Excelsior... Nation

Contingency plan should
be prepared to rectify
information system

NEW DELHI, Nov 2: A time-bound contingency plan should be prepared to rectify the computer-based information system which may affect safety and operations of the worldwide aviation sector with the beginning of the next century, Civil Aviation Minister Ananth Kumar said here today... . ...more

BJP to observe
Nov 15 as Black
Day in Tripura

AGARTALA, Nov 2: Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party today announced to observe November 15 as "Black Day" in Tripura in protest against two alleged failure of the Left Front Government to curb militancy.. . . ..more

HC quashes GRIDCO
notification

CUTTACK, Nov 2: In a significant judgement Orissa High Court has quashed a Grid Corporation of Orissa (GRIDCO) notification increasing power tariff for all categories of consumers in violation of the prescribed norms. ....more

Cong to take
action against
Ahluwalia

NEW DELHI, Nov 2: Congress today declared that disciplinary action would be initiated against former Union Minister, S S Ahluwalia for his criticism of party chief Sonia Gandhi and warned that the leadership would not tolerate indiscipline.....more

PMO mishandling
relations with
South Africa: Jain

NEW DELHI, Nov 2: Former Indian High Commissioner to South Africa, L C Jain, today accused the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) of mishandling relations with South Africa and said there was need to restore freedom.....more

Mishra moves HC
for bail in
fodder scam case

PATNA, Nov 2: Former Bihar Chief Laloo Prasad Yadav Minister Jagannath Mishra today moved the Patna High Court against the trial court order denying him regular bail in a conspiracy angle case of the fodder scam......more

Student killed
by guerillas

AGARTALA, Nov 2: Tribal guerillas shot dead a student, injured two others and kidnapped a businessman in Tripura last night.....more

Vaccine against
cerebral malaria
in the offing

NEW DELHI, Nov 2: A vaccine against cerebral malaria developed under a Indo-U S collaborative project is ready for testing on monkeys next year.....more

Debate on no-trust motion
against Patel Govt begins

BANGALORE, Nov 2: The dissidence-plagued J H Patel Government today came under fire in the Karnata assembly....more

Uttarakhand Mahotsav ’98 begins
in Doon Valley

DEHRA DUN, Nov 2: A weeklong gala celebration highlighting the cultural heritage of the Uttarakhand region will get underway tomorrow with a massive "cultural rally" in the Doon Valley.

Uttar Pradesh Hill Development Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal "Nishank" will inaugurate the grand festival at the rangers college grounds in the heart of the city. The festival will begin with a special cultural programme by artistes of the various districts of Garhwal division.

Organised under the aegis of the "Akhil Garhwal Sabha" of Dehradun, the festival aims at mirroring afresh the way of life and folk arts prevalent in the picturesque hills of Garhwal and Kumaon. It would help bring the city dwellers closer to their cultural roots, the organisers feel.

Poetry sessions, group discussions on various aspects of Uttarakhand’s development, seminars on the literature of the region, development of theatre and preservation of folk arts and crafts will be the main features of the large-scale celebration.

Artistes from far-flung areas of Uttarakhand have arrived in the Doon Valley to participate in the festival, the first of its kind ever to be held in this region. Groups of folk dancers from Jaunsar, Pauri and Chamoli are among them.

The festival will open at 1100 hrs every morning and go on till 2100 hrs, providing an opportunity to all people of Doon as well as Rishikesh and Mussoorie to participate in the celebrations people from other states who have settled down in the Valley will also get a chance to familiarise themselves with the native traditions of the hill folk.

Renowned Hindi author Shivani, Bachendri Pal, Jashpal Rana and Vishweshwar Dutt Saklani (Vrikshamitra) will be among the persons from Uttarakhand to be honoured at the festival for achieving excellence in various spheres.

On each day of the fete, an eminent personality of the region will be invited as the chief guest at the mahotsav. Mr Jauhari Lal, director, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, will be the guest of honour at the inauguration of the event.

Organisations which have sent their representatives to the festival include Navyuvak Mangal Dal, Pithoragarh, Akanksha Mahila Ashram, Tehri Garhwal and Seemant Bhotiya Jan-Jaati Kalyan Samiti, Pithoragarh.

Mr Paripoornanand Painully, renowned freedom fighter from the Garhwal region, will lead the discussion on the future face of Uttarakhand to be held on November four.

Mr B M Vohra, commissioner (Garhwal) will be the guest of honour at the concluding function of the festival on the evening of November nine next. (UNI)

HC censures officers for unauthorised constructions

NEW DELHI, Nov 2: Delhi High Court has censured officers of the municipal authorities and other departments for their failure to prevent unauthorised constructions of huge markets and buildings in the capital.

A Division Bench comprising acting Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal and Justice K S Gupta in a recent judgement passed strictures against the officers of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and other departments and reversed the order of a single Judge for leniency against a young officer, found to be responsible for the growth of one of such construction.

The Judges said, "we are constrained to observe that in all likelihood such unauthorised constructions of huge markets and buildings cannot be undertaken without the connivance of the officers of municipal authorities and other departments."

"We are firmly of the view that the punishment for those who may be responsible, directly or indirectly for coming up of such unauthorised constructions shall be deterrent. Public interest would be the casualty if while awarding the punishment in such cases leniency is shown," they observed.

Upholding the dismissal of the MCD officer, a junior engineer, for his failure to prevent the unauthorised construction of a four-storied market, the Bench said, "a message is required to be sent that despite the position an officer may hold in the hierarchy, he would be severely dealt with in case of direct or indirect involvement in the unauthorised construction of the nature with which we are concerned."

Setting aside the Court’s earlier judgement, the Bench allowed the appeal filed by the MCD against the order and imposed a cost of Rs 25,000 on the junior engineer, Mr Avinash Chandra Gupta.

In the present case, unauthorised construction of a market took place during the tenure of the officer between April 20, 1981 and November 2, 1882 within the area under his jurisdiction and the authorities after a departmental inquiry had inflicted punishment of dismissal.

However, when the matter came up before a single Judge of the High Court, his punishment was ordered to be converted into a minor penalty of stoppage of two increments keeping in view of the young age of the officer.

The Judgement said that as a junior engineer it was the duty of Mr Gupta to check and take appropriate action against unauthorised construction within the area under his jurisdiction.

Rejecting the contention of the accused that the construction was cleared after he was dismissed, the Judges said, "the four storied market could not have been built within the span of only couple of days."

"Such a person in our considered view does not deserve any sympathy. A lenient view on the ground that a young man would be debarred from getting any job in government in future is not called for on the facts and circumstances of the present case," the Judges observed.

"The punishment in the present case cannot be said to be such so as to shock the conscious of the Court nor is it an exceptional and rare case justifying reduction of punishment from the dismissal to minor penalty of stoppage of two increments," the order said adding that it was also not a case which calls for being remitted back to the appropriate authority for reconsideration of the quantum of punishment.

Among the charges levelled by the mcd against the officer in the chargesheet against him was that during the year 1982 he committed gross mis-conduct and failed to maintain absolute integrity and devotion to duty, in as much as with malafide intention he did not book the aforesaid unauthorised construction during his tenure as the junior engineer. (UNI)

Contingency plan should be prepared
to rectify information system

Calling the problem as the millenium bug, the minister said it was not realised by computer designers that minor mathematical discrepancies in the design of the computer hardware system in the name of memory-economisation would jeopardise the very operations and safety of the aviation sector which is increasingly based on computer technology.

The minister was inaugurating a six-day Y2K international seminar organised by the Airports Authority of India in collaboration with the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) to find a solution to this problem before the end of this century.

Explaining the problem, AAI Chairman D V Gupta said due to technological limitations in providing cost effective memory resources in the computer system during 1960s and 1970s, only two digit characters were allocated for the year information in the data-field by software developers.

Therefore, he said, the year 1980 was written as ‘80’ in the computer and interpreted as 1980. He said this was okay upto 1999 but the year 2000 would also be interpreted as 1900. This would obviously render all calculations dealing with the year dates haywire from January 1, 2000, he added. (PTI)

BJP to observe Nov 15 as Black Day in Tripura

Announcing this at a press conference here BJP’s state president H S Roy Chowdhury and party spokesman Brajesh Chakraborty said the ruling Left Front had "miserably failed" to tackle growing extremism and protect the lives and property of the people. "The State Government was not properly utilising central forces, but repeatedly demanding additional para-military forces to curb extremism," they stated.

The leaders said the party was organising "Tripura bachao programmes" throughout the state to highlight the Government’s "failure" in tackling militancy. The programmes, to continue till December 31, would include rallies, meetings and group discussions. The party also demanded recall of Governor Siddheswar Prasad and imposition of President’s rule in the state.

Criticising the Left Front Government for the price hike, Dr Roy Chowdhury and Mr Chakraborty blamed the State Government for not taking any action against blackmarketeers and hoarders. (UNI)

HC quashes GRIDCO notification

Disposing of a bunch of writ petitions filed by individuals and different commercial and industrial organisations against a GRIDCO notification of 1996 on tariff hike, a division bench comprising Mr Justice D M Patnaik and Mr Justice P K Mishra directed GRIDCO that the excess amount collected by it pursuant to the notification be adjusted towards future billing.

The verdict, pronounced on Friday, held that the May 13,1996 notification of GRIDCO enhancing the power tariff was unsustainable as hike in power tariff had exceeded the 17 per cent limit provided in the provisional licence issued to it in March,1996 for distribution and supply of power under the Electricity Reforms Act.

Upholding the Orissa Government’s action in granting the provisional licence to GRIDCO and the legality of the Orissa Electricity Regulatory Commission (OERC), the court directed the commission to re-determine the tariff as per law.

Altogether 51 writ petitions were filed challenging the GRIDCO notification, grant of provisional licence to it by the State Energy Department and the legality of the enactment of Orissa Electricity Reforms Act, 1996.

Alleging that GRIDCO’s action was illegal and unconstitutional, petitioners’ counsel Pratap Keshri Mishra said GRIDCO had enhanced domestic tariff by 66 per cent and commercial tariff by 100 per cent in violation of the norms. (UNI)

Cong to take action against Ahluwalia

"Action will be taken against Ahluwalia.....Congressmen at all levels must refrain from going to the press on any issue. Indiscipline will not be tolerated from anyone however small or mighty they may be", party spokesman Anil Shastri told reporters.

Stating that the former party MP had indulged in "incorrect" behaviour, he said Ahluwalia’s letter to Gandhi which found its way in the press had come at a time when he was already served with a show cause notice for a similar letter sometime back.

"Without replying to the show cause, he has written another letter", Shastri said adding that this was against the norms of the party.

Ahluwalia, in the letter, had assailed the party move to give positions to those allegedly involved in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in Delhi and said Gandhi’s decisions were based "on the advice of sycophants". He had taken strong exception to the appointments of H K L Bhagat, Sajjan Kumar and Dharamdasshastri in the campaign committee for Delhi. (PTI)

PMO mishandling relations with South Africa: Jain

Jain, a well known Gandhian who was appointed high commissioner by the Gujral Government and returned to the country recently following the change in New Delhi, told reporters the High Commission was constantly ignored in dealing with South African Government leading to strain in relations especially in the wake of Pokharan nuclear tests.

Referring to the controversy over reference to Kashmir in the inaugural speech of President Nelson Mandela at the NAM summit, he said when Kashmir was mentioned, we pushed the Prime Minister in the firing line though discreet options were available. And when Mbeki conciliated, it was described as South Africa’s apologises, which was rather unfortunate.

Jain said in the context of BJP’s image in South Africa and the forthcoming NAM conference, the High Commission recommended to External Affairs and Information and Broadcasting Ministries to tackle the lacunae and disinformation campaign against BJP by Pakistan as well as the South African media.

A direct letter was sent to the Prime Minister seeking guidance on important policy issues but was not acknowledged. Jain said it was also highlighted that Kashmir had been made a live issue and had to be catered before the Prime Minister arrived in Durban for the NAM meeting.

The absence of policy planning forum in the External Affairs Ministry and a full time minister further compounded the situation, he added.

Jain said after the Pokharan tests explaining their timing became an important job of the High Commission which had become particularly difficult as pretoria had not only abjured nuclear capability in principle but had also vehemently condemned the French tests.

Yet, he said, the South African resolution on the Indian tests was the mildest. The High Commission dealt with criticism among the public and media energetically. After a review of performance of all missions in respect of publicity efforts after the nuclear tests the ministry rated the performance of High Commission in South Africa as excellent.

On the NAM summit, Jain said not only little note was taken of the steps recommended by the High Commission preparatory to the conference but some of the steps taken by the New Delhi like the visit of Prime Minister’s special envoy to South Africa without consultation with the High Commission added to difficulties. (PTI)

Mishra moves HC for bail in fodder scam case

PATNA, Nov 2: Former Bihar Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra today moved the Patna High Court against the trial court order denying him regular bail in a conspiracy angle case of the fodder scam.

Controversial RJD MLA, R K Rana also filed his petition in the High Court against designated CBI Judge S K Lal’s order rejecting the Rana’s bail plea in the case.

Senior advocate K K Mishra filed the petition on behalf of Mishra, a three-time Chief Minister.

Mishra along with RJD President Laloo Prasad Yadav, former Bihar Ministers Bholaram Toofani, C P Verma and Vidya Sagar Nishad, besides Rana were remanded to judicial custody by the designated CBI Judge on October 28 when they surrendered before him following the September 25 directive of the Apex Court rejecting their prayers to surrender in the instant case.

Lal had on October 30 rejected their pleas for regular bail in the case which dealt with frauulent with drawal of Rs 97 lakh from Deohar treasury by the State Animal Husbandry Department officials through forged and fake bills.

The trial court had on July 2 asked the accused to surrender after cognisance of the CBI chargesheet which was filed on November 28 last year. (PTI)

Student killed by guerillas

AGARTALA, Nov 2: Tribal guerillas shot dead a student, injured two others and kidnapped a businessman in Tripura last night.

Police said here today that the militants raided a house in Udaydafadarpara under Kalyanpur Police Station in West district last night and opened fire killing Saroj Debbarma, a class ten student, and injuring two others.

A businessman was kidnapped at gun point by the militants from Killa in South Tripura.

Security forces rushed to the spot and launched a combing operation to nab the militants and rescue the businessman.

Meanwhile, the rebels yesterday released three persons, kidnapped earlier from various places in West Tripura. (UNI)

Vaccine against cerebral malaria in the offing

NEW DELHI, Nov 2: A vaccine against cerebral malaria developed under a Indo-U S collaborative project is ready for testing on monkeys next year.

The vaccine is based on a synthetic gene made by adding 21 Epitopes from nine diferet antigens present in the cerebral malaria parasite, plasmodium falciparum, Dr Altaf Lal from division of parasitic diseases at Centre for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta, the USA, told an ongoing international conference on immunology here.

Epitopes are small regions in proteins which are recognised by immune cells. The entire protein is not recognised by them.

The vaccine that is being described as the first multicomponent, multistage vaccine against cerebral malaria parasite, was developed by CDC in collaboration with National Institute of Immunology (NII) here.

Dr Lal reported the researchers selected antigens which contain geographically conserved epitopes — they are equally effective against cerebral malria parasites in several geographical locations like India, Tanzania and Kenya where the disease is rampant.

The vaccine works against different stages of the malaria parasite - sporozite, liver, blood and mosquito stages. It is both immunogenic (generates immune responses) and antigenic, Lal reported.(PTI)

Debate on no-trust motion against Patel Govt begins

BANGALORE, Nov 2: The dissidence-plagued J H Patel Government today came under fire in the Karnata assembly which took up the debate on a no-confidence motion against it, with the Congress alleging collapse of administration.

Opposition Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge came out with a 23-point "virtual chargesheet" against the Patel Ministry, alleging that the state was "tottering under uncertainty" trigerred by the heightened dissidence in the ruling party.

"The dissidence is at its peak. Corruption is rampant. Developmental activities have come to a standstill. The catalogue of misdeeds is endless", Kharge said, mounting an attack on the Patel regime while initiating the discussion.

Kharge accused the Government of failing to tackle the recent floods and deteriorating law and order, not curbing sky-rocketing prices and flayed it for agreeing to the Cauvery River accord with other riparian states.

The one-line motion, which read: "This House expresses no-confidence in the Council of Ministers headed by J H Patel" would be taken up for voting only on or after November 6.

In the backdrop of a strident campaign by the dissidents for Patel’s removal, Congress and BJP had moved two separate no-confidence motions but both were clubbed and taken up.

Kharge said the Government had lost the right to continue in office and added, "even if you survive the motion by your numerical strength, you will be rejected by the people". The Government, Kharge charged, had failed to safeguard farmers’ interests and to take concrete steps for the welfare of agricultural labourers, labourers, the down-trodden, the minorities, backward classes and women.

Stating that Karnataka had 46 ministers and 56 chairmen of state-owned boards and corporations and several of them embarked upon frequent foreign jaunts, he charged, the end result in attracting foreign investment was "zero".

The Cauvery river talks brokered by the Centre to implement the Cauvery water dispute tribunal’s 1991 interim award to release 205 TMCFT to Tamil Nadu, was not in the state’s interests, Kharge said

During Kharge’s speech, Speaker Ramesh Kumar expressed his strong displeasure over the absence of Ministers, noting that of the 46 Ministers, 13 were present in the assembly and 11 in the Legislative Council.

"Where have the others gone", he asked and said it hurt him that they were not present when the opposition leader was speaking.

He also took exception to the absence of senior officials during the debate.

Patel has been facing trouble from MLAs loyal to former Prime Minister H D Devegowda, who are insisting that the Chief Minister prove his strength in the Janata Dal Legislature Party (JDLP), which Patel has agreed to do after the session. (PTI)