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Air India board approves fleet acquisition plan

NEW DELHI, Nov 8: Air India (AI) today announced its biggest one-time acquisition plan and said it will purchase 10 long-range and 18 short-range .....more

Eight killed in
encounter on
Bramhaputra ferry

GUWAHATI, Nov 8: Eight persons, including five militants, were killed in a clash with passengers on board a ferry sailing...more

Shimla-Kalka track has
fascinated Bollywood

SHIMLA, Nov 8: The Shimla-Kalka railway track that completes its hundred years tomorrow has been the fascination of...more

Constitutional experts
term TN assembly
order assault on press

NEW DELHI, Nov 8: Noted constitutional experts cutting across their political lineage today unequivocally decried the.....more

Vaiko urges Sinha
to take up death
sentence issue

CHENNAI, Nov 8: Incarcerated MDMK general secretary Vaiko, MP, today urged External Affairs Minister Yashwant....more

Journalists to observe
fast today over TN
assembly action

CHENNAI, Nov 8: Journalists organisations in the city today resolved to observe....more

TN assembly decision
an outrageous attack
on press: Left

NEW DELHI, Nov 8: Condemning Tamil Nadu assembly decision to arrest six senior journalists......more

Formal veneration
of Mother Teresa’s
relics begin

KOLKATA, Nov 8: The archdiocese of Kolkata today formally began veneration of the relics of blessed Mother Teresa at......more

Non-Cong Govts held sway for only 7 years in MP .....

Gurpurab celebrated with enthusiasm .....

Those casting aspersions on secularism will not succeed: PM ......

Revoke verdict against journalists: PCI appeals TN assembly .....

Air India board approves fleet acquisition plan

NEW DELHI, Nov 8: Air India (AI) today announced its biggest one-time acquisition plan and said it will purchase 10 long-range and 18 short-range aircraft at a cost of Rs 10,000 crore to bolster the fleet size.

The mixed fleet will aid its operations to Europe, the United States and many new destinations. The country’s flagship carrier has suffered heavy losses in recent years and had to cut down on many destinations due to lack of planes.

The 10 long-range planes recommended by AI board are Airbus 340 while Boeing 737-800 have been chosen for 18 short-range ones. All aircraft will be fitted with engines from CFM, a consortium of companies.

The meeting of AI’s full board considered the report of in-house techno-economic negotiating committee which was headed by Director for operations Capt M K Hathi and cleared the country’s largest-ever fleet expansion exercise in history.

AI Director for Public Relations Jitender Bhargava told reporters after the board meet that all new aircraft will be inducted in a structured manner by 2007. They will replace 11 airbus 310s and three Boeing 747-200s which are in the current fleet on dry lease.

Each Airbus 340 plane has 272 seats — 10 first class, 27 executive and 225 economy — while a Boeing 737-800 has 146 seats —8 executive and 138 economy. The US-based boeing and European consortium airbus have been locked in a tussle for the huge contract.

The board’s decision has now been recommended to the Civil Aviation Ministry. The Projects Investment Board (PIB) and the pre-PIB approvals are must before the union cabinet finally clears the mega deal.

Mr Bhargava said AI will raise money from international markets to fund the induction plan. "For airlines, finance is never a problem. Moreover, AI has a good record and never defaulted on its payments."

He said board members felt there is no reason to put off the purchase plan any longer as the expert committee has predicted long-term profits in inducting new planes in the fleet. At present, AI has 33 planes — nine B747-400s of which three are on dry lease, two B747-300s, three b747-200s and 19 airbus 310s of which 11 are on dry lease.

Recently, it announced doubling it weekly frequencies to the United States and bi-weekly connections to Shanghai from next month. The national flagship carrier will now offer 20 weekly frequencies to the United States which is its biggest playground after the Gulf.

The replacement/acquisition aircraft plan will accompany creation of technical infrastructure and training of new pilots. (UNI)

Eight killed in encounter on Bramhaputra ferry

GUWAHATI, Nov 8: Eight persons, including five militants, were killed in a clash with passengers on board a ferry sailing from Dhubri to Goalpara on the Bramhaputra in Assam today.

The clash occurred when passengers got suspicious of one person and asked him to open his bag, who in turn lobbed a grenade killing one passenger and tried to flee with other militants when the boat was sailing through Dindinga at Arikata area in Goalpara district, police sources here said.

However, the passengers got together and challenged the militants who again threw grenades killing two more passengers and injuring several others, they said.

The passengers overpowered five militants and lynched them, the sources said.

Senior civil and police officials of both Goalpara and Dhubri districts reached the scene, they said, adding patrolling on the river were intensified after the incident.(PTI)

Shimla-Kalka track has fascinated Bollywood

SHIMLA, Nov 8: The Shimla-Kalka railway track that completes its hundred years tomorrow has been the fascination of Bollywood Directors, producers, film stars and cameramen.

Right from the days of the joy Mukherjee-Sadhana starrer ‘Love in Shimla’to the more recent films like Maya Memsahib and Baggi,the track has drawn numerious film makers to the queen of hills. The track and the railway station here has featured in numerious Hindi films.

From romantic and happy scenes to emotional departing scenes have been filmed on the railway station.

The rail route shot into prominence after the hit of the early sixties ‘Love in Shimla’ and thereafter a number of film producers began flocking to the hill capital to shoot their films featuring the track or the railway station and in some films shots of a train chugging along the line were also captured by the camera.Director-producer, the late Raj Khosla filmed the track in his hit movie ‘Woh Kaun Thi’ starring Manoj Kumar and Sadhana.

Not to be left behind, Bollywood’s showman, Subash Ghai shot his first film ‘Khalicharan’starring Shatrughan Sinha and Reena Roy here and captured the railway track on camera. The track also featured in Chetan Anand’s film ‘Kudrat featuring Rajesh Khanna and the dreamgirl Hema Malani in the lead roles.

In the late seventies, the track and the station featured in Parkash Mehra’s superhit film ‘Muqadar Ka Sikander’ starring the super-star Amitabh Bachan, Vinod Khanna and Rekha. A scene showing the young Amitabh Bachan at the start of the film was shot at the railway station.

The track also featured in the Jeetendar-Reena Roy-Rishi Kapoor starrer ‘Badltey Rishtey’ in which a song squence was shot at the railway station. In the nineties the track was captured on camera in Yash Chopra’s hit movie ‘Yeh Dillagi’ starring Akashay Kumar, Saif Ali Khan and Kajol.

In the later movies the track also featured in the Sharukh Khan-Deepa Mehta starrer ‘Maya Memsahib and then in Romesh Sharma’s movie ‘Payaasa’.

Besides the Bollywood stars,the track has also attracted numerious Punjabi pop singers who have shot some of their songs on the track and the railway station. These singers include Harbjahan Maan,Balli Saggu and Hansraj Hans.

Perhaps the centenary celebrations would attract many more Bollywood producers who in the last couple of years have begun to shun the Kalka-Shimla track in preference for locations abroad. Himachal Pradesh Tourism Minister Vijay Singh Mankotia who is over-seeing the centenary celebrations is optimistic that the centenary celebrations would attract Bollywood stars."We are going back to the past to market the future", he rightly pointed out in one of his recent press briefing’s. (UNI)

Constitutional experts term TN assembly
order assault on press

NEW DELHI, Nov 8: Noted constitutional experts cutting across their political lineage today unequivocally decried the Tamil Nadu assembly decision to sentence journalists and termed this as a "frontal attack on press freedom".

Former Law Minister and eminent lawyer Ram Jethmalani said "the action of the assembly is a direct assault on the freedom of press and I am sure the media will rise to the occasion to meet the challenge."

Speaking from Mumbai, he said the issue would be raised "strongly" in Parliament when it meets on December 2 and added that in situations like this, unless the Prime Minister came out strongly against the action of the Tamil Nadu assembly, such incidents would keep on repeating.

"I think unless the Prime Minister makes some strong statement and asserts his power, this kind of thing will continue to repeat," he said and alleged that "merely because there is a possibility of a tie-up with AIADMK, the BJP is tongue tied."

Congress MP and noted lawyer Kapil Sibal said "it is time that the Courts should intervene and stop this kind of frontal attack on the freedom of press."

He termed the order of the assembly on breach of privilege of the house against the journalists as an attack on "all that India stood for - freedom of press and democracy".

Criticising the manner in which politics was being carried out in Tamil Nadu, Sibal said "to throttle the voice of dissent narcotics were being planted on anybody who protests and was threatened with dire consequences".

Former Union Minister P Chidambaram said the action of the assembly to sentence the journalist would be remembered as "a black day for democracy and freedom of the press."

Noted constitutional expert P P Rao, who had represented Tamil Nadu Government in several cases before the Supreme Court in the recent past, said "this extreme step does not appear to be warranted.

"My view is the legislature should reconsider its decision in the interest of democracy and withdraw the warrants forthwith," he said.

Any perceptible action taken against the press would not be good in the long run as democracy thrives by free expression of opinion so tolerance was required and more so on the part of legislators who represent the people, he said.

"My view is that even if there had been lapse on the part of the press, there would be other mild ways of correcting the lapse, i.e by warning, admonishing, censure or expression of displeasure," Rao said.

He said the powers of legislators, particularly in matters of punishment by way of imprisonment should not be "lightly exercised" and of late even in other countries legislators have not been exercising such powers against the press. (PTI)

Vaiko urges Sinha to take up death sentence issue

CHENNAI, Nov 8: Incarcerated MDMK general secretary Vaiko, MP, today urged External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha to personally take up the issue of the eight Indian Tamil youths, who were awarded capital punishment in a drug trafficking case in Malaysia, at the highest level.

In a letter to Mr Sinha, written from the Vellore Central prison where he has been lodged for more than a year after his arrest under POTA, he said the youth from Ramanathapuram district of Tamil Nadu, had brought this to the attention of the Indian High Commission through their friends. However, there had been no response from the commission.

"I feel sad to mention that our embassies and missions in some countries fail in their duty, to attend to the sufferings and problems of Indians, even after the matter is brought to their knowledge," he claimed.

Stating that the families of Indians were in tears, Mr Vaiko said missions should work with the missionary spirit of compassion and humanitarian approach to help Indian citizens in foreign countries at the time of trials and tribulations.

"Who else can take care of such unfortunate Indians other than our embassies and missions," he asked and said he was very much worried about the fate of the eight Tamils who were facing the gallows for an offence they had not committed.

Mr Vaiko said they had gone to Malaysia with valid documents as labourers for construction work.

He said on April 25 last, the police seized some drugs from two persons who were residing in the ground floor of the house in which the Indians were staying.

For no fault of theirs, the Indians were arrested by the police and produced in a court, which had on May 7 last pronounced that they were not guilty of any offence.

However, suddenly, they were taken to another court where charges were framed against them for alleged drug trafficking the next day, Mr Vaiko said in a letter, copies of which were released to the press today.

This had happened after the police, at the time of arresting the Malaysians, interrogated the eight people, scrutinised their documents like passport, permit visa, and returned it to them after satisfying themselves, Mr Vaiko said.

The court later convicted the eight Indians and awarded capital punishment. They were detained in Sungai-Boloh prison.

Mr Vaiko said, according to his information, the Malaysian police had falsely implicated the Indians in the case by allegedly colluding with the influential duo and the Indians were facing the gallows.(UNI)
Journalists to observe fast today over TN assembly action

CHENNAI, Nov 8: Journalists organisations in the city today resolved to observe a token fast tomorrow to protest the Tamil Nadu assembly serving 15 days imprisonment on the editors of "The Hindu" and "Murasoli" in a breach of privilege case, even as veteran journalist Cho S Ramasamy appealed to the editors of all newspapers and journals to re-publish Hindu’s editorial, which attracted the house’s privilege.

The journalists organisations, in a meeting convened here to express solidarity with "The Hindu and "Murasoli," also resolved to file an interim petition whenever "The Hindu" moved the Court for taking legal recourse and boycott the state assembly for 15 days when the correspondents of "The Hindu" and "Murasoli" were barred from covering the assembly proceedings.

Addressing the meeting, Mr Cho Ramasamy, MP (Rajya Sabha member) made an open appeal to the editors of all newspapers and journals to carry the editorial of "The Hindu," which attracted the wrath of the state assembly, and dared the State Government to "haul up all editors and sentence them to 15 days imprisonment."

Mr N Ram, Editor-in-Chief of the Hindu, speaking on the occasion, said freedom of speech and expression was at peril in the state and his paper had decided to take legal recourse.

Declining to give details of the legal course, he said "we want to get it (arrest) stopped immediately."

Mr Cho Ramasamy said the assembly’s action was not only "highly unconstitutional" and "authoritative" but also a "political suicide."

Stating that the privileges of the house were not codified despite several suggestion from the Courts, he said it was often decided by the majority in the House and the Court could question whether a particular action was malafide or not.

In the present case, the privileges committee held the view that the editorial of "The Hindu" brought down and tarnished the image of the Chief Minister and the Government, but it was not the burden of the assembly to protect the image of the Chief Minister. "The assembly is not there to protect the image of Ms Jayalalithaa and the Government," Mr Cho Ramaswamy said.

Moreover, the April 25 editorial of ‘The Hindu," which alleged to have attracted the privilege issue, was as usual very balanced and no privilege issue involved in it, he claimed.

It was totally an "undesirable" and "undemocratic" act, he said, adding that he would only say "Vinasakale Viparitha Buddhi" (mind goes amuck when bad times are in store).

Mr Ram said the assembly issuing arrest warrants against journalists was not something new and it had happened before. But the police action on the premises of "The Hindu" office last evening, when they came in search of Editor N Ravi and others, was condemnable, he added.

He said the edition got delayed because of the police melodrama. The police directly interfered with the deadline and caused delay in bringing out the edition, he charged.

Mr Ram believed that there was another aspect involved in issuing the arrest warrant. It might be an attempt to scuttle the 125th year celebrations of the Hindu to be held in Bangalore, but the function would be held as per schedule, he said.

Mr Bhagwan Singh, president, Madras Union of Journalists (MUJ), Mr T N Gopalan, Chief of Bureau, the New Indian Express, Mr Mohan, General Secretary, MUJ, S M Balasubramanian, former General Secretary, MUJ, Mr Sathyalaya Ramakrishnan, president of All Media Journalist Association (AMJA) and Mr Ravindra Doss, president of the Tamil Nadu Union of Journalists, were among others who addressed the meeting.

The meeting also resolved that all journalists would Court arrest when the six journalists were arrested and write to the Speaker K Kalimuthu to withdraw the arrest warrant. Journalists who attended the meeting, wore black badges as a mark of protest.

The AMJA, in a letter to Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa and Mr Kalimuthu, requested them to withdraw the arrest warrant.

Meanwhile, about 100 journalists staged an hour-long slogan shouting demonstration in front of the red cross building in Coimbatore condemning the assembly action.

The agitation was jointly organised by the Coimbatore Press Club and Journalists Association. BJP state unit president C P Radhakrishnan, who also joined the agitation, condemned the "anti-democratic" act. (UNI)

TN assembly decision an outrageous attack on press: Left

NEW DELHI, Nov 8: Condemning Tamil Nadu assembly decision to arrest six senior journalists including top editors of "The Hindu" in a breach of privilege case, the Left parties today said the action was an "outrageous" attack on the freedom of press and a "gross misuse of legislative privilege" which should be revoked.

"The decision to imprison the publisher and four editors and journalists of `The Hindu’ by the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly is an outrageous attack on the freedom of the press and the rights of citizens," CPI(M) said in a statement here.

It was a "gross misuse of legislative privilege" and another sign of the "extreme intolerance" to any opposition or dissent by the Jayalalitha Government, the party said.

The Jayalalitha Government must reconsider and withdraw the action, it demanded.

The CPI said the extraordinary step was "an attack on the freedom of press for printing and discharging its legitimate tasks".

In a statment the party said it was a "deliberate attempt" to subvert the fundamental right of free press and called upon all democratic sections of the people, organisations and parties to vehemently oppose the action.

Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy said the assembly decision "reveals a totalitarian psychology. Anything objectionable written in the media can always in a democracy be rebutted by a statement by the aggrieved party."

Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party described it as a "slur on the Constitution and a fraud on the statute."

Party Chairman Bhim Singh said "this act of the legislative assembly amounts to contempt of the Constitution and violates the very letter and spirit of the mandate of the Constitution of India so far as freedom of press, expression and thought is concerned". (PTI)

Formal veneration of Mother Teresa’s relics begin

KOLKATA, Nov 8: The archdiocese of Kolkata today formally began veneration of the relics of blessed Mother Teresa at a liturgical function, replicating the one in Vatican city on October 19 in which pope John Paul-II beatified the Nobel Laureate Nun.

Its high point was the presentation of drops of Mmother’s blood in a reliquary to the archbishop of Kkolkata Lucas Sircar by brother Vinod, Assistant General of the MC brother and superior general, missonaries of charity, sister Nirmala.

The relic was then venerated by the archbishop.

Monica Besra, the tribal woman from Raigunj in north Bengal whose claims of miraculous cure from abdominal tumour at Mother’s intercession had clinched the beatification, was, however, not present.

The function at the St Xavier’s grounds began with a tribal dance by members of the Raiganj Diocese and culminated in the celebration of the mass.

The archbishop, assisted by eight bishops, led hundreds of Roman Catholic faithful, besides Mother’s friends and admirers, in celebrating mass and paying homage to her spirit of love and compassion.

Also present were archbishop emeritus of Kolkata, Henry D’Souza, who supervised the diocesan inquiry into Mother’s cause of sainthood, bishop Salvador Lobo, who led the diocesan inquiry team, Fr Brian Koldeijchuk, postulator for the cause and Fr Rosario Stroscio, a member of the inquiry team who had said a prayer of exorcism on mother during her illness.

"This is a replication of the October 19 function at Vatican city," said Fr C M Paul spokesman of the archdiocese committee for celebration of Mother Teresa’s beatification.

According to the Roman Catholic canon, Mother’s beatification allows her ‘limited’ veneration, namely, at the Churches in the places where she had lived and worked, besides chapels of the missionaries of charity world-wide.

Earlier, delivering his homily in Bengali, archbishop Lucas said that even during her lifeftime, Mother had been accepted as a saint by millions of people.

"Not only her unique compassion, her profound spiritual foundation or her sacrifices in Christ, her assessment would be incomplete without a mention of her daily prayers and penance and dedication to her spirit of service."

Recalling his experience at the Vatican ceremony, archbishop emeritus Henry D’Souza said, "when her portrait was unveiled during the ceremony, I could feel Mother smiling at me and saying: `Ah, there you are!’ Almost all present at the ceremony that day could feel Mother’s personal love for them."

Archbishop Henry said that Mother used to describe herself as a ‘pencil’ in the hands of God. "She used to say: ‘No matter how imperfect the instrument is, God writes perfectly.’ this perfection was reflected in her life." (PTI)

Non-Cong Govts held sway for only 7 years in MP

BHOPAL, Nov 8: Though the Congress has dominated the seat of power in Madhya Pradesh’s 47-year-old political history, Governments formed by other parties thrice came into existence but it was an interesting coincidence that none of them could complete their five-year tenure.

Once again the state is on the threshold of polls and only the future holds the answer as to whom the results will favour. However, the past tells us that non-Congress regimes were in power for only seven years.

For the first time in Madhya Pradesh’s electoral history, a non-Congress Government took the reins in 1967 under Mr Govind Narain Singh. Late Rajamata Vijayaraje Scindia played the role of a ‘Lady Chanakya’ in the Government’s formation.

Political rivalry with the then Congress Chief Minister Dwarka Prasad Mishra led to her taking up a pledge that she would dislodge his regime. Implementing her strategy, she created a rift in the ruling party and formed a ‘joint legislature party’ under Mr Singh’s leadership.

As fate would have it, the new Government could run only for a couple of years and Mr Singh returned to his parent party. Soon after, the Congress came to power.

Exactly a decade after Mr Singh had assumed the seat of Government, a ‘Janata Wave’ resulted in yet another non-Congress Government.

In 1977, the then Jan Sangh leader Kailash Joshi formed a Janata Party Government. Incidentally, the same Mr Joshi now heads the Bharatiya Janata Party’s state unit.

However, he could stay at the Chief Minister’s post for only a year as ill-health forced him to quit.

On January 17, 1978, Mr Virendra Kumar Saklecha, of the same party, took over. Even that Government could not complete its tenure and in 1980, as Mr Saklecha resigned on "moral grounds" due to his party’s defeat at the general elections.

Just about a month later, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi clamped President’s rule over Madhya Pradesh.

Ten years after these developments, the ‘Ram Wave’ resulted in the BJP surging to power on March 5, 1990. After completing two years, the Government was dismissed by the Centre and President’s rule imposed yet again.

Madhya Pradesh has seen Central rule thrice, the first instance being in 1977 when the Congress Government of Mr Shyama Charan Shukla was sacked.

There have been four non-Congress Chief Ministers thus far. Mr G N Singh, Mr Joshi, Mr Saklecha and Mr Sunderlal Patwa. (UNI)

Gurpurab celebrated with enthusiasm

CHANDIGARH, Nov 8: Gurpurab, the birth anniversary of first Sikh Guru Nanak Dev, was today celebrated with enthusiasm in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh with people offering prayers in Gurudwaras and taking dip in holy sarovars.

A large number of men, women and children dressed in their colourful best paid obeisance at the various gurudwaras.

Devotees took holy dip in sacred sarovars at Golden Temple at Amritsar, Gurudwara Darbar Sahib at Muktsar, Gurudwara Godari Sahib at Faridkot, Damdama Sahib (Talwandi Sabo) and Guru Ka Dhab in Bathinda.

The festival was also celebrated throughout Haryana.

People thronged the Gurudwaras in the city since early this morning. Colourful Nagar Kirtan processions were taken out in which school children participated.

In Kanpur the main function was at Moti Jheel Gurudwara where thousands of Sikhs converged and attended ‘Shabad Kirtan’.

Day-long community kitchen was organised in which a large number of women and children offered ‘Kar Seva’. (PTI)

Those casting aspersions on secularism will
not succeed: PM

NEW DELHI, Nov 8: Pointing out that secularism meant respect for all religions, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today said those casting aspersions on secular values would not succeed.

"In the end, truth will prevail... And faith will triumph," Mr Vajpayee said on the occasion of Guru Nanak Jayanti at his residence.

He said Guru Nanak’s message of humanism , tolerance and universal brotherhood would always inspire people to work for the welfare of mankind.

"Guru Nanak taught us that it’s not by birth, but by deeds that a man is known in society.... An oppressor does not live long.... Those perpetrating terror have to succumb when those dedicated to human values put up valiant efforts to tie humanity in a single thread," he said.

Mr Vajpayee expressed happiness that the function was being held at the Prime Minister’s residence for the third time.

"I hope that we meet again on the same occasion next year also," he said at ‘Panchvati’ where several people, including BJP Delhi unit chief Madan Lal Khurana and National Minorities Commission Chairman Tarlochan Singh, were present. (UNI)

Revoke verdict against journalists: PCI
appeals TN assembly

NEW DELHI, Nov 8: Taking "serious notice" of the Tamil Nadu assembly sentencing journalists of the Hindu and Murasoli, the Press Council of India appealed to the House and the Speaker to revoke its verdict saying the issue has to be debated at the national level.

"The Press Council is concerned very much with safeguarding the freedom of the press. In matters like these the authorities concerned are expected to show some restraint and be benevolent", the Council said in a resolution passed at a special meeting to review the situation.

The ‘Hindu" has glorious traditions and has always respected the freedom, privileges and role of the legislators who are pillars of democracy, the resolution said appealing to the assembly and the Speaker to revoke its verdict.

Observing that freedom of the press was also equated with fundamental right under the constitution like freedom of speech, press council Chairman Justice K Jayachandra Reddy said at the same time no freedom is absolute.

While press is elevated to the fourth estate along with executive, judiciary and legislature, he said that the council was very much concerned with the verdict passed by the Tamil Nadu assembly which is also supreme in its own way.

Justice Reddy said since it involved a larger issue, a serious debate at the national level was needed.

Asked whether the Supreme Court could be moved on the issue, he said any interested or affected people can move the Apex Court and it was for it to take up the matter on its own. At the same time, legislature was also supreme in its own sphere and that was the reason the constitution was full of checks and balances, he said.

Asked whether the legislature action was right, Justice Reddy said "I can’t say anything now". (PTI)

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