Elders demand improvement in Telephone services

NEW DELHI, Dec 13: The Government came under fire in Rajya Sabha today for poor telephone and mobile phone services from members who demanded that the state-owned communication services be girded up for better performance.

Participating in the discussion on the ‘Indian Telegraph (Amendment) Bill, 2006, which was moved by Communication Minister Dayanidhi Maran to amend the Indian Telegraph Act of 1885, Mr Shantaram Naik (Congress) demanded converging several separate aspects into a comprehensive Act to make it more stringent and effective.

The Bill has already been passed by the Lok Sabha.

He also regretted the failure of mobile telephony during emergencies like floods etc and suggested putting up more mobile telephone towers.

Mr Suresh Bharadwaj (BJP) urged the government to subsidise the basic telephone line to extend its reach to rural and backward areas.

Mr Virendra Bhatia (SP), while pointing out that nobody opposed expansion of telecom services, said stress should be laid on quality as well. (UNI)

Only 36.7 pc women have heard of AIDS: Survey

NEW DELHI, Dec 13: The Government today said preliminary results of a survey showed that only 36.7 per cent of women in the age group of 15-49 years have heard of HIV/AIDS.

Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Panabaka Lakshmi said in the Lok Sabha that NSSO conducted the survey in 43 districts across 14 states to obtain information regarding schooling, education of children, particularly girls, hygiene, water supply and HIV/AIDS.

"The survey was carried out during March-May 2005, but reports are yet to be finalised. However, preliminary reports suggest that only 36.7 per cent of women in the age group of 15-49 years have heard of HIV/AIDS," Lakshmi said in a written reply.

The financial assistance for the survey was provided by UNICEF.

The Minister said a Behavioural Surveillance Survey (BSS) was undertaken by NACO in 2006 covering about one lakh respondents. Based on this, awareness of HIV/AIDS among women in rural areas is estimated to be 74.7 per cent.

"The reliability of the BSS is much higher as the survey is focused on HIV and related issues as compared to UNICEF- funded survey that covered a large number of development issues, with only a few questions related to HIV," she said.

Lakshmi said trends ascertained from sentinel surveillance studies clearly showed that there had been a gradual increase in HIV infection among rural population with current estimation showing 58.7 per cent of the 52 lakh infected with it in rural areas as compared to 29.2 per cent in 2002. (PTI)

SC directs Centre to establish 14 lakh anganwadis by 2008

NEW DELHI, Dec 13: The Supreme Court today directed the Centre to establish 14 lakh anganwadis by 2008 under the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) and asked state governments to extend help in implementing the programme.

A bench headed by Justice Arijit Passayat took strong exception to some of the state governments failing to comply with the Court orders in this regard.

At present, there are six lakh anganwadi centres across the country.

The Court directed the Chief Secretaries of Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Assam and Haryana to personally appear before it for not implementing the orders and failing to file compliance report.

The Court also directed the Chief Secretaries of 15 states and Union Territories to file an affidavit as to why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against them for not complying with the Court order since 2001.

The Court granted them three months to file the affidavit. (PTI)

Motorbikes ‘banned’ for students

IMPHAL, Dec 13: Members of a student body in Manipur which issued a diktat that students of higher secondary level or below should not ride motorcycles have damaged 15 two-wheelers in the city.

A spokesman of the Democratic Students’ Alliance Manipur (DESAM) said its volunteers damaged the 15 motorcycles used by higher secondary students at educational institutions and private tuition centres in and around Imphal yesterday.

He said the "ban" had been imposed from October two as it had become fashionable among students to use motorbikes.

The spokesman appealed to parents of students of up to the higher secondary level not to buy them motorcycles and asked the motor vehicles department not to issue driving licences to them.

Officials confirmed the damage of 15 two-wheelers by "unknown persons" yesterday. (PTI)

Official caught while accepting bribe

SRINAGAR, Dec 13: A local body official here has been arrested by the State Vigilance Organisation for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 6000, an official statement said today.

Vigilance sleuths caught Mohammad Yaqoob Rather, senior assistant of Srinagar Municipal Corporation, yesterday while he was accepting the bribe from one Sirajuddin Rather.

Sirajuddin, a contractor, had been allotted work related to the development of a graveyard at Buchapora near here at an estimated cost of Rs 1.26 lakh.

The accused demanded Rs 30,000 from Sirajuddin for delivery of the allotment order following which he lodged a complaint with the SVO.

An amount of Rs 18,000 was also seized from the accused, the statement said adding the official’s car was also taken into custody from his office premises.

A case has been registered under Preventive of Corruption Act, the statement added. (PTI)

UNICEF to open nodal centre at GSVM medical college

KANPUR, DEC 13: In view of increasing child mortality rate in Uttar Pradesh, GSVM medical college today entered into an agreement with UNICEF for opening a nodal centre here by January next year for bringing down the trend.

According to the agreement, UNICEF and GSVM would work together in the state for bringing down the child death rate and providing better medical services to pregnant women.

Principal of GSVM S K Katiyar said the state has the highest child death rate in the country and it needs to be checked.

"Child death rate in Uttar Pradesh was 70 per 1000. The condition of pregnant women was no more better. The nodal centre would start functioning from January next year," he said.

Under the agreement, UNICEF would provide financial assistance to the GSVM students for doing research on topics related to Child Mortality Rate besides providing global datas. (PTI)

Internet-enabled CSCs for rural areas

NEW DELHI,Dec 13: The Government has approved a scheme for providing support for establishing one lakh broadband internet-enabled Common Service Centres (CSCs) in rural areas of the country, the Lok Sabha was told today.

Minister of State for Communications Dr Shakeel Ahmad said in a written answer that these centres would provide a mix of Government and private services in rural areas at the doorstep of the citizen.

The scheme would be implemented through a Public Private Partnership. The CSC operator would be a private enrterpreneur.

The Service Centre Agency,under whose direction the CSC operator would be responsible for investing in setting up the CSC infrastructure, with the Government providing revenue support for running these centres for four years.

The revenue support to be paid to the SCA would be determined througha bid process.

The scheme has been approved at an estimated cost of Rs 5742 crores over four years, of which the Government is estimated to contribute 856 crores and the State Government Rs 793 crores.The balance resource would be mobilised by the private sector. (UNI)

Aruna Roy urges for Dalit participation
in Govt-welfare schemes

BHILWARA, Dec 13: Magsaysay award winner and social activist Aruna Roy has urged the state government to take the services of Dalits in Government-welfare schemes so that discrimination against them ends.

Talking to reporters yesterday in Suliya village, Ms Roy said Dalits should be employed in providing drinking water to the people engaged in the mid-day meal schemes, drought relief works and anganbari projects so that prejudice and discrimination against them ends.

She said Dalits entry into the Chamunda Mata Mandir in Suliya village was symbolic as the main purpose was to make them aware of the Constitutional rights, which will help them join the mainstream and not feel alienated and discriminated.

Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan’s Nikhil De said if the State Government issues a order that Dalits be employed to provide drinking water to those working under the welfare schemes, then the project will take off easily, otherwise the social organisations will have to fight for their rights. (UNI)

Western Command headquarters to celebrate Vijay Diwas

CHANDIGARH, Dec 13: To mark the Vijay Diwas ceremony, Western Command headquarters will organise various functions on December 16 at Chandimandir cantonment.

In the morning, the General Officer Commanding-In-Chief, Western Command headquarters and decorated war veterans will lay wreaths at the Western Command headquarters war memorial ‘Veer Smriti’, Chandimandir to pay rich tributes to war heroes who sacrificed their lives for the nation. Senior army officers, JCOs and other ranks will also attend the ceremony. The Last Post will be sounded by the buglers on the occasion.

"Vijay Diwas’ is celebrated every year and it marks the victory of the Indian armed forces over Pakistan in the 1971 war.

In the evening, the army personnel and their families will light candles at the war memorial. All the units will arrange ‘Barakhana’ on the occasion at their respective locations. (UNI)

India signs MoU with UAE for better deal to workers

NEW DELHI, Dec 13: Aimed at ensuring protection and welfare of Indian emigrant workers and regulate the functioning of recruiting agents, India today signed a bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in the field of manpower with the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi and UAE Labour Minister Dr Ali Bin Abdullah Al-Ka’ Abi signed the MoU, the first agreement on manpower to be signed by the Emirates.

Mr Ravi told mediapersons that a Joint Committee consisting of three members from each country would implement the MoU which will be valid for four years and shall automatically extend by another four years each time thereafter.

Dr Abi said the MoU would help break the role of the middlemen in the recruitment process. "There is a mafia of manpower sending agents in India and receiving agents in the UAE. WE want to kills this mafia," he said.

He said the new agreement would go a long way in protecting the interests of Indian emigrant workers who constitute 60 per cent of the work force in the Emirates.

Dr Abi said Indian workers had been helping to build the UAE.

He said several reforms were introduced on the labour front in his country in keeping with the philosophy that "happy worker will give excellent results."

Mr Ravi said the MoU would provide for facilitation of manpower recruitment and mutual sharing of information and experience. It makes it mandatory that recruitment should be in conformity with the laws of both countries.

He said the Government would soon bring forward a bill to amend the Indian Emigration Act of 1983 to provide more teeth to the law to take on the erring recruiting agents and ensure protection of the Indian workers taking up jobs abroad.

Under the MoU, all categories of workers would have the protection of the UAE labour law and regulation.

With a view to plugging the loopholes in recruitment and avoid cheating of prospective job seekers by middlemen, it has been made compulsory that terms and conditions of employment contract should be in conformity with the work permit that the employer obtains from the UAE government.

It provides that all contracts should be authenticated by the UAE labour ministry.

Aimed at protecting the workers from recalcitrant employers, the MoU makes it clear that the employer would have no authroity to change the contract conditions.

Mr Ravi said the six-member Joint Committee, entrusted with the task of implementing the MoU, has been mandated to review employment opportunities in the UAE and availability of corresponding skills in India, to coordinate between the two states in the implementation of the MoU and to take necessary action in this regard, to interpret the provisions of MoU in case of any dispute in this regard and to settle the difficulties that might arise in the implementation and to propose review or amendment of any of the articles of the MoU whenever necessary.

Mr Ravi said the government had been negotiating a similar agreement with Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

Dr Bin said the UAE would sign a similar agreement on manpower with Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka during this month. It would be signed with Philippines and China in January. (UNI)

No proposal to close CGHS dispensaries

NEW DELHI, Dec 13: Government today said it was looking into the issue of denial of medical services to the poor by private hospitals that received land on concessional rates.

"Urban Development Ministry is looking into this," Health Minister A Ramadoss said during Question Hour in the Lok Sabha when asked about hospitals that got land at cheaper rates but refused medical services to the poor.

CGHS: Ramadoss said there were no plans to discontinue health services under CGHS.

The Government had no plans to close CGHS dispensaries, he said adding there were nine lakh cardholders under the CGHS scheme which covered 24 cities.

On empanelment of private hospitals under the scheme, he said the Government had kept it open for all, provided they satisfied certain minimum requirements.

Rates payable at empanelled hospitals and diagnostic centres were enhanced from November one this year. (PTI)

Prefab bamboo medical centres, schools
coming up in Kargil

SRINAGAR, Dec 13: About 40 pre-fabricated bamboo structures, housing medical aid centres and schools, would be constructed in the border district of Kargil in Jammu and Kashmir, an official spokesman said today.

He said of these 35 would be medical aid centers and 5 middle schools. The estimated cost of the project is Rs 3 crore.

The spokesman said the National Mission of Bamboo Applications (NMBA) under the Union Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), Kargil would fund the project jointly.

While Rs 2 crore will be borne by the NMBA, the LAHDC, Kargil would spent Rs one crore on the project, he added.

The pre-fabricated structure of medical aid centres would have three rooms and two toilets each while the middle school buildings comprised of three rooms and a toilet each, the spokesman said. (UNI)