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CPI-M mulls
essential service status for IT industry
KOLKATA,
Nov 10: With West Bengal fast emerging as an
IT destination, veteran CPI-M leader Jyoti Basu
today said his party was considering whether the
industry should be treated as an essential
service.
"Nothing has
been finalised as yet. It has been suggested for
now that the IT sector should be treated as an
essential service," he told reporters after
a meeting of the CPI-M state secretariat here.
"If IT
employees are to go on strike at all, the norms
followed in essential services during the strike
should be adhered to," he said.
Basu’s
comment will be a boost to Chief Minister
Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee’s keenness to keep
the IT industry out of the purview of strikes
because of his initiatives to bring more
investments to West Bengal.
The comments came
a couple of days after the CPI-M’s labour
arm CITU alleged that IT firms were flouting
labour laws and said there could be strikes in
the IT industry on the ground that it was not
classified an essential service.
CITU made the
allegation after top brass of the IT industry
held a closed door meeting here on Tuesday to
discuss how its move to establish worker’s
rights in the sector would affect their
operations. They expressed apprehension at the
possibility of coercive action after the
formation of an IT workers’ union later this
month.
Asked whether IT
would be included within the purview of the
December 14 nation-wide general strike called by
Left trade unions and organisations, Basu said
the decision on this would be taken by CITU on
December 12.
The chiefs of IT
firms had indirectly opposed the formation of a
workers’ union saying the companies can take
care of their employees better than anyone else
and each company could ably handle its own
affairs.
Basu defended the
right of IT employees to form an association with
the rider that "the right to strike should
not be exercised in the way it is done in other
services".
He said CITU
leaders were interacting with employees in the IT
industry here on this issue. (PTI)
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Karna nod for
agriculture policy
BANGALORE,
Nov 10: The Karnataka cabinet today cleared
the state agriculture policy and decided to form
a cabinet sub-committee to oversee the
implementation of a Centre’s rehabilitation
package for families of farmers who had committed
suicide.
Briefing
reporters, Minister for Primary and Secondary
Education Basavaraj Horatti said details of the
agriculture policy would be unveiled when it is
launched by Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy.
The last time the
state had agriculture policy was during the
chiefministership of Deve Gowda,
Kumaraswamy’s father, he said.
On the
Centre’s package,he said Rs 1,568 crore had
been sanctioned as grant and Rs 1,121 crore as
loan for six districts covering Belgaum,
Chitradurga, Shimoga, Chikamagalur, Hassan and
Kodagu.
The cabinet
sub-committee would be headed by PWD Minister H D
Revanna and would oversee the effective
implementation of the package, Horatti said.
He said the
cabinet also cleared the Upper Bhadra project
that would irrigate 1.42 lakh hectares of land in
Chimakamagalur and Chitradurga districts.
Horatti said the
state cabinet also decided to extend the scheme
of providing bicycles to boys coming from Below
Poverty Line families, covering 2.70 lakh school
children. It was earlier confined to girls only.
Horatti said the
cabinet also cleared a Centre’s midday meal
scheme for school children under which they would
get either an egg, milk or banana at the rate of
50 paise for each. Sixtyseven lakh children would
be covered under this.
An ordinance would
be issued to crackdown on land mafia and those
grabbing Government land or intimidating
"gullible" people to force them to sell
their land.
In accordance with
the Government’s decision to create Greater
Bangalore,the cabinet decided to increase the
number of wards in the city from 100 to 150,
Horatti said.
The cabinet also
gave its clearance for the Karnataka Private
Medical Establishment Bill that would make
obtaining permission mandatory for opening
clinics in a move to curb fake doctors. (PTI)
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BJP stalls
proceedings in assembly over mayoral polls
LUCKNOW,
Nov 10: Alleging irregularities by district
administration officials during the counting of
votes for mayoral polls in Moradabad, Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) members today created noisy
scenes in the state legislative assembly here.
As soon as the
House assembled in the morning for Question Hour,
the Leader of Opposition, Nepal Singh, raised the
matter of irregularities during the recently held
local bodies’ polls all over the state,
especially in Moradabad.
When Chairman
Sukhram Singh Yadav asked the BJP members to
raise the matter during Zero Hour, they jumped
into the well of the House and started raising
anti-government slogans.
When the
Opposition members continued their sloganeering,
the House was adjourned for 20 minutes.
When the House met
again the BJP members again tried to raise the
issue and created a pandemonium leading to the
adjournment of the House twice and finally till 3
pm.
Samajwadi Party
candidate S.T. Hasan won the mayoral seat in
Moradabad by a narrow margin of about 1,700 votes
and the BJP leaders were alleging that he won due
to "manipulations" during the counting.
(PTI)
Safdarjung Hospital
fined for not providing timely treatment
NEW
DELHI, Nov 10: A Consumer forum has held
capital’s Safdarjung Hospital guilty of
negligence and directed it to pay a compensation
of over two lakh rupees to the family of a
patient who died as a result of delay in
treatment.
"A delay of
over five hours to attend to the patients who
required emergent treatment undoubtedly amounts
to medical negligence," said S L Khanna,
president of the District Consumer Disputes
Redressal Forum.
Swaran Lata, who
was taken to Safdarjung Hospital following severe
headache and vomiting, was not attended for five
and a half hours and had to be moved to another
hospital where she died on account of brain
haemorhage.
Rejecting the
contention of the Safdarjung Hospital that no
liability could be imposed on it if the
complainant did not name the attending doctor
specifically, the Forum said "it would be
very difficult for the patient or her attendent
to pin-point the doctor who was responsible for
not providing proper treatment".
"The overall
responsibility is that of the hospital and it is
liable for the acts of omission and commission on
the part of the doctors under its
employment," the south-west District Forum
said adding "it was vicariously liable for
such medical negligence".
The Consumer Body
directed the hospital to pay a compensation of Rs
2.05 lakh to deceaseds’ husband Fakir Chand
and three minor children-Ranjana, Anjana and
Nitin-within 30 days.
The victim was
rushed to Safdarjung Hospital on November 4,
2002, as she complained of acute headache and
vomiting. When doctor on duty did not attend to
her, she was moved to Apollo Hospital where she
died two days later due to brain haemorhage.
The forum agreed
that the condition of the patient detoriated for
want of immediate treatment but refused to award
a compensation of Rs 12 lakh as sought by her
husband saying death of the patient could not be
attributed directly to negligence of the
hospital.
Hospital had also
argued that complainant was not a consumer since
no fee was charged for the treatment, which was
rejected by the forum contending Chand
contributed Rs 40 per month under Central
Government Health Scheme and hence, medical
facilities could not be termed free of cost.
The forum further
noted there was no explanation by the hospital as
to why the patient was not subjected to CT-Scan
when the symptoms were that of brain haemorhage
and its subsequent failure to produce any
evidence as to the attending doctor and kind of
treatment provided to the patient. (PTI)
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34 countries to
participate in IITF
NEW
DELHI, Nov 10: External Affairs Minister Pranab
Mukherjee will inaugurate the 26th edition
of the India International Trade Fair that will
see the participation of 34 countries apart from
India.
"Austria
and Australia will be participating in the fair
for the first time that gets underway on November
14th," Indian Prade Promotion Organisation
CMD N N Khanna said.
He said in
all 7500 companies would be participating in the
fair, of which 400 will be from abroad, he said.
This year
China is the partner country, while Thailand is
the focus country.
Pakistan,
Afghanistan, Indonesia, Iran, Germany, Denmark,
Italy, Japan, Korea, Kuwait, US, UK, Turkey,
Poland, Russia, Belgium, Bhutan, Sweden, Syria
and Denmark are the other countries from which
exhibitors would come, Khanna said.
He said in
the national sector Andhra Pradesh is the partner
state and Madhya Pradesh is the focus state and
the theme of this year’s fair is Small Scale
Enterprises and Tourism.
Khanna said
as many as 20-25 lakh prople had visited the fair
last year and this year too the number is
expected to remain the same.
Although, he
said, the business done by participants is hard
to guess but the repeat participation by many
points to the fact that they benefited greatly,
he said.
ITPO CMD said
as many as 70 per cent of the participants from
abroad and 90 per cent from India were coming to
the fair again. (PTI)
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Mother of 17
felicitated in Meghalaya
SHILLONG,
Nov 10: A mother of 17 children has been
felicitated by Meghalaya’s Khasi Hills
Autonomous District Council (KHADC) to encourage
an increase in the population of indigenous
tribals to counter a "threat" posed by
immigrants.
Amelia Sohtun, a
50-year-old Khasi woman living at Rngi on the
outskirts of Shillong, was given Rs 16,000 by
KHADC Chief Executive Member H S Shylla
yesterday.
"She has set
an example to others that the only way to save
the land of Khasi and Jaintia communities is to
increase the population," Shylla said after
felicitating Amelia.
The indigenous
people are fast losing their land because
outsiders are taking advantage of a thin
population, and the only way to reverse this
trend is to increase the population of indigenous
tribals, Shylla said.
He admitted the
KHADC’s policy ran counter to the national
family planning programme but said his was a
"mission with a purpose". (PTI)
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11 Maoists
killed inAP
HYDERABAD,
Nov 10: Eleven Maoists, including five women
rebels, were killed in two separate incidents in
Andhra Pradesh today.
Nine Maoists,
including two top leaders, were killed in an
exchange of fire with police in a thick forest
near Badvel on the border of Kadapa and Nellore
districts, police said.
State committee
member of the outfit, Raghvulu, and Rayalseema
division secretary Obaleshu were among the nine
Maoists killed in the shootout which took place
when a special police party was carrying out a
combing operation in the area, they said.
Five women Maoists
killed in the gun battle were yet to be
identified, they said.
Later, police
recovered 12 weapons, including AK-47 rifles,
from the scene.
In Warangal
district, two Naxalites of Pratighatna were
killed in an exchange of fire at Kolukonda hilly
area under Devarupla mandal while two others
managed to escape.
This was the
second major gun battle in the state this year.
Earlier, Maoist state committee secretary Madhav
alias Gurra Chenniah and seven others were killed
in a shootout with police in Nallamala forest
area in Prakasam district on July 23. (PTI)
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Congress leader
Shaktawat cremated
JAIPUR,
Nov 10: The last rites of veteran freedom
fighter and Congress leader Gulab Singh Shaktawat
were held in Udaipur today in the presence of a
large number of Congress leaders and dignitaries.
The leader had
died of heart attack yesterday.
Chief Minister
Vasundhara Raje, AICC general secretaries Ashok
Gehlot, Mukul Wasnik, Pradesh Congress president
BD Kalla, National Women’s Commission
chairperson Girija Vyas and Dr CP Joshi were the
large number of leaders that attended the
funeral.
State Home
Minister Gulab Chand Kataria and Industries
minister Narpat Singh Rajvi were also
present.(UNI)
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Indore girl
sings non-stop for 61 hours
INDORE,
Nov 10: Sixteen-year-old Akansha Jachak, who
is seeking an entry in the Guinness Book of World
Records, sang non-stop for 61 hours here.
The Guinness Book
officials, who were monitoring her performance
since November 7, are to make an announcement.
Akansha sang 725
songs old, new and remixes till late last night
in the backdrop of fireworks to seek an entry in
the book.
Attributing her
success to her parents and loved ones, Akanksha
said she wanted to take up singing as a career.
Akansha was later
taken in a procession to Rajwada, a historical
monument, where people congratulated her.
State Public Works
Department Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya, who was
present at the function, said Chief Minister
Shivraj Singh Chouhan has announced to give Rs. 1
lakh to Akansha for her extraordinary
performance.
Akansha has also
been selected for the Rashtriya Bal
Puruskar-2005, which will be presented to her by
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi on
November 14. (PTI)
Sudha Murthy
to act in teleserial
BANGALORE,
Nov 10: Writer Sudha Murthy, wife of Infosys
Chief Mentor and non-executive Chairman N R
Narayana Murthy, would act in a television serial
for the first time.
The Chairperson of
Infosys Foundation is playing the role of a judge
in popular Kannada serial ‘Preethi Illada
Mele’ being telecast by ETV.
"It’s a
first time for me. It’s a new field. I am
happy and looking forward to it", an excited
Sudha Murthy told PTI.
Before accepting
the role, she put some riders to the producers
and director of the serial, which has already
clocked over 300 episodes telecast at prime time.
She told them:
"You have to show me as I am. Don’t
tell me to wear gaudy sarees and change my
hairstyle and things of that nature". But
having said that she is not averse to
"minimum" make-up as may be required
for the role.
Predictably,
Sudha, who has authored a dozen books, some of
which have been translated in different
languages, got an "yes" reply from
them.
A widely travelled
person, particularly in rural hamlets of
Karnataka, she is a known face in the state and
has been spearheading the NASDAQ-listed
firm’s social welfare measures as the head
of the foundation.
She is now getting
ready for the day-long shoot on Sunday. "I
told them (Producer and Director) it’s a
first time for me. If I make mistakes, they
should bear with me".
According to
sources, in her role, Sudha Murthy would read out
a lengthy judgement with socially relevant
messages.
If things go well,
Sudha said, she would take up acting offers in
future if happy with the roles. (PTI)
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Rajasthan’s
first case under Domestic Violence lodged
JAIPUR,
Nov 10: Rajasthan’s first case under
the Domestic Violence Act has been lodged in the
Sessions Court here.
The applicant
Santosh Chauhan, a resident of city’s
Jawahar Nagar slum, and a mother of two,
complained yesterday that her husband beat her up
regularly and harrased her for dowry.
Santosh, who
married to Hiralal Chauhan of Kotputli on May 14
2002, alleged that just four to five months after
marriage, Hiralal and his brother Kapil started
torturing her physically and harrased her for
dowry regularly.
After a year, when
she gave birth to a daughter, the tortures and
beatings increased. Her husband used to drink
everyday and beat her up. Her second child, a son
was born three years later but the in-laws and
husband continued to torture her. They even
chained her once.
Judicial
magistrate Israr Khokar, after hearing the case
issued notices to Hiralal, summoning the accused
to the court on Monday Three relatives of Hiralal
too were summoned.
The magistrate
then sent instructions to SHO of Jawahar Nagar
police station directing him to provide security
to Santosh and children.(UNI)
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24-hr power
supply to Gujarat villages under scheme
VADODARA,
Nov 10: Gujarat has taken the lead in
ensuring round-the-clock power supply to its
18,065 villages under the Jyoti Gram Yojana,
boosting industrial activities and agricultural
production, a state minister said today.
President A P J
Abdul Kalam will dedicate the project to the
nation tomorrow at a ceremony to be held at
Champaner heritage site, Minister of State for
Energy Saurabh Patel said here.
A sum of Rs 1,135
crore was spent for the Yojana in the past 30
months to make available three-phase, quality
power supply to all villages and 9,680 suburbs
for non-agricultural activities.
The project also
ensures supply of improved quality power for
agricultural purposes and had been implemented in
a record time of 30 months, Patel told PTI.
Governor Naval
Kishor Sharma and Chief Minister Narendra Modi
will also be present for the dedication, said V G
Joshi, chairperson of Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam
Ltd.
The project will
benefit 3.17 crore people in rural areas and
prevent, to a large extent, migration of people
from rural areas to cities, he said.
Before
implementing this scheme, power was availabile in
rural areas, including for agricultural purposes,
for only eight to 14 hours a day, Patel said.
Patel said under
the scheme, all non-agricultural consumers have
been connected to seperate feeders. (PTI)
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