Excelsior... Nation

60 passengers offloaded Air India flight due to overbooking.......

Malaysia freezes recruitment of Indian workers...........

ESI to introduce smart cards at national level ..........

Govt schools to get more Urdu teachers..........

WWI wants to develop Palpur Sanctuary
as new home for tigers

NEW DELHI, Jan 8: With the rise in number of tigers in Ranthambore National Park, the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) wants Palpur Kuno Sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh to be developed as a new home for the wild cat.

Initially, Kuno Palpur Sanctuary was being developed by Madhya Pradesh Government to provide habitat to Asiatic lions relocated from Gir forests.

But with Gujarat Government refusing to part with the endangered species, WII has sought the development of a corridor between the two sanctuaries for free movement of wildlife.

"As Gujarat Government is not responding to the proposal positively, we have asked Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan Governments to work on the development of a corridor connecting the two sanctuaries," Qamar Querishi, WII official said here.

The move has come following the birth of as many as 20 cubs in the Ranthambore National Park, taking the total number of tigers in the sanctuary to 40 from 26 in 2005.

However, this has led to pressure on the available area.

"Once they gain maturity which is at the age of four, they start demarcating their territories and if not provided suitable alternatives end up fighting with each other for their land or venture outside the forests only to be killed by villagers or poachers," Querishi said.

Spread over 344.686 sq km, Madhya Pradesh government has taken various steps to develop the Kuno park by relocating 24 villages and taking a lot of conservation measures besides developing waterholes, the official added.

"We have asked the State Government to ensure removal of bio-mass, provide cover, reduce disturbance and make the corridor safe for movement of wild animals," he said.

Rajesh Gopal, director of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) said presently most of the striped cats were living in the core area of Ranthambore National Park.

"But there is an urgent need to reduce pressure on the buffer area in the region spread over around 3000 sq km to avoid man-human conflicts and stop straying of domestic animals," he said adding habitat in Kuno Palpur Sanctuary will help in better dispersal of the tigers. (PTI)

Rehman announces setting up of Music conservatory

CHENNAI, Jan 8: Celebrated music director A R Rehman has set up a state-of-the-art music conservatory here to create a ‘worldclass orchestra’ that could score music for the Indian composers and to train students in vocal as well as instrumental music.

‘The KM Music Conservatory and Audio Media Education,’ said to be India’s first Apple-authorised training centre, was a birthday gift from the maestro, who turned 42 on Sunday last.

"Currently, Indian composers have to go abroad to find an orchestra for recording. The KM Music Conservatory aims to remove this obstacle by providing an exemplary orchestra in India," he said in a statement.

The conservatory, an integrated school of music, to start functioning from the coming academic year, would have faculty from both India and abroad educating students in Indian and western classical music.

The school would currently be auditioning and accepting singers and students who play flute, oboe, clarinet, french horn, trumpet, trombone, violin, viola, cello, double bass and percussion.

The courses include western and Indian classical vocal, instrumental performance, western and Indian music theory, music appreciation, ear training, piano, audio engineering, an Apple-certified course in logic pro and a digi-design-certified course in pro tools.

After the completion of the program, the students would also have an opportunity to audition for the professional KM Music Symphony Orchestra.

Scholarships would also be offered to deserving students from the A R Rehman Foundation.

While acknowledging that synthesizers and electronic sounds played a significant role in the evolution of music in the 80s and 90s, Rehman also rued that listeners had begun to lose interest in live classical compositions.

If the trend of listening only to synthesizers and electronic sounds continued, the future generation would be deprived of the joy of live classical music, he felt.

"I feel, as a modern classical musician, having the knowledge of both music performance and music technology is invaluable."

"Having only the skill to perform an instrument may not necessarily be lucrative. However, having that skill as well as excellent music capabilities will ensure many more career opportunities and financial security. That way they learn to use the best of both worlds," he said. (PTI)

Global Advisory Council of PIO to be set up

NEW DELHI, Jan 8: With a view to tap the vast potential of Indians settled abroad, Government has decided to set up a ‘Prime Minister’s Global Advisory Council of People of Indian Origin’ to draw upon the experience and knowledge of the "best Indian minds".

Inaugurating the sixth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also announced a proposal to promote an ‘India Development Foundation’ to direct overseas Indian philanthropic efforts into human development activities in the country.

"The Council would comprise of People of Indian Origin from a variety of disciplines who are recognised as leaders in their respective fields, not only in their country of residence but globally as well," Singh told Indian diaspora gathered here for the annual event.

Addressing the gathering, which included Leader of the Opposition L K Advani and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, Singh said the Council would serve as a high-level platform for the Prime Minister to draw upon the experience and the knowledge of the best Indian minds whereever they may be based.

Over 1,500 delegates from about 50 countries are participating in the event, organised on January 8-9 every year to mark the return of Mahatma Gandhi from South Africa to India, where he led the struggle for freedom some hundred years ago.

IT terming the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas a "special day", the Prime Minister said the country took pride in the achievements of the PIOs and noted that "we seek to encourage in every possible way our links and relations with overseas communities of Indian origin."

"It is also our sincere desire to benefit from the vast reservoir of technological, managerial and entrepreneurial skills represented by overseas Indian communities," he said.

Singh particularly referred to women achievers Indira Nooyi, Sunita Williams, Kalpana Chawla and Jhumpa Lahiri and said they have became role models for the society to give women a rightful place.

He said the Overseas Indian Affairs Ministry is examining a proposal for setting up the India Development Foundation as a non-profit trust to serve as a "credible institutional mechanism to direct overseas Indian philanthropic propensities into human development in the country".

"The Foundation will assist overseas Indians to contribute to the cause of education, health and rural development in their home village, district or state," he said.

Singh also informed the gathering that the Government has approved the policy framework for setting up a PIO university in the country for the benefit of children of overseas Indians from across the globe, a proposal which he had announced last year.

"I am confident the work of the University will commence this year," he added.

Mauritius Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam, the chief guest of this year’s function, said "there is a new vibrancy, vitality, confidence and hope in this country and it is palpable to everyone visiting India."

"My plea to Indian diaspora is to grab this opportunity and get involved with India and one another.... We owe it to this country," he added.

This year’s Pravasi Bharatiya Divas will focus on social development issues as well as economic partnership between India and its diaspora.

Singh also announced launch of an "Overseas Workers Resource Centre" which would provide relevant information and assistance to potential migrant workers and operate a multi- lingual helpline for grievance redressal and intervention for overseas Indian workers in distress.

"The security and welfare of Indian residents living abroad is a top priority for our diplomatic missions," he said asking community leaders to develop better liaison with Indian missions to better serve non-resident communities.

An economist, Singh said the conditions in the country were favourable to achieve and sustain 9 to 10 per cent growth rates. "The growth process now underway will transform our economcy to emerge as a major powerhouse of the evolving globalised world."

"The ambitious growth rate that we seek to achieve will require determined efforts to raise our savings and investment rates. The bulk of resources for India’s development must come from home.

"However it is our sincere desire to create a framework which will provide profitable opportunities for overseas Indians to invest in India’s development," he said.

Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi said the Government has already entered into bilateral agreements with GCC countries like UAE, Kuwait and Qatar to ensure protection and welfare of Indians working there.

Similar agreement is also likely with Malaysia, Oman and Bahrain in the near future, he added.

He asked overseas Indian to contribute in their own way to India’s growth story. "We will build a strong partnership with overseas Indian community on rural development," the minister added.

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit sought the help of overseas Indians in improving the national capital’s transport system to "decongest Delhi".

"We welcome any organisation, country to help us set up, in addition to metro and high capacity bus, other systems of transport like monorail to help decongest Delhi," the Chief Minister said.

"There is great amount of congestion. We need help to manage our traffic better.... We need your guidance, help and managerial skills in the spheres of transport, health and education," she added. (PTI)

SC issues notices to Centre, UP in land acquisition case

NEW DELHI, Jan 8: The Supreme Court today issued notices to the Centre and the Uttar Pradesh Government on a petition challenging the use of Land Acquisition Act for forcibly acquiring the land of farmers for private parties for setting up of industries in the garb of public purposes.

A bench comprising Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan and Justices R V Raveendran and J M Panchal, however, directed the petitioners, Sahayog Samiti, to delete the name of Reliance Industries belonging to Anil Ambani group from the list of respondents.

Sahayog Samiti, an organisation of landless farmers, whose 903.449 hectares of fertile land located in seven villages of district Ghaziabad, had been acquired under the Land Acquisition Act, contended that it was the gross misuse of the Act being used for private purposes.

According to the petitioners, the fertile land of farmers, which was the only source of their livelihood was being forcibly taken away by paying meagre compensation in the name of industrial and technological development in the area.

The land had been acquired for setting up of a power plant while, in fact, within a distance of one km there already existed a NTPC power plant. It was a clear indication that perhaps the deal involved issues which did not meet the eye, according to the petitioner.

The petitioners have also alleged that many farmers had opted to fight until death against the acquisition of their land and that the protest by them had fallen on deaf ears.

There have been violent protests across the country, including Nandigram in West Bengal, Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana as well as Goa.

The petitioners have also relied on an earlier judgement which ruled that good agricultural land should not be acquired for the purpose of setting up of SEZs.

The petition had been tagged with similar others already pending in the court.

(UNI)

60 passengers offloaded Air India flight due to overbooking

MUMBAI, Jan 8: Around 60 passengers of Air India’s Mumbai-London- Chicago flight were offloaded here today as the plane was overbooked and the airline termed the exercise as an industrywide practice.

The passengers were denied boarding as all seats in the flight got filled up before they could reach the counter. They would be accommodated in a flight tomorrow, an airline spokesman said.

Some irate passengers also had a tiff with the Air India officials as the check-in staff left the counters keeping them standing in the queue for an hour.

Hotel accommodation was offered to all those who were offloaded, the spokesman said.

"I could hear people shouting asking why the line was not moving, but there was no airline official to inform us of anything. After some time, an official informed us that we have been offloaded and left," a woman traveller, who requested anonymity, said.

In a statement, the spokesman said "overbooking of flights is an industrywide practice. This is done primarily to ensure that the seats do not go vacant if confirmed passengers do not turn up for the flights.

"There are occasions where all confirmed passengers turn up leading to a situation when passengers have to be offloaded.

"In the event of offload, all airlines, including Air India, take care of their passengers. They get to travel on the first available flight, are provided accommodation upto the departure of their flight and get telephone facility to inform their near and dear ones regarding the change in travel plan," the spokesman said. (PTI)

Delhi to become power sufficient in three years

NEW DELHI, Jan 8: Delhi is all set to become power sufficient in the next three years as steps are being taken to add 7,000 mega watt of power, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit announced today.

"We will add 7,000 mega watts in the next three years which will be more than sufficient for our need," she said at the inaugural function of Pravasi Bhartiaya Divas here.

On the water front, Dikshit said "we will also be able to redistribute water in the next 3-4 years."

Apparently not satisfied with various steps taken to streamline the transport system in the Capital where lakhs of vehicles are added every month on the roads, Dikshit sought the help of overseas Indians in "decongesting Delhi".

"We welcome any organisation, country to help us set up, in addition to metro and high capacity bus, other systems of transport like monorail to help decongest Delhi," the Chief Minister said.

‘Akash’ ready for production: Rs 5000
crore business in 10 years

HYDERABAD, Jan 8: ‘Akash’, an indigenously developed Surface to Air Missile (SAM) and multiple target handling system, is ready to serve Air and Army forces said, Chief Controller (Research and Development) of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) Dr Prahlada.

Addressing newspersons here yesterday, Dr Prahlada said, "Akash, targeting fighter aircrafts, cruise missiles and Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs) of enemies, has been completely developed to be used by defence forces after conducting flight tests with the participation of public and private companies."

Stating that the DRDO took 21 years to develop the innate technology for this air defence weapon system, he said more than 1000 scientists, 13 Defence Research organisations and 100 private companies participated in the project. "It was a milestone in the history of defence research," he added.

Mr Prahlada said, "We are estimating Rs 5000 crore worth orders from Air Force and Army in next 10 years. The former had already started its process to induct ‘Akash’ missiles. The final decision would be taken on their acquirement at the meeting of Defence Acquisition Committee (DAC), chaired by Defence minister A K Antony, next month."

He said the technology would be upgraded continuously to meet the world standards, adding, "our dream is to export the missile to other countries and we are ready to do so. We have to get permission from Ministry of Defence and Ministry of External Affairs to export."

"First two squadrons would be developed in three years. Every bloc would be improved based on the feedback of users," Mr Prahlada added.

Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL) Director P Venugopalan said, "The scientists have developed many technologies to make Akash a success. Every problem that came before the scientists was being solved while developing the technology. (UNI)

Sushmita distances herself from Landcruiser import

MUMBAI, Jan 8: Bollywood star Sushmita Sen has distanced herself from the controversial illegal import of her Toyota Landcruiser, which has almost invited prosecution for the former Miss Universe.

In a reply to a notice issued by the Bombay High Court asking her to explain as to why appropriate action be not initiated against her for alleged illegalities committed in import of Toyota Landcruiser purportedly using fake documents and further manipulation for getting the vehicle registered, Sushmita has said that she had no intention to defeat any provision of law and that she was not involved in import of the Landcruiser.

The court had on October 11, 2007 upheld Sushmita’s petition for quashing order of the BMC’s joint commissioner asking her to cough up more than Rs 23 lakh towards octroi and ten times penalty for importing the car.

At the same time the court had taken serious note of allegations made against Sushmita, including non-payment of custom’s duty, preparing false records, registering the new car as used one, importing it under transfer of residence, mentioning wrong engine and chasis numbers, undervaluing the vehicle and submitting false declaration to the registration authorities and had issued the notice to her.

In the reply Sushmita has also said that, she had not indulged in any irregularities or illegalities or in any blameworthy conduct, on the contrary as a law abiding citizen she had approached the settlement commission on her own, when the custom’s officials raised an issue of under-payment of duties, and paid Rs 20,33,386 to them.

Thereafter, she had duly paid the octroi amount of Rs 2,16,988 when the BMC issued demand notice, she has added in the reply.

Besides, the actor has also stated that all the papers with respect to the vehicle were prepared by M/s Jai Mata Enterprises proprietor Haren Choksey, who had purportedly offered her the Landcruiser, and signed by him on behalf of Vasu Thamala, the alleged owner of the vehicle and an allegedly non-existent person.

She has said, she was shown registration papers of the landcruiser before it was handed over to her and categorically made it clear that it was not specifically imported for her.

Meanwhile, a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Swatanter Kumar and Justice J P Deodhar today issued a non-bailable warrant against Vasu Thamala and adjourned the matter for further hearing after two weeks.(UNI)

60 passengers offloaded Air India flight due to overbooking

MUMBAI, Jan 8: Around 60 passengers of Air India’s Mumbai-London-Chicago flight were offloaded here today as the plane was overbooked and the airline termed the exercise as an industrywide practice.

The passengers were denied boarding as all seats in the flight got filled up before they could reach the counter. They would be accommodated in a flight tomorrow, an airline spokesman said.

Some irate passengers also had a tiff with the Air India officials as the check-in staff left the counters keeping them standing in the queue for an hour.

Hotel accommodation was offered to all those who were offloaded, the spokesman said.

"There are occasions where all confirmed passengers turn up leading to a situation when passengers have to be offloaded.

Malaysia freezes recruitment of Indian workers

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 8: Malaysia has frozen the recruitment of Indian workers, including temple priests, sculptors and musicians, a move apparently linked to the recent mass protests by the ethnic Indians here against their alleged marginalisation.

Workers from India will not be recruited, according to an official circular. But, it is not clear if the ban applies to professionals as well.

The decision was taken by the Malaysian government on December 18 but made public today when Defence Minister A K Antony ended his three-day visit to Malaysia. It follows mass protests by the ethnic Indians, led by Non-Governmental Hindu Rights Action Forum (Hindraf), against the alleged marginalisation of the community.

The Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism (MCCBCHST) said it is shocked that the Immigration Department has suddenly ceased to issue work permits to new applications for foreign priests, temple musicians and sculptors.

The department has extended the visa by only six months for priests, three months only for temple musicians and one week only for sculptors.

In a statement, MCCBCHST said the Immigration Department had stated that after this period there would be no further renewal.

"This sudden decision without any dialogue or consultation with MCCBCHST is unprecedented because previously the department has always had discussions with Council before any change in the system," the statement said.

The MCCBCHST has appealed to the Prime Minister requesting him to reconsider this sudden change in the policy of the Government which has become a very highly sensitive issue to the non-Muslim community, the statement said.

"We hope that the Prime Minister will be able to immediately request the authorities to dialogue with the MCCBCHST and find an amicable settlement," the statement added. (PTI)

ESI to introduce smart cards at national level

NEW DELHI, Jan 8: The Employee State Insurance Corporation will soon come out with smart cards for providing medical and other benefits to employees at national level under the ESI scheme.

"ESI corporation intends to start use of smart cards for providing medical and other benefits for its beneficiaries under current and contemplated benefits of ESI scheme or Government scheme," the corporation said, while inviting expression of interest from IT and ITES service providers for operationalise the scheme.

The selected firm would have to provide "total solution for the use of smart cards in ESI institutions all over the country on turn-key basis", it said.

Presently, the ESI scheme covers over 91 lakh families and the total number of beneficiaries under the scheme are about 3.5 crore. It extends to shops, restaurants, cinemas including preview theatre, road motor transport undertakings and newspaper establishment employing 20 or more persons.

The scheme has been implemented across India except, Sikkim, Nagaland, Manipur, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram.

The interested firms can send their proposals by February 6, the ESI said, adding, the vendors would be selected after obtaining request for proposal from shortlisted bidders.

According to the ESI, the selected company would operate the smart card scheme on a turn key basis and also impart training in operation of transaction to all stakeholders.

The prospective bidders, it said, should be a national level IT/ITES firm in operation for at least five years and must have a turnover of Rs 5 crore in the past three years.

In addition, it said, only those companies which have experience in handling microprocessor chip cards and had implemented at least one similar project on turn-key basis in the Central or State Government or private sector would be eligible to participate in the bidding process. (PTI)

Govt schools to get more Urdu teachers

NEW DELHI, Jan 8: The Government has decided to appoint 2,000 Urdu teachers in schools across the country from March to offset the shortfall due to which many parents have been sending their children to ‘madrasas’ to learn the language.

The Human Resource Development Ministry’s move is part of efforts to revise the Modern Indian Languages Scheme with a separate Urdu scheme given special focus, sources said.

They said recruitments would begin for Kendriya Vidyalayas and Navodaya Vidyalayas from March initially and continue till the end of the financial year.

"Urdu speakers have no option but to send their children to ‘madrasas’, where they are taught the language. Given a choice, they would be more than willing to send their children to mainstream schools. Unfortunately, most mainstream schools do not teach Urdu alongside," a senior ministry official said.

He said the appointments would, however, depend on number of students willing to learn Urdu in school.

There were around 4.5 crore speakers of Urdu in India, according to census data, which means 25 per cent of the population uses the language.

"The 25 per cent does not indicate Muslims alone, for there are others who are speaking and learning the language," the sources said.

The sources said the HRD ministry would shortly be issuing instructions to all states and Union Territories for implementation of the separate "Urdu scheme" under the MIL scheme.

"The new scheme is again formulated to ensure Urdu gets the desired importance and promotion. It has been obeserved that major funds are diverted for Hindi as the number of students learning the language is higher," the senior official said.

As a result, most schools were recruiting Hindi teachers, he said. (PTI)