HYDERABAD, July 30: Lauding the proposals to create wi-fi zones at different places in the country, a cyber security expert today said the government needs to take appropriate security measures to prevent cyber crime.

“While it (creation of wi-fi zones) has a lot of positives like increase in productivity, efficiency and ease of internet access for all, it is important that the government takes proper security measures like identification verification through SMS, maintenance of user logs and others,” Ankit Fadia, an author and consultant to police in various states on cyber security issues, told reporters here.

His response came in the context of the government proposing to make Hyderabad a wi-fi city and similar proposals being made elsewhere in the country.

Fadia was speaking after releasing his latest book ‘SOCIAL — 50 ways to improve your professional life’ here.

Quoting official figures, he said 4.7 lakh ethical hackers would be required in India by 2015, given the rising number of cyber security threats. (PTI)

CHENNAI, July 30: The new Chief Justice of Madras High Court Sanjay Kishan Kaul today stressed the need to ‘demystify’ the court for litigants by making information available through technology or otherwise, so that they can easily access justice.

“The Court must be demystified for the litigant by making information available through technology or otherwise so that they have an easy and simple way to access Justice, he said, speaking after being welcomed by the Court on assuming office.

The CJ also spoke of the need to accord some priority to pendency of old cases, saying the litigant has waited enough and “one must make sure that the current institution does not result in a similar long pendency.”

While stressing the need to use new technology, he said use of optimal computer technology for all-round improvement in the justice delivery system, coupled with better court management, could go a long way in getting better output.

Stating that litigation emanating from the Court and going right up to Supreme Court has given a new dimension to the Constitution,he said “movement of social reforms and great stalwarts outside court in public life found matching judicial pronouncements that shaped constitutional jurisprudence.”

Seeking the co-operation of everyone, he said all must adjure lawlessness in court complexes, co-operate with each other and continue to provide justice to the common man uninterrupted.

Justice Kaul was given a warm welcome, commencing with the welcome address by Advocate General A L Somayaji.

The CJ, in his reply, thanked Somayaji for his welcome address and all other leaders of various associations of the High Court. (PTI)

NEW DELHI, July 30: In an ambitious initiative aimed at empowering women, the Government has proposed to set up an exclusive bank for women having branches across the country which may see merging of the Bharatiya Mahila Bank launched last year by the UPA Government.

The initiative has been taken by Union Minister for Women and Child Welfare Maneka Gandhi primarily to fulfil the financial requirements of women and ensure their empowerment.

Asked to share details about the proposed bank, she said its broad contours will be deliberated upon in a meeting with representatives of top banks tomorrow.

Gandhi said Rashtriya Mahila Kosh, which was set up in 1993 to empower women, and the Bharatiya Mahila Bank (BMB) may be merged into the new bank to have just one institution to fulfil the funding needs of women.

“We will call it women’s bank. There is already a women’s bank in the Finance Ministry which has not worked and we have Rashtriya Mahila Kosh which too has not worked,” Gandhi told in an interview.

The previous UPA government had set up the first all-woman bank in November last year as a step towards empowerment of women. The bank was launched with a corpus of Rs 1,000 crore and currently it has around 28 branches across the country.

The Rashtriya Mahila Kosh was set up in 1993 under the Women and Child Welfare Ministry to facilitate credit support to poor women.

Listing empowerment of women as a priority area, Gandhi said setting up of the state-owned bank exclusively for women will be one of the priority initiatives of her Ministry to improve the plight of women across the country.

“Banks should make it easy to lend to women, not just to

self help groups,” said Gandhi.

Though the main objective of the RMK was to fulfil credit needs of poor women, Gandhi said her assessment was that it has not been able to deliver effectively.

Elaborating on her priorities, Gandhi said the Ministry was also mulling over a proposal to set up Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) exclusively for women to impart vocational training.

She said normal ITIs have very few courses for women and that is why her Ministry was moving a proposal to set up such institutes for women.

Gandhi said her Ministry was also planning to streamline the functioning of Anganwadis across the country which provide services like post natal care and supplementary nutrition to both children below the age of six as well as pregnant women under Integrated Child Development Services.

There are about 14 lakh Anganwadi centres across the country.

“This is one system that really needs to be worked out. Because they could be the most powerful weapons that we have against malnutrition and for baby care.

“Over the years, nobody has ever paid any attention to them. Infact, in my own constituency, I have been there for 25 years and I didn’t even know that Anaganwadis existed. It is that bad. Most Members of Parliament don’t know about the Anganwadis,” she said.

The Minister said there are cases of alleged irregularities such as fake tenders and substandard food being provided by Anganwadis and there was a need to put in place a mechanism to check such wrong-doings.

“Many of them are accused of selling the food that is given for distribution and that is because there is no checking system in place,” she said.

Gandhi said she has called a meeting of representatives from all the states on August 4 to discuss ways to carry out “reforms” in the existing system.

“If I can work that out, that will be a major, major achievement in eradicating malnutrition,” she said. (PTI)

NEW DELHI, July 30: Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan has said she will take a decision on the issue of Leader of Opposition within the next four days after going through the rules and Attorney General’s letter on the matter.

Mahajan said the Speaker did not enjoy any personal discretion while choosing a member as LoP and was only meant to follow rules and precedents to arrive at a decision.

“I will see all the rules and also the letter of Attorney General. I have to see what’s there and what is not. Speaker cannot do anything…I have to go by the rules. Within one to four days, I’m expecting a decision on this,” she said.

Pointing out instances when there had been no LoPs, she said: “Many a times, there was no Leader of Opposition. First LoP was only in 1969 as before that no one had 1/10th (seats) in Lok Sabha. There was no LoP in 1980 and also in 1984.

“Now also the numbers are not adequate for LoP…So have to see,” she said.

In view of the dilemma she was facing over the issue, Mahajan had sought AG Mukul Rohtagi’s opinion on the matter.

In his letter, Rohatgi opined that Congress is not eligible and there is no precedent since the days of the first Lok Sabha to grant the post to a party which does not have the minimum required MPs.

The AG’s opinion came as a setback to Congress which has made a strong pitch for the Leader of Opposition post despite securing just 44 seats in the 543-member House. A party has to win 55 seats to get 10 per cent members. (PTI)

PUNE, July 30: At least 17 people were killed when torrential rains triggered a landslide at a village in Maharashtra’s Pune district today, burying over 160 as 400 NDRF personnel looked for survivors and bodies in the mud-and-rock debris battling inclement weather.

Officials said the death toll could go up. 14 injured survivors have also been pulled out of the rubble and admitted to a primary health centre nearby, sources at an emergency control room set up at Khed-Manchar told PTI.

An earlier report had said 15 persons were extricated from the debris alive.

Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan said over 160 people were believed to be trapped in the 44 houses buried under the rubble after large parts of a hillside collapsed on them early this morning.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh is expected to visit Malin village, the scene of the tragedy, in Ambegaon taluka of the district, some 120 km from the district headquarters, tomorrow, according to a BJP spokesman.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the loss of lives in the tragedy and asked Singh to rush to Pune to take stock of the situation.

“The Prime Minister has condoled the loss of lives in the landslide and directed all possible efforts to help the affected people,” a PMO statement said in Delhi.

Large earth-moving machinery have been pressed into service but the rescuers are moving slowly to avoid causing harm to the possible survivors, Pune collector Saurav Rao said, adding the operation to clear the rubble was on.

Crowds have gathered at the spot and villagers could be seen moving fallen trees and rocks with bare hands to assist 300 National Disaster Response Force personnel in rescue efforts.

Scores of JCBs, dumpers and ambulances have been pressed into service to clear the rubble and shift the dead and survivors to hospitals, Rao said.

An NDRF spokesman said 158 people–61 children, 60 women, and 37 men– are feared to be trapped under the debris.

He said the landslide-affected village is spread over 50-metre radius and has a total number of 70 houses, out of which 46 have been affected. (PTI)

PUNE, July 30: Casualties were feared as several people were suspected to have been trapped inside houses on a hillside following a landslide in Maharashtra’s Pune district today, police said.

People living in about 35 houses have come under the debris of a hillock that caved in at village Malin in Ambegaon taluka of the district when they were asleep, Pune (rural) police said.

Rescue operations are on and a team of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has been rushed from the neighbouring Talegaon camp to the village, about 120 km from here.

According to District Collector Saurav Rao, the administration has mobilised rescue machinery to pull out those trapped.

“Exact number of causalities is not known as we are moving slowly to ensure that those trapped are removed safely. About 30 ambulances have been rushed from adjoining areas to extend medical help to the victims,” he said, adding earth moving equipment from government and private parties were being pressed into service.

Communication difficulties and rains were affecting the operations, he said.

State’s Relief and Rehabilitation Minister Patangrao Kadam said rescue operations were going on in full swing in coordination with various government agencies.

Pune Divisional Commissioner Prabhakar Deshmukh is coordinating the relief work, Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Dilip Walse Patil said.

“The Pune district collector and SP have reached the spot. The divisional commissioner is coordinating the relief work,” Walse Patil, who represents the affected region in the state Assembly, said.

“The NDRF teams have also reached the spot,” he said.

Chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and deputy CM Ajit Pawar have rushed to the village. (AGENCIES)

NEW DELHI, July 30: Over 28,800 new petitions have been filed before Central Information Commission during 2012-13, Lok Sabha was informed today.

Minister of State for Personnel and Training Jitendra Singh said in a written reply that in 2012-13, a total of 28,801 second appeals/complaints were filed before the CIC while in 2011-12 the number of 33,922 and in 2010-11 it was 28,875.

He said there are a number of cases where an applicant has filed first appeal with the first appellate authority in the concerned public authority and second appeal/complaints with the Central Information Commission/State Information Commission, as the case may be.

Singh said such appeals can be filed following– non-receipt of information within prescribed time; denial of request for information; if he/she believes that incomplete/ misleading or false information under this act has been given by the public information officer. (PTI)

NEW DELHI, July 30: After asking taxpayers to validate their personal email ids and mobile phone numbers for online filing of Income Tax returns, the IT department has now urged them to include its official email address in the ‘safe list’ of their inboxes.

The department has suggested taxpayers to validate and include in the ‘white/safe list’ of their respective inboxes the official handle of the department– ‘DONOTREPLY@incometaxindiaefiling.Gov.In’, so that it does not land in the spam or junk folder of the taxpayer.

“What a taxpayer needs to do is to include this email id in the safe list of his or her email recipients. Once an online tax filer validates his or her email id and mobile phone on the department’s online portal, the system sends an auto-generated PIN to complete the secure process and hence this email should not land into the spam folder which can be easily missed by the individual,” a senior IT officer said.

The department has issued the advisory after it found instances of this validation email landing into the spam or junk folder of taxpayer’s inboxes thereby leading to trouble in e-filing.

The online tax filing season is on and as of now the last date is July 31.

Once the email is received from this official handle, the taxpayers can use the PIN to go further with the online filing procedures of their Income Tax Return (ITR).

The Central Board of Direct Taxes, the apex authority of the IT, has recently notified new rules for online filing of ITRs saying taxpayers filing their returns this year (assessment year 2014-15) will have to mandatorily share their personal email ids and mobile numbers with the department.

The aim behind this latest move was to update and stay in touch with the taxpayer each and every time their is a tax related issue.

The CBDT also recently notified taxpayers that the IT department does not send any communication from private email addresses such as gmail, yahoo etc to them.

“Taxpayers are cautioned that they should not respond to such phishing mails and avoid downloading any attachment, which may contain virus or malicious software,” the CBDT had said. (PTI)