NEW DELHI, May 8:
Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia today pitched for raising fees by universities and providing easy finance for students to complete higher education.
“Stop funding the universities and just fund the students..Then they go to universities that are worth paying for,” he said addressing a function here to unveil a report on corporate sector participation in higher education.
“I am in favour of raising the fees across the board and giving scholarship that will enable students to go to universities which actually do a good job,” he added.
Ahluwalia said after making allocation for primary and secondary education which are high priority areas, there will be limited resources left for higher education and thus private sector investment would be required.
“Public resource need to grow in areas of highest priority and in education sector, primary and secondary education is much more important. You cannot have world class universities unless you have world class university entrance,” he added.
On private sector investment in higher education, he said: “Corporate sector should be taking interest in setting up educational institutions because the amount of public resources available for health and education is limited. If you don’t bring the private resources, you will not get the end result you want”.
Speaking on the occasion, Human Resources Minister Kapil Sibal said: “Private sector is not going to invest unless you give them appropriate environment and the fundamental (requirement of private sector) is land”.
Pointing towards the litigations over land given to private sector for setting up educational and health institutions, the minister said there is enormous opposition to the idea of giving free land to private players for these purposes.
Sibal also emphasised on the need for giving soft loans for the private sector for setting up educational and health institutions in the country.
“The banks must be asked to give long term loans to educational institutions for 20 to 25 years to set up institutions as nobody is going to borrow at 12 per cent or 16 per cent for 7 years, “ he added.
The Minister also expressed resentment over the Planning Commission turning down its proposal to set up education finance corporation to provide easy finance to students. (PTI)

LAHORE, May 8:
Indian national Surjeet Singh, who has been languishing in Kot Lakhpat Jail in this eastern Pakistani city for over 30 years, is expected to be freed within three months, his lawyer has said.
The Punjab Government yesterday told the Lahore High Court that Surjeet had completed his term and would be released.
Through a written report submitted in the court of Justice Manzoor Ahmad Malik, the Government said Surjeet was given the status of an internee last month.
The judge was hearing a petition seeking the release of Surjeet filed by his Pakistani lawyer Awais Sheikh, who is also counsel for Sarabjit Singh, an Indian on death row after his conviction for alleged involvement in bomb blasts in 1990.
Sheikh pleaded that Surjeet had been held in the Pakistani jail even after completing his term of life imprisonment.
Relying on the Punjab Government’s reply, the judge adjourned the hearing till July 9.
The lawyer told that he had filed the petition for Surjeet’s release at the request of his family. “I met the son and daughter of Surjeet in Amritsar and they told me that their father was languishing in Kot Lakhpat Jail,” he said.
Sheikh said Surjeet was captured near the border on charges of spying during the era of military ruler Zia-ul-Haq.
He was given the death sentence but then President Ishaq Khan commuted it to life imprisonment.
“Surjeet completed his term in 2004. The High Court has said there is no law that allows a prisoner to be detained after he completes his sentence,” Sheikh said.
In a separate development, Justice Umar Ata Bandial of the Lahore High Court has disposed of another petition filed by Sheikh seeking the release of another Indian prisoner named Madan Lal.
Punjab’s Inspector General of Prisons informed the court that no prisoner by this name had been detained in any jail of the province.
Sheikh asked the court to seek a reply from the Interior Ministry about Lal’s whereabouts but the judge turned down this request and disposed of the petition.
The judge directed Sheikh to approach the Foreign Office to redress his grievance.
Sheikh had pleaded that Lal mistakenly entered Pakistan in 1967 and was arrested by authorities.
He said Indian authorities had informed Lal’s family that he was last seen in Bahawalnagar district jail in June 1984 and his whereabouts after that were not known.
In his petition, Sheikh had asked the court to direct the Government to trace Lal and order his repatriation. (PTI)

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, May 8:
Army Chief Gen V K Singh today said the force was operationally prepared to meet any contingency, days after he highlighted major “shortcomings” in the country’s defence preparedness.
On corruption in defence deals, he said it was important to ensure probity and transparency.
Speaking about defence preparedness of the country, the Army Chief said, “With great confidence, I can say that operationally we are prepared to take on any contingency that can arise.”
Singh said defence preparedness was a large field that comprises training of troops, morale of the troops and the type of equipment and other things.
In a letter to the Prime Minister on March 12, Gen Singh had complained about lack of defence preparedness and ammunition. He had also pointed out the obsolescence of air defence systems in the force.The leakage of the letter in the media had triggered a controversy.
Maintaining that adequate measures were being taken to check corruption, he said, “Corruption has always been a major issue. We had people fighting against corruption for long time. Certain exposes have come up in recent times in various fields which included the defence sector also.”
“Our thrust area is to ensure transparency and probity and also to ensure that middlemen and dealers who indulge in wrong practices are checked,” he said.
He said it was also important that the defence forces were not saddled with sub-standard equipment.
Singh said it required wide ranging changes in the entire system in which the Army was only a minuscule part of it.
Gen Singh, who was the chief guest at the release of the Army-commissioned book on north eastern region “North East Trilogy”, said the area was now much more peaceful than it was five years ago.
Citing examples of different north eastern states, he said the Army was closely working with State Governments to bring insurgents to negotiation with the Government.
Asked about the “threat perception” posed by China to that region, he said, “China is our neighbour.”
He, however, said when you have a border that has not been settled, there can be all types of things happening. I do not want to say more on that”, he said.
On the demand for one-rank one-pension, Singh said this was something that “we had been pursuing” and expected a positive outcome with the support of Defence Minister A K Antony.
As per the present estimates, its implementation would cost Rs 1300 crore.
Gen Singh said north eastern region of the country was as safe as any other part and the Army was working for the last couple of years to ensure that peace prevailed.
A lot of insurgent groups fighting against the state had come forward to have settlement with the Governments.
In the case of Assam, groups like ULFA and NDFC were fighting. In Naglaland, insurgent groups had ceased their hostility with the Government.
Manipur had a comparatively violent profile because of differences between two major groups. “We are working very hard to ensure that they also come to negotiate and settle with the State Government”, he said.
Tripura had only law and order problems and Meghalaya was very peaceful except for some political issues. “Generally I would say, as a whole, north east is much more peaceful than five years ago.” (PTI)

WASHINGTON, May 8:
The US has foiled an attempt by al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula to blow up a passenger plane and seized a sophisticated explosive device bearing the “hallmarks” of the 2009 underwear bomb, officials said.
The plot was foiled before it threatened any Americans, and no airliners were at risk, a US official said.
A non-metallic explosive device that could have passed through airport security unnoticed like the one used in the failed attempt to bomb a Detroit-bound jet in 2009 by underwear bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was recovered, the official said.
It was meant for use by a suicide bomber, he said.
“As a result of close cooperation with our security and intelligence partners overseas, an Improvised Explosive Device designed to carry out a terrorist attack has been seized abroad,” the FBI said in a statement.
The FBI said it currently had the possession of the IED and was conducting technical and forensics analysis on it.
“Initial exploitation indicates that the device is very similar to IEDs that have been used previously by al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula in attempted terrorist attacks, including against aircraft and for targeted assassinations,” the statement said.
President Barack Obama was informed about the plot in April, and the attempt “underscores the necessity of remaining vigilant against terrorism here and abroad,” the White House said.
“While the President was assured that the device did not pose a threat to the public, he directed the Department of Homeland Security and law enforcement and intelligence agencies to take whatever steps necessary to guard against this type of attack,” Deputy Spokesperson of National Security Council Caitlin Hayden said.
“The disruption of this IED plot underscores the necessity of remaining vigilant against terrorism here and abroad,” Hayden said, adding that President Obama thanked all the concerned authorities for their “outstanding” efforts in foiling the bid.
The news of the plot emerged shortly after the US marked anniversary of the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. It also comes a day after killing of Fahd al-Quso, a senior leader of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) in Yemen.
The AQAP, primarily active in Yemen and Saudi Arabia, is considered the most active of Al-Qaeda’s branches.
“What this incident makes clear is that this country has to continue to remain vigilant against those that would seek to attack this country. And we will do everything necessary to keep America safe,” Defense Secretary Leon Panetta soon after news of the plot broke.
Making it clear that the device “never presented a threat to public safety”, the FBI said the government was “working closely with its international partners” to address the various concerns associated with the device.
Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security has said it has no specific and credible information regarding an active terrorist plot against the US at this time, although it continues to monitor move by al-Qaeda and its affiliates to carry out terrorist attacks, both in the Homeland and abroad.
“Since this IED demonstrates our adversaries’ interest in targeting the aviation sector, DHS continues, at the direction of the President, to employ a risk-based, layered approach to ensure the security of the traveling public,” department’s spokesperson Matt Chandler said.
“These layers include threat and vulnerability analysis, pre-screening and screening of passengers, using the best available technology, random searches at airports, federal air marshal coverage and additional security measures both seen and unseen,” Chandler said.
Earlier in the day, the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joe Lieberman was briefed by the Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and White House Counter-terrorism Advisor John Brennan about the foiled plot.
“The most important fact is that terrorists planning to kill innocent people were stopped before anyone was in danger,” Lieberman said, adding that both Secretary Napolitano and Brennan assured him that country’s intelligence and counter-terrorism agencies, with the help of their international counterparts, successfully foiled the bid.
Lieberman said he was told by them that no public announcement of al-Qaeda’s this plot was made in order to protect the ongoing counter-terrorism operations by the US.
The Senator also said he was also informed that there was “no evidence” to prove that the plot was “tied to” the first anniversary of the killing of Osama Bin Laden. (PTI)

WASHINGTON, May 8:
The US wants to see Hafiz Saeed, the mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attack, brought to justice whether he is tried in a Pakistani court or in a US court or wherever, a top official has said.
State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the US’ desire that Pakistan secure the conviction of the founder of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) in connection with the Mumbai attack was the reason why it recently announced a reward of USD 10 million to anyone for information leading to his trial in a court of law.
“We have been very clear why this program, particularly our Rewards for Justice program, was put in place. We want to see this individual brought to justice,” Toner told reporters.
“As you remember at the time, there was a lot of speculation of why we did this because everyone knows he’s in Pakistan. What we want to do is give the Pakistani authorities the judicial wherewithal to bring this guy to justice,” he said.
“At the time we used the phrase, and continue to use, evidence that can withstand judicial scrutiny.
Whether he is tried in a Pakistani court or in a US court or wherever, we want to see him brought to justice,” Toner said.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton now on a visit to India said yesterday the US would push Pakistan for securing the conviction of Saeed, observing that country has not done as much as US and India wanted it to fight terrorism.
Clinton said she was “well aware that there has not yet been the steps taken by the Pakistani government” that could help in securing Saeed’s conviction.
“We’re going to be pushing that point. So it’s a way of raising the visibility and pointing out to those who are associated with him that there is a cost for that,” Clinton said at an interactive session in Kolkata.
“You have to go after those who are trying to kill you. You have to be focussed on that…We want everybody who is associated with that(Mumbai attack) brought to justice. And it may take longer than any one of us like. But we are going to be standing with you and trying to make that happen,” Clinton had said.
Responding to questions, Toner denied news reports that the US-Pak relationship is now at a standstill.
“I don’t think it’s fair to say right now that everything is at a standstill with Pakistan. We have had a series of high-level meetings over the past month to two months that we believe is laying the groundwork for renewed cooperation,” he noted. (PTI)

NEW DELHI, May 8:
A man was today arrested at the Indira Gandhi International airport here for allegedly smuggling memory cards and other electronics goods worth over Rs 26 lakh by Customs officials.
Kamal, a Delhi resident, was carrying 1,600 Sony memory cards for Cybershot cameras, 3,200 game processors and other electronic items worth Rs 26.62 lakh, they said.
The passenger had arrived from Guangzhou, China.
“While passing through Green Channel, on suspicion he was diverted and his baggages was scanned and some dutiable items appeared in the image. Electronic goods valued at Rs 26.62 lakh were recovered after a body search was carried out on him and his baggage,” said Arun Kumar, Additional Commissioner, Customs (IGI Airport and T-3).
Kumar said that Kamal was arrested and further probe in the case is in progress.
Customs officials had on Sunday arrested two men from the IGI airport for allegedly trying to smuggle memory cards worth over Rs 1.30 crore.
The accused—Amrit Pal Singh and Kamal Chadha, who had come from Hong Kong—were carrying 74,250 2GB memory cards worth Rs 1.33 crore by hiding them in a well-stitched cloth zipper jacket.
Customs officials have arrested three more passengers with memory cards worth Rs 55.50 lakh since April. “All of them had come from Hong Kong,” the official said. (PTI)