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Monday,
November 26, 2001, Chandigarh, India  
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Drive to modernise BSF on, says Jagat
Laloo to
surrender today
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Ex-Admiral moves HC against govt TN transport strike called off Pinning hopes on small, private schools PT leader
Krishnasamy arrested
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Drive to modernise BSF on, says Jagat New Delhi, November 25 “In the wake of apprehensions of increased infiltration by Afghan mercenaries, especially during the peak winter season, we are taking all precautions and equipping our jawans to thwart any nefarious design,” BSF Director-General Gurbachan Jagat told a press conference here today. The BSF has already started inducting state-of-the-art night vision equipment and installation of sensors in sensitive borders, installation of thermal sensors and providing jawans with superior assault rifles and guns, Mr Jagat said. “We have drawn a five-year modernisation plan under with all latest counter-militancy equipment would be provided to all our sensitive and border outposts,” he said. Under the modernisation plan, the BSF is also procuring a 100-seater Boeing, two 40-seater Turbo Prop aircraft and a few Mi-18 Helicopters. “These will be procured by the same time next year,” Mr Jagat said. To augment the force strength, the BSF has also recruited 102 companies of jawans and would put them under rigorous training beginning January, 2002. “The additional manpower would help ease the burden on our existing jawans,” the BSF chief said. On the border-fencing in the Indo-Pak borders in Jammu sector, the BSF Director-General said despite firing from across the border to disrupt erection of fencing, the work was on. To a specific question whether there was any attempt by infiltrators to dug tunnel to enter the Indian territories where fencing has already been erected, Mr Jagat said “there has been no such case in the Jammu region, but three such incidents were noticed on Punjab border last year.” The analysis of the infiltration patterns indicated that 25 per cent of the infiltrators were mercenaries from Afghanistan, some from Pakistan and a small number from Sudan, he said. In a bid to curb trans-border crimes, the BSF has also proposed to establish floating border outposts for deployment in the creek areas of Gujarat, Assam and south Bengal frontiers to improve surveillance of the riverine/creek areas. To cater for additional inputs on counter-insurgency operations, the duration of the basic recruit training for constables has been extended from 36 to 40 weeks and young direct entry officers, after completion of their foundation training, are sent on attachment with infantry units of the Indian Army for a duration of four months, he said. Bomb disposal course and Sub-Inspector (direct entry) Integrated Course have also been introduced, he said. Asked about the new responsibility of guarding the Indo-Bhutan border, Mr Jagat said the BSF had requested the Home Ministry to sanction the raising of 12 additional battalions exclusively for deployment there. To a question on the reported immigration of Hindu Bangladeshis into India, Mr Jagat said apprehending attacks, a number of women and children had migrated to India, “but now they are going back”, he observed. |
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Laloo
to surrender today
Patna, November 25 Before his departure, Mr Yadav said he was suspicious about various matters, including the nature of treatment he would receive in Jharkhand. However, the leader said he was ‘sure of conspiracies’ hatched against him by his political opponents. “My political opponents are behaving like enemies,” Mr Yadav said. He said he did not forget that he was a political leader “first” and an accused in the fodder scam “later”. The RJD supremo would surrender before the special CBI court in Ranchi tomorrow in connection with a ‘conspiracy angle case’ of the fodder scam. Meanwhile, official sources said here
that Mr Yadav’s cavalcade was greeted by a large number of RJD
supporters on the Patna-Ranchi road. The former Bihar Chief Minister
addressed a roadside gathering. UNI |
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Ex-Admiral moves HC against govt New Delhi, November 25 In an application before Mr Justice M.K. Sharma, Admiral Purohit said the court in its October 10 order had allowed his request to inspect 27 official documents, which allegedly formed the basis of denial of a promotion to him. The petitioner, through his counsel Meet Malhotra, complained that he was allowed to examine only one document, which was a published article. The rest of the documents were kept away on the grounds of ‘secrecy’, even though they did not contain any information that would effect national interests nor was any immunity taken on them earlier, the petitioner claimed alleging that the official procedure for getting a document marked ‘secret’ had not been followed in the case.
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TN transport strike called off Chennai, November 25 Stating that the strike was a ‘’big success,’’ Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) general secretary T. Rangarajan claimed that the government had agreed to pay 20 per cent bonus, with an initial payment of Rs 2,500 (being 8.33 per cent) and the remaining Rs 3,500 (11.67 per cent) before April 14, 2002. Transport Minister Nainar Nagenthiran had earlier denied having agreed to pay Rs 3,500 and said ‘’at no point of time was an agreement reached between the government and unions in this regard.’’ The government had only stated that it would give an incentive to the employees as and when the financial position of the transport corporations became comfortable, he had said. Mr Rangarajan, however, insisted that the government had agreed to pay Rs 3500 before April 14 but had not made it open fearing that other government departments would also demand for higher bonus. Labour Progressive Front President C. Kuppusamy said the workers would reorganise themselves and strike work again if the government failed to concede to their demand later on. “We are calling off the strike without prejudice to our demands,” he said, adding that the committee also did not want any embarrassment to be caused to the trade union movement. He said the workers would resume work immediately. Those who have been arrested would also report to duty after their release. However, there was no word from the government regarding the immediate release of the arrested workers, he added. The transport workers went on a strike from November 9 demanding 20 per cent bonus as against the offer of 8.33 per cent by the government.
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Pinning hopes on small, private schools JAGESHWAR (UTTARANCHAL): Residents of Naini were angry. The primary school in their impoverished village in Kumaon division of Uttaranchal had just two teachers for more than 110 children. Their children spent most of the time studying on their own. With so many students per teacher, and each teacher taking all five classes, the father of two boys, farmer Diwan Singh Rawat, asked: “How is the teacher going to teach?” Mr Rawat, who supplements his agricultural income by running a small shop dealing in biscuits, candies and cigarettes, says: “Even if children go for six months to the government school, they don’t learn anything.” So four years ago, Naini’s prominent residents travelled by bus to the district headquarters, more than two hours’ drive down a winding mountain road, to plead for an additional teacher. Nothing happened. Discontented parents, along with the village pradhan, Mr Jagat Singh Kani (72), took matters into their own hands. They appealed to Mr Umesh Chand Pandey (26), a graduate from a provincial college, to teach their children. Although Mr Pandey was one among a handful of educated persons for kilometres around, he had few prospects for employment. Parents said they would pay him themselves from their meagre earnings. Mr Pandey agreed, and Naini’s Shishu Mandir was born. Today, the private primary school has four teachers and 60 students, whose parents pay a monthly tuition fee of up to Rs 150 plus book and uniform fees. Classes are held in a spartan community building, devoid of teaching aids except blackboards. Yet with more teachers and fewer students, the school is seen as an improvement. “The standard of reading is better than at the government school,” says Mr Rawat, whose boys attend the school. “Students are learning”. Parents are pleased that children at Shishu Mandir learn the English alphabet in kindergarten; it’s not taught till Class VI at government schools. “If the kids go to the government school, they won’t even learn the Hindi alphabet,” says village chief Kani. The story of Naini is not unusual in the northern Indian states. Government-run schools are in a shambles, crippled by the lack of resources and poor management. Although well paid with a minimum of Rs 6,000 per month, teachers have a heavy workload and commute over long distances. So many villages are pinning their hopes on small, new private schools. Although the teachers are often ill-trained and poorly paid — about one-quarter of the salary of a public school teacher — they have fewer students and are more responsive. And while many barely speak English, they nonetheless offer a few lessons. While no precise figures are available on the number of private schools, a recent study estimates that 36 per cent of the school children in Uttaranchal attend them. The number of parents willing to pay the tuition fee “completely disproves anyone who argues that these ignorant rural folk are not interested in education.” Shishu Mandir teacher Prema Rawat (22), a graduate, reads English nursery rhymes to her students but can’t tell them in Hindi what the rhymes mean. So the children repeat the strange sounds without understanding them |
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PT leader
Krishnasamy arrested Coimbatore, November 25 Police sources said the PT leader was picked up from his nursing home-cum-residence in Kuniyamuthur on the city outskirts for his alleged involvement in two murder cases in 1997 and 1998. He was charged with killing an estate employee at Naraikinar in Tuticorin district and BBTC estate supervisor at Manjolai in Tirunelveli district,
sources added. Later, he was shifted to Kovilpatti Central Prison after presenting him before the RDO here. Dr Krishnasamy told reporters before being taken to Kovilpatti that the charges against him were “framed up” by the police. The PT leader said he was innocent and murder charges were framed against him at the instance of AIADMK leadership as he was championing the cause of the downtrodden in the southern districts. Dr Krishnasamy has been spearheading a workers’ strike demanding 20 per cent bonus for the plantation workers in the district since November 13.
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