Friday, July 9, 1999
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India: talks after
intrusion ends Hooda against joining coalition |
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 KARGIL: Get well soon — friends wishing their injured buddies in a forward field hospital in Kargil. — PTI
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Shiv Sainiks throw stones
at PIA office ‘Appoint panel to probe
hafta’ Pakistan can’t be trusted:
BJP HP to raise battalion of India
Reserve Move to make nominees sign pledge
letters Students disrupt assembly session No fresh US work visas till Sept
30 9 top Hollywood companies move HC HP to upgrade Roerich trust DSGMC gesture to Kargil martyrs |
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India: talks after intrusion
ends NEW DELHI, July 8 — India today said it would be possible to resume the composite dialogue process only when the intrusion by Pakistan has been totally vacated. Responding to a question on what would New Delhi do once its military action against Pakistani intruders comes to a successful end, a spokesman of the Ministry of External Affairs said "we have a larger vision of our relationship with our neighbour and it is part of our policy to have good neighbourly ties with Pakistan". "It would be possible to put the composite dialogue process on the track again once the intrusion has been cleared of our side of the Line of Control (LoC)", the spokesman said. The spokesman denied that there were signs of Pakistani withdrawal on the ground. He said there were no communication between India and Pakistan and between New Delhi and Washington since US President Bill Clinton spoke with Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to brief on his talks with Mr Sharif. The spokesman said India’s focus was on evicting the intruders from the Kargil area and the Army operations would continue until this objective has been achieved. Meanwhile, India is of the view that it was for Pakistan to bother about its international credibility. Mr Sharif had given a commitment to Mr Clinton and it was a bilateral affair, an official said adding that "we don’t come anywhere in picture". Mr Sharif’s
credibility is at stake and he would have to ensure that
intrusion is vacated, he said. |
Hooda against joining
coalition NEW DELHI, July 8 — The Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) President, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, today asserted that the party was opposed to entering into any alliance or joining a coalition government. Speaking to mediapersons here, Mr Hooda said that the Congress, in principle, was against joining a coalition, but said he was not aware of any proposal said to have been made by the Haryana Chief Minister, Mr Bansi Lal. Asked if the Haryana Congress favoured dissolution of the state assembly, Mr Hooda said that ever since he had taken charge as the state unit chief, he had been demanding that Mr Bansi Lal should step down on account of "non-performance" and hold fresh assembly elections. To another question if the Congress should enter into any alliance with the Haryana Vikas Party, he said the party should go it alone and not align with anyone. He said the Congress high command was aware of the sentiments of the party workers in the state and would arrive at a decision that was both in the interest of the Congress and the people of Haryana. Meanwhile, Mr Hooda
denied reports that the HPCC executive had been convened
in Delhi during the past two days. |
Kargil heroes NEW DELHI, July 8 (PTI, UNI) — The President, Mr K.R. Narayanan, has contributed his month’s salary towards the National Defence Fund for the welfare of families of jawans who laid down their lives in ‘Operation Vijay’ in Kargil, an official source said today. The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) today contributed Rs 14.37 lakh towards the National Defence Fund. The cheque for Rs 14,37,929 was handed over to the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, by the Science and Technology Minister. Mr Murli Manohar Joshi, on behalf of the DBT, an official statement said. The Ministry of Steel and Mines contributed over Rs 5.2 crore to the National Defence Fund. The cheque for the amount was presented to the Prime Minister, by the Steel Minister, Mr Naveen Patnaik, and the Minister of State, Mr Ramesh Bais. The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) President, Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav and his wife, Chief Minister Ms Rabri Devi, today expressed their keen desire to visit Kargil to boost the morale of jawans flushing out Pakistani intruders. Both the leaders, who met injured jawans at the Army Hospital here, said a formal letter of request in this connection would be sent from Patna to the Defence and the Union Home Ministers. The Chief Minister said Rs 1 crore donated by the State Government for the families of the martyrs was only the first instalment and more would be contributed in the near future. MUMBAI: The Maharashtra Government on Thursday launched a special fund for the welfare of family members of the martyrs, who laid down their lives in the Kargil operations. The fund raising drive was inaugurated by the State Governor, Mr P.C. Alexander, who handed over a cheque, representing his one month’s salary to Mr Bhongirwar, Chief Secretary, at the Raj Bhavan, an official statement said today. Meanwhile, the State Government has appealed to all ministers, members of the state legislature, government servants and the public to contribute generously to the fund. The Anandilal Podar Charitable Society here has decided to provide free education up to Senior Secondary School level to the children of soldiers hailing from Rajasthan’s Nawalgarh area, who sacrificed their lives during the ongoing Kargil conflict. The society president,
Mr Kantikumar Podar, in a statement on Thursday said the
decision has been conveyed to the Rajasthan Chief
Minister, Mr Ashok Gehlot. |
Shiv Sainiks throw stones at PIA office NEW DELHI, July 8 (PTI) — Shiv Sena activists threw stones at the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) office in the heart of the Capital today protesting against the manhandling of Indian High Commission officials in Islamabad. The activists, numbering about a dozen, converged behind the PIA office in Connaught Place around 3 p.m. and started throwing stones and raised anti-Pakistan and anti-Nawaz Sharif slogans. No one was injured in the surprise attack and only a few windowpanes of the PIA office were broken, the police said. The activists fled from the spot within minutes even as PIA officials informed the police control room. Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Sanjay Beniwal said "there were only a handful of miscreants and the damage was minimal." Mr Beniwal said security at the PIA office had been beefed up following the attack. Delhi Shiv Sena chief
Jai Bhagwan Goyal claimed responsibility for the attack
and demanded the immediate closure of all Pakistani
business establishments in the country saying "they
cannot make money here and beat up our people there and
support anti-Indian forces." |
‘Appoint panel to probe hafta’ NEW DELHI, July 8 (PTI) — The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has directed the Delhi Government to constitute a high-powered committee to look into the menace of collection of “hafta” by officials of the police and civic officials from vendors and hawkers. The panel will also suggest ways and means to curb the menace “hafta”, a weekly collection made by the police for permitting petty vendors to carry on their trade activities. The city government has also been ordered to pay Rs 2.5 lakh as compensation to the next of kin of a fruit vendor who died in police violence last year, an NHRC press note released said here today. Matloob Hussain had died allegedly following a severe beating by a Head Constable and a constable in the Shahdara area because he had failed to pay them “hafta”. The city government has been ordered to ensure effective and expeditious trial of the errant officials and to make sure that they are punished in accordance with law and not allowed to go scot-free due to weak prosecution. The NHRC also asked the state government to ensure that the implementation of the scheme framed by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) in regard to hawkers and vendors was implemented at the earliest. It has also been asked to submit the compliance report to the commission by August 1. The Commission was seized of the case after a report by the Subdivisional Magistrate (Shah-dara). Later some NGOs, including the Peoples Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) and the Peoples Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR) also approached the commission. The Commission appreciated that the higher authorities had done well in taking action against the erring cops by putting them under suspension and starting a prosecution. It, however, expressed concern over the “lack of sensitivity” on the part of the SHO who had not taken adequate and immediate action for medical treatment of Hussain and for registration of a case against errant officials. “Thus the
commission assumed that the atrocities were committed
with the knowledge and connivance of the SHO. The
commission has, therefore, accepted the recommendation of
the SDM for a probe into the conduct of the SHO in this
episode,” the release added. |
Pakistan can’t be trusted:
BJP NEW DELHI, July 8 — The BJP today called Pakistan an untrustworthy state saying it had failed to honour its commitment to restore the sanctity of the Line of Control (LoC). Briefing newspersons here, party general secretary Narenda Modi said Pakistan had shown scant regard for a commitment made to the United States and the UK. “Pakistan has not taken any steps to give ground evidence about withdrawal of troops and infiltrators. History bears testimony to the fact that Pakistan betrayed the Simla agreement and the Lahore declaration. Now it has gone back on the Washington assurance,” he observed. Mr Modi said to go back on its word Pakistan was seeking to link Kargil with non-issues. “The true face of Pakistan will now be known to the international community. Its commitments are incredible and its actions irresponsible,” he said. Mr Modi said India, on the other hand, had honoured each bilateral commitment and accord and behaved in a responsible manner. “India has been steadfast in refusing any third party mediation or intervention - a stand that has now been accepted by the international community”, he quipped. The party general secretary said Pakistan had not only betrayed India but its own soldiers also which it had sent to the Indian territory. “What can one expect from a state which does not even accept the bodies of its soldiers killed in Kargil? A state that has such a low level of commitment to its own people, more so, its soldiers, cannot be expected to be credible or responsible. That is why we had merely taken note of the Clinton-Sharif joint statement,’’ he pointed out. He said in this situation the Vajpayee government was justified in militarily evicting the intruders. “The government remains firm in its resolve that the Indian forces will not rest till the intruders have been removed dead or alive,” he said. Mr Modi said it is unfortunate that instead of appreciating the urgency of the situation, Congress President Sonia Gandhi was trying to make cheap political capital out of the crisis. The party general secretary said unity was crucial at a time when the country was facing such a crisis. Asked to comment on the
Congress demand for a White paper on intelligence failure
in checking intrusion into Kargil, Mr Modi said:
“All this will demoralise jawans. Right now, our
priority is to free our territory from
infiltrators.” |
HP to raise battalion of
India Reserve NEW DELHI, July 8 — Himachal Pradesh will raise another battalion of India Reserve and train 300 ex-servicemen to meet its security requirement. The State Chief Minister, Mr Prem Kumar Dhumal, addressing a press conference here today said the Centre had approved raising of another battalion of India Reserve and a final clearance was expected to reach the State Government shortly. Mr Dhumal, who was here to attend the Chief Ministers’ meeting on Kargil situation convened by the Centre yesterday, said HP would recruit 1,000 constables for the Reserve. At the meeting, the Home Minister had asked all the Chief Ministers to remain vigilant as the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of Pakistan was expected to step-up its activities in the wake of setback in Kargil. The Chief Minister said the Centre had already provided Rs 1 Crore towards modernisation of police force and the state had procured vehicles, equipment for high altitude besides various modern communication systems. He said the State Government has made special efforts to keep a watch on spots from where the militants had infiltrated earlier and also constructed helipads for reconnaissance. Mr Dhumal said he had suggested at yesterday’s meeting to expedite the construction of an all-weather road connecting Manali and Leh. The route, he said, would require tunnel at Rohtang and the matter had been taken up with the Ministry of Defence. “This alternate all-weather route has become imperative after the manner in which the Srinagar-Leh route came under attack,” he said. The Chief Minister said he urged the Centre to strengthen the Special Services Bureau network in the state and recruit local population for the purpose. He said by stepping up the security and strengthening the intelligence machinery at the borders would enable the State to meet the threat from across the borders. The State government, he said would consider deploying civil defence workers and home guards to assist in the smooth conduct of the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. The Home Minister, Mr L.
K. Advani had yesterday asked the Chief Ministers not to
depend on the Centre for greater deployment of
paramilitary forces for the general elections in view of
their commitment to defend the borders. |
Child labour NEW DELHI, July 8 — The Bachpan Bachao Andolan, the nucleus body of the South Asian Coalition for Child Servitude, plans to approach candidates contesting the Lok Sabha elections to place on record their commitment to eradicating child labour. Mr Kailash Satyarthi, founder and chairperson of the SACCS, said here that candidates would be required to sign pledge letters stating their will to eradicate child labour and provide free, compulsory and meaningful education to all children below the age of 14. In the last Lok Sabha poll, the SACCS had lobbied with general secretaries and the election manifesto committees of main political parties to include eradication of child labour as a poll promise in their election manifestoes. “This year, we have gone a step further. Those candidates who do not sign the pledge letter will run the risk of being declared “Bachpan Virodhi ummedwaar”. We will also ask the voters to cast their vote in favour of candidates who have pledged their resolve to eliminate child labour.” Mr Satyarthi said the
SACCS tried a similar campaign before the Vidhan Sabha
elections in Delhi last November. The process had been
set in motion and preparatory meetings were on. |
Students disrupt assembly session CALCUTTA, July 8 (UNI) — In an unprecedented situation, a group of Chattra Parishad supporters today entered the West Bengal Assembly and disrupt the second session of the House for half-an-hour in protest against the government’s decision to gradually withdraw higher secondary courses from state colleges. The incident forced Deputy Speaker Anil Mukherjee to adjourn the House for half-an-hour. The House, after reassembling for the post-lunch session, was engaged in the Budget discussion of the Panchayat Department when a group of about eight Chattra Parishad supporters believed to be students of City College, entered the House through the Speaker’s gallery hoodwinking the security. Later, altogether 21 agitators were arrested by the assembly security in the midst of vehement protests from several Congress members, including Ramjanam Majhi, Gautam Chakraborty and Ashok Deb. Security was tightened
around the assembly as students gathered outside the
House and continued their protest. |
No fresh US work visas till Sept 30 NEW DELHI, July 8 (PTI) — No fresh applications for work visas for the USA, will be approved till September 30 this year since the 1999 fiscal year ceiling of 1.15 lakh ‘H-1B’ (speciality worker) visa approvals has already been reached, US Information Service (USIS) said here today. “The US Immigration and Naturalisation Service will not approve any newly filled application for work visa commencing on or before September 30, the end of the fiscal year. It will, however, accept new petitions for processing, and approve them with the effective date of October 1, 1999”, a USIS release said here. However, to avoid a rush
of applications at consular posts in India after that
date, US visa offices in India have been authorised by
the State Department to begin work now to issue visas
against such applications. |
9 top Hollywood companies move HC NEW DELHI, July 8 (PTI) — Nine top Hollywood film production houses, including Twentieth Century Fox, Columbia Pictures, Time Warner Entertainment and Disney Enterprises, have moved the Delhi High Court against unauthorised exhibition of their films by the two largest cable TV operators in India. In joint petitions before the court, these film houses sought to restrain Siti Cable, promoted by Subhash Chandra and Hinduja-owned In Cable and their distributors from showing the films produced by these multinationals. The other five petitioners are Paramount Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn Mayer Studios, Tristar Pictures, Universal City Studios and Lucasfilm. The court today restrained the two cable operators from exhibiting the films made by the Hollywood companies on their cable network and directed the police to provide the necessary assistance in the execution of the order. The petitioners alleged
that these two cable networks, which covered almost the
entire country, had recently shown films like
“Speed”, “Commando”,
“Blade”, “Mad City”, “As Good As
It Gets”, “Ronin”, “Wag the
Dog”, “The Edge”, “The Mask of
Zorro”, “Wild Things”, “Six Days
Seven Nights”, “Delta Force”, “City
of Angels”, “Hard Rain” and “Home
Alone” illegally. |
HP to upgrade Roerich trust NEW DELHI, July 8 — The Himachal Pradesh Government in association with the Russian Government and other organisations would work to upgrade the Roerich Memorial Trust in Naggar, Kulu District. Presiding over a meeting of the trust here, which was attended, among others, by the Russian Ambassador to India, Mr Albert S. Chernyshev, the Himachal Chief Minister said a committee has been set up to draw a comprehensive plan to promote eco-friendly projects on the nearly 200 acres of land owned by the famous Russian painter. The Chief Minister suggested that the area could be put to use by setting up herbal garden and for horticulture. He also said that the trust would delegate certain financial powers to the executive committee for carrying out the day-to-day activities. Mr N.N. Vohra and Mr Ashok Malhotra have been made special invitees of the committee, which has been asked to prepare the project report by August 15, this year. The Russian Ambassador
said that his government could consider providing
financial assistance to the trust. |
DSGMC gesture to Kargil
martyrs NEW DELHI, July 8 — The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee yesterday announced that children of Kargil martyrs would be given free education in the schools run by the committee. Addressing a press conference here today, the President of the DSGMC, Mr Paramjit Singh Sarna, said that in recognition of the exemplary sacrifices made by valiant soldiers, “DSGMC will extend suitable help to the families of soldiers killed and wounded in action.” “We have also decided to contribute Rs 11 lakh for the welfare of the families of soldiers killed or wounded in action,” Mr Sarna said. He said that a committee has been formed to monitor the Kargil Relief Fund which has been set up for the benefit of the brave soldiers. “Contributions to
this fund can be made in all historical gurdwaras under
the management of the DSGMC where special counters have
been set up,” Mr Sarna said. |
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| Orders on Colonel’s
salary MUMBAI: The Mumbai High Court on Wednesday came down heavily on the Centre for deducting the entire salary of an colonel towards recovery of house rent reimbursement claimed by him for nearly four years and ordered the Defence Ministry to forthwith release his emoluments since May last. “No Army officer is expected to discharge his duties towards the nation, particularly in the battlefield, when such harsh and unreasonable orders were delivered” Justice M B Ghodeswar and Justice B. N. Srikrishna noted while hearing a petition filed by Colonel Mahesh Narayan Karnick who is now posted at the border. — PTI AICTE
approves college Red panda cubs
born Cops destroy
documents Synthetic milk
menace Under-reporting
malarial deaths Arms factory
unearthed 106-year-old
woman dead ISI agents:
court reserves order Red leader
surrenders |
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