Saturday, July 10, 1999
|
N A T I O N |
|
| weather n
spotlight today's calendar |
 |
 |
|
|
Govt not to bow to gun:
PM Cong objects to Thakre’s
remark |
 |
Roychowdhury files papers for RS
poll CALCUTTA, July 9 — A former Army chief, Gen (retd) Shankar Roychowdhury, today filed his nomination papers for the July 26 Rajya Sabha election as a consensus candidate of the ruling Left Front and Congress in West Bengal despite differences in the CLP over support to his candidature.
|
|
Karnataka, UP leaders
join Cong
Vikrant may not be scrapped Vikas Yadav surrenders again
Citation for two battalions |
|||||||
 |
||||||||
Govt not to bow to gun: PM NUMALIGARH (Assam), July 9 (PTI) — The Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, today asserted that the government would not bow to the demands of insurgent outfits under the threat of the gun and vowed to crush those unleashing violence. "We will not bow before the threat of gun. Those who think that their demand can be fulfilled at gun point are badly mistaken and their efforts will fail," Mr Vajpayee said, apparently referring to the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) and National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN), who had given a call to boycott his day-long visit to Assam. Addressing a public function here after dedicating to the nation the Rs 2724 crore Numaligarh refinery, he said some external forces were trying to foment violence in Assam and threatening internal security in the entire north-east region. "We will crush those who try to unleash violence and we are determined to restore peace in Assam as we have done in Punjab and to a great extent in Jammu and Kashmir," he said. Referring to the Kargil situation, he said: "We are facing a conflict which we did not want. A war has been thrust on us and we are fighting bravely to protect our territory", the Prime Minister said. He paid rich tributes to Cap Jintu Gogoi, the soldier who made the supreme sacrifice in Batalik while fighting Pakistani intruders. He assured Captain Gogoi’s parents, who met him at the function, that efforts would be made to retrieve their son’s body once the area was regained from the infiltrators. Referring to the oil refinery here, he said it fulfilled commitment made in the 1985 Assam accord for providing the required thrust towards industrialisation and economic development of the state. He announced that the government would convert the Central loan for setting up of the plant to a grant. The Petroleum Minister, Mr V.K. Ramamurthy, the Minister of State for Petroleum, Mr Santosh Kumar Gangwar, the Minister of State for Communication, Mr Kabindra Purkayastha, the Assam Governor (retd) Lt-Gen S.K. Sinha, and the Chief Minister, Mr P.K. Mahanta, also attended the function. The Prime
Minister’s visit to Assam today was marked by
unprecedented security following the call to boycott his
visit by four banned militant outfits of the North-East,
including ULFA. |
Making Kargil poll issue NEW DELHI, July 9 — The Congress today took strong exception to BJP president Kushabhau Thakre’s assertion that Kargil would be an election issue and said the ruling party was reducing the gallant efforts of our jawans to a political issue for partisan ends. “The cat is out of the bag,’’ said party spokesperson Ajit Jogi, reacting to Mr Thakre’s statement. The Congress never politicised the issue and had extended full support to the government in its bid to drive the armed infiltrators from our territory, he added. Meanwhile, a five-member Congress delegation including former Union Minister Balram Jakhar met President K.R. Narayanan today and urged him to use his good offices to persuade the BJP government to call a special session of the Rajya Sabha to discuss the Kargil issue. In a letter to Mr Narayanan, copies of which were made available to reporters, the Congress leaders contended that President had the constitutional responsibility of ensuring the democratic functioning of the government. The BJP today said it was ready to counter any Congress campaign on Kargil in the upcoming Lok Sabha election. “If the Congress makes Kargil an issue, then the party will give a reply to it,” BJP general secretary Narendra Modi told reporters here. On party chief Kushabhau Thakre’s reported remarks that the BJP would make Kargil an election issue, he said “Thakre had said that all achievements of the Vajpayee government would be highlighted in the election and Kargil as such was not referred by him.” On the Kargil conflict, Mr Modi said the Pakistani action, especially in view of “voluminous evidence” of involvement of its army, posed a threat to the civilised world as Islamabad had “total disregard for humanism”. Referring to the
barbaric treatment meted out to Indian soldiers by
Pakistan, he said “this reflects the Nazi character
of Pakistan.” |
He could not keep his promise SHILLONG, July 9 (PTI, UNI), “Don’t worry, Papa... I’ll come home soon”, was a promise late Captain K. Clifford Nongrum made to his father from the warfront on June 25. He returned yesterday, albeit draped in the Tricolour. Recalling his son’s last words at the funeral held here, Mr K. Peter said: “I was worried when he was busy fighting the Pakistani intruders. But now I am at peace. His supreme sacrifice had made him immortal”. Hike in solatium CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government on Thursday ordered the payment of a solatium of Rs 5 lakh each to the families of defence personnel killed in the operations in Kargil. Six defence personnel from Tamil Nadu had been killed in the operations and the state government had already paid a solatium of Rs 2 lakh each to their families, an official press note said. The government had ordered an additional payment of Rs 3 lakh each to the six families, it said. Kids’ fast RAINADOAON: Hundreds of schoolchildren in this district of Madhya Pradesh observed a day-long fast to express solidarity with the soldiers fighting on the Kargil front. The children also paid homage to the Kargil martyrs by holding processions in the town on Thursday and raising patriotic slogans. The little ones collected Rs 6,000 to help the families of the Kargil martyrs and handed over the amount to District Collector L.S. Baghel. Welfare cells GORAKHPUR: The Uttar Pradesh Government will set up army welfare cells at all district headquarters to extend help to the families of armymen. This was stated by Jail Minister Shiv Pratap Shukla here on Thursday. He said it was the duty of the government and the people to take care of the families of the armymen as they were fighting the enemy in the most adverse circumstances in the Kargil sector. Mr Shukla was speaking at a functions “hum sab ek hain” organised by the Marwari Yuva Manch here. Goa Governor PANAJI: Goa Governor Gen J.F.R. Jacob, will visit military units on the Kargil front. The Governor, who had played a part in the Bangladesh liberation war, left for Delhi on Friday enroute to Kargil, where he shall remain till July 12. Christians to pray CALCUTTA: Christians in West Bengal will hold special prayer services in more than 600 churches all over the state on July 18 in memory of jawans who had laid down their lives in Kargil. General secretary of the organisers Bangiya Christiya Pariseba (BCP), Herod Mullick said people of all castes, creeds, religions and political affiliations would be invited for the prayer services. The BCP, which is launching a fund collection drive from schoolchildren and churches, would donate a portion of the collection to the victims’ families during an all-religion prayer meet at the Cenotaph near Esplanade on August 8. Day’s salary NEW DELHI: Sixteen lakh Indian Railways employees will donate a day’s salary amounting to Rs 18.5 crore towards the National Defence Fund (NDF) for the welfare of families of jawans killed and injured in Kargil, an official note said here on Friday. The Railways
Women’s Welfare Central Organisation (RWWCO) had
donated Rs 5 lakh towards the NDF and it would organise
charity shows all over the country to raise funds for the
families of Kargil martyrs, the note said. |
Roychowdhury files papers for RS poll CALCUTTA, July 9 (PTI) — A former Army chief, Gen (retd) Shankar Roychowdhury, today filed his nomination papers for the July 26 Rajya Sabha election as a consensus candidate of the ruling Left Front and Congress in West Bengal despite differences in the CLP over support to his candidature. The AICC General Secretary and the party’s candidate Mr Pranab Mukherjee, also submitted his papers. Besides, four other Left Front nominees — Mr Jiban Roy, Mr Chandrakala Pandey, Ms Sarala Maheswari (all CPM) and Mr Abani Roy (RSP). All candidates submitted their papers to the assembly Secretary, Mr N. Khan, the Returning Officer for the Rajya Sabha poll. Gen (retd) Roychowdhury filed his nomination in the presence of the state Home (police) Minister, Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, the state Congress President, Mr A.B.A. Ghani Khan Chowdhury, besides a host of Congress and CPM leaders. To a question that some Congress MLAs described him as a “BJP sympathiser”, Gen Roychowdhury said he did not belong to any political party and added that he was against politicising the Kargil issue. Despite his being the consensus candidate, the Left Front and Congress submitted two separate sets of proposals for General Roychowdhury. The Gorkha National Liberation Front also supported him. Earlier, about 30
Congress legislators including senior Congress MLA
Subrata Mukherjee, expressed reservation about supporting
General Roychowdhury’s candidature, saying that he
has “links with the BJP”. |
Karnataka, UP leaders join Cong NEW DELHI, July 9 — Two former Janata Dal leaders including a former Home Minister of Karnataka, Mr Roshan Baig, and two former Samajwadi Party MPs from Uttar Pradesh today joined the Congress. Mr Baig, who quit the J.H. Patel Cabinet in Karnataka earlier this week, also resigned from the legislative assembly. Mr Baig said he quit the Janata Dal since the leaders of the party instead of working to strengthen it and hold it as a secular outfit were quarrelling among themselves. The others who joined the Congress included Mr Qamarul Islam, MP in the 11th Lok Sabha, Mr Raja Venkatappa Naik, a sitting MLA and Mr Raja Rangappa Naik former MP. Their admission into the Congress was announced by Mr Ghulam Nabi Azad, General Secretary of the AICC. The Congress also admitted several leaders from Uttar Pradesh, including former MP, Mr Jagpal Singh, of the Samajwadi Party and his colleague, Mr Javed Ali Khan. Yet another leader from Uttar Pradesh, Mr Rajinder Kumar of the Bahujan Samaj Party, who was a Revenue Minister in the Mayawati Government, also joined the Congress. The UPCC Chief, Mr
Salman Khursheed, announced their admission into the
Congress. |
101 varieties of mango on one tree! NEW DELHI July 9 (UNI) — A single mango tree, which can yield 101 varieties of the juicy fruit, will be planted on the lawns of Rashtrapati Bhavan in August. The tree will be planted anytime between August 20 and 30, according to Kalimullah, who will plant the tree. Kalimullah, a mango grower from Malihabad in Uttar Pradesh, is participating with about 570 varieties of mangoes in the 11th mango festival, which was inaugurated here today by the Chief Minister, Mrs Sheila Dikshit. He said he had grown 317 varieties of the fruit from a single tree. The tree to be planted in Rashtrapati Bhavan, is six years old and already yields about 54 varieties of the fruit. The remaining 47 varieties will be grown here through grafting. He says the mango tree
which yields 317 varieties is 80 years old. He has
another tree which can grow 55 varieties. |
Vikrant may not be scrapped MUMBAI, July 9 (UNI) — The Maharashtra Government has decided to prevent the scrapping of the country’s first aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant, by providing Rs 6.5 crore for repairs of the decommissioned ship. The state government would also examine the feasibility of converting the ship into a war memorial, Shiv Sena leader Bal Thackeray told newsmen here today. Vikrant was auctioned for Rs 5.8 crore to Haryana Shipbreakers yesterday. The auction was carried out by the Metal Scrap Trading Corporation (MSTC). After visiting the decommissioned ship at Lion Gate, South Mumbai, Mr Thackeray said a final decision would be taken within a month. The ship had saved the nation in a crisis (during the 1971 Indo-Pak conflict) and hence it should become a war memorial for the fallen heroes, he added. He said he had spoken to Defence Minister George Fernandes, who promised that Vikrant would not be sold. Chief Minister Narayan Rane, who was also present on the occasion, said the state government would provide Rs 6.5 crore to the Navy for feasibility and repairs of the vessel. Meanwhile, sources at
the MSTC, which conducted the auction, said that the
auction did not mean that the ship has been sold. The
final decision rests with the naval headquarters. |
Vikas Yadav surrenders again NEW DELHI, July 9 — Vikas Yadav, an associate of Manu Sharma, prime accused in the Jessica Lal murder case, today surrendered again in a Delhi Court. He has been sent in judicial custody for three days by the Metropolitan Magistrate, Mr V.K. Khanna. Counsel for the accused , Mr G.K. Bharati, appealed to the court that Vikas Yadav should be provided security inside the jail as he is feeling insecure due to the political rivalry of his father, Mr D.P. Yadav, Jantantrik Bahujan Samaj Party leader and a Rajya Sabha MP from Uttar Pradesh. He also appealed to the court that Vikas Yadav should also be provided proper medical care as he was recently injured in an accident. The Magistrate ordered
the Jail Superintendent that Vikas Yadav should be
provided these facilities. |
Citation for two battalions NEW DELHI, July 9 (PTI) — The 12th Battalion of the Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry (JAKLI) and 1st Battalion of the Gorkha Rifles have been chosen by Army Chief V.P. Malik for the special award of unit citation for their gallant performance during the continuing Operation Vijay in the Batalik sector. The 12th battalion of
the JAKLI got the unit citation award for "their
gallant and sterling performance during the battles of
the Point 5203 on night of June 10 and 11 and the Point
4812 on night of June 30 and July 1 in the Batalik
sector," an Army press release said here yesterday. |
Bridge built in 38 days SOLAPUR (MAHARASHTRA), July 9 (UNI) — Is not one year a little too much to cross a bridge? So thought a private construction company, which was given one year by the government to complete its Rs 1.25 crore bridge contract. They did it in only 38 days. That is seven days less than the target set by the company who employed its workers round-the-clock. The 90-metre long and eight-metre wide bridge over a stream on the Mahad-Pandharpur state highway is a vital link in the annual pilgrimage to the temple town of Pandharpur. The bridge was opened by PWD Minister Nitin Gadkari yesterday. While the Limca Book of
Records has shown their eagerness to include it in its
next edition, the Guinness authorities have written to
the company for details, the company spokesman added. |
| H |
|
||
| Two convicted for dowry
death LUCKNOW: District Judge M K Mittal has awarded 10 years imprisonment on Wednesday to two persons involved in a case of dowry death. According to prosecution, the victim, Rukmani Devi Lodhi, who was married to one Shivraj Singh, had died on severe burns on May 14, 1993, after she allegedly set her- self afire. However, the FIR lodged by the father of the deceased said she was killed by her husband and in-laws for failing to meet their dowry demands. The District Judge, after hearing both the parties, found the three accused guilty under Section 306 and 498. — UNI Forest Dept training
officers beyond 52 3 killed in
cylinder blast ISRO to launch
two satellites 75,000 posts
abolished Gangster shot
dead Elephant dies
after miscarriage Eight killed in
accident Orissa’s
first woman legislator dead Lightning kills
three |
 |
 |
| Punjab
| Haryana | Himachal Pradesh | Jammu & Kashmir | Chandigarh | | Editorial | Business | Sport | | Mailbag | Spotlight | World | 50 years of Independence | Weather | | Search | Subscribe | Archive | Suggestion | Home | E-mail | |
