Sunday, July 11, 1999
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President to think on RS
session after Cabinet nod Kargil heroes impress Bollywood
stars |
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Kargil to be poll plank
for BJP
Korean
ship had cargo of missile parts for Pak INLD
to focus on Sonia’s foreign origin
IMA
appeal to parties on population Cong
sends relief to Kargil victims Indians
more prone to heart diseases
4
units get special citation ‘The
Terrorist’ gets Grand Jury prize |
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President to think on RS session
after NEW DELHI, July 10 (UNI) — The President can consider convening of a special Rajya Sabha session on the Kargil situation only when the recommendation comes from the Union Government. Federation of Legislators of India secretary-general Vishwa Bandhu Gupta said in a press note here that he had received a letter to this effect from President K.R. Narayanan. The letter indicated that the President was awaiting the response of Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee. Earlier, Mr Gupta had urged the President to summon a session of the Upper House. He had suggested that as several major political parties had demanded such a session, the President should take immediate action as the custodian of the Constitution and impress upon the Prime Minister the need to convene the Rajya Sabha as the Lok Sabha now stands dissolved. Almost all opposition
parties including the Congress have demanded a session.
However, the Bharatiya Janta Party and its allies feel
that it may affect the morale of the armed forces if the
situation is discussed in the House at this time. |
Kargil heroes impress Bollywood stars NEW DELHI, July 10 (PTI) — Carrying a message of gratitude from the countrymen, a team of film and theatre stars flew into Kargil and Srinagar this week to boost the morale of soldiers but came back with tales of courage and grit. The team, which included Vinod Khanna, Shabana Azmi, Javed Akhtar, Raveena Tandon, Pooja Batra, Salman Khan and Javed Jaffrey, first went to the Army base hospital in Srinagar to meet the wounded before flying to the battle front in Kargil. Theatre personality Amir Raza Husain said it was an humbling experience. "We carried a message of gratitude for them and came back with stories of raw courage and a great sense of debt for the entire nation to share’’, he said. The stars spent over three hours at the Srinagar hospital going from patient to patient. Unlike VIP visits, this was a human visit where each of the visitors spent "quality" time with each patient — listening to their tales of bravery, holding hands and expressing their gratitude. Each star had his own way of dealing with the sagas of bravery and sacrifice. While Khanna regaled the patients in his chaste Punjabi, Jaffrey cheered them up in his distinct style of humour. The stars were seen off
at the hospital by hundreds of jawans who had gathered
outside to get a glimpse of the stars. |
8 Sikh spearheaded Tiger
Hill assault NEW DELHI, July 10 — The lion-hearted troops of the 8 Sikh spearheaded the operation to recapture the strategically located Tiger Hill in Dras area of Kargil sector. The crucial task of encircling Tiger Hill was assigned to 8 Sikh which was inducted into Dras on May 14. The other task given to the unit was cutting-off the enemy’s maintenance route. The Commanding Officer of 8 Sikh, Col S.P. Singh, taking into consideration the fact that at that point of time the unit was neither optimally equipped nor fully acclimatised for operating at extreme altitudes, decided to approach the task assigned in two parts. On May 18, after customary ‘Ardas’ to Waheguru, the soldiers of the “Chardhi Kalan” battalion started clearing features nearer to the maintenance road like Pt 4460 and Pt 4195. Sub Joginder Singh displayed exceptional bravery as he captured an enemy weapon bunker despite being hit and wounded. Thereafter, the unit started closing in towards the main feature. In the process, the battalion suffered six casualties, including two dead. Having made a substantial dent initially, one company moved out to isolate the main feature from the West. This movement was across the area with vertical cliffs, totally devoid of cover and under observation and machine gun fire. Nevertheless, Lt K. Bhattarcharjee and his men, with grit and determination continued to manoeuvre against all odds. The casualties suffered during this phase were three killed, 12 wounded and two missing (including Lt Bhattarcharjee). On June 3, another company was assigned the task to clear Pt 4660, beyond Tiger Hill and on the same day, Tiger Hill was cordoned off from three directions. The battalion continued the process of closing-in and putting pressure on the enemy as also reducing the size of the enemy position and inflicting casualties. The noose was fully tightened and areas fully secured to launch further operations for the final assault. Tiger Hill was captured on July 4 by 18 Grenadiers, while the battalion provided firm base, fire support and was ready to assault in the wake of 18 Grenadiers. Pockets of enemy resistance were cleared later and during the process, two enemy counter-attacks were successfully repulsed at a cost of 14 killed and 14 injured, including two officers. Major Adhikari who was injured during the action, contributed notably in the action. The encircling of Tiger Hill was largely instrumental in its subsequent recapture. The battalion suffered heavy casualties — 25 killed, 60 wounded (including two officers) and 2 missing (including one officer). The personnel who were
killed during the process of encircling Tiger Hill
include Sub Joginder Singh, NK Ranjit Singh, Sep
Sukhvinder Singh, Sep Jaswinder Singh, Sep Rushvinder
Singh, NK Bahadur Singh, Hav Surinder Singh, Sep Manjit
Singh, Sep Jivan Singh, Sep Surjeet Singh and Sep Satwant
Singh. |
Kargil to be poll plank for BJP PUNE, July 10 (PTI) — The stern action by BJP-led coalition at the Centre in tackling the Pakistan-backed intruders in Kargil and its "diplomatic victory" over the issue at the international fora would be the major poll plank of the BJP and the Shiv Sena, the ruling coalition partners in Maharashtra, BJP spokesman Prakash Jawdekar said here today. The "party will expose the double standards of the Congress, who are now making a hue and cry about Pakistan’s intrusion in Kargil while the party itself had kept silent when Pakistan had occupied one-third of Kashmir in 1947", he told a press conference. To a query, Mr Jawdekar said the alliance partners would take a decision on July 14 about simultaneous holding of Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in the state. Shiv Sena chief Bal
Thakeray and Information and Broadcasting Minister Pramod
Mahajan of the BJP would meet to take the final decision,
he added. |
Korean ship had cargo of
missile parts NEW DELHI, July 10 — India today said that North Korean vessel, detained at Kandla port since June 25, was carrying special material and equipment for the production of missiles to Pakistan. Briefing reporters, a Ministry of External Affairs spokesman said “it is our apprehension that cargo was destined for Pakistan”. In a statement, the spokesman said that North Korean vessel “M.V. Kuwolsan”, which docked at Kandla port on June 25 to discharge a cargo of sugar, was carrying 148 boxes having equipment for the production of tactial surface-to-surface missiles wtih a range in excess of 300 km. The contents in these boxes “included special materials and equipment, components for guidance system, blue prints, drawings and instructions manuals for production of such missiles”, the spokesman said. He added that these boxes were declared as having machines and water refining equipment. The investgations are continuing, the statement said adding that the DPRK authorities have agreed to cooperate in facilitating inquiries and completing the investigations. Consignee of the 148
boxes was a company from Malta, the spokesman said adding
that our inquiries have revealed that this company
“does not exist”. |
INLD to focus on Sonia’s
foreign origin NEW DELHI, July 10 — Congress president, Mrs Sonia Gandhi’s foreign origin would be the main election issue for the Indian National Lok Dal during the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections, the party’s working president, Mr Om Prakash Chautala said here today. Addressing a press conference at the party’s new central office here, which was inaugurated by INLD president, Mr Devi Lal, the working president said “Mrs Gandhi’s origin would be our main election issue.” Mr Chautala said “we are happy that she did not become the Prime Minister. What would have happened to the country if she had gone abroad like she did so during the 1971 India-Pakistan war, now when a war-like situation prevails in Kargil.” The party’s working president said the INLD was open to talks with all the political parties except the Congress for electoral alliance. Not ruling out the possibility of an alliance with both the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party during the Lok Sabha polls, Mr Chautala said the INLD would contest polls in Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan, Western Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. The party has re-nominated the four MPs for the polls, he said, adding the names of other candidates for the remaining seats would be announced soon. On the withdrawal of the
BJP support to the ruling Haryana Vikas Party in the
state, Mr Chautala said “the INLD would perform well
in the polls as the people of the state are angry that
the Congress had come to the rescue of the ‘corrupt
and inefficient’ HVP government.” |
Major’s body to be flown to TN TIRUCHIRAPALLI, July 10 (UNI) — The body of Maj Saravanan of Bihar Regiment, who was killed in the Kargil operations on May 30, will be brought here tomorrow by Union Power Minister and Tiruchirapalli Lok Sabha Member Ranagarajan Kumaramangalam. Tiruchirapalli district BJP spokesman R. Thirumalai in a press note said the body of Maj Saravanan would be brought to Chennai by a scheduled Indian Airlines flight from New Delhi and then here by an Indian Air Force aircraft. It would be kept for public homage at the infantry battalion grounds. Later, the mortal remains of the Kargil martyr would be consigned to the flames with full military honours. NEW DELHI: The body of Maj Saravanan was flown to Delhi on Saturday. Though he was killed in action nearly 60 days ago, his body could not be recovered due to incessant shelling from the intruders. The Army could recover the body only two days ago when the area was recaptured by the Indian Army. Wreaths were placed on
the body on behalf of the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister by Mr
K. Sampath, Special Officer of the state government based
here. |
IMA appeal to parties on
population NEW DELHI, July 10 — On the the eve of the World Population Day, the Indian Medical Association has appealed to all national political parties to include population stabilisation in their agenda and declare it a national emergency. Expressing concern over the uncontrolled population growth, the general secreratry of the IMA, Dr Prem Aggarwal, said, “we perceived this as the biggest threat to our country and want the government to treat it as a national emergency. It is alarming that with just 2.4 per cent of the world land mass, India supports 16 per cent of the world population.” Dr Aggarwal said that political parties should join hands to ensure implementation of the two-child norm, he said that measures as amendment of service rules in government service and denial of voting rights to those who flouted the norm would prove effective in ensuring adherence to the norm. He said that eradication
of illiteracy and gender bias, de centralisation of
programmes and people’s involvement were imperative
for the success of national planning programme. |
Cong sends relief to Kargil
victims NEW DELHI, July 10 — The Congress President, Mrs Sonia Gandhi, flagged off 14 vehicles carrying relief material for victims of the Kargil battle. The trucks carrying blankets, tents, lanterns, ration packets, clothes and medicine are expected to reach Kargil by Tuesday. A team led by AICC secretary, Dr S.C. Vats, MLA, Major Dalbir Singh and Mr Harnam Dass Johar, former Speaker Punjab Legislative Assembly will reach Kargil by Tuesday to surpervise the relief work. Mr Johar told The Tribune today that the relief would be distributed among refugees staying in relief camps at Sonmarg, Kaksar, Gomha and Leh. Overall supervision of
the relief work is being done by a committee headed by Mr
Jitendra Prasada. |
Indians more prone to heart diseases JAIPUR, July 10 (PTI) — The number of persons suffering from heart diseases are steadily increasing to attain epidemic proportions, a cardiological expert said here today. “It was estimated to reach 100 million by the 2010,” the President of the Cardiological Society of India, Dr Upendra Kaul told mediapersons, adding, this had made preventive programmes and cost effective treatments a necessity. Currently, at least 50 million persons in the country were suffering from heart diseases, he said. Stating that it was the
rapid urbanisation, high stress, saturated fat diet and
smoking which had made Indians prone to heart diseases,
he said South-East Asians were also genetically prone to
the blockade of arteries. |
World population report NEW DELHI, July 10 (UNI) — The United Nations population fund will observe October 12 as the “day of six billion” symbolising the birth of the child who brings world population to that figure. The century, which began with under 2 billion, showed a jump from 5 billion to 6 billion in just 12 years, thanks to the rapid decline in death rates in less developed countries. The world population grew 4.4 billion in the 20th century, by far the greatest increase of any century. In the 19th century, the growth was only 600 million, according to the just released 1999 world population data sheet. “Today, about 98 per cent of the world population increase takes place in less developed countries,’’ says Carl Haub who co-authored the data sheet with Diana Corenelius. According to its statistics, in May 2000, India will become the second country to reach a population of one billion, joining China. From 986 million this year, the Indian population will reach 1.16 billion in 2010 and 1.41 billion in 2025. In India, birth for 1,000 population is 28 compared to nine deaths. Never before have so many people lived so long. Life expectancy is now 64 years in less developed countries and 75 years in more developed countries. Life expectancy for men in India is now 60 years compared to 23 years at the beginning of the century. In the USA, life expectancy rose from 47 years in 1900 to 77 years today. As the century ends, there are more young people than ever before — nearly two billion below 20 in less developed countries. Women in Sub-Saharan Africa have the highest total fertility rate (TFR) — an average of six children per woman. South European women have the lowest TFR, 1.3 per woman. The data sheet says 50 per cent of the world’s population will live in urban areas by 2006. In India, the current figure is 28 per cent. In the beginning of the century, a vast majority of the population lived in rural areas. Fortynine per cent of married women in less developed countries now use modern contraception methods. The figure for India is 36 per cent. Contraception usage was 10 per cent in the 1960s in less developed countries. “This year, world population will reach six billion and begin its fast ascent to seven billion — a number that may be reached in record time,’’ says Mr Haub. Among the less developed countries, there will be dramatic shifts in where the greatest population growth occurs. Africa, which now accounts for only 13 per cent of global population growth, will account for about 34 per cent of the world population growth during the first half the next century. When will child seven
billion be born? “That depends almost entirely on
the number of children in less developed countries,
especially in Africa and Asia,’’ says Mr Haub. |
4 units get special citation NEW DELHI, July 10 (PTI) — The Army Chief, Gen V.P. Malik, has made a special instant award of unit citation to four units for their gallantry and courage in the Kargil operations. The 8th Battalion (Sikh Regiment) has been awarded for its meritorious and gallant performance during the isolation of Tiger Hill, which facilitated the capture of the Hill Top, and battles of ‘Helmet’ and ‘India Gate’ in Dras sector on July 7 and 8, an Army spokesman said here today. The 17th Battalion (Jat Regiment) has been awarded for its gallant during the battles of ‘Whale Back’ and ‘Pimple I’ on July 5 and 6 and ‘Pimple II’ on July 8 in Dras. The 2nd Battalion (Naga Regiment) has been given the unit citation. Ladakh Scouts has also
been given the special award of unit citation. |
‘The Terrorist’ gets Grand Jury prize NEW DELHI, July 10 (UNI) —’The Terrorist’ by the renowned film maker Santosh Sivan, which has already won national and international acclaim, has been awarded the Grand Jury prize at the Cine Manila International Film Festival. The Tamil feature film, which was directed and photographed by Sivan himself, stars Ayesha Dharkar, as a terrorist who has been assigned to be a human bomb to kill a VIP. The Manila festival concluded on July 8. One other Indian film — ‘Thai Saheb’ in Kannada by Girish Kassarvalli — gained entry into the festival, which also featured a retrospective of seven films by the renowned filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan. Several Indian films
have won major awards at international film fetes over
the past two months. These include the Malayalm feature
film, ‘Marana Simhasanam’, at the 52nd Cannes
International Film Festival, ‘When the Gods
Dance’ at the 32nd US International Film and Video
Festival. |
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| Feast of 15-ft-long
python BARIPADA (Orissa): In a rare feast, villagers of Bhillani in the tribal-dominated Mayurbhanj district recently shared the meat of a 15 ft-long python weighing about 18 kg, after killing it with bows and arrows. According to a delayed report received here, the python, a projected animal under the Wildlife Protection Act, was killed by the villagers after it was sighted on the fringe of the forest near the village. Kirit Majhi first noticed the reptile swallowing a goat. He suddenly raised the alarm and a large number of villagers soon gathered at the spot armed with bows, arrows and tangias”. — UNI Antelopes destroying
crops First blastocyst
pregnancy Oil struck in
Rajasthan Internet kiosk
for govt staff 3 Panchaloha
idols recovered Jails to be
called ‘correctional homes’ Students ransack
varsity office Urdu conference
chief quits CPI leader dead |
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