Faridabad, September 13
Commercial establishments thrive in Faridabad in residential sectors as officials look the other way.

An ongoing drive to close down shops and commercial establishments operating in residential colonies here appears to be a mere eyewash considering the manner in which the district administration and concerned departments are implementing the directions issued by the Punjab and Haryana High Court in this regard.

This is despite the fact that the administration must file an action taken report against the commercial activities in residential areas, especially the Housing Board Colonies (HBC), in the Court on September 15. Hundreds of shops and commercial establishments continue to operate in various HBCs, ignoring norms.

The local administration had taken up a similar drive several months ago in the city. However, it had failed to close down shops, operating illegally in residential sectors. Many of the shops were shut down by the shopkeepers or residents themselves by constructing temporary walls at the entrance of their shops. Later, most of the shopkeepers removed the walls and resumed business as usual.

A petition in the High Court had prayed for closure of all type of commercial activity, including the markets that had come up illegally in several sectors and HBC.

It had been pointed out that due to functioning of such market and shops in residential areas, ‘official’ markets developed by the Housing Board or Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) had become defunct. A glaring example is the market on the road dividing sector 7 and 10 which the government had been directed to close down, but continue to thrive.

A PIL had also been filed in the High Court regarding this market which has shops operating in the rear of the residential sectors.

A prominent social activist here alleged that many of the illegal showrooms and commercial establishments in various areas, including the dividing road of sector 7 and 10, are owned by influential persons, including political leaders, which the authorities were finding difficult to demolish.

Claiming that the present ‘drive’ also appeared to be ‘eyewash’, he said the effort lacked “will” of the officials concerned. He alleged that as the authorities were to reply in the Court on September 15, the shopkeepers had been asked to close down their shops ‘for the time being’.

Sources say that this time, the majority of the shopkeepers were constructing walls made of mud and putting wooden doors at their shops to show that these had been closed down. Later, these shops would be reopened.

There is also some confusion regarding the legality of running shops on 100 feet wide roads. Though, as per the directions, such shops or markets were also to be closed down, official sources claimed that the state government had issued a notification regularising such shops. However, the officials of the Municipal Corporation, Faridabad, claimed that they were yet to receive such an order. 

New Delhi, September 13
A Residents’ Welfare Association, which had earlier challenged the grant of a one-year moratorium against sealing of illegal shops in residential areas in the Capital, today moved another petition in the Supreme Court challenging the latest notification of DDA permitting mixed land use plan in certain areas.

The notification issued on September 7 has virtually permitted illegal constructions and unauthorised shops in residential areas, Delhi Pradesh Citizen Council says in its fresh petition filed in the apex court.

It pointed out that prior to the September 7 notification, the DDA had already issued a notification regarding modification of mixed land use in Delhi Master Plan, which has already been submitted to the court.

The petition termed both the notifications as “unjust, illegal, arbitrary, discriminatory and unconstitutional inasmuch as an attempt to reverse the courts’ order in the garb of modifying the Master Plan.”

The twin notifications virtually give power to the DDA and MCD to regularise those constructions and illegal shops, set up in gross violation of the law.

This had been done by the government when the court was still adjudicating the matter, the petition pointed out.

It said that the citizens of the city were facing significant problems due to illegal constructions. The mixed use plan would further put pressure on infrastructure which is already on the verge of crumbling due to unbearable load, it says.

The petition has accused the government of “succumbing to the pressure of trading community and turning a blind eye to the welfare of residents”.

The petition is likely to come up for hearing along with the main matter which the apex court is already seized of.

New Delhi, September 13
More than one hundred establishments were sealed, nine properties demolished and 200 kiosks removed today.

Taking this issue seriously, a delegation of BJP municipal councillors led by Subhash Arya today handed over a memorandum seeking regularisation of unauthorised markets running prior to the enactment of Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and unauthorised colonies mushroomed in various areas of the Capital.

The memorandum demanded regularisation of 1700 unauthorised colonies, civic amenities to the villages. Junk shops, plywood, marble and paint shops should also be allowed to run in mixed land use areas. Coaching centres should be allowed in rural and urban villages.

The memorandum stated that roadside plots of Block A, F, G, H and J of Rajouri Garden were declared local commercial areas in 1967 and on this basis, the government should declare other plots commercial. 

New Delhi, September 13
The Metro is all set to roll in at Pragati Maidan ahead of the annual India International Trade Fair starting on November 14.

According to DMRC officials, construction work on the Barakhamba Road-Indraprastha stretch of Metro is targeted to be completed by October 2, but the section will be thrown open to public by November 10.

To make this public, the DMRC, which has several technical innovations to its credit, has constructed India’s first ‘extra-dosed’ bridge near Pragati Maidan. The special bridge, matching international standards, has been designed by French consultant company.

Incidentally, this happens to be the second bridge of its kind built over a railway crossing in the world, the first one being in Japan.

The DMRC says that there are 26 ‘extra-dosed’ bridges in the world, of which 15 are in Japan

The construction of the bridge was complicated as it had to be built over five railway lines on which about 200 important trains pass every day. Considering the daily load of rail traffic below the bridge, the structure had to be strong but no extra piers could be put on the 93-metre-long main span over the railway crossing.

The decision to build an extra-dosed bridge was taken after considering the functional requirement of the bridge and future needs of the railways. The expected life of the 196.3m-long bridge is around 120 years. Built by continuously joining segments, the bridge has been constructed at a cost of Rs 6.5 crore.

Meanwhile, it is reported that Metro’s dream of connecting Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the main venue for the games, might remain just that—a dream.

As per a senior DMRC official, the government has lost precious time and as things stand now, it might not be possible for the DMRC to undertake the project in such a short span of time.

New Delhi, September 13
Passengers boarding long-distance trains at New Delhi railway station may now be greeted by clean coaches, thanks to a “Clean Train Station” (CTS) drive.

A private company, entrusted with the job of giving a clean look to long-distance super-fast trains, began its 15-day operations on a trial basis under the CTS scheme today.

If the trial succeeds, New Delhi railway station will become the country’s 13th and Northern Railway’s first “Clean Train Station”.

The Railway Board launched the CTS scheme in 2003 to try provide international standards of cleanliness to long-distance trains between stations.

It was launched at Ratlam station of Western Railway subsequently extended to some other important stations after positive feedback from passengers.

Under the CTS scheme, private companies are hired to clean toilets, floors, windowpanes of AC coaches and corridors of long-distance trains with the help of modern equipment.

They will also clean rail tracks on platforms and take care of drains, besides filling water tanks in coaches.

The CTS scheme has so far been in operation at Ratlam, Bhusawal, Aasansol, Visakhapatnam, New Jalpaiguri, Guwahati, Ahmedabad, Itarsi, Chennai, Trivandrum, Vijayawada and Ernakulam stations. 

New Delhi, September 13
A three-member committee, headed by the UGC Chairman, has been set up to probe the allegations of caste-based atrocity and harassment made by a group of pro-reservationists at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).

Taking note of the complaints from MPs, media and other representations of harassment, the three-member committee has been announced by the government.

Other members of the committee, which is expected to submit its report within a month are K M Shyam Prasad, Vice-president of National Board of Examinations and R K Srivastava, Director General of Health Services (DGHS).

Refuting the allegations, Dr Kumar Harsh who has been elected the president of the RDA said, “these are untrue”. Referring to the last-minute withdrawal of the opposition members as “face-saving measure”, he said, “the RDA is not limited to a few members, there was a collective decision to vote, which is why the polling percentage this year has gone up to 60”.

Elections to eight posts including president, vice-president, secretary and joint secretary to represent RDA were held on Tuesday.

While Kumar Harsh won the prestigious presidential seat, Arnab Pal, M. Kukreja and Kaushal were elected for the post of vice-president, secretary and joint secretary respectively.

The winning panel that was part of the anti-quota protests in AIIMS, however, maintains that the RDA is not directly linked with the issue. “There is no direct link, the RDA has more functions and responsibilities. Yes, some members are part of the Youth for Equality that spearheads the anti-quota protest,” Dr Harsh said.

New Delhi, September 13
Students at Jawaharlal Nehru University will boycott classes tomorrow to protest against the administration’s lapse in fulfilling their demands. Except for examinations, all other academic work will be suspended for a day in the university.

“We had presented the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. B B Bhattacharya, a charter of our demands in March, but till now we have not received any positive indication from him nor has he met us,” said JNUSU president, Mona Das.

She said, “We will negotiate with the Vice-Chancellor tomorrow and then decide the future course of action”.

The JNUSU has put forth a demand for increasing financial assistance to students, they want the amount of the merit-cum-means scholarship increased from Rs 600 to Rs 1500 and extending this facility to Ph.D. scholars as well.

Democratisation of the Equal Opportunities Office, transparency in the examination system and implementation of the OBC quota are also in the charter of demands.

“We want the administration to make the examination system more transparent, by making public the marks scored in written as well as viva exams,” said Das.

New Delhi, September 13
Delhi Education Minister A.S. Lovely today claimed that the government was committed to promoting sports activities for physically-disabled students so their personality could develop.

He said that the government’s motive was to create a special environment for disabled students by promoting different kinds of sports. The government plans to develop new stadiums for sports, he said after inaugurating Delhi Deaf Athletic Championship-2006 at Chhattrasal Stadium.

About 600 disabled children are taking part in the championship.

The Minister said that before the beginning of the Commonwealth Games, Delhi Government would develop a residential sports complex at Ghewara, where all facilities including board and lodging will be provided to sportsmen. 

Ghaziabad, September 13
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav, who is gearing up to face Assembly elections next year, today announced gifting of two sets of saris for each woman in families living Below Poverty Line (BPL) and Rs 20,000 for girls opting for higher education.

Mr Yadav also asked students facing financial obstacle in pursuing their studies to write to him directly for help.

He said the girls who are pursuing studies after 12th standard would be eligible for the help.

He was speaking after dedicating the Lohia Park to the public here.

Mr Yadav said that if his party came to power after the elections, he would raise unemployment allowance from Rs 500 to Rs 1,000.

He however, dismissed allegations that he was announcing these allowances with an eye on votes of youths in the coming elections. “Would anyone tell (me) how can the money to be given to girls for education be used for such purposes,” he said.

Stating that his government was committed to taking the youth on the path of progress, he claimed that during the tenure of his government, eight lakh youths were given jobs.

He claimed that Uttar Pradesh was the first state in the country where education till 12th standard and treatment in government hospital, had been made free.

Mr Yadav also claimed that all farmers in the state had been paid their sugarcane dues and a total of Rs 18,000 crore had been spent to clear them.

He said his government was working on the motto of Dr Ram Manohar Lohia: “Food and clothing should be within reach of the poor and education and treatment free”.— UNI

Gurgaon, September 13
An official of the district administration today urged the elected representatives in Panchayati Raj institutions to expand their ‘job-role’ so as to be of more than utilitarian value to the people.

Speaking during a training progamme conducted by Nilokeheri (Karnal)-based Social Community Development Training Centre (SCDTC) for the benefit of elected representatives of revenue blocs Sohna and Pataudi of this district, the Additional Deputy Commissioner said that the elected representatives should take initiative in all aspects of life in the interest of people.

The SCDTC conducted a similar one-day training programme for the elected representatives of village panchayats of Gurgaon and Farukhnagar blocs yesterday. 

New Delhi, September 13
After a long delay, Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) today declared the names of its office-bearers and Executive Committee members as approved by party chief Ms Sonia Gandhi.

The list comprises eight vice-presidents, a treasurer, 13 general secretaries, 56 executive members and 101 secretaries.

Significantly, it includes a number of names from the dissident camp, which could mean continued trouble for Chief Minister Ms Sheila Dikshit.

The permanent invitees to the DPCC include the Chief Minister, Delhi ministers, sitting MPs, MLAs, former DPCC presidents, AICC office-bearer, Mayor, Chairman of Standing Committee, MCD and Leader of House, MCD.

Among the special invitees to the committee are ex-ministers of Delhi Government, MLAs, ex-MPs, ex-MLAs, former mayor and deputy mayor.

The list has been announced almost two years after Mr Ram Babu Sharma, an arch-rival of Dikshit, took over as the DPCC chief. The original list of office-bearers and executive committee members that was sent to the Congress president for approval comprised around 370 persons, which was sent back to DPCC for ‘trimming’. 

Noida, September 13
Burglars intruded into the house of a war widow, Ms Uma Naurayal, wife of martyr Major Anurag Naurayal, in posh sector 29 yesterday and decamped with cash, jewellery and valuables worth lakhs of rupees. Ms Uma had gone to her petrol pump in sector-52 when the incident took place. The whole house was ransacked.— OC

Noida, September 13
Two youths were killed here today when a dumper truck hit the motorbike in which they were travelling.

The victims, Bhupinder and Yashpal, both residents of sector 41, were on their way to Delhi when the truck hit their motor bike. The duo sustained serious injuries. Both succumbed to their injuries on their way to hospital.

According to police, a case against the driver of an unidentified vehicle has been registered on the basis of a statement of the relatives of the victims.

Meanwhile, another victim of a road accident that took place in sector 58, succumbed to his injuries after three days’ treatment in a hospital. His body had been sent for autopsy, the police said.

Noida, September 13
Two persons were killed and six injured in a fire at a food company in Surajpur here today.

The fire broke out at 4 pm at a food company which prepared ‘sattu’ for mid-day-meals. Eight persons incurred serious burns and were admitted to Kailash Hospital where two of them were declared brought dead.

SP Dehat Sudhir Kumar said seven fire engines were called from Noida, Greater Noida and NTPC Dadri. The exact nature of damage could be ascertained only after the fire was controlled, he added. The company is owned by the Ponty Chadda Group.

Witnesses said a cylinder exploded when welding work was going on.

Work had resumed in the company today after a similar incident had taken place last month. On August 17, the company premises had caught fire, killing 12 persons out of the 27 injured seriously.

The police are investigating. — UNI 

New Delhi, September 13
A site engineer overseeing construction work at a West Delhi shopping mall, where a business executive fell to his death, was today arrested on charges of negligence of duty.

Kulwant Singh, an employee of Movietimes Cineplex Ltd, was arrested as he was in charge of infrastructure development of the fourth floor of West Gate Mall in Rajouri Garden area yesterday, the police said.

He has been charged with Section 304-A (negligence) of the IPC.

B. K. Aggarwal, a deputy manager with Pearl Drinks Ltd, slipped from the fourth floor yesterday while inspecting a prospective site for opening an outlet at the mall, which is partly under construction.

The 38-year-old deceased was a resident of Rohini in North Delhi.

The police had yesterday registered a case under Sections 304-A and 201 in connection with the incident. Section 201 pertains to destruction of evidence as somebody had cleaned the floor of bloodstains where he had fallen from the height.—PTI 

New Delhi, September 13
A fire ravaged a cycle manufacturing unit in Anand Parbat area early today. However, no one was injured in the fire which was reported at about 4.25 am.

Twenty fire tenders battled for nearly two and a half hours to bring the fire under control and prevent it from spreading to other adjoining areas.

The police said that a case had been registered and efforts were being made to ascertain the cause of the fire.

New Delhi, September 13
Nineteen years after trial in a murder case, a Delhi court acquitted six persons, rapping the prosecution for its failure to produce any public witnesses in the case.

“Non-joining of witnesses from the public speaks volumes against the fair conduct of the investigation in the case,” Additional Sessions Judge Narinder Kumar observed, adding, “No witness from the public was asserted in the investigation, despite their presence at the time of occurrence and availability in the village”.

As many as nine persons of Sannoth village under the Narela police station in North-West Delhi were charged under various Sections, including 302 (murder) and 307 (attempt to murder), of the IPC in the 1987 murder case of Varinder Kumar.

Out of the nine accused, Ram Swarup died during the trial, while two others, Tara Chand and Indira, were discharged by the high court for want of proof.

The court exonerated all six accused — Jagbir, his wife Santosh and sister Geeta, Prem and his wife Sushila and Prem Chand in the case.

All nine had allegedly killed Varinder, son of Pirthi Singh, after attacking his family on the night of October 28, 1987.

The police seized a gun and four live cartridges from the possession of an accused, Ram Swarup. The court, however, noted that a quarrel did take place between the accused and Singh’s family but there was no convincing evidence on record to suggest from whose hands gunshots were fired.— PTI 

New Delhi, September 13
With the arrest of five persons namely Tanveer, Ravi, Veeru, Sanjay and Mahender, the special staff of the North-West Delhi Police today claimed to have busted a gang of bus robbers and pickpockets.

An amount of Rs 22,000 looted from bus passengers in Shalimar Bagh area was also recovered from them.

A countrymade pistol, two live cartridges and two knives were recovered from their possession.

The arrest was made after a tip-off that some men would assemble at Shalimar Bagh for robbing buses plying on Outer Ring Road.

“During interrogation, they admitted to have committed a bus robbery in Shalimar Bagh area and two cases of pickpocketing in Model Town and Sarsawati Vihar area,” said a police official.

New Delhi, September 13
In another narcotic haul, the police today claimed to have seized 1200 kgs of poppy husk worth about Rs 1.2 crore in the international market from north-west Delhi and arrested two persons in this connection.

Mukhtiar Singh and Mukesh, residents of Kaithal district of Haryana, were arrested from G T Karnal Road yesterday after the Anti-Narcotics Branch of the police had received a tip-off about their movement. 

New Delhi, September 13
The Director General, Sashastra Seema Bal, Mr Tilak Kak, today inaugurated a ‘Blood Donation Camp’ at the force headquarters on the occasion of ‘World First Aid Day’. In all more than hundred bottles of blood was donated by SSB personnel at the camp.

Mr Kak said, “We realize there is an acute shortage of blood in New Delhi. The annual requirement is 4,00,000 units of blood, which means the requirement per day is 1,096 units.”—TNS