Delhi

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday has lauded the efforts of National Cadet Corps (NCC) in bringing about a change in the youth profile of the nation.

Addressing the NCC Republic Day camp 2014 here, Kejriwal congratulated the NCC for its untiring efforts and dedication in grooming and training youth cadets.

He also said that the NCC is doing a commendable job in motivating youth by providing them leadership skills to lead the country in all walks of life.

Delhi Chief Minster on Tuesday urged all legislators to rise above party lines and join hands to make the capital a better place.

In his reply to the motion of thanks to the Lt. Governor’s address in the assembly, Kejriwal said Delhi cannot be improved by only 28 legislators of the Aam Aadmi Party.

“Only 28 MLAs of our party cannot improve Delhi. All 70 MLAs will have to come together and join hands to make Delhi a better city,” he said.

“We cannot achieve Swaraj (self rule) without a dialogue among the members of the house,” he said.

Several Pakistani Hindus Tuesday burned effigies of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Urban Development Minister Manish Sisodia for failing to rehabilitate them.

Supported by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), the protesters gathered at Jantar Mantar, where many of them have been camping and raised slogans against Kejriwal and Sisodia before burning their effigies.

Kites of all colours, hues, sizes and shapes dotted the skyline of Delhi Tuesday as the 26th International Kite Festival opened here.

Over 40 participants from countries like France, Russia, Ukraine, Malaysia, Vietnam and Estonia and from over 10 Indian cities showed off their kite-flying skills through the day, leaving onlookers awestruck. This is the third time the festival has opened in the national capital.

When we talk of the food at an upscale restaurant we invariably talk of the chef behind it. But despite most of us finding the array of food available in Delhi’s old quarters lip-smacking, few of us remember the ‘bawarchis’, or the traditional cooks, behind the culinary magic.

Cracking down on corruption in Delhi+Jal+Board” target=”_blank”>Delhi Jal Board, the city government today suspended three officials of the water distribution utility and shifted around 800 others in a bid to streamline its service delivery mechanism.

Chief water analyst Vinod Kumar, patwari Sunil Kumar and meter reader Atul Prakash were suspended following orders by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Education and PWD Minister Manish Sisodia said after a sting operation by a TV channel showed the trio seeking money to clear use of water for building construction and meter reading.

Delhi Government on Monday warned private power distribution companies that their licenses may be cancelled if they do not cooperate with the Comptroller and Auditor General which is scrutinising their finances.

In his address to the Assembly, Lt Governor Najeeb Jung said CAG audit of the private companies is being carried out to ascertain their financial position and the firms must cooperate with it.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Monday tried to put an end to the controversy over Aam Aadmi Party leader Kumar Vishwas’s remarks on Muharram, saying he has apologised for it.

“This is an old issue, at one of the poetry conventions, he (Kumar Vishwas) had said something in a satire…” said Kejriwal.

“Kumar said later it was not his intention to hurt anyone. He also tendered an apology,” he said.

Kejriwal’s clarification came after Janata Dal-United legislator Shoaib Iqbal, who supported the AAP in the confidence vote in the Delhi assembly, threatened to withdraw support.

Cold wave tightened its grip in north India, with temperatures settling below normal in most parts as fog enveloped the region disrupting air, rail and road traffic.

Flight operations at the Indira Gandhi International Airport came to a standstill last night due to dense fog.

According to reports, around 150 domestic and international flights were affected, causing inconvenience to passengers.

Kashmir Valley and Ladakh region also experienced sub-zero temperatures as cold intensified and mercury plummeted several notches below the freezing point.

The national capital Monday continued to be enveloped in dense fog, which disrupted many flights and trains. The city was hit by the season’s worst fog Sunday.

The visibility dropped to 300 metres in Delhi Monday morning.

“My flight has been diverted to Ahmedabad, thanks to Delhi fog,” Anuja Mohan, who was on her way to Delhi from Dubai, told IANS.

People waiting at the city’s two airports for their flights complained that the authorities were not providing information about the delays and cancellations.

Delhi minister Rakhi Birla’s car was attacked by an unidentified person here Sunday evening, police said. The minister was unhurt.

The incident took place around 6 p.m. in Mangolpuri area of west Delhi.

Birla, a minister in the Aam Aadmi Party government, said in a complaint to police that she had gone to attend a ceremony held in Mangolpuri’s R block to welcome her.

“While returning from the ceremony, someone threw an object at my car causing a crack in the windscreen,” Birla told police.

The national capital experienced the season’s worst fog Sunday evening with the maximum temperature settling one notch below average at 19.3 degrees Celsius. Similar weather is expected Monday, the Met office said.

A met department official said: “Delhi experienced season’s worst fog Sunday evening after 8.30 p.m. The maximum visibility at Safdarjung was 600 metres and 50 metres at the Palam airport. Runways at airport are likely to become unoperational by 10 p.m.”

Aam Aadmi Party’s national executive will meet for the second day today to finalise its strategy for the Lok Sabha elections, due by May.

Yesterday, after a meeting at the Constitutional Club here, the year-old party announced that its first list of candidates for the national elections will be out within two weeks while the full list will be released by February 15.

AAP leader Sanjay Singh on Saturday said the list of candidates for this year’s Lok Sabha elections would be released in the next ten to fifteen days.

Delhi will experience a moderate Sunday morning with the minimum temperature settling one notch above the season’s average at 7.8 degrees Celsius. The Met Office predicts a clear day ahead.

“The day will be mainly clear, with moderate fog in the morning,” an official from the India Meteorological Department said.

The maximum temperature is likely to hover around 19 degrees Celsius.

Humidity at 8.30 a.m. was 97 percent.

According to the Northern Railways, 35 trains’ arrival to the national capital was delayed, whereas two trains were rescheduled.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said Saturday he would not contest the April-May Lok Sabha elections.

“I am not contesting the Lok Sabha elections,” Kejriwal told mediapersons.

The response came after a senior leader of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Yogendra Yadav, earlier in the day said he wanted to see Kejriwal as the prime minister of the country.

Kejriwal said Yadav’s statement was out of love for him.

Delhi’s Women and Child Social Welfare Minister, Rakhi Birla, one of the youngest cabinet ministers, undertook a surprise inspection of night shelters on Friday night to assess the plight of the city’s shivering poor.

Birla, a former journalist, has been making surprise checks at various government-run shelters ever since she took charge as a minister.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Sanjay Singh on Saturday said the list of candidates for this year’s Lok Sabha elections would be released in the next ten to fifteen days.

Commenting about the national executive meeting, Singh said, “This meeting will continue for the next two days. There will be a thorough discussion about the Lok Sabha elections.”

Delhi’s much-criticised Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), which all its political parties agree should be scrapped, can solve its traffic woes and reduce road accidents, if extended all over the city, Dinesh Mohan, an IIT professor and one of India’s acknowledged transport experts, said.

Delivering a talk on ‘Accidents, mythologies and science of traffic safety’ at the India International Centre here Friday evening, Mohan said the 5.7 km long BRT corridor in South Delhi was better than the one in Ahmedabad and should not be scrapped.

Despite Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announcing that night shelters running in tents will be replaced with portacabins to shield the homeless from the intense cold, many of the homeless said they would prefer sleeping on the city’s roads than move in to unsafe night shelters.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said Saturday that he will not be moving into the five-bedroom duplex government flat here, and has instead asked for a smaller house.

“I won’t shift to the five-bedroom duplex flat. I have received lots of messages and phone calls from the people of Delhi and some of my close relatives suggesting me not to accept such a big accommodation,” said Kejriwal outside the Constitution Club here before attending AAP’s national executive meeting.

It was a moderate Saturday morning here with the minimum temperature recorded a notch below the seasons average at 6.4 degree Celsius. The Met Office has forecast a clear day, but a cloudy afternoon ahead.

The maximum temperature is likely to hover around 20 degrees Celsius.

According to the Northern Railways, 10 trains’ arrival to the national capital was delayed, whereas two trains were rescheduled.

Humidity at 8.30 a.m. was 98 percent.

The capital registered 435 cases of drug pedalling in 2013 compared to 825 in 2012 – a decrease of 47 percent, police said Friday.

“While 435 cases were registered, 536 people were arrested in connection with drug peddling and a total of 3,206 kg drugs were seized compared to 2,007 kg drugs in 2012,” Police Commissioner B.S. Bassi said at the annual press conference.

There was also an increase in the quantity of smack, heroin, opium and marijuana recovered in 2011.

Former minister Haroon Yusuf was Friday appointed as the new Congress Legislative Party (CLP) leader in the Delhi assembly.

“The party high command has decided Yusufji will be our new CLP leader. We hope that he will guide us for good,” a Congress legislator told IANS.

Yusuf, a five-time legislator from Ballimaran, was the strongest contender for the post. Mateen Ahmed was also in the fray.

One in every 10 murders in the capital is sexually motivated, according to Delhi Police data.

The number of murders declined slightly in 2013 with 487 cases, compared to 504 in 2012 – a downfall of 3.37 percent. But 10.68 percent murders occurred because of sex related issues.

Analysis of motives in murder cases in 2013 revealed that 20.74 percent cases were due to sudden provocation or trivial issues, 16.02 percent were due to old enmity, 10.27 percent cases due to differences in the family, and 11.07 percent due to disputes over property.

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Friday issued a notice to the Delhi government for failing to provide adequate shelter to about 1.5 lakh homeless people surviving on city’s roads in the winter chill.

Taking suo motu cognizance of a media report, the NHRC has sought a report from the chief secretary of the Delhi government within four weeks.