Month: April 2010

New Delhi, April 05: Congress and BJP on Sunday attacked Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati for criticising the lack of funds for the Right to Education Act, saying the state government spent more on building statues and employing security men to guard them.

“Uttar Pradesh (government) has loads of money that they are spending on memorials. If that very money was to be diverted to empower the children of Uttar Pradesh and of course the children of India, perhaps that would be money better spent,” HRD Minister Kapil Sibal said, reacting to Mayawati’s remark in Lucknow yesterday.

Patiala, April 05: Government on Sunday said it has engaged prominent lawyers of UAE to file an appeal in higher court against the sentencing of 17 Indians on death row for allegedly killing a Pakistani.

The Indian Consulate in Sharjah has been taking services of prominent lawyers and an appeal to the higher court will be made within the prescribed period of two weeks from the date of judgment by the lower court, Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur said here.

Leh, April 05: In the wake of reports of Chinese incursions in the Ladakh region, the BJP deputed a delegation of its national leaders for an on-the-spot survey after which they demanded that Government stop the practice of issuing inner line permits but open up the area to tourism to defeat the “Chinese design of grabbing the land by inches”.

Washington, April 05: US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has left for New Delhi to launch the Indo-US Economic and Financial Partnership which according to him would set the pace and put and economic relationship between the two countries on a new trajectory.

Lalgarh, April 05: Chidambaram’s visit to Lalgarh, suspected Maoists on Sunday killed a CPI(M) student wing leader at nearby Binpur in West Midnapore district.

Partha Biswas (26), Secretary of Students’ Federation of India (SFI), Belpahari Zonal Committee, was shot at by six suspected Maoists, who came on three motorcycles, at Malabati village at about 6 pm, police said.

Biswas, who suffered bullet injuries in head and chest, died on way to Jhargram Hospital.

Karnataka, April 05: Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa has said he had not received any letter from any Central minister to seek CBI probe into illegal mining in the state.

His comments come in the wake of a satellite survey which was conducted by a Survey of India team in Obulapuram Mining area in Andhra Pradesh following a Supreme Court directive to verify allegations of illegal mining.

Tourism Minister Janardhana Reddy, who owns Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) and was also present, said he was confident that he would come clean in the survey.

New Delhi, April 05: Government has said it has engaged prominent lawyers of UAE to file an appeal in higher court against the sentencing of 17 Indians on death row for allegedly killing a Pakistani.

The Indian consulate in Sharjah has been taking services of prominent lawyers and an appeal to the higher court will be made within the prescribed period of two weeks from the date of judgment by the lower court, Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur said in Patiala on Sunday.

Jaipur, Apr 4: In a shocking medical negligence, a woman delivered a premature baby outside a hospital on Saturday, April 03. The newborn died just minutes after the delivery.

Meena, who was six months pregnant, had gone for check up along with her husband Ramratan to Government Janana hospital in Chandpole locality.

When she reached the hospital, she started feeling pain. Her husband said that that he immediately rushed inside the hospital to seek help but the hospital staff provided no assistance.

Bangalore, April 05: Antarnaad, a grand Hindustani classical musical symphony hosted by the Art of Living foundation in Pune on January 12 this year was awarded an entry into the Guinness Book of World records.

The citation issued by the Guinness World Records Ltd, reads, “The record for the largest simultaneous sing-along was organised by The Art of Living Foundation (India) and involved 104,637 participants singing ‘Vande Mataram’, India’s national song, at Antarnaad in Pune, India on 12 January 2010”.

New Delhi, April 05: A Delhi University professor was today detained by police for his suspected links with Maoists, including arrested leader Khobad Ghandy, police sources said here.

Sunil Mandiwal, an assistant professor with Dayal Singh College, was questioned for two hours before he was released, the sources said.

Srinagar, April 05: The Congress has made inroads upon the mainstream political base in the Kashmir valley, by enrolling 2.10 lakh members in five months, an all-time high. The membership figures from the snow-bound areas are yet to turn up.

Furthermore, 2,000 delegates have been enrolled to form the electoral college that will choose the PCC office-bearers.

A team of the Central Election Committee of the All-India Congress Committee, led by Tajdar Babar, monitored the process.

New Delhi, April 05: A day ahead of the empowered group of ministers meeting to re-look the national food security bill, the Congress Sunday said that the proposed legislation should provide maximum benefits to the needy sections of society.

“The needy sections of society should get maximum benefits,” Congress spokesman Shakeel Ahmed told IANS.

He said that present entitlement of below poverty line (BPL) families should be protected under the proposed legislation.

Lalgarh, April 05: On his first visit to this Naxal stronghold, Home Minister P Chidambaram on Sunday ruled out military action against Maoists, saying police and paramilitary will continue their operations even as he made a fresh offer of dialogue with extremists if they abjure violence.

Describing Naxals as “cowards” hiding in the forests, he said if they were really interested in the welfare of the people they should give up violence and come for talks.