Month: April 2015

CCL exceeds targets

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The Central Coalfields Limited has produced 55.64 million tonne coal in 2014-15, exceeding its 55 MT target for the fiscal.

The company registered a growth of 11.2 per cent in coal production compared to 4.1 per cent in the previous fiscal, the Head of the Department (CCL-Public Relations), Deepak Kumar, said today.

He said that in a span of about two years (2013-2015), six green field projects of about 40 MT capacity (to be further expanded to over 100 MT) were commissioned.

Family income limit raised to extend benefits of schemes

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Puducherry government today raised the annual family income ceiling for extension of benefits of various welfare schemes operated by Department of Women and Child Development for economically weaker sections.

A notification of the department said the annual income of the household, which was fixed at Rs 24,000 to provide benefits under various schemes,had been raised to Rs 75,000.

The revised income criterion has been implemented retrospectively from September 2014.

Tata Steel registers high hot metal, crude steel production

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Tata Steel registered hot metal and crude steel production of 10.15 million tonnes and 9.32 million tonnes respectively in the financial year 2015.

The saleable steel production was higher at 9.07 million tonnes, 1.6 per cent up as compared to last year’s figure of 8.93 million tonnes.

Hot metal production, which was 9.90 million tonnes last year, recorded 2.52 per cent increase at 10.15 million tonnes while the crude steel was up by 1.85 per cent against 9.15 million tones in Fy-14, a Tata Steel press release today said.

BJP slams AAP govt’s direction to route all files through CMO

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Delhi BJP today criticized the Aam Aadmi Party government’s direction to reportedly route all public order files related to police, services and DDA through chief minister’s office (CMO).

Leader of Delhi BJP Legislative Party Vijendra Gupta has urged the Lt Governor Najeeb Jung to send a report in this matter to the Union Home Ministry and obtain direction in this regard, demanding that till then, no files be sent to city’s government ministers.

Pak keen to strengthen defence ties with S Africa

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Pakistan is keen to strengthen defence ties with South Africa and will explore possibilities of joint ventures between the two countries, a senior minister said here today.

Pakistan’s Minister of Defence Production Rana Tanveer Hussain said that cooperation between the two nations in the field of defence related equipment is increasing on a continued pace and the two sides will also explore possibilities of joint ventures.

BJP leader files complaint against AAP for defaming his party

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BJP today filed a complaint with Delhi Police against Aam Aadmi Party for allegedly defaming the party by making fake calls and offering bribes to several of its own MLAs impersonating leaders of the saffron party.

Delhi BJP spokesperson Ashwani Upadhyay has written a complaint to Police Commissioner BS Bassi, demanding through investigation and the persons behind this be punished as per law.

Jharkhand people to be given priority in Class III-IV jobs

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Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das today said people of the state would be given priority in Class III and IV jobs and sought everyone’s cooperation in framing a domicile policy.

“In the interest of the state, it is necessary to work together in (framing) domicile policy and your cooperation is required,” an official release said here quoting Das.

Das said the people of the state would be given priority in Class III and Class IV jobs. He was addressing a function.

An all-party meeting, which was scheduled yesterday, has been postponed and is expected to be held on April 7.

Badal seeks PM’s intervention for providing compensation to

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Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today sought personal intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to provide a bonus of Rs 100 per quintal over and above the MSP of wheat to compensate farmers who have lost their crop to untimely rain and hailstorm.

In a letter to the Prime Minister, Badal apprised him that Punjab had been contributing about 30-35 per cent of wheat procured for the central pool for buffer stock operations.

SEBI not to revisit 25pc public holding shares norm in listed

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The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Chairman U K Sinha today ruled out revisiting the existing norm for 25 per cent public holding of shares in the listed companies, including the PSUs, and said that such a step will be a retrograde one.

“There is no proposal with SEBI to review the norm directing the listed companies with bourses, including the PSUs, to float 25 per cent of its shares for public holding,” he told reporters here at a function.

Astrologer injured in attack by gunmen

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Unidentified persons shot at and injured an astrologer, who is an accused in a murder case, here today, police said.

The assailants, numbering 2 to 3, fired at T Nagaraju in front of his house in Saroornagar area. He was admitted to a hospital with three bullets injuries, they said, adding the gunmen later escaped from the spot.

According to doctors treating Nagaraju, his condition is stable but he has been kept under observation, Deputy Commissioner of Police (LB Nagar Zone) Tafseer Iqbal told PTI.

BJP sets up LED screen giving info on membership drive at HQ

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With its membership drive extended by a month, BJP has installed a digital screen outside its party headquarters giving the number of new members enrolled and missed calls received.

BJP had yesterday claimed a membership of nine crores, making it the largest political party in the world, as its online drive to enrol new members was extended till April 30.

Though BJP has been projecting the membership drive as a huge success with the screen at its headquarters showing over 9 crore members and over 15 crore missed calls received, its rivals have questioned the claim.

Odisha DGP asks force to be alert on economic, cyber crimes

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Odisha Director General of Police, Sanjeev Marik, today asked the police personnel to be vigilant with regard to the rise in economic and cyber crimes across the state.

Speaking at the 80th Odisha Police Foundation Day after taking salute of an impressive parade at the police headquarters here, the DGP said the Naxal menace, organised crimes and economic and cyber offences are now the major challenges of the state police.

Police recovers SUV used by assailants in INLD MLA’s murder

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In a major headway in the murder case of former INLD legislator Bharat Singh, Delhi Police has recovered the vehicle which was allegedly used by assailants to carry out the attack.

The SUV, a black Scorpio, was recovered from Kharkunda in Haryana which had blood stains which meant that one or more attackers were also injured in the cross fire as Singh’s PSOs had also fired in retaliation, a senior police official said.

Police is now checking records of hospitals and nursing homes in the area to see whether anybody with bullet injuries was brought there.

Van driver, 3 school children injured in accident

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Three children and driver of a school van were injured after their vehicle collided head-on with a car in Bharat Nagar of north Delhi today.

While children escaped with minor injuries and were discharged after treatment at a local hospital, the condition of the van driver was said to be serious and was admitted to a hospital, police said.

The accident took place at about 7.30 AM while six school students were being driven in a van to a private school in the area.

Drug seizure case: constable’s police custody extended

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The special court for Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act cases here today extended the remand of a police constable, from whose cupboard at police station drugs had been recovered, to April 7.

“Police custody is being given to cover vital aspects in the investigation,” said judge U B Hejib while remanding Dharmaraj Kalokhe, the accused, to further police custody.

190 Indians evacuated from Yemen reach Mumbai

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An Indian Air Force flight with 190 Indians evacuated from strife-torn Yemen landed here on Thursday, while another 169 went to Kochi in Kerala, an official said.

In a highly coordinated operation, around 350 people stranded in the port city of Aden, Yemen were evacuated by Indian Navy Ship INS Sumitra in the past two days.

An IAF C17 (Globemaster) with 190 people took off from Djibouti on Wednesday night and landed at Mumbai airport at 3.30 a.m. on Thursday.

The evacuated people were handed over to the Air India ground staff for baggage and immigration formalities.

Chandrapur goes ‘dry’ as liquor consumption is banned

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The district became a ‘dry district’ officially from today, after the imposition of a ban on sale and consumption of liquor in any part of the district from April 1.

District Collector Deepak Mhaisekar convened a meeting of representatives from various industrial establishments in the district directing them to organise awareness programmes for their workers about ill effects of liquor and also conduct courses for de-addiction if required.

Liqour prohibition in the district was welcomed by many social organisations in the city.

HC warns bureaucrats of imposing cost for delay in filing

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Warning bureaucrats that it will be constrained to pay costs for delays in submitting replies in pending cases, the Madras High Court today imposed a cost of Rs 25,000 on the state government and directed it to recover the sum from the salary of the officer responsible for filing counter-affidavit in a PIL.

TRAI facilitates easy migration from one service provider to

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TRAI today prescribed a framework of norms which will make it easier for consumers to migrate from one Direct-To-Home (DTH) service provider to another, while also encouraging transparency in charges levied by operators.

Under a ‘Tariff Order’ (TO) issued today, TRAI prescribed for interoperability of Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) or Set Top Box (STB) offered by DTH operators to their subscribers.

Currently if a customer wishes to migrate from one DTH operator to another, he is required to invest in the CPE of the other operator, TRAI said in a statement here.

Imposter who cheated people offering government jobs arrested

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A school teacher, who posed as a personal assistant to an official in the Telangana Chief Minister’s Office here and allegedly collected money under the guise of offering people compensation and getting them government jobs has been arrested, a police press release said here today.

Central Crime Station (CCS), a wing of the Hyderabad city police arrested Bangaru Suresh, who is a resident of the Karimnagar district in Telangana hailing from Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh, the police release said.

Interim relief to miners with less than five-hectare area

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Himachal Pradesh government today allowed the owners of mines having area below five hectares and closed due to non-receipt of environment clearance to continue mining activities till July 12.

These mine owners, however, would have to obtain environmental clearances from competent authorities by July 12, 2015.

These decisions were taken in a meeting of industries department presided over by Industries Minister Mukesh Agnihotri here today.

Sitharaman unveils new five-year Foreign Trade Policy

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In tandem with Prime Minister Narendra Modi ‘s ambitious ‘Make in India’ campaign, Union Trade Minister Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled a new five-year Foreign Trade Policy in New Delhi.

The event was also attended by Trade Secretary Rajeev Kher and other dignitaries.

The policy, said Sitharaman, aims at making India a significant participant in world trade by 2020.

DDA approves Sanjay Lake View Complex project

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The Sanjay Lake View redevelopment project in east Delhi was approved by DDA today paving way for the area to be developed into a residential-cum-commercial complex based on transit-oriented-development norms.

The area is spread over nearly 10.26 hectares of land near Patparganj, and the decision of redeveloping it was approved by the urban body in its authority’s meet.

Irate students damage school workshop

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Rampaging students vandalised the office and workshops of an engineering school here today accusing school authorities of shielding a lab demonstrator facing sexual slur.

The developments capped the alleged sexual harassment complaint of a first year girl student two days back against the demonstrator.

District police sources said with no action taken against the accused, the students ran amok damaging school properties worth over lakhs of rupees.

Visakhapatnam: Turtle hatching increases despite cyclone Hudhud’s badgering

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The nesting and breeding of turtles has been an unprecedented success this year with nearly 93 per cent of the eggs hatching successfully, even after cyclone Hudhud hit Visakhapatnam last year.

Surprisingly, the cyclone proved to be a blessing for the endangered Olive Ridley turtles, as certain fallouts of the cyclone went in favour of the nesting, egg laying and hatching of turtles.

Moreover, the beaches were restored with fresh golden sand and proved to be an ideal nesting site for the turtles as all the old toxic sand was blown away.