STUdenT aGeR E A D T H E N E E D

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 20138 Pages Rs: 1.00Jammu Editionwww.thestudentage.com

JKENG/2012/41612Vol. 2 No: 40

Pope says willresign on Feb28: Vatican

Modi invited to attendEuropean Parliament inBrussels, his blog says

Notification of CauveryTribunal's award: A

boon or a bane?

IN BRIEFIN BRIEF

Page

7

Edito

rial

16th National Conferenceon e-Governance to

begin in JaipurJAIPUR: 16th NationalConference on e-Governancewill begin in Jaipur today.Chief Minister of RajasthanAshok Gehlot will inauguratethis 2 days conference.Minister of State in the PrimeMinister's OfficeV.Narayanasamy will alsoaddress the inaugural session.Theme contd on page 2

NHRC issues noticeto West Bengal Govt

NEW DELHI: The NationalHuman Rights Commission,NHRC, has issued notices toPrincipal Secretary, Health,West Bengal Governmentand District Magistrate,Malda on the allegations ofsterilization of more than 100women by two doctors in aday without ensuring basichealthcare facilities. Takingcognizance of a media report,a release issued by NHRCsays the operations werereportedly performed at acamp contd on page 2

'Issue of direct flightsbetween India-Aus to

be taken up'MELBOURNE: The issue ofdirect flight connectivitybetween India and Australia, along-pending demand of theIndian diaspora here, will beraised with the government,an Indian Minister has said. "Iam aware that there is a needfor direct flight between thetwo nations and I am going toraise this with the Indian gov-ernment," Minister of Statefor Planning andParliamentary Affairs RajivShukla, said. Shukla who isleading a delegation of IndianParliamentarians to Australiamade contd on page 2

Rs 10 lakh reward forgiving info on Yasin, 3

other terroristsMUMBAI, FEB 11:Maharashtra Anti-TerrorismSquad (ATS) todayannounced a reward of Rs 10lakh each for anyone provid-ing information on elusiveIndian Mujahideen (IM)chief Yasin Bhatkal and histhree aides allegedlyinvolved in a number of ter-ror cases. The anti-terrorsquad has also releasedposters consisting their latestphotographs, address andphysical contd on page 2

Afzal Guru hanged asper procedure:

Farooq AbdullahNEW DELHI,FEB 11:National Conference leaderand union minister FarooqAbdullah Monday said AfzalGuru was hanged accordingto procedure. "Afzal Guru'smercy petition was putbefore president. He rejectedit. The matter is over,"Abdullah told reporters here.Asked about the situation inJammu and Kashmir,Abdullah said: "Ask the chiefminister (Omar Abdullah)who is there. He knows whatthe state is going through."Farooq Abdullah is a formerchief minister of Jammu andKashmir contd on page 2

Page

6

ALLAHABAD: In a majortragedy on the most auspi-cious day of the MahaKumbh on Sunday, at least37 pilgrims were killed andover 39 people were injuredin a stampede at theAllahabad railway station.Authorities fear the death tollcould rise further and 17 bod-ies are still to be identified.Eyewitnesses say a policelathicharge triggered thechaos.

Union Railway MinisterPawan Kumar Bansal onMonday said that he wouldbe going to Allahabad tomonitor the situation as threemore bathing days at theMaha Kumbh were sched-uled. "I am going toAllahabad to see the situationand the preparations for thecoming days as three moredips are scheduled in thecoming days," Bansal toldreporters in the national capi-tal.

Speaking to reporters inthe national capital, Bansalsaid, "There has been no col-lapse of foot-over-bridge orany railing on the station. I

want to clear that stampedeoccurred due to people reach-ing in large numbers. We hadmade arrangements before

start of the Kumbh. We havecome to know that peopleturned in large numbersresulting in stampede. Still

there are large numbers ofpeople on the station."

However, the RailwayMinister admitted that there

was lack of arrangements dueto huge turn up of people. "Itwas not possible to accom-modate a large numbers of

devotees, who had reachedrailway station," he said.Giving the break-up of thedead and the injured, Basal

said 37 people had died while39 were injured, one of themcritically. "Apart from the

Rajnath Singh condoles lossof lives, demands probe

NEW DELHI: BJP President Rajnath Singh today con-doled the loss of lives in the stampede at Allahabad Railwaystation and urged Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansaland Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav tostrengthen the arrangements in the city during the MahaKumbh. Condoling the loss of contd on page 2

Nearly 3 lakh peopleNearly 3 lakh peoplemissing in Maha Kumbh missing in Maha Kumbh NEW DELHI: The proverbial story of brothers and fami-

lies getting separated and lost during the Kumbh Mela inBollywood potboilers is taking place in Allahabad. TheMaha Kumbh Mela is the biggest festival and takes placeevery 12 years in Allahabad. With a massive crowd at theMela, several people get separated contd on page 2

Injured would get Rs 2 lakhcompensation: Akhilesh

ETAWAH FEB 11: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister AkhileshYadav today said that those injured in Allahabad railway sta-tion stampede would be given a financial assistance of Rstwo lakhs. The chief minister today visited the family ofArvind Kumar Tiwari of Etawah who died in the stampedeyesterday and said that instead of contd on page 2

Allahabadstampede failure of

Centre, UP: BJPNEW DELHI: TheBharatiya Janata Party(BJP) on Monday said thestampede at Allahabad rail-way station on Sundaynight exposed the failure ofthe central as well as theUttar Pradesh governmentin managing large congre-gations. "We pay our hom-age to all those who aredead and pray for earlyrecovery for those who areinjured. contd on page 2

Azam Khan quitsas in-charge of

Kumbh Mela NEW DELHI: UrbanDevelopment Minister inthe Uttar Pradesh govern-ment Azam Khan onMonday quit as the in-charge of Maha KumbhMela organising committeein the wake of AllahabadRailway Station stampede,which killed at least 36people. According toreports, Khan, a powerfulSamajwadi Party leader,has contd on page 2

Allahabad stampede: Death toll rises to 37; UP govt orders inquiryBansal announces compensation, rushes to AhemdabadEyewitness

blames policeALLAHABAD: An eye-witness blamed the policefor a stampede at the rail-way station that killed sev-eral pilgrims returningafter a holy dip at the''Maha Kumbh'' here. Atleast 36 people were killedand scores of others injuredon Sunday night in a stam-pede at Allahabad railwaystation. Officials said thatmore than 30 million peo-ple took a dip on the occa-sion contd on page 2

SRINAGAR, FEB 11: A YouthUbaid Ahmad, injured in forcesaction at watergam in NorthKashmir's Baramulla district onSunday, succmbed to his injurieshere on Monday. Meanwhile, Lifein the Kashmir valley remain para-lyzed for third consecutive day onMonday due to indefinite curfewimposed by the authorities to con-tain the fallout on Afzal guru'shanging at tihar jail in New Delhion Saturday.

According to CNS, UbaidAhmad Rather of WatergamSopore who was critically injuredin clashes, died in a Srinagar hos-pital early Monday morning,police official confirmed.

On Sunday in Rafiabad area ofBaramulla district, four personswere injured, two of them critical-ly, when paramilitary forcesallegedly fired upon protesters onSopore-Watergham road.

Eyewitnesses said forces fired

after protesters blocked the roadand shouted slogans.

Sajad Ahmad Bhat, a class 11student, son of Zahoor AhmadBhat and Ubaid Ahmad Rather,son of Mushtaq Ahmad Rather,were rushed to SKIMS Srinagar

from district hospital Baramullaafter receiving bullet injuries inhead and thigh. Sajad was stated tobe in critical condition whenreports last came in. Pertinently, onSunday, A youth died when he wasallegedly chased by policemen and

was forced to jump in RiverJehlum in north Kashmir's Sumbalarea in Bandipore district.However, Police denied that hewas chased by the cops andclaimed that he died when a boathe was traveling in capsized.

People in the area came onroads on Monday when the bodyof another youth was recoveredwho was identified as ZameerAhmed Dar an 8th calss studentfrom Batvina, Ganderbal. So farthe toll has reached to three since

Saturday when Parliament convictAfzal Guroo was executed in TiharJail. According to reports

A body of another youth wasretrieved from River Jhelum nearWangipora village in Sumbal areaon Monday.

The youth has been identifiedas Zameer Ahmad Dar, son ofAbdul Rashid Dar of Batwina inGanderbal district.

Reports said the protesters car-ried the body and marched fromBatwina towards Sumbal amid profreedom slogans.

On Sunday, a youth, TariqAhmad Bhat son of MuhammadMaqbool Bhat died when he wasallegedly chased by policemen andwas forced to jump in RiverJehlum in north Kashmir's Sumbalarea. Massive protests were held inWattergam and Sumbal areas overthe death of these two youth.Hundreds of people came on roadsand contd on page 2

All the Minsters andMLA's in Valley

CM directs them tomonitor the situation

On the directions ofChief Minister OmarAbdullah, all the

Ministers and MLA's belongingto Kashmir Valley arrived inSrinagar on Monday. They havebeen directed to monitor the pre-vailing situation in their respec-tive constituencies and be intouch with Police and districtadministration. Confirming thisdevelopment,contd on page 2

Afzal's family receiveblank letter with out seal

and stamp

Accusing Government ofIndia for keeping themin dark about the execu-

tion of Afzal Guroo, the familyof the slain Kahsmiri youth con-firmed that they received thespeed post on Monday morningand the letter was without anyseal and signatures. "Wereceived the speed post onMonday morning which readsthat Parliament convict AfzalGuroo will be hanged. The letterdoesn't contd on page 2

KERALA, FEB 11: Keralahas become the first state inthe country to launch anambitious programme to gen-erate over 10 MW of solarpower through over 10000roof-top solar power systemsof I kw each to be installed atindividual houses.

The unique programmewas formally launched by DrFarooq Abdullah, Ministerfor New and RenewableEnergy at Tiruvanthapuramtoday. Oomen Chandy, ChiefMinister of Kerala was alsopresent on the occasion.

This is the biggest pro-gram sanctioned to Kerala, sofar, with an overall expendi-ture of over Rs 175 crore andbudgetary support of over Rs.80 crore from the Ministry ofNew and Renewable Energy(MNRE). The aggregatedand complete project is

expected to generate 15Million Units of electricityannually.

Speaking on the occasion,Dr Abdullah congratulatedthe state of Kerala for takingthis initiative and assuredsupport for the second phaseof the project aimed at reach-ing over 50,000 householdswith a subsidy support ofover Rs. 200 crores.

The project has been sanc-tioned by MNRE under SolarOff-Grid Photovoltaic pro-gram of the Jawaharlal NehruNational Solar Mission(JNNSM). The Mission-launched in 2010- aims toachieve a target of 200 MWof off-grid solar applicationsto be achieved by the end ofMarch 2013. This target isapart from 20 Million SolarHome Systems to be installedby 2022. The Ministry has

already sanctioned severalprojects to various statesincluding Kerala. It sanc-tioned various solar projectsfor schools, hospitals, policestations, panchayats, bus sta-tions, telecom towers andforest villages in variousstates. In Madhya Pradesh,the forest Department hasinstalled Solar Power Plants /Packs to power its checkposts, monitoring stationsand other establishments ofthe forest department withthe help of the Ministry.

In Jammu and Kashmir,the Ministry has supportedinstallation of Solar PowerPlants in all sub-district hos-pitals to provide uninterrupt-ed power supply for criticaloperations. Besides, solarpumps, for irrigation pur-pose, have also been sanc-tioned contd on page 2

Afzal Gurupens last letterto wife before

being executedNEW DELHI, FEB 11:Hours before he was to beexecuted, Afzal Guru pennedhis last letter to his wife, TiharJail officials said Monday.The letter, written in Urdu,was posted Saturday but is yetto reach his wife in Kashmir.

Officials at Tihar jail saidthat Afzal Guru, convicted forhis role in the 2001 parlia-ment attack, was told Feb 8evening that he would behanged the next morning.

"When he was told abouthis execution, he was cooland calm. He just expressedhis wish that he wants to writea letter to his wife. The jailsuperintendent gave him apen and paper," an officialsaid under condition ofanonymity. "He wrote the let-ter in Urdu, which was postedto his contd on page 2

BJP SlamsOmar AbdullahFor ProvokingSentiments In

KashmirNEW DELHI, FEB 11: TheBhartiya Janata Party (BJP)on Monday slammed Jammuand Kashmir Chief MinisterOmar Abdullah, accusing himof "provoking" sentiments inthe valley.

Abdullah, in an interviewpublished in a newspaper onMonday, said the execution ofAfzal Guru may increase the"sense of alienation" in theyouth in Kashmir. He alsosaid they may "identify withAfzal Guru". "Saying thatyouth in the Kashmir Valleywill identify with Afzal Guruis an insult to the youth in thevalley. They do not identifywith Afzal Guru. They identi-fy with cricketer ParvezRasool and UPSC topperShah contd on page 2

Kashmir reels under curfew on 3rd consecutive day, death toll reaches three

NEW DELHI, FEB 11 :The execution of Afzal Guruwas conducted under asecret code name given bythe Tihar Jail authorities,officials at the jail said.

"The code name of theoperation was OperationThree Star," officials said.

The preparation to hangGuru was started immediate-ly after the home ministrycleared the file Feb 4.

In four days, a hangmanwas called and arrangementswere made to hang Gurunear his solitary cell in jailnumber 3.

"Very few officers weretold about the decision. Thethree doctors and a maulvi,who performed his last rites,were informed secretly anight before. They wereasked to come early

Saturday morning.An official said, the

motive of giving a secretcode name to this operationwas just to prevent word ofthe impending hanging fromgetting around.

"Guru was informed aday before he was hanged.He had his dinner and sleptfor the night. He wokearound 5 a.m.," an officialsaid, on condition ofanonymity.

Guru performed hismorning prayers and alsoread few pages of the HolyQuran. He was calm, andgreeted officials on themorning of his execution.He knew many of the offi-cials by their first name.

Soon after his death wasconfirmed by the doctor, hisbody contd on page 2

Afzal Guru hanging code-named Operation Three Star

Dr Farooq Abdullah launches unique initiativein Kerala to generate 10 MW solar power

Page 1_.qxd 2/11/2013 10:43 PM Page 1

16th National Conference....of this year's conference is "towards an open

Government. National Awards for E Governancewill be awarded in 7 categories during this con-ference for excellent work in ICT sector. Ourcorrespondent reports that State wide AreaNetwork for Rajasthan R-SWAN will belaunched on this occasion.

ICT experts, educationists and various e-Governance stakeholders will discuss variousaspects of effective use of Information technolo-gy in governance during the 2 days conference.Aim of the conference is to prepare a road mapfor providing transparent, effective, responsiveand accountable system of governance to thecommon people with use of e-services. On thisoccasion The Chief Minister of Rajasthan AshokGehlot will launch the statewide area networkR-SWAN for e-governance, which will be thebiggest network in the country.4500Government offices at block level, will be con-nected with this network. An exhibition is alsobeing organized on e-mitra services in ruralareas during the conference.

NHRC issues ....

organized at Manikchak Village Health Centre,in Malda. After surgery, the women were left inopen outside the health centre for recuperation.Some of them were sent to their homes by rick-shaws even without keeping them under amandatory period of observation post surgery.The notices are returnable in six weeks.

'Issue of direct....

the comments at a gathering of Indian communi-ty here last night. Direct flights from India toAustralia were slated to begin by September lastyear. Both Melbourne and Sydney, which havebeen competing for the exclusive right to havethe planes land at their airports, were expected tosee Air India tails on their runways.

Tourism, trade and business between the twocountries have been booming, demandingincrease in air connectivity. There is also a largenumber of Indians living, working and studyingin Australia. Earlier last year, Australia's formerhigh commissioner to India, Peter Varghese hadsaid direct flights were also a priority fromAustralian governments.

Shukla said that the Australia and India rela-tions were gaining momentum specially afterAustralian Prime Minister Julia Gillard's lastvisit to India. "After the visit of Australian primeminister, the relations have improved," the min-ister said, adding that Indian diaspora has beenworking towards improving the ties as well.

There is a large scope to develop trade linksas well with Australia as the trade with India forAustralia is worth USD 21 billion dollars, hesaid. Shukla is leading a goodwill delegationcomprising several parliamentarians. He will beheading to Sydney and Canberra after his trip toMelbourne and Perth.

Afzal Guru....

and father of Omar Abdullah, the state's presentchief minister.

Rs 10 lakh....

appearance details such as height, built, age etc."We would like to announce that a cash

reward of Rs 10 lakh each to any person provid-ing information leading to the arrest ofMohammed Ahmed Siddhibappa alias YasinBhatkal (30), Dadar blast bomb planterTahaseen Akhtar Wasim Aktar Shaikh (23),Asadulla Akhtar Javed Akhtar (26) and Waqasalias Ahmed (26)," said Rakesh Maria, ATSchief.

All the four wanted accused were allegedlyinvolved in three co-ordinated bomb explosionsat different locations in the peak evening hoursin Mumbai on July 13, 2011. The blasts hadoccurred at Opera House, Zaveri Bazaar, andDadar West, leaving 27 dead and 130 injured,the ATS said.

Except Tahaseen, the rest three were alsoinvolved in the four co-ordinated low-intensityexplosions struck the busy arterial road in theheart of the Pune city on August 1 of the state.

The explosions occurred on Jangli Maharaj(JM) Road at spots near Balgandharva Theatre,Dena Bank branch, McDonald food outlet andGarware bridge. The first explosion took placeat Balgandharva Theatre in which one personwas seriously injured. The explosion outsideMcDonald occurred in a dustbin while the blastsnear Garware bridge and Dena Bank werereported from a cycle which had a bucket withexplosives strapped on, police said.

Yasin and Asadulla were also involved inbomb blasts took place over the years inAhmedabad, Surat, Bangalore, Delhi andHyderabad, the ATS said.

Kashmir reels...

raised anti-NC, anti-police and anti-Indiaslogans. Protestors beat the Tehsildar, Lar,Ganderbal to pulp when he tried to calm downpeople. People staged protests on road alongwith the dead body of Zameer Ahmed Dar, how-ever police and Para-military forces resorted toheavy shelling to disperse the agitated protest-

ers. Protests were going on when this report wasbeing filed.

In North Kashmir's Khanpora area ofBaramulla Additional Superintendent of Police(ASP) Baramulla Zubair Ahmad Khan wasinjured during clashes. He has received threestitches. Heavy clashes were going on in thearea, when this report was filed.

All the Minsters.....

the spokesperson of ruling NationalConference, Tanvir Sadiq told CNS that allthe Legislative members and Ministers have

been directed by the Chief Minister to monitorthe situation in their respective constituenciesand be in touch not only with people but withpolice and district administration officials aswell.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is already inSrinagar and has been constantly in touch withPolice and District administration officials."Omar has learnt a lot of lessons from the 2010turmoil when government was out of touch withthe people. This time he wants to be the part ofthe people and not to give any chance for anyoneto disturb the peace," an NC leader on conditionof anonymity told CNS. This fact was confirmedby Tanvir Sadiq when he said that ChiefMinister is himself present in Srinagar maintain-ing a strict vigil over the prevailing atmospherein Kashmir. Sadiq however refused to commentabout the party's stand on Afzal Guru and saidthat Chief Minister being the working presidentof the party has already vindicated the stand ofthe party.

Sadiq said that all the Ministers andLegislative members have been directed to mon-itor the situation in their respective constituen-cies. "All the Ministers and MLA's are present intheir constituencies and they are in touch withofficials." Sadiq said. It is for the first time thatduring Darbar in Jammu all the representativeshave been directed to be in Valley. When con-tacted one of the Ministers from ruling partyrefused to comment on the issue of Afzal Guru,however on the condition of anonymity he main-tained that one the instructions of the ChiefMinister, he is right now available for his peoplein his constituency.

Afzal's family....

contain any signatures or stamp and everythingis written on plain paper." Mohammad Rafiq, thebrother of Afzal told Srinagar based newsagency CNS.

He said that Government of India is suppress-ing the voice of common Kashmiri and don'tallow people to pay homage to Afzal Guroo. "Byimposing curfew and quelling protests state aswell as central government is proving thatKashmir is being ruled on police and militarymight. "Let the Government returned his body tous so that whole Kashmir nation will have aglimpse of him. He (Afzal Guroo) is the son ofsoil and he will be buried where ever peoplelike." Raifiq said and added that Afzal was afreedom lover who yearned for the freedom ofKashmir.

"My brother Afzal was not present in NewDelhi when Indian Parliament was attacked. Hewas unarmed when arrested from Fruit MandiSrinagar and executed for being a Muslim andKashmiri in particular." He said.

While talking to CNS, Mohammad Rafiq saidthat Government of India played a big gamewith them. "Two months before when her wife,Tabasum went to meet him in Tihar Jail, every-thing seemed all right then. He was 22nd on listand we thought only after the execution of 21persons his case may come up, but just being aKashmiri Muslim, his file was discussed in ahurry and he was executed without any informa-tion to the family. What sort of Justice it is? It isa judicial murder as he was hanged under politi-cal pressure." He said and added that for the first5 years Afzal was not allowed to defend himselfand Government of India didn't allow him tohire a lawyer of his choice. After 5 years, Afzalwas granted the permission but no Indian lawyercame forward to take up his case.

"We appeal Government to lift the curfewand return the body of Afzal so that people couldperform his last rites as per Islamic religion."Rafiq said and lambasted Government of Indiafor sending blank speed post to them after the 3days of Afzal's execution.

Afzal Guru....

was buried near his cell.Afzal Guru had been convicted of plotting

the attack on parliament that occurred Dec 12,2002, and sentenced to death.

BJP Slams Omar....

Faesal," BJP spokesperson PrakashJavadekar said. "He (Omar Abdullah) saidyoung man of 43 was hanged. Six of the ninekilled in the parliament attack were youngerthan Afzal. Why isn't Omar's heart crying forthem but sympathising with Afzal? We condemnit," Javadekar said.

"To raise the issue of discrimination is noth-ing but provoking the situation in the valley. Atleast the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmirshould not do this," he said.

Javadekar said such statements from a chief

minister were "totally unacceptable" when thecountry was feeling a "national sense of relief"after Afzal Guru was executed.

He also demanded a clarification from theCongress if they agreed with Abdullah's com-ments as his National Conference is an ally ofthe United Progressive Alliance.

Dr Farooq Abdullah....

in Rajasthan, Bihar, Haryana, Punjab andChhattisgarh. So far, over 50 MW of installa-tions have already been completed under thescheme. A subsidy of 30% of the bench markprice is provided as central financial assistancefor promoting various off grid applicationsincluding Solar Home Systems, Solar StreetLights, Solar Power Packs, small Solar powerplants, mini grids and solar pumps.

Afzal Guru pens....

family in Kashmir on the same day," the offi-cial said.

But the family, who live in Sopore, they saidthey are yet to receive it.

Afzal Guru was hanged Feb 9 at 8 am in theTihar Jail complex where he had lived in a soli-tary cell for many years.

His family has demanded that they beallowed to conduct his last rites.

Afzal Guru, who used to spend his time in thejail by reading and writing, has left behind manybooks and hand-written articles.

The family has asked the jail authorities thatall his belongings should be returned to them.

"The government will have to take a decisionon this issue," the official added.

Allahabad stampede....

compensation announced by the Prime minis-ter, we are giving a lakh each to the kin of thedead, Rs.50,000 to the critically injured andRs.25,000 to victims with minor injuries," hesaid. The Railway Minister will visit Allahabadalong with Chairman Railway Board VinayMittal to take stock of the situation and meet thefamilies of the victims.

Bansal further said that more trains have beenpressed into service for rescue operations.Bansal stated that even if the Ministry ofRailways run trains every 10 minutes, it wouldnot be possible to manage three crore people."The entire railway network of India ferries 2.3crore people each day. Even if we have trains at10-minute intervals at Allahabad, managing 3crore people may not be possible," he said.

The Railways Minister also said AC secondclass passes each to the relatives of the victimswho want to go to Allahabad are being offered,and added that proper arrangements will also bemade for their return. Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh has expressed shock at theloss of life in the stampede at the Allahabad rail-way station, and issued instructions to Ministryof Railways to provide all necessary assistanceto the affected persons.

"My government assures an ex gratia pay-ment to the families of those who have lost theirdear ones and to those who are injured from thePrime Minister's Relief Fund. The Central gov-ernment will extend all possible help to the stategovernment in relief operations," Dr. Singh said.

The UP government ordered an inquiry intothe stampede and asked the Railways to makeproper arrangements to clear rush of devoteesand sanctioned an ex-gratia of Rs five lakh to thekin of each of the dead persons.

"The state government has ordered an inquiryinto the entire incident. The 'snan' at Kumbh wascompleted without any problem...The unfortu-nate incident took place at the railwaystation.Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav hasordered an inquiry into the incident", SPspokesman and Cabinet minister RajendraChowdhury told a news agency.

Chairman Revenue Board has been asked bythe Chief Minister to inquire into the incidentand submit his report to him. Over three crorepeople had converged for a holy dip on the occa-sion of 'Mauni Amavasya' yesterday, a day con-sidered the most auspicious day during the 12-yearly congregation. A total of 112 trains rou-tinely passes through Allahabad and an addition-al 49 special trains were being operated yester-day. Both the DIG Railway and the DRM havedenied reports that a portion of the banister col-lapsed under the weight of passengers jostlingfor space on the over-bridge. Following themishap, the railways suspended movement oftrains for a couple of hours to carry out the reliefwork.

According to sources in the railway hospitaland the SRN Hospital, most of the injured,which include around 10 women, were fromeastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar who had cometo the station on foot in view of the massive traf-fic restrictions near the Kumbh Mela site. BJPleader Uma Bharti, who visited the accident siteand later met the injured, questioned thearrangements made by Railways ahead of thereligious gathering. Meanwhile, a number ofvolunteers have joined the relief work and areoffering assistance at the railway station, therailway hospital and the SRN Hospital.

The Ministry of Railways has also set uphelpline numbers. The helpline numbers are:Delhi - 011-23342954, 23341074, 24357660,

Allahabad - 0532-1072, 0532-2408149,2408128, 2407353 and Kanpur - 0512-1072,0512-2323015, 2323016, 2323018.

Eyewitness ....

of ''Mauni Amavasya'', considered the most aus-picious day during the 12-yearly congregation,at Sangam - the confluence of the Ganga,Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati rivers.

Thousands of people were at the railway sta-tion, waiting to take a train home, when themelee occurred. "People were walking on thefootbridge when suddenly police charged withbatons. Because of that baton charge, the publicpanicked and the stampede happened. In thatstampede these people were killed," eyewitnessAmit Kumar said.

It was not clear why the police waved batonsat the crowd, but Kumar blamed authorities fornot acting immediately after the tragedy. "Some10 dead bodies are lying on the platform rightnow and some dead bodies have been lifted fromthe top of the footbridge. There is completednegligence on part of the authorities, there is nodoctor, no ambulance has come till now, morethan two and a half hours have now passed,"Kumar said.

Rajnath Singh ....

lives in the stampede at Allahabad, BJPPresident Rajnath Singh on Monday said theincident could have been avoided if adequateprecautions had been taken at the railway stationteeming with thousands of Kumbh pilgrims.

Demanding an investigation into the incident,he said those responsible for it should be pun-ished. "I believe that if precautions could havebeen taken at the railway station earlier, thisincident could have been avoided," he said.

"Whoever is responsible for this must be pun-ished. I offer my condolences to all the grievingfamilies," he said. A stampede broke out at theAllahabad Railway Station on Sunday, leaving36 people dead. The stampede occurred at plat-forms no 5 and 6 where thousands of passengers,mostly Maha Kumbh devotees returning aftertaking the holy dip at the Sangam, had gatheredto board a train.

Nearly 3 lakh ...

from their families and are lost in the crowd. The district administration has set up lost and

found centre across Allahabad to help reunitethose who get separated from their families.Approximately, 2.75 lakh people are reportedmissing in the Kumbh.

Many of people at the lost and found centrewere crying for their missing sons, brothers, oldmother or some other family member.

Injured would....

Rs one lakh, as announced earlier, those injuredwould get a financial assistance of Rs two lakh.

Yadav said as of now the priority of the gov-ernment is to ensure that the bodies of thedeceased reached their families at the earliestand the injured get proper medical attention.

"The first challenge before the governmentand its officials is that those remaining in theKumbh reached their homes safely ", Yadavsaid.

To questions on the inquiry ordered into theincident, he said that it would cover all theaspects and any comment or putting blame onanyone before the completion of the probewould not be proper.

"All the senior officials including the chiefsecretary, DGP, divisional commissioner arepresent there and are looking after the arrange-ments and if required more officials would besend there", Yadav added.

Allahabad stampede...

This is the failure of both central and state gov-ernments. Bansal cannot wash his hands of thetragedy by giving technical answers like thefootover bridge did not collapse," BJPspokesperson Prakash Javadekar told reportershere. "Stampede happened at the station, asthere was much chaos. It could have been man-aged in a better way... This has been happeningin every religious congregation," he said. BJPleader Murli Manohar Joshi claimed the KumbhMela officials and local authorities did not havea crowd management plan.

"It was expected of the government and theauthorities to manage properly such a grandscale gathering. This time there was a recordbreaking crowd (in Allahabad). Yet, the officialsdid not have any plan to manage the crowd'smovement, nor did they know how to handle thesituation," Joshi said.

Azam Khan ...

quit taking moral responsibility for the tragedy.Khan, a popular Muslim leader in UP, was madethe in-charge of the Maha Khumbh Mela organ-ising committee by the state's Chief MinisterAkhilesh Yadav days ahead of the start of whatis being hailed as the biggest congregation offaith. On Sunday, it is alleged that a foot-over-bridge collapse at the platform no. 6 of theAllahabad Railway Station triggered a stampederesulting in the death of at least 36 people andinjuring scores of others.

STUDENT AGETUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013 2

Contd. from page 1... Mufti urges return ofAfzal's body

'Mahatma Gandhi's country look-ing like a banana republic'

JAMMU, FEB 11: Urging government ofIndia to roll back the draconian measures inKashmir that has imprisoned an entire popula-tion, People's Democratic Party patron MuftiMuhammad Sayeed has said the narrow mind-ed approach to the problem has already causedserious set back to peace process. In a state-ment issued today he said the least the govern-ment could do to retrieve the situation to someextent in the aftermath of the execution ofMohammad Afzal Guru would be to liftunconstitutional curbs on normal life andreturn his body to the family.

Mufti said it was sad that our democraticsystem could not accommodate some basicdecency and legal requirements in dealingwith an issue that could have very seriousimpact on the state and its future. He saidclemency to Afzal would only have lifted thedemocratic profile of the country, enhanced itsprestige and sent a positive message ofaccommodation to people of the state. "Ifthere ever was an overwhelming reason to usethe provision of commutation provided by ourconstitution both for legal and political rea-sons it was this", he said.

Referring to the setback suffered by peaceprocess in Kashmir Mufti said the latestevents have unfortunately created a sense ofdefeat among a people who have been bruisedby six and a half decades of uncertainty andbloody history. "I wish it doesn't consumeanother generation of Kashmiri youth but onecannot wish away the apprehension" Muftisaid.

Mufti said it is no good to regret the inabil-ity of the government to deny Afzal's family alast mandatory meeting with him or deny hisbody to the family. This he said reducesMahatama Gandhi's country, world's largestdemocracy and a genuine candidate for superpower status as a banana republic, he said.

Mufti said by the extent and scale of curbsput on normal life Kashmir today does notlook like part of Indian democracy. He saidnowhere in civilised world much less in afunctioning democracy could an entire popu-lation be imprisoned, news papers, internet,cable services banned and provisions denied."It is no less than a collective punishment" hesaid while demanding immediate lifting ofcurfew and other restrictions including infor-mation blockade.

Massive rush causedstampede, says railway

ministerNEW DELHI, FEB 11: The stampede at theAllahabad railway station that killed 38 peo-ple was caused by a massive rush of pilgrims,not by collapse of a foot overbridge or its rail-ing, Railways Minister Pawan Kumar Bansalsaid Monday. "I am saying it again that thefoot overbridge did not collapse and neitherdid the railing of the bridge," he said. "Allarrangements were in place at the station."

Bansal added that a massive rush causedthe stampede at the Allahabad railway stationand the administration is now clearing plat-forms of passengers.

Recounting what had happened, Bansalsaid: "There was massive rush and passengersbroke the barricades. Thousands of peoplewere on the foot overbridge. In such situa-tions, anything can happen."

He also denied reports of poor arrange-ments at the railway station.

"Arrangements were made well in advanceand there was colour coding at railway stationto divert the rush according to destinations.All arrangements were in place," said Bansal.

He said he would visit Allahabad to moni-tor the situation as three major bathing daysare scheduled at the Maha Kumbh.

"I am going to Allahabad with the RailwayBoard chairman to see the situation and prepa-rations as three more bathing days are sched-uled in the coming days," Bansal toldreporters. Giving the break-up of the dead andthe injured, Basal said 36 people had diedwhile 39 were injured, three critically.

He said the full focus of the railway admin-istration is on clearing passengers from theAllahabad railway station.

"I have spoken to Uttar Pradesh ChiefMinister Akhilesh Yadav and the governor(B.L. Joshi). Even now there is a lot of rush atAllahabad railway station," he said.

"Several special trains have been runningsince Sunday from Allahabad. The railwayswill run 220 special trains for next three days(Feb 11-13) to clear the rush. We are also try-ing to arrange more trains," he said.

Bansal said the lists of the dead and injuredhave been put on the North Central Railwaywebsite. "Apart from the compensationannounced by the prime minister, we will giveRs.1 lakh each to the kin of the dead,Rs.50,000 to the critically injured andRs.25,000 to victims with minor injuries.

Page 2_Defence_Bali.qxd 2/11/2013 10:54 PM Page 1

STATESTUDENT AGETUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013 3

NEWS IN BOXBhaderwah deputation calls on Vikar

JAMMU, FEB 11: A deputation from Bhaderwah led byNadeem Sharief Niaz and Neeraj Kundan today called on theMinister of State for Technical Education, Power,Information, Mr. Vikar Rasool.

The deputation demanded provision for admission to thefemale students in ITI Bhalesa, besides introduction of newcourses there as well as in ITI Bhaderwah. They alsodemanded attachment of electric division Kishtwar to Doda,besides early repair work on 33KV line between Thathri andBhalesa. The Minister assured the deputation that all theirgenuine demands would be looked into and redressed withinthe shortest possible time. He said that it is the endeavour ofthe government to ensure that the people living in the ruraland far-flung areas of the state get all basic amenities and inthis regard several projects have been started.

Social audit of MGNREGA heldJAMMU, FEB 11: The social audit for the works underMGNREGA was held today in Panchayat Jaswan BlockMarh, of District Jammu.

In the Gram Sabha people participated enthusiastically.Besides the public of the Panchayat, Sarpanch Mr. NarinderSingh, Panches, Assistant Commissioner DevelopmentJammu, Mr. K. K Sidha, Block Development Officer, Marh,Mr. M. L. Tasir and other officials of the Block were presentin the Gram Sabha. The Social Audit was held in the openground adjacent to the Panchayat Ghar Jaswan under thechairmanship of Director Social Audit MGNREGA, Dr.Abdul Ghani Sofi. All sections of the population participatedin the discussions. They discussed the issues which were rel-evant to them. However there was no complaint regardingthe payment made, works undertaken, quality of works,made under MGREGA. However people showed interest intaking up more works under the scheme. Even house to thehouseless under IAY was discussed in the Gram Sabha.

The Public however demanded that wages under MGN-REGA be enhanced as they ate meager. During discussionssome works of emergent nature were identified by public.The ACD with the concurrence of Sarpanches and Panchesissued necessary instructions for their execution on spot.

The social audit was conducted smoothly with coopera-tion of all stakeholders.

Availability of Ambulances forneedy people

SRINAGAR, FEB 11: In view of the prevailingsituation/restrictions in the valley imposed by DistrictMagistrates, the Divisional Commissioner Kashmir hasarranged three mobile ambulances for convenience of gener-al public. In case of any emergency the needy people arehereby informed to contact Divisional Commissioner,Kashmir, Dr. Asgar Hassan Samoon, on Mobile No.9419015150.

Geelani issues fresh calendar SRINAGAR,FEB 11: Days after Muhammad Afzal Guruwas hanged in Delhi's Tihar jail, Chairman HurriyatConference (G) Syed Ali Shah has issued a fresh four dayprotest calendar and has also called for 'Eidgah Chalo' onFriday 15th February.

Spokesman Hurriyat Conference (G) Dr GhulamMuhammad Ganaie while quoting Syed Ali Shah Geelanitold Kashmir Monitor over phone that Geelani has appealedthe people to observe complete shutdown on Tuesday andalso offer funeral prayers in absentia for Afzal Guru at alldistrict Headquarters across Kashmir valley.

"We appeal people to offer funeral prayers in absentia forGuru on Tuesday at all district headquarters," Ganaie saidand added that on Wednesday, Thursday people are appealedto observe complete shutdown to protest Afzal's execution.

"We demand that the remains of Maqbool Bhat be hand-ed over to his family and also the body of the MuhammadAfzal guru be handed over to Kashmiri's," Ganaie said.

NC for four-laning of Akhnoor RoadJAMMU FEB 11: Senior National Conference leader andFormer Minister Pandit Govind Ram Sharma on Mondayurged the government to initiate work on the four laning ofJammu-Akhnoor road expeditiously keeping in view thevehicular rush on the highway. In a statement, Mr Sharmaand former legislators Thakur Kashmira Singh, Mr BrijMohan Sharma and Mr Bushan Lal Bhat said that frequentjams being caused due to heavy traffic rush particularly atthe Canal Head and Bakshi Nagar squares during peak hourscause lot of problems to commuters. The constant irritantputs the people thronging to the city from Akhnoor andadjoining areas in great hardships, the leaders complained.

They said that the road for four laning has already beenacquired by the government and emphasised the importanceof the highway which remains over busy due to civil andarmy vehicular movement.

Shabir calls on Union Health MinisterJAMMU, FEB 11: Minister of State for Health, Mr. ShabirAhmed Khan, yesterday evening called on Union HealthMinister, Mr. Ghulam Nabi Azad at New Delhi.

The Minister apprised Union Health Minister about phys-ical and financial achievements registered under health sec-tor in Jammu and Kashmir. Mr. Shabir also briefed the UnionHealth Minister about the implementation of various compo-nents of NRHM in the state. He informed that several hospi-tal complexes, besides other related health infrastructure wasapace in the state under NRHM and would be completed instipulated time frame. The State Health Minister urged forrelease of additional funds under NRHM. He said that 90%funds released so far by the Union Health Ministry to thestate under NRHM have been utilized in full for creation andupgradation of health infrastructure in the state. He said thereis dire need for release of additional funds to the state underNRHM for carrying out the construction works of ongoingprojects, besides purchase of health equipments for hospitals.

JAMMU, FEB 11: ShriAmarnathji Shrine Board hasprescribed the Food Menu tobe served by the LangarOrganizations to the Yatrisduring this year's ShriAmarnathji Yatra which isscheduled to commence on28thJune, 2013 and concludeon 21st August, 2013. Thiswas disclosed by Mr. NavinK. Choudhary, CEO, SASB.He informed that all friedand high caloric fatty itemslike poori, bhatoora, pizza,burger, stuffed prantha, dosaand fried roti, bread butter,cream/butter based food, andall other fried/fast food, colddrinks, high caloric sweetdishes and intoxicants havebeen banned.

Mr. Choudhary informedthat high protein food like

cereals, pulses, potato, saag,nutrela (soya chunks), basincurry, roti, tandoori roti,bread, rusks, tea, coffee, fruitjuice, vegetable soup, kheer,dry fruit etc which providestamina and keep body light,have been permitted to beserved to the Yatris. Shri N.N. Vohra, Governor, who isChairman of the ShriAmarnathji Shrine Board,has asked CEO, SASB toensure effective implementa-tion of the expert advicereceived and revise theTerms and Conditions of theLanger permissions to bindthe Langars to serve food tothe Yatris strictly in accor-dance with the Food Menu.

Mr. Choudhary furtherinformed that the SpecialHigh Powered Committee

constituted by the SupremeCourt had earlier observedthat a large number of fooditems included in the Menuof Langar Organizationswere not suitable for pil-grims who are required totrek in high altitude areasand recommended that anExpert Committee shouldprepare an appropriate FoodMenu to be adhered to by theLangar Organizations.

The Food Menu has beenformulated by the committeecomprising Mr. Navin K.Choudhary, Chief ExecutiveOfficer, Shri AmarnathjiShrine Board, Col. RajulGupta (High AltitudeMedicine Specialist) fromUnion Health Ministry, Dr.Jahangir Bakshi and Dr.Sham Gopal from the J&K

State Health Department inits meeting held on 7th

January, 2013 at Jammu. Atable containing the permit-

ted/banned food items in theYatra area is as under:

Expert Committee prescribes Food Menu for YatrisPermitted Menu : Cereals, Pulses, Green

Vegetables, Potato, Saag, Nutrela (SoyaChunks), Besan Curry, Plain Dal, GreenSalad, Fruits, boiled / instant noodles,Chowmein, Sprouts.

Banned Menu: All Non-Vegetarian foods,Alcohols, Tabacco, Gutka, Pan Masala,Smoking, other intoxicants.

Permitted Menu: Plain Rice, Zeera Rice,Khichri and Nutrela Rice.

Banned Menu: Heavy Pullav / Fried Rice.Permitted Menu: Roti / Phulka, Dal Roti,

Missi Roti, Makki ki Roti (Un-fried),Tandoori Roti, Bread / Kulcha/DoubleRoti, Rusk, Chocolate, Biscuits, RoastedChanna and Jaggery, Samber, Idli,Uttapam, Poha, Vegetable Sandwichwith cream/ butter/cheese, Bread Jam,Kashmiri nan (girda), steam dumplings(vegetable momos).

Banned Menu: Poori, Bathura, Piza,Burger, stuffed Parantha, Dosa and Friedroti, Bread butter , Pickles, Chutney

based foods, butter based foods, Pickle,Chutney and fried papad, all other fried /fast food.

Permitted Menu:Herbal Tea, Coffee,Curd, Sharbat, Lassi, Lemon Squash /Water, Low fat milk, Fruits Juice,Vegetable Soup, tomato soup, mineralwater.

Banned Menu:Cold drinks and Kharrah.Permitted Menu: Kheer (Rice / Sabudana),

White Oat (Daliya), Figs, Raisins,Apricots, Other Dry fruits (only roasted /raw), Low fat milk, sawain, Honey,Boiled sweets (candy), Roasted Papad,Khakra, Tila ka Ladoo, Dhokla, Chikki(Guchak), Reweri.

Banned Menu: Halwa, Jalebi, GulabJamun, Laddu, Khoya Burfi, Rasgullaand all other Halwai items, CrunchySnacks (high in fat and salts) Chips /kurkure, Matthi, Namkeen Mixture,Pakora, Samosa, Fried dry fruits and allother deep fried items.

Shri Amarnathji Yatra-2013

DDC reviewsperformance of depttsRAJOURI, FEB 11: District DevelopmentCommissioner (DDC), Rajouri, SaugatBiswas reviewed the performance of variousdepartments under the district plan.

The chair was informed that under the rev-enue component Rs.2072.34 lakh have beenexpanded till January 2013 against the avail-able funds to the tune of Rs.3201.49 lakh.

Similarly under capital component out oftotal available funds of Rs.3114.63 lakh aboutRs.5660.29 lakh have been incurred which is70% expenditure of the total district plan.

The DDC exhorted upon the concernedofficers ensure the set targets are achieved instipulated timeframe.

Power shut downJAMMU, FEB 11:In order to carry out thework of dismantling of towers of 132 KV D/CRajouri-Draba transmission line, the powersupply to Poonch district shall remain affect-ed on February 12, 2013 from 10:00 hours to17:00 hours.

Governor appointsKhoda as CVC, Jerath VCJAMMU, FEB 11: Governor N. N. Vohrahas appointed Kuldeep Khoda IPS, (Retd) asthe Chief Vigilance Commissioner and R. K.Jerath IAS, (Retd) as VigilanceCommissioner in the State VigilanceCommission. These appointments shall takeeffect from the date the officers assumecharge of the posts in the State VigilanceCommission.

Secretary LA issuesnotice for LC polls

JAMMU, FEB 11: The Secretary Jammu andKashmir Legislative Assembly issued notifi-cation for election to 8 seats of J&KLegislative Council today. As per the notifica-tion the forms of nomination paper shall beobtained from the offices of Returning offi-cer/Assistant Returning officer(SecretaryJ&K Legislative Assembly, Deputy SecretaryJ&K Legislative Assembly) from February11-2013 to February 18 -2013.

Scrutiny of nomination papers shall beheld on February 19 while as February 21 isthe last date for withdrawal of nominationpapers. Elections, if necessary, will be held onMarch 7 between 10 am and 2 pm.

SRINAGAR, FEB 11: TheHuman Rights Forum (HRF)strongly condemns the executionof Afzal Guru calling the execu-tion, injustice and inhumanwhich was done in a tearinghurry. "It is a dark day for ourdemocracy. HRF is in principleopposed to capital punishment inall cases without exception. Thisis regardless of the nature or cir-cumstances of the crime; guilt,innocence or other characteris-tics of the individual. The deathpenalty is the ultimate denial ofhuman rights and has no deter-rent effect. We believe it is bru-tal, uncivilised, arbitrary and

discriminatory. It is nothing butthe premeditated and cold-blooded killing of a human beingby the State and it violates theright to life as proclaimed in theUniversal Declaration of HumanRights."

It is well to remember that allthe five attackers of Parliamentwere killed in the gunfight thatvery day and Afzal Guru'salleged involvement in the plan-ning of the attack on Parliamentis the only reason why he wassentenced to die. This is no waymeets the "rarest of rare" criteriafor which the death sentence isallowed for in Indian law. It is

therefore unfortunate that theSupreme Court also succumbedto the common emotion of ret-ributive justice when it notedthat sentencing him to deathwould satisfy "the collectiveconscience of the society". This,when the evidence against Guruwas thin and circumstantial. In astatement, the HRF sid thatunfortunately, Afzal's case wasenmeshed in a politics of hatefrom the very moment of hisarrest.

The trail itself was flawed. Itwas based on faulty investiga-tion, circumstantial evidence andthe arbitrary role of the police

was deeply suspect from thevery beginning. Moreover, AfzalGuru did not have adequate legalrepresentation in the course ofhis trial.

According to AmnestyInternational, the trail did notconform to India's obligationunder international human rightslaw. The secrecy surroundingAfzal's execution, like in theKasab case, is very disturbingand raises serious questionsabout procedural fairness. HRFdemands that the governmentestablish a moratorium on exe-cutions with a view to abolishingthe death penalty.

Guroo's execution, injustice and inhumanwhich was done in a tearing hurry: HRF

SRINAGAR, FEB 11:Condemning the firing inci-dents at Watergam, Rafiabadin which around 04 peoplewere injured and 01 out ofthem died at SKIMSSrinagar, CPI (M) StateGeneral Secretary,Mohammad Yousf TarigamiMonday lambasted the stategovernment over taking peo-ple of Kashmir for a ride."There are reports about theperson who died after a boatcapsized in Sumbal,Sonawari allegedly due to thepolice chase is also con-demnable and outrageous.The incident needs to beprobed by the concernedDistrict Magistrates." He saidin a statement and added that

the government must easerestrictions in Kashmir takingpeoples sufferings into con-sideration. People in Kashmirare suffering for want of foodespecially baby food items,fuel, LPG and other essentialcommodities due to precau-tious situation.

CPI (M) State Secretary,Mohammad Yousf Targamiexpressed serious concernover the deteriorating situa-tion that has emerged afterthe execution of MohammadAfzal Guru. "We reiterate ourview point that the decisionhas been taken in haste andkeeping the narrow interestsinto consideration. The sensi-tivities of Jammu andKashmir have not been paid a

heed before finalizing thedecision about execution."He said.

Tarigami said that it is alsounfortunate that the family ofGuru was not informed priorto his execution and burial."It is out earnest demand thatthe body of Guru be returnedto the family for the last rites.In principal, we stand againstthe capital punishment and ithas been our consistentdemand to commute thedeath sentence into lifeimprisonment. We appre-hend; that this unfortunateepisode may encourage ten-dencies and forces inimical tothe peace process cultivatedafter huge efforts and invest-ment. As the act is bound to

increase alienation amongKashmiri's, especially that ofits younger generation Iappeal all shades of opinionin the country to join theirheads together and reach outto the people of Kashmir, ifthey really want to reduce thelevel of alienation." He saidand added that the countrymust take some concretemeasures to reduce estrange-ment and especially thewrongs committed so far, arenot repeated. He said that it isour firm belief that the alien-ation and anger is a breedingground for extremism andterrorism. Any decision thatcan further increase the alien-ation is bound to provedestructive and will have

long term political ramifica-tions. "As the situation is un-predictable and simmering ,discontent is brewing up, thestate government must alsotake steps to prevent any fur-ther deterioration It shouldensure treatment of peoplewho got injured in clashesbetween protesters and thesecurity forces across the val-ley and should bear all theexpenses involved in thetreatment. The police and thePara-military forces mustobserve utmost restraintwhile dealing with theprotests. Any further causali-ty will have a ripple effectand the situation can turn intoa measure law & order prob-lem." Targami said.

KATHUA, FEB 11: Minister ofState for Finance, Fisheries,Cooperative and Planning, Dr.Manohar Lal Sharma inaugurated"District Cultural Festival"organized by Nehru YuvaKendra, Kathua on theme " Betianmol Hai" here on Monday.

Apart from a large number oflocals, Youth clubs, mahila man-dals, social and non-governmen-tal Organizations, schools andcolleges took part in the pro-gramme

Speaking on the occasion,Sharma said the state governmenthas dedicated year 2013 as "BetiAnmol Hai" to raise awarenessabout the importance of girl childin the society. He said women isworking at par with man in alldomains be it education, sports,politics, media, art and culture,service sectors, science and tech-nology, etc. It is the moralresponsibility of every individualto eradicate menace of femalefeoticide from the society, headded. He also appealed the pub-lic to come for word with theinformation regarding sex selec-tive abortions so that the culprits

could be dealt under the law.Dr Sharma also gave away

District Youth Club award andfinancial assistance to MentorYouth Clubs, besides distributingcheques and certificate among thebeneficiaries under Swarn JyantiShehri Rozgaar Yojna.

Among others Zonal Director,Nehru Yuva Kendra, NaveenKumar Naik, District YouthCoordinator, Som Dutt Zard,Project Officer DUDA and otherdistrict officers were present onthe occasion. Later, Sharma laidfoundation stone of public con-

venience building and a park, tobe constructed with an estimatedcost of Rs 65.07 lakh byLakhanpur Sarthal DevelopmentAuthority ( LSDA) at Billawar.

CEO, Lakhanpur SartrhalDevelopment Authority, A.S Chibalso accompanied the Minister.

Manohar inaugurates Cultural Festival at Kathua

Minister of State for Finance, Fisheries, Cooperative and Planning, Dr. Manohar Lal along with others posing fora group photograph at Kathua.

"Anger is brewing amoung youth, Statemust act to soothe the people: Tarigami

Kundal chairs PetitionCommittee meetingJAMMU, FEB 11: The

Committee on Petitions (PC)of Jammu and Kashmir,Legislative Council todaymet here under theChairmanship of MLC, B. R.Kundal and discussed severalimportant issues. TheCommittee took up thePetitions pending withCommittee and directed theVice Chairman LAWDA tofurnish Action Taken Report(ATR) within week's timewith regard to the payment ofcompensation to the wrong-ful person on account ofacquisition of the land atNandpora, Rainawari,Srinagar. The Chairman ofthe Committee thanked allmembers of the PetitionCommittee for their coopera-tion and valuable comments.

Page 3,4 State.qxd 2/11/2013 10:52 PM Page 1

STATESTUDENT AGETUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013 4

JAMMU, FEB 11:Dismaying over the poorfunctioning ofCommunication and CapacityDevelopment Unit (CCDU),Minister for PHE, Irrigation& Flood Control, Sham LalSharma, today constituted aCommittee under the chair-manship of Chief Engineer,PHE, Jammu to look into thedetails about the functioningand modus-operandi adoptedby the agency in funds uti-lization. The Committee willsubmit its findings within fif-teen days to the Minister.

The main objectives of theCCDU are to develop Statespecific information, educa-tion and communication strat-egy for reforming initiativesin water and sanitation, toimprove capacity develop-ment of functionaries at dif-ferent levels, to address waterquality issues, water qualitymonitoring, sanitation &

hygiene, social mobilization,to sensitize the massesthrough door to door cam-paign about the water quality,audio visual publicity andpublicity through differentmodes including hoardings,wall writings and pressmedia.

Chairing the maiden

review meeting of PHE,Irrigation and Flood Control,the Minister stressed on judi-cious use of drinking water,adding that the departmentshould launch an awarenesscampaign about the waterusages and ensure qualitywater to the people across theState. He directed the officers

to ensure metering at all com-mercial establishments by theend of current month.

To further streamline thefunctioning of PHE depart-ment, the Minister said thatthe Government will intro-duce social audit on the anal-ogy of health department. Hesaid a format will be devised

in which every officer willreflect his performance onmonthly basis that will helpimprove overall functioningof the department. Any offi-cer found lacking in his per-formance will face actionunder rules, Mr. Sham assert-ed.

Expressing satisfaction on

the implementation of adviso-ry issued after the introducto-ry meeting, the Ministerdirected for improving thework culture and affectingnecessary facelift of offices.He directed the concerned todisplay citizens' charter inevery division for informa-tion of the public and any

deviation of the instructionswill attract action.

He also directed theExecutive Engineers to stayat their headquarters and con-duct field visits at least threedays in a week and submittheir tour diaries to the ChiefEngineers and AdministrativeDepartment.

Giving fresh guidelines tothe engineers, the Ministerasked them not to lay downthe pipes unless the waterscheme is totally developedand handed over by the desig-nated team of engineers afterproper verification. He alsodirected for rationalization ofstaff as per the work load andcurbing the attachments at alllevels.

Setting deadline for desilt-ing the canals and tributaries,the Minister directed theChief Engineer, Irrigation andFlood Control, Jammu tocomplete all works before

March 10 so that the water isthrown open instantly.

He directed for judicioususe of funds and clearing allpending liabilities besidesmaintaining irrigational tube-wells to improve the irriga-tional facilities in Jammudivision.

Commissioner/SecretaryPHE, Irrigation & FloodControl, Dr. Pawan Kotwalbriefed the Minister about thefunctioning of each wing ofthe department. He assuredthat the targets will be real-ized well before the close offinancial year.

Chief Engineer, PHE,Jammu, Mr. AshwaniSharma, Chief Engineer,RTIC, Mr. V.K. Badyal, ChiefEngineer, Irrigation & FloodControl, Mr. K.K.Gupta andExecutive Engineers of PHE,Irrigation & Control fromacross the Jammu Divisionwere present in the meeting.

Sham constitutes panel to oversee functioning of CCDU'Social audit on the analogy of health deptt to ensure accountability in PHE'

Minister for PHE, Irrigation & Flood Control, Sham Lal Sharma chairing a meeting at Jammu.

JAMMU, FEBERUARY11: Deputy Chief MinisterTara Chand has directed theEducation department towork with utmost dedicationand speed up the process ofrecruitment of Sarva ShikshaAbhyan (SSA) teachers toclear the backlog within stip-ulated time frame.

He emphasized on fasttrack recruitment in educa-tion sector to minimizeunemployment and addressstaff requirements. He alsostressed on framing a timebound transfer policy partic-ularly for those working inhilly and remote areas. Hesaid thousands of posts arelying vacant in educationdepartment and stressed forearly filling of the same.

The Deputy ChiefMinister gave these direc-tions while chairing a highlevel meeting convened toreview the implementationand progress registered underSSA and RashtriyaMadhyamik Shiksha Abhyan

(RMSA).Minister of State for

Education Feroz Khan waspresent on the occasion.

Tara Chand laid stressedon creating infrastructure inupgraded high schools underRMSA. He directed the con-cerned agencies to speed upthe pace of various worksbeing executed under educa-tion department and com-plete all ongoing construc-tion works of school build-ings within the prescribed

time frame.He also reviewed the sta-

tus of utilization of fundsunder SSA and RMSA anddirected the concerned offi-cers for timely utilize thefunds under education sector.He stressed for computeriza-tion of the entire educationdepartment for ensuringtransparency and easyaccess.

Reviewing the progress ofpace of various works beingexecuted in education sector,

the Deputy Chief Ministerdirected the concerned to fur-nish detailed status report ofongoing works for inspec-tion.

Secretary GeneralAdministration DepartmentMustaq Ahmed, ChairmanBoard of School EducationDr Sheikh Bashir Ahmad,Project Director RMSA HilalAhmed Parray and seniorofficers from BOSE andschool education departmentattended the meeting.

"We have a job to do":Farooq Abdullah

NEW DELHI,FEB 11: Union Minister andformer Jammu and Kashmir chief ministerFarooq Abdullah said that he was pained bythe fact that 2001 Parliament attack convictAfzal Guru's family wasn't given a chance tomeet him for one last time before he washanged on Saturday morning in Delhi's TiharJail. However, Farooq, hastily added that therewas no question of leaving the UPA govern-ment over this issue.

"We don't leave government on suchissues. We have a job to do. The only thingthat pains me and will pain many others is thefact that the family was not given the chanceto meet him for the final time," Farooq said.

A speed post sent to Guru's family reachedthem on Monday; two day after Guru washanged to death and buried in Dehli's Tiharjail. Farooq said that the Centre needs toexplain not just to the people of Kashmir, butthe country why it was done in such a manner.

Farooq Abdullah said that the Centre needsto explain not just to the people of Kashmir,but the country why it was done in such amanner.

"Government of Kashmir should have beeninformed; we could have sent an aircraft forthe wife and children in time. The Centreneeds to explain not just to the people ofKashmir, but the country why it was done insuch a manner," Farooq said.

SRINAGAR, FEB 11: Kashmiri stu-dents who are pursuing their higherstudies in various universities ofHyderabad staged demonstrationsagainst the hanging of Afzal Guru andoffered funeral prayers in absentia atMaulana Azad National UrduUniversity (MANUU) campus. Ataround 10 am the Kashmiri studentsof Maulana Azad National UrduUniversity and Osmania Universitygathered at the main gate of Manuuand offered funeral prayers in absen-tia. After offering funeral prayers thestudents who had carried placards intheir hands held a demonstration forhours against the hanging of AfzulGuru. Amid slogans of "is India's col-lective conscience satisfied? We wantjustice and Afzal Guru- victim ofinjustice" students walked throughthe various departments of the varsi-ty.

Speaking on the occasion, the stu-dents said that "Burying Guru insidethe jail and rejecting to hand over hisbody to the family was an extremekind of injustice".

While demanding return of AfzalGuru's body to his family the studentsdemanded that "since the justice has

not been dispensed properly but bury-ing Afzal inside the jail is a big injus-tice. We demand that his body bereturned to his family member so thatburial is done according to the reli-gious rites".

Questing the justice done, the stu-dents said "it is too unfortunate that ina big democracy like India a personhas been hanged without giving alawyer and a fair trial"

"GOI has hanged Guru to makecommunal parties like BJP, RSS,VHP happy and to achieve politicalgains in view of 2014 general elec-tions" they said.

"Despite the apparent evidencesagainst the killers of Rajiv Gandhi,the government is using dilly dallyingtactics in executing them but whyAfzal Guru has been hanged withoutkeeping the sentiments of Kashmirisinto consideration" they questioned.

Talking about the judicial systemof the country, the students said that"it looks like countries law is meantfor a particular community. Why con-spirators of Mecca Masjid andMalegaon blast, Gujrat massacre andBabri Masjid demolition are free ofcharge?"

Kashmiri students hold protest in Hyderabad, Justicewas not dispensed to Guroo: claim studentsDy CM reviews SSA, RAMSA implementation

Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand chairing a high level meeting convened to reviewing theimplementation and progress registered under SSA and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhyan .

Ajaz for earlysettlement of landacquisition cases

JAMMU, FEB 11: Ministerof State for Revenue, Reliefand Rehabilitation, Mr. AjazAhmad Khan today called forearly settlement of cases relat-ing to land acquisition for rais-ing Government infrastruc-ture. Chairing a meeting toreview the progress of landacquisition cases across theState, the Minister said earlysettlement of these caseswould not only let the processof raising infrastructure gocomplete but the cost escala-tion, generally observed inthese works, would also bearrested to a great extent.Minister of State for TechnicalEducation, Mr. Vikar Rasoolwas also present in the meet-ing. The meeting was told thatPrivate NegotiationCommittee (PNC) has beenconducted in case of proposedGovernment Degree College,Banihal whileas in caseDegree College, Gool the rev-enue papers have been sent forauthentication. The Ministerimpressed upon the officers toexpedite the acquisitionprocess and complete all paperwork in a time bound manner.Financial Commissioner,Revenue, Mr. Arun Kumar,Commissioner-Secretary,Revenue, Mr. B. A. Runiyal,Divisional Commissioner,Jammu, Mr. Pradeep Thakurand other officers were presentin the meeting.

SHS holds reviewmeeting of DPMs

under NRHMJAMMU, FEB 11: Themonthly review meeting ofDistrict Programme Mangers(DPM) was held today at theoffice of State Health Society(SHS) under the chairmanshipof Mission Director, NationalRural Health Mission(NRHM), Dr YashpalSharma.

DPMs from all the districtsacross the Jammu regioninformed the meeting aboutthe details of works being car-ried under the national flag-ship schemes in their respec-tive districts. Speaking on theoccasion, Dr Yashpal soughtcrucial information from theDPMs and directed them tocollect the necessary informa-tion from their subordinates intime bound manner.

He asked the DPMs to col-lect the information con-stituency wise, district andblock wise for forthcomingAssembly session and furnishit only after proper verifica-tion. He further asked to pro-vide the detail reports of dis-trict monitoring committeeson the standard format.

He directed the DistrictAccounts Managers (DAM)to visit all the block headquar-ters to scrutinise the accountsmaintained at block level withspecial focus on the expendi-ture on account of the JananiShishu Suraksha Karyakaram(JSSK) and Janani SurakhshaYojna (JSY).

POONCH, FEB 11:Member Parliament (MP) forJammu PoonchConstituency, Mr Madan LalSharma said that centre hasapproved rail project con-necting border district ofPoonch with railway net-work of the country. Theproject will change develop-ment scenario of Pir Punjalregion on completion, heassured.

While addressing atawareness camps organizedat Balakote and Salwan in

Mendhar regarding imple-mentation of centrally spon-sored schemes includingMGNREGA, IAY, PMGSYand Total sanitation, MP saidcentre has framed variouswelfare schemes for speedydevelopment of rural areasespecially the border regionsof the country. He impressedupon executing agencies tostrictly adhere to the guide-lines prescribed for execu-tion of such schemes.

Mr Sharma said that cen-tre has decided that all the

development projects takenin hand under BADP will beframed and executed withconcurrence of respectiveSarpanchs, moreover fundsfor such works would bereleased to panchayatsdirectly hence forth.Commenting on execution ofMGNREGA the BDO's weredirected to chalk out variousdevelopment projects to pro-vide jobs to unskilled labourforce. M.P further directedofficers of the HorticultureDepartment to carry out fruit

plantations drive coveringatleast one a car in each 15panchayats of Balakote CDBlock, funds for the samewould be provided out of hisMPLAD scheme.

Responding to localdemands at Salwah, MPdirected Engineers of PWD,PHE and BDO Mendhar tostart construction work onExamination Hall Block inGovernment High SchoolSalwah besides providingcomputers Laboratry, blacktopping of 2 kms link road

leading from Sakhi Maidanto Salwah, construction of 1Km road linking upperKasbalari, a play ground atSalwah comprising fivekanal land and constructionof bore well to providedrinking water at Salwah.Funds for said developmentworks would be fundedunder MPLAD Scheme, MPadded.

Vice Chairman OBC Mr.Kuldeep Raj Verma project-ed various welfare schemeslaunched for upliftment of

OBC section of the peoplebesides scholarships arebeing provided to childrenbelonging OBC category.

Addl. Distt. Dev.Commissioner Syed AnwarHussain Shah, ProjectOfficer DRDA Mr. AshokKumar earlier gave a resumeof centrally sponsoredschemes and pace of execu-tion in the district, ADC Ch.Manzor Hussain and officersof District & TehsilAdministrations accompa-nied the MP.

UDHAMPUR FEB 11: Ablock level Kissan Mela wasorganized by Department ofAgriculture Udhampur atVillage Ritti today under theCentrally Sponsored Scheme"Support to State ExtensionReforms" ATMA under theguidance of DirectorAgriculture, Mr. AjayKahjuria and DistrictD e v e l o p m e n tCommissioner, Udhampur,Mr. P.K. Pole who is alsochairman of ATMAGoverning Board.

MLA Udhampur, Mr.Balwant Singh Mankotiainaugurated the KissanMela.

While speaking on theoccasion, Mr. Singh

applauded the efforts of theagriculture department andsaid that these Kissan melasare the need of the hour toapprise the farming commu-nity regarding the ongoingschemes and level of subsidyavailable with the depart-ments.

He said that rural areas inthe district are being primari-ly agriculture based; thefarmers should take theadvantage of these campsand adopt all the technicalknow-how imparted by thevarious departments in theirfields to uplift their econom-ic status. He also commend-ed the efforts of the depart-ment in the field ofAgriculture Machinery and

implements and its promo-tion in rural areas of the dis-trict.

Chief Agriculture Officer,Mr. K.S. Sambyal in his wel-come address said that theconvergence of all the stakeholders under the oneumbrella will act as a plat-form to work out the futurecourse of action for increas-ing the production and pro-ductivity level of farmingcommunity and raise theirSocio-economic status andto make the agriculture pro-fession more lucrative. Headvised the farmers to takefull benefit of these melasand do agriculture as per theneeds of the market.

Later, the MLA distrib-

uted Kissan Credit andWomen Health InsuranceCards among the farmers.He also handed over chequesamounting to Rs. 30,000 forthe construction of rearinghouses among three benefi-ciaries of the area.

Chief Animal HusbandryOfficer, Mr. Uma KantSharma, Deputy DirectorSericulture, Mr. AshwaniKumar, D.A.O (Extn.), Mr.V.K. Bhardwaj, A.D.O , Mr.L.C. Bhagat, District LevelSMS, Sub DivisionAgriculture OfficerUdhampur, Sarpanches,Panches, officers of otherdepartments and large num-ber of farmers were the parton occasion.

Madan for strict implementation of centrally sponsored schemes

MLA inaugurates Block Level Kissan MelaUDHAMPUR FEB 11: Togive an opportunity to thebeneficiaries financed underREGP and PMEGP schemes,a three-day long district levelSale cum Exhibition of Khadiand Village Industries prod-ucts manufactured by theentrepreneurs of KVIB atTown Hall commenced heretoday. The district level Salecum Exhibition is beingorganized by J&K Khadi &Village Industries Board(KVIB), Udhampur.

District DevelopmentCommissioner, Udhampur,Mr. P.K Pole who was thechief guest formally inaugu-rated the exhibition on theoccasion. The DDC whileappreciating the KVIB for its

initiative of organizing exhi-bition at Udhampur said thatsuch exhibition would go along way and become a modelof inspiration for the newentrepreneurs and unem-ployed youth to overcome thefear of risk of enterprises. Heurged the unemployed youthpresent on the occasion totake maximum benefits of thedifferent income generatingschemes of the government toestablish their own incomegenerating units for theirsocio economic upliftment.He also instructed the districtofficers of Industries,Handicraft, Handloom andKVIB to organize a capacitybuilding programme for theentrepreneurs.

KVIB exhibition cum salecommences at Udhampur

Page 3,4 State.qxd 2/11/2013 10:52 PM Page 2

EDITORIALSTUDENT AGETUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013 5

While it is heartening that Indiahas made great strides intiger conservation and pro-

vided a legal framework to protectwildlife, the effort to conserve lesserknown species remains an area ofconcern. This is not to undermine theefforts that have gone into makingProject Tiger, into its 40th year now, aroaring success. At the last count in2011, the tiger population stood at1,704, as against the 2008 census fig-ures of 1,411. Inspiring as this is, thefact remains that the tiger is only apart of biodiversity that stands threat-ened by the relentless march of devel-opment. That we are still a far cry frommaking our wildlife adequately securecan be gleaned from the fact thatsome 132 species of flora and faunafrom India are tagged as criticallyendangered in the Red List of threat-ened species drawn up by theInternational Union for Conservationof Nature. Significantly, while the tigerfinds no mention on this list, morethan 15 critically endangered birdspecies and a host of lesser knownanimals do. In 1972, when the tigerwas notified as the country's nationalanimal, replacing the Asiatic Lion, theGreat Indian Bustard was all set to benominated the national bird, but it lostout to the peacock. Today, less than250 bustards survive and the speciesis on the verge of extinction.

Except for the Asiatic Lion, which isfound in a small pocket in Gujarat,there is hardly any population data onother carnivores, including the snowleopard. Things have come to such a

pass that even the most ubiquitoussparrow is vanishing from our lives.The near extinction of vultures is well-documented, as is their impact asnature's most efficient scavenger.Over the years, serious concernshave been voiced by wildlife loversand conservationists about the declin-ing number of vital fauna and flora inthe country. They have rued the lavishallocation for tiger conservation efforts- a whopping `167.7 crore, and `22.58crore for Project Elephant, for the year2012-13, to the exclusion of all otherspecies. Experts argue that whilefocussing entirely on the tiger otherspecies, including tiger prey such asthe Hog Deer and the Barasinghahave been neglected. And the lesssaid about the fate of the brown bearthe better it is. Although India is hometo four of the eight species of bears,there are no scientific papers or stud-ies on bear ecology in the country. Ifreports are anything to go by, thereare only two sanctuaries for bears oneeach in Gujarat and Karnataka.

The plight of the gravely endan-gered species, paucity of funds andan ineffective implementation of theSpecial Programme for Recovery ofCritically Endangered Species haveall conspired to stump the feeble con-servation efforts.

This bodes ill for our future as everyspecies plays a crucial role in theproper functioning of the ecosystem.It's time the Government and thewildlife activists got together to take aholistic look and not limit themselvesto a few species.

Germany is much richerand in many ways moreadvanced than India.

But its people are old-fash-ioned Aryans. They have tradi-tionally believed that the hus-band should go to theFabrik -their name for a factory - andearn money with hard, consci-entious work, while the wifebrings up the children. Thisdivision of labour broke downlong ago. Men dressed up, gothold of guns and invaded therest of Europe in World War II,leaving women to man themachines. Then, as machinesbecame more productive, bothbegan to get into Volkswagensand drive down autobahns toneat little offices in the nexttown. All this purposeful activityleft them little time for play inthe bedroom. Then they goteven richer and started flying tobeaches to sun themselves inwinter. There is much fun to behad on beaches, but the densi-ty of population on them is toohigh for intimate activities.However, it is high enough formixing with strangers. Itencouraged the rearrangementof marital pairs, a reform of themarital system that spread intooffices. The result is that whilethere is sufficient cohabitationfor good company, it is not per-sistent enough to breed thenext generation. If a populationis to reproduce itself, a couplemust have at least two chil-dren; if some of them havenone, or some refuse to formcouples altogether, the numberof children per couple would goup that much. A Germanwoman in the childbearing age

is having less than one-and-a-half children in her lifetime.

The government of Europe'smost powerful nation is natural-ly worried, and has been wor-ried for some time. It has subsi-dies for children, married par-ents, single parents, orphans,and even siblings. A youngGerman in her twenties canexpect to get almost a crore ofrupees in child-related subsi-dies during her lifetime. Thegovernment has tried all it can,and yet the population contin-ues to fall. In 2011, there were81 births and 104 deaths forevery 10,000 Germans;851,000 people died, and only663,000 were replaced by newbirths. Government subsidiesto women with children clearlyfailed to persuade them. Thismay be because marriage hasbecome too tenuous an institu-tion, or because life is freerwithout children, or the cost ofhaving children is too high interms of income forgone.

The latest report commis-sioned by the government saysit is the last. The solution,namely replacement of incomeforgone, would be expensive,so it has been suggested thatthe government should investin kindergartens, another longforgotten German invention.This may be a good idea. Itwould separate childbearing tosome extent from child rearing.But kindergartens must also bemanned, and the men have togo home at night; then the par-ents have to bear with the chil-dren. Maybe the Germansshould turn to a British colonialinvention called ayahs.

By Ajith Athrady

With the SupremeCourt directingthe Government

of India to notify the finalaward of the Cauvery WaterDisputes Tribunal byFebruary 20, Karnataka hasto brace itself to facing whatit has dreaded all along:Surrendering the right of'ownership' and managementof the dams and control of therelease of water from its sideof the border to an independ-ent Central agency.

On the flip side, TamilNadu, too, will have to do thesame and hopefully, the gameof political one-upmanshipbetween the two state gov-ernments will come to anend.

At present the issue ofsharing of Cauvery waterbetween the four riparianstates - Karnataka, TamilNadu, Puducherry and Kerala- is being addressed as per theTribunal's interim award.Under the interim order, theprime minister headed theCauvery River Authority(CRA) in which chief minis-ters of the all riparian statesare members. A sub-commit-tee, Cauvery MonitoringCommittee (CMC) headedby the secretary, WaterResources Ministry assiststhe CRA.

Once the Centre notifiesthe final award of theTribunal, institutions likeCRA and the CMC will ceaseto exist and a new set of bod-ies like CauveryManagement Board (CMB)and Cauvery WaterRegulation Committee(CWRC) will come into exis-tence. The Tribunal's awardwill take effect within 90days of its notification asstipulated in the Inter StatesWater Disputes Act.

The CauveryManagement Board will beheaded by its chairman, ofthe rank of chief engineerhaving 20 years' experiencein irrigation sector in the gov-ernment of India. Besides,senior officials from ministryof water resources will be itsmembers. All the riparian

states - Karnataka, TamilNadu and Kerala- and theUnion Territory ofPuducherry will have theirrepresentatives on the board,says the draft notificationprepared by the Centre. Thisnotification is currently beingvetted by the Union Law

Ministry.The Cauvery Water

Regulation Committee, a subgroup headed by a member ofthe board, will be constitutedto assist to the Board onwater storage, crop cultiva-tion and other related issues.The committee will compriseexperts from irrigation, agri-culture, animal husbandry,hydrology and related fields.

Implement recommen-dations: The Board's primarytask is to implement the rec-ommendations of the finalaward of the tribunal on shar-ing of water. The prime min-ister or any other departmentsof the Centre is highly

unlikely to interfere on thisissue any more.

While Karnataka andother states will lose theirsupervisory powers overtheir reservoirs, the boardwill play a major role inadministration, operation,maintenance, and regulation

of supply of water fromCauvery and its tributaries toall four states. Karnatakahopes that there will be betteraccounting of water usage byTamil Nadu and strictermonitering, so that TamilNadu's demand will comedown.

The Tribunal had deter-mined the total availability ofwater in the Cauvery basin at740 tmcft at the LowerColeroon Anicut site. Thepanel gave Tamil Nadu 419tmcft of water (as against thedemand of 562 tmcft);Karnataka 270 tmcft (asagainst its demand of 465tmcft); Kerala 30 tmcft and

Puducherry 7 tmcft. For envi-ronmental protection, it hadreserved 10 tmcft.

Though ensuring releaseof water from Karnataka tolower riparian states may notbe a big problem when thereis sufficient storage in reser-voirs, the challenging task

before the CMB will be towork out a formula for water-sharing in difficult years ofdeficient rainfall.

Soon after the gazettenotification, the Tribunal'sinterim order will cease toexist and the final award willbe binding on the disputantstates. Both Karnataka andTamil Nadu have filed spe-cial leave petitions in theSupreme Court questioningvarious aspects of finalaward, which are being heardby the court, but it can not bea ground for non-compliancewith the award on the part ofany state.

After its notification it

cannot be put in limbo.Advocates arguing for

Karnataka say, still there is aray of hope for the state.Though the tribunal has allo-cated 270 tmc feet of water toKarnataka, the state need notbe disheartened as thechances of getting additionalwater will not end. The legalbattle on water sharing willcontinue, and if SupremeCourt gave additional direc-tion on the issue, it will haveto be implemented, they say.

The Tribunal had nottouched on several issuesincluding sharing of excesswater, i.e. over and above740 tmcft, in the basin area.Now, all the governmentsexpect, the Supreme Court toaddress this issue during thecourse of its hearing of pend-ing petitions. Still, it is a mil-lion dollar question whetheran official committee will beable to handle the vexedwater sharing issue withoutpolitical interferences. Asthe final order of the Tribunaldoes not dwell on shelving ofthe CRA or CMC, Karnatakawanted them to continue, butnone of the other states sup-ported its stand.

Dismissing Karnatakaapprehensions, an official inthe water resources ministrysays "the state is trying torake up emotional issuesrather than resolving thevexed issue".

As the Board chairman isa Central government's sen-ior official, there will not beany bias in its decision, saysthe official adding that allriparian states will be itsmembers. As the board's taskis to implement the tribunal'sfinal order, there is no scopefor sentiments here, says theofficial.

The Centre cites theexample of the success ofsimilar mechanisms in placein the Bhakra-Beas WaterManagement Board and theTungabhadra WaterManagement Board to drivehome the point that theCauvery dispute is best man-aged by an independentexpert body without politicscoming in the way.

By Amulya Ganguli

Narendra Modi mayhave performed withaplomb at his first

appearance in Delhi after hiselection victory in Gujarat,but it is too early to saywhether the pitch which thechief minister made for mov-ing to the national stage willbe successful.

The reason for the doubtslies in the events that unfold-ed several hundred milesaway in Allahabad. After tak-ing a holy dip in the Ganga,Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)president Rajnath Singh fer-vently called for the buildingof the Ram temple inAyodhya, thereby reviving anissue put in cold storage bythe party in 1996. In thatyear, after failing to secure amajority in the Lok Sabha,then outgoing prime ministerAtal Bihari Vajpayeeannounced that the BJP wasshelving the three mainpoints on its Hindutva agenda- constructing the temple, anemotional issue for millionsof fervent Hindus, introduc-ing a uniform civil code forall religions in India andscrapping Article 370 of theIndian constitution that givesspecial status to Jammu andKashmir.

It was on the basis of thispromise that Vajpayee wasable to put together a coali-

tion of 24 parties to form agovernment in 1998. Sincethen, the coalition has dwin-dled to only four membersbecause many of the 'secular'parties walked out after the

2002 Gujarat riots. The pointis whether the NationalDemocratic Alliance (NDA)led by the BJP will sufferanother jolt because ofRajnath Singh's announce-ment, which has subsequent-ly been endorsed by theHindu supremacist RashtriyaSwayamsevak Sangh (RSS)and the Vishwa HinduParishad (VHP).

Considering that the RSSand the VHP are also seen tobe in favour of Modi's candi-dature as prime minister, thenext point of interest will beto see how the BJP managesto reconcile Modi's develop-ment plank, which pledges toencompass all the communi-ties, with the polarising tem-

ple agenda. Or, whether itwill try to ride both the hors-es at the same time even atthe risk of the Janata Dal-United (JD-U) walking out ofthe NDA. The JD-U has

already said that the Ramtemple is not on the NDAagenda.

One calculation of theHindutva camp can be thatModi's candidature and arenewed emphasis on thetemple will together be sucha morale-booster for the BJPin northern and western Indiathat it will be able to ignorethe JD-U's protests. In anyevent, since the latter hasclarified more than once thatModi is unacceptable to it asa prime ministerial candidate,it may already have one footoutside the NDA's door. Thereadiness expressed by theCongress to expand theUnited Progressive Alliance(UPA) led by it might be

aimed at the JD-U.It is too early to say

whether the Congress will beable to take advantage of arupture in the NDA. But, asthe sudden execution of Afzal

Guru, a decade after he wassentenced to death by theSupreme Court, shows, theCongress is gearing up forthe forthcoming state assem-bly elections this year and thegeneral election in 2014. If itcan breathe new life into theeconomy, it can look forwardto the contests with greaterconfidence than before.

Much depends on whetherit will be able to woo backthe 'neo middle class', asModi calls it, which has beendrifting towards the BJP. Iftheir diatribes on the internetare an indication, they areanti-Mahatma Gandhi, anti-'Italian' dynasty, anti-Congress and anti-Muslim.No one knows, however, how

big this group is as a votebank.

Besides, there is a basiccontradiction between thetension-prone temple issueand a development pro-gramme with its concomi-tants of consumerism andsocial peace. A middle class,or any other group, whichfavours development canhardly be expected to goalong with the whipping upof communal tension that isbound to accompany therevival of the temple agenda.

It is possible, therefore,that the BJP's efforts to repeatin 2013-14 what it tried in the1990s will come a cropper.Had the choice of tacticsbeen left to itself, the partymay have to tread more care-fully by being more accom-modating towards the JD-Uand the Shiv Sena. The latterprefers Sushma Swaraj as theprime ministerial candidateinstead of Modi. It appears,however, that the RSS haspersuaded Rajnath Singh,chosen by it to replace thescam-tainted Nitin Gadkari,to focus on the temple again.The BJP will be preoccupied,therefore, in the comingweeks with the twin issues ofModi and the mandir, aninsistence on either or both ofwhich can lead to the NDA'sdemise. It is a Hobson'schoice for the BJP.

The endangered mustget immediate attention

CHILD LOCK

Notification of Cauvery Tribunal's award: A boon or a bane?

Soon after the gazette notification, the Tribunal's interim order willcease to exist and the final award will be binding on the disputantstates. Both Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have filed special leave

petitions in the Supreme Court questioning various aspects of finalaward, which are being heard by the court, but it can not be a

ground for non-ccompliance with the award on the part of any state.After its notification it cannot be put in limbo.

Advocates arguing for Karnataka say, still there is a ray of hope forthe state. Though the tribunal has allocated 270 tmc feet of water toKarnataka, the state need not be disheartened as the chances of get-ting additional water will not end. The legal battle on water sharingwill continue, and if Supreme Court gave additional direction on the

issue, it will have to be implemented, they say.

Modi and mandir: Hobson's choice for BJP

Considering that the RSS and the VHP are also seen to be infavour of Modi's candidature as prime minister, the next point ofinterest will be to see how the BJP manages to reconcile Modi'sdevelopment plank, which pledges to encompass all the com-munities, with the polarising temple agenda. Or, whether it willtry to ride both the horses at the same time even at the risk ofthe Janata Dal-United (JD-U) walking out of the NDA. The JD-U

has already said that the Ram temple is not on the NDA agenda.

Page 5.qxd 2/11/2013 9:10 PM Page 1

NATIONALSTUDENT AGETUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013 6

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Courton Monday issued notice to the cen-tral government, Intelligence Bureau,Research and Analysis Wing,National Technical ResearchOrganisation and the attorney gener-al on a petition to bring intelligenceagencies under legislative scrutinyand their accounts under the CAG.

The PIL sought audit of theIntelligence Bureau, the Researchand Analysis Wing (R&AW) and theNational Technical ResearchOrganisation (NTRO).

The PIL also asked for a regulato-ry mechanism which can keep a tabon the operation of such agencies.

An apex court bench headed by

Chief Justice Altamas Kabir issuedthe notice after senior counsel AnilDivan submitted that these intelli-

gence agencies were snooping on theprivacy of the citizens and were oper-ating without any legislative man-

date. Appearing for NGO Centre ofPublic Interest Litigation, Divan toldthe court the petition was not seekingany disclosure of secrets but merelyasking that there should be someguidelines to regulate the operationsof intelligence agencies.

The court was told that the fund-ing of these intelligence agencies wasbeing done from the consolidatedfund of India, thus their accountsshould be brought under the scannerof the Comptroller and AuditoryGeneral (CAG) of India. The apexcourt has granted six weeks time tothe Centre and intelligence agenciesto file their response and asks theAttorney General to assist it.

SC notice on PIL seeking audit of intelligence agencies NEW DELHI: With

Jammu & Kashmir ChiefMinister Omar Abdullahstating that he fears thehanging of Afzal Guru mayreinforce a feeling of alien-ation in his state,Information andBroadcasting MinisterManish Tewari on Mondaysaid every individual andevery leader is free toexpress his or her views inthe Indian democraticmilieu, but added that capi-tal punishment is given inthe rarest of rare cases, and

each case rests on its ownunique facts and circum-stances.

"We listen to themextremely carefully. We takethose views on board.However, it is important toremember that capital pun-ishment is given in the rarestof rare cases, and each caserests on its own unique factsand circumstances.

There can never be a onesize fits all. There can neverbe a generic broad brushwhen you deal with matters,which are so sensitive and

have both legal, judicial andconstitutional implicationsand obligations," saidTewari.

"So, therefore, we wouldlike to submit that in thecase of capital punishment,there is a need to be respon-sible and there is a need tounderstand and realise thatthere is a very deliberatescrutiny process, which isinvolved and which takesinto consideration the factsand circumstances of eachcase on its own merits," headded.

'Death sentence is givenin rarest of rare cases'

AHMEDABAD: After EuropeanUnion ended over a decade-long boy-cott of Gujarat Chief Minister NarendraModi, lawmakers from the region haveinvited him to attend the EuropeanParliament in Brussels in November,according to a post on his blog.

"The lawmakers invited Modi toattend the European Parliament inBrussels in November this year. TheParliament will be attended by repre-sentatives of over 27 nations. There isalso an invitation to attend the EuropeanBusiness Meet in Brussels later this year,"Modi's blog said. The Chief Minister yesterdayhad an online interaction with the Europeanlawmakers who were attending the 10th corpo-rate culture and spirituality India conference inBangalore, according to the blog post.

The lawmakers appreciated Gujarat's devel-opment and congratulated Modi for making thestate vibrant. According to the post, during theinteraction, Modi highlighted various initiativestaken by the Gujarat government for environ-

ment protection. He told them that Gujarat isthe first state in India and among the four statesin the world to have a separate department onclimate change.

Briefing the lawmakers about Gujarat'sadvances in solar energy, Modi told them aboutAsia's largest solar park in Charanka in Patandistrict and about state government's roof-topsolar policy. The post also spoke of Gujarat'swork in other forms of renewable energy,including wind energy.

Modi invited to attend EuropeanParliament in Brussels, his blog says

KOHIMA: The Isak-Muivah and Khaplanggroups of the NationalSocialist Council ofNagaland (NSCN) haverejected the ban imposed bythe Cease Fire MonitoringGroup on movement of theircadres with arms and ammu-nitions till the February 23election is over in the state.

Convener of the politicalaffairs committee of NSCN(IM) alleged that the direc-tive issued by the chairmanof Cease Fire MonitoringGroup (CFMG) Major Gen(Rtd) N George "over-stepped" his jurisdiction.The Convener said it alsoviolated the ceasefireground rules (CFGR) by thechairman, "who is supposedto enforce the CFGR with-

out any tendency of beingpartial in favour of theCentre."

Maj Gen (Rtd) N Georgehad on February 5 said thatall members of the threeNSCNs, including identitycard holders have beenbanned from carrying anytype of weapon betweenFebruary 7 to 23 as perdirectives issued by theElection Commission.

The EC directive had thesanction of the Union HomeMinistry, the CFMG chair-man had said. In a state-ment, NSCN (K) ministry ofinformation and publicitysaid the decision was "notacceptable because Indianelection law cannot beapplied to NSCN/GPRNwhich is different entity."

It said that the 'Naganational movement' existedbefore Nagaland state cameinto being and would con-tinue even if 'Nagaland statevanishes'.

The NSCN (IM) hasmade it clear that it wouldnot abide by the ban statingthat it was against the cease-fire agreement signed withthe Centre. The NSCN-IMhas said the cardholderswould carry weapons asmentioned in the ceasefireagreement, whether therewas an election in the stateor not.

The NSCN (IM) hadentered into a ceasefire withthe Government of Indiasince 1997 while NSCN (K)had signed the pact in 2001and thereafter the ceasefire

agreements have beenextended yearly.

Meanwhile, the securityforces have set up mobilecheckposts and were frisk-ing passersby and checkingvehicles.

This led to seizure of ahuge cache of assortedarms, including foreignmade guns and ammunitionand arrest of cadres of theunderground groups by theAssam Rifles in various dis-tricts.

On February 5, the per-sonnel of 17 and 19 AssamRifles seized a huge con-signment of highly sophisti-cated weapons, made inGermany and Austria, fromthe possession of a suspect-ed NSCN-IM cadre after ajoint operation.

Bihar villagebans jeans,T-shirt for girlsPATNA: After three of itsgirls went missing, a villagein Bihar's Siwan district hasbarred girls from usingmobile phones and wearingjeans and T-shirts, an officialsaid on Monday. The vil-lagers also imposed heavyfines on girls if they violatedthe diktat.

The ban was imposed onSunday by self-styled socialreformers of Makhnupur vil-lage under Pachrukhi policestation in Siwan district, 150km from here. The decisionwas taken after three girls -including two cousins - wentmissing last week. They areyet to be traced.

"A group of villagersissued an order to impose afine of Rs 10,000 if a girl isfound anymore using amobile phone or wearingjeans and a T-shirt outsideher house," a local policeofficial said.

An 11-member committeehas been formed to imple-ment the ban. "Mobilephones, jeans and T-shirts arethe cause of all evil in oursociety, including increasinglove affairs and elopement,"said Satyender Sharma, a vil-lager.

In the last three months,nearly half a dozen villagepanchayats across the statehave banned girls andwomen from using mobilephones and ordered them notto wear provocative clothes.

Nagaland: NSCN rejects ban onmovement of cadres with arms

BHUBANESWAR: BijuJanata Dal (BJD) presidentand Odisha Chief MinisterNaveen Patnaik Monday rein-stated party legislators PrabhatRanjan Biswal and BibhutiBhusan Balabantaray, whowere suspended for theirinvolvement in anti-partyactivities. "The suspensionorders of Prabhat RanjanBiswal and Bibhuti BhusanBalabantaray are hereby with-drawn with immediate effect,"party chief Patnaik said in astatement. Both the legislatorswere suspended from the BJDalong with three others --

Rajya Sabha memberPyari Mohan Mohapatra,Women and ChildDevelopment MinisterAnjali Behera, andMinister of State forCommerce and TransportSanjib Sahu -- from theBJD June 1 last year.

The suspensions cameafter they allegedly plotted anunsuccessful coup led byPyari Mohan Mohapatra tounseat the chief minister May29. After his suspension,Mohapatra launched theOdisha Jana Morcha (OJM), apolitical forum, saying he

wants to establish "internaldemocracy" in the state's rul-ing party. The OJM has heldseveral rallies in recentmonths and is gearing up tohold a few more to causeembarrassment to the rulingBJD. Mohapatra was a closeconfidant of Patnaik for years.

Patnaik revokes suspension of two BJD MLAsA H M E D A B A D :Authorities have unearthedan 18-feet long tunnelinside the SabarmatiCentral Jail in Ahmedabadallegedly built by theIndian Mujahideen (IM)militants lodged in theprison there.

Reports, Monday, saidthat the tunnel was alleged-ly being dug by 14 IMMilitants, who are accusedin the Ahmedabad serialblast case and presentlylodged in the Sabarmati

jail. Giving more informa-tion, the jail authorities saidthat the tunnel was beingdug for the past five to sixmonths so that thedetainees could escapefrom the prison using thetunnel.

The police officials saidthere were over 50 under-trials in that jail, out ofwhich 14 have been identi-fied. They said the tunnelwas half way when it wasdiscovered by the jailauthorities.

18-feet long tunnel foundin Sabarmati jail in Gujarat

NEW DELHI: A fast-trackcourt will on Monday con-tinue its hearing in the bru-tal Delhi gang-rape case.Notably, five of the sixaccused are being tried forcharges of rape and murderof a 23-year-old student atSaket court. The trial in thefast-track court began onFebruary 05, around 50 daysafter the medical student'sbrutal rape.

The fast-track court ofAdditional Sessions JudgeYogesh Khanna started day-to-day trial in the case lastweek after framing chargesof murder, gang-rape andkidnapping, among others,under various sections ofthe Indian Penal Code (IPC)against the five accused.

The gang-rape victim'smale friend, a softwareengineer, who was alsoattacked along with her onthe bus, also appeared as awitness in the court on a

wheelchair accompanied byhis father.

The case of the juvenileaccused is being heard bythe Juvenile Justice Board.Police had filed a supple-mentary chargesheet thatincluded the autopsy reportof the physiotherapy internwho was gang-raped by thesix on December 16 lastyear, in a moving bus. Shedied on December 29 in aSingapore hospital.

The other charges framedagainst the accused areunnatural offence, destruc-tion of evidence, attempt tomurder, causing hurt whilecommitting robbery, dacoitywith murder, and commonintent.

The accused had pleadednot guilty to the charges.The court had earlierrestricted media fromreporting the proceedings inthe case and ordered an in-camera trial.

Delhi gang-rape case:Trial to continue in

fast-track court today

AGARTALA: Congress vice presidentRahul Gandhi will on Monday addressfour poll meetings in four corners ofthe northeastern state of Tripura for theFebruary 14 Assembly Elections.

According to reports, Rahul wouldarrive at Agartala airport today and flyby a helicopter to Sonamura inSipahijala district to address a poll rallyin support of the subdivision's four can-didates.

Rahul will later fly to Shantir Bazar

subdivision in South Tripura to addressthe second election rally.

"We are expecting that our cam-paign will get a major boost fromRahulji's meetings," PCC spokesmanAshok Sinha said.

He said Finance Minister PChidambaram and Congressspokesman Sandeep Dikshit accompa-nied by a host of other leaders wouldalso arrive here on the morning ofFebruary 12, the last day of vocal cam-

paign, to address a central rally atAstabol ground.

Sinha indicated that the central rallywould be held to make up for Sonia'sabsence. "Chidambaram as the FinanceMinister will openly endorse our pollmanifesto at the meeting.

We have made a lot of promises. Hispresence and endorsement of the mani-festo will set all speculation and mis-chievous propaganda of the CPM torest," Sinha said.

Rahul Gandhi to address poll rallies in Tripura today

KOLKATA: Taking pot-shots at senior CPM leaderBuddhadeb Bhattacharjeeover his comment that theruling party in West Bengalmay join hands with theBharatiya Janata Party (BJP)if it performs well in the2014 Lok Sabha polls,Trinamool Congress (TMC)MP Saugata Roy on Mondaysaid the former chief minis-ter's remark cannot be takenseriously for he is not even apeople's representative.

"I cannot take BuddhadebBhattacharjee seriously. Hehas been defeated in his ownAssembly constituency just19 months ago. He is just aforeign minister and nothingmore, he is not even a peo-ple's representative. So, whathe says has no importance,"said Roy.

"Trinamool Congress ismaintaining equidistancefrom BJP and the Congress.Our policies will not be dic-tated by what BuddhadebBabu sees, thinks or predicts.We shall follow our ownchart independently," headded.

Bhattacharjee had earlieron Sunday said that the

Trinamool Congress and BJPmay soon join hands in thedays ahead. "From thespeeches of BJP leaders weunderstand that the BJP iswilling to enter into analliance with the TrinamoolCongress. The ground isbeing readied by this govern-ment," said Bhattacharjee,while speaking at a hugeparty rally held in Kolkata

Bhattacharjee also lashedout at the government overits decision to give allowanceto imams. "During ourregime, too, the temples,masjids functioned smoothly,but we did not give anyallowance to imams andpriests. Why the governmenthas to allocate money forthem (imams), when lakhs ofyoung Muslims are not get-ting jobs," he added.

'Buddhadeb is just a foreignminister, not people'srepresentative': Saugata Roy

Maha drought: Sharad Pawar toask Centre for more relief fundsJALNA: Terming the drought situation in Maharashtra as"grim," Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said hewould recommend the Centre to release more funds for thestate to tackle the problem.

"The situation is grim and an important decision regardingthe future mode of action would be taken soon in New Delhiby the Drought Eradication Committee, the Union Ministersaid while addressing villagers in drought-hit villages in Jalna.

Fodder camps would be set in the drought hit areas and thegovernment would increase the wages given to the EGS work-ers, he said.

"I have never seen such a serious situation," Mr Pawar latertold reporters and reassured that he would recommend theUnion government to release more funds to the state, as wellas food grains to the BPL and AGL families.

The state government should send proposals to the Centreto tackle drought, Mr Pawar said, adding that he would takenecessary steps in this regard.

Replying to a question on the allegations by certainOpposition leaders that he thinks only of western Maharashtra,Mr Pawar said, "I am the Agriculture Minister of the wholecountry, not of Beed or western Maharashtra. I have to go towestern Maharashtra because my home is there."

NEW DELHI: Foreign SecretaryRanjan Mathai has said that India isdetermined to reach a satisfactory con-clusion of goals set by the PrimeMinisters of India and Bangladesh.These goals include ratification of theland boundary agreement and an interimagreement on sharing of Teesta Waters.Mr. Mathai reiterated India's unwaver-ing commitment to the early conclusion

of both these agreements in the shortestpossible time frame. He was addressinga joint press conference withBangladesh Foreign Secretary ShahidulHaque at the end of the foreignSecretary level talks in Dhaka.Responding to a question about extradi-tion of Anoop Chetia under the recentlysigned extradition treaty which does nothave provision for extradition of those

involved in political crimes, Mr. Mathaisaid that Anoop Chetia can be coveredunder the available provisions in thetreaty.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh PrimeMinister Sheikh Hasina has said that shewas looking forward to the proposedvisit of the President Pranab Mukherjeeto Dhaka in the first week of March thisyear.

India to move forward on interim Teestawater sharing pacts with Bangladesh

PATNA: An influentialgroup of Hindu priestsMonday objected to theVishwa Hindu Parishad(VHP) projecting GujaratChief Minister NarendraModi as a prime ministerialcandidate in the next generalelection. Bharat Sadhu Samaj

general secretary SwamiHarinarayanand said VHPleader Ashok Singhal's state-ment in Allahabad last weekwas "highlyobjectionable"."It wasagainst the norms and sancti-ty of pilgrim places,"Harinarayanand told

newspersons after returningfrom the Maha Kumbh inAllahabad.

He was responding toSinghal's statement that Modienjoys the same popularity asthat of first Prime MinisterJawaharlal Nehru. Claimingthat people across the country

wanted Modi as prime minis-ter, Singhal also called theGujarat chief minister"Hindu Hriday Samrat (onewho rules Hindu hearts)".Such a campaign at a pilgrimcentre, Harinarayanand said,was against the sanctity ofsadhu orders.

VHP's Modi as PM chant 'objectionable': Hindu priests

Page 6_ National - Copy.qxd 2/11/2013 7:49 PM Page 1

ISLAMABAD: Pakistantoday successfully testedthe nuclear-capable Hatf-IXtactical missile with a rangeof 60 km, designed todefeat all known anti-tacti-cal missile defence systems.

The test consisted of"successive launches of twomissiles from a multi-tubelauncher", the military saidin a statement describingthe test of the short rangesurface-to-surface missileas successful.

The Hatf-IX or Nasr,which has "in-flightmanoeuvre capability", cancarry "nuclear warheads ofappropriate yield with highaccuracy". "This quickresponse system, which canfire a four-missile salvo,ensures deterrence againstthreats in view of evolvingscenarios.

Additionally, Nasr hasbeen specially designed to

defeat all known anti-tacti-cal missile defense sys-tems," the statement said.

The test was witnessedby the Joint Chiefs of StaffCommittee Chairman GenKhalid Shameem Wynne,Strategic Plans Divisionchief Lt Gen (retired)Khalid Ahmed Kidwai,Army Strategic ForcesCommand chief Lt Gen

Triq Nadeem Gilani, seniorofficers from the armedforces and scientists andengineers of strategicorganizations.

The statement did notsay where the test was con-ducted.

Addressing scientistsand military officers ofstrategic organizations,Wynne congratulated themfor a high standard of profi-ciency in operating the Nasrweapon system.

He said the armed forceswere "fully capable of safe-guarding Pakistan's securityagainst all kinds of aggres-sion".

The successful test wasappreciated by thePresident and PrimeMinister, who congratulat-ed the scientists and engi-neers. The first test of theHatf-IX was conducted inApril 2011.

INTERNATIONAL & ECONOMYSTUDENT AGETUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013 7

ECONOMY

MUMBAI: RBI governor DuvvuriSubbarao on Monday cautioned thecountry was headed for the highestever current account deficit this fis-cal year, after it rose to 5.3 per centof GDP in the second quarter.

"Last year, CAD (current accountdeficit) was 4.2 per cent of GDP, butthis year we expect it would be sig-nificantly higher than that. It's goingto be historically the highest CADmeasured as a proportion of GDP,"the RBI governor said, though herefrained from giving any figure.

He also expressed concern overthe way current account deficit,which is the gap between forexgained and forex spent, is beingfinanced by volatile inflows insteadof more foreign direct investments.

Mr Subbarao was addressing theconvocation ceremony of the RBI-set up Indira Gandhi Institute ofDevelopment Research (IGIDR).

The trade gap is widening mainly

because of higher import of oil andgold. The third quarter numbers are

expected later this week.Flagging his concerns over cur-

rent account deficit, which was theoverriding theme of the third quartermonetary policy announced onJanuary 29, Mr Subbarao said thesewere regarding its level, quality andthe way it is being financed.

"We would not worry if thewidening CAS is on account of

import of capital goods, but here it ishigh on account of import of oil and

gold. The other con-cern is the way we arefinancing it. We arefinancing our CADthrough increasinglyvolatile flows.Instead, we shouldideally be getting asmuch of FDI as possi-ble to finance theCAD. On the otherhand, what we aregetting is a lot of

volatile flows to finance it," he said.In FY12, after hitting a high

CAD of 4.3 per cent, which wasthen a record, CAD had declined to3.9 per cent of GDP, though it was10 bps above the year ago period.According to both the governmentand the RBI, a 2.5-3 per cent currentaccount deficit is sustainable, other-wise it can impact the balance of

payments (BoP) position. The risingcurrent account deficit is blamed onthe falling health of the external sec-tor.

Besides, the domestic manufac-turing sector has also maintained alow growth at 0.8 per cent during thesecond quarter against 2.9 per centgrowth a year ago.

The growth of services sector,including insurance and real estate,stood at 9.4 per cent in Q2 against9.9 per cent in same quarter of lastfiscal year.

For the first nine months of thefiscal year, the manufacturing sectorgrew just 0.1 per cent. The Q1 cur-rent account deficit improvement to3.9 per cent was supported by asharper decline in imports comparedwith exports. In the FY12, it stood at4.2 per cent. However, as a propor-tion of GDP, even during Q1, CADrose to 3.9 per cent against 3.8 percent a year ago.

Highest current account deficit ahead: SubbaraoNEW DELHI: Union Finance Minister PChidambaram will meet state finance ministershere on February 14 to seek their approval ondesign of GST so that a broad outline of the indi-rect tax regime can be included in the nextBudget.

After holding discussions with states, sourcessaid, Chidambaram is likely to recommend cer-tain changes in the Goods and Services Tax(GST) Bill to the Parliamentary StandingCommittee on Finance.

Chidambaram had recently told state financeministers that he would include a broad outlineof the Constitution Amendment Bill on GST inhis Budget speech if there was a consensus. TheUnion Budget is scheduled to be presented onFebruary 28.

Last month in Bhubaneshwar, theEmpowered Committee of State FinanceMinisters had reached a broad consensus on thedesign of GST, under which the states will befree to decide on the time of its introduction.

The Empowered Committee also decided tosuggest to the Finance Ministry incorporation of

provisions for allowing states to opt out of theGST fold, thereby making it optional.

Moreover, states had agreed to a lower pay-ment of Rs 34,000 cr for phasing out the CentralSales Tax, a pre-condition for rollout of theGST. Besides, they had agreed that instead of asingle rate for GST there would be a floor ratewith a band, giving freedom to states to fix theirown rates. The February 14 meeting alsoassumes significance as the Centre is in theprocess of firming up indirect tax proposals forthe Budget.

Chidambaram calls meetingon GST rollout on Feb 14

NEW DELHI: The governmentwill pay Rs 25,000cr additionalcash subsidy to state-owned fuelretailers to make up for part of therevenue they lost on selling autoand cooking fuel below cost thisfiscal.

The Finance Ministry onFebruary 7 issued a "comfort let-ter" to Indian Oil Corp (IOC),Bharat Petroleum Corp (BPCL)and Hindustan Petroleum Corp(HPCL) sanctioning Rs 25,000crfor part of the revenue they loston selling diesel, domestic LPGand kerosene below cost, officialsources said.

Previously, the governmenthad released Rs 30,000cr subsidy.With the latest sanction it has metabout 44 per cent of the Rs124,854cr revenue the three firmstogether lost on selling auto and

cooking fuel below cost duringthe April-December period thisfiscal.

Of the latest sanction, IOCwould get Rs 13,474.56cr, BPCLRs 5,987.25cr and HPCL Rs5,538.19 cr.

Sources said the FinanceMinistry has only issued a com-fort letter which the oil compa-nies will account as receivables topost decent third quarter earn-ings. Actual cash will flow onlyafter Parliament approves supple-mentary demands for grants oradditional spending.

IOC, BPCL and HPCL lost Rs39,268cr in revenue on sellingdiesel, LPG and kerosene at gov-ernment controlled rate inOctober-December quarter. Ofthis, about Rs 15,000cr will bemade good up upstream firms

like Oil and Natural Gas Corp(ONGC) and Oil India Ltd.

Fuel retailers currently lose Rs9.22 a litre on diesel, Rs 31.60per litre on kerosene and Rs 481on every 14.2-kg LPG cylinder.

They lose Rs 443 cr per day ofsale of the three fuel.

The Finance Ministry payscash subsidies to state oil retailerswhile state-run upstream compa-nies - ONGC, OIL and GAILIndia Ltd - sell crude oil andproducts like LPG products at adiscount.

From the previous Rs 30,000cr dole, IOC had got about Rs16,100 cr, while HPCL andBPCL's was about Rs 6,670 cr,and Rs 7,200 cr respectively,sources added.

Upstream firms have till nowpaid Rs 45,000 cr in fuel subsidy.

Govt sanctions Rs 25,000cr additional fuel subsidyNEW DELHI: Domestic annual carsales are set to be in the negative ter-ritory for the first time in a decadewith industry body SIAM today say-ing it's growth forecast of 0-1 percent for this fiscal year will not bemet as gloomy macro-economic fac-tors and negative sentiments continueto hit demand. The statement bySociety of Indian AutomobileManufacturers (SIAM), comes on theback of January numbers also show-ing a decline of 12.45 per cent, thethird consecutive monthly declinesince November last year.

According to its latest data,domestic passenger car sales declinedto 1,73,420 units in January this yearcompared to 1,98,079 units in thesame month of 2012.

Worried by the performance of the

industry, SIAM called for govern-ment intervention in the form ofreduction in excise duties in theBudget and special schemes for com-mercial vehicles under JawaharlalNehru National Urban RenewalMission (JNNURM) to boost the sec-tor. "The way car sales are at themoment, we may not be able to meetthe forecast of 0-1 per cent growthfor the domestic passenger cars wemade last month. It will be in thenegative territory this fiscal year,"SIAM director general VishnuMathur said.

In January SIAM had lowered carsales growth projection to just 0-1per cent for this fiscal year, from 1-3per cent and 9-11 per cent announcedin October and July, 2012 respective-ly.

Car sales set to decline inFY13, first time in a decade

WASHINGTON: USPresident Barack Obamawill use his State of theUnion address on Tuesday tocall for dramatic cuts innuclear arsenals around theworld. In his speech Obamais unlikely to discuss specif-ic numbers but White Houseofficials are looking at a cutthat would take the arsenalof deployed weapons to justabove 1,000, said the offi-cials.

Currently, the UnitesStates has about 1,700

nuclear weapons, and thenew strategic arms reductiontreaty with Russia thatpassed the Senate at the endof 2009 calls for a limit ofroughly 1,550 by 2018. ButObama "believes that we canmake pretty radical reduc-tions -- and save a lot ofmoney -- without compro-mising American security inthe second term. And theJoint Chiefs have signed offon that concept," However,the White House is loath tonegotiate an entirely new

treaty with Russia, whichwould lead to Russiandemands for restrictions onUS and NATO missile-defense systems in Europeand would revive a majorfight with Republicans in theSenate over ratification.

Instead, Obama is weigh-ing how to reach an informalagreement with RussianPresident Vladimir Putin formutual cuts within theframework of the newSTART treaty, but withoutthe need for ratification.

Obama to propose deep nuclear arms cutsREYHANLI: Nine people werekilled and dozens wounded when acar exploded on Monday near theborder between Turkey and Syria,officials said, although the cause wasnot immediately clear.

A Syrian-registered car is believedto have been at the centre of the blaston Turkish soil, local mayor HuseyinSanverdi said.

Dozens of ambulances were dis-patched to the scene at the Cilvegozuborder crossing near the town ofReyhanli in the southern province ofHatay.

An official from the Turkish for-eign ministry confirmed the deadly

Explosion, adding that the blasttriggered a fire that damaged around15 humanitarian aid vehicles.

The explosion happened barely 40meters (yards) away from the

Cilvegozu crossing Another Turkishforeign ministry official said the

explosion did not appear to have beencaused by a mortar but that a suicidebomber might have been involved inthe blast that smashed apart the gatesat the crossing, opposite Syria's Bab

al-Hawa post."It is too early to make a conclu-

sion as the inquiry is still goingon,"the official said.

The car was believed to have beenparked at a crowded lot filled with

trucks ready to leave for war-torn

Syria with humanitarian supplies, theministry official added.

The explosion comes after a sui-cide bomber attacked the US embassyin Ankara on February 1, killing aTurkish security guard and woundingthree others.

That attack was claimed by a radi-cal Turkish Marxist group classifiedas a terrorist organization by Turkeyand the United States.

Monday's blast also came less thanthree weeks after NATO declared thata battery of US-made Patriot missileshad become operational on Turkey'sborder with Syria.

Several other batteries of the sur-face-to-air missiles have also beendispatched by NATO allies Germanyand the Netherlands to protect Turkeyfrom a possible spillover of the con-flict in Syria.

Nine killed in car blast near Turkey-Syria border

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan onMonday reacted cautiously tothe execution of Afzal Guru,hanged for his role in the2001 attack on the IndianParliament, saying it did notwant to "go into details" ofhis trial.

Responding to a questionregarding the hanging ofGuru, Foreign Officespokesman Moazzam Khansaid he "would not want to gointo details of the trialprocess".

The matter was "beingdiscussed and debated by themedia and the human rightsorganizations", he said in astatement.

"However, we reaffirmour solidarity with the peopleof Jammu and Kashmir andexpress our serious concernon the high-handed measurestaken by India in the wake ofAfzal Guru's execution tosuppress the aspirations ofKashmiris by arrests and

detention of Hurriyat leaders,curfew, news blackout andother coercive means," Khansaid.

Pakistan calls for the "lift-ing of repressive measuresand immediate release ofHurriyat leaders", he said.

Kashmiri groups andorganizations like theJamaat-ud-Dawah haveorganised protests in severalPakistani cities against thehanging of Guru.

Jammu and KashmirLiberation Front chief YasinMalik, currently on a privatevisit to Pakistan, held a 24-hour hunger strike anddemanded that Guru's bodybe handed over to his family.

Guru was hanged andburied in Delhi's Tihar Jail onSaturday.

Rights activists inPakistan have criticized theexecution and questioned theevidence that was used toconvict him.

Pakistan reacts cautiously toAfzal Guru's execution

Pak successfully test firesnuclear-capable Hatf-IX missile

VATICAN CITY: PopeBenedict XVI announcedon Monday he will resignon February 28 because hisage prevented him fromcarrying out his duties, anunprecedented move in themodern history of theCatholic Church. "Afterhaving repeatedly exam-ined my conscience beforeGod, I have come to the certainty that mystrengths, due to an advanced age, are nolonger suited to an adequate exercise of thePetrine ministry," the 85-year old pope told ameeting of cardinals. "For this reason, andwell aware of the seriousness of this act, with

full freedom I declare thatI renounce the ministry ofBishop of Rome,Successor of Saint Peter,entrusted to me by theCardinals on 19 April2005, in such a way, thatas from 28 February 2013,at 20:00 hours, the See ofRome, the See of SaintPeter, will be vacant and a

Conclave to elect the new Supreme Pontiffwill have to be convoked by those whosecompetence it is," he said. Pope Benedict hadhinted in a book of interviews in 2010 that hemight resign if he felt he was no longer ableto carry out his duties.

Pope says will resign on Feb 28: Vatican

PROVIDENCE: More than 220,000 homes and businesses remain remained without poweras the U.S. Northeast and Canada dug out from a blizzard that dumped up to 3 feet of snow onthe most densely populated part of the region. The death toll was at 15.

Some motorists had to be rescued after spending hours stuck in wet, heavy snow. Utilitiesin some hard-hit New England states predicted that the storm could leave some customers inthe dark. About 650,000 lost power in eight states at the height of the storm.

"We've never seen anything like this," said county official Steven Bellone of New York'sLong Island, where hundreds of drivers had been caught on highways by Friday's fast-movingstorm. Local police said that all known abandoned cars were searched and no one needing med-ical help was found. At least 11 deaths in the U.S. and four in Canada were blamed on thesnowstorm, including an 11-year-old boy in Boston who was overcome by carbon monoxide.Roads were impassable, and cars were entombed by snow drifts.Blowing with hurricane-forcewinds, the storm hit hard along the heavily populated corridor between New York City andMaine. In Massachusetts, the National Guard and Worcester emergency workers teamed up todeliver a baby at the height of the storm at the family's home. Everyone was fine.

US, Canada dig out after snowstorm; death toll 15

MUMBAI: Falling for theeighth day in a row, the BSEbenchmark Sensex onMonday lost over 24 pointsto close at new one year lowof 19,460.57 on selling incapital goods and FMCGstocks. The Sensex fell by24.20 points, or 0.12 percent,to 19,460.57, its lowest closesince December 31, 2012.The index had lost 520 pointsin last seven sessions.

Similarly, the wide-basedNational Stock Exchangeindex Nifty dipped below5,900 points by falling 5.65points, or 0.10 percent, to5,897.85, after touching theday's low of 5,979.10.

Brokers said continuedselling pressure on weakGDP projections and absence

of any cues from Asian mar-kets following closure forLunar New Year holidaysinfluenced the market.

In 30-BSE index compo-nents, 17 stocks ended withlosses led by Bharti Airtel,HDFC Ltd, Jindal Steel,Larsen and Toubro, MarutiSuzuki, ONGC and TataConsultancy Services.

However, state-runMMTC gained 18.96 percentto Rs 609.55 and HindustanCopper by 10.48 percent toRs 137.05.

The capital goods sectorsuffered the most by losing0.81 percent to 10,085.85followed by Teck index by0.43 percent to 3,783.42. ITindex lost 0.33 percent to6,455.58.

Sensex falls for 8th day; Bharti,HDFC among losers

Page 7_International & Economy.qxd 2/11/2013 10:49 PM Page 1

MISCSTUDENT AGETUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013 8

CHIEF-EDITOR, PUBLISHER, OWNER: Rohit Singh Rana, C.E.O.:Pawan Rathore, DY. CHIEF EDITOR : Vikram Singh Shan, Administrative Head Jammu: Vikram Singh Bhandai, Bureau Chief Kashmir: Allayee Faizan, LEGAL ADVISOR: Advocate Ashok Parihar EDITORIAL PRINTED AT JK PRINTING & PUBLICATIONS, SUJWAN, JAMMU TAWI.

For Contributing articles mail us at callme.ranasahib@gmail.com, editor.studentage@gmail.com. For Complaints, Querries or Advertisement Contact us: 0191-2580342.. Address: Sector-12, H.No-12 Nanak Nagar, Jammu(All disputes are subjected to the exclusive jurisdiction of Jammu District courts only.)

VINA DEL MAR, CHILE -Argentine Horacio Zeballossprung a major surprise by beatingRafa Nadal 6-7 (2) 7-6 (6) 6-4 towin the Chilean Open on Sundayand clinch the first title of hiscareer.

World number 73 Zeballos heldhis nerve in the final set, breakingNadal when he was serving to stayin the match to seal victory afteralmost three hours in the Pacificcoast city of Vina del Mar.

Nadal, whose plan to resume atthe end of 2012 after a long layoffdue to a knee injury was delayeddue to illness, will continue play-ing on his favorite clay surface attwo other Latin American eventsthis month.

The French Openchampion heads to theBrazil Open in Sao Paulonext week and the MexicoOpen in Acapulco fromFeb. 25. Zeballos wascompetitive from the out-set, but failed to exploittwo break-points in thefirst set to allow Nadal atiebreak, which theSpaniard comfortablywrapped up 7-2.

Zeballos hit back towin the second settiebreak 8-6 and showedgreat poise to level at 1-1in the decider after beingbroken before proceedingto an inspiring victory.

Zeballos surprises Nadal to win Chilean Open

Argentina's Horacio Zeballos (L) poses with his trophy after winning the final men's singlesagainst Spain's Rafael Nadal at the Chilean Open tennis tournament in Vina del Mar cityFebruary 10, 2013.

BADEN-BADEN (GERMANY): Worldchampion Viswanathan Anand missed out on awinning advantage and played out a draw withDaniel Fridman of Germany in the fourthround of the Grenke Chess Classic here.

With his fourth draw in as many games,Anand slipped to joint third spot in the six-players double round-robin tournament.

Italian Fabiano Caruana played yet anotherfine game to draw as black against MichaelAdams of England while in the other game ofthe day, Arkadij Naiditsch of Germanyaccounted for compatriot Georg Meier.

With six rounds still to come in the catego-ry-19 event, Caruana stayed on top with threepoints out of a possible four and Naiditschjumped to second spot a half point behind.Fridman on two points shares the third spotwith Anand while Adams is now on fifth spoton 1.5 points. Meier with one point in his kittystands last. What could have been a finely

crafted victory turned in to a missed chance forAnand. The Indian ace went for a topical vari-ation as black and came up with an improve-ment in the opening to equalize easily as black.Fridman hung on to his own to get to a slight-ly worse endgame wherein the grind began tofavour Anand once the position boiled down topure minor piece endgame.

It was only on the 48th move that Anandfaltered decisively. Instead of a Bishop retreat,

the Indian went for a wrong manoeuvre afterwhich Fridman gave no chances. A draw wassigned ten moves later. Naiditsch came up withhis third decisive games out of four rounds andcruised to his second win. The Slav defensewas Meier did not prove good enough as imag-inative display by Naiditsch helped him reacha decent advantage in the middle game. Meierwas down to his last minute when he failed tospot a single chance that came in his way andit was all over pretty soon. Caruana opted forthe sharp Arkhengelsk variation against blackand appeared to be in some difficulties in theensuing endgame. However, an erroneous planby Adams led to an easy equality and the drawwas a just result. The game lasted 50 moves.

Results round 4: Daniel Fridman (Ger, 2)drew with V Anand (Ind, 2); Michael Adams(Eng, 1.5) drew with Fabiano Caruana (Ita, 3);Arkadij Naiditsch (Ger, 2.5) beat Georg Meier(Ger, 1).

Viswanathan Anand slips to draw again

NEW DELHI: Pankaj Advaniadded another feather to his illustri-ous cap as the eight-time worldchampion became only the secondIndian cueist to qualify for the maindraw of Welsh Open Pro SnookerSeries.

Pankaj Advani defeated formerworld champion Peter Ebdon 4-3 ina nail-biting encounter to enter thedraw of 32 in the Welsh Open inSheffield.

In the past, two-time Asianchampion Yasin merchant had qual-ified for the round of 32 during hisstint on the professional circuit.

If Adavni manages to beat hisfirst round opponent in Newport,Wales then he'll become the firstIndian cueist to enter the pre-quar-

ter finals. In his qualifying finals, Advani

had ad i s a s -t r o u ss t a r t ,w i t hE b d o nracing toa 2-0lead. TheI n d i a n ,however,f o u g h tb a c kwith a 48break tonotch uphis firstframe of

this final qualifier match 72-42. The crucial fourth saw Pankaj

with a healthy lead until his Englishopponent fought back. Requiringone snooker, Pankaj deliveredimmediately to secure the frame67-66.

At 2-2, Ebdon fired in an 83break to secure the fifth frame 83-16 with only one frame to go for theBrit to enter the prestigious WelshOpen main draw.

However, Ebdon was stretchedto the decider as his 27-year oldopponent took the score to 88-49with the help of a 52 break.

In the decider, Pankaj utilisedthe momentum he gathered frombouncing back to enforce thedecider from virtual defeat andwent on to construct a clean,match-winning 63 break.

Pankaj Advani defeated former world champion Peter Ebdon 4-3 ina nail-biting encounter to enter the draw of 32 in the Welsh Open inSheffield

Pakistan against Hot Spot and umpire Steve DavisKARACHI: Pakistan has objected to the use of Hot Spot ball tracking technology and also to theappointment of umpire Steve Davis in the ongoing Test series in South Africa.

Pakistan Cricket Board has written a letter to the ICC outlining their objection to the use ofthe Hot Spot technology in the first Test against South Africa. Davis was the third umpire in thefirst Test in Johannesburg and many of the referral decisions went against Pakistan. Most of thereferrals were adjudged with the help of the Hot Spot technology which appeared to be inconclu-sive at times. The team management have clearly stated they don't want the ICC to post SteveDavis again in the series and that the Hot Spot technology should also be dropped for the remain-ing matches of the series. It said that the Pakistan Cricket Board had also asked the ICC toensure that the Hot Spot technology was no longer used in the series but so far the ICC had notresponded to their letter. The PCB is also unhappy with the way decisions went against their teamin the first test and have told the ICC they feel the Hot Spot technology is not reliable.

RANCHI: Ranchi Rhinos came from a goaldown to beat Delhi Waveriders 2-1 and winthe inaugural Hockey India League in athrilling summit clash in front of a capacityhome crowd at the Astroturf Hockey Stadiumhere on Sunday.

The Rhinos were trailing for most part ofthe match after Simon Child gave Delhi thelead in the 25th minute.

But the Ranchi outfit never gave up anddisplayed tremendous fighting spirit to scorethrough Austin Smith (55th) before ManpreetSingh (63rd) scored a late winner for the hometeam.

Earlier in the day, Uttar Pradesh Wizardsrode on captain V R Raghunath`s four goals,including a hat-trick, to finish third, defeatingJaypee Punjab Warriors 4-3 in the bronzemedal play-off match.

As expected, the title clash, a matchbetween the two best outfits of the tourna-ment, displayed scintillating hockey by bothDelhi and Ranchi, which was fast and free-flowing.

The Rhinos seemed to enjoy playing infront of a vociferous home crowd as they over-shadowed the Waveriders, at least, in the firstquarter.

The match started on an aggressive notewith both the teams adopting an attackingapproach but it was the Rhinos who dominat-ed the early exchanges with more penetrationsinside the rival circle.

The Waveriders, however, picked up their

game in the second quarter and scored againstthe run of play in the 25th minute throughSimon Child to silence the capacity crowd.

An opportunistic Child slammed the ballinto the right corner of the Ranchi post afterpicking up a loose ball inside the `D`.

The Rhinos got an opportunity to draw par-ity in the 32nd minute when they earned theirfirst penalty corner, but skipper MoritzFuerste`s low flick was saved by an alertNicolas Jacobi at the Delhi goal.

Leading by a goal, the Waveriders startedthe second half on a positive note and soon

managed to earn three penalty corners in suc-cession but Rupinder Pal Singh wasted all thethree with Ranchi goal-keeper Fransico Cortescoming to his side`s rescue on two occasions.

The Rhinos were unlucky not to have lev-elled the scoreline just before the end of thethird quarter. Their star forward and tourna-ment`s highest scorer Mandeep Singh misseda sitter from close range after he was set up byFuerste.

The Rhinos made continuous inroads intothe rival citadel in search of the equalizer andtheir consistent pressure finally paid off in the

55th minute when Smith brought the hosts onlevel terms.

Smith beautifully executed a variation witha grounded flick from the Ranchi`s thirdpenalty corner after earning the set piece fol-lowing a successful referral appeal. After man-aging to equalize, the Rhinos went for thekiller blow which rocked the Delhi defence.

After holding on to most part of the game,the Waveriders` backline started to buckleunder Ranchi`s consistent pressure and in theprocess made a mistake which cost them thetitle.

Ranchi earned another penalty corner inthe 63rd minute and Manpreet scored from arebound after Ashley Jackson`s initial flickwas saved.

With time running out, Delhi pressed hardfor an all-important equalizer but it was not tobe as the Rhinos` defence were up to the task.

It was a double celebration for the Rhinosas they not only won the inaugural HIL titlebut also bagged the Fair Play Trophy. Ranchi`syoung forward Mandeep Singh also won themost promising player of the tournament.

Despite the defeat there was something tocheer about for the Waveriders as its skipperSardar Singh was adjudged player of the tour-nament.

Besides the trophy, champions RanchiRhinos pocketed Rs 2.5 crores, while runners-up Delhi Waveriders took home Rs 1.25 crore.Third-placed Uttar Pradesh Wizards got richerby 75 lakhs.

Players of Ranchi Rhinos celebrate their victory after winning the final of Hockey India Leagueagainst Delhi Waveriders in Ranchi on Sunday

HIL: Ranchi Rhinos clinch inaugural edition, defeat Delhi Waveriders

Advani becomes 2nd Indian to qualify for Welsh Open

DUBAI: India maintained itsnumber one spot in the ICCODI Championship table whileVirat Kohli retained his num-ber three position among bats-men in the latest rankingsissued on Monday.

India continued at the topslot with 119 points, followedby England, while a 5-0 seriesvictory over the West Indiessaw Australia gain three ratingpoints to be at the third placewith 116 points.

In the rankings for ODIbatsman, comeback man ShaneWatson of Australia broke intothe top 10 after jumping sixplaces to eighth. Watson endedas the leading run-getter of theWest Indies series with 198runs from three games at anaverage of 66. The battingchart continues to be headed bySouth Africa's Hashim Amla,followed by his captain AB deVilliers and India's Virat Kohliin third place. In the ICCPlayer Rankings for ODI

bowlers, West Indies' SunilNarine has moved up a place to

third to reclaim his career-bestplacing thus far. Narine hasalso achieved a personal best-ever 740 ratings points in thisseries against Australia.

Clint McKay of Australiahas broken into the top 10 ofthe bowlers' list for the firsttime ever by moving up sevenplaces to seventh. McKay'snine wickets from five gamesat an average of 21.88 helped

him break into the top 10 inseventh spot, while his team-

mate Mitchell Johnson hasjumped five places to 14th.

The bowlers' table is stillheaded by Pakistan's SaeedAjmal, with MohammadHafeez in second place.

There is no change in thetop 10 of the all-rounders' list.Hafeez continues to head thistable with Shakib Al Hasan andWatson in second and thirdplaces respectively.

India retains number one spot, ViratKohli third among batsmen

NEW DELHI - TheNational Rifle Associationof India (NRAI) on Mondaybarred its three officials whooccupy key positions in theIndian Olympic Association(IOA) from taking part in itsupcoming elections.

The three officials areIOA vice-president AnuragThakur, joint secretary RajaK. Sidhu and executivecommittee member RanaGurmit Singh Sodhi.

Thakur, a BharatiyaJanata Party (BJP) Memberof Parliament (MP), alsoholds important administra-tive positions in other sportsassociations. Secretary ofPunjab Olympic AssociationSidhu and Sodhi both repre-sent Punjab's shooting bodyas secretary-general andvice-president, respectively.Tripura OlympicAssociation's secretaryRupak Deb Roy, who is alsoan office bearer of the stateshooting body, will also notbe allowed to take part inthe NRAI election.

NRAI presidentRaninder Singh said thenational body has written toall its affiliated units to barthose officials who took partin the elections of the IOA,which has been de-recog-nized by the InternationalOlympic Committee (IOC)over rigged elections inDecember. The units havebeen given 15 days' time toact against themembers."Raninder Singhsaid Punjab is the first stateto take action against itsofficials, who voted forAbhay Singh Chautala inthe IOA elections. GurbirSingh Sandhu, president ofPunjab's shooting body andfather of former WorldChampion Manavjit SinghSandhu, has already sus-pended Sidhu and Sodhi.

Raninder Singh, son offormer Punjab chief minis-ter Amrinder Singh, saidsteps are being taken toensure that the careers of theIndian shooters are not jeop-ardized.

NRAI bars three topIOA members from its

election process

MUMBAI: Indian scientists willjoin their counterparts globally fora rare celestial event scheduled forthe night of Feb 15-16 the passingof an asteroid very close to Earth,around 28,000 km away, and visi-ble with ordinary binoculars, aMumbai astro-scientist said onMonday.

The asteroid, named 2012DA14, measuring an estimated 44meters in diameter and up to 75meters long, and weighing around130,000 tonnes was discovered byan observatory in Spain on Feb 22,2012.

It will travel at a dizzying speedof a little over six km per second, oraround 22,000 kmph, leaving ablazing trail behind it, as it shootspast in a south-north direction

above Earth, said Bharat Adur,Director, Akash Ganga Centre forAstronomy (AGCA), Thane.

"At its closest point, it will bewithin the orbit of the moon andcloser than some high-orbiting geo-synchronous communicationssatellites. It will be a unique oppor-tunity for observation and study theasteroid which will be the closest toapproach Earth, without recentprecedents," Adur said.

2012 DA14 will cross theEarth's orbit shortly after midnightof Feb 15-16 at an average distanceof around 28,000 km and will bevisible with ordinary binoculars ina clear dark sky, he said.

However, he added that if itwould have indeed collided, itcould have caused an earthquake

measuring at least four on theRichter scale, impacting a largevicinity and enough to flatten a city.

As for the origins of this aster-oid, classified as an 'Apollo typeasteroid' Near Earth Object, Adursaid it will come within the asteroidfield between Earth and Mars.

Usually cold and hard rocks,asteroids are believed to be celes-tial bodies which never becameplanets and continue to cross thesolar system and even beyond atregular intervals.

The 2012 DA14 will again bevisible in 2020 and even at thattime, it will be zooming past at avery safe distance from Earth, withthe chance of a collision as remoteas one in 83,000, according toNASA.

Scientists brace for a close peek at asteroid

page 8_Misc.qxd 2/11/2013 10:47 PM Page 1