Laws and statutes are the fertile breeding ground for corruption: Karnataka Lokayukta

BANGALORE: Karnataka Lokayukta Y Bhaskar Rao on Saturday maintained that laws and statutes in the country are the fertile breeding ground for corruption.

"There are more than 3,000 central statutes and ten times as many state statutes and subsidiary and administrative laws with several exemption clauses and vide discretionary powers sans accountability. All these laws are fertile breeding ground for corruption," Rao said during symposium on role of government servants in eradication of corruption organized by Karnataka State Government Employees Association at Vidhana Soudha on Saturday.

Justifying his statement, Rao attacked the senior echelon of the bureaucracy saying that power is concentrated in about 2 million public servants who excise their powers, control and regulate thousand million citizens. "About 19.5 million people in over 200,000 establishments hold public offices in state and Central government. Of these more than 90% are class III and class IV employees. Power is concentrated in the hands of couple of million public servants, who have got the potentiality to indulge into corruption in all forms and scale giving India an image as one of the most corrupt country in the world. The remaining 17.5 million public servants with limited power can indulge in petty corruption," he said.

Asking officials and employees to change their mind set, Lokayukta gave away examples of corruption in public distribution system ( PDS), health and pensions department. He said below poverty line (BPL) people have to pay extra money to avail subsidized rice, wheat, kerosene and sugar. "Rice is charged at Rs 3, but sold at Rs 3.41; wheat is charged at Rs 3, but sold at Rs 3.16, kerosene is charged at Rs 10.10 per litre, but sold at Rs 10.58 per litre and similarly, sugar is charged at Rs 13.50, but is sold at Rs 14.89," he said.

According to Rao, the excess payment made by the beneficiaries is calculated for the year turned into crores of rupees and further the quality of service like inaccurate measuring of items are dissatisfactory. Quoting study reports, he said 97.7 lakh BPL ration cards are in circulation for 44.7 lakh households. The total economic loss to the state is Rs 145.8 crore every month.

On corruption in primary health centres, the Lokayukta noted that though all the medical services in the PHCs are free, patients have reported that they have paid on average of Rs 94.80 for treatment, Rs 90 for medicines and Rs 89.80 for laboratory services. "Problems faced by the patients in the PHCs were non-availability of medicenes (37%), doctors coming late to the PHCs (27%), demanding money from patients (18%), issuing medicines (9%) and absence of duty doctors in the night (9%)," Rao maintained.

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Laws and statutes are the fertile breeding ground for corruption: Karnataka lokayukta

BANGALORE: Karnataka Lokayukta Y Bhaskar Rao on Saturday maintained that laws and statutes in the country are the fertile breeding ground for corruption.

"There are more than 3,000 central statutes and ten times as many state statutes and subsidiary and administrative laws with several exemption clauses and vide discretionary powers sans accountability. All these laws are fertile breeding ground for corruption," Rao said during symposium on role of government servants in eradication of corruption organized by Karnataka State Government Employees Association at Vidhana Soudha on Saturday.

Justifying his statement, Rao attacked the senior echelon of the bureaucracy saying that power is concentrated in about 2 million public servants who excise their powers, control and regulate thousand million citizens. "About 19.5 million people in over 200,000 establishments hold public offices in state and Central government. Of these more than 90% are class III and class IV employees. Power is concentrated in the hands of couple of million public servants, who have got the potentiality to indulge into corruption in all forms and scale giving India an image as one of the most corrupt country in the world. The remaining 17.5 million public servants with limited power can indulge in petty corruption," he said.

Asking officials and employees to change their mind set, Lokayukta gave away examples of corruption in public distribution system ( PDS), health and pensions department. He said below poverty line (BPL) people have to pay extra money to avail subsidized rice, wheat, kerosene and sugar. "Rice is charged at Rs 3, but sold at Rs 3.41; wheat is charged at Rs 3, but sold at Rs 3.16, kerosene is charged at Rs 10.10 per litre, but sold at Rs 10.58 per litre and similarly, sugar is charged at Rs 13.50, but is sold at Rs 14.89," he said.

According to Rao, the excess payment made by the beneficiaries is calculated for the year turned into crores of rupees and further the quality of service like inaccurate measuring of items are dissatisfactory. Quoting study reports, he said 97.7 lakh BPL ration cards are in circulation for 44.7 lakh households. The total economic loss to the state is Rs 145.8 crore every month.

On corruption in primary health centres, the Lokayukta noted that though all the medical services in the PHCs are free, patients have reported that they have paid on average of Rs 94.80 for treatment, Rs 90 for medicines and Rs 89.80 for laboratory services. "Problems faced by the patients in the PHCs were non-availability of medicenes (37%), doctors coming late to the PHCs (27%), demanding money from patients (18%), issuing medicines (9%) and absence of duty doctors in the night (9%)," Rao maintained.

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Bus fares to go up by 30 per cent in Himachal Pradesh from October 1

SHIMLA/DHARAMSALAA: Bus fares in Himachal Pradesh is set to go up from October 1. Accepting the demand of private bus operators, Himachal Pradesh government has decided to increase the fares by 30 per cent while the minimum fare for local buses would go up from Rs 2 to Rs 5. Announcing the hike in bus fares at Dharamsala, transport minister GS Bali said the revised fares would come into force from October 1 and a notification in this regard would be issued immediately.

The cabinet had already approved the bus fare hike in its last meeting but no announcement was made in this regard.

The private bus operators had been demanding a hike in bus fares and went on a day's strike to press their demand.

While the revised fares would reduce the operational losses of private operators to a great extent, the revenue of Himachal Road Transport Corporation(HRTC) is estimated to go up by Rs 50 crore annually. The HRTC is incurring losses to the tune of Rs 80 crore annually while its accumulated losses stood at Rs 600 crore due to increase in prices of diesel, spare parts and salaries of employees. Himachal's opposition BJP criticised the bus fare hike and said it was totally ?unjustified and uncalled for? at a time when the people are already reeling under rising prices due to "wrong" policies of UPA government. State BJP chief Satpal Singh Satti and party spokesperson, Genesh Dutt said only a few days ago, the government had announced that there was no immediately move to hike the prices.

They said 30 per cent hike in bus fares and increasing the minimum fare of local buses from Rs 2 to Rs 5, was a "cruel joke" with the people and would further add to the inflation. "The state government is following the footsteps of UPA government and putting burden on people by frequently hiking the prices of diesel, petrol and LPG but people of Himachal would not take it lying down and give a befitting reply", he added.

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German village evacuated after gas explosion, 16 firefighters injured

BERLIN: Police are evacuating an entire village in central Germany after a fire at a gas company led to an explosion that injured 16 firefighters.

Police spokesman Markus Sicius said an explosion of two gas tanks early on Saturday in Harthausen near Ludwigshafen led to the evacuation of some 3,000 residents after the firefighters were injured.

The fire on the grounds of a gas company was first reported at 4:20am, and while firefighters were trying to douse the flames, the fire spread to two trucks with gas tanks which exploded.

Sicius said one of the injured was in a critical, but not life-threatening, condition.

Residents were taken to nearby Dudenhofen and put up at a town hall.

He said the cause of the fire was not immediately known.

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Kachroo ragging case: Convicts get nod to rejoin college

SHIMLA: Four medical college students convicted for ragging to death their junior Aman Kachroo would now return to the classroom as the Himachal Pradesh University (HPU) on Saturday allowed them to complete their studies.

The conviction of Ajay Verma, Naveen Verma, Abhinav Verma and Mukul Sharma, who were punished for the 2009 ragging death of Kachroo, was upheld by the Himachal Pradesh high court in April.

The university executive council, chaired by vice-chancellor ADN Bajpai, has allowed the convicts to continue their MBBS degree, an HPU statement said.

The permission was given on the convicts' request, it said.

The three convicts were third-year MBBS students, while the fourth, Ajay Verma, was an intern at the time of the incident.

Kachroo, 19, was a student of the Rajendra Prasad Medical College and Hospital at Tanda town in Kangra district since 2007. He died on March 8, 2009 after he was ragged by his four drunk seniors.

Reacting to the HPU's decision to readmit the students, Aman's father Rajender Kachroo told IANS over telephone from Gurgaon in Haryana: "We have nothing to do with this."

He had earlier said: "I am not against rehabilitation but that doesn't mean they should be given the same position as earlier."

"The decision to readmit them is a major setback in this direction. It may be symbolic (to readmit them) but it has the large dimension in the context of the campaign," said Kachroo, currently monitoring the National Ragging Prevention Programme on behalf of the University Grants Commission.

Ajay Verma, Naveen Verma, Abhinav Verma and Mukul Sharma, who were convicted by a trial court in Dharamsala Nov 11, 2010 spent three years and five months in jail before the state government waived off their remaining seven-month jail term in August last year.

They were earlier held guilty of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, house-trespass, assault or wrongful restraint under the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Upholding their conviction by the trial court, the high court in April rejected their appeal seeking relief and enhanced the fine from Rs 10,000 to Rs 100,000 each.

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US citizen missing; embassy officials meet UP police

MATHURA: Officials from the US embassy arrived here on Friday from New Delhi to get information about a missing American citizen, who had come to India ten years ago.

Derek Scott Clinton, who arrived in India in March, 2003 on a visa valid for ten years, continues to remain untraceable despite a search going on for him from July last year.

Following a complaint registered by Clinton's family in the United States, US embassy officials on Friday met senior police officer Gulab Singh in Mathura and exchanged information regarding Clinton's disappearance.

An inquiry at the local level had been started in July last year as expiration date of Clinton's visa was nearing.

"It is mandatory for any foreigner to register himself for the extension of visa before its expiry," said Munnalal Goad, an official of the police's local intelligence unit.

Police suspect that Clinton either may have become a hermit or might have been killed in a mishap or due to some protracted illness.

A survey of American visitors who died in mysterious circumstances in Mathura in the last ten years is already underway in the district, police said.

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Lankan court extends remand of 31 Indian fishermen till October 1

RAMESWARAM (TN): A Sri Lankan court on Friday extended till October 1 the remand of 31 fishermen, arrested by Lankan Navy on July 30 for allegedly fishing in the island country's waters, fishermen welfare organisation sources said.

Rameswaram fishermen welfare organisation president Emerite said 65 fishermen of Nagapattinam and Karaikal were arrested on July 30. While 34 fishermen were released on September 4, the others are still lodged in Trincomalee prison.

Trincomalee court magistrate, Pasis, extended the remand when the fishermen were produced before him, he said.

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Andhra Pradesh transport strike hits Odisha bus passengers

BERHAMPUR (Odisha): Over a month-long transport strike in Andhra Pradesh in protest against the creation of Telangana state has hit Odisha transport services hard, official sources said today.

Many Odisha State Road Transport Corporation (OSRTC) buses are unable to enter Andhra Pradesh due to the strike.

As many as 64 buses at 32 routes under OSRTC's Berhampur division have been diverted, causing heavy loss to the Corporation.

"The buses are not entering Andhra Pradesh since August 12 as the agitators detained some inter-state buses," OSRTC divisional manager (Berhampur) Lala Ashok Kumar Ray said.

The loss to the corporation's Berhampur division has been estimated at Rs 2.75 crore during the period, he said, adding total loss to the corporation would be higher if other divisions like Angul, Cuttack and Bhubaneswar were taken into consideration.

"These long routes buses, mostly plying during night, are profitable. We are not sure when the normal bus services will resume," the Divisional Manager said.

Even though several buses have been grounded, the OSRTC is paying road tax and giving salary to the staff.

While plying of buses of the OSRTC in 32 routes in Vijayanagaram unit has been stopped, the bus service in 12 routes at Berhampur, six at Bhawanipatna and four at Bhanjanagar units has come to a grinding halt.

Bus passengers are now depending on trains to go to Andhra Pradesh as rail services were not affected due to the strike.

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Telangana riddle: Focus on Sushma's Mahbubnagar rally on Saturday

HYDERABAD: Amid political turbulence over the division of Andhra Pradesh, the BJP leader Sushma Swaraj is set to visit Telangana region and address a public meeting in Mahbubnagar on Saturday.

It is interesting to know what message she would send across from the hotbed of the Telangana movement, since she had promised that the government would grant the statehood to the region within hundred days if the BJP comes to power at the Centre, but the Congress has now announced that the Telangana state would be formed even before the elections.

It is interesting for another reason that Sushma is known to have been rivaling her party prime ministerial nominee Narednra Modi, whose priority is to lure the parties like TDP with an anti-Telangana leaning. Modi had chanted 'Jai Seemandhra', 'Jai Telangana' at a public meeting in Hyderabad last month, in a bid to woo both the splinter regions. But, the party insiders said there was a conflict within the BJP over this. While Sushma wants to use the pro-Telangana stand as the trump card, Modi supporters want to reach out to the Seemandha also.

"The BJP has positioned itself as the strong pro-Telangana party and we are not affording to lose it. At this point of time, if we veer out from this, we will have to pay heavy price in both Telangana and Seemandhra," said Nagama Janardana Reddy, an independent MLA who joined the BJP recently.

Nagama Janardana Reddy is the most likely candidate of the BJP from Mahbubnagar currently represented by the TRS president K Chandrasher Rao in the Lok Sabha. While he is overviewing the arrangements for the Saturday's public meeting in Mahbubnagar, Nagam said Sushma would make a strong pitch for Telangana and urge the Centre to expedite the process of formation of the separate state.

However, the supporters of Modi led by the state BJP president G Kishan Reddy are advocating a moderate approach and they are planning to take the Gujarat chief minister on Seemandhra tour in the run-up for the election campaign. Public meetings for Modi have been lined up in the Seemandhra towns like Rajamundry, Vishakapatatnam, Anathpur, and Tiruptahi. But, with the region is on the boil now, the programme has been postponed. And Modi will visit Telangana region to address massive rallies in Nizamabad and Karimnagar in October or November.

"The BJP is a national party, and for us it is important to see both the regions including Telangana and Seemandhra get justice. Modi will visit both the region and demands the Centre to address the concerns of the people while bifurcation the state," said Kishan Reddy. "We are waiting for the situation in Seemandhra coming back to normalcy. Once the things are settle down, we will plan the schedule of Modi's tour in Seemandhra. For now, he will address rallies in Nizamabad and Karimnagar."

However, Kishan Reddy sought to clarify that the BJP was not compromising with its pro-Telangana stand. And he even staged a day-long Dharna earlier this week in Karimnagar seeking justice to the Telangana region.

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Special train to ply between Kerala and Assam via Vizag

VISAKHAPATNAM: The Indian Railways has decided to run special trains between Dibrugarh in Assam and Kochuveli in Kerala to clear extra rush of passengers during the upcoming Dasara season. Train number 06335 Dibrugarh - Kochuveli special will leave Dibrugarh on September 29, October 13 and 27 as well as November 11 at 12.15am (midnight). The train will arrive at Visakhapatnam on Tuesdays (October 1, 15 and 29 and November 12) at 3.15am and depart at 3.35am to reach Kochuveli on Wednesday at 11.45am.

In the return direction, train number 06336 Kochuveli-Dibrugarh special will leave Kochuveli on October 8, 22 and November 5 at 8.15pm. It will reach Visakhapatnam on Thursdays (October 10 and 24 and November 7) at 3.40am, depart at 4am and reach Dibrugarh at 9.55am on Saturday.

The train will pass through Kollam, Kottayam, Ernakulam Town, Coimbatore Junction, Katpadi, Chennai Central, Gudur, Nellore, Ongole, Vijayawada, Eluru, Rajahmundry, Samalkota, Vizianagaram, Berhampur, Khurda Road, Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Bhadrak, Balasore, Hijilli, Midnapure, Bankura, Adra, Asansol, Durgapur, Malda Topwn, New Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar, New Bangaonl, Kamakhya, Guwahati, Lumding, Dimapur, Mariani and New Tinsukia in both the directions.

The train consists of one second-AC coach, two third-AC coaches, four sleeper-class coaches, six general second-class coaches, six second-class chair car coaches and two second-class sitting-cum-luggage rakes.

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Encephalitis claims 9 more lives in UP, toll crosses 300 mark

GORAKHPUR (UP): With nine more children succumbing to encephalitis, the death toll due to the disease in eastern Uttar Pradesh has climbed to 301 this year.

The dead include three children from Kushinagar, two from Deoria, and one each from Gorakhpur, Siddharthanagar and Santkabirnagar districts of eastern UP, health officials said on Thursday.

One child from Bihar also died due to encephalitis, they said, adding that 22 persons suffering from encephalitis have been admitted to the BRD Medical College Hospital in the past two days.

This year as many as 1,486 encephalitis patients, mostly children, were admitted to BRD Medical College Hospital, of which 301 died, they said.

Encephalitis usually occurs after the onset of monsoon every year. The disease is caused by mosquito bite and contaminated water.

The government has launched sanitation and vaccination programmes in the affected areas.

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China court jails general's son for 10 years over gang rape

BEIJING: A court sentenced the teenage son of a Chinese general to 10 years in jail for rape on Thursday, court authorities said, after his trial threw a spotlight on the lives of China's elite.

Li Tianyi, 17, and four other men were found guilty of raping a woman in a Beijing hotel in February, Beijing court authorities said on a verified social media account.

Li's father Li Shuangjiang, a military singer, holds a rank equivalent to general in China's army. The case drew widespread scrutiny in the country, where the children of the elite are often seen as living extravagantly or above the law due to their connections.

Li Tianyi had previously triggered controversy in 2011 after he and another teenager, both driving expensive cars, attacked a couple who reportedly blocked their passage, while the victims' child looked on.

His father is dean of the music department for the Chinese army's Academy of Arts, and is known for singing patriotic songs. His mother, Meng Ge, is also a prominent singer.

The court did not state clearly how Li had pleaded during his trial last month. During the hearings, the Beijing News reported that he "did not admit to the sexual assault and did not admit to a relationship, saying he was drunk and did not know anything" about what happened.

The other four defendants in the trial were sentenced to between three and 12 years in prison, the court authority said.

Internet users had speculated that Li would escape without a prison sentence. Some celebrated the verdict on Thursday.

"Ten years, that's not bad," posted one user of Sina Weibo, a Chinese equivalent of Twitter.

Others decried what they saw as too light a sentence for Li. "How much do other gang rapists get? In 10 years he will be released and will be considered a great boy," said a post.

It was not immediately clear if Li would appeal the charge. State media quoted Li's legal advisor Lan He as saying ahead of the trial that his family would appeal if the court gave a guilty verdict.

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At least 27 dead in Sudan fuel subsidy protests: Report

KHARTOUM: At least 27 people have been killed in protests in Khartoum over fuel subsidy cuts, a medical source said on Thursday, making it the deadliest outbreak of unrest in Sudan's capital in years.

Thousands of protesters torched cars and petrol stations in central areas of the capital on Wednesday, sending thick plumes of black smoke into the air. Internet access went down across the country, although the cause was not immediately clear.

Sudan's president, Omar Hassan al-Bashir, has avoided the mass unrest that unseated rulers in Arab countries like Egypt and Tunisia, but anger has been rising over inflation and corruption.

Relatives and medics said at least six people were killed in Wednesday's protests, but a medical source at a hospital in Khartoum's Omdurman neighbourhood said 27 bodies had arrived at that hospital during the riots.

"There were 27 people killed in the protests and their bodies are at the Omdurman hospital," the source told Reuters, asking not to be named.

The Arab-African country has suffered from armed insurgencies in its poor peripheral regions for decades, but the wealthier central areas along the Nile including Khartoum are usually relatively isolated from unrest.

Similar protests broke out in June last year after some fuel subsidies were cut, but they fizzled after a security crackdown. This round of unrest started on Monday after the government announced another set of cuts to fuel subsidies.

The secession of oil-producing South Sudan in 2011 hurt Sudan's economy, depriving it of about three-quarters of the crude production it relied on for state revenues and foreign currency used to import food.

Despite an outstanding warrant for his arrest from the International Criminal Court, Bashir said on Sunday he planned to attend the UN General Assembly and had booked a hotel in New York.

But a UN official told Reuters by email Bashir would not be coming to New York, giving no further details.

Washington has led calls for Bashir to face international justice over bloodshed in the now decade-old conflict in Sudan's Darfur region and the US ambassador to the UN had previously called Bashir's intention to travel to New York "deplorable".

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US relations with Asean countries governed by China's influence in the region, expert says

CHENNAI: The relationship of the US with Asean countries is influenced to a large extent by China's growing authority and on whether this will indicate a demeaning of the US influence, according to a US expert on international relations, politics and regionalisms of Southeast and East Asia.

"The official US policy in the region is not about containing China, but there are concerns about the country's growing influence. If you put the different pieces of relationships in East Asia together, there is a concern over the rising Chinese influence," said Alice D Ba, director of the Asian Studies Programme at the University of Delaware, here on Thursday.

Ba was interacting with students and researchers of the University of Madras and other educational institutions after delivering a lecture on 'The US and East Asia's Transitioning System: The Significance of the Rebalance'. The lecture was part of a series organised by the department of politics and public administration of the University of Madras and the Centre for Asia Studies.

During her lecture, Ba said that the US policy for East Asia was based on strategic peace, diplomatic or institutional peace and economic peace. The policy did not evolve in one instance but was framed based on broader, macro systemic changes, she said. "It's not just about China, but also a response to regional changes in East Asia," she added.

Responding to a question from a student, Ba said, "We are increasingly moving towards a multipolar world order involving a lot of economics and not just military power. The economies of all countries are tied together now and cannot be ignored any more. Politics is much more complex today than 50 or 60 years ago."

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4 injured in chopper crash near Mount Everest

KATHMANDU: A helicopter crashed while attempting to land near Mount Everest on Thursday, injuring all four people on board, Nepalese police said.

The helicopter belonging to local Dynasty Airlines was approaching Lukla airport when it got caught in a wire fence, police official Badri Bikram Thapa said.

The helicopter crashed and caught fire but the four on board all Nepalese citizens managed to escape. One was critically injured and was flown by rescue helicopter to Kathmandu for treatment.

The tiny airstrip at Lukla, carved out of the side of the mountain at an altitude of 2,843 m, has earned a reputation as one of the most extreme and dangerous airports in the world. The single runway is narrow, short and sloped. The helipad is also small.

It has become a busy airport used by thousands of mountaineers and trekkers who visit the Everest region every year.

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Suicide bombing: Catholic forum urges govt to raise the case with Pakistan

MANGALORE: Mumbai-based activist community organization, the Catholic Secular Forum (CSF), has urged the Pakistani high commissioner Salman Basheer in New Delhi to assist in organizing a delegation of Indian Christians to Peshawar to express solidarity with the victims of the blasts that killed over 80 Christians and others on Sunday. The CSF has called upon the international community and human rights NGOs not to remain silent and take up the issue with the Pakistan government, as there is no guarantee that the situation will not be repeated in the future.

Joseph Dias, CSF general secretary, said: "Christians in Pakistan are soft targets and get caught in the political and fanatical crossfire. Pakistani Christians are not only targeted by fundamentalists, but also by local Pakistanis under blasphemy laws, with the government not acting effectively against such human rights violations. Hundreds of CSF activists have in an e-mail protest called upon the Pakistan government to punish the fanatics and deal with Islamic terrorism with a firm hand."

Dias has also called upon the UPA government to take up the case with Pakistan, since many of the Christians are of Indian origin and either migrated or were forced to stay back after 1947 partition and hence, the government cannot absolve its responsibility.

The CSF has sent an SOS memorandum to the Prime Minister and the foreign minister too. The Christian community in Pakistan has contributed in a big way, rendering educational, medical and social services to mainly the Muslim community. "The burning of a church and St Paul's High School in Mardan, near Peshawar proves that the Pakistan government has no control over the fundamentalists,'' Dias said.

The CSF has called upon the President and Prime Minister of Pakistan to immediately announce monetary dispensation to the next of kin of those dead and adequate compensation to rebuild the burnt down and destroyed institutions.

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HC defers hearing on reference in December 16 gang-rape case

NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court on Wednesday deferred to October one hearing on the death penalty reference against four convicts in the December 16 gang rape and murder case and directed the police to supply to offenders the necessary set of documents.

A bench of justices Reva Khetrapal and Pratibha Rani listed the matter for Tuesday after the counsel for the four convicts submitted that they did not have the same paper books (set of documents) with which prosecution will present the case before it.

The court had on Tuesday fixed the hearing of the death penalty reference on a day-to-day basis against convicts Mukesh (26), Akshay Thakur (28), Pawan Gupta (19) and Vinay Sharma (20) from Wednesday.

The defence counsel informed the bench that they have not been provided with the set of documents either by the court's registry or by the prosecution on a court's query whether they have received the paper books to start the arguments.

Special public prosecutor Dayan Krishnan agreed to supply the complete paper books to the defence within two days.

The bench also asked the registry to furnish a translation of the 23-year-old victim's dying declaration from Hindi to English language and relevant statements of witnesses under section 161 and 164 CrPC.

"The state has got prepared the paper books (except the translation) and in order to expedite the same, they (police) will furnish it within two days.

"Registry shall accordingly furnish the translations... the handful of documents to the parties which have already been exhibited by the trial court," the bench said.

It said in case the parties need any other document, they could either inform the court or the registry.

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Mizoram office hours shortened before winter

AIZAWL: Mizoram government office hours were shortened due to the approaching winter with effect from October one and the government offices in the state would have working hours from 9:30am to 4pm, a notification issued by the General Administration Department on Wednesday said.

The office hours in Mizoram Houses in Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangaluru and Kolkata would be 10am to 5pm while the office hours in Mizoram Houses in the North East - Guwahati, Shillong and Silchar would be like the government offices in the state, the notification said.

Mizoram Houses outside the state were authorized to issue Inner Line Permits (ILP) for entering this tribal state.

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2013 MacArthur 'genius grant' winners unveiled

CHICAGO: The old man couldn't control his diabetes, no matter how closely he followed his doctor's instructions. A nurse visited him to find out why the insulin wasn't working, only to watch the nearly blind man inadvertently inject himself with a syringe filled with nothing but air.

It sounds simple to track a patient outside of office visits. But the Chicago-based John D and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation found the idea genius.

Jeffrey Brenner, a doctor and founder of the organization that dispatches medical professionals to the doors of the desperately poor residents of Camden, NJ, was named on Wednesday as one of 24 to receive a $625,000 "genius grant" from the foundation.

"This is an acknowledgment that we are headed in the right direction," Brenner said.

The 44-year-old created the Camden Coalition of Healthcare Providers as a means to find and track the poorest patients with the most complex medical issues. Those patients are visited wherever they are _ at home, in shelters _ and escorted to doctor's appointments.

"We cut, scan, zap and hospitalize (patients)," said Brenner, whose group is now working with 10 communities to develop similar systems. "But we forget we need to take care of them."

The eclectic group of grant recipients includes scientists, artists, historians, writers, a lawyer, a statistician and a photographer. They can spend the money however they like, for seeing things others haven't, asking questions others haven't asked and finding new solutions to old problems.

The awards, given annually since 1981, are doled out over a five-year period. This year's class brings the number of recipients to nearly 900, and also will be given the largest amount ever _ $125,000 more than last year. Shrouded in secrecy, the selection process involves anonymous nominators and selectors who make final recommendations to the foundation's Board of Directors.

A National Public Radio report about the Library of Congress worrying about damaging old recordings just by playing them sparked the imagination of Carl Haber, a 54-year-old experimental physicist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California.

He began to think how one could use precision optical measuring techniques employed in particle research to try to pull sounds from fragile or crumbling cylinders as well as discs and tinfoil.

"Using scientific cameras and measurement tools that just use light, we create essentially a picture ... and then write a program where the computer analyzes the image and calculates mathematically how the needle would move rather than use the needle," he said.

The result: Bringing alive the voices of the dead, from Alexander Graham Bell's voice from the 1800s to a Native American language that fell silent with the last of its possessors. The thousands of recordings from bygone eras around the world are of "great value to anthropologists, the study of folklore, national culture," he said.

But there's more to it, as Haber found out when he heard Bell respond to a small mistake made during the recording.

"To hear someone caught off guard, you are actually seeing the humanity of these people," Haber said.

Robin Fleming's work has been to show the humanity of nations passed over in history books. A Medieval historian at Boston College, she has focused on Great Britain after the fall of the Roman Empire, starting in the 5th century, by analyzing things like coins, pots and even tooth enamel found in settlements and cemeteries to create a picture of their lives.

What she discovered was the people of the time were so determined to carry on the ways of those who came before, they went to cemeteries to dig up artifacts that would help them do that _ including containers that held cremated remains.

"They knock(ed) the ash out, give them a wash and put them on the table," Fleming, 57, said.

With an eye to a more contemporary, but just as forgotten, issue, attorney Margaret Stock focuses on military personnel and their families who she says are victimized by the nation's immigration laws.

After Sept. 11, as politicians asked the nation to take care of those fighting for their country, Stock was getting call after call, hearing things like a soldier begging her to stop immigration officials from deporting his wife to Mexico.

"He's on the tarmac ... about to be deployed and says his wife took a wrong turn into a construction zone, was picked up by immigration, they had her in jail and were trying to deport her." said Stock, who lives in Anchorage, Alaska. "The pain that's being caused right now is tremendous."

To help, Stock created the American Immigration Lawyers Association MAP program, which puts volunteer attorneys across the nation with military families that need help.

Recipients of the grants say the money will only aid their work, giving them time to research and time off from figuring out how to pay for it.

Fiction writer Karen Russell worked at a veterinarian clinic part-time while writing the acclaimed novel "Swamplandia." Her grant money buys her time.

"Just the idea of having a stretch of time where you can commit your time wholeheartedly to a project, nobody gets that," the New York City resident said.

For Stock, her thousands of dollars will mean one thing: People will be seeing more of her.

"This is going to let me advocate more," she said.

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Stringent laws not solution to curb honour killing, Sibal says

CHANDIGARH: Union minister of law and justice, Kapil Sibal is of the view that stringent laws are not sufficient to control the menace of honour killing but the change in the mindset of the people is the only permanent solution of the crime.

Sibal was in Chandigarh on Wednesday at an event organized by Punjab and Haryana High Court Bar Association.

While talking to media on the sidelines of the function, Sibal said that increase in the number of cases of honour killing is a serious issue. He stated that though a stringent law can help controlling the crime but there is also need to change the mentality of the people. He was referring to queries on recent incidents of honour killing in the state of Haryana.

While defending the ordinance issued by the Union government to neutralize the Supreme Court (SC) judgment on disqualification of convicted leaders, Sibal said that the ordinance is in compliance of the Supreme Court judgment and no attempt has been made to protect the convicted leaders. However, he failed to explain the need of the ordinance if it is in terms of SC judgment and in turn asked the media persons to first read the ordinance before questioning him.

Sibal also criticized senior BJP leader and leader of opposition in Lok Sabha, Sushma Swaraj, for criticizing the ordinance. The Union minister said, "I was not expecting this from Sushma Swaraj believing she has read the law and have knowledge of the same but it is really strange she is criticizing the ordinance without any basis."

In his speech during the function at HC premises, Sibal turned nostalgic and recalled the day, when for the first time he appeared before the court after becoming a lawyer.

Sibal appealed the judges, advocates and the legal fraternity to maintain quality and standards in the justice delivery system. He also said that these days' visionary and stalwarts are missing in every field of the country and leaders are worried about their present not the future of the country.

Expressing displeasure over the poor standards of education, Sibal said that during his tenure as minister of human resources and development, he came to know that some institutions have rented accommodation, rented furniture and even rented faculty and that too to get government's affiliation.

Sibal's appeal to media

In his speech, Sibal also appealed media not to create "bad picture" of the government. "In absence of trust, nation cannot move ahead," said Sibal while appealing media to highlight positive aspects of the Union government's achievements. Sibal also referred an incident where some German investors refused to invest in India after reading recent media reports about corruption in India.

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Chandrababu Naidu walks out of NIC meeting over Telangana

NEW DELHI: TDP chief and former chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday walked out of the National Integration Council meeting here in protest against the move to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh.

During the meeting, which was convened to discuss the growing incidents of communal violence, attack on women and atrocities on SCs and STs, Naidu wanted to raise the issue of Telangana and bring the central government's attention to the continuous protests in Seemandhra region against the bifurcation move.

Naidu said when he raised the issue, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi objected to it and told him that NIC was not the forum to discuss the Telangana issue.

Gandhi was immediately joined by finance minister P Chidambaram and home minister Sushilkumar Shinde in preventing Naidu to raise the issue of bifurcating Andhra Pradesh.

The TDP chief said Chidambaram told him that he would not be allowed to speak on Telangana in the NIC meeting and if he wishes, he can walk out of the meeting, which he did.

"My point is, if I am not allowed to speak such a serious issue in such a forum where top leadership of the country is present, where will I go?" he asked.

Naidu said there is continuous tension in entire Seemandhra and protests and strike has crippled the region.

The Congress Working Committee, which met on July 30, passed a resolution requesting the Centre "to take steps in accordance with the Constitution to form a separate state of Telangana...within a definite timeframe".

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New onion crop arrival brings down price to Rs 60-70/kg

The author has posted comments on this articlePTI | Sep 23, 2013, 03.34PM IST

NEW DELHI: With the arrival of new crop in the wholesale market, Onion prices on Monday fell by Rs 10 per kg to Rs 60-70 per kg in retail markets in the national capital.

In the coming weeks prices are expected to further cool down as new crop from Karnataka has started coming into the market. According to NHRDF data, arrival of onion at Bangalore wholesale market has increased by 50 per cent to 76,266 quintals on Monday from last week's level.

Prices of the kitchen staple have also declined as onions from Afghanistan via Wagah border have started coming into the market, traders added.

"Supplies have improved as the new crops from Bangalore mandi are coming in to the Azadpur mandi, which has brought the prices down by Rs 10 per kg to Rs 45-50 per kg," Onion Merchant Traders Association president Surendra Budhiraj said.

He added that supplies have increased by around 30 per cent from last week, with around 12,000 quintals of onion arriving in the market on Monday against last week's average arrival of 9,000 quintals.

Meanwhile, Mother Dairy outlets, which are selling onions at Rs 62-64 per kg, are also contemplating reducing prices from Tuesday after the fall in prices at the wholesale market, an official said.

Traders also attributed the fall in wholesale onion prices to decline in prices in Lasalgaon Mandi in Nashik, which sets the price trend of the politically sensitive commodity across the country.

According to National Horticultural Research and Development Foundation (NHRDF) data, prices of the Onion at Lasalgaon in Nashik, decreased by Rs 6 per kg to Rs 41 per kg today.

The government's recent decision to hike the minimum export price (MEP) of onion to USD 900 per tonne from USD 650 per tonne has also pushed the prices downwards.

Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based inflation had risen for the third straight month to 6.1 per cent in August, driven by a whopping 244.62 per cent jump in onion prices on an annual basis.

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BJP MLA Suresh Rana booked in another case of rioting

MUZAFFARNAGAR: BJP MLA Suresh Rana, who was arrested in Lucknow on September 20 for allegedly inciting violence by making provocative speeches, has been booked in another case of rioting, police said on Monday.

A case of rioting was registered yesterday against Rana and others in connection with an incident in Shamli on June 16 this year, police sources said, adding a warrant has been issued to Rana.

On June 16, a girl was allegedly kidnapped and gang-raped, following which hundreds of people including Suresh Rana staged a protest and damaged shops and vehicles, demanding the arrest of the accused.

Another BSP leader Noor Saleem Rana, who was sent to 14 days judicial custody on Saturday, could not be shifted to Azamgarh district jail due to some health problem, jailer Mijazilal said.

He was under the treatment of doctors in jail's district hospital, he said, adding that district authorities have ordered that he be sent to Azamgharh district jail.

Meanwhile, Chief Judicial Magistrate K P Singh of a local court will on Monday hear the bail plea of BJP MLA Sangeet Som, who was accused of allegedly uploading a fake video that triggered the communal tension in Muzaffarnagar.

Som was arrested on September 22.

Sangeet Som was sent for 14 days judicial custody on Saturday. He was shifted to Urai district jail.

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SP govt orders probe into jail staff 'welcoming' BJP MLA Sangeet Som

LUCKNOW: A day after BJP MLA Sangeet Som, arrested in connection with Muzaffarnagar riots, was "welcomed" by the jailer and staff of Orai district jail, UP government on Monday said action would be taken against those found guilty.

"There is no provision of saluting MLAs inside the jail.

There is no protocol (for MLAs) inside the jail...We are probing the matter and action will be taken against those involved in the act," state prisons minister Rajendra Chowdhury told reporters here.

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Sadhu Yadav gets income tax notice, alleges Congress of harassing him for meeting Modi

PATNA: Anirudh Prasad alias Sadhu Yadav, RJD chief Lalu Prasad's estranged brother-in-law who met Narendra Modi in Ahmedabad, has been served with an income tax notice of Rs 11.96 lakh.

"The income tax department served me a notice on Saturday evening in a nine-year-old case to pay Rs 11.96 lakh tax," Yadav said.

The matter regarding tax payment was pending with the I-T after he filed an appeal at that time itself, Yadav said, adding, "I have sent an explanation to the I-T office Patna today through my chartered accountant explaining the entire issue."

Yadav alleged that he was being harassed by Congress for meeting Modi on August 16 and said he would approach Patna High Court in case of adverse judgement by the I-T department.

Efforts to contact I-T officials here failed despite a number of attempts.

Yadav was expelled from Congress on August 19 after he failed to reply to a showcause notice served to him by the party. He had caused embarrassment to the Congress by singing paeans about the BJP strongman and making light of the party's vice-president Rahul Gandhi.

Another Congressman Dasai Chaudhary, who had accompanied Yadav, had also been shown the door by the party.

Yadav had unsuccessfully contested on Congress ticket from Bettiah Lok Sabha seat in 2009.

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Testimony concludes in 21st week of Michael Jackson’s death trial

LOS ANGELES: A look at key moments this past week in the wrongful death trial in Los Angeles between Michael Jackson's mother, Katherine Jackson, and concert giant AEG Live LLC, and what is expected at court in the week ahead:

The case

Jackson's mother wants a jury to determine that the promoter of Jackson's planned comeback concerts didn't properly investigate Dr Conrad Murray, who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter by a criminal jury for Jackson's death in June 2009. AEG's attorney says the case is about personal choice, namely Jackson's decision to have Murray serve as his doctor and give him doses of a powerful anaesthetic as a sleep aid. Millions, possibly billions, of dollars are at stake.

What happened this past week

Jurors heard from Jackson's longtime personal physician, Dr Allan Metzger, who was one of the final witnesses called in the case.

Metzger described his treatments on Jackson and their friendship. The doctor described Jackson as secretive about his medical care and said the singer engaged in doctor shopping.

The physician said Jackson's frequent medical visits were the result of injuries he sustained while performing, including burns to his scalp and back pain, and the skin conditions discoid lupus and vitiligo.

Metzger said he believed Jackson's use of pain medications was for legitimate reasons and that the singer never used medications to get high or for pleasure.

Judge Yvette Palazuelos ruled that Katherine Jackson was dependent on her son for some of her living expenses and is entitled to recoup damages in the case if AEG Live is found liable for her son's death.

What the jury saw

Metzger testify via video and in person. AEG's attorneys played more than an hour of the doctor's testimony and he was called as a live witness by Katherine Jackson's lawyers.

Metzger's attorney Eric George take the stand after his client testified, telling the jury that Metzger wasn't being paid by attorneys for the Jacksons — an issue that was raised while the doctor was on the stand.

Quotable moments

"He wanted to redeem Michael Jackson ... He wanted to redeem his image. He felt this was it and he wanted to go out with a flash. He was still terribly hurt about the trial and the accusations," Metzger said of Jackson's desire to perform the "This is it" shows successfully. In 2005, Jackson was acquitted of child molestation charges in a criminal trial.

"I don't believe this was in any way a recreational problem," Metzger said of Jackson's use of prescription medications.

"I told him it was dangerous and I couldn't help him," Metzger said about Jackson asking him for intravenous sleep medicines in a meeting at the singer's home two months before his death.

What is next

Closing arguments are expected to begin on Tuesday and jurors should receive the case sometime on Thursday to begin deliberations.

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Slide victims recovered as Mexico storm toll rises

LA PINTADA, Mexico: Rescuers fighting tons of slippery, wet mud at the site of this week's worst storm disaster unearthed the bodies of two women Saturday, possibly among the 68 people missing in a massive landslide that buried half of the remote coffee-growing town of La Pintada.

Houses were filled to their roofs with dirt and vehicles were tossed on their sides when the hillside collapsed on Monday afternoon after several days of rain brought by Tropical Storm Manuel, which along with Hurricane Ingrid gave Mexico a one-two punch last weekend.

"As of today, there is little hope now that we will find anyone alive," said president Enrique Pena Nieto after touring the devastation, adding that the landslide covered at least 40 homes.

Pena Nieto told storm survivors that La Pintada, a town of 800, would be relocated and rebuilt in a safer location as officials responded to a wave of criticism that negligence and corruption were to blame for the vast devastation caused by two relatively weak storm systems.

"I will come to inaugurate a new La Pintada," he said. "That's a promise I'm making today to this community, which has undergone such a misfortune."

Authorities on Saturday also found the wreckage of a Federal Police helicopter that was working on the La Pintada rescue when it went missing nearby on Thursday. All aboard died, five federal police, according to local media. Security spokesman Eduardo Sanchez said he could not confirm the number on board.

All week in Mexico City, editorials and public commentary said the government had made natural disasters worse because of poor planning, lack of a prevention strategy and corruption.

"Governments aren't responsible for the occurrence of severe weather, but they are for the prevention of the effects," wrote Mexico's nonprofit Center of Investigation for Development in an online editorial criticizing a federal program to improve infrastructure and relocate communities out of dangerous flood zones. "The National Water Program had good intentions but its execution was at best poor."

Ingrid and Manuel simultaneously pounded both of Mexico's coasts, killing at least 101 people, not including the helicopter crash victims or the 68 missing. Interior secretary Miguel Osorio Chong told Mexican media the death toll could go as high as 200 in the coming days, nearing that of Hurricane Paulina, which hit Guerrero state in 1997 and caused one of Mexico's worst storm disasters.

Guerrero governor Angel Aguirre publicly confirmed that corruption and political dealings allowed housing to be built in dangerous areas where permits should have been rejected.

"The responsibility falls on authorities," Osorio Chong said in a press conference earlier in the week. "In some cases (the building) was in irregular zones, but they still gave the authorization."

Both the federal and Guerrero state administrations are new and cited cases in the past, though Osorio Chong said that going forward, he is sure that Aguirre and the mayor of Acapulco will not allow flooded-out victims to return to high-risk areas.

In a meeting with hotel owners in Acapulco, Pena Nieto told the resort city that the reconstruction phase has begun, and that the government will help address the hoteliers' concerns, including improving the main thoroughfare from Mexico City, the Highway of the Sun, which was closed by slides and damage in the storm, cutting off access for days.

The highway reopened Friday, albeit with many detours skirting stretches damaged by flooding and landslides. As of Saturday, all of the thousands of stranded tourists had been able to leave Acapulco.

Pena Nieto said he would visit the northern state of Sinaloa on Sunday, where Manuel hit with hurricane force Thursday morning.

Three people were reported dead in Sinaloa. Flood waters hat reached waist-deep in some places in Culiacan, the Sinaloa state capital, including the city zoo.

Some 24 animals perished in the hurricane, according to Mexico's federal prosecutor for animal protection, including goats, sheep and a scimitar oryx, an antelope from Saharan Africa that is now extinct in the wild. The giraffe cages were flooded and the storm damaged the reptile exhibit.

Zoo director Diego Garcia Herredia said the animals had shelter, but that stress from the storm may have prevented some from seeking protection.

The storms affected 24 of Mexico's 31 states and 371 municipalities, which are the equivalent of counties. More than 58,000 people were evacuated, with 43,000 taken to shelters. Nearly 1,000 donation centers have been set up around the country, with nearly 700 tons of aid arriving so far. Nearly 800,000 people lost power across the country, though the Federal Electricity Commission said 94 percent of service had been restored as of Saturday morning.

Seventy-two key highways were damaged.

The investigations center, known as CIDAC for its initials in Spanish, said Mexico had not been hit by two simultaneous storms since 1958.

The editorial said that while rescue efforts and aid are indeed humanitarian, they also provide good images for opportunistic politicians.

Prevention "like that in developed countries, designed to avoid the negative impact of natural events on people, doesn't seem to sell advertising or create grateful constituents," read the editorial.

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Bogie of express train derails in Andhra Pradesh, no one hurt

HYDERABAD: A bogie of Kanyakumari-Howrah Express derailed in the early hours on Sunday when a cattle herd strayed on railway track near Kavali station.

No injuries or casualties were reported in the incident involving a second class luggage coach carrying around 25 passengers at the time of the incident, according to a South Central Railway (SCR) release.

"Timely response by the railway engine personnel today averted a possible major mishap when four wheels of the coach of Kanyakumari-Howrah Express (No.12666), next to the engine, derailed between Sri Venkateshwarapalem and Kavali stations on Gudur-Vijayawada down-line section at 2:40 AM," the release said.

The incident occurred when a herd of cattle, strayed on railway track, was mowed down by the speeding train.

"On noticing the herd on track, the driver immediately applied emergency brakes," the release said.

The train, running at a speed of around 72 kmph at the time of the incident, was deftly brought under control and stopped quickly by the loco pilots within a short distance, according to SCR.

According to the release, four wheels of the coach derailed as they got entangled with the carcass of the cattle.

"Around 25 passengers who were travelling in the affected coach were shifted by the onboard railway staff to adjacent coaches of the train," the release said, adding that a accident relief train from Bitragunta immediately rushed to the spot.

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PM Manmohan Singh condemns terror attack in Nairobi

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday wrote to Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, condemning the terror attack in Nairobi in which two Indians were among those killed and said a concerted global effort is required to control such mindless violence.

He directed the external affairs ministry to extend all help to Indian nationals who were victims of the attack at a mall in the Kenyan capital.

"The Prime Minister has sent a letter of condolence to Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta condemning the attack at a shopping mall in Nairobi," the PMO said here.

In his letter, Singh said "concerted global effort is required to control such mindless violence."

Two Indians, including an eight-year-old child, have died in the attack and four others have been injured.

The dead Indians have been identified as 40-year-old Sridhar Natarajan, employee of a local pharmaceutical firm and Master Paramshu Jain, son of a Branch Manager of Bank of Baroda (Kenya Limited).

The injured Indians are Sridhar Natarajan's wife Manjula Sridhar, Paramshu Jain's mother Mukta Jain and 12-year-old Poorvi Jain and Natarajan Ramachandran, an employee of Flamingo Duty Free, Nairobi.

About 10 to 15 masked gunmen yesterday stormed the packed shopping mall, asked Muslims to leave and opened indiscrimate firing.

Somalia's al-Qaida-inspired Shebab rebels claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was in direct retaliation for Kenya's military intervention in Somalia, where African Union troops are battling the Islamists.

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Rajnath stopped from going to riot-hit Muzaffarnagar in the interest of peace: Azam Khan

RAMPUR (UP): Defending Uttar Pradesh government's decision to not permit BJP chief Rajnath Singh to visit riot-hit Muzaffranagar, senior SP leader Mohammed Azam Khan on Sunday said that it was done for the "peace and tranquillity" in the area.

"Rajnath Singh's entry was stopped on the basis of a report of the administration which could not be overlooked or neglected in the best interest of peace and tranquillity of the sensitive area," said UP's parliamentary affairs minister Khan.

"Rajnath ji has himself occupied the pivotal post (chief minister) in Uttar Pradesh and so he should realize what the government and administration should do on the occasions when the law and order of the state is at stake," Khan said.

Dismissing the controversy surrounding yoga guru Baba Ramdev's detention at the London airport, Khan said, "Baba has created a suspicious image for himself after he fled the Ramlila Maidan in Delhi under the garb of a woman. So if security persons in Britain detained him on suspicion what is the point to condemn them."

He, however, called for the Centre's attention in such cases.

"Britishers have been in the habit of insulting Indians visiting their country even for noble purposes. This situation needs government attention," he said.

Criticising the CBI for "delaying the submission of the closure report in the disproportionate assets case against Mulayam Singh Yadav", Khan said, "the agency needs to be impartial. The delay of six years in filing the closure report has damaged its image. It has proved that the agency does not take its own decisions, but waits for nod from the above."

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