The Golden Sparrow on Saturday 25/07/2015

PAGES: 16+16 (TGS LIFE) | PRICE: `5

PUNE, JULY 25, 2015 | www.thegoldensparrow.com

L RAUT

RAHU

rrow.com

oldenspa

PUNE,

JULY

25, 2015

.theg | www

Pune’s Meet change g n u yo s maker

ict or is dia add their ial me is a soc ters are doing ngs early 20s in their rld. These you ryone Not eve the big bad wo wary of ke a difference ma to bit

TGS LIFE

Meet Pune’s young change makers

MUMBAI

Simon, go away!

P2

They are breaking free towards a better life

CITY

Nothing comes free, not even Aadhar cards P5 Aniruddha Rajandekar

Real estate agent driven to suicide by loan sharks Constant threats and abuse drive 32-year-old father of two to end his life

Shinde’s (below) business partner Bunty Tambekar, father-in-law Prakash Chavan, and sister-in-law Shubhangi Bhalerao

By Rajil Menon @RajilMenon

In the nebulous and murky worlds that the transgenders inhabit, there are some who are making their way into the light, armed with hope See Spotlight, p08 & 09

College students make traffic police richer by Rs 25,000

Five college students travelling in a car were fined Rs 5,000 each. While the driver was booked for drunk driving, four occupants were charged for abetting his crime

by Gitesh Shelke @gitesh_shelke

In one of the biggest cases of drunken driving so far in the city, five youngsters travelling in an inebriated state were made to pay a fine of Rs 5,000 each. The youngsters were caught by traffic police earlier this month and found guilty by Judicial Magistrate’s court at Shivajinagar, Pune on Wednesday. While the driver was fined for driving under the influence of alcohol, four other occupants were found guilty of abetting his crime. The five coughed up Rs 25,000 in total, largest sum recovered so far by the traffic cops in the city.

The five youngsters, all college students, were returning from a party when their vehicle was stopped on Bund Garden Road by Koregaon traffic police on July 5. The five

Himanish Manocha was driving the car (Left); The fine receipt

were identified as Himanish Manocha, Vishal Virendrakumar Prasad, Chakradhar Reddy, Rasika Singh and Namrata Sahil Khatake.

According to police they are all students of a college in Wadgaon.

According to police, Himanish, originally from Delhi, and an engineering student in Pune, was at the wheel while the rest were travelling with him in the mid-sized luxury car registered in Delhi. Cops added that apart from the driver, occupants too were drunk. The alcohol content in their bodies was found to be beyond permissible limit. They were taken to Koregaon Park police station and

booked for driving dangerously, drunken driving and abetment.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Sarang Awad said that after they were booked, the case was forwarded to the Motor Vehicle Court at Shivajinagar. “The driver was drunk, while other four occupants were also in an inebriated state. The court has appropriately punished them,” Awad said.

As per law, any person found to be driving under the influence of alcohol beyond permissible limits is to be booked under section 185 of Motor Vehicles Act. Recently, Pune traffic police started enforcing section 188 of MVA, which involves booking those who are travelling with a drunk driver knowing that he is in an inebriated state. They are to be booked for abetting the crime, whether or not they are drunk. The punishment for drunk driving and abetment is the same.

After their case was forwarded to Shivajinagar court, on July 22 Judicial Magistrate found them guilty. They were all asked to pay a fine of Rs 5,000 each. gitesh.shelke@goldensparrow.com

Sagar Shinde, a real estate agent, committed suicide by consuming a pesticide, owing to constant threats and abuse by a money lender, on July 20. Shinde, 32, of Indrayani Nagar, Bhosari, left behind a suicide note, mentioning the names of Dhumal and Somnath Landge as being responsible for driving him to suicide. The police have registered a case under sections 306 and 34 of the IPC, but have made no arrests so far.

Contd on p4

mUMBAI

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JULY 25, 2015

PUNE

“Government has no control over private coaching classes. Earlier, such a proposal to regulate coaching classes had come before the legislature but it did not take shape of a law.”

— Vinod Tawde, Education Minister

Consumers decry apathy over gas cylinders P4

Around the world on solar power!

P4

Simon, go away!

Indian cinematographers unite against producers’ fetish for ‘goras’; get a French national booked for illegally working on an ad

BY Bapu Deedwania @bapudeedwania Indian cinematographers are an angry lot. Early this week several wellknown cinematographers united under the banner of Western Indian Cinematographers Association (WICA) and got a French national booked under the Foreigners Act. Their grouse is that over the past few years several foreign nationals have come to India and engaged in assignments without valid work permits.

The cinematographers met early this week to discuss the issue of influx of foreign cameramen into the Indian film and advertisement productions.

Just when they were debating over the subject, they received an application for a temporary membership for a French cameraman Vincent Gallot from Nomad Productions, Mumbai.

Mahesh Aney, General Secretary of WICA refused to grant the membership on the grounds that the visiting cameraman didn’t have the requisite work permit and employment visa, instead he only had a tourist visa.

“It was decided at the meeting to curb the influx of foreign cameramen, as it was noticed that many of the cameramen who come to India and work were doing so without a valid work permit. It is the norm around the world, that when a foreign cameraman goes to shoot there, he or she has to obtain a work permit and also obtain a temporary membership of the local cameramen’s union or an association,” Aney stated in a note sent to TGS. The whole issue escalated when despite having failed to get the temporary membership of WICA, the production house decided to go ahead with their shoot of a Lakme Television Commercial featuring Kareena Kapoor with the French cameraman on Studio Two at Film City on July 20.

When the WICA members learnt of this, they filed a complaint with the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO). There they were directed to file a complaint with the Aarey Colony police station. The cops filed an FIR under the clause 14B of the Foreigner’s Act 1946. On the basis of the FIR, Gallot was presented before the Magistrate at Borivli court on July 21 and granted a conditional bail.

United on the issue are renowned cameramen who have won accolades for their work in the film industry - Sudeep Chatterjee of ‘Chuck De’, ‘Guzarish’, ‘Dhoom 3’, ‘Baby’ and ‘Bajirao Mastani’, Kamaljeet Negi of ‘Vicky Donor’, ‘Madras Café’ and ‘Piku’, Mahesh Aney of ‘Swades’, ‘Dr Prakash Baba Amte’, Alphonse Roy of ‘Aamir’ and ‘Gour Hari Dastaan’, Ayananka Bose of ‘Kick’, ‘Bunty Bubbly’, ‘Kites’ and ‘Dostana’, Anil Mehta of ‘Lagaan’, ‘Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam’, ‘Highway’ and ‘Badlapur’, Ravi K Chandran of ‘Black’, ‘Yuva’, ‘Rabb Ne Bana Di Jodi’ and Vishal Sinha of ‘Ab Tak Chappan’.

Under the Ministry of Home

Affairs guidelines, it is a statutory requirement to have a ‘work permit’ to work in India. “The law clearly states that it should be issued only to persons with specialised skills, which aren’t available in India,” said Alphonse Roy. “Probably, this is the first time a foreign cinematographer is being subject to judicial action for violating the norms of a Tourist Visa. As per the records at WICA there have been nearly 126 film and advertising projects shot by foreign cinematographers, over a short period of two years and nine months. It is increasingly becoming the practice in our film industry to bring in a foreigner to shoot commercials and feature films. It is not that the visiting cameraman coming from abroad is any great Oscar nominated cameraman or cameraman with any specialised skills. It is sad that what appears to be a basis for deciding this is our age-old weakness for fair skin and the

Members of Western Indian Cinematographers Association met recently to discuss the issue of influx of foreign cameramen into the Indian film and advertisement productions

the process? We have legends like Amitabh Bachchan who make sure that his visa is proper whether it’s a day’s work or months together. If they can, then why can’t everyone else?” said Kamaljeet Negi of ‘Piku’ and ‘Madras Café’ fame.

Producer’s side The producer Riyaz has shot many commercials in the past with Indian cinematographers like Ayananka Bose, Vishal Sinha, Sudeep Chatterjee and Sejal Shah. Members feel that both the producer and the advertising

French cameraman Vincent Gallot (right) was booked by Aarey police for shooting illegally for an ad film in Mumbai early this week

despondent attitude that anything foreign is better than ‘desi’ Indian!

This to our mind is the primary cause for such attraction to ‘goras’. The visual quality of Indian cinema has grown to a great extent, as can be understood from films like ‘Dhoom 3’, ‘PK’, ‘Piku’, ‘Ram Leela’, ‘Kay Po Che’, ‘Swades’, ‘Aamir’, ‘Lagaan’, ‘Jodha Akbar’, ‘Bunty Bubbly’, ‘Black’… the list is endless,” said Aney.

Members also say that while they do understand that it is a director’s choice who he wants to shoot with, there is no reason to bypass the law for that. “In this entire issue a whole lot of the cameramen from WICA are also feeling bad for having put Gallot, a member of their fraternity, through duress. We totally understand a director’s or agency’s preference to shoot with a particular cameraman, but what’s the harm in following

agency are equally responsible for the current scenario. However, in a response to TGS, Riyaz cited his inability to comment on the issue via a text message.

The problem of influx of foreign DOPs (director of photography)

it seems is a major issue with the advertising world as compared to the film industry where the project schedule is longer and usually bypassing the law is not an option.

Speaking on the issue, a producer who runs a production house for advertising, said that there are many issues that compels a production house to bypass the law and engage a foreign national.

“The gestation period for a television commercial is very small and the returns high. Usually a television commercial is shot between one and three days. Sometimes the client gives a brief that necessitates that a foreign director and/or foreign DOP shoots it.

Now, from the process of work visa or work permit itself is an onerous task, while we do not subscribe to bypass the law, but where is the option? So there comes our famous ‘Chalta hai na!

Arrey do din ki baat hai’! How does it matter? Let’s get a tourist visa and get over with! Also, the interference of political parties who want their cuts from every shoot also becomes an issue,” said the producer on the condition of anonymity.

Another issue that makes the demand of foreign DOPs higher is the skill set and the professionalism they bring to the table. “There are people who have done years of work only in one area. Abroad there are categories like beauty, automobile, fashion, lifestyle, etc. Now these are areas where their work is so phenomenal that you are likely to go for them if your budget permits. This has also led our DOPs disgruntled who are still far behind in terms of professionalism, being enterprising and learning new techniques,” said the producer.

“However, it is about time that the law is strictly followed that will at least set a time frame for everybody - right from the client down to the technician on ground to decide on the project and make it fully legal,” he said. bapudeedwania@gmail.com

Ministry of Home Affairs guidelines The guidelines clearly state that employment visas shall not be granted for jobs for which qualified Indians are available. It also states, “Employment visa shall also not be granted for routine, ordinary or secretarial/clerical jobs.”

WICA’s criteria of eligible foreign DOPs Foreign cameraman with specialised skills like shooting under water at great depths or aerial cinematography etc should be considered for jobs in India.

The association also believes that cinematographers who have won Oscars or even been nominated for prestigious awards, or those who have an impressive body of work like Roger Deakins, Immanuel Lubeski, among others should be considered.

Strict punishment for adulteration Maharashtra government is in favour of awarding capital punishment to those who indulge in adulteration of food, milk and medicines, the state Legislative Council was informed.

“The government is of the view that there should be strict punishment awarded for adulteration. That is why we have included Section 302 (Murder) against the perpetrators of the Malvani Hoonch incident. The government is positive on capital punishment in such cases and we will consult the Centre amending the existing law,” Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said.

RPI MLC Jogendra Kawade, while speaking on calling attention motion, demanded that the state government should

consider death sentence for adulteration crimes, referring to the Malwani hooch tragedy incident, in which about 100 people died after consuming spurious liquor.

Kawade also demanded that the state government, after banning liquor in Gadchiroli, Wardha and Chandrapur, should now ban sale of liquor across the state.

Replying to Kawade, Fadnavis said that liquor is smuggled in states where prohibition is enforced and Maharashtra police already faces many challenges.

NCP MLC Prakash Gajbhiye said that alcohol can be obtained easily by making a phone call in districts where it has been banned.

He also questioned if the government

plans to ban alcohol in Yavatmal district.

Replying, Minister of State for Home, Ram Shinde said that there currently is no proposal to ban alcohol in the district.

Fadnavis later said that effects of banning the sale of liquor in Maharashtra needs to be studied first and after taking various aspects into consideration, a decision will be taken.

On the issue of awarding capital punishment for those who indulge in adulteration, Fadnavis said, “the state government will discuss the issue of awarding capital punishment with the Centre for those who indulge in adulteration and make necessary changes in the existing law if possible PTI

Voices Nitin Ghag, Vice President, WICA

I strongly believe that there is no requirement of a foreign director of photography (DOP) in India to shoot a commercial or any language film unless our makers need any specialised work to be done, for example a 3D, or making use of a new technique of film making which is not in India. But unfortunately our producers are hiring foreign DOPs for their own benefit.

I have witnessed that for the last two years many foreign DOPs have come on either tourist or business visas and taken up assignments here. This is completely illegal.

WICA has decided to back our own cinematographers and will take appropriate action against foreign DOPs entering in India without proper work permits. We have also seen that in the commercials shot by foreign DOPs, there is no extraordinary result achieved as compared to our own. As an office-bearer of WICA, I firmly oppose the influx of foreign cameramen entering India without proper work permit and reason.

DOP Alphonse Roy, WICA member

Digital technology has democratised and reduced and simplified technology and film production. Hence it is much easier to become a cinematographer today. This has led to a lot more people jumping into the fray to become film technicians. The number of films produced in Europe is minuscule compared to the numbers produced in India. Hence there is a big influx of foreign cameramen into India.

I am an EMMY award winner and have worked in more than 10 countries around the world. I always had to wait for at least three months to get my work permit before I started working in another country. There is this popular case of our Indian cinematographer Kiran Deohans, who after obtaining a work permit started shooting in America for two weeks. After his assistant complained to the local union, work was stopped the next day.

Kiran had to cool his heels in a hotel until his papers could be checked and work resumed.

We intend to take up the issue with the Central Government. We suggest forming a panel that processes the application of foreigners who wish to work in India and recommend the suitable ones for issuance of work permit. We do not want a ban on foreign cameramen, but want only eligible candidates to work in India.

DOP Vikas Sivaraman, WICA member

The invasion of Foreign Directors of Photography coming to work here illegally on ordinary tourist visas and not the appropriate work permits issued

by Government of India has now reached epidemic proportions. This is not only illegal, but has also rendered their more qualified, experienced, talented and productive Indian counterparts jobless in their own country! Rather than promoting homegrown cinematography services, production houses often invite foreign DOPs to work on their advertisements and short films and use them to seduce their clients into giving them the film contracts. They are blatantly turning a blind eye to the devastating fallout on the legal and work opportunities of Indian DOPs. Clients are also probably unaware of the legal implications to themselves and that the Foreigners Act can also possibly extend to hold them responsible as the principal employers. Tourist visas allow production houses to import these foreign DOPs on very short notice as a fully legal work permit takes time to process. Further, the misuse of business visas and work permits - which restrict the services of the foreign DOPs to only the sponsoring production house - is rampant with the DOPs staying here for months on end and working well outside the purview of the sponsor production house.

There is adequate provision in law for the proper legal import of technicians for specified purpose and production houses must use that legal route. Our association, the WICA, will continue to actively pursue such cases. Other countries have clearly established practices whereby they will not allow outsiders to work there. And while our producers welcome foreign DOPs with open arms, other countries do not entertain any such reciprocal arrangements! And this practice is spreading to other departments of Indian film-making world too.

Development of villages around tiger reserves Maharashtra Cabinet recently approved Shyamaprasad Mukherjee Jan Van Vikas Scheme, aimed at comprehensive development of villages in the buffer zones of tiger reserves and around them.

Its objectives are to reduce the man-animal conflict and achieve sustainable development of these villages.

The scheme had been proposed by Forest Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar, who also holds finance portfolio, in the annual budget this year.

He said the scheme aims at reducing the dependence of villagers on the forest. The scheme

will seek to boost the supplementary businesses to farming activities and create alternative employment possibilities in these areas.

The scheme will be launched on project basis from 2015-16 to 2019-2020.

The villages in the buffer zones of ‘Project Tiger’ are not expected to be rehabilitated and they are usually dependent on the forest for firewood, cattle food, grazing and employment. This puts excessive burden on the forests, thereby degrading them, Mungantiwar said this evening.

PTI

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JULY 25, 2015

I-T dept to bring 1 crore new people under tax net this fiscal P14

“ The state government is considering a proposal to increase the amount of compensation and bring uniformity in compensation amounts for victims of ST bus accidents .”

— Diwakar Raote, State Transport Minister

Man waits four years for cops to nab dad’s killers

The silence of the dhol-tasha troupes

Police put a ban on dhol-tasha group rehearsals after receiving regular complaints from citizens regarding the the disturbance

Victim’s family claims that police spoke to murderers, know where they are, and yet have made no breakthrough yet

by Gitesh Shelke @gitesh_shelke

rahul raut

BY RAJIL MENON @RajilMenon Every day is a struggle for Sandeep Baburao Moghekar as police ‘fail’ to nab the two killers of his father despite knowing their identities. The 22-yearold has been making the rounds of police station for the past four and a half years after the gruesome murder.

After the ban on the tol, the iron plate which is used as an instrument, the city police have put a ban on dholtasha troupe rehearsals on Wednesday, in the wake of complaints regarding the disturbance from the residents of Kothrud, Warje, Sadashiv Peth and Narayan Peth areas. Groups violating the police orders are likely to face action under section 132 of the Bombay Police Act. The dhol-tasha groups who are an inherent part of the Ganesh festival, have been rehearsing for this year’s fest. This year there are 110 dhol–tasha groups in the city.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone I) Tushar Doshi said that the city police control room had been

Sandeep Moghekar is still fighting to get justice for his father’s murder

confessed to the crime before switching off their mobile phones. The police also have information about the accused’s village in Uttar Pradesh. I don’t know why cops are dragging their feet? The two accused were also working for the same builder as security guards hired from Pacific Security Services,” Sandeep said. The builder and his elder brother are threatening me to go soft on this case, besides asking me to leave the house and find another accommodation,” he said. The builder’s elder brother has told him that they would have to spend only Rs 3 lakh to get him killed, alleges Sandeep.

MOVING SCOT-FREE It is sheer helplessness and losing faith in policing that has made Sandeep a dejected person. “Police know the details of the murderers from day one as they had spoken to killers who

AGAINST THE LAW After Sandeep met the then police commissioner Gulabrao Pol and provided facts that none of 250 security guards working for Pacific Security Services have had their police verifications done, a separate case was registered at Mundhwa police station against the security agency and the murder is being investigated by Chatuhshrungi Police. “I have been trying to file an RTI as officials either do not give me appointment or fail to give me a satisfactory answer. Sandeep also found that the two accused did not

receiving four to five calls a day from citizens complaining about the noise of the dhol–tasha groups.

Doshi said that he has called a meeting of all the troupe leaders or representatives on Thursday to discuss the issue. “I have decided not to allow practice. We will give them a month’s time for rehearsals. This year, the groups had started practicing a month before schedule,” he said. “We will not allow them to practice in residential areas or in the vicinity of hospitals. The practice sessions can be held only between 7 pm and 9 pm. We will allow only one third of the troupe members to practice at a time,” he said.

Police will marshal these areas until further orders are issued. gitesh.shelke@goldensparrow.com

rahul raut

GRISLY ACT Sandeep was 19 years old when his father Baburao Vithal Moghekar, the sole breadwinner of the family, was found smothered and murdered inside a lift at the construction site of builder Pradeep Shantilal Jain’s project ‘Ambika Complex’ in 2011. Baburao used to work as site supervisor. Now, Sandeep works with the same builder as watchman for a meagre salary of Rs 4,000.

MENTAL BLOW Fate took a cruel turn when Sandeep had to appear for first year BSc computer science exam after eight days of his father’s murder. “I have been unable to focus on study or anything else. The memory of removing the socks and other clothes that was stuffed in my father’s mouth to keep him from shouting by his murderers and blood oozing from his mouth and nose keeps haunting him all these years. I am yet to complete the three-year course as I am yet to overcome the loss and grief besides not having enough money to pay fees.” The builder who allowed the Moghekar family to stay in an outhouse is pressurising the bereaved family to leave the place.

PUNE

carry mandatory police verification.

He was in for a rude shock that even Pacific Security Services was not a registered company. Mundhwa police station probe stated that the firm had only nine guards whereas Sandeep has proof that more than 250 persons work the security agency run by Ramsanjivan Motilal Chatuhshrungi senior police inspector Arun Sahebrao Sawant said, “I was on a leave for a few days but I remember that police teams had visited the accused’s village in Uttar Pradesh and failed to nab the culprits.” rajil.menon@goldensparrow.com

A dhol-tasha group of Pune practising for this year’s Ganeshotsav

BY GITESH SHELKE @gitesh_shelke The successful implementation of goat farming in Yerawada Open Prison has impressed Visapur Open Jail in Ahmednagar and Aurangabad Open Jail to seek goats for farming from Pune prison. Inmates are trained in goat farming as a viable employment option after their release from jail.

Authorities underwent training in goat farming before teaching inmates.

Starting with 30 goats 11 months ago, Yerawada Open Prison now has 45 goats. Visapur jail has requested for 10 goats and one male goat and Aurangabad Open prison needs 10 goats and two male goats.

The prison plans to sell male goats (over one year old) during Eid in September and have sought market rates from animal husbandry department.

Senior jailer Eknath Shinde said, “Goats are reared on the grazing land where farming is not done. We have made a good progress in goat farming and plan to rear quality breed. It is a cost effective business for inmates after they are released, besides proving a profitable venture for the prison.”

Authorities plan to rear around 100 goats in the farm in the next couple of years.

Inmates of both open and central prisons carry out various agricultural activities

rahul raut

Prison authorities have received demand for goats from Ahmedabad and Aurangabad jails

Punekar RTI activist’s efforts bear fruit as SIC orders disclosure on PPP projects and toll contracts

rahul raut

Yerawada inmates get lesson in RTI plea responded to in just goat farming for a bright future five hours

by PRIYANKKA DESHPANDE @journopriyankka

The imposing arch of the Yerawada open jail and the path lined by greenery

Inmates of open and central prison carry out farming activity

in the Yerawada Open prison spread across 200 acres.

Barren land available with the prison department is converted into grazing land. Large banana plantation and cultivation of vegetables, rice, wheat, jowar and bajra cultivation helps prison administration save money on procurement

of groceries.

The open prison has a few cows and its dung was used as manure for farming. Prison administration plans to have start growing organic mushrooms.

Last year, the prison department had earned a healthy profit of Rs 4 lakh by selling bananas grown at Yerawada farms. Authorities have planted Sahyadri rice this year, instead of Indrayani rice for its better yield and longer grains. gitesh.shelke@goldensparrow.com

A determined Punekar’s efforts came to fruition, when the State Information Commission (SIC), in an extraordinary move, ordered the Chief and Additional Secretaries of the state, as well as the Managing Director of Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), to instruct concerned authorities to adhere to directives of the central government and immediately publish all the information related to all PublicPrivate Partnership (PPP) projects or toll contracts on their website.

The order was issued just five hours after city-based RTI activist Vivek Velankar sent an email to the SIC on Thursday, expressing displeasure over the apathy of the state government departments in publishing information about PPP projects or toll contracts.

“It is first of its kind that the orders had been issued in such a short duration since the complaint was filed,” said Vivek Velankar, RTI activist and founder of Sajag Nagarik Manch, who filed the complaint under section 18 of RTI with the SIC. Velankar, 53, send an email to the SIC on the morning of July 23 and the order was issued in the afternoon of the same day.

“The state authorities has washed their hands off by saying that they were unaware about the nature of the contract between MSRDC and the contractor, after the tragic landslide

Founder of Sajag Nagarik Manch and RTI activist Vivek Velankar is jubilant over SIC ordering disclosure on PPP projects and toll contracts

on Mumbai-Pune Expressway that claimed the lives of two persons. This prompted me to register a complaint against the concerned departments who do not wish to disclose to whom the contracts were given while starting any PPP project,” said Velankar.

When the government authorities were unaware about the nature of the contract, it was impossible for people to understand the nature of the contract between the two agencies, he said.

The central government had sent a circular to the Chief Secretary of Maharashtra in April this year, directing them to publish information about PPP projects pro-actively on websites. The government had also voiced its desire that public authorities ensured that suo motu information is put in the public domain, particularly

that related to important policies, decisions affecting the public, and to communicate the reasons for administrative or quasi-judicial decisions to citizens.

“In wake of the SIC order, I hope that the state government’s concerned department’s will ensure transparency by making the information available on the public domain,” said Velankar.

It’s possible the state government will approach the courts to appeal against the SIC order.

Velankar has regularly filed RTIs on various issues concerning the city since the RTI Act came into existence in 2005. “This was my eighth effort which found fruition when the order was issued in wider public interest,” Velankar said. priyankka.deshpande@goldensparrow.com

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JULY 25, 2015

PUNE

Of the, by the and for women

“In Smart Cities Mission, municipal corporations are functioning as implementing body and the Centre is imposing its planning.This is unconstitutional” — Anil Shidore, State General Secretary, MNS

Jacuzzi, salons on private varsities’ platter!

P10

P12

FTII students accused of threatening faculty

BY Gitesh Shelke and Gargi Verma @gitesh_shelke @missgverma

The FTII impasse over the appointment of Gajendra Chauhan has taken a new turn. Sanjay Chandekar, head of Radio FTII, in a written complaint to the Director of the Institute, has alleged that some students have threatened him and consequently he fears that his life is in danger; he has lodged an FIR in this regard. Chandekar’s complaint was forwarded to the Bund Garden and Deccan Gymkhana police stations.

Senior Police Inspector P A Chougule of Deccan Gymkhana police station said that a case has been registered against eight students of the institute for threatening Chandekar. “The students have been booked under the sections 143 (unlawful assembly), 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence commit¬ted in prosecution of common object), 341 (punishment for wrongful restraint), and 506 (2) (punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC),” he said.

On the 42nd day of the strike, a beat marshal was posted at the institute along with a round the clock vigil. Four vehicle-loads of policemen visited the campus to enquire about the FIR lodged by Chandekar.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone I) Tushar Doshi said that he has instructed police station authorities to monitor the situation. “Earlier, the issue was restricted to the campus only and it was not disturbing the law and order situation. The public at large was not concerned with the students’ strike. However, now the issue has reached the doorsteps of police stations and so I have issued instructions to the local beat marshals to pay regular visits to the institutes to avoid law and order issue on campus,” he said.

Doshi said that he has instructed the private security guards of the

institute not to allow any outsiders on the campus. “No outsiders should be allowed to disturb the peace on the campus,” he said. The police will also assist the security guards.

After the FIR lodged by Chandekar and the policemen’s visit to the campus, the FTII Students Association handed a letter to the Director, demanding that Chandekar be given police protection and that the FTII administration take him under their protection to avoid further hassles.

The letter reads, “The students association of FTII would like to bring on record that the FIR lodged against the students is false and totally baseless.

We demand a free and fair enquiry in this matter and request the authorities to impress upon the police of the need to provide Shri Sanjay Chandekar with 24-hour police protection. This should be done with immediate effect and with utmost urgency. Sir, we hereby state that the students association doesn’t bear any malice against Shri Chandekar and demand that the FTII administration and the Pune police take full responsibility for the health and physical security of Shri Chandekar.

We expect that you take the necessary and urgent steps in ensuring the well being of Shri Chandekar.”

The student body however, denies all allegations. “We even have a recording of the entire incident. We can prove our innocence. But we haven’t gotten a legal notice or even a summons from the Director. So we would like to reserve our comments,” said Ajayan Adat, one of the core committee members.

The students took to their Facebook page to express their distress over police vehicles entering the campus. One of the posts read, “Four vehicles for a man? Why no heed to the vandalism outside our gates?”

Some students, off the record, claim that this is just a tactic to distract from the main issue. “We are feeling threatened now, seeing the amount of police and armed personnel and the violence perpetrated around us,” said Harishankar Nachimutu, head of the Students Association.

Chandekar’s claim According to Deccan Gymkhana

Chalo Dilli The students have decided to stage a protest at the Parliament on August 3. “Since the Parliament is in session, we wish to join their discussion, however, externally,” said Rakesh Shukla. Around 100 students plan to travel to Delhi. “The association has some funds; thanks to GRAFTII and some of us will self fund this trip.

We plan on meeting various student groups there and take the protests to a new level,” explained Lavanya Ramaiah, a final year student.

However, few students shall move to other cities and make it a nationwide protest on August 3.

shailesh joshi

Faculty member Chandekar alleges that students have threatened him with bodily harm; students deny allegations

Cops have been posted at FTII campus anticipating a law and order situation

Senior Police Inspector Chougule, Chandekar has mentioned a threat to his life by the students. He said, “In his complaint, Chandekar mentioned that he has formed a Save FTII forum, along with three other faculty members.

He, through the forum, raised some issues which the students do not want to come out in public, in an interview to the press. He also allegedly called the students undisciplined. After the interview was aired, the angry students went to his office room, gheraoed him and kept him in confinement in his chair. The students threatened him with dire consequences.” He then allegedly called the police, and handed the Director and police officials his written complaint.

Students’ view “I was one of the six students who went to talk to Chandekar on Monday,” says Ajayan Adat, a final year student.

“The others were Ashwini, Manish, Indraneel, Shama and Sakshi. We went to ask him about the misleading statements in the press regarding the

students not being united and the faculty not being supportive,” adds Ajayan. He continued, saying, “He had called the police already and while we were just starting to talk, the guards came in and asked if he had called the police. After denying that he had called the police, he walked out of his office. We followed suit and he kept denying about the police. He went straight to the gate where police was standing and accepted in front of them that he had indeed called.” When the students allegedly asked why he had called them, he started screaming that he had been accosted by the students and his life was in ‘mortal danger’.

Vandalism and voices of dissent Earlier this week, an installation outside FTII campus was vandalised by unknown people. A day later, on July 20, Patit Pavan Sanghatana, allegedly a right wing group, protested outside the gates of FTII against the students and for Gajendra Chauhan.

“We think Gajendra Chauhan should

remain the Chairman, and the students are working on left wing political ideology,” said one of the members protesting outside. This was the first protest against the students. The installation was placed back by July 21 but the vandals couldn’t be traced.

Politics of support Politics has at some stage gotten mixed with the FTII imbroglio. While Congress and its youth wing organised multiple solidarity movements, including a oneday fast on July 21 to support the students, actress Nagma visited the students on the same day to express her concern and extend support from Congress. Since it is the monsoon session of Parliament, the student body has sent out mails to all Members of Parliament, asking them to discuss the issue in Parliament. We have asked them to discuss the issue and have provided them with an updated fact sheet, they said.

“We welcome any party to take up the issue,” said Rakesh Shukla, one of the core committee member of the Students Association.

Director’s statement Newly appointed Director Prashant Pathrabe has avoided getting in the crossfire by not making any press statements. However, on his second official day, July 20, he addressed the students. According to Vikas Urs, “The Director clearly told us that the government is not ready to listen to us until we go back to our classes. He also said that the government is thinking of extreme measures that include shutting the institute for a little while.

His statements clearly told us that the government is not ready to reconsider its decisions nor is it ready to listen to our demands.”

Former students asked to vacate rooms According to an official notice to the student, the administration is taking the matter of occupation of hostel rooms illegally by former students seriously. On July 23, the FTII administration issued notices to 13 students who have been overstaying at the hostels after completion of their courses. The FTII hostel rules forbid students from overstaying except when permission is taken from the Registrar or the Director. The 13 students have been asked to vacate the rooms with immediate effect. The Students Association has responded to this by saying that there are only 11 students who are overstaying and that they will vacate the premises soon. gitesh.shelke@goldensparrow.com gargi.verma@goldensparrow.com

Bhaijaan pendant, latest craze in Pune No respite from LPG cylinder woes

BY SALONEE MISTRY @Sal0412

While the movie ‘Bajrangi Bhaijaan’ is about a simple man who pledges to help a Pakistani girl reach her home safe and sound, the actual Bhaijaan is anything but an ordinary simple man. Ruling the hearts of many for years now, Salman Khan has through his own style and personality crafted for himself a brand that needs no introduction.

SALES ARE SKY HIGH In the movie, Salman plays the role of a Hanuman devotee and is seen adorning his weapon, the mace as a pendant around his neck. The pendant has been designed by Silvostyle, a sister concern of Pune based PN Gadgil Jewellers. It is available on Amazon, Shopclues, Flipkart and other sites, apart from PN Gadgil. The pendant is also available in the Middle East countries as well.

Almost every PNG store across Pune has sold more than 100 pendants. It had also become the number one bestseller on Amazon, after going live. “We received phenomenal pre-bookings. It was more than our expectations. We now have to be on our toes with the manufacturing as the demand is stupendous. We have been receiving calls from Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Uganda and Armenia for the pendant,” said Silvostyle

branding manager Varun Mavani, who added that the pendant will soon be launched in the US through Amazon.

A smaller version of the official silver pendant measuring 1.5 inches is available at Rs 795, while the slightly bigger one inches is priced at Rs 1,195.

Cheaper options costing as less as Rs 175 are also available online. The official piece comes with a small Bhaijaan card autographed by Salman.

The silver pendant weighs about 4.25 to 4.5 grams and is made of oxidised silver. To allow the buyer to feel as close to their star as possible, the pendant comes with a 30-inch long black string that can be worn around the neck just like Salman does in the movie. The gold variant of the pendant available at PNG starting at Rs 14,000 is only custom made and is delivered within two-three days after placing the order.

THE SALMAN FACTOR The pendant was turned into merchandise by Silvostyle after the countless requests Salman got from his fans for the pendant. “The pendant is very close to my heart. Thanks for making it yours,” said Salman announcing that the pendant was available.

Most of the people buy the pendant out of their love for the actor and very often use it to gift someone who is a Salman fan,” said an employee of PNG. salonee.mistry@goldensparrow.com

GIFT MATERIAL

“My brother was extremely happy and surprised when I bought it for him and he wears it almost every day without fail.

This is a brilliant initiative to allow Salman’s fans to Chirag, Pooja’s connect with him. The acbrother tor should do something like this in all his movies.”

Pooja Sawant (Sadashiv Peth)

“I bought a pendant for my sister as she is crazy about Salman. She was super excited at having something that is so close to the actor even if it is from a film of his. I too am Rani, Vaishnavi’s an avid fan and wanted to sister buy one for myself too and will do so very soon. The fact that it is so easily available whether online or at PNG made it easier to get it for her. We both alternately wear the pendant for now till I get my own.”

Vaishnavi Jagtap (Sinhagad Road)

Agent driven to suicide by loan sharks

Contd from p1

A day after the tragedy, Sagar’s wife Shivani attempted suicide by trying to jump off the terrace of her building, but was dissuaded by her elder sister Shubhangi. “I had given her a change of clothes when she disappeared all of a sudden. I ran behind her and saw that she was on the terrace about to jump off. I pulled her back and managed to save her,” said Shubhangi.

Sagar had taken a loan of one lakh rupees from Dhumal, who thereafter started calling him daily, using abusive language. Dhumal also threatened Sagar over money he had lent

to others with Sagar as witness.

Sagar and Shivani were married in 2006 and they have two daughters aged 2 and 7.

They were living at Shivani’s parents threestorey house at Indrayani Nagar.

Shivani’s sister Shubhangi Bhalerao, 33, has demanded the arrest of Dhumal and Landge. She said that the police were stalling the investigation because of the involvement of a policeman called Firoz Khan.

Sagar’s father-in-law Prakash Chavan said, “The police keep asking me the same question over and over again. Dhumal had come to our house demanding his money. I

gave him a cheque for one lakh rupees but the encashment was delayed because of the Eid holiday. Dhumal then called and abused Sagar, which drove him to suicide.”

Sagar mentioned in the note that he was unable to take his asthma affected daughter to hospital because Dhumal had taken his bike. Dhumal had also said that he had given a contract to kill Sagar to a hitman named Samadhan Raut.

Senior Police inspector JS Pathan of Mundhwa police station said that they have seen Sagar’s suicide note and that the police are hoping to bring the culprits to book soon.

District Collectorate’s lethargy over dealing with gas cylinder issues has raised consumers’ ire

BY PRIYANKKA DESHPANDE @journopriyankka Ramesh Chitnis is at his wits’ end. His countless complaints to the District Collectorate over nonreceipt of his gas subsidy, from January have been to no avail. The Sadashiv Peth resident has registered his complaints on the District Collectorate’s helpline number.

A private firm had developed software for the District Collectorate to speed up the settlement of complaints. After the registration of complaints, the website promptly forwarded the same to the District Supply Office (DSO) and Food Distribution Office (FDO). But the online website service was shut down owing to the non-payment of the firm’s charges by the Collectorate. Consequently, the General Branch of DC has around 200 pending complaints regarding gas cylinders since February 2015. Now the General Branch staff has been instructed to send letters to the DSO and FDO regarding the complaints. However, the department has no records of complaints received on the helpline since May 2015.

The interminable delays have raised the ire of consumers. “I have not received my gas subsidy since the last six months despite repeated complaints to

Official speak “We plan to have a meeting between the officials of the company which developed the online website service for us, and District Collector Saurabh Rao to deal with this issue soon,” said Anjali Kulkarni, Naib Tehsildar of General Branch of DC. There was no option but to manually work on the complaints until then, she said.

Ramesh Chitnis displays his gas booklet alongside his wife

the gas agency and the District Collectorate, nor have I received a reply from the collectorate or my gas agency,” said Chitnis.

“My wife and I are senior citizens and there is no family member to look into these issues,” said Chitnis, 69. He says that owing to his age he himself is unable to keep making rounds of the gas agency.

Parshuram Bhagwat of Vadgaon Budruk registered his complaint in April and is yet to get a reply. “The gas agency has not delivered gas cylinders to my home for several months. And the agency officials make some lame excuse or another,” said Bhagwat, who fetches the cylinders himself from the agency two kilometres from his home.

SB Gholap of Bhosari is irked by the extra money he has to pay the delivery guy. “The delivery guys insist on being paid extra for home deliveries.

They refuse to provide receipts and are generally very rude,” says Gholap. “Why should I pay extra when the delivery charges are included in the gas cylinder cost? I have registered my complaint with the district administration, but it seems to have fallen on deaf ears,” he said. priyankka.deshpande@thegoldensparrow.com

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JULY 25, 2015

“We have issued showcause notices to some political parties that have not provided the financial details since 2005.We will wait for their answers and take action according to the law.”

— J S Saharia, State Election Commissioner

‘India among top nations with disasterrelated displacements’ P11

PUNE

Invest smartly in mutual funds P14

Nothing comes free, not even Aadhar cards Maha E-Seva centres extorting money from citizens wanting Aadhar cards

District Collector assures strict action

Maha E-Seva centre, Warje

T

GS team visited the Maha E-Seva centre on NDA Road, Warje owned by Akshay Bhusare, licensed to issue Aadhar card, domicile certificates, ration card, PAN card etc, We identified ourselves as citizens wanting Aadhar cards. We were asked to produce identity and address proofs to enrol for Aadhar. The woman handling the Aadhar machine told us to fi ll up the form and bring in the necessary the following week. We asked her if we would have to pay for the process, and she asked for Rs 70 in a hushed tone. She also told us to buy the Aadhar enrolment form from Sairaj Gift Shop next door, which sells the Aadhar enrolment form for a rupee each, which also violates the UIDAI guidelines.

PRIYANKKA DESHPANDE @journopriyankka Even after an FIR was fi led recently against a private agency in Karve Nagar that had demanded money from citizens for Aadhar card enrolment, several Maha E-Seva centres in the city are openly demanding money from people to enrol them in the Aadhar card scheme. TGS team visited three Maha E-Seva centres at Warje, Bund Garden Road and Vishrantwadi, only to find that the staff at all the three centres asked for amounts ranging from Rs 70 to Rs 200 for enrolment in the Aadhar card scheme.

According to the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) guidelines, any individual can enrol for the Aadhar card once free of cost. Therefore, these authorised Maha E-Seva centres are openly violating the UIDAI guidelines by demanding money.

While the central government is urging citizens to enrol for Aadhar card, which thereafter can be linked to voter id, LPG gas connection, as well as being beneficial for scholarships, pension ID, and MNREGA job cards, these private agencies are extracting money from people, some of whose daily earnings are less than the money

District Collector Saurabh Rao said that agencies demanding money for Aadhar card enrolment would be sealed and FIRs would be registered against them if necessary. “I have been receiving such complaints regularly and I have been looking into this matter,” Rao told TGS. The administration had received complaints against Maha E-Seva centres in Ambegaon and Lohegaon. “My staff had carried out checks at the Ambegaon and Lohegaon centres, and we will fi le FIRs against them if necessary,” Rao said. In total 156 Aadhar machines have been installed at Maha E-Seva centres in the district. Rao has urged citizens to inform the district administration regarding malpractices regarding the Aadhar card scheme.

they demand.

However, having received complaints from citizens I this regard regularly, the district administration has finally been stirred into action, shutting down the private agency run by one Manish Dabhade at Karve Nagar, and registering an FIR against him for demanding money for Aadhar card enrolment. Aadhar cards were also seized from Dabhade, who was enrolling Lohegaon residents, though he was authorized to issue Aadhar cards to only Karve Nagar the residents. priyankka.deshpande@ goldensparrow.com

RAHUL

Siyasidh and Shree Kanchan Tax Consultants, Bund Garden Road

RAUT

With this une’s issue P t e e M change com parrow.

T

dens thegol | www. , 2015 JULY 25 PUNE,

he Siyasidh and Shree Kanchan Tax Consultants run an Aadhar enrolment centre at their office in a commercial complex. Pamphlets are put up regarding the services provided by the centre, including PAN, TAN, TDS and Aadhar cards. The woman receptionist told us to produce the documents mentioned on the pamphlet to enrol for the Aadhar scheme. She told us to avail of a prior appointment and that the centre was open on Sundays. Another staffer told us that it would cost us Rs 200 each for an Aadhar card, and that we would get a soft copy of the card in 15 days, while the proper card would be delivered after one and a half months in the mail.

young makers

is addict or r al media s is a soci rs are doing thei 0 2 y rl te r ea e youngs e in thei n es yo Th . er ld Not ev ad wor the big b ce wary of a differen e k a m bit to

Maha E-Seva centre, Vishrantwadi

W

Tracing the Nirma girl

Aadhar enrolment work in the district started in 2010-2011 to an enthusiastic response from citizens. But the work suffered a major setback when the Supreme Court of India ruled that the Aadhar card was not mandatory.

However, after the government’s ambitious such as linkage of with LPG cylinder and voter ID cards, the administration conducted drives. Maha E-Seva

central projects Aadhar subsidy district special centres,

schools and Anganwadis have been authorised to undertake Aadhar card enrolment. The district administration has issued 75.30 lakh Aadhar cards in the district, with the special drive for Aadhar enrolment in Junnar.

NG VI I R

UR

T

In the issue ES

FEAT

EN

THRILL OF D

ENTERTAIN

M

e called the centre at Shanti Nagar in Vishrantwadi, asking about how much it would cost to enrol for the Aadhar card.

Initially they said that it was free of cost, but then said that the fee could be discussed later. When we visited the centre, the woman staffer informed us that the Aadhar machine was to be installed the next day, and asked to produce the necessary documents and pay Rs 200 as processing fee.

XUVolution

Wanna acquire a svelte body?

TECH

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JULY 25, 2015

PUNE

In general, people tend to read as much as 10% slower from a screen than from paper.

- http://www.thefactsite.com/

Risk of war in Middle East without Iran N-deal: Obama

Pune Station needs a cleanliness regimen

P 13

P 15

Left with no choice, airlines keep pushing for biofuels To carry all those extra passengers, airlines are turning to converting trash into fuel The number of global fl iers is expected to more than double in the next two decades.

In order to carry all those extra passengers, airlines are turning to a technology very few can make work on a large scale: converting trash into fuel.

They have no other choice. As people in countries such as China, India and Indonesia get wealthier they are increasingly turning to air travel for vacation or business, creating an enormous financial opportunity for the airlines.

The number of passengers worldwide could more than double, to 7.3 billion a year, in the next two decades, according to the International Air Transport Association.

But many in the industry believe that

w ithout a replacement for jet fuel, that growth could be threatened by for t hc oming rules that limit global aircraft emissions.

“It’s about retaining, as an industry, our license to grow,” says Julie Felgar, managing director for environmental strategy at plane maker Boeing, which is coordinating sustainable biofuel research programs in the US, Australia, China, Brazil, Japan and the United Arab Emirates.

Cars, trucks and trains can run on electricity, natural gas, or perhaps even hydrogen someday to meet emissions rules.

But lifting a few hundred people, suitcases and cargo 35,000 feet into the sky and carrying them across a continent requires so much energy that only liquid fuels can do the trick.

Fuel from corn, which is easy to make and supplies nearly 10 per cent of US auto fuel, doesn’t provide enough environmental benefit to help airlines meet emissions rules.

“Unlike the ground transport sector, they don’t have a lot of alternatives,” says Debbie Hammel, a bioenergy policy expert at the Natural Resources Defense Council.

That leaves so-called advanced biofuels made from agricultural waste, trash, or specialty crops that humans don’t eat.

United Airlines last month announced

Cheating website hacked for user data

Dating app eyes product enhancement iCrushiFlush, a casual dating app, said it has raised funds from IDG Ventures, which will be primarily used for product enhancement.

However, the company declined to comment on the quantum of fund raised from IDG Ventures, a venture capital fund with focus on early stage technology startups.

IDG Ventures has invested in companies like Flipkart, Yatra, Newgen, Lenskart.Com, Vserv, Firstcry.Com, Manthan Software and Zivame.Com. The pre-series A round of funding will be mainly used for product enhancement and marketing purpose, iCrushiFlush Founder Amit Vora said in a statement. iCrushiFlush is a casual dating app that helps connect people around your location and allows them to make new friends to build relationships.

It has managed to get about five lakh downloads across India, mainly between age group of 18 to 25. iCrushiFlush is witnessing a growth of 25 per cent on month-on-month basis.

The app has presence in over 12,000 towns across the country, and Vora believes that next 200 million internet users will be coming from tier 2 and tier 3 cities.

PTI

The adultery website Ashley Madison said that customers’ data had been stolen by hackers The adultery website Ashley Madison said that customers’ data had been stolen by hackers and user information was briefly posted online before the breach was fi xed.

Avid Life Media, which owns Ashley Madison, said an “unauthorised party” was able to gain access to the data through various unauthorised points on the website.

“At this time, we have been able to secure our sites, and close the unauthorised access points,” Avid Life Media said in a statement.

“We apologise for this unprovoked and criminal intrusion into our customers’ information.”

The technology blog Gizmodo reported that the hackers, who called themselves ‘The Impact Team’, had briefly posted some sensitive data online before it was taken down.

The media company confi rmed that personally identifiable information was posted online.

“Our team has now successfully removed the all posts related to this incident ... about our users published online,” Avid Life Media said.

Ashley Madison, which boasts more than 37 million users, helps

people who are in relationships cheat on their partners.

It said it has “stringent security measures in place, including working with leading IT vendors from around the world.”

The company said it is working with law enforcement over the breach and that those responsible for the “act of cyber-terrorism will be held responsible.”

Users in more than 46 countries subscribe to the cheating website, which was founded in 2001.

The Canada-based company said a new user joins every six seconds, and that it is “the world’s largest website for married men and women looking to have a discreet affair.” Its slogan is “Life is short. Have an affair.”

AFP

a USD 30 million stake in Fulcrum Bioenergy, the biggest investment yet by a US airline in alternative fuels.

Fulcrum hopes to build facilities that turn household trash into diesel and jet fuel.

FedEx, which burns 1.1 billion gallons of jet fuel a year, promised today to buy 3 million gallons per year of fuel that a company called Red Rock Biofuels hopes to make out of wood waste in Oregon.

Southwest Airlines had already agreed to also buy some of Red Rock’s planned output.

These efforts are tiny next to airlines’ enormous fuel consumption. US airlines burn through 45 million gallons every day.

But airlines have little choice but to push biofuels because the industry is already in danger of missing its own emissions goals, and that’s before any regulations now being considered by the US Environmental Protection Agency and international agencies.

AP

758 cases against explicit content transmission in 2014 A total of 758 cases were reported in 2014 for publication and transmission of obscene or sexually explicit content under the Information Technology Act, Parliament was informed today.

“As per the data maintained by National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), a total number of 758 crimes have been reported in 2014 under the category of IT - Publications/Transmission of obscene/sexually explicit content under the Information Technology Act, 2000,” Minister of Communications and Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad said in a written reply to Lok Sabha.

The highest number of such crimes were reported from Uttar Pradesh at 371, followed by Karnataka (72) and Rajasthan (55).

As per the data compiled by NCRB, 191 cases have been solved and 313 cases have been pending for trial in 2014, he said.

Further, a total of 491 persons were arrested in 2014 in such cases.

The Minister said as per the Ministry of Home Affairs advisory, states have set up cyber crime cells to investigate online crimes and initiated action to strengthen investigation resources in such cells.

Responding to a separate query, Prasad said the growth in cyber space and IT, systems and associated services in all areas worldwide has led to a rise in virus attacks on computers in the country.

“Some of the latest malware targetting computer systems and mobile devices include Kilim, Bioazih RAT, Android.Badaccents, Cridex Trojan, FakeInst, Android Opfake, Dyreza, ZeroAccess, ZeuS, etc,” he said.

Prasad added that Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) suggests remedial measures to the users to dis-infect infected systems and prevent further infections.

PTI

Around the world on solar power!

BY GV JOSHI He fi rst attempt to fly around the world in an aircraft using electricity generated by solar cells only (solar energy) was launched on Monday March 9, 2015 at Abu Dhabi in United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The aircraft called Solar Impulse 2 (Si2) began its journey from Abu Dhabi on Monday March 9, 2015 and made a stopover at the Muscat International Airport in Oman on Tuesday March 10, 2015 morning.

From Oman, it headed for Ahmedabad, covering a distance of 1,465 km in 16 hours. The Swiss aircraft made in Switzerland touched down at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, Ahmedabad, at 11.24 p.m.

It was planned to stay at Ahmedabad for two days only for the pilots to hold meetings with government officials, stakeholders and civil society members. The

Some of the components used in aircraft Sunrise are made in India

stay dragged on to six days due to sort out some customs problem before leaving for Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh.

The aircraft touched down at the Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport at Babatpur (Varanasi) on Wednesday shortly after 8:30 p.m., completing an over 13 hour-long journey from

Ahmedabad. Andre Borschberg, the CEO of the project and pilot of Si2, flew the aircraft from Ahmedabad to Varanasi.

The aircraft took off from Varanasi on Thursday March 19, 2015 morning on its way to Mandalay in Myanmar. This ended its ten day journey in India as part of the round-the-world trip.

Made of carbon fibre, the aircraft Si2 has a 72- metre wingspan, which is larger than that of a Boeing 747, and weighs just 2,300 kg-as much as a car.

The 17,248 solar cells built into its wings supply four electric motors with renewable energy from our Sun. The cells recharge four lithium batteries which allow the aircraft to fly at night. The plane’s control centre is in Monaco in Europe.

Some of the components used in this pioneering aircraft are also made in India. Sunrise was the world’s fi rst solar-powered electric aircraft, the propellers of which are run by electric motors rather than the shaft of an internal combustion engine (ICE), with electricity produced by solar cells.

The historic fl ight, powered only by sunlight, took place November 4, 1974 at For t Irwin, California. Two motors powered the craft via a 6:1 gearbox swinging a 36x24 wood propeller.

More than one thousand solar

cells on the wing were the sole source of energy, producing roughly 450 watts of power. The craft, weighing in at 12.3 kg with its 9.8 metres wingspan, flew up to 6,100 m height depending on available sunlight.

Si2, also an electric aircraft, is the successor of Solar Impulse 1, a pioneering electric aircraft which notched up a 26-hour fl ight in 2010, proving its ability to stor e enough electrical energ y in lithium batteries during the day, to keep it flying at night.

Th is forerunner was put through its paces in Europe, crossed the Mediterranean to reach Morocco and traversed the United States in 2013 without using a drop of fossil fuel.

In the words of Bertrand Piccard, the co-pilot as well as project president, who made history in 1999 by becoming the fi rst person to fly around the world in a hot-air balloon, “The objective was to prove that clean energy could “achieve incredible things.”

PTI Feature

APP WORLD

For the love of music and melody Equalizer music player booster

Android: Free Listen to your favourite tracks on this all-in-one music player, equalizer and bass booster! Voted best app of the year 2014 by Google Play, Equalizer+ has more than 15 million downloads already. Improve your music listening experience easily thanks to a brand new interface, even more elegant and sober. Turn up the volume, listen to your favorite albums and playlists and revamp your tracks with your music equalizer, a real music booster! Equalizer+ is the most complete music player enabling you to adjust your sound tracks with a five-band equalizer and enjoy a powerful bass amplifier! Access your music library directly from the app. Play with audio filters to get the best out of your music. Amplify even more your bass sounds thanks to the Bass Booster option.

MP3 Cutter and Ringtone Maker Android: Free Cut the best part of your audio song and save it as your Ringtone/Alarm/ Music File/Notification Tone. The cut results are stored in sd card. Make your own MP3 ringtones fast and easy with this app. You can even record a live audio and this MP3 editor can edit and trim the best parts from it for free. The app supports MP3, WAV, AAC, AMR and most other music formats. This app is also a music editor/alarm tone maker/ ringtone cutter and notification tone creator.

Old Hindi Songs

Android: Free Old Hindi Songs is a music App that has been especially created for Bollywood music fans who love listening to Old Hindi Music.

This app helps you listen to the best collection of old Hindi songs from Bollywood movie and non-filmi Hindi music. You can enjoy these evergreen old Hindi songs and watch their videos anywhere, anytime on your mobile phone absolutely free. Now with this app, there is no need to download any mp3 songs, simply click and enjoy your favourite classic Hindi songs. From varied playlists that include favourite Old Hindi songs of all times to an array of collection of old classics of Bollywood legends, singers and superstars and Hindi movies and blockbusters, the app offers it all.

Djay 2

Android/iPhone: Rs 120 Ready to rock your next party? Introducing djay 2 - the next generation of the world’s best-selling DJ app is now available on Android.

Djay transforms your Android device into a full–featured DJ system.

Seamlessly integrated with Spotify and all the music on your device, djay gives you direct access to mix your favourite songs and playlists instantly. You can perform live, record mixes on–the–go, or enable Automix mode to let djay create a seamless mix for you automatically.

Whether you are a professional DJ or a beginner who just loves to play with music, djay offers you the most intuitive yet powerful DJ experience on an Android device.

Tab Pro

Android/iphone: Rs 248 Ultimate Guitar’s Tab Pro application for Android combines all the benefits of tried-and-true musical tablature with the most advanced interactive technology! Whether you want to master a classic rock riff or play along with the chords from a Billboard chart topper, Tab Pro makes it a breeze with its sleek audio and visual layouts. Over 200,000 songs are available at your fingertips in Tab Pro’s extensive database, with options available for players of all backgrounds and skill levels. Tab Pro allows you to play along with your favourite song as you learn, ensuring that you are truly keeping perfect time. Whether you prefer to hear the rhythm section in the forefront or let the lead guitar take center stage, the power is in your hands to shape your perfect audio mix with solo/mute options.

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JULY 25, 2015

“Our efforts in redesigning clients’ experience and widespread adoption of innovation are starting to bear fruit in large deal wins and in the growth of large clients.”

— Vishal Sikka, Chief Executive, Infosys

“We are looking to invest Rs.1,000 crore in manufacturing and Rs.500 crorein research and development in the next two to three years.”

— Keshav Bansal, Director, Intex Technologies

New age ventures attracting workers from big firms

This shift in preferences can be clearly attributed to “meaningful aspirations” the young generation has from their work and workplaces With start-ups being the buzz word today, industry is witnessing employee movement, especially in midto senior-level, from established organisations to new age ventures, say experts.

“There has a lot of movement of employees from well-established companies to start-ups, primarily because of the value proposition that they get offered in terms of pay-package, roles and responsibilities and future career graph,” PeopleStrong HR Services Co-Founder and CEO Pankaj Bansal told PTI. “From what we have seen, employees from well established FMCG, consulting fi rms and IT fi rms are moving to startups,” he said.

Th is shift in preferences can be clearly attributed to “meaningful aspirations” the young generation has from their work and workplaces, he pointed out.

Michael Page India Regional Director Nicolas Dumoulin said funding for start-ups has increased significantly through private equity and venture capital.

“Th is results in more ambitious growth plans for start-ups.

Th is is mainly in the technology or e-commerce space. As a result, budgets for hiring have increased significantly.

“Both higher growth prospects and higher budget availability are resulting in these start-ups being empowered to hire more talented people,” he

pointed out.

GlobalHunt Managing Director Sunil Goel said in terms of hiring trend, professionals who joined start ups are either at the earlier stage of their career or the ones those who have done extremely well in large corporations and would have spent almost 15 years in the industry and now willing to risk themselves with the start ups.

People from sectors like e-commerce, IT, services are seen moving to start-ups, he added. .

A n k i t Bansal, Founder of My Kind of Job said after the success of quite a few start-ups lately, the industry is witnessing a positive shift in mindset of people towards working at start ups.

“The other significant trend is start-ups being able to attract campus students, which was earlier not even imaginable in India,” he added.

Also, start-ups are offering stock options in order to attract talent, Dumoulin said, adding this helps them suppress the salaries they offer and engage people for long term.

“The candidate views this as an attractive value addition, as the potential of cashing-

According to a hiring firm, major sectors where lot of start-up hiring has been observed are technology based, specifically data analytics, mobility, security, cloud and mobile applications, retail, ecommerce, services (travel, real-estate), micro-finance and consulting in when a company is bought over or announces its Initial Public Offering (IPO) is much larger than if he would start in an already established organisation,” he said.

“While compensation is important for this next generation of employees, an increasing number(almost 65 per cent) is now looking for better growth and career opportunities and start-ups have been able to provide a mix of these factors to a lot of job seekers,” PeopleStrong HR Services’ Bansal said.

The major sectors where we have observed lot of start-up hiring are technology specifically - data analytics, mobility, security, cloud and mobile applications, retail, ecommerce, services (travel, realestate), micro-finance and consulting, Bansal said.

Experts, however, said that largely well-funded start-ups are witnessing professionals movement.

“On the other hand, non funded start-ups, which are seeded from promoter’s own funds, still have to contend with trying to make best out of talent that fits their budget,” Ankit Bansal said.

PTI

Chinese students launch scheme for those who flunk SHANGHAI: Inspired by Shanghai’s success in promoting innovation and business start-ups, three students in this gleaming eastern Chinese metropolis have launched a unique ‘insurance’ product for students who flunk in their exams.

The students - Guan Lingzi, Xu Yecheng and Shao Tianyu - finance majors at the Shanghai University of Finance and Economics said they came up with the idea just for fun.

It all started after Xu fared badly in the exams last month.

“He joked that if there was any insurance for failing in the exams, he would have bought it and got some comfort,” Guan was quoted as saying by state-run Shanghai Daily.

“His words set our minds working and we came up with the idea. We just realised that other students might be feeling the same way as Xu,” she said.

The trio, based in Shanghai, the Communist nation’s financial capital, worked out the details of the scheme

after checking out the failing rates of students in the school in recent years and created a WeChat account to operate the scheme.

Under the scheme, students have to pay five yuan (81 US cents) for each course through WeChat. They will receive 30 yuan if they fail the final exam.

To make the scheme “attractive,” they decided that insurance buyers who scored over 90 marks out of 100 in the exams, will be rewarded with 20 yuan.

“By developing this insurance

package with such a small sum of money, we are not encouraging students to blow their exams, but to help them to relax before the exams,” Guan claimed.

Since they started the “business” on June 24, about 150 students had joined the scheme.

“Th irty-yuan compensation is not a big sum of money,” Xu Zhifeng, a sophomore from the university’s law school, said. “But buying the insurance did give me some kind of psychological comfort,” Xu said.

Guan said if they had developed the product at the beginning of June before the final exams began, they would have had more buyers. Th is year’s results are not out yet so it is not known yet if the trio will be making or losing money, the report said.

“It doesn’t matter if we make or lose money. We will continue to run it next semester and see if it can be developed into a real thing,” she said .

PTI

KSUM plans more boot camps The Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) plans to expand its successfully running ‘startup boot camps’ to more colleges, giving a larger number of students a chance to join young entrepreneurs’ population in the state.

Kerala Startup Mission has invited more engineering colleges to start Innovation Entrepreneurship and Development Centres (IEDC) to develop innovative business ideas with market-viable products, according to an official release.

Each IEDC centre will get Rs 2 lakh to conduct start-up boot camps, it added.

Launched with an aim to boost student entrepreneurship in Kerala, start-up boot camps primarily conduct workshops, seminars and leadership camps.

Students selected from these camps will get pre-incubation training

from KSUM. So far, about 25 colleges have started IEDC centres with the support of KSUM to deliver highquality training and entrepreneurship development activities.

chairman of the Silicon Valley-based company told PTI.

8K Miles to cash in on Obamacare

Healthstart (http://www.healthstart. co.in), which is one of the fi rst healthcare-focused accelerators in the country, is also enabling Indian healthcare Start-ups go global, apart from PurpleCrest. Recently it partnered with HITLAB New York, to organise HITLAB World Cup India 2015 (http://rockhealth.com/2015/07/21b-digital-health-funding-first-half2015-keeping-pace-2014) . Both of these global events have joined hands with Indian partners for the fi rst time ever, to encourage Indian start-ups go international.

PTI

On the back of three successful acquisitions in health and pharma space in past six months, pure-play cloud player 8K Miles Software is looking at more buyouts in the same area as it seems a huge opportunity in the US following the legal mandate to Obamacare.

“The recent Supreme Court order legalising Obamacare across the US is a big boost to cloud players like us,” Suresh Venkatachari, founder-

Helping start-ups go global

PUNE

2015 likely to be a big year for deal making: Experts NEW DELHI: Merger and acquisition activity in India witnessed significant rise in the fi rst half of the year and the momentum is likely to continue as the year 2015 is likely to be a “big” year for deal making, experts say.

According to experts government’s actions on key policy issues and reforms like the Companies Act, ITP for Tech start-ups, unblocking stalled projects, have to an extent improved the ‘ease of doing business’ and this may further accelerate the transaction activity in India.

There were M&A deals worth USD 19.2 billion in the fi rst half of 2015 by way of 178 transaction, representing 11.4 per cent rise against 156 deals worth of USD 17.2 billion in the same period last year, according to global advisory fi rm Mergermarket.

“Foreign players, further attracted by the newly elected government’s tax exemption, continued to increase their presence in India,” Mergermarket said adding inbound activity increased by 39.5 per cent to USD 9 billion from the prior half-year period.

There has also been an uptick in the amount being spent on outbound M&A with Indian companies spending USD 925 million abroad since the beginning of 2015, a 38 per cent growth compared with USD 650

million in the fi rst half of 2014.

Commenting on the deal activity in fi rst half of this year, PwC India Partner Deals Munesh Khanna said, “The presence of a pro business government, a strong domestic economy and falling energy costs, which will immensely benefit India are the main drivers for the increased optimism”.

Khanna further noted that the rating agencies are being conservative and are awaiting for more evidence of implementation of the policy changes.

“We believe the building blocks are in place and impact in the economy will be felt in the short-term,” he said.

According to Merger ma rket Intelligence, the ‘Make in India’ programme, designed to boost India’s manufacturing, will result in the sector seeing even more activity in the future.

“Given the positive business sentiment and sustained momentum through the fi rst half of this year, we see 2015 to be a big year for deal making,” Grant Thornton India Partner Prashant Mehra said. He believes Indian assets are likely to remain in focus as inbound and domestic M&As accelerate on the back of pickup in alternate buy out financing by PEs and increased capital market activity.

PTI

Govt actions have improved the ease of doing business

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JULY 25, 2015

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY

PUNE

JULY 25, 2015

PUNE

They are breaking free towards a better life Panna, 52, school event co-ordinator

pics by Aniruddha Rajandekar

P

anna lives in a lane in Pune’s notorious red light area of Budhwar Peth, amongst transgender sex workers. “I live a righteous’ life.

I stay here so I can help them leave this life behind and find another decent option. I want to be on hand when they need me,” she said.

Panna keeps busy. She works as event co-ordinator with the Holy Convent school in the neigbourhood. She also gives tuitions to kids in her house. She runs Aashirwad, her own NGO, for the welfare of sex workers. “I have been given this life for a reason. Why waste it when I can do so much?” says Panna, who has been doing this for over two decades.

“I was born in a small village near Hyderabad. My parents refused to accept me.

They scolded me, beat me, tried in every way to make me normal. But my body and mind were going through a transition. Eventually they told me to leave the house, telling me they rather think of me as dead. So I left,” she said. She has never gone back and neither has her family bothered to find her. “I miss my mother at times,” Panna says with tearful eyes. “But I had decided that I didn’t want a family, bonds or oppression. I’d rather lead my life my way,” she said.

Panna came to Pune and fell into the sex trade. “I was forced as I was young and naive. But I soon realised the pitfalls of the sinful path I was on,” she says.

In the nebulous and murky worlds that the transgenders inhabit, there are some who are making their way into the light, armed with hope

GargiVerma @missgverma They live in a twilight zone, being neither male nor female.

Transgenders have been a part of Indian society since time immemorial, and they are accepted and even required for some Indian rituals. Hijras and eunuchs, for all their assimilation into the Indian milieu, tread an uphill path, where struggle, hardship and stigma are an indelible part of their daily lot.

That is why some of them have no recourse but to lead murky, nocturnal lives, slinking through dark alleyways, begging for alms, or pandering to base passions of the flesh trade.

Things are changing, however, as exemplified by the appointment of a transgender as the Principal of a college in Kolkata. Tracing the lives of transgenders in Pune, we found some who are doing all they can to live with their heads held high, even as they fight off the taunts and barbs from a society that really does not care much, nor is sensitive to their needs. Being disowned by their families is a common cross they have to bear, from a young age.

Having had the misfortune to be born different, that is the price they must pay as misfits.

Some of them succumb to their travails but others are fiercely independent and not afraid to take on all odds. All of them, however, believe that education could be their salvation, and that if they had been granted acceptance by society, their lives would be far removed from the ordeal that it is.

While they wait for acceptance into the mainstream, they are trying to ascend to a better place, one step at a time. gargi.verma@goldensparrow.com

R

“I went to the PMC office with my documents and asked to give me a job, in place of my mother. I insisted on my rights; I knew what I was entitled to, so I never wavered and they had no option but to give me the job,” she said.

But life did not turn into a bed of roses thereafter. “Things have changed a lot, for the better. Initially I was the constant butt of jeers and abuse. I had no friends and no one was willing to accept me, no matter how nice I was to them,” she said. “I couldn’t change who I was, so instead I applied myself to my work with complete devotion,” she said. Rashmi’s fortitude and patience have; people let her be and she rose through the ranks and is now senior stenographer.

“I have had great support from the transgender community. They have given me the respect and love I was denied by my family,” she said. “My father died before my mother. After her death, I have taken care of my grandmother,” said Rashmi, who lives with her grandmother in her ancestral house.

Her hobbies have also made her happier. “I have always wanted to act. After taking lesson from Aniruddh sir, I have worked in ‘Hijda’, a national

A church pastor helped her find work at an NGO. She finished basic studies and the pastor got her the job at the Holy Convent school. It proved to be tougher than she thought. “The teachers wouldn’t talk to me or touch their possessions. I wasn’t allowed to eat with them. But they changed when they saw my work and dedication. They are not my friends, but now I am treated with respect,” she said.

Panna is on her way to

D

ancing is an art that like other arts, demands passion. But for Ruturaj dance offers an outlet wherein he can accept himself. Ruturaj dances with a rope holding of 120 ghungrus that bind his feet.

The dance liberates him from the coils of the gender crisis he lives under. Neither Ruturaj’s family nor his colleagues know about his being a transgender. “I have to keep it a secret because who will accept this truth?” he says.

Ruturaj is an ardent Madhuri Dixit fan; he has even styled his hair like her. Her dancing has influenced him hugely and even his costumes have a Madhuri touch. He is learning kathak and is gearing up for his fourth year exam. “I save money and used to do odd jobs and shows to pay for my dance classes,” he said. He bought a scooter from his savings.

Ruturaj has appeared for his third year college exams. “I was an adolescent when I discovered that I had effeminate feelings and behaviour. But I couldn’t express myself, my parents would have never understood me. But I couldn’t hide my passion for dance. So they sent me to dance classes,” he said. Nobody in his family knows that he is a transgender. “I don’t want them to disown me,” he says.

His father, the only earning member in

Hyderabad. “I am going for the shooting of a Telugu serial in which have a role of a mother,” said Panna. “I have a daughter I adopted around 15 years ago.

She is studying to become a nun. I am so proud of her. She knows everything about me and loves me unconditionally,” she says with the joy any mother has talking about her kids.

But she’s not her only family. Known as ‘Pannama’ to her neighbours and other

community members, she is like a mother to one and all.

“They are my family. So what if I am dead to my own relatives?” she says.

Panna is dead against the sex trade. “Talking and teaching are the only options. Some are too far gone. The younger ones are easier to mould and if other jobs were available, they would never come here. We are succeeding no matter how slowly,” she says.

in Mumbai. We were in dire straits. I needed money for my mentally disabled daughter. I did not want to ask my transgender friends for money, enter their trade or beg,” he said. His uncle supported him and helped him get a job at Sancheti. “They paid peanuts and it was tiring work, but it was a long term job,” he said. He started doing dance shows. “Dance is liberating. I am happiest while I dance. It also brings in additional income,” he said.

It is arduous; he finishes work at 6, the shows end around midnight, he reaches home by 3, sleeps by 4 and has to wake up at 6 to reach work by 8.

“Sometimes I can’t afford the two hours of sleep, due to an early shift or a late show. I cook for myself in the morning,” he explains. His colleagues knows he is a transgender. In the hospital records, however, he is male.

He wants to undergo sex reassignment surgery, but is not sure how feasible it will be. “My wife is understanding but I have a growing daughter,” he says. His wife is his confidante in picking the right sari, to getting all the jewellery in place. “I sometimes wish things were normal. I am sure I would be happier. But right now, I have to live as both Sushil and Sonali, if I have to survive,” he says in a wistful tone.

his family is old and frail. “My parents told me to find a job, so I got a job at a call centre,” he said. “I used to have long hair. But I had to cut it a bit and wear a cap at office to hide my hair. My colleagues know that I learn kathak and do dance shows. Anything else, and they would mock me,” he said.

Ruturaj had been trapped in the murky hijda rituals. “They wanted me to beg, dance in the streets. Though I love dancing, I couldn’t do that. But to keep hooligans at bay, I do the infamous hijda clap,” he said.

“It is a dark world. People are encouraging the darkness by not accepting us as equals,” he said. “I have a guru and I know the rituals. But I don’t mingle with them. I like progressive people. After all, if I have to meet Madhuri, I have to make it big, right?” he laughs.

Ruturaj doesn’t want to undergo sex reassignment, ever. He would even like to marry to honour his parents’ wishes. “But I will obviously tell the girl beforehand about everything. I would like for her to understand my interests and be my friend,” he said.

“Until the world accepts that some people are born different and that they are not outcasts, we have no choice but to live a double life,” he says.

Ambika, 32, teacher and lab assistant award winning play about transgenders,” she said.

Hijda, the play by Saggar Lodhi features Rashmi as Pinki, one of the lead characters.

“I have gone through a lot. But if I let that decide my behaviour, I am no different from the people who have caused me pain,” she said.

Bapi, 41, dry cleaner

B

S

ushil Shinde does a vital job. He has been working as compounder at the Sancheti Hospital for the past eight years. He is also a Lavani dancer, with the stage name of Sonali. He manages this double life thanks to all the support from his family and friends.

Sushil shatters several myths about the transgender community. He is married and is father to a boy of 19 and a daughter of 17. “I was married when I was just 20 as do people in villages. The kids followed soon after,” he said. But his being a transgender is no secret. “My parents knew. My wife knows and my kids do too. In fact, my wife and my kids are my biggest supporters,” he says. Hailing from a small village near Sangli, he lives in a small house in Vishrantwadi with his parents, wife and kids.

“I used to dance at the local events as a kid.

The neighbours were all praise initially but the appreciation soon turned to frowns and I was a matter of public ridicule. But I continued to dance,” he said.

He finished his schooling, got married and left his village to look for a job. “I got a job as office boy, peon and receptionist rolled into one at a small firm in Mumbai. I worked there for five years until the company went bankrupt. I couldn’t afford staying on

Ruturaj, 20, call centre worker

Rashmi, 31, Wstenographer ashmi has learnt and absorbed a lot. She graduated from Garware College, and did a 30-day Marathi typing course at Amravati.

She even took acting lessons from renowned theatre personality Aniruddh Khutwad. She works as a stenographer at the Pune Municipal Corporation.

She has yet to come to terms with the stigma of being a transgender, however. “Are the raindrops falling on others any different from those that fall on me? Is it not the same sun that shines on all of us? If mother nature doesn’t discriminate, why do humans?” she wonders in obvious anguish.

Rashmi realised quite early in her life that the male body she was given was not in synchrony with her psyche that was feminine. And the results were soul-scorching. Her effeminate ways were jeered at not just by strangers, but even her friends and parents condemned her, and she was left in utter torment and isolation. “Cat calls and jeers, that was all I got wherever I turned,” she says. “Going to school was an ordeal, and college was no better. I went because my parents forced me to,” she said.

The education she acquired however, proved to be a boon, after her mother, a PMC employee, passed away due to a heart ailment five years ago.

Sunil, 34, compounder

api works at a dry cleaning shop near Mati Ganpati. His working hours are from 10 am and 3 pm, and Bapi, 41, has been working there for the past 20 years.

Bapi has adopted a male identity and lives with his sister and what he calls ‘her army of kids’. “They do not depend on me, as their father provides for them. But my sister stays with me as I have no one else in this world,” says Bapi. His mother who guided and supported him selflessly, passed away two years ago. “She was a strong yet sensitive woman. She worked a nurse at Sancheti Hospital, but died of a heart attack when she was taken to an ECG room,” he said.

Bapi and his two sisters were brought up by their mother in the slums near Dandekar bridge in Dattewadi. “My father deserted us when I was just four years old. My mother paid for my

education till standard X. I left school after that, being fed up of the taunts and ostracisation by the other students,” he said. He met a dancer, who taught him the dance and other crafts and rituals of the hijda community. “I knew, however, that dressing up and dancing was not the way to earn a proper living and begging for alms was too demeaning. So I had to find a job,” he said.

“I used to work as an outreach activist for an NGO, working with transgenders and gay men, informing them about HIV and AIDS. But the NGO shut down and I am looking for alternatives,” he said. Life is still a daily struggle.

“We are not an alien species. But people take us for granted, make us the butt of their jokes. Some even think that we are evil but no one realises that we are humans, just like them,” Bapi said.

They might be a male beli A transgender is someone whose identity necessarily doesn’t comply with the societal norms of male and female. They might be a male believing themselves to be female due to their characteristics and behavioural patterns.

It is not necessarily a biological condition, and is independent of one’s sexual orientation. Violence against transgenders, generally sexual, is common in all parts of the world.

A

mbika has a teaching job she likes and she also works as lab assistant at a school. She rides a scooter and owns a two-bedroom house at Bibvewadi. Fiercely independent, she goes out of her way to helps others from her community. “My family threatened to cut off my money and I decided I do not want them to be a barrier, so I left,” she said.

Ambika was born and brought up in a lower middle class family in Pune. “I realised in my pre-teen years that I was different. I behaved and had the kind of feelings a girl does. I also realised that I was attracted to boys,” she said. All of this was too much to bear for her family, who tried all kind of means to make Ambika a regular boy. “I just couldn’t bear it, so I left my house and I have never gone back,” she said.

Ambika lived with her friends and after she got a job, she availed of a home loan. “Now I have a home that no one can evict me from. I have given shelter to some homeless people because I know what it is to not have a roof over your head,” she says.

“Money changes everything and now that I have some, my family members visit me and tell me to come home and let bygones be bygones. I

will never return but I do help them when I can,” she said.

Ambika faces discrimination constantly, at her place of work, and from her grocer. “They used to pass lewd comments or ignore me when I went shopping for household stuff. But some of them have now stopped that,” she said. “Some colleagues used to harass me. But my boss reprimanded them and now they have stopped taunting me, at least to my face. The students, however, have always been respectful,” she says.

Ambika has grand plans. She wants to contest the municipal elections and work for the community. She is married, but not legally, to a man she loves, who is both a bit ashamed and proud of her. She underwent a sex reassigning process a month ago and is on medication currently.

Ambika wishes society was more accepting.

“I wanted to study. But the constant jeering and taunts made me give up studying. Why can’t people accept us? Some people go out of their way to trouble us, passing rude and lewd remarks and even more. But when I am minding my own business, what right do they have to interfere with me?” she asks.

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JULY 25, 2015

PUNE

“Violence has not done any good for anyone. Look back at history, violence has never brought satisfaction to anyone. It was Mahatma Gandhi who has shown a way to mitigate these two menaces, terror and climate change.”

— Narendra Modi, Prime Minister

Greece to vote on second bailout bill in test for Tsipras P13

India ranks 3rd Pune ad firm’s campaign in list for LEED scores big at the Cannes Green Building Seagull’s Polar Bear campaign for Thermax Profetherm was the only Indian work to feature at the prestigious global advertising awards this year

NEW DELHI: India ranks third in the list of top 10 countries outside US for LEED rated green buildings, according to US Green Building Council (USGBC).

The United States, the birthplace of LEED, is not included in this list but remains the world’s largest market for LEED, the council said in a statement.

LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a set of rating systems for the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of green buildings.

“India ranks third on USGBC’s second annual ranking of the Top 10 countries for LEED, the world’s most widely used and recognised green building rating system,” the statement said.

Canada and China are on the top two positions in this list respectively.

USGBC said the top 10 list highlights countries outside of the US that are making significant strides in sustainable building design, construction and transformation, illustrating the ever-growing global demand for LEED green buildings.

The analysis used to develop the list ranks countries in terms of gross square meters and numbers of LEED projects to date. India has 1,883 projects LEED-certified and registered projects, while Canada has 4,814 projects and China 2,022.

The US, which is not included in the list, has 53,908 LEED certified projects.

LEED-certified spaces use less energy and water resources, reduce carbon emissions and create a healthier environment for residents, workers and the larger community.

“India’s dominant position in the green building movement is significant due to the country’s aggressive plans to expand access to electricity, it explosive economic growth projections and its unprecedented and rapid urbanisation,” USGBC said.

The announcement comes at a time of increased global focus on climate change mitigation in the lead up to the United Nation’s COP21 climate negotiations this December.

LEED is poised to feature prominently as a eco-friendly solution for Indian business leaders and policymakers, and can be a powerful tool in efforts such as the 100 Smart Cities initiative, USGBC said.

“Given India’s regional and global significance, it is very encouraging to see the country successfully positioning itself as an international leader in the green building and sustainability movements at the same time that its prominence as a global leader in technology and the information economy is growing,” USGBC CEO and founding chair Rick Fedrizzi said.

“The international community cannot solve major challenges such as climate change and water scarcity without India’s full and enthusiastic participation.”

Projects that got LEED certification in 2014 included Ascendas IT park in Chennai, Thomson Reuters campus in Bengaluru, Ericsson Tower in Gurgaon, Nirlon Knowledge Park, building 6 in Mumbai and DLF IT park in Chandigarh.

PTI

Latur girl to represent India at US pageant

Eesha Agarwal was crowned Ms India Exquisite Queen at Delhi

BY SALONEE MISTRY @Sal0412 A small town girl who dared to dream big gets her moment of glory. Hailing from Latur, Eesha Agarwal (28) was crowned Ms India Exquisite Queen on June 16 at Delhi. The promising model who moved to Pune nine years ago will represent India at the Ms Exquisite International at Baltimore in the US on August 4, this year.

The India Exquisite Pageant competition is a platform for women of all ages, sizes and ethnicities to embrace their inner and outer beauty and promote the spirit of volunteerism.

PURSUING HER CHILDHOOD DREAM An alumna of Symbiosis College and a nutritionist by profession, Eesha said that her childhood dream was to become an actress and a model. “As a kid when anyone asked me what I wanted to be in when I grew up, my instant answer would be an actress or a model. I never wanted to do anything else,” she said. She decided to pursue nutrition as it was something that would take her closer to her dream. “I was a chubby kid. Studying to be a nutritionist taught me about the correct food and it helps me stay fit and prepare even today as I aim to win the international crown,” she said. Training under coach Ritika Ramtri through the coaching institute ‘The Tiara’, Eesha saw her childhood dream come true. She won Miss Pune in 2013 competing against 400 girls followed by shinning at India Exquisite Pageant. Eesha not only bagged the crown but was also won the ‘Most Photogenic’ title.

NOT A SMOOTH RIDE Eesha faced challenges in her attempt

to create space for herself in the modelling world.

“I am an avid foodie and it was difficult for me to maintain a healthy diet. I would desire to eat all the wrong food but had to check myself before taking part in the Miss Pune content. In fact, I lost some extra pounds,” Eesha said. She also had to overcome the fear of not being able to voice her opinions correctly especially to the panel during the question-answer round at the pageant.

SUPPORT AND INSPIRATION Family supported Eesha throughout her journey, from trying to get a foothold in modelling to winning beauty contests.

“My younger sister is my biggest support. She is like an extension of me and I can never thank her enough for everything she does for me,” said Eesha, whose inspiration is actress Lara Dutta. Eesha’s father runs a family-run jewellery business in Latur and she has a younger sister and a brother.

WINNING AND LOSING Eesha wants to win the international title for the simple reason that she feels that India deserves that pride. “It is important to show what Indian models are capable of doing on the international stage.

There is so much potential waiting to be explored,” she said. She is not afraid of losing and believes that it is often God’s plan. “Whatever the result I will continue to modelling and work towards making my family and country proud,” she said. salonee.mistry@goldensparrow.com

What began as an effort to motivate staff to use power judiciously finds a place of honour at an international event. Pune-based advertising and brand consulting agency Seagull Advertising’s work done for Thermax Profetherm is the only Indian work to be featured at the Cannes Lions’ 15 ACT Responsible – a platform that showcases outstanding work with an objective to remain responsible towards the planet.

The Polar Bear campaign came into being after Thermax Profetherm, a city-based company which provides customer solutions on how to optimise energy efficiency, approached Seagull’s creative team to create awareness amongst their clients to conserve energy. Seagull Advertising Managing Director Sameer Desai said, “Global warming is severely impacting endangered species like polar bear. The insight behind our campaign is ‘Unplug to save the Polar Bear’. And in order to spread this message across all verticals, our creative team heads Debashish Sinha and Sanju Ayyar made this campaign for Thermax to encourage everyone to follow the green hour.

We created posters, e-mailers and innovative stickers which were put on plug sockets across their offices. Polar bear made of electric wire with plug removed from socket. Whoever tries to put a plug into the socket will see stickers with similar design having ‘Save endangered species. Unplug’ message written on them.”

Thermax found that irresponsible behaviours found in big office environments of staff leaving ACs running and lights switched on in empty rooms not only ends up as huge power bills but also contributes significantly towards global warming.

The campaign which was an instant success amongst Thermax employees and customers went viral and was picked by one of the teams at the Cannes which found that it had the potential to have a positive impact on environment.

The campaign was selected amongst the top 100 entries for the Cannes Lions’ 15 ACT Responsible Expo. The global event was spread across four categories - Human Rights, Education, Solidarity and Planet - which allowed people to express their views by voting

MD Seagull Advertising Sameer Desai (red shirt) and Creative Director of Seagull Advertising Sanju Ayyar (black shirt); (below) the polar bear artwork

MEGA MEET

for their favourite campaign.

“Ours was the only campaign from India to be featured at the prestigious event along with a citation at the closing ceremony. We won the third place under the category of Planet.

The award announced on June 25 is one of our biggest achievements this year,” he said.

The campaign was one of the many marketing collaterals that Thermax was seeking to engage their customers and prospective clients to show various ways of conserving energy. heena.grover@goldensparrow.com

ACT Responsible is an international non-profit organisation which highlights how creativity can help the world’s major issues Largest gathering of worldwide advertising professionals takes place at Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival. During one week 16,000 delegates from around 90 countries gather to celebrate the best of creativity in brand communication, discuss industry issues and network with one another. Since 2001, ACT Responsible celebrates the best social and environmental advertising and showcase over 400 advertising campaigns from over 35 countries ACT Expo at Cannes this year featured over 110 pieces of brilliant work from 88 countries and Seagull Advertising’s entry was the only Indian work.

Of the, by the and for women Swamini has transformed the lives of married women

AND THE AWARD GOES TO...

• •

TGS NEWS SERVICE @TGSWeekly

• • • • • • •

With a mission to encourage women to find their identity and realise their potential, Saraswati Mehta (42), Neeta Mehta (50) and Kalpana Marothi (45) started Swamini, a group for married women, eight years ago. “We three friends wanted married women to look beyond the family hearth, pursue their dreams and make their family proud,” said Saraswati.

With a motto of ‘Khud Banao Khud Ki Pehchaan’ (make a name for yourself), the 450-member Swamini group acts as a supportive and encouraging platform for women who wish to exhibit their talent or pursue their dreams. Neeta emphasised on the need for many more such platforms for women who are just waiting for such opportunities. “Swamini is not only a group where women come and interact with each other but a learning and growing space too,” she said.

ALL-ROUND DEVELOPMENT Swamini holds medical camps to ensure that its members are physically fit, workshops on financial management, image consulting, handicrafts and communication skills. A workshop on remodelling old sarees to trendy creations was held recently. An annual exhibition showcasing the works of enterprising women is arranged during Diwali. The group’s annual calendar has eleven programmes where women are given an opportunity to fi rst learn and display their talent.

BECOMING A MEMBER The group is open to any married women irrespective of age, religion or profession. A nominal annual membership fee of Rs 2,500 per year is collected for holding workshops, picnics and other programmes.

ANNUAL EVENT To celebrate the successes of past year, Swamini hosts an annual function every year. Swamini

Excellence in Cooking: Jignesha Shah Excellence in Social Work/Social Awareness: Social work - Sujata Shetty / Social Awareness - Anita Shah Excellence in the field of Literature: Chitra Shah Excellence in the field of Business: Neena Shah Excellence in Dance: Mrudul Shah Excellence in Creativity: Puja Lunawat Excellence in Singing: Sheela Mehta Excellence in Fitness and Yoga: Leena Shah All-rounder woman of the year: Shweta Shah “Swamini helped boost my confidence. I just needed a push to pursue my passion for cooking. They gave me the inspiration to work towards my dream. The admirable founders are my role models today.”

Jignesha Shah (32), Owner, Jiya Cooking Classes “I joined Swamini to spend time with my friends and family members.

Little did I know how much it would benefit me in the long run. I often restricted myself from doing what I wanted to because of family responsibilities. Joining the group helped me realise what all I could achieve only if I tried. Saraswati and Neeta not only taught me to face and conquer my fear but also gave me the opportunity to become the person I am today” Neena Shah (44), Owner, Kidzee School (Kothrud and Bavdhan)

RAHUL RAUT

LEED is a set of rating systems for the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of green buildings

BY HEENA GROVER MENON @HeenaGM

Swamini members walk the ramp at the annual event

honoured eight women for their credible work in respective fields. The annual show this year also highlighted Swamini’s journey through the past eight years. A panel of three women experts selected the winners. One additional all-rounder award was also handed out. The programme comprised a fashion show by title sponsors Kritika Designer Bridal Studio and groovy dance

numbers performed by club members with no age bar. Rajya Sabha member Vandana Chavan was the chief guest. “It is an honour to be among so many talented women. It is not only inspiring but also exhilarating to see women achieve so much over and above the duties that their mundane roles demand,” Vandana said. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com

ENVIRONMENT “Ignoring the current environmental situation is like a man on the top floor of a flat being indifferent to the fire on the ground floor.”

— Mata Amritanandamay, spiritual leader

H EALTH

BY SHREERUPA MITRA-JHA

India was third after the Philippines and China, in absolute numbers last year, for displacements due to disasters both weather and hazard-related (photograph for representation only)

account for 95 per cent of the total global [displacement] since 2008,” said Director of IDMC, Alfredo Zamudio.

“A devastating payoff of this rapid and often unplanned urban growth is that there are more and more vulnerable people living in the path of natural hazards. The large and growing informal settlements around cities such as Mexico city, Mumbai, Karachi and Port-au-Prince are just a few examples.

“What these trends suggest, therefore, is that as well as being an acute humanitarian concern, disaster-displacement is also a chronic development issue,” Zamudio said.

Among last year’s 20 largest displacement events which shoved people off their lands was the Philippines’ typhoon Rammasun which displaced 2,994,100 people. It was followed by the same country’s typhoon Hagupit.

India followed with the third largest displacement event globally as the Odisha floods displaced 1,073,700 people, according to the report.

Cyclone Hudhud that hit India’s Eastern coast including Odisha and Andhra Pradesh displacing 639,300 people and the Assam-Meghalaya floods between September and October that displaced 367,000 people

Indo-US joint deep space exploration on the cards An Indo-US deep space exploration mission is in the offing.

The unthinkable is already happening in space, India and America are together planning to explore the last unknown frontier. Until recently India was an untouchable.

Venus, Mars, and an asteroid all could be the next big destinations that India will be exploring. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is now embarking on a new planet-hunting endeavour. There are indications that the United States of America will be working with India in this `deep space exploration’.

As per ISRO’s own plans, in the next few years another robust mission to planet Mars is being planned by ISRO. A possible flyby to an asteroid is likely. A small satellite aptly called `Aditya’ will keep a constant eye on the everchanging moods of the Sun. Speaking to students of Indian Institute of Technology, Chennai Richard Verma, Ambassador of USA to India sprung a surprise by saying, “We look forward to pathbreaking work between NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) and ISRO on deep space exploration to Mars and beyond”.

Till 2005, ISRO was a total pariah kept under full technology denial and sanctions were in full force but a decade later the chill has gone and relations have thawed, now hand in hand both want to fly `where no man has gone before’.

If Pluto was the target for the American space agency through its mission `New Horizons’, the Indian space agency is also setting its goals to explore the Solar System to its limits.

On ISRO’s wish list `a technology

PTI

Venus, Mars, and an asteroid could be the next big destinations that India will be exploring

BY PALLAVA BAGLA

A photo of Venus comparing with Earth.

ISRO is planning a new planet hunting endeavor to Venus as a part Indo-US deep space exploration mission

demonstration mission or a flyby to the outer solar system’.

The current ISRO chief, who played a key role in the success of Mangalyaan says, “for the next planetary mission, we are looking at opportunities whether it is a repeat Mars mission, or Venus mission or even an asteroid mission’ revealed Kiran Kumar, Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). .

Exploring Venus could be the next logical step as India has already been to Mars. It is Earth’s neighbour and if all goes well in a few years an Indian rocket will lift off and head towards the inside of the Solar System.

Until date only Russia, America, the European Space Agency (ESA) are the ones to have successfully reached Venus.

In 2010 Japan tried but failed. Can India make global history once again by becoming the fi rst Asian country to reach Venus.

Repeating a moment in history when India’s Mangalyaan in its maiden attempt itself reached the Red Planet a feat not achieved by any other country.

Venus is considered a twin of Earth and yet very little is understood about this terrestrial planet. It is almost the same size that of Earth but it has a hugely dense atmosphere made up mostly of carbon dioxide and being closer to the Sun it has an average

India and US are planning to explore the last unknown frontier

JULY 25, 2015

PUNE

“How can we agree with the state’s decision to differentiate forest land in Western Ghats as agriculture areas? It will strengthen the hands of people who have encroached 40,000 hectares of forest land in less than 30 year period.”

— Kummanam Rajasekharan, Secretary, Hindu Aikyavedi

‘India among top nations with disaster-related displacements’ India is among top three countries after the Philippines and China where large numbers of people were forced to flee their homes due to disasters as 19.3 million people were displaced globally last year alone, a Norway-based global humanitarian group’s report said today.

In the last seven years between 2008 to 2014, an estimated one person every second has been displaced by a disaster, according to Global Estimates 2015 - People Displaced

by Disasters, a report released by the Norwegian Refugee Council’s Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC).

India was third after the Philippines and China, in absolute numbers last year, for displacements due to disasters both weather and hazard-related. India stood second after China, again on an absolute scale, for largest number of displacements between 2008 and 2014 globally.

The three countries were home to last year’s 15 of the 20 largest displacements due to floods, storms and earthquakes.

The analysis of IDMC’s new report is based on research of 695 new displacement events in 100 countries.

“Middle-income countries, particularly in Asia, with fast growing urban population and fast growing economies seem to be particularly affected by disaster displacement. They

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY

temperature of about 460 degrees Celsius.

U R Rao, former chairperson of ISRO and head of the committee that decides on scientific missions has long expressed a desire that India should ideally soon head to Venus.

It is believed by experts that Venus in a way resembles what could be the ultimate fate of Earth if run-away release of carbon dioxide goes on unabated and the climate continues to change with carbon dioxide being amassed in the atmosphere.

Kumar says there are many things to be learned at Venus like trying to figure out `why does the atmosphere of Venus rotate in the opposite direction’.

Some of these future planetary mission would need bigger rockets and towards that Kumar says India’s indigenously made Geo-synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark-II (GSLV Mk-II) is probably going to be the preferred vehicle as it has `superior capabilities’. The almost 50 meter tall rocket that weighs as much as 414 ton is capable of hoisting a 2500-kilogram satellite on inter-planetary voyages.

India has had hugely successful inter-planetary missions, the most recent being Mangalyaan that reached the Martian orbit in 2014 and continues to operate with vigour sending back scientific data to India. .

The Mars Orbiter Mission or (MOM) was launched using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV).

Kumar says `we have demonstrated the overall capability that we can go up to Mars with a minimal launcher using the PSLV’.

Therefore, a repeat mission to Mars is very likely but with a heavier satellite where scientific instruments would get priority. Kumar says `the next mission will be science driven.’

India already has a second visit to the Moon planned for 2018 through Chandrayaan-2 that will include an orbiter, lander and a rover on the lunar surface. Th is Rs 500 crore mission is already being put together in Bengaluru.

PTI

last year, also figure among the top 20 global displacement events of last year.

The report, however, states that relative to the population size, the scale of displacement in China and India is less significant than in the Philippines.

In India, between 2008 and 2014, 82.6 per cent, or 24.4 million people, were displaced by floods, followed by 17 per cent displacement (Five million people) due to storms, 0.4 per cent displaced (132,600 people) due to earthquakes and 0.1 per cent due to wet mass movement.

Both in India and China, disasters tend to be more concentrated in specific regions, like the east coast of India with strong exposure to tropical storms.

The report also shows that confl ictrelated displacements have increased in India last year compared to data between 2010 and 2014.

Among the 19.3 million people displaced globally last year due to disasters, 17.5 million were affected by weather-related hazards like floods (8.3 million people), storms (9.1 million people) and 1.7 million due to geophysical hazards. Between 2008 to 2014, an average of 26.4 million people have been displaced by disasters each year, equivalent to one person per second. In the same time period, 22.5 million people were displaced each year due to climate or weather-related disasters, equivalent to 62,000 people every day.

PTI

4°C temp rise may make outdoor work impossible If the world warms up by 4 degrees Celsius, there is 30 per cent probability that temperatures will be so high that even moderate outdoor work cannot be carried out in the hottest month in northern India, a study on the risks of climate change has said.

There would also be a 40 per cent chance that individuals in northern India will not be able to participate in competitive outdoor activities in summertime if global average temperature rises on an average by one degree.

An international group of climate scientists, energy analysts and experts from finance and military recently released an independent assessment of the risks of climate change commissioned by the United Kingdom’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

“The most important decision any government has to make about climate change is one of priority - how much effort to expend on countering it, relative to the effort that must be spent on other issues.

“This risk assessment aims to inform that decision. In a year when important climate negotiations are scheduled, this kind of multi-country risk assessment hopes to inform a wide range of stakeholders about the risks

for which human societies need to prepare,” said Arunabha Ghosh, CEO, Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) and one of the lead coauthors of the report.

The report was the result of a collaboration between Harvard University Center for the Environment, Tsinghua University, China, CEEW and Cambridge University Centre for the Study of Existential Risk.

The study also said that on a high emission pathway, flooding in the Ganges basin could be six times more frequent, becoming a 1 in 5 year event over the course of the century.

It also said that with 1 metre of global sea level rise, the probability of what is now a “100-year flood event” becomes about 1000 times more likely in Kolkata.

The assessment considers three key areas - the future pathway of global emissions, the direct risks arising from the climate’s response to those emissions, and the risks arising from the interaction of climate change with complex human systems.

The report suggests that the largest risks of climate change may be those that are magnified by the interactions of people, markets and governments.

PTI

Climate change magnified by the interactions of people, markets and governments

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JULY 25, 2015

PUNE

“We demand action against those involved in corruption cases. The entire opposition is demanding action against them. On the issue of transparency, the government must practice what they preach.”

— Jyotiraditya Scindia, Congress parliamentarian

Signposts Quota for disabled: status reports sought from states, UTs NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has asked states like Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Goa, Jharkhand and Rajasthan to file status reports regarding implementation of legal provisions on grant of reservation to disabled persons. A bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra asked states and Union Territories, which have not complied with its earlier direction, to file status reports giving details of progress made in awarding quota to persons suffering from different kind of disabilities. It fixed the matter for hearing in September. Earlier, the court had issued notice on a fresh plea by Justice Sunanda Bhandare Foundation through its lawyer Ambar Qamaruddin, that the Centre and states be asked to file reports on the status of the implementation of provisions of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995. “It is submitted that the present application is filed for direction to the effect that all the Central Government, State Governments and Union Territories may further be directed to file a quarterly/half yearly status report before this Hon’ble Court, so that the implementation of the provisions of the said Act can be tracked under the supervision of this court,” the plea had said. The court, in its verdict, had said, “In our view, the 1995 Act has to be implemented in letter and spirit by the Central Government, State Governments and Union Territories without any delay, if not implemented so far.

“We, accordingly, direct the Central Government, State Governments and Union Territories to implement the provisions of the 1995 Act immediately and positively by the end of 2014.”

Ban proposed on health supplements

NEW DELHI: Clamping down on mis-labelling of ‘health supplements’, food safety regulator FSSAI has proposed banning sale of these products as ‘medicines’ and announced new norms for products based on ayurveda, sidhha, unani and other traditional health systems.

Under the new draft regulations, the companies can’t claim that their nutraceuticals and health supplement products are for therapeutic and curative purposes.

“Every package of food or health supplements shall carry the words FOOD or HEALTH SUPPLEMENT... the term ‘NOT FOR MEDICINAL USE’ shall be prominently written on the label,” as per a draft order issued by FSSAI, which recently created a flutter by banning the popular Maggi noodles.

Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has also proposed the maximum usage levels for cow’s milk, buffalo’s milk, camel’s milk, ghee, curd, butter, honey, gold, gold foil, silver, pearl in ayurveda, siddha and unani ingredients based products.

The limit has been fixed as maximum usage levels per day for use as a health or food supplements which are based on ayurveda, siddha and unani.

The regulator will finalise the safety norms after receiving comments from all stakeholders on the draft note.

FSSAI said that the benefits of specialty foods containing ingredients based on ayurveda, unani and siddha and other traditional health systems of India, should be shown by science

Civil services topper scores just 53 per cent Testimony to strict pattern of civil services examination NEW DELHI: The topper of civil services examination has got about 53 per cent, thus showing the strict pattern of civil services examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission for selecting country’s top bureaucrats.

The Commission has made public the marks obtained by the successful candidates. The mark sheets of the candidates who qualified the civil services (main) examination and those who could not, have also been put in public domain.

The civil services examination is conducted annually in three stages-preliminary, main and interview--to select candidates for the elite Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and Indian Police Service (IPS), among others.

Ira Singhal, a physically handicapped Indian Revenue Service (Customs and Central Excise) officer from Delhi who topped the 2014 exam, got a total of 1,082 marks (53.43 per cent) out of a total of 2,025--comprising 1,750 of main and 275 of interview.

Second rank achiever Renu Raj, a

BRICS bank will be WB, IMF alternative P 14

doctor from Kerala, got 1,056 marks (52.14 per cent) and third-rank holder Nidhi Gupta got 1,025 marks (50.61 per cent), according to their marks sheet.

“The marks achieved by the successful candidates show the strict pattern of the examination while selecting country’s top bureaucrats,” a senior UPSC official said.

The civil services preliminary examination was conducted on August 24 last year at 2,137 venues in 59 centres across the country. About 9.45 lakh candidates had applied for it but approximately 4.51 lakh appeared for the examination. Of these, 16,933 were declared qualified for the main examination. The main examination was held in December last year and, out of the 16,933 candidates, 16,286 appeared for it, he said.

A total number of 1,236 candidates, including 590 in General category, 354 belonging to Other Backward Class, 194 from Scheduled Caste and 98 from Scheduled Tribe, have been recommended for appointment to various central government services on the basis of the final results.

PTI

Vol-II* lssue No.: 06 Editor: Yogesh Sadhwani (Responsible for the selection of news under the PRB Act, 1867) Printed and Published by: Shrikant Honnavarkar on behalf of Golden Sparrow Publishing Pvt. Ltd. CIN:U22200PN2014PTC151382 and printed at PRI – Media Services Private Limited CIN: U22222MH2012PTC232006 at Plot No. EL-201, TTC Industrial Area, MIDC, Mahape, Navi Mumbai.

Golden Sparrow Publishing Pvt. Ltd. 1641, Madhav Heritage, Tilak Road, Pune-411 030, Tel: 020-2432 4332/33.

UP denies tree felling around Taj, enquiry ordered

Report alleges 8,000 trees were cut in Babarpur and around 4,000 trees in 500-metre radius of the Taj Mahal

Under the new draft regulations, companies can’t claim that their nutraceuticals and health supplement products are for therapeutic and curative purposes

based evidence.

Industry body Assocham had released a knowledge paper suggesting that FSSAI should come up with safety norms for nutraceuticals and dietary supplements.

In the paper, the industry body said about 60-70 per cent supplements in the nutraceuticals market, which has potential to grow to USD 12.2 billion in the next five years, are fake and such unregistered and unapproved products should be recalled.

India accounts for 1.5 per cent of the global nutraceuticals market.

Heinz, Kellogg’s, Nestle, Hormel, Unilever, Johnson & Johnson and GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals are key players in this segment.

PTI

Ban justified MUMBAI: Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has justified the ban on Maggi noodles before the Bombay High Court, saying that the popular instant snack contained lead beyond permissible limit.

FSSAI lawyer and Maharashtra Advocate General Anil Singh argued that the food regulator had studied the representation of Nestle India (Maggi manufacturer) and was ready to give the company a hearing.

PTI

‘15 persons ended life every hour in India in 2014’ NEW DELHI: At least 15 suicides took place every hour in the country during last year, which saw over 1.31 lakh people ending their lives, with government data also noting that Maharashtra saw the highest number of such cases while Chennai heads the list among cities.

Data released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) also said that as many as 69.7 per cent of those who committed suicide had an annual income of less than Rs 1 lakh while one out of every six persons who took the extreme step last year was a housewife. Maharashtra saw 16,307 suicide cases in 2014 followed by Tamil Nadu (16,122) and West Bengal (14,310), the data said.

PTI

NEW DELHI: The National Green Tribunal has directed an inquiry into the alleged illegal felling and sale of 4,000 trees in the eco-sensitive zone near the Taj Mahal.

A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar appointed advocate M C Mehta to visit the site near Taj Eco Zone where the trees are alleged to have been cut and asked him to file a report within two weeks.

Taking note of a newspaper report, the Tribunal had issued notice to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) and Uttar Pradesh government directing them to file their replies.

According to the report, the former Agra DFO had allegedly cut 8,000 trees in Babarpur and around 4,000 trees in 500-metre radius of the Taj Mahal, which is an eco-sensitive zone.

“The state Government (UP) shall provide all facilities, and if required police security for execution of the commission by Mehta.

“We direct a nominee of the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) Dehradun to be present with Mehta during the course of the inspection,” the bench

said, while fixing Rs 50,000 as fees of Mehta for his visit.

Advocate General Vijay Bahadur Singh, appearing for Uttar Pradesh, told the bench that the newspaper report on which the Tribunal has issued notice to the state government claiming that 4,000 trees have been cut and sold is factually incorrect.

He said that the report was a “mischievous act” and submits that he would file a comprehensive affidavit on behalf of the state supported by Google images and other revenue records to show that not even a single tree, particularly in the Taj Eco Zone, has been cut or sold.

Advocate General further told the bench that state has constituted a High Power Committee to investigate the matter on which the green panel directed it to file the report within three weeks.

The Tribunal also issued notice to the Times of India correspondent on whose report the bench had taken suo motu cognisance of the case.

Chief Conservator of Forests of Agra division, A K Jain, told the bench that approximately 4,000 trees have been uprooted around 500 metres of Taj Eco Zone.

PTI

Notice issued to MoEP and Uttar Pradesh govt

PAYING HOMAGE TO MARTYRS

An aeriel view of large gathering of TMC activists during a rally to observe Martyrs’ Day in Kolkata on Tuesday. PTI

Jacuzzi, salons on private varsities’ platter!

Private varsities woo aspirants with sprawling campuses, heated pools, beauty salons and shopping arcades NEW DELHI: As the lure of fat pay packets draws thousands of students to the IITs, IIMs and prestigious colleges of Delhi University, private varsities seek to woo the aspirants with sprawling campuses, heated pools, beauty salons and even shopping arcades.

The admission brochures and advertisements of various private universities besides promising “worldclass education” and “100 per cent placement record”, also offer facilities like on-campus retail therapy and luxury fitness services.

While public universities such as Tezpur University, Banaras Hindu university, Annamalai University and Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University in Kanpur have their helipads, private universities such as Symbiosis’ Lavale campus near Pune and Munnar Catering college in Kerala also feature in the list.

For the fashion enthusiasts, the universities which are like “minitownships”, have shopping malls on campus to offer some retail therapy.

The 600-acre campus of Lovely

Symbiosis’ Lavale campus

professional University in Jalandhar which often graces full page advertisements in newspapers, has residential facilities for over 30,000 students, an open air theatre, 40 ATM machines and six bank branches.

Its shopping complex known as Uni-mall has elite supermarkets, departmental stores and even a photo studio. The varsity says the mall, which is completely managed by its students, has been set up to encourage

entrepreneurship skills of students.

“Though education quality is of prime importance to any student but having a beautiful campus which has all the facilities for a comfortable life, help us focus better on studies,” says a Rohan Bhalla, a LPU student.

Another student Himanshi Mehta says, “Having all the facilities on campus, from necessities to hangout zones, is important from safety point of view, especially for girls. We do not have to worry about going to the market late in the night after classes get over to fetch things.”

The 63-acre campus of Sharda University in Noida has a world class cafeteria with outlets such as Cafe Coffee Day, Sgara Ratna, Bikano, among others. Manav Rachna International University in Faridabad has similar facilities.

Amity University, which has sprawling campuses in Noida, Jaipur and Lucknow among other cities have L’oreal Beauty Salons and laundry services provided by a London firm.

World class hair and skin care

solutions are not only available at Amity campuses but also at Lovely University, Pravara Institute of Medical Sciences in Maharashtra and Sathyabhama University in Chennai, among others.

“Why waste time and energy to go to a far off salon whenever you have a birthday party or any event at college,” says Ridhima.

“Institutions are not just for imparting theoretical education, the facilities on campus help you in overall grooming of personality. For example, I learnt dance on campus because it was available here, otherwise the thought of enrolling somewhere, managing classes, travelling to and fro act as deterrents at times,” says Anukriti, a student at Galgotia University.

For the fitness freaks, these varsities also have state-of-the-art gym facilities. Going a step ahead Galgotia University in Noida has a dance and music studio, Jain University in Bangalore has a cardio fitness centre, sauna and steam bath. Munnar catering college has a jacuzzi too.

PTI

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JULY 25, 2015

Ancient city with a teenage heart P 15

“We will launch construction of four new nuclear power plants in the country in the next two-three years. We plan to engage more than 20,000 workers and engineers in this large-scale construction.”

— Ali Akbar Salehi, Head, Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran

Risk of war in Middle East without Iran N-deal: Obama

US Prez claims that with the deal, they have a chance to resolve challenge of Iran trying to get a nuclear weapon peacefully ‘India, China to agree on climate change is my goal’

BY LALIT K JHA WASHINGTON: A risk of war in the Middle East loomed large in the absence of an Iranian nuclear deal which was achieved last week, US President Barack Obama has said as he exhorted the Republican-controlled Congress to approve it.

“With this deal, we have a chance to resolve the challenge of Iran trying to get a nuclear weapon peacefully.

Without it, we risk yet another conflict in the Middle East,” Obama said in his address to the Veterans of Foreign Affairs in Pittsburgh.

“In the debate over this deal, we’re hearing the echoes of some of the same policies and mindset that failed us in the past. Some of the same politicians and pundits that are so quick to reject the possibility of a diplomatic solution to Iran’s nuclear programme are the same folks who were so quick to go to war in Iraq and said it would take a few months.

“We know the consequences of that choice, and what it cost us in blood and treasure. So I believe there’s a smarter, more responsible way to protect our national security. And that is what we are doing,” he argued.

“Instead of dismissing the rest of the world and going it alone, we’ve done the hard and patient work of uniting the international community

In the remaining 18 months of his presidency, one of the major goals of President Barack Obama is to persuade India and China to agree to US proposals on climate change.

“That’s my goal,” Obama told the popular Daily Show when asked what he plans to achieve in the remaining 18 months of his second term.

“The way I’m feeling right now is, I’ve got 18 months,” he said.

Obama said he hopes to tackle climate change, fuel efficiency standards and to persuade countries like China and India to come aboard.

“That’s my goal. It finally comes to fruition. That represents a lot of work,” he added.

President Barack Obama shakes hands after a speech at the 116th National Convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, on Tuesday, July 21, 2015, in Pittsburgh.

Obama says the people criticizing the Iran nuclear deal are the same people who rushed into war with Iraq. AP/PTI

to meet a common threat.

“Instead of chest-beating that rejects even the idea of talking to our adversaries, which sometimes sounds good in sound bites but accomplishes nothing, we’re seeing that strong and principled diplomacy can give

PUNE

hope of actually resolving a problem peacefully,” Obama said.

Later in New York, appearing on the popular Daily Show, Obama mocked those who he said seem to believe that if “you had brought Dick Cheney to the negotiations, everything

US, Cuba re-establish ties after 54 years Cuban flag raised at its embassy premises in Washington WASHINGTON: The United States and Cuba have re-established diplomatic relationship after a gap of more than five decades, burying enmity between the Cold War foes.

In presence of hundreds of people, for the first time since 1961, the Cuban flag was raised at its embassy premises in Washington.

The flag was also placed at the main lobby of the Foggy Bottom headquarters of the State Department.

Similarly, the US flag was raised at the US Interests Section in Havana, officially making it the American Embassy.

“The US Secretary of State John

Kerry will travel to Cuba later this summer to celebrate the re-opening of US Embassy in Havana and raise the US flag,” the US Embassy in Havana said in its first official media release.

However, Senator Robert Menendez expressed deep concern with ongoing human rights violations in Cuba. “Diplomatic relations with the US are a privilege and must be earned, yet the Cuban government refuses to make any substantial changes to uphold democratic principles and human rights since the December 17th announcement,” Menendez said.

PTI

would be fine”.

The White House launched @ TheIranDeal, a Twitter handle designed to engage the public and correct misconceptions about the deal.

“It will distribute facts, engage online audiences, and be used as a forum by those involved in negotiating the agreement,” White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said.

PTI

Goan Portuguese India ranks 8th for tourists in Australia dominate UK influx More and more Indians choosing Australia as their travel destination in 2015

by Aditi Khanna LONDON: India-born migrants with Portuguese ancestry are among the largest groups to migrate to the UK in recent times, according to new report.

These Indians are from Goa, which was a colony of Portugal dating back to the 16th century and was ruled by the European nation for nearly 450 years before it officially became a part of India in 1961.

Portugal recognises Goans born before 1961 - as well as their children and grandchildren - as Portuguese citizens, which in turn entitles them to a European passport as part of the European Union (EU).

“The only group larger than 10,000 with a common EU country of citizenship and a common nonEU country of birth is India-born Portuguese citizens. This group accounted for just over 20,000 UK

residents in the first quarter of 2015,” the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford found in a new report titled ‘Recent trends in EU nationals born inside and outside the EU’.

“From a legal perspective, no distinctions can be made between these different routes to citizenship. In an EU with free movement, citizenship policies of other countries may be of interest to other EU member states, since citizenship in one country gives people the right to free movement to others,” the report said.

According to data from the Election Commission of India, 11,500 Goans surrendered their Indian passports in favour of Portuguese citizenship in the five years between January 31, 2008 and January 31, 2013.

This figure is now estimated to be closer to 24,000, many of whom have settled in the UK. PTI

MELBOURNE: India has jumped to the eighth position for tourist arrivals in Australia till May this year, with over 27.5 per cent more Indians choosing the country as their travel destination.

According to latest official data released by Tourism Australia (TA), India was ranked Australia’s tenth largest inbound market for visitor arrivals in 2014 but figures during the five months this year has moved India to eighth position.

During January-May this year, a total of 105,000 Indian tourists have arrived in Australia as compared to over 82,000 tourists for the same period last year, recording an increase of more than 27.5 per cent.

Australia ranked third for the Indian traveller in terms of aspiration and intention to visit, just behind Mauritius and Switzerland.

When it came to converting into actual trips undertaken for Indian

Greece to vote on second bailout bill in test for Tsipras ATHENS: Greek lawmakers are set to vote on a second batch of reforms that must pass if Athens is to receive its third huge international bailout, in a key test of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ authority.

The embattled premier suffered a major parliamentary rebellion on the cash-for-reforms deal last week, with a fifth of the lawmakers from his radical-left Syriza party voting against sweeping changes to Greece’s taxes, pensions and labour rules. He was forced to rely on the support of opposition MPs to get the law passed.

The second bill is less controversial, with MPs set to vote on measures including an EU directive that guarantees bank deposits up to 100,000 euros (USD 108,000), as well as civil justice reforms designed to speed up legal proceedings and reduce their costs.

The government is hoping for fewer

The first customers, most of them pensioners, enter a branch at the National Bank of Greece headquarters in Athens

dissidents in Wednesday’s vote, but analysts say it will nonetheless prove a test of whether Tsipras can avoid a split within Syriza that could fell his fragile coalition government after just

six months in power, forcing early elections. The prime minister received a boost when Standard & Poor’s raised its credit rating on Greece by two notches to CCC+ from CCC. AFP

tourists, Australia fell to ninth place, behind competitors such as the US, the UK and France, TA cited in its latest market profile for India.

It quoted a consumer research which found over onethird of Indian leisure tourists cited safety and security as their main motivation when selecting a travel destination while other important factors included world class beauty, value for money and family friendliness.

“Australia performs strongly in terms of its safety and security, world class beauty and interesting attractions among Indian leisure travellers. There is room for improvement with respect to Australia’s associations with value

for money, romance and good food and wine.

“Australia’s coastline, wildlife and island experiences generate the greatest appeal for Indian travellers in terms of attractions, with aquatic wildlife rating as the preferred Australian experience for just under half of Indian respondents,” TA said in its market profile for India.

It was further found that in 2014, 29 per cent of Indian visitors to Australia travelled on Singapore Airlines and 27 per cent on Malaysia Airlines.

“Last year, Air India has grown to 11 per cent market share, and close to Qantas’ share at 12 per cent,” it said, adding that Thai Airways

Indian leisure tourists cite safety and security as main criteria

Scotland Yard wants Hindi, Punjabi speakers LONDON: Scotland Yard will recruit more bilingual officers with proficiency in 14 languages including Hindi, Punjabi and Bengali to connect with minority communities and increase public confidence in the UK’s largest police force.

“We know that almost 300 languages are spoken in the capital.

We need to recruit and deploy officers with second languages in areas where those languages are spoken,” said Metropolitan Police chief Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe.

“These officers will be deployed into the community as the first line of contact with victims and witnesses,” Clare Davies, the head of human resources for the Met Police, said. The other languages which will feature in the campaign include Yoruba (Nigeria), Hebrew, Arabic, Italian, German, Turkish, Greek, Spanish, Polish, Portuguese and Sinhala.

PTI

share continued to decline which was currently at 6 per cent.

Direct capacity from India to Australia rose by 187 per cent following Air India launching Australian (Sydney/Melbourne) services in August 2013 during 2014.

As of this year, there were over 2,000 qualified Australian specialists in India who were trained as front line travel sellers to sell Australia as tourist destination.

There were 196,600 visitors from India for calendar year 2014, an increase of 16.6 per cent compared to 2013.

Visitors from India generated USD 0.8 billion in total expenditure last year.

The Tourism 2020 strategy has earlier estimated that India has the potential to grow to between USD 1.9 billion and USD 2.3 billion in total expenditure by 2020.

PTI

Population cap on Beijing agenda BEIJING: Beijing will take aggressive measures to cure the “big city disease”, making sure the city’s population does not cross 21.8 million by the end of this year, the mayor of the Chinese capital said.

Wang Anshun was speaking at a meeting analysing Beijing’s economic situation in the first half of this year.

The city is facing severe resource and environment pressures caused by fast growing population.

By the end of 2014, the permanent resident population of Beijing was 21.5 million, among which 12.8 million living in the six urban districts.

Beijing is plagued by water resource shortages, air pollution, traffic congestion and other problems caused by insufficient environment capacity.

According to the BeijingTianjin-Hebei Region’s Coordinated Development Planning Outline, the population of Beijing should be within

23 million by 2020 and the ratio of urban population should be 15 percent lower than that of 2014.

The Chinese government has already announced plans to build a satellite city adjacent to Beijing to limit the city’s population to 23 million, an official announcement here said on July 12.

“Beijing will take a series of function dispersal measures to prevent new population gathering, making sure the permanent resident population is within 21.8 million by the end of this year. The municipal government and all the districts and counties of Beijing have signed the letter of responsibility to fulfil the goal,” Wang said.

The mayor also said that Beijing will take innovative measures to deal with overpopulation, traffic congestion, and environment pollution, so as to make breakthroughs in curing the “big city disease”.

PTI

MONEY MATT ER S

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JULY 25, 2015

PUNE

“Cloud computing is driving business model innovation and helping businesses. Going forward, the impact will be even morepervasive - with innovative solutions around safe cities.”

— Manoj Menon, MD, Frost and Sullivan

Signpost

“The T33 Smartphone has been designed to overcome the fundamental problem of language barriers faced across India by giving them an option to choose from various languages.”

— Manish Sharma, MD, Panasonic India

BRICS bank will be WB, IMF alternative BRICS bank is the first major financial institution from the emerging countries

BY KJM VARMA

Sebi chief rues lack of IPO proposals from East Sebi Chairman UK Sinha said many companies have approached the regulator with IPO plans, but rued the absence of any such proposal from the Eastern region including in the start-up space. “There is a healthy pipeline of IPOs lying with Sebi for clearance. But there is not a single proposal from the eastern zone, which is cause for concern,” Sinha said at a seminar organised by Bharat Chamber of Commerce. The Sebi chief said that India was growing and there were signs of optimism everywhere. “But eastern region has to grow when India is growing,” he said. Historically, most of the IPO proposals emerging from the Eastern region came from West Bengal.

“I have also checked it out from the regional office here. There are no proposals from this part,” Sinha said.

A new USD 100 billion bank floated by the BRICS nations has opened for business here, over three years after India mooted the idea, making it the fi rst major financial institution from the emerging countries to reduce dependence on the IMF and World Bank.

The New Development Bank (NDB) of the five-nation BRICS bloc headed by eminent Indian banker K V Kamath was inaugurated at a colourful function attended among others by Chinese Finance Minister Lou Jiwei and senior officials from BRICS countries.

Kamath, 67, who will be the bank’s president for the fi rst five years, said he was confident of delivering on people’s expectations from the new bank.

“Countries should closely cooperate,” Kamath, a former executive with India’s largest private bank ICICI Bank, said.

“We will listen carefully to our members and try to offer tailor-made services for them,” he said.

The new bank is created to encourage all-inclusive cooperation among developing countries, led by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS), Lou said.

“Its creation is to meet urgent demand of such countries in infrastructure construction and beyond,” Lou said.

It will complement the existing international banking system, instead of challenging it, he said allaying reports that the NDB coupled with the new China-floated Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), will rival the US-controlled IMF and World Bank.

World Bank President Jim Yong Kim was the fi rst to congratulate the NDB. “We would like to congratulate

Research body says there is sign of growing public faith in an economic recovery in some of the largest economies

More Indians are today bullish about the country’s economic state than they were a year ago as nearly three-fourth believe the economy is doing well, despite concerns about a worldwide recovery, a new has study.

Pew Research in a report released on Thursday said 74 per cent of Indians they interviewed believed the country’s economic conditions are good, a 10 per cent jump from a year ago.

“In emerging markets, half or more in 14 of 21 countries see their economy as negative. The gloomiest are Ukrainians (94 per cent), Lebanese (89 per cent) and Brazilians (87 per cent),” the report said.

“At the same time, 90 per cent of Chinese, 86 per cent of Vietnamese and 74 per cent of Indians think economic conditions are good in the year 2015,” it said.

Last year, according to Pew, some 64 per cent of Indians thought that the economy was doing well.

According to the survey, a median of just 40 per cent in advanced economies say conditions are good, as do 45 per cent in emerging economies

K V Kamath, President of the New Development Bank, and the founding members, Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, on this important occasion. We are committed to working closely with the New Development Bank and other multilateral institutions, offering?to share our knowledge and to co-finance infrastructure projects,” Kim said.

“These types of partnerships will be essential to reach our common goals to end extreme poverty by 2030, boost shared prosperity, and to reduce inequalities,” Kim said.

The Japan-backed Asian Development Bank (ADB) also greeted the NDB. In a message ADB President Takehiko Nakao said, “We look forward to working with this new member of the global family of multilateral development banks in areas of common interest in Asia and Pacific, including possible co-financing for infrastructure and projects promoting sustainable development, utilising our

The new bank will encourage co-op among developing countries

74 per cent Indians happy with country’s economic conditions

BY LALIT K JHA

The NDB is the first major institution for the five-member bloc of emerging countries

and 46 per cent in developing nations.

The study concluded that the overall sentiment is largely unchanged from economic sentiment in comparable countries in 2014.

Pew said there is sign of growing public faith in an economic recovery in some of the largest economies.

Roughly four-in-ten Americans (40 per cent), Europeans (38 per cent) and Japanese (37 per cent) say economic conditions are good in their countries.

Such sentiment is up 30 percentage points in Japan from the low point in 2012; up 23 points from the low in the US in 2009; and up 23 points from the low in 2013 for the median of five European Union nations.

“European and Japanese views, while far from positive, have now returned to or exceed pre-financialcrisis levels.

But American attitudes, while rebounding, are still more negative than they were in 2007.

“Th is modest recovery in public economic sentiment parallels a gradual pickup in economic growth in many of these economies,” it said.

PTI

Govt linking NPR data with Aadhaar numbers The government has decided to update the National Population Register (NPR) and seed the Aadhaar number in the NPR database.

Minister of State for Home Haribhai Parathibhai Chaudhary told Rajya Sabha that the initiative would cost Rs 951.35 crore and the field work would be completed by March 2016.

“Th is updated NPR database along with Aadhaar number would become the mother database and can be used by various government departments for selection of beneficiaries under their respective schemes,” he said in reply to a written question.

There is no duplication of efforts as all the agencies namely Registrar General of Citizen Registration India, Ministry of Home Affairs, Unique Identification Authority of India, NITI Aayog, Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) Mission, Ministry of Finance and State/Union Territories Governments are working in close coordination for completion of the above exercise.

The National Population Register is a Register of usual residents of the country. The project is being implemented by the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India.

The Unique Identification Authority of India is responsible for collecting the biometric and demographic data of residents, store them in a centralised database, and issue a 12-digit unique identify number called Aadhaar to each resident. It is considered the world’s largest national identification number project.

PTI

long experience and expertise in the region.”

The operationalisation of the bank took roughly three years after India proposed the idea at the BRICS summit in New Delhi in 2012.

The NDB is the fi rst major institution for the five-member bloc of emerging countries as it has been set up with an initial authorised capital of USD 100 billion and initial subscribed capital of USD 50 billion equally shared among the five founding members.

Unlike the IMF and World Bank none of the five have veto power and the presidency is rotated every five years.

It is backed by a USD 100 billion contingency fund in which China contributes lion’s share of USD 41 billion, India, Russia and Brazil contributing USD 18 billion each and South Africa USD five billion.

The bank will stand lending in local currency by April next year and member countries will primarily be the focus of credit facility. India is the second largest shareholder next to China in AIIB. While China holds 20.06 per cent share, India has a 7.5 per cent share followed by Russia with 5.92 per cent.

PTI

FINANCIAL CORNER

Invest smartly in mutual funds

BY SARANSH DEY @Casaransh

The advertisements with words like ‘Mutual funds are subject to market risk. Please read the offer document carefully before investing’ have become as meaningless as ‘Go Slow’ warning road signs in Pune. Many investors get trapped in the marketing of mutual funds (MFs) and forget that any investment without wellt h o u g ht- o u t research is risky.

L e t ’ s understand what MFs are.

It started with the idea where funds are pooled to invest productively in markets.

Small investors who would want to invest in blue chip stocks ie stocks with value of Rs 20,000/share and upwards are usually robbed of that opportunity because of small investment size. Also, the understanding of complex markets and trends is lacking with individual investors. Hence, MFs come into play.

Here an established and experienced portfolio manager pools money from investors and puts in the market.

The amount invested by subscriber is planned and broken up into various categories to average out risk. The NAV or Net Asset Value represents the value of your investment broken up into shares that you hold. MFs are listed on markets and are dematerialised so that you can trade with your demat account.

All this is good in theory, but today the concept of MFs has taken an ugly turn. Many companies are using it as a vehicle to mobilise cheap public funds to their own group companies by various channels. As many MFs come with various riders in the offer document, no investor can claim that the funds were deprived of opportunity to earn money.

Portfolio managers’ remuneration and fund management costs are kept at maximum statutory limit making the cost of operating a MF high. Though MFs are regulated by Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and Association of Mutual Funds of India

(AMFI), in my opinion they still cost a lot more to the investor.

Many companies come up with policies like term insurance, medical insurance and similar or annuity products clubbed with MF offering.

The premiums are kept high with low cover. Many investors forget to check the break-up of amount they pay for these add-ons and end up investing far lesser amount in their MF accounts than they originally planned. Investors must be aware that MFs also come with an objective. They can be a safe and secure MF investing in government securities or they can me market stocks high beta investment funds. They can be debt-based or stock-based MFs. Though the above descriptions paint a volatile picture of MFs, they still have their brownie points. MF investments that are eligible for income tax deductions, save tax and also allow productive investments. Dividends that come from good performing funds are tax free. Many good funds give amazing returns beating market averages too.

All you need is to sensibly pick a fund and make sure you monitor its progress.

If you are a first-time investor in mutual funds and need to know how to go ahead below are a few tips and tricks Identify your risk aversion. It is always advisable to understand the risk you want to take. Risk determines what kind of fund you want to subscribe to.

Don’t decide a mutual fund solely to convert it into child education plan or pension plan. Profits sponsor your objective. The only underlying objective of selecting a mutual fund should be past performance and stable growth.

All other objectives are subjective.

Understand the minute terms and conditions, including lock-in period, entry load, exit load, charges for transfer and security premium.

Login to AMFI website and check facts provided by sales representative before you buy a mutual fund Read about the fund management team and their experience.

Mutual funds are a great vehicle to mobilise professional help to your savings. This author recommends them only if you don’t want to invest your time in market investment directly. saransh@goldensparrow.com

I-T dept to bring 1 crore new people under tax net this fiscal

Pune region has been given the maximum target of bringing in over 10 lakh new assessees; Board has communicated to taxman that it should adopt a multi-pronged strategy The Income Tax department has launched an ambitious drive to bring under its net one crore new taxpayers after the government recently asked the taxman to achieve the target within the current fiscal.

As part of government’s initiative to broaden the tax base, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the apex policy making body of the I-T, this week activated all field formations of the department to achieve the goal with the Pune region being given the maximum target of bringing in over 10 lakh new assessees.

The order issued by the CBDT, also accessed by PTI, has laid down region-wise targets. Maharashtra’s second largest urban centre Pune leads the list with the target of over 10.14 lakh new assessees, north western states comprising Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana over 9.30 lakh new assesses, and the newly bifurcated states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana will have to contribute 7.93 lakh new taxpayers.

Similarly, Gujarat region has been given a target of getting more than 7.86 lakh taxpayers, Tamil Nadu over 7.64 lakh, West Bengal and Sikkim over 6.91 lakh, and Mumbai region 6.23 lakh assessees. The target for the national capital has been set at 5.32 lakh new assessees.

The tax department has a total of 18 regions in the country for purposes of collection of revenue under the major heads of I-T, Wealth Tax, and advance tax for large entities like corporates.

The Board has also communicated to the taxman that it should adopt a multi-pronged strategy to achieve this ‘not-soeasy’ target by holding meetings with trade associations and professional bodies and obtaining data on under-reporting assessees through technical and human intelligence.

The strategy in this regard was mooted and formally launched in May this year when CBDT told the tax department about the government’s desire to have at least 25 lakh new assessees each month from across the country.

“With effectively eight months remaining in the 2015-16 fiscal, the target has now been set at one crore new assessees.

The CBDT and the tax department scientifically arrived at these region-wise numbers taking into account the revenue paying potential of these different regions in the country,” a senior official said while explaining the new strategy.

These steps were mooted as the tax department is concerned over the “very small number” of people paying income tax.

The official said as per current data, the taxpayer base is just over 4 crore which is about 4 per cent of the total population.

“Ambitious and multiple social welfare and development schemes can be launched by the government only when it has money in its pockets. The department, in its internal deliberations, has found that a large section of taxpaying population remains untapped and hence the new drive holds relevance and importance,” the official said.

The CBDT has also asked the taxman to clampdown on Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) defaults and ensure that big Income Tax defaulters are just not let off after slapping penalties but also prosecuted in a court of law.

PTI

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JULY 25, 2015

“The expressway will soon get better lighting especially in the tunnels, a larger CCTV network to monitor lane-cutting 24X7, and quicker response teams to help victims and avoid jams in case of mishaps.”

— Eknath Shinde, PWD Minister (MSRDC)

PUNE

“We want to develop Pune region as a major international investment destination. This region should be on top of the foreign investors’ list.”

— Mahesh Zagade, CEO, PMRDA

Pune Station needs a cleanliness regimen The perennially busy railway station is littered with garbage and filth, making it an eyesore for all visitors including those from foreign countries

Since I travel by train to Mumbai regularly, I also have to visit the Pune Railway Station often. It is very busy junction and therefore it is always overcrowded. One of the fallouts of this is the lack of cleanliness on and around the station.

The Sinhagad Express to Mumbai halts at station for half an hour. During this halt, all and sundry use the train’s toilets, including autorickshaw drivers, vendors, beggars etc.

You can only imagine the state of the track where the train had halted, after the train leaves; it is just awful and the stench is unbearable.

Once the stench was so overpowering that I left the platform and waited on the overbridge

Sadik Ghadiali

for the train to arrive.

The railway authorities should take measures to avoid this and must discourage any one other than the passengers with tickets from using the train’s toilets. They should also ensure that the tracks and the platforms are clean. They

CITIZEN JOURNALIST

should discipline passengers who litter the platforms and have adequate sanitary staff on hand to clear the garbage from the platforms and tracks at regular intervals. The railway administration should levy fi nes on those who litter the station.

Platforms 5 and 6 are neglected for the most part and there is garbage and litter all around. There is rotting garbage, plastic bottles and such on the tracks, besides the more offensive and health endangering faeces and such. Besides what the authorities should do, it is also the responsibility of citizens to maintain standards of cleanliness and hygiene at a public place like a railway station. The attitude of those who litter and dirty the place is deplorable and irresponsible, since they are just passing through and the stink they leave behind does not affect them.

It is this mentality among some Indians that is so disgusting; along with material progress they should also be becoming more aware of the importance of hygiene, not to mention the bad example we are setting for our children, and how offensive such primitive behaviour must be to visitors from foreign lands.

Ancient city with a teenage heart Being an education hub, Pune has a youthful style and aura which permeates every facet of life

Pune is a city that is growing and I evolving by the day, so it needs proper planning and infrastructure

Ameya Bhattacharya

I have lived n Pune for almost three years, and over this time I come to love this city nearly as much as I love my hometown Kolkata. I arrived in Pune in the month of July, which is when the city has a charm all its own. I fell in love instantly with the city as it had turned cool with the onset of the rains and the atmosphere was so romantic.

I live in Lavale, which is truly picturesque; my college campus is on a serene, green hill, and we have the most exquisite views and skylines all around.

The city has the vibrant air and aura just like a teenagers’ party. Even people who are way past their teenage years have a youthful energy. I think it is because Pune is home to a huge number of educational institutions, due to which there are countless numbers of young people from all over the country and the world here. Pune has therefore adopted a style that is youth-oriented, with so much music, parties, events at all the clubs and

LETTERS TO THE

EDITOR

restaurants.

Even I am very fond of going out with my friends whenever we have the time. Our favourite hangouts are Le Placir, Café Chokolade, Peter Pan, The Little Door and 11 East Street Café. There are scores more that we have yet to discover and experience.

The city now has shopping centres and malls in every area, which makes it shopper’s paradise. With all the street vendors, selling trinkets, clothes and snacks, FC Road is an absolute delight. For branded goods, Phoenix Market City Mall at Viman Nagar is my favourite.

There is always something to do,

something new to discover, whether it is watching movies, or attending some event or another. I am so glad that in Pune all that I had expected of college life has more than come true. Along with all the fun, I have also found myself faring well on the academic front, thanks to the institution I am in and the great teachers we have. I am hoping to prolong my stay in Pune for as long as I can, and I can even imagine settling down here. Whatever happens, I know that my college life has been special, an unforgettable episode in my life, one which will be forever etched in my heart and mind.

NON-NATIVE

PAROLE

came to Pune two years ago. As I expected, settling down in a new city has its share of challenges. It took some time for me to find my way around the city and get used to things which were very different from what I was used to. But it all became much easier after I made a few friends. Not only did they make me feel more at home, but in their company I also found the antidote for my feeling of alienation and loneliness.

Through them I also came to meet more people and all this made me feel more and more a part of the life in the city.

Now that I have been here long enough, I have found my favourite spots around town. Shopping for groceries usually means Dorabjee’s, which I must say is a very well-stocked store, where one can find the widest range of foods and products, quite a few of which are sourced from foreign shores.

The Shivaji market in Camp is a good source for fresh vegetables and such, but I wish the surroundings and even the market itself was more orderly, clean and less crowded.

For the occasional outing, all the restaurants in Koregaon Park offer a wide variety of global cuisines, and I have the luxury of picking just what kind of food I wish to taste. This area is very cosmopolitan and one is liable to come upon people from all over the world here, who make for a generally very friendly and fun atmosphere.

The operative language is English and it makes me feel even more at home.

Even in the short time I have been here, I have seen

Kim Hue

Pune developing at a rapid pace. However it is far from organised or planned. The civic authorities should envision the future and make sure that the development is in sync with what shape the years to come will bring.

There is growing congestion of traffic on every street, and I must say that there is an alarming lack of discipline or observance of traffic rules among the road-users.

Unless this is checked by the traffic police, things are sure to get worse in the days to come. No though is given to pedestrians and their safety or convenience; not only do we need more footpaths and walking areas, but the police must also take strict action against the encroachment of pavements by two-wheeler users and vendors, which leaves the pedestrians no option but to walk through traffic.

Another aspect of life in Pune that bothers me no end is the general population’s disregard to cleanliness and hygiene, especially in public places, some o which are littered with garbage or waste, not to mention habits like spitting or worse. There is always room for improvement, though Pune is a very likeable place.

FROM FOREIGN

SHORES

Every Indian kid has the right to an education just eight, is selling toys at Deccan, when she should be in a classroom.

It is surprising that the thousands of teachers doing the survey could not see her.

-Prerna Goyal

Down to earth Ajinkya Rahane

The story on out-of-school kids was enlightening. I see kids on every street corner in the city, selling flowers, toys and trinkets. It is real sad that in India such poor and homeless kids are deprived of education. Not just that, but they are also forced to earn a living,

A growing city deserves proper infrastructure

owing to their parents’ circumstances.

At an age when they be carefree, school-going kids, they are burdened like adults. The government should undertake this monumental task of ensuring that every child in India gets an education. Tejashree, who is

The story on Ajinkya Rahane’s hometown was interesting. He has become an inspiration for kids in Sangamner. It’s commendable that he has not forgotten his roots, as he meets the locals and interacts with them regularly. To hail After coming from a small town and leading the Indian cricket team is a big achievement, but the stardom and fame have not affected him. He is still Sangamner’s own boy who still plays cricket with kids. Hope he remains the same.

- Rajhans Potdar

Dancing into the bright lights

Vicky Alhat is an achiever. The boy, despite his average family background,

is now a contestant on the Dance India Dance show. That he pays for his own education and also helps out his

family is something he can be really proud of. The passion for dance drives him to work harder. He has performed innovatively in every episode. I hope he wins the show and makes the city proud. Puneites should vote for Vicky and lead him to greater things.

- Akansha Dave

FTII students remain strong and united

It’s good to see FTII students coming together and fighting for what is right.

The government cannot pressurise them to accept their orders. The chairman of the institute should be capable of guiding the institution, and an inexperienced cannot fit the bill. He should command the respect and admiration of the students as well as the faculty. Gajendra Chauhan cannot compare with stalwarts like Shyam Benegal and Girish Karnad who headed the institution in the past. The authorities should not take the students lightly. The teachers and faculty should support the students.

The government must not make this a prestige issue but admit that it has

erred by nominating Chauhan.

-Sachin Muley

Bookworm corner

The feature on young writers was timely. I am an avid reader but I had no idea that there were so many aspiring young writers in the city. Siddharth Das Gupta’s ‘Letters from an Indian Summer’ seems interesting, and I am going to buy it. The book on happiness

by Shama Patel is also intriguing. It may dispel stress and depression, and cheer up the reader. It’s good news that publishing houses are doing their bit by offering the right opportunities to young aspiring authors. May the joys of reading be never lost.

- Manikya Deb

Write to Us Letters to the Editor may be emailed to editor_tgs@goldensparrow.com, editor_tgs@gmail.com or mailed to The Editor, Golden Sparrow Publishing Pvt Ltd, 1641 Madhav Heritage, Tilak Road, Pune-411030.

SPORTS

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JULY 25, 2015

PUNE

“In India, hockey coaches are not considered as knowledgeable people. For Hockey India and SAI, the coaches are just puppets who should move according to their wishes.”

—Former India hockey coach Jose Brasa

“At the moment, I’m waiting to see whether I’ll try one last adventure in India, like last year. I am working hard to be ready to leave if I get called back.”

—Arsenal legend Robert Pires RAHUL RAUT

Arya is aiming for national team spot TGS NEWS NETWORK @TGSWeekly

Purva gearing up for hectic international schedule City youngster to participate in tournaments at Malaysia and Indonesia

BY ASHISH PHADNIS @phadnis_ashish Purva Barve, Pune’s promising youngster, has a hectic schedule starting from September. The 14-yearold will be the star attraction at the Sushant Chipalkatti Memorial International badminton tournament to be held in Pune in the fi rst week of September. Thereafter she will proceed to the Malaysian Junior Tournament (Sept 10-15), followed by Indonesian tournament (Sept 17-22).

Internationals done, Purva will then feature in the national tournament at Chandigarh. She will also be the leading shuttler for Maharashtra in the interdistrict and state badminton tournament followed by the Nationals at Jaipur.

Asked about her preparations for the whirlwind schedule, Purva said, “I am totally fit mentally. But I am still working on my physical fitness. All

Signposts

After the big bang signing of Costa Rican star striker Yendrick Ruiz, FC Pune City has shown more of its intent by quickly wrapping up deals for Nicky Shorey, the flying left back who was with Portsmouth FC last year, and shot stopper Steve Simonsen, who until last year was plying his trade with Rangers FC. Shorey, the England left back known for his pace and set piece ability, has played previously for a number of Premier League clubs including Reading, West Bromwich Albion, Aston Villa and Porstmouth among others. Simonsen, best known from his time at Stoke City for whom he made more that 150 appearances is the other Englishman signed by FC Pune City.

Pooja beats Divya in state ranking final Pune’s Pooja Koparkar defeated former Pune and now Mumbai paddler Divya Mahajan to claim the women’s state ranking table tennis title at Juhu Vile Parle Gymkhana, Mumbai, recently. In the final, second seeded Pooja took a 2-1 lead in the third set and didn’t look back. She comfortably won the match 11-5, 8-11, 13-11, 11-7, 11-5. Meanwhile, another Pune player Chinmay Datar entered the men’s semi-final with an easy win over fourth seed Omkar Torgalkar of Mumbai. However, Chinmay went down to top seed Sanil Shetty.

experience. The conditions and courts are totally different there and the level of badminton is also very high.

I attended a camp in Indonesia in summer, but I preferred a camp in Pune, as it was kind of an equivalent,” said Purva on the sidelines of the Construction Cup district badminton tournament at PDMBA complex, Shivajinagar.

Purva won the under-17 title, beating Tanishka Deshpande in the fi nal. However, she was made to work hard in the fi rst set, which she won by a whisker, 30-29.

She said, “I was a bit casual in the fi rst set. I was also not in top nick physically. I wanted to push to the limits but I had not warmed up enough. Then I committed some errors; instead of staying at the baseline, I played more near the net which helped her score some points.

It was much easier in the second,

however, as I won 21-06.”

Her coach, former Olympian Nikhil Kanetkar was not too pleased with her performance. He said, “At this level she was expected to dominate the match. Tanishka is a strong players, but Purva should have won quite comfortably. But then she is young and has to learn a lot about match temperament.”

Purva, who is currently ranked 8th in the junior girls in India, is aiming for place among the top 4.

“It’s not going to be easy. Players like Ashwini Bhat and Prachi Joshi make for stiff competition but I am confident that I can make it to the top 4 this season. Th is year I am focusing on under-19 tournaments. I have set some realistic targets, such as winning the fi rst round to move to the next. I want to get a feel of the bigger league and earn points,” she said. ashish.phadnis@goldensparrow.com

Arya Bhivpathki returns a shot during his final match in the boy’s under-17 category

Blindfolded runners to feature in NIO event Over 1000 runners including visually impaired to participate in NIO Vision Half Marathon

RAHUL RAUT

FC Pune City ropes in Shorey, Simonsen

these are under-19 tournaments where I will be competing against stronger and tougher players. It’s not all about winning or losing, but it will be a morale booster if I manage to overcome some top players in the under-19 segment.”

Purva achieved another feat by becoming the fi rst player to be handed an individual contract by Li-Ning, a badminton equipment company. Her father said that Purva was the fi rst and youngest Indian to be given such a contract. Purva will get the opportunity to participate in a badminton camp at Singapore in December as part of the contract,.

“It will be great learning

Arya Bhivpathaki was in signature form, the lanky shuttler winning the junior boys’ title with a 21-09, 2116 win over third seed Aniruddha Mayekar. The match looked tough on paper, but it turned out to be one-sided.

“I was completely focused and though I committed some errors in the second set, it was kind of easy.

I dominated most of the time,” said Arya, who also featured in the under-19 final.

About his performance, he said, “The 2013 season was a bad one, but I had a fantastic season last year. I had a great start this year too. I did well in the national tournament and won a state title. Another positive is my fitness level, which would drop as the season progressed. It is in peak form for the first time. So I am hoping for a better season this time.”

Lauding the two-month camp at P Gopichand’s badminton academy in Hyderabad, Arya said, “It was RAHUL RAUT

Purva Barve is adopting a more aggressive approach to control her matches better

fantastic how it helped to improve my stamina. Now I just have to maintain their schedule. Training wise, their system is ten times better.

It’s tough to get into the academy but I was fortunate to train there for a couple of months. Everything there is up to the mark and they have maintained their high reputation on the national badminton circuit,” said Arya.

The Pune shuttler also had the opportunity to interact with the legendary Gopichand himself, who gave him some priceless tips.

“They were small things but really help during play. It was fine tuning my game to the optimum level,” said Arya, who is aiming for a berth in the Indian squad.

“I have played just one international tournament so far, that too in Pune. I have to get into the top 4 to qualify for the international tournaments and to be picked for the national squad. The competition is fierce but I am hoping to make it this year,” he said. tgs.feedback@goldenparrow.com

TGS NEWS NETWORK @TGSWeekly Schools for the of the city and Pune district have confirmed their participation in the National Institute of Ophthalmology’s (NIO) first ever Vision Half Marathon on Sunday, July 26. The race will be f lagged off from and also finish at MITCON School, Baner.

Vision Marathon aims to create education and awareness about avoidable blindness and other eye diseases.

The event conducted by citybased Run Buddies Club, will employ a novel format wherein any one can participate as a guide for the blind runners, or run blindfolded with your buddy.

“I have seen such races in Singapore and London, but this is the first-ever such race being organised in India. Though many regular runners are participating in this event, it’s going to be a challenge to run blindfolded, which is not easy,” said Arvind Bijwe of Run Buddies.

“This is the first step towards treating causes of irreversible blindness, and the event has the motto ‘Come run with me for healthy eyes’,” said Dr Aditya Kelkar, director of NIO. TAKING THE PLU NGE Sanjay Limaye, an industrial

Sanjay Limaye and guide Anuradha Palnitkar during a practice session for the blindfold run at Patrakar Nagar

sales consultant of the city, is one of the blindfolded runners taking part in this event. However, instead of running just 3km or 5km, he has decided to run a half marathon completely blindfolded, with the help of his guide Anuradha Palnitkar.

“I have been taking part in marathons for the last five years, but I will be participating in a blindfold marathon for the first time. It’s difficult as you lose your

sense of direction, balance and time, which is really scary. Even your body posture changes during running,” said Limaye. He said that the guide therefore, has a major role to play.

“During practice I realised that I was completely dependent on my guide. I have to focus on her voice and each and every instruction.

Meanwhile, she must observe minute details on the road and surroundings, and she should act as my eyes. Th is is

not easy,” said Limaye.

Echoing his thoughts, Anuradha said, “The tough task is to keep a running commentary over a distance of 21 km. Secondly, a blindfolded runner has to run a little ahead of the guide and should not be dragged by him or her. So we have keep a balance between our speed and strides. Unless both are comfortable with each other, it’s not possible.”

The duo tried several combinations and finally settled for

a string tied to each other’s hands.

“Initially we started running by holding hands. But it wasn’t comfortable as it becomes painful to keep your hands in that position for more than two hours. Moreover, the runner needs to move his hands freely to maintain balance. So, we decided to use the string and it’s working,” said Limaye.

To get a true feel of the blindfold, Limaye is planning to keep his eyes closed for the entire duration, even during breaks for water.

“It will be my additional responsibility to guide him at water spots with detailed instructions,” Anuradha said.

Coincidentally, Anuradha’s son Sahil is also participating in this event as a blindfolded runner.

“I don’t know what the experience will be like, as I couldn’t fi nd time to practice and will rely on tips I get from my mother,” said Sahil.

M AIN AT TR ACTION Fifty-nine-year-old blind marathon runner Amarjeet Singh Chawla will be the main attraction of the event. Singh who could see till the age of 13, started losing vision gradually and became totally blind at the age of 40. He started participating in sports and adventure activities in 2004, when he was 48. Singh has completed 34 half marathons, including the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon and Airtel Delhi Half Marathon, apart from being the only blind person to scale the 19,830 feet high Dolma Pass in Kailash Parikrama, Tibet (China), in June 2009. tgs.feedback@goldenparrow.com