The Golden Sparrow on Saturday 19/12/2015

PUNE, DECEMBER 19, 2015 | www.thegoldensparrow.com

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

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY DECEMBER 19, 2015

PUNE

MUMBAI Indian army saved Hasina in 1971 war P 11

“I am not against granting loan waiver. But, it is observed that farmers hardly benefit from such waivers, and the banks get their balance sheets cleared as government repays farm loans.”

—Devendra Fadnavis, Chief Minister

Police have found a bag containing his identity cards near the body. His father, however, refuses to accept that it is their son and demands a DNA test

RAHUL RAUT

IIT student’s body found near Dhak fort

Panauti IIT Powai?

Four students from the electrical engineering department have died in the past two years, leading to murmurs in the corridors of the premier educational institute in Mumbai

BY ASHISH PHADNIS AND YOGESH WAGH @TGSWeekly A decomposed body believed to be of 29-year-old PhD student of Indian Institute of Technology, Powai has been found near Dhak Fort in Karjat. B Srinivas Chandrashekhar, a doctoral student of department of electrical engineering at IIT, Bombay had been missing since October 26. Karjat police recovered a bag containing his documents and identity cards from near the highly decomposed body. His family, who has rushed from Hyderabad, however is refusing to accept that it is their son’s body and want a DNA test done. Srinivas had gone for trek to the Dhak Bhairi peak, which has a steep climb.

On Friday, December 11 morning a tribal from Sandshi village near Dhak Bhairi Fort informed the Karjat police that a body was trapped in bushes. The cops rushed to the spot and brought the body down. They found a bag containing documents of the IIT student and his cell phone which was discharged. Since Srinivas’ family had filed a missing complaint on October 31, the cops immediately got in touch with his father Chandrashekhar.

AK Tadvi, assistant sub inspector attached to Karjat police station told TGS that Srinivas had left IIT campus on October 25 for a trek. A day later, one of his family members got a message from him stating that he was in trouble, his clothes were torn and he had run out of food. “After that there was no trace of Srinivas. His cell phone was switched off. On October 31, his family filed a missing complaint with

BY GARGI VERMA @missgverma

A tribal from Sandshji village Ghenu Vhola (above) was the first to spot the decomposed body. From the bag containing Id cards and other documents, the cops deduced that it was Srinivas’ body. The IIT student had been missing since October 26

us,” said Tadvi.

A month later, on December 11, they found the highly decomposed body. “His family however is refusing to accept that it is their son’s body. We will now get a DNA test done to establish the identity of the deceased. We have no doubt however that the body is that of Srinivas as all his belongings were found near the body,” he added. The cops believe that Srinivas fell off while trekking and got caught in the bushes.

Srinivas’ uncle Satyanarayana, who has also rushed to Mumbai, said that they will wait for medical reports before reaching to any conclusion.

Vadiraj Hemadri, a friend of Srinivas from IIT, said that it was not unusual for the 29-year-old PhD student go for a trek alone. He explained that Srinivas took off on such treks often and would not tell others where he was headed. Vadiraj said that Srinivas was a calm, fun loving person and an extrovert. “He was inclined towards spirituality and extremely fond of travelling to serene places. Trekking was his hobby and had gone to several forts near Mumbai. He always preferred trekking solo,” he said.

On October 25, Srinivas left for the trek and no one in the IIT hostel

made much of his absence. However, on October 26, Vadiraj got a mail from Srinivas’ brother stating that the PhD student was in trouble and in need of help. The brother wrote that Srinivas was lost somewhere near Dhak Fort at Karjat.

Srinivas had initially messaged one of his relatives stating he had climbed down from Dhak Fort and was alright. He had spent a night in a cave. Later he messaged stating that he was lost and had run out of food. After that his cell phone was switched off, his family reached out to his friends at IIT. His friends informed the local police, who in turn contacted trekking groups to trace the 29-year-old.

Amongst them were Nisargamitra and Ajay Gadgil, founder member of Durgamitra. They also contacted Pune based trekker Omkar Oak, who has carried out several rescue operations.

“Prasad Mhatre of Chakram Hikers and I chalked out a strategy.

Since I was busy with my exams, I couldn’t go. With whatever little information we had, we zeroed down on the search on the SandshiDhak route. It passes through a dense forest and anyone can get lost without the help of a local guide.

Normally trekkers from Mumbai

prefer this route, as other routes from Jambhivili and Wadap are long and time consuming. So, we were sure that Srinivas must have taken this route,” said Oak. Ajinkya Hikers from Badlapur and Shivdurga Mitra from Lonavala also joined the rescue operation.

For the next three weeks, a group of around 40 trekkers spread out in the jungles to look for Srinivas but in vain. “The thick forest made our job difficult. We searched the entire area and eventually decided to call off the operation on November 20.

We informed almost every trekking group in Pune, Mumbai and nearby areas requesting them to keep looking,” said Oak. Now that the body has been found and Srinivas’ family has refused to accept it, cops attached to Karjat police station are busy ascertaining the identity of the corpse. “We have brought the body to JJ Hospital in Mumbai, where a post mortem has just been concluded. Some samples will be sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory in Kalina for DNA test, which will be matched against his father. Also, bone ossification tests will be done to ascertain the age and sex of the body found in the jungles,” said Tadvi. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com

‘City trekkers don’t pay attention to safety’

Indian Institute of Technology, Powai’s electrical engineering department seems stricken with bad luck. Four of its students have lost their lives, in mysterious cond it ions, in the past two years.

B Srinivas Chand r a shek h a r, whose body Aniket Ambhore was discovered on December 11, is the latest student from the department, where he was pursuing his PhD. This is the second death in 2015, from the same department.

In June 2015, Rasagnya Kumar, a fourth year student of dual degree course lost his life in a train accident. Rasagnya was travelling to Mumbai Central from Dadar on an overcrowded local train, standing at the door. His head hit a pole when he looked out and died on Rasagnya Kumar the spot.

In September 2014, Aniket Ambhore, another fourth year student of dual degree course had fallen to his death from the sixth floor of the hostel. While it was alleged to be suicide, it wasn’t proved if he had

jumped, was an accident or he had been pushed. Aniket’s parents and friends maintain that he was not likely to commit suicide.

I n Shiva Teja J a n u a r y 2014, PhD student Shiva Teja was murdered in Vishakhapatnam.

His body was found in mysterious condition in a lodge toilet. He had been missing for over a week, before his body was found. His head and hands were wrapped in a polythene bag which was taped.

These student deaths have caused immense consternation in the department and outside.

“While students committing suicide is not unheard of, so many students dying in a span of few months is surely not common, even for an IIT,” said a professor at the department. “The pressure at IIT to procure good grades in order to procure good jobs is like running on a spinning wheel. Most students feel that pressure,” he said.

One of the students said, “Suicides are not something we can get used to, some of our batch mates dying in accidents and even being murdered. It is a difficult scenario to adapt to.”

The bad luck streak aside, the Dean and Head of Department refused to comment citing busy schedules. “Dean and the Department Heads are busy preparing for the annual fest, Mood Indigo and thus can’t discuss this,” said an admin officer. gargi.verma@goldensparrow.com

Villagers of Sandshi who found the decomposed body of missing IITian say hikers often throw caution to the wind

BY YOGESH WAGH & SANTOSHEE GULABKALI MISHRA @TGSWeekly For the people of Sandshi village who are used to seeing trekkers in their neighbourhood, their advice to hikers is to exercise caution. “Trekking on this difficult stretch alone without any guidance could be the reason for the IITian’s death. One could imagine using the path during the night when many expert trekkers avoid covering this stretch during daytime. To climb this hill, alone and without any guide, is to invite death,” said the natives of Sandshi village after the body of PhD student of Indian Institute of Technology (Powai) B Srinivas Chandrashekhar was found near Dhak Bhairi Fort on Friday (December 11).

Six weeks after he went missing, the remains of Srinivas were discovered by Genu Vhola (60), a tribal from the nearby village in Sasusunecha Dongar area. On December 9, when Genu had ventured out looking for crabs for dinner, the sound of barking of dogs caught his attention. “I walked up to the thicket of bushes to see what the dogs were barking at hoping to find someone in distress. The sight of a highly decomposed body of a man, trapped amid bushes at the spot where it waterfalls during rainy season left me numb,” recounts Genu, shivering slightly, still in a state of shock. The scared villager didn’t tell anyone what he saw for over a day but his panicked appearance after returning to the village led others to alert Sandshi Village Police Patil

Nandkumar Payagude.

Payagude was waiting to hear any news from villagers since the missing report of Srinivas was filed in October 31. “I was also part of the 25-member search team comprising young men from nearby villages who had combed the whole area. I went to Genu’s house on December 11 and told him to give me the details, after gaining his confidence. We weren’t sure what it was, but I had a hunch that it was something about the missing person as the trek route is mostly used by Mumbai-Lonavla trekkers,” he said.

The police official said that even the victim’s uncle had taken help of villages and searched for Srinivas.

“One could not identify the decomposed body found in the thicket but after searching the contents in the sleeping bag found stuck in the branches near the body we discovered that it could be Srinivas. A rucksack, wallet, clothes, biscuit packets and a book were found strewn in the spot,” Payagude said, adding that many identity cards were found in the victim’s wallet.

According to villagers, the gruesome incident is not a sole occurrence. “People from cities are kind of overconfident and tend to risk their lives. These routes pass through difficult terrain. Trekkers often lose their ways and one misstep could send them down in a ditch or steep slopes,” said 58-year-old villager Madhukar Shirke. Even regular trekkers agree.

Manesh Nambiar, who has covered this route 3-4 times, got lost the last time he went. “We were a group of six people on our way down the slope in the evening when we lost our way. The thick, constantly changing

Nandkumar Payagude, Police Patil

Rescue team bringing down Srinivas’ body from the fort to Sandshi village

undergrowth and the weather conditions determine the routes. Only experienced locals can figure where the routes lie. Therefore, we stopped till daylight appeared and resumed the hike,” he said.

Villagers said that trekkers and authorities should take efforts to work in unison. “We are always ready to help trekkers even as their arrival hampers our daily routine. We survive on meagre income and searching for missing trekkers often disturbs our livelihood,” Shirke said, adding that following safety rules while going on a hike will do a lot of good for city dwellers and trekkers.

“Trekkers should enlist their names in the nearby police station and always accompany a guide. Authorities should put up boards displaying the names and numbers of registered

guides for trekkers. Following these basic steps could have saved Srinivas.

Accidents could happen and our doors are always open for help but trekkers should exercise caution and not be too reckless,” said Shirke.

DEATH WAS NOT CAUSED BY A FALL: DOCS The father of Srinivas cannot believe that the body found near Dhak Fort in Karjat is that of his 29-year-old son. A senior government servant, Vijaysarthi Prakashrao Bohraje, rushed to Mumbai from Hyderabad after hearing the news and is waiting for DNA test results. The JJ Hospital authorities said that preliminary tests cannot reveal the exact cause of death but they ruled out the “fall off” possibility. Regular trekkers and experts cite that overexertion and

dehydration often cause trekkers to lose weight and pass out.

“The injuries are mandibular fracture, also known as fractures of the jaw, and a contusion on right cheek. We can confirm the exact cause of death only after bone ossification test reports are in and it will take three days. DNA report is likely to be available after three weeks,” said JJ Hospital Dean Dr TP Lahane.

“The body has suffered only two injuries, on right cheekbone and jaw.

A fall off generally causes multiple injuries of hands and legs (bones).

We have examined his left hand up to elbow (rest is not present), right hand and legs and there is no fracture.

We cannot come to any conclusion without chemical analysis as the body is totally decomposed. Viscera of the deceased is sent for chemical tests,”

said a senior official from JJ Hospital.

The medical officer said that either a sudden jerk to body or push could result in the injury that is seen in the body. Absence of Body Mass Index (BMS) has led the team of doctors from forensic to further analyse the body parts.

Meanwhile, the deceased’s two uncles Satyanarayana and Murthy hope for some miracle to happen to defy the reality.

“My nephew, who used to always remain sick as a child, chanted a mantra that brought him relief.

I am praying for a miracle,” said Satyanarayana, who added that one cannot recognise the decomposed body. “Maybe it could be a mistaken identity. We are awaiting for the DNA report,” he said.

Murthy said that Srinivas’s mother and younger brother Suryaprakash have not been informed as the former is a high blood pressure patient and latter is appearing for BTech second year exam at an institute in Jaipur.

“Srinivas refused a Singapore job offer as he is more patriotic than us. He loved fiction and non-fiction books. He wanted to work as a professor in IIT Bombay after getting his doctorate. He started loving trekking after moving to Mumbai and often used to hit the ghats alone,” the uncles said. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com

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

PUNE, DECEMBER 19, 2015 | www.thegoldensparrow.com

The bittersweet saga of the sugarcane field labourers

A day in the life of migrant sugarcane cutters of Western Maharashtra See Spotlight, p06 & 07

This is how Aundh Hospital doctors (mis) treat poor, sick DEIC centre doctors give poor man’s malnourished son the runaround, saying they have no internet connection for registering his name

AKSHAY MAHAJAN

Winners find no place in See P4 smart city plan Seven-year-old Prasad (right) is smaller in size than his four-year-old brother Durvesh. In the centre is their father Namdev Kolambekar

BY DNYANEHSWAR BHONDE @dnyanesh1

Mere haathon mein...

See P3

Seven-year-old Prasad Kolambekar of Kalewadi in Pimpri is suffering from acute malnutrition, stunted growth, dental caries and multivitamin deficiency. His worried father Namdev had brought him to Aundh

Hospital’s District Early Intervention Centre (DEIC) for treatment. But to his dismay, the doctors are passing the buck and making all kinds of excuses for not being able to treat Prasad, such as the case not being under their purview, or not having an internet connection.

Contd on p 2

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY DECEMBER 19, 2015

PUNE

“Traffic congestion and garbage were the most challenging problems for the administration every weekend at the Sinhagad Fort. Parking lots at the base for visitors and buses to the top may address the problem.”

— Saurabh Rao, District collector

New river regulatory zone rules to be launched soon, says Prakash Javadekar

Dalit issues taint Haryana in 2015

P8

P10

Why do these bigwigs refuse to pay water tax?

City elite, reputed colleges among the prominent water tax defaulters

BY PRIYANKKA DESHPANDE @journopriyankka The list of water tax defaulters may shock you as it includes government and private organisations, Central Railways, reputed colleges as well as some elite citizens. This came to light when Bharatiya Janata Party corporator Dhananjay Jadhav sought information regarding water tax defaulters in the city under the Right to Information Act (RTI).

While talking with The Golden Sparrow, Jadhav said that he filed an RTI a couple of months ago, seeking information from the Pune Municipal Corporation regarding water tax defaulters who owed more than Rs five lakh. “I was shocked to read that in the last eight years as many as 906 institutions and individuals had defaulted on water tax,” Jadhav said.

The corporator from panel number 51 (SP College area) claimed that after filing an RTI, the PMC did not reply to his queries for two months. “I filed the RTI in August and have received the reply just 15 days ago. After going through the information the civic body provided, I found that most defaulters’ meter status is ‘faulty’, which I feel hints a something bigger,” Jadhav said.

Meanwhile, director of Maharashtra Institute of Technology (MIT), Vishwanath Karad, Ranka Hospital’s founder-director Dr Ramesh Ranka, Anil alias Aniruddha Seolekar are among the bigwigs who have defaulted on water tax, while Sir Parshurambhau College, Victory Theatre and Council Hall are also among the list of defaulters.

According to Jadhav, PMC officials are trying to protect the bigwigs and other organisations in the city. “I have been following up on this information regularly and have met concerned PMC official twice. It seems that the officials do not want to take any action against the culprits. I have decided to go on an indefinite hunger strike if PMC officials do not take appropriate action against the defaulters,” said Jadhav. priyankka.deshpande@goldensparrow.com

OTHER DEFAULTERS • The Commissioner, Pune Division • Victory Theatre • Purshottam Shroff • Amir Hotel • National Chemical Laboratory • Poona Club • ABC Farm Private Limited.

• PMT Manager • J A Khater, c/o C G Porwal

Dr Ramesh Ranka (Founder-Director, Ranka Hospital) - Rs 5.93 lakh Vishwanath Karad PICS BY RAHUL RAUT, VISHAL KALE AND TEJAS GAIKWAD

A

ssociated with Ranka Jewellers, Dr Ramesh Ranka founded the hospital in the year 2000 in Mukund Nagar. However, he has defaulted on water tax of Rs 5.93 lakh for the water being used in his hospital.

According to the information provided by PMC through an RTI, the last updated water bill for Ranka Hospital Dr Ramesh Ranka was in the month of July. However the water connection is still intact on his property.

When contacted, Dr Ranka said that he has already paid a bill of Rs 900 a couple of months ago. “I am not aware that I am in a list of defaulters.

PMC officials did not correspond with me. In fact, I am shocked to hear that the PMC officials have listed me as water tax defaulter,” said Ranka.

T

he director of MIT Vishwanath Karad has defaulted to the tune of Rs 12.14 lakh water tax for his property in Rajpath Society at Kothrud.

According to the information provided by PMC through an RTI, the last updated water Vishwanath Karad bill of Karad was in the month of March. However the water connection is still intact on his property. The status of his meter is faulty. However, Mangesh Karad, the executive director of MIT and Karad’s nephew, denied the charges against his uncle and said that PMC has submitted bill which is commercial in nature.

“It is our bungalow which is

Sir Parshurambhau College - Rs 55.98 lakh

A

ccording to PMC, the last bill update from SP College to PMC was in May 2014. The college has defaulted on a

(Director, MIT)- Rs 12.14 lakh

huge amount of Rs 55. 98 lakh. However, the water connection is still intact on their property. The status of the meter is

faulty. But Principal Dilip Sheth had a completely different version to share.

“They (PMC officials) showed such a huge amount of water tax for the water that we use in our swimming pool.

However, a few years ago we stopped using PMC water for our swimming pool,” said Sheth. He said that since the last few years the college authorities had decided to use the water from their own well for the swimming pool.

“We had already informed about it to PMC officials and they visited and surveyed our college. It is surprising that even after informing them about our usage of water, they slapped us with this fat amount of water tax,” said Sheth.

located in the Rajpath Society in Kothrud. However, PMC officials have submitted a water bill to us at a commercial rate,” said Karad.

According to Karad, it is their private property spread in a area of 2000 sq feet. “The bill which PMC submitted us itself is a faulty and therefore there is no question of paying it,” Karad added.

Sassoon General Hospital – Rs 93.38 lakh

T

he state-run Sassoon General Hospital has another black mark against its name, in regard to defaulting on water tax payment to the tune of Rs 93.38 lakh. According to information provided by PMC through an RTI, the last updated water bill for Sassoon General Hospital was in July but its water connection is still intact, while the meter status is faulty.

Sassoon General Hospital and BJ Medical College Dean Ajay Chandanwale said that he was unaware about defaulting on water tax payment. “I am not aware about this. I will be able to comment on this only after the board of directors review the matter,” Chandanwale said. He declined comment on if the PMC officials had contacted him in this regard.

MSEDCL -Rs 34.84 lakh MAHADISCOM, the power supply agency has defaulted on payment of water tax to the tune of Rs 34.84 lakh.

According to the information provided by PMC through an RTI, the last updated water bill for MAHADISCOM was in December 2014. Its water connection is intact on the Senapati Bapat Road premises.

MAHADISCOM Public Relation Officer Nishikant Raut said that Executive Engineer Anand Raidurga denies that they have defaulted on water tax. “We have already paid the water tax. Such a huge defaulted amount could be of the transmission department of MSEB and not of distribution department,” said Raut.

OFFICIAL SPEAK The head of water supply department, VG Kulkarni said that even after sending them a notices, these defaulters did not pay the water tax for last many years. “They do not correspond with us. If we try to take a strict action against them, they pressurise us with their so called big connections,” said Kulkarni. Replying to the query about further actions taken by PMC against these defaulters, Kulkarni said that PMC would disconnect their water connections.

Pay extra for lingering at airport This is how Aundh Hospital doctors (mis)treat poor, sick Pune airport authorities levying surcharge for vehicles waiting for more than five minutes on the premises

BY SUSHANT RANJAN @sushantranjan Visitors to the Pune International Airport to see off or receive family or friends will now have to shell out some more cash, as airport authorities have made an extra charge mandatory for all vehicles in the drop-off and pickup areas stopping for more than five minutes. The surplus charge aims to ease traffic congestion around the terminal. The charge is Rs 85 for cars and Rs 100 for SUVs, if the time between entry and exit exceeds five minutes. This rule has been brought into effect in November, and 25 vehicles have been levied the extra charge for waiting more than five minutes.

Airport Director Ajay Kumar said, “The decision taken by Airport Authority of India (AAI) is implemented at all international airports. There is shortage of space in the drop-off and pick-up areas.”

Air traffic has increased at Pune and the number of passengers is growing by the day. And consequently there are more private vehicles at the airport. A private car or taxi is entitled to five minutes of ‘free waiting’ on the airport premises, most of which is usually spent queuing up at the entry and turning left and right to reach the arrival section at the other end of the cavernous parking lot.

The contract has been allotted to SS Multi Services at Pune Airport.

There is one person at the entrance and another at the exit point, who tracks the vehicle.

A first-time visitor is more than likely to get confused and end up in front of the walkway to the terminal, in which case more time will be spent

dropping passengers.

Aviation expert and former Chairman Pune Airline Operators Committee Dhairyashil Vandekar said, “Going by the increasing number of vehicles visiting metro airport to pick up and drop passengers, there is a global trend by airport authorities to charge fee from passenger vehicles citing reasons such as to reduce vehicle congestion, safety of passengers, curbing touts etc.”

Vandekar said that the increasing number of vehicles visiting Pune airport is being seen by the Airports Authority of India as a lucrative source to generate revenue. He said, “AAI at Pune Airport is known to be making substantial profit and should pass at least a part of this profit to passengers and cargo customers by way to subsidising certain existing levies, creating better facilities rather than putting such additional financial burden on the passengers.”

“The idea of allowing five minutes for pick-up and drop was to avoid congestion in front of the terminal.

But that purpose is lost. It’s the duty of the police to ensure there is no car unnecessarily waiting in front of the terminal” he added. sushant.ranjan@goldensparrow.com

Contd from p 1

The father has now written to the Aundh Hospital Civil Surgeon (CS), urging him to look into the matter.

Prasad was first referred to DEIC

by Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK) doctor Umesh Jaiswal. “I referred him to the DEIC Centre at Aundh Hospital for treatment in August. But his problem has not been addressed till date, for obscure reasons,” said Dr Jaiswal.

Namdev Kolambekar is a casual worker in a transport firm and can ill afford treatment for his son at a private hospital. Prasad’s teeth are damaged due to a lack of calcium and he was taken to Mumbai and later to the DEIC centre. “I first went to the National Rehabilitation Centre (NRC), and they referred me to the DEIC centre. There the doctors sent us to the dentist, then psychologist three times. The chief of DEIC centre Amruta Wagh, sent us back, saying they had no computer. The next time she said that they did not have an internet connection to register Prasad’s name,” he said.

Meanwhile Wagh said that Prasad may have been sent back because of there was no power supply and internet connection at the centre. “He may have needed a certificate of disability and the registration is done on Wednesday,” she said. About why he was not given any treatment, and making his father make repeated rounds of the hospital, she said that they were following up and would treat Prasad. “Our DEIC centre does not have enough doctors but we treat children from Aundh Hospital,” she said.

This situation has arisen because the state health department has not given attention for proper development of the DEIC, which is an ambitious project, aimed at providing treatment of all children’s diseases. A state health department letter issued in January 2015 says that the DEIC centre would

have all facilities such as pediatric, dental, psychology, ophthalmology, cleft surgery, surgery and a nutrition centre. The centre would have general physicians along with specialists. But currently there are no such facilities at the DEIC centre. Patients coming to the centre are eligible for transportation costs but they are not paid anything.

Maharashtra state RBSK doctors and workers union chairman Pranali Vetal said that the health department had issued a memo stating that they were not referring children to the centre. “We have referred patients to the centre and still the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) department issued a memo to us.

When we refer children to the centre, they do nothing and instead send them to other hospitals for treatment.

That is why people are losing trust in us. The same has happened with Prasad, and the health department is hoodwinking us. They do not care about the welfare of the patients and issuing a memo to us is not justified,” she said. dnyaneshwar.bhonde@gmail.com

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY DECEMBER 19, 2015

Mere haathon mein...

Limit raised for appeals in tax cases

Do tattoos help women cope better?

P12

P9

SUSHANT RANJAN

“Many got elected only because of party influence or because his or her top leader was popular. People voted them for these reasons and overlooked their capacity as a representative. This affects the quality of debate in the House.”

— Ujwal Keskar, BJP leader

PUNE

Workers at the Ghorpadi diesel locomotive shed have developed skin ailments for want of gloves and other safety gear

BY SUSHANT RANJAN @sushantranjan Railway employees at the Indian Railways diesel locomotive shed in Ghorpadi are suffering from skin ailments owing to long-term exposure to the fuel. Nearly 30 per cent of the more than 700 workers have been afflicted.

Part of the problem is that these workers are not provided adequate and quality safety gear. Besides the shoes and uniforms, the gloves they use are past their prime and are tattered and greasy. Neither are they given shoes, uniforms, gloves nor helmets regularly.

A worker who wishes to be anonymous said, “On record we are given the necessary equipment but its delivery is long delayed. Shoes, uniforms and helmets supposed to be delivered in 2014 were given to us this year.”

The railway workers union, Central

The workers in the shed go about their duties without appropriate safety gear

Railway Mazdoor Sangh (CRMS) representatives say that they ask the engineering department for safety equipment but to no avail. The union also holds medical check-ups for workers regularly. Union’s chairman D R Jamadar said, “The workers are provided gloves and safety equipment.

But there are shortages and delays.”

Senior officials say however, that no representative of the workers union has approached them with complaints of skin infections. Workers at the diesel shed are given gloves, helmets and Kerodex cream to prevent skin ailments.

But workers are seen without gloves

128 trainees told to leave CISF Bhilai training centre, their recruitment as constables annulled

RAHUL RAUT

CISF leaves 128 candidates in the lurch

BY TUSHAR RUPANAVAR @TGSWeekly The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which comes under the Ministry of Home Affairs, had released advertisements to recruit 1203 constables/drivers, in July 2014. The ads expectedly drew responses from youths across the nation, and those who were summoned, appeared for the physical, written and medical tests, following which the CISF selected the required candidates. They were told to report to Bhilai, Chhattisgarh CISF training centre on December 5, 2015. However, just two days after commencement of training, 128 trainees including 22 from Maharashtra, were told to leave. This has left them facing an uncertain future.

Sachin Mane, of Satara, Maharashtra did two days of training at the CISF Bhilai, Utai centre said, “I received a on November 28, 2015, to report to Bhilai Chhattisgarh which for training on December 5, 2015. On reporting at the centre, our names were cross-checked and verified. But on December 7, 2015, the officials told us to leave as our names were not on their list. We said that we had received call up letters, but they said they had sent us ‘want of vacancies’ letters afterwards, which reached our homes after we had reported for training.

The CISF officials are to blame for the quandary we are in now.”

Mahesh Tinkbare alleges that they have been cheated by the CISF staff

Mahesh Tinkbare, of Karad, said, “The CISF letter calling us up was dated November 20. But the list they uploaded on November 30 had only 711 names.

The initial advertisement was for 1203 posts. Why didn’t they upload this final list before November 30, as they sent us call up letters on November 20? They have cheated us. Why did they allow us two days of training at Bhilai? They have expelled us by giving false reasons.”

New Delhi CISF Public Relation Officer Hemendra Singh said, “It was actually a computer error. We didn’t cross-check the selected candidates list.

Later we corrected the list and sent it to Bhilai training centre. About the candidates’ travelling expenses, Singh said, “Candidates has to report for training at their own expense which is refunded later. In this case they are not

our selected candidates, so we will not pay them.”

CISF Bhilai training centre officials said, “The 128 candidates have been sent back as their names are not on the selected candidates list. We had sent them ‘want

CISF HAS TAKEN BRIBES Some of the candidates alleged that the CISF officials had taken bribes from candidates to put their names on the list. They alleged that those who had not cleared medical tests were recruited.

Rejected candidates cited names of V Ysakh D (Roll number 144104153), Satish Kumar (144100565), Mahajan Samadhan Kailas (142103442), Laxman Eggidi (144101469), M Murugesh (144101993) and Dipin D (144101239), whose names were not in the medical list, but were on the list of the selected candidates.

They also cited case of Anup Singh undergoing training at CISF Bhilai centre, who they allege has two different roll numbers - 143300011 on the medical list, and 143300014 on the final selected list. All other selected candidates have the same roll number on both lists.

PICS BY RAHUL RAUT

Khadak police station in three-way tug-of-war

Pune police, revenue department and Umaji Naik Smarak Samiti wrangle over Khadak police station possession

BY YOGESH WAGH @ywagh1857

The heroic, turbulent era of India’s freedom struggle seems like a figment of the imagination these days, when even the district administration seems to be turning a blind eye towards its landmarks and memorials.

The Khadak police station, at Shukrawar Peth, Pune’s oldest police station is a case in point. It now houses

a tehsil office and forest department office. During British rule, there was a sub jail, revenue office and

of vacancies’ letters, telling them not to come to Bhilai training centre. We received the list of selected candidates from our New Delhi headquarters and they are undergoing training now.”

The rejected candidates are have filed a writ petition at Aurangabad bench of the High Court.

Advocate Mukulchand Wagh said, “We have filed a writ petition at Aurangabad bench of Bombay High Court. Our main contention is that the CISF recruitment officials uploaded the final merit list after sending call up letters for training. They have to display the final merit list first before sending call up letters to candidates. How can they prepare a merit list after sending appointment letters? They have rejected candidates on the grounds of ‘want of vacancies’, but this is not a valid reason.

We went through final list and till there are 71 vacancies for general category, equal vacant figure of OBC candidates, then why did they kept it vacant? We are waiting for a hearing date from the court.” tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com

court Khadak police station, where the freedom fighter Umaji Naik was hanged till death. The British even left

Naik’s body hanging from a banyan tree for three days to intimidate other freedom fighters. Before Yerawada jail, all kinds of prisoners were housed in the sub jail, including freedom fighters.

The government had allotted space at Khadak police station for an Umaji Naik memorial. The remaining space is being used by the police, revenue, and forest departments, while the premises are under the jurisdiction of the revenue department. The Pune police had demanded that they be handed over the premises as the Faraskhana police station lockup area is inadequate to house criminals, but the revenue department turned down that demand One of the Pune metro railway stations was to be built at the spot but the Umaji Naik Smarak Samiti objected to the plan, supported by the local corporator and Guardian Minister Girish Bapat. The proposed station was moved 100 metres to the north.

The Umaji Naik Smarak Samiti wants to set up a freedom fighters museum there, and cast focus on

or helmets, and they have visible skin and nail infections and acne. They say that their medical tests are often delayed, from once in three months to once every six months.

Long-term exposure to diesel results in contact dermatitis. The symptoms include itching, redness, swelling and rashes. Contact dermatitis may also cause crusting lesions or ulcerations on the skin. Open lesions are susceptible to bacterial infection if not properly treated.

There are also those who have developed allergy to diesel. “The person suffers from acute itching on hands and

face and even gloves doesn’t help,” said another staffer.

Pune Rail Division Public Relation Officer Manoj Kumar Jhawar said the mechanics are instructed to use gloves and helmets and to apply a barrier cream to prevent any adverse effects from diesel contact.

“Only one in 100 must be afflicted, if any at all. Otherwise the unions would have raised the issue with me.

We meet union representatives often.

If there is such an issue, we will look into it and address the problem,” said Jhawar. sushant.ranjan@goldensparrow.com

This school has new teachers every month Lokseva School students and their parents concerned over shortage and shuffling of teachers

BY GARGI VERMA @missgverma Imagine studying English with one teacher for a month and with another teacher in the next month. Students of Lokseva e School, Pashan have been coping with this switching of teachers since the term began in April. An acute shortage of teachers has led to this chaotic situation at the school.

Eight-year-old Megha (name changed on request) does not really want to go to school these days.

Her mother says that this is rather uncharacteristic as Megha was always eager and excited about school before.

“I have noticed her lack of interest since this term began,” she said. The reason is the shortage of teachers. “One teacher was teaching four subjects for a month.

Then another teacher took up a subject but left within 2-3 weeks,” she said.

“The chemistry teacher who is teaching math solve certain sums in class and the rest is given as homework,” the parent of a sixth grader said.

The key for the shortage and shuffling of teachers, is that the school is not paying teachers adequate salaries. A teacher, on the condition of anonymity, said, “They are paying less than the industry standard. We do not expecting high salaries, but they should pay what other schools do.”

Another teacher said, “The school has invested in making the school a tech campus which is why they are paying us less.”

Parents have approached the administration over the teachers’ issue.

“They say that it is temporary and they will have regular teachers soon.

But six months later the situation has deteriorated further,” said the mother of an eighth grader. Another parent said, “The principal blamed my child for not paying attention in class when I raised the teachers’ issue.”

The school administration refutes the allegations. Principal Renuka Datta said, “There’s no such issue.

No one has complained to us. There’s a small crunch, nothing more. The temporary teachers were substitutes and we have brought in permanent staff.” gargi.verma@goldensparrow.com

The overgrown shrubs and the unkempt premises tell their own story

lesser known freedom fighters. Samiti member Sunil Jadhav said that if the government hands over the sub jail to the Samiti, they will make proper use of it in keeping with its historical heritage.

Haveli tehsildar Vaishali Rajmane said that they stored election records in the sub jail. “We are planning to

construct a new office building on a build operate and transfer (BOT) basis. But it is stalled owing to a judicial process.”

TGS team found the sub jail premises in very run down conditions, with overgrown shrubs, damaged furniture, showing long-term non-use. yogesh.wagh@goldensparrow.com

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY DECEMBER 19, 2015

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“The PMC has paved way for private companies to work in the smart city project by signing MoUs with them. It is an infringement of the rights of the proposed special purpose vehicle (SPV). These MoUs should be cancelled.”

— Vijay Kumbhar, Founder, Surajya Sangharsha Samiti

Gifting Bengali art to Pune P 13

Winners find no place in smart city plan A competition was organised with much fanfare inviting proposals for the smart city. None of the final entries have been incorporated in the plan sent to the Centre

BY GARGI VERMA @missgverma The battle to make Pune a smart city has been raging on for the past few days at the Pune Municipal Corporation. While the draft is now almost ready, it doesn’t include ideas that the PMC picked from the entries sent in by participants of the Pune Smart City competition.

In July, the Municipal Corporation had organised a competition called ‘Maza swapna, smart Pune’, wherein Puneites were asked to send in their ideas under the broad categories decided by the PMC. The ten best entries were selected, from which the best three were declared the winners.

On August 15, the senders of the winning entries were felicitated and given cash prizes as well. Their ideas were to be implemented in the draft of the proposals for the smart city.

However, none of these ideas or their creators were considered while the proposal was being developed.

“We did have a group on messaging app Whatsapp, but after a few days of the competition, it became inactive.

We were the only ones enquiring about our ideas and the shape they were taking,” says Prashant Sahay, the second runner-up of the competition. Prashant’s idea was to create safety booths throughout the city. “My idea had very low investment. I proposed turning the current bus stops into safety booths which would be well lit throughout the day, would have a CCTV camera and a pay phone along with a charging slot, if necessary. All these were supposed to deter criminals as everyone is afraid to do something illicit in a well-lit area where there’s a camera. The phone could be used to call police, if needed,” he said.

The simplicity and ingenuity of the idea must have been one of the deciding factors it was selected. But while implementing the plan, the authorities seem to have bypassed Sahay’s inputs.

Shahuraj Kadam, the first runner-up, had no information about the proposal. “I had been removed from the group a few weeks ago and there was no communication from the PMC at all,” he said. “My idea was to turn the sides of the river bed into a cycle track, for constructive utilisation of the space, reduced pollution and restoring the image of Pune as a cycle city,” Shahuraj said.

But his concept, with all its benefits has not made it to the plan. “The

Shahuraj Kadam proposed riverside roads be turned into cycling tracks and beautified Milind Acharya proposed that builders should mandatorily use only industrial debris and construction waste as fillers while constructing instead of using sand and stones Prashant Sahay proposed existing bus stops and small booths in dark alleyways be turned into safe hubs, by installing cameras, payphones, charging slots and be lit well

authorities kept telling me that they would work on it. Then they decided to work on Baner region only, meaning my plan had no value as the water bodies are in main city and not in the Baner region,” he said. They should have done a contest region wise, or should have focused on all of Pune and not a specific region. “What’s the point of a proposal when it doesn’t really have all the beneficial points due to geographical limits?” he said.

Milind Acharya, the winner of the Smart City competition also was unaware of the proposal. His idea of reusing industrial debris and waste as fillers for the foundations of building has not been included. “My idea, firstly would lead to recycling of industrial and constructional debris resulting in reduction in pollution. Secondly, it would reduce the demand for small stones and sand as fillers for building, spelling low inundation of mountains and less erosion of soil. It was a perfect plan for sustainable development,” he said. But his idea didn’t make it to the final proposal draft for the smart city.

None of the winners were informed about the proposal. “We weren’t asked for any inputs or help,” says Shahuraj. However, the three winners kept an eye out for all of PMC’s work. “We kept calling, messaging, badgering the authorities about our ideas. They always had the same answer: it has gone for

review to various committees,” said Prashant. “We thought maybe that’s how the procedure works. Maybe they are actually going to take our ideas seriously,” he said. Milind said, “None of us were interested in the cash prizes. We had given our ideas to make this city a better place for the coming generation. It all seems like a waste of time now.”

PMC Commissioner Kunal Kumar, however has a different outlook. He said, “The theme of these ideas was important, not the exact ideas. We have started work on them. While we have started rolling out tenders for waste management, we are also planning to start working on cycling routes. As for the safety booths, well we have already started work on Public Announcement systems and the likes. What if these are not in the proposal, we are working on them.”

What the commissioner doesn’t say is that none of these ideas was actually incorporated in the smart city plan. “If it was only about the theme, then why did we have to put so much thought and come up with one action plan?” said Prashant.

Milind said, “It isn’t about the waste management. It’s about making the builders accountable for the debris that they create.” While the commissioner states that it is all in the good of the city, at least three of its felicitated residents feel left out. gargi.verma@goldensparrow.com

PMC chief finally gets a nod from corporators Kumar takes corporators’ criticism in stride, vows to deliver better results for the city

BY EKTA KATTI @Ektaak The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) corporators have finally given the green light to the smart city proposal after a marathon 11hour General Body (GB) meeting on Monday. On December 9, it was decided to postpone the smart city proposal but this turn of events now

has been a shot in the arm for Pune Municipal Commissioner Kunal Kumar, who believes that this was a historic development for Pune and its residents.

If the smart city plan was not forwarded to the Centre before December 15, Pune would have missed out on several facilities.

Talking to TGS on Monday, Kumar said, “I am happy that the

corporators agreed on the smart the city plan. It’s an important decision for the city’s future as Pune undertakes its journey Kunal Kumar to become a smart city.

“It’s a team effort. The proposal wouldn’t have been made without the participation of the citizens. I feel our strength was the good wishes of all citizens of Pune.”

Pune’s smart city proposal was submitted to the Centre in the nick of time on December 15, when Kumar handed over the proposal to the Urban Development Ministry.

With this Pune is eligible for selection in the first list of India’s smart cities.

Kumar was under fire by the corporators for asking the State Government to use its powers and direct the GB to take the decision before December 14.

But due to the criticism and suggestions by corporators, the

smart city budget dropped from Rs 3,900 crore to Rs 2,932 crore.

Congress corporator and opposition leader in the PMC Arvind Shinde said, “We had asked for time to go through the docket.

I’m happy that due to our protest Rs 968 crore was saved.”

Deputy Mayor Aba Bagul said, “This day will be etched in the history as this is the first time that this Section was evoked.”

Kothrud ward MNS corporator Kishore Shinde said, “The commissioner already has a lot on his plate.

So we insist that SPV should be headed by the Mayor who can easily interact with the citizens and corporators.”

The corporators insisted that the Mayor should head the Special Purpose Vehicle and that SPV head must be a people’s representative.

Kumar said, “I face criticism positively and will continue to strive for better results for the city. Now we have to start working for creation of SPV, refining of proposal and getting necessary approvals from the state and central governments.”

NCP, Congress and MNS corporators said that SPV should

Pune is now eligible for selection in the first list of smart cities

Citizens united to save the PMC chief’s smart city proposal

be dissolved if the organisation fails to function efficiently.

Some citizens had united to save the smart city proposal when the corporators wanted to submit the proposal in Phase 2. Some citizens still oppose the initiative.

Conveyer of the Save Pune City community, Ajit Abhyankar staged a protest against the smart city proposal outside the PMC building on December 14. He said, “It’s a fraud. The concept, planning,

and objective of the project is a farce. The plan of the smart city proposal is basically privatisation of the PMC. Double the amount allocated for the city development is used to develop Aundh, Baner and Balewadi, where just 40,000 people reside. PAN city areas comprise of more than three lakh citizens and a relatively smaller amount is allotted to that area. I fail to understand the math.” ekta.katti@goldensparrow.com

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY DECEMBER 19, 2015

“ As a Jew, my parents taught me that we must stand up against attacks on all communities. Even if an attack isn’t against you today, in time attacks on freedom for anyone will hurt everyone.”

— Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook CEO

“We must encourage a broad human outlook in all our citizens and educate them to rise above caste or communal loyalties. We must learn to respect the rights of minorities.”

— Pranab Mukherjee, President

TGS NEWS SERVICE @TGSWeekly Photographers@Pune’s annual photography exhibition ‘Drushtikon’ this year featured 100 selected photographs covering wildlife, p or t r a it s , landscapes, travel, nature, architecture, fashion and many genres; from basic to Bhushan Mate advanced, fine art and commercial photography. Shot across the globe with various cameras by members, each exhibit is a visual story and an inspiring window to the world. But what makes this annual event special is its noble cause. The organisers donate 50 per cent of the earning from the sale of photographs at the exhibition to sponsor education of deaf and mute children of Vidya Pratishthan.

Voluntary donations received from visitors at the event will also go towards the cause.

Popularly known as P@P, Photographers@Pune started in 2006 with

six passionate photographers coming together to popularise the art. The group has grown to 3,000 plus members and over one lakh photographs.

Drushtikon 2015 is the ninth edition of the exhibition. The selected photographs at the exhibition were picked from over 1,000 submitted entries.

Technology explosion and Internet has turned anyone with smartphone into a photographer. Millions of pictures are uploaded every minute.

And the influx has created the need for professionals to find innovative ways to distinguish their work and elevate their art. With expert advice available online and photography equipment and SLRs easily accessible and affordable, photography has become an everyday industry.

According to a statement issued by the club, the exhibition is open to all. The group organises various activities for its members, including photo shoots, photo-walks, seminars, workshops and annual charitable exhibitions like ‘Drushtikon’. The common element among members of P@P comprising people from all walks of life is the association with Pune. P@P has students, doctors, techies, corporate heads and family members comprising 15-year-olds to senior citizens. Its online website and forum launched in 2012 now has many followers.

The club shares pictures on the online photo sharing portal ‘Flickr’ and discuss photography, equipment and other details. According to the club, 30 new members and 250 new photographs get added to P@P pool each week with the current pool

VISHAL KALE

Capture the world for a noble cause

Part of profit earned at Photographers@Pune’s annual photography exhibition ‘Drushtikon’ goes towards education of needy children

Chief guest actor Ameya Wagh with students of Vidya Pratishthan at Drushtikon 2015

having 62,000+ photographs clicked by members. Their tagline ‘Lose a hobby…gain a passion…’ shows the club’s approach towards photography.

One of the participants, Bhushan Mate, took up photography as a hobby six years ago with a point to shoot camera and now uses Nexus 6p. “Smartphones have revolutionised photography,” he said. The 40-year-old professional who handles the logistics of 8-9 fi rms in Pune joined P@P through the online portal Flickr. “A team of founders, including Soumitra Inamdar, Suhas Desale, Prashant Patil, Yogendra Joshi, Anand JadSoumitra Inamdar hav, Chaitanya

Initiative to digitise and empower farmers Australia-based techie is helping farmers across the country sell their produce and earn profits

BY SALONEE MISTRY @SaloneeMistry Agriculture is known to be one of the oldest professions of India but in today’s time it is becoming one of the most dreaded.

With scanty rainfall always a constant worry for possible droughtlike situation, farmers are finding it extremely difficult to make both ends meet Prashant Patil and sustain their livelihood. Many have migrated to cities in search of jobs, but those left behind only wait for dark clouds to bring a new ray of hope.

Hailing from Karnataka and settled in Australia, techie Prashant Patil has come up with a complex but effective solution to address the woes faced by farmers. Setting up a digital platform that enables farmers to sell their produce directly to consumers is what he has been working on for a while. “I am only putting my technical expertise to use and creating a marketing tool for them. They not only get a bet-

ter price for their produce but customers too are benefited as it is cheaper for them,” said the 35-year-old.

Working under the initiative Mera Kisan, the online forum started its operation in Pune in October 2014.

With 4,600 farmers, the group has expanded to 60,000 plus registered farmers. All the backend work is done by the organisation team that currently comprises of 28 members. An important part for setting up was getting the farmers on board. Via workshops and meeting held in different villages across the country, the team has managed to educate and empower farmers to join them in the movement.

Explaining the process and working of the online platform, Prashant said, “When a customer places an order online, an SMS is sent to the farmer.

When one is making a purchase online, they can contact the farmer that they will be buying from. The farmer sends the required amount to our team and we package and distribute it to the one who placed

the order. The farmer has to just concentrate on doing what he is best at, which is growing the produce.”

The response has been overwhelming and the order requests have shot up. It is indeed becoming quite tough for the team to meet the requests and this they consider as positive as it only shows the demand for such a platform. There are two essential things that set this venture apart from the others. The fi rst being that one is able to see exactly who they are buying the products from and second is the elimination of multiple middlemen because of whom the farmer does not get his due. Keeping in mind the complexity of the model, Prashant took his time to set up the platform and is satisfied at the feedback, positive outcome and admits that there have been no challenges yet as such.

Prashant is funding the initiative on his own but plans to collaborate with corporates in the future.

Mera Kisan will hold a meet in the city on December 19 to support NGOs working in the field of agriculture. There will be a structured exhibition and conference forum which will allow organisations to network and strengthen their functionality.

“The event is poised to play an integral role in facilitating government agencies, agriculture institutions, professionals and NGOs in agriculture field and identify how they can collaborate and better serve the needs of farmers.

The event will also provide a wider platform for NGOs to connect directly with their peers, proactive humanitarians, farmers, funding bodies and policy-makers and provide them an opportunity to learn from their experiences and gain insights on governance, social challenges and to discuss how Eagriculture can help farmers to sell their products on global platform,” Prashant said. salonee.mistry@ goldensparrow.com

The digital platform enables farmers to sell products directly

PUNE

Khire and myself select the photographs to be displayed at ‘Drushtikon’.

Maximum of five entries from a photographer can be picked for the exhibition,” said Bhushan, adding that the club is a mix of people who take up photography as a hobby and those who analyse the medium.

With the annual exhibition bringing the various talent under one roof, the increasing popularity of P@P and the sale of photographs have been changing the lives of students of Vidya Pratishthan for many years. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com DON’T MISS When: 10 am – 8 pm, December 18-20, 2015 Where: Raja Ravi Varma Art Gallery, Ghole Road, Opposite Mahatma Phule Museum

Waste pickers’ job made less painful

New rooftop and collapsible carts are a boon for waste pickers TGS NEWS SERVICE @TGSWeekly The Solid Waste Collection and Handling (SWaCH) in association with Kagad Kach Patra Kashtakari Panchayat have come up with pushcarts with roof and side curtains (rooftop) and collapsible cart for the waste pickers in the city.

After eliciting feedback from a group of waster pickers from the city, changes was made to the earlier model.

Waste picker Shantabai Pawar, 40, was happy with the roof and side curtains model. She said, “I have been using this model cart since a couple of days. The citizens always complained of being bothered by the smell of garbage. The new model has curtains to block the smell. If we miss the garbage van, we can leave the cart as it is without creating a nuisance.”

The modified rooftop carts feature big wheels which are a big boon. “We used to suffer from lower back pain as we had to bend low.

The bigger wheels on the new model means we don’t have to bend low,” said Pawar.

The PMC officials were happy with the changes in the new carts, said Malti Gadil, a member of Kagad Kach Patra Kashtakari Panchayat.

“The roof and side curtain are for the convenience of the waste pickers.

We were helped by waste pickers in the testing phase. The new model has adjustable handles, the roof is of nylon which is more durable than fl ex

Changes were made in pushcarts after eliciting feedback from a group of waster pickers

or rexin,” said Gadil.

The old carts occupied a lot of space. The collapsible carts take up very little space. “The new collapsible model can be parked on crowded streets or housing complexes without creating an obstruction,” said Rajlaxmi Teli, a freelance designer with SWaCH. Another waste picker, Suman More, said, “It is easy to park on the streets as it can be collapsed to two feet in length.”

The base of the cart is divided into four hinged collapsible parts and the sides are made of hinged collapsible metal plates.

PMC vehicle depot superintendent engineer Kishor Pol said, “We have fi nalised both models.

The collapsible model is very efficient but we have asked the SWaCH member for make changes in the roof and side curtain cart.” tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY DECEMBER 19, 2015

PUNE

Their only option…

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jaml Morsing Chavan, 35, and his wife Seema, 30, cut sugarcane with machine-like precision. They work in haste, with a sense of anxiety, as they have a lot of work ahead of them to reach their target of cutting two tonnes of ‘material’. They travelled 450 kilometres from Sarola tehsil in Jalgaon district to Baramati, and currently live in a makeshift encampment outside the Malegaon factory. “We own a six-acre farm in my native place but drought makes cultivating it unprofitable. So I moved here with the entire family including my mother Anusayabai, and three sons,” said Ajaml. This is their sixth year returning to Baramati for the season. “We can’t make ends meet with farming, so doing seasonal work is our only option,” said Seema.

THE BITTERS

of the sugarcane A day in the life of migrant sugarcane cutters of Western Maharashtra

BY DNYANESHWAR BHONDE, AKSHAY MAHAJAN & SHAILESH JOSHI @TGSWeekly

The roads of Baramati are often said to be paved in sugar. A reference perhaps to how this everyday commodity to sweeten your cup of tea has changed the fortunes of people in the region. This region’s transformation has been brought about by the legion of unorganised migrant farm labourers from the acutely drought-hit areas of the state, particularly Latur, Beed and Ahmednagar districts. In the village of Manapa Vasti, a ‘toli’ or group of 15 to 20 farm labourers, made up smaller family ‘jodis’

or pairs, wake up early, at the crack of dawn.

They make their way to the fields, bullocks in tow carrying large canisters of water insulated with wet jute and a steel knife, the ‘koyta’ in hand. Harvesting cane is hard work and it requires lots of manpower.

The jodis approach the wall of ripe-and-ready-tocut sugarcane. Mostly young men harvest at an almost rhythmic pace as they move forward. Two cuts produce a freed ‘prachat’ (stalk). Knife raised again, it catches the glint of the winter sun, they cut down low at the stalk’s birth and top of the stalk.

The machetes move back at fourth as they work in unison, trying to keep up. They wear loose-fitting long-sleeved shirts to protect themselves from the

N

asiba Chandbhai Shaikh, 40, sorts cane, piling it up neatly so it can be loaded. At the same time she watches over her five-year-old grand-daughter Anjum. She’s doing her daughter a favour, since she is working on another field and is unable to take care of her daughter. Nasiba and her husband Shekhnoor have been seasonal farm labourers since 1992. “This is hard and continuous work, so much so that we have no time to cook, and we are forced to eat stale food,” said Shekhnoor. “If, at the end of season, we have not cut enough cane to set off the advance given to us, we will have to pay back the rest of the money. The rate of interest on this loan is 60 per cent a year,” he said. “It took approximately five hours of waiting at the sugar factory, and that is the reason we all have been deprived of sleep,” he said.

But sleep does not matter when there is a loan to be worked off, and then there is the worry of Anjum’s schooling.

S

anjay Gophane, 56, from Ashti, Beed district has been working in the fields since he was five years old. He received Rs 50,000 as advance for working in the Sakharwadi area. His wife Alka, 48, is with him. One of their bullocks’ eyes were severely damaged by an iron rod. The veterinary doctors couldn’t save the bullock’s vision. Now they have only one bullock to carry the twotonne load to the factory, with no compensation in sight.

Jack of trades

M

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avnath Bappa Ghongde, 24, is regarded and admired as a real life hero by his fellow workers in his toil, because of the way he has overcome all odds. He started working on the fields with his parents when he was 12 years old. Due to the untimely passing of his parents, the responsibility of the household fell squarely on oldest son Navnath’s shoulders.

“After the death of my parents, I had the responsibility of providing for and arranging the marriages of my two sisters. I paid off the debt and I got Rs 80,000 as advance for this season’s work,” he said, content with his current situation.

su

The wheel of misfortune

No time to cook…

Head of the family

sh do ste wo in bu th th th w ro off

Landless labourers

P

arshuram Adagale, 22, has studied till standard XII. He wanted to join the police force but failed to clear the constable recruitment in two attempts. That is the reason he is cutting cane at the Malegaon sugar factory, along with his 80-yearold father. They hail from Mhasobawadi, Baramati, which is considered to be a developed region. “I belong to the Mang caste which is listed among the Scheduled Castes, and is regarded as a backward caste in western Maharashtra. We do not own farmland, so I have no option but to work as labourer. It is better to work as sugarcane cutter because the sugar mill pays us enough for the daily subsistence of my family. I appeared for the police recruitment exams but failed to clear the written examination as there is nobody to guide me,” he said.

ahadev Ghongade, 26, and his wife Sheetal, 19, are for the first time. He is loading the cart with bundles wearing an oversized men’s shirt and trousers, is hard a keeping a watchful eye on her two-month-old son Karan, asleep sheet with a makeshift roof for shade. Mahadev had left his ho search of a job in the city. He landed in Bhosari Industrial area, an operator job paid him a measly Rs 3,000-4,000 monthly. He quit to selling spices in the vegetable market. “I used to make about R but it was not enough to look after my family’s needs, so I took th here, though most of it was spent on buying these bullocks for tr been able to inoculate for Karan because we have access to a docto

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY DECEMBER 19, 2015

PUNE

The middlemen

L

abour contractors and sugar factories go hand-in hand. Labour contractors register their tolis of workers as labour society or trust. The society office moves along with the contractors. Contractors are the middlemen with linkages to other contractors, tractorowners cum labour contractors, bullock cart contractors, etc.

They have a direct and personal interest in maintaining this workforce and most of them have themselves started as migrant labour. Commission from the various people in the chain is their main source of income (normally 15 to 18 per cent of the earnings). Below them is a head gang man known as a ‘mukadam’. This gang man keeps the harvesters under his control. He is paid a commission for his service from the earnings of harvester workers. The advances vary for workers associated with truck and tractors and bullock cart owners. They are paid by the labour contractors through the mukadams. If the mukadam or labour contractor does not get money from the sugar co-operatives, they are forced to go to financiers called ‘sawakars’, who charge interest (which is not institutional rate of interest) on such advances. However, this depends on the will of the labour brokers. In some cases the rate of interest is higher than that of the commercial banks. The rate of interest varies from broker to broker. Indebtedness in the form of advances is indirectly binding on the workers, in response to the contractor’s agreement for cane harvesting, and perpetuates their vulnerability and submission. Paying such advances keeps the brokers safe, because thereby the workers’ migration towards their destination is confirmed.

SWEET SAGA

e field labourers

harp-edged leaves. As the day goes by, the sun beats own on them. When the cane is cut, they take a ep back and throw it into a pile. Th is is where the omen take centre stage, as they stack the cane neatly nto bundles. Carrying the load they put it on to the ullock cart in a practiced manner. By afternoon heir cart full, the family makes the slow ride to he sugar factory in Malegaon. Long queues await hem there late into the night. For some others, the ait could last till the next day. Yet, after labouring ound-the-clock, they may still not be able to work ff the advance taken from their contractor.

Th is is a typical day in the life of migrant ugarcane cutters.

e harvesting cane s of cane. Sheetal, at work and is also p atop a tarpaulin ometown early in nd a lathe machine t that job and took Rs 12,000 a month he advance to work ransport. We have or,” he said.

Sugarcane being basically a perennial grass that grows back year after year, from the undisturbed roots left in the ground which allows for many harvests in a season. Their lives are a half-yearly cycle of migration born out the severe droughts in the 1960s and continues to this day because development disparities between Marathwada and the sugar belt.

Th is year they had the dimmest of Diwalis, with as much as a 75 per cent shortfall in rainfall and a complete failure of their Kharif crop. Men, women and children, entire villages pack up their meagre belongings into trunks and gather their cattle. Only the elderly are left behind. Fifteen lakh workers are faced with their own and survival of their livestock.

Before leaving their village, the families were given advances by contractors, which are set off against the quantity of sugarcane they cut. Like many migrant workers who travel from the dry Marathwada region to western Maharashtra’s sugarcane belt in search of work, many return to their village with a debt to repay. Herded into Tempos, they leave the barren fields of Marathwada behind. Th is year’s labour surplus has shortened the harvesting season from six months, which affects their wages. TGS visited these families in Baramati and Phaltan to better understand the sweat, toil and lives of these farmers. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com

Lifelong labour

‘TYRE’ CENTRE

BULLOCK CART OR ‘GADI CENTRE’

These workers cut the cane and fill it in bullock carts and then in tractor trolly or truck.

Then the cane is taken to the factory. These workers get Rs 212 per tonne.

KOYATA OR DOKI CENTRE These workers nether have tyre nor bullock cart. They cut the cane and make bundles and fill the truck, carrying the cane on their head. They get Rs 180 per tonne

In the mukadam’s shoes

STATISTICS Total numbers of sugar industries in Maharashtra (co-operative and private): 235 2014-15

These workers cut the cane and ferry it by bullock carts to the factory. They are given Rs 236 per tonne and the transportation adds ten rupees per kilometre.

omen go about their chores at a temporary encampment in Phaltan. There is barely any shelter. They set up temporary encampments in the vicinity of the fields they work on. The conical huts called ‘kopis’ are made from sugarcane stalks. During rains the huts get waterlogged. There is no electricity nor toilets, and the women have to bathe in the open. These families are on the move every two weeks when the work in a village is done. There is always a new field to harvest and because of this constant moving, their children do not get any education.

Women at the encampment in Sakharwadi start their day before dawn, making bhakari and bhaji. They then travel to ‘fad’, the cane field which is five to ten kilometres away. They cut the cane without masks or hand gloves in the biting cold. The head of the cane is used as fodder for their bullocks and the rest is sold to other villagers. The couples cut the cane for up to 6-7 hours before loading the cart. Then the men wait with their bullock carts in long queues outside the sugar factory, while the women return home to attend to their evening chores.

sha Kondiba Rathod is the wife of Kondiba, 30, the mukadam, and is a resident of Thakarwadi in Beed district. They travel with their three-year-old son Karan. Their status as the head has allowed them to leave their older children with the grandparents so that they can be educated. Kondiba is responsible for eight other labour jodis.

S

The wage structures are different for three types of sugar cane cutters:

W

U

hahabai Gophane, 55, at her age is still working as she has been for the last 40 years, along with husband Navnath, 60.

They hail from Ashti tehsil in Beed district and have made camp outside the sugar factory Sakharwadi in Phaltan. Shahabai does not want her son to join her trade. “The work is so hard and I don’t want to push my son Uttam into this business,” she said. Uttam is in the fi rst year of college in Ahmednagar. “I have been sending him money for his living and educational expenses for five years,’’ she said.

The work has taken a toll on her and she has to cope with stiff and aching knees.

WAGE STRUCTURE

Living conditions of 15 lakh farm hands

• 190 sugar factories were operating out of 235 • 9 crore 29 lakh metric tonnes sugarcane • Sugar production 104 lakh metric tonnes 2015-16 • 164 sugar factories are operating out of 235 • 220 lakh metric tonnes sugarcane • Sugar production 215 lakh quintals (Info Provided by Sugar Commissionerate), Pune

AUTHORITY SPEAK Maharashtra State Sugarcane Labour, Transport, Mukadam Union Chairman Gahininath ThorePatil said that there are around 15 lakh sugarcane migrant labourers in Maharashtra, most of them from Marathwada, and the numbers are increasing owing to the drought situation. “The surplus labour from Maharashtra has gone to sugar industries in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Gujarat. There are nearly 180 sugar mills in Maharashtra, but because of the current condition they were not able to pay advances this year.” he said. These workers don’t get proper wages.

“The factory gives 400 rupees per tonne to the cane harvesting machine. They haven’t got last year’s dues till the date. The due amount of last year is 673 crore rupees by all sugar industries which was approved by the chief minister,” he said. Th is year Minister Pankaja Munde also announced a 20 per cent hike in the labourers’ wages which the factory hasn’t paid yet.

Gahininath Thore-Patil

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY DECEMBER 19, 2015

TECH/START-UP

PUNE

“Alien Robots used in famous Transformers movie series are so huge, that if all robot parts are laid out end to end, it would stretch from one side of California to the other, about 180 miles.”

— http://www.wtfdiary.com/

We will not let Americans be terrorised: White House P 11

Finding faith in cyberspace VISHAL KALE

With fast-paced lifestyle constricting urbanites to follow religious rituals, online portal and mobile application MuhurtMaza is on call

BY ABHA PANDIT @abha_pandit

Every Hindu home in urban set-up religiously want to follow traditional rituals but fall short of time. Their lives revolve around elaborate religious and spiritual ceremonies with a pandit being the central figure. But nuclear families and fast-paced lifestyles has turned arranging these rites more a hassle than anything else. The metro generation would like to perform these ceremonies but it has become increasingly difficult to find bhatjis (priests) and collect puja materials.

MuhurtMaza offers a complete package for puja at the click of a button. An online portal and mobile application, MuhurtMaza provides puja essentials (Samagree) along

MuhurtMaza founder Sughosh Sowale (left) explaining the facility to a client

with bhatji or guruji on the date of your choice, right at the doorstep. The online facility also provides auspicious dates (muhurat) for conducting puja. Apart from offering over 140 different types of rituals, one also has the option of customising puja, depending on language or tradition.

The Android and iOS app of MuhurtMaza was launched in September and have already organised and performed more than 150 pujas in two months.

Founder Sughosh Sowale found this sector extremely unorganised with young professionals settling in Pune facing a stressful time organising pujas at home and domestic functions.

MuhurtMaza faced initial opposition after its launch in 2014. “Although youngsters were all for this idea owing to its convenience, the elders were skeptical since it was not the traditional method,” Sughosh said. With time, the concept got acceptance and gained

popularity through word of mouth.

The founder said that MuhurtMaza was conceptualised in 2012 but could not take off as e-commerce boom had not yet hit the market. “It was difficult to get bhatjis earlier.

Now, pandits themselves want to register to offer their services at MuhurtMaza and we have 300 priests on board,” he said.

The online facility have an effective method to screen priests. “We have a panel of three experts who go through the detailed bio-data of applicants before hiring them. All bhatjis are presently hired on freelance basis,” Sughosh said. MuhurtMaza has gained popularity in the past six months. NRIs who visit India lead their client list, along with working individuals. “These religious ceremonies constitute approximately $30 billion market in India. We offer services in Pune, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Nagpur, Nashik, Aurangabad and Kolhapur and plan to cover another 20 cities in the next couple of months.

“We plan to tie up with temples for customers who do not have the time to perform puja at the religious place,” he said. abha.pandit@goldensparrow.com

Explore use of GM seeds with Portal for adequate safeguards: Experts gardening, farm needs Taskforce has invited comments from states, the general public, farmers and traders

An expert panel under NITI Aayog has floated a set of ideas, including exploring use of genetically-modified seeds and minimum crop support price (MSP) reforms, for broader discussion.

“India should explore selective use of transgenic seed varieties with necessary safeguards in areas where conventional technology is not yielding the much-needed gains like pulses and oil seeds,” stated a paper based on inputs of an agriculture taskforce set up under NITI Aayog and headed by its ViceChairman Arvind Panagariya.

All these options are being explored in order to revive the farm sector growth and the sector’s contribution to Indian economy with an ultimate aim to bring India back on a high growth trajectory.

The taskforce has invited comments from various stakeholders like states, the general public, farmers and traders.

According to the paper, the BT cotton in India and many more GM seeds elsewhere in the world proved the potential use of GM technology by giving a boost to productivity in agriculture.

The paper said transgenic seed varieties can also help in addressing adverse effects of pesticides on human health and environment, food safety, abiotic stresses and vitamin and nutrient

Paper said transgenic seed varieties can also help in addressing adverse effects of pesticides on human health and environment

deficiencies in diets.

On MSP reforms, it said, one possible way to keep a check on prices falling below threshold level is to adopt the system of Price Deficiency Payment (PDP). While MSP may still be used for need-based procurement, the remainder of the produce may be covered under PDP, it suggested. Under PDP, in case the price of a commodity falls below a threshold level, the government will compensate the farmers up to a certain level like up to 10 per cent of the benchmark cost. The paper said that to start with, cotton may be adopted as a test crop for a pilot case in select districts of leading states.

Similarly, it also advocated putting in place land leasing laws for use of direct benefit transfer of subsidies to

farmers. Currently, land is tilled by tenants and the government ends up providing subsidy to land owners under the proposed move, an expert explained.

According to the paper, NITI Aayog should prepare “model land leasing Acts” that can be used by various states to reform their existing land lease provisions and Acts keeping in view the differences in existing laws, land tenure systems and special circumstances of hilly states.

Once this Act is in place, the paper said, a mechanism based on Aadhaar authentication can be devised to provide relief to farmers in distress.

The paper also suggested accelerated replacement of seeds and payment of direct fertiliser subsidy to farmers.

PTI

An interactive portal aimed at providing quality products and credible knowledge to avid farmers and gardeners in India has been launched.

Ugaoo.com envisages changing the way of India farms and gardens, portal founder Siddhant Bhalinge told reporters at the launch event.

The online store sells equipment and encourages informative discussions based on topics related to gardening and farming, he said.

Ugaoo.com will promote urban farming by providing sound and credible knowledge to those who want to teach and learn, he said.

With initial focus on Mumbai and Pune, Ugaoo. com has tied up with over 50 manufacturers and has distribution plans all across India. With a strong delivery network all across India and convenient payment options, Ugaoo plans to reach out to the remotest corners of the nation so that no one is deprived of going green, he said.

“The Food Agriculture Organisation (FOA) estimates that India is home to 11 per cent arable land of the world.

Currently, the gardening market in India is approximately Rs 5,000 crore, which is much lower when compared to other economies like China. This presents a huge opportunity,” he said.

“Ugaoo.com aims to connect all individuals residing in urban and rural areas to come together and start growing for a healthier future and a greater cause towards the nation,” Bhalinge said.

The portal will appeal to professional gardeners, horticulturists, architects, landscape architects, interior decorators, urban farmers, hobby gardeners, plant lovers and the rural large scale farmers of India, he said.

Ugaoo.com has been selected among the world’s top 40 most promising start-ups by WebSummit tech conference, he said.

PTI

New river regulatory zone rules to be launched soon, says Prakash Javadekar Against the backdrop of recent floods in Tamil Nadu and Jammu and Kashmir, the Centre said it was preparing new river regulatory zone rules to check encroachments along riverbeds and introduce waste management mechanisms in Himalayan states.

Noting that management of solid waste, e-waste and construction waste management are a big concern in Himalayan states, Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said the government will put in place proper waste management mechanism even in small hamlets of hill states.

“New rules for River Regulatory Zones are being prepared and will be launched soon,” Javadekar said while referring to the recent floods in Chennai, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand.

Javadekar was addressing the concluding session of the second meet of Parliamentarians from Himalayan states where more than 12 MPs participated.

Referring to the encroachments along river beds, Javadekar said that there is a need for taking up stern measures on this

and his ministry will do so. Javadekar said that unless representatives of the people are involved, the desired results will not be achieved. He said that similar meetings with Members of Legislative Assemblies, members of Panchayats and Members of Zila Panchayats will also be held on similar lines.

“We want to put in place proper waste management mechanism even in small hamlets of hill states,” he said, adding that the gap in enforcement can be overcome

through technological support.

Former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Shanta Kumar said urbanisation and population burst was the biggest issue in the hill state that needs to be addressed.

MPs also spoke about the monkey menace and other stray animals which destroy crops.

Javadekar pointed out that he had written two letters to all the states on the issue and told them that they should send proposals to the Centre. Javadekar referred

Rescue works at Chennai as floods killed many and left thousands homeless

to the provision of declaring any species as vermin and granting rights to a state to hunt them down. Javadekar said that only one state has sent the proposal which was approved by his Ministry.

Javadekar, while launching an initiative ‘Climate Change- Indian Himalayan Region: Our Mountains, Our Future today’, said that the change in lifestyle and new innovations will happen only when people come together.

“Through this initiative, there will be a lot of activities across all Himalayan states.

This will be a continuous process. There are thousands of people doing amazing work.

We are going to bring them together and promote the networking of change agents from across the Himalayan region.

“After two years, we will have developed a very strong group of more than 5,000 agents of change, who will join us when the Climate Change initiative returns to Delhi in 2017. We will then do a huge event and call the Prime Minister,” Javadekar said.

PTI

APP WORLD

Online delight for booklovers Home Library

IOS/Android: Free Home Library is a very convenient software application for reading books which contains over 2,400 classic works of English literature and covers almost all genres: fiction, philosophical treatises, opinion journalism, memoirs, children’s books and others. Now you do not have to search a book through many databases on the web – just download our app and you will always have a massive e-book collection of the best English-language writers within reach! In the list of 370 authors you will be agreeably surprised to find not only the famous names like Charles Dickens, Arthur Conan Doyle, O. Henry, Jack London, Edgar Allan Poe, Robert Louis Stevenson, Mark Twain, but many, many others.

Aldiko

IOS/Android: Free This free book reader is one of the best readers that you can get on an Android device. The user interface lets you adjust fonts, font size, background colors, and other options, which can really enhance your reading experience. Aldiko also has a night-time reading option that makes it easier to read at night. Other useful features include tagging and bookmarking, dictionary support, and a global-text search that helps you look up words, without leaving the app. Aldiko Book Reader is a highly recommended app for book lovers.

Goodreads

IOS/Android: Free Goodreads for Android is the official app of Goodreads, the social networking site for bookworms. Goodreads is considered the world’s largest social network for avid readers and book lovers. If you’re looking for an Android app that can help you find the latest bestselling books around, then this app is your best friend. You can interact with other book lovers around the world, read book reviews, and post your own book reviews and ratings. The app also comes with a barcode scanner that will allow you to scan books for more information by simply pointing your device at the code. You can also use this functionality to quickly add books to your own library. If you’re an avid reader, Goodreads is a must-have application on your Android smartphone and tablet.

Audible

Android: Free Bookworms have the propensity to burn their eyes out from all that reading, especially if they do it on a bright screen. Is this something that you can relate to? It turns out that reading is also about listening. Audible is the world’s largest provider of digital audio books through their dedicated Android app.

Apart from the endless audio books, the app also offers bookmarking features and social media integration. And not only that! Other features include sleep mode, button free mode, and the play-as-you-download functionality. Audible is an awesome app for book lovers.

Wattpad

Android: Free Wattpad is the world’s largest community of readers and writers. Basically, Wattpad is a place where you can read thousands of books written by some of the best budding writers around the world.

Wattpad lets you browse over 3 million books in its library, with stories ranging from romance to science fiction.

You can also share the books that you’ve read via your social networking account or upload the content that you wrote yourself. Furthermore, the app also features an auto-scroll functionality, offline reading, and night mode. Plus, Wattpad has a humongous library of books for your reading pleasure

ENVIRONMENT

AIR POLLUTION HAS KILLED 30,000!

Air pollution is responsible for 10,000 to 30,000 deaths annually in Delhi as it is the fifth leading cause of death in India, a report by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) said.

The publication ‘Body Burden 2015: State of India’s Health’ released also said that climate change is leading to greater frequency and intensity of extreme weather events.

Your faith in god can be altered

Smartphones to help fight air pollution

AIIMS in collaboration with Melbourne Institute of Technology in Australia is working towards developing low-cost helmets having better ventilation for Indian weather conditions, which is mostly hot and humid.

“We are working closely with the Melbourne Institute of Technology in Australia to develop helmets which is light and airy so that people do not feel uncomfortable putting it on. The reason is that a country like India has a climate which is not very congenial for a helmet for at least nine months.

As it is uncomfortable, people do not wear helmets.

“So if we come up with a helmet which is light and airy and also strong, many people would use it without any hesitation,” AIIMS Director MC Mishra said.

About 377 people die on Indian roads every day -- the world’s highest fatalities in road accidents, according to ‘Road Accidents in India 2013’, a report by Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.

Experts say many of these deaths and injuries can be brought down if people riding two-wheelers wear Apart from this, AIIMS in collaboration with Monash University, Melbourne is doing a long-term research project in trauma systems. Under ‘Australia India Trauma Systems’ collaboration project, the apex trauma centre will try develop a national trauma registry for the country. “The aim is to develop a national registry so that we can have a good robust trauma data composed of uniform data elements that describe the injury event, demographics, prehospital information, diagnosis, care and outcomes of injured patients.

“Although we have an institutional registry, we want other small hospitals to also collect data and provide us so that a national policy could be formulated by analysing it,” AIIMS spokesperson Amit Gupta said.

PTI

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TGS LIFE

Run for... yourself

NATION

CITY

Get your voice heard on NetaG P6

No damaged goods please P3

GRANDCHILDREN SUE THE COMPLETE MAN

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Dr Vijaypat Singhania’s grandchildren from his estranged son Madhupati have moved Bombay High Court seeking their share in ancestral property. They have filed a suit against their grandfather, father, mother and Raymond Limited. Detailed story on p7 TGS LIFE

When hunger strikes past midnight

NATION

CITY

Bakery worker’s daughter gets her wings P 12

Why are traffic cops taking selfies these days?

P3

DITCH THE

AUTO,

HAIL A

CAB

GAUTAM SINGHANIA

or long distances (depending on their mood), overcharge or ask for obnoxious fares, often refuse to ply by meter – the list is endless.

TGS Team members decided to give the ‘victimised’ autorickshaw drivers a chance.

Five members of the team tried hiring rickshaws for distances ranging between 1.5 and 20 kms. All the members came back irked and disgruntled. The autorickshaw community let us down badly, as they do with citizens across the twin cities.

Then we tried our luck with private cab operators, who were more than were willing to oblige and take us wherever we wanted to go, for a price of course.

In some cases, the cab fare worked out cheaper than what the auto drivers were asking us to cough up.

Intentions of Dr Singhania were ‘malafide and illegal’ with a motive to grab the share of Madhupati and Anuradha as well as grandchildren and to achieve the same he directed that his son and daughter-inlaw move to another country ‘instead of Collectively Pune Municipal continuing to stay in India with the family.

6

Spotlight Pg 8 and 9

CHIKHALI

ALANDI

KIWALENIGDI AKURDI

CHINCHWAD

RAVET

BHOSARI

4 THERGAON HINJEWADI VILLAGE

KALEWADI FATA

WAKAD

DIGHI

NASHIK PHATA

5

LOHEGAON

DAPODI 50

PIMPLE GURAV

WAGHOLI

3 4 BANER

VISHRANT VIMAN WADI NAGAR YERWADA

AUNDH

2

SANGAMWADI PASHAN

AH47

WADGAON SHERI

MUNDHWA

SHIVAJI NAGAR

GHORPADI

9

BAVDHAN

CAMP

HADAPSAR

KOTHRUD

SWARGATE PARVATI

WANOWRIE

1

NANDED AMBEGAON BUDRUK

KONDHWA

UNDRI

KATRAJ

4

Sab golmal hai...

Had it not been for a Pune-based activist everybody had forgotten about a film on Lokmanya Tilak commissioned in 2001 by Central Government at the cost of `2.5 crores. Three years after Vishnu Kamalapurkar raised questions about the film, the project is nowhere in sight

said director of the school, who

fi led the FIR and kept in touch with “We are feeling the investigating officer and public prosecutor The director is let down by the PUNE, MARCH 14, 2015throughout. | www.thegoldensparrow.com yet to get a copy of the order. prosecution The case dates back to February 2013 when some of the students and the system. studying in class five walked up to their class teacher and alleged that It is upsetting their creative writing sir had touched because we do them inappropriately. The class teacher in turn informed the principal and not how to face management.

School authorities spoke to several other students and the parents and found that 22 girls in all had levelled similar allegations. Director of the students who school approached Chaturshrungi came forward police station and lodged an FIR under the Protection of Children from to give their Sexual Offences Act (POCSOA).

The investigation was carried out by statements.”

DIRECTOR OF THE SCHOOL

DEHU

Corporation, PimpriChinchwad Municipal Corporation and Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited have spent `1,816 crores on constructing dedicated corridors and flyovers along major routes, erecting bus shelters, and buying buses.

Despite this not a single route is operational or has succeeded in years. Citizens residing in twin cities continue to cry foul over pathetic public transport system. And from the looks of it nothing is going to change in near future.

See Spotlight on p8&9

~ Suit filed by the siblings

The creative writing teacher from a reputed school in Baner was booked and arrested in February 2013. A special court acquitted him on the grounds that police bungled up in collecting evidence

RITU GOYAL HARISH

Parents teach them more than exams do P 10

`1,816 crores spent on BRTS,

Precious man hours are lost every day at Hinjewadi just because planners forgot to make more entry and exit points. Over a decade after Hinjewadi was planned to house country’s best IT firms and talent, planners have finally woken up to the plight of citizens.

They have now planned five alternative roads. But the authorities are in no hurry to complete them. See spotlight on p8 & 9

The case created ripples across the city. A teacher was accused of sexually abusing 22 students all from fi fth standard of a reputed school in Baner.

In February 2013, Chaturshrungi police registered a case of sexual abuse against the creative writing teacher and arrested him immediately. Two years after the cops went all out to claim that they had a watertight case, the teacher has been acquitted by a Special Court. The court ruled that the prosecution made out a weak case. The management of the school and parents of students are not only disappointed but also irked with the outcome.

“We are feeling let down by the prosecution and the system. It is upsetting because we do not how to face the parents and students who came forward to give their statements.

We believe we were on the right,”

Truly, a tree lady P4

~ Suit filed by the siblings

What a mess!

Teacher booked for sexually abusing 22 students acquitted

COMMUNITY CONVERSATIONS

CITY

TGS LIFE

Hum Saath Saath Hain

And yet no respite for commuters

DR VIJAYPAT SINGHANIA

Madhupati Singhania (57) and his wife Anuradha (54) with their children Ananya (29), Rasaalika (26), Tarini (20) and Raivathari (18)

Rickshaw unions across the city want us to believe that private cab service providers or radio cab operators, as they are popularly known as, are villains.

Around 12,000 radio cabs have made their lives miserable for 50,000-odd autorickshaw drivers in twin cities of Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad. The auto drivers want us to believe that corporate houses with deep pockets behind the cab services are eating into their share. Essentially poor rickshaw drivers are getting poorer because of stiff competition from private cab operators.

All that the auto drivers are saying is true. But what they are not telling us or willing to concede is that their enemy lies within. Their enemy number one is not private cabs but members of their own ilk – many of whom are rude, refuse to ply short

While Gautam Singhania ‘in a span of 14 years as CMD of Raymond Limited has built a personal net worth of `1.4 billion, Madhupati belonging to the same family was struggling to settle down in a new country, educate his children and make a new life.’ Gautam and his family led a luxurious life ‘with fancy cars, private jets, yachts and expensive holidays.’

PICS ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

About 377 people die on Indian roads every day, the world’s highest fatalities in road accidents

Ladies, take note! If you feel unreasonably aggressive during the winters, you may blame it on your hormones, suggests a new study that found a link between short winter days and increased aggression in females.

The study on hamsters, which advances basic knowledge on the connection between certain sex hormones and aggression, could go on to advance research on the treatment of inappropriate aggression in humans, researchers said.

RAHUL RAUT

Low-cost helmets for India

more aware of their bodies through, among other things, fat shaming, the cosmetics and plastic surgery industry and hypersexualised imagery in media,” said Jerome Koch, sociology professor at the Texas Tech University.

“What we may be seeing is women translating that awareness into empowerment. We know women sometimes replace a surgically removed breast, for example, with elegant body art,” she said.

“We wonder if more tattoos might be a way of reclaiming a sense of self in the wake of an emotional loss evidenced by a suicide attempt,” she said. In a 2008 study, Koch’s team found women were more than twice as likely as men to want tattoos removed, as a way of dissociating from the past.

PTI

BEWARE OF SHORT WINTER DAYS

ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

Your smartphones could soon help you combat a deadly form of air pollution, thanks to a new low-cost and reliable method of detecting nitrogen dioxide - a significant air pollutant, scientists say.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) contributes to more than seven million deaths worldwide each year, researchers said.

The gas increases the risk of respiratory disorders in children and can severely affect the elderly in particular.

The negative impact of nitrogen dioxide could be prevented by access to personalised, highly selective, sensitive and reliable monitoring systems that could detect harmful levels of the gas early, project leader Professor Kourosh Kalantar-zadeh, from RMIT’s Centre for Advanced Electronics and Sensors (CADES), said. “The revolutionary method we’ve developed is a great start to creating a handheld, low-cost and personalised NO2 sensor that can even be incorporated into smartphones,” Kalantar-zadeh said.

PTI

Women with a history of suicide attempts may use tattoos as a coping mechanism, according to a new study which suggests that the body art may be a way of dissociating with one’s past.

Some interesting emotional correlations emerged in the study among college-age respondents with four or more tattoos, researchers said.

Women with multiple tattoos reported higher levels of self-esteem than anyone else in the study.

Moreover, escalating acquisition of body art does not correlate with increased depression or suicide ideation among men or women, researchers said. However, the same multi-tattooed women also reported a much higher frequency of past suicide attempts.

“I think women, especially, are

THANK GOD IT’S S AT U R D AY

ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

about immigrants. The findings showed that people in whom the targeted brain region was temporarily shut down reported 32.8 per cent less belief in God, angels, or heaven. They were also 28.5 per cent more positive in their feelings towards an immigrant who criticised their country. “People often turn to ideology when they are confronted by problems,” said Keise Izuma, from the University of York.

PTI

Craze of popular social networking site Facebook has witnessed a drop among city youngsters with 83 per cent using it against 91 per cent last year, a TCS survey showed.

“Facebook leads from the forefront (used by 83 per cent) followed by Google+ (used by 74 per cent). An interesting observation was that Google+ was more popular among young girls of the city (used by 78 per cent) as against Facebook (used by 67 per cent girls),” the TCS Youth Survey results said.

Last year, Facebook recorded a lion’s share of 91 per cent young users, followed by Google+ at 72 per cent and Twitter at 47 per cent.

The TCS Youth Survey is one of the largest surveys in the country that captures the Digital habits of children between the age group of 12-18 years.

Generation Z (Gen Z) is defined as the group born after 1995 – the current youth generation. TCS has been conducting the TCS Youth Survey with students across 15 cities, as part of the TCS IT Wiz Quiz.

The report also revealed that smartphones are the most coveted electronic gadget (84 per cent) amongst Hyderabadi teenagers.

However, desktops/home PCs and laptops are the most popular mode of accessing the Internet (48 per cent) followed by smart phones (33 per cent).

Vice President and Global Head, Technology Business Unit, TCS, V Rajanna said Gen Z youth of Hyderabad are socially collaborative, and technologically aware. “Our annual survey of high school children across India helps us understand tomorrow’s professionals,” he said.

PTI

Do tattoos help women cope better?

ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

Our belief in God and prejudice towards immigrants can be reduced by directing magnetic energy into a specific region of the brain, researchers have found.

Researchers from the University of York in UK and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in US, carried out an innovative experiment using transcranial magnetic stimulation, a safe way of temporarily shutting down specific regions of the brain. The researchers targeted the posterior medial frontal cortex, a part of the brain located near the surface and a few inches up from the forehead that is associated with detecting problems and triggering responses that address them.

In the study, half of the participants received a low-level “sham” procedure that did not affect their brains, and half received enough energy to lower activity in the target brain area.

Next, all of the participants were first asked to think about death, and then were asked questions about their religious beliefs and their feelings

PUNE

Supriya Bhoite from Chaturshrungi police station.

Contd on p4

PUNE, MARCH 28, 2015 | www.thegoldensparrow.com

advance, and second instalment was to be released after completion of certain formalities. The very next year second instalment was also disbursed.

Cut to October 2012 – Kamalapurkar fi led an RTI with chief public information officer (CPIO) of Ministry of Culture seeking information about the fi lm on Tilak.

The CPIO was clueless about the project and sought information from his colleagues in other department in the same ministry. But none of them knew about the existence of fi lm. In January 2013, the Culture Ministry forwarded his application to Information and Broadcasting Ministry (I&B) as well hoping that they would have commissioned the fi lm. I&B in turn contacted National Vishnu Kamalapurkar, Pune-based activist, sought details of the project in 2012 from Films Development Corporation the Central Government only to be told that they had no records left asking if Dhumale had registered a fi lm in the name of Lokmanya Bal

BY ASHOK BHAT Gangadhar Tilak with them. The @ashok_bhat answer was negative.

RP Bahuguna, under secretary and The fi lm was jinxed from the start. It also CPIO of special cell in Ministry was commissioned to celebrate 50th of Culture wrote to Kamalapurkar in Anniversary of Indian Republic.

July 2013 admitting that the issue of While 2000 was the celebratory year, funds being sanctioned for such a fi lm the project was assigned to fi lm-maker by the government came to light only PUNE, MARCH 21, 2015 | www.thegoldensparrow.com Vinay Dhumale only by the end of after receiving his RTI. 2001. Money was doled out and it was Contd on p4 expected to get over in a year’s time.

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+') *5 ƫ %( 'ƫ3 /ƫ ministry had been wound up, and that the fi lm will be released in “next +))%//%+*! ƫ 5ƫ +20ƫ+"ƫ * % ƫ that fi lm-maker could not be traced. two to four months”. He still hasn’t %*ƫ ! !) !.ƫĂĀĀā Essentially, the government acceded answered several questions raised by đƫ $!ƫ,.+&! 0ƫ3 /ƫ +))%//%+*! ƫ 0+ƫ*+0! ƫüƫ()ġ) '!.ƫ %* 5ƫ that it had been duped of `2.5 crores, the government about the script and $1) (!ċƫ`ĂċĆƫ .+.!/ƫ3!.!ƫ the sum that was transferred to the the star cast. / * 0%+*! ƫ 5ƫ0$!ƫ + ƫ"+.ƫ0$!ƫ fi lm-maker.

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ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

strengthening the Tertiary Health Care facilities.

He said the Centre also provides medical facilities for patients through central government hospitals or institutions in different parts of the country.

PTI

Facebook craze drops among Hyderabad teens

ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

Over 10,000 people have lost their lives to respiratory infection in the past three years, the government told Upper House of Parliament amid reports of increasing air pollution in cities.

Union Health and Family Welfare Minister JP Nadda said that respiratory diseases are believed to be associated with air pollution exposure, while citing National Health Profile 2015 data.

In a written reply, Nadda also said that the health is a state subject and it is primarily the responsibility of the state governments to provide healthcare to patients, including those suffering from respiratory and other ailments.

The Central government, however, supplements the efforts of state governments, he added.

Nadda said that about 3.17 crore cases of acute respiratory infections were reported in 2012, out which 4,155 people died.

In 2013, as many as 3.17 crore cases came up with reported death of 3,278 people and in 2014, 2,932 people died with 3.48 crore reported cases.

The government has taken various measure to control environmental pollution, including tightening of vehicular and industrial norms, promotion of cleaner technologies, strengthening of network of air quality monitoring stations, and promoting public awareness, he said.

Under the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme, Nadda said the districts and states have been strengthened by providing additional manpower, training of identified Rapid Response Team members, strengthening of laboratories for detection of epidemic prone disease including acute respiratory infections.

Provisions for health system strengthening are made under the National Health Mission (NHM), Nadda said, adding that various schemes are also being implemented for

DECEMBER 19, 2015

“Climate change is not of our making. It is the result of global warming that came from an industrial age powered by fossil fuel.

We want the world to act with urgency.”

— Narendra Modi, Prime Minister

Respiratory infection takes heavy toll Respiratory diseases are believed to be associated with air pollution exposure, according to National Health Prof ile 2015 data

H EALTH

ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

“We have today reassured our future generation that we all together will mitigate the challenge posed by climate change and we will give them a better future.”

— Prakash Javadekar, Environment Minister

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY

Ministry of Culture wrote to Kamalapurkar admitting that the issue came to light only after receiving his RTI

When

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A family that prays together stays together. Pune’s joint families on why they agree to disagree

TGS takes a night trail around the city to look for places that will silence a grumbling tummy in the dark of night

The Kamdars

Run for…

yourself

Puneites are running to fight depression, lethargy, even physical disadvantage. Marathoners are taking over the street and making the city fitter than it has ever been

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“Those who claim the legacy of Panditji ( Jawaharlal Nehru) must ask themselves the question, what kind of history are they making? The current session of parliament is also threatened with a washout. The reasons for the washout keep changing by the hour.”

— Arun Jaitley, Finance Minister

Black money: Swiss laws to ease sharing of stolen info P 12

GST Bill entangled in a cat and mouse game The aggression shown by Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi suggests the compromise will not be that easy

BY SUBHASHIS MITTRA The Goods and Services Tax Bill, a key reform legislation, is caught in cat and mouse game between the government and the opposition, mainly Congress.

Though Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi have held interactions on the proposed measure, only time will tell whether the Congress will support the GST Bill, as it is popularly known.

This is more so as the aggression shown by Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi suggests the compromise will not be that easy, though the BJP can certainly agree to one of the Congress party’s demands -- on the one per cent additional tax.

The first demand of the Congress is to specify GST rate in the Constitution Amendment Bill.

The second point is the proposed additional levy of upto one per cent by manufacturing states like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka to compensate them from losing out because the tax will be levied at the point of consumption

Opposition Congress members in the Lok Sabha in New Delhi

instead of the point of production.

This might be resolved by the Centre agreeing to compensate these states.

The third point is Congress wants a panel of judges to deal with disputes instead of the proposal to let the GST Council decide.

The BJP will, of course, use former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh to try and persuade the Congress party that its first and third demands are best dropped.

Now that the two sides are talking to each other, there appears some light at the other end of the tunnel to push the bill to its logical conclusion.

The recommendations of the panel headed by chief economic

Dalit issues taint Haryana in 2015

BY SANJAY GANJOO CHANDIGARH: Burning of two Dalit children sparking widespread condemnation, fixing of minimum qualification for panchayat poll contestants and Supreme Court endorsing it, Twitter-happy minister Anil Vij’s frequent brush with controversy and passage of a stringent cow protection law were some of the highlights of 2015 in Haryana.

A number of other issues also made news -- the state’s move to introduce Gita in school curriculum, an alleged paddy scam raked up by the Opposition, more incidents pertaining to Dalits, charge sheet against senior IAS officer Ashok Khemka being dropped, launching of Centre’s flagship ‘Beti Bachao-Beti Padhao’ campaign and yoga guru Ramdev made the state’s brand ambassador.

Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh also remained in the limelight as he featured in his own flick “MSG: The Messenger” and its sequel.

The Congress and principal Opposition INLD kept up the attack on the government over its alleged failure on issues related to power,

farmers, employees, guest teachers, and worsening law and order.

Despite scathing attacks from the Opposition parties, which branded the ruling dispensation as “inexperienced” and “non-performing”, the government led by first-time MLA and first-time Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar set the ball rolling for putting in place a transparent and graftfree administration.

The government undertook various initiatives of egovernance aimed at reducing interface between the public and government functionaries to help minimise corruption and rendering citizencentric services in a time-bound manner.

Olympic bronze-medallist Vijender Singh, bid adieu to his amateur career by turning professional in June. The beginning of the year saw Prime Minister Narendra Modi launching the ‘Beti Bachao-Beti Padhao’ campaign, while the year end brought good news for the Khattar government, with Supreme Court upholding the constitutional validity of the law that made minimum educational qualification compulsory for contesting panchayat elections.

PTI

The Congress and INLD kept up the attack on the govt

Vol-II* lssue No.: 27 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: 020-41220010.

adviser Arvind Subramanian on GST rates have triggered concerns that services, ranging from mobiles to entertainment, could become more expensive but the committee is confident that its proposals would have minimal inflationary impact.

In contrast, on the goods side, food products and furniture, among other manufactured products, may see a fall in prices, if retailers pass on the benefit to consumers.

“The suggested standard rate of GST of around 17-18 per cent appears to be a modest rate for manufacturers who currently suffer the levy of central excise duty at 12.5 per cent as well as state levies, which may be as high as

677 incidents of firing by Pakistan NEW DELHI: As many as 677 cases of cross- border firing by Pakistan have been reported from May 2014 to October 2015, Rajya Sabha was informed. “During the period May 2014 to October 2015, 677 cases of cross-border firing incidents by Pakistan Rangers have been reported along the Indo-Pakistan border,” Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju said in reply to a written question.

He said due to cross-border firing, the number of casualties of civilians during the period May 2014 to October 2015 in Jammu and Kashmir was 27.

“During this period three BSF jawans died and 19 were injured due to cross-border firing,” he said.

Rijiju said a number of steps have been taken to stop the cross-border firing, including India repeatedly telling Pakistan to uphold the sanctity of the Line of Control.

PTI

Lokayukta, Dadri issues haunt UP

14.5-15 per cent,” says Saloni Roy, senior director, Deloitte in India.

Economists have for long argued that the implementation of GST will help do away with the cascading effect of various taxes and actually help reduce the overall levies. With the entire value chain in the tax net, the government is looking at a wider tax base to trigger buoyancy in its collections.

The NDA’s lack of majority in the Upper House (Rajya Sabha) means that it has to get the opposition on board. Besides, once Parliament passes the Constitution Amendment Bill, at least half the state legislatures will have to ratify it.

As both sides are keen on having their say in passage of the key reform measure, Parliament is all set to witness a battle of wits.

Senior Congress leader and former Commerce Minister Kamal Nath has said the government’s reluctance to accept an 18 per cent cap on the Goods and Services Tax, as demanded by the main opposition party, is a “sticking point” in resolving the impasse.

Pitching for the inclusion of a cap through a Constitution amendment, Nath said it is required to ensure that no changes are made into it by a simple majority in Parliament, and dismissed as “absurd” the government’s proposal to have a Council of States instead as the Disputes Redressal Mechanism.

PTI Feature

Prime Minister Narendra Modi looks on as Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe is received by UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on his arrival in Varanasi

BY SUBHASHIS MITTRA LUCKNOW: Politically vibrant Uttar Pradesh will ring the curtain down on 2015 after a tug-of-war between Raj Bhawan and Akhilesh Yadav government on Lokayukta issue and the horrific Dadri lynching, even as ruling Samajwadi Party pulled up its socks for Assembly polls a year away.

In the run-up to the 2017 elections, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav sent a strong message that he means business when he carried out a massive reshuffle in his council of ministers dropping non-performers and striking a subtle balance between youth and experience.

The year also saw a festering feud between SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav and IG-rank IPS officer Amitabh Thakur, who was suspended after leaking to media the purported telephonic threat meted out to him by the SP patriarch. The litigation reached the doors of the judiciary, which also hogged the headlines for its rulings on appointment of 1.72 ‘shiksha mitras’ (primary teachers), who took the matter

SNOWFALL IN GULMARG

Tourists enjoy a walk at ski resort Gulmarg after fresh snowfall on Tuesday

The battle over beef...

The Constitution actually does not talk only about prohibiting slaughter of cows, but also of other milch and draught cattle

BY DR SAUMITRA MOHAN, IAS My family taught me to relish Hindu non-vegetarian delicacies since my childhood and I continue doing so with lip-smacking panache. In my puerile iconoclastic bid to establish my credentials as an enlightened and liberal Hindu, I have tried my hand at consuming both the Indian political meat namely beef and pork.

However, I failed miserably in my foolhardy gastronomic expeditions by throwing up every time I attempted. My own increasing disenchantment with non-vegetarian food notwithstanding, the fact remains that one’s affection for something as basic as food can’t be changed overnight.

But as a sovereign citizen of a modern liberal democracy, it is me who has taken all my decisions regarding ways to please my palate.

So, what has lately become

to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during one of his visits to Varanasi.

Court rulings on suspended NOIDA chief engineer Yadav Singh’s movable and immovable properties kept making news all the year round and threatened to become an albatross around the ruling SP’s neck.

In the Dadri incident, 50-yearold Ikhlaq was beaten to death and his 22-year-old son Danish critically injured by a 200-strong mob which barged into their house in Bisara village on a September night following rumours that the family had consumed beef. The matter snowballed into a major political issue as the timing was around Bihar Assembly polls and every party tried to score a brownie point.

The Dadri incident coupled with the killing of Kannada scholar MM Kalburgi triggered a spontaneous outrage from India’s intellectuals who have earned recognition, with a string of litterateurs returning their Sahitya Akademi awards, concerned over the silence of the august body over rising intolerance.

PTI

Political parties have appeared at loggerheads on the issue of meat ban with supporters taking out protest marches and strikes

fashionable in this country is not in order and definitely not legitimate.

Article 48 of the Indian

Constitution says, “...the State shall take steps for preserving and improving the breeds, and prohibiting the slaughter, of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle.”

So, the Constitution actually does not talk only about prohibiting slaughter of cows, but also of other milch and draught cattle whose meat is relished by the Hindus.

So, those asking for banning beef because it is mentioned in the Constitution should demand equal prohibition for other milch and draught cattle including goat and buffaloes.

A country whose citizens’ nutritional and employment status is already compromised just can’t afford to ban meat eating of one or the other kind. Pandit Thakur Dass Bhargava who suggested article 48 relating to cow slaughter in the Constituent Assembly had said, “I do not want that, due to its inclusion in the Fundamental Rights, non-Hindus should complain that they have been forced to accept a certain thing against their will.”

As the founding fathers of our Constitution did not want to force a decision on citizens, the end result was Article 48 in its extant form as one of the Directive Principles of State Policy.

PTI Feature

Over 81,000 deaths on rail tracks in 2012-15 NEW DELHI: Over 81,000 deaths have been reported on railway tracks since 2012, Lok Sabha was informed.

As many as 16,336 deaths took place on railway tracks in 2012, while 19,997 were in 2013, Minister of State for Railways Manoj Sinha said in a written reply in Lok Sabha.

Number of deaths reported in 2014 stood at 24,393, while it was 20,312 till the November this year.

Sinha admitted that there was a rise in the number of deaths on railway track. He said the Railway system is spread over the length and breadth of the country and people get run over due to various reasons, including trespassing, violating safety and cautionary instructions, avoiding over bridges, using mobile phones and other gadgets while crossing railway tracks, falling from trains while travelling on foot-boards, steps or roofs of the trains.

He said injured persons are promptly evacuated from the railway tracks. The guard of the concerned train informs the Station Superintendent of the nearest station, who arranges for medical assistance to the injured besides informing the police.

PTI

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY DECEMBER 19, 2015

“The leaders of India and Pakistan should decide they will no more let any element sabotage the peace process for well-being of the poor on both the sides, and other neighbouring countries.”

— Imran Khan, Chairman, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf

Indian domination in rollball will be over in next few yrs P 14

We will not let Americans be terrorised: White House All public schools in Los Angeles were closed due to an unspecified ‘electronic’ threat which affected over 6,60,000 students

India, US to share intelligence

BY LALIT K JHA WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama is resolute in his refusal to allow America and its citizens be terrorised, the White House has said, hours after all public schools in Los Angeles were closed following an emailed threat of violence.

“The President is resolute in his refusal to allow this country and our citizens to be terrorised. And there are several things the president is doing about that,” White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest told reporters at his daily news conference.

All public schools in Los Angeles were closed due to an unspecified “electronic” threat which affected over 660,000 students in one of the largest School District in the US. New York schools have received similar threats but they decided not to close the schools.

The FBI is investigating the matter.

Obama was briefed about the

President Barack Obama sits with Vice President Joe Biden and talks with Defense Secretary Ash Carter during a meeting with the National Security Council about the fight against the Islamic State Group at the Pentagon

incident early in the morning, the White House said.

“We have engaged this aggressive campaign to counter ISIL, to degrade and ultimately destroy that organisation.

That’s an indication and should be an indication to you and to the American public that the president and the federal government are cognisant of the risks and are taking appropriate steps to protect the American people,” Earnest said.

“This is, after all, the President’s top priority. I think that as people go about their business, and go about the

PUNE

kind of holiday routines that many people rightly look forward to, that people can have confidence that our law enforcement professionals that are on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week are actually doing the work that’s necessary to keep us safe,” he said in response to a question.

“They will remain vigilant. They continue to use every element of the power and authority of the greatest country in the world to protect our citizens. That is part of what should give people confidence that they can go about their holiday routine,” Earnest added.

THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS

NEW DELHI: India and the United States have agreed to finalise a pact to expand intelligence sharing and terrorist watch-list information.

Minister of State for Home Haribhai Parathibhai Chaudhary said that at the first IndiaUS Strategic and Commercial Ministerial Dialogue held in Washington on September 22, 2015, a joint declaration on combating terrorism was issued.

“The declaration identified specific steps to further strengthen counter-terrorism cooperation. The government of India and USA have agreed to finalise an agreement to expand intelligence sharing and terrorist watch-list information,” he said in a written reply in Lok Sabha.

However, Chaudhary said, further details in this matter cannot be disclosed in the interest of national security and friendly relations with the foreign country.

However, the overall internal security situation in the country is under control, he said.

PTI

Man asks neighbour for help to kill wife LONDON: In a shocking incident, a 40-year-old man offered 50,000 pounds to a neighbour to help him kill his pregnant wife after claiming that she had “brainwashed” him into having another child, a UK court has heard.

Gurpal Diu allegedly went to the neighbour with his bank statements and said he will pay up to 50,000 pounds to find someone to get rid of his wife, the Mirror reported.

“I want my wife dead,” the RollsRoyce worker told his neighbour Shezan Rasul and suggested the killer could attack her from behind with a hammer or plank of wood at home or even set up a hit and run accident.

But Rasul, who lived beside Diu in Derby, refused to go along with the plot and instead went to the police, the paper said, without identifying

the nationality of the accused. Derby Crown Court heard Diu showed Rasul his bank statements and said he could pay thousands of pounds for the deed.

Diu said he was having marriage problems and his wife had brainwashed him into having a second child.

“What the prosecution say, for reasons best known to the defendant, he set about getting assistance, what may be known as a hitman, to murder his wife and unborn child,” Prosecutor Jeremy Janes was quoted as saying by the paper.

He said Rasul had seen Diu sitting in his car outside his house on Boxing Day and Diu told him he was having marriage problems. The court heard that an hour later Diu went to Rasul’s home and said: “I want my wife killed. You must have contacts to get the job done.”

PTI

Derby Crown Court is hearing the case of Gurpal Diu

India questions OECD report In 2009, industrialised countries had pledged USD 100 billion to developing nations to help them fight the challenge of climate change

BY TUHIN DUTTA

Malaysian Muslim women walks past a Christmas tree in front of Malaysia’s landmark building, Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The spirit of Christmas is felt very much in Muslim-dominated Malaysia, as shopping malls in Malaysia have decorated their premises with Christmas trees, lights, Santa Claus and carols as a chance to boost year-end sales

PARIS: India along with other BASIC nations questioned a recent OECD report which claimed that significant progress has been made on USD 100 billion fund for developing nations to mitigate climate change and sought a transparent mechanism for better accounting of financial flows.

Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) had recently come out with a paper in partnership with Climate Policy Initiative ‘Climate Finance in 2013-14 and the USD 100 billion goal’, claiming significant progress has been made on a roadmap for USD 100 billion a year climate change financing by 2020 and USD 62 billion has already been given.

In 2009, industrialised countries had pledged USD 100 billion to developing nations to help them fight the challenge of climate change.

“Double accounting is not the

real numbers. It does not reflect the real numbers,” Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said.

The BASIC is a bloc of four large newly industrialised countries - China, India, Brazil and South Africa.

South African Environment Minister Edna Bomo Molewa said that countries agreed that finance must come from all the sources and although OECD has come out with a report, the reality remains that nations were not part of putting together the narrative behind what is being calculated.

“We agreed that finance must come from all sources. OECD did some work in terms of calculating what has already gone into climate finance.

The report has come up with USD 62 billion. The reality remains that parties of the world that are gathered here, were actually not part of putting together the narrative behind what is being calculated.

As minister Javadekar pointed double accounting cannot be accounted for.

“We still have to agree as parties under UNFCCC that what is it that is counted, what amount is meant for what. This process can be complicated if we do not have mechanism of accounting and what we are calculating. There must be a process put in place through which we can do the calculating and say what are we counting,” she said.

PTI

BASIC includes China, India, Brazil and South Africa

Website on Netaji’s Indian army saved Hasina in 1971 war last days launched

BY ADITI KHANNA LONDON: A new website providing documentary evidence of the last days of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose was launched here.

The www.bosefiles.info website dedicated to the freedom fighter and Supreme Commander of the Indian National Army (INA) aims to debunk numerous conspiracy theories surrounding Netaji’s death.

The website, launched by UKbased independent journalist and Bose’s grandnephew Ashis Ray, said that its purpose is “to chronicle the truth about what happened to Subhas Chandra Bose, based on 25 years of investigation and research into this subject.” “The site is dedicated to the people of India, millions of whom still worship Subhas (Bose), to (his

wife) Emilie Schenkl, who died in 1996 without closure on the matter (of the mystery about his end), and (to his daughter) Dr Anita Pfaff,” the website explains in its ‘About’ section.

Bose is believed to have died after a plane crash in Taiwan in 1945. His daughter and sole heir Dr Pfaff, who lives in Germany, accepts this as a credible explanation. But a majority of his extended family in India dispute the story and claims he escaped to the Soviet Union. In October, Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave an assurance to a section of Bose’s relatives that he will raise the matter with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The website has started by posting documents from files of the Indian Embassy in Moscow and the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs which establish that Bose never went to the Soviet Union in or after 1945.

PTI

To chronicle the truth about what happened to Bose

The Indian squad was led by Major Ashok Tara, whom Bangladesh honoured conferring him with the ‘Friend of Bangladesh’ award

BY ANISUR RAHMAN

DHAKA: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her family members faced the risk of being massacred but were saved by a group of Indian soldiers during the 1971 liberation war, her father’s close aide said, as Bangladesh marked the 44th anniversary of its triumph over Pakistan.

Recalling the events after the victory of Bangladesh in liberation war, Hazi Golam Morshed - one of the top aides of Bangladesh’s founder and Hasina’s father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman - said he escorted the four-man squad of Indian soldiers to the house where Bangabandhu’s wife Begum Fazilatunnesa was imprisoned along with Hasina and three other children.

The Indian squad was led by Major Ashok Tara, whom Bangladesh

honoured conferring him with the ‘Friend of Bangladesh’ award two years ago.

“The Pakistani soldiers guarding the house looked frightened but arrogant...visibly they were unaware of the surrender (of Pakistan) even on that morning of December 17,” said Morshed, who is now 85.

“Major Tara approached the (Pakistani) soldiers unarmed...

One of the guards shouted, asking him not to proceed a single

step further if he wanted to avoid being shot,” he recalled.

Morshed described the subsequent few minutes to be highly “delicate” as it appeared that the “frustrated, frightened and directionless” Pakistani guards were going to kill the Bangabandhu family.

Morshed happened to be the last man to accompany Bangabandhu until the Pakistani troops on March 25, 1971 night and arrested him.

On his release, he found out that

Bangladeshi Mukti Joddhas (freedom fighters) Maj Gen MD Saiful Alam, Gp Capt Haider Abdullah and Capt MD Niyamat Elahee pay tributes at ‘Vijay Smarak (War memorial)’ during a function to commemorate 44th anniversary of the 1971 Indo-Pak war at Fort William in Kolkata

Bangabandhu’s family was detained at a house heavily guarded by the Pakistani troops.

On December 17, he went to makeshift camp at the Circuit House in Kakrail to inform the Indian forces about it.

An Indian major general introduced him to Major Tara and then entrusted him with the task of rescuing the Bangabandhu family.

When Major Tara reached the house he told the Pakistani troops that their army had surrendered as they were not aware about the development due to disruption of communication.

“And as soon as I entered the house, (Bangabandhu) Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s wife hugged me and said ‘I was her son sent by God from the heaven (to save the family)’,” Tara said in an earlier interview.

Meanwhile, President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Hasina paid homage to the war heroes at the National Memorial, followed by a guard of honour by a contingent of the three armed forces.

The memorial was then opened to the public.

PTI

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY DECEMBER 19, 2015

PUNE

MONEY MATT ER S

“Only a small part of India’s sovereign debt is denominated in foreign currency. India’s favourable economic growth outlook makes India attractive for foreign investors.”

— Thomas Rookmaaker, Director, Sovereign Ratings

Signposts US double visa fee for Indian firms US Congress has doubled a special fee on popular H-1B and L-1 visas raising it up to USD 4,500 to fund a 9/11 healthcare act and biometric tracking system that will hit Indian IT companies.

Congressional leaders, while agreeing on the USD 1.1 trillion spending bill, decided to impose a special fee of USD 4,000 on certain categories of H-1B visas and USD 4,500 on L-1 visas. The US House of Representative voted on the USD 1.1 trillion spending bill deal.

The money generated would be used to fund a biometric entry and exit tracking system.

“We are honoured to continue our association with our dear friend, Anil Ambani and his team at Reliance. We have had produced wonderful films together.”

— Steven Spielberg, DreamWorks

‘Fiscal deficit to be met without cuts’ Drop in oil prices is passed on to consumers as petrol prices have been reduced 20 times and that of diesel 16 times in the recent past

Justifying the hike in excise duty on petrol and diesel, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said for the first time fiscal deficit target will be met without budgetary cuts, as Opposition charged the government with “profiteering” from the fall in global oil prices.

“This will happen for first time, we will achieve fiscal deficit (target) without fiscal cuts,” he said in Rajya Sabha, during Zero Hour on the Opposition criticism over government’s decision to hike excise duty on diesel and petrol as global crude prices fell to a record low.

He said the earlier governments used to achieve fiscal deficit targets by resorting to expenditure cuts, adding that during the previous UPA rule, the cut was as high as Rs 1.20 lakh crore and “this is a harsh reality.”

The government was following “proper fiscal planning” and India should take advantage of falling oil prices, he said.

Jaitley further said the drop in oil prices is passed on to consumers as petrol prices have been reduced 20 times and that of diesel 16 times.

The Leader of the House was responding to Opposition criticism over increasing excise duty on petro products at a time when the global

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramaniam at a meet organised by CII, FICCI and ASSOCHAM in New Delhi

crude prices had drastically fallen.

Responding to the criticism, Jaitley said that following reduction in fuel prices by oil companies, many a times, state governments, including those led by Congress, resorted to hiking the VAT rates.

A part of excise duty on diesel and petrol went towards building national highways and rural roads, the minister said, adding those who drove vehicles “must pay for it”.

He further said the revenue from excise collection also shared with states. Besides, oil companies too make up for their past losses.

Jaitley said earlier the government used to subsidise petrol and diesel sales in the country to compensate the oil PSUs for their losses.

As the House met, Congress and other opposition parties came down heavily on an item in the supplementary agenda regarding hike in excise duty.

Raising the issue, Congress leader Anand Sharma said the government saved USD 88 billion on account of fall in global crude oil prices. The benefits, he said, were not being transferred to consumers and alleged that the government was “profiteering” from the sharp drop in crude prices and trying to cover up for its “fiscal mismanagement”.

Parties like CPI(M), JD(U), SP, BSP, BJD and DMK, as well as NDA ally Akali Dal, also raised the issue.

To blunt the opposition charge of not passing benefits of low oil prices

Debt is like dynamite, says RBI chief RBI is maintaining a database which is being shared among banks to avoid over-borrowing by large corporate houses

Warning corporates against ill effects of over-borrowing, RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan said debt is like “dynamite” which can harm at times with its “explosive” nature.

Rajan also said that RBI is maintaining a database which is being shared among banks to avoid overborrowing by large corporate houses.

“Debt is very much like a dynamite. It is an instrument which is very useful in right places and explosive in others,” Rajan said at the Presidency University here.

RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, flanked by Deputy Governors HR Khan and Urjit Patel, at the 555th Central Board Meeting of Reserve Bank of India in Kolkata

The governor also called for moderation in use of debt as “there is always a temptation to over-use it”.

He also made it clear that despite the difficulties associated with debt, “burying it is not an option”.

“Moderation is required and some debt is good and not too much. Avoid over-borrowing to avoid problems,”

Limit raised for appeals in tax cases Seeking to reduce tax litigation by about 50 per cent, the Finance Ministry raised the monetary limit for filing appeals to Rs 10 lakh in appellate tribunal, and Rs 20 lakh in High Courts.

It has been decided to withdraw appeals filed by I-T department in ITAT and High Courts for cases involving tax effect of below the new monetary limit.

There are 75,000 cases pending in ITAT and HC. Tax effect refers to the difference between what the I-T department’s assessment of tax liability and asssessee’s assumption.

“The monetary limits for filing of appeals by the Department before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) and the High Courts have been revised to tax effect of Rs 10 lakh and Rs 20 lakh respectively, from the present limits of tax effect of Rs 4 lakh and Rs 10 lakh,”

Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia told reporters.

The revised limits have been made applicable retrospectively to pending appeals also, he said, adding that directions have been issued that pending appeals which are below the revised monetary limits may be withdrawn or not pressed.

The cases involving substantive question of law would be pursued irrespective of the monetary limit.

The government and CBDT have also decided to set up a collegium of two Chief Commissioners would be set up by Principal Chief Commissioners to decide on withdrawal of appeals filed by the department. Asked if the government is still sticking to the April 1, 2016, deadline for GST rollout, Adhia said “we will take a call after the end of the ongoing Winter session of Parliament”.

PTI

There are 75,000 cases pending in ITAT and HC

Rajan said.

He said RBI has a database of large borrowers whose status of borrowings is shared among banks.

Acknowledging that Indian banks have the right kind of leveraging, he added that “those who said the banks have no capital requirements are not sensible”.

Notices issued in Hawala cases Indian Government has issued show cause notices under FEMA in a total of 728 Hawala cases during the last three years and the current year, Minister of State for Finance Jayant Sinha said in Parliament.

“Show Cause Notices have been issued under FEMA in 728 Hawala cases during last three years and current year. CBI has also registered 6 cases in the related matters during the last three years and current year,” he said in a written reply in Lok Sabha.

In four cases, charge-sheets have been filed in the court and two cases are under investigation, he added.

As of September 2015, government registered a total of 637 cases under Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) and Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

There were as many as 1,093 cases under these Acts in 2014-15; 1,250 in 2013-14 and 1,943 cases in 201213. On government action taken against people and banks, he said RBI has issued instructions to all banks highlighting the irregularities observed. There were public and private sector bank employees being involved in Hawala transactions during 2012 through 2015, he said.

PTI

to the people, Jaitley said in the past, that he would be allowed to speak states like Delhi, Bihar, West Bengal, after Sharma raised the opposition’s Himachal Pradesh and Punjab had concerns. “I have no doubt in my increased VAT rates immediately mind that after Anand Sharma has after oil companies cut prices. spoken, they will not allow me to Jaitley added that he was not speak. If that happens, it will not be finding fault with the states as a good precedent,” he said. they too have to raise resources for Deputy Chairman P J Kurien development. said the Leader of the House has a The government increased excise right to reply after which the debate duty on petrol by Rs 0.30 per litre began. and by Rs 1.17 a litre on diesel to Sharma said in one year, the make use of slump in price of crude oil had oil prices to garner an fallen from USD 111 additional Rs 2,500 to USD 35 but the crore. government was not passing the benefit to Leader of people. He asked why Opposition Ghulam the government was Nabi Azad said his “burdening the poor” party colleague Anand and what happened to Sharma wanted to its promise of “achche express the concerns of din”. the members, to which Sharma said that Jaitley said in that case, the government was the government should seeking an increase also be allowed to reply of funds for Ministry as it “cannot be a oneof External Affairs way traffic”.

- ANAND SHARMA (MEA) and suggested He asked for a that the government “solemn undertaking” needed these funds because of the from opposition leadership that Prime Minister’s foreign visits. they will be allowed to reply. Azad CPI(M) leader Tapan Sen said that he wanted to give at questioned the taxation structure and least one undertaking that SC/ST said the global crude prices had fallen Amendment Bill, which was listed so drastically that the current retail would be passed in this very session prices of petrol and diesel could be and after a proper discussion. halved even after keeping a mark-up BSP leader Mayawati said that in of 25 per cent. The CPI (M) member the prevailing situation in the House, criticised the “faulty” price mechanism it did not seem that there would be for petrol and diesel and said when proper discussion and demanded the global prices are low, the domestic that the Bill should be passed in prices should reflect that. this session itself. Jaitley however PTI again demanded an undertaking

“Centre saved USD 88 bn on account of fall in global crude oil prices.”

UNDERSTANDING FINANCE

Citing the example of Indian economy, he said foreign share in government debt is 3-3.2 per cent, which is “very reasonable”.

“It is easy to fall to the temptation of easy money from outside and then, get into problems later. There is a need for the golden mean,” he stressed.

Talking about the need for debt in society, Rajan said it’s also responsible for creating “an antipathy” among entities.

Rajan termed cutting interest rates to rock-bottom levels as “not a good idea”. “Better is to have growth in real activity rather than a financial market boom due to distortion in prices,” the governor said.

Hailing GST as “a good move”, he added: “It will remove barriers among states and make a common market. It will bring more people under the tax net.”

PTI

Black money: Swiss laws to ease sharing of stolen info Till October 2014, Switzerland had not provided the information requested by India is respect of the list of account holders in HSBC Bank, Geneva

Switzerland is in the process of amending its laws that would make it easier for countries like India to obtain details of black money based on information emanating from ‘stolen data’, the Indian government informed Parliament recently.

“The Swiss Federal Council initiated the consultation proceedings on the revision of the Tax Administrative

Assistance Act, which provides for an easing of Swiss practices with regard to stolen data,” the council said.

“It should now be possible to respond to requests, if a foreign country has obtained the stolen data via normal administrative assistance channels or from public sources,” it said, according a reply in Parliament. “A bill to enact such revision is due to be discussed in the Swiss Parliament in due course,” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said.

Till October 2014, Switzerland had not provided the information requested by India is respect of the list of account holders in HSBC Bank, Geneva, stating that it represented stolen data and that as per its domestic laws, information cannot be provided it if relates to data obtained through a criminal offense under Swiss law.

“An alternative method of obtaining the information and documents through the taxpayer and from the HSBC bank directly on the basis of consent letters issued by the account holders was also pursued which has led to obtaining of the requisite information/documents in several cases,” Jaitley said. Consequent to the visit of a delegation to Switzerland and a joint statement issued after the meeting in Berne in October 2014, Switzerland has agreed to provide information on cases where investigations have been carried out by the Income Tax Department independently from what Swiss government considers as stolen data.

“Accordingly, requests based on evidence gathered

by Income Tax Department, independently of the stolen data have been sent and are being pursued further with Switzerland,” Jaitley added.

PTI

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY DECEMBER 19, 2015

PUNE

Our voices need to be heard Dire Straits, and many more. Band Members consist of Ranjit Sant - Rhythm Guitar Sanket Nashikkar - Lead Guitar Gaurav Joshi Vocals/Bass Guitar Akhil Datar – Drums What can be more entertaining than ‘open jam session’ which is a unique way for musicians to interact with others? The session aims to provide a platform for other bands to showcase their talent and join in the fun with Wanderlust. Non-house bands and solo artistes are also welcome to perform at The Beer Cafe this Saturday.

When: December 19 Where: The Beer Cafe , Koregaon Park

NEW BREED

Hard Rock Café presents Christmas Eve Special with New Breed, a versatile band from Pune. New Breed, a young versatile band from Pune, plays all genres of music right from Jazz to Classic rock to Pop rock and some progressive rock too. With some brilliant female/male vocals and multi-talented musicians, the band promises a mix bag of all-genres. From Janis Joplin to Jefferson Airplane they can play it all.

When: December 24 Where: Hard Rock Café, Koregaon Park

spinning some crazy EDM, Commercial, House and Bollywood! Don’t forget to witness a power-packed opening set by DJ Gaurav Ponnappa, DJ Karam and DJ Tash.

When: December 24 Where: The Flying Saucer Sky Bar, Viman Nagar

THE FLYING X’MAS BASH

The Flying Saucer Sky Bar has a mad Christmas bash planned out for you featuring the Noise Faktory. Watch out for DJ Sukhi and DJ Vicky

BATTLE OF DA SEXES

WANDERLUST

A laughter riot is coming your way as the undisputed king of cutting-edge humour. Vir Das is set to take you all on a comedy ride with the Battle of Da Sexes. Men and women have walked the Earth for centuries and for all this time, they have been pitted against each other in a never-ending war. Imagine a battle not with armies and gunpowder but with bellies and eyeliner. The winner can only be one - either a man or a woman.

When: December 19 Where: Susie Sorabji Auditorium, Camp

Wanderlust - A group of like-minded individuals that share a common lust for playing live music. The band covers a wide range of genres that include legends like Eric Clapton, Pink Floyd, Led Zepellin, Bryan Adams,

GIFTING BENGALI ART TO PUNE

Darpan Kala Dalan Pune will be a home to nine vibrant Bengali artists and their artwork. Artists will be presenting their work on oils, acrylics and water colours inspired by nature beauty, society and love. There will be sixty paintings and around ten sculptors of art to enrapture your minds.

The ​ nine artists hail from Bengal and its various regions.

Many of them pride themselves to be self taught while others are graduates of well known art colleges. The talented artists are Biplab Ray, Jagannath Sarkar, Joydeb Chatterjee, Sampad Acharya, ​​R ajrishi Mukherjee, Sanjeev Kumar, Sumeeta Banerjee, Subendu Biswas and Utpal Biswas.

When: Till December 22 W here: Darpan Kala Dalan, ​ Senapati Bapat Road

COMMUNITY DRUM CIRCLE

Taal Inc. is back with an amazing and fun-filled community drum circle. The community drum circle is an open invitation to everyone to come and drum with Taal Inc. You don’t have to be a drummer to take part and no prior musical experience is required.

When: December 19 Where: Monalisa Kalagram, Koregaon Park

A SPACE IN TIME

Nachiket Prakash presents a series of paintings that are about his journey into his own understanding of time and space. The paintings reflect the inseparable relation between them.

Nachiket is a Bachelor of Fine Arts who holds an experience of more than a decade in the world of art. He is an established artist in Pune and has worked as a commercial and fine artist with prestigious companies, organizations and institutions. His works are inspired by daily life events and situations.

When: December 19 to 25 Where: The Muse, Koregaon Park

RAHUL RAUT

WEEK THAT WAS 4 DEAD, 2 INJURED IN KOTHRUD FIRE

TEJAS GAIKWAD

PIC

THE

EDITOR

LETTERS TO THE

Pune is a city of lawless vehicle users and the bad habits are so chronic that there is really no solution. Even girls and women are as brazen as men when it comes to flouting traffic laws. Every Puneite seems to take leaves of his/her senses when they are in or on a vehicle. The police could solve the problem by confiscating licences of law-breakers and imposing fines. But that is not going to happen. Even as the number of deaths and injuries in accidents keeps growing every year, we the Puneites are determined to put our and other people’s lives in danger. Any civilised city in the world has sorted out such problems, and here we are, aiming to become a smart city, without finding a solution to this problem. We do not have the common sense needed for such normal behaviour.

— Nawaz Bootwala

The garbage eyesore

The uncleared garbage at Wakad area highlights the fact that Pune which is aiming for smart city status is a long way off from sorting out everyday problems. If the PMC officials and staff do their jobs conscientiously and efficiently, we would not see garbage strewn around the city in so many places. Is there a shortage of staff or vehicles that is leading to piles of uncleared garbage? Cleanliness and hygiene are matters that are crucial for a clean and safe environment. The lack of this is bound to take a toll on citizens’ health. Besides, the sight of uncleared garbage and the hazard of insects and disease are not becoming of a supposedly smart city.

—Sushma Baghi

Write to Us

Letters to the Editor may be emailed to editor_tgs@goldensparrow.com, yogesh.sadhwani@goldensparrow.com or mail it to The Editor, Golden Sparrow Publishing Pvt Ltd, 1641 Madhav Heritage, Tilak Road, Pune-411030.

SANDALWOOD TREES STOLEN FROM AGA KHAN PALACE

Despite being a guarded icon of Pune, unidentified persons managed to flee with sandalwood trees from the premises of historic Aga Khan Palace in the wee hours of Tuesday. ASI had declared the place as a monument of national importance in 2003.

An officer of ASI Pune district officer and Yerawada resident Bajran Yekikar (41) has lodged a complaint with the Yerawada police station. According to the complaint, the incident took place between 1.30 am and 2.30 am on Tuesday. Police revealed that the thieves felled five sandalwood trees and fled with the wood worth Rs 15,500. Security guards at the palace have told the police that they did not see anyone get in or out, or hear the sound of the trees being axed. The felled trees were 8-15 ft tall and located in the main garden of the palace. Yerawada Police Station Senior Inspector SA Patil said that CCTVs installed at the palace are found to be non-functional because of some technical snag.

JUHI PRASAD’S KILLER SENTENCED TO LIFE

Youngsters of the city indulge in some acrobatics and fun on DP Road alongside the river

Is there a solution to Pune’s traffic problem?

Am I leading a human life, or, have I grown to become yet another typecast “part of the crowd” robot? - one who goes to the office early, leaves late; one who knows that the process being followed isn’t efficient, still doesn’t retreat; one who wants to do a lot of things, but eventually gets confined to one of the many tiny spectrums of work/ life; one who oneself is pro-equality, but every now and then gets carried away by the burden of hierarchy. The job that we do is no doubt rich in “Vitamin M”. But, over Karan Anand the years what I’ve experienced is that more than money, it’s our passion that makes us feel content with ourselves.

We ought to understand that the money that we earn in our profession follows the law of conservation, but the credits and appreciation that we earn in our fields of passion remain forever irrespective of our existence and tenure on this planet. Being in IT Sector for almost 12 years has made me understand that we must give equal attention to life and work, for imbalance leads to accidents. One who has managed to do that has survived, while one who hasn’t has eventually had to struggle a lot. One who carries office work to home could never be happy; however, utilizing the spare time in some non-technical activities would rejuvenate our soul and help us perform even better @ work - with more dedication and sincerity.

While it takes a lot to get out of comfort zone of our jobs and just follow our respective passions, there are many who have done it in the past and even met success. On the contrary, there are many who haven’t as well. And why not? After all, there’s always a considerable amount of risk involved in doing that as they are all cut-throat industries in the world we live. Besides, we would then be directly competing with the dedicated class, i.e. with those who would have worked hard all their lives to grow in that particular field. Not saying that we can’t reach that level, but being a lateral, chances of that would indeed be meagre.

Nevertheless, there’s this path of golden mean in our way - the one of sincere service for the organization we’re employed at, coupled with investing our spare time on our hobbies/passions. But, we ought to walk the extra mile to serve both our purposes; We definitely would then need to follow a proper daily routine. Many of us have this complain that we don’t get enough time to invest in our personal life/ goals/ambitions; but the fact is we need to manage it well to have it in abundance. I personally feel that waking up early in the morning is the key - for if we are able to do that, we would have a couple of spare hours prior to office, and the same after office (post dinner) as well - considering that we are following the general shift timelines.

Of course, the routine and the spare hours’ adjustment can be done for other shifts as well; the hour count would remain the same in any case.

In a nut shell, I would say that we do need to give time to ourselves, and margin ourselves away not from the office work but from the office politics of rating, promotion, and foreign trips - for in the end what we deserve we would get for sure.

The Almighty knows it all. Justice wouldn’t be denied.

“It’s not the strength of the devil that can kill us, it’s the weakness within which might.”

Be strong, rise above, and win over all.

Disclaimer: Not a post that discourages work, but one that encourages work-life balance. #JustAThought

Anushree Kundra has been found guilty by Pune Court of setting Juhi Prasad and her fiancé Nimesh on fire in 2011. A Pune Special court sentenced Anushree to life imprisonment, on Tuesday, holding her guilty of killing Juhi and attempting to kill Nimesh Sinha on October 13, 2011. Juhi was a close relative of Rajiv Pratap Rudy, a minister in the current government. On Tuesday, Special Judge LL Yenkar, who pronounced the life sentence, also imposed a fine of Rs 2000 on Anushree. For attempting to kill Nimesh, Anushree has been sentenced to a seven-year term and a fine of Rs 1,000.

Both the sentences will run concurrently. District Pleader Ujjwala Pawar said, “The conviction was achieved on the basis of dying declarations of Juhi Prasad.”

OF

E WE K

Four people died and two others were injured as a fire broke out at Bhusari Colony, Kothrud at around 5.30 pm on Wednesday.

Three fire tenders succeeded in bringing the blaze under control in half an hour. The deceased have been identified as Mohammad Aizaz, 22, Mohammad Azad, 22, both from Bihar, Ravi Thakur, 35, of Rajasthan, while the fourth victim is yet to be identified.

Chief Fire Officer Prashant Ranpise said, “A shed is being constructed near Mayuresh Dining Hall at Bhusari Colony, and the fire broke out when a mattress caught fire due to the sparks from some welding work which was going on.” Deputy Commissioner of Police Zone I Tushar Doshi said, “The shed was being used as a mattress workshop.”

Work-Life Balance

Bus drivers or criminals?

The reckless school bus drivers who put the lives of innocent children at risk on a daily basis should give us the creeps. Such behavior is unpardonable. The parents of these children expect the school authorities to ensure the safety of the children. So the school authorities are just as much to blame as the Mad Max school bus drivers. They school authorities should screen the people properly and only em0ploy those who are conscientious and decent, who realise the responsibility of driving other peoples’ children to school and back. To take short cuts, drive the wrong way, just to save some time and fuel is the kind of behavior one expects from criminals, not school bus drivers.

—Chandni Naik

Juhi Prasad

Ban schools with no toilets or drinking water That there are schools in Pune without the most basic of facilities such as toilets and drinking water is shocking. How do such schools have the permit to operate? There is something really wrong here, because no matter how hard up they may be, providing toilets and drinking water is so basic that no one should have any excuse for not providing such facilities. Who is responsible for giving such school the license to operate? Such schools should be shut down and only be allowed to open when they have installed the necessary facilities. Forcing women teachers to go to people’s houses to use their toilet and making the school children go out in the open is shameful indeed.

—Shefali Manik

Hold civic staff responsible for shirking their duty Open manholes and those with broken lids are a common sight in the city. The woman and her daughter who fell into a manhole is the kind of accident waiting to happen all around the city. It is a wonder how many more people don’t fall into manholes and injure themselves. The PMC personnel responsible for looking after such matters are not doing their job and do not care about the consequences of such carelessness. It is time action was taken against civic staff shirking their duties.

—Raje Havi

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY DECEMBER 19, 2015

PUNE

SPORTS

““While it’s good to get rounds and experience under my belt I want excitement and knockouts. Right now I want to take opponents out as quickly as I can.”

— Vijender Singh, Indian boxing star

“We don’t have proper grounds, proper nets or a proper academy. All these things are a part of our downfall. It’s painful to see the state of our cricket.”

— Dwayne Bravo, West Indies all-rounder

Signposts Pune girls win state volleyball title The Deccan Gymkhana team, representing Pune Zone, won the title in the State Volleyball Championship at Bandra, Mumbai.

In the final, Pune girls defeated the Nashik team 25-22, 10-25, 25-11, 19-25, 15-11. Shruti Kandhare, Rashmi Kadam and Nalini Sode were impressive and earned a place in Maharashtra women’s team participating in National Women Volleyball Championship at Chandigarh from Sunday (Dec 20).

BNY Mellon clinches ABIL championship BNY Mellon scored a 2-0 win over Accenture to lift the ABIL Futcorp Inter corporate Mini football Championship, organised by Sportiluv and Green Box at Range Hills. In the semis, BNY Mellon edged out Persistent Systems 3 -2 while Accenture also scored a 3 -2 win over IBM in the tie-breaker. In the final, Joshua Monserrate and Cedrick D’Souza scored a goal each for the winning team.

Maharashtra script big win over Himachal Shubham Kothari and Utkrasha Agarwal helped Maharashtra beat Himachal Pradesh by an innings and 26 runs in the Kooch Behar Trophy Under-19 cricket tournament held at MCA stadium, Gahunje, Pune. With this win Maharashtra earned seven points along with bonus. Himachal Pradesh scored 334 in their first innings, while Maharashtra posted 471, thanks to double ton by Ruturaj Gaikwad.

Pravin Trophy national tennis from today The 28th edition of Pravin Trophy one of the oldest ongoing tournaments on the state and the national tennis calendar and one of the first tennis events of Pune will be played at the Hill Side Gymkhana tennis courts, Bibwewadi from December 19. This year the event will be a Championship Series All India ranking event in the Under-12 and a state ranking in the Under-10 category.

Indian domination in rollball will be over in next few yrs

With the game picking up rapidly in Europe and South America, city’s experienced player Aditya Ganeshwade advocates drastic measures to boost Indian standards

BY ASHISH PHADNIS @phadnis_ashish Rollball is an Indian origin game, and currently Indian players dominate at the international level. With one world cup trophy and probably another one in next few days, India has stamped its dominance over the game. However, the situation is set to change. European and South American countries are improving rapidly and in a few years will pose a real threat to India. India needs to adopt drastic measures to improve quality to extend its domination over the sport, feels city-based player Aditya Ganeshwade.

On the sidelines of the 3rd Rollball World Cup at Shiv Chhatrapati sports complex in Balewadi, he spoke about various issues.

“We once dominated hockey, but our federations failed to adopt modern techniques and soon we were relegated to the bottom.

Even Indian games like wrestling and kabaddi will face similar issues in future. We must focus on fitness and a scientific approach,” said Ganeshwade.

“Currently we are technically strong and our experience gives us the edge over our opponents. However, Argentina, Brazil and Iran have started giving us a tough fight. Their technique is not su;perlative but with better

Uphill task for Ankita The defending champion will face tough challenge this year in $25,000 ITF women’s tennis TGS NEWS SERVICES @TGSWeekly City-based tennis player Ankita Raina is the sole Indian to get direct entry into the main draw of the $25,000 NECC-ITF Women’s tennis tournament to be played at Deccan Gymkhana here from December 21.

Ankita, whose last ITF Tour title came exactly last year at the same tournament, will be eager to continue her reign at home and end the 2015 season on a high note. However it’s going to be a tough nut to crack for the defending champion and World number 255, as she will face severe challenges from China’s Jia-Jing Lu and Russia’s Polina Leykina, who are ranked 213 and 227 respectively.

Both foreigners have listed the Pune event as second on their priority list as per the ITF rules. Both Lu and Leykina have won three titles each this year and should be the favourites. Lu has won all three titles on hard courts, just the same surface as at Deccan Gymkhana.

Lu won $25000 title in Balikpapan, Indonesia, a $15,000 title in Bangkok and $10,000 in Antalya, Turkey.

Leykina has two titles on clay this year and one on hard court. She triumphed in Clermont-Ferrand in France, a $25,000 event on hard court. Her other

titles came at St Petersburg ($25,000) and Knokke ($10,000) in Belgium.

On the other hand, Ankita hasn’t won a single title this year. However, she was finalist in Ahmedabad ($25,000) in April, and went down to 113 ranked Anastasija Sevastova.

Her performance earned her highest single ranking of 222. Later in May, she reached semifinals of $50,000 tournament in Xuzhou, China. But, later on, she kept losing before reaching semi-finals or even quarterfinals.

Her ranking has now dropped to 255.

Meanwhile, in the doubles event, she has gone down before the quarterfinals in most of the tournaments, except in Belgium.

In August this year, she reached semis in Koksijde, partnering Bibiane Weijers, and in the following week finished runners-up with Ukraine’s Alyona Sotnikova in Westende.

Even her doubles ranking has gone down to 318 from 260 (January 2015).

However, Ankita is positive about performing her best in this tournament.

“I’m very positive with experience that I have got this year with the circuit and level of players I have played. The challenge is always the same no matter where you play, who you play and when you play and that’s the ball I’m just going to take one match at a time,” she said.

About her recent performance in Mumbai, she said, “I lost in singles pre-quarters and doubles semi-finals and could have definitely done better. Fell short in few aspects but the good part was that my coach was there to watch me play, so now we can work on the few things where I fell short.” tgs.feedback @goldensparrow.com

physiques, aggression and agility they can overpower us. That’s the threat we will face in the near future,” he said.

Another issue Indian players will face is the changing of rules. Currently most of the Indian players use quad skates, while inline stakes are used all over the world. Quad skates help player exercise more control compared to inline. However, as per the international federation official, inline skates will be made compulsory for all players. This will affect India’s performance.

Ganeshwade was part of the Indian team which featured in both world cups held in 2011 (Pune) and 2013 (Nairobi). He along with Prabhakar Wadewaro, Mihir Sane, Indian skipper Chetan Bhandwalkar and Rohan Dabadhe had been the mainstay for India.

“In the first world cup held in Pune, we lacked confidence as we were facing international players for the first time. Later in Nairobi, we were confident, and had a strong team. Almost every member of our team was capable of converting opportunities. So it was an enjoyable performance. This time we have a young squad, but with our variety of shots and swift counter-attacks we are doing a good job,” he said.

NEED BETTER INFRASTRUCTURE

AND FACILITIES Though rollball is played in 35 countries and they are sending their teams for the world cups in good numbers, the sport is yet to be recognised as an Olympic sport. Therefore, the players don’t get many facilities from the Indian government.

“There are several players like me, who are playing this sport for over ten years. If government provides support, we can drop our academics and devote our all efforts for the promotion of the game. But, it doesn’t seems to be happening here,” said Ganeshwade, a final year mechanical engineering student of Sinhagad College.

The game originated in Pune, but the city don’t have a proper wooden court stadium for the sport. Most of the players, who normally feature in Indian team practice at Mahesh Vidyalay or Paranjape Vidya Mandir. Only during the Indian camp, they get a chance to practice on wooden courts in Balewadi.

“Most of the practice areas in city or even state have tar or slate surface. This can lead to groin or hamstring injury. But, we don’t have any other option but to practice on these surfaces,” said Ganeshwade.

He also stressed the need for promotion and marketing of the sport.

“The game is action-packed, and can easily

Ganeshwade (R) poses with the World Cup in Nairobi

attract television spectators. Like kabaddi grew bigger with the support from media, I believe rollball can gain more viewers if promoted properly,” he added.

ABOUT ROLLBALL Pune’s sports teacher Raju Dabhade invented this sport in 2003. He experimented with rules, regulations, basic and technical sides of the sport for almost two years. With suitable changes and modifications from time to time the game took final shape. The first rollball world cup was held in Balewadi, in which 16 countries took part. In the final, host India went down to Denmark.

The sport is played between two teams of six players. This game can be played on wooden surface or event ice skating rink. ashish.phadnis@goldensparrow.com

Pune boys clinch inter-district title TGS NEWS SERVICES @TGSWeekly Pune FC Soccer Schools’ Chaitanyaa Advani, Sahil Gaikwad and Rachit Singh put on an excellent show to help Pune District clinch the prestigious Maharashtra State Inter-District Under-13 Tournament in Nashik.

In the showpiece final at the Sports Complex Ground in Panchavati, Nashik, Pune overcame heavyweights Mumbai 2-1 in a thrilling penalty shootout after both sides were tied 1-1 at the end of normal time. In fact, Pune fought back from a goal down to level scores and then went on to win in the ensuing tiebreaker with decisive strikes from Pune FC Soccer Schools’ Chaitanyaa and Pranav Kale (ex-Pune FC SS).

Meanwhile, all three Pune FC Soccer Schools’ youngsters played an important part for Pune throughout the tough campaign contributing heavily in all games. For the record, Chaitanyaa scored three goals, while Rachit and Sahil chipped in with a goal each in four games.

Former Pune FC Soccer Schools youngster Pranav Kale who also scored seven goals in the competition was adjudged the Best Player of the tournament.

RESULTS: Final: Pune 1 (2) (Pranav Kale | PSO: Chaitanyaa Advani, Pranav Kale) b Mumbai: 1 (1) (Utsav Pradhan | PSO: Cornelius Rodrigues) via tie-breaker Semi-finals: Pune: 7 (Pranav Kale 4, Chaitanyaa Advani 2, Rachit Singh) b Nashik: 0 Quarterfinals: Pune 10 (Ysnay Rondamori 3, Rohit Mangle 2, Ishwar Rachal 2, Pranav Kale 2, Sahil Gaikwad) b Gondia: 0

Prequarterfinals: Pune: 1 (Chaitanyaa Advani P) b Ahmednagar: 0 tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com

Lions win Garden City league TGS NEWS SERVICES @TGSWeekly Mrugesh Laser Lions defeated Sachin Dodke Yuva Manch (SDYM) by eight wicket to emerge victorious in the Garden City Premier League cricket tournament held at Warje.

Ajit Pal Singh, who was later adjudged as the best batsman and best all-rounder of the series, played a crucial role for Lions, as they posted 40 without loss. Meanwhile, SDYM who were in line for triple crown managed to win women’s title with a two-wicket win

over Indus Warrior.

In junior girls, SDYM went down to

Indus Warrior on the virtue of super over.

Indus Warrior also lost their boys’ final, as they were beaten by Pounching ProFive Peshwas by four runs.

Awards: (Best all-rounder) men: Ajit Pal Singh (Mrugesh laser Lions - 84 runs, 10 wkts), women: Shraddha Ingle (Indus Warrior - 9 runs, 5 wkts), junior boys: Aditya Bokade (Indotech Warriors - 26 runs, 6 wkts), junior girls: Shriya Dhar (Indus Warrior - 13 runs, 3 Wkts), sub-junior boys: Sanchit Borikar (Indotech Warriors - 19 runs, 1 wkt). tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com