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DRSC-1 of Legislative Council holds its first meeting
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Summer vacations for schools, colleges from today Srinagar, July 14 (KNS): The State Government Monday announced 16-days summer break for schools in J&K from July 15. “All government institutions including recognized private schools upto higher secondary level falling in Kashmir division and winter zone of Jammu divisions shall observe summer vacations w.e.f 15th July, 2014 to 31st July 2014. Any default on part of private schools in observance of the calendar of vacations authorized shall attract action under rules,” the government order reads. Meanwhile, the Government on Monday ordered summer vacation for Government Degree Colleges of Kashmir Division including winter zone colleges of Jammu Division w.e.f 15th of July to 30th of July 2014. (KNS)
Tral blazing incident Police detains 24 suspects Srinagar, July 14: Police have detained at least 24 persons in connection with the blazing incident that occurred on July 5 when after the death of a militant agitated protestors allegedly set two police armoured vehicles on fire near Aripal area of South Kashmir’s Tral town. Protestors mostly youth had attacked government forces and torched two of their armoured vehicles after the death of Hizb militant in Aripal area during a gun battle with Joint team of Army and Para-military troopers on July 5. Police sources told CNS that from past two days police detained at least 24 suspects from Pastuna, Aripal, Gadhpora See Tral On PG 11..
2 die, several injured in traffic mishaps Srinagar, July 14: Two persons died while seven others were injured in different road traffic accidents across the valley. A Tipper bearing registration number 1253/01B hit a scooter at Naraspora bridge in the jurisdiction of police station Budgam, resulting in on spot death of the scooterist 22 years old Umer Rashid Kumar son of Abdul Rashid resident of Ompora, Budgam. Budgam Police has registered a case in this regard.
Edit Page Two lac orphans and our responsibilities Shocking but reality, the number of orphans has increased two lac and perhaps it is the only state in the country where nothing concrete is being done by the state govt. for these unfortunate one’s. Baring an orphanage here and there, no organized mechanism is in place to effect some steps for the rehabilitation and welfare of the large number of orphans. During the month of holy Ramdhan, one finds vehicles fitted with public address system asking for donations for the welfare of the orphans. But actually very small portion of the collected money is spent or reaches to these orphans who are always in
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WEATHER FORECAST FOR NEXT 24 HRS: Light Rain would occur at a few places over the state.
FORECAST OF SRINAGAR: Possibility of thunderstorm inthe afternoon. Maximum & Minimum temperatures will be around 32°C & 18°C respectively.
C TEMPERATURE M MAXIMUM Y MINIMUM K
SUNSET ON(TUESDAY) SUNRISE ON (WEDNESDAY)
31.70C 18.8 0C 07:46 PM 05:30 AM
Largely Circulated, No. 1 Bilingual Daily of J&K
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Mian Altaf for making third party monitoring system more effective
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Massive anti-Israel protests rock Kashmir Thousands of students join protests Srinagar, July 14: With no letup in Israeli attacks on Gaza, the anti-Israel protests have escalated in Kashmir region with students, lawyers, employees and common people out on roads against the aggression of Jewish state and silence of western world. Hundreds of government employees led by Employees Joint Action Committee (EJAC) president Abdul Qayoom Wani appeared in Press Enclave Lal Chowk and staged strong anti-Israel protests. The protesters were raising slogans against Israel and expressed solidarity with the besieged Gazans and Palestinians. Witnesses said the employees tried to march towards the office of United Nations Military Observer Group for India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) in Sonwar but were stopped by police. “The police detained EJAC president along with several employees’ leaders,” they said. The protesters torched an Israeli flag. After employees’, thousands of students from Sri Pratap College, Islamia College and Sri Pratap Higher Secondary School assembled appeared in Press Enclave and started massive sloganeering against Israel and America. The highly charged students raised slogans in favour of Islam, Palestine resistance and Hamas. The students were chanting ‘Death to Israel’ ‘Down with Gaza’ and ‘Long Live Palestine’. The students on the occasion expressed solidarity with Palestine. “We are with Palestinians. Kashmir stands behind their brethren who are being terrorized, massacred and killed by Jewish terrorists. Our protest is also against America and those Muslim rulers who are supporting Israel actions or are silent on the genocide of innocent Palestinian children, women and men,” the agitated stu-
Israel downs Hamas drone as offensive claims 175 lives Gaza, July 14: Israel on Monday unleashed more airstrikes on Gaza and shot down a drone used for the first time by Hamas militants even as international pressure mounted on both to end the week-long conflict that has killed 175 Palestinians. Although Israel has delayed its ground offensive amid global calls for a ceasefire, the military continued its airstrikes, killing four people today. The Israeli military said that it shot down the drone spotted along the Israeli coastline, near the city of Ashdod. Hamas' military wing said in a statement that it has sent a number of drones on missions inside Israel and would provide more details in due course. About 17,000 people from the Beit Lahiya area in the northern See Israel On PG 11..
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dents said. The agitated students marched on Residency Road, Regal Chowk, Maulana Azad and Ghanta Ghar or Clock Tower,” witnesses said, adding earlier police tried to stop them from moving towards Clock Tower but they broke police cordon and reached Clock Tower where they shouted anti-Israel protests. Many students, who were carrying placards, climbed half of the Clock Tower from where they raised anti-Israel and pro-Palestine slogans. The students were also carrying a flag of Islmamic State, formerly known as Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, witnesses said. See Protests On PG 11..
Silence of Muslim countries over Israeli aggression unacceptable: Geelani Srinagar, July 14: While expressing his deep sorrow and anguish over the heart threatening killings of hundreds of innocent people in Palestine including dozens of children and women, chairman All Parties Hurriyat Conference Sayed Ali Geelani has appealed for peaceful protest demonstration against the Israeli aggression on July 15 and July 18 after zahur and
Friday prayers. In a statement issued to GNS, Geelani appealed the college and university students to wear black arm bands to show solidarity with the oppressed and subjugated people of Palestine. “While strongly condemning the support of America, Britain and Canada to the aggression of Israel, he also expressed deep sorrow and dismay over
CBI appears before NC still indecisive court in Sopore over pre-poll alliance massacre case of 1993 with Congress
Judge directs the organization to provide full case record Srinagar, July 14: CBI in-
vestigating officer DSP Vijay Kumar Shukla appeared before the TADA Court, Srinagar in the case relating to the Sopore massacre of 6 January 1993. The Court directed DSP Vijay Kumar Shukla to provide the full case record – all documents underlying the closure report – on 4 September 2014. It was argued on behalf of the survivors of the Sopore massacre that it is condemnable that the CBI has taken 20 years to file an incomplete closure report without any supporting documents. The case has been listed for 4 September 2014, Pervez Imroz told GNS. He said that survivors of the 6 January 1993 Sopore massacre had earlier [28 June 2014] filed a protest petition
against the closure report filed by the CBI on 4 December 2013 before the TADA court, Srinagar. The survivors have alleged that on January 6, 1993, personnel of the 94th battalion of BSF “carried out an attack in Sopore town that led to the killing of more than 50 civilians, injury to more than a dozen and destruction of more than 500 shops and two dozen houses”. “The Sopore chowk area was burnt down including the roadside areas of Shahabad, Bobimir Sahab, Muslim Peer, Shallapora and Kralteng. Further, Samad Talkies, and the women’s college located near the Sopore chowk were also burnt”, Imroz said. The CBI had filed the closure report on December 4 last year on the grounds that the witnesses examined were unable to identify the BSF personnel involved in the incident and they could not give details of the firing or cross-firing. See CBI On PG 11..
‘Dr Farooq will take final call over the issue’ Srinagar, July 14 : The ruling
national conference is yet to take final call over the issuance of mandates to its leaders for the forthcoming assembly polls scheduled for the end of this year. NC Tuesday stated that the final call over the issue would be taken within few days and that the hectic deliberations are going on over the issue. Also it stated that no final decision over entering into pre-poll alliance with its ally Congress has been taken so far and that the party president will make the final announcement over the issue. Talking to KNS, senior NC leader and additional general secretary Dr Sheikh Mustafa Kamal stated that the issuance of tickets for the assembly elections will be made at the party headquarters in the coming days and there is no rift within the party over the decision. “We are just making the final
call over the issue. Discussions over the mandates have already been held thoroughly.” Over the reshuffle within the party, the NC veteran stated that the party at present has prioritized its efforts for the coming elections and all the steps are being taken to achieve fleet during the forthcoming polls. “All our hard work is centralized for the coming elections. Le us concentrate on that,” Kamal said. Over the issue of pre-poll alliance with the Congress, Kamal maintained that the party president has been authorized by the party leadership to take final call over the issue. “Only he can take the decision whether we should have alliance with the Congress or go alone in the polls. As far as the general view is concerned both the senior leaders of NC and Congress have made it clear that coming elections should be contested separately.” Kamal maintained further that Dr Farooq has already been appraised over the See NC On PG 11..
No role in journalist’s meeting with Hafiz Saeed: Govt Arun Jaitley in Rajya Sabha says govt had “not sanctioned” meeting; asserts there is no change in its stand on the 26/11 Mumbai attacks mastermind New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government on Monday distanced itself from the reported meeting of Ved Pratap Vaidik with the 26/11 Mumbai terrorist attack accused Hafiz Saeed in Pakistan, saying it had “not sanctioned” it and asserted there is no change in its stand on the alleged terror mastermind. Vaidik, a journalist who is close to yoga guru Ramdev, met Saeed during his recent visit to Pakistan. Ramdev is considered to be close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Congress members in both Houses created an uproar and sought detailed statement from the government on the “purpose and motive behind the meeting with India’s most wanted
terrorist”. Digvijay Singh asked in Rajya Sabha whether the government had sanc-
tioned the meeting, leading to an uproar. Union defence minister and Rajya Sabha mem-
ber, Arun Jaitley, replied that for India, Saeed was a terrorist and indeed involved in terrorism against India. “Government has nothing to do with directly, indirectly or even remotely with any journalist meeting Saeed...government has not sanctioned permission to anyone for meeting him,” he said. “For the government, there is no change of stand as far Hafiz is concerned. For India, Hafiz is an accused in the terror attack. He is a terrorist who conspired to attack India,” information and broadcasting minister Prakash Javadekar told reporters outside Parliament. The minister said there is no “track-2 or track-3 diplomacy” involved and that for the government, See Govt On PG 11..
KEA questions CM’s ‘belated’ response on regional discrimination
Srinagar, July 14 : Valley’s apex trade body— Kashmir Economic Alliance—has criticized Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah for his belated remarks regarding discrimination being meted out to Kashmir region by the Centre. In a statement issued to KNS, KEA questioned the silence maintained by Omar when the alliance has raised the matter of discrimination with Kashmir region and protested how Jammu and Ladakh regions develop at the cost of the Valley. “What Omar is asserting today KEA did it when the Chief minister assumed his chair,” the statement quotes adhoc KEA chairman, as saying while referring to the stoic silence Omar maintained thus far. “And now all of a sudden the chief minister is alleging “brazen discrimination” with Kashmir
Delhi gangrape, murder case:
Supreme Court stays execution of two convicts The Supreme Court today stayed till further orders the execution of death penalty of two of the four convicts in the December 16 gangrape and murder case. A bench of justices Ranjana Prakash Desai and N V Ramana said since the death sentence of other convicts have already been suspended by this court, the same order has to be passed. It stayed the execution of Vinay Sharma (21) and Akshay Thakur (29), who were convicted along with other two-- Mukesh (27) and Pawan Gupta (20)-whose death sentence has already been stayed.
the role of Saudi and Egyptian governments, who are criticising Hamas instead of Israeli aggression and whose unconsciousness has provided Israel a chance to bombard the innocent people of Palestine”. Geelani said that the America and England are equal partners to the heinous crimes of Israel and they are See Geelani On PG 11..
Vinay and Akshay had moved the apex court seeking a stay on their execution and reversal of the Delhi High Court verdict upholding their conviction and the punishment. The court proceedings also witnessed some confusion as the bench queried whether it could hear the plea in the light of observation made by Chief Justice R M Lodha that the cases of death convicts be heard by not less than three-judge bench. The bench called for Supreme Court registrar who said no such notification has been issued so far in this regard. See Delhi On PG 11..
region by pointing to the grant of IIT for Jammu in the recent Union budget. “Where was he (Omar) when we were protesting against the Centre for neglecting Kashmir region and doling out heavy fortunes for developmental of Jammu and Ladakh regions,” said Dar. The KEA chairman also laughed off the assertion of chief minister that “it was the NC parliamentarians who were instrumental in getting Central Universities for Kashmir region. “Now we have to remind Omar Abdullah about the role of his ministers, particularly, Abdul Rahim Rather, who in his capacity of states finance minister and chairman of empowered committees of state finance ministers miserably failed to stop the Planning Commission of India in slashing the annual plan See KEA On PG 11..
Non-local killed in South Kashmir Srinagar, July 14: A non-local labourer was killed after a wall of a government building collapsed and fell upon him at Pulwama in south Kashmir on Monday. Official sources told GNS that a group of labourers were demolishing a government building near Deputy Commissioner’s office in Pulwama, suddenly a one side wall of the building collapsed and one of the labourer came under it. The labourer was identified as Mubeenul-Haq son of Gayesdin of West Bengal was immediately evacuated to nearby hospital, sources said. However, Haq later succumbed to injuries in the sub-district hospital Pulwama, sources said. Meanwhile, police have taken all the See Non On PG 11..
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Protest Witnesses informed GNS that police had to face tough time during protests by students. “Policemen also chased students from Maulana Azad Road which created chaos in whole Lal Chowk,” they said. However, no clash, on the occasion, took place. The students of Women College M A Road also took out a huge rally from their college and reached Press Enclave. Raising anti-Israel slogans, they expressed solidarity with the besieged Gazans. “I am Gaza and I stand by every Gazan including those kids who are being attacked by Zionist army. One day world will see when Palestine will be free from the clutches of Jews,” Nuzhat Wani (name changed) told GNS. The students marched peacefully and the protest concluded at the Women College. The lawyers under the banner of High Court Bar Association also staged an anti-Israel protest here in Sadder Court. Boycotting court proceedings, dozens of lawyer led by Mian Abdul Qayoom assembled in the Court Premises and raised slogans against Israel. They expressed their solidarity with Palestine. Witnesses told GNS that the lawyers tried to march towards Lal Chowk but they were stopped by police to move ahead. South Kashmir Hundreds of students in north Kashmir’s Pulwama district took out an anti-Israel rally from Government Degree College Pulwama and raised slogans against Israel, America and Western countries. The protesters marched through the markets of the Pulwama town and the rally concluded at Rajpora Chowk. The protesters condemned the military action of Jewish State against besieged Gazans and demanded an end to military strikes. They also slammed Arab leaders, who according to them are silent on the on-going massacre of Gazans. “They are silent. They are watching how the blood of Palestinians is being spilled by Jews with the help of America. They are actually stooges of West,” the students remarked. The protest rally created huge traffic jam in the town. However, the protest concluded peacefully, witnesses told GNS. The anti-Israel protests were reported from Tral area of the Pulwama district and in Anantnag district. North Kashmir The north Kashmir districts on Monday also witnessed string anti-Israel protests by students and youth. According to GNS Correspondent, hundreds of students from Sopore Degree College took out a huge rally from their College and held anti-Israel protests. The protesters were carrying placards and flags of Palestine. “We promise Palestinians and Gazans, who are being butchered by Israel, that they are not alone. We stand behind them,” the students told media persons. “We endorse Hamas and ISIS’s Abu-Bakr al Baghdadi, who is our leader in Iraq and Israel should know it that one day it will perish,” a student, who leading protesters, said. Eyewitnesses told GNS that students marched upto Main Chowk where other youths joined them. “Some youth later pelted stones on CRPF bunker in SBI Building,” they said. In Bandipora, youth took out a bike rally against the killing of Gazans at the hands of Israel. The bikers were holding Palestine flags and placards which read: ‘Gaza is calling’ and ‘Down with Israel’. The protesters condemned Israeli aggression and extended their support to Palestine and Hamas militants. In border district of Kupwara, scores of students from Degree College took out an anti-Israel rally. The demonstrators condemned the on-going ‘murderous’ campaign of Israel. A similar protest was held in Pattan town of Baramulla district. (GNS)
Israel Gaza Strip streamed for protection into UN-run facilities after Israel yesterday warned residents of the area to leave their homes. Israeli warplanes bombarded the vacated area, hitting alleged launch sites and homes of members of extremist groups such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad. The assault was carried out mostly by air, but the Israeli navy also reportedly fired shells from the sea.
Geelani formally supporting the bloodshed of innocent children in Gaza. He questioned that is no one among the children killed in Palestine a Malala Yousaf Zai, whose death could have melted the hearts of Mr. Obama and Mr. David Cameron?
CBI However, the survivors contested the closure report. The protest petition - seeking further investigations in this case – is a contestation of the States lies and attempts to cover up the Sopore massacre of 1993, Imroze added. (GNS)
NC views and opinions of the party workers over the prepoll issue and everything shall be taken into consideration before taking the final call. (KNS)
KEA outlay for the state,” said Dar. Accusing Omar Abdullah of resorting to “double-speech” Dar said that KEA has opposed the cabinet reshuffle where the portfolios related to developmental works were handed over to Jammu. “How will Omar respond to it….That we asked him not to transfer the reigns of ministry—dealing with states development—to MLAs in Jammu? Since then Valley has got nothing for infrastructure and other developments,” asked Dar. “Therefore the chief minister should stop shedding crocodile tears and introspect into the five years of his office and see how instrumental ministers of NC have been in neglecting the Kashmir region,” Dar concluded. On the weather vagaries playing spoilsport with the development works in Kashmir, Dar suggested that on the pattern of Ladakh, a separate treasury should be build in Kashmir where funds are reserved the fund the development works in Kashmir which are
Zabarwan Times majorly hit by inclement weather for most of the times in Kashmir. (KNS)
Govt “Hafiz is a terrorist. Rajya Sabha leader has already clarified it in the House.” Vaidik met Saeed, chief of the Jamaat-ud-Dawa, the parent organization of terror outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba, in Lahore on 2 July while touring Pakistan along with a group of journalists and politicians invited by a peace research institute. With the Congress seeking his arrest, Vaidik defended his parleys with Saeed, saying he has been meeting all kinds of people. He also rejected suggestions by Congress that he might have acted as government’s envoy, saying he was “nobody’s envoy but my own”. India has accused Saeed of orchestrating the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks in which 166 people were killed.
Delhi The bench then went ahead with the hearing and passed the stay order. The Delhi High Court had on March 13 this year upheld their conviction and award of death penalty by terming the offence as "extremely fiendish" and "unparallelled in the history of criminal jurisprudence" and said the "exemplary punishment" was the need of the hour. It had also said if this case was not "the rarest of rare cases" then "there is likely to be none". Besides seeking setting aside of the High Court verdict, Vinay and Akshay, in their appeal, have sought a stay on their execution as an interim relief. The petition has said the judgement be set aside as there was no "substance or material piece of evidence" and there were contradictions in the depositions of the victim and her friend, who had accompanied her in the bus, about the offence and the offenders. The petition has said the testimony of the SDM cannot be relied on as she had deposed that the victim was "comfortable, happy and willing to record her statement." "Whether a patient who is on ventillator...can be happy and comfortable?," it has said. Disputing the veracity of the dying declaration of the victim, it has said she was not fit enough to record her statement and hence, the statement made through gestures cannot be relied upon. "The High Court failed to appreciate before awarding death sentence to appellant Vinay Sharma that he was juvenile at the time of the incident...," it has said. The 23-year-old paramedic, on the night of December 16, 2012, was brutally assaulted and gangraped by six persons in a moving bus in South Delhi and thrown out of the vehicle with her male friend. She later died in a Singapore hospital on December 29. Prime accused in the case Ram Singh was found dead in Tihar Jail in March last year and the trial against him was abated. The sixth accused, the juvenile, was on August 31, 2013 convicted and sentenced to a maximum of three years in a reformation home by the Juvenile Justice Board.
Non necessary formalities for sending the body of the deceased to his relatives in West Bengal for last rites. (GNS)
Tral and Dar Ganaie Gund Tral areas. Sources added that police have picked up 7 youth from Pastuna, 7 from Aripal, 3 youth from Gadhpora and 8 suspects from Dar Ganaie Gund Tral.
Govt slaps USD 579 mn additional penalty on RIL New Delhi, July 14: The government has slapped an additional penalty of USD 579 million on Reliance Industries for producing less than targeted natural gas from its KG-D6 block, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said. With this, the total penalty on RIL for missing the target in four fiscal years beginning 1st April 2010 now stands at a cumulative USD 2.376 billion, the Minister informed the Lok Sabha on Monday. The penalty is in the form of disallowing costs incurred. The Production Sharing Contract (PSC) allows RIL and its partners BP Plc and Niko Resources to deduct all capital and operating expenses from the sale of gas before sharing profit with the government. Disallowing costs will result in government's profit share rising by USD 195 million from 2010-11 to 2013-14, he said. In a written reply to a question, Pradhan said gas output from the Dhirubhai-1 and 3 gas field in the eastern offshore KG-D6 block was supposed to be 80 million standard cubic meters per day but actual production was only 35.33 mmscmd in 2011-12, 20.88 mmscmd in 2012-13 and 9.77 mmscmd in 2013-14. This year the output has been only 8.05 mmscmd. His ministry on 10th July issued a notice disallowing USD 579 million in cost for output lagging targets in 2013-14. The government had previously issued a notice to RIL disallowing a total of USD 1.797 billion in costs
for falling short of production during 2010-11 (USD 457 million), 2011-12 (USD 548 million) and 2012-13 (USD 792 million). Pradhan said the issue is currently under arbitration. "The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has also raised a claim of additional profit petroleum to the tune of USD 115 million to be paid by the contractor, on account of disallowance of cumulative contract costs of USD 1.797 billion, till 2012-13," he said. After including cost disallowance in 201314, the total additional profit petroleum claimed from RIL comes to USD 195 million, he said. "GAIL and Chennai Petroleum (who buy oil and gas produced from KG-D6 block) have been directed to remit the sale proceed of crude oil/condensate/natural gas from KG-DWN-98/3 (KG-D6) block which falls due immediately into the Government account so as to recover an amount of USD 115,263,612 at the rate of 50 per cent by each company and deposit the same with the government," he said. The Minister said RIL had put up production facilities to produce 80 mmscmd of gas but "has failed to adhere to the approved field development plan in terms of drilling and putting on stream the required number of wells." His ministry and its technical arm DGH blames nondrilling of committed wells for the production lagging targets while RIL and its partners say unexpected geological complexities like sand and water ingress led to output fall.
Govt sanctions Rs 8,060 cr for PMEGP during 12th Plan
New Delhi, July 14: The government on Monday allocated Rs 8,060 crore for the Prime Minister's Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP) to create over 27 lakh jobs in the 12th Plan period ending March 2017. The scheme provided jobs to over 16 lakh persons during the 11th Plan (2008-2012). "The scheme is to be continued during Twelfth Plan (2012-13 to 2016-17). An outlay of Rs 8,060 crore (Rs 7,800 crore Margin Money subsidy plus Rs 260 crore under Backward and Forward Linkages) has been approved by the Planning Commission for PMEGP in the 12th Five Year Plan to set up about Rs 3.39 lakh projects with creation of about 27.12 lakh employment," an official statement said by MSME Ministry said on Monday. The government provides Margin Money subsidy between 25 to 35 percent of the Project cost, de-
pending upon the category of the entrepreneur, with the remaining amount being covered by the banks. "The scheme has received very encouraging response from all the stakeholders in the country and is well received by the unemployed youth," according to the statement. PMEGP is already in operation and completed two years during the 12th Plan period successfully. Therefore, the PMEGP Scheme has been approved for continuation by the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) Ministry during the 12th Plan without any change in the broad framework and parameters of the scheme. For the year 2014-15, the targets have been fixed for setting up of about 1.03 lakh micro units with the margin money subsidy of Rs 1,380 crore to generate employment for 8.25 lakh persons.
PMEGP is a central sector scheme launched in 2008-09 to empower first generation entrepreneurs for setting up micro enterprises across the country by merging Prime Minister's Rozgar Yojana (PMRY) and Rural Employment Guarantee Programme (REGP) schemes. Khadi and Village Industries Commission is the nodal agency at national level for implementation of PMEGP. An evaluation study of PMEGP was conducted by M/s Development & Research Services Pvt Ltd, New Delhi during 2013-14 for the sample units financed during 2008-09 to 2011-12. The report reveals that 91.7 percent of the units financed are working and average income of the beneficiaries has increased by 61 percent which shows the success of the PMEGP scheme for generation of employment opportunities in rural and urban areas of the country.
Malala meets with Nigerian president to talk about missing girls lala Yousafzai, the teenage campaigner for girls’ education in Pakistan, told journalists on Monday that Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan assured her he would free 219 abducted schoolgirls being held by Islamist militants. Malala, who survived a 2012 attack by Pakistani militants opposed to the education of girls, marked July 14 as Malala Day by visiting the Nigerian capital, Abuja, and pressing Jonathan to do more to free the schoolgirls. But her visit came as a chilling new video surfaced in which Abubakar Shekau, leader of the militant group Boko Haram, said he would not set free his captives unless the government released his fighters from prison. Pakistani schoolgirl activist Malala Yousafzai, second from the left, blows out candles with Nigerians from the "Bring Back Our Girls" campaign during a dinner Saturday in Abuja, Nigeria. (Deji Yake / European Pressphoto Agency)“Nigerians are saying 'bring back our girls,' and we are telling Jonathan to bring back our arrested warriors, our army,” Shekau said in the video, handed to Agence France-Presse news service. The video was released Sunday, the same day
Malala met with parents of the missing schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram from a boarding school in Chibok village in northeastern Nigeria on April 14. She also met with five girls who managed to escape from captivity. During her meeting Monday with Jonathan, the Nigerian president agreed to a meeting with the parents of the abducted schoolgirls for the first time, Malala later told reporters. He also promised scholarships to all the girls once they were released. Malala told journalists after the meeting that the president assured her the girls would be safely recovered. She said that he seemed pained about their fates and referred to them as his “daughters.” “The president has expressed his solidarity with those girls and his sadness," she told reporters. "He has assured that these girls will come back home safely. He has several options but that he will choose the best to ensure the girls are released safely.” Nigerians are saying 'bring back our girls,' and we are telling [President Goodluck] Jonathan to bring back our arrested warriors, our army. In the Boko Haram video, Shekau claimed responsibility for simultaneous bomb attacks last month in Abuja and Lagos, the nation's commercial hub.
He also sent greetings to Al Qaeda leader Ayman Zawahiri; Abu Bakr Baghdadi, head of Islamic State, an Al Qaeda offshoot; and prominent terrorist leaders in Afghanistan, Yemen, Algeria and Pakistan. Boko Haram, which means “Western education is a sin,” is fighting an insurgency to create an Islamic caliphate in Nigeria, a country of more
than 170 million people divided between Christians and Muslims. The group sees democracy, banking, secular education and Western culture as sacrilegious. Malala, who turned 17 on Saturday, visited Nigeria in support of the #BringBackOurGirls campaign, designed to pressure Nigerian authorities to do more to release the Chibok girls.
LOST I have lost marks card of 10th and 12th class somewhere. Now I have applied for the duplicate. Anybody having objection in this regard may file the same in the office of J&K Board of School Education, Sub Office Baramulla within 7 days after that no objection will be entertained. Abdul Razaq Najar S/o Gh. Hassan Najar, R/o Tilgam, Pattan
DD
Public Notice My residential address in school records has been wrongly entered as Soibugh instead of Doulatpura. Now I have applied for its correction. If any person has any objection/objections in this regard may submit the same in the office of the Headmaster, Govt. Boys Middle School, Soibugh within seven days of publication of this notice. No objection will be entertained after the due date. Irfan Ahmad Ganie, S/o Khazir Mohammad Ganie, R/o Doulatpura
BNA
University of Kashmir Office of the Dean Academic Affairs
Admission-2014
It is notified for information of all the concerned that the date of submission of On-Line Application Forms and hard copy for admission to Certificate Course in Women and Law, at University of Kashmir for the academic session 2014 notified by the University vide notification No.F(Admission-14) DAA/KU/14 dated 30-06-2014 has been extended upto July 24, 2014. No.F (Admission-2014) DAA/KU/13/ET-222 Dated: 14-07-2014 Sd/-Assistant Registrar (Academic Affairs)
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Daily ZABARWAN TIMES
SRINAGAR | TUESDAY
EC rejects Ashok Chavan’s explanation in paid news case New Delhi: In fresh trouble a notice to Chavan in May last he is already a sitting member for former Maharashtra chief to appear before it in connec- from the date of the order of minister Ashok Chavan, the tion with the case of alleged the Election Commission and Election Commission on Sun- expenses made by him during not from the date on which he day rejected his explanation in the 2009 Maharashtra Assem- contested the election or was the paid news case and asked bly polls which were catego- elected at such election.” him to submit his representa- rised as “paid news”. “Therefore, the resignation tion within 20 days. If Chavan is disqualified by of the respondent from the slapped a show cause notice the EC, it may have an impact membership of the Maharashon him for failing to lodge his on his Lok Sabha membership tra Legislative Assembly on election expenses as per law also though the issue relates to 22nd May, 2014, has no effect in a paid news case and asked his contesting the Assembly or impact on the continuance him why he should not be dis- polls. of the present proceedings bequalified. The EC order said a candi- fore the Commission and the Setting a 20-day deadline to date who is declared disquali- proceedings shall continue unrespond to the notice, the Com- fied by the Commission under abated until logical conclusion mission said he has “failed to Section 10 of the RP Act “incurs thereof,” Paragraph 70 of the lodge his account of election disqualification for contesting EC order said. expenses in the manner re- further elections to any House The full bench of the EC quired by the (Representation of Parliament or State Legisla- comprising Chief Election of the People) Act and rules.” ture for a period of three years, Commissioner (CEC) VS The EC, on the directions of “and also for continuing as Sampath and Election ComNews Agency Kangan News AgencyHS Ganderbal the Supreme Court,Lone had issued member of any such HouseKhan if missioners Brahma and
Zabarwan Times is available at
SNA Zaidi issued the 104-page order. It had reserved its decision on the issue on June 19. When contacted, Chavan said he will respond to the notice after examining it. Chavan, who became the chief minister of Maharashtra in December 2008 replacing Vilasrao Deshmukh, said that the show cause notice issued to him by the Election Commission has vindicated his and the Congress’ stand and “there is no question of paid news”. “Our stand on the paid news issue has been confirmed by the Election Commission. Even the High Court and Supreme Court had taken a similar stand when our opponents had filed a petition. The courts had rejected their petition.
Gulzar News Agency Soura Zahid Book Depot Chadoora Tariq News Agency Hawal Bashir News Agency Nowhatta Muzaffar Ali News Agency Alamgari Bazar Budshah News Agency Lal Chowk Abdullah News Agency Lal Chowk Sikendar News Agency Lal Chowk Gupkari News Agency Lal Chowk Raina News Agency Gund Kangan Khan News Agency Regal Chowk Rashid News Agency Dalgate Sheikh News Agency Hyderpora Hilal News Agency Budgam TATA Institute of Social Sci- rationBhat in the final draft so Lone News Agency Tangmarg News Agency Chadoora CS chairs Bhat Newsences Mumbai, Dr T Jayara- that Zargar an efficient, effectiveKunzarThe smell of rotting Agency Magam News Agency Principal Disas-Sumbal flesh often hangs in the inaugural session Dar Newsman, Agency BeerwahSecretary and comprehensive Bashir News Agency Planning, Mr B. R Sharma, ter Management plan is air and stray dogs freAgency Safapora Saleemfor News Agency Administrative Secretaries, formulated the state in- Pattan SRINAGAR, JULYReshi 14:News quently wander into resBasharat Agency Bandipora Reyaz News Agency Pampore Deputy Commissioners corporating all aspects. The 2-day workshop on News idential premises, holdAgency Javaid News and other Pulwama officers, experts Emphasis wasAgency laid onQazigund finalization of J&K Altaf StateNews ing chunks of human and Agency stake Baramulla holders were incorporating in the plan- asDisaster Management Plan News Jeelani G.M News Agency Sopore flesh in their mouths. present onKupwara the occasion. pects Sultan to strengthen the inter-Handwara (JKSDMP) started today And women and chilShahatNews Agency News Agency brief overview coordination, early Islamabad SKICC here. The inaugudren have stopped climbYounis NewsAAgency Langate high- agency Sheikh News Agency ral session was chaired by lighting the main features warning systems, emergency ing up to rooftops for Reshi News Agency Islamabad Three Way News Agency Tral management exercises in- fresh air, for fear of starTurray News Agency Tral Badru News Agency Bijbehara cluding class room type train- ing at cadavers, cut open Rahi News Agency Kulgam Malik News Agency ing, real life simulation exer-Arwani and the internal organs cises Shaheen and capacity Rah News Agency Byepass Newsbuilding Agency Kargil hanging out.
2-day workshop on finalization of State Disaster Management Plan begins at SKICC
Chief Secretary, Mohammad Iqbal Khandey. Financial Commissioner Revenue, Dr Arun Kumar, Member NDMA Dr Muzaffar Ahmad, Consultant,
of the draft of the J&K State Disaster Management Plan was presented and comments, inputs and suggestions from the participants were solicited for incorpo-
Delhi: Robbers loot house holding infant hostage at gunpoint The 11-month-old daughter of awoman was allegedly held hostage at gunpoint by a man while his accomplice looted jewellery and other valuables worth about Rs. 2 lakh from her house in north-east Delhi’s Mansarovar Park, police said on Sunday. The robbers allegedly assaulted the woman when she tried to raise an alarm. The victim Divya, 23, is a housewife and her husband Vishal (27) works for a private firm in Gurgaon. The incident occurred around 10pm on Friday when Vishal was out of home and Divya was with her baby daughter Shreshti. Two strangers had knocked at the door and told Divya that they wanted to meet Vicky, which happens to be her husband’s pet name. As soon as Divya opened the door, the duo barged into and latched it from inside, police said. The woman tried to raise an alarm, but one of them allegedly pulled out a pistol and kept it pointed at her sleeping daughter’s forehead till she agreed to keep quiet, police said. The other assailant, allegedly collected four gold bangles, eight gold rings and two gold earrings among other jewellery items. “While fleeing, the duo also took away her mobile phone to stop her from calling the police immediately,” a police officer said. Since the assailants were aware of Vishal’s pet name, police suspect the involvement of someone known to the victim’s family.
to ensure effective and quick human resource response to any disaster. During the discussions on the various features of the plan it was highlighted that besides having Disaster Management plan to deal with natural calamities like earthquakes, cloudburst, flash floods, avalanche and landslides, snow blizzards, wind storms, fire and drought.
In this Madhya Pradesh town, autopsies are carried out in the open
For over three years now, residents of Bhagat Singh ward in Madhya Pradesh’s Garhakota town are living a “hellish life” thanks to the government hospital’s open-air autopsy room. Garhakota, in Sagar district, is nearly 225 km from capital Bhopal. It is the hometown of Gopal Bhargava, panchayat and rural development
minister in the Shivraj Singh Chouhan cabinet. The post-mortem building, situated away from the hospital premises, collapsed over three years ago and since then the broken room has been the only place for performing autopsies. Located right in the middle of a residential locality, people have to live with anything between seven and 10 postmortems carried out on an average every month. “It’s a mental torture for the people of the locality. We don’t know when the nauseating smell will hit us or when we will be an unwilling witness to human bodies being cut open. Children and women have nightmares when they see such scenes. It has been
a hellish experience for us,” said Rajkumar Khare, a resident of the locality. Another resident Roop Kumar Dubey said that often “stray dogs and pigs bring in human body parts. Then there is the smell. For us, it is a case of, if the sight does not kill you, the smell will”. They said that repeated complaints have failed to evoke any response from the hospital authorities. But even Bhargava appeared helpless. “I arranged the sanctioning of Rs. 9 lakh for the post-mortem building about a year-anda-half. It is the responsibility of the health department to construct the facility,” he told HT.
Mian Altaf for making third party monitoring system more effective SRINAGAR, JULY 14: Minister for Forests, Ecology and Environment has asked the authorities of forest department to make third party monitoring system more effective and ensure that inspection reports of the works, conducted by the agencies engaged for the purpose, are submitted in time to the Government.The Minister was reviewing the status of the projects taken up under CAMPA scheme in the State at an officers meeting held here today. Secretary Forests, Principal Chief Conservator Forests, Director Social Forestry and Conservator Forests (CAMPA) were present on the occasion. Underling need for focusing attention on plantation, the Min-
Committee result oriented. The Committee has the mandate to look into the functioning of the Departments which include Industries & Commerce, Agriculture Production, Power Development Department, Higher Education, Ladakh Affairs and Haj & Auqaf. Threadbare discussion was held on the working of the Com-
HOROSCOPE Aries
March 21-April 19
Don’t discount your ability to be extremely resourceful if you need to be, Aries. If you don’t have everything you need or all of the required information, take time to think. Who can you ask? What places can you access? Who might know where you can find what you need? Rather than panic because the pieces aren’t all there, instead make a list of contacts and go for it. Trust in yourself.
Taurus April 20-May 20
Try not to let today’s blues get you down, Taurus. While it’s true that some days can seem to drag on, the busier you are the faster time will pass. Get down to finishing any work still before you and then make plans for tonight. If there’s a light at the end of the tunnel, not only will things seem to speed up but you’ll feel better knowing it’s coming.
Gemini May 21-June 21
Dare to be different, Gemini. It can be so easy to fall into a drill. Sleeping at the same time, eating at the same time, wearing the same style, and going about work the same way day after day. Before you know it, you feel like you’re in a rut. The only way to get away from this is to make a decision to break free by doing something unique. Try a new haircut. Wear colors that are unusual for you. If the need is there, consider a new career. Pursue expansion.
Cancer June 22-July 22
If your lifestyle is considerably different than that of others, resist feeling self-conscience about it today, Cancer. Try to remember that you chose the life you have for specific reasons. Even if you’ve come to a point where you’re considering a change, there’s no need to feel badly, ashamed, or embarrassed about where you are now. Everyone has to make his or her own way. If this conforms to the norm, that’s fine. If it doesn’t, that’s fine, too.
Leo
July 23-August 22 An enhanced feeling of determination could motivate you today, Leo. Finish the things that aren’t complete and make some plans for this evening. Don’t hesitate to take on something that feels complicated or big. Chances are you’ll be able to handle most anything and it will feel great when it’s finished. Enjoy your day by making the most of opportunity.
Virgo
August 23-September 22
Feeling the effects of today’s energies, Virgo? Take heart if this is the case, because the end of the tunnel isn’t as far away as it seems. Do your best to take things one step at a time and see about making some plans for a little fun this evening. Get together with friends or take in a movie. Help yourself feel better by staying busy and focused and follow up with some recreation. Before you know it, the aspect will pass and you’ll be back to normal.
Libra September 23-October 23 Consider making some plans for a vacation or short getaway, Libra. Looking forward to something fun can make even the toughest of days far easier to handle. You’ll be amazed how much you can manage when there’s an end in plain sight. Your entire attitude can lighten. So take the bull by the horns and create an incentive for yourself. Do something special to reward the hard work you do day after day.
Scorpio
October 24-November 21 Don’t judge someone if he or she has a different lifestyle than what you consider to be OK, Scorpio. You probably lean toward the traditional, yet not everyone feels this way about relationships, working, or lifestyle. While it may seem impossible to understand and even frighten you, try not to be too harsh on those you deem odd. You’d be better off using that energy to keep your own life on track.
ister asked officers to go for massive plantation on open chunk of forest land particularly on the banks of major State and district road so that pollution causing to the environment due to vehicular traffic is checked. He asked concerned officers to speed up work on the projects started across the state under CAMPA. The meeting was informed
DRSC-1 of Legislative Council holds its first meeting
SRINGAR, JULY 14: A meeting of the Department Related Standing Committee (DRSC-I) of Legislative Council was held today under the Chairmanship of MLC, Mr Showkat Hussain Ganai here. Legislators, Mr Ghulam Qadir Pardesi, Mr Abdul Majeed Bhat and Aga Syed Ahmed Rizvi attended the meeting and gave their valuable suggestions to make the
Now this (EC) order is also very clear. There is no question of paid news,” Chavan said. When asked to comment on the EC order which says that he has failed to file his election expenses in the requisite manner, Chavan said, “There is a provision under which a notice can be served to us. We will reply to that. I have not seen the order in detail yet. But (the issue of) paid news is ruled out totally.” The Commission said that it is quite clear that despite knowledge and awareness on his part, Chavan did not show the expenditure made on the publication of 25 advertisements in his account of election expenses.
15. 07 .2014
mittee and decided to call the concerned officers of Power Development Department to discuss the working paper of the department in its next meeting. Stressing on ensuring regular presence of all the members, the Chairman said that it will enable the Committee to take unanimous decisions besides settling the issues in a time bound manner.
that Rs 59 crore stands expended during last financial year on various programmes taken up under CAMPA scheme in the State while Rs 49.50 crore have been earmarked for current fiscal. Apart from this, the social forestry department has incurred Rs 6 crore under the scheme during last financial year, the meeting was told.
PAC discusses functioning of CA&PD Stresses for displaying rate lists, name of ration card holders at every Ration Depot SRINGAR, JULY 14: A meeting of the Committee on Public Accounts (PAC) of Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly was held under the Chairmanship of MLA Advocate Abdul Haq Khan here today. Threadbare discussion was held on issuance of ration cards besides the working of the Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution (CA&PD) department.Legislators, Prof. Chaman Lal Gupta, Rafi Ahmad Mir, Peerzada Mansoor Hussain, Mr. Javid Ahmad Dar and Dr. Shahnaz Ganai attended the meeting and gave their valuable suggestions to make the working of the CA&PD result oriented.The Committee stressed for displaying rate lists and name of the ration card holds at every Ration Depot.Secretary, CA&PD Department, Mr. Baseer Ahmad Khan and Director, CA&PD Kashmir,, Mr. Bashir Ahmad Khan briefed the Committee about the achievements registered besides functioning of the department.Among others, Secretary, Legislative Assembly Mr. M. Ramzan, Accountant General, AG’s office J&K Mr. Khalid Jamal, Director General Accounts and Treasuries, Mr. Altaf Hussain, representative from J&K Accountant General Office, and other senior officers of CA&PD .
Sagittarius November 22-December 21
Friends seeking advice or a shoulder to cry on could be plentiful today, Sagittarius. You’re one of best people to give them the support and care they need. Just be sure that you don’t give so much to others that you don’t have anything left for yourself. True friendship is about sharing and the exchange of problems and help. Running yourself down will leave you in a place where you aren’t going to be much help to anyone.
Capricorn December 22-January 19
Getting through today shouldn’t pose too big a problem for you, Capricorn. You may feel a huge second wind that can give you the drive and determination to see your chores and projects through. Make some plans for this evening, such as getting together with friends or taking in an event that really intrigues you. Until then, go about your tasks bit by bit. You’ll get things finished before you know it.
Aquarius January 20-February 18
Working within boundaries and restrictions could really get to you today, Aquarius. Yours is an independent spirit and your best achievements are often born of doing things your own way. Yet like it or not, we all have to follow guidelines and rules. Do your best to follow suit and finish what needs to be done. Afterward, you may find more freedom to act independently without consequences. Exercise patience and diligence as needed today.
Pisces
February 19-March 20 Chances are that you’ll feel upbeat and positive today, Pisces. Consider sharing this energy with those around you who are feeling less than content. Your attitude can have a profound effect on friends, partners, spouses, and children. Even neighbors and extended family can pick up on your spirit without you even realizing it. Share your optimism with everyone you can today. If you see someone hurt or angry.
OPINION EDITORIAL// OPINION Quote of the day
Be passionate, they are young and shing xiong deserve leniency
In the end, it’s not going to matter how many breaths you took, but how many moments took your breath away
lac orphans CTwoand our
ricket has become a very popular game across the world and this game offers name, fame and a lot of money not only to the players but to various boards, advertising agencies and hundreds of stake holders connected directly or indirectly with this game. Once conbut reality, the sidered a hocking gentleman’s game, cricket number of orphans has is now engulfed with lot of controincreased two lac and versies including betting, fixing and perhaps it is the only other negative things. It is not a sin to state in the country like or dislike a player or a team but it where nothing concrete is being is the way that one expresses his sendone by the state govt. for these timents connected with his likings. unfortunate one’s. Baring an orOnce chief election commissioner phanage here and there, no orgaof India M.S.Gill who later became nized mechanism is in place to a cabinet minister and held sports effect some steps for the rehabilportfolio was interviewed on a TV itation and welfare of the large channel were he openly said that he is orphans. During the anumber big fan ofofPakistani cricket team. It month of holy Ramdhan, one does not attracted any ill will against finds vehicles fitted with public the country and cannot be treated as address system asking for donatreason or a hate act against the countions for the welfare of the ortry, but if you celebrate the victory phans. But actually very small of Pakistani cricket team over India portion of the collected money and raise slogans it definitely can be is spent or reaches to these ortreated as a hate act and will amount who are always in dire aphans punishment. The J&K chief Minisneed of help. Most of the money is ter Omer Abdullah has said that the swindled by so called non-governact of Kashmiri students is not a kind mental-organisations pretending of treason but has justified their punto be engaged in the welfare of the ishment by the university authorities. orphans. Some of these organizaThe question arises as to why should tions are even running orphanthese students instead of putting their ages. If one has a round of these abilities to study and achieve new orphanages, most of them are heights indulge in such acts. Definitein a pathetic condition and the ly they are in Meerut where the unichildren lodged there are spendversity has provided them an opporing agonizing days. There is no tunity to study different courses and doubt that a few persons or orgawhere most of the students belong to nizations are truly serving their other parts of India who will necescause, but most of them are exsarily get hurt when somebody raises ploiters, cheaters and emotionalslogans against their team or country. ly black mail general public who The Kashmiri students should have donate foe these organizations. known that they are availing all the There are big advertisements in facilities provided by Govt. of India the local papers to donate for orand the government of the country phans and lacs of rupees are bewhere they live and make their caring spent on publicity. The money rier. It is unfortunate that they are collected in the name of orphans swayed by emotions without caring is lavishly spent for publicity for the emotions of others and are inand for the personal comforts of dulging in such acts which could furthose who are the helm of these ther complicate their future and creorganizations. One fails to underate many more problems. By doing so stand as to why there is no monithey have also put their parents in lot toring of the funds being collected of inconvenience as everybody is not and there are no checks and balaffluent and does not have enough ances from the govt. side which money to spend on the education of should have necessarily be in their wards. There are people who place. The orphans are spending barrow the money or sell the propervery pathetic days, the exploitors ty for the education of their children. comfortable life and the Itleading is the duty of the children to respect govt. watching all this like a mute the hard work and toil of their parents spectator. In fact, the two lac plus who do everything for their educaorphans and their rehabilitation tion. They should refrain from doing is a big challenge for the society such acts. As they are young hence the in general and govt. in particular. university authorities should take a It needs a meticulous policy and passionate view and should now give a perfect mechanism to rehabilthem one more chance and should itate them and take them out of not spoil their career. The UP govt. the agonizing life besides the exshould also keep their young age in ploitation of those persons and view and withdraw the cases against organizations who are swindling them, particularly the case of treason. huge amounts in the name of As they are young, the govt. of Utter their welfare. In fact , every inPradesh and the University instead of dividual and the govt. have to coming heavily on them and proving share the responsibility of these harsh, should instead be polite and deserving persons. lenient on them.
responsibilities
S
Daily Daily
Zabarwan Times Times Zabarwan
Srinagar, Friday Tuesday July 2014 Srinagar, 0715 March 2014
Drinking Water Facility for Villages
F
ive crore people living in over one lakh habitations in villages in our country do not have access to safe drinking water even today. According to official figures twenty two per cent rural families have to walk for at least half a kilometer or more to fetch water (mostly it is the women who have to bear the burden). The percentage of such families is the maximum in Manipur, Tripura, Odisha, Meghalaya, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh. Fifteen per cent of households in villages depend on uncovered wells and other unimproved sources like rivers, springs, ponds for drinking water. Also eighty five per cent of all drinking water resources in villages are based on underground sources of water and in many of these areas water is contaminated. Only 30.80 percent of the rural population has access to tap water. In fact there are only four states which have been able to bring fifty per cent or more of the rural areas under piped water supply. Many of the states are yet to fully comply with the Supreme Court order on supply of potable water in government schools. The latest available data shows that less than the 44 per cent government schools in villages have drinking water facility. During the national consultation in Delhi held recently on the progress of national rural drinking water programmers and related issues , it was revealed that in spite of this unsatisfactory scenario with regard potable water availability in villages many of the states have failed to fully utilize the funds allocated by the centre under the various heads of NRDWP. To achieve the objective of providing drinking water facilities to all the villages, the Government is bringing about a major paradigm shift in the National Rural Drinking Water Programme in the XIIth
Five Year plan period. In the backdrop of over extraction of ground water in most parts of the country, the emphasis is to shift away from ground water to surface water. The focus would be on piped water supply and minimizing the use of hand pumps. The target is to ensure individual household connections to at least 35 per cent of the population in villages by 2017 against only 13 per cent today. In order to encourage the villagers to take water connections, the Government is roping in Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA). A recent order said the ASHAs will get an incentive of 75 rupees for motivating each of the families in villages to take individual household tap connection. The states can use the money from the support funds allocated to states under the NRDWP. The norm of 40 litres of water per capita per day( LPCD) in villages was set way back in 1972 but now under the 12th five year plan , it is being increased from 40 to 55 litres .In the 12th plan the target is to cover at least half of the population to get 55 LPCD water within in their house hold premises or within 100 meter radius. Once the states are able to increase the per capita availability of drinking water, it will help in bridging the gap to some extent between urban areas and rural areas. Under NRDWP, States have the flexibility to fix their own supply norms. The Drinking Water and Sanitation Minister Bharatsinh Solanki has urged the states to aim at 55 LPCD , this he says will enable higher level of household connections and reduce the burden on women and girls in fetching water from hand pumps and public taps as well as reducing risk of contamination. Quality of drinking water availability is a major concern in villages many parts of the country are affected by contamination of arsenic and fluoride, which are considered
the most hazardous in terms of their effect on health. In the budget proposals for 2013-14 Rs 1,400 crore will be provided for the setting-up water purification plants as there are still 2,000 arsenic and 12,000 fluoride affected rural habitations in the country. Then there are contaminants like iron, salinity uranium and pesticides. The centre is assisting States affected with Chemical contamination of drinking water, and those States which have cases of Japanese and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome through a provision under the NRDWP by allocating 5% of the NRDWP funds for Improving the quality of drinking water Given the growing importance of water quality issues, under the 12th plan dedicated funding will be provided to States with quality affected habitations, over and above the normal NRDWP allocation to the State. Highest priority will be given to arsenic and fluoride affected habitations. Part of the funding would also be made available to tackle bacteriological contamination in the priority districts with high incidence of Japanese and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome as identified by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Unfortunately many of the states like Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Kerala, and Uttarakhand & Tripura are yet to submit proposals to get the benefit from 5% Water Quality earmarked fund. World over lack of drinking water and sanitation facilities account for over nine per cent of the diseases and more than six per cent of deaths. In our country where more than half the population resorts to open defecation, the situation is worse. It is in this scenario that major emphasis in the 12th plan is strengthening convergence between rural drinking water supply and rural sanitation by taking up
villages covered with piped water supply to get Open Defecation Free status priority and vice versa. The 12th plan draft document says that all government schools and anganwadis in government or community buildings will be provided with water supply for drinking and for toilets as per relevant quality norms by convergence of NRDWP for existing schools and Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and for new schools set up under SSA. For private schools this will be enforced the right to education provisions. All community toilets built with public funds and maintained for public use will be provided with running water supply under NRDWP. Care will be taken to ensure that minimum distance is maintained between the toilet systems and water sources, to alleviate the problem of nitrate contamination. A part of NRDWP outlay will be set aside for integrated Habitat Improvement Projects to provide housing, water and sanitation facilities in rural areas at par with urban areas. Participation of the beneficiaries especially women in drink water supply schemes is also proposed. In another initiative Solar powered pumps will be provided for implementation in remote, small habitations and those with irregular power supply by converging subsidy available under Ministry of New and Renewable Energy. Waste water treatment and recycling will also be an integral part of every water supply plan or project. India is fast becoming a water stressed country and over and above everything else there is need to generate awareness about protecting drinking water sources from contamination, regular testing of drinking water sources, conserving rainwater in tanks and ponds, water recharge and water saving devices so that everyone in the country is able to get the basic facility of drinking water.
Measures to Check Cheating of investors by Unscrupulous Companies
C
heating of investors by unscrupulous companies takes many forms, such as: ‘vanishing’ after raising money through public offers; illegal collection of deposits in violation of Section 58A of the Companies Act, 1956; floating sham ‘Collective Investment Schemes (CIS)’ in violation of SEBI Act; collecting money from public by posing as ‘Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) in violation of RBI Act; and resorting to ‘Ponzy’ or money circulation schemes under the Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs has taken action against ‘vanishing companies’ which have raised funds through initial public offer but thereafter are not traceable. The Ministry has also taken action against certain companies which have failed to repay deposits to public violating Section 58A of the Companies Act, 1956. Complaints of cheating by companies which promised high rates of interests to investors, have been received against 87 companies. In these cases Inspection under Section 209A/ Investigation under Section 234 of the Companies Act, 1956 has been ordered. Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) also looked into the affairs of 669 companies whose operations were in violation of SEBI (Collective Investment Schemes) Regulations, 1999. The amount collected by these companies was about Rs 7,435 crore. Out of these companies, 75 have been wound up and the money refunded to the investors. A total of 552 companies were prosecuted; convictions have been secured in 124 cases. RBI also regulates deposits / investments of the public with Non- banking Finance Companies (NBFC) that are registered with RBI. Complaints received against companies posing as NBFC’s and Unincorporated bodies indulging in cheating
/ fraud are forwarded by RBI to the Economic Offenses Wing of the State Police for investigation and further action. There are certain companies which have floated fraudulent investment deposits mobilizing schemes (also called ponzi schemes) under various guises and are liable for action under the Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978. This Act is administered by Ministry of Finance (Department of Financial Services) through the State Governments. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs has constituted a Steering Committee to develop a “Fraud Prediction Model” aimed at generating alerts for prevention of fraud and malfeasance. It is also proposed to revamp the existing Market Research & Analysis Unit (MRAU) in the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) to enable it to function as an intelligence unit. Giving a fillip to the early establishment of a state-of-art Forensic Lab within the premises of SFIO in the national capital; and the development of a Comprehensive Early Warning System (EWS) for detection of corporate fraud and malfeasance at the earliest, three important MoUs have been signed by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs. These MoUs are: Between Director, SFIO ( which functions under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs) and Director, National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT), a scientific organization under the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology; Between Joint Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs and Director, Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU-IND), an agency under the Ministry of Finance; and Director, SFIO and Director, FIU-IND. As per the Memorandum, NIELIT will set up a state-of-art Forensic Lab within
the premises of SFIO - with a total outlay of Rs. 3.80 Crore on a turnkey basis, to be completed in two phases. The MoUs signed with FIU-IND will lead to better and faster exchange of information between the three Government entities. FIU has been playing a pivotal role in the collection and dissemination of information on suspicious banking transactions under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. FIU-IND has been helping both the Ministry and SFIO from time to time by supplying information on suspicious banking transactions. Having access to banking information as well as expertise of FIU, the MoU will help SFIO in conducting its investigation in a more effective manner. These initiatives will facilitate development of a comprehensive EWS for detection of fraud and malfeasance at the earliest. The concerned regulatory agencies of the Central Government have adopted different measures aimed at sensitizing the public of the need to be cautious while making investments into schemes, etc. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs conducts Investor Awareness Programs (IAP’s) for making the public aware of the various instruments of investments available to them. Similarly, RBI issues notice in newspapers regularly to caution the public against the design of entities in collection of deposits illegally. Editors of Newspapers are also sensitized to exercise caution for accepting advertisements pertaining to acceptance of deposits by un-incorporated bodies. Presently, RBI is in the process of undertaking a comprehensive campaign aimed at alerting the public against falling prey to the Ponzy schemes and other monetary mal-practices. SEBI also conducts Investor Awareness Programs in cities / towns across the country and has recently launched publicity campaigns through electronic and print media.
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