Gujarat Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani on Tuesday accused the BJP of targeting youth leaders like him and charged the party and the RSS with instigating violence against Dalits in Bhima Koregaon in Maharashtra.

“The way in which Hardik (Patel), Alpesh (Thakore) and Jignesh (Mevani) with the support of the youth in Gujarat brought the BJP down from over 150 seats (target set by BJP in Gujarat) to 99 seats… That is the reason we are being targetted,” Mevani told his Yuva Hunkar rally here.

“And this is the reason why the people of the (Rashtriya Swayamsewak) Sangh and BJP spread violence in Bhima Koregaon,” he said, referring to the violence that broke out in Bhima Koregaon near Pune last week in which a person lost his life and several vehicles were damaged.

The rally for which the Delhi Police had originally denied permission was held at the Jantar Mantar, a short distance from the Parliament in central Delhi. But Mevani and his supporters shelved plans of taking out a procession to the Prime Minister’s Office.

The newly elected MLA also said that when he fought elections in Gujarat he always spoke about bringing people together.

“Throughout the election campaign we said that for 22 years the BJP followed the politics of division, while we always spoke about binding people together,” he said. “We don’t follow love-jihad.

“We only talk about love and harmony. We will celebrate April 14 and Valentine Day too,” he said.

Referring to the violence that marked the 200th anniversary of the Bhima Koregaon battle in Pune last week, he asked: “Why the violence took place in Bhima Koregaon?

“I don’t have to answer it but you have to answer me… This you have to answer why Rs 15 lakh didn’t come in everyone’s account, why no jobs to youth? Why were farmers shot dead in Mandsaur? Why no justice to the Una Dalit victims? Why Najeeb Ahmed went missing? Why Rohit Vemula died? We’ll ask all these questions from you (Prime Minister Narendra) Modiji.”

Mevani, who won from Vadgam in Gujarat in Assembly elections, said elected representatives were not allowed to speak and that was Gujarat’s model.

Earlier, scores of people gathered around the barricaded Parliament Street for the protest march planned by Mevani.

“No permission has been given to anyone (to hold a rally),” Joint Commissioner of Police Ajay Chaudhary told reporters here.

The Gujarat lawmaker slammed the police and the central government for denying permission to the protest.

“An elected representative is not allowed to speak… This is extremely unfortunate.”

Some 1,500 security personnel in riot gear, with tear gas launchers and water cannons, were deployed on Parliament Street. A total of 42 groups — parties, associations, student groups — took part in the rally.

HTC VIVE, the Virtual Reality (VR) arm of Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC, on Tuesday announced new hardware upgrades that will deliver premium VR experiences to consumers and enterprises with the introduction of VR headset “VIVE Pro”.

“VIVE is investing in the platforms and services that will enable highest quality display, audio and wireless VR for VR content delivering the best of content and experience,” Faisal Siddiqui, President-South Asia, HTC, told IANS.

The HTC VIVE Pro, the price for which is yet to be announced, is built for those who want the best display and audio for their VR experiences.

“Vive Pro offers an immediate upgrade for both VR enthusiasts and enterprises that want to utilize the best VR experience,” said Daniel O’Brien, GM (US), VIVE.

HTC has refreshed its VIVE VR headset after almost two years. The new HTC VIVE Pro can be seen as the consumer feedback upgraded version of the HTC VIVE. It comes with 78 percent increase in resolution of the dual-OLED displays with 2880 x 1600 pixels (1400 x 1600 pixels per eye) and 615 ppi.

“This resolution increase should help with clearer text rendering and overall graphics, and the bump puts the Vive Pro beyond the Oculus Rift or Windows Mixed Reality headsets,” The Verge noted in its report.

The headset also features integrated, high-performance headphones with a built-in amplifier to offer a heightened sense of presence and an overall richer sound.

“There’s a clear need in the VR market for a premium VR experience with high resolution display, integrated audio and the best components available today in a headset,” said O’Brien.

The company also unveiled “VIVE Wireless Adaptor” for a better integration for both HTC VIVE and HTC VIVE Pro.

“A lot of developers in India are involved in creating content and delivering a seamless VR experience,” Siddiqui added.

(Written with inputs from IANS)

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday sought the Central government’s response to a petition challenging its decision of directing action against fitment of metal crash guards or bull bars in vehicles.

A division bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C. Hari Shankar sought a response from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highway and Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) on the plea filed by a manufacturer of crash guards.

On December 7, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways directed all states to act against crash guards, installed at the front and back of vehicles, as they “pose serious safety concerns to pedestrians as well as occupants of the vehicles”.

The petitioner has sought to stay on the government’s notification but the bench refused to stay it. The court now posted the matter for next hearing on February 6.

Advocate Kameshwar Gumber, appearing for the petitioner, said the government’s decision to ban crash guards was “invalid” and was “taken without any scientific survey on its safety quotient”.

The petitioner further claimed that crash guards are “useful safety accessories” and that there is no rule or law dealing with it.

The plea said that the ministry had said that crash guards fall under the purview of Section 52 of Motor Vehicle Act and attract a penalty, but crash guards do not come under the section as it pertains to modification in a vehicle and not after-market fitments.

The High Court is seized of another petition which has sought to ban such metal bumper guards as they pose a threat to lives of pedestrians as well as passengers.

The petition had claimed that in high-speed accidents they would defeat the in-built safety features of the car resulting in serious and fatal injuries to the passengers.

Hitting back at Congress President Rahul Gandhi, who said India is witnessing a rise in the forces of hatred and division, the BJP on Tuesday said it is the Congress party that is guilty of hate and communal politics “for the longest time”.

“Rahul Gandhi accused us of spreading hate and terror, besides a few other things that are normally not said at international forums. We want to ask if the Congress party’s stand on triple talaq bill in Rajya Sabha was politics of hate or not,” Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesman and Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said here.

Accusing the Congress of having “double standards”, Prasad said: “For the longest time, the politics of hate and communalism has been practised by the Congress. From Shah Bano to Shayara Bano, the Congress has not changed its attitude in 31 years… It has not come out of the clutches of fundamentalists, not even on the question of women’s dignity.”

He also said that before praising China in India’s comparison, Gandhi should have seen a report in “The Economist” magazine’s December issue, “which predicts that India would overtake China in growth in two years”.

Addressing the Indian diaspora in Bahrain on Tuesday, Rahul Gandhi had said: “Tragically, the conversation in our country today is not about jobs, healthcare or education. The only thing India talks about is what you are allowed to eat, who is allowed to protest and what we can say, or rather what we cannot say.”

He added that the “tragedy” was that instead of focusing on critical issues like poverty alleviation, job creation and building a world-class education system, “we see instead rise in the forces of hatred and division”.

In a bid to bring transparency, the Railways on Tuesday said that it has launched an online vendor registration system that will allow small and medium enterprises to become railway vendors.

“In line with the philosophy of the government to make systems and procedures digital and transparent, the railways has launched new online vendor registration system,” the Railway Ministry said in a statement.

The new online vendor registration system has been developed by Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO), the research arm of the Railways which is headquartered in Lucknow.

According to the ministry, the move would benefit lakhs of new vendors who wish to do business with it.

The railways said that with the launch of the new online registration system, the vendor need not come to RDSO for any activity related to his case for registration, while the process of documents scrutiny and physical verification of the vendor’s facility has been made a parallel exercise.

“With the new online system implemented by the RDSO, the vendor can now deposit registration fee, submit documents, download technical drawings and specifications and interact with RDSO online,” it said.

The ministry also said that the vendors interested in developing products and new technologies for the sector can now register with the national transporter through the year.

According to railways, it is for the first time that the RDSO has also invited expressions of interest (EOI) for all the 600 plus items — such as automatic twist locks, components for diesel locomotives and anti-friction coatings — required by the sector and kept the window open with no timelines to enable wider participation.

The Shia Central Waqf Board has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to shut down madrassas in the country, alleging that education imparted in these Islamic schools encouraged students to join terrorist ranks.

In a letter to the prime miniter, the Shia body demanded that madrassas be replaced by schools affiliated to the CBSE or the ICSE which will offer students an optional subject of Islamic education.

The Board suggested that all madrassa boards should be dissolved.

The Shia Central Waqf Board chairman, Waseem Rizvi, claimed that most of the madrassas in the country are not recognised and the Muslim students studying in such institutions are moving towards unemployment.

He claimed that these madrassas were mushrooming in almost every city, town and village and were providing “misplaced and misconceived religious education”.

He alleged that funds to run the madrassas were also coming from Pakistan and Bangladesh and that even some terror outfits were assisting them.

Reacting to it, All India Muslim Personal Law Board spokeman Khalilur Rehman Sajjad Nomani said madarssas had played a key role in the freedom movement and by raising questions on these schools, Rizvi was insulting them.

However, Rizvi said that madrassas should be replaced by schools that are affiliated to the CBSE or the ICSE and they should allow non-Muslim students too.

“These schools should be affiliated to CBSE, ICSE, and allow non-Muslim students. Religious education should be made optional. I have written to the PM and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in this regard,” he said in a tweet.

“This will make our country even stronger,” he said.

The letter cites two primary reasons to justify the demand of closing the madrasas.

It alleged that the education imparted in the madrassas is not relevant to today’s environment and therefore, they add to the long queue of unemployed youths in the country.

Rizvi said that the employability of students passing out from madrassas was very poor at present and they do not get good jobs. “At the most, they get jobs of Urdu translators or typists,” he said.

The letter also said that it has been found in certain cases that the education of these institutions is encouraging the students to join terrorist ranks.

After as many as 51 girls were rescued on December 30 in a raid on a madrassa in Uttar Pradesh, the Shia Waqf Board had said that all madrassas being run on Waqf properties will be closed down.

The Indian Navy is “fully capable” of defending the country against any threat, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Tuesday after she reviewed the Navy’s maritime prowess.

The Minister presided over India’s show of naval might, off the western coast on Monday and Tuesday, in which more than 10 warships, including aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, three submarines and various types of naval aircraft participated in operational manoeuvres, an official statement said.

Sitharaman initially embarked on INS Kolkata, the first of the indigenously built Kolkata Class destroyers, and then spent the night at sea onboard INS Vikramaditya.

To assess the performance of the carrier in “real conditions”, she transited through a simulated “multi-threat” environment on board along with the ship’s escorts during Monday night, it said.

Sitharaman also presided over multiple complex naval operations including air interceptions, missile, gun and rocket firing, ship-to-ship replenishment, night flying and anti-submarine warfare.

The Western Fleet undertook these major naval manoeuvres off the western seaboard to showcase its operational excellence and combat capabilities.

“Having witnessed first-hand the prowess of the Western Fleet, I am confident that the Indian Navy is fully capable of defending the nation against any form of threat,” she said.

She also interacted closely and had open discussions with the sailors on board the warships.

On Tuesday, the Minister left the ship by a naval helicopter which landed at INS Hansa near here on Tuesday.

The 72-run loss in the opening Test to South Africa has cost India skipper Virat Kohli a drop to the No.3 spot in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Test batsmen rankings, which were released here on Tuesday.

Besides Kohli, India’s batting mainstay Cheteshwar Pujara also dropped a couple of places to No.5 in the list headed by Australia skipper Steve Smith and followed by his England counterpart Joe Root.

India’s Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma have also lost ground. Vijay is now 30th after dropping five places, Dhawan has slipped three places to 33rd, while Sharma has ended up 44th after falling three places.

Among others, South Africa’s Hashim Amla and Dean Elgar have slipped three places apiece to finish in 10th and 16th positions, respectively, but former skipper AB de Villiers has risen five places to 13th with a slot in the top-10 firmly within his sights. De Villiers struck 65 and 35 to stabilize the Proteas after their batting line-up faltered in both the innings.

South Africa opener Aiden Markram, who was declared Player of the Tournament in the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup in 2014, and India all-rounder Hardik Pandya are the other big movers from the Newlands Test. Markram has moved up six places to 48th, while Pandya is now ranked 49th after rocketing 24 places.

Among the bowlers, South Africa paceman Kagiso Rabada has grabbed the numero uno spot in the ICC Test bowler’s rankings, displacing Englishman James Anderson.

Rabada starred with the red cherry, picking 3 for 34 and 2 for 41 in the opening Test at Newlands. Rabada, 22, earned five points for that performance, taking him past Anderson’s tally of 887 by one point.

Anderson’s tally reduced by five points after the final Ashes Test in Sydney, where he took 1 for 56 in Australia’s only innings.

Vernon Philander, who was Man of the Match for his nine wickets against India at Newlands, jumped from 12th place to sixth.

Philander now trails Australia’s sixth-ranked Josh Hazlewood by eight points and has an opportunity to break into the top-five following the Centurion Test, which begins on Saturday.

Outside the top-20, India’s Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Pat Cummins of Australia have achieved career-high rankings.

Kumar has vaulted eight places to 22nd following figures of four for 87 and two for 33, while Cummins has leaped eight places and is now in 28th position after match figures of eight for 119, which also earned him the player of the match award.

There is no change in the top-five of the all-rounders’ list, which is still headed by Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan, with Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin in second and third place, respectively.

Arshi Khan, the quirky contestant of Bigg Boss 11 is set to surprise the audience again. Arshi who was evicted from the show will re-enter the house as a taskmaster. The bold Arshi Khan will have the power to help out the contestants in the last step. She will be entering the house on Wednesday, the shoot for the episode has already started.

According to media reports, “Arshi will enter the house to bring more spice and drama to the show. As part of the finale week tasks, she will be seen interacting with the five housemates and giving them various tasks to complete. The one who would outshine in the same would be given a special privilege by Arshi.”

Post eviction, Arshi Khan seemed very upset, saying some “undeserving contestants were still there”, as she counted herself among the top five contestants. However, Arshi had said she had a great time in the house. As per reports, Arshi had said she never played filthy games. Arshi reportedly wants to see Vikas Gupta winning the show as he has been playing really well. According to her “it would be a disgrace if Shilpa Shinde or Hina Khan win the show”.

For the mid-week eviction, Hina, Vikas, Puneesh, Shilpa and Akash are nominated. One of them will be eliminated from the show soon.

Richard Gasquet of France on Tuesday handed a defeat to World No.1 Rafael Nadal at the Kooyong Classic exhibition in Australia.

This was Nadal’s first match after withdrawing due to a right knee injury from the 2017 ATP Finals in London, and despite losing 4-6, 5-7 to the World No.31, he remained upbeat about his physical condition, reports.

“It’s not an official match but still a test for me and good practice, that’s the most important thing, that’s the most important thing for the whole season,” the 31-year-old Spaniard said, reaffirming his need to keep practicing hard to be prepared for the Australian Open.

“I had a long year last year, so I had to start my preparation later than usual. But I’ve arrived with plenty of time and it’s a good day to start again the feelings of playing a match,” the 16-time Grand Slam champion added.

On Wednesday, Nadal is set to play against Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, World No.14, at the Tie Break Tens in Melbourne, where matches are to be comprised of tie-breaks only, with no games and no sets.

Nadal’s first official match is scheduled to take place at the Australian Open, following his withdrawal from the Brisbane International tournament and from an exhibition held in Abu Dhabi.

Flaying the BJP government in Assam for “excluding a large section of Bengali- and Hindi-speaking people from the NRC’s list” in that state, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday urged her state’s people to offer shelter to those from Assam seeking refuge here.

“There is a trend in Assam to drive away and oppress the Bengali-speaking people in the name of determining the state’s original inhabitants. The names of a lot of genuine residents have been omitted from the National Register of Citizens list. Out of 3.39 crore people in Assam, 1.29 crore have been excluded. This includes Bengali- and Hindi- speaking people,” Banerjee claimed at a public meeting in Alipurduar district.

“How can they be driven away like that? I urge all of you to be alert. If someone comes (to Bengal) after torture there, please give them shelter; do not drive them away,” she told her audience.

Taking a dig at the Bharatiya Janata Party and its ideological mentor Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the Trinamool Congress supremo alleged that an NGO funded by them was “injecting RSS ideology into tribal students on the pretext of providing them education”.

“The BJP, RSS and Bajrang Dal have formed a new organisation. They have appointed teachers with handsome salaries in tribal areas and are giving RSS lessons to tribal students in the name of education. They are trying to brainwash the tribal brothers and sisters,” Banerjee alleged.

“They are publishing their version of textbooks and asking the students to read them at home. Do not believe them,” the Chief Minister said.

Banerjee said an FIR has been lodged against the publisher of Class 2 textbook in West Bengal’s Uluberia on Monday on charge of publishing “bad things” about Prophet Muhammad and distributing them among students.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked all states and union territories (UTs) to come out with details of the money they have received from the Centre under the Nirbhaya fund scheme and the amounts disbursed as compensation to the victims of sexual assaults and acid attacks.

A bench comprising Justices M B Lokur and Deepak Gupta, while asking all the states and UTs to file their responses within four weeks on receipt and disbursal of funds, rued the fact that they do not respond.

“Let me tell you (senior advocate Indira Jaising who is assisting the bench as an amicus curiae), they do not (respond),” the bench said when Jaising submitted that states are under obligation to respond and should be asked to give details of the funds received and disbursed under the Nirbhaya scheme.

The Nirbhaya Fund scheme was announced by the Centre in 2013 after the sensational December 16, 2012 gang-rape and murder case in Delhi to support the initiatives of the governments and the NGOs working towards safety of women.

Meanwhile, the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA), represented by its Director S S Rathi, informed the court that it has prepared a draft Model Rules for Victim Compensation for sexual offences and acid attacks in pursuance of the earlier direction and would submit it later.

The NALSA Director said the procedures and the mode adopted in Delhi in awarding compensation to victims of sexual assaults and acid attacks have been considered while preparing the draft model rules.

“In Delhi, such victims are awarded money within 24 hours after a decision to this effect,” Rathi, an Additional District and Sessions Judge who has also served in the Delhi Legal Services Authority (DLSA), said.

During the hearing, the bench asked the NALSA Director whether there was any provision to reappropriate the unspent funds awarded to NALSA and the State Legal Services Authority.

The bench has now posted the matter for further hearing on February 15 when it would deal with states’ response on receipt and disbursal of funds under Nirbhaya scheme and otherwise.

Earlier, the Centre had told the apex court that it was finding it difficult to get the cooperation of states on the issue relating to disbursal of compensation to the victims of sexual assault under the Nirbhaya scheme.

Jaising had informed the court that she had gone through 36 schemes related to compensation to be disbursed to victims of sexual assault under the Nirbhaya fund and has extracted the best practices which could be looked into by the bench.

The top court on September 22 last year had said it would hear the submissions of the amicus and the Centre on how best to evolve an integrated and cohesive system of payment of compensation to victims of sexual assault and also about steps to rehabilitate these victims or at least reduce or eliminate the trauma they have undergone.

Later, it asked the NALSA and others to devise a model rules on award of compensation to rape and acid attack victim.

Six petitions were filed in the Supreme Court after the gangrape case in Delhi on December 16, 2012 raising concerns over the safety and security of women.

All the petitions were tagged by the apex court and several directions have been issued from time to time in this regard.

The Delhi Cabinet approved a tender for purchase of 1,000 non-AC, standard floor cluster buses to serve the city’s outlying areas, said Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Tuesday.

Addressing the media, Sisodia said that the buses would cater mainly to outer Delhi and rural areas. The buses are expected to start arriving by August and all buses will be delivered by year end, he added.

Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot also tweeted: “Delhi Cabinet approves tender for purchase of 1000 cluster buses which will cater to rural villages of Delhi.”

Delhi Cabinet approves Tender for purchase of 1000 Cluster Buses which will cater to Rural Villages of Delhi.

— Kailash Gahlot (@kgahlot) January 9, 2018

Ealier on Monday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal launched a pilot ‘Delhi Common Mobility Card’ which will enable commuters to travel in both Delhi Metro and 250 select city buses.

The Delhi government aims to shift to a ‘Common Mobility Card’ which could be used to travel in Metro and all Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and cluster buses by April 1.

Under the pilot project, Delhi Metro cards will be valid in select 200 DTC and 50 cluster buses from Monday.

During the trial, by tapping the Metro card on an Electronic Ticketing Machine or ETM in a bus, a ticket would be generated, which would also reveal the balance in the passenger’s Metro card. Currently, ETMs are used by conductors in buses to issue tickets.

The money deducted from commuters’ Metro cards will go to Delhi Metro Rail Corp (DMRC), which issues the Metro cards. The money will be later transferred to the Delhi government.

Commuters would be able to purchase and recharge these cards at all Metro stations, railway stations, airports, Inter State Bus Terminals and DTC bus pass counters.

(With agency inputs)

Do you travel for business assignments for two weeks or more in a month? According to a study, such people are more likely to suffer from symptoms of anxiety and depression and are also likely to smoke, be sedentary and have trouble sleeping.

The findings showed that poor behavioral and mental health outcomes significantly increased as the number of nights away from home for business travel rose.

Among those who consume alcohol, extensive business travel was associated with symptoms of alcohol dependence.

“Although business travel can be seen as a job benefit and can lead to occupational advancement, there is a growing literature showing that extensive business travel is associated with risk of chronic diseases associated with lifestyle factors,” said Andrew Rundle, Associate Professor at the Columbia University.

“The field of occupational travel medicine needs to expand beyond its current focus on infectious disease, cardiovascular disease risks, violence and injury to bring more focus to the behavioural and mental health consequences of business travel,” Rundle added.

Previous research showed that extensive business travel was associated with higher body mass index, obesity, and higher blood pressure.

For the study, published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, the team checked health records of 18,328 employees who underwent a health assessment in 2015 through their corporate wellness work benefits programme.

The results showed that mild or worse anxiety or depressive symptoms were common in this employee population.

Employers and employees should consider new approaches to improve employee health during business trips that go beyond the typical travel health practice of providing immunisations and medical evacuation services, Rundle said.