statesman news service
KOLKATA, 9 JUNE: A few undergraduate students of Institute of Post-Graduate Medical Education and Research (IPGMER) at SSKM hospital today accused the Trinamul Congress Chhatra Parishad (TMCP) leaders of assaulting and threatening to drive them out of the campus.
The accusations came after a student owing allegiance to All-India Democratic Students Organisation (AIDSO) was allegedly beaten up last night.
The AIDSO blamed the TMCP for the assault and said students’ leaders of the ruling party have been engaged in hooliganism ever since the polls were halted in the campus last year
Mr Bharat Chandra Das, a final year student, accused the TMCP activists of attacking him last night after he refused to vacate his hostel room.
Mr Das has been served a showcause notice and asked to appear before West Bengal University of Health Sciences on 12 June to specify the reason for not leaving the campus.
However, the TMCP leaders have rubbished the allegations calling it baseless and have accused Mr Das of being involved in illegal activities in the campus.
“He has been spoiling the atmosphere in the hostel and has been repeatedly told to leave, but he refuses to listen,” said a TMCP leader.

press trust of india
NEW DELHI, 4 JUNE: Tata Consultancy Services, the country’s largest software company, may sack as many as 290 employees at its Finland office, a move that the workers say is an attempt to shift jobs to India.
TCS, which has a registered office in Helsinki and has an employee strength of about 800 in Finland, is currently in negotiation with the employee representatives (ERs) over the move to cut jobs. The Union of Professional Engineers in Finland (UIL) claimed that the jobs at stake were about 412, a figure which TCS said was inaccurate.
“If I remember…412, I believe is the correct number,” UIL director (collective bargaining) Mr Ismo Kokko said when asked about the number of jobs at stake in TCS.
When contacted, a TCS spokesperson said: “The maximum number of roles affected is 290 and not the numbers you have mentioned, which are completely inaccurate.”
Lay-offs may be less than even 290, some sources privy to TCS management thinking said.
In April this year, more than 160 employees at the Finland offices of TCS staged a walkout protesting against job cuts. These employees were outsourced by Nokia to TCS in March. The employees are based in Espoo, Salo, Tampere and Oulu.
“On 25 April, there was a spontaneous walk-out from all TCS offices located in Nokia premises in Finland. People felt angry and betrayed over the fact that it only took TCS seven weeks to show their true colours. Many people felt that Nokia simply outsourced its lay-offs and dirty work to TCS,” sources closely following the developments revealed.
Nokia made the announcement related to the outsourcing of employees in January and the total number of Nokia employees to be transferred was 820 of which about 560 were to go to TCS and 230 to HCL, Mr Kokko said.
Separately, Nokia also cut jobs at its IT centre by up to 300 employees.
Mr Kokko said negotiations with employee representatives (ERs) are currently going on and will conclude soon, which was also confirmed by sources, who wished not to be quoted.

DURGAPUR, 9 JUNE: A sitting Panchayat Samiti member from the Trinamul Congress, Mr Sassi Choube of Andal, was given Congress ticket to contest in a Panchayat samiti seat by state Congress president Pradip Bhattacharya today.
Mr Choube, the first Trinamul Congress Pradhan in Andal in 2003 was elected as a Panchayat Samiti member in 2008. The Trinamul Congress meanwhile refused ticket to him this year and the leader along with his 400 followers migrated to the Congress. Mr Bhattacharya said: “Sassi is an example how the Trinamul Congress is behaving step-brotherly and ditching its friends of past days. There are many those who are suffering the worst. The Congress offers them the choice to come back voluntarily and give the Trinamul big trouble in the coming election.”
State agriculture minister and Trinamul congress&’s state committee member, Mr Moloy Ghatak however said: “Persons like Sassi have been refused symbol because of their corruption and nepotism.” He added: “Such persons leaving the Trinamul Congress would ensure better health of our party.” The Congress has assigned Mr Choube to contest as a candidate for the No: 19 Panchayat Samiti seat in Andal. sns

Be better informed about parties
SIR, ~ My compliments to you for the report, “Parties covered under RTI” (4 June). The fact of the matter is that the lives and aspirations of the people are  tremendously affected by the political parties, either directly or indirectly. It is the parties that frame laws after debates and discussions in Parliament and the state Assemblies. Theoretically, legislative enactments are intended to benefit the people. In reality, however, it is quite the contrary.
The political parties, irrespective of whether they belong to the ruling side or the Opposition, are in a position to fulfil the aspirations and improve the living conditions of the people. When they fail to do so, the people need to be vigilant. And they do reserve the right to seek information pertaining to political parties.
Therefore, the directive of the Central Information Commission deserves to be generally welcomed. Democracy will thereby reach the grassroot level of society.
yours, etc., prasanta sanyal, kolkata, 4 june.
Unusual unanimity
SIR, ~ Post-Independence, our parties have seldom arrived at a consensus on any issue other than external aggression, a natural calamity or a hike in pay and perquisites. MPs and MLAs are unanimous when it comes to the third compulsion.
  Notably, all parties have now banded together to oppose the CIC&’s order that seeks to include all political parties within the purview of the Right To Information Act. Politicians, normally divided along party lines, have almost unanimously demanded the withdrawal of the order.
yours, etc., arun malankar, mumbai, 5 june.
Ideology of extortion
SIR, ~ The Maoists are active once again to protest against the exploitation of tribals, who have been displaced from their hearth and home and without compensation… to make way for industrial projects.
  Neither the government nor the investor has ever come to their rescue. The Maoists are, in fact, fighting for the rights of the tribals.
   In 2006, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh referred to the outfit as “the single biggest internal security challenge ever faced by our country.”  On 22 June 2009, the UPA government banned the CPI (Maoist) under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), claiming that the outfit is a terrorist organization.
The Maoists have claimed that they are fighting for the rights of the tribals in the forest belt around central India ~ Chattisgharh, Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, and West Bengal. They have reportedly extended their network to Uttarakhand, Assam, Manipur, Nagaland, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka. These areas are rich in mineral deposits that are of interest to mining companies, such as  Tata and Essar.
Equally, the Maoists have somehow conveyed the impression that they are a bunch of extortionists who demand huge sums from the local offices of the mining companies and other business enterprises. They have been involved in the blowing up of schools and railway tracks, and accused of hindering  development.
They have often been involved in the killing of innocent people. They have been urged by the government to return to the mainstream, but to no avail. They have no faith in the Constitution, democracy or democratic institutions. Nor have they responded to appeals to abjure violence, surrender their arms, and head for the negotiating table. Their brand of Maoism is not based on ideology, but on extortion. They are the enemies of the country and ought to be dealt with severely.
yours, etc., soumita paul, kolkata, 4 june.
Fatal acid attack
SIR, ~ The death of a 25-year-old nurse, Preeti Rathee, is a national shame. She had just arrived at Mumbai&’s Bandra railway station by Garib Rath Express, when an unidentified assailant threw acid on her face.
  The tragedy has provoked widespread outrage in Delhi, where her relatives have decided not to cremate her body until certain demands are met.
India prides itself on a string of achievements ~ the first woman President, Pratibha Patil; the first woman Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Meira Kumar; and the chairperson of the United Progressive Alliance, Sonia Gandhi. Yet the treatment of women has disgraced the country.
There are reports of female foeticide, gangrape, dowry deaths, and acid attack, to name but a few forms of crime against women. The acid attack on Preeti has trashed the traditional values of the country.
yours, etc., ramesh g jethwani, bangalore, 5 june.

Options in Syria
SIR, ~ This is with reference to your excellent editorial, “Elusive peace” (3 June). Nothing seems to be working to end the hostilities in Syria. Desperate situations call for desperate solutions. NATO, led by the USA, should threaten Bashr al-Assad with dire consequences in an effort to bring the warring factions to the negotiating table.
  If this doesn’t work, a limited offensive can be launched against both the rebels and the regime. But before that, the USA, Russia and China must reach a consensus. The conflict has the potential to become a conflagration that can engulf the whole of West Asia.
yours, etc., aranya sanyal, siliguri, 4 june.

buddhadeb halder
KOLKATA, 5 JUNE: City-based Vikrant Forge Limited (VFL), open doe forgings maker, consumed mainly by heavy engineering industries, is targeting to double its exports revenue this financial year.
The company’s exports revenue stood at around Rs 35 crore during financial year 2012-13, which accounted for about 35 per cent of its overall turnover of Rs 110 crore, while the remaining 65 per cent came from domestic markets.
"This year we are targeting a turnover of Rs 140 crore. Out of which 50 per cent is expected to come from exports, which means we will be doubling our exports revenues," Mr Manoj Chhajer, one of directors of the company, told the Statesman.
The company, which exports its forgings mainly to Europe, is exploring new markets like Austria and Finland, Mr RK Chhajer, another director, said. The company will also be focusing on the USA, he said.
"Domestic market being sluggish for the last few years with no major investments taking place in steel and power sectors which are our potential customers, we are on the lookout for opportunities in overseas markets," Mr Manoj Chhajer said.
The company, which has its manufacturing facility spread over 18 acres at Dankuni near Kolkata, has a production capacity of 15,000 tons per annum. The company has recently pumped in Rs 40 crore in VFL to upgrade its machinery to conform to international standard, Mr Chhajer said.
The plant&’s capacity can be doubled to 30,000 tons a year within a short span. "We will do it once there are signs of improvement in domestic market," he added.
Asked whether the company plans to tap the capital market, Mr RK Chhajer said: "We have no such plan in the immediate future".
VFL has recently been awarded the EEPC National Award for highest growth in exports during financial year 2011-12.

The official also said they were questioning Ramesh Vyas, arrested by  Mumbai Police recently in a betting case. Delhi Police have been allowed by a court here to question him till 18 June
press trust of india
NEW DELHI, 9 JUNE: Delhi Police has written to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for a probe into alleged hawala transactions in the IPL spot-fixing case, including underworld don Dawood Ibrahim.
A senior police official said etails have been provided to the ED about 27 people arrested in connection with the scandal as well as that about Dawood and Chota Shakeel.
“We have written to the ED. There have been hawala transactions not only in India but abroad as well like in Karachi and Dubai in connection with the case. They (ED) have the expertise in investigating this angle,” he said, referring to the letter. He said establishing the money trail in the case is “very important”. The official also said they were questioning Ramesh Vyas, arrested by  Mumbai Police recently in a betting case. Delhi Police have been allowed by a court here to question him till 18 June. “He was in touch with bookies arrested by us. He was the one of the main men in the racket. He had direct links with the underworld,” the official said. “He had communication with people outside and inside the country,” he said.
Sources said they were questioning Vyas to ascertain the the identity of “Master” and “Doctor Saab”, who figured in intercepted telephone calls between bookies.
“Both ‘Master’ and ‘Doctor Saab’ stay abroad,” the official said, adding,  Mumbai Police had told them that Vyas used 92 mobile phones to communicate with bookies and those connected to the underworld. He also said they are yet to nab six-seven bookies in the case.

nandu kulkarni
MUMBAI, 5 JUNE: Dalal Street is rife with speculations that many traders and high net-worth investors booked heavy profits over the weekend through buying and selling of Infosys Technologies’ shares as they had an inkling about the return of Mr NR Narayan Murthy as executive chairman of the company.
Analysts have seen a spurt in purchase of Infosys shares in the final hour of trade on last Friday. The demand and some big deals in Infosys shares during the late afternoon trade, it is confirmed, helped the share price go up by more than 2.5 per cent, while the benchmark Sensex was down 2.25 per cent on the last day of the previous week.
Now it is being claimed by a section of brokerage that some traders did know about Mr Murthy’s comeback to put Infosys Technologies back on progress-track.
Jump in daily average volumes on both the Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange during the period is now being cited to substantiate this point.
A quick calculation by a stock firm suggests if an investor had bought 1,000 Infosys shares at that day’s (Friday) lowest price of Rs 2,383 and sold them on Monday this week amid rising demand for the stock ~ after the announcement of the change at the helm ~ at a top price of Rs 2,625 on the BSE, the putative investor could have booked a net profit of nearly Rs 2.5 lakh.
“But this is how stock market operates and thrives as it happens quite often in some share or the other,” said a stock broker.
Some traders, however, have come up with a different set of reasons to explain why Infosys shares were bought and sold so heavily between Friday and Monday. According to them, fast declining rupee against the American dollar brightened the profit prospects of the country’s information technology companies as it would bolster their businesses.
Investors bought Infosys shares to create fresh positions after previous day’s (Thursday) expiry of May derivatives series. This, they say, explains demand for this IT share, which analysts say appears quite logical.
But the question remains why the spurt in Infosys buying at the end of May series only? It never happened earlier.
The traders say the deals and subsequent profit earning by “fortunate” traders cannot be termed as insider trading since the buying and selling was based on sheer common sense displayed by business-minded investors. It was their way of welcoming Mr NR Narayan Murthy.
Analysts have seen a spurt in purchase of Infosys shares in the final hour of trade on last Friday. The demand and some big deals in Infosys during the late afternoon trade, it is confirmed, helped the share price go up by more than 2.5 per cent, while the benchmark Sensex was down 2.25 per cent during the day
 

Relevance Of Traditional Rituals And Conservation Methods

WORLD Environment Day (‘WED’) is celebrated every year on 5 June to raise global awareness of the need to take positive environmental action. When we were in school ages ago, there was a favourite topic for essay-writing ~ Science: Blessing or Curse? Science aims at knowledge only, and technology is not necessarily an offshoot of modern science. It has been present since time immemorial to solve the problems of perpetuation of life. The leap from traditional mores to modernity, in the last fifty years or even less, has dramatically changed the nature of technology.
In traditional societies, conservation processes were perpetuated by various social mores and prohibitive measures incurred by both religious sanctions and the law of the land. The glare of modern science and technology has robbed us of that simple mode by its victory over nature in various ways. Undoubtedly modern life is indebted to science and especially modern technology in various fields especially medicine, medical and information technologies for making it much easier and care-free. But the big question is: At what price?
That brings us to a further issue namely, that of development vis-a-vis conservation. Indeed, the tremendous speed at which modern technology is developing cannot be compared with any progress made in the past. No doubt we have gained a lot from its progress. But after the initial euphoria, we have now realised that the cost is much too dear. People are drawing lessons from climate changes all over our planet ~ too many earthquakes, floods, cyclones, recent dust storms in China and disappearance of various flora and fauna or at best, changes in their features are all indicators of excessive interference with the ways of nature.  Frequent floods, soil erosion, global warming and change in weather patterns, erratic rainfall, even eruption of volcanoes are some of the recent indicators of serious natural calamities. In this overall phenomenon, the human being is the main actor with modern technological activities geared to fulfil the needs of modern life.
In an effort to contain the denudation of nature, environmental laws are being enacted. As with many other issues, the poorer countries are victimised more than the rich ‘developed’ countries although the latter are more responsible for exploitation of nature for development projects. Traditional societies use nature for minimum sustenance, while developed countries exploit it for massive development schemes. The annual meeting on pollution control has become an expensive fiasco.
As an old civilization, we can attempt a historical evaluation. Both Mahatma Gandhi and Rabindranath Tagore respected nature and tried to restrict its use to the minimum in accord with our ancient ethos. The protection of the environment is part of the dharma (duty) of the king.  Ashoka, Akbar and Shivaji planted trees, dug water-bodies and groves. The rights and duties of the people were mentioned in Dharmashastra and Arthashastra. For example, the destruction of plants and trees is generally prohibited, but for certain diseases and death, certain varieties of fruit, leaves or branches can be plucked. Even animal sacrifice is sometimes justified for the greater cause of nutrition and the need to maintain a balance in the natural world.
The Arthasastra also deals with protection of the people from natural calamities. But there can be a conflict of interest. For example, in relation to mining, the duty of the king to acquire wealth for his kingdom can clash with his duty to protect the earth. For good governance, detailed prescriptions and proscriptions are found in the texts. Subsequently, however, the political and social power structure became far more complicated, and is today extremely complex.
Given the long history of Indian civilization, many scholars believe that the survival rate of natural species is reasonable compared to many other civilizations where several natural species of animals were extinct after the invasion by foreign powers. Even the survival rate of people is much higher in India than in many Western countries where the natives were totally exterminated or at best reduced to a marginalized minority by the colonial powers. In many countries, excessive cultivation or misuse of land turned it into a desert and in some cases, changed the course of rivers.
Various rituals,  indigenous rites and beliefs have historically helped conservation in a natural way. Many of these beliefs are not scientifically backed or proved, but nevertheless they have helped in saving the earth from too much exploitation. At another remove, ‘scientifically’ backed ideas overused the natural capacity of the earth, resulting in barrenness. Scholars, who work on the problem of sustainability and development, have observed that many rites or traditions that include the non-human part of nature have helped conservation and sustenance as well. For example, the tradition of not plucking fruits and flowers at night when the trees are supposed to ‘sleep’ or not to milk a cow for some months after a calf is born, or not to plough land for a certain period after a crop. Scientific farming has denuded the tradition of natural sustenance.
More importantly, modern technology/science does not consider its method as one possible option. It is, on the contrary, touted as the best method. The inclusion of “non-human nature” into our daily lives is considered as a dated concept and, therefore, ‘un-scientific’. My western friends are surprised when I tell them that the Sun and the Moon are witnesses in our traditional wedding ritual. Both Gandhi and Rabindranath respected this traditional ~ more of a symbiotic ~ relationship between man and nature, including other living species. Tagore revived several traditional festivals like Halakarshan (the beginning of tilling the agricultural land), Varsha Mangaland Basanta Utsav etc., to commemorate the onset of different seasons and connect people with nature.
Traditions and various rituals are non-modern methods of conservation and sustenance, but can nevertheless address modern requirements.
Since 1972, a raft of environmental laws have been enacted, the violation of which is punishable. But the precautions are not working. The natural calamities are rooted in the constant interference with the ways of nature. The victims are invariably the poorer and less powerful people. Ironically, it is this segment that lives closer to nature, with minimal exploitation. Rights have of late been granted  to forest dwellers who have for generations used its resources for sustenance.
The Constitution&’s Directive Principles of State Policy, in particular the 42nd amendment, have tried to clarify the duty of the State towards its citizens as well as environment. It also ensures that the environment is protected and improved. Since the days of  Arthasastra, the law provides that protection of nature can improve the quality of life. But in this day and age, enforcement of the law can ensure development projects at the cost of the majority who do not enjoy its benefits and can suffer dislocation of their lives. Attempts are being made to demonstrate that development projects are attractive. But considering the poverty of a vast swathe of the populace, dislocation and loss of traditional mores cannot be compensated by trickle-down effects.
Indeed, we cannot go back to traditional methods, but can still reduce and modify our needs to help conservation. Nature-friendly technology cannot alone resolve the problem. On Earth Day, power consumption is stopped for one hour to save precious fossil-fuel. This economy in terms of usage was not unknown to us. In ancient India, many festivals were organised on the night of the full-moon. Subsequently, many places in the country volunteered to be without electricity to save power as well as to enjoy the light of the full-moon. Minimizing the use of motorized vehicles or paper (to save trees) are some other measures. Similar moves can be initiated to stop the mindless desecration of nature (which may backfire on us any day) in the name of development. Ironically, such perceived development benefits  a fraction of the populace who live far away from nature and is still inaccessible to those nearest to it.

Various rituals, indigenous rites and beliefs have historically helped conservation in a natural way. Many of these beliefs are not scientifically backed or proved, but nevertheless they have helped in saving the earth from too much exploitation

Woman ends life after killing baby; mother-in-law held
Jalgaon (Maha), 9 June: A 20-year-old woman allegedly killed her seven-month-old daughter by banging her against an electric pole before she committed suicide by jumping before a speeding train here. Locals yesterday saw the woman, Latabai Narayan Gawli, banging her infant daughter against an electric pole near a railway track on the outskirts of the Jalgaon railway station. Seeing the people rushing towards her, Latabai threw the injured baby aside and jumped on the railway track where a train was speeding towards Bhusawal. While the baby died on the spot, the woman was declared dead after she was rushed to the civil hospital. Later, the deceased’s husband, a resident of Shanipeth in Jalgaon, told police that she was mentally ill and so had been sent to her parents’ home a few months ago. Latabai’s brother later filed a police complaint against her 52-year-old mother-in-law of mentally and physically torturing his sister, based on which she was detained. pti
2 more held for UK couple&’s abduction
CHENNAI, 9 JUNE: Two persons, including a key accused wanted for the abduction of a British couple here recently were arrested today, taking the number of persons arrested in this case to 11.Satya alias Sakthivel was arrested from Neyveli bus stand in Cuddalore district and on his information, one more person, Kaliamurthy, was also picked up, police said here. They were wanted in connection with the abduction of British nationals Thavaraja (59) and his wife Salaja (55), who were kidnapped for ransom here on 29 May when they landed at the airport. The couple were originally from Sri Lanka and had settled in the UK and obtained citizenship. The couple had arrived here to proceed to Tiruchirapalli, where they planned to join a tour operator and visit temples in Tamil Nadu for nine days. Police recovered Thavaraja’s two credit cards, his wife’s jewels and a knife from them, it said. pti
Punjab docs on two-day strike today
Chandigarh, 9 June: The Punjab Civil Medical Services Association (PCMS), a body representing a large number of government doctors in the state, have decided to proceed on a two-day strike across the state tomorrow to protest the recent transfers of doctors. The decision taken at a state body meeting of the Association held at Ludhiana is likely to hit the health services, mainly atprimary health centres and the civil hospitals, which are run by the health department. The PCMS is protesting the recent decision of the Punjab Government to transfer 523 specialist doctors across the state. pti

The political war in Chhattisgarh after the recent Naxal attack has taken a strange turn. A Congress-versus-BJP battle has become a Congress-versus-Congress internecine feud. The party has turned on itself following reports that the National Investigation Agency&’s preliminary inquiries point to a Congress hand in the Naxal ambush that led to the death of 27 persons, including top state leaders.
The NIA&’s needle of suspicion seems to be pointing at the faction led by former chief minister Ajit Jogi who, along with son Amit, was mysteriously absent when the convoy was ambushed by Naxals on 25 May.
The revelations have sent tempers soaring and Congress workers are now venting their wrath on Jogi loyalists in different parts of the state. They’ve hunted them down, locked them into rooms, beaten them mercilessly with shoes and iron rods, leaving several badly injured.
The fight followed Jogi loyalist and one of the two survivors of the attack, Congress MLA Kawasi Lakhma, to the corridors of the swanky Gurgaon hospital in which V C Shukla is being treated for the four gunshot wounds he sustained. Lakhma turned up to inquire about his condition and there, right outside the ICU where Shukla was lying, a Congress group led by union minister Charan Das Mahant, now the new state chief, waylaid him and beat him with shoes. There was complete pandemonium in what is supposed to be a silent zone, but the hospital staff did not dare intervene as the two Congress factions tried to settle scores. Later, a bleeding Lakhma was handed over to the police, who were instructed to dump him somewhere near Karnal.
Furious Sonia
Those who accompanied Congress president Sonia Gandhi to Chhattisgarh after the Naxal attack on a Congress convoy were stunned by the depth of her fury. Sonia is known as a composed, polite person. But in Raipur, she lost her cool with everyone, from chief minister Raman Singh to the chief secretary Sunil Kumar and other senior officials to her own party workers. “You are lying,” she is believed to have shouted at Sunil Kumar at one point. And as Raman Singh fumbled with weak explanations for the security lapse that led to the killings, she told him angrily that the Centre had the power to dismiss him “in one minute”, according to someone familiar with the discussions.
She didn’t calm down even at the Congress headquarters in Raipur, where she met surviving state leaders in small groups. Those waiting outside could hear her raised voice through the closed door as she gave vent to her agitation and distress. Perhaps, the killings were a sharp reminder of past tragedies in her life and cut too close to the bone for her to handle with equanimity.
‘Thankless’ media
There were many red faces in the official delegation that went with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Japan when a Hyderabad-based television channel telecast footage of senior babus having a night-out in Tokyo with the media contingent. As is tradition, the external publicity division of the ministry of external affairs arranged a dinner cruise for the media, to which officials accompanying the PM were also invited.
It would have gone down as just another XP dinner, except that the hosts had also arranged for live entertainment in the form of a Bollywood dance performance. The dancer, an Indian girl born and brought up in Japan, was full of oomph and her dance was provocative. At one point, she almost had a wardrobe malfunction too, after which the entertainment programme was called off.
When the delegation returned to the hotel, panicky aides informed them that footage of the evening had been telecast in Hyderabad, with the TV camera focusing closely on the dancer and the officials watching her. There was a huge furore that night. PMO officials breathed fire at the ministry of external affairs, which in turn came down heavily on the media group. The representative of the TV channel was taken to task and XP
officials vowed to stop all hospitality
for accompanying media persons on future trips.
The threat was put into action almost immediately. When the delegation landed at Bangkok on the way back from Tokyo, media persons were left to fend for themselves, without the cocktails and dinner usually showered on them.

agence france-presse
ISTANBUL, 5 JUNE: Thousands of striking workers took to the streets of Turkey’s cities today, loudly joining calls for Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to step down as mass protests against his rule intensified.
Bellowing to the din of drums and wailing Turkish pipes, teachers, doctors, bank staff and others marched in a sea of red and yellow labour union flags in the capital Ankara and in Istanbul, where they converged on Taksim Square, the cradle of nearly a week of violent clashes.
“Taksim, resist, the workers are coming!” they chanted, demanding the resignation of Mr Erdogan, who has dismissed the protesters as “extremists” and “looters” as he faces down the biggest challenge to his decade in power.
Two people have been killed in the six days of unrest, doctors and officials say, and hundreds have been arrested.
Fresh clashes erupted overnight, with police firing teargas and water cannon on protesters in major cities including Istanbul and reportedly arresting 25 people in Izmir for “misleading and libellous” Twitter posts.
“Erdogan needs to apologise, resign and go to court for the things he has done, for the excessive force,” said Tansu Tahincioglu, a 26-year-old web entrepreneur in Istanbul.
“Before, people were afraid to express their fear publicly. Even tweets are a problem. But now they are not afraid,” he said.
The violent police response to the protests has hardened the movement, drawing in the labour unions that represent hundreds of thousands of Turks. Two major trade union federations, KESK and DISK, launched two-day strikes from yesterday in solidarity with the street protesters.
“The ordinary workers and the educated are all together to defend a better Turkey, where there is equality and freedom,” said Arhan, a 45-year-old doctor, dressed like other demonstrators in a white shirt and cap.
Marching with his wife to Taksim Square, he said he did not believe Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc when he apologised yesterday to people injured at the start of the protests. Turkey’s state-run news agency says police have detained 25 people for “spreading untrue information” on social media and provoking protests.
The Anadolu Agency says today people were detained in the city of Izmir for allegedly “inciting the people to enmity and hate.” It said police were still looking for 13 others.

press trust of india
New Delhi, 9 June: Slamming BJP for politicising the power tariff issue, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit today said consumers are receiving higher electricity bills due to round the clock power supply in the city.
Justifying the current tariff structure, she said the cost of power production has increased significantly in the last few years due to which electricity tariff in the city has also gone up.
“The BJP is politicising the issue because of the ensuing elections which is very unfortunate. The people are receiving higher bills mainly because we are ensuring round the clock supply of electricity. If you get 24X7 power supply, then it will be reflected in the bills,” Mrs Dikshit said addressing a rally in Bindapur area of West Delhi.
She also wondered why BJP did not protest the steep power tariff hike effected recently in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh.
“The electricity rates have been increased significantly in Uttar Pradesh few days back, but no one protested. The power tariff in Delhi is much lower compared to other metropolitan cities,” Mrs Dikshit said.
BJP and Aam Aadmi Party have been targeting the Delhi government for rising cost of power ion the city. Delhi BJP president Vijay Goel even promised to cut the rates by 30 per cent if his party comes to power in Delhi in assembly polls scheduled to be held in November.
The power tariff was hiked by 22 per cent in 2011, followed by five per cent hike in February last year. It was raised by upto two per cent in May last year and again by 26 per cent for domestic consumers in July.
The tariff was increased by up to three per cent in February and it was again hiked earlier in May by 1.5 per cent to adjust the power purchase cost of the distribution companies. The Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission is currently considering a further raising the tariff as all the private power distribution companies have demanded a steep hike in the rates to help them overcome fund crunch.
Mrs Dikshit had recently indicated that power tariff may go up again. Addressing the rally, she  promised to set up mono rail network in the area to connect it with central Delhi. Government has already decided to set up monorail network in congested area of east Delhi.
Mrs Dikshit said the introduction of Delhi metro and AC buses in the city has made passengers’ journey comfortable and it was time to improve mode of public transport in congested localities.
“The Government has decided to introduce Mono Rail for this purpose with an aim to supplement the services of Delhi metro to introduce mono rail from Bindapur,” she said.
The chief minister said that Bindapur would be included in the ongoing survey for introduction of mono rail in Mohan Garden localities since it was easy and less expensive to lay mono rail lines in congested localities.
The chief minister stated that her government would widen the roads from Dwarka to Bindapur and construct a DTC terminal in the area.

agence france-presse
Seattle, 5 June: A US soldier accused of killing 16 Afghan villagers is expected to plead guilty in return for escaping the death penalty, when he appears before a military tribunal.
Sergeant Robert Bales faces charges including 16 counts of murder, six of attempted murder and seven of assault over the massacre in southern Afghanistan in March last year.
The 39-year-old will appear at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state to enter his plea over the killings, which further strained already tense US-Afghan ties.
Seventeen of the 22 victims were women or children and almost all were shot in the head. Prosecutors called in November for him to face the death penalty, setting a provisional date for court-martial in September.
His lawyer John Browne announced last week that he had reached “an agreement with the military to take the death penalty off the table if (Bales) he will plead” guilty.
Asked if Bales was sorry, Mr Browne said: “Absolutely. And I think that will become clear as the process goes forward. He’s very relieved that the death penalty is not on the table.”
“And then he’ll have a sentencing trial in September to determine whether he can get life with parole or whether he will get life without parole,” Browne said in video interview.
The plea bargain deal is likely to anger families of the victims who originally wanted him to face justice, and potentially a death penalty, in Afghanistan.
Bales allegedly left his base in the Panjwayi district of southern Kandahar province on the night of 11 March 2012, to commit the killings, which included nine children. Bales allegedly set several of their bodies on fire.
At a pre-trial hearing in November, Bales’s family insisted he was innocent until proven guilty, calling him “courageous and honorable,” while his lawyer raised questions about the role of alcohol, drugs and stress in the tragedy.
But prosecutors lashed the “heinous and despicable” alleged massacre during an eight-day hearing, details of which were given at the military base south of Seattle.
Prosecutors at the so-called Article 32 pre-trial hearing alleged that Bales left the base twice to carry out the killings, returning in between and even telling a colleague what he had done.
The hearing included three evening sessions ~ daytime in Afghanistan ~ to hear testimony by video conference from Afghan victims and relatives of those who died.
In a statement read out by the soldier’s sister Stephanie Tandberg after last year’s hearing, the family said it had yet to learn the how, why and what of the incident.

statesman news service
NEW DELHI, 9 JUNE: The much talked-about NCTC seems to have got a quiet burial with the government making it clear that there were no plans to bring any law to set up the anti-terror body in the wake of strong opposition from non-Congress chief ministers during the recent CMs’ meet.
Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde said his ministry was not exploring the option of bringing a Bill in Parliament for a wider debate on the feasibility of the anti-terror body as suggested by Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar.
“No, we have no such proposal,” Mr Shinde told PTI when asked about the possibility of bringing a law for setting up the National Counter Terrorism Centre.
Asked whether the government was planning to issue an executive order for the NCTC, the home minister said, “We are not doing anything now. We brought a proposal before the chief ministers. But some of them opposed it. So, there is no further movement now”.

statesman news service
KOLKATA, 5 JUNE: The Kolkata Municipal Corporation today deployed a fleet of battery-operated vehicles (in sns photo) to remove garbage replacing old hand carts.
Ten such vehicles will ply in the morning and in the evening on Sarat Bose Road. The vehicles have a capacity to carry 250 kg of garbage.
The vehicles have a recorded message in Bengali, Hindi and English that urges people to put their garbage in the vehicle.
The vehicles also have the capacity to sprinkle water on trees and plants. Sunglow, an NGO, has imported the vehicles from China spending Rs 18 lakh for the fleet.  The KMC’s solid waste management department will bear the maintenance cost of the vehicles. The civic body will bring in more vehicles from China and the hand carts will be gradually phased out, said Mr Debasish Kumar, member, mayor-in-council, parks, gardens and markets.  The garbage will not spill over from the vehicles which will be covered. They will be able to carry five times more garbage than the existing vehicles or hand carts and these will also minimise the number of vehicles that carry garbage to the dumping ground. Mr Kumar said hand carts are a civic nuisance and a health hazard and have long been a cause for concern among the citizens.  The vehicles for the past two months have been plying on an experimental basis to collect garbage on Sarat Bose Road.
The state pollution control board today observed World Environment Day at Rabindra Sadan. Mr Partha Chatterjee, minister for commerce and industries, Mr Rabiranjan Chattopadhyay, minister for science and technology, attended. A rally was organised from Harish Park to Minto Park to mark the occasion.

statesman news service  
KOLKATA, 5 JUNE: Urban planners need to choose which heritage buildings to save and which to sacrifice, American urban planning expert Robert Brosnan said today at a roundtable on “green building” at the American Center. 
“I wouldn’t necessarily advocate for preserving everything and I think, you know, cities need to regenerate themselves. Especially, older cities,” said Mr Brosnan, who is in the city on a two-day trip to share his experiences regenerating Arlington district near Washington DC.  
“I think that’s what planning is about. The planning is about looking at where it makes sense to preserve character, and where does it make sense to tear down and maybe replace with new (buildings), and where does it make sense to expand,” he said.  It can be hard to adapt older buildings to make them energy efficient suggesting the focus should be on making sure new constructions, like those coming up at Rajarhat, are eco-friendly, said Mr Brosnan.
“It’s hard to retrofit the old city, in terms of green buildings, their infrastructure should be changed from time to time and so that in itself makes it more efficient, but it’s hard to make it very very efficient,” he said. 
Mr Brosnan said in his experience there are two elements that make up a “green building”: the energy efficiency of the structure, and the proximity to transit.  It’s the first time Mr Brosnan has been to India and he said he’s found Kolkata a lot “more orderly” than Dhaka, where he visited before coming to the city.  While here, he’s given talks to students at Bengal Engineering and Science University, in Howrah, architects at the city-based NGO, the Centre for Built Environment and businessmen from the Confederation of Indian Industry’s (CII’s) Young Indians group.  
The planning is about looking at where it makes sense to preserve character, and where does it make sense to tear down and maybe replace with new (buildings), and where does it make sense to expand
 

statesman news service  
KOLKATA, 3 JUNE: A woman in her mid-fifties sustained serious injuries after she was attacked by alleged Trinamul Congress workers for casting her vote in favour of the opposition candidate in the by-poll for the Howrah Lok Sabha seat held yesterday. 
Hamida Biwi, a class IV employee of SSKM hospital and resident of Lichubagan in Nazirganj at Howrah’s Sankrail, sustained severe injuries on her thumb as she tried to save her pregnant daughter-in-law from being attacked by the hoodlums.  
Sources said alleged Trinamul workers had come looking for her son Sayeed and attacked the family members after they didn’t find him at home.  
A profusely-bleeding Hamida was rushed to the South Howrah State General Hospital. She accused  local Trinamul leader Guddu of assaulting her.  
“He had been threatening us to cast our vote in favour of the Trinamul candidate or face dire consequences for the past few days. We were attacked as we did not pay heed to their demand,”  the woman said, while speaking to media persons at the hospital.  
Senior Trinamul leader Mr Arup Rai, however, refused to link the incident with post-poll violence and said it was the fallout of the enmity the victim’s family had with a particular group.