Some say the Maoist attack on Congress leaders in Chhattisgarh is a wake-up call and others say it is time to have another look at the strategy to deal with Maoists; however, the problem needs to be tackled with top priority as innocent people cannot be allowed to get killed. Almost one-third of the country is eclipsed by the ‘red corridor’, under the parallel rule of the Maoists. The sad part is that it is the poor innocent people and the tribals who suffer in the bargain, because they have to deal with the Maoists on one side and the security forces on the other, and they often have to compromise with one or the other.
The Maoists get away with these killings because they try to lure the tribals by whatever means they can ~ by force, incentives and what not. The politicians also have to be blamed because at the time of elections, they try to get the tacit support of the Maoists. Telugu Desam Party supremo N.T. Rama Rao did it, Congress leaders Saikia and Rajashekhara Reddy did it and in recent times even Mamata Banerjee did it, to name a few.
The UPA launched the integrated action plan in February 2009 aimed at coordinated efforts in Naxal-affected states but this is obviously not working in the desired manner. Otherwise, why should the Centre blame the states and the states complain of not getting adequate Central support for tackling the Naxal menace?
There has been a lull in some parts of the country for some time. Karnataka was removed from the list of Maoist-affected states in 2010. In July 2011, the number of Naxal-affected districts was reduced to 83. In December 2011, the Centre announced that the number of Naxal killings had come down by 50 per cent compared to 2010. Now, the Maoist problem has elicited international attention and national focus once again, after the incident in Chattisgarh’s Darbha Ghati, in which more than two-dozen Congress leaders and workers were killed.
Why did the Maoists become so emboldened so as to attempt such a horrific attack on the political leadership in Chhattisgarh? The first reason is that Chhattisgarh is going in for elections in a few months. The two main parties ~ the Congress and the ruling BJP ~ are in a no-holds-barred fight for power. The Congress is desperate as it has been out of power in the state for the past ten years. Pundits have predicted that the Raman Singh government will come back as any anti-incumbency is almost absent. Maoists chose this time to strike because they know that there may be some slackness with a lame duck government in power.
Secondly, going by the letter written by the Naxalite leaders, it appears that they are worried about the weakening of the movement itself as the youth are not attracted by it any more. They wanted to send a signal to create a fear psychosis.
Thirdly, they might be feeling that the UPA at the Centre itself is weakened by the series of scams and the alliance is reduced to a minority after the parting of ways with two big allies ~ the DMK and the Trinamool Congress ~ some time ago.
But what should be worrying is that Maoists are targeting the political leaders and also security forces more and more instead of participating in the democratic process. In addition, economist prime minister Manmohan Singh should worry about how investors would put in money in areas where neither money nor lives is safe? What happens to the dreams of India emerging as a big economic power if this continues? Despite having identified the problem, why is it that these affected regions continue to be backward and lack proper communication facilities, roads and other connections, while the Maoists are able to function with modern communication equipment and most modern arms and ammunition?  Economic growth also continues to be uneven in these regions; as a result, the youth go astray and come under the influence of the Maoists.
The time has come for the Centre and the states to review the Naxalite strategy. Mamata Banerjee has tackled it successfully; earlier, Rajashekhara Reddy had contained the Naxalites. The review should be undertaken on an urgent basis and the Centre should convene a meeting of all Naxal-affected states at the level of the chief ministers soon.
Secondly, there should be complete coordination between the Centre and the states. Neither should attempt to pass the buck as is being witnessed, particularly in states where the Congress is not ruling. How can any government ~ state or Centre ~ shy away from the responsibility, claiming it is the fault of the other? After all, it is a national problem affecting so many states.
Thirdly, there should be balance and coordination between the security forces and the state police. Using the army should be the last option.
At the social level, much more needs to be done. The tribals should feel integrated and protected by the state. The misguided youth have to be brought back and this can be done only by providing jobs and better living conditions for them.
The Prime Minister recognises the Naxal menace as the single most dangerous threat to the development of the country. He has also admitted that what is required is a multi-pronged strategy including social, economic and political initiatives. The top priority should be to implement this effectively and that is where we are lacking. Unless this is done on an urgent basis, the problem will continue to haunt the country.

What should be worrying is that Maoists are targeting political leaders and security forces more and more instead of participating in the democratic process

WASHINGTON, 1 JUNE: A molecular cousin of party drug Ketamine may act as a quick and effective way to relieve depression, a new study has claimed.
GLYX-13 induces similar antidepressant results without the street drug side effects, reported a study published in Neuropsychopharmacology. Despite the availability of several different classes of antidepressant drugs such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), 30 to 40 per cent of adults are unresponsive to these medications. Moreover, SSRIs typically take weeks to work, which increases the risk for suicide.
Human clinical studies demonstrated that ketamine can ward off major and bipolar depressive symptoms within 2 hours of administration and last for several days. Ketamine is fraught with serious side effects including excessive sleepiness, hallucinations, and substance abuse behaviour. “Ketamine lit the field back up,” said Joseph Moskal, a molecular neurobiologist at Northwestern University and senior study author.
“Our drug, GLYX-13, is very different. It does not block the receptor ion channel, which may account for why it doesn’t have the same side effects,” said Moskal. Moskal&’s journey with GLYX-13 came about from his earlier days as a Senior Staff Fellow in NIMH&’s Intramural Research Programme. He created specific molecules, monoclonal antibodies, to use as new probes to understand pathways of learning and memory.
Some of the antibodies he created were for NMDA receptors. When he moved to Northwestern University, Moskal converted the antibodies to small protein molecules. Composed of only four amino acids, GLYX-13 is one of these molecules.
Previous electrophysiological and conditioning studies had suggested that GLYX-13, unlike ketamine, enhanced memory and learning in rats, particularly in the brain&’s memory hub or hippocampus.
GLYX-13 also produced analgesic effects. Using several rat behavioural and molecular experiments, Moskal&’s research team tested four compounds: GLYX-13, an inactive “scrambled” version of GLYX-13 that had its amino acids rearranged, ketamine, and the SSRI fluoxetine.
GLYX-13 and ketamine produced rapid acting (1 hour) and long-lasting (24 hour) antidepressant-like effects in the rats. Fluoxetine, an SSRI that typically takes from 2-4 weeks to show efficacy in humans, did not produce a rapid antidepressant effect in this study. pti

agencies
Cardiff, 1 June: West Indies scored 256 for nine in their allotted 50 overs against Australia at Sophia Gardens, Cardiff in their first warm-up tie of the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy on Saturday. After winning the toss and electing to bat first, West Indies lost their opener Devon Smith early in the fifth over of the innings. However, Jonathan Charles, in company of Darren Bravo resurrected their innings adding 65 runs for the second wicket partnership.
Charles fell leg before wicket to Clint McKay, who ended up with figures of three for 45. However, Bravo continued to bat in the same vein in company of the experienced Ramnaresh Sarwan. Darren Bravo struck 10 boundaries and two huge sixes in his patient knock of 86. He continued to lose partners at regular intervals as Sarwan, Dwayne Bravo and Denesh Ramdin fell in their twenties. The lower order couldn’t contribute much to the team’s cause as West Indies were restricted to 256. For Australia Mitchell Starc was the pick of the bowlers as he accounted for four wickets for only 29 runs in his seven overs.

press trust of india
NEW DELHI, 2 JUNE: Illegal weapons manufactured in Munger, Bihar, have found their way to various terror groups and criminal gangs in several parts of the country, as well as Bangladesh, according to officials.
Easy accessibility and low cost are the unique selling points of Munger’s 9 mm pistols where buyers even get a heavy discount on bulk orders. This has led to the availability of the weapons in various parts of the country, especially Maharashtra, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh.
Available somewhere between Rs 15,000 and Rs 20,000 with a magazine free, the demand for Munger weapons is in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, New Delhi and adjoining areas and Bangladesh. After Delhi police cracked the botched-up Pune blasts of 1 August last year with the arrest of four people, the recovery of Munger pistols caught the eye of Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar, who asked his Special Commissioner (Special Cell) S N Srivastava to conduct a study and plug the supply of these weapons.
“I tasked an inspector who did a study of the source of weapons with the help of Munger police,” Mr Srivastava told PTI here while explaining the easy availability of these weapons.
In the last one year, police have recovered 74 pistols in and around the National Capital from criminals and terror groups, he said, adding that during the interrogation of Feroz, an Indian Mujahideen terrorist, it was found that they had also purchased Munger weapons from Aurangabad in Maharashtra.
While the Bihar government announced closure of Munger’s factories, it failed to rehabilitate the karigars (manufacturers) from the district, which form part of the Bhagalpur range.
One such case is of Abdullah, a manufacturer who started selling pistols from 2005. After his arrest recently by Delhi police’s elite Special Cell, he said he had to get into the trade to make his ends meet.
With an elder brother (already arrested), a younger one and eight sisters, Abdullah said he did not know any other trade other than gun manufacturing and therefore, he had to rely on this trade only to look after his family.
There have been cases where gun runners have dressed like lawyers and smuggled the weapons to Bangladesh border. “Some have been caught but its difficult to hazard a guess as to how many may have slipped out to the neighbouring country,” a senior police official said.
The Police Commissioner had tasked the Special Cell to study the growing use of sophisticated firearms over the previous 4-5 years in the commission of violent crimes in Delhi. 
The study found that in most of the cases, it was illicit firearms manufactured in Munger, which were being smuggled into Delhi by organised criminal gangs based in Meerut, Kanpur, Allahabad and other places, had been used, police said.

poulomi ghosh
KOLKATA, 11 JUNE: Raiganj University College authorities have written to the chief minister, Miss Mamata Banerjee, urging her to convert the college into a unitary university. A unitary university is one which has no college affiliated to it. 
The Malda college courted controversy last year when the then teacher-in-charge resigned after being beaten up allegedly by TMCP supporters; since then, the teacher-in-charge of the college has been changed thrice. After Prof Dilip De Sarkar resigned, Mr Satrughna Sinha became the teacher-in-charge, followed by Mr Debasish Biswas. Presently, the post is held by Mr Uttam Roy.
The present college administration feels that many problems facing the college would be addressed if the college becomes a unitary university. Since it is presently a "university college", it is different from other state-aided degree colleges ~ it is run directly by the North Bengal University and its employees are entitled to university scale payment.
Since there is already a full-fledged university in the district ~ Gour Banga University ~ Raiganj University College authorities have demanded unitary university status for the college.
"The idea was initially proposed to the education minister, Mr Bratya Basu, when he had visited the campus to attend the All Bengal Principal Council programme. He had asked us to send a formal proposal to the education department," said a source. However, instead of the higher education department, the proposal has been sent straight to the chief minister.
Teacher-in-charge Mr Uttam Roy, who has written the letter, refused to comment on the issue. Some insiders thinks that the authorities are maintaining silence owing to the ongoing agitation of non-teaching employees. Others think the reason behind seeking unitary university status is a means of tackling the issue of payments. 
"Non-teaching employees of the college had moved court demanding university scale pay and the verdict was in favour of them. But the college authorities are not abiding by the order. Now, if non-teaching employees get university scale, teachers of the college will obviously want the same. But since the teachers are recruited by the West Bengal College Service Commission, they are not entitled to higher pay. A unitary university status will make them eligible for higher pay ~ that might be a reason for the college’s demand," said an official of North Bengal University.

pradip chatterjee
KOLKATA, 11 JUNE: The state government is yet to implement the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 in the Sunderbans which concerns the rights of forest-dwelling communities to land and other resources, denied to them over decades.
The natural custodians of the forest are now denied access to it by some of the state forest department officials who allegedly deprive the basic rights of the forest-dependent people.
The people in the Sunderbans are allegedly facing harassment by some officers of the forest department who are allegedly levelling false cases against the villagers and fishermen quite often if they are reluctant to hand over honey, fishes and crabs to them. Villagers who collect honey from the forest, risking their lives, are not allowed to sell them in the open market. Some of the officers allegedly collect 40-50 kg honey for each member of the team that visit the forest. And some of them demand more. If someone tries to raise a voice, he is beaten up and false cases framed against him.
The Act secures forest rights of the forest dwelling Schedule Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers on all forest lands, namely right to hold and live in the forest land under the individual or common occupation for habitation or for self-cultivation for livelihood, right of ownership, access to collect, use, and dispose of minor forest produce.
According to the Union ministry of Tribal Affairs, "forest dwelling Scheduled Tribes" means the members or community of Scheduled Tribes who primarily reside in and who depend on the forests or forest lands for bona fide livelihood. The state cannot restrict the entrance of the villagers by declaring a forest as critical wildlife habitat without consulting the experts in the locality, the law says.
But the state government is not ready to implement the forest rights in the Sunderbans even after the Union minister for Tribal Affairs, Mr V Kishore Chandra Deo, had written to the chief minister on 28 February 2013 urging her to implement the rights in the state.
The state Backward Class Welfare department, the nodal agency for implementation of Forest Rights Act in the state, has identified 11 districts of Bengal for implementation of the Act but South and North 24-Parganas, the two districts where Sunderbans exists, have been excluded from the list.
Mr Upen Biswas, the Backward Classes Welfare minister, said: "Villagers who live in the Sunderbans are not traditional forest dewellers. Hence they need to take permission from the concerned authorities to collect forest products."
Different organisations, including the Sunderban Jana Shramajibi Mancha (SJSM), National Fish Workers Forum, Sunderban Matshajibi Joutha Sangram Committee and Disha, an environment organisation, held campaigns in the Sunderbans to create awareness among the people about forest rights.
Mr Tapas Mondal, a member of the All India Forum for Forest Movements, said: "A few months ago a forest officer shot at fishermen Manaranjan Joardar, Bhabotosh Mondal and Gunasindhu Mondal. Gunasindhu was killed in the incident while the others survived. The accused negotiated with the victim’s wife paying Rs 1 lakh. They also forcibly take away honey from the villagers."

sam wallace 
The game between Brazil and England at the newly rebuilt Maracana stadium in Rio de Janeiro tomorrow night is the first big test event for the showpiece stadium that will host the World Cup final on 13 July next year. It is a moment when the eyes of the world, especially those at Fifa will be on the country to assess their readiness for that tournament, and more pressing, the Confederations Cup later this month. 
It should also be pointed out that on a more micro level, but no less important if you are attending the match, this is the first time in the history of Brazilian football that spectators will be expected to sit in their allocated seats. That alone could be chaos. 
The decision by a judge in Rio on Thursday not to grant the stadium a safety certificate for tomorrow’s game, since reversed, was a sharp reminder that Brazil is still a long way behind schedule when it comes to its World Cup infrastructure. According to the Globo newspaper, the new Maracana cost 1.2bn Brazilian reals (£370m) and is 48.8 per cent over budget. When it hosted its first event, an exhibition game in April, there were so many problems that staff were reportedly told to prevent journalists taking pictures of flooding and unfinished work.  For that game, the attendance was restricted to just 30,000, but tomorrow the ground is expected to be close to its new 78,838 capacity, albeit a major reduction on the 200,000 the old stadium once held. The Maracana is one of 12 venues, which range from Manaus in the Amazon, to Cuiaba, Brasilia and Belo Horizonte in the interior of the country and eight along the coast, all the way down to Porto Alegre in the far south — but it remains the flagship. 
The headline on the front of the city’s Metro newspaper yesterday morning, accompanying a picture of the stadium surrounded by building materials, was "Inacabado" — "Unfinished". There were still around 1,000 workers busy at the site yesterday morning and piles of rolled turf were dotted around the area, although they were intended for landscaping rather than for the pitch itself, about which there are fewer concerns. 
The former Brazil international, and 1994 World Cup winner, Bebeto was part of that exhibition game at the Maracana in April. At a Football Association event yesterday he described the confusion over the game going ahead as "embarrassing". Now an elected representative in the Rio state government, Bebeto said that the uncertainty was "damaging".  The Maracana was due to be handed over officially to Fifa on 31 December last year but that was only done on 24 May and, as of yesterday, there was still extensive work being carried out. There remains public dissatisfaction and the potential for a legal challenge over the decision to hand the stadium’s operation to a consortium of AEG, which owns Los Angeles Galaxy, Eike Batista, the richest man in Brazil, and Odebrecht, Brazil’s biggest construction company. 
Not every 2014 World Cup stadium has stumbled towards the ever-more generous deadlines set by Fifa in the build-up to the World Cup finals. The Castelão in Fortaleza, with a 63,900 capacity, opened in January and has hosted more than 20 test events already. Along with the Belo Horizonte stadium, home of the club Cruzeiro, the Fortaleza stadium was built in time for Fifa’s original 31 December handover deadline. But these two have been the exception. 
The 56,500-capacity Fonte Nova stadium in Salvador, in the north-east, suffered an embarrassment last week when heavy rain caused a build-up of water that contributed to a partial collapse of the roof. The biggest concern of all is the 65,800 Itaquero stadium in Sao Paulo, home to Corinthians, which is more than a year behind schedule, with an estimated completion date on February next year. On Fifa’s insistence, that has now been revised to this December. 
The investment has been extraordinary. A recent report by The Economist put the cost of overhauling five of the 12 venues, and refurbishing the other seven, at 7bn Brazilian reals (£2.18bn) which is three times more than South Africa spent on the 2010 World Cup finals — a tournament which had two fewer stadiums.
The major criticism has been that public money has gone into the project rather than private, as was first promised.  The Maracana is in the northern part of Rio, away from the tourist areas along the coastline in the south, and the arrival of more than 1,000 England fans for tomorrow’s game will test the local police force’s ability to make sure that visitors do not add to the city’s crime statistics.
the independent

Rio de Janeiro, 1 June: Brazil striker Fred has declared himself ready to start in Sunday’s international friendly against England at the revamped Maracana Stadium, despite nursing a broken rib. 
The 29-year-old Fluminense frontman suffered the injury during the early stages of his side’s 1-2 defeat to Olimpia in Rio Wednesday, a result that eliminated the Rio outfit from Copa Libertadores, reports Xinhua. 
"It’s difficult but it’s important to make the sacrifice. Pain is normal. Every player knows what it’s like to play through it. I am able to play normally. If I cop a knock I will have to grin and bear it until the end," Fred said during Brazil’s training session at Flamengo’s Gavea base Friday. 
England also have their share of injury concerns with forwards Jermain Defoe (achilles), Danny Wellbeck (knee) and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (calf) in doubt for Sunday’s match. The team’s dearth of attacking options means coach Roy Hodgson could deploy Arsenal’s Theo Walcott as a central striker and Rooney in a deep-lying role.   Walcott trained in an advanced position at the Urca military base Friday and admits he would relish the opportunity be England’s target man at the Maracana. 
"It will be fantastic. I said I wanted to play up front. People say I have played up front, but I have had limited opportunities this year I have played on the wing and got most of my goals from there. Playing for England in any position is a dream. The manager picks the team and whoever plays will go out and do a job and hope to win. I have had a go in training, so we will see," Walcott said. 
"I think I am the top English scorer in the Premier League. My confidence is good and that was from playing on the wing. I will play anywhere for club and country and the goal-scoring side of things have got much better." 
Both Brazil and England will train at the Maracana Saturday ahead of the friendly, which will be the Maracana’s official reopening after three years of refurbishment work. ians

CHENNAI/KOLKATA/NEW DELHI, 2 JUNE: Bowing to all-round pressure, N Srinivasan today agreed to “step aside” as BCCI President under a compromise formula that brought back former chief Jagmohan Dalmiya as head of a four-member “interim arrangement” to run the Board, more than a fortnight after the spot-fixing scandal rocked the cricketing world.
In a decision in which the pro-Sharad Pawar group appeared to have suffered a dent, the Working Committee of the Board decided that Mr Dalmiya will conduct its day-to-day affairs after Mr Srinivasan announced that he will not discharge his duties as the President till such time the probe is completed.
Sources said that key members including Mr Arun Jaitley, Mr Rajeev Shukla and Mr Anurag Thakur appeared to have tilted the scales in favour of Mr Dalmiya and softened the blow on Mr Srinivasan.
While the Pawar group may have wanted former chief Shashank Manohar in Mr Dalmiya’s place, it could also not ensure that Mr Srinivasan resigned.
The 73-year-old Dalmiya will appoint a new member on the three-member inquiry commission in place of Mr Sanjay Jagdale that will go into the allegations of betting and spot-fixing against Mr Srinivasan’s son-in-law and CSK Team Principal, Mr Gurunath Meiyappan, and his franchise CSK.
Twenty-four members of the Board attended the meeting in which there was no demand made for his resignation, Mr Srinivasan said, though Punjab Cricket Association chief I S Bindra claimed that he did raise such a demand. Two senior members of the Working Comm-ittee said that the word resignation was not used at the meeting.
The meeting also urged Secretary Jagdale and Treasurer Ajay Shirke, who resigned from the posts a couple of days ago, to rethink their decision and get back to the Board within 24 hours. However, both of them said after the meeting that they had decided not to withdraw their resignations.
Later in the evening, Mr Dalmiya said if they did not join duty, he may have to do their work. He is taking this as a challenge to clean the muck maligning cricket in the wake of the spotfixing scam.
“This is not an individual victory. The need of the hour is to cleanse cricket. That’s my top priority,” he told reporters after arriving in Kolkata from the BCCI emergent working committee meeting in Chennai.
Mr Srinivasan, who has been facing calls for resignation as BCCI chief ever since the arrest of his son-in-law, said he had taken an extraordinarily fair step by stepping aside.
After the meeting, Mr Jaitley said Mr Srinivasan will maintain an “arms length distance” from the probe against his son-in-law Meiyappan, even as Mr Bindra said the whole show appeared to have been stage-managed by Mr Srinivasan and what he called the "Delhi Group".
Mr Shirke, said to be close to Mr Pawar, expressed unhappiness over the decision of the Working Committee and wondered how this arrangement could work. “I personally cannot make out how this kind of arrangement will work. I have just reaffirmed my decision (not to withdraw the resignation). He said he and Jagdale were requested by all the Working Committee members to withdraw their resignations. “My final decision is that I cannot continue”.
“Nobody except Mr Bindra and myself and a couple of others… We did question the modalities of this arrangement,” he said. Mr Bindra was more forthright in his attack on the decisions of the Working Committee. “Mr Jaitley has had his way in this meeting. Most of the suggestions came from Mr Jaitley, including the appointment of Mr Dalmiya,” Mr Bindra said. “Srinivasan is not resigning. He is just stepping aside for one month. This is taking the public for a ride. We needed something more than this. I suggested, let him step aside until September, but he said he is not going to resign,” Mr Bindra said.
Sources said at the start of the meeting Mr Srinivasan gave a resume of issues including domestic and pending issues with the ICC. He then spoke of the two incidents involving three players allegedly involved in spot-fixing and the Gurunath Meiyappan betting issue. He then told the committee about the resignation of Jagdale and Shirke and that it was unacceptable.
Mr Jaitley, a Vice President, participating in the meeting through video conferencing from Delhi, expressed concern about the credibility of the Board taking a beating because of the actions of the three players and Gurunath. “Step aside till the pendency of inquiry and not discharge any presidential functions for a free and fair probe,” Mr Jaitley told Mr Srinivasan which he immediately agreed. Mr Bindra questioned the validity of the meeting as it has been called in just one day. Mr Shukla countered it saying that this meeting can be ratified by the next WC meeting. A suggestion was made by some members that Mr Jaitley take over as interim president but he refused citing busy political commitments. Mr Jaitley then proposed the names of Mr Shashank Manohar and Mr Jagmohan Dalmiya as two candidates who should be the leader of the “interim arrangement” till the probe is over.
Mr Srinivasan was told then that he could come back as president if he is cleared in the probe.

statesman news service
BANGALORE, 1 JUNE: Mr Narayana Murthy, Infosys’ father figure and co-founder, has returned to the company from retirement as its executive chairman. This follows the comparatively poor performance of the software giant quarter on quarter, of late, worrying its several thousand stakeholders. Till recently considered as the bellwether of the IT industry, the company has given lower than expected guidance which added to the all round concern.
In a statement here today, the company said that Mr Murthy has been appointed executive chairman and additional director with immediate effect The decision was taken at a board meeting held earlier today. Mr KV Kamath, well known banker, would step down from his position as chairman of the board to take up the role of lead independent director.
The board has taken this step keeping in mind the challenges that the technology industry and the company faces and in the interests of shareholders, large and small, who have asked for strengthening the executive leadership during this challenging time, according to Mr Kamath. The appointment is subject to approval at the annual general meeting scheduled for 15 June.
Alongside this development, Mr Murthy&’s son, Rohan, would join the company as his father&’s executive assistant. His appointment would be co-terminus with Mr Murthy&’s with both being paid a token compensation of Re 1 per year. The company meanwhile added that “as Mr Gopalakrishnan and Mr Shibulal have requested that they draw a compensation of Re 1 per year, the board has accepted their requests, subject to shareholder and government approvals.”
Mr Murthy, on his part, said that “this calling was sudden, unexpected, and most unusual. But then, Infosys is my middle child. Therefore, I have put aside my plans-in-progress and accepted this responsibility.”
The market and the industry has welcomed the move. Mr Som Mittal of Nasscom hailed the decision arguing that it could well be the turning point for the company.Marketmen, on their part, felt that Infosys faced a major challenge when it comes to regaining revenues. Mr Murthy could help the software giant through the credibility and respect that he enjoys worldwide. Others noted that he could be the game changer for the company and the industry as a whole.

statesman news service
KOLKATA, 1 JUNE: Telecom equipment maker Nokia Siemens Networks will close its factory manufacturing fixed line equipment at Salt Lake Electronics Complex, with effect from 31 July.
The company took this decision following decline in demand, refocus of company strategy on mobile broadband and unprofitability of fixed line telephony products.
Official communication to 48 factory employees out of 65, who had not opted for voluntary retirement scheme, was sent yesterday, which includes details of the closure notice.
Nokia Siemens Networks remains committed to West Bengal with current employee strength of around 700 and managing mobile telecom networks that carry over 26.5 million subscribers in the state, said a company statement.
"We would like to share with you that the management of Nokia Siemens Networks, after evaluating all possible alternatives, have taken a final decision to close the Kolkata factory at Salt Lake Electronics Complex, Sector V, with effect from 31 July 2013," the statement said.
The 48 factory employees are to receive closure compensation. Out of the total 65, six employees took transfers within the organisation and 11 had accepted voluntary separation scheme last year.
The Kolkata factory with its focus on fixed line telephony products and serving operators in India with legacy fixed line operations has not been profitable. Changing consumption trend from fixed line telephony to mobile telephony in India in the last few years has influenced the decision of the company.
Besides, Nokia Siemens Networks embarked on a substantial, two-year restructuring and transformation programme in November 2011 which involved focusing its business on mobile broadband and services. There have been several initiatives in support of this shift in strategy and the decision to close the Kolkata factory is one of such initiatives to support the company&’s focused business portfolio and restructuring programmes, the company said.
The company said that the state authorities have offered all possible support and we are thankful to them, adding, Nokia Siemens Networks will continue its commitment in West Bengal.
"We understand separation is never easy and thus have endeavoured to approach this with responsibility and consideration for the future of the employees. All options of alternate employment within Nokia Siemens Networks were considered, offering opportunities within the organisation in Bengal and other locations of Nokia Siemens Networks’ business in India," the company statement said.

alok kumar 
NEW DELHI, 11 JUNE: With the incumbent Railway Board chairman, Mr Vinay Mittal, scheduled to demit office on 30 June, the race for his successor is gaining momentum against the backdrop of the cash-for-promotion scam which cost the former railway minister, Mr P K Bansal, his job. 
Though there are three more contenders for this coveted post, Mr Kulbhushan, member electrical, Railway Board, is way ahead of his rivals and is likely to succeed Mr Mittal.
The other three potential candidates for this post are Mr R S Virdi, Mr V K Gupta and Mr A K Mittal, general managers of North Frontier, Northern and South Western zones
respectively. 
A highly places source in Rail Bhavan told The Statesman that since 2003, when for the first time the 1987 resolution detailing the appointment of the chairman Railway Board and members was enforced, the post of CRB has always been going to the  person who fits the laid down criteria. 
The 1987 resolution   prescribes tenure linked norms for filling up the posts of members of the Railway Board, financial commissioner, Railways, and chairman Railway Board.
These norms were laid down to avoid appointments  made for very short periods to the post of CRB and members. 
Emphasising that there has not been any aberration in adhering to these norms, the source said this time around the Cabinet Committee for Appointments (ACC) would be extra cautious in not allowing even the slightest deviation from the norms against the backdrop of the ‘Railgate’ scam. Norms that govern the filling up the post of CRB  explicitly mention that the candidate should normally have a remaining tenure of two years or more and should have worked for a period of one year in the grade preceding that of member, Railway Board. 
The  preceding grade mentioned in the resolution is that of general manager (open lines) and it is on this  specific point that Mr Kulbhushan may lose out as he served in ‘open lines’ a month less than a year.
But this interpretation conveniently overlooks that this one-year open-line service condition is applicable for only those  candidates seeking to become CRB directly from the post of general manager of a zone. 
A person who has already been appointed  member, Railway Board, does not require to meet this  criterion which is any way is not mandatory as the qualifying word for this norm is  “normally”. 
Mr Kulbhushan  belongs to the 1974 batch while Mr Virdi, who is  second to him in seniority belongs to the 1976 batch. Mr Kulbhushan is also senior-most among the four candidates who first reached  the rank of general manager. Here too, he is followed by Mr Virdi. 
However, on the yardstick of honesty, integrity  and efficiency, all the four contenders measure up quite well, said sources in Rail Bhavan,  conceding that the cash-for-promotion scam is a blessing in disguise for Mr Kulbhushan as the ACC will think twice in deviating from  the norms for appointment.

press trust of india
NEW DELHI, 1 JUNE: Both precious metals, gold and silver tumbled on the bullion market today on stockists selling in the face of sluggish demand at higher levels amid a weakening global trend.
While gold plunged by Rs 440 to Rs 27,350 per 10 gm, silver dropped by Rs 980 to Rs 44,120 per kg on lack of buying by industrial units and coin makers.
Marketmen said stockists indulged in reducing their holdings driven by a weak global trend while demand from retailers declined at higher levels following three days of gains.
Gold in overseas markets slumped the most in two weeks as US consumer confidence climbed in May to the highest in almost six years, stoking concern that the Federal Reserve may scale back monetary stimulus. Gold in New York, which normally sets the price trend on the domestic front, dropped by $25.40 to $1,388.30 an ounce, while silver declined by 2.24 per cent to $22.27 an ounce.
On the domestic front, gold of 99.9 and 99.5 per cent purity plunged by Rs 440 each to Rs 27,350 and Rs 27,150 per 10 gm, respectively. Sovereigns rose by Rs 100 to Rs 24,000 per piece of eight gm.

statesman news service
BHUBANESWAR, 1 JUNE: ‘A great escape, unprecedented…’ is all the stunned wildlife officials could mutter as they realised that a wild Royal Bengal Tiger (RBT) which had strayed in to the Nandankanan zoo a month ago, had managed to escape from its enclosure.
The RBT proved it was more intelligent than humans. Perhaps it also wanted to teach a lesson as the wildlife officials were engaged in a month-long debate on whether to release it in the wild or retain it in the zoo. The debate would have gone on for months as tiger experts insisted that unless they establish its original habitat they cannot release it in any nearby forest.
A month ago, the wild full grown RBT had strayed into the lion safari of the zoo much to the delight of wildlife enthusiasts. Speculation was that it had come from the Satkosia tiger reserve.
CCTV footage showed how it had walked into the lion safari. Recently, the zoo authorities had shifted it from the safari to another enclosure which had a 18-ft high fencing.
The intelligence of the majestic striped animal was proven when a couple of days ago it damaged the CCTV camera in the enclosure. The zoo authorities felt the camera was installed at a low level and hence they installed a camera at a greater height in the enclosure.
Last night the RBT scaled the 18-ft high fencing, damaged the camera and escaped, leaving no footage of its escape for wildlife officials to follow its trail!
World over no tiger has ever scaled such heights! remarked a senior forest official of the zoo. It had come from the wild and it returned to the wild, leaving authorities flabbergasted.
Villages in the vicinity of the zoo were scared as the news of the great escape spread in the area. Forest officials said they had spotted pug marks which led them to a water body where the RBT had taken a plunge. It is in the forests near the zoo, they said.

sns & pti
NEW DELHI, 11 JUNE: The Union Home Minister, Mr Sushilkumar Shinde (file photo), today said that the Centre will provide the required paramilitary forces for security during panchayat polls in West Bengal.
“It (forces) will be given to them. I have spoken to the Chief Minister (Mamata Banerjee) and asked her that she should give a proposal to the chief secretary and the chief secretary will talk to the home secretary. I have already spoken to the home secretary asking him to give paramilitary forces (to West Bengal),” he added.
Meanwhile, facing stiff opposition to the NCTC from non-Congress chief ministers, Mr Shinde said both the Centre and the states need to work together for setting up the proposed counter-terrorism body and sought consensus from all stakeholders.
“When such opposition is there, we will think over it and then decide. We need to take consensus on it. I have said it many a time that both the Centre and the states need to work together. We cannot do it alone,” Mr Shinde told reporters here when asked about the government’s strategy on setting up the NCTC.
He said the government has already accepted the demands of some chief ministers opposed to the proposed body.
“First, their (chief ministers) objection that it should not be under Intelligence Bureau, we took it out. They also said its operationalisation should not be under IB, that also we did.
“I will only say that we tried to have a Central intelligence agency but they said Multi-Agency Centre is there. To which, they have accepted which is also a Central agency,” Mr Shinde said apparently suggesting that the opposing states should agree to the NCTC.
Mr Shinde today rejected Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi’s demand for a ‘white paper’ on internal security and said the government was following a two-pronged strategy of development and offensive action to tackle Maoists.

statesman news service
NEW DELHI, 1 JUNE: Dr Avinash Chander, who has taken over as scientific advisor to the Defence minister and director general of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), today said he is determined to enhance the level of self-reliance in the Defence sector. “We are looking forward to further growth in indigenous capabilities and to achieve a goal of 75 per cent self-reliance. DRDO has tremendous potential and the right critical mass to deliver. Today the ambience is right, with the maturity of Indian industry and our own R&D capabilities,” Dr Chander said.
“We have taken major programmes in multiple areas. Our focus is on performance and timely deliveries of critical programmes like LCA, artillery guns and surface-to-air missiles systems. Simultaneously, we want to make sure DRDO becomes a leading technology agency in the world. While we set our eyes on this process, we need to involve academia in a very close interaction to create frontline centres of excellence in R&D,” he said.
Dr Chander has been appointed for a period of three years.

statesman news service 
KOLKATA, 11 JUNE: As many as 4,519 candidates for gram panchayat seats of a total of a little over 30,000 seats going to the poll in the first phase on 2 July have won uncontested and going by the trends the figure may even go up to 5,250 ~ over 15 per cent of the total, a state election commission official today said after the last date of withdrawal of nomination expired yesterday.
In all 94,350 candidates for the three tiers of gram panchayat, panchayat samiti and zilla parishad are in the fray. In the first phase election will be held in  5,792  panchayat samiti and 514 zilla parishad seats.
In the second phase the contest will be in 11,999 GP,  2,183 PS and 197 ZP seats and the figures for the third phase are 6,943 (GP), 1,265 (PS) and 114 (ZP). 
As per the break-up given by the SEC 732 panchayat samiti seats of a total of 5,792  and eight of 514 zilla parishad seats have been won uncontested. 
The commission’s secretary Tapas Ray admitted the staggering number of seats going uncontested was “indeed a matter of concern for the SEC.” The SEC, he said, had taken cognizance of the matter and would look into the reasons, including alleged intimidation and terror tactic by the ruling party.
The districts most affected by the “disconcerting trend” are Hooghly, East and West Midnapore, Burdhwan and Bankura. 
Mr Ray conceded one reason for the incidence of uncontested seats could be that the political parties cutting across ideologies found it difficult to get women candidates.
Sources in the commission said fears of violence during the polls cannot be ruled out judging the trend of the first phase.
“In the panchayat polls of 2003, around 6,800 seats in all the phases were won uncontested,” he added.
A Left Front delegation urged state home secretary Basudeb Banerjee to take action against the abduction of its candidates for the panchayat poll by alleged Trinamul Congress-backed goons in several areas when they were going to BDO offices to file nominations. 
Mr Anisur Rahaman of the CPI-M, who submitted a memorandum to the home secretary complained the police hadn’t taken action even after FIRs were lodged. “We are afraid that more such incidents would take place in next two phases of filing nomination papers also,” Mr Rahaman said. 
“Trinamul leaders, who instigated their supporters for abducting Left Front candidates, are now being guarded by security personnel as reward from the party,” said Mr Rahaman. On the other hand, he alleged, the Leader of the Opposition Dr Suryakanta Misra hadn’t got police escort and taken high risk a few days ago when he went to meet the wife of a slain Trinamul leader in Howrah to express sympathy. 
He said Trinamul won about 5,000 seats uncontested, which is over 15 per cent of the total gram panchayat seats where election will be held in the first phase. This is an ominous sign for democracy,” he said.
The LF would launch a bigger movement if this situation continues, he threatened.
Earlier, during the day, Congress leader Dr Manas Bhuniya met SEC officials and complained that his party candidates had been threatened to withdraw their nominations for the first phase.
The commission had registered a case against the Trinamul Birbhum district president Anubrata Mondal for asking his party activists not to allow rival candidates to file their nomination. A separate case has also been initiated against West Midnapore’s Pingla Officer-in-Charge Pankaj Mistry for alleged police inaction during an attack on CPI activists on 26 May.
However,  state panchayat minister Subrata Mukherjee said during the day the state government was desperately trying to bring Central forces for the panchayat poll. He sought to allay fears and assured the state government would ensure free and peaceful poll. He was speaking on the sidelines of a community police programme.
“An unwarranted situation in which we would have to confront criminals enjoying the patronage of the ruling party appears to be on the cards and the state government would be responsible for it” Leader of the Opposition, Dr Surjya Kanta Mishra told the media at the CPI-M party office at Alimuddin Street.
"The state government cannot shirk its responsibilities and it should keep in mind that its power is much less than the semi-Fascist forces and the Emergency  we had stood up to and combatted" he added.
“Criminals enjoying the patronage of the ruling party are preventing our candidates from filing nominations and later pressurising them to withdraw though in 2008 rural polls half the seats were won by the then Opposition “ the Leader of the Opposition alleged. “Things have come to such a pass that a minister is trying to pass off  the recent  killing  of CPI-M leader in Burnpur, Dilip Sarkar as an intra-party feud and making statements tarnishing his image though the investigation is not yet over ,” Dr Mishra said.
“Trinamul Congress itself is a party plagued by factional feud and killings after which several next of kin of the deceased person had moved the court and got a direction for a CBI probe. It is regrettable that the state government is not taking steps following the directions of the court and the state election commission” he added.
“Law and order situation in the state is about to collapse and the actions of the state government are leading to anarchy” Left Front chairman Biman Bose said earlier. “The state government’s actions are stifling participatory democracy as the Opposition candidates are increasingly being prevented from filing nominations all over the state.” he added.