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had on September 19 allowed the plea of the extradited gangster, being tried in eight criminal cases including the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts that he be sent back to Portugal. Salem, a gangster extradited from Portugal in November 2005, was charged with MCOCA for allegedly making extortion calls to Delhi-based businessman Ashok Gupta in 2002, demanding Rs. 5 crore as protection money. The Portuguese court had said that in view of the new charges against Salem which entail death penalty, the authorisation granted for his extradition has been terminated as it violated the principle of speciality.India had given an executive assurance to Portugal that Salem would not be given death penalty or charged with any section of law which entails jail for more than 25 years, once he is extradited.If India fails to convince the Portuguese judiciary, Salem may have to be sent back to jail in Lisbon. The then NDA government had given an executive assurance to Portugal in 2005 that after Salems extradition he would be tried only in eight cases and will not be awarded imprisonment exceeding 25 years. It was also vowed that the gangster would not be tried under any special law. Salems counsel had approached the Portuguese High Court after the Supreme Court here dismissed his plea last year and upheld the a designated TADA courts decision to frame additional charges against him for the 1993 Mumbai blasts in addition to the other grave charges for which he was extradited by Portugal government to face trial in India.Salem, the prime accused along with underworld don Dawood Ibrahim in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts, and his girlfriend Monica Bedi were extradited to India on November 11, 2005, after a torturous legal process in Portugal lasting three years. The extradition of Salem, who is also wanted in various cases including the murder of noted film producer Gulshan Kumar, came after an assurance by the Indian government to Portugal that he would not be given death penalty, an important requirement in extradition proceedings in Europe. The underworld don had been extradited to India to face trial in eight cases which included the serial blasts, two cases of forgery of passports in Lucknow, three cases of extortion in Delhi and two murder cases in Mumbai which included murder of Ajit Dewani, secretary of Bollywood actress Manisha Koirala.Salems was the first successful extradition from any European country to India involving a person accused of committing heinous crimes.

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WEDNESDAY 5 OCTOBER 2011

The President, Smt. Pratibha Devisingh and the President of the Swiss Confederation, Ms. Micheline Anne-Marie CalmyRey, at the joint press conference, at Berne, Switzerland.

J&K Assembly adjourns sine die amid PDP uproar

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): The Jammu and Kashmir Assembly was on Tuesday adjourned sine die amidst strong protests by Opposition PDP demanding a discussion on the death of a National Conference worker allegedly in police custody last week. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) MLAs had moved a fresh adjournment motion notice demanding that the House should debate the death of Syed Mohammad Yousuf on September 30 as there were allegations of the Chief Ministers office being involved in it. However, Speaker Mohammad Akbar Lone rejected the PDP demand saying there was nothing new in their notice than the one rejected by him on Monday. A discussion on the matter is hardly justified at this stage and can prove counter-productive as the state government has requested the Chief Justice of the J&K High Court to appoint a sitting High Court judge to probe the matter, Mr. Lone said. Angry PDP members stormed the Well of the House, raising slogans protesting against the Speakers decision. Initially, the Opposition members were demanding discussion into Yousufs death but as the Speaker did not allow them even to speak, they started protesting against the Chair.Quoting newspaper reports, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti said a discussion had become extremely inevitable claiming that the High Court had refused to entertain the state governments request for conducting a probe by a sitting judge. However, the Speaker remained steadfast on his decision that no issue which is sub-judice can be discussed in the House.Senior PDP leader Muzaffar Hussain Baig contested the Speakers ruling saying if the 2G scam can be debated in Parliament while being heard by the Supreme Court, why this matter cannot be taken up by the Assembly. National Panthers Party (NPP) leader Harsh Dev Singh and CPI(M) MLA M.Y. Tarigami supported the demand for discussion in the House. The matter is not yet under the purview of judicial inquiry as the same has not been established yet. There should be no hesitation in discussing the issue, Singh said. Mr. Tarigami said if Chief Minister Omar Abdullah can make a statement on the issue outside the Assembly and government officials can brief the press on the case, why cannot the House be taken into confidence.As the commotion continued, the Speaker went about the business which included passage of two bills before adjourning the House sine die. Tuesday was the last day of the Autumn Session.

Vigilance department searches Panneerselvams residences

Chennai,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Officials of the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti Corruption on Tuesday carried out searches at the residences of former DMK Minister M.R.K. Panneerselvam and his relatives in Cuddalore, Chidambaram and Chennai.The searches at the residences of Mr. Pannerselvam and his relatives come a few days after DVAC officials conducted searches at former Labour Minister T.M. Anbarasans house in Kundrathur, police said.Mr. Panneerselvam handled the backward communities and health portfolios during the previous DMK regime and is the partys strongman in Cuddalore district.He unsuccessfully contested the April 13 state Assembly polls against Sorathur Rajendran of AIADMK in Kurinchipadi constituency in Cuddalore district. DVAC had on September 31 arrested former Higher Education Minister K Ponmudi in Chennai in connection with a land grabbing case. Former ministers Veerapandi S Arumugam, K.N. Nehru and N.K.K .P. Raja were also arrested on charges of land grabbing in the crackdown launched by the Jayalalithaa government on land grabbing.

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): India has approached Portugals Supreme Court challenging its High Court order which had terminated the extradition of underworld don Abu Salem for breach of agreement by India by slapping charges which attract death penalty. India, in its appeal before the Portuguese Supreme Court, has said the interpretation of the High Court of the trial in various courts of the country was not correct.In its affidavit, India has assured that the fresh charges levelled against Salem, a key accused in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case, attracted less jail term than the offences for which he had been extradited, official sources said on Tuesday. In its plea, which will soon come up for hearing, India has asked for a stay on the Portuguese High Court order, the sources said.Lisbon High Court

Portugals SC moved against termination of Salems extradition

Will vote Congress out if Lokpal bill is delayed: Anna Hazare

Mumbai,Oct 4(TSIT Bureau): Anna Hazare on Tuesday put Congress on notice on the Lokpal issue, saying he will campaign against it in election-bound states if the Centre fails to get his version of the anticorruption bill passed in Parliament's Winter Session. To begin with, Hazare said, he will appeal to voters in Hisar Lok Sabha constituency in Haryana where bypolls are scheduled on October 13 not to vote for the Congress candidate as the party was "deliberately" not bringing the Jan Lokpal bill."If the Jan Lokpal Bill is not passed in the Winter Session, then I will name the Congress and ask people not to vote for it in the Assembly polls scheduled in five states next year," he said addressing a press conference in his native village, 50 km from Pune. He announced that he would begin his tour of five electionbound states of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Manipur between October 13 and 15.Hazare, who had withHe said he will undertake a fast in Lucknow three days before election commences in Uttar Pradesh if the Centre does not pass the Jan Lokpal Bill in Winter Session of Parliament. Hazare came out in support of arrested Gujarat police officer Sanjiv Bhatt who has accused Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi of complicity in the 2002 communal riots. "What Narendra Modi has done is wrong. It is not good for democracy in the country," Hazare said, castigating the move to arrest Bhatt.What was the need for the state government to interfere and arrest Bhatt when the Sudrawn his 12-day hunger preme Court was fully strike in Ramlila Maidan aware of the matter, Hazafollowing assurances from re asked at a press conferthe Centre that three of his ence here. He was refermain demands would be ring to Bhatt's affidavit in considered, made it clear the Supreme Court allegthat his agitation would be ing that the 2002 riots took intensified across the coun- place with Modi's tacit aptry in the coming months. proval.

Honble Chief Minister inaugurated the additional building for State Human Rights Commission through Video Conferencing.

Bangalore is 6th worst city in world for commuting

Bangalore,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): In the space of eight months, up to August 2011, Bangalore's traffic police booked over 4 lakh cases of illegal/wrong parking of all class of vehicles including cars. The precise number is 4,25,379. This means over 50,000 cases of wrong parking are booked every month, as per Bangalore city traffic police records.In Bangalore, wrong parking occurs due to lack of parking space and it takes almost 20 to 35 minutes to find parking space in the central business district comprising MG Road, Brigade Road, Kamaraj Road, Commercial Street and Residency Road. Bangalore conforms to the global average time spent looking for a parking spot, which is 20 minutes, according to the re-

Manmohan, Chidambaram must quit: Shahnawaz

We will bring Lokpal Bill in next session: Khurshid

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): As Anna Hazare threatened to campaign against Congress on the Lokpal issue, Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid on Tuesday said the government will bring the anti-corruption bill in Parliaments Winter Session. Reacting to Mr. Hazares plan to campaign against Congress for the coming Assembly elections, Mr. Khurshid said he was not going to comment on anybodys views about what should happen in the next election.It is their decision. Every citizen is free to vote for anybody. Congress will only do its work, perform its duties and Congress will then go back to people when the duty is performed.

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a function here yescently released fourth an- comes to Church Street, terday, the BJP MP did not nual IBM Commuter Pain spends 20 minutes every rule out the possibility of Survey.The survey pro- day even at noon to find mid-term polls in the counvides a unique look into the parking space. "I have to try. "Manmohan Singh and interplay between traffic wait at a strategic location, Chidambaram are equally congestion and human switch off my engine. I do responsible for 2G specemotions - from New York this every day and some- trum scam and must quit for to Nairobi. The survey times it stretches beyond 25 the betterment of the counconducted among 8,042 minutes." Ranjani M, a try... We do not rule out the commuters in 20 cities techie, who works at an possibility of mid-term across 6 continents has MG Road office, parks polls," he said. Shahnawaz confirmed that parking is her car at Mayo Hall to dismissed reports of rift elusive worldwide with avoid waiting on Church between senior party leadover half the commuters Street. "I invariably do not ers L K Advani and Narenabandoning search for a find parking on MG Road dra Modi over the issue of and Church Street. Even BJP's choice for Prime parking spot. Not surprisingly, Ban- Museum Road is full. So I Ministership."BJP is a disgalore reported the largest wait at Mayo Hall for al- ciplined party. The Gujarnumber of tickets for ille- most 20 to 35 minutes on at Chief Minister has algal parking - the 50,000 any given day.'' ways respected cases booked per month. The survey showed that drivers in New Delhi (58%), Bangalore (44%), Nairobi (43%) and Milan (37%) are most vocal with Administration Office : No.73/1 Iyyappa each other over a specific Chatti Street Mannady, George Town, parking spot in commercial areas. Sheetal R, advertis- Chennai - 600001. ing professional who Cell No.9445330309, 9629852366

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THE SOUTH INDIA TIMES, Chennai

WEDNESDAY 5 OCTOBER 2011

Ahmedabad,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): The state government had yesterday challenged in the sessions court here, a magisterial court order denying remand of Bhatt, arrested for allegedly threatening and forcing a constable to sign a false affidavit. Sessions Judge G N Patel hearing the case reserved the order after hearing both the parties. During the hearing Bhatt's lawyer I H Sayed contended that the revision remand application of the state government was not maintainable in law. He cited Supreme Court judgement which said that granting or rejecting of bail was an interlocutory order and there cannot be revision of that order as per section 397(2) of the CrPC. Sayed said in view of the apex court judgement, the government application is not maintainable and should be rejected.On the government side, public

Court reserves order on remand revision of Bhatt for Oct 7

prosecutor Pravin Trivedi argued that the state government has right to seek revision of the remand once it is rejected.After the order was reserved, Bhatt who was present in the came back, it would readily grant him bail. However, Bhatt refused to take this proposal and said he cannot compromise with "touts"."Whatever wrong the government wants to do

Non-advocates can appear before consumer fora: Supreme Court

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): A nonadvocate or an authorised agent can represent a consumer before the district, State and national consumer fora for adjudicating a complaint, the Supreme Court has held.A threejudge Bench, which gave this ruling recently, directed the National Consumer Commission to frame within three months comprehensive rules on appearance of agents, representatives, registered organisations and/or non-advocates in respect of their qualifications, conduct and ethical behaviour. Writing the judgment, Justice Dalveer Bhandari said: When the legislature has permitted authorised agents to appear on behalf of the complainant, the courts can't compel the consumer to engage the services of an advocate. On the contention of advocates that they would be entitled to practise before consumer forums, the Bench said, This privilege cannot be claimed as a matter of right. However, a consumer forum has to guard itself against touts and busybodies [showing themselves up] in the garb of power of attorney holders or authorised agents in the proceedings before it. While a consumer forum may permit an authorised agent to appear before it, he shall not be one who has used this as a profession: the forum has the right to prevent an authorised agent from appearing in case it is found and believed that he is using the said right as a profession. Directing the National Commission to frame rules, the Bench said it might consider creating a process of accrediting non-advocates through an examination for them to practise as representatives before a forum. The basic issue involved in appeals filed by G. Venkatachalam and the Bar Council of India against a Bombay High Court judgment was whether a person under cover of being an agent could represent a large number of persons before the forums created under the Consumer Protection Act. The Bench took up the question whether somebody who is not a legal practitioner can represent a large number of parties before the forums thereby frustrating objects embodied.

2002, hours after the Godhra train carnage. On October 1, Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate B G Doshi had rejected the state government's demand for seven-day police custody of Bhatt and remanded him in judicial custody. The government had challenged the magistrate's order and sought Bhatt's custody on the grounds that it wanted to know how the IPS officer had used the affidavits signed by Pant. The government contended that Bhatt's custody was required to find out about others involved in the conspiracy, and also to ascourt told the judge that he I don't care, I will tolerate certain whether the IPS would like to assist it and it," he old the court. He officer had sent the affidaremain present during pro- was arrested on Septem- vits to somebody using enouncement of the order. ber 30 in connection with mails.The government furBut he was told that his an FIR filed against him by ther said that it also wantpresence was not required. police constable K D Pant ed to know how many The judge also asked the in June for allegedly threat- bank lockers did Bhatt jail authorities not to bring ening him and making him have and what was inside Bhatt on October 7. sign false affidavits regard- them.Bhatt has filed for bail The court proposed to ing a meeting called by in the sessions court, which Bhatt that if he went on re- Chief Minister Narendra will be heard later in the mand for three hours and Modi on February 27, day.

The President, Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil meeting the President of the Swiss Confederation, Ms. Micheline Anne-Marie Calmy-Rey, at Berne, Switzerland.

Pulok Chatterjee takes over as Principal Secretary to PM

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Senior IAS officer Pulok Chatterjee, perceived to be a Gandhi family loyalist, took charge as Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister. A 1974 Uttar Pradesh cadre officer, Mr. Chatterjee replaces T.K.A. Nair, who has been associated with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh since 2004. Mr. Nair, a retired IAS officer of the 1963 batch, will hold the office of Adviser with the rank and status of Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office. Mr. Chatterjee returns to the PMO after a stint in the World Bank as Executive Director. The PMO is a familiar terrain to Mr. Chatterjee as he was a Joint Secretary from 2004 to 2009. Mr. Chatterjee's term will be co-terminus with that of the Prime Minister or till further orders. The appointment of Mr. Chatterjee is part of a major overhaul of the PMO and comes at a juncture when the United Progressive Alliance government is hurtling from one crisis to another. Mr. Chatterjee had worked with the UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi when she was the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.Given his proximity to Ms. Gandhi, he could ensure smoother coordination between the government and the Congress president. A Secretary in the PMO, M. N. Prasad, has left to join the World Bank. Sanjay Mitra, a Joint Secretary, has already joined West Bengal government. He has been replaced by L. K. Atheeq, who was promoted recently. Senior IFS officer Pankaj Saran, a Joint Secretary, is also on the way out. B. V. R. Subramanyam, an IAS officer of Chhattisgarh cadre who served as Private Secretary to Dr. Singh in UPA-I from 2004 to 2008, is also set to return to the PMO as Joint Secretary. He will replace Vini Mahajan.

Tendulkar poverty line will remain reference point'

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Though the methodology for determining the poor would be based on the socio-economic caste census being undertaken by the Rural Development Ministry, the (Suresh) Tendulkar poverty line would remain a relevant reference point to see how development is helping to take more and more individuals above a fixed line over time and across States, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia told a news conference here on Monday. As per the Tendulkar Committee report, the percentage of the population below the poverty line in 2004-05 was 37.2 per cent. The percentage of poor in rural areas was estimated at 41.8 per cent and 25.7 per cent in urban areas. Denying the allegation that the panel intended to limit the benefits to those below the poverty line, , Mr. Ahluwahlia said the panel had accepted the Tendulkar Committee.

Undemocratic and arbitrary

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Leaders of various organisations on Monday condemned the arbitrary and illegitimate raid on Right to Food Campaign steering committee convener and PUCL general secretary Kavita Srivastava, who has challenged in the Supreme Court the Union government's poverty line on Right to Food.Activists Jean Dreze, Binayak Sen, Aruna Roy, Medha Patkar, Nikhil Dey and Annie Raja charged that the raid was an act of harassment and witch-hunting of human rights workers. The ulterior motive was sending a message to all activists not to take up issues against the state. Those associated with the Right to Food Campaign and the People's Union for Civil Liberties said it was harassment under cover of fighting Naxalism. They said the Rajasthan police raided Ms. Srivastava's house claiming to be looking for a dreaded Naxalite, and in her absence, they harassed her 82-year-old father and two domestic helpers.The statement said the raid was conducted at the behest of the Chhattisgarh police on a warrant that carried only Ms. Srivastava's address and the word abhiyukt accused. The activists said Ms. Srivastava had been a tireless defender of human rights for many years and was earlier harassed for opposing the criminal activities of the Chhattisgarh government such as detentions, encounter killings, and foisting false cases under the garb of fighting Naxalism.Demanding an unconditional apology from the Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh governments, the activists warned that such undemocratic and arbitrary actions would not silence human rights defenders and instead amplify their voices .

The Defence Minister, Shri A. K. Antony being welcomed by the Tajik Defence Minister Col General Sherali Khairyulleov, at the Dushanbe Airport of Tajikistan .

Affidavit a fraud, says Murli Manohar Joshi

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Murli Manohar Joshi on Monday described the Planning Commission's affidavit on poverty line in the Supreme Court as a fraud and blatantly absurd. Questioning the explanation offered by Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia that the poverty line figure of an income of Rs. 32 per head in urban areas and Rs. 26 per capita in rural areas was not meant to serve as the cut-off point for deciding the beneficiaries of various government schemes, Dr. Joshi wondered what then was the exercise about. Demanding Mr. Ahluwalia's exit from the Commission, he said the affidavit showed he was totally insensitive to poverty and the poor in the country. Asked what the poverty line criterion was under the Vajpayee government of 1998 to 2004, Dr. Joshi evaded a direct response. Instead, he said: There was plenty of food in those years; we gave subsidised food to anyone who wanted. He denied there were quotas for State governments on the basis of the number of below poverty line (BPL) people identified by them. The fact is, as pointed out in contemporaneous reports, in 1999-2000, the Vajpayee government scaled down the percentage of those below the poverty line from 37 per cent of the population to roughly 27 per cent and less than 500 lakh families nationwide were designated below the poverty line with an income of Rs. 350 a month a person, that is, less than Rs. 12 a day, in rural areas and Rs. 454 a month (Rs. 15 a day a person) in urban areas.But Dr. Joshi insisted: Despite two drought years during the Vajpayee government's tenure, our godowns were full we had plenty of food we gave subsidised.

The Ambassador, Republic of Korea with a team of delegates, called on the Honble Chief Minister.

Proposed Central bill may deny subsidised rice to 66 lakh card holders
Chennai,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Approximately 66 lakh rice-drawing card holders in the State may become ineligible to receive subsidised rice from the Central pool if the draft National Food Security Bill is adopted in its present form.According to the bill [contents are available on the website of the Union government's Department of Food and Public Distribution], the ceiling for the coverage of population is 75 per cent in rural areas and 50 per cent in urban areas.It states that of the covered rural population, 46 per cent should belong to priority households (PHH) and at least 28 per cent of the urban population account for PHH. The remaining portion would be regarded as general households (GHH). Food grain entitlements and issue price vary with regard to PHH and GHH with higher weightage for those covered under the PHH.As of now, the State has 1.85 crore rice-drawing family cards, of which 1.07 crore cards are in rural areas and 78 lakh in urban areas. [The total number of cards is 1.97 crore, according to the Policy Note of the State Food and Consumer Protection Department.If the rule of exclusion, as envisaged in the Bill, is applied, 66 lakh cards will have to be removed. Of them 39 lakh cards will be from urban areas and the remaining 27 lakh from rural areas. Assuming that each card has four beneficiaries, about 2.64 crore people will be left out of the PDS. This accounts for around 37 per cent of the State's population of about 7.21 crore (2011 Census provisional data).Another point to be kept in mind, an official points out, is that urban areas account for 48.45 per cent of the State's population. It is against this backdrop that the restriction on the coverage of urban population, as provided in the Bill, has to be seen. The Centre's obligation under the proposed legislation will be restricted to allocating food grains and ensuring them to those belonging to PHHs and GHHs. If any State government wants to provide subsidised rice to others who, in the context of Tamil Nadu, are covered under 66 lakh cards, it will be the concern of the respective State.After the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam government assumed office in May, the scheme of providing 20 kg of rice per month free of cost to ricedrawing card holders in general is being implemented since June 1. The Antodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) beneficiaries get 35 kg per month. The monthly requirement of rice is around 3.3 lakh tonnes whereas the Central allotment of rice is 2.96 lakh tonnes. Even now, the Centre provides rice to the State at an issue price of Rs.3 per kg for Antodaya Anna Yojana beneficiaries; Rs.5.65 per kg for Below Poverty Line (BPL) people; and Rs.8.30 per kg for Above Poverty Line (APL) people. The difference of roughly 35,000 tonnes is met through various ad hoc allotments of the Centre at the per kg rates that vary from Rs.5.65 to Rs.11.85 to around Rs.15.4. The State also buys rice under the Open Market Sales Scheme of the Food Corporation of India at rates that are in the range of around Rs.15.2 to Rs.16.10. However, the State government, while providing rice free of cost, does not make any dstinction among family card holders. This year's food subsidy bill has been estimated at Rs.4,500 crore, of which about Rs.2,500 crore is earmarked.

THE SOUTH INDIA TIMES, Chennai

WEDNESDAY 5 OCTOBER 2011

Italy appeals court clears Knox of murder

Perugia,Oct 4(EMS): Amanda Knox left prison Monday, a free woman for the first time in four years, after an Italian appeals court threw out the young Americans murder conviction for the brutal stabbing death of her British roommate after a drug-fuelled sexual assault. Knox, 24, collapsed in tears after the verdict was read, a stunning reversal in a sensational saga that became a cause celebre in the U.S. and Italy. Her co-defendant and former boyfriend, Italian Raffaele Sollecito, also was cleared of killing 21year-old Meredith Kercher in 2007. Were thankful that Amandas nightmare is over, her younger sister, Deanna Knox, told reporters outside the courthouse. She suffered for four years for a crime she did not commit.About 90 minutes after the verdict was handed down, a black Mercedes carrying Knox was seen leaving the prison. She was expected to board a commercial flight for home on Tuesday. The fatal blow to the prosecutions case was a court-ordered DNA review that discredited crucial genetic evidence used to convict Knox and Sollecito in 2009. They were sentenced to 26 and 25 years, respectively.While waves of relief swept through the defendants benches in the courtroom, members of the Kercher family, who flew in for the verdict, appeared dazed and perplexed. Merediths older sister, Stephanie, shed a tear, and her mother, Arline, looked straight ahead. We respect the decision of the judges but we do not understand how the decision of the first trial could be so radically overturned, the Kerchers said in a statement. We still trust the Italian justice system and hope that the truth will eventually emerge. The Kerchers had pressed for the court to uphold the guilty verdicts, and resisted theories that a third man convicted in the case, Rudy Hermann Guede, had acted alone. Guede, convicted in a separate trial, is serving a 16-year sentence.There were two options to acquit- that there wasnt enough evidence to uphold the conviction or that the pair simply didnt commit the crime. The eight-member jury determined the latter, clearing Knox and Sollecito completely. The verdict reverberated through the streets of this medieval hilltop town, where both Knox and Kercher had arrived with so much anticipation for overseas studies programs four years agoHundreds of mostly university-age youths gathered in the piazza outside the courtroom jeered as news of the acquittals spread. Shame! Shame! they yelled, adding that a black man had been made to shoulder all of the guilt for the murder. Knox was pale, clearly terrified and appeared breathless as she arrived for the verdict shortly after 9-30 p.m.Presiding Judge Claudio Pratillo Hellmann read out the verdict in a frescoed subterranean courtroom packed with reporters. In five minutes, Knoxs fate was reversed. The appeals Court of Perugia ... orders the immediate release of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito, Hellmann said.The jury upheld Knoxs conviction on a charge of slander for accusing bar owner Diya Patrick Lumumba of carrying out the killing. But it set the sentence at three years, amounting to time served. Knox has been in prison since Nov. 6, 2007, five days after the murder.After the verdict, Knox dropped her head in sobs and had to be propped up by lawyers on both sides of her. Prosecutors said they would appeal to the nations highest criminal court, the Court of Cassation, after reading the courts reasoning, due out within 90 day. Tonights sentence is wrong and confounding, prosecutor Giuliano Mignini told the ANSA news agency. There is a heavy conviction for slander. Why did she accuse him? We dont know. The Court of Cassation will establish who is right between the lower court and the appeals court, he added. Mignini said there was unprecedented media pressure, revisiting a theme he touched .

North Korean defectors arrive at Incheon International Airport in Incheon, west of Seoul, South Korea.

Doubts even before Gilani's offer to militants takes root

Islamabad,Oct 4 (EMS): Carrying forward the All Parties Conference mandate to give peace a chance'', Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani on Sunday night announced that his government was ready to talk to all militant groups'' provided they decommissioned'' themselves. Speaking to a select group of journalists in Lahore, Mr. Gilani said: If negotiations fail to work, the government will launch military operations in the tribal areas.'' However, he did not get into specifics particularly vis--vis a military operation in North Waziristan where the Haqqani network accused by the U.S. of attacking American targets in Afghanistan is said to be based.Providing the contours of the process that the government proposes to initiate, he said: We will not ask them to disarm before the negotiations since this is against the tribal culture. However, the political agents of the tribal agencies will ask them to decommission themselves.'' Essentially, what the government proposes to do is follow the Swat example where a peace deal was offered to militants in 2009 before launching military operations when the Taliban did not honour their end of the bargain. However, this option is viewed with considerable scepticism because in the past when such peace deals were struck, the terrorists took advantage of the agreement to strengthen their hold over the area. Meanwhile, the BBC quoted Haqqani network's Sirajudin Haqqani as denying any role in the assassination of Afghan High Peace Council chairman Burhanuddin Rabbani as has been alleged by the Karzai government. He also told the BBC's Pashto service that the Haqqani network had no links with the ISI.Admitting that the mujahideen fighters had contacts with intel-

Gunmen attack Shia Muslims in Pakistan, kill 12

Quetta,Oct 4 (EMS): Suspected Sunni extremists opened fire on Shia Muslims traveling through southwestern Pakistan on Tuesday, killing 12 people and wounding six others in the latest apparent sectarian attack to plague the country, police said.Sunni militants with ideological and operational links to alQaeda and the Taliban have carried out scores of bombings and shootings against minority Shias in recent years, but the past couple weeks have been particularly bloody. The gunmen who attacked on Tuesday were riding on motorbikes and stopped a bus carrying mostly Shia Muslims who were headed to work at a vegetable market on the outskirts of Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan province, said police official Hamid Shakeel. The attackers forced the people off the bus, made them stand in a line and then opened fire, said Shakeel. The dead included 11 Shias and one Sunni, he said. The wounded included four Shias and two Sunnis.Sunni extremists carried out a similar attack on Shia pilgrims traveling through Baluchistan about two weeks ago, killing 26 people. Pakistan is a majority Sunni Muslim state, with around 15 per cent Shia.Most Sunnis and Shias live together peacefully in Pakistan, though tensions have existed for decades. In the 1980s and 1990s, Pakistan became the scene of a proxy war between mostly Shiia Iran and Sunni Saudi Arabia, with both sides funneling money to sectarian groups that regularly targeted each other. The level of sectarian violence has declined somewhat since then, but attacks continue.

A man talks into a large model of a ear which has recording capabilities on a car at CEATEC JAPAN 2011 electronics show in Chiba, east of Tokyo.

ligence agencies of Pakistan and other countries during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s, the younger Haqqani said these were snapped after the U.S. invasion. Further, according to him, the Haqqanis have been contacted and are being contacted by intelligence agencies of many Islamic and non-Islamic countries including the U.S. asking us to leave the sacred jihad and take an important part in the current government''. Of the view that the aim of these intelligence agencies is not peace but to create tension among the Emirate's mujahideen'', he described attempts to link the Haqqani network to the ISI as a bid to hide their failure and confuse people''. As for the attack on the U.S. Embassy in Kabul last month, he said it was ordered by the Islamic Emirate which was the name given to Afghanistan by the Taliban when in power.

Ex-Beatles at Harrison film premiere

London,Oct 4(EMS): For Beatles' fans who thronged the premiere of Martin Scorsese's muchanticipated film on George Harrison here on Sunday, there was unexpected bonus: surviving ex-Beatles Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr were on the red carpet to share their memories of Harrison their little mate'' .Every time I see anything to do with George it brings back more memories than you would believe. He was my little mate on the school bus ... when he was very little. He's sorely missed by us all, said McCartney who was accompanied by his fiancee, Nancy Shevell. Scorsese's documentary, George Harrison: Living in the Material World, tracing the life and work of the guitarist who died in 2001 at the age of 58, is to be released in British cinemas only for one night on Tuesday but will be telecast by the BBC next month. Based on hitherto unseen footage from Harrison's childhood and interviews with his widow Olivia, McCartney, Starr and John Lennon's widow Yoko Ono, among others, it focuses on the Fab Four guitarist's search for spiritual fulfilment through music.

Syria detains 3,000 in 3 days

Beirut,Oct 4 (EMS): Syrian troops going house to house have detained more than 3,000 people in the past three days in the rebellious town of Rastan, which saw some of the worst fighting of the 6month-old uprising recently, activists said. Over the past week, the military fought hundreds of army defectors who sided with anti-regime protesters in Rastan. The fighting demonstrated the increasingly militarized nature of the uprising and heightened fears that Syria may be sliding toward civil war. The activist group Local Coordination Committees said Monday fighting in the town has now stopped after the military operation that left dozens dead. The group and a Rastan-based activist confirmed about 3,000 in the town of 70,000 had been detained. The activist told The Associated Press by telephone that the detainees are being held at a cement factory, as well as some schools and the Sports Club, a massive, four-story compound. Ten of my relatives have been detained, said the activist, who asked that he be identified only by his first name Hassan for fear of retaliation. He said he was speaking from hiding in Rastan.Syrias opposition movement has until now focused on peaceful demonstrations, although recently there have been reports of protesters taking up arms to defend themselves against military attacks. Army defectors have also been fighting government troops, particularly in Rastan, the town just north of Homs that government forces retook on Saturday. The fears of civil war, possibly along sectarian lines, were also heightened by the assassination Sunday of the 21-year-old son of Syrias top Sunni Muslim cleric the latest in a string of targeted killings. The state-appointed cleric, Grand Mufti Ahmad Badreddine Hassoun, is considered a loyal supporter of President Bashar Assads regime, heading a host of regime-backed Sunni clergymen who have been a base of support for the presidents ruling Alawite sect. Hassoun, who has echoed regime claims that the unrest in Syria is the result of a foreign conspiracy, accused the opposition of creating the climate for his sons killing and blamed rival, anti-Assad Sunni clerics for allegedly issuing fatwas, or religious edicts, inciting against him.My brothers who were misguided and carried arms, you should have assassinated me because some clerics issued such fatwas. Why did you kill a young man who did nothing and harmed no one? Hassoun, holding back tears, said in a sermon at his sons funeral in the northeastern city of Aleppo, aired on Syrian TV stations. The killing was the latest in a series of targeted executions of prominent people including a nuclear engineer, university professors and physicians. The men, a mixture of Alawites, Christians and Shias, were all killed in a hail of bullets in the past week, most of them in central Homs province one of the hotbeds of anti-government protests. The regime has accused terrorist gunmen of the killings, while the opposition in turn accused the regime of trying to foment sectarian strife to maintain its grip on power.

Luxembourg-born Frenchman Jules Hoffmann, one of the three scientists who won the Nobel Medicine Prize for work on the immune system, gestures as he talks during an interview in Shanghai.

Libyas post-Gaddafi rulers name new Cabinet

Libya,Oct 4 (EMS): Libyas transitional leaders have named a new Cabinet and have vowed to step down after the country is secured, even though fighting persists and Gaddafi remains at large.The announcement Monday was made jointly by the head of the National Transitional Council, Mustafa AbdulJalil, and de facto Prime Minister Mahmoud Jibril in a news conference following weeks of political infighting and delays over the formation of a new government. In the end, the Cabinet lineup did not contain many changes, prompting many Libyans to question why it took so long, coming about six weeks after revolutionary forces seized the capital, Tripoli, and forced Gaddafi into hiding. Jibril, who graduated from and taught strategic planning at the University of Pittsburgh for several years, remains in his position but also takes over as foreign minister, meaning his current deputy and Foreign Minister Ali Al Issawi is out. Ali Al Tarhouni, a U.S.-educated economist, will continue acting as oil minister until the National Oil Company is ready to take over. The new leaders said they would remain in place until the country is secured and liberation is declared, then a new transitional government would be formed within a month.We have signed a pledge to the Libyan people that we will not be part of the future government not in any way, Abdul-Jalil said to applause. The pledge was intended to reassure the public they will not suffer under another dictatorship. Revolutionary forces are still battling loyalists of Gaddafi on two major fronts as well as pockets deep in the southern desert. But Jibril said he had asked that liberation be declared after Gaddafis hometown of Sirte is captured because that would ensure that all sea, land and air entry ports are secure. He acknowledged fighting would continue in Bani Walid, where the terrain and the harboring of suspected high-level regime figures possibly including.

THE SOUTH INDIA TIMES, Chennai

WEDNESDAY 5 OCTOBER 2011

THE SOUTH INDIA TIMES

WEDNESDAY 5 OCTOBER 2011

PM cant disown responsibility

Some people may believe otherwise, but the fact remains that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh cannot any longer escape responsibility for the 2G Spectrum swindle. At every step, from the time his now incarcerated Telecom Minister A Raja conceived the scam to its implementation to the various objections raised on it by some important Government functionaries to the tacit and sometimes open approval by others, the Prime Minister was in the know. Yet he did nothing to halt the scandal in its tracks.It is important to understand this fundamental point, because all through Mr Singh has got away by initially feigning ignorance, then lamenting the compulsions of coalition politics, and finally using the ace that not even his worst enemy could question his personal integrity. But now, more than ever after the 2G taint has directly hit the Congress with Mr P Chidambaram as the target, the Prime Minister appears vulnerable as never before. Whatever he or his spin doctors may say the latest being that he cannot be held criminally liable for the lapses he is a suspect in the public eye for being a silent spectator and, therefore, a sort of collaborator in the entire episode. Let us begin with the Law Ministrys letter of November 1, 2007 to the Telecom Ministry a letter that the Prime Minister would have been aware of because A Raja replied to the Law Ministrys letter not to the Law Minister but to Mr Singh directly. Then Law Minister HR Bhardwaj, apparently upset by the methodology adopted in allotting the spectrum, wrote to the Telecom Ministry: In view of the importance of the case (2G spectrum allocation) and various options indicated in the statement of the case, it is necessary that the whole issue is first considered by an Empowered Group of Ministers and, in that process, the legal opinion of A-G (Attorney-General) can be obtained.The Law Minister was responding to an opinion sought by the Telecom Ministry on going ahead with the allocation of 2G spectrum on first-come-first-served basis and on prices fixed in 2001. An enraged A Raja wrote back not to the Law Ministry but directly to the Prime Minister questioning the idea of an EGoM to decide on spectrum pricing. He said in that letter, The Ministry of Law and Justice, instead of examining the legal tenability of these alternative procedures, suggested referring the matter to EGoM. Since generally new major policy decisions of a department or inter-departmental issues are referred to the GoM, and needless to say that the present issues relate to procedures, the suggestion of the Law Ministry is totally out of context. This was on the morning of November 2, 2007. The same afternoon, the Prime Minister wrote back to A Raja and cautioned him against taking any measures without informing him. I would request you to give urgent consideration to the issues being raised with a view to ensuring fairness and transparency and let me know of the position before you take any further action in this regard, Mr Singh directed the Minister. The Prime Minister also instructed him to adopt correct pricing of spectrum and revision of entry fee. Thus, the Prime Minister was all along in the loop. But he did nothing to ensure that his directions were followed by the Telecom Minister. There was no tangible follow-up on Mr Singhs part on what was turning out to be a huge scam.Towards the end of November the same year came another shocker for the then Telecom Minister. The Finance Ministry got into the act, with then Finance Secretary D Subbarao sending a stinker to the Telecom Secretary on the issue. Mr Rao wrote, It is not clear how the rate of `1,600 crore, determined as far back as in 2001, has been applied for a licence given in 2007 In view of the financial implications the Ministry of Finance should have been consulted in the matter before you finalised the deal. Mr Subbarao added, Meanwhile, all further action to implement the above licences may please be stopped.If the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Telecom both agree remember the Prime Ministers clarification at a media interaction. But the Finance Ministry had not agreed to the deal. We know with the fresh revelations that only then Finance Minister P Chidambaram had consented despite his initial reluctance to whatever had happened, suggesting to the Prime Minister that it may be treated as a closed chapter. So, again, Mr Singh had the option to not treat it as a closed chapter, given the stink, and seek a review. He did not. Instead, he went along with Mr Chidambarams opinion. If today Mr Chidambaram is in the dock for that recommendation, how can the Prime Minister escape responsibility? Mr Singh was wrong on another count: Even the Telecom Ministry had not, if one goes by the assertions of senior Ministry officials, agreed to A Rajas policy. Neither then Telecom Secretary DS Mathur nor then Department of Telecom Member (Finance) Manju Madhavan was on the same page with A Raja. One had to leave in disgust while the other was swiftly replaced with the then Ministers yes-man after he retired. With senior officials in the Department of Telecom registering their protest to the deal, the only way to believe the Telecom Ministry was in agreement is to accept that A Raja alone was the Ministry! Mr Singh cannot even say that he acted immediately after the matter came to light. The Pioneer was the first to report on the shady dealings as far back as in December 2008, and it went on to unravel, layer after layer, the scam in a series of reports all through 2009 and 2010. That in turn triggered a flurry of activity, with the Comptroller & Auditor General, Central Vigilance Commission, the Central Bureau of Investigation and the courts turning the heat on the Government. A Raja, who presided over the scam as Telecom Minister, had to depart and was eventually arrested.But, at least a year before The Pioneer launched its scathing expose the matter had come to Mr Singhs notice. Besides the official correspondences involving the Telecom Ministry, the Law Ministry, the Finance Ministry and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India in late-2007, that showed how the then Minister was manipulating the policy to favour a select few, the Prime Minister too had written to A Raja, asking him to implement the policy in a fair and transparent manner.Finally, the Prime Minister, being the innocent bystander that he has claimed to be all through the scam history, must tell us whether he was aware at least of the Finance Ministrys note to the PMO that pointed to Mr Chidambarams closed chapter suggestion. If yes, why then did a senior Ministers claim that no such note existed? And, if Mr Singh was not aware of the note, then he is clearly clueless about what is happening in his own office. By Rajesh Singh

Paralysed Government
There is New Delhi, the Diwan-e-Aam, and theres Lutyenss Delhi, the Diwan-e-Khas; the first passes for the capital of the Republic of India and the second is the exclusive inner courtyard where entry is restricted to the charmed few whose concerns are far removed from the miseries of Bharat. Neither New Delhi nor Lutyenss Delhi, however, is remotely bothered about life beyond the borders of the National Capital Region or the realities of our times. This goes to explain why the exalted, all-powerful Planning Commission, headed by none less than the Prime Minister himself and managed by another economist-turned-bureaucrat, believes that Indias teeming millions should consider themselves blessed and above the poverty line if they are lucky enough to earn Rs 32 a day if they happen to live in cities or Rs 26 a day if they are living in villages. The absurdity, as also the callous cruelty, of such assertions by those who live off taxpayers money and are kept in clover by those whom they hold in limitless contempt is lost on Lutyenss Delhi. It would be instructive if economist Montek Singh Ahluwalia and his boss, economist Manmohan Singh, were to append with their definition of poverty how much it costs India to keep them, and their colleagues in the morally decrepit UPA regime, in comfort. The comparison would explain the disdain that Lutyenss Delhi has for the people of India whom the Congress presumes to rule. Its a matter of abiding shame that the Government should now announce, and incredulously so, that the minor kerfuffle over living wages to keep above the poverty line has been resolved with Mr Ahluwalia clearing all doubts over the Planning Commissions submission before a Bench of the Supreme Court. What has been resolved? And what doubts have been removed? More important, how can an issue that impacts that lives of millions of Indians be resolved by individuals who owe no explanation to anybody by virtue of the fact that they are not even elected to the office they hold? Meanwhile, in distant Manipur, people struggle to keep their body and soul together as the economic blockade of the State enters its third month. Cylinders of cooking gas are being sold for Rs 2,000 each and petrol costs anything between Rs 150 and Rs 200 a litre. Essential commodities have become dangerously scarce while lifesaving drugs are difficult to purchase, no matter the price offered by desperate Manipuris. This is not the first time that Manipur has had to bear the brunt of separatist belligerence and the indifference of Lutyenss Delhi. The situation in Andhra Pradesh where the agitation for Telangana has completed 20 days is no better. Normal life, as is understood by most of us, has ceased to have a meaning for those whose lives have been disrupted by the agitation and who have been abandoned by the Government.

Everybody hurts...
We all live with weltschmerz in these difficult times. There's no exact translation of this charming word coined by Jean Paul Richter in 1810. What it suggests is a kind of world weariness that has entered our lives. What you can call a universal pain. Everyone lives with it and yet everyone is in denial of it. That's why we have this great love affair with the entertainment business. Movies. Broadway. Vegas. The IPL. Formula One. We are living in the greatest era of escapism simply because we live in the greatest era of pain. This pain is not always personal. It's not just about you and me and those who we love. You see it in the eyes of the urchin who comes begging to you at a street corner. She has lost her childhood, her innocence. You see it in the eyes of those who work for you at home, cooking, cleaning, washing your clothes, or taking your well groomed dogs out for a walk. Each one of them, however well you may take care of them, dreams that one day they will walk away to be their own master. You see it in the eyes of your colleagues at work, however enthusiastic they may be about what they do. The long travel to work, the pitiable condition of public transportation, the missing footpaths, the growing pollution, the problems with putting kids through school and college, the frequent confrontations over rent, power, water, tax: everything contributes to this weltschmerz. It's everywhere. I see it in parties and film premieres too. There's something very tragic in watching middle aged men and women dressed in absurd designer togs, their hair dyed and faces botoxed, prancing around like teenagers and pretending to have a great time. There are more sad-eyed drunks and dope heads there than in the dance bars of suburban Mumbai or the glitzy discotheques of five star hotels. While the real youngsters of this generation, equally sad-eyed, shot and lonely, are racing down empty Mumbai roads late at night on rented souped up bikes trying to prove their machismo. They challenge danger because they find it tougher to challenge life. They hide their pain by escaping it. So do their parents who helplessly watch them suffer, knowing that sermons don't help. The day we all realise this, that the rich is in as much pain as the poor, that the employer is having as tough a time as the employee, that the cop who asks you for a bribe lives as sad a life as you, the pickpocket you catch has risked being lynched because he has no other alternative means of livelihood, that the movie star you idolise is as lonely as you are, that the one who brutalises you is perhaps as brutalised by life as you are, the less we will seek to blame others for our fate. You will feel less anger against that guy in the tax office who asks you for a bribe when you realise he is still paying back, after ten years on his job, his father's debt for getting him the job. We are lucky. The Americans are consuming today what their next 13 generations will have to pay for. The Greeks will be lucky if their next generation can survive their current crisis. We have, all of us, mortgaged our futures to pay for being around. No, I am not saying this. Ask anyone who understands economics or the environment and they will tell you this. Yet man bravely strides ahead. As we flirt with more pain, more danger, we discover more and more ways to seek gratification, more technology to flaunt, more entertainment to excite us and, most important, more dreams to chase. So we pursue new ways to earn more money, grow more food, hunt down more pleasures, seek to extend our life spans. British scientists recently declared that by 2050 we will find a way to overcome mortality. By Pritish Nandy

What The Poverty Debate Misses

The outrage about the poverty line is mainly about using it to identify the poor for providing subsidised entitlements. However, even when we are able to identify them, we are not able to reach them. The experience with the public distribution system (PDS) shows this clearly. The main instrument for providing foodgrains at low prices to poor consumers has been the PDS and its current incarnation, the targeted PDS(TPDS).As per the 2004-05 National Service Scheme survey, of the poorest 40% of households, only 34% had TPDS cards, while 18 % of the top 60% of the households had such cards. The income support provided was meagre and the cost to the government was 10 times that.I have argued for many years for use of smart cards or food coupons, which was endorsed by the Economic Survey 2009-10. A person can go to any shop and buy designated food items at market price, paying part of the cost through a smart card or food coupons. The trader can exchange the coupons for money at any bank. These coupons would eliminate the diversion of PDS grains by traders. In fact, the system would eliminate the PDS itself. It would, however, involve the problem of printing and distributing the coupons to the poor, who will have to be identified.The messy problem of printing and periodically issuing coupons can be eliminated with the use of the Unique Identification Number under the Aadhaar scheme. But even with the Aadhaar cards, the task of identifying the poor remains.The large exclusion and inclusion errors of the present system of issuing BPL cards will still persist.One way to deal with the exclusion error is to go for a universal right to food under which everyone is entitled to subsidised foodgrains from the PDS, as proposed by the National Advisory Council. The food security Bill adopted by the empowered group of ministers aims to provide rice at Rs 3 per kg, wheat at Rs 2 per kg and coarse grains at Rs 1 per kg to priority households. Forty-six per cent of rural and 28% of urban households are to be the priority households. The scheme will cover 68% of the population and government`s subsidy outlay will increase to around Rs 95,000 crore. This scheme will face two problems. Firstly, how to iden-tify the priority households to eliminate exclusion error and minimise inclusion error?Secondly,how to control diversion and make an enlarged PDS cost-efficient?To resolve this, instead of identifying the poor, make PDS universal but exclude the clearly and easily identifiable rich.This will ensure that all the poor will be covered even at the cost of some undeserving rich getting covered. If all those who pay income tax, those who own motorised vehicles and all those in the organised sector, including government, with monthly emoluments of more than, say, Rs 15,000, are excluded, the inclusion error could be reduced. Further reduction could be achieved through self-selection if households are themselves required to purchase ration with an Aadhaar card, as many of the relatively well off would not find it worthwhile to claim their ration.The problem of diversion can be taken care of by providing food coupons or Aadhaar cardlinked entitlements that can be purchased at any shop. This would eliminate the problems of having to procure and distribute more than 50 million tonnes of foodgrains every year as also the problem of diversion. The costs of the PDS system would be greatly reduced.Of course, the problem of traders charging high market price in remote areas can be a real one. In such selected areas, cooperative societies could be encouraged to run fair price shops which would stick to prices announced every week by the government. International experience indicates that this can work, as in the case of the 22,000 cooperative stores in remote areas of Mexico that sell food and other necessities, and provide competition to private traders in thin markets of remote areas.Should entitlements be linked to purchase of foodgrains,or should one do cash transfer? Linking transfer to purchase of foodgrains increases the transaction cost for the consumer, which will encourage self-selection as better-off consumers will stay away. A problem of linking entitlements to the Aadhaar card is that the entitled person may be unable to go to a shop due to sickness or some emergency. This can be taken care of by permitting two members of a household to avail of the entitlement.An unlinked cash transfer will enable the family to spend the money as it wishes, say, on milk or on sending the child to a better school. As is now well recognised, the transfer should be made in the name of the woman of the house to empower her. If this is done through Aadhaar cards, only she can use the money.Since transfer linked to Aadhaar can significantly reduce, if not eliminate, diversion, the total outlay even with near-universal coverage can be much smaller than the present outlay. If we assume that of the 240 million households in the country, 40 million relatively rich households can be excluded, the remaining 200 million households can be provided Rs 4,500 per year with an estimated outlay of Rs 94,000 crore, keeping Rs 4,000 crore for administering cash transfers.The writer is chairman, Integrated Research and Action for Development. By Kirit S Parikh

Plan panel relents

It is ironic that at a time when the Manmohan Singh government is dogged by a surfeit of scams, the Planning Commission stirred up an avoidable controversy over how poverty should be defined for purposes of identifying beneficiaries of various welfare programmes. Indeed, by filing an affidavit in the Supreme Court saying that persons consuming items worth more than Rs 32 a day in urban areas and Rs 26 in rural areas were not poor, the plan panel made itself an easy target of critics, especially in the context of food inflation playing havoc with the purchasing power of the masses. It is a matter of some relief that better sense has now prevailed and Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia and Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh have announced jointly that the current method of defining poverty would be discarded and that there will be no link between the state-wise poverty estimates and the selection of beneficiaries. It was clearly an attempt at saving face when Mr Ahluwalia said on Monday that Rs 32 and Rs 26 were merely statistics based on the methodology prescribed by the Suresh Tendulkar Committee and not views that were agreed upon by the Planning Commission. But talking of statistics, there is a plethora of these that should stir the countrys conscience. India is ranked 67th out of 88 countries in the Global Hunger Index and nearly half of Indias children remain under-nourished, twice as many as in sub-Saharan Africa. As activist Aruna Roy has pointed out, the Planning Commission itself has admitted that households at the current poverty line are getting 20 per cent less food than they require.

THE SOUTH INDIA TIMES, Chennai

WEDNESDAY 5 OCTOBER 2011

F I LM Rajini sir has blessed "If LBZ gets 60% opening, I will RA.One: Shah Rukh Khan throw a party" - Dia Mirza
starred in India's so far most expensive film "Endhiran", took a break from work post his treatment in Singapore earlier this year. But the 60-year-old didn't refuse Shah Rukh's invite for the cameo. 'RA.One' completed today. Rajini sir blessed it. Have tears in my eyes of gratitude and only prayers and love for his whole family. You complete us sir, " Shah Rukh tweeted late Sunday. "Misconcepts, misunderstood. Stressed and then Rajini sir walks on sets and you know why god made films. Thanks Soundarya for making our dream come Shah Rukh Khan feels his mega budget film "RA.One" has been blessed by su- true," he added."RA.One", perstar Rajinikanth, who shot a cameo for the superhero film in Mumbai over the which also features Arjun weekend. "Sitting with Soundarya (Rajinikanth's daughter) and seeing the edit of Rampal and Kareena Rajini sir's shoot. He is like a celestial being...the whole office is beaming with happi- Kapoor, will release Oct ness. WOW, " Shah Rukh posted on microblogging site Twitter.Rajinikanth, who 26 on Diwali. decided to be a part of LBZ"Love Breakups Zindagi has a sharp wit. Cyrus Sahukar is inherently a witty guy. He opens his mouth and he is funny. Cyrus was one cast member and the only cast member who was pre-decided to be a part of LBZ. Sahil wrote his character Govind keeping him in mind. No one could argue about that because Cyrus is just brilliant in what he does. Cyrus is not that funny guy who makes you laugh in LBZ. He's got so many layers. Jay played by Zayed is also funny."LBZ is Zayed's best work and people need to see it to believe it"I think Zayed Khan has come home with this film. Firstly, he has got an opportunity to play a part that is totally up his ally. Saif did it in Dil Chahta Hai. His sensibility is in sync with this film. He's playing a Delhi boy and that's the only thing that is distinct. It's Zayed's best work and people need to see it to believe it."You will never see me and Zayed alone in any of the creative's of LBZ because the film is about everyone"Yes, you could have just seen Zayed and Dia on the posters or the many creative's but we refrained from doing that because LBZ is about everyone. You won't see us alone in any creative. It's about collective energy. Yes, we are the central characters in the film and all these people exist around them but they are the driving forces of the film. They take the story forward. I will never shortchange two young kids who've just come on the block by not putting them on the poster because I think it's important for Zayed and Me to be on the poster. "The idea behind the poster is to give the people a flavour of the world that these characters inhabit"A poster speaks volumes. I sent the first poster to Jatin Kampani, the photographer, and he said that it made him smile. The idea is to give the people a flavour of the world that these characters inhabit. So what's their world? There's sunshine, there are a fields with crops, which means its India and the fact that no one is posing. All are placed in a candid moment and that candid moment represents a relatable story. That's why the tag line that says - Is this your story?Dia Mirza "If the film gets a 60% opening, I will throw a party"A lot of our choices we make are determined by the budgets we are working with. Our greatest endeavour has been to do the best we can but by the end of the day, the film will speak for itself no matter what the marketing and promotions you do to impress your audiences. If the film gets a 60% opening, I will throw a party. I am not asking for a 100% because I know that the 60% will come out of the theatre and come out smiling and will encourage the others to go and watch our film. And yes, we are working hard to make sure that those 60% sees LBZ. "My relationship with Sahil is very comfortable"What do I talk about my relationship with Sahil Sangha? I am at a stage where I don't even know whether I am in a relationship. Even for Sahil - the only relationship he shares is with LBZ. We eat, sleep, walk, talk, and breathe LBZ right now. But it's interesting because we both have such an intense comfort level with each other. We aren't school kids jumping with joy and saying - Wow! It's crazy. Our relationship is very comfortable (smiles)."Tisca Chopra is hot"Tisca Chopra is hot. There is this amazing sensuality that she has. I think that comes from a woman who has experienced life and who is aware of what her sex appeal is. She uses her eyes beautifully. She is the perfect Sheila in the movie. She gets very irritated when we sing - 'Sheila Ki Jawani'. She brings with her the arsenal of experience. She gave Sahil the respect that a director needs and an actor gives."With any girl, don't be over enthusiastic and clingy"The three things that you should not do if you don't want a Break Up are - Don't cheat on your girlfriend. Don't be over enthusiastic and clingy and don't not let her know how much you appreciate her. The three things that you need to do if you want to Break Up with your girlfriend are - Every time she calls you, say you are busy and hang up, fix dates with her and don't show up and when she is upset don't try and find out why she is upset because she will straight away dump you that very moment.

Where has Ranbir's new girl Nargis Fakhri vanished?

the media only post Love Aaj Kal release). But it's not just the Rockstar director.Of late, several producers have been adopting this strategy of introducing (and fiercely guarding) surprise elements, be it a debut actor, a new look, special effects or a special appearance by a well-known superstar in a filmDue to the media boom it has become all the more difficult for filmmakers to keep their reel secrets under wraps. To ensure that the story or the 'surprise' doesn't leak out, production houses have started signing non-disclosure contracts with their actors and directorial crew.It doesn't stop there. Besides the lead cast, no other actor is given the full script.A character artiste confirms, "We don't get to read the whole script of the film. We are given a gist of our roles and we get the script scene-wise only a night before our shoot. It's done to ensure that story doesn't leak out." An assistant director of another hyped upcoming film adds, "We are starting the shoot of our film in a few days and we still haven't been told who the lead actor is as the makers don't want to disclose it."All the big film studios have become extra cautious about guarding their films that are under production.In fact, only recently Karan Johar spruced up the security of his forthcoming Agneepath after Midday leaked Hrithik Roshan and Priyanka Chopra's look.Hit or miss?But do such strategies work? Does it really make sense for Nargis Fakhri to be kept away from the media, especially when Ranbir is the main protagonist of the film? Film historian Dinesh Raheja says, "If the heroine is in the titular role (Heena, Julie, Bobby) keeping her under wraps makes sense because there is so much curiosity about her, but not if it's a second fiddle or an arm candy. Actresses take a huge risk by agreeing to remain low profile.If you keep a heroine under wraps and the film fails, she stands to lose the most. No one will be interested in talking to the actor of a failed film. Between Anushka Sharma (who was also kept under wraps for Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi) and Giselli, the former benefited more since her films were bigger hits."Giselli says, "Yes, every film has a pre-decided publicity plan, which is in the best interest of the project."No wonder then Imtiaz seems to be backing off his stance a biThe spokesperson of Rockstar informs, "We are going to reveal Nargis at a dandiya night in Ahmedabad on October 2. She is also walking the ramp for Manish Malhotra next month.She will also have media interactions before the release of the film, but we still have to work out the details." Let's just hope Nargis is worth the wait and not a disappointment like many other 'surprises' sprung on us by filmmakers! Love Breakups Zindagi is all about relationships but when it comes to talking of her own relationship, Dia Mirza will say little, cloaking any personal revelations in the therapy-speak Indian actresses are prone to - 'I love in a different way now. I am less taken by my emotions. It's not that I'm less sensitive, but I do feel more stable now' types. How can a young woman so level-headed and brainy be such a hot Bollywood commodity, you wonder? Dia, however, is anything but a bore. Anyone who has spent real time with her invariably comes away mesmerized; first by her exquisite beauty, which she seems oblivious to, and then by the thing that sets her apart from almost every actor in Bollywood - a total, intelligent absorption in everything but herself. She'll talk about the world, the world being green, the world being peaceful and the world filled with movie madness. If there's one word that's probably never been used to describe a Dia Mirza movie, it's 'challenging.' LBZ is challenging for Mirza as a producer. Cheery, unpretentious, and, she admits, so focused on her work that phone messages from her friends go unreturned for days. Yes, Mirza is that real thing. She is for really stunning even after working for fifteen hours a day without a break. And no, she isn't taking any energy capsules, nor is she on red bull, and nor does she have time for those head massages. For starters, it's Love Breakups Zindagi. UK's Harrow Observer columnist and London correspondent get's you Dia's never ending obsession for movies aka Love Breakups Zindagi. Did I just miss the name 'Sahil Sangha'? "The one thing that Salim Sulaiman appreciated the most in their working experience with us was that we never confined them"Sahil has worked very closely with every technician on this film, including the music. We sat in every session. The one thing that Salim Sulaiman appreciated the most in their working experience with us was that we never confined them. We gave them clarity of brief and they just flew with it. They are like lightening those two. They work at a lightning pace without compromising on the quality of their music.Dia MirzaAfter watching ZNMD I told Zoya, 'No one can take away the thought and honesty you've put in your film'Zoya Akhtar is a very dear friend of mine. She showed me ZNMD in a special screening she had kept but there was one thing that worried her. She asked, 'Will people enjoy it? Will they like it?' I just looked in her eye and said, 'There is one thing that nobody can take away from your film Zoya - it's the thought and the honesty'. People love an honest film. Audiences never felt disrespected while watching ZNMD and the songs worked too post the film's release. "Cyrus was one cast member and the only cast member who was pre-

Nargis Fakhri is almost put under 'house arrest' by 'Rockstar' director Imtiaz Ali apparently to retain the mystery surrounding her. Mauli Singh reports on the 'surprise element' strategy and if it really works in favour of films She has not yet proved herself onscreen, but Nargis Fakhri seems to have already caught the imagination of Bollywood followers thanks to her mentor Imtiaz Ali.The filmmaker is pulling out all the stops to maintain the mystery surrounding his American find before their Rockstar hits theatres this year. Not surprisingly, she'll be kept out of all the promotional events, too.Confirms a source, "Nargis will not interact much with the media till the film's release. Ranbir Kapoor (the film's main protagonist) will mostly promote the movie. This is all part of the promotional strategy."Apparently, this is also the reason why the half-Pak, half-Czech hottie was missing from the music launch event held in Delhi recently. "The makers want people to see her work and then introduce her to the media. They don't want her to get over exposed before the release of the film, and lose her charm. They want to retain the mysterious air around the supermodel, " the source adds.Avoiding the paparazziEven during the making of the movie, Imtiaz did everything possible to keep Nargis under wraps. She wasn't even allowed to go to public places and get photographed by the paparazzi. The only gossip we did get to hear about her included romantic link ups with co-star Ranbir and later model/actor Shayan Munshi.Since the film's publicity has started, the actress was expected to finally surface.But Imtiaz seems to be very protective about her, like he has been with all his girls (Giselli Monteiro was introduced to

THE SOUTH INDIA TIMES, Chennai

WEDNESDAY 5 OCTOBER 2011

Indian Sign Language Research and Training Centre is the Realization of the Long Cherished Dream of the Deaf Community
New Delhi,Oct 4 (PIB): Mukul Wasnik, Minister for Social Justice & Empowerment, here today inaugurated the Indian Sign Language Research and Training Centre (ISLRTC) at the IGNOU Campus. Shri Kapil Sibal, Minister for Human Resource Development, Shri K.M. Acharya, Secretary (SJ&E), Smt Vibha Puri Das, Secretary (HRD), Professor V.N. Rajasekharan Pillai, Vice Chancellor, IGNOU, Prof P.R. Ramanujam, Pro Vice Chancellor, IGNOU, Prof Madan Vasishta, Honorary Director, ISLRTC, Shri Ramesh Warlyani, Vice Chairman, National Council for Promotion of Sindhi Language(NCPSL) and other dignitaries were present on the occasion. Wasnik said that ISLRTC is the realization of the long cherished dream of the deaf community in India. It is an exclusive education project for teaching, learning, training and capacity building for the vast deaf population. It will be a full time teaching and training center for Indian Sign Language combined with distance teaching/learning opportunities. This research centre is the first of its kind in India with centres attached to IGNOU. There will be zonal/regional centers in different geographic regions of the country. The center would consist of short term, medium and full-fledged programmes for both the un-trained and experienced teachers of the deaf schools. Minister for Social Justice & Empowerment said that in India, as per 2001 census, the population with hearing impairment was over 12.62 Lakhs and as per 58th round of NSSO the hearing impaired population was 30.62 Lakhs. A significant number of deaf persons essentially depend on Sign Language for communication; hence this is an historic occasion, depicting the commitment of the Government to fulfill the needs of the deaf community in India. The inclusion of deaf people in the larger development activity of the country depends significantly on promotion of Sign Language, Shri Mukul Wasnik said. He further said that Sign Language in India is in nascent stage and evolving. Even the reach of it also by far is limited to some pockets of the country. Therefore, we need to think innovatively to reach out to the people who are in need. One such activity could be having Sign Language Clubs. In USA, there is a concept of Sign Language Clubs. These clubs are attached to colleges and universities. Shri Wasnik requested the Director, ISLRTC, to explore the possibilities of having such clubs in India. European Sign Language Centre through the web based computer tool www. spreadthesign.com created a web of itself in 10 European countries. The Minister requested the Director to explore the possibility of creating a web of ISLRTC in our States and UTs. Information and Communication Technology should be used to its maximum advantage in reaching out to the deaf people, Shri Mukul Wasnik said.

The Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment, Shri Mukul Wasnik addressing at the inauguration of Indian Sign Language Research & Training Centre (ISLRTC), in New Delhi on October 04, 2011. (PIB)

Sensex down by 21 points on mild selling

Mumbai,Oct 4(TSIT Bureau): The BSE benchmark Sensex was down by 21 points in early trade on Tuesday amid mild selling pressure in IT stocks, despite buying in capital goods, consumer durable and metals. The 30-share Sensex resumed lower at 16,081.77 and hovered in a range between 16,179.40 and 16,051.68 before quoting at 16,130.49 at 1015 hours, a net loss of 20.96 points, or 0.13 per cent, from its previous close.In contrast, the National Stock Exchanges (NSE) 50-share Nifty index was marginally up by 0.20 points at 4,849.70. The major losers from the Sensex pack in early trade were Tata Motors (down 2.76 per cent), Infosys (1.08 per cent), HDFC Bank (0.75 per cent), Wipro (0.60 per cent) and Sun Pharma (0.58 per cent).However, Jaiprakash Associates moved up by 3.14 per cent, Larsen & Toubro by 2.26 per cent, Maruti Suzuki by 2.19 per cent, Tata Steel by 1.85 per cent, Hindalco Industries by 1.33 per cent and Sterlite Industries by 1.24 per cent. Meanwhile, Asian equities extended their steep losses from the previous session, with shares of financial services firms and exporters skidding amid growing concerns about Europes debt troubles.The key benchmark indices in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Singapore were down by between 0.24 per cent and 5.02 per cent.

RINL achieves record turnover in first half

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Despite sluggish growth in the automobile, construction and manufacturing sectors, Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd. (RINL) has achieved a record sales turnover of Rs.6,215 crore in the first half of 2011-12, registering 28 per cent growth over the corresponding period last year. The company, which is the corporate entity of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, has fulfilled 117 per cent of the MoU target set by the Ministry of Steel. In this backdrop, the regional managers and senior branch managers met on Monday and reviewed the performance of the company besides preparing a business plan for the second half.

Samsung unveils three new smartphones

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Aimed at further consolidating its position in the Indian smartphone market, Samsung Electronics on Monday unveiled three new touch-screen handsets, which include its first device on the latest Windows operating system.Priced at Rs.19,990, Omnia W is based on the latest release of Microsoft's Windows Phone operating system, code-named Mango, featuring an elegant design, a vivid 3.7 inch SuperAMOLED display, an enriched content and excellent social communication experience.The phone comes with powerful 1.4 GHz processor, 5MP camera and integrated 14.4 Mbps HSPA+ connectivity, enabling high-speed data browsing. Similarly, Samsung has also introduced Wave III smartphone loaded with the upgraded version of its indigenous software bada 2.0'. Priced at Rs.19,600, the smartphone comes with market-leading 4-inch SuperAMOLED display, a 1.4GHz processor and hosts of Samsung Apps, an integrated application store.Samsung, which has gained considerably in the Indian mobile handset .

New electronics policy aims to create 2.8 crore jobs

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Communications and IT Minister Kapil Sibal on Monday unveiled the draft National Policy on Electronics, 2011, aimed at achieving a turnover of $400 billion for the sector by 2020, which involved investment of about $100 billion, besides creating employment for 2.8 crore people. The final policy is likely to come by December this year. At the current rate of growth, the domestic production can cater to a demand of only $100 billion in 2020 as against demand of $400 billion and the rest would have to be met by importsa demand-supply gap of nearly $300 billion. Unless the situation is corrected, it is likely that by 2020 the electronics import may far exceed oil imports, Mr. Sibal said after unveiling the draft. The National Policy of Electronics-2011 envisions creating a globally competitive electronics systems design and manufacturing (ESDM) industry, including nanoelectronics, to meet the country's needs and serve the international market. This is a quantum jump from production level of about $20 billion in 2009. This inter alia, includes achieving a turnover of $55 billion of chip design and embedded software industry, and $80 billion of exports, he pointed out. Mr. Sibal also said the policy was also aimed at making India the hub of electronic manufacturing. The policy proposes setting up of over 200 electronic manufacturing clusters (EMCs) and providing assistance for setting up of greenfield EMCs and upgradation of brownfield EMCsI have talked to chief ministers and ministers regarding finding a place for setting up such clusters, he added. The Minister further said another important objective of the policy was to augment post-graduate education and produce about 2,500 PhDs annually by 2020. For this, we need tie-ups with universities and educational institutions like IITs and IIScs to promote such kind of thing, Mr. Sibal added.

India records highest growth in domestic air traffic in August

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): India witnessed the highest growth in domestic air passenger traffic this August registering almost a 20 per cent rate, even though the growth in international traffic slowed down worldwide. India, which recorded a demand growth of 19.7 per cent in August, was described as the top performer among domestic markets, latest figures analysed by the global airlines body, International Air Transport Association (IATA), showed.India and Brazil, which followed in the domestic growth, together represented three per cent of worldwide air travel, it said.In the international segment, passenger demand was up 4.5 per cent over August 2010, but this represented a significant slowing from the six per cent recorded in July.Noting that the rate of decline in freight markets accelerated, the IATA said the 3.8 per cent contraction in freight markets in August was more than double the pace of Julys 1.8 per cent decline. Comparison of August to July data clearly indicated the slowdown, showing that the total passenger market fell by 1.6 per cent in August compared to July. International markets declined by 1.8 per cent, while already weak domestic markets shrank by one per cent.The industry has shifted gears downward. The pace of growth in passenger markets has dipped and the freight business is now shrinking at a faster pace. With business and consumer confidence continuing to slump globally, there is not a lot of optimism for improved conditions any time soon.

Now, MBAs with conscience are new poster boys

Mumbai,Oct 4(TSIT Bureau): The MBA programme has, for years, shaped the manner in which business is conducted. Assertive leadership, aggressive marketing, audacious planning, sharp strategizing and pumpingup profits were considered the best practices of successful conglomerates that hogged case studies on Bschool campuses. Now, something inherent in the courseware is changing. Management schools are blunting the spiky approach. The MBA is becoming temperate. Leadership, for instance, was always just a function of winning; not anymore. Management schools are reworking their pitch. Being a leader is also about understanding human values and about being socially sensitive, say B-school faculty. The need to rebalance the programme has been long felt, said deans and senior faculty members who participated in a daylong workshop 'Rethinking the MBA: Business Education at a Crossroad' at the S P Jain Institute of Management Research. Srikant Datar, Arthur Lowes Dickinson professor of accounting at the Harvard Business School, said, "It is imperative to understand the purpose of business and responsibilities of leadership. It is essential for leaders to understand values like the behaviour that exemplify integrity, honesty and fairness." So, XLRI, Jamshedpur, prides in, putting its students through a two-weeklong stint in rural India. At the School of Inspired Learning (SOIL), students are not admitted through any of the mind-numbing competitive exams like the CAT or the GMAT, but through Princeton's Caliper test. "Emotional intelligence cannot be taught in a classroom through psychometrics. Now, research is showing that emotional intelligence is more important than analytical intelligence. We test both of them during our admission process," said Anil Sachdev, founder and CEO of SOIL. The B-school's students who worked in Gurgaon have set up galli schools. SPJIMR pupils adopt students of Std VII and mentor them for four hours every month. The B-school works with 60 civic corporation schools. However, sceptics feel that it's still only about business. They add that the weaker sector is being eyed since "that is where the future markets lie". But, whatever the reason, the MBA is couching its aspirants' ambitions and teaching them that the unequal world needs "caretaker managers".

Communication and IT Minister Kapil Sibal (left) with Minister of State Milind Deora at a press conference to announce the National Policy on Electronics, 2011 in New Delhi.

India and Indonesia to begin talks on CECA today

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): India and Indonesia will begin talks on Tuesday for a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) with an aim to take forward the economic cooperation to a new level by achieving a bilateral trade target of $25 billion by 2015. Union Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma on Monday reached Jakarta to launch the formal negotiations with Indonesian Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu. Trade and investment between India and Indonesia had seen a massive rise in the last few years with investment by Indian companies having touched $3.50 billion and another $25-billion worth of investments in the pipeline. Although both countries in 2005 had set a target of $10 billion bilateral trade by 2010 but they surpassed the target by 40 per cent reaching the $14-billion level. Already during the January-July period this year, trade between the two countries had touched $13 billion. The proposed CECA will not only break tariff walls on merchandise trade but also enable professionals from the two countries to take up shortterm business assignments in each other's markets. The scope would also cover easing of bilateral investment regime.Mr. Sharma will also attend the Biennial Trade Ministers Forum during his stay in Jakarta. Apart from holding talks with his counterpart Ms. Mari Elka Pangestu, he will discuss issues of mutual interest with senior Indonesian ministers. The CECA with Indonesia will be over and above the trade liberalisation already achieved through the India-ASEAN agreement. Indonesia is an important member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations bloc. The country has also implemented a comprehensive pact with other ASEAN members Malaysia and Singapore.Bilateral trade between India and Indonesia stood at $13.2 billion in 2010 but it is highly skewed in favour of the South East Asian country. India's exports to Indonesia were $3.3 billion against imports of $10 billion.

Sudhir Vasudeva new CMD of ONGC

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Putting an end to the long wait, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has cleared the appointment of Sudhir Vasudeva as the Chairman and Managing Director of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC). Mr. Vasudeva, 57, is now Director (Offshore) in ONGC. The formal orders for appointment of Mr. Vasudeva, who was selected by government appointed Public Enterprise Selection Board (PESB) in interviews on October 19 last year, were issued by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry on Monday, officials in the Ministry said.

THE SOUTH INDIA TIMES, Chennai

WEDNESDAY 5 OCTOBER 2011

Gayle leads RCB to massive win

Bangalore,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Chris Gayle played the sort of innings only he can to give Royal Challengers Bangalore the sort of win they desperately needed to keep their Champions League Twenty20 campaign alive. Gayle's assault ensured the margin of victory - 51 runs - was the largest of the tournament, and not only did it earn the Royal Challengers their first points but also dragged their previously negative net run-rate ahead of that of three other teams in Group B. The Royal Challengers now need only to win their remaining game, against South Australia, by a reasonable margin to make the semi-finals. Despite the severity of today's defeat, though, Somerset also need only to win their last group game against Warriors to progress.After defeats in their first two matches, the Royal Challengers were the only team without points, and Daniel Vettori lost the toss on a ground where teams prefer to chase. The trace of dismay in Vettori when Alfonso Thomas asked the Royal Challengers to bat, however, had disappeared long before they finished with the tournament's highest total - 206. It would have disappeared when Gayle was hitting eight of RCB's 14 sixes, on his way to 86 off 46 balls. Somerset had their chances early in the match - two of them were difficult - to prevent this suffering but they didn't take them. Gayle was dropped in the second over, two balls after he had hit his first four to get off the mark. He miscued a loft off Steve Kirby over extra cover but Jos Buttler couldn't run back quickly enough. In Kirby's next over - the fourth off the innings - Gayle survived two run-out attempts off the same ball, both at the same end. He was on 8 at the time. Tillakaratne Dilshan, Gayle's opening partner, was also let off. He initiated the acceleration by scooping Peter Trego over short fine leg, but when he tried to repeat it next ball, he didn't connect as well. Kirby, who had to run back from the circle, dived and pushed the ball towards the boundary. Dilshan then charged to blaze through cover, the third consecutive four, and also slogged over the long-on boundary to take 19 off the third over. Gayle had thumped the ball to the boundary every now and then but his start was relatively sedate: only 29 came off his first 25 balls. By that time, Roelof van der Merwe had bowled Dilshan round his legs and Virat Kohli had begun striking the ball splendidly on a true pitch and a quick outfield. Kohli lofted Murali Kartik's leftarm spin for a four through extra cover and a six over long-off to take Bangalore to 87 for 1 after 10 overs. A few minutes later, Gayle had teleported to 53 off 31 balls, bringing up his half-entury with a leg glance off Trego to the boundary. He plundered George Dockrell's left-arm spin to get there, launching three sixes in the 11th over, over midwicket, long-on and the sightscreen. He celebrated his fifty by sending Trego over the sightscreen and dismissed Kartik over midwicket and square leg as well. Gayle moved to 86 as early as the 17th over with another six over long-on off Trego and a century seemed imminent. It wasn't to be, though, for Thomas induced a top edge off a pull that was held by Arul Suppiah at deep midwicket. Useful contributions from Mayank Agarwal and Arun Karthik - who replaced Mohammad Kaif for this match and hit a six in the final over took the Royal Challengers past 200. Even though Somerset were faced with the most daunting chase of the competition, Trego was not about to give up. He had been hit for 50 runs in three overs and he wanted to return the punishment. Trego and Craig Kieswetter gave the innings a powerful start, adding 42 in 4.1 overs before Kieswetter was dismissed. He had charged to attack Vettori and edged to the wicketkeeper Karthik.van der Merwe entered and dispatched his second ball, from Vettori, into the stands at midwicket. The third, he skied straight up in the air and Karthik held his second catch. Somerset were not done yet though. Trego took charge of the chase and in the tenth over, bowled by Gayle, he ransacked 22 out of 24 runs, hitting two sixes and two fours. Somerset went past 100 in that over, earlier than the Royal Challengers had. Trego went past 50, by cutting Vettori for four, off his 31st delivery, just as quick as Gayle.Trego, however, had little support from his team-mates and, as wickets fell at one end, the asking-rate soared to 16 by the end of the 15th over. When it touched 19 for the first time, Trego lashed at Raju Bhatkal and skied a catch to Vettori at mid-off. Somerset's chase was over.

Somdev crashes out of Japan Open

Tokyo,Oct 4 (EMS): Somdev Devvarman suffered yet another first round defeat as he lost in straight sets to world number 24 Radek Stepanek of Czech Republic in the ATP Japan Open Tennis Championships here on Monday. The unseeded Indian, ranked 85, lost 46 3 6 to his seventh seed opponent in the singles event of the USD 1,214,50 hard court tournament. Statistically it has been a successful year for Somdev as he touched a careerhigh rank of 62 this season but lost in the first rounds of several ATP tournaments. Reaching the final of the Johannesburg event and the prequarterfinals of the Indian Wells Masters remain the highlight of his season. Somdev did create chances today against Stepanek, who also figured in top10 at one time in his career, but the Indian could not convert much of the break points he earned. In all, he managed to get seven chances but converted only two and dropped his serve twice in each of the two sets. The Indian challenge is still alive in the ATP 500 event with Rohan Bopanna and his Pakistani partner Aisamulhaq Qureshi competing in the doubles. The IndoPak pair has been given the top billing and they open their campaign against Brazilian pair of Marcelo Melo and Bruno Soares.

Chris Gayle drills one down the ground, Royal Challengers Bangalore v Somerset, Champions League Twenty20, Bangalore.

Rest of India openers extend lead

Jaipur,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Rajasthan's middle-order batsmen fought hard on the third day in Jaipur but despite their determined performance they still have a mountain to climb to prevent Rest of India from winning the Irani Cup outright. Robin Bist, Rashmi Parida and Ashok Menaria made half-centuries as Rajasthan added 254 runs for the loss of only three more wickets. They still trail Rest of India by 356, though, and need another 157 to avoid the follow-on. Rajasthan began the third day on 53 for 3 with Bist and Parida yet to score. Parida had made just 2 when he edged Umesh Yadav but was let off by the wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel, diving to his right. Both batsmen suffered blows to the glove from Vinay Kumar, who extracted extra bounce, and needed attention from the physio. On 28, Parida was dropped once again, off legspinner Rahul Sharma, this time by Abhinav Mukund at point. Despite those edgy moments, Bist and Parida survived to steer Rajasthan to 135 for 3 at lunch. Both batsmen reached their half-centuries during the afternoon session: Bist off his 153rd delivery and Parida off his 133rd, when he cut Varun Aaron in the air to the backward-point boundary. Vinay continued to trouble the batsmen with extra bounce, hitting Parida's gloves a second time. There were no reprieves in the second session, though, and Rajasthan went into tea on 211 for 3 with the partnership between Bist and Parida worth 158. Vinay struck in the first over after the break as Parida, on 85, reached for one that seamed away and edged to second slip. With Menaria for company, Bist began to attack and a flurry of boundaries ensued, including three in an over from Vinay. Bist moved steadily towards his century but, on 93, he was given caught behind off leftarm spinner Pragyan Ojha. He had added 67 for the fifth wicket with Menaria in 12 overs. Rajasthan's fight weakened further a few overs later, when wicketkeeper Rohit Jhalani played on to

Zaheer Khan addresses the media after receiving the Arjuna Award, New Delhi.

Zaheer hopes to bounce back soon

New Delhi,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Zaheer Khan, having spent more than a decade in international cricket, understands the need of being patient while recovering from an injury.The ace Indian pacer, nursing an ankle injury, has remained out of international action for most part of the year. His brief comeback in July, in the first Test against England at Lord's, was snapped due to the injury.Now, in the second phase of his rehabilitation, Zaheer was happy about the recovery process. I have to build strength in my ankle. Then I have to start bowling slowly in some club games or first class cricket. I am going by what my body is telling me. The rehab is slow but positive, Zaheer told reporters after receiving the Arjuna award from Sports Minister Ajay Maken here on Monday. The left-arm fast bowler, who will celebrate his 33rd birthday on October 7, will soon rejoin the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore to assess his fitness level.

Karachi,Oct 4(EMS): Aleem Dar, voted the best umpire of the year by the ICC, has backed the use of Decision Review System in all the international series but advised the umpires to rely more on their own judgement while making decisions.Dar said DRS is a good addition to the sport and insists it has the potential to do wonders in the future. The DRS has drawn mixed reactions from the international cricket community with the BCCI against the use of it but PCB supporting it.Theres no issue in using technology. Its a good addition to the game but the umpires should stop thinking about it when making a decision. And instead of being used randomly the system should be enforced on permanent basis in all series, Dar said. The critics of the DRS also point out to the high costs involved in its use and the fact that there is no uniformity in its enforcement

Let DRS be there in all international series: Aleem Dar

by the ICC.Dar, who has officiated in 67 Tests, 146 One-Dayers and 18 Twenty20 Internationals, said technology needed to be used properly.The DRS should be applied on a permanent basis. Its not being used in all series and that affects the umpires performance. I believe an inconsistent usage is not good for the game either, Dar, who supervised any match in Pakistan after nearly two years, said during the national T20 championship. The 43-year-old felt the implementation of new rules, which came in effect from October 1, have added to the responsibility of the umpires. The amendments in playing conditions include two new balls in an innings, redefined period of Powerplays, penalty for a batsman for obstructing the field and a ban on the use of runners among other changes. Dar said the umpires now need to be more vigilant.I feel my responsibility has increased and

Record prize money for 2012 Australian Open

Melbourne,Oct 4 (EMS):Next years Australian Open will be the richest tournament in Grand Slam tennis history, with the winners of both the mens and womens singles to pocket $2.3 million ($US2.2 million). Organizers announced Tuesday that a total of $26 million ($25 million) will be paid out in next Januarys event.Martina Hingis will be the main attraction to the new womens legends event, although there was no immediate confirmation of reports the former womens No. 1 would play mixed doubles with fellow Swiss Roger Federer in preparation for a potential pairing at the 2012 Olympic Games. Tournament director Craig Tiley said he expected defending champion Kim Clijsters and Serena Williams to bolster a womens draw that will have added interest for local fans next year following Sam Stosurs title win at the U.S. Open. We know that Kims been out for most of the year, but shes planning on being back to defend her title.

we need to be more focused, Dar told the Express Tribune before giving the instance of the T20 Cup final which faced a 28minute delay after Sialkot captain Shoaib Malik objected on the use of a runner by Rawalpindi. The team was allowed a runner because the tournament was played on the previous playing rules. Umpires may face such situations after the rule changes and thats an increased burden. Meanwhile, the Pakistan board has named the umpires room at the Gaddafi stadium after Aleem Dar to pay tributes to his winning the prestigious ICC award for the third time.PCB Chairman Ijaz Butt also awarded him a cash prize of one million rupees at the final ceremony of the national T20 event. Dar said he was keen to set up an academy for young players in future and has requested Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif to allot him a ground for the purpose.

his stumps while trying to leave a delivery from Vinay. Menaria steered Rajasthan to stumps without further losses and reached his half-century along the way. Rajasthan will need him to bat smartly with the Amla to captain ODIs and tail on day four and pro- T20s against Australia long the first innings for as Capetown,Oct 4 long as possible. (EMS): Hashim Amla will make his international captaincy debut for South Africa in their upcoming T20 and ODI series against Australia. He replaces the injured AB de Villiers, who was named captain in both limited-overs formats in June. The series were due to be de Villiers' first as skipper but he was ruled out for between four and six weeks after breaking a finger while practicing with the Royal Challengers Bangalore during the Champions League.Amla was chosen as de Villiers' vice-captain but there was speculation that he would not captain the side straight away, having never done the job before, and described himself as "more of a backroom guy." But the selectors have shown faith in their decisions and handed Amla the leadership role in both formats. Amla has only played three T20s for South Africa, but has plenty of experience in Michael Clarke strikes a pose in Australia's new Test ODIs, having played 49 uniform, Sydney. matches and is currently.

Spot-fixing trial set to begin

Dubai,Oct 4 (EMS): Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif begin their trial at a criminal court in London on Tuesday, more than a year on from the spot-fixing allegations that engulfed the cricket world during Pakistan's troubled tour of England.The former Pakistan Test captain Butt, 27 on Friday, and fast bowler Asif, 28, will appear at Southwark Crown Court with the possibility of a custodial sentence awaiting them if deemed guilty. Both players are pleading not guilty. Reporting restrictions are in place on this event. The players are facing charges of conspiracy to cheat, and conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments, following the Lord's Test in August last year when they allegedly conspired to bowl pre-determined no-balls.Butt and Asif, along with teenage fast bowler Mohammad Amir, were exposed by the now defunct British tabloid the News of the World in an undercover sting operation. Their former agent Mazher Majeed was recorded by a secret camera, saying when no-balls would be delivered by the bowlers. The fact the case is being heard at a crown court shows the seriousness of the allegations facing the defendants, with crown court being the more senior of the criminal courts.One of the complexities of this trial surrounds its high-profile nature. Because the issue was so well reported globally at the time.

THE SOUTH INDIA TIMES, Chennai

WEDNESDAY 5 OCTOBER 2011

Among Manali residents, hope flares anew

Chennai,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): This newly carved out zone of the Chennai Corporation offers a surprise in terms of land use. Apart from famed industries of Manali, agricultural lands of Kadapakkam, Theeyambakkam which produce paddy, banana and musk melon too form part of Manali Zone. Comprising wards 15 to 21, Zone II has a total of 56,864 voters, including 29,113 men and 27,744 women. Several panchayats in remote areas, including Theeyampakkam, Kadapakkam, Sadayankuppam, Edayanchavadi and Vadaperumbakkam, are set to get their infrastructure upgraded and be part of expanded Chennai. R. Ammu Ravichandran, president of the Theeyambakkam village panchayat, says that in the past they had to bear with insufficient funds for development of infrastructure, but now there would be more funds. We will get underground drainage, cement roads, sodium vapour lamps. The Kosappur canal, which carries surplus water from the Puzhal lake, overflows during monsoon and residents of Thyagi Viswanathadas Nagar wade in hip deep water. Something needs to be done for them, he says. Located 15 km 20 km from the Government General Hospital, residents of these villages want a major hospital in the neighbourhood. If there is an accident or if someone needs a surgery we have to travel to the city. We do have small public health centres but they work only during the day, says G. Kumari, a resident of Sadayankuppam. The Mathur MMDA and Manali New Town (MNT) have been under the control of the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority and residents say they are eagerly awaiting the change. Our respective panchayats have not been taking care of our needs as they don't have the funds. Garbage clearance has also received a beating. We have been paying the CMDA a meagre amount as maintenance fee. We do not have proper connectivity, S.Kotteeswaran of MNT. As these panchayats have only primary and middle schools students have to travel to Vadakarai, MNT and Madhavaram to complete their schooling. Kavitha Narayanan, who is contesting in ward 17, said there were no colleges in the vicinity and students had to come to Chennai. The next generation of residents in our villages would be a happier lot with the Chennai Corporation taking over our areas, she says. The Zone also has a truck parking facility at Manjampakkam. The facility needs further improvement and merger with the Chennai Corporation would definitely help in that, says G.Thukkaram, a candidate of ward 19. Kadapakkam shares the pollution woes of Manali. N. Mohankumar, of Kadapakkam Panchayat said groundwater in the area was spoilt by industries in Manali. Our water is brown in colour, he said. Though several industries in the area have caused pollution, most have helped increase land rates. Residents say that rates have been spiralling in urbanised areas including Manali, Manali New Town and Mathur MMDA.

Honble Chief Minister inaugurated the new buildings of Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University through Video Conferencing

Commuting on roads no child's play

Chennai,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): When eightyear-old S.Ananthi left the Red Hills government middle school on Friday evening, she might have thought of meeting her friends as soon as she got home or helping her mother, a basket weaver, in some way. But we would never get to know what was on her mind that day. She was run over by an autorickshaw on her way home. For many students like Ananthi, commuting in the city is a daily ordeal and one slip could lead to a fatal end. Some fall off overcrowded Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) buses. Others get injured by speeding vehicles while playing on the road. In 2010, 36 children succumbed to road traffic injuries. Chennai's roads have become so hostile to vulnerable users like children that there is a need for a drastic overhaul in traffic management within school zones and greater sensitivity towards designing childfriendly urban environments, say experts. Sowmya Simhan of the Suraksha Road Safety Society, an NGO which focuses on the safety of schoolchildren, says that each school must appoint a transport officer to resolve commuting problems. Parents must also be able to complain to him about overloading of school vans. She says that existing provisions on passenger capacity must be stringently enforced. The maximum number of students that autorickshaws are permitted to transport is five and in the case of school vans, it is 18. Ms.Simhan blames parents for their laxity and says even an injury can be a very traumatic experience and would stay with the child for the rest of his/her life. However, parents like Geeta Krishnan say: Most parents know that their children are travelling in potentially dangerous circumstances, but there is no other go. The school bus is the safest option, but it is not available beyond Class V in the school our child goes to, as the management also cannot provide the service for every child. The problem is especially severe for children who completely rely on MTC bus services.Though school students account for 10 per cent of all trips carried by the MTC, most of them suffer inside overcrowded buses. The buses do not halt for them. Even Ananthi waited over two hours for an MTC bus before boarding the autorickshaw which would fatally knock her down. While there are 28 student specials operated by MTC during the morning and evening school hours, they do not cover most of the northern or western parts of the city. The government must allow schools to lease MTC buses at low cost to operate more exclusive student services, says N.S. Srinivasan, former Director of the National Transportation Planning and Research Centre. Such a system started in Delhi in the 1960s; even now nearly 100 buses are diverted to cater to schoolchildren every day.

Hike in DA for government staff

Chennai,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): The State Government on Monday issued an order announcing the increased dearness allowance for its employees. The order said following the orders issued by the Government of India, the Government sanctioned the revised rate of dearness allowance to the State Government employees, which will be payable from July 1, 2011. The rate would be 58 per cent pay plus grade pay. Earlier revision was made in Jaunary 1, 2011, which was 51 per cent. The order said the increase in the allowance should be paid in cash with effect from July 1, 201The arrears of the allowance for the months of July, August and September should be disbursed immediately.The revised allowance should be admissible to full-time employees who are at present getting the allowance paid from contingencies at fixed monthly rates. This is not admissible to part-time employeeThe revised allowance should apply to teaching and nonteaching staff working in aided educational institutions, employees under local bodies, employees governed by the University Grants Commission/All India Council for Technical Education scales of pay, teachers/physical directors/librarians in government and aided polytechnics and special diploma institutions, village assistants in revenue department, noon meal organisers, child welfare organisers, anganwadi workers, cooks, helpers, Makkal Nala Paniyalar, Panchayat Assistants, clerks in Village Panchayat under Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department, the order said.

Job working powerloom units call off strike

Coimbatore,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): The 35day strike by job working powerloom unit owners in Coimbatore and Tirupur Districts was called off here on Monday following a conciliatory agreement reached on wage increase for these units. Coimbatore District Collector M. Karunakaran and Tirupur Collector M. Mathivanan held talks here on Monday with the job working unit owners from Tirupur, Palladam, Somanur and Avinashi and the powerloom cloth manufacturers from these places. The officials told presspersons after the talks that the manufacturers and the job working units have agreed for 39 per cent increase in wages for other varieties and 41 per cent increase in wages for the Somanur variety of fabric. The earlier agreement was signed in 2008 and expired in July this year. The powerloom cloth manufacturers had then agreed for 32 per cent increase in wages for Somanur variety fabric and 27 per cent increase for other varieties. With cost of all the inputs increasing manifold, the job working unit owners demanded 100 per cent increase in wages paid to them by the powerloom cloth manufacturers. Several rounds of talks were held during the last two months and the job working unit owners were also on a fast in the two districts from September 23. Mr. Karunakaran said the talks were held with the permission of the State Election Commission. The new wages would come into effect immediately. Though the wage agreement for the powerloom job working units was usually a three-year agreement, it would be reviewed if there was any problem. Following the agreement, the job working units announced withdrawal of the strike and fast. Sources in the job working units said nearly two lakh powerlooms in 25,000 units in the two districts had stopped production during the last 35 days.

Resolve people's issues instead of targeting DMK

Chennai,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Chief Minister Jayalalithaa should channel her energy towards resolving people's problems, including power crisis, instead of filing cases against DMK activists and ordering search operations at their houses, DMK president M. Karunanidhi said on Monday. In a statement here, he said though the Chief Minister had claimed that steps had been taken to overcome power shortage, the State could not get its due from Central power stations such as Neyveli thermal power station, Kalpakkam atomic power station, Kaiga atomic power station in Karnataka and Simhadri power plant in Andhra Pradesh.This has led to a deficit of 1028 MW and many places in the State.

Over 23 lakh tonnes of paddy procured during Kharif season

Chennai,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Over 23 lakh tonnes of paddy, the highest in 10 years, was procured by the Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Corporation (TNCSC) during the justconcluded Kharif Marketing Season 2010-2011 (October 1, 2010 to September 30, 2011). Since October 2002, the State government has been adopting the decentralised system of procurement as per the Minimum Support Price (MSP) and uniform specifications fixed by the Centre. The TNCSC, the State government's authorised agency for procuring food grains and other essential commodities under the public distribution system, had adopted various systems of procurement such as monopoly procurement, parallel procurement and levy system between 1973 and 2002.An official said that during 2011-2012, the anticipated quantity of procurement would be 24 lakh tonnes.A few days ago, the State government had issued an order, permitting the TNCSC to procure paddy at Rs.1,180 per quintal for Grade A' paddy and Rs.1,130 per quintal for the common variety. The Corporation was directed to open adequate number of procurement centres in the Cauvery delta region and other paddy growing areas in the State in consultation with District Collectors.In the non-delta areas of the State, District Collectors have been permitted to open direct purchase centres, depending upon the arrival of paddy. The official explains that the rates specified in the order include the State government's per quintal incentive of Rs.50 for common variety and Rs.70 for Grade A' variety.In June this year, the Union government communicated to the State government that the MSP figures for Grade A' and common varieties were Rs.1,110 per quintal and Rs. 1,080 per quintal.Compared to the previous year, there would be a net increase of Rs.80 per quintal for the two varieties.

Online campaign gathers steam too

ground campaign by publishing his movements on Facebook. Thanks to one of my FB friend who has given me a grand welcome in Madhavaram yesterday in campaigning, is one of his recent posts. Apart from political propaganda, Mr. Subramanian also posts personal messages such as: It is very hot here in the campaign now, had about 4 litres of water since this morning. Other candidates on the fray, especially ones with no party backing such as Mr. Sarathbabu of Foodking, have tried to garner as much support online as possible. After reaching 30,000 followers on Friday, he posted: Thousands of people came to know about my candidature because of this group. Our expenditure till now is less than Rs.5,000. Let us show the main political parties that the message can be spread without spending any money.

Chennai,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): Their names rarely ring a bell. But many of them stand out amid your favourite authors, either because of an intriguing title or an interesting end note about the writer or sometimes, their story. Some of them even make it to bestsellers' list or get shortlisted for awards. Three of the shortlisted works for Best Fiction Award 2010 are from firsttime authors. Similarly, debut works of five authors were shortlisted for the

It is the best of times for new authors

Crossword Book Awards, announced recently. For many of these authors, an inherent urge to discover the storyteller in oneself has only been amplified by the increased willingness of publishers to consider such authors and the advance in technology. And they are also ready to explore new genres and styles or tweak old ones too as the increasing popularity of graphic novels and campus fiction shows. For instance, Ravikiran Rangaswamy's semi-auto-

Chennai,Oct 4 (TSIT Bureau): With the campaign for the Chennai Corporation's Mayoral elections heating up, politicians have turned all web-savvy, commanding a sizable following on online social networking platforms. Everything from political posters, pictures from the campaign trail and audio interviews dot the Facebook pages of Saidai Duraisamy and M. Subramanian. One of Mr. Duraisamy's biographical fiction social activist, advertise- cent of the books pub- nus of Vivekananda Colfirst posts on CHENNAI 46+14=06, A Story of a ment person and even stu- lished by the company, lege, Delhi School of EcoGenius', which he co-au- dents, says Kapish G. which has 10 imprints in- nomics and University of MAYOR 2011' was a thored with his mom, is Mehra, Managing Direc- cluding Frog books, are by Chicago. Publishers em- poster of matinee idol based on his experiences at tor, Rupa & Co. Many debutants.But even in these ploy many methods to pro- MGR hugging a frail old Loyola College where he first-time authors are be- good times, finding a pub- cess this deluge. For in- woman with the caption studied literature and his tween the age group of 25 lisher can be quite a task. stance, Chennai-based Friend of the poor'. The time at the National Insti- and 35 years with focus on R. Chandrasekhar's The Blaft Publications are open team behind his online tute of Design. I think we Indian fiction writing. We Goat, the Sofa and Mr. to getting works from first- campaign has steadily used must have worked and re- receive about 70 scripts Swami' was turned down time writers but insist on an posters and symbols, worked on the manuscript each day, which also in- by three publishers before element of surprise in the thereby replicating what is many times. I even de- cludes submission from lit- Hachette, impressed by story and not somebody currently not possible in the signed and shot the cover erary agents India and the first three chapters, who wants to be another real world due to the ban for the book thrice., says international authors, says published him. My story Chetan Bhagat or an IIM on hoardings. The DMK's M. SubraSwarup Nanda, CEO of revolved around cricket, story, says a spokesperRavikiran. I see a lot of people Leadstart Publishing, add- bureaucracy and politics, son. Rupa & Co too re- manian has devised innowriting across age groups ing that 50 of them are In- all three are timely and con- jects a considerable per- vative ways to establish a and occupations banker, dian authors. Almost 60 per tinue to be, says the alum- centage of the manuscripts. link between the online and

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