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August 2003
Gangaajal
Sunday, August 31, 2003
There is deep-rooted corruption in the police force, there are politicians. And there are feudal lords (often you cannot tell the difference). And their wayward gun-totting sons who have a penchant for terrorising the neighbourhood. And the honest police officer who gets stick from both ends. Prakash Jha's Gangaajal (co-produced by Manmohan Shetty who also produced Ardh Satya), is no different. It follows in the footsteps of E Niwas' Shool, one of the better Hindi films about the predicament of an upright cop who takes on a degenerate system. Jha makes things a little easier for himself by not making his hero a low-ranking inspector. Instead, Amit Kumar (Ajay Devgan) is the new Superintendent of Police in charge of a notorious district in Bihar called Tejpur. Tejpur, which lies on the banks of the Ganga, is a particularly lawless town ruled by the father-son duo of Sadhu and Sundar Yadav (Mohan Joshi and Yashpal Sharma). Even the DIG of police, Amit's boss, and the state home minister turn their eyes away from the Yadavs' crimes. Moreover, just about every officer working under Amit is on their payroll. So when Amit tries to clean up the system, he meets with stiff resistance from within and without. His idealism rubs off on one of his subordinates, Bachha Yadav (Mukesh Tiwari), who turns against his mentor Sadhu Yadav and stands by his boss. When Bachha and three of his subordinates vent their frustrations on two of Sundar's cronies in police lock-up by blinding them with acid (a reference to the Bhagalpur Blindings of 1979-1980 when 30 undertrials were blinded by policemen), the situation spirals into a crisis that gets out of everyone's hands, including that of the filmmaker. Suddenly, Amit becomes a social crusader than cop, with the entire population of Tejpur standing by him. Good and evil neatly stack up against each other. There are tokenisms like a bad cop whom Amit has suspended suddenly reforming into an honest tea-stall owner, making a very mushy speech about his makeover with a Raj Kapoor song with a socialistic message playing in the background. The symbolism of acid being described as the gangajal used to cleanse the system does not filter through the confusion of the post-interval mayhem. But it is heartening to watch Jha's hero keep his idealism intact to the very end and not cop out and go on a killing spree like most other noble filmi policemen do in the name of justice. While Gangaajal doesn't have anything original to say, it is well shot, well edited and brilliantly enacted by most of the lead actors. Cinematographer Arvind K's visuals lend tremendous character to the discontented yet deceptively calm temple town (shot in Wai, Maharashtra) where the plot unfolds. Wayne Sharpe's background score is outstanding. There is a stream of restlessness in the seemingly serene notes of the fusion music used in the background track. The film has one song. One wishes directors would do away with these raunchy item numbers, irrespective of whether they are relevant to the storyline or not. Oh for a heroine who has a role to play! Jha seems to have spent all his creative energies on writing the character of Amit Kumar, his deputies and adversaries and forgotten all about the SP's wife (Gracy Singh), whose only role in the proceedings is to warn her husband about the hazards of smoking, caution him against drinking too much and heating the food. Worse, Gracy Singh doesn't attempt to lend colour to her screen self. She only makes the heroine look like a caricature. Mohan Joshi repeats his Mrityudand (also directed by Jha) act by playing the supercilious villain with vigour. Yashpal Sharma, on the other hand, has essayed the hedonistic bad man so often in his short career that he has become totally typecast. One of the most engaging performances in the film comes from Mukesh Tiwari. After a hyped debut in Chinagate five years ago, he finally gets a role that offers scope for histrionics. He delivers the goods without much ado. Ajay Devgan pulls up an ace with a part tailormade to reinforce his seething-under-the-surface angry hero image. To his credit (and the director's), he brings style and grace to a largely stereotypical, righteous protagonist. To a great extent, his presence covers up the film's patchiness in the second half. Director Jha does not take the problems addressed by Shool and half-a-dozen other films on similar lines much further. Also, he is rather simplistic with his solutions. But considering the fact that you rarely get to see justice being done outside the fictional confines of the movie halls these days, Gangaajal does offer solace and a sense of retribution. CREDITS Cast: Ajay Devgan, Gracy Singh, Mohan Joshi, Mukesh Tiwari Writer-Director: Prakash Jha Music: Sandesh Shandilya Producers: Entertainment One, Prakash Jha Productions
Gangaajal
Sunday, August 31, 2003
There is deep-rooted corruption in the police force, there are politicians. And there are feudal lords (often you cannot tell the difference). And their wayward gun-totting sons who have a penchant for terrorising the neighbourhood. And the honest police officer who gets stick from both ends. Prakash Jha's Gangaajal (co-produced by Manmohan Shetty who also produced Ardh Satya), is no different. It follows in the footsteps of E Niwas' Shool, one of the better Hindi films about the predicament of an upright cop who takes on a degenerate system. Jha makes things a little easier for himself by not making his hero a low-ranking inspector. Instead, Amit Kumar (Ajay Devgan) is the new Superintendent of Police in charge of a notorious district in Bihar called Tejpur. Tejpur, which lies on the banks of the Ganga, is a particularly lawless town ruled by the father-son duo of Sadhu and Sundar Yadav (Mohan Joshi and Yashpal Sharma). Even the DIG of police, Amit's boss, and the state home minister turn their eyes away from the Yadavs' crimes. Moreover, just about every officer working under Amit is on their payroll. More on rediff.com! Sneak preview: Gangaajal Slide show: Boys will be boys! Slide show: See Ash, Rani! Tell us why Koi... Mil Gaya is a hit! So when Amit tries to clean up the system, he meets with stiff resistance from within and without. His idealism rubs off on one of his subordinates, Bachha Yadav (Mukesh Tiwari), who turns against his mentor Sadhu Yadav and stands by his boss. When Bachha and three of his subordinates vent their frustrations on two of Sundar's cronies in police lock-up by blinding them with acid (a reference to the Bhagalpur Blindings of 1979-1980 when 30 undertrials were blinded by policemen), the situation spirals into a crisis that gets out of everyone's hands, including that of the filmmaker. Suddenly, Amit becomes a social crusader than cop, with the entire population of Tejpur standing by him. Good and evil neatly stack up against each other. There are tokenisms like a bad cop whom Amit has suspended suddenly reforming into an honest tea-stall owner, making a very mushy speech about his makeover with a Raj Kapoor song with a socialistic message playing in the background. The symbolism of acid being described as the gangajal used to cleanse the system does not filter through the confusion of the post-interval mayhem. But it is heartening to watch Jha's hero keep his idealism intact to the very end and not cop out and go on a killing spree like most other noble filmi policemen do in the name of justice. While Gangaajal doesn't have anything original to say, it is well shot, well edited and brilliantly enacted by most of the lead actors. Cinematographer Arvind K's visuals lend tremendous character to the discontented yet deceptively calm temple town (shot in Wai, Maharashtra) where the plot unfolds. Wayne Sharpe's background score is outstanding. There is a stream of restlessness in the seemingly serene notes of the fusion music used in the background track. The film has one song. One wishes directors would do away with these raunchy item numbers, irrespective of whether they are relevant to the storyline or not. Oh for a heroine who has a role to play! Jha seems to have spent all his creative energies on writing the character of Amit Kumar, his deputies and adversaries and forgotten all about the SP's wife (Gracy Singh), whose only role in the proceedings is to warn her husband about the hazards of smoking, caution him against drinking too much and heating the food. Worse, Gracy Singh doesn't attempt to lend colour to her screen self. She only makes the heroine look like a caricature. Mohan Joshi repeats his Mrityudand (also directed by Jha) act by playing the supercilious villain with vigour. Yashpal Sharma, on the other hand, has essayed the hedonistic bad man so often in his short career that he has become totally typecast. One of the most engaging performances in the film comes from Mukesh Tiwari. After a hyped debut in Chinagate five years ago, he finally gets a role that offers scope for histrionics. He delivers the goods without much ado. Ajay Devgan pulls up an ace with a part tailormade to reinforce his seething-under-the-surface angry hero image. To his credit (and the director's), he brings style and grace to a largely stereotypical, righteous protagonist. To a great extent, his presence covers up the film's patchiness in the second half. Director Jha does not take the problems addressed by Shool and half-a-dozen other films on similar lines much further. Also, he is rather simplistic with his solutions. But considering the fact that you rarely get to see justice being done outside the fictional confines of the movie halls these days, Gangaajal does offer solace and a sense of retribution. CREDITS Cast: Ajay Devgan, Gracy Singh, Mohan Joshi, Mukesh Tiwari Writer-Director: Prakash Jha Music: Sandesh Shandilya Producers: Entertainment One, Prakash Jha Productions
Anant Balani
Sunday, August 31, 2003
Film-maker Anant Balani had a lot to look forward to. His Joggers' Park, starring Perizaad Zorabian and Victor Banerjee, releases on September 12. Mumbai Matinee (Zorabian again, with Rahul Bose this time) and Ek Din (Bose, Nandita Das) are due to release by the end of this year. Shooting for his fourth film this year, Chameli, starring Bose and Kareena Kapoor, began last month and was in full flow. Clearly, after a decade of obscurity, debts and hardship, Balani was feeling good. He was doing good work, the kind of work he wanted to do. And he seemed to be on the way to success at last. But alas! success was not his to savour. Late Thursday evening, the director died of a massive heart attack while on his way home in an autorickshaw. He was returning from a shooting schedule of Chameli, at Mumbai's Rajkamal Studios. Excerpts from what turned out to be one of Balani's last interviews: What is Chameli about? It is about a commercial sex worker [Kapoor] who bumps into an investment banker [Bose] on the streets of Mumbai one rainy night. They have no option but to spend the night together. The story takes place in one night. I like the idea of two characters from different worlds who meet accidentally and are forced to be together. That is why I decided to direct Chameli. Where do these people meet? They meet at the Flora Fountain area in South Mumbai. How do these two meet? The hero's car breaks down. His cell phone runs out of charge. He then runs to take shelter in a building, where he meets this commercial sex worker. Rahul suits the role of an investment banker staying in the upmarket South Mumbai. Do you think this kind of film will work where a commercial sex worker romances a hero? This is not a romantic film. There is no love. This film is about relationships. Does it have any resemblance to Pretty Woman starring Richard Gere and Julia Roberts? No, not at all. This is an original script. It has nothing to do with that film. What is the USP of your film? It is based on emotions. It has an unusual story. There are only two main actors. It is a compact film and with a compact budget. What made you cast Kareena? I wanted someone who has never played a sex worker before. I wanted to cast against type, break the mould of someone from mainstream cinema. Also, Rahul and Kareena are from different schools of cinema, so the combination works. And no, I did not cast Kareena for sensational value. Was it difficult to convince Kareena? It was not too difficult to convince Kareena. When she read the script, she was very excited. She has never done this kind of film before. She is different. What do you think made her accept this film? You will have to ask her that. But I think she has made a clever move. She will explore herself as an actress with this role. It is very good sign -- it gives a fillip to filmmakers as well. Is it difficult in any way to make Kareena act as a commercial sex worker? I think she has acted brilliantly in the last four days [since the launch of Chameli]. She is doing well. Once she read the script, she picked it up soon. She learnt the body language of commercial sex workers. She is very spontaneous as an actress. Don't you think she looks too upmarket to be convincing as a sex worker? I don't think so. See her dress, her makeup. You won't believe it. She does not look like Kareena. How did you come up with the name Chameli? It is just Kareena's name in the film. Chameli is a flower. I don't know why this name occurred to me. How many songs do you have in Chameli? There are three songs and the music director is Sandesh Shandilya. Is there a message in the film? There is no message. I am simply narrating a story. When do you plan to complete the film? The film will be over in a month. I think we will release it in November. It will be shot only in Mumbai. The film has a tight script and I want to finish this film in 30 days. Why? First, the film is not more than two hours. Second, the economics of film-producing works well for this schedule. The actors are happy to give me bulk dates and finish the film. A lot of films are being made on start-to-finish schedules these days. Why do you think this was not done earlier? Simply because actors were busy. Now they are becoming professional. They know that filmmaking is an expensive medium. Are Indian audiences mature enough to accept such films? Yes, why not? Five years ago, I would not have believed that a film like [Sujoy Ghosh's] Jhankaar Beats would do well. Now, there is lot of scope for such films. Audiences want something new. They are ready for something different. Why the long gap in your career? Everything is destiny. I directed television serials for some time. I didn't make more films because I wanted to make good films. I was just waiting for the right time. But yes, work is pouring in for me now. I have lots of films in hand. I am happy about that. Times have changed drastically. How would you describe your films? My films are not really arty; they are realistic. Stories about real people and real situations. They are more identifiable than the cardboard characters we have today. Are you happy with the way things are going with Chameli? Yes, I am very happy. Very, very happy.
Sobig 'Carpet Bombs' the Internet
Sunday, August 31, 2003
Sobig 'Carpet Bombs' the Internet 30/08/2003 Sobig-F, which has been causing chaos on corporate networks the past three days, is now being called the fastest spreading virus in the industry's history. ''It was a carpet bombing,'' says Chris Belthoff, a senior security analyst with Lynfield, Mass.-based Sophos Inc., an anti-virus company. ''We're judging this to be the fastest spreading worm ever, even surpassing Klez and LoveBug. This is really just a complete swamping, or inundation, of networks... Companies are having their email systems taken down because of the sheer volume of emails they're getting. It's a slow down, then a slow to a crawl and then just being taken offline.'' Sobig-F, which first appeared this past Monday as the latest member of the malicious Sobig virus family, hit the Internet hard, flooding email servers and inboxes. Corporate networks staggered under the barrage with network access slowing to a crawl, and some email systems being taken temporarily offline to stop the siege. AOL saw email traffic nearly quardruple yesterday, according to Nicholas Graham, an AOL spokesman. Graham says AOL scans email attachments at the gateway, checking for viruses. On an average day, the ISP scans approximately 11 million attachments. On Wednesday, the staff scanned 40.5 million email attachments and found 23.7 of those to be infected with viruses. Of those, 23.2 million were infected with Sobig-F. ''People are just getting pummeled, either with the virus or with notifications,'' says MJ Shoer, president and chief technology officer of Jenaly Technology Group, Inc., an IT provider and consultant based in Portsmouth, N.H. ''We're just getting beaten on. One of our clients is seeing a 90 percent increase in email messages. In the case of my mailbox, it's close to 70 percent. And I have a firewall, a spam and content filter and anti-virus.'' And Shoer says the virus attack is bringing regular work to a standstill. ''It's rendered IT staffs useless,'' he adds. ''They're just flooded. If there was going to be a rollout or something, it's just not getting done. We're putting off everything that was a high priority.'' Shoer also noted that he talked to an IBM engineer on Wednesday who wasn't able to offer him customer service because his email was down. Security analysts verified IBM's troubles but the company could not be reached for comment and its Web site was unresponsive Wednesday afternoon. ''A lot of corporations and universities had to literally shut down their email networks because of the huge volume of traffic of inbound Sobig emails and bounced email messages,'' says Steve Sundermeier, vice president of products and services at Central Command Inc., an anti-virus company based in Medina, Ohio. ''If you're talking about a large corporation -- a Fortune 100 or a Fortune 200 -- and you take down an email system for an hour, it could cost that corporation a million dollars.'' But three different security experts say the Sobig-F assault seems to have peaked yesterday afternoon, when the malicious email was accounting for at least 70 percent of all email flowing around the world. Today, the number is still high but most estimate that it has dropped down into the 60 percent to 70 percent range. Sophos' Belthoff says the virus, which is a mass-mailing worm that also can spread via network shares, hit the Net so hard so quickly because of the spam-like spreading technique that the author used. ''They carpet bombed the Internet and played the numbers game,'' says Belthoff. ''There were just millions of copies out there hitting the Internet all at the same time. It's a matter of sending out enough copies so that somebody will click on it. When you send out that many, even a small percentage of a response, is going to make for a successful virus.'' But other security analysts say the virus is hitting the Internet so hard because it is building on the impact of its Sobig predecessors. Sundermeier explains that earlier variants of Sobig have infected computers and then downloaded Trojans to set the machines up to be hidden proxy servers. ''The author has a huge army now for the next seeding,'' he says. ''Every Sobig variant becomes bigger and bigger, and we believe it's because of this army he's building of infected machines.'' Sobig-F is designed to die out on Sep. 10. That's leading many analysts to suspect that the next variant will hit on Sep. 11 or soon after. And if that variant builds on the malicious success of Sobig-F, then the damage could be even worse. AOL's Graham says they are already planning defenses for the next Sobig attack. ''We're already gearing up for the next variant, Sobig-G, if you will,'' he says. When the worm arrives via email, it poses as a .pif or .scr file. The sender's address is spoofed. The subject lines used are taken from a list, including 'Re: That movie', 'Re: Wicked screensaver', 'Re: Approved' and 'Your details'.
Gazi Baba killed along with four associates
Sunday, August 31, 2003
Gazi Baba killed along with four associates Srinagar,Saturday, August 30, 2003: One of the most wanted terrorists in India, Gazi Baba, who mastermind the attack on Parliament House nearly two years ago, was killed along with four associates in a 10-hour encounter with the security forces here today, according to a top BSF officer. One BSF jawan was killed and eight other security personnel, including a commandant and two assistant commandants, were injured in the operation in Noorbagh locality that began at 3 am following a tip-off about the whereabouts of Gazi Baba, the operational chief of Jaish-e-Mohammad in Kashmir. "What was believed to be mission impossible was made mission possible by BSF... We have Gazi Baba dead. This, to our mind, is a great feather in our cap," BSF Inspector General Vijay Raman told reporters this evening. However, JeM denied Gazi Baba was among those killed in the encounter. "Gazi Baba was not even in the vicinity of Noorbagh area," the outfit's spokesman Abu Muslim said in a statement to a local news agency. Two JeM militants were killed while five others escaped with one of them in injured condition, he added. Raman, however, maintained that he was sure of the identity of Gazi Baba, whose real name was Shabaz Khan and whose death was a severe blow to the militancy in the state. "I am not a damn fool...We were targeting him for the past two months and I am sure it is him." "Killing of foot soldiers does not have much impact on the militants....We need to get generals, the brain behind the militancy and Gazi Baba was one of them," he said. 20:33 IST
21.2 kg explosives found at ND Railway Station,tragedy averted
Sunday, August 31, 2003
21.2 kg explosives found at ND Railway Station,tragedy averted New Delhi,Saturday, August 30, 2003: A possible tragedy was averted today with timely detection of a huge quantity of explosives at the busy New Delhi Railway Station here. 150 gelatine sticks weighing 21.2 kgs and contained in a bag were detected at an area between Platform 6 and 7 during routine random checking by police at the railway station at around 11.45 AM, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime and Railways) Dependra Pathak told PTI. The bag was lying unattended and two cops got suspicious, he said. Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad and sniffer dogs were called and after an examination confirmed it to be gelatine, Pathak said. The explosive was enough to cause a huge damage at the station, particularly considering that hundreds of people are present there at any time. No arrests have been made but a number of people have been questioned to obtain a clue. Meanwhile, at Nizamuddin Railway Station here, a "suspicious" looking man was detained by police within 30 minutes of detection of gelatine at New Delhi Railway Station. A huge amount of cash - Rs 77 lakh - was recovered from the possession of the man who identified himself as Ram Rai, Pathak said adding he was being questioned about the source of cash and the intention of its use. Interestingly, he allegedly offered upto Rs five lakh to three policemen -- Head Constable Sri Pal and Constables Zaman Khan and Jetendra -- who nabbed him in exchange of release, the DCP said, adding but they refused. 19:06 IST
30 feared killed in Himachal bus accident
Sunday, August 31, 2003
30 feared killed in Himachal bus accident Nalagarh (HP),Saturday, August 30, 2003: At least 30 people, including some school children, were feared killed when a bus was washed away by flash floods in Sirsa river in Solan district of Himachal Pradesh today, official sources said. Eight bodies had been recovered and four people rescued by divers while 18 people were still perched on the roof of the totally submerged bus carrying 45 to 50 passengers, Deputy Commissioner of Ropar in Punjab, Seema Jain told here. Those rescued included the driver of the ill-fated Punjab Roadways bus which was on its way to Ropar in Punjab to Solan, she added. The survivors told that a tyre of the bus got stuck in the muddy waters of the river in Nalagarh area and as the driver tried to move the bus to safety, water came gushing down from upstream and washed the vehicle away. 20:33 IST
Vajpayee promises electricity in all villages by 2007
Sunday, August 31, 2003
Vajpayee promises electricity in all villages by 2007 Omkareshwar (MP),Saturday, August 30, 2003: Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today said his government was committed to provide electricity in all villages by 2007 and all houses by 2012. "Jahan andhera hai, wahan mrityu hai, jahan jeevan hai, wahan prakash hai (Where there is darkness, there is death. Where there is life, there is light)," Vajpayee said after laying the foundation stone of the 520 MW Omkareshwar Hydel Project here. The Prime Minister expressed concern at the stagnation in hydel power generation and said an additional 34,000 MW of hydel power was targeted during the 10th and 11th plan as against 27,000 MW generated so far. 18:18 IST
India's foreign exchange reserves rise by USD 148 mn
Sunday, August 31, 2003
India's foreign exchange reserves rise by USD 148 mn Mumbai,Saturday, August 30, 2003: India's foreign exchange reserves rose by US dollar 148 million at USD 85,563 million, a record high level, during the week ended August 22. The foreign currency assets increased by USD 147 million at USD 81,932 million in the period under review, according to Reserve Bank of India's weekly statistical supplement released here today. Gold reserves remained unchanged at USD 3,628 million while special drawing rights at USD three million, registered a rise of USD one million, it said. For the week ended August 15, the country's foreign exchange reserves had jumped by USD 418 million to cross the USD 85 billion mark. In the week ended August 22, loans to the state government were up by Rs 1,348 crore at Rs 5,279 crore while that to central government showed a nil balance, RBI added. 18:18 IST
Mulayam Singh sworn in as U.P. Chief Minister
Saturday, August 30, 2003
Mulayam Singh sworn in as U.P. Chief Minister Lucknow,Friday, August 29, 2003: Mulayam Singh Yadav returned to power today after a gap of eight years, being sworn in as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister at the head of a coalition, and immediately announced that all "politically-motivated" POTA cases were being withdrawn, a move that will mean freedom for the controversial independent MLA Raja Bhaiya. The 63-year-old Samajwadi Party leader, who has 14 days to prove his majority in the Assembly, was guarded in his comments on sensitive political issues such as the cases against top BJP leaders in the Babri Masjid demolition case. He would consult his coalition partners on whether to issue a fresh notification to pave the way for trial of Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani and others in the case. Watched by NDA Convener and Defence Minister George Fernandes, former Prime Minister Chandrashekar, state BJP leaders, his coalition partners, film stars Amitabh Bachhan, Jaya Prada, industrialist Anil Ambani, Yadav alone took the oath of office administered by state Governor Vishnukant Shastri on the banks of the Gomti river here. This is the third time Yadav has become Chief Minister, the first being in 1989 and later heading a coalition with BSP, which collapsed in 1995. None of the representatives of the supporting parties Congress, RLD, RKP, CPI-M, and BSP rebels, found a place in the Yadav ministry with the Congress still undecided on joining it. 17:07 IST
Five arrested for Akshardham attack
Saturday, August 30, 2003
Five arrested for Akshardham attack Ahmedabad,Friday, August 29, 2003: In a major breakthrough, Gujarat police today arrested five persons hailing from sensitive Dariapur and Shahpur areas in connection with Akshardham temple attack and said their interrogations revealed that terrorist outfits Jaish-E-Mohammed (JeM) and Lashkar-E-Toiba (LeT) had masterminded the strike. Among the arrested was a Maulvi, who was running a relief camp for victims of post-Godhra communal riots in Dariapur area of the city, City police commissionmer K R Kaushik told reporters here. Thirty two people, including three security personnel, were killed in the attack on September 24 last year. Kaushik said it was sometime during the post-Godhra riots last year that the conspiracy to attack the Akshardham temple was hatched in Riyadh, capital of Saudi Arabia, and the five accused had provided logistic support to the two terrorists, who were killed by the NSG commandos. Acting on a specific information, police arrested Salim Sheikh, Mufti Abdul Kayoom Mansuri, Maulvi Abdul Miyan Sayyed -- all residents of Dariapur area and Altaf Malek and Suleman Aadam Ajmeri, staying in the Shahpur area, he said. Police acted after getting information that some Muslim youths of the city, who were working in various cities of Saudi Arabia and were closely associated with Pakistan's ISI and JeM and LeT, had come to Ahmedabad recently. 20:18 IST
PM announces economic package for J and K
Saturday, August 30, 2003
PM announces economic package for J and K Jammu,Friday, August 29, 2003: Taking into consideration the additional requirements of new schemes for the speedy development of the state, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today announced a 9-point third economic and development package for the people of Jammu and Kashmir. "During my interaction with people here I found that there are additional requirements of new schemes and programmes, which the government of India will help in implementation", he said in a statement at a press conference today. A new package comprising of nine points has been announced for the people of Jammu division and Kashmir Pandits, he said. The schemes announced by the Prime Minister include, Rs 30 crore one-time grant for University of Jammu, improved water supply, a 220kw single-circuit transmission line from Srinagar to Leh via Kargil, increase in scale of relief for valley's migrant families, 500 new tenements and shifting of some border villages for those affected by shelling from across the border and opening up of Kendriya Vidyalayas. A one-time special grant of Rs.30 crore will be given for development of University of Jammu and its affiliated collages, Vajpayee said. A scheme has been prepared at a cost of Rs.175 crore to provide drinking water to 2284 habitations and 1400 schools in Kandi area of the state, he said. 17:07 IST
Inflation based on Consumer Price Index rises to 4.16% in July
Saturday, August 30, 2003
Inflation based on Consumer Price Index rises to 4.16% in July New Delhi,Friday, August 29, 2003: Mumbai continued to be the most costly city with consumer price index shooting to 589 points compared to the national average of 501, even as inflation rate based on the index rose to 4.16 per cent in July from 3.89 per cent a year ago. Mumbai was closely followed by Delhi with Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers (CPI-IW) at 577 points, Kolkata (545), Chennai (538), Ahmedabad (501) and Bangalore (481), an official release said today. Rise in prices of rice, wheat, milk, vegetables and fruits, pushed up the inflation rate based on CPI-IW to 4.16 per cent last month from 3.89 per cent in July 2002. The inflation rate, however, came down by 0.25 per cent compared to 4.41 per cent in June mainly due to cheaper kerosene oil and onions. The consumer price index rose by 4.0 points to 501 last month compared to 497 in June. Of the 70 centres in the country, the CPI-IW rose by 1-22 points in 58 centres while it remained static in four centres and declined 1-6 points in eight centres. 20:18 IST
Petition filed in HC for confiscation of Tendulkar's Ferrari
Saturday, August 30, 2003
Petition filed in HC for confiscation of Tendulkar's Ferrari Chennai,Friday, August 29, 2003: Giving a new angle to the controversy over cricketer Sachin Tendulkar's gifted Ferrari, a petition was filed today in Madras High Court seeking confiscation of the car presented to him by the Italian car maker. Contending that he was not questioning the waiver of 120 per cent excise duty on the car, the petitioner, K T Kuppiah, in a public interest litigation, claimed that the manner in which the car was imported was contrary to law and against the policy governing import of cars. Besides, the special treatment to this car "is clearest violation of the right of equality", he said adding that it violated relevant provisions of Central Motor Vehicles Rules 1989 as the car was not subjected to any test as specified in the rules. He contended that the union ministries of Finance, Revenue and Commerce, the Central Board of Excise, the Chief Commissioner of Customs (Imports) Mumbai and Tendulkar were duty bound to answer and satisfy the court as to how the import of the car was in accordance with law and in conformity with the centre's import policy for new cars. 20:18 IST
President gives away Arjuna Awards
Saturday, August 30, 2003
President gives away Arjuna Awards New Delhi,Friday, August 29, 2003: After a bitter controversy, the nation's highest sporting honours were conferred on 33 sportspersons including cricketer Virender Sehwag and shooter Anjali Bhagwat at a glittering function here today. President A P J Abdul Kalam gave away the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna, Dronacharya and Dhyan Chand Awards 2002 at the ceremonial function at the Rashtrapati Bhawan bringing to an end yet another chapter of controversy-ridden awards. But the bitterness and the wranglings were set aside once the ceremony unfolded with the customary national anthem. Khel Ratna winners -- shooter Anjali Bhagwat and athlete K M Beenamol attired in lemon yellow silk sarees and maroon blazers -- were the first to walk up to the President to collect their medal, a scroll of honour and a trophy amidst thunderous applause. The cash prize of Rs 5 lakh was split between Anjali and Beenamol but the duo said there were no hard feelings. The newly formed Arjuna Awards Committee triggered off a controversy by nominating more sportspersons for the Awards than stipulated in the government guidelines. It made matters worse by leaking the provisional list to media. The Government added its bit to the drama by declining to accept the list and asking the committee to cut down the nominations. Even as the controversy raged over the government's stand, the Sports Ministry eventually decided to accept all the recommendations as a one-time exception. 17:07 IST
"Meaningful" talks not possible in the face of violence: PM
Saturday, August 30, 2003
"Meaningful" talks not possible in the face of violence: PM Jammu,Friday, August 29, 2003: Observing that the situation was "not normal" for resumption of Indo-Pak dialogue, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today said "meaningful" talks were not possible in the face of continuing terrorist violence. Winding up his two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir, Vajpayee also said that if the Hurriyat leaders were ready to talk to the government, they were welcome. Government was willing to talk to anyone but they must lay down arms, Vajpayee told a crowded press conference here on being asked whether militant outfit Hizb-ul Mujahideen would be invited for parleys. On resumption of talks with Pakistan, he said "terrorist violence is going on. People are being killed. Then, how can meaningful talks take place?" Vajpayee said "there is violence along the border. Terrorist activities are going on. Whatever happened yesterday (in Srinagar) clearly shows that the situation is not normal. How can talks take place without normalcy. "We would like to have meaningful talks with Pakistan. But, if terrorist activities continue, that will not be possible". The Prime Minister responded to questions on political developments in UP and strongly discounted a media report on his health. 17:07 IST
Mobiles became a blessing during encounter
Friday, August 29, 2003
Mobiles became a blessing during encounter Search for More News Srinagar, August 28: It was the mobile telephony, which was started partially in Kashmir region recently, especially for top security officers, that came as a boon for civilians trapped inside Greenway Hotel during the night-long encounter between a holed-up militant and the police. "People inside the building contacted our control room on telephone. They were redirected to our senior officers camping at the site of the encounter," DGP Gopal Sharma said here. The officers, equipped with newly-procured WLL phones, a different version of mobile phones, kept in constant touch with those trapped inside the building and guided them to safer places during the rescue operation, Sharma said. One of the civilians jumped from the second storey of the building while the police placed their bunker vehicle beneath to facilitate his jump to freedom, he said. (Agencies)
25 people killed, 8 presumed dead in Daman bridge collapse
Friday, August 29, 2003
25 people killed, 8 presumed dead in Daman bridge collapse Daman,Friday, August 29, 2003: At least 25 people, including 22 school children, were on Thursday killed and eight were missing and presumed dead, when nearly ten vehicles and pedestrians fell into Damanganga river after a dilapidated bridge collapsed due to heavy rains in Daman and Diu. The children in the age group of 10 to 15 years were returning from school when the 100 year old bridge connecting residential areas of Moti Daman and Nani Daman gave way, official sources said. At least 25 people were injured, eleven of them seriously. Six of the seriously injured were admitted to a hospital in neighbouring Haria town where 13-year-old Ashok Tandel succumbed. "We have recovered 24 bodies, of which 21 are of children and three are adult males", Additional Director General of Police (Daman) R P Upadhyay told PTI. He said the deceased include 12 girls and nine boys, and were students of Lady Fatima Convent School in Moti Daman. "Eight people are still missing and it is feared that they might have been swept away into the Arabian sea", the official said. "Rescue operations are now coming to an end as chances of finding more bodies are negligible", Upadhyay added.
Hema Malini, Jalan, Kasturirangan among 7 nominated to RS
Friday, August 29, 2003
Hema Malini, Jalan, Kasturirangan among 7 nominated to RS New Delhi,Friday, August 29, 2003: Dream girl of yesteryears Hema Malini, RBI Governor Bimal Jalan and ISRO Chairman K Kasturirangan were among the seven nominated to the Rajya Sabha on Thursday. Wrestler-turned-actor Dara Singh, Pioneer Editor Chandan Mitra, Hindi scholar Vidya Niwas Mishra and social worker Narayan Singh were the other persons nominated to the Upper House, a Home Ministry spokesman said. The names were cleared by the BJP top brass, including Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, here on August 24. The seats had fallen vacant following retirement of eight nominated members including actress-turned-social activist Shabana Azmi, nuclear physicist Raja Rammana and veteran journalist Kuldip Nayyar. 55-year-old Hema Malini, who had campaigned for the BJP in recent elections, was the box office queen of her time, reigning for a decade with a huge fan following. An exponent of Bharatnatyam, Kuchipudi and Mohini Attam dance forms, she shot to the highpoint of her career with the Bollywood film "Sapno Ka Saudagar". Other successful films included "Sholay", "Johney Mera Naam", "Jugnu" and "Kinara". A former Secretary, Banking, Jalan served as Chief Economic Adviser to the Finance Ministry before assuming the charge as RBI Governor. Educated at Cambridge and Oxford, Jalan had held various positions in the IMF and World Bank. Eminent space scientist and astrophysicist Kasturirangan, 63, was honoured with a Padma Vibhushan in year 2000. He is also a recipient of Padma Bhushan and Padma Shree national awards. 09:26 IST
"Sale of Arrow anti-missile system to India a test case"
Friday, August 29, 2003
"Sale of Arrow anti-missile system to India a test case" Washington,Friday, August 29, 2003: As the Indo-US military cooperation was "deepening", the proposed sale of Israeli Arrow anti-missile system to India would be a "test case" on how far Washington was willing to go ahead regarding the sale of weapons to New Delhi, a defence consultant has said. "The Arrow issue is a test case of how far the US is willing to go regarding weapons sales to India," said John E Carbaugh, who regularly issues an 'India Report'. US, however, balks at sale of the anti-missile system to India, he said. The Arrow anti-ballistic missile system, jointly built by Israel and Boeing Co., requires US approval for sale since Washington funded its development. According to Carbaugh, US officials with inside knowledge of Indo-US military cooperation believe that deepening defence ties with India could pave the way for an eventual strategic alliance between Washington and New Delhi. "The US is looking to incorporate the deeper military ties into a broader security alliance with India. There is even some talk of the US and India anchoring an 'Asian NATO' made up of Asian-Pacific democracies," he said. US ideally would like to establish access to military bases in India to have more flexibility in responding to regional crisis and deal with terrorism, he added. 09:26 IST
ISC for safeguards on imposition of President's rule in states
Friday, August 29, 2003
ISC for safeguards on imposition of President's rule in states Srinagar,Friday, August 29, 2003: Ending more than a decade of discussions on the Sarkaria Commission recommendations, the Inter-State Council on Thursday "unanimously" decided to incorporate safeguards into the Constitution on imposing President's rule in states which would be used "sparingly" and only as a "last resort". The two-day meeting of the Council, held for the first time outside Delhi, which concluded today, however, rejected a demand of some states for scrapping of Article 365 that provides the Centre with powers to impose sanctions against states defying its directives. In his concluding remarks, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who had urged for a finality and consensual decision on the Sarkaria Commission recommendations, asked Law Minister Arun Jaitley to prepare the amendments to Article 356 to incorporate the safeguards on imposition of President's rule so that they can be legislated upon by Parliament at the earliest. Briefing newsmen after the meeting which was attended by a dozen Chief Ministers and representatives of other states, Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani said he was happy that the Council has completed discussions on the Sarkaria Commission recommendations. He said most of them have been accepted while some have not been accepted and on some others there were differences.
Govt takes the first step in tax reforms, introduces E-filing of IT returns
Thursday, August 28, 2003
Govt takes the first step in tax reforms, introduces E-filing of IT returns NEW DELHI: Resisting stiff opposition from the unions, the government pushed ahead with its tax reform agenda by launching electronic filing of income tax returns in seven cities across the country on Wednesday. While E-filing of returns is expected to make the process hassle-free for the assessees it would also make the tax administration efficient. To begin with, electronic filing would be done through select banks in the seven cities. The banks selected by the finance ministry for the purpose are HDFC Bank, UTI Bank, IDBI Bank, ICICI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank and Bharat Overseas Bank. The facility would be available in six bank branches in Delhi, five in Mumbai, four each in Chennai and Bangalore and three each in Kolkata, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad. Talking to reporters, chairman of CBDT, PL Singh explained that initially electronic filing was being done through intermediary banks as individuals would have to secure digital signature first for filing of electronic returns directly. The necessary notification for this purpose has been issued by CBDT. Singh also stated that the selected banks would charge Rs 100-400 for filing of returns per individuals depending upon the services they provide. According to Singh, as a first step towards paper-less filing of tax returns, paper challans as proof of tax payment would be dispensed with for tax deduction at source (TDS) from this year. From next year, paper challans for income tax payment too would be dispensed with, Singh said while adding that assessees would be able file E-returns on their own once they acquire digital signature, which was a legal requirement. So far only 5,000 persons have secured digital signature. As already announced, income tax returns could be filed this year upto September 30 and this was applicable for electronic filing as well, Singh said. Reacting on the issue of outsourcing of PAN cards, Singh said UTI's subsidiary, from whom the service was being outsourced, has issued over 8 lakh applications. Of the 8 lakh, 4.33 lakh applications have been received, of which 81,000 cards have been issued and an additional 1.33 lakh cards have been processed. Claming that all pending income tax refunds were being cleared expeditiously this year, Singh said all those giving their bank account numbers could get their refunds transferred into their accounts. With the establishment of TIN (tax information network) by next year, online accounting system would be started by the tax department.
Advani takes centre stage as BJP turns the heat on Ram temple
Thursday, August 28, 2003
Advani takes centre stage as BJP turns the heat on Ram temple NEW DELHI: The ASI report on excavations carried out at the Ayodhya site might have been temporarily overshadowed by more sensational developments, but the BJP, conscious of this value-addition to its temple cause, has embarked on a sustained campaign for Ram temple construction. Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani took up the issue at Aurangabad on Tuesday, saying ``the ASI report must have gladdened crores of people''. He did not go any further in view of the sensitivity of NDA partners to the issue. However, on Wednesday, M. Venkaiah Naidu hammered home the issue. Being the BJP president, he can obviously position himself more strongly in favour of the temple. Therefore, speaking at a press conference, Naidu described the ASI findings as ``conclusive evidence'' and appealed to Muslims to start a ``fresh dialogue to remove all hurdles in the construction of a Ram temple''. Naidu said the ASI investigation makes it clear that the Babri Masjid built by Mughal invaders in 1528 was constructed on the site of a grand 10th-century temple. ``There have been several other historical, literary, epigraphical and sceintific evidences, all of which have established the fact that the Babri structure was built after demolishing a temple,'' he said. Claiming that the ``ultimate evidence'' sought by the critics of the temple in the form of ASI excavations was before everybody, Naidu remarked: ``It is unfortunate that some of the contending parties in the court are now saying that the ASI report is doctored.'' He recalled that ``the court agreed to all the demands of contending parties during the investigations. When they alleged that the chief scientist of the ASI was not impartial to them, the court had him replaced. Thereafter, the work force used for digging was also picked up on the basis of religious ratio following insistence by these parties. Hence, their criticism of the ASI now is unjustifiable.'' ``In the light of this conclusive evidence,'' said Naidu, ``this dispute should be put to rest and all of us should come together to re-build the Ram temple.'' He said even if the court delivered a judgement, ``it will make one party a winner and the other a loser''. Therefore, ``this is the moment for all communities to shed past differences and concentrate on the national mission to make India a proud, prosperous and secure nation. A united approach for the construction of the Ramjanmabhoomi temple will be an important symbolic step in that direction.'' However, when asked if the ASI report will be an issue in the elections, Naidu replied in the negative. ``ISI, not ASI, will be the issue,'' he quipped. However, given the way the Sangh Parivar speaks in different voices, this has to be taken with a pinch of salt. Another key national functionary of the party informally admitted that the BJP would certainly go to town with the ASI report because this would bring focus back on the Ram temple.
Salman to promote Tere Naam, fashion in South Africa
Thursday, August 28, 2003
Salman to promote Tere Naam, fashion in South Africa IANS JOHANNESBURG: It will be a double bill for Bollywood star Salman Khan here this week, promoting India's leading fashion designers as well as his new film 'Tere Naam'. The Indian designers will feature at the South African Fashion Week, the country's premiere fashion event, to be held from August 27-30 but Salman will not be opting for his traditional chest-baring role as in his films. He will only speak at the forum and attend a gala dinner where he will draw the winner of a competition in which one of the expected 1,000 guests will win two tickets for a trip to India. Salman's appearance here is also expected to give added impetus to his latest movie 'Tere Naam', which is playing to capacity houses across South Africa since opening two Friday's ago. Although not all the designers will be present themselves, the work of almost all top designers will be modelled in a show put together by model and actor Milind Soman for South African promoters. One designer who has confirmed her attendance is Neeta Lulla, who designed the stunning outfits for the film 'Devdas' last year. She will be auctioning two of the outfits worn by the leading ladies in the film, Aishwarya Rai and Madhuri Dixit. Malaika Arora, Salman's sister-in-law, is the compere for the evening and will also perform some dance items. She will be joined by playback singer Babul Supriyo and six dancers from Mumbai. "It started when we were in India and were offered Milind's film Rules - Pyar Ka Superhit Formula for our company Tip Top Entertainment," organiser Sugen Nair told IANS. "We took the movie on condition that Milind and the cast come and do a fashion show here to help promote the movie. He is getting outfits from the top designers to be modelled by the cast of the film." Nair said the original plan was to host the premiere of "Rules..." and then have the fashion show afterwards but this was not possible because the release of the movie had been postponed by a week. "But it's not just about the fashion show and Salman's attendance, although these are certainly highlights," Nair added. "It will be an unprecedented celebration of Indian couture and lifestyle that will help usher in an exciting international dimension into South Africa's fashion industry. "The fusion of Indian designers' authentic style on vibrant Indian fabric meeting Western designs brings in an eclectic mix to fashion houses all over the world, and are making Indian designers more and more popular," said Nair. "As this year marks the 10th anniversary of resumed trade relations between South Africa and India, we are proud that we can commemorate this at South African Fashion Week," Nair concluded.
Its now Vijay Anand who plans meaningful TV channel
Thursday, August 28, 2003
Its now Vijay Anand who plans meaningful TV channel IANS KOLKATA: Film director Vijay Anand is starting a 24-hour TV channel which will have "alternative and meaningful entertainment" as its USP. Promoted by three businessmen whom Anand doesn't wish to name, the new channel will showcase soap operas, talk shows, game shows and musical programmes, among other things. "But the entertainment will be meaningful and will give viewers an alternative to the present set of TV channels," Anand told IANS here. Anand, the brother of famed Bollywood actor-director Dev Anand, will be the new channel's managing director. Lamhas Communications Ltd. will have an annual budget of Rs.2 billion-2.5 billion. The director says he was prompted to consider starting a new channel after closely watching the fare on offer on different cable stations now. "I have watched various channels and I feel the Indian viewer is not getting the best," Anand says. "The gap in quality entertainment encouraged me to consider this new channel." The date for his channel's launch hasn't yet been fixed. Anand, who also shone as an actor in films like Kora Kagaz, claims the serials on his channel wouldn't be the "artificially glamorised and overdone" variety that is the staple of most entertainment channels. In India, an estimated 70 million homes have TV sets. The popularity of Hindi satellite channels has skyrocketed in cities and towns over the past couple of years, mostly riding on drama serials and game shows. Anand says his channel will have serials based on popular short stories and plays. To begin with, he would roll out a 365-episode soap on Indian women. A treatise on the fallible Indian male has also been lined up. About 40 projects have been cleared to be made into programmes for the new channel. Anand says he wants to have a bank of quality programmes before going on air.
One killed, nine injured as militants attack BSNL building
Thursday, August 28, 2003
PTI SRINAGAR: A BSF jawan was killed and nine people, including a BSF DIG, were injured as heavily-armed militants made a vain attempt to storm the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd building here on Wednesday evening, official sources said. BSF constable Des Raj succumbed to wounds in hospital where he and eight other injured were moved after militants hurled a grenade on security personnel in a bid to storm the BSNL building around 1900 hours. Deputy Inspector General of BSF Desh Raj, who was also injured has been rushed to Soura Medical Institute, the sources said. Two militants belonging to al-Mansooren outfit lobbed a grenade near the main gate of the BSNL building in their bid to gain entry into the building, but took shelter in a nearly hotel when faced with retaliatory fire at the hands of forces deployed there. As the security men took position outside the hotel, they exchanged intermittent firing with the militants holed up in the building, which also houses offices of several local dailies, the sources said.
Encounter at Srinagar hotel ends, 5 dead
Thursday, August 28, 2003
Encounter at Srinagar hotel ends, 5 dead Srinagar,Thursday, August 28, 2003: A fierce encounter between two militants holed up in a hotel here since 7:00 pm Wednesday, ended early this morning with five deaths and several people injured. Both the militants, who had entered Hotel Greenway and engaged in exchange of fire with security forces for about 12 hours, are believed to be among the dead. Three other bodies were recovered from the hotel. These are believed to be those of National Conference leader Javed Shah, a former militant and former MLC, his bodyguard and an unidentified civilian. The four-storey hotel building caught fire during small hours of the morning when the encounter was continuing but fire fighters extinguihsed the fire later. Those injured in the encounter, included BSF DIF Desh Raj who received a gash in the shoulder last night but his condition was described as stable this morning. 09:21 IST
Rush for coins caused stampede, say eyewitnesses
Thursday, August 28, 2003
Rush for coins caused stampede, say eyewitnesses NASHIK: As millions of pilgrims turned out for the "Mahaparvani" -the most auspicious occasion of the Nashik kumbh on Wednesday- some were not so lucky. At least 33 persons were killed in a stampede at Sardar Chowk near Kalaram Mandir, Panchavati. Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal ordered a magisterial inquiry into the incident and announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh for the kin of the deceased. The incident took place at 2.35 p.m. when some sadhus were returning after the holy bath at Ramkund in Godavari river. On the same road, pilgrims were walking from the opposite direction towards Ramkund. Former corporator, Sanjay Adayprabhu, who was an eyewitness of the incident, said that a sadhu threw some coins, toffees and flowers from his vehicle on the pilgrims. The pilgrims rushed at the coins and toffees, causing the stampede. Another thing that worsened the situation was that at the same time a large number of pilgrims following the sadhus vehicles rushed at the spot. Another eyewitness, Narhari Bhagwat, who was watching the crowds from his balcony from a distance of about 100 metres said that it was because suddenly there was commotion among pilgrims in the narrow road that winds from the south door of Kalaram temple towards Ramkund. He said that he was not aware whether coins were showered by some sadhus as the exact spot where it all began was out of his sight. There is confusion over the immediate cause for the stampede. Some police officials said that the showering of coins caused the stampede, while deputy chief minister Chhagan Bhujbal said that some pilgrims broke barricades, causing the stampede. However, the persons who survived the stampede do not buy the police version. Kiran Sharma (30) from Jehanabad, Bihar, who lost her mother Sitadevi Bahadur Sharan (50), and her aunt Ramkumari Sharma (60). "I think that the police have concocted the story to hide their inefficiency" she said, " There was not even a single police on that road." She further said she was returning after the holy dip when the road got saturated with people. Then with a choked voice she said, "Then suddendly the crowd form the opposite side came on us and we were trampled upon." She said that there was no sadhu on the road at the time of the incident. "They should have kept the flow of people one-way only," she said pointing out that she and her family was caught between the mob charging from the front while the crowd behind kept pushing them forward. Raghunath Kaushik from Bijapur, whose right leg was fractured in the incident also said that there was no showering of coins by any person. "I got trapped because of my wife, Kamaladevi," he said, "We were returning to sadhugram after the bath when the crowd swelled. My wife lost balance and fell down and suddenly there were people all over us." He said that he protected his wife by covering her, but got trampled upon by the crowd. He said that his wife became unconscious for two hours and had regained senses after that. Another pilgrim, Chhabu Gahinaji More from Ozar (Nashik) said that he was returning with his family after the bath and heading for the sadhugram. "There was suddenly a large crowd charging at us from the front and the crowd behind us pushing forward," he said, "And I got trampled upon." He is recuperating at the civil hospital with an injured leg. According to unofficial figures, 49 people died in the stampede, while officials put the figure at 33. Only nine deceased could be identified till evening. The names of the other deceased were not known as they were not carrying any identification papers. The Nashik district civil surgeon Dr Ashok Wankhede told this website's newspaper that he had received 33 dead bodies- 27 women and 7 men. He said that 69 injured persons had also been admitted for treatment. The flow of bodies decreased at the hospital after 5.00 p.m. Dr Wankhede saidthat the hospital had a strength of 550 cots and additional section of 100 beds were specially created for the kumbh. He said that most of the deceased were elderly ladies. Most of the victims were pilgrims returning from the holy dip. Till evening only nine dead bodies had been identified as Seetadevi Jeetbahadur Singh, Mahendiyadevi, Ramkumari Sharma, Sumitradevi Laxmisharan, Mogilal Gundecha, Selubala Mohanty, Indiraben Patel,Seetadevi and Bachhindradevi Sahay. Chaos prevailed at the civil hospital as dead bodies and injured persons continued to be brought into ambulances and official vehicles. The commissionerof police, P T Lohar, said that he was himself confused about the cause of the stampede while district collector Mahesh Zagade said that he would not like to hazard any guess and that the proper person to tell the official version was the police commisssioner.
Karishma to marry Delhi-based businessman
Thursday, August 28, 2003
Karishma to marry Delhi-based businessman MUMBAI: Bollywood's leading star, Karishma Kapoor, who essayed the roles of a firebrand protagonist fighting against all odds in films like Zubeida and Anari, has interestingly opted to settle for a typical traditional arranged marriage with a Delhi-based businessman. The wedding bells for the 28-year-old grand daughter of showman Raj Kapoor with industrialist Sanjay Kapoor of Sona Steering company would ring around Dussehra festival in October. The actress, who was lauded for her role as an obsessive lover married to a member of a royal family in Zubeida or that of a girl born with a silver spoon but defies family pressure to marry a simpleton domestic help in the film Anari, would settle down to being Biwi No 1 by tying the nuptial knot in the traditional fashion. "The marriage is an arranged one and would be performed in the traditional manner in Mumbai around Dussera time," the actress' father Randhir Kapoor told on Thursday. Going by the past experience, the Kapoors have decided to skip the traditional "magni" ceremony. "We will not have an engagement but will straight go ahead and solemnise the wedding," Randhir added. "The date of the wedding has not yet been fixed. We are discussing the matter. The wedding is expected to take place around Dussehra time," Randhir said. On the choice of the groom, he said, "Karishma and Sanjay have known each other. The marriage was arranged through some common friends". The actress, who bagged an award for her role as a friend who sacrifices her love in the box-office hit Dil to pagal hai, had earlier been engaged to actor Abishek Bachchan but called off the marriage reportedly following differences of opinion. The engagement, which was announced with great fanfare by the veteran actor and father of Abhishek, Amitabh Bachchan, during the latter's 60th birthday last October, was called off with neither party going public about the exact reason. However, she had on August 18, emerged in front of the television cameras after a long time to announce her debut in a mega serial -- Karishma, the miracles of destiny.
RDX is the culprit in the twin blasts of Aug 25: Krishnamurthy
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
RDX is the culprit in the twin blasts of Aug 25: Krishnamurthy Mumbai,Wednesday, August 27, 2003: Forensic experts have found use of RDX in the twin car bomb blasts that rocked the city on Monday killing 52 people and injuring over 130. Director of State Forensic laboratory Dr Rukmini Krishnamurthy told their report was based on the samples collected immediately after the blasts at the Gateway of India and Zaveri Bazar. "On the face of it, it does not appear to have had any `external missiles' as was the case in 1993 serial blasts," she said. "The explosive must have been kept in the dicky of the taxis used in the blasts and the CNG cylinders added to the high-explosive device's impact," she said. The remnants of the CNG gas cylinders were found in both the sites thereby confirming that the CNG gas added to the impact of the blast, she said. The tissues of some of the mutilated bodies where identification by the relatives was impossible, have been sent to the forensic lab by the police for identification by DNA fingerprinting technique, Krishnamurthy said.
Blast in Srinagar ahead of Vajpayee's arrival; No casualties
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Blast in Srinagar ahead of Vajpayee's arrival; No casualties Srinagar,Wednesday, August 27, 2003: Hours before the arrival of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee here today, an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) went off in the city but there were no casualties. The IED, planted by militants, near the boundary wall of an abandoned house in Karan Nagar went off at 1010 hrs shattering window panes of nearby houses, official sources said. They said no one was injured in the blast. JKLF vice-chairman Javid Ahmad Mir and three others were arrested when activists of JKLF and Awami Action Committee, constituents of Hurriyat Conference, tried to take out a procession in the city ahead of Prime Minister's arrival. Police arrested them on charges of violating prohibitory orders in force in Srinagar, the sources said. Led by Mir and Shahidul Islam of Awami Action Committee, the activists raised slogans and marched towards Budshah chowk here. Police swung into action and arrested Mir,Islam and two others, the sources said. Residents of the area, protesting the arrests, threw stones at police, the sources said. 12:53 IST
I’m against item songs: Urmila
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
I’m against item songs: Urmila KOCHI: Urmila Matondkar talks about what scares her in real life, her upcoming movies and why she hates item songs. The best compliment you got for Bhoot? From Orlando to Bhuleshwar to Bhayander, people have said I deserve awards. But Rekha discussed my performance for one hour and wrote me a beautiful letter. Do you think you did a good imitation of Linda Blair in The Exorcist? It’s the stupidest thing I’ve heard! I saw The Exorcist years ago, but in that the bed flew, red, blue and green stuff came out of her mouth and her head turned. Bhoothas nothing to do with any horror movie seen before. What scares you? Lizards and snakes make me go yuck. When I was shooting for Kaun, I felt I was reading a Stephen King novel. Once I was wearing the same white outfit and when I passed the mirror, I thought it was very spooky. Any characters you would play from a book? So many, I’m such a book-worm- Anna Karenina. In Tehzeeb, you’re playing Shabana Azmi’ daughter after Masoom. It’s all about relationships, the sparks between characters. People will have a laugh at my expense - all the characters are having fun, but at the base is a volcano. Do you fight as much with your mother? Not a lot. My relationship with my mom is very chilled out. But there’s that feeling - can’t do with them, can’t do without them. Would you give up your career for marriage? No, I think that defies the purpose of a relationship. But sometimes, with the right man and for the right reasons, it’s the obvious next step. It’s moving on to another level. You’re doing another psycho-thriller Ek Hasina Thi. I play a single girl living as a paying guest in Mumbai. It’s funny because this is also the first time I’m working with Saif Ali Khan. Rajkumar Santoshi is also making Khakee. You’re considered his lucky mascot. Are you doing an item song for this film? No, in fact, I’m totally against item songs. They are so cut off from the rest of the movie. I would have beaten everyone hollow if I thought otherwise. But I have done one kick-ass dancing song in Tehzeeb!
Rakesh Roshan
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
MUMBAI: Flush with the spectacular success of his latest release Koi... Mil Gaya, director Rakesh Roshan says the film is special because it breaks Bollywood norms, something the audiences find unsettling. In an interview with IANS, the director spoke of the journey from blockbuster >I>Kaho Na... Pyar Hai to Koi... Mil Gaya, son Hrithik and more. Excerpts: You've done it again! Yes, god has been kind again. I don't know how big Koi... Mil Gaya will eventually be. But the first week's collections have shattered all records in India. No other film has done as much business in the first week. But the collections outside India, especially in the U.S., are disappointing. That isn't entirely true. In the U.S. collections will cross $400,000 in the first week. This isn't a small figure. But, yes, the box office figures in the U.S. aren't going berserk as they're in India. In the U.S. my Kaho Na... Pyar Hai had collected less than $100,000 in the first week. In Britain, Kaho Na...Pyar Hai had collected 63,000 pounds as compared to the 300,000 pounds which Koi...Mil Gaya has collected in the first week. This is almost the same collection as Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham and Mohabbatein in Britain. Would the success of Koi...Mil Gaya encourage you to make further experiments within the mainstream format? Let's see. It depends on the subject. I choose my subjects on intuition. But the film industry is bound to stay away from hackneyed subjects. How much of the success would you attribute to Hrithik's performance? Everything depends on the film. Without a proper subject no actor can do anything. Because the film is good Hrithik's performance has been liked immensely. It's a two-way traffic: first the film gives the actors a push, then the actors push the film. That's what happened to Kaho Na... Pyar Hai. The film ran on its merits. And then Hrithik shouldered it from the fourth week onwards. The audience has to like the film to like the actors. But as a father aren't you happy to see Hrithik again getting his due? Oh yes. What a return! He has come back not only at the box office but also as an actor. I'm thankful to the people for accepting a film that's different. There can be no greater pleasure for a filmmaker than to be accepted for a film where he's gone beyond the expected. I can't understand why people ask me if Koi...Mil Gaya will be as big as Kaho Na... Pyar Hai. It's not in my hands to repeat the success of my earlier films. Let's not forget. Kaho Na...Pyar Hai was accepted as a blockbuster after seven-eight weeks. Even when Spielberg made ET there was a lot of public debate. They had never seen anything like it before. But they still went to see the film. But in Koi...Mil Gaya it isn't the sci-fi but the emotions with Hrithik that work. I'm not comparing my film to ET. We've made our film within a budget of $5 million-$6 million. In Hollywood they've a budget of $400 million. I don't think any Indian film has got special effects as good as mine. Perhaps they were still not good enough? I couldn't have done any better. Within my budget I've created an authentic ambience. When a film is different from the expected it unsettles the audience. When they come out of Koi... Mil Gaya they can't stop talking about it.
Pooja Bhatt weds ‘Udham Singh’ Makhija
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
MUMBAI: When she finally tied the knot, actress and film-maker Pooja Bhatt did it with none of the fanfare that surrounded her staged wedding in father Mahesh Bhatt’s Dil Hai Ki Manta Nahin. Pooja wed hotelier and Channel [V]’s former veejay Munish Makhija at a temple in Goa on Saturday. Her mother was present but father Mahesh Bhatt begged off. ‘‘I have always supported her. But I didn’t attend the function because I feel uncomfortable with anything related to religion,’’ Bhatt said. He added that he was the first person Pooja consulted through an SMS when Makhija proposed. Makhija, famous as Channel [V]’s Udham Singh armed with a lathi buffalo and his deadpan jokes, now runs a restaurant in Goa and dabbles in music. The two are said to have begun their four-month courtship on the sets of Pooja’s directorial debut Paap, starring John Abraham and Udita Goswami, being shot in Sikkim.
Lara Dutta
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
IANS MUMBAI: After playing a sexy city girl in Andaaz, beauty queen turned actress Lara Dutta portrays a village belle in her just released film Mumbai Se Aaya Mera Dost and is hoping audiences will like her this time too. In an interview with IANS, Lara revealed among other things that she was nervous about her new film and co-star Abhishek Bachchan, a "little brat". Excerpts: Your debut Andaaz clicked. Now comes Mumbai Se Aaya Mera Dost. That's what makes me jittery. Andaaz put me on a really firm footing in the industry... I've been extremely cautious with the selection of my films. They can't understand why I insist on knowing what I'm doing in a film before signing on. Thank God, things are changing. It's no longer that shocking for an actress to ask for a script. People were shocked by the amount of skin display in Andaaz. I don't think there was lots of that, at least not in the character that I was playing. I think the makers of Andaaz wanted to cash in on Miss Universe and Miss World, that's me and Priyanka Chopra, being in the film together. Both of us came from an out-there field like modelling and we were comfortable with our bodies. We knew fully well what we were doing, and wearing. I wore what today's college-going girls wear. The only song where there was extra glamour was "Rabba Ishq Na Hove". It wasn't as if I was deliberately trying to be hot and provocative. I was confident I wouldn't look vulgar. Did the success of Andaaz put an added responsibility on you? For starters it made everyone aware that I was serious about my film career. A successful debut also puts a great burden on the debutante. I don't want to be known as a one-film wonder. I've become very cautious about what I sign. I'm not in this business to make hay while the sun shines. In Mumbai Se... I'm poles apart from Andaaz and, if I may say so, lots better. My character in Mumbai Se... is much more vibrant, much more a woman of the earth. But in hindsight I'm glad I was introduced to cinema with Andaaz. Having learnt the ropes of conventional acting it was relatively easier for me to work within a set-up where the crew was closer to me in age and sensibility. Did you have a tough time getting into the rustic groove in Mumbai Se...? The fact that we shot on location in Jaisalmer really helped me to get into character. There was a lot of time to absorb the local colours and flavours. It definitely did take me a while to get adjusted. I remember on the first day I sat down on the sets and my director said, "Hello? This isn't Fifth Avenue". My director Apoorva Lakhiya was very helpful in getting me into character. How was Abhishek after Akshay Kumar? : I call him a little brat. But he's an amazing co-star. Getting fresh off the sets of Andaaz and Akshay Kumar and straight into Mumbai Se... and Abhishek was quite a jump. We were like two school children while our director was the headmaster. Abhishek and I are both outspoken. Once he accepts you as a friend he opens up. I think we've worked really well together. We were constantly playing off one another, so there was a lot of improvisation in our performances. What have you signed now? There's a Venus film Yuddh that Vikram Bhatt is directing. I'm paired with John Abraham. It's an action film and I'm part of the main action. I'm looking forward to doing my own fights. Even in Mumbai Se... you get to see me doing a little bit of Lara Croft in the climax. In my other action film, Madhur Bhandarkar's Aan, I'm not part of the main action. It's a film about cops where I play Akshay Kumar's fiancée. Are you and Priyanka Chopra vying for the same roles after Andaaz? I don't think so. We're two very different actresses. She has very different aspirations. I want to build a base for myself as an actress so that if tomorrow a filmmaker wants to cast me in a Nargis role in Mother India, he'll have the confidence to cast me. I don't want to burn myself out. I don't want the audience to say, 'Oh no, she's in this one too'. Roles of substance aren't easy to come by for women in Bollywood. No they're not. And it's very hard to find the right balance between being a woman of substance and a sex symbol. I want to play the entire gamut. In Dharamesh Darshan's next film for Venus I co-star again with Akshay Kumar and Priyanka Chopra. It's a very young film. What I like about our Hindi movies is the vibrancy... It's an intelligent script with subtle humour. Are you happy with your career? I'm very happy. I've got my plateful. But I'm not overeating. I don't think a film like "Mumbai Se..." is going to come my way in a long, long time.
Going the Bhagyashree route
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
MUMBAI: Bhumika Chawla did the unforgivable at the premiere of her debut Hindi film, Tere Naam. She offered the required thank-yous to her director Satish Kaushik and producers Sunil Manchanda, Gautam Kumar and Mukesh Talreja. Then she committed the ultimate celluloid sin. Referring to co-star Salman Khan, she said, ‘‘Thank you, Salman bhai!’’ Imagine the stir, as the shirtless box-office wonder went red in the face. Of course, he bettered the remark by claiming, ‘‘This is why the film’s called, ‘Unfortunately, a love story’!’’ But Chawla set us thinking. Her clothes (always sarees or salwar-kameez sets); her stance (posing with a pensive expression); and her one-film-at-a-time-funda remind us of another Salman Khan heroine. Yes, we’re talking about Bhagyashree of Maine Pyar Kiya. Remember how she always preferred Indian dresses and gave those touch-me-not-vibes? And they have a similar stance on exposure. Chawla, a Sardarni, goes a little further and says that she’ll also think twice about cutting her locks. ‘‘If I have to lend authenticity to a character, I don’t mind,’’ defends this actress, a well-known name down South. As for exposure, ‘‘I’m not open to it but it depends on how it’s portrayed. If the script demands it and I’m assured the director will portray me aesthetically, then maybe... but, as of now, I won’t.’’ Chawla is also politically correct. Gushing about Khan, she says, ‘‘He’s a gem of a person. He never throws his weight and is a smooth guy to work with.’’ It’s hardly surprising that Tere Naam is close to her heart. ‘‘I could relate to my character, Nirjara, because she’s a simple girl. I, too, believe in Indian culture and traditions.’’ So like all good Indians, she waits her turn. ‘‘I don’t jump into things and like to do one project at a time. I’ve been acting in the South for the last four years and have only done nine films. This is a record, as actors there usually go on signing sprees,’’ adds the actress, who has also acted in the Telugu version of Khushi. Chawla will next be seen with Abhishek Bachchan in Run and rumours float that she may be cast as Salman’s wife in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Bajirao Mastani. ‘‘Offers are pouring in after Tere Naam, but I’m not in a hurry to sign anything,’’ she gives a Bhagyashree-like reply. All this sounds nice, but we hope you know what happened to Bhagyashree!
Abhishek Bachchan shines in slightly boring MSAMD
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Abhishek Bachchan shines in slightly boring MSAMD IANS After Hrithik Roshan in "Koi...Mil Gaya" and Salman Khan in "Tere Naam", for the third week in a row, the leading man scores way above the parent product. In debutant director Apoorva Lakhia's long-awaited desert parable "Mumbai Se Aaya Mera Dost", Abhishek Bachchan fits hand-in-glove into his role of Kanji, the domestic servant in Mumbai who creates cyclonic havoc when he brings a television set and a dish antenna into his newly electrified village. A brilliant premise for a film supported by a team of incredibly proficient actors and technicians. The sandy brown textures of Jaisalmer in the frames are consistently eloquent. Not since "Lagaan" have we seen the desert ambience in such undulating glory. Cinematographer Gururaj R J and music composer Anu Malik make the desert a canvas of kaleidoscopic expressions. Alas, the canvas needed to be filled with more tangible images than the ones writer-director Apoorva Lakhia conjures. Ironically it's Lakhia who spoils a great deal of his work's rustic resplendence by opting repeatedly and annoyingly for overstatement. Initially it's amusing to watch the effects of television on the villagers. Specially funny is their wonderment when they see Aamir Khan kissing Karisma Kapoor in "Raja Hindustani". After a while, however, the satire begins to tire. Repeated invocation of images from commercial Hindi cinema flashing on the television set (indeed, the television set is the other iconic hero of the film) to create a distance between Lakhia's rural Rajasthan and the kitsch quality of life in Hindi cinema, finally comes to a rather laughable and ironic impasse. The very crassness in Hindi films that grips Lakhia's villagers also takes control of his film as "Mumbai Se..." dissolves at an alarming rate into a traditional battle between good and evil with every workable and non-workable cliché crowding the landscape. The classic conflict between the heroic low-caste hero Kanji and the boorish thakur (Yashpal Sharma) is treated by Lakhia with a mixture of arrogance and reverence that finally leaves the narrative totally unanchored. Lakhia has the guts to take on the commercial format headlong and turn it on its head. Hence Kanji and his skittish ladylove KC (Lara Dutta) meet, sing serene duets and even get intimate. At least that's what we presume them to do when he unstrings her trendily styled blouse. Does pre-marital sex between a city-returned hero and an ethnically chic heroine in a semi-primitive village seem incongruous? Director Lakhia lays the filmy elements thick on the plot. Lara Dutta's seductive song-and-dance numbers, choreographed with ambrosial élan by Vaibhavi Merchant, constantly challenge the film's ruggedly real ambience. The scenes in the city showing Kanji with his employers are tacky. The vulgar homophobic jokes in this section are out of step with the rest of the film. To Lakhia's credit, he builds the unevenly paced, sluggish and often repetitive plot to an exciting climax. The battle between the "good and simple" villagers and the evil thakur is well-pitched, exuding an energy and force often lacking in the rest of the narrative. The little tribute to Ketan Mehta's "Mirch Masala" where the village women fight the thakur with chilli powder is specially heart warming. But why on earth is a satellite crew, led by an over-bubby Raageshwari, brought into the plot at this late stage? Besides the breathtaking locales, what makes "Mumbai Se..." watchable, is Abhishek Bachchan. His eloquent eyes, shy smile and vastly improved body language (watch him match steps with Lara Dutta in "Shahar Ka Jadoo" and the Holi song) go a long way in making us bear with the film's flat-footed humour. As for Lara Dutta, she looks as much like a village belle as Zeenat Aman in "Satyam Shivam Sunderam". In both cases the cleavage is required to be the most expressive part. Zeenat would be proud of Lara. The rest of the cast is filled with "Lagaan" actors. This film fails to provide them with the energy to shine once again. Lakhia, who assisted on "Lagaan", pays the other film a homage in the colours, actors, ambience and even an inspirational song "Jeetenge Baazi Hum" that echoes "Baar Baar Hum" in "Lagaan". If only inspiration was echoic. Starring Abhishek Bachchan, Lara Dutta, Yashpal Sharma. Directed by Apoorva Lakhia
World leaders condemn Mumbai twin blasts
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
World leaders condemn Mumbai twin blasts Washington,Tuesday, August 26, 2003: US President George W Bush and UN Secretary General Kofi Annan today joined the international community in expressing outrage over the twin car blasts in Mumbai terming them as "acts of terror", "despicable act" and called for close cooperation among nations to combat the scourge of terrorism. Indian organisations in US and UK also condemned the bombings and demanded strong action by the Indian Government to deter and eliminate terrorists. "I strongly condemn the bombings... On behalf of all Americans, I send condolences to all affected by today's tragedy and to the Government and people of India," Bush said in a statement. "Acts of terror are intended to sow fear and chaos among free peoples. I hope that the perpetrators of these murders will be identified quickly and brought to justice," Bush said. UN Secretary General described the bombings as "despicable acts" of terrorism and said he "adamantly opposed all acts of terrorism, from whatever quarter." Fifty people were killed and about 140 were injured in twin blasts that rocked the famous monument of Gateway of India and city's jewellery market in what intelligence sources suspect is the handiwork of Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and Students Islamic Movement of India (SINI). A Russian Foreign Ministry statement said "the terrorist acts in Mumbai once more highlight the need for close unity of all the members of the world community in combating the global scourge of international terrorism". 10:19 IST
Bush expresses sympathy for lives lost
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Bush expresses sympathy for lives lost in Mumbai blasts New Delhi,Tuesday, August 26, 2003: U S President George W Bush today telephoned Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to voice sympathy for the loss of life in Monday's Mumbai blasts and said in the fight against terror, India has a friend in the US.. PTI 08262206 R NNNN ZCZC URG WEB NAT .MUMBAI WEB122 CLUES Police gather clues of blast suspects, teams go to Guj, Bihar Mumbai, Aug 26 Mumbai police today claimed to have gathered certain clues about those behind the twin car bomb blasts in the metropolis and sent teams to Gujarat, Bihar and various parts of Maharashtra to trace the suspects even as the death toll rose to 52 with two more succumbing to injuries in the hospital. About 100 people across the state had been detained for questioning in connection with Monday's blasts but no arrest had been made so far, Joint Police Commissioner Satyapal Singh told reporters here. Official sources said two among the seriously injured in the blasts died today in the J J hospital The driver of the taxi in which bomb was placed meanwhile told police that a couple had hired his vehicle from suburban Andheri yesterday and placed their baggage in its boot. Based on the clues provided by the driver, police has drawn sketches of the suspects and circulated it across the state. The city gradually recovered from the shock due to the blasts with shops and business establishments opening. Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani and Congress President Sonia Gandhi visited the city to take stock of the situation. The Shiv Sena-BJP opposition combine met the Governor Mohammed Fazal and demanded dismissal of the state government and imposition of President's rule. A section of media reported that Bedal-ul-umar group and Gujarat Revenge Group were suspected to be behind the blasts but no official confirmation was available on this. 22:09 IST
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Centre asks SC not to stay HPCL, BPCL privatisation
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Centre asks SC not to stay HPCL, BPCL privatisation New Delhi,Tuesday, August 26, 2003: Government has asked Supreme Court not to stay the privatisation of oil PSUs HPCL and BPCL as it would lead to irreparable loss and injury to economic sentiments in the country besides impacting the stock markets. Replying to Supreme Court notices on a petition challenging privatisation of Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd and Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd without Parliamentary approval, the Disinvestment Ministry has sought to make out a case for the court not to intervene in the matter citing its earlier ruling in the Balco case. The case is likely to come up for hearing on September 1. Pointing to the Supreme Court ruling in Balco case that "the decision to disinvest and the implementation thereof is purely an administrative decision relating to the economic policy of the state and that is open to the elected Government to follow its own policy", the ministry said Government's disinvestment policy "cannot be made the subject matter of judicial review." It said prior approval of Parliament for disinvesting Government's holding in HPCL and BPCL was not necessary as "in the Acquisition Acts (under which ESSO was nationalised as HPCL and Burmah Shell as BPCL in 1970s) as also in the Companies Act, there are no restrictions on the disinvestment." Shares in BPCL/HPCL were sold during 1991-92 to 1993-94 through executive decisions. "Another PSU - Maruti Udyog Ltd., where acquistion was through an Act of Parliament, was disinvested through executive decisions". 17:29 IST
Scam tainted Home Trade officials arrested
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Scam tainted Home Trade officials arrested New Delhi,Tuesday, August 26, 2003: Delhi Police has arrested the top officials of Home Trade allegedly involved in the multi-crore Government securities scam that shook the financial sector last year. Sanjay Hariom Aggarwal, Ketan Seth and Suboddh Bhandari, Directors and Vice President of Home Trade were arrested from Surat, police said here today. Home Trade is alleged to have siphoned off around Rs 800 crore from urban cooperative banks, concentrated mainly in Gujarat and Maharashtra, by purchasing Government securities on behalf of these banks. Delhi Police action in this regard followed a bunch of FIRs registered on complaints by several companies, including Bajaj Capital, alleging that Home Trade cheated them on the purchase of Government Securities (G-secs) and did not deliver the securities to them. A case was registered against Home Trade under various sections of Indian Penal Code for entering into criminal conspiracy to cheat the investors. Many prominent film and sports personalities had endorsed the scam-tainted company in its promotional acttivities. There are 21 cases against the accused officials of the Home Trade elsewhere in the country, police said. 20:13 IST
Centre to fight terrorism jointly with Maharashtra: Advani
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Centre to fight terrorism jointly with Maharashtra: Advani Mumbai,Tuesday, August 26, 2003: Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani today said the Centre and Maharashtra government will work jointly to fight terrorism. "The Centre and the intelligence agencies will provide all possible assistance to Maharashtra government," he told newspersons after visiting the blast site in Zaveri bazaar, the hub of gold and diamond trade, where one of the two car bombs exploded. On the Sena-BJP demand to dismiss the state government, Advani said "I have come here only to jointly work with the state to fight terrorist activities. "I had talks with Chief Minister Sushilkumar Shinde, Home Minister Chhagan Bhujbal and senior officials about the blasts and am confident that the government would trace the culprits," he said. Comparing yesterday's blasts to those which had shaken Mumbai in 1993 when explosives were placed in scooters, he said "I cannot talk much at this moment except say that the blasts here may have also been carried out by keeping explosives in suitcases and placing them in vehicles". 20:13 IST
Mayawati quits, urges Governor to dissolve assembly
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Mayawati quits, urges Governor to dissolve assembly LUCKNOW,Tuesday, August 26, 2003: IN A SUDDEN DEVELOPMENT, UTTAR PRADESH CHIEF MINISTER TODAY RESIGNED URGING GOVERNOR VISHNU KANT SHASTRI TO RECOMMEND DISSOLUTION OF THE STATE ASSEMBLY PAVING FOR FRESH ELECTIONS. A DAY AFTER RULING OUT HER RESIGNATION TILL THE ASSEMBLY WAS DISSOLVED, MAYAWATI DROVE TO RAJ BHAWAN AND SUBMITTED HER RESIGNATION TO SHASTRI. ADDRESSING A PRESS CONFERENCE AFTER PUTTING IN THE PAPERS, MAYAWATI SAID SHE HAD SOUGHT TO IMPRESS ON THE GOVERNOR THE NEED FOR IMPOSITION OF PRESIDENT'S RULE IN UP TO PREVENT HORSE-TRADING AND BRING AN END TO POLITICAL INSTABILITY IN UP. THE CHIEF MINISTER CLAIMED AT LEAST 40 BJP MLAS WERE READY TO QUIT THE PARTY AND HELP THE OPPOSITION TO FORM AN ALTERNATIVE GOVERNMENT. SHE ALSO CLAIMED SAMAJWADI PARTY HAD APPROACHED SOME BSP MLAS FOR SUPPORT TO FORM AN ALTERNATIVE MINISTRY IN RETURN FOR MINISTERIAL BERTHS AND SAID "THIS IS NOT GOOD FOR DEMOCRACY. IT WILL BE BETTER TO DISSOLVE THE ASSEMBLY AND HOLD FRESH ELECTIONS." MAYAWATI, HOWEVER, SAID BSP WOULD NOT BE AFFECTED IF THE GOVERNOR IGNORED THE SUGGESTION FOR DISSOLUTION OF THE ASSEMBLY. SHE SAID SHE QUIT IN ORDER TO DISPEL THE "DISINFORMATION CAMPAIGN" AGAINST HER BY BJP AND OTHER OPPOSITION PARTIES THAT SHE WANTED TO CLING TO POWER EVEN AFTER BEING REDUCED TO MINORITY FOLLOWING WTHDRAWAL OF SUPPORT BY BJP. MAYAWATI SAID SHE HAD URGED THE GOVERNOR THAT SHE WOULD NOT LIKE TO CONTINUE EVEN AS CARETAKER CHIEF MINISTER.
Vajpayee for making sports integral part of educational curriculum
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Vajpayee for making sports integral part of educational curriculum New Delhi,Tuesday, August 26, 2003: Keen on making sports an integral part of the educational curriculum, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today announced renaming of an existing fund as Prime Minister's Sports Development Fund to attract more contributions and for promotion of sports in the country. "The subject of sports needs to become an integral part of the educational curriculum and effective steps should be taken in this direction," he said inaugurating the All India Sports Congress here. He said the Ministries of Human Resource Devleopment and Youth Affairs and Sports should chalk out a time-bound action plan to include sports in the curriculum. "Let us, today, adopt a motto of 'Fit and Strong India' and try to make sports a part of our lifestyle," he told the audience which included several Union Ministers, Chief Ministers and eminent sports personalities. 14:21 IST
Tendulkar's Ferrari car issue adjourned
Monday, August 25, 2003
Tendulkar's Ferrari car issue adjourned Kochi,Monday, August 25, 2003: The PIL challenging the Rs 1.13 crore duty exemption to Sachin Tendulkar for the Ferrari car gifted to him by Fiat was today adjourned by a division bench of the Kerala high court after the petitioner submitted that he was approaching the Supreme court. When the case was taken up today, the counsel for the NRI petitioner, Sanu Joe Mathew, submitted that he would be approaching the Apex court under Article 129 (A) of the constitution. The article stipulates that cases involving same or substantially same question of law, pending before Supreme court or one or more high courts, and if SC was satisfied it could withdraw the cases pending before various high courts and dispose of all the cases by itself. Following this submission, the bench, comprising chief Justice J L Gupta and Justice A K Basheer adjourned the case. The bench had earlier posted the case for today for a detailed hearing. According to the petitioner, the exemption is "illegal" and "discriminatory" as no public interst was involved in granting the exemption to Tendulkar. If the government had collected the duty from the cricketer, it could have been utilised for some public welfare scheme. Section 25 of the Customs Act empowers the central government to waive customs duty on imported goods if it was satisifed that exemption should be given in public interest. It also stipulates that exemption should be granted only in exceptional cases. Besides, a notification also needs to be published in the gazettee, he said. 16:02 IST
Army help sought for probing blasts
Monday, August 25, 2003
Army help sought for probing blasts New Delhi,Monday, August 25, 2003: Army experts have been called to help in the investigations into the explosions that rocked Mumbai today with possibility of use of RDX explosives not being ruled out. The state government has sought their assistance keeping in view the large scale devastation caused by these blasts. Though sources were tight lipped, it is feared that the vast area of the impact of the blast could have been due to the explosives like RDX or Semtex which are used by terrorists in recent bomb blasts in other parts of the country. 16:02 IST
High alert sounded in Delhi after blasts in Mumbai
Monday, August 25, 2003
High alert sounded in Delhi after blasts in Mumbai New Delhi,Monday, August 25, 2003: In the wake of bomb blasts in Mumbai, state of high alert was today sounded in Delhi which remains a target for terrorists. The entire police force, particularly those deployed at vital installations and other sensitive places, have been sensitised, police sources said. Extra force have been deployed at market and other crowded public places, the sources said. Police pickets have been erected at various places across the Capital and random checking of vehicles is being carried out, they said. Top Delhi police officials held a meeting to review the situation in the Capital in the wake of developments in Mumbai. 15:36 IST
IMF warns India of high deficit, but pegs GDP growth at 5.5%
Monday, August 25, 2003
New Delhi,Monday, August 25, 2003: International Monetary Fund has warned that large fiscal deficit and public debt was hampering India's economic growth, which is slated to go up by 1.0 per cent to 5.5 per cent this fiscal in the face of good monsoon. "India's large fiscal deficits and public debt are exacting an economic cost in term of foregone growth," IMF said, but projected GDP growth of 5.5 per cent for 2003-04 in the face of recovery in agriculture. "The projection for 2003-04, which was broadly in line with the consensus forecast, incorporates a recovery in agriculture. But there is a potential for even a stronger rebound in this sector," the fund said in its latest country report after consultation with Indian government. IMF said inflation was expected to be "moderate" at around 4.5 per cent by end of this fiscal. "The external current account situation is expected to remain in surplus," it said. IMF acknowledged the "resilience" of the Indian economy in warding off recessionary trends worldwide, which was a testimony to the benefits of reforms. But the apparent ease with which the fiscal deficit has been financed, IMF said "there would be detrimental effects on growth through crowding-out of critically needed spending on fiscal and social capital and through the pre-emption of resources for private investments." "Large fiscal imbalances leave little room for manoeuver in the face of shocks and have tended to result in ad hoc policy changes, which increase investment uncertainties," IMF cautioned. 16:02 IST
Share prices tumble as bomb blasts rock Mumbai
Monday, August 25, 2003
Share prices tumble as bomb blasts rock Mumbai Mumbai,Monday, August 25, 2003: Share values crashed across the board around midsession on the Mumbai Stock Exchange as news of a series of explosions having rocked the city filtered in this afternoon. From the Intra-day's high of 4170.58, the BSE sensitive index tumbled to 3945.45 before being quoted at 3950.64 at 2 p.m. All 30 index-based counters including heavyweights RIL, HLL, Infosys Tech, BHEL, Grasim, HPCL, SBI, ITC, L&T, Satyam Computer, Telco and Tisco were quoted sharply lower. Operators turned heavy sellers as the news filtered in, a broker said. Among major losers, Zee Tele was quoted down by 15.09 per cent, SAIL by 9.74 per cent, ACC by 7.30 per cent, BPCL by 6.33 per cent, BHEL by 6.08 per cent, RIL by 2.57 per cent and HLL by 2.98 per cent. 14:29 IST
42 killed in two blasts in Mumbai
Monday, August 25, 2003
42 killed in two blasts in Mumbai Mumbai,Monday, August 25, 2003: Two powerful bomb blasts in crowded areas of the city today killed at least 42 people and injured over 150, officials said even as security forces were put on high alert in Maharashtra and neighbouring Gujarat. Police sources said that explosives concealed in two taxis went off in quick succession in the vicinity of Mumbadevi near the crowded Zaweri bazaar and Gateway of India. Twenty-six people were declared dead before admission at J J hospital and 85 others were admitted with serious injuries, Maharashtra Health Minister Digvijay Khanvilkar told PTI. At G T hospital, three persons were declared dead before admission while 35 were admitted with serious injuries. City police commissioner R S Sharma said the explosions were suspected to be the handiwork of terrorists but so far no one has claimed responsibility for the blasts. The explosions occurred in Gujarati dominated areas prompting the authorities in Maharashtra and Gujarat to put the security forces on high alert. 16:02 IST
Cabinet reshuffle on the cards
Sunday, August 24, 2003
New Delhi,Saturday, August 23, 2003: Top BJP leaders at a meeting here this evening are believed to have discussed a minor cabinet reshuffle. The meeting at the residence of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was attended among others by Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani, Finance Minister Jaswant Singh and BJP President M Venkaiah Naidu. While Naidu declined to comment on the meeting, party sources indicated that a minor reshuffle cum expansion was on the cards. Interestingly, Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee who is expected to join the cabinet was present for half an hour at the Prime Minister's residence during the meeting but told reporters that she did not attend the meeting and had merely gone to invite the Prime Minister's family for Durga Puja. "No news," she shouted when asked by waiting reporters whether she had any good news (about her induction). Besides, Banerjee, speculation is rife about the possible induction of BJP Chief Whip in Parliament V K Malhotra in the cabinet. Malhotra is currently the Chairman of the National Sports Council of India and enjoys cabinet status. Besides, some ministers of state including Vijay Goel are likely to be given independent charge, party sources said. 21:50 IST
India in 'sleepy mode', says Sri Lanka President's aide
Sunday, August 24, 2003
India in 'sleepy mode', says Sri Lanka President's aide Colombo,Saturday, August 23, 2003: India has gone into a "sleepy mode" and is unaware of the growing strength of Tamil Tigers in north-eastern district of Trincomalee that could threaten Indian interests, a top aide of Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga has said. New Delhi had been lulled into believing that there was peace in Sri Lanka, President's International Affairs advisor and former Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar told the Foreign Correspondent's Association of Sri Lanka Friday night. "India has gone into a sleepy mode... to the extent that they consider the only problem for them is Pakistan," he said. Kadirgamar, who had just returned from New Delhi, said he drew India's attention to the growing strength of Tamil Tiger rebels in the north-eastern port district of Trincomalee where Indian Oil company has a facility. "India must be ready. India must be prepared and should not be taken unawares," he said suggesting that the rebels could go back to fighting despite a truce in place since February last year. He said India should consider setting up a separate cell in New Delhi to study and analyse the developments in Sri Lanka because he felt that the Indian authorities did not have a correct assessment of what is going on here.
Pak says India adopting "coercive means"
Sunday, August 24, 2003
Pak says India adopting "coercive means" Islamabad,Saturday, August 23, 2003: Charging India with adopting "coercive means", Pakistan has written letters to UN General Assembly and the Security Council to urge New Delhi to start composite dialogue with Islamabad and agree for a ceasefire on the Line of Control. In letters addressed to the UN General Assembly and Security Council Presidents, Pakistan's Permanent Ambassador to the UN Munir Akram said "so far, there is no talk about talks, no roadmap and no signpost for moving towards a genuine process for peace and security in South Asia". Calling upon the international community to urge India to agree for resumption of composite dialogue, he said "a bilateral dialogue is not a favour which either country would bestow on the other. "India's demand that Pakistan make unilateral concessions to its position is designed to frustrate not facilitate a dialogue. India's aversion to talks, is premised on seeking concessions from Pakistan unilaterally through coercive means". 18:20 IST
Cabinet approves new pension scheme
Sunday, August 24, 2003
Cabinet approves new pension scheme New Delhi,Saturday, August 23, 2003: Government plans to come up with a contributory pension scheme for its employees who joined service after October 2002, but deferred a decision (rpt deferred a decision) to set up a National Tax Tribunal to speed up settlement of disputes. The decision on the pension scheme was taken by the Union Cabinet at its meeting here today. The new contributory pension scheme, managed by independent fund managers, has been mooted by the Finance Ministry for all government staff, as part of efforts to reduce government's pension liabilities, sources said. One-tenth of the basic pay of government staff and dearness allowance will be deducted from their salary and put in the pension fund with the Centre making a matching contribution. Government would mandate the proposed Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority to licence the new pension funds. The new scheme follows the recommendations made by the B K Bhattacharya Committee that went into Centre's own pension provisions. 17:53 IST
Aussies trounce Argentina to reciprocate India's favour
Sunday, August 24, 2003
Aussies trounce Argentina to reciprocate India's favour Amstelveen (Holland),Saturday, August 23, 2003: Australia set up yet another India-Pakistan clash when they hammered Argentina 8-3 to join Holland in the final of the 25th Champions Trophy hockey tournament here today. The victory took Australia's tally to 10 points at the end of the league, while Argentina, who needed to win today to make the final, remained on six, the same as India. However, India (-2) finished ahead of Argentina (-5) in the league standings on superior goal-difference. India thus will play Pakistan tomorrow for the bronze medal. Argentina take on Germany for the 5-6 spots. The awesome Aussie firepower was well in evidence as Michael McCann (12th, 53rd), Craig Victory (28th), Grant Schubert (39th, 56th), Troy Elder (55th), Robert Hammond (59th) and Tristam Woodhouse (63rd) came up with clinical finishes. Argentina, hopelessly outplayed in the second-half, had their moments of success when Jorge Lombi (45th, 68th) and Carlos Retegui (57th) scored. Later, in an inconsequential match, the Netherlands got past Germany 6-0, without raising much of a sweat and top the table with 13 points. Germany, fielding a development team, suffered their fifth straight defeat. The Dutch virtually sealed the issue in the first-half when, during a nine-minute spell, they struck thrice through penalty corner specialist Bram Lomans (20th, 29th) and Karel Klaver (25th) before easing off. 21:50 IST
Two killed, 9 injured as passenger train collides with engine
Sunday, August 24, 2003
New Delhi,Saturday, August 23, 2003: Two persons were killed and nine injured after a Rohtak-bound train collided head-on with a stationary engine in a West Delhi area this evening, police said. The two engines also caught fire after train from Tilak Bridge collided with the engine at Shakur Basti station in Rani Bagh at around 7.35 PM, they said. Altogether 11 people were injured in the mishap and two of them died on way to the hospital, they said. Seven injured have been admitted to Sanjay Gandhi Hospital while one each is undergoing treatment in Jaipur Golden and Agrasen Hospitals, they said. The blaze has been doused, police said. Delhi Lt Governor Vijai Kapoor, Police Commissioner R S Gupta along with senior railway and police officials have rushed to the spot. 21:50 IST
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna to Anjali, Beenamol
Saturday, August 23, 2003
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna to Anjali, Beenamol New Delhi,Saturday, August 23, 2003: Bowing to pressure from various quarters, the government on Friday deviated from its existing policy and selected two sportpersons -- athlete K M Beenamol and shooter Anjali Bhagwat -- for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, the country's highest sporting honour. The government also named 21 sportspersons for the Arjuna award 2002, accepting in toto the original recommendations of the Arjuna Awards Committee, which had triggered off a controversy by submitting a list with recommendations in excess of the number stipulated in guidelines. Five sportspersons have been named for the Dhyan Chand award for lifetime achievent while an equal number were selected for the Dronacharya award. 09:28 IST
Malaysian MP takes up Indian workers' cause
Saturday, August 23, 2003
Malaysian MP takes up Indian workers' cause Kuala Lumpur,Saturday, August 23, 2003: A Malaysian parliamentarian on Friday took up the cause of Indian workers who took refuge in a local Gurdwara while fighting for justice against their employer for cancelling their work permits. Kerk Kim Hock of the opposition Democratic Action Party in Malacca on the southwest coast of Malaysia said he would fight to eradicate abuse of migrant labour rights. The 38 Indian workers were fighting against Technointan Holding, a company based in Malacca. "I am appalled at the number of reports against employers about the breach of contract. I want all these cases to be investigated and resolved," said Kerk. This type of news brings down the image of the country, it is high time that Malaysian government deal with the situation with utmost seriousness," he added. Kerk said he would bring this issue in the parliament session starting next month. "Whereas foreign workers come to Malaysia to earn money, Malaysia also needs foreign workers and if these cases are true, I am afraid other countries may take tough measures," he said. "I will call upon the ministry of Human Resources to intervene in the case. Secondly we must have proper government to government agreement on recruitment of foreign workers to stop such incidents in future," Kerk added. Reports said that Technointan Holding also tried to deport the workers, who had obtained their jobs paying heavy sums of money six months ago through Mumbai-based Gulf Exports, run by one Kamal Sharma, who recruited them through agents in Punjab and Andhra Pradesh.
Vajpayee holds meeting on CAS, Khurana says Delhi to be spared
Saturday, August 23, 2003
New Delhi,Saturday, August 23, 2003: Amid assertion by Delhi BJP chief Madan Lal Khurana that the capital would be spared from CAS implementation for now, the issue was discussed at a top-level meeting convened by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee but no decision was taken as it remained "inconclusive". Attended by Deputy Prime Minister,L K Advani, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, Law Minister Arun Jaitley, BJP General Secretary V K Malhotra and Khurana, the meeting discussed whether CAS implementation should be deferred in Delhi beyond September one or could be introduced in some other form like dual-use, sources told PTI. The hour-long meeting did not take any decision as it remained "inconclusive", they said, adding another round of discussions would be held soon over the issue. Prasad refused to speak on the matter after the meeting. Fearing backlash in the Assembly polls due in November, Delhi BJP has been vociferously opposing implementation of the controversial Conditional Access System in the capital for now. Having fresh memories about 1998 when the party lost power due to onion shortage, BJP apprehends that Congress could take advantage of "initial problems" that might occur in CAS implementation. Before the meeting, Khurana claimed that he had virtually been assured by Vajpayee and Advani that CAS would not be implemented in Delhi along with other Metros on September one. 09:28 IST
Six Pak ultras, four army personnel killed in Poonch encounter
Saturday, August 23, 2003
Jammu,Saturday, August 23, 2003: Six Pakistani militants trying to infiltrate into Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir were killed in an encounter with army in which four personnel also lost their lives, official sources said here today. The exchange of fire which occurred in mendhar sector of the district on Friday night lasted several hours and also left three personnel injured, the sources said. Three junior commissioned officers were among the army personnel killed in the encounter. The militants, after crossing over to the Indian side, had tried to flee into the forests of Gani area on being challenged by army, they said. Six AK rifles and some ammunition were seized from the encounter site.
BSNL to roll out 10 million mobile phone connections
Friday, August 22, 2003
BSNL to roll out 10 million mobile phone connections Srinagar,Thursday, August 21, 2003: Bouyed by the success of its Cellone service, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) today said it had set a target of rolling out 10 million mobile telephone connections in the country for which work would begin from April next year. "We are planning to roll out one crore telephones on mobile and hope that it can be started from April next year," BSNL Chairman-cum-Managing Director Pritpal Singh told reporters here. Singh said the state-run telephone service provider would roll out another 2.5 million connections by the end of current financial year which would also cater to expansion of subscriber base in Jammu and Kashmir. "We are improving the infrastructure that will cover 800 important towns, which were not covered untill now, roads and highways all over the country," Singh said. He said BSNL was also in the process of improving the services provided to the customers by way of value addition. The customers will not only be able to access voice telephone but data services as well, he said, adding infrastructure for the purpose had already been tested and the services would be implemented in near future. Singh said BSNL, which has marked a 100 per cent increase in subscriber base in the past four years and registered 36 lakh mobile subscribers since October last year, would soon introduce short message service (sms) facility on the fixed landlines.
Thousands pray for Paes in Kolkata
Friday, August 22, 2003
Thousands pray for Paes in Kolkata Kolkata,Thursday, August 21, 2003: Kolkatans prayed for Leander Paes at churches, mosques and temples after this metropolis, hometown to the 30-year-old tennis ace, woke up this morning to the disturbing news of him suffering from a brain cyst. Special prayers were also held at the global headquarters of Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity here, a place Leander frequented alongwith his father whenever he was in town. Leander's father, Dr Vece Paes, who could not leave for the US Wednesday evening as he missed the connecting flight, had some encourating news to share. "He is now stable. The headache has gone. He seems more cheerful and better now," the senior Paes told PTI. Reports from Orlando were also encouraging as Clarence Brown III, President and CEO of M D Anderson Cancer Centre where the India star is admitted, said "Leander is in excellent spirits." "He is physically strong and currently able to exercise and perform yoga. His appetite is excellent," he said. Paes, a winner of six Grand Slam doubles titles and former doubles world number one, will be out of action for at least a month. He will miss the US Open and is also doubtful for next month's Davis Cup world group qualifying match against Holland. 21:35 IST
SC asks CBI to complete Taj Heritage Corridor probe by Sept 11
Friday, August 22, 2003
SC asks CBI to complete Taj Heritage Corridor probe by Sept 11 New Delhi,Thursday, August 21, 2003: Indicating involvement of "high and mighty" of Uttar Pradesh Government in the Taj Heritage Corridor (THC) scam, the Supreme Court today directed CBI to interrogate "four to five important persons" mentioned in the "interim secret" report submitted by the investigating agency. Turning down CBI's plea for four months time to complete the probe, a Bench comprising Justice M B Shah and Justice AR Lakshmanan directed a "higher officer of CBI t |
