Vol. 2 Issue 25 10.00 24 PagesRNI Reg. No.: PUNMUL/2012/45041 Postal Reg. No. PB/JL-047/2013-15 SUNDAY 23 JUNe 2013

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Nature’s fury, human greed and sleeping on the dead...Mohit DubeyThose who survived the cloudburst and flood that ravaged Uttarakhand are limping back home with harrowing tales of spending four days without food and water, being forced to pay Rs.200 for a Rs.5 biscuit packet, and of a former Bihar minister who slept on a “layer of dead bodies”.The hundreds and thousands returning to safety from the rain ravaged Kedar Valley and other parts of devastated Ut-tarakhand have stories to narrate of human insensitivity, as some locals are fleecing the trapped pilgrims and tourists in the wake of shortages of food supply, shelter, medicines and drinking water. The rescued say those still trapped in far-flung areas are being sold water bottles at Rs.100 a piece and a biscuit packet that normally costs Rs.5 for Rs.200. And there is nothing we can do, said Nutan Shukla, a resi-dent of Uttar Pradesh’s Bareilly who claims to have paid Rs.5,000 for one-time meal for herself and her group of five.Jaipal, a resident of Kaithal in Haryana, told that he was caught in a landslide on way back from Gangotri and had to spend four days without food and water. “We were locked in the bus...I guess the deaths are much higher than what is being claimed,” he said minutes after landing at the Jolly Grant airport in Dehradun. Former Bi-har minister Ashvani Kumar Chaubey, who was trapped in Kedarnath with his entourage of family members and secu-rity men, told reporters on returning to Dehradun that he has never seen anything like this. He said he slept on a “layer of dead bodies” and saw many protect their dead and refuse to leave the area without tak-ing them. Some, he added, however, creamated their loved ones and proceeded to safety. The magnitude of the misery caused by weekend torrential rains and flash floods is now becoming clear, with some officials fearing that the toll may be frighteningly high.Neha Mishra, resident of Yamuna Vihar in New Delhi, who lost her mother, grandmother and another relative in the trag-edy at Kedarnath, said she was “saddened at the apathy and greed of the locals who are trying the best to make most of the tragedy”. Gujarat’s Ramesh Solanki said he was amazed to see how locals were fleecing them for essential items like food even as they waited for the army helicopters to come and take them to safety. Nand Kishore from Rajasthan said he would not return to “this part of the world ever again”.“What I have seen in the last four-five days will never be for-gotten. I am thankful to God that I am alive but I will never come back here,” he said.Eyewitness accounts said more than two dozen people died on the way to Kedarnath due to cold, fatigue and hunger. Army soldiers involved in the rescue operations briefed R. Meenakshi Sundaram, the state government official deputed to oversee the rescue. Sundaram, who spent doing aerial surveys of the disaster struck areas, admitted that bodies were strewn all over the area and that the toll could be much higher.The authorities also admitted that while many people are alive in the thickets between Soneprayag and Kedarnath, Jangal Chatti, Rambada, Garunchatti and Dhinurpaani, the fact that they are going without food and water could raise the number of deaths. Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna ob-served the fact that over 500 roads have been damaged and 200 bridges washed away makes the problem of rescue even bigger. “Now rescue is solely by choppers, both of the air force and the 20 private choppers that we have hired. But they too have their limits,” pointed out the chief minister who said with the relief camps and ‘rain basera’ full, the biggest challenge now is to take people from here to plains where there is normalcy.A senior official told that they are now worried about the prospects of more rain coming to Uttarakhand in the next few days. The Met department has forecast inclement weather and more rains in the region from June 23. This, officials fear, would not only jeopardize the rescue operations but would also snap the last ray of hope for thousands still stranded. Officials say more than 51,000 people are still stranded at various places while over 24,000 have been rescued to safety.

UN chief hails G8 leaders’ understanding on Syria

Five-star luxury returns to Kashmir

Page 6 Page 10

TSUNAMI IN THE HILLS

In damage similar to an oceanic Tsunami, rains in Himalayas have wreaked havoc

Extensive Coverage on Page 12-13

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2 CHANDIGARHSUNDAY 23 June 2013OPINION

eDITORIAL DeSK Manu Sharma

Furious By Nature

It is Gujarat versus Gujarat in UP

The Earth was once a realm of Dino-saurs, the mighty reptiles who were bigger, stronger and more powerful than all other classes of creatures. All it took to wipe out their entire bouquet of species was a random cataclysmic incident that changed the Earth’s ecosystem. There were no greenhouse gas emissions, no human induced climate change, rampant construction or heavy earth structures back then! Destruction and disasters are not endemic to post in-dustrial age. It is in this context that one must analyse the great calamity

When Modi’s trusted man Amit Shah was made the in-charge of UP by BJP it was understood that Gujarat strongman would deploy his sharpest knife in the battle. Not be left behind the Congress has inducted its own Gujarati in the house Madhusudan Mistry as party in-charge of UP. Mistry is widely credited with creating the poll strategy for INC’s Karnataka win this year. Sources also claim that he is amongst the few guys who better understand the strategic thinking of Shah’s poll machinery.

that has come to visit Uttarakhand.Self styled environmentalists, activ-ists and busybodies should refrain from commenting on a developing situation that begs for a concerted search and rescue effort. The Hima-layas in the Uttarakhand are notori-ous for narrow valleys that produce high pressure streams of run offs in case of minor increases in water flows. These events of high veloc-ity flooding can wreak havoc in case of high density population centres. Luckily enough upper Uttarakhand is a sparsely populated region, but

Uttar Pradesh contributes 80 Lok Sabha seats to the parliament and thus controls the fate of both na-tional parties. BJP ruled the roost till it was a major player in UP’s electoral arena and Congress never got a majority on its own since it lost UP to other political play-ers. The Mistry versus Shah battle royale in Uttar Pradesh has all the makings of a political page turner. What is of interest to the nation is that most populous state of the country is being handled by strat-egists from Gujarat. Perhaps a tes-

this time being pilgrimage season, there were many temporary clusters of high density population in the re-gion.The death toll and the damage wreaked in heart wrenching but it is also a reminder to us of the power and fury of nature. Given the scale and terrain of this natural disaster there is a need to get almost all that we have in terms of airlift capabil-ity to the disaster site and save lives. Thousands maybe gone but we must fight tenaciously for even a single living person in distress there.

tament to the shifting ideological moorings of the polity or a result of demonstration effect of Gujarat’s progressive image.This shift in political centre of gravity can upset traditional politi-cal arithmetic relied upon by the re-gional parties and hence it begs a closer observation than is the case currently. Will the two Gujaratis introduce lasting and deep changes in the political ethos of politically most significant state of India? For that we will have to wait for the next Lok Sabha elections.

LETTER TO THE EDITORLetters may be emailed to the editoruconnect@gmail.com ,with full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

India’s poor need more purchasing power, not doles

The welfare subsidies, if one recaps, were introduced by the European rul-ers following the French revolution to entice their subjects. Such welfare subsidies did not adversely affect the overall economy since there had been easy flow of capital - predominately generated from the captive markets of their colonies spread over the world. Similarly, in the US, following the anti-apartheid movement, social sec-tor schemes were mooted to appease its socially backward communities, largely black habitants.After the Second World War, the de-colonisation process gradually set in and, with the passage of time, Eu-ropean colonies waned. Thus, they not only lost their captive markets but also easy access to cheaper in-puts like labour and materials from their erstwhile colonies. Following globalisation-cum-opening of the global markets, stiffer competition was being faced by these countries, especially with consumer products. With the shifting scenario it became necessary for most of these nations to revisit their welfare policies, es-pecially to prune the unsustainable social development programmes.While most of these social sector schemes have attracted severe criti-cism for their repeated failure to de-liver the contemplated benefits to the targeted groups, a grandiose welfare scheme named as the National Food Security Bill is proposed to secure food for two-thirds of our population. The proposed programme is to pro-vide 5 kg of subsidised foodgrain per person per month, which would cost the exchequer around Rs.124,747 crore ($21 billion) in the very first year. This scheme has raised several doubts amongst notable economists and professionals, both in the coun-try and abroad, about the rightness of spending such a huge amount out of the exchequer, especially at a time when the country’s economy is at its lower ebb.

India’s growth trajectory is at present shaky due to increasing gaps between the government’s annual revenue in-come and expenditure. India’s pres-ent growth reversal has raised sev-eral doubts on the viability of such policy initiatives of the government. According to Deepak Lal, James S. Coleman Professor Emeritus of Inter-national Development Studies at the University of California at Los An-geles, the growth rate has slipped in India due to the diminishing tax rev-enues but enlarged spending, espe-cially on politically-motivated unsus-tainable welfare schemes. According to Lal, the “trickle-down” from rapid growth cannot redress India’s pov-erty; it showed a shocking failure to recognise the outcome of the recent period of rapid growth in reducing poverty in India.Ashok Gulati, chairman, Commis-sion for Agricultural Costs and Prices in India’s agriculture ministry, in a recent interview stated that the coun-try has largely followed a ‘price pol-icy approach’ to achieve essentially what are the equity ends. It has sub-sidized food and agricultural inputs so that poor consumers and small farmers can have economic access to these. But the ground evidence sug-gests that this may not be the best way to achieve equity objectives. It has led to major distortions in mar-kets besides high costs in handling foodgrain over and above diversions to non-targeted groups. These have resulted in large ‘efficiency losses’ without achieving commensurate re-sults on the equity front.Literature on best practices around the world too showed that ‘income policy approach’ rather than ‘price policy approach’ is more efficient in achieving equity ends and this has been successfully adopted by many countries across the world. Specific criticism of subsidy schemes are par-ticularly open to corruption and mis-management, besides posing a heavy

burden on government budgets.It has been amply proved that pov-erty and food insecurity exist for want of access to education, health-care and, most significantly, gain-ful employment. This very ‘income policy approach’ in achieving equity has already been very skilfully dem-onstrated in India with the success of the well-known ‘Anand Model’ of dairy development. It is, therefore, more prudent to revisit this model, especially in the present context of the proposed food security scheme.While dwelling on the food security scheme vis-a-vis the ‘Anand Model’, it would be worthwhile to spool back the erstwhile food aid programme of the UN. The objectives underpinned in the programme were, to a certain extent, similar to those proposed in the food security scheme of India. The UN programme was contem-plated to provide food security to the third world nations by distributing the accumulated surplus food com-modities in the developed countries. This programme, however, came under severe criticism for its misap-plications, besides using food aid as a tool for expansion of the commodity trade in the third world markets by the donor nations!Most of the third world nations were hemmed into food aid dependency. India, in contrast, succeeded in mon-etising the commodity aid to en-hance indigenous growth-cum-self-sufficiency. The globally acclaimed Operation Flood programme, which ushered in milk sufficiency in India, would remain a rare testimony. This exception would not have taken place in India had not a visionary leader, the late Varghese Kurien, been there to evolve an appropriate developmental model. His model had successfully demonstrated as to how food aid can be used for creating gainful em-ployment, besides ushering in socio-economic benefits to the millions of destitutes-cum-unprivileged in India.

By Animesh Banerjee

By Ranvir Nayar

Rafale deal is progressing, not bogged down: Indian ministerThe $10.4 billion contract for 126 multi-role medium range combat air-craft that India has awarded to French aircraft maker Dassault for its Rafale aircraft has not got bogged down in any controversy nor were certain is-sues holding it up, Minister of State for Defence Jitendra Singh has said.“It is not stuck anywhere. It is the biggest deal of its kind in the world and, of course, a very complex one too. They are talking to HAL and the private sector companies in India as well; so it is progressing,” Jitendra Singh told IANS in an interview on the sidelines of the 50th Paris Air Show.Rafale had last January emerged the winner of the Indian Air Force (IAF) tender, fighting off stiff competition from five other jets. Protracted price negotiations are currently under way as issues like lifecycle costs and transfer of technology terms need to be factored in.Indian officials had often said they hoped to wrap up the deal in the 2012-13 fiscal that ended March 31. However, with less than a year to go for the general election, the issue is likely to be decided only by the new government. The elections are due in Arpil-May 2014 but could be ad-vanced depending on the evolving political scenario.“India has a great potential and could

become a hub for defence produc-tion. We have the talent, we have the capabilities, now all we need is tech-nology for that to happen. The min-istry, in its 2013 Defence Procure-ment Policy, has taken the steps to facilitate the involvement of both the public and private sectors in defence production,” he said.The Paris Air Show, Jitendra Singh said, “has once again demonstrated that there is a great deal of enthusi-asm not only among French compa-nies but also among others around the world to work with India as they have realised that the country is one of the biggest markets for them globally”.“One of my key objectives during this visit is to meet various global defence companies and try and understand their problems and the roadblocks that they face in doing business with India so that the government can take appropriate steps to remove these,” said Jitendra Singh, who visited the Paris Air Show on Wednesday, ac-companied by a high-level team from his ministry.He visited some of the key traditional defence partners of India, including the European aerospace giant EADS, during his quick tour of arguably the world’s largest air show. Jitendra Singh would also be meet-ing French Defence Minister Jean Yves Le Drian to discuss various di-mensions of bilateral ties.

World Bank: Turn Down The HeatLate last year, the World Bank re-leased a report – Turn Down the Heat – which concluded the world would warm by 4°C by the end of this century if concerted action was not taken now. A new report, released today, spells out an alarming scenario that could unfold as a result of global warming.The new report - Turn Down The Heat: Climate Extremes, Regional Impacts and the Case for Resilience – looks at the likely impact of warm-ing on agricultural production, water resources, coastal ecosystems and cities across three regions - South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and South East Asia. It assesses impacts at pres-ent day temperatures of 0.8°C above pre-industrial levels, as well as in a world that is warmer by 2°C and 4°C.The report finds that if the world warms by 2°C - which may hap-pen within the next 20 to 30 years - widespread food and water short-ages could unfold, together with prolonged droughts, unprecedented heat-waves, more intense rainfall and flooding, and a significant threat to energy production.These are not challenges looming at the end of the century, the report says. Rather, severe impacts can be-gin to appear within the next 10-20 years, within the span of the current generation. Already, a warming trend has begun to emerge over South Asia, and India’s large and growing popu-lation is experiencing water stress in many parts.Increasing temperatures, changing rainfall patterns, declining snowfall, retreating glaciers, and declining groundwater can make the situation

even worse. Impacts can be aggra-vated by rising sea-levels and more intense tropical cyclones, precipitat-ing a major crisis for food security and the rural economy.Urban populations cannot escape the consequences of global warming, ei-ther. Densely populated urban areas, especially those with unplanned ur-banization, would be increasingly at risk from prolonged spells of extreme heat, floods, and disease.The case for resilience has never been stronger. Already, our world is 0.8°C above pre-industrial levels of the 18th century. Irrespective of future emission paths, the warming already underway will lead to a num-ber of climate impacts. Many of the worst impacts could still be avoided by holding warming below 2°C, but the window for action is narrowing rapidly.The onus is clearly on today’s gener-ation to develop heat and drought re-sistant crops, improve ground water management, invest in water storage infrastructure, build adequate flood defenses, improve energy efficiency and the performance of renewable energies, ‘climate-proof’ critical public infrastructure that is locked in for long periods, and make cities more resilient to climate change. To minimize damage from floods and cyclones to human life and property, strong building codes will need to be enforced.In a very real sense development is the best adaptation – investing in skills, health, knowledge, better in-frastructure and a more diversified economy will render countries more climate-resilient.

CHANDIGARH SUNDAY 23 June 2013 3CABINeT ReSHUFFLe

Manmohan inducts eight veterans with eye to pollsNew DelhiPrime Minister Manmohan Singh inducted eight veterans into the union council of ministers, evi-dently with an eye to state assem-bly elections this year-end, but the exercise was seen as lacklustre with no new or young faces and a preponderance of senior citizens.With general elections less than a year away, the prime minister evi-dently played safe and brought in only people with a proven track re-cord in the party.Of the eight ministers, the young-est was 59 years old, while the old-est was Sis Ram Ola at 85 - bely-ing speculation that the Congress would induct new blood in the cabinet.This is the fourth major reshuffle in UPA-II.Those inducted as cabinet min-isters are seen as Sonia loyalists, contrary to reports that some mem-bers of Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi’s core team would be included. Those inducted as cabinet min-isters are Sis Ram Ola (Labour), Oscar Fernandes (Road Transport and Highways), Girja Vyas (Hous-ing and Poverty Alleviation) and K.S. Rao (Textiles). Those brought in as ministers of state are: Manik Rao Gavit (Social Justice and Em-powerment, Santosh Chowdhary (Health), E.M.S. Natchiappan (Commerce and Industry) and J.D. Seelam (Finance).Veteran Congressman Mallikarjun Kharge’s portfolio was changed from labour to railways, after C.P. Joshi stepped down to join the par-ty organization.Ola and Vyas are heavyweights from Rajasthan, where elections are slated later this year. Andhra has two faces - Rao and Seelam, where the Congress is hoping to resolve the contentious Telangana separate statehood issue. Fer-nandes is from Karnataka, where the Congress came back to power last month.

After the oath-taking ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan, Prime Min-ister Manmohan Singh expressed hope that the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) would come back to power for the third term. “I have always believed that we will have a third go as UPA and the people will again repose their faith in us,” he said.The prime minister also reiterated what he has maintained for long, that he would be “happy” to see Rahul Gandhi “step into his shoes”.“I will very happy to see Rahul Gandhi step into my shoes,” Singh said adding that he always believed that Rahul Gandhi had the qualities to lead the UPA.The reshuffle comes a day after a Congress organizational revamp, which saw the infusion of younger blood into the powerful All India Congress Committee that had the stamp of Rahul Gandhi.The age factor of the ministers seemed significant as it came on a day that newly-appointed party general secretary Ajay Maken said that the Congress was focusing on the demographics of a young India where more than 60 percent of the population is below 30 years.Maken, addressing his first press conference, said that the AICC re-vamp Sunday had resulted in the

average age of the office bearers being 52 years. “Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi have together put together the most youthful team of office bearers. Rahul is a youth leader, his stamp is clearly visible. The average age of the AICC is 52 years,” he said. “The party revamp was done keep-ing the average age of the youth of India,” he said.The BJP immediatly took a dig at the cabinet reshuffle.“This is a dead reshuffle. This is the way the Congress would want to pay respect to elders,” Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said.Communist Party of India’s D. Raja said the rejig was a “neces-sity” for the Congress as many al-lies had quit.Though Manmohan Singh had said during November’s reshuffle that it would be the last one possibly be-fore the general election, Monday’s was necessitated due to the exit of erstwhile UPA allies - the DMK and the Trinamool Congress, as well as the resignations of minis-ters C.P. Joshi and Ajay Maken last week to join the party organization. Tainted ministers Pawan Kumar Bansal and Ashwani Kumar had stepped down a month ago.

Jat leader Birender Singh again misses the bus

ChandigarhHaryana’s powerful Jat leader Biren-der Singh has once again missed the bus. All set to be inducted into the union cabinet in perhaps its last ex-pansion before next year’s general election, he suddenly found his name being dropped at the last minute from the list of those to be inducted.That his entry into Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s cabinet was a certainty till the last day could be seen from two pointers. One, he was sounded out about this a day ahead of Monday’s reshuffle and, two, he was moved out as Congress general secretary in-charge of states like Hi-machal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.With Birender Singh out on a limb, the party made him a member of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) in an apparent damage con-trol exercise. But that was only a consolation prize for him.Though Congress insiders tried to justify Birender Singh’s last minute exclusion to the fact that another Jat leader, the 85-year-old Sis Ram Ola from poll-bound Rajasthan, was in-ducted and two Jat leaders could not be made ministers in the same expan-sion, the fact remains that there were other reasons for the sudden move.Birender Singh is a known baiter of Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Together with another Hooda critic, union minister Selja, and some other Congress detractors, Birender Singh has never missed an opportunity to criticize Hooda and his government. Congress insid-ers say that it was the Hooda camp which complained to the top Con-gress leaders in New Delhi once it became clear that Birender Singh

was being inducted in the union cabinet.“He has been openly criticizing the Hooda government to settle personal scores. If he was made a minister, it would have been like rewarding him for anti-party activities,” a senior leader of the Hooda camp said.With Haryana due for assembly elec-tions next October, the Congress high command could hardly afford to further divide the party. Hooda is serving his second term as chief minister, first occupying the office in March 2005 and then in October 2009.Grandson of Haryana’s famous peas-ant leader Sir Chhotu Ram, Biren-der Singh is considered among the state’s tallest of Jat leaders. How-ever, he has always felt he never got his due as a senior politician - like this time when he was pipped at the last moment.Birender Singh had even claimed that former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi had assured him that he would be made chief minister of Haryana. This was just before Gandhi was assassi-nated on May 21, 1991.After that, Singh could only man-age to become finance minister in the Hooda government (2005-2009). In the October 2009 assembly elec-tion, he lost to Indian National Lok Dal stalwart Om Prakash Chautala in the Uchana seat. The Congress reha-bilitated him by sending to the Ra-jya Sabha and making him a general secretary.For now, Singh will have to wait lon-ger to get a bigger role in the gov-ernment - whether at the centre or in the state.

- Jaideep Sarin

Almost all new ministers 65-plusNew DelhiA day after the Congress touted its most youthful team of office bearers with an average age of 52 years, the UPA-II inducted eight new ministers, most of them in the 65-plus age group.Of the new cabinet ministers, Sis Ram Ola is 86, Oscar Fernandes 72, Girija Vyas 66, and K.S. Rao 63, while of the ministers of state, Santosh Chowdhury is 69, Manik Rao Gavit 77, E.M.S. Natchiappan 65, and J.D. Seelam is the youngest at 59 years.Taking over as head of Congress’ communications department Mon-day, party general secretary Ajay Maken said Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi had “together put together

the most youthful team of office bearers. “Rahul is a youth leader, his stamp is clearly visible. The average age of the AICCI is 52 years. Keeping the average of the youth of India, the fact is that an over 100 year party is having a 52 average age. The Congress arty effected the changes keeping the demographics of the country in mind,” he said.Congress spokesperson Meem Afzal reasoned the fresh cabinet inductions were done to gain from the experience of the leaders. “The inductions were done by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to benefit from their experience in the election year. He had earlier inducted youngsters also,” Afzal told.

The musical chairs in council of ministersNew DelhiEight new ministers were inducted into Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s team in the fourth major re-shuffle of the cabinet and the coun-cil of ministers.The first cabinet appointments of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), led by the Congress, were made May 23, 2009, when seven cabinet ministers were appointed. Another 30 ministers were inducted May 28, 2009.Since then, there have been six rail-way ministers, five ministers for water resources and four law and justice ministers.The railways ministry portfolio, which was earlier held by Trin-amool Congress chief Mamata Ba-nerjee, was handed over to Dinesh Trivedi when Banerjee became West bengal chief minister in 2011.Trivedi was soon asked to leave, and Mukul Roy took the charge in March 2012. After the Trinamool Congress left the UPA in September 2012, Congress leader C.P. Joshi was given the charge of the railway, followed by Pawan Kumar Bansal and Joshi again.In Monday’s cabinet rejig, Mal-likarjun Kharge has been given rail-ways.

The Ministry of Water Resources has had five changes. Meira Kumar was the first appointee, who left soon after being made Lok Sabha speaker. The portfolio was then held by Pawan Kumar Bansal, followed by Salman Khurshid and Bansal again before finally settling with Harish Rawat.The Ministry of Law and Justice has had four changes: M. Veerrapa Moily, Khushid, Ashwani Kumar and Kapil Sibal.The Ministry of Corporate Affairs has had four changes as well: Khur-shid, Murli Deora, Moily and Sa-chin Pilot.The Ministry of Science and Tech-nology has also had four changes: Prithviraj Chavan, Bansal, Vilasrao Deshmukh S. Jaipal Reddy.Key ministries like finance and home have been comparatively stable, yet seen some change. The finance ministry was with Pranab Mukherjee, which he quit when he contested the president’s election. He was replaced by P. Chidam-baram, who quit as home minister, paving the way for Sushilkumar Shinde.The first major reshuffle after 2009 came in January 2011. It was called by Prime Minister Manmohan

Singh as an expansion, rather than a reshuffle after the UPA started wit-nessing turmoil over the 2G spec-trum scandal. By then, UPA-II had seen two resignations: Minister of State for External Shashi Tharoor April 19, 2010, and telecom minis-ter A. Raja Nov 15, 2010.The second reshuffle came soon after on July 12, 2011. This was a major rejig that saw some ebeing el-evated and some being shunted out.In between, Ajit Singh was appoint-ed civil aviation minister in Decem-ber 2011, when the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) joined the UPA.A year later, there was another re-shuffle October 28, 2012. It came after Trinamool Congress withdrew support in September 2012 and several posts were left vacant. The reshuffle also saw a younger tinge being given to the council of minis-ters, handpicked by Rahul Gandhi. Jyotiraditya Scindia, Sachin Pilot, Manish Tewari, Jitendra Singh and Bharatsinh Solanki were all as-signed independent charge of min-istries.This reshuffle, expected to be last before 2014 general elections, how-ever saw age take over youth, with several veterans being given plum posts.

IANS

IANS

CHANDIGARHSUNDAY 23 June 2013NATIONAL NeWS4

Flood, agony and tears in DelhiNew DelhiTenzing Dawa is vexed. His sep-tuagenarian father, who has a heart disease, needs a sterile environment and oxygen to survive. But due to the swollen Yamuna, his neighbourhood is partly submerged in water with no electricity or drinking water and is threatening his father’s life.“We can’t give him oxygen, there is no supply of fresh water and no elec-tricity since yesterday (Wednesday). Portions of houses, shops and streets have been damaged,” Dawa, a resi-dent of Majnu ka Tila in north Delhi, told.“Thankfully, the water has not en-tered our homes as of now, but half our neighbourhood is under water,” said Dawa, who works as a security guard and is part of the 5,000-strong Tibetan community whose settle-ment abuts the river that is the capi-tal’s lifeline and bane.Many low-lying areas in east and northern Delhi are inundated due to the rise in the levels of the Yamuna river, which touched the 207.25 me-tre mark late Wednesday, the highest since 1978 when it reached 207.49 metres. The flood water has spilled over to the major arterial roads that run along the river.Over 900,000 cusecs of water has been released into the Yamuna from Hathinikund Barrage in Haryana in the last four days, resulting in the river’s water level rising. A man drowned in the swollen river while bathing near Majnu ka Tila Wednes-day, an official said.The 145-year-old double decker rail-cum-road bridge over the Yamuna

was shut down for traffic for two days due to fears of damage by the river’s strong current. The bridge was re-opened Thursday.Nearly 5,000 people have been evacuated so far from low-lying ar-eas like Usmanpur, Yamuna Bazar, Bhajanpura, Shastri Park and Tibetan Market, and shifted to about 900 re-lief camps set up by the city govern-ment.Officials said the water is receding in the Yamuna, but continues to flow over the danger mark as hundreds of vicarious onlookers thronged the various bridges across it to watch the river in spate.One of the worst affected is the Ti-betan Market near Majnu ka Tila, where knee-deep water has forced the residents to move out to other safer areas.According to 25-year-old Nawa, Tenzing’s daughter, several residents in the area have lost their cattle, while some have lost their pets.“Some of them drowned while others were bitten by snakes in the water. My cousin lost her cat and she has been crying ever since,” a pensive looking Nawa told.“It was a ghastly sight to see the animals floating in the water,” she added.Though the residents admit that flooding is nothing new for them, they are resigned to their fate, ac-cusing the government of not being willing to help them as they are poor.For 38-year-old Karma Lhawang, a grocery store owner in Tibetan Market, the authorities had failed to come up with a well thoughtout plan

to tackle the crisis when they are aware that low lying areas get flood-ed each monsoon season. Lhawang also said that they refused to shift to the relief camps set up on the road-side as they were not safe for women and children.“The relief camps are very far away. We refused to shift there keeping in mind the safety and security of our women and children. We are staying with our neighbours, whose homes have not been inundated yet,” Lha-wang told.The story was similar in other flood-ed areas of the capital.Dharampal, 27, residing in a relief camp in Usmanpur said: “We know this happens every year and so does the government. Why can’t they swing into action on time? This will keep on happening every year with us.”Ramnek Singh, an auto-rickshaw driver, who has shifted to a relief camp near Mayur Vihar, faulted the government for not issuing flood warnings in advance.“The government should have been more proactive in giving out flood warnings to us. We don’t matter be-cause we are poor,” Ramnek Singh.Most of the people are living in tents, provided by the authorities, on the sidewalks. Women prepared meals on the makeshift clay ovens as the children played games, unaware of the disaster around them.“When the water recedes, it will leave behind bacteria and germs which will cause diseases,” said Ramnek Singh, whose elderly moth-er watched in abject misery.

Rashtrapati Bhavan nurturing the sports stars of tomorrow

New DelhiVidya Sagar was a sports enthusi-ast and an avid tennis player in his youth. But financial crunch forced him to work as a gardener in Rash-trapati Bhavan. Years later, his daughter has got an opportunity to fulfill his dream courtesy President Pranab Mukherjee.Nisha Sagar, a squash player, is one of the 15 youngsters who were short-listed by the coaches at the president’s house for their talent and skills in sports like table tennis, lawn tennis and squash. They are now be-ing groomed with the hope of them representing the country in the inter-national arena one day.“Till last year I had never heard about squash but now I am in love with it and want to play it at the internation-al level,” said Nisha in an interaction with the media here Tuesday.However, the children, all under the age of 14 years, would have never got the chance to even enter the sports complex in the Rashtrapati Bhavan had it not been for President Mukherjee.

“Earlier the sports complex was open only to officials and their families re-siding in the Rashtrapati Bhavan. But the president wanted inclusive devel-opment so the gates were opened for every child from any background,” said Venu Rajamony, press secretary to the president.According to Rajamony, there are 8,000 people including 1,800 em-ployees that live in the presidents’ estate.“There are children of gardeners, horse groomers and peons who play along with the kids of bureaucrats... there is no discrimination,” he added.As far as the coaches are concerned, the children do have what it takes to make it big and all they need is direc-tion and motivation.“We are giving them special protein diet and are looking after all the ex-penses so they can just concentrate on the game,” said Gauri Shankar, the tennis coach.The tennis coaching had begun in December 2012, while that for table tennis and squash commenced in March.

Anti-landmine vehicle escapes blast in Chhattisgarh

Bacheli (Chhattisgarh)Maoist militants triggered off a landmine Friday in Chhattisgarh’s Dantewada to blow up an anti-land-mine vehicle carrying 14 policemen but missed the target, police said.“A patrolling party of 14 policemen were on their way to Bacheli town when Maoists triggered a blast at Nerli Ghati but it marginally missed the target,” Dantewada Superinten-dent of Police Narendra Khare said.“It was a massive blast in which at least 25 kg of explosives were used, which created a deep crater at the site,” hee said.He added that after the blast, rebels opened fire on policemen who retali-ated. The gunfight went on for about an hour.Bacheli is a small town about 30 km away from Dantewada district head-quarters and about 420 km south from Raipur.Maoists have stepped up their vio-

lence activities in the state since last month. Dozens of armed rebels had Thursday late night carried out an at-tack on a police patrol in Kondagaon district’s Keshkal area in which a policeman was killed and two of his colleagues were wounded.

Maoists had also hit a convoy of the country’s ruling Congress in Sukma district May 25 in which up to 30 people were killed, including state Congress chief Nandkumar Patel and Congress leaders V.C. Shukla and Mahendra Karma.Six kids among 10 dead in Thane building collapse

Thane (Maharashtra)Ten people, including six children, were killed when a building collapsed here Friday, a police official said.The accident occurred around 2 a.m. Friday, when the 35-year-old Shakun-tala building suddenly came crashing down, catching sleeping occupants unaware, Inspector N.D. Chavan of Thane police said.At least 23 people were rescued alive, Chavan said.The dead children are Mahek Pun-jabi (two months old), Hamja Shaikh (four months), Hasina Maqdoom Shaikh (3), Taslima Karim Shaikh (3), Shabbir Karim Shaikh (6) and Rohan Farooqui (7).The adults who died are Aliya Maq-

doom Shaikh (22), Farid karim Shai-kh (28), Karim Abdul Shaikh and Maqdoom Shaikh (both 32).Chavan said that by Friday evening, most victims had been rescued. There are no more victims feared trapped under the debris, he said. District officials, including Mayor Harishchandra Patil, acting Mu-nicipal Commissioner Shyamsun-der Patil, Thane District Collector P. Velrasu, Police Commissioner K.P. Raghuvanshi and others supervised the relief and rescue operations.Mumbra Mayor Harishchandra Patil said the civic body will soon make arrangements to shift people from di-lapidated and dangerous buildings to new rental houses.

“We are finalising the rent to be charged, which should be in the range of Rs.1,500 per month, so that occu-pants can be shifted out of dangerous buildings,” Patil told reporters.This is the second major building col-lapse tragedy in the Mumbai metro-politan region in the past 10 days.On June 10, an old four-storeyed building collapsed at Mahim, central Mumbai, killing 10 and injuring an-other six.Nearly three months ago, Thane’s Mumbra district witnessed the state’s worst-ever building crash, which left 75 dead and 60 injured. The incident occurred April 4 at Shil-phata, near this township, around 40 km from Mumbai.

Karnataka to add 19,000 more people to police forceBangaloreKarnataka will go in for massive re-cruitment from this year to fill around 19,000 vacancies in its police force in the next three years, Chief Minis-ter Siddaramaiah said Thursday.“This year around 8,000 people will be recruited and the remaining in the next two years,” he said addressing police personnel here after present-ing the chief minister’s medals to over 120 personnel for meritorious service.Siddaramaiah said the government was also thinking of providing in each of the state’s 30 districts, a can-teen service facility, now provided to defence forces, where groceries and household appliance would be sold at a price less than the market rates.

The state has 30 districts.The government has already sanc-tioned opening of a canteen stores for police personnel in Bangalore. It is expected to start operating soon.The chief minister also promised to build more flats in the next two to three years to provide government accommodation for at least 80 per-cent of the police force as against 40 percent at present.He urged police personnel to be courteous to people approaching them for help or to file complaint and work sincerely to maintain law and order and curb illegal activities.Home Minister K.J. George and se-nior home ministry and police offi-cers were present at the function.

Panel to finalise media campaign against portrayal of womenNew DelhiThe government constituted a com-mittee to finalise modalities for a media campaign against indecent portrayal of women in mass media.The committee would be headed by K. Ratna Prabha, additional secre-tary in the women and child develop-ment ministry.The mandate of the committee is to finalise modalities of a media cam-paign, through print and electronic media, to instill a sense of respect

for women in all spheres of life, sug-gest innovative campaign strategy to project women in a more positive, draw up a national campaign to sen-sitize families regarding the values of girls.It will also identify areas of coop-eration between ministries of women and child development and informa-tion and broadcasting on all such is-sues that demand sustained public in-terest campaigns in print, electronic as well as the social media.

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Half-a-dozen hurt as BJP observes vishwasghat diwas in patna

PatnaNearly half-a-dozen people were injured here in a clash, several trains were stopped and roads were blocked , when the BJP began a state-wide shutdown to protest what it called a betrayal by the JD-U.Several trains were forcibly halt-ed and national highway blocked Tuesday as the workers and leaders of the Bharatiya Janat Party (BJP) began a state-wide shutdown to protest the betrayal of ruling party Janata Dal-United (JD-U) that end-ed its 17-year-old alliance Sunday.The cracks between the BJP and JD-U appeared when Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar opposed Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP’s decision to make Modi its public face for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.An angry BJP is observing Tues-day as ‘Vishwasghat Diwas’ in the state.Nearly half a dozen workers of BJP and JD-U workers were injured af-ter they clashed and attacked each other with bamboo sticks and iron rods in Patna during the shutdown.According to police officials here, JD-U spokesperson Rajeev Ranjan and three other party leaders were injured when BJP workers attacked them following the clash.

The clashes took place after the BJP workers raised slogan against Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and JD-U workers countered them by raising slogan against Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, a police official said.The BJP workers stopped half a dozen trains, including long route trains, at different railway stations across the state.“Several trains were halted...,” a police officer told.Roads, including the national high-way, were blocked at various plac-es across the state.“The strike supporters, mostly BJP workers, blocked important roads including the national highway and state highway at various place,” said a police official.

Authorities have “made elaborate security arrangements in view of the shutdown”, assured a senior government official.In Patna, shutdown evoked mixed response with busy roads like Ashok Rajpath, Bailey Road, Pat-na-Danapur Road and Fraser Road being blocked. “Shops and markets were also closed in some areas”.Soon after the JD-U ended its alli-ance with the BJP, it was declared as a black day by BJP that accused JD(U) of `vishwasghat’ (treach-ery).The JD-U has 118 seats in the 243-member assembly, he won the majority with the help of congress and independent legislative mem-bers.

Barasat gang-rape: Protests rock Kolkata, web after Mamata’s village visit

KolkataPeople protested on the streets of Kolkata, women government staff took out a march at Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s seat of power, while the web users poured scorn on her, a day after she shouted back at demonstrators in a village while on a visit to the house of a gangrape-murder victim.Joining angry women, youths, rights organisations and college and school students, who held rallies and pro-cessions, leading lights of the civil society including Magsaysay award winner Mahasweta Devi and cel-ebrated film maker Mrinal Sen urged the masses to take part in a proposed march June 21 demanding justice for the Barasat victim and against crimes against women.Banerjee had Monday gone unan-nounced to North 24 Parganas dis-trict’s Kamduni village, the residence of a second-year college student ab-ducted, gang-raped and killed by a group of youths June 7 when she was returning home after appearing in an examination.However, the visit turned sour after a group of women asked her to talk to them and shouted slogans about the lack of security. The chief minister lost her cool and screamed at the villagers “shut up”. She also branded the perpetrators of the crime as well as the protesters as “CPI-M people”.In a rare happening at the over two-century-old state secretariat, the Writers’ Buildings, housing the chief minister’s office, women employees Tuesday marched down its corridors in silence, holding aloft placards that cried “We want justice” and “Shame”.Activists representing Maitree, a network of women’s rights organisa-tions and activists, took out a rally

from the city hub Metro Channel to the Academy of Fine Arts where a large number of college students took part.The Democratic Youth Federation of India, the youth arm of the op-position Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), also organised a protest procession from Sealdah to Esplanade.At Kamduni, school children took out a protest-march amid rains dis-playing placards decrying Baner-jee’s “brief” visit” to the village, and raised slogans demanding speedy tri-al and criticising police’s “inability” to give protection to the villagers.In a joint and hard-hitting letter, not-ed actors, social activists, filmmak-ers and authors urged the people to condemn the deteriorating law and order situation in the state, irrespec-tive of their political affiliations.“Not only the administration, but we (the common people) also have to strongly protest against what is hap-pening in the state,” said the letter signed among others by Mrinal Sen, Mahasweta Devi, thespian Soumitra Chatterjee, poet-academic Nabanee-

ta Dev Sen and poets Sankah Ghosh and Tarun Sanyal.Assailing Banerjee for asking a resi-dent of Kamduni village to “shut up”, angry cetizens lashed out at the chief minister and sternly told her to “shut up and do some work”.A Facebook post read: “Mamata Ba-nerjee is most irresponsible and use-less chief minister of West Bengal. Why she is always so arrogant she never reply politically, always shout-ing. Recently she visited Barasat Ka-mduni Gram How she has re-acted with people, it cannot (be) accepted by any gentleman or gentle women.”State Food and Supplies Minister Jy-otipriyo Mallick, however, claimed the “so-called protests” were orches-trated by the CPI-M and the Maoists to discredit the Trinamool Congress government and the chief minister. “We are not paying any importance to the incident. No one can malign the chief minister in this way”.But the opposition CPI-M ridi-culed Banerjee, saying she was now “scared” to enter a village in the state and was only doing it “secretly like thieves”.

India becomes Kenya’s largest Asian trading partnerNairobi India, which has a thriving diaspora in Kenya estimated at 100,000, be-came the East African nation’s big-gest trading partner in Asia in 2012, surpassing China, a government doc-ument says.India exported to Kenya goods worth $240 million, way ahead of Asia’s biggest economy China, which ex-ported goods valued at $148 million.The figure represents a growth of around 30 percent when compared to 2011.The figures, according to Kenya’s National Economic Survey 2013, represented 18 percent of Kenya’s imports in 2012, asserting India’s growing influence in the east African region.Exports to Kenya, according to In-dian High Commissioner Sibabrata Tripathi, included petroleum prod-ucts, pharmaceuticals, electrical ma-chinery, steel products, hand and ma-chine tools, yarn, vehicles and paper.Kenya, on the other hand, exported soda ash, coffee, leather, vegetables, synthetic fibers, wool, cereals and metal scrap to India.While the figures seem impressive for a small economy like Kenya, with a population of 40 million, Tripathi said they represented less than one percent of India’s total global exports.“A number of factors contribute to the growing trade between India and Kenya. Relative proximity of the two countries, particularly of ports on the west coast of India, and the quality of Indian products at an affordable cost are among the major factors,” the high commissioner said.“Close attention is paid by Indian exporters to the specificities of the Kenyan market. The commonal-ity of business language in the two countries also helps,” added Tripathi. Much of the Indian diaspora has its origins in Gujarat and Punjab.He said Kenya was emerging as a market for Indian tour operators, with some 60,000 of the one mil-lion tourists who visited Kenya in 2011 being from India, compared to 47,000 in 2010.The growth has been spurred by in-creased direct flights between Delhi/Mumbai and Nairobi, with Kenya Airways and Emirates operating reg-ular flights on these sectors.There was also growing Indian inter-est in Kenya as an investment desti-nation in areas like communications, petroleum refining, floriculture and medical diagnostics.Already some 40 Indian firms, in-cluding a bank, are operating in Ke-nya, using the country as a launch pad to the 100 million strong East African Community and the wider Common Market for East and South-ern Africa (COMESA). Among the major companies operating in Kenya are Tata Chemicals, which owns Ma-gadi Soda Ash Company, oil firm Es-sar and Airtel. The Bank of India has four branches in Kenya.A major Indian hospital was also planning to open a diagnostic facility in Nairobi, which could cut down on visits to Indian hospitals by Kenyans seeking specialised treatment.Kenya and the East African region have benefited greatly from Indian education, with thousands of stu-dents going through Indian universi-ties via scholarships since the 1960s, a trend that picked in the 1980s.

Men in khaki under attack in UP, three killed in JuneLucknowPolicemen in Uttar Pradesh are un-der attack. Literally!Amid spiralling crime, policemen now face threats of assault. More than a dozen policemen have been attacked in the last one year in the state while half a dozen have been shot dead by criminals. The dead include a deputy superintendent of police, an inspector and constables.The situation has seemingly spun out of control, with three policemen being shot in June alone.Such is the crisis that the Uttar Pradesh Police Association (UPPA) has urged Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav to go for a “course correc-tion” vis-a-vis the law and order front.Leaders of UPPA told that police were at the receiving end of the criminals and the people, largely owing to “political interference” and a perception that the state had no government.UPPA president Subodh Yadav said there was a flurry of attacks on po-licemen and police stations. Police weapons had been looted and police stations had been burnt down.“From day one it was clear that this government did not have the ‘iqbal’. When its own policemen are being killed in broad daylight, what can be said of the security and safety of the common man?” asked Vijay Baha-dur Pathak of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).Senior police officials admit that such incidents were alarming. Ad-ditional Director General of Police Arun Kumar said his men were after the criminals who shot dead a station house officer in Allahabad.In the last two years, more than 40 policemen have been killed in the sprawling state. They include those killed in gun battles, by criminals and by mobs. A total of 25 others have been wound-ed during mob fury. Twenty-eight of the casualties were aged between 18 to 35 years.Former director general of police Vi-kram Singh called the attacks on the police force a “serious and ominous development”.He said the frequency with which these have happened had shocked even veterans in the force.“The brazen manner in which cops are being attacked is certainly shocking.”Added a senior officer: “These are serious issues and our image ... has taken a knock.” The Congress says the Samajwadi Party government has no right to continue in office.“The state is in throes of anarchy, there is complete lawlessness... Akhilesh Yadav has failed com-pletely,” said Pradeep Mathur, who heads the Congress in the state as-sembly.Senior Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader Swamy Prasad Maurya says criminals tend to go on the rampage whenever the Samajwadi Party is voted to power.For once, even the men in khaki were facing the heat, he said.BJP state president Laxmikant Bajpayi fears that if the government was allowed a free run, the morale of the police would touch rock bot-tom. “Cops are being shunted out of post-ings at political behest. When they perform, they are killed,” he said.

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UN chief hails G8 leaders’ understanding on Syria

United NationsUN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon welcomed the understanding reached on Syria by leaders of the Group of Eight (G-8) industrial na-tions.Ban welcomed the commitment to bring the Syrian sides to the nego-tiating table, saying that he stands ready to convene the Geneva Con-ference on Syria as soon as possible to help the Syrian sides reach “a

comprehensive agreement based on the Geneva communique of 30 June 2012”. The UN chief highlighted that the announcement of additional contributions of $1.5 billion in hu-manitarian aid “is very welcome and will be critical in saving the lives of Syrians.” He also welcomed the call of the G8 for all parties to the conflict to allow access to the UN Mission to

Investigate Allegations of the Use of Chemical Weapons in the Syrian Arab Republic.This year’s G8 Heads of State Sum-mit, which opened Monday, was held at Lough Erne, Northern Ire-land, with the focus on Syria crisis and economic issues. The communique was agreed upon by the leaders at the final day of the G8 Summit.

Surveillance programmes thwarted terror plots

WashingtonTwo phone and Internet surveillance programmes run by the US National Security Agency (NSA) helped dis-rupt over 50 potential terrorist at-tacks against the US and its allies, the agency’s chief said.Two classified programmes, one col-lecting US phone records and the other mining Internet data, were re-vealed last week after leaks from de-fense contractor Edward Snowden. The Congress panel hearing Tues-day was the first of its kind dedi-cated to the recent disclosures of the phone and Internet surveillance pro-grammes by the NSA. Army General Keith Alexander, the director of the National Security Agency and commander of US Cy-ber Command, defended the recently revealed surveillance programmes before members of the House of Representatives Intelligence Com-mittee, Xinhua reported.

During the hearing, Alex-ander and officials from the FBI and the Office of the Director of National Intel-ligence provided details of a plot to blow up the Stock Exchange in New York.“Let me start by saying that I would much rather be here today debating this point than trying to explain how we failed to prevent

another 9/11,” said Alexander, while stressing that these two programmes have held great value to “our nation-al security and that of our allies” in combating terrorism.“In recent years, these programmes, together with other intelligence, have protected the US and our allies from terrorist threats across the globe to include helping prevent the terrorist -- the potential terrorist events over 50 times since 9/ 11,” he claimed.The plots included a previously un-disclosed plan to blow up the New York Stock Exchange, Alexander added and noted the Sep. 11 attacks in 2001 occurred in part because of “a failure on the part of our govern-ment to connect those dots,” some of which were already in the country.The four-star general also told mem-bers that agency officials planned to provide them with an unclassified summary of the foiled terror plots to Congress.

Pakistani leader among 29 killed in suicide bombingIslamabadA member of the provincial assem-bly of Pakistan’s northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was among 29 people killed in a suicide bombing, media reports said. Over 50 people were injured.Independent member Imran Mohm-and was killed in the blast at a fu-neral procession in Mardan.Police said the blast took place dur-ing the funeral procession of Haji Abdullah, a well-known figure in the area who was killed by unidentified gunmen.Provincial Information Minister Shaukat Yousafzai said the blast was a suicide attack. Yousafzai told Geo News there were threats against Mohmand and two policemen had been deployed for his security.Regional police chief Jaffar Khan told the incident took place when a suicide bomber exploded his explo-sives-laden jacket amid the funeral gathering in Shergarh village of Mar-

dan. The injured were taken to the Lady Reading Hospital in provincial capital Peshawar. Police chief Khan said around 10 kg of explosives were used.Witnesses said over 500 people were

present at the funeral. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the attack. No group or militant organisation has claimed responsibility for the bomb-ing.

US, Taliban to have direct peace talksWashingtonThe US has decided to hold direct peace talks with the Taliban, se-nior White House officials have an-nounced. The first meet is due to take place in the coming days in Qa-tar’s capital, where the Taliban have opened their first official overseas office.US officials told reporters the first formal meeting between the US and Taliban representatives was expect-ed to take place in Doha next week, with talks between Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s High Peace Council and the Taliban due a few days after that.The announcement came on the day NATO handed over security for the

whole of Afghanistan to government forces.Karzai said his government was also sending delegates to Qatar for talks with the Taliban.Though the first weeks will mainly be used to explore each other’s agen-das, the US officials said, prisoner exchanges would be one topic for discussion with the Taliban.The talks are on condition that the Taliban renounce violence, break ties with al-Qaeda and respect the Afghan constitution - including the rights of women and minorities.The Taliban in the past have declined to meet President Karzai or his gov-ernment while dismissing them as Washington’s puppets.

Vast Mayan city discovered in Mexico jungle

Zimbabwean president, rivals favour delaying polls

Mexico CityArchaeologists have discovered a previously unknown Mayan city in the southeastern state of Campeche, which for its vastness and charac-teristics is believed to have been a seat of government some 1,400 years ago.A team of experts headed by Slove-nian archaeologist Ivan Sprajc has christened the site Chactun, Mexi-co’s National Institute of Anthropol-ogy and History, or INAH, said.“It is one of the largest sites in the Central Lowlands, comparable in its extent and the magnitude of its build-ings with Becan, Nadzcaan and El Palmar in Campeche”, Sprajc said in a statement released by INAH.The complex covers more than 22 hectares.Based on the number of monuments, at least 10 of them with inscriptions, the city is believed to have been the seat of government for a extensive

area during the period of 600-900 A.D., the researcher said.The INAH-backed exploration is fi-nanced by the National Geographic Society and two private companies: Austria’s Villas and Slovenia’s Ars Longa.Down through the centuries, Chac-tun remained hidden in the jungle on the north of the Calakmul Bio-sphere Reserve. The millennial me-tropolis is one of the nearly 80 sites detected by the Southeast Campeche Archaeological Recognition Project, launched in 1996.

HarareZimbabwean president and his main political rivals in the coalition gov-ernment have agreed to file an ap-plication at the Constitutional Court, seeking extention of the general elec-tions’ date beyond July 31, 2013.The three leaders -- President Rob-ert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, and Industry and Com-merce Minister Welshman Ncube -- met Wednesday at the State House and gave consent on an agreement (over delaying poll date), reported Xinhua citing the prime minister’s spokesperson.The agreement followed a recom-mendation by Southern Africa De-

velopment Community (SADC), an organisation meant to ensure com-mon political values, systems and institutions among its 14 member states in southern Africa, over the weekend urging the coalition gov-ernment to approach the court for a deferment of the poll date. Mugabe and Tsvangirai are believed to be the main contestants for the country’s top post in the upcoming elections.The poll date in question was unilat-erally decided by Mugabe last week. Meanwhile, the formal document is being prepared by the three parties’ senior members.Mugabe last week proclaimed July

31 as the election date in compliance with a Constitutional Court ruling but Tsvangirai argued that he was not properly consulted for the proc-lamation.Zimbabwe’s last elections in 2008 were plagued by violence and had finally compelled Mugabe to join a power-sharing government with the opposition.

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UN officials voice outrage at deadly attack on world body’s compound in Somali capitalTop United Nations officials have voiced their outrage at today’s dead-ly attack on the world body’s com-pound in the Somali capital, Mogadi-shu, while reiterating that it will not deter the Organization from helping the country as it proceeds on the path to stability and development. According to the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM), a pickup truck rigged with explosives was detonated outside the gate of the UN Common Compound – in which UN humanitarian and development workers reside and work – around 11:30 in the morning, and attackers then entered on foot. Gunfire and further explosions followed, as staff took refuge in secure areas. The UN confirmed that, among those killed are one international staff member, three contractors and four Somali security guards. A number of Somali civilians were also wounded and killed outside the compound. “The Secretary-General is deeply saddened by the loss of life in the UN family, its contractors and among Somalis,” said a statement issued by Ban Ki-moon’s spokesperson in New York. “Malicious terrorist attacks of this nature will not deter the United Na-tions or weaken its resolve to stand by the people and Government of Somalia as they work courageously to build peace in their country,” it added. Mr. Ban, who is on an official visit to China and spoke by telephone with Somalia’s President, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, said he was outraged by the “despicable” attack and urged the President to ensure that UN staff are protected. Both the Secretary-General and his Special Representative for Somalia, Nicholas Kay, expressed their grati-tude to the Somali Government and the African Union Mission in Soma-lia (AMISOM) for their immediate responses to secure the area and pro-tect UN personnel.

“I am truly shocked and horrified by what took place in Mogadishu today,” Mr. Kay, who heads UN-SOM, said in a statement issued to the press. “The United Nations Common Com-pound houses UN personnel working on humanitarian and development is-sues for the Somali people,” he said. “This was an act of blatant terrorism and a desperate attempt to knock Somalia off its path of recovery and peacebuilding.” Mr. Kay noted that the vast majority of UN staff are unhurt. “Our Moga-dishu colleagues are shaken but the United Nations remains determined to stand by the people of Somalia,” he said. Deputy Secretary-General Jan Elias-son, in remarks at a Security Council debate in New York, voiced solidar-ity with the UN staff and all those who have suffered through this trag-edy. “We remain committed to the principles of achieving peace and to keep Somalia on its path to recov-ery,” he stated. The 15-member Council, in its own statement to the press, voiced its outrage at the attack, for which the Islamic militant group known as Al-Shabaab has claimed responsibility. Council members underlined their support for all UN personnel work-ing to bring peace, stability and pros-perity to the Somali people. Following two decades of strife and humanitarian crises, Somalia entered a new phase in its history last year with the establishment of a represen-tative Government and the approval of a draft constitution. UNSOM, a political mission sup-ported by the Department of Field Support (DFS), began operations earlier this month. It is tasked by the UN Security Council to offer exper-tise in areas ranging from the politi-cal process to disarmament to help the country consolidate and build on hard-won gains towards peace, rec-onciliation and stability.

War drives number of forcibly displaced worldwide to 18-year high, says UN reportA United Nations report released to-day says that more people are refu-gees or internally displaced than at any time since 1994, with the crisis in Syria having emerged as a major new factor in global displacement. The annual Global Trends report, re-leased by the UN High Commission-er for Refugees (UNHCR), shows that as of the end of 2012, more than 45.2 million people were in situa-tions of displacement compared to 42.5 million at the end of 2011. This includes 15.4 million refugees, 937,000 asylum-seekers, and 28.8 million people forced to flee within the borders of their own countries. The report does not include the rise in those forced from their homes in Syria during the current year, UN-HCR pointed out in a news release on the report, launched ahead of World Refugee Day, commemorated annually on 20 June. War remains the major cause for the displacement, the agency noted, adding that 55 per cent of all refu-gees listed in the report come from just five war-affected countries: Af-ghanistan, Somalia, Iraq, Syria and Sudan. The report also charts major new displacement from Mali, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and from Sudan into South

Sudan and Ethiopia. “These truly are alarming numbers. They reflect individual suffering on a huge scale and they reflect the dif-ficulties of the international commu-nity in preventing conflicts and pro-moting timely solutions for them,” said UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres. The report notes that some 7.6 mil-lion people became newly displaced last year, 1.1 million as refugees and 6.5 million as internally displaced persons (IDPs). This translates to a new refugee or IDP every 4.1 sec-onds. Also, there is a continuing gap be-tween richer and poorer countries in hosting refugees. Of 10.5 million refugees under UNHCR’s mandate [a further 4.9 million Palestinian refugees fall under the mandate of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)], half are hosted by countries that have a per capita gross domestic product (GDP) of less than $5,000. Overall, developing nations host 81 per cent of the world’s refu-gees, compared to 70 per cent a de-cade ago. The report also shows that children below the age of 18 make up 46 per cent of all refugees. In addition, a record 21,300 asylum applications

submitted last year were from chil-dren who were unaccompanied or separated from their parents. This is the highest number of unaccompa-nied or separated children that UN-HCR has recorded. The agency works to help people who are forcibly displaced, includ-ing through aid and immediate prac-tical help, and by finding solutions to their plight. Last year saw an end to displacement for 2.7 million people, including 526,000 refugees and 2.1 million IDPs. Last year saw little change from 2011 in the rankings of the world’s major refugee-hosting countries, ac-cording to the report. Pakistan con-tinued to host more refugees than any other nation (1.6 million), fol-lowed by Iran (868,200) and Ger-many (589,700). Afghanistan remained the world’s top ‘producer’ of refugees, a position it has held for 32 years. On average, one out of every four refugees world-wide is Afghan, with 95 per cent lo-cated in Pakistan or Iran. Somalia, another protracted conflict, was the world’s second largest refugee-pro-ducing nation during 2012, however there the rate of refugee outflow slowed. Iraqis were the third larg-est refugee group (746,700 persons), followed by Syrians (471,400).

Obama proposes further US, Russian nuclear arms cutWashingtonUS President Barack Obama, cur-rently on an official visit to Ber-lin, Wednesday proposed plans for America and Russia to further cut their strategic nuclear warheads.During a speech at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Obama renewed his call to reduce the world’s nuclear stockpiles, and said the US would ultimately strive toward eliminating nuclear weapons, Xinhua reported.“After a comprehensive review, I have determined that we can ensure the security of America and our al-lies, and maintain a strong and cred-ible strategic deterrent, while reduc-ing our deployed strategic nuclear weapons by up to one third,” he said.“I intend to seek negotiated cuts with Russia to move beyond Cold War nuclear postures,” Obama said.“We may no longer live in fear of global annihilation, but so long as nuclear weapons exist, we are not truly safe,” the US president said.A one-third cut of the 1,550 atomic weapons agreed in the last Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) treaty between the US and Russia will leave each country with just over 1,000 nuclear weapons.

In response, Russia confirmed Wednesday that Obama had offered to discuss new rounds of nuclear dis-armament.However, President Vladimir Putin’s foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said in Moscow that other countries that possess nuclear arms should be included in this process.During his speech, the US president also announced that he would host a nuclear security summit before he leaves office in 2016 to address the international flow of nuclear weap-

ons and material.Obama said he would push for do-mestic support to pass a nuclear test ban treaty.The US has about 1,700 nuclear weapons. Under START, which Obama signed with Russia in 2010, Washington and Moscow are com-mitted to cutting their existing war-head ceilings by 30 percent over the next 10 years from the current 2,200 to 1,550. Each side is limited to 700 deployed long-range missiles and heavy bombers.

UAE’s efforts to preserve environment exemplary

Robbers dressed as rabbis hit Argentine bank

Abu DhabiEnvironment related authorities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have not been resting on their laurels since re-ceiving an acknowledgment from the World Wildlife Fund in 2010, a UAE daily has reported.The UAE authorities in charge of tacking environmental issues were recognised as number one in the world in terms of having the biggest ecological footprint.“Proactivity has been their hallmark and untiring efforts ensure that plans are implemented and efforts are being made to tackle several initiatives that address major ecological issues in the country”, said.The race is now on to reduce indi-vidual footprint even further and the cut-off has been set for 2030 where, among other projects, carbon emis-sion is set to be reduced by as much as 40 per cent. The ecological footprint is a mea-sure of a country’s sustainability that compares the use of natural resources per person per capita, expressed by a unit of bio-productive land called the global hectare.

Buenos AiresThree robbers, two of whom were dressed as Orthodox Jewish rabbis and the third as a security guard, held up a Buenos Aires bank and fled with the contents of several safety deposit boxes, police said.The robbery was carried out early in the morning in the Villa Urquiza neighbourhood when the bank was full of customers waiting in line to conduct their financial business.The three robbers got out of an auto-mobile parked in front of the bank, while a fourth person waited behind the wheel, police said.Once inside the bank, the fake rab-bis subdued the employees and the customers and took the contents of a number of safety deposit boxes.Police told the Telam news agency that the robbers “were disguised, with two of them dressed as mem-bers of the Orthodox Jewish commu-nity, that is to say, black outfit, wide-brimmed hat, beard and curls, and the other pretended to be a security employee who was going to inspect the closed circuit television”

Mexican police nab one of FBI’s 10 most wantedCancun Police at the Mexican sea resort of Playa del Carmen arrested one of the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugi-tives, a former college professor accused of sexually exploiting chil-dren.Walter Lee Williams, 64, was nabbed around 8.30 p.m. Tuesday in a coffee shop near a public park, Quintana Roo state Attorney Gen-eral Gaspar Armando Garcia Torres said during a press conference in Cancun.

“At present we have no record of any crime he has committed here. His arrest is based on a request by the FBI, which put him on the Most Wanted list for crimes of sexually exploiting children,” the attorney general said.“He was unable to prove he was in the country legally, for which rea-son he was handed over to Immi-gration, so it will be up to them to turn him over to the proper authori-ties,” Garcia Torres said.Media outlets in Quintana Roo

published Williams’ photo and an-nounced that he was wanted in the state. According to FBI records, Williams is a native of Durham, North Carolina.Williams, who was included just on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugi-tives list, is linked to an organiza-tion known as the Buddhist Univer-sal Association of Los Angeles, and the FBI has tracked him through such countries as Indonesia, Poly-nesia, Thailand, Peru and Mexico.

CHANDIGARHSUNDAY 23 June 20138 POLITICS

Prakash Karat, CPI(M) “We are concerned with the government and its policies, and not indi-viduals. The question is whether the rejig will help to boost the im-age of the government.I don’t think so.”

Mamata Banerjee, West Bengal Chief Minister “I am surprised to know that UPA-II has made yet another Cabinet reshuf-fle. So how many times, in the last four years, UPA-II Government has made reshuffles of the Cabinet? What is the message from this Cabi-net reshuffle?”

Venkaiah Naidu, BJP“The cabinet reshuffle by the UPA-II is a des-perate attempt to mis-lead the people. It is now clear that the Con-gress is insensitive to criticism .In spite of se-rious charges against the ministers, some of them are retained and some are even promoted. It is like “make-up before pack up.”

Nirmala Sitharaman, BJP spokesperson “This is a dead reshuf-fle. This is the way the Congress would want to pay respect to elders. They have elevated those leaders who are totally disconnected from the people, the reshuffle will not have the impact the Congress expects.”

Janardan Dwivedi, Congress “The reshuffle has given representation to experienced people as well as the young and new faces. Congress has always made efforts to ensure that the new gen-eration gets maximum representation. This is called a big change, a meaningful change.”

Rajiv Pratap Rudy, BJP“After Trinamool Congress’s withdrawal, government lost its credibility. The BJP feels this (reshuffle) is an exercise in vain. The government of Prime Minister Man-mohan Singh “should have sought a “fresh mandate” before going for this exercise.”

Ghulam Nabi Azad, Union Health Minister “Congress is not taking decisions while watch-ing others.Congress is following its politics and the latest reshuffle is the outcome of that strategy.”

QUOTe FIRe

SrinagarReacting strongly to Congress leader M.L. Fotedar’s claim that the National Conference (NC) gave up its autonomy demand in 1975, senior NC leader Muham-mad Shafi said the likes of Fot-edar had become irrelevant.Fotedar had said said the NC’s de-mand for restoration of autonomy in Jammu and Kashmir had no basis as its leadership gave up the demand when it signed the 1975

accord with the central govern-ment.The 1975 pact, better known as the Beg-Parthasarthy accord, was signed by NC founder Sheikh Mu-hammad Abdullah’s deputy Mirza Afzal Beg and G. Parthasarthy, emissary of then prime minister Indira Gandhi.Sheikh Abdullah returned to pow-er in the state in 1977 because of the accord which heralded his re-turn to mainstream politics after

23 years.Fotedar, who belongs to south Kashmir’s Anantnag district, played a key role in Jammu and Kashmir politics as he enjoyed the confidence of Indira Gandhi during whose regime Fotedar was regarded as a power centre.In a strongly worded statement, Shafi, who is also an MP, said: “He (Fotedar) should find some other issue to make himself rel-evant.”

The statement said Fotedar had distorted the contents of the 1975 accord to oppose autonomy for Jammu and Kashmir as demanded by the NC.“The accord in fact provides the basis for restoring autonomy as envisaged in article 370 of the constitution of India. “The NC, in its manifestoes for elections, has been persistently demanding the restoration of au-tonomy in its original form.”

National Conference blasts Congress leader Fotedar

POLITICAL CAMP NeWSCAMP UPA

New DelhiAs the Nitish Kumar-led JD-U government in Bihar sailed smoothly through a trust vote, the BJP accused its just-parted ex-al-ly of becoming part of a Congress conspiracy.“JD-U has shown its colours by participating in Congress’s con-spiracy. They are now bound to Congress with the glue of corrup-tion,” BJP spokesperson Meen-akshi Lekhi said here, clarifying

that she is referring to “moral cor-ruption”.“George Fernandes joined the NDA because he was anti-Con-gress. Their (JD-U’s) politics is based on the anti-Congress sentiment. And today, they have joined hands with Congress,” Lekhi said.“This is an easy way out for him. He should have gone back to peo-ple to get the mandate,” she said, referring to Bihar Chief Minister

Nitish Kumar.Asked about Nitish Kumar’s com-ment that BJP did not “respect its elders”, Lekhi said: “What kind of respect have they shown to George Fernandes? What they did to him, no one in BJP has done to any of its leaders.”“Disagreement is one thing, disrespect is another. We may have different opinions on something in the party, but we have not disrespected our veter-ans,” she said.

Senior BJP leader L.K. Advani last week submitted his resigna-tion from key party posts fol-lowing Narendra Modi’s ap-pointment as the chief of BJP’s election campaign committee. He took back his resignation af-ter intervention by BJP’s mentor organisation Rashtriya Swayam-sevak Sangh (RSS).JD-U announced its split with BJP Sunday over the new role be-ing given to Modi.

JD-U has joined Congress’s conspiracy: BJPCAMP NDA

KolkataRidiculing West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s visit to Kamduni village, the opposi-tion Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) said she was now “scared” to enter a village in the state and was only doing it “secretly like thieves”.“For the first time since her gov-ernment came to power two years back, the chief minister is now scared to enter a village. She is

now entering a village secretly like thieves,” Leader of Opposi-tion Surjya Kanta Mishra said.Banerjee had gone unannounced to North 24 Parganas district’s Kamduni village, the residence of a second-year college student abducted, gang-raped and killed by a group of youths June 7 when she was returning home after ap-pearing in an examination.However, the visit turned sour after a group of women asked

her to talk to them and shouted slogans about the lack of secu-rity. The chief minister lost her cool and screamed at the villag-ers “shut up”. She also branded the perpetrators of the crime as well as the protesters as “CPI-M people”.“She went there after ten days, but did not stay for even five min-utes,” said Mishra.Wondering why the chief minis-ter had to ride pillion on a bike

to enter the village, Mishra said he had gone there on the day of the incident.Mishra said his party did not have much presence in the area, and people supporting the ruling Trinamool Congress had voiced their protest.“The protests against the chief minister has proved those sup-porting the Trinamool Congress will also raise their voice against any injustice,” he said.

Mamata now scared of entering any village: CPI-M

HyderabadK. Keshava Rao, a former senior leader of the Congress party, took over as the secretary general of Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS).Keshava Rao thus became the num-ber two in the party headed by K. Chandrasekhara Rao.KCR, as TRS president is popularly called, also appointed Rao as the

head of the party’s national affairs committee.This is the first time since KCR founded the party in 2000 that he has named a general secretary.The TRS chief made the announce-ment at a press conference in the presence of Rao, who last month quit Congress party to join TRS along with two party MPs.

KCR said Keshava Rao was in touch with West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee, who has proposed forma-tion of the Federal Front.The MP from Mahabubnagar said TRS would play a key role at the national level after the coming elec-tions. “In Andhra it is going to be a trian-

gular fight and hence none of the three parties (Congress, TDP and YSR Congress) can win more than 10 (Lok Sabha) seats. TRS will be the only party from Andhra Pradesh which will get 16 seats,” said KCR.Out of 42 Lok Sabha seats in Andhra Pradesh, 17 seats are in Telangana region.KCR also made it clear that nothing short of a separate Telangana

state with Hyderabad as its capital is acceptable to TRS.He said Keshava Rao would take key decisions of the party and would also look after its national affairs.The TRS chief said he had been a fan of Keshava Rao since his student days. “I used to go to (legislative) council to hear him. He is an elo-quent speaker.

Ex-Congressman Keshava Rao named TRS general secretary

Cabinet Reshuffle

CHANDIGARH SUNDAY 23 June 2013 9POLITICS

Nitish wins trust vote, says BJP can’t win in 2014

PatnaThree days after he dumped the BJP, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar Wednesday proved his majority in the legislature and said his former ally won’t win the next Lok Sabha battle.Accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party of trying to promote divisive poli-tics, he said the policies of consulta-tion which it believed in under Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s leadership had ended.In a speech in the assembly during a trust motion he moved to prove his majority, Nitish Kumar said India was built on secular foundations and his party won’t tolerate anyone try-ing to cause a religious divide.“The country should be run in a man-ner so as to take everyone along... Coalition governments are the norm now. No party should be under the false premise that they can run the country on their own steam,” he said. Referring to the now ailing Atal Bi-hari Vajpayee, who was prime minis-ter from 1998 to 2004, he said: “The work ethics of Atalji was based on how to take everyone along, based

on consultations... But now it has changed.”Nitish Kumar sailed through with 126 votes in his favour after 91 BJP members and a Lok Janshakti Party legislator walked out of the 243-member house before the vot-ing.The Congress, which has four mem-bers, voted for him. This triggered accusation from the BJP that Nitish Kumar -- described as a secular per-son by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh -- had joined hands with the Congress.“JD-U has shown its colour by par-ticipating in the Congress conspira-cy,” BJP spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi said. “They are now bound to Congress with the glue of corrup-tion.”Criticising the BJP, with which his party split last week after Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi was made the party’s election campaign chief, Nitish Kumar said the BJP’s dream of ruling India would be shat-tered.He said the BJP had no chance of winning the 2014 Lok Sabha elec-

tion. “Even if we remained with them, notching up 200 seats would be diffi-cult... Don’t be under the illusion that you can do it alone. This is the time of coalitions,” he said.Taking an apparent dig at Modi’s Gujarat model of development, Nit-ish Kumar said: “What vikas (de-velopment) model is this where you improve (the condition of) areas that are already good? “What kind of improvement is it?” He said the BJP had benefited by aligning with his Janata Dal-United (JD-U). “We will not tolerate thopna (imposi-tion of views). We are for the policy of taking everyone along and against divisive policies,” he asserted.In the house Wednesday, Nitish Ku-mar got the support of JD-U’s 117 legislators, four Independents and Congress members each and the Communist Party of India legislator. One JD-U member is in jail.On its part, the Congress said it voted for the JD-U government to “keep communal BJP at bay” and endorsed Manmohan Singh’s opinion of Nitish Kumar as a secular person.“We do not expect anything in re-turn,” the Congress said.Those who voted against Nitish Kumar included 22 members of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and two independents.Soon after the JD-U ended its 17-year-old alliance with the BJP Sunday, Nitish Kumar said he would seek a vote of confidence at a special session of the assembly Wednesday.Nitish Kumar called off the alliance and his colleague Sharad Yadav quit as convenor of the BJP-led Nation-al Democratic Alliance following mounting differences with the BJP over the growing clout of Modi.

After turmoil, Advani and RSS chief meet

Modi meets Advani to get backing for new role

New DelhiBJP leader L.K. Advani and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat met here for the first time after Advani revolted following Narendra Modi’s elevation as the par-ty’s face in the Lok Sabha polls.A day after their meeting got axed as Advani reported ill, the former deputy prime minister went to the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) office here and spent an hour with Bhagwat.Officially, no details were available about the meeting. But informed sources said they discussed the situa-tion since the June 9 appointment of the Gujarat chief minister as head of the party’s campaign committee.Bhagwat had played a key role in resolving the crisis in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after Advani re-signed from key party posts June 10, one day after Modi’s elevation was announced at a party meet in Goa.Advani had created a sensation by alleging in a letter to BJP president Rajnath Singh that most party leaders were busy pursuing personal agenda.The sources said Advani has reserva-tions over the role played by some RSS functionaries who apparently promoted Modi.Modi’s elevation has also split the BJP-led National Democratic Al-liance, with the Janata Dal-United walking away from the coalition.

MMK to support Kanimozhi in Rajya Sabha pollsChennaiMuslim party Manithaneya Makkal Katchi’s (MMK) two legislators in the Tamil Nadu assembly would vote in favour of DMK’s Kani-mozhi in the June 27 Rajya Sabha biennial elections, said a party of-ficial.Speaking to reporters here, MMK leader M.H. Jawahirullah said: “We met DMK chief M. Karu-nanidhi and expressed our support to Kanimozhi in the Rajya Sabha elections.”DMK has 23 members and with MMK’s support, the total number of votes assured for Kanimozhi is 25.Queried about the reason for sup-porting DMK after supporting AIADMK since 2011, Jawahirul-lah said the ruling AIADMK and the Communist Party of India (CPI) have sufficient votes to get their candidates elected and his party does not want to waste its votes.He said the party will decide later on the alliance for the Lok Sabha elections and did not expressly say that the alliance with the AIADMK is over.MMK fought the 2011 assembly elections in alliance with AIAD-MK.A total of six Rajya Sabha members from Tamil Nadu would retire next month. They are A. Elavarasan and

V. Maitreyan from the AIADMK, Tiruchi N. Siva and Kanimozhi from the DMK, B.S. Gnanadesikan of the Congress and D. Raja of the CPI.The candidates from AIADMK in the fray - V. Maitreyan, K.R. Arju-nan, T. Rathinavel and R. Laksh-manan - had filed their nomination papers Wednesday.AIADMK has also announced its support to CPI’s Raja.While the AIADMK has a strength of 151 (including the speaker) in the 235-member house, the DMDK has 29 legislators, the DMK 23, CPI-M 10, CPI 8 and Congress 5.A candidate needs 34 votes to get elected.As per the current position, all the four AIADMK candidates and the CPI candidate are expected to romp home safely. The AIADMK is expected to increase its tally in the Rajya Sabha to seven from the current five.The contest will be for the sixth seat between DMK’s Kanimozhi and DMDK’s Elangovan.Kanimozhi’s election depends on the support the DMK gets from parties like the Congress and oth-ers.It will be interesting to note the Congress’s position - whether it would support Kanimozhi or DMDK’s Elangovan.

New DelhiGujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi met L.K. Advani to get the BJP patriarch’s backing for his new role as head of the BJP’s campaign com-mittee, an elevation that has split the NDA.He also discussed with senior lead-ers the strategy for the five assembly elections scheduled this year-end as well as the 2014 Lok Sabha battle, party sources said.Modi also visited ailing former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and met senior party leader Murli Manohar Joshi. All three -- Advani, Vajpayee and Joshi -- have been presidents of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).A source close to Advani, who caused a tsunami by revolting a day after Modi was elevated to be BJP’s face in the next Lok Sabha election, described the meeting as “good” and said it ended “on a positive note”.But there was no official word on the 45-minute Advani-Modi meet that took place at the former’s residence.Party sources said Modi reportedly discussed recent political develop-ments including the split in the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).The Janata Dal-United (JD-U) quit the NDA following Modi’s eleva-tion. The JD-U also dumped the BJP from the coalition government in Bi-har.Modi’s meeting with Advani was the first since the former deputy prime minister stunned the BJP by resign-

ing from party posts after accusing most of its leaders of pursuing per-sonal agenda.He made the charge May 10, a day after Modi was elected in Goa as the election campaign chief despite res-ervations from Advani.Advani relented and took back his resignation following the interven-tion of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).According to BJP sources, Modi is understood to have told Advani that the veteran leader remained the pa-triarch of the BJP and expressed opti-mism about the party’s performance in the 2014 general election.Modi Tuesday spent about an hour at the residence of Vajpayee.In his first meeting with the par-ty general secretaries after being named the head of BJP election cam-paign committee, Modi asked them to come up with ideas to improve the party’s electoral prospects. The strategy session lasted for over two hours.Indicating his special interest in Ut-tar Pradesh, Modi held a separate meeting with his confidant and state in charge Amit Shah to discuss the seats where the party could emerge stronger, said the sources.Meanwhile, Information and Broad-casting Minister Manish Tewari Tuesday said a “civil war” was rag-ing in the BJP.“What is happening in the BJP is their internal matter. It is a civil war situation playing out like reality tele-vision,” Tewari said.

Mamata has CPI-M phobia: Biman BoseKolkataWest Bengal Chief Minister is suf-fering from a CPI-M phobia, the Left Front said Wednesday, accusing her of violating the model code of con-duct for the panchayat elections.“When she visited Kamduni (vil-lage), she had said there were CPI-M (Communist Party of India-Marxist) people there. But actually there was no one (from CPI-M). It seems she is having CPI-M phobia,” Left Front chairman Biman Bose told the me-dia.Banerjee went unannounced to the North 24 Parganas district village, the residence of a second-year col-lege student abducted, gang-raped and killed June 7.The trip turned sour after a group of women asked her to talk to them and shouted slogans about the lack of security. The chief minister lost her cool and told the villagers to “shut up”. She branded the rapists as well as the protesters “CPI-M people”.Bose, the CPI-M state secretary, said Banerjee was violating the model

code of conduct by making public announcements of schemes and poli-cies before the election.Bose slammed the State Election Commission for failing to get central forces for the panchayat elections.Bose asked Congress leaders to urge the central government to intervene in the dispute between the state gov-ernment and the poll panel.“Congress leaders should ask their government at the centre to assist the state government and the State Elec-tion Commission so that the election can be held peacefully,” he said.

IANSIANS

CHANDIGARHSUNDAY 23 June 201310 ReGION

With normalcy, five-star luxury returns to Kashmir

GulmargLike a phoenix risen from the ashes, Kashmir has once again got a five-star luxury resort two decades after the only such property in the Valley closed down due to militancy-relat-ed issues. It’s a sign of increasing normalcy in a state that has seen a bruising insurgency that only recent-ly has shown signs of abating.With the beginning of the separatist violence, the state’s only 5-star heri-tage hotel, the Oberoi Hotel, func-tioning in the palace of the erstwhile Dogra maharajas in Srinagar was closed in early 1990s. Other hotels in Srinagar were also either closed or converted into makeshift barracks of the security forces.Now, two high-end properties - the Taj and the Lalit - have reopened in Srinagar but they are not of the five-star variety.Spread over seven acres of land amid majestic pine trees over a ter-raced mountain slope in this ski-lov-ers’ paradise, 50 km from summer capital Srinagar, the best part about the 85-room Khyber Himalayan Re-sort and Spa is that 70 percent of its staff are locals. Little wonder that its opening season occupancy is a whopping 95 percent.“It is a challenge to get quality staff,

make them perform and retain them because my competitors at the mo-ment are good resorts both in the country and outside,” Alex Koshy, the resort’s general manager, told.He said he is delighted at the way things are shaping up at the resort. “For a hotel, reaching 95 percent occupancy in its first season is an achievement. This standard has to be maintained,” Koshy added.The resort, which has some 180 staffers including managers, chefs, waiters, bell boys and security, is owned by Umar Tramboo, who is also its CEO. The Tramboos are a prominent business family of the Valley.“I have been very particular that the majority of the staff must be from Jammu and Kashmir. You cannot claim Kashmiri hospitality unless the hosts are Kashmiris. Seventy percent of our staff is from the state,” Koshy said.Asked whether the locals, with little exposure to international standards, are performing well, he said: “They have the drive and it is not true that they do not have the right exposure. After the Khyber opened, many trained and talented locals are com-ing back. My chief engineer is a lo-cal who came back from the Middle

East, my front office manager came back from Delhi, my HRD manager came back from Bangalore, they are both locals.”Koshy said the local Wazwan cui-sine is in big demand at the resort. “We mostly serve the Wazwan to our guests in copper plates known as the ‘tramis’ with an option of eating in Kashmiri style sitting on the ground or at a table.”“I agree that Wazwan made outside the Valley would definitely not taste the same. You see water and Kash-miri spices make a lot of difference to the taste of this traditional cui-sine”, executive chef Vivek Kapoor said.Khyber has a mini movie theatre - the Den - that accommodates 15 view-ers. The Igloo is an ideal place for children to hangout and to play table tennis and board games, among oth-ers. Chaikash, the tea lounge, offers breathtaking views of the Affarwat Peaks and of Gulmarg. Guests are spoilt for choice, what 25 varieties of tea are on offer.The resort’s hookah and cigar lounge, the Calabash has some of the World best cigars and flavoured hoo-kahs. The Nouf, one flight up from the lobby is a covered deck with fas-cinating views in all directions.

“If you are a stargazer by night or want to catch the sun’s rays by the day, just doze or party with family and friends Nouf is the place you are looking for,” said Waseem Raja, the front office manager. Raja was pre-viously with Marriott International.“Apart from this, we will have a Presidential Suite with four bed-rooms,” Raja added.The resort has high-end state-of-the-art facilities while the basic architec-ture and layout is totally authentic.The resort is in the final stages of starting its Spa, which has a gym and separate swimming pools for children and adults. “The Spa would also have a steam sauna, a saloon and a massage centre to be run by a professional company,” Raja said.He said he was sure the Khyber would never be short of guests who have the spending power to stay here.“Gulmarg has always been a high-end destination as a ski resort which is a very costly sport. We have the world’s highest golf course here which has never been short of golf-ers from all over the world. The Khyber is in fact Kashmir’s hospi-tality history-in-the-making and I am proud to be part of it”, Raja said.

- By Sheikh Qayoom

Omar chairs meeting to review Amarnath Yatra arrangements

SrinagarJammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah chaired the unified headquarters meeting which took stock of the security situation in the state and the arrangements for the forthcoming annual Amarnath Yatra.An official statement issued here said the chief minister received a briefing on the prevailing security and law and order situation in the state dur-ing the meeting, as well as “arrange-ments put in place to conduct the Shri Amarnath Yatra peacefully and securely”.The unified headquarters is the apex security grid in the state and was formed to coordinate security force action against the separatist guerril-las.Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand, Minister of State for Home Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo, the army’s north-ern command chief Lt. Gen. K.T. Parnaik, Principal Secretary Home Suresh Kumar, Director General of Police Ashok Prasad, the command-ers of the army’s 14, 15, 16, and 9 Corps, divisional commissioners, Kashmir and Jammu and other senior civil, police and intelligence officers also attended the meeting.Lt. Gen. Parnaik had recently dis-closed that intelligence intercepts with the army indicate this year’s Amarnath Yatra is “on the radar of the militants”.

Haryana acid attack victim gets Rs.20 lakh for surgeryChandigarhA girl volleyball player, who became the victim of an acid attack in Hary-ana’s Rohtak town last year, will be given Rs.20 lakh by the state govern-ment for her plastic surgery, a state minister said.Women and Child Development Min-ister Geeta Bhukkal said the state level panel set up under the Relief and Re-habilitation of Women Acid Victims scheme, which met here, decided to re-lease an immediate relief of Rs.20 lakh to Ritu Saini for her plastic surgery.Bhukkal said that any further assis-tance, if required for the treatment, would also be given to Saini. She has been advised to undergo plas-tic surgery by the Indraprastha Apollo Hospital in New Delhi, for which the cost would be around Rs.20 lakh.Saini was attacked in Rohtak town May last year by two youths who threw acid on her. Police said the as-sailants were hired by a cousin of the victim, who liked her, to throw acid on her. The duo has been arrested.The Relief and Rehabilitation of Wom-en Acid Victims scheme provides tem-porary relief, medical reimbursement and rehabilitation services to acid at-tack victims.

Pakistani troops violate LoC ceasefire after infiltration foiledJammuA civilian was injured as Pakistani troops violated the ceasefire and fired across the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district after an infiltration bid was foiled by the Indian Army, a defence official said.Defence PRO S.N. Acharya said a group of four militants from Pak-istan-administered Kashmir were seen moving towards the LoC in Krishna Ghati sector in Poonch around 9.50 a.m. and opened fire when challenged by Indian troops. “Our troops retaliated, and they were pushed back,” he said. Acharya said after the infiltration bid was foiled, Pakistani troops fired with small arms and mortars in Krishna Ghati and Poonch sec-tors, and one civilian sustained injuries. The injured man is under treatment at a hospital in Poonch.Indian troops retaliated to the fir-ing, he said, adding that firing con-tinued intermittently.

Event managing director booked for rapeGurgaonA Mumbai-based event management company’s managing director has been charged with raping and black-mailing a woman teacher and threat-ening her, police said.Police officer Dinesh Kumar said a team was likely to go to Mumbai to arrest Sarasjeet Srivastav, 62.The woman, in her mid-30s, hails from Pathankot in Punjab and came to be with her sister in Gurgaon in 2012 after she had some differences with her husband. She got employed as a teacher at a private school here.

“She came in contact with Srivastav through the Internet when she ap-plied for a job online,” officer Kumar told.Srivastav lives in Andheri (West) in Mumbai and ran an event-manage-ment company there, he said.Srivastav invited the woman to Mumbai where he employed her at his company as a deputy director and provided her a flat, Kumar said.In a complaint lodged with police at Palam Vihar police sation, the wom-an alleged that Srivastav installed a spy camera in the washroom of the

flat provided to her.“He blackmailed me on the basis of the camera footage and raped me for about a year. I somehow managed to return to Gurgaon, but he also reached here and forced me to return to Mumbai. “He also threatened me and my sister with dire consequences in case we divulged his misdeeds,” the woman said.She alleged that Srivastav had ex-ploited a number of women after luring them on some pretext or the other.

Kashmir police cadets turn violentSrinagarCadets went on a nightlong ram-page inside a police training school complex in Jammu and Kashmir smashing the property as well as vehicles on the Srinagar-Leh high-way.Scores of trainees at the Mani-gam police training school in the northern district of Ganderbal went on the nightlong rampage late Wednesday some 30 km from here. The violence subsided only Thurs-day morning.The trainees shouted slogans against the school principal, al-

leging moral turpitude, financial corruption and use of abusive lan-guage.The trainees also damaged canteens and window panes at the barracks. They later took to the Srinagar-Leh highway, forcing traffic to halt on the busy route.Many of the protesters masked their faces with handkerchiefs. On the streets, they snapped the elec-tricity lines, plunging the entire area into darkness.Many of the trainees had been re-cruited during the government’s drive in old city areas of Srinagar

to address the problems of unem-ployed youths.Police sources said the trainees had been agitating against the delay in their passing out parade.The nightlong rampage lasted till early Thursday. Senior police offi-cers had a tough time pacifying the trainees.The hue and cry raised by the train-ees at night created panic and fear in the adjacent villages where resi-dents wondered if separatist guer-rillas had attacked the police train-ing school.

IANS

CHANDIGARH SUNDAY 23 June 2013 11CAMPUS

• Himachal Pradesh University (HPU) Shimla DM and MCh Entrance Test Notice 2013An All India MCQ type entrance test for admission to DM (Cardiol-ogy) and M.Ch (CTVS) courses in Indira Gandhi Govt Medical College and Hospital, Shimla will be held on 07th July, 2013 (Sunday) at IGMC premisesApplication Form: The Prospectus-cum-Application Form can be ob-tained from the University Exami-nation Enquiry-cum-Sale Counter No.1, Library Building (Basement) Summer Hill, Shimla-5 from 07th June, 2013 to 29th June, 2013 dur-ing working hours on payment of Rs.3300/-The request for obtaining the pro-spectus-cum-application form by post can be made to the Assistant Registrar (entrance tests) Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla-171005 accompanied by crossed IPOs/Bank Draft amounting to Rs 3500/- drawn in favour of the Finance Officer, HP University, Shimla-171005• NAL-SAR University of Law offers specialised MBA Programmes 2013-2014

• University of Mysore PG Entrance Exam 2013Postgraduate Entrance Examination (PGEE) for admission to all PG pro-grammes offered by the university in its campus, other PG centers and af-filiated colleges from 2013-14.How to ApplyCandidates may download the Ap-plication form from the University of Mysore website: www.uni-mysore.ac.in and submit the same along with a Demand Draft of Rs. 100/- (Rupees One hundred only) as application fee in favour of “The Finance Officer, University of Mysore, Mysore” pay-able at Mysore.The completed application form along with DD will have to be sent/submitted to The Coordinator, PGEEC, Pareeksha Bhavan, Behind Crawford Hall, University of My-sore, Mysore-05 so as to reach on or before 01-07-2013 latest by 5.00 pm.

• Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University PG Courses Admission 2013Applications are invited for admis-sion to the full time Contemporary & Innovative Courses of following UG/PG/M.Phil./PGD/Certificate programmesEntrance test for admission: 25th July, 2013 to 30th July, 2013Center: Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambed-kar University, LucknowApplication Form: Prospectus con-taining application form are avail-able from 17th June, 2013 to 08th July, 2013 by hand from the ‘Canara Bank branches at BBA University, Hazratganj in Lucknow’ on payment of Rs.1000/- plus Bank charges in cash (Rs.500/- plus Bank charges for SC/ST/PH candidates)Online application form may be submitted (likely to start 17th June, 2013) on the university web-site www.bbau.ac.in by paying the prescribed fee through payment Gateway/E-challan/NEFTThe last date of submitting applica-tions is 10th July, 2013.For further information kindly visit University website www.bbau.ac.in and download prospectus/applica-tion form of contemporary and new innovative courses for the session 2013-14.

Admission News

DU colleges hike fees

With Delhi University implement-ing the four-year undergraduate pro-gramme from this academic year, several colleges have decided to raise the fees for various courses be-ing offered.The decision to hike the fees is taken by the colleges and the university has nothing to do with it.“There has been no directive from the university. The decision to raise

the fees is taken by the respective colleges,” Avinashi Kapoor, the var-sity’s joint dean of students’ welfare, told.The DU colleges hiking their course fees include Sri Ram College for Commerce (SRCC), Hans Raj, St. Stephens, Kirori Mal, Lady Sri Ram and Ramjas.“There has been a hike of just Rs.1,000 for economics and commerce programmes being of-

fered by the college,” SRCC principal P.C. Jain told. St. Stephen’s College has raised the fees by five-eight percent for the science and humanities courses. “There would be a hike but it won’t be more than 10 percent. The hike would be for all the courses except for the Bachelors of Technol-ogy (Btech) in Electronics,” Hans Raj College principal K.V. Kavatia said.However, colleges like Hindu, Miranda House and Lady Irwin are not raising their fees.“There will be no fee hike in Hindu College. We have already printed the fee struc-ture in our prospectus,” Hin-du College principal Pradu-man Kumar said.Miranda House principal

Pratibha Jolly said: “We have not taken a decision on the fee hike so far.”Under the new four-year under-graduate programme offered by DU, students will be required to study 11 foundational courses in the first two years, clubbing together students who seek vocational education with those pursuing pure academic disci-plines.

Ravi Kumar, an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology -Madras (IIT-M), has been appointed dean of the Nanyang Business School (NBS) in Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU).In a press release issued by the univer-sity, Kumar, 61, has been described as “an academic heavyweight with a good blend of east-west experience”.Ravi Kumar comes to Singapore from the University of South California’s (USC) Marshall Business School, where he served in several key posi-tions, including that of vice dean for international programmes and vice dean for graduate programmes.He also served as dean of the College of Business at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology while taking a two-year leave of ab-sence from the USC, a stint that saw the Korean college break into the top 100 of the Financial Times global MBA rankings.“NTU has an ambitious leadership that has been consistently building its

brand worldwide,” Ravi Kumar said about his new move.“As one of the pillars of the universi-ty, the Nanyang Business School has a great reputation for thought lead-ership. It recruits excellent students and faculty, and aspires to be a global leader in business education.”“My predecessors have laid a strong foundation and I plan to build on these strengths and bring NBS to greater heights,” he said.NTU provost Freddy Boey said Ravi Kumar “has a strong record of global and cross-cultural business leadership spanning many continents”.“As an information and operations management professor, he is known widely for his expertise on global operations, particularly in improv-ing operational performance through cellular design and in integrating decision-making with marketing and information technology.”Ravi Kumar, who loves playing table tennis, graduated in mechanical engi-neering from IIT-M in 1974.

He also holds a master of science de-gree in industrial engineering from the University of Texas, and a doc-torate in philosophy from the indus-trial engineering and management sciences department at Northwestern University in the US.Ravi Kumar also has extensive in-ternational consulting experience, including projects with Nike, Rolls Royce, BMW, Ericsson, Reuters, and Infosys.He serves on the board of

several major corporations, including the Korea Exchange Bank.The NTU is one of the two largest public universities in this city-state.The NBS is ranked first in Singapore for its MBA programme by both the Economist and the Financial Times.The school has 160 professors repre-senting 20 nationalities.Ravi Kumar’s appointment comes after a two-year global search by the university.

IIT-ian becomes dean of top Singapore business school

GurgaonTo engage students in social devel-opment and community service, a premium business school here an-nounced a course for their new batch of 2013-14, officials said .The social innovation programme by School of Inspired Leadership (SOIL) requires a student to dedicate one day of each week to social causes. With the help of 25 NGOs attached with SOIL, students can participate in different causes.The course was inaugurated by former IPS officer-turned-activist Kiran Bedi, whose NGO Navjyoti India Foundation is part of the con-sortium.“When you are working with NGOs you are seeing, feeling, believing. All your five senses are into it. You taste, feel the air, sense the people’s culture. This is something which should start at the school level,” she said.

Business school announcesSocial service course

CHANDIGARHSUNDAY 23 June 201312 SPECIAL

‘Only Kedarnath shrine intact, destruction all around’DehradunOnly the sanctum sanctorum of the revered Kedarnath shrine with the Shivling in it is intact, and all around the temple is a sight of de-struction, with bodies scattered, following a cloudburst, an Uttara-khand minister said.Uttarakhand Agriculture Minister Harak Singh Rawat told reporters his chopper landed at Kedarnath with “great difficulty”. “Though the Shivling is intact, there is destruction all around, with bodies scattered all around. It is a very heart rending situation,” he said.The administration has been try-ing to land choppers at a Bhairon-nath temple a little away. “There are around 250 people there,” the minister said.“There are around 8,000-,10,000 people stuck in Gaurikund. We have made arrangements to bring down the elderly and the sick. The army and ITBP (Indo-Tibetan Border Police) are trying to bring

down the rest by holding ropes,” he added.He said 2,000 people have been brought down by the ITBP and army.In Rambada, near Kedarnath, which has been completely devas-tated, he said the authorities have made a helipad where small chop-pers can land. “The army choppers are not able to land there,” he added.Rawat said there were many small destroyed hamlets in the hills where people are stranded. The people are being provided food packets and rescue teams are go-ing to the areas to bring down the people, he said.“It will take us at least five years to recover from the extensive damages caused to the entire in-frastructure network in the Ke-darnath area, which is the worst affected”.According to officials, around 207 people have been killed and around 50,000 are stranded in the hill state, mostly in the temple town of Kedarnath, which was hit by torrential rains that set off flash floods and cloud bursts over the weekend.

22 helicopters involved in rescue work in Uttarakhand: Home ministry

New DelhiTwenty-two helicopters have been pressed into service for rescue opera-tions in Uttarakhand, which was rav-aged by flash floods and landslides, the union home ministry said in a statement.The search, rescue and relief opera-tions are being carried out with the help of choppers from the army, air force, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and the state government.A total of 13 teams of NDRF, con-sisting of 422 personnel along with the necessary paraphernalia, have been deployed for assisting the state government in search and rescue op-erations.Though there is no shortage of food material, the department of food and public distribution and ministry of petroleum have been requested to consider an appeal from the state government for 100 tonnes of rice and 60 kilolitres of kerosene at BPL rates, the home ministry statement said.Essential commodities including food packets are being air dropped, it added.Giving details of the rescue opera-tions, the statement said 51 persons were rescued by NDRF teams in Ut-

tarakhand.Home secretary R.K. Singh is chair-ing daily meetings reviewing the situation and the relief and rescue measures being undertaken in the states of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, it said.The ministry, quoting the India Me-teorological Department (IMD), said the cumulative rainfall of Utta-rakhand is reported to be 385.1 mm till now, as against a normal of 71.3 mm. The rainfall in the state is 440 percent in excess of the average for

this time of year. At a meeting of officials attend- ed by the home secretary, a decision was taken that the ITBP would launch teams based in Pithoragarh and fanning out to other locations, to search for - and provide aid to - stranded villagers and tourists.

Railways plan to evacuate people stranded in Uttarakhand

New DelhiThe Northern Railway has deployed senior officers at Dehradun, Ri-shikesh and Haridwar to help coor-dinate evacuation of people stranded in flood-hit Uttarakhand, a statement here said.These officers will co-ordinate with the state authorities and ensure man-agement and dispersal of passengers by trains, running of special trains and also ensure setting up of pas-senger help booths at these locations round the clock, said the statement.The officers are:Dehradun - Sanjeev Garg, chief commercial manager/freight market-ing, Mobile:09717630953; Rishikesh - D. K. Singh, chief

commercial manager/project, Mo-bile:097171630969; Haridwar - Hitendra Malhotra, ad-ditional divisional railway manager/Moradabad, Mobile:09760534001; and New Delhi - Vivek Srivastava, ad-ditional divisional railway manager, Mobile:09717631001The statement said the railways have also deployed Railway Protection Force (RPF) officers, doctors and paramedical staff in sufficient num-bers at these stations.Four special trains are being sent to Haridwar/Dehradun to be utilized for evacuation of stranded people between Haridwar/Dehradun and Ambala, Delhi and Lucknow, it said.

‘TSUNAMI’ IN THE HILLS

1,446 people rescued from flooded north India areas: NDRF

New DelhiA total of 1,446 people were rescued by the NDRF from areas affected by floods caused by torrential rains in various places of north India, includ-ing Uttarakhand, a disaster manage-ment official said.“While 443 people were rescued in Uttarakhand, NDRF teams rescued 930 people from Haryana out of which 844 from Karnal and 86 from Yamuna Nagar. Fifty were rescued from Reckong Peo in Kinnaur dis-trict in Himachal Pradesh and 23 in Uttar Pradesh,” a National Disaster

Response Force (NDRF) official said in a statement.Twenty-nine teams of the NDRF have been deployed in various flood hit area of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, West Bengal and Assam for relief operations.“The water levels have decreased, relief operations are continuing,” the statement added.Apart from NDRF, men and staff of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and the army are carrying

over the rescue operations par-ticularly in Ut-tarakhand, the worst hit by heavy rains.Home Minis-ter Sushilku-mar Shinde We d n e s d a y put the number of people stranded in Uttarakhand at some 62,000.

Destroyed roads major hurdle in rescue, says NDMA 50,000 still

stranded in Uttarakhand

New DelhiAs rescue operations in the flood-hit Himalayan areas continue, a disaster management official said the de-struction of roads is creating a major hurdle.“The situation is very difficult there.... there is only one approach-able road which is also damaged. The rescue operation is depending totally on helicopters,” National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) member J.K. Sinha told reporters.“However, even the helicopters have limited space for landing,” he said.The NDMA member said that 4,000 Indo-Tibetan Border Police person-nel, 5,000-6,000 army soldiers, and nearly 500 members of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) were involved in rescue operations.

New DelhiSome 50,000 people are still strand-ed in the flood-hit areas of Uttara-khand, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said.“We have evacuated more than 34,000 people, some 49,000-50,000 people are still stranded there,” Shinde told reporters here after a meeting with members of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).“The figure of deaths so far is 207, but more people could be buried in the debris,” Shinde said.He added he would go for a surveil-lance of the flood-hit areas.

• Uttarakhand: 0135-2710334/ 0135-2710335/ 0135-2710233/ 011-23710362

• Rudraprayag, Uttarkashi and Chamoli: +919808151240, +919837134399

• Pauri, Haridwar and

Nainital: +91999779124, +919451901023

• Almora, Bageshwar and Pithoragarh: +919456755206, +919634535758

• Uttarakhand Disaster Management Secretary:

+919837542221• Indian Army (Medical):

18001805558/ 18004190282/ 8009833388

• Army (for pilgrims stranded at Joshimath): 0138922225

• District Disaster Control

Helpline No.

CHANDIGARH SUNDAY 23 June 2013 13SPECIAL

Thousands of flood-hit without food in Uttarakhand

DehradunAs the skies cleared, rescue and evac-uation operations picked up in flood-ravaged Uttarakhand but those who survived the nature’s fury alleged major food shortages.Harrowing tales of devastation and agony emerged as the air force, army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) continued to rescue people from the hills.Officials told that while the evacu-ation process had been fast-tracked, more than 70,000 people were still stranded at various places in the hill state.“We are trying our best but there are limitations. The army is working under testing times to the best of its abilities,” an army official told.Officials of the highly revered Kedar-nath temple say the place where it is located has been devastated, and that there was only death and ruins. B.D. Singh, chief executive officer of the Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee, said the chances of re-viving the pilgrimage to these places in the next few years was slim. “What we are seeing is very painful and unbelievable, we don’t expect the Char Dham Yatra to re-sume in the next three years,” Singh said. More than four days after the cloudburst and incessant rains led to misery, the thousands

caught up at various places were faced with lack of potable water, food and power.Many of those who have returned safely told that the stranded do not have enough food and prices of even potato chips and mineral water had shot up in the wake of shortages.“There is an acute shortage of drink-ing water, medicines and food. One can’t imagine what the situation is like,” said a pilgrim from Basti in Uttar Pradesh who was rescued by a private chopper. To bring back his family of five, he said, he had to cough up Rs.11 lakh on touch down at Dehradun. “People are fleecing others, with-out showing compassion,” he com-plained. The food packets being dropped by choppers were dropping in the rivers, he said.Authorities said 20,000 food packets were dropped by choppers Thursday. Some 500 cars stuck between Gupt-kashi and Ghansali in Uttarakhand had also been taken out.A temporary helipad has been built in Gaurikund. An aerial survey of Badrinath and Ghangharia was com-pleted Thursday.While the Uttarakhand government did not release any fresh estimate of the dead, Chief Minister Vijay Bahu-

guna admitted that the the death toll would be “much

higher”.Some officials fear

thousands may be dead after being washed away in the strong cur-rents of rain swol-

len rivers or after coming under the debris of collapsed buildings.

‘TSUNAMI’ IN THE HILLS

Kin of missing, stranded pilgrims crowd Dehradun

DehradunAnxious relatives holding photo-graphs of missing kin crowded the Uttarakhand capital for news as an estimated 60,000 people, including pilgrims, continue to remain strand-ed in Kedarnath.“I am here for the past four days for news of my five missing relatives. We are from Rajasthan. There is no news, and no one is helping us. We have come to know from people who arrived from Gaurikund that a bottle of drinking water is being sold there for Rs.250...,” an agitated man told reporters here.Another man from Rajasthan look-ing for his seven relatives, said some stranded pilgrims who had arrived here from Kedarnath and surround-ing areas that was hit by a cloudburst over the weekend claimed the toll was much higher than the official

150. One middle-aged man claimed an-grily that private chopper owners were charging exorbitantly to rescue people. “Six of my relatives are stuck. The helicopter owners are charging in thousands to evacuate people. Those who have the money are giving it and flying out, others are selling the jewellery they are wearing, and those who have nothing are at the mercy of the authorities.”“The people are then dumped in a small dirty hospital, with no help or doctors around,” he claimed.According to officials, around 150 people have been killed and around 60,000 are stranded in the hill state, mostly in the temple town of Kedar-nath, that was hit by torrential rains that set off flash floods and cloud bursts over the weekend.

Tales of misery and human endurance from the hills

New DelhiAfter being stranded for days with-out food on a small stretch of hilly road that did not cave in, a Rajast-han trader made it to safety Friday with tales of human endurance and chilling details of nature’s fury that unleashed death and destruction in Uttarakhand.The 36-year-old Vinod Kumar Shar-ma’s story was reinforced by details from Hindu activists who said that many lives could have been saved if only the massive rescue operation now underway had begun right after the torrential rains and cloudburst of last weekend.Sharma, who hails from Rajasthan, was camping at Ram Bada after visit-ing the Kedarnath shrine when a sud-den burst of very heavy rains swept away virtually everything including people, mules, houses, hotels, shops and mountainous roads. The govern-ment hotel he was in disappeared in no time.Guided by instinct, Sharma and his family made it to a small stretch of road where eventually about 150 people took refuge, braving the rains that drenched them the first night and hoping for an early rescue.“After a while most of us managed to take shelter in two huts that were still intact in the hills,” Sharma told IANS soon after he was rescued and

he reached Dehradun. “We spent one night there. The next day, boulders suddenly came crashing from the mountains, killing two people in-stantly.“We fled to safety... We were now caught in the open, praying that there would be no more tragedies... We had no food. We managed to light a fire to cook grain meant for cattle. The third day we had no food.“Believe me, there were bodies all around the place where we had taken shelter. They had begun to rot. It was impossible to bear the stench,” the trader said.Sharma and the others saw helicop-ters passing over Ram Bada, and wondered why no one was rescuing them even though they were franti-cally waving their clothes. He did not know then that the choppers were headed towards Kedarnath, which had suffered the worst destruction.Chandragupta Vikram, the Dehradun president of the Vishwa Hindu Pari-shad (VHP), told IANS that human life was obliterated in Kedarnath “within just 15 minutes”.“There was a huge explosion,” Vi-kram said. “It happened behind the Kedarnath shrine. It turned out to be a cloudburst. Suddenly the place was overwhelmed by water.“With the water came huge boulders and tonnes of mud. It took just 15

minutes for the destruction at Kedar-nath.”Sharma and others in Uttarakhand told IANS that the death toll in the disaster was bound to be much more than the officially admitted 200-plus.According to them, there were at least 15,000 people including locals as well as pilgrims besides hundreds of mules in Kedarnath when the ca-lamity took place.“Barring some, there is no trace of the people and animals,” Sharma said. He added: “As of today no one can give a precise figure of the dead and missing. It is impossible.”Vijay told IANS from Rudrapryag, 85 km from Kedarnath, that the res-cue operation going on now should have started immediately after the disaster. “In the beginning, the state government didn’t even come to terms with the tragedy.”Both Sharma and Vijay said the army and other security forces were doing a great job against tremendous odds.“Many survivors got food from vil-lagers,” Vijay said. “Unfortunately, many of the food packets air-dropped fell into rivers and in the hills.“For days, many people were strand-ed in the hills, hungry and shiver-ing.”“I wish the administration had wo-ken up days ago. Many lives would have been saved.”

No Kedarnath-Badrinath pilgrimage for three yearsDehradunPilgrimage to the shrines of Ke-darnath and Badrinath in Utta-rakhand cannot resume for three years due to extensive damage caused by heavy rains and floods, an official said.Officials of the two shrines say the two places have been so badly devastated that there was nothing “but mud, devastation and death” around the highly revered temples

visited by millions.B.D. Singh, chief executive Of-ficer of the Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee, told IANS that the chances of reviving the pilgrimage “for the next few years” was grim. “What we are seeing is very pain-ful and unbelievable,” he said. “We don’t expect the Char Dham Yatra to resume in the next three years.”

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CHANDIGARHSUNDAY 23 June 201314 CeLeB

‘Amazing Spider-Man’ costume designer keen to work in IndiaNew DelhiHollywood costume designer Kym Barrett, who had a major hand in re-designing the webslinger’s costume for “The Amazing Spider-Man”, says she would love to visit India, but not as a tourist. She wants to ex-plore work options in the country.“I would love to shoot a film in In-dia. I don’t want to travel to India as a tourist,” Barrett told IANS in an email interview.“I like to live and work in different countries where I can really experi-ence life and the culture of the coun-try,” she added.Her body of work includes projects as varied as ro-m a n t i c

drama “Romeo + Juliet”, sci-fi clas-sic “The Matrix”, supernatural thrill-er “Gothika”, rom-com “Monster-in-Law” and superhero project “The Amazing Spider-Man”.How difficult is it to come up with innovative designs for iconic char-acters like Spiderman, who has a fan following stretching back decades?“These characters are difficult to de-sign as they are already so dear to the people’s hearts,” admits Barrett, who designed a slicker and smarter span-dex-based attire for actor Andrew Garfield, the on-screen Spiderman.“You need to re-imagine the costume and then try

to cre-ate a

new at-mosphere around the

character - a design that re-tains his or her original char-acteristics, but lives a new l i f e in context

with the new sto-ry,” she

added.

The 2012 film “The Amaz-

ing Spiderman”, which will be aired on

Sony Pix June 26, was a character Barrett enjoyed

working on because she likes “projects that are adven-

turous and full of fascinating charac-ters”.Barrett was just 28 when filmmaker Baz Luhrmann asked her to design costumes for the 1996 film “Romeo Juliet”. Before that, she had studied costume and set design at the Na-tional Institute of Dramatic Art in Sydney.Barrett’s first tryst with costume de-signing was in the world of theatre. How different is it to design for the cinema and theatre?“Theatre is very immediate and ev-erything evolves constantly through rehearsals and into the run of the show, the costume, the character and the makeup. (It is) different in film, where once a scene is shot, you must adapt your continuity around that first scene,” she explained.

‘Bold’ Poonam Pandey wants to go beyond boldness

MumbaiControversial model-turned-actress Poonam Pandey, known for her out-rageous photographs and statements, clarifies that she isn’t cut out just for bold roles. She wants to do much more.The actress has gone over ’bold’ in her forthcoming film “Nasha”. But she says: “Honestly speaking, it’s not like I have always wanted to do bold films. I would love to experiment with different types of roles.”“Right now, I haven’t thought much. I am just focussing on ‘Nasha’ right now,” the 20-year-old said here Wednesday during the shoot of a pole dance sequence.Even Amit Saxena, who has directed

her in “Nasha”, vouches that Poo-nam has the talent to feature in all kinds of film genres.“She would fit any genre. It’s breath-taking to watch this talent. She is ab-solutely new, she is doing this for the first time and there is absolutely no inhibitions that she has,” said Sax-ena.Talking about her capability, he said: “She has gone from comic moments to serious moments. I feel she will be able to do any genre and do full justice to it.”“Nasha” tells the story of an 18-year-old boy who falls in love with an older woman, played by Poonam. The movie releases July 26.

Sheeran, Gomez more than just friends?

Los AngelesSingers Ed Sheeran and Selena Go-mez are said to be showing a lot of interest in one another, and have “hooked up”, reports thesun.co.uk.Gomez, who was earlier dating Justin Bieber, instantly hit it off well with Sheeran after getting introduced by common friend, singer Taylor Swift.“They are hooking up. They are

friends with an open mind. He’s sen-sitive and sweet and a lot deeper than Justin,” a source said.Gomez famously ended her two-year-old relationship with “Baby” hitmaker Bieber in January this year.Sheeran was also linked up with Swift earlier, but later, he denied the reports, calling her “a very good friend”.

Indian Ocean members gets chained for a cause

New DelhiMembers of Indie-pop band Indian Ocean have shot an advertisement to oppose abuse of animals in circuses.Band members Rahul Ram, Tuheen Chakravarty, Amit Kilam, Himan-shu Joshi and Susmit Sen, who has now quit the band, are seen chained with heavy metal chains in the latest People for the Ethical Treatment Of Animals (PETA) advertisement.“We are performers and enjoy en-tertaining our fans, but chaining and beating freedom-loving animals into performing is not entertainment. It’s

abuse. We’re asking all good people of conscience to stay away from any circus that enslaves and harms ani-mals,” Indian Ocean said in a state-ment.The new ad’s slogan is “Try to Relate to Their Fate. Boycott Animal Cir-cuses” and has been shot by leading photographer Anil Chawla, with hair and makeup by Adwita Roy.Post the shoot came the news that guitarist Susmit had decided to move away from Indian Ocean and that he will be replaced by Nikhil Rao.

‘Banana’ is special for John Abraham

MumbaiActor-producer John Abraham’s up-coming production has a quirky title - “Banana”! He says it is “a slice-of-life film”, which traces the journey from adolescence to teenage, and he admits the project is special to him.“’Banana’ is a film about adoles-cence to teenage. It’s about a young boy and how he deals with the new adventures in his life. It’s a slice-of-life kind of a film and it is a very real film,” John told reporters at the launch of music album “Pitol Soku” by rock band JOI here Thursday.He believes the movie will appeal to all viewers from all age groups.“I am sure the target audience of this film is from the youngsters to all the old people out there because every-one will reminisce what they’ve gone through. It’s a very special film,” added the 40-year-old.The movie has an “absolutely new cast”, revealed John. It is directed by Sajid Ali.“Sajid has got some amazing people for ‘Banana.’ I am sure they will be amazing,” said John“Banana” will hit the floors in Oc-tober. Besides this, John’s other productions in the pipeline are “Ha-mara Bajaj” and “Madras Cafe”. He forayed into film production with “Vicky Donor”, which turned out to be hugely successful and critically acclaimed.

CHANDIGARH SUNDAY 23 June 2013 15CeLeB

The film industry means everything to me: Akshay KumarMumbaiBollywood star Akshay Kumar cred-its the film industry for all the name, fame, accolades, adulation, lifestyle and luxury that he has garnered in over two decades, saying filmdom “means a lot” to him.Ever since he started with “Sau-gandh” in 1991, he has never looked back and the career graph of the 45-year-old has always spiralled up.“This is my bread and butter. This is where I started... I am very thankful to the industry. It means a lot to me. In fact, it means everything to me,” Akshay told in an exclusive inter-view.Tagged as “one of the most profit-able actors”, he delivered mega hits “Housefull 2” and “Rowdy Rathore” last year, with both the films entering the Rs.100-crore club.Asked about the new title, pat came the reply: “Who wouldn’t want to be an actor who gives profits to all his producers and exhibitors?”In the same breath, he added: “I feel honoured with this compliment. Thank you very much for it.”There is a lot of talk about the qual-ity of content in films, but box office numbers are important for survival, he said.“It is important for you to survive. It is important for the distributors and exhibitors to be happy. At the end of the day, these are the people who matter to you. The box office does matter, no matter what everyone says,” he explained.As a beginner, he earned the tag of an action star after the hit “Khiladi” se-ries including “Khiladi” and “Main Khiladi Tu Anari”. Subsequently he moved to drama and comedy with “Waqt - Race Against Time” and “Hera Pheri”.With “Khiladi 786” and “Once Upon A Time in Mumbaai Dobara”, he is back to the action genre and con-fesses: “I enjoy action with comedy.”“But this film (‘Once Upon...’) is about romance and action. It is a

deadly combination. I have enjoyed working in it. It is a different kind of genre. I am looking forward to the release,” he said.Milan Luthria-directed underworld drama “Once Upon A Time In Mum-baai Dobara” , would release Aug 15 to take advantage of the Indepen-dence Day holiday. It also stars Im-ran Khan and Sonakshi Sinha.

Asked about the box-office prospects of the film, he said: “I have worked hard in the film. I don’t know wheth-er I will achieve it or not, but I am very confident that people will like it and that is more important. I have been very honest with my work.”He attended the India-Pakistan Champions Trophy match in London on Saturday to promote his film.

“I don’t know if it will help or not. It surely helped me to have fun and that is what I went for,” he said.Hectic shooting schedules and en-dorsements keep Akshay, who is married to actress Twinkle Khanna, on his toes. Therefore, he keeps his free time for his children - Aarav and Nitara. “I play with my children in my free time,” he said.

Ali Zafar to shoot for ‘Tere Bin Laden’ sequel in August

MumbaiPakistani actor Ali Zafar, who de-buted in Bollywood with 2010 film “Tere Bin Laden”, will be seen doing a cameo in the comic satire’s sequel.Directed by Abhishek Sharma, “Tere Bin laden”, a spoof on the 9/11 mas-termind Osama Bin Laden, featured Ali in the lead. Tentatively titled “Tere Bin Laden 3”, the sequel stars TV anchor Man-ish Paul in the main role.“I am only doing a cameo in the sequel. I am very excited about the film. Most probably, I will shoot for this film in August,” Ali told IANS.Meanwhile, Ali, who has done films like “Mere Brother Ki Dulhan”, “London, Paris, New York” and “Chashme Baddoor”, expresses hap-piness over good scripts coming his way.He said: “I am in a happy phase right now. Really happy that I am getting to read some outstanding scripts...I want to be known for my good work and good films and not just for the box office success.”

‘Bhaag Milkha Bhaag’ not a sports film: Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra

MumbaiProducer-director Rakeysh Om-prakash Mehra, who is all set to release his film, “Bhaag Milkha Bhaag”, based on the life of former athlete Milkha Singh, said that the film was not based on sports and could have been on anybody in an endeavour to show the human spirit.“I will like to clarify that the film is not based on sports or about a sports-man. It is about the triumph of the human spirit. What I saw was a story of a boy who lost his parents in his childhood at 12 years. He went on to make his country proud in the fu-ture,” he said at the music and promo launch of the film held here Wednes-day.The film stars Farhan Akhtar and So-nam Kapoor.Farhan who has been seen in films like “Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara” and “Rock On” said that he feels truly honoured to have got to play Milkha

Singh in this film.“The opportunity of acting or direct-ing a film on someone so inspiration-al are rare. I am so happy that I got this opportunity. I promised Milkhaji that I will do a lot of effort,” he said.The actor said he prepared a lot for this role.“I had to completely change my run-ning style. The training was com-pletely different. You have to build up your endurance and stamina. But the purpose of the film was higher than what we were doing, this re-moves your ego from the picture. You try and put in whatever is re-quired to achieve the goal,” he said.The actor further added that he was so inspired by Milkha Singh’s life, that nothing seemed tough for him.“We were all inspired by Milkha Singh’s life. We never felt something was tough,” he said.The film is all set to release on July 12.

Sienna Miller’s laid-back personality affects style

LondonActress Sienna Miller says that she has such a laid-back personality that even if she wears suits, she looks like a hippy.“I suppose I am inherently bohemian in terms of the way I am as a person, and I definitely went through a hippy phase with my style. But I think it’s more about the way my personality is than the way I dress,” femalefirst.co.uk quoted the 31-year-old as say-ing.“Now I’m a bit older, I do appreci-ate tailoring more than I used to, but my personality is still very laid-back. Even when I put on a suit, I still look like a hippy,” Miller added.The “Stardust” actress favours clothes that make one comfortable in their own skin. “I think personal style is all about feeling comfortable in your own skin, knowing what suits you and wearing clothes that are a clear re-flection of who you are,” she said.

Sushant, Parineeti in ‘Shuddh Desi Romance’

New DelhiYash Raj Films (YRF) has settled for a quirky title for its project star-ring actors Sushant Singh Rajput and Parineeti Chopra. The movie, directed by Maneesh Sharma, is titled “Shuddh Desi Romance”.The movie will be a “fresh and very real love story about the hair-raising minefield between love, attraction and commitment”, read a statement from YRF.“Finally, a romantic comedy that

tells it like it is,” the statement add-ed.Apart from Sushant and Parineeti, this “classy, candid look at the af-fairs of the heart in today’s desi heartland” are the endearing Rishi Kapoor, along with debutant Vaani Kapoor.The movie, releasing Sep 13, is written by Jaideep Sahni, and pro-duced by Aditya Chopra. Its music is by Sachin-Jigar, with lyrics by Sahni.

IANS

IANSIANS

CHANDIGARHSUNDAY 23 June 201316 LeISURe

Panchang in Brief: Sun, Jupiter, Mercury in Gemini, Moon is Sagittarius, Mars in Taurus, Venus in cancer, Ketu in Aries, Sani and Rahu in Libra. Nakshatra is Moola.

W e e K L Y H O R O S C O P e

A property dispute could arise which will ruin your happiness. Be extra cautious. Ju-piter will provide some mental relief. Health of mother could be of concern. Expenditure

could be on luxury and comforts. Do not gamble. Have cordial relations with spouse and business partners. Remedies for Ketu and Rahu is sug-gested.

Being over ambi-tious can land you in trouble. Take extra caution while in business or en-tering into any new venture. Income will be satisfactory. Take

extra care of your health, especially with spinal cord. You might spend on Luxury and comforts. Remedies of Rahu and Ketu is suggested.

Foreign contacts will yield good results. If in job, your status can rise. A pilgrimage or foreign travel is in-dicated. Condition of sibling might be of concern. People

in teaching profession will have good week. Being religious will serve you better. Worshiping of Sun and Remedies for Sani and Ketu is suggested.

People in medical pro-fession will do well. Rise in status cannot be ruled out. Income from more than one source will cheer your mood. Your siblings will do well. Foreign

contacts will be helpful. People in stock market and banking will do well. confrontation with spouse and partners. Remedy for Sani and Rahu is indicated.

Take care of Health. Relations with spouse and partners will improve. Your enemies will be defeated. Health of sibling could disturb you. Gain

from speculation. Love life will be promising. Remedy for Sun and Ketu is suggested. Recite Om Namah Shivaya.

Do not get emotional. Health will remain good this week. Your enemies will be de-feated. Success from Government and high-er authorities is seen. If single, chances of

marriage. Relations with spouse and business partner will improve. Remedy for Sani and Rahu is sug-gested.

Income will be slow but improve as the week goes on. Minor quarrel with wife or business partner is indicated. Some gains through inheritance is on the cards. God will be at your side. Avoid litiga-tion. Health will be mod-

erate. Business will improve slow and steadily. Take extra care of your fi-nances. Minor eye or teeth problem is indicated. Remedies for Sani and Rahu is suggested.

Business will be av-erage. Dentist can expect good week. Communication will be the key to good luck. A short journey is indicated. Minor eye or teeth problems

are seen. If single, chances of mar-riage are great. Do not take hasty de-cisions. Maintain your calm. Secure your valuables. Remedies for Ketu is suggested.

ARIeSMar 21-Apr 19

LeOJul 23 - Aug. 22 VIRGO

Aug. 23 - Sep 22TAURUSApr 20 - May 20

Some gain in prop-erty is indicated. Some wish can fulfilled this week. Minor stomach upset is seen. For-eign contacts will be helpful. Rise in

status if in job. Do not blind trust anyone. Love life will be dull. Avoid speculation. Remedies for Sani and Rahu is suggested.

Period of losses. Do not trust anyone. Hear your own inner voice before making any decision. You might start gain-ing weight. Avoid junk foods as it can increase your cho-

lesterol levels. People in politics can expect good time. Some gain from in-laws is indicated. Avoid short cuts to obtain money. Strengthening of Ju-piter will bring good results.

Week starts on a weak note. Mental strain is indicated through business or love af-fair. People in com-merce and banking will do well. Health will be average. Some property re-

lated matter can be solved amicably. People in authority and status will be helpful. Another source of income can be generated. Remedies for Rahu and Ketu is suggested.

Your income will be good. Health will improve. Gain from property is in-dicated. Love will be blossoming. All in all a good week. You might buy a

new car or land or house this week. Favor from government officials. Remedies for Ketu and Rahu is sug-gested.

GeMINIMay 21 - Jun 20

CANCeRJun 21 - Jul 22

LIBRASep 23 - Oct 22

SCORPIOOct 23 - Nov 21

SAGITTARIUSNov 22 - Dec 21

CAPRICORNDec 22 - Jan 19

AQUARIUSJan 20 - Feb. 18

PISCeSFeb 19 - Mar 20

V. Kumar (Scientific Horoscope Consultant) You can consult him with Appointment on: 9855150789; 9592095234

Sudoku Solution 16 June, 2013

Sudoku 23 JUNe, 2013

Down1. Skim over2. Opera solo3. Struggle for breath4. Books of maps5. Behold6. Gasoline classification7. Tidy up8. Chunk of eternity9. Military rank10. Faithful11. Sweet potatoes17. Children’s game19. Actor _______ Hanks22. Adolescents23. Make amends24. Common verb25. Acquire26. Make again28. Goodness29. Strange32. Soldier35. Additional ones36. Styling foam37. Wrath39. Highway curve40. Military supplies41. Show the way44. Leer45. Oceans46. Miscalculates48. Recline49. Recipe unit(abbr.)

Arcoss1. Legendary stories6. Uno9. Pig’s pad12. Box13. Business VIP14. Pitching stat15. Church walkway16. Burst if bad temper18. California wine valley19. Make lace20. Epochs21. Caveman’s era(2wds.)24. Concurrence27. Time past30. _________ Witherspoon of “Sweet Home Alabama”31. Had33. And so forthe(abbr.)34. Proposed as a candidate38. Renovator40. Pub drinks43. Stood up47. Childhood disease49. Golfer ______ Woods50. Bathroom rug51. Tax org.52. _______ eclipse53. Lyric verse54. Compass dir. 55. Printing machine

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

12 13 14

15 16 17

18 19 20

21 22 23

24 25 26 27 28 29

30 31 32

33 34 35 36 37

38 39

40 41 42 43 44 45 46

47 48 49

50 51 52

53 54 55

Crossword Solution 16 June, 2013

1A

2M

3A

4S

5S

6A

7L

8P

9M

10A

11T

12P E S T O

13M I A

14A D E

15R A P I D

16M A A

17T E S E

18L A

19B O R E R

20T

21E

22R E S A

23T O

24R

25T

26E

27A L E S

28S

29W

30A T T E A M

31P O D

32R E E S E

33P U B

34E P I

35S O D E S

36P O P E

37S E D A N

38E

39L A T E D

40M A

41R

42I T A L

43A

44N

45G E L E S

46P A

47S

48T

49A

50Y E A

51D D E

52E T H A N

53E E L

54S S E

55L E E R Y

Tips to keep your pets safe during summer, monsoonNew DelhiIf you see your dear pet lazying around, vomiting, drooling or pant-ing, take it immediately to a good veterinarian. Beware, it can be a heatstroke caused by hot and humid weather.Experts suggest, you can protect your pooches from heatstroke by provid-ing fresh food, lot of water and avoid taking them out during daytime.

Humane Society International (HSI), India, shares 10 important tips to keep pets safe during the warm months:Vet Visit: A visit to the veterinarian for an early summer check-up is a must. Get your pet tested for heart-worms. Ask the vet how to keep pets free from flea and ticks or start a safe flea and tick control program.Watch Warning Signs: Symptoms

of overheating in pets include pant-ing, staring, drooling, warm and dry skin, high fever, rapid heartbeat, vomiting and even collapse. Consult the vet immediately when you ob-serve these signs. Animals with flat faces, like Pugs and Persian cats, are more susceptible to heat stroke since they cannot pant as effectively. They should be kept in air-conditioned rooms as much as possible.Constant Supply of Fresh Water: Dogs and cats quickly dehydrate, so make sure you provide them with plenty of clean, fresh water all the time. If your pet is outside for a long period, he or she should have access to complete shade and ample water.Don’t Over-exercise Your Pet: Never let your pet indulge in over exercise sessions even if it’s during the cool-est part of the day like early morning or evening. Long periods of exer-cise in hot weather can lead to heat stroke.Don’t Leave Pets Alone In Park-ing Vehicle: Never leave your pet alone in a parked vehicle. Even with the windows open, your car becomes a furnace in hot weather, which can give rise to fatal heat stroke in your pet. Besides, it’s illegal to keep ani-mals unattended for a long time in parked cars.Safe Swim: Not all pets have an af-finity for water nor are they good swimmers all the time. Pets should be introduced to water gradually. Make sure they wear floatation de-

vices in water. Rinse animals thor-oughly after swimming to remove chlorine or salt water from their fur.Keep Away from Hot Pavements: Don’t subject your pet’s feet to hot pavement. It can burn his or her ten-der paws.Avoid Chemicals: Never expose your animals to chemicals like ro-denticides, tick and flea products and lawn and garden insecticides. Animals are closer to ground and soil and hence are more vulnerable to these chemicals than humans. Their faster metabolism and smaller lungs enables them to inhale chemicals at a faster rate, but their bodies have to work harder to eliminate these toxins. It can also affect long-term

health.Trimming and Brushing: Your pet’s coat should be frequently brushed to avoid tangling, skin irritation and discomfort. Trimming a pet’s hair also ensures cleanliness. Never shave a dog during summer as the layers of a dog’s coat guard against sunburn.Summer Party: Remember to keep your pet away from the potential food and drink hazards in a summer party. Don’t treat your pet with the snacks offered to the guests. Avoid feeding pets raisins, grapes, onions and chocolate. Never use fireworks around pets as they can suffer from extreme fear from the noise of explo-sives.

Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.

–Albert Einstein

IANS

CHANDIGARH SUNDAY 23 June 2013 17ReVIeW

Music DirectorSachin-Jigar

Singers Atif Aslam, Shreya Ghoshal, Mika Singh, Monali Thakur, Mohit

Chauhan, Neha Kakkar

The music album of director Prabhu Deva’s “Ramaiya Vasta Vaiya” has six tracks and composer duo Sachin-Jigar has given elements of love and fun their due importance. In short romantic songs are the highlights of the album.

Atif Aslam and Shreya Ghoshal sing the first track “Jeene laga hoon” beautifully. After a long time hum-ming is made to sound so good in a song. The rhythmic number has

a pure romantic feel to it. Shreya’s voice is a treat for her fans but the song lacks grandeur. The simple love song has good lyrics.

“Hip hop beat” is next and, as the name suggests, it is a dance num-ber. Singers Mika Singh and Monali Thakur have sung it in a way that the music’s beats are highlighted well. The loud track talks about teasing a girl. After a point it becomes a regu-lar track with all the music and the dhol sounds. Towards the end, the music, however, becomes really fast and brings the climax, which is an interesting turn for listeners.

Atif and Shreya again team up for yet another romantic number

‘Ramaiya Vasta Vaiya’ Simple & Entertaining Album

Music

“Bairiya”. The song has a magical feel to it and the singers’ soothing voices are mesmerising. It gradually changes pace as more instruments join in. Both singers take the song to another level, making it worth hearing.

Third in the line is “Peecha chutha” in Mohit Chauhan’s crisp voice. The song is a rhythmic, happy track. Even though some may like the song, it may not have a long shelf life.

Atif and Shreya weave magic for the third time with another romantic number, “Rang lagyo”. With good music, apt lyrics and rhythmic mu-sic, this one is the best so far. It has everything required in a love song and that makes it magical.

Item number “Jadoo ki jhappi” ends the album on a peppy note. The whistles, fast beats and fast mu-sic make it a perfect dance number. Neha Kakkar’s voice gels very well with the composition and Mika later spices it up. Entertaining, but not an out of the box composition.

The music album of “Ramaiya Vasta Vaiya” scores average, with the only high point being the ro-mantic numbers. It may or may not strike the right chord with the lis-teners on a larger scale.

Author- Dipen AmbaliaIllustrated By- Shreyas NavarePublisher- Inkpen Publication

After targeting the software world in his previous satire LOSER, Dipen Ambalia now has engineering stu-dents on his hit-list!“1) Who do you think is responsible for the origin of engineering?A) Foreign terroristsB) Some RussianC) Some AmericanD) Surpanakha2) Do you know the relation between submissions and corruption?3) Who the hell was the father of viva4) How are Indian housewives in-evitably related to engineering stu-dents?5) What is the “All Engineers are bloody Dogs” theory?

Dipen Ambalia answers these and a lot of other such questions and solves puzzles related to an engineer’s life with great humour and fun.

An electrical engineer from VJTI (2004), Dipen Ambalia gets electri-fied by his penchant for words. Not only has he experienced the IT in-dustry for eight chaotic and enjoy-able years, but has also successfully passed his high-voltage thoughts through his two other books In Their Shoes (2010) and LOSER (Life of a Software Engineer) (2012) (Na-tional Bestseller). He has worked in companies such as Polaris Software Labs Ltd. Mphasis- an HP Compa-ny, Citiustech and Hexaware.

Join him on this heavenly ride of an engineering student’s life and answer the quintessential question: To B.E. or Not to B.E.???

About the Author

To B.E. or Not to B.E.?Relive your golden days of of Engineering life!

Book

Director Aanand. L. Rai

Cast & Crew Abhay Deol, Dhanush,

Sonam KapoorRaanjhanaa, which is a love triangle story, with both rural and an urban side to it stars Dhanush, Sonam Ka-poor and Abhay Deol in lead roles.Benaras holds a special place in Kundan`s (Dhanush)heart because not only did he grow up as a typical, god fearing, shiv bhakt-Pandit but also because it was the city that gave him Zoya(Sonam Kapoor). Quiet, beautiful with mischievous eyes, Zoya was the girl of his dreams. She was like a breath of fresh air, the first time he saw her on the busy streets,

sitting regally in a Tonga. He would fol-low her everyday to the bazaar, back to her house till one day he mustered the courage to speak to her and tell her his true feelings - his 13year old heart, smitten by her sim-plicity. She of course didn`t take him seriously and brushed him off. Time passed by and Zoya moved to Delhi to study further. Love they say is a feel-ing that only grows stronger with time and Kundan’s love for Zoya never dimin-ished, he carried his feelings all through college and his heart flipped when Zoya came back to his town. With Zoya back in Benaras, Kundan was

excited as he of finally thought of telling Zoya how she felt. Zoya fi-nally met Kundan and confessed her true feelings to him. She was in love but with Akram(Abhay Deol), a col-lege friend from DU and she wanted Kundan’s help in marrying him. His world shattered and his heart broke a million pieces and the rage that Kun-dan felt was inexplicable. He was torn between his true feelings for Zoya and his hearts pleas to help her get her true love because who could understand that pain better than him. He sets out to unite her with Akram and what follows is a tale of love, betrayal, redemption and healing set against the very rooted town of Benaras and the upbeat political en-virons of Delhi

MovieRaanjhanaa

“A beautiful love story not to be missed”

Director Susi GanesanCast & Crew

Neil Nitin Mukesh, Amisha Patel, Richa Gangopadhyay

StorySuraj (Neil Nitin Mukesh) a good for nothing youth, who throws his weight around his house with his violent atti-tude. One day in a fit of rage, he injures his younger brother, following which he is sent off from Goa to Mumbai to his uncle’s house. Suraj chances upon a couple indulging in love making on the lawns of a golf course. He has this act shot on a video camera. He then finds out that it is an extramarital af-fair and that the lovers Monica (Ameesha Patel) and Ashish are rich. Despite Monica’s of-fering large sums of money for the tape, Suraj refuses to part with it. His demand is much greater. He wants an assurance from her that she will pro-vide him a luxurious life throughout his life.Monica has no choice; she succumbs to Suraj’s blackmail and Suraj foots his holiday in Kenya along with his friends. Monica at every stage of the bilking process tries to outsmart Suraj; the battle of wits is on. Suraj meets Sherry (Puja Gupta) a rich but

lonely girl and falls in love with her. Thats when he begins to realize that there are things more important than money in life. The cat and mouse game begins between Monica and Suraj, and goes on till Rahul (Mon-ica’s husband) hires a private detec-tive. Does Monica free herself from the clutches of the blackmailer? Does Monica’s husband punish Suraj? The later part of the story ends with inter-esting twist and turns.

Shortcut Romeo“Cooly crafted cat-and-mouse game”

Bollywood actors Ravi Kishen, Rajesh-wari Sachdev, Television actor Ravi Dubey, Director Manish Tiwari, Amyra Dastur, Prateik Babbar, Prashant Nara-yanan and Makhrand Deshpande dur-ing the launch of song Issaq Tera from the movie Issaq.“Issaq” is a modern day adaptation of William Shakespeare’s popular play “Romeo & Juliet”. Set in Benaras, the movie features actor Prateik and new-comer Amyra Dastur in the lead. It releases July 26.

Issaq’s First romantic song ‘Issaq Tera’

IANS

CHANDIGARHSUNDAY 23 June 201318 SCIeNCe AND TeCH

NASA Announces Asteroid Grand Challenge

WashingtonNASA announced Tuesday a Grand Challenge focused on finding all as-teroid threats to human populations and knowing what to do about them. The challenge, which was announced at an asteroid initiative industry and partner day at NASA Headquarters in Washington, is a large-scale effort that will use multi-disciplinary col-laborations and a variety of partner-ships with other government agen-cies, international partners, industry, academia, and citizen scientists. It complements NASA’s recently an-nounced mission to redirect an aster-oid and send humans to study it. “NASA already is working to find asteroids that might be a threat to our planet, and while we have found 95 percent of the large asteroids near

the Earth’s orbit, we need to find all those that might be a threat to Earth,” said NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver. “This Grand Challenge is focused on detecting and charac-terizing asteroids and learning how to deal with potential threats. We will also harness public engagement, open innovation and citizen science to help solve this global problem.” Grand Challenges are ambitious goals on a national or global scale that capture the imagination and demand advances in innovation and breakthroughs in science and tech-nology. They are an important ele-ment of President Obama’s Strategy for American Innovation. “I applaud NASA for issuing this Grand Challenge because finding asteroid threats, and having a plan

for dealing with them, needs to be an all-hands-on-deck effort,” said Tom Kalil, deputy director for technology and innovation at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. “The efforts of private-sector partners and our citizen scientists will augment the work NASA al-ready is doing to improve near-Earth object detection capabilities.” NASA also released a request for in-formation (RFI) that invites industry and potential partners to offer ideas on accomplishing NASA’s goal to locate, redirect, and explore an aster-oid, as well as find and plan for as-teroid threats. The RFI is open for 30 days, and responses will be used to help develop public engagement op-portunities and a September industry workshop.

3D-printed tiny batteries developedWashingtonUS researchers announced they have successfully used the three-dimensional (3D) print-ing technique to print lithium-ion microbatteries the size of a grain of sand.The printed microbatteries could supply electricity to tiny devices in fields from medicine to communications, including many that have lingered on lab benches for lack of a battery small enough to power them, according to a research team from the Wyss Institute at Har-vard University and the Univer-sity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.“Not only did we demonstrate for the first time that we can 3D- print a bat-tery, we demonstrated it in the most rigorous way,” senior author Jennifer Lewis of the Harvard University said in a statement. To make the microbatteries, the team had to print precisely interlaced stacks of tiny battery electrodes, each less than the width of a human hair, reported Xinhua.The researchers first created and tested several specialized inks. Un-like the ink in an office inkjet printer, which comes out as droplets of liquid that wet the page, the inks developed for extrusion-based 3D printing must fulfil two difficult requirements: they must exit fine nozzles like toothpaste from a tube and must immediately harden into their final form. The inks also had to function as elec-trochemically active materials to create working anodes and cathodes,

and they had to harden into layers that are as narrow as those produced by thin-film manufacturing methods. In the end, the researchers created an ink for the anode with nanoparticles of one lithium metal oxide com-pound, and an ink for the cathode from nanoparticles of another. The printer deposited the two inks onto the teeth of two gold combs, creating a tightly interlaced stack of anodes and cathodes. Then the researchers packaged the electrodes into a tiny container and filled it with an electrolyte solution to complete the battery. The researchers said despite its tiny size, the battery’s electrochemical performance is “comparable to com-mercial batteries” in terms of charge and discharge rate, cycle life and en-ergy densities. The findings were published online in the journal Advanced Materials.

High-Access Survey Robot Developed Jointly by Honda and AISTTokyoHonda Motor Co., Ltd. and the Na-tional Institute of Advanced Indus-trial Science and Technology (AIST) have jointly developed a remotely controlled survey robot that will con-duct on-site surveys on the first floor of a nuclear reactor building at Fu-kushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Sta-tion of Tokyo Electric Power Com-pany, Inc. (TEPCO) and help discern structures in high and narrow areas. This newly-developed survey robot already began working inside the reactor building from June 18, 2013.The survey robot was developed to support the actual needs based on information provided by TEPCO concerning conditions inside the re-actor building. AIST developed the high-area accessible crawler work platform and Honda developed the survey-performing robot arm, which is installed on top of the platform.In developing the survey-performing robot arm, Honda applied the follow-ing technologies which were devel-oped originally for ASIMO, Honda’s humanoid robot:• Technologies that enable 3D

display of structures surround-ing the subject of the survey using a 3D point cloud (a group of vertices in a coordinated sys-tem)

• A control system that enables simultaneous control of mul-tiple joints

• Control technologies which en-able the robot arm to absorb the impact when it makes physical contact with surrounding struc-tures

• With these technologies, the newly developed robot arm can easily approach hard-to-see ob-jects that are behind other ob-jects in a structurally-complex environment in the reactor building by applying simultane-ous control on multiple joints. When approaching the objects, the robot uses a zoom camera, laser range finder and dosimeter located at the tip of the arm to confirm detailed images, collect 3D data and identify the source of radiation.

For the high-area accessible crawler work platform applying a structure with a low center of gravity that enhanced the stability of the robot, AIST applied its various remote con-trol technologies and ingeniously po-sitioned camera, lights, laser marker and other devices, enabling it to be remotely controlled via 400-meter fiber-optic wired LAN and wireless LAN.Moreover, Honda and AIST jointly developed an intuitive remote-con-trol interface. Using this interface, the operator can control the robot from a remote location such as the Main Anti-earthquake Building and allow the robot to maneuver in dark and narrow places in the reactor building. Once the robot reaches a target spot, the mast can be extend-ed to survey areas as high as seven meters without hitting the robot arm against surrounding structures.While making progress in the devel-opment of ASIMO, a humanoid robot that can be helpful to people while co-existing with people in their daily

1. Length 1.8m2. Width 0.8m3. Height 1.8m (while being transported/

traveling)4. Maximum reach (height) 7.0m5. Weight Approximately 1,100kg6. Robot arm Length: 1.7m, DOF: 117. Travel capability Maximum travel speed: 2km/h

Maximum allowable incline:15 degrees (front/back), 20 degrees (sideways)Maximum allowable bumps: 60mm in height

Key specifications

lives, Honda also has been studying and researching the possibility of us-ing humanoid robots at disaster sites. Following the development of this survey-performing robot arm, Honda will accelerate the development of humanoid robots also designed for use in response to disasters, includ-ing the prevention and mitigation of damage caused by a disaster.In reaction to the Great East Japan Earthquake, AIST has been support-ing recovery efforts in various forms including surveying the situation of underground seawater seepage in areas affected by the tsunami, lead-ing the Kesennuma Kizuna Project, conducting and supporting radiation measurement and decontamination, and volume reduction of plant-based radioactive cesium. AIST will con-tinue utilizing primarily its robotic technologies to contribute to the ef-forts to decommission the TEPCO Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station.

Scientists identify 280 craters on moon

SydneyA team of Australian scientists has identified 280 craters on the moon’s surface using a combination of grav-itational data and topographical im-ages from satellites, media reports said.A high-definition map prepared by the researchers at Curtin University in Perth identifies lunar craters not previously detected, ABC reported Tuesday.The project was initially designed to capture high-resolution images of the Earth, but it was later expanded to study the moon and Mars.Initial observations focused on cra-ters on the dark side of the moon, which is not visible from the Earth, and researchers later decided to make a map of all lunar craters, Will Featherstone, one of the scientists working on the project, said.Scientists combined gravitational data and topographical images to “obtain more consistent signals” that show the presence of the craters, Featherstone said.The team is also working on a gravi-tational map of Mars to study the planet’s internal structure, Feather-stone said.

IANS

IANS

CHANDIGARH SUNDAY 23 June 2013 19KIDS

Here we are giving your childan opportunity to enjoy our funny tongue twisters for kids and have fun trying to say some of the most difficult sentences . To get the full effect of a tongue twister you should try to repeat it several times, as quickly as possible, without stumbling.

• Kitty caught the kitten in the

kitchen.

• I have got a date at a quarter

to eight; I’ll see you at the gate,

so don’t be late.

• Dog dodged the dark doll that

dashed through the door.

• Wide way was full of weeds

and weeds filled the wide way.

• The thirty-three thieves

thought that they thrilled the

throne throughout Thursday.

• ObligateMeaning- Bind or compel (some-one),Example- “I feel obligated to watch the movie, as a hardcore Harry Potter fan.”

•Pungent Meaning- Having a sharply strong taste or smell. Example- “Due to the pungent odor of the chemical, the classroom was cleared.”

•QuirkMeaning-Unusual attribute, phenomena, or habitExample- “Through a quirk of fate, the fire was extinguished by the steam explosion.”

•RageMeaning-Uncontrollable anger Example- “The officers were vibrating with rage and one of them was an inch from my face”

Put your puzzle solving skills to the test with our travel word

scramble. Look carefully at the jumbled words and try

unscrambling words related to vacations and travelling.

ALHIDOY

PREATD

GTLIHF

IETCTK

ICRSUE

IADNLS

The Supermoon of 2013

This year’s largest and closest “Super Moon” will occur on June 23, 2013. This super full moon is not only the closest and largest full moon of the year. It also presents the moon’s closest encounter with earth in a long time.A supermoon is the coincidence of a full moon or a new moon with the closest approach the Moon makes to the Earth on its elliptical orbit, re-sulting in the largest apparent size of the moon’s disk as seen from Earth. While astronomers call this close full moon a Perigee Full Moon, the term ‘supermoon’ is more of astrological than scientific. But for this apparent larger size, there is nothing peculiar about this ‘Supermoon phenom-enon’, and on an average, it happens once in every year. The last perigee supermoon happened to be on 6 May 2012, and the next one is expected to be in August, 2014.

Defining SupermoonThe name SuperMoon was coined by astrologer Richard Nolle in 1979, randomly defined as: A new or full moon which occurs with the Moon at or near (within 90% of) its closest approach to Earth in a given orbit. In short, Earth, Moon and Sun are all in a line, with Moon in its nearest approach to Earth.

Sighting SupermoonThe sight of the perigee supermoon on 23 June 2013 will however be a good experience, as the full moon is going to be larger and brighter than the normal one. During these events, the moon can appear up to

14 % bigger and 30 % brighter to the skywatchers on Earth. According to NASA, a full moon at perigee is up to 14% larger and 30% brighter than one at its furthest pointLook out for the Moon this weekend as it approaches Perigee, because the full moons during this times will ap-pear exceptionally large. The Moon will be at its closest approach on June 23 and it will reach full moon only a few minutes after it passes this point in its orbit.These ‘super moons’ not only ap-pear larger because they are physi-cally closer but, combined with a full moon, the mind can play tricks on you to think they are much larg-er. This phenomenon is called the Moon Illusion. Try to catch these full moons as they rise/set because the il-lusion works when there is an object in the foreground, like a tree, build-ing or mountains.

The supermoon of March 19, 2011 compared to a more average moon of December 20, 2010.

Look out for the Moon this weekend as it approaches Perigee, because the full moons during this times will appear exceptionally large.

New DelhiThe 16th annual International Olym-piad Awards were to winning stu-dents, teachers and principals from across Asia, officials said.Organised by NGO Science Olym-piad Foundation (SOF) here, the awards felicitated the winners of the four Olympiad examinations conducted by SOF for the academic year 2012-13, in which around 30 lakh students from 25,000 schools in 1,150 cities around Asia participated.Awards were given to the top three rank holders from classes one to twelve.Winners from Classes 7 to 12 won Rs.50,000 each, those who came second got Rs.25,000 each, and prize money of Rs.10,000 was awarded to the third rank holders.Winners from Classes one to six were awarded iPads.In addition, the top 10 principals and top 40 teachers whose students put up an excellent

performance were also felicitated with cash awards, mementos and ci-tations. The total prize value was ap-proximately Rs.8 crore.Former Chief Justice of India R.C. Lahoti, in his speech on the occa-sion, stressed that the most important resource the nation has is its intel-lectual potential, which is not only inexhaustible but will multiply and obtain new qualities when properly used. He added that it is also among the most reliable guarantees for dy-namic economic development.Mahabir Singh, founder and execu-tive director of SOF, which is the largest conductor of Olympiads in Asia, said: “Around 24,000 students from 1,050 cities across India and 14 countries have been awarded for achieving top state-level ranks. In addition, close to 3.5 lakh students were awarded for achieving top ranks in their respective schools.”

International Olympiad awards presented in Delhi

• Release Date : Jun 21, 2013• Cast & Crew: Steve Buscemi, John Goodman, Helen Mirren

STORYEver since college-bound Mike Wa-zowski (Billy Crystal) was a little monster, he has dreamed of becom-ing a Scarer—and he knows better than anyone that the best scarers come from Monsters University (MU). But during his first semester

at MU, Mike`s plans are derailed when he crosses paths with hotshot James P. Sullivan - Sulley (John Goodman), a natural-born Scarer. The pair`s out-of-control competi-tive spirit gets them both kicked out of the University`s elite Scare Program. To make matters worse, they realize they will have to work together, along with an odd bunch of misfit monsters, if they ever hope to make things right.

Send Your Kids to Monsters University

This Monsters prequel takes Mike and Sulley back college on June 21, 2013 and will be shown in Disney Digital 3D.

Lightning causes the thunder, so it actually has to precede the thunder. If you are close to the lightning, they may seem to occur simultaneously. Since light travels faster than sound, the thunder will always lag behind the lightning. Light moves at 299 million metres per second. Sound moves at 340 me-tres per second (at sea level in air).

When lightning occurs, the light and the creation of the sound occur at the same time and place. Thunder is due to the rapid expansion of superheated air which the lightning causes. The flash of light (lightning) arrives first because light waves move at roughly a million times faster than sound waves. If the flash and sound are simultaneous, the source of the

lightning is very close. So, if you are outdoors avoid going near water and stay off the phone. Remember that electricity seeks the path of least re-sistance to ground, and the rain that accompanies the lightning enhances that effect, so stay dry and go indoors .Thunder and lightning always occur together but you may occasionally detect one without the other.Light from a lightning strike may travel much farther than sound, especially if it reflects off the water vapor in clouds, so you see the flash but hear no thunder. In other circumstances, the flash may be hidden by dense clouds.On average, there are about 6,000 flashes of lightning every minute around the planet. With all of those flashes, it’s hard to believe lightning never strikes in the same place twice!

Why do you see lightning before you hear thunder?

Life is not meant to be easy, my child; but take courage -- it can be delightful.

George Bernard ShawMusic & drama critic, Irish playwright

Answers to Word Scramble :Holiday, Depart, Flight, Ticket, Cruise, Island

IANS

CHANDIGARHSUNDAY 23 June 201320 BUSINeSS

India eyeing $400-bn electronics base by 2020: IT SecretaryNew DelhiHaving established itself as the back-room office for global businesses with a flourishing outsourcing indus-try, India is taking steps to expand its electronics manufacturing base to avoid imports, arrest dollar outflows and add jobs, a top official has said.“We are importing so much of elec-tronics items that we are draining our foreign exchange,” said J. Satyanara-yana, secretary, Department of Elec-tronics and Information Technology.“So, manufacturing is of course the focus area for us in the latest Na-tional IT Policy (2012). We are look-ing at an electronics manufacturing industry the size of $400 billion by 2020, from $70 billion now,” Saty-anarayana told in an interview.“The policy has provisions for IT in-frastructure as well.”The electronics industry has 27 ver-ticals, including telecom, office au-tomation, automotive, medical and avionics. The employment oppor-tunity is immense in this sector be-cause it is manpower-intensive, the secretary said.“Just as IT parks created the boom initially for the software side, here we call it Electronics Manufactur-ing Clusters where we will give 50 percent subsidy on creation of such infrastructure.”The government last month said

through the policy, it is creating an opportunity for companies in the electronic system design and manu-facturing sector to look at India as their next destination to cater to the domestic demand as well as act as an exports hub.The IT department has already re-ceived eight proposals across the country worth Rs.2,100 crore ($360 million) for infrastructure. It aims to do 200 EMCs across the country to achieve that target of $400 billion by 2020, the IT secretary said.The government is asking promoters to put together a group of entrepre-neurs who are interested in creating the manufacturing units, which has some kind of synergy to form a na-tional cluster.“It is not necessary that all the people who will set up units in the area will have similar businesses. But it is in-dicative that they will have synergies in terms of common test facility or something in common, which will help them become more cost effec-tive,” Satyanarayana said.“For every 100 acres we will give Rs. 50 crore, or 50 percent of what they spent on infrastructure as sub-sidy, subject to a ceiling of Rs.50 crore, whichever is less,” he said.The government is also keen to set up two fabrication units in the coun-try. So far, there is none.

“It (fabrication unit) is in the offing for quite some time now. Two units that we want to set up is in an ad-vanced stage of processing in the government. We have got two appli-cants. It is in the approval stage.”There is only one Semi-Conductor Complex Limited in Chandigarh catering to this domain for the last couple of years. “It is not up to the current demand of the market.”The IT department is also focussing on manpower development in elec-tronics.It has designed certain schemes for faculty development in various states.“This is faculty upgradation on be-half of the government. Once it is ap-proved we will ask state governments to identify academic institutions of their choice. Faculty improvement and alignment with the latest needs of the industry is very crucial.”This will also help in bridging the industry-academia gap. Internal con-sultation regarding this scheme is go-ing on and it will take a month or two for approval.The government has envisaged an Electronics Development Fund to promote innovations. It is also in the formulation or approval stage. “We are pegging it about Rs.2,000 crore initially. Hopefully it will be through this fiscal,” he said.

TRAI cuts roaming charges for calls, SMSes from July 1

New DelhiThe telecom regulator reduced na-tional roaming calls and SMS tariff ceilings from next month and said it would allow telecom service provid-ers to offer national mobile roaming to subscribers for a fixed fee from the same date.However, GSM operators sounded their strong displeasure at the move because it had moved away from its position of forbearance to regulation on tariff with regard to SMS roam-ing. The ceiling tariffs prescribed by TRAI in 2007 were Rs.1.40 per min-ute for outgoing calls and Rs.2.40 per minute for outgoing STD calls while on national roaming. These ceilings have been reduced to Re.1.00 per minute and Re.1.50 per minute, re-spectively. Similarly, the ceiling tariffs for in-coming calls while on national roam-ing have been reduced from Rs.1.75 per minute to Re.0.75 per minute. Tariffs for outgoing SMS while on national roaming have now been capped: outgoing SMS-local at Re.1.00 per SMS and outgoing SMS-STD at Rs.1.50 per SMS. Incoming SMS will remain free of charge.It said competitive pricing below the new ceiling levels is expected. It also planned to encourage Special Tariff Vouchers and Combo Vouchers to be permitted for roaming tariffs.This exercise to review national roaming tariffs was initiated by TRAI earlier this year to move to-wards “One Nation-Free Roaming” throughout the country, as mentioned in the New Telecom Policy, 2012.

“With increased subscribers and us-age, the costs associated with na-tional roaming have declined, but not vanished. There are still real costs incurred in providing the national roaming facility,” Telecom Regula-tory Authority of India (TRAI) said here in a statement.“Mandating a fully free roaming re-gime is simply not practicable at this juncture. Compelling a transition to a fully free national roaming regime would result in telecom service pro-viders not being able to recover their costs from roamers. In turn, telecom service providers would pass these costs on to all consumers (predomi-nantly non-roamers) through higher tariffs.”Rajan S Mathews, director general, COAI, told that the association for GSM operators were “disappointed with TRAI because it has moved away from its position of forbear-ance on tariff with regard to SMS roaming. This change in position is disappointing.” “Earlier TRAI has left it to the mar-ket forces to decide on the rates. But now it is moving away from it and also intervening regarding price de-cisions.”Regarding the two types of tariff rates being fixed by TRAI, he said it could be beneficial for the consum-ers, but the industry is not sure how this will impact operators. “We have to observe for several weeks to un-derstand its impact on operators.”-The Association of United Telecom Service Providers of India - the body for CDMA operators - declined com-ment on this matter.

Conducive climate for private investment needed to spur growth: RBIMumbaiThe Reserve Bank of India called for a conducive environment for pri-vate investment and faster clearance of projects to stimulate economic growth which slowed to a decade low of 5 percent in the last fiscal.“Key to reinvigorating growth is accelerating investment by creating a conducive environment for pri-vate investment, improving project clearance and implementation and leveraging on the crowding-in role of public investment,” the central bank said in the mid-quarter mon-etary policy review.Voicing concern, it said all con-stituent categories of industry have slowed, with a persistent contrac-tion in mining activity. “The continuing weakness in manu-facturing activity needs to be ur-gently reversed,” it stressed.The growth of industrial production decelerated to 2.3 percent in April after picking up in the preceding month.“The sharp weakening in the growth of capital goods production points to still damped investment demand whereas a pick-up in consumer non-

durables could be indicative of a fragile return of consumer confidence.” On the domestic front, the RBI said, last year’s robust rabi production and the current monsoon performance so far augur well for growth pros-pects. It further noted that the onset of the south-west mon-soon had been strong and on time. “The spatial and temporal dis-tribution of rainfall over the next three months will be cru-cial in determining the perfor-mance of agriculture.”Pulled down by poor performance of farm, manufacturing and mining sectors, economic growth slowed to 4.8 percent in January-March quar-ter and fell to a decade’s low of 5 percent for 2012-13 against 6.2 per-cent in the previous fiscal year.The RBI painted a gloomy picture of the economy, saying that “macro-economic conditions remain weak, hamstrung by infrastructure bottle-necks, supply constraints, lacklus-tre domestic demand and subdued investment sentiment. Inflation has

moderated as projected”. However, upside pressures on the way forward from the pass-through of rupee depreciation, recent in-creases in administered prices and persisting imbalances, especially re-lating to food, pose risks of second-round effects.“As recent experience has shown, shifts in global market sentiment can trigger sudden stop and rever-sal of capital from a broad swath of emerging economies, swiftly ampli-fying risks to the outlook. India is not an exception.”

General Motors recalls 231,000 SUVs over fire riskBeijingUS General Motors Co. is set to re-call about 231,000 older SUVs over fire risks and has urged owners to park them outside garages until they are repaired, a report said.The Detroit-based automaker agreed to recall 193,000 2006-2007 Chevro-let Trailblazer, GMC Envoy, Buick Rainier, SAAB 9-7x, Isuzu Ascender and 2006 Chevrolet Trailblazer EXT and GMC Envoy XL in the US. The recall also includes 3,546 in Canada, 4,876 in Mexico and 30,000 outside North America.The report said it is feared fluid may enter the driver’s door, causing rust

that could result in a short in the circuit board. The short may cause overheating, which could melt com-ponents of the door module, produc-

ing odor, smoke, or a fire.At least 28 door fires were reported, including some when the vehicle was left unattended.

India to revise FDI caps in different sectors: ChidambaramNew DelhiThe government is likely to re-move foreign direct investment (FDI) ceilings from sectors where these are not serving any purpose, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said.Addressing a meeting of the par-liamentary consultative commit-tee here, Chidambaram said: “The government is looking at FDI caps to see if they are indeed serving the purpose.” “Otherwise the caps could be revis-ited,” the finance minister said. Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma had said Sunday that a proposal to hike FDI cap in telecom sector to 100 percent would be brought before the cabi-net soon. “I am strongly in favour of raising the cap in telecom sector. I have discussed this with the telecom and finance ministers and once we have the proposal, we will move the Cabinet for raising the cap to 100 percent and also for FDI in defence because we want defence manu-facturing to be here,” Sharma told reporters.

At a press conference recently, Chi-dambaram had said that the gov-ernment would take major reform measures in the coming weeks. India allows up to 100 percent over-seas investments in a large number of sectors. However, there are ceil-ings in some sensitive sectors like multi-brand retail, insurance, bank-ing, telecom and defence.

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CHANDIGARH SUNDAY 23 June 2013 21BUSINeSS

Power firms allowed price-hike based on coal-costNew DelhiThe government approved a mecha-nism under which power companies can hike electricity price if the cost of imported coal goes up.The Cabinet Committee on Eco-nomic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, approved the new mechanism at a meeting here. Finance Minister P. Chidambaram told reporters after the meeting that the rationale behind the decision was to improve power generation by en-suring adequate supply of coal to the firms. “There will be a small increase in power tariffs,” Chidambaram said. The finance minister said Coal India will do the bulk of the imports and supply it to power firms on a “cost-plus” basis. However, power companies can also import coal on their own. They will be allowed to adjust the prices de-pending on the import cost. Chidambaram said 65-70 percent of coal requirements of the power com-panies will be met from domestic sources. Under the new mechanism, higher cost of imported coal will be consid-ered for pass- through. “Mechanism will be explored to sup-ply coal subject to its availability to the thermal power plants with 4660 MW capacity and other similar cases which are not having any coal linkage but are likely to be commissioned by March 31, 2015, having long-term

power purchase agreements and a high bank,” said an official statement released after the cabinet meeting. Addressing an event organised by the Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Assocham), Coal Min-ister Sriprakash Jaiswal said under the new mechanism, the entire ad-ditional cost of imports would be passed on to the consumers. “Price of coal in India is far below the international coal prices and the same needs to be rationalised for avoiding wastage and inefficient use of the same,” Jaiswal said. To ensure adequate supply of coal, the government has directed Coal In-dia to sign Fuel Supply Agreements (FSA) for a total capacity of 78,000

MW. “Taking into account the overall domestic availability and actual re-quirements, FSAs to be signed for domestic coal quantity of 65 percent, 67 percent and 75 percent of annual contracted quantity for the remaining four years of the 12th Five Year Plan (2012-17),” the official statement said. To meet its balance Fuel Supply Agreements obligations, Chidam-baram said Coal India can import coal and supply it to the willing ther-mal power plants on cost-plus basis.“Thermal power plants also import coal themselves. Ministry of Coal will issue suitable instructions,” Chi-dambaram said.

India, Bangladesh must aid each other’s development: President

AgartalaIndia and Bangladesh must help each other to develop and achieve self-re-liance in the energy sector, President Pranab Mukherjee said here.“India has been trying to help Ban-gladesh meet its electricity crisis by setting up a common grid along the border of the two countries,” Mukherjee said, after dedicating to the nation the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation’s (ONGC) first ever commercial power project in India.“India’s 30 crore people still re-main without electricity. In the next five years, India is expected to add 88,000 MW of electricity to its exist-ing power supply system,” Mukher-jee said.The gas-based power project, set up at Palatana in southern Tripura, 60 km south of here, will resolve the power crisis of seven of the eight northeastern states as the electricity from it would be transmitted to the power-starved northeast through the national transmission grid.The president, in a brief 10-minute speech delivered extempore, said: “Without the help of Bangladesh, transportation of the heavy project equipment and turbines to Palatana project could not be possible, if that country did not allow their territory to ferry these heavy machineries.”From this power plant Assam will get the maximum share of 240 MW of electricity followed by Tripura (196 MW), Meghalaya (79 MW), Manipur (42 MW), Nagaland (27 MW), Mizoram (22 MW) and Arunachal Pradesh (22 MW), while Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL & FS) and ONGC Tri-pura Power Company (OTPC) keep 98 MW.

Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister M. Veerappa Moily, in his speech, said: “As huge natural gas reserves are found in Tripura and the state would soon be power surplus, it will lead India to attain energy inde-pendence in the near future.”Tripura Governor Devanand Kon-war, Chief Minister Manik Sarkar, union Minister of State for Petro-leum and Natural Gas Panabaka Lakshmi, Tripura Power Minister Manik Dey, ONGC CMD Sudhir Vasudeva, Bangladesh High Com-missioner to India Tariq A. Karim and others were present at the inau-gural function.State-owned ONGC’s 726 MW gas-based combined cycle power plant at Palatana began generating electric-ity on a trial basis from its first 363 MW unit on October 22 last year.The second 363 MW unit would likely start operations by August this year.To set up the Rs.10,000-crore power

plant, including transmission lines, ONGC Tripura Power Company (OTPC) was floated by ONGC, the Tripura government and Infrastruc-ture Leasing and Financial Service Limited (IL&FS), an infrastructure and financial service organisation.The Palatana project is a hallmark of cooperation between India and Ban-gladesh, which ensured smooth pas-sage of heavy project equipment and turbines to Palatana through its ter-ritory by road and waterways, from Haldia port in West Bengal.“A 400KV high transmission power line (660 km) has been drawn up to Silchar in southern Assam from Pal-atana to connect with the Bongaig-aon national grid in western Assam to distribute the electricity to various northeastern states,” OTPC manag-ing director Sudhindra Kumar Dube said.Prime Minister Manmohan Singh laid the foundation stone of the pow-er project in October 2005.

Rupee, Sensex slump as Fed signals stimulus exitMumbaiThe Indian rupee slumped nearly two percent to hit a new record low of 59.98 against a dollar and key indices of the stock markets crashed almost three percent, after the US Federal Reserve signalled an end to its mon-etary stimulus.The partially convertible rupee opened sharply lower at 59.62 and hit a record low so far of 59.98 against a dollar at the inter-bank foreign ex-change market in Mumbai, surpass-ing the previous lowest of 58.98 hit June 11. The rupee closed at 59.57 against its previous day’s close at 58.71. It touched a high of 59.50 intra-day. The Indian currency dropped sharply a day after the US Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke signalled that the Fed would start winding down its stimulus spending later this year. The Fed move is likely to lead to appreciation of the US currency against its major rivals. Weakness in Chinese economy also led to the appreciation in the value of greenback.Indian equities markets were also hammered on the Fed move. Bench-mark Sensex of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) slumped 526.41 points or 2.74 percent to 18,719.29 points. The wider 50-scrip Nifty of the Na-tional Stock Exchange (NSE) tum-bled 2.86 percent or 166.35 points to 5,655.90 points. The currency as well as the equities markets remained jittery despite the government’s assurance of necessary action. Finance Minister P. Chidambaram held a meeting with his top officials in New Delhi to discuss the volatility in the markets. After the meeting, chief economic

advisor in the finance ministry Ra-ghuram Rajan said the government was not “short of options” and it would take necessary action to en-sure stability in the currency market. “We are not short of actions or instru-ments. As and when need arises, we will be alert to development. We do not like volatility and will take ac-tions when necessary,” Rajan told reporters. However, Rajan said there was no need to be “overtly pessimistic”, as the Indian currency was not in sham-bles. Planning Commission Deputy Chair-man Montek Singh Ahluwalia said the rupee drop was a “temporary phe-nomenon” and the Reserve Bank of India would take action when needed. “We are allowing the exchange rate to move with the market. RBI steps in when it thinks necessary,” Ahluwalia said. Ahluwalia said the Indian rupee has weakened more than the other Asian peers against the dollar largely due to the high current account deficit. India’s currency account deficit touched a record high of 6.7 percent in the quarter ended Dec 31, 2012. High trade deficit is likely to put fur-ther pressure on the current account balance. According to data released by the commerce ministry early this week, India’s trade deficit widened to sev-en-month high of $20.14 billion in May, due to sluggish exports and higher imports, notably of gold. Analysts said the Indian currency would weaken further. “We continue to maintain our bearish outlook on rupee with a short-term correction in-between and expect the dollar to start its fresh bull run,” said Abhishek Goenka, founder and CEO of India Forex Advisors. IANS IANS

World bleak on job prospects: Gallup

WashingtonA majority of adults worldwide say job prospects are dim in their local communities, with Europeans ex-pressing the most pessimism about finding a job, according to a Gallup survey.Fifty-seven percent of adults world-wide said it was a bad time to find a job, a figure unchanged from 2011, although global views on job pros-pects have improved since 2009, the height of the global downturn, Xin-hua cited the poll as saying.In Europe, currently undergoing a re-cession, 75 percent said 2012 was a bad time to find work, surpassing all other regions in terms of negativity.Eurozone countries topped the list of those negative on job options, with Greece, Italy and Spain the worst places to find work, according to citi-zens of those nations.In Greece, which saw its economy shrink 20 percent between 2007 and 2012, 98 percent of residents tagged job prospects as bad. In Spain, with unemployment rates resembling a depression, 94 percent of residents said 2012 was a bad year to find work.In Italy, with massive debt and a contracting economy, 95 percent of adults expressed job pessimism.The US stood in sharp contrast, with 40 percent saying it was a good time to find a job and 54 percent saying it was a bad time to find work.But leading the world in 2012 job prospects optimism were emerging

markets, with 73 percent of residents of Saudi Arabia and Thailand saying it was a good time.Job optimism in Thailand came amid strong domestic demand last year, which bolstered economic perfor-mance.For Saudi Arabia and other energy-rich countries such as Kuwait, Qatar, Venezuela, and, to a lesser extent, Turkmenistan, historically high oil prices last year likely contributed to bright employment prospects, Gal-lup found.The World Bank recently cut its forecast for global economic growth in 2013 to 2.2 percent, an ominous sign for job optimism this year, Gal-lup said.Most countries will require eco-nomic growth well above the World Bank’s forecast to see a noticeable improvement in their economy and in their residents’ perceptions of the job market, the survey found.Job pessimism is both a contributing factor to and a result of weak eco-nomic growth.An obvious problem is that in this environment, the millions of jobless and underemployed individuals will continue to struggle to secure a job.Another complication is that current-ly employed workers, believing that finding work will be difficult if not impossible, will be incentivised to remain at their current jobs, even if these are not occupations that utilise their strengths. This further slows economic expansion, Gallup said. IANS

(UCI) academy in Switzerland, ahead of the Scotland World Cham-pionships in August. As luck would have it, the team’s Swiss tour has been called off owing to visa issues.“It is another unfortunate thing that t h e Schengen visa for the

Indian team has been rejected.

Now it seems there was no way the girls could have gone w i t h o u t their coach,” Onkar Singh

said.

CHANDIGARHSUNDAY 23 June 201322 SPORTS

Coach Ruma’s demise a major setback for Indian cyclingNew DelhiThe tragic death of India’s cycling coach Ruma Chatterjee in a road accident on the Noida Expressway Tuesday morning has come as a ma-jor setback for the national team that was preparing for the World Cham-pionships.Ruma, who hails from Kolkata, was hit by a speeding vehicle while she was training with the junior cyclists. The 51-year-old was taken to the nearby Kailash Hospital where she succumbed to her injuries. Ruma, a spinster, leaves behind her 77-year-old mother and five sisters.Besides representing India thrice in international competitions, she served as coach seven times and was part of the national team since the 2010 Commonwealth Games.Ruma, a strict disciplinarian, was popular among her wards. It was un-der her tutelage that India produced

their best ever show in the Asian Championships, winning four med-als here in March. Deborah bagged three medals while another teenager Manorama Devi won a silver. Cycling Federation of India (CFI) secretary general Onkar Singh paid rich tributes to the coach. Singh said Ruma had worked hard to develop a close relationship with the juniors.“It is a very sad day for us. She liked to do things in her own way but was totally committed. Earlier, she was taking care of the seniors but after the Asian event she start-ed focusing on the juniors as well. She was always there for the kids. It would be tough for us to replace her,” said Onkar Singh.Ruma was set to travel with a four-member girls team to train in the International Cycling Union

Jaypee assures 2014 Indian Grand Prix is onNew DelhiJaypee Sports International, promot-ers of Indian Grand Prix, rubbished European media reports that the race might be dropped by the Formula One organisers in 2014 and assured that the event is on.Askari Zaidi, JPSI spokesperson, said: “Some international news or-ganisations are trying to spread ru-mours that JPSI may not host 2014 Indian GP. This is totally baseless and malicious.”Jaypee’s statement came after the European media was abuzz that the race could be dropped due to drop in attendance. During the inaugural edition in 2011, 95,000 fans attended the race but the attendance dropped to 65,000 in 2012.

Zaidi said Jaypee’s contract with Formula One Management run till 2015 and they are fully committed to it.“Our agreement with Formula One Management is to hold F1 races at Buddh International Circuit (BIC) till 2015, and we are fully committed to do that. There is no reason for us to give up hosting F1 races. In fact, JPSI is keen to get some more inter-national car and bike races to BIC, besides F1 and World Superbike Championship which will be held this year on November 17. “We are fully committed to promot-ing motorsport in India in collabo-ration with local government and global and local motorsport organi-sations,” he said.

‘World Cup 2018 venues to be completed on time’MoscowAll stadiums being built for the FIFA World Cup 2018, to be staged in Russia, will be completed on time though they are at present be-low FIFA standards, Russian sports officials said.“All of the stadiums have prob-lems meeting the FIFA standards,” Daniil Izotenkov, head of the Arena 2018, a company set up to check the stadiums and designs against FIFA rules, told reporters, reports Xinhua.Izotenkov said Russia has been hir-ing foreign specialists with experi-ence of creating stadiums for the World Cup, who worked on Lon-don’s Wembley and the Amsterdam Arena, for example.Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said that all the stadiums will be completed on time.Mutko said that among 12 stadiums to host the Cup, five have been built in accordance with schedule. Are-

nas in St. Petersburg and Yekater-inburg are among the most troubled sites, still they will be built on time too, the minister promised.He said the government set up the

price cap at 15 billion rubles ($500 million) for each stadium construc-tion.World Cup 2018 will take place in 12 stadiums in 11 Russian cities.

Australian cricketers train on Thames for AshesLondonFive Australian cricketers led by captain Michael Clarke visited river Thames here to train for the upcom-ing Ashes on a floating pitch for a promotional event.With the Tower Bridge overhead, Clarke, Shane Watson, Chris Rogers, James Faulkner and Mitchell Starc took to the pitch to increase team support ahead of the series.While Clarke said the team’s imme-diate focus is the battle for the urn in England, he was excited about the unique prospect of a double Ashes series and encouraged Australian fans to get behind the team.“There’s no doubt the Ashes is the greatest rivalry in cricket and to have two series in a year is a great oppor-tunity for fans and players. We’ve come to London aware of the huge challenge in the coming months,” Clarke said.Rogers said he was equally excited to

be part of the 16-man squad selected to represent Australia in England.“It’s a real honour to be a part of an Ashes Series and we’ll do the very best we can to return the urn to Aus-tralian soil,” Rogers said.The first Ashes Test of the tour of England starts July 10 at Trent Bridge in Nottingham.

Saina drops to World No.4

New DelhiIndia’s ace shuttler Saina Nehwal dropped two places to No.4 in the latest release of the Badminton World Federation rankings.The Hyderabadi, who lost Friday in the quarter-finals of the Singapore Open Super Series, has been go-ing through a relatively rough patch this season. Without a single title in 2013, the 23-year-old dropped to No.4 in the women’s singles rank-ings released Thursday.City-mate P.V. Sindhu, who pulled out of the ongoing Singapore Open due to an injury, also dropped a place to 12th.Though only two Indians feature in the women’s singles top-50 rankings, the men’s singles shuttlers are doing much better with as many as seven of them in the top 50.

Parupalli Kashyap fell a place to 11th while R.M.V. Gurusaidutt and Ajay Jayaram retained 23rd and 25th in the men’s singles.Sourabh Verma, who hails from Dhar in Madhya Pradesh, leapt five places to 37 while Mumbai boy Anand Pawar retained 38th.Talented youngster K. Srikkanth, who recently won the Thailand Open, jumped another two places to 42.B. Sai Praneeth, who sent legendary Indoensian shuttler Taufik Hidayat into retirement last week, made a remarkable jump of 16 places to 45. Sai Praneeth also beat World No.4 Yun Hu of Hong Kong earlier this week in Singapore.No Indian shuttler, however, figures in the top 25 of the men’s, women’s or mixed doubles.

No more cricket or cricketers: Vindoo Dara SinghMumbaiBollywood actor Vindoo Dara Singh still can’t believe he spent 13 days in jail for being accused in the Indian Premier League (IPL) spot-fixing scam. Now he says he will never ever watch a cricket match or associ-ate with cricketers.“I thought I’d be out in hours. I had told my wife I’d be back by lunch time when they took me in. I came home after 13 days,” Vindoo said after he was granted bail earlier this week.It was his family’s support that kept him strong.“My wife stood by me. She believed in my innocence. And so did my en-tire family. They came to see me af-ter I was taken in. I told them I was not guilty of any of this. That was all they needed to hear.“My family kept me going. My wife knows exactly what I am capable of. She didn’t believe any of this non-sense. My love and respect for her has doubled,” he added.Recalling the genesis of the experi-ence, Vindoo said: “I still can’t be-lieve what I went through. There are thousands of people who bet in cricket. I haven’t done anything wrong. Except that I loved cricket! Now I hate the game.“I’ll never again look at cricket. My love for cricket has cost me so heav-ily that I’d never again watch a game

in my life. I’ll never speak to anyone related to the game of cricket.”Thinking of his arrest leaves Vindoo in jitters.“I never expected I’d be held for so long. When these guys decided to arrest me, there were hundreds of mediapersons around. I don’t know who informed them. They asked me to cover my face. I refused. Why should I have covered my face? I had done no wrong,” said Vindoo, son of late legend Dara Singh.None of Vindoo’s friends from the film industry spoke up for him. He defends their silence saying: “You have to understand they were not sure of my innocence. If everyday I read the things that were written about me in the papers, even I’d have kept quiet.“I don’t blame anyone for not speak-ing up for me. If I had done wrong they’d be in trouble. So they had to be careful.”However, he is glad his “childhood friends” stood up for him, and he was “amazed” with the support of actress Dolly Bindra.Vindoo revealed he was treated well in custody. “During the first hour of interrogation, I told them about my exact connection with cricket. They wanted to know more about Gu-runath Meiyappan and Asad Rauf. I came clean. But like I said, I am done with cricket.

“My brothers would often ask me why I waste so much time watching cricket. I’d fight back. Today I realise I was wasting my time. To hell with this rubbish game. It has brought me so much pain,” he added.Nevertheless, he is all for legalising betting in cricket.“If they’re going to pick up anyone on these charges, then they might as well either shut down the bookies completely or allow them legally. The world knows for 25 years where all the bookies of the world stay,” he said,

IANS

IANS

IANS

CHANDIGARH SUNDAY 23 June 2013 SPORTS

India thrash Sri Lanka, to face England in final

CardiffIndia marched into the final of Champions Trophy with a convinc-ing eight-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the second semi-final at the Sophia Gardens here.India will take on England, who beat South Africa in the first semi-final, in the summit clash at Birmingham Today.After a delayed start due to a wet outfield, Indian bowlers restricted Sri Lanka to 181 for eight in gloomy conditions. Ishant Sharma and Ravi-chandran Ashwin took three wickets apiece.India cantered to 182 for two in 35 overs with Virat Kohli (58 not out) and Shikhar Dhawan (68) starring with the bat.Earlier Sri Lanka, put into bat, were immediately put on the backfoot with Kusal Perera edging a Bhuvneshwar

Kumar out-swinger to Suresh Raina in second slip.There was more bad news as Tilla-karatne Dilshan limped off the field due to an injury in the fifth over.Lahiru Thirimanne (7) and Kumar Sangakkara (17) played out the new ball but failed to get the scoreboard going.When both the batsman fell in quick succession, Sri Lanka found them-selves in trouble with the score on 41 for three in 18 overs.Captain Angelo Mathews (51) and Mahela Jayawardene (38) notched the innings best partnership with a 78-run stand for the fourth wicket.Both batsman, though, again took their time and left the other batsmen too much to do in the end. Mathews fell with the score on 158 for four in the 46th overs and rest of the tail crumbled under pressure.

Dilshan came out to bat towards the end but did very little with a crooked leg.India, in reply, had the match in con-trol since the beginning.Rohit Sharma (33) and Dhawan strung together a 77-run opening wicket partnership and put India in the driving seat.However, failure to capitalise on starts will be a cause of worry for Rohit Sharma. The right-hander has scored 65, 52, 18 and 33 in his four matches averaging 42.Dhawan, who is the top run getter in the tournament with 332 runs, once again looked totally at ease. Together with Kohli, the left-hander took In-dia to the brink of victory before be-ing stumped by Sangakkara.Kohli and Raina (7 not out), who has hardly had a bat in the tournament, added the finishing touches.

AFC Cup: East Bengal face Semen Padang in quartersNew DelhiI-League club East Bengal have been pitted against tournament debutants Semen Padang of Indonesia in their home and away quarterfinal matches of the AFC Cup football tournament in September.The first leg of the 2013 AFC Cup quarter-finals will be held Septem-ber 17 with the return fixtures taking place one week later.The draw for the quarterfinals of Asia’s second tier club competition was made at AFC headquarters in Kuala Lumpur Thursday. East Ben-gal are making their second appear-ance in the quarterfinals in their sev-enth attempt.Meanwhile, defending champions Kuwait Sports Club face an intrigu-ing quarterfinal clash with Maldivian champions New Radiant.Kuwait SC, the champions in 2009 and runners-up two years later, won their second AFC Cup title with a comprehensive 4-0 hammering of Iraqi side Arbil, who were denied a place in the quarter-finals after their surprise 4-3 extra-time defeat at home to Syria’s Al Shorta.Al Shorta’s reward for their hard-fought Round of 16 win over the four-time Iraqi Premier League champions is a quarter-final clash with another Kuwaiti SC’s domestic rivals Al Qadsia.While Kuwait SC scrapped into the last eight with a penalty shootout victory over Iraqi side Duhok, Al Qadsia’s progress to the quarter-fi-

nals was more straightforward with the 2010 runners-up enjoying a com-fortable 4-0 win over Oman’s Fanja.Like Kuwait SC, Al Faisaly are also looking to become the first club to win the AFC Cup for the third time and the first hurdle in the way of the 2004 and 2005 champions is Hong Kong’s Kitchee, who were propelled to the last eight with the help of the tournament’s leading scorer Jordi Tarres.The 32-year-old Spaniard has found the net in every match in this year’s AFC Cup and will be looking to add to his 11 goals to help Kitchee be-come the first side from Hong Kong to contest the trophy after South Chi-na were eliminated in the semi-final stage in 2009.

Brazil deploys elite force in Confederations Cup host cities

BrasiliaBrazil deployed members of an elite security force in cities hosting international football matches, in the wake of massive anti-govern-ment protests that threaten to dis-rupt the FIFA Confedrations Cup.Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff ordered the deployment of Brazil’s National Public Security Force (FNSP) to the cities of Fortaleza, Salvador, Belo Horizonte, the capi-tal Brasilia and Rio de Janeiro, all of which are hosting Confedera-tions Cup games this month, the ministry of Justice said on its of-ficial website Wednesday, reports Xinhua.The FNSP troops will bolster the already-high security measures put in place during the large-scale international event, as well as dur-ing the Catholic Church-organised

World Youth Day to be held in Rio de Janeiro in July, the ministry said.In Brasilia, governor Agnelo Queiroz asked the national force to particularly increase security in and around government buildings.Officials of the National Congress in Brasilia asked Queiroz Monday to deploy the force after demonstra-tions were held outside the legisla-tive building.The FNSP, created in 2006, serves as a kind of military police during protests or emergency situations that threaten public order.Brazilians, angered by a recent hike in transport fares and a lack of pub-lic services while the government spends millions on global sporting events, including next year’s World Cup and the coming Olympic Games in 2016, took to the streets in the past couple of weeks.

It was a well written script: Dhoni

CardiffSkipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni termed India’s eight-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the Champions Trophy semifinal as a well-writ-ten script. Dhoni hardly put a foot wrong right from winning the toss and opting to bowl first.“I think it is a well-written script, good toss to win, started well by the bowler, unfortunately for Sri Lanka they lost Dilshan. We capitalised on that, then the bowlers bowled well, especially the spinners. I think it is important to have good bowlers in the side. The ball was still doing a bit,” said Dhoni.Asked why he decided to bowl four overs of medium pace, Dhoni said: “Bhuvnesh had already bowled 8 or 9, we wanted to keep some of the fast bowlers’ overs for the death, so with Karthik around I think might as well give it a go. I thought even if it goes badly, I’ll bowl one over. It

went okay so I bowled another.”Dhoni rated India’s opponent in the final, England, as a good side.“England are a very good side, and we have played a lot against them in the last couple of years,” he said.Man of the Match Ishant Sharma (3/33) lauded his fellow pacers Bhu-vneshwar Kumar and Umesh Yadav.“My strength is the bounce, I stick to my strength. I think up front Umesh and Bhuvi bowled really well. I think the conditions were re-ally favourable here, in the previous games the wickets were quite flat,” he said.Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews said losing the toss proved crucial.“The toss was crucial, we would have also bowled if we won the toss. The ball was seaming around, swinging around, the pitch was two-paced, our batsmen found it diffi-cult. But credit should go the Indi-ans,” he said.

FIFA clears two Zambian players suspected of match-fixingLusakaWorld football governing body FIFA has cleared two Zambian players who were involved in a match-fixing scam in Finland.Erick Mwanza, communica-tions officer of local governing body, the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ), said Nchimu-nya Mweetwa and Christopher Musonda had been issued with playing licences after completing their Transfer Marketing System process.He said the duo were free to start playing immediately and added that FIFA was already looking into the Transfer Marketing Sys-tem of the other players who were involved in the scam while play-ing professional football in Fin-land.“The two are free to play. They completed their TMS (Transfer Marketing System) process. The rest of the other guys are expected to start playing soon,” he was Post of Zambia.On April 3, 2011, the Finland Football Federation convicted nine Zambian players for match-fixing and FIFA banned them from all football activities. The players were initially banned for eight months but FIFA later extended it to April this year.

CHANDIGARHSUNDAY 23 June 201324

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FLATS AT SUNNY HeIGHTS AND NRI ReTReATS

Come rain or sunshine, keep your skin flawless by figuring out what your skin needs and following your skin care regime religiously. From easily available over-the-counter products to kitchen beauty secrets, use them

as per the demands of your skin.

A guide to healthy skin during monsoonExperts like Hong Kong-based skin care expert Ceri Silk and Indian Beauty expert Blossom Kochhar and they have come up with the following tips:

Oily skinCeri Silk suggests that people with oily skin should use water-based moisturisers after deep-cleansing the face.

Dry skinUma Singh, medical director, Ozone Group of Companies, not only supports use of moisturiser, but also application of a cream-based cleanser to keep the skin hydrated. Singh gives the thumbs up to light moisturiser. She also advises the use of finger tips to apply and not to use it profusely. Excessive use of it will only work against the skin as the moisturiser will just sit heavily on the face and prevent the skin from breathing. Capital-based dermatologist Indu Tolani recommends sunscreen lotion to people who have field work and are exposed to the sun for long hours. They should carry sunscreen with them and apply it every two hours.Blossom Kochhar too emphasises on the Sun Protection Factor (SPF). Those just commuting between home and office should use sunscreen with SPF 15. The SPF level should be 30 for those who stay out longer in the sun. She also said that the sunscreen should have UVA and UVB protection.

Kochhar also shares quick tips on how to use vegetables, fruits and other natural ingredients to protect the skin from the weather’s harsh-ness.

- Take a tomato and crush it. Then take Multani mitti and mix them. Apply the mixture on the face and leave it on for 15 minutes, then rinse it off. It is good for specially those who have open pores.

- If you have a dry skin, paste made of honey and banana will be good. However, people with oily skin should use only honey.

- Watermelon is very good. If you mix it with milk powder and put in on the skin, it will help to calm and cool the skin.

Treatment and precaution for skin infection:

As skin infections are on the rise during monsoon, Singh advises con-sulting a specialist in addition to two simple solutions:

- Use an anti-fungal powder on all body folds to avoid any fungal infec-tion.

- Keep your skin dry. Don’t wear wet clothes and sit for long. Wet shoes should also be changed.