Times Chennai E-paper March 06, 2009

VOL: 2 ISSUE 51

March 06, 2009

SC refers Srikrishna's report to Madras High Court New Delhi, March 06 The Supreme Court on Friday referred the report of Justice B N

Srikrishna on the clash between lawyers and police to the Madras High Court, which, it said, could decide on the issue of holding a judicial inquiry into the incident. The apex court said the High Court was

already seized of the matter relating to the clash and it will take further decision on the basis of the report. A b e n c h headed by C h i e f Justice K G Balakrishna n said that it will be for the High Court to dwell on the issue of holding a judicial i n q u i r y under the Commission of Inquiry Act. The preliminary report by retired apex court-judge Justice Srikrishna indicted both the lawyers and the police for the clashes on February 19.

The report said that the provocation came from the advocates, who were on strike, and in retaliation the police used "excess force and exceeded its limits" by entering into the High Court premises and chambers of the advocates. In its report, the committee indicted the lawyer for the ugly incident saying “the lawyers had indeed acted like hooligans”. Giving a clean chit to the city police, it said that the men in uniforms cannot be blamed for the February 19 incident which created a furore in the state and elsewhere in the country. However, the committee added that the police did commit excesses to quell the unruly lawyers. The report

World heritage monuments on lease to attract tourists Chennai, March 06: The Central government will soon sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with private players to lease out the maintenance of five World Heritage Centres in India, including the famous Taj Mahal in Agra. Ta l k i n g t o reporters on the sidelines of a seminar on the ''Role of Corporate Sector in To u r i s m P r o m o t i o n ' ' organised by the Tamil N a d u T o u r i s m D e v e l o p m e n t Corporation(TTDC) here, Union Tourism Secretary Sujit Banerjee said the MoU would be signed between the Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Culture and the Indian Association of Tour Operator(IATO). After signing the MoU, IATO would take care of the maintenance of Red Fort and Qutub Minar in New Delhi and the Taj Mahal, Fatehpur Sikri and the Agra Fort in Agra. ''We will hand over only the maintenance part of these World Heritage Centres to the IATO, which

had hitherto been maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The ownership rights, however, will continue to be with the ASI'', he added. T h e f i v e monuments would be leased out to the IATO for a period of either 33 years or 66 years, Mr Banerjee said. Responding to a question about tourists inflow, post 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai, Mr Banerjee said from minus 17.6 per cent in January this year and minus 12.5 per cent in December 2008, it had come down to minus 10.6 per cent in February. ‘'This is a good sign of improvement of tourists inflow into India'', he said, adding, about 50,000 tourists had arrived in February alone. ''This showed signs of tourism picking up in India,'' he added. E a r l i e r , delivering the presidential address at the seminar,

State Chief Secretary K S Sripathi said investment in Tourism has come down due to global downturn and called upon corporates to play a leading role in promoting tourism by developing infrastructure and hospitality to attract tourists. He said both the Centre and the State Government, could play the role of a facilitator. Mr Sripathi also urged the Centre to consider reviving the 'Festival of India', which was shelved a few years back due to various reasons. The festival w o u l d p r o v i d e opportunities to project India as a tourist destination, as it attracts lots of involvement from foreign tourists.State Tourism Secretary V Irai Anbu and TTDC Managing Director and Commissioner of Tourism M Rajaram, also spoke on the occasion.

recommended that there should be some guidelines evolved in relation to the behaviour of the advocates. It further said that the acting Chief Justice of Madras High Court had adopted "soft attitude" towards the lawyers who were on strike and were holding meetings in the corridors of the court complex. The committee,

which was appointed by a Bench headed by Chief J u s t i c e K G Balakrishnan, had yesterday submitted the report on the clash between the advocates and police. E a r l i e r, t h e lawyers' associations had said that their stir would continue till the apex court-appointed committee submits its report and actions are

taken against the police officers responsible for the February 19 clash. Various lawyers associations from the state conveyed the stand of the members of the Bar to the Bench which had on Friday last asked them to return to work in the interest of the citizens who are facing hardships due to the advocates' strike since January 29.

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SRM signs MoU with IGCAR Chennai, March 06: SRM University on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR) for academic and research collaborations and for establishing meteorological tower in the University Campus.

also planning to collaborate with research and educational institutions on designing a kit that would make it possible for even school children to test pollution levels. The kit would be made available at a cost of about Rs 10,000. E a r l i e r , speaking at the functon,

Dr Baldev Raj also warned the students that science was not an easy subject. He said ''on the contrary, science is a very difficult subject. B e i n g a scientist is not an easy job. You will have to work round the clock and throughout the year to achieve something. Then

March 06, 2009

JA College students lodge complaints with AU Chennai, March 06: Students of JA Institute of Te c h n o l o g y a n d Engineering submitted a list of complaints to Anna University here on Thursday. The students in their written complaint mentioned the alleged punishment meted out to the hostel students for coming out into the open with issues including no

dinner or breakfast for them. The students told the reporters that Prof Ganesan, Dean of Student Affairs, had assured them that a team from the university would visit the college on Friday for an inspection. They also said that they had requested for a transfer, but were told that it was not possible in the middle

of a semester. The students have planned to demonstrate in front of their college on Friday and boycott classes until the team arrives for inspection. University officials said that the complaints would be reviewed. - Bureau Report

Vision centre for kids

Photo by S. Mohan

Ta l k i n g t o reporters after the MoU function, IGCAR Director Dr Baldev Raj and SRM University Chancellor T R Pachamuthu and ViceChancellor Prof P Sathyanarayanan said as part of the MoU, a micro Meteoro l ogical Tower would be set up to check weather conditions and pollution levels. The 15 metre high tower would be built by the IGCAR in the SRM premises at suburban Kattankualthur. This tower would be the first of its kind in Chennai and it was being built as part of IGCAR’s atmospheric and environment monitoring programme. The Micro Meteoro l ogical Tower would help in establishing surface, air and water pollution levels apart from helping urban planners on proper use of land space, Dr Baldev Raj said. ''Setting up of the tower, which will become functional in three months with an initial investment of Rs 20 lakh, will make industries and educational institutions, including schools, able to monitor pollution levels in the environment.' ''A prototype of the tower (15 metre high) would first be built. Later the actual tower, measuring 50 metre height, will be set up'', Dr Raj said. The IGCAR was

Dr. Baldev Raj said atomic energy and material science had immense potential in touching the lives of people and for nation building. It could help in improving quality tests of fruits, vegetables and flowers exported from India, better diagnosis of cancer and diseases caused by inflammatory tissues and it was also possible to bring robust technologies at lower cost in the field of health care. Dr Baldev Raj said India was second to none in establishing sodium-cooled fast reactors and that it was the first to master this technology ahead of the US and France. This not only speak volumes about the Indian scientific community's talent, but also proved that Indians could work as a team, he said, dismissing as myth, the criticisms that Indians could not work as a team. ''India has taken a lead. Tomorrow we want to be world leader in this technology. For this synergy is required and the national facility like IGCAR can be used as much as possible t h r o u g h s u c h agreements'', he said. In this context, he referred to the successful launch of Chandrayaan-I and said it was a classic example of team work.

only you can realise your dream. Science is like climbing a mountain, which you love as you go up step by step'', he said. Observing that addiction to Science was not bad, he said he wanted to make students get addicted to science and IGCAR was ready to enhance the students holistic education in science, which was relevent in all spheres of activity. Vice Chancellor Prof Sathyanarayanan said SRM would soon introduce subjects in nuclear science and technology as electives before offering a fullfledged course at the post graduate-level. Chancellor T R Pachamuthu, speaking on the occasion, emphasised the importance of research, either by the faculty or the students, and said any University would be known by the level of research it was doing and SRM University is trekking the path of research. Earlier Pro Vice Chancellor Dr. T P Ganesan welcomed the gathering and highlighted the SRM University's strides to the gathering and Prof. Sethuraman Registrar proposed a vote of thanks. - Staff Reporter

Chennai, March 06: Vidya Sagar, an NGO for cerebral palsy has come up with a vision centre --The Vision Centre of Vidya Sagar -for children with low vision. With children with visual and physical disabilities finding it difficult to get along with inclusive education, the Centre is setting up the Vision Centre to provide t h e m h o l i s t i c intervention, regular follow-up, parental

g u i d a n c e a n d counseling. The Centre is being set up to cater to the needs of children studying in mainstream schools and also the increased number of referrals from hospitals and doctors. “When these children become part of inclusive education issues like children not being able to see, not being able to copy down from the board, not being able to write correctly comes up.

The schools as well as the children are finding it difficult to cope with the requirements of each other. Hence, Vidya Sagar has come up with the Vision Centre to give support to the children” said its Vimala, coordinator, The Vision Centre of Vidya Sagar. The programme includes orientation and mobility, communication, peer-interaction, play, braille activities and occupational therapy. - Bureau Report

Congress appoints committee to hold seat sharing talks with DMK Chennai, March 06: The Congress high command has appointed a five-member committee for identification of constituencies and seat sharing arrangements with DMK for the May 13 Lok Sabha elections in

Tamil Nadu. T N C C President K V Thangabalu, Union Ministers G K Vasan, P Chidambaram, E V K S Elangovan and Congress Legislature Party Leader D Sudharasanam would be

the members of the committee. T h i s w a s conveyed by AICC General secretary Gulam Nabi Azad, in-charge of Tamil Nadu to Mr Thangabalu, a party release here said. - Agencies

Special trains to clear rush Chennai, March 06: S o u t h e r n Railway will run the following special trains to clear the rush during April, May and June. T i r u c h i Chennai Central Weekly Superfast special (No. 0634) will leave Tiruchi at 10.40 p.m. on Saturdays and arrive Chennai Central at 8 a.m. on Sundays. Chennai Central-Tiruchi (No.

0633) will leave Chennai Central at 10.20 on Tuesdays and arrive at Tiruchi at 7.15 a.m. on Wednesdays. The first train will leave Tiruchi on April 4 and the last train from Chennai Central on June 23. C h e n n a i Central-Mangalore Weekly Superfast special (No. 0619) will leave Chennai Central at 5 p.m. on Sundays and reach

Mangalore at 9.10 a.m. on Mondays. MangaloreChennai Central (No. 0620) will leave Mangalore at 4 p.m. on Mondays and reach Chennai Central at 8 a.m. on Tuesdays. The first train will leave Chennai Central on April 5 and last train from Mangalore on June 22, says a Railway release. - Bureau Report

Special coaching classes for Civil services exams Chennai, March 06: Manitha Neyam IAS and IPS Free Coaching Centre has decided to offer special coaching classes from Saturday to candidates who are planning to take the forthcoming Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) examinations. The UPSC

examinations will be held in New Delhi. Experts will offer special coaching, conduct mock interviews and group discussions to help the candidates. In a release, founder-president of the centre S. Duraisamy said that there had been a nearly three-fold increase in the number of candidates from the

coaching centre emerging successful in the preliminary and main interviews. This year, 34 students passed out as against 26 last year. Those desirous of joining the coaching classes may contact the course director at 24358373 or 99406 70110. - Bureau Report

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March 06, 2009 Times Chennai E-Paper

PFBR almost on schedule Chennai, March 06 : After over two decades of work, India's first nuclear reactor that would breed more fuel than

it consumes will be ready by the end of this year said IGCAR director Baldev Raj said on Thursday speaking on the sidelines of function to mark the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the IGCAR and SRM U n i v e r s i t y i n Kattankulathur, Work on second generation the 500-MW prototype fast breeder reactor (PFBR) was expected oto be completed by the end of current year, he said adding that it would be major achievement for the country, as no other country in Asian cubcontingent has developed it so far. A breeder reactor is one that breeds more material for a nuclear f i s s i o n 26.002660062reaction than it consumes, so that the reaction--that ultimately produces electricity--can continue, he explained. If all goes well, the Rs.3,500 crore/$700 million project promoted by Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Ltd (Bhavini) will become the crowning glory for experts at the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic

Research (IGCAR), he added. M a n y consignments of Sodium has been injected to the reactor and that the tests conducted are positive. Though we had lost some time d u r i n g Tsunami we are almost on schedule and the dates of commissio0 ning would b e announced shortly. Atmospheric and environment monitoring programme He added that the Micro Meteorological Tower, to check weather conditions and pollution levels, will be built by Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam, on the premises of SRM University. First of its kind in Chennai, the facility was being built as part of IGCAR’s atmospheric and environment monitoring programme. T h e M i c r o Meteorological Tower w o u l d h e l p i n establishing surface, air and water pollution levels apart from helping urban planners in proper use of land space, Dr. Baldev Raj said. he said it was part of a larger programme to make industries and educational institutions, including schools, monitor pollution levels in the environment. A prototype of the tower about 15 metres tall would first be

built, before the actual tower measuring 50 metres in height was installed. It would cost about Rs. 20 lakh and completed in about three months, Dr. Baldev Raj said. There were also plans to collaborate with r e s e a r c h a n d educational institutions in designing a kit that would make it possible for even school children to test pollution levels. The IGCAR was planning to make the kit available at a cost of Rs. 10,000. Advanced Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR) Progress was made on the AHWR fuel cluster design optimisation studies in terms of vibration consideration and thermal hydraulic point. . Advanced operator information system for integration of all available AHWR plant information system at a single location was under development. The peer review of the Detailed Project Report (DPR) of AHWR was completed by the 15 Review Groups of NPCIL. AHWR was also undergoing a review for its compliance with the international standards through participation in the IAEA initiated International Project on Innovative Nuclear Reactors and Fuel Cycles (INPRO). The project is under review at the Regulatory Board and concurrence is expected to be received by next y e a r. Once the concurrence is given it would take atleast seven years to complete the project he added.

Venkatapathy and State Government officials were present at the a i r p o r t a s P Subramanian, brother of Simon received the body. The family members, accompanied by district revenue officials, took the body to their native village near Kallakuruchi in Villupuram District of Tamil Nadu to perform the last rites. The Tamil Nadu Government had arranged an ambulance for taking the body. Giving up hope of getting back the body after being informed that the abductors had killed

Three international flights diverted as fog engulfs city Chennai, March 06: T h r e e international flights, scheduled to land at the Chennai Airport at the wee hours of today, diverted to Bangalore as thick fog engulfed the c i t y, r e d u c i n g t h e visibility level. In less than a week, fog threw a cover over this metropolis, forcing three flights from Sharjah, Dubai and Qatar to land in Bangalore and come back to the city after 0700 hrs, as the skies cleared. Air-Arabia flight C9 475 from Sharjah, scheduled to arrive at 0300 hrs, Gulf Airlines GF 468 from Dubai,

scheduled to land at 0325 hrs and Qatar Airlines QR 276 from Qatar, scheduled to land at 0345 hrs, found their way to Bangalore, as the Pilots reported poor visibility and declared that they would not land. Meanwhile, three flights, including the much sought after Lufthansa were cancelled due to poor bookings. Indian Airlines cancelled its IC 440 flight to Delhi at 0640 hrs, as it had a booking of only 47 passengers against its capacity of 180 passengers. S i m i l a r l y, Lufthansa’s LH 758 and LH 759 and Malaysia

Airlines MH 180 and 181 were cancelled due to poor bookings, much to the surprise of passengers. LH 758, scheduled to arrive at 2345 hrs from Frankfurt was cancelled. In view of this, LH 759, which was to leave for Frankfurt at 0145 hrs had been cancelled. It had a booking of 135 passengers, against the capacity of 360. The Malaysian MH 180 also did not arrive at 2145 hrs last night and in view of that, the flight from Chennai to Malaysia at 2300 hrs had been cancelled. It had a booking of 95 passengers against the capacity of 240 passengers, Airport sources said. -Agencies

Cancer patient commits suicide in city Chennai, March 06: A c a n c e r patient, being treated at the Government Royapettah Hospital here, committed suicide by hanging himself from a tree at the hospital

premises today. Police sources said Ramakrishnan (50), hailing from Papnasam in the Thanjavur District, had been undergoing treatment at the hospital. Unable to bear

the ordeal, he committed suicide by hanging himself from a tree, in the hospital premises. The body was removed for post-mortem.

Jayalalithaa advances fast on Sri Lankan Tamils issue Chennai March 06 The AIADMK leader Jayalalithaa has advanced her March 10 fast on the Sri Lankan Tamil issue by a day. Jayalalithaa had announced on Thursday that she would observe the fast on March 10 demanding the Centre should work for bringing about an immediate ceasefire between Sri Lankan forces and the LTTE. The former Chief Minister had said other prominent party leaders would lead the fast in all district headquarters to express solidarity with the Sri Lankan Tamils.

-Agencies

Airport witnesses poignant scenes as Simon's body arrives Chennai, March 06 Poignant scenes were witnessed at the Chennai Airport at the early hours of today as the body of Simon Paranthaman, abducted and killed by Taliban terrorists in Afghanistan, about three weeks ago, arrived. Heart rending scenes were witnessed as Simon’s wife, two children and family members broke down and wailed, as they received the body at the International Cargo at 0220 hrs from Kabul via Delhi. Union Minister of State for Law and Justice K

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him on February eight, the family members, using a handful of soil from Afghanistan, had performed the last rites. They were later informed on February 24 that the body had been found and recovered in a mountainous region, about 70 km away from the city of Herath in Afghanistan. S i m o n Paranthaman, who worked as a cook for an Italian firm in Afghanistan, when he was abducted by the Taliban terrorists on October 13. As the Italian firm and the Indian

Vijaykanth scotches speculation on tie-up with Cong Chennai, Mar 06 Putting at rest

speculation of his party aligning with the Congress for the ensuing Lok Sabha polls, DMDK

President and Actorpolitician Vijayakanth today described it as media speculation and said a final decision would be taken after consulting his party cadres. Speaking to mediapersons after attending the house warming function of his brother-in-law and DMDK Youth Wing President Sudheesh, he said 'I am here to attend a private function. I do not want to comment on political alliances with the

Lok Sabha polls round the corner.' Stating that media has been speculating a possible tie-up between his party and the Congress, Vijayakanth said ''I cannot take any decision on my own. I will hold consultations with the party cadres on the issue and take a final decision''. I n t e r e s t i n g l y, TNCC President K V Thangkabalu was also present at the function. But both the leaders did not have any private audience. -Agencies

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News You Can Use

Congress may rope in ‘Slumdog' kids for polls

Mallya buys Gandhi's items for USD 1.8 million New York, March 06: M a h a t m a Gandhi's five personal items, including the iconic round eye glasses, finally went under the hammer here and were bought by Indian liquor baron Vijay Mallya for USD 1.8 million after hours of high drama. But the sale would take two weeks to finalise as the owner of Gandhi's prized memorabilia, James Otis had announced outside the Antiquorum Auctioneers auction house that he has decided not to sell the items in the light of controversy. "The items would be kept with the Auctioneer for two weeks to resolve a n y c l a i m s , " a spokesperson for Antiquorum Auctioneers said. This means, Mallya will have to wait for next two weeks to get the possession of items of the Father of the Nation. The liqour baron is then expected to return the items to the Government of India. Tony Bedi, who bidded on behalf of Mallya

said that he was "bidding for the country" and this sale means that Gandhi's items would now return to India. Apart from trademark spectacles, which once Gandhi has said gave him "the vision to free India," a pair of his worn sandals, his Zenith pocket watch, made in about 1910, a bowl and plate went under the hammer. A large number of Indian-American, who were present in the auction room, burst into cheers and clapping when the bid closed saying that the items will now go back to India. It is said that Mallya and IndianAmerican hotelier Sant Singh Chatwal had come to an understanding, before the bidding, that they would not bid against each other and were in contact with each other over the telephone while the bid was on. The last time, when the sword of Tipu Sultan went under the hammer at a London

auction house four years ago, Mallya coughed up Rs four crore to bring it back to India. E a r l i e r , speaking to reporters here, Otis said: "In the last few hours, I have decided, in the light of the controversy, not to sell Gandhi's personal items." Otis' move came after intense negotiations between him and Indian diplomats at the Indian Consulate in New York. Otis earlier in the day set new conditions including that India shift priorities from military spending to health care especially for the poor if he has to call off the auction. In 2007, India managed to obtain another piece of Gandhi memorabilia - a manuscript of an article he wrote - after persuading the auctioneers to withdraw the document from sale. -Agencies

Pussycat Dolls 'Jai Ho' remix lights up single charts Los Angeles, March 06: Rapper Flo Rida logged a fifth week at No 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart on Thursday, while the Pussycat Dolls' remix of the Oscar-winning "Slumdog Millionaire" anthem "Jai Ho!" jumped 85 places to No 15. Another song by "Slumdog" composer AR Rahman, the Oscarnominated "O'Saya" featuring MIA, entered at No 93. TI featuring Justin

Timberlake's "Dead and Gone" remained at No 2, and Lady GaGa's "Poker Face" rose three to No 3. Soulja Boy's "Kiss Me Thru the Phone" featuring Sammie jumped five places to No 4. T h e A l l American Rejects' "Gives You Hell" slipped one to No. 5; Kanye West's "Heartless" dropped three to No 6; Lady GaGa's "Just Dance" held at No 7;

Eminem, Dr Dre and 50 Cent's "Crack a Bottle" fell three to No 8; Taylor Swift's "Love Story" slipped one to No 9; and Kelly Clarkson's "My Life Would Suck Without You" posted a second week at No. 10. The top debut was "American Idol" alumna Brooke White's self-released "Hold Up My Heart," which came in at No 47. -Agencies

'India among world's attractive destinations' Geneva, March 06: India has moved up three places on the list of the world's attractive destinations, but is still at a low of 62nd position in the global ranking, which is topped by Switzerland, according to a report released by the World Economic Forum on Wednesday. Switzerland is followed by Austria, Germany, France and Canada in the top five of the annual 'Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report' for 2009, which features a total of 133

countries. India has moved up from its 65th position last year, but is still below its neighbour China, which has moved up to 43rd place from 52nd in 2008. "India is ranked 11th in the (Asia-Pacific) region and 62nd overall, up three places since last year. As with China, India is well assessed for its natural resources (ranked 14th) and cultural resources (24th), with many World Heritage sites, both natural and cultural, rich

March 06, 2009

fauna, and strong creative industries in the country," WEF said. The country also has quite a good air transport network, particularly given the country's stage of development, and a reasonable ground transport infrastructure, it added. However, some aspects of its tourism infrastructure remains somewhat under developed (ranked 73rd), with very few hotel rooms p e r c a p i t a b y international comparison and low ATM penetration.

Mumbai, March 06: Congress may rope in child stars of Oscar-winner 'Slumdog Millionaire' Azhar and Rubina for Lok Sabha poll campaign, Mumbai Regional Congress Committee (MRCC) president Kripashankar Singh said here on

Thursday. "We may use their services if they volunteer to campaign for the Congress," Singh told reporters. Singh also informed that the copyright of the film's song 'Jai Ho' was with the Congress.

C o n g r e s s President Sonia Gandhi will decide on the allotment of tickets for the Lok Sabha elections. We will forward all applications to AICC after discussion, Singh said. -Agencies

65-year-old appears for 10th exams Lucknow, March 06: A 65-year-old grocery shop owner in Uttar Pradesh, undeterred by past failures, is appearing for class 10 exams for the 44th time. "Jabbar is taking the exams in the Adarsh Janta Inter college in Fatehpur district as a private candidate," District Inspector of Schools Prem Prakash Maurya told over phone. Fatehpur district is around 200 km from Lucknow. "He would be

probably the oldest student enrolled with the UP (Uttar Pradesh) board. His determination to pass the exam has impressed us all," added Maurya. Jabbar, a resident of the Bindki village in Fatehpur, has opted take the exams in English. "I am quite confident this time I would be able to make it," the candidate told reporters on Wednesday after coming out of the examination hall. He says that because of his

"experience" in appearing for the exams, he can now predict the exam trends. " L a s t y e a r, I committed some silly mistakes and failed by a few marks. But this time I will not repeat them (mistakes) and pass the exam," he said. According to officials, over 5.4 million students are appearing for class 10 and 12 exams in the state. Nearly 3.3 million are appearing for class 10 exams that began March 2. -Agencies

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March 06, 2009 Times Chennai E-Paper

India to send military medical team to Sri Lanka next week New Delhi, March 06 India will send a team of military doctors to Sri Lanka soon in its first open indulgence in the island nation's fight against the LTTE since the failure of a peace mission in 1987. Acceding to a popular demand from Tamil Nadu's political parties, the Centre decided to base the medical team in Pulmodai in the island's north-east, which was once under LTTE control. The medical team would provide immediate

aid to innocent civilians impacted by the bitter military face off there between the Lankan Army and the LTTE cadres. The External Affairs Ministry has on February 24 prepared a detailed note on the situation in the island nation, but the Defence Ministry was sent an intimation only on March 3, government sources said here today. As per the MEA note, the matter had been discussed within

the government and with the Lankan officials, who gave concurrence and support to the programme. A 50-personnel team of doctors, nursing staff and paramedics would fly out on two IL-76 heavy lift transport aircraft next week to set up the hospital at the Pulmodai, where the Lankan government would provide two buildings for erecting an operation theatre, ICU and labs. -Agencies

Eighty two per cent voters to use photo ID cards for LS polls New Delhi, March 06 The Election Commission on Thursday said 82 percent electors would use photo identity cards to cast their votes in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls. "Eighty-two percent electors have photo identity cards issued by the Election Commission across the country. Over 90 percent electors have been issued voters cards with photographs in fourteen states and 90 percent electors have their

photographs printed in the electoral rolls in 13 states," the Election Commission said in a release here. "This will facilitate easy identification and prevent impersonation," the poll panel said. For the first time, photo electoral rolls will be used for polling in the entire country except the three states of Assam, Nagaland and Jammu and Kashmir in forthcoming general election.

"Of the 543 Lok Sabha constituencies, 522 constituencies and the legislative assembly constituencies in Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim and Orissa will go to the polls on the basis of the photo electoral rolls. Nearly 77 percent eligible voters have their photographs in the rolls," the Election Commission said. It added that the concept of photo electoral roll was introduced in 2005. -Agencies

President appoints Chief Justices for five High Courts New Delhi, March 06 : P r e s i d e n t Pratibha Patil has appointed Chief Justices of five High Courts -Rajasthan, Allahabad, Patna, Sikkim and Kerala. Justice Deepak Verma, presently a judge in the Karnataka High Court, has been appointed as Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court, according to a Rashtrapati Bhawan communique.

J u s t i c e Chandramauli Kumar Prasad has been appointed Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court whereas Justice Aftab Hussain Saikia will take over as Chief Justice of the Sikkim High Court. Presently a judge of the Kerala High Court, Justice Jacob Benjamin Koshy will assume charge as Chief Justice of the Patna High

the apex court-appointed committee submits its report and actions are taken against the police officers allegedly responsible for the February 19 clash. Va r i o u s l a w y e r s associations from the state conveyed the stand of the members of the Bar to the apex court Bench which had on Friday last asked them to return to work in the interest of citizens facing hardships due to the advocates' strike since Janaury 29.

Expelled CPI(M) West Bengal MP joins Trinamool Kolkata, March 06: Hours after being expelled from West Bengal's ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist CPI(M) on Thursday, Lok Sabha member from Katwa Abu Ayesh Mondal, joined the Trinamool Congress amid speculation that he may contest the coming elections as its candidate. The CPI-M's Burdwan District Secretary Amal Haldar, accused Mr. Mondal on Thursday morning of anti-party activities and spreading canards against the party after being denied a ticket for the polls. "His Lok Sabha constituency is no more after the delimitation of seats. So we could not give him a ticket. But he could not stomach this and started secret communications with the Trinamool Congress," Mr. Haldar alleged. "We held a meeting this morning (Thursday) and expelled him for antiparty activities."

Later in the day, Mr. Mondal met Tr i n a m o o l s u p r e m o Mamata Banerjee at her Kailighat residence in South Kolkata and was inducted into the party fold. He was also made its state committee vice-president. Welcoming Mr. Mondal into the party, Ms. Banerjee said: "He has a clean image. And I would like to make it clear that he has not sought a ticket for the polls. He has categorically said that ideology, and not a seat, is important for him." However, Ms. Banerjee gave an evasive reply when asked whether the party would give him a ticket for the coming poll. "Wait for a few days. There are days to go before we declare our candidates' list." M r. M o n d a l claimed that he had been fighting for internal democracy in the CPI(M) since 2006. "I was always kept at arm's length in the party. I was not made a party to

decisions," he said, alleging the CPI(M) never showed the courtesy of officially telling him that he is not being given the party ticket. "They haven't cared to let me know that I have been summarily expelled. I am a senior leader of the party. They should have told me officially that I won't contest this time. I am definitely unhappy." Mr. Mondal, a former legislator from Ousgram in Burdwan district, denied the charge that he had been hobnobbing with the Tr i n a m o o l C o n g r e s s despite being a CPI(M) MP. "I was an MLA for a long time. I am also an MP now. To do my work efficiently I have to maintain good rapport with leaders of various parties. I have never gone beyond that." Mr. Mondal was elected to the Lok Sabha from Katwa in a by-poll in 2006. West Bengal will go to the polls April 30, May 7 and May 13. -Agencies

Advani plays safe, says Jinnah issue settled

Court. J u s t i c e Samindar Rudrayya Bannurmath will be the Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court. All these appointments will come in to effect on the date when the respective judges assume charge of their new offices. -Agencies

SC panel submits report on police-lawyers clash New Delhi, March 06 : The Supreme Court-appointed Committee headed by retired judge B N Srikrishna on Thursday filed its report in the apex court on clashes between Tamil Nadu and lawyers inside the Madras High Court premises. The committee was appointed by a Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan. E a r l i e r, t h e l a w y e r s ' associations had said their agitation would continue till

Page 5

The advocates have demanded that the "guilty" policemen be suspended instead of being let off with transfers. The bench had on February 26 acceded to most of the demands of the lawyers and expressed hope that since the committee was constituted according to their wish, the lawyers will maintain the decorum and discipline and would withdraw the strike which has paralysed the work of the courts.

New Delhi, March 06: If there is anything the BJP’s Prime Minister-in-waiting Lal Krishna Advani does not want to face on the eve of the Lok Sabha elections, it is his controversial reference to Mohammad Ali Jinnah - the creator of Pakistan. Advani had, four years ago, described Jinnah as “a secular man.” While the BJP leader is no longer interested in talking about the Father of Pakistan, some nonsaffron political parties are planning to make Jinnah an issue in the forthcoming polls. Advani had on his Pakistan visit in June 2005 showered fulsome praises on Jinnah. When the matter was raised with Advani, who was in Parliament for a function t o d a y, t h e l a t t e r appeared guarded.

Asked if he would clarify his position on Jinnah now that he was projecting himself to lead India, which was divided on Jinnah’s insistence, Advani said, “I think the matter stands settled.” “What I had said about Jinnah was based on quotes from Jinnah’s speech made in the P a k i s t a n A s s e m b l y. There is no confusion on this,” he added, when reminded that many people, especially those in Punjab, had not forgotten the pangs of Partition and were confused about Advani’s opinion of Jinnah. The matter may still occupy the RSS mind scape but Advani believes otherwise. Earlier in 2005, the saffron outfit had asked Advani to immediately retract his statement on Jinnah. The issue had snowballed into a controversy, with Advani

resigning from his post in the party. The stalemate was eventually resolved, with the BJP accepting the significance of Advani’s Pakistan visit but also rejecting the two-nation theory championed by Jinnah, who “led a communal agitation to achieve his goal of Pakistan, which devoured thousands.” Advani had then maintained he had not said or done anything from which to retract. Four years later, he seems to be sticking to his stand. He had in fact quoted Jinnah’s speech, which said Pakistan was for all people. But when asked what Jinnah or any other leader for that matter would have said from a public platform except what was politically correct, Advani was silent. -Agencies

Times Chennai E-Paper

Page 6

M&M launches new model of Scorpio Chennai, March 06 Auto major Mahindra & Mahindra on Friday launched its sports utility vehicle 'New Mighty

Bharthendhu Kapoor. The Scorpio f e a t u r e s t h e technologically advanced mHawk

Rs 70,000. "Mahindra's ingenious approach to driving efficiencies and costs has enabled us to

engine and also incorporates micro hybrid technology and this variant look is now available across all variants, the company said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange. The price range is Rs 7.20 lakh (LX) to Rs 9.88 lakh (VLX) exshowroom Chennai. post significant price reductions ranging upto

provide additional customer value up to Rs 70,000. The new Scorpio has the ability to expand the market and appeal to a new set of customers," he added. The company said the powerful and highly successful 2.2 litre advanced mHawk engine is now available on the Scorpio LX, SLE and VLX. -Agencies

Photo S. Mohan

Muscular Scorpio' at a price range of Rs 7.20 lakh to Rs 9.88 lakh. "The Scorpio's strong value proposition lies in versatility, its ability to morph and mould itself according to the changing template of customer needs. The new Scorpio will further enhance our domination of the UV market," said Mahindra & Mahindra Automotive Sector Vice President

Infrastructure growth slows to 1.4 per cent New Delhi, March 06: Growth in India's six infrastructure industries slowed to 1.4 per cent in January as production in the core sectors barring cement showed poor performance. The six core infrastructure industries crude oil, petroleum refinery products, coal, electricity, cement and finished carbon steel-- had registered a growth rate of 3.6 per cent in January 2008. During the AprilJanuary period of this

fiscal, the industries posted a growth rate of 3.2 per cent against 5.7 per cent in the corresponding period previous year. Displaying poor performance, crude oil production declined further to 8.1 per cent in January after a dip of 0.2 per cent in the corresponding month last year. Petroleum refinery production too declined by 2.6 per cent against a growth rate of 5.4 per cent in the year-ago period.

Coal output and electricity generation registered growth rates of 6.3 per cent and 1.4 per cent in January against 7.9 per cent and 3.7 per cent, respectively, in the same month previous year. Finished steel production registered a growth of 1.2 per cent in January against 2 per cent last year, while cement production grew by 8.3 per cent compared to 5.6 per cent in January 2008. -Agencies

Rupee recovers, up 12 paise against dollar Mumbai, March 06: The Indian rupee gained 12 paise after a weak opening against the US currency in late morning trade on Friday on expected central bank intervention to contain further slide in the domestic unit. At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (forex) market, the rupee resumed weaker at 51.83/85 a dollar from its last close of 51.77/78. But it recovered smartly to 51.65/67 a dollar

in late morning deals. Dealers said the rupee bounced back from its early lows on anticipation of the central bank's intervention in favour of the domestic currency to prevent any further fall amid sliding stock markets. The domestic currency also drew support from a fall in dollar against a basket of major currencies in overseas markets. Dealers said

March 06, 2009

Business

sustained FII pull out from domestic stock markets leading to capital outflows remained the principal cause of concern in the exchange market. Meanwhile, inflation fell to a six-anda-half-year low of 3.03 per cent a day after the Reserve Bank of India cut the repo and the reverse repo rates by 50 basis points each. -Agencies

Textile sector expects Rs.1.50 lakh crore investment Chennai, March 06: The country's textile sector is expected to attract an investment of Rs 1,50,600 crore by the end of 11th plan (2007-2012) and also to generate employment opportunities for 17.35 million workforce, according to the Handloom Atlas of India. The Atlas said the growth of the industry had accelarated to 10 per cent per annum and was expected to reach 16 per cent in the near future. The textile trade had been contributing about 17 per cent of country's overall export, growing at a compounded average of 10.24 per cent per annum over the last decade. It was expected to grow 22 per cent and reach $ 55 billion by 2012, the Atlas, released here recently, said. It said the textile sector had contributed about four per cent of the GDP, about 14 per cent

of total industrial production, about 21 per cent of the workforce, about 17 per cent of export earnings and about 12 per cent of global production of textile fibres and yarns (including jute). The Atlas said that India was the only country which produced handloom on a commercial scale. The world's installed capacity of handloom is currently 4.60 million. In the global scenario of handlooms, India was in number one position with 85 per cent (3.90 million) of the world's installed capacity. According to D e v e l o p m e n t C o m m i s s i o n e r (Handlooms) B K Sinha, the handloom industry produced a staggering variety of clothes and handloom products, with each state having its own specialities, due to the different ethnic traditions as well as craftsmanship.

The readymade garment sector is the country's biggest textile export basket, contributing over 43 per cent of the total textile exports. The Atlas said the government proposal to set up 30 integrated textile parks was expected to generate an annual production to the tune of Rs 23,600 crore and create half a million new jobs. M B r i t t o , Chairman, Handloom Export Promotion Council said the factors that promote India as a favoured destination for textile products included the availability or relatively inexpensive and skilled workforce, design and expertise. A l a r g e production base for raw material like home grown cotton, yarns and fabrics and availability of a wide and exciting range of textiles was another reason, he added. -Bureau Report

Sensex rebound at noon on selective buying Mumbai, March 06: The benchmark Sensex recovered by 49 points after a weak opening on emergence of buying by funds in fundamentally strong stocks. The Bombay Stock Exchange barometer, which had lost over 150 points at the outset, was trading

higher by 49 points at 8,246.92 at 1200 hrs with most of the banking and capital goods shares posting smart gains. Meanwhile, wide-based National Stock Exchange's index, Nifty, rose by 15.10 points to 2,591.80. It had dipped to 2,539.45 points in the opening session. Marketmen said

the market turned positive as investors purchased fundamentally strong shares available at attractive low levels. They said heavy selling in last two trading sessions pulled down the market to a 40-month low level.

Satyam shares surges 14 pc after SEBI stake sale nod Mumbai, March 06: Shares of Satyam Computer Services surged nearly 14 per cent on bourses after the company received approval from market regulator SEBI to facilitate a global competitive bidding process enabling it to sell 51 per cent stake in the company to a strategic investor. Shares of the beleaguered IT firm surged by 8.26 per cent to Rs 38 on the Bombay Stock Exchange. On the National Stock

Exchange, the scrip jumped by 13.67 per cent to touch a high of Rs 39.90. The scrip was later trading at Rs 36.30, up 3.42 per cent on BSE. Satyam was trading at Rs 36.55, up 4.13 per cent on NSE. A total of 44.02 lakh shares of Satyam changed hands on the bourses. Satyam on Friday received approval from SEBI to facilitate a global competitive bidding process enabling it to sell 51 per cent stake to a strategic investor.

The selected investor will be issued fresh equity of 31 per cent and upon a successful closing of the subscription, the investor will be required to make a mandatory minimum public open offer to purchase a minimum of 20 per cent of the company's share capital. The open offer will be made at the same share price as the price paid by the investor for the subscription, the company said. -Agencies

March 06, 2009 Times Chennai E-Paper

World

‘Undeniable links between Pak govt and LeT’

Sri Lanka distances itself from Indian link claims Islamabad, March 06 : Distancing itself from speculative media reports about Indian elements being linked to the terror attack on its cricket team in Lahore, Sri Lanka has said it had scored successes in its counter-terrorism campaign due to India's support. Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama, who visited Pakistan on Wednesday to discuss the progress in the probe into the audacious gun and grenade attack, brushed aside several questions on alleged Indian links to the incident

during two interactions with the media. M r . Bogollagama told reporters that India is backing Sri Lanka's counter-terrorism actions and Colombo had been "able to succeed on many fronts due to this support". Sri Lanka appreciates India's support in this regard, he said as he swept aside queries on New Delhi's "hegemonic" designs and on Indian intelligence agencies allegedly being linked to the attack on the cricket team. Following his meetings with President

Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, Mr. Bogollagama said Sri Lanka had not ruled out the possibility of the LTTE’s involvement in the attack. The Sri Lankan government is "keenly studying" this issue, Mr. Bogollagama said. Eight persons, including six policemen, were killed and over 20 others injured when a dozen heavily armed terrorists attacked the Sri Lankan team's bus near a stadium in Lahore. -Agencies

TV footage shows Lahore attackers fleeing past police Islamabad, March 06 : TV footage aired on Thursday clearly showed two of the terrorists who attacked the Sri Lankan team in Lahore fleeing past an approaching police vehicle, giving the lie to the authorities' claims that they had cordoned off the area immediately after the incident occurred. Captured by a CCTV camera and aired by Geo TV, the visuals show two men on a motorcycle, one of them branding an automatic, entering the frame from the bottom of the picture.

A police vehicle approaches from the other side, crosses the motorcycle and speeds on without even attempting to stop the duo as they ride out of the frame. On Wednesday, Geo TV had aired four sets of visuals captured by CCTV cameras in the lanes around the Liberty Market area near the Gaddafi Stadium where a group of terrorists, said to number 12, sprayed bullets on the Sri Lanka team bus on Tuesday. E i g h t Pakistanis, including six

security personnel died in the attack, while six Sri Lankan cricketers, and the team's assistant coach, were injured. One of the visuals showed two armed terrorists running 50 metres down a lane to where another man waited on a motorcycle. The rider kick starts the machine, the other two get on and the motorcycle speeds away. Another visual showed a terrorist brandishing his weapon as he ran up a deserted street. -Agencies

H1B quota expected to be filled up in the first few days: Expert Washington, March 06: Amid speculation that there would be reduction in number of HIB visas, which has attracted large number of Indian professionals, a top immigration expert has said that the quota of 65,000 will get capped as the filing opens on April 1. "This year, with the economy in a recession and in view of widespread layoffs, the general expectation is that there may not be as many petitions as the previous years," said immigration attorney Morley J Nair. In 2008, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) received about 163,000 petitions including 31,200 against the US advanced degree category in the first five days of filing, so a random lottery was conducted. Similar procedure was followed in 2007. Even with a drastically reduced number of petitions, Nair said there is the likelihood that the quota would get

capped in the first couple of days. "Even a reduction of 55 per cent from last year in the general quota and 35 per cent in the advanced degree quota would do it," he said in a statement. "So, I would urge potential employers to be proactive and get ready to file the cap-subject H1B petitions on April 1itself," he said. Top Indian IT companies account for the largest chunk of the H-1B work visas. Just four Indian companies alone last year accounted for more than 10,000 H1B visas. At present the annual quota of H-1B visas is 65,000, out of which 6,800 are reserved for nationals of Singapore and Chile. Indian professionals account for the majority of the H-1B visas. A d d i t i o n a l l y, there is a special quota of 20,000 visas for holders of advanced degrees from US graduate

Page 7

schools. Further, certain employers (mainly in academic and research areas) are exempt from this quota. I n d i a n professionals and top IT chiefs have earlier asked the the US Congress and t h e O b a m a Administration to remove the cap on H-1B visas, which enable foreign nationals to live and work in the United States. The Fiscal Year starts on October 1, and petitions can be filed up to six month ahead of the start of employment, so the filing opens on April 1. Another factor in reaching the cap quickly, Nair said would be the thousands of foreign students in the US whose advanced degree category petitions were not picked in the lottery last year and who would be candidates again this time, in addition to those graduated later, putting more demand on that category.

Washington, March 06: A former top US intelligence officer on Thursday said there is an "undeniable link" between the banned Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), blamed for the Mumbai attacks, and the Pakistan Government, which saw it as a useful tool to keep an "insurgency" brewing in Jammu and Kashmir. "Lashkar-eToiba, or LeT, is an Islamist Pakistani group that has gotten, certainly in the past -- and there's a question about how much it still has in the present -cooperation and sponsorship from elements of the Pakistani government itself." T h e Government "saw it as a useful tool, particularly with regard to confronting the Indians in Kashmir and keeping an insurgency in Kashmir brewing," Paul R Pillar, the former National Intelligence Officer for the Near East and South Asia, said. H e w a s testifying before a Congressional panel on Afghanistan and Pakistan. Pillar said there is an "undeniable link" between the banned LeT and the Pakistan Government, which has used it to serve its interests in Kashmir. "Since then -- and partly because of the pressure that our government has placed on the Pakistanis not to do business with this group, which is -- let's

be quite blunt – a loathsome terrorist group that is appropriately on all of our terrorist lists and it is appropriate for us to place such pressure on the Pakistanis," Pillar said. He is now visiting professor and director of studies, Security Studies Program, Georgetown University. " T h e o ff i c i a l sponsorship is no longer there. The remaining question is to what degree there may be individuals or elements -particularly in the Pakistani military – that may have some continued relationship with the group," Pillar said. Pillar said LeT shares the general ideology in many respects of al Qaeda, although operationally they have been focused more on Kashmir and now in Pakistan itself. LeT has been accused of carrying out the 26\11 strikes in Mumbai that claimed more than 180 lives. ’Pak playing game with US’ Pakistan has been "playing game with the US" at least when it comes to the war against terrorism, cross border terrorism and Kashmir, Pillar said. He said that Pakistan simply shows to the US that it is going against the terrorists, while in reality it is not. “The Pakistanis

are very adept at playing these sorts of games with foreign governments -including us -- in doing just enough to keep us satisfied while doing other things that if we knew everything that was going on, we'd be dissatisfied with," he said. "This is the same thing that's taken place for years with regard to their activity in Kashmir and the crossborder operations," said Pillar. T h e Congressional hearing on ‘Afghanistan and Pakistan: Understanding a Complex Theatre Environment’ was convened by the National Security and Foreign Affairs Sub Committee of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. "To be quite blunt, you know, the Pakistanis have played games with us, in terms of, you know, making perhaps more of a show of going after elements we're most concerned with in the northwest, which is not to say that they haven't done real operations and indeed have incurred substantial casualties." "But then have, you know, brought things to a halt and have reached these various agreements and truces, whether it's the people in Swat or elsewhere, that have fallen short of our objectives," Pillar said in response to a question from Chairman of the Sub Committee John Tierney. -Agencies

Pak facing grave internal threat: Hillary Brussels, March 06: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday described the attack on Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore as a replica of India’s 26/11 and concluded that Pakistan is facing a serious internal security threat. Speaking at NATO Foreign Ministers’

conference in Brussels, Clinton put forward a proposal of a high-level international conference to devise a new strategy for Afghanistan. "We hope that this meeting could provide an opportunity to reach a common set of principles, perhaps embodied in a chairman's statement on a common

way forward," Clinton said. She did not say where the meeting would be held, but that Afghan and Pakistani officials would be invited, with NATO allies, financial contributors, international organisations and "key regional and strategic" nations. -Agencies

Sunil Mittal, Anil Agarwal in Forbes list New York, March 06 Indian telecom czar Sunil Mittal and NRI businessman Anil Agarwal are among the four Indians featuring in the list of ‘48 Heroes of Philanthropy’ compiled by business publication Forbes. The other two Indians are Shiv Nadar, the chairman of HCL

Te c h n o l o g i e s , a n d Rohini Nilekani, who supports many NGO activities.She is the wife of the Infosys Te c h n o l o g i e s ’ c o f o u n d e r, N a n d a n Nilekani. “Many opened up their checkbooks to help the victims of the Sichuan earthquake and the Myanmar cyclone in

May. Many more donated to health, education, cultural and other causes,” Forbes said in an accompanying report. The list features 44 individuals, four each from India, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand, besides another four from Australia and New Zealand

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Sports

Times Chennai E-Paper

Glittering ceremony kicks off Women's World Cup Sydney, March 06: A glittering ceremony marked the beginning of the ICC

accelerate Cricket Australia`s vision for women`s cricket in this country.”

Wo m e n ` s Wo r l d C u p Cricket championship, which is being held under the aegis of International Cricket Council this year for the first time, at the iconic Luna Park here on Thursday. Cricket Australia Chairman and ICC director Jack Clarke launched the sixteen-day tournament, p a r ti c i p a te d b y e i g h t countries including defending champions Australia, besides India and England. "We look forward to the tournament showcasing women`s cricket around the world. We hope that the staging of this event will further

"The ICC wants cricket to be a genuinely global sport and to achieve that goal cricket has to be a genuine global sport for girls and women, we as well as boys and men," Clarke said. A l l t h e participants were photographed together in the shadow of famous Sydney Opera House. Players and officials were then ferried to the main venue, Luna Park for an official welcome function, hosted by former Australia cricketer Ian Healy, an ICC release said. "This will be an

exciting event which will take women`s cricket to new heights and will hopefully produce role models. I know the competitors are extremely excited and so is the ICC as it the first time this event is being staged under our umbrella.” "It has only been four years since women`s cricket came under the ICC`s control but its rapid growth since that time can be gauged from the fact that from 15 members playing the sport in 2005, we now have 78 members who are involved in some form of women`s and girls` cricket," ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat said on the occasion. India will now travel to Bowral where they will take on archrival Pakistan in the opening encounter on Saturday, while two-time champion England will take on Sri Lanka in Canberra on the same day. This is the first World Cup since ICC`s integration with the International Women`s Cricket Council (IWCC) in 2005. -Agencies

Padma awards panel ignored Olympic heroes New Delhi: March 06 Nominations of Olympic medal winners Sushil Kumar (wrestler) and Vijender Singh (boxing) were struck off by the Padma Awards Committee des pite having been recommended by the sports and home ministries. In response to an RTI query, home ministry said it had received recommendation in favour of both the Olympians from ministry of youth affairs and sports on November 20, 2008, well before the cutoff date for accepting nominations. "The nominations were placed before the P a d m a A w a r d s Committee. These names were not recommended by Padma Awards Committee

for 2009," ministry's CPIO S K Bhatnagar said in reply to an application filed by RTI activist Subhash Chandra Agrawal. Sushil and Vijender had won bronze medals in the Olympic Games held in Beijing. The ministry in its reply s a i d 1 , 0 9 3 recommendations were placed before the Padma awards committee which selected 133 names for different categories — 10 Padma Vibhushan, 30 Padma Bhushan and 93 Padma Shri. In fact, on at least two occasions earlier, the government has overruled the K R Narayanan committee — set up by the Supreme Court to frame guidelines

on Padma awards to sportsmen. One of the guidelines said the government could not give Padma awards at any other time except for Republic Day. However, according to the home ministry, in March 1983 and June 1984 seven sportspersons were given these awards out of turn. The awards committee is headed by the cabinet secretary and comprises home secretary, secretary to the President and principle secretary to the prime minister. Four nonofficial members this year were Kapila Vatsyayana, Tarun Das, Jyotindra Jain and R Chidambaram. - Agencies

March 06, 2009

IPL not moving out of India, says Modi New Delhi: March 06: Indian Premier League commissioner Lalit Modi on Friday rubbished reports that the cach-rich Twenty20 extravaganza will move out of the country. "Reports of moving venues out of India are rubbish," said Modi. "IPL is a domestic tournament and will stay so," he added. T h e I P L commissioner will hold a meeting at the BCCI headquarters later in the day, after six of the eight host states voiced concerns that they could not guarantee security during the matches.

On Thursday, the IPL organisers had sent a fresh schedule to the home ministry in the wake of security concerns about the Lok Sabha elections and the T20 tournament being held simultaneously. The revised schedule carries the same inaugural (April 10) and closing dates (May 24). Dates of five games have, however, been changed, to ensure that host cities are not allotted matches two days before and after polling days. The home ministry had earlier said it would decide on the fate of the tournament only

after the states responded on whether they would be able to conduct the matches without asking for central forces. The terror attack on the Sri Lankan team on Tuesday in Lahore has also compounded the problems for the IPL organisers, who now expect pullouts by many of the foreign players. Federation of International Cricketers Association chief executive Tim May has already sought a wider role in assessing the security for players during the IPL. -Agencies

In the wake of Lahore, security for Indo-Eng Test comes in for praise Chennai, March 06: The security cover provided for the last Test between India and England (Dec 11-14, 2008) at the MAC Stadium here, can serve as a model for stadiums and cricketers across the subcontinent. The security expert of the English Cricket Board (ECB), Reg Dickason, who flew down to Chennai a week before the match to assess the security measures set in place for his team, was highly impressed by the arrangements made by the Chennai city police. It was a perfect example showcase of how security for the cricketers had evolved post Mumbai 26/11 terror strike. The message of the Chennai police was loud and clear: they were not ready to take any chance and did everything possible to tighten up the security strap around both the Indian and English cricket players. From a mere one layer security, involving lathi-wielding policemen, the concept of security for cricketers changed overnight. Now the buzzwords are NSG commandos with AK-47 assault rifles, s o p h i s t i c a t e d surveillance cameras and multiple layer

security. "The Mumbai terror strike has changed our concept of security. Be it the security for installations or for VVIPs. In the Chennai Test, we put in all our efforts and men to prevent any untoward incident and to prove a point that we are second to none in providing high-end security," a senior police official told TOI. The spectators, team officials and cricketers had mentioned that the security measures for C h e n n a i Te s t w e r e unprecedented. Now, all other match venues in the country will follow the Chennai model. The police deployed five deputy commissioners, three assistant deputy commissioners, 25 assistant commissioners, 80 inspectors, 170 sub inspectors and 600 policemen in other ranks from city police on guard in MAC Stadium. In addition to this, there were 75 armed reserve police personnel and 80 commandos from swift action group of city police and Tamil Nadu commando force. A good number of CRPF commandos were also deployed at the stadium apart from the top class security provided at the team hotel. The Chennai police also went a step

ahead and restricted the cricketers from attending any commercial or social function. The police had full control over the itinerary of the cricketers. The cricketers were forced to change the way they lived. A leisurely afternoon at the cricket field became a thing of the past. They were also forced to abstain from late night parties and autograph sessions. The cricketers who were denied permission to meet their friends at team hotel protested but were made to follow the guidelines. Of course, the fun element for the spectators did take a back seat as they were not allowed to carry fire crackers, lunch boxes or even water bottles. "Generally teams practice at the outside grounds. But it will not be allowed anymore as the security is purely a police business now," a BCCI official added. Such were the security measures, that the team bus didn’t take the same route to the ground e v e r y d a y . To k e e p everyone guessing, the bus route kept changing. It may have looked a little too much, but the Lahore incident on Monday proved that the Chennai security authorities had taken a step in the right direction.

-Agencies

March 06, 2009 Times Chennai E-Paper

Medley

World's top 25 train trips

World's oldest steam engine ride New Delhi, March 06: D e s p i t e recession and slowdown in tourists inflow to the country, travel by the world's oldest working steam locomotive on the Delhi-Ajmer route has gained momentum with the heritage train running to full capacity. Plying only eight times a year during the first and the last quarters, the 'Guinness Book of World Records' recognised train christened "Fairy Queen" ran with its full capacity of 60 passengers when it left the Delhi Cantt station on Feb. 28 Among the passengers of the 154year-old train, 30 were foreigners, a senior Railways official said on condition of anonymity citing protocols. The official said passengers can now book a ticket of the train through Internet on the Railways website. "Fairy Queen" train was rolled out for the first time by the East Indian Railway in 1855. The locomotive of the heritage train is the oldest working engine in the world. On January 13, 1998 it was recognised by the 'Guinness Book of

World Records' as the world's oldest working engine. A comprehensive two-day tour package with 'Fairy Queen' is being offered by Railways and includes on-ground catering, lodging, boarding, transfer facility, a visit to Sariska National Park and cultural programme, the official said. A journey on "Fairy Queen" costs Rs 8,600 for one person for both ways while the one way fare is Rs 6,000. The train, which relives history, culture and heritage of its destinations in Rajasthan, has only one 60-seater AC passenger coach and a pantry, which serves delicious Rajasthani cuisine to its passengers, the official said. T h e destinations of the train include Alwar and the famed Sariska Wildlife Sanctuary. The train's first journey this year on January 24 was packed to full. On February 14 and 28 also, the "Fairy Queen" ran with all 60 passengers on board, the official said, adding that for the next and last

journey on March 14 for the quarter, 15 out of the 60 seats have been booked. Nearly half the passengers were foreigners in its earlier runs this year, the official said. During the erstwhile East Indian Railways, the train shuttled between Howrah and Raniganj stations. In 1895, it was christened "Fairy Queen". In 1908, its service was stopped. The heritage train was first exhibited in 1971 at the National Rail Museum, Delhi. In 1996, it was completely overhauled at Perambur workshop of the Southern Railways. "Fairy Queen" was revived in 1997 and made its first commercial trip in July the same year. In 1999, it was recognised as the the most innovative and unique tourism project and conferred the National Tourism Award by the Prime Minister, the official added. -Agencies

'Filmi' packages high in demand New Delhi, March 06: The slums of Dharavi in Mumbai, which formed the backdrop for multiple Oscar winning film "Slumdog Millionaire" along with the narrow bylanes of Amritsar where Sharukh Khan crooned in "Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi" have become hot destinations for tourists. Post "Slumdog", Dharavi is in international limelight and according to several private tour operators they are ready to encash this global attention. "We have drawn ambitious plans for filmi packages. After the success of Slumdog we

are trying to arrange tours to Dharavi also," says Ankit Rastogi, Business Head, IndiaHotelReview.Com, which has initiated package in India. Package tours offering a visit to Amritsar or even Manali where Bollywood films were shot are also increasingly becoming hugely popular, he says. "Indians are crazy about films and we recognized this innate potential of linking Bollywood to places. We are trying to showcase 'filmi' locations and urging tourists to relive

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moments of their favourite stars," says Rastogi. Some of the famous destinations offered in Bollywood packages are Ram Nagaram (Sholay), Amritsar (Rang De Basanti and Rab ne Bana di Jodi), Jaipur and Bharatpur (Jodha Akbar and Umrao Jaan), Munnar (Nishabd), Manali (Jab we Met), Bhuj (Lagaan) and Delhi ( Delhi 6 and Chandni Chowk to China). -Agencies

Sydney, March 06 : The United States and Mexico gave way to Norway and Britain this year on The Society of International Railway Travelers' (IRT) annual list of The World's Top 25 Trains Trips. The list is based on the experience of IRT writers, editors, members and staff, with all trains and the trips meeting stringent standards for service, accommodation, scenery, itinerary, offtrain experiences and passenger enjoyment. Owen Hardy, CEO of The Society of IRT which was set up 26 years ago, said two Norwegian routes appear this year -- the Flam Line, a steep mountain railway connecting a pristine fjord at the tiny town of Flam with Myrdal, a stop on the equally magnificent OsloBergen Railway. New to the top 25 list is the British Pullman, which completes the British leg o f Ve n i c e S i m p l o n Orient-Express journeys

between Paris and London. But gone are North America's GrandLuxe Express and Sierra Madre Express which ran in Mexico's Copper Canyon, both closed down currently as victims of the economic downturn. "The North American train closings had nothing to do with their quality," said Hardy in a statement. "Both were exceptional and extremely popular with American travelers." Here is the list of the top 25 in geographical order: North America 1. Canadian (Canada) 2. Royal Canadian Pacific (Canada) 3. Rocky Mountaineer (Canada) South America 4. Andean Explorer (Peru) 5. Hiram Bingham (Peru) Africa 6. Blue Train (South Africa) 7. Pride of Africa (Rovos

Rail) (South Africa) Asia/Indian Subcontinent 8. Palace on Wheels (India) 9. Eastern & Oriental Express (SE Asia) 10. Shangri-La Express (China/Tibet) 11. Toy Train (India) 12. Deccan Odyssey (India) Europe 13. Danube Express (Central Europe, Turkey) 14. British Pullman (Great Britain) 15. El Transcantabrico (Spain) 16. Golden Eagle TransSiberian Express (Russia) 17. Venice Simplon-OrientExpress (Europe) 18. Glacier Express (Switzerland) 19. Bernina Express (Switzerland) 20. Royal Scotsman (Scotland) 21. Flam Railway (Norway) 22. Bergen Railway (Norway) Australia 23. Ghan (Australia) 24. Indian Pacific (Australia) 25. Sunlander (Australia)