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News:
Jammu attack very heinous, we have to counter it: Vajpayee
Gujarat govt seeks time to file report on communal riots
Pre-primary kids face brunt of schools’ whims
Tension still prevails in Gujarat as police maintain vigil
Terrorism against India "unacceptable": Rocca
Campaign launched to stop misuse of Red Cross emblem
Ban on thin plastic doesn’t help animals
Ketan Parekh arrested on charges of duping European firm
World Food Programme formulating strategy for Orissa
Food Ministry rules out restrictions on soya oil imports
FICCI to promote Sino-India commercial, eco ties: Lodha
BSE:Sensex opens on promising note
Fourth Test ends in a dull draw
Kumble to undergo surgery tomorow, will be back in four weeks
Ganguly misses Kumble in drawn Test
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Sensex: 3395.59, -24.74
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Jammu attack very heinous, we have to counter it: Vajpayee
New Delhi,Wednesday, May 15, 2002: Outraged over the terrorist attack near Jammu, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today asserted in the Lok Sabha that Government would take steps to "counter" such incidents.
"The whole House is one that what has happened is very heinous and we have to counter it," he said.
The Prime Minister was responding to an agitated opposition and some of the NDA allies who raised a hue and cry over the killing of 30 innocent people by terrorists as soon as the House assembled for the day and took up Question Hour.
"This question is not such that we have to raise it on partisan lines. The question of adjournment motion does not arise," Vajpayee said and offered to call a meeting of opposition leaders to discuss the issue and requested members not to disturb Question Hour. "If you want I can call a meeting of opposition leaders to discuss the issue but there is no need to disturb the Question Hour," the Prime Minister said.
Vajpayee said Home Minister L K Advani made a statement in the House on Tuesday and Defence Minister George Fernandes is currently taking an on-the-spot assessment of the situation and interacting with army. Fernandes is due to return by Thursday and the Home Minister is not here today, he said. Deputy Leader of Congress Shivraj Patil welcomed Vajpayee's statement. He said Congress President Sonia Gandhi is going to Kashmir today. "We may discuss it, if necessary, in whatever fashion the Speaker and and leaders think. If we discuss that matter, there will probably be a better understanding," Patil said.
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Gujarat govt seeks time to file report on communal riots
New Delhi,Wednesday, May 15, 2002: Gujarat goverment has sought further time from National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to file its "comprehensive" report on the communal riots in the state as the time given by the Commission for filing of the same ended today.
"We have received the state governments' plea seeking 2-3 days time to file their report to the Commission," the NHRC sources told PTI.
The Commission on May one had given two weeks time to both the Centre and the state government to file their responses to its preliminary comments and recommendations.
While the Centre had filed its report the same day, the state government is yet to submit its detailed response.
The Commission had observed that the reply of the state government earlier does not respond to the contents of the confidential report of the Commission and had sought more "comprehensive" response.
"A specific reply was sought to this (confidential) report to enable further consideration of the matter in view of the allegations made which are mentioned in that report," the order had said.
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Pre-primary kids face brunt of schools’ whims
(Excerpted from an Indian Express report)
IT is not enough to teach your child the mandatory three Rs. Does she participate in school discussions on Women’s Day? For if she doesn’t, chances are the school will find her ‘dull’ or ‘lazy’ and ask her to repeat her senior KG.
That is the trauma an engineer couple are battling, after their daughter chose not to voice an opinion about women and work on March 8 this year. A prestigious convent school at Fort decided she would have to wait another year to earn her spurs for Std I.
The state government’s education department says it is helpless. ‘‘Pre-primary education is not regulated by the State. So whatever happens is between the parent and the school,’’ says Secretary, School Education, Jairaj Phatak.
But child mental health activists say such evaluation systems not only abuse a child’s right to a stress-free education but also traumatise the child and his parents.
A group of parents and counsellors under the Counsellors Association of India (CAI) met last week to take up the issue with the education authorities in the city. ‘‘Such an exclusion so early in life can tell on a child’s personality when he is unable to understand why his friends have moved ahead. The helplessness of the parents also rubs off on the child, causing greater harm,’’ said Dr Harish Shetty, president, CAI.
Not that the city doesn’t have any child-friendly schools. In Kamala High School at Khar (W), for instance, no child is repeated in primary school. ‘‘If the child fails, we take retests. We ensure that the retests are at a lower level than the regular tests,’’ says administrator of primary school, Rekha Shahani.
This school has also introduced a confidential report card for children who have difficulty in coping. The cards, which tabulate the child’s progress from one standard to another, record almost everything about the child, including his parents’ financial and social status. Counsellors, teachers and the parents then work together to ensure the child does not suffer.
(Names of the parents and kids have been changed to protect their identities. CAI will meet at Kamala High School, Madhur Park, Khar (W) on May 18, 11 am. Call on 8201658 between 5 to 9, Monday to Friday for details)
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Tension still prevails in Gujarat as police maintain vigil
Ahmedabad,Wednesday, May 15, 2002: Stray incidents of stone throwing and stabbing continued in Ahmedabad city, even as the overall situation was under control, police said.
A place of worship was burnt down in Sadarpur village near here on Tuesday, police said.
Meanwhile, curfew was further relaxed in Kagdapith, Dani Limda, Haveli, Kalupur, Shahpur, Karanj and Vejalpur police station areas, they said adding night curfew continued in these police station areas as a precautionary measure.
Night curfew also continued in Sarkhej and Viramgam in Ahmedabad rural district, police said.
In Ahmedabad city, police recovered arms and arrested some persons during the vehicle checking drive.
Arrest of those persons allegedly involved in killings during violence and named in the FIR continued, police added.
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Terrorism against India "unacceptable": Rocca
New Delhi,Wednesday, May 15, 2002: In a firm message to Pakistan, U S Assistant Secretary of State Christina Rocca today asserted that terrorism against India is "unacceptable" and that Washington was "very worried" about a spark leading to an unintended "Indo-Pak conflict".
"Terrorism against India is as unacceptable as it is against America or any other country", Rocca told reporters before flying by a special military aircraft to Islamabad after holding talks with Indian officials here.
Voicing America's outrage over yesterday's attacks in Jammu, she said the terrorist action was "totally condemnable".
Sharing India's concerns over no let up in infiltration, Rocca said "infiltration is counter-productive and must stop".
On defusing tensions between India and Pakistan, she said "there is always room for hope" but added "we are very worried about the continued mobilisation of the two major armies facing each other in close proximity and the threat that could be posed by a spark and lead to an unintended conflict".
She said this was of great concern to the US which was working hard to ease tensions between the two neighbours.
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Campaign launched to stop misuse of Red Cross emblem
(Express News Service)
Mumbai, May 14: CONCERNED over the rampant misuse of the Red Cross emblem by doctors, hospitals, pharmacies and ambulances in the state, the Maharashtra State Red Cross (MSRC) today kick-started an awareness campaign to educate people on its proper use.
The Indian Red Cross Society (ICRS), parent body of the MSRC, says such misuse erodes the credibility and effectiveness of the emblem which is recognised globally as a symbol of impartial and non-partisan services to the needy.
‘‘The campaign — Stop the misuse of the Red Cross emblem — will include door-to-door campaigns, rallies and seminars,’’ said Homai N Modi, joint honorary secretary, MSRC, at a press meet at J H Taleyarkhan Memorial Hall, Red Cross Building at Ballard Pier.
‘‘The Red Cross emblem should be used only by the Army Medical Corps and volunteers of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Society,’’ added Modi.
The ICRS launched its campaign all over in the country to commemorate World Red Cross Day on May 8. Misuse of the Emblem is prohibited by international and national laws.
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Ban on thin plastic doesn’t help animals
(Express News Service)
The ban plastic drive may have removed plastic bags below 2 microns in thickness from Mumbai. While that may be good news for the environment since thicker bags can be recycled, the story doesn’t really end on a happy note for bovines and other animals.
Plastic bags have become part of animals’ staple diet in the city, especially for cows, who swallow plastic bags containing food refuse that are discarded by homes. The proof of the peril emerges during post-mortems conducted on dead cattle at the Bombay Veterinary College, when kilos of plastic bags are removed from the viscera of cattle. Bovines being ruminating animals, they have stomachs with four partitions and in dead cattle in Mumbai, the second one is almost always filled with residue of plastic bags. ‘‘These bags remain there forever. Sometimes when the residue is pushed down the digestive tract, it blocks the intestines leading to a build-up of gases and death due to congestion,’’ says Dr P S Lonkar, professor of pathology, who conducts post-mortems. ‘‘People feeding animals should see that they do not let them consume the plastic bag as well. For the animal it doesn’t matter whether the bag is below or above 2 microns. Once it is ingested, it remains in the stomach forever.’’ An alarming number of deaths among stray cattle are caused by these plastic bags.
Lonkar remembers operating a cow and removing 45 kgs of plastic residue from its stomach. ‘‘Luckily, the cow survived. But that was an indication of how bad the situation is. The stray cattle seen in Mumbai usually have bulging stomachs, not because they are healthy. The bulge is due to all that undigested plastic lying in there,’’ he says. The problem is also seen in animals of Veermata Jijabai Zoo, where visitors feed animals despite being instructed not to. ‘‘People bring food in plastic bags and feed the animals. Post-mortems of deer, sambhars, bears have shown plastic bags in their stomach cavities too,’’ says Lonkar.
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Ketan Parekh arrested on charges of duping European firm
Mumbai,Wednesday, May 15, 2002: Stock broker Ketan Parekh was arrested today by the Economic Offences Wing of Mumbai Police on charges of swindling funds to the tune of Rs 710 million of a European company.
"Parekh was mandated by the European firm to invest Rs 71 crore in certain shares, which he never did and issued bogus contract notes", an EOW official said here.
He said Parekh will be produced before a local magistrate later today.
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World Food Programme formulating strategy for Orissa
Bhubaneswar,Wednesday, May 15, 2002: The World Food Programme (WFP) is formulating a comprehensive strategy for eradication of food insecurity in Orissa, WFP country director Pedro Medrano has said.
"Orissa is a paradox where despite per head foodgrain availability of 165 kg, 40 per cent of the population live below the poverty line", Medrano told reporters here Tuesday night.
WFP had began a series of consultations at various levels including the Central and state government to help the administrations to reduce the number of malnourished people by end of 2015, he said.
Medrano said Orissa had been identified as one of the states with moderate food availability but a very low food access. This had been revealed through a food insecurity mapping taken up by WFP in collaboration with the M S Swaminathan Research foundation.
Though Orissa had a satisfactory food grain production, the consumption needs of parts of its people were not adequately met due to high level of poverty, he said.
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Food Ministry rules out restrictions on soya oil imports
New Delhi,Wednesday, May 15, 2002: Food Ministry today ruled out any restrictions on soyabean oil imports saying it is neither practical nor in the interest of the overall trade of edible oils in India.
"Labelling of soyabean oil as genetically modified and non-modified is not possible and the current imports are only meeting the genuine demand in the country," Union Food Minister Shanta Kumar told PTI.
The Food Minister's rejoinder comes in wake of the Agriculture Ministry sending a proposal to the Law Ministry for curbing genetically modified soya oil imports.
There have been proposals to distinguish between various kinds of soya oil and accordingly fix the customs duty on them, but these ideas do not carry weight, he said.
Once the oil has been extracted from the seeds it is not possible to identify the genetically modified product and therefore any restriction will be impractical, the minister said.
There is a shortage of edible oils, the imports are only bridging the gap between domestic demand and production and are not alarmingly high.
More importantly, any restrictions on soya oil trade will result in the monopoly of palm oil in the Indian imports which is uncalled for, he added.
The minister felt when edible oils are required by the country to cater to consumer demand, India should not become dependent on one variety alone.
It is always conducive to import numerous varieties from variable sources.
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FICCI to promote Sino-India commercial, eco ties: Lodha
Beijing,Wednesday, May 15, 2002: Expressing keenness to forge new synergies between trade circles in India and China, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) today said it would do all it can to build a "new era" in bilateral trade and economic relations.
"FICCI is eminently placed to play a catalytic role to impart vigour and dynamism to India-China bilateral and commercial ties which is witnessing high growth in the wake of high-level political contacts," FICCI President R S Lodha said addressing the first 'India-China Economics and Trade Forum' here.
"We are and we want to be seen as natural allies and would be happy to explore partnerships and alliances that augment mutual interest of our two business communities and great nations," he said.
Speaking on the occasion, Indian Ambassador to China, Shivshankar Menon, described the seminar as "a significant event" in the further development of Sino-India relations.
"The fact that the seminar is being held today, and is being attended by persons of such eminence, shows not only the potential of India-China economic relations, but also the fact that this potential is now appreciated by an ever larger circle of friends," Menon said.
Expressing satisfaction over the rapid growth in trade relations between the two countries, Menon pointed out that the two neighbouring nations were very far from realising the full potential of what they could do.
"With our talented peoples, large markets and the present stage of development, our two countries can certainly do much more together," he said.
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BSE:Sensex opens on promising note
Mumbai,Wednesday, May 15, 2002: The Sensex opened on a promising note and was later trapped in an extremely narrow range in line with a mixed trend at early stages on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) today on buying support alternated by profit booking by operators.
The BSE Sensitive Index opened moderately up at 3422.07 against yesterday's close of 3420.33 and later fluctuated in a range between 3423.70 and 3420.87 before being quoted at 3426.67 at 10.45 a.m.
Key IT stocks like Infosys Technologies and Satyam Computers which have high weightage in the index were quoted substantially up on fairly good purchases by operators in the light of another sharp rally on Wall Street.
Prompted by a powerful combination of upbeat economic data and enthusiasm for a profit improvement in some of the equity market's best and worst-performing sectors, NY stocks rose sharply for the second straight day contributing to a jump in the Nasdaq Composite Index of 66.81 points last night.
Select old economy stocks like MTNL, ACC and Dr Reddy's Lab also showed moderate gains while others like Grasim Ind, HLL, HPCL and Zee Telefilms remained under pressure.
Among the top gainers, Sesa Goa were quoted up by 5.34 per cent, Kochi Refinery by 2.66 per cent, Bharat Electronics by 2.62 per cent, Videocon Int by 2.61 per cent, Satyam Compu by 2.21 per cent and Infosys Tech by 2.20 per cent.
However, Crompton Greaves, Shyam Telecom, GTL Ltd, NIIT, Telco, BPCL, Zee Telefilms were among the prominent losers.
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Fourth Test ends in a dull draw
St John's (Antigua),Wednesday, May 15, 2002: With the match already destined to end in a draw, the fifth and final day of the fourth cricket Test between India and West Indies here saw the formality being enacted out in the most boring of fashions.
On a day when India used every single player including their wicketkeeper Ajay Ratra to bowl, West Indies progressed from their overnight score of 405 for five to 629 for nine before declaring their innings about an hour before scheduled close.
India, who had declared their first innings at 513 for nine, did not come out to bat for the second time and the match was declared a draw.
The day saw two more centuries being scored, taking the aggregate in this match to five, in contrasting styles. While Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who remained unbeaten on 136, laboured through his third hundred of the series in a dull manner, wicketkeeper Ridley Jacobs' entertaining 118 off 206 balls with 11 fours and five sixes was the highlight of the day.
The Indians seemed to have given up their efforts early in the day. The bowlers and fielders were content to just go through the motions even as Jacobs was hammering his way through his second Test hundred.
Jacobs, who started the day at 18, did the bulk of the scoring till he was at the crease as Chanderpaul, who was on 80 overnight, took nearly the entire morning session to reach hundred.
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Kumble to undergo surgery tomorow, will be back in four weeks
Bangalore,Wednesday, May 15, 2002: Ace leg-spinner Anil Kumble, who fractured his jaw during the fourth test against the West Indies, today underwent a thorough check-up by a team of dental specialists, who said he can be back on the cricket field after four weeks.
"We had a thorough check-up this morning. Kumble had fracture in lower jaw and he needs surgery," the specialists, who treated the bowler in a private city hospital this morning, told PTI.
They said the surgery would be performed tomorrow, and it would take four weeks for Kumble's injury to heal. Hospital sources said the bowler was in the hospital for three hours.
But Kumble, hit on the jaw by a Mervyn Dillon short-pitched delivery on Saturday, appeared unnerved by the fracture and seems to have taken it in his stride.
"I am alright now. I am disappointed but it (the injury) is part and parcel of the game," he told reporters on his arrival at Bangalore airport at around 4.30 am from Mumbai.
At the airport in his hometown here, where he was warmly received by his parents and wife Chetana, Kumble did not sport a bandage and had some difficulty in speaking.
In a heroic effort, Kumble had fought off acute pain in the fractured jaw to bowl 14 overs unchanged on Sunday, claiming the prize wicket of Brian Lara.
Team physiotherapist Andrew Leipus had said at Antigua that Kumble was definitely going to be fit for the England tour.
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Ganguly misses Kumble in drawn Test
St John's (Antigua),Wednesday, May 15, 2002: Captain Sourav iGanguly said Anil Kumble's injury cost India dearly, as the visitors failed to take advantage of a crumbling pitch in the fourth Test which ended in a tame draw here on Tuesday.
But Ganguly was not ready to accept the need for a second spinner. "I don't think so," Ganguly replied asked whether he should have gone into the match with two spinners.
"If fast bowlers keep it tight at one end, a spinner can pick wickets (from the other end). When we saw the wicket on the first day, it was a fairly hard pitch," Ganguly said.
"I have never seen a wicket overseas, even in India, yield so much of spin from the rough. There was nothing left on the wicket."
So bad had the wicket become on the last two days that off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, who sat out in this game said: "The wicket is absolutely gone, there is nothing left," he said looking at the track with wide cracks on either side.
"Anybody who had gone close to the wicket would have noticed it. And this has been so since the fourth day," Ganguly said. "We missed a spinner very badly. You could see Kumble when he bowled he looked like picking a wicket every ball."
"I never expected the wicket to break in this fashion."
It was quite ironic that Ganguly needed the help of a spinner he didn't deem fit enough to hold his place in the two previous Tests. Harbhajan Singh was preferred in Trinidad and Barbados Tests before the roles were reversed in this game.
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