Hockey action in India

United Arab Emirates – Thailand 4 – 3 (1-2, 1-0, 2-1)

DEHRADUN – The 2012 IIHF Challenge Cup of Asia took off with the opening game featuring the United Arab Emirates (UAE) winning 4-3 against Thailand. 

The game was very balanced between the two nations. UAE responded twice against Thailand after the latter scored in the first and second periods. The Emirati then pulled away thanks to a goal from Mubarak Almazrouei with just under five minutes left in the game, giving UAE the three points in their opening game.  

On the Thailand side the game was mostly held together by the outstanding performance of Thamwongsin Arthit, Neimwan Likit and Chartsuwan. Chartsuwan was named India’s best player for the game.

Thailand will face Chinese Taipei in their next match, with UAE taking on Kuwait.

India – Macau 3 – 5 (1-0, 2-2, 0-3)

DEHRADUN – India’s debut at the 2012 IIHF Challenge Cup of Asia was spoiled by Macau, which scored three unanswered goals in the third period to take their first game at the expense of the hosts 5-3.

Prior to the game, the host Indians were welcomed with a raucous atmosphere at the rink in Dehradun. When the home team entered the ice, the local spectators burst into a standing ovation, celebrating their country’s first ever international game on home ice.

The game against Macau was close through two periods. Despite showing up to the game seven players and a goalkeeper short in comparison to India, Macau was able to stay with the Indians and managed to turn up their game in the final frame. Chon Kong Leong, Macau’s captain, scored a hat trick, including the equalizer to erase India’s early 2-0 lead. He added two more in the third period to put the game away and earn Best Player honours.

Macau has their next game against Malaysia, while India has a day off before taking on the Malaysians as well.

10-member Cabinet team takes oath in Uttarakhand

Dehradun, March 20

Governor Margaret Alva today administered the oath of office to a 10-member ministerial team of Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna, two of whom are from parties extending support to the Congress and two are Independents.

The swearing-in ceremony of the Council of Minister took place after more than an hour's delay. It is learnt that an Independent and Congress rebel Dinesh Dhanai had created a ruckus at the Bijapur Guest House for keeping him out of the Cabinet. Dinesh Dhanai, MLA from Tehri, had earlier courted controversy first declaring his intent to vacate his Tehri Assembly seat for Bahuguna and later backtracking from the statement. He had also failed to turn up for the filing of nomination of the Congress candidate for the Rajya Sabha seat yesterday. Among the four Independents that have extended the support to the Bahuguna government, only Harish Durgpal and Mantri Prasad Naithani have found a place in the 10-member Cabinet.

The first to be administered the oath of office was Dr Indira Hridyesh, who was the number two minister in the ND Tiwari Cabinet. She was followed by Yashpal Arya who is also Uttarakhand Congress chief, Surinder Singh Negi, Pritam Singh, Amrita Rawat, Dinesh Agarwal, Mantri Prasad Naithani,(Independent) Pritam Panwar (UKD), Harish Chandra Durgapal (Independent), Surinder Rakesh (BSP).
“In the coming days, we will fill all remaining posts and the Congress government is committed to giving good governance to the state,” said Bahuguna. At one level, the usual formula of balancing the ministry by giving equal representation to all districts of the state seems to be missing. Bahuguna was made to walk the tight rope due to the compulsion of the mandate. While the heavyweights Indira Hriydesh, Dinesh Agarwal, Pritam Singh and Yashpal Arya managed to find a place in the Cabinet, senior Congress leader Navprabhat and Rajender Bhandari and Govind Singh Kunjwal were not so lucky.
“Our hands are tied due to the compulsion of the coalition and keeping everybody happy will be a challenging task. We have come to power after five years. The expectation among the elected Congress MLAs is understandable,” said Yashpal Arya, a Cabinet Minister.
Interestingly, along with Independent MLA Dinesh Dhanai, Rajender Bhandari of the Congress too seemed miffed for being left out of the Cabinet. He was the Cabinet Minister in the BJP government, but prior to the 2012 elections he had joined the Congress. Significantly, the Cabinet comprises two women members, one member each from the SC (Yashpal Arya) and ST communities (Pritam Singh). However, member from the Muslim community could not find a place. Among the Congress leaders holding fort with senior leader Harish Rawat, Pradeep Tamta MP, Govind Singh Kunjwal and senior Congress Harak Singh Rawat were present on the occasion.

Anna, Ramdev share dais to fight against graft

Acharya Balkrishan, yoga guru Ramdev and
 Anna Hazare share the dais in Haridwar on Tuesday.  

 

Announce to launch a joint fight against graft

Haridwar, March 20

In a bid to boost anti-graft and black money campaign, Gandhian Anna Hazare and Swami Ramdev have now openly announced their alliance in the "fight against corruption".

Both Anna and Ramdev came together on a platform at the Patanjali Yogpeeth here in Haridwar where in the presence of 5,000 women activists, both announced their fight against corruption that was deep-rooted in the system.

Yog guru Ramdev warned the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government of a nationwide movement before the monsoon session of Parliament. He said a protest would be held for the Jan Lok Pal Bill and black money issues.

Baba Ramdev added that this agitation would be much stronger, as Team Anna and Bharat Swabhiman Trust activists would carry out agitation in the country jointly.

Anna Hazare, addressing a huge public gathering for the first time after recuperating from illness, stressed on the need of having a stronger movement for the Jan Lok Pal Bill, bringing back black money, having the right to reject option and making Parliament a place for only honest public representatives.

Hazare also mooted for 50 per cent reservation in Parliament for women only as, he said, in comparison to men they were less corrupt, be it politics or social life.

Further in memory of martyr IPS officer Narendra Kumar who was killed by the quarrying mafia in Madhya Pradesh, the duo of Hazare-Ramdev will sit on a one-day fast at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on March 25.

Acharya Balkrishan, convener of the Bharat Swabhiman Trust, termed the day a historic one in India as now they would take respite only after making sure the Jan Lok Pal Bill was passed and black money stacked in foreign accounts was brought back.

On question of differences between the two mass leaders, Ramdev refuted any such claims. "We were together earlier too, be it at Jantar Mantra, Ramleela Maidan, the August 15 agitation or during the Jan Lok Pal fast observed by Hazare. It's just now we have openly joined hands to fight against the menace of corruption and those who try to shield it,” said Ramdev.

Punjab CM to inaugurate seminar on Guru Granth Sahib

Fatehgarh Sahib, March 20
Shri Guru Granth Sahib World University, Fatehgarh Sahib, will organise a two-day international seminar entitled “Sri Guru Granth Sahib and third millennium civilisation” in collaboration with the Council for a Parliament of World’s Religions at the university campus. Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal will inaugurate the seminar and Avtar Singh Makar, the Chancellor of Sri Guru Granth Sahib World University, would preside over the seminar. Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal will be the guest of honour, said Jasbir Singh Ahluwalia, Vice Chancellor, GGS World University in a press release issued here today.

He said that the sub-topics of the seminar will be Sikhism and inter-religious dialogue, accommodating the religious identity of Sikh diaspora with cultural identities of the countries of settlement, and correlating the existential concerns of the Sikhs with the universal concern of Sikhism. He said that co-operation will also be sought from Marcos Bogue, a scholar associated with the Religions Insight Journal. Besides this, a one day national seminar on “Major Trends in Punjabi Literature since 1947” will also be organised in collaboration with Sahitya Academy, Delhi, and Punjabi Sahitya Academy, Ludhiana, he added. Dr Gurmail Singh Sidhu, a renowned scholar, will be invited to deliver a lecture on “Sri Guru Granth Sahib and Environmental Concerns”.

Fake degrees gang busted

Chandigarh, March 20
The special investigation team (SIT) of the UT police today arrested nine members of a gang operating from tricity who were providing fake degrees of universities, fake birth and death certificates, marriage certificates, income tax documents, bank documents as well as ration cards to a large umber of clients against a heavy price. The certificates were being used for obtaining visas, jobs as well as other purposes. The total number of certificates recovered from the gang is over 1,000. In addition, stamps pertaining to the Food and Supplies Department, UT, and marriage certificates were also recovered.

Prominent among the universities and educational institutions whose certificates were forged by the accused include Panjab University, Punjab Technical University, Andhra Pradesh University, Punjab School Education Board, Haryana State Education Board, CBSE and the Delhi Board. In addition, the gang members are also adept in forging certificates of National Trade Certificates, fake passbooks of the State Bank of India, Fake ILETS certificates, voter cards, driving licences as well as income tax returns.

A case under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, 120-B of the IPC has been registered.

The police has not ruled out the involvement of employees of the universities in the scam and their role was being investigated.

The police said it had deployed a decoy customer to unearth the gang and the exact number and profile of their clients who purchased the fake degrees from them was being investigated.

Those arrested included Manjit Singh, Amandeep Gora, Sushil Kumar, Surinder Saini, Sandeep Kumar Kokhar, Puran Chand, Varinder Kumar, Raman Sharma and Sushant Saini.

Out of the arrested, Raman and Varinder, Mohali residents are the prime accused. They used to give advertisements through a website and then meet their clients at different places.

DSP Anil Joshi said the forged certificates were being provided at a cost ranging from Rs 60,000 to Rs 80,000 while the accused used to charge Rs 30,000 for other documents.

The police said the clients were mostly from Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. In addition, involvement of four companies in the scam had also come to light. These four include I.S. InfoTech, Sector 35, Chandigarh, Way to fly Company, Sector 34-A, Global Communication, Sector 70, Mataur, Sohana in Mohali and Bhogal Communication, also in village Sohana. The accused used to prepare documents while sitting in these cyber centres.

In addition, the SIT has also recovered two laptops, two scanners-cum-printer, one coloured printer, sheets (used for certificates and documents), one cutter (used to cut the papers according to the size of required certificates/degrees) which was used to prepare the fake certificates.

Bogus stamps belonging to superintendent, District and Sessions Judge, Ludhiana, examiner, Copying Branch,

District and Sessions Judge, Ludhiana, Registrar Birth and Death, Registration Unit, Municipal Committee, Hisar, Union Bank of India, Phase-1 Mohali, Krishana Auto Sales, Khajuria, Phagwara, Registrar Death and Birth, Kharar, Executive Magistrate, Karnal, Principal, Guru Nanak Dev Polytechnic, Bidar, Inspector Food and Supply, Assandh, Karnal, State Bank of Patiala, Phase 10, Mohali Assistant. Food and Supplies officer, UT, Chandigarh, Punjab National Bank, Patiala Punjabi University and Kurukshetra University were also recovered.

SC rejects govt plea for Vodafone case review

Srinagar/Jammu, March 20
At least one person was killed and 17 injured as a cyclonic windstorm swept across the Valley, blowing away hundreds of rooftops, uprooting an even greater number of trees, and disrupting power services on Tuesday.

“The minimum temperature has gone 12°C above normal due to steep pressure gradient over the Valley, causing a wind storm that resulted in damage to property,” Aamir Ali, Coordinator, Disaster Management Cell, Kashmir Division, said. The cyclonic windstorm began yesterday afternoon. The winds touched a maximum speed of 40 knots, with average speed being 24.7 knots, he added.

Mohammed Maqbool Magray was killed when a branch of a “chinar” tree fell on him in Kachnambal village in Ganderbal district. Many tourists had to be evacuated to safety from Dal Lake, officials said. They were accommodated in various hotels by the QRT of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) led by Dy SP Ghulam Haider and SDPO Nehru park Ghulam Jeelani.

At Pahalgam, a tree fell on a tourist hut, causing injuries to a tourist from Kolkata, Sanjay Paul. He was rescued and provided treatment at the SDH, Pahalgam, officials said.

At least 17 persons were injured in various incidents. Twenty-nine residential houses were fully damaged while 2,166 non-residential, six government buildings and 10 houseboats were partially damaged.

There are reports of extensive damage to the power supply network across the valley. The work is in progress to make the network fully functional. All commercial flights to and fro Srinagar were, however, operating normally, though with slight delays.

There is also a report of an avalanche in the Badwan area of Bandipore district. Two persons were killed, two injured and one has gone missing in the incident.

Around 200 houses were damaged in Poonch, Ramban and Doda districts of Jammu division due to the dust storm. The storm also caused huge damage to private and government property. Several trees were uprooted and the power network hit. However, no loss of life has been reported from the Jammu region so far.

Assistant Commissioner Revenue, Ramban, Ghanshyam Singh Thakur said 42 private houses, five schools, two shops and a temple had been reportedly damaged in the overnight gale. 

Cyclonic storm rips through Kashmir

Srinagar/Jammu, March 20
At least one person was killed and 17 injured as a cyclonic windstorm swept across the Valley, blowing away hundreds of rooftops, uprooting an even greater number of trees, and disrupting power services on Tuesday.

“The minimum temperature has gone 12°C above normal due to steep pressure gradient over the Valley, causing a wind storm that resulted in damage to property,” Aamir Ali, Coordinator, Disaster Management Cell, Kashmir Division, said. The cyclonic windstorm began yesterday afternoon. The winds touched a maximum speed of 40 knots, with average speed being 24.7 knots, he added.

Mohammed Maqbool Magray was killed when a branch of a “chinar” tree fell on him in Kachnambal village in Ganderbal district. Many tourists had to be evacuated to safety from Dal Lake, officials said. They were accommodated in various hotels by the QRT of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) led by Dy SP Ghulam Haider and SDPO Nehru park Ghulam Jeelani.

At Pahalgam, a tree fell on a tourist hut, causing injuries to a tourist from Kolkata, Sanjay Paul. He was rescued and provided treatment at the SDH, Pahalgam, officials said.

At least 17 persons were injured in various incidents. Twenty-nine residential houses were fully damaged while 2,166 non-residential, six government buildings and 10 houseboats were partially damaged.

There are reports of extensive damage to the power supply network across the valley. The work is in progress to make the network fully functional. All commercial flights to and fro Srinagar were, however, operating normally, though with slight delays.

There is also a report of an avalanche in the Badwan area of Bandipore district. Two persons were killed, two injured and one has gone missing in the incident.

Around 200 houses were damaged in Poonch, Ramban and Doda districts of Jammu division due to the dust storm. The storm also caused huge damage to private and government property. Several trees were uprooted and the power network hit. However, no loss of life has been reported from the Jammu region so far.

Assistant Commissioner Revenue, Ramban, Ghanshyam Singh Thakur said 42 private houses, five schools, two shops and a temple had been reportedly damaged in the overnight gale. 

Major earthquake hits southern Mexico

MEXICO CITY— A strong, long 7.6-magnitude earthquake with an epicentre in Guerrero state on Tuesday, followed by an aftershock that shook central southern Mexico, swayed buildings in Mexico City and sent frightened workers and residents into the streets.
The U.S. Geological Survey set the intensity of the first quake at 7.6 and said the epicentre was underground and was felt strongly in Oaxaca. Mexico's National Seismological Survey said the tremblor had an epicentre southwest of Ometepec in Guerrero state.
Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard's Twitter account said the water system and other “strategic services” were not experiencing problems.
But frightened workers and residents poured into the streets of the capital just minutes after noon local time.
President Felipe Calderon said there were no immediate reports of damage through his Twitter account. Telephone service was down in the city and throughout the area where the quake was felt.
“I have problems with pressure, I felt I was going to faint,” said Rosa Maria Lopez Velazquez, 62, outside a mall in Mexico City.
The quake was felt in southern Oaxaca state next to the epicentre in Guerrero.
“It was very strong, but we didn't see anything fall,” said Irma Ortiz, who runs a guesthouse in Oaxaca. She said their telephones are down, and that the quake shook them side-to-side.

India to urge airlines to boycott EU carbon scheme

NEW DELHI (REUTERS) - India will urge its airlines to boycott the European Union's (EU) carbon charge scheme, raising the prospect of a global trade war over a law requiring flights in and out of Europe to pay for their greenhouse gas emissions.

A senior Indian government official told Reuters that India would soon ask local airlines not to buy carbon credits from or share emissions data with the bloc, which says other countries are not doing enough to tackle this source of greenhouse gases.

China said in February its airlines were barred from participating in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) unless they got government approval. Beijing has also suspended the purchase of US$14 billion (S$17.6 billion) worth of jets from European maker Airbus.

India does not yet plan to ask airlines to cancel Airbus purchases, but that is possible if the dispute escalates, said the Indian official, who has direct knowledge of talks between the EU and other countries on the issue.

Mukul Roy sworn in as new railway minister

President Pratibha Patil (L) administers the oath to Mukul Roy as new Railway Minister at the presidential place in New Delhi March 20, 2012. 

New Delhi, 20 March 2012 - Mukul Roy was sworn in as India's new railway minister on Tuesday amid signs the UPA government would bow to the wishes of a petulant coalition partner and initiate a partial fare rollback this week.

Roy, 57, was inducted as a cabinet minister just hours before a debate on the railway budget in the Lok Sabha and replaces his Trinamool Congress colleague Dinesh Trivedi.

Trivedi quit on Sunday after the Trinamool Congress, a key ally in the UPA government, said it was displeased with his decision to raise passenger fares for the first time in eight years.

The unpopular policy step was cheered by investors but Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government was seen bending to the wishes of its coalition partner.

"The new Railway Minister … will have the onerous duty of carrying forward the challenging task of modernizing our railway system," Singh told lawmakers in the Lok Sabha on Monday.

Roy, junior minister for shipping in Singh's council of ministers, represents West Bengal in the Rajya Sabha, and had served as the junior minister for railways in 2011.

India Railway Minister Quits Over Fare Hike

New Delhi. India's railway minister Dinesh Trivedi resigned Sunday evening, after a fare hike he proposed was rejected by his own party, sparking a political crisis within the Congress-led coalition government.

The fare hike by Trivedi, a member of the Trinamool Congress, won praise from its ally, Congress, for raising money to modernize and upkeep the Indian Railways. But it angered his own party leader Mamata Banerjee, because it went against her populist image.

Banerjee called for a rollback of the hike and the resignation of Trivedi, who was her nominee as railway minister, sparking a stand-off between the Congress and its key ally.

That crisis appeared defused yesterday with Banerjee announcing that Trivedi had agreed to resign. She is also pushing for a rollback of rail fares.

"He (Trivedi) called me and he told me that he will abide by the party decision and send his resignation," Banerjee, who is Trinamool Congress supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister, told news agency Press Trust of India.

Trivedi too announced his decision to quit. "I'm a soldier of my party. [I] have to obey party," he said. He had been railway minister for a year.

Banerjee flew from Kolkata to New Delhi and is expected to meet with Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in a effort to reduce tensions.

The fare increases - which still need to be passed by Parliament - were the first in eight years.

They ranged from 2 paisa per km to 30 paisa per km.

Trivedi said the railways needed the extra money to lay new tracks and modernize services.


STOP PRESS
Mukul Roy has been sworn in as India's new railway minister after his predecessor resigned over the weekend in a spat over his ticket price rise.