NEW DELHI, FEB 25Eleven days after coming into

power in Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP government onWednesday slashed power tariffby 50 percent for consumption upto 400 units per month and20,000 litres of free water perhousehold every month thatwould cost the exchequer aroundRs 1,670 crore annually.

The Delhi government's deci-sion will benefit around 90 per-cent of Delhiites, announcedDeputy Chief Minister ManishSisodia here after a Cabinetmeeting.

The Cabinet meeting waspresided over by Chief MinisterArvind Kejriwal.

The cut in tariff and the freewater scheme will be effectivefrom Sunday (March 01).

"The reduction in power tariffwill benefit 36,06,428 families,

which is around 90 percent of thecity's population," Sisodia said,adding that those consuming over400 units would have to pay thefull bill. Water tariff will also becharged if the consumption limitexceeds 20,000 litres.

After the announcement,

Kejriwal took to Twitter to assurethat he would fulfil other pollpromises too.

Sisodia also said that around 18lakh families will be able to reapthe benefits of free water andinformed that the Delhi Jal Board

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

NEW DELHI, FEB 25Himachal Pradesh BJP

MP Anurag Thakur onWednesday thanked PrimeMinister Narendra Modifor the enhanced grant ofRs 40,625 crore to the rev-enue deficit hill state asrecommended by the 14thFinance Commission.

"The Prime Minister isaware of problems facedby the hill states and there-fore even if it meant thestraining of its ownfinances, the central gov-ernment has accepted therecommendations of the14th Finance Commissionin letter and spirit," he saidin a statement.

The hill state receivedthe grant out of the Rs 1.95

lakh crore allotted to 11revenue deficit states.

Thakur said the 13thFinance Commission hadrecommended states' sharein central taxes at 39.5 per-cent but the then UPA gov-ernment scaled it down to32 percent.

"Now the Modi govern-ment has decided to hikethis to 42 percent. Neverbefore has it happened thatstates' share has beenincreased by 10 percent."

The three-time MP saidunder the 14th FinanceCommission only Jammuand Kashmir has obtainedenhanced assistance morethan that of HimachalPradesh. "Out of the total

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

PATNA, FEB 25Chief Minister Nitish

Kumar government onWednesday announcedbonanza for the poor byincluding sugar, tea leavesand kerosene in the list ofitems to be providedthrough ration shops.

The decision was takenat a review meeting of foodand civil supplies depart-ment by Chief MinisterNitish Kumar.

Cooperative Minister JayKumar Singh who partici-pated in the review meet-ing said that sugar wastaken out of the PDS out-lets' list almost two decadeago. He said it was decidedthat each family would get2 kg of sugar every month

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

MUMBAITemperature: 330CPrecipitation: 0%Humidity: 51%Wind: 21Km/hr

HAQSAADDAFIGHT FOR RIGHTThursday, February 26, 2015

Vaiko meets Kejriwal, stresses on fullstatehood to Delhi, Puducherry

iBall Andi 5Q Cobalt Solus NowAvailable Online at Rs. 11,262

When Aayushmann Khurana goteight tight slaps

Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP govt keeps poll promises;halves power tariff, gives 20K litres free water

P8

NEW DELHI, FEB 25Number of tourists arriving

in India has increased by sev-eral times as compared to pre-vious year after the launch ofVisa on Arrival (VoA) enabledElectronic Travel

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

Implementation ofVoA: Tourist's arrivalsup by 1,214 times

HYDERABAD, FEB 25An officer of a state-run

power utility has been trappedby Anti-Corruption Bureau(ACB) in West Godavari dis-trict of Andhra Pradesh forallegedly taking a bribe of Rs50,000. D Adinarayana,Assistant Divisional Engineer

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

Power companyengineer caughttaking Rs 50,000 bribe

NEW DELHI, FEB 25The Delhi High Court on

Wednesday sought responsefrom the Centre and the citygovernment on a plea seekingfacilities at beggars' homeshere. A bench of Chief JusticeG Rohini and Justice Rajiv

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

HC seeks responsefrom Centre, Delhi govton beggars' homes

NEW DELHI, FEB 25RJD MP Rajesh Ranjan on

Wednesday lashed out at BiharChief Minister Nitish Kumar,accusing the JD(U) leader andhis aides of working to "finishoff" RJD and said he wouldquit the party if Lalu Prasadwishes so. Ranjan, who is bet-ter known as Pappu Yadav and

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

Pappu Yadav lashes out atNitish, says ready to quit RJD

NEW DELHI, FEB 25Rahul Gandhi's sudden sab-

batical to reflect upon thefuture course of the party maybe a prelude to his elevation asCongress president.

There are indications thatGandhi, who is currently theVice President, could be madethe party chief later this yearas the tenure of Congress

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

Rahul Gandhi could be elevated asCongress president later this year

HISAR, FEB 25Former Haryana chief minis-

ter Bhupinder Singh Hooda onWednesday lashed out at theBJP-led Central governmentfor allegedly trying to revertback to the "exploitative" LandAcquisition Act, 1894 enactedby the Britishers, saying it willnot be allowed at any cost.

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

'BJP trying to revert back toLand Acquisition Act of 1894'

SHIMLA, FEB 25The picturesque tourist

resorts Manali and Kalpa inHimachal Pradesh onWednesday saw more snowwhich lent the resorts and itsneighbouring areas a morebeautiful look. The minimum

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

Manali, Kalpa inHimachal Pradesh getmore snow

DELHI, FEB 25Delhi Police have launched

WhatsApp and Hike groups ofits application, Himmat onWednesday. WhatsApp groupis available on the number8800001091. It is also

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

Delhi Police launcheswomen safety app'Himmat' onWhatsApp, Hike

NEW DELHI, FEB 25A man has been arrested for

allegedly trying to smuggleinto the country gold valuingabout Rs 24 lakh by hiding itin slippers at Indira GandhiInternational Airport here.The passenger was

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

Man held at Delhi air-port for smuggling goldworth Rs 24 lakh

P6P2

Sugar, kerosene, tea leaves forpoor in ration shops in Bihar

NEW DELHI, FEB 25Delhi Chief Minister

Arvind Kejriwal hasinvited activist AnnaHazare to theGovernment Secretariaton Wednesday and askedhim to interact with legis-lators, ministers and offi-cials through a motiva-tional talk.

The AAP leaderextended the invitationwhile sharing a stagewith the Gandhian onParliament Street duringa protest against the landacquisition ordinance,evoking memories of theduo's camaraderie duringthe anti-graft movementof 2011.

"Tomorrow, if Annajicomes to Delhi

Secretariat, his presenceonly will purify the place.I want him to come thereand interact, at least for10 minutes, with differentmembers and officials ofthe government. It willguide us all," Kejriwalsaid.

Wearing a grey shirt

and blue v-neckedsweater and minus histrademark muffler,Kejriwal initially wasstanding among thecrowd in the front of thestage but was later hoist-ed by Anna supporters onto the stage, drawing a

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

Kejriwal invites mentor Anna Hazare to interactwith MLAs at Delhi Secretariat

Weather ReportDELHITemperature: 290CPrecipitation: 0%Humidity: 63%Wind: `13Km/hr

KOLKATATemperature: 330CPrecipitation: 0%Humidity:53% Wind: 16Km/hr

CHENNAITemperature: 320CPrecipitation: 0%Humidity:55%Wind: 14Km/hr

NEW DELHI, FEB 25After Prime Minister

Narendra Modi asked partyMPs to counter the"myths" propagated by theopposition parties againstland bill, BJP onWednesday launched amajor initiative to projectthe good elements of thenew bill introduced by it inLok Sabha.

The party claimed thatCongress-ruled states andits chief ministers had alsoraised objection to theUPA's bill.

BJP has also launched amajor online drive to high-light the good points in thebill that it touted as"farmer-friendly".

Government said manystates had objected to theprevious Land Bill passedin 2013 during UPA regimeand highlighted formerMaharashtra chief ministerPrithviraj Chavan's objec-

tions in his letter datedAugust 3, 2011 to thenRural DevelopmentMinister Jairam Ramesh.

"On closer examination,we find that the provisionsof the new Act willincrease land and rehabili-tation cost up to 6 times forpublic amenities like watersupply, health facilities,sewerage and infrastruc-ture (roads and power proj-ects)," Chavan had said inhis letter.

He had requestedRamesh to consider thesuggestions put forthwhich include removal of80 percent consent whengovernment acquires landfor industrial and urbanisa-tion purposes. He had alsosought decentralisingauthority for deciding pub-lic purpose for govern-ment's own acquisition andfor providing land owner a

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

BJP highlights good elementsof Land Acquisition Bill

NEW DELHI, FEB 25A parliamentary com-

mittee on Wednesdayrejected the govern-ment's proposal to try asadults juveniles between16 and 18 years involvedin heinous cases such asrape, saying the move is"in conflict with law"and should be"reviewed".

Giving its observationon the Juvenile Justice(Care and Protection ofChildren) Bill, 2014, theParliamentary StandingCommittee on HRD saidchildren below 18 yearsare amenable and shouldbe treated in the samemanner and "differential

treatment" for childrenabove 16 years of age"should not arise".

The report of the com-mittee comprising J PNadda and SatyanarayanJatiya was submitted inParliament today.

The comprehensivebill to tackle increasingcrimes committed byyoungsters aged between16-18 years like theDelhi gangrape case andto ensure proper care and

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

Parliamentary panel rejects govt proposalto try juveniles as adults in rape cases

Himachal MP thanks PMfor enhanced grant

NEW DELHI, FEB 25The Delhi High Court on

Wednesday issued noticeto Union Health MinisterJP Nadda on a plea seek-ing CBI inquiry intoalleged irregularities andcorruption at All IndiaInstitute of MedicalSciences (AIIMS).

The notice was issued bythe HC while hearing apetition seeking a CBIinquiry into various casesof irregularities and cor-ruption in AIIMS raised by

then anti-graft officerSanjiv Chaturvedi.

A division bench ofChief Justice G Rohini andJustice RS Endlaw alsoissued notice to the CentralVigilance Commissionand Sanjiv Chaturvedi andasked them to file theirresponse by April 22.

The public interest liti-gation (PIL), which iscame up for hearing onWednesday, has sought arevival of all cases inwhich action were initiat-

ed by Chaturvedi before hewas sacked by then unionhealth minister HarshVardhan in August lastyear from his post as chiefvigilance officer of theAIIMS).

NGO Centre for PublicInterest Litigation (CPIL)in its petition contendedthat Chaturvedi started ini-tiating action in the cor-ruption cases related tovarious malpracticeincluding "supply of

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

NEW DELHI, FEB 25A man, convicted of

raping a widow aftertrespassing her house,has been awardedseven years rigorousimprisonment by aDelhi court whichrelied on the victim'sstatement.

Additional SessionsJudge Virender Bhatthanded down the jailterm to Delhi residentRanjeet while holdinghim guilty of theoffences of rape and

house-trespass undersections 376 and 451 ofthe IPC respectively.

The court said thatprosecution successful-ly established that itwas the accused whohad gained forcibleentry into the woman'sflat when she wassleeping and committedthe offence.

It also imposed a fineof Rs 20,000 on theconvict, a father ofthree minors. The

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

HC notice to Health Minister over demand forCBI inquiry into alleged corruption at AIIMS

Man gets seven yrs in jailfor raping widow in Delhi

Vol. 1 Issue: 165 Price: Rs.3:00 Reg. No: DELENG/2014/58212 Delhi Edition Pages: 8 Website: www.saaddahaq.in Email: news.saaddahaq@gmail.com

Passports issued onnon-existentaddresses: Delhi HCseeks govt replyNEW DELHI, FEB 25

Taking note of allega-tions of Indian passportsbeing issued to citizensand foreigners not livingat addresses given bythem, the Delhi HighCourt on Wednesdaysought an explanationfrom the Centre and thecity government on theissue. A bench of ChiefJustice G Rohini andJustice R S Endlawissued notices to the min-istries of external affairs(MEA) and home affairs(MHA) as well as Delhigovernment and citypolice and sought theirreplies by April 29.

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

PATNA, FEB 25Bihar Chief Minister

Nitish Kumar onWednesday expressed dis-satisfaction over the 14thFinance Commission's

recommendations accept-ed by the Narendra Modigovernment with refer-ence to states, particularlyBihar. He also made it

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

Nitish Kumar unhappy with 14thFinance Commission recommendations

BJP questions AAPgovernment's moveto slash power tariffin Delhi NEW DELHI, FEB 25

BJP on Wednesday ques-tioned Arvind Kejriwal-ledDelhi government's decision toslash power tariff by 50 percentfor consumption up to 400 unitsper month.

Reacting to the announce-ment, Delhi BJP chief SatishUpadhyay said, “Lakhs of peo-ple on rent must get benefit,how will they benefit is a bigquestion, if they too are benefit-ing it's a big thing,” as persources. He added, “Those who

CONTD. ON PAGE 3

NEW DELHI | THURSDAY | FEB 26, 2015Delhi News2 SAADDA HAQ

NEW DELHI, FEB 25MDMK leader Vaiko on

Wednesday met DelhiChief Minister ArvindKejriwal and stressed thatfull statehood was neces-sary for both Delhi andPuducherry.

He, however, deniedspeculation that his partywould work closely withthe Aam Aadmi Party inTamil Nadu.

The meeting came a dayafter Vaiko joined handswith Kejriwal in a AnnaHazare-led farmers' rallyagainst the controversialland acquisition bill in thenational capital.

"I do not have any suchthought. We did not dis-cuss about it," the MDMKleader replied to a query onwhether his party and AAPwould work together in the southern state, after he met Kejriwal at the Delhi Secretariat here.

Vaiko said there was nopolitical agenda behind themeeting and it was a cour-tesy call in the wake ofAAP registering a historicvictory in the recently con-cluded Delhi Assemblyelections.

"I have got admirationfor him... The day when hewon the election I made astrong statement condemn-ing the BJP and Hindutvaforces. The victory forAAP and Arvind Kejriwalhas highlighted the gloryof Indian democracy," hesaid.

Vaiko also attacked theBJP-led NDA Governmentfor attempting to bringamendments in the landacquisition bill andappealed to MPs cuttingacross party lines not tosupport the ordinance.

Vaiko meets Kejriwal, stresses onfull statehood to Delhi, Puducherry

NEW DELHI, FEB 25Uber, the US-based

online taxi-hailingcompany, onWednesday provided"full" details to theDelhi governmentwhich it had asked forits application toresume services in thecity. Authorities had seta February 25 deadlineto provide supportingdetails for the firm'sapplication to operatein the national capital.

State TransportDepartment officialssaid the details submit-

ted by Uber will beexamined and there-after, a final decision ongranting it a licencewill be taken.

"Uber today submit-ted details the TransportDepartment had askedfor. We will now exam-ine these details andthereafter, a decision onwhether it be granted alicence will be taken,"said a senior govern-ment official.

Uber was banned inDelhi in Decemberafter one of its driverswas accused of raping a

female passenger.Last month, the compa-ny applied for a radiotaxi licence to operatethrough its subsidiary

ResourceE x p e r tI n d i aPvt Ltd.

T h egovern-m e n t ,howev-e r ,

issued a 'deficiencymemo' on January 24asking it to furnish alldetails before it as men-tioned in recently intro-

duced 'Modified RadioTaxi Scheme (2006)'.

Similar memos wereserved to app-basedtaxi operator 'Taxi ForSure' and another firmwho had also appliedfor licences.

Sources said the thesetaxi providers, includ-ing Uber, did not pro-vide full details in theirapplications for procur-ing a licence accordingto the laid downrules.

"In Uber's applica-tion, certificate/under-taking for parking of

radio taxis was not pro-vided. They also did notmention telephonenumber, e-mail addressand address proof oftheir registered office inDelhi."

"Besides, call centremanagement detailswere also not providedin the application," thesources said.

Rules set by Delhi'stransport department inDecember require taxicompanies to instalemergency buttons intheir cabs and havetracking devices.

NEW DELHI, FEB 25The Delhi High Court on

Wednesday sought theCentre and city govern-ment's responses on a PILchallenging an NCT lawand its recent amendmentby which unauthorised con-structions up to June 1,2014 have been protectedfrom punitive action.

Prior to the latest amend-ment to National CapitalTerritory of Delhi Laws(Special Provisions)Second Act, 2011, unautho-rised constructions only upto February 8, 2007 wereprotected.

A bench of Chief JusticeG Rohini and Justice RSEndlaw issued notice to theMinistry of Home Affairsand Delhi government andsought their replies by May4 on a PIL by NGO,

Campaign for PeopleParticipation inDevelopment Planningwhich has challenged theconstitutional validity ofthe Act. The petition, filedthough advocate Anil KAggarwal, has said that byordering a "completeembargo" on any punitiveand coercive action againstencroachment on publicland and utilities and unau-thorised and irregular con-struction of building, a"free hand" has been givento the violators of law todeface coordinated spatialplanning of Delhi. It hassought quashing of the Actand amendment and declar-ing all effects of the legisla-tion as "ab initio null andvoid".

It has raised the appre-hension that if something is

not done soon to bring theeffect of these legislation tonaught, then "the day is notfar when instead of servingas a model of urban devel-opment for other parts ofthe country to follow, thechaotic Delhi will witherand collapse under the bur-den of ill-planned, haphaz-ard growth".

It has alleged that by wayof these legislation, thegovernment have "beliedthe promises held out by itto all law-abiding citizensfor the last more than 7years that after notificationof Master Plan - 2021, noh a p h a z a r d / u n p l a n n e ddevelopment, constructionand use of buildings andencroachments over publicland and utilities, beyondFebruary 8, 2007 shall betolerated or overlooked".

Delhi HC seeks govt reply onPIL against law protecting

unauthorised constructions

Uber provides full details forlicence to operate in Delhi

NEW DELHI, FEB 25Deployment of mobile patrol

squads, setting up of control roommanned by police and DTC authori-ties and formation of teacher-stu-dent committees are among a seriesof measures being taken by DelhiUniversity to check hooliganismduring the festival of Holi.

The varsity, in a 13-pointer guide-lines issued to all department headsand principals, has directed the for-mation of committees of students,teachers and other staff to restrictthe entry of outsiders in collegesand hostels.

A control room jointly manned byDTC authorities, Delhi police andvarsity officials has been set up todeal with any complaints of unto-ward incident.

Helplines have been set up for theNorth and South Campuses, calls ofwhich will be received by the con-trol room.

"Playing of Holi will not be per-mitted in any educational institution

and the entry would be regulatedthrough identity cards.

All anti-ragging and anti eve-teas-ing provisions would be made appli-cable in case of harassment causedto any student during the period,"DU Proctor said Satwanti Kumarsaid in an official communication toprincipals.

"The university has approachedDTC authorities to check anyharassment of girl students in thebuses during Holi days. DTC driv-ers have been instructed to take thebus to the nearest police station incase of any harassment noticed bythem," Kumar said.

Police has assured us full supportin maintaining law and order andensuring strict action against eve-teasing. They would deploy ade-quate security in uniform and plainclothes in and around the campus aswell as the buses plying in the areas,she said, adding that mobilepatrolling squads have also beendeployed.

Delhi University gearsup to tackle hooligan-

ism during Holi

NEW DELHI, FEB 25In an example of callousness

in handling applications filedunder the RTI Act, the CBI hassent a reply dated even beforethe application was filed,apparently aimed at not giving30-day period to the applicantto file his appeal.

Sending backdated commu-nication for application understatutory provisions is a seriousoffence under the Right toInformation (RTI) Act. UnderSection 18 of the Act, a CPIO(Central Public InformationOfficer) can be slapped with apenalty for giving "false andmisleading" information.

If sending backdated com-munication was not enough,the CPIO of Anti-CorruptionUnit of the agency alsoreturned the postal order of RTIfee which is again an offenceunder the transparency law.

Claiming exemption fromdisclosure under the RTI Act,CPIO Ratan Sanjay returnedthe RTI application, along withthe fee, seeking status of closedPreliminary Enquiries relatedto allegations of corruption --an information which is pro-vided in the annual report ofthe agency, a public document.

Ironically, the reply no.568/1-RTI/CBI/AC-II/2015 isdated January 3, 2015 whereasthe application was datedJanuary 16, 2015, showing thatthe agency might be using tem-plates to respond to applica-tions without applying mind tothe information sought.

Sending backdated replyapparently could also be aimedat not giving 30-day period tothe applicant to file his appeal.

The then Chief InformationCommissioner SatyanandaMishra had sought the inter-

vention of then CBI Director AP Singh, underlining that theagency was returning the appli-cations after CBI was broughtin the list of organisationsexempted from the RTIAct.

Singh had then directed theofficials to not return the RTIapplications but with newDirector Anil Sinha at the helmof affairs, the practice ofreturning the applications hasagain started.

Section 24 of RTI Act, citedby the CBI officers whilerejecting the information, says,"Nothing contained in this Actshall apply to the intelligenceand security organisationsspecified in the SecondSchedule, being organisationsestablished by the central gov-ernment or any informationfurnished by such organisa-tions to that government.

"Provided that the informa-tion pertaining to the allega-tions of corruption and humanrights violations shall not beexcluded under this sub-sec-tion."

Describing the exemptionclause of the RTI Act, Mishrahad said, "It casts an obligationon the CPIO of the exemptedorganisation to entertain allrequests for information per-taining to allegations of corrup-tion or human rights viola-tions".

"It (the exemption clause)does not make any distinctionbetween the exempted organi-sations on the basis of the func-tions they perform nor betweenthe allegations of corruption onthe basis of whether it is madeagainst the employee of theexempt organisation or againstothers," he had said in hisorder.

CBI sends backdated com-munications to RTI pleas

NEW DELHI, FEB 25The Delhi High Court on

Wednesday sought theCentre and city govern-ment's responses on a PILchallenging an NCT lawand its recent amendmentby which unauthorised con-structions up to June 1,2014 have been protectedfrom punitive action.

Prior to the latest amend-ment to National CapitalTerritory of Delhi Laws(Special Provisions)Second Act, 2011, unautho-rised constructions only upto February 8, 2007 wereprotected.

A bench of Chief JusticeG Rohini and Justice RSEndlaw issued notice to theMinistry of Home Affairsand Delhi government andsought their replies by May4 on a PIL by NGO,Campaign for PeopleParticipation inDevelopment Planning

which has challenged theconstitutional validity ofthe Act.

The petition, filed thoughadvocate Anil K Aggarwal,has said that by ordering a"complete embargo" on anypunitive and coerciveaction against encroach-ment on public land andutilities and unauthorisedand irregular constructionof building, a "free hand"has been given to the viola-tors of law to deface coordi-nated spatial planning ofDelhi.

It has sought quashing ofthe Act and amendment anddeclaring all effects of thelegislation as "ab initio nulland void".

It has raised the appre-hension that if something isnot done soon to bring theeffect of these legislation tonaught, then "the day is notfar when instead of servingas a model of urban devel-

opment for other parts ofthe country to follow, thechaotic Delhi will witherand collapse under the bur-den of ill-planned, haphaz-ard growth".

It has alleged that by wayof these legislation, thegovernment have "beliedthe promises held out by itto all law-abiding citizensfor the last more than 7years that after notificationof Master Plan - 2021, noh a p h a z a r d / u n p l a n n e ddevelopment, constructionand use of buildings andencroachments over publicland and utilities, beyondFebruary 8, 2007 shall betolerated or overlooked".The petition has alleged thelaws were enacted by theCentre to "cover up theirfailure" to preventunplanned development aswell as encroachments overpublic land and utilities.

The PIL has said the

Centre "enacted the legisla-tion against all norms ofdisaster mitigation, know-ing that all unplanned/ille-gal constructions and devel-opment, rapidly erectedovernight, inherently struc-turally unsafe and entailimmense risk to lives of thepeople occupying thesame".

It has sought directions tothe Centre and city govern-ment "to facilitate themunicipalities to frameimprovement scheme forthe unplanned colonies withthe active participation ofthe councillors, elected rep-resentatives of the people".

The petition has alsoasked for directions to thegovernment "to constitute ametropolitan planning com-mittee to assimilate andcoordinate developmentplans and improvementschemes prepared by therespective municipalities".

NEW DELHI, FEB 25The Delhi High

Court on Wednesdayrejected a PIL seekingdirections to theCentre to block siteswhich provide infor-mation on or sell pre-natal sex determina-tion kits, saying thereis already a remedyavailable under thelaw.

A bench of ChiefJustice G Rohini andJustice RS Endlawrefused to entertain thepetition which alleged"pathetic inaction" onthe part of the govern-

ment in "curbing"import and search ofpre-natal gender deter-mination tests and kitsonline.

"There is already aremedy availableunder the law forprayers sought in thepetition. We are notinclined to entertainthe petition," the courtsaid. The petition,filed by NanditaBansal through advo-cate Gaurav KumarBansal, had claimed ifthere is no interventionfrom the government,entire purpose of the

Pre-Conception andPre-Natal DiagnosticTechniques (PNDT)Act would be defeated.

Under the PNDTAct, pre-natal sexdetermination isbanned.

The petition hadclaimed there wereseveral online stores,which sells such kitsfor prices rangingfrom USD 19 to USD500. These tests or kitsare packed in the US,where sex determina-tion is legal, and aretransported here, it hadsaid.

NEW DELHI, FEB 25The Delhi High Court on

Wednesday sought responsefrom the Centre and the citygovernment on a plea seekingfacilities at beggars' homeshere. A bench of Chief Justice GRohini and Justice Rajiv SahaiEndlaw issued notice to author-ities concerned while hearing aPIL which was transferred to itby the Supreme Court lastmonth. "Matter has been trans-ferred from the Supreme Court.Issue notice to respondent 1(Centre), respondent 2(Government of Delhi-NCT)and respondent 3(Commissioner of Police). Putup for hearing on April 22," thesaid.

The apex court while transfer-ring the matter in its January 30,2015 order had said that it willbe appropriate if the matter isdealt by the High Court as thecase pertains to beggars' homes

in Delhi.The apex court bench com-

prising justices MB Lokur andUU Lalit had also said thatsince the matter is pending forquite some time, the Delhi HighCourt is directed to take up thecase on regular basis and passappropriate directions at theearliest.

To look into the facilities atbeggars' homes, a expert com-mittee was constituted by theSupreme Court comprising for-mer Additional SolicitorGeneral L Nageswara Rao, sen-ior advocate Colin Gonsalvesand advocate Indra Sawhney,which submitted its report onOctober 8, 2014, detailing the"inadequate" facilities at suchinstitutions.

A PIL was first filed byKartikea Sawhney in theSupreme Court in year 2000,seeking basic human and funda-mental rights for the beggars in

the national capital.The PIL sought the court's

direction for appointing of visit-ing committees for periodic vis-its to these institutions and mak-ing of arrangements for cleanshelter, proper food, clothingand other necessary basicamenities to the inmates.

Sawhney also sought direc-tion to the Centre for providingvocational training that wouldprovide meaningful work andprovision of payment of mini-mum allowance to the inmatesfor the work done by them.

The petitioner has alsodemanded increase in the num-ber of beggars' homes in Delhiin which NGO's and voluntaryorganisations may also beattached to participate in ensur-ing inmates' well-being anddirection to not to keep juvenilecriminals/insane beggars in thecompany of other beggarshoused in the institutions.

Delhi HC seeks govt reply on PIL againstlaw protecting unauthorised constructions

Delhi HC rejects PIL for blockingsites selling sex determination kits

HC seeks response from Centre,Delhi govt on beggars' homes

HC seeks responsefrom Centre, Delhi govton beggars' homesNEW DELHI, FEB 25

The Delhi High Court onWednesday sought response from theCentre and the city government on aplea seeking facilities at beggars'homes here. A bench of Chief JusticeG Rohini and Justice Rajiv SahaiEndlaw issued notice to authoritiesconcerned while hearing a PIL whichwas transferred to it by the SupremeCourt last month. "Matter has beentransferred from the Supreme Court.Issue notice to respondent 1 (Centre),respondent 2 (Government of Delhi-NCT) and respondent 3(Commissioner of Police). Put up forhearing on April 22," the said. Theapex court while transferring the mat-ter in its January 30, 2015 order hadsaid that it will be appropriate if thematter is dealt by the High Court asthe case pertains to beggars' homes inDelhi. The apex court bench compris-ing justices MB Lokur and UU Lalithad also said that since the matter ispending for quite some time, theDelhi High Court is directed to takeup the case on regular basis and passappropriate directions at the earliest.

Continuation 3NEW DELHI | THURSDAY | FEB 26, 2015SAADDA HAQ

Arvind Kejriwal...has been directed to speed up the process of

setting up infrastructure to provide water tocolonies which do not have pipelines.

The Deputy Chief Minister said the freewater is being extended to group housingsocieties as well and all the consumers underthe scheme will not require to pay any othercharges including the sewerage charge. In thefree water scheme announced by the firstAAP government, the group housing soci-eties were kept out.

On free power scheme, Sisodia said thegovernment will review power rates afterComptroller and Auditor General of India?completes audit of the accounts of the powerdiscoms and submits its report.

Earlier, the Chief Minister had metComptroller and Auditor General ShashiKant Sharma and discussed the status ofscrutiny of finances of the private power dis-tribution companies by the auditor whichwas ordered by the AAP government in itsfirst stint.

The power subsidy scheme will cost thegovernment Rs 70 crore for the month ofMarch and a total of Rs 1,427 crore for thenext financial year.

Sisodia said relief in electricity bills willcontinue even in the eventuality of any tariffhike by Delhi Electricity RegulatoryCommission.

For the water scheme, Rs 20 crore will berequired for March and a total of Rs 250crore has been set aside for 2015-16. Thisestimate includes the cost of installing moremeters to allow more people to get the bene-fit of piped water.

The benefit of the water scheme will bemade available to the consumers havingmetered connection.

"We do not make false promises. That iswhy today we decided to provide major reliefto the citizens of Delhi. We have delivered onthe promises," Sisodia said.

Cutting power tariff and providing freewater were major election promises of AAPwhich had won a whopping 67 out of 70 seatsin the Assembly polls earlier this month.

Officials said per unit of power from 0-200slab will cost Rs 2 per unit while it will be Rs2.97 per unit in the 201-400 slab. The rate for401-800 slab will remain at Rs 7.30 per unit.

The city has seen a series of hike in powertariff in the past few years.

The tariff was hiked by 22 percent in 2011followed by five percent hike in February2012. The tariff was increased by up to twoper cent in May 2012 year and again by 26percent for domestic consumers in July 2012.

It was hiked by up to three percent inFebruary 2013 and again by five percent inAugust last year. It was again enhanced up toseven per cent in November last year.

Attacking the BJP, Sisodia said the the rul-ing party at the Centre did not show anyinterest in solving problems faced by peopleof Delhi during President's Rule.

"Today is an important day for the aamaadmi (common man). We are happy toannounce that as promised, we are slashingrates of electricity by half and will providefree water," he said.

BJP questions...do not have meters how will they benefit?”Delhi government today slashed power tar-

iff by 50 percent for consumption upto 400units per month.

The decision was taken at a Cabinet meet-ing presided over by Chief Minister ArvindKejriwal.

The cut in tariff will be effective fromSunday.

Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia alsoannounced that government will also provide20,000 litres of free water to every householdper month.

However, water tariff will be charged if theconsumption limit exceeds 20,000 litres.

The free water scheme will come into forcefrom March 1. Sisodia said consumers get-ting free water will not require to pay forsewer charges, as per sources.

On the free power scheme, Sisodia saidgovernment will review the power rates afterCAG completes audit of the accounts of thepower discoms.

In its manifesto, AAP had promised to cutpower tariff by 50 per cent immediately aftercoming to power.

The AAP had also promised 20 kilolitres(20,000 litres) of free water to every house-hold per month. The previous AAP govern-ment had introduced the free water schemebut it was discontinued after it quit.

BJP highlights...choice between three times market value

plus proposed rehabilitation or six times mar-ket value without rehabilitation package, andbarring litigation on the value of land.

Government also stated that Kerala andHaryana had sought modification of consentclause for rural and social infrastructure,while Karnataka and Kerala sought exemp-tion from social impact assessment for ruraland social for small projects.

Besides, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha and WestBengal had sought modification in the Act onthe retrospective clause.

Passports issued ..."It is a very serious issue that people who

are not living at their addresses have beenissued passports in their name. The govern-ment needs to explain to us on this very seri-

ous allegation raised by the petitioner(NGO)," the bench said.

NGO Paardarshita, in its PIL, alleged thatthousands of Indian passports have beenissued to foreign nationals at non-existentaddresses here on the basis of false policeverification reports.

It also alleged that diplomatic passportshave been issued to non-diplomatic personsand claimed that this has led to human traf-ficking.

It further alleged that diplomatic passportshave been issued to non-diplomatic personswho "impersonate themselves as spouseand/or children of Members of Parliamentwho themselves accompany such personsand drop them off in foreign nations inexchange for huge amount of cash".

During the hearing, the court askedAdditional Solicitor General (ASG) SanjayJain whether passport office is doing anyindependent verification of the addresses ofpersons to whom the passports were beingissued.

The ASG replied that the verification isbeing done by the police and added that if thepetitioner has any grievances it should lodgean FIR against the culprits.

The NGO, in its petition, alleged that theBureau of Immigration has "overlooked themalpractices and illegalities" and claimed ithas lead to "compromising of the integrityand security of our country".

It also alleged that some corrupt passportand special branch officials are "conniving"with each other and police of other states toissue passports for persons at false addresses.

The plea sought directions to NationalInvestigating Agency and CBI to probe thematter as well as seize relevant records anddatabase of the passport offices and specialbranch offices concerned to prevent tamper-ing and destruction of evidence.

The NGO also sought action against allthose persons who are involved in "illegalracket" of issuing Indian passports on falsepolice verification reports.

Kejriwal invites...loud cheer from the crowd. The AAP leader

sat right next to the 77-year-old Gandhianand was seen interacting with people on thestage.

Occasionally, he waved at the crowd aswell. Chandni Chowk MLA Alka Lamba,who was among the AAP legislators presentat the protest site, said the idea was to "con-nect bureaucracy with an veteran activist'svision of India".

"We want him there, because his presencewill connect bureaucrats, legislators and min-isters and other members and functionaries tothe Gandhian's thoughts, which so far hasbeen missing," she said. Sporting the AAPcap, Lamba, who upstaged sitting CongressMLA Prahlad Singh Sahni in the polls, whenasked if Hazare had accepted the govern-ment's invite, said, "We have invited Annajito the Assembly tomorrow. It is up to him torespond to it. But, his presence at theSecretariat will definitely benefit all."

Senior AAP leader Yogendra Yadav alsojoined the Gandhian briefly on stage.Kejriwal and Hazare, the two most promi-nent faces of the Lokpal movement had fall-en apart after Kejriwal decided to launch apolitical party in October 2012.

On Monday, Kejriwal and Deputy ChiefMinister Manish Sisodia, Hazare's trustedlieutenants during the Lokpal movement, hadmet the activist at the Maharashtra Sadan inDelhi and extended support to the agitationled by him. This agitation did in a way servedas a point of reunion for the young leader andthe veteran activist.

Sugar, kerosene...from PDS shops. Likewise, the beneficiary

families would get 2.5 litre kerosene month-ly.

Food Minister Shyam Rajak said the meet-ing also decided in principle to provide tealeaf to beneficiaries of subsidised ration.

Senior officials of Food and Civil Suppliesand Cooperative Department participated inthe meeting.

Singh said it was decided to rigorouslymonitor movement of vehicles carrying sub-sidised food items to PDS shops by usingGPS system to plug leakage in supply.

There are over 45,000 PDS outlets in Biharand 8.71 crore beneficiaries.

Nitish Kumar...clear that demand for a special status for

Bihar is very much relevant, unlike the cen-tral government's stand that it was notrequired.

"The recommendations accepted by Modiled government were a big loss for Bihar,itwould not help the state to continue with itsdevelopment works," Nitish Kumar said at apress conference here after presiding over hisfirst cabinet meet since becoming chief min-ister Sunday.

Nitish Kumar said it was a matter of worryfor the poor and backward states like Biharthat would not get benefit from recommenda-tions of the finance commission.

"It would only benefit developed states,notunderdeveloped states like Bihar," he said.

Nitish Kumar also said that he would writeto Prime Minister Modi in a day or two todraw his attention.

The Chief Minister termed the much talkedabout recommendations of the Commissionfor a record increase of 10 percent in thestates' share of the divisible pool of centraltaxes, despite negative implications for the

fiscal deficit, as nothing but "an eyewash".He said Bihar's demand for a special cate-

gory status remains as it was earlier."We willcontinue to fight for it till granted by the cen-tral government for development of Bihar."

Parliamentary panel ...protection of needy children was intro-

duced in Lok Sabha last August.Increasing cases of crimes committed by

children aged 16-18 years in recent yearsmakes it evident that the current provisionsand system under the Juvenile Justice Act of2000 "are ill equipped to tackle child offend-ers in this age group", the statement ofobjects and reasons of the bill said.

Referring to the views expressed by thestakeholders about a clause of trying anoffender apprehended after the age of 21, thecommittee said that it was in full agreementwith them that the provision was "discrimi-natory" and all children below 18 yearsshould be treated as children.

"The proposed legislation is meant for chil-dren alleged and found to be in conflict withlaw. And the definition of both the term'child' and 'child in conflict with law' means aperson who has not completed 18 years ofage.

"Accordingly the question of envisaging adifferential treatment for children above 16years of age should not arise. Such a movewould lead to contravention of internationallaw and also the stated purpose of the bill,"the committee said.

"The committee accordingly recommendsthat the entire process needs a relook andreview," it underlined.

Himachal MP...grant, Himachal Pradesh is scheduled to

get Rs 8,009 crore this year (2015-16) itself,"he added.

Man gets ...court, while convicting him, observed that

there was nothing adverse in the conduct ofthe woman and it is "quite natural that theincident may have sent her into a state ofshock, despair and distress."

It also relied on the medical report of thevictim which proved her allegations.

According to prosecution, the woman wasalone at her flat on the intervening night ofSeptember 17-18, 2014 when Ranjeetentered her house and raped her after gaggingher mouth.

When she tried to raise alarm, Ranjeetwent back to his flat in the same building andthe victim called up her daughter who was atwork at that time, it said, adding that a policecomplaint was lodged and he was immedi-ately arrested from his house.

She told the police that the accused used tostay in the same building on a different floorand they had quarrels over petty issues, itsaid.

During the trial, the accused had deniedthe allegations and claimed he was falselyimplicated as there was enmity between himand the woman.

HC notice to ...dubious medicines by a private chemist

shop, having influential political nexus, roleof middlemen in making fake out patientdepartment (OPD) cards".

The PIL filed by advocate PrashantBhushan, also a member of the Aam AadmiParty (AAP), asked Health Minister JPNadda to recuse himself from all cases andfrom acting as a disciplinary authority, alleg-ing that he "unfettered powers to influencethe course of proceedings in all the corrup-tion cases".

Bhushan alleged that Nadda actively par-ticipated in dismantling the newly set up vig-ilance administration and halted all inquiriesinitiated by Chaturvedi by writing numerousletters to various central ministries from May2013 to June 2014.

Pappu Yadav...was against the move to remove Jitan Ram

Manjhi as Bihar Chief Minister, said hewould send his resignation to the RJD Chiefin a few days who can send it to the Speakerif he wants.

Dismissing claim by RJD leaders, includ-ing Lalu's son Tejeswi Yadav, that he was inleague with BJP, Ranjan said he was not con-cerned about what some "petty" leaders thinkand was speaking for RJD workers and sen-ior party leaders who felt hurt at the party'smarginalisation.

"If Lalu ji thinks I won because of him andRJD, then let me tell him that he had giventickets to so many people and they lost. If hefeels hurt by me or thinks I have cheated him,I will send him my resignation from LokSabha membership after he is done with hisdaughter's marriage. He can send it to theLok Sabha Speaker," he told reporters out-side Parliament.

Such a resignation letter will be more of apolitical exercise as a member has to submitthe papers himself to the Speaker if he wish-es to quit.

Ranjan has been in and out of Lalu's partyand enjoys considerable clout in parts ofBihar. His wife Ranjeet Ranajn won LokSabha election on Congress ticket fromBihar.

Attacking Kumar, Ranjan said he has givenplum portfolios to leaders who have beenworking overtime to finish Lalu's career andparty and senior RJD leader Abdul Bari

Siddiqui also said the party was not consult-ed by Kumar about his ministry.

Kumar's party JD(U) is being supported byRJD in the Assembly.

'BJP trying..."The BJP-led Central government is subtly

trying to revert back to the Land AcquisitionAct of 1894 of the British which wasabsolutely exploitative and had been enactedmainly to serve the colonial interests," thetwo-time former chief minister said here.

He said: "It will not be allowed at any costcome what may."

Alleging that BJP can never be a party offarmers, poor sections and small traders,Hooda said, "now it (BJP) probably wants toprove more loyal to the corporate houseswhile ignoring the genuine concerns andapprehensions of millions of farmers acrossthe country."

"The farmers are not getting the right priceof their produce, they are being deprived oftheir right to oppose the land acquisition," hesaid.

The Congress leader also said that theGovernment had "betrayed" the farmers bynot implementing the recommendations ofthe Swaminathan Commission report.

"This government has lost faith of the peo-ple in such a short span. Not a single sectionof society is happy with the government maybe they are farmers, employees or traders. Allare fed up with BJP government at the Centreand in Haryana as well," he said.

Hooda also hit out at the Manohar LalKhattar-government in the state on powerissue.

"People are facing power cuts. If this is thesituation in winter months then what is goingto happen when temperatures rise anddemand for power increases," he said.

Hooda also announced his decision tolaunch a state-wide campaign from Jind inMay against the alleged failures of the stategovernment on various fronts.

Rahul Gandhi....President Sonia Gandhi comes to an end in

September.While it is not clear whether the elevation

could happen at the AICC session itself,which is expected to be held in the first weekof April, top party sources do not discountthe possibility of the Congress Vice Presidenttaking over as the party chief finally thisyear.

Sonia Gandhi has been the longest-servingCongress President since 1998, when shetook over the reins of the party from SitaramKesri.

While Congress under her leadership lostto BJP-led NDA in 1999 general elections, itcatapulted to power in 2004 forming anumbrella coalition of UPA.

Rahul Gandhi was elevated from the postof General Secretary to Vice President in aChintan Shivir in Jaipur in January 2013. Hewas made the virtual face of the Congress in2014 Lok Sabha polls by being anointedchief of the campaign committee.

Despite defeats before and after he becameparty Vice President, Gandhi is consideredthe natural choice because he belongs to theparty's first family.

As speculation gained ground, top leadersremained tight lipped. "Wait for a day or two.Nothing is decided as yet. But I cannot ruleout anything. Ultimately a final decision hasto be taken," said a senior party functionarywhen asked about Gandhi's possible eleva-tion as Congress President at the AICC ses-sion.

Gandhi's sudden sabbatical is also beinglinked with his exasperation at not being ableto see some of his decisions being fullyimplemented. Sources close to him maintainthat it is misnomer that he gets done every-thing what he wants in the party.

Difference between the style of functioningof Gandhi and the old guards have come tofore many a time. A few months ago for thefirst time in the history of Congress, someyoung AICC general secretaries, protestedpublicly against some comments made byseniors while Gandhi's associates drew theire of some senior leaders, which was inter-preted as a veiled attack on the functioning ofthe Congress Vice President.

A meeting of the party's apex decisionmaking body Congress Working Committeewill be held to finalise the agenda of theAICC session. "Much depends on what hap-pens in the CWC," said a source when askedabout Gandhi's possible elevation.

Even in Jaipur, Gandhi's elevation as partyVice President was okayed unanimously at ameeting of CWC.

Gandhi is considered a reluctant politician,who believed power to be "poison", and peo-ple close to him in the party believe that it'stime he takes full control of the party shed-ding the image of a reluctant politician.

Implementation of ...Authorisation (ETA) scheme for 43 coun-

tries. A total of 25,023 tourists arrived inIndia in January this year using the VoAenabled ETA scheme as against 1,903 in thesame month last year, registering a growth of1214.9 percent growth, according to TourismMinistry data.

Government extended the VoA enabledETA facility for 43 countries in November2014. Prior to it, the VoA scheme was inoperation for 12 countries only.

While maximum tourists came from theUS (23.71 percent), followed by Republic ofKorea (18.26 percent), Russian Federation

(14.06 percent), Ukraine (9.99 percent),Australia (8.83 percent) and Germany (6.53percent).

The facility is operational at nine interna-tional airports including all four metropolisand Kochi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad,Trivandrum and Goa.

Power company at Eastern Power Distribution Company of

Andhra Pradesh (APEDCL), was caught byACB sleuths when he accepted a bribe of Rs50,000 from a person doing an officialfavour, an ACB release said here today.

Further investigation is on.

HC seeks...Sahai Endlaw issued notice to authorities

concerned while hearing a PIL which wastransferred to it by the Supreme Court lastmonth.

"Matter has been transferred from theSupreme Court. Issue notice to respondent 1(Centre), respondent 2 (Government ofDelhi-NCT) and respondent 3(Commissioner of Police). Put up for hearingon April 22," the said.

The apex court while transferring the mat-ter in its January 30, 2015 order had said thatit will be appropriate if the matter is dealt bythe High Court as the case pertains to beg-gars' homes in Delhi.

The apex court bench comprising justicesMB Lokur and UU Lalit had also said thatsince the matter is pending for quite sometime, the Delhi High Court is directed to takeup the case on regular basis and pass appro-priate directions at the earliest.

To look into the facilities at beggars'homes, a expert committee was constitutedby the Supreme Court comprising formerAdditional Solicitor General L NageswaraRao, senior advocate Colin Gonsalves andadvocate Indra Sawhney, which submitted itsreport on October 8, 2014, detailing the"inadequate" facilities at such institutions.

A PIL was first filed by Kartikea Sawhneyin the Supreme Court in year 2000, seekingbasic human and fundamental rights for thebeggars in the national capital.

The PIL sought the court's direction forappointing of visiting committees for period-ic visits to these institutions and making ofarrangements for clean shelter, proper food,clothing and other necessary basic amenitiesto the inmates.

Sawhney also sought direction to theCentre for providing vocational training thatwould provide meaningful work and provi-sion of payment of minimum allowance tothe inmates for the work done by them.

Manali, Kalpa...temperature recorded at Kalpa, some 250

km from the state capital, was minus 4degrees Celsius with 11 cm snow, the weath-er office here said.

Manali saw 3 cm snow and recorded minus1.2 degrees Celsius temperature.

The state capital Shimla experienced 16.4mm rain and a low temperature of 6.8degrees Celsius.

The high hills in Lahaul and Spiti, Kinnaur,Kullu, Shimla and Chamba districts havebeen experiencing moderate to heavy snow-fall since early Wednesday, said a weatherdepartment official.

Keylong in Lahaul-Spiti district saw a lowof minus 1.7 degrees Celsius while it was 8.6degree Celsius in Dharamsala. These townssaw 38 cm snow and 12.6 mm rain.

Rain lashed the lower areas of the state likeDharamsala, Palampur, Solan, Nahan,Bilaspur, Una, Hamirpur and Mandi, lower-ing maximum and minimum temperatures byone to two degrees.

Tourist resort Dalhousie in Chamba districtsaw 62 mm rain, highest in the state.

The Met department said western distur-bance -- a storm system originating from theMediterranean-Caspian Sea region and mov-ing across the Afghanistan-Pakistan region --would remain active in the region till March1.

Delhi Police...working towards launching the app on

Apple store and making it available on non-smartphones as well.

More than 30,000 women have down-loaded the app which lets women send a SOSsignals to alert Delhi police control room, asper reports.

It is being said that 5000 women havealready registered themselves with thepolice. Till now only two genuine SOS hasreportedly been generated, with a womancomplaining of domestic violence in Delhiand a teenage girl from Karnal sending aSOS. Meanwhile, eight SOS messages havebeen received from foreign countries.

The teenage girl's complain was regardingharassment by a local youth. Acting swiftly,Delhi Police contacted Karnal SP and askedhim to take action.

Women can take a picture of the taxi orauto that they are travelling in and send it tothe group so that the cops have a record of it.

Man held ...intercepted by customs officials after his

arrival here from Bangkok yesterday."On personal search, two cut pieces of gold

bars weighing 990 gms and valuing Rs 24.68lakh were recovered from slippers worn bythe passenger," a press release issued todayby the customs said.

BY JEAN DRÈZE

An odd silence has surroundedthe National Food SecurityAct (NFSA) in the last few

months — as if food insecurity werea thing of the past. It may be recalledthat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP),far from opposing the Act, vocifer-ously demanded a more comprehen-sive law when the NFSA was beingdiscussed in Parliament in 2013. Insome States, notably Chhattisgarh,the BJP had taken the lead in guaran-teeing entitlements that were laterincluded in the Act, and also in show-ing that the Public DistributionSystem (PDS) can be reformed.Today, however, the Modi govern-ment’s urge to “get things done” doesnot seem to extend to the NFSA.

Step towards food security

This is unfortunate because thenutrition situation in India remainscritical. Very few countries if any,had higher levels of child undernour-ishment in 2005-6, the last time Indiacollected reliable nutrition statisticsat the national level (under the thirdNational Family Health Survey).What happened since then is hard totell. Some surveys, including a gov-ernment-sponsored UNICEF survey,suggest significant improvement.Others, notably the second IndiaHuman Development Survey, pointto very limited progress. This statisti-cal fog, largely due to the failure ofthe fourth National Family HealthSurvey, does not help matters. Whatis clear is that even if substantialprogress took place since 2005-6,undernutrition levels in India remainhigher than almost anywhere else inthe world.

It is no one’s claim that the NFSAis an adequate answer to this prob-lem. The Act has serious flaws, andleaves out some important require-ments of good nutrition (e.g. sanita-tion). Still, effective implementationof NFSA would make an importantcontribution to food security andimproved nutrition. Recent experi-ence shows that a well-functioningPDS makes a big difference to peoplewho live on the margin of subsis-tence. The Act is also an opportunityto strengthen valuable child nutritionprogrammes such as school meals

and the Integrated ChildDevelopment Services.

Central and State governments arejointly responsible for the tardyimplementation of the Act. In somerespects, the blame clearly lies withthe Central government. Forinstance, ever since July 2013, allIndian women have been entitled tomaternity benefits of Rs.6,000 permonth under NFSA. It is the Central

government’s responsibility to designa scheme for this purpose and to fundit. Yet, this critical provision of theAct does not seem to figure in discus-sions of the forthcoming Budget.

A new PDS

In other respects, the State govern-ments also have much to answer for.This applies in particular to food enti-tlements under the PDS. The Act pro-vides for the PDS to cover 75 percent of the rural population and 50per cent of the urban population atthe national level — the correspon-ding ratios are higher in the poorerStates and lower in better-off States.Every eligible household is entitledto 5 kg of foodgrain per person permonth at a nominal price (Rs.3, Rs.2and Rs.1 per kg for rice, wheat andmillets respectively). This wouldmean that the PDS takes care ofabout half of the foodgrain consump-tion of eligible households.

“Even if substantial progress tookplace since 2005-6, undernutritionlevels in India remain higher thanalmost anywhere else in the world.”

This “new PDS” does not requireany increase in public procurement offoodgrains, beyond the levelsachieved in recent years. It is mainlya restructuring of the system, withbroader coverage, lower issue prices

and clear entitlements. Recent expe-rience shows that these steps, alongwith bold PDS reforms, can lead todrastic improvements in the system.This experience is not confined toleader States like Tamil Nadu orChhattisgarh, but now extends tosome lame-duck States as well, e.g.Odisha. Even Bihar, one of the worst-governed States, has achievedremarkable PDS improvements inrecent years.

The NFSA is an opportunity to con-solidate these achievements andextend them across the country. Themain stumbling block is the identifi-cation of eligible households. Whenthe Act was being drafted, it wasassumed that the identificationprocess would be based on the SocioEconomic and Caste Census (SECC).The idea was to use simple and trans-parent “exclusion criteria” (e.g. hav-ing a permanent government job orowning a motorised vehicle) to weed

out relatively well-off households —everyone else would be eligible.SECC is the best available databasefor this purpose.

The SECC saga

Alas, the release of SECC data hasbeen excruciatingly slow. Accordingto the official SECC website, a “draftlist” has been released for about threefourths of India’s districts. However,

data are missing for at least some dis-tricts in half of India’s major States.Where a draft list has been released, a“final list” is supposed to be preparedafter giving every household anopportunity to appeal for corrections— this could take a long time.Meanwhile, for better or worse, someStates have gone ahead and issuedration cards based on the draft SECClist.

Aside from the delay, there areother shortcomings in the SECCprocess. Even in districts for whichdata have been released, the draft listhas important gaps. Also, it is dis-played in an odd format (pdf) thatdoes not lend itself to computersearches or tabulations. This is anembarrassing muddle, consideringthat the Central government spentsome Rs.5,000 crore on this exercise.

In the absence of SECC data, someStates have resorted to shortcuts such

as expanding the old “BPL list”,instead of preparing a new list of eli-gible households. These shortcutstend to be fraught with problems. TheBPL lists, often as old as 2002 oreven 1997, are highly unreliable. Insome States, a well-defined BPL listdoes not even exist — there are dif-ferent lists in different places (e.g. onthe net, at the district level, and at thegram panchayat level), inconsistentwith each other. The SECC approach

is an opportunity to clean this messand prepare a single, transparent, log-ical, digitised list of eligible house-holds.

Bihar’s recent experience showsthe benefits of using SECC data toidentify eligible households, basedon the exclusion approach. The out-dated, elusive and often arbitraryBPL list has been replaced with a farmore reliable list, transparentlylinked to SECC data that are avail-able online. Since the SECC’s house-hold listing corresponds to the 2011population census, the coverage ofSECC data is close to universal.There are, of course, inaccuracies inthe SECC data, but judging from arecent survey of 1,000 households infour districts of Bihar, the errors arerarely such as to exclude a householdthat would otherwise be eligibleunder NFSA.

The main shortcoming of the Bihar

process, as things stand, is that thelist of eligible households is yet to beplaced in the public domain.Nevertheless, this approach is a realbreakthrough compared with theBPL census. West Bengal is now fol-lowing a similar approach.

Committee recommendations

Many other States, however, areunable or unwilling to follow thislead due to delays or gaps in theSECC data. Rajasthan, the first Stateto implement NFSA, made a mess byrelying on an extension of the BPLlist to identify eligible households.Odisha, frustrated with the delays,embarked on an entirely separateidentification process based on self-declaration — a very risky venture.Jharkhand, lagging behind in thesematters, has not moved beyond aseries of vacuous announcements.

Just to add to the confusion, therecent report of the Shanta Kumarcommittee recommends a reductionof the coverage of NFSA from 67 percent to 40 per cent of the population.How this is supposed to be done,halfway through the implementationof the Act, the report does notexplain. Aside from threatening tocause havoc in States that are alreadyimplementing the Act, the report hascreated crippling uncertainties forother States. How is, say, Jharkhandsupposed to follow Bihar’s lead ifthere is a possibility of the expansionof PDS coverage being rolled backany time?

On a more positive note, PDSreforms have made remarkableprogress in many States — evenJharkhand — as they prepared for theFood Security Act. It would take littleto remove the roadblocks, startingwith the release of SECC data, andensure that the Act serves its purpose.This process, however, requires asense of urgency that is wholly lack-ing as things stand.

(Jean Drèze is Visiting Professorat the Department of Economics,

Ranchi University.)

Editorial4 NEW DELHI | THURSDAY | FEB 26, 2015SAADDA HAQ

BY YAMINI MISHRABY REBECCA REICHMANN TAVA

The coming Union budgetis significant for at leasttwo reasons: first, this

will be the new government’smaiden full year budget.Second, with the NITI Aayogreplacing the PlanningCommission, the government islikely to abolish the distinctionbetween plan and non-planbudgets.

This year’s budget is also anopportunity for the governmentto demonstrate its commitmentto gender equality. Genderissues have found consistentmention in official fora, includ-ing in the speeches of the PrimeMinister. Ensuring adequateallocations for policies and pro-grammes for women will helptranslate those commitmentsinto action.

Development challenge

Gender inequality poses a sig-nificant development challengein India. The Global Gender GapIndex 2014 ranked India at 114out of 142 countries. The rank-ing is based on a country’s abili-ty to reduce gender disparities infour areas: economic participa-tion and opportunity, education,political empowerment, andhealth and survival. Violenceagainst women and girls per-sists, both in private and in pub-lic spaces.

As a response to these chal-lenges, India adopted ‘gender-responsive budgeting’ (GRB) in2005. Put simply, GRB is amethod of planning, program-ming and budgeting that helpsadvance gender equality andwomen’s rights. It also serves asan indicator of governments’commitment to meeting thoseobjectives. So far, 57 govern-ment Ministries/departments inIndia have set up GenderBudgeting Cells — a major stepthat could potentially impact thelives of crores of women. An

analysis of GRB in India, 10years after it was adopted, willbe a crucial pointer to the wayforward.

The quantum of allocationsfor schemes relating to women— out of a budget of nearlyRs.18 lakh crore (2014-15 budg-

et estimate) — can be assessedby examining the GenderBudget Statement (GBS) whichwas first introduced in the 2005-06 budget. The analysis showsthat over the last eight years theallocations for women as a pro-portion of the total budget haveremained constant at approxi-mately 5.5 per cent. Further,only about 30 per cent of thedemands for grants, or estimatesof expenditure, presented byMinistries/departments to theUnion government are reportedin the GBS.

Further, allocations to theMinistry of Women and ChildDevelopment (MWCD), thenodal agency for women in thecountry, show a marginalincrease over the last three years— from Rs. 18,584 crore in2012-13 to Rs. 21,193 crore in2014-15. With respect to‘Women Welfare,’ the alloca-tions actually show a downwardtrend — from approximately Rs.930 crore in 2011-12 to aroundRs. 920 crore in 2014-15. Andalmost 87 per cent of the 2014-15 budget of the MWCD was

allocated for the IntegratedChild Development ServicesScheme, leaving only five percent for schemes exclusivelymeant for women.

The UN Committee onElimination of Discriminationagainst Women has emphasised

the need for increased invest-ments for the MWCD and forgender budgets acrossMinistries. In 2014, followingits review of the fourth and fifthperiodic reports submitted bythe Government of India, theCommittee — which monitorsStates’ implementation of theUN Convention on theElimination of All Forms ofDiscrimination against Women(CEDAW) — also reiterated theneed to strengthen institutionssuch as the NationalCommission for Women and theState commissions.

Schemes focussed exclusivelyon women either receivedreduced allocations or were notimplemented, as seen from therevised estimates for 2013-14vis-à-vis the budget estimates ofthe same year. Revised estimatefigures are presented for theongoing fiscal year based on theperformance in the first sixmonths of that year. TheDomestic Violence Act is a casein point. The legislation, enacteda decade ago, received an allo-cation of Rs. 20 crore in 2012-

13. Revised estimate figures for2013-14 show zero allocation,which indicates that the schemelaunched to operationalise theAct did not take off that year.Renamed SAAHAS, the schemewas allocated Rs. 50 crore lastyear. The coming budget willreveal how much of this was

actually spent.

Other schemes such as restora-tive justice for rape victims havealso seen a decline in alloca-tions. The recent launch of the‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’scheme by the new governmentis commendable. Equal attentionmust now be paid to betterimplementation of laws and spe-cial measures for the most mar-ginalised women, as highlightedin the election manifesto of theBharatiya Janata Party.

It will also be important toensure increased spending on allsocial sectors such as health,education and sanitation, giventheir impact on women. Womenbear the greatest burden ofunpaid care work — whichincludes looking after childrenand elderly or sick family mem-bers, cooking and cleaning. Thecall to recognise, redistributeand reduce women’s unpaid carework has gained momentumglobally. This is therefore anopportune time to increase thequantum of allocations to thesocial sector.

Positive trend

A positive trend over the pastcouple of years has been the pre-budget consultations organisedby the Ministry of Finance,aimed at ensuring that the voicesof women are also heard in thebudget making process. Thisyear, in addition to meetingwomen’s rights organisations,the Ministry also held a dialoguewith UN Women along with theMWCD to discuss key issuespertaining to GRB.

In conclusion, the comingbudget can serve as a timelycourse correction. The emphasismust be on the strengthening ofkey institutions, adequateinvestments for schemes thataddress gender concerns and theeffective implementation ofthose schemes.

The coming months will see agreater focus on developmentissues in general, and genderissues in particular, with theadoption of the post-2015 globaldevelopment agenda andreviews of countries’ perform-ance vis-à-vis the BeijingDeclaration and Platform forAction (Beijing+20). The stand-alone goal on gender equalityand women’s empowerment inthe Sustainable DevelopmentGoals is an achievement forwomen’s rights advocates acrossthe globe. It will, however,remain elusive if not backed byadequate investments. The gov-ernment’s first full year budgetis an excellent chance to recog-nise missed opportunities andtake corrective action.

(Yamini Mishra is GenderResponsive Budget Specialistfor Asia Pacific, UN Women,and Dr. Rebecca Reichmann

Tavares is the Representative ofUN Women’s Multicountry

Office (MCO) for India,Bhutan, the Maldives and Sri

Lanka.)

Rahul on leaveThursday | February 26, 2015

SAADDA HAQ

Food insecurity and statistical fog

Our team will publish yourthoughts send us your articlesat news.saaddahaq@gmail.com

The rise of the liberal-right intellectual

Rahul Gandhi could not have chosen a worsemoment for self-introspection, coinciding as itdoes with a parliamentary budget session. The

Bharatiya Janata Party’s humiliating defeat in therecent Delhi Assembly elections, and the unqualifiedsupport for the Congress-led United ProgressiveAlliance’s Land Acquisition Act — that the Modi gov-ernment diluted in an ordinance and now seeks to trans-form into an Act of Parliament — provides the perfectsetting for the Grand Old Party to take on the role of aneffective leader of the opposition in Parliament. And, asMr. Gandhi was the moving spirit behind the previousUPA government’s Land Acquisition Act, the Congresscould have used the legislation’s current cause célèbrestatus to relaunch its heir apparent. The party had evenannounced that he would address a public meeting onthe issue at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on February 25. ForMr. Gandhi, therefore, it is not just a case of anothermissed opportunity: the “leave of absence” he has takento “reflect on recent events and [the] future course ofthe party” has left Congress president Sonia Gandhiembarrassed, and the party faithful stunned — andbewildered. So much so that the official explanationthat Mr. Gandhi would shortly “return and resume hisactive participation in the affairs of the Congress” isnot being bought entirely even by senior party func-tionaries — which is also a testimony to the markedlack of transparency within the party. The speculativeexplanations proffered by party leaders, however,ranged from the plausible to the bizarre. One, Ms.Gandhi’s coterie was resisting his elevation and oppos-ing the changes he wished to institute in the party. Two,it was a prelude to his exit from politics, as Mr. Gandhiwas tired of being the fall guy, including after therecent Delhi polls. Three, he was finally getting mar-ried. If there is no evidence for the third explanation,Mr. Gandhi had planned a two-month sabbatical start-ing in the last week of January, before the Delhi polls— eventually, Ms. Gandhi persuaded him against it.However, the first holds a germ of truth as the Congressis clearly engaged in its own internal politics ratherthan in a project of revival. But damaging as Mr.Gandhi’s “leave of absence” is for the Congress, it isconsistent with his known need for frequent breaks.The Congress has shown no signs yet of demanding analternative leadership; it can now only hope that Mr.Gandhi returns refreshed for the unveiling of a plan ofaction at the All India Congress Committee conclavecoming up in early April.

This is unfortunate because the nutrition situation in India remains critical. Veryfew countries if any, had higher levels of child undernourishment in 2005-6, thelast time India collected reliable nutrition statistics at the national level (underthe third National Family Health Survey). What happened since then is hard to

tell. Some surveys, including a government-sponsored UNICEF survey, suggest sig-nificant improvement. Others, notably the second India Human Development

Survey, point to very limited progress. This statistical fog, largely due to the fail-ure of the fourth National Family Health Survey, does not help matters. What isclear is that even if substantial progress took place since 2005-6, undernutrition

levels in India remain higher than almost anywhere else in the world.

Gender inequality poses a significant developmentchallenge in India. The Global Gender Gap Index 2014ranked India at 114 out of 142 countries. The ranking is

based on a country’s ability to reduce gender disparitiesin four areas: economic participation and opportunity,

education, political empowerment, and health andsurvival. Violence against women and girls persists, both

in private and in public spaces.

State Watch 5NEW DELHI | THURSDAY | FEB 26, 2015SAADDA HAQ

PATNA, FEB 25Bihar Chief Minister Nitish

Kumar will seek confidence vote onMarch 11 at the onset of the 179thsession of the Legislative Assemblyand his government will table thestate budget next day.

The decision regarding the trustvote was taken today at the firstcabinet meeting of Kumar's fourthterm as the Chief Minister. Kumarpresided over the meeting.

Throwing light on the date of theconfidence vote, PrincipalSecretary (Cabinet Coordination) BPradhan said, "The 179th session ofthe Bihar legislature will start onMarch 11 with Governor KeshariNath Tripathi's addressing the jointsitting of the Legislative Assemblyand the Legislative Council.

The council of ministers hasdecided to take the floor test on thesame day."

Pradhan said the state EconomicSurvey would also be tabled onMarch 11 itself. The government

will table its budget for the finan-cial year 2015-16 on March 12 andthe Assembly will also take updebate on Governor's address onthe same day.

The debate will continue onMarch 13 as well and end with the

government's reply on it. Vote-on-Accounts will be taken

on March 17.The session of the legislature will

continue till April 22 and will havetotal 27 working days during thisperiod.

Nitish Kumar to seek trust vote on March 11

AHMEDABAD, FEB 25A special court for

Prevention of MoneyLaundering Act (PMLA) caseson Wednesday rejected the pre-arrest bail application of sus-pended IAS officer PradeepSharma.

Principal district judge S CSrivastava rejected his antici-patory bail plea, observing thatthere was a prima-facie caseagainst Sharma.

The court also said thatSharma, who is an IAS officer,could influence the probe.

The Special PublicProsecutor for EnforcementDirectorate Rajesh Kanani ear-lier argued that Sharma hadgranted some favours to aKutch-based private companyby selling the land at very lowrate.

Sharma's lawyer, advocateDinesh Patel, argued that EDfiled the case after a delay ofmore than ten years. It had

never demanded Sharma's cus-tody when he was in the cus-tody of Gujarat anti-corruptionbureau, he added.

In March 2012, ED regis-tered a case against Sharma forallegedly selling governmentland at cheaper rate to Kutch-based Welspun Group when hewas the District Collector in2003-04.

He alloted land at 25 per centof the market rate, whichcaused a loss of Rs 1.2 crore tothe state exchequer, it said.

In return, the company madeSharma's wife 30 per cent part-ner in one of its subsidiaries,Value Packaging, and extendedher a benefit of Rs 29.5 lakh, itsaid.

The state CID as well as ACBhave filed separate FIRsagainst him in the same case.Sharma was arrested by ACBon September 30 last year. ABhuj court granted him bail onJanuary 29 this year.

Suspended IAS offi-cer Pradeep Sharma

denied pre-arrest bail

RAIPUR, FEB 25Employees of the Chhattisgarh govern-

ment will now be able to attend "shakhas"of RSS with the ruling BJP lifting the banon their participation in "non politicalactivities" of the Sangh Pariwar.

The opposition Congress has dubbedthe move as "harmful to democraticprocess".

The state government has revoked theban which was imposed during undividedMadhya Pradesh, barring governmentemployees from participating in RSS'activities, Special Secretary, GeneralAdministration Department, DD Singh,told a news agency.

The order in this connection was issuedby the department last week, he said.

The order issued during erstwhileMadhya Pradesh specified that participat-ing in RSS activities or functions by thegovernment employees would be a viola-tion of the Civil Services rules, Singh

said.In neighbouring Madhya Pradesh, also

ruled by BJP, the ban was lifted a fewyears back but was still in place inChhattisgarh, but it has been removednow, he said.

However, he said the ban on participat-ing in political activities is still in force.

The opposition Congress has protestedagainst the move saying it will harm thedemocratic system of the country.

"The move will dilute the differencebetween government and a political party.RSS has been claiming to be a social-service apolitical outfit but everyone iswell aware of the fact that they are run-ning the BJP from backdoor."

"Hence, association of governmentemployees with such organisation willharm the democratic process," said TSSinghdeo, Leader of Opposition inLegislative Assembly.

Chhattisgarh ?govt allows staff tojoin apolitical activities of Sangh

PATNA, FEB 25The BJP on

Wednesday tookexception to restora-tion of Amir Subhanito the post ofPrincipal Secretary(Home), alleging thathe had failed to dealwith law and ordersituation duringNitish Kumar's earli-er five-year stint asCM which wasmarred by serialblasts in Bodh Gayaand Patna among ahost of other majorincidents.

Senior BJP leaderSushil Kumar Modisaid that Kumar

restored him thoughserial blasts at BodhGaya and Patna andthe death of 33 peo-ple in stampede herelast year occurredwhen Subhani was inthat post.

"How come therecan be improvementon law and orderfront under steward-ship of an officialwhose previoustenure had seen rapidspurt in crime?"Modi asked in a state-ment.

Former chief minis-ter Jitan Ram Manjhihad removed Subhanifrom the post of

Principal Secretary(Home) three monthsago and replaced himwith a Dalit bureau-crat Sudhir Kumar, adecision with whichNitish Kumar wasreportedly unhappy.

The senior IASofficial's continuationas the PrincipalSecretary (Home)had evoked sharpreaction from the BJPearlier too but JD(U)came to the rescue ofthe bureaucrat charg-ing the saffron partywith victimising theofficial on religiousground.

The Chief Minister

had effected a majora d m i n i s t r a t i v ereshuffle yesterdayrestoring a number ofsenior bureaucrats,including Subhani, tokey posts they hadheld earlier beforebeing shunted out byManjhi.

Modi also ques-tioned the timing ofthe administrativereshuffle and wantedto know whether itwas done on the basisof merit or consider-ing the 'help they willrender' to the rulingJD(U) during theAssembly polls duelater this year.

PATNA, FEB 25Over 10,000 lawyers of Patna

High Court abstained from workfor the second day onWednesday to protest againstnew rules pertaining to filing ofcases and demand constructionof new building for better sittingarrangements for advocates.

The lawyers' agitation, calledby the Coordination Committeeof three associations of the PatnaHigh Court lawyers, got a majorboost today with the Bihar StateBar Council extending support toit.

The meeting of the Bihar StateBar Council today backeddemands of the CoordinationCommittee for cancelling thenew rules in the filing of peti-tions and construction of a newbuilding to facilitate proper sit-ting arrangements for lawyers,its chairman A M C Shrivastava

said.Former President of Bar

Council of India Suraj NarayanPrasad Sinha, Rajendra Singhand Yogesh Chandra Verma wereamong others who participatedin the council meeting.

The HC administration recent-ly came up with new rules whichmade it mandatory for lawyers tostand in queque for rectifying thedefects which earlier was doneby their assistants which trig-gered protest by lawyers.

The meeting, attended byPresident of Advocates'Association and CoordinationCommittee ChairmanVindhyakeshri Kumar, BarAssociation Chief Abhay KumarSingh and Lawyers AssociationPresident Uma Shankar onMonday evening resolved toabstain from work till theirdemands were fulfilled.

BJP slams Nitish Kumar for restor-ing Amir Subhani to PS's post

Patna HC lawyerscontinue to boycott work

17 girls hospitalisedfor suspected foodpoisoningRAJAHMUNDRY, FEB 25

At least 17 girls lodged at a government-run SC/ST hostel here in East Godavari dis-trict of Andhra Pradesh have been hospi-talised for suspected food poisoning aftereating contaminated food, police said onWednesday.

The girls, all studying in Class X, wererushed to the Rajahmundry GovernmentGeneral hospital for treatment last nightafter they began vomiting and complainedof loose motions and giddiness post dinner,they said.

Soon after the incident, RajahmundryMunicipal Corporation Chairman RajaniSesha Sai visited the hospital to check onthe victims and directed health officials totake all measures for their speedy recovery.

According to hospital sources, the condi-tion of the girls is stable now.

Police have collected food samples fromthe hostel in Devichowk area and investi-gations are on.

New Delhi: Government hasgiven its go-ahead to the visitof a team from the USDepartment of Transportation(DOT) to carry out safetymechanism at the GMR-runHyderabad Airport, sourcessaid.

National carrier Air India isthe only carrier which oper-ates to the US from Hyderabadvia Delhi, and its passengershave to undergo securitycheck at both the airports peri-or to flying to the US.

If the US DOT team clearsthe security mechanism at theHyderabad airport, passengerswill not have to undergo a sec-ond security check at theDelhi Airport, the sourcessaid.

"Government has given itsapproval to the US

Department of Transportationto send its team for a safetyaudit of the HyderabadAirport," official sources said.

When asked by when theteam was expected to vist andcommplete its audit, the offi-cial said the schedule wasbeing worked out.

Air India had launched itsHyderabad-Delhi -Chicagoflight in 2010. And since thattime, the passengers have toundergo such a rigrous exer-cise.

"Due to security issues, thepassengers of this flight arefirst de-planed at the DelhiAirport and then they go for asecurity check and then boardthe plane again for flying tothe US, which is very incon-venient, especially for eldelypassengers," the sources said.

US team to carry outsafety mechanism at

Hyderbad airport

GANDHINAGAR, FEB 25A bill aimed at reforming labour

laws, was passed in the GujaratAssembly on Wednesday afterCongress MLAs walked out protest-ing against the bill, claiming it to be"pro-industry" and "anti-labour".

The BJP-led state governmenttabled the 'The Labour Laws(Gujarat Amendment) Bill, 2015' inthe House for its approval.

The Bill aims to amend certainprovisions in labour laws applicablein Gujarat, including the IndustrialDisputes Act 1947, Minimum WagesAct 1948, Factories Act, ContractLabour Act and Employees'Compensation Act, among others.

One amendment in the bill propos-es to introduce a "compromise" for-mula between industry and labour incase of any dispute.

While presenting the bill in theHouse, Gujarat state Labour andEmployment Minister Vijay Rupani

stated that Gujarat would become thefirst state to introduce the provisionwhere both parties could end theirdispute through a compromise,called "compounding of offences".

"This provision will reduce unnec-essary and endless litigations, ascourt cases go on for years. Thus, wewant to introduce a system wherelabourers can arrive at compromisewith the employer without approach-ing court," Rupani said in his speech.

"For this, government will chargeup to Rs 21,000 as penalty from theemployer and give 75 percent of thatpenalty money to the affectedemployee or employees. This willbring quick solutions and reduce bur-den on courts," Rupani said.

However, senior Congress MLAShaktisinh Gohil took strong objec-tion to this amendment in labourlaws and asked the minister to with-draw it. "Labour laws are created toinfuse a sense of fear among employ-

ers, that if they will break it, theywould face a criminal case. But thisnew provision will encourage themto break the law and get away with itby paying only Rs 21,000. Why doesthe government not want industrial-ists to be prosecuted and let them goeasily," Gohil asked during hisspeech.

Gohil alleged that the maximumfine of Rs 21,000 is a very smallamount for industrialists to pay.

"The Supreme Court said that it iscompulsory to pay minimum wage.If you violate this order, you willhave to face a criminal case. Now,the Gujarat government wantslabourers to arrive at a compromiseinstead of knocking at the doors ofthe court. This is certainly anti-labour. We oppose this move," Gohilsaid. However, in his defence,Rupani clarified that "compromise"would happen only if both the partiesagree to it.

Labour Bill passed in GujaratAssembly as Congress walks out

Mild quake inGuntur, PrakasamdistrictHYDERABAD, FEB 25

Mild tremors were felt inPrakasam district and partsof Guntur district in AndhraPradesh this morning.

The quake, with a magni-tude of 4 on the RichterScale was felt at 6.09 am,and its epicentre was nearOngole in Prakasam dis-trict, according to theNational GeophysicalResearch Institute (NGRI)o b s e r v a t o r yhere.

"The tremors were felt inthe distance of around 60-70 km area from its epicen-tre. It was a low intensityquake and the area is seis-mically active with smallmagnitude earthquake it isnothing to worry," NGRIchief scientist R K Chaddhasaid.

The quake was felt foraround 5 seconds.

There was no immediatereport of any loss of life ordamage to property.

Miscreants hold upand rob vehicles inNawadaNAWADA, FEB 25

Armed miscreants waylaid vehicles on abusy route in Nawada district of Bihar andlooted cash and valuables worth severallakhs from passengers, the police said.

The incident occured near Mangura Roadon Kadriganj - Roh route during the weehours today. Qadriganj Sub-InspectorDharmendra Kumar said the criminals hadfelled a tree on the road to obstruct the pass-ing vehicles. "Two buses stopped there see-ing the obstruction. The miscreants robbedpassengers of their cash, ornaments, mobilephones and other valuables. Several womenwere among those who were looted,"Kumar said. The police official added thatan FIR has been registered and raids arebeing conducted to nab the personsinvolved in the hold-up. This is the sixthincident of road robbery in the district inthe last two weeks.

Atmaram Parmar elected asdeputy Speaker of GujaratAssemblyGANDHINAGAR, FEB 25

Atmaram Parmar, former minister andsitting BJP MLA from Gadhda inBhavnagar district, was on Wednesdayelected as the deputy Speaker of the stateAssembly. Congress had fielded itsDahod MLA Chandrika Bariya in theelection; however, the contest was one-sided as BJP enjoys a comfortable major-ity. Parmar, 62, a Dalit, was electedthrough a voice vote. The electionbecame necessary as the Speaker GanpatVasava is hospitalised and being treatedfor swine flu. BJP MLA from Kutch DrNeemaben Acharya, who was on the five-member panel of substitute speakers, wasthe acting Speaker since Monday. AfterParmar was elected in the first half today,he took over from her. Parmar, a lawyeras well as a farmer by profession, is afive-time MLA and had served as minis-ter of state for social welfare in NarendraModi government during 2002-07. Hewas also the deputy chief whip of BJPfrom May 2014.

Gujarat riots: verdictin UK nationals'

killing cas e on Feb 27AHMEDABAD, FEB 25

A special trial court is likely to pronounce verdict thisweek in the case related to killing of three British nationalsat Prantij town in Himmatnagar district during the 2002post-Godhra riots in Gujarat.

Principal district judge I C Shah of Himmatnagar court islikely to deliver the verdict on February 27, prosecutionsources said.

The Supreme Court-appointed special investigation teamhad charged six persons with the killing of four personsincluding three Indian-origin Britons.

On February 28, 2002, a day after Godhra train burningincident, Imran Dawood and his UK-based uncles SaeedDawood, Shakeel Dawood and Mohammad Aswat wereattacked by a mob at Prantij in Sabarkantha district ofGujarat.

Saeed, Shakeel, Mohammad Aswat and their car driverYusuf Piraghar, a local, were burnt alive by the mob on thenational highway 8, while Imran managed to save himselfwith the help of police.

Mithanbhai Patel, Chandu alias Prahlad Patel, RameshPatel, Manoj Patel, Rajesh Patel and Kalabhai Patel, all res-idents of Prantij, are the accused.

The Supreme Court started monitoring the progress ofnine cases from post-Godhra riots period -- Prantij, GulbergSociety, Naroda Patiya, Naroda Gaam, Ode village (twocases), Dipda Darwaja, Sardarpura and Godhra -- after theNational Human Rights Commission and various NGOstermed the investigation as shoddy and unreliable.

SHIMLA, FEB 25The entire tribal belt and higher

hills of Himachal Pradesh experi-enced another spell of heavy snow-fall while mid and lower hills werelashed by intermittent rains disrupt-ing power supply at some places andblocking link roads in the interiorareas. The tribal valleys of Lahaulwere hit by a blizzard while Kinnaurdistrict, Rohtang, Kunzam andSaach passes received heavy snow-fall whereas Palampur in Kangrawas lashed by a hailstorm, Metdepartment said today.

The snow storm and hail disruptedpower supply at many places inLahaul-Spiti, Kinnaur, Kullu andsome other places while over 50roads were blocked due to snowfall.

However, all major state andnational highways in non- tribalareas were through for vehiculartraffic. Keylong and Kalpa in tribalareas received 60 cm and 45 cm ofsnow while Rohtang Pass and upperManali region received 60 cm to 100cm of fresh snowfall.

Manali had 15 cm of fresh snowwhile Chitkul and Sangla valleysrecorded 50 cm and 15 cm of snow.

Most parts of Lahual valley, partsof Kinnaur and some areas in Kullu

district were without power while 65roads in Rampur, Kullu, Dalhousieand Chamba were blocked due tosnow. Fifteen roads were opened bythis evening while 40 more roadswould be opened tomorrow,Superintending Engineer (Works)Ajay Garg said. All schools inLahaul-Spiti district have beenclosed for February 25 and 26 andavalanche threat loomed large overthe tribal areas and people have beenadvised to stay indoors. Palampur inKangra district was lashed by a hail-storm this evening causing damageto Stone fruit and Rabi crop. Thehailstorm accompanied by intermit-tent rains and strong winds causedsharp fall in mercury and peoplewere forced to rush indoors. The midand lower hills were lashed by inter-mittent rains and Dalhousie waswettest in the region with 62 mmrains while Bhandal received 60 mmrains followed by Chamba 45 mm,Saloni 44 mm, Kheri 35 mm,Bhuntar 30 mm, Kasol 31 mm,Seobagh 30 mm, Manali and Karsog25 mm, Banjar and Bijahi 24 mm,Dehra Gopipur 23 mm, Jubbarhattiand Mashobra 23 mm, Shimla 21mm, Dharamsala 19 mm andSeobag and Bhandal 16 mm.

Heavy snowfall in tribalareas of Himachal

Terming the cyber-security threat as a"big challenge",

Home Minister RajnathSingh on Wednesday saidan experts committee setup to suggest ways to tack-le the problem is likely tosubmit its report in threemonths.

"Cyber-security threat isa big challenge for thecountry. Effective stepshave been taken tostrengthen cyber-security,"he said in Rajya Sabhaduring the Question Hour.

The Minister said anexperts committee hasbeen set up to suggestways and means tostrengthen cyber-securityin the country and it islikely to submit its reportand recommendations

within three months.

He was replying to asupplementary question inregard to security breach atdomestic airports.

Minister of State forHome Affairs H PChaudhary said 30 securitybreaches have been report-ed at airports since 2011including the latest one atthe Nagpur airport onFebruary 5.

He said Bureau of CivilAviation Security (BCAS),under the Ministry of CivilAviation, investigates intoincidents of lapses andsecurity breaches.

BCAS has taken steps tostrengthen securityarrangements, whichinclude time-bound

deployment of CentralIndustrial Security Force atairports and QuickReaction Teams at majorairports.

Chaudhary replied innegative when asked ifgovernment was planningto hand over certainaspects of security meas-ures to private agencies.

NEW DELHI | THURSDAY | FEB 26, 2015SAADDA HAQScience & Tech6

1. The mean distance of the earth from the sun isapproximatelyA. 149,502,000 km B. 150,503,000 kmC. 148,000,000 km D. 150,000,000 km

2. The major control over the form of the developingslope is exerted byA. inputs to the hill slopeB. outputs from the hill slopeC. balance between inputs and outputs from the hillslope systemD. None of the above

3. The middle latitude extends betweenA. 23(1/2)? North to 32(1/2)? SouthB. 23(1/2)? and 66? in both the hemispheresC. 66? North to 66? SouthD. North pole and South pole

4. The major graphite producing country isA. Russia B. Sri LankaC. India D. Zaire

5. The maximum soil fertility occurs in the pH rangeofA. 5.0 to 6.2 B. 6.0 to 7.2C. 7.0 to 8.2 D. 4.0 to 5.2

QUIZ TIME

Answer: 1(A), 2 (C), 3(B), 4(B), 5(B)

12:00AM Tu Mera Hero12:30AM Tu Mera Hero01:00AM Tu Mera Hero01:30AM Tu Mera Hero02:00AM Tu Mera Hero

02:30AM Tu Mera Hero03:00AM Tu Mera Hero03:30AM Suhani Si Ek Ladki04:00AM Saath Nibhaana Saathiya04:30AM Everest05:00AM Diya Aur Baati Hum05:30AM Nisha Aur Uske Cousins06:00AM Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam

Doon...Ek Baar Phir06:30AM Ye Hai Mohabbatein07:00AM Tu Mera Hero07:30AM Veera: Ek Veer Ki Ardaas08:00AM Suhani Si Ek Ladki08:30AM Everest09:00AM Diya Aur Baati Hum09:30AM Ye Hai Mohabbatein10:00AM Saath Nibhaana Saathiya10:30AM Tu Mera Hero11:00AM Veera: Ek Veer Ki Ardaas11:30AM Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam

Doon...Ek Baar Phir12:00PM Diya Aur Baati Hum12:30PM Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai01:00PM Ye Hai Mohabbatein01:30PM Tu Mera Hero02:00PM Diya Aur Baati Hum02:30PM MasterChef India03:00PM Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai03:30PM Suhani Si Ek Ladki04:00PM Saath Nibhaana Saathiya04:30PM Nisha Aur Uske Cousins05:00PM Veera: Ek Veer Ki Ardaas05:30PM Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam

Doon...Ek Baar Phir06:00PM MasterChef India06:30PM Suhani Si Ek Ladki07:00PM Saath Nibhaana Saathiya07:30PM Ye Hai Mohabbatein08:00PM Tu Mera Hero08:30PM Nisha Aur Uske Cousins09:00PM Diya Aur Baati Hum09:30PM Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai10:00PM Everest10:30PM MasterChef India11:00PM Ye Hai Mohabbatein11:30PM Tu Mera Hero _____________________________

12:00AM Teleshopping02:00AM Jodha Akbar02:30AM KumkumBhagya

03:00AM Jamai Raja03:30AM Doli Armaano Ki04:00AM Baba Ramdev Ka Yog05:00AM Narayan Seva05:30AM Teleshopping06:00AM Sant Nirankari Mandal06:30AM The Faith show07:00AM Satrangi Sasural07:30AM Creflo Dollar and Taffi

Dollar08:00AM Teleshopping09:00AM Kumkum Bhagya09:30AM Bandhan....Sari Umar

Hume Sang Rehna Hai10:00AM Qubool Hai10:30AM Hello Pratibha11:00AM Doli Armaano Ki11:30AM Satrangi Sasural

12:00PM Jamai Raja12:30PM Kumkum Bhagya01:00PM Jodha Akbar01:30PM Doli Armaano Ki02:00PM Satrangi Sasural02:30PM Jamai Raja03:00PM Kumkum Bhagya03:30PM Hello Pratibha04:00PM SaReGaMaPa L’il Champs04:30PM Bandhan....Sari Umar

Hume Sang Rehna Hai05:00PM Jodha Akbar05:30PM Qubool Hai06:00PM Kumkum Bhagya06:30PM Service Wali Bahu07:00PM Bandhan....Sari Umar

Hume Sang Rehna Hai07:30PM Hello Pratibha08:00PM Jodha Akbar08:30PM Jamai Raja09:00PM Kumkum Bhagya09:30PM Qubool Hai10:00PM Satrangi Sasural10:30PM Doli Armaano Ki11:00PM Service Wali Bahu11:30PM Jamai Raja _________________________

12:00AM ComedyNights with Kapil0 1 : 0 0 A MTeleshopping

02:00AM Shastri Sisters03:30AM Sasural Simar Ka05:00AM Iskcon Aarti05:30AM Sasural Simar Ka06:00AM Teleshopping07:00AM Narayan Sewa Sansthan

Trust07:30AM Home Shop 1808:00AM Balika Vadhu - Kacchi Umar

Ke Pakke Rishte08:30AM Shastri Sisters09:00AM Meri Aashiqui Tum Se Hi09:30AM Udaan10:00AM Chakravartin Ashoka

Samrat11:00AM Sasural Simar Ka11:30AM Udaan12:00PM Meri Aashiqui Tum Se Hi12:30PM Code Red01:30PM Shastri Sisters02:00PM Udaan02:30PM Meri Aashiqui Tum Se Hi03:00PM Chakravartin Ashoka

Samrat04:00PM Sasural Simar Ka04:30PM Comedy Nights with Kapil06:00PM Udaan06:30PM Meri Aashiqui Tum Se Hi07:00PM Shastri Sisters07:30PM Sasural Simar Ka08:00PM Balika Vadhu - Kacchi Umar

Ke Pakke Rishte08:30PM Udann09:00PM Chakravartin Ashoka

Samrat10:00PM Meri Aashiqui Tum Se Hi10:30PM Code Red11:30PM Udaan __________________________

12:00AM SoundShuffle0 1 : 0 0 A M

Teleshopping

06:30AM Morning Music Mocha07:00AM Morning Music Mocha08:00AM Jump Starter09:00AM Morning Music Mania10:30AM Tweet Your Beat11:00AM Bindass Juke Box12:00PM Yeh Hai Aashiqui01:00PM Halla Bol (2)02:00PM Love By Chance03:00PM Teleshopping03:45PM Bounce04:00PM Yeh Hai Aashiqui05:00PM Fb Jukebox06:00PM Yeh Hai Aashiqui07:00PM Halla Bol (2)08:00PM Love By Chance09:00PM Halla Bol (2)10:00PM Yeh Hai Aashiqui11:00PM Love By Chance _____________________________

12:00AM V SuperstarPreview12:30AM Sadda HaqMy Life My Choice

01:00AM Gumrah02:00AM Sadda Haq My Life My

Choice03:00AM Gumrah04:00AM V Distractions04:30AM Million Dollar Girl05:00AM Sadda Haq My Life My

Choice06:00AM Gumrah07:00AM V Superstar Preview07:30AM Million Dollar Girl08:00AM Sadda Haq My Life My

Choice09:00AM V Distractions09:30AM Sadda Haq My Life My

Choice12:30PM Million Dollar Girl01:00PM Gumrah02:00PM Sadda Haq My Life My

Choice03:00PM Million Dollar Girl03:30PM V Superstar Preview04:00PM Specials05:00PM Gumrah05:30PM V Distractions06:00PM Million Dollar Girl06:30PM Sadda Haq My Life My

Choice07:30PM V Distractions08:00PM Gumrah09:00PM Million Dollar Girl09:30PM V Superstar Preview10:00PM Sadda Haq My Life My

Choice11:00PM V Distractions11:30PM Million Dollar Girl _____________________________

12:00AM ComedyClasses12:30AM ComedyClasses

01:00AM Supercops vsSupervillains... Shapath : Ghosts

02:00AM Best of Savdhaan India:India Fights Back : UP Fight BackNow

03:00AM Mahakumbh - Ek RahasayaEk Kahani ! : Kahani Rudra Ki

04:00AM Supercops vsSupervillains... Shapath : Ghosts

05:00AM Best of Savdhaan India:India Fights Back : Mumbai FightsBack

06:00AM Best of Savdhaan India:India Fights Back : UP Fight BackNow

07:00AM Best of Savdhaan India:India Fights Back : 11 Crime Alert

07:30AM Mere Rang Mein RangneWali

08:00AM Mahakumbh - EkRahasaya Ek Kahani ! : KahaniRudra Ki

08:30AM Comedy Classes09:00AM Mere Rang Mein Rangne

Wali09:30AM Ajeeb Daastaan Hai Ye10:00AM Mahakumbh - Ek

Rahasaya Ek Kahani ! : KahaniRudra Ki

10:30AM Mere Rang Mein RangneWali

11:00AM Ajeeb Daastaan Hai Ye11:30AM Mahakumbh - Ek

Rahasaya Ek Kahani ! : KahaniRudra Ki

12:00PM Best of Savdhaan India:India Fights Back : Mumbai FightsBack

01:00PM Best of Savdhaan India:India Fights Back

02:00PM Best of Savdhaan India:India Fights Back : Mumbai FightsBack

03:00PM Best of Savdhaan India:India Fights Back

04:00PM Best of Savdhaan India:India Fights Back

05:00PM Best of Savdhaan India:India Fights Back

06:00PM Best of Savdhaan India:India Fights Back : 11 Crime Alert

06:30PM Best of Savdhaan India:India Fights Back

07:30PM Mere Rang Mein RangneWali

08:00PM Mahakumbh - EkRahasaya Ek Kahani !

08:30PM Laut Aao Trisha09:30PM Ajeeb Daastaan Hai Ye10:00PM Comedy Classes10:30PM Savdhaan India: India

Fights Back11:30PM Mahakumbh - Ek

Rahasaya Ek Kahani ! ___________________________

02:00AM C.I.D05:00AM Bhakti0 6 : 0 0 A MTeleshopping06:30AM Bhakti

07:00AM Teleshopping08:30AM C.I.D08:00PM Itna Karo Na Mujhe Pyaar08:30PM Muh Boli Shaadi09:00PM Tum Aise Hi Rehna09:30PM Hum Hain Na10:00PM Bharat Ka Veer Putra:

Maharana Pratap10:30PM Itna Karo Na Mujhe Pyaar11:00PM Bhanwar

TV Channels Schedule TODAY’S STARARIES Venturing into something new and different may be what you

need, Aries. You have a very solid, practical side to your per-sonality, but the need for excitement and adventure is likely tobe just as strong. If you've had your nose to the grindstonerecently, take some time off for fun. Visit a friend or, better yet,drive to a place you haven't been to and explore.

TAURUS You may want to learn about something today, Taurus. At work andhome there's a set schedule of what you must tend to and when. Onyour own time, you're free to research anything your heart desires.Intellectual growth is something you enjoy, so why not spend timeonline or in the library finding out more about your favorite things?Whether cooking or genealogy, you will find something new.

GEMINI If you happen to meet new people today, Gemini, be careful. Somefolks appear interesting because they're bold or dangerous. Perhapsthey do things you'd never dream of doing. This may seem interest-ing, but it can lead to trouble and hurt you if you aren't careful. Stickto your usual standards and ethics. If danger excites you too much,it may be time to reexamine your life and change things.

CANCER You might have to make a choice between telling the truth andlying today, Cancer. In some circumstances, this can be diffi-cult, especially if you're afraid you will hurt someone's feel-ings. Keep in mind that a lie can take more energy than thetruth. Consider what you would want the other person to do inyour place. Stick to your morals and ethics even if it's tough.

LEO You're known to be kindhearted. However, being taken advan-tage of can happen as a result. It's important for you to trustyour instincts to prevent this from happening. If what you heardoesn't match your feelings, trust your feelings. If you thinkyou're being used, try to move past it. It would be a real shameif resentment permanently squelched your giving nature.

VIRGO Your nature is intense, Virgo. You probably feel things deeply andspend a lot of time lost in thought. Yet, too much intensity cantake a toll on your health and well-being. It might be time to goout and enjoy yourself. Get up from the chair and take a walk.Meet someone for lunch or do a little shopping or yoga. Findsomething active to do to break the monotony of your routine.

LIBRA Feed your mind today, Libra. While you no doubt enjoy beingactive and social, you get bored fairly quickly, too. You need aconstant supply of intriguing, fresh material in order to feelyour best. Explore an interesting subject or learn a new hobby.Stimulate your mind and your body will become more ener-getic. Use the Internet if you can't get away.

SCORPIO If you think you have to prove that you have something valuableto offer, Scorpio, consider this carefully. You're naturally friendlyand can get along with almost anyone. This may already be yourstrength. You have something great to bring to a crowd. Considerbeing yourself and not trying so hard to feel a part of things. Lookat your qualities and you will prove your worth to yourself.

SAGITTARIUSConsider putting your problem-solving skills to work today,Sagittarius. You have a real flair for investigating situations andfiguring out what happened. If something comes your way thatseems mysterious, take the bull by the horns and get to the truth.If you're baffled, use the process of elimination to narrow thingsdown. Stick with it and you will learn what's what in no time.

CAPRICORN Capricorn, don't be fooled by others who aren't straight withyou. If you don't know the person well, trust your instincts. Youtend to care for others, so it can be easy for you to feel sorryfor someone and be inclined to help. Make sure that the per-son you help really deserves it and is telling you the wholestory. Taking this extra time can save you problems later.

AQUARIUS It could be easy to get carried away today, Aquarius. You mightget caught up in some excitement or base your decisions onanother's word. You need to use your head on a day like this.Double-check everything and moderate your activities. Keep yourlimitations in mind. There's nothing that says you can't do what-ever it is that catches your eye. Just use caution and stay safe.

PISCES The energy that you feel today may have you so jittery that oth-ers don't know what to do with you, Pisces. The day's influencescan bring a boost. You'd be wise to plan things to do to expend itall. Get busy with physical chores at work or home. Pull things outand organize, move furniture around, whatever it takes. It's betterto be productive than drive everyone crazy.

iBall, after listing its new Andi 5QCobalt Solus smartphone lastmonth on its website, appears set to

launch the smartphone in India. Thesmartphone has been listed on e-com-merce websites, with prices as low asRs. 11,262.

The Andi 5Q Cobalt Solus is a dual-SIM (GSM+GSM) smartphone whichruns the recent Android 4.4 KitKatout-of-the-box. It comes with a 5-inch(720x1280 pixels) HD OGS displayand offers a pixel density of 289ppi.The company touts that the Andi 5QCobalt Solus features glass finish at the rear panel.

The smartphone is powered by a 1.4GHz octa-coreMediaTek processor coupled with 2GB of RAM. TheiBall Andi 5Q Cobalt Solus comes with 16GB ofinbuilt storage, which is further expandable viamicroSD card (up to 32GB). It sports a 13-megapixel

autofocusrear cam-era withL E Df l a s h ,w h i l ethere is asecondary5 -megapixelfront-fac-ing cam-era alsoonboard .The rearc a m e r af e a t u r e ss c e n edetection,f a c er e c o g n i -t i o n ,Panorama,g e o - t a g -g i n g ,Smile shot,face beau-t y ,Panoramamode, andsmile shotoptions.

On theconnectivi-ty front, the

Andi 5QCobalt Solus

offers 3G, GPRS/ EDGE, Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n, Micro-USB, and Bluetooth options. The smart-phone packs a 2250mAh battery with no word on talktime and standby time.

The official listing claims that the iBall Andi 5QCobalt Solus packs a proximity sensor, ambient lightsensor, and magnetic sensor. The handset is available inBlack colour variant only from Flipkart andSnapdeal.

iBall Andi5Q CobaltSolus NowAvailableOnline atRs. 11,262

Expert Panel on Cyber-Securityto Submit Report in 3 Months While earlier this month

we heard Google wastesting video chat

expert advice for Google devicebuyers via Hangouts, it is nowsaid to be testing a new featureusing the same platform lettingusers chat directly with business-es they search for.

A user has spotted a new "chat"feature on the Google Searchresult cards for businesses onmobile, clicking on which direct-

ly leads the user to a Hangoutchat window with the particularbusiness. Spotted first by userMatt Gibstein, the screenshots byhim on Twitter shows the 'Chat'option in the search results alongwith the Hangouts window.TechCrunch cites a Googlespokesperson to confirm the fea-ture is currently being tested. It isnot clear as to when the featurewill be rolled out officially.

The Hangout window screen-

shot also shows a message stating'Dizengoff [the business] typical-ly responds within hours' sug-gesting that users might not wantto chat here if they are in a hurry.Also, if the business startsresponding more quickly to userqueries via the particular feature,the message might change 'hours'to 'minutes'.

It has been mentioned that thisnew service by Google resemblesPath's 'Talk' feature that too letsusers chat directly with the busi-

nesses.

Google earlier this month wasseen testing its Hangouts-basedvideo chat platform to potentialcustomers of devices on GooglePlay. The search giant's service isfor those users who are planningto buy those Google smart-phones, tablets and Chromebookslisted on the Google Play store'sDevices section, and need anexpert's opinion before sealingthe deal.

Google Testing Live Chat Feature That Connects Users With Businesses

With the ICCCricket WorldCup 2015 under

way, there are a host ofcricket games available forfans of the sport. Rangingfrom simple arcade farsuch as Stick Cricket todeeper simulation-styledgameplay like DonBradman Cricket, there's alot to choose from.

Having said that, anothergame joins the fray.TableTop Cricket is a fast-paced affair from Big AntStudios, the same develop-ers behind the superlativeDon Bradman Cricket. It'sout on digitally on PC andPlayStation 3 via Steamand PlayStation Networkrespectively.

The PS3 version costsRs. 1,082 and the PC ver-sion will set you back by asimilar amount when itgoes live shortly for pur-chase (the page is up butyou can't buy the game justyet). As for the Xbox Oneand PlayStation 4 variants,the studio tells us thatthose are due later thisyear.

TableTop Cricket sportsan interesting board game

aesthetic and quick-pacedgameplay elements. Butperhaps most interesting isthe element of fun itexudes, what with thegame's statistics trackingeverything from runsscored to the number oftimes you've knocked overa fielder and allowing youto play in a variety of loca-tions ranging from Delhi toLondon within environ-ments such as kitchens andman caves. The systemrequirements for the PCversion are as follows:

Minimum:OS: Windows

X P / W i n d o w s

V i s t a / W i n d o w s7/Windows 8

Processor: PentiumDual-Core CPU E5700 @2.00Ghz/AMD Athlon IIX2 250 Processor 2.01Ghz

Memory: 512 MB RAMGraphics: ATi Radeon

HD2400 pro or NVIDIAGeforce 8 Series

DirectX: Version 9.0cNetwork: Broadband

Internet connectionHard Drive: 180 MB

available space

Recommended:X P / W i n d o w s

V i s t a / W i n d o w s7/Windows 8

Processor: Intel CoreTM

I3-3210 CPU @ 3.20Ghz(4 Cpus) /AMD Phenom IIX4 960T 3.0Ghz

Memory: 1 GB RAMGraphics: Radeon HD

7790 or NVIDIA GeForceGTX 650 with minimum1GB Memory

DirectX: Version 9.0cNetwork: Broadband

Internet connectionHard Drive: 180 MB

available space

With a relatively lenientconfiguration, the PC ver-sion seems to be the one toget. Will you be playingTableTop Cricket or othercricket gamesLet us knowin the comments.

TableTop Cricket for PC and PS3Launched Amid World Cup Action

SPORTSSPORTS 7SAADDA HAQNEW DELHI | THURSDAY | FEB 26, 2015

BRISBANE, FEB 25Ireland held their nerve to beat the

United Arab Emirates by two wicketswith just four balls to spare atBrisbane`s Gabba Ground onWednesday as they moved a stepcloser to the quarter-finals of theWorld Cup.

Set 279 for victory after ShaimanAnwar scored the UAE`s first WorldCup hundred, Ireland were falteringat 97 for four and 171 for five in thisPool B clash.

But Gary Wilson (80) and the big-hitting Kevin O`Brien, who made 50off 24 balls, got them back on trackwith a sixth-wicket partnership of 72.

However, both batsmen fell withinsight of victory and it was left toGeorge Dockrell (seven not out) andBrisbane-born Alex Cusack (five notout) to see Ireland to victory as thetwo non-Test nations produced themost exciting game of the World Cupso far.

Defeat was tough on the amateursfrom the Middle East, who were indire straits at 131 for six.

But Anwar (106) and Amjad Javed(42) hit back with a record-breakingstand of 107 which took the UAE to278 for nine.

Read more: Ireland vs UAE - As ithappened...

Their partnership surpassed theprevious World Cup best for the sev-enth wicket of 98 shared by the West

Indies` Ramnaresh Sarwan andRidley Jacobs against New Zealandat Port Elizabeth in 2003.

Javed had a fine all-round match,also taking three for 60 with hisdeceptive medium pace and holding abrilliant catch at short third man thatdismissed Wilson to give the UAE alate chance of victory.

Both Anwar, who made his previ-ous one-day international best of 67in the UAE`s tournament-openingloss to Zimbabwe, and Javed seizedon a succession of short balls fromKevin O`Brien.

Anwar`s three down to third manoff O`Brien saw him to a hundred in79 balls with 10 fours and a six.

He was eventually out for 106, sky-ing Max Sorensen to wicketkeeperWilson, after scoring only the UAE`ssecond one-day international centuryfollowing Khurram Khan`s 132against Afghanistan last year.

Javed was dismissed when wellcaught in the deep by Ed Joyce offSorensen.

The UAE had an early break-through with the ball when seamerManjula Guruge struck with just hisfourth ball of the tournament whenPaul Stirling, who made 92 againstthe West Indies, was caught behindfor three.

Joyce had two fortunate reprieveson his way to making 37, having hisstumps hit by Javed but bails settle on

16 and then being dropped off hisown bowling by UAE captainMohammad Tauqir.

However, Joyce couldn`t cash in,caught behind off Javed, and thenTauqir struck twice to reduce Irelandto 97 for four in the 26th over.

He bowled Ireland captain William

Porterfield (37) as the batsman wentto sweep and the spinner then hadNiall O`Brien (17) out lbw playing asimilar shot.

The run-rate climbed to more thannine an over before Kevin O`Brien --who four years ago struck the fastestWorld Cup century -- took chargewith a typically aggressive innings,

although the UAE were hampered byGuruge (one for 21 off seven overs)being off the field with cramp.

After being dropped in the deep on24, Kevin O`Brien powered his wayto a 24-ball 50 with a straight six offJaved only to be caught off the nextball.

Wilson, with his first ODI fifty inmore than a year, kept his cool until,with Ireland needing 13 to win, hewas caught by Javed off MohammadNaveed to end a 69-ball inningsincluding nine fours.

But the UAE couldn`t take the twowickets they needed in the 15 ballsleft as Ireland scrambled home.

ICC World Cup 2015: Ireland see offUnited Arab Emirates in thriller

MELBOURNE, FEB 25Afghanistan all-rounder

Mirwais Ashraf is suffer-ing from a side strain hepicked up in the matchagainst Sri Lanka and hasbeen replaced byShafiqullah Shafiq in theWorld Cup squad, the

International CricketCouncil said onWednesday.

The 26-year-old Ashrafwas part of theAfghanistan team that suf-fered losses againstBangladesh and SriLanka.

Wicketkeeper-batsmanShafiqullah, 25, hasplayed 10 one-day interna-tionals for Afghanistan,who will play fellow ICCassociate memberScotland in their thirdmatch of the tournamentin Dunedin on Thursday.

Shafiqullah Shafiq replaces injuredMirwais Ashraf in Afghanistan squad

MUMBAI, FEB 25The suspense over

Mumbai CricketAssociation's (MCA)president Sharad Pawarcontesting the CricketBoard's election on March2 is likely to end onFebruary 27, according toMCA sources.

"Indications are he willcontest (for the president-ship of BCCI). He'sexpected to decide onFebruary 27 whether hewill contest and attend theBCCI AGM," the sourcessaid.

This time it's the turn ofEast Zone affiliates of theBCCI to propose and sec-ond the name of the presi-dent.

MCA sources saidPawar was confident ofgetting the requisite sup-port from the East Zone aswell as the rest of theBoard if it comes to a con-test with the ruling fac-tion.

Significantly, theMCA's managing commit-

tee is scheduled to meethere on Friday, but Pawaris unlikely to preside overit, sources said.

The NCP chief, whoheaded the Board from2005-08, is considered asone of the alternatives totake over BCCI's reinsfrom the faction which isclose to Board's president-in-exile N Srinivasan.

As per a recent SupremeCourt ruling over a peti-tion citing his conflict of

interest within the BCCI,Srinivasan cannot contestthe election unless he dis-associates from his IndianPremier League franchiseChennai SuperKings.

The apex court had saidthat the conflict of interesthas arisen between what isSrinivasan's duty as BCCIPresident and his interestas the father-in-law ofGurunath Meiyappan andthe owner of ChennaiSuper Kings.

Sharad Pawar's decision on contestingBCCI election likely by February 27

DUBAI, FEB 25Andy Murray scored his

most one-sided victory foreight months and his easi-est win over a top 50 play-er for nearly six yearswhen he trounced JoaoSousa, the Portuguesenumber one, 6-0, 6-2.

His rapid fire win onWednesday books a placein the quarter-finals of theDubai Open.

It lasted less than an hourand confirmed the impres-sion that the formerWimbledon and US Openchampion is a far fitter andmore confident player nowthan at any time during2014, and capable onceagain of winning big titles.

Murray served more con-sistently than in his open-ing match, applied consis-tent pressure whilst play-ing within himself, and had

the match completelyunder control from themoment he broke serveearly in the second set.

The unfortunate Sousa,ranked 50, was increasing-ly rattled into more errors,and did not get on to thescoreboard until the ninthgame after which he verybriefly showed glimpses of

the form which once tookhim inside the top 40

"Today I thought I justpicked the right shots andplayed the right way whenhe was struggling," Murraysaid.

"I didn`t give him anyfree points. I didn`t make,you know, just sort of

needless errors.

"You know, I wasn`t justgoing for shots justbecause I was up 4-0. Ithought I made good deci-sions and didn`t give himanything for free, and hewas getting more frustratedbecause he couldn`t getany free points and thenwas going for more and

more shots and obviouslymaking more errorsbecause of it."

The only negative feel-ings after his quietly rapidperformance came when aquestioner inadvertentlyreminded Murray of criti-cisms he received herethree years ago when headmitted after a defeat thathe had used the match forpractice. Were there areasof his game he was tryingto work on, he was nowasked.

"It`s funny how, whenyou win matches, it`s okayto say you`re trying some-thing out, and when youlose matches, you`re notallowed to say that,"Murray replied with anedge to his voice, explain-ing that "I am a wee bitcareful when I say abouttrying out things, becauseof when I was here a fewyears ago."

Andy Murray breezes into Dubai Open quarter-finals

M E L B O U R N E ,FEB 25

N o - o n eembodies thecaptivating riseof Afghanistancricket moret h a nM o h a m m a dNabi, the cap-tain and heart-beat of a teamthat is winningthe admirationof everyone atthe World Cup.

Afghanistanmay be one theweakest teamsat the World Cup with no real hope of winning the tour-nament but that hardly seems to matter.

Just making it to the sport`s greatest spectacle is a vic-tory in itself for a country torn apart by war and with lit-tle cricketing heritage.

Adversity is a part of life for Afghanistan`s cricketersand for many, including Nabi, the sport became their sal-vation.

Like most of his team mates, Nabi grew up in aPakistan refugee camp during the Soviet War inAfghanistan.

It was there that he first learnt the game of cricket,spending hours each day playing on dirt fields with a ten-nis ball.

Cricket World Cup: Mohammad Nabiembodies team's rise from adversity

KOLKATA, FEB 25Ramkumar Ramanathan

kept the Indian hopesalive, advancing to the lasteight, on a day YukiBhambri and Sanam Singhmade second round exit inthe USD 50,000 KolkataOpen ATP Challenger Tourat the Bengal TennisAssociation courts here onWednesday.

The talented Chennailad, who ousted India No.1 Somdev Devvarman yes-terday, faced a strong chal-lenge from Miki Jankovicof Serbia before the Indianwrapped it up 6-1 5-7 7-5in a battle between two 20-year-olds that lasted twohours 12 minutes.

The Tamil Nadu young-ster remained the onlyIndian in the fray in the lasteight, as earlier on thesame court Bhambri, whowas runner-up in the lastweek's USD 100,000 DelhiOpen ATP Challenger,went down to sixth seedRadu Albot of Moldova 6-3 2-6 6-1.

Currently ranked 267,Ramkumar will faceTaipei's Ti Chen, who is 47

places higher than theIndian, in the quarterfinals.

The highlight of the daywas German qualifierRichard Becker, who cameback from behind to stuneighth seed and 166thranked Kimmer Coppejansof Belgium 4-6 6-3 6-3 inone hour 56 minutes.

Ranked 425 Becker willbe up against third seedRuben Bemelmans, who isranked 139.

Meanwhile, seventh seedAustralian Alex Boltpulled out after sustaininginjury in his left-handelbow as Egor Gerasimov

of Belarus got a walkoverand will now face top seedAustralia's JamesDuckworth in the quarters.

The Aussie top seedended another Indian'schallenge when he crushedwild card Sanam Singh 6-26-1.

Fresh from his inspiringwin over Devvarman yes-terday, Ramkumar took thefirst set lead when he wonfive games in a row, break-ing Jankovic twice in thesecond and fourth game asthe Serb could hold hisservice only once in thesixth game.

Ramkumar Ramanathan entersquarters; remains lone Indian in fray

Rohit Shetty is allgeared up for hisnext film. The

director has a solid reasonto be confident about thisproject – it has 17 stars!Moreover, these 17 actorsmight have a major role toplay, rather than any cameoof special appearance.Though all of these bignames haven’t beenrevealed yet, the names offour of the cast are con-firmed. The icing on thecake is the ‘DDLJ’ epicromantic pair Kajol andShah Rukh Khan. Anotherpair is the fresh faces ofBollywood- Kriti Sanonand Varun Dhawan.

The news has been con-firmed by none other thanKing Khan, as he reportedto the media, “The onlything we are keeping underthe wraps is the title of thefilm, which will have 17actors in all.” But why has-n’t this utmost excitingproject been officiallyannounced yet? Shah Rukhhas an explanation for thistoo, “I am old-school thatway, maybe. I believe indocuments and the paper-

work to happen first. Itneeds to be signed firstbefore we talk about it. Weshould not announce it justbecause we had a talkabout it with certain peopleand are keen to have themon board.” The good newsis, the filming will beginvery soon and it would hitthe screens at the end ofthis year. “We start shoot-ing for the film March 4onwards. So by March 20,we will have the entire castin hand. Rohit’s film will

definitely come onChristmas this year. Thatmuch I can assure you,”said the actor.

Shah Rukh has previous-ly been a part of such mul-tistarrer film, but then thenumerous stars had justspecial appearance. It wasin song ‘DeewangiDeewangi’ of ‘Om ShantiOm’, that Shah Rukhshook his leg with a whop-ping 31 celebrities. Otherthan the song, there werecameo appearances here

and there throughout thefilm. Besides actors, therewere other famous person-alities too like VishalDadlani, Virat Kohli, YashChopra and Subhash Ghai.

The actor was asked ifthe Rohit Shetty film is aremake of some old Hindimovie, to which he replied,

“No, first I read it was aremake of Chalti Ka NaamGaadi, then Hum and laterAmar Akbar Anthony! Letme tell you it is none ofthese. In fact the narrationthat I have got, I haven’theard or seen anything likeit before. It’s a populisthappy film but original.”

The red carpet at theAcademy Awards isnot just about who

wore what.

The celebrated awardsceremony is also a timewhen the city's fashionistaslook out for trends, espe-cially when it comes tointeresting hairdos. Thoughthis year's awards nightdidn't see too many trends,except for ScarlettJohansson's bold mohawklook and the shorn hairtrend which both ScarJoand Rosamund Pike sport-ed, we did spot someeveryday styles thatworked well on the red car-pet too. Here are a fewactresses who rocked thered carpet with their casualyet chic hairstyles...

Anna Kendrick The Up in the Air actress

Anna Kendrick was quite astunner at the Oscars. Shelooked resplendent in herpeach gown and classichairdo. Playing with herwaves, Anna went for aclassic chignon to go withher outfit. Uncluttered and

beautiful, her lookscreamed of her naturalpersonality.

Dakota Johnson She might have sported

this look in her film, FiftyShades of Grey, but Dakotalooks every bit cute in thisasymmetrical fringe hair-style. She just kept it sim-ple by tying it up and evenwent for a slight messyfringe instead of complete-ly straightening it. What'smore? Her hairdo wentwell with the dress too.

Emma Stone Emma Stone was

undoubtedly among thebest dressed at the Oscars.And we'd like to award herbrownie points for her hair-do too. The side-swept lookspelled sheer elegance. Wealso loved how she main-tained the length of her hairin casual waves.

Jennifer Lopez Singer-actor Jennifer

Lopez looked dreamy inher brown sheer gown. Butwhat we really liked abouther look is that she kept her

hairstyle simple by sport-ing a ponytail.

Now, all you girls whoworry about going over thetop for the gown-look cantake a cue from JLo.

Keira Knightley Keira Knightley, who

looked gorgeous in a net-and- satin gown that hadflower motifs and graphictext, sported a simple yetcasual hairstyle. She justplayed with her waves andchose a head band to gowith the look. This mom-to-be sure carried off thislook with elan.

Sienna MillerWhile most of her con-

temporaries chose white,this American-born Britishactress looked resplendentin a blue-black fishtailgown. Sienna Millerworked on her look quitewell, pairing her outfit witha side twist hairdo. Whatwe really liked about herhairstyle is that it was casu-al yet classy. Sienna's over-all look was very simple, asthe actress went for a mini-mal-accessory look.

SAADDA HAQ NEWSPAPERAdvertisement Tariff (Rate Card)

DISPLAYBlack & White Rs.80 p.sq.cmColour Rs.160 p.sq.cm

EXTRA PREMIUMFront page solus (size min : 15×8, Max : 50×33)Back page (size Min : 5×8,Max : 50×33)3rd & Other pages (size Min : 3×4,Max : 50×33)

EAR PANELFour Colour Rs.4000/- per panelSize : 5cmx4cm(*min.30 insertion)Note : All the Classified Ads will be published on 2ndpage and will cost Rs 500 per insertion

Bollywood/FashionBollywood/Fashion8 NEW DELHI | THURSDAY | FEB 26, 2015SAADDA HAQ

Printer, Publisher, Owner & Editor: S. Harpreet Singh Khalsa, C-35, Hanuman Road, New Delhi-110001, Website:- www.saaddahaq.in, Contact Number :- +91- 9697645357, E-mail: news.saaddahaq@gmail.com, Printed by:- Purraj Print & Puckaging Pvt. Ltd., E-19, Sec-6, Nodia-201301All disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of competent courts and forums in Delhi High Court.

For Advertisment Contact:-+91-9958791398

Rajesh Mishra (Advt. Manager)

Hairst yles that rocked the red carpet

Sonam Kapoor’sbiggest regret is thatshe has not com-

pleted her graduation butthe fashionista is going tocomplete her graduationthis year.

"My biggest regret isI've not completed mystudies. But I'm going tofinish my graduation thisyear. I'm going to fill inthe forms to get myundergraduate degree inliterature. For me, it's oneof those things that I

regret the most," Sonamsaid on the sidelines ofL'Oreal Paris FeminaWorld Awards 2015 inMumbai.

Sonam, debuted inBollywood with SanjayLeela Bhansali’s‘Saawariya’ oppositeRanbir Kapoor and sincethen there has been noturning back for her. Shehas been working nonstoppost her debut film andalso endorAsed manybrands.

"I stopped studying atthe 12th. Then I came andbecome actress. I couldhave waited for fouryears," said Sonam whoopened a new clothingline called Rheson withher sister RheaKapoor.

Sonam’s last comedyfilm ‘Dolly Ki Doli’ didnot fare well at the box-office and she is currentlyshooting for ‘Prem RatanDhan Payo’ with SalmanKhan.

I'm going to finish my gradua-tion this year, Sonam Kapoor Actresses are often

seen being hesitantand shy about on

screen love makingscenes. But the case hereis completely different asthis newcomer actress wasnervous for an act thatmost people would doquite easily. BhumiPednekar is making heracting debut with theAayushmann Khuranastarrer ‘Dum Laga keHaisha’. All that Bhumiwas asked to do was toplant a tight slap onAatushmann’s face- forthe filming of course. Butthe actress found this parthard to play. She eventual-ly gave a satisfactory per-formance, but only afterpoor Aayushmann hadeight slaps!

Bhumi Pednekar is mak-ing her acting debut withthe Aayushmann Khuranastarrer ‘Dum Laga keHaisha’. As a sourcereported, one of the scenesdemanded Bhumi to be ina high tempered mood.She was then required toslap Ayushmann right onhis face. When the scenestarted filming, Bhumiwas seen quite anxiousabout the shot. She wasvery hesitant about slap-ping the actor. As thesource reported, “It wasan interesting scene which

was being shot. Bhumiwas asked to giveAyushmann a real slap sothat it looks right onscreen. But to get it rightwe had to do someretake.”

Every time she went for-ward to slap him, the tim-ing of the slap wentwrong. As a result, therewere 7 takes in total- eachone with Aayushmannhaving to bear the blow!The actor was finally

tired, though he was in ahumorous mood and jokedthat Bhumi was doing iton purpose just to enjoyhitting him. As the castand crew saw, the actor’sear had turned soar andred from th is constantaction.

Aayushmann then had aseries conversation withthe actress, about the‘slappy’ shot, and madeher comfortable so shecould perform smoothly.

Then Bhumi spent 15minutes alone to calmdown her nerves. Shefinally gave the 8th shotand the director got justthe right the performancehe needed from Bhumi.

The Sharat Katariyafilm ‘Dum Laga keHaisha’ is ready to hit thescreens on 27th thismonth.

The debutant Bhumiwould be seen as a charac-ter called Sandhya, where-

as Aayushmann wouldplay Prem Prakash Tiwari.It is a Yash Raj Films pro-duction and it has beenreported that BhumiPednekar has signed athree film contract withthe productionhouse.

It would be interestingto see how this newcomerbreaks the stereotype ofslim figured actresses andplay a challenging role inthis upcoming film.

When Aayushmann Khurana got eight tight slaps

Shahrukh, Kajol, Varun, Kriti in Rohit Shetty's multistarrerNumerous B-town

c e l e b r i t i e sexpressed their

views on the most recenthot topic, the ‘AIB’ roast:

1.Rakhi Sawant: Rakhi Sawant’s mouth

is something that is diffi-cult to keep shut. Howcould the drama queenremain silent when thereis so much controversygoing on? Rakhi com-mented on the matter, “Iwant to go and abuseeveryone myself. It is fun;people want to hear suchstuff. If you go and checkon Google you will seethat it has the highest TRPon YouTube. It’s good. Ithink people should speaktheir heart out. If theythink they should abuse,then they should.”

2.Shah Rukh Khan: Hearing what King

Khan said, it is clear thathe wants to keep awayfrom controversies,“When you are a popularactor like I am, people lis-ten to you... So, you needto re-look at it and I am

only speaking aboutmyself here. There willalways be issues andquestions. I can’t take anysides.”

3.Vidya Balan: The ‘Dirty Picture’

actress was seen support-ing the dirty humor, “Ithink everyone has thefreedom to do what theywant to. I think as citizensof a free country we mustrespect everyone's right todo what they choose.”

4.Aamir Khan: He has clearly criticized

‘AIB’ and has evenreceived criticism inreturn. After Aamir spokeagainst the obscenityshown on the show, sever-al personalities remindedhim of ‘Delhi Belly’. Hereis what Aamir had to sayon ‘AIB’, “I scolded bothKaran and Arjun and toldthem that I didn't find itfunny at all.You can’t give25 gaalis and think thatpeople will like it. I amnot a 14-year-old that Iwill be impressed bygaalis.”

5.Mallika Sherawat:She is one of the few, or

perhaps the only one, whosupported Aamir’s views,“I haven’t seen the roast,but I agree with whatAamir Khan has said —there shouldn’t be anyemotional violence. Heused a very -correct term.I feel that we shouldn’tgenuinely hurt anyone’sfeelings and -sensibili-ties.”

6.Varun Dhawan: The actor talked to the

media on this matterwhile he was promoting‘Badlapur’. “My requestto the media is let’s notdiscuss it anymorebecause there are so manymore important thingshappening and let’s notgive those people moreimportance. It is a verysmall subject. There areso many important thingsin the country. Discuss therapes, discuss the corrup-tion, discuss the otherthings that are happen-ing,” is what Varun said,taking a neutral stand.

What Celebrities Said On‘AIB Knockout’ Roast

Salman Khan’s arm actcase adjourns till March 3

Superstar Salman Khan’s verdict on possessionof illegal arm weapons adjourned till March 3.Salman was supposed to appear in the court

today but according to reports, the actor’s counselhad filed a plea seeking exemption from appearing inJodhpur Court.

“The case relates to both possession and use of ille-gal arms and the chief judicial magistrate’s court haskept February 25 for judgment,” public prosecutorN.K. Sankhla of the court in Jodhpur, 330 km fromRajasthan capital Jaipur, said sources.

The case days back to 1998 when Salman wasshooting for ‘Hum Saath Saath Hain’. Salman hasbeen accused of carrying and using illegal arms. Heis also alleged to have been carrying arms withexpired license.