|
Nation
& States
Sweeping
changes likely in environment policy
What is India News
Service, August 25, 2004, 1700 hrs IST
The environment ministry is
in reform mode. It is deliberating on deteriorating groundwater levels and blamed
"distorted subsidies" given to electricity and diesel.
In a shift from the moribund policies of the past five decades, the draft National Environment Policy 2004 has suggested "a judicious mix of civil and criminal processes and sanctions" for enforcing pollution norms.
The ministry has acknowledged that criminal sanctions "in reality are rarely fruitful". In fact, corruption at the level of state pollution control boards is almost institutionalised.
The document says that civil laws offer flexibility and the burden of evidence is less daunting than that in criminal law. It also allows for preventive policing through orders and injunctions to restrain prospective pollution, the report said.
Spotlight
Parliament
disruption
Clearly fatigued
by parliamentary disruptions and opposition sniper fire, Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday signalled he \91\91wanted to make
up for lost time\92\92 by immersing himself in the business of
fixing India\92s infrastructure. In the process, he also heaped more
responsibilities on the Planning Commission, headed by his protege
Montek Singh Ahluwalia.
All
chaos, no work at Rs 4 million an hour!: It
has been almost a week since the 790 lawmakers of the world's
largest democracy transacted any business in parliament.
'We
are living in abnormal times": Manmohan Singh
lamented that the continuing deadlock was preventing
him from interacting with people from various walks of
life, including trade and industry.
CPM
says BJP is 'stonewalling' parliament:
The CPI(M) on Tuesday condemned
the BJP for "disrupting Parliamentary proceedings" saying
that the BJP had not raised a single issue concerning the people's
interests since the new UPA Government had come into power.
|
Talks
should move to logical end:
Pakistan
on Tuesday asked India not to have second thoughts about the
composite dialogue it was holding with Pakistan to resolve
contentious issues, including Kashmir.
APHC rejects
Delhi\92s talks offer: The moderate faction of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) spurned New Delhi\92s offer for talks, saying dialogue would only resume after the new Indian leadership accepted three demands: unconditional talks with no mention of
the constitution, discussions to find a solution to the larger Kashmir issue, and
third, involvement of Pakistan in the process.
Funding
sick PSUs pointless, says CPI: Ahead of Wednesday's UPA-Left
coordination committee meeting where discussions on revival of
public sector enterprises are on the agenda , CPI general secretary
A B Bardhan has said that "wasting taxpayers' money on reviving
absolutely sick units" should be discouraged.
Uma
Bharti sent to jail for 14 days: A Hubli
court today sent Uma Bharti to 14-day judicial custody in Bellary in
a case of rioting 10 years ago at Idgah maidan.
|
Employees\92 stir hits banking operations:
The employees\92 token strike, called by nine major unions, has affected financial operations across the country.
'Besides
taking, industry must also learn to give':
Social Justice Minister Meira
Kumar on Tuesday asserted that the use of traditional argument of
"merit" to dismiss the case for caste reservation was
reflective of the "Eklavya phobia" which has carried over
from Mahabharata to the 21st century.
1984
L-G blames Rajiv govt for delay in army deployment: Twenty years
after he was forced to resign as Lt Governor of Delhi owning
\91\91moral responsibility\92\92 for the 1984 Sikh carnage, P G
Gavai has blamed the Rajiv Gandhi government for the delay in
calling in the army.
Sub-inspector arrested in post-Godhra riots case: Patil allegedly did not file a proper FIR and clubbed several riot cases into
one.
Striking
lawyers get their way, HC rolls back conduct code: The Supreme
Court has empowered high courts to frame rules laying down
conditions for lawyers to practice. And yet in a bid to end the
month-long standoff, the Madras High Court today withdrew its code
of conduct for lawyers.
Talks
with FM only, say truckers: On the fourth day of their
indefinite strike, truck operators have they will hold any further
talks only with the Finance Minister.
States
Terrorists
kill youth: Suspected Lashker-e-Toiba terrorists killed a youth
on Wednesday after abducting him from his house in Poonch district
of Jammu and Kashmir, official sources said in Jammu.
Jaya opposes decision to repeal POTA:
The Tamil Nadu chief minsiter has said law and order is a state subject,
and the repeal of POTA would \91undermine the states\92 ability to counter terrorism\92.
Karnataka plans more Bangalores:
The state will promote secondary cities, including Mysore and Mangalore, as information technology destinations, even as the state is gearing up to provide employment to an additional 40,000 personnel in software and business process outsourcing segments.
Another boy dies playacting Dhananjoy's execution:
Yet another boy has died in a West Bengal village trying to imitate the recent hanging of a convict that has fired the imagination of many children - with disastrous consequences.
YSR in trouble over illegal power connections:
The Congress\92s \93anti-farmer\94 move has elicited tremendous flak from other parties, who are pressurising it to consider other alternatives to the issue.
Maharashtra,
Arunachal poll dates out:
Assembly elections in Maharashtra and Arunachal
Pradesh will be held on October 13 and October 7 respectively. The
by-elections of four Lok Sabha seats in three states and 41 Assembly
seats across 14 states will also be held on October 13.
Neighbours
Another
Awami leader dies; 70 hurt in Dhaka violence:
At least 70 people were injured on Tuesday in violence
across Bangladesh where Opposition activists went on a rampage,
torching Government offices and shops during a general strike called
by the Awami League party to protest the weekend grenade attack that
killed 20 people.
Qaeda planning more attacks: Al Qaeda and anti-government elements are planning a series of bombings and rocket attacks in the country\92s major cities very soon, sources told
a Pakistani newspaper.
Kashmiris will
reach goal, says Pakistan PM: Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain on
Tuesday said Pakistan had become a formidable state by attaining the
status of a nuclear power, almost diminishing the chances of a war
breaking out with India. The government, he said, was sincerely
endeavouring to resolve the issue of Kashmir. "I am of the firm
belief that the supreme sacrifices of Kashmiris will not go waste
and the issue will be resolved according to the will of Kashmiri
people," he said.
Nepal puts foot down, Maoists take step back:
With the Nepal government putting its foot down and refusing to
concede any more ground to the Maoists, the Left-wing extremists
today, in what many see here as a tactical move, withdrew their
indefinite siege of the Valley \91\91for a month\92\92 from
tomorrow.
 12
women in Nepal gangraped by Indian bandits: At least 12
women have been gangraped in Morang district in just two days by a
gang of Indian robbers, says a report.
Hundreds
of troops in Bangi Dar:
Pakistan has deployed hundreds
of regular and paramilitary troops in the Bangi Dar area along the
Afghanistan border to check possible incursion of terrorists from
Afghanistan.
Islamabad,
Kabul to expand trade and economic ties:
Pakistan
and Afghanistan pledged on Tuesday to take part in a regional
electricity grid, remove irritants in the Afghan Transit Trade (ATT)
and stop cross-border smuggling to enhance bilateral trade and
economic relations.
View from
abroad
UK
telecom regulator probes customer ire against India: An inquiry
has begun following complaints that directory inquiry service,
outsourced to India, are not meeting customer satisfaction.
Osama's
driver appears at US military trial:
A man said
to be the driver of Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan appeared before a
US military commission on Tuesday at the start of the first military
trials arising from the "war on terror".
Mahatma
Gandhi\92s grandson takes up Palestinian cause: Mahatma
Gandhi\92s grandson will lead a Palestinian peace march in the West
Bank town of Ramallah on August 26. Arun Gandhi hopes to spread his
illustrious grandfather\92s mantra of non-violence and sow the seeds
of peace in a region ravaged by daily acts of aggression.
Indian
Overseas Congress honours NRIs:
A senior Indian diplomat and
two NRIs have been presented with \91gold medals\92 by the Indian
Overseas Congress in London for their outstanding contribution to
society. Mr Navdeep Suri, diplomat and writer, Mr Chris Naidu,
Business Development Director of Natwest Bank, and Ms Atiya Khan, an
Urdu short-story writer, were given the medals.
California
Senate passes anti-outsourcing bill: An anti-outsourcing bill
passed by the California Senate will prohibit all levels of the
government from contracting or subcontracting with companies that
use foreign labour.
Overall:
Draft proposed change in
environment law: The
environment ministry is looking at why groundwater levels are going
down.
APHC reject talks offer: The Kashmiri
separatist group said India should stop insisting on talks within
the country's constitutional framework.
Jaya opposed Pota repeal: The Tamil Nadu chief minister
said the law was necessary to deal with terror.
|
|
![]()
|
