Efforts Group & Axis Bank Hold MCD Tax Camp

Property Tax Camp held at St. Mary’s school Safdarjung Enclave.

S L Watwani
Ph. 9958046738 / 26171135

PRESS RELEASE

Prof. Kiran Walia, Health & Family Welfare Minister Delhi Govt inaugurated a Property Tax Collection Camp on 13th Jun 2009 at St. Mary’s School, Safdarjung Enclave.  Wing Cdr Mathew, Retd. & Chairman of St. Mary’s School Safdarjung Enclave welcomed Prof. Kiran Walia by presenting her a bouquet. Shri Pankaj Agarwal thanked Wg Cdr Mathew for his help & support in organiging social activities for the residents at the school.

About 465 property owners from Safdarjung Enclave and its adjoining areas visited this camp & deposited tax amounting to about Rs 15.90 Lakhs. Tax was collected by MCD and Axis Bank officials by issuing manual & electronic receipt respectively. Tax paying by electronic media proved advantageous for many since calculations were automatic & they got excess payments made already adjusted in this year’s tax amount. Many residents also visited camp for guidance & clarifications. Volunteers from Efforts Group helped residents in guiding & filing their return forms & for their tax related queries. Tax payments only by cheques were accepted at the camp.

Sr Citizen Tax Payers were very happy & expressed satisfaction for organising such a camp which has immensely helped them in submitting tax with out hassles near their houses.

Unsung heroes and heroines

Old is useful

Swati Shinde | TNN

Pune: Most of us don’t think twice before discarding those age-old odds and ends. But not Jyoti Sachade. For two years now, the former college teacher has been collecting and passing on old articles — both her own and those donated by others — to the needy.

Today, her efforts have grown into a trust called Mamata Charitable Foundation, which came into existence three weeks ago. Sachade receives items ranging from clothes, electrical appliances and vessels to books, shampoo bottles and mattresses. Or, as Sachade puts it: “Anything under the sun.”

“These days, people get bored of things and throw them away even if they can be further used,” she observes. “They don’t realise that they can be of much use to the needy.”

With this thought in mind, Sachade began giving her old items to those in need. Soon, her neighbours and friends began donating their old things to her. “Right now, I have 24 dozen notebooks piled up in front of me. All these have been donated. With the new academic year set to begin in a few days, there’s a lot of demand for them,” she adds.

Many orphanages and old age homes visit Sachade’s home and pick things. Her flat in Kothrud is crammed with donated items, some of which have been sent from abroad.

“Last year, I was sent stationery from Kenya and Germany. Besides, there have been people coming in with donations from Gujarat, Mumbai, Delhi, Nagpur, Talegaon and from around the city,” she adds.
Sachade once even received a two-wheeler while television sets and refrigerators sent from various corners of the country have also filled her house in the past.

The institutions which need these things enter their requirements in a register kept by Sachade. When the requirement is available, it is despatched to the institution.

However, cash donations are a complete nono. “Giving cash is a great attraction for people. However, I do not wish to take it for several reasons. Also, doubts may be raised on how the money is being spent. So, I insist that people only give items.”

THE ART OF GIVING: Jyoti Sachade

For a CAUSE

Biju Babu Cyriac | TNN

Bangalore: For the thousands who will assemble at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium on Sunday, road running is the latest way to bond with others. But for a select few like Sharad Bhagwatkar, it is all about overcoming one’s disabilities through self-belief and working for a social cause.

Fighting his way back from a devastating road accident which almost cost him his right leg, Bhagwatkar defied medical science winning medals from the pool and then hitting the roads and successfully competing in marathons in India and abroad.

“I was bedridden for four years after suffering multiple fractures in 1992. Doctors told me that I would never walk again. They were about to amputate my right leg, but I came back,” said Bhagwatkar, who retired from government service in Maharashtra.

By 1999, Bhagwatkar could move around a bit and soon he limped back to normalcy. In 2004, he competed in his first road race in Bangalore and finished the distance of 21 km in 2 hours and 40 minutes. On Sunday, Bhagwatkar will be competing in the senior citizen’s race.

“Then, I got this idea of raising money for charity and so far I was able to raise around Rs 20 lakh,” Bhagwatkar told STOI.

Bhagwatkar’s passion for running saw him enter in the Mumbai marathon in 2006 and then again in Bangalore. He also got a taste of international races when he competed in the Chicago marathon in 2007 and 2008.

The sexagenarian wants everyone to take up running so that we can all enjoy the benefits of good health. “People can run anytime and anywhere. Just that one needs to find some time,” he said.
toiblr.reporter@timesgroup.com

Unsung Heroines and Heroes

Not Without My Daughters

VIMALA SESHADRI, WHO MOVED FROM THE US IN 2000, LOOKS AFTER 10 UNDERPRIVILEGED GIRLS

Shalini Umachandran | TNN

The only male in this family of 13 is a gorgeous brown German Shepherd named Lupin. Pharmacologist and medical researcher Vimala Seshadri lives with 10 girls between the ages of four and 20, who come from underprivileged backgrounds, and two dogs.

“We’re an all-women household,” says Vimala, who has been bringing up the girls as her own daughters in a small home in Injambakkam for the past nine years. While the younger girls study at a nearby CBSE school, the older ones have just started working.

Twenty-two year old Sashi, who came to Vimala when she was 14, is doing her BCom through correspondence and works as an au pair for an expat couple. “The older girls also babysit for expat couples on weekends. The money they make is put aside for them,” says Vimala.
In Vimala’s home, the focus is on education and being independent. The girls live with her through the year and go back to their parents during the holidays.

“We go back for a while, but this is home too,” says Divya (18), who’s paraplegic and has just finished class 12 at a special school. She’s planning to start her own baking business.

Born to Indian parents in the US, Vimala had never really visited India, though her family was originally from Chennai. “I could just as easily have gone to Cambodia or Vietnam, I had no particular affinity for India despite being of Indian origin,” she says.

She decided to work with children while she was living in Michigan in 1993. “Soon after I had made that promise to myself, I got a call from the local hospital asking I could help out with a little Indian girl who had come in and couldn’t speak English. That’s what made me think of coming to India.”

She came to India in 1994 and until 1997, worked in an orphanage in Tirukundram. “It made me realise that though the children were well looked after, they needed one-onone attention.”

So in 1998, she set up the Nivedita Centre for Learning in the US as an organisation that not only focussed on education but on making girls financially independent. She and trustee R N Prasad started an India branch in 2000 and Vimala moved to Chennai to put her idea to practice. “We found this property and moved here in 2000.

The lease runs out in 2010 and we’re still looking for a place. It’s hard to find a place that is willing to take in a family as diverse as ours,” she says. Vimala’s been putting her own money into the home with help from a few donors — it costs about Rs 5 lakh to Rs 6 lakh a year to keep the centre running.

She juggles work as a senior project information and feasibility associate at Icon Clinical Reasearch in Perungudi and her large family.
Vimala also conducts tuition classes for girls from the nearby fishing village. She pays for a master to tutor the older girls, while Esther teaches the girls from classes one to three. “That’s how I realised I wanted to be a teacher,” says Esther. “I want to become a Montessori teacher and also study abroad” she says.

The others have big dreams too — Maheswari wants to be an astronaut, or the President of India. Vaishali wants to be an accountant. “I wanted to be a pilot, but realised I loved numbers after I started doing Vimala Akka’s accounts,” says the class nine student. “You can be both,” interrupts Vimala. “You can get a licence after you finish your CA,” and then adds, “Vaishali’s been doing my accounts for three years. My auditors have never found a mistake.”

Vimala believes that every city should have at least one home based on her model. “With a little bit of money, you can do a lot,” she says. “You just have to be ready to give each person one-on-one attention.”

Lighting the lives of less privileged

TOI honours the city’s unsung heroes who are doing their bit away from the public glare

Kalyani Sardesai | TNN

Pune:

In his modest little ways, 39-year-old businessman Sanjay Deshmukh seeks to brighten the lives of the less privileged. Be it distributing a hundred solar lanterns for free to villagers who don’t have electricity in their homes, or sponsoring the education of needy children in his native village Kasegaon in Sangli district, Deshmukh believes that it is the small things make a big difference.

“There is so much poverty in rural areas that despite the government providing free education to children, they sit at home because their parents can’t afford to buy books or uniforms,” he says, adding, “They are usually the children of poor farmers or landless labourers, and it’s really sad when the parents decide to keep the child home just because they can’t pay for these essentials.”

But even as Deshmukh ensures such children are able to attend school, he is careful to stress that the funding is strictly performance based. “I insist on a copy of their report cards,” he says.

Apart from this, Deshmukh, the owner of a factory that manufactures solar products, distributes about a hundred solar lanterns to needy villagers or school-going children every year, free of cost. “The solar lantern is a far better option than the traditional kerosene lamp. Not only is the light from this lamp much stronger, it is cheaper and pollution-free. It helps the villagers save a lot of money and improves the quality of their life. In fact, so many of them have told me that it feels like Diwali after their days spent in darkness,” he smiles.
“To me, social work is not a solitary effort,” he says.

In order to ensure that help is extended to those who truly need it, Deshmukh sources the relevant database from non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and social workers. “I also have friends in Zilla Parishad schools who let me know about school-going children who don’t have electricity at home. My company gives out lanterns to them too,” he adds.

Having helped around 30 children with their educational needs over the last four years, Deshmukh is now in the process of opening a school near Kolhapur. “The trust has been registered and we are now seeking approval. Initially, it is going to be for children between standard V and VII,” he says.

56 jail inmates clear Class X examination

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:

Fifty-six of the 98 inmates of various prisons in the state who appeared in this year’s Class X examination have passed, while 16 failed and the results of 26 were withheld for various reasons. Dinakaran (29) of Nagercoil, sentenced to life imprisonment in a murder case, was the prison topper with 330 marks out of 500 while the youngest was a 19-year-old inmate of a Pudukottai juvenile home.

“At least 6,000 inmates have attained primary education after the launch of the 100 percentage literacy programme a few months ago. Udhaya Karan of Orissa, arrested and remanded by RPF personnel on theft charges, is now able to write in Tamil.

In the 2008-09 academic year, the prison department spent Rs 7 lakh for prisoners’ education. Tamil Nadu Liberation Army leader Maran alias Senguttuvan, an accused in the Rajkumar kidnap case, has completed his PhD,” director-general of police (prisons) R Nataraj said.

“We have invited many NGOs to conduct courses periodically for prisoners.

Emphasis will be on vocational and professional courses like computer applications, animation, carpentry, electrical and masonry work,” he added.

Inspiration: Ordinary folks are also special

Inspiration.

A Housewife, A student, an old man, Auto rickshaw men.

All stories are real. How ordinary people do wonderful things.

Mother’s plight inspires daughter

Overcoming Odds, Domestic Help’s Child Scores 96.96% In SSLC Examination

Shruthi Balakrishna | TNN

Bangalore: Sixteen-year-old Jhansi N bravely fought some battles to secure 96.96% in the SSLC exam this year. This soft-spoken teenager scored a stunning 606 out of 625. What makes the story even more remarkable is that this student of Martin Luther English School faced financial difficulties while preparing for the exam.

Her father Vasu works as a labourer and her mother Dhanalakshmi is a domestic help. Moved by her mother’s plight, this young girl decided to become an acheiver. “When my mother would come home, she’d look so tired. It would hurt me to see her work so hard. If I get a good job, she needn’t struggle like this in future,” she said. Her ambition is to become a cardiologist.

“I was little disturbed with the financial situation at home, but got over it and focused on studies,” she said.

She studied continuously for 8-10 hours a day during holidays. “Sometimes, I took breaks in between. I’d go for a walk but then too, I’d try to recall what I’d studied,” she said. As her parents were working, the quiet atmosphere at home helped her concentrate. Scoring centum in Maths was not easy.

“I found it difficult. I solved a lot of model question papers. I got one mark less for 97%,” she said.

Interestingly, she didn’t go for tuitions but studied on her own. “I won’t go for tuitions even for II PU. I’ll start preparing for the CET from I PU itself,” Jhansi said.

Though she doesn’t come from a strong academic background, she managed to excel in the exam. “I studied in a government school in a remote village in Andhra Pradesh. When I came to Bangalore I studied in a government school for Class 8 and 9 where there were no teachers.”
She loves reading including novels.

“Charles Dickens is my favourite author,” she said. Jhansi would also participate in co-curricular activities like debates and essay competition. She’s inspired by former President Abdul Kalam and read his book ‘Wings of Fire’.

“My mother is also my inspiration,” she said, with tears of joy in her eyes.
If you want to help her,
contact: 41643680/ 26569193

Almost 100,

he has the perfect recipe for a long, healthy life

Vijay Singh I TNN

Mumbai: Watching an active Kashinath Ponde prepare his own tea and sing classical Bhavgeet on a harmonium, one can never guess that this former postmaster is 99 years old.

Ponde is perhaps the fittest nonagenarian in the country with a razor-sharp memory. He lives alone at his home in Solapur, and regularly travels to Mumbai and Pune to meet his sons and their families.

On Sunday, Ponde is throwing a bash in Pune to celebrate his 100th birthday. “There will be 200 guests. But there will be no birthday cake or candles, just good wishes and prayers of my loved ones,’’ he smiles. Ponde, who had voted during the first Lok Sabha elections in 1952, still has a clear vision, and can even read fine print without using any lenses.

“I remember I was posted in Akluj, district Solapur, in 1952 when the first elections took place. But I don’t remember who I voted for then,’’ he says. Over the last 57 years, Ponde has derived very specific conclusions on Indian politics and politicians.

“Over 90% of politicians today are in it for power, money and prestige; only 5% may be there for desh seva but they’re perhaps not elected,’’ he says.

Remembering the Indian leaders of his time, Ponde says he has seen stalwarts like Mahatma Gandhi and Nehru at Ahmednagar, Pune and other parts of the state before Independence.

“I also remember being very impressed by the oratory of Barrister Savarkar (Veer Savarkar) at public meetings in Pune; he had a terrific voice like that of a tiger,’’ he adds.

Born on May 10, 1910, Ponde completed his matriculation from Society High School in Ahmednagar in 1932. He even worked on farms and looms while schooling and joined the postal department in 1933. For the next 35 years, he was posted in several post offices in various towns and districts in the state. Surprisingly, the grand old man has maintained his weight through a simple yet disciplined vegetarian diet.
He walks ramrod straight, and even washes his own clothes. The only sign of ageing, perhaps, is that he is a little hard of hearing.

So what is the secret of his long life? “I used to walk four hours daily till five years ago. Then I cut down on my walking as my doctor-son advised me not to engage in such vigorous activity. I eat vegetarian meals, and my love for music keeps me happy and healthy,’’ he says.
Ponde’s diet normally consists of a chapati, rice, milk with crushed almonds in it, garlic and a vegetable or two.

“I never have aerated drinks, and never ever touch tobacco,’’ he asserts. His granddaughter Poonam Ponde, a Pune-based lecturer, says: “He keeps himself updated by reading newspapers, and has not forgotten his hard and frugal childhood. Grandpa still scolds us if we shop new clothes, as he remembers how hard it was to make cloth on a loom as a child nearly a century ago.’’

PONDE’S POINTERS

• Never touch tobacco

• Be a vegetarian and have meals on time

• Walk, whenever you can

• Work honestly

• Make music a part of your life

Green gardener

In this weekly series, TOI honours the city’s unsung heroes who are doing their bit away from the public glare

Anoop Jaipurkar | TNN

Waste management in the city, like anywhere else in the world, is a critical issue and needs immediate attention of not just the authorities but every responsible citizen. “Brazen neglect has resulted in dumping of tonnes of unsegregated waste at Urali and subsequent rise in pollution followed by falling health standards in the affected villages,” says Lalita Bhave, a banker, who has been creating awareness about waste segregation and decomposition of biodegradable discard for the last 14 years.

Bhave was always fascinated by greenery. So, she could never assimilate the fact that people need to be told about environment and its conservation. “I grew up in a surrounding where the need for nature and its preservation were imbibed in our psyche. And since my daughters have grown up the same way, I know, they will never feel the need for tutoring. It’s a civic sense,” she says.

Bhave’s affair with nature continued after marriage as she did a gardening course and started a plants library. Her interest in landscaping took her to a relative’s place where she saw a roof-top garden made by converting household waste into useful manure. “I decided that my terrace would also look the same. It was exactly a year’s effort. Hundreds of people have visited my garden since then.”

But she’s not the one to bask in self-glory. “The inspiration behind my effort was the desire to minimise the plight of rag-pickers, especially women, who spend most part of the day scurrying through garbage heaps in search of scrap that earns them as little as Rs 50 a day,” says Bhave.
For the last 20 years, the Bhave family has not let any trash go out of the house. Ask her an estimate of waste she has utilised at her roof-top terrace so far and she calculates it to over 10,000 kg. The city generates an estimated 1,000 tonnes of garbage a day. Imagine how much waste an estimated 6 lakh households of the city can decompose if they follow this simple methodology.
“Of course, those living in apartments do not have the luxury of maintaining a terrace garden. But the same decomposable waste can be put in flower pots in smaller quantities and leave left-over food for birds. The least one can do is just to segregate the waste. This will do a world of good not just for the municipal corporation but to the thousands of villagers in Urali-Phursungi who have been plagued by this unethical and inhuman dumping since last two decades,” she says. Bhave, who obtained a diploma in conservation of natural resources, has delivered over 150 lectures.

Recently, she suggested the PMC to formulate a plan so that the biodegradable waste can be dumped on barren land around the city to make it cultivable again.

Indeed, the ideas sound very simple and reasonable. However, the major stumbling block has been the lack of awareness, and compulsions on part of the civic body. “Segregating waste and recycling it to the extent possible should become a way of life so that we do not have to teach them to the coming generations,” she concludes.

Creating an oasis IN THE CITY

This group of autorickshaw drivers works to keep their surroundings green

Lakshmi Kumaraswami | TNN

When you think of autorickshaw drivers, what automatically comes to mind is reckless driving and the endless arguments you have over fares and definitely not green crusaders. But this bunch of auto drivers have been working to green the city for the last one-and-a-half years.
It is common to find them hard at work on the patch of green on the dull grey pavement outside the Kilpauk Medical Hospital. This group of 25 began planting saplings on the pavement as the area which served as their auto stand became very unhygienic.

“Some of us have been here for at least 20 years and it was disheartening to see how dirty the place was, especially outside a hospital,” says K Mathivanan, secretary of the auto stand who took the first step in adding greenery to the pavement. S Jagan adds that it was very unpleasant as they were forced them to remain in such surroundings all day.

A year and half ago, they decided to do something about it. The pavement, which at that time didn’t have concrete but mud, was swept. “We drew out a patch of the pavement and replaced the mud with soil. We then brought in some saplings,” says M Hamsa. Initially, they were planting crotons and spinach but eventually moved on to jasmine, guava and karpuravalli (belonging to the mint family).

“We also nurtured a banana plant and some creepers that grow along the hospital’s wall,” Mathivanan says, pointing to the green vines scaling the compound.

They source their plants on their daily journeys as and when they see them. “We buy around two plants a month and try to have a variety,” says Ravi Kumar. The group has planted over 50 plants and take it in turns to water the patch. “Maintaining it can be quite difficult as people pluck leaves and even spit in the area.

It is very frustrating because after all the effort we have taken we want the place to look nice,” says T Sekar. They hope to erect a plastic fence shortly but are yet to raise funds. “As autorickshaw drivers we don’t earn much, so we try to put in whatever we can, be it Rs 10 or more,” says Mathivanan.

Since they started planting saplings, things at the auto stand have never looked better. In fact, an actual pavement has also been built around the green patch. “It feels good when the doctors compliment our work,” says Hamsa. W Santosh adds that these comments encourage them to nurture their patch of green.

“We plan to do this as long as we are here and will try to work on other dry patches in the area as well. After all, Kilpauk has given us so much. We would like to do our bit for the society by keeping the area clean and green,” says Mathivanan.
lakshmi.kumaraswami@timesgroup.com

Unbelievable: An RTO Office sans Harassment, Touts & Bribes

Unbelievable: An RTO Office sans Harassment, Touts & Bribes

We are so used to being harassed and squeezed by babus in government offices. This was a wonderful experience of an enthusiastic and helpful officer, good staff and efficient working.

I wish we had more Anil Kumars and that all RTO offices were like the one in Vasant Vihar in New Delhi.

It was with trepidation that I approached the RTO office for renewal of my time expired license. I had avoided going for renewal to the RTO office, apprehending torture and run around.

It was then that I heard that a new RTO office had been set up at Vasant Vihar, andI had tried to access information about the location and timing from the internet. True to traditions, the Delhi Government website had no information of the office. According to the website there was no RTO office in the vicinity of Vasant Vihar. However I made up my mind to face the battle and went forth.

Since I had gone without pre arranging for ‘help’ from a tout or a ‘driving school’ or ‘sifarish’, I was mentally prepared for being given a run around by the clerks in the office. I had even taken along a friend for moral and physical support.

I found the enquiry counter near the gate manned by 3 clerks. To my surprise I got the necessary forms from the enquiry counter without any problem. I was also told to attach supporting documents in respect of age, address proof etc. The clerk noted the details and directed me to a counter inside the main office.

I went inside the main office and found it to be well lit, bright and cheerful. There I was told that being a time expired license that too from a state outside, renewed many times over from Tamil Nadu and UP it would be a difficult and time consuming affair to get the old license renewed.

I walked in to the office of the officer in charge (I read the nameplate out side, it said Anil Kumar) and was pleasantly surprised at the courteous manner in which my friend and I were dealt with.  ‘It would be better and easier to get a fresh license issued after due tests than a renewal’ he said and further advised me of the forms to be filled for obtaining a learner’s license.

I proceeded as advised, paid the necessary fees, was administered a test on driving rules and given a learner’s driving license all in a matter of 30 minutes. I was advised to come after a month for a formal test for the drivers’ license.

I did tell Mr. Anil Kumar what a surprise it was not to find any tout in or near the RTO office premises, and the speed with which the forms were accepted, dues collected, test given and learner’s license handed over.

I went a month later and I was given a receipt for the amount paid at the counter and after a driving test was told the new driving license would be sent by courier within 10 days. That day I had spent just over an hour for the entire process.

The new driving license was delivered home on the third day!

Mr. Anil Kumar also told me later that he can make resources available for imparting training, spread of road sense etc.

We are so used to being harassed and squeezed by babus in government offices. This was a wonderful experience of an enthusiastic and helpful officer, good staff and efficient working.

I wish we had more Anil Kumars and that all RTO offices were like the one in Vasant Vihar in New Delhi.

PS

The RTO Vasnt Vihar office is located adjacent to Munirka, Rama Market, between DCP office and DTC depot

Election 09: Jokers, cheats, imposters

Man climbs tree for a Congress ticket to contest

By Kay Benedict in New Delhi

DRAMA in the amphitheatre of the Indian political scene is far from rare. Every few days, there are speeches, fights and claims of friendship to keep the avid election- watcher entertained.

The latest to jump onto the bandwagon of the theatre of the absurd is 50- year- old Prempal Singh.

On Saturday, a little after Congress spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan completed the party’s daily briefing at the All- India Congress Committee ( AICC) headquarters, there was a flashback of a scene from 1970s blockbuster Sholay . A la Dharmendra — who played a character who threatened to jump off a tower if he was not allowed to marry his lady love — Singh was perched atop a 30- ft high tree, refusing to disembark unless he was given a ticket to contest from Hatharas in Uttar Pradesh.

The bare- chested ex- MLA was clad in a white dhoti and sported a Gandhi cap. From his green perch, he threw a bunch of his bio- data to the eagerly waiting throng of television and print journalists. According to Singh’s biodata, he was a legislator from Uttar Pradesh’s Jalesar during 1985- 1989.

He was keen to contest the Lok Sabha election from Hatharas constituency, which is reserved for Scheduled Castes.

His friend Mohammed Mansur Alam said his name had been earlier cleared for Hatharas but later, an outsider was allotted the ticket.

While the crowd below urged him to descend, he nonchalantly gave bytes to television crew, some of whom had also managed to climb up the tree along with their video cameras and equipment.

Those who had to enjoy the action from below seemed to be ruing their poor fitness level and their inability to give Singh company.

One national English channel went to the ludicrous extent of asking its bulky correspondent to climb the tree to do a “ phone- in” with the man on top! From the tree top, he raised slogans hailing Sonia Gandhi, Rahul, and Priyanka.

In his elements, Singh raised slogans against Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi for calling the Congress “ a budhia ( old woman)” and challenged him to climb the tree to prove his youthfulness.

Once he came down, the police took him into custody.

But anyone who thought Singh was serious about threatening to jump off was clearly mistaken.

Mentioned in the bio- data under the header ‘ Notable Actions’ in his resume he proudly mentioned his earlier “ heroic deeds”. He has a) Climbed a tree in front of 10, Janpath and remained there for eight hours trying to persuade Sonia Gandhi to become prime minister in 2004. He hadn’t mentioned what brought him down on the occasion.

b) Jumped into the Lok Sabha from the visitors’ gallery to protest against Mayawati’s abusive language.

Andhra Pradesh

Netas girdle up for rigging

Koride Mahesh | TNN

Hyderabad: It happens only in India. A six-year-old boy cast a vote at a polling booth in Engine Bowli in the Old City in the 2004 assembly elections. Similarly, a burqa-clad ‘person’ voted 17 times at a polling booth at Yakutpura, each time wiping clean the indelible ink mark with a chemical solution.

Though the polling staff knew, they could do nothing. “A political party brought the boy to cast a vote, but agents of other parties did not object. So, we could not do anything,” an official, who was manning the polling booth then, told TOI.
This is a regular occurrence at around 200 polling booths in the city. Most of them are located in the Yakutpura, Charminar, Chandrayangutta, Karwan, Nampally and Malakpet assembly constituencies. Interestingly, there are some polling booths in the upmarket Jubilee Hills constituency too.

With the polling day nearing, some candidates in the city are preparing for ‘cycling’ (a person voting more than once) and ‘rigging’ in polling booths.

The candidates engage some people in each polling booth to cast as many votes as they can. This is possible by removing the voting ink put on their finger after casting their vote. The ink, made of silver nitrate by mixing some other chemicals, dyes and aromatic materials, is generally removed by using acetonebased chemicals and hair oil.

“Bogus voters who resort to such practices first dip their finger in hair oil or acetone based nail polish remover or the liquid supplied with whitener before getting into a polling booth. After the ink is applied in the polling booth, they come out and remove it following the same method,” an officer said.

K Sowmya of National Election Watch, an NGO, AP chapter, said, “It was observed that those who resort to such malpractices, remove the voting ink within a few seconds after it is applied.”
Another organisation ‘Ennikala Nigha Vedika’ (Election Watch AP) brought this problem to the notice of Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) I V Subba Rao a few days ago.

“This time the polling officers have been asked to put the ink half on the nail and half on the skin so that erasing the ink mark is not easy,” M Veda Kumar, state convenor of Election Watch AP told TOI.

“Several mistakes in the voter’s list and EPICs, and missing images in the list help parties to bring bogus voters on the polling day,” a former corporator of the city said.

Rigging normally takes place between 7 am and 9 am, and between 3 pm and 5 pm, an official who worked as presiding officer in Hyderabad said. Interestingly, agents of rival political parties are also managed by the dominant political party in the area. “Either they manage polling agents of other parties at the booths or they threaten them. The agents keep quiet and the officials do not react unless there is objection from the agents,” a RO said. There are 212 such polling stations in 15 assembly constituencies in the city. Of them, nearly 190 are in the Old City alone.
VULNERABLE SPOTS
KARWAN
Booths include Subzimandi, Balappa Doddi, Mochivadi, Prasanthnagar, Pensionpura, Langer Houz, MD Lines, Moghalgunj and Risala Bazar.
CHARMINAR
Sultan Shahi, Bidi Bazar, Talab Meer Jumla, Gowlipura, Moghalpura, Meta Ki Khidki and Darulshifa.
CHANDRAYANGUTTA
Uppuguda, Talla Kunta, Jangamet and Riyasatgar.
SECUNDERABAD
Chinta Bavi, Manikeshwarinagr (polling booths 182 and 183), Tukaramgate and Addagutta.

OH Calcutta

Trees scarred in campaign flurry

Arpit Basu | TNN

Kolkata: Political leaders are good at advocating environmental causes. But when the time comes to act, they are the first to destroy the environment. For, despite a Supreme Court ruling that bans hoardings on trees, parties have blatantly flouted that and pinned posters on several tree trunks across the city.

When a TOI team visited Harish Mukherjee Road on Tuesday, it found that most trees along its eastern pavement, from Harish Park to Muktadal, had hoardings pinned on their trunks. Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee’s house is just a few metres from the spot.

The team then headed for Pyari Mohan Ray Road and found that Trinamool activists had pinned large flex-boards on the trunks of at least 20 trees lining the pavement. Most boards carried photographs of Mamata Banerjee.

“Leaders should understand that in an age of global warming, trees are more essential than political campaigns. Such practices will severely affect trees and, in turn, make the human species extinct,” said Ravi Menon, a veteran green activist.

Though hoardings on Harish Mukherjee Road clearly stated that they were sponsored by the local ward committee, the local councillor was not aware that they were pinned on trees in violation of a Supreme Court order. “Did our men pin the hoardings on the trunks of trees? I have to check that out,” said local councillor Ratan Malakar.

Firhad Hakim, the local Trinamool councillor of Pyari Mohan Roy Road, looked a bit more active. “I know the Supreme Court verdict has been flouted. It was a mistake and we have to rectify it,” he said, claiming that he had already asked his partymen to remove all hoardings pinned on trees. These should be tied to lamp posts instead, Hakim had directed.

Joydeep Kundu, another green activist, was not happy with the councillor’s stand. “At a time when the Trinamool leader is raising questions on how safe the environment would be after the chemical hub, how can her party supporters flout a Supreme Court order and pin hoardings on trees?” he wondered.

RTI:Bangalore activist was murdered

Autopsy Exposes Cops’ False Story

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bangalore: In a twist to the tale of RTI activist Venkatesh’s death, the postmortem report has contradicted the police’s claim that he died in an accident.

The body of Venkatesh, 49, was found on Nagarabhavi Main Road on Monday night. The autopsy reveals it was murder. The deceased was instrumental in BDA’s recovery of encroached land worth over Rs 30 crore. Jnanabharati police, after inspecting the body and spot, had concluded the death was due to a road accident.

There were said to be cut injuries on the neck and the case was transferred to Kamakshipalya police station, with recommendation to register a case of accident. The postmortem report released on Thursday revealed Venkatesh was hit with a blunt weapon on the head before being assaulted on the neck with a sharp one.

HE HAD MANY ENEMIES
As an RTI activist, Venkatesh had developed enmity with many people. Police said he was building a house in Nagarabhavi, behind the house of a water supply businessman. The land that BDA recovered is said to have been encroached upon by this man’s brother.

Moreover, Venkatesh had quarrelled with his brothers and moved to his inlaws’ place, sources said. He exposed many misdeeds in the area, earning the wrath of the land mafia.

Additional commissioner of police (law and order) M R Pujar said the issue has not come to his notice. “I will look into it and if the post-mortem report says it is murder, we will register a fresh case and investigate.”

Green activist beaten up for taking photos

TIMES NEWS NETWORK 

Pune: Senior environmentalist and writer Shyam Chainani of Bombay Environmental Action Group (BEAG) was allegedly beaten up at Koregaon Park while taking photographs for a heritage book on Pune and other Indian cities.

S i x t y – s i x – ye a r- o l d Chainani, a founder of BEAG, was a part of the Pune Municipal Corporation’s environmental conservation committee. He was in Pune to visit certain officials associated with heritage structures. He has written a book titled ‘Heritage & Environment – An Indian Diary’.

Narrating the incident, Chainani said, “I visited a few officers and environmentalists in Pune for this project. I was taking pictures in Koregaon Park for the book, when two security guards from a nearby bungalow walked towards me and tried to stop me from taking pictures.”

“I protested, saying that I was taking photographs at a public place. More persons joined in. They snatched my camera and took away the roll. Then, they threw my camera on the road. They did not stop at that. They even took out another camera which was kept in my car and tried to damage it,” he said.

Chainani could not file a police complaint. “I had to leave for Mumbai due to some urgent work so could not lodge a complaint. But, I will send a letter from Mumbai to the authorities concerned,” he said.

Senior Supreme Court advocate from Pune, N P Bhog, who is an associate of BEAG said, “Non-governmental organisations in Pune will take up the matter with the police commissioner soon.”

Chainani was taking the photographs for a book

Politicians:Election, religion, caste, & Astrologers

Elections are here.

Can Caste, religion or Astrologers be far away?

Of politicians, superstitions and elections

Ambarish Mishra | TNN

Mumbai: With the polls drawing closer, few parties are willing to tempt the fates, and are adhering to age-old beliefs to ensure that nothing goes wrong.

By all accounts, the Shiv Sena-BJP combine is seeking an auspicious muhurtham (moment) to sign off on its seat-sharing pact.

Poll talks between the two parties were suspended for two days on account of Holi, said a senior sate BJP functionary.

“People believe that the festival has ominous connotations. Good decisions are neither taken nor announced during Holi,’’ said the BJP functionary, adding that the Sena’s request that talks be resumed after Holi was accepted by his party.

The festival is popularly linked with tomfoolery and merry-making, and in many towns across the state, mahamurkha sammelans (big fool gatherings) were held on Wednesday to raise a toast to Mr Stupid.

At one function in Dhule, a donkey was the guest of honour.

“How can we meet and talk about elections?’’ asked a Sena leader, looking a tad worried. Sena spokesperson Neelam Gorhe denied that the Holi hurricane that has hit the brotherhood.

It remains to be seen if the Sena-BJP is ready to wrap up its talks and make a formal announcement on Friday the 13th. But the date has not drummed up any fear . “We are not worried about the date. Friday the 13th is a Western concept; it will not harm us,’’ said the BJP functionary. A Sena leader added,

“Tomorrow is a Sankashti and Lord Ganesha will turn Friday the 13th into an auspicious muhurtham.’’

Astrologers and godmen will soon arrive with their paraphernalia to soothe the nerves of candidates. Bhayyu Maharaj, the guru from Indore, has a sizeable following among political leaders, with former CM Vilasrao Deshmukh allegedly topping the list while Mumbai Regional Congress chief Kripa Shankar Singh is known to be a devotee of Asaram Bapu.

And while Sena chief Bal Thackeray is known for having kept godmen and gurus at bay, Uddhav Thackeray’s team has firm faith in yagnas, said sources. Uddhav is believed to have a soft spot for Namramuni Maharaj, a popular Jain sadhu who has a vast followingCaste divisions add to security woes

Caste Lines

M N Samdani | TNN

Vijayawada: With the battle lines for the Election-2009 being drawn on caste lines, the police in the state are redesigning the entire security map.

Against the largely accepted security manuals of previous elections where not more than 10-20 per cent of the total polling stations were considered sensitive, the new graphs are throwing an entirely new picture.

According to the new charts, the hyper-sensitive and sensitive villages could touch a record 60-70 per cent of the total polling areas in the state.

This is, thanks to the expected division of electorate based on the caste lines. Police believe that the entry of Prajarajyam Party coupled with consolidation of Kamma and Reddy voters behind TDP and Congress respectively has changed the situation.

Earlier, the hyper-sensitive and sensitive areas were identified purely based on the faction and extremist violence reported in a particular village. According to sources, the police have re-jigged priorities in identifying the sensitive areas, taking the local caste factors into account.

The field officers have been asked to map each village and hamlet with the head count of electorate and their castes. “We are expecting that the elections could throw up keen fights, particularly with regard to the caste struggles in the villages,” a police official attached with graphing of the new charts told TOI.

According to him, faction and extremist-related violence have occupied fourth and fifth slots on the five-point agenda to prepare the security map.

Though not many incidents of riots or clashes between various caste groups were recorded in the past, the police are fearing caste reprisals in this elections. Previously, most of the clashes in the villages used to be branded as “political” in spite of the role of some caste groups.

“This time the division on caste lines is deep-rooted and highly sensitive to gauge,” confirmed an intelligence official. He observed that routine security bandobust near the polling stations and route parties might not be sufficient.

Sources told TOI that police are overhauling the security arrangements. More mobile parties are likely to be pressed into service around the villages to keep a close watch on the troublemakers. “We have told our cops to forget about the previous history of the candidates and elections.

They have to be in tune with the latest intelligence inputs from every village. We are making pucca arrangements to ensure a fair polling,” explained a DIG-level officer. Sources indicated that most of the 13,000 villages in the state will be given the ‘sensitive’ tag till the completion of the elections.

Muslim Ulema meet to discuss polls

Mohammed Wajihuddin & Somit Sen | TNN 

Mumbai: Muslim intellectuals and ulema who met at the Islam Gymkhana on Thursday demanded an alliance of secular parties so as to prevent the division of secular votes.

Low representation of Muslims in the Lok Sabha has become a serious issue after the lone Muslim MP from the state, A R Antulay from Raigad, announced that he will not seek re-election. Muslims constitute 20% of the electorate in Mumbai; their share of votes in the state is 10%.

“We need to have one Muslim candidate from Mumbai who will voice our issues in Parliament,’’ said Maulana Syed Ather Ali, president, All India Ulema Association, the organisation that convened Thursday’s meeting.

He stated that the discontent over seat-sharing between the Congress and NCP, and the subsequent reports of an NCP-Sena alliance has caused confusion.

“We want secular parties to stick together so that our community can back them in the polls. We are also launching a 15-day campaign to ensure that more Muslims come out to vote,’’ he said.

A sad day in the life of Service Personnel

It is a matter of concern that service personnell who had spent the best part of their lives in service of the nation should feel so aggrieved as to return the the tokens of honour bestowed on them.

Shameful still that the President of India who is also the Commander in Chief has not cared  to acknowledge even the existence of retired service personnel.

Moist eyes, they return medals

Retired Servicemen Demand

‘Equal Pension For Equal Service’

Neha Pushkarna | TNN

New Delhi: Subedar Chauhan could not hold back his tears as he parted with his medals on Saturday. He said he had worn them close to his heart all his life but only the government could not stand up to his contribution to the country.

Nearly 300 ex-servicemen returned their medals to President Pratibha Devisingh Patil on Saturday in protest to demand ‘equal pension for equal service.’

‘‘More than 3000 medals were collected on Saturday, which we returned at the Rashtrapati Bhawan. We wanted to give the medals to our Supreme Commander, President Patil, but she did not meet us.

If our demand is not considered, many more exservicemen of all ranks will return their medals,’’ said Maj Gen (Retd) Satbir Singh, vice-chairperson, Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement — the group that initiated this protest in December 2008.

More than 2000 medals were earlier returned to the President on February 8 when ex-servicemen from all over the country, including 300 general-rank officers, had gathered at Jantar Mantar. According to the exservicemen, those who retired earlier get less pension than those who retired recently even though their number of years in service may be same.

Retd Commander Sharan Ahuja, member, Indian ESM Movement, said, ‘‘If an officer of my rank retires today after 20 years of service, he would get Rs 30,000 per month as pension. However, I get Rs 14,500 as I retired in 1994.’’

The ex-servicemen say that the disparity in the pension of the defence personnel retiring at different times is too stark because the old ex-servicemen never got adequate increment after the various Central Pay Commissions. They said that the issue has been raging for 25 years now.

Retd Commander Ahuja said, ‘‘We have fought the wars in 1965 and 1971. We had spent our lives looking after the frontiers of the country. Many of us don’t even know how many schools did our children had to change.

Many of us weren’t even around when our children were born.’’
He added, ‘‘Our medals were a testimony to all this but we had to give them up as no government has acted on our demand to have equal pension for equal service in all these years. Ex-servicemen from all the three forces are together.’’

Hawaldar Mukesh, who retired in 2004, said that government should understand the plight of the ex-servicemen after they retire.
‘‘I haven’t fought against plastic bullets. Then why is my pension less than those who retired after me.

There are no jobs for exservicemen either’’ he said. Subedar Ram Swaroop Yadav, who retired from the army in 1992 says returning the medals is as painful for him as parting with his child.

‘‘But if the President doesn’t have any concern for our services, we better give the medals back,’’ he said.
neha.pushkarna@timesgroup.com

RTI: CIC Summons Police Officials

Striking a blow for the common man

CIC: Habibullah

‘Vague’ replies land top cops at CIC office

Officers Say Queries Frivolous

Dwaipayan Ghosh &
Abhinav Garg | TNN 

New Delhi: In an unusual development, more than a dozen senior Delhi Police officials — joint commissioners, additional commissioners and deputy commissioners — landed up at the Central Information Commission office on Thursday after 22 senior police officers were summoned by chief information commissioner Wajahat Habibullah in reference to an appeal. The hearing was for a RTI filed by Ajit Kar, a resident of Satyaniketan. The RTI sought answers to 43 questions.

According to Kar, he had initially filed an RTI on various issues concerning ‘‘Delhi Police and the citizens’’ and wanted the seven joint commissioners of Delhi Police to answer them. ‘‘However, the answers I received were mostly vague. Some of the questions were partially or generally answered, while some others were misleading. Hence I appealed to the CIC to provide me relief in the manner that the respondents may be ordered to supply specific and accurate information,’’ Kar said.
While most of the officers turned up in person, a few sent their representatives.
However, a look at the RTI application, a copy of which is with Times City, raises questions about the nature of information demanded. While one question asked the police to give a complete list of heinous crimes and the sections of IPC that were pressed for them, another asked whether all telephone numbers provided in the citizen’s charter were still in working condition.

Habibullah defended the decision to summon the top cops, adding the officers were free to depute a common representative instead of appearing in person. ‘‘Since each one of them had been made a respondent in the RTI plea, summons were sent to each of them.

It is the registry which sends these summons and it was open to the officers to send the PIO or intimate their non-availability. It is for them to decide whom to send or depute,’’ Habibullah said, admitting that even he was surprised to see the entire Delhi Police brass turn up in full force. ‘

The applicant has a very long appeal which we will decide shortly. We told him how the entire force was present today because of his appeal. We have criticised him for that,’’ the CIC said.

A source said: ‘‘With almost all top cops attending the hearing, many important meetings had to be rescheduled. While we respect every CIC decision, we urge the RTI activists to ask more specific questions.’’

Sources said there were people who had been arrested for harassing people with RTI suites. ‘‘While one applicant has filed 270 RTIs in south and south-west districts, another person puts up atleast 90 questions,’’ claimed the source.