MP Quits YSR Congress, Joins Chandrababu Naidu’s TDP

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May 25, 2014

Less than 10 days after Chandrababu Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party or TDP emerged the clear winner in the Seemandhra region of Andhra Pradesh, fresh trouble is brewing for YSR Congress chief Jagan Mohan Reddy.

Three-time MP from Nandyal, SPY Reddy, who joined the YSR Congress in September last year and won on the fan symbol, joined the TDP, after a meeting with Chandrababu Naidu in Delhi. Kurnool MP Butta Renuka is also expected to join soon. Her husband Neelakantam also joined the TDP along with SPY Reddy, who was incidentally elected in 2009 on a Congress ticket.

“I have joined TDP not because of any differences with the YSR Congress but for the development of my region. The BJP is ruling at the Centre and TDP is set to be ruling Andhra Pradesh,” Mr. Reddy said.

Chief Minister-designate for Andhra Pradesh N Chandrababu Naidu is a seasoned politician who knows that a weakened political rival is better in the long term. Though he does not require any additional support to form his government, he is conscious that the gap, in terms of vote share, between his party and the YSR Congress is just about two per cent. One can expect that more MLAs from Jagan’s party may switch sides.

The Nandyal MP was in fact part of the MPs’ delegation of YSR Congress which met Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi and BJP President Rajnath Singh. The YSR Congress had won nine Lok Sabha seats, one of them in Telangana.

AP Teen became youngest woman to conquer Mount Everest

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Afternoon Voice

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May 25, 2014

At just 13 years and 11 months old, Poorna, a tribal girl from Andhra Pradesh, has become the youngest woman to conquer Mount Everest, the highest peak in the world.

Poorna, daughter of farm labourers from Andhra Pradesh’s Nizamabad district, studies in Class IX in a government-run social welfare hostel. On this unique mission, along with Poorna, is Anand, another Class IX student, who is the son of a cycle mechanic from the state’s Khammam district. Anand is said to have become the first Dalit to conquer the tallest peak.

The teenagers, Poorna and Anand, symbolically carried photographs of BR Ambedkar and former IAS officer SR Sankaran, to the top of the world.

In November last year, Poorna and Anand were among a dozen teenagers, all from similar social background, who became the youngest group to climb Mount Renock, after initially being denied training for being too young. From then on, the group had set its sights on Everest. “I will climb Mount Everest and after I am back, I am going to be an IPS officer,” Poorna had told, brimming with confidence, at a time when her target was miles and miles away. Her inspiration, IPS officer Praveen Kumar, who as secretary of Andhra Pradesh’s social welfare hostels, has been the force behind making this happen and to show that given the opportunity, the most so-called backward can make it to the top of the world.

New Zealander Edmund Hillary and his Sherpa guide Tenzing Norgay were the first people to climb Mount Everest on May 29, 1953. This week marks the 61st anniversary of the conquest. Since then, more than 4,000 people have climbed the 8,850 metres (29,035 feet) summit.

Man arrested for allegedly trying to extort Rs. 5 lakh from his uncle

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Afternoon Voice

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May 25, 2014

A 25-year-old youth has been arrested for allegedly trying to extort Rs. five lakh from his uncle, who is an associate professor with the Delhi University, by posing as a gangster, police said.

The accused, identified as Atish Ranjan alias Trilochan Kumar alias Sumit was arrested by the Crime Branch of Delhi Police after it received a tip off that he will be coming to Mehrauli Badarpur Road.

It was found that Ranjan is the nephew of Suman Verma, an associate professor in the Mathematics department of the Delhi University who had registered a complaint at the Maurice Nagar Police Station last year saying that he had been getting extortion calls.

“During interrogation, Ranjan revealed that it was he who had been making extortion calls to his uncle and demanding Rs. five lakh, as he was in dire economic distress while his uncle was financially sound,” said Additional Commissioner of Police (Crime) Ashok Chand.

The extortionist posed himself as a gangster to threaten the Assistant Professor, said Chand.

The mobile phone and the SIM card used for threatening the Assistant Professor has been recovered, police said.

Ranjan hailed from Patna where he had worked in BPO, MNS Company. He came to Delhi in 2010 where he joined a bank as sales executive for six months. In 2012, he changed his job profile and started providing waiters for celebratory functions. In the year 2013, he was in deep financial crises and therefore he planned to extort money.

Man attacks tiger with sickle, saves his life

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Afternoon Voice

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May 25, 2014

Shaukat Ali, a resident of Bijua, was attacked by a tiger when he went to fish hunting in Sharda river near Rewatipur village in Lakhimpur Kheri district. In a counter attack, Shaukat attacked the big cat with a sickle.

Shaukat has been referred to district hospital after he suffered injuries on his back and face.

Shaukat attacked the Tiger three times which forced the animal to flee.

DFO of South Kheri, Neeraj Kumar, informed that he has received a report that a tiger attack has taken place in Bhira Range.

Students should make informed career decisions

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Lopamudra Ghosh

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May 25, 2014

As the CBSE and ICSE results are already out, there is a huge rush for students to enrol in junior colleges and select the stream of their choice. Although the results don’t always reflect the capacity and capabilities of students, there play a pivotal role in deciding a child’s future. Many students are confused at this stage as they are not sure which course to enrol for. I think each student should seek the help of career counsellors at this stage. They conduct tests which determine the aptitude, interest and ability of each candidate and thereby determine career choices for them which match all three, thus putting an end to a student’s confusion and queries.

Then comes another big hurdle which is admissions. It is needless to say that some people perform better while others do not. Then there are cut offs and course options based on cut offs and the marks obtained in a particular subject. Many people end up in a dilemma. They are divided in their opinion about whether to pursue the course of their choice in a less reputed college or whether to opt for a different course in a more reputed college. Experts advise students not to change their stream as post getting the degree, it is up to them to make a mark in the respective field. Only if they have the aptitude for and interest in the field can they scale heights in their career.

Besides, many a times young brilliant students lose out their chance of getting admission in a junior college of their choice because of reservations. Some of the seats are reserved for students attending high school from the same institute whereas other seats are reserved for students belonging to reserved categories. This practice might destroy the career of students.

Many a times students take the eleventh grade very lightly as they have just answered their board exams a year ago. However, this kind of thinking and attitude is dangerous as in the eleventh grade, there is a drastic change in syllabus. If students are not serious, they might perform poorly in the examinations. Many students are detained in the eleventh grade, especially the students who take up science.

Besides, in junior colleges, students aim to get admission in a good undergraduate college. Some of the meritorious students have plans of seeking admission abroad. For this, they need to be extra serious. Students should pay heed to all the above mentioned points and then enrol themselves in a junior college.

Narendra Modi: The statesman

By

Mahendra Singh

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May 25, 2014

Narendra Modi has taken a very friendly step by inviting SAARC nations for his swearing-in ceremony. Situation always improves when you display mutual respect, meet and have a dialogue with your neighbouring nations. It is true that in Pakistan, the Army, the ISI and non-state actors tend to have an upper hand but such a situation cannot be allowed to continue forever. May be, they want to get out of it and abandon it forever and the courage of Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is commendable. It will be very fruitful if he announces most favoured nation status for India which will pave way for the flourishment of trade and commerce between both the countries.

When I and my Pakistani captain used to have discussion while having dinner he always used to say that America does not want bilateral cooperation between both the nations. However, this is not true with President Barack Obama who is in favour of peace between both the countries. There is a possibility of betterment of bilateral ties between India and Pakistan.

Both Modi and Sharif should have bilateral dialogue and seek consensus among parliamentarians to accept the line of control as the permanent border between both the nations. Once, the groundwork is prepared, make a declaration in a mutually acceptable manner. Both the PM’s should agree to reign in or ignore the hardliners amongst them. What action will Pakistan now take against underworld don Dawood Ibrahim who has relocated to an unknown location in Af-Pak border from Karachi? Pakistan must handover Dawood to India who has masterminded the 1993 Mumbai bomb blast.

The most delicious apple I have eaten was at Karachi. Why should not such fruits become available to all of us through opening up the trade between both the nations? We are two brotherly nations and our produce should be shared unhindered which will enable us to control inflation. If a commodity like onion becomes expensive in India due to scarcity then we can procure if from Pakistan and vice-versa.

We must have strong alliance with Japan. We must learn a lot from them by arranging training programmes for our youth. Talented youth must be selected and training should be imparted to them under the guidance of Japanese technicians. Such trainers can also be sought from other countries like Pakistan, Europe and Britain. Selecting and training our youth for employable trades is the top priority to find employment for them and deploy them for infrastructure development work. Lengthy discussions pertaining to India and Pakistan must be avoided on television channels.

Journalists should behave properly

By

Vaidehi Taman

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May 23, 2014

I would like to start my editorial with one of the famous quotes of Oscar Wilde which says,“Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation”. Few days ago, a Senior Journalist of “Jagran”Group suggested me to learn and write in Hindi to connect with maximum people and readers. He almost convinced me about the importance of “Hindi” for a journalist(especially if you are active on Social Media). I adapted his thought and tried to implementit with balanced posts in both “Hindi” and “English” languages.Today morning, another senior journalist who is working with TOI criticised me for loosing charm as an ‘English Journalist’. He bashed me out and out saying that “You have become a typical North-Indian” journalist. He told, “Why you have to listen to those vernacular writers who are jealous of us?We belong to ‘English Publications’and you should have that attitude in you.My mood was spoiled as I never thought somebody will bash me for the language I used in theearly morning and I was at the receiving end.Anyways,they both are following me. I am too junior to them to argue but trying to have a grip here with almost an integrity which is beyond the language barriers. Earlier, Journalists were divided in to two sects, Electronic media and Print media. These days,media is sub divided into Hindi, English and vernacularmedia houses to some extent. Now, even banners are divided on the basis of its loyalty towards political parties. Yes, English press have that attitude towards vernacular press. It’s been always there but has come openly now. If you are comfortable and can communicate in both or more languages, then it gives you an edge. However, the strange mindset is that if you know English in addition with French and German then you are an elite person. And if you know English along with Hindi or Marathilanguage then you are medium or a common person. Whatmatters here is content and only reasonable expectation is decent grammar. While social media companies seem eager to break their mobile experiences into smaller pieces, there are some risks that could turn off users. Whereas print media has different challenge and electronic media has another challenge. Over all, journalism has gone unreasonable and arrogant.

Few days ago, I was watching a talk show on IBN Lokmat anchored by Nikhil Wagle.He invited some politicians along with Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Anjali Damania. During a debate, she said media was not fair with AAP.Wagle lost his cool and behave like a wild animal and started attacking her with all sort of hard dialogues and language.Finally, she was about to cry and he asked her to leave the studio. Arnab Goswami is famous for his aggressiveness and pretending like or copying him will not make others famous.

Journalists have been the only source of information for administration since the 2nd World War. India has imported the style of engaging journalist for gathering intelligence on politics as well as crimes. Trading of information between the journalist fraternity and Intelligence agencies went on rise and reached a point of equilibrium, so much that ethics ceased to exist. Some did it for status, some for career, while some for money.The ugliest form of info-sharing journalism was seen during the 2G spectrum scam when we heard Barkha Dutt and Vir Sanghvi operating as touts amidst the political lobbying that was on for the portfolio of Telecom Minister. It is government’s approach towards the journalistic fraternity that neither of them has been made accused.Shivani Bhatnagar made a posthumous impact upon the journalist fraternity when the hidden details of her relationship with some bureaucrats and politicians were revealed during investigations. Unholy proximity to the subjects of journalism is the root or fundamental evil of all the tragedies that journalist have had to face, either by virtue of loss of name or due to some legal consequences.

Mumbai being the commercial capital of India has some weighty examples of unholy nexus between journalists and their subjects such as officials, politicians and underworld dons. The sensational J Dey murder case has brought to the fore this nexus more clearly than any other events. Having covered the crime beat for around three decades, Dey had naturally developed affiliations in legitimate as well as illegitimate walks of life. Bootleggers, matka-den operators are regular paymasters of crime reporters residing in respective areas. Visionless and routine crime reporters thrive on their money and retire peacefully. Ambitious reporters like Dey, aim high and possess heavy appetite. Their morals become flexible in the initial period of their career and later vanish. Switching of loyalties is not a great affair when it comes to money. It may not be so frequent in underworld as it is in journalism. Whether it is for higher pay-scale in another newspaper or for a “heavier Diwali” by a gangster; a journalist can swing like a Pilipino bi-sexual. He/she can switch loyalties so fast that even seasoned politicians shall envy the promptness and swiftness of such a journalist.

NCP’s number game

By

Afternoon Voice

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May 23, 2014

NCP tries to gain an upper hand over Congress by demanding more seats in the forthcoming assembly election.

Blame games have begun after the Congress party had suffered its worst defeat in the recently concluded LokSabha election. Party leaders have held the weak leadership of Rahul Gandhi responsible for the poll debacle. On the other hand, NCP had demanded more seats in the forthcoming assembly election. NCP party Chief SharadPawar wants the seat sharing formula to be reworked after Congress party’s tally had reduced to two. According to him, NCP should be allotted more seats in the assembly election as the party has fared better than the Congress by winning four seats.

SharadPawar said, “Our party should get more seats for contesting the assembly elections in Maharashtra as the performance of the Congress has been poor in the state.”

“Last time, when we wonfewer seats than Congress in LokSabha polls, the latter said that it was entitled to contest more seats for the assembly election. We should discuss about the seat sharing arrangement with the Congress party. Congress must remember that we have won more seats in this election” Pawar added.

During the 2009 Assembly polls, NCP had contested 114 seats compared to 174 by Congress in the 288 member House. In the recent LokSabha polls NCP won four and Congress two seats in the state.

SachinSawant, Congress Maharashtra state unit spokesperson said,“As of now there is no proposal to review the seat sharing arrangement for the assembly polls. If we receive any communication in regard to this matter from the NCP then the high command will look into this matter and a decision will be taken.”

It may be recalled that during the last assembly polls Congress state unit President Manikrao Thackeray had said that Congress is in a position to contest more seats for assembly polls after faring better in the LokSabha polls as compared to its ally NCP.

In recently concluded LokSabha polls, Congress had contested 27 seats out of 48 seats whereas its ally NCP contested from 21 seats in the state. Congress managed to win two seats while NCP’swon four seats. NCP has sharpened its attack on the Congress party and has held the party responsible for the poll debacle. The party attributed the UPA rout mainly to the “communication deficit” on part of the outgoing prime minister and Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

NCP leader Praful Patel who lost the LokSabha election from Gondia held Rahul Gandhi responsible for the defeat and said, “Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was missing during the entire election campaign and the Congress party failed to project a leader for the prime ministerial candidate. People were confused about Rahul Gandhi’s role if the Congress had retained power.”

Congress stalwart Narayan Rane held NCPresponsible for the downfall of UPAin the state and said, “NCP supporters were negatively campaigning against the Congress which was responsible for our defeat in the election. If NCP wants to review the seat sharing arrangement then they shouldsurrender the seats offered to them by us.”

BJP scoffs at MNS’ move to project Raj as CM nominee

By

Afternoon Voice

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May 23, 2014

The BJP on Friday ridiculed the move of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) to project its party head Raj Thackeray as the chief ministerial nominee for the state Assembly elections this year, employing the Narendra Modi gambit.
BJP spokesman Madhav Bhandari said if the MNS projection is inspired by the nomination of Modi who was made the prime ministerial candidate by the BJP, then MNS should remember that Modi has more than 35 years of work as party worker and 12 years as Gujarat Chief Minister.

“Modi has not risen overnight as BJP’s PM nominee and now PM-designate,” he said.

Bhandari said just like the voters had rejected the MNS candidates in the Lok Sabha polls where all of them lost their deposits, the same situation will be seen in the Assembly elections.

Sena-BJP “Mahayuti” secured a lead in about 240 Assembly segments in the Lok Sabha polls and the endeavour of the alliance would be to maintain the lead in the Assembly elections as well, he said. The issue of MNS joining the ‘Mahayuti’ is a closed chapter and any decision on new allies will be taken jointly by all the allies, he added.

Bhandari said the Lok Sabha election results proved that voters in the state have realised that voting for MNS was indirectly helping the Congress-NCP coalition.

He said preparations for the Assembly polls will begin after swearing-in of the new government in Delhi.

Shiv Sena corporator shot dead

By

Afternoon Voice

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May 23, 2014

A Shiv Sena corporator of Badlapur Municipal Council in Thane district was on Friday shot dead by unidentified persons, police said.

The assailants opened fired at Sena leader Mohan Raut at around 11.30 AM in Apte Wadi locality of Thane’s Badlapur township.

Raut, in his late thirties, was rushed to Ulhasnagar Central Hospital where he was declared brought dead, police said.

The motive behind the killing was yet to be ascertained, police said, adding that it was immediately not known as to how many persons were involved in the killing.

Investigations were on into the murder, they added.