Nasheman

India's largest selling Urdu weekly, now also in English

You are here: Home / Archives for News & Politics / India

No single momentous invention from India in 60 years: Narayana Murthy

by

N R Narayana Murthy

Bengaluru: There has not been a single invention from India in the last 60 years that became a household name globally, nor any idea that led to “earth shaking” invention to “delight global citizens”, IT czar NR Narayana Murthy said today.

“Our youngsters have not done much impactful research work despite being equal to their counterparts in intellect and energy in Western universities,” he said delivering the convocation address at the Indian Institute of Science here.

Listing out 10 major inventions that Massachusets Institute of Technology has created in the last 50 years that includes Global Positioning System, Bionic Prostheses and Microchip, Murthy said these happened because students and faculty at MIT “walked the untrodden path, asked the unasked questions and used their intellectual prowess to take huge leaps”.

“They demonstrated unusual courage to achieve the plausibly-impossible. The story is similar at many other western institutions of higher education,” he said.

He said almost all inventions such as cars, electric bulb, radio, television, computers, internet, Wi-Fi, MRI, laser, robots and many other gadgets and technology happened, “thanks to the research by Western Universities”.

He added: “On the other hand, let us pause and ask what the contributions of Indian institutions of higher learning, particularly IISc ans IITs, have been over the last sixty-plus years to make our society and the world a better place?

“Is there one invention from India that has become a household name in the globe? Is there one technology that has transformed the productivity of global corporations? Is there one idea that has lead to an earth shaking invention to delight global citizens?”

Co-founder of the country’s major IT firm Infosys said, “Folks, the reality is that there is no such contribution from India in the last 60 years. The only two ideas that have transformed the productivity of global corporations — The Global Delivery Model and the 24-hours workday — came from the company called Infosys.”

(PTI)

Regulate Internet calls, disallow Internet.org-like app: DoT

by

Internet calls

New Delhi: A government panel on Net neutrality has proposed to regulate domestic calls made using Internet-based calling applications such as Skype, Whatsapp and Viber at par with phone call services offered by telecom operators.

The panel has opposed projects like Facebook’s Internet.org, which allow access to certain websites without mobile data charges, while suggesting that similar plans such as Airtel Zero be allowed with prior clearance from TRAI.

“In the case of Over-The-Top (OTT) VoIP international calling services, a liberal approach may be adopted. However, in the case of domestic calls (local and national), communication services by TSPs (telecom service providers) and OTT communication services may be treated similarly from a regulatory angle for the present.

The Committee is chaired by DoT Advsior for Technology A K Bhargava and members in the panel include A K Mittal, V Umashankar, Shashi Ranjan Kumar, G Narendra Nath and R M Agarwal.

Net neutrality implies that equal treatment be accorded to all Internet traffic and no priority be given to an entity or company based on payment to content or service providers such as telecom companies, which is seen as discriminatory.

The neutrality debate flared up in India after telecom operator Airtel launched a platform, Airtel Zero, that would allow free access of some websites on its network. However, the companies were asked to pay Airtel for joining the platform.

The panel discussed Facebook’s Internet.org and said that until April 2015, Internet.org users could have free access for only a few websites, and Facebook’s role as gatekeeper in determining what websites were on that list was seen as violating Net neutrality.

The panel said that “collaborations between telecom operators and content providers that enable such gate-keeping role to be played by any entity should be actively discouraged”.

At the same time, the panel approved allowing zero rating platform after telecom operators compared it with a toll-free number. It said there is a multitude of possibilities in designing tariff plans and everything cannot be validated in advance on parameters of Net neutrality.

The panel proposed “ex-ante determination” and “ex-post regulation” model for dealing with tariff plan, including zero rating.

Under ex-ante determination, the panel has proposed telecom operators to follow current practice of filing tariffs before the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India and the regulator should carefully vet it on scale of Net neutrality before giving its nod.

In line with demand from telecom operators, the panel has recommended that OTT players should be brought under regulation to comply with national security norms like telecom operators in the country do.

“National security is paramount, regardless of treatment of Net neutrality. The measures to ensure compliance of security related requirements from OTT service providers need to be worked out through inter-ministerial consultations,” the report added.

(PTI)

Goa renews ban on Sri Rama Sene’s Muthalik

by

Muthalik

Panaji: Authorities in North Goa and South Goa districts have renewed the ban on the entry of Pramod Muthalik, chief of the Mangalore-based Hindu right-wing organisation Sri Rama Sene, a government official said on Wednesday.

“Muthalik and his associates from the Sri Rama Sene have been banned from entering the two districts of Goa for 60 days from July 16 (Thursday) onwards as his aggressive statements and comments could hurt community feelings of certain groups and create violence, riots or an affray resulting in serious law and order problem,” a government spokesperson said.

The ban orders against Muthalik – infamous for his alleged communal speeches – were passed by North Goa’s Additional Collector Swapnil Naik and South Goa’s District Collector Sachin Shinde respectively, the spokesperson said.

Muthalik, who first shot to notoriety nearly a decade ago after beating up patrons of a Mangalore pub, was first banned from entering Goa by the then Congress government in 2009, after he publicly announced that he would try to curb the pub culture in Goa and try and establish ‘Hindu culture’ in the state.

The ban was subsequently renewed by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led coalition government in 2014.

(IANS)

27 Child labourers rescued in Bengaluru

by

child labourers

Bengaluru: Around 27 child labourers from Thagajaguppe village in Kaggalipura police limits were rescued by CID’s anti-human trafficking unit on July 14.

The officials conducted a raid based on information provided by the 16 children who were rescued earlier from the same area. The children, all under the age of 15, hail from Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka.

It is learnt that the employers, Ashwath Narayana (35) of Lingarajapuram, Anand of Chamarajpet and Prashanthkumar (35) of Vijayanagar brought them to Bengaluru on the pretext of giving them jobs; they were then made to work on segregating and cleaning plastics from the garbage. Both the accused are said to be absconding.

The children told the officials that they used to work from 6 am to 7 pm. Having been assured jobs, they were brought to the state by Tannulal, Mandee and Suresh Lal Jadhav, all belonging to the state of Bihar. The police are on a lookout for the accused.

(Agencies)

Vaikom Muhammad Basheer’s wife Fabi Basheer passes away

by

Fabi Basheer

Kozhikode: Fabi Basheer, widow of Vaikom Muhammed Basheer, passed away at a private hospital here on Wednesday.

She was 77.

She had been suffering from colon cancer for quite some time.

Fabi was admitted to the hospital three days ago with pneumonia and had been in the ICU of the hospital.

Basheer and Fabi entered into wedlock on December 18, 1958.

She is survived by their children Shahina and Anees.

(Agencies)

1993 blasts convict Yakub Memon to be hanged on July 30

by

Yakub Memon

Mumbai: Yakub Memon, convicted for his role in the March 12, 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts, will be hanged on July 30, official sources said here early Wednesday.

He is likely to be be hanged in the Nagpur Central Jail, where he is currently lodged, following the rejection of his mercy plea in April this year by the president, said the official who declined to be identified.

A chartered accountant, Memon, 53, has filed his second review petition before the Supreme Court which is expected to be heard July 21, but the state government is making all preparations for the hanging with the warrant issued earlier this week.

He was awarded the death sentence by a Special TADA Court in Mumbai on July 27, 2007 for his role in the blasts, including arranging finances for carrying out the 13 serial explosions which left 257 dead and over 700 injured across the city on March 12, 1993.

Subsequently, Memon – the brother of one of the main absconding accused Ibrahim alias Tiger Memon – appealed against the sentence in the Bombay High Court, Supreme Court and later filed a mercy petition with the president, followed by a review petition, and now a second review petition which is pending.

Leading criminal lawyer and a former defence lawyer in the same case Majeed Memon questioned the need for the state government’s “hurry” in the matter even before the outcome of the second review petition.

“Are they pre-empting the issue or are they already before-hand aware of the outcome of the review petition? They should have waited till the matter is finally decided,” Majeed Memon, a top NCP leader and Member of Parliament, told IANS on Wednesday.

(IANS)

‘Acche din’ will take 25 years, report quotes Amit Shah; BJP calls it ‘baseless’

by

Amit_Shah

New Delhi: As the Opposition attacked it over Amit Shah’s reported comment that it will take 25 years for the promised ‘achhe din’ to come, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today termed the report as “baseless” and said the party president had stated that it will take these many years to restore India its “ancient glory”.

“Shah said the BJP government had curbed corruption and brought down inflation.It is working to end corruption and create many jobs in five years. But the dream of making India ‘Vishwa guru (world leader) will take 25 years to realise,” BJP secretary and media cell in-charge Shrikant Sharma said.

A media report today quoted Amit Shah as having told party leaders and workers at a meet in Bhopal yesterday that the good days promised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take 25 years to come.

Latching onto it, Congress leader Digvijay Shah took a dig at Amit Shah, saying his good days had arrived and people can forget about theirs.

Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal wondered in a tweet, “Would people have voted for BJP had it told them that it will take 25 years for good days to arrive”. Sharma, however, said Shah made the remarks in the context of restoring India its ancient glory and claimed the report was “part of conspiracy to defame BJP”.

“India used to be a world leader. And our president said it will take 25 years to restore India its ancient glory and status of world leader again,” he said.

Shah never said the BJP government will take 25 years to bring ‘achhe din’, he added.

“It is a baseless report and part of larger conspiracy to defame BJP,” he alleged.

(PTI)

27 killed in stampede during Godavari Pushkaralu festival in Andhra Pradesh

by

Some pilgrims said ambulances took time to reach the site [Reuters]

Some pilgrims said ambulances took time to reach the site [Reuters]

Rajahmundry: At least 27 pilgrims, 13 of them women, died and 20 others injured in a stampede at a major bathing spot on the banks of the Godavari river where a huge crowd of devotees had gathered on the opening day of ‘Pushkaram’ festival here today.

A major religious event held once in 12 years, hundreds of people drawn from different parts of the state had converged on the river bank to take dip in the river on the auspicious occasion.

The tragedy struck between 7.30 AM and 8 AM and most of the victims were elderly people.

Rajahmundry Sub-Collector Vijaya Ramaraju said the bodies had been shifted to Rajahmundry Government Hospital and the injured taken to a nearby hospital.

“So far 27 have died …most of the dead are elderly women,” Ramaraju said.

The victims had been waiting since early hours and some of them were tired as they had travelled long distances to reach here.

The official said there is a possibility that the deaths were caused due to suffocation.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, who was on the spot to take the holy dip, expressed profound grief at the tragedy and is personally monitoring relief and rescue operations.

A visibly disturbed Naidu, monitoring the situation from the control room, said, “This is very unfortunate and shocking. I have come here many times to review arrangements to ensure smooth conduct of the event. But some problems cropped up in execution.”

The Chief Minister also announced an ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh for the family of the deceased and said, if necessary, he would would remain in Rajahmundry for the next 11 days.

Earlier in the day, Naidu, accompanied by his wife and son, had taken the holy dip, where the river is full in its expanse.

Godavari ‘Pushkaram’, the ritual of taking holy dip in the river, is observed once in 12 years, but this time it is considered auspicious from astronomical point of view as it is ‘Maha Pushkaralu’ which comes once in 144 years.

Kanchi Shankaracharya Jayandra Sarswathi was among the spiritual leaders who took the sacred bath.

The ‘Pushakaram’ is a similar to the ‘Kumbh Mela’ performed alongside rivers elsewhere in the country and taking holy dip is the main ritual of the religious event.

(PTI)

CBI raids Teesta Setalvad’s residence, office in Mumbai

by

Teesta Setalvad

Mumbai: The Central Bureau of Investigation Tuesday carried out searches at premises of social activist Teesta Setalvad and her organisation in connection with a case of alleged violation of Foreign Contribution Regulation Act in receiving funds from abroad without taking prior permission from the home ministry.

The CBI sleuths carried out searches at four places in Mumbai at the premises of Setalvad, her husband Javed Anand, Gulam Mohammed Peshimam and office of Sabrang Communications and Publishing, a move flayed by the social activist who said that she was cooperating with the CBI.

“We are surprised and shocked at this,” Teesta said, adding, “We have been offering full cooperation.”

The CBI had registered a case on July 8 against all these under IPC section related to criminal conspiracy (120-B) along with provisions of Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, 2010 and Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, 1976.

“We had written a letter to CBI offering full cooperation and telling the agency that whatever so-called offences are registered against us, we will cooperate. So we don’t understand the rationale behind this entire operation,” Setalvad, who was at fore front of campaign for 2002 Gujarat riots victims, said.

“We believe that it is a caged-parrot in operation and its a political vendetta and they are trying to humiliate and intimidate us,” she said, noting “the team here is very professional but we don’t know where it will end”.

CBI sources said in New Delhi that the case was registered after the agency completed verification of all the documents submitted by the home ministry while referring the probe to the agency.

They said it is alleged that the accused named in the FIR, in a criminal conspiracy, accepted foreign contribution without registration and prior permission from the Union home ministry as mandated under FCRA norms.

The government had earlier ordered a CBI probe into the transfer of funds by US-based Ford Foundation to Sabrang Communication and Publishing Pvt Limited (SCPPL) and even froze a bank account of the firm on June 26.

It was alleged that at SCPPL violate rules of FCRA in accepting a donation of USD 2.9 lakh from Ford Foundation without getting clearance of the Home Ministry.

According to the rules, an organisation or a private firm can accept donations from overseas only after it is registered under FCRA. The donation was, therefore, a “serious violation” of FCRA provisions which mandate funding from a foreign source to only those recipients who have FCRA registration, the Home Ministry had said while ordering a CBI case.

A bank account of the firm located in Juhu, Mumbai, had also been frozen at the instruction of the Home Ministry.

The Gujarat government had earlier asked the Home Ministry to take action against Ford Foundation, alleging that the US-based organisation was “interfering in internal affairs” of the country and also “abetting communal disharmony” through an NGO run by Setalvad.

The fund transfer from Ford Foundation has, at present, to be cleared by a nodal official in the Home Ministry. In April, the government had ordered that funds from Ford Foundation should not be released by any bank to any Indian NGO without mandatory permission from the Home Ministry.

There are several cases in which the Gujarat government and Setalvad are waging legal battles. While she has filed several cases against the state government functionaries in connection with post-Godhra riots of 2002, the state police have filed a case of alleged embezzlement of funds against her.

(Agencies)

BCCI suspends Mumbai cricketer Hiken Shah for corruption

by

Hiken Shah

Mumbai: The Board of control for Cricket in India (BCCI) suspended Mumbai cricketer Hiken Shah with immediate effect on Monday after finding him guilty of breaching its Anti-Corruption Code.

The BCCI said Shah made a “corrupt” approach to one of his colleagues from first-class cricket, who plays in one of the Indian Premier League (IPL) teams.

Shah is a left-hand batsman and leg-break bowler who made his debut for Mumbai in domestic cricket in 2006 but has since struggled to be a regular member of the team. He has played 37 First Class matches, scoring 2160 runs at 42.35 with six centuries.

“His involvement in any form of cricket, affiliated with the BCCI stands suspended till the time the disciplinary committee of the BCCI passes appropriate orders,” the BCCI said in a statement on Monday.

The approached player informed of the approach to his franchise team which reacted by informing the incident to BCCI’s Anti Corruption Unit (ACU). The ACU conducted an immediate enquiry into the matter and found Shah guilty.

“After a detailed inquiry into the reported incident, the inquiry commissioner found Hiken Shah guilty of committing breach of Articles 2.1.1; 2.1.2; and 2.1.4 of the BCCI Anti-Corruption Code for participants and recommended their provisions to the BCCI President,” the statement added.

BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya said BCCI is committed to uphold its stance of “zero tolerance” for fixing and reacted swiftly by ordering a probe.

“BCCI has zero tolerance for corruption in the game of cricket. We have and we will take swift action against such incidents to set a precedent and control the menace of corruption in the game. While placing the player under suspension, I have referred the matter to the disciplinary committee of the BCCI to take further action against the player involved,” Damiya said in the release.

BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur said the governing body’s education policy was beginning to show results and the incident proves that they are on the right track.

“This particular incident demonstrates that BCCI’s education policy against corruption is showing results, as the player approached was vigilant enough to report the matter to the ACU of the BCCI.

Having said that, the fight against corruption is an ongoing battle and we will not leave any stone unturned. BCCI is committed to keep cricket corruption-free,” he said.

(IANS)

KNOW US

GET INVOLVED

PROMOTE

Archives