I News India - Empowering Ideas!

Bandhu Das, 100-year-old man from Orrisa put an example for those youngsters of today’s generation who are lazy and behind the money only. The old but passionate Bandhu Das refused to take old age pension from the government saying that he is active enough to work.

Although the resident of Salijanga village in Jagatsinghpur district is poor but he denied any help from government and said he is strong enough to earn his bread and butter.

“The government should help the disabled, those in distress and the weaker sections of the society but not able persons,” says Das.

Though Bandhu Das claims that he is older than 100-year-old but official records says that he is 100. Still the activeness and firmness at this stage of life is really appreciable.

As told by the villagers he gets up at 5 each morning. After a breakfast of milk and muri (puffed rice), Das goes to the fields located over two km from the village to cut grass, feed cows and pluck betel leaves. He feeds his cattle himself. He also often involves himself in farming, said the villagers.

He is full of life and the old man used to recites folk songs and often participates in village programs also.

When the every second kid of today have to wear spectacles because of weak eyesight, Das’s eyesight is perfect at 100.  “I have never used spectacles,” he said.

Das has two sons and two daughters, all married. His wife Labani is 90. She is bedridden with paralysis. He is more active and healthy than the youngsters. his daughter-in-law Lata told, “He has not suffered from any major disease and lives a healthy life.”

Das says that he is healthy and give the credit of his fitness to milk and other food products he eat.

“I am fit because I used to drink milk, and eat other milk products including ghee,” says Das.

Social activist Santosh Sahoo of neighbouring Balansa village said Das is an inspiration to people of the region. He is energetic, cheerful, enthusiastic and determined. Definitely he has put a live example for the people all over the country. This is the spirit which is a need for today’s generation. I News India salute his spirit and courage.

Tags: 100 Year Old, Bandhu Das, Behind the money, Lazy, Old Age, Orrisa, Passionate, Pension

A recent study disclosed that developing countries like India and China are creating a novel but dangerous waste. The e-waste is giving a serious emerging threat to environment. The reports brought out by a leading environment group, Greenpeace India, says that these booming economies are more and more dependent on electronic and electrical equipments which is giving rise to electronic waste.

“Primitive recycling or disposal of e-waste to landfills and incinerators causes’ irreversible environmental damage by polluting water and soil and contaminating air,” states the report titled as “Take Back Blues - An assessment of e-waste take-back in India”.

It is poisoning our soil and water, causing serious health problems. The report showed that in 2007 India generated 380,000 tonnes of e-waste from discarded computers, televisions and mobile phones. This, the report said, was projected to more than double by 2012, to 800,000 per annum with a growth rate of 15 per cent.

Shocked by the findings, Abhishek Pratap, Greenpeace Toxics campaigner and the principal investigator for the study questioned, “It seems like e-waste take-back in India is in no way a priority for global brands. Otherwise, how else can one explain the irresponsible conduct of brands like Sony, Sony Ericsson, Toshiba, Samsung and Philips, which have no take-back service in India whatsoever?”

“Long-term exposure to deadly component chemicals and metals like lead, cadmium, chromium, mercury and polyvinyl chlorides (PVC) can severely damage the nervous systems, kidney and bones, and the reproductive and endocrine systems, and some of them are carcinogenic and neurotoxic,” the report mentions.

Now the question is how to tackle the problem before it becomes seriously out of control. Greenpeace Toxics campaigner Rampati Kumar said that the only way to tackle this novel threat is eco-friendly equipment. He believes that global and domestic brands manufacture should ensure eco-friendly equipment to control the threat.

“The solution lies with the brand owners or manufacturers of electronic products, which need to bear responsibility for financing the treatment of the own-branded e-waste discarded by their customers. If brands follow the ‘cradle to grave’ approach by ensuring take-back and bring back responsibility, it might work,” he says. ”

It was found in the study that half of the global brands have no take-back service in India. Nine out of 20 brands surveyed have no take-back service. The nine brands include Apple, Microsoft, Panasonic, PCS, Philips, Sharp, Sony, Sony Ericsson and Toshiba. Only two brands, HCL and WIPRO, stand out as having the best take-back practice in India and have come out publicly in support of e-waste legislation in India.

“As part of HCL’s eco safe programme, we give booklets along with our products that address waste disposal and inform customers of take back policies, we also host customer seminars telling them about the importance of electronic waste disposal,” George Paul, executive vice-president marketing, HCL Info Systems, said.

“Customers have to incur the cost of giving back the equipment; thus they prefer to sell it to local scrap dealers for a nominal price. Unlike in Europe where once a week the local municipality picks up the electronic waste for a charge levied at the time of purchase of goods, in India the consumer is still at a fairly nascent stage of understanding waste disposal.” He added.

Even as India heads for an e-waste crisis, most of the global electronic brands have no functioning e-waste take-back services in India.

The findings have sounded an alarm of emerging e-waste crisis and if not dealt properly at time, this e-waste will be proved harmful to the economy as well as to the global environment.

Tags: Apple, Bones, carcinogenic, China, Domestic Brands, E-waste, Eco safe, Economies, Electrical, Electronic, Endocrine Systems, Environment, Europe, Global Brands, Greenpeace India, Greenpeace Toxics, HCL, India, Kidney, Microsoft, neurotoxic, Panasonic, PCS, Philips, polyvinyl chlorides, PVC, Samsung, Sharp, Sony, Sony Ericsson, Toshiba, Wipro

Niketa Mehta, who loses the case of her appeal eight days back in Bombay High Court to abort her 25-week-old fetus detected with a congenital heart problem, has suffered a miscarriage on Wednesday. His husband, Haresh Mehta, a stockbroker, had confirmed the news that she suffered a miscarriage on August 12.

Haresh Mehta blamed intense media pressure for his wife’s high blood pressure and increased stress level which led to the miscarriage.

The couple had challenged the country’s 37-year-old abortion law (Pregnancy Act of 71) that does not allow termination of pregnancy beyond 20 weeks unless it harms mother’s life or health.

After medical reports that her child would be born with a complete congenital heart blockage and malpositioned arteries, the couple had sought the termination of the 25-week-old pregnancy. But on August 4, the Bombay HC dismissed the plea saying that the case is not convincing.

The medical report had claimed that the child would have required a pacemaker soon after birth. The case has divided the country into two sides - one against the abortion and the other which favors the couple.

Confirming that his wife Niketa had a miscarriage on Tuesday, Haresh Mehta said, “If not the court, at least god was on our side.”

Well, its god own justice to the couple and their unborn baby. Whatever it happens, it happens for good but the case had caught much attention by the country and media which left many questions unanswered. Should the 37-year-old abortion law needs amendment? It is the one of the biggest question on the law.

Tags: Abort, Abort Child, Abortion, Child, congenital heart, Court, Harrish Mehta, Niketa Mehta, Parents

The Union Cabinet approved the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations on Thursday as an Independent Day bonanza for the civil servants and defense staff. The report states an average increase of 21 % in salaries of over 50 lakh government employees with effect from January 1, 2006.

Information and Broadcast Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi said that arrears will be paid in two installments, 40 per cent this fiscal and 60 per cent in the next financial year.

He added that the new system includes four pay bands and the mid-level officers have been placed in the highest pay band. The formal announcement however will be made by Prime Minister on the 61st Independence Day eve from the ramparts of the Red Fort in Delhi.

Main points of the recommendations are as follows:

- It will be effective from January, 2006 as the term of the Fifth Pay Commission ended on December 31, 2005.

- The arrears will be paid in two installments, 40 per cent this fiscal and 60 per cent in the next financial year.

- The revised pay scale will be effective from next month.

- The entry level salary for government employees has been revised to Rs 7000 against the earlier pay of Rs 6,660, while the minimum salary per month at the lowest level will now be Rs 10000.

- Financial implication of Pay Commission on General Budget Rs 15,700 crore; Rs 6,400 crore on Railway Budget in 2008-09.

- It raises basic pay every year by 3% against the norm is a Rs 500-increase annually within grade scale.

- At least 3 promotions for both civilian and defense personal will be given. In case of civilians it will be at the 10th, 20th and 30th year and in case of defense forces by 16th, 18th and 24th year.

- A separate pay scale for DGPs and others high rank police personnel. IPS and Indian Forest Service pay packages have been appropriately modified.

- Military service pay for persons below the officer rank (POBR) would be Rs 2,000 per month. Hike in salaries of Brigadiers as they will now be in Pay Band 4 (Rs 39,200-67,000) from the suggested Pay Band 3 (Rs 15,600-39,100)

- The financial implications, with the implementation of the new structure, for the central government for the year 2008-09 will be Rs 15,700, while for the railways it will be to the tune of Rs 6400.

Tags: arrears, pay commission, Pay Hike, Salary Hike, Sixth Commission, Sixth Pay, sixth pay commission

In wake of the recent terror blasts in Bangalore and Ahmedabad in India, Delhi Police have alerted operators of guesthouses, cyber cafes, telephone booths and taxi services to keep a register on their customers as a security measure ahead of Independence Day.

Installation of CCTVs is asked in cyber cafes, hotels and guesthouses while telephone booth operators will maintain a register to record the entry of every customer.

Owners of guesthouses and hotels were also asked not to allow their guests to use hotel address for getting a mobile connection, said a senior police officer.

Police have asked the operators to keep a watch on every customer and report about any suspicious people. Police instructed them not to allow the service to any one without proper identification.

The city police are also installing 34 CCTVs in crowded areas from August 10 to 15; the official said adding that high security personnel are deployed on the borders and in the city.

“The deployment of paramilitary personnel has already started. Personnel from BSF, CRPF and RAF will be on streets,” the official said telling about their preliminary preparation for security on the Independence Day.

Tags: Ahmedabad bomb blast, alert, Bangalore serial blast, Bomb, bomb blast, Delhi Police, independence day, Security, Terror

As the Jammu-violence on the issue of Amarnath land row is getting worse day by day, eight members of the Shri Amaranth Shrine Board (SASB) out of total ten resigned on Wednesday to facilitate re-constitution of the board.

The members submitted their resignation to state Governor N N Vohra. The other two members left in the board includes the state Governor himself and the CEO of the board, who happens to be the Principal Secretary to the Governor. According to the sources, the new board will have members only from the state of J&K.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will meet top leaders of political parties on Wednesday to discuss measures to calm the situation in the state. Congress president Sonia Gandhi, BJP chief Rajnath Singh and top leaders of Left parties leaders are expected to attend the meeting.

Amid the continuous violence, the Kashmir Traders Federation decided to boycott Jammu products. The Traders Federation has said that it will snap all business ties with traders in Jammu region and instead buy products directly from other markets like Amritsar and Delhi.

“We have decided not to buy any product from traders in Jammu and instead buy products directly from other markets like Delhi and Amritsar,” Chairman of the Traders Federation Jan Mohammad Koul told news agencies in Srinagar.

Koul accused the Centre which fails to provide protection to the traders of Kashmir. He further added, “The situation in the aftermath of economic blockade of the Valley and attacks on minority community in Jammu has made it clear that it is part of a well-thought out conspiracy and the Centre is involved in it.”

He criticized the government and complaints that truck loads are not being allowed to move to Kashmir and instead of doing anything, government is watching the scenario like a mute spectator only.

Koul said, “We will not cooperate with the traders of Jammu anymore. We are not going to buy any goods from them … we have decided to boycott Jammu traders.”

Telling that they will find new markets in other cities, he said, “We will continue our struggle for an alternative route to the Valley.”

The violence over the land allocation for Amarnath pilgrims has rocked the state for the last many days.

Tags: amarnath land row, amarnath shrine board, boycott, Jammu, Jammu Kashmir, jammu products, SASB, Violence

“Even God will not be able to save this country.”  This is the statement pronounced by a fuming Supreme Court on Tuesday stated while criticizing the government for its decision of not amending Section 441 IPC (criminal trespass) for prosecuting squatters of government accommodation in the country.

A bench of Justices B N Aggrawal and G S Singhvi uttered its anger as the Additional Solicitor General Amarender Saran bluntly told the court that the Union government has decided not to amend Section 441 IPC (criminal trespass) for prosecuting squatters of government accommodation in the country.

The apex court also added, “In India even if God comes down he cannot change our country. Our country’s character has gone. We are helpless.”

Furious on the refusal to amend the law for launching criminal prosecution against those who illegally occupy official houses, the bench of justice said, “We are fed up with this government. They don’t have the guts to differ with the opinion of the clerks.”

The government took the stance that the existing provisions provided under the Public Premises Act was sufficient to evict those illegally occupying government accommodation. Moreover, it claimed that out of 99,100 government houses only 300-odd dwellings were under unauthorized occupation for which had been made to evict them.

The apex court was upset with the centre for not doing anything about illegal occupants of government houses and refusing to bring in harsher laws.

The court said PILs are being filed before it by people who are vexed with the approach of the government on various issues.

“You complain about judicial activism when you are in power. When you are not in power you come to us for remedy,” the 2-judge bench remarked.

Tags: Court, God, India, IPC, Public, Supreme Court

Amarnath shrine land transfer issue is getting worse day by day as curfew has been extended by five days in Jammu and adjoining areas.

Jammu, Samba, Rajouri and Udhampur have already been under curfew for nearly a month due to the ongoing unrest of the month old agitation. Meanwhile, army has been called in to keep the situation under control.

A day-long strike has been called to protest against violence, blockades and harassment of Muslims in Jammu region. The strike was called by breakaway Hurriyat Conference faction led by Syed Ali Shah Geelani. Around 37 people were injured in the clashes on Sunday.

Talking on the issue of blocking two local TV news channels and sealed the offices of two Hindi dailies for allegedly whipping up communal passions, Chief Secretary S S Kapur had said, “They were repeatedly asked not to telecast provocative and inflammatory content,” Kapur said.

He said the channels were violating the programme code under the Cable Network (Regulation) Act, 1995. “The administration had earlier issued notices to the channels, but they kept on transmitting highly objectionable and provocative material. Our patience was exhausted and we decided to act” he said.

“Since the two channels are also cable service providers without signal separators, the transmission of other channels was disrupted,” he explained.

Protesters torched four houses in R S Pura near Jammu and stoned vehicles damaging four trucks in Hira Nagar.

The agitation is going for the restoration of 40 hectares of forest land in north Kashmir to the SASB that was given to the shrine board May 26 and then withdrawn July 1.

Tags: Amarnath, amarnath land, amarnath land row, curfew, Jammu, Jammu Kashmir

146 devotees including 30 children and 38 women were killed in the stampede at Naina Devi temple in Himachal Pradesh’s Bilaspur district on Sunday. Out of 146, as many as 129 bodies are identified and handed over to their relatives, officials said. The yatra was suspended after the accident but resumed on Monday morning.

“Identity of 129 deceased has been known and their bodies were handed over to their relatives. Efforts are on to identify the remaining 17 bodies,” Ropar Deputy Commissioner B Purshartha said.

Thousands of pilgrims had come there to seek the blessings of the deity during the Shravan Navaratra festival which began on Saturday. 50 people were injured in the tragedy triggered by rumors of a landslide. It was raining on the sad day which halted the rescue operations. However, the injured were taken to hospitals at Anandpur and Ropar in neighboring Punjab.

There was a sudden rumor of landslide which created a wave of panic among the devotees.

“We were standing near the railing, we tried to move but police did not allow us to. The railing collapsed and people fell on each other,” said an eyewitness.

The Himachal Pradesh Government has announced Rs1 lakh compensation for the families of those who died in the incident, a relief of Rs 50,000 for the critically injured and Rs 25,000 for those who suffered minor injuries.

The state government has ordered a commissioner-level inquiry into the incident.

“We have asked Division Commissioner to prepare a report and submit it as soon as possible. We will find out the cause of the accident and submit recommendations to prevent such incidents,” says Himachal Chief Minister.

Tags: devotees, landslide, naina devi temple, temple stampede

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has nodded the safeguards agreement with India on Friday making a way clear for the operation of the crucial Indo-US nuke deal. Passed by the 35-nation IAEA board unanimously, India will now proceed to the 45 member Nuclear Suppliers Group for a nod to allowing trade with a non-NPT country, followed by ratification from the US Congress, to finalize the deal.

Earlier in the day, International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei had given a positive response by endorsing the India-specific safeguards agreement and asserted that it conformed to “all legal requirements” of his agency.

IAEA expects to start implementing the agreement by next year. The chief told that a total of 14 Indian nuclear reactors will come under Agency safeguards by 2014, six reactors being already under IAEA supervision.

The India-specific safeguards agreement could also be used for the conclusion of other 66-type safeguards agreements, said the chief.

Tags: Atomic Energy, IAEA, India, India USA, Indo US, NPT, Nuke Deal, US, US Congress