CBSE class 10 and 12 exams from March 1

Jan 2

The class 10th and 12th examinations of CBSE schools will begin from March 1. 

The schedule can be accessed from the CBSE website. The board has advised schools to conduct the school based assessment between March 16 to March 31, 2013. CBSE sources said about 10 lakh students across the country had appeared the examination last year and a further rise is expected this year.

Special Task Force on women's safety in Delhi;Justice Mehra Commission invites complaints & suggestions

Jan 2

The Government has constituted a 13 member Special Task Force headed by Union Home Secretary to look into the safety issues of women in Delhi.

The Home Ministry said that it will continuously review action taken by the police and the Delhi government regarding safety issues of women, on an ongoing basis.

The Task Force will also take into consideration the suggestions made by the Members of the Parliament during the debate on the issue.

Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde has asked political parties to give their views on reviewing rape laws to the Justice J S Verma Committee.

The Committee has been set up to suggest amendments in the statute to provide speedier justice and enhanced punishment in cases of sexual assault against women.

Justice Usha Mehra Commission, set up to inquire into various aspects of the Delhi gangrape incident, has invited complaints and suggestions on the shocking incident.

A Home Ministry statement said the Commission, headed by Justice Mehra, will function from its office at Vigyan Bhawan Annexe in New Delhi.

Complaints and suggestions may be sent to the Commission by e-mail at : usha.mehracommission@nic.in.

The commission's telephone number is 011-23022365 and Fax No. 011-23022364. The Commission will suggest measures to improve the safety and security of women, particularly in NCT of Delhi and National Capital Region.

The panel, set up on December 26, will submit within three months its report which will be tabled in Parliament along with action taken by the government.

Fog affects flights at IGI airport, Delhi

Jan 2
Operations at the Indira Gandhi International Airport at New Delhi were affected today after dense fog partially disrupted the schedule of over 30 flights, including diversion of an international flight to Mumbai.
Air India's flight (AI 314) from Hong Kong was diverted to Mumbai, while seven flights were cancelled today, either due to poor weather at destination or due to operational reasons.Airport sources said,dense fog started to descend at the airport around 11 PM last night and it thickened between 3.30 AM and 5 AM this morning leading to drop in runway visibility to less than 25 metres at the third runway, forcing authorities to suspend operations on that runway.
Though fog affected the schedule of flights, operations largely remained normal as the main runway was operational through the night as the runway visibility was above the permissible limit for take-off and as it is equipped with Instrument Landing System at both ends so it can facilitate landing of aircraft even if runway visibility is low.Four international flights had to be diverted to Jaipur and Mumbai after visibility dropped to less 50 metres.T

Tourist flow not affected by travel advisories after gangrape protests : Tourism Secy

Jan 2
Union Tourism Secretary Parvez Diwan on Tuesday said that there has not been a single cancellation of visits by foreign tourists to India in view of protests over gang rape case in Delhi.
He was answering a media query whether travel advisories by some countries to their citizens prompted the cancellations.Mr. Diwan said, the UK and the US have, indeed, reviewed their travel advisories asking their citizens to only avoid central Delhi during their stay in the city. He said the Ministry has written to all 14 offices in 13 countries to put things into perspective regarding the protests.Earlier, Mr Diwan released the Tourism Ministry's calendar for the year 2013. The 14-page calendar is based on the theme - Find What You Seek - as part of the 2nd phase of the Incredible India Campaign. The calendar captures varied Indian tourism products and covers a wide spectrum of tourist destinations.

Centre to set up multi-lingual helpline to help tourists

Jan 2 Tourism Ministry will set up a multi-lingual helpline to provide general information and assistance to tourists. Besides, Hindi and English, the helpline will be in the languages of the important source countries. Union Tourism Minister K. Chiranjeevi has directed that the toll free helpline should be accessible from everywhere in the country and start functioning in the new calendar year. The primary objective of the proposed helpline will be to provide tourism related information to free independent travelers. The proposal was mooted at a meeting with the representatives of various leading travel trade associations held in New Delhi on Monday. Cold spell in UP claims 100 lives Jan 2 In Uttar Pradesh, the western districts are reeling under intense cold wave due to snowfall and rain on the heights of Uttarakhand.The state government has speeded up relief operation in these areas. Additional night shelters have been opened while additional funds have been sanctioned for lighting bonfires.The death toll in current cold spell has reached 100. No fresh casualty has been reported during the past 24 hours. Our correspondent quoting met office sources reports that Agra remained the bcoldest place in the state with the minimum temperature recorded at 0.9 degrees celsius. Bareilly, Moradabad and adjoining districts also registered minimum and maximum temperature several notches below normal. The minimum temperature in the entire National Capital Region was below 5 degrees during the past 24 hours. In Gorakhpur, the day’s maximum temperature was recorded 20.6 while minimum temperature stood at 4.3 degrees Celsius. However, Varanasi and Allahabad divisions remained comparatively warmer with the temperature recorded being one to two degrees above normal. The met office has predicted dry weather across the state while cold wave condition in isolated pockets may prevail for the next 48 hours.

PIL on women's safety: SC gives Centre & States three weeks to respond

Jan 2,  1:4 PM The Supreme Court today agreed to hear a PIL filed by a former woman IAS officer seeking directions to the government to ensure safety of women and for conduct of fast-track court proceedings in all rape cases. A bench headed by Chief Justice Altamas Kabir will hear tomorrow the PIL which also sought suspension of MPs and MLAs in case a charge sheet is filed against them for crime against women. In her PIL, retired IAS officer Promilla Shanker has pleaded with the court to direct the government to set up fast-track courts in all states for expeditious trial of rape cases. She also submitted that cases of rape and crime against women and children are investigated by lady police officials and trial be conducted by lady judges. Meanwhile, another bench comprising justices P Sathasivam and Ranjan Gogoi issued notices to the Centre and all the states and sought their response on another PIL by advocate Mukesh Kumar seeking safety measures for women. Kumar, in his PIL, demanded creation of women police stations in every town to investigate complaints of rape and sexual assault against women. It also sought steps for implementation of UN convention on elimination of all forms of discrimination against women. The court asked the Centre and the states to file their responses in four weeks. The PILs come in the backdrop of the nation-wide outrage over December 16th brutal gangrape and assault of a 23-year-old woman in Delhi, who died in a Singapore hospital on December 29th.  Jayalalithaa sanctions  27 cr plus for tourism devpt projects in TN Jan 2 Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalaithaa has announced tourism development projects worth 27 crore 66 lakh rupees in the State. In a statement released today she said that Rs 3 crore 10 lakhs will be sanctioned for tourism infrastructure projects in Mukombu near Cauvery in Tiruchirapalli district. She also sanctioned 10 rupees crore for better road connectivity to tourism and pilgrim spots in the state. Four and a half crore rupees was sanctioned for development works in Anna Garden, Jedarpalayam in Namakkal district. The Chief Minister said that basic infrastructure of historic places, pilgrim spots and places of scenic beauty are being developed for the benefit of thousands of tourists who visit these places. MP women's helpline receives 17 calls on launch day Jan 2 In Madhya Pradesh, the Women’s Helpline number received 17 complaints on the first day of its launch yesterday. Our correspondent reports that the Women’s Helpline has been launched for ensuring prompt action on women’s complaints from all over the state. Our correspondent reports that any woman who gets harassed, stalked or is a victim of crime can now directly make a call to the Women’s Helpline. Its number is 1090. The Helpline has been launched in the wake of nation-wide outrage over the Delhi gang-rape. Soon after receiving a complaint at the Helpline, immediate information is given to the nodal officer of concerning district and concerning police station in-charge with the directives to ensure action within 24 hours. An officer of the rank of Additional or Deputy SP has been made nodal officer in each district. On the very first day prompt action was taken on complaints received by the Helpline. A case under section 306 was registered in Chhatarpur district and the accused was arrested. PMGEP loan helps jobless UP youth turn successful entrepreneurs Jan 2 In Uttar Pradesh a host of young entrepreneurs are proudly merchandising their products in the ongoing state level exhibition hosted in Lucknow from 28th December 2012 to 6th of Jan 2013 by Khadi & Village Industries Commission under aegis of ministry of MSME. Unemployed a few years ago, these young men and women took the loan some time ago under Prime Minister's Employment Generation Programme PMEGP coupled with skill enhancement training provided by KVIC and DICs (District Industries Centers). AIR Lucknow correspondent after visiting the PMEGP Exhibition in the state capital reports, that self employed persons benefited under PMEGP from across the state have gathered here to showcase and sell their products which ranges from leather goods to Hand loom products, perfumes, herbal products, decorative items and ready made garments to name a few. Sushil Skukla, an entreprenuer from Pratapgarh district is one such example whose Zaiqa Herbals have become a brand to reckon with. His organization has been named as "Sfurti Cluster" by KVIC, which empowers it to impart training to SHGs (Self Help Groups) and other self employment seekers. So is the case of Razi Ahmad of Lucknow who has become a job giver to 32 leather workers. He proudly flaunts shoes and chappals of pure leather made by his Super Leather gram Udyog. Aadhaar card mandatory to access Delhi Government services Jan 2 Aadhaar card will be compulsory for accessing various services provided by the Delhi government like marriage registration, property registration and issuance of domicile certificate. The Revenue Department has issued a notification making it mandatory for all citizens to have Aadhaar card for accessing government services. The official said if somebody has enrolled for National Population Register, NPR, then he or she can access the services producing the NPR details. He said people not having Aadhaar number at present will be able to access government services on enrollment of the same at designated Aadhaar registration centres. Our Correspondent reports that with the enrollment details, government will provide the services to the applicants. Special Task Force on women's safety in Delhi;Justice Mehra Commission invites complaints & suggestions Jan 2 The Government has constituted a 13 member Special Task Force headed by Union Home Secretary to look into the safety issues of women in Delhi. The Home Ministry said that it will continuously review action taken by the police and the Delhi government regarding safety issues of women, on an ongoing basis. The Task Force will also take into consideration the suggestions made by the Members of the Parliament during the debate on the issue. Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde has asked political parties to give their views on reviewing rape laws to the Justice J S Verma Committee. The Committee has been set up to suggest amendments in the statute to provide speedier justice and enhanced punishment in cases of sexual assault against women. Justice Usha Mehra Commission, set up to inquire into various aspects of the Delhi gangrape incident, has invited complaints and suggestions on the shocking incident. A Home Ministry statement said the Commission, headed by Justice Mehra, will function from its office at Vigyan Bhawan Annexe in New Delhi. Complaints and suggestions may be sent to the Commission by e-mail at : usha.mehracommission@nic.in. The commission's telephone number is 011-23022365 and Fax No. 011-23022364. The Commission will suggest measures to improve the safety and security of women, particularly in NCT of Delhi and National Capital Region. The panel, set up on December 26, will submit within three months its report which will be tabled in Parliament along with action taken by the government.