Three
Indian villagers die of starvation in Rajasthan
Mohammad
Gargh (Rajasthan): Three members of an impoverished
farmer family, who lost their crops to drought and were
saddled with huge debts have died of starvation at their
ramshackled mud house in Tonk district of Rajasthan. Entire
Mohammad Garh village is in a state of shock as terrified
villagers, most of whom are in a state of extreme poverty,
flinch at the very mention of the tragedy. Locals say monsoons,
though reasonably good this year, evaded their little hamlet
and repeated pleas to provincial authorities for artificial
irrigation went unheard as they lost their crops and with
it their sole livelihood. The 2,000 odd people in this conservative
Muslim-village have since been struggling to make both ends
meet with male members going to big cities for small-time
jobs. Many of the women and children they left behind were
surviving on wildroots and dirty water. Rabia, 35, who lost
her mental balance due to the deaths of her mother and kid
sister and Munna, her close cousin, sit stupefied by the
unused stoves in their mud house.
"There is nothing since the last 10-12 months. There is
no food, no employment, there is no help from the village
head or anybody. They say you are Muslims so you have no
right," Munna said. "Their conditions are such that there
is no employment, no regular source of income. People do
not get food, no water, no medicines nothing," Altaf Baig,
their neighbour, added. Locals say it is only after media
reported these deaths that government officers were first
time seen in this village. The barren region does not have
a single primary health centre or even a doctor and those
sick have to be taken to Tonk city area , about 45 kilometers
away. But few ever reach there due to inability to pay for
either transport or the medicines. "What I have seen after
looking at their conditions, their living conditions is
that the main reason for their sad condition is economic
insufficiency. They are unable to sustain themselves," said
G.L Rajor, Tonk district's chief medical officer, who, locals
say, they have seen for the first time. Baran, another district
in Rajasthan, has also registered around 20 starvation deaths.
Though the issue has been a political hot potato, little
has been done on ground. Amidst the euphoria of a booming
economy and impressive growth figures, India has in recent
months been rocked by a string of deaths due to hunger,
with newspapers and channels blaring pictures of people
surviving on only leaves and jackfruit seeds.
SAFMA
Conference ends (Go
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New
Delhi: The South Asia Free Media Association Conference
(SAFMA), an offshoot of the regional Asia grouping, ended
today. The three-day conference, which brought together
journalists from the South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC) member countries, had discussions on
the theme "Inter-state conflicts in South Asia". Speaking
at the seminar here, Information and Broadcasting Minister
Japial Reddy said media should reflect greater diversity
of opinion. "I am told that the foreign policy initiatives
are subject to greater internal scrutiny in Pakistan than
in India. I do not know whether it is true as as I have
never visited Pakistan. It it was true, it was truly disturbing.
So the newspapers and media in general should reflect greater
diversity of opinion that they do today," Reddy told the
conference.
Natwar
meets Ranil Wickremesinghe (Go
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New
Delhi: Foreign Minister Natwar Singh met Sri Lanka's
main opposition leader and former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe
today, as the embattled nation intensified its efforts to
turn a two-year truce with Tamil rebels into permanent peace.
Wickremesinghe has assured Sri Lanka's government that has
his party's support to revive the stalled peace negotiations
but urged President Chandrika Kuamaratunga to first resolve
conflicts within her coalition.
Bangladesh
agrees to flush out NE ultra camps: Pranab (Go
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Kolkata:
Bangladesh has agreed to cooperate with India against
the insurgent outfits operating from that country, Defence
Minister Pranab Mukherjee said here today. ''Bangladesh
Prime Minister Khalida Zia had recently called up our High
Commissioner to that country and extended its cooperation
to act against the outfits,'' he said. Asked whether India
had pressurised the Bangladesh government to take steps
against the insurgent camps, Mukherjee said ''Bangladesh
is a sovereign country and we are on friendly terms with
them. They should decide their own course of action.'' Bangladesh
had been repeatedly denying the presence of militants operating
out of its soil. The Defence Minister, however, reiterated
that the blasts in Assam and Nagaland were the handiwork
of the ISI and said the source of trouble lay in Bangladesh
and Myanmar. ''We have always been suspecting that the ISI
were active in Kashmir and in the Northeast,'' Mukherjee
said but declined to comment on what basis they have come
to the conclusion, saying ''such reports are not for public
consumption.'' He said the ULFA and the Kamtapuri militant
groups had also joined hands with the ISI to carry out subversive
activities in the country.
18
Indian nationals arrested in Bangladesh, arms and ammo seized (Go
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by Nazrul Islam
Dhaka:
Bangladesh border guards on Monday arrested 18 Indian
nationals from north-eastern frontier of Habiganj district
allegedly for their intruding, officials said. Habiganj
district police said that they intrude in Bangladesh through
Satchhari Tiprahati area in Chunarughat upazila in the morning
and the members of the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) rounded them
up. The arrested were sent to Habiganj police custody. Police
sources said two single-barrel guns, six rounds of ammunition
and Indian military uniform were seized from the possession
of the arrested persons, all hailed from Tripura State of
India. Fifteen of the arrested persons are Bimal Devborma,
Bhuri Borma, Bipesh Devborma, Mangal Devborma, Rakesh Devborma,
Asinanda Devborma, Sori Devborma, Bakal Devborma, Balendra
Devborma, Samina Devborma, Baitan Tripura, Gajor Devborma,
Pal Devborma, Bhaluk Devborma and Tiknai Devbarma. Names
of three others could not be known.
Bill
in US Congress for finding peaceful Kashmir resolution (Go
To Top)
Washington:
A bill has been introduced in the US Congress calling
for a peaceful resolution of the Kashmir issue. It also
entails provisions regarding the appointment of a special
envoy (by the State Department) to work with India, Pakistan
and the government of Jammu and Kashmir, which says, would
ensure continuing progress. The bill urges all parties involved
in the conflict to find a peaceful resolution to the Kashmir
conflict. Pennsylvania Republican Joe Pitts has introduced
the bill in the House of Representatives, the Daily Times
reported today. Introducing the bill, Pitts said, "this
area of the world is critical to the success of our foreign
policy. Leaders on both sides of Kashmir have sacrificed
a great deal over the last year to move this process forward.
I believe that the outcome of this conflict is crucial to
South Asia and to the people of Kashmir who have suffered
for so long. A special envoy will demonstrate that we are
serious about the issue and intend to support efforts to
resolve this conflict." The bill praises both Indian and
Pakistani governments for their ongoing dialogue, their
agreement on six basic road map steps for peace negotiations,
and confidence building measures to promote peace.
Qaeda
recruiting Pakistanis for Jihad: US intelligence (Go
To Top)
Washington:
US security officials believe that the Al Qaeda, which
had earlier recruited only Arabs, is now recruiting people
from other ethnic groups, including many Pakistanis. According
to the Dawn, the latest Qaeda recruitment drive is aimed
at not only bolstering the terrorist network's manpower,
but also at preventing various intelligence agencies to
monitor their activities more effectively. The modus operandi
too has changed with the organization choosing to operate
in small independent groups of 10 or less members, thereby
creating an operational command that keeps on working even
if there is bust. Pakistani police officials cite the example
of one such group headed by Attaur Rehman and nine of his
accomplices charged with carrying out a deadly attack on
the Corps Commander Karachi in June. Although the group
named Jundullah receives orders from senior Al Qaeda leaders,
it has no direct association with the Al Qaeda or any other
group associated with the network. As a result of this the
arrest of Rehman and his accomplices could not lead police
to other Al Qaeda cells. Pakistani officials say that many
of the new members are also recruited from other Pakistani
and Kashmiri militant groups such as Al-Badr, Harakatul
Mujahideen, Jaish-i-Mohammed, and Lashkar- i-Jhangvi. The
report further says that despite not having any direct access
to top Al Qaeda leadership, the jihadis, depending on their
personal performance, receive as much as 170 to 340 dollars
a month. The paper quoted a senior Karachi police investigator
as saying that as a matter of policy, the Al Qaeda leaders
rely on trusted contacts and preferably recruit people who
have fought alongside Arabs or otherwise have been trained
by them.
SC
stays Dalmiya's election as BCCI's patron-in-chief (Go
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New
Delhi: The Supreme Court today stayed the election and
appointment of Jagmohan Dalmiya as the patron-in- chief
of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The
court also stayed the appointment of Justice S. Mohan as
the BCCI's new administrator and restored the cricket Board's
newly elected office bearers to their posts. The two-judge
bench comprising Justice N. Santosh Hegde and Justice S.B.
Sinha felt that prima facie the High Court did not act properly
by passing the order restraining the newly elected Board
while entertaining a review petition filed by the Netaji
Cricket Club. The Bench noticed skeletons tumbling out of
the cupboards as the NCC pointed out serious irregularities
in the recent elections of the Board and observed, "If we
are satisfied, we may order holding of fresh elections for
the Board." After hearing the BCCI, Delhi District Cricket
Association (DDCA), NCC and D.C. Agashe representing the
Mahrashtra Cricket Association, the Bench fixed October
26 for final hearing on the petitions and passed an interim
direction staying the High Court order.
Sachin
set to miss full series (Go
To Top)
Bangalore:
Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar is likely to be ruled
out of the remaining three Test matches against Australia
as his tennis elbow injury is showing no reasonable improvement.
Reports emanating from the Indian camp suggest that his
injury is far more serious than was earlier thought. Tendulkar
was with the team during the Bangalore Test which India
lost by a massive 217 runs, but he's apparently only able
to practice for four-five overs at a time.
