Andhranews

New Delhi, Aug. 30: The armament requirements of all three wings of the armed forces will now be put up on the ministry of defence (MoD) website so that arms vendors (suppliers) can register themselves on the Internet. There is also a new revamped “fast track procedure” for quick arms acquisitions in a crisis situation.

The MoD has also promised “increased transparency in the conduct of field trials, whenever required”. These are some of the features of the new Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) and Defence Procurement Manual (DPM), 2006, announced by defence minister Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday. The DPM and DPP, 2006, which will come into effect from September 1 this year, are aimed at ensuring that defence deals are transparent and above board.

The move comes ahead of proposed mega arms acquisitions, such as 126 multi-role aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF), 277 helicopters for the armed forces (197 for the Army and 80 for the IAF) and the purchase of 155 mm guns. “Major decisions would be taken simultaneously in a collegiate manner by the Defence Acquisition Council, the generic (armament) requirements of the three services would be placed on the website of the ministry of defence to enable vendors to register themselves on the Internet, (there will be) increased transparency in the conduct of field trials whenever required,” the MoD stated on Wednesday.

“So far as putting up the requirements (of the armed forces) and registration (of arms suppliers) on the Internet are concerned, the modalities of implementation are being worked out,” a MoD official said. There will also be a requirement of a pre-contract integrity pact in all contracts worth over Rs 100 crores. According to this pact, the bidder has to commit that it will “not offer, directly, or through intermediaries, any bribe, gift, consideration, reward, favour ... to any official of the buyer, connected directly or indirectly with the bidding process...”

Besides this, there will be a revamped procedure for fast-track acquisitions. “While the defence acquisition process is long, deliberate and arduous, it is recognised that urgent operational requirements do arise from situations that may be foreseen as imminent, or in circumstances when a crisis emerges without prior warning. Consequently, the revised fast-track procedure has adopted a top-down approach in which all critical decisions are taken in a collegiate manner by the Defence Acquisition Council,” the government has stated.

The government has also made it clear that “no negotiations are to be conducted with the L-1 vendor identified (for unethical practices) ... as per guidelines issued by the Central Vigilance Commission”. The government has also unveiled a new “Make” procedure in the DPP “to enable Indian industries to develop high-technology complex systems and undertake upgrades required by the armed forces...” Arms acquisitions can also be made by an inter-government agreement with the government of a friendly country based on mutually agreed provisions, without following standard procurement procedure, as long as clearance from the competent financial authority is obtained.

The DPM and DPP had been promulgated for 2005 as well but the government felt that “further improvements be made for enhanced transparency”, the defence minister asserted, adding that it was a moment of “great personal satisfaction” for him since it marked the “completion of the reforms process initiated two years ago”.

New Rules for Defence Purchases
* Major decisions to be taken simultaneously in a collegiate manner by the Defence Acquisition Council
* Pre-contract integrity pact for all contracts worth over Rs 100 crores
* Revamped procedure for fast-track acquisitions

Nellore, Aug. 30: The State government’s move to acquire land for an IT park has angered farmers in Chittoor district. The move to acquire 11,000 acres in Varadayyapalem and Sathyavedu mandals comes just when farmers are about to receive water from the Telugu Ganga project. Farmers complain that the government, which claims to be farmer-friendly, is playing a cruel joke on them.

The district administration published a notification a few months ago to acquire land in these mandals for setting up the IT Park.The government also approved giving special economic zone (SEZ) status to 5,000 acres with the IT park, and this has changed the situation drastically.Sathyavedu Reserve Infra City (SRI City), promoters of the SEZ, has got involved in the negotiations and promised jobs to one person in every household in the area. As part of confidence building exercise, Sri City established a training centre at Tada to train unemployed youth.

Sources said that SRI City promoter Ravi Sannareddy has close contacts with Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy. Mr Sannareddy is Chairman of the IT firm Mega Soft and has a stake in the television news channel TV 9. He was associated with Satyam group as in-charge for overseas projects before he started Mega Soft, sources added.

There is fear among farmers of Chilamathoor, Mathherimitta, Agraharam, Bathhulavallur and Thonduru villages in Varadayyapalem mandal. Though some of the land is dry, they will soon be irrigated by the Telugu Ganga. Work on the branch canal is progressing fast in both mandals.

“We have agitated for three months, staged protests and obstructed traffic on the national highway to highlight the issue,” said C.S. Niyogi, 78, a farmer of Chilamathoor. Mr Niyogi, who has 10 acres of land under the village tank, said the notification came as a bolt from the blue. “What right does the government have to touch our lands?” he asked. “Those who have played with the lives of farmers have never ruled long.”

His sentiments were echoed by residents of Mathherimitta. Farmers of the village, located adjacent to the Tamil Nadu border, raise three crops every year. Most villagers own at least a small piece of land.
Residents of Sriharikota colony are even more distressed. They were forced to shift from Sriharikota 35 years ago when their land was acquired for the Indian Space Research Organisation.

“It took us decades to build a new life here and now they want to throw us out again,” said Mr Damodaram of the colony. “It is better for them to drop a bomb and kill all of us” said Ms Chanchamma bitterly. Tantrik Kalki Bhagwan is likely to lose land near Varadayyapalem for the project. He has built the Golden City by reportedly spending over Rs 10 crores. His followers have already filed a written objection against the acquisition.

Probably sensing the mood of the farmers, officials have not made further moves to acquire the land in fertile areas. Instead, they are focusing on dry lands in Sathyavedu mandal. In Cherivi village of the mandal, officials have succeeded in convincing some people to forgo their lands by offering Rs 1,82,00 per acre for wet lands and Rs 91,000 per acre for dry lands apart from 50 per cent additional bonus.
“We have completed the survey and identified 1,080 acres of patta land and 504 acres of dry land for acquisition,” said Sathyavedu mandal revenue official Chandrasekhar.

However, most villagers are demanding Rs 5 lakhs per acre without classification and waiver of crop loans. “It is a just demand, since we were about to get water,” said K. Venkataramana Reddy of Cherivi village. However the farmers in dry land zone don’t have that much bargaining power. “Farmers may not like it, but in the end they have to fall in line,” said an official of the AP Industrial Infrastructure Corporation which is acquiring the land.

Hyderabad, Aug. 30: A bitter slanging match between the Telugu Desam’s T. Devender Goud and Congress legislator Challa Ramakrishna Reddy effectively stalled an Opposition attempt to corner the government during a debate on the Outer Ring Road and land acquisition on Wednesday. Mr Goud accused Mr Reddy of murder and goondaism, after the Congress legislator taunted him about his land holdings.Mr Reddy interrupted Goud’s speech to say that he was repeating the same points and referred to the lands Mr Goud owned at Tukkuguda in Maheshwaram mandal, which were being acquired by the government.

Enraged, Mr Goud asked whether he was not eligible to own land. “Is it a crime for a man of the backward class to own land? Or should we get lands by resorting to rowdyism, as you do?” he shot back. Following another comment by Mr Reddy, Mr Goud accused him of resorting to theft, rowdyism, goondaism and murders. The Congress members, who were just seeking an opportunity to divert the discussion, pounced on Mr Goud.

In the din, Mr Reddy demanded an apology. Speaker K.R. Suresh Reddy advised both legislators to withdraw their comments. Mr Goud countered by saying, “Let us have a full session to discuss who has acquired what properties and by what means. Just because we hail from socially deprived sections, we are being provoked. Can’t we have properties of our own? Can’t we run business when Dr Rajasekhar Reddy, Mr Jana Reddy and Mr Diwakar Reddy can?” he asked.

Chief whip Kiran Kumar Reddy also insisted that Mr Goud apologise, but the TD leader said he would rather be thrown out of the House than tender an apology. “I will not spare those who humiliate the socially backward classes,” he said. Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy and finance minister K. Rosaiah asked Mr Goud to be graceful. The Chief Minister said it was a black day for Assembly as he had never heard such foul language. With Mr Goud unrelenting, Congress members stalled further discussion.

New Delhi, Aug. 30: India’s special envoy to West Asia Chinmay Gharekhan is on a 10-day tour of the region to ostensibly express support for the Palestinians and the Lebanese, but also with the added mission to garner support for the candidature of Mr Shashi Tharoor for the post of United Nations Secretary-General.

Mr Gharekhan met deputy emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani in Qatar and handed over a letter from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh addressed to Emir Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani. Qatar is currently a member of the UN Security Council and has been singled out by India, which is now working to get back some of the lost space in the Arab world.

It could not be ascertained if Qatar gave the special envoy a definitive response, but according to reports Mr Gharekhan spoke at length about Mr Tharoor’s qualifications for the top UN job. The other non-permanent members on whom India is concentrating are Argentina, Congo, Denmark, Ghana, Greece, Japan, Peru, Slovakia and Tanzania.

The Prime Minister is expected to pitch in at the non-aligned summit in Havana later this month to ensure support for Mr Tharoor from this large body of nations. Mr Tharoor has been lobbying hard, but according to the straw polls is still trailing behind South Korean foreign minister Ban Ki Moon. Mr Gharekhan had discussions with the top Lebanese leadership in Beirut on Tuesday.

He has made it apparent that India is not keen to participate in the UNIFIL peacekeeping effort until and unless the mandate is clear. He has been quoted in local newspapers, during his travel through Qatar, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, as saying that New Delhi will not participate in any exercise to disarm the Hezbollah. However, it has now been made clear that this responsibility rests only with the Lebanese Army and not with UNIFIL at any level. Sources here said that the Lebanese Army would work out the schedule, as and when, with the Hezbollah and there was no room for outside interference in what is seen by Lebanon as an essentially domestic issue.

India’s special envoy was quoted in Jordanian newspapers as saying: “It is clear to us that a military solution is not the answer or the way to peace. The Lebanon war has proved this.” He further told reporters in Amman: “We don’t see any sign of life in the peace process. The peace process is dead, but this doesn’t mean it cannot be revived, however slowly.”

Mr Gharekhan’s assessment will be a valuable input in framing New Delhi’s policy towards the region. He has met the top Lebanese and Syrian leaders as well during his visit. New Delhi is keen to win over support from the Arab world, particularly as its West Asian policy has invited veiled criticism from the region in recent months. The final complexion of the UN peacekeeping troops is still to be determined, with the participation of Bangladesh, Malaysia and Indonesia under a questionmark following Israel’s objections.

The French and Italian troops are reportedly on their way to Lebanon. The mandate for the troops has to be determined clearly as it is not clear whether their role will involve peace-enforcing activity under Chapter 7 of the UN mandate. The Indian government is not particularly keen to participate if this becomes the case, although the Indian Army has no such reservations.

Hyderabad, Aug. 30: In a surprising twist, police on Wednesday arrested Mohammed Shafique, the Hyderabadi who was deported from Britain and reached here on Tuesday. Deputy commissioner of police, North, Shikha Goel said Shafique was arrested under Section 41 of the Criminal Procedure Code for “moving under suspicious circumstances.”

Ms Goel said Shafique could not produce his B.Com certificate, though he had claimed that he was travelling to the US for a business programme. He only had a Class 10 certificate. Police found that Shafique was previously charged with threatening legislator Malreddy Ranga Reddy (case no. 394/2004 of Malakpet police station). That pertains to an incident in 2004 when a team of the Gujarat police shot dead one Mujahid Salim Ishai while arresting Maulana Naseeruddin in connection with the Haren Pandya murder.

Shafique allegedly called up Mr Ranga Reddy and threatened him after the killing. An NBW was executed against him and he was duly charged. He later went away to Dubai, returned in October last year and went back in February. The counter intelligence police had been tracking him after that case. Shafique’s residence is located in front of the residence of the hardline Darsgah-e-Jihad-o-Shahadat (DJS) chief Mehboob Ali.

Police is probing possible links between the two. Earlier in the day, Shafique told reporters that he was mentally tortured by the British police. He said that he was singled him, detained and questioned him about 9/11 and August 15. “They told me ‘We are sending you back as you are looking suspicious’,” he alleged.

Shafique has a US student visa and was travelling from Dubai to New York via London. He was detained on August 25 at Heathrow airport for three days; he reached Mumbai under escort on Monday and reached Hyderabad on Tuesday. Following his return, he was interrogated by police and Intelligence Bureau personnel in Mumbai and again throughout the day on Wednesday before he was arrested.

“I could sleep ten hours in the past six days. I told them that I am a student and not a terrorist. They asked my opinion on September 11 attacks and I told them that it is all about International politics,” Shafique said. “I applied for US student visa to do my MBA. I boarded the Atlantic Virgin flight on the 25th. There was a connecting flight of the same airlines to the US from Heathrow. Soon after the flight landed, three marshals entered the flight and took me away. They are looking at Asians suspiciously,” he said. Police checked his luggage and asked him why was he going to the US if his parents are in Hyderabad.

“When they told me that they were sending me back on suspicion I asked them why. I warned them that I would commit suicide at the UK embassy,” he said. He said he had changed his mind about going to the US. “I don’t think so I will go to the US as they are looking at Muslims with suspicion. If they do something to me who will come to my rescue?”

“I have a valid Indian passport. I have a valid US student visa. I bought the airline tickets, I boarded the flight after clearing immigration in Dubai. Without proper documents they would have not allowed me to board the flight.” As per UK visa rules, nationals of certain countries including India who land at UK airports to take connecting flights require a direct airside transit visa. This condition is waived if the traveller has a visa to enter the US, Canada, Australia or New Zealand.

It is thought that Shafique did not require the DATV since he had a visa to the US. Police here confirmed that his travel documents were genuine. He said, “I need not have transit visa. I don’t know about Direct Airside Transit Visa. But what I know is that I don’t need any transit visa,” he said.

Hyderabad, Aug. 30: Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy on Wednesday cut Value Added Tax (VAT) on tea, coffee and cashew from 12.5 per cent to four per cent and waived the four per cent VAT on salt.Following the VAT cut, a half-kg pack of Red Label tea with MRP of Rs 100 would cost Rs 7 less, Bru Coffee of 200 gram costing Rs 140 will be cheaper by by Rs 10. Annapurna and other branded salts which cost around Rs 8.50 would be cheaper by 35 paise, according to dealers.

Chief Minister announced the tax cut in the Assembly on Wednesday while intervening during a discussion on AP Value Added Tax (Second Amendment) Act, AP Tax on Professions, Trades, Callings and Employments; the AP Tax on Entry of Motor Vehicles into Local Areas, AP Rural Development and the AP Tax on Entry of Goods into Local Areas Acts (Amendment) Act.

The Assembly later passed eight bills. Commercial taxes minister Konatala Ramakrishna moved seven bills and home minister K. Jana Reddy, the AP Housing Board (Amendment) Act. The House approved the AP Excise (Amendment) Act extending the lease period for retail liquor shops from one year to two years, levying duty on beer and IMFL.

This bill was passed amidst a walkout by MIM members who accused the government of failing to implement phase wise prohibition as promised in the Congress manifesto. They demanded total prohibition in the State. “Islam forbids drinking of liquor. We want total prohibition,” Mr Akbaruddin Owaisi as he led the MIM out.

Legislators from other parties blasted the government for its failure to check “belt” shops (illegal liquor shops in rural areas) and encouraging drinking of liquor. Minister Ramakrishna said the government would launch a Rs 10 crore media campaign to discouraging drinking of liquor. He said that the government had reduced the number of wine shops/bars from 8,830 to 7,600.

“We will take suggestions from teetotaller MLAs,” he said to laughter in the House.
Mr Jana Reddy faced strong opposition while moving the AP Housing Board (Amendment) Act. The permits the AP Housing Board to construct integrated townships on non-competitive basis in the State, take up construction of integrated townships outside the State and enter into joint ventures in public-private partnerships to construct group housing and integrated townships among others.

Opposition to the bill fell flat when it was put to voting. While 80 members supported the bill, 37 opposed. The Assembly also passed the Code of Criminal Procedure (Andhra Pradesh Amendment) Act permitting aged parents to file for maintenance against their children from the place they reside, the Andhra Pradesh Advocates Clerks Welfare Fund Act and Andhra Pradesh Court Fees and Suits Valuation Act.During a discussion on these bills, Mr Ramakrishna said a new High Court building would be constructed soon. He announced setting up of family courts in every district.

24-hr water to take a decade

Hyderabad, Aug. 30: It will take at least a decade more for the twin cities to get round-the-clock water supply.This was disclosed by Municipal Administration Minister Koneru Ranga Rao in the Assembly on Wednesday.“It is a long term measure and we will be able to fulfil it in the next 10 years,” he said. “Metro Water Works has already started a trial run in Adikmet area by spending Rs 3 crore”. The minister said that the water board had started work to construct six new reservoirs in the Old City to improve water supply. The present availability of water in the twin cities is 140 Million Gallons per Day against the required 240 MGD. Mr Ranga Rao said that Rs 2,500 crore was required to improve infrastructure facilities and added that the State government will take up drinking water and sewerage facility improvement under the Centre’s Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission. Raising the issue in the house Majlis floor leader Akbaruddin Owaisi disputed the figures quoted by the minister. “The present availability of water is 215 MGD as against the demand of 260 MGD,” he said. The Majlis leader urged the government to subsidise the power used by metro water works for supply of water. “When multinational companies and Fab City are given subsidies why not the metro water works?” he asked.

Bus kills student near school

Hyderabad, Aug. 30: A four-year-old LKG student was knocked down by his school bus right in front of the school on Wednesday. He lay there bleeding for some time until a neighbour noticed M. Ravi Teja, and took him to hospital. But it was too late for the child. Ravi Teja was a student of JBR school in Sainathapuram, Safilguda. The school has about 300 students, about 75 of them take the bus. The school has only one bus which makes three trips each way. Witnesses said Ravi Teja got down from the van along with the others. What happened next is not clear: Either he did not go inside the school along with the others, or came back for something. No one noticed this. The school does not have a security guard to watch over children, as has been mandated by the State Human Rights Commission for schools with 300 and more students. The van driver, in a hurry to go on the second trip, took the bus in reverse and in the process knocked Ravi Teja down and fatally injured him. Police said that Ravi Teja was not run over, but suffered injuries on his head and body. School watchman M. Lakshman, who was in the van when the mishap took place, said, “All the students went inside. The other students are saying that the boy walked back to the van but we did not notice this.” Ravi Teja is the elder of two sons of cloth merchant Macharla Satyanarayana and Bindu Rani of Vajpayee Nagar in Neredmet. The couple has another son, one-year-old Yogeshwar. Mr Satyanarayana said, “This was his first year in school. We had put him in English medium so he could study well.” Ms Bindu Rani said, “I had waved at him just 15 minutes before (the accident).” Police took driver M. Sharat Kumar of Kushaiguda into custody on charges of rash and negligent act leading to death of the boy under 304A of the IPC. Police seized the school bus but no case has been registered against the school management. The JBR group of institutions owns a junior college and school at Keesara and Cheriyal. The school was closed for the day after the accident. Principal A.C. Reddy was not available for comment. SHRC Guidelines * Schools with 300 or more students should have one security guard at the gate to ensure students enter and leave safely. * School bus should be mechanically fit and no overloading should be allowed. * The driver should have a minimum of five years’ experience before he drives the school bus. * Persons above 55 years should not be employed as school bus drivers. * More than six students should not be allowed to travel in autorickshaws.

Gowrishankar is SCB vice-prez

Hyderabad, Aug. 30: P. Gowrishankar of Congress from Ward-V was elected unopposed as vice-president of the Secunderabad Cantonment Board on Wednesday. Sources said that while Gowrishankar will hold the chair for the first two years, another Congress candidate Jampana Pratap from Ward-I will take over the post for the remaining three years. However, SCB Executive Officer T. Arockianathan said, “If Gowrishankar resigns after two years, then elections for the vice-president’s post would be conducted again. However, two candidates cannot share the post,” he said. Gowrishankar’s name was proposed by J. Pratap himself, who was tipped to be the favourite for the post until Tuesday night. It was seconded by TDP candidate from Ward-IV P. Venkat Rao and another Congress candidate P.N Madhukar from Ward-VII. Both Gowrishankar and Pratap have been elected for the third consecutive time as ward members to the Board. Mr Rao and Mr Madhukar are likely to head other important departments like Finance, Public Works etc, elections to which would be held in a month’s time.

TRS chief threatens a crisis

Hyderabad, Aug. 30: Telangana Rashtra Samiti president and former Union labour minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Wednesday declared that the party would create a Constitutional crisis in the coming days to achieve a separate Telangana State. Mr Rao returned to Hyderabad after quitting the UPA government at the Centre. He was accorded a tumultuous welcome at the Begumpet airport by hundreds of party workers, who shouted slogans: “Jai Telangana, Jai Jai Telangana” and “KCR Sangharsh Karo, Hum Tumhara Saath Hai.” In a brief chat with mediapersons at the party office, the TRS president said he would convene a meeting of party MPs and MLAs on Thursday to chalk out the future course of action. Earlier in the day, the TRS legislators were suspended from the Assembly for one day on Wednesday. This was the third consecutive day that they had been sent out of the House when they disrupted the proceedings. Soon after the House began its proceedings, the TRS members as usual trooped to the podium demanding that Telangana be taken up for debate and a resolution passed. Despite repeated pleas by Speaker K R Suresh Reddy the TRS members continued to stall the proceedings. The Speaker, following the resolution moved by Legislative Affairs Minister K Rosaiah, suspended the following members: A Chandrasekhar, A Govind Naik, Ch Laxma Reddy, K Laxma Reddy, V Laxmikantha Rao, K Nagesh, N Narasimha Reddy, M Padma Devender Reddy, T Padma Rao, K Prathap Reddy, E Rajender, S Ramalinga Reddy, M Satyanarayana Reddy, G Vijayarama Rao and T Harish Rao.

Government to fill up 1,089 doctor posts

Hyderabad, Aug. 30: The State government will issue a notification next week for the appointment of 1,089 vacant posts of doctors for improving the medicare, particularly in rural areas. It will also fill up posts of 1,200 nurses and 1,210 para medical staff. A committee of senior officials will be formed soon to conduct the interviews in Hyderabad for the posts of doctors. The interviews for nurses and para medics will be held at the district level. The government plans to complete the entire process of selection within two months. According to officials of Medical and Health Department, the response for posts of doctors may not be good as the last year when government wanted to appoint 1,000 medicos but could fill up only 783 posts. Even af-ter receiving the appointme-nt letters, nearly 300 doctors left the service. About 100 of them joined PG courses and the remaining took up jobs at private hospitals or went abroad. The government offers Rs. 14,000-15,000 pay-scale for the entry level assistant civil surgeons. The young doctors say that pay scale in the government is much less than what they would get in the private sector. “MBBS course is very expensive. We expect a reasonable sal-ary. When compared with salaries of friends in IT, our remuneration is less than one-fourth,” said a junior doctor B.Nageswara Rao. While agreeing with the argument of young doctors, the Director of Health Dr. P. Venkateswara Rao said that government has increased the salaries to the existing level which are quite good. “The government has also created reservation in PG courses for doctors who join us. Then there is also freedom for doctors to undertake private practice after working hours with the government,” he added. Meanwhile, AP Public Health and Medical Emplo-yees Union General Secretary Mr. Y. Mohan Rao de-manded that the governme-nt fill up all the 5,000 para medical posts lying vacant for the last five years.

Traffic curbs for idol immersion

Hyderabad, Aug. 30: City police has imposed the following traffic restrictions due to Ganesh idol immersion procession on August 31 (fifth day), September 2 (seventh day), September 4 (ninth day) and September 5 (10th day). Hotel Viceroy T-junction: Vehicles, except those carrying Ganesh idols, will not be allowed towards Upper Tankbund and will be diverted towards Kavadiguda crossroads. Those going towards Liberty may take route via Kavadiguda crossroads, Gandhinagar T Junction, DBR Mills, Indira Park, Domalguda and Liberty. The vehicles coming from Secunderabad and going towards Khairtabad and Punjagutta may take diversion at Ranigunj / Nallagutta then proceed via Sanjeevaiah Park, Necklace road, and Khairatabad flyover. Necklace Rotary: Vehicles, except those carrying Ganesh idols, will not be allowed towards NTR Marg and will be diverted towards Necklace road or Mint compound road. Telugu Talli Statue Junction: Vehicles, except those carrying Ganesh idols, will not be allowed towards NTR Marg and will be diverted towards Upper Tank Bund and Liberty.

Krushi Rao test okayed

Hyderabad, Aug. 30: Justice K.C.Bhanu of AP High Court on Wednesday refused to interfere with the order of the Metropolitan sessions Judge who permitted to conduct Narcoanalysis test on Krushi Venkateswar Rao. The judge on Wednesday dismissed the petition filed challenging the verdict of the Metropolitan sessionsJudge who permitted the CBCID to conduct Narcoanalysis test on Rao. The court did not accept the contention of Kosaraju that the test would cause prejudice to him and it was unconstitutional. It may be recalled that the Metropolitan Sessions Judge of City Criminal Courts had issued directions to conduct Narcoanalysis test on Krushi scamster Kosaraju Venkateswara Rao. The Court allowed the petition of the Crime Investigation Department and had granted permission for conducting the test on September 5 and 6. ASI asked to file affidavit A division bench of the AP High Court comprising Chief Justice G.S.Singhvi and justice C.V.Seethapathy on Wednesday directed the Director of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to file an affidavit on the number of heritage buildings in AP and the criteria for evolving to declare a building as heritage. The bench was dealing with a taken up petition arising from a letter by Vasanta Sobha Turaga, Conservation Architect, seeking a court direction to give an equal National Status to Hyderabad Residency as is given to the Lucknow Residency in 1920. It had earlier directed ASI to file an affidavit with regard to declaring British Residency as a heritage monument. Enquiry into land deals A division bench of AP High Court directed the district judge, Visakhapatnam, to enquire into the allegations that thegovernment was leasing out lands in hillocks against rules. Ananda Rao, district general secretary, Indian National Trade Union Congress had filed a writ petition stating that the Visakhapatnam Urban Development Authority had allotted 50 acres of land instead of 10 acres as notified in the tender notification in Madhuravada village of Visakhapatnam. The court has directed appointment of a person not below the rank of district judge and to enquire along with the mandal revenue officer, surveyor and town planning officer as to the distance between the allotted place and Rishikonda Valley and the extent of the land allotted. The court also called for a report as to whether the ecological balance is being disturbed. The matter is posted to next month 27th. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com

TRS chief threatens a crisis

Hyderabad, Aug. 30: Telangana Rashtra Samiti president and former Union labour minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Wednesday declared that the party would create a Constitutional crisis in the coming days to achieve a separate Telangana State. Mr Rao returned to Hyderabad after quitting the UPA government at the Centre. He was accorded a tumultuous welcome at the Begumpet airport by hundreds of party workers, who shouted slogans: “Jai Telangana, Jai Jai Telangana” and “KCR Sangharsh Karo, Hum Tumhara Saath Hai.” In a brief chat with mediapersons at the party office, the TRS president said he would convene a meeting of party MPs and MLAs on Thursday to chalk out the future course of action. Earlier in the day, the TRS legislators were suspended from the Assembly for one day on Wednesday. This was the third consecutive day that they had been sent out of the House when they disrupted the proceedings. Soon after the House began its proceedings, the TRS members as usual trooped to the podium demanding that Telangana be taken up for debate and a resolution passed. Despite repeated pleas by Speaker K R Suresh Reddy the TRS members continued to stall the proceedings. The Speaker, following the resolution moved by Legislative Affairs Minister K Rosaiah, suspended the following members: A Chandrasekhar, A Govind Naik, Ch Laxma Reddy, K Laxma Reddy, V Laxmikantha Rao, K Nagesh, N Narasimha Reddy, M Padma Devender Reddy, T Padma Rao, K Prathap Reddy, E Rajender, S Ramalinga Reddy, M Satyanarayana Reddy, G Vijayarama Rao and T Harish Rao.