NEWS

• Telangana issue rocks Parliament on the first day of the resumed winter session; Lok Sabha adjourned for the day; Rajya Sabha till 2 pm.

• Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy sits on dharna at Jantar Mantar to oppose the creation of Telangana.

• Parliament expresses concern over killing of an Arunachal Student in Delhi and discrimination against people of the North-East.

• Rajasthan government suspends IAS officer B B Mohanty over sexual harassment charges.

• Election Commission orders criminal proceedings against Punjab Cabinet Minister Anil Joshi for alleged multiple enrolling.

• Srinagar-Jammu National Highway closed due to intermittent rain and snow.

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Both the Houses of Parliament witnessed unruly scenes on several issues including Telangana, leading to the adjournment of the Lok Sabha for the day and the Rajya Sabha till 2 PM on the opening day of the resumed Winter Session. The other issues figuring in the both the Houses include the killing of a student from Arunachal Pradesh in Delhi, inclusion of some backward castes in the list of Scheduled Castes and the Augusta Westland Helicopter deal.

When the Lok Sabha re-assembled at noon after its first adjournment, members from Andhra Pradesh rushed to the well with placards in their hands opposing the formation of Telangana. Amidst noisy scenes, Speaker Meira Kumar allowed the laying of papers. She also allowed a brief discussion on the killing of a student in Delhi and discrimination meted out to the people of the North-East. Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj asked the government to build hostels for the students of north-eastern region where students from other States could also stay and mingle with them and learn north-eastern culture.

I request to the government to construct hostels for the students from North-East so that they could stay in a safer environment. These hostels should accommodate students from North-East as well as from other states, so that they know each other better. Students from North-East should also be provided security.

Sharad Yadav of JDU wanted the House to condemn the incident of discrimination. He said it is a question of unity and integrity of the country and those responsible for the incident should be punished. He regretted that the House has not been able to function smoothly for the last three sessions. He underlined the need for finding a solution to frequent disruptions in both the Houses. Basudev Acharia of CPIM said this is not the lone incident of discrimination and it is continuously happening despite government's assurances. He demanded a statement from the government so that the people from North-East should not feel unsafe in any part of the country. Minister of State for Minority Affairs Ninong Ering appealed parties not to politicize the issue. Withdrawing a notice given by him on the issue for the suspension of the Question Hour, he said that he is aware of the fact as a minister he is not supposed to push for suspension motion. However, he said that he wanted to raise the issue as a member of the House and also the incident related to his area in the North-East.Before adjourning the House, Speaker Meira Kumar described the incident as deplorable and condemnable.

In the Rajya, Congress and TDP members from Andhra Pradesh, trooped into the well opposing the move for creation of Telangana. Samajwadi Party members also rushed to the well in support of their demand for inclusion of the people belonging to 17 backward castes in the Scheduled Caste category. On the other hand BJP members also raised slogans against alleged kickbacks in the August Westland Helicopter deal.

Amidst the din, Deputy Chairman Prof. P J Kurien allowed Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde to move a motion to withdraw the Communal Violence (Prevention, control and Rehabilitation of Victims) Bill, 2005.

However, BJP members strongly protested when the Minister rose to introduce the new bill in its place. Senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad demanded a statement from the government on the Augusta Westland Helicopter deal. Responding to this Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Rajiv Shukla said the government will make a statement on the issue today itself. Later, as the noisy scenes continued, Prof. Kurien adjourned the House till 2 PM.

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Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh today appealed to all political parties to cooperate with the Government to pass important legislation in the Parliament. Talking to reporters outside Parliament in New Delhi, Dr Singh said that all the parties need to create an environment to work together to pass the important bills.

We have important pieces of legislation ready for approval by Parliament and I sincerely hope that the Parliament will create an environment in which all sections of the House can work together to pass these Bills.

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Finance Minister P Chidambaram has expressed doubt whether any key legislation, would be passed in the current session of Parliament. He told this while Addressing a business conclave in New Delhi today. Later talking to reporters, he said the Finance Bill, Vote-on-Account and Appropriation Bill will be passed. Responding to a query on cut in prices of CNG and PNG ahead of the general elections, Mr Chidambaram said government has not given any sops, but has only rationalised some prices. Stressing that India has the potential to grow at 8-9 per cent for next 20-30 years owing to its demographic advantages and resources, he said anything that comes in the way of growth must be opposed.

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Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy and his ministerial colleagues from Seemandhra region began their dharna at Jantar Mantar today to oppose the creation of Telangana. Our Correspondent reports, the supporters and opponents of Telangana clashed during a protest outside Andhra Bhavan in New Delhi earlier today. Telugu Desam Party MPs today staged a dharna in front of the main gate of Parliament House demanding the continuation of Andhra Pradesh as it exists now. They raised slogans in support of their demands.

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Rajasthan Government has suspended an IAS officer B B Mohanty on charges of sexual harassment of a student. The suspension order was issued by Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje after she received a detailed report from the police. Mohanty was posted as chairman of Rajasthan Civil Services Appellate Tribunal. The victim is a civil services aspirant.

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The Election Commission of India (ECI) has directed the Chief Electoral Officer of Punjab, to initiate criminal proceedings against State Cabinet Minister Anil Joshi and his family members for having allegedly enrolled themselves at more than one place. By virtue of such an enrollment they have also contested elections from these places. Our correspondent has filed this report;

The Minister Anil Joshi told AIR that he has not yet received any letter from the Punjab CEO regarding this matter. He also claimed that he is not aware of that his and his other family members name exists in two different voter lists at two different places in the state. CEO, Punjab, V.K. Singh who has recently assumed charge said that he is aware of the matter and will take action accordingly. ECI has taken cognisance of the complaint of two Amritsar based lawyers Sandeep Gorsi and Vaneet Mahajan who approached the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) with documents to prove that the minister had violated Sections 17 & 18 of the RP Act. Rajesh Bali/AIR News/Jalandhar.

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The spectrum auction for the 1,800 and 900 megahertz band has entered the third day today. Eight Telecom companies, including Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and new entrant Reliance Jio Infocomm, are in the fray for two sets of airwaves frequencies that can be used for 4G services. The companies had put in bids worth a total of about 45,000 crore rupees on the second day of the auction, bringing hope the government to curb the fiscal deficit.

This is the biggest spectrum auction being conducted by the government with about 385 MHz of airwaves in 1,800 band and 46 MHz of airwaves frequencies in 900 MHz band being put on sale.The auction started on Monday, following a Supreme Court order in the 2G case.

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Government has approved modifications in the Mega Food Park Scheme guidelines of infrastructure development for food processing. The modifications are aimed at streamlining the implementation of the scheme while retaining its basic nature. The decision was taken at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, CCEA, in New Delhi yesterday. The objective of the scheme is to provide modern infrastructure facilities for food processing industries ranging from farm to market. Each Mega Food Park is expected to benefit 6000 farmers and producers directly and about 25,000 farmers indirectly.

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Visiting German President Joachim Gauck met Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh this afternoon and discussed ways to further enhance bilateral ties. Earlier, he was given ceremonial reception at the Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi this morning. He also visited Rajghat to lay wreath at the Samadhi of Mahatma Gandhi. Mr Gauck will meet his counterpart Pranab Mukherjee later in the evening. Our correspondent reports, India and Germany are strategic partners since 2000. Germany continues to be India's largest trading partner in Europe.

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British Prime Minister David Cameron has said that there was no involvement of the Margaret Thatcher Government in the 1984 Operation Blue Star. He informed the UK Sikh community via a video message, after the inquiry report was submitted to the House of Commons. Mr. Cameron said, the conclusion of no involvement was made after a thorough search of some 200 files and over 23,000 documents.

The British Prime Minister had ordered the inquiry after newly declassified secret documents revealed that an officer of the elite Special Air Service visited India to offer advice for the move against militants. Yesterday, India had said that it has noted the report and the statement made by the UK government that British assistance was purely advisory and limited.

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Swinging between losses and gains, the Sensex at the Bombay Stock Exchange stood 23 points, or 0.1 percent in the positive zone, at 20,235, in very volatile trade, a short while ago. Earlier, in morning deals, the Sensex had gained 43 points, on fresh buying by funds, amid largely firm Asian bourses.

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The rupee trimmed its initial gains, but was still quoted higher by 8 paise to 62 rupees 41 paise against the dollar in early trade today. This follows selling of the US unit by banks, amidst firm dollar overseas.

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In Jammu and Kashmir, intermittent rain and snow has resulted in closure of Srinagar-Jammu National Highway. Our Srinagar correspondent reports that higher reaches in the valley have received fresh snow and plain including Srinagar city were lashed by rain in the last 24 hours. Hundreds of vehicles are stranded at Qazigund as authorities closed the highway due to wind and snow in Jawahar tunnel and Patni Top area.

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In Madhya Pradesh, 44 Naxal-affected villages will soon light up with renewable energy. Our Bhopal correspondent reports that the centre has given sanction for electrification of these villages with solar energy under Distributed Generation-DDG Programme;

This 37 crore 62 lakh rupees project will benefit 4437 families. Two CFLs of 11 or 12 watt and 60 watt power point will be installed in every household in these 44 villages. The project will benefit villages of Naxal-affected Balaghat, Shahdol, Umaria, Sidhi and Singrauli districts. Project’s total generation capacity is 762 MW. The project has also provisions for commercial activities. Under the DDG Programme, Rural Electrification Corporation provides 90 percent subsidy and remaining 10 percent is given by the state government.Shariq Noor,AIR News,Bhopal

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Expelled Aam Aadmi Party MLA Vinod Kumar Binny has decided to withdraw support to the Delhi Government. Talking to reporters in New Delhi today, Binny said he will write to Lt Governor Najeeb Jung apprising him of his decision to withdraw support. Binny, however, said he will support the government on the matter of the Jan Lokpal Bill. He termed Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal as being more dangerous than a corrupt person.

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