Friday, July 17, 2009

 

Monsoon will be intensified further from July 21

Thiruvananthapuram, Friday 17 July 2009: As per the report from weather stations it has been told that the monsoon in Kerala will be intensified further from the 21 of this month. The present rains are the results of a depression that was formed in the Bay of Bengal. This phenomenon will be decreased within two days. Meanwhile another depression will be formed in the Orissa coast by the 20th. Due to this the state is likely to experience more rains.

Although rains in the month of June was lesser than what it should have been, by the middle of July the state has witnessed more rains than what it should have got during July. It has been predicted that there will be extensive rain in Kerala till tomorrow morning.


The innovative break through in Information Technology in Kerala has given birth to another proud heritage – this time is the whole of Ramayana in the form of an e-book.

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Wednesday, July 15, 2009

 

film actress Meena Wedding Reception Photo Gallery

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E. Sreedharan resigns as Delhi Metro chief

New Delhi, July 12: E. Sreedharan, managing director of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), resigned from the post Sunday, taking moral responsibility for the collapse of the underconstruction bridge that killed five people in the capital.

Addressing a press conference here, the 77-year-old Sreedharan expressed "lot of pain and remorse" over the accident in south Delhi.

"Having taken moral responsibility of the incident, I have sent my resignation to Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and Lt Governor Tejendra Khanna," Sreedharan told reporters.

The bridge that collapsed Sunday was part of an elevated section of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation's (DMRC) new route on the Central Secretariat-Badarpur section. The incident took place at around 5 a.m. at the construction site at Zamrudpur near Amar Colony.

A launching girder along with a portion of the bridge set up on pre-fabricated pillars collapsed. Five people were killed and 15 were injured in the accident.

The section was slated to be open September 2010, a month before the Commonwealth Games next year.

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CPI-M blames Kerala feuding on 'parliamentary opportunism'

VS in the line of fire, Vijayan may escape with censure
In a bid to end infighting in its Kerala unit, CPM Politburo have recommended removal of Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan from the top decision-making body and lesser punishment of censure for his critic and party state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan for alleged organisational lapses.

The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) politburo has blamed the factional feud in its Kerala unit on "parliamentary opportunism" and on putting the interests of "individual leaders or groups above the collective interests" of the party.

According to the CPI-M politburo's views on the Kerala issue, which were accessed by a Malayalam TV channel reporter, "parliamentary opportunism, which affected sections of the Kerala unit to different degrees, is the root cause of factionalism in the CPI-M Kerala unit".

"Putting the interests of individual leaders or groups above the collective interests and the struggle to capture the control of the party committees represents the worst form of groupism," was the politburo view articulated at the two-day meeting of the party's central committee that began in New Delhi on Saturday.

A Malayalam TV channel reporter while filming a central committee member reading from a document, focused on the paper and "leaked" it to the media.

"The control of the party committees is seen to be the key to undermining the positions in the parliamentary forum. Factionalism based on parliamentarism had its origins among the top leadership and it became the power-factional activities percolating below," the politburo maintained.

Meanwhile, Kerala Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan, who arrived in the capital on Friday evening to attend the central committee meeting, is reportedly planning to leave for Kerala on Sunday morning and would not be present for the second day's session, according to sources.

Achuthanandan has reportedly asked officials of Kerala House, where he is staying, to book his flight to Thiruvananthapuram in the morning.

The 85-member central committee meeting is being held after the CPI-M politburo met last week to discuss the Kerala issue.

Achuthanandan has been demanding that his arch rival, the powerful state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan, be removed as he has been named an accused by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the Rs.374 crore SNC Lavalin corruption case.

In retaliation, the Vijayan faction has demanded disciplinary action against Achuthanandan for "violating party discipline".

The feuding resulted in the party faring very poorly in Kerala in the April-May Lok Sabha elections, winning just four of the state's 20 seats

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CPI-M blames Kerala feuding on 'parliamentary opportunism'

VS in the line of fire, Vijayan may escape with censure
In a bid to end infighting in its Kerala unit, CPM Politburo have recommended removal of Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan from the top decision-making body and lesser punishment of censure for his critic and party state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan for alleged organisational lapses.

The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) politburo has blamed the factional feud in its Kerala unit on "parliamentary opportunism" and on putting the interests of "individual leaders or groups above the collective interests" of the party.

According to the CPI-M politburo's views on the Kerala issue, which were accessed by a Malayalam TV channel reporter, "parliamentary opportunism, which affected sections of the Kerala unit to different degrees, is the root cause of factionalism in the CPI-M Kerala unit".

"Putting the interests of individual leaders or groups above the collective interests and the struggle to capture the control of the party committees represents the worst form of groupism," was the politburo view articulated at the two-day meeting of the party's central committee that began in New Delhi on Saturday.

A Malayalam TV channel reporter while filming a central committee member reading from a document, focused on the paper and "leaked" it to the media.

"The control of the party committees is seen to be the key to undermining the positions in the parliamentary forum. Factionalism based on parliamentarism had its origins among the top leadership and it became the power-factional activities percolating below," the politburo maintained.

Meanwhile, Kerala Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan, who arrived in the capital on Friday evening to attend the central committee meeting, is reportedly planning to leave for Kerala on Sunday morning and would not be present for the second day's session, according to sources.

Achuthanandan has reportedly asked officials of Kerala House, where he is staying, to book his flight to Thiruvananthapuram in the morning.

The 85-member central committee meeting is being held after the CPI-M politburo met last week to discuss the Kerala issue.

Achuthanandan has been demanding that his arch rival, the powerful state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan, be removed as he has been named an accused by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the Rs.374 crore SNC Lavalin corruption case.

In retaliation, the Vijayan faction has demanded disciplinary action against Achuthanandan for "violating party discipline".

The feuding resulted in the party faring very poorly in Kerala in the April-May Lok Sabha elections, winning just four of the state's 20 seats

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V.S removed from CPM Politburo

New Delhi: The CPM Central Committee here Sunday has decided to remove Kerala Chief Minster from CPM Politburo putting an end to the long wait for a verdict from CPM Central Committee on factional feud existing in Kerala unit of the party.

The press communiqué released after Central Comittee meeting said, "the Central Committee decided that in view of the violations of the organisational principle and discipline by Com. V.S. Achuthanandan, he should be removed from the Polit Bureau. Com. Achuthanandan is the senior most leader who has made a big contribution to the Party in Kerala. The Central Committee expected Com. V.S. to fulfill his responsibilities as the Chief Minister and as a leader of the Party."

Meanwhile no action has been taken against Kerala state party secretary.

Regarding the Lavalin issue the press release further said, "the Central Committee examined the report submitted by the Polit Bureau on the SNC Lavalin contract for the renovation and modernisation of three hydroelectric projects in Kerala which were entered into by the UDF government in 1995-96 and which were subsequently implemented by the LDF government. The Central Committee is of the view that Com. Pinarayi Vijayan, secretary of the Kerala State Committee and the Electricity Minister in the then LDF government between 1996-98 was not involved in any corrupt practice whatsoever."

VS Achuthanadan and other party leaders have left Delhi For Kerala in an Air India flight.

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Saturday, July 11, 2009

 

CPM central committee meet begins

The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) begins a crucial two-day central committee meeting today hoping to put an end to the bitter factional feud in its Kerala unit. PB members from Kerala Chief minister V S Achuthanandan ,Pinarayi Vijayan, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan and central committee members EP Jayarajan, Paloli Muhammed Kutty, Thomas Isaac, M A Baby, Vaikom Viswom, PK Sreemathi, PK Gurudasan and MC Josephine reached AKG centre.

Today morning a CPI (M) Politburo met today ahead of the crucial Central Committee meeting and was attended by party General Secretary Prakash Karat, Sitaram Yechury, M K Pandhe, Brinda Karat,Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, S Ramachandran Pillai, Manick Sarkar and Biman Bose among others.

‘The meeting of the Politburo comes ahead of the Central Committee meeting. This meeting will discuss the agenda of the Central Committee meeting,’ a senior party leader said. Battling serious infighting in its Kerala unit, the CPI (M) Politburo last week was understood to have taken a decision to discipline Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan and his detractor Pinarayi Vijayan.

The PB had then decided to forward the ‘proposals’, which it finalized during the meeting to the Central Committee. Last week’s meeting saw intense and heated discussions and among the proposals was action against the Chief Minister whose statements the Central Committee said had helped Congress during elections.

Vijayan is also expected to face some action. There were reportedly arguments within the Politburo over action against Vijayan, against whom prosecution is pending in SNC Lavalin graft case. At least three Politburo members are understood to have opposed the view that Vijayan should be let off.

The problem in Kerala has become far more complex after the CPI (M)’s drubbing in the Lok Sabha polls even as it is groping for answers for its dismal performance. Vijayan, figuring as an accused in the SNC Lavalin graft case when he was electricity minister 11 years ago and CBI naming him in its chargesheet could not have come at a worse time.

Adding fuel to the factional fire, the Vijayan faction is incensed at Achutanandan and his loyalists for defying the party line to defend the beleaguered leader in the graft case and that too during the Lok Sabha polls. The Achuthanandan camp feels that the rival group will not have its way since a number of Central Committee members are from outside the state and would have no stake in the Kerala party affairs.

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Superstar Mohanlal joins Territorial Army

Malayalam superstar Mohanlal Thursday donned a new cap - that of a lieutenant colonel in the Territorial Army. The actor was piped by the Indian Army chief General Deepak Kapoor at a ceremony here.

"It is truly a proud moment for me to have been granted an honorary rank during the diamond jubilee year of the Territorial Army. I will try to serve to the best of my ability in my newly assigned role. It is a dream come true that I can now serve shoulder to shoulder with our officers and men," Mohanlal, a four-time national award winner, said after the ceremony.

"Lt Col (Hony) Mohanlal, Padmashri, will be yet another brand ambassador of the Territorial Army. His achievements are an example of his discipline, dedication and hard work which is very synonymous to the army way of life," a senior Indian Army official said.

"His passion for the army is amply evident from his outstanding and realistic portrayal of the penultimate, fearless and duty bound army officer on the silver screen especially in movies like 'Kirti Chakra' and 'Kurukshetra'.

"As part of his preparation to truly depict the role, he shared the realities of army personnel in actual conflict zone like Tiger Hill and Drass, withstanding extreme weather conditions and combat situations," the official added.

Mohanlal will be affiliated with the Kerala-based 122 Infantry Battalion.

In October 2008, veteran cricketer Kapil Dev was also granted the honorary rank of lieutenant colonel in the Territorial Army and has since been very active in the volunteer force.

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Friday, July 10, 2009

 

One more quarantined for suspected H1N1 in Kochi

Aluva, Friday 10 July 2009: A passenger, who arrived here from Jeddah, has been quarantined after he was suspected to be having symptoms of H1N1 flu, a top Health official said. The passenger, who hails from Purayar near here, had arrived four days ago, airport sources said. He was admitted to a hospital following fever and cough and was referred to Aluva Taluk hospital yesterday.

The 48-year-old man’s throat swab has been sent to the National Institute of Communicable Diseases, New Delhi, Dr K Shylaja, Director of Health services said. Ten persons have tested positive for the flu in Kerala out of the 60 swabs tested over the past few weeks

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Red alert in Kerala after Kochi blast

A high alert was sounded across Kerala and security beefed up after an explosion at the Kochi collectorate building Friday evening was identified as a pipe bomb blast.

 

Red alert in Kerala after Kochi blast

A high alert was sounded across Kerala and security beefed up after an explosion at the Kochi collectorate building Friday evening was identified as a pipe bomb blast.

The explosion took place around 3.10 p.m. in the staircase leading to the fifth floor of the building. Initially it was thought to be a fire that broke out but later forensic experts inspecting the site found that that it was a pipe bomb and identified a timer, ammonium nitrate and batteries.

A man near the spot suffered minor injuries in the blast.

State Revenue Minister K.P. Rajendran who rushed to the site said that a high level inquiry would be ordered.

After the forensic experts identified explosive materials, state Director General of Police Jacob Punnoose asked all the 14 district superintendents of police to maintain a high vigil. He left for Kochi himself.

Kerala Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan and Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, who are both in Delhi to attend a crucial party meeting, called up the Ernakulam District Collector M. Beena after coming to know of the incident.

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Sunday, July 5, 2009

 

Police station attack: students remanded

Thrissur Judicial First Class Magistrate K. Subhadrama on Saturday remanded five students of Thrissur Engineering College to judicial custody for attacking Viyyur police station and assaulting a Sub-Inspector Sajil Sasi, who was on duty.

According to the police sources, a group of engineering students on Friday night stormed into Viyyur police station demanding release of their fellow students who were taken in custody for consuming liquor at public place.

The SI who suffered head injury was admitted to hospital.

 

Malayali student alleges rape by TDP MLA

Even as Kovvur MLA T V Rama Rao has been crying foul, accusing the Andhra Pradesh Government of trying to implicate him in a criminal case, the issue took a curious turn on Saturday when five girl students of Spruha College of Nursing, owned by him, alleged that he was sexually harassing them.

The students, Nimisha Jacobs, M S Leena, Neetu Sailajan, Neetumol Joy and Dhanalakshmi, all from Kerala, called on Home Minister P Sabita Indra Reddy and submitted a representation in which they accused the TDP legislator of attempting to rape a student and misbehaving with others.

The allegations come almost a fortnight after the State Crime Investigation Department (CID) began a probe into a complaint filed against the MLA by a local Dalit leader. Later, the legislator went on a hunger-strike in the Capital charging the State Government with harassing him for political and other reasons.

After meeting the Home Minister, the students accompanied by their roommates and others met CID officials who recorded their statement. Later, they also narrated their version before AP State Human Rights Commission (APSHRC) chairman B Subhashan Reddy. “He made ugly advances at one student saying that if she cooperated with him, he would take her to Singapore and marry her.

We kept quiet all these days as he is of our parents’ age. But on June 14, he tried to rape a girl, ” they alleged.

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Friday, July 3, 2009

 

Kerala gets eight new trains

New Delhi, July 3: Following is a list of new trains for Kerala announced in the rail budget.

New trains

Ernakulam-New Delhi non-stop Super Fast train (Weekly once)

Ernakulam-Goa passenger

Bilaspur-Thiruvananthapuram-Thirunelveli Super Fast,

Happa-Thiruvananthapuram-Thirunelveli Super Fast train

Mangalore-Thiruvananthapuram passenger train

Bangalore-Kochuveli Super Fast

Coimbatore-Shornur passenger train

Shornur-Nilambur passenger train

Extended train services

Thiruvananthapuram-Ernakulam Janasatabdi extended to Kozhikode

Trichi-Ernakulam train extended to Nagur

Bangalore-Mysore-Mangalore daily train extended to Kannur

Thiruvananthapuram-Rameswaram

Other highlights

Thiruvananthapuram and Ernakulam stations to meet global standards

Multi-functional trade complexes at Ernakulam and Palakkad

Railway hospital at Thirvananthapuram to be elevated as Medical College

Railway nursing college at Kollam

New proposals

Erumeli-Punalur-Thiruvananthapuram railway line

Ernakulam Madura railway line

Thiruvananthapuram Central to be made model railway station

Tags:Kerala gets eight new trains,kerala trains

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Mamata's railway budget 2009-10 makes common man smile

NEW DELHI: The man on the street appeared happy with Railways Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday and also a trifle relieved that she had not announced a fare hike in her rail budget.

Raju, 28-year-old daily wage labourer, was all praise for her new scheme that makes a monthly season ticket of Rs.25 available for travel up to 100 km for those in the unorganized sector with monthly incomes not exceeding Rs.1,500.

"I have to travel from one place to another as and when work comes up. So this scheme is of great use to me," said Raju, who hails from Bihar, lives in Delhi and often goes to Haryana for work.

Homemaker Sushila Sharma pointed out that at a time when everything was becoming more expensive, Banerjee had at least spared train travel.

"With the prices of everything skyrocketing, the freezing of passenger fares is a real highlight. For the middle class it will be a relief in such times," said Sharma who travels by train at least twice a year for family holidays.

People have also given a thumbs-up to Banerjee's decision to make unreserved tickets available at 5,000 post offices across the country.

"Now we will not need to go to the railway station for tickets. I can buy a ticket from a nearby post office," said 80-year-old Dayanand Arora, who lives in a Haryana village.

Sahil Makhija, a 23-year-old Delhi based professional, also welcomed the installation of 200 automatic vending machines at key stations.

"Though we have online ticketing, everybody is not comfortable using it. The automatic ticket vending machine will surely take away the rush from booking counters."

The railway minister's announcement that a doctor would be present on long distance trains was also applauded by the common man.

"Long journeys in trains are sometimes very risky for the ailing and the elderly. The presence of a doctor will surely help," said Rajesh Gupta, an east Delhi resident.

However, there were certain issues which according to people still remain to be addressed.

"I expected the fares to go down but that did not happen. But the overall budget was good. More could have been done in terms of traffic management, which again was neglected. Punctuality is a big problem and needs to be sorted out soon," said Jalaj Bansal, a teacher.

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Railway Budget 2009-10: Mamata focuses on passenger amenities

NEW DELHI: Presenting the Railway Budget for 2009-10 in Parliament today, Minister of Railways Mamata Banerjee announced that there will be no
increase in passenger fare and freight tariff. She said that the budget will have approach for 'inclusive growth' and expansion of rail network to take development to every corner of the country.

Presenting the railway budget she proposed an outlay of Rs 40,745 cr. for 2009-10. Out of this, Rs 2,921 cr. will be spent on new lines, Rs 1,750 cr on gauge conversion and Rs 1,102 cr. on passenger amenities, which is 119% more than the allocation in the interim budget Rs 424 cr will also be spent on railway staff amenities. She proposed freight loading target of 882 MT and estimated gross freight receipt at Rs.88,419 cr.

Giving an overview of financial performance of the Railways in 2008-09, the Minister informed that freight loading during the period grew by 5 percent while traffic receipt increased by 11.4 per cent to reach Rs 79,862 cr.

The Budget has proposals for 7 new lines, Gauge conversion of 17 lines and doubling of 13 railway lines. In addition, proposals for 53 new lines, 3 gauge conversion and doubling of 12 lines will be processed during the year.

Proposing revision in Tatkal Scheme to make it more passenger friendly, the Railway Minister said that both the advance booking time and minimum charge will be reduced. She said perceptible improvement will be ensured in passenger amenities and safety and security will be given utmost importance. Cleanliness and quality of railway catering will be improved with focus on strict monitoring. She proposed that ticketing facilities will be taken to the grassroot level. Under the ‘Maa Mati Manush’ initiative, computerized tickets will also be made available through Post Offices. Mobile ticketing vans, ‘Mushkil Aasaan’, will also be introduced to provide services in remote areas.

Timely track renewal, modernization of signals and use of digital ultrasonic flaw detectors will be introduced for the safety of the passengers besides Integrated Security Scheme at 140 vulnerable and sensitive stations. Women RPF Squads, exclusively for women passengers, will also be introduced.

Kumari Mamata Banerjee announced a new scheme “Izzat” for travel with dignity. Under this scheme the people in unorganized sector with monthly income upto Rs 1,500/- can avail concessional monthly season ticket of Rs 25/- for travel upto 100 k.m.

The existing student concession is to be extended to students of Madrasas and students in Kolkata will now have the MST facilities for Kolkata Metro also.

To provide relief to women passengers the Minister proposed ‘only ladies’ EMU trains in Delhi, Chennai and Kolkata suburban during rush hours. She also announced new ‘Yuva trains’ dedicated to young generation from rural hinterland to major metros with concessional rail fare but with air-conditioned facilities.

Now the Press persons will get increased concession of 50% instead of existing 30% . Once in a year their spouse can also travel with 50% concession.

The Railway Minister announced 12 new point to point, non-stop ‘Duronto’ trains, 57 new train services, extension of 27 trains and increase in frequency of 13 trains. The Minister also proposed introduction of Air-conditioned double decker coaches for inter-city travel.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009

 

Kerala PSC office in Alappuzha

Kerala PSC office in Alappuzha (Alleppey) Kerala, India

The District Officer
K.P.S.C. District Office
Crescent Mansion, South of Collectorate, Alissery Road Alappuzha 688001

Phone:0477 - 2264134 old number ( 0477 - 2244134 )



Tags:Kerala PSC,Kerala PSC office in Alappuzha,Kerala PSC address,Kerala PSC vaccencies,Kerala PSC Alappuzha address,Alappuzha kerala phone

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Water level in Idukki dam declines: Report

Thiruvananthapuram: The water levels in two major reservoirs in the State have come down. The Central Water Commission (CWC) has said that the water levels in the Idukki and the Idamalayar dams have decreased by 1.06 ft and 4.79 ft, respectively, during the week ending June 29. However, the water level in the Kallada dam increased by 1.34 ft.

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Kollam-Kottapuram Waterway included in 100day plan

New Delhi, Tuesday, June 30, 2009: The central shipping ministry, in its 100-day plan announced here today, informed the inclusion of Kollam- Kottapuram waterway project no 3 in the hundred day project plan. The decision was informed by Shipping Minister G.K. Vasan.

By ensuring north-south coastal connectivity, the three waterway could be of use in transporting people and goods. This would help in decongesting the roads in the State. It will also be a boost to the various tourist destinations along the waterway.

The 12th Finance Commission had earmarked Rs.225 crore for developing waterways in the State. The State government had set apart Rs.98 crore in the budget.

Despite there being adequate funds, the development of the waterway had suffered due to the involvement of too many agencies in the process.

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Left meet to discuss self-financing college impasse

The left leadership meet that will be convened today evening will discuss the self –financing college issue. The cabinet sub committee meet that was authorized to sort out the issues will also attend the meet.

The deadlock was created after the main ally the CPI and the its youth federation yesterday strictly warned the government against signing accord with representatives of managements of private self-financing medical colleges. It alleged that by signing the three-tier fee structure the government will topple the merit system. It also asked the government not to implement the semester system in the degree level this year.

As per a seat-fee agreement arrived at between the managements of eight self-financing medical colleges and the government, candidates in the Below Poverty Line (BPL) category who get allotted to government seats in these colleges will pay a fee of Rs.25,000.

Thiruvananthapuram:Candidates who get allotted in the SEBC category (13 in each college) in the government seats will pay Rs.45,000 and the rest, Rs.1,38,000. If there are no BPL candidates a maximum of seven candidates, with the lowest income among those allotted to the government seats, will get to study for a fee of Rs.25, 000. If, for instance, there are two BPL candidates, five candidates with the lowest income will get this benefit. There will be no upper limit to the number of BPL candidates in the government seats.

In the management quota in these colleges the fee will be Rs.4.5 lakh and there will be no deposit. In the NRI quota the maximum fee will be Rs. 9 lakh.

The colleges that will sign the pact are Sam Somervel Medical College, Karakkonam, MES Medical College, Perinthalmanna, Karuna Medical College, Palakkad, SUT Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram, Gokulam Medical College, Venjarammoodu, Assisia Medical College, Kollam, KMCTE College, Kozhikode and Kannur Medical College, Kannur.

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Union Minister tried to influence me, says HC judge

CHENNAI: In a startling revelation, a Madras High Court Judge told an open court that a Union Minister sought to influence him to grant anticipatory bail to a doctor and his son in a forged mark sheets case filed by CBI.

An agitated Justice R Reghupathy Monday evening said "a Union Minister talked to me and sought to influence me to grant anticipatory bail to the petitioners."

Justice Reghupathy made the remarks when the advocate, appearing for S Kirub Shridhar, a third year student in a private medical college in Puducherry, and his doctor father Krishnamoorthy, complained that the judge was not granting bail to his clients on the basis of prosecution submissions.

The advocate's remarks came when the judge said he was not inclined to grant any relief as their pleas had been rejected by him on June 15 itself.

Annoyed, the judge retorted saying a "Union Minister talked to me about the matter. You yourself know every thing.

Unless an unconditional apology is tendered by you, I will incorporate every detail in my order," he said.

Justice Reghupathy said he would also be writing to the Prime Minister on the "pressure exerted" on him.

The judge, however, did not name the minister.

The CBI had filed a case against the father-son duo for allegedly using the services of a Puducherry University official and a middle man to inflate the marks of Shridhar.

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Nirupama Rao to be next foreign secretary

NEW DELHI: India's Ambassador to China Nirupama Rao was on Tuesday named as the next foreign secretary to succeed Shivshankar Menon who will be retiring on July 31 after an eventful three-year stint as the top diplomat.

Rao, a 1973-batch IFS officer who has served in a number of key positions, will be the second woman foreign secretary of India after Chokila Iyer.

Prior to her posting in Beijing as Ambassador in October 2006, the 58-year-old seasoned diplomat had served as Indian envoy to Sri Lanka and the country's first woman spokesperson.

Earlier, she had served in the Indian Missions in Washington and Moscow besides having a stint in the Ministry of External Affairs as Joint Secretary (East Asia).

She will be taking over as the top diplomat at a time when India's relations with Pakistan are going through tough times in the aftermath of Mumbai terror attacks.

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Sonia inaugurates Bandra- Worli Sea Link

MUMBAI: UPA chairperson and Congress President Sonia Gandhi yesterday thre open the Rs 1,600 crore, 5.6-km long Bandra-Worli Sea Link (BWSL), India's first open eight-lane, cable-supported sea bridge that will reduce traffic congestion in this metro, yesterday.

The inauguration ceremony was attended by Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal, Union ministers Sharad Pawar, Vilasrao Deshmukh, Sushilkumar Shinde, Praful Patel, state ministers, Legislators and Parliamentarians.

Under construction for over 10 years, the new link between the southern island city and the northwest suburbs will be an alternative to the existing Mahim Causeway.

Currently, a daily traffic volume of over 1.4 million vehicles causes massive traffic snarls, especially during the morning-evening peak hours.

The distance of 8 km between Bandra and Worli currently takes 60-90 minutes to cover during the morning-evening peak hours.

"After BWSL becomes operational yesterday, this travel time will reduce to barely six-eight minutes. It will also entail savings in vehicular operating costs (VOC) of over Rs 1 billion a year," an official of the Maharashtra State Roads Development Corporation (MSRDC) said.

The chief attraction of the magnificent structure would be the two cable-stayed bridges, one 500 metres long (northern side) and another 350 metres long (southern side), for the passage of fishing boats.

The bridge rests on two towers, each 126 metres tall or equivalent to a 43-storeyed building.

MSRDC has plans to provide a viewers' gallery at the top of the towers which would offer a bird's eye glimpse of the entire city.

There is a modern, automated, 16-lane toll plaza at the southern end, and the bridge has been equipped with sophisticated security and monitoring systems.

Executed by Hindustan Construction Company over a period of more than 10 years, the MSRDC's project suffered a long delay of five years owing to various hiccups. The company will also maintain the bridge for the next five years.

The public sector giant, Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), has provided almost two-thirds of the steel used in building the link.

The BWSL has gobbled up a total of nearly 22,235 tonnes of steel of which SAIL's share is pegged at over 13,780 tonnes, according to a senior SAIL official.

"The steel is of the best quality and has come from our integrated plants. All the steel rods, if laid in a straight row, would measure almost 3,000 kilometres or the breadth of India," the SAIL official said.

Although the bridge is designed for speeding at 100 km per hour, initially the MSRDC plans to impose a 50 km per hour speed limit to enable motorists to get used to the bridge and prevent accidents. Two lanes are proposed to be reserved exclusively for buses and heavy vehicles.

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