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Strike in Kashmir on voter card issue, life paralysed
Srinagar, Aug 16 (ANI): Srinagar wore a deserted look on Friday as vehicles were off the roads and businesses closed in response to a strike called by the separatist All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC). The APHC called for a strike to protest against the decision to treat voter identity cards as general identity cards. Separatist groups have accused the army, police and paramilitary of forcing people to register to vote. According to a Hurriyat supporter, security personnel at many check-points around the state have refused to recognise any form of identification except a voter registration card. The state government officials were not immediately available for comment. The APHC has refused to participate in the Assembly elections slated for September and October. The Election Commission nevertheless began preparations for the polls and started issuing voter I-cards to people above 18 years of age. The Hurriyat also observed a strike on Thursday when the entire country was celebrating the 55th Independence Day. Frequent shut-downs have become one of the biggest problems for the residents of Kashmir. Strikes also affect the economy of the state. "There are a lot of the problems because of the shut- downs. Transporation is a big problem, school children cannot go to schools and no work gets done. Strikes should not take place", said a resident. (ANI) Nedumaran's deputy held under POTA
Chennai, Aug 16 (ANI): Subaveera Pandian, a Tamil Nationalist Party leader and deputy of Pazha Nedumaran, was arrested under Prevention of Terrorism Act here on Friday and produced before the special POTA court at Poonamalee near here. Police said Pandian was arrested for making "provocative speeches" in support of the banned Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. Pandian's counsel P. Purushothaman said he has been arrested under Sections 21,2,3,4 of POTA and remanded to custody till 13 September. The arrest was made on the basis of the speeches made by him during a party meeting held in Ananda theatre on 13 April 2002, he added. Pandian, TNP general secretary, is the 12th leader to be arrested under POTA in Tamil Nadu. The most recent arrest was that of PMK chief Vaiko who has been under detention for the past more than two weeks for making pro-LTTE speeches. TNP chief Pazha Nedumaran, who was arrested earlier this month for convening the World Tamil Federation Conference in April, has been framed under similar charges. The TNP has already committed its support to Sri Lanka's rebel Tamil Tigers notwithstanding the arrest of its leaders under POTA. Earlier this month, the party passed six resolutions at its state executive committee meeting in Chennai and decided to challenge the arrest of Nedumaran. (ANI) India, Pak not keen to solve Kashmir issue: Arunadhati Roy
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to top Islamabad, Aug 16 (ANI): Indian writer Arundhati Roy has slammed the governments of India and Pakistan for not being serious about solving the Kashmir issue. The 41-year-old Booker prize winner said both the governments were in the habit of raising this issue as a cover for themselves whenever domestic crises cropped up. "When you talk about the Indo-Pak problem or the Kashmir problem we are assuming they are problems and that people are unsuccessfully searching solutions. But I don't think this is the case. I think that governments of India and Pakistan pull this rabbit out of their hats every time they face domestic issues at home," Roy remarked on Thursday. "I dont think that they really want to find a solution. But we really need to solve the problem," added Roy, whose "God of Small Things" won her rave reviews all over the world a few years ago. Roy is on her first trip to Pakistan, a move seen as one of her most radical ever. She also said that she feels like an "insect" burrowing in amongst established institutions to force social change. The writer added she was constantly accused by the government at home of being "anti-national", when what she opposed was nationalism. "In India I am constantly accused of being an anti-national but you see, being an anti-national suggests that you are against that nation and therefore close to some other nation. But I am not that at all. I am against nationalism. I am terribly worried about flags. I see them as a piece of cloth that shrink, cramp people's brain and then are used as shrouds to bury the willing dead," Roy elaborated. The author clearly struck a chord in Pakistan, being warmly applauded throughout her address by 200 people including journalists, academics, students and businessmen. "Let us cherish rare moments like today, when Indians and Pakistanis, in quest of peace and freedom, can meet and talk and hope for a better joint future than the past that they have inherited," prayed Najam Sethi, editor of Daily Times. Arunadhati Roy's comments came as leaders of both countries traded insults over Kashmir, using some of their strongest language on the emotive issue since stepping back from the brink of war in May. Reading from one of her essays at the seminar, Roy called India's development of nuclear weapons "the final act of betrayal of a ruling class that has failed its people." She added that "the truth is, it's far easier to make a bomb than to educate 400 million people." Her campaigns have got her into trouble with the authorities in India but have caught the public imagination. She was jailed for a day earlier this year and fined over her campaign to halt the Narmada dam project.(ANI)
Rain brightens hope for atternative crops: Ajit Singh Go to top New Delhi, aug 16 (ANI): Union Agriculture Minister Ajit Singh said on Friday that there is some relief in drought-hit areas of the country following rains last week. Several regions received good showers with the revival of the south-west monsoon. The meteorological department has forecast more rains in different parts in the next few days. There has been a lot of rain in Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. "So the fodder situation should ease and alternative crops like "jawar" (coarse grains), moth and pulses can be grown in areas blessed by rain." Singh told reporters after the second meeting of the task force set up to tackle the drought situation. The task force, a committee of Cabinet ministers and top officials of related ministries, was constituted under the chairmanship of Deputy Prime Minister L. K. Advani after monsoon rains failed in July. But despite the revival of monsoon, India continues to feel the impact of the worst drought in more than 15 years, with rainfall between June 1 and August 7 amounting to 29 percent less than the long-term average. The Central government has provided more than Rs 12 billion from the Calamity Relief Fund to different states to tackle problems arising out of a failed monsoon. Singh said several programmes are being implemented to provide relief to the affected states. "We also decided the conditions for SGRY's (Sampoorna Grameen Rojgar Yojna or Complete Village Employment Scheme). SGRY is now allocated to each district. We are giving flexibility to the states to use that money and the food component more in the drought-affected areas. They (states) can decide where it is more needed and the Finance Minister is going to west Rajasthan for an extensive tour of five drought-affected districts. Then he will come and give his report. We have already sent the nodal officers for each state," the minister explained. (ANI)
No early polls in Gujarat, says CEC
New Delhi, Aug 16 (ANI): Stating that the situation in Gujarat is still not such that permits holding of elections, the Election Commission has issued a clear "no" to early polls. January, according to it, will be a more suitable period for the purpose. The CEC, JM Lyngdoh, has made it clear in a 40-page order that corrections in, and updating of, electoral rolls must be completed before any such exercise is taken up. The decision comes as a setback to the Narendra Modi government.(ANI)
Gaiety in Kerala as Onam festival approaches Go to top Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 16 (ANI): Preparations are on in full
"We come here to sell readymade garments during the Onam festival every year. We bring clothes from Kolkata and sell it here," Sanjay Gupta, a shopkeeper from the eastern metropolis said. The festival falls in August-September when the harvest has been reaped and granaries are full. The houses are freshly painted and every one wears new clothes. The celebrations begin on August 21. Deepthi, a resident of this city, which is the state capital, said that people of all faiths and castes celebrated this festival. "In Kerala everybody celebrates Onam irrespective of religion or caste. Through this festival we are inviting Mahabali to our houses and he sees that we are happy or not," she added. The celebrations begin with traditional prayers in preparation for welcoming the mythical King Mahabali. The head of the family presents new clothes to the family and friends. This is followed by a lavish feast. In olden days the festival used to be celebrated for 28 days but now it lasts between three to ten days. Onam recalls the story of the demon king Mahabali who created a wonderful kingdom in what is now Kerala. Legend has it that the jealous gods sent God Vishnu to crush Mahabali. Vishnu disguised himself as Vamana, a small Brahmin boy, and came to Mahabali's court. He asked for as much land as he could cover in three steps. With the first stride, Vamana covered heaven, with the second, he covered earth. For the third step, he put his foot on Mahabali's head and pushed him down to the nether world. Mahabali then pleaded that he be allowed to visit his kingdom once a year. The Onam festivities are held to "greet the king." |
swing for the 10-day-long annual harvest festival Onam in Kerala.
Onam is eagerly awaited by people of all ages who redecorate
their homes, buy new clothes and set up elaborate tents for the
ritual to pray for the prosperity of their relatives and friends.
"Pookkolam" or floral arrangements are an important part of the
festivity. Women decorate floors and courtyards of their houses
with fresh multi-coloured flower petals.
The markets are already abuzz with activity with people seen
doing their last minute shopping. The shopkeepers are doing brisk
business.