NEW DELHI: The annual Plan for Delhi for the new financial year was finalised on Monday at Rs.9,000 crore at a meeting between Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia and Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit.
Initiating the discussion, Dr. Ahluwalia hailed the State Government for its achievements, especially in sectors such as infrastructure and education. Delhi being the national Capital, he said, the metro should develop its infrastructure and be comparable to the best in the world. As the venue for the upcoming Commonwealth Games in 2010, it would provide an opportunity to showcase Delhi as a world-class Capital to the visitors, he said.
Dr. Ahluwalia also commended the Delhi Government for a significant improvement in green cover, with the total forest and tree cover increasing from 151 square kilometres in 2001 to 268 sq. km now. The Delhi Government, Dr. Ahluwalia said, should take the lead in promotion of the public-private partnership (PPP) approach. Apart from physical infrastructure, the PPP model should be initiated in social sector projects also, he said.
Now Delhi for trees and trees for Delhi
NEW DELHI: Kick-starting a public movement here in the Capital to prevent over 35,000 trees from being axed under various ongoing and planned development programmes of the Government, concerned citizens and environmentalists have come together under a unique initiative called “Trees of Delhi‘’. Several thousand trees across the city face the threat of being cut down to make way for widening of roads for new “High Capacity Buses", building new flyovers and expansion of the Delhi Metro railway network.
Says well-known environmentalist Pradip Krishen: “Trees don’t just add to the beauty of the city but also keep it environmentally healthy. We have got together to ensure that people of the city know what is at stake. People should have a voice and we will try and highlight the issue. We have already lost several thousand trees in the name of development and are in danger of losing several more.'’ The new group, comprising various non-government organisations, environmentalists and concerned citizens, will work actively towards creating awareness about the issue among the public and putting pressure on the Government to try and save the trees of Delhi. “Trees aren’t just government property but also belong to the common man. We haven’t been consulted on how many trees and in which locations they should be cut. We have already lost several thousand trees in the name of development because of the Delhi Metro, National Highway No. 8 and several flyovers. The Government continues to go ahead with its plan to cut trees and make way for what seems to be an environmentally hazardous development. We want the Government to consult the people affected by the same before they mark and cut trees,'’ says Usha Srinivasan of “Trees for Delhi'’.
Indian real estate goes global
NEW DELHI, MAR 7: The real estate boom was changing the way Indians live is old news. The latest is that it has started generating interest from buyers overseas.
With more than a dozen Indian property exhibitions lined up across the world this year, for the first time, Indian real estate is truly going global.
An Indian property exhibition has now become part of the annual events calendar of cities like Singapore, Dubai, New Jersey, Los Angeles, Toronto, London, San Francisco, Hong Kong and Muscat. The Home Owner Dubai exhibition, for instance, held an exclusive Home Owner India event last year as well as this year from February 16-17, 2007. The Indian Property Show to be held from May 17-18, 2007 at Dubai is billed to be the largest Indian property exhibitions in the world.
CISF to take over Delhi Metro security
NEW DELHI: With the Delhi Metro figuring high on the list of possible terrorist targets, its security would be handed over to the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) on April 15. Incidentally, CISF has been handling the security of the Central Government installations and buildings in Delhi and the IGI Airport for the past five years.
Addressing a press conference, CISF Director-General SIS Ahmed said on Wednesday that 1,633 posts had been sanctioned for Phase I of the Delhi Metro project. As there was a paucity of trained personnel, the force had also started recruitments for the purpose, he said. The deployment would be done in a phased manner from April 1. Earlier, CISF was assisting the Delhi police in providing security cover to the Delhi Metro.
As the Metro was considered very vulnerable to terrorist strikes, Mr Ahmed disclosed that the force had recommended procurement of explosive detectors, baggage scanners and “intelligent” video cameras, apart from other security gadgets. The intelligent cameras, which were yet to be procured, could detect out-of-the-ordinary occurrences on the basis of the data fed into its software defining the characteristics of various unusual events.
Rymbai going to Delhi to attend Plan Panel meeting
Shillong, March. 4 (PTI): With the leadership issue still hanging in balance, Meghalaya Chief Minister J D Rymbai is going to Delhi tomorrow, but for a different reason.
Rymbai, who refused to step down after two AICC leaders Oscar Fernandes and Ved Prakash asked him verbally to demit office on Monday last, is going for attending a Planning Commission meeting.
In Delhi, he would also try to meet Congress President Sonia Gandhi and other senior leaders of the party high command, sources said.
Rymbai would be accompanied by State Planning Board Chairman and veteran Congress leader S C Marak.
The ruling faction, which held a meeting with Ministers and MLAs loyal to the Chief Minister on Wednesday night, decided against Rymbai’s stepping down and rather await the high command’s call.
With no fresh words from the Congress High Command, a sort of status quo was prevailing on the leadership issue.
State’s Parliamentary Affairs and Home minister R G Lyngdoh said asking the Chief Minister to step down verbally, was a ‘complete diversion of the normal procedure.’
Task force to tackle hotel room scarcity in Delhi, NCR
NEW DELHI: The government, concerned with the slow pace of rolling out Commonwealth Games 2010 infrastructure in the Capital, has gone into combat mode on the hotel accommodation front. Government sources have revealed that a task force has been formed under the chairmanship of a joint secretary - tourism and additional director general - tourism for monitoring the creation of additional accommodation in Delhi and NCR region.
According to the tourism ministry officials: “We have prepared a status note stating that we are in touch with all land owning agencies for creating additional hotel rooms in the NCR region and the status note has been sent to sports minister Mani Shankar Aiyar.”
The status note estimates that a minimum 30,000 to 35,000 hotel rooms would be required in NCR by 2010, out of which a minimum of 20,000 additional hotel rooms will be required in Delhi itself. Some of the important issues raised by the tourism ministry are the creation of land banks, giving land on long lease, grant of additional FAR, greater commercial utilization and change of land use for hotels.
The task force after meetings with land owning agencies has asked them to identify more hotel sites, adopt a single window clearance approach and to focus on the budget category hotels by giving land on long lease.
Delhi to go to the polls on April 5
Delhi to go to the polls on April 5
Delhi will finally have a new civic body by April 10 as mandated by the Constitution with the State Election Commission on Friday announcing elections on April 5 for the 272 newly carved out wards of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.
Announcing the schedule, State Election Commissioner S. P. Marwah said notification for the elections would be issued on March 10 and the entire process would be completed by April 9. The model code of conduct comes into force with immediate effect.
Mr. Marwah said the last date for filing nominations would be March 17, while scrutiny of nomination papers would take place on March 19. The last date for withdrawal is March 22 and counting of votes will be taken up on April 7.
More : hindu.com
Work begins on project to double capacity of New Delhi airport
Work begins on project to double capacity of New Delhi airport
India has started work on a project that will enable the New Delhi airport to handle 37 million passengers a year by 2010, more than double its current capacity, aviation officials said.
The 85 billion rupee, or $1.94 billion, revamp will see a third terminal building constructed in the next three years and a new runway by 2008 to ease congestion at the airport.
The new runway — the airports third landing strip — would be one of Asias longest at 4,430 meters, or 14,530 feet, and would allow Airbus A-380 super jumbos to land, Delhi International Airport said.
More : iht.com
UNIDO South-South centre opened in Delhi
UNIDO South-South centre opened in Delhi
The first UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development Organisation) Centre for South-South [developing countries] Industrial Cooperation (UCSSIC) was launched in New Delhi on Thursday by Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath at a function presided over by the Director General of UNIDO, Kandeh Yumkella.
India has as much to learn as to teach, as much as to receive as to give. We see the centre as a project which is global in its reach and scope, Mr. Kamal Nath said in his keynote address. The role of South-South cooperation in linking development, the expansion of trade, and poverty reduction is not a new subject. However, it faces new challenges and has a greater potential today, Mr. Yumkella observed.
He said recent initiatives heralded a `new UNIDO with focus on linkages between industrial development and trade, especially through value-addition and technological innovations.
More : hindu.com
Air Canada cutting flights to New Delhi
Air Canada cutting flights to New Delhi
Air Canada is being criticized by business leaders in the Indian-Canadian community for cutting all flights to India in favour of routes going to China.
The airline told the Toronto Star that daily service to New Delhi will end as of May 1. Company spokesperson Peter Fitzpatrick said it has been difficult to fill the flights year-round. He added that demand for flights to China has been on the rise.
It is a surprising decision for the Canada-India Business Council. President Kam Rathee sent a letter to Air Canada president Montie Brewer urging him to reconsider.
More : toronto.ctv.ca
Taj, Great Wall to mark India-China tourism year
Taj, Great Wall to mark India-China tourism year
The Taj Mahal and the Great Wall of China gleam together in the logo of the India-China Friendship Through Tourism Year, launched here Wednesday, as the two neighbours hoped to bridge the yawning information gap with more travel and people-to-people contacts.
The Great Wall of China and our Taj Mahal, which are both represented in the joint logo that commemorates our Friendship Through Tourism Year, are among the most easily recognisable symbols of travel and tourism the world over, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said at the launch of this defining event in the cultural calendar of the two countries.
Yet not many from our two countries have seen both, he added in the same breath. The need of the hour then is to create awareness in our peoples about the two countries as tourist destinations, he said.
More : andhracafe.com
Planning Commission Okays Rs. 10,200 crore for Bihar
Planning Commission Okays Rs. 10,200 crore for Bihar
The Planning Commission, on Wednesday, approved an annual plan of Rs. 10,200 crore for the fiscal year of 2007-08 for Bihar that is an increase of approximately Rs. 2,000 crore, or 23%, over the last year plan.
The plan was approved in New Delhi during a meeting between the Planning Commission deputy chairperson Montek Singh Ahluwalia and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Among others to be present during the meeting were Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi and state planning commission deputy chairperson N. K. Singh.
More : patnadaily.com
DTC to build hotels, commercial complexes at its depots
DTC to build hotels, commercial complexes at its depots
The Delhi Transport Corporation has planned to construct hotels and commercial complexes at its various depots to overcome losses. The DTC has a total of 30 depots in the Capital.
Delhi Minister of Transport and Power Haroon Yusuf said that to begin with, the government had decided to launch the project from 16 depots and Shadipur would be the one of the first depots. Thereafter, the target will be Sukhdev Vihar, Okhla, Sarojini Nagar, Patparganj and Nehru Place depots.
He said that the project had a lot of potentiality. The ASSOCHAM and CII jointly conducted a survey to find out whether running hotel or restaurant and commercial complexes from DTC depots would viable.
The survey report indicated that total revenue of the DTC by this project would be Rs 300 crore per annum.
More : tribuneindia.com
Delhi to be developed as sports city
In view of the 2010 Commonwealth Games, the Delhi Government will develop the national Capital into a sports city and promote activities among students to nurture their hidden talent for different games.
Education Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely made this announcement after inaugurating the 52nd National School Games at Chatrasaal Stadium here on Saturday.
He also lauded competitors, hailing from Delhi, who won medals at the recent Doha Asian Games.
NSCN-IM leader Muivah arrives in Delhi
Top NSCN-IM leader Thuingaleng Muivah arrived in Delhi on Wednesday to a rousing welcome from Naga students to take forward the peace process in Nagaland.
The rebel leader, who is likely to hold parleys with Central leaders during his first visit to the country in about 18 months, will stay in India for about two months, sources said.
NSCN-IM chairman Isak Chisi Swu is expected to join him in the first week of January.
Attired in traditional dress and carrying spears and musical instruments, Naga girls and boys danced to the tune of folk songs as they welcomed Muivah.
Tokyo, New Delhi OK trade agreement talks
India and Japan agreed Friday to launch talks on an economic partnership agreement centered on lowering tariffs on bilateral trade, with Tokyo trying to make up for lost time as it tries to deepen business ties with India, whose economy is growing rapidly.
The talks will begin early next year, with the goal of wrapping up the pact by 2009, visiting visiting Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Japanese counterpart, Shinzo Abe, agreed in Tokyo.
The two leaders sealed the agreement in a joint statement signed Friday at the prime ministers office in Tokyo.
India, which has the third-largest economy in Asia, has enjoyed rapid growth in recent years. This year its GDP is forecast to grow by 8.1 percent.
Japans total trade with India totaled $ 6.5 billion in 2005, up 22 percent from the previous year. But trade rivals China and South Korea boosted their trade with India by about 40 percent each over the same period.
By value in 2005, Japan ranked a lowly 10th among Indias trade partners. Japans imports from India to date have mostly been traditional products, with precious stones and jewelry accounting for 25.1 percent of the total and seafood another 12.7 percent, according to the Foreign Ministry. Machinery is Japans largest export to India, at 24.5 percent of the total.
Looking to the future, I believe the most important area in which we can build partnership is (in) the knowledge economy, Singh told lawmakers in the Diet Thursday, stressing the importance of information technology, nanotechnology and biotechnology as promising areas for expanding bilateral economic ties.
Delhi slum dwellers to get flats for Rs 16, 250
Low-cost alternative housing for slum dwellers in the capital may finally become a reality with the MCD planning to construct up to 2,500 such units worth as less as Rs 16,250 per flat.
To be built as part of the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewable Mission launched by the Ministry of Urban Development, the flats would be four-storied with the provision of one living room, one multipurpose room with kitchen, one balcony or courtyard and one bathroom.
The cost of each would not include the cost of the land, which comes to Rs 16,250 per flat. The price of the land would be borne by the implementing agency through commercial exploitation.
The apartments would come up in Rohini and Dwarka I and II and the proposal has already been approved by the Delhi Government.
Fifty per cent of the cost of the flats would be shared by the Centre and the remaining 50 per cent by the urban local body or the implementing agency.
The flats would be sold through a cooperative society of the Jhuggi Dwellers which will be responsible for raising loan on behalf of the members from financial institutions which will be recovered from the beneficiaries through easy instalments.
Initially the title of the flats will be transferred to the society which will further allot the flats to the beneficiaries on license fee basis.
The lease hold rights will be given to the beneficiaries by the society after recovering the total cost of flats.
SEZs, industry corridor: Delhi, Tokyo in new economic deal
Set to upgrade ties to a full-fledged strategic partnership, India and Japan will underline this by firming up a special economic partnership for a Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor during Prime Minister Manmohan Singhs visit to Japan which began today.
Ahead of Singhs formal talks with counterpart Shinzo Abe, Union Commerce Minister Kamal Nath today signed an MoU with Akira Amari, Japans Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, to upgrade the Japan-India Policy Dialogue from an official to ministerial level and even reached an agreement to develop an industrial corridor along the Delhi-Mumbai multi-modal freight corridor.
This will see setting up of SEZs, industrial parks, upgrading transport infrastructure including ports, roads, power facilities along the sensitive western coast. In that regard, this initiative would essentially be scaling up the existing rail freight corridor project between Delhi and Mumbai which, by current estimates, needs an investment of around $5 billion alone.
This is the first time that India will enter into a bilateral partnership of this sort with any country. Principal Secretary to Prime Minister T K A Nair told The Indian Express that this is a unique proposal which has never been attempted with any other country.
Working group on Kashmir to meet in Delhi
The working group to discuss measures for strengthening the relation between Jammu and Kashmir and the Centre would meet here today for the first time sans any representation from the states main opposition National Conference.
The group, which will be chaired by retired Supreme Court Judge Sageer Ahmed, is one of the five committees constituted after the second round table conference chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Srinagar in May this year.
This was the only working group which had remained headless for nearly six months after the announcement of its formation. The state government had earlier approached former Chief Justice A M Ahmadi who had sought a commission status to the working group.
Finally, Justice (Retd) Sageer Ahmed, who resigned as the chairman of Rajasthan State Human Rights Commission in 2004 after the formation of BJP government, was appointed to head the working group.
While National Conference has decided to boycott the working groups or any future round table till the human rights situation in the state improved, ruling alliance of Congress and PDP would be represented by Union Water Resources Minister Saif-ud-din Soz and Mehbooba Mufti respectively.
When contacted about the participation of his party, National Conference president Omar Abdullah told reporters that discussions were already underway with senior leaders of the party and a decision would be taken soon
Delhi-Agra highway blocked after accident kills child
Angry villagers near Palwal town of Haryanas Faridabad district Sunday set two trucks on fire and blocked the national highway linking Delhi and Agra for over three hours after a truck ran over two children, killing one of them.
The other victim was admitted to a Faridabad hospital in a serious condition, witnesses said.
Following the accident, villagers gathered at the spot and set that truck on fire. Another dumper truck of a construction company, which was passing through that way, was also set on fire.
The villagers then blocked the national highway, leading to a traffic jam and putting thousands of motorists to inconvenience.