DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: Telangana Rashtra Samiti chief K Chandrasekhar Rao's meeting with Bharatiya Janata Party president Rajnath Singh and the former's reported pledge to support the BJP-led National Democractic Alliance at the Centre has caused some anxiety in the Telugu Desam Party which has been trying to forge a "Grand Alliance" with the Left and the TRS in Andhra Pradesh.The sudden shift in TRS' stance, after having supported the United National Progressive Alliance on the trust vote in Lok Sabha last week, has caught the TDP in a fix though the party would still like to consider joining hands with the TRS to consolidate its position in the Telangana region.The TDP has been dropping enough hints that it would indeed like to align with the TRS by reiterating that it was "not against" Telangana. Opposition parties, barring the Bharatiya Janata Party, in the state have been seeking to forge the so-called Grand Alliance with the sole objective of dislodging the Congress from power -- much the same way the parties came together in 2004 to dethrone the Chandrababu Naidu government. Rather than "ideology," it is a "common cause" (of defeating the Congress) that is bringing the opposition forces together. "Was there any ideological bond between the Congress, Left and TRS in 2004? It is no more a question of ideology but some common factors that bind us," a senior Left leader pointed out.Interestingly, the ruling party which has been reduced to a loner in state politics, too is trying to re-establish its old links with the Left parties to scuttle the principal opposition Telugu Desam Party's plans. The Congress is jittery over the impact the grand alliance would cause as a unified opposition could become a very formidable force and mar its chances of retaining power.
The CPI, on its part, is desperately looking towards Chiranjeevi while the CPM will be part of the grand alliance as things stand now."The question of our re-aligning with the Congress doesn't arise as our national congress has taken a clear stand on the issue," CPM state secretariat member Y Venkateswara Rao asserted.The TDP wants to align with the Left parties and also the Telangana Rashtra Samiti by keeping the BJP aside. The Bahujan Samaj Party, which of course does not have much strength in the state, too may become part of the TDP-Left-TRS alliance going by the developments at the national level. Significantly, the TDP is also leaving open the option of seeking support of film star Chiranjeevi in the event of a "hung" Assembly next year. This statement by party spokesman Kodela Siva Prasada Rao only exposed the insecurity in the TDP camp over the impact of Chiranjeevi's future party, political observers say. TDP's indication of a possible "post-poll" alliance with the Chiranjeevi party is being viewed in the context of Devender Goud's Nava Telangana Praja Party planning a "pre-poll" tie-up with the star. Goud has asserted that he would not join hands either with the TRS or the TDP but left the option of joining hands with Chiru open.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Chasing mirages...
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: The dream houses promised at affordable rates by the state government continue to remain a "dream" for many prospective buyers as the Rajiv Swagruha scheme is progressing at a snail's pace.
More than a year after the demand survey, the Rajiv Swagruha Corporation Limited (RSCL) is yet to verify and process over 10,700 applications for houses, leaving the applicants anxious.
In all 1,74,774 applications were submitted in 94 urban local bodies of the state for houses under the Swagruha scheme when the demand survey was conducted in April last year. By the end of June this year, as many as 10,707 applications have not yet been verified by the authorities. Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation tops the "pending" list with as many as 3615 applications followed by Greater Visakhapatnam (1510), Medak (1233) and Guntur (1142). Unless the verification of applications is done, applicants will not know whether they are eligible for a house under the Swagruha scheme or not. RSCL officials blame the district-level officials for the delay in processing the applications. Besides, the Corporation is awaiting alienation of over 2850 acres of land in 16 districts to take up the housing projects. The empowered committee headed by the Chief Commissioner of Land Administration has approved the land alienation proposals but the respective district Collectors are required to complete the other formalities.
The RSCL has so far launched only four projects while many projects are in the tenders stage. Work on construction of multi-storied buildings has begun around the state capital at Chandanagar (1140 flats), Pocharam (2604 flats), Bandlaguda (3048 flats) and also at Chirala (427 duplex houses) in Prakasam district.
"With the steep escalation in cost of construction materials, we are inviting fresh tenders on e-procurement basis for other projects after revising the standard schedule of rates," a senior RSCL official said. However, mounting construction costs are adding to the worry of the applicants.
"Given the progress of the projects, we fear the costs will rise further by the time the Swagruha authorities actually begin the works. Unless the RSCL gives us a clear plan, we can't obtain loan from banks," an applicant K Ravichandra lamented.
Unless the RSCL steps up its act, the hapless applicants will be left with no other option except dreaming.
The government had to give up its plan to build independent houses in municipalities due to scarcity of land and now it will construction sky-rises even in smaller towns. For example, a G+9 structure will be built in Anantapur town in 11 acres while a G+20 structure is being planned at Bachupalli. In other towns, G+14 structures will be constructed since land is in short supply, sources in the Rajiv Swagruha Corporation (RSC) said.
While over 10,000 acres of land is required to complete the project as envisaged, authorities could so far identify only 7600 acres of which only 1023 acres has been handed over to the Corporation. With land in severe short supply, the government is now speaking of acquiring land even from private persons to accomplish the Swagruha dream project.
Land acquisition, particularly from private owners, will obviously push the costs up and may well lead to additional burden on buyers. With construction material costs too fluctuating constantly, the RSCL authorities are unable to fix the rates for the flats, leaving the applicants anxious.
The Swagruha scheme that is meant to provide housing for the "moderate income group" at an "affordable" rate, is also literally scaring the prospective buyers away, because of the faulty priorities of the officials concerned. The scheme has been especially designed to cater to the growing housing needs of the middle-class people and provide them houses at a price 25 per cent lesser than the prevailing market rates. But the overzealousness being shown by officials of the Rajiv Swagruha Corporation Limited (RSCL) -- a Special Purpose Vehicle floated by the state government to implement the scheme -- seems to be defeating the very purpose of the scheme. In the name of providing "international-class" facilities, rather than focusing on the basic housing needs, the Swagruha Corporation is allegedly following in the footsteps of private realtors, thereby denying any cost advantage to prospective buyers.
"We thought normal apartments or houses will be built under Swagruha but the designs prepared by the RSCL are scaring us away. They are no doubt impressive but all that will put extra financial burden on us," an applicant D Ramesh Babu said.
Landscaping, walkways and such 'common' things apart, the projects designed by RSCL also contain high-end facilities like swimming pool, club house, amphitheatre and malls.
Hospitals, schools, entertainment centres, parks and playgrounds are other amenities that are planned to be developed. With land values already sky-high and prices of vital inputs like cement and steel steeply rising, there is widespread apprehension that any "add-on" feature will only push the overall project cost further up. Since the RSCL is virtually a real-estate company floated by the state government, the costs will have to be ultimately borne by the buyers, it is feared.
"Of course, such facilities will not be common in our every venture. They will be layout-specific depending on the availability of land," a senior official of the RSCL pointed out.
However, the authorities could not so far finalise rates of flats in the ventures taken up around Hyderabad in places like Pocharam, Bachupally and Kondapur.
RSCL officials say buyers need not pay anything extra for such facilities as the ventures will be commercialised. Profits earned from such ventures will reduce the overall cost of flats and ease the burden on buyers, they contend.
Hyderabad: The dream houses promised at affordable rates by the state government continue to remain a "dream" for many prospective buyers as the Rajiv Swagruha scheme is progressing at a snail's pace.
More than a year after the demand survey, the Rajiv Swagruha Corporation Limited (RSCL) is yet to verify and process over 10,700 applications for houses, leaving the applicants anxious.
In all 1,74,774 applications were submitted in 94 urban local bodies of the state for houses under the Swagruha scheme when the demand survey was conducted in April last year. By the end of June this year, as many as 10,707 applications have not yet been verified by the authorities. Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation tops the "pending" list with as many as 3615 applications followed by Greater Visakhapatnam (1510), Medak (1233) and Guntur (1142). Unless the verification of applications is done, applicants will not know whether they are eligible for a house under the Swagruha scheme or not. RSCL officials blame the district-level officials for the delay in processing the applications. Besides, the Corporation is awaiting alienation of over 2850 acres of land in 16 districts to take up the housing projects. The empowered committee headed by the Chief Commissioner of Land Administration has approved the land alienation proposals but the respective district Collectors are required to complete the other formalities.
The RSCL has so far launched only four projects while many projects are in the tenders stage. Work on construction of multi-storied buildings has begun around the state capital at Chandanagar (1140 flats), Pocharam (2604 flats), Bandlaguda (3048 flats) and also at Chirala (427 duplex houses) in Prakasam district.
"With the steep escalation in cost of construction materials, we are inviting fresh tenders on e-procurement basis for other projects after revising the standard schedule of rates," a senior RSCL official said. However, mounting construction costs are adding to the worry of the applicants.
"Given the progress of the projects, we fear the costs will rise further by the time the Swagruha authorities actually begin the works. Unless the RSCL gives us a clear plan, we can't obtain loan from banks," an applicant K Ravichandra lamented.
Unless the RSCL steps up its act, the hapless applicants will be left with no other option except dreaming.
The government had to give up its plan to build independent houses in municipalities due to scarcity of land and now it will construction sky-rises even in smaller towns. For example, a G+9 structure will be built in Anantapur town in 11 acres while a G+20 structure is being planned at Bachupalli. In other towns, G+14 structures will be constructed since land is in short supply, sources in the Rajiv Swagruha Corporation (RSC) said.
While over 10,000 acres of land is required to complete the project as envisaged, authorities could so far identify only 7600 acres of which only 1023 acres has been handed over to the Corporation. With land in severe short supply, the government is now speaking of acquiring land even from private persons to accomplish the Swagruha dream project.
Land acquisition, particularly from private owners, will obviously push the costs up and may well lead to additional burden on buyers. With construction material costs too fluctuating constantly, the RSCL authorities are unable to fix the rates for the flats, leaving the applicants anxious.
The Swagruha scheme that is meant to provide housing for the "moderate income group" at an "affordable" rate, is also literally scaring the prospective buyers away, because of the faulty priorities of the officials concerned. The scheme has been especially designed to cater to the growing housing needs of the middle-class people and provide them houses at a price 25 per cent lesser than the prevailing market rates. But the overzealousness being shown by officials of the Rajiv Swagruha Corporation Limited (RSCL) -- a Special Purpose Vehicle floated by the state government to implement the scheme -- seems to be defeating the very purpose of the scheme. In the name of providing "international-class" facilities, rather than focusing on the basic housing needs, the Swagruha Corporation is allegedly following in the footsteps of private realtors, thereby denying any cost advantage to prospective buyers.
"We thought normal apartments or houses will be built under Swagruha but the designs prepared by the RSCL are scaring us away. They are no doubt impressive but all that will put extra financial burden on us," an applicant D Ramesh Babu said.
Landscaping, walkways and such 'common' things apart, the projects designed by RSCL also contain high-end facilities like swimming pool, club house, amphitheatre and malls.
Hospitals, schools, entertainment centres, parks and playgrounds are other amenities that are planned to be developed. With land values already sky-high and prices of vital inputs like cement and steel steeply rising, there is widespread apprehension that any "add-on" feature will only push the overall project cost further up. Since the RSCL is virtually a real-estate company floated by the state government, the costs will have to be ultimately borne by the buyers, it is feared.
"Of course, such facilities will not be common in our every venture. They will be layout-specific depending on the availability of land," a senior official of the RSCL pointed out.
However, the authorities could not so far finalise rates of flats in the ventures taken up around Hyderabad in places like Pocharam, Bachupally and Kondapur.
RSCL officials say buyers need not pay anything extra for such facilities as the ventures will be commercialised. Profits earned from such ventures will reduce the overall cost of flats and ease the burden on buyers, they contend.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Transparency that 'Exposes'
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy never misses an opportunity to boast about the “transparency” in his administration. True, the administration has been transparent. So much so that the transparency is also literally “exposing” the government. Case in point is the system of issuing all Government Orders (GOs) online. Be it a GO related to sanction of monthly newspaper bills, grant of leave to officers, amount sanctioned for buying snacks in a particular minister\officer’s peshi or even sanction of advance to an attender for purchase of a bicycle, the online portal of the government has everything posted on it. In fact, no GO can be issued nowadays without first uploading it online. Here comes the catch. There is no harm in making available routine GOs on the World Wide Web as people will get to know more about what’s happening in the administration. The other day, a supposedly confidential GO too found its place on the AP government’s online portal causing much embarrassment to those concerned. The GO pertained to the expunction of certain adverse remarks made against Indian Police Service officer P S R Anjaneyulu, currently the deputy inspector general of police (political and development) in the Intelligence Department, in his annual confidential report (ACR). The ACR pertained to the period when he was a Superintendent of Police. Using his right to seek expunction of the adverse remarks in the ACR, the IPS officer made an appeal to the government and the process ended with the latter ruling in his favour. So far so good, but the awkward part is the inclusion of the “adverse remarks” – which the officer wanted expunged – in the GO that provided him relief. Hitherto, barring the officers concerned, nobody else would have known about the whole issue, more so the remarks made in the ACR. Thanks to the increased “transparency,” the world could virtually read into the ACR of an IPS officer. This has, naturally, left the officers red faced. “This is absolutely ludicrous. How can the contents of an ACR, even if they were expunged, be made public,” a senior IPS officer wondered. Some days ago, another routine GO too found its place on the government portal leaving an Indian Administration Officer concerned upset. The GO related to the sanction of a few lakh rupees from the officer’s provident fund to meet certain personal expenses (like education\marriage of a child). “Why should the world know such details? What purpose does it serve,” the officer in question fumed. Higher officials suggest that it would be good only if GOs that are absolutely relevant to the general public are posted on the government portal. “The administration becomes a laughing stock if people read manyof the GOs, going by what they contain. Simply put, more than 80 per cent of the GOs are nothing but trash,” a high-ranking bureaucrat observed.
Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy never misses an opportunity to boast about the “transparency” in his administration. True, the administration has been transparent. So much so that the transparency is also literally “exposing” the government. Case in point is the system of issuing all Government Orders (GOs) online. Be it a GO related to sanction of monthly newspaper bills, grant of leave to officers, amount sanctioned for buying snacks in a particular minister\officer’s peshi or even sanction of advance to an attender for purchase of a bicycle, the online portal of the government has everything posted on it. In fact, no GO can be issued nowadays without first uploading it online. Here comes the catch. There is no harm in making available routine GOs on the World Wide Web as people will get to know more about what’s happening in the administration. The other day, a supposedly confidential GO too found its place on the AP government’s online portal causing much embarrassment to those concerned. The GO pertained to the expunction of certain adverse remarks made against Indian Police Service officer P S R Anjaneyulu, currently the deputy inspector general of police (political and development) in the Intelligence Department, in his annual confidential report (ACR). The ACR pertained to the period when he was a Superintendent of Police. Using his right to seek expunction of the adverse remarks in the ACR, the IPS officer made an appeal to the government and the process ended with the latter ruling in his favour. So far so good, but the awkward part is the inclusion of the “adverse remarks” – which the officer wanted expunged – in the GO that provided him relief. Hitherto, barring the officers concerned, nobody else would have known about the whole issue, more so the remarks made in the ACR. Thanks to the increased “transparency,” the world could virtually read into the ACR of an IPS officer. This has, naturally, left the officers red faced. “This is absolutely ludicrous. How can the contents of an ACR, even if they were expunged, be made public,” a senior IPS officer wondered. Some days ago, another routine GO too found its place on the government portal leaving an Indian Administration Officer concerned upset. The GO related to the sanction of a few lakh rupees from the officer’s provident fund to meet certain personal expenses (like education\marriage of a child). “Why should the world know such details? What purpose does it serve,” the officer in question fumed. Higher officials suggest that it would be good only if GOs that are absolutely relevant to the general public are posted on the government portal. “The administration becomes a laughing stock if people read manyof the GOs, going by what they contain. Simply put, more than 80 per cent of the GOs are nothing but trash,” a high-ranking bureaucrat observed.
Long wait for Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: The state government is still dragging its feet on formally constituting the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) even after three months elapsed since the state legislature passed a legislation for the purpose.
The Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department (MAUD) has not yet framed the relevant rules to operationalise the new body that will replace the 33-year-old Hyderabad Urban Development Authority.
Once in place, the HMDA will cover an area of 6856 sq km spread over five districts and become the third largest metropolitan region development authority in the country after the National Capital Region of Delhi (30,000 sq km) and Bengaluru (8000 sq km). Mumbai comes next to Hyderabad with 4272 sq km.
The state Legislature passed a Bill in the Budget session for the constitution of HMDA with the Chief Minister as its chairman and municipal administration minister as vice-chairman. But so far the MAUD Department has not completed the task of framing relevant rules for the new body. The government is required to issue three notifications for putting the HMDA in place: A GO notifying the constitution of HMDA; a GO prescribing rules and procedures and another constituting the HMDA Board.
Informed sources in the MAUD said "some procedural hitches" -- like who should be nominated to the authority and the role they should play -- have been holding up the process of finalising the rules. "The issue is now almost clear and the HMDA may be notified latest by this month end," a top MAUD official asserted.
"The recent bye-elections have hampered the HMDA constitution process for more than a month. Hence the delay in the new body taking birth," a senior official, who is a member of the high-level committee constituted to frame the HMDA rules, said.
In fact, the move to create HMDA has been on for more than a year-and-a-half now. In April last, the government expanded the jurisdiction of the existing Huda, which would have later transformed into HMDA. But the government "ignored" the subsequent exercises, like drafting relevant rules and procedures, so as to give effect to the HMDA plans. It was only after the legislature passed the HMDA Act, that the MAUD Department sat down to business.
HMDA will be spread over five districts -- Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy, Nalgonda, Mahbubnagar and Medak -- covering 54 mandals.
The HMDA will be a high-powered "body corporate" comprising an 'Authority' and an Executive Committee. Ranging from the state Chief Secretary, the authority will have as members the GHMC Commissioner, principal secretaries of revenue, MAUD, panchayat raj, environment and forests, transport, roads and buildings, vice-chairmen and managing directors of APSRTC, AP Transco, APIIC besides four MLAs\MLCs representing the Hyderabad Metropolitan Region and four elected representatives from the local authorities. A Metropolitan Commissioner of the rank of additional chief secretary\principal secretary will be the member-convenor of the authority.
The Metropolitan Commissioner will also be the chairman of the Executive Committee that will be responsible for planning and implementing the decisions of HMDA. Besides, the EC will be responsible for preparation of plans, schemes and projects. "The management and administration of day-to-day affairs of the HMDA will be vested with the Executive Committee," the MAUD sources said.
A Metropolitan Development Fund with a seed capital of Rs 200 crore and a revolving fund of Rs 100 crore is being created for the HMDA. While the HMDA will get 10 per cent of the total receipts of urban local bodies under its jurisdiction, it will also have power to levy specific cess for capital infrastructure projets. The HMDA will also raise funds through bonds, debentures and external loans to carry out its tasks.
Hyderabad: The state government is still dragging its feet on formally constituting the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) even after three months elapsed since the state legislature passed a legislation for the purpose.
The Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department (MAUD) has not yet framed the relevant rules to operationalise the new body that will replace the 33-year-old Hyderabad Urban Development Authority.
Once in place, the HMDA will cover an area of 6856 sq km spread over five districts and become the third largest metropolitan region development authority in the country after the National Capital Region of Delhi (30,000 sq km) and Bengaluru (8000 sq km). Mumbai comes next to Hyderabad with 4272 sq km.
The state Legislature passed a Bill in the Budget session for the constitution of HMDA with the Chief Minister as its chairman and municipal administration minister as vice-chairman. But so far the MAUD Department has not completed the task of framing relevant rules for the new body. The government is required to issue three notifications for putting the HMDA in place: A GO notifying the constitution of HMDA; a GO prescribing rules and procedures and another constituting the HMDA Board.
Informed sources in the MAUD said "some procedural hitches" -- like who should be nominated to the authority and the role they should play -- have been holding up the process of finalising the rules. "The issue is now almost clear and the HMDA may be notified latest by this month end," a top MAUD official asserted.
"The recent bye-elections have hampered the HMDA constitution process for more than a month. Hence the delay in the new body taking birth," a senior official, who is a member of the high-level committee constituted to frame the HMDA rules, said.
In fact, the move to create HMDA has been on for more than a year-and-a-half now. In April last, the government expanded the jurisdiction of the existing Huda, which would have later transformed into HMDA. But the government "ignored" the subsequent exercises, like drafting relevant rules and procedures, so as to give effect to the HMDA plans. It was only after the legislature passed the HMDA Act, that the MAUD Department sat down to business.
HMDA will be spread over five districts -- Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy, Nalgonda, Mahbubnagar and Medak -- covering 54 mandals.
The HMDA will be a high-powered "body corporate" comprising an 'Authority' and an Executive Committee. Ranging from the state Chief Secretary, the authority will have as members the GHMC Commissioner, principal secretaries of revenue, MAUD, panchayat raj, environment and forests, transport, roads and buildings, vice-chairmen and managing directors of APSRTC, AP Transco, APIIC besides four MLAs\MLCs representing the Hyderabad Metropolitan Region and four elected representatives from the local authorities. A Metropolitan Commissioner of the rank of additional chief secretary\principal secretary will be the member-convenor of the authority.
The Metropolitan Commissioner will also be the chairman of the Executive Committee that will be responsible for planning and implementing the decisions of HMDA. Besides, the EC will be responsible for preparation of plans, schemes and projects. "The management and administration of day-to-day affairs of the HMDA will be vested with the Executive Committee," the MAUD sources said.
A Metropolitan Development Fund with a seed capital of Rs 200 crore and a revolving fund of Rs 100 crore is being created for the HMDA. While the HMDA will get 10 per cent of the total receipts of urban local bodies under its jurisdiction, it will also have power to levy specific cess for capital infrastructure projets. The HMDA will also raise funds through bonds, debentures and external loans to carry out its tasks.
Hyderabad to have Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh capital Hyderabad will have a Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (UMTA) in place soon.
The new entity will be headed by the state Chief Secretary and will be responsible for effective implementation and co-ordination of various traffic and transportation measures in the Hyderabad Metropolitan Region (HMR).
The onus will be on the UMTA to devise better plans and mitigate the traffic woes of the metropolis, which has been witnessing chaos on the roads with the spurt in number of private vehicles and also population.
Mumbai, Jaipur and Chennai are the other major cities that have similar bodies in operation while Bengaluru has a land transport authority in place. Andhra Pradesh is the only state in the country where the UMTA is being constituted as per a legislation enacted by the state legislature. The National Urban Transport Policy-2006 stipulated setting up of a Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority in cities having a population over a million to help ease urban transportation problems.
All modes of public transport including buses, multi-modal transport system (MMTS) and the proposed Metro Rail project would be integrated into a single system under the UMTA, according to highly-placed sources in the Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department (MAUD). The UMTA will also approve traffic and transporation proposals and new initiatives of different departments and its recommendations will be binding on all other departments concerned, the sources added.
The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Commissioner, managing director of APSRTC, general manager of South Central Railway, police commissioners of Hyderabad and Cyberabad, transport commissioner, member-secretary of AP Pollution Control Board, principal secretary\secretary of MAUD, Transport, Roads and Buildings department and two experts in the field of urban transportation will be the members of the UMTA.
"The UMTA will promote and monitor key traffic and transportation projects and recommend effective transportation strategies for the HMR. The emphasis will be on improving the public transport system and ease congestion on roads," a senior MAUD official said.
It would also work towards integration of various routes of public transport and look into issues of combined ticketing and operation of feeder services.
A fraction (0.25 per cent) of the estimated cost of all traffic and transportation projects undertaken by different departments and also 0.25 per cent of development charges collected by Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority and Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, besides other local bodies in the HMR, will be pooled into an escrow account and utilised for research, studies and training in traffic and transportation, according to official sources.
Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh capital Hyderabad will have a Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (UMTA) in place soon.
The new entity will be headed by the state Chief Secretary and will be responsible for effective implementation and co-ordination of various traffic and transportation measures in the Hyderabad Metropolitan Region (HMR).
The onus will be on the UMTA to devise better plans and mitigate the traffic woes of the metropolis, which has been witnessing chaos on the roads with the spurt in number of private vehicles and also population.
Mumbai, Jaipur and Chennai are the other major cities that have similar bodies in operation while Bengaluru has a land transport authority in place. Andhra Pradesh is the only state in the country where the UMTA is being constituted as per a legislation enacted by the state legislature. The National Urban Transport Policy-2006 stipulated setting up of a Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority in cities having a population over a million to help ease urban transportation problems.
All modes of public transport including buses, multi-modal transport system (MMTS) and the proposed Metro Rail project would be integrated into a single system under the UMTA, according to highly-placed sources in the Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department (MAUD). The UMTA will also approve traffic and transporation proposals and new initiatives of different departments and its recommendations will be binding on all other departments concerned, the sources added.
The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Commissioner, managing director of APSRTC, general manager of South Central Railway, police commissioners of Hyderabad and Cyberabad, transport commissioner, member-secretary of AP Pollution Control Board, principal secretary\secretary of MAUD, Transport, Roads and Buildings department and two experts in the field of urban transportation will be the members of the UMTA.
"The UMTA will promote and monitor key traffic and transportation projects and recommend effective transportation strategies for the HMR. The emphasis will be on improving the public transport system and ease congestion on roads," a senior MAUD official said.
It would also work towards integration of various routes of public transport and look into issues of combined ticketing and operation of feeder services.
A fraction (0.25 per cent) of the estimated cost of all traffic and transportation projects undertaken by different departments and also 0.25 per cent of development charges collected by Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority and Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, besides other local bodies in the HMR, will be pooled into an escrow account and utilised for research, studies and training in traffic and transportation, according to official sources.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
King-maker Beleaguered
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: Telugu Desam supremo N Chandrababu Naidu is a much more beleaguered man now as two more of his party MPs have ditched him.
Despite making some new friends in UP Chief Minister Mayawati and former Union minister Ajit Singh and reviving old friendship with former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda at the national level, Naidu is increasingly losing his own party leaders in what appears to be a calculated exodus from the TDP.
The signs are clearly turning out to be ominous for the once-king-maker who is fast losing ground on the home turf.
The trust vote in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday added two fresh candidates to the growing list of TDP deserters -- Chittoor MP D K Adikesavulu Naidu and Nagarkurnool MP Manda Jagannatham.
Both the TDP MPs -- out of the party's total five -- supported the United Progressive Alliance government as they "support the nuclear deal."
Adikesavulu Naidu and Jagannatham are expected to join the Chiranjeevi bandwagon later. Tuesday started with widespread speculation in New Delhi that Adikesavulu Naidu -- known as an "all-party man" -- will defy the TDP whip and vote in favour of the confidence motion. Jagannatham, however, turned out to be a surprise element in the eleventh hour. Chandrababu Naidu, with whom Adikesavulu Naidu has a very strong relationship, was closeted in a meeting with the latter and tried to prevail upon him not to go against the party at a time when they were trying to a build a political front at the national level.
Adikesavulu, however, was apparently not willing to buy anything and, as speculated, wanted to vot for the Manmohan Singh government. A technical glitch, however, rendered his vote invalid though Adikesavulu informed Speaker Somnath Chatterjee that he supported the confidence motion.
A known liquor baron, Adikesavulu Naidu earlier served as the treasurer of Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee when Y S Rajasekhara Reddy was its president. He unsuccessfully contested the Chittoor Lok Sabha seat in 1996. In 2003, Chandrababu Naidu made him the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams chairman upon joining the TDP. In 2004 he won the Chittoor Lok Sabha on the TDP ticket.
Following the delimitation of constituencies, Chittoor has now become a reserved segment, forcing Adikesavulu to look for an alternative. Indications are that he will contest on behalf of Chiranjeevi's party from Rajampet constituency in Kadapa district, which covers some Assembly segments that are currently in Chittoor district.
Jagannatham is a Madiga leader from Mahbubnagar district and served as a state minister earlier.
Hyderabad: Telugu Desam supremo N Chandrababu Naidu is a much more beleaguered man now as two more of his party MPs have ditched him.
Despite making some new friends in UP Chief Minister Mayawati and former Union minister Ajit Singh and reviving old friendship with former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda at the national level, Naidu is increasingly losing his own party leaders in what appears to be a calculated exodus from the TDP.
The signs are clearly turning out to be ominous for the once-king-maker who is fast losing ground on the home turf.
The trust vote in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday added two fresh candidates to the growing list of TDP deserters -- Chittoor MP D K Adikesavulu Naidu and Nagarkurnool MP Manda Jagannatham.
Both the TDP MPs -- out of the party's total five -- supported the United Progressive Alliance government as they "support the nuclear deal."
Adikesavulu Naidu and Jagannatham are expected to join the Chiranjeevi bandwagon later. Tuesday started with widespread speculation in New Delhi that Adikesavulu Naidu -- known as an "all-party man" -- will defy the TDP whip and vote in favour of the confidence motion. Jagannatham, however, turned out to be a surprise element in the eleventh hour. Chandrababu Naidu, with whom Adikesavulu Naidu has a very strong relationship, was closeted in a meeting with the latter and tried to prevail upon him not to go against the party at a time when they were trying to a build a political front at the national level.
Adikesavulu, however, was apparently not willing to buy anything and, as speculated, wanted to vot for the Manmohan Singh government. A technical glitch, however, rendered his vote invalid though Adikesavulu informed Speaker Somnath Chatterjee that he supported the confidence motion.
A known liquor baron, Adikesavulu Naidu earlier served as the treasurer of Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee when Y S Rajasekhara Reddy was its president. He unsuccessfully contested the Chittoor Lok Sabha seat in 1996. In 2003, Chandrababu Naidu made him the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams chairman upon joining the TDP. In 2004 he won the Chittoor Lok Sabha on the TDP ticket.
Following the delimitation of constituencies, Chittoor has now become a reserved segment, forcing Adikesavulu to look for an alternative. Indications are that he will contest on behalf of Chiranjeevi's party from Rajampet constituency in Kadapa district, which covers some Assembly segments that are currently in Chittoor district.
Jagannatham is a Madiga leader from Mahbubnagar district and served as a state minister earlier.
JULY BLUES for TDP
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: The Telugu Desam Party may now have to treat July as an inauspicious month as far as its national politics are concerned.
Everybody knows that August is generally considered ominous for the Yellow brigade in Andhra Pradesh, going by the TDP's history. A small piece of history, coupled with the latest happenings, would drive one to infer that July certainly doesn't bode well for the party at the national level.
It was in July way back in 1993 that the TDP Parliamentary Party witnessed a major split with six out of 13 Lok Sabha members, led by the then Narsapur MP Bhupatiraju Vijaya Kumar Raju, defied the party to charter their own path. It was the no-confidence motion against the P V Narasimha Rao government and the TDP members were supposed to vote for it. However, following a request made by none other than P V himself, Bhupatiraju convinced five of his fellow party MPs to vote against the no-confidence motion. MPs K V R Choudary (Rajahmundry), Thota Subba Rao (Kakinada), K P Reddaiah Yadav (Machilipatnam), Indrakaren Reddy (Adilabad) and Ganga Reddy (Nizamabad) obliged and faced the axe from TDP.
History seemed to have repeated on Tuesday for the party when two out of its five MPs in Lok Sabha openly violated the party diktat and voted in support of the confidence motion moved by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
This has indeed come as a rude shock for the TDP at a time when its supremo is trying to cobble a coalition of non-Congress and non-BJP parties at the national level.
Now, what course will Naidu take is the question that's haunting the partymen.
Hyderabad: The Telugu Desam Party may now have to treat July as an inauspicious month as far as its national politics are concerned.
Everybody knows that August is generally considered ominous for the Yellow brigade in Andhra Pradesh, going by the TDP's history. A small piece of history, coupled with the latest happenings, would drive one to infer that July certainly doesn't bode well for the party at the national level.
It was in July way back in 1993 that the TDP Parliamentary Party witnessed a major split with six out of 13 Lok Sabha members, led by the then Narsapur MP Bhupatiraju Vijaya Kumar Raju, defied the party to charter their own path. It was the no-confidence motion against the P V Narasimha Rao government and the TDP members were supposed to vote for it. However, following a request made by none other than P V himself, Bhupatiraju convinced five of his fellow party MPs to vote against the no-confidence motion. MPs K V R Choudary (Rajahmundry), Thota Subba Rao (Kakinada), K P Reddaiah Yadav (Machilipatnam), Indrakaren Reddy (Adilabad) and Ganga Reddy (Nizamabad) obliged and faced the axe from TDP.
History seemed to have repeated on Tuesday for the party when two out of its five MPs in Lok Sabha openly violated the party diktat and voted in support of the confidence motion moved by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
This has indeed come as a rude shock for the TDP at a time when its supremo is trying to cobble a coalition of non-Congress and non-BJP parties at the national level.
Now, what course will Naidu take is the question that's haunting the partymen.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Air Pollution: From menacing to alarming
The 'air' we breathe!DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: There is nothing new in saying that the air we breathe is polluted.
From menacing to alarming, air pollution levels are fast zooming up in urban areas in Andhra Pradesh, threatening to adversely affect the people indiscriminately.
Vehicles of all kinds are the single largest source contributing to 50 per cent of the total air pollution in urban areas while the dust on roads is the next biggest culprit with 25 per cent contribution. Burning of refuge and vegetation is resulting in 15 per cent of air pollution while the industry is adding up to the balance 10 per cent.
Take the case of the state capital Hyderabad. The number of vehicles in twin cities has shot up from 10.91 lakh in 2001 to 18.47 lakh by the end of 2007 (in twin cities alone). Add another 7.94 lakh vehicles registered in surrounding Ranga Reddy district, the total number of vehicles adds up to 26,42, 337 i n Greater Hyderabad region. If the vehicles registered in other districts (used by migrants) and plying on city roads is also taken into account, the number crosses 27 lakh. Between 2006 and 2007, the total number of vehicles in Hyderabad increased by 1,66,129 with cars\jeeps rising by 33,986 and two-wheelers by 1,16,511. Now, as many as 2,61,850 cars and 13,81,861 two-wheelers in all are being used in the twin cities.
"On an average, 600 new vehicles are adding up to these numbers every day," a senior transport official pointed out. This has been causing the air pollution levels to shoot up day by day -- way above the standard levels. For example, the total suspended particulate matter (TSPM) should be 200 milligram per cubic metre but the average value being recorded in the twin cities is 280 milligram per cubic metre with heavy traffic junctions like Panjagutta, Charminar, Paradise Circle and Abids recording a staggering 300-400 on any given day.
RTC city buses, the Setwin services, cabs, Aero Express buses being run by the Hyderabad International Airport and autos are found to be causing the most pollution. Fuel adulteration has become rampant these days with the hike in prices of petrol and diesel and also due to shortage of diesel. Thus cabs and autos could be found emitting unbearable smoke. But neither the traffic police, the transport authorities nor the civil supplies department seem to be taking any action to check this.
Port city Visakhapatnam used to be relatively free from air pollution, particularly that caused by vehicles, but of late it too has been "catching up," thanks to the growing number of vehicles.
"But the scene in Vizag has not still been beyond the critical limit," a senior official of the AP Pollution Control Board said. While the TSPM levels in Vizag are just below the standard level, they seem to be rising in certain pockets like Police Barracks, Mindi, Gnanapuram and Seetammadhara.
A study conducted by the AP Pollution Control Board in the state revealed that the air pollution levels (TSPM) have been steadily rising in major towns like Vijayawada, Kurnool, Anantapur, Nalgonda, Kadapa, Vizianagaram and Warangal. The levels, however, fell below the standard mark in Tirupati, Khammam and Nizamabad after showing an upward trend for a few years.
"The level of respirable suspended particulate matter (RSPM), which is indeed more dangerous than the TSPM, has been steadily increasing, causing concern to one and all. Just a few towns like Tirupati, Khammam, Kadapa and Warangal have low RSPM levels while all other cities are clearly in the danger zone," the APPCB official pointed out.
From menacing to alarming, air pollution levels are fast zooming up in urban areas in Andhra Pradesh, threatening to adversely affect the people indiscriminately.
Vehicles of all kinds are the single largest source contributing to 50 per cent of the total air pollution in urban areas while the dust on roads is the next biggest culprit with 25 per cent contribution. Burning of refuge and vegetation is resulting in 15 per cent of air pollution while the industry is adding up to the balance 10 per cent.
Take the case of the state capital Hyderabad. The number of vehicles in twin cities has shot up from 10.91 lakh in 2001 to 18.47 lakh by the end of 2007 (in twin cities alone). Add another 7.94 lakh vehicles registered in surrounding Ranga Reddy district, the total number of vehicles adds up to 26,42, 337 i n Greater Hyderabad region. If the vehicles registered in other districts (used by migrants) and plying on city roads is also taken into account, the number crosses 27 lakh. Between 2006 and 2007, the total number of vehicles in Hyderabad increased by 1,66,129 with cars\jeeps rising by 33,986 and two-wheelers by 1,16,511. Now, as many as 2,61,850 cars and 13,81,861 two-wheelers in all are being used in the twin cities.
"On an average, 600 new vehicles are adding up to these numbers every day," a senior transport official pointed out. This has been causing the air pollution levels to shoot up day by day -- way above the standard levels. For example, the total suspended particulate matter (TSPM) should be 200 milligram per cubic metre but the average value being recorded in the twin cities is 280 milligram per cubic metre with heavy traffic junctions like Panjagutta, Charminar, Paradise Circle and Abids recording a staggering 300-400 on any given day.
RTC city buses, the Setwin services, cabs, Aero Express buses being run by the Hyderabad International Airport and autos are found to be causing the most pollution. Fuel adulteration has become rampant these days with the hike in prices of petrol and diesel and also due to shortage of diesel. Thus cabs and autos could be found emitting unbearable smoke. But neither the traffic police, the transport authorities nor the civil supplies department seem to be taking any action to check this.
Port city Visakhapatnam used to be relatively free from air pollution, particularly that caused by vehicles, but of late it too has been "catching up," thanks to the growing number of vehicles.
"But the scene in Vizag has not still been beyond the critical limit," a senior official of the AP Pollution Control Board said. While the TSPM levels in Vizag are just below the standard level, they seem to be rising in certain pockets like Police Barracks, Mindi, Gnanapuram and Seetammadhara.
A study conducted by the AP Pollution Control Board in the state revealed that the air pollution levels (TSPM) have been steadily rising in major towns like Vijayawada, Kurnool, Anantapur, Nalgonda, Kadapa, Vizianagaram and Warangal. The levels, however, fell below the standard mark in Tirupati, Khammam and Nizamabad after showing an upward trend for a few years.
"The level of respirable suspended particulate matter (RSPM), which is indeed more dangerous than the TSPM, has been steadily increasing, causing concern to one and all. Just a few towns like Tirupati, Khammam, Kadapa and Warangal have low RSPM levels while all other cities are clearly in the danger zone," the APPCB official pointed out.
The state government prepared an action plan, on the directions of the Supreme Court, for "lowering air pollution" in Hyderabad and constituted the Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority to monitor its implementation.
A high-level co-ordination committee comprising the AP Pollution Control Board member-secretary, additional commissioner of police (traffic), civil supplies commissioner, transport commissioner and co-ordinator of oil companies meets "as and when required" to monitor the pollution control action plan. The emphasis of the action plan is to promote public transport and curtail the number of private vehicles which is not only causing pollution but also chaos on roads.
"Only 40 per cent of people in the state capital now use public transport. We want to increase it to 60-70 per cent so that use of private vehicles can be restricted and pollution curbed," APPCB member-secretary Rajeshwar Tiwari said. Besides, the APSRTC has been asked to increase more number of city buses that meet the Euro-III environment norms.
Though the RTC has plans to introduce buses that run on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), the delay in completion of CNG pipeline work from Vijayawada is proving a major impediment. Official sources said the RTC as well as the Bhagyanagar Gas Limited, supplier of CNG, are working on pricing, the quantum of fuel that would be made available and related issues. "We hope to get CNG at least before the end of this year so that we can press the eco-friendly buses into operation. We already have such buses running in Vijayawada," an executive director of RTC said.
If indeed the CNG buses hit Hyderabad roads, they will certainly bring at least some relief to the harassed road-users.
Monday, July 21, 2008
'Chinna Sir' gives a power shock to Malaysian
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister's Office (CMO) is busy these days desperately trying to trace the address of a Malaysian power producer who came calling to set up a thermal power station in the state.
The Malaysian power producer first met Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy early this year for giving a brief about his plans. "I am ready to set up a 2000-MW thermal power plant near any upcoming port in Andhra Pradesh. I have an investment of 600 million dollars ready and have coal mines in Indonesia, from where I shall import the coal by sea. I don't need any other assistance from the AP government except land for setting up the power plant," the Malaysian told the Chief Minister.
The Chief Minister was impressed but insisted that the Malaysian not press for any power purchase agreement with the state and could sell the power anywhere else. The Malaysian agreed to this and said he has no problems on this count as the Power Trading Corporation of India was ready to buy electricity from him. Having heard the plans, the Chief Minister promptly asked the power producer to meet the "Chinna sir" (junior sir), as is customary. (Now, everybody knows who this Chinna sir is and the authority he wields in the current dispensation).
Accordingly, the Malaysian approached the "Chinna sir" with his project proposals. "Since a new port is coming up at Krishnapatnam, I would like to set up the power plant in its vicinity," the Malaysian told the Chinna sir. "No way," the Chinna sir made it clear, as two major power plants were already proposed at the same location.
The Malaysian then bargained for Visakhapatnam or Machilipatnam, where too another port is being developed. The Chinna sir was "not impressed" and negated these proposals. By then the government had already approved a plan for power plant at Machilipatnam, under the aegis of a ruling party MP.
Later, the power producer approached the Chief Minister once again to apprise him of the situation and seek an alternative location. Rajasekhara Reddy, however, did not show any interest and asked the Malaysian to meet the 'Chinna sir' again.
Distraught, the Malaysian gave up his plans and went away.
All this happened more than six months ago when the power scenario in the state was not alarming as it has been now. But, with the situation going out of hand, the government has become desperate and started looking at all avenues to boost the power generation. Hence, the search for new power producers, particularly the ones who come with no "liabilities" like the compulsory power purchase agreement.
"We never really took any details from the Malaysian man though he met the Chief Minister a couple of times. Ironically, we don't even know his name to get in touch again," a senior official in the CMO lamented.
Even Google hasn't been of much help to the CMO authorities!
Hyderabad: The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister's Office (CMO) is busy these days desperately trying to trace the address of a Malaysian power producer who came calling to set up a thermal power station in the state.
The Malaysian power producer first met Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy early this year for giving a brief about his plans. "I am ready to set up a 2000-MW thermal power plant near any upcoming port in Andhra Pradesh. I have an investment of 600 million dollars ready and have coal mines in Indonesia, from where I shall import the coal by sea. I don't need any other assistance from the AP government except land for setting up the power plant," the Malaysian told the Chief Minister.
The Chief Minister was impressed but insisted that the Malaysian not press for any power purchase agreement with the state and could sell the power anywhere else. The Malaysian agreed to this and said he has no problems on this count as the Power Trading Corporation of India was ready to buy electricity from him. Having heard the plans, the Chief Minister promptly asked the power producer to meet the "Chinna sir" (junior sir), as is customary. (Now, everybody knows who this Chinna sir is and the authority he wields in the current dispensation).
Accordingly, the Malaysian approached the "Chinna sir" with his project proposals. "Since a new port is coming up at Krishnapatnam, I would like to set up the power plant in its vicinity," the Malaysian told the Chinna sir. "No way," the Chinna sir made it clear, as two major power plants were already proposed at the same location.
The Malaysian then bargained for Visakhapatnam or Machilipatnam, where too another port is being developed. The Chinna sir was "not impressed" and negated these proposals. By then the government had already approved a plan for power plant at Machilipatnam, under the aegis of a ruling party MP.
Later, the power producer approached the Chief Minister once again to apprise him of the situation and seek an alternative location. Rajasekhara Reddy, however, did not show any interest and asked the Malaysian to meet the 'Chinna sir' again.
Distraught, the Malaysian gave up his plans and went away.
All this happened more than six months ago when the power scenario in the state was not alarming as it has been now. But, with the situation going out of hand, the government has become desperate and started looking at all avenues to boost the power generation. Hence, the search for new power producers, particularly the ones who come with no "liabilities" like the compulsory power purchase agreement.
"We never really took any details from the Malaysian man though he met the Chief Minister a couple of times. Ironically, we don't even know his name to get in touch again," a senior official in the CMO lamented.
Even Google hasn't been of much help to the CMO authorities!
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
AP Police Academy's distinction
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: The prestigious Andhra Pradesh Police Academy (APPA), that has carved a niche for itself in training police officers not only from the state but also from other states and countries, will soon be elevated to the level of a University. Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy has given his nod, in principle, to the proposal to upgrade the Academy into a University when APPA director C N Gopinatha Reddy came up with the proposal. Once upgraded as a University, APPA plans to award graduate and post-graduate degrees in police management not only to police officers but also to civilians who wish to pursue research studies on police affairs, according to Gopinatha Reddy. APPA is also planning to set up a Department of Management, Behavioural Sciences, Research and Evaluation Studies to train police officers in management and behavioural science. "The Department could also serve as a research centre on police affairs," the APPA director said. A Cyber Forensic Lab is also on cards to train police officers in modern crime, notably white-collar offences. The APPA was established in 1986 to serve as a nodal agency and an institution of higher learning for police and other law-enforcing agencies and grew to become a Centre of Excellence in police training. It has also won international acclaim with agencies like the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, United Nations Development Fund for Women (Unifem) besides National Human Rights Commission, National Crime Records Bureau recognising it as their regional training centre or nodal agency for training officers from India and abroad. In fact, the UNODC declared APPA as its resource, research, development and nodal training centre and granted Rs 10 lakh for infrastructure development. APPA is likely to find its place in the Guinness Book of World Records for having provided in-service training to 8475 personnel in 2006 and 8020 in 2007, spanning a staggering 2.50 lakh training days. With such accomplishments on its back, the APPA is now aiming to become a regular university and award degrees. "In fact, officials of the Osmania University visited our Academy and found it fit to be recognised as their post-graduate centre and award master of police management degree to the trainee officers," Gopinatha Reddy pointed out. With the Chief Minister promising to get university status for APPA, police authorities are now drawing a detailed blueprint to make it a reality.
Hyderabad: The prestigious Andhra Pradesh Police Academy (APPA), that has carved a niche for itself in training police officers not only from the state but also from other states and countries, will soon be elevated to the level of a University. Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy has given his nod, in principle, to the proposal to upgrade the Academy into a University when APPA director C N Gopinatha Reddy came up with the proposal. Once upgraded as a University, APPA plans to award graduate and post-graduate degrees in police management not only to police officers but also to civilians who wish to pursue research studies on police affairs, according to Gopinatha Reddy. APPA is also planning to set up a Department of Management, Behavioural Sciences, Research and Evaluation Studies to train police officers in management and behavioural science. "The Department could also serve as a research centre on police affairs," the APPA director said. A Cyber Forensic Lab is also on cards to train police officers in modern crime, notably white-collar offences. The APPA was established in 1986 to serve as a nodal agency and an institution of higher learning for police and other law-enforcing agencies and grew to become a Centre of Excellence in police training. It has also won international acclaim with agencies like the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, United Nations Development Fund for Women (Unifem) besides National Human Rights Commission, National Crime Records Bureau recognising it as their regional training centre or nodal agency for training officers from India and abroad. In fact, the UNODC declared APPA as its resource, research, development and nodal training centre and granted Rs 10 lakh for infrastructure development. APPA is likely to find its place in the Guinness Book of World Records for having provided in-service training to 8475 personnel in 2006 and 8020 in 2007, spanning a staggering 2.50 lakh training days. With such accomplishments on its back, the APPA is now aiming to become a regular university and award degrees. "In fact, officials of the Osmania University visited our Academy and found it fit to be recognised as their post-graduate centre and award master of police management degree to the trainee officers," Gopinatha Reddy pointed out. With the Chief Minister promising to get university status for APPA, police authorities are now drawing a detailed blueprint to make it a reality.
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Carrots, Eggs, & Coffee!
A carrot, an egg, and a cup of coffee...
You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.
A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her.. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose. Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil.. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word. In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, ' Tell me what you see.' 'Carrots, eggs, and coffee,' she replied. Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg. Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, 'What does it mean, mother?' Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water. 'Which are you?' she asked her daughter. 'When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?'
Think of this:
"Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength? Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart? Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor."
If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean? May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy. The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.
When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling. Live your life so at the end, you're the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying.
May we all be COFFEE!!!
(Courtesy of: R Masthipuram).
You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.
A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her.. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose. Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil.. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word. In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, ' Tell me what you see.' 'Carrots, eggs, and coffee,' she replied. Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg. Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, 'What does it mean, mother?' Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water. 'Which are you?' she asked her daughter. 'When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?'
Think of this:
"Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength? Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart? Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor."
If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean? May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy. The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.
When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling. Live your life so at the end, you're the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying.
May we all be COFFEE!!!
(Courtesy of: R Masthipuram).
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Stifling Growth
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: The Comprehensive Master Plan (CMP) and Special Development Regulations for the development of the Hyderabad Outer Ring Road GrowthCorridor (ORRGC) have come as a rude shock to real estate developers as there are many clauses that will only stifle growth rather than encourage it. Layout developers are crying foul, in particular, over the rule that mandates them to "gift" five per cent of total developed area free of cost to Hyderabad Urban Development Authority through a gift deed. Developers are also required to reserve five per cent of total area for Economically-Weaker Sections (EWS) housing programme. Besides, a minimum of 10 per cent of total area has to be reserved for parks, playgrounds and open spaces of which five per cent has to be for 'local' open spaces. Developers are equally aghast at the provision for levying a "Development Deferment Charge" (DDC) which, authorities say, is aimed at discouraging owners from land hoarding. "There is nothing encouraging in the CMP that spurs growth but rather it will only discourage prospective investors from coming to the state," real estate developers say, adding that the CMP and the SDRs were totally "unviable and impractical." When the Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department came out with the draft master plan for the ORRGC last year, it did not contain provisions for "gifting" of land or levying the development deferment charge. "These issues were never discussed with the stakeholders at any level. The provisions in the CMP have indeed come as a shock for us," president of the Builders' Forum Sekhar Reddy remarked. Developers contend that there was no logic in trying to impose the development deferment charge as the Outer Ring Road itself has not taken shape. "Where can you expect development when there is practically no infrastructure to speak about? It will take a few more years for things to take shape," one major real estate player pointed out. In case, the government goes its way, developers will be required to shell out Rs 80,000 per acre in the first year as DDC and Rs 2 lakh per acre in the second year. This rule alone will deter investors from looking at Hyderabad as a popular destination, particularly in the real estate sector. The move to impose DDC boomeranged in the case of Cyberabad Development Authority, forcing the government to withdraw it. "The same scenario may repeat even in respect of ORRGC," developers feel. Besides, the "abnormal" impact fee and other development charges that the developers are required to bear amount to at least Rs 1.5 crore per acre -- a burden which will ultimately be passed on to individual buyers. Though the government spoke of providing incentives for large projects, developers see it as an "eyewash" as the levies outweigh the discounts. The MAUD Department authorities, however, say there was nothing unusual about the provisions in the CMP. "These are essential to regulate development. Moreover, the land we take from developers will be used only for development of common facilities and not used for commercial purposes," a senior MAUD official pointed out. Referring to the DDC, he said it was meant only to ensure there was no land hoarding. He said the ORR would be ready in two years but development along the ORRGC could be taken up simultaneously.
Hyderabad: The Comprehensive Master Plan (CMP) and Special Development Regulations for the development of the Hyderabad Outer Ring Road GrowthCorridor (ORRGC) have come as a rude shock to real estate developers as there are many clauses that will only stifle growth rather than encourage it. Layout developers are crying foul, in particular, over the rule that mandates them to "gift" five per cent of total developed area free of cost to Hyderabad Urban Development Authority through a gift deed. Developers are also required to reserve five per cent of total area for Economically-Weaker Sections (EWS) housing programme. Besides, a minimum of 10 per cent of total area has to be reserved for parks, playgrounds and open spaces of which five per cent has to be for 'local' open spaces. Developers are equally aghast at the provision for levying a "Development Deferment Charge" (DDC) which, authorities say, is aimed at discouraging owners from land hoarding. "There is nothing encouraging in the CMP that spurs growth but rather it will only discourage prospective investors from coming to the state," real estate developers say, adding that the CMP and the SDRs were totally "unviable and impractical." When the Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department came out with the draft master plan for the ORRGC last year, it did not contain provisions for "gifting" of land or levying the development deferment charge. "These issues were never discussed with the stakeholders at any level. The provisions in the CMP have indeed come as a shock for us," president of the Builders' Forum Sekhar Reddy remarked. Developers contend that there was no logic in trying to impose the development deferment charge as the Outer Ring Road itself has not taken shape. "Where can you expect development when there is practically no infrastructure to speak about? It will take a few more years for things to take shape," one major real estate player pointed out. In case, the government goes its way, developers will be required to shell out Rs 80,000 per acre in the first year as DDC and Rs 2 lakh per acre in the second year. This rule alone will deter investors from looking at Hyderabad as a popular destination, particularly in the real estate sector. The move to impose DDC boomeranged in the case of Cyberabad Development Authority, forcing the government to withdraw it. "The same scenario may repeat even in respect of ORRGC," developers feel. Besides, the "abnormal" impact fee and other development charges that the developers are required to bear amount to at least Rs 1.5 crore per acre -- a burden which will ultimately be passed on to individual buyers. Though the government spoke of providing incentives for large projects, developers see it as an "eyewash" as the levies outweigh the discounts. The MAUD Department authorities, however, say there was nothing unusual about the provisions in the CMP. "These are essential to regulate development. Moreover, the land we take from developers will be used only for development of common facilities and not used for commercial purposes," a senior MAUD official pointed out. Referring to the DDC, he said it was meant only to ensure there was no land hoarding. He said the ORR would be ready in two years but development along the ORRGC could be taken up simultaneously.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Gates opened for Hyderabad Growth Corridor
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: The state government has finally opened the gates for "planned and regulated" development along the 162-km Hyderabad Outer Ring Road by coming out with a Comprehensive Master Plan (CMP) for the Growth Corridor (ORRGC). The CMP covers a one-km belt on either side of the ORRGC and has a set of Special Development Regulations that are intended to "promote planned development and curb haphazard and ribbon development." The CMP is expected to give fresh impetus to economic activity along the162-km stretch -- a one-of-its-kind in the country -- as the government did not permit any development activity for over two years now. The Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department issued the CMP notification on Wednesday. The government is planning to announce special incentives to encourage major projects that would cater to a larger population and also provide better infrastructure, sources in the MAUD Department said. Special incentives will be offered to large integrated townships and large educational institutions that come up on land up to 400 acres. A special committee will soon be constituted by the government to look into development issues related to the ORRGC. A special unit is also being created for dealing with applications for permission to develop\undertake building constructions in the ORRGC and also enforcing the regulations, the MAUD sources added. "We are also working on a separate policy on the planning standards and public-private partnership models along the ORRGC," highly-placed official sources said. The government feels the CMP would spur widespread development along the ORRGC and construction activity would also get a push. "Hype around the ORRGC has so far only been speculative but with the ORR works going on in full steam, the entire stretch will become a popular destination for investment," a senior MAUD official said. The government also wants to encash the opportunity to strengthen its financial resources and ensure overall development of physical and social infrastructure within the ORRGC. Land use in the ORRGC has been classified as a multi-purpose zone. The ORRGC will be characterised by two SDZs of 500 mts wide each (SDZ-1 and SDZ-2). No expansion of existing industries and no new industries will be permitted within the SDZs while existing industrial estates will remain part of it only if they are "non-polluting." The ORRGC will, have three categories of zones: SDZs for residential, commercial and industrial development (non-polluting units), social infrastructure, institutional and work centres; open space and recreational zone for parks, green buffers, lakes, nalas and reserve forests; transportation and circulation zone for roads, parking lots, truck terminals, warehousing, wholesale market yards among others.
All Smoke, No Fine
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: If there is one law that is implemented only in breach rather than practice, it is the "Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003.
The law that came into force from May 1, 2004, prohibits, among other things, smoking in public places, including indoor workplaces, ban on direct and indirect advertising of tobacco products and also a ban on sale to minors. The Government of India legislation also stipulates that tobacco products cannot be sold within a radius of 100 yards of educational institutions but don't we commonly find kiosks that sell these stuff everywhere, even in the vicinity of schools!
In fact, the Andhra Pradesh government too enacted the Andhra Pradesh Prohibition of Smoking and Health Protection Act, 2002, imposing a ban on smoking in public places. It came into force from July 4, 2002.
Now, there is always an argument over what a "public place" is. The Supreme Court, way back in 2001, defined hospitals, health institutions, public offices, public transport (including railways), bus stops, court buildings, educational institutions, libraries and auditoriums as "public places." The state government included amusement centres, restaurants and hotels (inlcuding pubs), function halls, monuments and stadia, shops and shopping complexes and cinema halls too in the list of public places and classified them as "non-smoking" places under Section 3 of the AP Prohibition of Smoking and Health Protection Act, 2002.
"On any person who is reasonably believed to have committed an offence under this Act or the rules made thereunder, a sum not exceeding Rs 100 will be imposed as penalty for the first offence," the Act says. If caught a second time, the fine will be Rs 200 and subsequently Rs 500. Under a similar legislation in force in Kerala, a violator can be arrested without any warrant and the punishment includes six months' imprisonment or fine which might extend upto Rs 1000 or both.
Do pubs run without smokers or are cinema halls free from this smoking menace? The answer would be a clear 'No.' Then, what are the enforcing authorities doing? By the way, who these enforcing authorities actually are?
The state government has designated the managers\assistant managers of auditoriums, amusement centres, hotels, pubs, stadia and monuments as the enforcing authorities; for hospital buildings and health institutions the respective principal\superintendent\resident medical officer or the medical officer; for educational institutions it is the principal\head or chief executive concerned; for libraries the librarian\assistant librarian; for court buildings the registrar\assistant registrar of High Court, Sheristadar or head clerk of district court, head clerk of junior civil judge court; for public offices gazetted officers of the Central or state government or public sector undertakings.
If it is a public transport vehicle like a bus, the conductor or the driver are the designated persons to enforce the smoking ban and collect penalties. Now, don't we find RTC bus drivers or conductors themselves puffing inside the bus?
The state government appointed a high-level technical committee under the chairmanship of Director of Health to ensure effective implementation of the smoking ban. The committee includes officials from the Drug Control Administration, Crime Investigation Department, Institute of Preventive Medicine, Revenue Department, AP Vaidya Vidhana Parishad, Directorate of School Education, Municipal Administration, Higher Education Department and representatives of Non-Government Organisations. This committee meets once a month and reviews the implementation and submits a report to the High Court.
Statistics available with the Directorate of Health reveal that till the end of May this year only 1260 cases have been registered and a fine of Rs 1,09,250 collected from violators of smoking ban, from the time it came into force. Obviously, the police topped the list in enforcing the law by booking 505 cases and imposing a fine of Rs 62,300. The Drug Control Administration ranks second with 271 cases and Rs 25,000 in fine, IPM third with 458 cases and Rs 19,530 fine.
The revenue, higher education, transport, roads and buildings and school education departments drew a full blank in this regard.
The district-level committees are headed by the respective joint collectors as chairman and district medical and health officer as member-convenor. "To put it simply, no body cares about the law," a top official of the health department lamented, admitting that enforcement of smoking ban was proving "impractical."
Hyderabad: If there is one law that is implemented only in breach rather than practice, it is the "Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003.
The law that came into force from May 1, 2004, prohibits, among other things, smoking in public places, including indoor workplaces, ban on direct and indirect advertising of tobacco products and also a ban on sale to minors. The Government of India legislation also stipulates that tobacco products cannot be sold within a radius of 100 yards of educational institutions but don't we commonly find kiosks that sell these stuff everywhere, even in the vicinity of schools!
In fact, the Andhra Pradesh government too enacted the Andhra Pradesh Prohibition of Smoking and Health Protection Act, 2002, imposing a ban on smoking in public places. It came into force from July 4, 2002.
Now, there is always an argument over what a "public place" is. The Supreme Court, way back in 2001, defined hospitals, health institutions, public offices, public transport (including railways), bus stops, court buildings, educational institutions, libraries and auditoriums as "public places." The state government included amusement centres, restaurants and hotels (inlcuding pubs), function halls, monuments and stadia, shops and shopping complexes and cinema halls too in the list of public places and classified them as "non-smoking" places under Section 3 of the AP Prohibition of Smoking and Health Protection Act, 2002.
"On any person who is reasonably believed to have committed an offence under this Act or the rules made thereunder, a sum not exceeding Rs 100 will be imposed as penalty for the first offence," the Act says. If caught a second time, the fine will be Rs 200 and subsequently Rs 500. Under a similar legislation in force in Kerala, a violator can be arrested without any warrant and the punishment includes six months' imprisonment or fine which might extend upto Rs 1000 or both.
Do pubs run without smokers or are cinema halls free from this smoking menace? The answer would be a clear 'No.' Then, what are the enforcing authorities doing? By the way, who these enforcing authorities actually are?
The state government has designated the managers\assistant managers of auditoriums, amusement centres, hotels, pubs, stadia and monuments as the enforcing authorities; for hospital buildings and health institutions the respective principal\superintendent\resident medical officer or the medical officer; for educational institutions it is the principal\head or chief executive concerned; for libraries the librarian\assistant librarian; for court buildings the registrar\assistant registrar of High Court, Sheristadar or head clerk of district court, head clerk of junior civil judge court; for public offices gazetted officers of the Central or state government or public sector undertakings.
If it is a public transport vehicle like a bus, the conductor or the driver are the designated persons to enforce the smoking ban and collect penalties. Now, don't we find RTC bus drivers or conductors themselves puffing inside the bus?
The state government appointed a high-level technical committee under the chairmanship of Director of Health to ensure effective implementation of the smoking ban. The committee includes officials from the Drug Control Administration, Crime Investigation Department, Institute of Preventive Medicine, Revenue Department, AP Vaidya Vidhana Parishad, Directorate of School Education, Municipal Administration, Higher Education Department and representatives of Non-Government Organisations. This committee meets once a month and reviews the implementation and submits a report to the High Court.
Statistics available with the Directorate of Health reveal that till the end of May this year only 1260 cases have been registered and a fine of Rs 1,09,250 collected from violators of smoking ban, from the time it came into force. Obviously, the police topped the list in enforcing the law by booking 505 cases and imposing a fine of Rs 62,300. The Drug Control Administration ranks second with 271 cases and Rs 25,000 in fine, IPM third with 458 cases and Rs 19,530 fine.
The revenue, higher education, transport, roads and buildings and school education departments drew a full blank in this regard.
The district-level committees are headed by the respective joint collectors as chairman and district medical and health officer as member-convenor. "To put it simply, no body cares about the law," a top official of the health department lamented, admitting that enforcement of smoking ban was proving "impractical."
Monday, July 7, 2008
National Urban Health Mission
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: The Government of India will launch the National Urban HealthMission (NUHM), on the lines of the ongoing National Rural Health Mission. The goal of NUHM is to improve the availability of and access to quality health care by people, especially those residing in urban slums, the poor, women and children. The proposed NUHM will be in convergence with the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), according to joint secretary in the Union Ministry for housing and urban poverty alleviation, Dr P K Mohanty. Mohanty said the Centre has earmarked Rs 5160 crore for the NUHM, which would be implemented over a five-year period. Access to integrated comprehensive primary healthcare to the urban slum-dwellers would be the main objective of the NUHM. Prevention and control of communicable and non-communicable diseases, including locally endemic diseases, and total sanitation would be the other focus areas of the Mission. The NUHM will cover 100 cities in the first phase and later extended to 330 more cities to benefit over 22 crore people, including about five-crore slum population. Cities with a population of over one lakh, state capitals and district headquarters will be brought under NUHM purview. Urban Social Health Activists (USHAs) will be appointed, each catering to a population of 2,000. The government would pay the health insurance premium for slum-dwellers while the private sector and Non-Government Organisations would also be involved in reaching out to the urban poor under the programme, official sources said. The Union Cabinet is expected to give its formal approval to NUHM and make it operational soon.
Hyderabad: The Government of India will launch the National Urban HealthMission (NUHM), on the lines of the ongoing National Rural Health Mission. The goal of NUHM is to improve the availability of and access to quality health care by people, especially those residing in urban slums, the poor, women and children. The proposed NUHM will be in convergence with the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), according to joint secretary in the Union Ministry for housing and urban poverty alleviation, Dr P K Mohanty. Mohanty said the Centre has earmarked Rs 5160 crore for the NUHM, which would be implemented over a five-year period. Access to integrated comprehensive primary healthcare to the urban slum-dwellers would be the main objective of the NUHM. Prevention and control of communicable and non-communicable diseases, including locally endemic diseases, and total sanitation would be the other focus areas of the Mission. The NUHM will cover 100 cities in the first phase and later extended to 330 more cities to benefit over 22 crore people, including about five-crore slum population. Cities with a population of over one lakh, state capitals and district headquarters will be brought under NUHM purview. Urban Social Health Activists (USHAs) will be appointed, each catering to a population of 2,000. The government would pay the health insurance premium for slum-dwellers while the private sector and Non-Government Organisations would also be involved in reaching out to the urban poor under the programme, official sources said. The Union Cabinet is expected to give its formal approval to NUHM and make it operational soon.
Some rules are of no use
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: It has been a year since the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) put the Telecom Unsolicited Commercial Communications Regulations - 2007 (TUCCR) in place but the National Do Not Call (NDNC) Registry that prohibits Unsolicited Commercial Communication (UCC) to telephone users proved to be ineffective. There are now over 225 million telephone subscribers across the country but only about 7.5 million of them have registered with the NDNC. Trai estimates that telemarketers make more than 10 billion calls in India every year, leaving the mobile phone users, in particular, a harassed lot. As per the mandatory requirement under the TUCC regulations, 12183 telemarketers in the country registered with the NDNC but still phone users continue to receive unwanted calls day in and day out as new companies, banks and insurance firms keep mushrooming. It normally takes 45 days for an NDNC registration to become active, once a request is placed with the telecom service provider, and block all Unsolicited Commercial Communication (UCC). But in many cases the UCC never stops. Telecom service providers aren't really helpful in dealing with complaints against UCC by telemarketers, though as per regulation fines ranging from Rs 500 to Rs 20,000 could be levied for different levels of violations. "Yes, we do get complaints about telemarketing calls but the number is minimal. Since tracing such calls and cross-checking with the NDNC registers consumes time, subscribers do not generally persist with their complaints," a senior manager of a telecom company tried to reason. With the NDNC not being of much use, subscribers often tend to vent their ire at the telemarketing callers. When one caller repeatedly disturbed him on behalf of a bank offering a "personal loan," a senior IAS officer had threatened that he would get her arrested if she called again. When a telemarketer wanted to know "when is it the right time to speak to you," another IAS officer retorted rather politely: "Amma, no time is right for you to talk to me." Most harassed are mobile users who have fancy or VIP numbers. Telemarketers randomly pick up such numbers and keeping calling without even knowing the identify of the call receiver. "This irks us more. They pick up our number from somewhere and keep calling. I have registered with NDNC at least four times but to no avail. The messages and telemarketing calls are unabated," complained a software executive Nidhi. Phone users feel strict enforcement and prompt disposal of complaints by telecom service providers could arrest the problem. As the regulator, the onus is thus on Trai to rein in service providers as well as telemarketers.
Hyderabad: It has been a year since the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) put the Telecom Unsolicited Commercial Communications Regulations - 2007 (TUCCR) in place but the National Do Not Call (NDNC) Registry that prohibits Unsolicited Commercial Communication (UCC) to telephone users proved to be ineffective. There are now over 225 million telephone subscribers across the country but only about 7.5 million of them have registered with the NDNC. Trai estimates that telemarketers make more than 10 billion calls in India every year, leaving the mobile phone users, in particular, a harassed lot. As per the mandatory requirement under the TUCC regulations, 12183 telemarketers in the country registered with the NDNC but still phone users continue to receive unwanted calls day in and day out as new companies, banks and insurance firms keep mushrooming. It normally takes 45 days for an NDNC registration to become active, once a request is placed with the telecom service provider, and block all Unsolicited Commercial Communication (UCC). But in many cases the UCC never stops. Telecom service providers aren't really helpful in dealing with complaints against UCC by telemarketers, though as per regulation fines ranging from Rs 500 to Rs 20,000 could be levied for different levels of violations. "Yes, we do get complaints about telemarketing calls but the number is minimal. Since tracing such calls and cross-checking with the NDNC registers consumes time, subscribers do not generally persist with their complaints," a senior manager of a telecom company tried to reason. With the NDNC not being of much use, subscribers often tend to vent their ire at the telemarketing callers. When one caller repeatedly disturbed him on behalf of a bank offering a "personal loan," a senior IAS officer had threatened that he would get her arrested if she called again. When a telemarketer wanted to know "when is it the right time to speak to you," another IAS officer retorted rather politely: "Amma, no time is right for you to talk to me." Most harassed are mobile users who have fancy or VIP numbers. Telemarketers randomly pick up such numbers and keeping calling without even knowing the identify of the call receiver. "This irks us more. They pick up our number from somewhere and keep calling. I have registered with NDNC at least four times but to no avail. The messages and telemarketing calls are unabated," complained a software executive Nidhi. Phone users feel strict enforcement and prompt disposal of complaints by telecom service providers could arrest the problem. As the regulator, the onus is thus on Trai to rein in service providers as well as telemarketers.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
In Case of Emergency (ICE)
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: A public-interest campaign called ICE is fast picking up across the country. ICE is aimed at creating an awareness among mobile phone users the need to store in their phone memory card a particular phone number of their closest family members or friends who could be contacted in an emergency situation. ICE precisely stands for In Case of Emergency. Almost everyone these days carries a mobile phone with many names and numbers stored in its memory but nobody, other than the phone user, knows which of these numbers belongs to his\her closest family members or friends. "If we were to be involved in an accident or were taken ill suddenly, the people attending on us would have our mobile phone but wouldn't know whom to call. Yes, there are hundreds of numbers stored but which one is the right contact person in case of an emergency? Hence this 'ICE' (In Case of Emergency) campaign," says a campaign mailer that is currently being circulated on the Internet. ICE is a method of contact during emergency situations. As cell phones are carried by majority of the population, all one needs to do is store the number of a contact person or persons who should be contacted during emergency under the name ICE. An unknown paramedic hit upon the ICE idea after he found on many an occasion that there were always mobile phones with patients at the scenes of accidents but did not know which number to call. He, therefore, thought it would be good if there was a nationally recognized name for this purpose and coined ICE. In an emergency situation, emergency service personnel and hospital staff would be able to quickly contact the right person by simply dialling the number one has stored as ICE. For more than one contact name, one can simply enter ICE1, ICE2 and ICE3. A great idea that might make a difference and help save lives! "Let's spread the concept of ICE by storing an ICE number in our mobile phones today," the e-mail exhorts. "It really could save your life, or put a loved one's mind in peace. ICE will speak for you when you are not able to," the email adds. Students and software professionals -- even some journalists -- have now taken it upon themselves to take the campaign forward and ultimately make ICE a unique national emergency code. Hail the move.
Hyderabad: A public-interest campaign called ICE is fast picking up across the country. ICE is aimed at creating an awareness among mobile phone users the need to store in their phone memory card a particular phone number of their closest family members or friends who could be contacted in an emergency situation. ICE precisely stands for In Case of Emergency. Almost everyone these days carries a mobile phone with many names and numbers stored in its memory but nobody, other than the phone user, knows which of these numbers belongs to his\her closest family members or friends. "If we were to be involved in an accident or were taken ill suddenly, the people attending on us would have our mobile phone but wouldn't know whom to call. Yes, there are hundreds of numbers stored but which one is the right contact person in case of an emergency? Hence this 'ICE' (In Case of Emergency) campaign," says a campaign mailer that is currently being circulated on the Internet. ICE is a method of contact during emergency situations. As cell phones are carried by majority of the population, all one needs to do is store the number of a contact person or persons who should be contacted during emergency under the name ICE. An unknown paramedic hit upon the ICE idea after he found on many an occasion that there were always mobile phones with patients at the scenes of accidents but did not know which number to call. He, therefore, thought it would be good if there was a nationally recognized name for this purpose and coined ICE. In an emergency situation, emergency service personnel and hospital staff would be able to quickly contact the right person by simply dialling the number one has stored as ICE. For more than one contact name, one can simply enter ICE1, ICE2 and ICE3. A great idea that might make a difference and help save lives! "Let's spread the concept of ICE by storing an ICE number in our mobile phones today," the e-mail exhorts. "It really could save your life, or put a loved one's mind in peace. ICE will speak for you when you are not able to," the email adds. Students and software professionals -- even some journalists -- have now taken it upon themselves to take the campaign forward and ultimately make ICE a unique national emergency code. Hail the move.
'Babus' know their "Babu" well
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: Are the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers in Andhra Pradesh really peeved at what former Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu allegedly remarked against them?Not really. For, they know the reality and what's exactly happening over the past four years in the state bureaucracy. After all, Chandrababu Naidu used to be dubbed the "Babus' Babu" during his nine-year stint as the Chief Minister since he maintained such a good rapport with the bureaucrats. So, the IAS men didn't really take the issue seriously though only the Mahbubnagar district Collector obliged the television news channels with an "on record" sound byte. While senior Collectors simply brushed the issue aside when scribes confronted them, the juniors looked puzzled. The Chief Minister's Office seized the initiative and spread word that many Collectors, during their one-on-one interaction with Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, expressed their "serious displeasure" over "Naidu's remarks." The Congress was also quick to react and castigate the former Chief Minister, with ministers K Rosaiah and Aanam Rama Narayana Reddy taking the lead. But IAS officers, as such, remained unfazed. "There is no smoke without fire, isn't it," a senior bureaucrat, who has been newly-elected as an office-bearer of the AP IAS Officers' Association, questioned, referring to the alleged remarks of Naidu. Bureaucrats are not cut off from the world, so to speak, and know pretty well the "ins and outs" of the administration. It has become rather an open secret that postings of IAS and IPS officers are coming with a certain "price tag" in the last four years. Any bureaucrat will tell who is calling the shots in the government in respect of the postings. "We will only be degrading ourselves if we speak about the happenings, particularly in the Chief Minister's Office, when it comes to the postings. Don't many of the incumbent district Collectors know how they landed in that job," the senior bureaucrat quizzed. Of late, there have been allegations of corruption against many IAS officers, including some "juniors" who hitherto used to be immune to such things. "Lobbying" has unwittingly become the buzzword with even the junior officers, who should get postings in the routine course, being forced to please the powers that be to land in a job. Two very latest examples, related to the posting of two IAS young officers, bear testimony to the goings-on in the government. By the way, the Invisible Crusaders -- the bunch of young IAS men trying to fight corruption from within -- have been keeping a watch on all happenings and preparing a dossier on the recent bureaucratic postings. They will strike at an opportune time.
YSR's anxiety showing up
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy is clearly anxious as his flagship Indiramma housing programme seems to be heading nowhere.
Though otherwise he sought to "pamper" the district Collectors on various issues, the Chief Minister could not, however, hide his anxiety over the tardy pace of implementation of Indiramma housing programme, particularly in the urban areas.
At one stage during the review of Indiramma housing programme at the two-day conference on district Collectors, the Chief Minister reportedly vent his ire at Nizamabad and Khammam Collectors for lagging in land acquisition, a senior official who took part in the meeting said. Other Collectors, however, were spared though the progress of phase-I and phase-II of the housing programme was still way below the target. He directed the Collectors to step up land acquisition, particularly in urban areas, by paying
"Barring the housing issue, there was nothing much about other things. The Chief Minister was visibly happy over the state of affairs and patted the Collectors for the 'good work' they have been doing," one senior Collector pointed out. The officers were also happy that the conference, unlike the previous ones, was a "cool" affair.
This being the crucial election year, Rajasekhara Reddy was apparently playing it safe in dealing with the Collectors who, according to him, were the "eyes and ears" of the government. He virtually spoke in a tone that suggested his government's fate was in the Collectors' hands, one district Collector who was attending his fifth conference, observed.
The ministers, who too were part of the conference, had no complaints either as they were "happy" with their respective Collectors.
The Chief Minister had usual instructions to the Collectors on issues like drinking water supply, Arogyasri, filling up of ration dealers, effective implementation of crop insurance scheme and the like.
Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy is clearly anxious as his flagship Indiramma housing programme seems to be heading nowhere.
Though otherwise he sought to "pamper" the district Collectors on various issues, the Chief Minister could not, however, hide his anxiety over the tardy pace of implementation of Indiramma housing programme, particularly in the urban areas.
At one stage during the review of Indiramma housing programme at the two-day conference on district Collectors, the Chief Minister reportedly vent his ire at Nizamabad and Khammam Collectors for lagging in land acquisition, a senior official who took part in the meeting said. Other Collectors, however, were spared though the progress of phase-I and phase-II of the housing programme was still way below the target. He directed the Collectors to step up land acquisition, particularly in urban areas, by paying
"Barring the housing issue, there was nothing much about other things. The Chief Minister was visibly happy over the state of affairs and patted the Collectors for the 'good work' they have been doing," one senior Collector pointed out. The officers were also happy that the conference, unlike the previous ones, was a "cool" affair.
This being the crucial election year, Rajasekhara Reddy was apparently playing it safe in dealing with the Collectors who, according to him, were the "eyes and ears" of the government. He virtually spoke in a tone that suggested his government's fate was in the Collectors' hands, one district Collector who was attending his fifth conference, observed.
The ministers, who too were part of the conference, had no complaints either as they were "happy" with their respective Collectors.
The Chief Minister had usual instructions to the Collectors on issues like drinking water supply, Arogyasri, filling up of ration dealers, effective implementation of crop insurance scheme and the like.
Pending Inquiry, perpetually!
DESARAJU SURYA
Hyderabad: Revenue authorities in Andhra Pradesh have been sitting over magisterial inquiries in many districts for over a decade now. This has resulted in piling up of 507 cases between 1998 and 2008. A magisterial inquiry is a statutory requirement in cases related to death of persons in police custody or lock-up as well as incidents of police firing and exchange of fire between police and extremists. Karimnagar district tops the list with over 181 such pending cases, mostly related to exchange of fire between police and extremists. Warangal, another naxalite-affected district, comes next with 65 pending cases followed by Mahbubnagar, Nalgonda and West Godavari 33 each. The Supreme Court and the National Human Rights Commission guidelines clearly stipulate that magisterial inquiries have to be completed within four months but revenue authorities seem to drag their feet in conducting the inquiries in time. Though the state government has been repeatedly directing the respective district Collectors to step up the inquiries and complete them soon by according priority, the cases seem to head nowhere. Of the 507 magisterial inquiries pending, 54 cases are registered by the NHRC and 12 by the AP State Human Rights Commission. "These inquiry reports are crucial to establish whether an officer is guilty of wrongdoing or whether any person died, in custody, of natural reasons. The delay in completion of inquiry may eventually deny justice to the affected party," a senior official pointed out. In Guntur district, for example, five cases of custodial\lock-up death were reported way back in 1998 but so far the magisterial inquiry reports into these incidents have not been submitted. Two more cases of same nature in 1997 and one in 1999 in Guntur district have been pending inquiry. Karimnagar district, which once used to be a hotbed of naxalite activity, had seen 75 incidents of police firing or exchange of fire with extremists in 1998, 30 in 1999 and 25 in 2000. After a lull for six years, 15 incidents were reported in 2007 and five so far this year. In all these cases, the magisterial inquiries have not been completed, official sources said. Since this is a "very important issue" concerning human rights, the state government is worried about the fallout of non-compliance of Supreme Court and NHRC orders. Now, the government has issued fresh directions to the district Collectors of Karimnagar and Warangal, where the pendency is very high, to pay personal attention and complete the magisterial inquiries at the earliest so as to avoid "adverse comments by NHRC, SHRC, courts and also the media."
Hyderabad: Revenue authorities in Andhra Pradesh have been sitting over magisterial inquiries in many districts for over a decade now. This has resulted in piling up of 507 cases between 1998 and 2008. A magisterial inquiry is a statutory requirement in cases related to death of persons in police custody or lock-up as well as incidents of police firing and exchange of fire between police and extremists. Karimnagar district tops the list with over 181 such pending cases, mostly related to exchange of fire between police and extremists. Warangal, another naxalite-affected district, comes next with 65 pending cases followed by Mahbubnagar, Nalgonda and West Godavari 33 each. The Supreme Court and the National Human Rights Commission guidelines clearly stipulate that magisterial inquiries have to be completed within four months but revenue authorities seem to drag their feet in conducting the inquiries in time. Though the state government has been repeatedly directing the respective district Collectors to step up the inquiries and complete them soon by according priority, the cases seem to head nowhere. Of the 507 magisterial inquiries pending, 54 cases are registered by the NHRC and 12 by the AP State Human Rights Commission. "These inquiry reports are crucial to establish whether an officer is guilty of wrongdoing or whether any person died, in custody, of natural reasons. The delay in completion of inquiry may eventually deny justice to the affected party," a senior official pointed out. In Guntur district, for example, five cases of custodial\lock-up death were reported way back in 1998 but so far the magisterial inquiry reports into these incidents have not been submitted. Two more cases of same nature in 1997 and one in 1999 in Guntur district have been pending inquiry. Karimnagar district, which once used to be a hotbed of naxalite activity, had seen 75 incidents of police firing or exchange of fire with extremists in 1998, 30 in 1999 and 25 in 2000. After a lull for six years, 15 incidents were reported in 2007 and five so far this year. In all these cases, the magisterial inquiries have not been completed, official sources said. Since this is a "very important issue" concerning human rights, the state government is worried about the fallout of non-compliance of Supreme Court and NHRC orders. Now, the government has issued fresh directions to the district Collectors of Karimnagar and Warangal, where the pendency is very high, to pay personal attention and complete the magisterial inquiries at the earliest so as to avoid "adverse comments by NHRC, SHRC, courts and also the media."
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