Our angel Aarushi is with us, say Talwars as Nupur leaves jail

Ghaziabad: Nupur Talwar, who left jail today after five months, and is charged along with her husband with murdering their daughter and their domestic help said today that "the truth will prevail."

Mrs Talwar said she will ensure she abides by the law while on bail - the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had argued in court that if she were allowed to leave jail, she would attempt to influence witnesses. As she walked out of the jail - dressed in a peach salwar-kameez - to a horde of waiting mediapersons, her husband Rajesh was beside her, his arm wrapped protectively around her. "We will face the trial and we will be vindicated. It has been a long, dark night for us so far...our angel Aarushi is here to take us through this," Mr Talwar, also a co-accused in the case, said.

13-year-old Aarushi, the Talwars' only child, was found dead in her bedroom in their Noida home in May 2008. Aarushi's father, Rajesh, told the police that their domestic help, Hemraj, was missing, and the police declared he was the main suspect and sent teams to his village in Nepal to search for him. However, hours later, Hemraj was found dead on the Talwars' roof.

The Noida police then arrested Mr Talwar, who is a dentist like his wife, and kept him in jail for nearly two months till the CBI took over the case and declared there was no evidence against him.

After that, the police arrested four domestic workers, including a man who worked as a dental assistant at Mr Talwar's clinic, but months later, the CBI did not oppose their bail, acknowledging that it had not found any proof of their involvement in the double-murder at the Talwars' home.

In December, the CBI asked the Ghaziabad court handling the case for permission to close its investigation because it had found no hard evidence. However, the agency said Mr Talwar was the main suspect, prompting criticism among legal experts, who said the CBI could not announce a suspect while acknowledging it had little proof against him. The judge refused to allow closure of the case, and said the Talwars would both be tried for murder and destruction of evidence.

Mr Talwar had been granted bail by the Supreme Court - a decision the CBI has challenged recently. Mrs Talwar was arrested on April 30 and moved to a jail in Dasna. 

BJP national executive meeting today; focus on UPA's 'misgovernance'

Surajkund (Haryana): The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will hold its national executive meeting in Surajkund in Haryana today where it is expected to formulate its strategy on the current political and economic situation in the country. The event will be followed by a two-day National Council meeting, starting on September 27.

During the three-day deliberations, the BJP is expected to focus on "misgovernance" by the Congress-led UPA government and highlight recent scams including the allocation of coal mines, 2G telecom spectrum and the 2010 Commonwealth Games, as pointed out by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG).

The meeting will start with BJP president Nitin Gadkari's address. Apart from its top leaders, chief ministers and deputy chief ministers from NDA-ruled states, 300 delegates are also expected to attend the party National Executive, while 1,200 will attend the BJP National Council meet.

BJP Vice President Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the party top brass. including LK Advani, Nitin Gadkari, Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley, Murli Manohar Joshi, Rajnath Singh, Venkaiah Naidu and others, will give a final shape to its proposed roadmap against UPA's "corruption and misgovernance".

The party is also expected to discuss its prospects in the forthcoming assembly elections in Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Tripura, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Karnataka and strategise its poll campaign.

After the day-long National Executive on September 26 and National Council on September 27 and 28, a rally will be held on September 28.

The party meet comes at a time when the UPA has seen the exit of the Trinamool Congress from the coalition over the issue of FDI in retail and a hike in diesel prices, something that has seen opposition parties gunning for the Congress.

"People of this nation who are opposing the policies of UPA and have taken to the streets to expose corruption and scams indulged by it are doing constructive service to nation. They expect that they continue to do scams and corruption and we praise it and showers petals on its corrupt ministers.... They will not sit quietly," Mr Naqvi said on Tuesday.

Form: NDTV

Suresh Kalmadi brings more disgrace, Indian Olympic Association forced to accept international observers

New Delhi: The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) faced more disgrace on Tuesday when it was forced to accept international observers for "fair" polls. The IOA buckled under the pressure when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) slammed both the disgraced Suresh Kalmadi and the Indian body's acting president Vijay Kumar Malhotra.

The simmering war of words between the IOC and IOA intensified with the former slamming the latter for refusing to accept an observer for its upcoming elections and threatened to take action if poll date is not furnished by September 25.

The poll dates were announced by the IOA on September 24 but it was still not clear whether they would accept the 'observation'.

On September 14, IOA's acting president V K Malhotra in a strongly worded letter to IOC president Jacques Rogge had asked if appointing neutral observers is only for India or for other member associations as well.

"I was surprised to receive yet another letter dated dated September 11, 2012 (after the one on August 31) from your office which reads like a dictate. It virtually orders IOA to do things as specified in it," Malhotra wrote in the letter.

The IOC in its two letters dated August 16 and September 11 stated that IOA's election process of the IOA would have to be held in strict compliance with the Olympic Charter.

The IOC and the Olympic Council Asia (OCA) will be appointing observers for the elections and it is completely unacceptable to the IOA.

Later, Malhotra in his letter said IOA was only being singled out.

"I am also amazed to read that IOC and OCA will like to jointly nominate the observers for the elections of IOA. I will like to know whether IOC is sending observers to monitor the elections of all the NOCs or only IOA is being single out. In any case, the idea of IOC-OCA observers may not be acceptable to the IOA," said Malhotra.

In a strongly worded letter, in response to a September 13 missive by IOA acting president V K Malhotra in which he had termed the world body's decision to send an observer as unacceptable, the IOC said that such a supervision was necessary owing to the "confusion surrounding the status of Suresh Kalmadi".

"The IOC and OCA are extremely astonished by the content of your letter and by the fact that you do not seem to understand that the internal situation of your NOC is not as smooth and normal as you want to depict it".

"Should we remind you that, despite our numerous and repeated requests, you and your NOC were unable to take any clear decision vis-a-vis situation of Mr Kalmadi with much confusion surrounding the status, powers and decisions of your NOC Ethics Commission in this affair," the letter addressed to Malhotra said.

"We urge you once again to respond transparently and openly to all the questions which we have raised in our previous communications. If we do not receive any clear and satisfactory answers within a deadline of one week maximum, we will immediately produce a report for the IOC Executive Board for appropriate action," the letter dated September 18 and signed by NOC Relations Director Pere Miro said.

"In particular, we expect (i) a clear answer to the simple question of the date of which the Elective General Assembly of the IOA is expected to take place and (ii) a clarification of the composition of the General Assembly with respect to the principle of the voting majority for the national federation affiliated to the IFs governing sports on the programme of the Olympic Games," it said.
Earlier on Monday, Mr Malhotra had also termed the government's directive to adhere to age and tenure guidelines in its upcoming elections as "illegal" and "unconstitutional" and said that it could even move the Supreme Court if its case in Delhi High Court goes against it.

"Where is the law for IOA to implement these guidelines? There is no Act of Parliament. We have filed a case in Delhi High Court against the sports ministry guidelines, saying that these are illegal and unconstitutional. The high court had issued notices and hearing is coming up on October 15," Malhotra said.

"The government had sought to portray that the high court had directed the IOA to adhere to these guidelines. It's not like that. The court had simply said that the IOA can hold elections by taking into account its rules, by-laws and government sports code.

"What the high court said is a bit contradictory and we will fight out our case till the end. But, the court had also said that it (the high court observation) can be changed also later on. Besides, International Olympic Committee can even derecognise India if the government forces these guidelines on us," he said.
(With PTI inputs)

Former President Pratibha Patil in trouble over gifts

New Delhi: Controversy seems to be following Pratibha Devisingh Patil even after she finished her term as President of India.

Following a Right to Information (RTI) inquiry that revealed Ms Patil had taken several "gifts" given to her when she was President to her hometown Amravati, Rashtrapati Bhawan has acted. In his application, RTI activist Subhash Agarwal has said that the former President must return all the gifts by January 13, 2013.

In reply to the application, Rashtrapati Bhawan has said that all articles should be back by January 13. "It was a decision taken by President Pranab Mukherjee soon after he took office," said the President's Press Secretary.

When contacted by NDTV, the Patil family said that they were yet to receive any intimation from Rashtrapati Bhawan about this.

The gifts include things like a stone box given to Ms Patil as a memento by visiting US president Barack Obama.

Ms Patil's predecessor A P J Abdul Kalam had also moved gifts out of Rashtrapati Bhawan, but they were for display at the Defence Research and Development Organisation, where he used to work.

Conventionally, presidents and other dignitaries who are given these gifts deposit them with the government. 

PM turns 80 with signs of reformist mojo

New Delhi: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh marks his 80th birthday on Wednesday in fighting fashion with signs he has rediscovered his "mojo" as a reformer after being written off as a dithering under-achiever.

The soft-spoken Dr Singh, India's first Sikh Prime Minister, is widely expected to stand down at the next elections due to be held in 2014.

While he earned a place in the history books as the man who lit the fuse for India's rapid growth in the 1990s when he was Finance Minister, his reputation has taken a battering as premier - especially since his 2009 re-election.

Time magazine branded him "The Underachiever" on its front cover earlier this year while Dr Singh's office got into a spat with the Washington Post after it said he had "transformed himself from an object of respect to one of ridicule".

But a sudden blitz of reforms designed to revive an economy in which growth is stuck around three-year lows has also given his own image a shot in the arm with the Economic Times proclaiming he had got his "mojo back".

And his stock has also risen sharply with the business sector, which warmly applauded his moves to open the retail, aviation and broadcasting sectors to more foreign investment.

According to Adi Godrej, president of the Confederation of Indian Industry, the premier has "unambiguously sent a message that the government is determined to see through the reforms".

Dr Singh, who always wears a blue turban, became premier when Congress took power in 2004, ending a long stint in the political wilderness.

His first term was relatively smooth-sailing, with growth almost reaching double digits.

But after success in the 2009 polls, his reputation has been hit during a second term marked by a litany of corruption scandals and policy paralysis caused in part by an impasse in Parliament with the main Opposition BJP party.

Deepak Lalwani, head of India-focused financial consultancy Lalcap in London, said Dr Singh's sudden burst of activity signalled a desire to salvage his reputation before he leaves office, employing a cricketing metaphor.

"In his last innings he would like to leave on a strong wicket -- he wants to leave a legacy that he was able to revive the economy again," Mr Lalwani told AFP.

Born in 1932 in what is now Pakistan, Dr Singh moved to India when Britain split the subcontinent at independence in 1947. His father, a poor vendor with 10 children, joked his son would become Prime Minister because he studied so hard.

The reformist zeal he would later display at the Finance Ministry - where he embraced free markets in the socialist-style economy and cut through red tape - was honed during his time as a Governor of the International Monetary Fund.

He became the surprise choice as premier in 2004 when his boss, Congress party leader Sonia Gandhi, decided that she did not want to head the government of the world's largest democracy after her election triumph.

Looming large over his birthday celebrations on Wednesday is another Gandhi - Sonia's son Rahul - who has borne the burden of expectation ever since his father Rajiv was assassinated in 1991.

Observers are watching to see whether Rahul, now 42, finally accepts Dr Singh's offer of a Cabinet berth in a major reshuffle expected soon, after a coalition ally pulled out of government last week.

Rahul, whose fumbling parliamentary performances have sparked big questions about his suitability for the premier's job, has never declared outright he wants to claim his inheritance and lead India.

But other young party leaders have not been allowed to take a prominent role in what analysts say is a move to ensure no-one outshines the Gandhi scion.

Since Independence, power in Congress has threaded from Rahul's great-grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first premier, to his grandmother Indira Gandhi, who was slain by Sikh bodyguards, and in tragedy-studded succession to his father Rajiv, who was blown up by a Tamil suicide bomber.

Congress party billboards drill home the message of succession - showing the elderly Dr Singh, beaming mother Sonia and in front, the fresh-faced Rahul.

Critics decry the need for continuation of the Gandhi-Nehru dynasty, seeing it as a sign of political immaturity and incompatible with India's superpower aspirations.

But Gandhi family biographer Rasheed Kidwai told AFP that "Rahul is very much in the frame to succeed" when Dr Singh calls time on his lengthy political career.

"It will all start unfolding three to six months before the (2014) elections when the prime minister will seek a mandate for generational change to hand things on," Mr Kidwai said.

Sensex jumps to 18500, Nifty above 5600 as govt notifies FDI

The BSE Sensex jumped over 150 points to reclaim the 18,500 mark while the broader Nifty bounced back above the key 5,600 mark Friday. The strong gains came on the back of positive global cues and the government's notification allowing foreign investment in multi-brand retail, aviation, and broadcast on Thursday. The rupee, too, saw gains and traded at 54.14 to the dollar.

The government implemented its reforms decisions taken last week despite widespread political opposition, which has sent a positive signal to markets.

"There is no need to press the panic button as far as the domestic polity is concern... Markets may rise to 5,650 or 5,900 on account of global liquidity," Mehraboon Irani of Nirmal Bang Securities told NDTV Profit.

Strong buying was seen in aviation and retail stocks. Debt laden Kingfisher Airlines surged 4.5 per cent while SpiceJet traded with over 3 per cent gains. Pantaloon Retail shares jumped nearly 8 per cent.

All groups of stocks traded higher. Banks, realty, and capital goods stocks jumped over 1 per cent. On the Nifty, 42 of the 50 stocks traded higher.

Reliance Infra was the top Nifty gainer, up 2.4 per cent. PSU lender Punjab National Bank advanced 2.3 per cent. Heavy equipment maker BHEL and private lender Axis Bank were the other stocks to rise over 2 per cent on the Nifty.

Private steel maker JSPL declined 1 per cent after global brokerage CLSA downgraded the stock to "sell".

Global cues:

Assets from Asian shares to oil to gold rose and the euro steadied as stimulus measures from major central banks continued to buoy investor confidence, offsetting weak economic data. The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.7 per cent after slipping to its lowest in nearly a week on Thursday. Tokyo's Nikkei stock average added 0.6 percent.


(With inputs from Thomson Reuters)

Prime Minister will make final attempt to change Trinamool's mind on Friday

New Delhi: The Prime Minister is likely to make a last attempt to persuade the Trinamool Congress to reconsider its decision of exiting the UPA government when its ministers come to resign. The TMC's six ministers are expected to resign on Friday.

At the same time, sources say, both the Congress and the government are standing fast on the reforms decisions taken last Friday that have now put the UPA government in a minority in Parliament, following the TMC pull-out.

The government also remains confident that it will manage the numbers and survive a trust vote if required in Parliament.

The sources said that both the PM and Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi are unanimous in their decision to push through the reforms. Both the party and government are firm that there will be no rollback on foreign investment in retail as well as the hike in diesel prices and a cap on subsidised LPG cylinders for homes.

The party has already announced that the states ruled by it will increase the cap on subsidised cylinder from six to nine. Delhi has already done so for the poor.

About the reported secrecy around the Cabinet decision on allowing FDI in multi-brand retail, the sources say that the decision was taken on September 14. The PM consulted Sonia, and allies Sharad Pawar and Farooq Abdullah. DMK's T R Baalu was also informed.

The government consciously decided not to circulate papers before the Cabinet meeting regarding FDI in retail. Most cabinet ministers were also in the dark about the consultations on FDI and that Cabinet would take it up soon.

A day before the Cabinet meeting, commerce minister Anand Sharma spoke to Mamata Banerjee but did not raise the issue of FDI in retail with her.





 

From: NDTV

Bharat bandh over FDI in retail, diesel price hike: Trains stopped in Bihar, UP, Mumbai unaffected

New Delhi: The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance along with other opposition parties have called a nationwide bandh today to protest against the government's reform measures announced last week. Nearly 5 crore traders and 25,000 trade associations are also taking part in this bandh demanding rollback of FDI in multi-brand retail. Schools, colleges, markets and transport services are likely to be affected in most states.

The protests began early this morning in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Workers belonging to BJP Yuva Morcha blocked three trains at Patna railway station and in Darbhanga, CPI(ML) workers stopped the Ganga Sagar Express. In Allahabad, Samajwadi Party workers staged demonstrations on rail tracks. There are also reports of trains being stopped in Bhubaneswar in Odisha.

In the national capital, public transport is running smoothly so far. Metro trains are also on time.

Mumbai and the rest of Maharashtra is likely to be unaffected by the bandh call due to Ganesh Chaturthi festivities. Both the MNS and the Shiv Sena and even the BJP have said that they will not enforce the nationwide strike in the state because of the ongoing festival. While MNS supports FDI in retail, BJP and Shiv Sena are opposed to it. So public transport, malls, super markets all other services are likely to function normally. Schools and colleges also will stay open.

Karnataka meanwhile has seen partial effect of the bandh call so far. While buses are off the road, autos are plying.  Trains are also running on time. There have been no protests so far.

Taking some politically tough decisions last week, the government had hiked the price of diesel by Rs. 5 per litre, capped the supply of subsidised liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders to six per household and cleared 51 per cent Foreign Direct Investment or FDI in multi-brand retail - reforms, which saw its biggest ally, Mamata Banerjee, pull out of the UPA. The opposition has called for the bandh to protest against these reform measures.

Today's strike against these new policies has won the support of parties ranging from the Left to the BJP, and crucially, Mulayam Singh Yadav, whose Samajwadi Party is now key for the government's survival. The Samajwadi Party, which has 22 MPs and was for long considered the Congress' Plan B if Mamata Banerjee ditched the UPA, has been playing hard to get. The SP has been vehemently opposed to FDI in retail and has told the UPA that it cannot take its support for granted. "Let the Congress be enlightened," he said yesterday, of the political situation, "that it has to give people more than corruption and rising prices."

The Left Front will also be holding a 12-hour strike in West Bengal to oppose the Centre's new reforms. "The government is making a false claim that oil companies are facing losses. ONGC, Bharat petroleum, Hindustan petroleum are making profits and not losses. So, there is no reason for increase in the prices of oil. This will increase inflation and prices of all commodities," CPM General Secretary Prakash Karat had said.

Meanwhile, coming as a huge relief to the UPA, which is now in a minority in Parliament after the Trinamool Congress announced it was exiting the Congress-led ruling coalition, Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has said it will not participate in the nation-wide strike even though the party opposes FDI in retail. The Congress is now looking at the BSP, which supports the UPA from outside, as its best bet to make up the numbers it needs to survive. The BSP has 21 MPs, two more than the Trinamool Congress.

The DMK, a member of the UPA with 18 MPs, has said it remains with the government, though it will participate in nationwide protest against FDI in retail, and the new diesel prices. Sources in the Southern party say that the DMK has decided "not to embarrass the UPA" and that its course will not be affected by Ms Banerjee's pull-out.

Though the policy to allow 51 per cent FDI was cleared first in November by the cabinet, it was shelved after Ms Banerjee threatened to pull out of the UPA. Sources say that last Friday, when the cabinet decided to implement the reforms, many senior ministers were also caught off-guard. The policy had not been listed in notes circulated before the meeting. Though Commerce Minister Anand Sharma had a phone conversation with Ms Banerjee the night before, he did not refer to FDI in retail. The government had informed other allies Sharad Pawar, Farooq Abdullah, and TR Baalu about its plans - allies who it was confident would not block the reform.

The new reforms, designed to revive a sluggish economy, means global firms such as Wal-Mart can set up shop with a local partner and sell directly to consumers for the first time. Like the Left and the BJP, Ms Banerjee had argued that the entry of international super-markets will put thousands of corner shops and farmers out of business. 

Govt likely to announce spending cuts on Saturday

New Delhi: The government could announce spending cuts for the 2013 fiscal year on Saturday, although the size of the cuts was not immediately clear, two government sources said.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will chair a meeting of top government economists to discuss India's five-year economic strategy and look at trimming expenditure in the light of an economic slowdown.

"The government is quite serious to keep the fiscal deficit as close to budgeted target of 5.1 per cent of GDP as possible," one of the sources said.

A second source, a senior government official who did not want to be named, said the meeting would "discuss cuts for current spending".

Copyright: Thomson Reuters 2012

Understanding FDI in multi-brand retail

New Delhi:  The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on Friday cleared 51 per cent foreign direct investment in multi-brand retail.

FDI norms made easy:

1. Retail sales outlets may be set up in those states that have agreed or will agree in future to allow FDI in multi-brand retail under this policy. The establishment of the retail sales outlets will be in compliance of applicable state laws/regulations, such as the Shops and Establishments Act etc.
2. Retail sales outlets may be set up only in cities with a population of more than 10 lakh as per 2011 Census and may also cover an area of 10 km around the municipal/urban agglomeration limits of such cities.
3. Retail locations will be restricted to conforming areas as per the master/zonal plans of the concerned cities and provision will be made for requisite facilities such as transport connectivity and parking.
4. In states or union territories not having cities with population of more than 10 lakh as per 2011 Census, retail sales outlets may be set up in the cities of their choice, preferably the largest city and may also cover an area of 10 km around the municipal/urban agglomeration limits of such cities. The locations of such outlets will be restricted to conforming areas, as per the Master/Zonal Plans of the concerned cities and provision will be made for requisite facilities such as transport connectivity and parking.
5. At least 50 per cent of total FDI brought in shall be invested in ‘back-end infrastructure’ within three years of the induction of FDI, where ‘back-end infrastructure’ will include capital expenditure on all activities, excluding that on front-end units. For instance, back-end infrastructure will include investment made towards processing, manufacturing, distribution, design improvement, quality control, packaging, logistics, storage, ware-house, agriculture market produce infrastructure etc. Expenditure on land cost and rentals, if any, will not be counted for purposes of backend infrastructure.
6. A high-level group under the Minister of Consumer Affairs may be constituted to examine various issues concerning internal trade and make recommendations for internal trade reforms.

In Amethi, Rahul Gandhi faces protests from angry villagers

Amethi: Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi, who is on a two-day visit to his parliamentary constituency Amethi, faced protests from unhappy residents for the second day in a row today. While he faced angry college girls yesterday, villagers protesting against lack of roads confronted him today.

Villagers from Chachkapur gathered outside Rahul Gandhi's guest house this morning and shouted slogans, asking him to leave Amethi. This forced the young MP to invite them for talks.

Yesterday, on the first day of his visit, girls from Rajkiya Balika Inter College blocked the road which Mr Gandhi was to take on his way to inaugurate a bank branch. The students were reportedly upset over lack of basic amenities in their college.

Mr Gandhi's cavalcade was diverted to another route after local intelligence unit alerted the Special Protection Group (SPG) about the protests. The students later raised slogans and condemned the MP for not meeting them.

Mr Gandhi is in Amethi to attend a District Monitoring and Vigilance Committee meeting at the collectorate, party sources said. He is expected to meet party workers, distribute tricycles in Salon area and take part in a closed door workers' meet in Jamo area before leaving for Delhi, sources added.

In the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls held earlier this year, the Congress lost eight out of the 10 Assembly seats in the twin Lok Sabha constituencies of Amethi and Rae Bareli despite Rahul Gandhi campaigning extensively in the state. While Mr Gandhi is an MP from Amethi, his mother and Congress President Sonia Gandhi is an MP from Rae Bareli. The Congress has had a stronghold in both these constituencies since decades.

(With inputs from Agencies)
 

Diesel price hike: Who said what

New Delhi: The Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs on Thursday approved a Rs. 5 hike in the price of diesel. Here are some of the reactions on the price hike:

Mamata Banerjee, West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress chief: We want a rollback. I am shocked. The matter is very serious and sensitive. We can't compromise with the people's issue. We will discuss our plan of action in our party meeting. We know the economic crisis we are with the government but enough is enough. I will be most happy to withdraw support (from the UPA). If I withdraw support, then other parties will provide support to them. And, then ask why we left the UPA which led to its collapse. People had misunderstood us when we had withdrawn support earlier.

Digvijaya Singh, Congress General Secretary: We are not in favour of a hike in diesel prices to such an extent because it hurts the farmers and common man. At the same time, there are some unpleasant decisions that have to be taken by the government by taking an overall view of what is best for the country.

Sushma Swaraj, BJP leader: We have a massive loot of national resource like Coal on the one hand. The Government is now robbing the common man to pay for that loot. Strange are the  policies of this Government which got elected in the name of the common man. They have demolished the kitchen of a lady who is to manage the house.

Yashwant Sinha, former finance minister and BJP leader: This is going to cause undue hardship. Prices are not under control. This will lead to overall inflation and mayhem in the economy. Need a system where the burden isn't transferred to the people in this hamhanded manner. If prices are to be raised, they should be raised in small dozes, not like by huge margins like Rs. 5.

Anant Kumar, BJP leader: It will be a direct hit on the common man and the farmers of the entire country. Cap on  number of cylinders is highly condemnable.

Kamal Farooqi, leader, Samajwadi Party: The jump is too big and it seems to be a political one than an economic decision. Immediately after Parliament, they have done it. Will demand a rollback. Definitely, we will ask for some consideration to be given, we are concerned.

Akhilesh Yadav, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Samajwadi Party leader (to NDTV): Decision ill-timed, will hurt the common man.

Gurudas Das Gupta, CPI leader: Never seen such a massive increase. It will stimulate inflation and aggravate the economic slowdown, which will cost jobs. We will protest in every way we can.

Prakash Karat, CPM leader (to NDTV): UPA government has taken the anti-people's step by raising diesel prices, no way can we accept it. Unless the govt rolls back the price hike, it will have to face the political consequences.

J Jayalalithaa, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and AIADMK chief: Centre is betraying the poor. The diesel price hike will lead to an overall price rise. The Centre should rollback the hike if its interested in people's welfare. Limiting the subsidised gas cylinders would affect poor and middle class households.

C Rangarajan, chairman of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council (to a private TV channel): The government had taken the right decision, and that fiscal deficit had to be contained. An increase in diesel prices in India should avert a credit rating downgrade for the country.

RS Butola, CMD, Indian Oil Corporation: Diesel accounts for 53 per cent of total subsidies. Oil companies are running a deficit of Rs. 6000 crore every month. We are committed to cutting petrol prices whenever possible. By reducing excise duty on petrol, we have brought down the gap between the prices between petrol and diesel. A narrow margin between petrol and diesel will be good for economy. If prices of petrol fall internationally, we will pass on the benefits.

RK Singh, CMD, Bharat Petroleum: This is a very good decision, and will certainly help oil companies and reduce the burden on the government in terms of subsidies. The reduction in the excise duty on petrol is good for us."

TK Ananth Kumar, CFO, Oil India: This is a welcome move and is very good for the oil industry.

Mulayam Singh Yadav talks of mid-term polls again, says he has high regard for Mamata Banerjee

Kolkata: Mulayam Singh Yadav has sewn up his election game plan in Kolkata and says those elections can happen before 2014. And though he has clearly taken a lead in cobbling together a non-Congress and non-BJP alternative, he insisted today that any Third Front would take shape only after the next Lok Sabha elections.

Mr Yadav has made no bones about the fact that after his party's spectacular showing in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, he is eyeing a bigger role for his party at the Centre. Asked if he was in the running for being the next Prime Minister, the veteran politician said, "I am not in line, but I am not a sadhu-sant (saint) either.

The Samajwadi Party, he said, would fight elections alone. "The Third Front can happen only after the polls. It will depend on the situation," Mr Yadav said. He also refused to say who of the two West Bengal rivals, the Left and Mamata Banerjee, would be part of such a Front, merely stating that, "We will keep good relations with all parties." Mulayam Singh Yadav has for years had political affinity with the Left parties and has joined hands with them on several issues like FDI in retail and the coal allocation scam in recent times.

But the Yadavs, Mulayam and son, Akhilesh, have also indicated during the Kolkata sojourn that they are willing to explore new equations. Mr Yadav said today that he had the greatest regard for Ms Banerjee and described a meeting between her and son Akhilesh yesterday as "very good talks." After the meeting Mr Yadav junior had said, "After coming to Kolkata, I would not have felt good not meeting Didi. It was necessary to meet her." Just a few months ago, the Congress managed to blunt a growing closeness between Mr Yadav and Ms Banerjee ahead of the Presidential elections. Ms Banerjee partners the Congress at the Centre, but that relationship has been at breakpoint for some time now. 

A common political imperative binds Mamata Banerjee and Mulayam Singh Yadav - both would like early elections to consolidate on their big wins in their respective states. In the first flush of victory and from a position of strength they know that they are likely to do much better now than after two years, when the honeymoon period is well over and anti-incumbency factors set in. Ms Banerjee swept the Assembly elections in West Bengal last year; Mr Yadav's Samjawadi Party won UP early this year.     

What Mr Yadav was startlingly unambiguous about today was where exactly he stood in his equation with the Congress, that leads the UPA government at the Centre.

"Let me make it clear, the Samajwadi Party does not support the UPA government. The Samajwadi Party is against communalism. If the Congress is weakening and needs support against communalism, we may provide that support." Not words of comfort for the ruling party which depends heavily on Mr Yadav to bail it out at crucial moments. Mr Yadav's assertion today that "the situation is such there may be elections earlier than 2014," makes it worse.

For three days in Kolkata, where his party is holding a convention, Mr Yadav has appeared determined to prove he's on a different team. Yesterday he had slammed the Congress for financial scams, especially the coal swindle that has forced the government on the defensive amid allegations of entrenched corruption. This after referring to his Samajwadi Party as the opposition on Monday.

That distancing from the Congress continued today when he said that both the national parties - the Congress and the BJP have weakened and are plagued by issues. He said that he would not field a candidate in Congress president Sonia Gandhi's constituency Rae Bareli as a return of favour for the Congress not contesting against his daughter-in-law Dimple in the Kannauj by-election a few months ago, but would not promise the same in Amethi, Rahul Gandhi's constituency. His party colleagues had made things rather awkward yesterday by saying that they saw little political ability in Rahul Gandhi.  Today Mr Yadav wished Mr Gandhi much luck.

(With PTI inputs)

Mehrajuddin Dand, Kandahar hijack suspect, arrested in Jammu and Kashmir

Srinagar: Thirteen years after the audacious Kandahar IC-814 hijack, a man suspected to have provided logistical support for it, Mehrajuddin Dand, has been arrested in Kishtwar, Jammu and Kashmir. The militant, the J&K Police say, is a major catch; he had been operating for the last 20 years.

There are very few details of the arrest available yet as the police double-check that the man they have arrested is indeed Dand. He goes by the alias Javed and is also alleged to have been involved in several blasts across the country. He had been living in Nepal for many years now, the police said, and had married a Hindu girl there.

The police claim that Dand provided fake travel documents to the five Pakistani men who hijacked the Indian Airlines flight IC-814 on December 24, 1999. The plane, with mostly Indians on board, had taken off from Nepal that Christmas Eve evening and just as it entered Indian airspace, the gunmen hijacked the flight to Kandahar in Afghanistan after fueling stops at Amritsar and Lahore in Pakistan and a stop at Dubai were they freed some passengers. The hijackers killed one man in the seven-day stand-off that ended controversially with the Indian government releasing three notorious terrorist leaders for the safe return of the rest of the passengers. Among those freed by India were Maulana Masood Azhar who later founded the Jaish-e-Mohammad and Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who is accused of later killing American journalist Daniel Pearl.

The police say Dand is suspected to be a key man of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and an important fund raiser for terror activities. He is believed to have been among the first group of Hizbul Mujahideen that crossed over into Pakistan for training and is said to be the longest surviving militant in the state. Dand is also believed to have been a key lieutenant of Hizbul chief  Syed Salahuddin for many years before becoming an independent operative who coordinated between various terror groups, the police said.

India has highest child mortality rate says UN report

New Delhi: With almost 19,000 children under five years of age dying every day across the world, India tops the list of countries with the highest number of 16.55 lakh such deaths in 2011, according to a UN agency.

The 'Child Mortality Estimates Report 2012' released by Unicef in New York has said that in 2011, around 50 per cent of global under-five deaths occurred in just five countries of India, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Pakistan and China.

Incidentally, India's toll is higher than the deaths in Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo and Pakistan put together.

While there have been 7.56 lakh deaths in Nigeria during the last year, Democratic Republic of the Congo accounts for 4.65 lakh deaths and Pakistan 3.52 lakh deaths of under-five children during 2011.

China reported 2.49 lakh deaths of under-5 kids last year, followed by 1.94 lakh by Ethiopia and 1.34 lakh each by Indonesia and Bangladesh. Uganda with 1.31 lakh such deaths and Afghanistan with 1.28 lakh deaths held the ninth and 10th position in the list of 10 top countries reporting under-five children deaths.

Singapore with a mortality rate of 2.6 has the lowest under-five deaths, while Slovenia and Sweden followed it with a mortality of 2.8.

The Unicef report also states that globally Pneumonia is the leading killer of children under five, causing 18 per cent of all under-five deaths worldwide - a loss of roughly 1.3 million lives in 2011, the bulk of which occur in just two regions, sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

Globally, the five leading causes of deaths among children under five include pneumonia (18 per cent); pre-term birth complications (14 per cent); diarrhoea (11 per cent); intrapartum-related complications (9 per cent) and malaria (7 per cent).

Besides, more than a third of child deaths are attributable to undernutrition globally, the report states.

Police brutality caught on camera in Bihar, man dragged by his hair

Munger: A shocking incident has come to light in Bihar's Munger district where the policemen have been caught on camera manhandling an accused.

According to the police, they were solving a dispute between two men when the incident happened. One of the men, the cops allege, was in an inebriated state and armed with an illegal pistol and live cartridges. He started a fight with the policemen, following which the police, along with local people, beat him brutally till he fell unconscious.

The policemen then took the young man to the hospital in a cycle rickshaw; a cop sat in the rickshaw with his feet on the chest of the man. The policeman further dragged him by his hair in the hospital.

Harda jal satyagraha: Police start forcibly evicting protesters

Harda: A jal satyagraha to demand a reduction of water level in the Indira Sagar Dam from 262 metres to 260 metres entered the 15th day today in Khardana village of Madhya Pradesh's Harda district. And now the police have begun cracking down on the protesters who have been sitting in neck-deep water.

The cops are evicting villagers from the protest site after authorities clamped prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) on Tuesday, asking villagers to come out of water citing health concerns. Some ambulances have also reached the spot.

However, the police are facing problems in bringing these protesters out of water as they continue with their key demands that the water level of the dam should be brought down and affected people be rehabilitated. After the prohibitory orders were imposed in the area yesterday, the protesters had intensified their agitation and moved at least 200 metres away from the banks, into the water. 200 others are protesting outside.

The district authorities, meanwhile, say that the government has agreed to 14 of the protesters' 16 demands. Harda's Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Manjusha Rai, Collector Sudam Khade and the Superintendent of Police are at the protest site and are taking stock of the situation.

Over a hundred policemen and Rapid Action Force personnel have been deployed in the area.

The protests in Harda came to prominence after the state government gave into demands of villagers in nearby Khandwa who sat on a jal satyagraha for 17 days. Villagers in Harda allege that while the state government agreed to the demands of Khandwa protesters, it has not addressed their grievances yet. They also accuse the government of "double standards".

The state government has increased the water level in the Indira Sagar dam to 262 metres, which threatens to inundate 19 villages. Three villages are already submerged in water. In fact, the state government plans to further increase the water level in the dam by .02 metres.

"The Chief Minister has not announced anything for us, just for the protesters in Khandwa. He has agreed to bring down the water level there, and to rehabilitate the people affected. Until they will accept our demands we will not leave, the chief minister has done discrimination with us," said one of the protesters.

The protest in Khandwa's Ghogalgaon village ended on Monday after 17 days when Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan agreed to lower the water level in the Omkareshwar dam, one of the key demands of the 51 protesters, sitting in neck-deep water.

Both Omkareshwar and Indira Sagar dams are built across the Narmada river and are part of the Indira Sagar Project. The water protests were launched with the help of the Narmada Bachao Andolan to demand proper rehabilitation for land that the villagers have lost and a reduction in the water level of the dam.

The unusual protest was highlighted by the media and brought widespread attention to the villagers sitting in water. The photograph of the shriveled, bruised feet of a woman protester went viral on social networking sites.
 

Facebook may give you a call if your profile looks suspicious

Mumbai: Social networking giant Facebook is making a "huge effort" to weed out fake profiles to prevent misuse of such identities, a senior company official has said.

"Absolutely, there is a huge effort," Facebook India business manager Pavan Varma said when asked about the company's action on this front.

If Facebook doubts the ownership of an account, it will ask the user to identify himself/herself, he said.


The doubt about the authenticity of the account will arise if an account has a generic name instead of a proper name, uses images of celebrities/ cartoon characters as display pictures, or does not have "enough friends", Mr Varma said.

"It could even be that Facebook comes back to you saying, "could you help us identify yourself if you don't have enough friends, because we don't want fake identities," he said.

"We are worried about the experience we deliver....It's not about protecting our brand identity so much," he said.

Recently there were reports of fake accounts being created by computer programs, which are used for inflating the number of "likes" on Facebook page for a brand.

Facebook had recently said it would be taking out fake "likes" generated by spammers, malware and black marketers.

Mr Varma said advertisers must also shed the obsession with numbers. "How does an advertiser today treat a Facebook page? It is treated as a place where they just come with a number of people who are there. But that is a wrong way of doing it," he said, stressing that the conversations around the brand should assume importance rather than the numbers.

Mere "likes" on the page do not help a brand, he said.

Companies generally pay Facebook for a dedicated page on its platform that helps them connect with the target audience.

IDBI Bank claims it has over five lakh fans on Facebook, Varma said, on the sidelines of a banking summit.

He added that Facebook, as a medium, is completely secure and cited the case of ICICI Bank, which now offers basic services over the Facebook page by integrating its net banking platform with the social networking site.
  
From: NDTV

India's next moon mission depends on Russia: ISRO chief

Sriharikota: India's second moon mission will depend on Russia's decision after a failed inter-planetary mission with China, ISRO chairman said on Sunday, a day when the Indian space agency launched its 100th mission.

"Russia is reviewing its inter-planetary missions after a failed joint mission with China. For Chandrayaan-2, Russia has to provide the lander.

"India will build the lunar orbiter and rover. Russia has said they would come to us with a decision after their review," K. Radhakrishnan told reporters.

The Chandrayaan 2 is planned for 2014 with India's heavier rocket - Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV).

Mr Radhakrishnan said Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will ready the rocket and also the lunar orbiter and rover.

While reports are there that the Chandrayaan 2 project may get delayed to 2016, Mr Radhakrishnan did not comment on it.

For its 100th mission, ISRO on Sunday launched a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle-C21 carrying SPOT 6, a 712-kg French earth observation satellite, and Proiteres, a 15-kg Japanese micro satellite, from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.

ISRO is now eagerly looking forward to its Mars mission planned for next year.

Ruling out that India was in race with China for the Mars mission, Mr Radhakrishnan said: "Mars mission is a challenging one where we will develop new technologies."

He said ISRO was studying the Mars mission since August 2010 and the union cabinet had recently approved the project.

He said the Mars mission was much more challenging than Chandrayaan 1 mission since it required taking the orbiter from the initial orbit into the Mars orbit as the distance to be covered was huge.

Mr Radhakrishnan said the other major challenge was tracking the satellite with deep space network.

He said to realise the Mars mission next year, ISRO centres were working hard to perfect the GSLV rocket technology including the cryogenic engine technology.

On the expansion of facilities at the space port Sriharikota, Mr Radhakrishnan said ISRO had decided to set up a Multi Object Tracking Radar to track the space debris and to time its rocket launches precisely.

He said ISRO was also planning to have a second vehicle (rocket) assembly building to facilitate increasing launch frequency.

He said ISRO would build two more communication satellites - GSAT 15 and GSAT 16 - to augment its transponder (transmitters that receive and send signals) capacity.

From: NDTV

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's assets worth 10.73 crores, including Maruti 800

News: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has assets worth Rs. 10.73 crore, double that of last year, but a number of his cabinet colleagues are much richer than him.

Among the richer cabinet ministers are Praful Patel with assets of approximately Rs. 52 crore and Sharad Pawar with property worth around Rs. 22 crore, according to the updated list of assets of the ministers posted on the PMO website.

Defence Minister A K Antony has assets worth Rs. 55 lakh, the lowest in the list of the cabinet Ministers.

Manmohan Singh has shown residential properties, bank deposits and a Maruti 800 car as his assets.

While the total worth of Manmohan Singh's two flats- in Chandigarh and Delhi- is Rs. 7.27 crore, he has bank deposits and investments worth Rs. 3.46 crore approximately in various State Bank of India (ASBI) accounts.

He has declared total assets of worth Rs. 10,73,88,730.81 (Rs. 10.73 crore approximately).

Last year, the Prime Minister had declared total assets worth Rs. 5.11 crore approximately. The flats owned by him in Chandigarh and Vasant Kunj in Delhi were then valued at a total of Rs. 1.78 crore and he owned 150.80 gm of gold jewellery worth Rs. 2.75 lakh.

Sources in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said though the assets with him have remained the same, the valuation has gone up as the assessment has been done by a government- approved valuator.

The depreciated value of his Maruti 800 car has been shown as Rs. 21,033. Singh also owns 150.80 grams of gold jewellery but its value has not been shown in his declaration of assets and liabilities.

Prime Minister Singh also owns a bank account in Dispur in Assam where he has a deposit of Rs. 6,515.78 only.


HRD Minister Kapil Sibal and his wife Promila have total assets of Rs. 45.33 crore, which includes 8.11 crore of his wife.

Of the Rs. 37.22 crore assets owned by Mr Sibal, he has at least 12 properties worth Rs. 29.35 crore and cash and bank deposits along with shares and debentures worth Rs. 2.82 crore, 3 kilograms of jewellery worth Rs. 35.33 lakh and loans and advances of Rs. 4.63 crore.

Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde has a house whose present worth is Rs. 50 Lakh, two flats worth Rs. 1.99 crore and Rs. 1.25 crore, agricultural land worth Rs. 19.76 Lakh, guest house worth Rs. 8.22 Lakh, land worth Rs. 1.11 Crore.

Mr Shinde also owns a Mitsubhishi tractor worth Rs. 1.90 lakh He owes a loan of Rs. 10 Lakh to one Raj Shroff.

His wife Ujjwala Shinde owns a flat worth Rs. 2.15 crore, two pieces of land worth Rs. 15.38 crore and Rs. 84 lakh. She also owes a loan of Rs. 27 Lakh to one Raj Shroff.

External Affairs minister S M Krishna has assets worth Rs. 1.89 crore, including immovable properties of Rs. 31.44 lakh.

He owns half share in a residential house at Bangalore and agriculture land in Mandya district and Somanahalli, besides owning a farm house at Somanahalli and a site at Viswapriya Greeneries, Begur. He owns a Sonata and a Lancer car.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram's total assets, including bank accounts and current assets, add up to Rs. 11.96 crore approximately.

Mr Chidambaram also has assets and liabilities as part of Hindu Undivided Family. His total assets as part of HUF are Rs. 94.04 lakh and liabilities worth Rs. 75.52 Lakh. Hence, his net assets here add up to Rs. 18.52 Lakh approximately.

His wife Nalini has immovable assets worth Rs. 4.82 crore and the total assets add upto Rs. 17.81 crore approx. Her liabilities are Rs. 1.22 lakh.

Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers M K Azhagiri has assets worth Rs. 9.50 crore.

Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh owns six agricultural lands in Durg (Chhattisgarh) and West Uttar Pradesh having a total worth of nearly Rs. 13 crore.

His land in Chhattisgarh is worth Rs. 5.64 crore. Rest of the pieces of land are in Aligarh, Ghaziabad and other nearby areas. He also owns three flats - two in Delhi and one in Gurgaon-worth Rs. 3.75 crore.

Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh has assets worth over Rs. 56 lakhs.

Last year, his wife K R Jayashree had assets worth Rs. 14,79,148 which included bank balance, fixed deposits, jewellery, silverware and shares.

In the year 2011-12, Mr Ramesh's asset rose to over Rs. 4.16 crore after his mother declared him a nominee of her bank deposits worth over Rs. 3 crore due to the sale of the house of his parents in Bangalore in September 2011.

New And Renewable Energy Minister Farooq Abdullah has over Rs. 98 lakh deposited in bank accounts and has shares in ancestral properties in Jammu and Kashmir.

The value of some of the properties within the share and in possession of Mr Abdullah is over Rs. 2.25 crore. Mr Abdullah also earned over Rs. 26 lakhs from the sale of family land in Srinagar.

Tourism Minister Subodh Kant Sahay and his wife Rekha Sahay have declared assets worth Rs. 70.74 lakh and Rs. 1.24 crore, respectively.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal has total assets worth Rs. 6.65 crore, including Rs. 95.15 lakh of his wife Madhu.

While Mr Bansal has cash and bank deposits worth Rs. 62.4 lakh, he owns a share in agricultural land in Mehrauli, Delhi worth Rs. five lakh and half-share in a two kanal house in Chandigarh valued at Rs. five crore. He also owns a Maruti Esteem car and jewellery worth Rs. two lakh.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni has declared a flat in Delhi valued at nearly Rs. 3.5 crore in addition to jewellery worth Rs. 16 lakh and silver utensils worth over Rs. 11 lakh in addition to an Optra car. She has also mentioned a farmhouse owned by her husband in Gurgaon.

Railway Minister Mukul Roy has shown Rs. 6 lakh as total income in the Income Tax return and Rs. 5.08 lakh in his wife Krishna's name. He has declared Rs. 20.07 lakh in his name and Rs. 14.97 lakh in his wife's name as total movable assets for the last fiscal.

Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has total assets of Rs. 68.59 lakh, including land in Maharashtra worth Rs. 5.5 lakh and the remaining in cash and bank balances.

His wife Shameed Azad owns a house and land in Srinagar worth Rs. 55 lakh besides a residential flat in Delhi. She has bank deposits and jewellery worth Rs. 2.62 crore.

The net worth of Mr Azad and his family as on July 2012 is Rs. 3.42 crore along with a flat in Delhi which is not valued.

He has a total net worth of Rs. 2.22 crore in cash and deposits along with a flat in Delhi.

Law and Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid has an agricultural land in the name of his family in Gautam Buddha Nagar of Uttar Pradesh worth over Rs. 1.30 crore.

While Mr Khurshid himself has cash worth Rs. 74.48 lakh, the combined cash holdings of his family - including bank deposits - stand at over Rs. 1.22 crore. He has a flat in Jamia Nagar, Delhi worth Rs. 5 lakh, his wife Louie owns two flats in Goa gifted by her father.

The Law Minister also owns an agricultural land worth Rs. 32 lakh in Farrukhabad in Uttar Pradesh and a barren, non-agricultural land worth over Rs. 10 lakh in the same place.

Besides a Mahindra jeep and a Toyota Innova, Mr Khurshid owns a "very old" imported car.

The total worth of immovable property owned by Minister of Urban Poverty Alleviation and Housing Kumari Selja is Rs. 12.25 crore approximately.

She owns agricultural and non-agricultural land as well as a residential house owned in partnership with others.

The Minister, who hails from Haryana, also has movable assets worth Rs. 9,91,101. She owns a Maruti Esteem car, jewellery (worth Rs. 8.61 lakh approximately) and bonds, shares and fixed deposits. Ms Selja's total net worth is Rs. 12.34 crore and the total tax and interest paid by her for 2011-12 is Rs. 12,04,661.

The net assets of Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath has been declared at Rs. 8.85 crore as on March 31 this year while his wife Alka Nath owns assets worth Rs. 4.48 crore approximately.

The figure though formidable may seem paltry in comparison to the over Rs. 200 crore declaration made by Mr Nath an year earlier. As per the previous year's declarations, Mr Nath was the richest of all Cabinet Ministers.

Mr Nath has also explained the reduction of figures in his declaration.

"In the previous year's declaration, the assets of Shri Nakul Nath, Shri Bakul Nath & Smt Simran Nath were shown.

Since they are not dependent family members, it is not required to include their assets. They have therefore, been excluded this year," Mr Nath's declaration said.

The declaration also said the assets of a private trust for the benefit of Nakul Nath and Bakul Nath, who are non-dependent family members, had also been excluded this year.

From: NDTV