Day: June 27, 2019

Where are the jobs? Angry students ask Jharkhand minister

Source: telegraphindia.com

Angry students at Birsa Agricultural University on Wednesday confronted state agriculture minister Randheer Kumar Singh with a question: Where are the jobs?

The minister had gone to attend the 39th foundation day event of the varsity in Kanke. When he was leaving after delivering his speech, around 50 students were waiting outside the auditorium to pepper him with questions such as why no student from Jharkhand’s only agriculture university has got a state government job for the last 20 years, and what future could they look forward to with such a bleak placement record.

The minister tried to duck the barrage by saying that he wishes for the students’ good academic performance. Agriculture, he said, is the priority sector of the government and steps are being taken to provide employment opportunities for students. He said that vice-chancellor Parvinder Kaushal would address the students’ concerns.

The students were not in the mood to be swayed by perfunctory assurances. They raised slogans against the minister and the vice-chancellor, and followed the minister till he reached his car.

“The last recruitment was done in 1989,” said Varunesh Kumar, a former student of the university, who secured a gold medal in 2016 for academic excellence. “In 2015, the government had started the recruitment process for 450 block agriculture officers through the Jharkhand Public Service Commission. The preliminary test was successfully conducted. But two days before the mains examination, the recruitment was cancelled without citing any reason. Students of B.Sc (agriculture) are the worst victims.”

Ruplal Prasad, a current student, said the university’s alumni can be the backbone of an agriculture revolution in the state.

“But then we are neglected,” Prasad said. “Where we will display our skills if employment opportunities are not given to us? Jharkhand’s achievement in agriculture is only on paper. The government may be opening new research centres and colleges for agriculture studies in the state but there is employment opportunity for students. We are under pressure of our parents to get jobs. Now we feel that we made a mistake by opting to study agriculture. Every year the minister visits BAU during the foundation day programme and assures to look into our matter, so today we decided to protest.”

A group of students from veterinary and allied subjects, who were also part of the protest on Wednesday, said the state has 16 Krishi Vigyan Kendras, each with six teaching faculty and scientists, but veterinary and allied sciences students are not deemed qualified for recruitment in the Kendras.

The varsity runs a number of courses such as animal husbandry, forestry, biotechnology, fisheries, agri-business management and horticulture. There are six colleges under the varsity, of which four are agricultural colleges, one is a veterinary college and the other is a forestry college. There are over 600 students at the varsity.

The angst at BAU is not isolated. The unemployment rate in India rose to 7.2 per cent in February 2019, the highest since September 2016, and up from 5.9 per cent in February 2018, according to data compiled by the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy and released in March this year.

L&T shares gain on mega power project order in Bihar

Source: moneycontrol.com

Larsen & Toubro shares gained more than a percent intraday on June 24 after bagging big power project in Bihar.

“The power business of L&T has bagged a mega engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) order from SJVN Thermal Private Limited to set up a 2×660 MW ultra-supercritical power plant in Buxar district, Bihar,” the infrastructure major said in its BSE filing.

SJVN Thermal Private Limited is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SJVN Limited, a joint venture of the Government of India and the Government of Himachal Pradesh and a Mini Ratna public sector undertaking.
L&T said the scope of work for L&T includes design, engineering, manufacture, procurement, supply, construction, erection, testing commissioning of Buxar Thermal Power Project (2×660 MW),

on turnkey basis, covering steam generator, steam turbine generator, electrostatic precipitator, NOx control system, flue gas desulphurization (FGD) system and complete balance of plant (BoP) systems.

The stock was quoting at Rs 1,541.20, up Rs 1.20, or 0.08 percent on the BSE at 1006 hours IST.

While maintaining buy call on L&T being on conviction list with a target price at Rs 1,700, Goldman Sachs said company continued to show strength in core business and vigour in non-core business. “In bull-case scenario, we 26 percent upside from current levels.

Bihar man carries dead son on shoulders, district magistrate orders probe

Source: hindustantimes.com

The Nalanda district magistrate has ordered a probe after it came to light that a man was forced to carry the body of his eight-year-old son on his shoulders on Tuesday as the hearse at government hospital was unavailable at that time.

The incident brought back the memories last year’s incident in Odisha, where one Dana Manjhi was forced to walk 10 kilometers carrying his wife’s body on his shoulders as he was not provided any transport from the government hospital to his village in Kalahandi district.

Tuesday’s incident took place at the Sadar hospital at Biharsharif, 75 kms south-east of Patna.

Nalanda DM Yogendra Singh has sought clarification from the civil surgeon Parmanand Chowdhary and constituted a two-member team led by the SDM to investigate the matter.

“The incident has come to our knowledge but the lone hearse at Sadar hospital had gone to Silau and the man did not wait for its return. Instead, he preferred to carry the body on his shoulders,” the DM said.

Sources said the boy, from Sagar Sitabigha village of Parwalpur, fell unconscious while riding a bicycle. He was admitted to a private clinic from where he was referred to Biharsharif Sadar Hospital, where he died during the course of treatment.

The DM said this was second such incident in the district in recent times when an ambulance service had been found wanting. “A few months ago, the agency providing the service was penalised after it was found that the drivers were taking money from patients for the service provided,” he said.

Similar incidents in May 2017 in Majhaulia village of Muzaffarpur, and in October 2017 in Patna, had raised questions on health care system in the state.

22-YO Son of Petrol Pump Worker Beat All Odds To Crack UPSC in 1st Attempt!

Source: thebetterindia.com

5 April 2019, marked a very important day in the lives of over 759 candidates (577 men and 182 women) who cleared the coveted Union Public Service Commission exam. One step closer to their dream of serving the country in various roles like IAS, IPS, IFS, among others, future aspirants find succor in the success stories of those who rose up to the challenge and beat it.

Among these stories, stands out the tale of Indore’s Pradeep Singh. One of the youngest candidates appearing for the UPSC 2018 exams, Pradeep, the son of a petrol pump serviceman, cracked the exams in his first attempt at the age of 22!

In an exclusive interview with The Better India, Pradeep recalls how his father, Manoj Singh, who originally hailed from the town of Gopalganj in Bihar, migrated to Indore in 1991 in search of better education and employment.

Though the family had ancestral land, farming brought no steady income. The women of the household stayed back and took care of the land, while men migrated to bigger cities for employment to sustain their families.

Manoj took up the humble job of a petrol pump serviceman to make ends meet. In 1996, when Pradeep was born, he spent the first few years in Gopalganj. But for education, he moved to Indore with the rest of his family. From studying at a CBSE school to completing his B.Com (Hons) from IIPS DAVV, he spent the formative years of his life in Indore.

When I asked him how the decision to pursue UPSC came about, he laughs.

“Growing up, I didn’t know what UPSC or an IAS officer was. But my parents often spoke with delight about the success stories of aspirants who had cracked the exams to become ‘afsars’ (officers). I would look on in awe at the joy on their faces as they tried to fathom how proud the parents of these achievers would have felt to see their children crack one of the toughest exams in the country and serve the nation.”

It was at that moment that Pradeep knew, he wanted to be the reason for the same pride and joy on his parents’ faces. The dutiful son wanted it all for his loving parents.

Pradeep recalls the last wish of his late grandfather who, on his deathbed, told Pradeep and his older brother to educate themselves and achieve something on their merit and hard work.

Another source of motivation was the change Pradeep witnessed first hand.

Moving to Delhi to prepare for the UPSC was a big decision. From coaching to accommodation, Pradeep knew it was more than his father could afford. And yet, Manoj decided to sell their home and move into a rented accommodation to help Pradeep achieve his dream.

Pradeep moved to Delhi on 17 June, two years ago. Already a bright student who had won several debates, quizzes and extempores, his preparation had started back in college where he kept himself abreast of the latest happenings in India and the world.

Even though there were times when the study material was expensive, Manoj never let Pradeep lose out. He ensured that his son had all the resources he required.

He sheds light on the challenges he faced while preparing for his maiden UPSC attempt, “I was new in the field and there are lakhs of aspirants. I knew there would be a lot of struggle but I was ready to fight my battles.”

“The schedule was set. Get up, shower and eat, all the rest of my time was spent studying. The distractions were rare. I had limited going out for films or hanging out with friends to a bare minimum. My father sacrificed a lot and I knew not everyone gets the opportunity that I had. So I treated my first attempt like it was my last attempt. I had to give it my best shot and prove myself.”

Before you think the process may have drained him, he is quick to clarify that he enjoyed the process of preparation thoroughly.

With every result that came—be it the prelims, mains or the final, the happiness of the Singh family reached new heights.

In a message to UPSC aspirants, Pradeep says, “Do not rely on coaching alone. Be a self-starter. Coaching will contribute about 8-10 per cent to the results. But 90 per cent depends on your hard work. If you want to pursue UPSC, think your decision through. Don’t pursue it under family or peer pressure. When it is your own decision, you will do well. Your motivation will come from within and at no point will you regret it. Yes, there will be a lot of struggle. But remember, the more you struggle the greater your chances at success.”

The results were only the first step, as he begins his journey into the civil services.

Pradeep whose journey as an IAS officer has begun signs off by saying, “As an IAS officer, any district that I am posted to, I want to focus on four key areas, namely law and order, women empowerment, health, and education. Because I believe all of these fields are intertwined and dependent on each other for a better society. As I step closer to my dream, I hope I am able to attain these for the greater good of the people I serve.”

Nalanda to exit Mindtree after Sebi questions role

Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com

MUMBAI: Nalanda Capital is exiting MindtreeNSE -1.54 %, having tendered its entire 10.6 per cent stake in the open offer by Larsen & Toubro on Monday, said sources aware of the development. Nalanda founder Pulok Prasad had opposed the takeover and held out against it for months. The fund will make a four-fold return on its investment if it sells all its shares.

The turnabout was attributed to the regulator having written to the Singapore-based public market fund, asking if it was acting in concert with the founders of Mindtree without triggering an open offer, sources said.

This came after a handful of institutional investors in L&T and Mindtree wrote to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), complaining against Prasad for allegedly provoking minority investors of Mindtree, ET reported on June 11. The investors asked the markets regulator to investigate if Prasad was acting in concert with Mindtree’s promoters and other investors opposed to L&T’s takeover.

If so, according to the letter, their combined shareholding as persons acting in concert (PAC) exceeded the regulatory threshold of 25 per cent, beyond which they needed to make an open offer to counter that of L&T.

Proxy advisory firm Ingovern also wrote to Sebi earlier this month on the issue, citing the independent directors’ committee recommendation of June 12.

The committee found L&T’s offer of Rs 980 a share a “fair and reasonable one.”

Legal sources said that even after tendering its shares, Nalanda, registered as a foreign portfolio investor (FPI) with Sebi, will have to respond to the show cause notice or face penal action by the regulator.

Nalanda, the single largest institutional investor in the midcap company, had from the start been vocal about its opposition to L&T’s $1.6-billion “hostile takeover attempts,” with Prasad rallying support from other minority shareholders such as Baburaj Pillai’s Singapore-based Arohi Asset Management Pte, which holds 2.44 per cent.

Prasad was of the opinion that L&T had undervalued Mindtree and that investors should hold out for a better deal. Nalanda’s average acquisition cost in Mindtree was Rs 260 per share and it has been holding its stake for 10 years, adding up to a 276 per cent return at Rs 1,254 crore if it manages to cash out entirely. The Sensex, in comparison, gained 168 per cent in the same 10-year period.

Prasad did not respond to queries and neither did Sebi.

Sources said Sebi has not yet received any response from Nalanda.

L&T currently has a 48 per cent stake, said people with knowledge of the matter. It mounted the takeover bid in March after entering into a deal to buy Cafe Coffee Day owner VG Siddhartha’s 20.32 per cent and placed an order with brokers to pick up another 15 per cent. It has been buying from Nemish Shah’s Enam Holdings, White Oak, Avendus Capital, HDFC Life Insurance and other public shareholders, such as mutual funds and foreign institutional investors (FIIs).

Subsequently, L&T launched an open offer for 51.3 million shares, or 31 per cent of Mindtree. It aims to take its holding to 66 per cent. Another institutional investor, Amansa Capital, sold its 2.6 per cent stake last Friday, while UTI Asset Management is likely to tender its 3 per cent holding later this week.

In the past few weeks, backchannel negotiations have seen the founders tone down their hostility. In a message to shareholders in the FY19 annual report, executive chairman Krishnakumar Natarajan and CEO and managing director Rostow Ravanan wrote that shareholders’ interests were paramount.

THAW IN THE BOARDROOM
Last week saw Mindtree giving the nod to L&T representatives on the board. The board will seek shareholder approval at the annual general meeting, scheduled in July, to induct five new members. They include three non-executive directors —SN Subrahmanyan, chief executive and managing director, L&T; R Shankar Raman, chief financial officer, L&T; and Jayant Patil, senior executive vice-president (defence business), L&T.

The others are independent directors — Prasanna Rangacharya Mysore and Deepa Wadhwa. Subroto Bagchi, one of the founders and a critic of the takeover, won’t seek reappointment.

Assam NRC: 45-Year-Old Woman Of Bihari Origin Declared ‘Foreigner’, Sent To Detention Camp

Source: newscentral24x7.com

On June 15, 45-year-old Amila Shah was sent to a Tezpur detention camp for “foreigners” in Assam. As per a report in The Hindu, Amila, wife of Ram Dulal Shah, a trader based at Dhalaibeel near Jamugurihat in north-central Assam’s Sonitpur district, was sent to the detention centre after she asked to appear before a Foreigners’ Tribunal.

Amila’s family, speaking to the daily, said that their ancestors had come from Bihar and settled down near the Pertubghur Tea Estate east of Jamugurihat during the British rule. In fact, Amila’s father Kesav Prasad Gupta’s name figured in the 1951 National Register of Citizens (NRC) that is being updated in Assam.

A family member told The Hindu that despite providing all documents establishing her citizenship, the Border Police marked her as a suspected foreigner who entered Assam after March 24, 1971. “She was summoned to the FT2 in Tezpur (Sonitpur district headquarters) on June 4, 2018, where all our papers were submitted with elders in the family telling the tribunal we are originally from Bihar, which is very much a part of India,” they added.

Political parties, activists, journalists etc. in Assam have been criticising the Foreign Tribunal and implementation of the NRC for some time now. They have time and again expressed concern over false objections raised by persons with vested interests to harass genuine Indian citizens”, whose names have appeared in the draft NRC.

Opposition parties such as the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the All India United Democratic Front have criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Assam government for targeting specific communities and putting them behind bars in the name of detecting foreigners.

Last month, on May 23, retired Army captain Mohammed Sanaullah was detained by the police in Assam. The 52-year-old was sent to a detention camp after a tribunal declared him to be a foreigner. The veteran, in response to the detention, had said, “This is the reward I got after serving for 30 years in the Indian army.”

AES in Bihar: Poor anganwadi centres failed to deliver

Source: downtoearth.org.in

Imagine a dilapidated room, with no plaster on the walls and any doors, window panes — this is what an anganwadi centre (AWC) in Bihar’s Talimpur village in East Champaran district looks like. More, the building has neither a toilet, hand washing facility nor drinking water.

“I have to carry chairs, utensils and other essentials for making food, charts for teaching children, and my registers everyday to and fro from home,” says the sevika (the main service provider) of the AWC in Talimpur village’s Madhuban block told DTE.

Most AWCs in Muzaffarpur, East Champaran (Motihari) and Sitamarhi districts that Down To Earth (DTE) visited, appears to be in similar appalling condition.

The state has recently witnessed a massive outbreak of Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES), which claimed lives of more than 130 children. Malnourishment has widely been pegged as the causal factor for AES.

The state also has the highest case of malnourished children (43.9 per cent) in India.

The Anganwadi scheme was started as a rural child care programme in 1975 as part of the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) programme. The centres are responsible for providing food and nutrition to children and also pregnant women.

An AWC has a sevika and sahaiyka (the helper who prepares food). The menu is fixed — khichdi, kheer, halwa, rasiav (a sweet local dish to be given on particular days of the week). Typically, an AWC, registers 40 children (3-5 years) for food.

It registers another 40 (0-3 years), eight pregnant and eight lactating mothers to provide take-home-ration (THR). The THR consist of 2.5 kg rice, 2.5 kg dal and some soybean to each of the beneficiaries.

But, many centres get children and mothers more than they could afford. As a result, many do not get registered and remain under nourished.

This is despite the 2006 Supreme Court order directing anganwadi services to be universalised.

“There are many more but I can’t register all of them as the numbers are fixed. Therefore I also have to face wrath of parents whose kids I don’t register,” said Sahaiyka from Talimpur village, adding they try to take only one member (child/lactating or pregnant woman) from a family even if there are more eligible members so that more and more families can be covered.

Out of 2.96 lakh children registered in AWCs of the district’s villages, 27,000 are malnourished, according to a survey report sent by Muzaffarpur district programme manager of ICDS department. This was about those children who are registered. The level of malnourishment in children not registered is yet to be known, the report said.

Most of the deceased’s families that DTE visited said their child was not registered with any AWC.

“There is no AWC nearby. The one that is far did not register my child,” said a man from Muzaffarpur’s Marwan block, who lost his child due to AES. Parents in Sitamarhi and Motihari also narrated a similar story.

Moreover, many of sevikas have also not received their salaries as well as the budget allocated for their centres.

“The villagers come charging on me as to why I am denying food. But the fact remains if I am not getting money what can I do,” said the sevika from AWC in Runni Saidpur block of GIddha Phulwariya village in Sitamarhi district.

The last budget was received in the month of March, she said, teary-eyed. Till the next lot, she provides the children with biscuits from her own pocket on a daily basis.

“If we don’t do it, the children will stop coming and they would not turn up even when I would have the budget. Then I will be questioned by supervisor why children are not there. What would I do then when I would be slapped with notices,” the sahayika rued, adding that they have raised the concern to authorities, but to no avail.

The story is same across AWCs of all the three districts where DTE visited.

According to the recent national family health survey, only 37 per cent children got food from AWCs in Bihar. Incidentally, Bihar had second highest number of malnourished children after Uttar Pradesh till NFHS-3 But in last NFHS survey, it even surpassed Uttar Pradesh.

“Whatever you found in the anganwadi kendras of these villages is in fact of story of villages across Bihar. The story would not have been different, had you not visited the villages before the advent of AES,” said Shakeel, the Bihar coordinator of Jan Swasthya Abhiyan.

“Besides the central government’s scheme, the state also has a couple of them. But the result is to be seen on the ground,” Shakeel added.

Young Boy falls, death, shopping mall, escalator, trousers, caught, handrail,

Source: thesun.co.uk

The young boy, named as Partiv Shah, appears to be bored and begins to play with the moving handrail at the top of the escalator at the Nucleus Mall in Ranchi, East India.

CCTV footage shows how he panics as his trousers appear to be caught in the mechanism, the young boy is hurled forward and his body thrown over the glass partition.

Shah manages to hold on for a few seconds before the fall, as panicked onlookers rush to the escalator in a vain attempt to help him.

TRAGIC ACCIDENT
According to reports the boy had been shopping with his aunt and uncle and had become separated from them at the time of the accident.

The mall’s manager urged guardians to take care of children and reiterated that this tragic accident could have been avoided.

Local journalist, Vishvendu Jaipuriar who claims to have witnessed the horrific accident said the boy appeared to be playing a game in which he was trying to ‘stop’ the escalator.

“The boy was rubbing his body against the escalator’s conveyor belt.

“He was playfully trying to stop with all his might. In the process, he got his pants stuck in the belt and was pulled along.”

SAFETY REGULATIONS
The journalist pointed out that had the mall been in accordance with Indian government rules which require safety nets near escalators, the young boy’s death could have been avoided.

Shah was rushed to hospital from the scene, as traumatised witnesses describe how there was ‘blood all around’ and that the boy didn’t even scream as he hit the floor.

The 13-year old was pronounced dead on arrival.

City Superintendent, Sujata Kumari Veenapani said in a statement: “It seems he was trying to slide down the ground floor through the handrail. The matter is being probed.

“Police will also look into the security aspects at malls.”

Mall manager Kumar Pandey insisted that the shopping centre complied with government safety regulations, he said “escalators [were] installed conforming to global security norms.

6 killed, 43 injured as bus falls into gorge in Jharkhand

Source: indiatoday.in

At least six people were killed and 43 injured after a bus skidded off the road and fell into a gorge in Anuraj Ghati in Garhwa district of Jharkhand on Tuesday.

The accident took place around 3.30 am, they said. CRPF jawans recovered the bodies of six people and rescued 43 passengers by entering the ill-fated bus through the windows, Superintendent of Police Shivani Tiwari told PTI.

While three of the injured were referred to the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences in Ranchi, the rest were admitted to a local hospital, the SP said. The bus was heading to Garhwa, about 140 km from state capital Ranchi, from Ambikapur in Chhattisgarh, she said.

Earlier on June 10, a Patna-bound bus had hit an iron-laden stationary trailer-truck in Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh district.

The accident had taken place at dawn near Danua-Bhanua area under Chouparan Police Station limits, when the bus crashed into the trailer-truck from behind.

Eight persons had died on the spot, while three others succumbed to injuries in the hospital. The bus was travelling to Masauree in Patna district from Ranchi. Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das had expressed grief over the deaths and wished a speedy recovery to the injured.

Jharkhand’s anti-pollution board offers 50% off on hospital registration fees

Source: hindustantimes.com

In a bid to deal with biomedical waste hazard in Jharkhand, the state pollution board on Tuesday held a meeting with the government authorities as well as private health service providers in Ranchi.

Jharkhand State Pollution Control Board (JSPCB) has come up with several offers to woo the hospitals, nursing homes and clinics to get their institutions registered with the board at the earliest.

The board has slashed fees for consent to establish (CTE), consent to operate (CTO) and authorisation by 50%, said JSPCB chairman AK Rastogi. “The offer is applicable for only two months. After August 31, the relaxation will be withdrawn,” he said.

For example, authorisation fee for the hospital having up to four beds is ?1,000 annually. If hospital takes authorisation by August 31, it will have to pay ?500.

Similarly, hospitals having bed capacity of more than 200 have to pay ?6,000 annually, while the actual fee is ?9,000 to ?11,000. JSPCB member secretary Rajiv Lochan Bakshi said that the board would prohibit the operation of individual or private incinerators and the wastes of hospitals in periphery of 70-km radius would be treated at a common bio-medication waste treatment facility (CBWTF).

Bakshi said that two CBWTFs, one at Ramgarh and another at Lohardaga, were functioning. The CBWTF of Saraikela-Kharswan would start functioning very soon, while three more CBWTs are proposed and will be coming up in Dhanbad (Sindri), Ramgarh and Santhal Paragana.

The hospitals have also been asked to establish sewage treatment plants and effluent treatment plants by December 2019.

The pollution board officials said if hospitals failed to get them registered with the board, they might have to face legal action. As per the provisions under Section 15 and Sub-section-1 and Sub-section-2b of the Environment Protection Act, 1986, the defaulter could face five-year jail term or ?1 lakh fine.

Jharkhand’s most hospitals, nursing homes and clinics are not registered with the board so the latter doesn’t have actual figure of bio-medical waste generation. As per the Bio-Medical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2016, every health care centres, be it government or private, should be registered with the board.

Notably, the meeting was called a day after the report, highlighting the problems of bio-medical waste in Jharkhand, was published in HT on Monday.

As per a survey conducted by Delhi-based environmental group Toxics Link and Ranchibased NGO Lok Swar in 31 government and private hospitals of Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad, Bokaro and Deoghar, found that these hospitals produce around 4,700 tonnes of bio-medical waste annually but 59%, around 2,700 tonnes, are left untreated and turns out to be harmful.