Jammu, Aug 19: With improvement in situation, curfew was relaxed for varying periods in Jammu, Samba, Udhampur and Kishtwar districts in Jammu region on Tuesday.

Curfew has been relaxed in Jammu city for 15 hours from 0500 hours, while it was eased for nine hours in Samba, official sources said.

In Udhampur, authorities relaxed curfew for 17 hours from 0500 hours, while it was relaxed in Kishtwar town for three hours from 0700 hours.

The sources said district authorities will be reviewing the situation in Kishtwar town which was rocked by communal violence on August 12 in which two persons lost their lives and several others were injured.

Today is the second day of the three-day 'jail bharo andolan' called by the SASS which said that women activists were going to court arrest demanding the transfer of more than 100 acres of land to the Amarnath Shrine Board.

Hundreds of people courted arrest yesterday in support of the demand for restoration of land.

Meanwhile, SASS convenor Leela Karan Sharma has warned the state government that the Samiti will not take part in any dialogue with the administration if it "continues to harass" public servants who have rendered their support to the agitation.

Sharma said he had conveyed his views in this regard to B B Vyas, Principal Secretary to Governor N N Vohra.

"The samiti issues a strong warning to the state government against any such action and cautions that in the event of any such act on the part of state administration, it would not be possible for the Samiti to take part in any type of dialogue with the state government," he said.

Life limps back to normalcy in Kashmir Valley

The Kashmir Valley, where normal life was disrupted for eight days due to the agitation to end the "economic blockade", limped back to normalcy today following separatists' decision to suspend the strike for three days.

Schools, shops, business establishments and offices opened as the Coordination Committee -- an amalgam of separatists, social organisations, traders' and employees' bodies -- decided to suspend the strike for three days beginning today.

Vehicles were seen plying on all city and inter-district routes of the Valley.

The separatists had decided to suspend the strike for three days to provide relief to students, labourers and other sections of the society who were hit by the shutdown.

However, vehicles and business establishments perched black flags atop their buildings as a mark of protest and in support of the demands of the separatist groups.

The separatists had launched the agitation on August 11 demanding the opening of Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road to end the "economic blockade" of the valley in the wake of the Amarnath land stir.

As many as 22 people were killed during the protests and in police firing in the Valley. The separatists have called for 'march to Eidgah' in downtown city on Friday when they will announce their future course of action.
 

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Islamabad, Aug 18: Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf on Monday announced that he was stepping down from the post, amid tremendous pressure from the ruling coalition government to do so. “For the sake of the nation and people, I’m resigning. I don’t want anything from anybody. I’m not vindictive. Let the people be the judges. Let them do justice. I’m going with the belief that I have done everything for the nation with honesty,” Musharraf said in a live televised address to the nation. The President added that he will submit his resignation to the National Assembly in a shortwhile.

While announcing his decision to step down, a worried and emotional Musharraf said, “Even if the impeachment motion (to be brought against him) is defeated, the relationship between the President and the government will not be alright.” There might also be tensions between the Parliament and judiciary and even the Army might get dragged into it, he added.

“I’m worried Pakistan is going down abyss rapidly, poor people are being affected,” he said. Quoting recent opinion polls, Musharraf said that 80% of the population wanted him to stay. “But I’m resigning so that there should be no more uncertainty in Pakistan,” he added.

An emotional Musharraf asked his supporters to accept his decision for the sake of the country, saying, “If this (the current impasse with the ruling coalition) would have been on a personal level, I would have done something else.”

On the plans to impeach him, an aggressive Musharraf said that he was not afraid of any chargesheet. “Not even one charge can stand against me,” he said, adding “but the question is: should a personal issue lead the country into an instable phase. Can the country take any of this? Will it be right that the office of the President be subjected to impeachment?”

“I may win or lose impeachment, but the people, the nation will definitely lose. I love Pakistan. I’m ready to give my life for the nation. I will never do anything that puts nation in the peril.”

In a bid to seek Musharraf’s impeachment, Pakistan’s ruling coalition has prepared a chargesheet against him, which was to be filed in the National Assembly today.

At the start of his speech, Musharraf said that it was a day of important decisions for him, adding God is with him.

“Seen Pakistan through worst times”

The President also said that he has seen Pakistan through the worst of times in the last eight years. The challenges that Pakistan has faced and successfully tackled during my tenure have never been faced by any other Pakistan ruler, Musharraf added.

“When I took over Pakistan’s reign in 1999, the country was in tatters. It was set to be declared a terrorist state. I have worked hard for last eight years and turned challenges into opportunities,” Musharraf said further in his address. “I am proud I have kept Pakistan intact,” he added.

The ex-General further said that he has kept Pakistan and its people in mind whenever trying to resolve any problem. “I gave a slogan ‘Pakistan first’ from the core of my heart,” he added.

He also lashed out at the current rulers, saying some people who have always kept their self-interest above Pakistan’s are leveling false allegations against him. “They have cheated Pakistan’s people,” he added.

Talking about reconciliation, Musharraf said that he always wanted that and is ready to create an atmosphere for that. As proof of his sincere attitude, the President said that he was never involved in politics of vendetta and victimization of anybody.

Enumerating the highlights of his rule, Musharraf said that the economy was sound when he was at the helm of power. He talked about the GDP which was at 7% as late as December 2007 and that Pakistan was rated high by international rating agencies. But over the past eight months, the economy has begun a downslide, with foreign exchange reserves, stock exchange, currency rates falling. Prices of all essential commodities have also increased, he added.

Apparently, moved by the importance of the “moment” in his life, Musharraf said, “I thank the defence forces for their loyalty and also the people of Pakistan for the love they bestowed on me. I’m a common man, part of the middle class. I know their difficulties. I hope the government looks into it.” He went on to call upon ‘Allah’ to keep his Pakistan safe and solve the problems of its people. The man who ruled Pakistan for nine long years, in a way played a crucial part in the sub-continent’s history, bid adieu by saying, “Pakistan Khuda Hafiz.”

Where will Musharraf go?

The announcement of resignation came amid conflicting reports that Musharraf might go in exile. Reports also suggested that a Saudi plane is on a standby at the Rawalpindi airport, fuelling speculation that Musharraf might fly to Saudi Arabia after his address to seek asylum in the Islamic Kingdom.

It may be noted that top US officials have said that granting asylum to the beleaguered Pakistan President was not on the cards. Some reports also suggested that the former Army Chief may seek refuge in Turkey where he owns a house and spent his formative years.

Musharraf seized power in a bloodless military coup in 1999 and then imposed a State of Emergency in November last year to push his re-election to another five-year term through the Supreme Court.
 

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Beijing, Aug 18: Umpteen Davids have slain many a Goliath in the world of boxing and Akhil Kumar, standing on the threshold of history, does not want to step on a banana skin and miss out on his first Olympic medal on Monday.

For someone who has beaten the world champion in his previous round, today's quarter-final bout against the relatively unheralded Veaceslav Gojan of Moldova should ideally be a cakewalk. Akhil, however, refuses to lower his guard and says underestimating opponents can often be fatal.

"You never underestimate an opponent, much like you never get overawed by his reputation," the bantam weight (54kg) boxer, who is just one win away from an Olympic medal, said.

"A number of great players have bitten the dust just because they took it for granted. The Russian world champion (Sergey Vodopyanov) made the same mistake and underestimated me. See who reached the quarter-finals. It's a cardinal sin in any other sport and I'm not going to step into the ring thinking he would serve it on a platter," the Haryana boxer said.

Even before he boarded the flight to Beijing, Akhil has been insisting that he would not settle for anything less than gold. Asked if that was arrogance, Akhil said he is aware of the fine line that separates confidence from complacency.

"I'm not complacent at all. I'm just confident, confident of my ability. I want to be the first Indian boxer to have an Olympic medal dangling from his neck and that just cannot happen if I am not confident enough. Tomorrow is my medal bout, it's too big an occasion to get complacent. And I'm confident because I know I'm not complacent," Akhil said.

The 27-year-old has not faced Gojan before but the boxer says he has seen enough recordings of the Moldovan.

"I'm thankful to Doordarshan , they provided me some of those recordings. I'm consulting my coaches and formulating a strategy. All I can say is that I would not turn up under-prepared tomorrow," he asserted.

Though overwhelmed by the deluge of wishes flowing from all quarters, Akhil is hurt by the way boxers are treated back home and he pleaded all to provide financial security to pugilists.

"I'm not sure if I would be read and listened to if something untoward happens in tomorrow's bout. But I know people would listen to me today. So I don't want to take a chance and urge all to provide security to the boxers. I work with the Railways but if I buy a pair of boxing shoes, I've to worry how to meet my monthly expenditure. Promised promotions never actually materialise and it's worse with other boxers," said Akhil, sounding bitter.

"I don't aspire for private jets or trendy cars. I just want decent jobs for boxers and some financial security for them, so that they can concentrate on their craft," he added.
 

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New Delhi, Aug 18: After a gap of five years Yamuna River is flowing above danger mark to touch 205.55 meter in Delhi.

This is about 1.50 meters above the red mark. Precautionary measures have been stepped up.

Authorities have evacuated to safer places 60 people trapped as Yamuna overflowed in Usmanpur area.

Development Minister Rajkumar Chauhan said there is no imminent threat to life and property. He said the water level in the Yamuna is rising consistently as Haryana is releasing 25,000 cusecs of rain water everyday.

Chauhan said if it continues, the water level is expected to rise further in the next few days.

As a precaution, the authorities are releasing more than 50,000 cusecs of water from Wazirabad barrage to Okhla barrage and ITO barrage. Control rooms have been set up at strategic places to keep a round-the-clock vigil on the water flow.

The city faced heavy floods in 1978, when the Yamuna crossed the danger mark and rose to 207.49. The river had also crossed danger level in 1995 and 1998.

The Meterological department has said the city received a rainfall of 18.02 mm between 8.30 a.m. and 5.30 pm. yesterday.

A Met official forecast cloudy sky with few spells of rain in the next 24 hours

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Jammu, Aug 18: The Shri Amarnath Sangarsh Samiti (SASS) on Monday started its three-day 'jail bharo andolan' as authorities lifted curfew for the day in Kishtwar, Jammu and Udhampur districts and relaxed it for nine hours in Samba district.

Hundreds of people gathered in the city following a bandh call by the SASS which has been spearheading the agitation for the past 51 days.

Over one lakh people demanding transfer of nearly 100 acres of land to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) are likely to court arrest, said SASS spokesman Narinder Singh.

Police said curfew was relaxed today from 5 am to 8 pm in Kishtwar, Jammu and Udhampur districts.

"In Kishtwar, which witnessed violence last week, there was no untoward incident and curfew has been relaxed for the day. However, tension is still high," Deputy Commissioner Sudershan Kumar Sharma told reporters.

Samba and Jammu have been under curfew for the past 18 days while Udhampur has been facing curfew restrictions for the past 13 days. The curfew was relaxed today from 5 am to 2 pm in Samba district.
 

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Six people, including two policemen, were killed and 84 others were injured when agitating farmers from clashed with the police in Greater Noida on Wednesday.

The farmers were demanding compensation for their land, which was acquired by the Uttar Pradesh government way back in 2003 and 2005.  As the demonstration turned violent with the protestors torching four tractors, five motorcycles and a car and pelting stones, the cops resorted to lathicharge.

However, when the situation turned out of control, the police opened fire. Over 200 rounds were fired in which four people were killed. 

The deceased and the injured were all rushed to the Kailash Hospital in Greater Noida. The deceased have been identified as Manoj alias Kalwa, Sunil, Yogesh and Pradeep Rawal.  

"I was in front of the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority office since morning when the protestors started pelting stones and bricks. We were not prepared for such violence. They tried to manhandle the SSP and we had to lathicharge them. We had to open fire," said a police sub inspector.

The villagers had gathered to press for their demand that the compensation awarded for land acquired in 2003 and 2005 to be equal to the rate of compensation awarded in 2008.

IG (Meerut Zone), Gian Singh said, "We lathicharged them initially. We also fired water canons and tear gas shells. But then when they could not be controlled the police resorted to firing. A policeman has also been killed. The violence during the protests were pre-planned, we will take action."

However, the farmers are claiming that more people have been killed as many of them are "missing".

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Mind it: An approximate 27 lakh passengers use the station
 
An intelligence report with the Government Railway Police (GRP) and the Railway Protection Force (RPF) received last week, says Churchgate station, which sees 27 lakh commuters every day, could be bombed on August 15.

Even though security is upped on both Independence Day and Republic Day, the rail administration will now be doubling security measures as it's taking the bomb threat seriously. Additional personnel will be deployed and every  part of the station will be under a security net. Churchgate is one among several other targets in the city, details of which, were unavailable. WR Senior Divisional Security Commissioner Devendra Kasar confirmed the threat perception, but refused to furnish further details.

"We are making arrangements to ensure proper security," he said. In fact, security measures - checks to see if the GRP and the RPF personnel are alert to possible threats at railway stations - are already in place. A week ago, the police headquarters carried out a sting operation and sent a team of 'terrorists' to Churchgate. Thankfully, the team was detected.

A failure to detect a decoy can earn a reprimand or punishment for the personnel on duty. If a decoy is caught or detected, the personnel on duty are rewarded.

A few days earlier, the railway security personnel were informed that three stations CST, Churchgate and Marine Lines would be a terror targets on August 11.

A security drill with mandatory checks was carried out on that day too, but nothing untoward happened.

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Arjun Bali, an Indian-origin teenager from Buckinghamshire scaled the 20,000 feet Stok Kangri in the area of Ladakh of the Himalayas to raise money for charity in Africa.

16-year-old Bali, a climbing enthusiast, is a resident of Beaconsfield and completed the climb in aid of a fund set up by his housemaster at his school.

He managed to raise almost 4,000 pounds.
This money will be used to support the WAMA Foundation, which provides orphaned Tanzanian girls with secondary education and Emusoi, a school that educates young girls from the Massai community.

Bali, the secretary of the RJM Tanzania Project, explained, "You go to school in this country until you are 16 at least; in other parts of the world that's not the case."
"It was nice to feel when I got to the top that I had really earned it and done something to help those girls in Africa," he said.
"A lot have run away from home after their parents have been trying to force them into marriage or circumcisions. Some people there don't see the value of girls being educated," Bali concludes.

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LUCKY: Fire brigade personnel rescue the trapped from the Rangoli building at Bhendi Bazaar that collapsed yesterday.  PIC/BIPIN KOKATE
 
Twenty-one people have already died in the Rangoli building collapse at Bhendi Bazaar. But if the death toll continued to rise, the impediments on rescue work will have to be blamed. Efforts to rescue those trapped were hampered by the inadequate access to the building.

The building is blocked on all sides by several other buildings and the narrow space between these structures meant restriction to the movement of rescue personnel and vehicles. Also, the debris was removed brick by brick, as large-scale removal was just not possible. This was evident with the fact that rescue efforts, which began around 5.45 am yesterday, were still on while going to press.

Get 'em in time

Dr Mohan Warang, senior medical officer at JJ Hospital - where most of the injured were taken - said even rescue ladders or ambulances could not reach the building. "When children and infants are involved, it is imperative that they be rushed to a hospital within two hours. These children were brought nearly 12 hours after the incident. Even if their injuries were minor, they would die because of asphyxiation before they were treated," said Warang.

Even the BMC said they couldn't do much. According to R A Rajeev, addl municipal commissioner, the buildings that are in the city for a long time were made on the rules that existed at that time. New rules are applicable for new buildings. "The only solution is redevelopment," he said.

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Here's to me: Margaret Nazareth slipped in the toilet of her home last Tuesday
 
For most senior citizens over 70, a fracture is nothing short of a death knell. However, 100-year-old great grandmother Margaret Nazareth could hardly compare to them.

Margaret who fractured her hip last Tuesday was on her feet 48 hours after the accident - a feat that came as an obvious relief to her family and friends.

"My grandmother slipped in the loo. We took no time in getting her to the hospital and she's already tired of staying in bed," said her granddaughter, Bandra resident Rosanne Nazareth (38).

Within 24 hrs

What really saved Nazareth was that her surgery was completed in the window period of 24 hours.

She was operated on by orthopaedic surgeon Dr B S Rajput of Cumbala Hill Hospital, who said that had they waited any longer, the patient could have developed umpteen complications.

"There are too many people who just try to deal with a fracture in an inadequate way after they've had a fall. They can develop chest infections, bed sores, urinary problems if they wait too long," said Rajput, who operated on Nazareth for three hours.

'Hey there'

For Margaret, her fall is already a distant memory and she can hardly wait to get out of bed. "When I was at the hospital, I asked the doctor if I'd be OK to go dancing the next day. He said yes and that made me feel a whole lot better," she said.

Her family also added that Margaret's been missing her favourite evening pastime. "She'd spend hours in the balcony, waving out to friends and strangers. Our neighbours came asking when they didn't see her last week. More than anything, it's her will to live that helped her recover this quickly," said Rosanne.

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