New Delhi:Even as the Cabinet Committee on Security is actively considering a Home Ministry proposal to create unified commands in each of the five main Naxal-affected states with a military officer included in the set-up as an adviser, the Army has conveyed that it is “too stretched” to spare additional troops for any enlarged operational role. It is, however, more open to the idea of posting advisers.
While the Army stand, which is backed by the Defence Ministry, can be overruled if a political call is made to use the military in this fight, sources said, there are other complications. The Army is believed to have also pointed out that its troops cannot be deployed for active operation without adequate legal protection through the implementation of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act and related instruments.
Sources said initial proposals from the Home Ministry did in fact, suggest a more active role for the Army. An earlier idea to shift some Rashtriya Rifles battalions to these areas was, however, rejected by the Army on the grounds of insufficient troops. Instead, it proposed raising fresh RR battalions.
As a result, a more limited role for the military is under consideration. However, there are differences after the Home Ministry identified de-mining operations as one of the key tasks for the military. The Army has argued that de-mining cannot be segregated as an operational task as no area is permanently mined in this case. Sources said Maoists use mines and improvised explosive devices as and when they desire, so such capability will have to exist in the force that is deployed for the operations.
The Defence Ministry is likely to go along with the idea of setting up unified commands, but officials remain sceptical about its effectiveness. From what it on the table, the proposed structure will be headed by the chief secretary of the state, with senior officials of the state police and paramilitary forces deployed in that state as members.
Here again, there are issues over the rank of the military adviser. Given that the police are not keen to have an Army official senior to police officers represented in the command, the adviser may end up being of the rank of a Brigadier or a Colonel. The Army, however, seems to be of the view that an adviser of the sort being conceived should be someone more senior, with varied military experience.
A suggestion to involve retired officers — to get around the issue of hierarchy — was apparently shot down by North Block. Still, this is one issue on which the military is likely to agree despite its reservations.
For North Block, however, accommodating police concerns is proving to be an uphill task. Just like raising fresh RR battalions got entangled in turf issues as the force is officered by the Army, another South Block proposal to have the military open a National Counter-Insurgency Training School for helping the paramilitary and police has not made much headway.
The Army, meanwhile, is insisting that IPS officers deployed for operations too must undergo training before induction along with the paramilitary personnel under their command given the pivotal role leadership plays in tactical operations. It has also conveyed the importance of having an entire platoon undergo training with its commanders rather than just an unfamiliar group of personnel who are then posted to separate locations.
Is Pawar losing grip over Indian cricket officialdom?
NEW DELHI: It is measure of the extent to which NCP chief Sharad Pawar’s sway over the Indian cricket establishment has weakened that his one-time protege, BCCI president Shashank Manohar, on Saturday lashed out at suspended IPL commissioner Lalit Modi unmindful of the collateral damage he was doing to Pawar.
In his bid to nail what he said were Modi’s “ridiculous allegations” against the current IPL chief Chirayu Amin, the BCCI president virtually ended up demolishing Pawar’s claim that the bid made by City Corporation was a personal initiative of its managing director, Anirudh Deshpande.
Manohar’s statement is likely to be a cue for others in the faction-ridden BCCI, and can encourage those who have been uncomfortable with Pawar’s continued support for Modi to speak out.
On Modi’s claim, Manohar said that the former IPL boss had himself asked the bidders to contact Chirayu Amin. He said the message to Amin was sent through Maharashtra Cricket Association president Ajay Shirke. On his part, Amin not only said he would join the consortium only if it won but also informed the Board about his intention.
Manohar said in a media release, “The letter (from Amin) makes it clear that it was proposal with a pre-condition that Amin would seek a formal sanction only in case the bid succeeds.”
Manohar’s said that if Anirudh Deshpande was indeed acting in his personal capacity, “the bid could have been rejected at the threshold if it had been from (Deshpande) as an individual as it did not carry the necessary information about the bidder.”
Chirayu Amin in his letter to the BCCI on March 17 had said, ‘‘I am writing to inform you that a group of businessmen have approached me to participate in a franchise bid under the umbrella of ‘City Corporation Ltd Pune’ and I have given my consent to invest upto 10%. Please note that if they succeed, I will communicate to you for formal sanction of BCCI before investing in the venture.”
Indian-American Nikki Haley attacked with racial slur
NEW YORK: Nikki Haley, the Indian-American woman running for South Carolina's governor seat, was attacked with racial slur by a state lawmaker who called her a "raghead".
Republican state Senator Jake Knotts also attacked President Barack Obama in comments on an internet political show called Pub Politics.
Haley, who was born a Sikh and describes herself as a Methodist, became target of racial slur typically used against Arabs or other ethnic groups that wear turbans or headdresses.
"We already got one raghead in the White House," Knotts said. "We don't need another in the governor's mansion," he was quoted as saying by The State, a South Carolina newspaper.
Knotts reportedly also talked at length about Haley's parents' religion and her family.
Haley campaign manager Tim Pearson said Knotts was an embarrassment to the state, and that South Carolina voters would make it clear on Tuesday they are better than this.
Knotts now insists that his comments were made in zest and also agreed to apologize.
"My 'raghead' comments about Obama and Haley were intended in jest," he said.
"Bear in mind that this is a freewheeling, anything-goes Internet radio show that is broadcast from a pub. It's like local political version of 'Saturday Night Live'", he said in a statement.
"Since my intended humorous context was lost in translation, I apologize. I still believe Ms Haley is pretending to be someone she is not, much as Obama did, but I apologize to both for an unintended slur," the Republican politician added.
The show's host, Wesley Donehue, told the newspaper: "I, along with everyone else at the table, was shocked."
Republican Haley currently serves in the South Carolina House of Representatives where she represents Lexington County, and is the first Indian-American to hold office in that state.
Haley's religion was also raised as an issue during her first South Carolina House run in 2004, when anonymous fliers claimed that she was a Hindu, which is incorrect.
The daughter of a Sikh Punjabi immigrants faced more trouble this week, as a political lobbyist claimed that he had a tryst with the Republican candidate, who is already facing allegations of an extra-marital affair.
The 38-year-old mother of two, whose husband is a US Army reserves officer, has been hit by allegations that she had a "physical" relationship with commentator Will Folks.
Haley has refused to make her texts and emails public in order to clear up the controversy.
Haley maintains she has been faithful to her husband for 13 years and her campaign rejected the latest allegations as "a false and outrageous desperate attack from a losing candidate's paid campaign consultant in the final week of the race".
If elected, Haley would be only the second governor of Indian origin in the US after Louisiana's Bobby Jindal.
She currently has the backing of political Republican heavy weights like Sarah Palin and Mitt Romney.
A strong pro family, pro life, pro Second Amendment, pro development, conservative reformer...your next governor Nikki Haley," Palin said in her endorsement.
The Second Amendment protects the right to bear arms in the US.
Modi: What’s Children’s Day done for kids?
MUMBAI: In trying to promote development as BJP’s new mantra to woo voters, Gujarat CM Narendra Modi on Saturday crashed headlong into the legacy of the man credited for his vision of modern India.
Modi said wrong policies can mar development. No problem there, but what he picked to illustrate his point was a tad strange. He said Jawaharlal Nehru’s birth anniversary, being celebrated across the country as Children’s Day, has done precious little to improve the lot of underprivileged children.
"Has anyone shed a tear for these children who struggle to get a square meal a day when Children’s Day is celebrated?" he asked. "Jawaharlal Nehru was said to be very fond of kids and his birthday has been christened as Children’s Day. Kids called him Chacha Nehru and it brought images of a benevolent Nehru flooding our minds. But what good has it done to the kids?"
Modi’s comments came as the party at a meeting tried to push good governance on top of its agenda and fielded Modi as the dream CM. Drawing from his experience in Gujarat, Modi advocated to fellow BJP CMs the need for public-private, government-citizen and public-public participation in order to ensure good governance.
J’khand may see polls after 6 mths of President’s rule
NEW DELHI: Congress is likely to seek fresh elections in Jharkhand after the first spell of President’s rule. The party brass has arrived at the decision after mulling the pros and cons of using the interregnum to cobble together partners to form a government in the volatile state.
Central rule was imposed in Jharkhand this week after six months of coalition between JMM and BJP. The ruling allies fell apart when CM Shibu Soren crossvoted for UPA in the opposition-moved cut motions during the Budget session of Parliament. While the two parties tried to renegotiate the terms of engagement, they could not arrive at an understanding.
According to sources, Congress will not seek extension of President’s rule beyond the first six months. The party plans to bolster its organizational muscle during this period and then seek a fresh vote.
The Congress confidence is boosted by the perception that BJP’s stock has nosedived after the disaster, creating political space for the lead UPA party to revive its fortunes. While many in the state unit think that the Congress should use the clout brought by Raj Bhavan administration to win over fresh allies to form the government, the dominant position is that the current assembly is too messy to seek order in it.
The only exception can be a split-and-merger in favour of UPA. There have been fears of split in JMM in the run-up to the messy divorce with BJP while a small regional party can have a rethink on its independent status. A merger by a breakaway faction in favour of either Congress or ally Jharkhand Vikas Manch of Babulal Marandi would raise hopes of providing a stable government. Congress has adopted a hands-off approach in Jharkhand since the December polls delivered a badly split mandate, with BJP at the top of the heap.
Business News
Gold spikes to record Rs 19,070/10 gm
New Delhi: Gold prices jumped Rs 430 to an all-time high of Rs 19,070 per ten grams in the bullion market here as investors rushed for the metal, considered as a safe bet, after global equity markets crashed on concerns over worsening eurozone debt crisis.
The euro dropped below 1.20 dollar for the first time since March 2006 on mounting concerns that Europe's sovereign-debt crisis would spread to global markets.
Panic sparked after a spokesperson for Hungarian Prime Minister said his nation's economy is in a "very grave situation." The US and European equities and commodities retreated the most in a week.
Fearing the worsening eurozone debt crisis might slowdown global economy, investors rushed to buy gold as an alternate place to park their funds, marketmen said.
Gold in global markets, which normally sets price trend on the domestic front, jumped up by 12.20 dollar to 1,220.00 dollar an ounce.
The ripples were felt in domestic market here as pure gold (99.9) surged by Rs 430 to set a new peak of Rs 19,070 per ten gram. The gold with 99.5 purity shot up by Rs 420 to Rs 18,970 per ten gram.
Sovereign followed suit and traded higher by Rs 50 to Rs 14,650 per piece of eight gram.
However, silver ready lacked necessary buying support and shed Rs 75 to Rs 28,825 per kg and weekly-based delivery by Rs 170 to Rs 28,425 per kg. However, silver coins remained unchanged at Rs 34,400 for buying and Rs 34,500 for selling of 100 pieces.
Mumbai: Maytas Infra on Saturday said it has won a contract worth Rs 1.85 billion to build part of a metro rail network in Gurgaon.
Maytas will build a elevated viaduct and six stations within 21 months for ITNL ENSO Rail Systems, Maytas said in a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange.
Don't exit stimulus at one go: FM to G-20
Busan: India cautioned G-20 nations against rushing to withdraw stimulus measures, although many countries were seeing the worrying trend of expenditure far outstripping income.
"The market is sending strong signals that the fiscal situation is a matter of concern...we should all not rush to fiscal (stimuli) exit at the same time so as not to undermine the recovery...," he said at the G-20 Finance Ministers meet here.
India had unveiled a number of fiscal and monetary sops to insulate the domestic industry in the wake of the 2008 global financial crisis, but rolled back some of them such as excise duty cuts after the economy posted healthy growth.
The economy expanded by 7.4 per cent in 2009-10 from 6.7 per cent in 2008-09, the year that bore the brunt of the global crisis. India's fiscal deficit is pegged at a high 5.5 per cent of GDP this fiscal, but the government hopes to reduce it to 4.5 per cent in 2011-12 and 4.1 per cent in 2012-13.
High fiscal deficit makes borrowings costlier for the industry and in turn impact their investments -- key to economic growth -- at a time when public spending itself is strained because of poor government finances.
"Those countries that have market compulsions may need start the consolidation now. Others can stagger in fiscal consolidation. It is critical, however, to clearly lay down credible and transparent fiscal consolidation paths," Mukherjee said at the meeting called to discuss the global financial crisis and ways to regulate financial institutions.
The Reserve Bank of India too has signalled exit from monetary stimulus and has raised key policy rates twice this year to put the lid on inflation.
Mukherjee also warned the countries that they should exit from stimulus before the markets started forcing them on account of deterioration in fiscal conditions.
"And, we need to act before the market forces us to do so. I may point out that fiscal deterioration is a natural corollary of deep and protracted recessions and downturns as governments try to stimulate the economy back to their true potential," he said.
This entails ceding some control to markets that have to fund the high deficits. Fiscal consolidation is a natural corollary of the recovery process, as countries can only grow their way out of high levels of public debt, he said.
Sports News
IPL easy target for match-fixers: Gilchrist
London:The organisers may insist it is clean but Deccan Chargers' Australian skipper Adam Gilchrist feels the Indian Premier League is an "easy target" for match-fixers as players are accessible during the event.
The retired wicketkeeper-batsman said corruption in cricket can only be stopped by heightened vigilance.
"I've been made more aware of it since getting here, seeing some of those comments from players who have been approached," Gilchrist told 'The Daily Telegraph'.
"I'd be concerned if it was happening, but I haven't seen anything concrete to say it is. You need evidence, and I've not seen any.
"I hear suggestions and whispers, and this stuff that's come out - police coming and arresting players - is pretty hardcore. But unless you get evidence and have something to back it up, it all means nothing. So all the speculation is not good for the game, either," he added.
The IPL is in the middle of a raging controversy presently over the ownership patterns of the eight franchises and money laundering.
The league's Commissioner Lalit Modi has been suspended on charges of financial bunglings and there are also whispers of betting and match-fixing in the event.
Paes-Dlouhy loses in French Open final
Paris: A second successive French Open doubles title eluded Leander Paes as the Indian ace and his Czech partner Lukas Dlouhy lost the final to Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic in straight set here today.
The third seeded Indo-Czech duo failed to convert the two breakpoints that came their way in comparison to their rivals who converted three of the four breakpoints that they earned.
"It has been a great two weeks and I'm happy to be in the finals for the second successive time. I would like to thank Lukas for making it happen and sticking with me," said Paes, who won the title in 1999 and 2001 (both with Mahesh Bhupathi) and then with Dlouhy in 2009.
Dlouhy, on his part, credited the opponents for playing terrific tennis and said hopefully next year they would regain the title.
"They were just too good today. Hopefully me and Leander will play some more tournament in the future and regain the title next year," Dlouhy said.
Paes already has six men's doubles and five mixed doubles Grand Slam crowns in his pocket, same as his estranged partner Bhupathi.
Paes and Dlouhy, who put up an impressive performance coming into the final, earned a breakpoint as early as in the second game after five deuces but couldn't convert it.
Locked 5-5, Nestor-Zimonjic finally broke the Indo-Czech pair in the 11th game and held their serve in the next to wrap up the first set 7-5 in 40 minutes.
With momentum going their way, the Canadian-Serbian duo quickly earned two more breakpoints in the first game of the second set and even though Paes and Dlouhy saved one, they were eventually broken as Nestor-Zimonjic lead 1-0.
Lagging 1-2, Paes-Dlouhy earned another breakpoint in the third game but failed to covert it yet again.
To make things worse, Dlouhy double faulted and gave away three breakpoints which the Canadian-Serbian pair converted without much ado as they surged ahead 4-1.
The Indo-Czech narrowed the gap to 2-5 but it was too late too little as Nestor-Zimonjic held their serves to eventually wrap up the second set 6-2 in 25 minutes and pocket the match and the title comfortably.
India crash out of tri-series after loss against SL
Harare: A sloppy India crashed out of the cricket tri-series after Sri Lanka, riding on Dinesh Chandimal's maiden century, thumped them by six wickets in a crucial one dayer.
Chandimal's (111) 118-ball knock, which included six fours and five sixes, knocked the stuffing out of India's feeble bowling attack as Sri Lanka cruised to 270 for four in 48.2 overs.
Monday's Sri Lanka-Zimbabawe match is now rendered inconsequential and they would meet again in Wednesday's final at the same venue.
Earlier put into bat, India had posted 268 for nine with Virat Kohli (68), Yusuf Pathan (44) and R Ashwin (38) scoring bulk of the runs.
Desperate for a win, India effected three changes in the squad -- bringing in the uncapped trio of Naman Ojha, Pankaj Singh and R Ashwin while leaving out Murali Vijay, Umesh Yadav and Amit Mishra -- but the win remained elusive.
Sri Lanka's chase got off to a brisk start with Tillakaratne Dilshan (21) looking in his element before he fell to Ashok Dinda in the sixth over.
Chandimal joined Upul Tharanga (27) in the middle and looked quite at ease against the Indian attack.
Even after Tharanga fell to R Ashwin, Chandimal continued the good work in company of Chamara Kapugedera (42). He used his feet well against the spinners and never allowed the Indian bowlers to dictate terms.
Chandimal smote Pankaj Singh over mid-on, greeted Pragyan Ojha with a six and twice hit Ashwin out of the ground.
Ashwin eventually had Chandimal stumped in the 41st over but by then, the writing was clear on the wall for India.
Jeevan Mendis (35) and Thilan Samaraweera (28) completed for the formality for the Sri Lankans with consummate ease.
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