President Pratibha Patil | SilverScorpio.Com

Pressure on Rahul Gandhi to resolve Lokpal crisis

August 23, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

MUMBAI: Pressure is building up on Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi from within the party to step in and resolve the crisis over the Lokpal bill, in view of the nationwide response to Anna Hazare’s agitation.

“The response is unprecedented. It has caused massive damage to the party. It will have to pay a heavy price in the forthcoming polls in some states. In the last three days, many senior Congress leaders called on Rahul to press for his intervention. We expect him to step in soon,” a senior Congress minister in Maharashtra said on Monday.

On April 5, Hazare called off his fast following intervention by Congress president Sonia Gandhi. “Sonia Gandhi had written a letter to Hazare and assured him that a joint committee, including his nominees, will be set up. Now, since Sonia is away for medical treatment, Rahul should take the initiative and resolve the dispute,” he said.

Some senior Congress leaders also plan to seek President Pratibha Patil’s intervention. “We plan to meet her and we feel that she should appeal to Hazare to call off his agitation,” they said.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: bill, Congress, congress president sonia gandhi, Forthcoming Polls, intervention, President Pratibha Patil, Rahul Gandhi, response

Some sulk, others cheer: A range of emotions on show at oath-taking

July 12, 2011 By admin

NEW DELHI: From quiet jubilation to sulking silence—the brief swearing-in ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhawan on Tuesday — saw the entire rainbow of emotion, with 11 ministers being administered the oath by President Pratibha Patil.

Among those who had a reason to celebrate included V Kishore Chand Deo, Beni Prasad Verma, Dinesh Trivedi and Jairam Ramesh, who have been elevated to the Cabinet rank. Trivedi, in a crisp white dhoti-kurta, and minister of state Bhanwar Jitendra Singh, in his red and yellow turban, were dressed for the occasion.

A beaming Jayanthi Natarajan and Paban Singh Ghatowar were sworn in as minister of state with independent charge. While four ministers took their oath in Hindi, a majority chose to take their oath in the name of God. Minister of state Charan Das Mahant went a step further to express his gratitude in being given MoS rank by touching the feet of Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh after being sworn in.

Ministers Gurudas Kamat and Srikumar Jena were conspicuous by their absence at the ceremony, making obvious their unhappiness in the apparent short shrift that had been given to them. K

amat, the erstwhile MoS in home affairs and IT & communications, was named MoS (independent charge) drinking water and sanitation. Later in the evening, he resigned in protest against his new portfolio.

Former law minister Veerappa Moily, who has been given corporate affairs, was a subdued version of his usual ebullient self. Those present at the ceremony included vice president Hamid Ansari and Opposition leader Sushma Swaraj. The four key ministers — Pranab Mukherjee, P Chidambaram, S M Krishna and AK Antony — were also present.

All the five MoS are first-timers. These include Sudip Bandopadhyay, Charan Das Mahant, Bhanwar Jitendra Singh, Rajiv Shukla and Milind Deora. Deora was accompanied by his entire family, including father Murli Deora, who had resigned in the run up to the reshuffle.

The day was also marked by an unprecedented breach in protocol. The Prime Minister's Office released the list of Cabinet ministers on Tuesday morning as a break in protocol. Usually, the list is issued by the Rashtrapati Bhawan. President's Office sources said the list had been cleared by the President, and it was only an effort towards transparency.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: First Timers, jairam ramesh, jayanthi natarajan, Mahant, Manmohan Singh, Milind Deora, President Pratibha Patil, Rajiv Shukla

‘CBI fabricated our statements’

June 6, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Mumbai, June 6 — The trial in the murder of the president of the Jalgaon District Congress Committee, Vishram Patil, has taken a new turn. Some of the witnesses, including a prosecution (panch) witness, have filed affidavits alleging that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) fabricated their statements attached to the CBI’s additional chargesheet filed on June 10, 2006.

Vishram was murdered on September 21, 2005. Political rivalry between him and party colleague, G.N. Patil, President Pratibha Patil’s brother, and another party member, Ulhas Patil, was suspected to be the reason for the murder.

Vishram’s widow, Rajni Patil, had moved the high court and the Supreme Court to make G.N. Patil an accused in the murder. An affidavit filed by Rekha Mali (wife of accused Raju Mali, who died in custody in 2007) alleged that the CBI and police fabricated her statement.

“CBI officers visit me and threaten me and my relatives. They ask me to give my statement according to what they say.

If anything happens to me, the CBI should be held responsible,” Rekha’s affidavit said. A senior CBI official confirmed these affidavits were filed.

“We will follow the process of law and file a reply if the court asks us to,” the officer said. The affidavit of Kishor Shah, one of the witnesses, said the police had approached him to be a panch witness.

“The police threatened me saying if I didn’t help them they would make me an accused in the case,” Shah’s affidavit said. Raju’s brother, Sanju, said the CBI had attached his statement with the chargesheet without recording it.

Rekha’s affidavit also said her husband had connections with politicians but nobody helped her. She claimed she had gone to meet G.N. Patil who asked her to return after 90 days.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: affidavit, affidavits, Cbi Officers, central bureau of investigation, colleague, district congress committee, Jalgaon, mali, Party Member, political rivalry, politicians, President Pratibha Patil, prosecution, Rajni, raju, relatives, reply, Sanju, Supreme Court, witness

Didigiri hits Karat, is Yechury next Red boss?

June 6, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

New Delhi, June 6 (IANS) ‘Didigiri’ appears set to shatter the ‘dadagiri’ of the Red bosses after the battering they got from Cyclone Mamata in the West Bengal civic polls. The buzz is that CPI-M top man Prakash Karat is seriously thinking of handing over the baton to Sitaram Yechury.

Party insiders say although he still enjoys the full backing of the party’s Kerala state committee, West Bengal leaders are not happy with him for severing all ties with the Congress over the India-US nuclear deal. Unlike Karat’s Stalinist hardline, Yechury’s pragmatism is seen widely as his plus point. They believe the party could re-build a bridge with the Congress under Yechury’s leadership.

A section in the party believes a change in the CPI-M leadership may take place later this year before the assembly polls in West Bengal and Kerala next year.

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Newsmakers in Shanghai!

Presidential visits have a knack for making news for all the wrong reasons. And so it was when two Indian journalists from prominent TV channels got into a drunken brawl in Shanghai during President Pratibha Patil’s visit to China.

The news spread like ‘wildfire’, the delegates travelling with the president got to know about it within minutes. For the Indian embassy, it was most embarrassing, as it was made clear to everyone, including the scribes, that the Chinese regard drunkenness with extreme distaste.

‘If it had been some official in the president’s delegation, the media would have flashed it as breaking news,’ said one senior official.

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Zuma’s ode to Indian food

‘Time is the biggest enemy to what we want to achieve here in India,’ South African President Jacob Zuma told the captains of Indian industry. ‘Especially for eating!’ he added after a pause, triggering ripples of laughter across the Durbar hall in Taj Palace hotel.

‘Those who are not from Durban, it is too much… But for those from Durban, with the hot curry, we feel at home,’ he said.

Zuma, a fan of Hindi films, also expressed his love for things Indian during a press appearance with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. ‘I enjoyed the music and the food. We are at home in India,’ said Zuma, adding he and his delegation did not feel like leaving.

Zuma’s hometown is Durban, the third largest South African city, which also hosts the country’s largest Indian population.

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Scandal back home

While South African President Jacob Zuma’s state visit here received a fairly good press in India, back home, it was overshadowed by a scandal involving his second wife Nompumelelo Ntuli who had accompanied him on the trip.

Newspapers in South Africa carried reports of alleged improprieties by First Lady Ntuli, as noted in an anonymous letter faxed to media houses. This led the President’s Office to issue a terse denial Friday, saying the reports were part of an ‘ongoing and malicious campaign to undermine the right of the president and his family to privacy and dignity’.

‘He will not dignify such gossip with a response,’ said the note.

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What’s between Congress, Paswan?

Guess what comes between the Congress and Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Ram Vilas Paswan? The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) of Lalu Prasad.

The Congress is not likely to support any candidate in the ensuing elections to the Rajya Sabha from the state. And Paswan is doing exactly that with RJD’s help.

The Congress has 10 MLAs in the state and state leaders say a directive will be issued to party MLAs to abstain from voting. State Congress leaders are up against any tie-up with the RJD – they even prevailed upon central leaders against any attempts at government formation in Jharkhand with Lalu Prasad’s RJD.

But if Paswan distances himself from Lalu after getting elected to the Rajya Sabha, there is always the possibility of a tie-up, say Congress leaders.

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Jairam misses Environment Day function

Guess who missed the World Environment Day function at Vigyan Bhavan Saturday? Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh.

Ramesh could not make it to the ceremony as he was in Andhra Pradesh with work related to his Rajya Sabha nomination. While invitation cards read that Ramesh would preside over the function, the ministry asked Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khursheed to take over at the last moment.

‘I am here as a substitute for the un-substitutable Jairam Ramesh,’ said Khursheed who read out a record of work done by the environment ministry in past year.

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Tytler’s unending woes

Nothing seems to be working out for Congress leader Jagdish Tytler, the man who until recently was supposed to shepherd the Congress’ comeback trail in poll-bound Bihar.

Barely a year after he was given a chance to rehabilitate himself – having been denied a Lok Sabha ticket in the wake of fierce opposition to his candidature by Sikh groups – he is once again in the wilderness.

The party central leadership removed him as incharge of the state earlier this week for his apparent failure to check factionalism in the state party unit. The story goes that Tytler developed differences with his protege Anil Kumar Sharma, who too was removed last week as the party’s Bihar unit president.

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Tech savvy Bollywood divas

Who says technology is a thing for the guys? Bollywood divas are slowly taking over that domain. While Bipasha Basu appeared in a trimmer-than-ever avatar to endorse a cellphone company and tomtommed her soon-to-join micro blogging site Twitter, another diva Neha Dhupia beat the likes of willow wielder VVS Laxman in an online gaming competition.

Another beauty Priyanka Chopra, a regular at Twitter, couldn’t help but go gaga over her inseparable association with her new prized possession – the Apple iPad. Well if these maidens are set to conquer the wired world, how do boys have all the fun?

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Assembly polls, Civic Polls, drunken brawl, Extreme Distaste, Food Time, Hindi Films, india south, indian embassy, Indian journalists, Jacob Zuma, kerala state, mamata, nuclear deal, party insiders, President Pratibha Patil, Red Boss, south african president, taj palace hotel, west bengal, zuma

LeT man sneaked in as driver during Patil visit to AP

May 31, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

In a startling disclosure, a Lashkar-e-Toiba operative arrested from Hyderabad on May 3 has told interrogators that for four days in December 2008 he had driven President Pratibha Patil’s son Rajendra Shekhawat around the city as she paid a two-week official visit to Andhra Pradesh.

This was more than a year after the alleged Lashkar operative, Mohammad Zia-ul-Haq, reportedly received a consignment of a pistol and two hand grenades concealed in a box of sweets in New Delhi.

Haq is also linked to the May 7, 2006, hand grenade blast in Hyderabad’s Odeon Cinema.

Haq has told investigators that he “worked as a driver” for the President’s son as the Head of State was paying a visit to Hyderabad.

Haq has said he was preparing to target foreigners working in companies like Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu when he was arrested. Police officials in Hyderabad questioning Haq confirmed the disclosure but did not reveal whether Rashtrapati Bhavan had been briefed.

Haq was arrested from Hyderabad’s Edi Bazaar after his telephones and e-mails were intercepted. Following the arrest, two other sleeper cells in Srinagar and Nepal were busted with sufficient leads that the “handler” of all the three operatives — part of the Lashkar’s ‘Indian Ocean’ network — was an LeT Commander based in Saudi Arabia. Haq has reportedly listed all the “exchanges” he had on planned terror strikes with his “handlers”.

Haq’s interrogation has also laid bare the relative ease with which LeT operatives like him made border crossings from Pakistan Occupied Kashmir and Dhaka. He has said that after being inducted into the LeT in Saudi Arabia in 2002, he was taken to Muzaffarabad for a 30-day arms training and issued arms and ammunition in Kotli, PoK. LeT “guides” later escorted him across Poonch, after which he reached Banihal on foot and then moved to Delhi and finally, Hyderabad.

The other border crossing that Haq describes is to Bangladesh in 2008, where he was called to meet his “handler” since he was delaying “execution of offence (attacks)” in Hyderabad.

His interrogation report reads, “After receiving firearms and cash at Delhi, my handler Abdul Aziz started pressurising me to execute/commit some sensational offence. As per his instructions, either I have to throw the hand-grenade in the crowd or the targeted person. I was planning to throw the hand-grenade in the crowd gathered nearby Hitech City (Hyderabad) in front of hotels or on the foreigners working in Deliotte company. Though initially I thought I alone can execute the task, I started requesting my handler to send someone in support to me…”

Haq has said that among the 25 LeT recruits with whom he got a brief arms training in Muzaffarabad was a young man from Tamil Nadu.

He has also disclosed that it was in Saudi Arabia that he was taught how to use the Internet and create e-mail IDs.

He said that while operatives like him used e-mails and accessed Internet from five specific locations in Hyderabad, LeT commanders in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia always used VoIP ( voice-over-internet-protocol) to convey instructions.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Blast In Hyderabad, border crossings, Box Of Sweets, Days In December, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, hand grenades, hand-grenade, Kotli, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Ocean Network, Odeon Cinema, pakistan occupied kashmir, police officials, poonch, President Pratibha Patil, rajendra, shekhawat, Startling Disclosure, terror strikes, Zia-ul-Haq

President Patil dedicates Indian-style Buddhist temple to China

May 29, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Luoyang (China), May 29 (IANS) Visiting Indian President Pratibha Patil Saturday dedicated a Buddhist temple, built with Indian assistance, to the Chinese people.

The structure is adjacent to the White Horse Temple (Baima Si) built in the first century A.D. in honour of two Indian monks who travelled on horseback, carrying with them religious texts and an image of the Buddha.

As she entered its premises in this city in Henan province, she was welcomed by Buddhist monks in yellow robes.

The temple has a dome that 63 feet high and 80 feet in diameter and has a 16-feet tall statue of Buddha in a preaching position. Indian officials say it is modelled on lines of the Sanchi Stupa in Madhya Pradesh.

The temple is Indian not only in concept and design but also the material that has gone into its construction. A variety of stones in many textures from Kota and Jaisalmer in Rajasthan as well as marbles and granite were carried in 200 containers to China.

The glass roof of the temple allows in a swathe of sunlight that falls on the Buddha statue. The statue is made of Chunar sandstone, the same that was used to make the Buddha idol at Sarnath near Varanasi, a major Buddhist pilgrim centre.

At the entrance to the shrine is the ‘toran’ or the ‘welcome gate’ along with two ‘dwarapals’ (gatekeepers). There is a separate shrine for the ‘paduka’, the Buddha’s feet that are traditionally worshipped. Water bodies and lawns outside complete the exteriors.

The idea of the temple was proposed by China in 2003 when then Indian prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee visited Luoyang. He promptly accepted the idea, realising the importance of a Buddhist shrine as a means for people-to-people contact.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit in 2008.

India has provided technical, financial and other support for the temple that stands on a 6,000 square metre plot provided by the Chinese government.

Sanchi in Madhya Pradesh is known for its stupas, monasteries, temples and pillars dating from the 3rd century B.C. to the 12th century A.D. The most famous of these monuments, the Sanchi Stupa, was originally built by emperor Asoka.

Patil is on a six-day visit to China. The visit ends May 31.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: atal bihari vajpayee, Buddha Statue, buddhist monks, Buddhist Shrine, Buddhist Temple, INDIAN President, Indian Prime Minister, Luoyang China, Manmohan Singh, memorandum of understanding, Pilgrim Centre, President Pratibha Patil, Prime Minister Atal, Prime Minister Atal Bihari, prime minister manmohan, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Religious Texts, Sanchi Stupa, Welcome Gate, White Horse Temple

Vegetarian president brings own cooks to China

May 29, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Beijing, May 29 (IANS) President Pratibha Patil, a vegetarian, has flown in her own cooks for her six-day China visit, fully aware that she was visiting a nation known for a cuisine that is primarily non-vegetarian and where gourmet dishes are whipped out of many animal, bird and fish species.

In fact, the president who attended a sumptuous state banquet Thursday given by her Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao at the Great Hall of People bypassed the non-vegetarian dishes and tucked into a meal which included a special dish of white gourd.

Officials said Patil, who is staying in the majestic Hotel Raffles Beijing, has a huge suite which has a big kitchen, with separate entry for staff members. Patil is in China on a six-day visit that is taking her to Beijing, Luoyang and Shanghai.

‘She is a simple eater. And likes her dal, rice and one vegetable. Her chef knows her liking,’ an official told IANS, not wishing to be identified as he was not supposed to talk to the media.

Not only chefs Laxman Rai and Dheeraj Mani Bhatt are taking care of the president’s needs, but also her husband Devisingh Ramsingh Shekhawat, son-in-law Jayesh Rathore and grandson Dhruvesh Rathor who are accompanying her in the visit.

As Chinese dining etiquettes demand that guests do not decline any food that is served to them, Chinese authorities were informed about the president’s preferences in advance. ‘She was not offered any non-vegetarian fare (at the state banquet),’ said the official.

A huge steel box labelled with bold letters ‘grocery’ was flown to China. In fact, it was one of the few things that were loaded first in the special aircraft Air India One in which the president and her entourage travelled.

‘We are carrying everything for the journey. We know her choices so we have packed everything. We wanted to be fully prepared,’ the official told IANS.

Chinese banquets typically serve about ten courses that include food cooked from animal, fish or bird anatomy.

(Kavita Bajeli-Datt can be contacted at kavita.d@ians.in)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: air india, Banquets, Bird Anatomy, Bird And Fish, Bold Letters, China Beijing, chinese authorities, Chinese Counterpart, Dining Etiquettes, fish species, gourd, gourmet dishes, Hu Jintao, luoyang, Majestic Hotel, President Pratibha Patil, Rathore, State Banquet, vegetarian dishes, Vegetarian Fare

RJD MP delays President Patil’s flight in China

May 29, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Beijing/Luoyang, May 29 (IANS) President Pratibha Patil’s flight from Beijing to Luoyang was delayed by 20 minutes Saturday as Lok Sabha MP Raghuvansh Prasad Singh arrived late to board the special Chinese aircraft.

Singh, who is from the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) party of Lalu Yadav, however, blamed mismanagement for the delay, saying he had not been informed about the boarding time.

President Patil was to take the flight at 9 a.m. but was delayed by 20 minutes.

‘There was confusion and mismanagement. That is why I got delayed and couldn’t be a part of the cavalcade that was taking the president to the Beijing airport,’ Prasad said.

‘I was not informed about what time I had to board the plane and I couldn’t handle the electronic key to the lift and the room,’ the former rural development minister said.

Since the special Chinese flight could not take off on time, other flights at the busy Beijing airport also got delayed, officials said.

Patil is on a six-day visit to China. The visit ends May 31.

In Luyoang, President Patil dedicated an Indian-style Buddhist temple, inspired by the Sanchi Stupa, to the Chinese people.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Beijing Airport, Boarding Time, Buddhist Temple, cavalcade, China Beijing, Chinese Aircraft, Chinese Flight, development minister, Electronic Key, indian style, Janata, lok sabha, luoyang, mismanagement, prasad, President Pratibha Patil, RJD, Sanchi Stupa, time president, yadav

President Patil to visit China on May 26

May 19, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

New Delhi, May 19 (ANI): President Pratibha Patil will embark on a five-day official visit to China from May 26-31 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relation between the two countries.

A press release from the Ministry of External Affairs said President Patil would visit Beijing, Luoyang and Shanghai.

During the delegation level talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao, the two sides will discuss bilateral, regional and global issues.

President Patil will also meet other Chinese leaders, including Premier Wen Jiabao and Chairman of the National People”s Congress Wu Bangguo.

In Luoyang, she will dedicate to the Chinese people an Indian-style Buddhist temple, which was inspired by the Sanchi Stupa in Madhya Pradesh. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: 60th anniversary, BEIJING, Buddhist Temple, chinese leaders, Chinese president hu, Congress, delegation, global issues, Hu Jintao, indian style, luoyang, ministry of external affairs, New Delhi, premier wen jiabao, President Pratibha Patil, press release, Sanchi Stupa, shanghai, Wen Jiabao, Wu Bangguo

Gates meets Health Secretary

May 14, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

New Delhi, May 14 (ANI): Microsoft founder Bill Gates met Union Health Secretary Sujatha Rao in New Delhi on Friday and the duo reportedly discussed health-related issues prevailing in India, like polio and vaccination.

“It”s a great increase in investment in health and it”s great to see. It is going to lead to getting finished with polio. We hope more vaccination and there are some good things taking place,” said Gates after the meeting.

“In this trip, I learnt a lot about how our foundation (Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a private charity) can help with that,” he added.

Sujatha Rao, however, did not give any statement on the meeting with Gates, but said that all information would be released after President Pratibha Patil approves the Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) Gates signed with the Bihar Government.

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on Thursday signed a MoC with Bihar government to make medicare services and products availbale and accessible to several districts of the state.

The MoC, which was signed in the presence of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, aims at improving and increasing the availability, quality and utilisation of health-care facilities and services.

The foundation will also particularly try to cut down the maternal mortality rate (MMR) and infant mortality rate in Bihar.

With the signing of this MoC, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will extend aid to accelerate statewide improvements in maternal, newborn and child health. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Bihar Government, bill and melinda gates, bill and melinda gates foundation, Bill Gates, Chief Minister, Child Health, founder bill gates, Government Bill, health care facilities, health related issues, health secretary, infant mortality rate, maternal mortality rate, Medicare Services, Melinda Gates Foundation, Memorandum Of Cooperation, microsoft founder, President Pratibha Patil, Private Charity, Sujatha

Sarosh Homi Kapadia appointed as new Chief Justice of India

April 30, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

New Delhi, Apr 30 (ANI): Supreme Court Justice Sarosh Homi Kapadia has been appointed as the new Chief Justice of India (CJI).

He will assume charge May 12.

Kapadia takes over from Justice K.G. Balakrishnan.

“In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (2) of Article 124 of the Constitution of India, President Pratibha Patil is pleased to appoint Justice Kapadia to be the Chief Justice of India with effect from May 12,” a press release from the ministry of law and justice stated.

Kapadia was appointed as Chief Justice of the Uttaranchal High Court on October 5, 2003.

Later, he was elevated to the Bench of the Supreme Court of India on December 18, 2003. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: bench, chief justice of india, constitution of india, exercise, k g balakrishnan, law and justice, Law Justice, ministry of law, new chief justice, New Chief Justice Of India, New Delhi, President Pratibha Patil, press release, supreme court justice, Supreme Court Of India

Kerala initiates signature campaign for using elephants in temple festivals

April 30, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Thrissur (Kerala), Apr 30 (ANI): Scores of elephant-lovers and owners in Kerala are undertaking the task of collecting one million signatures on a petition to save the centuries-old tradition of parading caparisoned elephants during temple festivals, following a demand for a ban from animal protection agencies.

The main objective behind the campaign is to collect as many signatures as possible and send them to President Pratibha Patil, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and state Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan, for consideration before taking any decisions to ban the presence of elephants during the temple festivals.

“For the safety of elephants all the temple boards, locals and other authorities are greatly concerned and are taking several measures. But by showing false and unlikely love, some people are trying to stop elephants taking part in temple festivities and want them to be sent back to jungles. But this is not possible here because when we started collecting signatures, we noticed that many foreign tourists especially book their tickets to see temple festivals and to have a glimpse of caparisoned elephants. Thus we want elephants parading should go on as it is a part of the rich culture and tradition in Kerala,” said P Sasikumar, General Secretary, Kerala Elephant Owners Federation, Thrissur.

Despite incidents of rampage and killing by the pachyderms, men, women, children and the elderly all queued up to sign the petition.

The resent reason for elephants creating havoc has been noticed by the officials that it is over-stressed as they are made to work long hours in several temple festivals in violation of rules.

The procession of elephants attracts several tourists who are awed by the rich glory and grandeur of the place.

It can be noted that a task force has been formed to protect elephants and their habitats across the country.

Project Elephant, which is being implemented in 13 states, would also address issues of man-animal conflict and welfare of domesticated elephants.

Thrissur is widely acclaimed as the land of elephant lovers. According to official records Kerala is home to over 750 captive elephants. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Animal Protection, Chief Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, elephant lovers, elephant owners, elephants, general secretary, grandeur, jungles, main objective, manmohan, Manmohan Singh, pachyderms, President Pratibha Patil, procession, Project Elephant, rampage, rich culture, signature campaign, temple festivals

Tripura films highlight tribal issues

April 20, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Agartala /New Delhi, Apr 19 (ANI): Tripura’s film industry received a boost when film Yarwang, which means Roots, won the first national award for the state.

President Pratibha Patil handed over the award to Don Bosco priests Joseph Kizhakechennadu and Ft. Joseph Pulinthanath, the producer and director of the film at the 56th National Film Awards (2008) in New Delhi on March 19 this year.

`Yarwang’ meaning roots is a feature film in Tripura’s tribal language Kokbarak, which highlights issues related to the tribal community.

The 95-minute film tells the story of large-scale displacement of tribal people that took place in the northeastern state when a hydel project was set up there in the late 1970s.

A national award to Yarwang opens new vistas for regional cinema, which can project the indigenous way of life of the northeast.

Speaking to ANI, National Award Winning Director, Joseph Pulinthanath said filmmaking would generate employment in the region.

“Unfortunately, there isn’t much film making take place in the region accepts for a couple of states. But I think if filmmaking comes to the region in a serious manner it can benefit us in many ways,” Pulinthanath said.

“Not only on unfold stories of these beautiful region will be seen by people but to be practical it will provide employment to numerous people who would like to get employed,” he added.

Yarwang has been screened in India and major cities around the world including New York, Brisbane, Moscow, Taipai and Dhaka.

It has also won a Special Jury Mention Award at the 3rd Eye Asian Film festival held in Mumbai in 2008.

Actress Meena Debbarma said people of Tripura are no way behind

“ After we received the national award it has been proved that the people of Tripura are no way backward, infact we are as good as the people of those places where big films are produced. Not only films, in different fields we are as good as the people of mainland. We are no way behind rather I believed we are at par,” said Debbarma.

“Realizing the power of this medium the youth are now taking up this profession. And it is a fact that one can express oneself, a crisis or emotion better through this medium. And recently the National Award that Father Joseph Pulinthant’s film “Yarwng” received will surely encourage them to improve their work,” said Biplab Goswami, film Director.

The technical team of Yarwng came from Kerala while the support team was from Guwahati.

The cast, however, was made up mostly of indigenous people who were victims of displacement and had no experience whatsoever in acting.

Indeed! Cinema can play an important role in raising issues of concern to the northeast. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: 3rd Eye, Actress Meena, Asian Film Festival, cities around the world, don bosco, feature film, film industry, hydel project, minute film, National Film Awards, New Vistas, northeastern state, President Pratibha Patil, Regional Cinema, Special Jury, state president, Taipai, tribal community, Tribal Issues, Tribal Language

Tripura films highlight tribal issues

April 19, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment