Thursday, April 27, 2006
Nations Face Massive Teacher Shortages: UN Report
By Judy Aita
United Nations: Massive teacher shortages are looming over developing nations threatening to undermine efforts to provide every child with a quality primary education by 2015, according to a new report released April 25 by United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Report, entitled Teachers and Educational Quality: Monitoring Global Needs for 2015, says that the greatest challenge lies in sub-Saharan Africa where UNESCO estimated that the region will need 2.4 to 4 million teachers over the next 10 years. Shortages are also expected in Arab States and South and West Asia.
Over the next 10 years 18 million new teachers will be needed worldwide, according to UNESCO.
Peter Smith, UNESCO assistant director general for education, said that the report provides the basis for a fundamental examination of what is needed for educating children, education policy, and financing in the developing world.
At a press conference at UN headquarters, Smith was critical of the efforts being made to finance education. He said that money can be raised for preserving critical heritage sites such as Angkor Wat in Cambodia, "but we are much less successful, relatively speaking unable, to raise money... in ways that matter or count for children who are our heritage of the future."
Children in the developing world "are dying a slow death from the lack of education," the UNESCO official said, yet the media is either "unable or unwilling to show the problem for what it is."
Report was released to highlight Education for All Week, which is celebrated each year on the anniversary of the 2000 World Education Forum held in Senegal. The week is intended to remind governments and the international community to keep their promise to achieve "education for all" by 2015.
The theme of the 2006 campaign is "every child needs a teacher."
Report will also be one of the documents discussed at a conference on global literacy scheduled for September in conjunction with the 61st session of UN General Assembly. Plans for the conference were announced April 24 by US first lady Laura Bush, honorary chair of United Nations Literacy Decade.
"We know regardless of the level of education... people who go to school, stay in school and finish school do better, they are healthier, participate civilly, economically, socially; they have more power; they do better than people who don't. It is that simple," Smith said.
Report demonstrates several different problems in education like quality of teachers, replacing current teachers who will leave the profession over the years, and creating additional positions to meet increasing numbers of students.
Countries that need the most teachers are also the ones that face severe fiscal constraints, Smith said. Many have no choice but to rely on "para-teachers" who have less education and are paid less than teachers. For example, more than half the primary teachers in the Congo consist of "volunteer parents" with limited or no formal training, he said. UNESCO said that a lower secondary education is considered the absolute minimum qualification to teach yet only 45% of the teachers in Laos and 57% in the Congo meet that standard.
Chad will need almost 4 times as many primary teachers in 2015 from the current level of 16,000 to 61,000 thus increasing its current teaching force by almost 13% a year, which is the highest rate in the world. Burkina Faso, Congo and Niger are also expected to have similar needs. Ethiopia will need to create 153,000 new teaching posts to reach universal primary education while replacing 116,000 teachers who are expected to leave the profession over the next decade.
Arab states will need to create 450,000 new teaching posts mainly in Egypt, Iraq, Morocco and Saudi Arabia, UNESCO said.
Another 325,000 teachers will be needed in South and West Asia. Afghanistan, where the number of teachers must grow by almost 9% a year, is in need of the most teachers, according to report.
Some countries have declining school-age populations and will need fewer teachers. China is expected to reduce its number of teachers by 1.8 million while more moderate reductions are estimated for Brazil and India, it said.
North American and Europe will face a shortage of teachers specializing in math and science, according to the report. Older teachers are retiring and potential teachers are being lured into more lucrative professions. As a result, UNESCO estimates that 1.2 million teachers will be needed over the next decade, primarily to compensate for attrition.
United Nations: Massive teacher shortages are looming over developing nations threatening to undermine efforts to provide every child with a quality primary education by 2015, according to a new report released April 25 by United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Report, entitled Teachers and Educational Quality: Monitoring Global Needs for 2015, says that the greatest challenge lies in sub-Saharan Africa where UNESCO estimated that the region will need 2.4 to 4 million teachers over the next 10 years. Shortages are also expected in Arab States and South and West Asia.
Over the next 10 years 18 million new teachers will be needed worldwide, according to UNESCO.
Peter Smith, UNESCO assistant director general for education, said that the report provides the basis for a fundamental examination of what is needed for educating children, education policy, and financing in the developing world.
At a press conference at UN headquarters, Smith was critical of the efforts being made to finance education. He said that money can be raised for preserving critical heritage sites such as Angkor Wat in Cambodia, "but we are much less successful, relatively speaking unable, to raise money... in ways that matter or count for children who are our heritage of the future."
Children in the developing world "are dying a slow death from the lack of education," the UNESCO official said, yet the media is either "unable or unwilling to show the problem for what it is."
Report was released to highlight Education for All Week, which is celebrated each year on the anniversary of the 2000 World Education Forum held in Senegal. The week is intended to remind governments and the international community to keep their promise to achieve "education for all" by 2015.
The theme of the 2006 campaign is "every child needs a teacher."
Report will also be one of the documents discussed at a conference on global literacy scheduled for September in conjunction with the 61st session of UN General Assembly. Plans for the conference were announced April 24 by US first lady Laura Bush, honorary chair of United Nations Literacy Decade.
"We know regardless of the level of education... people who go to school, stay in school and finish school do better, they are healthier, participate civilly, economically, socially; they have more power; they do better than people who don't. It is that simple," Smith said.
Report demonstrates several different problems in education like quality of teachers, replacing current teachers who will leave the profession over the years, and creating additional positions to meet increasing numbers of students.
Countries that need the most teachers are also the ones that face severe fiscal constraints, Smith said. Many have no choice but to rely on "para-teachers" who have less education and are paid less than teachers. For example, more than half the primary teachers in the Congo consist of "volunteer parents" with limited or no formal training, he said. UNESCO said that a lower secondary education is considered the absolute minimum qualification to teach yet only 45% of the teachers in Laos and 57% in the Congo meet that standard.
Chad will need almost 4 times as many primary teachers in 2015 from the current level of 16,000 to 61,000 thus increasing its current teaching force by almost 13% a year, which is the highest rate in the world. Burkina Faso, Congo and Niger are also expected to have similar needs. Ethiopia will need to create 153,000 new teaching posts to reach universal primary education while replacing 116,000 teachers who are expected to leave the profession over the next decade.
Arab states will need to create 450,000 new teaching posts mainly in Egypt, Iraq, Morocco and Saudi Arabia, UNESCO said.
Another 325,000 teachers will be needed in South and West Asia. Afghanistan, where the number of teachers must grow by almost 9% a year, is in need of the most teachers, according to report.
Some countries have declining school-age populations and will need fewer teachers. China is expected to reduce its number of teachers by 1.8 million while more moderate reductions are estimated for Brazil and India, it said.
North American and Europe will face a shortage of teachers specializing in math and science, according to the report. Older teachers are retiring and potential teachers are being lured into more lucrative professions. As a result, UNESCO estimates that 1.2 million teachers will be needed over the next decade, primarily to compensate for attrition.
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Greater Number of Small Cities Swamped by Pollution
New Delhi: Delhi would have been reeling under a pollution load of 38% more particulates if the Supreme Court had not intervened to introduce cleaner fuels and emissions technology in the city. Delhi's air is cleaner today, but it is still not clean enough. What's worse, more and more Indian cities, a number of which are small, are turning into smog-encased pollution hotspots.
peaking at a Public Meeting following the release of a book 'The Leapfrog Factor: Clearing the air in Asian cities', published by Centre for Science and Environment, Anumita Roychowdhury, Associate Director, CSE said, "While Delhi has remained in the forefront in enforcing tighter emissions standards and fuel quality, it stands at serious risk of losing its gains to newer challenges. Most worrying trend in Delhi is that while the technology roadmap remains sluggish, the sheer numbers of vehicles are overpowering the change. Unbelievably, as much as 17% of the cars in India run in Delhi alone. It has more cars than the total numbers of cars in the individual states of Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and West Bengal."
Congestion and pollution from these vehicles is threatening to destroy the quality of life in the city. This mobility crisis is building up not only in Delhi, but in all Indian cities because a large share of daily travel trips is being made by personal transport. A car caught in congestion can emit nearly four times more. Cars and two-wheelers take up nearly 90% of the road space, carry lesser numbers of people and pollute excessively.
As a result, public transport, key to leveraging change towards sustainable mobility, is collapsing in most cities. Only 8 of the 35 cities that have more than a million population have dedicated bus services; even these are under extreme pressure. Approximately 80 million trips need to be catered to daily in our metro cities, but the available rail and bus transport can cater to only 37 million.
Buses still meet nearly 61% of the travel demand, though they occupy a mere 3% of the total traffic. Yet city governments penalize public transport and tax bus transport higher than cars. In Delhi, the total road tax that a bus pays per vehicle kilometer is Rs.5.69/-, as opposed to the pittance of Rs.2.39/- that a car pays. Governments spend more money in building flyovers than they do for improving public transport, ignoring the fact that for every 10% increase in lane mile capacity, there is a 9% increase in traffic. Roychowdhury says that the public transport plans of the Delhi government, such as high-capacity bus systems, must be implemented urgently and all transport modes should be well integrated for easy access if we expect to see any turnaround.
Some cities in India have seen a decline in their pollution levels. In fact, according to a World Bank study, Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad have seen about 13,000 less premature deaths due to air pollution-related diseases. But this evidence of success in a few cities should not breed any sense of complacency. In fact, the daily exposure levels to air pollution in these cities have gone up.
Moreover, a much larger number of cities are in the grip of killer pollution today, as many as 57% of the cities monitored in the country have critical PM10 levels (more than 1.5 times the standards). Newer and smaller cities are scaling the pollution peak and are more polluted than even the metros. India still does not have a legal framework to meet air quality standards.
New evidence confirms that the estimated health effects of air pollution in Indian and Asian cities are similar to those found in Western countries. In fact, the growing air pollution menace is deadly for the urban poor in India, 50 to 60% of who live in slums. Each year, two-third of the 0.8 million deaths and 4.6 million lost life years attributed to air pollution worldwide, occurs in developing Asian countries.
Book was released by Sheila Dikshit, Chief Minister of Delhi.
peaking at a Public Meeting following the release of a book 'The Leapfrog Factor: Clearing the air in Asian cities', published by Centre for Science and Environment, Anumita Roychowdhury, Associate Director, CSE said, "While Delhi has remained in the forefront in enforcing tighter emissions standards and fuel quality, it stands at serious risk of losing its gains to newer challenges. Most worrying trend in Delhi is that while the technology roadmap remains sluggish, the sheer numbers of vehicles are overpowering the change. Unbelievably, as much as 17% of the cars in India run in Delhi alone. It has more cars than the total numbers of cars in the individual states of Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and West Bengal."
Congestion and pollution from these vehicles is threatening to destroy the quality of life in the city. This mobility crisis is building up not only in Delhi, but in all Indian cities because a large share of daily travel trips is being made by personal transport. A car caught in congestion can emit nearly four times more. Cars and two-wheelers take up nearly 90% of the road space, carry lesser numbers of people and pollute excessively.
As a result, public transport, key to leveraging change towards sustainable mobility, is collapsing in most cities. Only 8 of the 35 cities that have more than a million population have dedicated bus services; even these are under extreme pressure. Approximately 80 million trips need to be catered to daily in our metro cities, but the available rail and bus transport can cater to only 37 million.
Buses still meet nearly 61% of the travel demand, though they occupy a mere 3% of the total traffic. Yet city governments penalize public transport and tax bus transport higher than cars. In Delhi, the total road tax that a bus pays per vehicle kilometer is Rs.5.69/-, as opposed to the pittance of Rs.2.39/- that a car pays. Governments spend more money in building flyovers than they do for improving public transport, ignoring the fact that for every 10% increase in lane mile capacity, there is a 9% increase in traffic. Roychowdhury says that the public transport plans of the Delhi government, such as high-capacity bus systems, must be implemented urgently and all transport modes should be well integrated for easy access if we expect to see any turnaround.
Some cities in India have seen a decline in their pollution levels. In fact, according to a World Bank study, Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad have seen about 13,000 less premature deaths due to air pollution-related diseases. But this evidence of success in a few cities should not breed any sense of complacency. In fact, the daily exposure levels to air pollution in these cities have gone up.
Moreover, a much larger number of cities are in the grip of killer pollution today, as many as 57% of the cities monitored in the country have critical PM10 levels (more than 1.5 times the standards). Newer and smaller cities are scaling the pollution peak and are more polluted than even the metros. India still does not have a legal framework to meet air quality standards.
New evidence confirms that the estimated health effects of air pollution in Indian and Asian cities are similar to those found in Western countries. In fact, the growing air pollution menace is deadly for the urban poor in India, 50 to 60% of who live in slums. Each year, two-third of the 0.8 million deaths and 4.6 million lost life years attributed to air pollution worldwide, occurs in developing Asian countries.
Book was released by Sheila Dikshit, Chief Minister of Delhi.
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Narmada Bachao Andolan: Health of Fasters Deteriorates
New Delhi: Health of fasters is beginning to deteriorate on their 16th day of indefinite hunger fast. However, the hunger fast continues.
Medha Patkar has written a letter to the Parliament Street SHO demanding to know what sections she has been charged under, since she was officially not been served any papers at all. Nor has she been produced before a magistrate until now. Yet, she is being held under detention.
Meanwhile, noted social activist and anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare visited the dharna site to support the ongoing struggle. He also met Vilasrao Deshmukh, Chief Minister of Maharashtra, to urge him to intervene in this matter as far as the rehabilitation of Maharashtra families is concerned.
The meeting of the Review Committee has been announced for April 15 morning. According to NBA, this meeting should have been held one month ago when the construction clearance was given. By now, the dam construction has proceeded upto about 3 meters, NBA demands an immediate stalling of construction until all affected families are rehabilitated as per Supreme Court directives; with land and shifted 6 months before possible submergence.
Medha Patkar has written a letter to the Parliament Street SHO demanding to know what sections she has been charged under, since she was officially not been served any papers at all. Nor has she been produced before a magistrate until now. Yet, she is being held under detention.
Meanwhile, noted social activist and anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare visited the dharna site to support the ongoing struggle. He also met Vilasrao Deshmukh, Chief Minister of Maharashtra, to urge him to intervene in this matter as far as the rehabilitation of Maharashtra families is concerned.
The meeting of the Review Committee has been announced for April 15 morning. According to NBA, this meeting should have been held one month ago when the construction clearance was given. By now, the dam construction has proceeded upto about 3 meters, NBA demands an immediate stalling of construction until all affected families are rehabilitated as per Supreme Court directives; with land and shifted 6 months before possible submergence.
Sunday, April 09, 2006
Taj Trapezium Zone Faces Biggest Eco-disaster
By Brij Khandelwal
Agra: Taj Trapezium Zone, spread over 10,000 sq kms, comprising not just Mughal monuments in Agra, but also religious sites of Braj Bhoomi, associated with Sri Krishna, stands threatened as a result of large-scale mining activity in the area all along the Rajasthan border right from Fatehpur Sikri to Nandgaon, Barsana and Kamavan.
The local administrations in the districts of Mathura, Bharatpur and Agra are helpless as the mining mafia carries on illegal dynamite blasting and quarrying of stones from hills that once formed part of the Krishna folklore.
Central Pollution Control Board officials in Agra said the alarming rise in the SPM level in the ambient air of the eco-sensitive zone was a matter that required detailed investigation as all industrial activity in the region has either come to a halt or has become pollution proof as a result of the switch over to natural gas.
“Even after the drastic steps taken by the Supreme Court to contain air pollution in the area and a series of measures taken by the Mathura Oil refinery, the air pollution level continues to remain alarmingly high,” told environmental engineer RK Gupta to Www.mediabharti.com.
The apex court has issued clear cut directives to ban mining activity in Fatehpur Sikri area, but the contractors clandestinely in the cover of the night continue to blast off hills for the famous Sikri stone. The hills of Nandgaon, Barsana and Kamvan have been similarly marauded and pillaged for stones, leaving the hills barren and the green cover parched. “It is an invitation to eco disaster and already we are facing acute shortage of water what with constant fall in the water table,” said PK Jain of the Agra Citizens Council.
The Kamvan tehsil of Bharatpur is presently the centre of all illegal mining activity in the 84-kos Braj area. Environmentalist Raghav, an ex-IITian said this was in total violation of the Rajasthan High Court order. “Mining and stone crushing are polluting activities. Large scale air, water and noise pollution created by these industries is discernible to the naked eye everywhere on the Parikrama route,” Raghav Mittal said.
A team of the CPCB which studied the problem of illegal mining and its effect on the local ecology has made several recommendations to the central government. The report calls for immediate halt to mining activity, restoration of the area through filling and plantation of trees, removal of rock blasters, revoking of consent granted to stone crushers, drawing up of an environmental management plan for the entire Braj area.
An investigation team of the Rajasthan High Court has similarly observed in its report: “The entire hill tract is being defaced and denuded of vegetation and the loss already incurred is irreparable and can not be compensated by any means and in our humble opinion such unwarranted interference with ecology deserves to be stopped.”
Each year millions of people visit the Braj area for Parikrama of the holy Goverdhan hill. But sadly the district authorities of Mathura and Bharatpur have not been alert to the large scale devastation and interference by land mafias, says journalist Vineet Narain.
Agra: Taj Trapezium Zone, spread over 10,000 sq kms, comprising not just Mughal monuments in Agra, but also religious sites of Braj Bhoomi, associated with Sri Krishna, stands threatened as a result of large-scale mining activity in the area all along the Rajasthan border right from Fatehpur Sikri to Nandgaon, Barsana and Kamavan.
The local administrations in the districts of Mathura, Bharatpur and Agra are helpless as the mining mafia carries on illegal dynamite blasting and quarrying of stones from hills that once formed part of the Krishna folklore.
Central Pollution Control Board officials in Agra said the alarming rise in the SPM level in the ambient air of the eco-sensitive zone was a matter that required detailed investigation as all industrial activity in the region has either come to a halt or has become pollution proof as a result of the switch over to natural gas.
“Even after the drastic steps taken by the Supreme Court to contain air pollution in the area and a series of measures taken by the Mathura Oil refinery, the air pollution level continues to remain alarmingly high,” told environmental engineer RK Gupta to Www.mediabharti.com.
The apex court has issued clear cut directives to ban mining activity in Fatehpur Sikri area, but the contractors clandestinely in the cover of the night continue to blast off hills for the famous Sikri stone. The hills of Nandgaon, Barsana and Kamvan have been similarly marauded and pillaged for stones, leaving the hills barren and the green cover parched. “It is an invitation to eco disaster and already we are facing acute shortage of water what with constant fall in the water table,” said PK Jain of the Agra Citizens Council.
The Kamvan tehsil of Bharatpur is presently the centre of all illegal mining activity in the 84-kos Braj area. Environmentalist Raghav, an ex-IITian said this was in total violation of the Rajasthan High Court order. “Mining and stone crushing are polluting activities. Large scale air, water and noise pollution created by these industries is discernible to the naked eye everywhere on the Parikrama route,” Raghav Mittal said.
A team of the CPCB which studied the problem of illegal mining and its effect on the local ecology has made several recommendations to the central government. The report calls for immediate halt to mining activity, restoration of the area through filling and plantation of trees, removal of rock blasters, revoking of consent granted to stone crushers, drawing up of an environmental management plan for the entire Braj area.
An investigation team of the Rajasthan High Court has similarly observed in its report: “The entire hill tract is being defaced and denuded of vegetation and the loss already incurred is irreparable and can not be compensated by any means and in our humble opinion such unwarranted interference with ecology deserves to be stopped.”
Each year millions of people visit the Braj area for Parikrama of the holy Goverdhan hill. But sadly the district authorities of Mathura and Bharatpur have not been alert to the large scale devastation and interference by land mafias, says journalist Vineet Narain.
Dead Chickens Spark Bird Flu Scare in Agra
By Brij Khandelwal
Agra: Discovery of dozens of dead chickens in this city has sparked a bird flu scare, with officials sending samples for avian influenza tests at a leading government facility in Bhopal.
The chickens were found lying in a heap in the Transport Nagar neighborhood by early morning joggers Thursday, and the local administration stepped in immediately to ensure that the development did not scare away the hundreds of tourists who visit Agra every day to view the Taj Mahal. "The panic reaction was natural, because Agra is a major tourist centre. A bird flu scare will severely affect the inflow of tourists," said a senior district official.
Animal husbandry department has sent samples of the dead chickens for testing at Bhopal's High Security Animal Disease Laboratory. Officials have also said there was no cause for immediate concern. "The birds probably died of a heat stroke," Chief Veterinary Officer Uday Shankar Gupta told reporters, discounting fears of an "outbreak" of bird flu. "A biryani-seller in Transport Nagar did not take adequate care to protect the chickens from oppressive heat, which killed them," another official said.
But many citizens are not buying the claim of the authorities that the death of the chickens was a one-off affair, and point to the poor state of preparedness in government hospitals.
"With heaps of garbage piled up across the city's thoroughfares, coupled with chocked drains, one wonders how no major outbreak of disease has been reported in Agra," said Vinay Paliwal, an NGO functionary.
Others said that while government officials were vaccinating birds against avian influenza in rural areas, no one was concerned about birds caged in hundreds of illegal poultry farms located in narrow lanes and high-density neighborhoods.
NGO workers pointed out that if adequate precautions were not taken and birds brought from other states were not screened, an outbreak of bird flu was possible.
"With a callous administration and the poor state of health services, this is not just conjecture but a sad reality," said Surendra Sharma, founder president of the local Hotel and Restaurant Association.
Agra: Discovery of dozens of dead chickens in this city has sparked a bird flu scare, with officials sending samples for avian influenza tests at a leading government facility in Bhopal.
The chickens were found lying in a heap in the Transport Nagar neighborhood by early morning joggers Thursday, and the local administration stepped in immediately to ensure that the development did not scare away the hundreds of tourists who visit Agra every day to view the Taj Mahal. "The panic reaction was natural, because Agra is a major tourist centre. A bird flu scare will severely affect the inflow of tourists," said a senior district official.
Animal husbandry department has sent samples of the dead chickens for testing at Bhopal's High Security Animal Disease Laboratory. Officials have also said there was no cause for immediate concern. "The birds probably died of a heat stroke," Chief Veterinary Officer Uday Shankar Gupta told reporters, discounting fears of an "outbreak" of bird flu. "A biryani-seller in Transport Nagar did not take adequate care to protect the chickens from oppressive heat, which killed them," another official said.
But many citizens are not buying the claim of the authorities that the death of the chickens was a one-off affair, and point to the poor state of preparedness in government hospitals.
"With heaps of garbage piled up across the city's thoroughfares, coupled with chocked drains, one wonders how no major outbreak of disease has been reported in Agra," said Vinay Paliwal, an NGO functionary.
Others said that while government officials were vaccinating birds against avian influenza in rural areas, no one was concerned about birds caged in hundreds of illegal poultry farms located in narrow lanes and high-density neighborhoods.
NGO workers pointed out that if adequate precautions were not taken and birds brought from other states were not screened, an outbreak of bird flu was possible.
"With a callous administration and the poor state of health services, this is not just conjecture but a sad reality," said Surendra Sharma, founder president of the local Hotel and Restaurant Association.
Thursday, April 06, 2006
Raj Babbar in Trouble, FIR Filed against Family Members
By Brij Khandelwal
Agra: Lok Sabha member cine star Raj Babbar, suspended from the Samajwadi Party, reacted sharply alleging political vendetta by political agents, when told of the FIR filed against him in Agra for alleged forgery relating to land deals by his family members.
The dispute centers around purchase of 5 plots in Sikandra area in a colony being developed by Officers Housing Society.
FIR was registered after the Society administrator and additional housing commissioner DP Singh lodged a complaint against Babbar and his family members, wife Nadira, brother Kishan, daughter Juhi, son Arya and mother Shobha Rani, for forging documents to manipulate purchase of five plots of 2230 sq yards each.
Talking to media persons in Agra over the phone Raj Babbar said he was prepared for a thorough inquiry and was even willing to go to the jail with all the family members if there was an iota of truth in the allegations. He said he had made all the purchases in white money through cheques from his Mumbai account. “The FIR only proved how mean his political detractors were and in particular those who had been thriving on dalali.”
Agra: Lok Sabha member cine star Raj Babbar, suspended from the Samajwadi Party, reacted sharply alleging political vendetta by political agents, when told of the FIR filed against him in Agra for alleged forgery relating to land deals by his family members.
The dispute centers around purchase of 5 plots in Sikandra area in a colony being developed by Officers Housing Society.
FIR was registered after the Society administrator and additional housing commissioner DP Singh lodged a complaint against Babbar and his family members, wife Nadira, brother Kishan, daughter Juhi, son Arya and mother Shobha Rani, for forging documents to manipulate purchase of five plots of 2230 sq yards each.
Talking to media persons in Agra over the phone Raj Babbar said he was prepared for a thorough inquiry and was even willing to go to the jail with all the family members if there was an iota of truth in the allegations. He said he had made all the purchases in white money through cheques from his Mumbai account. “The FIR only proved how mean his political detractors were and in particular those who had been thriving on dalali.”
Monday, April 03, 2006
Fight Fundamentalism with Humor, say Cartoonists
By Brij Khandelwal
Agra: Away from the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten's cartoon controversy, Indian cartoonists on April 1st brought to the Taj Mahal city, Agra some comic relief -- exponents of this "dying art" gathered to exhibit their caricatures on fundamentalism and politician-criminal nexus.
Cartoonists say their caricatures best serve as safety valves in a society choked by traditionalism and dogmatism. Manohar Gidwani, Cartoon Forum President, said fundamentalism is best fought with humor.
Under the banner of Cartoon Forum, more than 250 cartoonists presented their takes on the world's most wanted man Osama Bin Laden, President George W. Bush, Railway Minister Lalu Prasad, former UP Inspector General of Police D.K. Panda, who claimed he was a divine incarnate, and the Agra-based controversial medicine man and yogi, Swami Ram Dev.
Among the most eye-catching cartoons was one by Sarla Singh. Sarla's cartoon portrayed Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh questioning President Bush as to why a visit to the Taj Mahal did not interest him. The President explains only sites with oil prospects interest him. The Taj also featured in Nimisha's caricature and highlighted environment pollution.
Politicians are the easiest of preys under the cartoonists' pencil. In the Agra exhibition, Sonia Gandhi and the office-of-profit controversy dogging the Congress-led UPA government seemed the caricaturists' favorite topic.
Agra: Away from the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten's cartoon controversy, Indian cartoonists on April 1st brought to the Taj Mahal city, Agra some comic relief -- exponents of this "dying art" gathered to exhibit their caricatures on fundamentalism and politician-criminal nexus.
Cartoonists say their caricatures best serve as safety valves in a society choked by traditionalism and dogmatism. Manohar Gidwani, Cartoon Forum President, said fundamentalism is best fought with humor.
Under the banner of Cartoon Forum, more than 250 cartoonists presented their takes on the world's most wanted man Osama Bin Laden, President George W. Bush, Railway Minister Lalu Prasad, former UP Inspector General of Police D.K. Panda, who claimed he was a divine incarnate, and the Agra-based controversial medicine man and yogi, Swami Ram Dev.
Among the most eye-catching cartoons was one by Sarla Singh. Sarla's cartoon portrayed Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh questioning President Bush as to why a visit to the Taj Mahal did not interest him. The President explains only sites with oil prospects interest him. The Taj also featured in Nimisha's caricature and highlighted environment pollution.
Politicians are the easiest of preys under the cartoonists' pencil. In the Agra exhibition, Sonia Gandhi and the office-of-profit controversy dogging the Congress-led UPA government seemed the caricaturists' favorite topic.
Subscribe to Posts [Atom]