News

indianexpress: In the good, old days Pune was a bicycle city. That was before the two-wheelers arrived. And in the future, going by the Motor Vehicle Population statement sent to the Transport Commissionerate by the Pune Regional Transport Office (RTO) recently, four-wheelers may well overtake the two-wheeler population in the city.

RTO officials attribute the rise in four-wheeler registrations to growth in the automobile sector, the expanding IT and BPO sectors and the banking sector offering attractive car loans. In addition, the need to have a better lifestyle is also the driving force behind the need for a four-wheeler, they added.
 
“Almost every house is Pune has a two-wheeler. With a better per capita income, thousands of families are interested in four-wheelers,” the officials said. According to National Accounts Statistics mentioned in the city development plan drawn up by the Pune Municipal Corporation, the city’s per capita income has increased from Rs 41,111 in 2002-03 to Rs 46,313 in 2003-04.

Figures speak for themselves. The RTO officials said there was a dip in the percentage of registration of vehicles this year, specifically two-wheelers.

The Motor Vehicle Population statement mentions 11,23,898 two-wheelers were registered in the city by March 2007. In the previous year, there were 10,18,346 two-wheelers in the city, indicating an increase of 1,05,552 two-wheelers, which includes motorcycles, scooters and mopeds.

Compare this to the four-wheelers registered at Pune RTO by March 2007. The figure stood at 2,11,768. By March 2006, the corresponding figures were 1,79,252 four-wheelers indicating an increase of 32,516 vehicles this year. The four-wheelers, according to the RTO statement, include cars, jeeps and station wagons.

While the registration of vehicles in the fiscal year ending on March 31, 2007 was 110 and 132 per cent for two and four-wheelers, the registration percentage was 165 and 148 per cent in 2006 respectively.

indianexpress:  Two years ago when the Mandhardevi tragedy in Wai killed over 200 people, it was a wake up-call for the district administration. Post the incident, shops flanking the narrow path leading to the temple, where many devotees were trampled to death — the main culprits for triggering off the fire and the resultant stampede — were immediately banned.

However 250 kilometers way from Wai, at Bhimashankar, the lessons are still unlearnt. The path that leads to the 18th century Shiv temple, is a narrow lane bordered with about 50 tiny shops on either side. While most sell flowers, temple offerings and photographs, there are also a host of eateries.

Along with being a prominent religious place, Bhimashankar is also a popular wildlife sanctuary, known for the shekru or giant squirrel. It is thus visited by hundreds of devotees and trekkers daily. On Shivaratri and in the month of Shravan the number swells to lakhs.

However little seems to have been done to ensure devotees’ safety, except for one clearance undertaken by the Forest Department and the police, immediately after the Mandhardevi tragedy.

“We had started with the clearing of the area even before the incident. After the tragedy we speeded up the process and removed every single shop on the stretch that comes under the Forest Department,” states CS George Range Forest Officer, Bhimashankar. However this stretch, that does stand clear of all encroachments today, extends to just about 500 metres. The path before this area — a much longer lane, still has a multitude of tiny shops squeezed together. “This area comes under the Revenue Department and the temple trust. We cannot do anything. In fact the Forest Department had to face the hostility of people once we started the clearing drive, because the others had not been ousted and we were seen as being unnecessarily harsh,” adds DR Parhihar, Conservator of Forests Wildlife Pune.

indianexpress:  Concerned over the rampant misuse of the Red Cross emblem— the red plus sign— the Pune branch of the Indian Red Cross Society will conduct a conference that will be attended by authorities of hospitals, medical institutions, ambulances, chemists and others on Monday. A door-to-door campaign will also be organised to create awareness on the proper use of the emblem.

According to secretary of the society R V Kulkarni, “Over the past few years, there has been rampant misuse of the emblem. The significance and value of the symbol of the noble humanitarian organisation gets eroded by its unauthorised use by doctors, hospitals, chemists, ambulances and others. Under the Geneva convention such unauthorised use is a punishable offence.”

While in a majority of cases the use of the emblem is out of ignorance, the drug controller general, Medical Council of India and others have issued specific circulars on the misuse. The society, on May 8, which is World Red Cross Day, will train young Youth Red Cross volunteers to organise a door-to-door campaign to generate awareness about the misuse.

The Red Cross emblem introduced in an international conference in 1864 symbolises the principles of the Red Cross movement — humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity and universality.

The society has been working towards serving the vulnerable communities to reduce the impact of natural and man-made disasters, diseases, poverty and stigma in AIDS. This year, the World Red Cross Day theme is Together for Humanity.

indianexpress: The Khadki police on Sunday arrested a suspended State Bank of India clearing clerk and booked another employee of the bank on the charges of duping the bank to the tune of over Rs 43 lakh from September 2004 to September 2006.

The accused, Dattatreya Mapipat Lad (47), of Dhankawdi was working as the clearing clerk at the SBI’s Khadki branch where the incident took place, the police said.

According to a complaint lodged by branch manager Pandurang Ramkrushna Bhagwat, Lad had debited a total of 197 cheques amounting to Rs 43.22 lakh into the National Clearing account (NALCA) and had sought the help of senior assistant of the industrial finance wing of SBI, Wakdewadi Branch identified as Satish Sadashiv Chandere (43), a Nigdi resident.

The duo later returned Rs 42, 97,435 when the fraud was detected by the branch manager.

indianexpress: Supreme Court judge Justice V S Sirpurkar on Sunday advised lawyers to study India’s ancient legal system and its concepts of justice to become good lawyers and judges while delivering a lecture on clinical legal education, at the New Law College, Erandawane, on Sunday.

Justice Sirpurkar said the first task before a budding lawyer was to ensure that he knows the country’s past, legal heritage and principles of justice. “India has a rich tradition of over 5,000 years. Has anybody bothered to study the legal system during Chhatrapati Shivaji’s reign,” he asked.

Justice Sirpurkar said, “Passing examinations is important, but it should only be a means to a goal. Students should not feel that wearing a gown or a black coat will make them perfect lawyers. You should equip yourselves as lawyers, learn judicial ethics, develop language skills and keen power of observation. Clinical education starts from self-education.”

The judge said, “Dr Ambedkar was our modern Manu. He was the law-giver. He was the first to study Hindu law and understood Indian texts.”

Calling upon students to become judges, Justice Sirpurkar said, “A judge is the most powerful man in the Indian judiciary. Not even the President can tell a judge to convict or acquit a person. A judge has tremendous power,” he said, urging students to visit Supreme Court, High Court and district court to look at their functioning. Justice Sirpurkar emphasised that law colleges should regularly hold legal awareness and legal literacy camps.

indianexpress: 
 Members of the Suvarna Sahakari Bank Sangharsha Samiti on Sunday held an agitation outside the residence of directors of the bank demanding justice for the small investors, bank account holders and members.

Samiti members organised a morcha on the house of Vimal Khare, sister of the bank’s director Dnyaneshwar Agashe at Prabhat Road and houses of directors Dilip Jadhav and Vishwakumar Badve. The samiti has also threatened to conduct another agitation this month if their demands are not met. “Samiti members will resort to rasta roko any time from now,” said Shrikant Limaye, member of the samiti.

In the wake of financial irregularities discovered in the functioning of the bank, Agashe and some 30 other present and former chairmen, were slapped with notices for recovery of dues earlier this month. Sixty eight other officials and workers have also been issued notices.

State cooperative commissioner had dismissed the board of the bank late last year, and had appointed an administrator to look after its day-to-day functioning. Consequently, the RBI had also placed the cooperative bank under a moratorium. An audit had been conducted by the RBI, which had brought the financial irregularities to light. The apex bank’s report had revealed involvement of 96 present and former officers of the bank, all of whom have been issued recovery notices.

Agashe was described as the biggest defaulter after an inquiry. An RBI audit had also brought the financial irregularities to light.

bbc: Europe’s Ariane 5 rocket has set a new benchmark for a commercial launch - lifting into orbit a two-satellite payload weighing 9.4 tonnes.
The immense, 50m-long vehicle powered away from Kourou in French Guiana at 1929 local time (2229 GMT).

The Astra 1L and Galaxy 17 platforms it put in space will deliver TV and other services to Europe and North America.

Friday’s mission represented the second launch of the year for the Ariane 5 and its 32nd flight overall.

The launch was delayed by a day because of poor weather over the spaceport on Thursday.

The rocket is the workhorse of Europe’s commercial launch service, operated by the French-based Arianespace company.

In its heavy-lift, or ECA, configuration, the vehicle produces 13,000 kilonewtons of thrust at launch - equivalent to 20 Concorde jets at take-off.
Watching the launch in Kourou was US space agency (Nasa) Administrator Dr Mike Griffin.

The Nasa chief came to see the rocket that will begin to supply the International Space Station later this year.

bbc: Chips could run faster and be more energy efficient thanks to a process from IBM that copies nature’s creation of seashells and snowflakes.
The process, called airgap, enables trillions of microscopic vacuum holes to be placed between the copper wire in chips to act as an insulator.

It solves the problem of electrical energy leaking between wires, which creates unwanted heat.

IBM says the chips will run 35% faster and consume 15% less energy.

The company has developed a method of controlling the interaction between self-assembling molecules, called diblock copolymers, to create the vacuum holes.

Mr Edlestein, IBM Fellow and chief scientist of the self-assembly airgap project, said: “We have managed to harness the kinds of processes we see in nature to make regular patterns - such as the layers of enamel on your teeth, or the shape of a seashell if you look under a microscope.
The process mimics the way snowflakes are developed
“In this case we choose molecules that have a certain shape and certain molecular forces between them, and when they are mixed properly and baked they naturally on their own behaviour assemble themselves into regular arrays of certain patterns.”

While the self-assembled polymers were developed back in 2001, it is the first time anyone has been able to produce mass quantities and integrate them into a manufacturing process with high yields.

itwire: Denmark’s Consumer Complaints Board has determined that a power-related problem with the iBook G4 stems from a design defect, and that Apple must accept the return of computers showing this fault.

The problem is a tendency of year-old iBook G4s to lose power. Even though “thousands” of owners around the world had experienced the problem, Apple’s position was that it was not a design defect and that the computers were out of warranty.

Various owners had restored their iBook to life by applying clamps or  fitting cardboard shims, and “This made the Consumer Complaints Board suspect that the problem was a design fault with which the computer was born,” said board officials.

Independent electronics lab Delta was commissioned to examine a faulty iBook, and it found a broken soldered joint was the problem. (No great surprise there, as a mechanical fix for a electrical or electronic  problem normally suggests a poor connection of some kind.)

The important part of the findings was that the break was caused by internal movement occurring when the iBook is turned on and off. “It is a bit like a person dying a little bit every time he breathes because the cells break down.  In the same way, the computer dies a little every time you turn it on and off”, says Frederik Boesgaard Navne, a lawyer for the Consumer Complaints Board.

Eventually, the joint breaks and the iBook won’t start unless the connection is pressed together.

Board officials said Apple has settled a number of complaints in Denmark on the basis of the report, and “The question now is whether Apple is going to go on denying that there is a design fault in the same type of computer in the world outside Denmark’s borders.”

reuters:  From emergency message networks that can reach 100,000 people within minutes, to alarm systems that allow you to monitor your home over the Web, new technologies are aiming to make U.S. consumers feel safer.

While institutions such as immigration services, banks and credit card companies continue to improve their systems to prevent fraud or theft, in many cases homeowners and their communities haven’t kept pace.

That’s starting to change — but, unfortunately, it often takes a major disaster or tragedy to get people thinking about how to better protect themselves and their families.

The deadly rampage by a lone gunman that claimed 32 lives at Virginia Tech university last month brought renewed attention to a wave of companies offering the latest technology to keep people informed, and hopefully safe.

“It’s probably one of the most backward industries in the United States today,” said Vincent Tedesco, chief executive of Total Computer Group (TCG), referring to security technologies for identifying criminals. His company builds software applications for law enforcement agencies.

TCG is trying to remedy the situation with software that helps give police departments rapid access to crime records via a handheld-device linked to a Microsoft-supported database.

TCG’s system could clue-in police, in the course of a routine identity check, whether they are dealing with someone who has a criminal record