26/11: Pakistan panel to arrive in Mumbai today

Mumbai: The much-awaited eight-member Pakistan judicial commission will arrive in Mumbai on Thursday to record the statement of four people including the magistrate who had recorded the confessional statement of Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving member of Lashker-e-Toiba (LeT), which was behind the 26/11 attacks.
After a delay of nearly six months, the commission, finally arrived in New Delhi on Wednesday.
According to official sources, the team will record the statements on March 16 and 17.
Ahead of their arrival, Chief Metropolitan Magistrate of the Esplanade court in south Mumbai issued summons to magistrate R V Sawant Waghule, who had recorded Kasab's confession, and crime branch officer Ramesh Mahale, who was the investigating officer in the November 26, 2008 terror strike by LeT terrorists in Mumbai in which over 160 people were killed.
Two doctors from state-run JJ Hospital and civic-run Nair hospital have also been asked to appear in court to record their statements. They had conducted autopsies on the nine killed terrorists and victims of the terror strike which lasted for nearly 72 hours.
While Waghule and Mahale have been summoned on March 16, statements of the doctors will be recorded on March 17.
The commission comprises defence lawyers Khwaja Haris, Riya Akram Choudhary, Fakhar Haayat, Raja Ehassan Ulhakhan and Isaam Bin Haris, special public prosecutors Choudhary Mohammed Azhar and Choudhary Ali and court official Azad Khan.
The statements of the four witnesses will be used as evidence before an anti-terrorism court in Pakistan, which is conducting trial against LeT's Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and six other suspects.
With Additional Inputs from PTI

Injured Mathews out of Asia Cup

       Mirpur: Allrounder Angelo Mathews was on Wednesday ruled out of the ongoing Asia Cup due to a calf injury, dealing a blow to Sri Lanka's chances in the four-nation tournament.
Fast-bowling allrounder Shaminda Eranga has been named as replacement for Mathews. Eranga was originally named in Sri Lanka's Test squad to play Pakistan in the UAE last year, but had to withdraw with a shoulder injury to his right arm.
The last couple of days Angelo has had some fitness tests, he hasn't pulled through those well, so we made a call to send him back home, Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene said.
He will try to get ready for the Test matches (against England) that starts in about ten days' time. The selectors back home will decide (on his replacement).
With Thisara Perera also missing due to a back injury, there is a dearth of allrounders in the Sri Lankan squad, which forced Tillakaratne Dilshan to bowl his quota of ten overs in the opening game against India on Tuesday.
Such was their plight in the opening game that Sri Lanka had to turn to Chamara Kapugedera, who has taken just two wickets in his 90-match ODI career.
The team is yet to confirm injured pace spearhead Lasith Malinga's availabilitty for Thursday's match against Pakistan.
Malinga played through injury in the final two matches of the CB series, so we decided to give him a break yesterday (against India).
Yesterday he bowled a bit, he will be bowling today as well, and after his bowling session we will take a call on him tomorrow, Jayawardene said after a training session here.

Boeing to pay AI $500 mn for delayed deliveries

Hyderabad: The Boeing Co has agreed to compensate Air India $500 million for the delay in the delivery of 50 aircraft, but the state-run carrier is pushing for more, a senior official said.
Air India has sought $1 billion as compensation for the three-year delay in the delivery of 50 long-range Boeing jets worth about $6 billion.
Talking to reporters on the sidelines of India Aviation 2012, which began in Hyderabad on Wednesday, Prashant Sukul, joint secretary in the civil aviation ministry, said Boeing had agreed to pay $500 million. He, however, said the talks were still on with the aircraft maker.
The aircraft include 27 Boeing 787 Dreamliner that is being showcased at India Aviation.
Earlier, replying to a query at the news conference, Ajit Singh said the negotiations about compensation were on with the Boeing. He did not elaborate.
Dinesh A Keskar, president, Boeing India and senior vice president, sales, Asia Pacific and India, refused to comment. "We don't discuss such issues in public," was all he said when asked about the official's comment that the company has agreed to pay compensation.

Amend tax laws for senior citizens: 70-yr-old to FM

 Kolkata: A senior citizen Manik Dabriwal wants tax laws to be amended so that citizens above the age of 60 years can claim deductions on the medical insurance premium paid by dependents.
Manik, a 70-year-old businessman, spends his days catching up on the news that is something he didn't have time for when he was young. In his twilight years, Manik hopes to reap the benefit of his age, as does his 60-year-old wife. But there's a problem.
The Income Tax Act says one has to be 60 to be termed a senior citizen. But the age limit is 65 for benefits on medical insurance premiums.
"The government is not clear about what they should define as senior citizens. Somewhere it is 58, somewhere it is 60, somewhere 65. I fail to understand why can't they fix one age. For PF it is different, under Section 80D it is different," Manik said.
Under Section 80D of the Act, deductions can be claimed on medical insurance premiums up to a maximum of Rs 15,000. If premium is paid for the medical insurance of a senior citizen an additional Rs 20,000 can be deducted.
So Manik's wife can claim all the benefits of being a senior citizen, but not on medical insurance.
"My plea to the honorable Finance Minister Pranab ji is remove these anomalies in the age of senior citizens. Senior citizens throughout India should be known by one age only. Kindly fix the age for senior citizens," Manik said.

Chennai Metro to integrate public transport

CHENNAI: Design and construction of underground stations and associated tunnels are going on at a rapid pace as plans are on to integrate upcoming Metro Rail stations with existing modes of public transportation.Metro Rail sources said utility diversion work is in progress near the Gemini flyover, Teynampet and Chamiers Road underground stations. Sources also revealed that first stage of the traffic management plan has partly been implemented at the Gemini station.Similarly, with regard to rolling stock, the tender which has been awarded to Alstom Transport SA & Alstom Projects India Ltd, sources said, the production of car body shells has commenced and First Article Inspection (FAI) performed in Brazil and has been approved. Sources added that Alstom will supply the Chennai Metro Rail project with 42 train sets, each comprising four cars. The stainless steel trains will feature air-conditioned interiors and electrically operated automatic sliding doors, offering comfort and easy access to passengers. They will also be equipped with a regenerative braking system, ensuring significant energy saving. The cars will operate on 25 KV AC through an overhead catenary system at speeds of up to 80 km/h. Sources said that in addition to supplying the rolling stock, Alstom will also equip the new trains with a signaling system for Automatic Train Protection (ATP) and Automatic Train Operation (ATO).N K Kumar, chief general manager of project finance Chennai Metro Rail Limited, said that plans are on to have a civil and systematic integration of existing modes of transportation with the Metro Rail stations with immediate influence of around 500 metres and a broader influence of around 2.5km to 5km."In the civil integration, we are planning to integrate the Metro Rail through physical structures such as pick-up and drop-off facilities, besides provision of parking buoys, footpath facilities and feeder services," he added.Similarly, in the system integration, a common ticketing system for bus and rail, holds the key. Highlighting the success of the pick-up and drop-off facility at the Chennai Central station, he said this could be replicated at Metro Rail stations, as well. Kumar also said that plans to run a feeder bus to the stations, feeder routes and bus stops are underway. He added that the parking requirements should be assessed and a common parking solution should be framed with the involvement of all stakeholders.He stressed the need for hawking zones so that stations could have an "happening experience". He also said that the Metro Rail project will have eight stations by next year and the underground stations by 2015.    

University of Hyderabad ditches students

HYDERABAD: Nursing students of the School of Medical Sciences at the University of Hyderabad on Tuesday took to the streets in protest against the administrations failure to get the Indian Nursing Councils (INC) recognition for the five-year integrated masters course in nursing sciences.The course was introduced in 2008 by the then vice-chancellor Prof Sayed E Hasnain and the School of Medical Sciences had at the time assured the students that recognition would be secured in due course. However, on Dr Geetha K Vemuganthi, Dean of the School informing that the current batches have no chance of passing out with INC recognised certificates has put the students in a spot of bother. Around 80 students comprising four batches will be affected if the course doesnt get an INC recognition.The students, who have been boycotting classes, staged a demonstration in the garden in front of the administrative block in a novel way, by cooking and having their lunch there itself. We are peacefully protesting and we will not bow down, said V Prasanth, a student of fourth-year, IMSC Nursing Sciences.According to the school, the application for recognition was submitted in January last year. The five-year course is not there in the Indian Nursing Councils programme. So we are revising the course now to combine Bachelors and Masters in four years. The proposal has been submitted to the INC and a response is expected by July this year, Dr Geetha told City Express.Asked about the anxiety the students were facing, she replied, Once the course gets recognized, we will request the INC to recognise the existing students also.The students, though, are not convinced. They believe any professional course in nursing is useless without the INCs recognition and are understandably worried about their job prospects. The certificates without INCs recognition will not be valid. We will not get jobs and will not qualify for higher studies, said Prakash Kodali, a third-year student. He also doubted the varsitys claim that it is putting pressure on the council to grant recognition for them. If the INC asks for proof regarding the course being run by the university in the past few years, I doubt if they would be able to do so. We do not have a regular curriculum, and had no regular faculty till recently, he explained.There are also concerns that the university may discontinue the course till recognition is acquired. Asked about the same, the dean said, We are awaiting a response from the council. We will take a new batch only after receiving recognition which we are hopeful of getting soon.The course is one of the most expensive courses in the university with the students paying around Rs 28,000 on an average per semester. We did not think twice before joining. We fell for the name and reputation of the Central University, rued V Ramya, a third-year student.