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(NOVEMBER, 2002) 'Battle Royale' On
for Jaipur Gate (Go
to Top) JAIPUR: Children in Jaipur on Tuesday, November 26, staged a protest march demanding that an entrance gate to the city, reserved solely for the royal family, be opened for the general public. The 'Tripolia' Gate, which is one of the three major entrances to the walled city, has been reserved as a private passage for Jaipur's royal family since 1971 under a special agreement with the Central Government. But with the city's population doubling two-fold in the past decade, the royal privilege has become a source of inconvenience for the residents who see it as a major traffic hazard. Residents say the walled city entrances are continually plagued with hour-long traffic jams which often lead to accidents. The worst affected are school children who end up travelling for hours before they reach their schools. Tuesday's protest was organised by Janhit Sanrakshan Manch, a voluntary organisation working for people's welfare. People of this region have been extremely loyal to their royal family and this is the first time any organisation has challenged their exclusive rights. The royals, however, say the opening of the gate to public would not ease the traffic, but add to the problem. "The opening of this gate will not be helpful, rather it will lead to more traffic jams as three main traffic (streams) will merge at one point. It will be very difficult for traffic police to man it," said Rajendra Singh, an official with the royal family. Raghunath
Temple in Jammu Re-opens (Go
to Top) NEW DELHI: The Raghunath temple in Jammu re-opened Wednesday, November 27, two days after the terrorist attack in which 13 people were killed. The head priest conducted a purification yagna in the morning after which the temple was thrown open to devotees. Police officials have taken adequate security measures within and outside the temple complex. As a precautionary measure, the main gate on the Raghunath bazar side will remain closed for a few more days. Access to the premises will be from the Hari market side. Tourists
Throng Puri Beach Festival (Go
to Top) PURI (Orissa): Thousands of tourists, including foreigners, thronged the temple town of Puri in Orissa on Monday where a five-day annual beach festival is under way. The colourful festival that kicked off on Saturday, November 23, is aimed at promoting tourism in Puri town, sacred to Hindus for the famous Jagannath temple dedicated to Lord Krishna. Artistes from other States, including West Bengal, Rajasthan and Gujarat, also participated. Foreign tourists marvelled at the graceful performances by classic Odissi dancers. A major attraction of the festival was a display of Orissa's traditional handicrafts. Hundreds of artisans from across the State exhibited their work at makeshift shops set up at the festival venue. The festival was organised by the hotel and restaurant association of Orissa. This is the 9th year of the Puri Beach Festival. All the hotels in Puri have got almost 90 per cent occupancy. Tourism is the mainstay of impoverished Orissa's economy with Puri's Jagannath temple and Konark's Sun temple attracting thousands of visitors every year. State tourism officials estimate that at least 1.3 million tourists would have visited Orissa by the end of 2002. Three
Boys Killed in J-K Blast (Go
to Top) SRINAGAR: Three boys, aged between 11 and 13, were killed and another was seriously injured in a bomb blast in Kupwara district early on Tuesday. The explosion took place when the boys who found an explosive device in a field tried to fiddle with it. According to police, the device was a hand-grenade. The victims have been identified as Mushtaq Ahmad Sheikh, Firdous Ahmad and Shabir Ahmad. Six Drowned
as Boat Sinks in Bengal River(Go
to Top) KOLKATA: Six persons were drowned and four others missing when a boat, carrying over 60 people, capsized in Bidya river at Chunokhali in West Bengal's South 24-Parganas district. The boat, which overturned late on Monday, November 25, was on its way to neighbouring Gabberia in Sandeshkhali area of North 24-Parganas district for a 'Ras Jatra' function. However, the local people claimed that the boat was carrying more than 100 persons and it capsized due to over-loading. Rescue operations are going on. 30 Killed
as Bus Falls off Bridge in MP(Go
to Top) BHOPAL: Thirty 30 people were killed and many injured when a bus plunged into Sone river,145 kilometres from Rewa in Sidhi district of Madhya Pradesh. The bus, on its way from Hanmana to Behri, fell off a bridge after its front right tyre burst. Although the river was almost dry, passengers died as they fell from a considerable height, an official said. Tibetans
Protest at Chinese Trade Stall (Go
to Top) NEW DELHI: Tibetan exiles staged a violent protest on Saturday, November 23, against China's participation in an international trade fair currently on in New Delhi. The Tibetans shouted slogans and had scuffles with the police as they tried to forcibly enter the fair complex.(Trade Fair Details) About 25 countries are participating in the India International Trade Fair 2002 which began earlier this month. But the biggest draw at the fair, which is Asia's largest, has been the 164 Chinese stalls. This is China's first-ever participation in the event. Trade between India and China has grown since the mutual grant of the Most Favoured Nation Status in 1984. Chinese troops marched into Tibet in 1950 and Buddhist spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, alongwith his followers fled to India nine years later after an abortive uprising against Communist rule. The Tibetan refugees are now settled in different parts of India with the Dalai Lama establishing his headquarters in Dharamsala. Of late, the Dalai Lama has dropped the demand for complete independence for Tibet and is now campaigning for genuine autonomy from the Chinese. The Dalai Lama's representatives recently visited mainland China and Tibet, the first time in nearly a decade, in what is seen as a thaw between the two sides. MP Bus
Fire Toll 60 (Go
to Top) JABALPUR: The toll in Wednesday's bus fire has risen to 60, said an official on Thursday. The crowded private bus, on its way to Kundam, caught fire near Paharkhera village on Jabalpur-Dindori Road in Mandla district, 40 km from here. According to District Collector Sanjay Shukla, 30 people were being treated in hospital for injuries. Twenty-one bodies have been recovered and the rest are charred beyond recognition. Preliminary investigations suggest that the flame started when a passenger transporting two cans of petrol lit a cigarette. The bus was carrying more than 100 people, most of whom were returning from a village fair.
Curbs on VIPs at
Jim Corbett National Park in Uttaranchal (Go
to Top)
DEHRA
DUN: After a gap of six months, Jim Corbett Park saw the first arrival
of tourists on Saturday, November 16. A dream destination of wildlife
lovers, the park closes every year on June 16, with the onset of the
monsoon.
However, this winter the VIPs who plan to visit the park will be minus their security guards and retinue of attendants. "The administration has decided that protocol formalities should be completed in Ramnagar before entry to the park. Inside the park, the Forest Department will look after the security arrangements," said the director of the park, DS Khati. The huge caravan of VIPs not only creates unnecessary noise pollution and disturbs wild animals in their natural habitat, but also makes the park administartion run at their beck and call during their free stay The new rule will also benefit the tourists, who have to cancel their bookings at the Guest House when a VIP and his entourage arrive. Recently the park was in the news for large-scale poaching. Last year, five adult male elephants were killed in the park. The Jim Corbett Park, located at the foothills of Uttaranchal, is known as a tiger reserve. With a count of 92 tigers, the park is also home to leopards, jungle cat, fishing cat, crocodiles and elephants.
Orissa is known for tourist attractions like Jagannath temple at Puri, Konarak sun temple, Nandankanan sanctuary of Bengal tigers etc. A centre of art and craft, 2,600-year old Bhubaneswar city too is a tourist destination with hundreds of temples. The classical Odisi dance belongs to Orissa.
200 Fishermen
Missing as Cyclone Hits Coastal Bengal (Go
to Top) KOLKATA: Nearly 200 Indian fishermen were missing on Thursday, November 14, after a cyclone hit West Bengal, killing at least two people, officials said. State Fisheries Minister Kiranmoy Nanda said 47 fishermen were confirmed missing after their boats capsized. He said at least 20 trawlers were not accounted for and 200 fishermen were untraced. As confirmed by the meterological offices, the storm first struck the coast of West Bengal, packing winds of 60-70 km (40-45 miles) an hour, but it weakened as it turned towards Bangladesh. Digha in Midnapore district and Sagar islands were the worst hit. Kolkata received 81.5 mm of rainfall and temperature dipped by around seven degrees Celsius. A Coast Guard hovercraft and a ship were expected to join the search for fishermen in the Bay of Bengal.
The heavily populated, low-lying coastal areas of eastern India and
Bangladesh are vulnerable to storms that roar in off the Bay of Bengal.
In 1999, at least 10,000 people were killed in Orissa when a severe
cyclone hit its coast.
PUSHKAR
(Rajasthan): Though the United States and Britain have warned of
the risk of a terrorist attack on the world's biggest camel fair at
Pushkar in Rajasthan, and urged their citizens to stay away from it,
many tourists are awe-struck by the scale of festivities there.
The major attraction for most of the devotees coming to Pushkar is the
Brahma temple. The 10-day fair got off to a flying start on Tuesday,
November 12, in the desert town of Pushkar. Diplomats from various countries
have organised group visits to the fair, touted as the world's biggest
annual sale of cattle. Thousands of tourists thronged the stalls
The American embassy in New Delhi said in a statement on Wednesday that it has information which suggests that there is a risk of terrorist activity at the fair. Bodh Gaya
Enters Global Air Map (Go
to Top) GAYA (Bihar):: International flight to Gaya, one of the holiest Indian Buddhist sites, was inaugurated when the first flight from Sri Lanka arrived in eastern Bodh Gaya city on Tuesday, November 13. (Details) Bill Gates
to Invest $ 400 m in India (Go
to Top) NEW
DELHI: Bill Gates on the second day of his four-day visit to India
said that his company would invest 400 million dollars over the next
three years in several areas, including education, partnerships, innovations,
localisation and development centres.
Later
he visited Hyderabad and Bangalore in connection with varuious projects.
He came to India especially to set up a campaign against AIDS. Gates,
the world's richest person, is on his third visit to the country.
Bomb
Hoax in Chennai Airport (Go
to Top) CHENNAI:
Airport officials and security men in Chennai airport went into
a tizzy after they received an anonymous call that an explosive device
had been placed at the airport complex. However, this proved to be a
hoax.
According to official sources, the call came through the airport's intercom but after intensive scrutiny by bomb disposal squads and sniffer dogs, nothing was found in the complex. NEW
DELHI: Taking a cue from Jet Airways, Government-owned Indian Airlines
announced on Wednesday, November 6, a 10 per cent across-the-board increase
in passenger fares from November 10 for all sectors to neutralise the
hike in the price of aviation turbine fuel and airport user charges.
However, according to the IA spokesperson, the APEX (advance purchase and excursion) fares and the domestic US dollar fares remain unchanged. Jet Airways also raised its point-to-point, return excursion and promotional fares. The inland air travel tax (IATT) of IA as well as excess baggage fares will be increased proportionately but insurance charge and passenger service fee will stay as they are. PATNA: Three persons were killed and several others were injured when Gwalior Express collided with the Amritsar-Barauni Express near Chhapra in Bihar on Monday. One of the coaches of the Amritsar-Barauni Express was derailed. Initial reports said that the Amritsar-Barauni Express was stationary as it had halted near Chappra railway station following a snag in the vacuum pipe, when the Gwalior Express, running on the same track, collided from the back.
Over 100 fire incidents were reported from across the Capital on the occasion of Diwali. Seven
Pilgrims Killed in Nalanda Bus Mishap (Go
to Top) PATNA:
Seven Buddhist pilgrims were killed and 25 others injured, when a bus
they were travelling in plunged into a river near Banganga in Nalanda
district on Tuesday, November 5. Official sources said the incident
took place when the driver lost control over the vehicle near Banganga.
The bus was on its way to Bodh Gaya, a key Buddhist pilgrim centre,
from Rajgir.
The victims were members of the Buddhist Society of India, founded by Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar. NEW DELHI: On account of Diwali, all major domestic airlines cancelled, re-scheduled or combined several of their flights on Monday, November 4. Indian Airlines, Jet Airways and Air Sahara together cancelled about 35 flights for Monday in different sectors, especially on Delhi-Mumbai route, with IA cancelling 15 and Jet 14. While IA's flight rescheduling and cancellations would continue till November 6, Jet Airways and Air Sahara have effected rescheduling only on Monday. KOLKATA: Eleven people, including seven women, were drowned and several others reported missing after an overcrowded country boat capsized mid-stream in the Moni river in West Bengal's South 24-Parganas district on Sunday, November 3, police said. The bodies of 11 people were recovered while search was on to locate the missing persons, they said. Eighteen people were hospitalised. The boat was ferrying about 70 people from Raidighi to Kultali for a political meeting there when the mishap took place near Raidighi, 45 km from here, police added.
CHENNAI: Heavy rains lashed Chennai for the fifth consecutive day on Saturday, November 2, claiming 17 lives and rendering thousands homeless. Almost all the districts in the State reported heavy to very heavy rainfall with the Cauvery river delta and Chennai receiving the most. School children and office-goers had a harrowing time in reaching their destinations, as many roads remained inundated. Many houses in low-lying areas of the city were submerged. Some local schools declared a holiday following the heavy downpour. Traffic came to a virtual standstill as rain water submerged main roads. At some busy points, buses were seen crawling at a snail's pace due to heavy traffic jams. Traffic policemen had a tough time maintaining free flow of vehicles. Weather
officials say the State would continue to witness heavy rainfall for
the next two days.
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