Page 144 - Social Issues
India lowers tax on new home sales ahead of general election: TV stations
MUMBAI (Reuters) - India on Sunday announced a cut in the goods and services tax charged on sales of residential properties under construction, according to television news channels.
Discrimination against women disturbs me: Bachchan
Megastar Amitabh Bachchan on Sunday said he is pained that women who carry hepatitis B virus face discrimination in the society, something he will continue to fight for. Bachchan, who is the World Health Organization's Goodwill Ambassador for Hepatitis in South-East Asia Region, said women must be treated with respect and dignity. "Discrimination against women has been most disturbing for me. This shouldn't happen. Women are half the power of the country, they are the strength of the country. They must be given the respect and dignity that all deserve," Bachchan said. "To be discriminated like this just because they are carrying hepatitis B virus is not acceptable. I will fight for this as long as I am alive," he added. The 76-year-old actor was speaking at the launch of National Action Plan on combatting viral hepatitis in India. Bachchan said this discrimination is "condemnable" and was shocked to know how things unfold for women suffering from the disease. "I have heard such ...
Women with more social support live longer: Study
Elderly women who have more social support are more likely to live longer, a study claims. Researchers from George Mason University in the US examined perceived social support and its effect on cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mortality. Even after accounting for factors such as income, race, and education that could have influenced the results, the researchers still found that women in this age range who reported lower levels of social support had a higher death rate during the 10 plus years of the study. In fact, they found that when women reported a very low level of social support, that predicted about a 20 per cent greater risk of death during those same 10 plus years compared to those reporting very high levels of social support. "Perceived functional social support, which we examined in this study, can include whether a person believes they could get emotional support, advice, or just company from others to do fun things with, which can help reduce stress," said Nancy Freeborne
Elderly man 'cheated' by kin over property sale ends life
A 75-year old man allegedly committed suicide depressed over being 'cheated' by his relatives who registred a property he sold for Rs 6.10 lkah for Rs 29.30 lakh ten years later in 2010, resulting in the I-T department issuing him a notice, police said Sunday. The retired private sector employee hanged himself in his house here Saturday, they said. In a suicide note purportedly written by him, the elderly man accused his relatives of having cheated him, Malkajgiri Police Station Sub-Inspector K Sanjeeva Reddy said. According to police, the man had sold his house at Musheerabad here to his relatives for Rs 6.10 lakh, but the latter got the registration done in 2010 for a value of Rs 29.30 lakh. The IT department had recently issued him a notice seeking clarifications over the sale transaction, the SI said. Later, he had called up his relatives but they did not respond. As a result, he went into depression and resorted to the extreme step, he said. A case had been ...
Tiger faeces being collected in uneven terrains, insurgency-hit areas to estimate population
In a first, wildlife officials are collecting tiger faeces to estimate the population of the big cats in erratic terrains and insurgency-hit areas in the country, with a report likely to be released next month. The experiment is called 'scats' and it is being conducted for the first time in uneven terrains like those in northeastern states, and naxal-affected areas, where installing cameras to capture the movement of tigers is tough, a National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) official said. The official said tiger faeces is being used for genetic sampling and estimating the big cats population for the 2018 Tiger Census. Explaining the methodology of 'scats', an official of the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), an autonomous institution of the Environment Ministry, said the technique involves making polygons -- squares in this case -- of 25 sqkm each in an area of 400 sqkm in the northeastern region, and then physically going there and collecting faeces for genetic sampling. "Such
50 lakh names deleted from electoral rolls in Maharashtra
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has deleted as many as 50 lakh names from the voters' list in Maharashtra after revision ahead of the polls, an official said on Sunday. Some of these names were registered multiple times or the concerned voters had died, he said. More names were likely to be deleted in the coming weeks as the process of authentication of voters was underway, the ECI official said. It was an ongoing process but picked up pace in the last one year ahead of the Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly elections, he said. "The special drive started in January last year and around 50 lakh names were found either entered multiple times or the person was dead and the name was not removed from the list," he said. It was also found that names of many married women, who had relocated, were not deleted from the voters' list at their native places. At times, the changed names of married women were included in the lists at their relocated places without getting it ..
Rajasthan govt releases rules for providing pension to small, marginalised farmers
The rules for Rajasthan Social Security for Elderly Farmers Pension Scheme, 2019, has been released by the government, which, following its implementation, will put a burden of Rs 990 crore on the state exchequer. The rules will come into effect from March 1, 2019. Implementing the promise made in the poll manifesto, the Congress government decided to provide Rs 1,000 monthly pension to small and marginalised farmers above 75 years of age, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said in a statement. The government will also provide Rs 750 monthly pension to small and marginalised women farmers above 55 years of age and male farmers above 58 years respectively without any regular source of income. According to an official statement, there are nearly 30 lakh small and marginalised farmers Rajasthan, of which nearly 19 lakh are taking benefit of various social security schemes. In such a case, around 11 lakh farmers will be able to get the benefits of pension under the scheme, statement said. The ...
NRC's biggest success is stopping influx of illegal Bangladeshis into Assam: Mukhi
Assam Governor Jagdish Mukhi Saturday said the roll-out of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) to identify illegal immigrants from Bangladesh has resulted in "totally containing" fresh influx of Bangladeshis into the state. Mukhi also said that the Centre was speeding up work on completely sealing Assam's land border with Bangladesh and that the riverine portion of the frontier would soon be put under electronic surveillance to stop any illegal migration from the country. "Illegal migration from Bangladesh has totally stopped because of the NRC. It is the biggest achievement of the NRC process. The government is committed to identify illegal migrants living in Assam," Mukhi told PTI. In July last year, Assam released the draft of the NRC, a list of people who proved they came to Assam by 24 March 1971, a day before Bangladesh declared independence. The list excluded nearly four million people, triggering widespread anguish and intense agitation in several parts of the Northeastern
Writing generates fear among oppressor caste forces: Kancha Ilaiah
Writing is the only medium that generates fear among the oppressor caste forces and can change the conditions of the oppressed Dalitbahujans, believes activist Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd. The Dalit writer has come out with his memoirs "From a Shepherd Boy to an Intellectual" in which he also talks of the struggle for education and dignity that a great majority of Indians undergo. "Many people from the Brahmin-Baniya castes have written about their own greatness in their autobiographies, in English and in the regional languages. But I have not seen even a single autobiography of a person born and brought up in the shepherd community," he says. "Writing is the only medium that can change the conditions of the oppressed Dalitbahujans. After (B R ) Ambedkar, I took up this task, and this writing has to be done on a continuous basis, generation after generation," Ilaiah Shepherd writes in the book, brought out by Sage Publications. "There is no doubt that such writing generates fear among the .
I will only be with someone who is true to himself, says Onir
National Award-winning filmmaker Onir, who doesnt worship monogamy, says he wants to be with someone who is true and open both to himself and to the world.
Hyderabad man committed suicide for failing to pay I-T penalty
Depressed over his kin cheating on him after allegedly grabbing his house at a price lower than the market value, an elderly man committed suicide here by hanging himself at his house in Malkajgiri on the intervening night of February 22 and 23.Speaking to ANI, an officer handling the case said: "We have recovered a suicide note in his residence. Jagannadam owned a residence in Malkajgiri are. He had signed an agreement with his relatives in 2000 to sell the property for Rs 6.1 lakh. For some reason, the registration got delayed and the final agreement was signed in 2010 after which he sold the same house to his relatives at the old rates. The actual market value was Rs 29.3 lakh."While he was upset over this, the Income Tax Department issued the notice to him asking him to pay the penalty of Rs 15 lakh. "He then went back to his relatives for the money as per the market value but his relatives did not respond to him properly. On which Jagannadam got depressed and committed suicide. ..
Restrictions in Srinagar to prevent separatist-called protests
Authorities imposed restrictions in parts of Srinagar city on Sunday to prevent separatist-called protests against the mass detention of over 150 Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) cadres, police said.
Victims of clerical sexual abuse hold protests near Vatican
Scores of people who were allegedly sexually abused by members from the Catholic clergy as children held protests near the Vatican on Saturday (local time).This comes in the wake of a meeting of Bishops and heads of religious orders from around the world being held to prevent clerical sexual abuse. Demonstrators, hailing from the United States, New Zealand, and Italy amongst other nations, carried posters which had the zero figure printed on them, symbolising zero tolerance for sexual abuse, reports NHK World.They have called for the unfrocking of clergy members who have either been found guilty of abusing children or have covered up cases of clerical sexual abuse of minors.The agitators have also called for an explanation on how reforms will be carried out from the Pope, along with the church.Meanwhile, high-ranking members from the clergy have condemned clerical sexual abuse and the "slow nature" of response to alleged crimes at the summit, with Archbishop Eamon Martin putting forth
No of hospital beds Delhi increased from 48,096 in 2014-15 to 57,194 in last fiscal: report
The total number of hospital beds in the national capital increased from 48,096 in 2014-15 to 57,194 in the last fiscal, according to Delhi's Economic Survey report. This translated in a jump in beds per 1000 population from 2.68 to 2.99 in the corresponding periods, it said. Besides, the strength of beds at a proposed hospital in Ambedkar Nagar has been revised from 200 to 600. The estimated cost of the hospital is Rs 180.95 crore and 80 per cent of the work has been completed, the Delhi's Economic Survey 2018-19 report said. The Delhi government has decided to remodel around 16 existing hospitals so as to enhance the number of existing beds as per Floor Area Ratio (FAR) norms. Around 7,000 new beds will be added as per planned remodelling of these existing 16 hospitals, it said. According to the NSSO survey (71st Round) report of State Samples, around 2,697 persons were hospitalised per one lakh population during the reference period of one year and the share of the government ...
Two child marriages stopped by SHE Teams
The 'SHE Teams', set up by the Telangana government to ensure protection of women, have stopped two child marriages here, police said Saturday. While one marriage was planned to be organised Saturday, the other was to take place later this month, a police release said. The teams, which received information on the proposed marriages, counseled the parents concerned in Yadadri district (of Telangana) and stopped the marriages. Police have been conducting an awareness campaign against child marriages, it said. Over a period of time, owing to the success of the campaign, 51 minor girls have been rescued from getting married, the release said.
Health scheme for ex-Armymen: Sitharaman says hospital malpractices being probed
The government is probing fraudulent practises at hospitals empanelled for treatment of ex-servicemen, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said here Saturday. She said there were several issues with the scheme, and some of these hospitals inflate the bills. "I say this openly, there are a lot of issues with ECHS (Ex-servicemen Contributory Health Scheme). Both you (ex-servicemen) and the government are facing problems. Random checks have revealed that complaints are coming from many of these (empanelled) hospitals," Sitharaman said. The defence minister was speaking an an interactive function attended by ex-servicemen. She said audits of these hospitals revealed that many of them charged huge fees by showing ordinary cases as emergencies and apparently conducted unnecessary tests and treatment to inflate bills. "From among these 1,446 civil hospitals, payments of many have been stopped for now and they are being investigated whether the bills are genuine," Sitharaman said. Because of .
Mata Bhagwanti Chadha Niketan celebrates 20th annual day
Mata Bhagwanti Chadha Niketan (MBCN), a school for specially-abled children, celebrated its 20th annual day on Saturday.
Muzaffarpur shelter home case: Trial to begin in Saket court from Monday
The trial in the sensational Muzaffarpur shelter home sexual assault case will begin from Monday at a Delhi court. Some of the accused were produced before a designated POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) court here on Saturday, which said it will take up the matter on Monday. On February 7, the Supreme Court had transferred the case from a Bihar court to Saket court, which would now conclude the trial within six months. Several girls were allegedly raped and sexually abused at an NGO-run shelter home in Muzaffarpur and the issue had come to light following a report by Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS). The apex court had said the transfer of records to Saket court should be completed within two weeks and the trial is to be concluded within six months by holding preferably "day-to-day" trial.
Mizoram's tribal refugees seek to know electoral status
The first-time voters from among the 35,000 tribal immigrants from Mizoram, sheltered in Tripura for the past 21 years, do not know whether their names have been included in the final electoral rolls published in Mizoram on Friday, refugee leaders said on Saturday.
Free clinical laboratory services introduced in Tripura
Tripura Health and Family Welfare Minister Sudip Roy Barman on Saturday launched a mega free clinical laboratory service across the northeastern state.