Page 57 - Social Issues
Rahul Gandhi for action against those involved in 1984 riots
Facing a mounting attack from the BJP, Congress chief Rahul Gandhi Monday said those involved in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots should be punished, even as he again rebuked his party leader Sam Pitroda, saying he should be "ashamed" of his remarks on the tragic event. Addressing a poll rally in Hoshiarpur, Gandhi said that what happened in 1984 was very wrong. "Pain, which is there in people's hearts, you (Pitroda) should respect that, and those who committed wrongs in 1984 (riots), there should be action against them and action will be taken." Earlier, at his rally at Khanna, which was his first rally in Punjab, he also said that his party's overseas unit chief should apologise to the country for his "totally" wrong remarks. The Congress president's remarks came in an apparent damage control exercise after an uproar over Pitroda's "hua to hua" response to a query on the riots. The Congress chief had earlier tweeted his disapproval and the party had distanced himself from Pitroda's ...
Employment opportunities top list of voters' priorities; govt performance 'below avg': ADR survey
Better employment opportunities, healthcare and drinking water were the top three issues on which voters want the government of the day to work on, a national survey conducted by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) has claimed. As per the survey, conducted between October and December in 2018, the performance of the government has been rated "below-average", Jagdeep Chhokar, founder member, National Election Watch, ADR, told reporters here on Monday. The survey covered 534 Lok Sabha constituencies with 2,73,487 voters participating in the exercise. It was spread across various demographics such as voters' priorities on specific governance issues; voters' ratings of the government's performance on those issues, and factors affecting voting behaviour. When asked if national security was one of the issues listed in the survey, Chhokar said, "terrorism was one of the 31 listed issues, and it figured on the 30th position in the survey". Better employment opportunities figured as ..
Tapasvi PM Modi is full of arrogance: Priyanka
Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Monday mocked Prime Minister Narendra Modi calling him a "tapasvi" full of arrogance. She was addressing a rally for the Congress candidate from Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh.
U'khand ex-CM stages protest over Dalit youth's killing at wedding
Former Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat staged a silent protest here on Monday against the death of a Dalit youth who was allegedly beaten up by upper-caste people for eating in front of them at a wedding. The Congress general secretary held the hour-long protest with his supporters in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue at the Gandhi Park. Rawat demanded that the ruling BJP government in the state must immediately extend financial help to the deceased's family as the youth was the sole breadwinner. Rawat, who had met the family of the deceased in their village on Sunday, expressed shock and said it was a "blot" on the name of Uttarkhand. Jeetendra Das, 23, had died on May 5, nine days after he was beaten up by upper-caste men for daring to eat in the same row with them at a wedding reception in Shrikot village of Tehri Garhwal district.
CBI raids 22 education institutions in connection with multi-crore scholarship scam
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday conducted raids at 22 educational institutions in Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh in connection with a multi-crore scholarship scam.The raids were carried out after the agency registered a case against unknown officials for misappropriation of scholarships meant for the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Class and Minority community to the tune of Rs 250 crore, a CBI spokesman said.The funds, meant to be transferred to the accounts of the students, were allegedly siphoned off to other accounts.
Airtel offers HDFC Life Insurance cover with Rs 249 plan
Telecom major Bharti Airtel on Monday said that it has partnered with HDFC Life Insurance to bundle an insurance cover with its Rs 249 prepaid plan.
Ex-CM Rawat sits on fast against death of Dalit youth
Congress General Secretary and former Chief Minister Harish Rawat on Monday observed an hour-long fast here in protest against the recent death of a Dalit youth in Tehri district of Uttarakhand.
Kashmiri Pandits stage protest in Jammu over vandalism of apple orchard in valley
A group of Kashmiri Pandits staged a protest here on Monday alleging that an apple orchard owned by a member of the community was vandalised by miscreants in South Kashmir. The protesters alleged that the incident was aimed at creating a sense of insecurity among the minority community in Kashmir and demanded arrest of the culprits. "I came to Jammu last week from Kashmir. Two days ago, I received a call from the people in the valley that my apple orchard at Akura village of Anantnag district has been vandalised during the night," Ajay Raina, the owner of the orchard, told reporters here. Police have registered a case and taken up investigation, officials said. All State Kashmiri Pandit Conference (ASKPC) general secretary T K Bhat said, "We want the culprits to be arrested and punished severely." All Party Migrant Coordination Committee (APMCC) chairman Vinood Pandita demanded a high-level probe and compensation for the orchard owner.
Airtel ties with HDFC Life, offers insurance with prepaid plan
Telecom operator Airtel on Monday said it has partnered with HDFC Life Insurance to introduce a prepaid scheme with in-built life insurance term plan cover. The new plan will come with Rs 4 lakh life cover from HDFC Life, Airtel said in a statement. "Airtel's new Rs 249 prepaid bundle will come with Rs 4 lakh life cover from HDFC Life along with 2GB data, unlimited calls to any network and 100 SMS/day," the statement said. The policy will be available to all customers aged 18-54 years, and requires no paperwork or medical examination except self declaration of good health, it said. "Insurance adoption is abysmally low in India, including in urban areas. Price, access and convenience of payments are barriers to adoption," Bharti Airtel Chief Product Officer Adarsh Nair said. "Airtel's pan-India distribution reach will enable millions of uninsured and underinsured Indians to become financially secure and improve adoption, penetration of insurance products in the country,"
Ireland bans anti-gay US preacher
A controversial anti-gay and anti-Semitic US preacher has become the first person to be banned from Ireland under a 20-year-old Act, a media report said on Monday.
Kin hold wedding sans bride for man with learning disability
A Gujarat family, to fulfill the wish of their son suffering from learning disabilities, organised a lavish wedding for him, with all the usual fun and frolic, but without a bride. The unique, "bride-less" wedding of Ajay Barot (27) was held on May 10 in Champlanar village near Himmatnagar town of north Gujarat's Sabarkantha district. The Barot family spent over Rs 2 lakh on the "wedding" so that his "childhood wish" to get married got fulfilled, said family members. On the day of his wedding, Ajay, clad in sherwani with a garland around his neck, led the procession through the village on a horse. "Since Ajay is mentally challenged, we knew that he may never get a bride. But he always used to ask us about when he would get married. He has attended many wedding ceremonies, and used to dance joyously in them. After attending them, he used to ask about his own marriage," said Ajay's uncle Kamlesh Barot. Due to his learning disabilities, Ajay never got formal ...
Harish Rawat observes 'silence' to protest against death of Dalit man
Congress general secretary Harish Rawat along with other party officials on Monday observed an hour of 'maun vrat' (silence) here at the Gandhi Park to protest against the killing of a Dalit youth by upper caste men in Tehri."Congress national general secretary Harish Rawat along with other party leaders observed an hour silence at Gandhi Park in Dehradun," an official statement said. On May 7, a Dalit had succumbed to injuries a few days after he was beaten up allegedly by a group of "upper caste" people for dining with them at a wedding reception in Tehri district of Uttrakhand, police said."The incident was very disgusting and it is an act of shame to all of us. This is why I kept an hour fast today," Rawat said while speaking to ANI. Rawat and Congress state chief Pritam Singh also met the family of deceased, Jitendra Das, and offered monetary help. The party has also demanded Rs 15 lakh compensation to Das' family and a government job for the deceased's sister."Das was the sole ..
2 in custody for smuggling gold worth 8cr in Kerala
Two people on Monday were anbbed from the Thiruvananthapuram airport and taken into custody for carrying 25 kg gold worth Rs 8 crore.
Cyprus 'serial killings' spark horror, anger at police
Seven foreign women and girls murdered, some dumped in a toxic lake -- the "first serial killings" in Cyprus have provoked horror and sparked accusations of police racism. Since mid-April, the Mediterranean island's press has slammed official failings over the murders, which 35-year-old army officer Nicos Metaxas has allegedly confessed to carrying out. Andreas Kapardis, a criminologist and emeritus professor at the University of Cyprus, said the killings were first such case since the island won its independence in 1960. "For Cypriots, discovering a serial murderer in their own society is... unique," he said. The victims were four Filipinas, including a mother and her six-year-old daughter, a Romanian woman and her eight-year-old daughter, and a woman reported to be Nepalese. All the women had been reported missing, but police failed to follow up the cases, allowing the alleged killer to carry on for nearly three years. "The more the investigation advanced, the more it became clear ..
EC applauds senior citizens, disabled for voting
The Election Commission on Sunday applauded senior citizens, women and persons with disabilities, who came out to vote.
Lithuanians elect new president amid inequality woes
Lithuanians voted for a new president on Sunday with concerns over income inequality and poverty dominating round one of a tight race in the Baltic eurozone state. Voter turnout tallied at 56.45 percent at the close of voting on Sunday, according to the Central Elections Commission, which also said it expected to publish partial official results in the night or early on Monday. Nine candidates are vying to succeed two-term independent incumbent Dalia Grybauskaite. The politician nicknamed the "Iron Lady" for her strong resolve has been tipped as a contender to be the next president of the European Council. But pre-election surveys suggest only three stand a chance of making it to an expected May 26 run-off that would coincide with European Parliament elections. Centre-left Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis, conservative ex-finance minister Ingrida Simonyte and independent economist Gitanas Nauseda lead the pack, and each has focused primarily on bread and butter issues. Simonyte is ...
55-yr-old man found hanging in under construction building
Body of a 55-year-old man was found hanging from the ceiling of an under construction building here on Sunday, police said. The deceased has been identified as Sunil Kumar. He was staying in a rented accommodation in Rajiv Nagar colony of the state capital, the police said, adding that prima facie, it seems to be the case of a suicide, though no suicide note was found from the site of occurrence. Kumar's body was found hanging in an under construction building in Magadh colony near Kurji nala, the police said. They said Kumar's wife has lodged a complaint stating that her husband has been murdered.
EC's special arrangements for voters with disabilities receive appreciation
The initiative of the Election Commission to facilitate the 'Divyang' or voter with disabilities to enable them to cast their vote without any hassle in all 10 Lok Sabha seats in Haryana received appreciation by those who availed this facility Sunday. Several of these voters were provided with a wheelchair at polling stations and vehicles were provided to them to exercise their franchise. Names of 1,04,534 physically challenged voters out of a total voter strength of over 1.80 crore were registered in the electoral rolls across the state, Haryana Joint Chief Electoral Officer Inder Jeet said. Polling remained peaceful on all the 10 LS seats on Sunday. The 'Divyang' voters were contacted at the district level so as to provide them the vehicles to bring them to the polling booth and later drop them back at their homes. "Apart from this, arrangement of wheelchair was made at the polling stations where more than 20 Divyang voters were registered. In this way, 2,631 wheelchairs were ...
Online bullying worsens sleep and depression in teens
Teens who have experienced cyberbullying are more likely to suffer from poor sleep, which ultimately raises their levels of depression, suggest researchers.According to the study presented at the meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, for examining the relationship between online bullying and depression, this study is one of few to explore the connection between cyber victimization and sleep quality."Cyber victimization on the internet and social media is a unique form of peer victimization and emerging mental health concern among teens who are digital natives. Understanding these associations supports the need to provide sleep hygiene education and risk prevention and interventions to mistreated kids who show signs and symptoms of depression," said the author of the study, Misol Kwon.Nearly one-third of teens have experienced symptoms of depression, which, in addition to changes in sleep pattern, include persistent irritability, anger and social withdrawal.And nearly
Students of Delhi govt schools do their bit to make voting a joyous experience for one and all
For students of Delhi government schools, it was a Sunday well spent at polling booths in the national capital where they volunteered to help disabled and elderly voters to cast their ballot. From giving flowers to first-time voters and candies to children accompanying their parents to rushing wheelchairs for the disabled voters, the student volunteers were on their toes to make voting a happy experience for one and all. "We can't vote right now but we are very happy to be part of the electoral process. I have been helping disabled people and centenarians," said Shanita Chaudhary, a class 8 student, who was volunteering at a school in Chandni Chowk's Zeenat Mahal area. Dishita Rajput, another student volunteer, said, "I am too excited about this. I got to see Rahul Gandhi who had come to vote here. We cannot go inside where votes are being cast but we can be around the polling booth. If somebody needs any help, we are here". Similar excitement was shared by Sarthak Chaudhary, another .
