Anna Hazare asks people to vote conscientiously

Rishikesh: Anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare on Tuesday asked people to vote conscientiously as he launched the third phase of his Jantantra Yatra here on Tuesday.

"We must elect individuals capable of delivering and not vote blindly for parties in 2014," Hazare said while addressing a gathering at Doon Tiraha here.

He said the Jantantra Yatra was meant to awaken people's ability to bring about a major change in the system and it would continue till an independent Lokpal was set up.

Hazare will conduct his public awakening campaign in about 50 places in Uttarakhand before concluding the third phase of his yatra in Rudrapur later this month.

He had kicked off his yatra from the martyrs' memorial at Amritsar's Jallianwala Bagh on March 31.

On the eve of the launch of the third phase of his yatra, Hazare had participated in the Ganga Arti programme on the banks of the river here with Parmarth Niketan chief Swami Chidanand Saraswati.

PTI

3.50 lakh class 8th students in Raj get Rs 6,000 for tablet PC

Jaipur: Over three lakh meritorious students of class 8th in government schools in Rajasthan were on Tuesday given cheques of Rs 6,000 each for purchasing tablet PCs.

The state government's education department distributed the cheques in 35,819 government schools to 3.5 lakh students who have secured 2nd to 11th position in the merit list of 8th class.

The scheme was announced in the state budget this year. Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, addressing a state-level function here, said, "The scheme aimed at enabling future generation to learn more about technology during their schooling."

"The scheme fulfils dream of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi who wished the country to enter into the 21st century with full preparation so that we can stand in the line of developed countries of the world," he said.

In the second phase of the scheme, laptops will be given to 1.11 lakh students, he said.

Students who have secured 1st position in the merit list of class 8th and 10,000 students in the merit of 10th and 12th Rajasthan Board examinations will be provided laptops, he said.

One thousand college students who secure first position in all faculties of government colleges will also be provided laptop, he said.

State ministers Shanti Dhariwal, A A Khan, MP Mahesh Joshi, Mayor Jyoti Khandelwal were among others present in the function.

PTI

Govt to advertise best practices on RTI

New Delhi: The Centre on Tuesday decided to publicise best practices on implementation of Right to Information (RTI) Act by public authorities across the country.

The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), which acts as a nodal body for the implementation of RTI Act, has invited "write ups" from citizens about the best practices on RTI being adopted by public authorities all over the country.

The DoPT plans to publish a compendium of best practices on the RTI being adopted by a government department or public authority.

"The best 20 write-ups would be selected for inclusion in the compendium. The individuals whose write ups are selected for inclusion in the compendium would be rewarded with a lumpsum amount of Rs 25,000 each," the DoPT said.

The write up should carry need felt or problem faced by the public authority leading to adoption of such practice, details of the said practice including its scope, financial implications, and deployment of resources such as manpower, infrastructure, etc and lessons learnt by the concerned department during its implementation, it said.

Besides, positive positive outcome of such practice in the implementation of the RTI Act and scope of its replication in other public authorities may be included in the write ups by an interested citizen.

The neatly typed write-ups should be of about 5,000 words and must reach the department before June 28, it said.

"There are many good practices being followed by various public authorities. We want it to reach all people and other public authorities so that they also start following them. That is why we decided to publish the compendium with the people's help. It (people's support) will help us in saving time too," a DoPT official said.

The Centre's flagship Right to Information Act, which was enacted in 2005, mandates timely response to citizen requests for government information. One has to pay a fee of Rs 10 for seeking information.

The DoPT had last month also started a unique facility of submitting RTI applications and fees online.

It has created a portal--www.Rtionline.Gov.In--with an aim to help people exercise their right to know through online medium.

The boundary settlement should be pursued as "strategicobjective" by the two countries: India on vexed boundary issue with China.

Cancel permits if autos switch off GPS device, says Goswami

The permits of 45,000 new autos that were fitted with GPS-enabled fare meters might be cancelled if the device is found switched off, Transport Minister Ramakant Goswami said on Tuesday.

Goswami has also directed the Transport department to work out a schedule to install GPS meters in the 55,000 old autos in the city.

"It has been decided that all autorickshaws, which are not keeping their GPS system in 'switch on' mode might be issued notice for cancellation of their permits. I have also asked for a time schedule for installation of GPS system in old autorickshaws to be worked out,'' Goswami said.

The minister has also asked the Transport department to work out a system, under which the driving licence and registration certificate of an auto driver would be punched for each violation. Goswami has also constituted a committee comprising additional commissioner (Transport), assistant commissioner of police and deputy general manger of DIMTS to discuss the issues related to pre-paid system, monitoring and analysing GPS data and colour markings on autos to decide their routes, officials said.

After the fares were revised, the Transport department has been trying to improve enforcement by inducting more personnel in its enforcement team.

"I have asked for special enforcement at railway stations, bus terminals/ISBTs and airport to ensure better transport services to the public. We want to involve representatives of Weights and Measures department to check if the fare meters installed in autorickshaws are correct,'' Goswami said.

After the recent increase, the minimum fare for the first two kilometres has gone up from Rs 19 to Rs 25 and, thereafter, per kilometre rate is Rs 8 as opposed to Rs 6.50.

Similarly, the minimum fare for one kilometre for both AC and non-AC taxis has gone up from Rs 20 to Rs 25. Meanwhile, the per kilometre rate for non-AC taxis has increased from

Rs 11 to Rs 14 and from Rs 13 to Rs 16 for AC taxis.

Source : IndianExpress

Official returns bribe after complaint on FB

Madurai: An employee of the electricity department here was forced to return the bribe he had taken from consumers after complaints were lodged on the Facebook page of the district collector.

Officials said 10 consumers posted messages on the social networking site complaining that they were made to shell out bribes for new power connections by the commercial inspector of the TN Generation and Distribution Corporation.

Acting swiftly on the FB posts, district collector Anshul Mishra called the commercial inspector and inquired about the complaints. When he “confessed” to have taken the bribe, Mr Mishra directed him to return the money to the consumers.

Delhi airport Metro offers discounted ride for family

In a bid to woo commuters, the Airport Metro Express Line (AMEL), run by Reliance Infrastructure, has offered from Tuesday discounted travel for families or groups, an official said.

"The current tariff of Rs.180 per person between New Delhi Station and Dwarka Sector 21 will come down to Rs.100, a discount of Rs.80 if four or more people travel together. If two people travel together, each of them will have to pay Rs.150, instead of Rs.180 each, a discount of Rs.30 per ticket," a Reliance Infra spokesperson said.

Similarly, for commuters travelling from New Delhi Railway Station to Terminal 3 of Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport the fare will come down to Rs.100 each for a group of four or more, from Rs.150.

This discount scheme will be available at all six stations of the AMEL.

"With this special family fare, the AMEL commuters will have to shell out less fare compared to cab for the same distance travelled," the spokesperson said.

The Delhi Airport Metro Line is a joint venture between Delhi Metro and Reliance Infra. The Airport Metro ferries about 15,000 people every day.

UK launches 'super-priority' visas for Indians

London: Britain has launched a new "super priority" same-day visa service for urgent travellers from India, the first-of-its-kind service to be launched by the UK anywhere in the world.

The super priority visa service was announced by British Prime Minister David Cameron during his visit to the country in February this year.

The service is open for appointment bookings in India from today.

"I am delighted to see the super priority visa service being launched in India before any other country," said Sir James Bevan, the British High Commissioner to India.

"For the first time, Indian visitors will now have the option of a same-day visa to the UK. This underlines our strong commitment to make an already excellent visa service even better. We expect this new service to be particularly useful for business," he said, adding that it will cater to those who need to travel on very short notice.

"Opportunities arise at short notice. We want Indian entrepreneurs and businessmen to be able to seize these. The UK and India are already on course to double bilateral trade by 2015.  The new super priority visa will help make sure that we hit this target," he added.

The service is optional and incurs an additional fee of 600 pounds besides the standard fee for the type of visa being applied for.

Applicants are required to complete an online form and submit their applications, by appointment, before 9.30 am.

If an application is successful, the visa will be ready for collection by 5.30 pm the same day in New Delhi or by 6.30 pm the same day in Mumbai.

It complements the UK's existing Fast Track Service and the recently announced online payment option.

The new service is available to customers applying for a six-month or two-year multiple entry visit visa (excluding student visitors) who have previously travelled to the UK, US, Australia, New Zealand, Canada or a Schengen country within the last five years.

It is also available to visa applicants sponsored by companies who are members of the UK's Business Express Programme.

"We are committed to making the UK an attractive place to visit and a destination for the brightest and best to work and do business. That's why we've launched this new service, to provide our valued customers from India with the choices to fit their particular circumstances and needs," immigration minister Mark Harper said.

"The UK and India have always had close commercial ties and I am determined to ensure that we continue to build stronger links in the future," Harper said.

India is the UK's biggest visa operation in the world, processing around 400,000 applications each year and the government claims that the vast majority of applications - over 97 per cent of UK business visit visas and 86 per cent of visit visas - are approved.

The latest service does not replace the process for expediting visas on compassionate grounds.