No netagiri in transfers anymore

BANGALORE: The Congress government has come out with a new transfer policy, which limits the interference of politicians and empowers department heads to shift officers. The policy is a deviation from what was followed by the previous BJP government.

According to the policy adopted by the Siddaramaiah government for 2013-14, transfers should be done only during May-June. There is a rider, however: The chief minister can, in public interest and to ensure good administration, order transfers anytime.

"The new policy will help in better administration and ensure that transfer and appointments of officials are done in public interest. It will also revive the confidence of government servants, who had been questioning the frequent transfers done during the previous regime,'' Siddaramaiah explained.

The new guidelines have been framed on the recommendations of the Karnataka Administrative Reforms Commission headed by former minister Haranahalli Ramaswamy.

Welcoming the new policy, Karnataka State Government Employees' Association president L Bhyrappa said: "The policy is good, provided the government implements it in right earnest."

A routine affair

When Yeddyurappa took over as CM in 2008, the BJP government had, in fact, instituted a similar transfer policy covering Class I to IV government employees. The government had then set June 30 as the last date for completing the process. However, transfers continued unabated, even after the deadline, with three chief ministers ruling the state in five years.

After the Congress government took over, transfers of IAS and IPS officers continued, with around five such orders being issued on an average every week. In administrative and police circles, the chief minister's ways are being compared with that of Yeddyurappa, who kept bureaucrats on tenterhooks with the musical-chair policy.

What it says

Some of the highlights of new transfer policy are: Six per cent employees in each department can be transferred; all Group A and B (IAS, IPS, secretaries, chief engineers, etc.) should be shifted from their posting at the district or divisional levels only after completing three years/ In case of Group C and D employees, they can be transferred if they have completed four and seven years respectively.

The rules, however, are not applicable to employees coming under the Police Establishment Board and teachers falling under Karnataka Civil Service Rules, 2007. Teachers will henceforth be transferred through counselling.

During counselling, employees concerned will be asked to give three preferences. If more than staffer opts for a particular place, preference will be given to the one who has served longer in a particular place.

185 flight cadets, including 21 women, inducted into IAF

Hyderabad: As many as 21 women are among the 185 flight cadets joined the fraternity of the Indian Air Force on Saturday, after completion of their successful one year rigorous training in different branches.

At an impressive combined graduation parade held at the Air Force Academy,  Dundigal near Hyderabad, Chief of Army Staff General Bikram Singh presented the Commission to them, on behalf of the President of India.

Besides 4 Indian Navy officers and 1 Indian Coast Guard officer were also awarded flying brevet on the the occasion. The passing out parade was culmination of the completion of  the one year rigorous training of the cadets in different branches at Air Force Academy, Air Force Administrative College, Coimbatore, Air Force Stations at Hamikpet and Begumpet.

 Addressing the cadets after reviewing the parade, the Army Chief called upon them to continue to work hard and create their own professional qualities with confidence, courage, integrity and compassion, make them good leader.  He hoped that the newly commissioned cadets will perform their  duties well and bring glory to the service and motherland. He said that the ascendancy of Air Power has been amply displayed in recent wars and inter-service cooperation will continue to remain a key element in future operations.

He told the cadets, "You are going to join a elite force that is going to play a major role in future conflicts.  There can be nothing more satisfying than participating in the defence of our own country".

General Bikram Singh was received by the Air Marshal Rajinder Singh, AOC-in-C Training Command and Air Marshal RG Burli, Commandant , Air Force Academy.

General Bikram Singh presented 'President's Plaque and Chief of Air Staff''s 'Sword of Honour' to flying officer Amandeep Arey, Commander of the parade, for standing firsing in overall order of merit in the pilots course. Flying officer Ravi Ranjan and flying officer Anshu Kumar Singh were awarded 'President's Plaque' for standing first in overall order of merit in ground duty and navigation branches respectively.

Traditional fly past by Kiran, Hawk, newly inducted Pilatus aircrafts and Chetak helicopters, while An-32 and Dornier aircrafts flew the crisp “Small Boy” formation kept the audience spell bound.  An exhilarating low level aerobatic display by Su-30 aircraft, kept Parade spectators enthralled.  A breath taking performance by Akash Ganga Para Jump Team & Air Warrior Drill Team was appreciated by one and all.  

On the penultimate night, the Army Chief attended as chief guest a ceremonial guest night with passing out flight cadets and their parents wherein he presented trophies and medals to cadets, excelled in their respective branches.

IIT entrance exam: Underprivileged children of 'Super 30' make it big again

Patna: The underprivileged students of 'Super 30' here have yet again made it big at the IIT entrance examination with 28 out of the total 30 students qualifying. The result of JEE(Advance) was declared on Friday.

Chandan Kumar, son of a landless farmer of Gaya district and one of the students of the famed institute told PTI that he had managed to study till matriculation by borrowing books from friends. "I have been reborn after my days in 'Super30'," said Abhishek Kumar, the son of a small shopkeeper.

"My father and mother gave me birth but Anand Sir has granted us another life," said Shivangi Gupta, daughter of a book seller in a small township of Rasoolpur in Kanpur, said.

For Alok Ranjan, the youngest of four sons of a private school teacher who manages to sustain family by giving tuitions, it is a joyous occasion. "I have never purchased a new book in my life. My joy knows no bounds now that I have cleared entrance to IIT."

'Super 30' is the brainchild of noted mathematician Anand Kumar who founded the institution in 2002 and provides free of cost coaching for IIT entrance examination to students belonging to economically weaker sections. The students are also provided with free food and accommodation.

"Due to lack of resources I could not go to Cambridge. I wish to see my reflection in all these students who hail from similar backgrounds," Kumar told PTI.

'Super 30' has attracted praise from world over and Tokyo University has announced to sponsor one of its students to study there. The institute was heaped with praises and lauded as the best in India by Rassad Hussain, the special envoy of US President Barack Obama who visited it in 2011. Bollywood mega star Amitabh Bachhan had enacted the character of Anand Kumar in the film 'Arakshan'. 

Release food to the poor: HC tells Maharashtra govt

MUMBAI: Young India is impatient for a change, said Bombay High Court on Friday even as it directed the Maharashtra government to expedite process to give foodgrains to large number of primitive tribal groups in Thane and Raigad districts.

A division bench of Justice Dhananjay Chandrachud and Justice Suresh Gupte on June 21, 2013 heard a public interest litigation by Jagruti Sangharsh Manch regarding non-implementation of the Supreme Court's April 2004 directives for issuing ration cards to PTG and distribution of subsidised food grains. "Young India is impatient for change. You must show action," said Justice Chandrachud.

The judge said "mindsets have to change" as the poor and illiterate who are unaware of their rights will not come to the government. "Government must come with a begging bowl to the poor. The process must be conducted in the reverse and every effort must be made to trace and identify such persons including holding camp,'' said Justice Chandrachud. The judges also reminded the government that foodgrains "are rotting in godowns instead of being given to the poor."

NGO's advocate Kranti LC argued that the government is yet to approve the 2002 Below Poverty Line list and is continuing with the 1997 lists. Shocked that the government had not approving the BPL list pending with it for 10 years, the judges directed that steps be taken grant approval forthwith and not later than four weeks. They said there is no justification for State government to insist that unless PTG possess BPL cards the government cannot give them foodgrains. They said persons to whom benefit ought to have been granted after 1997 would definitely be excluded only because of administrative inefficiency of the government in failing to update the list. "We are of the view that this state of affairs cannot continue any further since the failure of the State government to reach out to persons Below Poverty Line constitutes violation of Right to Life,"they noted in their order.

The judges were also astonished when told by additional government pleader Nitin Deshpande that the verification of ration card is also done by ration shop owners. They said it will result in "conflict of interests and duty" as the object of verification is to weed out persons to whom bogus cards is issued. They directed the government to file a status report at the next hearing on July 19, 2013.

New York's Times Square becomes yoga's Om Sweet Om

WASHINGTON: If yoga is the practice of quieting the mind, as Patanjali, chronicler of the spiritual quest said, its practitioners couldn't have picked a better place than New York City's Times' Square to put the aphorism to test.

Some 16,000 yoga aficionados turned up at what is arguably the world's glitziest - if not busiest - crossroads to stretch America's acceptance of the great Indian export, amid continued misgivings in conservative circles about its religious content.

The hum of Om rose above the everyday wailing of police sirens and honking of rude taxis as New Yorkers ushered in summer solstice with open-air yogabhyas from sunrise to sundown on the longest day of the year.

It wasn't exactly a flash mob. What began as a three-person exercise a decade ago has now grown into a thousands-strong annual event that celebrates ''mind over madness.'' The organizers, led by Times Square Alliance, say it is a pushback against the hectic lifestyle in the world's most vibrant city.

It is also the world's most diverse and multicultural city that embraces universal values with such ease that no one raised a peep about the iconic square being shut down to traffic for the yoga gig. Curious foreign tourists milled around to see thousands of Americans stretch to instructions from professional teachers, the entire spectacle flanked by anachronistic eateries such as McDonald's and Bubba Gump Shrimp Company, with neon signs of Spiderman and Buzz Lightyear flashing down.

Coming on the heels of the Obama White House also encouraging yoga with its annual Yoga Garden event during Easter, the growing acceptance and popularity of the ancient Indian practice is marred only by occasional bouts of pique by conservatives who think it is fronting for Hinduism sneaking into America through the back door.

In California, there is an ongoing court case against a school district that established a yoga program with a $ 500,000 grant from the K Pattabhi Jois Foundation, aimed at helping elementary schools students focus on studies, keep calm, and contain aggressive behavior.

But some parents have gone to court, maintaining that the program has a religious connection and violates the line between church and state. Attorneys for the parents have charged that students have been made ''spiritual guinea pigs'' and were encouraged to greet each other with ''Namaste, a religiously laden Hinduism greeting.''

Court proceedings last month included testimony from an Indiana University professor of religious study who agreed that the yoga program was filled with religious elements and can serve as an introduction to Hinduism, and a live demonstration in court by the instructor of the poses she taught, during which she maintained there was no religious content to what she taught. It also turned out the that judge hearing the case himself practiced Bikram yoga, which he likened to simple stretching exercises.

"If you think there's something spiritual about what I do, that's news to me," he told the attorneys, as they argued about terms such as yama and niyama, samadhi and samskruthi.

No such doubts attended the enthusiasts at Times Square, which on Friday became Yoga's Om Sweet Om.

11-yr-old genius makes it to Harvard University

Mexico City: Armed with an IQ comparable to that of Alberto Einstein, 11-year-old Luis Roberto Ramírez of Zamora, Mexico, is headed to Harvard University to study quantum physics and engineering, the Huffington Post reported.

“My dream is to start a company and sell my devices,” Ramírez was quoted as saying by Spain’s El Mundo.

The multitalented Ramírez also has an ease for languages. He taught himself English at age 5, and he’s since moved on to learning French and Chinese, according to Terra. “His learning level progresses in giant leaps,” his proud father Roberto Ramírez told Mexican newspaper Milenio.

“It’s incredible how he retains information and the way he expresses himself, not to mention the goals and the vision he has.”

However, a Harvard representative was quoted as saying by the Huff Post that no school records of the boy was found even though media claims that the boy is going to attend classes at Harvard.

Rajasthan gives people right to pink-slip babus

JAWAJA (AJMER): The complaints, like always, were many. But the tables had been turned. At the receiving end were government officers as people crowded around demanding an explanation for being denied their right. It was their day of hearing.

A motley group of villagers thrust 'pink slips' towards the sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) demanding to know why they were being denied the Re 1 a kg wheat promised by the state government. The pink slips given to them while registering their grievances under the recently implemented Right to Hearing (RTH) Act in Rajasthan had proved to be a stimulus for ensuring a rightful hearing. An enquiry was immediately ordered and soon after 80 of the 109 affected people got their dues.

The simultaneous weekly block-level public hearing day at Raipur in Pali district and at Bhim and Kumbalgarh in Rajsamand district too brought forth their share of complaints. Rations and pensions not reaching beneficiaries, long-overdue MGNREGA payments, a water connection, a 'patta' for land being denied, a sarpanch taking bribes from poor Bhil families in the chief minister's housing programme — even the weakest had their say and redressal was promised.

"This is where a grievance-redress mechanism is crucial to give citizens an opportunity to demand accountability," says Aruna Roy of the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS), which pioneered the Right to Information Act and is now helping craft the way ahead for the RTH Act in Rajasthan. "The hotly debated Food Security Bill of the country does not have a good redress mechanism. The Right to Hearing Act in Rajasthan is an important step forward, but there are many provisions like independent appellate authorities at a district level that are only present in the central Bill. It is, therefore, imperative that the Centre passes the pending Grievance Redressal Bill in the next session of Parliament to ensure that entitlements under all the schemes, laws and programmes in the country reach the beneficiaries."

Three simple steps carry forward the important journey from transparency to accountability in this Act.

By creating a single window, Rozgar Sahayaks in every panchayat have been made responsible for accepting grievances and applications from people every day between fixed hours at the Rajiv Gandhi Seva Kendras, which have been rechristened Public Hearing Assistance Booths.

A pink receipt is given for all grievances lodged and every Friday all officers assemble at the panchayat, block or district level for an open public hearing. The applicant must be given a hearing within 15 days and a written reasoned order has to be given by the officer concerned within seven days after that. The whole cycle is completed within 21 days, and any delay or violation attracts a penalty.

Tested on a pilot basis first in Rajsamand, the Rajasthan government issued guidelines in April making the format compulsory across the state. But months down the line weaknesses in implementation remain.

A defunct Public Hearing Assistance window, an absconding Rozgar Sahayek or the pink slip never reaching the officer even on the day of the hearing were some of the major flaws noticed by six teams of almost a hundred volunteers of the MKSS that went on a 'yatra' across Raipur (Pali), Jawaja (Ajmer), Bhim, Devgarh, Khumbhalgarh (Rajsamand) and Asind and Mandal (Bhilwara).

"All defaulting officials will be taken to task," says Banna Lal, director, Public Grievance department, Rajasthan. "There are provisions of imposing fines of up to Rs 250 per day for such officials. We have fined a junior engineer for having failed to provide a water connection while a BDO has been put under APO (awaiting posting order). But the Act has ensured that even the weakest now has a forum to speak out. Complaints of corruption have also been investigated and are being acted upon. Lots of complaints pending for years are pouring in."

At a review of the three-week process, attended by government officials and civil society organizations, Nikhil Dey of the MKSS says: "The entire country has been agitated about the lack of accountability at all levels. This exercise can be seen as a continuation of the process of campaigning for a strong law that ensures accountability of officials to the citizen. The Rajasthan government should be given credit for attempting to implement this law, but our experience here underscores the need for the central government and Parliament to draw lessons and immediately enact an effective grievance-redress law."

The volunteers from over 15 districts plan to take this process across Rajasthan, but the question remains whether parliamentarians will hear these voices of distress and hope from the ground level and give people their right to seek accountability.