Odisha special unit to counter urban terrorism

Bhubaneswar: A special police unit has been created in Odisha to deal with terrorism in the state's urban areas, police said on Tuesday.

The Special Tactical Unit (STU) has currently 30 Special Operations Group (SOG) personnel who were trained for about three months at the National Security Guard (NSG) camp in Manesar, Haryana.

"This unit is a part of the Special Operations Group (SOG). We plan to gradually raise the strength of this unit to about 100," Odisha Director General of Police Prakash Mishra said.

The SOG, which has 3,000 personnel, was set up in the state in 2004. It is primarily being used to counter left wing extremism.

"There was a need for creating a dedicated force to counter attacks like those happened in Bodh Gaya in Bihar and Mumbai," he said.

The STU unit conducted its first mock drill at the battalion ground of the state's armed police force in Bhubaneswar Monday. Chief Secretary Jugal Kishor Mohapatra and police chief Prakash Mishra were among those present.

Odisha is now the third state in India after Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh to have a dedicated force to counter terrorism in urban areas.

IANS

South African Indians raising funds for Uttarakhand

Johannesburg: Indian community in South Africa has launched a fund raising drive to contribute to the relief efforts in flood-hit Uttarakhand.

Local welfare organisation 'Atmadaan' and the 'Johannesburg Yuvak Mandal' have launched a collection drive already, while the BAPS Charities organisation is on the verge of launching a national relief fund.


"We are appealing to South Africans to open their hearts and wallets, as they have done in the past with relief efforts for earthquake and tsunami victims in India," said Atmadaan spokesman Ishwarlal Govan.

Indian High Commissioner to South Africa, Virendra Gupta, has lauded the efforts of local organisations in raising relief funds for the victims of the floods that devastating killed thousands of people.

India is grateful for the contributions by South Africans, both with the empathy shown and the material assistance, Gupta said at an event at the Indian Cultural Centre here yesterday.

"The exact extent of the loss will never be known. Many thousands have been simply lost without being able to account for them. But the magnitude of the loss is not in numbers. It is in the trail of tragedy which has been left behind, with huge devastation which will take several months if not years for reconstruction," Gupta said.

Gupta said all funds raised in South Africa will be sent to either the Prime Minister's Relief Fund or to any other organisation which can channel it into the relief effor

ts.

PTI 

Despite stunted growth, Joby Mathews wins gold at World Arm Wrestling Championship

Navin Nair CNN-IBN

New Delhi: Joby Mathew, a man who did not allowed severe disabilities to come in the way of his ambitions, has won a gold medal at the World Arm Wrestling Championship. Despite having 60 per cent disability since birth, Mathew has also won 10 world medals in the last one decade.

The 36-year-old man, who suffers from Bilateral Proximal Femoral Focal Deficiency or in simpler terms stunted growth of the legs since birth, has been a World Arm Wrestling champion twice. What his legs could not, he has achieved with his arms and a bundle of raw courage and grit.

"I don't have legs, so I cannot play football or basketball. Hence I focused on my arm power and started arm wrestling in school days. Soon, I was defeating every one," Mathew said.

In March 2008 at Leon in Spain, Mathew became a World Arm Wrestling champion in the normal category. The same year he also won the championship in the disabled category. Mathew even drives a specially modified car and also hits the gymnasium regularly.

"There is so much to learn for all of us from Joby. It's just his determination that keeps him going," Mathew's trainer Shaji said.

"When Joby Mathew addressed us for the first time, he motivated us with his challenges and achievements. He is an inspiration to us," Krishnan R Menon said.

When Mathew isn't thinking of sports, he dons the role of a husband, and a father to his three-year-old son. And with a supportive wife by his side, he has converted his disability into his biggest strength.

"One ambition which remains is to scale the Mount Everest. I want to achieve that in eight years from now after having undergone proper training," Mathew said.

But as the world champion goes on breaking every possible barrier in sports, there is one thing that he is still waiting for and that is recognition because he too has done his nation proud in whatever way he could.

Badal offers Rs 10 cr for reconstruction work in U'khand

Dehradun: Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal Friday announced a financial assistance of Rs 10 crore for reconstruction of Kedarnath shrine, Hemkunt Sahib and other Himalayan centres of faith in the wake of the recent calamity.

Badal, who met Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna at the secretariat here, said in these moments of crisis Punjab stands in solidarity with Uttarakhand and will offer all help to the state government in relief and rehabilitation efforts.

Besides announcing a financial assistance of Rs 10 crore for reconstruction of the damaged Himalayan temples, Badal also announced that relief material including 10 thousand tonnes of flour and rice, 100 tonnes of sugar, 10,000 blankets and woollens as per requirements will be provided by Punjab government.

Expressing his gratefulness to Badal, Bahuguna said the Punjab Chief Minister's gesture reflects the country's ethos of helping each other in times of need.

PTI 

Food inspectors to check mid-day meal in Goa schools

Panaji: Goa Government has decided to recruit food inspectors to check the mid-day meal at schools before it is served to students.

The decision comes in the backdrop of food poisoning incident in a school at Canacona, where 100 students had taken ill after partaking mid-day meal a few weeks ago.

"We will recruit 10-15 food inspectors who will inspect the mid-day meal which is served to students," Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar said. They would be recruited by Education Department, he added.

To a query, Parrikar said it is not possible for the food, s

erved under a Government-sponsored scheme, to be transported to Food and Drugs Administration lab in Panaji for checking from schools located in rural areas.

The Chief Minister said process was on to empanel new self-help groups to supply mid-day meal in schools.

PTI 

US adds better-than-expected 195,000 jobs in June

Washington: The US unemployment rate in June has remained unchanged at 7.6 percent as more than 195,000 jobs were added to the economy this month, latest official figures said Friday.

"Non farm payroll employment increased by 195,000 in June and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 7.6 percent. Over the prior 12 months, job gains averaged 182,000 per month," said Erica L Groshen, Commissioner of Bureau of Labour Statistics.

"In June, employment increased in leisure and hospitality, professional and business services, retail trade, health care, and financial activities," Groshen said.

The number of unemployed persons remained steady at 11.8 million, while the number of part-time workers increased by 322,000, Groshen said.

PTI

Noida Authority to shift 300 mobile towers

NOIDA: The Noida Authority has decided to relocate over 300 mobile towers away from densely populated areas in the city, in a bid to reduce the alleged health risks of exposure to radiation from these towers.

This was decided by top authority officials at a meeting on Wednesday. The move may hit mobile connectivity as more than half of the total 572 towers in Noida are slated to be moved. Officials said the decision was in line with an Allahabad high court order in January last year, in which installation of new towers was prohibited in residential areas . The court had also asked for an assessment to determine the harm caused by mobile towers on human health.

"Towers located in densely populated areas would be moved to safer sites," said P K Agarwal, Noida ACEO. The Authority has also turned its attention towards cell towers on hospitals, schools and nursing homes.

Following the court's order last year, the Greater Noida Authority had relocated many towers to green belts. Officials said in Noida, too, such sites would be identified. The towers would be shifted in a phased manner once the Authority prepares a survey report to finalize a process which would cause minimal interruptions in mobile services.

The authority is also likely to compete formulating a 'mobile-tower policy' for the city within the next 10 days with guidelines regarding permissions to be taken from the Authority for setting up towers.