NEW DELHI: Observing that granting relief would have "demoralizing" effect on those who work "honestly", a trial court on Saturday dismissed the bail plea of one of the accused in Rs 10-crore railway bribery case in which former railway minister Pawan Kumar Bansal's nephew was also arrested. Special CBI judge Swarana Kanta Sharma rejected the bail plea of Dharmender Kumar, observing that he and co-accused Vivek Kumar had full knowledge of what they were delivering and that such a huge amount cannot be for legal purpose. "Accused Dharmender and Vivek were told about the persons to whom the amount was to be paid and they had full knowledge about what they were carrying and should have known that so much amount which was being sent through them cannot be for a legal purpose. Granting bail in such case will have demoralizing effect on the persons who want to pursue their business honestly," the judge said. The court also observed that it is a premature stage for grant of bail as the investigation has just begun and one of the accused, Sushil Dagga, is absconding and incriminating material and documents are yet to be seized. "One of the accused, i.e, accused Sushil Dagga, who is also a railway contractor, for whom accused Vivek was working, is absconding. Incriminating documents and articles are yet to be seized from accused Sushil Dagga and, therefore, it is premature stage to grant bail to accused," the court said. Senior public prosecutor Akshay Gautam opposed the bail plea of Dharmender, saying he and Vivek were among the conspirators in the case and "it would be a travesty of justice to show mercy to them".
in a suspected case of suicide pact, a woman and her daughter jumped under a moving train near naganahalli railway station between mysore and srirangapatna junctions onsaturday.the deceased have been identified as shylaja hm (45), wife of raghunath bv and their only daughter sharmila (22) of krnagar in mysore district. railway police said thatraghunath is a manager at a lodge in ggcomplex, krnagar, while shylaja was a homemaker.sharmila was studying final year mcom at karnataka state open university (ksou). sharmila was engaged to an nri indubai against her wishes. though her mother supported her daughter, her father and other relatives had advised her to get married to the said groom to be. the marriage was scheduled in a month or two.the mother and daughter duo who had come to the city four days ago to attend the naming ceremony of a close relative at vidyaranyapuram in mysore, had stayed back.the two had called raghunath in the morning, and the latter had asked them to wait for him.around 1 pm, shylaja and sharmila allegedly jumped under shatabdhi train bound to mysore from chennai. while sharmila was crushed to death beyond recognition, shylaja suffered serious injuries. she succumbed to the injuries on her way to krhospital in mysore. the police could trace their identity with the help of a cellphone found in the bag of shylaja. post-mortems were conducted at the mortuary attached to mysore medical college and research institute (mmc and ri) before handing over the body to the relatives. railway police have registered a case.
chinese premier li keqiang visit to india, starting tomorrow, to break new ground amid recent border stand-off, could also focus on the need for settlement of border dispute besides boosting trade, chinese analysts said here today.it may not be a breakthrough trip for the border dispute settlement but could be the one to emphasise on the need for an early resolution and improvement of relations, they said. "china has resolved border dispute with 13 of its 14 neighbours including russia leaving india the only country to settle such a problem. china and india has to come to terms to resolve it, the legacy left by british", victor gao zhikai, noted chinese current affairs commentator and director china national association of international studies told pti here.li, who will be travelling with a large business delegation, is due to visit both new delhi and mumbai. he is scheduled to address first ceo forum of the two countries during which he is expected to announce new initiatives to boost bilateral trade and to provide more access to indian goods to chinese markets to reduce the nearly usd 30 billion trade deficit.gao, who was the translator for chinas moderate leader deng xiaoping whose opening up of ideology transformed china, said beijing managed to settle the land border even with vietnam even though there is still dispute about the islands in the south china sea. this means from chinas point of view, india stands out with the dispute raring its head causing problems between the two countries."chinese leadership believes that both countries should not get caught in the quagmire and come out early", gao said adding that the two countries should come to terms with it sooner or later. he said there was economic benefits that would follow such a settlement with new opportunities for railway and energy links.
Agartala: India and Bangladesh Railway officials would meet in Dhaka on May 21 to review the progress of work on the railway link between Agartala and Akhaura in Bangladesh, officials sources said on Saturday. Bangladesh and India signed a memorandum of understanding on February 16 for linking Agartala and Akhaura railway stations so that Bangladesh railways could be connected with the north eastern states of the country to avail the facilities of the international Chittagong Port. The survey for laying 15 km track was completed a few months ago and now the process for laying tracks would begin on both the sides of the Indo-Bangla international border, Tripura Transport minister Manik De said. Total project cost for the project is Rs 271 crore which would be borne by India and of the 15 km track, only five km falls on the Indian side and the rest are in Bangladesh. Meanwhile, NF Railway officials informed the Tripura government that the work for gauge conversion from Lumding in Assam to Agartala would be delayed by a year due to paucity of funds. According to sources, NF Railway officials during a review meeting on progress of the project with Tripura government informed that the project would be completed by March 2015 instead of March 2014 as appropriate fund was not allocated. The meeting was chaired by Chief Minister Manik Sarkar and was attended by North East Frontier Railway (NFR) Lumding Divisional Manager Rakesh Goel and Chief Administrative Officer AS Garur, state Transport Minister Manik De and Revenue Minister Badal Chowdhury and state government officials. The then prime minister H D Deve Gowda laid the foundation for conversion of Lumding-Agartala metre-gauge track to broad-gauge in January 1996. The project cost has risen to Rs 2,800 crore from Rs 648 crore in 1996.
New Delhi: A Delhi court on Saturday dismissed the bail plea of an accused in the Rs 10 crore railway bribery case in which ex-railway minister Pawan Kumar Bansal's nephew was among those arrested. Special CBI Judge Swarana Kanta Sharma rejected the bail plea of Dharmender Kumar after CBI contended that his release could adversely affect probe which was in initial stages. Dharmedra along with co-accused Vivek Kumar had allegedly delivered Rs 90 lakh, part of the Rs 10 crore bribe amount, to Bansal's nephew Vijay Singla in Chandigarh to get a plum post for a Railway Board official. "Arguments heard. Bail application dismissed," the judge said. Senior Public Prosecutor Akshay Gautam, appearing for CBI, opposed the bail plea of Dharmender saying he and co-accused Vivek were well aware of the purpose behind the delivery of money and to whom it was to be given and as such they were one of the conspirators in the case. Considering the "gravity" of the offence, "it would be a travesty of justice to show mercy to them", the counsel for CBI said. "Any leniency shown to them would be misplaced," he added. Gautam also said that the CBI investigation is in its initial stages and a lot of things are yet to be unearthed. "If they are granted bail, it would affect the probe of the agency," the prosecutor said. He also said that the two 'couriers' had gone in two separate cars each with a bag containing Rs 45 lakh and the whole thing was well planned and organised and could not have been done without their knowledge. Dharmendra's counsel said his client had no idea where exactly he had to deliver the money, to whom and for what purpose when he and Vivek had left Delhi for Chandigarh.
two passenger trains heading in opposite directions collided during rush hour in southwestern connecticut, injuring 60 people, five of them critically, and closing the key corridor between new york and boston.a metro-north train heading from new haven to new york city derailed around 6:10 p.m. friday, hitting the other train in bridgeport, connecticut, about 60 miles northeast of new york city on the long island sound, authorities said.that caused some cars on the second train, which was destined for new haven, to likewise leave the tracks, cnn reported citing a metro-north spokesperson.connecticut governor dannel malloy told reporters friday night that five people were "critically injured," one of whom was in "very critical condition."officials from the national transportation safety board will head the investigation into the crash, with malloy saying that agencys team should be on site by saturday morning."we have no reason to believe that its anything but an accident," the governor said.power was shut off along the line and service has been halted -- westbound past bridgeport, and eastbound beyond south norwalk -- because of the derailment.amtrak train service also announced early friday night that it had suspended all travel between new york and boston indefinitely after the crash.such travel headaches could persist for weeks, because the two tracks affected by the derailment -- which are both "shot right now" -- may take weeks to repair, cnn quoted bridgeport mayor bill finch as saying.because of a bridge replacement project, those two tracks are the only way in and out of new york city by train from that part of connecticut.workers will need to not only remove disabled trains, but also remove the tracks, regrade the rail bed, then lay down the tracks again, according to finch.a passenger in a middle car of the new york-bound train, chris martin, recalled to cnn how his car went dark after the crash, then someone over the intercom "called all the doctors up front.".brian alvarez, who saw the wreckage, described the scene as "pretty graphic.""i saw this one car and it was completely destroyed, and they were pulling people out of the car," alvarez was quoted as saing. "... they were all bloody."
Over 150 workers of Gammon India, engaged in Chennai Metro Rail work, refused to work on Friday, citing salary dues. The workers, an official said, get a salary of around Rs. 8,000-Rs. 10,000, and were yet to receive the salary for April, which should have been paid by May 7. “A few days ago, the workers who are living in a labour colony in Nandambakkam refused to board the employees’ bus demanding the immediate payment of salary. We have assured them that it will be paid on Saturday,” said a Gammon official. The official blamed Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) for a delay in clearing bills. “Only when CMRL clears the bill, we will receive the money to settle the workers’ payments,” he said. He added that such developments have caused minor delays in the project. However, CMRL officials said the bills had been cleared and the Gammon India office in Mumbai had to approve and release the money. The workers had gone on strike twice earlier, demanding a pay hike and drinking water facility. “The workers are supplied water in tanker lorries every day. Rarely, they face water problems. We are negotiating with them on the pay hike issue,” the official added. The Russian workers, numbering around 100, who are also involved in the project, have not gone on strike so far, the official said. In November, The Hindu had reported that CMRL had issued a show cause notice to Gammon India as there were delays in the work carried out by them. However, Gammon India attributed the delay to the seasonal rains. The company, which is also a contractor for Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), was faced with sanctions following a mishap at a worksite in 2009 when six people were killed. The report of a committee set up by DMRC to probe the incident, indicated deficiencies in the project design. Gammon was then debarred from entering into any new contract for two years, with effect from 2010. In 2011, Gammon India, in a joint venture with OJSC Mosmetrostroy, was awarded a contract of Rs. 1,947 crore by CMRL. It is involved in the construction of seven underground stations from Government Estate to Saidapet, located over a distance of 6.4 km.
About 100 students designed projects on safety in railways including automatic coach guidance, signal control system and submitted a thesis to the South Central Railway (SCR) authorities. The engineering students who designed the circuits and software programmes displayed them before the Vijayawada Division Railway officials at Railway Auditorium on Friday. The projects would be useful both for the railways and passengers, said the students. Vijayawada Additional Divisional Railway Manager S. Subba Rao, SCR Women’s Welfare Organisation president Priti Awasthi and heads of various departments visited the software products exhibition. Ms. Awasthi praised the budding engineers for designing the projects with innovative ideas. Alerts for driver Four students of Electronics and Communication Engineering of Vignan University – Vamshi Krishna, Aravind, Siddhartha and Vara Prasad – prepared a circuit on Signal Control System, which would prevent accidents and provide safety for the passengers. “In Signal Control System, we placed a monitoring device on the signal pole and receiver in the engine. The train drivers can know the signal position (from each pole) through the receiver at some distance. Signal Control System will be useful particularly during winter seasons when there is heavy fog,” said Mr. Vamshi Krishna. If the train crosses the red signal, the system would automatically slow down the train and prevent any possible mishap. The device was prepared after discussing the problem with loco drivers, said Mr. Siddhartha. The GPS on Fire Detecting System would alert the railway authorities, if there was any fire in the coaches. Likewise, the Rail Tracking System, designed by four students – T. Bhavya, D. Kavya, Ch. Kranthi and K. Srujana -- of K.L. University, can alert the station master or superintendent of the next station through satellite system on the position of the tracks, location of train and at what time it was expected to arrive at the station. “We travelled in the train from Vijayawada to Visakhapatnam and studied on implementation of Rail Tracking System, which can help reduce manpower and give accurate position of the train on tracks”, Ms. Srujana told The Hindu. Students also designed projects on digital caution order, power line failure, wireless energy meter, vigilance control device, and a digital eye for coach guidance automation.
Indian Railways plans to roll out a communications-based train management system that provides higher precision in locating trains when compared to the conventional signalling systems, S. Manohar, Chief Signal and Telecommunication Engineer, Southern Railway, said on Friday. Addressing a function to mark the World Telecommunication Day organised by Southern Railway, Mr. Manohar said the CBTC or Communications-Based Train Control systems would facilitate a more efficient and safe way to manage railway traffic. Metro rail networks and other railway systems in a few cities were already adopting this technology which improved the safety levels. According to Mr. Manohar, RailTel Chennai, would be implementing the National Optic Fibre Network (NOFN) in Tamil Nadu, which along with Gujarat, are the only two States selected for the NOFN project. The nationwide plan to connect all 2,50,000 gram panchayats in the country is being implemented by utilising the existing fibres of PSUs (BSNL, Railtel and Power Grid) and laying incremental fibre, he said. Some of the technology-driven projects implemented in Southern Railway were the Train Protection Warning System, Integrated Security System and train Management System in two suburban sections in Chennai, he said. Rakesh Misra, Southern Railway General Manager, inaugurated an exhibition and released a compendium which contains important letters pertaining to telecommunication to serve as a ready reckoner. G. Narayanan, Additional General Manager, spoke.
the city traffic police have imposed traffic diversions for the tcs world 10k marathon, that will commence at 6:30 am from the sri kanteerava stadium and conclude at 11 am on sunday.traffic restrictions will be in place from 5.30 am to 8.30 am up to brv junction. in the rest of the area, restrictions will be in place from 5.30 am to 10.30 am.all types of vehicles are restricted on kasturba road, mg road, (up to anil kumble circle), cubbon road, kamaraj road, queens road, ambedkar veedhi (eastern portion) and the stretch from gopalagowda circle to hudson circle (inside cubbon park).instead, the police have enforced the following alternative route: motorists plying from jc road to vidhana soudha, shivajinagar, and raj bhavan should go via police corner, kg road, old post office road, kr circle and ambedkar veedhi. commuters going towards old madras road, mg road, ulsoor, marathahalli, from jc road and nrupathunga road should ply from hudson circle towards devanga road, mission road, shantinagar junction, reach richmond circle and proceed via residency road. vehicles coming from shivajinagar should reach balekundri circle (indian express junction), take a right turn towards cunningham road, and go further via chandrika hotel, lrde, and basaveshwar circle. vehicles coming from balekundri circle should take a compulsory left turn at traffic headquarters junction (income tax office) and proceed via infantry road only. vehicles will not be allowed from kr circle to cubbon park. they should ply via nrupathunga road. no vehicle coming from kr circle will be allowed inside the cubbon park from gopalagowda circle. instead, it should proceed directly on ambedkar veedhi, reach police thimmaiah circle for going further. all vehicles coming from anil kumble circle should take a left turn at queens circle and ply from the left side of lavelle road or kasturba road.no vehicle will be allowed at anil kumble circle from mg road and st marks road. tempos, goods vehicles, etc. entering the city from old madras road can proceed towards the old airport road and further via suranjan das road. similarly, they can ply from ulsoor via st johns church road to reach cantonment railway station, jayamahal main road to get to mehkri circle and further. as traffic will be banned on cubbon road, motorists can use infantry road and mg road. vehicles coming from infantry road should ply on dickenson road, st johns church road, gangadhar chetty road to get to old madras road. vehicles coming from minerva circle at jc road and going towards shivajinagar, mg road, ulsoor should take a right turn at bharat junction on jc road and ply on h siddaiah road, urvashi theatre junction, kh road, richmond circle and further.vehicles coming from old airport road, domlur, etc. and going via trinity circle towards mg road and further will be stopped near asc centre. instead, they can go via asc centre, ply on india garage, palm grove road, dsouza circle to reach richmond circle and further. participants of the race can park their vehicles in the parking lot of the ub city. spectators can park their vehicles at bannappa park and at the csi compound on mission road.