[ 7 Sep, 2006 2325hrs IST TIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
BANGALORE: A mason who had killed a woman and buried her near her aunt's house was arrested on Wednesday. He was nabbed after the deceased's aunt came to know about the murder.
The deceased is Nagarathna (28) from Kuppam in Andhra Pradesh. She had come to her aunt,Gowramma's house in Raghavendra Nagar, HBR Layout, on August 17 along with her sister and brother-in-law.
Later, Nagarathna's sister and brotherin-law left for Kuppam and the former continued to stay with Gowramma. Three days later, Gowramma left Nagarathna alone at home and went to Kuppam.
A mason identified as Muniraju, who reportedly had a relationship with Gowramma, visited the house in a drunken state. On seeing Nagarathna alone at home, Muniraju made sexual advances towards her and when she refused, he picked up a wooden plank and hit her on the head.
Following this, she died and he buried her near Gowramma's house in a trench dug by him. He also cleaned the blood stains and fled the scene.
Two days later, Gowramma returned home and found Nagarathna missing and started a search for her. On Wednesday, foul smell emanated from the trench and Gowramma noticed Nagarathna's clothes buried underneath.
She informed the police who exhumed the body. Gowramma suspected Muniraju's involvement and told the police who in turn questioned Muniraju who confessed to the crime.
Woman conned: A stranger conned an elderly woman of her gold chain on Thursday afternoon after promising her to get a loan.
When Lakshmidevi (88) was returning to her house located near Janavahini Educational Trust, Girinagar, a stranger identifying himself as a relative approached her and told her that he could help her get a bank loan.
He took her to an isolated spot and asked her for the chain. He took away the chain and fled the scene. Credit card forgery: Byappanahalli police have arrested a person who used to buy expensive gold ornaments from shops using stolen credit cards and recovered valuables worth over Rs 8 lakh from him.
According to police, Anil Kumar (23) used stolen credit cards and forged signatures to buy valuables.
Live band joint raided: Talaghattapura police raided a live band joint at a farm house near Tataguni village on city outskirts, Kanakapura Road, on Wednesday.
At least 14 girls have been arrested, the police said. The police also seized a television set and other electronic gadgets from the farm house.
Friday, September 08, 2006
Bangalore: Soon, you can zip through Tumkur Road
Sowmya Aji Mehu
[ 7 Sep, 2006 2323hrs IST TIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
BANGALORE: In keeping with Bangalore's image of embracing anything new, the NHAI has designed the IT city's first access-controlled road project on the highly accident-prone Tumkur Road.
Tumkur Road's shocking figures of an accident a day and a death once in five days have spurred the authorities to action.
The road has one of the highest traffic density of incoming/outgoing traffic to and from Bangalore — 1.30 lakh passenger carrying units per day — making travel to Nelamangala a matter of an hour from Bangalore city.
The plan to ease this is: A 4.5 km elevated road beginning immediately after the ring road, and beyond that a 15.5 km six-lane road up to Nelamangala that will have walls or railings on both sides to prevent any traffic from crossing the highway. Result: Travel time across the stretch is a mere 15 minutes!
"Access control will reduce accidents on this road. The elevated stretch will also contribute by easing the congestion on this road," NHAI sources told The Times of India.
Designed to be built at a cost of Rs 440 crore, the Bangalore-Nelamangala stretch of Tumkur Road is to match the dream-scape of the Mumbai-Pune, Ahmedabad-Vadodra stretches.
There will be no interruptions, with six flyovers and several pedestrian/cattle underpasses built to ferry people across wherever there is need.
The project was planned over an year ago, but ran into trouble because it clashed with the Bangalore Metro. Both projects were eying the same land, the NHAI for expanding the existing road, Metro to put up its rail line and stations.
"That issue has been sorted. Both projects are essential, but ours is planned and ready, so we are going ahead. The Metro will acquire land next to ours," sources added. Bids have already come in from the private sector for the project and are being processed.
The project, planned in the public-private partnership (PPP) model, is to be awarded within a month and take off in another six months with a two-year construction period.
[ 7 Sep, 2006 2323hrs IST TIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
BANGALORE: In keeping with Bangalore's image of embracing anything new, the NHAI has designed the IT city's first access-controlled road project on the highly accident-prone Tumkur Road.
Tumkur Road's shocking figures of an accident a day and a death once in five days have spurred the authorities to action.
The road has one of the highest traffic density of incoming/outgoing traffic to and from Bangalore — 1.30 lakh passenger carrying units per day — making travel to Nelamangala a matter of an hour from Bangalore city.
The plan to ease this is: A 4.5 km elevated road beginning immediately after the ring road, and beyond that a 15.5 km six-lane road up to Nelamangala that will have walls or railings on both sides to prevent any traffic from crossing the highway. Result: Travel time across the stretch is a mere 15 minutes!
"Access control will reduce accidents on this road. The elevated stretch will also contribute by easing the congestion on this road," NHAI sources told The Times of India.
Designed to be built at a cost of Rs 440 crore, the Bangalore-Nelamangala stretch of Tumkur Road is to match the dream-scape of the Mumbai-Pune, Ahmedabad-Vadodra stretches.
There will be no interruptions, with six flyovers and several pedestrian/cattle underpasses built to ferry people across wherever there is need.
The project was planned over an year ago, but ran into trouble because it clashed with the Bangalore Metro. Both projects were eying the same land, the NHAI for expanding the existing road, Metro to put up its rail line and stations.
"That issue has been sorted. Both projects are essential, but ours is planned and ready, so we are going ahead. The Metro will acquire land next to ours," sources added. Bids have already come in from the private sector for the project and are being processed.
The project, planned in the public-private partnership (PPP) model, is to be awarded within a month and take off in another six months with a two-year construction period.
Mumbai: Attack on woman sparks fear in Andheri
[ 8 Sep, 2006 0317hrs IST TIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
MUMBAI: In yet another attack on a woman, a 23-year-old was assaulted by an unidentified person who attempted to rob her while she was climbing the staircase of a building in Andheri's Manish Nagar area on Thursday.
The incident follows an attack on a 21-year-old MBA student who was targeted in a similar manner in the colony last month.
While police claim both incidents were attempts at robbery, residents are edgy and have demanded more patrolling.
According to witnesses, Thursday's incident took place in building number 44. The victim, Nishtha Patel, a physician at a charitable clinic in JVPD, was returning home in the afternoon. Nishtha lives with her parents on the fourth floor of the building.
"Around 12.30 pm, after Nishtha had climbed two floors, an unidentified man appeared in front of her and tugged at her handbag. When she resisted, he picked up a cement pole and hit her on the head," said inspector Pradeep Suryavanshi. However, Nishtha put up a tough fight.
After unsuccessfully trying to steal her handbag, the man fled, clambering over the society's compound wall to escape. Nishtha was rushed to Sujay hospital where she was given medical treatment and discharged.
Nishtha described the assailant to the police and said he was about five feet in height and in his twenties. Police suspect he was loitering on the building terrace and keeping a watch. Officials have started preparing a sketch of the offender.
Locals voiced concern over the attacks. "The problem is an under-construction transit camp that has sprung up at the edge of our colony," said gemology student Rovina D'souza.
"The labourers are hired on a temporary basis and keep a watch on movements of residents. There are very few watchmen in the area and trespassers walk in and leave whenever they want."
Rovina's friend, MBA student Vailani Varella, sustained 16 stitches to her head after an unidentified assailant had struck her repeatedly with a hammer on August 21. Varella was in building 48, which is only a block away from where Thursday's incident took place.
The police had acted swiftly and arrested a 19-year-old welder from the nearby construction site but residents remain dissatisfied.
"We believe there are 3-4 men involved in these attacks and they work in groups. The real culprit is still at large," said resident Jitendra Jain. He added that a month ago an 80-year-old woman was robbed in Block B, but the case remains unsolved.
Another resident Mangala Patil said local college students usually return to their homes in the afternoon and in the wake of these attacks, the police need to take stringent measures.
MUMBAI: In yet another attack on a woman, a 23-year-old was assaulted by an unidentified person who attempted to rob her while she was climbing the staircase of a building in Andheri's Manish Nagar area on Thursday.
The incident follows an attack on a 21-year-old MBA student who was targeted in a similar manner in the colony last month.
While police claim both incidents were attempts at robbery, residents are edgy and have demanded more patrolling.
According to witnesses, Thursday's incident took place in building number 44. The victim, Nishtha Patel, a physician at a charitable clinic in JVPD, was returning home in the afternoon. Nishtha lives with her parents on the fourth floor of the building.
"Around 12.30 pm, after Nishtha had climbed two floors, an unidentified man appeared in front of her and tugged at her handbag. When she resisted, he picked up a cement pole and hit her on the head," said inspector Pradeep Suryavanshi. However, Nishtha put up a tough fight.
After unsuccessfully trying to steal her handbag, the man fled, clambering over the society's compound wall to escape. Nishtha was rushed to Sujay hospital where she was given medical treatment and discharged.
Nishtha described the assailant to the police and said he was about five feet in height and in his twenties. Police suspect he was loitering on the building terrace and keeping a watch. Officials have started preparing a sketch of the offender.
Locals voiced concern over the attacks. "The problem is an under-construction transit camp that has sprung up at the edge of our colony," said gemology student Rovina D'souza.
"The labourers are hired on a temporary basis and keep a watch on movements of residents. There are very few watchmen in the area and trespassers walk in and leave whenever they want."
Rovina's friend, MBA student Vailani Varella, sustained 16 stitches to her head after an unidentified assailant had struck her repeatedly with a hammer on August 21. Varella was in building 48, which is only a block away from where Thursday's incident took place.
The police had acted swiftly and arrested a 19-year-old welder from the nearby construction site but residents remain dissatisfied.
"We believe there are 3-4 men involved in these attacks and they work in groups. The real culprit is still at large," said resident Jitendra Jain. He added that a month ago an 80-year-old woman was robbed in Block B, but the case remains unsolved.
Another resident Mangala Patil said local college students usually return to their homes in the afternoon and in the wake of these attacks, the police need to take stringent measures.
Navi Mumbai: Nerul murder shrouded in mystery
[ 8 Sep, 2006 0316hrs IST TIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
NAVI MUMBAI: Twenty-six-year-old housewife Kamini Manojkumar Giri left home on an errand on Tuesday and never returned. Even as the Nerul police found her body on Thursday, they continue to search for her infant son.
After two nerve-wracking days, the Giri family of Nerul, as also the entire Oriya community here, were plunged into grief when Kamini's body was found in a pond along Palm Beach Road.
Even as the police were doing the panchanama, Kamini's distraught husband arrived at the scene and was so shocked by the sight of her body and overcome by emotion that he began vomiting. He was rushed to a local hospital immediately.
While the Nerul police located her bloated body in the pond, there is still no sign yet of the couple's nine-month-old son. The two had been last seen at around 11.30 am on Tuesday.
Kamini had taken the boy along with her when she left their Gharkul society residence in Sector 16, Nerul, to buy some medicines. A missing complaint had been subsequently lodged at the Nerul police station by her husband.
The police themselves discovered the body in the pond. The grieving Giri family is now waiting for news of how Kamini died. "We will get the post-mortem report on Friday and only then can we comment on the cause of death," said the deputy commissioner of police (Zone 1), Amar Jadhav. Kamini's father-in-law Surendra Giri has told TOI, "There was no marital dispute between the husband and wife, and all of us were living very normally in Nerul. Only God knows how this has happened."
The entire Oriya community of Navi Mumbai has expressed shock at the mysterious death of the housewife, who was known to regularly interact with other members of the community.
"Kamini would without fail attend the holy satsangs in Nerul that were organised by the Oriya community. This tragedy in the Giri household has shaken everyone in Navi Mumbai," said one Oriya, S Das.
NAVI MUMBAI: Twenty-six-year-old housewife Kamini Manojkumar Giri left home on an errand on Tuesday and never returned. Even as the Nerul police found her body on Thursday, they continue to search for her infant son.
After two nerve-wracking days, the Giri family of Nerul, as also the entire Oriya community here, were plunged into grief when Kamini's body was found in a pond along Palm Beach Road.
Even as the police were doing the panchanama, Kamini's distraught husband arrived at the scene and was so shocked by the sight of her body and overcome by emotion that he began vomiting. He was rushed to a local hospital immediately.
While the Nerul police located her bloated body in the pond, there is still no sign yet of the couple's nine-month-old son. The two had been last seen at around 11.30 am on Tuesday.
Kamini had taken the boy along with her when she left their Gharkul society residence in Sector 16, Nerul, to buy some medicines. A missing complaint had been subsequently lodged at the Nerul police station by her husband.
The police themselves discovered the body in the pond. The grieving Giri family is now waiting for news of how Kamini died. "We will get the post-mortem report on Friday and only then can we comment on the cause of death," said the deputy commissioner of police (Zone 1), Amar Jadhav. Kamini's father-in-law Surendra Giri has told TOI, "There was no marital dispute between the husband and wife, and all of us were living very normally in Nerul. Only God knows how this has happened."
The entire Oriya community of Navi Mumbai has expressed shock at the mysterious death of the housewife, who was known to regularly interact with other members of the community.
"Kamini would without fail attend the holy satsangs in Nerul that were organised by the Oriya community. This tragedy in the Giri household has shaken everyone in Navi Mumbai," said one Oriya, S Das.
Mumbai: Nothing but the BEST (buses)
Yogesh Naik
[ 7 Sep, 2006 0054hrs IST TIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
MUMBAI: Commuters who catch their BEST buses along the Eastern or Western Express Highways are a step closer to a whole new experience.
The design for swanky new bus shelters—which will cost Rs 7 lakh each to build—was cleared by a high-powered committee of officials-cum-citizens on Saturday.
Fresh tenders will now be issued by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), which presented the updated design, and 85 shelters on both highways are expected to come up in six months.
Later, other roads—like LBS Marg, SV Road and the underconstruction Santa Cruz-Chembur, Jogeshwari-Vikhroli and Andheri-Ghatkopar link roads—will also get the bus shelters.
Compared to the current drab bus-stops, the new shelters will have features that will make waiting for a bus a more aesthetic and comfortable experience (See graphic).
In addition, hi-tech features, like electronic displays, will allow commuters access to information about BEST services. However, commuters will have to wait longer for the most eagerly awaited feature.
The Global Positioning System (GPS) will be linked to the new stops later. The GPS will allow commuters to know exactly where a bus is along a route, making it possible to know if it will be on time.
[ 7 Sep, 2006 0054hrs IST TIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
MUMBAI: Commuters who catch their BEST buses along the Eastern or Western Express Highways are a step closer to a whole new experience.
The design for swanky new bus shelters—which will cost Rs 7 lakh each to build—was cleared by a high-powered committee of officials-cum-citizens on Saturday.
Fresh tenders will now be issued by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), which presented the updated design, and 85 shelters on both highways are expected to come up in six months.
Later, other roads—like LBS Marg, SV Road and the underconstruction Santa Cruz-Chembur, Jogeshwari-Vikhroli and Andheri-Ghatkopar link roads—will also get the bus shelters.
Compared to the current drab bus-stops, the new shelters will have features that will make waiting for a bus a more aesthetic and comfortable experience (See graphic).
In addition, hi-tech features, like electronic displays, will allow commuters access to information about BEST services. However, commuters will have to wait longer for the most eagerly awaited feature.
The Global Positioning System (GPS) will be linked to the new stops later. The GPS will allow commuters to know exactly where a bus is along a route, making it possible to know if it will be on time.
Patna: For Nitish, 'charity' begins at home
Radhika D Srivastava
[ 8 Sep, 2006 0330hrs IST TIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
PATNA: The wheel of development is moving fast in the state, and fastest in Nalanda. A private sugar mill, piped water in villages, new power stations, super highways, hospitals, rural electricity, new colleges... you name it and it's all happening in Nalanda, the home district of CM Nitish Kumar.
The remaining 37 districts are in the queue, waiting for the state government's largess to befall them. The worst-affected are Supaul, Madhepura, Araria, Saharsa, Madhubani, Purnia and Jamui.
For, most of these districts are flood prone and in dire need of development. That Nalanda is special is an open secret in the corridors of power in Patna.
"If a new state-wide scheme is to be implemented, it is an unwritten code that it has to be first implemented in Nalanda," a bureaucrat said.
In their bid to please the boss, even cabinet ministers end up focussing more on Nalanda. A politician said, "Nalanda is a pampered district. First it was former Union minister George Fernandes who benefited the district and it got, among other things, an ordnance factory project. Now it is the turn of Nitish."
In the last two months alone, the state government has okayed development projects worth Rs 700 crore for Nalanda. On the eve of Independence Day, Nitish himself announced projects worth Rs 500 crore, including Rs 257 crore for a rural electricity project and Rs 130 crore for setting up a milk powder processing plant.
A few days ago, the cabinet gave its nod to a private enterprise to set up a sugar complex in the district.
The complex, to be set up at a cost of Rs 122.4 crore, will produce sugar, alcohol and even about eight megawatt of electricity. The government has also approved the formation of a municipal corporation at Biharsharif.
[ 8 Sep, 2006 0330hrs IST TIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
PATNA: The wheel of development is moving fast in the state, and fastest in Nalanda. A private sugar mill, piped water in villages, new power stations, super highways, hospitals, rural electricity, new colleges... you name it and it's all happening in Nalanda, the home district of CM Nitish Kumar.
The remaining 37 districts are in the queue, waiting for the state government's largess to befall them. The worst-affected are Supaul, Madhepura, Araria, Saharsa, Madhubani, Purnia and Jamui.
For, most of these districts are flood prone and in dire need of development. That Nalanda is special is an open secret in the corridors of power in Patna.
"If a new state-wide scheme is to be implemented, it is an unwritten code that it has to be first implemented in Nalanda," a bureaucrat said.
In their bid to please the boss, even cabinet ministers end up focussing more on Nalanda. A politician said, "Nalanda is a pampered district. First it was former Union minister George Fernandes who benefited the district and it got, among other things, an ordnance factory project. Now it is the turn of Nitish."
In the last two months alone, the state government has okayed development projects worth Rs 700 crore for Nalanda. On the eve of Independence Day, Nitish himself announced projects worth Rs 500 crore, including Rs 257 crore for a rural electricity project and Rs 130 crore for setting up a milk powder processing plant.
A few days ago, the cabinet gave its nod to a private enterprise to set up a sugar complex in the district.
The complex, to be set up at a cost of Rs 122.4 crore, will produce sugar, alcohol and even about eight megawatt of electricity. The government has also approved the formation of a municipal corporation at Biharsharif.
Patna: Rs 3500-cr plan to develop city
[ 8 Sep, 2006 0329hrs IST TIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
PATNA: If the city development plan prepared by various government agencies is implemented fully, Patna will join the league of well-planned cities.
A development plan worth Rs 3,500 crore has been drawn up to revamp the drainage, sewerage, drinking water, power and roads sector in the state capital.
Of this, the Patna Municipal Corporation and Bihar Rajya Jal Parshad have already prepared a detailed project report worth Rs 1,600 crore.
PMC commissioner Atul Prasad said the project duration is for seven years. A year has already passed. By the time the required clearances are obtained, this year will end. "So effectively we will be left with five years to implement the project," he said.
Prasad said about 50 per cent of the funds will be provided by the Union government under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Modernisation Mission. The remaining 50 per cent will be given by the state government.
He said it is high time the old and crumbling sewerage system was upgraded. "Our capacity to treat sewage is not enough. Against a generation of 170 million litres a day (MLD) of sewage, the city's sewage treatment plants have a combined capacity to treat 107 MLD only."
All drinking water pumping stations do not work as the water pipes do not have the strength to withstand the pressure generated by these pumps. "We have 96 pumping stations. But at a given time only 82 are operated. If we switch on all of them, the water pipes may burst," he said.
So first on the priority list is the revamping of drainage and water systems. A new network of storm water drains is to be laid keeping in mind the increase in population over the next 15 years. Drinking water pipes will also be re-laid.
Besides, the city development plan envisages uninterrupted power supply to the water pumping stations so that these are not dependent on the local power networks.
Prasad said there is a plan to provide a dedicated and uninterrupted power supply to the pumping stations. Underground cables will be laid so that there is no pilferage from these lines.
There is also a provision for constructing roads and relaying them so that they are able to face the vagaries of nature.
Prasad said, "All departments need to work in complete co-ordination so that there isn't a situation in which a freshly-laid road is cut open for laying water pipes or even power lines."
PATNA: If the city development plan prepared by various government agencies is implemented fully, Patna will join the league of well-planned cities.
A development plan worth Rs 3,500 crore has been drawn up to revamp the drainage, sewerage, drinking water, power and roads sector in the state capital.
Of this, the Patna Municipal Corporation and Bihar Rajya Jal Parshad have already prepared a detailed project report worth Rs 1,600 crore.
PMC commissioner Atul Prasad said the project duration is for seven years. A year has already passed. By the time the required clearances are obtained, this year will end. "So effectively we will be left with five years to implement the project," he said.
Prasad said about 50 per cent of the funds will be provided by the Union government under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Modernisation Mission. The remaining 50 per cent will be given by the state government.
He said it is high time the old and crumbling sewerage system was upgraded. "Our capacity to treat sewage is not enough. Against a generation of 170 million litres a day (MLD) of sewage, the city's sewage treatment plants have a combined capacity to treat 107 MLD only."
All drinking water pumping stations do not work as the water pipes do not have the strength to withstand the pressure generated by these pumps. "We have 96 pumping stations. But at a given time only 82 are operated. If we switch on all of them, the water pipes may burst," he said.
So first on the priority list is the revamping of drainage and water systems. A new network of storm water drains is to be laid keeping in mind the increase in population over the next 15 years. Drinking water pipes will also be re-laid.
Besides, the city development plan envisages uninterrupted power supply to the water pumping stations so that these are not dependent on the local power networks.
Prasad said there is a plan to provide a dedicated and uninterrupted power supply to the pumping stations. Underground cables will be laid so that there is no pilferage from these lines.
There is also a provision for constructing roads and relaying them so that they are able to face the vagaries of nature.
Prasad said, "All departments need to work in complete co-ordination so that there isn't a situation in which a freshly-laid road is cut open for laying water pipes or even power lines."
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