2014, ഒക്‌ടോബർ 7, ചൊവ്വാഴ്ച

Nokia to shut down its Chennai factory from November 1

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NEW DELHI: Telecom gear maker Nokia today said that it will shut down its Chennai plant from November 1 as Microsoft has terminated mobile purchase agreement from the the factory and it is left with no business.

"Microsoft has informed Nokia that it will be terminating the manufacturing services defined in the agreement with effect from 1 November 2014. In absence of further orders from Microsoft, Nokia will suspend handset production at the Sriperumbudur facility from 1st November," Nokia said in a statement.

In September 2013, Nokia announced it would sell its devices and services (D&S) business, including assets in India, to Microsoft for USD 7.2 billion by March 2014.
The deal was completed on April 25 but Chennai facility could not be transferred to Microsoft because of legal issues related to tax demand by Indian government.

Nokia started manufacturing in Chennai in January 2006 and exported to markets including in the Middle East and Africa, Asia, Australia and New Zealand from there.
In March, the Tamil Nadu government served a Rs 2,400 crore notice on Nokia, saying the firm had also sold products from the Chennai plant in the domestic market instead of shipping them overseas.

In a separate tax case, the Supreme Court had ordered Nokia India on March 14 to give a Rs 3,500 crore guarantee before it transfers the plant to Microsoft.

As a consequence, Nokia entered into a transitional services agreement with Microsoft to address their immediate production needs and keep the factory operational.

"Unfortunately, the continuing asset freeze imposed by the tax department prevents Nokia from exploring potential opportunities for the transfer of the factory to a successor to support the long term viability of the established, fully functional electronics manufacturing ecosystem," the statement said.

Nokia said that it will be informing all stakeholders including the Labour Commissioner of the suspension.

"As a responsible employer, Nokia is currently evaluating options to minimise the impact on existing employees at the manufacturing facility. It will share further information once details have been finalised," Nokia said.

The exact number of employees at present in its Chennai factory could not be ascertained but in March out of 6,600 permanent employees, about 5000 had opted for Voluntary Retirement Scheme offered by Nokia.

E-commerce may create 1.5 lakh jobs in India in 3 years -

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New Delhi: It's raining jobs in the e-commerce space as this segment could grow at 20-25% over the next 2-3 years in terms of jobs, salaries and growth, which in turn could create at least 1,50,000 jobs.
The current estimated size of the industry is about Rs 18,000 crore and is expected to reach Rs 50,000 crore by 2016 and as the industry grows, the demand for talent would grow proportionally.
"We are extremely bullish on the e-commerce sector in India. There are nearly 200 startups flush with PE/VC funds within this area and several hundred that are treading the same lines. We believe over the next 2-3 years, this sector will create at least 1,50,000 jobs," Antal International Network India managing director Joseph Devasia said.
Commenting on this trend, Mani Sankar Das Gupta, chief, placement unit, BITS Pilani, said, "The industry is very bullish, the main players — Amazon, eBay, Flipkart, Myntra etc — are regular recruiters from BITS and are now generating huge revenues, and have increased the number of hiring this year."
Since the sector is fairly new, there is a severe dearth of talent at all levels and in order to attract and retain key talent some of the leading e-commerce players today are even shelling out "crore+" salaries. On this, BITS Pilani's Gupta said "In India, most e-commerce players increased the salaries by 10-40% between 2013 to 2014 and are now paying salaries ranging from Rs 10-23 lakh and are hiring large entry level employees. At mid- and senior-level also, the salaries are swelling by 10-15% every year, besides the priceless stock options that are offered, which make employees millionaires," Gupta added.
Jayesh Pandey, managing director, talent & organization at Accenture India, believes, "Salaries in this sector are likely to see a higher degree of ESOPs and performance based rewards as compared to other industries." Rajiv Srivatsa COO & co-founder, Urban Ladder, said, "We are at par with most other e-commerce companies in terms of salary. Along with the salary component, employee stock options attract a lot of talent since the industry is on a massive growth path."
Indian Staffing Federation executive director Suchita Dutta said "E-commerce hiring is extremely bullish with the sector alone ready to hire over 15,000 in the next 5 months. The upscale is largely driven by robust positive sentiment both amongst consumers as well as the industry."
The indicative salary outlook for junior employees is Rs 1.45-3 lakh per annum, while for mid-management it is between Rs 12-30 lakh per annum, Dutta added.

Three Japanese share Nobel in physics for blue LED

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Professors Akasaki, Amano and Nakamura made the first blue LEDs in the early 1990s. (Image courtesy: BBC.com)
Stockholm:This year's Nobel Prize in Physics has been awarded to Isamu Akasaki and Hiroshi Amano from Japan, and Shuji Nakamura from the US for the invention of blue light emitting diodes (LEDs). The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences made the announcement Tuesday.
The prestigious prize will be awarded to the scientists for making fundamental transformation of lighting technology by inventing a new energy-efficient and environment-friendly light source - the blue light-emitting diode (LED).
Akasaki worked together with Amano at the University of Nagoya, while Nakamura was employed at Nichia Chemicals, a small company in Tokushima, a press release from the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said.
The invention of the blue LED is just 20 years old, but it has already contributed to create white light in an entirely new manner to the benefit of us all.

Promote self-attestation of documents: Govt tells states -

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New Delhi: The Centre has written to states asking them to promote self-attestation of documents in place of notarised and gazetted officer-signed affidavits required for majority of government-related works.
Terming it a good governance initiative, Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Jitendra Singh Tuesday said introducing a single, self-attested affidavit would go a long way in simplifying processes and revolutionizing governance in the country.
"It is one of the good governance initiatives taken by the government. We are promoting self-attestation of documents in place of affidavits. We have written to states and sought their views too," Singh said.
The government is yet to come out with an official order in this regard. "The intent of declaration has been made very clear. We cannot give any timeline for it (implementation of self-attestation of documents)," Singh told reporters here after inaugurating two-day symposium on 'Excellence in Public Service and Public Administration' here.
He said the government need to focus on maximising and simplifying governance.
"It has been our endeavour to ensure maximum governance and minimum government. We will continue to simplifying government processes," the Minister said.
At present, an individual has to spend about Rs 200-500 to get a notarised affidavit, whereas, getting a certificate or affidavit from a gazetted officer remains a herculean task for common man, especially those living in remote areas of the country.
Cabinet Secretary Ajit Kumar Seth, who was also present at the function, said the government is determined to improve public service delivery system.
"We are working towards meeting our government's priority to bring innovation, energy and drive to transform public service delivery in the country," Seth said.
Underlining the importance of partnerships in improving public service, N Ravi Shankar, Secretary, Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances, said, "In today's time, government institutions and civil society cannot stand alone.
Collaborative efforts between government, private sector and civil society are needed to sustain progress towards development goals."
The two-day event showcases outstanding global examples of best practices and reforms which have made a significant impact in improving public administration and public service delivery.
Countries presenting innovative reforms include Bangladesh, Brazil, Bahrain, Canada, Dubai, Ethiopia, Ecuador, Ghana, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Nepal, Peru, Senegal, Singapore, Tanzania, Turkey, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay.
Gujarat's online grievance redressal mechanism or 'Swagat' is amongst 21 global innovations in public administration which are being showcased at the symposium.
By creating a direct interface between citizens and the Chief Minister of Gujarat, 'Swagat' has enabled ordinary citizens to seek redressal for their grievances through an online platform.
The initiative received the prestigious United Nations Public Service Awards in 2010. In addition to Gujarat, most of the other participating initiatives are recipients of either the United Nations Public Service Awards or the Commonwealth
Association for Public Administration and Management Awards, said a press release issued by United Nations Development Programme.
-

Jayalalithaa's bail plea rejected, to remain in jail

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Bangalore: In a big blow to AIADMK chief J. Jayalalithaa, the Karnataka High Court on Tuesday rejected her bail plea in the disproportionate assets case, saying there was no ground to grant her the relief.
The order by Justice A.V. Chandrashekhara came after Special Public Prosecutor Bhavani Singh told the court he had no objection to granting conditional bail to Jayalalithaa, who is in prison here since her conviction by the Special Court on September 27.
In his order pronounced in a packed court room, the judge said there 'are no grounds' to give bail to the former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and observed that corruption amounts to 'violation of human rights' and leads to economic imbalance.
As the SPP told the court that he was not opposed to bail for Jayalalithaa, AIADMK supporters, who had gathered near the Parappana Agrahara jail, where Jayalalithaa is lodged, and near the court, went delirious anticipating her release. When the verdict came, they went into a state of disbelief.
With reports emerging from the courtroom in Bangalore that the former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister was granted conditional bail, AIADMK workers broke into dance.
In Tamil Nadu too, 'Amma' supporters started celebrating but only to learn later that their leader will remain in jail.
"My client will take a call," senior counsel Ram Jethmalani, who appeared for Jayalalithaa, told PTI, after the verdict when asked whether they will approach the Supreme Court.
The court also rejected the pleas for bail by Jayalalithaa's close aide Sasikala and her relatives V.N. Sudhakaran, disowned foster-son of the former Chief Minister, and Ilavarasi, who have also been sent to four years in jail in the 18-year-old case.
In his submission, Jethmalani strongly pleading for immediate bail to 66-year-old Jayalalithaa, cited the Supreme Court verdict granting relief to former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad in the fodder scam.
The court did not accept the submission, with the judge noting that Lalu Prasad had spent 10 months in jail before being granted bail by the apex court.
Arguing for the AIADMK supremo, Jethmalani also earlier pleaded for suspension of the sentence by the Special Court which had sent her to four years in jail.
Jethmalani asked for suspending the sentence pending appeal under Section 389 of the Criminal Procedure Code, under which pending any appeal by a convicted person, the appellate court may order that the execution of the sentence or order appealed against be suspended. Also, if the person is in confinement, that he or she be released on bail, or on own bond.
The 'regular practice' was to give bail, Jethmalani told Justice Chandrashekhara who took up the matter which was posted for today by the vacation bench on October 1.
Jethmalani also said appeals should be heard within a reasonable period of time.
Criticising the judgment of the Special Court in the Rs 66.65 crore disproportionate case, he said assets prior to the period between 1991 and 1996 (when Jayalalithaa was Chief Minister) could not be taken into account.
There was nothing disclosed in the conduct of Jayalalithaa to show that she might abscond, he contended.
Counsel Amit Desai, appearing for Sasikala, Sudhakaran and Ilavarasi pleaded for bail, telling the court that no witness talked of assets acquired by the three and suspicion cannot take the place of evidence.
Special Court Judge John Michael D' Cunha, in his verdict, had held Jayalalithaa and three others guilty of corruption that unseated her as the Chief Minister. He had slapped a fine of Rs 100 crore on Jayalalithaa and Rs 10 crore fine each on the three other accused.
In her petitions seeking immediate bail and challenging her sentence, Jayalalithaa maintained that the charge of amassing wealth against her during 1991-96 when she was the Chief Minister for the first time was false and that she had acquired property through legal means.
She also contended that the trial court had overlooked several judgements and not considered the binding nature of various income tax orders and decisions of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, which had accepted the income and the level of expenditure pleaded by her.
Tight security was in force around the Karnataka High Court complex as also the Parappana Agrahara jail with police personnel deployed in good strength anticipating a rush of AIADMK supporters and leaders.
Prohibitory orders are in force in the vicinity of the court and the jail, close to the entry point from Hosur on Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border where the police kept a close vigil on entry of vehicles.
The vacation bench had on October 1 deferred the matter till today to be taken up by a regular bench after the end of Dasara vacation.

2014, ഒക്‌ടോബർ 6, തിങ്കളാഴ്‌ച

TISS entrance test

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The Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) has invited applications online for the National Entrance Test (TISS-NET 2015) to be held on January 10 from 2 pm to 3.40 pm across the country for admissions to its 49 master’s degree programmes conducted on the Mumbai, Tuljapur, Guwahati and Hyderabad campuses. One can apply for a maximum of three programmes offered by any of the two campuses, indicating the order of preference.

Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Kozhikode, Chennai, Madurai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam are among the test centres.

Graduates in any discipline and final-year degree students are eligible to apply. Last date is November 29.

Eligibility criteria and instructions for submission of applications are available onhttp://admissions.tiss.educ and www.tiss.edu.

Application fee for one programme is Rs 1000, two programmes Rs 2000 and for three programmes is Rs 3000 plus bank charges. Admit card will be sent by December 19 by email to the candidates.

Ronaldo dazzles as Real rout Athletic

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Madrid: Cristiano Ronaldo scored his third hat-trick in five games as Real Madrid moved into the top four for the first time this season with a 5-0 win over Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.
It took Ronaldo just two minutes to extend his scoring streak to eight games as he headed home Gareth Bale's cross and Karim Benzema made the game safe when he doubled Madrid's lead just before half-time.
Bale teed up Ronaldo once more to make it 3-0 and the Portuguese then turned provider for Benzema to tap home his second of the game.
Ronaldo rounded off the scoring two minutes from time when he unintentionally deflected Pepe's effort home to take his tally for the season to 17 goals in just 11 matches in all competitions.
Victory takes Real back to within four points of leaders Barcelona behind Valencia and Sevilla, but ahead of champions Atletico Madrid who drop down to fifth.
A fourth defeat in five league games for Athletic, meanwhile, means Ernesto Valverde's men end the weekend in the relegation zone.
"We are improving in some aspects and we are growing," said Ronaldo, who equalled the record of scoring 22 hat-tricks in La Liga also held by Telmo Zarra and Real Madrid legend Alfredo di Stefano.
"The team played a great game and scored five without conceding, so we are very happy."
And Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti lauded the contribution of his front three.
"All of the front three were fantastic. Cristiano scored three, Karim two and Gareth gave two assists and worked very hard for the team.
"Having the three of them working together is fundamental for the team."
Bale provided the opener on his weaker right foot as he managed to pick out a perfect cross for the unmarked Ronaldo to head home at the back post.
Athletic 'keeper Gorka Iraizoz then made a smart save low to his right to deny Ronaldo a second and Benzema just couldn't stretch to turn home another Bale cross as the hosts piled on the pressure.
However, the Basques settled midway through the half and Iker Muniain's spectacular dipping volley from the edge of the area forced Iker Casillas into action with a fingertip save.
Crucially Real managed to get the second goal before half-time, though, as Benzema rose highest to head Luka Modric's corner in via the crossbar.
Bale wasted a great opportunity to make it 3-0 five minutes into the second-half as he blazed over with just Iraizoz to beat.
However, the Welshman made amends five minutes later when he raced onto Benzema's pass and squared for Ronaldo to tap home his second of the night.
Bale came close again when he shot just wide after being set up by a lovely backheel from James Rodriguez and was then flagged offside when he did finally have the ball in the net.
Madrid were continuing to open up the Athletic defence at will and made it 4-0 21 minutes from time when Ronaldo unselfishly squared for Benzema to roll into an empty net rather than going for a hat-trick.

Multiplex staff beaten to death in Kozhikode

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Kozhikode: In a shocking incident, a security employee of a multiplex on Mavoor Road in Kozhikode was beaten to death by a group on Monday in a clash following arguments over movie tickets.
The deceased has been identified as Sathyaprakash, a native of Kozhikode. Another employee of the theatre was seriously injured in the attack.
The mayhem occurred when a gang persisted on entering the movie hall in RP Mall even after the employees informed them that tickets were sold out.
Speaking to media, the manager of the theatre said that the gang insisted on watching a movie upon reaching the multiplex at around 2 PM.
Two persons, namely Ajmal and Sarjas - employees of a readymade garment shop in the city - have been arrested in connection with the incident. Sources said that there were six people in the gang that attacked Sathyaprakash.

India, West Indies teams arrive in Kochi

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Kochi: The Indian cricket team has arrived amid much fanfare in Kochi on Monday for the first ODI against West Indies to be played at the Jawaharlal Nehru international Stadium on Wednesday.
Cricket fans, in good numbers, thronged the airport premises to get a glimpse of their stars. The centre of attraction was Indian Vice Captain Virat Kohli.
While Ravindra Jadeja was seen busy over his mobile phone, batsman Shikhar Dhawan was full of smiles and waved at the crowd.
The remaining members of the team, including skipper M.S. Dhoni and Suresh Raina, who were part of the Champions League T20 title winning Chennai Super Kings, will join the team later.
The West Indies team, barring captain Dwayne Bravo and batsman Andrew Russel, who had arrived on Sunday, also reached Nedumbassery airport at around noon on Monday along with the Indian contingent.
Rain threat looms large over the Kochi ODI with the meteorological department forecasting scattered rain in Kerala for the next two days.
The Kochi ODI will be followed by games in New Delhi on October 11 and Vishakhapatna on October 14.
The last two matches of the series will be played in Dharamshala (October 17) and Kolkata (October 20).

iPhone 6 to retail in India from Oct 17

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iPhone 6 to retail in India from Oct 17

byAgencies

Text Size
iPhone 6 and 6 Plus
iPhone6 will hit the Indian markets on Oct 17 with a price range Rs. 53, 500 to Rs. 80, 500. File photo

New Delhi: The latest model of the Apple mobile phone, the iPhone 6, will hit the Indian markets Oct 17 with a price range of Rs.53,500 to Rs.80,500, according to the company's distributors here.
For the first time, Apple is introducing its pre-booking concept in India, by which a person interested in buying the iPhone can go to any of Apple's distributors, choose a model and pre-book.
Once that is done, a coupon will be issued that can be used to buy the actual phone from the midnight following Oct 6.
For a 16 GB iPhone 6, the price has been fixed at Rs.53,500, going up to Rs.62,500 for a 64 GB and Rs.71,500 for a 128 GB. For the iPhone 6 Plus, the price will be Rs.62,500 for 16 GB, 71,500 for 64 GB and Rs.80,500 for a 128 GB.
"Customers can pre-order both models beginning Oct 7 at 12:01 a.m. at the major retail outlets of the partners," said Ingram Micro, one of Apple's largest distributors and partners in India.
Early September, Apple had unveiled two bigger screen versions of the iPhone, the 6 and the 6 Plus, a new Apple Watch, touting it as a comprehensive health and fitness device, and a mobile wallet called Apple Pay.
"What we didn't do was take the iPhone and shrink the user interface and strap it on your wrist," Chief Executive Tim Cook had said at Apple’s splashy launch event at the Flint Centre in Cupertino, California.
"It's the most personal device we've ever created," he said of the new watch with a traditional square watch face, calling it "a comprehensive health and fitness device."
The Apple Watch pairs with the new iPhones to display notifications. It features a magnetic charger, health and fitness apps and a crown that controls zoom and scrolling with a twist. It also tells time.
Apple said it will sell three versions of the Apple Watch, including a sports model and an 18 carat gold model called the "Apple Watch Edition." The Apple Watch also comes in two sizes, one slightly smaller than the other.
Announcing its version of the mobile wallet Cook said, "We've created an entirely new payment process, and we call it Apple Pay."

2014, ഒക്‌ടോബർ 5, ഞായറാഴ്‌ച

Patna stampede: Four top officials removed

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Patna: Patna Divisional Commissioner N Vijaylaxmi and three other top civil and police officials of the district administration were today removed from their posts by the Bihar government, two days after the stampede in the state capital that left 33 dead.

Besides Vijaylaxmi, the three others who were shifted were DIG Patna Range Ajitabh Kumar, Patna District's District
Magistrate Manish Kumar Verma and Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Manu Maharaj, an official notification said.

The transfers were effected even as the state government vowed to punish those responsible for the 'lapses' that led to
the stampede.

Vijaylaxmi has been replaced by Tirhut Divisional Commissioner Narmadeshwar Lal while Upendra Kumar Sinha, the
SP (Railway) in Patna, will take up Ajitabh Kumar's post.

East Champaran District Magistrate Abhay Kumar Singh will replace Verma while Maharaj's Muzaffarpur counterpart
Jitendra Rana will be the new SSP of Patna. Vijaylaxmi and Verma have been asked to report to the General Administration (GA) Department till further orders, the notification said.

Though the latest round of transfers in the police and GA Department is seen as a fallout of the stampede outside the
Gandhi Maidan on October three, the state government remained tightlighted on the development with a senior
minister merely saying that transfers have been effected to meet requirements of the state administration.

'Notifications have been issued for transfer of a number of IAS and IPS officials....beyond which I would not
like to say anything,' Water Resources Department (WRD) Vijay Kumar Chaudhary told PTI.

'The state government is not going to spare anyone responsible for 'lapses' that led to the stampede outside the
Gandhi Maidan,' he said.

He said that the probe team would jointly hold a public inquiry at the district collectorate on October 7 to hear
accounts of eyewitnesses and other people willing to depose. The state government would also publish advertisements in
newspapers appealing to the people to share information about the incident, he said.

On the lack of lighting arrangement at the venue on the day of the Dusshera celebrations, Chaudhary said the state
government was aware of the matter, but would await the probe report to act.

The state government has instituted an inquiry and it is being conducted by Home Secretary Amir Subhani and
Additional Director General of Police, Headquarters, Gupteshwar Pandey.

Pandey said the probe would be completed within a week and a report would be submitted to the state government. PTI
KDK DR MD SC GSN

Patna stampede: Four top officials removed

________ A to Z kerala .......... [kvk] [www.atozkerala.in , www.atozkerala.blogspot.com]
Patna: Patna Divisional Commissioner N Vijaylaxmi and three other top civil and police officials of the district administration were today removed from their posts by the Bihar government, two days after the stampede in the state capital that left 33 dead.

Besides Vijaylaxmi, the three others who were shifted were DIG Patna Range Ajitabh Kumar, Patna District's District
Magistrate Manish Kumar Verma and Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Manu Maharaj, an official notification said.

The transfers were effected even as the state government vowed to punish those responsible for the 'lapses' that led to
the stampede.

Vijaylaxmi has been replaced by Tirhut Divisional Commissioner Narmadeshwar Lal while Upendra Kumar Sinha, the
SP (Railway) in Patna, will take up Ajitabh Kumar's post.

East Champaran District Magistrate Abhay Kumar Singh will replace Verma while Maharaj's Muzaffarpur counterpart
Jitendra Rana will be the new SSP of Patna. Vijaylaxmi and Verma have been asked to report to the General Administration (GA) Department till further orders, the notification said.

Though the latest round of transfers in the police and GA Department is seen as a fallout of the stampede outside the
Gandhi Maidan on October three, the state government remained tightlighted on the development with a senior
minister merely saying that transfers have been effected to meet requirements of the state administration.

'Notifications have been issued for transfer of a number of IAS and IPS officials....beyond which I would not
like to say anything,' Water Resources Department (WRD) Vijay Kumar Chaudhary told PTI.

'The state government is not going to spare anyone responsible for 'lapses' that led to the stampede outside the
Gandhi Maidan,' he said.

He said that the probe team would jointly hold a public inquiry at the district collectorate on October 7 to hear
accounts of eyewitnesses and other people willing to depose. The state government would also publish advertisements in
newspapers appealing to the people to share information about the incident, he said.

On the lack of lighting arrangement at the venue on the day of the Dusshera celebrations, Chaudhary said the state
government was aware of the matter, but would await the probe report to act.

The state government has instituted an inquiry and it is being conducted by Home Secretary Amir Subhani and
Additional Director General of Police, Headquarters, Gupteshwar Pandey.

Pandey said the probe would be completed within a week and a report would be submitted to the state government. PTI
KDK DR MD SC GSN

Patna stampede: Four top officials removed

________ A to Z kerala .......... [kvk] [www.atozkerala.in , www.atozkerala.blogspot.com]
Patna: Patna Divisional Commissioner N Vijaylaxmi and three other top civil and police officials of the district administration were today removed from their posts by the Bihar government, two days after the stampede in the state capital that left 33 dead.

Besides Vijaylaxmi, the three others who were shifted were DIG Patna Range Ajitabh Kumar, Patna District's District
Magistrate Manish Kumar Verma and Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Manu Maharaj, an official notification said.

The transfers were effected even as the state government vowed to punish those responsible for the 'lapses' that led to
the stampede.

Vijaylaxmi has been replaced by Tirhut Divisional Commissioner Narmadeshwar Lal while Upendra Kumar Sinha, the
SP (Railway) in Patna, will take up Ajitabh Kumar's post.

East Champaran District Magistrate Abhay Kumar Singh will replace Verma while Maharaj's Muzaffarpur counterpart
Jitendra Rana will be the new SSP of Patna. Vijaylaxmi and Verma have been asked to report to the General Administration (GA) Department till further orders, the notification said.

Though the latest round of transfers in the police and GA Department is seen as a fallout of the stampede outside the
Gandhi Maidan on October three, the state government remained tightlighted on the development with a senior
minister merely saying that transfers have been effected to meet requirements of the state administration.

'Notifications have been issued for transfer of a number of IAS and IPS officials....beyond which I would not
like to say anything,' Water Resources Department (WRD) Vijay Kumar Chaudhary told PTI.

'The state government is not going to spare anyone responsible for 'lapses' that led to the stampede outside the
Gandhi Maidan,' he said.

He said that the probe team would jointly hold a public inquiry at the district collectorate on October 7 to hear
accounts of eyewitnesses and other people willing to depose. The state government would also publish advertisements in
newspapers appealing to the people to share information about the incident, he said.

On the lack of lighting arrangement at the venue on the day of the Dusshera celebrations, Chaudhary said the state
government was aware of the matter, but would await the probe report to act.

The state government has instituted an inquiry and it is being conducted by Home Secretary Amir Subhani and
Additional Director General of Police, Headquarters, Gupteshwar Pandey.

Pandey said the probe would be completed within a week and a report would be submitted to the state government. PTI
KDK DR MD SC GSN