Animal lovers angers at the death of a horse Sunday, July 31, 2005 | AY
The death of a horse, who succumbed to its injuries Thursday after being hit by a vehicle on a busy Kolkata road, has invited the wrath of many an animal lover. The horse had strayed on to a road and been hit by a vehicle Wednesday. These animals are often used for joy rides along the vast green Maidan area but never provided shelter during the night. Amarnath Ghosh, deputy administrator of Animal Shelter, Hospital and Research Institute here and a representative of Maneka Gandhi's People for Animals group, said the horse died of internal haemorrhage in their hospital.
New type of virus hits the city Sunday, July 31, 2005 | AY
Doctors in the city of kolkatta are facing a new challenge in the form of a virus whose prime targets are children’s hearts. At least 10 per cent of children admitted at various hospitals are suffering from a particular viral disease, the symptoms of which are high fever, over 105 degrees, accompanied by headache, stomach ache, nausea and vomiting. They also complain of a running nose and lethargic feeling. But what is new about this particular type of fever is the fluid accumulation in the chest. Doctors said the virus strikes at the heart muscles, causing a condition known as viral myocarditis. It hampers blood flow, which results in fluid accumulation. According to doctors, children suffering from fever and with swollen eyes and bodies which indicate accumulation of fluids should be brought under observation.
Economic zone to be set up in WB Sunday, July 31, 2005 | AY
Indonesian giant Salem will set up a special economic zone comprising an industrial city, a knowledge city, a biotechnology park and a health city over 5,000 acres near Kolkata. Salem's managing director Beni Santosa after a meeting with West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, said that they are raedy to invest in the new project and start work soon. Bhattacharjee said that 2,500 acres are identified for the industrial city and 2,600 acres for the health, technology, culture and knowledge cities.
Search operations continue for missing trawlers Sunday, July 31, 2005 | AY
Three trawlers with 39 people on board were reported missing on Saturday in the deep sea off the Digha coast in West Bengal, while four others which could not be traced since Thursday have been found. The Digha Fishermen and Fish Traders Association, Chairman Pranab Kar said wireless link with three trawlers Maa Annapurna (with 10 people on board), Maa Basuli (15), Krishna Arjun (14), snapped on Friday. Kar said two of the four missing trawlers since Thursday had returned with 26 fishermen. Another two carrying 24 fishermen have been traced by the Coast Guard in the deep sea. The Coast Guard personnel have now started fresh search operations for the three trawlers reported missing.
Rahul with many offers Sunday, July 31, 2005 | AY
Rahul Bose, just back from South Africa after shooting an ad, is now doing another Bengali film. It's a film called "Anuranan" to be directed by Annirudh Roy Chowdhary. After "Kaal Purush", he feels confident of bengali movies and enjoys doin it. The film will also star Rituparna Sengupta and Raima Sen.
Help sought from London Sunday, July 31, 2005 | AY
West Bengal's Municipal Affairs Minister, Ashok Bhattacharya, has flown to London to learn how to use funds wisely to help the poorest of the poor. During his 11-day study tour, the minister will visit parts of Liverpool, Belfast and London — where similar rejuvenation plans are being worked out — to pick up tips on how to utilise funds. He is accompanied by Howrah mayor Gopal Mukherjee, project director, CUSP, Arnab Roy, and Calcutta Municipal Development Authority CEO P.R. Baviskar.
Sir Thursday, July 28, 2005 | AY
Bollywood actor Mahima Chowdhury is to star in Bengali filmmaker Kaushik Ganguly's next film "Sir". Mahima will play a woman whose values undergo a change after meeting a blind teacher played by Bengali superstar Prosenjit Chatterjee. The film would be shot in the Kalimpong hills of Darjeeling district, where Mahima spent several years of her student life. Director Kaushik Ganguly says that he wants Mahima to speak broken Bengali in the film because she plays a woman who comes from outside Bengal.
Famous director expired Thursday, July 28, 2005 | AY
Veteran Bengali film director Pinaki Mukherjee died in a city hospital here on Wednesday after protracted illness. Some of the hit films Mukherjee directed included Chowringhee, Memsaheb, Asabarna, Sujata, Pratisruti, Yogviyog, Kapalkundala and Rudrabeena. A large number of actors and actresses came in touch with him and earned fame.
Famous director expired Thursday, July 28, 2005 | AY
Veteran Bengali film director Pinaki Mukherjee died in a city hospital here on Wednesday after protracted illness. Some of the hit films Mukherjee directed included Chowringhee, Memsaheb, Asabarna, Sujata, Pratisruti, Yogviyog, Kapalkundala and Rudrabeena. A large number of actors and actresses came in touch with him and earned fame.
2 football matches to be played Wednesday, July 27, 2005 | AY
The Premier Division of the Kolkata Football League will kick off tomorrow with two matches scheduled to be played. Eastern Railway and Calcutta Port Trust will feature in the first match at Mohun Bagan ground, while Ever Ready will take on George Telegraph in the other match at East Bengal ground. The first big match of the season between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan is slated for 19 August according to the Indian Football Association fixtures.
An effort to track down the disappearance of Netaji Wednesday, July 27, 2005 | AY
The Justice Mukherjee Commission, probing the disappearance of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose 60 years ago, will visit Russia from September 19 to 30 to track down the freedom fighter's whereabouts after August 1945. Four to five Indian deponents, including Kolkata-based Asiatic Society researcher and visiting lecturer to St Petersburg University Purabi Roy would accompany the commission to Russia on their own. The commission would visit Moscow, Omsk and St Petersburg. As per official records, Bose was killed in a plane crash on August 18, 1945, in Taiwan but the commission, after visiting the country, found that there was no official record pertaining to any crash in August/September 1945.
Bajpai makes allegations against Dalmiya Tuesday, July 26, 2005 | AY
Former Kolkata police chief Dinesh Bajpai said he was contesting to the post of president of Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) to remove the anomalies and apathy of some of the present office bearers. He said that the Jagmohan Dalmiya camp are more interested in national and international cricket. As a result local interest was getting hampered. There needs to be a lot of proactive steps to improve the infrastructure, widen the district base, hone the local talents.
Bengali filmmakers bags awards Tuesday, July 26, 2005 | AY
West Bengal filmmakers and actors performed a clean sweep of all the awards in the Indian competition section of the Osian's Cinefan film festival held in New Delhi. It was Jahar Kanungo's Bengali film 'Nisshabd' (Reaching Silence) which romped home with the Best Film and Best Actress trophies. Trina Neelina Banerjee was chosen the Best Actress for her performance in this film. Meanwhile, noted character artist Sabyasachi Chakraborty bagged the Best Actor Trophy for his role in Sandip Ray's film 'Nishijapon'. Also another Bengali, Rupa Ganguly was honoured with a special jury mention and a memento.
A new destination for tourists Monday, July 25, 2005 | AY
The Bahadurpur forest and the Hasadanga Beel in Nadia will soon be seen as the new tourism destinations on the state’s tourism map. The state forest department has now come with a plan on the development of these places. Their main aim is not only to develop or revive the existing forests but also to make new forests, more specifically the green cover apart from the existing forests. The Hanshadanga Beel adjacent to Bahadurpur Forest is a vast waterbed, which can be transformed into a water sports complex. This Beel has the potential to be developed as a safe haven for the seasonal migratory birds. The Bahadurpur forest situated on the side of NH-34 in Krishnagar-II Block has been previously chosen as a prospective spot for jungle safari.
WB surgical Instruments production upgraded Monday, July 25, 2005 | AY
The cottage and small scale industries department in West Bengal has decided to upgrade 40 State-owned surgical instrument manufacturing units at Baruipur in South 24 Parganas to compete with the United States and Japan and develop more employment prospects in the State. The proposed project is expected to be completed by October 2005. In Baruipur around 300 to 350 manufacturing units are there and about 300 people are employed. These units in Baruipur have been supplying surgical equipments to the State Government Hospitals and health centers. These specialise in equipments which are meant for eye surgery, orthopaedic surgery, ENT surgery, leproscopic instruments and many others. Both the Government and the workers feel that with the setting up of the CFC, the surgical industry will grow and employment will increase.
C R Irani passes away Sunday, July 24, 2005 | AY
Editor-in-Chief of The Statesman, C.R. Irani, died here on Saturday following multiple organ failure. He was 75. Mr. Irani was twice chairman of the Press Trust of India. He was a member of the PTI board till his death. Spearheading The Statesman, one of India's oldest English newspapers founded in Kolkata in 1875, Irani made the publication a vehicle for his crusade against corruption in high places. Irani also wrote several books on corruption scandals, including one on the infamous Bofors scandal involving a defence purchase by the government of Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1985. Irani was bestowed the prestigious Astor award by the Commonwealth Press Union.
Bakers on strike from july end Sunday, July 24, 2005 | AY
Bakeries in the city will go on an indefinite strike from July 30 in protest against the state government's 'indifferent attitude' towards the rise in prices of yeast, flour and other inputs. The strike call has been given by the Joint Action Committee of West Bengal Bakers' Association, Indian Biscuit Manufacturers' Association and two other bodies connected with the bakery industry.
Reward given to those who helped to catch Kohli Saturday, July 23, 2005 | AY
The Hampshire Constabulary has rewarded around a dozen parties involved in the arrest of Maninder Pal Singh Kohli, accused in the murder of British teenager Hannah Foster in July 2004. A total reward of Rs 50 lakh — Rs 45 lakh by the Hampshire Constabulary and Rs five lakh by The Sun newspaper, had been divided among around a dozen people. We have with the help of the West Bengal police identified a number of individuals who we believe either assisted in locating Kohli or provided information to the Fosters’ telephone hotline,” Detective Superintendent Alam Betts, who leads the inquiry for Hampshire police said.
A unique blessing in the form of quadruplets Saturday, July 23, 2005 | AY
Wonders never seize..A woman has given birth to quadruplets in a West Bengal nursing home and all the babies were doing well, reports said Saturday. Bandana Das of Burdwan district was admitted to a nursing home in Burdwan town, 95 km from here, and Thursday evening she delivered four babies - one son and three daughters. The doctor attending on Bandana said the probability of such cases was only one in 500,000. He said the babies weighed one to 1.6 kg and were keeping well. The mother was also in good health and quite proud of her babies.
Bose enters Kolkata market soon Friday, July 22, 2005 | AY
Bose Corporation India Private Limited is set to foray into Kolkata market by the end of the year. The search is for suitable real estate and depending on the property, it will either be a stand alone experience centre on the lines of what they have in New Delhi, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad or will be part of an existing mall establishment. There are currently 16 wholly owned subsidiaries of Bose globally. The Indian subsidiary achieved sales growth in excess of 60 per cent annually thanks to its professional systems division which provides complete retail solutions for establishments. Bose’s focus in India was to reach the consumers directly which was established with their e-commerce enabled website.
Prayer organized for Big B Friday, July 22, 2005 | AY
Fans of film star Amitabh Bacchan today organised prayer meets here on the occasion of 'Guru Purnima' under the auspices of the West Bengal chapter of the Amitabh Bachchan Fans Association. A 'Havan' was held before a huge chair on which a pair of shoes belonging to the superstar were placed. Fans of Bachchan also comprised young children who participated in the prayers, wearing saffron gear with headbands praising Amitabh Bachchan. Fans of Bachchan also comprised young children who participated in the prayers, wearing saffron gear with headbands praising Amitabh Bachchan. The association also served free lunches to poor children on this occasion.
Jharkand &Bengal reached a deal to share ore Friday, July 22, 2005 | AY
West Bengal chief minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and Jharkhand chief minister, Arjun Munda met today in Kolkata to discuss probable solutions to the controversial and restrictive policy of iron ore adopted by the mineral rich states including Jharkhand. It was evident from the statements made by the two chief ministers that a mutually beneficial proposal would be worked out. West Bengal government would in turn consider giving river water to Jharkhand and electricity. Arjun Munda said, after meeting the required demand for our steel projects whatever mining leases would be surplus could be given to other states.
CBI investigation on the theft of Buddha bust Friday, July 22, 2005 | AY
The West Bengal government has ordered a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the theft of a 5th century sandstone 'half-bust' of Buddha stolen from the Indian Museum here Dec 29 last year. He said the state Criminal Investigation Department would assist the CBI. The 23-cm half-bust was kept in a glass case on the ground floor of the long gallery of the archaeology section. The thief removed the glass case and took away the bust.
Traffic block in the state Friday, July 22, 2005 | AY
Traffic in central Kolkata is paralysed due to not one but two political rallies in the heart of the city. They are parallel rallies by the Congress and the Trinamool to mark the same event - the death in police firing of 13 party workers in Kolkata on this day in 1993. Back then, Mamata Banerjee was in the Congress and had been leading the procession that the police fired upon. But after Mamata broke away from the Congress, both the Congress and the Trinamool observe July 21 as Martyrs Day.
Protest against salwar kameez Friday, July 22, 2005 | AY
Protests over a woman teacher's choice of salwar kameez in a West Bengal school has led West Bengal Secondary Education Minister Kanti Biswas to declare there is no restriction on the dress. Some male teachers at the Prasadpur Bhagyadhar Bidyaniketan school at Sonarpur on Kolkata's outskirts staged a protest against a recently-appointed fellow teacher, Sudeshna Chatterjee, for wearing the salwar kameez to work. They unleashed a campaign against Chatterjee and asked her to come to school in a sari and with traditional bangles of conch and vermilion on the parting of hair to signify her married status. The salwar kameez, originally a north Indian dress, has made inroads in West Bengal, where the sari is the traditional attire.
Project for preserving sweetmeat Tuesday, July 19, 2005 | AY
The state government is planning to set up a project for preservation and packaging of sweetmeat at Salboni in West Midnapore district. They also added that the sweetmeat industry has a lot of potential and the need of the hour is to take a planned and scientific approach. An advisory committee has been formed with scientists at the Calcutta University, Jadavpur University, Bengal Engineering and Science University and West Bengal University of Fishery Sciences to introduc modern technology for ensuring hygiene, sanitation and preventing adulteration for diversification and preservation of the sweetmeat products. The food processing and horticulture department will render all possible assistance to the manufacturers for modernisation of the industry.
Strong disapproval in apponting Dravid to lead the team Tuesday, July 19, 2005 | AY
Bengal’s cricketing fraternity has reacted sharply to the national cricket selectors’ decision to appoint Rahul Dravid as India’s captain for this month’s tri-series in Sri Lanka. Ganguly was picked as the 16th man. Former national selector Sambaran Banerjee who served as the east zone selector in the late 1990s, felt Kiran More and Co should have named Ganguly as captain and allowed Dravid to lead till a decision was reached on his ban. He said Ganguly is made to suffer when the whole team is responsible for the slow run rate, during the one-day series against Pakistan.
Income tax department happy with kolkatans Monday, July 18, 2005 | AY
The chief commissioner of income tax (Kolkata), P C Sinha informed that the net tax collection from the Kolkata region in the first half of the current financial year has increased by around 95 per cent compared to the same period of 2004-05. However, the gross collection that includes refund has decreased marginally. The income tax department has opened a help centre at the BCCI premises. The help centre at BCCI is the fourth help centre of the income tax department in Kolkata.
Bengal Unitech plans real estate projects Monday, July 18, 2005 | AY
Bengal Unitech Universal Pvt Ltd has unveiled two real estate projects in New Town Rajarhat near Kolkata, the implementation of which is estimated to entail an investment of Rs 3,000 crore. Spread over 150 acres of land, the project would comprise an IT Park christened Infospace and a multi-residential project called Uniworld City. Mr Mukherjee said RMJM of Scotland has been selected as the architectural consultants for the proposed projects, which are expected to provide a fillip to infrastructure at Kolkata's satellite township of New Town Rajarhat.
First gay music in small screen Sunday, July 17, 2005 | AY
Music video by well-known Bangla band Cactus is taking the issue of acceptance of the gay community to middle class homes through the small screen. The music video, in Bengali, is the first such attempt in India and will soon be aired by some Bengali channels. With the movement by supporters and members of the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual) sweeping Kolkata through the gay pride march, a film festival and growing participation in the AIDS prevention movement, the soon-to-be aired Cactus music video comes as a reinforcement. According to Cactus, it has been 30 years that homosexuality has been medically accepted as normal and the society should also accept it.
Biplab Dasgupta passes away Sunday, July 17, 2005 | AY
Rajya Sabha member and eminent economist Biplab Dasgupta of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M),66, died here Sunday after a prolonged illness. Dasgupta had been elected to the upper house thrice from West Bengal. He had also been elected to the Lok Sabha from south Kolkata in 1989. Dasgupta, who was suffering from Parkinson's disease, breathed his last around 5 p.m. at his south Kolkata residence.
Decision to include Ganguly in the hands of selection committee Saturday, July 16, 2005 | AY
Indian Cricket Board today directed the National Selection Committee to take a decision on whether to include banned Sourav Ganguly in the squad for the tri-series in Sri Lanka later this month. It still remains unclear whether the Indian captain would be provisionally accomodated in the team pending a final verdict on the ban which was slapped on him for slow over rates during the one-day series against Pakistan at home in April this year. Ganguly, who has already sat out for two matches, had his appeal against the ban turned down by ICC Appeals Commissioner Michael Beloff. The BCCI had taken up the issue to the ICC, disputing the process by which Ganguly's appeal was heard.
Eco friendly housing complex Saturday, July 16, 2005 | AY
Kolkata will soon have country's first environmental friendly housing complex. A pilot project would build 25 houses of 1800 sq ft costing between Rs 38 and 40 lakh each. The complex will be having 25 houses and one community centre. The unique feature of the complex is that all the houses will be eco friendly, energy efficient. The solar powered system installed on each house would generate 250 units of electricity per month. House owners would be eligible to get 250 units free and a subsidy of 40 paisa would be levied for each unit of power consumed thereafter till the next 200 units. The two storeyed buildings fitted with two kilowatt integrated solar photovoltaic systems, will ensure that power bills are almost halved. The housing complex would receive power from the West Bengal State Electricity Board and generation from the solar system would be transmitted to the grid. The interactive system will enable owners of the houses to sell off their extra electricity to the WBSEB and that will be adjusted in the electricity bills.
Tara produced 10 telefilms selected for the festival Saturday, July 16, 2005 | AY
Broadcast Worldwide's Bangla Television network Tara has its seven telefilms nominated for the prestigious Kolkata Telefilm Festival at Nandan. The festival will be held from 22 July to 31 July. A total of 20 telefilms have been selected for the festival. The Tara-produced telefilms which will compete in the festival are: Madur (directed by Jayashree Bhattacharya), Sumitra Online (directed by Atanu Ghosh), Balyabandhu (directed by Sanjoy Bhattacharya), Rupkathar Jibon (directed by Sourav Sarengi), Raat Bhor (directed by Arindam Dey), Teesta (directed by Raj Chakraborty) and Scandal (directed by Milan Roy Chowdhury).
Tara produced 10 telefilms selected for the festival Saturday, July 16, 2005 | AY
Broadcast Worldwide's Bangla Television network Tara has its seven telefilms nominated for the prestigious Kolkata Telefilm Festival at Nandan. The festival will be held from 22 July to 31 July. A total of 20 telefilms have been selected for the festival. The Tara-produced telefilms which will compete in the festival are: Madur (directed by Jayashree Bhattacharya), Sumitra Online (directed by Atanu Ghosh), Balyabandhu (directed by Sanjoy Bhattacharya), Rupkathar Jibon (directed by Sourav Sarengi), Raat Bhor (directed by Arindam Dey), Teesta (directed by Raj Chakraborty) and Scandal (directed by Milan Roy Chowdhury).
EXIM bank raise 8000 cr Friday, July 15, 2005 | AY
EXIM Bank of India, the country's premier export finance institution, will raise Rs 8,000 crore for meeting its resource requirements in the current financial year. Of this amount, Rs 4,400 crore would be raised as foreign currency loans and the balance Rs 3,600 as Rupee loans, which would be in the form of commercial papers of varying maturities. In the last year, EXIM Bank had sanctioned Rs 15,000 crore, adding that in the current year, this was expected to grow by 20 per cent at Rs 18,000 crore. He said the bank had targeted seven focus areas -- namely textiles, pharmaceuticals, auto components, agriculture, biotechnology, healthcare and tourism, for providing export financial assistance to the tune of 114 billion USD by 2010.
Rekha to star in bengali movie Thursday, July 14, 2005 | AY
Bollwood idol Rekha has anew project in Gautam Ghose's next Bengali film, 'Yatra' (Journey). 'Yatra' is the story of a person who comes to town from a village. It also stars Nana Patekar. Gautam Ghose, who is currently in the US for the screening of his film "Impermanence" on the Dalai Lama, had cast Tabu in his previous Bengali film "Abar Aranya" (Again in Forest), a sequel to Satyajit Ray's celebral "Aranyar Dinratri" (Days and Nights of Forest). Abhisekh Bachchan played a role in Rituparno Ghosh's "Antarmahal", while Bipasha Basu has agreed to do Ghosh's next.
Govt keeping close watch on rise in prices Thursday, July 14, 2005 | AY
The West Bengal government has decided to intervene if the prices of commoditties in the market are not reduced even after introduction of value added tax (VAT). Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta said between 1999 and 2005, sales tax growth in 21 states, where VAT had been introduced, was 10.5 per cent. But in 2005-2006, the growth in these 21 states were 15 per cent and in case of West Bengal it was 17.5 per cent. In some states, he said, the growth was as high as 20 per cent.
Modern examination systems Wednesday, July 13, 2005 | AY
As part of reforming and modernising the college examination system, Calcutta University has split the three-year undergraduate Honours course into three segments — parts 1, II and III — to be accompanied by yearly exams. Under the new system, it will be binding on Honours students to clear the Pass subjects at the end of the first year (Part I) and then take four Honours papers each in parts II and III. This implies that they will have to clear 700 marks at the end of the first year (6 Pass papers and 1 language paper) and 400 marks each (four Honours papers) at the end of the second and third years of study. Under the present system, students have to clear 1,100 marks in the Part 1 examination at the end of the second year — 300 marks each for the two Pass subjects, 100 marks for the language paper and 400 marks for the four Honours papers. They have to clear only 400 marks (4 Honours papers) in Part II. The new system will definitely take the burden off Honours students.
KPT tops in cargo handling Wednesday, July 13, 2005 | AY
Kolkata Port Trust (KPT) has achieved the highest growth among all major ports in India in cargo handling during April-June, 2005. The port registered the highest 30.26 per cent growth in traffic to 11.66 million tonnes as against 8.95 million tonnes handled during same period last year. The absolute growth of 2.71 million tonnes was also the highest among all major ports and was followed by Visakhapatnam (2.3 m.t.), Chennai (1.93 m.t.) and Mumbai Port (1.8 m.t.). In terms of percentage growth, KPT far exceeded the national average growth of 16.26 per cent. Hailing the achievement, KPT chairman A K Chanda said the major commodities attributing to the traffic growth were container cargo, vegetable oil and pulses at KDS and iron ore, coking coal, thermal coal and petroleum products at HDC.
W.bengal becoming a major IT centre Wednesday, July 13, 2005 | AY
Wipro, which set up a 17 acre campus in Kolkata’s Salt lake in November 2004, is now planning to get another 50 acre plot in Rajarhat, the proposed IT hub in east Kolkata. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is also eyeing similar space in the park. Major IT companies such as Satyam Computers, ITC Infotech, HSBC Electronic Data Processing India (HDPI), ICICI OneSource and Gecis will set up their centres in the city shortly. Even the existing companies like IBM, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTS) and SkyTECH Solutions are on an expansion drive. Hinduja TMT has evinced interest in setting up a software development centre in Kolkata. Companies say that the goverment, led by the state chief minister and his team comprising IT minister Manabendra Mukherjee and IT secretary G D Gautama, has worked relentlessly to make the IT and ITES dream a reality for West Bengal.
29 factories shut down in W.Bengal Wednesday, July 13, 2005 | AY
As many as 29 factories were closed during 2004-05 in West Bengal, rendering 15,619 workers jobless. Of the 29 factories, 25 were closed due to lockout and the remaining four due to strike. Labour Minister Md Amin said the state government had convened tripartite meetings to reopen those units and there was some progress in talks in case of some of those units.
Peerless reasons the flats cost value Monday, July 11, 2005 | AY
Mr KS Bagchi, managing director of Bengal Peerless Housing Development Company Limited, which recently completed the Avishikta Housing Complex, said that each of the 358 flats in the area spread over three acres would have cost Rs 50,000 less, if the area had the necessary sewerage and drainage system. We gave Rs 36 lakh for the drainage of this project to the KMC and we also had to spend a lot on construction of the sewerage treatment plant and the sump in this complex to provide proper infrastructure to the residents, which in turn increased the flats cost value. In this project worth Rs 15 crore and with 27 per cent green cover, there are low-income group flats of Rs 2,00,000, middle-income group flats of Rs 8,75,000 and high-income group flats ranging from Rs 11,75,000 to Rs 23,85,000.
Patalghar Monday, July 11, 2005 | AY
The theme of this new released bengali film is based on the story written by the eminent writer Sirshendu Mukhopadhyay. The famous Ad-agency of Kolkata 'Black Magic' is the producer of this film. Abhijit Chowdhury is the director of "Patalghar". Key characters in the film are Soumitra Chatterjee, Biplab Chatterjee, Monu Mukherjee, Kharaj Mukherjee, Ramaprasad Banik, Joy Sengupta, Master Sourav Banerjee etc. Every actor and actress has performed their best. Master Sourav Banerjee's acting especially bags appreciation. Monu Mukherjee gives us a dramatic relief. The dolby digital sound effect of this film is really praise worthy. Music direction of Dibyojyoti Mishra is excellent. 150 years ago a peculiar machine was invented by the scientist Aghor Sen, the protagonist of the film is the main theme. By this machine any one can make anybody sleep for hundreds of years. Everybody wants to have the unique machine by any means. Who will get that machine, that is the suspence.
3 CPI(M) leaders shot down Sunday, July 10, 2005 | AY
Three CPI(M) leaders were shot dead in separate attacks by suspected Maoist guerrillas in West Bengal's Bankura and Purulia districts. The sources said Raghunarth Murmu (50) and Bablu Mudi (38) were gunned down at a dispensary in Ranibandh area of Bankura district, while Mahendra Mahato was killed in Bundwan, Purulia. Both incidents took place last night. Suspected Maoist activists, posing as patients entered the dispensary at Ranibandh where Murmu and Mudi were waiting. They pulled out a gun and shot the two dead at point blank range. Murmu and Mahato were members of the CPI(M) Zonal Committee.
Upgradation of hospitals to improve health Sunday, July 10, 2005 | AY
The government today unveiled plans, including upgradation of hospitals and recruitment of doctors, to improve healthcare across rural Bengal. The health department has allocated Rs 100 crore in the current budget for upgrading hospitals in remote villages. Mishra said Rs 22 crore out of the Rs 100 crore have been earmarked for regular maintenance of rural hospitals. The 20-bed block health centres will be upgraded into 30-bed hospitals and the primary health centres, which have four beds each, will get six more. Mishra said more than 1,000 doctors would be recruited to man the 341 block and primary health centres in the state. Five doctors will man a 30-bed block hospital, while two doctors will oversee a primary health centre round the clock.
IA launches new scheme Saturday, July 9, 2005 | AY
Indian Airlines has launched a new concessional air fare scheme for Kolkata-Port Blair and Chennai-Port Blair and vice-versa. The new scheme names as "Easy Fares Plan" is also applicable in some other important sectors for domestic travel offers with discount upto 60 per cent. He said Easy Fares would be available at four levels and reservations could be made under different levels each of which would have a different fare and class name. The Station Manager informed that all tickets issued on or before July 4 under apex fare, positioning flight fares and flight select fares would be accepted on the face value of the ticket with no refund or additional amount being charged from the passengers. Another unique feature of the new scheme is that unlike the apex fares, there is no requirement of the time limit on advance purchase of tickets.
Asia motor works launches commercial vehicles Saturday, July 9, 2005 | AY
Asia MotorWorks, a company promoted by a Kolkata-based family with interests in financial services and tea, is planning to launch large and medium commercial vehicles. the company is right now in the prototyping stage for a variety of commercial vehicles including tractors, tractor-trailers and tippers. The company has bought land and is in the process of setting up facilities for the manufacture of commercial vehicles at Kanaiyabe village in Gujarat's' Kutch district. There are plans to initially get into the 16 and 25 tonnes segment with multi and single axle vehicles powered by 180 and 230 hp diesel engines.
AirTel expands in new towns in W.Bengal Friday, July 8, 2005 | AY
Airtel will be investing Rs 100 crore in network expansion in West Bengal over the next four months. With this addition, Airtel’s coverage would span across key highways, rail routes and more than 250 towns in the circle by the third quarter of the current fiscal. The new towns added include Balurghat, Gangarampur, Hilli, Gobardanga, Machlandapur, Kaliagunj, Adra, Ukhra, Panagarh, Salboni, Garbetta, Shankchuriya, Chandrakona, Bakreshwar, Mejia, Toofangunj and Dhupguri. Airtel under the Bharti Tele-Ventures fold is structured into two main strategic business groups — the mobility leaders business group and the Infotel leaders business group — at a national level.
Yechuri , Karat &others elected to RS Friday, July 8, 2005 | AY
All the six Rajya Sabha candidates from West Bengal, including CPI(M) politburo members Sitaram Yechuri and Brinda Karat, were today declared elected unopposed on the last day of withdrawal of candidature. Besides Yechuri and Karat who made their debut in the Rajya Sabha, others declared elected were CPI(M) Politburo member Chittabrata Majumdar, RSP's Abani Roy, Trinamool Congress' Swapan Sadhan 'Tutu' Bose and left and Congress-backed Independent and former Planning Commission member Arjun Sengupta.
Bengal forming new law for better land use Friday, July 8, 2005 | AY
The West Bengal government was contemplating a new law for effecting better control over land use and planned urban land management in view of the Centre's proposal to the state to repeal the urban land ceiling Act. The Municipal Affairs Minister of the State, Ashok Bhattacharya said that after the Centre had advised repeal of the urban land ceiling Act, the state government had been contemplating a new law styled as 'urban land management and utilisation act' for ensuring better control of land use and planned urban development. The new law is likely to be brought in the next session of the House.
Rupa into other business Thursday, July 7, 2005 | AY
Hosiery manufacturing company Rupa and Company Ltd will soon set up a pig iron plant in Durgapur in West Bengal. Construction work for the plant and the blast furnace has already started. P R Agarwala, chairman, Rupa stated that the total cost of the project would be around Rs 300 crore. The new company will be known as Neo Metaliks Ltd, will be completed by 2008. Agarwala also stated that funds for the project will be through internal accruals and loans from financial institutions.
New tennis coach for BTA Wednesday, July 6, 2005 | AY
Buoyed by the recent visit of former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash, Bengal Tennis Academy will now bring Kiwi coach Michael Mooney for a five-day clinic beginning tomorrow. BTA Secretary Hironmoy Chatterjee said here today that Mooney, a professional coach in the New Zealand Coaching Programme with credentials of training several countries, will be here tomorrow to take hold a tennis camp with the wards of BTA. This is part of the tennis development programme of the BTA, he said.
WB govt not affected by TCG decision Wednesday, July 6, 2005 | AY
The West Bengal government on Wednesday said it was not concerned whether The Chatterjee Group (TCG) was involved in the Basell transaction saying its only interest area in the deal was the involvement of Haldia Petrochemical (HPL). Asked whether Chatterjee had opted out of the deal because of the delay on the part of the West Bengal government in allowing him to rope in HPL for part-funding of the deal, Sen said, "since the petrochemical company had just come out of the Corporate Debt Restructuring (CDR) package, the government has to think hundred times before allowing HPL to join the league.
Abar Asbo Phire Tuesday, July 5, 2005 | AY
After the grand success of famous TV Serial "Ek Akasher Neeche" the director Ravi Ojha, has his new film released named "Abar Asbo Phire". The two protagonist character Anindya and Pritha are played by Saswata Chatterjee and Koninika Banerjee respectively. Victor Banerjee, Sabitri Chaterjee, Tapas, Rajatava, Biplab, Anasuya and Una are the other attractions and as well as important characters in this film. Singers like Jojo, Joly Mukherjee, Nachiketa, Srikanta Acharya, Subhomita, Gopa sing in the film. The songs of this film are not so impressive.The story is about an orphan young girl, Pritha, who suffers from a psychic disorder. Whenever she looks at the Indian national flag or watches any patriotic film or be it the Indian Independence day she is attacked by her disease of unconsciousness. The story takes a different turn with the arrival of FRCS doctor Anindya, along with the deepening complexity of Pritha.
Enacting hanging scene leads to death Tuesday, July 5, 2005 | AY
An eight-year-old girl in West Bengal was enacting a hanging scene when the sari she was using playfully as a noose accidentally tightened, killing her. Rekha Mistry, a student of Class 3, from Hooghly district of south Bengal used to play such dangerous games quite often despite warnings from elders. But on Saturday night it proved fatal, reports said yesterday. Rekha had hung the sari like a rope from the ceiling to enact hanging scenes that she had seen on TV and films. Accidentally, the ladder on which she climbed slipped.
More job oriented courses to be added Monday, July 4, 2005 | AY
MADRASAHS — the traditional seats of learning on Islamic theology — are set to introduce a more contemporary curriculum in the State. They will soon be offering courses in home science, nursing and short-term training in engineering and technology, besides other vocational courses. Meanwile, the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education plans to run courses on nursing and pathology, especially in districts like Murshidabad and Malda. Of the 508 registered madrasahs in the State, just 30 are located in the municipality areas. They intend to include more job-oriented courses in rural areas to help students from there find employment.
Animal rights group demands zoo to be abolished Monday, July 4, 2005 | AY
A Kolkata-based animal rights group, demanding abolition of zoological parks in urban areas, has found global support for its movement. The Compassionate Crusaders Trust (CCT), a strategic partner of Maneka Gandhi's People for Animals (PFA), was Kolkata's sole representative in the biennial animal welfare meet 'Asia for Animals' that recently took place in Singapore. Indian zoo laws stipulate that animals should be kept in conditions as close to nature as possible. But in most zoos animals are kept in crammed cages. CCT said the zoo authorities were violating laws that forbid sick and weak animals from being displayed for the public.
Health Tourism Popularising Sunday, July 3, 2005 | AY
Two city-based private hospitals have introduced the concept of health tourism and a couple of others are set to join the bandwagon. The main strategy is to get a flavour of the city while your relative recuperates. It aims to provide cost-effective pleasure-cum-treatment trips. The hospital offers a package allowing a patient and his companion to go on sight-seeing trips during their treatment. The sights on offer include Dakshineshwar, Belur, Kalighat, Jorashanko Thakurbari and Swabhumi.
Justice seeks a man after 25 long years Sunday, July 3, 2005 | AY
Branded a killer for having murdered his second wife by slitting her throat and burying the body in 1980, West Bengal’s Sheikh Sarifuddin was pronounced a life term imprisonment. His first wife and their children were also charged but were later acquitted. A division bench of the Calcutta High Court on Thursday absolved him of all charges in the absence of proper and strong evidence.
MRIL improves its financial set up Saturday, July 2, 2005 | AY
McLeod Russel India Ltd (MRIL) has improved its financial performance during fiscal 2004-05. The company, which had suffered losses worth Rs 57 crore in 2003-04, has brought it down to Rs 19 crore. Deepak Khaitan, vice-chairman, MRIL stated that this loss would also have been wiped out if the completion of a deal of selling two non-core assets had taken place on time. Khaitan, however, pointed out that PBDIT in 2004-05 stood at Rs 13.23 crore as against a negative PBDIT of Rs 11.45 crore in 2003-04.
Senior leader of BJP suspended Saturday, July 2, 2005 | AY
Former Union Minister and senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party from West Bengal, Tapan Sikdar, has been suspended from the party on charges of having "committed breach of discipline." He was asked to give an explanation why further action should not be taken against him and why he should not be expelled from the party. Mr. Sikdar was informed of the complaints received against him of giving statements to the media against Mr. Roy and the party's State Committee which had "already damaged our party. He was also charged with holding a "parallel programme" in the city recently "in the name of the BJP" when a scheduled meeting convened by the party was being held elsewhere.
Need to stop the trend of divorce by NRI husbands Friday, July 1, 2005 | AY
A marriage bureau in Kolkata has moved court to stop non-resident grooms from divorcing their Indian wives in foreign countries. They were forced to approach court after noticing the disturbing trend of divorce decrees received by NRI grooms in foreign courts. At least 100 women in West Bengal have filed cases demanding restoration of their marriage that has been annulled by divorce decrees their husbands received abroad. The PIL, filed by Relations in Calcutta high court late in June, says most of the divorce cases filed by NRI grooms are settled in their favour because their Indian wives don't have the money to go abroad to contest the cases. Currently, Indian marriage laws says a wedding registered in the country can be annulled in a foreign court.
Speak bengali or else no promotion Friday, July 1, 2005 | AY
Promotions for non-Bengali administrative officers in West Bengal will now depend on certain factors put forward by the CM. Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya on Thursday asked the state's non-Bengali Indian Police Service (IPS) and Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers to quickly pick up Bengali language or else put their promotions in peril. The CM's comment triggered a protest from Opposition leaders who said it was impossible to pick up the language properly even in 10 years unless there was an infrastructure or proper training programme. Non-Bengali IPS or IAS officers would need to appear in a hundred-mark test for promotion, failing which their promotion would be stalled.
