Samata men keep the heat on Rabri
A delegation of senior Samata Party leaders led by party president George Fernandes met Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee yesterday to impress upon him the need for imposing Article 356 in the state. The 16-member delegation also submitted a memorandum demanding a package of Rs 50,000 crore for Bihar if the Centre went ahead with its plans to bifurcate the state.
Centre and State panels to monitor power tariffs soon
Taking an important step towards reforming the power sector, the Government has issued an ordinance to set up the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) and the State Electricity Regulatory Commission (SERC). To be set up as independent bodies within three months, the CERC and SERCs will mainly decide the power tariffs which can be charged from consumers.
Hegde meets Atal
Lok Shakti leader and Union Commerce Minister Ramakrishna Hegde yesterday met the Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to explain his position following allegations of corruption levelled against him by AIADMK supremo J Jayalalitha. Hegde, who has denied all the charges made against him, is understood to have impressed upon Vajpayee that the charges were not true.
BJP may usher in Presidential govenment
Strongly denying that the BJP Government intends to scrap the Ambedkar Constitution, Union Home Minister L K Advani yesterday said the proposed commission to review the Constitution will explore the possibilities of changing over to the presidential form of government. Advani added that this would have no impact on the basic structure of the Constitution.
Ignorant trustees preside over decline of 11th century monument
The famous 11th century Dilwara Jain temples are slowly fading out. After the Rajasthan State Archaeology Department was chased out by the overtly possessive religious heads, conservation is the last thing on the agenda of the temple trust comprising 12 shopkeepers.
US-Russia fight looms over Iraq sanctions
The UN Security Council is set to renew sanctions against Baghdad on Monday, but a struggle between the United States and Russia looms over proposals to declare Iraq free of nuclear arms. Russian and US delegates are expected to weigh support among their 13 Security Council partners to a Russian draft resolution and a competing US draft statement on the nuclear disarmament issue.
