Mamata's vindictive politics over patient care push Bengal people to poor health care

Norway may pull out of SSKM project

BySumati Yengkhom, TNN | Feb 22, 2013, 02.20 AM IST

KOLKATA: Barely four months after the state health department shunted out Dr Arun Singh, the head of the neonatology department at the Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research (IPGMER) in SSKM Hospital, the state's premier medical institute is set to lose a prestigious project funded by the Norway government.

The funding agency wants to pull out of the project because it has "lost confidence" after Dr Singh's transfer.

Dr Singh, as the head of the department, had been instrumental in developing a state-of-the-art neonatology wing at IPGMER. He was transferred to the College of Medicine and Sagar Dutta Hospital in October 2012, allegedly after a row with an influential health department official.
Dr Singh - for whom the city's medical fraternity vouches for his dedication, hard work and pioneering initiatives -

was transferred to a hospital which does not even have a neonatology department.

former neonatology head at Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research (IPGMER) (SSKM), the state's premier medical institute is about to lose a prestigious project funded by the Norway government.

The neonatologist, who the medical fraternity vouch for his dedication, hard work and pioneering initiatives, was shunted to the North 24 Parganas hospital which does not even have a neonatology department.

The Norway funding would have been crucial for the hospital, as the country boasts one of the best healthcare facilities for the newborn in the world. With an infant mortality rate of 3 (number of deaths per 1,000 births), it ranks sixth amongst countries with the lowest infant mortality rates.

The corresponding figure for Bengal is 35.

Now, the funding agency has expressed a wish to discontinue the project, said sources.

The funding agency reportedly has expressed its desire to discontinue with the ongoing project. If the project is withdrawn it will give a major blow to the neonatology wing that has taken up many pioneering initiatives.

Therefore the collaborative project with Norway government at IPGMER would have served the state.

Some initiatives that would have materialized under the project was a breast milk bank at IPGMER, a training programme for doctors and nurses in Norway and collaborative efforts to reduce neonatal sepsis, nutrition of newborns and improving neurodevelopment.

An exchange programme with the Oslo University Hospital under the project would have meant clinical skill development for medical staff members of IPGMER's neonatology wing.

In fact, the first batch of two doctors and four nurses have been trained so far with full sponsorship from Norway.

The project was to run for five years. Now, a little more than a year into it, the funding agency wants to pull out.

"The project would have gone to AIIMS in Delhi. But Dr Singh had fought hard to win it," said a senior doctor at IPGMER. "This was a matter of pride not only for the state but also for the entire eastern and north-eastern regions."

According to sources the funding agency had confidence in Singh's efficiency and dedication. Therefore it did not want to continue with the project after he was shunted out. A communication on this was sent to IPGMER director Dr Pradip Mitra some weeks back.

"Now I hear that they (the Norwegian funding agency) do not wish to continue with the project. The reason is not clear," said Dr Mitra.

The fate of the Newborn Care Resource Centre at IPGMER, facilitated by the Norway India Partnership Initiative, also hangs in the balance. The resource centre - a first-of-its-kind initiative in India - owed its existence largely to the efforts of Dr Singh.at IPGMER under NIPI was the first of its kind in India. While the other four centres - KEM Mumbai, Institute of Child Health Chennai, Lady Hardinge Medical College Delhi and PGI Chandigarh - that came up much later have been given extension for another five years, IPGMER has not been sanctioned the extension by NIPI. Singh was instrumental in impressing upon NIPI to start the centre.

Incidentally, even though the state has shunted Dr Singh to a hospital where he has very little work, it is yet to release him on a central Health Ministry deputation to work as a senior advisor to the National Child Health Project.

Even as the state shunted out the specialists doctor to a place where there was no work for his expertise, the central health ministry has requested the Mamata Banerjee government to depute him for two years to work as a senior advisor to the national child health project. The state however is yet to release Singh.




Read related news: 

Surprise transfer for SSKM doctor

After surprise transfer, probe shock for doctor

Neonatology doctor shifted to hospital without neonatology ward

Politics over patient care in transfer of top doctors

This is not the first time the uneducated and partisan politician Mamata put her egoistic politics over patient care, on 26 May 2011 she suspended an eminent neurosurgeon and The director of the Bangur Institute of Neurosciences Dr. Shyamaprasad Ghorai, without any reason. click on the link below to read details. 

Hospital head suspended

Mamata and her ministers always go abroad for best treatment but Bengal people get deprived of right treatment by expert doctors for her uneducated and insensitive behavior towards best doctors. Some of the city's well known persons say that she drive away best doctors from Govt. run hospitals to give advantages to some of the private clinics of the city in which she has some interest.

Gyanpith award winner writer Mahasweta Devi, who is the closest associate of Mamata, surprisingly silent about this ordeal of Bengal people who has always been vocal about people's cause and despite her poor health take part in many political rallies of Mamata. Then is it true that her intellect only gets vocal where she has some personal interest, and not for all?

However, Gyanpith award winner writer Mahasweta Devi, who is the closest associate of Mamata, surprisingly silent about this ordeal of Bengal people who has always been vocal about people's cause and despite her poor health take part in many political rallies of Mamata. Then is it true that her intellect only gets vocal where she has some personal interest, and not for all?

Mamata's Self-Propaganda Using Public Money

Follow the leader

Jug Suraiya
07 February 2013, 10:06 PM IST

How Didi has made herself Kolkata's most prominent landmark

During a recent visit there, i discovered that Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee — known to all and sundry, particularly sundry, as Didi — has brought about wondrous 'poriborton' (change) to Bengal, or at least to the city of Kolkata in the two years since her Trinamool Congress assumed office after dislodging the Marxists from a power they'd held on to for more years than most cared to remember. One of the problems with Indian cities, all Indian cities, including Kolkata, is that they are difficult places in which to find your way, particularly if you happen to be a visitor and not a local resident.

One of the reasons is that — thanks to mass urban migration from rural areas where there are no jobs, and few if any other sources of livelihood — Indian cities have a tendency to grow like mammoth brick-and-mortar mushrooms. As the construction boom continues unabated, sweeping away established landmarks in a tsunami of concrete, newcomers are often at a loss to find their bearings. I find this to be particularly true of Kolkata, a city i lived in for many years before moving to Delhi.

On my periodic visits there it was brought home to me that the city that was once as familiar to me as the palm of my hand had become a mysterious and misleading maze, thanks to flyovers and other construction projects that have transformed its topography. How do people find their way round, how do they not get lost? i asked a resident on one of my previous visits.

And the answer to that was the State Bank of India, or SBI. The SBI is to the Indian urban dweller what the North Star was to ancient mariners: it is an unfailing point of reference from which to get your bearings and figure out where you are and where you ought to be.

In Indian cities, all Indian cities, the SBI has long fulfilled the function of the North Star by being a navigational aid for people seeking or giving directions. That has traditionally been the primary role of the SBI, the business of receiving and giving out money being an ancillary activity.

A host giving directions to a guest might say something to this effect: Go straight down the road till you come to an SBI, take the first left after that and continue for half a kilometre and then turn right after the SBI there, and my place is three doors down from the second SBI you'll pass on your left — got it?

The SBI remains an infallible city guide all over India. Except in Kolkata. Here it has, literally and metaphorically, been overshadowed by a direction-finder even more ubiquitous than the SBI: Didi. Not Didi in person, of course, but Didi on great big huge hoardings and posters and other forms of public display. Wherever you look there's a larger-than-life Didi, hands joined together in a nomoskar (the Bengali pronunciation of namaskar), welcoming the visitor to her city.

Now, a Kolkata host giving directions to a guest might go something like this: After the 139th hoarding of Didi, go around the roundabout then count off another 17 Didis, turn right, and my place is bang opposite the 10th Didi on the left hand side — got it?

Didi's vote-catching slogan was 'Maa, maati, manoosh'. Ever since she's won, she's cut out all the frills — be it manoosh, maa, or maati — so her new slogan is just plain Mamata: Mamata, ad infinitum. If that ain't poriborton, i don't know what is.

 State misses molest law lead

Mamata Govt Sat On Rights Body Prod To Make Molestation Non-Bailable

Saibal Sen TNN 07.02.2013

Kolkata: The Centre has marked molestation as a non-bailable offence following the recommendations of the Justice Verma Commission but very few know that the West Bengal Human Rights Commission had mooted the proposal a year back.
    The Mamata Banerjee government had been sitting on the committee’s recommendations, missing out in the process a rare opportunity to showcase that Bengal can lead from the front in areas that really matter.
    On April 20, 2012, former Supreme Court judge and WBHRC chairman Asoke Ganguly had made the same recommendation to the Mamata Banerjee government to curb incidents of molestation in Bengal. But the government did not pay heed.
    Now, the same proposals figure in the Justice Verma Commission report and have been icorporated in the Criminal Law Amendment (Ordinance), 2013.
    Justice Ganguly’s proposals to the Mamata Banerjee government had been specific on two counts — to make molestation a non-bailable offence and increase the minimum sentence to five years with a maximum term of seven years. The proposal also sought to impress that should a court impose any lesser sentence, the reasons have to be specified in the judgment.
    “I am happy that the spirit of our proposals have found reflection in amendments,” Justice Ganguly told TOI.
    Justice Ganguly’s proposals had been based on the National Crime Records Bureau’s data till 2011, which pointed out that molestation cases in Bengal had increased almost tenfold since 1990 — from 357 cases to 3320. Earlier, Section 354 IPC (that dealt with molestation) defined the offence as a cognisable but bailable offence. The rights body chairman, while making the recommendations to the government a year ago, had cited the instances of two states — Madhya Pradesh and Odisha — that amended the IPC section and also the criminal procedure code, redefining molestation as a non-bailable offence.
    That wasn’t all. The commission chairman also felt the need to redefine rape because in some cases it is difficult to prove a rape charge in court though persons accused of molestation are convicted. The courts then had no alternative but to give minor imprisonment to the accused, leading to “social imbalance and injustice”.
    The state government didn’t set aside the recommendation but didn’t accept it either. Instead, it left the issue pending on grounds that it was “considering” the proposals. But then, it was last year.
    “It only shows how the state government is apathetic to human rights. Though the commission’s recommendations are not binding on the government, in this case it could have at least taken a lead,” Justice Ganguly said from New Delhi.
WHAT BENGAL THOUGHT LAST YEAR...
RECOMMENDATIONS OF WEST BENGAL HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION  

Make molestation non-bailable
Increase minimum sentence to five years and maximum to seven years
Should a court impose a lesser sentence, the reasons have to be specified in the judgment.
Need to redefine rape because in some cases it is difficult to prove a rape charge in court 

Related Stories:

How Bengal treats Rapes 

Mamta ordered Kolkata police to gag protesters over Rape incidents

Bengali intellectuals called rape victims are sluts

Rampant sexual assault in Bengal for Mamata's inefficiency

Women security is nil in West Bengal under Mamata 

Inept Governance of Mamata made West Bengal the State of Horror

Man stabbed for defending sister

Goon Attacks Victim On Main Road, But No One Responds To Cries For Help

Monotosh Chakraborty TNN 07.02.2013

Mathurapur: A 32-year-old man is fighting for his life after being stabbed repeatedly while trying to protect his sister from a molester in South 24-Parganas’ Mathurapur on Tuesday evening. The attack took place at an auto stand on the main road during peak traffic hour but no one dared challenge the molester because he is a history-sheeter who roams around freely although he us branded an absconder.
    The vicious attack brought back memories of the murder of schoolboy Rajib Das, who was stabbed to death for defending her sister from a gang of molesters in Barasat in February 2011.
    The victim of Tuesday’s molestation is a 28-year-old woman, married for three years. Her brother, a farmer, is admitted to Diamond Harbour subdivisional hospital with multiple stab wounds on his chest and back. Doctors say he is in a critical condition.
    The woman had come to visit her brother in Killa village on Tuesday and was on her way back in the evening. He accompanied her to the auto stand, as he always does, and a woman neighbour joined them for the short walk.
    Around 7pm, local rowdy Nityananda Bar was passing by when he saw her and started passing lewd remarks. The group ignored him because the locality is terrified of him. But he stepped closer and kept making filthy gestures. The others waiting at the auto stand started running away but the 28-year-old woman’s brother stood up to him.
    “This only angered Nityananda, who grabbed the young woman and started molesting her. Her brother resisted and a scuffle ensued. Suddenly Nityananda whipped out a chopper
    -
    on stabbing and kicking him even after he had collapsed on the road. She and I shouted for help but no one came forward, fearing for their lives,” said the neighbour.
    The goon left after threatening to kill anyone who went to the police. The two women took the injured farmer to Mathurapur hospital, where the doctors patched him up as best as they could and asked them to take him to Diamond Harbour Hospital because he was sinking.
    Nityananda is accused in several cases, including dacoity, gun-running, extortion and selling stolen goods.

The attack took place at an auto stand during peak traffic hour but no one dared challenge the molester because he is a history-sheeter 

 

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Spate of molestations makes it a horror day for city

TIMES NEWS NETWORK07.02.2013

Kolkata: The city may have hit the streets time and again to protest against attack on women, but a series of molestations on Wednesday proved that the city is yet to practice what it preaches. The recent spate of molestations established the fact that Kolkata is not at all a safe place for women, as hinted by a national survey a few months back.
    In Bonhooghly, a 36-yearold woman was harassed by a fellow passenger on a bus of route 34B on Wednesday. The accused allegedly harassed the complainant for some time. When the woman tried to protest, the youth brought out his mobile phone and tried to take her photograph. However, he was stopped by other passengers. The youth was then handed over to cops in Cossipore police station. He was later identified as Rabin Singha, a 29-year-old resident of Baranagar. According to cops, Thakur was in an inebriated state. Police initiated a case under sections 354 (criminal force) and 509 (molestation).
    In Shyambazar, a 28-yearold woman from Sovabazar Street lodged a complaint against her 27-year-old neighbour Surojit Roy. She complained that Roy had passed lewd comments and when she protested, the accused had assaulted her. Police have started a case under section 509.
    In another incident, a student of Class III was allegedly molested by one of her teachers at Tarun Tirtha Primary School. On the basis of her parents’ complaint, police have initiated a case and started interrogating the teachers of the school. This comes days after a student of a primary school in south Kolkata was molested by a mason engaged in the renovation of the school building.
    This apart, a 55-year-old man was picked from the Watgunj for allegedly molesting his own daughter. He was arrested on the basis of the complaint filed by the girl.
    According to cops, prompt action against molesters has instilled courage in victims. “They now come forward and file complaints as they believe police will punish their tormentors. Earlier, many such cases used to go unrecorded,” said a police officer.

 

 ********************************************

Teen gang-raped at Joynagar

TIMES NEWS NETWORK07.02.2013

Kolkata: As the city grimly marked the first year of the Park Street rape cases on Tuesday, about 50km away, in South 24-Parganas’ Joynagar, a Class IX girl was dragged to the side of the road, beaten up and gangraped. A boy who was escorting her home was also beaten up when he tried to protect her.
    Police have filed a case of gang rape and sent the girl for medical tests. According to the complaint, the attack took place around 7pm at Vidyarai Mor at Nimpith. Earlier in the evening, the 15-year-old girl had insisted on visiting her grandparents in Naloa, some 3km away, and her parents asked one of close friends to accompany her. They were on their way back on the boy’s bicycle when four men stopped them at a deserted area near a school in Doshora Bhagabanpur.
    The boy sensed the danger and pedaled furiously to get away, but the gang chased them down and pushed them off the cycle. Two of the goons beat the boy and held him down as the other two dragged the girl into some bushes and raped her. They returned to pin down the boy so that the other two could take turns to rape the girl, says the complaint.
    She was barely conscious when they decided to dump her where she lay and walked away. The boy, who was himself injured, brought her home. The horrified parents immediately went to Joynagar police station and lodged a complaint. All the rapists were between 20 and 22 years of age, says the victim.

 

 *********************************

Howrah girls nab molesters

TIMES NEWS NETWORK07.02.2013

Howrah: Two girls, who were harassed by three youths on Church Road on Wednesday afternoon, fought back valiantly and managed to hold on to two of their tormentors. With the help of the passers-by, the duo was handed over to police while the third managed to escape.
    The arrested youths were later identified as 19-year-old Md Nadim and 20-year-old Md Shamim.
    It is learnt that the girls, one a student of Class X and the other of Class VIII in a Hindi-medium school in Howrah, were returning home from school around 11am on Wednesday. When they reached Church Road, the youths started stalking them. Soon, the trio started passing lewd comments. Shamim then approached the Class X student and proposed her. He also tried to hand her a letter.
    However, the girl rejected his proposal and refused to take the letter. In the meantime, Shamim’s friends stopped the girls when they tried to move forward and abused them. The girl then slapped Shamim and began running. The youths too ran after them.
    Sensing trouble, the girls screamed for help. As the passers-by rushed for help, two youths started hurling stones at them while the third ran for his life. Confident of support at hand, the girls made a dash towards the youths and managed to cling on to them till the crowd reached them and nabbed the duo.
    Just then, a patrol jeep of Howrah Police’s Radio Flying Squad was passing by the area. It stopped at the spot and took away the rowdies to the police station. The girls later lodged a formal complaint at the Howrah police station.
    “The youths have been arrested on the basis of the girls’ complaint. They have been charged under section 509A of the Indian Penal Code,” said Rakesh Singh, assistant commissioner of Howrah City Police. “We are investigating the duo to nab the third culprit,” he added.

 

Major scam and misuse of public money by Mamta party run Kolkata Municipal Corporation

Nothing fair about Kolkata Municipal Corporation trident ‘fair rate’

Saikat Ray, TNN Oct 4, 2012, 01.26AM IST

KOLKATA: Trident lamps have muddied the civic waters further. It has been revealed that the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) fixed Rs 17,690 as "fair rate" for installation of trident lamps - a few notches above market rates.

The rate on offer for a medium pole with lamp at the KMC's Entally workshop is Rs 9,600 - at least Rs 5,000 above the existing market rate. A TOI team probing the KMC rate came to know about it from suppliers at Muktaram Babu Street. According to market estimates, the medium pole costs Rs 3,500 while the KMC put it at Rs 5,800. A solite (decorative lamp) distributor at Shibnarayan Das Lane, off Bidhan Sarani in north Kolkata, put the price of each lamp at a maximum of Rs 2,000 while the KMC fair price rate is Rs 2,965.

Worse, the KMC lighting department fixed the rates after taking quotations from two small-time shops in the sanitary and fittings trade — one at Nirmal Chandra Street and the other at Shibnarayan Das Lane. The arbitrary price fixing has raised eyebrows even among officials in the state urban development department.
Heads rolled in the lighting department with director general (electrical) Gautam Patnaik being transferred to the Kolkata Environment Improvement Project. But the controversy refuses to die down even if mayor Sovan Chatterjee is desperate to sweep it under the carpet. Like Patnaik, other senior officers namely Monobrata Bose, now acting DG (electrical), was also a signatory to the fair rate decision as officer on special duty. Even an executive engineer of the lighting department had signed the rate, though they remain where they were.
Even as Patnaik in his reply to the show-cause said whatever he did was after consultation with his political bosses, the mayor refuses to probe the muddle further. "We have no role in fair rate fixing. The lighting department officials did it on their own," Chatterjee said. On the contrary, the mayor refused to take sides when asked how the lighting department could fix rates for the entire state except Salt Lake by consulting two shops only. "It is up to the lighting department to choose the process," the mayor said. Chatterjee was also non-committal to the Opposition demand for a probe.
Surprisingly, the TOI team that spotted the two shops based on corporation documents found that the owners didn't ever speak to corporation officials. "Yes, we are in touch with KMC-enlisted contractors to whom we supply materials," said the decorative lamp distributor at Shibnarayan Lane. But the one at Nirmal Chandra Street expressed dismay over his shop being mentioned in the KMC papers. "I am not into it," the shop owner said. However, he hinted at a shop on Muktaram Babu Street that has been supplying medium poles to KMC contractors.
The mismatch between KMC records and the reality over fair rates has come as a shot in the arm to the Opposition in the KMC. "We have already demanded a probe. The mayor has turned it down. But the recent revelations indicate that the trident lamp controversy is turning out to be a major scam," said KMC opposition leader Rupa Bagchi.

Trident main accused in HC, says mayor signed file

Saikat Ray TNN 07.02.2013

Kolkata:Mayor Sovan Chatterjee once again finds himself in the dock in the trident light scam.
    A former civic official indicted by the KMC as the prime accused in the scam has moved the Calcutta high court, alleging in his petition the file on installation of the lights —integral to beautification drives undertaken to realize the CM’s vision of turning Kolkata into London — was signed by Chatterjee.
    Gautam Pattanayak, former director general of the KMC’s electrical department, retired on December 31 last year, but was shunted out months before that to the Kolkata Environment Improvement Project. In paragraph VIII of his petition, Pattanayak has said the mayor signed the file on January 1, 2012. Since the file recommended emergency installation, the KMC’s electrical department finished the work within two months, the petition adds. Pattanayak has said he has documents to back his claims and will produce them before the court. His petition will come up for hearing at Justice Jayanta Biswas’ court on Friday.
    The official has also accused the KMC of holding back his retirement benefits that include provident fund, gratuity and pension.

 Didn’t approve breaking of rules: Mayor As the KMC brass went into a huddle with senior lawyers on Wednesday to discuss its reponse after receiving a notice, the mayor rubbished the charges and said he had cleared a file that was routed through proper channels and hadn’t approved breaking of rules. He said the KMC’s lawyers will contest the case.Pattanayak’s claims have, however, added to the simmering discontent in the KMC ranks over officials being made scapegoats for councillors’ faults. A delegation of KMC directors-general (DGs) have already taken up the issue with the mayor, requesting him not to take harsh steps against officials since they had only carried out instructions from political bosses
    An internal audit report submitted by chief municipal auditor Biplab Guha Roy just over a week ago found the entire process of installing trident lights-—right from tendering to fixing the ‘fair’ price — to be lacking transparency. The auditor also pointed to "extraneous circumstances" that compelled civic officials to bypass rules.
    While officials believe that Pattanayak, who was in charge of the electrical department, was responsible for impropriety, they also want ‘political’ forces that influenced his actions to be exposed. Apart from Pattanayak, officer-on-special duty (electrical) Monobrata Chaudhuri was showcaused. Like Pattanayak, he was also transferred to the Kolkata Environment Improvement Project. 

Bengal CM derogatory comment at security personnel in Kolkata Book Fair

Mamata loses temper at book fair

TIMES NEWS NETWORK  06.02.2013

Kolkata: Chief minister Mamata Banerjee is said to have publicly screamed at her securitymen at the Kolkata Book Fair on Wednesday evening after she got out of the wrong gate and could not find her car. While her guards scrambled to clear a way for her Santro through the traffic jumble at boi mela, the CM lost patience and started walking towards Park Circus crossing. Scores of passersby stopped on seeing her on the road and a crowd quickly gathered, triggering a potential security nightmare.

 

 

See Video Below

Security mess at CM boi mela visit

TIMES NEWS NETWORK 06.02.2013

Kolkata:There was a security scare during chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s visit to the Kolkata Book Fair on Wednesday evening when she exited via the wrong gate, putting her guards on the tenterhooks.
    The CM was very upset at not finding her car and shouted at her security officers. Sources say she walked out of Gate No 3, expecting to find the car she had left at Gate No 1. A senior officer hinted that the CM’s “unscheduled movement” gave no time to police to place her car in the changed location as it is difficult to move through the massive crowds and traffic jams.
    Mamata entered the fairground around 7.55pm through the main gate (No 3) on Wednesday and headed for the Jago Bangla stall to release her book and some CDs. Artist Suvaprasanna and Trinamool student leader Shanku Deb Ponda were waiting for her along with officials of the Publishers and Book Sellers’ Guild. “She had a book release programme,” said Ponda.
    After spending nearly half an hour, she walked out but this time she took Gate No 1 that is towards JBS Haldane Avenue. Her security unit was not prepared for this sudden change of route. “It was scheduled that she would leave via the main gate so her car was kept there,” said an officer. Her guards scrambled to get her Santro to Gate No 1.
    Mamata, meanwhile, was surprised on not seeing her car. After waiting for about two minutes, she started walking on the road. Police threw a security ring around her and stopped traffic, but they could not maintain the cordon as scores of people rushed towards her., shouting ‘Didi, Didi”. Some got close enough to shake hands with the CM.
    After walking for about two minutes, Mamata stopped and turned back towards the gate with a grim face. It was then that she was reportedly seen screaming at her securitymen. Alittle later, her car arrived.

Passersby throng the CM as she walks down JBS Haldane Avenue 

 

Video of Mamata's derogatory comment at personal security personnel in Kolkata Book Fair 2013

Related Story: Mamata's Culture

Anarchy and Politics at Bengal's Education Arena

মুখ্যমন্ত্রীর কলেজে ঢুকতে তৃণমূলের 'বাধা' অধ্যক্ষকে

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কৃষ্ণেন্দু অধিকারী, এবিপি আনন্দ
Wednesday, 06 February 2013 21:19

কলকাতা: সরকারি সুপারিশ থাকা সত্ত্বেও মুখ্যমন্ত্রী মমতা বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায়ের কলেজ ক্যাম্পাসে ঢুকতে পারছেন না অধ্যক্ষ৷ এ ব্যাপারে অভিযোগের আঙুল উঠেছে শাসক দল তৃণমূলের বিরুদ্ধে৷ জানা গিয়েছে, দক্ষিণ ২৪ পরগনার ফকিরচাঁদ কলেজের অধ্যক্ষ সুবীরেশ ভট্টাচার্যকে হাজরায় শ্যামাপ্রসাদ কলেজের অধ্যক্ষ পদে নিয়োগের জন্য গত বছরের অগাস্ট মাসে মনোনয়ন দেয় কলেজ সার্ভিস কমিশন৷ মনোনয়ন পাওয়ার এক মাসের মধ্যে কাজে যোগ দেওয়ার কথা৷ কিন্তু সুবীরেশবাবুর অভিযোগ, এতদিন পরও কলেজ পরিচালন সমিতির কাছ থেকে নিয়োগপত্র পাননি তিনি৷ বিষয়টি তিনি কলেজ সার্ভিস কমিশন ও কলেজের পরিচালন সমিতিকে চিঠি লিখেও জানিয়েছেন৷ কিন্তু এখনও সমস্যা সেই তিমিরেই রয়েছে৷ তবে শ্যামাপ্রসাদ কলেজের পরিচালন সমিতির সভাপতি সচ্চিদানন্দ বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায় কার্যত কমিশনের ক্ষমতা নিয়ে প্রশ্ন তুলে বলেছেন, কমিশনের মনোনয়ন মানতে কলেজ বাধ্য কি না, তা খতিয়ে দেখা কমিটি গড়া হয়েছে৷ যে বিষয় কলেজে পড়ানো হয় না, সেই বিষয়ের প্রার্থীকে অধ্যক্ষ মনোনয়ন করা যায় কি না, তা নিয়েও প্রশ্ন তুলে রিপোর্ট চাওয়া হয়েছে৷ সচ্চিদানন্দবাবুর রাজনৈতিক পরিচয়, তিনি দক্ষিণ কলকাতা জেলা তৃণমূলের সভাপতি৷ যদিও তাঁর যুক্তি মানতে নারাজ কলেজ সার্ভিস কমিশন স্পষ্ট জানিয়েছে, শ্যামাপ্রসাদ কলেজের অধ্যক্ষ পদে সুবীরেশ ভট্টাচার্যর নিয়োগ নির্ভুল৷ তাছাড়া আইন মেনেই কলেজে পঠন-পাঠন হয় না, এমন বিষয়ের প্রার্থীকে অধ্যক্ষ পদে নিয়োগ করা হয়েছে৷
এ ব্যাপারে ওই কলেজেরই শিক্ষকদের একাংশের অভিযোগ, মন মতো প্রার্থী না হওয়ার জেরেই আটকে দেওয়া হচ্ছে মনোনীত অধ্যক্ষকে৷ মুখ্যমন্ত্রীর কলেজ যোগমায়া দেবী৷ তারই সান্ধ্যবিভাগ শ্যামাপ্রসাদ৷ মুখ্যমন্ত্রীর কলেজ ক্যাম্পাসেই সরকারের মনোনীত অধ্যক্ষকে ঢুকতে বাধাদানের অভিযোগ ঘিরে তাই তৈরি হয়েছে বিতর্ক৷ বিভিন্ন মহলে প্রশ্ন উঠছে, শিক্ষার আঙিনাকে রাজনীতিমুক্ত করার তৃণমূলের স্লোগান কী তা হলে শুধুই স্লোগান? 

Incessant sexual assault on women in Bengal

জয়নগরে তরুণীকে গণধর্ষণ

রকাশ সিংহ ও রঞ্জিত হালদার, এবিপি আনন্দ
Wednesday, 06 February 2013 13:47



দিল্লি গণধর্ষণকাণ্ডের ছায়া এবার জয়নগরে৷ মঙ্গলবার রাতে নিমপীঠ এলাকায় সিআই অফিসের কাছে ৪ যুবক এক কিশোরীকে গণধর্ষণ করে বলে অভিযোগ৷ প্রতিবাদ করে প্রহৃত তাঁর বন্ধু৷

মঙ্গলবার রাতে প্রতিবেশী বন্ধুর সঙ্গে সাইকেলে চেপে মথুরাপুরের মামা বাড়ি থেকে ফিরছিল বছর পনেরোর এক কিশোরী৷ অভিযোগ, রাত আটটা নাগাদ নিমপীঠ সিআই অফিসের কাছে, ২ যুবক তাঁদের রাস্তা আটকে দাঁড়ায়৷ তারা ফোন করে আরও দুইজনকে ডেকে নেয়।এরপর কিশোরীকে সাইকেল থেকে নামিয়ে জোর করে তুলে নিয়ে যায়৷ প্রতিবাদ করলে আরও ২ যুবক এসে কিশোরীর বন্ধুকে রাস্তায় ফেলে ব্যাপক মারধর করা হয় বলে অভিযোগ৷ এরপর ওই ৪ যুবক পাশেই বাগানে কিশোরীকে গণধর্ষণ করে বলে অভিযোগ৷
অভিযুক্তরা চলে যাওয়ার পর কিশোরীকে উদ্ধার করে বাড়ি নিয়ে যায় তার বন্ধু৷
মঙ্গলবার মাঝ রাতে জয়নগর থানায় ৪জনের নামে অভিযোগ দায়ের করা হয়৷ পুলিশ গণধর্ষণের মামলা রুজু করে তদন্ত শুরু করেছে৷ নিগৃহীতার মেডিক্যাল টেস্ট করা হয়েছে৷
এক বছর পার করার পরও পার্ক স্ট্রিট গণধর্ষণকাণ্ডে তৃতীয় অভিযুক্তকে গ্রেফতার করতে পারেনি পুলিশ৷ প্রতিবাদে মঙ্গলবার পথে নামেন বিদ্বজ্জনেরা৷ এদিকে দিল্লি গণধর্ষণকাণ্ডের পর তড়িঘড়ি মহিলা সুরক্ষায় অর্ডিন্যান্সে সম্মতি দেয় কেন্দ্রীয় মন্ত্রিসভা৷ আসন্ন বাজেট অধিবেশনেই অর্ডিন্যান্সটি সংসদে পেশ হতে পারে৷ এর মধ্যেই ফের এ ধরনের ঘটনায় খাস কলকাতা থেকে জেলার প্রতন্ত এলাকায় মহিলাদের নিরাপত্তা নিয়ে প্রশ্ন উঠছে৷

মধ্যমগ্রামে ইভটিজিংয়ের শিকার তিন কিশোরী
Update: February 6, 2013 09:47 IST

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বারাসতের পর এবার মধ্যগ্রামেও ইভটিজিংয়ের ঘটনা। কয়েকজন মদ্যপ যুবকের অশালীন আচরণ ও কটূক্তির শিকার এক মহিলাসহ তিন কিশোরী। প্রতিবাদ করতে গিয়ে আক্রান্ত হলেন মহিলার স্বামী ও এক কিশোরীর মা।

সোমবার রাত এগারোটা নাগাদ এ ঘটনাটি ঘটে মধ্যমগ্রাম স্টেশনের সামনে। সোমবার রাতে সুভাষ মেলায় সাংস্কৃতিক অনুষ্ঠান শেষে ভ্যানে অভিভাবকদের সঙ্গে বাড়ি ফিরছিলেন দুই কিশোরী, এক তরুণী এবং তাদের মায়েরা। দুই কিশোরীর বাবা পিছনে সাইকেলে ছিলেন। মধ্যমগ্রাম স্টেশনের কাছে একটি মিষ্টির দোকানের সামনে মদ্যপ অবস্থায় দাঁড়িয়ে ছিল তিন যুবক।  ওই যুবকেরা তরুণীদের উদ্দেশ্যে কটূক্তি ও অশালীন ইঙ্গিত করে। প্রতিবাদ করায় মারধর করা হয় মহিলার স্বামী ও তাঁর স্ত্রীকে। পরে মধ্যমগ্রাম তদন্ত কেন্দ্র ও বারাসত থানায় অভিযোগ জানান তাঁরা। এ ঘটনায় প্রণব পাল নামে এক অভিযুক্তকে গ্রেফতার করেছে পুলিস।


চলন্ত বাসে মহিলার ‘শ্লীলতাহানি’
ময়ুখ ঠাকুর চক্রবর্তী, এবিপি আনন্দ
Wednesday, 06 February 2013 14:08

দিনেদুপুরে ভিড়ে ঠাসা বাসে এবার শ্লীলতাহানির অভিযোগ ঘিরে চাঞ্চল্য৷ বুধবার সকালে ঘটনাটি ঘটেছে কাশীপুর থানা এলাকায়৷ অভিযোগকারিণীর দাবি, এদিন সকালে কর্মস্থলে যাওয়ার জন্য বনহুগলি থেকে ৩৪বি রুটের বাস ধরেন তিনি৷ তাঁর অভিযোগ, বাসে ওঠার পর থেকেই এক মত্ত যুবক তাঁকে উত্যক্ত করতে শুরু করেন৷ চলন্ত বাসে ভিড়ের মধ্যে বারবার তাঁর গায়েও হাত দেন৷ মহিলা প্রতিবাদ করলেও কোনও লাভ হয়নি৷ কিছুক্ষণ পর ওই যুবক মোবাইল বার করে ওই মহিলার ছবি তোলেন৷ এরপরই তিনি চিত্‍কার করে প্রতিবাদ করেন৷ বাদানুবাদের পর বাসের অন্যান্য যাত্রীরা ওই মত্ত যুবককে বাস থেকে নামিয়ে কাশীপুর থানায় নিয়ে যান৷ দায়ের করা হয় এফআইআর৷
রবি সিংহ নামে ওই যুবককে গ্রেফতার করেছে পুলিশ৷ তাঁর বিরুদ্ধে ভারতীয় দণ্ডবিধির ৩৫৪ ধারায় শ্লীলতাহানির অভিযোগ দায়ের করা হয়েছে৷

Total anarchy in West Bengal - collapse of law&order

Gang kills youth day after protest

By Sanjib Chakraborty, TNN | Feb 6, 2013, 04.06 AM IST

KOLKATA: An armed gang barged into a house in Dum Dum on Tuesday morning, shot a youth twice while he was asleep, hurled bombs and fled. The 32-year-old victim, Gour Das, was rushed to RG Kar Hospital where he succumbed to injuries.

Locals said Gour was murdered for protesting against the blank shots the gang had fired on Monday evening to terrorize the neighbourhood and mark its area of influence.

The incident comes barely 10 days after the police recovered the bodies of two youths - Abhijit Saha, a promoter's son, and his brother-in-law Kaishik Roy - from a pond near Dum Dum railway yard. Tuesday's murder took place at Dum Dum's Harihar Nagar near Shyamnagar, 2.5 km from the spot of twin murders.

Around 250 families reside in Harihar Nagar slum off Jessore Road. Gour lived as a tenant in a two-storied building with wife Soma and two-year-old son. He was also associated with building materials supply business and was believed to have links with a real-estate syndicate that operates in Dum Dum-Nagerbazar area.

According to Soma, five armed miscreants barged in when she opened the door around 7.30 am. "Gour was asleep. They shot him in the head and the chest before leaving as abruptly as they had entered," she recounted.

Locals alleged that some anti-socials have been trying to gain control over the slum for several months. On Monday night, the gang, led by Jagannath alias Jaga, began terrorizing residents. When Gour and some of his associates confronted the gang, they retreated.

"Though we called the police, it took them an eternity to arrive from the Dum Dum police station barely 3 km away. By the time they arrived, the criminals had fled. There was no move to nab the culprits. Neither were policemen posted at the site to prevent further retaliation," alleged a local woman.

Gour was still alive when locals rushed him to RG Kar Hospital but died later. Soma lodged an FIR with Dum Dum PS against Jaga and other persons.

Locals on Tuesday gheraoed Prabir Chatterjee, the inspector in charge of Dum Dum police station, alleging inaction. They blocked Jessore Road at Shyamnagar More for about an hour. Later, a large police contingent, including RAF and combat force, rushed in to defuse the situation. The blockade was withdrawn around 10.30 am after senior officers assured that the culprits would be nabbed.

Later in the day, police arrested Jaga's brother Sourav Das. "Another person had been arrested on Monday night in connection with firing and bombing in Harihar Nagar. He is also being interrogated in connection with the murder. Raids are on to nab the other culprits. We are also investigating whether the victim had a business rivalry with somebody," said Biswajit Ghosh, additional deputy commissioner of police, Barrackpore.

Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress leaders claimed that Gour was their party supporter. "The CPM-backed goons who are desperately trying to regain control over the area murdered him," said North 24-Parganas Trinamool Congress secretary Kamal Das said. CPM district secretariat member Amitava Nandy, however, rubbished the allegation and said it was the fallout of Trinamool's internal feud.

সতেরো দিনে ৮ খুন বারাকপুরে
Update: February 6, 2013 22:07 IST

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সতেরো দিনে আটটি খুন। এই পরিসংখ্যান কলকাতা লাগোয়া বারাকপুর কমিশনারেট এলাকায়। স্বাভাবিক ভাবেই প্রশ্নের মুখে আইনশৃঙ্খলা। নিরাপত্তা নিয়ে শঙ্কিত বাসিন্দারা। কমিশনারেট গড়ে কী লাভ হল, উঠছে সে প্রশ্ন। তালিকায় শীর্ষে দমদম থানা। সেই থানার আইসির অপসারণের দাবিও জোরদার হচ্ছে বাসিন্দাদের গলায়।

দমদম পার্কের শ্যামনগরে ৩২ বছরের যুবক গোরা দাস ওরফে পুপার খুনের ঘটনায় ত্রাসে কাঁপছে গোটা এলাকা। গোরার স্ত্রী এবং ভাইয়ের অভিযোগ, আততায়ীরা স্থানীয় বাসিন্দা। তাদের নাম পুলিসকে দেওয়া হয়েছে। কিন্তু পুলিস নীরব দর্শক। ঘটনার ২৪ ঘণ্টার মধ্যে অভিযুক্তদের গ্রেফতারের আশ্বাস দিয়েছিলেন বারাকপুর পুলিস কমিশনারেটের এসিপি বিশ্বজিত ঘোষ। অথচ বাস্তবে শ্যামনগরে গোটা পাঁচেক পুলিসর্মীর ঢিলেঢালা টহলদারি ছাড়া পুলিসের তেমন তত্পরতা চোখে পড়েনি। আতঙ্কে ঘুম ছুটেছে বাসিন্দাদের। বাসিন্দাদের তোপের মুখে দমদম থানার আইসি প্রবীর চ্যাটার্জি। তার অপসারণেরও দাবি উঠছে।


জানুয়ারির ১৯ তারিখ থেকে ফেব্রুয়ারির ৫ তারিখের মধ্যে কমিশনারেট এলাকায় খুনের ঘটনাই আটটি। এরমধ্যে শুধুমাত্র দমদম থানা এলাকাতেই ঘটেছে চারটি খুনের ঘটনা।

১) ১৯ জানুয়ারি উত্তর চব্বিশ পরগনার হালিশহরে বিয়ের আসরে খুন করা হয় পাত্র শৌভিক দেকে। গুলি চালনায় অভিযুক্ত রাজীব বসু নামে এক যুবককে ধরে ফেলেন স্থানীয় বাসিন্দারা। ব্যাপক মারধর করা হয় তাকে।

২) ২০শে জানুয়ারি হাসপাতালে মৃত্যু হয় হালিশহরকান্ডের একমাত্র অভিযুক্ত রাজীব বসুর।

৩) ২২শে জানুয়ারি হালিশগরে গুলি করে বোমা মেরে প্রকাশ্যে খুন করা হয় ৩২ বছরের এক যুবককে। তার নাম রামজি কাহার।

৪) ২২শে জানুয়ারি টিটাগড়ের জে সি রোডে খেলার সময় ২ শিশুর বচসার জেরে রাহুল গিরি
নামে এক শিশুকে গুলি করে খুন করে তারই প্রতিবেশি মহম্মদ আরমান।

৫) দমদম স্টেশন লাগোয়া পুকুর থেকে ২৬শে জানুয়ারি উদ্ধার হয় অভিজিত ও কৌশিক নামের ২ যুবকের বিবস্ত্র দেহ। তাদের অন্যত্র খুন করে জলাশয়ে ফেলে যায় আততায়ীরা।

৬) দমদমের হরিহর কলোনিতে চৌঠা ফেব্রুয়ারি ব্যাপক বোমাবাজি ও গুলিবর্ষণ করে সমাজবিরোধীরা। শীলা দাস নামে এক প্রৌঢ়া গুরুতর আহত হন। পাঁচ তারিখ তার মৃত্যু হয়।

৭) শীলা দাসের মৃত্যুতে যারা জড়িত তারা গোরা দাসের ঘনিষ্ঠ বলে পুলিসের দাবি। সেই মৃত্যুর শোধ তুলতেই পাঁচ তারিখ বাড়িতে ঢুকে গোরা দাস কে খুন করা হয় বলে পুলিস সূত্রে খবর।

১৭ দিনে আটটি খুন। কমিশনারেটের ওপর আস্থা হারাচ্ছেন নাগরিকরা। আরও একটা হত্যাকান্ডের জন্য ত্রাসের প্রহর গুনছে বারাকপুর।
 (source: 24 ghanta news )

Goons harass girls, beat up protester

By Sanjib Chakraborty, TNN | Feb 6, 2013, 03.28 AM IST

BARASAT: A middle-aged man, who volunteered help to two girls being harassed near Madhyamgram railway station, was thrashed by two drunken youths on Monday. While police arrested one of the accused on Tuesday, the other has gone into hiding.

The victims - a Class-X girl and a first-year college student - had participated in a cultural event and were on their way home when they were harassed. Witnesses said that soon as the van rickshaw, in which the girls were travelling, stopped in front of the station, two inebriated youths drew up to the girls and made lewd comments.

A passerby on a cycle, whose wife was also on the van, noticed the misbehaving youths and at once rushed to the girls' rescue and admonished the goons. Instead of backing off, they continued with their drunken rambling.

This angered the man and he again yelled at them following which the latter charged at him, thrashed him and fled the spot, said locals.

The man was immediately taken to Madhyamgram Gramin Hospital and later discharged after treatment. He along with the girls' parents then went to Madhyamgram outpost and lodged a complaint against the assailants. While Pranab Paul was arrested from his residence at Subhaspally in Madhyamgram, police are on the look out for the other accused.

Gag protest against Rape? Yes, It's Kolkata

Cops halt silent march for justice

TNN | Feb 6, 2013, 03.33 AM IST

KOLKATA: A silent rally from Mahatma Gandhi's statue at the Dufferin Road-Mayo Road intersection to Park Street police station - organized by prominent civil society individuals to protest the tardy progress in the Park Street rape case - was blocked by police following instructions from higher ups in the Mamata Banerjee administration.

Ironically, the same rallyists had been stopped at the same spot in 2007 by the then Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee government when they hit the streets to protest the Nandigram firing.

"Power corrupts. It is extremely unfortunate that political rallies with flags are allowed to disrupt the city but a silent orderly rally is stopped without police and they don't even consider it necessary to cite a reason," said artist Samir Aich as theatre personality Shaoli Mitra nodding vigorously in agreement.

"When the Nandigram firing happened, many of those who are now in government had joined us in the silent protest march that was blocked at the Kyd Street-Chowringhee intersection. The same thing has happened again, a pointer to the fact that the faces in power may have changed but attitudes and functioning haven't," said Mitra.

Unlike March 2007 though, only a handful of civil society activists turned up for the march, among them Saswati Ghosh, Miratun Nahar, Bolan Ganguly, Sunanda Sanyal, Meher Engineer, Asim Giri and Dilip Chakraborty.

State Congress president Pradip Bhattacharya and party leader Nirbed Roy joined councilor Mala Roy and local Krishna Debnath joined them along with four truck loads of Congress supporters from No. 13 Bustee and Kalia Colony Rail Bridge in Tollygunge.

"Please don't label this a rally by intellectuals. It is a citizen's rally with people the cross-section of society," said scholar Miratun Nahar, aware that the turnout was not quite what she and others had hoped despite the short web campaign.

"I had hoped more youngsters would participate. But that does not belittle the issue. A year after the Park Street rape case, there has been no justice for the victim. Not only has she been vilified by people in power, she has been ostracized in society. She has been refused tenancy and jobs. We want immediate arrest of the two prime accused who are absconding and speedy justice for the victim," said activist Saswati Ghosh.

Questioning the laxity on the part of police, Nahar wondered if it was the comment of home minister (Mamata also holds the home portfolio) that the case was a concocted one that had prompted them to go slow.

"The CM calls it 'shajano ghotona'. Her ministers cast aspersions on the victim's character and term the rape accused as 'clients'. The only police officer who dared to conduct an impartial probe is transferred. Is there a link between the rape accused and those in top echelons in the administration? How the police have dealt with this case is reflective of the government's attitude," remarked Aich.

The Park Street crossing was blocked for nearly an hour by a group of women, mobilized by Mala Roy, even as the dozen-odd intellectuals were allowed to proceed to Park Street police station and submit a memorandum.

Activist Saswati Ghosh blames the Mamata government not only for "delayed justice" in the Park Street rape case but also the victim's humiliation because of "character assassination by the chief minister and her ministers".

"It is because of the aspersions that were cast on her character and irresponsible comments that the CM and some ministers made about her that she has found it difficult to land a job or reside in a place of her choice. This is continued violation of human rights. The state must own responsibility and remedy the situation," said Ghosh.

Aich felt the government needed to extend all possible help to the victim. "It is a shame that she has to continue suffering the ordeal," he said.

Mamata's Party up for Baby sale

Babies for Sale in West Bengal!  Mamata's partymen hand-in-glove with culprits On ‘sting’ radar: docs in baby sale near city

OUR BUREAU

Calcutta, Dec. 15: Two doctors and a suspected tout were detained and questioned today after a television sting purportedly showed babies put up on sale at a nursing home on the city’s southern fringes, allegedly in collusion with the local Trinamul-run panchayat. At Usti, 40km from the heart of Calcutta, two 24 Ghanta reporters posing as a couple apparently struck a deal with a man identified as Ramzan with the help of the two doctors. The channel identified the doctors as Chandrani Roy and Kaushik Roy. In the purported conversations, the decoys, doctors and the alleged tout bargain and fix the price for a newborn at Rs 1.6 lakh. The baby girl, according to the nursing home manager in the video, was born to an unwed mother. Starting October 30, 2010, The Telegraph had carried a series of reports on how babies were on sale in Calcutta and how a child could be bought for Rs 2.5 lakh. It was found that unwed mothers were identified, kept hidden and “maintained” in nursing homes and hospitals for months before the delivery. The manager, identified by the channel as Pintu in today’s video, is shown saying that “written consent” was taken from the girl’s family when the nursing home took custody of the baby. The doctors, who were allowed to leave Usti police station around 9pm along with Ramzan, apparently told interrogators they were not involved in any baby deals and had no clue whether the nursing home’s staff were putting the baby up for sale. An officer said: “We are verifying their statements. They may be summoned for interrogation again tomorrow.” The video shows Ramzan promising that the panchayat would help the couple get a birth certificate from the Calcutta Municipal Corporation, and that the certificate would mention the couple as the baby’s biological parents. The local Sheerakol panchayat is headed by Hafiza Biwi, wife of junior minority affairs minister Ghiyasuddin Mollah. Mollah said he went to Samadhan Nursing Home after he learnt about the allegations. “I have told the police to act if anyone is found involved. But none of our party workers has anything to do with the nursing home.” He suggested the sting could be a CPM conspiracy. “The CPM has been trying to malign me since I became an MLA,” the first-time MLA from Mograhat said. This is what the video purportedly shows: The reporters are led to a “small” room at the nursing home and a woman who seems to be an attendant brings the baby, wrapped in white cloth. Pintu claims it is “a Caesar baby… born on December 2” and quotes a price of Rs 1.7 lakh. The couple offer Rs 1.5 lakh. They are asked to pay Rs 10,000 more because, according to Pintu, even the nursing home sweeper gets a cut. The reporters voice their worry about the difficulties of obtaining a birth certificate. One of the doctors is shown assuring them that they know some 2,000 people in the area, including the MLA, and it would not be a problem to show that the lady (reporter) had delivered a baby at a relative’s home in Usti. The state child welfare department has started a probe. Minister Shyamapada Mukherjee said a team of senior officials, including the department’s secretary, director and a deputy director, had been sent to the nursing home, one of several in the area. He said the team would collect information about the alleged sale of newborns through a network of doctors and officials. “We will definitely take strong action against all concerned if what has been shown is true,” Mukherjee said. In the video, the lady doctor is shown saying the couple should pay an advance only if they are interested in the baby, because people usually don’t get the money back if they pull out later. The other doctor is shown certifying the baby’s health.

School children were forced to take part in political rally

Schools officially off rally feeder line

OUR LEGAL REPORTER 19.11.11

Calcutta, Nov. 18: The Mamata Banerjee government has formally removed the school network from the political conveyor belt during working hours. A gazette notification has banned schoolchildren from political activities and teachers from using school premises for political purposes during class hours. But the notification does not address the larger moral question of why the pupils are not being protected after school hours. The notification comes a couple of months after children from a government-run south Calcutta school were forced to become rally cattle — a malaise highlighted by The Telegraph. The notification issued by school education secretary Vikram Sen said: “No student of any government school or government-aided or unaided school shall take part in any political activity or join any political rally within or outside the school premises during school hours. No (school) premises… shall be used for any political purpose within school hours. “No teacher… shall take part in or promote directly or indirectly any political activity within school premises during school hours.” The notification was placed before a high court division bench headed by Chief Justice J.N. Patel. The document underscored the need to make educational institutions “free of political influence”. The order puts the onus of ensuring compliance on the managing committees of schools. The penalty on offenders is not specified. Government pleader Ashok Banerjee said the school education department would take action or direct managements to do so.

Democracy soon fading away in West Bengal

110 med students held for gherao

TIMES NEWS NETWORK 16.11.11

Friends of the arrested students wait outside Lalbazar on Tuesday night

Kolkata: In a bid to crack down on political hooliganism in hospitals, the state administration on Tuesday arrested 110 students of Calcutta Medical College Hospital for gheraoing principal Dr Utpal Dutta for five hours. The students were later released on personal bonds. They were protesting the authorities’ attempt to bar 18 students from contesting the college union election on November 25. These candidates had allegedly flouted the election code of conduct by taking a few students out for a picnic. 
    The arrested students owed allegiance to Medical College Democratic Students Association — a non-CPM, non-Trinamool union. They later alleged that the police had resorted tolathicharge, although joint commissioner of police (headquarters) Jawed Shamim denied using any force. 
    The authorities claimed MCDSA supporters had disrupted normal functioning of the hospital and cut off access to the principal’s office for over five hours. The union members also organized a rally on the campus. 
    “A committee to supervise the college union election was formed on November 4 and laid down certain guidelines. It was later reported that 18 MCDSA candidates had organized a picnic for first-year students. This was a violation of the code of conduct and a brazen attempt to lure voters,” a hospital official said. The committee on Monday unanimously decided to bar the 18 students from contesting. “The committee was to meet on Wednesday to probe complaints against them. But suddenly, the students gheraoed the principal’s office for five hours,” said Dr Siddhartha Chabraborty, medical superintendent and vice-principal.

Very few punishment for Rapists in India

Rape fastest rising major crime

792% Increase In Incidence Over 40 Years, 97% Rapists Known To Victims

Subodh Varma TIG 10.11.2011

    Incidents of rape in the country have increased by a staggering 792% over the past nearly 40 years. This eight-fold increase is way ahead of other serious crimes like murder, which increased by 106%, robbery (27%) and kidnapping (298%). In fact, the rise in rape stands out as the most steep compared to all cognizable crimes, which grew at 134% since 1971. 
    This shocking trend emerges from a comparison of the recently released crime data maintained by the National Crime Records Bureau with data from earlier years. Although NCRB maintains crime statistics since 1953, rape statistics are being collected only since 1971. Experts believe that while some of this jaw-dropping rise could be explained by increased reporting as awareness has grown among victims and families, the scale of increase undoubtedly reflects increasing violence against women in society. Maintaining a trend which has existed for several years, almost 97% of the rapes were committed by persons known to the victim with about 7% committed by family members and 35% by neighbours. 
    In a worrying trend disposal of cases by the police and the courts is worsening over the years. In 1972 (the first year for which disposal data is available), the police investigated and charge sheeted 71% of rape cases brought before it but in 2010 they could manage only 64% disposal. Shockingly, the courts were able to decide upon only 16% of rape cases in 2010 – half the rate forty years ago. Conviction rates have dipped from 41% in 1971 to a meager 27% in 2010. 
    Activists believe that the tide of growing rape cases was not being diligently handled by investigating agencies. This could in fact be contributing to increasing incidence as the deterrent effect was seen to be weak. Several women’s organizations have been demanding changes in rape laws to widen its definition.

Mahima Khanna's Cambridge Honours brought back Kolkata's pride

A 23-year-old from Kolkata, who works as a trade analyst in Mumbai, has become only the third Indian after Amartya Sen and Sir Partho Dasgupta to win one of Cambridge University’s highest honours.

Mahima Khanna, who has often been involved in Planning Commission assignments, has topped the 2010-11 MPhil class of economics at Cambridge and will receive the prestigious Stevenson Prize. Nobel laureate Sen was the first Indian to win the award in 1956. Dasgupta, the other Indian recipient, is a Cambridge professor emeritus who was knighted by Queen Elizabeth for his contribution to nutrition and developmental economics.

“Imagine sharing the roll of honour with the gods in my field of study,” Mahima gushes after being informed of the award through an email from the dean’s office. Her talent and academic accomplishments will take her places, but Mahima wants to work in India. The changing matrices of the Indian economy post-liberalization, says the young economist who aspires for a career in the World Bank, are of particular interest to her. “My MPhil papers were related to trade liberalization and informality, based on evidences from the manufacturing sector in India. The size of the informal sector in India is growing. The government should patronize it. India’s fiscal deficits and interest rates also interest me,” she says.

For a daughter of doctor parents and with golfing skills that Annika Sorenstam would be proud of, economics was an unusual choice. But Mahima’s heart lay in the intricacies of numbers and logic rather than those of the human body. After her schooling at premier institutions like Loreto House and La Martiniere for Girls, she cleared the medical joint entrance examination, but eventually took admission in St Xavier’s College. When she graduated in 2009, she had topped Calcutta University. She went to Cambridge on a Commonwealth scholarship for her PG degree. She excelled there, too, ranking second, and stayed on for her MPhil.

When she isn’t cracking mathematical puzzles or solving economic riddles, Mahima loves to tee off. While in Kolkata, she played amateur golf at the RCGC and Tolly Club. She went on to play in golfing events in the UK, UAE and Kenya. But the focus remains firmly on her career. Mahima attributes her success to grandfather Swarn Kumra. An engineer who studied in London University, it was he who instilled the love of numbers and logic in her. “The day after the JEE results were out and I got the chance to study medicine, I held his hands and went and took admission in economics at St Xavier’s. He remains my pillar of strength,” she says.

Top class
Mahima Khanna, who works as a trade analyst in Mumbai, has been involved in several Planning Commission assignments. The 23-yr-old, who won the C’wealth scholarship to go to Cambridge, came 2 nd in MSc. She cleared med JEE, but chose eco at St Xavier’s & topped Calcutta University. Mahima is an amateur golf player and has played in the UK, UAE and Kenya.