YEH MERA INDIA
35 monuments, sites untraceable
At least 35 historical monuments/sites have been reported "untraceable" due to factors such as urbanisation, commercialisation, development of projects, and changing climatic and geographical conditions, culture minister Kumari Selja told the Lok Sabha. "It is not feasible to fix individual responsibility as there are many causes.. for the disappearance of the monuments," she said.
When life was worth only Rs: 200/-
Indian CEO: Not trustworthy!?
At least 35 historical monuments/sites have been reported "untraceable" due to factors such as urbanisation, commercialisation, development of projects, and changing climatic and geographical conditions, culture minister Kumari Selja told the Lok Sabha. "It is not feasible to fix individual responsibility as there are many causes.. for the disappearance of the monuments," she said.
When life was worth only Rs: 200/-
Lucknow: A man in UP’s backward Gonda district killed his son for a meager Rs 200 and driven by guilt, committed suicide by jumping before a speeding train.
According to reports, Mata Prasad Goswami, a resident of Kunwarpur Amaraha village in the district, hit his son Bhupendra several times with an axe, killing him on the spot following an altercation after the youth expressed his inability to return Rs 200 taken from him to go to Rajastan to find work.
Goswami had borrowed the sum from a fellow villager and had given it to Bhupendra, asking him to go to some other state for work.
Bhupendra later left Rajasthan to try his luck but failed to get any work there and had returned to his village a few days before Holi.
Gowsami’s elder daughter Kusum Lata said his father had asked Bhupendra to return the money so that he could pay it back to the lender.
"The two had an altercation over the same," she said. Head of the family of six children and a wife, Goswami found it hard to make two ends meet from his petty income.
Goswami attacked Bhupendra with a sharp-edged axe and hit him several times, when the latter was asleep.
"My father was disturbed after the altercation and was crying. He immediately left the spot after killing Bhupendra," Kusum said. Goswami’s body was recovered from near the rail tracks a few hundred meters away from the village.
According to the police, he had committed suicide by jumping before a speeding train.
According to reports, Mata Prasad Goswami, a resident of Kunwarpur Amaraha village in the district, hit his son Bhupendra several times with an axe, killing him on the spot following an altercation after the youth expressed his inability to return Rs 200 taken from him to go to Rajastan to find work.
Goswami had borrowed the sum from a fellow villager and had given it to Bhupendra, asking him to go to some other state for work.
Bhupendra later left Rajasthan to try his luck but failed to get any work there and had returned to his village a few days before Holi.
Gowsami’s elder daughter Kusum Lata said his father had asked Bhupendra to return the money so that he could pay it back to the lender.
"The two had an altercation over the same," she said. Head of the family of six children and a wife, Goswami found it hard to make two ends meet from his petty income.
Goswami attacked Bhupendra with a sharp-edged axe and hit him several times, when the latter was asleep.
"My father was disturbed after the altercation and was crying. He immediately left the spot after killing Bhupendra," Kusum said. Goswami’s body was recovered from near the rail tracks a few hundred meters away from the village.
According to the police, he had committed suicide by jumping before a speeding train.
Indian CEO: Not trustworthy!?
Mumbai: Indian CEOs are now less trusted than ever before. Common people i.e. ‘you and I’ have toppled the corporate CEOs from their numero uno position a year ago to number four position, a survey conducted by Edelman has said.
According to an annual ‘Trust Barometer’ index, compiled by global public relations and consultancy major Edelman, the credibility of corportate officials have been replaced by academicians, technical expert and a ‘person like me’, in the chronological order.
Media, as also the social networking arena, have seen significant improvement in their credibility levels, while the trust level for businesses, government and NGOs remained largely stagnant over the past year.
The survey was conducted among more than 30,000 people in 25 countries including 1,000 Indians and covered trust in four areas: businesses, government, NGOs and media.
As per the findings, a systemic decline in trust in most institutions globally has seen a ‘person like me’ or the common person reemerging as one of the most credible people, with the biggest increase in credibility since 2004, and now trials only academics and technical experts.
The survey, which gauged the confidence levels in the last year, found that confidence in media has risen from 50% in 2010 to 70%. A number of scams being unearthed during the year 2011 might have worked in favour of the Indian media.
Overall, trust in media rose above 50% for the first time globally. Besides, trust in social media in India showed a double-digit rise, from 19% to 29%.
Globally, social-networking, micro-blogging, and content-sharing sites witnessed the dramatic percentage increase as trusted sources of information about a company, rising by 88%, 86% and 75%, respectively.
Trust levels in business (69%), government (53%) and NGOs (67%) remain stagnant in India.
"Business is substantially more trusted than government, but has its own hurdles to clear. In this year’s Trust Barometer in India, business and government are both not meeting publics expectations," Edelman President and CEO Richard Edelman said.
"The results in the general publics category throw up calls for greater protection for consumers from irresponsible behaviour by business," he added.
According to an annual ‘Trust Barometer’ index, compiled by global public relations and consultancy major Edelman, the credibility of corportate officials have been replaced by academicians, technical expert and a ‘person like me’, in the chronological order.
Media, as also the social networking arena, have seen significant improvement in their credibility levels, while the trust level for businesses, government and NGOs remained largely stagnant over the past year.
The survey was conducted among more than 30,000 people in 25 countries including 1,000 Indians and covered trust in four areas: businesses, government, NGOs and media.
As per the findings, a systemic decline in trust in most institutions globally has seen a ‘person like me’ or the common person reemerging as one of the most credible people, with the biggest increase in credibility since 2004, and now trials only academics and technical experts.
The survey, which gauged the confidence levels in the last year, found that confidence in media has risen from 50% in 2010 to 70%. A number of scams being unearthed during the year 2011 might have worked in favour of the Indian media.
Overall, trust in media rose above 50% for the first time globally. Besides, trust in social media in India showed a double-digit rise, from 19% to 29%.
Globally, social-networking, micro-blogging, and content-sharing sites witnessed the dramatic percentage increase as trusted sources of information about a company, rising by 88%, 86% and 75%, respectively.
Trust levels in business (69%), government (53%) and NGOs (67%) remain stagnant in India.
"Business is substantially more trusted than government, but has its own hurdles to clear. In this year’s Trust Barometer in India, business and government are both not meeting publics expectations," Edelman President and CEO Richard Edelman said.
"The results in the general publics category throw up calls for greater protection for consumers from irresponsible behaviour by business," he added.
Fake voter Id creator wants to be arrested
Nashik: A software expert, who helped manufacture fake voter cards, wants to be arrested, while seven PCs, with apparent voter data, were stolen from the Tehsildar’s office. Kanhaiya Ashok Pardeshi was a mute witness to the manufacture of fake voter cards, by Infotech Bhopal and remained so due to pressure. He announced this during a press conference in Nashik. "I saw that fake cards were being manufactured by the director Vijay Kasbe and Sanjay Budhe. The fake cards were being manufactured were made about 3 days before the recent elections.
The names on the cards and photographs are different. "I went to the State Election Commission but they refused to take down my complaint. Similarly the police refused to take down my complaint or arrest me", Pardeshi claimed.
The names on the cards and photographs are different. "I went to the State Election Commission but they refused to take down my complaint. Similarly the police refused to take down my complaint or arrest me", Pardeshi claimed.
I-T may get powers to reopen old returns
New Delhi: Government may grant the Income Tax department powers to re-open tax returns of beyond six years in specific cases of black money where "foreign assets" are involved, reports media.
The I-T department needs these powers to pursue the ongoing cases wherein funds were found to be stashed abroad and these came to light after India received a classified list of bank account holders which include those in HSBC Bank, Geneva and LGT Bank of Liechtenstein.
The department, according to current rules, can only open I-T returns for the past six years if they need to probe hidden income and assets.
The recommendation on extending the period was also made by the committee on black money headed by the Chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT). Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is expected to take into account this issue before he presents his Budget.
"This specific clause is being seriously thought. Numerous instances in the department’s ongoing probe in black money cases warrant such a clause as unreported investments date back to many years. The I-T investigations have also asked for such a clause in the I-T Act," a senior Finance Ministry official said. The clause, however, is needed in cases where foreign assets are traced as in these cases we need to prepare a tight case before we approach a foreign country for help under the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) or other relevant treaty, the official said.
The official said the time frame that I-T authorities want to go back is about 12 years but the limit can only be decided by the Finance Ministry and Mukherjee’s office after consulting all stakeholders.
While Germany had last year provided the names of some Indians having secret accounts in Liechtenstein’s LGT Bank, many other such classified data is now with India.
Officials of the probe wings of the I-T department have carried out a number of searches and visits in the last four months on various entities based in Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmadabad and few other cities of people who have admitted to holding accounts and stashing funds in the foreign bank after their names figured in the classified lists.
In cases wherein the individuals have denied holding secret foreign bank accounts, the department has already decided to re-open their past tax returns.
The I-T department needs these powers to pursue the ongoing cases wherein funds were found to be stashed abroad and these came to light after India received a classified list of bank account holders which include those in HSBC Bank, Geneva and LGT Bank of Liechtenstein.
The department, according to current rules, can only open I-T returns for the past six years if they need to probe hidden income and assets.
The recommendation on extending the period was also made by the committee on black money headed by the Chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT). Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is expected to take into account this issue before he presents his Budget.
"This specific clause is being seriously thought. Numerous instances in the department’s ongoing probe in black money cases warrant such a clause as unreported investments date back to many years. The I-T investigations have also asked for such a clause in the I-T Act," a senior Finance Ministry official said. The clause, however, is needed in cases where foreign assets are traced as in these cases we need to prepare a tight case before we approach a foreign country for help under the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) or other relevant treaty, the official said.
The official said the time frame that I-T authorities want to go back is about 12 years but the limit can only be decided by the Finance Ministry and Mukherjee’s office after consulting all stakeholders.
While Germany had last year provided the names of some Indians having secret accounts in Liechtenstein’s LGT Bank, many other such classified data is now with India.
Officials of the probe wings of the I-T department have carried out a number of searches and visits in the last four months on various entities based in Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmadabad and few other cities of people who have admitted to holding accounts and stashing funds in the foreign bank after their names figured in the classified lists.
In cases wherein the individuals have denied holding secret foreign bank accounts, the department has already decided to re-open their past tax returns.
Comments