Rs 600-cr grant to N-E States rly projects
New Delhi: The Centre on Thursday decided to grant Rs 600 crore to North Eastern States for infrastructure development. At a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh it was decided that Finance Ministry will provide Rs 400 crore to complete three critical rail projects — the Harmati-Naharlagun project providing rail connectivity to Arunachal Pradesh, the Dudhnoi-Mendipathar project to connect Meghalaya and the Rangapara-North lakhimpur gauge conversion project — by 2014. Also, Rs 200 crore will be given for the lumding-Silchar gauge conversion and Bogibeel bridge.
SC seeks Delhi Police reply on AAP plea
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday sought response from the Delhi Police on a plea seeking setting up of its special team to probe an alleged incident of policemen beating up Aam Aadmi Party members who were protesting non-registration of an FIR in a rape case. A Bench headed by Chief Justice Altamas Kabir issued the notice on the petition filed by 19 affected people including a minor girl, who was slapped by the police official some months ago while protesting in a hospital against the rape of a five-year-old girl in east Delhi.
‘India to achieve 80% literacy rate by 2015’
New Delhi: HRD Minister MM Pallam Raju, while inaugurating an International Conference on Achieving literacy for All, on Thursday, said that India will achieve 80 per cent literacy rate in the next two years. The literacy rate of India is 73 per cent at present as per the 2011 Census. He said that more than 20 crore people have become literates since the last Census of 2001 out of which more than half of them are females. To achieve the goal of 80 per cent literacy by 2015, the HRM said that the HRD Ministry is restructuring the entire adult education system in the country with a paradigm shift to lifelong education.