Railways to intensify ticket checking
New Delhi: Worried over decline in passenger bookings, cash-strapped railways have initiated steps like intensified checking against ticketless travel. “There was a sharp fall (passenger booking) till August. But in September and October, we have arrested the fall through intensive ticket checking,” Chairman, Railway Board, (CRB) Arunendra Kumar said on the sidelines of a seminar here.
Over 2.5 lakh posts lying vacant in Rlys
New Delhi: Over 2.5 lakh posts are lying vacant in Railways, Rajya Sabha was informed on Friday. The total number of vacancies in railways is 2,51,936 as on April 2013, Minister of State for Railways Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said in a written reply.
RS praises courage of girl in Assam
New Delhi: Members in Rajya Sabha on Friday praised the exemplary courage displayed by a 14-year-old girl in Assam, Gunjan Sarmah, who offered herself to be kidnapped to save school kids from unidentified gunmen in Sibsagar district. Raising the issue during Zero Hour, Birendra Kumar Baishya (AGP) said the girl rescued 12 school kids, kidnapped by extremists at gun point in a hijacked school van by offering herself as hostage, which is a very brave act.
Daily to file FIR against fake article
New Delhi: In a bizarre gaffe, a newspaper here published an article on Friday purported to have been written by former Union law Minister Shanti Bhushan which later turned out to be fake, prompting the daily to lodge an FIR with the police. The paper carried an article in the name of Shanti Bhushan which was critical of AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal, saying he might be a spoiler for BJP in the 2014 lok Sabha elections, drawing an angry denial by the noted lawyer who called it a “big conspiracy”. Bhushan said, “It is a forged article. I have asked the editor of the daily to file an FIR to find out who is behind it.”
Karzai meets PM; defence aid discussed
New Delhi: With the US planning troops withdrawal by next year, President Hamid Karzai is believed to have pressed India on Friday for stepping up military aid including lethal and non-lethal weapons amid indications that the Government was not averse to the Afghan leader’s demand which could be met depending on the country’s capacity. Karzai, who is here on a four-day official visit, had meetings with top leadership here including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, whom he briefed on the situation in his country.