Telugu New Year ‘Ugadi’ celebrated with gaiety

People offered special prayers, decorated their houses and shops with mango leaves and tasted a bit of the traditional sweet-sour ‘Ugadi pacchadi’ as Ugadi, the Telugu New Year, was celebrated across Andhra Pradesh Tuesday.Thousands of devotees thronged temples to pray for happiness and prosperity in the New Year. Special prayers were held at the Tirumala, Srisailam and Vijayawada temples.People customarily taste a bit of the ‘Ugadi pacchadi’, a mixture of neem buds, raw mango, tamarind juice, pepper, jaggery and salt. The mixture symbolises that life is a mixture of bitter-sweet experiences which should be accepted together and with equanimity.
People also attended special functions where the priests read out the ‘panchangnam’ or religious almanac of the coming year. Literary discussions, poetry recitations, recognition of authors through awards and cultural programmes also marked the day.Like every year, the state government organised an official function ‘panchangna sarvanam’, at Ravindra Bharati in the state capital, where an ‘agma’ pundit read out the religious almanac of the coming year. He forecast that the coming year would bring prosperity for the state and its people.Chief Minister K. Rosaiah and some of his cabinet colleagues attended the main celebrations and tasted the sweet-sour ‘Ugadi pacchadi’.Rosaiah said he was praying for the well-being and prosperity of the people of the state.“I hope that the coming year would bring happiness to the state in all sectors. There will be sufficient rains and bumper crop and industrial sector will perform better than last year,” he sai The chief minister said his government was trying to plug the loopholes in the development and welfare of the state and its people.Many people noted that the last year was one of the worst years as the state lost chief minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy in a helicopter crash in September, followed by unprecedented floods in Krishna river and agitation over the demand for separate statehood to the Telangana region.Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N. Chandrababu Naidu attended a ‘panchangna sarvanam’ held at NTR Trust Bhavan, the party headquarters. Similar functions were also held at the office of the ruling Congress party and offices of the Bharatiya Janata Party (PRP) and Praja Rajyam Party (PRP).
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Azad exhorts young doctors for rural services

The Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Shri Ghulam Nabi Azad releasing the Annual Report at the 94th Annual Day and Convocation of Lady Harding Medical College, in New Delhi on March 17, 2010.
(Photo by PIB No.CNR-30838)
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(PIB NEWS) The Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Shri Ghulam Nabi Azad has exhorted young doctors to take advantage of new measures for incentivizing rural services by doctors. Speaking at the 94th Annual Day and Convocation of Lady Harding Medical College here today, Shri Azad pointed out that by simply rationalizing the teacher student ratio from 1:1 to 1:2 additional 2800 Post Graduate seats will be added to the system from this academic year itself. ‘I invite the young graduating doctors and specialists to join hand with Government and come forward to serve in the rural areas where the real India lives’, Shri Azad said.Shri Azad emphasised that some options like generating the rural health manpower, distance learning, family medicine courses and a rural health cadre are required for scaling up the human health resources in rural areas to desired levels. He assured doctors that they will not get frustrated as Government is making the Primary Health Care System fully functional in terms of buildings, equipments, medicines, diagnostics and human resources. The Minister outlined various reforms in Medical Education such as rationalization of land requirement, teacher student ratio, upgradation of State Government Medical Colleges and additional weightage to be given in Post Graduate Entrance Examination for years devoted to rural services. Speaking in the exclusive Women Medical College Shri Azad said that it is only apt that his first engagement after passage of Women Reservation Bill in Rajya Sabha was in Lady Harding College. He said that once the Bill becomes reality India will go to general poll in the year 2014 which also happens to be Centenary Year of the College. The Minister also told the gathering about Rs.387 crore redevelopment plan of the Institution. The strength of Under Graduate seats would also be increased from 127 to 200 and Post Graduate from 70 to 130. The redevelopment would be done in next two years time, Shri Azad said.
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CM holds all-party meet to discuss SC ruling on 'free zone'

Hyderabad, Mar 17 : An all-party meeting began here this evening to discuss the Supreme Court's yesterday's ruling, declaring Hyderabad a 'free zone' for recruitment to government jobs under the Zoning System of the Presidential Order of 1975, and evolve a consensus on the future course of action.

Ahead of the all-party meet, Telangana Rashtra Samiti President K Chandrasekar Rao pressed for adoption of a resolution in the state Assembly, urging the Centre to bring in a bill to amend the Constitution to circumvent the ruling of the Supreme Court.The Apex Court had rejected the state government's Special Leave Petition against its order of October 9, 2009, which ruled Hyderabad as a 'free zone' on matters of employment. Leaders of the other Opposition parties, including the TDP, BJP, CPI, and CPI-M, wanted the Chief Minister to lead a delegation to New Delhi to impress upon Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for treating Hyderabad as part of Zone VI under the 'zoning system' evolved by the Presidential Order.
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Andhra Pradesh Assembly stalled over SC ruling on 'free zone'

Hyderabad, Mar 17 : The Supreme Court ruling on the issuance of 'free zone' led to angry exchanges between the ruling Congress and Opposition parties, adjournment of the Andhra Pradesh Assemblyh for over 15 minutes and expunction of certain remarks made by CPI floor leader G Mallesh.The trouble started as soon as the House assembled for the day when Speaker N Kirankumar Reddy announced that he was disallowing the adjournment motion notices by the TDP, CPI, CPI(M) and the BJP on the issue. Pressing for adoption of a House resolution urging the Centre to amend the Constitution to circumvent the Supreme court ruling, TDP members from Telangana region rushed towards the Speaker's podium.After repeated appeals, the Speaker adjourned the House for 15 minutes. When the House reassembled, Chief Minister K Rosaiah, intervening in view of the importance of the issue, announced that ''Hyderabad is very much part of the VI zone on matters of employment. It is not proper to discuss the sensitive issue which is before the Supreme Court. Let us evolve a consensus on the future course of action at an all-party meeting outside the House later today.'' Later, the Chief Minister offered to quit his post if he had stated that the matter was ''subjudice'' as claimed by senior TDP legislator N Janardhan Reddy and challenged him whether he was ready to do so. The House plunged into pandemonium for sometime as several Congress legislators, including ministers, were on their feet, arguing with Opposition party legislators on the issue. The Chief Minister pacified the Opposition members, saying, ''The Government will have no objection to adopt a resolution if all the parties wanted it.'' Following this, the House then took up questions listed for the day.The Speaker expunged certain objectionable references made by CPI floor leader G Mallesh on the ongoing stir for separate Telangana state, while pressing for a House resolution for protecting the interests of people of Telangana region on employment.
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Hyderabad will be a free zone: SC

New Delhi, Mar 17: The Supreme Court has said that Hyderabad will be a 'free zone' where people from any part of Andhra Pradesh can compete in police and government jobs.The verdict came against a review petition filed by the AP government.In a terse order, the SC said: ""We have perused the review petitions and record of the civil appeals and are convinced that the judgment for which review has been sought does not suffer from any error apparent warranting its reconsideration. Hence, the review petitions are dismissed."On October 9, 2009, the apex court said people from all parts of AP have equal rights in government jobs, postings and promotions. The state government filed a review petition against the ruling saying the decision will add fuel to the ongoing movement for a separate Telangana state.
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Fraudster impersonting as ACB official held.

Hyderabad,Mar.17: The City Police has arrested a fraudster impersonating as ACB official for trying to extort huge amount from the Government officials of various departments by threatening them.According to police, the accused Bathula Sai Rahul alias Rahul, Arvind,Bhaskar procured one cell phone with two SIM cards and obtained details and phone numbers of the Government Officials of various departments through Internet websites. He used to contact Government officials posing as ACB Official and threaten the officials saying that they were indulge in corrupt practices and these were recorded in the CD's by spy Cameras. He demanded huge money for handing over the CD's to them. The Central Zone Task Force team apprehended the accused yesterday, police said.
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Andhra assembly to move to protect jobs for locals in Hyderabad

Hyderabad, March 17 : The Andhra Pradesh assembly will Thursday pass a resolution urging the central government to bring an amendment to the Presidential Order to protect jobs for the Telangana people in Hyderabad.

At an all-party meet convened Wednesday evening to discuss the Supreme Court's refusal to review its order declaring Hyderabad a "free zone" for recruitments in government jobs, the Congress government agreed to bring the resolution. Leaders of all the parties were unanimous that the relevant paragraph of the Presidential Order relating to jobs for locals in Hyderabad should be amended to set aside the court order. Minister for Information and Public Relations Geeta Reddy told reporters after the meeting that the resolution would be sent to the central government and the home ministry would refer it to the Indian president. The decision came a day after the Supreme Court refused to admit a petition of the state government, seeking a review of its earlier order declaring Hyderabad a free zone for recruitments in police department. Earlier, opposition parties stalled the proceedings of the state assembly over the issue, forcing Chief Minister K. Rosaiah to invite an all-party meeting to discuss future course of action. Rosaiah told the assembly that he had no objection to passing a resolution urging the central government to bring an amendment to set aside the Supreme Court order. "Hyderabad is part of sixth zone and not a free zone. Nobody needs to have any doubts over this," Rosaiah told the agitated members. He said the issue was sensitive and in Supreme Court and hence could not be discussed in an open house. Later, Congress MPs from Telangana urged Rosaiah to pass a resolution in the assembly. Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) chief K. Chandrasekhara Rao, who had revived movement for separate statehood to Telangana following the Supreme Court order last year, warned the government of serious consequences if it failed to protect the interests of Telangana people. In October last year, the Supreme Court had declared that Hyderabad was not a part of Telangana but a free zone as far as recruitments and postings in government were concerned. This would mean that people from all parts of the state would have equal rights in jobs, postings and promotions in Hyderabad. People of Telangana had so far been enjoying local area status here with 70 percent quota in government jobs all these years. Hyderabad had remained part of sixth zone along with Ranga Reddy, Mahabubnagar, Nalgonda, Nizamabad and Medak districts of Telangana. Telangana, which comprises 10 districts including Hyderabad, was merged with then Andhra State in 1956 to form Andhra Pradesh. But the people of Telangana were given certain safeguards in appointments under the Gentlemen's Agreement of 1956 and a subsequent Presidential Order and six point formula.
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