raaees film writer is 

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yÚkðk --
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yrÄfkhe nðu fu{uhk Mkk{u ELxÞqo ÷uþu --
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nk÷ fuðe MkeMx{ Au --
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share transactions worth crores of rupees took place using Dagali’s Central Bank of India account in 2004. The police are also verifying...

Sample Gandhi’s ambidexterity 31-12-2008 | News - City
Gandhi often cribbed about his bad handwriting. This was perhaps because he did not take his handwriting with left hand seriously. Sample it for yourself. Photographs of his scribbles, both with right and left hands, are
printed alongside. You may decide it for yourself which one is better. Navjivan Press, while coming out with Gandhi’s celebrated book “Hind Swaraj”...

Black is back 29-12-2008 | News - Latest
Aamir Khan’s much-hyped action thriller Ghajini, which hit the cinema halls on December 25, has gone far beyond just setting the cash registers ringing in the city. Running house-full in Amdavad’s multiplexes and
single-screen theatres, Ghajini has achieved what another Aamir Khan starrer, Lagaan, managed to do in 2001. ...

Diktat to book vibrant Gujarat stalls 29-12-2008 | News - City
Wanna woo reluctant investors book stalls spending lakhs at an exhibition amid global meltdown? Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) has the solution: compel them.Apprehending lukewarm
participation in the Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors’ Summit (VGGIS) 2009 owing to the global slump and exorbitant stall tariff, GIDC has sent diktat ...

Cops get guns but no bullets 27-12-2008 | News - City
The INSAS rifles look intimidating in the hands of state cops. Meant to equip the police to take on militants, the assault rifle is a gas-operated weapon. But fire it, and it will go ‘click-click’. For now, the weapon is a dud for
the state has not been able to procure its ammunition. All the 2,000 distributed in rifles in border districts of Kutch, Junagadh, Jamnagar...

Our Ministers, MLAs double their salary 27-12-2008 | News - City
Ministers and MLAs have decided to gift themselves a near-100 per cent pay hike after playing Santa to state government officials on Christmas Eve. This when India Inc faces the heat of economic slowdown and many
corporates are forced to cut down on their expenses. Now, a minister will get a pay cheque for Rs 49,816 instead of Rs 25,200...

Masses to feel govt staff pay hike pinch 26-12-2008 | News - City
The state government employees had a merry Christmas with the announcement of implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission’s recommendations, but the masses might feel additional tax pinch in the New Year. The
cabinet’s nod to extend enhanced pay scales to the state government employees would cost the exchequer Rs 4,300 crore, including arrears...

13-cr-yr-old fossils at GEER dinosaur park 24-12-2008 | News - City
Confused where to go this Christmas? Dinosaur and Fossil Park at Gujarat Environmental Ecological Research (GEER) Foundation in Gandhinagar, now rich with trace fossils of Sauropod (a sub-order or infra-order of the
saurischian dinosaurs), could be the right place to be in. The trace fossils scientifically called coprolites — droppings of Sauropod ...

Raids spur closure of computer centres in city 24-12-2008 | News - City
Around 2,000 computer training centres in the city remained closed on Tuesday in protest against alleged illegal raids of the software company agents on the institutions to check software copyright. The objection to a raid
on a computer training centre at Bapunagar on Tuesday afternoon snowballed into a virtual strike of computer training institutions in the city. ...

Shop for a tree 20-12-2008 | News - Latest
Does the barrenness around your house break your heart? Wish your office was located in an area filled with tall, lush green trees? No worries. Soon, you will be able to ‘buy’ fully grown trees — at Rs 6,000 apiece apart
from transportation cost — and get them transplanted to the place of your choice, all within a few hours.It’s not a figment of anyone’s ...

Carnivorous Gujarat 19-12-2008 | News - City
The red meat and poultry production in the state has almost doubled in the last five years to meet a sharp rise in demand of non-vegetarian food. An increasing number of Gujaratis turning non-vegetarian and the state’s
rising migrant population are being credited/blamed — whichever way you want to look at it — for the rise in red meat and poultry production in the state....

AHMEDABAD’S COOLEST CHORS IN POLICE NET 13-12-2008 | News - Latest
They had a passion for sporting formal dress, mostly suits and tie. Clean shaven, they used to make forays into commercial hubs of the city around 7.30 pm. They had a natural craving for electronics gadgets and one of them
has five girl friends. Nope, they aren’t corporate honchos. Meet Vijay Makwana, a resident of Dani Limda, and Kamlesh Shah...

I FOR AN EYE 12-12-2008 | News - Latest
But he wants only Re 1 out of it. He has kept aside the remaining amount for those fighting police and govt excesses Two decades ago, Dr Praful Thakar lost an eye in police brutality. In the years that followed, he lost
successive battles against an insensitive police force which shielded goons he was protesting against. Now at long last, he has won a compensation...

ANTI-TERROR CRACK UNITS IN EACH DIST 11-12-2008 | News - Latest
DGP J K Bhatt says every unit will be led by a DySP and will have 30-40 commandos armed with the latest guns and communication equipment While the nation debates a move to train local police units on the National
Security Guards (NSG) pattern or even having a small NSG contingent in all major cities, Gujarat is clearly a few steps ahead of the rest ...

Cops’ Commando training begins in Gandhinagar 11-12-2008 | News - City
The commando training of 32 police constables who will be part of a Quick Response Team (QRT) began in Gandhinagar on Wednesday. The constables, aged 25-35, will be trained for 10 days at the Gandhinagar police
headquarters to deal with Mumbai-like attacks in the state capital. Two companies of Gujarat’s home-grown unit — the Chetak Commando Force ...

Under cover cameras 10-12-2008 | News - City
There is apparently none to plug security loopholes in the chief minister’s office, forget public places. On December 6, Ahmedabad Mirror reported eight of the 12 cameras meant to monitor Chief Minister Narendra
Modi’s office were not functioning under the title “CCTV cameras in CM’s office on the blink”. Three days on, the scenario is the same....

Terror threat prompts extra cover at dams 09-12-2008 | News - City
Intelligence intercepts suggesting terror strike on dams have prompted the state government to intensify surveillance at 14 prominent embankments, including Sardar Sarovar and Ukai dams, in Gujarat. Sounding a red
alert at the dams, the state government has deployed Special Reserve Police (SRP) personnel besides...

Construction slump makes workers jobless 09-12-2008 | News - City
The global economic slowdown has hit the construction sector hard, affecting builders as well as the hundreds of labourers who come to the city looking for work. While 2007 witnessed a construction boom in the city, things
have gone steadily downhill this year. Last year, construction work on around 24 buildings with 10 floors or more...

Mumbai CARNAGE wakes G’nagar into protecting its VIPs 08-12-2008 | News - City
In a bid to nip any terror threat in the bud, the state is set to establish its own commando force. But you and I would hardly benefit. For, the focus of the sophisticated weapon-wielding personnel would be on VIPs. The duty
of the special commando force has been cut out. The security of ministers, chief secretary, top IAS-IPS officials ...

CCTV CAMERAS IN CM’S OFFICE ON THE BLINK 06-12-2008 | News - Latest
The state Home Department, which has an ambitious plan of bringing sensitive areas of Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar under close circuit television camera (CCTV) surveillance as counter-terrorism strategy, is in for a
major embarrassment as eight out of the 12 cameras meant to monitor none other than Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s office are not functional....

Neta, babu battle at Old Secretariat 06-12-2008 | News - City
The mass leave agitation of the state government employees demanding pay package at par with their Central government counterparts took a dramatic twist at the Old Secretariat in Gandhinagar on Friday morning with
an IAS officer and a union leader engaging in a scuffle. The 20-minute drama was enacted at the office of the settlement commissioner...

Cops will now catch every move of yours as ahmedabad, gandhinagar set to get... WIRED 05-12-2008 | News - Latest
‘Every step you take, we’ll be watching you’ is the latest counter-terrorism strategy adopted by the security agencies as they plan to put Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar — the state’s financial and political capitals
respectively — under closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera surveillance. For the first time, streets of sensitive areas in old Ahmedabad...

Dealer likely to be arrested in faulty X-ray machine case 05-12-2008 | News - City
The probe into the alleged harmful radiation from the 108 X-ray machines installed in several health units in the state over, the Gandhinagar police have decided to arrest the Ahmedabad-based dealer and an official of
the company supplying the gadgets.
Sources in the Gandhinagar police said, Ketan Rawal, the Ahmedabad-based...

Piracy eating into theatre revenues 05-12-2008 | News - City
Piracy is playing a spoilsport for cinema halls, if their plummeting revenues are any indication. Not less than 10 years ago, the state government’s annual revenues obtained from movie theatres stood at Rs 63 crore. This
has now dropped to Rs 15 crore in the past couple of years. “The losses can be attributed to greater access to newer technologies ...

NEW GUNS FOR GUJARAT COPS 03-12-2008 | News - Latest
The latest mayhem in Mumbai has finally resulted in upgradation of the outdated firearms used by our police force, which stands little chance against automatic weapons-wielding terrorists. The Gujarat police have begun
replacing the .303 rifles, which they have been using for the last five decades, with the sophisticated INSAS assault rifles....

Amdavadi girl dies in Oberoi terror strike 29-11-2008 | News - City
Ami Thaker, a 24-year-old receptionist at the Spa Gymnasium department of Oberoi hotel, died in the terror attack after she was shot in the neck and stomach. Her body was found outside the hotel at 3 am on Friday.
Ami’s family used to stay in Naranpura area of the city till a couple of years ago. She had visited the city last during Raksha Bandhan....

Gujarat to raise army of marine commandos 29-11-2008 | News - City
A tad late, but the state will soon have its own Marine Commando Force to guard its long coastline from terror threat emerging from the sea route. State home department sources said the elite marine force would be raised
on the lines of the famed National Commando Force and be headed by additional director general of police (arms unit) S S Khandwavala. ...

Coastal temples, industries being secured in Guj 28-11-2008 | News - City
Security at industries, temples and ports along the coast of Gujarat was heightened soon after the terrorist attacks at hotels and railway stations in Mumbai on Wednesday night. Anticipating the likely threat along the
state’s coast close to Pakistan, the state home department rushed large contingents of security forces at sensitive installations...

Sleuths from A’bad headed for Mumbai 28-11-2008 | News - City
Chief minister Narendra Modi convened an urgent high-level meeting in Gandhinagar to assess and strengthen internal security in the state. the home department spokesperson said the chief minister directed officials to
send a team of sleuths to Mumbai consisting of Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS), Crime Branch and other officers involved in investigations...

Terrorists’ ship returning to Pak seized off Valsad 28-11-2008 | News - City
Security forces pursued and stormed a ship which reportedly was on its way back to Karachi after ferrying terrorists to Mumbai. Security commandos took control of the vessel off Valsad at 3.30 pm on Thursday. The
occupants of the ship, whose numbers were not disclosed, were being interrogated by Mumbai Coast Guard in Valsad. ...

Sadhus threaten to rebuild razed G'nagar temples 26-11-2008 | News - Latest
Backed by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), prominent godmen from Delhi, Haridwar and Gujarat have threatened to rebuild fallen temples in Gandhinagar. Over the last two months, 200 illegally constructed temples
were brought down in the state capital, which invited stinging criticism from the religious heads. The demolitions were keenly supported ...

Anganwadis in discarded state transport buses soon 26-11-2008 | News - City
Facing serious lack of infrastructure, but determined to make a success of anganwadis, the state government has decided to convert discarded buses into mobile kindergarten. The buses will also be used to transport fortified
sukhdis for the children between 3 and 6 who attend the anganwadis, according to Rajeev Gupta, Principal...

Women’s panel indicts Pilavai PTC trustee, son 25-11-2008 | News - City
The State Women’s Commission (SWC) has upheld the
contention of Pilavai PTC girls that they were subjected to sexual harassment by the son of the institute’s trustee. In its report submitted to the home department, the commission said the allegations of harassment made by
the girls against Kamlesh Dave, the son of trustee...

NRI grooms dupe six Gujarat girls 25-11-2008 | News - City
A large number of non-resident Indians (NRIs) — flush with foreign currency and amusing anecdotes — stampede into Gujarat every year during the wedding season, starting October. However, some simply disappear
after exchanging vows with gullible girls.
As many as six cases of glib-tongued NRIs duping their...

Single screens fast disappearing amid multiplex boom 22-11-2008 | News - City
Single screen theatres in the city are fast disappearing. Thanks to a rapidly-growing multiplex culture, and a government ordinance that ensures total entertainment tax waiver and other sops to multiplexes, the death knell
of single screens has been sounded. The city, which once had 35 single screen theatres now is left with only 18. ...

Now a fair value formula for sale of govt land 21-11-2008 | News - City
The unprecedented boom in the real-estate sector, under-valuation of property and the resultant revenue loss seems to have acted as a wake-up call for the State Government. It has finally come up with a formula to fix the
fair value of the land it owns. The land policy, decided by the district evaluation committee and passed by the state evaluation...

Bomb squads, data centre to check terror 20-11-2008 | News - City
With Gujarat figuring prominently on the terror map, the government has decided to set up bomb squads in 24 districts of the state. The state government has also decided to set up a data centre at the Gandhinagar FSL to
keep track of all the blasts occurring in the country....

Doc cliaims HIV cure 19-11-2008 | News - City
An Amdavad-born doctor claims to have invented a drug that will turn global research into treating the dreaded HIV virus on its head. Slogging away for the last 22 years in the nondescript town of Surendranagar, Dr
Mukesh Shukla, 59, has developed a drug that eliminates from an HIV-infected person the HIV-1 P17 matrix protein. This protein ...

FSI you can buy 18-11-2008 | News - Latest
The state government has decided to relax floor space index (FSI) norms for all areas under AUDA and industrial zones under Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation’s jurisdiction. The move will free a larger space for
construction on any given plot, reduce the pressure on land and thereby check spiralling land prices. ...

76 Sanand villages to be merged with AUDA 18-11-2008 | News - City
Land in 76 villages in and around the Nano plant in Sanand may soon be merged into Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority for regulated development. AUDA has presented a proposal to the state government
seeking such a transfer on an urgent basis.
“Currently, just Sanand town and five villages fall under AUDA jurisdiction...

Ashwin Patel is a patriot, not traitor, says Zadaphia 17-11-2008 | News - City
Gordhan Zadaphia, former home minister and now president of the newly-floated Mahagujarat Janata Party has thrown his lot behind Vishwa Hindu Parishad arrested member Ashwin Patel and sought his release
claiming the state government was being vindictive. The VHP man was arrested recently and charged with sedition for allegedly circulating ...

Arun Jaitley to contest LS elections from Surat 15-11-2008 | News - Latest
Election strategist Arun Jaitley will be Bharatiya Janata Party’s candidate from Surat in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections, if the buzz in party circles is to be believed. Insiders have revealed that the move could serve
two purposes for Chief Minister Narendra Modi — reward Jaitley for aiding him to put up a splendid show in the assembly elections ...

Tree growth in Gir cause of lions straying out 14-11-2008 | News - City
Lions are straying out of the Gir forest, and that’s not because they have grown in numbers and are short of space. Experts say it has to do with the change in the landscape of their natural habitat, that is becoming crowded
with trees, which deny the lions a free run during hunts. The most recent case of the big cats straying away from Gir ...

X-ray machines cause radiation scare at government hospitals 13-11-2008 | News - City
One can only hope that cases of cancer are not reported by the hundreds from government hospitals across the state in the near future. Or a worse case scenario doesn’t unfold where many have already contracted the
disease but don’t know of the lurking danger. In any case, the enormity of the health scare can give you the shudders....

State officials tight-lipped on ‘Nano’ incentives 12-11-2008 | News - City
The state government’s generous sops to the Tatas have come in for criticism, after a confidential note relating to the Rs 30,000 cr worth of benefits the government would give to Tatas for the Nano project got leaked. The
note was presented to the state Cabinet for discussion on Monday. The chief minister’s personal secretary, who is heading an inquiry ...

Bank agent dupes bizman, gives fake DD of Rs 9.5 cr 12-11-2008 | News - City
A Veraval industrialist was duped of more than Rs 7 lakh by a city agent who promised to get him a huge loan to expand his business and even buy him prime land at a throwaway price. According to Darshan Narottam
Palan, director of Messrs Haswanti Exports Pvt Ltd, GIDC Veraval, he came into contact with one Vishal Vyas...

Gandhi to come ‘alive’ at K Lal’s Magic Show 11-11-2008 | News - City
Want to see Gandhiji on stage? Wait until Friday. Renowned magician K Lal has taken it upon himself to make people “see” Mahatma Gandhiji in his show. Kantilal Vora, or K Lal, as the wizard from the city is popularly
known, in a pilot show in Amreli district a few days ago “presented” Gandhiji “live.” The 82-year-old magician ...

Govt note detailing Rs 10,000-cr benefits to Tatas leaks out 11-11-2008 | News - City
According to late-night reports, a confidential note relating to the benefits the government would give to Tatas for the Nano project got leaked after it was presented to the state Cabinet for discussion on Monday. Sources
said, the government set up an inquiry headed by G C Murmu, personal secretary to the CM, immediately after the incident. ...

Now, satellite system to tackle malaria 08-11-2008 | News - City
ISRO Chairman Madhvan Nair was not boasting when he said: “Gujarat is one of the few states in the country which uses science and technology in its governance.” After identifying land for Nano project through
Geographic Information System(GIS) and remote sensing, Gujarat may rope in the same technique to tackle malaria. ...

Scientists check out proposed coral transplantation sites 08-11-2008 | News - City
Scientists trying to save Gujarat’s diminishing coral reefs are using new approaches to help damaged reefs recover and survive a changing climate. The Gujarat Ecological Education and Research Foundation has
proposed transplanting coral reefs from the Gulf of Kutch to two new sites. To check the feasibility of the sites proposed in the project, ...

Dolphins in Dwarka can be a major tourist attraction 08-11-2008 | News - City
One of the few places in India where dolphins are found, the Kutch peninsula has witnessed a significant rise in its numbers, a study conducted by the Marine National Park of Jamnagar says. The coastline from Poshitra to
Pirotan islands in Jamnagar has seen a notable increase in the number of dolphins, the survey says. A total of 102 dolphins ...

Nihao Ma, Amdavad 07-11-2008 | News - Latest
Don’t be shocked if your tot walks in from school and greets you with “Nihao Ma” or “Con nee chee waa.” He’d merely be practising the Mandarin and Japanese lessons his teachers would have taught him in the
classroom. The state government is planning a mega project wherein schools and colleges across the state will include Mandarin ...

LPG dealers to go on strike from Monday 07-11-2008 | News - City
The state government will supply LPG gas cylinders from fair price shops in view of the strike call given by LPG dealers. The dealers have announced a strike from Monday, demanding abolition of inspector raj. The
dealers want the state government to strike-out the rule which gives government the authority to control stock and issue licences to LPG dealers....

Coba plot owners accuse builder of cheating them 06-11-2008 | News - City
A group of people who bought land on the outskirts of the city mobbed the builder at the site and accused him of cheating them by denying them of its possession with the intention of selling to others for a higher price.
About 70 persons, who claimed to have bought plots at Jain Vatika near Coba circle, descended at the site on Wednesday ...

Admission of 142 engg, med students to be cancelled 06-11-2008 | News - City
The Department of Social Justice and Empowerment has recommended cancellation of admissions to engineering and medical colleges of at least 142 students who had produced fake certificates, claiming they belonged
to socially and economic backward class (SEBC). As many as 66 students who got into engineering faculty and ...

Water in city outskirts poses health risks 05-11-2008 | News - City
The ground water in areas on the outskirts of Ahmedabad may pose a health hazard to people who consume it. The Gujarat Water Supply & Sewerage Board (GWSSB) has found that the ground water in places like Gota,
Lilapur, Sanand and Bopal, among others, has high nitrate content. “Excess nitrate content has been found in the ground water ...

Illegal temple pulled down in Gandhinagar 05-11-2008 | News - City
Protests and cries of devotees could be heard at the Shani Dev temple in Gandhinagar on Tuesday, but they had nothing to do with the prakop of the dreaded deity. His followers were witnessing the demolition of the
temple, constructed illegally on forest land, being razed on the order of the Collector. With the help of police and two bulldozers, the temple ...

BJP govt wants to finish VHP: Rawat 03-11-2008 | News - City
He gave up comforts of home to render his services for the VHP. During elections, he went round the slums in the city to mobilise support for the BJP. Now, the BJP-run state government has been harassing him because he
is with the VHP. Devji Rawat says, “The state government wants to finish the VHP as it do not need its help anymore.”...

Rationalists make a bhajia of kaala jadu 28-10-2008 | News - City
Lemon, coconut and bhajia are food items and can be put to better use than be cast away on roads by way of ritual. And if bhajia can be had at home, the spicy snack can well be had at a crematorium too, for there is nothing
sinister about the eatable or anything demonic about the place. The Bharat Jan Vigyan Jatha carried out a state-wide drive on Kali Chaudas ...

G’nagar man buys a bit of the moon 28-10-2008 | News - City
This real estate is fake and notional. But is still traded like hot property. US-based Lunar Republic Society has been selling tracts of land on moon to millions of eager buyers all over the world. And Gandhinagar lad Sachin
Dasani, 20, becomes a rare Gujarati to have bought himself a patch of land on the moon. The business of selling land on moon...

Pragyadevi campaigned for BJP in Lok Sabha polls, says ex-Union minister 28-10-2008 | News - City
While the revelations about former ABVP activist Sadhvi Pragyadevi’s alleged involvement in the Malegaon blasts have shaken the wits out of the BJP, in what could be a fresh embarrassment for the party, a former
minister in the Vajpayee government told Mirror she had even joined him in the election campaign during the ...

Lion family spotted for first time in Gondal 28-10-2008 | News - City
Farmers and cattle herders in Panchiyavadar village of Gondal taluka, Rajkot district, are a frightened lot, after a lion, lioness and its two cubs were spotted in the village on Sunday. Following news of killing of cows on
Sunday night, a team of Forest department officials have been camping in the village. A forest official, who did not want to be named, ...

Infocity to take legal battle to US 27-10-2008 | News - City
Infocity plans to take its legal battle with the state government to the United States. State-owned Gjuarat Informatics Ltd (GIL) had taken control of Infocity complex in Gandhinagar from private developer Creative
Infocity Ltd (CIL), citing breach of terms and conditions on Thursday. The notice says that CIL is no longer entitled to collect any payments, rentals,...

US meltdown affects Gujarat’s textile companies 27-10-2008 | News - City
American economic meltdown has affected the textile business in Gujarat. A chain of department stores in the US orders textile from the state around this time of the year, but there has been no big orders this month.
“Textile mills get orders for 4 to 5 lakh meters every year, but this year no big order has been placed. Those who had ...

Sarkar raj at Infocity 25-10-2008 | News - Latest
The Gujarat government-owned Gujarat Informatics Ltd (GIL) has taken control of the Infocity complex in Gandhinagar from its private developer, Creative Infocity Ltd (CIL), citing violation of terms and conditions. In
notices issued to over 55 IT companies in the complex, GIL has asked them to stop dealing with Creative Infocity. “...

State swimmers denied entry into SAI campus 25-10-2008 | News - City
Around 30 state employees were denied entry into the Sports Authority of India (SAI) complex when they went there for a selection trial for a national level swimming competition. The General Administration
Department of the state government on Friday took the 30-odd aspirants to the SAI campus in Gandhinagar for the trial for the national event ...

Rare hornbills sighted in city 24-10-2008 | News - City
Grey Hornbills, once common in Gujarat, had gone out of sight for the last four decades. However, forest officials have reported sighting the large birds in the green foliage in Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar. The birds have
been sighted primarily in Kankaria and Shahibaug areas of Ahmedabad and the lush green patches of the Capital. ...

Gujarat to develop 2,200 km highways with World Bank aid 23-10-2008 | News - City
The Gujarat government has decided to develop and upgrade 41 state highways on its own following the Centre’s refusal to convert them into national highways. It will do this with World Bank aid. The state wanted its
highways to be converted into national highways to enable quick development that could ease transportation between ports...

Funds squeeze hampers state’s battle against terror 23-10-2008 | News - City
The need to modernise the police force in Gujarat has become more acute than ever in the aftermath of the deadly serial blasts in Ahmedabad on July 26 and the spurt in terrorist activity across the country. But the flow of
funds from the Centre to the state has been much too slow to allow any meaningful modernisation of the police.
This year, assistance to the Ahmedabad ...

Illegal mobiles in Sabarmati central Jail, Jailors in a jam over Low frequency jammers 23-10-2008 | News - City
While prisoners inside the Sabarmati Central Jail merrily chat away on their Nokias and Motorolas, the authorities — facing the heat after a huge cache of mobile phones was discovered from the prison barracks in a Crime
Branch raid last week — are lamenting the low frequency of mobile phone jammers installed in the jail premises....

350 Northcotepura villagers face ‘eviction’ 23-10-2008 | News - City
The residents of the Northcotepura, where the Tata Motors’ Nano car plant is coming up, have alleged that they have been asked by the state government to vacate their generation-old residences.
The land belongs to the state government and is used by employees of the Anand Agricultural University (AAU). The village is on revenue record of Ahmedabad ...

State MPs to lobby with Centre for rly projects 22-10-2008 | News - City
The state government has issued a circular to its MPs and state ministers containing a list of proposed railway projects that need the central government’s ministry’s approval, with a view to get the central legislators to take
up the issue with the Union railway ministry. The circular details projects that would contribute towards that state’s development ...

Trust seeks money for Morarji memorial land 22-10-2008 | News - City
Former Prime Minister Morarji Desai was cremated on a plot of land near the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad. A monument in Desai’s memory was later created on this piece of land which came to be known as Abhay
Ghat. However, even 12 years after giving the land worth Rs 1 crore to the government for setting up the memorial...

S G Road is no Highway 21-10-2008 | News - Latest
The S G Road and the Naroda-Narol route should not be called highways, according to the state government. The government says due to rapid development in the city, these two routes are like any other busy Ahmedabad
stretch and the highways should be re-routed. It has also been suggested that the 200-feet Ring Road that encircles ...

AAU sows last paddy crop in Sanand 21-10-2008 | News - City
This is the last time, the famous rice brand — Anubhav — has been sown in Northcotepura. With Nano project rolling into Sanand, it will displace 50 acres of paddy and wheat fields owned by Anand Agricultural
University (AAU). These fields produce at least 1.25 lakh kilogrammes of modified seeds. The land will be handed over to the Tatas ...

Kankreji bulls vacate shelter for Nano 20-10-2008 | News - City
With the Nano project coming up in Sanand, the world’s best bulls are now searching for a new shelter. The North Cote Cattle Breeding farm, owned by Anand Agricultural University (AAU), will soon be transferred from
North Cotepur to some other place in the state. The farm was established in 1899-1900 in Chharodi to preserve and maintain ...

Narmada water a pipe dream for state’s farmers 18-10-2008 | News - City
Narmada water is currently a pipe dream for a larger number of farmers in the state. This, not because the river water is not adequate enough but because the canal network laying has not been completed yet. According to
the plan, the Narmada canal will extend 74,626 km across nooks and corners of the state, but till date work on a mere 18,078 km has been done. The entire network should have been l...

Nano land: Officials struggle for relevant papers 17-10-2008 | News - City

About 115 years after the British formulated the land acquisition Act in 1894, its provisions have turned full circle and come back to the present day dispensation. Invoking the provisions of the law that entailed acquiring land on long lease i.e. 99 years, farmers of Khoda village of Sanand taluka have contended that leasing land does not amount to relinquishing ...

Nano land to cost Tatas Rs 900 a sq m 16-10-2008 | News - City

The state Cabinet in its on Wednesday meeting decided to transfer 1,100 cares of land at Sanand to Tatas for the Nano plant for Rs 900 a square metre. The entire parcel will fetch the government Rs 400.65 crore. The deal requires Tata Motors to pay up the price in instalments over eight years. In case of delay in payment, the company ...

Pay deficit amount of stamp duty, Reliance told 16-10-2008 | News - City

The Jamnagar district administration has issued notices to Reliance Industries in Jamnagar to pay up deficit of Rs 2.7 crore as stamp duty on four plots it bought to expand the refinery in 2007. Reliance officials denied received the notices. The state government had allotted land from the Kanaloos, Padana, Moti Khavdi ...

Rani ki Vav has its sight trained on UNESCO list 15-10-2008 | News - City

Patan’s Rani ki Vav is making a bid for World Heritage status. And, to give this attempt a push, the Archaeological Survey of India along with CEPT held a workshop on ‘Rani ki Vav as a potential World Heritage Site’ at the CEPT campus in Ahmedabad. The two-day workshop, also attended by UNESCO officials, came to an end on Tuesday....

Did ‘bug biscuit’ factoray use banned colours? 15-10-2008 | News - City

The colours found in a biscuit factory, M R Foods, which was closed down by health officials on Sunday, are ‘banned’ under the food safety laws, says a civic official. “The colours used in the factory for manufacturing biscuits and confectioneries are inedible,” the official, who didn’t want to be named, said.
“They are synthetic and dying colours...

To solve land dispute, govt meets farmers and royalty 14-10-2008 | News - City

A week after the government handed over land to the Tatas for the Nano project, there seems to be a battle brewing between the farmers, who are claiming compensation for their land or return of their land, and Prince Jayshivsinh Vaghela (better known as Tikabapu) who claims it is his land. To resolve the land issue amicably ...

YOUR BISCUIT HAS A WORM! 13-10-2008 | News - Latest

Those cheap confectioneries you buy for your children may actually leave a sour effect on their health. Officials of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) on Sunday closed down a factory, M R Foods, in Naroda GIDC after they found their products — biscuits, sugar candies and chocolates — were being manufactured in unhygienic conditions....

Devotee to donate 12th century idol to c 13-10-2008 | News - City

Donations to temples have always been in cash and kind, but few as priceless as the one a city-based antiques collector plans to hand over. Ardent devotee Bhaskar Dave will donate a priceless idol from the 11th century that is sure to the newest attraction in Swaminarayan temple at Akshardham. Dave says the rare idol from the Solanki era ...

Notice to revenue secy on Nano land dispute 11-10-2008 | News - City

A group of farmers from Khoda village near Sanand have issued a notice to the revenue department to seek possession of the land earmarked for the Nano project claiming they are its rightful owners following the end of the lease period. The group, comprising 23 farmers, claim that their forefathers had given a stretch ...

Nano’s big link with Rajkot 10-10-2008 | News - City

The Tatas’ decision to move the Nano project to Gujarat has led to much cheer in the state, especially in Rajkot. No doubt, the project is bound to benefit Gujarat in many ways. Even if the Rs 1-lakh car had not come to Gujarat, there was no dispute that many critical parts, which will make the dream car zoom would have been made in Rajkot — the engineering ...

Thakore-Kshatriya Samaj to worship weapons today 09-10-2008 | News - City

Dusshera, the festival that marks the triumph of good over evil, will be celebrated on Thursday. On the occasion, the Thakore-Kshatriya Samaj of north and central Gujarat will take an oath to give up bad habits like tobacco consumption and drinking. They will perform a shastra puja on the auspicious day at the Town Hall.
“We will perform puja...

Nano plant on disputed land? 09-10-2008 | News - City

The Tata’s Nano project in Gujarat isn’t going to come without its share of land disputes. A group of farmers of Khoda village in Sanand taluka claim that the stretch of land where the plant is proposed to be set up belonged to them before it was given to the British on 99 years’ lease for an annual rent of Rs 800 in 1902. With that lease tenure ...

Women’s super-tonic gets a boost 07-10-2008 | News - City

Undergoing menopause or delivered a baby? Chances are your amma will whisk out that bottle of Dashamularishtam — the magic cure for most ‘womanly troubles’. Made of 10 herbs, as the name suggests, it is used across the country as a super-tonic by women. Such high demand has led to over-exploitation of plant resources. In fact, over-harvesting ...

Tata MD, Modi to meet today 07-10-2008 | News - Latest

In what could be the beginning of the Nano journey, Tata Motors’ MD Ravi Kant is scheduled to arrive in Gujarat on Tuesday. The Tata Group MD will hold a press conference jointly with Chief Minister Narendra Modi at 4.30 pm, although no official word is out on whether they will hold the meet in Gandhinagar or Ahmedabad.
The occasion holds...

GOOD KARMA DRIVING NANO TO AMDAVAD? 06-10-2008 | News - Latest

If Ratan Tata takes into account good karma and auspiciousness while deciding where to shift the Nano car project from Singur, he need not look much beyond Ahmedabad.For, his great-grandfather and founder of the House of Tata, Jamsetji Tata, had sowed the seeds of piety more than 100 years ago on the very land that the state government has offered ...

‘Tata’s grandpa did a pious thing for this land. It will bring him luck’ 06-10-2008 | News - City

We couldn’t help this cliche: Singur’s loss is definitely Sanand’s gain. Even before Ratan Tata gave his nod to the state government’s offer of giving Tata Motors 922 hectares at Chharodi and Charal villages of Sanand district for the Nano project, the villagers in Gujarat are already celebrating. Dreams of economic stability which they hope ...

Water meant for farms used to produce power 04-10-2008 | News - City

Narmada water meant to be used for irrigation purposes is being diverted to the power station at Sardar Sarovar Dam, according to sources. While the government claims the Sardar Sarovar Hydro power station produces 44.35 mega watt (443 crore units) electricity, experts say if the water is left in the canal itself, it could benefit the state more. ...

Builder to pay Rs 16 crore for evading duty 03-10-2008 | News - City

A city builder, Ashish Patel, has been served a notice by the deputy collector of the Jamnagar stamp duty assessment office, asking him to pay up Rs 16.43 crore as stamp duty and penalty. Patel, a resident of Sardar Patel Colony in Naranpura and co-owner of Radhe Developers, has been served the notice for evasion of duty on purchase ...
‘Face truth’s consequences’ 03-10-2008 | News - City

Gandhiji talked about the importance of loyalty in a marriage. Considering she has publicly accepted her mistake, she should be given another chance, which her husband has rightly granted her...

State govt roped in officials to collect donations for I-Day fete 02-10-2008 | News - City

That the government’s pet projects are funded by donations from businessmen is an open secret, but now there is hard evidence that government machinery is indeed used for the purpose.
An RTI application filed recently revealed that the state government had drafted the administration for the extra- constitutional task. Information got in ...

Know your MLA 01-10-2008 | News - City
You know his name is Narendra Modi. You know he is a BJP member elected from 77, Maninagar constituency. But did you that the Chief Minister of Gujarat lists social service as his occupation, or that he has an MA in political science? If not, then turn to the Who’s Who of the Gujarat Assembly which tells you everything you wanted to know about your MLAs ...

Corrupt practices cost state hundreds of crores: CAG 30-09-2008 | News - City
The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report on government revenue was tabled in the Assembly on Monday points out that the state has been losing thousands of crores by way of irregularities in collection of direct and indirect taxes and non-tax revenue. Irregularities occur by way of corruption, inadvertent errors in calculating figures and deliberate ...

A’bad the most corrupt of state’s cities 30-09-2008 | News - City
The major cities of the state contribute large sums of revenue to the state exchequer, but they also play host to corrupt officials and businessmen who deny it large chunks of money. According to the Vigilance Commission report tabled in Assembly on Monday, the list of most-corrupt cities was headed by Ahmedabad city and rural where 118 and 31 cases ...

Police worst human rights ABUSERS 27-09-2008 | News - Latest
The police are the worst violators of human rights in Gujarat, says a State Human Rights Commission report.The cops have more complaints of rights violations registered against them than any other government department not only in the city but across the entire state, the report says....

‘KILLER’ LIC OFFICER GETS 5 YRS IN JAIL 24-09-2008 | News - Latest
A Bhavnagar-based Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India official, who faked certificates to show three policy holders as dead and robbed them worth Rs 2.7 lakh, was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment by a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court number three in Mirzapur here on Tuesday.
...
Khadi returns to Gandhi Ashram after 28 years 24-09-2008 | News - City
About 90 years after his great grandfather initiated Mohandas Gandhi into manufacturing khadi at Sabarmati Ashram, Dhimant Badhiya has taken the lead to revive the practice discontinued about 28 years ago. “The idea is not to let the younger generation forget our legacy. Khadi played a major role in our struggle for freedom...

Warning Gujarat slept on 23-09-2008 | News - Latest
The state government had information about the July 26 blasts accused way back in March but the authorities slept over it, claimed the opposition Congress party. The central Intelligence Bureau had forwarded to the Gujarat Crime Branch a statement of SIMI boss Safdar Nagori, made before the Madhya Pradesh police, said the party....

Centre wary of GUJCOC’s draconian provisions 23-09-2008 | News - City
A Gujarat home department note detailing the stringent provisions of GUJCOC that give limitless freedom to the police to act against persons involved in organised crime may hold the reasons for the Centre dithering in giving its assent to the Bill.Chief minister Narendra Modi may have upped his ante demanding immediate approval of the Bill...

‘Mujavar’ exploits teenager, fathers illegitimate child 22-09-2008 | News - City
A baby born to a teenage girl out of wedlock was branded by villagers as a ‘child of the Jinns’ in an attempt to hush up the matter and avoid police complaint.Unmarried girl Farzana delivered a baby girl in early September in Devadi village of Talala Gir in Junagadh district. The girl’s parents refused to believe she had physical relations ...

Satellite images paint grim picture of Saurashtra 22-09-2008 | News - City
Torrential rain in Saurashtra has turned the region into a virtual island. Satellite images show that around 12,000 sq km of area in Saurashtra has been badly affected by the heavy downpour. Moreover, most agricultural land in the region is submerged in water. Homes have been flooded, and people have to wade through waist-high water.
...
Hardly vibrant, industrial output declines 22-09-2008 | News - City
Despite three consecutive Vibrant Gujarat summits held to attract investments in the state, industrial production in Gujarat is declining steadily,” said the office of commissioner of industries, Gandhinagar.According to sources, the government claims the state has received investments totalling about Rs 6.7 lakh crore in the form of memorandums of understanding (MoUs) ...

Special panel to study terrorist activities in Guj 18-09-2008 | News - City
The state home department has formed a special co-ordination committee to study and analyse terrorist incidents that took place in the state and the country in last three years.Official sources said the committee was set up on September 11 under the chairmanship of Balvant Singh, principal secretary, home, and consisting of nine other members. State director general of police PC Pande and aditiona...

Sniffing danger for Modi 12-09-2008 | News - City
He’s a key member of Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s security squad for the last eight years! Meet Bhoju, a labrador, who daily routine includes a meticulous check inside the chief minister’s office and residence for explosives. At 11, Bhoju is one of the oldest dogs in the Gujarat Police squad, but he is also regarded the best in the pack. Said ...

After much ado, the rollback 11-09-2008 | News - City
It will not be implemented. A day after stating that it had got nothing to do with The Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board’s decision on open book system, the state government on Wednesday said that the format will not be implemented. That was it, at least at the press conference called at Gandhinagar by Jaynarayan Vyas, ...

BJP rebels float new 11-09-2008 | News - City
Rebel BJP leaders on Wednesday floated a new political outfit ‘MahaGujarat Janata Party’. The outfit’s president Gordhan Zadaphia said his party aimed to take become an effective alternative to BJP and Congress in the state. “We are here as an alternative to the BJP and the Congress,” Gordhan Zadaphia, former minister who ...

Nothing loo-dicrous about GANDHI’S toilet 11-09-2008 | News - City
Mahatma Gandhi once said: Sanitation is more important than independence. And when tourists visited his famous Sabarmati ashram, guess what they found missing? The loo! The original toilet — a mobile one, no less — was taken apart 22 years ago by the then management as they felt it would spoil the Ashram’s ambience. To remedy this, ...

It doesn’t work 10-09-2008 | News - City

Top: The Nutan Vidyalaya School in Bareja which began testing the new format in 2004. Principal David Patel(above) says the results speak for themselves. Students have flunked in subjects they once topped in. The records of marks scored during the mock exams have plenty of numbers unde...

CBI set to come up with second office at Vadodara 09-09-2008 | News - City

In the wake of serial blasts and spurt in export and trade activities in the industrial towns of the Golden Corridor, the Central Bureau of Investigation is all set to come up with its second office in the state, at Vadodara. The CBI’s state headquarters is located at Gandhinagar. A proposal regarding the same was sent to the Personnel and Training ...

Feisty 63-yr-old fights off TB with ayurveda 09-09-2008 | News - City

Jyotsna Shah, who until recently was suffering from multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB), approached several doctors — including five in her family — for treatment, but returned home grim-faced. The doctors, though willing to offer help, gave her only one answer: you are living on borrowed time. However, the tenacious 63-year-old has proven ...

Cong counters Modi, Advani’s terror charges 05-09-2008 | News - City

The Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) on Thursday called a press conference on Thursday to counter the BJP’s allegations that the government was going soft on terror. BJP leader L K Advani and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi had at a press conference in New Delhi on Wednesday asked the Centre to re-enact the Prevention ...

Ahmedabad ‘god’ held in Junagadh 04-09-2008 | News - City
The police arrested a self-proclaimed godman, Mahendra Ram Chauhan, from a farmhouse in Talala near Junagadh on Wednesday on sexual harassment charges. Chauhan, 38, has been accused of ‘misbehaving’ with women who approach him to get treated for various diseases.It has been alleged that Chauhan, who tells people that he ...

Nail painter 03-09-2008 | News - City
Ganeshostav is round the corner and the market is flooded with Ganesha art. Paintings and idols all vie for attention, and in the rush to be different, artist Bhati N has hit it right on the nail. He uses his thumbnail to creating paintings of Ganesha, and he is probably the only one in the country to dabble in ‘nail art’. While regular painters use...

Buchanan sir, we are ready 02-09-2008 | News - Sports
After the successful completion of selection trials in Mumbai and Delhi, the Kolkata Knight Riders caravan has moved into the city.
The prospect of playing for Knight Riders in the next IPL season has the youngsters excited and they are anxiously awaiting the Talent Hunt to being on Tuesday. With the likes of Yusuf Pathan, Ravindra Jadeja, ...

‘Renovation’ of well at ashram riles Gandhians 02-09-2008 | News - City
The decision of Sabarmati Ashram’s management to ‘refurbish’ a 93-year-old well near Hridaykung has rankled some Gandhians, who say the structure should not be tampered with as it has great historical importance. They say Mahatma Gandhi had insisted on the construction of the well. In fact, Gandhiji, and several other national and world ...

ELECTRIC SHOCK FOR JAMNAGAR MARINE PARK 30-08-2008 | News - Latest
If the Gujarat Electricity Board (GEB) has its way, the fabulous corals and fish at the Marine National Park in the Gulf of Kutch would be destroyed. In a proposal, which will be forwarded to the government for approval by the officials of the state wildlife department on September 1, the GEB-affiliated Western Gujarat Electricity Company wants ...

Infocity promoters threaten to move court over rent 30-08-2008 | News - City
The acrimonious dispute between Gujarat government undertaking Gujarat Informatics Ltd (GIL) and promoters of Infocity, Creative Infocity Limited (CIL), seems to be headed for the courts.
The GIL has charged CIL with non-payment of rent as part of its 5 per cent share from Infocity revenue. The CIL rejects the allegations claiming ...

Paresh ban gaya Salim 29-08-2008 | News - City
What’s in a name? A lot, at least for the office secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) state headquarters in Khanpur.
Paresh Patel, who manages the party’s Khanpur office for the last 15 years, was so enraged over the fact that the office sweeper’s name also happened to be Paresh, he passed orders to address the worker as Salim!...

Owner of ‘shrunk Macbeth’ receives a deluge of calls 27-08-2008 | News - City
One of the first things Prabhaben, the wife of Ratilal Mandalik, did on Tuesday morning was to put a book owned by her husband in a safe. You, too, would have done the same if you had known that the book’s value is in lakhs. The book Prabhaben kept in a safe is three centimetres wide, five centimetres long and weighs 16 gm. More importantly, the ...

SHAKESPEARE SHRUNK 26-08-2008 | News - Latest
Should Christie’s or Sotheby’s roll out a fat cheque to lay their hands on this one? A city teacher has in his possession since the last 33 years, perhaps the tiniest version of Macbeth — one of William Shakespeare’s greatest tragic play. The play is squeezed in a book, which its owner claims is around 200 years old, measuring three ...

Threat to blow up Ambaji Temple 23-08-2008 | News - City
Chilling memories of the Akshardham temple attack were revived after one of the state’s most revered and oldest temples, the Ambaji Mandir, received a letter threatening a series of blasts on Friday. The police, thrown in a tizzy all of a sudden, were quick to react and reached the spot with a sizeable force, scanned the temple and eventually ...

Tantra tangle relieves family of life’s savings 23-08-2008 | News - City
The believers and the practitioners of ‘tantra’ swear by it even as rationalists pooh-pooh it as hocus-pocus. But tales of deceit, exploitation and disappointment that come to light from time to time remind one the of futility of reposing trust in ‘tantra’ or black magic. The predicament of the gullible like the Rathods, who spent their life’s savings in search ...

A first in 50 years: An animal expo at Vautha 22-08-2008 | News - City
The state government has decided to organise a three-day animal expo at the world-famous Tarnetar Mela in September. The expo will be on the lines of Vautha fair, where trading of donkeys takes place.Last year, at least seven lakh people thronged to the Tarnetar fair held near Chotila. This is the first time after the merger of Saurashtra ...

MODI’S WEEKEND PLAN: A FILM ON TERRORISM WITH ANUPAM KHER 22-08-2008 | News - Latest
Chief Minister Narendra Modi is not a movie buff, but veteran actor Anupam Kher has managed to convince him to watch his latest film on terrorism, Wednesday. Obviously honoured at Modi’s nod of approval, Kher, who plays Mumbai’s police commissioner in the movie, will fly down to Ahmedabad on Saturday for the screening, which will take place the ...

Sleaze overflows from Asaram ashram’s underground chambers 15-08-2008 | News - City
The CID (Crime) raid on the Asaram ashram on Wednesday has unearthed 10 underground chambers in the premises. The sleaze that went on in there will be brought out only after the investigation agency completes its probe, but some disciples from the ashram have already decided to let the public gaze in on the dirt inside after they felt cheated in ...

CID DENIED ACCESS TO ASARAM’S CHAMBER 14-08-2008 | News - Latest
Minders of Asaram Bapu’s Motera ashram refused to let a CID team that raided the ashram premises enter the godman’s kutir on Wednesday despite the cops demanding access to his chambers.
The cops, however, examined about ten chambers in the ashram’s basement but didn’t find any evidence that can prove that tantra-mantra activities take ...

GUJARAT TO GET 10,000 MORE COPS 13-08-2008 | News - Latest
For a tired, worn-out and completely out-of-shape Gujarat police force, this is just what the doctor ordered — some fresh blood.
The state government, shaken by the July 26 serial blasts and the severe manpower crunch faced in policing the city in their aftermath, has decided to recruit 10,000 more men and women in the police force....

IB Director meets DGP to discuss security 12-08-2008 | News - Latest
Intelligence Bureau Director PC Haldar made a surprise visit to Gujarat on Monday. He held a private meeting with DGP PC Pande, Gujarat IB chief P P Pande and top IB officials to discuss involvement of terror outfits in Gujarat blast case. He even sought details from these officials. His visit is being considered very important considering the police officials have not yet made a breakthrough in t...

ATs to get 39 officers in a few days 09-08-2008 | News - Latest
Stung by the fact that the Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) is not involved in the probe of the July 26 blasts in Ahmedabad due to lack of officers, the government has ordered an immediate filling up of 39 vacant posts in the ATS. Once empowered with sweeping powers, the ATS was allotted a staff of 77 officials but today, 39 posts are lying vacant....

State to upgrade its intelligence and police 09-08-2008 | News - City
The serial blasts in Ahmedabad and recovery of bombs in Surat seem to have woken up the state home department into improve state intelligence and police services. Reliable sources in the department said that the measures are being taken after an analysis of the state security system. Vacancies in the intelligence bureau will be filled with...

‘The bomber rolled down the window. It was dark, I could not see his face’ 07-08-2008 | News - Latest
He could be the eyewitness the police are seeking desperately to get to the masterminds of the July 26 serial blasts. A security guard at LG Hospital had talked to the driver of the car that later blew up in a parking lot on the evening of July 26, killing four persons and injuring 30. Guard Pritambhai Koshti told the Crime Branch on Tuesday that...

itterati have a blast at Rupala’s party 07-08-2008 | News - City
All roads led to the big bash at Karnavati Club’s Golden Glory hall. The occasion was the grand engagement ceremony of Jigar, the son of state BJP president Purushottam Rupala, with Sheetal Patel. The who’s who of politics (yes, Mr CM did pay a visit) and industry were there. Adding Page 3 flavour to the opulence were folk artistes and

Poll panel notifies
new civic wards Objections could be raised with State Election Commission in 10 days

DI L I P PATEL

The State Election Commission
(SEC) has issued a notification
increasing the number of wards
in the city to 64 from its present
43. Accordingly, the number of councillors
to be elected in the Ahmedabad
Municipal Corporation election scheduled
for October this year will be 192.
Commission Secretary P N Shah
said, “We have carried out the delimitation
of wards on the basis of population.
According to the census conducted
in 2001, population in 64 wards
was 45 lakh. We have tried to divide
the population equally in each ward,
but there could be 10 per cent variation.
Each ward will have about 77,000
people as against about 63,000 earlier.”
The increase in the number of wards
will also result in corresponding increase
in the number of corporators to
192 from the earlier 139. There is a provision
of 33 per cent reservation for
women. Accordingly, at least 64
women will get elected to the civic
body.
The new wards are mostly the 30
gram panchayats and 19 municipalities
that were merged with AMC three
years ago. They are: Gota, Chandlodia,
Kali, Chandkhera, Ranip, Ghatlodia,
Bodakdev, Noblenagar, Meghaninagar,
Bodekdev 2, Sarkhej, Jodhpur, Ambawadi,
India Colony, Krushnnagar,
Viratnagar, Vejalpur, Akahbarnagar,
Vastral, Mahavirnagar, Lambha, Isanpur,
Ghodasar and Ramol.
Three wards have been merged with
the existing wards of Gandhigram,
Potaliya and Baghefirdaus.
If any person has any question, objection
or suggestion, he or she can
write to the commission office at
Gandhinagar Sachivalaya, Block No. 9
within 10 days, the notification said.
After 10 days, the commission will
issue the final notification. A fresh voters
list will be compiled by the collector
office in about three months. For
the first time, the voters list will include
photos of the voters.
Also for the first time, voters will
have an option of e-voting. the commission
has already issued tenders for
developing the entire system and software
for e-voting.
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NO PULP FICTION THIS: MANGO THAT WEIGHS 1.6 KG!



Navsari Agricultural University has grown on its campus mangoes weighing five times more than normal yield

Anand varsity produces Kuchi dates using tissue culture




DILIP PATEL




The Navsari Agricultural University (NAU) has grown a hybrid variety of mangoes each weighing up to a staggering 1,600 gm, or 1.6 kg. Normally, mangoes weigh between 150 and 300 gm.
The vice-chancellor of the varsity, A R Pathak, on Monday delivered a box of the ‘bulky’ mangoes to State Agriculture Minister Dileep Sanghani, who will send them to the chief minister.
“There are two mango trees on our campus. This year’s yield is their first,” Pathak said. “The mangoes that they have produced are each 18 to 22 cm long.” Each tree, he said, had produced more than 120 kg of the summer fruit.
“Our mangoes are not very sweet, which makes them the ideal ingredient for pickles,” Pathak said.
Apart from NAU, the Anand Agricultural University (AAU) also showed its “wonder yield” to Sanghani. AAU has produced Kutchi dates using tissue culture techniques. The university claims this is the first time in India that this variety of dates has been produced using tissue culture methods.
“To grow such dates, we began an extensive research in 2000. After 10 years, our efforts have bore fruit,” the vice-chancellor of the institute, M C Varshneya, said. There are 2,000 date plants on AAU’s campus. Varshneya said that they produce 5,000 Kutchi dates a year.
“With the help of methods we have used, these dates can be grown even in Saurashtra and north Gujarat,” he said. “Many farmers import date plants, each costing Rs 3,000, from Arabian countries. By using methods we have employed, they will be able to save this money.”
Dates produced by AAU have low fibre content and have a rich colour (see picture). The varsity says they can be used for preparing wine.
“For the first time in India, Kutchi dates have been grown using tissue culture. Such techniques will help increase date output,” the state agriculture minister said. These type of dates are most sought after in Mumbai and Ahmedabad.
People who have tasted the variety produced by AAU said that dates were not only sweet, but also soft. “One rarely gets to see such good variety of the fruit,” Bhavna Patel said.
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PHEW!



Just three more days of this sweltering heat


DILIP PATEL




Respite from searing heat is round the corner. A cyclone is brewing in the Arabain Sea that will usher in rain and squally wind in the state’s coastal districts. Lower temperature in Ahmedabad will be the offshoot, say experts.
Mercury that breached 45 degrees Celsius and killed 55 in the city over the past few days will dip to around 36 degrees on June 3. After that the cyclonic storm and the imminent monsoon will ensure the mercury stays below 40 degrees.

JUNE 3



• Cyclone building in Arabian Sea, around 1,000 km from Mumbai

• Met dept officials say depression in the sea likely to hit south
Gujarat and Saurashtra coast on June 3, bringing with it rains

JUNE 2


• City will see 40 °C for the last time this summer on this date

JUNE 3, 4, 5


• Thundershowers predicted in city, chances of rain on these days: 60% Max temp: 36, 34, 38 respectively

Rain to visit state by June 3: Weatherman


Says Ashok Patel, the director of the state’s first private weather station Ring Road, “On Thursday and Friday, temperature will go down by up to four degrees due to clouds. If it rains temperature will slide down further.”
Patel’s forecast was reaffirmed by the US weather web site www.weather.com which had correctly predicted mercury hitting 46.8 degrees in the city on May 21. The site forecast temperature rising to 38 degrees on June 5 but said it would stay well below for the rest of the summer.
An ISRO scientist, earlier attached with the weather bureau, said it is natural for the temperature to fall due to formation of cloud as it cuts the sunrays.
“You can expect the temperature to fall by up to four degrees Celsius, thanks to the cyclonic clouds,” he said.
According to Indian Meteorological Department, coastal Gujarat is likely to experience rain in the next three days and with monsoon arriving in Kerala on Monday people in Gujarat can expect rains soon.
Latest satellite imageries and surface observations indicate the formation of a depression in the Arabian Sea about 1050 km southwest of Mumbai and 1050 km south-southwest of Naliya in Kutch at 5.30 pm on Monday. The depression was moving northwestward and likely to hit South Gujarat and Saurashtra coast on June 3 after correcting its course.
“The current environmental condition and numerical weather prediction (NWP) models suggest that the system would intensify gradually into a cyclonic storm and continue to move initially in a northwesterly direction for the next 48 hours and then recurve northeastwards towards Gujarat and adjoining Pakistan coast,” the Indian Meteorological Department said in its weather bulletin on Monday evening.
The system will usher in fairly widespread rainfall with very heavy rain at some places over the coastal Gujarat on June 3. Squally winds with speed reaching 55 kmph would hit the coast a day earlier, the met report said.
The state disaster management authority has taken note of the bulletin and alerted collectors of the coastal district.
Said Sanjay Joshi, the CEO of the Gujarat State Disaster Control Room, “The Met Department has warned of a cyclone. Even if the intensity of the cyclone lessens, Saurashtra and south Gujarat will experience heavy rain under its influence. The IMD warning has been forwarded to the districts and all collectors concerned have been alerted.”
The IMD bulletin also warned of very rough seas along and off the Gujarat coast from June 2 and advised fishermen not to venture into the sea during that period.
After a year of drought, the eagerly-awaited seasonal monsoon rains have reached Kerala, the weather office said.
“South-west monsoon has reached Kerala and we expect it to cover coastal Karnataka within a day,” Ajit Tyagi, IMD Director General announced in New Delhi earlier in the day.
However, Tyagi said due to the storm brewing in the Arabian Sea, the progression of the monsoon was expected to be along the western coast and interior parts of the peninsula would get rains later.
The onset of monsoon over Kerala sets the stage for the fourmonth rainy season. The IMD has forecast normal monsoon rains for the season beginning June 1.
A good monsoon could help in sowing of rice, sugarcane, soybean and corn and lead to a rebound in the agricultural output.
The current environmental condition and numerical weather prediction (NWP) models suggest that the system would intensify gradually into a cyclonic storm and continue to move initially in a northwesterly direction for the next 48 hours and then recurve northeastwards towards Gujarat and adjoining Pakistan coast
– the Indian Meteorological Department
You can expect the temperature to fall by up to four degrees Celsius, thanks to cyclonic clouds which cuts the sunrays
– An ISRO scientist
On Thursday and Friday, temperature will go down by up to four degrees due to clouds. If it rains, the temperature will slide down further
– Ashok Patel, the director of the state’s first private weather station Ring Road
----------------
Big B visits Kala Dungar, feeds foxes at temple



Bollywood icon now heads for Gir after shooting in Kutch for three days


AHMEDABAD MIRROR BUREAU




Concerned with the lack of greenery in Kutch, Amitabh Bachchan on Sunday contributed his mite by planting a sapling at main town of Bhuj. Sunday was the last day for Big B in Kutch where he was shooting an advertisement for Gujarat’s Tourism Department. Bachchan spent most of the time at Kala Dungar, a hill off Bhuj city.
Bachchan attended a Forest Department function and planted a sapling there. He said there should be more plantation drives to increase the green cover.
He also offered his prayers at Duttatreya temple at Kala Dungar, and distributed prasad to foxes, a tradition at the temple. The priest of the temple makes a special sound hearing which foxes from nearby areas assemble at the temple and have prasad given by him.
Bachchan also took a look at the Indo-Pak border through a binocular. He saw an Indian checkpost of the Border Security Force which was 25 km away and the India Bridge which is the way to go to the border. Later in the evening, he started shooting on the life of Kutch villagers after which he left for Gir in Junagadh district.

BIG B’S BLOG

DAY 768 SocialTwist Tell-a-Friend Posted on: May 30, 2010 - 1:01 am
Bhuj, Gujarat. Damn ! the alarm did not go off at the appointed hour and that had severe repercussions ! Charged off as I was to the shoot ! Nothing embarrassingly wrong with that, but still ..
It was still dark as we steadily made our way through barren roads. The police pilot GP flashing its orange rotator light ahead and behind, more security - we are just a ‘rann’ away from the Pak territory !! Moon was out shining at 6 in the morning and the entire region looked surreal. There is something uncanny about nothingness. That is what one felt as one strutted about on the salt laden muddy terrain, the wind so harsh even the vanity van shook and quivered.
Within a couple of hours around 8 am it was beginning to indicate to us what the rest of the day would be like in the sun, and the very thought of it was frightening. So we did what was best done. Wrapped for the morning to assemble again by the evening. And so we did and so we did. The normal general look and then the traditional as far as the clothing goes.
The script flew away from my hands as I was reading it and a couple of unit hands sillily ran after it as it bounced away at rapid speed. It was a strange site.A white stark bunch of papers flying off ahead chased by a couple of unit hands, until they became a tiny spot in the horizon and still no where near catching up with the sheet of paper. Until …smart production incharge Mr Kumar did his deed for the day - got on to a bike, readily accessible there as the only machine transport allowed on the Rann and drove off behind paper.
We looked at this site with great amusement and jeered as this chase kept unfolding in front of us, wary of course with the fact that any longer and paper and Kumar would become prized possessions of Pakistan !! We are really just 60 kilometers away from the border… and it can be seen across the Rann !!
That over, shoot over, we are back in the room and turning in early for tomorrow on another early start. In schedule and somewhat satisfied with the results the crew seemed content.The ladies looked less worried.The director, Shoojit of Johnny Mastana fame, gave his typical reserved look and the decorated camels pounced about in the breeze. Breeze or strong wind was incessant but not quite as strong as in Jomsom in Nepal when we were shooting for Khuda Gawah. That wind was awesome. You could actually lie back on it while standing and catch a few winks !! Incredible !!
Power ’s gone off !! Will post and slumber and remember in the number ..
Breathe in the Rann of Kutch !! Come breathe in a bit of Gujarat !
Avo jo !!
Amitabh Bachchan



T13: Just back from a grueling day of some really interesting shoot.. will fill you in asap ..how to put pics on tweet ?
T12: Following request from follower changed background image.. this is Kuch chi dress from Gujarat, where I shoot for their tourism promo
T12: In the Rann a man, a common man, now famous in his own right - he teaches and educates young girls through his own resource..incredible

-------------
AIR EMPLOYEE ASSAULTS COLLEAGUE IN OFFICE



Yogesh Pandya alleges in his complaint that Amul Ahuja also threatened to kill him in front of staff members


AHMEDABAD MIRROR BUREAU




Asenior official of All India Radio has filed a complaint of assault and threat to life against a news reader.
According to the complaint to the Navrangpura police by Yogesh Pandya, news reader Amul Ahuja beat him up, hurled abuses at him in front of members on the staff, broke his chair without any provocation and threatened to kill him.
Pandya heads the Regional News Unit of All India Radio, Ahmedabad.
Ahuja, who Pandya said was transferred from Delhi, shares office with him at All India Radio office at Income Tax Circle.

WHEN IT ALL BEGAN

ON MAY 27, Ahuja picked up a quarrel with Pandya when Pandya intervened in an office routine.
There was no peon in the office as it was a holiday. Pandya asked fellow Sindhi language news reader Heena Agnani to fetch news faxed from Delhi so that it could be translated in Sindhi.
Ahuja allegedly stopped Agnani from doing so and assaulted Pandya.

‘HE ABUSED ME’

“HE ALSO hurled abuses at me and said that he had come from Delhi and would kill me without anyone noticing it,” Pandya said in his complaint in faxed to the Navrangpura police in Gujarati.
According to Pandya, Ahuja had quarrelled with him in April, too, after he demanded joining report from the former.
The latter had joined duty on April 11, but not submitted the same. However, as Ahuja apologised for the incident, Pandya did not file any complaint.
Pandya claimed that he had informed the Director General of News from New Delhi of the incident and had obtained his sanction to file the FIR.
---------------
DANDI HERITAGE ROUTE PROJECT


Valsad village wants inclusion



Four people died, 450 were injured in salt satyagraha that Gandhi planned at Dharasana soon after Dandi event


DILIP PATEL




The people of Dharasana, a village associated with Gandhi’s Salt Satyagraha, are demanding its inclusion in the Central government’s Dandi heritage route project. They have formed a trust that also wants the government to renovate the structures that have survived since the colonial days.
Four people had died and about 450 were injured in an event that Gandhi planned at Dharasana in Valsad district as a follow-up to the defiance of the infamous Salt Act at Dandi.
Dharasana, a village of about 700 people, was the hotspot after Dandi. Soon after breaking the Act that prohibited people from making salt, Gandhi announced that the satyagrahis or volunteers would take control of the stock of salt at the government factory at Dharasana, about 22 km away.
Gandhi assigned the leadership of the seizure event to Sarojini Naidu and wrote a letter to the British government informing it of the volunteers’ intention. However, Gandhi and many of his followers were arrested on May 5 at Karadi where he had stayed for about three weeks after the Dandi event.
Naidu, who was in Kolkata those days, arrived at Dharasana on May 14, 1930, to lead the agitation, but she was arrested the very next day at the village as nearly 2000 people assembled at the small village.
Imam Abdul Qadir Bavjir took over the leadership and went ahead with the seizure programme on May 21. A total of 897 villagers and volunteers formed several groups and marched to the factory.
The cops welcomed them with a hail of canes, killing three of them and injuring about 450. The cops let amok their horses who crushed many volunteers under their hooves. As many as 40 people became unconscious after getting seriously injured. One of them died at the hospital the next day, taking the death roll four — Bhailalbhai Patel (Kheda), Bholabhai Nayak (Navsari), Narottam Patel (Surat) and Hulla (Solapur).
Says Mahesh Kothari, 73-year-old Gandhian and chairman of Dandi Meetha Satyagraha Trust, “Dharasana should be included in the heritage route project because the village is an inalienable part of the Dandi March. The villagers and the volunteers presented to the world the perfect display of Gandhian way of protest: bear the worst assault but don’t react violently.”
Dandi heritage route is a centrally-funded project that envisages connecting Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, from where Gandhi began his Salt March, to Dandi in March 1930. The project includes, widening of road and creating memorials to the events associated with the march.

--------------------
DON GETS INTO ACTION
Big B begins shooting for films on Kutch; will head for Gir next

DI L I P PATEL

The Don is here,” the large crowd erupted as as Gujarat’s tourism ambassador Amitabh Bachchan stepped out of the Bhuj airport where his chartered jet landed at 2.50 pm on Friday. The megastar got out of his car to wave at the crowd and shake hands. As the crowd got uncontrollable, his guards, fearing security breach, usher him back into the car. Sources informed that the star snacked on Kutchi mangoes and some pulav before a brief rest at a friend’s guest house in Kukma village, 12 kms from Bhuj. A scene similar to the one at the airport greeted him at Hotel Ilark at 5 pm where his still shoots were scheduled. Bachchan posed for pictures dressed in kurta pyjama, shirt and trousers and the traditional attire of Kutchi maldharis. He returned to the farm house after the shoot ended at 8 pm. Sources said that on Saturday, Bachchan will be Ghordo Gaam before sunrise for a short film White Desert that will also capture the area’s picturesque sunset. In between, he will be in Kala Dungar to promote its treasure of tree and dinosaur fossils. After shooting at Mandvi beach till Sunday afternoon, he is scheduled to leave for Gir. From June 1 to 4, he will be in Sasan and Somnath to shoot three films, on the Somnath temple, Gir lions and Bhalka Tirth, the place where is it is said Lord Krishna died. Sources say that the megastar will shoot with the lions. Bachchan will then head for Dwarka where a special set, a replica of the Dwarkadhish temple, has been erected for the shoot. His next visit to the state will be in June-end when he will visit Ahmedabad and also shoot at the Adalaj step-well and in Gandhinagar, Patan and Modhera. This is not an all-expenses paid trip. The tourism ambassador has refused hospitality facilities from the state government.

T11: Off to have Gujju dinner .. the desert winds make me hungry and rough and determined .. my determination will come from you and you ..

• T11:Tomorrow morning call at 4 am !! The Rann gets inceredibly hot and dusty beyond 10 or 11 AM .. so need to do those early shots !!

• T11: Dressed up as the typical ‘Kutch i’, everyone loved it. Reference was my dress in SRK film Paheli .. ShahRukh you reading ?

• T11:Almost 90% of this city was devastated in the terrible earthquake some years back.. now fresh constructions abound ..

• T11: Bhuj .. where Abhishek gave his first shot for film career.spoke to him in Istanbul, was getting nostalgic.. will visit the spot later

• T11: back from first few hours of shoot in Gujarat, Bhuj ... interesting .. so much history, glory, diversity.. will describe detail in blog

• T11: Flying over sea and land incredible patterns below of my beautiful country.. places look unexplored untouched, as nature made them...

• T11: Landed in Bhuj ! Strong winds, dry arid land but smiling screaming enthusiastic crowds at the airport. Off for the shoot immediately ..

• T11: In a few hours Gujarat and the campaign for its Tourism.This trip Rann of Kutch, Somenath, Gir lions ... love to all and for all..

---------------------
Beginning today, state to count hoofed animals



DILIP PATEL




The state embarks upon its first ever counting of hoofed wild animals today. Except wild ass, all animals that form part of the food chain of the cat family will be counted.
The state had undertaken a similar exercise of ungulate animals in 2006 but it was limited to blue bulls who numbered 96,000.
The Forest Department began the survey on Thursday across the state, employing almost all its field staff. The actual three-day counting will begin on Friday in which wildlife wardens, van mitras (friends of forests) and hundreds of volunteers from NGOs will take part, said Conservator of Forest (wildlife) AV Gamit. “We are conducting the count to ascertain the carrying capacity of our forests and check the number of animals available for lions and leopards. We will be ready with the count in about 15 days,” he said. The count will also help the department to plan and manage wildlife sanctuaries, he added.
Incidentally the state had counted its lions last month and found there were 411 of them. The animals to be counted include black buck, chinkara or Indian gazelle, four horned antelope, barking deer, sambar, spotted deer, and blue bull. Of these spotted deer and blue bull are expected to number more than a lakh each and black buck about 50,000, according to forest officials.



Nilgais and spotted deer are expected to number more than a lakh each

--------------
LEOPARD DESERTS CUBS, INDRODA PARK ADOPTS THEM

The 30-day-old cubs were found in a sugarcane field near Navsari by farmers and handed over to the Forest Department who fed goat milk to keep them alive
DILIP PATEL


Two leopard cubs deserted by their mother at a village in Navsari have been provided special care at the Indroda Nature Park in Gandhinagar by the Forest Department. Brought three days ago at the park, the 30-day-old cubs are the youngest in the wildlife gallery.
Farmers working at a sugarcane field in Bodvak village of Chikhli taluka in Navsari came across one of the cubs on April 29.
At first they thought it was a kitten, but once they brought it out of the farm they realised it was a leopard cub. Worried that the cub’s mother would come looking for it, they handed it over to the Forest Department.
On May 9, the farmers found another leopard cub from the place. This baby too was handed over to the Forest Department.
Interestingly, none of the cubs had even opened their eyes when they were found by the villagers. After taking charge of the cubs, forest officials started looking for the cub’s mother.
On May 11, forest officials kept meat in a cage and placed it in the area where the cubs were found. Their plan to catch the leopard worked and it was caught. Subsequently, the officials placed the cubs in the cage. However, the leopard showed no intimacy or emotion towards the cubs. She did not even allow the babies to suckle, literally rejecting them.
Worried about the survival of the cubs, Range Forest Officer K Gharia and his team took them away and fed them goat milk for 10 days. The entire incident was brought to the notice of Chief Wildlife Warden A Asari in Gandhinagar, who directed the officials to bring the cubs to the Indroda Park. Simultaneously, the leopard was set free at the Vansda National Park, near Navsari.

SPECIAL CARE

INDRODA PARK’S wildlife keeper Rasik Patel said, “The cubs are around 30 days old and need special care. They are kept in separate rooms and anyone coming in contact with them have to be sanitised first with potassium permanganate. We have been giving vitamins, egg yolk, milk and cream to the cubs. They are our youngest guests. We are all very attached to them. Though separation from their mother has affected their weight, there is no medical complication and we are taking good care
----------------
Mitsubishi to develop ‘smart community’ city in Gujarat



AHMEDABAD MIRROR BUREAU




Japanese major Mitsubishi Corporation plans to develop smart community and eco-friendly township
project in Sanand and Changodar industrial areas on Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) near Ahmedabad.
Keiichi Nakagaki, CMD of Mitsubishi Corporation of India Pvt Ltd, on Wednesday called on Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to apprise him about the project for which survey work will begin very shortly.
“The company will build advanced infrastructure facilities like waste water recycle plant, industrial waste recycle plant, logistics park, electric bus and advanced transportation facilities,” a senior official of the state government said.
According to him, survey work for the project, which will be spread in 50 square kms area and will be expanded at later stage, will be over by the end of this year.
Moreover, Mitsubishi has also submitted a proposal to set up a state-ofthe-art and environment-friendly ship breaking and recycling yard in Alang in partnership with Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB). GMB and Japan Development Institute (JDI) are currently preparing detailed project report for the project in Alang.

Grab that bite of asli KESAR

Grab that bite of asli KESAR

For a month, Gujarat Agro Industries Corporation will help growers from Junagadh sell naturally ripened Kesar mangoes directly to Amdavadis
DILIP PATEL
9825045322

The delectable Kesar mango, whose taste and quality have deteriorated due to excessive use of calcium carbide as ripening agent, may soon regain its mouth-watering taste, if the Gujarat Agro Industries Corporation has its way.
GAIC Managing Director D Thara convened a meeting of mango growers from Vanthali and Talala areas of Junagadh, to facilitate the direct sale of naturally ripened Kesar mango to Amdavadis for a month. “This is the first time that the state government has taken such an initiative,” she said.
As many as 15-16 co-operative societies based in Junagadh have been tasked with the responsibility of getting these farmers to the city. “The GAIC will bear the transportation cost of the fruits,” Thara said.
The managing director’s resolve was strengthened after a 10-kg box of Kesar mangoes she had ordered four days ago contained small packets of calcium carbide. This carcinogen is used to ripen mangoes quickly. “The mangoes had turned black due to overripening. I instantly dumped the entire contents of the box in the dustbin.”

‘FOR PROFIT, VENDORS MUST NOT PLAY WITH LIVES’

“THE DETERIORATION of Kesar mango, that has titillated the tastebuds of people the world over for years, pained and angered me at the same time. Even as the Corporation embarks on a route to cleanse Kesar of calcium carbide, I appeal to all fruit vendors and wholesalers — who take the shortcut to make a fast buck — not to play with the lives of people. I also ask mango lovers to administer the highest caution when they purchase the fruit,” she said.
Thara claimed she had decided to give the people of Ahmedabad a fruit that is free of carcinogenic effect.

FRUIT RIPENING PLANT SET UP IN NARODA

THE GUJARAT Agro Industries Corporation has also set up a 15,000 tonne fruit ripening plant at Naroda. Thara claims the ethylene gas is a WHO-approved process of ripening mangoes and is used by progressive countries as it is harmless.
“The mangoes are passed through a chamber and the gas is released into the chamber depending on the quantity of mangoes in the channel. The mangoes are given a 12-hour dose of the gas and then kept in the open for day. This is a safe method and we are aspiring for safety,” Thara said.
She said the use of gas will be minimal but naturally ripened mangoes will be given a preference over mangoes ripened through the ethylene gas.

DIRECT SALE IN OTHER CITIES OF GUJARAT SOON

THE EXPERIMENT of direct sale of mangoes through farmers if successful will also be replicated in other cities of the state.
Pointing out the differences between naturally ripened mangoes and artificially ripened ones, she said the naturally ripened ones had green and yellow skin, a rich taste and smell. “Its pulp is saffron. That is why it is called Kesar. If calcium carbide has been used to ripen mangoes, it will have uniform yellow skin. The fruit will not smell and the pulp will taste bland,” she explained.

The taste of Kesar in gujarat, junagadh

Branded: The taste of Kesar

GAIC plans to certify naturally ripened Kesar mangoes and build Brand Kesar to market fruit nationally as well as internationally
DILIP PATEL
09825045322

With a rich haul of Kesar mangoes, the Gujarat Agro Industries Corporation has decided to brand the fruit nationally. Production of the fruit is estimated to cross 10 lakh tonnes this season.
The Junagadh Agriculture University and the GAIC has estimated the production of Kesar at 10 lakh tonnes, which is more than three times the production registered last year.
The Corporation is also planning to certify naturally ripened Kesar mangoes and build Brand Kesar to market the fruit nationally as well as internationally.
As part of the Corporation’s efforts to distribute the fruit nationally, 50,000 boxes of Kesar will be transported to the Delhi Haat for display and sale.
“The sale of Kesar mango is the highest in Ahmedabad. People in Delhi are hardly aware of the taste of the mango. An effort will be made to popularise the fruit by encouraging people to taste the fruit. No one can resist the taste. We are confident that they will keep coming back for more,” said D Thara, Managing Director of the GAIC.
The GAIC is also in touch with the National Horticulture Board at Gurgaon. The Board has tie-ups with several malls in Delhi. The mangoes will be distributed through these malls.
Once the fruit gains popularity in Delhi, it will be then distributed across six major cities including Mumbai, Bangalore and Kolkata.
Thara said that to get certification, the fruits will have to meet the standards prescribed for organic mangoes.
The managing director said the production of mango has been good due to good weather. “We have decided to export Kesar mangoes in a big way. We have invited the opinion of traders regarding possible markets where the fruits can be sold. We have a rich tradition to live up to. Gujarat will turn 50 on May 1 but the Kesar is 75 years old. We will celebrate it’s diamond jubilee

GIZMO KID in gandhinagar

GIZMO KID

His development would be behind schedule, but 3-yr-old with genetic disorder has zapped everyone with the ease he uses gadgets
DILIP PATEL
09825045322

At his birth, the doctor had said his development will run a year ‘behind schedule’. Maharshi, an achondroplastic child, has proved to be the opposite. He has zapped his parents and doctors alike by being year ahead in schedule in development of brain, intelligence and grasping power. The gizmo-loving three-year-old can operate almost all electronic gadgets. No, he hasn’t been taught about them, say his parents Atul and Dharni. His favourite is the iPhone.
Although Atul, a Gujarat Technological University employee does not possess an iPhone, he is forced to borrow it from a colleague some days to calm Maharshi’s tantrums. He is inconsolable when the phone is returned, says Atul. “He has seen the iPhone with a relative and learnt operating it instantly, surprising us all,” says the father. We tested him with a new phone and he clicked!
Not only the iPhone, Maharshi, they say, can operate any electronic gadget, can click pictures on camera, record, open program files in a computer and select and play a desired song on his father’s mobile phone memory.
Sights and sounds kind of get embedded in his memory. Dharni says her son cannot read, but “remembers nursery rhymes by their page numbers”. He is the blue-eyed boy of Polytechnic Staff Quarters, Gandhinagar. Kids in the neighbourhood love to see him re-enact scenes from the hit film 3 idiots