Women's Bill: on to the Lok Sabha

New Delhi: Almost all political parties agree that the task to get the Women's Reservation Bill approved by the Lok Sabha would be far more difficult than it was in the Rajya Sabha. For, the three Yadav leaders — Mulayam Singh, Lalu Prasad and Sharad Yadav — who together constitute the staunchest opposition to the legislation, are all members of the House of the People.
Although the numbers in the Lok Sabha are stacked up nicely in support of the Bill, it seems the government may prefer to get the urgent financial business of this budget session through before giving the final push to women's reservation in Parliament.
It is also equally clear that with the Congress floor strategy worked out successfully in the Rajya Sabha — if the same were to be applied in the Lower House — the supporters of the Bill would together comfortably meet the constitutional requirement of numbers for the historic constitutional amendment.
Enough majority The Congress, the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Left parties, United Progressive Alliance partners (minus the Trinamool Congress which abstained in the Rajya Sabha), the Biju Janata Dal, the Akalis, the Shiv Sena, the Telugu Desam Party and other smaller groups between them have more than the two-thirds majority required to see the Bill through comfortably.
On Tuesday, the message has been sent home to those opposing the Bill that they will not be allowed to subvert the will of the House, even if that means suspension of members and use of marshals to take them out.
That is expected to have the desired effect as some of them may prefer to remain inside the House during the debate, speak their mind and cast their votes against it rather than disrupt proceedings.
Politically disastrous For at least one party, the Janata Dal (United), opposition to the Bill has proved to be politically disastrous leading to a vertical split in its ranks.

Sonia powers women’s victory

Tags: Bill, Fourteen years, Lok Sabha, Pranab Mukherjee, Rajya Sabha, RJD, SP, Trinamul Congress, UPA, Women's Reservation Bill

New Delhi, March 9: History was created when the Women’s Reservation Bill, which seeks to set aside 33 per cent of seats in the Lok Sabha and state legislatures, was passed in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

Fourteen years after the first attempt and repeated opposition, the 108th Constitution amendment bill was adopted with a majority with 186 members voting in favour and one against after two days of bitter hostility.

While UPA ally Trinamul Congress, with two members, kept away from voting, the 15-member BSP, opposing the bill in its present form, staged a walkout. In the 245-member House, with an effective strength of 233, the bill required the backing of at least 155 members.

It was a victory for the UPA chairperson and Congress chief, Mrs Sonia Gandhi who, despite stiff and unrelenting opposition from Mr Lalu Prasad Yadav and Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav, masterminded the passage of the bill.

A justifiably overjoyed Mrs Gandhi said the women’s quota Bill was a dream of Rajiv Gandhi.

“We have been waiting for years — because you know that it was my husband Rajiv Gandhi’s vision. And Panchayati Raj was in fact going to be the beginning. So I am really happy, of course, for my party but also for all the women of the country.”

She said the government had taken a huge risk in taking up the bill, but “We have taken such risks before.”

“Politics is always full of risks. There will be impact on one side or the other but the larger picture of women empowerment has to be kept in mind.”

Ms Gandhi took a potshot at the SP and the RJD for their opposition to the bill, saying: “Who is preventing you from giving tickets to Muslims, OBCs within the reserved 33 per cent seats?”

She said she was not sure whether the Bill would be brought before the Lok Sabha during the current session of Parliament.

She appeared confident of the stability of the government and wished the UPA’s “former partners” were with the government for passing the legislation.

“Of course we understand their compulsion, their problems. I hope they will understand and they will look at the larger picture. Why can’t women after all be in power,” she said,

Tuesday’s voting exposed the split in the JD(U).

Hyderabad ‘strongly down', says report

HYDERABAD: Employment generation in manufacturing, IT, infrastructure and construction are all down in Hyderabad with companies putting their plans on hold due to political uncertainty.
The city is put in the ‘Strongly Down' category compared to other major cities in the country like Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkota, according to Ma Foi Employment Trends Survey released here. Ma Foi is an international HR service provider servicing top companies across the globe.
The survey was conducted among 1,000 companies across 11 industry segments – Banking and Financial Services (BFSI), Education, Energy, Health, Hospitality & Travel, IT, ITES, Real estate & Construction, Trade, Transport and Manufacturing. These companies were queried about their hiring intentions in the next three months and over the next year.
The survey reveals a very positive picture for Ahmedabad, Pune and Chennai and a moderate picture for Kolkota and Bangalore. Delhi is also hit but not in the same league as Hyderabad. Manufacturing and IT segments see a positive growth in the cities where positive growth is projected.
Ahmedabad seems to be the biggest gainer with an uptrend noticed in all the sectors and new investments flowing into Gujarat.
The survey outcome says the organised sector in India is set to create close to a million new jobs in the year 2010-2011 and the overall picture looks bright for the year. .
Health Care industry seems to be biggest beneficiary with 2,95,000 jobs projected in the sector.
Over the last 18 months, when most industries were busy restructuring operations, Indian pharmaceutical and healthcare industry was adding manpower and giving salary increases. Education and Consultancy, IT and ITES and Manufacturing sectors will be other major job providers.

Ministers hopeful of passage of Women's Bill

HYDERABAD: Ministers -- J. Geeta Reddy and P. Sabitha Indra Reddy and Secunderabad MLA and former actress Jayasudha on Sunday hoped that under the leadership of UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, the Women's Bill would be passed in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
They were addressing a gathering of women journalists at a meeting organised by the local chapter of Network of Women in Media-India (NWMI) on the eve of the 100 {+t} {+h} International Women's Day. Speakers declared that whatever steps were taken for women's empowerment, their safety and encouragement to become leaders took place only during the Congress rule. While calling for stricter implementation of laws and also for amendments to be made, Dr. Geeta Reddy said there was no cause for alarm.
Ms. Geeta Reddy said women were administrators by birth and in the past proved that they could take the reins of leadership when situation demanded. She cited as examples President Pratibha Patil, Sonia Gandhi and Hyderabad Mayor Banda Karthika Reddy. She said women will never forget former Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy's pro-active role and his initiatives in proposing to the Centre amendments to laws pertaining to attacks on women.
Ms. Sabitha Reddy explained how YSR had suggested a 10-year imprisonment for those involved in acid attacks, compensation of Rs. 10 lakh for the victim/family and the need for making section 509 CrPC non-bailable so that people would think twice before picking up an acid bottle.
The section dealt with cases registered against men for any word/gesture insulting women.
Ms. Jayasudha said atrocities against women could be curbed only if laws were strictly implemented, apart from new amendments put in place. Recalling the line that ‘behind every successful man, there is a woman', she said the reverse was also true to a large extent.

Congress MPs concerned over Manmohan's remark

Clear stand: MPs Madhu Yaskhi Goud, M. Jagannath and G. Vivekananda after a meeting in Hyderabad on Sunday.
HYDERABAD: Three Telangana Congress MPs have said the remark by the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that consensus was needed to create Telangana was a matter of serious concern.
Congress MPs – Madhu Yaskhi Goud (Nizamabad), Manda Jagannath (Nagarkurnool) and G. Vivekananda (Peddapally) – who met here on Sunday said they were surprised by the statement made by the Prime Minister in Parliament. “We will meet him and try to get clarification about the statement,” the three MPs said talking to reporters after the meeting.
They pointed out that there was no mention about consensus in the December 9 and 23 statement made by Union Home Minister P. Chidamabaram. Mr. Vivekananda said Telangana Congress MPs would not hesitate to resign their Lok Sabha membership if the Srikrishna Committee report was against the interests of Telangana region.
“All the MPs are confident that Centre would concede Telangana,” he said adding that the Congress MPs from the region would submit a report to the panel in support of separate State. The MPs hoped that APCC chief D. Srinivas in his report would certainly make mention about the Congress election manifesto and the stand it had taken on the statehood issue.
Attack condemned
They condemned the uncivilised attack on the advocates when they were staging a protest at a meeting organised by the TDP. They wanted criminal cases to be filed against the culprits.
Meanwhile, Anantapur MP Ananta Venkatrami Reddy said people who were in support of united Andhra Pradesh could send their reports to him. He gave two email addresses for communication. The email IDs of the MP are mpanantapur@yahoo.com and mpanantha@gmail.com. He said there are people in all the 23 districts who are still in favour of integrated State. The data sent by various people would be compiled and the same would be submitted to the Srikrishna Committee, he added.

Copter assembly unit for Hyderabad

BIG BREAK: Agusta Westland helicopter at the Aviation expo in Hyderabad on Friday.
HYDERABAD: Italian helicopter manufacturer Agusta Westland and Tata Motors which recently signed joint venture for setting up a final assembly unit of AW 119 have finalised Hyderabad as location for the proposed unit. “We have finalised Hyderabad for the helicopter project owing to its closeness to several special economic zones and we are on the look out for suitable piece of land. We are hopeful of rolling out the first copter from this facility by 2011,” a senior official of Agusta Westland said. Once operational, the new unit would enhance the country's presence in the growing rotocraft market.
The unit would take up final assembly and fly test of the copters before they are delivered to the customers. The joint venture is engaged in preparing designs to ensure a capacity to produce 30 units a year, catering not only to requirements in domestic market, but also markets abroad.
Rotocraft market
The Italian chopper major produces a range of military helicopters from the single engine AW 119, three-engine AW 101 in addition to two combat copters, AW 129 and Apache AH.
The copters that are proposed to be assembled at the new facility are primarily intended for defence purposes, but they could be used for civil and public services including executive transport, emergency medical services, the official said.
Agusta Westland, he said, was planning to tap the high potential in rotocraft market in India where the requirement was expected to be around 800 copters in the next decade. The company was one among the three firms in the race for a recent tender from the Indian Army for 197 copters to replace the older fleet.

Ageless Tendulkar breaks the 200-run barrier

EPIC EFFORT:Sachin Tendulkar, who delighted with bold brush strokes of genius on the canvas — the colours celebrating batsmanship, showed he still is an explosive athlete; he still has the eye of the tiger.

Gwalior: His heart larger than frame, Sachin Tendulkar lifted his arms in triumph. At 36, he had become the first man to conjure a double hundred in One-Day Internationals.

The maestro's unbeaten 200 was an epic effort of focus, flair and dare. His passion for the golden Indian crest undiminished, the little big man oozed character after India elected to bat and ran up a mammoth 401 for three — its highest score against South Africa — on a belter at the Roop Singh Stadium.

In the process, he delighted with bold brush strokes of genius on the canvas; the colours celebrated batsmanship. He still is an explosive athlete; he still has the eye of the tiger.

Man-of-the-Match Tendulkar's spirit-lifting effort proved a match-winning one. South Africa wilted under the pressure of a big chase to go down by 153 runs. With a match remaining, India has taken a winning 2-0 lead in the series.

A.B. de Villers, using his feet well, working the ball around and finding the gaps, made a defiant unbeaten 114, but South Africa was in with little chance. To make matters worse for the visitors, the ball kept a shade low under the lights.

Tendulkar's world record double hundred was yet another landmark for the champion in a career of miles and milestones.

Pavilion in Tendulkar's name

The pavilion at the Roop Singh Stadium here will be named after him. A road in the city will also bear the maestro's name shortly.

“I need the good wishes of the people. It is the prayers of the people that have helped me in my career,'' he said.

Tendulkar added, “I do not play for records. I enjoy my cricket and I play with passion. I have done this for 20 years.''

The legend said he had struck a purple patch since the 2007 World Cup.

Asked about his record-breaking double hundred, he said, “I realised I had a chance when I got to 180 with so many overs left.''

On being at 199 at the start of the final over, he said, “I knew I would get my chance in the over. I will remember this innings. But I will not compare it with my other efforts. Each innings is different, the circumstances are different.

“No record is unbreakable. But I would be happy if an Indian breaks my record.'' He gave credit to Dinesh Karthik, Yusuf Pathan and M.S. Dhoni for their efforts. “Yusuf and Dhoni, in particular, played some very big shots.''

Electrifying atmosphere

Earlier, the atmosphere inside the stadium was electrifying as Tendulkar glided paceman Charl Langveldt to squarish third-man off the third ball of the 50th over and scampered for a single for his 200th run.

The crowd erupted, non-striker Dhoni and the South Africans walked up to congratulate the legend, and his teammates in the pavilion were up on their feet.

Soon, Tendulkar, undefeated, walked back to a standing ovation. His monumental double century (200, 147b, 25x4, 3x6) was his 46th ODI century. Opening the innings, he had batted through the 50 overs. Tendulkar's commitment shone through in the manner he ran between the wickets. He also batted through pain.

The hectic brace in the 47th over – third ball – when he worked left-arm paceman Wayne Parnell behind square and completed two enabled him to go past the previous highest ODI score – 194 by Pakistan's Saeed Anwar and Charles Coventry of Zimbabwe.

Tendulkar, his sights set on a historic double century, was restrained in his celebrations, attending to his right hamstring even as Dhoni and Mark Boucher greeted his achievement.

The Indian innings also featured a busy 79 (85b, 4x4, 3x6) of crisp hitting by Dinesh Karthik – he added 194 for the second wicket with Tendulkar. Also a power-packed 23-ball 36 from Yusuf Pathan, in the batting Power Play overs between 35 and 39 South Africa conceded 63, and a brutal 68 not out (35b, 7x4, 4x6) by Dhoni. The Indian captain bludgeoned the South African pacemen with wristy blows of immense power.

The astonishing afternoon, however, belonged to Tendulkar. He was light on his feet and heavy with his shots. His batsmanship does have an ethereal quality about it.

It is also timeless; the ease with which Tendulkar rolls back the years is remarkable.

The maestro's symphony in front of a delirious crowd here had some captivating notes. His mind and body in harmony, Tendulkar cover-drove Parnell to the fence. Nobody moved as the ball struck the boards. The outfield was fast, Tendulkar's timing made it appear quicker.

The feature of his batting has always been his ability to pick the length in a jiffy. He, thus, is decisive as he ventures into a front-foot drive or punches, cuts or pulls off his back-foot.

When Steyn bounced at Tendulkar, he was pulled fiercely. Tendulkar was meeting fire with fire.

All the aspects were in order - a still head, a high left-elbow, and a lovely extension of the willow - as he off-drove Parnell. Tendulkar's batting is underlined by perfect balance.

The maestro's innings was splendidly paced. His 50 consumed 37 balls, 100 came off 90, and 150 off 118. The South Africans ran out of ideas.

SCOREBOARD

India: V. Sehwag c Steyn b Parnell 9 (11b, 1x4), S. Tendulkar (not out) 200 (147b, 25x4, 3x6), D. Karthik c Gibbs b Parnell 79 (85b, 4x4, 3x6), Y. Pathan c de Villiers b van der Merwe 36 (23b, 4x4, 2x6), M.S. Dhoni (not out) 68 (35b, 7x4, 4x6); Extras (lb-3, w-5, nb-1): 9; Total (for three wkts. in 50 overs): 401.

Fall of wickets: 1-25 (Sehwag), 2-219 (Karthik), 3-300 (Pathan).

South Africa bowling: Steyn 10-0-89-0, Parnell 10-0-95-2, van der Merwe 10-0-62-1, Langeveldt 10-0-70-0, Duminy 5-0-38-0, Kallis 5-0-44-0.

South Africa: H. Amla c Nehra b Sreesanth 34 (22b, 7x4), H. Gibbs b Praveen 7 (8b, 1x4), R. van der Merwe c Raina b Sreesanth 12 (11b, 1x4, 1x6), J. Kallis b Nehra 11 (13b, 2x4), A.B. de Villiers (not out) 114 ( 101b, 13x4, 2x6), A. Petersen b Jadeja 9 (16b, 1x4), J.P. Duminy lbw b Pathan 0 (1b), M. Boucher lbw b Pathan 14 (31b, 1x4), W. Parnell b Nehra 18 (43b, 1x4), D. Steyn b Sreesanth 0 (4b), C. Langeveldt c Nehra b Jadeja 12 ( 11b, 3x4); Extras (lb-5, w-8, nb-4): 17; Total (in 42.5 overs): 248.

Fall of wickets: 1-17 (Gibbs), 2-47 (van der Merwe), 3-61 (Amla), 4-83 (Kallis), 5-102 (Petersen), 6-103 (Duminy), 7-134 (Boucher), 8-211 (Parnell), 9-216 (Steyn).

India bowling: Praveen 5-0-31-1, Nehra 8-0-60-2, Sreesanth 7-0-49-3, Jadeja 8.5-0-41-2, Pathan 9-1-37-2, Sehwag 5-0-25-0 .