Chennai

Mar 30 2002

The allegation of conversion into Christianity the inmates of the Pondicherry Central prison by a jail superintendent and some religious leaders has forced the authorities to issue a blanket ban on allowing religious discourses and other such practices within the jail premises.

The District Collector, who is also the Inspector General (Prisons), formally issued orders to this effect after a furore was created over the conversion of three jail inmates allegedly at the behest of the jail superintendent David.

It is also said that six other prisoners who had questioned the proselytisation were transferred to a diferent jail. A prisoner who was out on parole reportedly made himself scarce becoming a father.

Further, only discoursers from a particular community were allowed to hold sermons (sermons and religious speeches steeped in spirituality are generally allowed in prisons in a bid to reform the prisoners). There was a hue and cry from other communities over the happenings inthe Pondicherry Central prison.

The local political leaders also took up the matter to the Union Home Minister. With the controversy threatening to get out of hand, the Pondicherry government ordered a high-level inquiry into the whole issue. In the meanwhile, there was still some allegations about religious groups carrying out their work in the jail. In the event, the district Collector has now ordered that no discourse will be allowed inside the jail.

Taxes to fetch Rs 90 cr in Pondy state

Pondicherry

March 28 2002

Fresh taxation proposals to fetch an additional income of Rs 90 crore have been proposed in the Budget for 2002-03, presented to the Pondicherry Assembly today.

With this additional income from taxes, the total revenue being mobilised for the year 2002-03 would go up to Rs 638.44 crore, Chief Minister N Rangasamy, who also holds the finance portfolio, said while presenting his maiden Budget.

Increase in power tariff for both low tension and high tension consumers, reduction in sales tax on some items and exemption from tax for some others, increase in excise duty for IMFL and modification of the quarterly tax per seat for stage carriages would fetch an additional Rs 90 crore in the coming year,C.M. Rangasamy said.

He said the gross budget estimate for 2002-03 had now been placed at Rs 1,269.45 crore. The funding pattern would be Rs 174.71 crore as loan and Rs 456.30 crore as grants from the Centre and the balance Rs 638.44 crore would be raised through internal resources.

Rangasamy said that to give a fillip to trade in the Union Territory, the government had decided to exempt from ST, cooked food sold by hotels, restaurants, sweet stalls and other eateries, if the turnover did not exceed Rs 1 crore per year. Battery-driven cars, three-wheelers and two-wheelers would also be exempt from sales tax.

Sick industries would be given exemption from central sales tax up to March 31 next. All existing industries in Yanam region would be exempt from central sales tax till March next.

The excise duty on IMFL would be increased from Rs 50 to Rs 53 per proof litre. Licence fees for wholesale, retail liquor shops, distilleries, bottling plants, bonded warehouses and breweries would also go up.

Announcing a minor reduction in bus fares, Rangasamy said the quarterly tax per seat for stage carriages would be modified suitably.

Rangasamy said the quantum of central assistance was coming down year after year, while budgetary allocation had to be increased for implementing various welfare schemes for the benefit of the people.

The implementation of the uniform floor rate of sales tax on all commodities had resulted in reduced revenue realisation. "A need had thus arisen for augmentation of our own resources not only to compensate the decrease in revenue but also to finance the plan and welfare schemes," Rangasamy said.

Rajavelu Pondicherry govenment whip

Pondicherry

March 30 2002

R Rajavelu, the MLA from the Bahoor Reserved constituency, has been appointed Pondicherry government whip.

In a release here, Chief Minister N Rangasamy said Rajavelu would assume office on April 1.

Forget and forgive,Jayalalitha tells Dalits at sankaralingapuram

TUTICORIN

MARCH 30 2002

Conveying a message of `forget and forgive', the Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa, today handed over relief to Dalit victims of police atrocities at Sankaralingapuram in Tuticorin district in November last. ``Let bygones be bygones. Let us strive for communal harmony so as to fulfil our wish to make Tamil Nadu No.1 State,'' the Chief Minister said, hearing the grievances of different sections over police action and consoling police personnel and their families who were also affected by mob violence.

During her hour-long stay in the remote village, about 70 km from here, she met the Dalits, non-Dalits and police personnel separately and told them that she and her Government would spare no effort at ensuring an atmosphere of peace, safety and security.

Ms.Jayalalithaa, who arrived at Sankaralingapuram around 11.30 a.m., drove straight to the Dalit colony, where the residents showed her damaged articles. The women started wailing even as the elders narrated their tale of woe. The Chief Minister also inspected a couple of houses in the colony allegedly damaged by the police. Ms. Jayalalithaa disbursed a cash relief of over Rs.13 lakhs to 140 Dalits, whose property was damaged. As most of the Dalits were Christian converts, she had a feedback from the victims at a meeting held in the local Roman Catholic church.

Responding to their appeal, the C. M. said her Govt would sympathetically consider the demand for withdrawal of some cases filed against the Dalits. At the meeting with non-Dalits including Naickers and Chettiars, Ms. Jayalalithaa advised them to open a new chapter in their relations with other sections. A police outpost would be set up at the village . As the non-Dalits claimed that they too had suffered during the violence, Ms. Jayalalithaa said the Government would consider their demand for compensation .

Hindu Munnani hartal peaceful in Kovai

Coimbatore

March 30 2002

With a majority of shops closed in the city and other major towns, the Hindu Munnani sponsored dawn-to-dusk hartal to protest the killing of an RSS worker two days ago passed of peacefully today, excepting for a few instances of stoning of buses.

Police said about 30 buses suffered "minor" damage in stone-pelting reported in the city and nearby Tirupur town.

Buses, taxis, autorickshaws, which were exempted from the hartal, plied as usual with more than 80 per cent capacity, while other vehicular traffic was also normal, without affecting public life.

Police had made elaborate security arrangements, particularly at places of worship and communally sensitive areas, to maintain peace and law and order in the entire district, by deploying nearly 5,000 personnel drawn from various forces.

Responding to the call, shops in the busy commercial areas in the city downed their shutters. Nearly 90 per cent shops remained closed in Tirupur, police officials said.

The call evoked poor response in Pollachi, as almost all shops remained open, but in Udumalpet, a majority of the shops had downed their shutters, police said.

Over300 persons, including BJP and VHP leaders and BJP councillors from the district, were taken into preventive custody, police said.

BJP MP C P Radhakrishnan and N Muruganandam, Tamil Nadu Hindu Munnani organiser thanked the public for extending cooperation for the hartal.