Canada’s first turbaned mountie is here

Mohali, November 30
Sergeant Baltej Singh Dhillon, who had changed the face of Canada’s Royal Canadian Mounted Police when he became its first-ever turbaned mountie in 1990, attended the inaugural function of Baba Banda Singh Bahadur war memorial at Chappar Chiri village today.

Dhillon had come on the invitation of the Punjab Chief Minister. He was presently heading the criminal intelligence wing at the provincial intelligence centre.Interacting with mediapersons, Dhillon said there was no shortcut to hard work. “My father toiled in Malaysia before we migrated to Canada for better prospects,” he said.

Punjabi folk singer Kuldeep Manak passes away

LUDHIANA: Legendary Punjabi folk singerKuldeep Manak died at here on Wednesday after a prolonged illness. The last rites would be performed at his birthplace and native villageJalal in Bathinda on Friday. 

Manak had celebrated his 62nd birthday on November 15. His illustrious career in music began when the 17-year-old was chosen to sing alongside famed vocalist Seema in 1968. This proved to be his lucky break and he went on to forge a successful career in the music industry. He is credited for popularising the traditional Punjabi songs called kaliyan. His hits songs include "Tere Tilley Ton", "Chheti Kar Sarwan Bachcha" and "Garh Mughlane Dian Naaran". 

"Kuldeep Manak was a strong pillar of Punjabi music industry, and to me, a father figure. Whatever I am today is all because of him. His demise has left a void in our lives," said Jazzy B, who visited the singer's residence in Housing Board Colony near Rajguru Nagar soon after the news of Manak's death spread. Among others present there along with Manak's fans were Punjabi singers Surinder Chinda, Daljeet Dosanjhand Ranjeet Mani. 

"His death is a great loss to the Punjabi music industry," said Punjabi Sahitya Academy presidentGurbhajan Singh Gill. Dosanjh added, "He will continue to be an inspiration for all Punjabi singers." 

Manak is survived by his wife and two children - son Yuhdhvir and daughter Shakti. Yudhvir had been following his father's footsteps but his progress was stunted after he suffered a brain hemorrhage. 

American Airlines files for bankruptcy protection; most travellers won't be affected Read it on Global News: Global News | American Airlines files for bankruptcy protection; most travellers won't be affected

DALLAS - The parent company of American Airlines filed for bankruptcy protection Tuesday, seeking relief from crushing debt caused by high fuel prices and expensive labour contracts that its competitors shed years ago.

The company also replaced its CEO, and the incoming leader said American would probably cut its flight schedule "modestly" while it reorganizes. The new CEO, Thomas W. Horton, did not give specifics.

For most travellers, though, flights will operate normally and the airline will honour tickets and take reservations. American said its frequent-flier program would be unaffected.

AMR Corp., which owns American, was one of the last major U.S. airline companies that had avoided bankruptcy. Rivals United and Delta used bankruptcy to shed costly labour contracts, reduce debt, and start making money again. They also grew through mergers.

American — the nation's third-largest airline and proud of an 80-year history that reaches back to the dawn of passenger travel — was stuck with higher costs that meant it lost money when matching competitors' lower fares.

In announcing the bankruptcy filing, AMR said that Gerard Arpey, 53, a veteran of the company for almost three decades and CEO since 2003, had retired and was replaced by Horton, 50, the company president.

Horton said the board of directors unanimously decided on Monday night to file for bankruptcy. In a filing with federal bankruptcy court in New York on Tuesday, AMR said it had $29.6 billion in debt and $24.7 billion in assets.

With reductions to the flight schedule, Horton said there would probably be corresponding job cuts. American has about 78,000 employees and serves 240,000 passengers per day.

AMR's move could also trigger more consolidation in the airline industry. Some analysts believe American is likely to merge with US Airways to move closer to United Continental Holdings Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc. in size. Such a merger would leave five large U.S. airlines compared with nine in 2008.

US Airways declined to comment.

American will delay the spinoff of its regional airline, American Eagle, which was expected early next year.

AMR, however, wants to push ahead with plans to order 460 new jets from Boeing and Airbus and take delivery of more than 50 others already ordered. New planes would save American money on fuel and maintenance, but the orders will be subject to approval by the bankruptcy court.

Analysts said all airlines will benefit if American reduces flights — especially if the cutbacks are more severe than American's new CEO is letting on. They said the chief winners were likely to be United and Delta, which compete for the same business travellers and have global networks like American's.

The losers will be American Airlines employees and AMR stockholders.

Shareholders almost certainly will be wiped out. The stock had already lost 79 per cent of its value this year on fears of bankruptcy. The stock fell to 26 cents Tuesday, down $1.36 from the day before. In January 2007, after a 4-year rally, the shares peaked at $41.

AMR has lost more than $12 billion since 2001, and analysts expect it will post more losses through 2012. Speculation about an AMR bankruptcy grew in recent weeks as the company was unable to win union approval for contracts that would reduce labour costs. The company said it was spending $600 million more a year than other airlines because of labour-contract rules — $800 million more including pension obligations.

On Tuesday, Horton said no single factor led to the bankruptcy filing. He said the company needed to cut costs because of the weak global economy, a credit downgrade that raised borrowing costs, and high, volatile fuel prices. The price of jet fuel has risen more than 60 per cent in the past five years.

Expectation of a bankruptcy filing increased in November as contract talks with the pilots' union stalled and union leaders rejected a company offer without sending it to members for a vote.

Ray Neidl, an analyst with Maxim Group LLC, an investment banking company, said AMR was wise to file for bankruptcy while it still had about $4 billion in cash. That way, the company will have a cushion to keep operating without worrying immediately about lining up new financing, he said.

Fitch Ratings analyst Bill Warlick said American will focus on shuttering pension plans and getting wage concessions from workers. Both Neidl and Warlick said American might be pushed into a merger with US Airways because size and global networks are more important than ever in the airline business.

Darryl Jenkins, a consultant who has worked for the major airlines, said, "American will still be with us in one form or another 10 years from now." But, he said, its workers will "take a major hit. Their pensions are in danger."

Union leaders expressed unease.

James C. Little, president of the Transport Workers Union, which represents mechanics, baggage handlers and other ground workers at American, was harsh in his assessment of the impact on labour.

"This (bankruptcy) is likely to be a long and ugly process and our union will fight like hell to make sure that front line workers don't pay an unfair price for management's failings," Little said.

AMR, which has headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas, lost $162 million in the third quarter and has lost money in 14 of the past 16 quarters.

The company barely escaped bankruptcy in 2003, when it was still reeling from the drop in air travel caused by a recession and the September 2001 terror attacks. That downturn helped drive United, Delta and US Airways into bankruptcy while American used the threat of a filing to wring wage and benefit concessions from workers.

American was founded in 1930 from the combination of many smaller airlines. Its hubs are in New York, Los Angeles, Dallas-Fort Worth, Chicago and Miami. Major international partners include British Airways and Japan Airlines.

News of the bankruptcy swept through AMR's hometown.

"American Airlines is an institution in Dallas-Fort Worth, and when institutions start to crumble, you look at everything around you," said Elaine Vale, a jewelry store owner who flew back from a Thanksgiving holiday on American. "After American, then who?"

_________________________________________________________________Airline writers Samantha Bomkamp in New York and Joshua Freed in Minneapolis, and Danny Robbins in Fort Worth contributed to this report.

Canadian city on top ten list of best places to live worldwide

VIENNA (Reuters) - Vienna's excellent infrastructure, safe streets and good public health service make it the nicest place to live in the world, consulting group Mercer said in a global survey which putBaghdad firmly in last place.

German and Swiss cities also performed especially well in the quality of living rankings, with Zurich, Munich, Duesseldorf, Frankfurt, Geneva and Bern in the top 10.

The Austrian capital, with its ornate buildings, public parks and extensive bicycle network recently reduced the cost of its annual public transport ticket to 1 euro a day.

Serious crime is rare and the city of around 1.7 million inhabitants regularly tops global quality of life surveys.

But Mercer warned that top-ranking European cities could not take their position for granted in the survey, which assessed more than 200 cities.

"They are not immune to any decrease of living standards should this (economic) turmoil persist," Mercer's senior researcher Slagin Parakatil said on the company's website.

Mercer, which also ranked cities according to personal safety, gave Athens a poor score because of clashes between demonstrators and police and political instability.

"In 2011 Athens is ranked in Europe among the lowest in the personal safety ranking," Parakatil said.

Oslo also fell to 24th place in the separate safety survey because ofAnders Breivik's mass killings in July. It would usually be in the top 15, Mercer said.

Baghdad's political turmoil, poor security enforcement and attacks on local people and foreigners made it the worst place to live in 2011, both in terms of life quality and safety, Mercer said.

Political and economic unrest in Africa and the Middle East also pushed down scores in those regions.

"Many countries such as Libya, Egypt, Tunisia and Yemen have seen their quality of living levels drop considerably," Parakatil said.

"Political and economic reconstruction in these countries, combined with funding to serve basic human needs, will undoubtedly boost the region."

He said that while the outlook is uncertain for most of the world because of economic and political turmoil, cities in Asia-Pacific look set to benefit thanks to political stability and solid growth.

Auckland, Sydney, Wellington, Melbourne and Perth made it into the top 20 for quality of life in 2011 while Singapore was the highest-ranking Asian city in 25th place.

Top 10 in Mercer Quality of Living survey

1 Vienna Austria

2 Zurich Switzerland

3 Auckland New Zealand

4 Munich Germany

5 Duesseldorf Germany

5 Vancouver Canada

7 Frankfurt Germany

8 Geneva Switzerland

9 Bern Switzerland

10 Copenhagen Denmark

http://www.mercer.com/qualityoflivingpr#city-rankings

Justice Kumar to head NRI commission

Chandigarh, November 29

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today approved the constitution of Punjab State Commission for NRIs and appointed Justice Arvind Kumar (retd) as its chairman.

A Punjab Government spokesman said the Chief Minister also approved the appointment of Jagtar Singh of Hoshiarpur as the commission’s member. He said Badal also approved the appointment of Makhan Singh of Ferozepur as a member of the Punjab Subordinate Services Selection Board.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minster also appointed Sampuran Singh and Hardeep Singh, both Fazilka residents, as members of the Board of Directors, Pepsu Roadways Transport Corporation. 

Climate Conference 2011: Canada Says Kyoto Protocol 'Biggest Blunder,' May Withdraw

Global climate talks got an inauspicious start in Durban, South Africa, on Monday with reports that Canada planned to withdraw fully from the Kyoto Protocol, a carbon-limiting multinational treaty first adopted in 1997 and scheduled to expire in 2012.

Canada had already signaled that it would take a hard stance at the Durban talks, where negotiators from around the world are hoping, among other things, to extend the Kyoto agreement with a new phase of emissions reduction commitments. But the suggestion that Canada also planned to abandon its commitments under the original Kyoto protocol, which the nation appears unlikely to meet in any case, was met with deep disappointment by advocates for climate action assembled at the conference.

"Canada has been very clear that it would not be taking on a second commitment period," said Tasneem Essop, the provincial minister of environment, planning and economic development in the South African province of Western Cape and the head of the delegation for the environmental group WWF. "But abandoning the first commitment period would mean that Canada will have absolutely no integrity in the international arena.

"I believe that there will be a backlash against Canada," Essop added in a phone call. "The NGOs are very angry about this news, and Canada will have to do a lot of hard work to regain credibility."

A report on Sunday by the Canadian broadcast network CTV suggested that the Canadian government, under the leadership of conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper, had planned to make an announcement on the nation's withdrawal from Kyoto "a few days before Christmas." Speaking to reporters on Monday, Canadian representatives neither confirmed nor denied reports of its withdrawal plans, though the nation's environment minister, Peter Kent, asserted in no uncertain terms that "Kyoto is the past."

In a transcript of the press conference provided to The Huffington Post by a spokesman for the environment ministry, Kent also described Canada's participation in the Kyoto agreement as the folly of his government's predecessors. "Our government believes that the previous Liberal government signing on to Kyoto was one of the biggest blunders they made," Kent said, "particularly given they had no intention of fulfilling that commitment."

The Kyoto agreement -- which grew out of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and was adopted in Kyoto, Japan, 14 years ago -- bound more than three dozen industrialized countries to reduce emissions of certain greenhouse gases by a given percentage, averaging just over 5 percent, over 1990 levels. The protocol was to take effect only after at least 55 countries, representing 55 percent of global CO2 emissions, had ratified the document. Those conditions were fully met in 2004, and the treaty was entered into force in early 2005.

The emissions reductions were to be achieved between 2008 and 2012, the period during which countries would be required to report their progress. Developing nations were not required to make significant reductions, and the United States, accounting for nearly a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions and by far the largest global per capita emitter, refused to participate.

Europe has made up the bulk of the emissions reductions, and collectively, industrialized countries are on track to achieve the Kyoto goal of reducing their emissions by at least 5.2 percent over 1990 levels. This is true even when including U.S. emissions, which have increased by more than 10 percent over 1990 levels, according to an analysis of global emissions inventories published in September by the Netherlands environmental ministry.

But much of the decrease in emissions is attributed to the collapse of East European and Russian economies in the post-Soviet era, as well as to the current global recession, which has helped to reduce industrial output and overall energy use in many countries. Establishing a second phase for the Kyoto protocol, which officially expires at the end of next year, is a primary goal for negotiators gathered in Durban over the next two weeks -- although significant stumbling blocks make that outcome uncertain.

The United States -- and increasingly, Canada -- are among rich nations that have argued that developing countries like China must formally agree to emissions reductions of their own before a truly global and binding climate treaty can be reached. Short of that, they argue, industrialized economies are unduly hobbled, while powerhouses of the developing world, which are expected to account for an increasing share of global emissions, are able to grow and pollute with abandon.

Developing nations counter that the U.S., Europe and other developed countries became rich through profligate use of inexpensive and CO2-intensive energy sources like oil, coal and natural gas, and that they are to blame for the current build-up of greenhouse gases now warming the planet. They also suggest that it is unfair to ask poor nations to avoid use of inexpensive fossil fuels at precisely the time when they are poised to repeat the economic growth enjoyed by the rich world over the last century.

A $100 billion Green Climate Fund, first posited at the failed climate talks in Copenhagen in 2009, is designed to provide financial assistance to developing nations in their efforts to combat climate change, and establishing an architecture and funding for the trust is among the many goals of the Durban talks. But signs emerged even before negotiations got underway that progress on that front might also prove difficult.

Global greenhouse emissions, meanwhile, continue to rise, and even some participants in the first phase of Kyoto are expected to fall short of their goals under the agreement. This includes Canada, which had pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 6 percent compared to 1990 levels. Canada's most recent inventory of greenhouse gas emissions, submitted to the United Nations earlier this year, showed that while the country had been making year-over-year reductions since 2008, its emissions are still nearly 20 percent higher than they were in 1990.

Critics in large part blame increased development of the tar sands, a vast and contentious deposit of sand, clay and oil in northern Alberta. The Canadian government has expressed strong support for stepped-up exploitation of the tar sands, which they view as an economic boon. But opponents have argued that the carbon footprint associated with such an expansion would permanently cripple global efforts to get global warming under control.

"What's astonishing is watching Canada emerge as a rogue among developed countries," said Bill McKibben, the author and activist who has spearheaded a grassroots movement aimed at combatting a pipeline proposal designed to deliver some 700,000 barrels of oil each day from the tar sands to refineries and ports on the Texas Gulf Coast. "Of course, they have no choice but to ditch serious climate policy if they want to develop the tar sands in a big way -- and that pool of gunky oil is clearly the tail wagging the dog up there."

Kanimozhi gets bail from HC after six-month stay in Tihar jail

After six months in Tihar jail and five attempts, DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi's daughter Kanimozhi and four others got bail in the 2G case from the Delhi High Court on Monday.
Justice VK Shali of the high court said in his 39-page order that Kanimozhi and the four were on a "better footing" and deserved the benefit on the ground of "parity" with the five telecom executives released last week by the Supreme Court.
The court also considered the fact that she was a woman — an argument ignored so far right from the trial court to the apex court. But 43-year-old Kanimozhi, who was arrested on May 20, will have to spend one more night at Tihar, as the release formalities could not be completed on Monday.
Earlier, during the investigation into the 2G scam case, the CBI alleged that Kanimozhi was the brain behind DMK-owned Kalaignar TV's move to take a R200-crore bribe from Shahid Balwa's DB Realty companies in exchange for allocation of licence to Balwa-owned Swan Telecom.

The main 2G scam accused and former telecom minister A Raja, however, is still in Tihar, as he has not applied for bail. He was arrested on February 2, 2011.
The four others who have got bail on Monday are Kalaignar TV managing director Sharad Kumar, filmmaker Karim Morani and Kusegaon Fruits and vegetables Pvt Ltd directors Rajiv Aggarwal and Asif Balwa.
The court, however, reserved its order on telecom secretary Siddhartha Behura's bail plea, as the CBI opposed the move. Bail pleas of public servants required stricter scrutiny, the agency said.
As the news of Kanimozhi being granted bail broke, Karunanidhi announced a big welcome-home party for her in Chennai. "She spoke to me soon after the court gave her bail and both of us shared the happiness," he told reporters in Chennai.
The court has asked those granted bail to surrender their passports, furnish a bond of Rs 5 lakh each with two sureties of as much amount and remain present during the trial on a daily basis.
Justice Shali gave the CBI the liberty to approach the court in case any of the accused violated bail conditions. Justice Shali took the cue from the November 23 Supreme Court order granting bail to five telecom executives, saying, "Bail is rule and jail is an exception."

IMMIGRATION FRAUD

Two more cases registered against company

Mohali, November 26
Two more fresh cases of cheating have been registered against an immigration company functioning from Phase VI here.

The police said Jagdish Singh, a resident of Gagon village, falling in Ropar district, complained that he gave a sum of Rs 1.20 lakh to Deepak Arora and Karandeep for sending him abroad. But he was neither sent abroad, nor was the money returned to him.

In another case, Vasdev Singh, a resident of Mauli Jagran, Chandigarh, complained to the police that he had paid Rs 1.20 lakh to the immigration company functioning from Phase VI for sending him abroad. He was neither sent abroad, nor was the money given back to him.

The police has registered cases under Sections 406, 420 and 120 B of the IPC and Section 24 of the Immigration Act in both the cases.

The police has also booked two residents of Phase II on the charges of cheating.

In his complaint, Raveen Bansal of Sector 70 said a sum of Rs 1.50 lakh was given by him to Subhash Chand and Rohit Mahajan for sending him abroad, but the needful was not done and his money was also not returned.

Amarjeet Singh of Phase II told the police that he received an SMS that he had won a lottery of Rs 5.50 lakh. He even got a phone call in this regard. He had deposited Rs 1.73 lakh on different occasions as was directed by the suspects but the lottery amount was not given to him.

The police has registered cases under Sections 406, 420 and 120 B of the IPC in both the cases.

Was Lord Paul a victim of political vendetta?

Disgraced NRI members of the House of Lords have been offered a potential lifeline to salvage their reputation by a fellow member of the British Upper House.

Jalandhar-born Lord Swraj Paul, who has a degree from the MIT in the US and was once a confidant of the late Indira Gandhi, is one of three British lords suspended from Parliament after wrongly claiming thousands of pounds in expenses.

He is one of the UK’s richest men with an estimated personal fortune running into hundreds of millions of pounds. In 2003, he was quoted as saying that difficulties in the business world were linked to "greed coupled with the abdication of personal responsibility."

Last October, the House of Lords Committee for Privileges and Conduct commented that “on the balance of probabilities”, it was unlikely that Lord Paul acted dishonestly or in bad faith. But it said his actions were “utterly unreasonable and demonstrated gross irresponsibility and negligence” and there was, therefore, no option but to suspend him for four months.

Similarly, the committee found that East Africa-born Lord Amir Bhatia and Bangladeshi-origin Baroness Uddin had all repeatedly taken generous overnight allowances of £174 (Rs 14,000 per night) by registering properties outside London as their main homes, even though they rarely stayed in these.

When their conduct was discussed in a parliamentary debate, Paul in particular was singled out by a fellow Asian Lahore-born Baroness Shreela Flather who commented, "I want to say how distressing it is for me personally to find the 80th richest man, Lord Paul, saying that he didn't understand what 'main' and 'residence' meant.

"All of us know what they mean. And if we don't, may I suggest that we should not be sitting in this chamber.

“Lord Paul also says something about Indian culture. I don't know which Indian culture he is speaking of. I don't know of that culture.”

Paul has since repaid £41,982 (Rs 33 lakh), Bhatia has repaid £27,000 (Rs 21 lakh), but Uddin, who was suspended for 18 months, is yet to repay more than £100,000 (Rs 80 lakh)

In Paul’s case, there was some speculation at the time that he was the victim of political vendetta and had been more harshly treated because he was close to former Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

The implication was that Brown’s foes, including friends and supporters of his predecessor Tony Blair, were trying to embarrass him by hitting out at his known friends.

No such speculation surrounds the conduct of Bhatia or Uddin, but all three South Asian peers, including Paul, are possible beneficiaries of an initiative taken by another member of the Upper House, Lord Alli, who asked if his colleagues were victims of racial targeting.

He is quoted in the Daily Mail newspaper as saying, “Something is not right about the way these three peers were treated. There were at least 12 members of the House of Lords who were accused of abusing their second-home allowances. Yet only these three were singled out to be disciplined. Look at them. All three are Asian. It does not look right. This process was flawed.”

Alli is paying a London lawyer to carry out an independent review of the penalties imposed on the three errant peers.

The lawyer’s conclusions will be made available to the conduct committee, although the committee itself is not obliged to respond to any outside report.

The committee has three members: former Labour Lord Chancellor Lord Irvine, former head of the Ml5 secret service Lady Eliza Manningam-Buller and Commission for Racial Equality ex-chief Lord Dholakia.

“I have spent almost thirty years in the race-relations industry,” Dholakia was quoted as saying.

“It is unthinkable that I would be involved in anything that smacks of racism,” he was further quoted as having stated.

Meanwhile, Guyana-born Lord Alli, the first openly gay member of the House of Lords, has refused to further elaborate on his initiative. Calls made to him have not been returned.

Visa fraud: 6 persons arrested

Chandigarh, November 26
The Chandigarh Police today arrested six persons for submitting fake documents with the visa office while applying for tourist visa to the UK.

A special investigation team set up on immigration, student and tourist visa fraud, headed by DSP Anil Joshi, arrested Vikram Sharma, alias Vicky, and Viney Chadha, operators of the Atlantic Overseas Consultancy at Sector 32 here, on November 18.

The police today arrested Amandeep Singh of Yamunanagar, Sukhdev Singh of Karnal, Manjit Singh of Khalsa Basna village in Kurukshetra district, Kashmir Singh of Paherkalan village in Patiala district, Amrik Singh of Patiala and Kulwinder Singh of Jalandhar.

The police said these six applicants had gone to the visa office of the UK in Chandigarh and submitted documents with addresses, bank statements, income tax returns and mobile numbers, which were fake, intentionally in connivance with the main accused for getting tourist visa to the UK illegally.

Joshi said the Chandigarh Police was taking action not only against immigration companies, but also against applicants who were intentionally instigating these companies to prepare fake documents.

Mixed response to HC stay order

Conversion of council into a corporation

Mohali, November 26
There is a mixed response from former municipal councillors to the stay orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court issued in connection with the government notifications converting the Mohali municipal council into a corporation.
While some of the former councillors have welcomed the orders
saying that the upgraded body had not played any major role in the development of the town, others said they were neither happy nor sad regarding the orders as these were only a part of the legal process and the final verdict was still awaited.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court yesterday stayed the notifications through which the local civic body was upgraded to the level of a corporation. The court had also issued a notice of motion to the department of local government, Mohali Deputy Commissioner and municipal corporation for January 9.
Rajinder Sharma, who owes allegiance to SAD, said he was happy with the orders of the court as the upgraded civic body had done nothing for the development of Mohali. He said NK Sharma, chairman of the district planning committee, had got several development works initiated in the town at his own level, but officials of the corporation had failed to show any results.
Parkash Wati said she was happy to learn about the orders of the court.
She said elected representatives had sacrificed eight months of their term hoping that Mohali would witness major development activities, but only faced disappointment. Moreover, former councillors were promised that they would be nominated to the upgraded civic body, but nothing happened, she added.
Another former municipal councillor Amteshwar Kaur said orders of the high court made no difference to her as she was only interested in the development and was not bothered whether this was carried out by the corporation or the council.

Sukhminder Singh Barnala, however, claimed that the corporation had carried out development works in the town and the government had spent a lot of money in this regard. Had the Congress-headed civic body not been dissolved, the government would have not spent so much here.

‘Strengthen consumer Act’

Activists favour timely grievance redress, lower fee, decentralised fora

Chandigarh, November 26
The Centre should initiate steps to strengthen the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, to ensure timely redress of consumer grievances and the fee for filing a case should be reduced to Rs 10, on pattern of the RTI Act.

These were the views of consumer activists on the concluding day of the two-day convention. They also demanded the decentralisation of consumer fora to reach the grassroots by establishing headquarters at the subdivisional level.

Welcoming the government’s move to enact the Bill to regulate the real estate sector, which they termed as the need of the hour, the delegates called upon the Centre to withdraw the notification to allow non-standard packages, which caused unfair trade practices.

The convention also focused on consumer empowerment in relation to energy and fuel efficiency, an alternative complaint dispute redress system, public service quality and a citizens’ charter.

The convention resolved to support a strong Lokpal to curb corruption. Another resolution was passed, in which the government was called upon to create an administrative and legal mechanism to ensure the quality of public service.

The convention also resolved that the draft Citizens’ Right to Grievance Redressal Bill, 2011, which is in circulation for discussion, was grossly inadequate.

The convention noted the attempts by the governments of Punjab and Delhi to pass legislations on this subject without adequate consultation with user groups.

A consumer charter of demands for the telecom sector was also passed, in which consumers, both individually and collectively, called upon the government and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India to take immediate and concrete steps to remove consumer detriment before the next International Consumer Rights Day, which was March 15 next.

It was resolved that the Consumer Coordination Council undertake projects on good governance and a citizens’ charter in coordination with member organisations, civil society groups and the government.

On alternative dispute redress, it was resolved that the core-centre and toll-free projects of the council be continued and ongoing projects and awareness programmes be organised at the block level and rural areas in the country.

Air India cancels Nov 30 New Delhi-London flights

Foreseeing a strike by the public sector employees in London, national carrier Air India Saturday said it is cancelling its flights from New Delhi to the British capital that day.

"In anticipation of strike by the public sector employees at London on Nov 30, Air India flights stand cancelled," the flag carrier said in a statement.

According to the airline, these flights are AI-115operating from Amritsar to Delhi to London and AI-111from Delhi to London.

"Passengers of the cancelled flights may re-book on flights on Dec 1, without any charges," the airline said.

Why organised retail benefits farmers in Punjab & Himachal

Chandigarh, November 26
With Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in retail opened up in 53 cities in the country ( which have a population of above 10 lakhs), Himachal Pradesh is unlikely to be affected directly, although vegetable and fruit growers in HP will possibly be able to bargain better with big retail chains. But with the BJP opposing FDI in retail nationally, the Himachal unit of the BJP too has succumbed to the political compulsion of opposing it.

In any case, since the retailers will have to register and obtain licenses, the state governments will be responsible for granting or rejecting the applications.

But to its enormous embarrassment, staunch ally Shiromani Akali Dal has been effusive in welcoming the move. Punjab deputy chief minister, Sukhbir Singh Badal, was quick to write a letter to Commerce Minister, Anand Sharma, endorsing the decision. Entry of foreign players, he said yesterday at Anandpur Sahib, would create a more competitive market for agriculture produce.

His optimism is based on Punjab’s successful experience with agri corporates. The entry of agri corporates like Bharti Wal-mart, Pepsi Co, Tata Khet Se and Metro Cash and Carry, has actually helped in strengthening the retail supply chain. Farmers in Haider Nagar locality of Malerkotla, who supply vegetables to Bharti Wal-Mart, have not just been able to improve the quality of the vegetables they produce, but they are also getting better prices. Potato growers in the Doaba region have also benefitted by selling their produce to Pepsi Co.

“Most of the agri businesses are sourcing 30- 40 per cent of their requirement from farmers within the state. As a result, farmers are assured of a buy back arrangement with these corporates and of higher returns.

“These farmers also learn better agricultural practices from the experts appointed by these companies, thus leading to a better quality of produce,” said a senior official in the state Agriculture department.

The entry of corpoartes in the poultry sector in Punjab, too, has made the small poultry farmer in the state viable. Big poultry corporates like Suguna and Venkateshwara Hatcheries have “integrated” with many small poultry farmers in Gurdaspur, Pathankot and Rajpura. These corporates supply their own seed, feed for birds and medicines, while the farmers nurse and attend to the birds before selling them to the firms.

Ironically, even in Himachal Pradesh, the entry of agri corporates like Adani Agrilogistics, Dev Bhoomi, Reliance Retail and Mother Dairy procuring apples, other fruits and exotic vegetables, has helped raise the economic condition of growers.

But talking to The Tribune, the chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said, “ The small shopkeepers will lose their business and it wll add to unemployment. With the withdrawal of the industrial package, our state is already facing a lot of unemployment. Agreed that some agri corporates have been buying select fruits and vegetables from Himachal, but the majority purchase is still being done by the state government,” he said.

Several farmers’ organisations, too, are sceptical about the move. Balbir Singh Rajewal, President of Bharatiya Kisan Union, said the move would benefit just those farmers who have large land holdings. Almost 70 per cent of the farmers in Punjab have less than five acres of land holding and will not be able to make enough investments in improving their farming operations, as desired by foreign agri corporates, he said.

Alberta cracks down on drivers who drink

The Redford government introduced tough new changes to

 Alberta’s impaired driving legislation on Nov. 21, 2011.

What is it?

Traffic Safety Amendment Act

Why are they doing it?

The law will dramatically increase sanctions for Albertans who drive after drinking.

Those caught drinking and driving can already be charged under the Criminal Code of Canada if they have a blood-alcohol content over 0.08. Under the proposed new provincial law, people criminally charged with drunk driving will immediately lose their licences until the charges are resolved.

Albertans caught driving with a blood-alcohol content between .05 and .08 – below the criminal limit – will be subject to a three-day license suspension and a three-day vehicle seizure for a first offence. A second offence will bring a 15-day suspension and a seven-day seizure. A third offence will bring a 30-day suspension and a seven-day seizure. Drivers will pay impound costs.

Finally, under the proposed law, young drivers in Alberta will face stricter rules. The zero-tolerance for alcohol will continue, but those caught drinking and driving will face an immediate 30-day suspension. Also, for the first six months that new drivers are allowed to drive alone, the new driver cannot have more than one teen passenger in the vehicle. They are also restricted from driving between midnight and 5 a.m.

What are critics saying?

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business says the law will do little to prevent or punish drunk driving, but will have a severe impact on small business. The group says similar laws in B.C. created public confusion about whether it is permissible to even have a glass of wine before driving, leading to losses of between 10 and 50 per cent at some establishments.

Alberta Justice minister wants Ottawa to lower drunk-driving threshold

EDMONTON - As the province pushes ahead with legislation to increase sanctions on suspected drunk drivers, Alberta’s justice minister says he wants to talk to Ottawa about potentially toughening federal laws.

Specifically, Verlyn Olson said he is interested in the possibility of lowering the current .08 blood-alcohol threshold for laying a criminal charge on a driver.

Olson said he needs to do more research on the issue, but suggested .05 might be a more appropriate standard.

“Right now, .08 is the criminal standard and that’s something I’d be interested in talking to the feds about,” he said. “There is discussion that goes on about what is the right number, but I think it’s accepted that .05 is the beginning of impairment. It’s not there as an arbitrary number.”

Olson noted that most western European countries and Australian provinces use a .05 limit, Japan has a standard of .03, Sweden is .02. Hungary and the Czech Republic have a zero-alcohol policy.

Leila Moulder, president of the Edmonton chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, said she would support reviewing the .08 standard in Canada.

“I don’t see why that would be a bad thing,” she said. “At the .05 level, people are impaired. There is reaction time impairment, you are slower, you aren’t quite as co-ordinated, your fine motor skills aren’t working at a top-notch level.”

Moulder’s organization is also supporting the province’s proposed legislation, Bill 26, which would impose some of the strictest administrative penalties in the country.

For drivers who record a blood-alcohol level between .05 and .08, which is not a Criminal Code violation, the province currently allows police to impose a 24-hour licence suspension. The new legislation would increase that to an automatic three-day suspension and a three-day vehicle seizure for a first offence. A seven-day vehicle seizure along with a 15-day suspension or 30-day suspension would be triggered for a second and third offence, respectively.

For drivers who blow over .08, they will get a criminal charge, and lose their licence until the charge is resolved by the courts. Those convicted will be required to equip their car with an interlock device, which measures a person’s breath before starting the ignition.

The bill also targets new drivers, imposing a seven-day seizure and 30-day suspension if they are found with any alcohol in their system.

“It’s a definite step forward,” Moulder said. “We think this will serve as a better deterrent because from what we had seen, the 24-hour suspension wasn’t enough.”

However, some civil liberties advocates suggest the legislation may create more problems than it solves, since the current bill sidesteps due process and will wind up punishing innocent people.

“This is a very significant inroad into the panoply of rights we have in the criminal justice system and under the charter,” said D’Arcy Depoe of the Criminal Trial Lawyers Association. “No one has sympathy for the 90 per cent who are probably factually guilty, but what about the rest?”

Depoe said the proposed lengthy suspensions and seizures essentially allow police to impose punishment on people before any charge is laid or a case is heard in court. That will wind up hurting people who need their cars for work, or must transport their children to school or daycare.

“The presumption of innocence is gone and your ability to defend yourself is gone,” he said.

“When you have police making the decision at roadside, all the issues that would ordinarily arise at a criminal trial are effectively pre-determined. Was the person actually driving? Was the (breathalyzer) machine operating properly? Did the person have a reasonable excuse? Some people can’t blow because of medical issues or an injury.

“And you are not entitled to disclosure of Crown’s case, and not entitled to cross-examine the police officer.”

Depoe also took issue with the idea that people who blow over .08 should lose their licence until the criminal charge is resolved by the courts. He said it can currently take between six months to a year to receive a trial date in provincial court, and then there is the danger of further adjournments if the lawyers, the accused or judge is sick.

The province estimates impaired driving charges take up 40-per-cent of all trial time among its Crown prosecutors. Depoe said he believes the legislation is designed as a way to reduce that figure, by trying to force people to plead guilty so they can get their licence back sooner.

Hal Joffe of the Rocky Mountain Civil Liberties Association said the legislation also has a jurisdictional issue, since drunk driving legislation typically comes under the purview of the federal government, which has set the standard at .08.

“The province is essentially saying there is a lesser impairment at .05, that we’re going to have a different standard. They are trying to get around the jurisdictional issue by saying there are imposing only administrative penalties.”

Joffe said this issue may explain why Olson is interested in talking to Ottawa about lowering the Criminal Code threshold.

“That, in my mind, would be a more proper way to go.”

This is the second time in recent years the Alberta government and Premier Alison Redford have been accused of pushing legislation that attempts to get around due process. In 2009, then-justice minister Redford pressed into service “civil forfeiture” legislation that permits authorities to seize and sell property suspected of being used in the commission of a crime. Such seizures can occur without a criminal charge, let alone a conviction.

“The premier is a lawyer and the attorney general is lawyer, and this legislation has been devised by senior people in the justice department who are lawyers,” Depoe said. “I don’t know what they are thinking.

“In my mind, it is pandering to loud interest groups like MADD and relying on the great mass of the population not really looking at this in any detail.”

Olson said the province is prepared for any legal challenges.

Redford has said she would like to see the drunk driving penalties in place by Christmas, though Transportation Minister Ray Danyluk has suggested next summer might be more likely.

Lady Gaga sends video to Toronto school for assembly against bullies, homophobia

TORONTO - Lady Gaga delivered a personalized video message to some of her "little monsters" at a west-end Toronto high school Friday supporting an assembly against bullying and homophobia.

"I just wanted to tell you how proud I am of you for being such a strong advocate for the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) community in your school," the pop superstar said in the clip played for students at the Etobicoke School of the Arts.

"There should be more little monsters like you."

School principal Rob MacKinnon said Lady Gaga recorded the video message after student council president Jacques St. Pierre wrote a letter to her several months ago, asking for a word of support for the equality assembly.

"It's an arts school, it's a very inclusive school, we have a lot of gay and lesbian students," MacKinnon said in a telephone interview, noting Pierre was further driven to hold the assembly after last month's suicide of openly gay Ottawa teenager Jamie Hubley, who was bullied by his peers.

"When (Jacques) got the video he came to my office very, very excited with the teacher adviser and showed me the video and my jaw kind of dropped."

In the video, the usually outlandishly dressed Lady Gaga looks relatively demure in a teal pillbox hat topped with a giant bow, and a teal suit jacket.

Seated in front of a draped window, she says she received St. Pierre's fan letter and wanted to send the video on behalf of not only her team but also "little monsters around the world."

"It is important that we push the boundaries of love and acceptance, it is important that we spread tolerance and equality for all students in light of the recent suicide of Jamey Rodemeyer," says the singer, referring to the bullied, gay New York teen who committed suicide in September.

"Because of the bullying that he experienced in school, I am going to be working as hard as I can to make bullying a hate crime."

The chart-topper — whose song "Born this Way" carries a strong message against homophobia — closes out the clip to the school by blowing a kiss to the camera and telling them: "Love each other, treat each other with kindness because we're all we've got."

MacKinnon said school officials kept the video a secret from the student body until Friday morning, when they played it in the auditorium in two assemblies.

"It's a very powerful, powerful, powerful experience for the kids and for all of us," he said.

"Everyone was weepy throughout it. It was really lovely."

The assembly also featured a personalized video message from openly gay comedian Rick Mercer. Students also got to see one of his recent rants from his CBC-TV program "The Rick Mercer Report" in which he calls for an end to bullying in school.

Some students also danced and sang a Lady Gaga song as part of the assembly.

"It's just such a wonderful, feel-good story," said MacKinnon.

"There's lots of great support all around, but I think this is pretty exceptional for Jacques and for the students, and for all of us."