India to buy 36 Rafale jets

The signing of the 17 agreements between Indian and French ministries, companies and research organisations takes cooperation in the three traditional areas — space, nuclear and defence — to a whole new level.

Discussions between Modi and Hollande, which went on for two hours, spanned climate change, smart cities, security, space, nuclear energy, economic cooperation, heritage/cultural cooperation and education and science and technology. A significant part of the joint statement focused on Indian Ocean security aspects.

Hollande also expressed “indignation” at the release of Mumbai attacks mastermind and Lashkar-e-Taiba operations commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, and thanked Modi for his “solidarity” over the Paris terror attacks in January. “In the same vein, I express to you my indignation each time a terrorist is freed while he still has responsibility for an abominable act,” he said.

The bonhomie between the two leaders was apparent as they ended the day with a boat ride on the Seine river.

“Cyber cafés might mint a lot of money and exploit students in the process. Different colleges are being considered where students, with help from volunteers, can use internet facilities at computer labs to fill the forms,” said AK Bhagi, a DU executive council member.

The admission process — the schedule for which is yet to be released — would be spread over two weeks where lakhs of students will apply to occupy 54,000 seats in 63 colleges.

Andhra authorities say the men were killed after they attacked a police task force that came upon them, as the outnumbered security personnel opened fire in self-defence.

The state high court reviewed

a report submitted by director general of police JV Ramudu and decided to hear the matter on Monday without passing any directions. The bench, however, asked if a case of unnatural death or murder had been registered to which the government counsel replied in the negative.

Naidu had vowed to curb the smuggling menace, a nagging problem in his home district, Chittoor, as his government has big plans to generate revenues from global auction of the wood.

He has been the target of protests across Tamil Nadu as political parties and rights groups picked holes in the police claims and pointed out discrepancies in the encounter theory, with activists saying the killings were a violation of human rights.

According to reports, most of the corpses were decomposed, leading to allegations that the killings occurred much before Tuesday, while some bodies had burn marks and others had bullet injuries in the face and back of the head, indicating they were shot at close range.

Also, sources said several of the sandalwood logs found next to the bodies had white paint and code numbers on them, sparking suspicion that these were brought from a stockyard after the encounter, in which none of the policemen or forest officials was wounded.

Witnesses allege a few of those killed were pulled off a bus to Chittoor by policemen from Andhra Pradesh.

The Madras high court refused to order a fresh autopsy on six of the men, but asked for the preservation of their bodies until April 17. The petition filed by the wife of one of those killed was rejected.

“There is no jurisdiction for this court to pass any order on re-post mortem because already Andhra Pradesh high court is seized of the matter and there is a PIL pending in the Supreme Court,” the judge said.

The court order sparked protests across Tamil Nadu with

MDMK chief Vaiko and his supporters holding a massive demonstration in Vellore, demanding a CBI probe into the case.

“What happened in the Andhra forests is a planned, premeditated murder, after the woodcutters were tortured. They were shot at point blank range,” he said.

Following the incident, search operations for smugglers have intensified in the Sheshachalam and other forests where the red sanders trees grow.

Police are also scrutinising the call details of the men killed and CCTV footage from 16 cameras in the area where the encounter took place.

“We are looking into the whole issue,” road transport secretary Vijay Chhibber said.

Officials pointed out that a diesel lorry, bus or car’s road worthiness has to be considered in accordance with rules under motor vehicles act. “If a vehicle is fit and meets emission norms even if has completed 10 years, then banning it would violate provisions of the law. A vehicle might be 10 years old but its engine could be in top condition because it has run only a few thousand kilometres,” a senior government official said.

The second point was consumer rights. “Most states levy a lifetime road tax on new vehicles. Some states levy a road tax for 15 years. Banning a vehicle after 10 years will violate a consumer’s right because he has paid tax for 15 years. Controlling pollution is a complex issue and is dependent on a number of factors, including fuel quality. These aspects should be factored in before banning vehicles,” the official said.

The Centre could also highlight in its petition how the ban could hit essential services in Delhi. “Delhi gets most of its supplies … food, vegetables, goods or

services from outside. The majority of these goods and services are transported by diesel-run transport vehicles,” the official said.

The Delhi government on Friday put a similar argument before the green tribunal in its appeal for six months to implement the order. The counsel said most services in the national capital depend on diesel vehicles older than 10 years, including Delhi Jal Board water tankers, milk vans, fire engines and MCD garbage disposal trucks.

But the tribunal remained firm. “We understand you can’t take off 1 lakh vehicles off the road in one day. Such an order has limitations but we want to see willingness to implement it. We are prepared to accommodate government or private concerns provided they intend to follow the order.”

As the Centre and Delhi government scrambled for a solution, the All India Motor Transport Congress has called a strike from April 13, saying no diesel vehicle would enter Delhi until the ban is reversed. The strike could have far-reaching consequences because the association represents 93 lakh truckers and 50 lakh bus and tour operators. WITH INPUTS FROM HT

METRO TEAM