BANGALORE 28 APRIL 2014 MONDAY `4.00 PAGES 42 LATE CITY EDITION CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BANGALORE ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELGAUM ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIMOGA ■ TIRUCHY ■ www.newindianexpress.com Industry Captains Blow Fuse Over Erratic Power Supply ASK PRABHU by Avinash Bhat Post your questions on website www.newindianexpress.com and Prabhu will answer them R A DA R South Korea PM Resigns Jindo (South Korea): South Korea’s prime minister Chung Hong-Won resigned on Sunday over the sinking of a passenger ferry that left more than 300 people dead or missing, amid public anger over what is seen as a bungled response to the tragedy. P12 Bangalore: Despite several assurances from Energy Minister D K Shivakumar, power cuts and shortages continue in several parts of the state. The only difference is that, this time, none of the officials are ready to call it ‘load-shedding’ or ‘power shortage’ and instead attribute it to technical issues. On Saturday, power consumption in the state was at 195 million units. In the past one month, repeated faults at thermal power stations have led to sudden drops in supply, further contributing to power cuts. On Sunday, one unit of the Bellary Thermal Power Station and one at the Raichur Thermal Power Station did not produce power. Industrialists across the state have been complaining of 3-4 hour power cuts every day. The situation in villages is worse as the supply of drinking water has also been affected. However, there is no official accep- tance of a power shortage. “It is the beginning of the financial year and there is pressure to supply goods. We are finding this difficult because of the power problem,” said Mysore Industries Association general secretary Suresh Jain. Power supply has been affected for at least 3-4 hours a day for the past 15 days in this area, according to reports. The situation is the same in Gulbarga where GESCOM is allegedly resorting to loadshedding without prior intima- OFFICIAL FIGURES ON HOURS OF SUPPLY Hubli: 24 hours in urban and a mix of single, 2 and 3 phase power in rural areas. Mangalore: 18 hours in rural areas with load-shedding in some areas. 23 hours in urban. Mysore: 15 hours in rural areas, including 9 single and 6 threephase. 1 hour power cut in urban areas. tion, according to Umakant Nigudgi, former president of the Hyderabad-Karnataka Chamber of Commerce and Industry. In Mangalore, poor infrastructure coupled with power shortage has resulted in industrial yards in rural areas getting only about seven hours of power supply in a day. According to industrialists, MESCOM officials often blame overburdened supply lines and other technical issues. “There is a definite power BJP Vadra Video Has Priyanka Seething CJI Lodha Takes Oath New Delhi: Justice Rajendra Mal Lodha, who was sworn in as the 41st Chief Justice of India on Sunday, said he did not agree with the idea of having a fixed tenure for chief justices of high courts and favoured continuing with the collegium system for appointment of judges in the higher judiciary. P7 Says won’t keep silent on personal attacks made against family by Pratul Sharma Former Prez’s Home Gutted Guwahati: The ancestral home of former President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed and one of the city’s landmarks was completely gutted along with several other houses at the Lakhtokia area in Guwahati on Sunday, official sources said. PDV Successfully Test-fired Balasore (Odisha): In a significant milestone in the direction of developing a two-layered Ballistic Missile Defence system, India on Sunday successfully carried out its maiden Prithvi Defence Vehicle (PDV) test-fire. P11 Temple Admn Gets New Head Thiruvananthapuram: Acting on the order of the Supreme Court, Additional District and Sessions Judge K P Indira took over as chairperson of the new administrative committee of the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple. P7 Cries for Ramdev’s Arrest Lucknow: Yoga guru Ramdev on Sunday faced more heat over his controversial “honeymoon” remark against Rahul Gandhi, with authorities banning all his programmes in Lucknow till the elections are over. MAKING HISTORY Pope Francis touches the statue of the Virgin Mary during the canonisation mass of Popes John XXIII and John Paul II at the Vatican on Sunday. Catholics from around the world gathered in Rome for a mass presided by Pope Francis to confer sainthood on the two influential popes | AFP REPORT: P12 HDK Sees Red Over December 1 Theme, Threatens to Move Court Express News Service Bhaag Milkha Bhaag Wins Big Tampa Bay: Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, a biopic on former Olympian Milkha Singh, bagged top honours at the 15th International Indian Film Academy awards held here, including the best picture and best director awards. Farhan Akhtar bagged the best actor trophy for his portrayal of Singh. P7 EXPRESS POLL OF THE DAY Is Vijay Mallya’s `14 crore for buying IPL cricketer Yuvraj Singh money well spent? YES 18% NO 82% TODAY’S QUESTION: Will the new EC guidelines deter leaders from making personal attacks against each other? SMS TO 54646 www.newindianexpress.com 42 PAGES, INCLUDING 20 PAGES OF EDEX (TABLOID) & OF 6 OF CITY EXPRESS Bangalore: Director P Sheshadri’s national award-winning Kannada film December 1 has drawn the ire of former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy, as it is based on the theme of the Grama Vastavya (village stay) programme launched by him when he was CM. The film won awards for best feature film in Kannada and best screenplay. Kumaraswamy on Sunday threatened to move court against the makers of the movie which, he alleged, has portrayed his wellintentioned village stay programme in a very poor light. Venting his ire on Sheshadri, Kumaraswamy said, “Some directors make movies only for the purpose of getting awards. I know about such a syndicate of directors. The film depicts the sadistic mentality of the director.” “The film December 1 is nowhere close to the real intentions with which I launched the village stay programme. My Grama Vastavya has not adversely affected any family. I am ready to take responsibility if the director proves that any family has been adversely affected by my stay in their house,” Kumaraswamy said. Director Disagrees Rejecting Kumaraswamy’s objections, Sheshadri said, “Being in a democratic country, he (HDK) has all the freedom to file an objection. Likewise, even I do have all the freedom in making a film.” “Firstly, I have a disclaimer at the start of the film stating that it is based on fiction and not related to any incidents. I have not named any character resembling his name nor any picture of him and his party symbol. Personally, I don’t think he should be affected. The concept of staying at villagers’ homes started by him was followed by a few other CMs too. Why should he feel that this is his story?” he questioned. “Kumaraswamy had a good intention behind the village stay programme. But he didn’t realise the after-effects on the common people. If he is free, let him go and revisit all the 25 houses, he will get the answer,” Sheshadri said defending the movie. “At the same time, he should realise that December 1 is not a documentary, but a feature film,” he said. Theme of the Movie The film presents the story of a family in Basapura, a tiny village. Madevappa works in a flour mill and his wife Devakka makes rotis and sells them in nearby towns. The family makes a hand-tomouth existence, but has learnt to enjoy small pleasures and pursue its dreams. In the movie, the whole village is gearing up for the CM’s visit on December 1 for an overnight stay in Devakka’s house. MORE: P5 Polo, India’s Only Gorilla, Dies at Mysore Zoo Express News Service Mysore: India’s only gorilla, Polo, died at the Mysore Zoo on Saturday night due to respiratory infection and age-related ailments. He was 42. The average life expectancy of a gorilla is between 35 and 40 years. The Western Lowland gorilla was born in 1972 and was received by the Mysore Zoo from the Dublin Zoo in Ireland on August 12, 1995, zoo sources said. Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens executive director B P Ravi said for the past one month Polo’s health had deteriorated and he was constantly moni- problem in the twin cities (Hubli-Dharwad). Labourers are idle during power cuts which lead to losses. We have requested that they resort to power cuts on a particular day so that we can be ready,” said Vasant Ladwa, president of the Karnataka Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Hubli. Industries in BESCOM areas had complained about the quality of power supply during a recent public hearing by the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission. MORE: P5 tored. Dr Sunder Raj, a vet who used to monitor Polo, said, “Polo’s food intake had reduced over the last 15 days, and he had become less active. His condition worsened with respiratory dyspnea and hurried thoracic respiration. Dyspnea and open-mouth respiration could be due to a respiratory tract infection. We had advised injectable antibiotics.” “He was given vitamin supplements, to which he showed some improvement. Zinc, iron, antibiotics and painkillers were given in milk, tea and juices, but he was reluctant to take drugs orally,” Ravi said. Won’t Remain in Communal India: Farooq Priyanka Vadra addressing an election campaign in Amethi | PTI 2014 VOTE WARS ELECTION SPECIAL “Vadra’s land deals have the blessings of Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul Gandhi. Both Sonia and Rahul should explain Vadra’s land deals that generated huge profits for him… The influence of the family helped Vadra make big earnings in the deals,” he added. For his part, Modi, in an interview, said that he did not believe in politics of vendetta, but nobody was above the law, and if somebody had done something wrong, the law must take its own course. The war of words is likely to get only worse with pitched battles being fought in the remaining 47 constituencies of Uttar Pradesh. ‘NOT IN FAVOUR OF OUTSIDE SUPPORT’ Hyderabad: Union Minister and senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday said here that he was not in favour of his party extending support to the Third Front from outside, rather he wanted the party to be a part of the government. MODI THREATENS TO TMC CALLS NAMO DEPORT IMMIGRANTS ‘BUTCHER OF GUJ’ Serampore: BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi on Sunday threatened to deport Bangladeshi immigrants if NDA comes to power, saying they were being welcomed with red carpets for vote bank politics. Serampore: TMC spokesperson Derek O’Brien on Sunday heaped scorn on Modi, calling him the “Butcher of Gujarat”, in retaliation to his no-holds barred attack on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Experts feel that loneliness might have been a reason for Polo’s ill health. They said Polo was lonely after he lost his companion Sumati in 2000. “He was the only gorilla in the country and until a couple of years ago, he was Asia’s lone gorilla,” Mysore Zoo assistant director Suresh Kumar said. A file photo of Polo at the Mysore Zoo Srinagar/New Delhi: Union Minister and National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah on Sunday said communalism is not acceptable to the people of Kashmir and they will not remain with India if it becomes communal. “Pray to God to save us from communal forces so that we can move forward...Communalism is not acceptable to Kashmiris,” Abdullah said at a poll rally at Khanyar. The NC head took a dig at BJP leader Giriraj Singh and VHP’s Praveen Togadia, saying “they say those who do not vote for Modi should go to Pakistan. (I say) Those who vote for Modi should drown in the sea.” The nation belongs to its people and they will decide what to do, he said. Hitting back at Abdullah, BJP said the country does not need a certificate from the Union Minister to become secular. “Neither the country nor Jammu and Kashmir need a certificate from Farooq Abdullah to become secular. The actual matter of worry is the corrupt governments run in Jammu and Kashmir,” BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said in New Delhi on Sunday. PTI FULL COVERAGE P5 Lobbying on for Berths P9 Tough Battle for Sharad Food for Thought FULL DRAMA WITH AYYO RAMA P10 P5 Interns Welcome in Power Corridors by Nivedita Niranjankumar WAS HE LONELY? “Tranquillising Polo at his age was risky. A physical examination and sample collection for laboratory analysis were not possible. His urine was examined twice, but there were no abnormalities.” MORE: P6 New Delhi: After Priyanka Vadra raised the political pitch with her stringent attack on Narendra Modi, the BJP hit back on Sunday, releasing a video and a booklet titled Daamad Shree (sonin-law) on her husband Robert Vadra’s alleged land deals in Rajasthan and Haryana. The booklet accused Congress chief ministers of these states of helping Vadra acquire land at cheap prices to rake in crores. Reacting after the release of the video and booklet, Priyanka, who has been campaigning in her mother and brother’s constituencies of Rae Bareli and Amethi, said the BJP was like “baffled rats”, and she would welcome more such attacks. Earlier in the day, she criticised the Gujarat model of development and took a jibe at the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, saying one does not “require a 56-inch chest for development, but a large heart”. BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad hit back saying, “Someone talks about a big heart. Whose big heart helped Robert Vadra establish his empire in such a short span with an initial investment of `1 lakh?” “It is the Robert Vadra model of development,” Prasad said. Bangalore: Short-staffed government departments are allowing post-graduate interns to share some of the work in a move that could benefit both the departments and students. While the interns get a stipend of around `10,000 per month and experience, the departments gain from their field work and fresh perspective on issues. This is probably the first time that government agencies are allowing the internship model, a practice long in vogue in the private sector. The State Planning Board is among the first ones to The two-month programme accommodates five candidates at a time and students will be paid `10,000 per month as stipend adopt the system. “We devised such a plan knowing that it will be a gain for both — students and us,” said Bidisha Chaudhuri, research consultant and additional secretary, State Planning Board. At the department, the students will be exposed to various aspects of the formulation of five-year plans and the annual plans. “And we will get a perspective of how the young generation thinks. Fresh ideas will also be generated,” she said. The Planning Board is looking at post-graduate and research students of economics, social sciences and development studies for the internships. The twomonth programme accommodates five candidates at a time. “The programme is throughout the year and interested students can write to us a month before they want to start. After assessing them, we let them start,” Chaudhuri said. MORE: P5