West Bengal seeks more Central forces from Home Ministry

New Delhi (PTI),11th Nov: West Bengal on Tuesday sought additional para-military forces from the Union Home Ministry to tackle the Maoist problem in the state.

The demand was made at a meeting of State Chief Secretary Amit Kiran Deb with Union Home Secretary Mahdukar Gupta here on Tuesday.Deb later told reporters that he asked for more security personnel for the state, but declined to specify the quantum of the requirement.

The meeting came in the backdrop of the Home Ministry asking for a detailed report from the State Government on the landmine attack on Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan in Maoist-infested Midnapore district on November two. The powerful landmine blast triggered by suspected Maoists had damaged the security vehicle of Paswan and injured six policemen.

The Home Ministry has already said that there were "callousness" and "lapse" as the security drill was not ensured by West Bengal Police ahead of the visit of the two dignitaries to Midnapore.

Sources in the Home Ministry said the police did not carry out the basic road opening exercise, a mandatory security drill, ahead of the VIP arrival or departure from the foundation-laying ceremony of a steel project.

The remote-controlled mine was exploded at Salboni shortly after Bhattacharjee had passed through that area and Paswan was approaching the point in Jhargram district, adjacent to Midnapore.

Maradona to arrive in Kolkata on December 5

Kolkata,10 Nov,2008:

Argentine soccer legend Diego Maradona will lay the foundation stone of the Indian Football School (IFS) besides participating at a charity dinner during his visit to the city December 5-7.

Announcing Maradona's itinerary in the city, Lok Sabha MP Samik Lahiri said the present Argentine coach would arrive at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in the city on the night December 5.

After laying the foundation stone of the IFS in Maheshtala , about 13 km south of the city December 6, Maradona would meet the press - his first ever media interaction after becoming the Argentina coach.

The West Bengal government and the soccer fraternity would felicitate the superstar in the evening at the Salt lake Stadium, where all former soccer internationals of India would be invited. Maradona's programme for the day ends with a charity dinner, where some of his football gears would come under the hammer.

The hero of Argentina's 1986 World Cup victory is scheduled to visit Mother House, the global headquarters of Missionaries of Charity the next day, before attending a football clinic with youngsters, Lahiri told reporters on Monday. Maradona would leave for home the same night. To a query, he said Maradona could not play now, as he was a FIFA-registered coach. Lahiri also refused to disclose the remuneration Maradona has asked for his appearance.

The soccer genius is likely to be accompanied by his estranged wife Claudia, who played a big role in arranging the meeting between him and the organisers which made the visit possible. Asked what benefit would accrue to the country from the visit, Lahiri said: "The presence of the soccer master will definitely inspire and motivate the youngsters, who have grown up watching his exploits on the soccer field through video".

Lahiri said the ambitious IFS project would start by choosing 20 talented youngsters below the age of 10 from various clinics. The cadets would be coached by a former national level player, who would undergo a coaches' training in a reputed Latin American soccer academy.

After three years of training, the total number of youngsters would be pruned down to 40 (three batches combined). Once the shortlisted charges become 18, efforts would be made to place them in the leagues of various Latin American and European countries.

"Initially, we can't find slots for them in the premier divisions, but I think placing them in lower divisions should be possible," he said. He exuded confidence that if the project succeeded, the country would get 100 players with the experience of playing at the international level. West Bengal Sports Minister Subhas Chakraborty said the state government would play the role of facilitator for Maradona's visit.

Metro Cash & Carry to open outlet on Dec 4

KOLKATA,10 Nov: Metro Cash & Carry will be thrown open to the public on December 4. This German supply major outlet off the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass will be inaugurated the day before, possibly by chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. Metro officials met ministers Naren De and Mortaza Hossain among others on Monday.

The outlet will be the company’s fifth outlet in the country after Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai. Metro’s special focus would be hotels, restaurants, traders and kirana stores. The opening of the outlet is a major development as the Forward Bloc-controlled agricultural marketing board had refused to issue a fresh licence to the wholesale outlet a few months ago. Later, it agreed to give the nod after placing certain conditions. CPI(M) and Forward Bloc were locked in a major tussle over the issue. Finally, the marketing board and the Bloc agreed to issue a fresh licence and a memorandum of understanding was signed between the company and the state government on October 10.

Metro will do business with only those who have APMC licences. Though it can purchase from private markets or regulatory marketing committees, it has to pay one per cent market fee while selling the produce. Other conditions include a bar on contract farming with farmers and only following the business-to-business model with traders. Also, in case of a legal dispute, it must be sorted out in a court of law within the state.

The German wholesale major has already trained 350 persons to work in its outlet. According to its officials, the wholesale centres are open exclusively for business customers, all of them duly registered and provided with customer identification cards.