Somewhere in Ranthambore....

After two new tiger cubs were spotted in the month of April, the wildlife authorities in Ranthambore were elated after they found T-39 with a cub on Monday. With this, the number of cubs born in the last 10 months has gone up to 21. The total number of tigers in the park has now gone up to 47 which include 26 adults (12 males and 14 females) and 21 cubs, according to the wildlife authorities at the Ranthambore National Park. 
On Monday, some forest guards spotted T-39 with a cub in the Sulanpur area. Initially, it was not known if the cub belonged to tigress T-39. Y K Sahoo, field director of the park said, “ T-39 was spotted with a cub. There is a possibility of a second cub as tigresses are known to give birth two cubs.”   Sahoo added, “The age of the cub appears to be around three months.” 
The wildlife authorities have also said that T-17 tigress in the park is also pregnant as judged by her behavioural changes. “Her behaviour shows that she too has delivered recently. Usually, a tigress hides her cub for three months, so we will have to wait for three months for confirmation,” said an official. 
Wildlife enthusiasts attributed the birth of new cub to the rehabilitation of villagers from the core tiger habitat. “It is the result of efforts made by the wildlife authorities and those working for tiger protection,” said Dharmendra Khandal, conservation biologist at Tiger Watch, an NGO at Ranthambore. Similarly, the experts also said that now the state government should expedite the work of extension of core critical habitat for tigers from the existing 392 sq km to 1,100 sq km. “The work of evacuation of the villagers and their rehabilitation need to be done in a proper way. Villagers should be taken in confidence,” said a tiger conservationist.

Somewhere in New Delhi....

Sonia Gandhi along with son Rahul Gandhi at former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi's samadhi Vir Bhumi on his 21st death anniversary.

Maharashtra to be power surplus soon !

For powerstarved Maharashtra, it is a big achievement. Barring parts of Marathwada and north Maharashtra, the state has not only become free of load-shedding but by October-end, it will also be able to export surplus power following the completion of major projects. “It’s a big achievement. Barring areas where recovery is dismal, we have been able to supply uninterrupted power. We have been providing uninterrupted power for eight to 10 hours even to the agricultural sector,’’ Ajoy Mehta, managing director, Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Ltd (MSEDCL) said. MSEDCL records shows that while there is no loadshedding in areas where losses are below 34%, in areas where losses are more than that, load-shedding ranges from five to seven hours. For recovery, MSEDCL has created six zones: in A, B and C zones, the loss is below 34%; in D zone, it is 34-42%, in E, it is 42-50% and in F, it is above 50%. “We are drafting a new strategy for D, E & F zones to improve performance. If losses in these zones are reduced, the power supply position will improve,’’ a senior energy department official said. 
The official said peak hour demand ranges from 14,500-15,500 MW, which is met from 5,500 MW power from state-owned thermal power stations, 1,000 MW from Dabhol, 3,500 from NTPC, 600 from the Uran gas power plant, 1,500 MW from windmills, 1,900 from the Koyna hydroelectric plant and 1,000 from other sources, including the hydel and open markets. 
On achieving power surplus status, the official said, the state expects to receive an additional 1,100 MW from NTPC as per an agreement and another 1,500 MW from state-owned power plants at Khaparkheda and Bhusaval. “We are sure that by October-end, Maharashtra will be power surplus and will be able to export power to neighbouring states,’’ he said. 
MSEDCL found that out of the 1.12 crore consumers across the state, more than 35 lakh were defaulters, resulting in a loss of Rs 300-400 crore. “We are drafting a new strategy to tackle defaulters. In certain areas, recovery is zero. We have stopped power supply to these areas, but still they manage to secure power. We have shunted out 350 employees (who could have been aiding them),’’ he said. 
On the redistribution of load, the official said it had been proposed to shift major peak hour load to the night. “We have urged leading industrial houses, particularly those who consume a high quantity of power, so that our peak hour demand will reduce. Instead of Rs 7-8 per unit, we have proposed Rs 2.5 per unit. We have submitted a proposal to the state electricity regulatory commission for approval. If accepted, we will be in a better position to supply more power,’’ the official said.

Lokpal bill delayed again

India will not get a Lokpal anytime soon. The ill-starred bill was referred to a select committee of the Rajya Sabha after a trenchant opposition attack on the government for being evasive and taking recourse to parliamentary artifice over the anticorruption law. While a heated drama unfolded in the RS on Monday, the decision to refer the bill, already processed by a parliamentary committee, to yet another panel, drew Anna Hazare’s ire as he criticized the government for not being sincere about the law. 
Opposition parties like the BJP and Left promptly chimed in, saying the government lacked the will for a Lokpal. The bill now cannot be expected before the monsoon session in August. Perhaps anticipating the criticism, the government did not initially move the motion referring the bill to a select committee. Instead, Samajwadi Party MP Naresh Aggarwal rose to move an “amendment” immediately after minister of state in PMO V Narayanasamy presented the bill. But the ploy boomeranged as the opposition accused the Centre of using the services of a “friendly opposition party”. 

Rupee breaches 55

Continuing its downward drift, the rupee crossed a new all-time closing low of 55 against the dollar, settling at 55.04. The trend persisted in the absence of any major flows despite intervention by the Reserve Bank of India. Dealers said that given the current inclination, the currency could easily slide to 56 to 57 levels. However, any depreciation beyond this level could trigger panic and lead to a currency crisis, which would force the central bank to come out with concerted efforts to support the rupee. 
WHY A WEAK RUPEE IS NOT ALL THAT BAD... Imports are slowing down 
Import substitution picking up 
Domestic tourism gets preference over overseas 
Five star hotels make money 
Exporters get a fresh lease

AI yo !

Mumbai - Pune NH-4 snippets

The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) has submitted a Rs 190-crore proposal to the Union ministry of road transport and highways for constructing underpasses and overbridges at various locations on the Pune-Mumbai highway. A seven-km stretch of the highway from Nigdi to Dehu Road is also to be widened from two to four lanes under the scheme. While the MSRDC completed a number of underpasses and overbridges when the Mumbai-Pune expressway was built, the corporation has proposed similar constructions on the highway stretch to facilitate safe movement of people. 
MSRDC officials said that widening of the highway has also been proposed in some areas. One of the major works will be undertaken on the Nigdi-Dehu Road stretch, where the highway will be widened to 30 metres. 
The seven-km stretch of the highway from Nigdi in Pimpri-Chinchwad to Dehu Road is accident-prone because of its narrow width of less than 15 metres. The entire stretch passes through the Dehu Road cantonment limits. A number of government residential colonies, defence establishments, the central school and dense residential and commercial areas are located along the highway. The highway stretch from Nigdi to Dehu Road has avery sharp turn near the Dehu Road octroi post where a number of trucks are parked, making the spot accidentprone. A number of fatal accidents have taken place on this stretch as there is no divider along the highway. MSRDC officials said that only a four-lane highway has a divider for smooth and safe movement of traffic. 
Meanwhile, from Dehu Road onwards, the highway has been widened to four lanes. Just as the expressway, the highway too is a toll road. The MSRDC has already proposed to augment the capacity of the expressway to meet the requirements of increase in vehicular traffic in the future. It has also proposed to have a separate bypass in the ghat section for the expressway.