SP not to join government: Mulayam

Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav says they will only provide outside support to the Government-

New Delhi: The Samajwadi Party will extend legislative support to the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) but will not be a part of the government, party president Mulayam Singh Yadav announced here Tuesday।

There is no question of joining the government, Mulayam Singh told reporters, shortly after the four Left parties withdrew their legislative support to the government over their differences on the India-US nuclear deal।

He asserted that all 39 Lok Sabha MPs from his party would vote in favour of the Congress-led government if there was a confidence vote। There was no question of divisions in his party over the decision, he added.

All the Muslim MPs have attended the meeting and they are in favour of the nuclear deal, Mulayam Singh added।

The UPA government is likely to face a floor test later this month as the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M)-led Left parties on Tuesday announced their decision to withdraw their backing to the government।

Government sources said there could be a parliament session beginning July 21, during which Manmohan Singh would seek the confidence of the house।

The Left parties, which have 59 MPs, are expected to go to President Pratibha Patil Wednesday noon to present her with the letter of withdrawal. They also have the support of two more MPs from the Kerala Congress-J.

Time short for Indo-US nuclear deal

Toyako:

The White House today warned that time was running short to ratify the US-India civilian nuclear agreement during US President George W Bush's term, which ends in January।

Speaking on the eve of Bush's talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Toyako, spokeswoman Dana Perino said the US Congress have "a limited number of legislative days।"

"We've maintained a strong commitment to carry on our side of the deal, and obviously India has had a lot of discussion among its political parties," she said।

"We'll have to see what he's able to bring on the India civil nuclear agreement," she said।

"It could be that he's ready to move forward, but it also could just as likely be that they have a little bit more work to do।"

Singh yesterday arrived in Toyako, where he was expected to tell Bush he will move ahead on the stalled nuclear cooperation accord despite tough opposition।

Singh and Bush in 2005 unveiled an agreement to share civilian nuclear technology; a deal that when finalised would see India entering the fold of global nuclear commerce after being shut out for decades.

most wanted bank robber killed

The crime branch on Sunday night gunned down one of the most dreaded bank robbers in the recent past at Chembur। Ramesh Upadhyaya alias Dabbu, 35, who has about 40 cases (21 of them of bank robberies) registered against him at various police stations across Maharashtra and Karnataka, was killed in an encounter by the property cell of the crime branch near Diamond Garden in Chembur around on Monday.

Upadhyaya, who police say could easily be branded as the most successful bank robbers of all time, had a unique modus operandi। He always robbed banks where women were the majority staff, as they offered little resistance. He always struck in the mornings as soon as the banks opened and never robbed a bank after the 10th of a month.

Says an officer with the property cell, “He was a very shrewed guy who meticulously planned his robberies। He first properly surveyed his targeted. Smart as he was, he would enter a bank wearing good clothes and a tie. He would then find out about the security, staff strength and escape routes at the bank.”

“He would strike early morning as the bank staff would still be settling in and would be caught by surprise। He would also rob only between first and 10th of a month as banks have maximum cash during that time,” he added.

Upadhyaya also always stole a vehicle for the crime and then abandoned it, so that no one could trace him। “He once stole a Mercedes to commit a robbery,” said an officer with the property cell. “He was a fantastic driver and thus never took a chance with anyone else on the wheels. He would drive very fast and beat any chase,” said the officer.

On Sunday night, when he was gunned down, Upadhyaya had come to do a recce of Oriental Bank of Commerce in Chembur. “The officers of the property cell under senior inspector Arun Chavan received information that he was going to come there. They accordingly laid a trap and as soon as he arrived they asked him to surrender. He, however, fired at the police. In the retaliating fire by the police, Upadhyaya was killed,” said Crime Branch chief Rakesh मारिया

Son of a peon in Ghatkopar’s Jhunjhunwala College, Upadhyaya rose fast in his gang and on the crime ladder। Upadhyaya’s father, Shivshankar Upadhyaya, shifted to Mumbai with his family from Jaunpur district in UP in the early ‘80s.

The smartest and most intelligent of all his siblings, Upadhyaya quit studies after class IX and started selling handkerchiefs and scarfs on footpaths in Ghatkopar। It was during this time in 1994 that he came in touch with members of Katta Shekhar Gang and Ashok Jiwani, an infamous robber himself. “Jivani found Upadhyaya really smart and fit to be a member in his gang. He took him under his tutelage and intially used him only as a person who conducted reconnaissance of potential robbery targets. However, with his intelligent planning and meticulous execution of robberies, Upadhyaya soon grew through the ranks in the gang and even dwarfed Jivani so much so that the gang was now called Dabbu gang. He became the brain behind the gang while Jivani lied low,” said the officer.

Upadhyaya was first arrested by Pantnagar police in connection with a bank robbery in 1994। He was soon released on bail and this time started his operations on large scale spreading across Maharshtra and even Mangalore and Bangalore.

In 2006, while robbing Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative bank in Airoli, a brave sub-inspector named Babasaheb Adhav tried to stop him but was shot dead by Upadhyaya. His gang also killed a constable before running away with lakhs of rupees. In 2008 the gang committed three bank robberies in Pune. Police estimate Upadhyaya has committed robberies worth several crores of rupees. His brother, Avdhesh had earlier been killed in a similar encounter by the crime branch.

Members had warned RWITC

After fire gutted the third floor of the members stand at the Mahalaxmi race course on Thursday night, some members of the Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) that manages the race course have said that they had warned the fire brigade and the club itself that the building lacked fire-fighting systems।

The members' stand, a hundred-year old colonial structure made of stone, concrete and wood was built as an open stadium for watching the races। However, when sections of the three floors were proposed to be converted into cafeterias and air-conditioned lounges, some worried members had written to the fire brigade to find out whether the floors had fire-fighting systems, including fire alarms, in place.

Some RWITC members have now claimed that fire and smoke alarms have still not been installed and that if fire protection installation had been in place, the damage to the building would not have been as extensive as it was।

Between January and April 2002, a member had written several letters to the chief officer of the Mumbai fire brigade warning the air-conditioned lounges and the cafeterias could be fire hazards। Members had even said that the lounges could hinder movement of spectators in case of an emergency. The fire brigade had conducted an inspection of the premises after the warnings.

Earlier in November 2001, another member, major (retd) S K Lamba who was allotted space on the third floor to construct a lounge and cafeteria wrote to the fire brigade asking whether fire experts had cleared the proposal to construct the lounges as the structure was classified as a 'special building' under the city's development control rules as it was meant to be only a stadium। "If fire-fighting equipment had been installed in the building, the damage due to the fire would not have been so great," said Lamba.

Though no lounges were built on the third floor subsequently, liquor baron Vijay Mallya and industrialist Cyrus Poonawala have lounges on the first two floors। Each floor of the stand, including the lounge can seat around 300 people.

Confirming the lapses on the part of the committee even though there were concerns shown by the members, Vivek Jain, a RWITC's committee member said: "Since it is a heritage structure, we did not put in place a fire fighting system, but now after restoring the structure, we will ensure that this is not repeated। We were fortunate that the fire did not spread to other floors and in the stable area."

Though the cause of Thursday's fire is still not known, eye witnesses who had visited the building on the day the fire took place said that water-proofing work was going on in the building। The material used for the water-proofing work was bitumen, a highly inflammable material. "The bitumen was lying on the third floor and was being heated on gas stoves," said a RWITC member who had visited the building on Thursday.

Anil Sawant, chief fire officer said, "At this stage, it is difficult to predict the reasons for the fire। We are in the process of recording statements of club members and employees. We will gather proof from the scene of the accident to investigate the reasons. If we find anything suspicious, we will carry out a few forensic tests. The primary reason should be known within the next two or three days."

The race season is expected to begin in November and since the monsoon has set in, it is doubtful whether the member's stand would be restored by then.

5 reasons to hold off on the iPhone 3G

Yes, I'm one of those guys who wait in line the day a shiny new gadget goes on sale, and the iPhone 3G is one of the shiniest gadgets of all। But while I'll be out there waiting in the wee hours of July 11 (it's my job, after all), the rest of you should think twice before losing sleep on launch day. Here's why.

1. Shortages are unlikely

Remember last year, when we all got in line early for the iPhone because we were afraid it would sell out? Well, that didn't quite happen। Yes, individual AT&T stores sold out quickly, but many Apple stores had plenty of iPhones in stock in the days and weeks after the big day. (Indeed, there weren’t any serious iPhone 1.0 shortages until just recently.) Also, word of hundreds of massive overseas shipments bound for Apple (which began arriving as early as March) leads me to believe that there's a healthy supply of iPhone 3Gs on hand. So if you're worrying about a Wii-like shortage of the iPhone 3G, well ... I wouldn't.

2. Chaos on Day One

Unlike last year, customers won't be able to activate their new iPhones over iTunes—instead, clerks will have to activate them in the store, contracts will have to be signed on the spot, and new AT&T subscribers will have to undergo credit checks। It could take a good 10-15 minutes per customer—and that's if things go smoothly. It'll be a new process for everyone—especially for Apple Store employees, who aren't accustomed to processing cell phone contracts—so I'm anticipating (dreading, actually) a train wreck next Friday. Even if you're dying to lay hands on the iPhone 3G, you might want to wait a week or so until they get the kinks worked out.

3. 32GB iPhone 3G on the horizon

I was keenly disappointed when Steve Jobs didn't unveil a 32GB iPhone last month—indeed, all we got were 8GB and 16GB versions, and I'd personally like an iPhone that I could cram with as much music and video as I can stand। Here's the thing, though—a 32GB iPhone 3G is probably coming within the next six months, if not sooner (well, that's my guess). If I wasn't buying the 16GB iPhone 3G for Yahoo! Tech, I'd probably sit tight and wait for the 32GB version to arrive.

4. Best new iPhone features are coming to the original iphone

Yes, the iPhone 3G will be getting GPS and, of course, 3G—but for now, you can't download music tracks over AT&T's 3G network or access AT&T's streaming video service। For me, the most exciting thing about the new iPhone is the upcoming App Store, which will be stocked with scores of 3D games, chat clients, productivity apps, RSS readers, you name it—and the App Store will be available July 11 as a free upgrade to the old iPhone. That'll keep you busy till the 32GB iPhone comes out.

5. The HTC Touch Diamond

I've seen the future of cell phones, folks, and it's called the HTC Touch Diamond. With its gorgeous VGA screen, beautiful touch-screen interface, and compact, light-weight shell, the Diamond is the first phone to make me green-eyed with envy since … well, since the original iPhone. The Diamond is set to arrive in the U.S. in September, and spy shots of a Sprint-branded Touch Diamond are already circulating on the Web. You might want to give the Diamond a serious look before committing to a new two-year iPhone contract.

Left to pull out, to meet Prez tomorrow

July 08, 2008 12:52 IST

The Left parties on Tuesday announced their decision to withdraw parliamentary support to the United Progressive Alliance government, and said they will meet President Pratibha Patil [Images] on Wednesday morning to hand over a letter to this effect।

PM to meet NSG members todayAddressing a press conference on Tuesday afternoon soon after a meeting to decide on the modalities of withdrawal of support, Community Party of India-Marxist general secretary Prakash Karat said with the prime minister announcing his decision to approach the International Atomic Energy Agency over the nuclear deal, no useful purpose will be served by continuing to support the government।

What the IAEA agreement gives india

There was also point in going ahead with the coordination committee meeting on July 10 as sought by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee since the government has gone against the decision of previous such meetings, Karat said।

He added that the Left will be releasing documents to show that the government has lied to the people of India over the nuclear deal।

'It is sad the N-deal is smeared in murky politics'

The Left parties have sought an appointment with the President for Wednesday, Karat announced।

A formal letter about the Left's decision to withdraw support has also been sent to Mukherjee, he added.