No threat to Games Village as floods raise water level

Taj Mahal as Shah Jahan saw it
A river in spate, the angry and overflowing Yamuna is now touching the foundation of the Taj Mahal, providing thousands of visitors to the 'Symbol of Love' a rare spectacle — "just the way the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan had wanted it to look." Heritage lover Sudhir Gupta said: "If the emperor had been alive and looking at the Taj from his confines in the fort he would have been mighty pleased, for that is how he had wanted it to look."
Flood situation worsens in Bareilly & Moradabad Monday 20 September, 2010.
More than 200 villages have been inundated in Bareilly and Moradabad divisions due to floods even as seven trains have been cancelled in the region.

Vehicular movement on National Highway 24, connecting Delhi with Lucknow, which was closed on Saturday night after its section near Moradabad division was flooded, would remain suspended till 22nd September.

More than 200 villages in Bareilly and Moradabad have been hit by floods due to incessant rain and release of water in Ramganga and Kosi rivers from Kalagarh, Naraura, Behgul, Nand Sagar and Dhaura dams.

According to Central Water Commission report, Ramganga was swelling by 2 cm by every hour. The danger mark is at 204.83 metres. The water level had touched 206.78 metres last week. There is no threat to Games Village even if the water level rises
Flood situation worsens in Bareilly & Moradabad

Over 500 NDRF Personnel Deployed for Flood Relief in Uttarakhand, Up & Bihar
2o Sep 2010, 17:27 IST
The Government of India has sent six teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) for rescue and relief work in Uttarakhand. Three teams comprising of 90 NDRF personnel along with 20 boats and other flood and rescue equipment have been deployed at Haridwar. Other three teams comprising of 101 personnel along with 25 boats and other flood and rescue equipment have been deployed at Rishikesh.

As on date, Rs 87.49 crore is available with the State Government in their Calamity Relief Fund/State Disaster Response Fund account.

In Bihar, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) consisting of 152 personnel along with 31 boats /equipments have been deployed in Gopalganj since 16-9-10 for rescue and relief work. Additionally, two teams consisting of 66 NDRF personnel along with 12 OBM boats have been deployed in Gopalganj on 19.9.2010.

As on date 1491.28 crore is available with the Bihar Government in their Calamity Relief Fund/State Disaster Response Fund account. However the final figures will be subject to reconciliation between the State Government and State Accountant General.

In Uttar Pradesh, a total of 79 NDRF personnel along with 11 boats have been deployed in Uttar Pradesh at Muradabad (39 personnel with 6 boats), Rampur (40 personnel with 5 boats). In addition 01 team comprising of 40 NDRF personnel with 5 boats and other flood and rescue equipment have been deployed in Rampur on 19.9.2010.

As on date, Rs 667.04 crore is available with the State Government in their Calamity Relief Fund /State Disaster Response Fund account.

Ministry of Home Affairs is constantly monitoring the situation in close coordination with the concerned State Governments and nodal Central Ministries.
Over 500 NDRF Personnel Deployed for Flood Relief in Uttarakhand, Up & Bihar

National Highway Authority move may affect ex-servicemen

NHAI move may affect ex-servicemen
NEW DELHI, June 25, 2010 The Hindu
K. Balchand
The decision of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to hand over all the toll plazas on major highways to private contractors threatens to render about 35000 ex-servicemen, who earn a living by running them, jobless. The ex-servicemen have taken objection to the notification issued by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on Monday deciding to invite tenders for the toll plazas which are currently being operated by retired army personnel who have been employed through Director General of Rehabilitations, Government of India.

A delegation of ex-servicemen led by Col (Retd) H.S.Yadav and Col (Retd) Chaudhary complained to Defence Minister A.K.Antony about the injustice meted out to them by the MORTH (Ministry of Road Transport and Highways). They pointed out that the action violates the commitment the Congress party contained in its manifesto of 2004 and 2009 to rehabilitate ex-army personnel on their retirement.

The ex-servicemen said that Mr. Antony promised to take up the matter with Minister of Roads Transport and Highways Kamal Nath.

They charged that this action would render 25000 ex-servicemen and about 10000 others who are indirectly employed in various logistics for running these toll plazas, jobless.

These retired army personnel claimed that revenue has increased at the toll plazas from 15 per cent to 85 per cent. Besides, their presence helped road users in several ways.
NHAI move may affect ex-servicemen
Can ESM fight the all powerful corrupt NHAI and MORTH Bureaucrats? Read more:
CBI arrests top NHAI officials, gets custody till May 31
Former Supreme Court Judge fails to fight the Indian Corruption Inc and resigns in disgust
Lokayukta resignation shocks Yeddyurappa government

A Highway through A Building- Japanese are unstoppable

Look at the commitment of the builders of this building!! Truly amazing.
Gate Tower Building is a 16-story office building in Fukushima-ku, Osaka , Japan. And what makes it notable is the highway that passes through the 5th-7th floors of this building.

The highway is part of the Hanshin Expressway, a network (239.3 km) of expressways surrounding Osaka , Kobe and Kyoto , Japan. The Gate Tower Building is Japan 's first building to have a highway pass through it. And it had been nicknamed "beehive" referring to its appearance as a "bustling place".

The Umeda Exit of the Ikeda Route of the Hanshin Expressway system passes through this building. The expressway is the tenant of these floors.

The elevator doesn't stop on floor 5th-7th, floor 4 being followed by floor 8. These floors consist of elevators, stairways, machinery

The highway passes through the building as a bridge, held up by supports next to the building making no contact with the building itself.

The building has a double core construction, with a circular cross section and special care is taken by providing surrounding structure to the highway to protect the building from noise and vibration.

Generally expressways are built underground, and passing through a building is an extremely rare occasion. It dates back to 1983, when the redevelopment of this area was decided upon, "building permits were refused because the highway was already being planned to be built over this land. The property rights' holders refused to give up, and negotiated with the Hanshin Expressway corporation for approximately 5 years to reach the current solution."
A Highway through A Building!!!- Japanese are unstoppable

Eye Opener
Do our Politicians and Bureaucrats have any such vision for the Indian Metropolitan Cities buckling and crumbling/ crumpling under traffic and massive building pressure? Rightly Dr Manmohan Singh has highlighted that corruption is eating away our economy and infrastructural growth. Leave alone highways even potholes are not filled and highways resemble cart tracks in most regions. Citizen's need to continue dreaming to fulfill and realize their wishes.

Motor Vehicles Act to be amended to meet future needs: Kamal Nath

Illegal Parking
Ministry of Road Transport & Highways
Wednesday, September 23, 2009 19:27 IST
The Minister for Road Transport & Highways Shri Kamal Nath has said that a comprehensive review of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 would be done so as to meet the future requirements of the country. He said that a Committee has been constituted to review the Motor Vehicles Act and it will give its suggestions in three months time. Shri Nath said,” We need to not only learn lessons from the past but also stimulate what would happen in future.” Thus, the amendments in the Act would take care of the best practises abroad and would not only “serve the present but also future”. The Minister was speaking at the launch of the National Campaign for “Reduction of Road Fatalities”, a joint initiative of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) and International Roads Federation (IRF), a Washington and Geneva based worldwide platform for Road Safety.

Speaking at the function in Delhi, Shri Nath said that we need to make not ony 20km of roads per day but also ensure that they are safe. The roads would be built with safety stndards and no over or under engineering will be done, he said.

As per the WHO's global status report on road safety, India tops the global list of deaths in road accidents with 125,000 fatalities and at least 2.2 million serious injuries each year. India accounts for 10 per cent of global road accident deaths. The national campaign has been launched with the target of reducing road accident deaths by 50 per cent by the year 2012.

Shri Brahm Dutt, Secretary, MoRTH and Shri Nirmaljit Singh, Director General & Special Secretary, MoRTHwere also present on the occasion. Gre5/
Motor Vehicles Act to be amended to meet future needs: Kamal Nath

Illegal Parking on carriageways, berms and footpaths
Greatest menace to road safety is illegal parking of vehicles on carriage ways, berms, footpaths, highways and streets especially by the commercial vehicles. This restricts the road space available for driving to less than 40% of road surfaces paved for smooth flow of vehicles. Strict laws should be brought in to curb menace of illegal parking in metro cities and on the National Highways. Safety norms are violated in connivance with traffic police who accept bribes from the traffic violators and law breakers.

Panipat: Elevated Highway to Reduce Traffic Snarls

Travelling through this particular stretch on this National Highway would take only ten minutes which is much less than the present average travelling time of 45 minutes...Panipat elevated highway inaugurated by Baalu.

Panipat (Haryana), July 16, Union Minister of Shipping Road Transport and Highways Thiru T R Baalu, along with Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Chief Minister of Haryana today inaugurated the ten kilometre long Panipat Elevated Highway on North- South corridor.

The elevated highway has been constructed with a view to ease acute congestion in the Panipat city on National Highway-1 (NH-1) between Delhi and Amritsar.

Baalu said that the Rs 325 crore project has been completed six months ahead of schedule and it would bring relief to a large number of road users in Panipat and to the people proceeding to Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh who were earlier facing traffic jams on NH-1.
10 KM long Panipat elevated highway inaugurated today

Clarification of Highway Toll Tax

Dear Brigadier,

Please refer your e-mail to the chairman NHAI dated 03 Jan 08. The letter enclosed by you does not exist and is being circulated to misguide ex- servicemen as the toll collection work is being assigned only to DGR sponsored agencies of ESM(O) and employing 90% ex- servicemen.
Based on provisions of Indian Toll (Army & Air Force) Act 1901, exemption is available only to serving Defence Personnel and these provisions are being implemented. Recipients of Gallantry Award as per Gazette notification no GSR 84(E) dt 27 Oct 2003 are covered in exempted category.
No exemption is available to ex-servicemen unless they are recipients of listed gallantry awards.
Thanking you
Yours faithfully

Gp Capt Vinay Kaushal VSM
General Manager (CO)

The above letter was received by Brig CS Kamboj, VSM (Retd) which is reproduced for information of all ESM.

Exemption of Toll Tax

I have been very impressed and motivated by the great efforts that you have been putting into the cause of welfare to the veterans. I would like to express my gratitude on behalf of all my fellow veterans. I would also like to present my self in your service should it help the cause. I can relate with most of the problems that we face after having safeguarded the country with our Sweat and Blood. The kind of harassment that we undergo at the toll tax barriers at the hands of illiterate and arrogant duty personal is a shame and disgrace to those safeguarding the nation.

I have been harassed at most of the Toll Tax barriers as well but as a true soldier, continue to fight for the privileges offered by the Government. I will appreciate a great deal if a copy of the letter exempting veterans from paying toll tax is forwarded to me for wider distribution to put an end to undue harassment of the veterans on toll tax barriers. (National Highways Authority of India(Ministry of Road Transport and Highways) GM(CM) Office letter No NHAI/CMU/GMA Off/EXEMP/Toll Tax d 1166 dated November 17, 2006).
Best regards and good wishes for the new year.

V Sharma
Flt Lt (Retd)

SIGNAL replies
A copy of the NHAI letter is appended below:



Email for a copy and it will be send to you as pdf attachment.