MediaVigil, Journal of Global Communications and Justice

Supreme Court heard the Blue Lady (SS Norway) matter on 26 July. The court took notice of illegal sale of ship’s oil. It asked the Gujarat Pollution Control Board to submit its affidavit within one week. In the last order, the petitioner’s lawyer had pointed out that the oil lying on the ship is safer than its presence on the shore since taking it out would create complications due to prevalent illegal trade of waste oil etc. But the lawyer appearing on behalf of Priya Blue Industries Ltd who is seeking to dismantle the ship had argued that due to monsoons there is a danger of contamination of sea due to oil spillage. Therefore, it was necessary to shift the oil from the ship. Considering latter’s submission, the bench of Dr. Justice Arijit Pasayat and Mr Justice S.H. Kapadia ordered, “Without claiming any equities, the Ship Breaking Unit shall be permitted to remove oil from the ship under the supervision and guidance of the Gujarat Pollution Control Board and the Guja...

Justice B. Subhashan Reddy, Chairperson, Andhra Pradesh Human Rights Commission (APHRC) has called for a report on the circumstances that led to the police firing in Mudikonda of Khammam district on 28 July, taking note of the death of eight persons and injuries to eight more. Modigonda is 15 km from Khammam town. The two-month long struggle for the land distribution. The state Congress government has been using excessive force in the face of public protests. Fifty rounds of firing by the police using self-loading rifles (SLR) and other powerful weapons in Khammam district is similar to what happened in Hyderabad on May 18 after the blast in Makkah Masjid. N Chandrababu Naidu, chief, Telgu Desam Party on 29 July demanded the resignation of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy owning moral responsibility for the police firing in Khammam district. Khammam district Collector is supposed to send a report by August 1, 2007. Khammam is represented by Renuka Chowdhury ...

" Blue Lady has more extensive problems " Author: Wilfred Guerin Time: 26.07.2007 15:17 Comment: As it should be well known, the logistic and historical problems of the Blue Lady (SS Norway) are derived from a single source: In 2003 the SS Norway was attacked by Al Qaeda in the port of Miami with widespread prior knowledge and explicit media coverage of the 2-week prior advisory in tape from Al Qaeda. "to Raise/Singe the floor right out from under their feet, the political and corporate interests of the United States and Norway." Links to mass media archives are available at: http://remedials.org/sunk/ There is a reason the ship's papers are not in order, and the Americans are a primary reason. -Wilfred WilfredGuerin@gmail.com aim/msn/yp/gt/etc "WilfredGuerin" http://southasia.oneworld.net/article/view/151684/1/

Evidence of Radioactive Material on Blue Lady New evidence submitted by the former project manager of SS Norway reveals that the toxic ship-for-scrap renamed Blue Lady and currently anchored 4000 feet off Alang coast has radioactive material on board in at least 5500 fire detection points. Americium 241 – a radioactive substance – concentrates in the bone, liver and muscle and can expose surrounding tissues to radiation, thereby increasing the risk of cancer. Ironically, this finding was made months after the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Technical Experts (CTE) opined “the presence of radioactive materials in a passenger ship like “Blue Lady” is quite unlikely.” “The new evidence exposes the shoddy state of science in this country. A body of experts appointed by the apex Court of the country confidently, and without evidence, rules on a subject that has far-ranging implications on worker health and environment.” Supreme Court in the matter of Ship Breaking dealing with “Deconta...

Blue Lady Saga Current Situation: The Supreme Court is due to hear the Blue Lady/Hazardous Wastes matter on 26 July, 2007. The court observed on 17th August 2006 that the only permission granted on humanitarian grounds by it on 5th June 2006 was for anchoring at a safe place in the territorial waters of India off Alang. It made it clear that no permission whatsoever has been granted for breaking of the ship. The court further made it clear that any precipitate action to break the ship without the court's express permission will be dealt with severely. In its June 2006 order, the court took note of anchorage, beaching and dismantling as separate measures and mentioned them distinctly. Permitting anchorage, the order said, "This shall, however, not confer any equity on the owners of the ship, which is sought to be put on anchorage, beaching and dismantling." The question which remains unanswered is whether or not Blue Lady has violated court's 14th October, 2003 o...

Indian Platform on Shipbreaking B-1/66, Ist floor Safdarjung Enclave, New Delhi-110067 Press Release Evidence of Radioactive Material on Blue Lady 25 July, 2007 New Delhi: New evidence submitted by the former project manager of SS Norway reveals that the toxic ship-for-scrap renamed Blue Lady and currently anchored 4000 feet off Alang coast has radioactive material on board in at least 5500 fire detection points. Americium 241 – a radioactive substance – concentrates in the bone, liver and muscle and can expose surrounding tissues to radiation, thereby increasing the risk of cancer. Ironically, this finding was made months after the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Technical Experts (CTE) opined “the presence of radioactive materials in a passenger ship like “Blue Lady” is quite unlikely.” “The new evidence exposes the shoddy state of science in this country. A body of experts appointed by the apex Court of the country confidently, and witho...

Why does Indian intelligence fail? Each time there is a terrorist and jihadi strike in India, we blame the intelligence agencies of failing to anticipate and prevent the attack. Why do we fail? We fail because the central Intelligence Bureau, the government's cutting edge internal security tool, is ill-prepared to combat aggressive operations of Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence agency, Bangladesh's Directorate General of Forces Intelligence and Islamist tanzeem s. The Bureau has well-trained, motivated and dedicated operators to gather intelligence and operate along areas of national fault lines. The IB operates through its Central Operations Units and Subsidiary Units in states. From the Northeast to Gujarat, Kashmir to Kanyakumari, it has a vast geographical area and extremely complex problems to grapple with. And with Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal and Pakistan factors thrown in, the Bureau finds it nose drowned under the flood of events that threaten the nation. The I...

Note: Chaitanya Kalbag joined Hindustan Times as Editor-in-Chief from September 1, 2006. Earlier he was Managing Editor, Reuters Asia. Few weeks back at a panel discussion Kalbag said, "I have never felt that there has been any erosion in his editorial independence". He was responding to a question from a student of journalism at India International Centre. The student further asked him "what is the meaning of editorial independence when reporters are working like contract workers", both Kalbag and Vinod Mehta, his co-panelist were speechless. Shobhana Bhartia is the daughter of the industrialist K K Birla and grand-daughter of G D Birla. The KK Birla family owned 75.36 per cent stake in HT Media. She is married to Shyam Sunder Bhartia, Chairman, Pharma firm Jubilant Organosys Ltd. Shobhana is the Vice-Chairperson and Editorial Director of the Hindustan Times group . In February 2006, Shobhana was nominated to Rajya Sabha on a recommendation by by Sonia ...

Note: Chaitanya Kalbag joined Hindustan Times as Editor-in-Chief from September 1, 2006. Earlier he was Managing Editor, Reuters Asia. Few weeks back at a panel discussion Kalbag said, "I have never felt that there has been any erosion in his editorial independence". He was responding to a question from a student of journalism at India International Centre. The student further asked him "what is the meaning of editorial independence when reporters are working like contract workers", both Kalbag and Vinod Mehta, his co-panelist were speechless. Shobhana Bhartia is the daughter of the industrialist K K Birla and grand-daughter of G D Birla. The KK Birla family owned 75.36 per cent stake in HT Media. She is married to Shyam Sunder Bhartia, Chairman, Pharma firm Jubilant Organosys Ltd. Shobhana is the Vice-Chairperson and Editorial Director of the Hindustan Times group. In February 2006, Shobhana was nominated to Rajya Sabha on a recommendation by by Sonia G...

There are media reports that a new book titled "India's External Internal Intelligence: Secrets of Research and Analysis Wing" (RAW) written by former RAW officer Major General (retd) V K Singh is likely to be banned. The use of the Official Secrets Act might facilitate the same. Ashok Chaturvedi, RAW Chief is reported to have voiced his concerns about the book to MK Narayanan, National Security Advisor. It is being said that the book deals with the leadership crisis in the RAW, lack of accountability, and political mishandling of RAW's functions. RAW was founded on 21st September 1968 by Rameshwar Nath Kao who was made a Secretary (Research) in the Cabinet Secretariat. R.N.Kao retired from active government service in 1977. Prior to independence Kao had joined the Imperial Police - which was to the ICS what the IPS is to the IAS today - at the start of the Second World War. He became part of the British Intelligence Bureau. After independence Kao was entrusted with t...

Statistics reveal that on an average one woman is raped every hour in India. The Week (15 April 2007) noted that the conviction for rape crime in India is 4 to 12 per cent. As if this was not enough instances of gang rape is on the rise all over the country across all strata of urban and rural society. The most recent gang rapes being that of a MBA girl, a senior executive by three Delhi Jal Board (DJB) officials- Sarat Chander, Praveen Bhargava and Ramesh Thakur-the three accused in the case and the village women in Dhanipurwa village under the Sirsiya police station area in Shravasti, Uttar Pradesh (UP) by the supporters of Dadan Mishra, UP Minister of State for Medical Education. In the former the FIR (610/07) dated June 9, 2007 under Sections 376, 354, 506, 384 (34) of the Indian Penal Code was registered at the Malviya Nagar police station on June 9 this year under the directions of Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Kamini Lau. The details about the police action in the lat...

The Hoot carried this interesting piece Rupert and The Review As part of its campaign against Rupert Murdoch's acquisition of Dow Jones, The Columbia Journalism Review has produced a Rupert Reader A RUPERT READER Rupert Murdoch may or may not purchase Dow Jones and thus run The Wall Street Journal. We think it's a bad idea, and invite you to check our reasoning:First, in the editorial from our new July issue, we tell a tale about a frog and a scorpion: http://www.cjr.org/editorial/its_his_nature.php Second, our Dean Starkman rounds up the business-press coverage of Murdoch (notably in the Journal itself) and contends that a News Corp.-owned Journal cannot cover certain problems of modern capitalism because News Corp. exemplifies those very problems.Second, our Dean Starkman rounds up the business-press coverage of Murdoch (notably in the Journal itself) and contends that a News Corp.-owned Journal cannot cover certain problems of modern capitalism because News Corp. exemplifies...

Moderator's Note: Isn't there a relation between corporate funding to Indian National Congress, Bhartiya Janata Party, Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the approval of Special Economic Zones (SEZ)? It apears that under the influence of some vested interestes Ministers like Manmohan Singh, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Buddhadev Bhattacharya and Narendra Modi wish to get on the luxury bus of some sort even as farmers and soldiers continue to commit suicide at an unprecedented rate? The manifestoes of Indian National Congress, Bhartiya Janata Party, Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Common Minimum Program of UPA call for provision of state funding of the elections. All SEZ approvals and MOUs on Interlinking of Rivers (ILR) before the provision for state funding of elections are suspect. Aren't they? Moderator Mukesh Ambani's SEZ, 27 others get government approval New Delhi, July 12 : The Board of Approvals (BoA) today cleared 28proposals of Special Economic Zones ...

Moderator's Note: It is noteworthy that Kerela State Assembly and West Bengal Government has opposed Interlinking of Rivers (ILR) from the very outset. The Orissa government has objected to the construction of the Polavaram project(part of the ILR project). The Orissa Chief Minister in his letter to theCentral Water Commission says, its clearance was "fraudulent". The Orissa ChiefMinister wrote to the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister opposing Andhra’s unilateraldecision. Andhra seems to be reaping the benefits of a friendly government atthe centre.The National Water Development Agency on the 174 KM Polavarm link, is availableat the following link http://nwda.gov.in/index3.asp?sublink2id=12 Chapter 14 of the report deals with the ecological impact of the project thatentails Polavaram -linking Godavari and Krishna. Moderator Tamil Nadu, Kerala disagree on river linking Pamba-Achencoil-Vaippar link proposal may be “permanently deleted” NEW DELHI: Tamil Nadu and Kerala on 4th Ju...

Gangrape & Murder of Tapasi Malik Moderator's Note: Why did TATAs got Tapasi Malik gang raped and murdered? CNN-IBN reported on Jun 28, 2007 that a CPM leader in Singur, West Bengal, has allegedly confessed to the murder of Tapasi Malik, a 19-year-old girl who was found burnt to death. Earlier The Statesman reported on 24 June, 2007 that the CBI has arrested Debu Malik, who was detained in connection with the murder of Tapasi Malik in Singur about six months back. Debu was produced in a Delhi court. The CBI had taken Debu to Delhi for a polygraph test, commonly known as the lie detector test, on 21 June, 2007. Debu Malik, a CPI-M Hooghly district committee member, was arrested following the polygraph test. Debu had claimed during questioning that Tapasi was not murdered, but had committed suicide. Farmers, spearheading the movement to reoccupy their plots acquired for Tata Motor’s small car project at Singur, have decided to launch another agitation, demanding “capital punishme...