Boots on civilian turf:Sri Lankan troops chase protesters, up against contamination of drinking water in Weliweriya
Three young men have been killed over the last couple of days following a clash between the army and residents of Weliweriya — about an hour’s drive from Colombo — during protests against contaminated drinking water. At a time when the army’s growing dominance — even in civil matters — is being condemned by many sections within and outside the country, the incident has sparked severe criticism on the need for the army to be summoned in response to a protest over a basic civic problem.
The army reportedly swung into action to “tackle” the protesters and the subsequent firing claimed three lives, in addition to leaving many seriously injured.
Akila Dinesh (17), a student, died on Thursday night soon after the clash, while Ravishan Perera (19), who was admitted to the National Hospital, succumbed to injuries on Saturday, news agency Adaderana reported. On Sunday, a 29-year-old man, who was undergoing treatment at the Colombo National Hospital, also died.
Following contamination of water in their wells — their primary ground water source — by effluents from a nearby factory, thousands of Weliweriya residents staged a protest on Thursday. Though the residents had been highlighting the issue for a while, there was no response or action from civic authorities. They even explored legal options, moving the magistrate court with a petition against the owner of the factory, Dipped Products Ltd, a subsidiary of Hayleys Group located at Nedungamuwa, about 3 km from Weliwveriya, The Sunday Times reported. However, the adjournment of the case until August 22 resulted in the protest gaining momentum, as more residents took to the streets on Thursday to express their anger and concern. The road from Kandy to Colombo was blocked — except for access given to school vehicles and ambulances.
The army personnel were soon at the spot, trying to “control” the crowd. Many sections in Sri Lankan believe that while the police ought to have intervened in such a situation, the army’s presence and action cannot not justified. The Lawyers Collective condemned the government’s “continuous ferocity” against peaceful protesters.
In a statement issued in this connection, the Collective said the government has displayed total disrespect to the constitutional guarantees on civil liberties of its citizens. “Evidence clearly establishes that deplorable levels of force including live bullets were used on the unarmed villager. The assailants also assaulted journalists and grabbed their cameras by force when they were doing their job covering the event.”
The legal fraternity urged the government to control its military and ensure that they are used for only legitimate purposes.
Journalists of the local media, at the spot to cover the developments, said army personnel threatened to “smash” their cameras. “There was a power cut soon after the clash that made some of us suspicious,” a journalist told The Hindu .
Meanwhile, the Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission has begun investigating the incident, with a five-member team probing available evidence.
The army, which has been denying charges against it, too has ordered an investigation into the incident.
Atherosclerosis is a condition in which an artery wall thickens as a result of the accumulation of fatty materials such as cholesterol and triglyceride. It is a syndrome affecting arterial blood vessels, a chronic inflammatory response in the walls of arteries, caused largely by the accumulation of macrophage white blood cells and promoted by low-density lipoproteins (LDL, plasma proteins that carry cholesterol and triglycerides) without adequate removal of fats and cholesterol from the macrophages by functional high-density lipoproteins (HDL) . It is commonly referred to as a hardening or furring of the arteries. It is caused by the formation of multiple plaques within the arteries.
The atheromatous plaque is divided into three distinct components:
The atheroma, which is the nodular accumulation of a soft, flaky, yellowish material at the center of large plaques, composed of macrophages nearest the lumen of the artery
Underlying areas of cholesterol crystals
Calcification at the outer base of older/more advanced lesions.
Pathology
Atherosclerosis is a chronic disease that remains asymptomatic for decades. Atherosclerotic lesions, or atherosclerotic plaques are separated into two broad categories: Stable and unstable (also called vulnerable). The pathobiology of atherosclerotic lesions is very complicated but generally, stable atherosclerotic plaques, which tend to be asymptomatic, are rich inextracellular matrix and smooth muscle cells, while, unstable plaques are rich in macrophages and foam cells and the extracellular matrix separating the lesion from the arterial lumen (also known as the fibrous cap) is usually weak and prone to rupture. Ruptures of the fibrous cap expose thrombogenic material, such as collagen to the circulation and eventually induce thrombus formation in the lumen. Upon formation, intraluminal thrombi can occlude arteries outright (e.g. coronary occlusion), but more often they detach, move into the circulation and eventually occluding smaller downstream branches causing thromboembolism . Apart from thromboembolism, chronically expanding atherosclerotic lesions can cause complete closure of the lumen. Interestingly, chronically expanding lesions are often asymptomatic until lumenstenosis is so severe (usually over 80%) that blood supply to downstream tissue(s) is insufficient, resulting in ischemia.
These complications of advanced atherosclerosis are chronic, slowly progressive and cumulative. Most commonly, soft plaque suddenly ruptures , causing the formation of a thrombus that will rapidly slow or stop blood flow, leading to death of the tissues fed by the artery in approximately 5 minutes. This catastrophic event is called an infarction. One of the most common recognized scenarios is called coronary thrombosis of a coronary artery, causing myocardial infarction (a heart attack). The same process in an artery to the brain is commonly called stroke. Another common scenario in very advanced disease is claudication from insufficient blood supply to the legs, typically caused by a combination of both stenosis and aneurysmal segments narrowed with clots.
Atherosclerosis affects the entire artery tree, but mostly larger, high-pressure vessels such as the coronary, renal, femoral, cerebral, and carotid arteries. These are termed "clinically silent" because the person having the infarction does not notice the problem and does not seek medical help, or when they do, physicians do not recognize what has happened.
Angioplasty
Angioplasty is the technique of mechanically widening narrowed or obstructed arteries, the latter typically being a result of atherosclerosis. An empty and collapsed balloon on a guide wire, known as a balloon catheter, is passed into the narrowed locations and then inflated to a fixed size using water pressures some 75 to 500 times normal blood pressure (6 to 20 atmospheres). The balloon forces expansion of the inner white blood cell/clot plaque deposits and the surrounding muscular wall, opening up the blood vessel for improved flow, and the balloon is then deflated and withdrawn. A stent may or may not be inserted at the time of ballooning to ensure the vessel remains open.(Image of stent given below)
Velupillai Prabhakaran was the founder and leader of theLiberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam(the LTTE or the Tamil Tigers), a militant organization that sought to create an independentTamil statein the north and east ofSri Lanka. For over 25 years, the LTTE waged aviolent secessionist campaignin Sri Lanka
Tamil Eelam
The Tamil people of the island of Ceylon (now called Sri Lanka) constitute a distinct nation. They form a social entity, with their own history, traditions, culture, language and traditional homeland. The Tamil people call their nation 'Tamil Eelam'.
As a nation, Tamils have the inalienable right to self-determination, a universal principle enshrined in the U.N. Charter that guarantees the right of a people to political independence.
Apart from the right to self determination, the Tamil Eelam may also be justified in terms of international law under the concept of reversion of sovereignty and the concept of effectiveness.
Before a succession of western nations (including the Portuguese, Dutch and the British) ruled the island, there were two distinct kingdoms on the island, the Tamil Kingdom in the north and the Sinhala kingdom in the South.
For ease of administration, the British amalgamated the two distinct nations into a single entity with its capital in Colombo. The British gave Ceylon independence in 1948, handing over control of the entire island to a Sinhalese government, based in Colombo, which renamed the island Sri Lanka.
The Sinhala state's oppression of the Tamil people began in various forms almost immediately, attacking everything that defined the Tamils as a nation.
A series of laws that discriminated against Tamils were implemented. These included making Sinhala, instead of English, the only official language of the country, i.e. Tamils could not be employed unless they learnt Sinhala. The educational structures were altered to restrict Tamil admissions to higher education. Investment in Tamil areas was minimised.
Recruitment of Tamils into the security forces was restricted. The Sri Lankan security forces are almost exclusively Sinhalese. The security forces have been responsible for and continue to carry out human rights abuses and atrocities against Tamil civilians on a genocidal scale.
Sinhala colonisation of traditional Tamil areas was started in the fifties, and was intensified in the eighties with the security forces wiping out Tamil villages and replacing them with Sinhala settlements. Colonisation continues unabated.
Anti-Tamil rioting, with the active participation of the Sri Lankan security forces, has claimed thousands of Tamil lives. Thousands more suffered torture and rape.
As the Tamil people sense of helplessness deepened, Tamil politicians advocated a separate Tamil state. In 1977, the Tamil United Liberation Front resolved in its Vaddukoddai Resolution to campaign for political independence on the basis of the Tamil nation's right to self- determination.
At the general elections of 1977, the TULF demanded a clear mandate from the Tamil people to launch a national campaign to establish the sovereignty of the Tamil homeland. These elections were effectively a referendum the Tamil speaking people voted overwhelmingly in favour of secession.
The Tamil call for independence was met by island wide anti-Tamil rioting. The Sri Lankan government forced all elected MPs to take an oath that they would not seek a separate state.
With all democratic ways to achieve equality having failed repeatedly, an armed struggle for independence began, led by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). International Law recognises that the armed resistance of the Tamil people to Sri Lankan rule is lawful and just.
Today, the LTTE has evolved into a military and political organisation representing the aspirations and hopes of the Tamil people.
Formation of LTTE:
The birth and growth of the armed resistance movement should be analysed within the historical development of the Tamil struggle for self-determination. The Tamil struggle for self-determination has an evolutionary history of nearly half a century. It is a history characterized by state repression and resistance by the Tamils. The political struggles in the early periods were peaceful, democratic and non-violent but later assumed the form of armed resistance as the military repression of the state intensified into genocidal proportions.
Sinhala state repression against the Tamils began to manifest in concrete forms following the independence of the island in 1948, when the British colonial masters transferred the state's power to the Sinhala dominated parliamentary system. By discriminatory legislation and by other measures, successive Sinhala majority governments unleashed a systematic form of oppression that deprived the Tamils of their linguistic, educational and employment rights. Gradually and systematically, the thrust of state oppression affected the sphere of economic and social life of the Tamils. In the meantime, the state-aided aggressive colonization in the Tamil areas not only deprived them of their rights over their historical lands but also altered the ethnic composition of the population rendering the Tamils a minority in certain traditional Tamil regions. The features of Sinhala state oppression clearly indicated a devious plan calculated to destroy the national identity of the Tamil people.
As the Sinhala state oppression and discrimination unfolded in its ugly forms threatening the national identity, the Tamil parliamentary political leadership responded with mass political agitations. Adopting Gandhi's concept of 'ahimsa', the Tamil leadership organized non-violent campaigns demanding justice and fair play from Sinhala rulers. In the early sixties, the 'satyagraha' (peaceful picketing) campaigns attracted huge masses of people in massive demonstrations symbolizing a national uprising against the state. The Sinhala Government reacted with military violence and terror, brutally crushing the non-violent peaceful campaigns of the Tamils. Instead of looking into the genuine grievances of an aggrieved people, Colombo Governments adopted a harsh policy of military repression. Such high-handed tactics of terror made the people realise the futility of the non-violent campaigns.They realized that a repressive racist state adopting the methods of brutal violence attached no respect to the moral and spiritual values underlying non violent struggles. The Tamil people became frustrated and lost hope in both the parliamentary system which functioned under the tyranny of the majority and the non-violent struggles which were systematically crushed by the tyranny of the military. In desperation, the Tamil leadership sought political negotiations to resolve the conflict. Sinhala leaders entered into agreements but soon abrogated the pacts when Sinhala chauvinistic forces opposed reconciliation with the Tamils. The event that climaxed the state oppression against the Tamils was the new Republican constitution of 1972 which was a blatant attempt to legalize and institutionalize Sinhala chauvinism at the cost of alienating the Tamil nation from unitary constitutional politics. This event brought about radical transformation in the nature and structure of the Tamil political struggle.
It was during this specific historical juncture, that the armed resistance movement was born on Tamil soil with the determination to fight for political independence from alien domination. The armed struggle emerged as a historical development of the Tamil struggle in response to the determined efforts of the Sinhala Government to subjugate the Tamils. The Tamils took up arms when they were presented with no alternative other than to defend themselves against a savage form of genocidal oppression, when peaceful forms of democratic political agitations were violently repressed, when constitutional paths and parliamentary doors were effectively closed, when Sinhala ruling elites callously rejected the demands for justice and equality. Therefore, the Tamil armed struggle for political independence and self-government is the historical product of decades of racist oppression and injustice.
On May 5, 1976, the TNT was renamed the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), commonly known as the Tamil Tigers.
Religion was not a major factor in his philosophy or ideology, indeed the ideology of the Tamil Tigers emerged from Marxist-Leninist thought, and was explicitly secular. Its leadership professed opposition to religion.[ Their focus was on a single-minded approach toward the attainment of an independent Tamil Eelam.
Prabhakaran's first and only major press conference was held in Killinochchi on April 10, 2002. It was reported that more than 200 journalists from the local and foreign media attended this event and they had to go through a 10-hour security screening before the event in which Anton Balasingham introduced the LTTE leader as the "President and Prime minister of Tamil Eelam."
A number of questions were asked about LTTE's commitment towards the erstwhile peace process and Prabhakaran and Dr. Anton Balasingham jointly answered the questions.
During the interview he stated that the right condition has not risen to give up the demand of Tamil Eelam. He further mentioned that "There are three fundamentals. That is Tamil homeland, Tamil nationality and Tamil right to self-determination. These are the fundamental demands of the Tamil people. Once these demands are accepted or a political solution is put forward by recognising these three fundamentals and our people are satisfied with the solutions we will consider giving up the demand for Eelam." He further added that Tamil Eelam was not only the demand of the LTTE but also the demand of the Tamil people.
Prabhakaran also answered a number of questions in which he reaffirmed their commitment towards peace process, quoted "We are sincerely committed to the peace process. It is because we are sincerely committed to peace that we continued a four month cessation of hostilities" was also firm in de-proscription of the LTTE by Sri Lanka and India, "We want the government of India to lift the ban on the LTTE. We will raise the issue at the appropriate time."
Prabhakaran also insisted firmly that only de-proscription would bring forth an amenable solution to the ongoing peace process mediated by Norway: "We have informed the government, we have told the Norwegians that de-proscription is a necessary condition for the commencements of talks.
In 2002, the LTTE dropped its demand for a separate state.Instead, it demanded a form of regional autonomy Following the landslide election defeat of Kumaratunga and the coming to power of Ranil Wickramasinghe in December 2001, the LTTE declared a unilateral ceasefire.The Sri Lankan Government agreed to the ceasefire, and in March 2002 the Ceasefire Agreement (CFA) was signed. As part of the agreement, Norway and other Nordic countries agreed to jointly monitor the ceasefire through the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission.
Six rounds of peace talks between the Government of Sri Lanka and LTTE were held, but they were temporarily suspended after the LTTE pulled out of the talks in 2003 claiming "certain critical issues relating to the ongoing peace process".In 2003 the LTTE proposed an Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA). This move was welcomed by the international community but rejected by the Sri Lankan President.[74] The LTTE boycotted the presidential election in December 2005. While LTTE claimed that the people under its control were free to vote, it is alleged that they used threats to prevent the population from voting. The United States condemned this act.
The new government of Sri Lanka came into power in 2006 and demanded to abrogate the ceasefire agreement, stating that the only possible solution to the ethnic conflict was a military solution, and that the only way to achieve this was by eliminating the Liberation Tigers of Tamil. Further peace talks were scheduled in Oslo, Norway, on 8 and 9 June 2006, but cancelled when the LTTE refused to meet directly with the government delegation, stating its fighters were not being allowed safe passage to travel to the talks. Norwegian mediator Erik Solheim told journalists that the LTTE should take direct responsibility for the collapse of the talks.Rifts grew between the government and LTTE, and resulted in a number of ceasefire agreement violations by both sides during 2006. Suicide attacks military skirmishes, and air raids took place during the latter part of 2006.Between February 2002 to May 2007, Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission documented 3,830 ceasefire violations by the LTTE, with respect to 351 by the security forces. Military confrontation continued into 2007 and 2008. On January 2008 the government officially pulled out of the Cease Fire Agreement.
Current status of Srilanka
It is now apparent that the Government and the Sinhala people behind the Government are working towards elimination of National Identity of the Tamil people, firstly by destroying any claim to any separate area, secondly by destroying culturally and finally by Physical liquidation.
The Massacre in June and July should act as a warningto the world at large. 'So far, several countries who are aware of the oppression and violence against the Tamils while sympathising with the plight of the Tamils were of the opinion it is only an "internal matter". Some Governments even help in the development of Sri Lanka. In particular they are helping to develope the Mahaweli basin, the completion of which scheme will inevitably lead to the destruction of the TAMIL NATION.
Sri Lanka Government is building Army camps in the entire North and East for the purpose of oppression of the Tamil people. It was reported that a new large camp was started in the North. Only a few months back an Army camp was started in Batticaloa District in the Eastern Province. While countries in the world are giving aid for "development" Sri Lanka Government is spending money for the oppression of the Tamil People, and the destruction of their National Identity.
1. Telangana would be the 29th state of Independent India.
2. The Telangana region comprises 10 districts: Hyderabad, Adilabad, Khammam, Karimnagar, Mahbubnagar, Medak, Nalgonda, Nizamabad, Rangareddy, and Warangal.
3. Apart from Telangana, Andra Pradesh consists of two other parts namely Coastal Andra and Rayalaseema.
4. According to sources, violence that came along with the Telangana merger demand has consumed more than 1000 lives over last three years, which includes numerous cases of self immolation.
5. The sharing of the capital city Hyderabad had long been the bone of contention in the separation struggle.
6. Pro-Telangana people put forward a notion that 45% of the state income comes from Telangana but when it comes to utilization of funds, its share is only 28%.
7. Proponents of a separate Telangana state cite perceived injustices in the distribution of water, budget allocations, and jobs.
'Why Telangana report was not discussed in Parliament':
The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) has questioned why the Union government did not table the Srikrishna Committee's report on Telengana before the Parliament for discussion.
Srikrishna Committee on Telangana or the Committee for Consultations on the Situation in Andhra Pradesh (CCSAP) was a committee headed by former chief justice BN Srikrishna to look into the demand for separate statehood for Telangana or whether to keep Andhra Pradesh united in its present form.
TDP MLA Devineni Uma Maheswara Rao, who is also the party's Krishna district president demanded that the union government reveal the status of the report.
Less than four years after the UPA almost went back on its pledge to create Telangana, the Congress on Tuesday accepted one of the oldest demands in independent India for a separate state and asked the government to split Andhra Pradesh.
Pro-Telangana students celebrate at Osmania University in Hyderabad after Congress Working Committee endorsed a decision to create sgaeparate TelanGANAna state.
The new state – that culminates a bloody agitation that cost hundreds of lives -- will have 10 districts including the city of Hyderabad. Andhra Pradesh and Telangana will, however, have to share Hyderabad as a joint capital for 10 years.
Tuesday’s decision by the Congress Working Committee is the first step forward after the midnight dramatic announcement by former home minister P Chidambaram on 9 December 2009 promising to start the process. The Congress, however, developed cold feet.
As it ended the uncertainty on Tuesday with what could be a political masterstroke to check-mate its opponents ahead of the 2014 general elections, the developments went according to the script.
The UPA coordination committee first unanimously endorsed the move to divide Andhra Pradesh and the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the highest decision making body of the party, followed it up by unanimously passing a resolution, requesting the central government to “take steps in accordance with the Constitution of India to form a separate state of Telangana”.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi opened the meeting giving historical perspective of the issue. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh endorsed Gandhi’s views and said the move will help in the equitable development of all the regions of the state. Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who as party general held the charge of the state for more than two years, and his successor Digvijaya Singh gave details about their interactions at state and central levels.
Only three other CWC members spoke at the meeting. Mukul Wasnik raised the issue of Vidarbha, which is also one of the long-pending demands. His views were endorsed by his Maharashtra colleague Gurudas Kamat. Ambika Soni too spoke about her experiences in AP as in-charge general secretary.
The formation of Telangana will take some time but the bill to create the new state is expected to reach parliament in next 4-5 months, probably in winter session.
But the decision has not been smooth. The issue had vertically divided the Congress both in the state and the Centre and even security and intelligence agencies had raised concerns over the proposed move.
When it appeared that the Congress was reconciled to put the Telangana issue on the back-burner to give itself a breathing space till the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the party sprang a surprise a few months ago by stepping up its discreet preparation.
The top leadership came to the conclusion that Telangana is “emotionally disintegrated” and “only division could save” the party in the 2014 polls.
PM Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi during the CWC meeting on Telangana in New Delhi. (HT Photo/Sunil Saxena)
Till then, the broader thinking in the Congress was that the party stands to lose in the Telangana region even if it announced a separate state, but would gain in Andhra and Rayalseema parts of the state if it rejected or even delayed a decision.
Hyderabad, considered the crowning jewel of the Telangana region, will be the joint capital of the newly-proposed state and the other regions--Rayalaseema and Andhra--for a period of 10 years. A new capital for Andhra will be identified Seemandhra region within this period.
"It is resolved to request the Central government to take steps in accordance with the Constitution to form a separate state of Telangana within a definite timeframe," said a resolution passed at an hour-long meeting of the CWC.
The CWC meet followed a meeting of the UPA which also unanimously favoured formation of Telangana.
The CWC acknowledged that it "has not been an easy decision" but it was taken after the widest possible consultations and taking into account the chequered history of the demand for a separate state.
The decisions by the CWC and the UPA came after hectic consultations for the last over a week on creation of the 29th state of the country that will have a geographical area of 10 of the 23 districts of undivided Andhra Pradesh.
The Union Cabinet will meet on Thursday, apparently to consider formation of a Group of Ministers to go into economic issues on creation of the new state.
Students of Osmania University celebrate with a cake after Congress working committe and UPA endorsed the creation of a new state 'Telangana' in Hyderabad on July 30, 2013. (AP Photo)
This is the first decision of the UPA to form a new state in the last nine years.
Contrary to speculation that the new state could be named Rayala Telangana, including a couple of districts of Rayalaseema, the districts that will be part of the new state will be Adilabad, Karimnagar, Khammam, Mahaboobnagar, Medak, Nalgonda, Nizamabad, Rangareddy and Warangal besides Hyderabad.
At the moment the idea is to have 10 districts in Telangana but it will be for the Group of Ministers to consider demands for inclusion of more areas, AICC General Secretary Digvijay Singh, incharge of Andhra Pradesh affairs in Congress, told a press conference after the CWC meeting.
Out of 42 Lok Sabha seats and 294 Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana is likely to have 17 Lok Sabha seats and 119 Assembly seats.
The party, however, made it clear that no demand for creation of any other state would be considered as it emphasised that this case cannot be compared with any other.
This assertion comes against the backdrop of demands for creation of separate states of Vidarbha and Gorkhaland.
While TRS, which has been spearheading the demand for separate state, welcomed the decision, supporters of united Andhra Pradesh stepped up protests against division.
At the CWC meeting, the Prime Minister said the decision would help the entire Andhra region.
UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi gave a historical perspective on the issue to the CWC meeting in which Digvijay Singh moved the resolution.
It was adopted unanimously.
Like last week end, when indications emerged that the Congress was veering towards formation of Telangana, ministers and MPs belonging to the non-Telangana regions made last ditch efforts to convince the Congress President and the Prime Minister to have a rethink on the issue.
Andhra state, the first entity formed on linguistic basis, was created in 1953 from out of the erstwhile Madras Presidency with Kurnool as the capital.
News analysis:What next for Congress after Andhra-Telangana divorce?
With the passing of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, there was a merger of Hyderabad state and Andhra state to be called Andhra Pradesh from November 1, 1956.
Andhra Pradesh now has a population of over 8.5 crore.
The 2009 announcement, taken at the height of an indefinite fast by TRS leader K Chandrashekhar Rao, had ignited street protests in the non-Telangana regions and opposition from ministers, MLAs and leaders from within the party that forced the central government and the Congress leadreship to put the issue on hold.
The Centre held rounds of meetings with all parties from the state and set up a Commission under the chairmanship for Supreme Court Judge Justice Srikrishna, which had given a report suggesting various solutions.
Chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy, who was opposed to the division of Andhra Pradesh and was said to be thinking in terms of resigning, was called for consultations. He attended the UPA meeting.
However, he dismissed reports of resignation as "rumours". Similarly, Congress ministers in the Union government and the MPs gave enough indications that they would follow the party line.
Students take out rally to protest proposed AP bifurcation:
Students from various educational institutions took out a rally here on Tuesday to protest the proposed bifurcation of the state.
Over 3,000 students including girls from various colleges, under Joint Action Committee banner, led by its convenor and youth leader Devineni Avinash staged 'rasta roko' near the Indira Gandhi municipal stadium in the city for over half-an-hour.
In the midst of mounting pressure from both pro and anti-Telangana leaders, the crucial Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting is scheduled this evening to take a final decision on the separate statehood issue.
The students' JAC asked the Union government not to concede the demand of bifurcating the state made by some political leaders for their "selfish motive" at the cost of crores of Telugu people, Avinash said.
They also demanded that the people's representatives from all political parties should resign from their posts as token protest against the proposed bifurcation.
A number of public and private sector employees from various organisations, trade union leaders and some advocates also joined the rally to support the students.
Political reactions on creation of Telangana:
HT POLL
As the country waited for the UPA to decide on the creation of Telangana, Hindustantimes.com ran a poll asking readers if creating more states weaken India or strengthen it. Sixty-seven percent of the respondents agreed saying creating more states will weaken the unity of the country. On the other hand, 26% of those who voted said that it will strengthen the nation. However, the rest 7% of them remained undecided.
PROTEST ON TODAY:
This morning, protesting students picketed the home of state minister Ganta Srinivas in Vishakhapatnam, demanding that he should resign. Similar incidents have happened with ministers in Tirupati and Vizianagram.
MPs who want a "united Andhra Pradesh" will meet in Delhi; the Congress MP from Guntur has already said he will quit. In Hyderabad, Congressmen will meet at the MLA's Quarters this evening, before heading out to talk to Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy. More resignations could be announced thereafter. When they met him on Tuesday, Mr Reddy reportedly said that while the Congress' decision to carve out a separate Telangana may have upset them, as it did him, there will be no going back on it.
A message that Congress president Sonia Gandhi had also firmly handed to a group of these leaders who met her hours before the party's working committee announced the decision on Monday. She also reportedly instructed the Congress leaders to convince the people of Andhra Pradesh that a split would benefit all the regions as it would speed up development with the uncertainty over Telangana now over.
There were protests in the non-Telangana regions yesterday amid a bandh and more protests have been reported this morning in Vijaywada. Yesterday, protesters broke statues former Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi and attacked Congress offices.
The Chief Minister has asked top officials and cops to ensure law and order. He has issued strict instructions that no force, not even rubber bullets, be used against protestors, but at the same time said that they must not be allowed to destroy public property.
The people of coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema fear that the loss of the 10 districts that will be part of the new Telangana state, and particularly capital Hyderabad, will set them back economically by several decades. The Telangana region accounts for much of the state's resources and income
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AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS:
ICICI Prudential Life Insurance has been pronounced winner in the 2nd Excellence Awards and Recongnition for Shared Services, 2012. We won the award in the category - Shared Services in India - Insurance Domain.
These awards have been instituted by All India Management Association (AIMA) & Delhi Management Association (DMA), in collaboration with Rvalue Consulting as knowledge partners, to honour,recognize & promote trasformative strategies for shared services.
Bronze Effie in the Financial services category for the campaign "Life Insurance in just 10 Minutes"
Yaan (Tamil: யான்) is an upcoming tamil action film to be directed by the cinematographer Ravi K. Chandran starring Jiiva and Thulasi Nair. The movie has music by Harris Jayaraj and art by Sabu Cyril. Oscar winner Resul Pookutty is in charge of sound mixing and Brindha will take care of the choreography. The shooting will take place in Chennai, Mumbai, Hyderabad,Morocco, Andaman & Nicobar islands and IcelandYaan's shooting is in progress having completed two schedules in Hyderabad and Karjat with further schedules expected for Mumbaiand Morocco.
Music is composed by Harris Jayaraj collaborating with Jiiva for Fourth time. Lyrics are written by vaali. "ae lamba lamba., vaazhakai enna vamba" is the last song tat vaali written for Harris Yaan. It is rumored that he will be using a few new instruments for this album and will also rope in top American rappers. After finishing a portion of the album, the team will leave the USA on a cruise that travelsfrom Florida,through Haiti, Jamaica and Mexico, before reaching Florida again, after 8 days. During the cruise, they will compose the remaining songs and finalize the album. director Ravi K Chandran tweeted. He said all this was possible because of the support from his producer and team. "Thanks to our producer and his team for the complete support and management, cast and crew's hard work and involvements made this possible," added Chandran. The film also features Thulasi Nair, Nassar and Prakash Raj in lead roles. It is produced by Elred Kumar and Jayaraman of RS Infotainment.
This Jeeva and Thulasi Nair starrer flick has already completed two successful schedules in Karjat and Hyderabad. "This pair has got an electrifying screen presence," the director says. Now, the team is all set to leave to Mumbai to start 40 days lengthy schedule from 26th of this month. With almost 70% of the movie getting over after this Mumbai schedule, the Yaan team has finalised on Morocco for a 30-day-schedule where a few songs will be shot. Yaan also features Nassar, Prakash Raj, Premgi Amaren, Thambi Ramaiah, Jayaprakash and Srihari in the cast. While Harris Jayaraj will be composing the music, Neha Parti is the cinematographer of the film. Kajal Aggarwal, who is busy with Vijay's Thuppakki, seems to have bagged yet another big project. The actress has been approached by Ravi K Chandra for his upcoming Yaan starring Jeeva and she is likely to give a nod for the movie. Reports say that the makers of Yaan had earlier planned to rope in a Bollywood face. But they changed their stand and decided to cast an actress, who is popular in South. Hence, they offered the female lead role to Kajal Aggarwal, who is one of the most sought after actresses in South India. Ravi K Chandran has not narrated the script to Kajal Aggarwal yet, as she is busy filming AR Murugadoss directorial Thuppakki starring Vijay abroad. She is expected to return in the first week of September and the decision will only be announced once the cinematographer-turned-director meet Kajal. The movie is produced by Elred Kumar and it has Oscar winner Resul Pookutty donning the mantle of sound engineer. Multiple national winners like production designer Sabu Cyril and editor Sreekar Prasad are also part of the movie. It will be simultaneously made in Tamil, Hindi and Telugu.
