4 andheri ncp leader booked for female genital mutilation...

Slums on the mangroves a decade back (left) and school buses parked on the Versova plot at present

Mumbai:Versova police regis-tered an FIR against seniorNCP leader Narendra Vermaon Tuesday for encroaching onmangroves and laying paverblocks to park school buses.Verma has denied allegationsof encroachment.

Mhada provided him a pie-ce of government land—publicopen space—for maintenanceafter removing encroachmentsfrom the area. The land is situa-ted behind Jankidevi School, atFour Bungalows in Andheri(West). Verma is chairman ofthe school.

He allegedly began encroa-ching on the mangroves to cre-ate space to park the school’sbuses and recently started lay-ing paver blocks in the area. Lo-cal residents then approachedBJP secretary VivekanandGupta, who persuaded the teh-sildar’s office to examine thedetails. The complainant in thecase, Rohidas Tare, circle offi-cer at the tehsildar’s office, sta-

ted when they visited the spotlast week, they found Vermahad put paver blocks on the plotin violation of the act. No const-ruction or dumping of rubbleis allowed within 50 met-res of mangroves.

“Tehsildar’s officialapproached us statingVerma had violated therules after, so we registe-red the case. We are veri-fying the documents with himto ascertain the facts and accor-dingly will initiate any action,”said Kiran Kale, senior policeinspector at Versova police sta-tion. Verma was booked underSection 15 of the Environment

there were no violations. Thenwhy did they change theirstand in two days? I will chal-lenge it in court,” said Verma.

Gupta stated he received se-veral complaint from local resi-dents about the encroachment.“We have old and new photoswhich clearly show that hedestroyed the mangroves tomake parking space for hisschool buses. It’s open space, areserved plot which Mhada ga-ve him for maintenance. Pla-cing paver blocks in naturalareas is in violation of the Bom-bay High Court order. I wroteMhada to take back the plot,”added Gupta.

(Protection) Act, which at-tracts five-year imprisonment.

Verma stated the land wasencroached upon 14 years agoand he took it from Mhada on

lease for maintenan-ce. He said he ensuredthat slumdwellersdon’t encroach uponthe land again. “Weput paver blocks be-cause dust was co-

ming into our school classro-oms. We did not destroy anymangroves and have not encro-ached upon the restricted are-as. Last week the tehsildar’s of-ficials visited the spot and con-ducted a panchnama stating

Andheri NCP leader booked forencroachment on mangroves

School BusesParked OnMhada Plot

VijayV.Singh@timesgroup.com

THE TIMES OF INDIA, MUMBAIWEDNESDAY, MAY 18, 20164 TIMES CITY

Mumbai: The Brihanmum-bai Municipal Corporation(BMC) has standardized ten-der conditions across depart-ments. Each department,whether it is roads, storm wa-ter drains or solid waste mana-gement, had different tenderconditions, but after learningabout how civic officials wouldoften tweak tender conditionsto favour certain contractors,it was decided to standardizethem.

A panel of civic officialshad been set up by municipalcommissioner Ajoy Mehta tosimplify conditions and ensu-re adequate transparency. De-puty municipal commissionerChandrashekhar Chore, whoheaded the panel, submitted areport to Mehta on Tuesday.“Tender conditions have beenstandardized but in cases thatare unique to a department, ithas been left as it is. A recom-mendation was to change the

defect liability period fromthree years to five years, andthe contractor will have to sub-mit a guarantee letter to theBMC, ensuring adequate man-power and machinery,” said acivic official. TOI had repor-ted how the commissioner hadset up a panel to review tenderconditions especially aftermalpractices were found in ro-ad work during a probe.

Geotagging has been sug-

gested by the panel, so thatcontractors do not cheat the ci-vic administration. “The newconditions are framed keepingin mind different situationsand past experiences of the ci-vic body. For example, in caseof geotagging projects, it canhelp to easily and accuratelylocate on a map, enabling mo-nitoring of work and progressby government officials and ci-tizens. It will also help curtail

fraud,” said a civic official. Introduction of new tech-

nology was also recommen-ded. “The new tender condi-tions are broad and compre-hensive. Different situationsare foreseen on the basis of pre-vious experience. We have do-ne a comparison with tenderconditions of other govern-ment organizations like thePWD, railways, MIDC andMMRDA,” said a civic official.

BMC standardizes all tenderterms across departments

Mumbai: Petrol and diesel inthe state have both becomecheaper. The central govern-ment has rolled back the spe-cial surcharge that was beinglevied on the two fuels in thestate since Tuesday.

A state-specific surchargeon Rs 1.12 and 91 paise was be-ing levied on petrol and dieselrespectively.

Chief Minister DevendraFadnavis had spoken to theCentre to seek a rollback ofthe surcharge, said Girish Ba-pat, state minister of food andcivil supplies.

With this surcharge beingrolled back now, the petrolprices that increases in the en-tire country on May 16 by 83paise in Maharashtra the costis cheaper by 60 paise.

The price of diesel had in-creased by Rs 1.26 recently andnow, due to the rollback, it haseffectively increased by only21paise.

Petrol, dieselcheaper afterlevy rollback

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Mumbai: The World Health Or-ganisation (WHO) issued a setof new guidelines for managingthe health complications fromfemale genital mutilation(FGM) in Copenhagen on Mon-day, dismissing any health be-nefit from the procedure and lis-ting the grave physical and emo-tional harm that the removal ofhealthy genital tissue can do tothe natural functioning of thebody.

The guidelines compiled byasteering group set up by WHO,comprising healthcare provi-ders, researchers, healthcareprogramme managers, humanrights, lawyers and women’s he-alth advocates from across theworld, addresses the practice asaglobal health issue, highlightsthe physical and mental risksassociated and offers recom-mendations for health workersto provide better care.

Circumcision is commonlyknown as khatna in India.

WHO classifies FGM into fo-ur types—clitoridectomy (rem-oval of the clitoris and prepu-ce); infibulation (narrowing ofthe vaginal orifice); excision(removal of the clitoris and thelabia) and all other genitalprocedures for non-medicalpurposes like pricking, pulling,piercing, incising, scraping andcauterization.

The report warns against“medicalization of FGM” orperformance of FGM by health-care providers because it “vio-lates medical ethics since FGMis a harmful practice; medicali-zation perpetuates FGM; andthe risks of the procedure out-weigh any perceived benefit.”

It lists a series of humanrights principles that FGM vio-lates given the case studies andassessments that reveal risks ofpain, shock, vaginal infections,childbirth complications, pain-ful sexual intercourse, absces-ses and even death.

There have been growing in-ternational efforts to stop FGMfor close to two decades throughresearch, revised legal fram-eworks and international mo-nitoring bodies. In 2007, the Uni-ted Nations Population Fund(UNFPA) and the United Na-tions Children’s Fund (UNI-CEF) had initiated a joint pro-gram on female genital mutila-tion/cutting to end the practice.

Although internationally re-cognized as a violation of hu-man rights and legislation toprohibit the procedure has beenput in place in many countries,the practice is still reported in30 countries in Africa and in afew in Asia and the Middle East.

Recognizing the persistenceof FGM despite efforts to eradi-cate the practice and acknow-

ledging 200 million girls and wo-men who continue to live withor are at risk, the guidelines pro-vide evidence-based recom-mendations and standards thatcould serve as the basis for sta-keholders—at the community,national, regional and interna-tional level in developing polici-es and healthcare training pro-grams to prevent FGM.

A fortnight ago, an audio cl-ip of the spiritual leader of theDawoodi Bohra community, Sy-edna Mufaddal Saifuddin, indi-rectly urging people to continuewith khatna, went viral. Follo-wing this, Syedna’s rival TaherFakhruddin publicly denoun-ced khatna of girls and said thatit should only be allowed afterthey attain legal adulthood fol-lowed by individual choice.

“Whatever the reason provi-ded, FGM reflects deep-rootedinequality between the sexes,”reads the WHO report. “Thefact that FGM is an embeddedsociocultural practice, has ma-de its complete elimination ex-tremely challenging… efforts toprevent and thus eventuallyeradicate FGM worldwide mustcontinue, in addition to ack-nowledging and assisting theexisting population of girls andwomen already living with itsconsequences whose health ne-eds are currently not fully met.”

The research indicates theneed for more information onthe subject since many womenreport experiences of poor com-munication with health wor-kers and often overcome by shy-ness. The report also emphasi-zes the role of “health workersas caregivers who must not be-come perpetuators of a harm-ful practice” since healthcareproviders are often unaware ofthe consequences and remaininadequately trained to recog-nize and treat them properly.

The dissemination and imp-lementation of these guidelineswill be crucial. The recommen-dations will be translated intoArabic and French and spreadvia a network of partners, in-cluding WHO country and re-gional offices; ministries of he-alth; UN agencies and NGOs.

Masooma Ranalvi, who spo-ke out on her personal experien-ce with khatna a few monthsago and brought the issue tolight, hopes the new guidelineshelp galvanize support for wo-men rallying to end FGM in thecountry.

“We’d like to focus on threethings in the guidelines—thateven medically supervised pro-cedure of FGM is harmful, therole of health workers and me-dical practitioners, and we wel-come the recommendation toprovide psychological and sex-ual counselling along with phy-sical treatments.”

Female genital mutilationcan cause grave harm: WHOMohua.Das@timesgroup.com

IMMEDIATE RISKS OF FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION (FGM)

Haemorrhage, pain, shock (haemorrhagic, neurogenic or septic), genital tissue swelling, infections (acute local infections: abscess formation; septicaemia; genital and reproductive tract infections: urinary tract infections), urination problems, wound healing problems and even death (due to severe bleeding or septicaemia)

Female genital mutilation comprises all proce-dures that involve partial or total removal of ex-

ternal genitalia or other injury to female genital organs for non-medical reasons. The procedure has no known health benefits. Moreover, the removal of or damage to healthy genital tissue interferes with the natural func-tioning of the body and may cause several immediate and long-term health consequences. — WHO guidelines

A VIOLATION IN EVERY SENSE

Right to the highest attainable standard of health

Rationale | FGM can result in severe physical and mental harm, and because it constitutes an invasive procedure on an otherwise healthy tissue—without any medical necessity—it is seen as a violation of the right to health

Right to life and physical integrity, including freedom from violence

Rationale | It can cause severe physical and mental damage, sometimes resulting in death. As such, it interferes with a woman’s right to life and physical integrity and

freedom from violence

Right to freedom from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment &right to equality and non-discrimination on the basis of sex

Rationale | It perpetuates the fundamental

discriminatory belief of the subordinate role of girls and women, which fits

within the definition of discrimination against women

Rights of the childRationale | As it is predomi-

nantly performed on girls aged under 18, the issue becomes fundamentally the protection of the rights of children

LONG-TERM RISKSGenital tissue damage, vaginal discharge, vaginal itching, menstrual problems,

reproductive tract infections,

chronic genital infections, urinary tract infections, painful urination

PSYCHOLOGICAL RISKSPost-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety disorders, depression

HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS, ACCORDING TO WHO

HUMAN CHAIN AGAINST NEET THIS YEAR

UNCERTAIN FUTURE: Parents of medical aspirants form a human chain near Marine Drive against imple-mentation of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for this year’s MBBS and BDS admissions

While anoverhaul of the tenderingsystem is welcome, the civicbody needs to first ensure thatthe collusion of civic officialswith contractors is endedforthwith. This collusion hasonly grown over the last fewyears; after therecently-released preliminaryroad inquiry report, the BMCcommissioner had to suspendtwo officers and file casesagainst six contractors whowere found guilty.

TIMES VIEW:TIMES NEWS NETWORK

END OF THE ROAD: A probe found that Rs 108 crore was spent forwork in patches on Dr Ambedkar Road

Mother of deceased ac-tress Jiah Khan on Tu-esday approached the

Supreme Court alleging thatthe trial court was showing“unnecessary haste” in hea-ring the case and pleaded forstaying the proceedings tillher plea for an SIT investiga-tion was decided by the Bom-bay high court.

Questioning the probe do-ne by CBI, Rabia Khan allegedthat the agency had failed toconduct proper investigationin the case and no attemptswere made to collect the mes-sages/SMSes exchanged bet-ween the deceased and her bo-yfriend Sooraj Pancholi, sonof Bollywood actors AdityaPancholi and Zarina Wahab.

Jiah, 25-year-old British-American actress, was foundhanging from a ceiling fan ather home in Juhu on June 3,2013. A year after her death,the Bombay HC had handedover the case to CBI for furt-her probe on a plea of RabiaKhan, who alleged that the po-lice was trying to protect theaccused in the case.

Senior advocate JayantBhushan, appearing forKhan, told a vacation bench ofJustices A M Sapre and As-hok Bhushan that the procee-dings in the trial court should

be stayed as her plea for SITprobe was still pending in theBombay high court.

He contended that the HChad initially stayed the proce-edings on February 25 but it il-legally vacated the order onMay 2 without giving any rea-son. “It is submitted that theJudge has completely failed toappreciate, the well settledlaw as has been laid down bythe Court, that the Interim or-ders granted cannot be vaca-ted mechanically and witho-ut assigning any reason andordinarily the same should beextended in the petition is dis-posed of on merits,” Bhushancontended.

Challenging the HC order,she contended that the HChad mechanically passed or-der and termed it “absurd”.

She contended that the tri-al court was showing unne-cessary haste in proceedingsin the case after high court or-der and pleaded the court tostay the trial till her SIT pleawas decided on merit.

Apex court refuses to staytrial in Jiah Khan case

HC Yet To TakeCall On Mom’s

Demand For SITAmitAnand.Choudhary

@timesgroup.com

Mumbai: A catchy slogandraws attention to a new pro-duct, and who understandsthis truth better than the Con-sumer Guidance Society of In-dia (CGSI). The NGO is capita-lizing in on the election catchli-ne ‘Chai pe Charcha’ to launchadialogue between consumersand industry.

Five lakh cases are repor-tedly pending in consumer co-urts across the country, someinvolving amounts as little asRs 5,000. The CGSI itself recei-ves nearly 46,000 complaintsevery year.

Honorary secretary Dr M SKamath said, “We have noticeda growing ‘trust deficit’ betwe-en consumers and manufactu-rers or service providers. Asimple exercise like cellphonerepair can become the sourceof heartburn. The consumer

feels the service centre is accu-sing him of careless usage byasking if the handset fell or wasdropped in water. The companybelieves the user is not takingresponsibility. Each is convin-ced the other makes excuses.Both must come to commonground and make small conces-

sions if business is to proceedsmoothly. Somebody must ar-bitrate and break the ice.”

The CGSI is inviting consu-mers to send complaints for aparticular sector by the 7th ofeach month. It will then compi-le these grievances and con-duct a closed door roundtable

with representatives of that in-dustry after two weeks.

Dr Kamath, who is also amember of the state consumerprotection council and theTRAI board, says industry canmake small gestures to reassu-re consumers of fair intent.“Occasionally, telecom compa-nies should consider reimbur-sing a few rupees if a user suf-fers call drops. The relations-hip between buyer and sellershould not become an Israel-Palestine conflict,” he said.

Dr Kamath recalled howthe recent prolonged conflictbetween the state and milk dai-ries boomeranged on the con-sumer. The department of we-ights and measures had inter-vened on behalf of consumerswho were being overchargedon MRP. “Instead, companiesincreased MRP to please dea-lers, and dealers now overchar-ge on the revised amount so youpay Rs 2 more,” rued the expert.

‘Chai pe Charcha’ to help consumersavoid court battles over grievances

Bella.Jaisinghani@timesgroup.com STRIKING BALANCE: TENTATIVE LINE-UP

May 2016 | TelecomJune 2016 | BankingJuly 2016 | InsuranceAugust 2016 | HousingSeptember 2016 | Medicine October 2016 | EducationNovember 2016 |

TransportationDecember 2016 | Travel

and Tourism January 2017 | E-CommerceFebruary 2017 | White

Goods

March 2017 | Computers and Mobile Phones

April 2017 | Cosmetics

2004 2016

Mumbai: Two brothers, bothminors, who went for a swimin a dam at Dahanu withouttheir parents’ knowledgedrowned on Tuesday evening.

Raj Kurhit (7) and Rudra(5) had gone for a swim in thedam at Ganjad village in Da-hanu around 6.30 pm. Aboutan hour into their swim, theboys began shouting for help.

Eyewitnesses said that theboys were drowning but thelocals could not save them.Their bodies were fished outafter an hour-long search.

A case of accidental deathwas registered at the Dahanupolice station. The bodies we-re shifted to a primary healthcare centre in preparation foran autopsy.

Out for swim,two brothersdrown in dam

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Mumbai: Chairs made a comeback inthe arrival hall of Terminal 2 at Mumbaiairport on Tuesday after a spirited showof strength by the superintendents ofCustoms. The chairs were removed onFriday on the instructions of chief com-missioner Devender Singh that on-dutyofficials cannot sit throughout their 12-hour duty.

The no-chairs order came on Fridayafter TOI reported about a video clip of aCustoms official accepting a bribe at theinternational airport went viral. Follo-wing the report, superintendent N GShelar was suspended.

“But the turnaround came about af-ter a show of solidarity between the enti-re rank and file. On Monday, deputy com-missioners posted at the airport extendsolidarity to the superintendents by gi-ving up their chairs,” an official said.

On Tuesday, at a meeting called in thechief commissioner’s office to discuss

the situation, the superintendents refu-se to sit to drive home the point that theywere not allowed to sit on chairs duringtheir 12-hour-long shift.

There was also stiff opposition toSingh’s decision not to have air intelli-gence unit officials in the arrival hall ofthe airport. Officials said it would affect

anti-smuggling operations as they wo-uld not be able to carry out passengerprofiling to identify smugglers from the-ir body language and expressions. Singhhad denied to TOI of issuing any suchdiktat but the Association of Superin-tendents of Mumbai Customs had men-tioned this in its representation.

The association wrote Singh on Mon-day highlighting their shock at the remo-val of the chairs. They said that the moveappeared to be an attempt to punish offi-cers and is the fallout of the air intelli-gence unit officers scrutinizing the bag-gage of an office-bearer of the Brihan-mumbai Customs House Agents Associ-ation of Mumbai. The association saidthat many of their cadre are over 50 ye-ars of age and cannot stand for 12 hoursat a stretch.

A senior Customs official told TOIthat the issue has been amicably sortedout. “The idea was not to harass any offi-cial. We all strive to improve our rela-tions with the public,” the official added.

Customs officials can sit again during12-hour shifts as chairs return at T2

Chairs for Customs officials at the airportwere removed on Friday on the instructions ofchief commissioner Devender Singh

Colleagues’ Show Of Solidarity Forces Chief Commissioner To Withdraw Order TIMES NEWS NETWORK