CBI files case against Hyderabad's Shadan medical college
New Delhi, May 8: The CBI on Tuesday registered a case against Hyderabad-based Shadan Institute of Medical Sciences and some individuals on charges of criminal conspiracy and under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The case was registered against Santosh Kumar and Sandeep Kumar, both Lower Division Clerks in the Medical Council of India (MCI), private person Sushil Kumar, Shadan Institute of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital and Research Center and some others.
"It was alleged that Sandeep Kumar and Santosh Kumar in collusion with Sushil Kumar were abusing their official positions and taking bribes from various private medical colleges to facilitate their work pending with MCI," a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) official said.
It was further alleged that Sandeep and Santosh conspired with Sushil and received a bribe of Rs 4 Lakh from a medical institute in September 2017 for doing an undue favour in a matter related to registration of first-year MBBS students with the MCI for academic year 2016-17.
The federal investigating agency said it had conducted searches in Delhi and Hyderabad at the official and residential premises of the accused, including the medical institute.
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Centre doubles fines for stubble burning
New Delhi, Nov 7: The Centre has doubled the fine for farmers burning crop residue in view of the deteriorating air quality in the Delhi-NCR region, the penalty going up to Rs 30,000 for those with more than five acres of farmland.
According to the notification, which was published on Wednesday and comes following the Supreme Court's tough stance on the issue, farmers with less than two acres of land will now have to pay environmental compensation of Rs 5,000, up from Rs 2,500. And those with land between two and five acres will be fined Rs 10,000 instead of Rs 5,000.
Unfavourable meteorological conditions combined with vehicular emissions, paddy-straw burning, firecrackers, and other local pollution sources contribute to hazardous air quality levels in Delhi-NCR during late autumn and winters.
According to a Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) analysis, the city experiences peak pollution from November 1 to 15 when the number of stubble-burning incidents in Punjab and Haryana increases.
Major factors behind stubble burning include the paddy-wheat cropping system, cultivation of long-duration paddy varieties, mechanised harvesting that leaves standing crop stubble in the field, labour scarcity, and the lack of a viable market for crop residue.
Studies estimate that during peak burning periods, farm fires contribute up to 30 per cent of PM levels in the Delhi-NCR region and surrounding areas.
However, according to senior environmentalist Sunita Narain, the episodic burning of crop residue by farmers in winter is not the primary concern for poor air quality in Delhi-NCR. Instead, the persistent and major sources of pollution within the city, including transport and industries, are more worrisome.
