New Delhi, July 10 : A special court here on Tuesday extended till August 7 the interim protection from arrest granted to senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram in the Aircel-Maxis deal case.

Special Judge O.P. Saini directed Chidambaram to join the investigation whenever required.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had opposed the decision, saying the former Finance Minister and his son were evasive in their replies and as such ED would not be able to get to the truth if they were granted bail

ED pleaded that it is doing the investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act to unearth the larger conspiracy involved in the approval given by the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) for the Aircel-Maxis deal.

On May 30, the court granted interim protection to P. Chidambaram till June 5 which was leter extended till July 10.

Earlier, the court had granted interim protection to Karti Chidambaram from arrest till July 10 in the same case.

The Central Bureau of Investigation and the ED are investigating how Karti Chidambaram allegedly managed to get clearance from the FIPB for the Aircel-Maxis deal when P. Chidambaram was the Finance Minister in 2006.

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New Delhi (PTI): Approximately 13 lakh litres of packaged drinking water -- 'Rail Neer' -- are being supplied to train passengers across the railway network daily, the government informed the Lok Sabha in a written reply on Wednesday.

Apprising the Lower House about the Indian Railways' endeavour to provide safe and potable drinking water facilities at all stations, the government also provided zone-wise details of the water vending machines (WVMs) installed there.

"To ensure the quality of drinking water being made available at the railway stations, instructions exist for periodical checking and required corrective action to be taken.

"Regular inspection and maintenance of drinking water facilities is carried out and complaints are attended to promptly," Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said while responding to a question raised by BJP MP Anup Sanjay Dhotre seeking to know the supply of drinking water at railway stations across the country

"Complaints regarding deficiency in services, including water supply, are received through various channels such as public complaints, web portals, social media, etc. These complaints are received at various levels, including the Railway Board, zonal railways, division office, etc.," Vaishnaw said.

"The complaints so received are forwarded to the concerned wings of Railways and necessary action is taken to check and address them. As receipt of such complaints and action taken thereon is a continuous and dynamic process, a centralised compendium of these is not maintained," he added.

Providing zone-wise details of water vending machines, the minister said 954 such machines have been installed across railway stations.

"The Indian Railways also provides safe and affordable packaged drinking water bottles -- Rail Neer -- approved by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) in trains and at stations," Vaishnaw said.

"Approximately, 13 lakh litres of Rail Neer are being supplied per day to the travelling passengers in trains and at stations across the Indian Railways network," he added.