Scheme

WB chit fund scam: Court refuses CBI probe

Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court on refused to grant the prayer for a CBI investigation into the multi-crore Saradha chitfund scam at the present stage. A division bench comprising Justice AK Banerjee and Justice MK Chaudhuri, passing its order on PILs seeking CBI probe into the scam, refused the prayer at this stage.



The bench, however, kept the matter pending before it, while passing some directions to the state on the modus operandi of investigation, which is at present being done by the West Bengal police.

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Haryana achieves 97 pc target to provide free water

Chandigarh: The Haryana Government has achieved 97 per cent of the target of providing free water connections to households of members belonging to Scheduled Castes in the state. Stating this in Chandigarh on Sunday, a spokesman of Haryana Public Health and Engineering Department said that under the Indira Gandhi Drinking Water Scheme, out of the targeted more than 10.35 lakh such households, the water connections have already been given to...  

Madhya Pradesh: 40 brides subjected to pregnancy tests for CM's Kanyadan scheme

Bhopal: Forty brides were allegedly subjected to pregnancy test in Bajak village of Dindori district, 460 kilometre from Bhopal, ahead of a mass marriage. The brides had applied for Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's scheme - Kanyadan scheme. The five brides who were found pregnant were barred from the mass wedding function and were not allowed to get any benefit from the scheme. It comes days after the...  

GoM to suggest modalities for AP Girl Child Promotion Bill

Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh government on Monday constituted a nine-member Group of Ministers (GoM) to suggest modalities for the proposed AP Girl Child Promotion and Empowerment Bill, 2013. The Council of Ministers that met on Friday last did not approve the draft legislation proposed by Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy and suggested constitution of a Group of Ministers to formulate necessary modalities. Accordingly, the GoM was formed today with V Sunita...  

Ponzi schemes: RBI for increasing regulations

Mumbai: In the wake of ponzi schemes and chit fund scams, Reserve Bank Governor D Subbarao on Wednesday said there is a need to review the regulations governing these sectors and increase surveillance on such entities. "There is a need to review the regulatory oversight of this sector keeping in view the mandatory and relative comparative advantages of the financial sector regulators," Subbarao told a banking summit organised by the...  

Mamata questions UPA's hurry to pass Food Security Bill

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday questioned the Congress-led UPA government on its "hurriedness" to pass the National Food Security Bill. "A special session of parliament is reportedly being convened shortly to consider and pass the National Food Security Bill. Is this the right time for UPA-II to rush through and legislate on a major issue, particularly when the general election is knocking at the door? That...  

Chit fund firms in Jharkhand swindle Rs 100 cr a month

Bokaro: More than a month after the Sharada chit fund scam was exposed in West Bengal, CNN-IBN has found chit fund schemes mushrooming in Jharkand as well. Fraudulent companies are swindling Rs 100 crore per month in the state. It is hard to believe that a deserted office in the industrial town of Bokaro in Jharkhand has a monthly collection of over Rs 20 lakh. Jharkhand is the new haven...  

Odisha chit fund: Police probe links with media, builder

Bhubaneswar: Police in Odisha have begun investigations into allegations linking some mediapersons and builders with a chit fund group after prima facie that there were financial transactions between them, an official said Monday. The commissionerate of police here is examining the bank accounts and other relevant documents of about 25 people, including some builders and media people, after Pradip Sethi, the head of Artha Tatwa (AT) Group, who was arrested...  

NGO alleges uterus removal racket running in Maharashtra

Mumbai: In a shocking incident, an alleged uterus removal racket to pocket the money under the Rajiv Gandhi Insurance Scheme has been busted in nine districts of Maharashtra. The racket was running in the nine district including Latur and Usmanabad. The racket came in light after a social organisation Tathapi did a study and alleged that several women has lost their uterus due to the racket. It is alleged that...  

BlackBerry announces EMI schemes for BlackBerry Z10, Curve 9220

New Delhi: Smartphone maker BlackBerry announced easy monthly instalment (EMI) schemes for its two models - BlackBerry Z10 and BlackBerry Curve 9220 - starting this weekend. "Customers can now buy the BlackBerry Z10 via their credit cards by paying an EMI of Rs 4,799 per month for nine months," BlackBerry said in a statement. The smartphone model is available in price range of Rs 35,000 to Rs 43,500 in the...  

Goa govt to bring changes in mid-day meal scheme

Panaji: The Goa government will bring changes in the mid-day meal scheme to incorporate measures like improving the menu for better nutrition and participation of parents in monitoring quality of food. "We are introducing healthy eating habits for students by replacing bread with chapati. Fruit would be the part of the mid-day meal menu for students once a week," a senior official of the Education department said. The scheme is...  

WB: Mamata announces separate tribal affairs department

Kolkata: To ensure added importance to tribals in the state, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday announced a separate department of tribal affairs, which would be under her. "Tribal people have many grievances, but they don't know where to lodge complaints to draw attention immediately. Therefore, a separate tribal affairs department will be created just like the minority affairs department and it will remain under me," Banerjee told...  

Congress to organise meet to gear up for local body polls

Hyderabad: The ruling Congress in Andhra Pradesh plans to organise a convention of party leaders from the block level to gear up the party machinery for local body polls. The meeting would also discuss ways to spead numerous welfare schemes being implemented by the Centre and state governments, state Congress president Botsa Satyanarayana told reporters in Hyderabad on Tuesday. Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, several state ministers, AICC leader...  

Fake health cards scam running into crores surfaces in UP

Lucknow: In an embarrassment to the Akhilesh government in Uttar Pradesh, a major fake smart health card scam, which comes under the National Health Insurance Scheme, has come under scrutiny. This could turn out to be one of the major scams in Uttar Pradesh after the Akhilesh government came to power. Sources say if probed properly, the scam could run into several crores. Around 50 lakh smart cards have reportedly...  

Odisha chit fund scam: Artha Tatwa owner alleges politicians involved

Bhubaneswar: Weeks after CNN-IBN reported a political nexus in Odisha's Rs 20,000 crore investment scam, the crime branch has now arrested the owner of another financial company. The arrested owner of Artha Tatwa, Pradip Sethi, has alleged that ministers, MLAs, top politicians and bureaucrats are also involved in the financial scam. He has claimed that he has video and audio evidence to prove the involvement of politicians. Pradip has now...  

WB chit fund scam: What forces people to invest in ponzi schemes?

Kolkata: As the Calcutta High Court begins hearing pleas seeking a CBI probe into the Sharada group chit fund scam on Tuesday, CNN-IBN has found that it is unemployment and stunted industrial and agricultural growth in the state that is forcing people to invest in ponzi schemes. Seventy-year-old Sunil Sarkar recounts how he found his son Jayanta Sarkar's body at the terrace hanging by a rope. Jayanta, who was allegedly...  

I was only a trustworthy employee of Sen, says Debjani

Kolkata: Chit fund aided Saradha Group promoter Sudipta Sen's close aide Debjani Mukherjee on Friday claimed she was only a "trustworthy employee" of Sen and that she was sacked for raising her voice against the company's fund collection method. "When I found out that my boss was doing business in a way that was against my principles, I started raising my voice against him. Not considering my dedication towards the...  

Govt approves Rs 3,436 cr for Phase IV of Aadhaar scheme

New Delhi: The government on Thursday approved Rs 3,436.16 crore for Phase IV of the UID (Aadhaar card) scheme, which will commence immediately. The decision to approve Phase IV of the UID project at the cost of Rs 3,436.16 crore was taken in New Delhi at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Unique Identification Authority of India (CC-UIDAI), an official statement said. The Phase IV expenditure comprises Rs 1,600...  

West Bengal for social security scheme for investors

Kolkata: West Bengal is planning to start a social security scheme for depositors and investors to ensure proper return of public money following the Saradha chit fund mess, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said in Kolkata on Wednesday. "In the wake of growing financial insecurity, we are thinking of a social security scheme. It will ensure proper safety of public money and ensure safe and proper return. We will shortly put...  

Sudipta's properties to be posted in police websites

Kolkata: The amount of property amassed by Sudipta Sen, the chairman of the Saradha Group, which has been accused of duping thousands of investors, will be made public by the police. "We are planning to make public the amount of money that Sen and his associate Debjani Mukherjee has made from ponzi schemes. We are waiting for a court order to do it," DC (DD) Bidhanagar City Police, Arnab Ghosh...