Credit car fraudsters mislead cyber crime investigators

By U Sudhakar Reddy
Credit card fraudsters are adopting newest methods to dupe the card holders to the tune of lakhs of rupees and to
mislead the cyber crime investigators. After stealing the card details by using wireless skimmers the online
criminals are using spoofing technique to produce proxy Internet Protocol address. This makes the job of cyber crime police tough and
the fraudsters are untraced. Cyber forensic expert of State Crime Investigation Department Mr U Ram Mohan says ,"there are several cases of credit card are reported with us. Out of around 50 cyber crime cases most of them are either credit card fraud or Nigerian cheating cases. At petrol pumps, restaurant, shopping malls and during online use of cards the details of
the card are stolen. They are using skimmers to copy the date when the card is handed over to them,"
The data is then used to for online shopping and online purchase of tickets. The cyber criminals are using blue tooth for transferring the
stolen card numbers.
Cyber crime police station inspector of police Mr Ravi Kumar Reddy said ,"In most cases registered with us the accused are using the credit card details for buying the air tickets. They are using spoofing technique so that the IP address is not traced,"
In one of the cases registered with the CID cyber crime police station the accused used IP spoofing. Though it is suspected that he had
purchased the tickets locally the IP address traced to Malaysia.
"when they buy domestic air tickets it is very difficult to trace. In the international tickets cases at least passport number help us to track the user of the ticket. In one of the case it tracked to a gulf unskilled
employee who said the agent had given him. We are yet to trace the person who actually stolen the credit card details and using spoofing," said an investigator. Cyber crime officials say that credit card holders shall always stay near when they are swiped.

Cobra Man Snake Raj Kumar dies of Mosquito bite cerebral malaria

By U Sudhakar Reddy

Friend of snakes K Raj Kumar who escaped venomous sanke bites 29 times had fallen to mosquito bite. Raj Kumar passed away

due to cerebral malaria at a city hospital on Monday morning. Ophiologist Raj Kumar who was featured by Paul Merton and was running

Friends of Snakes Society in Defence Colony in the city and known nationally. At the age of seven he started catching snakes and lost two of his fingers of both hands due to the snake bites. Deputy Conservator of Forests Mr A Shankaran who lost his personal friend

says ,"As a school boy he used to rescue snakes and hand over them to zoo.

He used to tell that officials that he was handing over them as the people are killing it. He had a great art of capturing the snakes and handle them gently as we handle the new-born. He survived the snake including cobra and viper bites several times and two times it was very serious as his fingers were amputated. Once he was admitted to Intensive Care Unit where 23 doses of

anti venom was given to save his life. He escaped all these but the cerebral malaria killed him,"

Raj Kumar used to attend at least 20 to 30 calls a month to rescue snakes in the twin cities. He had conducted hundreds of shows in the schools and institutions across the country.

K Prakash an engineer and brother of Raj Kumar says, "This is a great loss to the family. He is a such a loveable man. He was diagnosed for cerebral malaria and treatment began two days ago. He died on Monday morning,"

Raj Kumar had at least 200 disciples who adore him, Raj used to tell in interviews that he was rescuing snakes as they are

misunderstood species and friends of farmers. He used to tell that snakes eat rats that spoil the crop particularly paddy and if the snakes are endangered the food production will come down due to increased mice menace.

Raj Kumar is survived by a wife and son and parents. His son Dharam Teja was also featured by Paul Merton carrying python on his neck.

Rajkumar was trained in Pune snake par and Bronx Zoo in US. Shankaran recalls ,"He dedicated all his life for snakes. He never took

money for his shows. Government of India has donated him a jeep which he used for the rescue of snakes. Raj knows snake feeding habits,"

Raju and his team members used to lay traps at the railway tracks and catch the rats and bandicoots and bring them back to feed the snakes. A follower of world renowned Romulus Whitaker Raj Kumar says the snakes are soft natured warm and friendly.

In his first encounter with snake when group of people killed it he asked his mother Ms K Joan who told him that they are beautiful creations of god and were misunderstood. His father Mr K V Rao was a defence employee.

One of the disciples of Raj Kumar Mr M Shiva says ,"we are two hundred members and 30 of us are active. He used to train us with non poisonous snakes initially and then until he gets satisfied that we can safely handle he never used to expose us to poisonous snakes. He used to be always caution us about our safety,"

Raju another aspiring young ophiologist of Raj Kumar says ,"there are no words to describe him. We couldn't digest the death of our guru," Retired PCCF Mr R K Rao and several other prominent people helped him

to grow. Chief Wild Life Warden Mr Hitesh Malhotra and Additional PCCF Mr A V Joseph were members of executive committee of the society. Maneka Gandhi and Amala Akkineni were the chief patron of the society

His society was involved in spreading awareness apart from rescue and rehabilitation in the State. He had done around 3000 rescues and 4000 educational snake demonstration.

Raj Kumar was writing a book on snakes and his desire to establish a snake park couldn't be fulfilled.

 Mr. Raj Kumar, spent almost three decades handling snakes, has come out with a blue print and spent several months in the United Studies Though land was given for snake park at Mahendra Hills he couldn't construct as permission as denied as the land is in the flight path. National zoo authority had given clearance and Union government approved a grant of Rs 25 crore but it didn't take off as Begumpet airport authorities refused permission. Later he tried for land at Necklace Road which didn't

materialise.

Drug link: Psychedelic trance music banned in Hyderabad

By U Sudhakar Reddy
The city police has banned psychedelic trance music shows in pubs because they find that it encourages drug abuse. The Banjara Hills police recently warned a pub attached to a five-star hotel in the city not to play psychedelic trance music by an Israeli DJ.

According to West Zone deputy commissioner of police, Mr Stephen Raveendra, “Normal persons can’t enjoy psychedelic trance music; those who are high on drugs enjoy it. The music has certain sounds and beats that irk a regular person. Most drug abusers join these kinds of parties.”
Psychiatrist Dr Ramana Cherukuri says hallucinogenic drugs cause the user to see vivid colours and their senses become abnormally active. CCS DCP, Mr J. Satyanarayana, says cocaine, a popular party drug, is a stimulant that makes one euphoric and enhances sexual prowess.
Heroin, unlike cocaine, is a depressant and is cheaper than cocaine. Ecstasy is another drug popular with the upwardly mobile crowd. It comes in tablet or capsule form. The attraction of these drugs is the euphoric, relaxed or energetic state they induce, but the downside is that they can be lethal and addictive. Ecstasy, for example, can cause multiple organ failure from severe body overheating, short term memory loss, and compromise the immune system.

Hyderabad High on Cocaine, No special cell to fight drugs

By U Sudhakar Reddy
Several drug busts in the past few months seem to suggest that national and international drug dealers are finding Hyderabad a lucrative market. Yet the state and city police have no special mechanism and infrastructure to fight the growing menace of organised drug racketeers.

Cocaine is said to be the drug of choice for Hyderabad’s wealthy elite and other drugs like amphetamine have made inroads into cities such as Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam. School-going children and college students are increasingly being targeted.
Police, who are on the front line of the war on drugs, say there is an urgent need for an Anti-Narcotics Cell in the Hyderabad and Cyberabad police commissionerates. An existing cell in the Crime Investigation Department is defunct and has not exposed a single racket in the past decade, and needs to be upgraded.
The state police has neither the equipment, such as field testing kits, nor the training to test drugs when they are seized; they have to depend on the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence or the Narcotics Control Bureau. Trained sniffer dogs that can track drug consignments at airports and seaports are also required.
There is no dearth of agencies to implement the Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Act — police, excise, Drug Control Administration, CID at state level, DRI, Customs and NCB at central level — but there is no co-ordination among them, which is to the advantage of drug peddlers.
The city police has busted nine major cases of drug racketeering, mostly of cocaine, in the past four months.
Sources in the Narcotics Control Bureau say drug cartels see India as a rising market for cocaine and Hyderabad has been listed as a top priority city. “Go to any college, and you will find that drugs are the most common thing right now,” says West Zone deputy commissioner of police, Mr Stephen Raveendra. “Pushers on the party circuit drag others into this. Cocaine has become a status symbol for the elite. This is in colleges in Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam too. The culture of using high-end drugs is increasing after more youngsters who studied abroad are returning home to Hyderabad.”
Recently, the city police arrested a drug peddler whose call list had the phone numbers of 150 IT professionals who are addicted to a high-quality form of ganja. “Cocaine, Lysergic Acid Diathylamide (LSD), a psychoactive hallucinogenic drug, and meth crystals are the most commonly used illegal drugs in the city. Cocaine, popularly called coke or crack, costs `3,000 to `5,000 per gram, and a drop of LSD costs `1,500 to `2,000. LSD is absorbed on paper and smuggled in,” said Mr Raveendra.
Cocaine finds its way to Hyderabad from South Africa, Afghanistan, and Burma, via Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru and Pune. The drugs are smuggled onto flights hidden in the body cavities of carriers. Drugs are also shipped and parcelled in.
Though police commissioner, Mr A.K. Khan, has ordered a zero tolerance policy towards drugs, legal experts say that the conviction rate is low in NDPS Act cases.
“Though the provisions are stringent, the police department has no field testing kits or the training that the DRI has. In most cases only drug ‘mules’ or couriers are caught. The handlers who are based in other countries and metros are not arrested. So the drug rackets continue and only the mules change,” says Mr T.K. Basha Vali, a lawyer.
He believes that the NDPS Act should also be amended to allow confessions before the police to be admitted as evidence in court, as in the case of special investigating agencies like the DRI and Customs.
Another twist in the drug tale is that even as the police crack down on drugs smuggled from overseas, like cocaine, users are switching to synthetic narcotics like amphetamine, ephedrine and crystal meth.
Central Crime Station deputy commissioner, Mr J. Satyanarayana, says the crackdown by police is having some effect. “CCS has busted three gangs in the past few months. Due to the sustained raids, cocaine has become expensive," he said

Wild fox follows crocodile, panther into Hyderabad city

Habitat destruction poses major threat
U Sudhakar Reddy
After panthers and crocodile now it's the turn of Fox to sneak into the city. Residents of Nagole woke up to see a wild fox moving in their locality from house to house on Sunday morning. The female fox aged two to three years lost it's way to from the Vanasthalipuram jungle into Sainagar Colony in Nagole.
As kids who are playing on the roads raised alarm and screaming at the fox a woman called up the forest anti poaching squad who along with Nehru Zoological park authorities caught it and shifted to zoo. An employee of an MNC Ms D Suma Reddy daughter of a retired
Motor Vehicle Inspector Mr D S Reddy says ,"when we saw it we were doubtful whether it was a dog or a fox. Colony kids were screaming at the fox. It was very mild and not wild. It was shivering and trembling as it saw so many people.,"
The incident took place around 10.35 am in road number 4 of Srinagar Colony.
Anti Poaching Squad Forest Range Officer Mr Raja Ramana Reddy said ,"After we received information we rushed to spot and confirmed it as a fox. It has injury on left limb. We rescued it and shifted it to Zoo park. It may have sneaked out of Vanasthalipuram national park which is spread over 3600 acres of land. There are four reserve forest blocks
that spread from Vanasthalipuram, Nagole and Dammaigudem,"
He added that fox is a protected wild species under part 2 of Schedule 2 of Wild Life Protection Act.
"Usually in groups the fox hunt for their prey deer. It may lost the route," said Ramana Reddy.
Increased human intervention in the forests and destruction of forest habitat are another reasons why the wild animals are sneaking out of
the forest. In another incident Forest officials rescued a wild animal of Cat family in Krishnakanth park in Yousufguda on Sunday evening.
"We are yet to identify the species of cat. It is a protected wild animal," said Mr Raja Ramana Reddy.

Pak Cyber Army hacks Andhra Pradesh Sainik webstie

By U Sudhakar Reddy
The "Pakistan Cyber Army" which defaced the Central Bureau of Investigation’s website, also hacked into
the website of the Department of Sainik Welfare of government of Andhra Pradesh.
The website, www.apsainikwelfare.gov.in was hacked on December 5, the day after Pakistani cyber miscreants hacked into the CBI website. The web page related to financial grant report to retired army officials was defaced.
The Pakistan Cyber Army also posted the defaced web pages of the Sainik Welfare Department on social networking site, Facebook. It read that cyber security of Indian government’s websites was a myth and  claimed that it was done in retaliation to the hacking of Pakistani websites by Indian hackers.
On the defaced web page of the Sainik Welfare Department, the hacker left a message: "Hacked by Innocent Hacker". Government officials, however, retrieved the defaced web pages by evening.
Sainik Welfare Department director, Brigadier (retired) C.S. Vidyasagar told this correspondent: "The AP Sainikwelfare site is non classified. Anyone can access it from any part of the world. No classified information is put on the website. We are going to lodge a complaint with the Cyber Crime Police regarding defacing of the pages."
He added that the website is maintained by the Centre For Good Governance. "We are paying CGG for maintenance of the website as the department has no technical experts. After this incident we are definitely going to ask them to strengthen security," he said.
CBI, on the other hand, has failed to restore its website since it was hacked. Andhra Hackers, a group that takes up "ethical hacking", has been assisting the cyber police of the state to tackle the Pakistani hackers.
Meanwhile, the Crime Investigation Department, Cyber Crime Police, is currently being trained by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on various aspects of cyber security and investigation in the Ghaziabad CBI Academy. Additional superintendent of police, Mr U. Ram Mohan, and inspector of police, Mr Ravi Kumar Reddy, are being trained by the FBI along with other officers across the country.
The FBI training module began on Monday, two days after the CBI website was hacked into.

Drugs from Africa: Khat leaf in Hyderabad.

Khat leafy contraband a drug used as alternative for Amphetamine and Cocaine by the drug abusers was caught in the city. City Task Force police on Saturday arrested a Somalian national
and seized 11 kgs of Khat leaves smuggled into Hyderabad from Adis Ababa the Ethiopian capital.
The arrested accused identified as Ahmed Khadar Yousuf Elmi 38 a native of Mogadishu in Somalia was residing at Nizam Colony at Humayunagar.
Cops found that he was selling the Khat to leaf to city drug abusers and foreign nationals. The accused was smuggling in Khat leaf as vegetables in Air cargo from East African Countries to city via Mumbai.
Khat leaf is a stimulant and produces hallucinogenic affect on chewing.
Task Force Deputy Commissioner of Police Mr V B Kamalasan Reddy said that the Somalian came to India on tourist visa in 1995. He discontinued his studies in the faculty of Bachelor of commerce in
King Koti Pragati College. He was arrested in 2008 October by Humayunagar police for overstay and sent to jail. On bail he procured refugee certificate. Due to financial crisis he started procuring Khat leaf
and selling the contraband at the rate of Rs 1000 per bundle.

Mr Kamalasan Reddy said ,"Not only foreign nationals but also Hyderabadis got addicted to Khat leaves. The Khat leaves contain psycho active ingredients known as cathinone and cathine. Both these

chemicals come under Narcotic Drugs and Pyschotropic substances act purview,".

Khat is a flowering shrub, it has stimulant effect similar to that of cocaine. Khat leaves are grown in Somalia, Ethiopia and Yemen countries. Khat is taken by chewing the leaves and dried Khat leaves,

can we mixed in tea decoction. The user experiences immediate increase in blood pressure and heart beat rate. It has effect of mild depression, extreme thrust, insomnia etc. It also damages the nervous, respiratory, circulatory and digestive system. It is a illegal drug falls

under Schedule-I drug under the Controlled Substances Act.

West Zone Task Force inspector of Police Mr J Narsaiah said Khat leaf is grown by farmers in Somalia.

The sale proceeds of Khat leaf is the key sources for the terror funding in Somalia.

Real Rakthacharitra: Paritala private army ROC chief Pothula Suresh arrest drama

Chaman and Nagoor Hussain still wanted
U Sudhakar Reddy
After 'arresting' the slain TD leader Paritala Ravi's aide and head of his private army Pothula Suresh the Anantapur police
and State intelligence sleuths have now began 'hunt' for absconding members of the out lawed group.
Pothula Suresh the founder of the Left Wing Extremist splinter group Reorganising Committee(ROC) was arrested by Special Operations Group of Anantapur police at Surat in Gujarat.
Police say that there seems to be no end for the 'Raktha Charitra' and the accused are still involved in extortions in the State particularly in Hyderabad.
ROC was assisting Paritala Ravi to carry out killings of his opposite faction, political party and community police said.
Pothula Suresh went into hiding after Congress came into power six years ago. After the murder of Paritala Ravi the members of ROC left the State with fear of being killed by rivals.
Suresh, reportedly made efforts to compromise with Paritala Ravi's rival Mr Maddelachervu Suri and Tadipatri legislator and former
minister Mr J.C. Diwakar Reddy four months ago sources said. Mr Suresh, a native of Mahabubnagar district, was accused in 7 murder cases including television set bomb blast case at Suri's residence and another 6 attempt murder cases.
While studying his post graduation in Sri Krishnadevaraya University, Suresh was attracted to left wing extremism and joined in people's war along with Paritala Ravi. Later broke away and turned into the head of Paritala Ravi's 'Private Army' the ROC.
 Ananthapur Superintendent of Police Mr Manish Kumar Sinha said ,"two other key members of ROC Dudekula Chaman and Nagoor
 Hussain are still absconding. We are talking to him. We have to take Suresh into police custody and question him regarding their
whereabouts. We have to still verify whether the group is active now.
But they are not committing any offences or indulged in violence in Anantapur,"
Paritala's arch rival Gangula Suryanarayana Reddy alias Suri is now in Bengaluru as his bail conditions say that he should not come to Anantapur.
An official of State intelligence said ,"due to fear of being killed by Maddalacheruvu Suri the suspect Suresh was hiding in Surat,"
 Police traced the nearby cell phone tower where Suresh used to speak over his mobile phone in Gujarat. Later police followed his wife Vavilala Sunitha while she was returning to Gujarat from Anantapur a month ago. They confirmed his exact location and swooped down on Suresh yesterday.
In contrary, rumours are airing in the district that Suresh voluntarily surrendered to police as his financial sources were
exhausted and his cadre was shattered following Ravi's murder in 2005.
Anantapur SP Mr M K Sinha dismissed the rumours of surrender and said that he was arrested on specific information.
 Pothula Suresh was upset over Paritala Ravi widow Paritala Sunitha's apathetic attitude over supporting his family and cadre.
Meanwhile, Vavilala Sunitha alleged that Congress government planned to eliminate her husband while speaking to media men in
Anantapur on Saturday. She admitted that Suresh made some efforts to step out from underground.
Meanwhile district jail superintendent Mr Ravi Prasad on Saturday filed a petition requesting the district judge to put Suresh in another jail as Paritala Ravi's murder case accused were already in jail.
Pothula Suresh allegedly masterminded the killing of S Chenna Reddy who was a Congress MLA from Dhamavaram town of the district.

Hyderabad: Pepper Guns to control the rioters

Udumula Sudhakar Reddy
As part of massive preparations for the December D-day on Telangana issue city police are procuring Pepper Guns that
make rioters and protesters sneeze when shot at.
City police are also recruiting ex service men on large scale as the constable recruitment was delayed due to free zone issue. Expecting trouble after the Srikrishna report comes out on the Telangana issue, the police are procuring weapons and recruiting men to control violent mobs.
Around 1200 ex army men will be appointed as police support officers in the city to deal with the rioting. City police already have 700 PSOs.
Sources in the city police said that the cops are trying to procured several non lethal weapons like Pepper Guns.
A senior police official said ,"Whatever is the report of Sri Krishna Committee our duty is to maintain law and order. Protection of people and properties will be the top priority. As part of the State police strategy to deal with the protesters in a harmless way we are procuring non lethal weapons,"
Pepper Guns are non- lethal weapon that fire fireballs which has a chemical Capsaicin(the burning component of chillies) strong irritant that cause teary eyes, runny nose, sneezing, wheezing and even difficult in breathing.
Cops are testing various other riot gear equipment as the preparatory measure. Police are also procuring 12 bore pump action guns. The non lethal weapons are also available for other districts including in Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema.
The non-lethal weapons like 12-bore pump action guns may cause injuries but will not be fatal.

APFSL ballistic experts say Azad was shot from distance

By U Sudhakar Reddy

 AP Forensic Science Laboratory ballistic experts submitted a report stating that Maoist former spokesperson Azad alias

Cherukuri Raj Kumar was shot dead from a distance and not close range. The report came in handy for the State cops who are facing the allegations of staged encounter. APFSL director Mr O N Murthy said ,"we have given the report. The ballistic expert report says that the bullet was fired from distance and not point blank,"

 Earlier Osmania Medical College Forensic Medicine department team has given similar report based on the examination done on the body. Azad was shot dead in the forest area in Adilabad. A bullet pierced through the upper left side of Azad's chest, making an oval shaped 1-cm hole. The bullet exited from the rear left side of the back, leaving behind a roughly 3-cm exit wound. A senior police official said ,"both the reports proved that Azad was shot from a distance and it is not a stage managed encounter. People who are demanding judicial inquiry into the killing has to rethink after seeing these reports,"  The findings of ballistic experts tallied with that of forensic doctors.

Several rights organisations, Swami Agnivesh and Union Railway Minister Ms Mamata Benerjee have been demanding judicial probe into Azad's killing alleging that it is staged managed encounter.

Kalpavriksha removed in highway extension

By U Sudhakar Reddy

Despite repeated requests from environmentalists, the state forest department has failed to protect and translocate the Kalpavriskha trees, a rare and endangered species, situated along the highways. Thus from 20 such trees in the state, there are now only 13.

They have, instead been removed during highway extension and while laying the Outer Ring Road in Hyderabad. At least seven trees have been removed on the Hyderabad-Vijayawada national highway and the ORR.

Kalpavriksha — also known as known as Baobab — live from 100 to thousands of years in the state and are mostly distributed in Krishna, Nalgonda and Ranga Reddy districts.

Mr A. Ravi Kiran, a former research fellow with NRSA said, “We have requested the AP Biodiversity board of the forest department several times asking them to translocate the trees. But there was no response and ultimately they were removed without concern. There were only 20 such trees in the state and now we have lost seven.”

These trees were removed at Chillakallu, Sher Mohammed Pet in Krishna district and Hayatnagar in Ranga Reddy.

Baobab is scientifically known as Adansonia digitata. In India it is known as Kalpavriksha as it provides food, water, shelter and has medicinal values. One of the trees, aged 700-year old, situated near Golconda Fort, has a 36-square-feet hollow and can accommodate at least 12 persons.

Dirtiest places on Earth in Andhra : Clean up a big challenge?

By U Sudhakar Reddy


With concerns about polluted environments growing and the Centre identifying several industrial clusters across the country that pose an unacceptably high risk to human health, cleaning up some of the worst areas is a big challenge for the authorities. The Centre has identified five industrials clusters - Vishakapatnam, Patan-cheru-Bollarum, Katedan, Kukatpally, and Vijayawada - to be highly polluted in the state and at least 20 major lakes in Hyderabad are in the category of most contaminated sites.
The Centre has sanctioned a two-year pilot project funded by the World Bank for two areas, Noor Mohammed Kunta lake in Hyderabad and Ukkayapalli in Kadapa. The Environment and Social Assessment study conducted in these areas with the assistance of the ministry of environment has revealed some shocking facts.
Lakes, industrial cluster areas, municipal dumping yards, and bio-medical waste sites are considered to be the dirtiest places. Environmentalists and health experts say it is not an easy task to clean up highly polluted areas as the ground and surface water are highly contaminated as is the soil.
Quantities of hazardous wastes are illegally dumped outside industrial estates, on abandoned public lands, and within privately owned lands. There are no estimates available with the State Pollution Control Board regarding the quantity and nature of the hazardous wastes in such dumps.
The AP Pollution Control Board (APPCB) has dug up the health records of people living around NM Kunta lake and five others inter-connected lakes including Mir Alam Tank situated in and around the Katedan Industrial Area in Rajendranagar. The records show that people living around these areas suffer from air pollution related health problems. Asthma, difficulty in breathing and vomiting are often experienced and get worse during the rainy season.
Mr A. Muralidhar, a resident of Katedan says, “The foul smell intensifies during the evening hours after 7 pm every day and the worst time is the rainy season.” Of the 600 industrial units in Katedan, 16 per cent are lead extraction units, 13 per cent are oil refining, 10 per cent are cement industries and 8 per cent are textile industries. None of these industries has their own effluent treatment plant and instead discharge untreated effluents into the NM Kunta lake.
Both surface and ground water quality has deteriorated due to discharge of untreated industrial effluents. Total Dissolve Solids (TDS) in the ground water sample was 2,924 to 3,280 mg per litre, way above the permissible limit of 2,000 mg/l. The hardness of the ground water sample was also significantly higher than the desirable limit of 300 mg/l and the permissible limit of 500 mg/l. Chlorides and sulphates in the ground water were also in excess of the desired limits. The APPCB found various heavy metals in the lake water. Cadmium concentration exceeded desirable limits and lead and copper levels too were high.
Borewell water in the monsoon season showed significant concentration of lead and soil samples showed high levels of heavy metals. Industrial units in Katedan generate more than 200 MT of solid waste every month out of which 70 MT or 37 per cent is hazardous solid waste. Around 14 per cent of people still depend on borewell, water which exposes them to significant health risks from all these pollutants.
The APPCB senior engineer, Mr N.V. Bhaskar Rao, claims that the Board has stopped the source of pollution at Noor Mohammed Kunta. “The textile industries are responsible for the heavy pollution at NM Kunta which we have closed down. Now we are working on remedies,” he said.
Dr S. Krishna of Netaji Nagar says that skin diseases are the major problem for people living near the lake. Diarrhoea, jaundice and asthma are very common. Dr Sitaram of Sriramnagar has treated several cases of hepatitis-B, dysentery, typhoid, malaria and asthma, which increases during the rainy season.
Doctors say it is essential to stop the burning of solid waste, and supply safe piped drinking water to all residents. The project to be taken up with World Bank funds is expected to provide a blueprint for how all such projects should be handled to ensure environmental and social sustainability

Animal toxicity tests must on Ayurveda drugs: AP government

U Sudhakar Reddy
State government has made animal toxicity tests mandatory for export oriented Ayurveda drugs containing metals. Health Department has issued guidelines to Ayurveda drug makers in this regard.
As part of streamlining the system for licensing of patent and proprietary products of Ayurveda, Siddha and Unani medicines government earlier formed an expert committee which prepared guidelines.
As per the government order any metal or Rasa preparations should be subjected to animal toxicity for the export oriented products.
Pharmacopoeia guidelines should be followed for the formulations to be exported.
Health department said authentic purifying procedures of the drugs belonging to the group of rasas, maha rasas, dhatus(metals) should be strictly followed and procedure should be specified.
Government made clinical trials mandatory for the ayurveda drug makers.
"The proforma, utilised in the clinical trials of the formulation should be provided with the clinical reports copies. Reports of bio chemical investigation related to the patient population should be enclosed in the
clinical study," said a health official.
The ingredients pertaining to the formulation should be only from those mentioned in schedule one of Drugs and Cosmetics Act.
As per the new rule the ayurveda drug makers shall submit the chemical analysis reports along with data and photos as evidence pertain to the process. Report shall be provided from government or
State government approve or own laboratories. The label 'Heavy metals with in permissible limits' shall be
conspicuously displayed on the container of purely herbal and ayurvedic rugs. Ayurvedic Drug Manufacturers who do not have in house laboratory facility shall get their drugs tested by any approved
drug testing laboratory.

Alligator weed a health hazard: Seema Thotakura or Ponneganti

By U Sudhakar Reddy
A popular green leafy vegetable in the city, the alligator weed, vernacularly known as Seema thotakura or Seema ponneganti widely sold in vegetable markets is a serious health hazard warns scientists of Forestry and Ecology Division of National Remote Sensing Agency.
Scientists say there is no record of the cultivation of alligator as vegetable crop in the State. It is an alien species of weed picked up from Hussain Sagar, Musi River and other polluted bodies in the city and outskirts by vegetable sellers.Accumulated heavy metals like Lead, Mercury, Cadmium, Chromium and Copper cause serious health problem to those who consume vegetables says Dr Chintala Sudhakar
Reddy of NRSA.
Following the finding scientists are now asking the State government to ban the consumption of alligator weed immediately.Dr Reddy said ,"It is predominantly found growing in polluted waters in urban waterways,
drainage, margins of lakes and sewage sludge of rivers. Alligator weed is collected from these water bodies and sold in the vegetables mandis and Monda Market. As it tastes delicious the consumption is increasing in Hyderabad and other urban areas. It was native to South America and alien to India. Alligator absorbs heavy metals from water. It can cause serious health problems to people who consume it as vegetable. These
plants accumulate pollutants in their roots, stems and leaves,"
Bio-accumulation factors of heavy metals were significantly higher for leafy than for non- leafy vegetable. Though the Alligator is useful to clean up the polluted waters it is dangerous for human consumption.
"the leafy vegetable suck up pollution, people eating them may ingest the metals which can be harmful," said Dr Sudhakar Reddy.
He added ,"this should be banned like Cat fish sale and consumption was banned and government should take up steps for its control in natural and aquatic habitats,"
Government earlier banned Cat Fish a weed fish that resembles murrel as it's consumption spreads diseases.
Indian Medical Association State president Dr N Kishore said ,"heavy metals when ingested cause serious health hazards and is poisons to human body. It affects lungs, cerebral system including brain and intestine and stomach and other body organs. So people should not consume such leafy vegetable like Alligator weed as suggested by the scientists,"

Maoists and cops techwarfare : Naxals has LMGs

By U Sudhakar Reddy
The technological war between the CPI Maoists and State police is heating up. To counter the technological wing of CPI Maoists which have been operating almost for a decade State police have recently set up a tech wing headed by a Superintendent of Police.
The tech wing part of Special Intelligence Branch mainly aims at collection of information and countering the Naxal technology by using latest communication tapping equipment and sniffer software to track e-mails.
The tech wing of SIB is also involved in analysing the communication equipment recovered from the Maoist dumps.
The tech wing of Maoists have developed rocket launcher technology indigenously and also played crucial in setting up the arms making factory in Dandakaranya of Chattisgarh.
 A senior official of State Police Headquarters said ,"we have Superintendents of Police to gather intelligence from each region. Like Maoists have a Special Zonal Committee for Andhra Orissa Border and we have two separate Superintendents of Police known as SP(AOB) who exclusively deals with the intelligence gathering from AOB. As well as SPs for Nallamala-Rayalaseema and for Telangana. So similarly we have a tech wing headed by an SP. We are also getting ready for anticipated cyberwar in future with the Maoists,"
Maoists have the latest weapons in their armoury including the Universal Machine Guns sources said.
 "They have looted several of the modern sophisticated weapons in Orissa incidents. They have now LMG(Light Machine Guns) as well as Medium Machine Guns and UMGs.
 Th firepower of Maoists is on par with the police. They are using the latest computers, laptops and electronic gadgets," said the senior police official.
The document of Maoists also speaks about carrying the cyberwarfare and intercepting and hacking the communication of police. The document says youth with IT knowledge and hacking abilities have to be recruited into the part. Tech Madhu alias Sreenivas Reddy who was heading the technical wing of Maoists gave up the arms earlier. The technological wing of Maoists keep themselves updated with the
latest warfare all over the world. In Nayagarh raids in Orissa in 2008 Naxals made away with 1100 weapons including AK- 47s, INSAS and SLRs and other sophisticated equipment and one lakh bullets.
In similar raids on Koraput town in February 2004, more than 525 weapons were snatch The police official said ,"they have both crude made in their factories and latest weapons looted from security forces. Maoists have developed crude rocket launchers.

Viqar's confession to Hyderabad police: Tried to kill Gujarat CM Narendra Modi

By Udumula Sudhakar Reddy
Terror suspect and Tehreek Galbha E Islam founder Viqar Ahmed in his confession to police said that he planned 26/11 type attack on December 6 in 2010( black day) by using AK-47 and other sophisticated weapons.
He was on the mission of collecting Rs 25 lakh for the project and was aiming to target the Sangh Parivar leaders and establishments. In his confession Viqar said that he met the controversial cleric Moulana
Naseruddin who is already facing several terror related cases in AP and Gujarat on June 14 and sought his blessings for the attacks.
In the confession Viqar said that he had asked Rs 5 lakh from Moulana Naseruddin for which he had accepted to provide financial help and gave Rs 5000 as an advance. In the confession Viqar also told police that he had attempted to kill Gujarat Chief Minister Mr Narendra Modi during the inauguration of Ramol Chowk Police Station. After seeing National Security Guards and other security staff he had withdrawn from the place. “ I was at the PS inauguration armed with the weapons. I thought it would not be easy to eliminate Modi with small weapons and decided to procure AK-47. I also planned to kill him in the guise of news reporters and made ID cards,” Viqar told to police. Police seized the fake ID cards of Zee news, Star News in which it was written that his name as Imran and designation as crime reporter.
Police also seized CDs and pen drives from the accused in which the sketches of city police stations, BJP leaders’ biodatas, hate speeches of Sayeed of Pakistan, Ayodha makeshift temple video, VHP leader Praveen Togadias details. The CDs seized from another suspect Riyaz also contained details of TGI logos, small arms training techniques.
Viqar confessed to police that he has connections with Indian Mujahideen and SIMI activists. As the two organizations have become inactive he want to use the ex DJS and Ex SIMI cadres for strengthening TGI. He had contacted Safdar Nagori of SIMI through one Jaber. Police said Viqar always wanted to keep the incident of Macca Masjid blast and firing afresh and wanted to commit offence on every anniversary.

Viqar prepared death note of city jeweler
TGI associated lead by Viqar targeted Bhavsagar a jeweler who hosted VHP leader Praveen Bhai Togadia meeting recently in the city. Viqar who conducted recce went to Sagar Bhai Jewellers at Motinagar in Borabanda in the city to kill Bhavsagar and to loot the shop in June 2010. As Bhavsagar was not at the shop he left the place and postponed the assassination. Police said that the Viqar had prepared a CD in the name of TGI that they killed Bhavsagar as he was hosted Praveen Togadia’s meeting in the city that spread communal hatred. Police seized the same.
“he had prepared the CD and was very confidence of eliminating Bhavsagar as this didn’t happen he had kept the CD with him,” said a police official.
Other suspects Riyaz and others confessed that they were given training in combat techniques which were downloaded from internet that are used by Mossad like Krav Maga marshal arts.
Viqar allegedly trained them in Chilkalaguda Idgah in combat techniques. Viqar also conducted recce for looting a foreighn exchange shop at Abids and to rob foreign currency. “I was very agitated after Macca Majsid blast and floated TGI in 2007,” Viqar told police.

Viqar was inspired by ‘Aankhen’ movie
Viqar told police in the interrogation that he was inspired by Aankhen movie starring Amitab Bacchan and Akshay Kumar. He said that he saw the movie several times and wanted to form a team to commit robberies. Viqar was named in 12 offences including two in Gujarat. Five cases of e-seva robberies, two cases of two wheeler thefts one at Uppal and other in Gujarat, Four cases of attacks on police and a case of robbery of HDFC bank were booked against him. Viqar initially purchased air guns in 2003 from Marfoof Armoury in MJ Market and teamed up with one Shameem Omar of Azampura who is still absconding. Shameem Omar along with the Viqar robbed E seva centre in Malakpet and Santoshnagar using air gun. With the cash they looted they purchased a England made and US made 7.65 mm pistols from Jhansi
and Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh. On June 7 in 2010 he had committed theft of scooter in Uppal police station limits and another automobile theft in Kagdapith PS limits in Ahmedabad and killing of constable Vinay in
Mananinagar. It was his associated Suleman alias Amjad who accompanied him to UP to purchase the weapons. He also took part in several robberies committed by Viqar.
During his stay in Ahmedabad with the help of local politician Zubair Viqar could get a plot in government land and constructed a room in t. He had shifted all his operations into the room.
Viqar confessed to police that he was inspired by the book written by Maulana Aleem Islahi of Saidabad on martyrs. Police said that the Viqar confessed that it was mentioned in the book that the terror suspect Fasiuddin is a martyr. Fasiuddin of Nalgonda is a terror suspect who was killed in police encounter. Viqar also mentioned that he had differed with DJS chief Mahbub Ali over the Macca Masjid blasts. “DJS chief was opining that it was handiwork of Shahed Bilal but I told him Sangh Parivar is involved. I differed from DJS on this,” Viqar told police.
Viqar had downloaded literature related to Jihad from Al-Nusra and Al furkhan websites. Viqar told police that he used his laptop to make letters and the logo was designed on the lines of Indian Mujahideen.
He came to city three days prior to Falkanuma incident from Ahmedabad and struck.
Viqar confessed to police that Dr Haneef and others were with him from 2008.

NIA probe in Zia Haq terror conspiracy case

By U Sudhakar Reddy
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken over the investigation of the conspiracy case involving Lashkar-e-Tayyaba activist Zia Ul Haq from the Special Investigation Team of the city police. This is the first case in the state being taken over by the NIA. “The NIA has taken over the case of Zia Ul Haq and has filed a petition in the court indicating this,” said the Central Crime Station deputy commissioner of police, Mr J. Satyanarayana.

Police said that the conspiracy case of Zia had been handed over to the NIA since it had wider ramifications. It is believed that 25 terror suspects got trained along with him in Pakistan and had intruded into the country. Zia was named an accused in the hand grenade blast at Odeon theatre on May 7 in 2006.
The LeT man had confessed that he was inspired by Jamat ud Dawaa leader Abdul Rahman Makki, a deputy of Hafiz Saeed, who is believed to be the mastermind behind the Mumbai attacks. A senior police officer said NIA had more sophisticated equipment and nationwide jurisdiction and could conduct a comprehensive probe. “Zia’s mentor, Abu Rehan alias Abdul Aziz, was directing terror activities in South India from Bangladesh and Nepal,” he said. “Rehan will also be made an accused in the case.”
NIA sleuths will also probe how Zia got hold of Chinese hand grenades and Chinese pistols. Zia, who conducted a recce of the Hitec City to carry out attacks, is facing charges of Passport Act violations too.


Zia Haq's Pak connections

Hyderabad Commissioner of Police Mr A K Khan showing
pics of Zia Ul Haq

Terror suspect Zia-Ul-Haq, who is currently in the custody of Special Investigation Team of the city police, has confessed that he was inspired by the Jamat-Ul-Dawah (formerly Lashkar-e-Tayyaba) leader, Abdul Rahman Makki, a deputy of Hafiz Saeed — the Pakistan-based terrorists most wanted in India.

In the confession report to SIT, the copy of which is available with this newspaper, Haq confessed, “while working as salesman in a textile company I used to visit a religious place in Jeddah in Saudi where I was most inspired with the preaching and speeches of Abu Ali of Pakistan and Abdul Rehman Makki of LeT-JUD cadre. Abu Ali used to play the CDs of Godhra carnage and other incidents and encourage us. It was Abu Ali of Pakistan who introduced me to Abdul Aziz.”
The investigators also found that on the instructions of LeT commander, Abdul Aziz, Haq crossed the border and went to Bang-ladesh with the support of one Shahi-Ul-Islam in 2008. An investigating official said, “Abdul Aziz alias Abu Rehan is guiding the terror activities in South India from Bangladesh and Nepal.
Haq confessed to the police that he was supposed to meet Abu Ali in Bang-ladesh, but returned as he could not complete the task. “I was trained in the Muzaffarabad camp for a month in handling and usage of explosives, fire arms, etc. I interacted with our instructors Abu Hafis, Sami, Abdul Aziz, Musamil and Zaki-u-Rahman, all Pakistanis. They have given me a specific task in Hyderabad. There were about 25 students in the training camp,” said Haq.
He also said he was under pressure from his handlers to carry out attacks in the city; the latest conspiracy being attack on places frequented by foreigners.

Haq's Hawala Links?
Officials of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) suspect that Lashkar-e-Tayyaba operative, Zia-ul- Haq, might have received large sums of money through hawala channels and other illegal means to perform his subversive activities. Police has found several transactions involving lakhs of rupees in his bank accounts in the city.

They wonder how a taxi driver could have such large sums in his account. Police is waiting for the transaction details from the ICICI bank’s Charminar branch, ABM Amro bank at Banjara Hills, Andhra Bank at Mehdipatnam and HDFC bank. Haq had accounts in all these banks.
Haq was also apparently using five SIM cards — three of Reliance and two of Idea — and the call details from these numbers have to be obtained from the service providers. “We have to identify the locations of the cellphone towers he used before he was arrested,” said an official. Investigators have also seized four hard disks from two cyber cafes in the city and sent them to APFSL for cyber forensic analysis.
Records of Sree Vishnu cyber cafe at Mehdipatnam show that Haq had visited the cafe on April 5, 2010. He had used the cafe three to four times. Two hard disks were seized from the cyber cafe. Haq had also visited another cyber cafe, Amaan Communications at Mehdipatnam, on April 10 and April 27 and contacted his handler Abdul Aziz of Pakistan.
The sleuths are working to crack the code language used by the suspect Haq. “Whenever terror operatives communicate with each other they use a code language. We have to decode this in this case,” said a police official. The accused had made several phone calls to countries including Saudi Arabia. “He made many phone calls and we need to know his contact details abroad. He stayed in a lodge in Delhi for two days in 2005 and met unknown persons and received weapons,” said an official.
Police also said there are several discrepancies in the passport applications filed by him with the Regional Passport Office.

Passport violation by Zia Haq

The Special Investigation Team of city police investigating the case of conspiracy booked against LeT operative Zia Ul Haq found that he has violated the provisions of the Passport Act.

Police said that Haq used a fake address and date of birth while procuring the passport.
The police is now discussing whether to book a separate case against Haq or to include the passport violation in the conspiracy case.
Zial Ul Haq obtained a passport in February 1995 from the Hyderabad passport office with the address as Jyothibagh in Yakutpura. He had quoted his date of birth as 19 February, 1972, by filing an affidavit with the officials.
Haq went to Dubai and worked there. From there he went to Saudi Arabia and then to Pakistan and got trained in the terror camp in Muzaffarabad, police said.
A senior investigating official said, “As his passport was taken away in the terror camp. He infiltrated into the country through Poonch in 2005. In 2006 he again applied for a passport in the name of Mohammed Zia ul Haque with a Muradnagar address. This time he applied for the passport with an SSC certificate that showed his date of birth as on October 19, 1976.”

Octopus to take part in commando operations in Indian States, 10 SWAT teams

By Udumula Sudhakar Reddy
Anti terror units Octopus and Counter Intelligence of State police are reorganised on Wednesday as the government accepted and issued orders on much awaited proposals. Organisation for Counter Terrorists Operations(OCTOPUS) will now be a specialised commando unit with operational wing having 10
SWAT(Special Weapons and Tactics Teams).
Four of these teams will be stated in Hyderabad and remaining two each in three other major cities in the State in Vishakapatnam, Tirupati and Vijayawada.
Each SWAT team with special uniform and weapons will have assault commandos, bomb disposal squad lead by Deputy Superintendent of police with a total strength of 53.
In significant move Government has decided to deploy Octopus SWAT commandos in neighbouring States too on special request to fight terrorists.
It was also decided to go for new recruits every year with 20 per cent replacement to make OCTOPUS look young and strong where they are trained Ex-National Security Guard, para commandos. Commandos
will serve only for five years in the unit and a training reserve will also be maintained. Octopus will have Snipers, Hit commandos, armourers, breechers as part of SWAT.
Octopus will have a linguist who can translate the Arabic and Urdu material as well as negotiate during hostage crisis. Doctors and paramedics to help the commandos kept fit and treat them not only during the operations but also during regular training. Octopus will be headed by Additional DG or IG rank official with three more IPS officials manning operation, training and administration wings.
The Counter Intelligence Cell will have an investigation wing which will also take up Mafia cases along with terror incidents. An additional SP will lead the Investigation wing. All the terror cases now with
Octopus including Indian Mujahideen Twin blasts case, Tehreek Galba E Islam terror suspect Viqaruddin case will be transferred to CI cell police station.
CI cell technical wing will also have web hackers whose prime duty is to crack into the enemy communication and networks.
CI cell will get 577 executive strength drawn from Octopus in addition to 326 existing officers. Planting mules, bugging and recording will be taken up by CI cell.
Counter Intelligence will have field intelligence, technical intelligence including forensic and cyber forensic division, surveillance, Research and Analysis wing including data centre, investigation and prosecution
cell, Administration and logistics cell. Field intelligence units will be located in all four police commissionarates, district and range headquarters. CI cell will be headed by an IG under whom command
and control centre operates as well as DIG or SP rank officials for intelligence and analysis wing and SP or Additional SP for administration wing.
The proposal was pending from 2007 and materialised on Wednesday where the redundancy of work is avoided between Octopus and CI cell.
Octopus will deal with the terror threats that arise of using of Improvised Explosive Devices in public place, hostage situation and firing on the public with focus on urban centres. Octopus will have operations, training and administration wings. Both Octopus and CI cell officer shall be paid additionally 50 per cent more.

Maoists influence in and around Delhi

By U Sudhakar Reddy
Maoist activities in and around Delhi is now a big concern for the anti naxal agencies. Intelligence officials found that the recent violent agitations of sanitation workers in Delhi has Maoist influence. At least 30 leaders of CPI Maoists were arrested in and around Delhi in the past one and half year.
According to sources in the State intelligence department three Central Committee members and two state committee members and other naxal leaders were arrested in Delhi.
Mr Kobad Gandhi, Gopal Mishra in charge of Delhi State Committee, Dr Pankaj of Central Committee along with 13 other Underground naxals were among those arrested.
A senior police official of State police headquarters said ,"they are not only using Delhi as shelter zone but stepped up their activities. This poses serious threat to VIP security. We are also suspecting the naxal
hand in the recent violent agitations. Gopal Mishra was working under the guise of trade union leader,"
Delhi is part of North Regional Bureau of CPI Maoists. The arrested leaders include Balraj alias Arvind is a member of the Central Committee and in-charge of the North Regional Bureau and  Banshidhar alias Chintan Da of Central Committee.
The North Regional Bureau f the Maoists oversees the revolutionary movement in Delhi, Haryana, Punjab and three Union Territory areas.
In July first week 12 policemen including two Station House officer were injured and 30 vehicles damaged when safai karamcharis resorted to violence at Najafgarh demanding permanent jobs and payment of
wages. The incident took place in the premises of Municipal Corporation of Delhi.
"the mob was so violent they went on rampage. We are suspecting that the motivating factors could be left wing extremist elements. They beat the cops black and blue. We have specific inputs that the Maoist have
stepped up their activities in and around Delhi as part of strengthening their urban squads," said a police official.

Oldest Indian wild ass dies in captivitiy at Nehru Zoo

The Oldest wild ass Rathi died on Saturday in Nehru Zoological Park. Rathis was 33 year old and it was the longest surviving Indian wild ass species as per the records.
According Zoo education officer Mr Vara Prasad the life span of wild ass in captivity is around 20 years.
“Rathi was boren in Shakkarabagh zoo in Junagadh in Gujarath in 1977. A pair of male and femal ass Rathi was brough to Hyderabad zoo in 1980. The male wild ass died in 1987.
Rathi was single since then till it died on Saturday for 23 years. It is a rare species as it is now found only in Rann of Kutch in Gujarat,” said Mr Vara Prasad.
He added ,”earlier it was found in Aghanistan and Baluchistan and now endangered. The proposal to translocate them in Thar desert in Rajasthan didn’t take off,”Zoo officials mourned the death of Rathi and paid tributes to it. “It died a natural death,” said the officials.

Ageing hits Maoists in Andhra

By U Sudhakar Reddy
Ageing has hit CPI Maoists from Andhra Pradesh who are now still underground. Around 174 CPI Maoists are now above 35 years and are considered not fit for guerilla warfare.

According to the latest Wanted List of CPI Maoists approved by the State government 408 UG naxals are wanted for the State police. Out of this figure around 28 are killed or arrested or surrendered before the government approved the list after the proposals are sent by the State police.

Around 60 Maoists are above 46 year old as per the list. Most of the Maoists from AP are working in Dandakarnya, Chattisgarh, Andhra Orissa Border, Orissa and a few of them in West Bengal, Karnataka and Maharasthra.
An official of State home department said,”As there are no new recruitments except around 37 from Vishakapatnam there are hardly any new entrants in the State into the left wing extremist movement. This resulted in ageing. They all have to be given less action oriented works. As their physical fitness don’t permit it is difficult to take up guerilla warfare,”
Even many of these old generation naxals are suffering with gastric and knee related diseases.
The wanted list has only one Maoist with Post graduation qualification and three professional courses and 16 graduates. Around 41 of them had primary education, 28 are SSC holders and 25 intermediate and around 25 are illiterate and the Status of 266 is not known.
Warangal tops the list with 84 wanted naxals followed by Vishakaptnam rural with 62 and then with Karimnagar 60 and Adialabad 35.
Nellore and Chittoor has only one naxal each. Seven of the Central Committee members are from Karimnagar and 17 State committee rank naxals and 19 district committee secretary ranks Maoists are from Warangal district.
Central Committee rank naxals carry a reward of Rs 12 lakh and State committee of Rs 10 lakh and the lowest is a dalam member of Rs 20,000.
Maoist supreme Mupalla Laxman Rao alias Ganapati (central committee secretary) is the longest serving with 35 years in the party followed by Katakam Sudarshan for 30 years and Mallojula Koteswara Rao alias Kishenji, Mallojula Venugopal alias Sonu for 29 years each.


Age profile of Underground cadre naxals
25 years and below 62
26-30 years 58

31-35 years 72

36-40 years 66

41-45 years 48

46-50 yrs 29

51-55 yrs 24

55 yrs above 7

Not known 42

Law of Torts : What action on cops in torture case?

By U Sudhakar Reddy
The traumatised victims of police torture in the Mecca Masjid blast case have approached the court demanding compensation from the State government for the nightmarish experience they had to undergo.

They are also seeking action against the guilty police personnel for ruining their lives and careers and for causing unending distress to their families.
Though the Law of Torts is not as strong in India as in other countries, there have been several instances wherein courts have granted compensation to the victims of police torture.
“We have filed a petition in the city civil court as per Law of Torts,” said the senior advocate, Mr Shafeeq Rahman Mahajir, who is fighting the case for the torture victims. “Our contention is that the police had put unnecessary blame on these innocent youth and their rights were violated at the instance of the State. So the State is liable to compensate them.”
The advocate said the demand was for Rs 20 lakh as compensation to each of 20 boys illegally detained and framed by the police. “We also asked for an unspecified amount for the mental trauma and dislocation suffered by the families,” said Mr Mahajir. “We have urged court to recover the entire compensation amount from those who illegally detained the youth."
He said that the court should ideally attach the assets of police officers facing the charge of torture to teach them a lesson and to give an example to other cops. "We have cited a High Court order in an earlier case where Rs 32,000 per day was awarded as interim relief to those detained by the police illegally,” said the advocate. “Some of the boys from the city were detained in jail for 18 months in the Mecca Masjid case.”
The court is now awaiting the responses from the defendants — the government and police officers — in the case. Reacting to the development, the former director general of police, Mr Pervaram Ramulu, cautioned the police to be alert while dealing with major cases such as blasts. “The police should act only when they have evidence and should not rush to conclusions,” he said. “Superior officers should not put pressure on investigating officers to show results.”
“Investigators must be doubly careful or the reputation and life of people will be damaged,” said another former DGP, Mr Swarnjit Sen, who added that such cases were rare and the Hyderabad police usually went about their probes in a scientific manner. “Police in this case violated National Human Rights Commission and Supreme Court guidelines on arrest and detention,” said the human rights advocate, Mr Lateef Khan. “They targeted the entire Muslim community.”

Police torture: Other side of Mecca Masjid blast case probe

By U Sudhakar Reddy
Syed Imran Khan, 26, can’t sleep at night. When he finally slips into a fitful slumber, he sees hooded policemen approaching him with batons. Screaming ‘mat maro, mat maro,’ he wakes up bathed in sweat.

Likewise, Abdul Raheem, a 30-year-old trader, shudders when he recalls the buzz of the electric wires which police used to give repeated shocks to his genitals in a torture chamber where he was kept blindfolded for hours and days.
Another youth, a Unani doctor, urinated blood after hours of torture only to have a leering cop tell him, “What does it matter to a dying man?”
These are just few of the dozens of Muslim youth picked up and tortured by Hyderabad cops in their excessively zealous and lopsided investigation after the Mecca Masjid blast of May 18, 2007.
There was no sifting of evidence, no objective probe to find out who triggered the blast, just a blind latching on to the ‘Islamic terrorist’ tag and Gestapo-like operations in the dead of the night to round up bewildered and clueless youth from their beds.
Blindfolded, they were kept in isolated farm houses in the outskirts of the city. Chained and tortured for days together, the traumatised youth were finally forced to give confessional statements that they were behind the blasts.
But as the slogan of Satyameva Jayate emblazoned on the caps and shoulders of these senior cops indicates, truth did triumph at last. It has now become evident that the Muslim youth had nothing to do with the blast, which was the handiwork of a Hindu right wing outfit.
But truth became the biggest casualty in the initial investigation of the blast when cops acted in a brutal manner without even considering the illogical nature of their assumption that Muslim youth would trigger a blast in the Mecca Masjid.
* * *
18 months in jail, for no fault
Syed Imran Khan, 26, engineering student

Three days after the Mecca Masjid blast, on May 21, around 80 to 90 policemen surrounded my house at Hasmathpet in Bowenpally. They spread over the entire locality — like they were trying to nab a big terrorist. I was about to sleep after dinner when they dragged me from my house saying that I, along with my uncle Shoaib Jagirdar from Jalna in Maharashtra, had conspired with one Nayeem alias Sameer, who was allegedly caught on the Bangladesh border.
I was doing my third year engineering after finishing school from Kendriya Vidyalaya. I played cricket and volleyball for my college. I was also working part-time as a phone banking officer for ICICI.
The cops booked two false cases against me — a conspiracy case and one for stocking RDX. The cops said that I knew how to transfer funds and I was apparently instrumental in aiding terrorists. After picking me up, they took me to a farm house in the city outskirts. Over the next 10 days of illegal custody, they gave electric shocks to my private parts. They then released me stating I was innocent. However, again in June, they caught me and subjected me to narco tests.
Though the court had given permission for a single test, they conducted it twice. The second time they gave me an overdose of narcotics. Many police officials were in the narco room. They didn’t give me a chance to speak. The police say Nayeem had visited our house. He had come with my uncle Jagirdar for a meal. I don’t know anything about him and his whereabouts. But the name Nayeem changed my life.
I spent 18 months in jail. I have never seen RDX in my life, but the police claim I had stocked 10 kg of the explosive. After the ordeal, representatives from the National Commission for Minorities visited us and I retook admission with great difficulty at Lords Institute of Engineering and Technology to complete my studies. I still wake up often at night shivering with fear. I still cry in sleep, sometimes shouting ‘mat maro, mat maro’.
The police changed my image to that of a goon. My family too suffered. My dad ran from pillar to post while I was in custody and my mother was inconsolable. I lost three years of my academic career. Advocate Muzafarulla Khan stood by me and helped me to fight my case. I still have faith in the CBI. They were supportive and told me I was innocent. The cops, who called me a terrorist, should call a press conference and announce I am innocent and that I was implicated in a false case.
* * *
I was threatened to confess Mohammed
Rayeesuddin, 27, electrician

I was a witness when the Gujarat police shot dead my friend Saleem Mujahid in front of the DGP’s office in October 2004. Since then I have been under police scanner.
Shahed Bilal is from our locality and we knew him since childhood. When the police asked me if I knew Bilal I said ‘yes’ and this answer changed my life for the worse. The police implicated me in a case of conspiracy. Is it a crime that I hail from the same locality where Shahed Bilal was born and brought up?
After the Mecca Masjid blast in 2007, the police asked me to visit the Special Investigation Cell office in connection with the Saleem Mujahid case. Instead, they asked me who was behind Mecca Masjid blast.
I told them it could be some right wing groups as no Muslim would do it. They released me. Three months later they caught me again after the twin blasts in Lumbini Park and Gokul Chaat. This time they tortured me in their camps in Premavatipet near the Greyhounds office. They shifted me to three-four farm houses.
I was then produced in court on the false charge of conspiracy. They branded me as Bilal’s associate but the court acquitted me. Even after three years I still suffer from several health problems due to the torture and narco-analysis test. Recurrent severe headaches have made my life miserable. The police detained me illegally for eight days. I also spent six months in jail. I lost my job at the jewellery shop where I was working. I am now working as an electrician.
But the police hound me even now. They continue to ask whether I knew Viqar Ahmed. They came to me after some persons fired at policemen at Shah Ali Banda. I don’t know who Viqar is. I was, however, a witness to the Mecca Masjid blast. I helped the injured but the police implicated me. They put a revolver to my temple and threatened me to confess that I was involved in the blast.
* * *
Nobody wants to marry me
Abdul Raheem, 30, provision store owner

On September 3, 2007, a police inspector called me up. I was an auto driver then. He asked me who had carried out the blast at Mecca Masjid. After the Lumbini Park blast the police called me again. This time they took me to a camp in Gandipet.
When we reached, I saw they were already beating several boys in the farm house. The police subjected me to abuses, beat me with iron pipes and gave me electric shocks. There were around 40 people in the camp and in our room there were perhaps four or five of us but I am not certain as I was always blindfolded. I could hear others crying for help as the police tortured them.
I used to shiver when I heard the sound of their boots come towards me. After five days in the camp I was taken to jail.
My marriage, which was scheduled at that time, was cancelled and after the ordeal no one wanted to give their daughter’s hand to me despite the fact that we had been staying in Malakpet locality for 20 years. After this episode we shifted to Chandrayangutta. Initially there too no one wanted to marry me and with great difficulty could we convince them.
I am not a member of any organisation and there are no other cases against me. I spent five months in jail for no fault of mine and the court acquitted me. My mother by then had already suffered two strokes and I still suffer from health problems.

* * *

I was subjected to third degree methods
Dr Ibrahim Ali Junaid, 28 years, Unani doctor

I was a third year BUMS student at Government Nizamia Tibbi Unani College which is situated just opposite Mecca Masjid. On May 18, 2007, I was at the Masjid offering Friday prayers when the blast occurred. I found several people injured including one of my professors, whom I shifted to the hospital.
Two days after the blast I got a call from the Special Investigation Cell. They detained me at the Secunderabad Task Force office and interrogated me till evening. They asked some strange and defamatory questions like, ‘why do you grow a beard?’ They also said, “You Muslims can only do this kind of blasts”.
They never suspected the right wing groups. They picked me up from my house, blindfolded me and and harassed me for three to four days. One of the officers put his revolver to my temple and threatened that I would be killed in an encounter if I did not confess that I was involved in the blast.
The police official told me that it was my last day on earth and asked me if I wanted to eat anything special before I was put to death. Later, they released me.
In August, after the twin blasts I went to Delhi to attend a conference in Hamdard University. After my return on September 3, I was picked up at Yakatpura Railway Station and for a moment I thought someone was kidnapping me. After a 90-minute journey we reached an unknown location in the city outskirts in a farm house where they ran a torture camp.
They stripped me and beat me on the soles of my feet. Third degree methods were adopted. They gave electric shocks to my ears, nose and joints. When I recited verses from the Holy Quran, they gave me electric shocks on my teeth and tongue. There was even blood in my urine. When I told the police about this, they replied ‘marnewale ke liye ye chhoti baat hai’. I feared that I would be killed in an encounter.
The police also questioned me why I went to the State Human Rights Commission along with the rights activists in the Sohrabuddin case. Later I was taken for a narco analysis test. I was subjected to the test for eight hours and for a week I couldn’t come out of the after-effects of the narco test. Later, they arrested me officially in the case and I was in jail for five months.
After my release the college refused to re-admit me. I approached the AP High Court and was allowed to write the exams. Then they said I did not have the requisite attendance to write the exams. I lost one precious year of my career.
The police, however, continued to visit my college and my home. I worked part time in a private hospital where intelligence sleuths came and questioned the hospital staff. During elections the police asked me for a “bound over”.
They had foisted two cases against me. One case related to the burning of a pandal on graveyard land in 2003. The court had acquitted me in this case. Again in 2007 they arrested me in a conspiracy case. This case was also cleared by the court. I asked the police that when there were no cases pending against me why should I be “bound over.” I appealed to the State Election Commissioner and following this, the police didn’t come back to me.
After my name cropped up in the blast case, none of my relatives came to our house and even our neighbours and friends stayed away from us. We were ostracised from the community.
(The writer met these men who narrated their spine chilling experience

CBI nabs Mecca Masjid blast suspects

By Udumula Sudhakar Reddy
The Central Bureau of Investigation arrested two activists of a Hindu group for triggering the Mecca Masjid blast.

In all, five persons were killed in the blast that took place on May 18, 2007. Following this, the court issued prisoners transit warrant for Devender Gupta and Lokesh Sharma and ordered the CBI to produce them. They are now in Ajmer jail in connection with Ajmer Darga blast and are likely to be brought to the city on Monday.
The CBI alleged that these two accused conspired to carry out the explosion in Mecca Masjid and aided the others.
They also purchased SIM cards and mobile phone devices which were e used in the bomb placed in the masjid. Devender used a fake driving license to buy the SIM cards.
The CBI has established the Mecca Masjid and Ajmer blasts were part of single conspiracy. According to the CBI prosecutor, the bombs used in the blast were made by Sandeep Dange and Ramchandra Kaslangara alias Ramji Kalsangara.
The two bomb experts come to the city two months ahead of the blast and stayed here. The CBI thinks they made the bombs using RDX and planted two of them Mecca Masjid and two in Ajmer.
Sandeep and Ramchandra are absconding and a manhunt is on to nab them. The CBI is also looking into the role of Swami Ashimanand in the case.

Telugu Dipak tells cops that party unhappy with Kishenji

U Sudhakar Reddy

Top Maoist Telugu Dipak, alias Venakteswara Reddy, who was arrested by the West Bengal police, has told them that the CPI (Maoist) central committee is unhappy with Kishenji alias Mallojula Koteswara Rao, over the publicity campaign he is running. Dipak, who was a key aide of Kishenji, also developed differences with him. The Greyhounds inspector general of police, Mr Anjani Kumar, visited West Bengal and returned to the city after questioning Telugu Dipak. Sources said that Kishenji’s announced policy decision without proper consultations with the CPI (Maoist) central committee which has irked other top Maoists.A senior official said, “Kishenji is neither a spokesperson nor secretary of the central committee. He was always on the TV screens and giving interviews to the print media. This has irked other top Maoists as Kishanji is trying to impose his personal decisions on the party.”The Greyhounds IG, Mr Anjani Kumar, visited the West Bengal CID office and explained the tactics of guerrilla warfare to the police officials involved in anti-Naxal operations in Bengal.He had presented videos of Greyhounds operations and shared experiences in fighting Naxals with officers from Maoist infested areas like West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia.As Telugu Dipak is also wanted in several cases in Andhra Pradesh, Mr Kumar also spoke to the officers who interrogated him, and himself interrogated Dipak. A team of Special Intelligence Branch also questioned Telugu Dipak

Dantewada massacre: Top Maoists Tirupati and Sudarshan lead attack

By U Sudhakar Reddy

Two top Maoists from Andhra Pradesh, Katakam Sudarshan and Tipparti Tirupati, led the biggest-ever attack carried out by Naxals in the country in Chhattisgarh on Tuesday.
Though there are reports that around 1,000 Maoists took part in the attack, senior police officers of the state who are familiar with Naxal operations say that only around 300 attackers were present. It is believed that there are around 3,000 armed Maoists in Chhattisgarh.
Source said at least three “military companies” of the CPI Maoist People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army united for the operation.
“The central regional military command led by Tirupati executed the attack under the guidance of the political wing of the central regional bureau led by Sudarshan,” said a senior police officer.
“The local dalams of the Dandakarnaya Special Zonal Committee may also have assisted them. The central regional bureau covers parts of AP, Chhattsigarh and Orissa.”
Sudharshan, 53, hails from Bellampally in Adilabad and carries a reward of Rs 12 lakhs on his head. He and Tirupati, 46, who are also members of the central committee, are wanted in several cases, including the attack on former Andhra Pradesh chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.
The DKSZC is dominated by Telugu-speaking Maoists. In all, 15 out of 20 members of the committee are from Karimnagar, Warangal and other parts of AP.
Kadari Satyanarayana Reddy, alias Kosa, of Gopalarapalli in Karimnagar, is the secretary of the DKSZC. Maoist Muppala Lakshmana Rao, alias Krishna Kumari (Ganapati’s wife), is district committee secretary of South Bastar.
(Graph COURTESY OUTLOOK INDIA)