Revenue staff to strike work from TuesdayMUMBAI, November 7: About 25,000 Revenue staff from the Customs, Excise and Income-Tax departments in Mumbai will join the all-India strike on November 10, 11 and 12 to demand upgradation of scales and parity with cadres in other services. The strike call has been given by the Coordination Committee of Revenue Federations who want implementation of the report of the high-level committee appointed by the Finance Minister in August, last, which had also recommended higher pay scales for Group C & D officers.Sant Samagam rally in CapitalThe 51st annual Sant Samagam of the Sant Nirankari Mission is being held at New Delhi till November 16, 1998. The Samagam, being held at the Nirankari Samagam Grounds at Burari Road, North Delhi, focuses on moral degeneration in society and the need for spiritual awakening. A colourful rally by over 10,000 volunteers of the Nirankari Sewa Dal will mark the Samagam on November 15.Borivli girl crushed todeathA 10-year old girl was crushed to death under a lift a Borivli on Saturday afternoon. Fire Brigade sources said the incident took place around 1.20 p.m. when Ekta Raj was playing in the ten-storeyed building, New Darshan, on Sai Baba Mandir Road, Borivli. Though the exact cause of the death is yet to be ascertained, it is feared the Ekta was trapped in the shaft with elevator coming down heavily on her. She was rushed to Bhagwati Hospital, but was declared dead before admission.Chembur jewellery shop burgledIn an incident of robbery, a jeweller's shop was looted of cash and jewellery worth Rs 13.11 lakh at Chembur late Friday night.Police said, the incident took place between 9.30 and 11.30 p.m. after the shop owner Paresh Chand Jain closed the shop. A vada-pav vendor who has his stall near the shop informed Jain that the back door of his shop was open. Jain, on reaching his shop found that jewellery worth Rs 3.5 lakh and cash totally amounting to Rs 13.11 lakh was burgled. Policehave registered a case and further investigations are on.Subsidised sale of farm produceAn exhibition-cum-sale centre of agricultural produce and minor forest produce procured from the tribals of the State was inaugurated by Minister for Tribal Development AT Pawar on Friday. The sale at `Nandanvan', which is on at the minister's bungalow near Kamla Nehru Park, Malabar Hill, is part of the opening of the ongoing Agro Advantage. Following are the prices of the produce per kg. Rice, Rs 13; toor dal, Rs 35; wheat, Rs 9.75; chana Dal, Rs 20; gram, Rs 15; bhagar, Rs 14; nagli, Rs 5.50; varai, Rs 7.50; sugar, Rs 15 and bal hirda, Rs 22. The exhibition will be open till Nov 9.NASA stir for parity in pay-scalesThe Non-Academic Staff Associations (NASA) of the five Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) have launched an agitation to demand speedy implementation of their demands. A statement from NASA, IIT, Mumbai, includes the following demands: Raising the retirement age of all staff membersto 62 years; parity in pay-scales among all the IITs; continuation of assessment/promotion with effect from September 13, 1986 and removing anomalies arising out of implementation of Fifth Pay Commission. The agitation, which commenced on November 2, will end on November 27.Two held for sewer worker's deathA labour contractor and a foreman have been arrested and charged with negligence following the death of a worker, who drowned in a 30-foot-deep sewerage pipe at Goregaon (E) on Friday evening.Venugopal Govindswamy Nadiar (50) was working at a site at Gokuldham along with nearly 30 co-workers. He was cleaning the sewerage lines and laying new pipes. When Nadiar failed to emerge from the sewerage pipe, his worried colleagues informed the authorities. The fire brigade finally fished out his body, which was taken to Bhagwati Hospital. He was declared dead before admission, senior inspector of Dindoshi police station KA Gawde said.be followed by a multi-lingual poetic symposium and a NirankariPradarshini (exhibition).
