Nepal tourists' troubles - Broken phone link and profit-making

Second quake delays flight backhome for many Gujaratis stuck in Nepal; opportunistic local shopkeepers arecharging exorbitant price for eatables

There is no light, food or wa ter...the hotel has been de stroyed in the earthquake. We are staying in bus. But don't worry, we will be fine.“ This is the message Roshni Tejas Thakkar received from her family members who are stranded in Nepal after the tragedy struck the Himalayan country.Six of her family members, along with 65 other tourists, went to Kathmandu on a pilgrimage on April 17. It turned into a nightmare after the tremblor destroyed all communication links and basic facilities.

Ahmedabad delivers highest number of home births

Five-yeardata shows more than 5,000 children are born every year at home in Ahmedabaddistrict which is higher than less-developed or tribal districts like ChhotaUdepur, Valsad, Mehsana, Sabarkantha or Porbandar
Despite having the latest technology and the highest num ber of hospitals in the state, Ahmedabad has registered the highest number of baby deliveries outside hospitals. Every year, on an average, 5,000 deliveries are made either at home or in an ambulance. Shockingly, the number of such deliveries is higher in Ahmedabad district than in under-developed or tribal districts like Chhota Udepur, Valsad, Mehsana, Sabarkantha, Porbandar and Navsari.

Social dept in hot water over transfer of kids

Social Department's move to shift 28 children under state's protection from Khanpur Protection Home without proper arrangements attracts criticism from child rights activists

The Social Justice and Empowerment Department has been left red-faced after its attempt to right a wrong backfired. Taking into account last month's CAG report which pointed out several irregularities in the child protection services, the department ordered the Khanpur Observation Home to shift 28 children, in need of protection, to another centre. The idea was to separate these children from those who have a criminal record or past. However, the hasti ly taken decision has landed the department in hot water after the protection home failed to find a safe place for the 28 children to stay.

CUT'TING DISREGARD

State govt under Modi ignored Centre's 2009 advisory to set up rape crisis centres in each district. Now Modi-led Centre plans to cut down RCCs to one in each state

Rape cases instate spike by over 70 pcin 5 years, yet Centre shows…

Two rapes occur every hour in India, reveals National Crime Records Bureau data. Statistics also show an 837% increase in rape cases in the country the last five decades. In Gujarat, which is considered a safe haven for women, rape cases have spiked by 70 per cent over past five years.

PAIN IN THE NECK

Cap of a cold drink bottle worthRs 10 costs a man Rs 2 lakh Dhaval Patani has trouble chewing food, so he oftenswallows it. One day he gulped down the cap unknowingly and carried it in histhroat for 9 months. Surgeons took 5 hours to remove it

Dhaval Patani from Kutch reeled from chest and back pain for 15 days. This forced him to approach a doctor who asked him to take an x-ray image.

The 44-year-old businessman got the shock of his life when it showed cap of a cold drink bottle embedded in the side wall of this food pipe.

Banks lead list of tax-payers

Axis bank tops chart for sixth year;telecom, infra and pharma sectors follow suit. Gujarat is growing and so is tax collection in the state. The size of the bag has increased by 21.89 per cent over last year's collec tion. And this time again, banking sector leads the tax payers' list with Axis Bank topping the chart for the sixth consecutive year. It is followed by Vodafone, Adani Port and SEZ, Gujarat Mineral Developmental Corporation, Sun Pharma and Gujarat Gas.

GUJ MISSES TAX TARGET BY 4K CR

Eleven of the top 18 taxdefaulters in the country are from state. Huge tax-to-GDP collection gap led toshortfall, say experts

Gujarat seems to be following Prime Minister Narendra Modi blindly. People from the state seem to have latched on to his idea that the state does not pass on any tax to the Centre and, in turn, does not seek any aid for it. Gujaratis seem to have taken his statement a bit seri ously. This year, they have paid less taxes.

With the Centre likely to miss the revised target of direct tax collection by around Rs 40,000 crore, Gujarat has emerged as one of the worst performing states with its direct tax collections falling short of meeting the target by more than Rs 4,000 crore.