• Third front a `mirage`, no body should chase it: Congress
• CBI accuses Nanda of foreign remittance fraud
• Centre moots bill to create special fund for afforestation

Third front a `mirage`, no body should chase it: Congress

Reacting to CPI-M's plans of forging a third front, the Congress on Sunday said such a formation has always been a "mirage" and no body should chase it.

"No secular alliance can be possible without the Congress," party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi said when asked to comment on CPI(M)'s statement that it will not enter into any alliance or forge an united front with the Congress in future.

"Since we are not astrologers we have to talk about the present. In future also no secular alliance can be possible without the congress. The so-called third front has always been a mirage which no body should chase," he said.

He added that "we have been, we are and we continue to be in a mutually supportive role in the central government of the UPA with outside Left support."

Releasing the draft political resolution for the ensuing 19th party congress of the CPI-M, its general secretary Prakash Karat gave worrying signals for the ruling UPA as he spelt out plans to forge a "long-term" third alternative to the BJP and the Congress.

CBI accuses Nanda of foreign remittance fraud

The problems for arms dealer and son of former Naval Chief Admiral S M Nanda, Suresh Nanda, appear to be far from over with the CBI alleging he had claimed to be a British national for one of his overseas companies and had received foreign remittance to the tune of Rs 400 crore for purchase of properties in India.

The CBI has alleged that Nanda, whose case for release of passport is to come up for hearing in Supreme Court tomorrow, had received an amount Rs 543.33 crore from various sources abroad into his bank accounts during the period of 1995-2001.

The CBI probe into Nanda`s dealings gathered momentum after the Interpol told the agency that Rs 400 crore was deposited in Nanda`s bank account after the Barak Missile deal was signed between the Defence Ministry and an Israeli firm.

The CBI, according to the sources, alleges that Nandas may have purchased a five-star hotel in the national capital with kickback money he allegedly received for brokering a Rs 1,100 crore deal between an Israeli company and India.

The money may also have been allegedly used to purchase a hotel in Mumbai and land for Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Maharashtra, sources said.

The CBI alleged that Nanda had shown himself as a British national in Media-Asia Europe firm in the UK. Nanda was not available for his comments on the charges though in a television interview yesterday, he has denied any such links.

Centre moots bill to create special fund for afforestation

Intending to maintain a rational balance between conservation and development, the Centre would soon bring in a bill to create a special authority for afforestation of forest land diverted for non-forestry use.

A separate legislation to create compensatory afforestation fund management and planning authority (CAMPA) is in the offing which shall utilise an amount of about Rs 5,000 crore for undertaking massive afforestation of the degraded forest land of the country, official sources said.

The afforestation would be done through the 'Green India' programme which envisages afforestation of upto six million hectares of degraded forest land in 10 years.The CAMPA would also allocate funds for wildlife protection and management as well as provide funds for activities approved by the national wildlife board.

It will table in Parliament a report each year on the progress of the green India programme, mobilise citizen support as well as enlist assistance from financial institutions for afforestation, the sources said.Efforts would also be made to make CAMPA an eligible candidate for international assistance under the climate change agenda.

Five per cent of funds would be earmarked for communication, social mobilisation, monitoring and evaluation and independent oversight.Chaired by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, the CAMPA will consist of a governing body with ministers of related developments and officials as members. The member secretary shall be the CEO.

The governing body shall be supported and serviced by an executive body, an independent monitoring group and an administrative support mechanism."The creation of the special fund would be effective in transparent functioning of the authority for the management of afforestation funds," the sources said.

The decision to bring in the legislation comes in the backdrop of the Supreme Court directions for creation of a compulsory afforestation fund for the purpose of afforestation of degraded forest land."Originally a proposal was circulated to create the CAMPA through executive notification, but following objections raised by the ministry of law and justice a decision was made to bring in a legislation," the sources said.

The proposal has been circulated to other ministries, including the ministries of Panchayati Raj and Rural Development. The Ministry of Finance had already given its approval to the project.