Army Postal Service Celebrates 44th Anniversary

Army Postal Service Corps (APS), the lifeline for delivery of letters to the armed and paramilitary forces, today celebrated its 44th anniversary at Udhampur-based Northern Command, with GOC-in-Chief Lt Gen D S Hooda lauding it for proving its mettle during war and peace.
The General Officer Commanding-in-chief Hooda said APS has provided efficient postal services in the Northern Command zone and its spirit is reflected in its motto of 'Mail Milab'.
The corps has a record of outstanding contribution in all operations and has proved its mettle both in times of war and peace, he said.
"Over the past years, APS has made rapid strides in technological advancements thereby leading to a much more efficient system of communication. Army post offices in the Northern Command have been provided with multipurpose counter machines," Hooda said.
"To convert Field Post Offices into troops-friendly establishments, computers and peripherals have been incorporated and modernisation of offices has been undertaken, giving a facelift to the Field Post Offices (FPOs)," he said.
Many FPOs are also working as eMO/ePost Centres to transmit money orders and letters of troops through the internet which has resulted in reduction in time taken in delivery and remittance of money, he said.
He said that although the APS came into existence as a separate Corps on March 1, 1972, the FPO is more than 150-year-old.
The first FPO was raised in 1856 initially as a war-time organisation accompanying the Indian Expeditionary Force abroad, thereafter in Jammu and Kashmir operation of 1947-48, the organisation of FPOs was initially affiliated to Army Service Corps and APS personnel were finally declared combatants in 1950.
On July 1, 1969 the collection, transport and delivery of official mail (SDS) was entrusted to APS.
APS, the youngest Corps, is an integral part of the Indian Army and functions as an extension of Department of Posts (Ministry of Communication and IT) to meet specific needs of the armed forces, Border Road Organisation and para military forces.
PTI

Law Commission working on Sedition Law amendments: Rajnath

Just a day after High Court rapped Delhi Police and questioned the force whether it knows what "sedition" means, Home Minister Rajnath Singh informed Lok Sabha on Tuesday that the government is reviewing the sedition law. Rajnath informed the House that the Law Commission is looking into making amendments to the law.
However, the recommendations were not made in connection with the current row over the sedition case against arrested Jawaharlal Nehru University students Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya. Lok Sabha MP MD Rajesh had raised a question whether the government had taken serious note of allegations of widespread abuse and arbitrary use of sedition law by police across the country. In reply to the same, Minister of State for Home Affairs Haribhai Parthibhai Chaudhary said the Ministry of Law and Justice had asked the Law Commission to study the sedition law and IPC, and in 2014 they had informed about certain focus areas.
While the government quoted the findings of the report of 2014, no current data was shared in connection with the recent sedition charges against the JNU students. A jury formed by the Supreme Court is reviewing whether the law needs to be amended. The focus area is on the words stated in the law "act against the state". The sedition law as interpreted by Supreme Court is that mere sloganeering is not enough to attract the charge of sedition and that there needs to be an indication of incitement of violence. The review thus is to see if the wording of the law needs to be amended.
Section 124-A of the Constitution which is the Sedition Law states, "Whoever, by words, either spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or otherwise, brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards. 2[*] the Government established by law in 3[India], 4[* * *] shall be punished with 5[imprisonment for life], to which fine may be added, or with imprisonment which may extend to three years, to which fine may be added, or with fine.

Kolkata Police Constable shoots himself inside Traffic Kiosk

A police constable has shot himself inside a traffic kiosk at Shyambazar five points crossing in North Kolkata on Tuesday morning.
According to police, Chadu Mandi was a constable of Shyampukur police station.  He was deployed at Shyambazar traffic kiosk since last night. But around 5 in the morning, he used his service revolver to shot himself.  Chadu sent to the RG kar medical hospital immediately but doctor declared dead. Police also recovered suicide note.