The proposed ban on import of sandstone by the US has upset mine owners as well as exporters in Kota and Jaipur and they are seeking intervention by the Central Government.

JAIPUR: The Centre will shortly release Rs.259 crore for two ambitious projects for conservation and pollution control in the world-famous Pichola lake of Udaipur and Chambal river of Kota district in Rajasthan under the National Lake Conservation Project (NLCP).

22 kids admitted to prestigious private schools Home-based education provided to 102 children An inclusive education programme launched for mentally-challenged children under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan in Kota district of Rajasthan three years ago has started showing positive results by creating a favourable atmosphere, inculcating confidence among the children and motivating the parents to educate such children.

The ever-increasing security threat to Indian nuclear establishments could lead to almost all of them being declared no-fly zones to avoid the possibility of any plane crashing into them in a repeat of the 9/11 attack. National security adviser M K Narayanan is learnt to have written to the Prime Minister's Office to consider a no-fly zone status for these sensitive establishments, a copy of which was sent to the aviation ministry for technical evaluation recently.

The public sector Jaipur Vidyut Vitaran Nigam has formulated an ambitious plan for supply of electricity to 693 villages and 1,296 hamlets in seven districts of Jaipur, Bharatpur and Kota divisions this year with an expenditure of Rs.197.57 crore. The Chairman and Managing Director of Jaipur discom, R.G. Gupta, said here on Thursday that the villages to be electrified during 2008-09 would include 96 where no power transmission lines presently exist. Over 4 lakh families, including 2.96 lakh living below poverty line (BPL), inhabit these villages.

A team of foreign experts has praised the performance of Kota Super Thermal Power Station in Rajasthan after studying its plant load factor, environment protection, modernisation and utilisation of fuel. The 75-member team, constituted under the Asia-Pacific Partnership, observed the plant over the weekend from the perspective of "clean functioning' and described its performance as remarkable.

Construction work was stopped at a biomedical waste incineration facility in Rajasthan's Kota district following opposition from local people. Construction of the plant started in March 2007 without