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Postal officials in courier business?

If Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s Rajya Sabha member from Madhya Pradesh Prabhat Jha is to be believed, many postal officials are running their own courier services on benami (fictitious) names.

Jha said the postal department was being bled to death by 27 percent officials 'running courier companies in benami names', but he did not clarify in parliament where he got the figure from.

Referring to postal services, journalist-cum-upper house member Chandan Mitra voiced concern that the norm of servicing a population of 3,000 people per post office was being violated.

Quoting official figures, Mitra said right now each post office on an average catered to a population of more than 7,000.

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Medha meets Meira on right to education

Speaker Meira Kumar had an unusual visitor at her office Thursday before the house proceedings began for the day.

Firebrand rights activist Medha Patkar was going towards the speaker's office when IANS caught up with her.

The Narmada Bachao Andolan leader told IANS: 'I have some concerns over the Right to Education Bill (that was passed in the Rajya Sabha last week). And so I am meeting the speaker with a note on the concerns.'

In her hurry to meet Meira Kumar, she did not reveal her concerns though.