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H A R Y A N A |  |
 Tuesday, October 6, 1998 |
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Call to implement |
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 DCs, SPs to discuss law & order today ROHTAK, Oct 5 — The Chief Minister, Mr Bansi Lal, has convened a meeting of the Deputy Commissioners and Superintendents of Police tomorrow at Chandigarh to review the law and order situation in the state. |
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Govt denies probe into DPSS
functioning |
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Call to implement Eradi panel
report FATEHABAD, Oct 5 — The Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee Vice-President, Dr K.V. Singh, has asked the central government to implement the interim report of the Eradi Commission regarding distribution of river waters. Dr Singh who is in charge of the party affairs in this district was here to launch membership drive of the party. Addressing mediapersons here today, he said water from the Ravi and the Beas was lifeline for the people of this state but regretted that the central as well as the state government had been adopting an indifferent attitude towards this. Dr Singh said the apathy of the central government could be judged from the fact that the Vajpayee government had already settled the Cauvery waters dispute, but it was sitting over the inter-state water dispute concerning Haryana. The Congress leader alleged that the intentions of the central government regarding Haryana's interests were not clear. Supporting his charge, Dr K.V. Singh asked, when the Cauvery waters dispute, which involved Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry and Kerala, none of which had the BJP of its allies in power, could be resolved, why could the interim report of the Eradi Tribunal not be implemented, though it involved Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Delhi and Himachal Pradesh, all having either the BJP or its allies in power. He added had the BJP been fair to the interests of Haryana, it could have persuaded its allies to agree to the terms of the report. But the BJP, he alleged, was working under the pressure of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD). Making a dig at SAD, the Congress leader said on the one hand the Akalis paid homage to late Sant Harchand Singh Longowal, on the other they rejected the Rajiv-Longowal accord. He said if the Akalis really had any regards for the late Sant, they should honour the commitments made by him. Dr Singh lashed at the state government alleging that it had totally failed on all fronts. He said the law and order situation in the state was on the verge of collapse. He said crime rate in Jhajjar, Sonepat, Karnal and Rohtak districts of the state had assumed alarming proportions. Earlier, Dr Singh headed a meeting of the D.C.C., which demanded, through a resolution a special girdawari of the crops in view of the recent heavy rains and a compensation of Rs 5,000 per acre for the farmers whose crops had been damaged. It also demanded the waiver of power bills and postponement of the instalments of all loans to agricultural sector for one year. The D.C.C. also demanded a white paper on the reported statement of the Chief Minister regarding digging up a new drain from Hisar to Ghaggar for the water-logged areas.
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Bansi Lal rules out power
privatisation HISAR, Oct 5 — The Chief Minister, Mr Bansi Lal, today ruled out the privatisation of power in the state and said that he was simply planning to restructure the Haryana State Electricity Board and not privatising it. Addressing a public meeting near here today, the Chief Minister accused the opposition leaders of misleading the people by saying that the government was privatising power in the state. He said, although private companies would be invited to contribute to the power sector, the control of generation distribution and supply would rest with the government. Reiterating his promise of providing uninterrupted power supply to the people, the Chief Minister said, it would be done before the 1999. He sought to clarify his government's position on bringing reforms in the power sector, saying the reforms were being initiated for better distribution and were for the betterment of the people. The Chief Minister revealed that 50 per cent stakes would be of the Haryana Government and for the remaining 50 per cent the government would invite global tenders. The agreement would, however, be on experimental basis from three to five years. "Any company that fulfils our requirements will get extension and these which do not, will have to go," he added. Mr Bansi Lal, had a dig at the employees of the HSEB. He accused them of holding the general public for ransom and trying to defame him. He charged the HSEB employees of deliberately cutting the supply of power during peak hours to put the general public in trouble and defame, the government. "But be sure I will set them right," he asserted. The Chief Minister clarified that it was not possible for his government to provide water and power free of cost to people in the state. He said, the situation in Punjab was different. The Punjab Government was utilising water and power which was supposed to be given to Haryana. Moreover, the subsidy provided by the Punjab Government on the supply of free electricity to the farmers, according to Mr Bansi Lal, did not amount to more than Rs 150 crore, while in Haryana the figure was more than Rs 700 crore. Mr Bansi Lal spoke at length on the reforms in the power sector. Referring to the agriculture sector, the Chief Minster pointed out that after he assumed power seven lakh acres of extra land had been brought under regular irrigation. Moreover, he said, Haryana Agricultural University was working round the clock for providing assistance and guidance to the farmers to meet various challenges. Mr Bansi Lal criticised Mr Om Prakash Chautala and Mr Bhajan Lal, accusing them of being in league to oust him. He said, both these leaders were trying to mislead the people by making false promises.
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DCs, SPs to discuss law & order
today ROHTAK, Oct 5 — The Chief Minister, Mr Bansi Lal, has convened a meeting of the Deputy Commissioners and Superintendents of Police tomorrow at Chandigarh to review the law and order situation in the state and the damage caused to the crops due to unseasonal rain. Mr Bansi Lal, who appeared perturbed over the worsening law and order situation, particularly in Rohtak and Jhajjar districts, had even gone to the extent of warning the police officials to either control the crime graph or go. The Superintendents of Police of nearly half a dozen districts were also transferred to convey the message that he did not approve of the prevailing situation. During the past over a month, Mr Bansi Lal has extensively toured the entire state with the twin purpose of streamlining the administration and countering the opposition propaganda following the privatisation of the state electricity board. In the process he is activating the HVP rank and file so that they were not caught unawares in the event of a snap poll to the Lok Sabha that appear certain with the prevalent fluid political situation at the Centre. The extensive touring and warning to the police appear to have brought in the desired change in the attitude of the police administration. No major crime has been reported from Rohtak and Jhajjar districts in the past fortnight. In Rohtak, the police was quick in solving the two murders and arresting the suspects within hours after the incident. Both the persons, who made unsuccessful attempt to kidnap two girls on Sunday were nabbed without any delay. One of the suspect is reportedly involved in a murder case also. The Superintendent of Police, Mr P.K. Aggarwal, told TNS that the kidnappers of the grandson of the Urban Development Minister, Mr Sri Kishan Dass, had been identified. Police parties had been despatched to various places to raid the possible hideouts of the kidnappers. Barring the kidnapping of petrol pump dealer, Mr Sant Lal, no major crime has been reported from Jhajjar district as well, Mr Sant Lal was kidnapped from near a temple on the Jhajjar Sampla road on Thursday last presumably for ransom. The Deputy Commissioner, Jhajjar, Mr Arun Kumar, said that kidnappers have been identified and the police had also raided their suspected hideouts. According to police sources, the kidnappers were hardened criminals. One of the members of the gang, a dismissed constable from the Delhi police, has reportedly been nabbed but the police has so far not been able to extract information from him. The Rohtak and Jhajjar police have set up permanent barriers on the national and state highways so as to eliminate chances of crime. These measures have been taken following large-scale incidents of snatching of cars and two-wheelers on these roads.
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Ban on
varsity
appointments may go ROHTAK, Oct 5 — The Haryana Government is planning to lift blanket ban imposed on appointments in Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak, Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra and Guru Jambheshwar University Hisar. The Education Minister, Prof Ram Bilas Sharma, told TNS here today that the government did not want the students to suffer due to the shortage of the teaching staff. He said the government had imposed a ban on the appointments in all universities except HAU, Hisar, in view of complaints of irregularities in the selection process in GJU. The Haryana Government had in a fax message on August 12, said that it had been observed that the universities had made appointments without assessing the work load. In certain cases the university had not adhered to the qualification norms laid down by the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the All-India Council of Technical Education (AICTE). The orders further slated that in case the selection had been made, the appointment letters should not be issued. As many as 65 posts of teacher and 89 posts of non-teaching employee lying vacant in GJU, Hisar. The university authorities had issued appointment letters to 22 teachers after the appointments were approved by the executive council one teacher had joined duty by the time the orders reached the university. The situation is quite different in M.D. University. The selection committees had recommended the names of the candidates selected in various departments. The Vice-Chancellor of M.D. University, Lt-Gen O.P. Kaushik (retd) said 11 posts of professor, 25 posts of reader an 39 posts of lecturer were lying vacant in the university. This was hampering the teaching and research work in the university. The total number of vacancies which existed when he took over was 65. He had made only 15 appointments during his one-and-a-half-year tenure. A senior political leader has accused the Vice-Chancellor of encouraging casteism by appointing Brahmins in the university. A probe revealed that out of the 15 appointments made by Lt-Gen. O.P. Kaushik since February 2, 1997, five had gone to Jats, four to Brahmins, six to Punjabis and one to Yadav. Similarly, during his tenure 65 posts of non-teaching employees had been filled which included 23 Jats. 13 Brahmins, five Punjabis, nine Rajputs, eight SC/BC and seven others. General Kaushik refused to comment on the allegation.
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Govt denies probe into DPSS
functioning GURGAON, Oct 5 — The Commissioner, Gurgaon division, Dr Prasanna Kumar, has denied the Haryana Government has instituted a high-level probe into the affairs of the schools run by the Delhi Public School Society in the Mewat area. In a press note, Dr Prasanna said after the DPSS took over the management of three schools, there had been substantial quality improvement in these schools. The news reports were based on certain complaints, allegedly written by some parents. These complaints had been looked into and it had been established these were "pseudonymous complaints, obviously initiated by certain vested interests who may have some personal grievance against the management", he added. According to the Commissioner, there is absolutely no truth in the allegations. "When their efforts to create hurdles in the smooth functioning of the schools failed, these elements resorted to character assassination", he asserted. So far, no complaints had been received by the administration or the Mewat Development Agency from any parent, he said. The Commissioner further said the Haryana Government had never constituted a committee to probe into the alleged complaints. On the other hand, a committee was constituted under the chairmanship of the Education Minister to hold discussions with the DPS representatives to work out the funding requirements of the schools. The committee had a fruitful meeting with the DPS representatives and all members of the committee were fully satisfied with the improvement in quality brought about by the DPSS. The committee members complimented the DPSS for their efforts to improve the standard of education in the backward Mewat area and conveyed their gratitude to the society management, he added. He asserted the administration fully supported the endeavours of the DPSS and would like to continue the present arrangement in the best interests of Mewat.
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Tributes paid to Balmiki SIRSA, Oct 5 — Balmiki Jayanti was celebrated here with great enthusiasm by followers of the Maharshi. A very attractive and colourful procession with jhankis was taken out in the city. Satsang and kirtan were organised at the Balmiki temple here today. Reports of celebration of Balmiki Jayanti were also received from Dahwali, Kalanwali, Ellenabad and Rania towns of this district. SHAHBAD: Balmiki Jayanti was celebrated here today with great enthusiasm. The Deputy Commissioner, Mr T.V.S.H. Parsad, paid glowing tributes to Balmiki, the first poet of the world, at a largely attended function in the local Balmiki mandir. The Deputy Commissioner accepted the demand of the local Balmiki leaders and announced the school building would be built in the colony expeditiously. Earlier, the DC performed puja in the Balmiki temple. KALKA: The birth anniversary of Maharshi Balmiki was celebrated with great enthusiasm. The main function was held at the Railway Balmiki mandir where Mr Chander Mohan, MLA from this constituency, was the chief guest. The function was attended by persons belonging to all sections of society. Mr Chander Mohan while speaking on this occasion asked the people to follow the path shown by Maharshi Balmiki. Mrs Mohini Nanda, president of the Municipal committee and Mr Vijay Bansal, president of the legal cell of the District Congress Committee were also present. YAMUNANAGAR: "Balmiki adhikar rally" will be organised on October 11 in Delhi by the Balmiki Reservation Sangharsh Samiti. Uttar Pradesh Cooperative Minister Ram Chander Balmiki while talking to news persons here yesterday said the Balmiki Community was being exploited and no benefits were being given to it. He said in Punjab only 50 per cent and in Haryana 40 per cent reservation benefits are given but in Uttar Pradesh and other states nothing has been given, resulting in frustration among the Balmikis. He said the rally would be addressed by BJP president Khushubhai Thakre, Information and Broadcasting Minister Sushma Swaraj and Delhi Chief Minister Sahib Singh Verma.
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Most
small units remain closed SONEPAT: The fast growing industrial city and district headquarters has been in the headlines since 1951 when Atlas Cycles, a largest bicycle manufacturing concern in the country came up. Despite publicity blitzkreig by the successive governments in the state, the district remains neglected. On paper there are large-scale industries, small industries and artisan-based cottage handicrafts industries. In real life, people, a majority of whom are landless and debt-ridden, live in penury, looking at the big promises being made by the politicians of the area to them. As one drives in the interiors, one sees a large number of signboards, proclaiming the existence of hundreds of small units but most of them are abandoned and remain closed permanently. The first reason given is that unscrupulous businessmen took bank loans and set up a minimum infrastructure to avail of further loans for working capital and then decided to sit back. The second is because the persons who really wanted to run their units could not get working capital in time or as much as they needed. According to official sources, around 88 units were set up in this district in 1995-96 and 100 in 1997-98. In 1998-99, 100 units were set up in the district by the end of June 30. Official sources also revealed that as many as 91 units are in working condition whereas nine units had been closed down on some pretext or the other. Of these four units had been shut due to lack of marketing and finances whereas two others on low production and yet another as a result of labour trouble. The poor civic conditions and infrastructural facilities in the industrial belt are not only retarding Sonepat's industrial growth but also tarnishing the image of Indian industry abroad, according to certain entrepreneurs. Many entrepreneurs wonder how any foreign investor could be inspired to come to this primary industrial area. Others complain that the authorities of the Industries department had been indifferent towards them and harassing them on one pretext or the other for "minting money". The single-window system introduced by the state government had utterly failed, they alleged. Some others complained that not only high government officers of the Industries department but also local officials of the department had never thought of visiting the industrial belt to know the difficulties and the problems. * * * Periodic artificial shortage, created by the diversion of ration items particularly levy sugar, wheat and kerosene to the black market, lead to harassment of the masses in the city and elsewhere in the district. It is common knowledge that whenever the prices of these items go up in the open market, fair price shop dealers divert the goods for sale in black and rake in huge profits in connivance with the officials of the Food and Supplies department. The state government has not been able to evolve any formidable system which could ensure that the rationed items reach the people for whom it is meant. According to sources, the problem plaguing the public distribution system of this district is the massive number of bogus ration cards that are in circulation, especially with the depot-holders. The authorities concerned had utterly failed to detect them so far. And yet, the authorities go on issuing new ration cards. The beneficiaries of the bogus cards are the ration shop holders who sell in open market the quantity of foodgrains, levy sugar and the kerosene which is not drawn. Thanks to nexus between
unscrupulous ration shop owners and corrupt officials,
the massive racket in Sonepat's PDS is flourishing while
the poor masses keep making endless trips to the ration
shops to be turned away often on one pretext or the
other. Many ration card holders, in various localities alleged that they were not getting their quota of levy sugar and kerosene as dealers turned them away on the plea that they had not received sufficient stocks from the government. From time to time levy sugar also disappears from the ration shops as there is a big difference between its rationed price and the open market price. Often the poor are not in a position to demand their due rations from powerful shop owners who browbeat them into accepting whatever they give under the excuse of inadequate supply from the government. * * * Residents of Sonepat are spending sleepless nights. Mosquitoes are largely responsible for this state of affairs. While the administration reiterates its resolve to drive away the mosquito menace at frequent meetings, residents from various colonies of the city say mosquitoes are alive. There are complaints of water not being fit for drinking, uninformed power cuts and heaps of garbage. And the residents say the authorities are becoming unresponsive to individual or collective representations or even to the media. * * * The Government of Haryana had been indifferent to the demand of the farmers of this area relating to the shifting of the office of the Superintending Engineer (WJC) Feeder, GC Circle, Delhi, and other allied offices from Delhi to Sonepat. Many representatives of various farmers organisations have fallen on deaf ears. They pointed out that most of the villages in Sonepat district were linked with these offices and farmers had to visit them frequently for petty works. Many a time officers were not available in offices and they had to return without the work being done. Farmers said their organisations were planning to launch an agitation if these offices were not shifted to Sonepat.
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DCC demands action against
‘errant’ cops KURUKSHETRA, Oct 5 — Members of the Kurukshetra District Congress Committee led by president Pawan Garg, sat on dharna in front of the Ladwa police station, 12 km from here, today, in protest against the Niwarsi incident. A memorandum addressed to the Governor of Haryana, Mr Mahabir Prasad, was faxed to the Deputy Commissioner here today. Drawing the attention of the Governor to the incident, the committee, in the memorandum, said Haryana police employees not hailing from this area went to Niwarsi village in a Gypsy on the night of September 26 and 27 with the intention to commit a crime. But the alertness of the villagers worked as a deterrent. On this occasion, villagers nabbed Constable Inderjeet and handed him over to the police alongwith the Gypsy. In the memorandum, it has been alleged the district police has miserably failed to trace the other three culprits involved in the incident and this, consequently, has led to tension and fear in the area. It has also been alleged the district police intends to put a lid on this case. The District Congress Committee has urged the Governor to intervene and issue the orders for the dismissal of the state government, transfer of the Superintendent of Police, Kurukshetra, honour to be bestowed on villagers who nabbed and seized the constable and immediate arrest of the rest of the three culprits. Tension had gripped Niwarsi village when, according to the villagers police employees forcibly entered the village houses and misbehaved with the women. The villagers feel there was more than one police employee involved in the incident. The police claims that only one constable, Inderjeet, was involved in the episode. When contacted, the
district police chief, Mr Y.P. Singhal, said,
"during the inquiry which is in progress it has been
proved that only one person Constable Inderjeet, went to
the village under the influence of liquor and strictest
possible action has been taken against him, including
suspension, arrest and departmental action. |
Leakage of question paper denied CHANDIGARH, Oct 5 — A spokesman of the Haryana Education Department said here today that an enquiry into reports of leakage of question paper had shown that there was no leakage. He denied that there had been any leakage of the question paper of the entrance test for admission to the diploma in Education course held on October 4. He said the news about the leakage of the paper, which appeared in a section of the press, was "misleading, false and baseless." Referring to the press release issued by the Deputy Commissioner, Jhajjar, he said before the commencement of the examination, a local correspondent had given a hand-written copy of a question paper with allegations that the question paper had been leaked out. He said the Deputy
Commissioners of Jhajjar and Rohtak immediately initiated
an enquiry with the help of other officers of the
district and the Education Department. The two Deputy
Commissioners, called for the real question paper after
the commencement of the examination and tallied it with
the hand-written paper in the presence of the said
correspondent. The hand-written paper was totally
different from the real one and these was nothing common,
he claimed. |
Power engineers plan stir CHANDIGARH, Oct 5 — The Northern India Power Engineers Federation (NIPEF) has decided to organise a week-long dharna from October 7 to 13 at the Housing Board Chowk against the dismissal of HSEB engineers and "blind privatisation of the power sector" in Haryana. To start with PSEB engineers along with BBMB engineers will stage a dharna on the first day to be followed by engineers from the PSEB, RSEB, Delhi, Himachal and J&K. While on the other hand,
the Haryana Government claimed that there would not be
any retrenchment due to the reform process, the dismissal
of two office-bearers of the HSEB Engineers Association
exactly one week before the HSEB was restructured into
three corporations was undoubtedly a move to terrorise
the employees of the HSEB so that there was no dissent,
the Federation said. Sanghi takes over CHANDIGARH, Oct 5 —
Mr A.K. Sanghi today joined as Area Manager (North) in
the Chandigarh Telcom District relieving Mr Naresh Kumar
of the charge. Mr Sanghi will be available at SCO 56-57
third floor Sector 17-D. |
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