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| Tuesday,
July 17, 2001, Chandigarh, India   
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Bansi has no hopes from
summit Farmers complain of power
cuts Powermen stage demonstrations Computer network plan for
police Issue I-cards to mine
workers: Agnivesh |
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Rainwater floods several areas of
Ambala
Withdrawal of case against ex-Deputy Speaker
sought Absent peon keeps minister waiting HR staff to join national-level stir Statewide bandh by Cong soon:
Hooda Constable killed in mishap Teachers hold protest march Hike in water charges likely Space quiz contest on July 21
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Bansi has no hopes from
summit Hisar, July 16 Talking to newspersons here yesterday he said the major stumbling block in the talks was the attitude of the Pakistan President. He said General Musharraf had the habit of going back in his utterances every now and then and, therefore anything he said could not be taken seriously. He said this had been proved true over the past two years and India alone was not the sufferer. Even the USA had described the General as unstable. Mr Bansi Lal said having sounded positive over the past few weeks, the Pakistan President suddenly did an about turn on his stand and made statements contradictory to his earlier stand. The latest proof of this was his stand on the Simla Agreement and the Lahore Declaration which he first rejected and then denied having made any such remarks. He said in view of this he did not expect the Agra summit to usher in lasting peace in the subcontinent. Talking of Haryana he criticised the Chautala government’s power policy saying the Chief Minister was burdening the people of the state with loans and debts which in the long run would hamper development. He said the recent decision to raise Rs 1,200 crore by way of bonds was unwise. He said only he could solve the state’s perennial power problem because he had the right blueprint. He said it had always been left to him to bring the power policy back on rails after his predecessors had made a mess of it. When he came to power in 1996, he said, he had cleared the mess created by the Bhajan Lal government which left the State Power Board in a financial mess. Barely had he set the ball rolling again when his government fell, otherwise Haryana would have been self-sufficient in power by now. He promised to repeat the exercise again once he came to power. The HVP leader said the people of Haryana had realised their mistake of saddling Mr Chautala and their frustration was beginning to show. Every section of society, he said, was fed up with the rampaging corruption and inefficiency. Mr Bansi Lal said the reservation system had not benefited the most deserving section of society — the backward classes. He said while the system did benefit the other categories, the BCs could not benefit from it for several reasons. He said he was in favour of extending the benefit of reservation to all sections of society on economic basis. This, he said, would take care of the interests of society as a whole. |
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Farmers complain of power
cuts Sonepat, July 16 Sarpanches and panches of the area told mediapersons here today that farmers had been getting only three to four hours of power supply during the day. However, during the night, most of the villages had to go without power, sometimes the whole night. Farmers have installed diesel pumping sets but the increasing cost of diesel is becoming unbearable for the farmers. The progressive farmers, nonetheless raise three crops a year from the land. The average yield of wheat in a village this year has increased considerably. The farmers said the yield could be further increased if the power supply was ensured round the clock. Meanwhile, the delay in the monsoon and shortage of electricity and canal water have adversely affected the transplanted paddy crop in this district. The UHBVN has given an assurance that the tubewells in the rural areas would be supplied power for 10 to 12 hours daily. The farmers, however, complain of frequent breakdowns, trippings and unscheduled power cuts. Similarly, the supply of water through canals has also not been regular particularly in the villages falling under the jurisdiction of Rai Water Service Division. Notwithstanding the high cost of operating a diesel pump, a large number of farmers are using these pumps to irrigate their fields in view of the erratic power supply. According to some farmers, it has become necessary for every paddy grower to maintain a diesel pump as a standby during the kharif season. This has added to their expenses. Farmers all over the district are greatly perturbed at the delay in monsoon. They point out that it was only the paddy crop which gives comparatively good returns and this year they are likely to lose even that. Meanwhile, representatives of various farmers organisations today expressed concern over the erratic supply or power and canal water and urged the Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, to take action against the officials found responsible for the power and canal water shortage in the district. |
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Powermen stage demonstrations Faridabad, July 16 According to the district unit of the union, its members took part in the demonstrations staged at Palwal, Ballabhgarh NIT, old Faridabad and outside thermal unit today. They also wore black badges. Mr Sohanpal Rawat, state chairman of the union, said the transfers of the 10 power union leaders was unjust, the motive behind these being to harass them and their families. He alleged that the transfers were based on false information and propaganda by some persons who were against unity among the employees. He said the union was working hard to make the proposed nationwide strike of government employees on July 25, a success. He said the strike had been called to oppose the policies of privatisation and anti-employees policies of the Union Government. |
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Computer network plan for
police Chandigarh, July 16 The Director-General of Police, Mr M.S. Malik, said the total cost of the project would be Rs 6 crore. The state government would provide Rs 3 crore for it with an equal amount coming from the Union Government under a modernisation scheme. he said the new computer system would maintain a data base of crime and criminals in the state to enable the district police to exchange information on stolen vehicles, missing persons and proclaimed offenders instantly. This would also ensure better coordination among various units of the state police to check crime. Besides crime analysis, the communication network would help the state police in matters like the budget, inventory control and movement of personnel in grave law and order situations. He said subsequently the computer network would be linked to the wireless network of the state police. The network would also be linked to POL-NET to exchange information on crime and criminals with other states and the National Crime Record Bureau, he added. |
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Issue I-cards to mine
workers: Agnivesh Faridabad, July 16 Stating this, the president of the morcha, Swami Agnivesh, said here on Saturday that the working condition in a majority of the mines were “appalling.” He alleged that due to apathy on the part of officials and rampant corruption, the exploitation of poor labourers was going on unabated. Speaking after the inauguration of the Rashtriya Chaupal of the Mine Workers Union, Swami Agnivesh claimed that the guidelines of the apex court regarding the implementation of various regulations were being openly flouted by many lease holders and contractors. He said even a monitoring committee headed by Mr Justice S.P. Singh and set up by the Supreme Court in 1982 had stated in its reports that labourers were being exploited and their rights were encroached upon in the matter of paying the minimum wages and providing residential accommodation near the work place. Alleging large scale irregularities in mine quarrying in the region and other parts of the country, he said about 93 per cent of 36 crore labourers were still unorganised. |
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Rainwater floods several areas of
Ambala Ambala, July 16 Washing away the claims made by the district administration of effective steps taken to check flooding, the heavy rainfall led to knee-deep to waist-deep water accumulating in several areas. At least three temporary structures collapsed due to the heavy rainfall. While two mud houses collapsed in Bandhu Colony, one mud house collapsed in the Lal Kurti area. A tree fell on the Ambala cantonment Civil Hospital boundary wall and breached it. There were, however, no reports of any casualty at the time of filing the report. The rain which started last night continued without break till this afternoon. By early morning, water had accumulated in different colonies and had entered houses. Among places where water had accumulated in large quantity were Machhi Mohalla, Pucci Sarai, Gawal Mandi, Mahesh Nagar area, Railway Road, Rai Market, Sadar bazar, Gandhi Market, Regiment Bazar, Lal Kurti, Bus stand, Anaj Mandi, Railway Colony, Bengali Mohalla, Dayal Bagh, Ram Nagar, Shastri Colony and the colonies lying close to the Gurguria Nullah. In Ambala city, the affected areas included Kapda market, Nadi Mohalla, Manav Chowk, Jagadhari Gate, Model Town, Urban Estate, Nahan house, Shukal Kund road, Kumayunpur village, Aima village, Durga Nagar, Shakti Nagar and Civil Hospital road. Open areas like the Gandhi Maidan, Indra Park and the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose park were inundated with water. Meanwhile, the Ambala Cantt Traders Federation chairman, Mr N.C.
Jain, demanded that Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala must send a high-level team to take stock of the situation. “The team must survey and file a comprehensive report on why such major water-logging took place.” He said that today water entered several shops and destroyed goods. The Ambala cantonment MLA, Mr Anil
Vij, who surveyed some affected areas, said that such water accumulation had taken after 1978, when flooding had taken place. “We have been told that there was 120 mm of rainfall. But the situation would not have come to such a pass if the Gurguria nullah and the Mahesh Nagar drain had been properly cleaned up,” he said. The BJP Ambala cantonment mandal president, Mr Shish Pal
Bhola, observed that the serious water-logging in Ambala cantonment was the result of the different “diggis” being filled up. “The John Sahab Ki Diggi was converted into a park and this has led to water accumulation in surrounding areas. Earlier, water used to enter the “Diggis” and gradually it would pass out but now this cannot happen,” he said. Mr Bhola stated that different drains had been cleaned up before the arrival of the monsoon. “The Municipal Council Ambala cantonment president, Pandit Shankar
Dass, visited different areas to take stock of the situation,” he said. |
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Withdrawal of case against ex-Deputy Speaker
sought Karnal, July 16 In a signed memorandum, the lawyers have urged Mr Chautala to get the facts of the case legally examined at the personal level. The memorandum further said the lawyers in the three districts were feeling agitated and concerned about the alleged wrong and illegal involvement of four lawyers in the case registered against Mr Vedpal. The lawyers involved are Mr Vedpal, his sons Mr Vijaypal and Mr Balinderpal, Mr Dharamveer, alongwith the elder brother and nephews of the Deputy Speaker. The case has been registered under Section 120-BIPC by the Vigilance Bureau, Rohtak, on January 25, on a complaint by the flying squad of the Chief Minister that Mr Vedpal had acquired property and assets beyond his known sources of income. The signed memorandum said the investigation officer had not considered the documentary evidence submitted by Mr Vedpal in response to the notice sent to him under Section 91 of the Cr PC. |
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Absent peon keeps minister waiting Sonepat, July 16 It is learnt that the minister, along with INLD workers, left Panchayat Bhavan and reached the PWD (B & R) rest house where he talked to party workers. Earlier, the minister presided over the monthly meeting of the District Public Relations and Grievances Committee in Panchayat Bhavan and disposed of 10 complaints within half an hour. Four other complaints were handed over to the officials concerned for taking action on a priority basis. The minister took serious note of a complaint against the supply of substandard seeds to the farmers and non-action by the, officials concerned even after his orders. He directed the officials to launch legal proceedings against the owner of the seed company without delay and persuade the owner to grant compensation to the affected farmers. |
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HR staff to join national-level stir Faridabad, July 16 According to a spokesperson for the union, the members would hold a dharna outside Haryana Roadways depot at Ballabhgarh tomorrow and observe anti-privatisation day on July 18. Meanwhile, leaders of the Central Government Employees and Workers Federation have criticised the union government’s reported move to open up various services related to public interest to private hands on commercial basis. Mr M.P. Singh, president of the Faridabad unit of the federation, said that every sector including the education was being commercialised, which he said was against the interests of common man. |
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Statewide bandh by Cong soon:
Hooda Ambala, July 16 Talking to mediapersons last night, Mr Hooda said the reason behind the bandh was the erratic power supply, scarcity of water and deteriorating law and order condition in the state. “Life is increasingly becoming difficult in the state,” he said. Mr Hooda said the Congress was already holding the ‘Congress chaupal ki aur’ programme and meetings were being held in different wards. “The residents of Haryana are unhappy with the Chautala government,” he said. He stated that there was no logic behind changing of power meters and people were holding demonstration all over the state. “Haryana now seems to be going the Bihar way as far as law and order condition is concerned,” he said. While condemning the murder of a freedom fighter, Mr Mehtab Singh Chauhan, Mr Hooda said there had been several instances of custodial deaths. “The first priority of the Chief Minister must be towards development, but this is not the case here,” he said. “I am going to demand for a special session for discussion on the deteriorating law and order condition in the state,” he said. Regarding the Agra summit, Mr Hooda said it was the first summit being held without any particualr agenda. |
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Constable killed in mishap Kaithal, July 16 According to information, Om Parkash and Bhir Singh, constables deployed for panchayat election were returning from duty in a jeep when a truck coming from opposite direction hit their vehicle. Om Parkash died on the spot and Bhir Singh was admitted to the Civil Hospital. He was referred to the PGI, Chandigarh. The jeep driver was also injured. The truck driver has absconded. accident site. While the truck has been impounded. |
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Teachers hold protest march Kaithal, July 16 The teachers were protesting against the non-payment of salaries for summer vacations. Earlier addressing teachers at a meeting today, joint secretary of the sangh, Mr Jai Parkash Shashtri alleged that the government giving step-motherly treatment to the teachers. |
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Hike in water charges likely Chandigarh, July 16 Mr K.C. Sharma, Financial Commissioner, Public Health, who was speaking to mediapersons here today, said the proposal, awaiting approval by the Cabinet, suggested a “mild increase” in the water charges. |
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Space quiz contest on July 21 Kurukshetra, July 16 According to the Kurukshetra Panorama and Science Centre project coordinator, Mr S. Kumar the contest would be held to commemorate astronaut Neil Armstrong’s first step on moon on July 21, 1969, in the Apollo mission. Prizes would be awarded to winners of the contest. The last date of receiving entries, is July 18. |
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State-level workshop Chandigarh, July 16 The Haryana Agriculture Minister, Mr Jaswinder Singh Sandhu will inaugurate the workshop. |
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Man donates blood 157th time Sonepat, July 16 Mr Dev Raj Dewan, an independent MLA, inaugurated the camp in which as many as 152 persons donated blood. |
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BAMS entrance exam Kurukshetra, July 16 Stating this here today, the Kurukshetra University Dean of Colleges, Prof Amar Singh, said the last date for receipt of application forms for the examination was July 18. |
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Girl commits suicide Faridabad, July 16 |
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2 labourers die of food poisoning Rohtak, July 16 |
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Farmer axed to death Rohtak, July 16 According to police sources, the victim had deserted his wife and was in the habit of drinking. Both sons of the deceased are reportedly absconding. The police has sent the body for a postmortem. A case has been registered. |
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Raped girl disappears Ambala, July 16 The girl left home last night, apparently without informing anyone. The local police and the girl’s family members are trying to search her. |
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Road blocked Ambala, July 16 |
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