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June 22, 2003, Chandigarh, India
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Govt denies bungling in allocations to BPL families New Delhi, June 21 The BJP had, on Thursday, alleged that the foodgrains granted by the Union Government to the Government of NCT of Delhi, under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana, were being black-marketed by the Congress. Food and Civil Supplies Minister Haroon Yusuf said the BJP was creating wrong impressions about the implementation of Antyodaya scheme. He said the BJP, it appears, had issued the statement about the irregularities in a haste without verifying the easily available facts. The attempt was motivated at maligning the government to gain cheap publicity in view of the November Assembly elections, he said. Contradicting the BJP’s claim, that not a single Red card (for free foodgrains to people under BPL) under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana was given out in the Capital, Yusuf claimed that 183 cards had been issued to the eligible families. However, as most of the eligible beneficiaries were already covered by old age pension, the response to the Antyodaya Anna Yojana was limited, he said. About the need to carry out a survey, to identify the exact number of people to be covered under the scheme, the minister said it was surprising that the BJP, which was involved in the process of finalisation of such beneficiaries, was raking up the issue. “All the 14 BJP legislators were involved as Chairman of the respective circle advisory Committee in finalising the list of such beneficiaries. Yet such a statement has been made ignoring all canons of ethics,” he said. Yusuf said the Centre had given a very strict family income criterion of Rs 24,200 per annum and fixed a rigid upper limit of maximum number of beneficiaries at 4.09 lakh in case of BPL families (of which 15 per cent were to be covered under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana). The Government of NCT of Delhi had already issued about 4.06 lakh cards for BPL families and 31,000 cards under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana. He said the Congress had been, for long, demanding that the Centre increased the family income limit from the present Rs 24,200 per annum to Rs 50,000 per annum and also the ceiling on the number of people to be covered under the Yojana. The minister said that a resolution in this regard was passed in the Assembly, and, on September 26, 2001, the then minister, Yoganand Shastri, had taken up the matter with the Centre. He also said that he had personally written a letter to the Union Food and Civil Supplies Minister, Mr Sharad Yadav, on March 13 this year, pressing for the two demands. He charged the BJP with adopting double standards. On the one hand it was talking about the non-implementation of the Yojana in the Capital, on the other it was involved in confiscation of ration cards of uprooted slum dwellers, he said. Welcoming the probe ordered by Sharad Yadav into the allegations by the BJP, Yusuf demanded that a probe be also ordered to ascertain why the BJP was sitting on these welfare schemes for the poor, between 1997 and 1998, when it was ruling in the NCT of Delhi. |
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BREAKTHROUGH New Delhi, June 21 He was arrested from Avantika Chowk in Rohini where he had gone to meet one of his associates to chalk out a plan to commit a robbery. The police received secret information of his movements in the area, mounted surveillance and conducted raids at suspected hideouts. He was finally caught in Rohini, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime and Railways) said. The police had information that the tender mafia in Delhi might again organise itself in the DDA and the MCD. The DCP said that the mafia was effectively contained in the past and once again the Crime Branch was developing intelligence to crack down on the nefarious elements. A country made pistol and two live cartridges were recovered from Amrik’s possession. He is a registered bad character in police station Rohini and a henchman of Kishan Pehalwan who is currently in judicial custody at Tihar Jail. He was detained under the National Security Act, in August 2001, for disturbing public order and remained behind bars till August 2002. He had more than seven previous involvements in cases of murder, attempt to murder, robbery, criminal
trespass and hurt. He had also been associated with the gruesome murder of Anoop in Rohtak and had plans to hijack the tender process in West, North-West and North Delhi, along with his associates, the DCP said. Girl dies after
taking ‘prasad’ A 17-year old girl died this morning after taking ‘prasad’ from an unknown woman in the Kanjhawla area in North-West district. The deceased, Nisha (17), resident of Bawana, was spotted by a policeman in an unconscious state and he took her to the Sanjay Gandhi hospital where she died. Nisha, when spotted by the beat constable Satish, at around 3 am, told him that she was fed prasad by some unknown woman, after which she got unconscious. The police said that Nisha was staying with her aunt at Kutubgarh village for the last 15 days after taking her 10th class compartment exams. On June 19, Nisha’s aunt put her in a bus (route 106) for her home after which she met the unknown woman. The police have registered a case and are looking out for the mysterious woman who fed prasad to Nisha. |
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COOL COMFORT Noida, June 21 The forum Chairman, Mr Kartar Singh, members S. C. Sharma and Vijay Laxmi Sharma have in their verdict ordered the General Manager, Northern Railway, to refund the amount charged for providing the facility with 8 per cent interest plus Rs 5,000 as compensation to him for the inconvenience caused and Rs 2,000 towards expenses of the suit within one month. Mr S. K. Singhal of Sector 12 had filed a complaint before the consumer forum on June 19, 2002. He had travelled along with his family from Delhi to Jammu Tawi in Rajadhani AC Coach on May 25, 2002. But the AC in the coach in which they were allotted seats was not working. He had made a complaint along with other fellow passengers to the officials concerned but no action was taken by them. As a result, they had to travel in non-AC conditions even after paying the fare of AC ticket. The complainant had demanded refund of the ticket amount of Rs 4,048 and Rs 10,000 as compensation for the inconvenience caused to them besides Rs 5,000 towards suit expenses. In response to the consumer court’s notice, the GM, Railways, had pleaded that such demands could only be considered by the Railway Claims Tribunal under the provisions of the Railway Claims Tribunal Act, 1987. However, the forum said the complainant had not been provided with required services and facility in spite of his having paid extra for it. As such he came under the category of a consumer to whom the Railways had failed to provide the desired services. Hence, this order to compensate him. BSNL also in the dock Rohtak: Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has been directed to pay Rs 3,000 as compensation to a consumer for deficiency in services. The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has directed the BSNL authorities to pay compensation to the complainant, Sandeep Dalal of Kishanpura, whose telephone remained out of order for 91 days in 11 months. In a recently delivered judgement, Mr Jagdish Chopra, president of the forum said: “It is a grave deficiency of service and, moreover, most serious negligence on the part of the opposition party. The opposition party cannot shirk its liability and responsibility to give a smooth service to the subscribers.” The forum has ordered the BSNL authorities to provide the complainant a rent rebate for 91 days and Rs 1,000 for litigation expenses, within 60 days from the day of passing of this order. It also directed BSNL to ensure uninterrupted and smooth functioning of the telephone of the complainant in future. The complainant, a resident of Kishanpura locality here, had stated in his complaint that his telephone (number 55544) remained out of order from May 27 to June 17 and from October 10 to October 24 last year. He said the phone had also been out of order since November 2,2002, till date. The telecom authorities admitted that the telephone of the complainant remained out of order for 38 days due to a defect in under-ground cable. The counsel for the plaintiff produced the subscriber faults card vide which the telephone of the complainant remained out of order for 91 days. He also argued that the subscribers were being charged service charges at the rate of 5 per cent of the bill amount. It is, therefore, the duty of the service provider to ensure uninterrupted service to its subscribers. |
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Blockade
blues: Ordeal for hours on Sonepat, June 21 about 25 km from here, last evening in protest against the killing of a 20-year-old youth, Mukesh, of Sikandarpur Majra village in an accident involving a jeep. According to a report, a large number of vehicles were lined up on both sides of the road. This caused inconvenience to the travelling public. On receipt of information, Mr Sham Singh Rana, DSP, Gohana, arrived on the spot and pacified the irate mob of people and succeeded in lifting the blockade. The victim, Mukesh, was reportedly returning home on a scooter after purchasing household articles for a friend who was to get married. However, on the way a jeep hit his scooter and he died on the sot. Another youth, who was sitting with him on the scooter, sustained serious injuries. He was sent to the PGI, Rohtak, for further treatment. The jeep driver, however, managed to escape. A large number of residents assembled at the site and held up traffic on the road for a few hours. When assured by the police that the culprit would be arrested soon they lifted the blockade. According to another report, a cyclist was killed on the spot when he was hit by a car on the GT Road near Bhigan village, about 10 km from here, last evening. The victim has not been identified so far and the car driver managed to escape immediately after the accident. The police have registered cases and further investigations are in progress. However, no arrests have been made in this connection. |
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HUDA working: Stranger than fiction Rohtak, June 21 It is claimed that HUDA plans its urban sectors on the lines of self-contained estates with quality infrastructure and public utilities. But in reality, the functioning of HUDA and the implementation of its policies raise a number of questions. The first question is about the rationale of its highly discriminatory and irrational fixation of rates of plots. For example, in its recent offer of plots, it has fixed a rate of Rs. 7,104 per square meter for a one kanal plot in Gurgaon’s Sector 38 and Rs. 6578 per square meter for a similar plot in Sector 45, even though the development charges should be the same in both the sectors. A similar situation exists in other estates in Rohtak, Ambala, Sonepat, Karnal etc. The second question is related to the quality of planning, befitting an urban estate built on modern lines. For example, in Sector I, Rohtak, out of the three main entrances only one is sufficiently wide. Of course, one of these is being currently widened. But what about the third one? The electrical wiring is all over the road in the sky and electrical poles are in a bad shape. Roads are never maintained etc. Vacant plots are swamped with congress grass and have become virtual dustbins and a health hazard. When HUDA charges an extension fee from plot holders, then why are these plots are not cleared and well maintained? In all HUDA sectors drinking the water line is laid on one side of the road and the sewerage line on the other. So far, so good. But when plot holders construct their units, they have to tap both the water mains and the sewerage line. They then cut through the road in such a manner that it gets bifurcated in front of every plot and is never repaired. One fails to understand why HUDA cannot provide a water and sewerage connection in each plot before constructing the roads. Private builders like DLF and Ansals do so. Obviously, vested interests play a role. |
Chautala wasting funds on Rajasthan rallies: MLA Faridabad, June 21 Mr Karan Dalal, a former minister and MLA from Palwal, said here today that not a week passed without a rally held by Chief Minister and INLD supremo Om Prakash Chautala in parts of Rajasthan. He claimed that that state’s funds and resources were being wasted as the state machinery was busy in holding rallies and press conferences in Rajasthan. He said the state government, which failed to provide any relief to drought-hit farmers last year, had been overlooking the interest of the people of both urban and rural areas. He said there were hundreds of villages in southern Haryana facing acute shortage of water. People of these villages had even been blocking traffic on roads in protest, he said. While ponds had gone dry in many villages, unavailability of power had led to scarcity of potable water, he said. He charged that the health authorities had failed to depute doctors and provide medicines for the people suffering from disorders caused mainly by contaminated water. The heat wave had led to hundreds of deaths in various districts and the lack of medical attention was responsible for most of them, Mr Dalal said. The authorities should conduct a survey and provide immediate relief, than to sit down in air-conditioned offices and hold meetings and darbars, he demanded. He said that officials remained busy only in organising VIP visits, while residents had been crying for basic amenities. The INLD should take a lesson from UP elections and concentrate its efforts to fulfil the promises made before the elections, he said. |
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Rathee-Hooda verbal duel over building collapse Jhajjar, June 21 Reacting to the statements of Mr Hooda on the alleged indirect involvement of Mr Rathee in the evasion of revenue by carving up unauthorised colonies, the local MLA accused the Congress leader of indulging in ‘politics of blackmail’. In a written statement, Mr Rathee said that he was trying to extort money from certain people by making such baseless allegations. He said that Mr Hooda’s allegations that he had helped the owner of the collapsed building by pressurising the district administration were ridiculous. “Mr Hooda was threatening to launch an agitation on the issue just to extort money from the owners of the building. And now he is adopting the same tactics on the property dealers, but he would never succeed in his intentions,” alleged Mr
Rathee. The INLD leader maintained that Mr Hooda himself had a benami share in the newly developing unauthorised colonies near the Asaudha turn on National Highway 10. It may be mentioned here that Mr Hooda had issued statements against the INLD MLA after the sudden collapse of the Shyam complex. He had demanded filing of a criminal case against the MLA for his alleged indirect share in the building. |
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Annual Plan to reflect people’s voice: CM New Delhi, June 21 This, she said, would ensure that the policies and programmes were in congruence with the hopes and aspirations of the people making governance people-oriented. Addressing the workshop on the third and concluding day, Mrs Dikshit said interaction between the people and officials was a must for democratic governance, which was the reason behind the government holding the workshops. The Chief Minister said so far, 90 villages of NCT of Delhi had been brought under the Bhagidari (participatory) governance and the remaining 102 would be brought soon. Regarding creation of employment opportunities in rural areas, she called upon the people not to be dependent on the government for jobs as it has been left with little. “Be an employer yourself instead of seeking employment elsewhere,” she said. She said her government was also working to provide more educational facilities in rural areas and asked the Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University to give affiliation to only those training colleges which agree to function in rural areas. On this occasion, she announced that the government would soon construct air-conditioned halls in villages for holding Bhagidari workshops and other social functions. Chief Secretary Shailja Chandra also addressed the workshop. |
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SEARCH WITHIN WHAT are the dangers we face in our modern world as we journey along the path of life? The daily newspaper lists them for us—there are road accidents, loss through robbers and thieves, natural calamities such as floods and storms and there can be fights and quarrels among men leading to injury and even death. And most of these are outside the control of the individual. But there are other dangers inherent in the individual against which he can guard himself by correcting attitudes and inclinations. For example a scripture like the Gita warns against going on yielding to one’s desires of the mind. An unbridled mind could be disastrous even according to Buddhist scriptures. An elderly Chinese philosopher was once approached by one young woman, who was grief stricken because of the loss of her only son. “I will be able to help you,” he assured her, “if you will bring me some mustard seed: but it must be obtained at a home where there has never been any sorrow.’’ Eagerly the woman started her search. In every place she visited, however, there had been trials and loss of loved ones. Returning she exclaimed, “How selfish I have been! Sorrow is common to all”. “Ah” said the elderly sage, “you have now learnt a valuable lesson and acquired a wealth which not only has eased your own grief, but also has prepared you to sympathise with others.” Like that woman, we need to realize on our journey that it is not what happens to us that causes much sorrow but often our reaction to events. Or in other words our attitudes. “Every man wants to finish life well. No man sets out early in his life to destroy himself. He does not plan to strike up failure after failure. He does not get married intending to make himself and his wife miserable. He does not plan out to be a poor father. He does not coldly calculate how he will become an alcoholic and ruin his liver by age forty. But the journey is filled with danger. Finishing well is a tremendous challenge’’. That is how author Jerry White begins the first chapter of the book, ‘Dangers men face’. We are repeatedly reminded that life is made up of time and that lost time and lost opportunities never return. “If we had to buy time, would there be any difference in how we would spend it? Would the days of our lives be used more wisely?” That is what time management consultant Antonio Herrera asked the participants in a seminar he conducted on the subject. “What if you had to pay in advance $100 an hour for the time allotted to you? Would you waste it?” That is a question that should ring through our lives all along… It is to be remembered that love is the central point of existence. Men in a hurry forget that two vital emotional needs of every man and woman on the face of the earth are the desire to love and the desire to be loved. It is a tragedy when they run after the things of the world and find thereby substitutes for the two basic instincts. They chase the shadows of fame, wealth and popularity, hoping thereby to find love and recognition in society. They become great achievers but fail to cultivate those virtues and relationships, which engender affection among humans. Relationship with fellow beings could be a source of conflicts if we are not careful. Getting along with people is an art and to nurture the correct attitude in this regard, we need to cultivate ‘reverence for life.’ We need to learn to respect people regardless of their station in life, knowing that everyone is created in the image of God. All virtues are to be exercised in the society and in modern days, isolation is not a possibility. Life has become more complex and no one can remain unaffected by what happens in the society. Next to God, man should be highest in our value scale. Persons who love and find their fulfillment in other people will also find happiness for themselves. Concern and involvement in the welfare of others are seen to bring great satisfaction and joy in the lives of those so involved. In dealings and in relationships it is important to follow the moral law `written on the tablets of the human heart’ and its violation will be attended by serious consequences. Time and again, men in a moment of weakness, is swept downstream by the fast flowing current of sin. Pride, greed, selfishness and lust are only some of the danger signals on the path of life. As we desire the love of God and man, we have to take care not to put on the garment of pride, which is hated by one and all. Pride “is a tumor of the mind that ruins all your actions; a worm in your treasury, that eats and ruins your estate. It loves no man and is beloved of none; it disparages another’s virtues by detraction and your own by vainglory. It is the friend of the flatterer, the mother of envy, the nurse of fury, the sin of devils, the devil of mankind. It hates superiors, scorns inferiors, and owns no equal,’’ wrote Lord Bolingbroke, an English statesman, in a masterly analysis of one of the gravest sins of mankind. Man is constantly struggling with temptations and he can not escape the consequences each time he violates the moral law. A leading psychiatrist Karl Menninger in his book, ‘Whatever Became of Sin’ has stated: “We are finding out that guilt buried deep within the human personality can be the cause of nervousness, backaches, headaches, heart trouble and ulcers.” In the journey of life, it is good if we take stock of ourselves and examine if any course correction is needed. We are bound to make mistakes, but the tragedy is not to be aware of them. God gives a second chance when there is genuine repentance in the human heart and a desire to turn away from evil. MPK Kutty |
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No headway in driver’s murder case Sonepat, June 21 According to a report, the alleged assailants include Joginder, alias Joga, of Chatia village who had already been involved in two cases of murder. It is stated that the assailants had hired the jeep for Chatia village and when they reached the village they consumed liquor along with the jeep driver. The quarrel between the victim and the assailants was the cause of the murder. The police have registered the case of murder and launched a hunt for the culprits.
Rally against
power crisis A large number people of various residential colonies and the workers of the Nationalist Congress Party took out a procession here yesterday to register their protest against
the power and water crisis in the city. According to a report, the procession passed through the main bazaars of the city and the processionists shouted slogans against the state government and the district authorities. They reached the mini-secretariat where they held a demonstration in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office and sat on a day’s dharna there.
Sarpanch suspension The Punjab and Haryana High Court has issued a stay order against the suspension of Mr Rajinder, Sarpanch of Khanda village in this district. According to a report, the court has fixed August 26 as the next date of hearing in the case. The Sarpanch, it may be recalled, was placed under suspension by the Deputy Commissioner on the charge of misappropriation of 336 quintals of wheat allocated to the gram panchayat under the Swaran Jayanti Rozgaar Yojna by the government. Later, an FIR was lodged with the police and he was consequently arrested by the police but released on bail by a judicial court. The Block Development and Panchayat Officer has fixed June 20 for the election of an officiating Sarpanch and informed the panches about it. When the Sarpanch showed the stay order, the meeting was postponed.
Non-auction of
sand dunes The Department of Mines has fixed Rs 42.20 lakh as reserve price for issuing 10-day permits for the sand dunes in the Khadar tract along the Yamuna in this district. According to a report, not a single bidder came to get the permit as they described the reserved price much higher. The state government has been suffering a huge financial loss on account of non-auction of the sand dunes. |
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SPECIAL FOCUS ON REWARI Rewari, June 21 An incident that occurred at Lookhi village under the Kosli police station of the district on June 14 was one such instance. One Sarita Yadav, now a teacher in SCERT, Gurgaon, was married to Vinod Yadav, a lecturer of Mathematics in Government Senior Secondary School, Wazirabad (Gurgaon) and a resident of Lookhi, about three years ago. Their relation had been strained for a long time. It is reported that Sarita Yadav, along with her elder sister Anita Yadav, who is a lecturer in Government DSD College, Gurgaon, came in a white Maruti car from Gurgaon to Lookhi at about 1 pm on June 14 to seek a rapprochement with Mr Vinod Yadav. It is also stated that the two sisters were accompanied by a young man and two other women who were in another white Maruti car. However, this has been denied by Anita Yadav. The sudden appearance of the two sisters and others in the house of Vinod Yadav led to uproarious scenes following which they came out on the streets. While the accompanying persons managed to flee in their car, the two sisters went to a PCO from where they contacted the DGP, Mr Mahender Singh Malik, at Chandigarh. Following directions from Chandigarh, the DSP held parleys with the two women and Vinod Yadav at the Kosli police station in the presence of Mrs Kailash Lal Yadav, a zila parishad councillor. When the talks failed, a case of subjecting a woman to cruelty, criminal intimidation, wrongful confinement and voluntarily causing hurt under Sections 498-A, 323, 342 and 506 of the IPC was registered against Vinod Yadav, his father Ran Singh Yadav, mother Heera Devi, sister Rekha Yadav, younger brother Dinesh Kumar Yadav, uncle Dalip Singh Yadav and granduncle Lal Chand Yadav on a complaint lodged by Anita Yadav. The police arrested Vinod Yadav who has now been granted bail by a local court. Another incident occurred at Dharuhera on June 12. Dr Prakash Saini and his wife Dr Raj Saini had strained relations for a pretty long time. Dr Raj Saini, along with her daughter Abhilasha Saini and sons Vishva Saini, Vijay Saini and Vikas Saini, have been living in her clinic-cum-residence on the Nandrampur Bas road in
Dharuhera. Of late, the clinic, which was in the name of Dr Prakash Saini, had become a bone of contention between the couple. Dr Raj Saini says that though the clinic was in the name of her husband, it had been built solely with her earnings. She alleged that notwithstanding her rightful claim on the property, her husband made a bid to transfer its ownership to his nephew (sister’s son) Manish Saini through a registered deed in January, 2002. She challenged this in court. The case has been pending since then. Dr Prakash Saini along with his nephew Narender Saini and three others allegedly barged into the clinic on June 12. A scuffle broke out in which Dr Raj Saini, Narender Saini and Dr Prakash Saini were reportedly injured. On a complaint lodged by Dr Prakash Saini, the Dharuhera police registered a case of attempt to murder under Section 307 of the IPC against Dr Raj Saini and her two sons Vishva Saini and Vijay Saini and arrested them. Vishva Saini and Vijay Saini were remanded in judicial custody for 14 days by a local court while Dr Raj Saini, who had received multiple injuries, was getting treatment at the local civil hospital under police custody. She complained that it was agonising that the police had registered a criminal case against them while her complaint against the assailants, who virtually inflicted grievous injuries on her body, had been let off. |
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NCR BRIEFS Bhiwani, June 21 The youths have been identified as residents of Mandhi Kehar and Jui villages. They were carrying illicit liquor with them in a Marshal jeep a d fired at the contractors when the latter followed them at Badhra Road. The police had registered a report on the complaint of liquor contractor Raj Kumar.
Advocate Goyal dies Mr Radhey Shyam Goyal, advocate, Income Tax died here today after a long illness. He was 52. Advocates, doctors, and lecturers participated in his funeral procession. He was cremated here today. Mr Goyal had been secretary of the Vaish College Management Committee for several years besides being member of Prakaritik
Chikitsalya.
Water shortage irks residents Rohtak: Residents of the Janta Colony here, who have already been facing an acute scarcity of piped water, are up in arms against disconnection of public taps in the locality by the public health authorities recently. The residents of the locality said nearly 30 public taps had been installed in the locality, following directions by the then Congress MLA, nearly 25 years ago. They said a major part of the inhabitants of this locality includes labourers who used to obtain water from these public taps. However, the public health authorities have disconnected the taps on the plea that water was going waste from these taps, the residents said. The residents argued that the authorities concerned should have repaired the defective or broken taps, if water was going waste at some places, instead of disconnecting all such taps. They demanded re installation of all public taps in view of inconvenience being caused to the labour class. |
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CBI probe sought in CAS ‘kickbacks’ New Delhi, June 21 “It appears the commission has been taken by a former minister and private broadcasters,” DPYC president Rajesh Lilothia said in a memorandum to the Information and Broadcasting Minister. “Your ministry has planned to thrust CAS upon the people, infringing upon their right to information and right to entertainment,” he said and threatened that the Youth Congress would organise demonstrations at district and block levels if a CBI probe was not ordered within 15 days. Earlier, addressing the Youth Congress activists, Mr Lilothia said CAS was anti-people and should not be given a green signal. “A poor person cannot afford to buy a CAS box worth Rs 2,900,” he said. Yesterday, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee gave a go-ahead in the implementation of CAS with the condition that the new tariff should not exceed the existing one, he added. |
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Subhash
Anand honoured New Delhi, June 21 Speaking on the occasion, Mr Jain pointed out that to ensure that schools are not run from tents, the construction of buildings is also being undertaken. The Standing Committee Chairman, Mr Ram Babu Sharma, also lauded Mr Anand’s performance. Association president Jagdish presented a memento to Mr Anand on the occasion. |
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Arms smugglers find Sonepat a safe haven Sonepat, June 21 According to a report, the police had been able to nab several criminals with illegal arms in the past few years. The Superintendent of Police, Mr Paramjit Singh Ahlawat, stated that the police had launched a three-month campaign, “Operation Agni”, for unearthing illegal arms in this district. Special police pickets had been put up on the Haryana-UP and Haryana-Delhi border for checking the incoming and outgoing vehicles for this purpose, he said. He disclosed that the police authorities were also in touch with the UP and Delhi police to curb the activities of smugglers of unauthorised arms. In 2000, the police had registered as many as 94 cases under the Indian Arms Act in Sonepat district and seized 69 country-made pistols, two revolvers, two guns, 21 knives and 49 live cartridges. In 2001, the number of cases registered under the Act went up to 86. Six revolvers, two guns, one rifle, 26 knives and 63 live cartridges had also been seized during this period. Last year, the police had registered 203 cases under the Indian Arms Act and recovered as many as 165 country-made pistols, five revolvers, seven guns, one rifle, 11 knives and 119 live cartridges from the arrested persons. It is stated that most of the youths living in villages have been getting illegal arms. Several of them carry country-made pistols (desi katta) and roam about the areas for robbery. Some students of schools and colleges are also said to be involved in such crimes. |
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Two booked for truck driver’s death Sonepat, June 21 According to information, truck driver Sanjay, originally a resident of Gumar village, was settled in Gohana town along with his father and family. His father Bijender, an ex-serviceman, earned the livelihood by selling milk in the town, On May 26, Sanjay along with another driver Suraj Mal of Pinana had gone to Aurangabad on a truck, owned by one Master Pratap Singh Malik, to unload the booked items. They returned to Gohana on May 15. During the journey, some money was reportedly stolen from the truck and to inquire into the incident, Sanjay was allegedly given a harsh beating by Vijay, alias Rinku, son of Pratap Singh and one more youth. On receiving information of the serious condition of his son Sanjay, his father Bijender Singh reached the Gohana Civil Hospital and found his son’s body lying on the back seat of a van. He took the body to his residence and kept it in ice for cremation in the morning. As the body was lying, he noticed some signs of scratches on it and suspected a foul play in his son’s death. Meantime, it came to the notice of the police also and they took possession of the body on June 15 night and sent it for a post-mortem to the Civil Hospital, Gohana where the SMO of the hospital formed a board to conduct the autopsy. But Sanjay’s family wanted the post-mortem to be done in PGIMS Rohtak and hence the body was sent to Rohtak. The PGIMS’s post-mortem report was received on June 19 in which it was reportedly stated that the cause of the death was due to injury in the heart. On the basis of the autopsy report and complaint of Sanjay’s father, a case under Section 304 of IPC has been registered with the city police station, Gohana against two youths on June 20. But the case has taken a new turn as Sanjay’s father alleged that he had not named anyone in the complaint to the police. |
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Gazetted
officer among two commits suicide New Delhi, June 21 In the first incident, Jhinguria Singh a gazetted officer in NISCAIR Institute on Pusa Road committed suicide by jumping down from the third floor of the building yesterday. He came to the Institute at 10 am. He told his colleagues after one hour that he was going to canteen and left the office. Just after a few minutes, it was reported that he had jumped down from the building. He was rushed to RML Hospital where he was declared brought dead. In the second case, Devinder, 28, in Inderpuri area committed suicide by setting himself afire. He poured kerosene and set himself ablaze. He was admitted to RML Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. When he took the extreme step, his mother was in the house. She tried to douse the fire but she could not and received burn injuries. She was also admitted to the hospital. He was married three months back but his wife was with her parents. No suicide note was recovered in both the cases, police said. |
Unfair practices galore as number of fair price Sonepat, June 21 According to reports, most of the fair price shops had been closed down during the past few years on one pretext or the other and their numbers are diminishing day by day. There are 341 ration shops in this district and of these, 240 are functioning in the rural areas and 101 in the urban areas. These are meant for providing rationed commodities like wheat, flour and kerosene to the families living below the poverty line (BPL) having yellow and pink ration cards. However, the bulk quantity of these items are being diverted to the black market by unscrupulous owners of some fair price shops allegedly in connivance with some officials of the department. In return, the depot holders share the booty with the ‘helpful’ officials. Most of the fair price shops always remain closed in the absence of any checking by the officials. The members of BPL families are being forced to visit them repeatedly to get the commodities meant for them. These hapless persons allege that there are no fixed timings for opening and closing these shops. Ration cardholders of general category are supposed to be supplied with kerosene. However, they don’t usually get to see their quota as allegedly certain owners are selling it in the black market. A high-level inquiry into the public complaints in this regard is likely to expose the misdeeds of the officials of the Food and Supplies Department and the malpractice of the owners. Surprise raids on the shops of halwais and commercial establishments can also yield good results, knowledgeable sources say. Enquiries made by this correspondent have revealed that there were 374 fair price shops in this district in 2002, 393 in 2001, and 414 in 2000. About 500 fair price shops used to function between 1970 and 1990. This period was considered to be the `swaran yug’ for the officials of the Food and Supplies Department. To get a licence for a fair price shop during these decades was most profitable as all rationed commodities were available on permits. Levy sugar was given on permits for marriages. The same was the case with cement for construction of houses and other buildings. Now this has become a thing of the past. At present, a depot holder could get a commission of Rs 500 per month as the subsidised rationed commodities like sugar, kerosene, wheat and flour are being supplied to the members of BPL families the number of which is negligible. According to owners of many fair price shops, they have to spend more than Rs 1,000 on maintaining the account books, stationery and having a godown. Moreover, they are penalised if any irregularity is detected by the officials during checking. The owner will lose his security deposit if any irregularity is found. The ration system, it may be recalled, was introduced in 1956 when the USA sent supplies of wheat and rice under PL 480 for distribution through the fair price shops. In 1965, the Food Corporation of India came into existence and the public distribution system (PDS) was improved during 1986 under the 20-point programme launched by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. |
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