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September 29, 2003, Chandigarh, India
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HC seeks report on affairs of Hazrat Nizamuddin Dargah New Delhi, September 28 A Division Bench of Chief Justice B C Patel and Justice A K Sikri directed the Survey Commissioner of the Central Wakf Council to file within two-and-a-half months a report as to who was looking after the dargah. The direction came during the hearing of a PIL filed by an NGO, ‘Hum Aap Ke’ alleging misappropriation of the income of the holy shrine by the Pirzadas and their agents. Earlier, the Bench made it clear that it was interested in better management of the shrine as it involved public money, which should be used for improving the facilities over there. In the petition filed through counsel M T Siddique, the NGO requested the court to recommend to the Government to enact a law on the lines of Ajmer (Khawaja Gharib Nawaz) Act for the medieval Dargah. Additional Solicitor General (ASG) K K Sud had told the court in July that the government was a bit cautious as religious sentiments of a particular community were involved. Petitioner NGO Aap Ke has sought a Central law on the pattern of the Ajmer Act to protect the income of the Dargah from being misused by the Sajjada Nashin, Pirzadas and their agents. Besides the Centre and Delhi Government, Central Waqf Council and Delhi Wakf Board have been made respondents in the petition. The NGO alleged heavy income derived by the Dargah through donations were being misappropriated by the Pirzadas and their agents and no record was being maintained about the daily donations made by devotees, which range from Rs 10,000 to Rs 20,000 a day and swells to Rs 1 lakh on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays. It further alleged that the income coming from the 700-year-old Dargah was going to private individuals and some people claiming to be heirs of the great saints. |
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Good monsoon = Chilly winter. No, say weather pundits
New Delhi, September 28 This season, the city experienced the second highest rainfall in the last hundred years, with showers greeting it almost everyday. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has confirmed the monsoon’s retreat, but added that a good monsoon does not indicate a chilly winter. IMD officials point out that there is no correlation between excessive rain and a very cold and foggy winter. The IMD has no such model, nor has it done any study to make such a forecast, the sources added. They point out that it is too early to forecast the kind of winter the Capital will have. The IMD pointed out that last year the Capital had received deficient rain, but experienced foggy and cold weather. The IMD scientists also debunked the theory that fog may be denser this year as the soil has absorbed a high level of moisture owing to heavy rainfall, which may take a long time to dissipate. Since the monsoon has already withdrawn from the Capital and some parts of Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh, the Westerlies will soon start blowing and drying the moisture in the soil. Even then, if the moisture remains, it will dissipate to form clouds, which will prevent the radiated heat from escaping into atmosphere, a phenomena that causes the temperature to rise, the officials pointed out. The Capital recorded 105cm rain this monsoon as against the average rainfall for the season, which is 65 cm. This, the IMD said, is the second highest rainfall recorded since 1901. In 1975, the city had received 115 cm rain.  |
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Commission
being collected forcibly for land registries Sonepat, September 28 They have also demanded a high-level probe into the scandalous working of these offices. In a joint memorandum sent to Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala, they also demanded immediate transfer of the registration clerks to ensure an independent and impartial probe. The memorandum pointed out that the district collector had fixed the rates of land in various parts of urban as well as rural areas in the district, so that the registration deeds are properly valued. But the registration clerks, it is alleged, were charging an unofficial commission at the rate of one per cent from the owners of the properties; if the owner refused to oblige, he was harassed on one pretext or the other. It is alleged that the commission is unaccounted for and is distributed among the clerical staff and the officials of the sub-registrar office every day. In this way, the officials are minting money in the absence of any checking by the district authorities. This practice is on for the last few decades, but the state government has closed its eyes and refuses to check it. About an year back, Chief Minister Chautala had ordered the transfer of all registration clerks in the state. However, the situation reverted to normal in no time. |
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Traders
upset over Sales Tax directive New Delhi, September 28 The requirement of a 10-pages performa was not only absurd and unnecessary, but it would result in harassment of traders and revival of the Inspector Raj, he added. The policy had been framed by the Commissioner, Sales Tax, either on his own or with the approval of the Delhi Government. Following the VAT agitation, assurances had been given to traders that no policy decision would be taken without prior consultations with trade representatives. Praveen Khandelwal, CAIT Secretary-General, described the 10-page performa as illegal and demanded immediate cancellation of the order of Commissioner of Sales Tax.
Closure of crushers ordered Noida: The Noida Authority has taken note of the increase in respiratory problems in the area and ordered the closure of 35 crushers in the area. But a number of crushers are still operative in a number of villages. The locals have to virtually live in a haze of dust and inhale the obnoxious mix. The worst hit are infants and the aged, who are reporting breathing problems. One of the places, where illegal crushers are still in operation, is ex-CM Mayawati’s native village. A large number of illegal crushers operate on both sides of the expressway.
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Simmering
land row erupts again Faridabad It is reported that certain elements, hailing from Fareda village of UP, had opened fire on the farmers of Solra village on September 23. The farmers of Solra had just begun sowing operations in the agricultural tract that had been cleared by the receding waters of Yamuna. Another firing incident was reported on September 27, forcing the villagers to run for cover. It is learnt that two children had a providential escape. Although Haryana police officials rushed to the site, the villagers fear that they could become targets again, if they tried to cultivate the land which belongs to them. This is not the first time firing has been reported from this border village. Earlier, there had been several such incidents, when farmers on both sides of the border clashed over the right to sow the crop in the disputed tract. Several meetings have taken place between the officials of the two states, but the dispute continues to simmer. The Yamuna changes course each year, igniting the row, as there is no definite line of demarcation.
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Teaching
work suspended till Oct 9 in varsity Meerut, September 28 Scores of students have already vacated the varsity hostels. The students, who sat on a dharna outside the VC’s office, alleged that the authorities had falsely implicated some of them in the matter. Later, the V-C was gheraoed in protest. The University authorities have decided to vacate the boys’ hostel. Already, there is a heavy deployment of the PAC. |
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Govt squandering public money: HVP Sonepat, September 28 Addressing a public meeting at Village Tihar, Mr Singh said the Chautala government had been unable to implement any development plans during its rule of more than four years. The most neglected area was the power sector-backbone of the state economy. The people have been facing problems of power cuts, replacement of burnt transformers and day-long power disruptions, he said. The farmers were the worst hit as they did not receive regular supply of even three to four hours daily, he added. He criticised the Chatala government for letting loose a reign of terror in the state, and added that the CM had released around 275 criminals involved in heinous crimes and was planning to release more. “The people can very well understand what these convicts will do after their release,” he remarked. “There is the rule of only three persons in Haryana-Om Prakash Chautala and his two sons, Ajai Singh Chautala and Abhai Singh Chautala”, he alleged. He also criticised the state Congress leaders, accusing them of having failed to play the roll of the Opposition in the state. “Many of the Congress leaders are hand-in-gloves with Om Prakash Chautala to serve their political interests,” he alleged. Mr Singh claimed that Bansi Lal’s first priority had always been the development of the state as was evident from the facts that most of the infrastructure in the state was completed by Mr Bansi Lal. |
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SPECIAL FOCUS
ON SONEPAT Sonepat, September 28 The investigations have reportedly zeroed in on two persons, Parsa of Sonepat and Rajbir of Bhattgaon, who according to Forest Department sources have allegedly disposed of woods worth around Rs three lakh. After police interrogation, seven of the alleged accused were remanded to judicial custody, while four others, nabbed on September 12, were released after being fined Rs 37,000 by the officials of the Forest Department. It may be recalled that the officials of the Forest Department had foiled two attempts of wood smuggling within a week. In the first case, four persons, identified as Vinod, Suresh, Pradeep and Babloo of Kakroi village, were nabbed near Sheela by-pass in Rohtak by a team of forest guards and Darogas on September 12. They were let off after a fine of Rs 37,000 as it was stated to be their first attempt of wood smuggling and illegal felling of trees. In the second case, a team of forest officials led by Ved Parkash Lamba nabbed six persons, identified as Sunil, Rakesh, Rajesh, Raju, Karambeer and Parsa of Sonepat on September 19, while they were loading illegally cut trees on a Tata-407 tempo near village Lath-Joli. They were, subsequently, handed over to the police and a case was registered against them. According to the Divisional Forest Officer, Mr Shyam Lal Kaushik, the main accused in the second case, Parsa, has revealed to the police that he had also used Tata-407 of one Rajbir of village Bhathgaon for wood smuggling. Later, Rajbir was also arrested by the police. Talking to the NCR Tribune today, Mr Kaushik disclosed that after receiving reports of illegal felling of trees, mainly ‘Sheesham’ and ‘Safeda’, the department had intensified patrolling in the area. “But to misguide the team, the wood smugglers used their mobile phones to convey wrong information about the place and time of their operation,” he said. It may be recalled that Parsa had been nabbed earlier in January after being involved in illegal felling of 23 trees on the Sonepat-Kharkhoda marg. However he was released on bail by the court, Mr Kaushik said, and added that after lying low for sometime, Parsa had once again became active in the illegal activity. The DFO explained that the trees along the drains, canals, distributaries and the link roads were the soft targets of wood smugglers, as the movements of people as well as vehicles here were minimum during the night. In order to ensure maximum participation of the people in the afforestation drive, the Forest Department had distributed more than 11 lakh saplings free of cost to the farmers, voluntary and social organisations as well as educational institutions during the year so far, he said. He also informed that pursuing the national forest policy to bring 33 per cent of the total area under forest cover, nearly 7.8 per cent of the total area in Sonepat district had been brought under the afforestation programme. |
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Unplanned
development takes toll on civic amenities Sonepat, September 28 To reduce the pressure of heavy vehicles on highway and town roads, a bypass was conceived but the project is yet to begin. According to residents, few roads in the city have been able to withstand the onslaught of the monsoon rains over the years. The impact of the rains on Sonepat roads is all too evident. Depressions, bumps, uneven surface, potholes and craters are common to most of the roads in the town. The government agencies are content in doing patchwork here and there, which hardly provide any relief to the commuters. Despite the claim of the agencies like the PWD (B and R), the Sonepat Municipal Council, the Market Committee and the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) to have launched a drive for repairing the roads, filling of the potholes and craters with brick pieces, red soil and debris is the only activity visible to the common man. A large number of roads are still lying unattended, including the Mamoon-Bhanja-Subzimandi road via the bus stand, the road between the railway crossing and the railway station. These roads have become a ‘nightmare’ for the vehicular traffic, particularly two-wheelers. For the pedestrians too, these roads have become dangerous at night. Some roads are so heavily damaged that the people are wary of using them. Encroachments on roadsides often lead to the blockage of the drains, which in turn divert the water to flow freely on the roads. Some roads, which were repaired just few months ago as well the old ones, have been damaged by the rains or water flowing from the blocked sewers. Official sources, however, point out that the maintenance work on the roads could not be taken up on a large scale due to an acute shortage of funds. In effect, no contingency plan was drawn up by the official agencies responsible for road maintenance. Meanwhile, representatives of various political organisations, including the Haryana Vikas Party and the Congress, have urged the state government to order a high-level probe into the functioning of the PWD (B and R). |
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Housing
Board colony planned at Kharkhauda Sonepat, September 28 According to a report, it has directed the authorities of the Kharkhauda Municipal Committee to provide information about the vacant lands lying in and around the town for the construction of this residential colony. Kharkhauda town falls under the jurisdiction of the National Capital Region (NCR) and it is situated about 10 km from Delhi. It is also 19 km away from the district headquarters of Sonepat. Kharkhauda is linked with the Sonepat-Rohtak road, Narela-Kharkhauda road and Bahadurgarh-Sampla-Kharkhauda road. The people of this area can easily access the railway stations of Narela, Sonepat, Bahadurgarh, Ganaur and Gohana for their journey. Thousands of people, who work in the different government departments and private firms and without any housing accommodation in Delhi, have been commuting to the national Capital from Kharkhauda and its adjoining villages. |
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Morning
walkers celebrate World Heart Day New Delhi, September 28 The walkers which comprised citizens from all walks of life including women and children, assembled at Shantivan where a team of eminent doctors led by Padmavibhushan Dr Padmavati answered the questions of the general public on heart and other health diseases. A free check-up for blood sugar and blood pressure was also organised at the venue and the entire event was sponsored by Cornola Refined Corn Oil under the aegis of All India Heart Foundation and the Cardiological Society of India. Mr Jagmohan said that he is ready to promote the cause as it provides a conducive environment for walking to keep the heart problems under control.
Common man’s
problems The general secretary of the All India Citizens Committee, Mr Pramod Arya, expressed concern over the hardships faced by a common man. There is shortage of roads, electricity, sewerage, link roads, community centres, transport, health and education facilities, employment opportunities, housing water and public toilets. He said though the government is supposed to provide these facilities, the officials are reluctant to do their duty and provide these
facilities... |
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NCR BRIEFS Faridabad, September 28 Agrasen Jayanti celebrated Jhajjar: The Agrawal Yuva Sangathan celebrated the Agrasen Jayanti with gaiety in the local Agrasen College for women here today. A cultural programme was held to mark the occasion by the school and college students. Speaking on the occasion, Mr Jagmohan Mittal, state president of the Vaish Sammelan, said that Maharaja Agrasen was the greatest socialist of all and he gave a new direction to the concepts of socialism and equality. He recalled the history of the great people belonging to the Vaish Samaj like Samrat Ashok, Maharana Pratap and Mahatma Gandhi.
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Water supply scheme The Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, inaugurated augmented water supply scheme constructed at the cost of Rs 155.46 lakh in Kanonda village of the Bahadurgarh subdivision in the district yesterday. This waterworks would provide 70 litre water per person per day in Kanonda and Khairpur villages. Addressing the people on the occasion, Mr Chautala told that this was the 100th augmented water supply scheme in the state.
Traffic held up Sonepat: A large number of residents including women held up traffic on the Gohana-Jind Road for more than an hour in protest against the delay in replacement of damaged electricity transformers by the officials of the UHBVN in spite of the assurances given to them by the authorities. |
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DELHI DIGEST New Delhi, September 28 He said the successive governments had failed miserably to improve civic amenities in the city, and their performance left much to be desired on other fronts also like transport, environment, power, health and administration. This, he said, had compelled the people to look for an alternative to both the parties. Mr Bhandari said his party which consists of “selfless intellectuals” will contest the coming Delhi Assembly elections and if came to power, would work hard for improving the life of the people. He called for regularisation of facilities in slum areas of the city. Mr Bhandari was addressing public meetings during a ‘Padyatra’ in Janak Puri area of the Capital.
Two held for car-lifting The South-West district police today arrested two youths for a bid to highjack a car. Identified as Umesh Kumar and Pappu Kumar, they were arrested from Najafgarh yesterday when they were driving a stolen car. They hired an Esteem car from a taxi stand near Nangloi bus stand for Vaishno Devi. The to and fro rent of car was agreed at Rs 8,000 and Rs 150 was paid by Umesh as an advance amount. On the way, they overpowered the driver, Sanjeev Anand, and made him sit in rear seat. Umesh had started driving the car but had to stop the vehicle near Dichau Kalan DTC bus depot due to traffic jam. Showing alertness, the victim jumped out of the vehicle and raised a hue and cry. Immediately people gathered and started thrashing the suspects and called the police. The police arrested them and recovered one country-made revolver, one live cartridge, one knife from their possession.
DDA ground rent In order to facilitate depositing ground rent at the doorsteps of various allottees, the DDA has been considering outsourcing collection of ground rent for sometime. The DDA has decided to outsource the collection of ground rent through the designated banks to be selected by the authority through competitive bidding process. Allottees can deposit their dues after ascertaining them from the branches of nominated banks. They can also pay through their credit card or debit cards. The ground rent is paid by the allottees holding leasehold property of the DDA. The detailed information is also available in the DDA website and can also be accessed through Information Kiosks to be set up in Vikas Sadan and Vikas Minar. |
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Sacked cop among five held New Delhi, September 28 On sustained interrogation, Rajesh Rathi, the dismissed constable, and his accomplices admitted to their hand in many cases of robberies involving lakhs of rupees committed in different parts of the city during the last about five years. Raids were being conducted to arrest other members of the gang, they said. |
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Haryana tourism needs a kiss of life Faridabad, September 28 Tourist activity in the state is limited only to running of motels, restaurants and certain tourist complexes. This has, however, led to the growth of private amusement parks in the region, which attract a good crowd at the weekends. The Haryana Tourism which shot to national fame in the 70s and 80s, has come to a near-static period, despite the increase in the number of tourist complexes in the state over the years. The annual ‘Art and Craft Mela at Surajkund’ is an exception. While the number of tourist complexes in the state has gone up to 46, the infrastructure has become outdated at many places. “The building, furnishings, upholstery and the total ambience have not improved with the growing competition,” says Dr Tarun, a physician here. The district has about six tourist complexes but their condition has been reported to be unsatisfactory, due to delay in the renovation and upgradation. Lake at one of the tourist complexes near Hodal has gone dry and there have been no efforts to revive it, said an insider. The furniture has remained unpolished. Curtains and sofa covers have become old and faded at many places, it is said. To cap it, there have been reports that the staff have the same liquor meant for the customers. It is reported that disciplinary action has been taken against certain employees for indulging in drinking, misbehaving and absenting themselves from the duty. It is a common complaint that the contractors providing eatables, refreshments, boat ride, camel ride and other services have been fleecing the tourists by charging nearly double the rates prevailing in the market. Soft drinks and other items available at these spots are very costly and sometimes fake, claimed Rajesh, a resident of Sector-16 here. He said the contractors were also charging entry fee at certain places, which was unjustified. However, a senior official of the tourism department claimed that the department had been earning profit for the past two-three years and said that renovation of some of the hotels including the Rajhans Hotel of Surajkund, the only five star hotel of the department, had been taken up. |
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BSNL promises improvement in customer care service Gurgaon, September 28 Responding to complaints from industrialist at an interactive session organised by the Gurgaon Industrial Association (GIA), Mr Tripathy further said that the department will ensure that the bills are delivered to the consumers in advance. In fact, most of the complaints of the industrialists were also the common grievance of the general subscribers, particularly in regard to the receipt of the tarrif bills. The subscribers are unable to receive the bills on time and are forced to pay penalties. Moreover, they are forced to run around to rectify the arrears in the bills. In regard to the industrial units, he said that bills could be delivered at some central point for a group of industries. Moreover, details of duplicate bills could be obtained by dialing 167, followed by the subscriber’s number. Responding to complaints with regard to delay in rectifying faults, he assured that faulty phones would be made functional within a period of four hours to seven days, and in case the department failed to rectify the fault, the subscribers would be given rebate. Shifting of the existing connections, as also releasing new connections would be completed within seven days, he assured. He clarified that subscribers who have more than two telephones would be provided internal DP. According to him, with the laying of underground wiring and internal DP, the problem regarding disturbance and disconnections due to windstorm, would improve. As regarding new WLL connection from Sohna exchange, he informed that these were being released on priority basis. |
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SHOWCASE Lakme, the beauty brand has launched Color Drench and Color Spray limited edition make-up palettes. Inspired by the creative expressions of Lakme’s Grand Finale Designers–Hemant Trevedi and Wendell Rodricks, the two ‘Water Colors’ palettes offer colors in non-oily crčme textures that you can splash across your eyes, lips and cheeks in six water inspired shades each. The ‘Color Drench’ palette inspired by Hemant’s collection is made up of six shades in green, purple, gold and brown while the ‘Color Spray’ palette by Wendell comprises shades in lilac, blue, silver and pink that sweep over your skin for an ultra natural finish. Wardrobe of key pieces Daks has launched its Autumn Winter Signature Collection. The Daks Signature Collection takes its inspiration from Britain’s uniquely varied and rich landscape as well as quintessential British style of artists and intellectuals of yesteryears. Daks areas styled with a modern attitude, create a wardrobe of key pieces and have a dark and luxurious palette of earthy tones using soft greys and blacks, sea blues, rich browns and lush, dark forest greens. Stylish English look Indigo Nation has unveiled the Convent Garden collection, a range of shirts showcasing the stylish English look. The shirts crafted from the finest CVC fabric in weaves like Dobby, Twill, Pick-On-Pick, Fil-a-fil and Herringbone are styled to leave the purists gaping. Convent Garden shirts come with a deep cut away collar graced by high neckbrand with twin buttons and a stylish 3-button cuff. For stain-free wash Whirlpool has launched the Whitemagic Stainwash–the first and the only washing machine that can completely remove stains. Whitemagic Stainwash is the only washing machine that can completely remove common household stains without manual intervention. Typically, stains have to be removed by hand using a combination of concentrated detergent, special cleaning agents and vigorous washing. Its washing combines the unique properties of Hotwash and Handwash to completely remove all traces of stains. For your lips Oriflame has launched its Lip Perfector Anti-Ageing Balm and Crystal Glaze Lip-Gloss. The product is a complete lip treatment balm, which contains Green Tea, Vitamin E and Ginkgo Bilabo, that protects the lips from environmental stress, increases moisture retention and lip volume and decreases fine lines preventing lipstick bleeding. It also contains Licorice extract that has a soothing effect on chapped lips. The Lip Perfector that is applied on lips on lip line before lipstick improves its application and wearability. Flavoured vodka brand GuinnessUDV has launched Smirnoff Twist, its flavoured vodka brand in Delhi. The company has launched the Smirnoff Twist brand with a Citrus flavour. With this launch, GuinessUDV unveils a new dimension in flavoured drinks in the city. The brand preludes the launch of other Smirnoff Twist flavours in India. Globally, Smirnoff Twist is available in Raspberry, Orange and Vanilla flavours. Trendy tiles Bell Granite Ceramica flagship brand Marbo Granit has launched its new collection in impeccable designs and combinations. India’s first and only ‘fully-body-design-vitrified,’ tiles Bell Marbo Granit exemplifies its creations sculpted with beauty and grandeur to add vitality to the affluent lifestyle. The new collections come in five different designs: Imperiale, Classique, Naturale, Royale and Stargaze. Cable solutions Finolex Cables, the leading provider of total cable solutions has launched 25 pairs LAN cables that has applications in voice and data transmission as well as broadband applications. The 25 pairs LAN cable is manufactured locally only by Finolex, which offers immense benefit to the customers as currently this product has been imported with high import duties and is difficult to stock as it is very bulky. The product range is highly flexible in its design structure making the installation easy and scalable. Geysers Summerking Electricals has launched its unique range of geysers under its DRG’O vision series. This new series geysers are manufactured under the strongest quality control according to the conditions laid down by the Bureau of Indian Standards. The state-of-the-art range of geysers whose inner tank is made from 99.9 per cent pure electrolytic copper can withstand maximum pressure. Artificial sweetener Boots Piramal Healthcare has launched its international artificial sweetener brand–Sweetex in the Indian market. Sweetex, a pioneer in the artificial sweetener category, is a three-year-old brand internationally and has been in India for the past 20 years. After a dormant period of three years, the brand is being relaunched with a new packaging, new communication and a more focussed distribution initiative. |
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No memorandum to CM from industrial associations of Kundli, Rai New Delhi, September 28 Reacting to a news item in the columns of this paper, Mr Jarnail Singh, Assistant General Manager
(I.A) said that the official named in the report had been posted to the Head Quarters in Panchkula on promotion as DGM
(I.A) several months ago. He claimed that the infrastructure. including roads and sewerage, were in good condition, contrary to as claimed in the report. |
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