 |
|
|
Sampat questions change in Assembly rules
BJP to challenge appointment of
Parliamentary Secretaries
Selection process for
Secretary’s post quashed
Race on for chairmanship
of boards, corporations
Illegal structures removed
Make agencies behind opinion polls accountable, say experts
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Workers-factory owners deadlock ends
First poet laureate of state
Residents protest land acquisition move
Undertrial woman commits suicide in Karnal jail
3 UHBVN employees reinstated
Two killed in road accident
HAU experts caution farmers
2 killed in road accident
Prizes given to farmers clubs
Minor reshuffle of portfolios
Board exams from March 8
BJP plans stir against price rise
|
|
Sampat questions change in Assembly rules
Chandigarh, January 17 Addressing a press conference here, the INLD leader said between Saturday (when the MLAs were sworn in as CPS and PS) and Monday, these legislators had enjoyed the status of ministers in violation of the guidelines on the size of the Council of Ministers. He also alleged that Rule 2 regarding the definition of “Minister” in the Haryana Assembly rules was changed by the Rules Committee in a “hush hush” manner. The meeting, held on Monday to amend Rule 2, was also notified the same day, he said, adding that the report of the Rules Committee was presented at the fag end of yesterday’s sitting, which was also the last sitting of the session. Interestingly, the report was not circulated in the press gallery, perhaps due to the delayed presentation of it in the House. It also did not figure in the original list of business for the day. An “addendum” to the list of business circulated later mentioned the laying of the Report of the Rules Committee as an item on the agenda. Mr Sampat Singh, who also held the portfolio of Parliamentary Affairs Minister during the Chautala regime, said it was unnecessary to call the session simply for the election of the Speaker, a task that could have been accomplished even during the Budget session. “A session of the state Assembly is expected to focus on the larger good of the people of the state. But this session was necessitated by compulsions borne out of conflicts within the ruling party”, he said. He added that while the absence of question hour deprived the MLAs of valuable information regarding development works, there was also no zero hour to raise issues of immediate importance. He said MLAs could have provided adequate number of questions for question hour had there been sufficient gap between the just-concluded session and the session held last month. The INLD leader also said that the Governor’s Address was thoroughly inadequate and showed it was drafted in a hurry. He said the Address gave neither fresh details about the government’s accomplishments nor contained any vision for the future. The former Finance Minister also alleged that the Chief Minister was giving a wrong picture of the power scenario in the state. He said Mr Hooda’s statement about 4,000 MW of power being available in Haryana against a demand of 9,000 MW was not correct. The actual availability of power was 3,000 MW against a demand of 4,000 MW. The projected demand after 10 years was 9,000 MW, he said. “Mr Hooda has been briefed wrongly by officials and his statements are making the public panicky,” the INLD leader said. |
|
BJP to challenge appointment of
Faridabad, January 17 Announcing this the
state Chief of the state unit of the party, Professor Ganeshi Lal, said
here last evening that the appointments of such a large number of MLAs
to this post was unconstitutional and an attempt to defy the
restrictions on the number of ministers in the state Cabinet. He said
this was an attempt to pacify a large number of MLAs as this post
carried the status of a Deputy Minister. He said a similar move by the
Himachal Government earlier had been brought down by the court.
Alleging that the present government had ‘failed’ on several
counts, including the law and order situation, the party demanded a
white paper on the issue of ‘waiving power bills worth about Rs 1600
crore. The party also announced to launch a statewide dharna against
the alleged ‘failures’ of the present government. The party also
criticised the stand of the Hooda government on the SYL issue and
alleged that it was trying to befool the people on such an important
matter. Meanwhile in midst of the general disappointment over the
district being ignored in the Cabinet expansion, the appointment of Ms
Sharda Rathaur, MLA from Ballabgarh as Parliamentary Secretary has come
as a consolation for the residents here. |
|
|
Selection process for
Secretary’s post quashed
Chandigarh, January 17 A few months ago, the state government had called for applications for the said posts, in which the eligibility criteria stated that the aspirants should have retired in the rank of major / lieutenant-colonel / colonel, should be in receipt of pension and should not be below the age of 50 years. Recruitment rules framed by the state government following guidelines issued by the central government stipulate that the aspirants should be between 25 - 55 years. Retired defence officers expressed unhappiness over the "unreasonable" and "arbitrary" change in eligibility criteria as it restricted a large number from applying for the posts. They maintained that neither those who leave service early nor most of those who retire in their due course were eligible. Some ex-servicemen also moved court. A representative of the Haryana Government stated before the Punjab and Haryana High Court yesterday that the government had withdrawn the said advertisement. The selection process is now expected to begin afresh. A few weeks ago when the case had come up for hearing, the court was informed that the government, subsequent to advertising the posts, had issued a notification amending the rules with retrospect effect. Legal experts say that such a move was illegal as there are no provisions for amending rules retrospectively. An officer is entitled to grant of pension after he completes 20 years of service. The average age at which officers receive their commission is 22--23 years and those who leave the service on attaining pensionable service would be aged around 42 years. The stipulated retirement age is 54--59 years for lieutenant colonels, depending upon their arm. "This implies that officers who have sought early release from the service for whatever reason, be it domestic, medical or otherwise, cannot apply for the aforementioned posts or they wait for several years to become eligible," a retired officer remarked while speaking to The Tribune. "It could only be a matter of chance or fluke that someone could have fulfilled the changed eligibility criteria," he added. |
|
|
Race on for chairmanship
of boards, corporations
Chandigarh, January 17 Many of those MLAs who could not make it to the Cabinet are now pinning their hopes on becoming chairpersons of corporations or boards. The Chief Minister, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, is also in a mood to oblige them. Mr Hooda, who kept the MLAs waiting for almost a year for cushy jobs, has now decided to cut short their wait. Sources close to Mr Hooda say that after his return from Hyderabad, where he will go to participate in the AICC session, the Chief Minister will announce the appointment of several of the MLAs as chairpersons of boards and corporations. His largesse will be extended to party men other than MLAs also, the sources say. There are a number of boards, like the Planning Board and the Public Enterprises Bureau, the chairpersons of which enjoy Cabinet rank. It is not known if any of the non-MLAs will be accommodated against these positions or these will be kept reserved for senior MLAs who may not like to be adjusted on “lesser positions”. Then there are boards whose chairpersons do not enjoy Cabinet rank but are considered prestigious. The Haryana State Agriculture Marketing Board is one of such boards. The sources say Mr Hooda is in a mood to give official positions to those party men also who could not get the Congress ticket in the last Assembly elections though they were on an equal footing with those who got the party tickets.
|
|
|
Illegal structures removed
Rohtak, January 17 The campaign commenced from Shiv Vihar colony located near Chhotu Ram Nagar when a demolition squad headed by Executive Magistrate Ajit Singh, DSP Parveen Mehta and the District Town Planner Mohammed Yusuf accompanied by a police posse descended on the spot early this morning and dismantled all roads and illegal constructions in the area. Deputy Commissioner R. S. Doon said the registration of sale deeds in unauthorised colonies were banned early this month to check the mushroom growth of such colonies. Thereafter, notices were served on developers of such colonies and the public was advised not to buy plots in these colonies. He said demolitions were forced on the administration as the owners did not heed to his advice to demolish the illegal constructions themselves. He said the sale of residential plots without obtaining a licence from the Town & Country Planning Department violated Section 7(1) of the Haryana Urban Development & Control Act 1975. So, such colonies were declared unauthorised as per law, he said adding that this was a cognizable offence. Revenue Department officials had been given the khasra numbers of the land where unauthorised colonies were being developed and they had been directed not to allow the sale or purchase of plots in these areas. However, the buying or selling of plots of one acre or more for personal use was still permissible in these areas. Mr Doon said the government was planning to develop the city in a planned manner so it was necessary not to allow land sharks to raise shanties in the municipal area. Demolitions were also carried out in unauthorised colonies on Chamaria Road, Bhiwani Road, Jhajjar byepass and Sunaria Road. The officials said the demolition drive would continue till all the unauthorised constructions were razed and encroachments removed. |
|
Make agencies behind opinion polls accountable,
Hisar, January 17 The two-day seminar, organised by the Department of Political Science of the college, is being attended by delegates from universities and institutes of Haryana and neighbouring states. Inspector-General of Police (Hisar range), Yashpal Singhal, was the chief guest on the occasion, while Mr Vikramjit Singh, Head of the host department, introduced the theme of the seminar. College Principal, A.C. Anand, welcomed the chief guest and delegates. Speakers maintained that in view of the impact of exit and opinion polls on voters’ choice, the agencies doing these surveys should be made accountable and results of exit polls should not be published or aired till the polling process was over. In his keynote address educationist P.D. Sharma observed that non-committed voters were often influenced by the findings of poll surveys appearing in the media. Stressing the objectivity of the analytical procedure, Mr Sharma maintained that focus should be on adopting a scientific methodology and impartial approach. He, however, added that due to vast diversity in the country, it was very difficult to predict a near-accurate poll outcome. Dr R.S. Yadav from Department of Political Science, Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra, chaired the inaugural session. Dr Yadav asserted that the exit as well as opinion polls should be made meaningful for the common people and aim at larger interest of society. Questioning the very relevance of such surveys, Dr Yadav pointed out that the purpose behind these should be clearly understood. “No media organisation or other agency would engage in such an exercise without some vested financial or political interest,” he affirmed. Mr Vikramjit Singh said it was clear from the recent poll outcomes that there was serious flaw in the conduct of exit and opinion polls. “Apart from having an adverse impact on the democratic process, such surveys may also lead to economic failure in view of the direct relation between share-markets and political stability,” he cautioned. Mr Singhal said objectivity in the analysis of data played a vital role in such surveys. The exit and opinion polls could tilt the balance by influencing public opinion, he asserted that some control over the agencies conducting such surveys was must to strengthen democracy. |
|
|
Workers-factory owners deadlock ends
Panipat, January 17 Mr P.P. Kapoor, secretary, Indian Federation of Trade Unions, Panipat unit, signed the pact to end the strike on behalf of the agitating workers, while Mr Dina Nath Gupta represented the industrialists. In the past few months, both workers and factory owners had agreed on a pact but both ignored it. The Tribune had highlighted the plight of pitloom and handloom workers who were on a strike for the past four months. Several instances of assault and abduction by both the parties were reported. According to Mr Kapoor, the workers had agreed on a previous agreement reached between the workers and the owners on October 12. According to the agreement, the practice of advance payment would be stopped. The federation had raised an objection against the practice as it was alleged that the factory owners under the guise of advance payment treated the workers as bonded labourers. They were forced to work in the factory but were underpaid. Under the pact, the workers will work only for eight hours in a day and factory owners will now list names of the workers at the main entrance at their units. |
|
First poet laureate of state
Chandigarh, January 17 Born in 1926 at Dera
Deenpanah, near Muzaffargarh, his writings span over six decades and his work, including 20 books, is published in four volumes. He also has several other literary awards to his credit. He started writing in Sanskrit and Urdu simultaneously, following the didactic trends of Sanskrit and the philosophic fervour of Urdu. Later he took to writing poetry in Hindi and started writing “rubias” which gave him overnight fame during the fifties. Another noted work by him is the “Sant
Sipahi”, an epic description of the 10th Sikh Guru. Apart from critical essays on the works of Hindi writers, he has also penned his autobiography, “Smritiyon ke
Shilalekh”, which gives a graphic description of his positive as well as negative traits. He served as a member of the Sahitya Akademi, Delhi, for 10 years and was awarded by the then President, Giani Zail Singh, with the Geet Ganga
Puraskar. As a student who had come over in the wake of Partition, Udai Bhanu had to eke out a living working as a teacher in coaching classes in Delhi. Later, he left Delhi to join as a lecturer in Government College, Hisar. |
|
|
Residents protest land acquisition move
Sonepat, January 17 According to a report, the residents also submitted a memorandum to the DC urging him not to get their land and houses acquired. The residents also warned of intensifying the protest if the government moved ahead with its proposals. Meanwhile, the Joint Action Committee of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) has decided to hold a massive demonstration and a dharna in front of the DC’s office on Wednesday in protest against the
acquisition of land for Rajiv Gandhi Education City in Sectors 65, 66, 67 and 68 by the government. Giving this information Mr Brahm Singh Dahiya, convener of the samiti, said thousands of farmers and other people would take part in the protest. Meanwhile, residents of Patel Nagar held a demonstration in front of the office of the Superintending Engineer, Public Health at mini-secretariat here today to protest the erratic water supply and poor drainage and sewerage systems in their locality. |
|
|
Undertrial woman commits suicide in Karnal jail
Karnal, January 17 The deceased was lodged in the jail on Saturday when a city court remanded her in judicial custody. She was accused of stealing the purse of a woman police constable posted here and an FIR under Section 379 of the IPC was lodged against her on Friday in this regard. Her son Lakhwinder Singh alleged that his mother had been falsely implicated in the crime and she had not stolen any purse. She had been feeling embarrassed due to false allegations and ended her life, he added. Meanwhile, the body of the deceased was handed over to her family after a post-mortem examination by a panel of doctors at the local Civil Hospital here this afternoon. According to police sources, the constable’s purse was stolen on January 5 when she had gone to purchase some goods from the market situated near Karan Gate. The purse contained a mobile phone, Rs 300, gold jewellery and a photocopy of her identity card.
|
|
3 UHBVN employees reinstated
Panipat, January 17 The Tribune had highlighted the issue yesterday. The action was also condemned by the All Haryana Power Corporation Workers Union. The activists had strongly reacted against the action taken allegedly at the behest of a local politician. Meanwhile, workers of the UHBVN staged a protest rally at the office of the Xen here this morning. The workers raised slogans and demanded action against the Mr Dahiya for his “autocratic” functioning, according to Mr Narinder
Khokhar, state secretary of the union. Mr Khokhar alleged that Mr Dahiya had threatened to suspend Mr Satbir
Alyan, the district president of union, and orders were issued late night. He said the Xen was misbehaving with the officials. He demanded an inquiry into the functioning of the official as there were frequent protests by the consumers for poor power supply falling under his jurisdiction. |
|
|
Two killed in road accident
Sonepat January 17 According to the police, those killed have been identified as Raj Kumar, secretary, Municipal Committee, Nilokheri, and Vijay, a branch manager of LIC at Shimla, while the injured women have been identified as Meenaxi wife of the deceased. Vijay Kumar and Ms Swarna an associate of Mr Meenaxi. The police has registered a case and sent the bodies for post-mortem examination. According to another report, a Tata-407 carrying bread, collided with a tractor-trailer on the Sonepat Rohtak road near Jharot village last night and fell into the Gurgaon canal. The driver and the cleaner sustained injuries. |
|
HAU experts caution farmers
Hisar, January 17 “The sunny spell followed by wet and cloudy weather during the past 15 days is favourable for aphid multiplication,” said Dr J.S. Rana, Entomologist (Oilseeds) at the university, in an official statement issued here today. The expert maintained that the insect first settled down on the crops along the eastern border of the fields. He advised the farmers that in the event of an aphid attack, they should pluck and destroy top 10 cm aphid-infested twigs of the plants started from the border to check its spread. “The farmers should spray insecticides only if there are 10 per cent plants infested or 9 to 19 aphids per plant with an average of 13 aphids per plant,” said Dr Rana. He, however, added that if ladybird beetles are active in the field, the spray might be avoided to let this insect multiply and feed on aphids. |
|
|
2 killed in road accident
Sonepat January 17 According to the police, those killed have been identified as Raj Kumar, secretary, Municipal Committee, Nilokheri, and Vijay, a branch manager of LIC at Shimla, while the injured women have been identified as Meenaxi wife of the deceased. Vijay Kumar and Ms Swarna an associate of Mr Meenaxi. The police has registered a case and sent the bodies for post-mortem examination. According to another report, a Tata-407 carrying bread, collided with a tractor-trailer on the Sonepat Rohtak road near Jharot village last night and fell into the Gurgaon canal. The driver and the cleaner sustained injuries.
|
|
|
Prizes given to farmers clubs
Chandigarh, January 17 The Gram Vikas Club, Saidpur of Mahendargarh district sponsored by Mahendargarh District Central Cooperative Bank and Kisan Club Palri of Bhiwani sponsored by Haryana KGB shared the first prize, whereas the second prize was bagged by PNB sponsored Kisan Club Jakholi, Jind. The prizes were given away by Mr A.
Ramanathan, Chief General Manager of NABARD at a state-level review and development meet organised by NABARD here
today.
|
|
Minor reshuffle of portfolios
Chandigarh, January 17 Mr Chander Mohan, who holds Food and Civil Supplies, was given additional charge of Printing and Stationery, a portfolio earlier allocated to Mr Chatha, who was inducted into the Cabinet in an expansion on January 14 Mr Chatha resigned as Assembly Speaker to pave the way for his induction into the cabinet. |
|
Board exams from March 8
Bhiwani, January 17 The matriculation examination of the Board will commence from March 9 and conclude on March 24. These examinations will be held in the afternoon at 1 pm daily. During these exams the students will be given only one answersheet and no additional sheets will be provided, the spokesman said. |
|
BJP plans stir against price rise
Ambala, January 17 Issues concerning rise in prices of essential commodities, corruption and lack of power supply were discussed. It was decided that demonstrations would be held to protest against the inefficiency of the Bhupinder Singh Hooda
government. A major demonstration will be held next month against rising prices and corruption. Former Ambala MP Ratan Lal Kataria said that the law and order situation had deteriorated in Haryana. He said that people are not feeling safe and there have been several incidents of dacoity, rape, murder and thefts. The common man was adversely affected by the rise in prices and finding it difficult to make both ends meet.
TNS |
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Mailbag | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
