Chandigarh, February 12
“By throwing out an intelligent person of Haryana origin, the Haryana Public Service Commission (HPSC) has, in fact, murdered the system.”

This stinging oral observation was made by a Division Bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court comprising Chief Justice Vijender Jain and Justice K.S. Ahluwalia here today when the hearing on a petition challenging the selection made by the commission for the HCS and allied services resumed.

The observation came after the Bench read an affidavit filed by a Scheduled Caste candidate, Shalender Singh Birla, who secured 565 marks in the written examination but was given only 17 marks out of 100 in the interview by the commission.

Giving a comparison of the marks secured by him and another Scheduled Caste candidate, Ranjit Kaur, who got 90 marks in the interview despite having scored 493 marks in the written examination, Birla stated in his affidavit that he was given less marks to favour Ranjit Kaur at his cost.

The judges noticed that the candidate was so intelligent that he had qualified for admission to all six IIMs, which is a rare distinction, yet the HPSC did not consider him intelligent enough to be selected in the HCS and he was given only 17 marks in the interview as against Ranjit Kaur, who was given 90 marks in the interview.

Appearing on behalf of petitioner Karan Singh Dalal, MLA from Palwal, former Advocate-General of Haryana Mohan Jain told the Bench that the answersheets of all candidates were inspected in pursuance to the court orders.

During inspection many irregularities, manipulations and interpolations, ostensibly not without connivance with HPSC officials, were detected.

Giving instances, Jain said in the case of Kuldhir Singh, son of Sher Singh Badsami, political adviser to then Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala, it was noticed that his marks in the answersheets were increased by way of cutting and overwriting without attestation.

In the history paper, although he attempted four questions, he was given awards for five questions. In the Hindi paper, though Kuldhir spelt the word “Hindi” as “Hindhi”, yet marks were increased.

Similarly, in the English paper, questions were found re-attempted at page Nos. 20 and 21 of the answersheet, though all pages from No. 18 to No. 21 were crossed, being blank.

Jain said in the case of Jagdeep, a close relative of then chairman of the commission K.C. Bangar, awards were given for five questions, though he had attempted only four questions in the geography paper and some of the answers were written afterwards, may be outside the examination hall.

He said in the case of Surender Kumar, a close relative of Chautala, marks were increased and tampered with without attestation.

The discrepancies were observed in the geography, criminal law and Hindi papers, where the difference in handwriting and tampering with marks was clear.

He claimed that Sarita Malik, daughter of then director-general of police M.S. Malik, was also favoured in the Hindi paper where the marks stood increased.

Also in the sociology paper, the awards on the opening sheet were in ink different than that used for evaluation inside the answersheet. In the general knowledge paper, full marks were given in spite of mistakes.

Certain discrepancies were also found in the answersheets of Veena Hooda, Kamlesh Kumar and Manish Nagpal.

The Bench directed that any respondent who was aggrieved by the allegations against him in the inspection report could file a counter-affidavit within seven days and the case was adjourned to February 20 for further hearing.

Chandigarh, February 12
The below poverty line families of Haryana never had it so good. Close on the heels of a promise to allot a 100 sq yd plot to landless BPL families, the Haryana government is all set to roll out a first-of-its kind initiative by offering a health insurance cover to all such families working in the unorganised sector.

This five-year Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana of the Government of India will offer a cover of Rs 30,000 a year to each family comprising the husband and wife along with three dependant children.

All families identified for the purpose will shortly be issued a smart card, similar to a credit card, for availing themselves of this scheme.

Any person covered under the scheme will only need to go to one of the “identified” hospitals or nursing homes and get treatment and its tentative cost on a prescribed pro forma from the doctor.

He will be required to give his smart card, bearing his thumb impression, to the hospital which will block the amount on his card and finally deduct it at the time of discharge, making it a completely paperless transaction. However, this facility is available only for indoor patients.

“A high-powered committee, which met last week, has given its approval for the project. We invited financial and technical bids and zeroed in on an insurance company. This scheme will benefit nearly 14 lakh workers of the unorganised sector among BPL families,” explains Naresh Gulati, financial commissioner and principal secretary (labour).

The scheme will cover all 20 districts but will be launched on a pilot basis in the four districts of Faridabad, Panipat, Bhiwani and Yamunanagar in the first year.

The insurance company would get Rs 750 per year per family of which 75 per cent would be paid by the union government and the rest by the state government.

Also, the insurance company would be required to empanel 10-bed nursing homes and hospitals where these families can get treatment. This cover would be valid only for indoor treatment as per the terms.

Gurgaon, February 12
Wg Cdr S.D. Saxena (retd), aged 75 and resident of DLF Phase II, was allegedly murdered at his residence by his Nepalese servant Rishi by hitting him on his head with an iron rod last night.

The police has recovered a letter from the place of murder written by Rishi to the Wing Commander’s daughter Rashmi, who is married and lives in DLF Phase V, in which he has admitted to his crime and has stated: “Didi, I am sorry, if I had not murdered uncle, he would have killed me.” A suitcase, mobile phone and camera are missing from the house.

The police said blood was found on the dining table where food was usually served to the Wing Commander.

He said it seemed that at the dinner table, an altercation took place between Wing Commander Saxena and his servant and the latter hit him on his head with a rod.

After that Rishi shifted the body of the Wing Commander from the dining room to a bedroom, where he covered it with a blanket.

The police said butts of beedi were found in the bedroom which indicated that after murdering the Wing Commander, the accused smoked beedi there.

He said Rishi switched off the mobile of the Wing Commander and disconnected the landline phone of the house.

The police said Rishi then went to his quarter and spent the whole night there. In the morning, he left the house and told neighbours that he was going to his village.

At 11 am, when Wing Commander Saxena’s daughter Rashmi could not contact him on the phone, She contacted her uncle who stays near her father’s house.

He went to Wing Commander Saxena’s house, but it was locked from outside. When he opened the lock with his duplicate keys, he found Wing Commander Saxena murdered. He immediately informed the police.

The police said Wing Commander Saxena had employed Rishi from a placement agency six months ago and by his behaviour and hard work he became just like a family member.

He said Wing Commander Saxena belonged to Bareli and had retired from service in 1982. In 2001, he shifted to Gurgaon.

Wing Commander Saxena’s wife died in January this year and after that he was staying alone in the house. He has three sons, all settled in the US.

DCP (East) Satish Balan said a case had been registered against Rishi and police teams had been sent to Nepal and other places in search of the accused. He said the police had sent the body for a postmortem.

Karnal, February 12
Explosives used in the attack on Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh’s convoy were procured from Nagpur in Maharashtra, the police today said.

This was disclosed by Jaswant Singh, alias Jassa, of Pipaltha village in Jind district, a conspirator in the attack, who was arrested from Dachar yesterday, Karnal SSP A.S. Chawla told mediapersons here.

A police team has been sent to Nagpur to dig out more details regarding the incident after Jassa’s disclosures.

Chawla said media reports stating the explosives were RDX were incorrect. “We have never used the word RDX,” he stressed.

The police have taken Jassa in remand till February 16, along with two other accused, namely Mahinder Singh and Swaran Singh, who were earlier arrested for triggering the blast on February 2 at Nilokheri.

Jassa had been in constant touch with the duo and had provided the details and movement of the dera chief’s convoy from Umri near Kurukshetra using his cellphone, Chawla said.

The defending lawyer opposed the further remand of the two in the local court, alleging third-degree torture by the police leading to fracture in one leg and one hand of Mahinder, which were in plaster. The court has ordered the medical examination of all three accused.

Meanwhile, hunt for Baksheesh Singh, the alleged mastermind of the attack, had so far failed to yield any result.

Meanwhile, a hand-written poster in English and Hindi, with bold slogans of “Khalistan Zindabad” and “Raj Karega Khalsa” and threatening the dera chief with dire consequences if he ever dared to pass through the same route again, created some agitation among dera followers here.

Tension gripped the area as the dera followers began to throng the place immediately after coming to know of the poster pasted on the wall of Sacha Sauda Naam Charcha Ghar in Gandhi Nagar area on the Ladwa road in Indri subdivision of the district today. — UNI

Chandigarh, February 12
Clay jewellery made and displayed by a young Sri Lankan girl at the on-going 22nd Surajkund Crafts Mela at Faridabad has invited a large number of trade enquiries from Indian fashion designers.

Manohari says the clay jewellery is not only imaginative and innovative but also environment friendly. Small items like earrings and nose pins make good fashion accessories.

One of the clay jewellery pieces made by her is a rose pendant having a circumference of about 4 cm with a hole pierced to run a string through it The string, she says, can also be beaded if the design so demands.

Explaining the process, she says after the jewellery is crafted, it is baked at a temperature as high as 1,200 degrees Centigrade which turns it almost into a stone.

"It has immense strength in it and can withstand any climatic conditions, including rain. It will not melt or get soggy.”

Then spray colouring takes over and the jewellery item is ready for use after the paints have dried. She has not tried making clay bangles so far, but she is thinking of making these as well as anklets some day.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka has shown keen interest in organising fairs and festivals in Colombo on the pattern of the Surajkund mela.

This was stated by Sri Lankan minister of rural industries and self-employment promotion S.B.Nawinna when he visited the mela today along with his wife. The Nawinnas were received by Haryana minister of state for tourism Kiran Choudhry.

Choudhry assured Nawinna of full cooperation of the Haryana government and the Surajkund Mela Authority in organising such melas in Colombo. Sri Lanka is one of the participating countries in the Surajkund mela.

Yamunanagar, February 12
Armed with batons, villagers, including women, gheraoed a restaurant at Khezrabad here today and caught two girls allegedly involved in flesh trade.

They damaged the property of the restaurant and later handed over the girls, one of them a minor, to the police.

Three days ago, the police had raided another restaurant in the area after complaints of flesh trade, but the culprits managed to escape.

According to the police, hundreds of residents of Tajewala and nearby villages, led by Tajewala sarpanch Harnand and former sarpanch Kanej Fatema, reached the restaurant (New Ekant) and gheraoed it.

Some of them entered the restaurant and allegedly caught the two girls from a room. According to them, three men and the restaurant owner managed to flee.

One of the girls is a minor and belongs of Howrah district of West Bengal. The other is a mother of two and native of Saharanpur district in Uttar Pradesh. SHO of Khezrabad police station Jang Sher said the matter was being investigated.

Fatehabad, February 12
Funds received for the benefit of the Scheduled Castes living below poverty line under the Sampooran Gramin Rozgar Yojna (SGRY) are on the verge of lapsing.

Though the funds were made available to the zila parishad in July last year, it is yet to find suitable beneficiaries and recommend those to the additional deputy commissioner, who is also the chief executive officer of the District Rural Development Authority (DRDA) for disbursement.

According to sources, a sum of around Rs 1.75 crore was received by the district under the SGRY scheme and out of this amount 20 per cent was to be spent through the zila parishad, 50 per cent through the gram panchayats and the rest 30 per cent through the block samitis.

Out of these funds, 77.5 per cent were to be used for generating employment through general works of villages while the balance 22.5 per cent was to be provided to persons belonging to the SC category and living below poverty line for self-employment.

The zila parishad, according to sources, passed a resolution in July last year thereby empowering its all 17 members to get Rs 50,000 each for distribution to two beneficiaries each of their choice in their respective constituency.

Though eight months have passed since then, none of the 17 members have so far been able to recommend eligible persons for disbursement of funds under the scheme.

Though some of the members did recommend names of beneficiaries to ADC C.G. Rajnikanthan recently, but those either did not belong to the Scheduled Castes or their BPL numbers were found to be fake. The ADC rejected all such recommendations.

In case, the zila parishad members failed to send their recommendations by March 31, the funds would lapse as the SGRY scheme would be replaced by the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) scheme from April 1.

Sources said the NREGA was to be implemented through the gram panchayats and the zila parishad would have no role to play, whatsoever, in its implementation.

Further, the funds under the NREGA would be used for the general works only and no funds could then be issued to individuals for self-employment, sources said.

Chairman of the zila parishad Baljit Balli admitted that some members had recommended the names of persons who were not eligible to get benefits under the SGRY, but maintained that it all happened because they were provided wrong BPL lists by parishad officials. He said the names of the beneficiaries would be finalised soon now.

Gurgaon, February 12
Gurgaon additional chief judicial magistrate Ranjana Agarwal on Tuesday sent Dr Saraj, an associate of alleged kidney transplant kingpin Dr Amit Kumar, to 14-day custody of the CBI.

Dr Saraj was not allowed to interact with the media today, but his advocate reiterated Dr Saraj’s version.

He had gone to Dr Amit Kumar’s hospital to monitor one of the patients on Kumar's request and he was not associated with the racket in any way.

Gurgaon, February 12
The sewerage treatment plant of Bhalla Chemical Industry on the Daultabad road was found non-functional in a raid that was conducted by officials of the Haryana State Pollution Control Board yesterday.

A team of officials under the leadership of the regional officer, Gurgaon Pollution Control Board, Dr C.V. Singh, conducted the raid last night.

They found that the company was using illegal pipelines for disposing of the sewer water during night hours. The team took samples of the water and sent it to a laboratory for investigation.

Dr C.V. Singh said the board had received many complaints against the unit, which illegally disposed of sewer water at night.

He said the raid was conducted on the basis of those complaints and an illegal pipeline had been sealed. Stringent action would be taken against the company if the complaints proved correct.

Karnal, February 12
In order to improve millions of hectares of salinity-hit land in India, a renowned expert from The Netherlands, Dr Jeannette Hoek, has recommended introduction of a nationwide mechanism to keep a complete health record of water and soil.

As coordinator of the European Union for its sponsored project - Biosaline (agro) forestry remediation of saline wastelands through production of renewable energy, biomaterials and fodder (BIOSAFOR), she was here today to attend a three-day workshop at the Central Soil Salinity Research Institute (CSSRI) complex.

Experts from The Netherlands, Spain, Germany, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the UAE and India had gathered to discuss the projects.

In an interaction with The Tribune, Dr Hoek said like India, salinity was a worldwide problem. Several varieties of trees and grass had been identified by Indian scientists which were fit for such arid land in the subcontinent.

Dr Gurbachan Singh, director of the CSSRI, said trees, including pahari and desi kikar, were suitable for salt-affected areas.

Stressing on spreading knowledge on biosaline agro-forestry among the farming community, Dr Hoek said the project would provide guidelines for policy makers on the subject.

The three-year project aimed at recommending policy on the use of saline wastelands with agro-forestry systems in South Asia and Europe was launched in The Netherlands in March 2007.

Citing the example of The Netherlands, she said it was mandatory for landowners to keep a record about the complete use of fields failing which they were penalised.

According to an estimate, about 1 billion hectares on the earth is salinity-hit and land near the sea “is gradually getting vulnerable to soil problem”, she informed.

In India, nearly 6.73 million hectares is affected by salt and would reach to 11.7 million hectares by 2025 if timely precautionary measures were not taken.