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WELCOME MOVE
DHBVN begins computerised grievance-redressal system
Traffic lights to replace roundabouts in Gurgaon
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Industry for setting up labour colonies
NIFAA mourns deaths in Japan tsunami
Corruption main obstacle to inclusive growth: Experts
Man gets life term for trader’s murder
Sanitation drive held
40 donate blood
Revenue officials start identifying land for power project
Plastic manufacture, usage and waste management rules
Tanwar’s job as AICC secretary a challenging task
Women empowerment 'a far cry'
Cops train youths, 25 trainees awarded certificates
Stern action advocated against rights violators
Urban development: Expert group formed
Need for change in teacher education stressed
Community radio stations
DHBVN told to compensate Rewari farmer
Thieves’ gang busted
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WELCOME MOVE
Jhajjar, March 14 Interestingly, contribution for the fund will not be taken from the government. The fund will be managed by contributions by policemen who will deposit a fixed amount from their salary as per their rank. Besides, the policemen will also be provided loan as per their requirement from the fund to get their medical treatment done if they suffer the attack of major ailments like cardiac arrest, brain haemorrhage, paralysis etc. While speaking to The Tribune, Kamaraja said the entire exercise was being carried out for the welfare of policemen so that they could perform their duty with honesty, dedication and enthusiasm after feeling themselves secure in the department. “A financial assistant of Rs 5 lakh will be extended to the next of kin of any policeman posted at the five districts if they die owing to road accident, lethal injuries and attack of any fatal disease while on duty. This aid will be made available to the victim’s family within a couple of days after the incident and will be separate from the government aid which is given in general as per the policy,” said the IGP, adding that the amount of contribution to be deposited by every cop had been set as per their ranks so that no one had to bear any extra burden for the same. Contribution of Rs 500 for the IGP, Rs 300 for SSPs of all five districts falling under the range, Rs 200 for DSPs, Rs 150 for ASIs to inspectors and Rs 100 for head constables and constables had been fixed on a monthly basis, Kamaraja maintained, adding that a communiqué in this regard had recently been sent to all SSPs who would not only inform their staff members about the decision but also ask them to deposit their contribution to the fund every month. “Group insurance of every cop will be done by an insurance company so that their kin could get the insurance claim if any casualty happens during the police duty,” said the IGP, claiming that perhaps this would be the first instance in the state when such sort of financial assistant, separately from the government aid, would be provided to the policemen.
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DHBVN begins computerised grievance-redressal system
Hisar, March 14 In case any consumer did not have a computer and Internet facility, he could avail the facility by visiting the office of any SDO (Operations). If the consumer was not computer savvy, he would be assisted by DHBVN employees in registering his complaint online. The DHBVN has introduced a new computer-based consumer grievance redressal system (CGRS). Mohammed Shayin, Managing Director, DHBVN, said the new system provided interfaces to the web and was entirely transparent as the facility of online tracking was provided to the complainant. This system would also serve as a web-based complaint register in the DHBVN as it was operational through any nigam office nearest to the customer. The MD said that the web-based CGR application was accessible through any Internet browser. It could be started by opening home page of the nigam's website www.dhbvn.com where a link had been provided to the consumer grievance redressal system. There were different sections for grievance registration, grievance tracking and login for officers. A click on the link "Register Your Grievance Online", the system would redirect the complainant to the grievance registration page, which was to be filled in by the complainant giving details of the complaint. After the complaint was submitted, an acknowledgement would appear giving details of the grievance and unique number of the grievance. The number then could be used by the consumer to track his grievance. Shayin said that for online tracking, the complainant would go to the grievance tracking section on the
homepage. An alternative way to track the complaint had also been provided in the form of a phone number on the homepage. By providing the complaint ID, the system would provide updates about the grievance any time before it was resolved. He said that the system had the provision for the officers to login and check the grievances assigned to them. The complaints were to be redressed in a time-bound manner. To make the grievance redressal system more effective and faster, the system would provide a mechanism by which the grievances would get escalated to the next higher official after a specific period. The next officer would also get a limited number of days for redressal of the grievance failing which the grievance move up to the officer next in the hierarchy. Eventually, in the end, the grievance would reach the inbox of the highest officer in the hierarchy. Meanwhile, Shayin has appealed to consumers to report bribery or unscrupulous activities in the offices of the nigam directly to him on his office telephone number 01662-223734 during office hours Notices regarding this had been displayed in all offices of SDOs. The identity of the consumer reporting bribery would be kept secret. Shayin said strict action would be taken against any employee found accepting a bribe.
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Traffic lights to replace roundabouts in Gurgaon
Gurgaon, March 14 The meeting decided to erect traffic lights to replace roundabouts at certain road intersections and make the already installed traffic lights functional. Besides, zebra crossings with thermo-plastic paints will be made for the convenience of pedestrians. Deswal felt that there was urgent need for constructing more foot overbridges between Rajiv Chowk and Kherki Daula as 57 pedestrians had lost their lives while crossing the road on this stretch. The Police Commissioner expressed concern about the long queues of vehicles at the Kherki Daula toll plaza which was a major reason for traffic jams there. He said that the
IMT Manesar-bound vehicles were also affected by this jam. He suggested more toll gates there to overcome the problem. At this, the NHAI representative pointed out that the apex court had stayed the acquisition of land. Deswal maintained that the NHAI authorities should be more sympathetic towards the predicament of the commuters. He also stressed the necessity to provide an additional exit point between Shankar Chowk and IFFCO Chowk, which can be used by the commuters for going to Phase I and II developed by DLF. HUDA Administrator Nitin Yadav observed that narrow exit points also led to jams on the highway. He said HUDA was ready to provide 15-metre additional strip of land from the green belt for widening of the exit points and service lanes. He revealed that a plan was also afoot to make an underpass at IFFCO Chowk. DCP (Traffic) Bharti Arora suggested a plan to mark specific lanes for different type of vehicles on the highway and also to put proper signages.
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State to be hub of technical education, says minister
Sonepat, March 14 This was stated by Haryana Technical Education and Power Minister Mahender Pratap Singh while addressing students of Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram University of Science and Technology, Murthal, during the closing ceremony of a two-day cultural programme on the university campus, here, recently. Stressing that technical education was the key to the development of the state and the country, he said the number of technical education institutes had increased from six to 596 and the number of seats had gone up to 1,24,000 during the tenure of the Hooda government. He also clamed that Haryana was emerging as an educational as well as industrial hub due to the large-scale expansion of educational facilities and modernisation of professional and technical education. Announcing a grant of Rs 11 lakh for the university, the minister assured more financial assistance would be provided if needed. Listing the achievements of the university, HS Chahal, vice-chancellor, said Murthal university was one of the 27 universities selected from 600 universities in the country under the solar energy programme. Besides launching postgraduate research courses, the university had also signed two agreements at the international level for providing better educational facilities to the students. The minister also distributed prizes among the winners of the events organised during the annual cultural festival of the
university.
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Industry for setting up labour colonies
Faridabad, March 14 Incidentally, the government has also expressed its seriousness in facilitating accommodation for workers in its new industrial policy. Making the proposal on behalf of the FIA, its president Sajjan Kumar Jain told the minister that it was high time that the industrial workers in Faridabad were provided accommodation. To this effect the industry was ready to play a pro-active role along with the government, he added. The industrialists are of the view that setting up of labour colonies and providing accommodation to the workers would not only boost their working capacity but also go a long way in removing slums from the city. The industry is of the view that with the growing culture of globalisation and competitiveness in the economy, not only the morale of the workers needs to be further raised, but the city also needs to present itself aesthetically. The landscape of Faridabad city looks a defiled lot as it is dotted with a large number of slums compared with the other cities of Haryana. According to a conservative estimate, the number of industrial workers in Faridabad may range from 1-1.5 lakh. Majority of them, including the migrant labourers, reside in slums. The minister responded to the industry’s proposal saying that the government was in favour of providing
accommodation to the workers at specified places. He hinted that allotments of spaces for setting up accommodation for the workers would be made in the industrial model township, Ballabgarh.
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Seminar on status of women in Haryana
Yamunanagar, March 14 Speaking on the problem of declining sex ratio, Prof Yadav said, “People are buying brides for just Rs 20,000 to Rs 25,000 while a buffalo is sold for Rs 60,000”. She added that somehow education had played a significant role in upgrading the status of women. She said due to reservation at grass-roots level, participation of women in politics has increased but they are still puppets in the hands of male politicians. Dr Sunil Devi from Panjabi University, Patiala, informed about the status of women in the Lok Sabha elections in Haryana and concluded that their participation was far too less. She added that women still had not got higher posts. Dr Seema Sethi, assistant professor of sociology department of DAV College, said there were not enough managerial posts for women in Haryana and there was a need to change the social structure. Tanmeet Jagdev of the host college described the Udaan project started by the college to impart computer education and judo karate training to girls top make them self-reliant. Aanchal from economics department of the host college spoke on the role of women in the growth of Haryana. Parmesh Tyagi, a lecturer in the mass communication department, discussed problems encountered by women on the domestic front. He also focused on the existing atrocities against women in society. He stressed the urgency of awareness amongst women to curb these social evils. Dr Sushma Arya, principal, thanked the participants.
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NIFAA mourns deaths in Japan tsunami
Karnal, March 14 Pritpal Singh Pannu, chairperson, NIFAA, has spoken to Kojiro Uchiyama, director of Japan Information Centre in the embassy of Japan, New Delhi, and has conveyed heartfelt sympathies and condolences, as well as offered any assistance that may be required. Later in the evening, NIFAA volunteers and citizens of Karnal organised a candlelight condolence meeting at the local Committee Chowk and paid homage to the victims of this tragedy. The gathering also observed two-minute silence to mourn the death of the victims in the disaster. Expressing grief and shock, Pannu said Indians were with the people of Japan at this hour of need and were keen to support them in every possible way. Various Japanese cultural groups had visited Haryana on the invitation of NIFAA and a number of Indian groups had also visited Japan through NIFAA. Pannu said it was a coincidence that Shilpa Manocha, general secretary of the Delhi unit of NIFAA, was also present at Haneda Airport in Tokyo when the earthquake hit Japan. She was returning to India after attending one-and-a-half-month-long education programme on peace building jointly organised by the Hiroshima Peace Building Centre and the UN. She experienced the dreadful movements of the earthquake at the airport. Her flight was delayed by two hours and as a result, she missed connecting flights and reached India late by a day.
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Corruption main obstacle to inclusive growth: Experts
Kurukshetra, March 14 KU Registrar Prof Raghuvendra Tanwar, who was the chief guest at the valedictory session, said the potential of Indians and the geographic advantage of the country were not well channelised by various governments of the country after Independence. “Sensitivity of people towards the poor and the underprivileged and readiness to make sacrifice by the rich is necessary for inclusive growth,” said Tanwar. Prof Upinder Sahni from the department of economics, Panjab University, Chandigarh, said it was ironical that Haryana was economically one of the fastest growing states in the country, but it was not witnessing inclusive growth. Observing that decline in agriculture-based growth and singular focus on the service and industry sector has resulted in suicides by farmers and unemployment among farm labourers, Sahni said it was important that they must ensure that economic dividends lead to greater employment and wage enhancement. There was a need to focus on provision of safe drinking water, health facilities, education and better living conditions, she added.
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Man gets life term for trader’s murder
Rewari, March 14 According to the prosecution, Naresh, along with his two accomplices - Manoj and Surender of the same village - picked up Narain Das from Dharuhera on February 13, 2000, when he was returning to Dharuhera after collecting the sale proceeds from cloth merchants of Tijara and Bhiwadi towns of Alwar district in Rajasthan. After looting the collected amount from him, Narain Das was shot dead allegedly by Naresh and then the body was thrown into a canal at Phideri turn, from where it was recovered by the police on February 15. Consequently, the police registered a murder case, following which Manoj and Surender were arrested while Naresh, who was declared a proclaimed offender, continued to elude arrest for several years. However, Naresh was arrested on September 2, 2007, while he was planning a robbery in Delhi. Meanwhile, the court of the Additional Sessions Judge here had sentenced both Manoj and Surender to life imprisonment on January 18, 2006, holding them guilty of the murder of Narain Das. However, this decision of the trial court was challenged by them in the Punjab and Haryana High Court which acquitted them both setting aside the verdict of the trial court in 2008. Consequently, family members of the deceased filed a petition challenging the above decision in the apex court, where it is still pending.
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Sanitation drive held
Sirsa, March 14 As many as 25 tractor-driven trolleys, four JCB machines and eight “karahas” (agricultural land equipment) were in service for the campaign, he added. Deputy Commissioner (DC) Yudhbir Singh Khyalia, who inaugurated the drive, said it was the first operation of its kind in the country. The DC said the authorities would launch a drive to make all towns free from polythene. He said the sewer system of Sirsa town would be revamped soon and all ditches on roads would be filled.
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40 donate blood
Ambala, March 14 Speaking on the occasion, Dr Bharti expressed concern over the poor count of HB. He said it mostly caused due to poor diet and irregular eating habits. None of the 20 girls were having 10 point hemoglobin which is required for blood donation. He advised the girls to be careful about their diet for maintaining good health. Earlier, inaugurating the camp, Ashok Mehta, who is also president of Haryana Punjabi Mahasabha, called upon the volunteers to donate blood for the ailing people. He informed that the sabha was setting up a multi-speciality hospital near Saha. Meanwhile, another blood donation camp was organised by GMN College in memory of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. Students, teachers and member of Innerwheel Club donated blood. SPS Chauhan, superintendent, Ambala Central Jail, was the chief guest. Prof YM Saini and Dr Mani Ram donated blood for 85th and 52nd time, respectively.
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Revenue officials start identifying land for power project
Fatehabad, March 14 The revenue officials have been visiting farmers, who had recently expressed their willingness to give their land for the project and have asked them to sign an undertaking to this effect. The undertaking says that they are ready to give their land for the project provided they get a compensation of Rs 50 lakh per acre and a job for a member of their family. The undertaking also lists some other conditions that the main gate of the unit will be opened facing the village. Sources said the authorities have so far obtained such undertakings from farmers owning about 400 acres. The Haryana Government had issued a notification for acquisition of 1,313 acres for the project last year leading to protests by the farmers, who have been sitting on dharna for the past over 200 days. Recently, a splinter group of farmers had met Chief Parliamentary Secretary Prahlad Singh Gillankhera and DC Vijay Singh Dahiya expressing their willingness to part with their land for the project on certain conditions. Though the group had claimed that they have the backing of farmers owning over 900 acres and could provide 600 acres more located adjacent to the site, those sitting on dharna had belied their claims. In an effort to identify the actual number of acres available for the project without any resistance, the revenue authorities have started the exercise of obtaining undertakings from these. District Revenue Officer Ram Singh Bishnoi said the undertakings were nothing but the terms of the memorandum given by these farmers to the authorities reproduced in the shape of affidavits. He said he would submit a report to the DC once the process was completed. While submitting their objections to the notification issued by the government, all farmers had opposed the acquisition. Now, the fresh undertakings submitted by these farmers would be read with the objections already given by them for the purpose of taking a final decision on the acquisition of their land, said sources in the Revenue Department.
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Tributes paid to unborn daughters
Sirsa,
March 14 The ADC honoured 150 mothers, who have only girls as their progeny, on this occasion. Deputy Commissioner Yudhbir Singh Khyalia, who was also present in the function, congratulated Pankaj Chaudhary for organising a programme for honouring mothers of girl children. The function began with the lighting of candles in memory of “missing daughters” --- the girls who could not see the light of the day because their parents did not allow them to take birth. Pankaj Chaudhary said gender-based discrimination was unreasonable and injustice with girls. She said women had proved that they were not behind men in any respect and had rather been outclassing their male counterparts in every sphere of life. She said though there were laws to stop the practice of female foeticide, things would change only when the mindset of society altered. Dr Shamim Sharma, Executive Director of Jan Nayak Chaudhary Devi Lal Vidyapeeth, said that the reason why women were treated as “second rate individuals” by a large section of society was that they had been kept away from education for generations. She said the patriarchal mindset of society was responsible for the poor plight of women . Kumud Bansal, chairperson of Rashoba College of Education, said laws providing rights to women would be useful only once women themselves identified their rights. Sheel Kaushik, deputy civil surgeon (vector-borne diseases) said women had proved in the recent years that they were not behind men in any field.
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Plastic manufacture, usage and waste management rules
Yamunanagar, March 14 The Central Government through the Ministry of Environment and Forests has notified that sachets using plastic material shall not be manufactured and used for storing, packing or selling gutka, tobacco and pan masala. The State Pollution Control Board will be the enforcement agency for the implementation of these rules related to authorisation manufacture, recycle and disposal in the state while the MC concerned will be the enforcement agency for the implementation of rules relating to the use, collection, segregation, transportation and disposal of plastic waste, besides plastic waste management. The Yamunanagar administration has directed to implement the provisions strictly in the district. Ashok Sangwan, deputy commissioner, has directed the authorities to take necessary action against the defaulters, particularly against the manufacturers and stockists. Regarding polythene carry bags, the Haryana government has already issued a notification dated January 3, 2011 to completely ban the manufacture, storage, distribution, sale and use of polythene carry bags of any size or thickness in the state.
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Tanwar’s job as AICC secretary a challenging task
Sirsa, March 14 As the secretary of the AICC, Tanwar has been assigned the charge of three important states - Gujarat, Maharashtra and Jammu and Kashmir. While Gujarat is to go for Assembly elections in 2012, Maharashtra will go in to local bodies elections soon. Jammu and Kashmir is also one of the most important states of the country. Tanwar will be associated with CWC member Mohan Parkash, who is AICC in charge of these states. Incidentally, Gujarat, where the BJP has been in power since 1998 and the Saffron party seems to be comfortably placed under Narender Modi, will be the first test of Tanwar’s organisational skill. A good performance by the Congress in 2012 elections in Gujarat can help Tanwar consolidate his position in the party’s organisation. Tanwar’s supporters are excited at his appointment and this was evident when he received a rousing welcome on his arrival in the constituency recently. Senior party leaders like former minister Ranjit Singh and former OSD to the CM Dr KV Singh were among those who felicitated Tanwar in a function held in the Congress Bhawan here. Senior Congress leaders of the area consider Tanwar’s appointment as a boon for the local Congress workers. Sampat Singh, a former minister and the Congress MLA from Nalwa, who has been representing the erstwhile Bhattu Kalan Assembly seat under the Sirsa parliamentary constituency for nearly three decades, said Tanwar’s appointment was an honour to the area. “With Kumari Sejla, who represented Sirsa in the past as a Union Minister and Birender Singh, another Congress stalwart from the area as general secretary of the AICC, we have a fairly good share in the power at the Centre now,” added Sampat. “Tanwar’s appointment will provide a boost to the Congress in his home constituency and we will start getting direct access in the AICC office now,” said Malkiat Singh Khosa, president of the District Congress Committee at Sirsa. Tanwar himself considers the assignment as challenge. “I have been an organisation man. I have worked as the president of the NSUI and as the president of the Indian Youth Congress. I have travelled the entire length and breadth of the country. The new assignment will also be a challenging job,” he added.
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Declamation Contest
Sirsa, March 14 Shalini won the first prize in the individual category, while Meenakshi and Mamta from the Mata Harki Devi College for Women, Odhan, were together adjudged second. Neeraj, a student of the Manohar Memorial College of Education, Fatehabad, got the third position. The first three participants were given cash prizes of Rs 1,000, Rs 750 and Rs 500, respectively, while the team of the DMA College of Education was given the trophy. In his keynote address, Dr JS Jakhar, associate professor in the Law Department of Chaudhary Devi Lal University, Sirsa, said the real empowerment of women was possible with their socio-legal empowerment only. He said education was the real empowerment and once women get educated, they become socially conscious and legally aware. Advocate Sukhwinder Punjwar also spoke on the occasion. Anoop Singh, principal of the Lala Hans Raj Phutela College of Law, said the college had been organising such declamation contests every year. Parveen Baghla, president of the Sirsa Education Society, VP Singhal, secretary of the DMA College of Education, Prof Sunita from Government National College and Prof Kavita Chaudhary from the MM College of Education, Fatehabad, and Promilla Mehra, Shimpa Gera, Gopal Krishan and Saurabh Nagpal, all teachers of the host college, were present on the occasion.
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Women empowerment 'a far cry'
Sirsa, March 14 She said women empowerment was still a far cry in India. Even educated women were not independent yet. The plight to those 80 per cent women who spend their life sitting besides the kitchen fire was poor, she added. Dr Shamim Sharma, executive director, JCD Vidyapeeth, said women had fought their way through exploitation, harassment and had managed to secure their rights in various spheres of life. She said in spite of continuing exploitation and injustice against women in the domestic and work front, several milestones had been achieved in terms of education and freedom of choice in the recent years. With growing literacy and financial independence, women felt more empowered today to assert their right to a life of dignity. She, however, said much more was still desired to be done. Various cultural performances, including bhangra, group dances, solo song, solo dance, skit etc, were arranged on the occasion. Prof Gurcharan Das expressed gratitude to all participants, faculty members and principals of various colleges functioning under Jan Nayak Chaudhary Devi Lal Vidyapeeth.
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Cops train youths, 25 trainees awarded certificates
Rohtak, March 14 The training was provided free of cost by the local police with the help of a Gurgaon-based NGO. The office has announced to continue it with the induction of more youths in such a training programme taken up for the first time by the Police Department. IG V. Kamaraja, who is the brain behind the initiative, said it was the beginning of the effort that was aimed at helping, training and guiding educated but unemployed youths of the region. Speaking on the occasion of awarding certificates to the trained youths, he said security sector was a highly employment-generating area at present and it was poised to grow at a larger scale due to the expansion of business, trade and service sectors. Stating that though there were several companies in the private sector which were offering training and placement to youths, he said such a training could be more fruitful and credible if it was done with the help and involvement of the Police Department which was an expert in the subject and well equipped in terms of infrastructure. He said though a basic training of at least 160 hours was required for such personnel, the youths were given three-month training at the local Police Lines and the NGO helped them in improving their language and personality skills. He said no candidate was asked to shell out money for the training programme. Moreover, the trained youths would be provided all help regarding their placement also. Kamaraja said around 100 youths would be selected for the second batch of the training. The Global Education and Aviation Institute, a charitable organisation based in Gurgaon, had come forward to help the department in the training, the IG added.
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Stern action advocated against rights violators
Ambala, March 14 Former Kurukshetra University professor PD Sharma said people were widely aware of human rights these days. Though various social organisations have been educating people about their fundamental rights, human rights violations have increased in the country. Sushma Yadav, director, IIPA, said the Human Rights Commission was the appropriate authority where the complaints of violation of human rights could be reported. She said that India was a country with a vigorous press and strong judiciary to protect human rights. The Human Rights Commissiongenerally focuses its attention on custodial deaths, rape of women and political victimisation but it should also take up other matters which were not highlighted. College principal CK Yadav said human rights violation incidents had increased over the past few years. The police and the law-execution agencies should be provided proper training and orientation to enable them to become more humane in approach. She said stern measures should be taken to safeguard the human rights of a common man. Ranbir Singh of HIRD, SK Gupta, Rajesh Sharma and Chand Singh said every citizen should be aware of his rights and strict provisions should be made in the law to penalise the human rights violators.
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Peace in Kashmir only through talks: Abdullah
Karnal, March 14 Dr Abdullah who was the chief guest at the award ceremony of the Haryana Institute of Fine Arts (HIFA), here, yesterday, expressed confidence that peace would soon return to the Valley through talks. “We are committed to root out terrorism from the Valley but talks must continue with all concerned,” he said. Later, Dr Abdullah conferred HIFA awards to 21 Haryanavis, including Pt Jasraj lifetime achievement to the Chief Election Commissioner of India, Dr Shahbuddin Yaqoob Quraishi. As many as 10 Karmayogi Samman for individuals above the age of 50 for contribution to art culture and social activities and 10 Karmabhumi Samman for upcoming individuals in the age group of 35 and 50 years were given. The awards were given for outstanding achievements in the field of music, dance, theatre, fine arts, handloom, handicrafts, film, media, heritage conservation, environment, tourism, industry, social service, civil service, rural uplift, medical sciences, science and technology, empowered women and distinguished disabled and young achiever in any field. The recipients of Karmayogi Samman, which carries a cash prize of Rs 31,000, a citation and angvastra, included Anand Sharma for fine arts, Dr RP Hooda for art, culture and heritage conservation, JP Kaushik for film, Gurukul Mahavidyalya, Jhajjar, for heritage conservation, Mahesh Vashistha for theatre, Mohan Lal Sukheja for social service, Nirmal K Minda for trade and industry, Raghubir Singh for folk music, Ustad Aslam Sabri for music and Gobind Thukral for media. Karmabhumi Samman, which carries a cash prize of Rs 11,000, was conferred on Capt Indrani Singh for empowered women, Charu Dutta for advertising, Dinesh Kumar for handicrafts, Dr Virender Sangwan for medical sciences, Gulab Singh Khandewal for folk music, KG Dutt for media, Meghna Malik for films, Rajinder Sharma Nanu for theatre, Rakesh Bani for fine arts and Renuka Gambhir for Indian classic music. A colourful cultural programme was presented on the occasion and a Bharatanatyam dance and a Haryanavi hasya kavi sammelan enthralled the audience.
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Urban development: Expert group formed
Chandigarh, March 14 The sub-committee constituted an expert group to prepare a draft report on various issues concerning urbanisation. Union Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Kumari Selja, Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia and other members of the sub-committee or their representatives were present in the meeting. Surjewala said revenues collected through income tax and service tax provided by cities go to the Centre. However, out of this, the local bodies should be allocated some share to help them in their capacity building. He said to increase the finances, the Haryana Government had levied a 5 per cent cess on VAT, 80 per cent of which would go to the urban local bodies for urban development. Surjewala expressed disappointment at the provision under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) that unless associated reforms were implemented by states, the funds would not be released. He said states had certain social obligations to fulfill. Direct taxation in the form of various levies and user charges on urban households, particularly the poor section, should not be insisted upon. This provision needed a fresh look, he added. Kamal Nath highlighted the importance of land economics, metropolitan planning with basic services and with special emphasis on the poor. He talked of integrating Metro service with the BRT and city transport. Laying stress on inclusive urban growth, Selja mentioned about housing shortage and land shortage. She advocated for revised land use policy and simple approval procedure with single window service providing approval within two months to meet the need of housing and to provide necessary infrastructure in the cities. Ahluwalia laid stress on planning for next 20 years. He stressed the need for enhancing technical capacity in towns. He said top 30 cities of the country should develop their city plans for the next 20 years. Chief Minister of Assam Tarun Gogai also spoke on the occasion. Manu Srivastava, Principal Secretary Urban Development, Maharashtra Government, was made the convener of the expert group. The members of the Group included representatives from Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and some experts. The expert group will consult various states and submit its draft report within three months.
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Need for change in teacher education stressed
Sonepat, March 14 Vishwavidyalaya, Khanpur Kalan, while inaugurating a national seminar on “Reorienting Teacher Education in Creation of a Knowledge Society, at Bhagwan Mahaveer College of Education on March 10. “Multilingualism is another concern to be addressed at all levels in consonance with trends in the present world teacher education programmes,” she stressed. “The emerging technological development and global competitiveness demands the orientating of teachers, teaching learning process and updating of the educational contents for creation of a knowledgeable society,” stated Dr Sanjay Jain, chairman of the college, who presided over the inaugural session. In the inaugural session of the seminar, Dr A.K.Rajput, a reader in NCERT at Delhi, said an informed and knowledgeable society was the need of the hour. Though teaching was a profession like medical practice of a doctor, he said and asked “If we can believe a doctor, then why not a teacher.” The occasion was marked by the release of a souvenir, a compilation of the research papers of scholars and teachers from different parts of the country. The seminar concluded with two technical sessions on sub-themes, including curriculum re-orientation in teacher education, multilingualism and teacher education, teacher preparation for inclusive education, value inculcation in teacher education, information and communication technology in teacher education and research perspectives in teacher education.
— OC
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Community radio stations
Sirsa, March 14 Chaudhary Devi Lal University community radio director Virender Singh Chauhan said here that presently only 50-watt transmitters and 30-meter-high towers are permissible for community radio stations. Another resolution adopted at the meeting called upon the functional stations to share programmes for ensuring optimum utilisation of resources. Through a resolution, the conference called upon the institutions imparting education in media studies to amend their syllabi to suit the demands of media Industry. The experts observed that while the central government had already announced establishing 4000 community radio stations in the country, trained workforce would have to be prepared to run such stations. It was further resolved that short-term courses in radio production should be started by various institutions to meet the demands of the expanding community radio network in the country. The delegates were intimated that the Directorate of Audio-Visual Publicity had fixed the tariff for community radio stations. Although the rate fixed was nominal, iit would ultimately pave the way for self-sufficiency of these stations.
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DHBVN told to compensate Rewari farmer
Rewari, March 14 The amount would be paid to the petitioner by way of compensation. The forum has also directed the officials to pay him Rs 5,500 to cover the litigation costs. The order was pronounced by Vinod Jain, chairman of the forum, here recently. After suffering an electric shock in 2006, Jai Narain sent repeated requests to the DHBVN seeking replacement of old and loose electric wires, poles as well as the deficient transformer in his field. He even sent a communication to the deputy commissioner, who directed the DHBVN authorities to address his concerns expeditiously. However, when nothing was done, the harried farmer filed a petition in the forum through his counsel Babu Lal Khola on October 10, 2010, seeking relief and justice. Interestingly, when the DHBVN officials made a bid to make light of the petitioner’s grievances, the forum appointed a local commission which recently submitted its report lending full credence to the petitioner’s woes. Consequently, the forum then gave the above orders.
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Thieves’ gang busted
Rewari, March 14 The police also seized from them 23 batteries which they had stolen from a mobile tower at Naya Gaon Bahala village, near Nahar, on Wednesday night. They were produced in the court of SDJM PK Lal who remanded them in the police custody for three days. Ombir, the main accused, was yet to be arrested, the sources added. — OC
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