Rohtak, November 19
Power generation in the state is poised to take a massive jump of another 2,070 MW in six months as the commissioning of two new plants in Jhajjar district is nearing.

The total power generation in the state will then be around 5,500 MW and will ensure at least 20 to 22 hours’ supply across the state.

Stating this, the Rohtak MP, Deepender Singh Hooda, said in a statement here today that the commissioning of the two new thermal plants in Jhajjar district in the next few months would ensure better power supply in the state and claimed that it would be for the first time that power generation capacity of more than the available capacity would be added in the state in a short span of just seven years as compared to a period of about 40 years of the state’s inception. The new projects include the 1,500 MW coal-based super thermal power project being set up in Jhajjar.

The project is being executed by the NTPC from concept to commissioning and subsequent operation and maintenance in a joint venture with Haryana and Delhi governments. As the MOU was signed between the NTPC, Government of National Capital Territory (NCT), Delhi, and Government of Haryana on August 24, 2006, the commissioning schedule of the three units under this project was 35, 38 and 41 months.

This plant will make available a supply of 750 MW to Haryana. The second project that is likely to commission is the 1,320 MW Mahatama Gandhi Thermal Power Project, also in the same district, and it was constructed by China Light Power Company. It was likely to be synchronised by the end of December this year.

The other projects in the pipeline include 1,500 MW gas-based project at Faridabad, 2,800 MW (4x700 MW) nuclear power plant in Fatehabad district.

The state had initiated reforms in its power sector in 1997. Pursuant to these reforms, the state electricity board was unbundled and reorganised in 1998. State-owned utilities were established to perform the functions of generation, transmission and distribution of power independently.

Haryana Power Generation Corporation Limited was incorporated as a company and was given the responsibility of operating and maintaining the generation projects and setting up of new generating stations in order to keep pace with the increasing demand of power.

Kurukshetra, November 19
The Kurukshetra University Teachers Association (KUTA) spearheading the agitation for acceptance of its pending demands today decided to go ahead with its agitation as talks between KUTA representatives and Kurukshetra University (KU) authorities ended in deadlock today.

KUTA leaders also rejected the request of the Vice-Chancellor to conduct an entrance test of Ph.D slated for tomorrow and made it clear that teachers would not undertake any evaluation work or examination duty and resign en mass from all additional assignments on Monday as decided earlier.

Dr Pradeep Chauhan, president KUTA, said the university did not give any firm assurance on some of the major demands and the talks ended without any tangible result. The university authorities had accepted the pre-conditions set by KUTA and removed the OSD in the Vice-Chancellor’s office for resumption of talks, today.

Chauhan said we had decided to continue the chain hunger strike as well as the indefinite dharna. The resignations of the Deans, Heads of the Departments and other teachers entrusted with administrative jobs had started pouring in and all 75 teachers would tender their resignations on Monday, if a negotiated settlement on their demands was not reached, Dr Chauhan added.

The university authorities had claimed on October 16 that the major demands of the teachers had been accepted but KUTA contested the claim of the university and insisted that no agreement had been reached and the agitation had been intensified.

Hundreds of students from Haryana and other parts of the country are expected to appear in entrance test for Ph. D and in case the agitation was not called off, situation cold become difficult for the university.

Chauhan alleged that the university was not even implementing the resolutions adopted by the Executive Council regarding the demands of the teachers, who have been forced to adopt a path of confrontation, which could vitiate the academic atmosphere in the university.

KUTA, KU talks deadlocked even after removal of OSD, stir to continue

Meanwhile, the Haryana Federation of University and College Teachers Organisation (HFUCTO) has lent its support to the ongoing agitation of KUTA for implementation of the Haryana Government notification dated July 21, 2011, and acceptance of other demands. It has expressed solidarity with the teachers of Kurukshetra University.

Jhajjar, November 19
A large number of residents of Kheri Hosdapur village here did not lift the body of an assistant lineman (ALM) for nearly 18 hours to protest against the incident besides building pressure on the district authorities to announce an appropriate compensation and a government service to a next of kin of the deceased.

The villagers lifted the body from the spot this morning following an assurance made by the district authorities that Rs 5 lakh as compensation and a government service of a driver would be given to the brother of the deceased.

The ALM, Dharmender, who had been working with the Haryana Power Corporation on a daily basis, was reportedly electrocuted to death while on duty in fields of the village here last evening.

It is learnt that the incident took place when Dharmender was busy rectifying a technical snag after climbing on an electricity pole installed in the fields. The power was switched off from the sub-station office of the corporation due to repairing of the electricity line whereas another ALM was standing on the ground to assist Dharmender.

Suddenly, Dharmender fell down from the pole after suffering a high-voltage shock following restoration of power supply in the line. Dharmender reportedly died on the spot while the other ALM fled after the incident instead of taking him to hospital for treatment.

As the news of untimely death of Dharmender spread in Kheri Hosdapur village, villagers rushed to the spot and decided not to lift the body from there till the district authorities announced an appropriate compensation and a government service to the next of kin of the deceased.

The villagers have also lodged a complaint against three officials of the power corporation.

Faridabad, November 19
A local court today awarded 14 days’ judicial custody to five persons accused of having stolen a consignment of cigarettes worth about Rs 3 crore while it was on its way from Saharanpur in UP to Hyderabad.

The CIA, a special investigation branch of the Haryana Police, handling the case, says it has recovered goods worth Rs 2 crore from them.

Three of the five accused, Talib, Jamshed and Arshad, all from Palwal, were arrested on Thursday in a market at Sector 7 here while they were looking for customers for the stolen goods. A local court had sent them in police remand for two days. Mukesh, a native of Hindon in Rajasthan, had escaped arrest in Sector 7, only to be arrested later. Saurabh, a resident of Bharatpur district (Rajasthan), was arrested in a raid at his house along with some of the goods.

According to the police, Mukesh, who runs a private ITI college in Hindon, allegedly conspired in the crime and also bought the stolen goods for Rs 50 lakh.

The goods consisted of high-value brands of cigarettes: Gold Flake, Wills Bristol, India King and Classic.

The truck carrying the consignment had left a factory gate of the ITC, a tobacco major, in Saharanpur on October 25. The truck was hired from Dharuhera (Rewari)-based Varoon Roadlines. Talib was the driver.

Mohammad Illiyas, head of the CIA team following the case, said Talib along with Arshad and Jamshed sold the goods in Hindon.

According to the police, Talib took the truck to the office of Varoon Roadlines in Dharuhera on October 26. He went to the office as the truck was running short of fuel. It was later taken to Hodal (Palwal) and then to Punhana (Mewat) where Jamshed and Arshad joined Talib.

They snapped the GPS-line fitted with the vehicle. They proceeded for Hindon and disposed of the goods on October 27. They abandoned the truck near Dholpur(Rajasthan) after the sale.

According to Illiyas, the case was first reported to the police in Punhana in the evening of October 26 by Varoon Roadlines after the GPS-linkage was severed from the truck.

Mukesh had escaped the police dragnet but was arrested later at Hindon. He and Saurabh were arrested by the police on the basis of information provided to it by those arrested in the case.

The police says one more accomplice in the case, Udai Bhan from Udaipur in Rajasthan, was still at large with some stolen goods.

Sirsa, November 19
“There is a wide chasm between haves and have-nots in India, which is increasing day by day,” said DR Chaudhary, a former member of the Haryana Administrative Reforms Commission.

Chaudhary, who was delivering his keynote address in the 10th national conference of the New Public Administration Society of India (NEPASI) organised by the Public Administration Department of Chaudhary Devi Lal University here, said India has the largest number of dollar billionaires in Asia, but at the same time, the country has a lot of poverty and malnutrition.

Tracing its reason, Chaudhary said India borrowed the form of democracy from the west, but the country could match those countries in the content of its democracy because the society continued to be semi-feudal. Quoting Arjun Sengupta report on the “Condition of Work and Promotion of Livelihood in the Unorganised Sector,” Chaudhary said over 77 per cent of Indian population lived on per capita consumption of Rs 20 per day.

Urging youths and academicians to play a positive role in improving the conditions, Chaudhary said their concerted efforts could strengthen the democracy in the country.

In his speech, Rajbir Deswal, IG (CID), Haryana, who was the chief guest, traced the administration system in India from the ancient history. He said all organs of democracy needed some improvements for its better functioning. “If the legislature is impeded by multiplicity of laws, the judiciary is “bogged down” due to delays,” said Deswal and added that even the executive had not been able to perform its duties properly and is often found looking towards courts for directions, where it could itself exercise its authority.

Chandigarh, November 19
The Punjab and Haryana High Court recently made it clear that the Haryana Home Secretary and the DGP, Haryana, will find themselves in the contempt loop for not reinstating dismissed Sub-Inspectors despite their reinstatement orders from the high court and the Supreme Court.

Directing the Home Secretary and the DGP to take back the dismissed SIs within two weeks, the high court asserted that both officers would have to file a reply before the court as to why contempt of court proceedings should not be initiated against them in case of failure to comply with the orders.

The orders by Justice AK Mittal came on a contempt petition filed by some of the dismissed cops. On September 1, 2009, a Division Bench had allowed a bunch of appeals by 43 SIs dismissed from service in 2005 by the present Hooda government immediately after coming into power.

In its orders, the Bench had directed the state government to reinstate all these cops with the benefit of continuity in service, but without financial benefit for the period they were out of job.

The SIs were recruited during the tenure of the then Chief Minister, Om Prakash Chautala, for the specially constituted Haryana State Industrial Security Force (HSISF).

Sonepat, November 19
Rich tributes were paid to the late Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, on her birth anniversary today by the Congress and the day was observed as National Integration Day by the group centre of the CRPF, Sonepat.

Suraj Bhan Kajal, DIG of the group centre, said the centre would observe a ‘communal harmony week’ by organising different programmes during the week.

Although India was a country of 1,618 languages, 6,400 castes and six major religions, its unity in diversity was an example of communal harmony, social amity and national integration for the people of other countries, he emphasised.

In a programme here at the party office, DCC (Urban) president Pradeep Gautam said Indira Gandhi was a dynamic leader, a true patriot and a well-wisher of the poor sections of society.

KAITHAL: On the occasion of birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and as a part of national integration week, the district administration organised a function in the local mini-secretariat here on Saturday. Government officials and employees present on this occasion were administered an oath by Deputy Commissioner A Mona Sreeniwas to maintain national unity and integrity and promote mutual brotherhood and peace in the society. She exhorted them to work with dedication.

Rich tributes were paid to the late Prime Minister. Sreeniwas said Indira Gandhi was a strong and bold leader and took historic decisions. India emerged as a strong nation due to her efforts. She had launched various schemes for the benefit of the common man.

Ratia (Fatehabad), November 19
Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said today that he made Haryana farmers “crorepatis” overnight by taking a decision that no agriculture land in Haryana could be acquired for a price less than the minimum floor rates fixed by the government.

Trying to strike a chord with farmers, who are the largest constituent of the Ratia Assembly segment, Hooda, who campaigned for the Congress nominee, Jarnail Singh, for the second day in succession today, said the prices of land in this area were Rs 2 to Rs 5 lakh per acre, when he assumed power in 2005.

However, by a single stroke of the pen, he raised the prices of land in the area to Rs 30 lakh per acre and more, making a farmer having five acres of landholding a “crorepati” from a “lakhpati”.

Hooda said that farmers used to pay 11 per cent interest on their crop loans before he came to power in 2005 and being the son of a farmer, he could understand the problems of farmers.

He said he decreased the rates of interest on crop loans from 11 per cent to 4 per cent and stopped the arrests of farmers for their failure to repay loans.

Meanwhile, the INLD today rubbished Hooda’s claims about spending Rs 330 crore on Ratia in its seven years in power against Rs 96 crore spent by its six-year regime from 1999 to 2005.

Abhey Singh Chautala, INLD MLA from Ellenabad, alleged that Hooda made such claims during the Ellenabad bypoll, too, but the people did not believe his figures.

“Whatever we did for Ratia is there for everyone to see, but there is no evidence of money spent by the Congress government on the ground,” the INLD leader said.

In a press conference organised here today, Hooda released a list of heads on which his government has spent these Rs 330 crore, as claimed by him yesterday.

Mamta Kataria, a zila parishad member, quit the Congress and joined the INLD in the presence of Dabwali MLA Ajay Singh Chautala.

Ajay Singh alleged that the Congress and the HJC indulged in “political match-fixing” at Hisar to defeat him, and now, he alleged, they were trying to repeat the same at Ratia and Adampur to the advantage of the Congress at Ratia and to the HJC’s benefit at Adampur.

Kuldeep Bishnoi, the HJC supremo, today campaigned in over 12 villages of Ratia and sought votes for the BJP nominee, Mahavir Parshad.

Hisar, November 19
The police has arrested three youths in connection with the looting of Rs 9.40 lakh from an ATM of Axis Bank three days ago.

A spokesperson for the police said here today that the accused had been identified as Ramphal and Rahul of Ladwa village and Sanjeev of Dinoda Kalan village. The police has recovered Rs 7.82 lakh from them which had been looted after breaking open the ATM.

While the police has sought remand of Ramphal and Rahul, it had requested the magistrate to send Sanjeev to judicial custody as he had a paralytic stroke after the incident.

The spokesman said Ramphal was under pressure from a financier to repay a loan he had raised. He contacted Sanjeev who earlier worked with Axis Bank. Sanjeev had a key to open the ATM which he had stolen while he was working with the bank.

The trio borrowed an Indica car from an acquaintance. They went to the ATM located on the Rajgarh Road here and while one of them waited outside, two of them entered the cabin. Sanjeev was familiar with the unlocking system and he effortlessly unlocked the ATM. Before doing so, his companion smashed the tubelight and covered the CCTV camera with a bedsheet. 

However, the camera took a clear shot of his face as the bedsheet slipped from the camera. The spokesman said the police had to recover the car used in the crime and also the remaining cash stolen from the ATM.