Chandigarh,February 14
There is good news for owners of unauthorized buildings built along scheduled roads and national highways in the state, with the state government deciding to regularise these structures on payment of charges.

In fact, giving a six-month “golden period” to the owners of such buildings, which came up before January 3, 2009, to avail the benefits of an amendment to the Punjab Scheduled Roads and Controlled Areas Restriction of Unregulated Development Act, 1963, the state government has decided to regularise the buildings on the payment of Rs 600 per square metre for a building on a national highway and Rs 350 per square metre for one on a scheduled road , official sources said here today.

A committee comprising the District Town Planner, a representative of the Deputy Commissioner concerned (not below an HCS officer), Executive Officer of the Municipal Corporation or Municipal Council concerned and an Executive Engineer, PWD, will scrutinise the applications.

The Act prohibits the construction of any building except those providing essential services such as petrol stations and bus queue shelters within 30 metres on both sides of national highways and scheduled roads and 100 metres on both sides of bypasses on these roads.

Taking cognizance of illegal constructions in the “non-construction zone” along national highways and scheduled roads, the authorities had started demolition drives in several cities which had sparked widespread protest from the affected building owners.

Now “bowing” to popular sentiments, the state government has framed a policy, which will be notified soon, the sources said, adding that no further extension would be provided to owners of illegal structures. However, the buildings coming in the way of strategic projects, including road-widening works, would not be regularised under any circumstances.

Chandigarh, February 14
The cash-starved power distribution companies of Haryana would be further burdened with an annual loss of over
Rs 21 crore as Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda today approved a proposal to
reintroduce the slab system of power tariff for agriculture tubewells in the state.

On an average, a consumer having metered supply connection and having a motor of 15 BHP would be benefited to the tune of about Rs 1350 per annum. In the case of motors of 25 hp and 40 hp, the consumers would be benefited to the tune of Rs 2,250 and Rs 3,600 per annum, respectively.

Consumers having unmetered supply connectionswould get a concession of Rs 900, Rs 1500 and Rs 2400 per annum on 15 hp, 25 hp and 40 hp motors, respectively.

As a result of this decision, the UHBVN and DHBVN would bear an annual burden of Rs 8.1 crore and Rs 13 crore, respectively.

Rohtak, February 14
A majority of the shops in the leading markets of the town remained closed till noon today in response to a call for a bandh given by various traders organisations in protest against the looting of a jewellery showroom here on February 7.

The traders bodies had called for the bandh in protest against the police’s failure to solve the jewellery robbery case in which three armed robbers looted gold ornaments and cash worth about Rs 75 lakh from Gupta Jewellery Shop near the Railway road here.

While the opposition parties, including the INLD, the BJP, the HJC and the CPM worked for the success of the bandh, it is learnt that over 70 per cent shops remained closed till noon only.

The INLD and the CPM activists staged a demonstration in the town in support of the bandh. The effect was mainly visible in the markets of the Quila road, the Railway road, the Shouri market, the Chameli market, the Palika bazar and parts of old Rohtak.

Ratia, February 14
The outbreak of hepatitis C in Ratia town of Fatehabad is quite disturbing. It became clear on the first day of the screening operations started by the health authorities yesterday under the guidance of medical experts from the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences (PGIMS), Rohtak.

The survey team covered less than one-third of Ratia town’s population yesterday and found 364 persons with hepatitis C symptoms, of whom 158 finally tested positive for the virus in the rapid tests conducted on their blood samples.

During the second day of the survey today, the teams have again found several cases with the symptoms though their blood sample reports would be known tomorrow.

Besides experts from the PGIMS, Bharti Sharma and Neha, both epidemiologists, and Phageshwar, a microbiologist from the state Health Department, have also been accompanying the survey teams.

Besides the 32,000-odd population of Ratia town, the health teams have to cover over 2 lakh people living in 48 villages and 11 ‘dhanis’ of Ratia block.

The operations are to continue till February 29 or till the targeted population of nearly 2.25 lakh persons is covered.

During the operations, people between the age of 18 and 60 years are being questioned whether they have symptoms like loss of appetite, loss of weight and gastric discomfort and those with these symptoms are being tested for hepatitis C. If a person is found infected, his or her spouse and other members of the family are also tested.

“I have not come across such a large number of hepatitis C cases in a particular area in my career,” said Dr RB Jain, a professor of community medicine at the PGIMS, Rohtak, who is leading the operations.

“Once we are done with the operations, we will send samples of all positive cases and 10 per cent of those testing negative selected on a random basis to the PGIMS for the enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test,” he added.

Palwal, February 14
The local police rescued a doctor hailing from Bengaluru, who is the owner of a nursing home, from the clutches of his kidnappers demanding Rs 50 lakh for his release. Three culprits were nabbed after exchange of fire with the police near Sondh village in Hodal.

Those arrested have been identified as Irshad (UP), Shadir and Javed of Mewat in Haryana. Another accomplice escaped at the time of the police encounter. A country-made gun and two cartridges were found on them at the time of the arrest. The car used in the crime was impounded during the police operation. The doctor with his limbs tied was in the car.

The culprits had kept the doctor, Shankar, in detention in the car. The police zeroed in on them near Sondh on the Hodal-Nuh road. They were nabbed following an exchange of fire with the police.

Vinod Singh, DSP, Hodal, said two of those arrested had conspired and visited Shankar Nursing Home in Bengaluru on the pretext of getting treatment for typhoid on January 29. They befriended its owner, Shankar. They visited the nursing home again on January 29.

Vinod Singh said the two lured the doctor with an offer to sell to him a gold brick at Rs 50 lakh only.

The unsuspecting doctor flew to the Delhi airport and came to Hodal last Saturday to clinch the deal. The doctor had brought only Rs 5,000 in cash with him. The culprits kept him in detention and made calls to his brother, Suresh, demanding Rs 50 lakh for his release.

The details of the telephonic calls made by the culprits led the police to Hodal.

New Delhi, February 14
As the Supreme Court is slated to hear the disqualification case of the five MLAs for allegedly defecting from the HJC to the Congress in 2009, the Speaker of the Haryana Assembly, Kuldeep Sharma, today conducted a hearing in the matter of disqualification of these MLAs that is pending before him.

The Speaker heard three witnesses in the case, Satpal Sangwan, a minister in the Bhupinder Singh Hooda Cabinet besides Vinod Sharma and Purshottum. The latter two have been associated with the HJC in the past. Today’s hearing was in Delhi while the matter is slated to be heard in the apex court tomorrow.

HJC chief Kuldeep Singh Bishnoi, in 2009, petitioned the Speaker saying five MLAs of his party left the HJC which helped the Congress to form a government in Haryana in October 2009. Two of them, Rao Narendra Singh and Satpal Sangwan, went on to become ministers. The other three MLAs are Vinod Bhayana, Zile Ram Sharma and Dharam Singh.

Today, Kuldeep Sharma while answering questions from reporters said it was wrong to say that he was delaying the case. “There are 80 witnesses in the case; so far only eight have come forward to depose. I have to hear all of them and only then dispose of the petition. The petition cannot be disposed of without hearing all of them.” Kuldeep Sharma was elected Speaker of the Assembly in 2011. However, the disqualification proceedings had been pending since 2009.

The Supreme Court on January 4 had stayed an order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court which declared the five MLAs, including two Cabinet ministers, Rao Narendra Singh and Satpal Sangwan, as “unattached members” of the House. The matter will be heard in the Supreme Court tomorrow.

The stay order has facilitated continuance of the two MLAs as ministers. The high court ruling had reduced the Congress government to a minority with just 41 MLAs in the 90-member House. However, its survival was not threatened as it enjoyed the support of 7 Independents, five of them from the HJC.

Hisar, February 14
The Haryana unit of the All-India Jat Reservation Sangharsh Samiti today distanced itself from any agitation that might be launched by any individual or organisation in support of its demand for reservation for Jats in government jobs before March 23.

Addressing a press conference here, Hawa Singh Sangwan, president of the Haryana unit of the samiti, said both the Haryana Government and the Centre had held talks with the samiti leadership. As a result, while the state had set up a Haryana Backward Classes Commission, the Centre had referred the demand to the National Backward Classes Commission.

Sangwan said the state panel had completed its hearings and it was expected to submit its report soon. Till the completion of the poll process in five states, it was not possible for the Centre to make any announcement in this regard.

He said the state unit of the samiti would wait till the expiry of the March 23 deadline for the government to give its verdict. Recalling that the samiti had first suspended its stir in September 2011 till February 19 and later extended the suspension to March 23, he said it would be highly inappropriate to resume the agitation before the deadline expired.