H A R Y A N A   E D I T I O N

Poor to pay more for wheat
Chandigarh, January 12
At a time when the Congress-led UPA Government is giving finishing touches to its ambitious Food Security Bill, the Bhupinder Singh Hooda Government in the state has given a jolt to about 12 lakh below poverty line (BPL) families. The state government has increased the rate of wheat from Rs 4.88 per kg to Rs 5.20 per kg distributed under the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) across the state.

Mewat to have three more Central schools: Minister
Nuh (Mewat), January 12
In order to ensure quality education for girls in Mewat, three more Central schools will be established in the district. A girls’ hostel will also be constructed at Mewat Engineering College to encourage girls to go for higher studies.

Union Minister for Minority Affairs K Rahman Khan shares a point with Haryana Education Minister Geeta Bhukkal at Mewat on Saturday. Tribune photo: Sayeed Ahmed

HC quashes dept’s ‘obsolete qualification’ rule
Chandigarh, January 12
In the world of tabs and Twitter, the Haryana Irrigation Department wanted job aspirants to pass telegraphy examination. And that too when the telegraphy system of communication was replaced in the department more than two decades ago.

Sirsa village to get good water supply
Sirsa/Fatehabad, January 12
Villagers from Panniwala Mota in Sirsa and Chimmo in Fatehabad districts could not have asked for more as the entire district machinery led by their respective Deputy Commissioners (DCs) were amongst them to spend their nights in the villages.

Khaps support cane farmers
Karnal, January 12
The nine-day-old agitation of farmers for higher MSP for sugarcane received a boost ahead of crucial talks between Chief Minister B.S.Hooda and the 21-member action committee of sugarcane growers at New Delhi tomorrow as powerful khap leaders came out in support of the farmers.

Poor to pay more for wheat
Government increases commission of depot holders by Rs 30 per quintal
Pradeep Sharma
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 12
At a time when the Congress-led UPA Government is giving finishing touches to its ambitious Food Security Bill, the Bhupinder Singh Hooda Government in the state has given a jolt to about 12 lakh below poverty line (BPL) families.

The state government has increased the rate of wheat from Rs 4.88 per kg to Rs 5.20 per kg distributed under the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) across the state. "The new rates would be applicable from February 1, 2013," said a source here today.

As part of social commitment of the government, each BPL family was entitled to 25 kg wheat and 10 kg rice under the system at highly subsided rates. While wheat was made available at a rate of Rs 4.84 per kg (now, increased to Rs 5.20), the rice was at given at Rs 6.40 per kg.

On the other hand, acting on the persistent demand of the depot holders, the state government has hiked their commission from Rs 18 to Rs 48 per quintal, a handsome hike of Rs 30 per quintal.

Terming the 32 paise per kg hike in wheat prices as "very nominal", a senior functionary of the state government said it would not put much financial burden on the BPL beneficiaries.

"The hike has been necessitated on account of general revision in the prices of the wheat over the years," he claimed.

On the hike in the commission of the depot holders, he said the issue of the increase in the commission of the depot holders had been hanging fire since 1997.

The Rs 30 per quintal hike would offshoot a part of expenditure the depot holders incurred on the distribution of wheat to the BPL beneficiaries.

Jolt to the poor

• Government effects a Rs 0.32 per kg hike
• About 12 lakh BPL families to be affected
• First hike in depot holders' commission since 1997

Mewat to have three more Central schools: Minister
Tribune News Service

Nuh (Mewat), January 12
In order to ensure quality education for girls in Mewat, three more Central schools will be established in the district. A girls’ hostel will also be constructed at Mewat Engineering College to encourage girls to go for higher studies.

This was stated by Union Minister for Minority Affairs K Rahman Khan, who was here today to review the progress of various developmental projects being carried out.

The minister said efforts would be made towards the formation of a Waqf Development Corporation.

Gurgaon MP and former Union minister Rao Inderjit Singh demanded a railway line, a university dedicated to the minority populace and development of the Kotla lake.

Khan said he would give due consideration to the demands. The Minister also held meetings with office-bearers of the Waqf Board, members of the consultative committee of the ministry and local officials of various departments. He also went to Shaheed Hassan Khan Mewati Medical College at Nalhar village.

HC quashes dept’s ‘obsolete qualification’ rule
Telegraphy exam for aspirant signallers
Saurabh Malik
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 12
In the world of tabs and Twitter, the Haryana Irrigation Department wanted job aspirants to pass telegraphy examination. And that too when the telegraphy system of communication was replaced in the department more than two decades ago.

But logging off the old system, a Division Bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court has now quashed the portion of the recruitment rules that prescribed the “obsolete qualification”.

In their petition placed before the Division Bench of Chief Justice Arjan Kumar Sikri and Justice Rakesh Kumar Jain, Dinesh Kumar and others contended that the State had framed Haryana Irrigation Department, Signallers (Group-C) Service Rules, 1985.

The qualification prescribed for the post of “signaller” under the rules was matric and telegraphy examination from the Post and Telegraph Department. The petitioners asserted the basic duty of “signallers” was to transmit information on flow of water and other issues concerning irrigation. Earlier, telegraphic machines were used for transmitting information, but were replaced by wireless communication and telephonic transmission of messages in the department in 1990. But, the rules were not changed. The selection commission issued advertisement on March 18, 2011, advertising 10 posts of signaller with the same qualification. Moreover, only in-service candidates could appear in the telegraphy test conducted by the Department of Post and Telegraph. Until a person was sponsored by the department, he could not appear in the examination.

Bench observed the qualification could not be acquired by an outsider.

Allowing the petition , the Bench quashed the portion of the rule, “which prescribes for passing of telegraphy examination”.

Sirsa village to get good water supply
Tribune News Service

Sirsa/Fatehabad, January 12
Villagers from Panniwala Mota in Sirsa and Chimmo in Fatehabad districts could not have asked for more as the entire district machinery led by their respective Deputy Commissioners (DCs) were amongst them to spend their nights in the villages.

If Sirsa DC J Ganesan redressed the long-standing demand of proper supply of drinking water to the village by ordering the supply from the waterworks in the HAFED complex, Fatehabad DC ML Kaushik ordered all streets in the village to be constructed with cement concrete.

Ganesan and Kaushik were in Panniwala Mota and Chimmo, respectively to spend nights in the villagers as per a policy of the state government under which the DCs would spend a night in a month in any of the villages of their district.

As many as 211 villagers appeared before Kaushik, while Ganesan listened to the grievances of 107 people.

Almost half of Panniwala Mota village did not have adequate supply of drinking water for long and the villagers alleged that their repeated representations in the past had failed to move the authorities.

Ganesan asked the officers of the Public Health Department to connect the village to the waterworks functioning in the HAFED complex of the village and ensure adequate supply of water by the first week of February.

He also ordered the resumption of old-age pension of 28 villagers, whose pension had been stopped for unknown reasons, by February 5.

Kaushik also ordered the resumption of social security pension of villagers, whose names had been deleted for some reasons.

Both the DCs went around the villages to inspect the sanitary conditions and the state of streets in the villages and ordered their improvement. Kaushik also checked police stations with SP Vikas Dhankhar.

Khaps support cane farmers

Karnal, January 12
The nine-day-old agitation of farmers for higher MSP for sugarcane received a boost ahead of crucial talks between Chief Minister B.S.Hooda and the 21-member action committee of sugarcane growers at New Delhi tomorrow as powerful khap leaders came out in support of the farmers.

State president of the Akhil Bhartiya Jat Mahasabha Om Prakash Mann, while addressing the farmers staging a dharna in front of the Cooperative Sugar Mill here, said: "The farmers are already reeling under debt and Haryana being an agriculture-predominant state, the government should sympathise with the farmers and substantially increase the MSP of sugarcane." Katar Singh Sanghwan of the Sanghwan khap also came in support of the farmers. — TNS