Danoda (Jind), February 23
Members of various Jat and Khap committees in Haryana struggling to get reservation at the Centre have threatened to block the rail traffic in the state from March 1 in case the government fails to issue the notification regarding it.

A mahapanchayat was held at Danoda village today to finalise the future course of action, where members of various panels refused to tolerate more delay in the issuance of the notification.

They said in case the UPA fails to issue the notification they would not allow Congress leaders to enter their villages during the forthcoming elections.

The meeting started at around 11 am and concluded at 2.30 pm.

Tek Ram Kandela, convener of Rastriya Sarv Jat Khap Panchayat, said: “We will block rail traffic at Narwana, Mayyed and Siwani Mandi from March 1. We know that the government will try to stop us, but we will come prepared.”

Sources said the places chosen for blockade were crucial, as the blockade would disrupt railway traffic to Punjab, Jammu, Rajasthan, Haryana and New Delhi.

Nafey Singh Nain, national president of Sarv Jat Khap Panchayat, said: “We do not want to trouble anyone, but the government has left us with no other option.”

The government had announced reservation for Jats on December 19, 2013.

Ambala, February 23
In a development that can have a defying affect on the recent announcement made by Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda to reduce power tariffs in the state, the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) has allowed the Adani Mundra Thermal Plant and Tata’s Mundra UMPP in Gujarat to claim a compensatory tariff from Haryana in view of the increased cost of imported coal from Indonesia. The compensatory tariff was allowed on the basis of a report submitted by Deepak Parekh committee set up in April last year.

The CERC, in its decision of February 21 on the petition no.155 of 2012, had granted compensation to the Adani plant for higher costs of Indonesian coal. This would lead to Haryana paying an additional Rs 409.51 crore as compensation for the period up to March 31, 2013. The authorities asked the state to pay the same in 36 instalments. In a similar order passed by CERC on Friday, the authority also allowed Tata’s Mundra UMPP to claim a compensatory tariff from Punjab, Haryana Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Gujarat for supplying 3,800MW of power to these states.

Sources said the Adnai’s compensatory tariff for the current financial year was likely to be 62 paise per unit and of the Tata’s Mundra plant 52.40 paise per unit, which might push the power tariff. There could be reduction on the increased tariff if Adani sells power on a merchant basis in case the power generation exceeded 80 per cent and profits were shared with Haryana.

Assuming a share of 19 paise in income from merchant sales, Haryana would still have to pay a minimum 43 paise more for each unit bought from Adani.

0The compensatory tariff mechanism for both the power plants would be reviewed after three years, read the orders passed by the CERC.

Sources said since it was an election year and the Haryana Government had proposed that there would be no tariff hike in the state, the increased charges were likely to be passed on to the consumers in the garb of fuel adjustment charges after the elections.

Sonepat, February 23
Farmers organised a demonstration on the GT Road near Rai today demanding that they be invited for a meeting with Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi at Gannaur tomorrow.

The farmers had been protesting at Kundli, Beeswan Meel, Pipli and other places in the district for the last two years against the acquisition of their land at rates far below market prices.

State BKU (Ambawata) president Shamsher Singh Dahiya and farmer Rajpal Sevli said they had been agitating for two years, but the government had not invited any of them to present their demands before Rahul Gandhi.

State BJP vice-president Rajiv Jain today met the farmers of three villages staging a dharna for seven days outside the HSIIDC complex at Bari village against the allotment of plots on high rates at unsuitable sites.

Addressing the protesters, Jain assured them party support and asserted that Kavita Jain would raise their demands during the Assembly session.

Bhiwani, February 23
Even as the police failed to arrest the killers of BJP leader Rakesh Malik around 48 hours after his murder, agitated residents continued their dharna today, placing the body at a roundabout in Tosham in the district.

The district administration accepted some demands of supporters and family of the victim and urged them to cremate the deceased, but the protesters were adamant, saying they would perform the last rites only after the arrest of the accused.

An 11-member committee decided at a meeting this evening to continue the dharna till 11 am tomorrow. "A decision will be taken after reviewing the situation tomorrow as the police have promised to nab the accused," a member of the committee said.

The victim's kin suspected the role of Tosham MLA and Haryana minister Kiran Chaudhry, her MP daughter Shruti Chaudhry and Kiran's personal assistant Hari Singh in the murder. The victim's family alleged political conspiracy behind the murder.

The district authorities today recorded the statement of victim's brother Krishan Malik under Section 164 of the CrPC. He had been naming Kiran, her personal assistant and her daughter as the conspirators in the murder.

Kamal Singh, a member of the committee which held talks with the Deputy Commissioner and the Superintendent of Police, said Krishan's statement was recorded today.

He said the demand of issuing notices to the minister and her MP daughter under Section 160 of the CrPC, which allowed the police to direct any person acquainted with facts and circumstances to join the probe, had been accepted.

Bhiwani Superintendent of Police Sateyender Gupta said police teams had been conducting raids to take certain suspects in custody. "Our investigation has been going on and we hope to nab the accused soon," he said. He refused to comment on allegations of the victim's kin against the minister and her daughter.

State BJP president Ram Bilas Sharma visited the victim's family and demanded the arrest of the accused. He lambasted the state government for its failure to maintain law and order.

Sources said the victim, who was president of the Tosham Beopar Mandal and had joined the BJP recently after defecting from the Congress, had enmity with certain persons who could be behind his murder.

He was shot at his office on Friday night when he was alone after returning from a campaign in connection with a BJP rally in Tosham. Two assailants wearing helmets entered his office and fired five bullets on him. 

Rohtak, February 23
Today’s rally of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) led by Arvind Kejriwal was a blend of patriotic fervour and anti-establishment sentiment. In fact, hoisting of big National Flags, playing of patriotic songs and enthusiastic response of the crowds at the rally venue reminded one of the Anna Hazare-led India Against Corruption (IAC) movement.

The raising of slogans like “Inqalab Zindabad” and Bharat Mata ki Jai” underlined the mood at the rally . The undercurrents and overheard remarks suggested that the people, who were not satisfied with the functioning of the present regime in Haryana but also did not consider the conventional Opposition parties worthwhile, looked up to the AAP as a political alternative in the state.

While there were masses from rural areas across the state on the one hand, the rally also witnessed a considerable participation from urban people, including professors, representatives of NGOs, women’s organisations and various sections of the intelligentsia.

Youth supporters were also present in large numbers at the rally which was a political event but seemed more like a civil movement.

“I have come all the way from Mewat just to catch a glimpse of Arvind Kejriwal, who has set an example of what a government should really do,” said Mohammed Akib, a youth.

His sentiments were echoed and endorsed by several other youths who said they saw a ray of hope in the AAP amidst the corrupt political system.

AAP leaders also acknowledged the overwhelming response and reciprocated by stating that the enthusiasm of the rallyists was the real strength and success of the event.

Nonetheless, despite the overwhelming response and enthusiasm of the rallyists, a good discipline was also maintained at the rally venue throughout the event.

Chandigarh, February 23
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has summoned the Chief Secretary for the state's failure to respond satisfactorily to the issues raised following the delivery of a child on road.

The incident had taken place after the expecting mother was not attended to by doctors in a government hospital at Fatehabad. Kavita was forced to deliver the baby on a road outside the General Hospital, Fatehabad, after she was shown the door by the doctors. A news report “Woman shoed away by doctors delivers on road” was carried in these columns on April 4, 2013.

On a previous date of hearing, a Division Bench had also called upon the state to continue with its efforts to fill posts of doctor. At the same time, the High Court had restrained itself from issuing directions to the state as the issue of better facilities was a policy matter. “Possibly better conditions of working and emoluments may be the panacea but that is a policy issue to be examined by the State Government”, the Division Bench of Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Augustine George Masih had ruled. An affidavit filed before the Court had earlier said disciplinary proceedings were proposed to be initiated following the “unfortunate incident” that took place on April 7 last year”.

Panipat, February 23
In what may give a new twist to parliamentary and Assembly elections, the Aggarwal Vaish community has decided to contest two MP and 16 MLA seats in Haryana. Seven per cent voters in the state belong to this community.

On the sidelines of a function, state Aggarwal Vaish Samaj (AVS) president Ashok Buwaniwala said today that the community would field candidates on two parliamentary and 16 Assembly seats in the elections.

He was here in connection with a function to felicitate municipal councillor Surendra Garg, who was presented a Fortuner car by the AVS.

Declaring Garg's candidature from Panipat City in the Assembly elections, Buwaniwala said the AVS had been demanding due representation to the community for several elections, but its interests were ignored.

He said, "We will field candidates from the Kurukshetra and Karnal parliamentary seats and 16 Assembly seats, including Panipat City, Kaithal, Ambala City, Karnal, Hisar, Bhiwani, Faridabad and Ballabhgarh, where the community has a sizeable electorate."

Asked if he would contest the elections, he said, "I have not made up my mind yet. If the AVS wants me to do so, I definitely will."

Karnal, February 23
The water table in several districts of Punjab and Haryana has been showing a continuous declining trend in the last four decades. Alarmed over the fall in groundwater, many district administrations have put restrictions on the exploitation of groundwater and made the registration of new tubewells mandatory.

The report of a survey conducted by the Central Soil Salinity Research Institute (CSSRI) paints a grim picture. It shows that the water table in fresh groundwater districts has been falling at between 0.8 metre and 1 metre every year in the last four decades.

“A total of 55 blocks in Haryana and 103 in Punjab have been notified as overexploited groundwater areas and the level of groundwater is not up to the mark in several districts,” said Dr SK Kamra, head of the irrigation and drainage engineering division of the CSSRI.

He said the most severely affected in terms of the falling water table were Kurukshetra, Karnal, Yamunanagar, Panipat, Jind and Kaithal in Haryana and Sangrur, Kapurthala, Jalandhar, Patiala, Ludhiana, Moga, Fatehgarh Sahib and Amritsar in Punjab. In the remaining parts of the states, either groundwater availability was limited or groundwater quality was unfavourable, he added.

“About two-thirds of Haryana, covering Rohtak, Sonepat, Bhiwani, Fatehabad and Hisar districts and parts of Sirsa, Palwal, Rewari, Jind and Kaithal, and one-third of Punjab, covering the south-western districts of Bathinda, Ferozepur, Faridkot and Muktsar, have saline groundwater,” said Dr Kamra. He added that climate change was increasing uncertainty of highly variable rainfall patterns, requiring greater efforts in managing both water scarcity and floods.

Dr Kamra said 'sathi' rice was the main reason behind this. He said farmers were tempted to grow 'sathi' rice as it resembled 'basmati' in shape and matured only in 60 days. He said growing 1 kg of 'sathi' rice consumed about 4,000 litres of water. He said the area under rice cultivation should be reduced and farmers should shift from flood irrigation to underground piped water, drip and sprinkle irrigation to improve the water table.

Yamunanagar, February 23
Haryana Vidhan Sabha Speaker Kuldeep Sharma advised guest teachers sitting on dharna in Delhi to have a dialogue with the state government to find solutions to their problems.

“The government wants to regularise guest teachers, but there are some legal hurdles in the way. The guest teachers should have a dialogue with the government to find a solution to this problem,” Kuldeep Sharma said, while addressing mediapersons. He was in Yamunanagar on Sunday to attend the founder’s day function of Guru Nanak Khalsa College.

On a question that state Lokayukta had been given less powers, he said the Union government had passed the Jan Lokpal Bill and the Haryana Government would also pass it soon.

“Some parties want to use farmers for their political gains. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi is coming to Ganaur to inaugurate the fruit and vegetable mandi tomorrow, where he will speak to farmers to know about the problems being faced by them,” he said.

Jhajjar, February 23
Giving full credit to his son, Deepender Hooda, for the significant development in this region over the past nine years, Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda sought votes for him in the forthcoming Lok Sabha poll.

Hooda was here to inaugurate and lay foundation stones of various development projects costing about Rs 196 crore. In an emotional address to the people, he said Deepender worked round the clock to bring prestigious development projects like the Global Centre for Nuclear Energy and Research, AIIMS-2, National Cancer Institute and IIT in Jhajjar.

Earlier, announcing the setting up of a state-level Ch Ranbir Singh Government Engineering College and a Teacher's Training Institute (TTI) here, the Chief Minister said Rs 60 crore would be spent on these projects.

He also inaugurated a Primary Health Centre in Silani village, 30 newly constructed residential quarters in Yamuna Enclave in Jhajjar, a roadways workshop and Rajiv Gandhi Seva Kendra in Jhajjar town.

Sirsa, February 23
Thanks to the intervention of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, schoolchildren in the state will get their textbooks supplied free of cost and well in time under the Right to Education Act.

Last year, the Education Department failed to supply books till October, when the children had already appeared in the semester exams. Intervening on the petition filed by Kartar Singh, a Sirsa-based activist and whistleblower, a Bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Augustine Masih had directed the department to adhere to a schedule for various stages leading to the procurement and supply of books.

In response to Kartar Singh’s civil writ petition, the principal secretary, School Education, had filed an affidavit on September 9, 2013, stating the reasons for the delay in the supply of books.

The reply said the bidder failed to supply the books in time despite a number of extensions. The other party that was awarded the tender supplied the books by October 4, 2013, much after the children had already taken the first semester exams.

The books have already started reaching schools even though a week’s time is still left as per the schedule.

Hisar, February 23
Dalit youth Nafe Singh's body was found in a pond in Ladwa village of the district today.

The police have registered a case of murder against three youths belonging to an upper caste on the complaint of the victim's family. The accused are Rajesh, Rania and Baba, residents of the same village.

Sources said the deceased was working at a liquor outlet in the village. He had an argument with the accused a few days ago.

However, they called him from his house two days ago and took him to the village pond. They reportedly consumed liquor together and later attacked Nafe with sticks. The assailants dumped his body in the pond and fled.

The body was fished out and taken to the civil hospital for a post-mortem examination.

Yamunanagar, February 23
A police team had a narrow escape when alleged cattle smugglers opened fire on them this morning. The police rescued 11 bulls and two cows, but the alleged smugglers fled, leaving behind their vehicles.

The Buria police had received information that a Canter illegally carrying cattle for slaughtering was being driven towards Buria from the Ambala side.

A team of the Buria police led by SHO Naresh Sharma reached a spot near Lakkar-Nawajpur village, one of the entry points to Uttar Pradesh from the Haryana side.

The police team started checking vehicles. They signalled a Canter to stop, which was escorted by a car, but the drivers of the vehicles did not stop.

The SHO said the cattle smugglers opened fire on the police team when they chased the vehicles. He said the police team opened fire on the smugglers in self-defence.

“The incident took place around 5 am. Taking the advantage of darkness, the smugglers managed to escape, leaving behind their vehicles.

The SHO said the police impounded the Canter and the car. He said 13 heads of cattle were recovered, but two were dead. He said a case was registered in this connection. 

Faridabad, February 23
The Confederation of Resident Welfare Associations has submitted a memorandum to the district authorities seeking removal of the toll plaza from the Badarpur border.

AS Gulati, general secretary of the confederation, said it was totally unjustified to burden thousands of persons, who move from one place to another in the NCR by making them wait and pay every time they cross the barrier. He said the imposition of toll was very much against the concept of the NCR which was aimed at decongesting the national capital.

He said the confederation had decided to intensify its agitation if the demand was not accepted. — TNS

Sirsa, February 23
Sixteen persons were hurt when a cruiser collided with a jeep near Sawantkhera bus stop on the Sirsa-Dabwali stretch of the NH-10 today.

Reports said the cruiser was speeding towards Dabwali when a jeep appeared from the Masita road.The cruiser overturned after the collision. The police rushed the injured persons to the General Hospital, Dabwali. — TNS

Kurukshetra, February 23
A woman was killed and two persons injured in a clash between two groups over a drain at Mugalmajra village in Shahabad, 20 km from here, last night.

Bunty stabbed Kanta Devi during the clash. Victim's brother-in-law Kaka Ram said his brother Rajesh Kumar had a dispute with his neighbours over a drain, which triggered a violent clash between both groups.

He said they had a spat, after which the other group entered Rajesh's house and attacked them. The police said Bunty stabbed Kanta Devi on the right side of the chest and she died on the spot. The injured, Rajesh and Satish, were rushed to a local hospital, where they were reported to be out of danger. Bunty, Golu, Gulab Singh and Satya Devi, all of the same family, were booked.

A case was registered on Rajesh's complaint. The police said a manhunt was on to nab the culprits. After postmortem, the body was handed over to the family and cremated.

Faridabad, February 23
Hundreds of residents took part in a run on the issue of environment organised by the Faridabad Industries Association here today. It was inaugurated by Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda.

Addressing the participants before the start, Hooda exhorted residents and social bodies to remain active to ensure a clean and green environment.

The run witnessed participation from residents from all age groups. Sportspersons Chetan Sharma, Mohammad Kaif, Asina Sayad and Varsha Tomar were among the participants. Hooda flagged off the run from Sports Complex, Sector 12.

Hooda said the government spent a large amount of funds on various sectors. He said environment was one of the areas where public participation was important to ensure that results were visible. A section of residents was of view that instead of holding symbolic events, social bodies should take part in activities like cleanliness, rainwater harvesting and maintenance of civic amenities.

The winners: 10 km men- Pritam Kumar Bin from ONGC, Dehradun (1st), Vinod Kumar from Army, Agra (2nd), Shailu Kumar from Palwal (3rd); 10 km women- Priyanka Sharma, Gurgaon (1st), Shailja, Gurgaon (2nd), Rajni Gupta, Faridabad (3rd); 3 km senior citizens- Virender Singh Man (1st), GB Nainwal (2nd) Vikram Singh (3rd).

Ambala, February 23
Janak Raj bagged the gold in the 100-m event in the 3rd annual sports and athletics meet of Maharishi Markendeshwar University, Sadopur (Ambala), which was inaugurated by Sanjeev Garg, general secretary, Maharishi Markendeshwar University Trust.

The second spot was occupied by the Akash Sidhu, who clocked 2.22 seconds. SR Tudu finished third in 12.34 seconds.

Results: Mens 200m: Janak Raj came first, Rakesh second and Dipson bagged the third position.

400m: Janak Raj first, Mudasir Rafiq second, while Rakesh Sharma came third.

1500m: Rupesh came first, Janak Raj second, while Rakesh came third.

Shot-put: Shubham Verma came first, Mudasir Rafiq bagged the second spot, while Sanjeet came third.

Javelin throw: Mukesh came first, Shubham Verma second, Deepak Singh third.

Hammer Throw: Sanjeet

first, Tawsif second and Mubashir Amin third.

Long jump: Deepak first, Mudsir Rafiq second, while Rakesh came third.

High jump: Binay came first, Kashif came second, while Naveen came third.

Women’s 400m: Sandeep Kaur came first, Harsharan Kaur came second, Seher Younus came third.

Shot-put: Aishwarya came first, Harsharan Kaur second, while Sandeep came third.

Javelin throw: Seema came first, Sandeep second, while Aishwarya came third.

High jump: Seema came first, Maheta second, while Harsharan came third.