Steps to foil staff strike
ROHTAK, Dec 4 — The Haryana Government has started taking steps to foil the strike a call for which has given by the Sarv Karamchari Sangh and the HSEB Workers' Union for December 11.

Bansi govt 'may fall under its own weight'
CHANDIGARH, Dec 4 — The Haryana Congress President, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, said here today that the state was likely to witness a mid-term poll because the Bansi Lal government would soon fall under its own weight.

• Ex-minister's charge against HPCC
• Polio awareness stickers donated
• School uniform for poor students

Steps to foil staff strike
Tribune News Service

ROHTAK, Dec 4 — The Haryana Government has started taking steps to foil the strike a call for which has given by the Sarv Karamchari Sangh and the HSEB Workers' Union for December 11.

The District Magistrate, Mr Anil Kumar today invoked Section 144 of the Cr. P.C. and banned the assembly of five or more persons throughout the district on December 11.

He also banned the holding of processions.

The District Magistrate, Jhajjar, Mr Arun Kumar too had imposed such restrictions prior to the assembly elections in Delhi. These orders will remain in force till December 31.

Incidentally, all major trade unions, including CITU, AITUC, INTUC and the BMS, have also announced a nationwide strike on December 11 in protest against the privatisation of the insurance sector. The unions have constituted the Rashtriya Jan Sangathan Manch to pave the way for the participation of associations of farmers, khet mazdoors and women in the proposed strike.

The sangh had organised a rally at Bhiwani on November 29 under the banner of the Haryana unit of the manch to mobilise employees. Besides, the sangh and HSEB workers, the rally was attended by members of various bank organisations the LIC staff, the Kisan Sangharash Samiti, the SFI, the Khet Mazdoor Sangathan, the Janvadi Mahila Samiti the HMS and the Mahila Sabha.

The rally had adopted a 31-point charter of demands which demanded a check on the prices of essential commodities and scrapping of the policy of privatisation. Describing the policies of the Centre as anti-people, the rally had opposed the opening of the insurance sector to private entrepreneurs and multinationals.

Among other demands, the rally sought legislation to ensure 33 per cent reservation in legislatures and Parliament for women. It demanded the implementation of the Minimum Wages Act and an end to the retrenchment policy.

The rally also demanded the supply of fertilisers and pesticides to marginal and poor farmers at reasonable prices and legislation for safeguarding the interests of agricultural labourers, besides introduction of the crop insurance scheme.

The charter also demanded the reinstatement of those employees who were dismissed in the wake of the September 16 strike and the nurses, who had gone on strike to demand parity in pay scales with their counterparts in Delhi.

Bansi govt 'may fall under its own weight'
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Dec 4 — The Haryana Congress President, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, said here today that the state was likely to witness a mid-term poll because the Bansi Lal government would soon fall under its own weight.

Talking to newsmen, Mr Hooda claimed that in case of the mid-term poll, the Congress would make a clean sweep in the state. However, he added that his party would not encourage horse trading in the state to topple the Bansi Lal government and would also maintain an equi-distance from the HVP, the BJP and the Lok Dal.

He said both Mr Bansi Lal and Mr Om Parkash Chautala had lost their moral right to continue in the posts of Chief Minister and the Leader of Opposition, respectively and should step down. In the interest of Haryana, Mr Bansi Lal should go for a snap poll.

Claiming that the Haryana Congress was united, Mr Hooda said whatever little dissensions were there would be sunk and the party would contest the elections unitedly.

Attributing the success of the party in the recent Assembly elections to the leadership or Mrs Sonia Gandhi, Mr Hooda said people had endorsed her leadership by voting for the Congress. He said before she became the party President, the Congress lacked "niti, niyat and neta (policy, intention and leader)" and now the party had all three.

The Congress, he said, suffered electoral defeats after 1991 because it lost a leader of the stature of Mr Rajiv Gandhi who was acceptable to the entire country.

Asked to comment on the formation of the Sarv Jati Morcha (SJM) by the former HVP M.P., Mr O.P. Jindal, Mr Hooda said all those who were opposed to Mr Bansi Lal and Mr Chautala were welcome to join the Congress.

In an indirect invitation to all those Congressmen who contested the last elections against the party's official nominees to come back to the party, Mr Hooda said the Congress was not worried about "bagis (rebels)" but had strong reservations about "dagi (tainted)" persons.

The Congress leader said the recent Assembly elections had exposed the real face of the Lok Dal and its leader, Mr Chautala, who opposed the BJP in Haryana and sought an alliance with it in Delhi and Rajasthan.

Accusing Mr Chautala of betraying the farmers of Haryana, Mr Hooda said the Lok Dal leader had made the Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, a mediator between him and the BJP without realising that the Punjab leader was the main obstacle in the construction of the SYL canal, which was the lifeline of the Haryana farmers.

He demanded that the minimum support price of wheat should be at least Rs 600 per quintal. The Haryana Government should ensure quality, quantity and availability of DAP. The state government should also revise the TA and DA rates of its employees on the pattern of Himachal Pradesh, he added.

Recruitment of cops on Dec 10
From Our Correspondent

ROHTAK, Dec 4 — Nearly 130 posts of police constable reserved for the ex-servicemen in the state police are to be filled through direct recruitment at various district police headquarters on December 10.

According to senior police officials, eight and 10 vacancies will be filled from Rohtak and Jhajjar districts, respectively. At Rohtak, four posts are reserved for Scheduled Castes and two each for A and B categories of the backward classes among the ex-servicemen.

Out of the 10 vacancies at Jhajjar, five are for SCs, three for BCs (A) and two for BCs (B).

The number of vacancies allotted to the remaining districts is as follows: Ambala 11, Panchkula 2, Kurukshetra 9, Kaithal 7, Yamunanagar 3, Hisar 12, Bhiwani 8, Fatehabad 9, Sirsa 9, Jind 9, Gurgaon 5, Faridabad 3, Narnaul 1, Rewari 4, Sonepat 10, Panipat 4 and Karnal 7.

The candidates have been asked to submit their applications at the time of registration on the day of recruitment.

The ex-servicemen discharged from service after December 1, 1996, are eligible.

At Jhajjar, the selection will take place in Government Polytechnic ground near the Police Lines.

Editor asked to pay compensation
From Our Correspondent

PANCHKULA, Dec 4 — The local Consumer Forum has directed the editor of a medical journal published from Delhi, to pay Rs 2000 as compensation to a consumer for indulging in unfair trade practice.

The order was passed by Mr R.C. Taneja president, Mr V. Aditya and Ms Rekha Sharma, both members of the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum, on a complaint filed by Mr Bhan Chand Goyal, a local business man.

Mr Goyal in his complaint alleged that the company publishing the magazine, Ayurved Vikas, had invited application for life-time subscription to the magazine. The company had advertised that along with life time membership subscription for Rs 1500, a telephone set or a wrist watch would be given as a gift.

He alleged that the company intimated him that the telephone set was being sent to him within a fortnight but on June 11, 1997, he received information that the delivery of the telephone set would be delayed. After another letter was written to the company, he was told that he could get his subscription money back.

On being noticed, the editor of the magazine failed to turn up.The forum in its order observed that the company had indulged in unfair trade practice. The editor has been directed to refund the subscription along with 18 per cent interest from the date of deposit till the date of payment.

Juvenile home for Ambala planned
From Our Correspondent

AMBALA, Dec 4 — A juvenile home will be set up in the district for which the Child Welfare Council has been told to take the necessary steps.

This was decided at a meeting of the Juvenile Welfare Board under the chairmanship of Mrs Navraj Sandhu, Deputy Commissioner, here on Wednesday.

Mrs Sandhu said the Juvenile Act, 1986, had been enacted to provide for the care, protection, treatment, development and rehabilitation of neglected or delinquent juveniles and for the adjudication of certain related matters and disposition of the delinquent juveniles.

She informed the Board members that under the provision of the Act, a Juvenile Welfare Board for the district had already been reconstituted by the government. She stressed the need for providing facilities of education, training and rehabilitation for all such juveniles with the help of the welfare organisation and citizens of the district.

The Deputy Commissioner said a scheme for the welfare of street children had been formulated and was being implemented. She said at present 120 such children were availing the benefit.

Sugarcane crushing commences
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Dec 4 — The crushing of sugarcane has commenced in Haryana and the cooperative sugar mills have set a target to crush 228 lakh quintals of sugarcane during the current season.

While stating this here today, the Haryana Cooperation Minister, Mr Narbir Singh, said close-circuit TVs had been installed in the sugar mills to monitor weighing system and the payment was being made through computers.

He said while the crushing had been started by all cooperative sugar mills despite untimely rains, the Bhuna cooperative sugar mill would start crushing from December 15.

He said the total crushing capacity of the sugar mills was about 2 lakh quintals per day and by December 2, they had already crushed 18.61 lakh quintals of sugarcane with average sugar recovery of 8.50 per cent. The mills were getting adequate supply of sugarcane, he added.

Lift irrigation scheme
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Dec 4 — Haryana Chief Minister Bansi Lal will lay the foundation stone of the state's fifth lift irrigation scheme at Birjpura village in Gurgaon district on December 12.

The Minister of State for Irrigation, Mr Harsh Kumar, said today that the project, known as the Rewari Lift Irrigation Scheme, would irrigate 78,790 acres of land of 99 villages in the tehsils of Pataudi, Gurgaon, Rewari and Jhajjar.

The scheme, costing Rs 46.50 crore, would be funded by NABARD. It would be 128 km long, have a discharge capacity of 218.15 cusecs and receive water through the Western Jamuna Canal and the Jawaharlal Nehru Feeder from the Hathni Kund Barrage.

Ex-minister's charge against HPCC
Tribune News Service

ROHTAK, Dec 4 — Mr Krishan Murti Hooda, a former minister, has criticised the Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) for not raising the issue of the huge losses suffered by farmers due to unseasonal rain and floods.

In a letter addressed to Congress President Sonia Gandhi and released to the press here today, Mr Hooda alleged that the HPCC chief, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, was in league with the Chief Minister.

The letter said that the HPCC had also failed to cash in on the goodwill generated by the hurricane visit of Mrs Sonia Gandhi to Haryana on October 12.

Polio awareness stickers donated
From Our Correspondent

PANCHKULA, Dec 4 — Create awareness about the pulse polio immunisation programme, the local Chemists Association has donated over 5000 stickers with polio immunisation message printed on them.

The president of association, Mr B.B. Singal, said the stickers had been distributed at different government-run hospitals and primary health centres and to private medical practitioners.

School uniform for poor students
From Our Correspondent

PANCHKULA, Dec 4 — As many as 497 poor students of six government schools of the Raitan area were given winter school uniform by the Deputy Commissioner at a function organised at Government High School at Bhawana village in Pinjore block here today.

The Deputy Commissioner, Ms Saroj Siwatch, said the aim of giving school dresses to the students was to have them devote more attention to studies.

The Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC), Mr Anurag Aggarwal, urged the parents to make it a point to send their wards to school.

A cultural programme was presented by students.