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H A R Y A N A |  |
 Tuesday, October 27, 1998 |
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Central team visits today ROHTAK, Oct 26 — An eight-member team comprising officials from the Union Ministries of Agriculture, Food and Supplies, Surface Transport and Finance and the Planning Commission will visit various districts in Haryana from tomorrow to make an on-the -spot assessment of the damage caused to the crops due to unseasonal rains and consequent flooding. INLD to seek Centre’s help FATEHABAD, Oct 26 — The Indian National Lok Dal MLAs and MPs from Haryana led by their leader Mr Om Parkash Chautala, will soon meet the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, to draw Centre’s attention towards the losses suffered by the farmers of Haryana due to untimely rain and demanded suitable compensation for them. |
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Wildlife
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Central team visits today ROHTAK, Oct 26 — An eight-member team comprising officials from the Union Ministries of Agriculture, Food and Supplies, Surface Transport and Finance and the Planning Commission will visit various districts in Haryana from tomorrow to make an on-the -spot assessment of the damage caused to the crops due to unseasonal rains and consequent flooding. The team headed by Mr JP Negi, Executive Director, National Horticulture Board, will hold meeting with the Commissioner, Rohtak division, Mr PK Chaudhary, and the Deputy Commissioners of Rohtak and Jhajjar to ascertain the loss to the crops and roads in five districts of Rohtak, Jhajjar, Sonepat, Panipat and Karnal. The other members of the team are Mr R Vishwanathan, Director, Finance, Mr DP Biswas, Director, Planning Commission, Mr Faqir Chand, Regional Manager, Ministry of Surface Transport, Mr PS Khurana, Regional Chief Manager, HUDCO, Dr S.V. Singh, Director, Directorate of Millets Development, Dr Paramjit Singh, Deputy Commissioner, horticulture division, Ministry of Agriculture, and Mr Ashok Kumar, Deputy Director, Ministry of Food and Supplies. The central team will visit Bau-Akbarpur, Madina, Ballambha, Kharkhra, Ajiab, Bharan and Bainsi villages of Rohtak district tomorrow before leaving for Jind. The team members will visit the affected villages in Jind and Kaithal districts and some parts of Hisar and reach Chandigarh on October 28. The team members are also likely to call on the Chief Minister, Mr Bansi Lal, on Thursday before returning to Delhi. The central team is visiting Haryana in response to the memorandum submitted by the Chief Minister to the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, on October 23. The memorandum has said the loss to the agriculture sector and infrastructure like roads, including state and national highways and link roads, was to the tune of Rs 2,099 crore. Stressing for immediate financial assistance to the tune of Rs 360 crore, Mr Bansi Lal had impressed upon the Prime Minister to send the central team to assess the loss. There are nearly 197 villages in the five districts of Rohtak in which an area of approximately 63105 acres has been flooded. Because of the unseasonal rains and strong winds, the standing crops of paddy, cotton, bajra, jowar and kharif pulses had been extensively damaged. The damage to the paddy crop varies between 40 to 80 per cent, Mr Chaudhary told TNS. Nearly one-third of the cotton crop has been destroyed. The area is about 4,000 hectares in Rohtak district alone. Basmati rice has been damaged due to the rain and strong winds and it is not possible now to retrieve the crop. Apart from this, there has been extensive damage to roads, including link roads. Rural water supply scheme in some villages of Rohtak district has also been damaged due to the untimely rains. Although the administration has launched dewatering campaign to enable the farmers to sow the rabi crop, it appears doubtful if the rabi crop could be sown in most of the flood-affected areas as the fall in temperature will delay drying up of the fields for ploughing and sowing. The government has assured
free supply of diesel if the farmers use their diesel
pumps to drain out the flood water accumulated in their
fields. The administration has so far commissioned 233
electricity driven pumps and 323 diesel pumps to drain
out the flood water in Rohtak division. |
INLD to seek Centre’s help FATEHABAD, Oct 26 — The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) MLAs and MPs from Haryana led by their leader Mr Om Parkash Chautala, will soon meet the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, to draw Centre’s attention towards the losses suffered by the farmers of Haryana due to untimely rain and demanded suitable compensation for them. Talking to mediapersons here today former Haryana Home Minister the INLD MLA from Fatehabad, Mr Sampat Singh, said the party had directed its units to prepare a report of the losses suffered by the farmers in their respective areas. The party would ask the Centre to get the damage assessed through its own sources and distribute the grant under its own supervision. Lashing out at Mr Bansi Lal, Mr Sampat Singh said the Chief Minister had been issuing statements, which reflected his dictatorial attitude. He said the Chief Minister had time and again been threatening the state power board employees. He asked the Chief Minister to improve the power situation in the state instead. Mr Sampat Singh alleged that no section of the society was happy with the present HVP-BJP government in Haryana. Agriculture, which occupied a pivotal position in the economy of the state, had suffered the worst during the present regime. He said the plight of the farmers was such that if they were not provided immediate relief, they may be forced to leave the state and settle elsewhere. He said the agriculture production in the state was on the decline for the past four years and the production had touched an all time low this year. This, he said was more due to the indifference of the government than due to natural calamities. He said lakhs of acres in the state had been inundated due to water-logging and the government was doing nothing in this direction. He criticised the government for not taking necessary steps for the speedy procurement of paddy crops. He asked the government to relax the specifications in the procurement of paddy and take necessary measures for dewatering of the water-logged fields.
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Bogus diploma holders among
candidates CHANDIGARH, Oct 26 — A number of bogus diploma holders have been found to be among the candidates for the posts of JBT teachers. The fact has been brought out by the Haryana Vigilance Department which had been asked to verify the genuineness of the diploma in education as submitted by some candidates for the posts of teacher. Among the applicants for the post of JBT teachers advertised by the Haryana Staff Selection Commission on December 22, 1997, there were quite a few candidates who had claimed to have passed their diploma in education (D.Ed.) examination from Bihar Vidyala Pariksha Samiti, Bihar. The diploma in education from this samiti does not fall within the ambit of the published essential qualifications prescribed by the Haryana Government. All candidates who claimed to possess the diploma of the said samiti, however, were called for interview in the light of the directions given by the Punjab and Haryana High Court in a civil writ petition which related to the previous recruitment of JBT teachers. The High Court had then held that the diploma in education of the said samiti of Bihar was recognised by the Government of India, and hence candidates possessing this diploma should be deemed eligible for recruitment of JBT teachers in Haryana as well. The Secretary, Haryana Staff Selection Commission today said that in the same order, the High Court had observed that the Commission would be at liberty to get the genuineness of the said diplomas verified from the Bihar Vidyala Pariksha Samiti. Pursuant to the order, the matter of genuineness of the diploma in education in respect of all the six writ petitioners was referred to the said samiti according to whose report only one diploma was genuine and the remaining five were bogus. He said that following the same precedent, the matter of diplomas of randomly selected 16 candidates was referred to the Bihar Vidyala Pariksha Samiti for verification. The said samiti had intimated that only three candidates possessed genuine diplomas and the remaining 13 were bogus. The commission had reported the above matter to the government with the request that it may be entrusted to the Vigilance Department for inquiry and necessary action, he added. During the earlier selection of JBT teachers, 67 fake diplomas in education, purported to have been issued by Jamia Milia Islamia, were also detected by the Commission. That case was also being dealt with by the Vigilance Department, Haryana.
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Wildlife staff save man KARNAL, Oct 26 — The alertness and grit of the Wildlife Department led by Mr Mangat Ram, Wildlife Inspector, and his staff in saving a man from the clutches of death recently when he jumped into the lions' enclosure at Pipli zoo, about 35 km from here, has come to light. According to information available, Mr Lachman Singh, son of Mr Risal Singh and resident of Murthal village in Sonepat District, jumped into the lions' enclosure on October 5. Mr Mangat Ram told this reporter that the man who was under the influence of liquor jumped over the railings and entered the lions' enclosure. The two lions kept in the mini zoo had been brought some time back from Chhat Bir Zoo were resting in the enclosure. Seeing the man jumping into their enclosure, the two lions pounced upon him. The Wildlife Inspector along with Mr Joginder Kumar and Mr Sat Pal, both wildlife guards, and Mr Roop Chand, a class IV employee in the zoo, rushed to the enclosure and started shouting at the lions. Along with visitors to the zoo, they started throwing stones at the lions to scare them away. The lions were kept at bay by shouting, beating of drums and throwing stones. In the meantime, a ladder and a rope were thrown in the water channel in the lions' enclosure where the fear-stricken victim was standing surrounded by the lions. After considerable effort, the lions retreated back and Lachman Singh was taken out without any harm. Later, it was learnt Lachman Singh, an employee of a contractor at Kurukshetra bus stand, had jumped into the enclosure with the intention of committing suicide. He was later handed over to the police. The visitors to the zoo are reported to have praised the efforts of the wildlife staff to save a man from the jaws of death.
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Morni residents seek release of
land PANCHKULA, Oct 26 — Residents of Morni have reiterated their demand for the release of "nautor land" owned by the state government which they have been tilling for the past several years. The issue was raised at a maha panchayat of sarpanches, panches and farmers of 14 bhojs of Morni organised by the Morni Kisan Andolan at Chandrawal Kunj Balag, Morni, near here, today. The participants also demanded the lifting of the ban imposed by the Forest Department on the use of forest wood and other resources for domestic purposes. Explaining the hardships faced by people of Morni, Lachi Ram of Bhoj Bhalag said since a major part of the agricultural land was in the name of the Forest Department, farmers had to face a number of restrictions. He alleged that the department had carried out afforestation in the fields, damaging the standing crop of farmers. Mrs Usha Sharma, an organiser of the maha panchayat, said that in a resolution passed by the participants demands for the release of one-sixth of the "nautor land" and lifting of ban on use of forest wood for fuel purposes were made. Shifting of the environmental court from Hisar to Panchkula was also demanded. Raj Singh of Balag said the residents had to travel to environmental courts in connection with forest related offences.
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Lok Dal activists block traffic ROHTAK, Oct 26 — Lok Dal activists of the Meham Chaubisi region today blocked the Delhi-Fazilka national highway in protest against the "casual" attitude of district administration towards dewatering operations. Nearly 1500 activists of the Lok Dal staged a dharna at Kranti Chowk in Meham and shouted slogans against the district administration. They also blocked vehicular traffic on the Meham-Lakhan Majra and Rohtak-Lakhan Majra roads. The buses bound for Hisar, Sirsa, Dabwali and Fazilka were diverted via Bhiwani. The call for the blockade was given by Mr Balbir Singh, Lok Dal MLA from Meham and Ms Meena Chaudhary, president of Meham Chaubisi Jan Sangathan. Addressing the protesters, Ms Chaudhary said nearly 20 villages of the region had been inundated for the past over one month and the dewatering process had been badly affected due to faulty alignment and level designing of the Meham drain and frequent power breakdown. She said the loss to the
standing crops of paddy, sugarcane, cotton, Millet etc.,
spread over thousands of acres of land, had been
estimated at nearly 100 crore. She said a large number of
farmers of the affected regions had been ruined and the
labourers working on daily wages had been rendered
jobless. She said the district administration did not
provide any financial or medical assistance to the
villagers. |
Irrigation Dept blamed for floods SONEPAT, Oct 26 — Mr Ranjit Kaushik, former secretary, Haryana Pradesh Yuva Congress, today blamed the Irrigation Department for releasing a large quantity of water from the Tajewala headworks and for causing flood in the Yamuna, resulting in the submergence of agricultural lands and damage to the standing kharif crops in villages situated along river embankments in tracts of Karnal, Panipat and Sonepat districts. Mr Kaushik alleged that the state government had failed to inform people about the release of water from the headworks. He said the district administration and the Indian National Lok Dal Member of Parliament, Mr Kishan Singh Sangwan, had not provided help to flood victims in the area. The Congress leader also urged the state government to order a fresh girdwari to assess the losses suffered by farmers due to the flood and heavy rains. He also demanded payment of suitable compensation to the flood-affected farmers and supply of certified seeds and pesticides to them for rabi sowings.
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45 crore to boost power sector SONEPAT, Oct 26 — The Haryana Government has decided to spend Rs 45.23 crore on the development of power sectors in the district in the current financial year. This was announced by Mr Bansi Lal, Chief Minister, while addressing a public meeting at Butana village, about 45 km from here, yesterday. Mr Bansi Lal was honoured with a Haryanvi turban and a silver stick. A purse of Rs 2.60 lakh was also presented to him and the Chief Minister gave it to the party. Mr Bansi Lal dwelt at length about the schemes to tide over the power crisis in the district and said the construction of 220 KV substation would be completed soon as the work on it was going on war-footing. Referring to the demands of the people. Mr Bansi Lal announced the setting up of a 33 KV power substation at Butana village in the next financial year, upgrading of the village school, and the school at Bhanwar village. The Chief Minister announced that a drain would be dug up at a cost of Rs 1.75 crore for providing canal water to Ahulana village. The drinking water supply system, he said, would be augmented in the area. Referring to the controversy over Siwana Maal village, the Chief Minister declared that a referendum would be held by the state government for the inclusion of this village either in Sonepat or Jind district. Mr Jagbir Singh Malik, Minister of State for Horticulture said the state government had already cleared the pending arrears totalling Rs 24 crore and made payment to the sugarcane growers. Mr Jagan Nath, Public Health Minister and Mr Romesh Kaushik, Labour and Employment Minister also spoke.
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Plea to
Bansi
to call all-party meeting SONEPAT, Oct 26 — Mr Hukam Singh Dahiya, a former Haryana minister, has urged the Chief Minister, Mr Bansi Lal, to call an all-party meeting to suggest ways and means for granting immediate relief to farmers whose crops had been ruined due to the unseasonal rain. Talking to mediapersons here yesterday, he said the untimely rain had dashed all hopes of farmers. Mr Dahiya said the rain had not only caused a heavy damage to the paddy and cotton crops, but had also hit the cropping schedule for the rabi season to a large extent. Similarly, procurement operations had been retarded and official procurement agencies were reluctant to purchase the rain-hit paddy. Mr Dahiya demanded immediate steps to pump out the water from the fields to enable them to sow the rabi crops.
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Manch demands aid for farmers BHIWANI, Oct 26 — The Lok Chetna Manch, Haryana, has demanded adequate compensation for farmers for their damaged crops from the state government. Mr Ram Phal Koli, former state general secretary of the BJP and president of the newly formed manch, during a press conference here yesterday expressed concern over the alleged corruption prevailing at the government level and demanded the appointment of Lok Ayukta. He also said the Chief Minister and his colleagues along with chairmen of boards and corporations should declare their movable and immovable properties. Mr Koli said the manch would ask the central government to insititute a CBI inquiry into the bus permit scam which caused a loss of Rs 19.44 crore to the state government.
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Demand to shift grain market CHANDIGARH, Oct 26 — The Ambala Cantt Traders Federation has demanded that the local grain market, situated in the heart of the town, should be temporarily shifted out of the crowded localities. In a fax message to the Chief Minister today, the Chairman of the federation, Mr N.C. Jain, said farmers were bringing paddy to the local grain market in large quantities which has blocked all connecting roads to the mandi which was situated in the centre of the town. Since the existing mandi was small in size and had no proper arrangements for storage of the produce, this has led to heavy traffic congestion which was inconvenient both to residents and the farmers. Mr Jain requested the
Chief Minister to issue instructions to the district
administrator to temporarily shift marketing operation
for paddy to Gandhi ground where tents could be provided
for the storage of the paddy as well as for farmers. |
Congress to celebrate birth of
Khalsa CHANDIGARH, Oct 26 — The Haryana Congress has decided to celebrate the tercentenary of the birth of Khalsa next year with vigour and solemnity. Announcing this here
today, the President of the party, Mr Bupinder Singh
Hooda, said a State-level committee would be constituted
under his chairmanship to formulate various programmes to
celebrate the tercentenary.
INLD activists block traffic ROHTAK, Oct 26 — Hundreds of activists of the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) blocked traffic on the National Highway number 10, near here for about nine hours today in support of their demands, including the draining out of rain water and ensuring regular power supply. The blockade which started at about 8 a.m. continued up to 5 p.m. The main site of the chakka jam was the road near the SDM office at Meham town.
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Unauthorised houses demolished FARIDABAD, Oct 26 — Hundreds of houses and jhuggis constructed unauthorisedly in Hanuman Nagar on the two sides of the Faridabad-Delhi bypass were today demolished by the district administration. On Saturday also the
administration had razed to the ground illegal Rahul
Colony in NIT.
Senior Deputy Mayor takes over FARIDABAD, Oct 26 — Mr Zile Singh and Mrs Shanta Rakheja today took over a Senior Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor, respectively, of the Faridabad Municipal Corporation. Mr G. Prasanna Kumar, Commissioner of Gurgaon division, administered the oath of office.
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