The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Govt shielding jail official?
From Ravi S. Singh
Tribune News Service

GURGAON, Oct 10 — Are some senior bureaucrats in the Ministry of Home in Haryana trying to shield the Deputy Superintendent of the local district jail, Mr Suriti Lal, who had been arrested and booked for colluding with the jail inmates for extorting money from outsiders? The government has been reportedly dragging its feet for more than a year in giving the go ahead for his prosecution.

A senior IAS officer of the state on the condition of anonymity, told Tribune News Service that the police had completed legwork and was ready to put up challan in the court in this case. But as the official concerned was a gazetted officer, a sanction from the government was necessary.

The then district police chief, Mr Navdeep Singh Virk, along with the Deputy Commissioner had raided the jail in the midst of phone calls by criminals — claiming to be from “D-gang” — to industrialists, traders, jewellers and private hospitals and doctors. The callers used telephone to ask for extortion money. The targets were threatened by the anonymous callers of liquidation if they did not pay up. Attempts on the lives of the targets were also made by the miscreants. Such calls continued for about a month and the police and authorities were clueless while the members of trade and commerce were in a state of panic.

There were a number of agitations from the public in protest against the police inefficiency in dealing with the situation. Although the government made it a look like a routine transfer, but the general feeling was that one Superintendent of Police was shifted on account of the police failure to deal with the extortion calls.

Acting on a tip-off the jail was raided and cell phones were found in possession of notorious criminals.

The then Deputy Jail Superintendent, Mr Suriti Lal, was suspended and placed under arrest. He was booked under Sections 384, 385, 386, 387, 189, 506 and 120-B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act for connivance with the jail inmates. Significantly, the co-accused in the case are the criminals who were in the jail.

The Home Ministry is alleged to be dilly dallying in giving the go ahead on some pretext or the other. In the latest stance it is alleged to be conducting a kind of trial on its part by going into the merit of the evidence in the case. According to experts, the job of the deciding authorities in the government in such cases is to see whether the culpability of the officer concerned is prima facie established or not. The court is, of course there to judge the probative value of the evidence produced by the prosecution, in accordance with the Indian Evidence Act.

FCI stays away from Pehowa mandi
From K.G. Dutt
Tribune News Service

PEHOWA, Oct 10 — The Food Corporation of India (FCI) did not enter the Pehowa grain market today to make purchase as a protest against the assault by farmers on two employees of the FCI last evening. Activists of the FCI Union reached Pehowa to register their protest against yesterday’s incident and conveyed to the authorities that the FCI officials would not make any paddy purchases from Pehowa market till the “guilty” in the incident were punished.

Meanwhile, uneasy calm prevailed in the grain market. Consequent, to the refusal of the FCI to purchase paddy, the Hafed and DFSC officials made purchases under the supervision of the SDM (Civil), Mr Gurmeet Singh Panjeta. A section of arhtiyas also observed strike today and did not buy any paddy on a call given by the Haryana Rice Millers Association. Heaps of paddy had collected in the grain market blocking all thoroughfares leading to the market. In fact heaps of paddy had spilled over to even the remotest places near the grain market.

The kisan cell of the Haryana Congress also took out a procession here to protest against the hike in prices of diesel etc. The processionists reached the office of the SDM (Civil) and handed over a memorandum to him which demanded remunerative prices of paddy to the farmers and speedy purchase of the produce.

Mr Panjeta told TNS auction had been started today with the DFSC and Hafed authorities. They planned to buy about 15,000 bags of paddy today itself. Talking about yesterday’s incident which led to violence by farmers in the grain market and also blockade the Hisar-Ambala road, the SDM (Civil) said the police had registered a case against three persons, including Mr Baljit Singh, a resident of Siana Saidan, who is also a relative of the Haryana Agriculture Minister, Mr Jaswinder Singh Sandhu. Two others who figure in the FIR are Jaspal Singh of Gumthala Garu and Karam Singh of Chajjupur.

Mr Bhopal Singh, an FCI employee who was seriously injured in yesterday’s attack, is still convalescing in the local civil hospital. In fact, it was the deft handling of the situation by Mr Panjeta which saved the situation from taking an uglier turn yesterday.

According to details gathered by this correspondent, two FCI employees, Mr Bhopal Singh and Mr Bharat Prakash, were making paddy purchases in the grain market. A section of infuriated farmers led by Mr Baljit Singh and others assaulted the two employees. The assault took place following angry complaints by the farmers that the FCI was purchasing paddy in a discriminatory manner and rejecting the produce of the farmers on flimsy grounds.

The farmers’ anger went out of control when some truckloads of paddy were returned to the market by the FCI authorities from the Dhand storage depot on the ground that these did not meet the requirements and specifications of the FCI. Infuriated over it, the farmers gheraoed the FCI officials along with some arhtiyas.

Inquiries reveal that one of the main persons who egged on the arhtiyas and farmers was an activist of the Indian National Lok Dal. When the incident of violence started, interestingly, no policeman was there in the market. The Agriculture Minister who represents this constituency was sitting at the local rest house. The SDM (Civil) was left alone to fend for himself. He repeatedly appealed to the farmers and arhtiyas not to resort to violence but his pleas went unheeded. One of the FCI employee, Mr Bharat Prakash, took shelter in a nearby depot when he was attacked.

The injured Bhopal Singh was taken to the local civil hospital in his Jeep and admitted there. In the meantime the police force also reached the spot. But the angry farmers did not listen to the pleas of the authorities and blocked traffic on the Hisar-Ambala highway for two hours. The Deputy Commissioner of Kurukshetra, Mrs Jyoti Arora, also reached Pehowa to supervise the situation.

Later, the SDM (Civil) along with the DSP, Thanesar, got the blockade open. In the evening, a delegation of the arhtiyas and another delegation of farmers met the Deputy Commissioner and the SP at the rest house. The delegation demanded that the FIR registered against the activists of the farmers union should be withdrawn. They further demanded that the entire lot of paddy which came to the grain market should be purchased without any specifications.

Furthermore, the auction by the FCI and other procurement agencies should be from A to Z shops without any discrimination. The usual practice is that the procurement agencies choose produce as per their norms and sometimes their whims also.

It is learnt that the Deputy Commissioner did not agree to concede the demands of the agitating farmers. She said the FCI specifications would have to be adhered to before buying paddy. Furthermore, the entire lot of paddy which did not meet the specifications could not be bought. The farmers agreed that they would not put any blockade on the roads in future.

The Agriculture Minister, while sensing trouble left the scene with the instructions that nobody who indulged in violence should be shown any leniency.

Meanwhile, it is learnt that some arhtiyas also joined hands with the farmers to indulge in malpractices. It is a fact that in some bags, which were sent to the FCI storage depot at Dhand yesterday paddy below specifications was filled. To checkmate this practice, the SDM has asked the FCI authorities to make local checking of paddy and ensure specifications before it is loaded in trucks.

Inquiries made by TNS show the procurement agencies have been buying about 30,000 bags of paddy per day from the Pehowa market. About 40 per cent of the total arrivals was purchased at a price of Rs 540 per quintal.

The rates of paddy vary in the market. While the Gobinda variety sells at Rs 450 per quintal, the Sarbati variety of basmati sells at Rs 600 per quintal.

Millers ready to receive paddy
From Sushil Manav

FATEHABAD, Oct 10 — After a lot of haggling by all parties, a meeting of government procurement agencies, millers, farmers and arhtiyas held here last evening to remove bottlenecks in the paddy procurement in the district ended on a positive note with the millers, who were earlier adopting a tough stance, agreeing to start paddy milling. The Deputy Commissioner, Mr Anil Malik, presided over the meeting.

The rice millers of the district, it may be recalled, had been adopting a tough posture for the past few days over the non-fulfilment of their demands. The millers had been demanding among other things a clear government policy regarding the levy rice, allowance of a few more days, the delivery of custom milled rice (CMR) to the FCI and payment of machine stitching charges on the delivery of CMR.

In the same manner, the grain market arhtiyas and farmers too had been sulking as they felt their interests were not being properly taken care of. While the dealers felt the procurement agencies usually delayed the lifting of paddy from the mandi for six to seven days. This, they complained, resulted in a loss of weight due to drying up. They complained this was a direct loss to them as the farmers usually get their produce weighed once the agencies register their lot of paddy for procurement. They demanded that the agencies should lift the paddy procured immediately so that they did not have to suffer losses.

The arhtiyas also complained that the process of procurement was very slow and once the agencies visited a trader for procurement his next turn came only after three to four days. The agencies, they complained, hardly covered 20 to 25 shops in one day. There were more than 100 shops in the local grain market.

The representatives of the farmers complained that anybody could err in the whole chain but it was the farmer who suffered. They alleged that farmers were exploited by all and sundry. They also refuted the dealers’ claim that they had to suffer losses for weight loss on account of delayed lifting and alleged they reimbursed the loss from the farmers.

The meeting ended on a positive note with the millers agreeing to start milling of paddy after some of their major demands were acceded.

Mr Malik informed the millers the policy regarding levy had already been formulated by the government. The millers would be required to mill rice in the ratio of 60:40, i.e. against three truckloads of levy rice they will have to mill two truckloads of CMR.

To remove doubts from the minds of millers regarding delay in agreement, the government has constituted committees under the chairmanship of the Deputy Commissioner which will include the DFSC and District Manager of all procuring agencies. The committees will monitor and review the progress of milling of paddy on weekly or fortnightly basis as required.

The Deputy Commissioner, according to a spokesman of the millers, agreed to allow some more time to them for delivery of CMR to the FCI. But at the same time he asked them to increase their market intervention. The private millers and dealers, it may be recalled, have been showing a lukewarm response towards the paddy procurement here this time. Out of the total procurement of paddy this year, only 20 per cent has been procured by the millers, while the rest has been procured by the government agencies. This has made the task of agencies all the more difficult.

The millers had also been demanding payment of machine stitching charges on the delivery of CMR. This demand too has been acceded by the state government. In a letter written to all DFSCs, the Director, Food and Supplies, Haryana, has asked to pay additional charges of double line machine stitching to the millers strictly on the delivery of CMR made by them to FCI, provided the charges have been realised from the central agency.

The administration also assured the farmers and the arhtiyas that there complaints would be taken care of. The Deputy Commissioner said in no case the farmers would be allowed to suffer. He asked the agencies to start procurement a bit earlier in the day so that more shops could be covered in a day.

Meanwhile, the latest step of the government in disallowing paddy from neighbouring Punjab to enter in the grain markets here has paid dividends. The administration has set up nakas on roads leading to Punjab for this purpose. Police patrol parties have also been checking the “infiltration”.

In a joint statement issued here today, Mr Harpal Singh, a former MLA and president of the district unit of the Kisan Sabha, and Mr Ram Kumar Bahbalpuria, state president of the ABKMU, alleged the wrong policies of the central and State Governments at the instance of US imperialists were responsible for the plight of farmers. They alleged the authorities instead of taking care of the interests of farmers were branding those who raised their voice for the poor farmers as anti-social elements.

Oppn criticises CM’s foreign trip
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Oct 10 — The Haryana Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, today came under attack from the Opposition for undertaking a foreign visit at a time when paddy growers in the state are getting a raw deal.

The Haryana Congress president, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, and the convener of the Haryana Nirman Manch, Mr Karan Singh Dalal, held separate press conferences here today to criticise Mr Chautala.

Mr Hooda went to the extent of issuing an ultimatum to the state government that if the government agencies failed to purchase paddy at the minimum support price within a week, his party men would stage dharnas in the mandis.

Mr Dalal said the manch had already started staging dharnas in various mandis to highlight the plight of the paddy growers.

The two leaders alleged that the procurement agencies were not impartial in purchasing paddy. While the produce of common farmers was being rejected on flimsy grounds, influential persons were able to sell even substandard produce to the agencies.

Mr Hooda accused Mr Chautala of befooling farmers of both Punjab and Haryana. He said at the time of Sunam assembly byelection, Mr Chautala invited Punjab farmers to sell their produce in Haryana, knowing full well that it would hurt the interests of the state’s farmers. However, when the Punjab farmers were taken in by Mr Chautala’s glib talk and brought their produce to Haryana, the Chautala administration put a ban on their movement.

Mr Dalal alleged that after the official agencies rejected the paddy of the farmers, it was purchased by INLD men at rates much below the minimum support price. Later they sold the same produce to the agencies at the minimum support price of Rs 540 per quintal.

Both Opposition leaders ridiculed Mr Chautala’s professed aim of the foreign visit to invite industry. They said industrial units in the state were shifting to other states because of the wrong policies of the Chautala government.

Mr Dalal named certain big industrial units, which, he said, were planning to move out of Haryana because of “extortion” demands being made by the ruling party.

He also alleged that the purpose of Mr Chautala’s foreign visit was ulterior.

Mr Hooda also criticised the Chautala government for its indifferent attitude towards the drought-hit southern Haryana. He described the state government’s education policy as based merely on slogans.

Describing the law and order situation in the state as alarming, Mr Hooda accused the ruling party of patronising the land and liquor mafia.

Quacks face bleak future
From Vipin Sharma

ROHTAK, Oct 10 — A large number of quacks who claims to be registered in Bihar and other states are likely to fall on hard days as the drug control authorities are getting tough. The authorities have decided to eliminate such ‘doctors’ on the ground of judgements passed by the Supreme Court.

According to an estimate, there are more than 15,000 ‘doctors’ in the state who are not registered in the medical register of the state. However, most of them are prescribing allopathic medicines to patients in gross violation of the provisions of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act (1940).

At least three such cases were decided at Hisar recently where ‘doctors’ who claimed to be registered with the Ayurvedic and Unani Board of Bihar were convicted by the court.

The Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Hisar, Mr Sanjiv Kumar, sentenced a ‘doctor’ to one-year rigorous imprisonment. A raiding party led by the then district drug inspector, Mr Girdhari Lal Singal had seized allopathic medicines from his clinic in 1988 and registered a case under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.

Ved Prakash Sharma practising at Vandna Clinic in Hisar had claimed to be a registered medical practitioner with the Ayurvedic and Yunani Board of Bihar and pleaded that the diploma of ‘vaid visharad’ obtained from Patna had authorised him to administer allopathic medicines. However, he was convicted by the magistrate as per a Supreme Court verdict.

In a similar case the CJM, Hisar, passed a two-and-a-half-year prison sentence on Prahlad Singh Panwar practising at Janta Hospital in Hisar on the charge of treating patients with allopathic medicines. The accused claimed to be registered with the Ayurvedic Unani Medicine Council, Bihar. While delivering the judgment, the judge clarified that the accused was permitted to prescribe only ayurvedic and unani methods. Only those registered in the medical register of the state are authorised prescribe allopathic medicines under Section 2 (EE) or drug rules (1945) of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act through a special notification.

According to sources, nearly 200 such cases are pending in different courts in the state against ‘doctors’ who claim to be registered with the Ayurvedic and Unani Medicine Council, Bihar, and practising in Haryana. It is learnt that about one-third of such cases are pending in local courts.

Sirsa’s date with e-governance
From Bhupinder Dharmani

SIRSA, Oct 10 — Following in the footsteps of the Andhra Pradesh Government the Haryana Government has also initiated a process of turning its districts ‘high- tech’. This novel project is likely to be inaugurated on Haryana Day from the native district of Chief Minister, Mr O.P. Chautala.

This is being done to facilitate information at the grassroot level, transparency in the administration and to check corruption. It will also ensure time-bound redressal of rural problems by officials-concerned.

According to reliable sources, work on this ambition project is underway and it should be ready for public use by November 1. Under this programme the villager will not have to come to the district headquarter to lodge his complaint but will be able to do so at a ‘Soochna Kendra’, at the block-level which will be connected through the internet to the HQ. The complainant will get a reply from the concerned department in a stipulated time through this system.

In the first phase this pilot project, to be funded by the District Rural Development Agency, is likely to have three to four soochna kendras at block headquarters. Rori will have one of them. One ‘soochna kendra’ will cater to the need of 15 to 20 villages.

The ‘soochna kendras’ will have the detail of families living below the poverty line, development grant given to the villages, information regarding projects, details of guidelines of various schemes, various facilities given to the people by the administration, old age pensioners’ list etc. The people can also get a copy of the ‘jamabandi’ domicile certificate etc.

When contacted the Deputy Commissioner, Mr Amit Jha confirmed that work on this project was underway and its main aim was rural connectivity at minimum expense. It will also speed up the redressal process.

The Additional Deputy Commissioner and the officer incharge of the District Rural Development Agency, Mr D. Suresh said if the project gets the desired response in the second phase all the villages in the district will be connected with this system by creating about 25 to 30 soochna kendras.

The villagers will not only be able to send their complaints through this system but will also get valuable information regarding agriculture, health and animal care including crop rates etc., he added. Private investers will be encouraged to participate.

A CD and website on Sirsa is also being designed and developed by DRDA, which will contain the detail of the history, economy, geography and administration of the district.