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| Tuesday, January 2, 2001, Chandigarh, India   
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Seeking Sushma’s help to revive Haryana BJP Dangi’s judicial remand extended Power failure in Ambala General category staff hail transfer Rs 100 cr spent on development: DC HVP protest march on Jan 9 |
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| Club’s impeccable welfare record Rain brightens power projects Computerisation to be introduced in 52 civic bodies HVPN drive to check power theft 12 injured in clash with police 5 robbers held, arms seized Governor, CM’s Gurpurb greetings Chautala calls for dedication in work BJP leader flays Bansi Lal Freedom fighter dead Road safety week begins Two die as car, tractor collide Vishnu Bhagwan
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| Seeking Sushma’s help to revive Haryana BJP GURGAON, Jan 1 — Irked by the alleged “cavalier” approach of the ruling INLD in Haryana towards the state unit of the BJP, prominent leaders of the Sangh Parivar are trying to enlist the support of the Union Minister and former Chief Minister of Delhi, Mrs Sushma Swaraj, for the revival of the party. According to sources, senior BJP stalwarts, including the leader of the BJP in the state Assembly, Mr Krishan Pal Gujjar, have approached Mrs Swaraj to involve herself in the state affairs. The leaders have expressed their desire that she makes a programme in the state. Mrs Swaraj is understood to have given her consent. The details of her programme are yet to be finalised. Mrs Swaraj hails from Haryana. However, she had shifted her base to Delhi, where she was the Chief Minister for a few months. A lot of significance is being attached to the move on account of the timing to rope in Mrs Swaraj by the BJP leaders. The development takes place at a time when the BJP leaders’ resentment is growing against the Chief Minister and INLD supremo, Mr Om Prakash Chautala. Also, the former Chief Minister, Mr Bansi Lal, is making efforts to revive himself after the virtual limbo he had gone into following the Haryana Vikas Party’s (HVP) defeat in the last Assembly election. It may be recalled that it was Mrs Swaraj who had played a key role for the HVP-BJP alliance in the 1996 election in the state. Mrs Swaraj was the vital link in the chain of contacts of Mr Bansi Lal in the higher echelons of the BJP. Mr Bansi Lal’s laudatory references to Union Minister L.K. Advani, Mr Murli Manohar Joshi and Ms Uma Bharati (all ministers in the NDA government at the Centre) in Narnaul a few days ago, is seen by many as signs of upheavals in the state unit of the BJP. The three BJP leaders were said to be close to Mr Bansi Lal and had for long resisted the state unit’s withdrawal of support to his government. While praising the senior BJP leaders, he had debunked the style of functioning of Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee. It may be recalled that Mr Vajpayee’s apparent moves in Haryana and Punjab had been pro-INLD and SAD. In fact, many in the HVP had attributed the withdrawal of support of the BJP to the Bansi Lal government, leading to its eventual fall, to Mr Vajpayee. |
| Dangi’s judicial remand extended ROHTAK, Jan 1 — The Special Judge, Mr Shiva Sharma, today extended the judicial remand of former Revenue Minister Anand Singh Dangi till January 15 and allowed the police to formally arrest him in another case registered against him on December 18. The Special Judge held his court on the premises of the district jail on the request of the jail superintendent who apprehended law and order problem. The judge said the jail superintendent had drawn his attention to reports about Mr Dangi having addressed the public while in custody on December 18 and there by violated the police manual. The jail superintendent informed the judge that the police had registered an FIR under Sections 353, 224, 506 and 186 of the IPC against Mr Dangi. The apex court had issued directions for the protection of Mr Dangi’s life who had allegedly apprehended elimination at the hands of the Haryana police. The public prosecutor told the court that the FIR on December 18 had been registered against Mr Dangi on charges of misbehaviour with the police and obstructing them from discharging their duties while the former minister was being escorted to the van for being taken to jail. The Special Judge permitted the DSP (City) to interrogate Mr Dangi in the case and also to effect his formal arrest. The judge ordered that the DSP (City) would be assisted by not more than a police officer of the rank of inspector. The judge also directed that Mr Dangi be arrested in the district jail in the presence of his advocate. Mr Dangi said he had been implicated and that he had made a statement to pacify his supporters outside the court at the instance of DSP Jai Narain Ranga, who had been transferred. He said he was made to climb the boundary wall of the court premises by the police escorting him. He denied having misbehaved with the police. |
| Power failure in Ambala AMBALA Several parts of Ambala city and cantonment went without electricity and water supply to some parts was affected. There was a fault in the power supply as insulators had ruptured due to the showers. The Milk Plant feeder had been affected. Also cable box damage was detected at Jagadhari Gate and the level crossing which took time to be repaired. An HVPN official said that pole-to-pole checking had to be conducted to detect the fault, which was later repaired. In parts of Ambala cantonment, for instance, power supply was affected for long hours. It was restored late in the evening. There was a sharp decline in the temperature after the showers. The Senior Vice-President of the Haryana Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr N.C. Jain, observed that such long power cuts had an adverse impact on the industry. "When power is off for long hours, then work comes to a standstill specially in the small industries which do not have generator arrangement," he said. Mr Jain said that power supply was a major cause for concern of the local industrialists. "There is definitely a need to improve the power supply," he emphasised. KHARAR: Majority of Kharar residents could not take part in the New Year celebrations and could not watch various programmes on their television sets as the supply of electricity remained suspended from about 11 p.m. last night to 9 a.m. today. The residents could not get the supply of drinking water in the morning. According to information gathered from the PSEB, Kharar, this happened because a jumper got damaged on the main supply line. | |
| General category staff hail transfer CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — Even as the transfer of Mr S.C. Chaudhary from the post of Special Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister of Haryana on Saturday was opposed by the All-India Confederation of Scheduled Castes/Tribes and Backward Classes (Haryana unit), general category employees today hailed his shifting by Mr Om Prakash Chautala. While making a speech at the striking Haryana employees’ rally in Sector 17 here, Mr Prithvi Singh Layal, an employees leader, said that the shifting of Mr Chaudhary from the coveted post was indicative of the changing attitude of Mr Chautala toward the agitating employees. He said Mr Chaudhary had played a key role in the state government’s decision to hold back its order reverting seven Under-Secretaries promoted after March 1, 1996. The issue of the transfer of Mr Chaudhary also figured in the speech of Mr Desraj Lamba, president of the Haryana General Category and Backward Classes Employees Welfare Organisation, which has been spearheading the pen-down strike by the employees on the issue of accelerated promotion to Scheduled Castes employees. The Chautala regime had issued transfer and posting orders in the case of 28 IAS officers in an administrative reshuffle carried out on Saturday. While Mr L.M. Goyal, a 1966 batch IAS officer, was named the Chief Secretary, what was unexpected was the shifting of Mr Chaudhary and Mr Sanjeev Kaushal, two high-profile bureaucrats, from the Chief Minister’s office. While Mr Chaudhary, who was also Secretary of the Town and Country Planning and Urban Estates Department, was transferred as Commissioner and Secretary, Industries, Mr Kaushal was retained as the Director of Public Relations but stripped of his position as Additional Principal Secretary to the CM. A high-ranking official tried to justify the transfers of Mr Chaudhary and Mr Kaushal, saying that even though they were removed from the Chief Minister’s office, they had been given important departments nevertheless. “The Director of Public Relations is very important and the same goes for the position of Commissioner of the Industries Department”, the official said. Similarly, Mr P.K. Chaudhary, who was removed from the post of Commissioner and Secretary, Industries, had been given charge of the important Education Department, he said. Knowledgeable sources, however, said that by giving additional charge of the Town and Country Planning Department to Mr M. Shankar, Mr Chautala wanted to convey the message that only a very firm officer with a good track record would be handling this department. “The Chief Minister is a very mobile person and has more feedback on everything than anybody else”, the sources said. For Mr Chaudhary, the charge of the Department of Industries could only be poor compensation for the clout he wielded as Special Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister and Secretary, Town and Country Planning. While the employees’ pen-down strike and the CM’s disapproval of Mr Chaudhary’s handling of the Town and Country Planning Department were stated to have led to his transfer to the Industries Department, several theories were doing the rounds on why Mr Kaushal had been transferred. While sources close to the Chief Minister claimed that Mr Kaushal was relieved of his post at the CM’s office so that he could focus wholly on Public Relations related work, there were not too many takers for this theory. The striking employees, meanwhile, claimed that Mr Kaushal was transferred as a “balancing act” vis-a-vis the removal of Mr Chaudhary. “If only Mr Chaudhary had been transferred, Scheduled Castes employees would have accused the government of being partisan”, they said. |
| Rs 100 cr spent on development: DC AMBALA Mr Gautam said that most of the development work pertained to the announcements made by Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala during the Sarkar Apke Dwar programme. "Priority was given to development work," he said. He said that a sum of Rs 10.63 crore was spent on 62 roads built last year. "For development in villages, Rs 7.43 crore was spent and bank loans amounting to Rs 1.22 crore were arranged," he said. Mr Gautam said that the Social Welfare Department disbursed Rs 7.5 crore as old-age, widow and disability pension. Now, about 45,000 aged persons, 12,000 widows and 2,300 disabled were getting pensions at Rs 200 per month, a release said. He said the Panchayati Raj Department was sanctioned Rs 5.69 crore for 241 works, including 65 school rooms, 10 school boundaries and 62 chaupals, which has benefitted 100 villages in the district. The Deputy Commissioner said that the Haryana Vidyut Prasar Nigam had spent Rs 6.32 crore on transformers and setting up new lines. On flood control, 39 works were undertaken at Rs 1.32 crore. He pointed out that encroachments were removed last year and about 1180-acre panchayat land worth Rs 30 crore was freed from encroachments. Mr Gautam said that Ambala became the first district in Haryana where computerised vehicle registeration and driving licences were issued. HVP protest march on Jan 9 SIRSA, Jan 1 — The HVP will hold a procession here on January 9 in protest against the “anti-people” policies of the Chautala government and the recent power tariff hike. This was stated by the district president of the HVP Mr Prahlad Singh Gillakhera, while speaking to newspersons at the local Surkhab tourist complex. Mr Gillakhera suspected that the Chautala government was trying to withdraw the SYL Canal case pending in the Supreme Court and trying to settle the issue by a dialogue with the Punjab Government. He warned that the HVP would not tolerate any compromise at the cost of the interests of the state and for the sake of farmers, it would fight the case in the Supreme Court. He said Mr Chautala had backtracked from his promise of providing electricity and water free of cost to the farmers. Mr Gillakhera said his party would also submit a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner to be forwarded to the Governor. |
| Club’s impeccable welfare record SIRSA: The local Lions Club, has shown the path to other clubs by implementation of a number of important projects touching almost every field during the past four to five months. The club has carried out activities in various fields which include blood donation, eye donation, Hepatitis B vaccination, as well as sports and talent promotion of the physically handicapped. The club organised blood donation camps through which it tried to eliminate misconceptions associated with blood donation. An awareness campaign about AIDS was also launched. A vaccination campaign against Hepatitis B was also initiated. A camp was also organised about dental care. The highlight of its activities was a free polio surgery camp in which as many as 150 patients were examined and 22 were operated upon by renowned surgeons. The club distributed callipers, crutches and one tricycle. The Lions Club left a mark in the field of patriotism by remembering Krishan Kumar, the Kargil martyr, by organising a free eye operation camp in his native Tarkanwali village and honoured his father, Jai Singh. The club members also took care of the handicapped by organising a sports competition and a cultural contest for the deaf and dumb. Independence Day was celebrated with these children. In other fields Lions Club contributed a lot in tree plantation and in the campaign against use of plastic bags. To educate people about traffic rules, a traffic umbrella was installed by the club. The club also launched an awareness drive against the increasing noise pollution. An ENT camp was organised for the benefit of the deaf and dumb. At the camp not only was speech therapy programme started but hearing aids were also distributed (see photo). The vigour and dynamism of the new club secretary, Dr Vinod Gupta, and his team have won people’s appreciation. |
| Rain brightens power projects CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam (HVPN) said here today that due to rain in the region, power position of the state would remain stable and comfortable and added that every precaution had been taken to keep the grid frequencies within the required parameters. An HVPN spokesman said that excessive generation by generating stations in the Northern Grid, particularly the Central power stations, combined with a large scale crash in demand for power because of widespread and intensive rainfall in the region, the frequency of the Northern Grid went up dramatically yesterday leading to tripping of power supply in some circuits. However, the Faridabad and Panipat Power stations backed out to the extent 100 MW each following which healthy frequency in the system was restored. Substantial rain in the region also temporarily affected some segment of the 11 KV distribution system in some areas such as Ambala, Fatehabad but the system was restored due to prompt action by the corporations, the spokesman informed. He said that it was essential to prevent the system frequency from rising excessively, i.e. from 50.5 - 51 hertz in order to protect devices such as tubewells, domestic electrical appliances etc from getting damaged. |
| Computerisation to be introduced in 52 civic bodies CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The Haryana Government today decided to introduce computerisation in all 52 municipalities and the Directorate of Local Bodies in order to streamline their working and bring about efficiency. The Minister of State for Local Bodies, Mr Subhash Goyal, said with the introduction of this scheme, the records of the municipalities relating to town planning, house tax, registration of births and deaths, building applications, municipal property, streetlighting and the personal records of the employees would be computerised. Information about the income of the municipalities, sources of income and expenditure and details of various works would be web enabled. The Minister said all municipalities would be connected with the headquarters in Chandigarh. He said Rs 6.50 crore would be spent on the implementation of this scheme, for which a loan would be got from HUDCO. HVPN drive to check power theft CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The Vigilance Wing of the Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam will launch month long special campaign to prevent and detect power pilferage. An official spokesman said a special task force had been set up under the chairmanship of Mr P. Rai DIG and Director of Vigilance and Security, HVPN at Panchkula, Mr Rai would be assisted by the SP, Crime and four DSPs at the range level. He said all district SPs had been asked to organise raiding parties under an Inspector in this regard. Technical teams of engineers from the HVPN would be associated with these police parties to nab the culprits. He said all CID and Vigilance units in the field had also been instructed separately to collect information on this count and pass it on to the district SP concerned so that specific checks could be conducted against consumers indulging in pilferage. It was expected that these raids, besides checking power theft, would also result in revenue for the HVPN in the shape of heavy fines, he added. | |
| 12 injured in clash with police HISAR, Jan 1 — As many as 12 persons, including three policemen and four women, were seriously injured in a clash between the police and protesters at the Uklana Chowk on the Hisar-Chandigarh highway, 45 km from here, yesterday. A police constable, Mr Ramphal and four women were admitted to the local Civil Hospital while the others were admitted to Uklana hospital. The residents of Uklana and nearby villages had given a call for a dharna on the crossing today in protest against the failure of the district police to locate Mr Bhale Ram, who has been missing under mysterious circumstances since October 31. When hundreds of residents, including a large number of women, proceeded towards the crossing from Uklana in the morning, the police tried to stop them. The angry mob started pelting stones at the policemen after which the police restored to a lathi charge and dispersed the protesters. After some time the mob again gathered in a nearby school and reached the crossing. This continued for over four hours and there were long queues of vehicles on both sides of the road. The protesters were demanding the immediate location of Mr Bhale Ram. They alleged that he had been kidnapped by some influential persons and the police was trying to save them. They alleged that though he had been missing for the past two months but the police had failed to find any clue to him. Later in the evening Mr Anurag Rastogi, Deputy Commissioner, and Mr Raj Pal Singh, Superintendent of Police, reached the site and assured the protesters that the matter would be resolved in the next 10 days. They also assured them that the case would be transferred to Mr Jagdish Nagar, Deputy Superintendent of Police, for further investigation. After the assurance the protesters lifted the dharna. |
| 5 robbers held, arms seized JIND, Jan 1 — The local police has busted a gang of robbers by arresting five of its members. Talking to mediapersons today, Mr O.P. Singh, Superintendent of Police, said the robbers had been identified as Sanjay of Chabri village, Kaptan of Dharoli and Surinder, Suresh and Naresh of the town. The police has seized four pistols and 17 cartridges from their possession. The gang was involved in a number of crimes in Rajasthan, Delhi and Haryana. The police received an information that some armed youths were hiding in the local new grain market and were preparing to loot bus passengers on the Jind-Rohtak road. A police party raided the grain market and nabbed the robbers. The SP said the gang consisted of 11 members. Police parties have been sent to different places to trace the six members of the gang. The SP said the gang members had taken away trucks from Delhi and Jind and stolen railway goods from Jind and Rohtak districts. The police has registered a case under Sections 399, 402 and 120-B of the IPC and under the Arms Act. |
| Governor, CM’s Gurpurb greetings CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — Haryana Governor Babu Parmanand today extended warm felicitations to the people of Haryana on the eve of the Guru Gobind Singh Gurpurb and asked them to follow the path shown by the Guru who fought terror, tyranny, cruelty and injustice. Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala, also urged the people to follow the path shown by Guru Gobind Singh. In a message issued here today, on the eve of Gurpurb, he described Guru Gobind Singh as a revolutionary saint and brave soldier who had made supreme sacrifice for the unity and integrity of the country. |
Chautala calls for dedication in work CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The Haryana Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, today asked the administrative secretaries and head of departments to work with dedication and make Haryana a model state. He said this while addressing a meeting of these officials here today. The Chief Secretary. Mr L.M. Goyal, who assumed charge from Mr Vishnu Bhagwan earlier in the day, was also present at the meeting. He assured the Chief Minister that the administration would continue to serve people with the same spirit with which Mr Chautala had himself been addressing the grievances of people under the ‘Sarkar Aapke Dwar’ programme. |
| BJP leader flays Bansi Lal SONEPAT, Jan 1 — Mr Mukhtiar Singh Malik, a former MP and a senior BJP leader, today flayed the former Chief Minister and the HVP leader, Mr Bansi Lal, for making irresponsible statements on the BJP and calling it as a party of the traitors. Talking to mediapersons here, he said due to a decline in his popularity, Mr Bansi Lal had lost his balance of mind and was making unfounded allegations against the BJP out of frustration. Mr Malik called upon the senior leaders of the state unit of the BJP to criticise the propoganda launched by Mr Bansi Lal against the party and should not hesitate even to launch the legal proceedings against him for defaming the party. The BJP leader also expressed his displeasure against some state party leaders for criticising the policies of the INLD government. |
| Freedom fighter dead SONEPAT, Jan 1 — A well-known and veteran freedom fighter Master Ram Narain died at Ganaur, 16 km from here yesterday. He was 93. His funeral was largely attended. He was cremated with full military honour as the five Army jawans fired shots in the air as a mark of respect to the departed soul. Master Ram Narain had participated in the freedom struggle during the British regime and imprisoned a number of times during the movement. Several political, social and voluntary organisations mourned his death by passing unanimous resolutions at their meetings. |
| Road safety week begins CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The Haryana Government is observing road safety week from January 1. The Haryana Transport Minister, Mr Ashok Kumar Arora, disclosed here today that during the week various road safety activities, including awareness programmes with the help of voluntary organisations, would be organised. Medical check-up and eye testing camps for drivers would also be organised. The state government had also launched Haryana highway patrol for carrying out round-the-clock patrolling on four important national highways No. 1, 2, 8 and 10 passing through the state. These highways had been divided into segments of 30 km each where traffic and centres would be set up having facilities of medical aid, telephone wireless communication besides an ambulance and recovery crane. The minister said five training schools for heavy vehicle drivers had been set up at Murthal, Karnal, Gurgaon, Hisar and Rohtak. Regular refresher training courses for the drivers of Haryana Roadways were also being organised regularly. |
| Two die as car, tractor collide YAMUNANAGAR, Jan 1— Two persons were killed in a head-on collision between a car and a tractor-trailer on the Jagadhri-Ambala highway yesterday. According to police sources, Anil, his wife Meenal and Sumit, all residents of Yamunanagar were coming in their car from Ambala when it collided with a tractor-trailer near Bhamboli village. All three were seriously injured and shifted to hospital where Meenal and Sumit died. The Thana-Chhapar (Yamunanagar) police has registered a case against the driver of the tractor-trailer under Sections 279 and 304 of the IPC. Vishnu Bhagwan CHANDIGARH , Jan 1 — The Haryana Government today appointed Mr Vishnu Bhagwan, a former Chief Secretary of Haryana, Chairman of the Bureau of Public Enterprises for a period of one year. He will also function as the Chairman of the Standing Committee on Public Enterprises. |
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