Bhajan hobnobbing with CM: HVP
Our Correspondent

Fatehabad, March 1
The Haryana Vikas Party General Secretary and a former member of Parliament, Mr Surender Singh, said here today that the March 4 Bhiwani rally of former Haryana Chief Minister Bhajan Lal was being organised following a tacit understanding between Mr Bhajan Lal and Mr Om Prakash Chautala.

The HVP leader said in case any Opposition leader was to organise a rally against the government, the ideal place would have been Sirsa, the home district of the Haryana Chief Minister. But Mr Bhajan Lal had chosen to hold his rally at Bhiwani only because he had reached a tacit understanding with Mr Chautala.

The two, he alleged, had been hobnobbing with each other to keep Mr Bansi Lal out of power. He claimed that the March 17, Hisar rally of the HVP would attract more people than the Bhiwani rally of Mr Bhajan Lal.

Castigating the Haryana Government, the HVP leader said almost all sections of society were fed up with the state government. He said the people were facing unprecedented crises of power and water. The type of protests over these issues that the state had been witnessing had never been seen in the past. Be it the farmers or the trading community or the working class, all had come to the streets to protest against the “malfunctioning” of the government.

He said the state government had abolished the slab system on power supplies to tubewells which had been introduced by Mr Bansi Lal. Now farmers were moving courts to get stay orders against the state government orders. He said the HVP would reintroduce the slab system whenever it came back to power.

Mr Surender Singh accused the Chautala government of “befooling” the people on the shortage of irrigation water. He said there was no shortage of water in the Bhakra Canal. The fact was that Bhakra waters were used in a few districts only and waters from the Agra canal and the Gurgaon canal were used in most of the areas in the state.

He alleged law and order in the state was in a shambles and no one was safe. He said murders, dacoities and rapes were being reported in the state almost daily.

Mr Surinder Singh claimed the Chautala government would last only as long as the A.B. Vajpayee government lasted at the Centre. He said a change at the Centre was imminent after the Assembly poll in four states later this year. Once there was a change of guards at the Centre, Mr Chautala was bound to go.

The HVP leader claimed that the HVP would form the next government. It would not seek public support on negative votes but on the “positive” work done by Mr Bansi Lal during his regime.

Budget balanced, says Chautala
Tribune News Service

Ambala, March 1
Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala today said his government did not believe in the imposition of new taxes.

Talking to mediapersons at a zonal-level workers training camp at War Heroes Stadium here Mr Chautala said development work was being carried out effectively.

Welcoming the Union Budget, he said it was for the first time that a balanced budget had been presented. “This Budget is acceptable to the different sections of society and the stress on agriculture is commendable,” he said. “A total of 15,000 workers had attended the training camps. We have generated awareness among the workers about their political and social responsibilities.”

He said wrong information was being given out by the Opposition regarding a ban on “sathi”. “This is baseless. However, we do tell the farmers to change with the times. They must explore better alternatives”, he said.

On whether Haryana was likely to get a package during the Kurukshetra rally to be addressed by the Prime Minister. Whenever we have needed anything, we have got it,” he said.

“The new house tax formula was worked out after consultations, if someone feels aggrieved, then the person can approach the Deputy Commissioner, president of the municipal council or its executive officer. Still if the person is not satisfied, then he can contact local bodies officials concerned” he said.

Senior INLD leader, Mr Devi Lal, addressing the workers, said they must reach out to people and inform them about the achievements of the government.

CPM: Budget favours blind liberalisation
Our Correspondent

Rohtak, March 1
The CPM’s Haryana unit has criticised the Union Budget and described its proposals as being ‘against the interests’ of the common man and in favour of a handful of monopoly houses and multinational companies.

Reacting to the Budget proposals, the party said that these were truly in accordance with the ‘disastrous’ policies and ‘blind’ liberalisation and privatisation being pursued by the Vajpayee government from the day it assumed power.

The Secretary of the CPM’s Haryana unit, Mr Inderjit Singh, said that in total contrast to the BJP’s election promise of creating one crore jobs each year, its government has proposed abolition of 10 per cent of the existing posts within five years.

Abolition of the Banking Services Recruitment Board, allowing contract system and closure of industrial units with 1000 workers without prior permission, further reducing the rate of interest on PF and small saving deposits by 1.5 per cent, and hefty enhancement in postal rates were the steps which would inevitably affect the common man adversely, he claimed.

The CPM has objected to the proposal to hand over responsibility of procurement of foodgrains and public distribution from the Centre to the state governments. The party said that the WTO has been asking for the same for the past many years.

The party has further characterised as ‘retrograde’ the proposals to dereserve the small-scale sector, to decontrol the prices of urea, to charge actual power rates from farmers and to amend the Essential Commodities Act in favour of hoarders and demanded that these ‘anti-people’ proposals should be dropped.

The CPM has also criticised the government’s attempt to ‘liberalise’ the labour laws and dilute the Industrial Disputes Act in favour of industrialists and termed it as ‘unacceptable.’

Mr Inderjit Singh has also expressed disgust over the Railway Budget, alleging that it has totally ‘ignored’ Haryana. Although some districts of Haryana are part of the NCR, there was no proposal either to introduce any new train or electrify of the track.

The party has expressed the apprehension that passenger fares would be enhanced after the Vidhan Sabha elections due in some states.

CITU panel to hold anti-Budget rallies
Our Correspondent

Sonepat, March 1
The Haryana Committee of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) has decided to organise rallies and demonstrations tomorrow at the district level in the state to register its protest against the Central Budget proposals.

Mr Howa Singh, vice-president of the state unit of CITU, told mediapersons here today that all Leftists parties would join the protest rallies and demonstrations, as the Budget proposals were pro-rich and anti-poor.

Criticising the Budget as being directionless and pro-multinational companies, he said the government had failed to announce the minimum support price for wheat for the current season, but had gone ahead with granting concessions to foreign companies which clearly indicated where its preferences lay.

The General Secretary of the Haryana Vikas Party, Mr Rajiv Jain, also described the Budget as anti-farmer, anti-people and anti-employee and said it would benefit the rich people only.

Talking to mediapersons here, he said the farmers who would be hit hard by the WTO regime from April 1 next, would not find any respite in the provisions of the Budget.

Dharnas against Budget on March 7
Our Correspondent

Rohtak, March 1
Describing the Union Budget as pro-capitalists and hard to the commonman, the Socialist Unity Centre of India (SUCI) has announced that the party will stage dharnas and demonstrations at the district headquarters on March 7 in protest against the “anti- people” provisions made in the Budget.

The SUCI leader alleged that the Budget was intended to encourage the policies favouring the capitalists. He alleged that the prices of the essential commodities, including medicines, fertilisers, petroleum products, sugar and electricity had been hiked, besides, the important aspects of education and health had been ignored in the Budget.

Survey to rationalise house tax
Our Correspondent

Kurukshetra, March 1
With a view to rationalise house tax in urban areas, a survey is being conducted so that disparities prevalent in house tax structure be removed.

This was stated by the Transport Minister, Mr Ashok Arora, while addressing party workers at Pipli, 4 km from here, today. He also invited party workers to participate in a big way in the rally scheduled to be held on March 6 which would be addressed by the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee.

The Transport Minister said the Haryana Government was committed to realise the dream of Chaudhary Devi Lal to make Haryana the first ranking state in the country. He said efforts were being made to provide all basic amenities to people living in rural areas similar to those in urban areas.

Mr Arora said special impetus was being given to development works in the state. He said most of the development works announced during first phase of this programme had already been completed and the remaining would be completed soon. He expressed hope that most of common problems of people in the villages would be solved after completion of third phase of ‘Sarkar Aap Ke Dwar’ programme promptly.

The Transport Minister said during half and one year, a new thrust had been given in the state to the development works under the Chief Ministership of Mr Om Prakash Chautala. While enumerating the details he said the oldage, widow and handicapped pension had been doubled from Rs 100 per month to Rs 200 per month. He said an innovative schemes ‘Kanyadaan’ for girls belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes had been launched in the state. Under this scheme Rs 5,100 would be given to the beneficiaries, he said.

Mr Arora called upon workers to come in large numbers to receive the Prime Minister as prestige of this district was dependent upon the gathering as it would sent a positive message to the Prime Minister for announcing package for development of the district as well as the state.

On this occasion, Mr Mewa Singh, president of the INLD, Thanesar block, leader of the INLD Sardar Karnail Singh, Mr Puran Chand Barshami, Satbir Singh Ban were also present.

Traders postpone Haryana bandh
Jatinder Sharma

Rohtak, March 1
The Haryana Beopar Mandal has postponed the call for the state-wide bandh on March 5 following the intervention of the All-India Udyog Beopar Mandal (AIUBM).

The President of the AIUBM, Mr Shyam Behari Mishra, MP (BJP), has yesterday summoned leaders of the Haryana Beopar Mandal to Delhi to discuss the reasons for giving the bandh call.

The President of the Haryana Beopar Mandal, Mr Laxmi Chand Gupta, said a five-member delegation met Mr Mishra at his residence yesterday and explained to him the circumstances under which the call for bandh was given.

Mr Mishra reportedly advised the leaders to postpone the bandh in view of Holi. He asked Mr Gupta and his colleagues whether they were prepared to talk to the government if the Chief Minister opted to settle the issues through negotiations.

After the beopar mandal leaders replied in the affirmative, Mr Mishra got in touch with Mr Ajay Chautala, MP, who after discussing the issue with Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala, said the Haryana Government was open to negotiations.

The beopar mandal leaders contacted representatives in various towns, including Gurgaon, Karnal, Fatehabad and Dabwali in this connection.

Mr Gupta said no fresh date had been decided for the bandh. He had, however, called a meeting of the state office-bearers and presidents and general secretaries of district units on March 5 here to review the situation.

Coop staff fear loss of job
Our Correspondent

Panipat, March 1
Resentment prevails among the 58 staff members of the State Cooperative Handloom Weavers Apex Society here on the decision of the Haryana Government to close down the society. The staff is stated to be neither getting its dues for many months nor any step has been taken by the state government for its rehabilitation.

Before taking this decision, the Haryana Government is reported to have ordered the closure of three other societies — Harcofed, Infed and Housing Federation, all in Chandigarh.

In a letter to the Chief Secretary, Haryana Financial Secretary Cooperative Department, Haryana, and the Registrar Cooperative Societies, Chandigarh, the employees have requested them to intervene as they are not getting their salaries for the last four months. They alleged that the field staff in the production side had not received salaries for the last 10 months.

One of the Office-bearer of the association said after the government’s announcement to stop business of the institution, source of income stopped and the Chief Minister assured them that the arrears would be paid to the employees but no concrete step appears to have been taken in this regard.

Another member of the association said the institution did not get the amounts of rebate and marketing development assistance (MDA) from 1993-94 to 1999-2000. The staff was perturbed by the government apathy for not releasing the pending amount.

Moreover, more than Rs 2.20 crore as arrear of rebate and MDA were reported to be pending with the government and employees had not been paid their salaries for the last 10-12 months, he alleged.

He stressed that the government should realise the difficulties faced by the employees under these circumstances.

In the letter to Chief Secretary, the staff requested that the amount received from the Central government should be released to the society, so that the staff could get their pending salaries.

The association demanded that the employees be rehabilitated by adjusting them in other cooperative institutions where many posts were reported to be lying vacant.

HIGH COURT
Sarpanch’s poll: recount order set aside
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 1
Allowing a revision petition, Mr. Justice V.K. Jhanji of the Punjab and Haryana High Court today set aside the orders passed by Panipat’s Civil Judge ordering a recount of the votes polled for electing the Sarpanch of Ujah village in Panipat district.

Pronouncing the orders on a petition filed by Bhopal Singh, initially declared sarpanch, Mr Justice Jhanji also directed the Judge to decide the election petition afresh.

Mr Justice Jhanji observed that there were no indications in the Judge’s order regarding evidence being produced for supporting the allegations of irregularities during the counting.

Mr Justice Jhanji observed: “No prima facie case for a recount of votes was made out, therefore, in my view, the Civil Judge (Senior Division) erred in ordering a recount of votes. Simply because 114 votes out of total 1702 were rejected, it does not mean that a prima facie case was made out for a recount”.

The petitioner, had secured 360 votes, eight more than his nearest rival during the elections held on March 16 last year. His election was subsequently challenged by the rival.

Show-cause notice to Hisar IGP

The High Court today asked Hisar’s Inspector-General of Police, Mr. R.N. Chahlia, to show cause why proceedings under the Contempt of Court Act be not initiated against him for his alleged failure to consider the case of the petitioner who had passed the physical test for recruitment as constable but was not selected.

Taking up the petition filed by Mr Vikas Yadav of Madhuban, Mr Justice J.S. Khehar, however, granted the respondent exemption from personal exemption till further orders. The case will now come up for hearing on August 14.

Notice to Haryana on SP’s action

Mr Justice S.S. Nijjar today issued notice of motion to the state of Haryana and other respondents after counsel for a Karnal resident expressed apprehension regarding the possibility of elimination of the petitioner’s father by Karnal’s Superintendent of Police.

Arguing before the court, counsel for Mr Amit Sharma stated that the SP was involved in the illegal detention of a foodgrain commission agent Rajinder Sharma. Seeking directions for the release for the detainee, Amit Sharma of Urban Estate in Karnal had earlier alleged that his father was kept in CIA staff custody for three days before being handed over to a respondent who had a dispute with him.

Notice on charge against pro-VC

Our Legal Corrrespondent adds: In a criminal petition seeking the registration of an FIR against Prof Hoshiar Singh Pro-Vice-Chancellar of Kurukshetra University, Mr Justice V.M. Jain issued notice of motion to the state of Haryana for March 13.

The petition was filed by Mr Rajesh Kumar, a resident of Panchkula, alleging that Prof Hoshiar Singh went to Berlin at government expense to attend conference in 1994. He alleged that the pro-VC purchased an air ticket for Rs 39,010 but claimed the travelling allowance of Rs 60,825 by making a forgery on the ticket. He sought registration of an FIR and the investigation into the matter by a higher police authority to ensure independent investigation. He stated that he had approached the SHO and the SSP, Kurukshetra, for registering the FIR but the police refused to do so.

Drive to detect power theft
Our Correspondent

Hisar, March 1
The Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam will conduct raids to detect power theft at Adampur, Uklana and Tohana from March 4.

An official spokesman of the nigam said here today that the Voluntary Disclosure Scheme launched in these towns from February 22 would end on March 3. He said line losses in these towns had crossed 45 per cent and more than 175 cases of power theft were being detected every month in each town.

The spokesman said under this scheme the nigam would recover only 33 per cent of the total fine if the consumers declared the actual load.

He said if meters were reported to be tampered with or had same fault these would be replaced with new electronic meter which would be installed within seven days. The new single-phased meters would be supplied by the nigam at the consumer’s cost while the three-phased meters would be installed by the consumers themselves, he added.

After the expiry of the deadline, the officials of the nigam would launch a campaign against power theft and recover the amount of fine from defaulters in toto.

Panipat power unit recommissioned
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 1
The 210 MW fifth unit of the Panipat Thermal Power Station was today recommissioned.

An official spokesman claimed that this unit would generate 50 lakh units of power every day. He added that the unit tripped on January 31 last while running at 209 MW load.

Sikkim Governor hails Indian democracy
Tribune News Service

Faridabad, March 1
The Indian democratic set-up has always come out strongly in the hour of crisis. This has brought the country like the USA closer to India in the past few years.

This was stated by the Governor of Sikkim, Mr Randhir Singh, while speaking at a function in Jharketli village of the district today. Mr Randhir Singh was addressing a gathering after inaugurating two rooms of a school in the village. Mr Randhir Singh spoke on the strengths of the democratic system of the country.

He said democratic values and mindset developed over the years had helped democratic forces to unite. As a result the USA had come nearer to India and acknowledged its importance. He said “Be it Kargil operation or the devastating earthquake in Gujarat, we Indians had been united and one to fight the problem”.

He also called upon teachers and students to work for strengthening moral and democratic values. Mr Randhir Singh also announced a grant of Rs 11,000 for the school.

Police recruitment on May 14
Our Correspondent

Hisar, March 1
The recruitment to the Haryana Police has been postponed from March to May due to examinations.

Mr Raj Pal Singh, SP, said here today that the physical test of sportsmen, which was scheduled for March 15, would now be conducted on May 14.

He said the physical test of 1,600 male constables, which was to be held on March 18 at the district level, would now be held from May 21. Similarly, the test for the recruitment of 85 women constables would be held from June 3.

Mr Raj Pal Singh said the last date for the acceptance of application forms for all categories had also been extended up to April 30.

Drive against encroachments
Tribune News Service

Faridabad, March 1
A campaign against encroachments on the government land has been started by HUDA in the district. The authorities have removed several clusters of jhuggis and illegal constructions in the past few days.

A demolition squad of the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) visited areas on the Ballabgarh-Sohna road yesterday and demolished several structures built on both sides of the main road and on the open plots of HUDA in Sector 55 and 25.

The team led by Tehsildar of Ballabgarh and assisted by the police was able to remove the illegal constructions without much opposition. Several jhuggis which had come up on HUDA land were removed.

In a similar drive the HUDA authorities got demolished a cluster of jhuggis in the Shyam Nagar area near Bhadkhal on Tuesday. These were reportedly built illegally by some mine labourers.

Meanwhile, activists of Bandhua Mazdoor Morcha had condemned the action and had described it as illegal.

NGOs invited to work in Mewat
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 1
The Mewat Development Authority, Gurgaon, today invited applications from non-government organisations (NGOs) for working in the Mewat area. The authority has also invited applications for its diploma in education course.

An official spokesman said the authority was working for the betterment of the Mewat area, especially in Gurgaon and Faridabad districts, as it was one of the most backward areas of the state. He said the NGOs had been invited to work on development projects which had been funded by the International Agricultural Development Fund and had also been provided financial assistance by the state government.

Falling standard of science worries VC
Our Correspondent

Kurukshetra, March 1
Speaking on the Science Day celebrations at the senate hall of Kurukshetra University yesterday, the Vice-Chancellor, Mr Radhe Shyam Chaudhry, called for an introspection as the interest in science education among the students was falling at a phenomenal rate. The ongoing information technology development without the necessary scientific foundation was like an inverted pyramid, which was bound to collapse as per the laws of nature, asserted Mr Chaudhry.

He blamed the present science curriculum for the fast diminishing strength of science students. The present-day science courses should be devoted to the development of a technical vocabulary, technical skills and a systematic presentation of the accumulated fact and theory, he said.

Highlighting the drastic changes in our social setup because of information technology, Mr Chaudhry called upon science teachers to lead the future generation on the basis of new challenges in the field of science.

Dr Avtar Singh Paintal, former Director-General, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), maintained that presently there is no respect left either for science or towards the Indian scientists. 

Wooden houses for quake victims
Our Correspondent

Sirsa, March 1
Dera Sacha Sauda will provide wooden houses to quake victims of Gujarat who have been rendered homeless in this tragedy in Partapgarh village of Rappar tehsil.

According to spokesman of the Dera, the sitting Guru of the Dera, Sant Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, cancelled all his programmes for the month of March and left for Gujarat along with construction material and workmen.

The Dera is sending relief material and has adopted 35 affected villages.

According to Dera sources, 1 lakh blankets worth Rs 1.5 crore and 10,000 tents worth Rs 1 crore, besides other household provisions, have so far been distributed in a door-to-door service in these villages.

Rs 30 lakh given for quake victims
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 1
Employees of the Haryana Health Department today presented a demand draft for Rs 30 lakh to Mr Om Prakash Chautala for the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund for the earthquake victims of Gujarat.

Devi Lal flays Sonia Gandhi

Ambala, March 1
Former Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal here today criticised Congress President Sonia Gandhi, saying that she was trying to bank upon the politics of kisan rallies without knowing the local names of vegetables and other crops.

Mr Devi Lal, addressing party workers here, said how could a person with little knowledge of agriculture, think of ameliorating the lot of the farming community. PTI

Gang of robbers busted
Our Correspondent

Kaithal, March 1
The district police has claimed to have busted an inter-state gang of robbers with the arrest of six members of the gang yesterday.

Giving this information to mediapersons here today, the Superintendent of Police, Mr A.S. Chawla, disclosed that this gang was involved in the murder of Gopi Ram of Fatehpur Pundri and looted cash and jewellery from his house at night, last week. The wife, son and a neighbour of Gopi Ram, who offered resistance to the armed robbers were seriously injured in the incident.

The SP further said on a tip-off a police party raided Chaman Garden at Railway Road, Karnal, and arrested Bhuna alias Budh Ram of Ahmedgarh, Krishan Lal of Bashlian district, Mujjafarnagar, Shyam Lal and Jai Parkash of Alawdipur, Kalicharan and Shanker of Ahmadgarh, whereas three other members namely Vinod of Kheri Janardhan, Gobind and Janardhan of Ahmadgarh managed to escape.

Mr Chawla said the gang members belonged to Bawaraia tribe. They were involved in committing number of robberies in Haryana, Punjab, UP, Delhi and Rajasthan, he added.

15 kg gold seized, 2 arrested
Tribune News Service

Faridabad, March 1
The railway police has seized about 15 kg of gold from Amritsar-bound Frontier Mail Express last evening. The seizure is valued at about Rs 65 lakh. Two persons have been arrested in this connection.

According to information, the railway police, while on a routine check, detected a bag lying under a seat in one of the coaches of the train when it was about to halt at the old Faridabad station. On inspecting the bag, it was found containing gold and jewellery items.

8-year-old boy kidnapped
Tribune News Service

Faridabad, March 1
A school boy was kidnapped from Hodal town in the district yesterday.

According to reports, eight-year-old Deepak, son of Anil Kumar and a student of a local school failed to return to his house yesterday. A case has been registered.

Doctor shot at 
Our Correspondent

Jind, March 1
Two car-borne armed youths shot at and injured a private medical practitioner, Dr Subhash Arya, near his clinic on the local Railway Road at Patiala Chowk area here today.

According to reports, two youths came at the clinic of Dr Arya in a car and asked him to accompany them. When Dr Arya refused to do so, they fired a shot at him and fled in their car.

Dr Arya was taken to the local General Hospital for treatment. Later, he was shifted to Medical College Hospital at Rohtak.

Two killed in mishaps
Tribune News Service

Faridabad, March 1
Two persons died in separate incidents in the town yesterday. While one was allegedly stabbed to death, the other died in an accident.

According to information, Chhetrapal (35), of Baselwa in old Faridabad was found dead yesterday after he had gone for some work on Tuesday night. His body bearing marks of stab injuries was recovered from Bhim Basti, Labour chowk, yesterday.

JE arrested
Our Correspondent

Yamunanagar, March 1
A Junior Engineer of the Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam (HVPN) has been arrested by the state Vigilance Department for allegedly taking bribe.

S.K. Sikka, Junior Engineer, was caught allegedly while taking a sum of Rs 1,500 from Mr Taushik Mohhamad of Buria in the district yesterday. 

Woman shoots herself
Tribune News Service

Ambala, March 1
A woman shot herself in the Jaggi Garden area of Ambala City last night. The woman used her husband’s revolver. The shot was heard by the neighbours. The woman is believed to have been under stress. She was rushed to the PGI, Chandigarh.