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| Friday,
August 31, 2001, Chandigarh, India   
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Workers’
disunity helps government CJM rejects Dangi’s plea 1 lakh new
Sehajdhari voters likely IN FOCUS Vigilance notice to former minister HPCC flays govt’s move on medical charges |
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Bringing
about women’s awakening Sept 9
rally: all-out efforts by Bhajan Justice
Anand to lay stone at varsity Freshers
forced to follow dress code BKU to
begin stir from Sept 2 KU
students defer relay fast Child welfare council proposes 300 new creches Cong spokesperson
Man stabbed to death Bandh call
withdrawn Holiday packages
to Morni Hills Rs 75,000
snatched, ex-sarpanch shot at Shop
employee robbed of Rs 20,000
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Workers’ disunity helps government Faridabad, August 30 Although the two main federations which represent about four lakh employees are unhappy with the government’s attitude towards their demands, lack of unity among workers has come to the aid of the state government. While the Leftist federation of the staff, the Sarv Karamchari Sangh, has been spearheading an agitation for the past over one year, the Haryana Karamchari Mahasangh (HKM) has kept away. Leaders of the HKM claim that they have been opposing and raising their voice against the “anti-employee” decisions of the government. But according to SKS sources, the “failure” of the HKM to share dais with it on issues concerning the entire staff, had slowed down the impact of the stirs launched by it. A spokesman of the SKS alleged that some HKM leaders had been playing into the “hands” of the government and had tried to torpedo the agitations by “misleading” the higher authorities. He said the SKS had invited senior leaders of the HKM on various occasions, but the response had been far from encouraging. The HKM leaders refute the charges and state several reasons, including “uncooperative” attitude of the SKS, for their not joining the agitation. According to SKS leaders the ‘indiscriminate retrenchment’ policy, ‘improper’ attitude regarding fresh recruitment, promotions and transfers and privatisation had led to a deterioration in the employee-government ties. The Haryana Power Corporation Union affiliated with the SKS claims that the privatisation move in the electricity department has failed and alleges that while ‘corruption’ has increased, the government performance has gone down. Now the SKS and the HKM both have announced continuation of their agitations separately. The latter has announced a state-level rally on November 4 at Jind to highlight the grievances of the staff. But the lack of unity among these federations is likely to help the state government. |
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CJM rejects Dangi’s plea Ambala, August
30 The advocate of Mr Dangi had filed an application in the court on Tuesday in which he stated that the present cell in which Mr Dangi is lodged neither has any window nor has the facility of ventilation. He requested the court to allot the cell No. 2 to his client on the jail premises. While rejecting the
application, the magistrate observed in his order that cell No. 2 is
not safe from the security point of view. |
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1 lakh
new Sehajdhari voters likely Chandigarh, August 30 The state government outfit which is looking after the election process in Haryana has obtained 4.80 lakh forms from the Gurdwara Election Commission for enlisting fresh voters in the state. Officials here said that 1.50 lakh forms, out of the total of 4.80 lakh, are 1-A forms meant for Sehajdhari voters while the remaining forms will be used for the enlistment of Keshadhari Sikhs. The voting right of Sehajdhari Sikhs, it may be mentioned, is at the centre of a controversy following the current leadership of the SGPC as well as various Akali factions strongly opposing the participation of Sehajdharis in the SGPC elections. In Haryana, which has eight constituencies, including three having double representatives, the percentage of Sehajdhari voters is put at about 33 of the total strength of voters. Distributed uniformly in all eight constituencies, Sehajdharis , at least theoretically , are in a position to make or mar the prospects of any of the candidates in the poll. Officials here said that the registration of voters would start from September 3. The forms had been already sent to the Deputy Commissioners of all districts of the state except Fatehabad, they claimed. The maximum number of forms were reportedly sent to Sirsa district which had the highest concentration of Sikh voters in the state. Rewari district is stated to have the smallest number of Sikh voters. The Gurdwara Election Commission has reportedly asked the Haryana Government to put all those officials who are being deployed for SGPC election-related work under the control of the commission that the poll was over. |
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IN FOCUS
Ambala The number of platforms has been increased in the past few years but the ticket windows especially for second class passengers have not been increased. Long queues are seen at the ticket windows at all times of the day. A passenger has to reach the station at least one hour before the time of his train to be able to buy a ticket. Most of the time there are 300 to 400 passengers waiting to buy their tickets whereas hardly 100 persons can stand in a proper queue. The worst sufferers are the senior citizens, handicapped persons and women as there is no separate booking window for them. Very often, passengers waiting in the queue miss their trains. Those who are in a hurry often get into the train without tickets. Recently, about 50 ticketless travellers were caught at Barara on the Ambala-Saharanpur section. They pleaded that they had no intention to travel without ticket but in the rush at the booking window, they could not buy the tickets. There is need not only for more booking windows but also for booking agencies in the town. The number of trains and passengers has increased but that of the booking windows remains the same as it was a decade ago. The second class ticket window is located on the extreme end of the station whereas the inquiry office is situated more than 200 yard away near the first class booking window. It is difficult for second class passengers to make any inquiry before purchasing a ticket. The first class and AC ticket windows are located next to the inquiry window. Mr N.C. Jain,
a senior citizen and a prominent businessman of Ambala Cantonment,
says that during the British period the third class (now second class)
windows were located away from the first class windows for the
convenience of British officers who travelled in the upper class. The
windows for the common man were pushed to the extreme end of the
station. No one has cared to alter this situation. |
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Vigilance notice to former minister Ambala,
August 30 An inquiry is being conducted in a case pertaining to the alleged assets disproportionate to his known sources of income. Incidentally, three notices have already been sent to Mr Nirmal Singh in this regard. An inquiry was reportedly initiated in 1982 when Mr Nirmal Singh became an MLA and subsequently a minister. The inquiry was started during Mr Bansi Lal’s tenure as Chief Minister. The SP, Vigilance, has also asked
for the production of copies of the income tax returns filed since
1982. |
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HPCC flays govt’s move on medical charges Chandigarh, August
30 A statement issued by Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, HPCC Chief, said the introduction of registration fee of Rs 5 in the government hospitals would prove to be a blow for the ordinary people. Similarly, introduction of the fee of Rs 10 as bed charges in the general ward of hospitals would also put a heavy burden on the weaker sections of the society, the statement said. In another statement, Mr Satpal Kaushik, General Secretary, Haryana Krishak Samaj, also criticised the government move of introducing cash charges for health facilities. |
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Bringing
about women’s awakening Kaithal As part of the movement, a mahila jagriti sammelan was organised in Faral village in July. More than 2,000 women drawn from the nearby villages attended the sammelan, the fifth in a series. Mr Dagar presided over this sammelan. Four such sammelans were also organised in the villages of Teonta, Mataur, Keorak and Sewan. The literacy rate among women in the Kaithal area was abnormally low about a decade ago. It was found to be as low as 28 per cent during the 1991 census. However, the movement to awaken women has improved the situation considerably. Official sources said the literacy rate among women had gone up to 47 per cent. The overall literacy rate in the district was 59.5 per cent. It was also found that despite the efforts of the NGO, the literacy rate in two blocks — Rajaund and Kalayat — was still very low (28 per cent). The sources further said that if the age group of 0-14 among women was excluded, the rate came down to 11 per cent only. Another alarming aspect is the ignorance of women about the sex ratio. During the 2001 census, it was observed that there were 854 females for 1,000 males in the district. The practice of foeticide has worsened the situation. In the case of a semi-urban area like Fatehpur-Pundri, the figures were 650 females for 1,000 males. The Gram Goonj organisation, which had been educating women in the rural areas in health aspects under the guidance of Dr Rajbir Singh found that the sex ratio had further changed during the past decade. There were more cases of foeticide, though hidden. It was observed that foeticide was more prevalent in the urban areas as compared to the rural. Educated couples indulged in it more because of economic constraints and the ever-rising expenses on marriage ceremonies. Another cause of concern is the state of health of women in the district. About 80 per cent of the women in the rural areas in Kaithal district are anaemic. That was the main reason why Gram Goonj launched the grow green vegetable campaign in the rural areas, Dr Rajbir Singh has been in the forefront of this campaign during the past two years. During this period he has brought home to women in the villages how they can grow green vegetables without spending much except on seeds. He has proved to women groups that green vegetables can be grown in plenty during the summer and the rainy season in small areas reserved for the collection of cowdung on the periphery of each village. Women in at least 50 villages have adopted this method. The district has also shown the way by opening an Asha Kendra. The aim of this kendra is to settle family disputes and persuade villagers not to go to court for this purpose. The Deputy Commissioner will preside over its meetings. Women social activists will actively participate in the running of the kendra. The movement for bringing about awakening among women is sponsored by the Union Government and is under the overall supervision of the Child and Women Development wing of Haryana. |
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Sept 9 rally: all-out efforts by Bhajan Faridabad, August 30 A former Haryana Minister, Mr Krishan Murti Hooda, who is considered very close to Mr Bhajan Lal, today claimed that response so far to the rally had been very positive. Talking to ‘The Tribune’ he said rally would set new standards regarding attendance. According to Mr Hooda the rally would demonstrate unity in the party as a large number of senior national-level leaders were likely to address it. Claiming that it was a “serious” attempt to rejuvenate the Congress party, he said at least 25 buses would be sent by the Kiloi Assembly segment alone. He claimed that announcement regarding the new PCC and its executive committee at this juncture would not affect the morale of party workers, especially those who were staunch supporters of the former Chief Minister. Mr Krishan Murti said that ‘misdeeds’ and ‘failures’ of the Chautala government would be exposed as the masses had been “unhappy” and “victimised” by the state government on various issues including demolition drive in name of removing encroachments, replacement of electricity meters, unemployment, and imposition of taxes. He said people were fed up with the “misrule” of present government and claimed that they wanted to give a chance to the Congress led by Mr Bhajan Lal. Meanwhile, Mr Chander Mohan, MLA and Mr Kuldeep Bishnoi sons of Mr Bhajan Lal and several local leaders have been holding meetings and touring villages and colonies in the district to mobilise people for the rally. According to some political observers, ‘less weightage’ to the Bhajan Lal camp in the PCC could have a ‘demoralising’ effect and as a result supporters of Mr Bhajan Lal have made it a ‘prestige issue’ to make the rally a grand success. |
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Justice
Anand to lay stone at varsity Kurukshetra, August 30 On this occasion, Dr Justice Anand will address the students of Law while the Haryana Governor and Kurukshetra University, Chancellor, Babu Parmanand, will preside over the function. Mr Justice A.B. Saharya, Chief Justice, Punjab and Haryana High Court, will be the guest of honour. Talking about the construction of the institute, the Vice-Chancellor of the University, Mr R.S. Chaudhry, said it would be completed in a short span of about one year at a cost of Rs 3.5 crore. The institute would be exclusively for the five year Law students and would be the only such institute in the Northern India, he added. |
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Freshers
forced to follow dress code Hisar, August 30 The newcomers have been told to wear black trousers, a white shirt and black shoes “till further orders” so that they be easily spotted. Most freshers have gone in for the dress. This is the first time in the history of university that a dress
code had been prescribed for freshers. Those defying the code face stringent “punishment” which could mean anything from rolling on the ground to disrobing and parading in the dark. The terror of ragging has forced many of them to stay out of their hostels. Not many are prepared to spend the night there till September 16 when the menace is expected to end after a freshers’ day function. They are forced to spend nights with relatives, friends or even in dharamshalas in the town. Some students have returned home and would not be back till the freshers’ day meet. However, those who are here are ragged during the day but this is extremely mild compared to the nightmarish exercise after dark. Girls, too, face similar problems in their hostels. Senior girl students resort to harsh ragging in the hostels during the night despite claims by the authorities to the contrary. Senior girl students admit to ragging. They justify it saying that they, too, had to undergo similar humiliation when they entered the university colleges. The authorities have already warned three senior girl students against ragging following complaints by some freshers. The authorities also denied night passes to them. Though the university authorities have issued strict directions against ragging but the menace could not be checked. A similar situation prevails in Guru Jambheshwar University and some other educational institutions here. Mr B.K. Kuthiala, a Guru Jambheshwar University, official said the hostel wardens had been asked to keep a close watch on the activities of seniors till late at night. He said a committee of teachers had also been set up to check ragging on the campus during the day. These committees would also visit hostels. |
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BKU to begin stir from Sept 2 Sonepat, August 30 Mr Hari Singh Khokhar, President of the state unit of the BKU, told mediapersons here today that the union had decided to hold rallies at all district headquarters to force the state government to accept the demands of the union. The union, he said, would hold its first rally on September 2 at Siwah (Panipat). It would be followed by one on September 11 at Pipli (Kurukshetra) and on September 30 at Ganaur in Sonepat district. He warned if the state government failed to accept the demands of the union by September 30, the union would launch ‘direct action’ against the government. The main demands of the union, he said, included ensuring power and canal waters supply regularly to the agriculture sector, withdrawal of all “false” cases against farmers relating to power and water theft and end to installation of electronic meters by force. Mr Khokhar demanded that the support price for paddy be fixed at Rs 760 per quintal. |
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KU students defer relay fast Kurukshetra, August 30 The federation yesterday held a dharna in front of the office of the Vice-Chancellor. They were demanding filling up of vacant posts of teacher in various departments, scrapping of fresh amendments made by the university in its re-evaluation system, reduction in hostel fees, especially, where three or more students were sharing a room, admissions to postgraduate students who were unable to clear 50 per cent papers in their previous examinations and resumption of elections to student unions. Annoyed on the alleged rigid attitude of university officials yesterday, the students resolved to start a chain fast in groups of five students from different streams of the university, in front of the office from today. Terming the demands as unreasonable and unwarranted, Mr Chaudhry said he would deal with the situation strictly because the agitation was being managed by some people having vested interests to disturb the peaceful academic atmosphere on the campus. |
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Child welfare council proposes 300 new creches Panchkula, August 30 This was disclosed by Mrs Sudesh Kumari, wife of Haryana Governor, who is also the vice-president of the council, while addressing mediapersons after laying the foundation stone of Haryana Bal Kalyan Bhavan in Sector 14, here today. She said that a team of Indian Council for Child Welfare had recently visited five creches run by the District Council for Child Welfare in the district and found the functioning of these creches commendable. Mrs Sudesh Kumari appreciated various child welfare and development activities being undertaken by the council in the state through its bal bhavans, mini-bal bhavans, creches, play centers, children’s libraries, drug deaddiction centers, supervised home work classes, sponsored schemes and adoption programmes. Miss Phoolpati, honorary general secretary of the council, informed that the office complex building known as ‘Haryana Bal Kalyan Bhavan’ would be constructed at a cost of Rs 20 lakh within a period of one year. The complex would be fully equipped with modern public health amenities and fixtures. The building would have four floors and would serve as a compact office complex for the council. Mrs Jyoti Arora, Deputy Commissioner
and president of the District Child Welfare Council, Mr Manoj Yadav,
Superintendent of Panchkula police, Mrs Poonam Gupta, honorary
treasurer of the State Council for Child Welfare and other senior
officers of the district administration and the council were also
present on this occasion. |
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Cong spokesperson Chandigarh, August 30 Mr Harmohinder Singh Chatha would be the chairman of the Disciplinary Committee, it added. |
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Man stabbed to death Sirsa, August 30 According to information received today, the assailants knocked at the door of the victim, Satish Kumar, at around 10 p.m. and assaulted him. When Satish Kumar opened the door they stabbed him to death. Satish Kumar was a ‘munshi” at a liquor shop. |
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Bandh call
withdrawn Kaithal, August 30 The town was gripped by tension yesterday when two traders were allegedly beaten up by some police men on Wednesday and the traders organised a protest dharna at the local Pehowa chowk. The Deputy Commissioner, Mr Phateh Singh Dagar, had long discussions with the traders’ representatives till late evening following which the matter was settled amicably. Meanwhile, the SP, Mr A.S. Chawla, in a statement here today clarified that he was not physically touched by any protesters. No policemen was injured in the incident nor any stones were hurled on the police party, he added. |
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Holiday packages
to Morni Hills Chandigarh, August 30 These holiday packages to the pine forests would be conducted by the Adventure Club of Haryana Tourism, an official release said here today. The activities will include trekking, rock climbing, rappling, river crossing, water sports, camp fire, bird watching, yoga and games like trust fall and tug-of-war. A minimum of 15 participants will form a package.
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Rs 75,000
snatched, ex-sarpanch shot at Yamunanagar, August 30 According to the information received here today, one widow, Sahroj of Roop Nagar here yesterday returned to her home after getting a sale deed registered and kept the money in an almirah. Meanwhile, three motor-cycle- borne youths came to her residence brandishing pistols and demanded the money. Sahroj, her daughter, Tabusham and former sarpanch, Sidha, alias Rashid, were present there. On resistance shown by the sarpanch one of the youths shot at him and snatched Rs 75,000. They fled away leaving the injured sarpanch behind. He was admitted to the hospital from where he was referred to the PGI, Chandigarh. A case has been registered in this connection. |
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Shop employee robbed of Rs 20,000 Panipat, August 30 According to information, the employee had withdrawn Rs 20,000 from the HUDA branch of Indian Overseas Bank and was returning to the shop when a white Maruti car, without a number plate, followed him. The moment he entered the shop, two miscreants came out of the car and snatched the cash at gun-point and sped away in the car. A case has been registered and the car impounded. |
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Two IAS officers shifted Chandigarh, August 30 Mr Anil Kumar, OSD, Manpower Planning, has been posted as Principal Director, Haryana Irrigation Rural Management Institute, Kurukshetra, vice Mrs Saroj Siwatch, who goes as Vice Principal, Revenue Training Institute, Ambala, against a vacant post. |
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Sadhus
attacked Bhiwani, August 30 A group of 18 men stormed the ashram, about 5 km from here, attacked the sadhus and committed robbery late past night. The loss was yet to be ascertained, the police said.
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