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Tuesday,
May 14, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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SC order
on mines to cost Rs 125 cr yearly Change
Cong chief, get support: NCP Burning of
wheat stumps unabated Communalism
threat to India: Tehelka chief CADA to
spend 240 cr on irrigation Villagers
attack HVPN officials, arrested |
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Hisar
continues to sizzle Spirit sold cheap during prohibition
Madhu Prakash files reply in Ruchika case MC files plea against UHVPN Bhagat Singh’s organisation to be revived Arrest
warrants against 12 dera disciples SHO,
Head Constable suspended Two nabbed
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SC order on mines to cost Rs 125 cr yearly Chandigarh, May 13 The apex court had banned mining within the 5-km belt of the inter-state border on May 6 last on an application moved by the member-secretary of the Delhi Ridge Management Board as an intervener in a writ petition filed by the renowned environmentalist, Mr
M.C. Mehta. Incidentally, Mr Mehta’s petition is pending before the apex court since the early nineties. The apex court has passed a number of orders during the hearing on the petition. The present order has come in view of the assertion by the intervener that mining near the Delhi border was affecting the ecological balance of the Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary and the Delhi ridge. The order, which was immediately complied with by the Haryana authorities, has resulted in the closure of 44 mines in the area and has rendered an estimated workforce of 50,000 unemployed. Interestingly, several of the mines closed down by the apex court orders were recently auctioned by the state government under its new mining policy. Mr Mehta had filed the writ petition for the shifting of stone crushers from Delhi and from certain areas of Haryana to some other areas. The court had ordered the closure of these stone crushers from August 15, 1992. The new orders have created uncertainty over the fate of those stone crushers which were relocated in Pali village of Faridabad district as per the orders of the Supreme Court. The crushers are likely to be closed down if they are unable to get raw stock from the mines closed down by the court orders. This would further affect the state revenue. On another intervening application filed by Mr Mehta in 1995, the apex court had initially banned mining activities within a 5-km radius of the Surajkund and Badkhal lakes. Later the court reduced the radius to 2 km. The court had also ordered the state to develop green belts in the mining area. It also banned all construction activity within a radius of 5 km of the Surajkund and Badkhal lakes. The Haryana Department of Mining and Geology feels that the applicant had not given “vital information” to the court. The stoppage of mining within 5 km of the Delhi border would not help the maintenance of the ecological balance in the sanctuary. The department says it is wrong to say that the water-table has increased in the sanctuary. As per the Central Ground Water Board the water-table in the area from 1960 to 2001 has declined to 30 metres (at the rate of 0.72 metre per year). Moreover, the underground channels of water in the Delhi sanctuary and in the Anangpur area in Haryana are separated by impervious rocks, which prevent the movement of water from one side to another. All these facts can be ascertained by appointing a committee of experts. Sources point out that in only two mines of Faridabad district, ground water has to be pumped out, which cannot have a significant effect on the water table. The sources say the water-table in Delhi has been affected primarily by increased urbanisation, particularly farm houses having big swimming pools. It is learnt that the department is likely to move an application before the apex court to vacate its interim order of May 6 “in the interest of state revenue, the livelihood of nearly 50,000 persons and for maintaining the supply of construction material in Delhi and the surrounding areas.” The hearing is scheduled for July as the court is closed for the summer vacation. The court order has also created a piquant situation for Swami Agnivesh’s Bandhua Mukti
Morcha. The morcha has done a lot for the rehabilitation of workers employed in mining operations, particularly in Faridabad and Gurgaon districts. It successfully contested several issues concerning the cause of the workers before the apex court, which ordered the authorities to ensure that the minimum wages “actually reached the workers(meaning these are not pocketed by the labour contractors)” and to also construct hutments with all basic amenities for the workers at the cost of the lease-holders of the mines. |
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Change Cong chief, get support: NCP Yamunanagar, May 13 Mr Sangma said the Congress was more than a 100-year old party and could provide a stable government. He ruled out the possibility of joining the Congress until there was a change in its leadership. Later, Mr
Sangma, while addressing a public meeting at Kharwan village, stressed the need for integrity in the country. He flayed the BJP, stating that it had failed to handle the situation in Gujarat. He said Mr Narendra Modi had no right to continue in office and should resign on moral grounds. He was accompanied by the state president, Mr Ved Pal, and the president of the Chandigarh unit, Mr Gurbachan Singh, besides others. |
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Burning
of wheat stumps unabated Hisar, May 13 The practice has been prevalent for the past several years and has assumed menacing proportions this year, thanks to the laxity on the part of the authorities. Burning the stumps to prepare the fields for the next crop is the most unsafe and environmentally disastrous way of disposing of these. The worst affected are kikar and eucalyptus trees which are grown along both sides of main roads. Farmers generally set the stumps afire when the wind is blowing towards the road so as not to let the fire spread to neighbouring fields. The trees stand in the low-lying ditches between the fields and the roads. Rainwater accumulates here leading to growth of tall wild grass in the ditches. With the onset of summer, the grass dries up and when it catches fire flames can rise up to several feet. This deadly fire burns down young saplings of eucalyptus and kikar completely. In older trees especially kikar, the fire results in a slow death as the root and the stem is scorched. Thousands of kikar trees covered with soot stand testimony to callous indifference of the government and the farmers towards environment and public safety. These fires are also causing numerous road accidents daily. Thick smoke emanating from the fields on fire envelopes long stretches of main roads reducing visibility to near zero. Temperatures along the long stretches of roads increase to several degrees above the normal. Doctors say there has been an increase in the number of patients reporting to them with respiratory problems and allergies caused by smoke and soot suspended in the air. Fire brigades are receiving several reports daily of fires in the fields. Environmentalists say the real damage caused by these fires will be evident in a few months when the roads will have more dried leafless trees than lush green trees raised through labourious care over years. The fires will result in gradual extinction of several species of reptiles and other creatures which live in burrows in the fields, they add. |
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Communalism threat to India: Tehelka chief
Bhiwani, May 13 He said journalists should come forward to play a role of “social activist” in the present day scenario. Speaking at a seminar on “Role of Media in the Contemporary Times”, organised by the Press Club here yesterday, Tejpal said the need of the hour was that a journalist should also become a crusader against forces of fundamentalism, corruption and various immoral practices currently afflicting the society. He said he was planning to form an independent citizen’s forum comprising social activists, journalists and intellectuals which would contribute in a big way in bringing about a social change.
PTI |
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CADA to spend 240 cr on irrigation Chandigarh, May 13 While stating this here today, the Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, said the annual budget of CADA had also been doubled for the current financial year as against Rs 20 crore for 2001-2002. |
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Villagers
attack HVPN officials, arrested Jind, May 13 Officials of the nigam reported the matter to the higher authorities. On receiving the information, Mr Vinay Singh, Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Narwana, Mr Jai Krishan Abhir, Managing Director, Sugar Mill, Jind and Mr Sukhdev Singh, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Narwana, along with a police posse rushed to the village and took 12 villagers in to custody on the charge of burning official record and manhandling officials of the HVPN Many villagers, including women and children, resisted the arrest of villagers and allegedly pelted stones at the police. They were armed with lathis. They raised slogans against the government. The angry mob stoned a police jeep and smashed its windows. According to Mr K.K. Rao, Superintendent of Police, Jind the police has registered a case under various Sections of the IPC and arrested 10 persons in this connection. Residents of Ghuiwana village in this district had earlier also opposed the recovery of pending electricity bills and raised slogans against the government when a team of officers went to the village to persuade them to pay the pending bills. Mr Hawa Singh Dhankhar, Deputy Commissioner, Jind, claimed that the new scheme of waiving 75 per cent of pending electricity bills had received a good response from rural areas. He said 24,766 consumers in rural areas in this district had settled their pending bills amounting to about Rs 18 crore. He said panches, sarpanches and members of the panchayati raj had assured the district administration that they would persuade the villagers to clear their bills by May 15. Mr Dhankhar said chokidars and nambardars would be removed from their posts if they failed to pay their pending bills within the stipulated period. He said action would also be taken against officials of the HVPN for wrong billing. |
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Hisar continues to sizzle
Chandigarh, May 13 The mercury shot up by six degrees from normal at Hisar and settled at 46.8°C, a shade lesser from yesterday’s high of 47.4°C, making the people groan under the intense heat conditions. Other hotter place in Haryana included Ambala, which recorded a maximum of 40.6°C, a weather bureau official said here. In Punjab, apart from Amritsar, which had a five degree above normal high, Ludhiana also sizzled at 41.5°C. Patiala followed closely at a high of 40.9°C. In Chandigarh, the maximum temperature dropped by a degree from yesterday and settled at 39.2°C. |
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Spirit sold cheap during prohibition Chandigarh, May 13 The state exchequer has reportedly lost over Rs 10 crore in this deal, when a former Managing Director of the distillery, presently serving as an Additional Deputy Commissioner, allegedly chose to oblige a once political boss. The accounts of the sugar mill, which are now being examined by the Commission of Enquiries, Haryana, show that the rectified spirit was sold off to a London-based firm,
E.D.F. Man, at the rate of Rs 5, ex-factory price, when in reality it was sold at the same price to a Delhi-based firm,
Globus. This firm is alleged to be owned by a close relative of a senior Congress leader. The distillery, it may be noted, had priced the rectified spirit at over Rs 8 per
litre, if the purchase was made by another distillery or licencee in Himachal Pradesh or Chandigarh. The exception, it is alleged, was made only in the case of
Globus. Meanwhile, the proprietors of Globus have today submitted a return before Commission of Enquiry, claiming that they had purchased 16.36 lakh bulk litres in October and November, 1996, and January 1997, from the Panipat distillery, instead of 6.36 lakh bulk
litres. If this is true, then the total loss to the exchequer increases by another Rs 10 crore. Highly placed sources inform that irregularities in the other five distilleries in the state during the period under prohibition, allegedly with the overt and covert support of certain bureaucrats, are also being looked into. It is estimated that evasions of over Rs 50 crore will be unearthed once the records of all these distilleries have been examined. Meanwhile, sources inform that trading with Globus took place at the time when prohibition had been imposed in the state by the then Bansi Lal Government. The said officer had reportedly secured a permit for exporting 6.36 lakh bulk litres of rectified spirit (1 bulk litre of rectified spirit can make three bottles of country made liquor) from the then Prohibition Excise Commissioner. The Panipat Cooperative Sugar Mill, with the distillery unit, has a 50 per cent share of the government . The board of management of the distillery was allegedly not taken into confidence when the spirit was sold off to
Globus, instead of the UK-based firm. Nor was the Prohibition Excise Commissioner intimated about this sale to a local firm, instead of its export. Interestingly, the Mill had no licence for export by the Ministry of Commerce, Government of India, which alone is authorised to grant permission for export of goods to other countries. The firm also pocketted the duty drawback granted in exports to the tune of Rs 10 lakh, at the rate of Rs 1.50 per litre (in case the amount of liquor sold to Globus was 6.36 lakh bulk
litres), for earning foreign exchange. Since they showed that their produce was being exported, they also saved lakhs of rupees on the taxes imposed for sale within the country. Sources inform that with the new submission of return by Globus showing purchase of 16. 36 lakh, it will require re- examination by the Commission. |
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A close-knit family of 700 Ambala, May 13 Ramgarh Majra village on the outskirts of Ambala Cantonment has not only an interesting present but also a fascinating past. The village elders say that all families, except for some persons from other communities, can trace their ancestry to two persons who settled there about two centuries ago. The dusty village looks no different from other villages of Haryana except for the fact that today it has about 125 families with 700 persons, including children, who are in one way or the other related to each other. The relationship is apparent from the fact that for the youngsters, each elder happens to be “chacha or tau”. A visit to the village reflects the obvious bonhomie among the villagers when they talk about their relationship. “Yes, we are related to each other. We belong to one community but are two large families. Every person here belongs to either of the families,” a villager said. Village Sarpanch Pritam Singh said they all lived like one big happy family. “Our bonding can be seen specially during times of joy and sorrow. When there is a marriage in the village, we all participate and those who visit from outside are impressed by our brotherhood he said. “It is like a mela,” he added with a smile. Eighty-year-old Shahzad Singh said he was happy to see that all brothers of different generations were living together and their families were also settled here. “We had moved to our present location about 100 years ago. Everyone in this village can trace his lineage to two persons and that means every villager here belongs to one of the two large families,” he said. The village elders observe that earlier it was a tiny village where all were living together and over the years, it has grown into a village now where different families are living. It is said that in 1902, the villagers were relocated by the Britishers since they wanted the land for defence purposes. Wells had been dug up by the Britishers to provide potable water, most of which have dried up now. These days, the villagers have sunk in tubewells to meet their water requirements. After relocation, the villagers had settled on their farmland where they are still living today. However, the village lacks basic facilities like bus service and a health centre. “We have a primary school where the attendance is not satisfactory since people prefer to send their children to better schools,” a villager observed. Kundan Singh, who is said to be one of the oldest villagers, stated that earlier they were poor. “However, through hardwork, the later generations have got prosperity. Even the gurdwara in the village has been built by contributions made by both kunbe,” he said. He rattles of names of persons who were his contemporaries. “Even if somebody went out for work, he would eventually come back and settle down here. I am happy that everyone is settled in this village itself,” he said. Notwithstanding chasms which may appear within any family, the two extraordinarily large families of Ramgarh Majra village here are living together and they are determined to continue to do so. |
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Madhu Prakash files reply in Ruchika case Ambala, May 13 Special Magistrate for CBI cases in Haryana, Mr J. S. Dhanjal, today adjourned the case till May 28. In her reply to the application filed under Section 311 CrPC filed by Mr Rathore, Ms Madhu Prakash said “the application is totally baseless and the contentions raised in the application clearly show that the provisions of Section 311 of the Code of Criminal Procedure are not applicable and attracted.” Any documents sought to be relied by the prosecution, has to be proved by it, by way of leading evidence and whether the document is authentic or not, is to be decided by the court, after the conclusion of the trial. During the trial, the accused will have the full opportunity either to rebut or to deny the contents of the documents. Hence, the present application is liable to be dismissed, as at this stage, the provision of Section 311 CrPC are not attracted, the reply states. |
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MC files plea against UHVPN Ambala, May 13 According to official sources the nigam has not paid the lease amount since 1986 and the total outstanding lease money has reached to several lakhs of rupees. The nigam has constructed its offices on the lease land at Cross Road No. 12 (4.1 acre), Bank Road (0.273 acre), and Jagadhri Road (511 sq.feet). The council has filed the application under Public Premises Act. Apart from it an application has also submitted under Rent Recovery Act before the competent authority to recover amount and damage charges. The council stated in its application that despite several reminders the nigam did not pay the lease amount and had violated the terms of lease agreement. The council has also asked the UHVPN to vacate their land. As per the council records the land situated at Cross Road No. 12 was first of all leased out to Ambala Cantonment Electric Supply Corporation in 1936 for 100 years at lease money of 897 per year while the land on Bank Road was leased to same organisation in 1956 for 30 years. Later, the land was transferred to PSEB and
HSEB. After the formation of UHVPN a few years back the land was handed over to it. It is not learnt whether new agreement of leases was prepared or not. |
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Bhagat Singh’s organisation to be revived Ambala, May 13 Talking to mediapersons here, Mr Bitta said that Bhagat Singh’s organisation, formed during the freedom struggle, should have been continued. “We are now going to revive the organisation and units will be formed all over the country.” He said the organisation would try to bring about “new freedom and new energy”. “Today we are facing cultural terrorism and there is increasing menace of drugs. We need freedom from both these aspects and the new generations will be benefited,” he said. “We have already felicitated the makers of movie on Bhagat Singh, starring Ajay
Devgan. Other movie-makers on Shaheed Bhagat Singh will also be felicitated by us. More movies should be made on the freedom struggle since this is an effective medium to keep the memory of the martyrs fresh,” he observed. Mr Bitta stated that there should be a limit to the interaction of embassy personnel with political parties “Embassy officials send political reports to their countries. They keep in touch with politicians, which is wrong. Political parties should keep an eye on such officials,” he said. “Incidentally, there is no verification on joining a political party”, he added. |
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Arrest warrants against
12 dera disciples Sirsa, May 13 According to reports, Ding SHO Sher Singh had filed a request in the court of Mr R.K. Yadav for the arrest of 12 persons. It may be mentioned here that a case had been registered in connection with the harvesting of crops standing on 104 acres of disputed land of the dera on April 11. As many as seven persons have already been arrested in this case. |
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SHO, Head Constable suspended Yamunanagar, May 13 Mr Ashok Kumar,
DSP, Headquarters, said here today that on May 10 four miscreants had robbed the employees of a mine contractor at Sandhala village near here, of Rs 25,000 after locking them in a room. However, the employees managed to come out of the room and informed at Jathlana police station, but no action was taken. Mr Ashok Kumar stated that he also received the message and reached the spot but found the police officials concerned absent. |
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Two nabbed
Ambala In the second case, Bittoo of Punjab, who was lodged in the Ambala Central Jail, had conspired with another inmate Ram Pravesh and gone to court in his place and escaped after bail was granted. The jail officials had filed a report at Baldev Nagar Police station following Bittoo has been nabbed. |
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