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Sunday,
February 9, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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YC dares Chautala to withdraw support Reports on Bansi Lal joining Cong denied New scheme for payment of power bills Residents’ plea on grain market
allowed Teachers decry rationalisation |
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602 students get degrees School
annual function held Scribes flay police
action; write to CM Electricity Dept
official held for graft Incumbent absent, Garg officiates as MC
head Work on digging out plane wreckage ends 2 killed as car hits tree
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YC dares Chautala to withdraw support Rajaund (Kaithal), February 8 Addressing a public meeting here today, the President of the Indian Youth Congress, Mr Randeep Singh Surjewala, said the Vajpayee government could increase the prices of essential agricultural inputs, like diesel and chemical fertilisers manifold and get away with it because it was surviving on the support of five INLD members in the Lok Sabha. Mr Surjewala said if Mr Chautala was true to his protestations of being the champion of farmers, he should immediately withdraw his support to the NDA government, which would then be compelled to reduce the prices of the essential agricultural inputs. But Mr Surjewala said, Mr Chautala would never withdraw from the NDA because of his vested interests. Thanks to his oratory, Mr Surjewala could keep the audience spell bound even when reeling out dry figures to prove his contention that since 1996, when the Congress was voted out of the power, both at the Centre and in Haryana, the prices of diesel, other
petroleum products and fertilisers had gone up tremendously. He said diesel had gone up from Rs 8.50 per litre to Rs 20.60 per litre. A bag of urea, priced at Rs 133, was now selling for Rs 242, while that of DAP had gone up from Rs 355 to Rs 445. He regretted that unfortunately there was no corresponding increase in the minimum support price of various agricultural commodities. Keeping an eye on nearby Kandela village, which was the scene of a massive BKU agitation last year, Mr Surjewala demanded the Chautala government should immediately release the Haryana BKU President, Mr Ghasi Ram Nain, who has been in the Ambala Central Jail for the past several months. Mr Nain, he said, had gone to Ambala district only to demand the early payment to sugarcane growers. Reminding the people of the promises made by Mr Chautala before the Assembly elections, Mr Surjewala said the INLD had misled the voters by promising them free water, free power and doubling of old-age pension on every birthday of the late Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Devi Lal. When the Congress was in power, the expenditure on the old-age pension scheme Was Rs 350 crore per annum, which had come down to Rs 280 crore per annum under the Chautala government. The former Speaker of the Lok Sabha and President of the All-India Kisan-Khet Mazdoor Congress (KKMC), Mr Balram Jakhar, criticised the Vajpayee government for its decision to disinvest two oil companies. “The Vajpayee government is selling off the national assets created assiduously by the Congress,” he claimed. Criticising Mr Chautala for his “apathy” towards the farmers, Mr Jakhar said while the INLD leader could go to Muzzaffarpur in UP to support the sugarcane growers of that state, he put farmer leaders in his own state behind bars for demanding payments of cane from the mills. Mr Jakhar was also critical of the Union Agriculture Minister, Mr Ajit Singh, for his failure to protect the interests of the farming communities in the country. The president of the Haryana unit of the KKMC, Mr Tejinder Pal Singh Mann, said the Congress governments used to declare the minimum support price of agricultural commodities before sowing, while the NDA government did so only when the crops arrived in the market. This not only denied the farmers an opportunity of not sowing unprofitable crops but also opened the gates for their exploitation by unscrupulous persons having political patronage. Mr Mann, who was a minister in the Bhajan Lal Cabinet, said while the Congress government gave substantial relief when the floods hit the state, the Chautala government had not given any relief worth its name to the drought-hit farmers. Accusing the Chautala government of indulging in political vendetta, he said he was indebted to the people of the area who came to his rescue when the government implicated him in false cases. Among others who spoke were the president and the secretary of the Haryana Youth Congress, Mr Satwinder Singh Sandhu and Mr Randhir Singh Rana, respectively, and Mr Sat Pal Kaushik, general secretary of the Haryana
KKMC. |
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Reports on Bansi Lal joining Cong denied Hisar, February 8 He clarified that Mr Bansi Lal had been campaigning against the Congress since 1990 when he quit the party. He even sacrificed his government three years ago when the Congress president Mrs Sonia Gandhi put forward conditions before Mr Bansi Lal for extending support to his government. He claimed that the HVP would contest next assembly election on its own. He alleged crime was on the rise and the Chautala government had failed to contain it. Common man felt insecure, he added. |
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Lapse in PM’s security yet again Fatehabad, February 8 Dr Batra and her husband Vinod Batra, a paediatrician, had gone to Delhi to attend a marriage on February 6. Before going to the marriage they went to the LRS Tuberculosis Hospital on the Aurobindo Road to meet a doctor. When they came out of the main gates of the hospital on their Honda City car they were surprised to find no traffic on the road, which is usually a busy road. Dr Batra was himself driving the vehicle and took a U-turn after going a few 100 metres to go towards Chhatrapati Temple to reach the venue. As there was no policeman deployed on their side of the road they did not suspect any VVIP movement. But as their car took the U-turn and reached the other side of the road, they saw three white Ambassador cars with blue lights atop on the road. They sensed trouble when they saw two whistle-blowing policemen running towards their car. But by that time the cavalcade of cars had passed them. The policeman escorted their car to the main gate of a nearby building and asked them angrily that how dare they entered the cavalcade of the Prime Minister and why they did not stop when they were signalled to do so. Dr Batra protested that it was not his fault as neither any policeman had been deployed at the main gate of the hospital, nor was the gate closed. It was only when he told the policeman that he would not take things lying down and would complain about their negligence to the higher authorities that the policemen relented and apologised for their lapse. |
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New scheme for payment of power bills Hisar, February 8 This was stated by Mr V. Umashankar, Managing Director, DHBVN, after inaugurating a electricity complaints and bill collection centre in Patel Nagar, here today. The centre has been constructed by the Patel Nagar and eight-Marla Colony Welfare Association by donations from residents. Mr Umashankar said if a group of consumers wanted to get their bills deposited through an individual, the DHBVN was ready to pay a commission of Rs 2 per bill for his services. However, the number of bills should not be less than 100 at a time. In this way, the consumers would be spared of the trouble of standing in queues. To strengthen the complaint redressal system, Mr Umashankar said the DHBVN hoped to start a pilot scheme of setting up centralised customer care centres in Hisar, Gurgaon and Faridabad districts. The centres would be named Bijli Suvidha Kendra so the consumers would get their complaints registered and also get information about power supply on telephone. Line staff in these centres would be given mobile phones. Mr Umashankar said all consumers of the DHBVN would soon be provided meter reading cards, in which meter readers would enter the latest reading. The consumers would get their bills corrected on the basis of recorded readings. |
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Residents’ plea on grain market
allowed Kaithal, February 8 The Haryana State Agricultural Marketing Board had planned to expand the new Anaj Mandi and auctioned a few shops and commercial booths a year ago and collected Rs 1 crore as first instalment and promised to hand over the developed site to the bidders. Residents of nearby residential colony had filed a case in the high court praying that the board be restrained from expanding the mandi. Resentment is prevailing among those who participated in the auction and advanced money for the allotment of shops. They are unhappy that the department had given them neither possession of the commercial plots nor refunded their earnest money. The bidders have threatened to move court. |
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Teachers decry rationalisation Chandigarh, February 8 “All that we have done is the redeployment of the surplus staff at schools having a shortage of teachers”, an Education Department official said. The official, however, added that a committee headed by Mr Sampat Singh and having Mr Bahadur Singh, Education Minister, and Mr M.L. Tayal, Education Commissioner, would review the policy to correct instances of its anomalous implementation. “As a large number of teachers have been transferred, there are cases of shifting a teacher to a school which is already having adequate number of teachers of the particular subject”, the official said and added that the committee would plug these loopholes. Mr Phul Kumar Petwar, president of the Haryana Rajkeeya Adhyapak Sangh, who has been on an indefinite fast in front of the building, was lifted by police yesterday and admitted to hospital as his condition was deteriorating. “The state government is claiming that all teachers have been transferred to schools in the same district where they were already posted. But what about the 2000 teachers who have been transferred to other districts in the name of sending them on deputation”, a press note issued by the sangh said. On February 17, the teachers would hold a rally in front of the office of Director, Secondary Education, Haryana, in protest against the policy of rationalisation, said the note. |
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602 students get degrees Kaithal, February 8 He said that the purpose of imparting education was to develop personality of the individual to fulfil one’s obligations towards nation and society as only educated youths could bring change and betterment in the social set up. He counselled the students to remain disciplined and dedicated to achieve their goals in life and always give priority to the national interests and work for the betterment of the poor and under privileged sections of the society. Mr K.K. Sirohi, Principal, awarded degrees to 602 students of BBA, B.Com. B.Sc and B.A. He also read the annual report and highlighted the achievements of students in
academic fields. Mr Y.K. Mangal, advocate, president, college governing body, welcomed the chief guest and congratulated the graduates. |
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School
annual function held Karnal, February 8 Mr Chautala was speaking at the 31st annual function of Arya Kanya Gurukul, Mormajra, about 35 km from here. He also laid the foundation stone of Ch Devi Lal Girls Hostel, to be constructed at a cost of about 50 lakh on the premises of the Gurukul. |
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Scribes flay police
action; write to CM Fatehabad, February 8 The manch had organised a signature campaign for a CBI probe into the affairs of the sect outside the local bus stand when the followers of the sect allegedly came there and clashed with the manch workers. The police had booked 14 volunteers of the manch, including three women in this case. Mr Virender Chauhan, president of the HUJ, in a letter to Chief Minister Om Parkash Chautala today condemned the police action and urged him to intervene and ensure the release of the manch workers. He said that the signature campaign by the Jan Sangharsh Manch was their democratic right and those who stopped them from doing so were the guilty ones. He charged the police of being hand-in-glove with the Sirsa-based religious sect. |
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Electricity Dept
official held for graft Ambala, February 8 According to information, Satinder Kumar, a resident of Shahjadpur, complained to the SP, Vigilance Bureau, Ambala, that Lakhwinder demanded Rs 8,000 from him as bribe. He said Lakhwinder had checked the power load of his shop and residence and told him that he had to pay a penalty of Rs 48,000 as he was using extra load of power without giving any intimation to the department. Satinder said Lakhwinder demanded Rs 8,000 from him to not report the matter to the department. He paid Rs 2,000 and it was decided that the balance would be paid in a hotel today. The SP constituted a team under Inspector Sham Lal. The SDO, Panchayti Raj, Mr Ashok Bhasin, was included as an Executive Magistrate in the team. According to vigilance sources, as soon as Satinder gave the amount to Lakhwinder in the hotel, Lakhwinder handed it over to the owner of the hotel. The bureau team nabbed both of them. A case has been registered against Lakhwinder under Section 7 and 13 of the Prevention of Corruption Act. |
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Incumbent absent, Garg officiates as MC
head Ambala, February 8 He sat in the office of the MC Ambala Sadar president, Pandit Shankar Dass and handled some files during the day. Mr Garg said he was now the “officiating president” as Pandit Shankar Dass had not turned up. “Being the officiating president, I handled some routine files. I have taken over as the officiating president, as the president is not available,” he said. He said his priorities would be to take care of the grievances of the people. “The various civic issues will be taken care of,” he said. This development comes a day after a city court dismissed the anticipatory-bail application of the MC president, Pandit Shankar Dass. The Vigilance Bureau had registered a case against him and some of the MC officials and councillors for granting permission to four shopkeepers to increase the height of their shops. An official, too, said Mr Suresh Garg was the officiating president, since President Pandit Shankar Dass was unavailable. “We tried to contact him, but had no success. Since routine matters have to be handled, Mr Suresh Garg has been made the officiating president,” he said. |
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Work on digging out plane wreckage ends Ambala, February 8 According to information, a number of officials of the Kalpi Airforce Station started the final operation around 8 a.m. under the supervision of a Wing Commander. The aircraft was taken out in half a dozen pieces and loaded on a Air Force trolley. Hundreds of residents of Rolaheri village bid adieu to the aircraft. The local vegetable growers took a sigh of relief as the arrival of hundreds of visitors to see the aircraft were ruining their crops. The Air Force authorities did not disclose whether the aircraft would be treated as scrape or it would be reassembled to keep it in some museum. However, some of the villagers have demanded that the aircraft should be reassembled and placed on the Dosarka chowk located on the
Ambala-Jagadhri road close to the village. |
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2 killed as car hits tree Hisar, February 8 According to the police, Lakhanpal of Prabhuwala village and a local resident, Vijay Singh, were going in their Maruti car to Bhiwani. When they reached near Bhojraj village the car driver lost control over the vehicle while over taking another vehicle and hit a tree. Lakhan Pal, a constable in the Haryana police, and Vijay Kumar died on the spot while the driver, Shamsher Singh, a resident of Patel Nagar here was seriously injured. The Sadar police has registered a case in this connection. |
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Two killed in accident Ambala, February 8 According to information, Jagdeep and Dildar were riding a motor cycle when a cycle collided with their vehicle near Manav Chowk. They lost control over the vehicle and were run over by four-wheeler coming from the opposite side. They died on the spot. The bodies of the deceased were brought to the local Civil Hospital for post-mortem examination. A case has been registered. |
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Shopowner robbed at gunpoint Ambala, February 8 He was accosted by three youths near his house. The youths allegedly demanded the bag containing cash. One of them allegedly shot at him when he resisted. |
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New ADC to Governor Chandigarh, February 8 He will come in place of Mr Amitabh Dhillon, a 1997 batch officer, who will take over as the SP (Traffic and Security), Chandigarh, sources in the Haryana Government said. |
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