 |
Friday,
March 7, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
|
Haryana taking legal opinion Subsidy on fertilisers ruled out Opposition allowed free say in House Cong leader seeks White Paper on jobs |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
BJP councillors summoned
to DC’s office 1572 new buses for Haryana Roadways HIGH COURT Revised TB control scheme launched
|
|
Haryana taking legal opinion Chandigarh, March 6 The malpractices had a bearing upon a vast section of the people in the state, Mr Chautala said, adding that the INLD, which was the main opposition party at that time, while supporting the policy of prohibition had also cautioned the government about its pitfalls. Expressing happiness over the court order staying the quashing of the appointment of the commission, Mr Chautala said the state government would like to implement the Chahal report in toto like it had done with the report submitted by the Commissioner of Rohtak Division after probing the killing of five Dalit men at Dulina. The DIG(CID) had observed in a report during the Bansi Lal regime that members of the ruling party were involved in liquor smuggling. Mr Chautala said when prohibition was imposed, it was done with a lot of fanfare but when the policy was withdrawn, Mr Bansi Lal had consulted only his son. Mr Bansi Lal did not come to the House today but Congress members as well as the lone HVP member present in the Assembly protested as Mr Rathi brought up the issue of the Chahal Commission report during zero hour. The Congress was also not impressed with the Speaker’s decision to keep pending three adjournment notices given by them. The three notices sought discussions on completion of the SYL canal, failure of the government to give relief to drought-affected farmers and discrimination in water distribution to districts. The notice on the SYL issue was also signed by Mr Jagjit Singh Sangwan, the only member of the Nationalist Congress Party in the house. Responding to the legislators’ queries about these notices, the Speaker, Mr Satbir Singh Kadian, said the notices had been referred to the government and he would be able to tell only tomorrow whether the notices would be admitted. The Speaker was visibly shocked at a call-attention notice given by Mr Krishan Pal Gujjar (BJP) and Mr Karan Singh Dalal (Republican Party of India) to discuss corruption by Mr Chautala’s relatives at the Food and Supply Department office in Faridabad. Mr Kadian was reading out the notice aloud but stopped halfway when he came upon the explosive allegation and said it could not be admitted. A whining Bhajan Lal, HPCC chief, said during zero hour that not a single day had been kept aside during the session for transacting non-official business. The Speaker replied, saying that there was nothing lying before him to make such a provision. Mr Sampat Singh, Finance Minister, also butted in and said Congress members had never forwarded any private member’s Bill for taking up by the House as non-official business. “The Opposition is not serious. They do not know how to take advantage of the Assembly session. They must go to classrooms first to learn and then come back to the Assembly”, Mr Sampat Singh, who is also Parliamentary Affairs Minister, said. |
|
|
Subsidy on fertilisers ruled out Chandigarh, March 6 The question, however, sparked a bitter debate with opposition members joining issue with the Agriculture Minister. Mr Sandhu said the Chief Minister had urged the Prime Minister to roll back the proposed hike in fertiliser prices in the Union Budget. Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Leader of the Opposition, asked Mr Sandhu whether the state government would compensate the farmers in case the Centre refused to entertain Haryana’s request. The Agriculture Minister said that there was no provision under which the state government could give subsidy on fertilisers. Mr Ramkishan Fauji (HVP) stood up at this point and asked whether INLD would withdraw support to the NDA Government on the issue.“On the SYL front, the Centre is doing nothing. Now if the request to roll back in the hike in fertiliser prices is also turned down, the INLD must retaliate by withdrawing support to BJP-led Union Government”, he said. Mr Fauji was supported by other opposition members on this issue. Mr Sampat Singh, Finance Minister, replied to the Opposition onslaught and said that the Congress Government in Punjab had not given even the additional Rs 20 announced for the farmers along with the minimum support price(MSP) of paddy on account of drought. The Congress was getting wiped out from the country and their recent victory in Himachal was as good as winning a municipal council poll, he said. Mr Sher Singh’s question was about giving subsidy in the current financial year. Therefore, what had been proposed in the Union Budget was not included in the scope of the question, he said. Chief Minister, Om Prakash Chautala, said cash mobilised by Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda during the Kandela agitation was spent on the Jhajjar rally recently, adding that if Mr Bhajan Lal requested for a probe, an inquiry into the matter would be ordered. While Mr Hooda protested against the allegation, Mr Bhajan Lal was heard saying that the issue was an internal matter of the party. The next question was on vacant posts in the Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam asked by Independent MLA Rajinder Singh Bisla. Replying to the question, Mr Ram Pal Majra, Chief Parliamentary Secretary, said 1262 posts had been lying vacant in groups A, B, C and D in the nigam. Congress legislator Raghubir Singh Kadian’s query on whether retrenched employees of the Minor Irrigation Tubewell Corporation(MITC) would be accommodated against the vacant posts was replied in the negative by Mr Majra. Replying to Mr Ram Phal Kundu’s question on the Dairy Development Department, Mr Mohammed Ilyas, Minister of State for Animal Husbandry, said the department had set up 6684 dairy units upto February 27 against the target of 10,800 units fixed for the current year. The target for next year had been fixed at 12000 units, he said. Mr Ilyas, however, failed to give any specific answer when Opposition MLA Karan Singh Dalal asked him about the expenses incurred in setting up these units and whether milk production in the state had increased with the coming up of these units. Mr Ilyas was rescued by the Chief Minister who snubbed Mr Dalal and said that if the MLA wanted such details, he should have put up a written question. Mr Dalal tried to say something in reply but the Speaker did not allow him to do so. In reply to a question asked by Mr Jarnail Singh, Mr M L Ranga, Minister of State for Health, said 40 health centres had been constructed after the INLD had come to power in the state. |
|
|
Opposition allowed free say in House Chandigarh, March 6 The ruling party led by Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala did not interrupt Opposition MLAs, who participated in the debate, even when the latter levelled personal allegations against Mr Chautala. It goes to the credit of the Chief Minister that the he firmly put his foot down whenever any member of his party tried to exercise his vocal chords in a bid to shout down a speaker from the Opposition Benches. Whatever interruption was there it was by way of repartee, an accepted feature of any parliamentary debate. The self-restraint did not prevent Mr Chautala from taking full advantage of the factionalism in the major opposition party, the Congress. He repeatedly embarrassed its leader, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Mr Bhajan Lal, by referring to their known differences. The two did not even made any attempt to put up a united face of their party. Otherwise, Mr Chautala was in a generous mood today. He did not wait for formally replying to the debate to accept the demand of Mrs Anita Yadav, a Congress MLA, who wanted a new primary school in Kosli town of her constituency. Mr Chautala directed the Education Minister to open the school even if he had to relax the norms. The Haryana Congress President, Mr Bhajan Lal, who opened the debate on behalf of the Opposition, appreciated the Governor for referring the Casino Bill to the President. He also criticised the government for trying to retaliate against the Governor by abolishing the post of Pro-Vice-Chancellor. Mr Bhajan Lal, who had come to the House armed with detailed notes, accused the Chief Minister and his father, the late Mr Devi Lal, of harming he interests of Haryana by opposing the Rajiv Gandhi-Longowal accord in 1985. The Supreme Court judgement of January 15, 2002, which directed Punjab and the Centre to complete the SYL canal, he said, was based on this accord. Mr Chautala remarked that there was no legal sanctity of the accord as it was not between the two state governments. “Who was Longowal? What was his status? The accord had not recognised the Haryana Chief Minister (Mr Bhajan Lal was in the saddle in 1985)”. Mr Bhajan Lal read out several instances to prove his allegation that the law and order situation in the state had gone from bad to worse. He said the Haryana Government had failed to get adequate drought relief from the Centre. He expressed sympathy with the plight of cane growers. He criticised the Chautala Government for installing the statues of Mr Devi Lal in every nook and corner of the state. He also claimed that the state was on the verge of bankruptcy. He also demanded a detailed account of the funds collected in the name of the former Fiji Prime Minister. Mr Jai Prakash Barwala (Cong) wanted that the Chautala Government should clarify if it accepted the Rajiv-Longowal accord or not. He also wanted the government to come out with details of how the available river water was being distributed in the state. He alleged that PWD contracts were being given to favourites at high rates. Rao Inderjit Singh (Cong), tracing the history of the SYL issue, regretted that the lifeline of Haryana had become a matter of politics. Mr Dharambir Singh (Cong) demanded a ban on cricket so that the other games could also be promoted. Rao Narinder Singh (Cong) urged the Chautala Government to pressure the Centre to expeditiously construct the SYL canal. Mr Sher Singh (Cong) wanted that those members of the para-military forces, who died defending the country, should be treated on a par with members of the armed forces while giving them monetary help. Rao Daan Singh (Cong) wanted that a university named after Shahid Rao Tula Ram should be established in Mahendragarh district. If that was not possible, he said the colleges in that district should remain affiliated with the MDU, Rohtak. Mr Kanwar Pal Singh (BJP) said instead of advising the INLD to withdraw support to the NDA Government on the SYL issue, the Congressmen of Haryana should tell their high command to either ask the Punjab Chief Minister to construct the canal or they should quit the party. The BJP MLA regretted that the government remained unmoved when canegrowers of Yamunanagar district agitated peacefully in support of their demands. This attitude of the government had sent a wrong signal that it was moved only by violence. Mr Karan Singh Dalal (RPI) regretted that the SYL canal had become “a carrier of votes rather than a carrier of water” for politicians. He said Haryana was lagging because of the “dictatorial rule of the one family”. The state government was not serious about the existing vacancies in the Eradi Commission which had to give the final verdict on the river water distribution between Punjab and Haryana. He regretted that no government agency was procuring crops other than wheat and paddy at the minimum support prices. This, he said, would not encourage crop diversification. He alleged in the presence of Mr Chautala that a transport contract of the Food and Supplies Department was given to a close relative of the Chief Minister in Faridabad yesterday “in a highly irregular manner”. Earlier, the House witnessed sharp exchanges between Mrs Anita Yadav (Cong) and Mrs Sarita Narain (BJP). Whatever they said about each other could be described modestly as “character assassination”. At one stage, Mrs Yadav was heard saying “Main Jute Maaroongi”. This unpleasant exchange took place when Mrs Veena Chhibber (BJP) was in the chair. This prompted Mr Bhagi Ram (INLD) to say that at present there were only four women members, who could hold the House to ransom. “What will happen when their number would go up to 33 per cent?” |
|
Cong leader seeks White Paper on jobs Fatehabad, March 6 Mr Bishnoi said the INLD government in the state was not serious about the completion of the SYL canal. He said the Congress would launch ‘jail bharo andolan’ after Baisakhi for the completion of the canal. He alleged that the law and order in the state was in a shambles and the government had lost the trust of people. He alleged that the state government, instead of working for the welfare of the people, wanted to corrupt the rich culture of the state by opening casinos. Mr Bishnoi decried the Union Budget and said it was anti-farmer. He said it was ridiculous that in a country where 85 per cent people depended on agriculture, prices of diesel, fertilisers and seeds had been increased while the prices of luxury cars and air-conditioners had been slashed. He sought the dismissal of the Mayawati government in the Uttar Pradesh on the basis of evidence of corruption in videocassettes against her. |
|
BJP councillors summoned
to DC’s office Ambala, March 6 The Municipal Council, Ambala Sadar, President, Mr Shankar Dass, said he along with 10 other councillors received a letter today asking them to be present in the Deputy Commissioner’s office on March 10. “The letter has been sent to us regarding the no-confidence motion which we have sought,” he said. He said the letter had been received only by those who had signed the letter seeking the no-confidence motion. “I fail to understand the reason behind this exercise. All those, who had signed the application for the motion, were present when the application was submitted to the Deputy Commissioner, on February 28,” he said. The letter comes a day after Mr Shankar Dass forwarded his reply to the show-cause notice issued by the UDD Department. The BJP councillors had submitted an application seeking a no-confidence motion under Section 21 of the Haryana Municipal Act, 1973, read with Rule 72 (A). The application states “we the members of the Municipal Council, Ambala
Sadar, submit this requisition of no-confidence against the Vice-President of the Municipal Council, Mr Suresh Kumar. You are requested to convene a special meeting of the councillors, Ambala
Sadar, as per rules.” The signatories comprised councillors Bimal Prakash, Jasbir
Jassi, Narinder Sharma, Rajiv Gupta, Nirmal Aggarwal, Bhagwati Devi, Angoori Devi and Veena
Sehgal. |
|
|
1572 new buses for Haryana Roadways Kurukshetra, March 6 This was
disclosed by the Haryana Transport Minister, Mr Ashok Kumar Arora, while talking to mediapersons here yesterday. He said all new buses had been designed in such a way that they were having all modern facilities, including safety measures and were comfortable to the commuters. He said Haryana Roadways buses had been adjudged the best in the country in providing prompt services to the passengers in the state as well as in other states also. |
|
HIGH COURT Chandigarh, March 6 Pronouncing the orders in the open Court, the Bench further directed that the husband to pay Rs 4 lakh, while six other accused in the case were directed to pay Rs 2.5 lakh each. The Judges added that Rs 90,000, directed to be paid earlier, would be handed over to the victim today itself. It may be recalled that the High Court, taking a serious view of the fact that six accused had failed to pay compensation to the victim, had directed the issuance of notice asking them to show cause why proceedings under the Contempt of Court Act be not initiated against them and why bail granted to them should not be cancelled. The Bench had ruled: “By order dated May 22, last year, without finally expressing any opinion on the merits of the case, the respondents were directed to pay Rs 15,000 each to the petitioner within four weeks. Till today, not a single penny has been paid by the respondents to the petitioner. Rather, counsel appearing on their behalf has submitted that they have not been able to arrange the money for payment to the petitioner”. The Judges had added: “We have been informed that during the pendency of the criminal appeal, they have been directed to be released on bail. They all have been granted bail. We are of the considered opinion that the respondents are prima facie liable to be proceeded against for committing contempt of Court. We are also of the opinion that a notice needs to be issued to the convicted rapists as to why the bail granted to them should be not cancelled”. Notice Taking up a petition filed by Ambala’s former Municipal Councillor Harish Sasan and nine others seeking the quashing of a first information report allegedly registered due to political rivalry, the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Thursday issued notice of motion for April 21. In their petition, Mr Sasan and others claimed that the case, under Sections 307, 332, 333, 341, 353, 506, 148 and 149 of the Indian Penal Code, was registered on August 14 last year at Baldev Nagar Police Station allegedly at the behest of a sitting MLA. Their counsel added that the accused had been implicated in the case. Stayed A Division Bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Thursday stayed the order of the State Election Commission, passed on March 1, whereby it had treated the candidature of Prithvi Raj Doomra as non-existent for contesting elections from ward number 12 of Jalalabad. The Bench further directed that the candidate may contest the
elections as per the schedule, but the result would not be declared. |
|
Revised TB control scheme launched Jind, March 6 Mr Dass said for the success of this programme there was need to launch a mass awareness campaign. He laid stress on giving emotional support to TB patients besides giving them medicines. The Deputy Commissioner, Mr Rajiv Sharma, said 10 laboratories had been set up in Jind district for TB patients. Medicines were given free of cost at 152 centres in the district. |
 |
| Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir | Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs | Nation | Editorial | | Business | Sport | World | Mailbag | In Spotlight | Chandigarh Tribune | Ludhiana Tribune 50 years of Independence | Tercentenary Celebrations | | 123 Years of Trust | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
