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May 19, 2003, Chandigarh, India
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Unrecognised
schools cry foul over new rules Faridabad, May 18 Office-bearers of the Public School Welfare Society (PSWS), representing about 100 private and unrecognised schools in the district, told mediapersons that a drive had been launched by certain elements with the active support of district education officials to terrorise these schools, while the Education Department was still to clear the air on the issue. They produced a handbill which, they claimed, was being circulated and pasted at various places in the town, cautioning parents against getting their wards admitted in unrecognised schools with the designation of the District Education officer printed under it. They claimed the DEO was not authorised to get such handouts or pamphlets published, although he could supervise and inspect the schools and present the report to the higher authorities. Mr Mamendra Kumar, president of the PSWS, told NCR Tribune the drive was
a conspiracy by certain recognised schools who wanted students of unrecognised schools to be enrolled in their institutions, so that their business could grow. He claimed a majority of private and unrecognised schools were not in a position to fulfil the norms laid by the state government due to financial and other constraints and the authorities should amend them properly, so that children of poor and lower middle class families could get education without any hurdles. Recognised schools and charged that the DEO was being used by them. He said the matter had been reported to the Deputy Commissioner through a memorandum but alleged that there was no positive response from the DEO’s office to check the campaign against them. He said although the state government had issued new guidelines for granting recognition, the authorities had not announced any steps to close these (unrecognised) schools forcibly. Claiming that there were about over 1,000 such schools in the district, offering education to over one lakh students at nominal and affordable charges, he said if these were closed forcibly then the future of students whose parents cannot afford expensive education would be at stake. He said while such private schools had been charging nominal fees, the so-called big schools, which fulfil all conditions of the state government, were charging 10 to 20 times the fees charged in small schools. He said it was all part of a well-knit
strata The PSWS has also claimed that many government schools also did not satisfy the new conditions. The authorities ought to have given them adequate time for meeting the required norms. The implementation of the norms should be delayed in the larger interest of the students and their parents as the new academic session had already started in the state. |
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Unrecognised
private schools in Sonepat Sonepat, May 18 According to a report, the DPEO, in this special campaign, has checked various schools in the city and found two schools where the management was violating the norms of the new Act. These schools are located at Rathdhanna Road and Prabhu Nagar Mandi areas of the city. She directed the management of these schools to maintain the norms and close down their branches opened in violation of the rules. She also warned them that if they failed to comply with the orders, they would be dealt with sternly. Meanwhile, the action of the DPEO has caused a panic among the management of the privately managed schools in the district and they were contemplating to close down their unauthorised branches of the schools. The scheme for mid-day-meal and introducing of the English language in the Government primary schools seem to have flopped. This followed the less strength of students in the primary schools of the district. During 2001-2002, the strength of the students was around 90,000 which had fallen to about 87,000 in 2002-2003. The Education Department has decided to organise the training camps for the government schoolteachers during the summer vacation beginning from May 20 in the district and elsewhere in the state. The District Education Officer and the DPEO have not yet announced the dates of such camps and this has baffled the schoolteachers in the district.
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Education
Policy: private school owners Bhiwani, May 18 The association said that the land could not be available in urban areas as slated in the new policy. The private school owners say that talking of the universality of education would be worthless. The size of rooms of a school building as decided is appropriate only where students are 60 or above in a class but in those schools where the teacher-student ratio is 1:25, slapping such a criterion is not justifiable. They say that the security amount described in Section 30 (B) 2 is quite hefty. The private school owners objected that under the new education policy, every school had been required to submit application on a set proforma available at Rs 500 each and primary, secondary, high and higher schools would have to submit a fee of Rs 1,000, 2,500, 5,000 and 10,000 for seeking sanction for admissions. They said that there were nearly 2,000 schools in the district which were directly providing employment to about 20,000 educated unemployed persons.
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Free facilities for poor in 37 hospitals in the New Delhi, May 18 In the first phase, the government will look into the working of 37 hospitals, where the services extended to poor patients would be reviewed. The hospitals are Indraprastha Apollo, Escorts, National Chest Institute, Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute, Batra, Dharmashila Cancer Hospital, National Heart Institute, Jaipur Golden, Vimhans and St. Stephens. These hospitals are among more than 400 private health centres in the Capital which have been provided land free of cost or on a concessional rate by the state government on the pre-condition that they would give free treatment, medicines and beds to the poor and needy patients. An official said that “there were complaints that these medical institutions were deviating from their undertaking to provide free treatment, as required under the agreement with the government…’’ Concerned over the lot of poor patients, Social Jurist, an outfit of legal practitioners, approached the high court through Advocate Ashok Aggarwal and sought an order, asking these private hospitals to comply with the provisions of the agreement. Sources said that “a team of the Directorate of Health Services of the Delhi Government will soon visit these hospitals, most of them run by trusts and societies, to examine the records and assess the free treatment facilities for poor patients.’’ The date of the team’s visit is being worked out. Besides the officials of the department, the team is also likely to include reputed medical practitioners and experts from other fields. The hospitals, in turn, have been instructed to furnish in writing within ten days the details of free treatment provided during the last three years. Also, they have been asked to authenticate their statement on free medical facilities provided by them from April 2000 to March this year. In their response, the hospitals are expected to give the total number of beds, the number of beds to be provided free to poor patients, the number, along with the percentage, of patients visiting the hospital and the details of those who were treated at a subsidised rate. The other hospitals, which would be on the Health Department itinerary, include S R Bhartiya, Skin Institute, Shanti Mukund, Indian Spinal Injury Centre, Veeranwali IH, Venu, Jeevan Anmol, Deepak Mamo, Gujarmal Modi, Sant Nirankari Mandal, Sundar Lal Jain Charitable Eye hospital, Mai Kamliwali Janmakalyan Charitable Trust, Jai Shree Ram Seva Samiti and Mata Channan Devi Eye Hospital. The decision comes in the pursuance of the high court directions both to the Centre and the State government for appointing a committee to go into the records of all private hospitals in the Capital to whom the government had allotted land free of cost or at a concessional rates. As the Central Government had appointed a nine-member committee to look into the matter, the Delhi Government also decided to send its high-powered team to these hospitals to take a stock of the facilities. However, the decision of the authorities came only after the high court had criticised them for their inaction on the matter despite repeated orders. ‘’It is a matter of sorrow that despite the direction given by the court, the government authorities are not moving an inch,’’ it had observed. Acting on the order, the Ministry of Urban Development, the authority which sanctioned them land, constituted a nine-member committee headed by the Secretary (Urban Development), with a doctor, a chartered accountant and a Land and Development Officer as its members. This Central committee is also expected to carry out its review independent of the Delhi Government committee to see if the hospitals were adhering to the agreement of land allotment. |
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CRIME
AGAINST WOMEN Faridabad, May 18 The other case related to the alleged rape of a woman by a police officer. The victim had lodged a complaint against some persons for assaulting her at Palwal. An ASI is stated to have asked the victim to accompany him to Kosi town in the neighbouring state for investigation and identification. Later, the ASI allegedly raped her at a Dharamshala, where they were staying for the night. The ASI has been arrested and remanded to judicial custody, after a case was registered under sections 363, 366 and 376 of the IPC. (An inspector had been accused of raping a woman in Hathin sub-division about a year ago.) In another incident, which was reported on Friday last, three persons, including the driver of a mini-truck, gang raped a woman who had taken a lift in the vehicle along with her husband on the Palwal-Sohna road. It is alleged that the accused stopped the vehicle midway and dumped the husband in the fields; then, they took the woman to a spot a few km away and gang raped her. The matter is under investigation. In the latest incident, the police have arrested three youths in connection with the gang rape of a Dalit girl belonging to Bhagola village. The accused had reportedly abducted her before committing the crime. (A few months ago, a 21-year-old schoolteacher had been abducted and raped by some youths in Ballabgarh. The police had arrested the accused after the matter was highlighted by the media.) The police, it is learnt, registers 4 to 6 such cases each month in the district. Incidents of chain-snatching, eve-teasing and dowry harassment are also common. Recently, two youths on a mobike had tried to snatch the purse of a lady teacher in Sector-14 in broad daylight. |
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ON
THE CAMPUS New Delhi, May 18 Besides assisting patients to reach their destinations without trudging in the heat, the special vehicles will help reduce noise and air pollution on the campus. They will also enable paramedics and others to reach their departments on time, Mr Gupta said. The premier medical institute, which caters to the needs of patients from across the country and abroad, has parking space for 2,700 vehicles; in peak hours, 15,600 vehicles ply through the campus. While there are no immediate plans to ban the entry and movement of private vehicles on the campus, the authorities are hopeful that the saving of fuel and freedom from parking woes would encourage staff and patients to use the battery operated vehicles. Impersonator held at MBBS exam centre:
20-yr-old slaps dowry case on in-laws:
The victim has said that her in-laws had been harassing her for dowry. |
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HIGH-SECURITY
ZONE New
Delhi, May 18. Joint Commissioner of Police (Intelligence) Neeraj Kumar said the bag was found lying near the iron chain fence between the footpath and the grass lawns, near Rajpath crossing close to Vijay Chowk. The abandoned bag was spotted by some members of the public around 11.30 a. m. who brought it to the attention of the police. The area was cordoned off and the bag searched by experts. The green coloured bag contained four live cartridges of an AK-47 rifle, 16 empty cartridges of a .22 rifle, five empty cartridges of a 9 mm pistol and two empty cartridges of a revolver. Besides, the bag also contained copies of a weekly, a few newspapers and a pair of trousers and shoes. A case under the Arms Act has been registered and the matter is being investigated by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police. Asked about the motive, Mr Kumar said it was intriguing why anybody would keep so many empty cartridges and then suddenly dump them there. ‘’It must be an attempt to spread panic,’’ he reasoned. The police said that while a large number of policemen were deployed in the area 24 hours a day, it would be difficult to trace the suspect as the place is teeming with tourists and visitors, specially on holidays and Sundays. Most of the picnickers in India Gate lawns carry bags, a senior police officer said. It is being
speculated whether the cartridges belonged to a paramilitary personnel. Incidentally, there are a few firing ranges in and around the Capital. |
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SPECIAL
FOCUS ON SONEPAT Sonepat, May 18 Sonepat, an “A” class city with a population of nearly 2.50 lakh, remains totally in a state of neglect, thanks to the callous attitude of officials who deploy most of the sanitary staff for the upkeep of their own and VIPs’ residences. A municipal official admitted this fact. The sanitary staff never attended their duty. Stray cattle and street dogs as well as monkeys roam all over the city wherever there is filth, which is everywhere. They polish off what is palatable for them, leaving the rest scattered for days. The municipal council is generous to a fault with its officials never caring or even daring to check whether the sanitary staff report for work or not. May be they are right for the employees only report to various officials exclusively at their residences and make their attendance by proxy rather than attending to civic matters. Even a short spell of rain turns Sonepat into a quagmire that stinks for months. Innumerable stagnant pools and puddles make mobility difficult. The worst affected are the children who find even going to school a wading through dirt exercise. All roads, lanes and bylanes are beyond repair. Ugly patchwork is done recklessly and that too once in a blue moon. The entire stretch of Murthal-Subzimandi road of the city is marked by potholes resembling huge craters. Last year was the most disconcerting for the residents of this industrial city. The population was plagued by unscheduled power cuts, acute scarcity of drinking water and deficient civic services. The hopes and aspirations of the people that the government in the saddle would come to their rescue were belied. The politicians in power continued to search for convenient and pliant officers. Consequently, the problems caused by ad hocism rendered the administration inactive and ineffective. The power supply, particularly to domestic consumers, has been erratic through the year. The consumers were and continue to be subjected to frequent load-shedding. Following the blanket order of the present government to check power theft and raise additional resources to partially offset the financial losses of the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN), the UHBVN officials on the lower rung actively became a law unto themselves and slapped the consumers with exorbitant penal bills for thousands of rupees on flimsy grounds. And in every case of penal bill, the hapless consumers were directed to make the payment within 48 hours, failing which the power supply would be disconnected. In the name of alleged power theft, the unscrupulous officials demanded hush money which made every operating subdivision lucrative. As a result, the power given to the UHBVN officials on the lower rung brought discredit to the government. The government turned a Nelson’s eye to the suggestion that only the vigilance department of the UHBVN should check the power theft and not the operation staff. The residents experienced the worst ever drinking water crisis during the year, particularly in the summer months when the residents resorted to protests and agitation. Even in the winter months, water scarcity continues. The Public Health Department has no immediate plan to tide over the water shortage in this city. The Rs 4.50 crore canal-based water supply scheme for Sector 23 of HUDA was commissioned last year by the Chief Minister but water crisis still continues in the areas and colonies of the mandi side. The public demand to dissolve the Sonepat Municipal Council was not responded to by the state government. Owing to paucity of funds, the council could not take up any development project. It owes lakhs of rupees to the contractors for the projects completed in previous years.
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Pollutants
in sub-soil render water Sonepat, May 18 As reported by the residents of this small town, the main cause of this problem was seepage and mixing of the chemically polluted water released by the industries in the sub-soil water, making the underground water unfit for human consumption and other domestic use. It is pointed out that Bahalgarh is located on four corners of the inter-section of the GT Road and Sonepat-Meerut national highway and about 10 km from Sonepat. As a result of its prime location from the business point of view there has been continuous growth of industries in and around the town during the past five decades. As there were no hard and fast rules earlier for the industries for implementation of pollution control measures, a number of industrial units came into existence in the area. And for lack of proper draining out of the chemical mixed wastes, the industries continued to release the polluted water in open areas or in the subsoil through pipes, resulting in contamination of the sub-soil water. The authorities of the Pollution Control Board and the Industries Department have been repeatedly informed about this problem but no action had been taken so far to overcome this. The residents are forced to consume the contaminated water, which is yellowish in colour. He also pointed out that a number of times complaints had been lodged with the district administration and the authorities of the Pollution Control Board and the Industries department about this problem but no action had been taken so far to check this. “With each passing day, it is resulting in creating skin related problems and other water-borne diseases. The water is not even suitable for taking a bath,” he said. Another resident, Rajbir Singh, informed that the residents had been facing the problem of contaminated water for the past 15 years. As the residents were not aware about the hazardous effects of this water, they continued its use without any fear. But the continuous use has brought many a problem for them in the past five years and “now it has become like poison,” he remarked. Similarly, Dayanand expressed his anger, alleging that the village was being neglected by the authorities and apprehended that the level of the contaminated water would further go down in the sub-soil and might affect the villages around Bahalgarh in future if it was not controlled now. |
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ASI
refuses to accept report on Begumpuri mosque New Delhi, May 18 In an affidavit before a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice B. C. Patel and Mr Justice A. K. Sikri, ASI Superintending Archaeologist A. K. Sinha said the ASI did not accept any such act of the revenue authorities. As the ASI had disputed and questioned the said demarcation so the question of accepting such a demarcation did not arise, the affidavit said. Any attempt to reduce the area of the protected monument was illegal and null and void as it went against the length and width/boundaries of the mosque given in the official 1918 notification or was not in accordance with the demarcation contemplated in the 1992 notification, it added. On April 30, the high court had directed the ASI to respond within a week to a Delhi Government Revenue Department demarcation report which ‘reduced’ the area around the Begumpuri mosque even when the court had ordered construction of an additional 300 metre buffer zone encircling the protected monument in South Delhi. The judges noted the 1918 notification had indicated an area of 20 bighas and nine biswas around the monument while a 1992 notification contemplated adding a 100 m prohibitive zone plus a 200 m regulative zone encircling the monument. The revenue authorities were asked to conduct a demarcation survey in accordance with the 1992 notification. The authorities undertook the survey correctly but allegedly later conducted two more surveys at the behest of the court, which was seized of the matter, and ‘reduced’ the monument’s existing area by nine bighas, leaving it with only 11 bighas and nine biswas. Now the court has told the Revenue Department to file a reply to the ASI affidavit. The court was dealing with a PIL. The Begumpuri mosque was built by Khan Jahan, Prime Minister of Firoz Shah Tughlaq, who also built the Khirki and Kalan mosques. Firoz Shah was the last emperor of the Tughlaq dynasty in India. |
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Casual workers clamour for wages Sonepat, May 18 In a written complaint to the CM, they have stated that they have carried out five-feet deep, two-feet wide digging to a length of 1,260 feet and laid 42 pipes in industrial area from Kalupur Chungi park to MICO company which falls under the jurisdiction of the HSIDC. As stated in the complaint, the labourers after completing the work of digging, carrying and laying of pipes and pipes’ fittings, demanded the payment of wages from the SDE, Mr Punia and contractor, Shyam Lal. But they refused to make the payment despite repeated pleas of the labourers, the complaint states. When their attempts to get the wages failed, they lodged complaint to the CM urging for inquiry into the allegations and payment of their
wages. The SDE and the contractors were not available for comments.
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Power workers threaten stir Rohtak, May 18 Mr Devender Hooda, newly elected president of the union said the decision had been taken at the 7th state level bi-annual convention of the union. The two-day convention concluded here today. It was also resolved at the convention that the employees would participate in large numbers in the nationwide strike proposed to be observed on May 21 against the ‘faulty’ policies of privatisation, liberalisation, contract system, retrenchment, down sizing and the Power Bill 2003. Addressing the employees, Mr Hooda said the jobs of meter reading and preparation and distribution of power bills was being given
phase wise on contract basis in the name of providing better service to the consumers. He criticised this contract system and alleged that such decisions of the Bijli Nigam had increased the sufferings of the consumers as well as the power employees. Moreover, he alleged that corrupt officials and contractors had been minting money through this process while it had caused a considerable revenue loss to both the Bijli Vitran Nigams. Besides, he alleged there had been a hike in the number of accidents involving power employees and frequency of power breakdowns as sub standard material had been used by the contractors. |
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Judge to probe mysterious death of life convict Sonepat, May 18 Cyclist killed:
An unidentified cyclist was seriously injured after being hit by a speedy bus on G T Road near Qumashpur village about 13 km from here last night. According to a report, the cyclist was crossing G T Road when the accident occurred. He was rushed to the local civil hospital where the doctors declared him brought dead. The body remains unidentified and has been sent for a post-mortem. Body recovered:
The victim was handicapped. He reportedly fell from the running train and was killed on the spot. Girl falls in tank:
Eight hurt in clash:
According to a report, the injured persons were identified as Om Parkash, Meenu, Sunil and Geeta (one group), Lali, Sandeep Lata and Devinder (another group). They were immediately hospitalised and stated to be out of danger. The police have registered the case and further investigations were on. However, no arrest has been made in this connection. RI for engineer:
According to a report, the judge also sentenced the accused in another case to one year rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 5,000. Both the sentences will
concurrently. According to the prosecution story, the officials of the state Vigilance Bureau caught him red-handed while accepting the bribe from one Kuldeep of Shershah village on July 16, 2001 and recovered the signed currency notes worth Rs 1,000 from him during the raid. The case was sent to the court for decision. |
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NCR BRIEFS Rohtak, May 18 According to official information, the jail superintendent, Mr Dayanand Beniwal, had apprised the Deputy Commissioner of the problems faced by 22 women undertrials who have children below 5 years. He had stated that the women inmates had to sleep on the floor along with their innocent babies. The Deputy Commissioner visited the jail and provided bedsheets and mattresses to the women and uniforms for their babies on behalf of the district Red Cross Society. He also made arrangement for a lady teacher to teach children of the inmates of the jail. He also took care of the women and provided a drum, harmonium and some other music instruments to recite bhajans in the evening.
Blood donated As many as 36 units of blood was collected at a blood donation camp organised by the district Red Cross Society here today. The camp was inaugurated by Ms Shailja Yadav, chairperson of the society. Gifts were presented to the donors from the Rotary Club and the Thalassaemia Welfare Society. Mr Govardhan Makrauli and Mr Satbir Makrauli donated blood for the 76th and 75th time respectively.
Criminal held New Delhi: The Central district police today arrested a criminal Ajit Singh, who was involved in more than 22 cases of robbery, snatching, criminal intimidation and attempt to murder. He has been targeting businessmen and extorting money from them. Acting on a tip-off that Ajit would be coming to Kucha Harjasmal, Sita Ram Bazar, the police party spotted him along with his associates. When the police neared him, Ajit whipped out a country-made revolver. But he was overpowered while his associates managed to escape. |
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Armed men barge into Sarita Vihar house, loot inmates of Rs one lakh New Delhi: Four men, armed with pistols and knives, entered a house in Sarita Vihar area in South district this evening and decamped with Rs one lakh in cash, jewellery and a car. The incident occurred around 4 pm when the four men knocked at the door of house no D-250, Abul Fazal Enclave. The house belonged to Mohammad Hansai (70), who owns a hardware shop in Shastri Park area of Seelampur. The robbers entered the house on the pretext of meeting someone, but they dragged all the family members and locked them in a room. They also asked them not to raise an alarm. Later, they stole Rs one lakh in cash and some jewellery. Just as they were planning to leave, Hansai’s second son, Mohammad Aslam, came in a Santro car. The robbers also dragged Aslam into the room and sped away with the car. TNS
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SHOWCASE Reebok India has announced the launch of “Rockport XCS Sports Sandals” collection for men and women which will be available in Rockport and select Reebok stores all over the country. Siddharth Varma, Reebok managing director, said, “Rockport is a modern lifestyle brand that blends current style and trend with innovative, engineered comfort for men and women’s products. Trendy T-shirts for teens:
Ruchika Oswal, executive director, OWM, said “The biggest USP of this collection is that is comes with the Monte Carlo branding. As also is the fact that these clothes go through several quality checks and are driven by the latest technology.” Technologically superior AC:
These air-conditioners come with brilliant innovative features like Super Flit Fins, Grooved Copper Tubes, Four Way Three Speed Air Distribution, GI body for longevity, Cordless Remote, Digital LCD remote control, Filter cleaning indicator and Quiet operation. Tere Bina by Abhijeet: ‘Magical’ fridges:
A result of Whirlpool’s sharp focus on bringing ‘consumer relevant innovation’ to Indian homes, these refrigerators come with a host of new-to-market features which are sure to delight the consumer. These refrigerators come with the revolutionary Fast Forward Ice System, that gives you superior cooling and markets Ice Super Fast – all at just the press of a button. Yummy fruit conserves: The production is made in small batches to make sure that every step is carefully reviewed to produce the world’s best conserves. A musical treat:
TIMEX Watches for men only: Kapil Kapoor, managing director, Timex said, “The new collection is for people who like the exciting Sportytech look and want to wear their time with attitude, all the time.” The Return of Daddy Mix:
Aqeel’s “Kishore Da’ and “The Daddy Mix” came in at a time when remixing as an art was losing its identity. It broke through all previously held notions and created an attitude, a character to remixes. A multi-purpose oil: Skin-food in dog days:
‘Urban’ for cute dude: The garments are crafted from 2-ply cotton–where some fabrics have lycra for extra comfort. Get rid of frog in your throat!
The Strepsils Pain Relief has Hexylresorcinol formulation that gives relief from painful sore throat. Hexylresorcinol, the active ingredient is an antiseptic which combats the bacteria that causes sore throat conditions. Exquisite Krishna idol: ‘Wicked’ jeans for challenging tasks:
Gold jewellery for sweet life:
Watch manufacturer Longines has announced its Dolce Vita Round collection in Indian market. Longines DolceVita, a discreet sculpted piece of yellow gold or stainless steel jewellery confirms the company’s universally appealing sense of elegance. Longines features three case shapes in its DolceVita product line, and each line in turn offers a variety of styles and sizes. Dream tiles:
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