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Tuesday,
August 12, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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ASI refutes Dalit body’s charges IAS officer
withdraws bail plea BDO, SDO found absent from duty No backing out of stir plan, says Congress CPM
workers hold procession Sanitation workers await salary |
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Handpump water unfit for drinking
Concession to B.Sc (home science) aspirants Medical college to remain at Karnal Three chain
snatchers held 
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ASI refutes Dalit body’s charges Yamunanagar, August 11 As many as 25 Dalit activists protested at Adi Badri, a picturesque Hindu pilgrimage centre near this town at the excavation site on Sunday. Karamvir Singh, president of the Haryana unit of the confederation, who was leading the activists, lit candles in front of a dilapidated relief of a sitting Buddha engraved on a wall of the unearthed structure. “It was a Buddhist site but the ASI would rather like it to be declared a Vedic site since the objective of the excavation work was to find the course of Saraswati river”, he claimed. When comment regarding the incident was sought from an official of the ASI’s Shimla mini circle, he was aghast. “We had declared it as a Buddhist site and also published our views in a brochure which was brought out when the President, Mr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, visited Haryana earlier this year”, he said. He added that antiquities dating from the Kushana period to the early Sultanate period, had been recovered from the site. “As an archaeologist I am answerable to my conscience as well as to my fellow professionals. If the ASI wanted to suppress evidence about a Buddhist site, we would not have dug it up in the first place”, said the official who was obviously agitated at the charges flung at the ASI. The concept of a militant Buddhism nurtured by some of the Dalit outfits is a fairly modern phenomenon, said a historian here. The ASI is carrying out the excavation to find the course of the now extinct Saraswati river through satellite imagery, scientists have mapped the course of an enormous river, that flowed through the north-western region, covering approximately 1600 km. It dried up about 4,000 years ago. Not all historians are in agreement about this but the assumption itself is not being questioned by Karamvir and other protesters. |
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IAS officer
withdraws bail plea Ambala, August 11 Ajit Mohan’s counsel had filed an interim bail application in the court of Mr Bedi a few days ago on the ground that his wife was seriously ill. The court had fixed August 11 for the hearing on the application. Earlier, the court had dismissed the regular bail application of Mr
Sharan. The Vigilance Bureau had alleged that during his tenure as MD HFC Ajit Mohan had granted loans worth crores in violation of the government guidelines, which caused a loss of Rs 97 crore to the state exchequer. Meanwhile, the bureau today filed an application in the court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Mr Surya Pratap Singh, in which it stated that three former HFC officials and 14 beneficiaries were wanted for the interrogation in connection with the scam. It further said raids were conducted at the residences and offices of these officials and beneficiaries a number of times but they could not be traced. Those wanted in connection with the case included, P.C. Gupta, Anil
Lekhi, and Manoj Arora (all HFC officials), Arun Mittal, Deepak Gupta, Satpal Gupta, Sunil Gupta, Surender Malhotra, Ashwani Malhotra, Neelam Arora,
G.S. Gill, Jaswir Kaur Gill, Vijay Chawla, Sadhna Chawla, Promila Jain, Ramesh Jain and Anil Sareen (all beneficiaries). The CJM issued non-bailable warrants against all 17 persons and directed them to appear in his court on August 13. |
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BDO, SDO found absent from duty Barwala, August 11 Four other employees were found late in reaching their respective offices. Headed by the DSP, Mr Phool Kumar, the team reached the office of the BDO around 9.15 am and found Mr Manohar Lal, BDO, Mr A.K. Sood, SDO and Mr Bant Ram, a Class VI employee, absent from duty. Two other employees, Sanjeev and Som Raj, reached the office late by about 20 minutes. The team also found Mr Shankar Das, a meter reader and Ramvir, an ALM, absent from their duty at the HVPN office, while the SDO, Mr Jagdish Chand, and a clerk, Mr Manoj Kumar, reported late on their duty. The squad has sent a report in this regard to the higher authorities. |
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No backing out of stir plan, says Congress Hisar, August 11 Reacting to Haryana Finance Minister Sampat Singh’s statement in this regard he said the plan was announced to ensure expeditious completion of the SYL Canal. The party was awaiting the verdict of the apex court on the issue and if it failed to ensure that Haryana got its share of river waters from Punjab, the Congress would launch an agitation. Mr Bishnoi said only the Congress could bring the SYL waters to Haryana. The Chautala Government had not done anything during its rule to ensure the completion of the canal. |
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CPM workers
hold procession Fatehabad, August 11 The CPM workers assembled at the local Ambedkar park. Mr Krishan Swaroop, a member of the state secretariat of the party, Mr Chander Bhan, secretary of the local unit, Mr Ramesh Jandli, district secretary of the Students Federation of India, and Mr. Dalbir Azad addressed the CPM workers. The speakers alleged that due to wrong policies of the Central and state governments farmers had been forced to commit suicide. They alleged that the plight of landless labourers was even worse. They also castigated the government for its decision to hike fees of various professional courses. Later,
the party gave a memorandum to the Subdivisional Magistrate,
Fatehabad. It demanded that the houses of the labourers destroyed due
to rain should be made pucca, masters degree classes be started at
Fatehabad, the town should have a rail link, decision to hike students’
fees be taken back and arrangement of potable water be made for all. |
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Sanitation
workers await salary Kaithal, August 11 The posts of secretary, chief sanitary inspector, sub-inspector have been lying vacant for the past one year. As a result, sanitary conditions continue to deteriorate in the town. Most of the silt removed from town nullahas in the last week of June has not been lifted and it has gone into the drains and nullahas have again filled with garbage. Garbage is not lifted from many localities for days in the absence of supervisory staff. The residents of the town are unhappy over the prevailing situation. The Deputy Commissioner, Mr Anurag
Agarwal, told this correspondent that he was aware of the situation and he had talked to the Director, Urban Development, Haryana, to fill the post. When contacted the council chairman, Mr Kamal
Choudhry, said he had apprised the higher authorities and demanded an immediate posting of the staff against the vacant posts to streamline the functioning of the civic body. |
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Handpump
water unfit for drinking Ambala, August 11 A little more than a decade back, the temporary toilets were dug up in villages so that the village folk did not have to frequent the fields. The temporary toilets were cheap and maintenance-free. So far so good. However, 10 years later, a serious issue has today emerged of the handpump water becoming unfit for human consumption. This problem is being faced by a host of villages and in a random survey carried out by The Tribune, it was found that the villagers have left drinking handpump water for fear of being afflicted with some water-borne disease. Some of the villages where the temporary toilets are believed to have spoilt the ground water are
Samalkha, Bihta, Monarheri, Khuda Kalan, Kardhan, Samalheri, Rola,
Manglai, Dukheri and Salarheri. Deputy Commissioner, Ambala, Mr DD Gautam, said that the matter will be immediately looked into. “Samples of the handpump water will be taken and prompt action will be initiated,” he said. Mr Hardayal Singh of Salarheri village said that the handpump water is unfit for drinking. “Till about a decade back, the handpump water was alright for drinking but today, there is a foul smell which emanates from the handpump water. We believe that the temporary toilets is the cause behind the handpump water going bad,” he said. He showed a water vessel in which the water from the handpump had been kept. The water had left a deposit on the vessel wall. “From the vessel, one can make out that the water has ‘shora’. On top of it, it smells bad and the taste is different,” he said. “We are now dependent on public health water supply for our needs,” he added. Another villager pointed out that when public health water supply is not available, the handpump water is offered to bovines but the animals too are reluctant to drink the water. “Incidentally, soon after the temporary toilets were built, some villagers built permanent toilets after they felt that the ground water was being affected. But till today, some poor families are still using temporary toilets,” he stated. The villagers pointed out that the scheme for temporary toilets was implemented with much enthusiasm in several villages. “I remember that to encourage its implementation, the government had given about 10 bags of cement and about a 1000 bricks to the village,” he said. “While some temporary toilets were constructed by the government scheme, the rest were constructed by private persons,” he stated. Mr Malkit Singh of Samalkha village observed that the handpump is not only unfit for drinking, the water also cannot be used for taking bath. “Besides the smell, the handpump water is hard so if a person applies soap, the soap cannot be cleaned. A couple of years back, it was possible to use the handpump water for cooking purposes but now, if the water is used, then the food will not get prepared,” he said. The villagers pointed out that it is not just the temporary toilets which are spoiling the ground water. The village drains are also leading to waste seepage in the ground. “Whatever may be the reason, it is clear that the handpump water has become bad in the last one decade,” they said.
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LEAF FROM HISTORY Ambala, August 11 Presbyter SM Bhatty said that the St Paul’s church sustained extensive damage due to the bombing. Since then, a portion of the parsonage is being consecrated and used as church. Previously, the church compound was spread over 21 acres of land and now a large area has been acquired by the Air Force authorities for a school and other purposes. The church was bombed in September, 1965. It is believed that the aircraft which bombed the church was hit by Air Force ground fire. Later that month, Mrs India Gandhi visited the church. The heavy metal bell was, thereafter, shifted to near the Parsonage. The bell, which has been built in England, has been mounted on two columns. The bombed church is now within the Air Force school complex. An interesting fact which has come to light is about the spelling of Ambala. In old documents, Ambala is spelled as ‘Umballa’. However, this correspondent noticed a plaque of 1884 which reads “In affectionate memory of Henry Wentworth Hughes, Lieutenant, Central India Horse, Son of General WT Hughes, CB, lately commanding the Sirhind Division, who entered into his rest December 1st, 1884. Deeply regretted by his friends in Ambala.” This is perhaps one of the first reference to Umballa being spelt as Ambala. The work on the St Paul Cathedral began in 1855. The building work was carried out by the British Army who first built a wooden model of the church. During the first war of Independence in 1857, Britishers took refuge in the church. On April 3, 1925, a meeting of 25 members was held. The meeting was presided over by Lt Col GC Hobson. After the meeting, it was shifted from Church of England to Lahore Diocese. In April 1925, Harold Spooner was made Chaplain of Ambala. Following partition in 1947, it was shifted from Diocese of Lahore to Amritsar Diocese. Thereafter, it was shifted from Amritsar Diocese to Diocese of Delhi. Presbyter SM Bhatty said that Air Force authorities were planning to turn the bombed church into a war memorial chapel. He said that St Paul’s church was a garrison church as it was located in the cantonment. He stated that British troops used to offer prayers at the church before going on military campaigns.
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Concession
to B.Sc (home science) aspirants Hisar, August 11 An official press release here today said that prospectus and application forms would be available on the spot on payment. Those who have passed Plus 2 examination with Home Science or Physics, Chemistry and Biology or Mathematics with at least 50 per cent marks (40 per cent for the Science stream candidates) from a recognised board or university are eligible for admission. The candidates should bring with them original and photo copies of Plus 2 and Matriculation certificates. In addition they are required to produce character certificate from the institution last attended and Haryana domicile certificates at the time of counselling. The selected candidates would have to deposit the fee by 3 p.m. on that day. A few seats are available also for candidates from outside Haryana, NRIs and foreign nationals. |
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Medical
college to remain at Karnal Karnal, August 11 Addressing a press conference here, Mr Swami said that he had talked to Health Minister Sushma Swaraj in this regard and said that she had informed him that there was no proposal to shift the college from Karnal to Kurukshetra. Mr Swami said that in case the Central Government failed to set up a medical college at Karnal, he would get it set up by some NRI or himself. Mr Swami said that Central Government had sanctioned Rs 14 crore for raising three Indian Reserve Battalions in Haryana for maintaining law and order in the state. Recruitments to the first and second battalions had been made by the Haryana Government and recruitment to the third Battalion was yet to be made by State Government, he added. Mr Swami asserted that elections to the Lok Sabha would be held on schedule next year. He said the government proposed to bring in four bills to curb defections, elections to the Rajya Sabha through open ballot, restricting the strength of ministries in states and at the Centre to 10 per cent and bringing the Prime Minister in the ambit of the Lok Pal. He said, to generate employment in Haryana, he had also got sanctioned another refinery. This proposed Rs 10,000 crore project, he said, would be built along the Panipat Refinery or as its expansion.
— PTI, UNI |
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Three chain
snatchers held Kaithal, August 11 They have been identified as Jarnailo, alias Chhindo, Palo, alias Kalo, a resident of Dundra, and Amarjit, alias Anaro, a resident of Kheri Gill, Punjab. The arrested women belong to the Sainsi tribe Mr Nehra added . He said Kuldip, Sandeep, Ranjit, and Babu Ram, all residents of Harnola, Manoj, a resident of Sonta and Banti, a resident of Dera Buta Wala, had been booked for causing damage to government property. These persons had allegedly attacked the police control room and office at the Siwan power house on Saturday night.
— OC |
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Hooda contests Sampat’s remarks Chandigarh, August 11 |
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Admission
date extended Sirsa, August 11 This extension in date for admission to about 56 colleges in five districts of the state will benefit many students. Admission will be given in these colleges according to merit. The principals of these colleges have informed. |
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Haryana
to enrol students from class VIII Chandigarh, August 11 All regular and private candidates would have to deposit Rs 20 each for enrolment. The same enrolment number would be valid up to the secondary level. |
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