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Assembly adopts
resolution on SYL canal Walkout in
Haryana Assembly 8 Haryana
Independent MLAs move SC Buwaniwala to
meet Railway Minister Chapra clash: DM
of Saharanpur shifted IAF pilots to
attend training exercise in Alaska |
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Dyeing units releasing chemical pollutants in Panipat city.
— Photo by Kiran Deep Industrialist shot near Panipat 2 killed as
vehicle overturns Man falls off
train, killed Flyover that
hardly lets you fly by Leaf
from History Ambala SP
felicitated Undertrial
passes MA (I) exam
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Assembly adopts resolution on SYL canal Chandigarh, June 21 The House adopted a resolution in this contest in the absence of the Congress MLAs, who walked out of the House during discussion on it in protest against the rejection of their appeal to the Speaker to recall Deputy Leader Ajay Singh Yadav, who was named earlier. The Speaker, Mr Satbir Singh Kadian, had named Capt Yadav and another Congress MLA, Dr Raghbir Singh Kadian, when they were protesting against the short duration of the session. They said a one-day session amounted to the gagging of democracy. Moving the resolution, the Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, said when the apex court had dismissed the suit of Punjab on June 4, everyone in Haryana, barring Congressmen, celebrated
Diwali. He said farmers of Haryana had been waiting for several years to get their allotted share in the Ravi-Beas waters through the SYL canal. About three lakh hectares in the state were deprived of irrigation facilities due to the non-completion of the canal as a result of which the state was suffering a loss of agricultural produce worth over Rs 1000 crore per annum. The resolution said the House was of the firm belief that the completion of the canal was not only in the interest of Haryana but in the larger interest of the nation also. “The Supreme Court has fully upheld the cause of Haryana and this has further strengthened our belief in the constitutional institutions.” Speaking for the Congress, Mr Mange Ram Gupta, Mr Karan Singh Dalal, Mr Dharamvir Singh, Mr Lachhman Dass Arora, Rao Daan Singh and Mr Sher Singh, said their party supported the resolution and was willing to cooperate with the government in all manners for the construction of the canal. However, they said Capt Yadav should be recalled to the House because he was the officiating leader of the main opposition party. When their pleas were not accepted, they walked out of the House. Mr Kishan Pal Gurjar, Leader of the Haryana BJP Legislature Party; and Mr Ram Kishan Fauji of the HVP also supported the resolution. They also pleaded with the Speaker to allow Capt Yadav to participate in the proceedings of the House. When the House was discussing the resolution, two senior Congress leaders, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Mr Shamsher Singh Surjewala, were present in the visitors’ gallery. When the Congress staged a walkout, they also left the House. Later the Congress members submitted a memorandum to the Governor accusing the Speaker of “high-handedness, misbehaviour and misconduct”. The House also passed by voice vote the Haryana Appropriation (No. 3) Bill, 2004, the Haryana Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2004; the Punjab Scheduled Roads and Controlled Areas Restriction of Unregulated Development (Haryana Second Amendment) Bill, 2004; the Restriction of Habitual Offenders (Punjab) Haryana Repeal Bill, the Punjab Habitual Offenders (Control and Reform) Haryana Repeal Bill, the East Punjab Molasses (Control) Haryana Amendment Bill and the Haryana Legislative Assembly (Facilities to Members) Amendment Bill. Later the House was adjourned sine die. |
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Walkout in Haryana Assembly Chandigarh, June 21 Those who walked out included the Independent MLAs who joined hands with the Congress recently. Mr Rajender Bisla, an Independent MLA, who was known for being a staunch supporter of Chief Minister. Om Prakash Chautala, was today seen opposing the government in his new ‘avtaar’. Mr Udaybhan, another Independent MLA, also took up cudgels against the government on the drinking water issue. The debate was triggered by a question by Mr Ajay Singh Yadav, officiating Leader of the CLP, on the norms for providing drinking water in the rural and urban areas. Mr Ram Pal Majra, Chief Parliamentary Secretary, replying on behalf of the Chief Minister, said that minimum 40 litres of water per capita was supplied in the rural areas, 70 litres per capita in small towns and 135 litres per capita in bigger towns. Mr Majra, however, added that the supply of water was not satisfactory in about 400 villages and eight towns. He said drinking water supply in these areas would be augmented during 2004-05. Mr Yadav, Mr Sangwan and other MLAs protested in chorus against the answer and said that drinking water supplied in many other areas was also much less than the prescribed norms. Mr Sangwan said a demonstration had been on in Bhiwani district for the past seven days protesting against inadequate drinking water supply. When the Speaker prevented the Opposition MLAs from interrupting Mr Ram Pal Majra’s long answer, the Opposition walked out of the House. Mr Bhajan Lal, chief of the Haryana Congress, who entered the Assembly during question hour, apparently did not participate in the walkout due to health reasons. Members of the BJP were not present when the walkout took place. In reply to another question by Mr Yadav, Mr Subhash Goyal, Urban Development Minister, said the government was considering the regularisation of the colonies located inside the municipal limits of certain towns. Earlier, the House mourned the death of SGPC President Mr Gurcharan Singh Tohra and Mr Radheshyam Sharma, a journalist, and others. |
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8 Haryana Independent MLAs move SC New Delhi, June 21 Mentioning the petition before a
vacation bench of Mr Justice K.G. Balakrishnan and Mr Justice P.V. Reddi, senior advocate Gopal Subramaniam and lawyer Jasbir Singh Malik, appearing for the MLAs, apprehended that the speakers’ action might result in the
legislators being prevented from casting their votes in the Rajya Sabha polls. Though the petitioners’ counsel sought urgent hearing of the matter, the court said since the Speaker had only issued notices to the MLAs, which was his prerogative once such a matter under the anti-defection law and 10th Schedule of the
Constitution was brought before him, no cause of action had arisen at this stage. The Court, however, told Mr Subramaniam that the MLAs were at liberty to approach the Court with a plea for early hearing of the matter if any order is passed by the Speaker. Otherwise, the petition would come up for hearing in the normal course of the court business, it said. Eight MLAs — Mr Rajender Singh Bisla, Mr Daryao Singh, Mr Dev Raj Deewan, Mr Moola Ram, Mr Jai Prakash, Mr Bhim Sain Mehta, Mr Tejvir Singh and Udai Bhan in their joint petition alleged that the action of the Speaker was “politically” motivated as an application
before him under the anti-defection law had been filed by two ruling Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) MLAs — Mr Krishan Lal and Mr Nafe Singh Rathi — because they had withdrawn support to the Chautala Government on June 14. Since the Speaker had fixed the matter for further
proceedings on June 24, the MLAs alleged that they “reasonably apprehend that the Speaker may pass adverse order against the petitioners and illegally debar them from casting their franchise in the ensuing biennial election to the Council of States (Rajya Sabha).” The two INLD MLAs had filed the application before the Speaker “at the instance of Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala, who is inimical to the Independent MLAs after they had withdrawn support to his government,” the Independent MLAs in their petition claimed. Since the MLAs were elected as Independent and had not joined any party, there was no ground for invoking the provision of anti-defection law against them on the basis of a “vague frivolous and misconceived” plea before the Speaker after they had withdrawn the support to the Government, the petition contended. Earlier, the MLAs had moved an application before the Election Commission (EC), which also declined to take an action against the Speakers’ notices to them, saying that once the poll process was issued, there was no ground for any interference either by the poll panel or by any court of law. The EC told them that the only remedy available to the MLAs would be through election petition, sources said.
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Buwaniwala to meet Railway Minister Bhiwani, June 21 He said he would impress upon the minister that these trains could be extended upto Bhiwani without spending any additional expenditure or changing their schedule. “Since Bhiwani is six hours away from Jaipur and it takes only one more hour to reach Hisar, so these trains can be run as passenger trains to yield more revenue, “ he said. |
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Chapra clash: DM of Saharanpur shifted Karnal, June 21 The Senior Superintendent of Police of Saharanpur, Mr Sunil Kumar Gupta, had earlier been transferred to Bareilly following allegations of the biased role of the police in helping farmers of Uttar Pradesh to forcibly acquire the disputed land, that was under the control of Haryana. He was yet to be relieved. The Saharanpur District Magistrate was instructed by the Chief Secretary to give up charge of the present post immediately. He relinquished charge this afternoon. The District Development Officer, Mr Harsh Tankha, took over the charge with immediate effect. Sources at Lucknow said no orders had been issued for the fresh posting of an IAS officer as District Magistrate at Saharanpur. The Chief Secretary and the Home Secretary summoned Dr Hari Om to Lucknow on Saturday to discuss the clash. The district administration of Karnal stuck to the allegation of the farmers of Haryana that the Uttar Pradesh police was involved in the firing. A detailed report had been sought from ballistic experts of the forensic laboratory at Madhuban. They were asked to identify the type of weapons used in the clash from the Uttar Pradesh side. They were yet to submit their report. The Karnal police had made no breakthrough in the case as no one had been arrested even after the registration of an FIR on the day of the incident against 52 persons, believed to be responsible for the clash. The demarcation of the disputed land jointly by revenue officials of Karnal and Saharanpur districts was in progress, said Mr R.S. Doon, District Magistrate of Karnal. |
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IAF pilots to attend training exercise in Alaska Ambala, June 21 It is for the first time that IAF fighter aircraft will be participating in an international exercise outside the Indian subcontinent. The IAF contingent, comprising six Jaguars, one IL-76 and two IL-78 flight refuelling aircraft, took off from Air Force Station Ambala Cantonment this morning. Air-Officer-Commanding in Chief, Western Air Command, Air Marshal
S. P. Tyagi and other senior officers were present. Air Chief Marshal S. Krishnaswamy addressed the IAF personnel participating in the international exercise and expressed his confidence in the ability of the pilots. “Since this is the first occasion of the IAF participating in an international exercise of such a large magnitude away from the country, I advise the personnel to fully exploit the learning opportunity, validate our concepts and operational philosophy,” he said. Air Marshal
S. P. Tyagi, AOC-in-C, Western Air Command, flagged off the IAF contingent at a ceremony held at Air Force Station Ambala. He advised the pilots to utilise the opportunity to improve their skills. Air Commodore L.K. Malhotra, Air Officer Commanding, Air Force Station Ambala, is the chief coordinator for the preparation of the Air Force contingent, ensuring operational training of the team for the exercise, maintenance and logistics back-up support. He said the pilots would gain invaluable experience during the deployment. The IAF is participating in the multi-national exercise from July 15 to July 30 at Alaska. This is an annual exercise where friendly nations train together in a near realistic scenario. The decision to participate in the exercise was taken during the eighth executive steering group meeting and was ratified by the Defence Policy Group in August 2003. The other countries participating in the exercise are the USA, Canada, UK, Germany, Singapore, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia and Sri Lanka. The IAF’s earlier participation in Cope Thunder Exercise was limited to sending observers in 2001 and 2002 and thererafter one IL-76 aircraft participated in 2003. The IAF contingent, which took off from Ambala today, will leave the country from Jamnagar on June 23. The aircraft are going to be ferried to Eielson Air Force base at Alaska through Middle East, North Africa, Mediterranean, Europe and Canada. The contingent will be transiting through four continents and the total distance covered will be 19,000 km. The IAF contingent is expected to return on August 16. |
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Dyeing units cause water pollution Panipat, June 21 The effluent from these units has been causing pollution of surface, ground water and contaminated agricultural land. On an average, over 1 crore litres of polluted water is discharged into the open by these units daily, putting the lives of the residents to great risk and also contaminating the underground water, while the smoke from the chimneys of these units add to the already-polluted air of the industrial city Not only that, the water level in the city has gone several feet down following excessive use of water by about 500 dyeing units. It has resulted in the acute shortage of water in several parts of the city. A few years ago, the Supreme Court had directed the authorities to relocate the polluting industries, away from the residential areas. But so far the administration has made no serious efforts to shift these units to Sector 29 and Sector 30 under the new scheme due to its lackluster approach on the issue. A visit to parts of the city has revealed that many of the dyeing houses are releasing pollutants in the open, making the life of local residents miserable. The polluted water remains blocked in the residential areas and it stinks also. Moreover, the residents also complain of getting contaminated water due to seepage of the polluted water. Besides it, due to excessive use of water in the dyeing houses, the residents have been facing shortage of water and the agriculture land adjacent to the dyeing houses has also been polluted. When contacted, president of the Panipat Dyers Association, Mr Yash Pal Malik, showed no concern in shifting these units to the industrial area and said that practically it was not possible to shift all the machinery and start afresh. He said that the administration had not made any arrangement of water and electricity supply as basic requirements to run the dyeing units at the new place and if shifted, it would virtually deal a death-blow to dyeing industry which was considered to be the backbone of the handloom industry . “There were a large number of small units also and it would not be possible for their owners to purchase land worth lakhs of rupees at the new place and start business from a scratch,” he further added. The Deputy Commissioner, Mr Balwan Singh, said under the scheme shifting of dyeing units from the residential areas to the industrial area in Sector 29 and Sector 30 was in progress. The administration had discussed the matter with the dyers and many of them had agreed also to shift to the new place. He added that it was a big project and needed a lot of time. |
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Industrialist
shot near Panipat Matloda (Panipat), June 21 The incident took place around 12.45 p.m. when Garg was alone in his office at Anaj Mandi. Three assailants came in a white Maruti. The driver remained in the car while the two others went to Garg’s office, carrying revolvers. Garg was shot at twice from close range and he sustained bullet injuries in his chest and stomach. He died on the spot. The exact cause of the murder had not been ascertained, yet, the police was suspecting the involvement of some insider and the business dealings as the probable cause of the murder. While leaving Garg’s office, the murderers threatened the businessmen who reached the spot. No businessman dared to chase them, but Garg’s accountant, Basti Ram, who was standing at a shop nearby at the time of the incident, chased the assailant’s car for about 12 km. He said Garg after attending a marriage at a nearby village, reached the office around 12.30 p.m. and asked Satish, the only employee present in the office, to get some official file from the other shop. As Garg was left alone, the assailants entered the office and shot at him. Giving details he said when he reached the office, he came to know that the assailants were running at an approachable distance. He took a motor cycle and chased the car. He tried to see the car number, but the car was being driven at high speed and the number plate was covered with dust. He said the car number was probably DL-4888. The incident caused anger among businessmen. They complained that the incident took place at a close distance from the police station. Immediately after the murder, the police had been informed, but the police took much time to swing into action. When the police was asked to chase the murderers, it said its jeep did not have fuel and it first went to a petrol station. This gave the assailants enough time to escape. As news of the murder spread, hundreds of residents, including businessmen and politicians rushed to the spot. Shops’ shutters were downed at Anaj Mandi and transporters stopped their work. Congress leader Suresh Gupta said “the business community was shocked as Garg was well-known for his soft-spoken image and had no enemy. It was unfortunate that the police was unable to nab the assailants in spite of the murder having taken place in broad daylight at a crowded place, he added. |
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2 killed as vehicle overturns Jhajjar, June 21 According to information, the tempo was loaded with marble stones and tiles. The vehicle was hired by Chand Ram of Mahrana village to transport stones from Delhi for construction of his house. Chand Ram and Devender, his neighbour, were sitting on the stones. Both were crushed under the stones when the tempo overturned near a temple in Chhara village. Driver Zora Singh, who is stated to be in an inebriated condition, and Jeet Singh were injured in the accident. The police has registered a case. In another incident, Balwan Singh was found dead on the road in Dighal village of the district today. The police sources said the body appears to be thrown there after killing. |
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Man falls off train, killed Yamunanagar, June 21 A resident of Durga Garden in Jagadhri, he was travelling in the train along with his friend Raju when the incident took place. He was reportedly standing by the door of the coach and he slipped. The post-mortem examination was performed today and inquest proceedings under Section 174 of the CrPC were initiated. In another incident, 45-year-old Kala Ram of Kajhuri village here committed suicide by consuming a pesticide this morning. The police said he was suffering from depression for quite some time. No suicide note was found. On the request of his family members, the body was handed over to them without post-mortem. |
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Flyover that hardly lets you fly by Ambala, June 21 Around a decade back, when it was being constructed, residents had raised the issue that the flyover’s width was not sufficient. They had demanded that it should be widened to facilitate free and smooth traffic, but the administration did not take their demand seriously. Now the problem has become grim. If the width of the flyover is not increased, the problem will amplify. A subway needs to be built close to the flyover so that the local traffic can pass through it. The road around the Agarsen Chowk also needs to be widened. Those coming from Bal Bhavan side have to face difficulty while moving towards Amar Palace side as there is a blind curve on the road. The curve does not allow a clear view of the traffic coming from the other side. The area of the roundabout has been increased by putting up a wall and grills. As vehicles coming from the flyover side are generally running at a high speed, there is always a possibility of their hitting the grill. The space between the boundary wall of the chowk and the flyover is so narrow that a vehicle can hardly take a safe turn toward Bal Bhavan or the bus stand . Even the pedestrians can not safely cross the road due to heavy traffic on the narrow road. A police assistance booth has been set up in the middle of the road, but no traffic police personnel has been posted there on regular basis. The residents have also been demanding that traffic lights should be installed at this roundabout. |
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Leaf
from History One of the oldest structures dating back to the Mughal-era in Ambala is a bridge, which was part of Grand Trunk Road. The Mughal-era bridge is today within the precincts of the Ambala Air Force Station in Ambala Cantonment. The bridge is being maintained and preserved by the Air Force. It is believed to be part of GT Road, which was originally constructed by Sher Shah Suri, extending from Calcutta in the East to Peshawar in the West. Although the route of the road was altered due to the establishment of the cantonment, the bridge remains a fine example of the unique and revolutionary experiment, which reflects the farsightedness of Sher Shah Suri. The remains of the bridge reveal a typical medieval architectural structure with round arches. In spite of the passage of four centuries, the monument is in a relatively fine state, which speaks volumes of the quality of construction despite the length of the road and the resources available in that era, a booklet on the history of the Ambala airbase states. The Mughal-era bridge is not the only structure belonging to the original GT road in Ambala. In Ambala City, there is a pillar that is said to be an indicator of the original route of the Sher Shah Suri Marg. The pillar is located in Cloth Market. It is said that
in the olden days, those travelling on GT Road could spot the pillar
from a distance and take the correct route. |
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Ambala SP felicitated Ambala, June 21 The president of the front Mr Viresh Shandilya, presented the award to Mr Akil. The state president of the front, Mr Kulwant Singh Manakpur, and a few other office-bearers of the front were also present. Mr Shandilya urged the state and the Union Governments to give honour to such police officers who had been fighting terrorism by putting their lives to risk. He said the front would also organise a function to honour the SP, Hisar, Mr Attar Singh Ahlawat who had nabbed a hardcore terrorist along with huge quantity of weapons recently. |
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Undertrial passes MA (I) exam Sonepat, June 21 Judge Dharmvir Singh allowed him to sit for the LL.B entrance
examination yesterday in Delhi. Parveen was taken to Delhi on the government’s expense. |
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