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Chautala to woo voters with sops
Industry migrating from Haryana, alleges Hooda
Rally to mark Devi Lal’s anniversary today
‘Scissors’ found in ashes of man
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MP announces Rs 20 lakh grant for judicial complex
First test-tube goat babies
Tributes paid to Rao Tula Ram
Regional clinical conference held
Soil health drive planned
Punia’s presence at varsity function causes confusion Woman’s viscera
sent to Rohtak
Man found dead
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Chautala to woo voters with sops
Chandigarh, September 24 A rally, being organised by the Haryana Government at Fatehabad tomorrow on the occasion of birth anniversary late Devi Lal, was, for all practical purposes, going to be an election rally to kick off the INLD’s poll campaign. It would see the CM announcing various steps to woo the voters before the Assembly polls. The sops, which were expected to be announced at tomorrow’s rally, included an increase in the allowance for unemployed youths and also relaxation in the eligibility criteria for beneficiaries of the allowance. At present there were three categories of beneficiaries, those who were only matriculate were getting Rs 50 per month, the higher secondary qualified were getting Rs 75 per month while for the graduates the allowance was Rs 100 per month. The new formula proposed to create only two categories of allowance, Rs 150 per month for the higher secondary qualified and below, and Rs 200 for the graduates. At present one had to be enrolled in an employment exchange of the state for at least two years to become eligible for claiming the benefit. But now this condition had been proposed to be done away with. Any person who was registered in an employment exchange would be able to claim the allowance. Over 3000 people in Haryana were getting the unemployment allowance now and the total government expenditure for paying the allowance was about Rs 25 lakh. The expenditure would go up manifold once the state government implements its new policy regarding the allowance. “The Chief Minister is most likely to announce the new policy at Fatehabad tomorrow”, a source in the state government’s Employment Department said. Two more sops which were likely to be unveiled at tomorrow’s meeting by the CM were increase in the minimum wage of workers and providing medical insurance to those workers who were not covered under the ESI scheme. The minimum monthly wage of workers was proposed to make Rs 2600 per month, which would be more than Rs 150 over the current minimum monthly wage of a worker in Haryana. An announcement regarding increase in the amount of old age pension from the existing Rs 200 to Rs 300 per month was also expected to take place at Fatehabad tomorrow. Mr Chautala had showered people with sops before the last Assembly elections also when he became the Chief Minister by toppling Mr Bansi Lal and then dissolved the Assembly for holding mid-term polls. The strategy was quite successful last time. |
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Industry
migrating from Haryana, alleges Hooda Chandigarh, September 24 In a statement issued here today Mr Hooda said during the past five years instead of bringing foreign investment to Haryana, the Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, and his associates had been busy in investing their money in foreign lands. He said the recent “Sarkar Udhamiyon Ke Dwar” programme launched by Mr Chautala was a gimmick to mislead the industrialists. This programme, he said, was no different from the “Sarkar Aapke Dwar” launched by Mr Chautala earlier. But the people of Haryana decisively proved that they could not be befooled by Mr Chautala when they wiped out the ruling INLD in the Lok Sabha elections. Mr Hooda said the footwear industry in Bahadurgarh was facing closure because the neighbouring Delhi had exempted shoes up to the price of Rs 300 from tax, while in Haryana this limit was still Rs 100. Similarly several other industries in the town, which were producing goods worth about Rs 1500 crore per annum, had to fight against pollution and poor telecommunication services. In Panipat various industrial units paid about Rs 900 crore per annum as sales tax. However, the government had done nothing to solve their problem of pollution. The oil and pulses units in Hisar had been crushed by corruption, entry tax on raw material and sales tax form No. 38. Mr Hooda said the utensil industry in Jagadhari and Yamunanagar was passing through a critical stage because of the indifferent attitude of the government. The rice industry in the state was on the verge of closure because of the high tax burden as compared to Punjab, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Uttranchal.
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Rally to mark Devi Lal’s anniversary today
Fatehabad, September 24 The Haryana Government has declared it a state function. The Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, will preside over the rally. Political leaders like Mr Navin Patnaik, Chief Minister of Orissa, Mr Chandra Babu Naidu of the Telugu Desham, Mr Nitish Kumar, former Union minister, and Ms Mamata Banerjee of the Trinamool Congress will also address the rally. The function will be held in the mela ground on the Hisar road. The ground has an area of 20 acres. It has been divided into 31 sectors for security purposes. Five of these sectors have been reserved for women. Four concrete stages have been set up for the rally. The main stage for the VVIPs has been fitted with four air-conditioners. Next to this stage is a stage for ministers, MLAs and MPs. Two more stages have been set for media and the cultural troupes of the Public Relations Department. Fatehabad town has been given a facelift and the entire official machinery has worked overtime for the past one month for the purpose. The town has been beautified by widening roads, constructing road dividers, providing street-lights, installing fountains at several places and by ensuring general sanitation. Welcome gates have been set up on all roads approaching the town. In all, 67 welcome gates have been set up on the Hisar, Sirsa, Bhuna and Rattia roads. Ten cut-outs of the former Deputy Prime Minister and the Haryana Chief Minister have also been installed near the rally venue. Around 15,000 policemen will be on duty for the rally. The administration has issued passes for vehicles employed for the rally. Separate passes have been issued for media vehicles. No private vehicle will be allowed to ply on the national highway in the town. The vehicular traffic passing through the town on the Delhi-Fazilka road will be diverted from Kharakheri to Bhattu Kalan and Ding road. Elaborate arrangements have been made for mediapersons. Meanwhile, the Congress has criticised the government for what it termed ‘misuse of public funds for political purposes by the government’. Talking to mediapersons here last evening, Mr Kuldip Bishnoi, Member of Parliament from Bhiwani and in charge of the party for Fatehabad district, alleged the government had been misusing the official machinery and public funds for projecting the image of the INLD keeping in view the forthcoming Assembly poll. |
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‘Scissors’
found in ashes of man Ambala, September 24 Family members of the deceased and other local residents got agitated on learning about the incident and ransacked the doctor’s hospital in Mahesh Nagar. They later pelted stones and blocked the busy Ambala-Jagadhari road. The police had to resort to lathicharge to disperse the demonstrators. Jaswinder Singh (30), a resident of Durga Nagar, died on September 22 in DMC, Ludhiana. He was cremated at Ram Bagh yesterday. His relatives were shocked to find a surgical instrument among the ashes. “I could not believe when I found the surgical instrument, shaped like scissors, among the ashes of my son,” Mr Thakur Singh Kohli, father of Jaswinder Singh, said. Mr Thakur Singh said his son had complained of stomach pain and he was taken to Aneja Hospital in Mahesh Nagar on August 19. “The doctor said Jaswinder will have to be operated upon for appendicitis. Thereafter, my son complained of more pain and started vomiting,” he added. Mr Thakur Singh said doctors assured him that Jaswinder’s condition would improve after three to four days. “On the eighth day after the operation, Jaswinder stopped taking water. We were again assured by doctors that he would be fine. His condition deteriorated further and had to be given oxygen on September 4. Thereafter, we took him to DMC Ludhiana,” he added. Mr Thakur Singh said Jaswinder expired on September 22 and he was cremated yesterday. “My son died due to the gross negligence of the doctor,” he alleged. The family had gone to collect the ashes at 8 am this morning and spotted the surgical instrument. They called the police and the news spread like wildfire in the area. At about 8.40 am, angry residents began to congregate at Aneja hospital in Mahesh Nagar and started pelting stones and thereafter, ransacked the hospital. The police tried to pacify the mob but to no avail. The mob threatened to torch the hospital if the doctor was not handed over to them. In the ensuing melee, the patients who were undergoing treatment at the hospital rushed out along with their attendants. At about 10.40 am, residents blocked the Ambala-Jagadhri road. They demanded registration of a case under Section 302 against the doctor. They refused to lift the blockade if the doctor was not handed over to them. About two hours of road blockade led to a major traffic jam. The police personnel armed with lathis swung into action and forcibly removed the demonstrators. This sparked off stone pelting by some people. Another attempt by demonstrators to congregate on the road was foiled by the police. About 12 persons reportedly sustained injuries in the incident. The injured include a police constable who was hit by a stone. Those injured were identified as Aakash, Balaji, Jagjit, Sonu, Harjit, Baljit, Amarjeet, Harjeet Kaur, Amarjit Singh, Kundal Kaur and
Jasbir. |
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MP announces Rs 20 lakh grant for judicial complex
Bhiwani, September 24 He announced a grant of Rs 20 lakh from his MP fund for the construction of chambers, road from chambers to courts and parking place in the
judicial complex. Earlier, the president of the association, Mr Sunder Singh Tanwar presented a shawl to Mr Bishnoi. Secretary Mohan Masta also welcomed the MP. Mr Bishnoi went to the hostel of the Sports Authority of India and complimented sportsmen for bringing Bhiwani’s name on the international map through their achievements. The Congress leader announced a grant of Rs 50,000 for providing water coolers and water purifiers in the hostel. The MP also met party workers and heard complainants at the PWD rest house. Mr Bishnoi had to face unruly crowd at the rest house and he had to leave the conference room to listen to the grievances. Earlier, the district Congress president, Mr Ramesh Masta, welcomed the MP. DCC (Rural) president Jangbir Singh and MLA Jagjit Singh Sangwan were among others present on the occasion. |
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First test-tube goat babies
Karnal, September 24 According to Dr Nagendra Sharma, Director of the NDRI, they had been working towards developing in-house capabilities to establish pregnancies in goats using in vitro fertilization (IVF) through laparoscopy technique. He said a team of scientists comprising Dr Dhruba Malakar, Dr S.K. Das and Dr S.L. Goswami of the Animal Biotechnology Centre of the institute had been working on the project, “In vitro production of embryos in goats and their transfer to recipients using laparoscopy”, for the past three years. They succeeded in producing the first test-tube goat baby in the country, early this year. The kids were in a state of good health and were growing normally, claimed the scientists. Outlining the techniques adopted by the scientists, Dr Goswami said goat oocytes were collected in the oocyte collection medium (OCM) by follicle puncture method from the ovaries brought from a Delhi abattoir. The oocytes were cultured in the laboratory for 24 hours in suitable media and fertilised using sperms from select bucks. The embryos were allowed to grow for a few days in the laboratory and then transferred to surrogate goats using laparoscopy technique. The scientists further said: “Following in vitro fertilisation, the cleaved embryos were isolated and cultured further in embryo development medium along with co-cultured oviductal cells.” A total of 11,247 oocytes were collected from 4,671 ovaries that were divided into four grades. A total of 554 embryos were produced in 54 trials conducted during the past three years. |
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Tributes paid to Rao Tula Ram
Rewari, September 24 Paying tributes to Rao Tula Ram and others, Union Minister of State for External Affairs Rao Inderjit Singh said as many as 5000 Indian warriors had laid their lives in the historic battle of Nasibpur (near Narnaul) which was fought against the British under the overall command of Rao Tula Ram in 1857. Recalling the life of Rao Tula Ram, he said his great ancestor Rao Tula Ram was the first Indian who met the then Czar of Russia and sought military assistance from him to drive out the British from the country. Turning to the sordid role then played by the neighbouring princely states, which backed the British, Mr Rao said it was ironical that the people of that very state were now putting hurdles in the implementation of the apex court verdict pertaining to the completion of the SYL canal and thus perpetrating injustice by preventing the parched fields from getting the Ravi -Beas water. Mr Rao also flayed certain old politicians of Haryana for their failure to secure the SYL canal water for Haryana. Reposing confidence in the Supreme Court, which, he said, would eventually ensure full justice to Haryana in the matter of the long-pending SYL tangle, Mr Rao asserted that at present the equitable distribution of available canal water in Haryana was the most pertinent and potent issue. Besides two Congress legislators Rao Dan Singh (Mahendergarh), Zakir Hussain (Taoru), former HPCC Chief Rao Nihal Singh and others also addressed the conference and paid homage to the martyrs. |
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Regional clinical conference held
Hisar, September 24 Addressing the conference, Dr K.S. Dangi, Director, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, said Haryana was the only state which was exporting the germ plasm of murrah buffaloes to other states as well as foreign nations. He said a special vaccination campaign for animals had been organised in eight districts of the state, following which no case of foot and mouth disorder had been reported in the state. The HAU Vice-Chancellor, Mr M.K.Miglani, said livestock was becoming the primary source of income in the rural areas. He exhorted the veterinary surgeons to prescribe simple and low-cost measures to livestock owners. Dr A.L.Choudhary, Chairman, Haryana Livestock Development Board, was the chief guest on this occasion. Addressing the gathering, he asserted that animal husbandry could be a good option for the farmers going in for diversification. |
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Soil health drive planned
Chandigarh, September 24 While stating this here today the Director, Agriculture, Mr Rajeev Arora said the state-level campaign would be launched in Jind district on October 1. He said the campaign would be launched with the cooperation of CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, Directorate of Wheat Research of Indian Council for Agricultural Research, International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre, International Rice Research Institute and major fertiliser manufacturing organisations. He said 30,000 laminated soil health cards had already been provided to the farmers and 50,000 additional soil health cards would be provided after the completion of the campaign. |
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Punia’s presence at varsity function causes confusion Sirsa, September 24 Dr Punia reportedly resigned from the post of Registrar on Tuesday but his presence on the dais surprised everybody. He was quoted to have resigned on “personal ground” but tussle between Dr Punia and the Vice-Chancellor, Dr
R.P. Dahiya was sat to be behind the said move. Today, he shared the dais with the Vice-Chancellor and Mr Vinay Kumar, Director-General of Chaudhary Devi Lal Vidyapeeth. According to a senior faculty member, they got confused on seeing him at the official function of the university. “The situation should be cleared. The Vice-Chancellor should come clear as it gives a wrong picture about the establishment”, says the faculty member. A nother senior teacher said that if Dr Punia had resigned from the post of Registrar, he should not have been present on the dais. He added that the authorities should clear the picture whether the resignation had been accepted or not. Interestingly, while addressing the gathering at the declamation contest, the
Vice-Chancell or repeatedly referred Dr Punia as “Registrar saab” from the dais to which none of the officials including Dr Punia objected to or try to clarify over the issue. Despite several attempts, the Vice-Chancellor could not be contacted. Meanwhile students found themselves at the receiving end. “Keep sitting or you have to face action” faculty members warned them trying to make them remain seated at the declamation contest. Organised near the main entrance of university the students were “forced” to sit until the function was over, which was scheduled to end in the evening. The declamation contest function proved to be a damp squib as there was a little crowd when the contest started. Students expressed their resentment when they were asked to keep sitting certain students complained that outsiders were “forced” to sit at the venue, as staff members were not ready to listen to them. Dr R.C. Punia also addressed the gathering and mentioned the role of late Devi Lal in social justice. He appealed to the students to follow the footsteps of late farmers’ leader to bring prosperity. The chief guest, Mr Vinay Kumar, Director-General of Chaudhary Devi Lal Vidyapeeth also spoke. |
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Woman’s viscera
sent to Rohtak Ambala, September 24 Municipal Councillor Lalita Prasad stated yesterday that the incident was politically motivated. He claimed that the injuries on Batto Devi were inflicted after she had died. “It is clear from the post-mortem report that the injuries took place after her death. It clearly shows that an attempt is being made to frame me,” he stated. Mr Prasad said his cousin, Sheetal Prasad, was assaulted in the evening. “We informed the police. No incident took place when Batto Devi died. Police personnel were present and they know the truth,” he claimed. “A false case has been registered against me and I am studying the case from a legal angle,” he added. |
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Man found dead
Karnal, September 24 Police sources said the deceased, Shamsher Singh, was a habitual drinker. Last night he was heavily drunk and had an argument with his wife on some issue. Without saying anything he left the house and went to the nearby cattle yard where he was found dead. A case The police has initiated inquest proceedings under Section 174 of the IPC. The post-mortem examination of the body was conducted. |
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