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Rohtak voter suspicious of delimitation move
CM orders suspension of corrupt officials
50,000 acres to get green cover
Political parties exploiting seer’s arrest: Sampat
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Congress demands President rule in Haryana
Traffic blocked as officers remain elusive
Haryana Government to observe Flag Day
MC allows govt to paste posters for
free
Ambala doctor writes to Kalam
Probe conducted into death of undertrial
Youth shot dead, burnt over money
Criminal, brother shot at in court
Bhadana, 4 others told to appear in court on Dec 14
Poor response to bandh
call
Bravery award for 9-yr-old
Ex-Services League poll from Nov 27
Leaf from History
Justice Nehru is MDU arbitrator
Mushaira on November 27
Sarpanch of Jondhi village resigns
Varsity’s plan for joggers
50,000 reach Kapal Mochan
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Rohtak voter suspicious of delimitation move
Rohtak, November 22 The commission’s move to abolish the Rohtak Lok Sabha seat and create a new constituency of Gurgaon has done the most damage to the Indian National Lok Dal. The people of this area interpret the move as a bid by the Chief Minister to “raze the identity of Rohtak to dust“ to avenge the humiliating defeat of his father, the late Devi Lal, from this constituency. The move could not have been more ill-timed. On the one hand, the Chief Minister is busy raising a memorial to the legendary Jat leader the late Sir Chhotu Ram at his village Garhi Sampla in this district in a bid to win over the Jats, who had voted against his party in the last Lok Sabha poll. But the commission’s recommendation abolishing the Rohtak Lok Sabha seat has effectively neutralised any favourable sentiments the memorial to Sir Chhotu Ram might have generated among the Jats of the area. The Meham Assembly segment of Rohtak district, which the Jat community considers as sacrosanct for itself, is also seething with rage as the commission wants it reserved for Scheduled Castes. This move, too, has been interpreted as Mr Chautala’s revenge for political nemesis as in the early nineties his bid to enter the state Assembly from Meham was thwarted and he had to unceremoniously demit the office of Chief Minister. Mr Chautala’s diehard supporters, too, find it an uphill task to defend him under the circumstances. A senior INLD functionary from Meham said, “It is so difficult for us to explain. Our leader seems to ignore the fact that Meham returned to the party fold after the infamous Meham mayhem and our party won from here in the last two elections”. Even those who would like to give Mr Chautala the benefit of doubt by blaming the recommendations on the delimitation panel, say the Chief Minister himself is to blame for the flak he is drawing on this issue. They say for years Mr Chautala has been consciously projecting himself as a strongman who forgets and forgives more. Now, this is going against him. This factor is working against the Chief Minister in other Haryana areas too where the delimitation panel has proposed changes, say for instance in Bhattu Kalan, Palwal, Narwana and Beri. The Chautala camp’s plea that Mr Chautala’s own favourite — Narwana — too has been proposed as a reserved constituency is not cutting much ice. His detractors say this has been done as part of a campaign to demolish opponents. Political analysts say while Mr Chautala can always go back to a segment in his home district of Sirsa, Narwana’s reservation will effectively deprive the Surjewalas of a safe Assembly segment. Even otherwise, his detractors say, the Chautalas are known as “seat hoppers” because of their penchant to change their Assembly seats when conditions so necessitate. Mr Ajay Singh Chautala has been a member of the Rajasthan Assembly from two different seats in the past. The Chief Minister’s younger son, too, has unsuccessfully contested from Rajasthan. Mr Chautala himself has contested from Rohtak, Sirsa and Jind districts. Though there is no official word from the Election Commission that the state panel’s recommendations have been shelved, there are enough indications that any changes in constituencies will only be considered after the elections. Yet, the damage to the INLD has been done. |
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INLD workers refused entry into village, yatra diverted
Jind, November 22 According to reports, vehicles carrying INLD workers reached the village to welcome the Deen Bandhu Sir Chhotu Ram samriti yatra. The INLD workers resented the action of the BKU activists and both groups pelted stones on each other. Five persons received minor injuries. The vehicles were also damaged. The BKU activists of Kandela and surrounding villages had assembled in the village to welcome the yatra. A few days ago, the BKU had said the INLD leaders and workers would not be allowed to enter the village as part of their agitation against the INLD government. Mr Raj Kumar
Redhu, president of the district unit of the BKU, said the BKU workers did not oppose the yatra because they had respect for Sir Chhotu Ram. The yatra was diverted through other routes. It reached Nagura village via Bohatwala and Dalamwala villages and did not pass through BKU-dominated villages. Meanwhile, the INLD leaders have condemned the incident. They alleged that some anti-social elements tried to obstruct the yatra. |
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INLD following Sir Chhotu Ram’s
ideology, says MP
Bhiwani, November 22 This was stated by the first general secretary of the INLD and Rajya Sabha MP Ajay Singh Chautala while addressing a press conference at PWD rest house here yesterday. He had come here with the Deen Bandhu Samriti Yatra, carrying belongings of the kisan leader which passed through the villages of this district. He said Sir Chhotu Ram had undertaken several welfare works like the implementation of the agricultural production Act when he was looking after the Revenue Department in joint Punjab. His works showed new direction in the uplift of the poor and the downtrodden farmers. He said a delegation of Journalists from Haryana would soon be sent to Pakistan on a goodwill visit. A delegation of journalists from Pakistan had come with him whose language, dress, lifestyle and culture were like Indians. “I did not feel there that I am in Pakistan but felt that it was a part of Haryana” he said. Taking a dig at the Congress he said that while the Chief Minister Mr Om Parkash Chautala, was working to treasure the relics of the great kisan leader in Haryana those who claimed to be his heir had forgotten his name and had made no efforts to bring his belongings to India. Those present at the press conference include Education Minister Bahadur Singh, ex-MP Inder Singh, state president of youth wing of INLD Umed Singh, MLAs Shashi Ranjan Parmar, Ranbir Singh, Dr Vasu Dev Sharma, Sunil Lamba, Deputy Commissioner D.D. Gautam and SP A.S. Chawla. The belongings of Deen Bandhu Chhotu Ram have been kept in an open van. The belongings include two chairs, two “modhas”, doors, rugs and a sword. |
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CM orders suspension of corrupt officials
Chandigarh, November 22 While stating this here today, an official spokesman said it had been decided to issue chargesheets to these officials under Rule 7 of the Punishment and Appeal Rules, 1987, and blacklist the concerned contractor and also register a criminal case against him as he had also been found responsible for the irregularity. He said the state Vigilance Bureau had submitted in its special checking report that 2450 bags of cement costing about Rs 3.66 lakh were consumed less in work. Executive Engineer R.C. Mohan (retd), Subdivisional Engineer S.P. Dhiman, Junior Engineers Sandeep Kumar and R.K. Aggarwal, Work Mistri Satbir Singh and Balwan Singh and the company contractor were found to be responsible for the lapse. Also, it was found that an excess payment of Rs 86,950.80 had been made to the contractor. Such a payment was not payable as per the specifications of the Public Works Department. He said it was found that the officials, including Executive Engineer, R.C. Mohan (retd), Sub-divisional Engineer S.P. Dhiman, Junior Engineers Sandeep Kumar and R.K. Aggarwal had connived with the draftsman M.M. Bajaj, head draftsman Lavleen, Sub-divisional Engineer (Headquarters) Vineet Chawala, Assistant Yogesh Hans, Accountant Raj Kumari, internal audit officer Sandeep Kumar Gujral and manager (accounts) S.K. Garg, to commit the irregularity. A total loss of over Rs 4.53 lakh had been caused to the state exchequer by these officials. The bureau recommended that this amount be recovered with penal interest from these officials and the
contractor. |
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CM directed to reply to officer’s charge
Chandigarh, November 22 The petitioner, Mr Varinder Kumar Verma, who is also president of Ekta Shakti, has alleged that his induction into the IAS had not been done despite his seniority only because he was not in the good books of Chief Minister Chautala. Mr Verma has challenged his non-induction into the IAS on the grounds that it was illegal and against the law. It may be recalled that Mr Verma had also moved the High Court, seeking directions to the Haryana Government to accept his application for voluntary retirement from service. However, the same had not been accepted due to pending inquiries against him. Sometime back, the court had directed the Haryana Government to complete all pending inquiries against the officer within one month. Today, the Bench headed by Mr Justice J.S. Khehar asked the Chief Minister to file his reply by March 11. Mahila samiti chief’s plea allowed
A Division Bench of the High Court on Monday allowed the application of Ms Jagmati Sangwan, chief of the Janwadi Mahila Samiti, seeking to become party to the ongoing case regarding the action of a khap panchayat of a Jhajjar village asking a couple, Ms Sonia and Mr Rampal, to annul their marriage or leave the village. The court also heard the plea of counsel for the couple, seeking action against the members of the panchayat for having caused a lot of harassment and mental torture to Ms Sonia. Counsel said that the medical record of treatment of Ms Sonia be summoned from PGI, Rohtak. The case was later adjourned to December 14. |
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Chautala tries to defect protest
Chandigarh, November 22 The Chief Minister, who was talking to newsmen after inaugurating the three-day National Workshop on
Agroforestry, was asked to comment on the decision of the Youth Congress to gherao the State Assembly on December 1. When asked to comment on the stand taken by BJP on the arrest of the seer of Kanchi, Shankarachrya Jayendra Saraswathi, Mr Chautala said that it had become a trend in the country to politicise every issue. He said in case the BJP had been honest and serious to react on the manner in which a respected person had been insulted. |
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50,000 acres to get green cover
Chandigarh, November 22 The Chief Minister was inaugurating a three-day National Workshop on Agroforestry organised by the Haryana Forest Department here. About 200 delegates from Forest Departments of various states and a number of institutions in the country are attending the workshop. Mr Chautala said although in most parts of Haryana the climate was arid yet about 23 crore saplings had been planted in the state during last about five-and-a-half years and out of them more than 80 per cent had survived. He said that it had been decided to provide saplings to farmers free of cost and also plant them in the complexes of government institutions to further increase the green cover. Suitable markets on the pattern of mandis would also be set up for the sale of trees. He said it was encouraging that a Rs 286-crore scheme was also being introduced from this financial year with financial assistance from the Japanese Bank for International Funding. An area of 50,000 hectares would be brought under afforestation under this scheme, which would be implemented in seven
years. He also appreciated the European Commission for giving financial assistance of Rs 126 crore for the implementation of community forestry scheme in the state. He said that during his last visit to China, he was impressed to observe that it was exporting medicinal plants worth $ 50,000 crore per year as compared to $ 5,000 crore by India. He urged the delegates to suggest what kind of plants should be planted in a particular area and how their marketing could be made more effective. Earlier, Haryana Principal Chief Conservator of Forests J.P.L. Srivastava said that it was high time to lay stress on agroforestry to increase the green cover in the country. Out of a total of 329 million hectares of the country, the forests covered only 64 million hectares. He pointed out that only half of these forests were healthy and the rest of them suffered from soil and water erosion or faced the threat of fire. Consequently, the Natural Forest Policy of 1988 had envisaged that tree cover should be 33 per cent of the nation’s geographical area. He said that the speed at which India was undergoing transformation from a developing to a developed country, it would be difficult to further increase the green cover. Therefore, the only possibility to achieve the national target was to plant trees outside the conventional forest area. Mr Chandi Prasad Bhatt, a well-known environmentalist associated with the “Chipko Movement”, was all praise for the manner in which Haryana had been able to increase its forest cover from 4 per cent to 8 per cent. He said that other states should also follow the Haryana model. He pointed out that afforestation schemes could be implemented effectively only with the involvement of the people. Mr Chautala also released the first issue of a newsletter, “Forest News”, brought out by the Haryana Forest Department. |
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Political parties exploiting seer’s arrest: Sampat
Yamunanagar, November 22 This was stated by the Haryana Finance Minister, Mr Sampat Singh, after participating in ‘1008 Kundiyan Mahayagya’ at New Grain Market here yesterday. He said various welfare schemes announced made by the INLD government would not put any extra burden on the exchequer. He alleged that the Opposition was misleading people regarding various announcements made by the Chief Minister, Mr Om Parkash Chautala. Mr Sampat Singh said the Chautala government was pro-people. According to him it was the INLD government, which had introduced pension for the old. Mr Sampat Singh said the
Vedic culture was several thousands year old and earlier yagya was part of the routine life. Earlier, in the day several prominent persons, including sitting MLAs from Yamunanagar district M.L Gambhir and B.L. Saini, former MLA Kanwar Pal, former Haryana Minister Kamala Verma participated in the yagya. Among others who took part in the yagya included former MLA Ram Parkash, District Congress President Rajesh Kumar Tyagi, Congress leader Satpal Kaushik and INLD leader Pradeep Aggarwal. |
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Congress demands President rule in Haryana
Ambala, November 22 Talking to mediapersons here, Dr Chauhan said law and order situation in the state had deteriorated. “People are no longer safe. Senior citizens are scared while women’s life, honour and property are facing threat,” he said. Dr Chauhan said they would launch a “jan andolan” to generate awareness among the people about failures of the government. “Colonies of Mahesh Nagar have not been developed as the government claims it is unauthorised. However, the colony residents are being forced to pay different taxes and no development work is carried out. The government has cheated the residents of outer colonies so we demand the taxes collected must be returned to the residents,” he said. Dr Chauhan said even the Open Darbars held by the Chief Minister were violative of the spirit of democracy. “The Congress has always encouraged local body participation for effective governance but Mr Chautala has let down decentralisation,” he said. He alleged that favouritism was shown by Mr Chautala in disbursal of funds to different villages on the basis of political allegiance. “Showing favouritism is a clear misuse of the public exchequer,” Dr Chauhan said. He said they would raise a number of issues, including unemployment. “We are also going to lay stress on local issues which are affecting the common man,” he said. Among others present on the occasion were Mr Randhir Chaudhary, Mr Tilak Raj Taneja, Mr Vinay Verma and Mr Munerheri. |
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Traffic blocked as officers remain elusive
Kaithal, November 22 Talking to mediapersons, the protesters comprising candidates who wanted to apply for the posts of conductor in Haryana Roadways, said they had to enclose medical reports with their application forms and the last date of November 27 was not very far off, but the doctors who come to conduct medical examination were slow and irregular. They said today the doctor left for lunch break but did not return till 4 pm. Similarly other youths said they had to apply for unemployment allowance as per the recently announced policy of the government and they had to get their forms countersigned by the SDM but they had not been able to contact the officer since Friday. The last date for submission of forms was November 23 they apprehended that they would not be able to submit their forms in time and might be deprived of the opportunity to avail the benefits. They said that they were feeling harassed due to the non availability of officials concerned and other senior officers, including the Deputy Commissioner. Others said it was strange that on the one hand the government was holding Sarkar Aapke Dwar programmes to provide relief to the people but here they had been doing the rounds of offices but the officers were not available. The Deputy Commissioner Mr H.S. Malik, who could be contacted after repeated attempts in his camp office late this evening said he and the SDM, Mr Bhupinder Singh, were busy due to the ‘Yatra’ carrying belongings of Sir Chhotu Ram which passed through the district. |
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Haryana Government to observe Flag Day
Chandigarh, November 22 While stating this here today, an official spokesman said that the Flag Day was an occasion to express solidarity with the armed forces personnel who were engaged in the onerous task of national defence. This Flag Day had a special significance in view of the unparalleled success of the armed forces in Kargil and other sectors. He said tokens and car flags would be distributed to the public in return for voluntary donations to the Flag Day fund to be raised on the occasion. In view of the increasing financial requirement to run welfare schemes for defence personnel, efforts would be made to mobilise maximum contributions to the fund. He said that as per instructions of the Central Government, the contributions to Flag Day were exempted from payment of income tax. A trophy would also be awarded to the Zila Sainik Board and Deputy Commissioner for raising maximum contribution to the Flag Day fund. |
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MC allows govt to paste posters for
free
Sirsa, November 22 The council charges fee from individuals and other groups but is not charging anything from the government. Posters about various schemes of the government and signboards displaying the photos of leaders of the ruling party are all over public places. The INLD has a majority in the MC and this has made it easy for the government. Publicity material is even displayed "illegally" on government buildings, roundabouts, college and other private and public places. According to the MC president who is also the district president of the INLD, Mr Padam Jain, the civic body was aware of the trend of unregulated display of publicity material. He said it defaced the town but the MC was not sure how to check it. The Executive Officer of the MC, Mr N.K. Bishnoi, admitted that the problem had gone beyond control due to obvious reasons. "I started charging from private parties for publicity material and also the MC's prior permission is needed," he said. About the status of charges from the government, he said the MC was determined not to charge from it due to the virtue of the former's "higher status". Congress leader Hoshiari Lal blamed the MC for adopting a soft corner towards the government. A senior official said the MC could have generated more funds by charging the government but seems it was interested in "pleasing political bosses" than doing welfare work for residents. "Though rules do not permit to paste posters anywhere, no action has been taken against anybody. The Anti-Defacement Act clearly empowers the MC to initiate action against the defaulting parties but lack of will and political pressure is a major hindrance," an official remarked. |
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Ambala doctor writes to Kalam
Chandigarh, November 22 The eyeballs of a person suffering from TED protrude out, adversely effecting the vision, besides disfiguring the face of the patient. Allopathy or any other system of medicine is not known to have any treatment for this disease. The available treatment is merely symptomatic and supportive. Dr Gupta had been knocking at the doors of various reputable institutes in the region with a request to evaluate the effect of his treatment. His request so far remains unheeded. His last hope now lies with the scientist-President. Dr Gupta says he has been encouraged to write to Dr Kalam after reading news reports how the President extends a helping hand to new inventors. Interestingly, Dr Gupta himself suffered from TED, known as “exophthalmos” in scientific terms, for over 12 years. Frustrated by his failure to find a treatment in allopathy, he turned to naturopathy. He says he tried the “non-medicinal” method found by him in naturopathy after years-long research, first on himself. His eyeballs protruded out of the boney socket so much that he could not close the eyelids while sleeping. He had to sleep with his face covered with a cloth. After taking treatment for a few months, he was able to sleep normally. Encouraged by the results, Dr Gupta, who is a practising MBBS doctor and holds the degree of MD in naturopathy from the Institute of Alternative Medicines, Kolkata,
hesitatingly started giving his treatment free of cost to TED patients who came to him for treatment of some other disease. The response motivated him to seek evaluation of his treatment from a reputed eye hospital. His efforts were frustrated. Meanwhile, Dr Gupta, whose claim was first highlighted by The Tribune about two years ago, is receiving testimonials from various parts of the country as well as abroad. Those who took treatment from him include a renowned Spanish singer, spouses and wards of doctors, housewives, judicial officers and doctors themselves. Recently, a resident of New Jersey in the USA, Ms Rosa Calamia, who came to know about Dr Gupta from his website, www.tedcure.com, wrote to him after taking his treatment for three months in very encouraging terms. “Within two
weeks (of taking Dr Gupta’s protocol), I saw a tremendous change. My eyes are now over 90 per cent back to normal. My ophthalmologist, Dr Mitchell Lautenberg, who works for the Ocean Eye Institute in Toms River, New Jersey, and who was aware that I was taking Dr Gupta’s treatment, has confirmed the improvement... It is sad that this man’s treatment is not world renowned. TED people have nowhere else to turn, when in fact the answer lies with Dr Gupta,” Ms Calamia emotionally testified the efficacy of Dr Gupta’s protocol. Another US resident, Ms Heidi Cassibo, wrote to Dr Gupta that “conventional doctors in the USA do not offer any form of treatment for TED. So I decided to do some research online to see if there were any alternative treatments...I found Dr Gupta’s website. I began his treatment in February, 2004, and within two weeks I noticed a dramatic improvement in my eyes. I had less discomfort and the swollen appearance of my eyes was greatly diminished. I have now been on the treatment for about three months and am very pleased to say that my appearance has returned to almost normal. I have no more vision problems, and my eyes feel completely normal with no more pressure or irritation.” Ms Laura P. Leeds, whose son took treatment from Dr Gupta, wrote from the USA that the exophthalmos measurement of her son was 21mm in February last, had now gone down to 20mm in August last. Even the endocrinologist treating her son had reduced his medication. Dr Gupta hopes that he will have better luck with Dr Kalam than what he had with the research institutes. |
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Probe conducted into death of undertrial
Sonepat, November 22 According to official sources, Mr Suresh Kumar visited Bal Sudhar Graha today and recorded the statements of the jail staff and other child prisoners. He would submit his report to the District Magistrate for further action. According to another report, Mr Pradeep Kumar, Chief Judicial Magistrate, also went to Bal Sudhar Graha today and conducted an on-the-spot inquiry into the death of the child prisoner, who was facing a trial in a case of theft. The CJM also talked to other child prisoners. He is reported to have sought information about the arrangements made for providing basic amenities like drinking water, first-aid, meals and rooms to the child prisoners. He directed the jail staff to improve the conditions of the jail. Meanwhile, parents of the deceased have urged the Civil Surgeon not to conduct the post-mortem of the body in the Civil Hospital but it should be conducted at the PGIMS, Rohtak. The parents, who belong to Sirsa, have come here after being informed about the death of Satpal. |
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Youth shot dead, burnt over money
Jhajjar, November 22 Mukesh owed Rs 6 lakh to him and one Satish. He send along with Satish, he took Mukesh to the fields where he was shot dead and his body burnt. |
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Criminal, brother shot at in court
Kaithal, November 22 According to information, the incident occurred around 21.15 pm in the court of Ms Bimlesh
Tanwar, ACJM, here when Surinder and his accomplices. Balwant of Patti
Afgan, Kaithal, Anil of Ghurana, Badal alias Sudhir of Dariyawala, Subhash of Balerkhan and Satbir of Surbabra (Jind), were produced in the court in connection with a case of kidnapping for ransom. Three persons entered the courtroom out of them and one was dressed as an advocate. The person went near Surinder and asked him about the case in connection with which he was produced. Soon thereafter he pulled out a revolver from a big envelop and fired at Surinder and the bullet reportedly hit the victim near the neck. Joginder also reportedly suffered some pellet injuries. Head constable Baldev Singh, gunman of the judge, and Naib court Mohinder Singh immediately pounced upon the assailant and disarmed him. According to some witnesses three persons were overpowered by the staff. Later after sometime other police personnel also reached the spot. Surinder and his brother were immediately rushed to the Civil Hospital here and later Surinder was referred to the PGI. After receiving information about this incident, Ms Bharti Arora S.P. Kurukshetra, reached the court premises here and inspected the court room where this shooting took place. The blood was scattered on the floor of the court room. Talking to mediapersons Ms Bharti said according to preliminary investigation four persons were involved in this incident and one person who has identified himself as Udaiveer of Sisai village (Hisar) has been arrested by the police and he was interrogated to know about his other accomplices. She admitted that one firearm has been
seized from him. |
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Bhadana, 4 others told to appear in court on Dec 14
Chandigarh, November 22 The CBI had been investigating into the allegations of illegal mining against Mr Bhadana and other unnamed mining lessees operating in Faridabad district. It also investigated into the role of officials concerned of the Mines Safety Department, Ghaziabad, the Haryana Mining Department and the local administration in allowing illegal mining. The CBI was asked by the Punjab and Haryana High Court to investigate into the allegations levelled by a Faridabad-based journalist, Mr Subhash Sharma, in a public interest litigation petition on April 20, 2001. The CBI registered a regular case in this regard on September 12, 2001. The premier investigating agency had filed the chargesheet in the court of Mr Sharma on October 14 last. However, the court had asked it to file all the relevant documents before it today. Mr Bhadana and the others whom the court has asked to appear before it on December 14, will have to seek bail from the court on that day. According to informed sources, among the witnesses listed by the CBI are at least three senior IAS officers of Haryana. In the FIR the CBI had named Mr Bhadana, Messrs Ram Kishan Poorni Devi and its partner, Mr Ram Kishan, and unnamed officers. The case was registered under Section 279 of the IPC and various provisions of the Mines and
Minerals (Regulation and Development) Act, 1957, and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The High Court had also appointed a Chandigarh-based advocate, Mr R.S. Bains, as the local Commissioner to visit the site and look into the allegations levelled by Mr Sharma. Mr Bains found that the allegations were not without substance and illegal mining was going on in the area of Ishaq Mandi as alleged in the petition. Before the last Lok Sabha elections, Mr Bhadana quit the Cabinet and the ruling Indian National Lok Dal to join the BJP. He unsuccessfully contested the Lok Sabha elections on the BJP ticket from Rajasthan. His brother, Avtar, is the Congress MP from Faridabad. The Bhadanas were earlier close to the Haryana Congress president, Mr Bhajan Lal, when he was the Chief Minister. However, later differences cropped up between them and Kartar joined the Haryana Vikas Party of Mr Bansi Lal. He became HVP MLA from Samalkha in 1996. He withdrew support from the Bansi Lal Government in 1999. He again won from Samalkha in the 2000 Assembly elections on the INLD ticket. |
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Poor response to bandh
call
Hisar, November 22 The protesters had called for a half-day bandh from 7 am to 12 noon, overlooking the fact that the markets usually opened at 10 am. They claimed that the bandh was "successful to a great extent." Leaders of the VHP, BJP, RSS and some other social and religious organisations assembled near Nagori Gate in the morning. They went to shopkeepers and appealed them to support the bandh call. However, their appeals did not evoke much response. They even staged a dharna and observed a fast in protest against the arrest of Kanchi Shankaracharya Jayendra Saraswati. Swami Bhagwan Dev Paramhans, state president of the All-India Sant Samaj, alleged that the case against the Shankaracharya was "false, unfounded and concocted." He said the arrest had been made at the behest of the Jayalalitha government and had the support of the Centre. SONEPAT: The band call evoked no response in this city and other parts of the district. According to a report, all shops and commercial establishments remained opened. Traders and businessmen ignored the bandh call and bus and train services also remained unaffected. Banks and educational institutions functioned normally. Officials of the district and police administration kept a close watch on the situation. Meanwhile, leaders of the VHP, the BJP, the Bajrang Dal and some other Hindu organisations condemned the seer's arrest. Mr Kishan Singh Sangwan, MP and national vice-president of the BJP, described the arrest as a conspiracy to malign the Shankaracharya. Talking to mediapersons here, he said the treatment meted out to the Shankaracharya was an insult to the religious sentiments of the people. BHIWANI:
The bandh call evoked a mixed response in the district. Activists of the Bajrang Dal, Bhartiya Janta Yuva Morcha and ABVP blocked Sirsa Express at the junction. Some markets remained closed. A heavy police arrangement was made to check any untoward incident. Various Hindu organisation activists observed dharna and said the Shankaracharya episode was politically motivated. |
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Bravery award for 9-yr-old
Rewari, November
22 The award will be presented to her by the
Prime Minister at a special function to be held in Delhi on the Republic
Day on January 26, 2005. Priyanka showed exemplary courage in rescuing
the lives of two children — Mohit (6) and his sister Anjali (5) from
being drowned. |
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Ex-Services League poll from Nov 27
Rohtak, November 22 He said the number of life members of the IESL in Haryana was 36,204 as on September 2 this year which was the cut off date. The election in Rohtak, Gurgaon, Sirsa and Mahendragarh will be held on November 27. Faridabad voters will vote at Gurgaon. The election will be conducted in Jind, Hisar and Jhajjar on November 28. While Fatehabad voters will vote at Hisar, Kaithal members will vote at Jind. Elections in Bhiwani,
Sonepat and Rewari will be held on December 4. Panipat, Karnal, Kurukshetra, Yamunanagar, Ambala and Panchkula voters will vote at
Sonepat. |
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Leaf from History Rahul Das Tribune News Service Ballroom dancing was popular during the pre-Independence era and Naach Ghar at Railway Colony in Ambala Cantonment is a testimony to the period when English dance was at its peak. Naach Ghar is said to have been a club for English officers and employees, particularly those in the Railways, who used to regularly dance in the evenings. Even British Air Force pilots are believed to be frequent visitors to the club. Over a period of time, the local populace called the club as Naach Ghar and the name has stuck ever since. Ambala Cantonment MLA Anil Vij said Naach Ghar was not the only place where English dance used to take place. "Ballroom dancing was common at the Sirhind Club and Defence Cinema too. However, Naach Ghar was the main centre for English dance," he said. Naach Ghar is a double-storeyed building with wooden floors on both storeys. There was also a circular room, called Gol Kamra, which used to be the bar in the pre-Independence period. It is perhaps the only building which has a huge overhead water tank. This is peculiar since none of the major water tanks constructed during the British period in Ambala have buildings underneath it. The water tank used to meet the water requirement of the Railway colony before other water tanks were constructed following the expansion of the colony. Besides the ballrooms, there used to be a well-maintained beautiful garden and two tennis courts. The cemented tennis courts are said to be the first tennis courts in Ambala. Mr Jaswant Mahajan, who has retired from the Railways, said Naach Ghar was quite popular during the British period as well as soon after Independence. "However, gradually Naach Ghar lost its popularity. Even after Independence, Anglo-Indians who were employed in the Railways used to dance here. There used to be a live orchestra," he said. Mr Mangat Ram Sharma, another former Railway employee, said Naach Ghar used to be the main club in the British days. "The Naach Ghar is believed to have been constructed soon after the Railways arrived at Ambala. The construction of the building, with its thick walls, clearly shows that it has a sturdy structure," he said. Mr Sharma said beautiful garden, fountains, tennis courts and the dance rooms used to make Naach Ghar an important centre for unwinding.
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Justice Nehru is MDU arbitrator
Rohtak, November 22 The appointment became necessary after the firm sent a legal notice to the university claiming that it owed it Rs 1.75 crore as arrears. The university had directed the firm in 2002 not to enrol any more students following complaints of financial bungling by study centres authorised by the firm all over the country. The firm came under a cloud immediately after signing of the agreement when the university Teachers Association alleged underhand deals in signing the agreement by the then VC. This was followed by complaints from study centres. The then VC appointed a panel to probe the complaints. The report of the probe panel submitted a few months ago had found the allegations against the firm true. |
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Mushaira on November 27
Chandigarh, November 22 While stating this here today, a spokesman of the academy said the Governor,
A.R. Kidwai would inaugurate the mushaira. Noted poets Muzaffar Hanfi, Rahi
Shahabi, Makhmoor Saidee, Muzaffar Razmi and others would participate in the function, he said. |
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Sarpanch of Jondhi village resigns
Jhajjar, November 22 The Sarpanch in her resignation addressed to the Deputy Commissioner said the panchayat of Gahlawat gotra and Dagar gotra in the presence of the SP and a representative of the district administration on November 9 in Jondhi village had reverted its decision of social boycott of Ashish and Darshna and allowed the couple to live in the village, but outside the phirni (boundary demarcating residential area). |
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Varsity’s plan for joggers
Hisar, November 22 The university will have a joggers’ track. There would be drinking water facilities as well. The authorities might even have a music system installed to greet early risers. After the plan is implemented, those interested would get special passes which they would have to show before entering the campus. The university would charge a nominal amount for these facilities. Talking to The Tribune here today, the HAU Vice-Chancellor, Mr M.K. Miglani, said he received letters from the people in this regard. He maintained that the amount collected from the morning walkers would be spent on facilities for them. However, to maintain cleanliness on the campus, pets would not be allowed on the campus, he added. Mr Miglani said along with facilitating morning walkers, the security set-up at the university would be revamped. A committee under the chairmanship of Dr M.S. Kuhad, Registrar, had been constituted for the purpose. The Vice-Chancellor said the security system would be based on the pattern adopted by Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana. To check the entry of unscrupulous elements, owners of vehicles would be required to submit their vehicle registration certificates at the university gate. For the university staff and students, special stickers would be issued. Apart from this, the timings for opening of different university gates would be regulated to tighten security, he added. |
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50,000 reach Kapal Mochan
Kapal Mochan (Yamunanagar), November 22 The district administration will earn several lakhs in the form of toll tax imposed on the vehicles going for the mela. For the purpose toll tax barriers have been erected on all roads leading to the mela venue. The SGPC had earlier requested the Haryana Chief Minister to exempt the pilgrims from paying toll tax. The mela, which has been declared a state mela, will conclude on November 26. |
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Chandigarh, November 22
Ballroom dancing was popular during the
