H A R Y A N A

Repoll ordered at two Rohtak booths
Chandigarh, September 29
The final figures for the byelection to the Rohtak Lok Sabha seat revealed that a total of 50.64 per cent of the voters exercised their franchise yesterday.

Sacha Sauda followers stage protest march
Rewari, September 29
Several thousand followers, including a large number of women of Dera Sacha Sauda, took out a protest march here today. They shouted slogans against the CBI officials, flaying them for allegedly resorting to unsavoury deeds to tarnish and defame the dera.

Shortage of paramedical staff, doctors in hospital
Panipat, September 29
With unqualified staff on duty at the dispensary of the government Bhim Sen Sachar Hospital, here all does not seem well with the district health facilities. An intern pharmacist with a staff nurse has been running the main dispensary in the OPD.

Gohana: venue of meeting change
Karnal, September 29
The venue for the proposed meeting on Saturday of the representatives of the Balmiki community has been changed from Gohana to Sonepat.

CCA for Haryana staff
Chandigarh, September 29
The Haryana Government has decided to grant City Compensatory Allowance to its employees stationed at Jind, Kaithal and Thanesar (Kurukshetra) at the rate of one and half per cent of their basic pay subject to a maximum of Rs 100 per month with effect from June 17, 2005.

Stories from Haryana towns falling in the National Capital Region are put in
 Delhi & neighbourhood.

REGIONAL BRIEFS

YOUR TOWN

Chandigarh Karnal Panipat Rewari

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	Develop technology for small farmers: Selja September 22, 2005
	Cong directs fire at BJP September 21, 2005
	Haryana Govt postpones selection of 10,000 teachers September 20, 2005

Repoll ordered at two Rohtak booths
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 29
The final figures for the byelection to the Rohtak Lok Sabha seat revealed that a total of 50.64 per cent of the voters exercised their franchise yesterday.

While the Kiloi Assembly segment, represented by the Chief Minister, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, recorded the maximum voting percentage of 61.79, the lowest turnout, 41.58 per cent, was registered at Sahlawas represented by the Congress MLA, Ms Anita Yadav.

Talking to TNS here, Ms Yadav said many voters did not go to the pollng booths as they were busy in agricultural work. The predominantly urban constituency of Rohtak recorded 46.02 per cent voting, while the polling percentage in the Jhajjar Assembly segment was 46.98.

The candidate of the ruling Congress from the seat is Mr Deepender Hooda, son of the Chief Minister. The other important contenders in the fray are Capt Abhimanyu of the BJP and Mr B.S. Suhag of the INLD.

It was learnt that the Election Commission of India has ordered repolling at two booths. An official press release said repolling at booth numbers 40 and 41 in Bhadani village in the Badli Assembly segment of the parliamentary constitueny would take place tomorrow. The Chief Electoral Officer, Haryana, Mr Manik Sonawane, said the repolling would be held between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

More than 80 per cent of the electors had used their electoral photo identity cards yesterday, an official here said.

Sacha Sauda followers stage protest march
Our Correspondent

Rewari, September 29
Several thousand followers, including a large number of women of Dera Sacha Sauda, took out a protest march here today. They shouted slogans against the CBI officials, flaying them for allegedly resorting to unsavoury deeds to tarnish and defame the dera.

A deputation of prominent followers of the dera led by Mr Ashok Kumar, the convener of its district committee here, later submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner, Mr Mahender Kumar, to forward it to the Haryana Chief Minister.

Resolutions eulogizing the social welfare activities of the Dera Sacha Sauda, Sirsa, by the village panchayats of Jainabad, Dahina, Nimoth, Siha, Tankri, Patuhera, Dharan, Balawas Jat and several other villages of the district, were also enclosed with the above memorandum.

Later M/s Labh Singh, Krishan Kumar, Saudagar Singh, Bhim Sen , Dinesh Mehta-all members of the Haryana state committee of the dera and several other prominent activists of the dera said that there was widespread resentment among lakhs of followers at the conduct of certain CBI officials (DSP Armandeep Singh and DSP Satish Dagar) who, they alleged, had been trying to implicate the dera head Sant Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and other prominent activists of the dera in false cases.

They also alleged that the dera manager, sadhus, sadhvis (nuns) and sewadars of the dera had been subjected to third degree methods by the concerned CBI officials during interrogation.

They informed that a recently held special meeting of the members of the state level dera committees of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi had adopted a resolution urging the Central Government to restrain the CBI officials from adopting such course during interrogation and also stop its other acts to falsely implicate the dera head.

They warned that if CBI persisted in its on-going activities, the followers of the dera would be compelled to launch a vigorous agitation, for which the entire responsibility would lie on the government.

Shortage of paramedical staff, doctors in hospital
Tribune News Service

Panipat, September 29
With unqualified staff on duty at the dispensary of the government Bhim Sen Sachar Hospital, here all does not seem well with the district health facilities. An intern pharmacist with a staff nurse has been running the main dispensary in the OPD.

Enquiries revealed that the Medical Superintendent (MS) had deputed the nursing staff in the dispensary.

Sources in the hospital said that as per norms, only a qualified pharmacist was authorised to dispense medicines as the norm at chemist shops also. Blaming the tussle between the two top officials for the malfunctioning of the hospital, doctors asked for an end to the malpractice.

MS Dr Randhawa, admitted that that the two had been functioning for the past some time. Justifying the move, he said that since the pharmacists were not working sincerely, other staff had been put on duty.

CMO, Dr Neh Lata Singh expressed ignorance of the matter. However, she added that she would look into why an unqualified person had been on duty whereas the hospital had five senior pharmacists.

Sources said that the post of orthopaedic surgeon has been vacant for the past six months. A senior doctor said that there was pressure in case of any emergency situation, due to shortage of staff.

Doctors in the hospital too said orthopaedic surgeons were urgently required due to increasing number of road accidents.

According to police officials, there are at least eight to 10 cases of accidents reported on an average per day and these are referred to the PGI, Rohtak 85 km from here or to private hospitals.

Though the hospital is equipped with ultrasound machines but absence of radiologists in the hospital is a handicap in treating patients. Doctors said that the post has been vacant for the past two years. Patients complained of delay in getting the X-ray done and getting reports. An elderly patient said the officials in the X-ray Department asked him to pay for the film as it was out of stock.

He said that he had to wait for three days to get the report due to shortage of doctors.

The hospital is also without an anaesthetist. CMO, Dr Singh said that the matter of staff shortage was not much serious.

However, a senior functionary of the hospital revealed that patients were advised to arrange for an anaesthetist or the doctors themselves provide contact numbers of a professional in the town.

Similarly there are no doctors in ENT, Eye, Dermatology and an expert in the Gyanecology Department.

Gohana: venue of meeting change
Tribune News Service

Karnal, September 29
The venue for the proposed meeting on Saturday of the representatives of the Balmiki community has been changed from Gohana to Sonepat.

This was stated by the national president of Akhil Bharatiya Balmiki Mahapanchayat (ABBM) Shukracharya Darshan Rattan Ravana while talking to this correspondent on the phone today.

Mr Ravana said the venue had been changed on the appeal of the district administration.

Representatives of the Balmiki community would discuss all the related issues about the incident of torching of Dalit houses in Balmiki Colony at Gohana on August 31, he said, adding financial help would also be distributed among the victims on that day.

CCA for Haryana staff