Chandigarh, October 8
The Haryana Government has assured the staff and students of Government Polytechnics in the State, especially those which were converted into polytechnic societies recently, that there would be neither staff retrenchment nor any fee hike in these institutions.

Officials have dispelled speculation that the government was trying to privatise these institutions, saying that the recent decision was aimed at providing autonomy and there was no hidden agenda.

The Director, Technical Education, Mr M.P Gupta, said some elements were trying to mislead the students and teachers into believing that the Government Polytechnics at Nathusiri Chopta, Manesar, Uttawar and Loharu were being handed over to private parties. "With the objective of granting autonomy, better governance and quick decision-making, the government has decided to run these institutions as aided institutions under the aegis of government societies", he said.

Giving out the details, Mr Gupta said each society would be headed by the Financial Commissioner, Technical Education, as its Chairman and the Director, Technical Education, as the Vice-Chairman. Principals of the respective polytechnics would be the members-secretary along with other officers such as the Deputy Commissioner and a nominee each of the finance and industries departments as members. The entire control of the society will remain in the hands of the government with the only difference being that any decision pertaining to the functioning of the polytechnic will be taken instantly rather than following the procedure of getting sanctions from the state headquarters.

According to Mr Gupta, the societal mode of governance for these polytechnics will enhance quality of technical education as the management would be more responsive to the needs of the students and the demand of the industry in that particular area. This would provide better employment opportunities to the students.

Additional Director, Technical Education, D.K Gupta, said there was no proposal to increase the fee of the students studying in these institutions. On the other hand, the government was proposing to recruit more staff for these polytechnics as some existing staff had expressed the desire to be transferred. He said the staff that wanted to stay at these colleges would be treated on deputation.

Disclosing the reasons for taking the decision to run these polytechnics by societies, Mr M.P Gupta said being located in the remote areas, no teachers were willing to stay put at these institutions.

To provide better promotional avenues for the existing staff, the government had taken a decision to avoid recruiting teachers in the Class I grade. Only recruitments were being done for the Class II grade so that there were adequate promotional avenues for the staff, he said.

"Anyone individually or through an association can come and meet me or the Principal Secretary, Education, and we will tell them our plans. There is no need to be misled by mischievous elements", Mr Gupta said.

Agroha (Hisar), October 8
Four journalists, including two reporters, and a photographer of a Hindi daily and a cameraman of a news channel, were beaten up by security personnel amidst the celebrations of the annual Agroha “dhaam” fair here today.

The injured journalists were rushed to the Agroha Medical College Hospital, where local Congress MP Jai Prakash, former Finance Minister Sampat Singh, local INLD unit chief Puran Singh Dabra and others visited them.

Confed Chairman and Agroha Vikas Trust general secretary Bajrang Dass Garg visited the injured journalists and tendered his apologies for the incident. The Congress MP from Kurukshetra, Mr Naveen Jindal, has also regretted the incident.

The journalists beaten up by security personnel include Pramod Vashisth, Rakesh Kranti, Amit Dhawan and Surender Narang. They had gone to cover the fair and waiting for singer Kavita Paudwal at the entrance when the incident took place.

Senior Communist leader Prithvi Singh Gorakhpuria, the president of the local unit of the SAD, Mr Sukhsagar Singh, and the local Press Club have also condemned the incident.

Addressing the gathering at the fair, the Rohtak MP, Mr Deepender Singh Hooda, who was the chief guest, announced that the proposed grain market at Agroha township had been cleared and work on it would begin soon.

Local Congress MLA and Haryana Minister for Housing and Urban Development Savitri Jindal, eminent social activist Nand Kishore Goenka, besides other leaders, representatives of various social and religious organisations and senior administrative officials were also present on the occasion.

Chandigarh, October 8
The Haryana Government is in a fix over the Supreme Court judgement on police reforms. It had hoped that since the matter concerned all the states, the Union Home Ministry would convene a joint meeting and issue guidelines on the implementation of the judgement. However, the Union Government has virtually left the states on their own by telling them that since they were respondents in the case, they should themselves decided the means to implement the apex court's directions.

According to informed sources, the Haryana Home Department has called a meeting of its legal experts here tomorrow to discuss the measures to implement the judgement. The Advocate-General, Mr H.S. Hooda, and the Legal Remembrancer, Mr M.S. Sullar, will have a brain-storming session with the Home Secretary, Mr K.S. Bhoria.

There is an urgency before the Haryana Government, particularly regarding the appointment of the Director-General of Police, because the present incumbent, Mr Nirmal Singh, will retire on October 31. The Supreme Court has asked that the minimum tenure of a DGP must of be of two years. Mr Nirmal Singh will complete 16 months as DGP.

The Supreme Court judgement says that till an appropriate legislation is enacted, its guidelines will be in force. The judgement is to be implemented before December 31 and the Cabinet Secretary and the Chief Secretaries of the states have to submit a compliance report before the apex court on January 3, 2007. The apex court has also directed that a DGP should be appoint from amongst three senior most officers, "who have been empanelled for promotion to that rank by the Union Public Service Commission." In Haryana, no officer immediately junior to Mr Nirmal Singh is yet empanelled for promotion as DG.

Another question has arisen out of the judgement. So far, it was the Union Home Ministry which empanelled IPS officers for promotion. Now the Supreme Court has asked that they should be empanelled by the UPSC. The legal experts have to answer it. Similarly, they have to decide if the judgement would cover the sitting DGPs as regard to their tenure. One school of thought is that a sitting DGP is not covered by the judgement. However, when the Centre had fixed a two-year tenure for certain officers like the Cabinet Secretary and the Home Secretary, the sitting officers were given the benefit.

The picture may be clear after tomorrow after the meeting of the legal experts with the Home Secretary.

Chandigarh, October 8
The Haryana Government has transferred nine HCS officers with immediate effect.

Mr Y.S. Khyalia, Registrar, Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra, has been posted Additional Deputy Commissioner-cum-CEO, DRDA, Fatehabad, against a vacant post. Mr Narhari Singh Banger, District Transport Officer, Gurgaon, and Mewat, has been posted Subdivisional Officer (Civil), Loharu, vice Mr Dharambir Singh, who has been posted Managing Director, Cooperative Sugar Mill, Kaithal, relieving Mr Sanjeev Verma.

Mr Jagtar Singh, Officer on Special Duty, CADA, Panchkula, and Mr Sandeep Singh, City Magistrate, Mahendragarh at Narnaul, will swap their places of posting. Mr Davinder Kaushik, Subdivisional Officer (Civil), Naraingarh, has been posted Land Acquisition Officer, Urban Estate, Panchkula, relieving Mrs Monica Malik.

Mr Narinder Singh Yadav, District Transport Officer (DTO), Hisar and Jind, has been transferred DTO, Gurgaon and Mewat. Mr Ashwani Kumar-II, District Development and Panchayats Officer, Yamunanagar, has been posted Subdivisional Officer (Civil), Naraingarh, while Mr Subhash Sheoran, Assistant Director, Consolidation of Holdings, Rohtak, and Joint Director (Admn.) Pt B.D. Sharma, PGIMS, Rohtak, has been given the charge of DTO, Bhiwani, against a vacant post.

Fatehabad, October 8
The dread of dengue has spread in the district where seven suspected cases have been detected. The health authorities have sent blood samples of the patients to the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD), Delhi. The health authorities are keeping their fingers crossed till they get the results of the blood samples.

Panic gripped the local residents, when two new cases of suspected dengue were found in the local Aggarwal Colony today. Mrs. Manju and Mr. Dalip Singh, both residents of the Aggarwal Colony, were brought to a local private hospital with fever and low platelets count.

The hospital in charge brought the matter to the notice of the District Malaria Officer, Dr. D. K. Dadhitch. The health authorities then took blood samples of the two patients and sent those to Delhi for testing. Earlier, four cases of suspected dengue were detected at Dayyar village and one at Mehuwala village in the district. The authorities had taken blood samples of those patients too.

Pinjore, October 8
The audience were delighted by the magestic dance performances weaved in the Indian classical dance traditions on the fourth day of the Pinjore Heritage Festival, today. The world renowned Kathak exponent Daksha Sheth and her troupe commenced the programme with a propitious invocatory ‘Ganesha vandana’ based on a shloka from “Sam Veda” led by Isha Sharvani.

The audience warmly greeted Isha Sharvani, the vibrant heroine of film ‘Kisna’ who will also be seen in the forthcoming ‘Good Boy Bad Boy’ and ‘Rockey’.

The composition, divided in four segments, brought alive the virtues of Ganesha through a well designed choreography by Daksha Seth.

‘Terminal Velocity’ performed with grace by Daksha herself was a fusion of western beats and Indian music.

‘The rope duet’ dance performed, probably for the first time in the region was a spectacular amalgam of physicality and choreographic excellence. Isha and Ravindran were incessantly applauded as they flowed in the air engaged in love-making postures.

Next came the ‘Sanjeetam’ by a Finnish composer in which the artistes displayed verne and virile dancing movements.

Isha was again the Centre of attraction as she gave an immaculate solo performance on ‘Lyra’. Swinging in the air she maneuvored with the grace of a master gymnast.

The ‘gravitational attraction’ a dance reflecting cosmic and magnetic powers, was followed by a Jugalvandi of drums by Tao Issaro and Karma on guitar. Similarly ‘Solar fusion’ too was well received. But audience seemed to have reserved the lofty applause for ‘Chain reaction’ performed by Isha and others.

The performance was based on the dominant dance themes of ‘chhau’ of Orissa, ‘malkham’ of Maharashtra and ‘claripattayu’ of Assam.

The chief guest Mrs Renuka Choudhry, Union Minister of State and Ms Kiran Choudhry, Haryana Tourism Minister, honoured the artistes.

Kurukshetra, October 8
Himachal Governor Vishnu Sadashiv Kokje laid the foundation stone of 18-storey ‘Gyan Mandir’ near late Gulzari Lal Nanda’s samadhi — Sadachaar Sthal — on the eastern bank of Brahmsarovar here today.

Addressing the gathering Shri Sudhaanshu Maharaj said that there were 18 chapters of the Gita and the Mahabharata war lasted for 18 days and ‘Gyan Mandir’ would have constructed by 18 storeys and would be the Shri Brahmpuri Annakshetra Ashram Trust. Walls and ceilings of each storey of the mandir, will have illustrations of one chapter of the Gita propagating its essence to people because common man, despite all facilities, was not happy and peaceful. This temple, will propagate message of living happy and peaceful life, he added.

Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee, working president, Dr Ram Prakash, in his presidential address, called for helping the humanity and spreading of Indian culture and civilisation, grounded in religion, message of which was received from our saints. 

Sonepat, October 8
Rahul (17) of Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh was killed on the spot and another youth, Subhash, a resident of Ravidas Pura in Karnal, was injured when they were run over by a truck here today. Subhash has been referred to the PGIMS, Rohtak, and the police has registered a case against an unidentified driver who reportedly sped away after the incident.

According to information, the victims were sleeping outside a shop. They were employed by Ashok, a “hadwara” contractor. They were taken to the local Civil Hospital where the doctors declared Rahul as brought dead and referred Subhash to the PGIMS, Rohtak.

According to another report, Mahender Singh of Kharkhoda died when his motor cycle collided with an ox near Rohna village on the Kharkhoda- Sampla road late last night.