Chandigarh, November 10
The Union Government has reduced the IPS cadre of the Haryana police from 125 posts to 118.

This decision was taken at a cadre review meeting held under the chairmanship of the Cabinet Secretary in Delhi today, according to information received here.

Haryana had an IPS cadre 110, which was raised to 125 by the Chautala Government so that more DSPs could be promoted to the IPS. However, earlier this year, the Hooda Government sent a proposal to the Centre to reduce to cadre once again.

According to informed sources, the cadre review of each state takes place once in five years. Now Haryana's cadre will be reviewed in 2010 only.

The Home Secretary, Mr K.S. Bhoria, and the Director-General of Police, Mr R.S. Dalal, represented Haryana in the meeting, which was attended, among others, by the Union Home Secretary, Union Joint Secretary (Police) and the Union Joint Secretary (Finance).

The review committee sanctioned two posts of DGP for Haryana though the state at present has four DGPs. The sources say under the rules a state can create ex-cadre posts equal to the sanctioned posts. Therefore, this should not pose any problem before the Haryana Government.

The committee also sanctioned six posts of Additional Director-General (ADG) though Haryana had requested for five. At present the state has 11 ADGs. The committee sanctioned eight posts of Inspector-General (IG) against the state's request for 10 posts. But it enhanced Haryana's demand for 10 posts of Deputy Inspector-General (DIG) to 12 posts. The state was also sanctioned 36 posts of Superintendent of Police (SP).

With the reduction in the IPS cadre of Haryana, four posts of direct recruitment and three posts of promotion quota will be reduced in the state, the sources say.

Yamunanagar, November 10
A marriage procession from Patti, Tarn Taran, Punjab, ended up in police custody well before the ‘anand karaj’ (marriage ceremony) could start here this afternoon. The bride was allegedly minor and someone from her neighbourhood had alerted the police.

In the police post, the members of the marriage party, including father of the groom, said they had not come for the marriage but for the ring ceremony.

The drama started around 12 noon when all arrangements for the anand karaj were allegedly in place. The groom alighted from a car and made himself comfortable in the marriage tent here when the police swooped on the party.

Sensing trouble, the groom along with his friends allegedly sped away in the car. The police caught hold of the girl’s family but they escaped from the venue on the pretext of fetching the birth certificate of the girl.

In the evening, Superintendent of Police K.V Ramana said the SHO of Farakpur had been asked to carry out an investigation into the matter and a DDR had been lodged.

The father of the groom said his son and the girl were in love and wanted to tie the nuptial knot. He said that his son was a student in a college of Yamunanagar and met the girl there. “The two were threatening suicide if the two families did not agree for the marriage immediately,” said Mr Iqbal Singh, father of the groom, Parminder Singh.

When asked if he knew that the girl was underage, he did not comment.

When the girl’s family was contacted on telephone, a woman claiming to be the maternal aunt of the bride, said a ring ceremony was scheduled, not marriage.

Farakpur SHO Baljit Singh said that the investigations were on and things would be clear by tomorrow. 

Ambala, November 10
Indian National Lok Dal state president Ashok Arora said today that law and order situation had deteriorated considerably in Haryana.

Talking to mediapersons here, Mr Arora said a large number of heinous crimes were taking place everyday in the state and particularly in the districts of Faridabad and Gurgaon. “Common people are feeling unsafe while the criminals are becoming bold,” he said.

He said the prevailing situation in Haryana was not conducive for industrial growth and many industrialists were leaving the state. He said even the claims made by the Chief Minister, Mr Bhupinder Hooda, regarding entrepreneurs setting up units here were hollow.

Mr Arora said the government should not accede to the request made by the Punjab Government for giving money for development purposes, till such time the SYL canal issue is not resolved. “SYL is the lifeline for Haryana and the issue must be resolved on the top priority,” he said.

He said that the abolishing of DTO posts by the government was an attempt to make those staff surplus who were granted employment during the tenure of the Chautala government. He said development work had come to a halt in the state and the programmes initiated by the Chautala government for the welfare of the people are not being implemented.

He said the state executive committee and district presidents would be announced by November 30.

Karnal, November 10
Following reports published in The Tribune, the district police has agreed to conduct a high-level medical inquiry to probe the alleged laxity by doctors that caused the death of youth at trauma centre on November 3.

Talking to this correspondent here today, the district police chief, Mr Sibash Kabiraj, revealed that a team of medical experts would be constituted to probe the case.

The aggrieved family had alleged that the doctors on duty had been negligent in handling the case of Sanmeet, the 18-year- old student of the Department of Law at Kurukshetra University.

He was admitted to the trauma centre on the night of November 3 after he consumed a heavy dose of sleeping pills.

The family had threatened to take a legal action against Health Department officials, including the CMO and PMO, for allegedly putting an anesthetist instead of a specialist to look after Sanmeet.

The police had registered an FIR against Palwinder Singh Bedi, father of the youth, for assaulting Dr Khurana after Sanmeet’s demise.

Bhiwani, November 10
Two persons, including a local manager of a finance company, have been charged with selling a truck on the basis of fake documents to another person. However, no arrests have been made so far.

Karmvir of the local DC colony lodged a report with the police that the manager, Ashok Kumar, of a private finance company of Rohtak in connivance with an oath commissioner got fake documents prepared of his truck and sold it to another person. Karmvir said he had purchased the truck on September 3, 2003. The police has booked the manager and the buyer.

In another case, the police has booked five persons of Loharu for assaulting a woman. Bimla of Balvas village alleged that Ram Chander, Mukesh, Kamla, Ramadevi and Pinki entered her house and thrashed her.