Yamunanagar, March 26
A local court here today found a coach of the Sports Authority of India (SAI) and four others guilty of the murder of an athlete of national level. The court will pronounce the sentence on March 29.

Additional District and Sessions Judge Darshan Singh found SAI coach Parminder Singh Bajwa and Rakesh, Ajay, Sunil and Narinder, all of Yamunanagar, guilty of the murder of Vikram (22) under Sections 302, 120B and 34 of the Indian Penal Code.

The five had attacked Vikram near the Tejli sports stadium here on September 8, 2005. Vikram received head injuries and died on September 14, 2005.

The prosecution told the court that the five killed Vikram because the latter had started taking training from a private coach which annoyed them. Vikram was selected for the All-India Interuniversity Championship only four days before the attack. Vikram had won several medals in national and state level tournaments.

Sonepat, March 26
The Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram University of Science and Technology will introduce new courses of food science and technology, architecture and urban designing, business incubation, BLSI designing embedded system of higher technical education from this year’s academic session.

Vice-Chancellor of the university Dr. R.P. Bajpai stated this to mediapersons at Ethnic India tourist complex, Rai today. He informed the university would prefer introducing job-oriented courses keeping in new the changes taking place in the fields of infrastructure development.

He also informed a vision document based on the knowledge of basic requirements of 21st century had been prepared to develop this university to world standards.

The Director of Technical Education, Haryana disclosed budget of the department had been increased from Rs 29 crore to the 120 crore for 2007-08.

Earlier at a meeting of the executive council of the university next year’s budget of Rs 47.77 crore was passed and decisions on laying down qualifications for the post of controller of examination, creation of posts of teaching and non-teaching staff, rules and constitution of the university, absorption of staff of the engineering college and creation of pension funds for the employees were also taken.

The meeting, presided by Mr Bajpai, was attended by other members of the council, including Mr M.P. Gupta, Vice-Chancellor of Panjab University R.C. Sobti, R.M. Mehra of Delhi University, Prof V.K. Gupta, Prof Anil Kumar, Prof K.D. Gupta, and Prof. D.P. Tiwari.

Rewari, March 26
Revelation about the whereabouts of still alive Rajbir Singh, son of Bhagwan Das Swami, whose decomposed body after it was identified (as that of Rajbir Singh) by members of his family, was cremated at Salhawas village near Kosli on Saturday (March 24), has brought cheer to the bereaved family. It has also brought relief to his wife who was made to go through rituals of widowhood after Rajbir’s cremation.

It all started some time back when Rajbir, after a quarrel in the family, left his home and went into hiding. When search to trace him remained fruitless his family reported to the Salhawas police about his disappearance.

When things had come to a dead end, on Friday (March 23), the family receive an information from a relation that a decomposed body, whose one arm bore name of Raju tattooed on it and who also resembled to Rajbir, was lying in the mortuary of civil hospital at Charkhi Dadri near Bhiwani.

Actually the Government Railway Police, which recovered it from the track four days ago, had it placed there for identification.

The family brought the body to Salhawas where it was cremated on Saturday.

A day hardly passed when on Sunday (March 25), the family received a telephonic call which made it known that Rajbir was very much alive and he was residing at a place near Kherthal Alwar district in Rajasthan.

Rajbir’s mother came on the phone and talked to Rajbir which confirmed the veracity of the call. Family members went to Kherthal where they reportedly were united with Rajbir again.

Chandigarh, March 26
The Haryana government failed to give the best village awards during the 2005-06 period.

This was pointed out in the 36th report of the assembly committee on estimates.

The report was tabled during the recently concluded budget session of the house.

The committee, headed by Congress MLA Sher Singh, said the development and panchayats department informed the committee that the budget estimates for 2005-06 amounted to Rs 1.5 crore for the awards. But the department did not spend any money and showed the expenditure as zero.

“The committee takes it seriously and recommends that the department may intimate the reasons/circumstances under which the department failed to spend the budget estimates”, stated the report.

In December, 2002, the state government took a decision to give awards to villages on the basis of performance in the fields of education, health services and execution of schemes of the development and panchayats department and the rural development department. It was decided that Rs 5 lakh would be given to the best village at the district level and Rs 10 lakh to the best village in the state by judging villages under the above-mentioned parameters.

From 2002 to 2005, the awards were regularly given. A total of 56 village panchayats got the district-level awards over the three-year period. Kharia village in Sirsa district first won the state-level award. Next year (2003-04), the state-level award was split between Bapoli village in Panipat district and Kultana village in Rohtak district. In 2004-05, the state-level award was not given, though the district-level award was given as usual.

The award has not been given after the formation of the government in the state by the Congress in place of the INLD. While the budgetary allocation remained unspent in 2005-06, it is doubtful whether any village will get the award for the 2006-07 period, which is fast drawing to a close.

The state government apparently has also changed the name of the award by removing the late INLD patriarch Devi Lal’s name from the prize. When the award was instituted in 2002, it was called the Devi Lal best village award.

The report of the committee on estimates, however, mentions the award as the best village award only without any reference to the late deputy prime minister.

The INLD, which had held numerous protest demonstrations when the state government removed Devi Lal’s name from the Panipat oil refinery, will certainly be “upset” with the exclusion of Devi Lal’s name from the incentive.

Karnal, March 26
The district administration today penalised the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN) for not releasing a tube well connection to a farmer in time thus causing him harassment.

At the monthly grievances redress meeting Deputy Commissioner Balbir Singh Malik on Monday announced a compensation of Rs 5,000 to the complainant of Chorkarsa village.

Sources said Kartara Ram, a farmer, had applied for a tube well connection in 2000. He had deposited Rs 21,000 along with the application to the nigam authorities.

The district authorities observed that the nigam turned down the request and returned the requisite fee to the farmer on “irrational grounds”.

The laxity on part of certain UHBVN officials caused delay in preparing estimate for the connection, the authorities observed.

The nigam had to draft estimate for tubewell connection from the low tension (LT) line to which the UHBVN officials admitted.

The DC also directed disciplinary action against the official concerned for causing unnecessary delay for a routine work.

Sonepat, March 26
Raising the issue of special economic zones once again, suspended Congress MP Kuldeep Bishnoi said such zones should be set up in backward areas.

Addressing a meeting at Ganaur here yesterday, Bishnoi said he was not averse to the concept of SEZs in general, but these be set up in backward areas like Mewat, Tosham and Narnaul in Haryana.

He, however, said the acquisition of farm land for the purpose would affect production of foodgrains in the country.

Alleging “a big scam” behind the SEZ policy, he claimed several Congress leaders were involved in the Gurgaon-Jhajjar land scam where an SEZ was proposed to be set up.

The MP from Bhiwani, who was suspended from the Congress for his alleged anti-party activities, charged the party high command with pressuring him not to raise the SEZ issue in Parliament.

Former Chief Minister Bhajan Lal, who also spoke on the occasion, said they would hold a rally in Rohtak later this year where an announcement about a new party would be made. — PTI

Yamunanagar, March 26
The police here has booked a manager of finance company, four employees and three financiers allegedly for driving a trader to commit suicide.

Manager Harsh Ahuja and Ramandeep, Ashwani, Raman, Rakesh, all employees of the company and three financiers Gulzar, Bobby and Gabbar were booked under Sections 306 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code after Vijay Kumar of Mukharjee Park here ended up his life yesterday. Kumar was allegedly beaten up and harassed by the accused as he had failed to pay two instalments of loan he had taken from the company.

The police registered a case on the complaint of Mukesh, son of the deceased.

Earlier in the day, members of the local unit of the Haryana Vyapar Mandal under the leadership of Mahinder Mittal held a demonstration outside the company’s office on the Gobindpura road here alleging finance companies had hired goons for the recovery of loan.

Later they met Superintendent of Police K.V. Ramana who assured them of proper inquiry and action in the case.

Ambala, March 26
The annual convocation and prize-distribution ceremony was held at Government College, Ambala cantt, yesterday.

Haryana education minister Phool Chand Mullana was the chief guest. As many as 933 graduates and postgraduates were given degrees while 191 students were given awards.

Phool Chand Mullana said students must be well-educated so that they could face the challenges of life. It was the duty of the educational institutions to mould them into good citizens. He stressed that students must pay special attention to character-building.

Principal of the college S.S. Phulia read out the annual report of the college. He said the college was planning to start MA (English), MSc (Geography), postgraduate diploma in computer education and BLib. — TNS

Ambala, March 26
A soldier, Ravinder Singh, was found dead under mysterious circumstances in Khudda village early this morning. He was posted at Bathinda and had come to his native village Kodwa Khurd on leave. He left for Bathinda last evening to join back his duty. His brother had accompanied him to the Kadasan bus stand last evening.

A police official said foul play could not be ruled out at that stage. Certain marks had been found on the neck of the soldier.

The soldier had recently been engaged and his wedding was to be held this year. Members of the soldier’s family said Ravinder had been murdered.

Newly-married woman raped

Sonepat, March 26
A newly-married woman was allegedly raped by two youths at Gopalpur village, near here the police said today.

The girl had gone to the fields to fetch fodder for animals when the youths dragged her away and allegedly sexually assaulted here it said.

The girl’s parents later complained to the Kharkhauda police against the two youths of the same village. — PTI

Boy hit by bullet, dies

Sonepat, March 26
A boy, who was watching a marriage procession from the terrace of his house, was killed when a bullet hit him at Farmana village here, the police said today.

Deepak was standing on the roof of his house when he was hit by the bullet last night, it said. — PTI