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Justice at your door
Gurgaon, July 26 Since there is no court in that area, the state government has decided to set up a mobile court to settle cases of the locals right on their doorstep. A permanent senior magistrate will be appointed for daily hearings of the mobile court. The court will have a convoy of three vehicles which will visit different areas of Mewat from Monday to Thursday every week to redress grievances. The court will hold hearings at Punhana, Indana, Shikrawa and Luninga Kalan, which fall within the jurisdiction of Gurgaon courts. These areas are located about 80 km from Gurgaon. Gurgaon chief judicial magistrate Arun Kumar Goel told The Tribune that the aim of setting up mobile courts was to provide instant and inexpensive justice on the spot besides making efforts to educate poor and illiterate litigants about the law and clear the expanding docket of overburdened courts. He said the mobile court would also be beneficial for employees of various departments who had to visits courts in Gurgaon to present the cases of their departments. He added that the vehicles of the mobile court would be equipped with facilities which were required to carry out official work. The records of cases would also be available in the mobile court. Officials involved in this initiative said that holding court in the villages would help the justice delivery system in more than one way. They added that since the hearings would held in villages where locals would be present, people would hesitate to tell lies in the courtroom. The mobile court would be inaugurated by Chief Justice of India K. G. Balakrishnan and
union law minister H.R. Bhardwaj. The formal announcement of the mobile courts would be made by Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court Vijendra Jain in Chandigarh on July 27. The court schedule is as follows: Punhana — inauguration on August 4 Indana — August 6 to 10 Shikrawa — August 13 to 17 Lohinga — August 20 to 24 On Wednesdays and Saturdays, the court will be held at Firozpur Jhirka.
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Govt dithers on notification
Chandigarh, July 26 It was on December 3, 2004, that the Haryana vidhan sabha amended the Haryana official languages act. Since the act was passed in the last session of the previous Indian National Lok Dal government, it could not be notified even after it received the assent of the Governor. “It is baffling,” says Rajya Sabha member Tarlochan Singh, holding that “on the one hand the present ruling Congress declared in its election manifesto that it would make every endeavour to get a separate committee to manage historic gurdwaras in Haryana, while on the other hand, it is dithering on notifying an act which has been ratified by both the state assembly and the Governor.” “This contradictory approach of the Congress for narrow political gains has Punjabis in general and Sikhs of Haryana divided vertically. While it has taken upon itself the onerous task of restoring their rights to manage their own historic gurdwaras, it is showing no inclination to honour their mother tongue,”says the MP. “It is all the more intriguing that for introducing Punjabi in schools, the state government gets special grants from the union government under the minority languages scheme,” adds Tarlochan Singh, who was earlier the chairman of the National Commission for Minorities. It was the minorities commission which had taken up the issue of supporting and protecting languages of the minorities. “But for the steps taken by the commission, the languages of minority communities are gradually losing out. Urdu is almost finished in the northern states of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal and Delhi. Punjabi is also on its way out in Haryana and Himachal Pradesh,” says Tarlochan Singh. Even the Haryana
Punjabi Both Haryana and Himachal Pradesh have been taking shortage or unavailability of Punjabi teachers as an excuse for their failure to honour their commitments of giving Punjabi its due in their respective territories. While the Congress government in Haryana set up a special eight-member committee headed by its agriculture minister H.S. Chatha to explore the possibilities of a separate Sikh gurdwara management committee in Haryana on the lines of the Delhi Sikh gurdwara management committee, nothing has been done to implement the amended official languages act, alleges the Haryana Punjabi forum. The forum and Tarlochan Singh agree that Punjabi language teachers could be taken on deputation from the neighbouring states of Punjab and Delhi to introduce the language both in Haryana and Himachal Pradesh till they are ready to make their own recruitment. Tarlochan Singh reveals that on June 14 he got a letter from union human resource minister Arjun Singh that the minority language teachers scheme had been once again approved in principle by the deputy chairman of the planning commission. It is pertinent to mention here that no funds were earmarked for the centrally funded minority language teachers scheme in the 2007-08 budget.
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Bar on marriages at night
Bhuna, (Fatehabad), July 26 Things have come to such a pass that the residents have decided to sort out the issue through referendum. An attempt to sort out the matter through casting of votes failed on July 16 due to factionalism and now, community leaders are in the process of fixing the next date of referendum. Members of the Punjabi community, who came to settle here from Pakistan after the Partition, took a decision on March 18, 1973, that all marriage ceremonies of the community would be solemnised during daytime only and anyone disobeying the order would have to face social boycott. The decision was aimed at putting an end to the practice of showmanship by incurring heavy expenditure on marriages and so far the decision has been religiously obeyed by all, except on one occasion when a local resident, Joginder Pal, organised the function of his daughter’s marriage at night. He had to face boycott from various service providers like caterers and tent house owners. He later filed a defamation case against those boycotting him. All was going well till June 10 this year, when a mahapanchayat of the community resolved to reverse the 34-years-old diktat and announced that people were now free to organise marriage ceremonies at the time of their will. Wazir Chand Rewari, the lone surviving member of the 11-member panchayat that took the decision in 1973, attended the June 10 meeting and said the decision was harsh and not in tune with the present times. Rewari, who rescinded the orders of the panchayat represented by him, has the backing of the younger generation of the town, which feels that the decision stopped them to celebrate occasions like marriages with enthusiasm. The reversal of the decision has caused furore in the community and conservationists among the community have taken up cudgels against the organisers of June 10 mahapanchayat. A meeting of the conservationists was held on June 12, which decided that the 34-years-old tradition could not be reversed and called another mahapanchayat on June 17. The mahapanchayat decided that those who reversed the decision represented only 15 gotras of the 83 gotras of the town and hence, they had no right to act on the behalf of all. The faction dominated by youths met on June 19 and rejected the decision of the second mahapanchayat. Since then both factions have been on the warpath with both sides sticking to their guns. In the midst of the ongoing controversy, some elders suggested referendum to sort out the issue. They decided that the residents should cast their votes for or against the tradition on July 16. However, when people assembled to hold the referendum on July 16, the group advocating reversal boycotted it and the move fizzled out. Differences still prevail between the two warring groups and mediators are now planning to fix another date for referendum.
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United for a cause in twilight years
Yamunanagar, July 26 The council is engaged in several social activities. It regularly organises free health and eye check-up camps and motivates people to donate their eyes posthumously. The council has managed to get an eye donation commitment from more than 1,200 persons. The council members read obituaries in newspapers and send condolence postcards to the families concerned. Interestingly, they do not know most of the families they write to and neither they expect an acknowledgement. Till date, the council members have sent thousands of such postcards. Senior citizens are being subjected to many hardships in our country, says Dr Ram Chander, a retired professor of Kurukshetra University and council member. “However, the most horrifying is the fact that parents are subjected to harassment by their own children, who sometimes go to the extent of murdering them for money. Every other day we hear about such incidents,” says B.R Sachdeva, another member. The council members have maintained a library of all reports regarding attack and plight of senior citizens published in various newspapers. The council has been actively helping senior citizens in the area. The council claims that its biggest achievement is that it had raised its voice for a law for the protection of senior citizens in the country and the government has decided to frame a law. “On June 27, 2000, when The Tribune published my letter regarding the need of a law so that senior citizens could secure their cost of maintenance from their children, we did not know that the letter would have such an impact”, Sachdeva says. The council had desired that the government should also pass a law to ensure that children do not automatically inherit the property of senior citizens till the parents will it, he says, adding that the government has now drafted a bill to protect elderly people from harassment at hands of their children and legally strengthen them though the bill is pending in the Lok Sabha. President of the council R.K. Jain claims that the council was the first to raise the issue through a public platform. “We hope the bill will soon become a law,” he adds. “Senior citizens deserve respect and love from the family members and society. They are not a burden as most of them have their own money which will last till they last”, says Om Prakash Sharma, another member.
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Restoring Hisar’s Jehaj Kothi to its old glory
Hisar, July 26 The building has a unique design. When it was built, it was located in an isolated area. It had sprawling lawns and residential accommodation for the entire staff of the Irishman. Time has taken its toll and these quarters have been demolished. Its roofing is made from red bricks used mostly in hill areas. A large octagonal dome stands in its midst which provides air circulation and daylight to the inside area. As of now, it stands in the centre of the town which also happens to be the most crowded area. There have been occasions when the administration wanted to demolish the whole building and utilise the space for building a commercial complex. However, in view of its history, the plan was shelved. For the past year dozens of masons have been struggling to restore its old glory. Officials say no changes will be made to the basic structure. There are several stories behind why it happened to be known as Jehaj Kothi. One such explanation is that since the locals could not properly pronounce George, they began referring to the Irishman’s stately residence as Jehaj Kothi. The other, which appears to be equally credible, is that when it was built, it was the only building in a vast clearance in the forest and it looked like a ship at sea. Hence, the name Jehaj Kothi. The approach to the building was through a bridge which incidentally is also called Jehajpul in local parlance. The building also houses a small but impressive museum of the archives department. The museum is currently not open because of the renovation work. It has a collection of prehistoric artefacts excavated from Agroha, Banawali, Rakhigrahi and other Indus Valley Civilisation sites in the area. The museum will reopen when the renovation is complete.
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Inside
Babudom
Chandigarh, July 26 But it also has a spin-off of its own. Recently, an administrative reshuffle took place in the state. Many departments got new administrative secretaries. With certain ministers not taking interest in their portfolios and the secretaries being new, the desired message, which the government wanted to give by the administrative changes, has not gone down the departments. Certain senior officers have been sulking since the administrative reshuffle took place. They feel they have not been given posts in accordance with their seniority or aptitude. The result is these officers are yet to give their full to their new departments. The cabinet reshuffle, which Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda had promised after the presidential election, seems to have been delayed further. Sources say it may not take place before the election to the post of Vice-President scheduled for August 10. Meanwhile, commissioner, social welfare, Anuradha Gupta is likely to go on four-month training abroad next week. In her capacity as acting vice-chancellor of BPS Women University, Khanpur, in Sonepat district, Gupta took several initiatives which, when these yield fruit, would give a distinct character to the university. The long absence of Gupta will be a setback to the educational institution. She earned for herself the reputation of being a tough officer during her stint as the home secretary of the union territory of Chandigarh. The Chief Minister has a special soft spot for his additional principal secretary Chhatar Singh. Though already overburdened, Hooda does not mind giving him additional work. First, he was asked to look after the public relations department as its secretary. When commissioner, information technology and industry, P.K. Chaudhery proceeded on leave for two months, it was again Chhatar Singh who was asked to look after these departments in Chaudhery's absence. Otherwise also, Hooda talks highly of Chhatar Singh in his absence.
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Autorickshaw men flout traffic rules in Rohtak
Rohtak, July 26 Most of the autorickshaws violate the pollution control norms with impunity, with the authorities concerned being least bothered about the growing menace. A number of these autorickshaws are operated by youths, who hire the vehicles and run them on kerosene to cut costs. This leads to the discharge of hazardous pollutants which play havoc with the health of the residents. While autorickshaws are mostly seen in the urban areas, their desi counterparts, called tempos, ply between villages and townships. The tempos usually carry much more passengers than prescribed and often overturn due to imbalance. Many unemployed youths are taking to plying three-wheelers for their livelihood. As a result, the number of these vehicles has increased manifold in the past few years, so does pollution and traffic hazards. However, the autorickshaws have emerged as a popular means of transport due to low fares and easy availability. Several administrative officials have tried to check the menace by employing novel and effective measures in the recent past. For instance, some time ago, it was made mandatory that autorickshaws bearing odd and even registration numbers would ply on alternate days. Local buses were also started to ferry people to reduce their dependence on three-wheelers. Strict enforcement of pollution control norms has also been tried, with the operators not adhering to these being challaned. However, thanks to vote-bank politics, all such measures adopted or proposed proved short-lived. Politicians simply cannot afford to ignore the large number of autorickshaw operators, persons engaged in allied businesses and their family members. Thus, these politicians force the officials to relax the norms. True, the issue also involves a humane aspect i.e. the livelihood of thousands of families is dependant on income from
autorickshaws. Besides, they provide a readily available and cheap means of transport to the residents. Nonetheless, the serious health hazards being caused and aggravated by the three-wheelers call for immediate and effective steps. This matter cannot be tackled with a casual approach and needs to be dealt with on top priority, but the question is: Will the politicians act in the larger interest, for a change?
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Power: Gas substations planned
Gurgaon, July 26 Financial commissioner and principal secretary, Power, Ashok Lavasa said Gurgaon would be the first district in the state to set up a GIS plant. He added that this would be a demo plant and after reviewing its progress, plans would be framed to set up GIS plants in other parts of the state as well. Lavasa said for setting up GIS plants preference would be given to those areas where there was a shortage of land and prices were quite high. The cost of setting up GIS plant is higher in comparison to the setting up of normal substation. Sources in the power department here informed that a team of experts was inspecting a GIS plant of 66 KV at Ajmeri Gate in New Delhi. They said the department had already cleared the bidding process for setting up of two GIS plants one each in Sector 43 and 51 here. The sources added that 1.25 acres of land had also been acquired for another GIS plant in Sector 17, near Atul Kataria Chowk. Besides, some private builders like DLF, Unitech had also approached the government for setting up GIS plants in their new residential projects for proper distribution of electricity.
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Hygiene is buzzword in Panipat village
Panipat, July 26 The project, which began some time ago to educate villagers about the benefits of a hygienic environment, has finally borne results. In this administration propelled and village-fuelled exercise, open defecation is banned and a fine of Rs 100 is imposed by the village panchayat to maintain its open defecation-free status. Today, the streets are clean, most homes have constructed bathrooms instead of using public space and solid waste management is a reality. Village sarpanch Dalbir Singh says, “It took a couple of months to change the mindset of the villagers, but once the exercise began, we only moved from strength to strength. Now, every house in the village has a toilet. Each family is involved in the cleanliness drive and is responsible for cleaning the drain in front of its house. Our village is a fine example of community involvement and as a reward we have earned the first position among all ‘Nirmal’ villages and the village was honoured by the President of India at a function recently”. A quick round of the village shows the difference the drive has made to the village and its people. “We used to spend a lot of money treating gastroenteritis and diarrhoea. My children are not sick all year round and their health has improved. Initially, we were reluctant to spend Rs 1,500 on making a toilet in our home, but now we are happy that the administration awakened us to the benefits accruing from improved sanitary conditions,” explains Khajani Devi, a mother of three. The villagers swear by the benefits of maintaining cleanliness. So determined are they to make a success story of their initiative that village walls are painted with slogans propagating cleanliness. “We have announced that anybody caught defecating in the open will be fined Rs 100 of which Rs 50 will go to the panchayat kitty and the remaining will go to the informer. Initially, there were a few violations, but we managed to reign in the culprits,” explains 85-year-old Ishwar Singh, the first villager to have constructed a toilet. In adjoining Buddhanpur, a small village, sarpanch Surinder Singh says the volunteers only showed a mirror to the villagers. “Obviously the picture they saw was not appealing. The greatest relief has come by way of mosquitoes vanishing altogether from the village,” he quips. Additional deputy commissioner Dr Amit Aggarwal, who set the ball rolling, remarks, “We prepared a blueprint of the entire exercise, identified volunteers and began with triggering an exercise aimed at sowing the seeds of the cleanliness drive. In villages where the public responded, we went ahead with organising meetings, prabhat pheris, nukkad nataks and showed documentaries to drive home the need for sanitation. The fallout of open defecation on the quality of air and water and its effects on the health of villagers was stressed for a lasting impression. Our efforts have yielded results and we owe our success to information, education and communication”. With 24 “Nirmal” villages to its credit, of which 18 have been honoured for good work, Panipat district is placed at the top in the state and efforts are on to extend the status to 100-odd villages by the year-end. While the district administration arranges for bulk supply of construction material, a subsidy is also given to BPL families.
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Faridabad industry on revival path
Faridabad, July 26 While there has been just a single entry of a large industrial unit in the past 10 years, a lot of restructuring and reshaping of the manufacturing units in the town is happening, leading to better results in terms of revenue growth and employment opportunities. But industry has been facing several challenges,, including tax holiday and cheaper infrastructure in the neighbouring states. According to Rajiv Chawla, president of the Faridabad Small Industries Association (FSIA), there has been a very positive change in the overall scenario though some measures are still required to make Faridabad shine again. He says the city has not only emerged as a hub of light engineering and auto industries, but it has shown a tremendous growth in sectors related to exports in textile and garments in the past few years. The FSIA has lauded the work done by the local Municipal Corporation in the past two years that has rejuvenated the civic amenities in the city. The move by the government to set up an Industrial Model Township (IMT) here is also welcomed by the industry.
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Sugar mill delays payment to farmers
Ambala, July 26 The farmers are up in arms over the delay in payment of their produce. While Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) state president Madan Pal Rana estimates that the outstanding dues to the farmers are in the region of Rs 25-30 crore, the management has pegged it at Rs 4.45 crore. This is not the first time that there has been delay in the payment to sugarcane farmers. In previous years, too, there was a considerable delay in clearing outstanding payment. The latest flashpoint is the delay in payment to farmers as well as alleged financial irregularity, which has led to the BKU holding a mahapanchayat in Naraingarh on July 23. It was decided that if the payments were not cleared within a fortnight, they would consider locking up the sugar mill. Cane manager of the mill Karam Singh said Rs 4.45 crore was outstanding and would be cleared at the earliest. “Sugar prices have come down which has adversely affected us. The farmers are aware of this issue and they are cooperating with us,” he said. Rana said the government had already made it clear to all sugar mills in the state that the payments to the farmers should be cleared by July 31.
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Govt to explore farm exports
Chandigarh, July 26 Concerned over the alarming rate of reduction of the area under cultivation due to urbanisation, serious thinking is underway to evolve methods to contain the extent of farm land at the present level. Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, while making a presentation at the Chief Ministers’ conference at Nani Tal last year, had highlighted the plight of farmers in the state and sought central assistance. As a step in that direction, the Haryana state agricultural marketing board (HSAMB) has decided to go in for value addition of farm produce in the state and explore the possibilities of exporting fruit and vegetables. “We have already invited expression of interest from consultants and companies in order to identify the export potential of agricultural and horticultural products”, a senior official said while talking to The Tribune. The move has the backing of the Chief Minister as it will serve the interests of the farmers, besides earning revenue for the state. The issue was also discussed at a meeting of the HSAMB, presided over by Chief Minister Hooda, recently. The Chief Minister was apprised of the fact that diversification and marketing were the logical way out for the crisis-ridden farming community. The government has announced the launch of the farmers’ marketing assistance scheme to ensure better income to the farmers.
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Morni fails to evolve as tourist spot
Panchkula, July 26 Once an attractive destination for day-visitors from Chandigarh, Ambala, and other nearby areas, the place has lost its sheen. Lack of infrastructure and not so attractive weather, in comparison to the higher Shivalik in neighbouring Himachal Pradesh, has also curbed the growth of the area. Morni is located barely 45 km from Chandigarh in Panchkula district. The Haryana Tourism has done precious little to boost the salability of this hill station. "It is an excellent conference destination or weekends getaway for anyone from cities located within an hour or two of driving distance. But since there are no facilities available that a tourist or visitor looks for, people prefer to go to the Shimla hills," says Sanjeev, a local resident. At Morni, the state tourism has a Lake View Cafe, with fully furnished dormitory and sprawling lawns. According to officials, adventure camps are held throughout the year, involving host of activities like trekking, water sports, river crossing, mountain repelling, cycling, bonfire and dance. Despite all what is offered tourism's Mountain Quail's accommodation is hardly ever full. This is despite the fact that it has only three air-conditioned, seven non-air conditioned rooms and two 16-bed dormitories. "Who will pay Rs 1,400 for a suit or Rs 1,100 for a room here, especially when the room comes with no extra facilities," says a government employee. The place does have a restaurant and a tenting site, but there are hardly any takers for it. Tourism officials, however, say Morni continues to be a hot favourite among those who love these hills. "The place offers everything that any other hill resort offers. Morni has several walking trails winding through hill tracks, forest cover and pine trees, located 3,000 ft above the sea level the place offer's an excellent picturesque locale". "For those who whish to really check out this hill town, Morni hill has two water bodies, agriculture tracks, trek routes, the presence of the Ghaggar, ruins of a fort and rural colour. Attractions here include Tikkar Taal and Bara Taal, two beautiful lakes. Bara Taal is surrounded by green grassland and high mountains offer a scenic view and serene surroundings," says a tourism official. With IT Park at Chandigarh and Haryana coming up close to this hill resort, the Tourism Department can do a lot better in promoting Morni if it sells the idea of a "getaway weekend holiday". But for that it will have to add recreational activities like making a mini golf course and more.
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MDU plans joint research centre with US varsity
Rohtak, July 26 MDU vice-chancellor R.S. Dhankar welcomed the foreign delegation and threw light on the background of this meeting. The groundwork for collaborative research had been carried out during Dhankar’s visit to leading Canadian and US universities during April-May. Dr Krishna K. Banandh from George Washington University detailed the meeting about the academic profile of his university. Prof Georges C. St. Laurent explained the frontier areas of bio-informatics and systems biology where joint research and collaboration could be possible. He expressed the desire to have joint studies and research programmes on biological potential of herbal medicines based upon the ancient Indian medicine system, ayurveda. The academician maintained that a joint research centre could be established in this regard. Elisha B. Pulivarti, executive director, Maryland India Roundtable Council, also spoke on the occasion.
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IAS officers drawing ‘illegal’ pay
Chandigarh, July 26 It is learnt that some of the IAS officers in super-time scale posted as managing directors of boards and corporations or heads of departments with the state government have been drawing a special pay of Rs 500 per month in violation of the IAS (Pay) Rules. However, instead of initiating the process of recovery, the government has taken the route of asking the officers to volunteer information in case they have been taking the special pay.
— TNS
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Letters
Heaps of filthy and unsightly garbage seem to have become a permanent feature of our surroundings even in the so-called millennium city of Gurgaon. The rapid, frantic and ill-planned urbanisation has turned it into a total mess so far as sanitation is concerned.
There are innumerable unpleasant sites and one such example is the Gurgaon-Faridabad road starting from Bristol roundabout up to DLF phase-I. The site is dotted with heaps of garbage, which ultimately is thrown into a deep ditch further up on the road. This ditch is now overflowing with putrefying garbage that has reached the roadside. Even the parks are not spared and litter is a common sight everywhere. The problem of garbage disposal is being talked over and over again, but the situation keeps worsening with no solution in sight. The paucity of funds cannot be accepted as an excuse in a matter of such magnitude. A concerted and continuing effort by the citizens themselves and the civic authorities can only solve this colossal problem. Dr Pravina Bhim Sain, Readers are invited to write to us. Send your mail, in not more than 200 words, at news@tribuneindia.com or, write in, at: Letters, Haryana Plus, Sector 29, Chandigarh – 160 030
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