Chandigarh, January 29
The recent Gurgaon-based kidney transplant racket has brought into focus the report of the Transplant of Human Organs Act Review Committee, popularly known as the Quraishi Committee, the recommendations of which are gathering dust in the union health ministry.

The committee was set up in pursuant to a Delhi High Court judgement in what is known as the Balbir Singh case delivered in September, 2004. The court had directed a review of the efficacy, relevance and impact of the Transplantation of Human Organs Act, 1994 (TOHO Act) and the Transplantation of Human Organs Rules, 1994 (TOHO Rules).

The committee was headed by the then additional secretary and director-general, NACO, Dr S.Y. Quraishi, an IAS officer of the Haryana cadre. Dr Quraishi is now the Election Commissioner of the country.

Among other things the committee recommended that a national organ transplant programme with special emphasis on promoting cadaver donations should be launched to develop a focused information, education and communication strategy to create awareness about organ transplantation and cadaver donations. It suggested that hospitals should make it mandatory for its staff to request relatives of brain dead patients for organ donation. A record of all brain dead patients and the next of kin who are approached should be kept. It should also be mandatory to report all brain dead potential donors to a central agency like the Organ Retrieval and Banking Organisation (ORBO). More hospitals with adequate ICU facilities and availability of specialists to diagnose brain death should be recognised as cadaver donor organ harvesting centres. The retrieval of organs from non-heart beating patients should be permissible after the consent of next of kin, which would serve as a valuable source of organs.

The ORBO is a national-level facility set up by the central government at the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi, to facilitate the transplant programme in the country with a view to encouraging organ donations, fair and equitable distribution of organs available in the organ bank and optimum utilisation of human organs.

The committee recommended that the ambit of ORBO activities should be enlarged and the central government should create five regional centres of the ORBO to cover the northern, southern, eastern, western and central regions of the country. All persons desirous of availing themselves of cadaver organs through the ORBO must get themselves registered for priority by paying a reasonable fee.

It also suggested suitable incentives for the family of a cadaver donor as well as live donors.

The committee also said that “swap” operations should be promoted. It means two different willing but incompatible “near relative” donors (vis-à-vis their intended related recipient) are permitted to donate their organs in exchange without any commercial interest and only due to the reason that despite willingness, their organ is not medically compatible for their intended recipients.

Action is yet to be taken on these recommendations. 

Gurgaon, January 29
The Registration of Nursing Home Act, which was formulated two years ago by the state health department, is yet to see the light of the day. The largest kidney racket unearthed in Gurgaon recently has exposed the magnitude of the illegal trade, which can only be possible in the absence of stringent laws.

This also reveals how much authority the health department has to keep a check on the functioning of nursing homes being run at every nook and corner of the state. Without the law anybody can open a hospital and the authorities have no power to impose a check on it.

Sources in the health department reveal that a panel was constituted in 2005, to formulate the Registration of Nursing Home Act to curb the mushrooming of illegal nursing homes and keep a check on the quality of health services being provided to the people of the state.

The sources say the Delhi Nursing Home Act 1953, was taken as a model for formulating the Haryana Registration of Nursing Home Act. The panel finalised the Act in 2006, and submitted it to the higher authorities for approval, but it is still gathering dust in the files of the health department waiting to be approved.

The sources inform that in the proposed Act provision has been made to charge fee according to the capacity of the clinic. It also covers the registration of criminal cases against illegal functioning of clinics by non-professionals.

The sources further reveal that the Act was formulated to tighten the grip on quacks and non-professionals who have entered this profession for making money. They say complaints have been pouring in the health department for the past several years about the opening of hospitals by non-professionals, particularly in the absence of any specific law. The complaints have also alleged employing of non-qualified technicians and doctors by such hospitals.

An official informs that in Haryana anybody can open a hospital and the department cannot even check whether the facilities being provided by such hospitals are as per norms. He says even if the department is aware about the functioning of such clinics it cannot take any action.

He says the state has the provision of the Pre-Conceptional and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act under which they could take action against those clinics that have ultrasound machines without having them registered.

Talking to The Tribune, secretary, Gurgaon IMA, Dr Subrat Saxena said the association had written to the state government two years back about the formulation of the Act and many reminders were also sent but all in vain, as the health department did not feel the urgency of the matter.

Dr Saxena said surprisingly the department had no set parameters for setting up a hospital in the state. He said the recent kidney racket was also the result of the absence of stringent laws.

He said the Act would empower the department not only in knowing the working of the hospitals and clinics but also help in checking the medical facilities being provided to the patients.

He said there had been mushrooming of clinics with five-star facilities all over the state by quacks, property dealers, businessmen and other professionals who employ under-qualified doctors, thereby playing with the lives of the people.

He also said even the law for the disposal of medical waste had not been strictly implemented as many clinics were using open spaces for the disposal of their waste.

Karnal, January 29
Two rebel Congress MLAs, Dharampal Malik from Gohana and Rakesh Kamboj from Indri, having staunch allegiance to Bhajan Lal, today clarified that they had not joined the Haryana Janhit Congress (BL), the political front floated recently by suspended Congress MP Kuldeep Bishnoi.

Talking to mediapersons here today, the duo said technically speaking they were still the members of the Congress party.

They claimed that they had not received any communiqué from the party about their suspension.

Interestingly, Malik showed complete ignorance about any Congress MLA or MP joining the Janhit Congress (BL).

However, both the MLAs reaffirmed their support to their ‘true leader’ Bhajan Lal, who would also decide on the future political steps.

Citing the rulebook of the state assembly, he stated that the postdated resignations submitted by them to the Speaker were legally valid. Rules certainly maintain that the resignations would be accepted from the date given by Vidhan Sabha members.

He said an MLA was entitled to withdraw his postdated resignation before it was accepted. However, he strongly ruled out any such possibility.

The MLAs claimed that they had not received the show cause notices reportedly served by the Speaker after the ruling MLAs had filed a petition for their disqualification from the house. 

Chandigarh, January 29
The Janhit Congress, floated by disgruntled Congress leader and former Chief Minister Bhajan Lal and his associates in Rohtak last month, is slated to name its top office-bearers on February 1.

Dharampal Malik, Bhajan loyalist Congress MLA from Gohana and former chief of the HPCC, will not like to say who will announce the names. Kuldeep Bishnoi will not be making the announcements, assures Malik. While saying that the names of all top office-bearers of the party will be announced on Friday, Malik also refuses to divulge whether Bhajan Lal will be named the president of the new outfit.

As Bhajan Lal, son Kuldeep Bishnoi and their two loyalist MLAs Dharampal Malik and Rakesh Kamboj have not dissociated themselves from the Congress despite floating a new political outfit, it has given a chance to their detractors to show righteous indignation over the nature of conduct by the disgruntled legislators.

Friday’s announcement, given the mystery attached to it by Malik — a leading figure of the Janhit Congress — can further fuel the controversy over the standing of the new party.

Bhajan Lal, Malik and Rakesh Kamboj, who are facing disqualification from the assembly for floating a new party, are, at last, getting ready to reply to the Speaker’s notice to them on the subject. The Speaker will summon them for the last time after two attempts to hand over the notices to them did not yield any result. The announcement of the office-bearers on February 1 will have a bearing on establishing the trio’s relation with the newly floated party.

Assembly sources here confirmed the receipt of Bhajan Lal’s resignation letter on January 25 and also the receipt of the resignation letters of Malik and Kamboj before that. Master Tara Singh, organising secretary of the HPCC, says the “ futuristic” resignations (with effect from June 1, 2008) are simply a cover-up designed to enable the MLAs to claim quitting of the assembly on their own rather than being ousted from there by their detractors.

Chandigarh, January 29
Taking serious view of a case in which the accused in a murder case were allegedly made eyewitnesses for implicating others, the Punjab and Haryana High Court today directed the state of Haryana to consider the feasibility of setting up a special cell or mechanism for ordering further probe in cases where the prosecution failed, or for initiating departmental action against the erring officials.

The judgement by a Division Bench, comprising Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel and Justice S.D. Anand, comes in less than a week after another Division Bench asked the state of Punjab to entrust probe in all criminal matters only to impartial officers.

Pronouncing the orders in an open court this morning, Justice Goel and Justice Anand ruled: “Before parting with the case, we would like to observe that there is a dire need for follow up action by the investigating agency in cases where prosecution cases fail, particularly on account of discrepancies of the investigating agency itself and more so when doubt is expressed about the fairness of the investigations.

“The present case may one such case. We direct the state of Haryana to look into this aspect of the matter and examine the viability of creating a special cell or other suitable mechanism to look into the cases where the prosecution fails with a view to examine whether any further follow up action ought to be taken by way of further investigation or by way of any departmental action for misconduct of any functionary involved in the investigation.”

The Judges also directed that a copy of the order should be sent to the Haryana chief secretary.

The case, dating back to May 28, 2000, was registered after primary school teacher Karnail Singh was killed in firing at a liquor vend. The victim, along with family and others were traveling to Delhi when the incident occurred. A vend employee allegedly tried to snatch money from them, resulting in the firing.

Setting aside the conviction and life sentence of three accused, Makhan Singh, Tarsem Lal and Manoj Kumar, the Judges held: “Main contention of counsel for the appellant is that Ajit Singh and Sukhwinder Singh were both injured witnesses and they did not identify the accused. Rather, they lodged protest against the implication of the present appellants for the real accused.

“We find from the statement of Ajit Singh, who was injured and who had lodged the FIR and whose evidence has high probative value that he did not identify the appellants. Same is the version of prosecution witnesses Sukhwinder Singh, Balbir Kaur and Surinder Kaur, who were also eyewitnesses.”

Ajit Singh had earlier filed a petition in this court and stated that the actual culprits were liquor vendor and his employee and no body else. This court directed change of investigating officer.

In spite of this, the liquor vendor and his employee have been made eyewitnesses and it is on the basis of their testimony that the appellants have been convicted.

“In these circumstances, the appellants having not been identified by the witnesses, whose version has higher probative value, are entitled to benefit of doubt. Accordingly, we allow these appeals and set aside conviction and sentence of the appellants,” they said.

Chandigarh, January 29
Trouble is brewing at the recently commissioned Bhagat Phool Singh Mahila Vishwavidyalaya at Khanpur Kalan in Sonepat district. The very mahasabha which urged the Haryana government to take over the reins of the Gurukul and upgrade it to a university is sore about getting a raw deal in the bargain.

Though they are appreciative of the fact that the government paid heed to their demand and created an all-women university, the recent “goings-on” have raised the hackles of members of the mahapanchayat.

At a meeting held earlier this month, the mahapanchayat had moved a resolution seeking reservation of 25 per cent seats for girl students of “their” area, recruiting women as faculty members and in the office staff and employing local men for odd jobs which women may not prefer to do.

According to the resolution, the government has been given a deadline of one month to give assurance on the demands raised by the mahapanchayat failing which the members would approach the chancellor of the university who is the Haryana Governor in this case.

A former president of the mahasabha of Gurukul Vidyapeeth Bhainswal Kalan and Khanpur Kalan, Baljit Singh Malik, said they had been receiving “complaints” about the neglect of “traditions followed at the Gurukul” and “indiscipline among staff and students”.

“We tried to approach the senior functionaries of the university but to no avail. In the face of indifference to our pleas, we decided to call a mahapanchayat which was attended by suspended Congress MLA Dharam Pal Malik, former members of the Trust which ran the Gurukul and senior members of the village,” Malik said.

At the mahapanchayat, the members unanimously resolved that male teachers could not be allowed to teach in a Gurukul and women faculty members should be appointed to teach the girl students. They sought the removal of male teachers recently employed at the university, maintaining that male teachers below 50 years in an all-girls university were not acceptable and in contradiction to the traditions of the Gurukul.

They claimed that in addition to the existing reservation of 85 per cent seats for girls of Haryana, a special quota of 25 per cent should be fixed to “accommodate” local students. They claimed that they had handed over the entire Gurukul to the government on the basis of assurance of Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda to consider their reservation demand favourably but nothing had happened so far. The mahapanchayat also backed the locals by emphasising that local men should be employed in areas where it was absolutely necessary rather than offering jobs to outsiders.

However, sources in the university said that confining to recruiting women teachers and locals would amount to compromising on the quality of teaching and other services. “Though we prefer to employ women where they are available, we cannot and will not take sub-standard staff. Also, the villagers have been assured of reservation for their wards by the Chief Minister. A few members of the mahapanchayat are only playing politics and taking innocent people for a ride,” the sources added.

Officials maintained that the buildings under construction would be completed in record time by June-end this year and the government was going all out to provide the best facilities at the university. 

Faridabad, January 29
The Haryana government has decided to hand over the murder case of two sisters to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), as the state police has apparently failed to crack the case.

According to sources, Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda had already sounded the state’s director general of police R.S. Dalal with regard to the move. The move came following a demand from the public.

A panchayat held at Prithla village had passed a resolution in favour of the CBI investigation of the case, a couple of days ago. The sisters were natives of Prithla, which falls under Palwal assembly segment.

Yesterday, a delegation from the area met the Chief Minister and urged him to hand over the case to the CBI.

The bodies of the two sisters were found near a railway track on December 18.

The police had arrested three youths of Prithla and a friend of the two sisters. They are now in judicial custody.

Yamunanagar, January 29
In the wake of the arrest of two girls from Bank Colony here in connection with the loot of Rs 24 lakh from a plywood merchant, the police will start a drive to persuade house owners and others to get their servants and tenants verified with it. Sources said residents of Jagadhri and Yamunanagar had not been getting the antecedents of their servants and tenants verified.

Deputy commissioner Nitin Kumar Yadav said relevant orders under Section 144 of the CrPC had been issued and it was mandatory on part of the house owners to get the antecedents verified in the police station of their respective areas. Superintendent of police Dr C.S. Rao said legal action under Section 188 of the CrPC would be initiated against the erring house owners.

House owners should get the verification done within 10 days after hiring a servant or letting his or her premises on rent to anyone, he added.

Rao also advised the residents to get a group photograph done of the tenant family as such precautions come handy in crime cases. He advised the rural population to get the verification done as they generally hire labourers on short-term basis and several crimes had been committed in the past by labourers and migrants.

Chandigarh, January 29
As many as 257 poor and meritorious students of Haryana belonging to various minority communities will be able to avail themselves of a merit-cum-means scholarship scheme for students launched by the union ministry of minority affairs.

Social justice and empowerment minister Kartar Devi said out of 257 scholarships for Haryana, 129 would be for Muslim students, 124 for Sikhs, three for Christians and one for Buddhists.

She said financial assistance would be given to pursue degree or postgraduate-level technical and professional courses from recognised institutions. Maintenance allowance would be credited to the student’s account and the course fee would be paid by the state government direct to the institution.

She said a maintenance allowance of Rs 1,000 per month for hostellers and Rs 500 per month for day scholars would be given for 10 months in a year. A course fee of Rs 20,000 per year or actual, whichever was less, would be given and the full course fee would be reimbursed for 50 listed top institutions.

Chandigarh, January 29
The Haryana urban local bodies department has prepared a city development plan for Faridabad town costing over Rs 2,679 crore for infrastructural development, which has been approved under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM).

A spokesman of the department here today said seven detailed project reports (DPRs) amounting to about Rs 1,204 crore had been submitted to the union government for various development works for approval and release of funds. The union government had sanctioned five DPRs costing over Rs 275 crore.

The state government would appoint chairmen in corporations and boards shortly after finalising a list of persons, he said.— PTI

Bhiwani, January 29
The Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVN) has decided to extend the period for replacing all power-guzzler incandescent bulbs with energy-efficient lighting systems from January 31 to February 29.

A spokesman for the nigam said here today that according to the feedback received from field officers, about 70 per cent agricultur and industrial consumers had switched over to compact florescent lamps, T-5 tubelights and other energy-efficient lighting systems for tubewells and factory lighting during this month following instructions issued by the nigam.

Sonepat, January 29
Five armed miscreants looted more than Rs 10 lakh from a branch of the Central Bank of India in Ghagoli village at pistol point here today.

However, three of them were nabbed by villagers and the police and looted cash was also recovered from their possession but two others managed to flee.

This was the fourth incident of robbery in this branch during the past six years. Earlier, the incident took place on November 7, 2007, on January 14, 2005 and about six years back when the branch manager was also kidnapped.

According to information, the five youths came to the bank on two motorcycles at around 10.45 am. After looting the cash, two of them sped away on their motorcycles. However, the other three, including the one carrying the bag, could not escape, as the motorcycle did not start. Meanwhile, the branch manager switched on the emergency siren alerting the villagers.

Hearing the sound, villagers reached the bank and overpowered two of them. The one, who had the cash bag, tried to escape through the streets of the village.

He also fired at a village youth while entering into a sugarcane field.

The police also reached the spot and nabbed the youth.

The arrested youths have been identified as Amit and Tinku of Khada village in Baghpat district and Imran of Nalikpur in Muzzar Nagar district in Uttar pradesh.

The arrested miscreants have reportedly confessed their involvement in the loot of this branch in November 2007 and January 2005. 

Bhiwani, January 29
A married woman is reportedly missing along with her two-year-old daughter for the past over two months from Dhanasari village in the Badhar assembly area. Her relatives have lodged a complaint with the police in this connection.

According to Jagdish, elder brother-in-law of the woman, his brother Jaideep, who is in the Army, had married his wife’s younger sister Sarita at Manhorpura in Rajasthan on April 4, 2002.

Sarita gave birth to a daughter. Sarita was a student of MSc (zoology), Jaipur University, and was living with her sisters. Jagdish said in October 2007, Sarita had come to meet them at Dhanasari village and had left for Manoharpura on November 12.

Jagdish said he saw Sarita off at the Nandha village bus stand for Satnali village. When Sarita did not reach her destination till late evening, her father Daya Chand spoke to Jagdish following which they started a hunt for her. One of their relatives reportedly saw Sarita shopping at the Satnali market that day.

Jagdish alleged that a neighbour, Sumitra, and her daughter had threatened them after a scuffle that they would abduct their “bahu”. Jagdish alleged that a panchayat had been convened on this issue but his neighbours did not attend it despite an invitation from sarpanch Baljeet.

Jagdish informed the police about it and a case was registered against Sumitra and her daughter Rekha on November 30.

Daya Chand, father of the victim, alleged that the police was under political pressure and he had made a complaint to the Chief Minister and the superintendent of police in this connection.