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Hooda camp jubiliant
Chandigarh, July 7 Though parties opposed to the Congress would have definitely wished the fall of the Congress-led UPA coalition, they themselves were ill prepared for an election. The Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) is plagued with in-fighting and still recovering from the shock of a humiliating performance in the recent byelections, the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), too, is on the back foot with the United National Progressive Alliance (UNPA) breaking up and weakening after the Samajwadi Party's departure and the party unclear about alliances it wants to forge. The Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC), launched in December last year is still in the process of having its district and block units in place and building up its organisation, leaving little scope for facing an election immediately. Though the parties in the opposition were certainly not in a position to take on the challenge of an election in the prevailing circumstances, the "close shave" with near-ouster of the UPA at the Centre and the subsequent "redemption" has brought cheer in the state's Congress camp in general and Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda's camp in particular. Though the state unit of the Congress recently announced that it was in an election mode and had fixed meetings with the district units all over the state to activate them, everything had been put on hold in view of the developments at the Centre. Despite being upbeat after its victory from two of the three seats in the byelections, the Lok Sabha polls would have been "unwelcome" at this juncture. Unlike
byelections, which are usually known to belong to the ruling party, elections to 10 Lok
Sabha constituencies would have been a different ball game altogether. However, the rhetoric of all political parties, including the Congress, has been that they are forever in a state of preparedness for election. For the Congress, an election at this point would not only have tested the party's performance at all 90 assembly seats, the recent delimitation effected in the constituencies could have added to the woes of the ruling party in view of the uncertainty involved. An early election and adverse results to the Lok Sabha seats could have led to trouble for the Chief Minister, giving his detractors within the party a handle to build their case for a change in leadership since the government still has over one-and-a half years. However, with elections averted and likely to be held as per schedule, his detractors have no option but to sit back. The LS elections in May next year, as slated, are unlikely to leave much time to press for change especially since assembly elections will be due in February 2010. Also, it has been a double advantage for Hooda who has not only been spared the trouble of facing an election but has the benefit of having his party's government at the Centre as well. The long-pending Cabinet reshuffle and expansion, which got stuck due to the volatile situation prevailing at the Centre, is likely to happen soon with the Congress' position remaining intact.
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Ludesar youth find it hard to follow legacy
Ludesar (Sirsa), July 7 As far as location is concerned, it is closer to Rajasthan with its Hanumangarh district nearly 17 km from here. “We want to emulate the path shown by our elders, but lack of adequate exposure and communication gap holds us back from joining the Army”, said a youth, Ranbir Singh, with a determined look. The village has an array of memorials announcing the legacy of its gallant persons, which keep its youth steadfastly attracting to join the forces to guard the nation. Inhabitants call the memorial in their lingo ‘bahaduri’. Rewarding the contribution of its men in the World War I, the then British Indian Army erected a memorial in the middle of the village to commemorate their sacrifice. It is inscribed, “From the village 41 men went to the great war 1914-1919. Of these two gave up their lives”. Besides, the then British government with a view to win hearts of the people had waived off tax of the village. After the end of the World War II, the British government had to once again acknowledge the sacrifices of its natives by raising another memorial. The second memorial has an inscription in Hindi. It informs that in the World War II (1939-1945), as many 101 men from the village participated. Of them 11 had martyred. Majority of the villagers are involved in agriculture and youngsters cherish to join the Army. But the village elders rued that the number of serving men from the village fell drastically since the end of open recruitment about two decades back. Post-Independence, they contributed in various wars. As many as 42 of them had taken part in the 1962 Indo-China war. While in the 1965 India-Pakistan war, 36 men from the village had participated. Of them Vijay Singh had sacrificed his life. Five of its men had gone to join the Indian National Army raised by Subhash Chandra Bose. They were Bala Ram, Maman Ram, Badri Ram, Tulsi Ram and Ram Krishan. Surya Devi, sarpanch of the village, said Bala Ram, who died nearly three years ago, had demanded installing of a symbolic tank in the village to commemorate bravery. But the demand was never met. She said currently not more than 25 persons were in the defence forces. However, the district administration is in the process of beautifying the memorials with a grant of Rs 1 lakh.
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Ahirwal wary of sainik school project’s fate
Rewari, July 7 Interestingly, it was announced with much fanfare at a press conference here on June 23 by union minister of state for defence production Rao Inderjit Singh that the defence minister A.K. Antony would lay the foundation stone of the sainik school in the presence of Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and other dignitaries, at Pali-Gothara village, 15 km from Rewari, on July 5. However, when the jubilant residents started making preparations for the big event, the news came
abruptly that the stone laying ceremony had been postponed owing to certain objections raised by the state forest department regarding the felling of trees on the entire land as well as the use of the land for non-forestry purpose. The village panchayat had donated 50 acres of its panchayati land for the school.
In a press statement issued on July 1, Rao Inderjit Singh said the stone-laying ceremony had been fixed for July 5 after the district administration’s assurance that there was no deterrence either of the Aravali plantations or under the Forest Act. It was unfortunate that such last minute reservations had been ventilated by the forest department that had led to the deferment of the pre-scheduled programme. Simultaneously, he expressed the hope that the formalities for obtaining the requisite permission would be accomplished within a month.
Rao also asked the people of the region to bear for some time more on this vital issue.
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Plus 2 to Master's
Rohtak, July 7 The most significant aspect of this move is that after passing their senior secondary (10+2) examination, the school students can get themselves enrolled directly in these masters'-level courses offered by the university. Thus, for the students going in for these courses, the college stage would be bypassed, as they are not required to do their graduation for getting admitted to these postgraduate study programmes. The new courses introduced by the MDU authorities include six-year integrated programme Master of Visual Arts (painting), five-year integrated MBA, five-year integrated MSc (Honours) in Economics, five-year integrated MSc (Honours) in Mathematics and a five-year integrated MCom (Honours) course. The university has also started a BSc (Honours) course in Chemistry, besides a three-year advanced diploma course in dance (Kathak), one-year certificate course in harmonium and a PG diploma in retail management under self-financing scheme. Then, there is a PG diploma course in remote-sensing and geographic information system, having a provision of sponsored seats for working teachers at the MDU geography department and colleges in Haryana. "The students enrolling for the five-year integrated MSc (Honours) courses will get BSc (Honours) degree on completion of three years.
After this, the students can pursue MSc (Honours) degree in continuation or go in for higher studies elsewhere," says Prof Surender Kumar, dean (academic affairs). "The underlying idea behind starting these programmes was to ensure the provision of quality education to young students," he maintains, adding that these courses had been designed to equip the students with the latest know-how in their chosen field of study.
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Banks list loan waiver beneficiaries
Jhajjar, July 7 As per information, loans amounting to Rs 90 crore taken by the farmers of the district have been waived under the scheme. Though the total outstanding loan amount against the farmers is Rs 600 crore, the remaining farmers could not get the benefit of the scheme, as they do not fulfill eligible criteria. The lists of such farmers have been put up by the banks at their local branches. "Farmers of the district have been provided the benefit of the scheme by 18 banks under the amended scheme. The banks have provided relief to the tune of Rs 90 crore to the farmers," said local lead bank manager S.L. Nagpal. The district cooperative bank waived loans amounting to nearly Rs 50.39 crore J.K. Gakhar, regional development officer of the Haryana Gramin Bank, said more than 14,000 farmers of 15 districts in the state had been
benefitted.
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Bhiwani youth hostel in a shambles
Bhiwani, July 7 Work on the building of the hostel began in 1989 and was completed in 1991 at a cost of Rs 70 lakh. The hostel became functional a year later. Besides grants from the government, several organisations had raised funds for this project from local residents. It has 10 rooms and two halls. A portion of the hostel is occupied by the office of the Nehru Yuva Kendra. The rest of the facilities are rented out at nominal charges. Students staying in the dormitory pay Rs 60 a day while members of the Youth Hostel Association of India pay just Rs 40 a day. The rooms are rented out for Rs 200 a day. The sole family room is available for Rs 250 a day. The diet charges are Rs 25 per head per day. At times, the building is rented out for holding marriages or similar functions for Rs 5,000 a day. However, the income from these sources is so meagre that it is impossible to maintain the building. The electrical fittings in the entire building have begun to come off. None of the ceiling fan is working. Sanitary fittings in the toilets and the kitchen are in a poor state. The roof of the kitchen has developed cracks due to seepage. Officials say there are no specific funds for maintaining the building. A few years ago, power supply to the hostel was disconnected for the non-payment of bills. After several months, the then deputy commissioner, somehow managed funds from local philanthropists and the power supply was restored. The district administration has not entrusted the task of supervising the functioning of the hostel to any senior officer.
Till 2004, the city magistrate was supervising the hostel functioning. For the past four years, the hostel is run solely by its manager. Officials say the main structure of the building is intact, but it needs urgent repairs. The electrical wiring has to be replaced along with the fittings and the seepage can be plugged. As of now, the authorities have been unable to arrange sufficient funds.
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Mulayam saves Chautala from embarrassment
Chandigarh, July 7 His salvo came just a day after he was all smiles when he posed for photographers holding hands of the leaders of other UNPA constituents up in air as a symbol of the unity of what they would describe as the foundation of the third political alternative in the country. The UNPA came into existence on the plank that the country needed a third political alternative, euphemistically termed as the third front, which should be independent of the “anti-people” Congress and the “communal”
BJP. According to Chautala, Mulayam had committed a “blasphemy” by extending support to the Congress and had struck at the roots of the concept of the UNPA. Political observers feel that notwithstanding the rhetoric, the UNPA was never a viable political outfit. At best, it was a “club of the leaders of regional parties who were in political wilderness in their respective states, at least for the time being.” These leaders were marking their time in the “club” till they would have found “suitable” allies before attempting to recapture power in their respective states. Mulayam is not the first to “desert” the UNPA. AIDMK supremo Jayalalita was the first to realise that the chances of the UNPA replacing the UPA or the NDA, at least in near future, were remote. Soon after the formation of the UNPA, she withdrew herself from it even without offering a perfunctory explanation. None of the UNPA constituents has influence in other than one’s own state. Chautala should be thankful to Mulayam for his “deception”. Otherwise, he himself would have to take the lead in breaking the
UNPA. For, he has to face the assembly elections in less than two years. On the other hand, Mulayam has to face only the Lok Sabha elections and not the assembly elections till another four years. Both BJP high command and Chautala are desperate to come to power; the former at the Centre and the latter in the state. Their common desperation will make them to come together once again, though they had parted company in all bitterness four years ago. Sources in the BJP say for party Prime Minister-designate L.K. Advani, every Lok Sabha seat matters. He and his “Woman Friday” Sushma Swaraj are keen on an alliance with the
INLD. Sushma is considered by the high command to be an authority on the Haryana politics as she belongs to
Haryana. Though she refrains from playing an open role in the affairs of the Haryana BJP, behind the scenes, her opinion prevails. In 1996, it was she who tilted the BJP in favour of the Haryana Vikas Party led by former Chief Minister Bansi Lal. The INLD, which too was wooing the BJP, had to remain out of power till the BJP switched support from the HVP to the INLD in 1999. The biggest hurdle in the path of the INLD-BJP ties is the “arrogance” displayed by Chautala towards his alliance partner when he was in power. If he had treated his saffron comrades the way Prakash Singh Badal, with whom the Chautalas have close personal ties, treats them in Punjab, they would not have been so steadfast in their opposition to him.
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Sharp reaction to charges against akademi chief
Rohtak, July 7 A number of authors, litterateurs and cultural historians of Haryana have stood up for Nirmohi and condemned Hans for leveling “baseless” charges against him. Many such writer-journalists and experts approached The Tribune to voice their concern regarding the issue. Noted art and cultural historian Ranbir Singh has described Hans’ allegations against Nirmohi as personal vendetta against an upright and scholarly person. Ranbir, who is also co-convener of the state chapter of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), has written a letter in this regard to Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who heads the akademi. In the letter, Ranbir Singh has urged the Chief Minister not to take any adverse action against Nirmohi in the larger interest of the people and literature of Haryana. Eminent Haryanvi cultural activist and author-photographer Raj Kishan Nain has asserted that it was after a long time that an HSA director had shown interest to take the akademi activities from posh hotels to village choupals. “It is unfortunate that such a person is being accused of ignoring traditional Hindi literature. Hans, who is himself a state awardee and attached to the akademi in advisory capacity, should have refrained from making such an outburst against a person like Nirmohi,” he observed. Naresh Chauhan of the Babu Bal Mukand Gupt Sahitya Parishad, Rewari, and Several other writers have also backed Nirmohi and affirmed their faith in his crusade of restoring the true status of the
akademi.
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‘Apna’ hospital nobody’s baby
Ambala, July 7 Lack of electricity coupled with lack of sitting facilities makes it a nightmare for patients in this hot and humid season. Also referred as the “apna” hospital, one is greeted by a strong stench in the corridors. The culprit is found to be unclean toilets that open in the middle of the corridor housing the doctors’ room. Cramped in small rooms, the doctors have a rush of people during visiting hours. Many of the patients have to sit on the floor and wait for hours. A part of the hospital was set up on December 26, 1990. The surgical ward came into being in 1999 and in 2003, an emergency ward was also added. The much-awaited trauma unit is also being built near the hospital premises. Patients who come from far of places have to make do with whatever is available. They allege that the canteen is not well maintained. The food available there is mostly junk and exorbitantly priced. During rains water accumulates outside the hospital gate. On the condition of anonymity, hospital staff informs that many of the staff does not come in uniform. Stray dogs are a common sight here. Parking is also done in a haphazard manner with no signs being followed. Despite clear indications of no parking, two-wheelers are randomly parked and
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Authorities blind to misuse of electricity
Karnal, July 7 Thanks to uncaring government officials that various public buildings remain well lit throughout the night in the power-crunched state. Worst is that even the state power authorities had turned a blind eye towards the gross misuse of electricity. Such an indifferent attitude confirms that the catchy slogans coined on “save power” remain mere words for these callous public officials. Reports are pouring in from every corner of the state about protests against unscheduled long hours of power cuts. Inquiries revealed that various government offices in the state, particularly the mini-secretariats, are among those involved in abusive use of electricity. It is observed that lights in almost all rooms of the
three-storeyed Karnal mini-secretariat building remain functional during the nights. Similarly, residents of the township complain that the streetlights in several pockets also remain on even after the sunrise. Though state power officials admit having aware about the situation, they showed their inability in taking strong measures against the erring government departments. Gulshan
Madaan, a resident of Sector 7 here, says strict action should be initiated against the government officials for this misuse. A senior citizen rues that instead of making itself a role model in energy conservation, apathetic government agencies have overlooked the significant issue.
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Karnal takes lead in sanitation drive
Karnal, July 7 According to deputy commissioner Balbir Singh
Malik, there are more than 1.50 lakh households in the rural belt of the district. Out of the total households, there are 1,15,528 categorised in the above poverty line (APL) whereas 57,413 houses fall under the BPL grouping. Malik claimed that by the end of this month the entire BPL population of the district would be provided with the toilets. The BPL beneficiaries are given a subsidy of Rs 1,200 per unit and the administration claims a success in the sanitation project. In the APL segment, out of 1,15,528 households, about 1,07,440 houses are provided with pucca toilets. Malik said it was heartening that
the villagers had taken keen interest in the He said the administration had initiated an intense anti-open defecation drive to make the rural population aware about hygiene. The village-level committees had also acted significantly in achieving the
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Chilli gives bitter tears to locals
Fatehabad, July 7 Besides the 500-year-old fort, a 250-year-old temple of Lord
Krishana, a gurdwara, a marhi of goddess and a dharamshala, Shri Ram Sewa
Samiti, are all situated around this lake. Chilli was once a place for recreation and amusement for the locals, but the sheer neglect of the place has turned it into a nuisance. Due to the dumping of garbage in this historical lake its very existence is in peril now. The sewage water of most parts of the town is being allowed to put in this lake. Even debris of old houses is being thrown into this lake. Once a sprawling lake, Chilli is now no more than a pond of filthy water, thus posing threat to the health of nearby residents. Residents of ward 1, 2, 3, 4 and 10 have complained that their lives have become miserable due to the stench emanating out of the lake, which has turned into a breeding ground for mosquitoes. Lately, reports of encroachments have also been received, as some land sharks are eyeing this area, which is adjacent to the town.
Balbir Singh Chaudhary, former MLA from Fatehabad, has taken up the matter with the authorities. He had also talked with Kunal
Bhadoo, son-in-law of Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, when that former visited his and Pawan Batra’s
residence. Chaudhary along with prominent citizens of the town recently met deputy commissioner
O.P. Sheoran on the issue. The former MLA says in case efforts are not made to save to the Chilli from pollution and
colonisers, the historical lake of the town will soon vanish.
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Fatehabad tops in per hectare crop yield
Fatehabad, July 7 Cotton was grown on 86000 hectare of agriculture land in Fatehabad district in year 2007-08 and the yield of cotton was 22.50 quintal per hectare. As against this, the average yield was 19.80 quintal per hectare when the figures of all districts of the state were compiled together. Among other districts, Sirsa produced 20.64 quintal per hectare, Jind 18.6 quintals per hectare, Hisar 20.16 quintal and Bhiwani 13.3 quintal per hectare. Though these are the figures of districts falling under Hisar division only, yield per hectare in other districts of Haryana is also less than that in
Fatehabad, claimed an official spokesman. In the preceding four years too, Fatehabad was on the top of Haryana with yield of 15.60 quintal cotton per hectare in 2003-04, 21.39 quintal per hectare in 2004-05, 16.23 quintal per hectare in 2005-06 and 20.91 quintal per hectare in 2006-07. As against these figures, yield per hectare in Haryana was 13.62 quintal in 2003-04, 17.04 quintal in 2004-05, 13.11 quintal in 2005-06 and 17.46 quintal in 2006-07. In paddy crop too, Fatehabad has been achieving top-position in
Haryana. Paddy was grown on 73000 hectares of land in the district in the year 2007-08 and the yield per hectare was 65.31 quintal during this period. As against this the average yield per hectare was 50. quintal in Haryana during the corresponding period. In other districts of this division, the yield was 39.3 quintal per hectare in
Jind, Sirsa and Bhiwani and 38.9 quintal per hectare in Hisar district. Interestingly,
Kaithal, Karnal, Yamunanagar and Kurukshetra, which are internationally renowned for rice, grow basmati rice, which gives much less yield than the parmal variety of rice grown in districts of this area. In the previous four years too, Fatehabad topped with yield of 50.41 quintal per hectare in 2003-04, 64.56 quintal per hectare in 2004-05, 55.93 quintal per hectare in 2005-06 and 66.93 quintal per hectare in the year 2006-07. The state figures during this period were 41.23 quintal per hectare in 2003-04, 44.11 quintal per hectare in 2004-05, 45.76 quintal per hectare in 2005-06 and 48.57 quintal per hectare in 2006-07. “The district authorities have been ensuring uninterrupted supply of DAP and other fertilizers to the farmers,” claimed deputy commissioner O P
Sheoran, while talking to The Tribune. He said that the authorities have provided maximum subsidies on the purchase of agriculture equipments and agriculture inputs to the farmers. He said that adoption of latest techniques by the farmers was also a reason for the better yields of crops in the district.
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Jhajjar ups ante against spread of dengue
Jhajjar, July 7 The state finance department has not only approved the proposal of the district health authorities regarding the UMS but also sanctioned around 12 posts for executing the scheme efficiently. The district health department has recently received a copy of the decision. As per information, one biologist, one health inspector (for population of 20,000), at least six health workers and four male multipurpose health workers
(MPHW) would be appointed under this scheme. These officials will run an awareness drive to caution residents in the urban areas about the spread of dengue and its preventive measures. This campaign will continue till the end of transmission season. According to sources, the department had sent a proposal to include Jhajjar district in the UMS nearly three years ago. The health department had accepted the proposal, but it was with the finance department for approval. “The scheme focuses on saving residents from the fatal disease especially during the transmission season. The chances of dengue outbreak are much higher in the urban areas as compared to the rural areas due to the use of coolers and water storage tanks in majority of houses, and hence this scheme has been started for the urban areas,” said district malaria officer
I.A. Yadav, adding that after appointment of staff members, the awareness programme could be run more effectively.
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Loss of Vision
Hisar, July
7 The kendra was inaugurated on the Haryana day in 2002. The news bulletin was introduced the same day. It was DD’s first kendra equipped with a digital studio. After its inauguration, the news bulletins were managed by newsreaders and news editors brought in from Delhi studios on a temporary basis. Many years later, the kendra was given a full time news editor, but no news producer was appointed. At present, there are eight posts of producer. But six posts have been lying vacant for years. Of the remaining two, one was transferred sometime ago. Earlier, these two producers have to work on rotation to produce the
programmes. At times, the floor and production assistants are asked to carry out the job of the producers. Presently, there is only one assistant producer. No replacement has been sent for the transferred employee. There are two cameramen posted here. One of them has proceeded on a long leave while the other too remains on leave frequently. Casual cameramen are engaged to produce
programmes. There is no make-up artist posted at the kendra. In case of VIP interviews, the kendra engages casual make-up artists from local beauty
parlours. Despite this, the kendra has so far managed to produce few popular programmes although the transmission time is extremely limited. Entertaining programmes like “Vividh Rang” and “Chitramala” are popular. The kendra was set up after Haryana’s persistent demand that it should have its own DD kendra on the lines of the one in Jalandhar in Punjab. However, official apathy
has ensured that it serves little purpose.
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Kaithal-Patiala road in bad shape
Kaithal, July 7 In the absence of maintenance, numerous potholes have developed on this road. As a result, the motorists have to drive in a zigzag way to avoid potholes which sometimes results in accidents. The stretch of the road falling in Haryana between Siwan and Cheeka needs immediate repair. Similarly, the stretch of road falling in Punjab calls for attention as the upper layer of the road has been completely worn out. Interestingly, officials of Haryana and Panjab PWD departments have failed to take notice of the bad condition of this road in their respective jurisdictions, which has been causing inconvenience to the
road users. If immediate steps are not taken to maintain this road, the cost of repair is bound to increase and put extra burden on the state exchequer. The motorists want that till the time the actual repair work is undertaken, the authorities should at least ensure the filling up of potholes to ensure safety of the road users and smooth flow of traffic.
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Commandos to attend driving course
Karnal, July 7 Under the four-week basic driving training programme, commandos of the Haryana Commando Training Centre (HCTC), Neval, Karnal, will be trained by experts at Haryana Police Academy (HPA), Madhuban. Sources revealed that there was no mention of driving skills for state commandos and the personnel had an experience of routine driving. In crisis, the driver of a targeted vehicle was the most important person.
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Citizens’ Grievances
I am a student of LL.M (final) course, session 2007-08, of the Directorate of Distance Education, Kurukshetra University. While appearing for exam of "Legal Regulation of Economic Enterprises", I found that a question in unit 1 of the exam was regarding the working of Consumer Protection (Amendment) Act, 2005.
It is pertinent to mention that the aforesaid Act was lastly amended in 2002 and thereafter there has been no amendment carried out in the statute. The ambiguity has sent confusing signals to the minds of the students. It is further submitted that because the weightage of a question in this exam is 25 per cent and the minimum passing marks are 50 per cent, so it would be imperative for the university authorities to contemplate appropriate relief for the aggrieved students so that they do not suffer. Kashish
Raheja, Faridabad Send in write-ups, not exceeding 200 words, to Haryana Plus, The Tribune, Sector 29, Chandigarh. E-mail:adalat@tribunemail.com.
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