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Chief Minister out to woo farmers,
labourers Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh claps as AICC in charge for the state Moti Lal Vohra lifts the sword presented to him at the
Kisan Rally at Rania in Sirsa on Sunday. Photo: Amit Soni
DHBVN to introduce advanced metering
Excise Act cases a burden on judiciary
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NCP: Cong not abiding by coalition dharma
No seat arrangement with BJP yet: Chautala
Rajasthan to follow state’s
land acquisition policy
HC restrains Ansals from using word ‘Kamdhenu’
AP cops to interrogate kidney scam accused
PR dept invites photos
Consumer forum chief honoured
Record power generation
at HPGCL
167 fair price shops penalised
No headway yet in Gurgaon firing case
Two held for molesting girls
Cold chains planned for 11 districts
Fire in plastic factory
State awarded
PR dept invites photos
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Chief Minister out to woo farmers,
labourers
Rania (Sirsa), December 14 Moti Lal Vohra, in charge of Haryana in the AICC, Phool Chand Mulana and Kuldeep Sharma, president and working president of the HPCC, respectively, and Lachhman Dass Arora, industries minister, were among the leaders who addressed the rally. Ranjit Singh, deputy chairman of the Haryana State Planning Board, organised the rally. The speakers concentrated their speeches more on the results of assembly elections in the neighboring Rajasthan and Delhi and tried to bring home their point that the results indicated that the UPA would perform well in the forthcoming parliamentary elections. Not only this, the speakers also forecasted that Hooda government in Haryana will also do a Sheila Dixit in the next assembly elections. Any political party that dreams of winning elections in Haryana and does not talk of kisan and mazdoor (farmers and labourers) is impossible. Hooda too talked at length about the benefits provided to the these classes by his government during his tenure and also announced that his government would observe the year 2009 as the “Kisan and Mazdoor Year” during which many new schemes for the benefits of farmers and labourers will be launched. In his speech, Hooda took jibes at Chautala clan that wields a considerable influence in the area, but interestingly he did not name anyone. “Those who promised free power will be supplied to farmers, did not take any step in this direction during six years they were in power, while my government provided several types of benefits to farmers,” Hooda maintained. “During the six years, when they (Chautalas) were in power and the NDA was at the helm in the Centre, the government increased Rs 40 in the MSP of paddy, but my government, helped by the UPA government in the Centre, has already increased Rs 400 in the price of paddy,” he added. Mulana criticised Chautala severely and alleged the previous government was being run like a firm “Om Parkash Chautala and sons” and not in the democratic manner. Interestingly, neither the chief minister nor any other speaker uttered a word regarding Bhajan Lal, his son Kuldeep Bishnoi or their political party Haryana Janhit Congress.
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DHBVN to introduce advanced metering
Hisar, December 14 This was disclosed by Anurag Agarwal, managing director, DHBVN, while talking to mediapersons after inaugurating a three-day energy conservation fair at Old Government College here yesterday. He said under this technology, in case of lesser availability of electricity, load of consumers would be reduced proportionately without imposing power cuts. It would be implemented in phases. In the first phase, Gurgaon and Faridabad would be covered. Agarwal said the DHBVN planned to renovate complete power distribution system in its area during the next three years and consumer services would also be improved considerably. He said theft of electricity was a major hurdle in the way of providing reliable and adequate power supply. To check theft of power and water, the government had decided to set up eight power and water police stations in the state where cases relating to theft of electricity and water would be registered. He said the DHBVN was taking a serious view of non-payment of bills by consumers in rural as well as urban areas and their connections would be disconnected shortly. Answering a question, Agarwal disclosed that the DHBVN had amended its system of empanelled firms for meters. Now, the empanelled firms would open their stalls for sale of meters at DHBVN’s offices so that they did not charge more than the rate fixed by the nigam. He revealed that the nigam was also purchasing meters for providing these to the consumers. He said the state government had made the use of CFLs and T-5 (28 watt) energy efficient tube lights and light emitting diodes (LED) mandatory for all electricity consumers in industrial, commercial and institutional sectors having load of 30 KW or above. Similarly, in all central government offices and central public sector undertaking institutions and other establishments in state, the use of compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) and T-5 (28 watt) tube lights and LEDs had been made mandatory. He said the state government had made use of energy efficient street lighting in all existing and new colonies in urban areas notified by the local bodies department, Haryana Urban Development Authority, HSIIDC, Housing Board complexes, colonies and townships developed by private, semi-government and autonomous institutions. He said in case of non-compliance of these orders, the power utilities could disconnect the electricity supply. |
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Excise Act cases a burden on judiciary
Fatehabad, December 14 Cases of this nature normally take five to six years to be finally decided and they usually end up in the acquittal of the accused, as positive evidences are hard to come forward in such cases. Even if the accused are convicted, the minimum punishment in such cases is imprisonment for three months. On the contrary, the excise authorities have the option of compounding the offence of the accused with a payment of minimum of Rs 50 per bottle of liquor recovered. However, they rarely exercise this authority. The cops take little interest in such cases and these cases end up adding to the burden of the already-overburdened courts. Narinder Kaur’s court is not an isolated case where hundreds of cases under the Excise Act have been pending for long. “In almost all magisterial courts, cases under the Excise Act abound consuming maximum time of judges,” admitted R.S. Virk, District and Sessions Judge, Fatehabad. “A case under Section 326 of the IPC that invites imprisonment up to life or a case under the Excise Act demand the same level of attention by the courts,” he added. However, lok adalats being organised these days under the mega lok adalat, Samadhan-2008, have come as boon for the courts, as they dispose of these cases by compounding these offences. “I have already disposed of more than 60 per cent of the cases under the Excise Act. The offenders stand to gain as they are not considered convicted and the government gets the compounding amount,” said Narinder Kaur. Virk maintained that various courts in the district had so far disposed off 8,350 cases ever since Samadhan-2008 had been announced. “Once the mega lok adalat is over, the judges will be able to concentrate more on real cases, which otherwise may have been awaiting judicial attention due to overburdening of courts,” Virk said. Meanwhile, the unit system of judging the performance of judges working in the district and lower courts has been posing a lot of problems as far as settling of pending cases in the courts is concerned. The system has been evolved in such a manner that judges are left with no other option but to complete their units rather than concentrate on cases that require application of legal mind. A retired judicial officer on condition of anonymity admitted that the unit system was not the right parameter to judge the performance of judges. “A case under Section 160 of the IPC, which requires evidence of two witnesses, brings in five units for a judge, while a case under the Food Adulteration Act that requires writing of lengthy judgments besides examining many witnesses fetches two units,” he added.
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NCP: Cong not abiding by coalition dharma
Karnal, December 14 Addressing mediapersons here, he accused the Congress of flouting the basic principles of alliance and said the Congress-NCP alliance in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh had left a bitter taste as the Congress was not serious and sincere about the alliance. While in Chhatisgarh, senior Congress leader Ajit Jogi termed it as a mistake, the Congress candidates filed nominations from two seats allotted to the NCP, he alleged. He said one thing was clear in the present political scenario that the voters would not go with the NDA as L. K. Advani was not acceptable as the Prime Minister to them but the Congress would have to face the consequences if it did not forge alliances with other parties, he added. Terming the Mumbai blasts as a system and collective failure, Tripathi bailed the government out by stating that those responsible for the lapse had already resigned on moral grounds and the efforts of the security forces to rescue a large number of people in the critical situation should not be undermined. Replying to a question about miserable condition of farmers, he said Sharad Pawar has given Rs 60, 000 crore loan waiver to save the farmers from falling into debt trap and in Maharashtra the farmers, who had raised loans from moneylenders, had also been bailed out. Similar pattern would be followed in other states to give relief to farmers, he said. Lauding the efforts of Chaudhry Ved Pal to strengthen the party in Haryana, the NCP leader said the party would try to broaden the alliance with the Congress by forging alliances in Haryana in other states also. Tripathi ruled out any alliance with the BSP but indicated that there was possibility of roping the Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC) in the broad alliance.
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No seat arrangement with BJP yet: Chautala
Chandigarh, December 14 This was claimed by president of the INLD Om Prakash Chautala here today. He firmly refuted reports that it had been agreed upon by the two parties that while the BJP would contest six Lok Sabha seats, the INLD would field its candidates on the remaining four seats in the state. Chautala, who was briefing newsmen after a meeting of the executive committee of his party, said all that the two parties had decided was that ticket would be given to candidates whose win ability in a particular constituency was the most. The elections would be contested by the NDA and not by individual parties. He said the BJP-INLD alliance was not “Dallon ka faisla, yeh to dillon ka faisla hai. (The alliance is not between the parties but between the hearts.)” He said the INLD and the BJP would hold joint rallies in all districts of the state. First such rally would be held at Badhkali Chowk in Mewat on December 18. Besides Chautala, BJP state president Atam Parkash Manchanda, Haryana INLD president Ashok Arora and other senior party leaders of the two parties would address the rallies. Many leaders of the Haryana Janhit Congress of Kuldeep Bishnoi and the Congress joined the INLD today. These included HJC state general secretary Roshan Dhandha, Congress leader and vice-chairman of the Ambala Zila Parishad Pawan Gujjar and most of the office-bearers of the Kaithal district unit of the HJC. Chautala said the people of the state were fed up with the Congress due to inflation, unemployment, terrorism, shortage of water and electricity, corruption and fast deteriorating law and order situation. The INLD strongly condemned the ongoing demolition drive along the national highways in the state and called for halting this anti-people exercise. It demanded that the law should be immediately amended and the affected persons should be adequately compensated and they should also be given alternative sites. Chautala said if the Congress government failed to provide the necessary relief to the affected persons, the INLD would do so after coming to power. He alleged that the Hooda government had not fulfilled even one of its promises during the past four years and the people were in a mood to teach a lesson to the Congress.
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Rajasthan to follow state’s
land acquisition policy
Ambala, December 14 While enlisting a number of schemes being implemented by the Haryana government, he said the state was paying the highest minimum wages and the central government had waived off loans amounting to Rs 71,000 crore which benefited 7.12 lakh farmers of the state. The CM also announced to make Shazadpur block a sub-tehsil and declared a sub-treasury would be set up here. He also announced upgradation of its primary health centre to a community health centre and setting up a farmers rest house in the block Mandi and further announced that a sub-divisional officer of power utilities would have its office in Raipur Rani, while a woman’s college would be set up in Shazadpur next year. He also announced that HUDA sectors in Naraingarh would have community centres and a stadium and gave a grant of Rs 50 lakh each to Shazadpur and Shaxadpur Majra villages. The chief minister also laid the foundation stone of a building of Industrial Training Institute (ITI) to be set up at a cost of Rs 14 crore at Bharapur. The building will be completed by August 2010. It would have 592 seats in 14 different trades. He also inaugurated a complex of office of sub-divisional magistrate at Naraingarh. |
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HC restrains Ansals from using word ‘Kamdhenu’
New Delhi, December 14 Justice Heema Kohli passed the interim order on a plea of Kamdhenu Ispat Ltd (KIL), which pleaded that the Ansal group is trying to gain by using the brand. Ansal Properties and Infrastructure Ltd (APIL) is to set up a special economic zone in Haryana with an investment of Rs 900 crore and it has floated a company called Ansal Kamdhenu Engineering SEZ Ltd for this purpose. Advocate S.K. Bansal, appearing for Kamdhenu Ispat Ltd, pleaded that the company has trademark rights to the brand Kamdhenu, and APIL, by using the word, has impinged upon its rights. The use of the Kamdhenu brand by the Ansals is illegal ... This is likely to cause confusion in the market, resulting in the erosion of goodwill (of Kamdhenu Ispat), Bansal submitted. Justice Kohli, after hearing his plea, passed the ex-parte order. She said until further orders, the defendant (APIL), and its agents/representatives are restrained from using the trademark Kamdhenu or any other name identical with or “deceptively similar” to that of the plaintiff’s (KIL’s) name Kamdhenu in relation to the goods and services relating to construction activities.
— PTI |
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AP cops to interrogate kidney scam accused
Ambala, December 14 Earlier, the Maharashtra and Rajashtan police had also taken two of the kidney accused, Dr Amit and Dr Jeevan, on production warrant in connection with the similar cases registered against them a few years ago. A team of the Hyderabad police led by a sub-inspector Vainkteshwar Rao reached here on Friday and filed an application in the CBI court to allow them to take three of the accused - Dr Amit, his brother Dr Jeevan and Dr Upender - in their custody on production warrant. The court accepted the application and allowed the Hyderabad police to take them for the interrogation. The police took Dr Upender to Hyderabad yesterday but they could not take Dr Amit and Dr. Jeevan with them as they are in the custody of the Jaipur police. The Jaipur police had taken them a few days back for interrogation in a case connected to kidney removal. |
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PR dept invites photos
Chandigarh, December 14 An official spokesman here today said the photographs in the size of 12" x 10", 15" x 12" and 20" x 16" should be submitted latest by December 29. Interested persons could submit a maximum of seven photographs. He made it clear that the participants should paste a sticker on the back of each photo print mentioning the participant’s name, address, phone and size, title and location of the photograph. He said a committee had been constituted to select the photographs and its decision would be final. The department would have the right to display the selected photographs in the proposed exhibition. He said option to sell the photo prints to the department at a fixed price of Rs 2,000 per print was open for all participants. He clarified that the department would purchase the selected prints only and these would be the property of the department. The photographers would have to handover the negative or soft copy of the selected or purchased prints to the department. Any other information in this regard could be taken from the office of director, information and public relations department, Chandigarh, he added. |
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Mudgal gets Prerna Award
Hisar, December 14 The award was presented to him jointly by director of the Haryana Sahitya Akademi Desh
Nirmohi, rajya kavi Uday Bhanu Hans and deputy commissioner O.P.
Sheoran. Nirmohi said the akademi would shortly produce a short documentary on famed Saang artist Pandit Lakhmi Chand, who had in his lifetime taken this art form to dazzling heights. He said the increased grant by the government to the akademi had given a fillip to cultural activities in the state. He said the akademi would continue to encourage new writers who had been showing maturity in their works. Hans urged the new writers to keep widening their mental horizons to improve their writings. He said budding writers in Haryana held a lot of promise. Sheoran, who was also the chief guest, said the move to encourage new writers was a step in the right direction and the district administration would also contribute its mite in this endeavour. Director of Prerna Parivaar Shubh Karan Gaur said the organisation had launched an ambitious project to publish a volume featuring poems of all poets in the state. Ten other budding writers - Rajesh Sardana, Surendera
Chhinda, Rishi Kumar Saxena, Amar Chand beniwal, Satyavan verma, Jyoti
Bainda, Suman Saluja, Alish bedi and Komal Swami - were given Prerna Protsaahan awards. |
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Consumer forum chief honoured
Kurukshetra, December 14 Arora said one could realise one’s dreams only by doing hard work, which was a key to success. He had been given this responsibility by Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. He assured that he would perform his duty honestly and diligently. President of the Senior Citizens Forum Jagjit Singh Virk, Arora’s teacher and senior advocate Chandermani, president of the All-India Brahman Sabha Shriprakash Mishra, president of the Brahman Teerthodhar Sabha, Kurukshetra, Jai Narayan Sharma and president of the Multan Parimandal, Karnal, Joginder Madan also addressed the gathering. Meanwhile, the Multan Sabha, Kurukshetra, in a unanimously passed resolution, thanked Hooda and Rajya Sabha member Ram Prakash as well as MP Naveen Jindal for the appointment of Arora.
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Record power generation
at HPGCL
Chandigarh, December 14 HPGCL had improved its own record of power geneation of 462.59 lakh units at a PLF of 89.42 per cent achieved on December 10 by generating about 17.35 lakh more units of electricity in a single day, HPGCL Managing Director Sanjeev Kaushal said here. He said the Panipat Thermal Power Plant had the total generating capacity of 1,360 MW. The Panipat Thermal Power Station-II, comprising two 210 MW units and two 250 MW units each, had been giving excellent performance and had achieved a PLF of 102.35 per cent during the month of November last, which was the highest ever genertion in a single month since the commissioning of the plant. The MD said on December 12, the PTPS-2 had generated 227,67 lakh units of power at a PLF of 103.11 per cent. —
UNI |
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167 fair price shops penalised
Chandigarh, December 14 A spokesman for the department said during the period 18 cases were registered with the police and 16 persons were arrested. Goods worth over Rs 3.78 lakh were seized from these traders. He said at present 9,552 fair price shops were functioning in the state, 6,888 of these in the rural areas. As many as 77 shops were located near industrial units and 22 near schools and hostels for providing goods to labour and students.
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No headway yet in Gurgaon firing case
Gurgaon, December 14 According to sources, Parteek had told the police that he had no enmity with anyone
and did not know the suspects. He was shot outside his house in Dayanand Colony by two unidentified youths on Friday evening. Though senior police officers are denying that Parteek had talked to them, sources in the police maintain that it is the case of enmity, as the suspects were aware of his whereabouts. DCP Rakesh Arya told The Tribune that Parteek had not talked to them. He said doctors had not yet given him permission to talk. The police could take action only after the statement of Parteek was recorded. |
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Two held for molesting girls
Gurgaon, December 14 The girls had complained yesterday that they were molested and beaten up by their landlord’s son, Vibhu. Daisy and Marry are still admitted in Sree Ram Hospital and their condition is said to be serious. Marry used to work in a call centre in Chandigarh and has recently shifted here to look for another job. The duo had taken an accommodation on rent from Krishan Kumar. They had shifted there two days ago. Daisy said, “When we took the room, the landlords behaved nicely, but in just one day they showed what kind of people they are. This is the worst experience of our lives.”
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Cold chains planned for 11 districts
Dabwali (Sirsa), December 14 The board will provide refrigerator vans in each district so that the produce of the farmers can be taken safely to the mandis or the processing plants. Interacting with farmers and entrepreneurs here recently, Shadi Lal Batra, chairman of the Haryana State Agriculture Marketing Board, said Rs 71 crore would be spent on this in Sirsa, Panchkula, Panipat, Hisar, Narnaul, Rohtak, Karnal, Gurgaon, Shahabad (Kurukshetra), Jhajjar and Sonepat. “An amount of Rs 13 crore has already been released for providing cold-chain related facilities in four mandis of the state,” Batra said. |
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Fire in plastic factory
Bahadurgarh, December 14 The fire broke out around 4 am. Watchmen on duty noticed the flames coming out from one of the rooms and informed the factory owner and the fire brigade office. Fire tenders took around two hours to control the fire. The Bahadurgarh police also rushed to the spot and inspected the situation. |
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State awarded
Chandigarh, December 14 Sumita Mishra Singh, director of the renewable energy department, Haryana, received the award at a function organised in Delhi today. Sushil Kumar Shinde, union minister for power, gave the award. |
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Chandigarh, December 14 A spokesman said the photographs in the size of 12" x 10", 15" x 12" and 20" x 16" should be submitted latest by December 29. — TNS
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Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and the Congress in the state, it seems, has switched over to election mode, if one goes by the tone and tenor of speeches of different political leaders, who spoke at the Kisan Rally organised here today.
