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Lok Sabha Polls
Hisar, January 8 All eyes are now on Indian National Lok Dal supreme Om Parkash Chautala's sons Ajay and Abhey Chautala, Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda's son Deepender Singh Hooda and former Chief Minister Bhajan Lal's younger son Kuldeep Bishnoi. The Chautala brothers have already shown their political acumen having grown into politicians in their own right. However, this year they shoulder the responsibility of bringing their party back in the reckoning of corridors of political power, first by ensuring a massive win in the Lok Sabha elections and then the state Assembly polls due February next year. Both brothers have been on the move in different parts of Haryana canvassing support of the voters, especially after the INLD reached an electoral alliance with the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP). Their task has been made a tad difficult by the resistance from BJP workers who remain opposed to the poll arrangement with the Chautalas. Nevertheless, the duo has been on the job. Bhajan Lal's younger son Kuldeep Bishnoi, too, has over the years emerged as a leader in his own right. This has been more so after his father was denied the office of the Chief Minister of Haryana in 2005 when he took up the cudgels for himself and his father and floated his own political party - the Haryana Janhit Congress (BL). Bishnoi has proclaimed
himself as an aspirant for the post of the Chief Minister and the “election year” will put to test everything he has by way of resources. Although, the failure of his party to reach an alliance with either the BJP or the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has given him a jolt, yet Haryana will watch him closely as the state inches towards the next Assembly poll. The youngest of the star sons is Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda's US-educated son Deepender Hooda. He will be facing the electorate in the next Lok Sabha elections for the first time in his own right. The last time he won the Rohtak Lok Sabha seat in a byelection, he was a novice who won because of his father. However, he has shown sharp political acumen and has learnt the tricks of the trade rather quickly. Over the past three years, he has assiduously nurtured his constituency in every possible way. That he happens to be the Chief Minister's son came in very handy. But to give him his due, the Hooda junior has been able to bring to his constituency a slew of central projects to his constituency through sheer hard work and persistence in these three years. The six-laning of the Delhi-Rohtak Highway, an Indian Institute of Management (IIM) for Rohtak, several railway overbridges, rail links and many other educational projects financed by the Centre were sanctioned only because of his efforts. This should stand him in good stead. However, this year, he will be compared to his counterparts the Chautala brothers and Kuldeep Bishnoi who all are several years senior to him as ultimately in a few years, he too like the rest of star sons be in the reckoning for the office of the Chief Minister of Haryana. In this comparison, he may feel the pinch of having not yet created for himself a niche in areas other than his own constituency.
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State’s help sought in drafting welfare schemes
Chandigarh, January 8 The schemes like life insurance, medical insurance, disability pension and providing access to short-term loans for buying equipment, have found many takers in other states. Other than the neighbouring state of Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Karnataka, too, have sought help of the state labour department, for formulating similar schemes for their respective states. Labour commissioner NC Wadhwa says, "Last year, we got almost 12 schemes approved by the Haryana Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board. Generally, schemes are formulated for the workers in the organised sector, but we decided to give attention to this underprivileged section. The welfare schemes have now been appreciated by the ministry of labour, and other states are looking at launching similar schemes," he said. Though building and construction workers welfare boards have been established by other states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Maharashtra, but none had launched as many welfare schemes as Haryana. The major success achieved by Haryana has been the launch of "Jan Shree Bima Yojana" - a life insurance cover for construction workers who are registered with the board (by paying a registration fee of Rs 25 and Rs 5 as monthly contribution). Over 5,000 workers have been registered with the board under this scheme, which is now going to be implemented in other states. A medical insurance for serious ailments, too, has been started, wherein the insured persons and five other members of his family are covered for treatment up to Rs 30,000. Other than this, the state government has introduced mobile ration depots and mobile dispensaries for this unorganised segment of workers. "We have also introduced a scheme wherein these workers along with five other family members are allowed to visit a place of worship or a historical place free of cost, once in four years. To ensure a better future for their children, we have allowed them transportation from their houses to the nearest school and provide them free books once a year,” said Wadhwa. He added that this year too, they would come up with more welfare schemes for these workers as well as worker in the organised sector. "The thrust will also be on checking child labour,"
he added.
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Lohri festivities with a message
Karnal, January 8 The festival, a component of the awareness campaign, “Mission - 2010” launched by NIFAA, a socio-cultural organisation working for the eradication of social evils, to eliminate female foeticide, will be a mega affair this year with about 5,000 parents taking part in the celebrations along with their newly-born baby girls. Lohri is considered a festival of prosperity and is celebrated to mark the harvesting of winter crops.The parents blessed with a son celebrate the first Lohri of the new arrival with great enthusiasm. However, the celebrations are not held at all or are held on a low key in case a girl child is born in a family. The festival is also an attempt to send a message against gender discrimination. Volunteers of NIFAA are visiting various parts of the state and contacting maternity homes and the birth registration office to enroll the newly-born girl child for the festival and a large number of parents in the targeted group in Karnal, Kurukshetra, Panipat, Kaithal and Yamunanagar districts have consented to attend the function. All participating parents will be honoured with special appreciation certificates/mementos on the occasion while two prizes each for rural and urban girls will be given to the healthiest and the well -dressed and the youngest girls. Apart from Lohri rituals, NIFAA artistes will present a
cultural programme. Asha Hooda, vice-president of the Haryana Council for Child Welfare, will be the chief guest at the inaugural function at NDRI while vice-president Shakti Singh will be the guest of honour. In spite of a ban on pre-natal sex determination test, the practice is continuing in Punjab and Haryana, notorious for female foeticide and the skewed sex ratio of about 800. A survey in Haryana revealed that an alarming 95 per cent of the amniocentesis scans were being carried out for sex determination, which laid the foundation for female foeticide. NIFAA had celebrated Lohri in 2006 with 114 newly born female babies and was able to persuade 1,200 parents of newborn girls to join the festivities last year. The main objective of the festival was to make people realise that like a son, a daughter is also the blessing of god and must be accepted as a divine gift.
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A glimpse of traditional art
Panipat, January 8 The work to set up the museum was assigned to the Haryana chapter of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH). The museum has been especially established for disseminating information about archaeology, history, art and crafts of the state with a special emphasis on the Panipat battles that marked the turning point in the history of the country. The display of antiquities, inscription, sculptures, arms, pottery, old and valuable documents, jewellery and art and craft objects, have been augmented by maps and write-ups with photographs. These equipments enable the students, visitors and scholars to understand the state’s glorious past and its significant contribution to the cultural and political history of the country. The main idea behind setting up this museum was to create awareness among the visitors about the three successive battles of Panipat, which virtually changed the course of Indian history. Through display, an attempt has been made to provide an insight into the acts of bravery of some valiant and patriotic warriors, who sacrificed their lives here. These include Hemu, a local hero, Raja Surja Mal of Bharatpur, Vikramaditya (Vikramajit) of Gwalior, Maharaja of Patiala, Sher Shah Suri, Sadashiv Rao Bhau, Vishwas Rao Peshwa, Tukuj Shinde and Ganpat Rai. Enlarged photographs of a large number of important miniatures, mostly from Baburnama and Akbarnama, relating to these battles and personalities connected therewith, had been obtained from the National Museum of New Delhi, the British Library, Victoria, and the Albert Museum of London. A large number of contemporary weapons, armoury and guns had been acquired through loan from the Archaeological Survey of India. A large number of blowups of the buildings and sites of the region, which are important from the archaeological as well as the historical points of view, had been provided by the Archaeological Survey of India for display in the museum. The photocopies of many original documents and handwritten letters concerning this theme had been procured from the National Archives of
India, the government of Maharashtra, Rampur Raza Library and Library of Aligarh Muslim Univesity. Akbar’s “farman” concerning Hemu is one such important handwritten document, a copy of which had been obtained from the National Archives, New Delhi. The Department of Archaeology and Museums, Haryana, also associated with this project, had donated a large number of items for display in this museum. These include replicas of a large number of artifacts in the form of status, pottery and coins that were collected from the excavated sites in the state. In addition, a large number of items of traditional art had been procured from various districts of Haryana with the help of the district administration, which exhibits a glimpse of the state’s
traditional art.
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Cong plans to project ‘philanthropic’ work in Bihar
Faridabad, January 8 The state government has adopted Sahabad-Mushahri village in Saharsa district in Bihar. All 233 houses in the village were either washed away or damaged in floods last year. The government has constructed the houses and other infrastructure in the village. The formal handing over of the houses to beneficiaries will take place later this month at a public function in the village in which Haryana Chief Minister will be the chief guest. According to Congress leaders, the village is predominantly inhabited by Dalits. Haryana was also the first state to dispatch relief material to the flood affected areas of Bihar. President of the state Congress Phool Chand Maulana said the gesture shown by Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda was above partisan politics. Chaudhary Ranbir Singh, CM’s father and the only surviving member of the Constituent Assembly that drafted the country's Constitution, was the guiding force behind this act, he added. Although the party did not plan to rake it up during elections, such gestures did form part of public debates in a democratic system, Maulana said, adding that the Haryana government's gesture assumed added significance especially in the wake of recent incidents of terror attacks in the country. The most encouraging fact was that the government had adopted a village that was mainly inhabited by Dalits. The Congress leader said the party would face the coming Lok Sabha elections and the subsequent Assembly elections on the plank of development works done by its
government. However, the Congress is going through tough time in Faridabad due to differences between senior leaders. While there are several aspirants for the party ticket from the Faridabad parliamentary constituency, the sitting Congress MP is being widely accused of ignoring the
constituency. Meanwhile, sources said the Bihar government would soon hold a public function for handing over houses to the beneficiaries. The date would be finalised after confirmation from the Haryana government. Earlier, additional deputy commissioner Sonepat Anita Yadav had visited the village in Bihar along with a team of officers to access the damage. The state government has constructed 233 houses, a temple, school, and roads, and also lighted up the village with solar light
system. The salient feature of the entire exercise by the state government was that the money was raised through donations and contribution from employees and school children, among others.
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Another mega power plant to come up in Jhajjar
Jhajjar, January 8 People of the region are enthused about this event to be organised on January 10 while on the other hand preparations are in full swing. The district administration has been making elaborate arrangements for the free flow of vehicles and the safety of the people, who will participate in the function. Different routes have been decided to ensure smooth movement of vehicles coming to the venue. Various roads, including Dadri, Matanhel, Chhuchhakwas, Jahajgarh and Beri road linking Khanpur Khurd village, are being re-carpeted or repaired. Besides, many other alternative roads have been prepared in order to check traffic congestion. Taking a lesson from “bijli rally” held in October 2007, in Jharli village where scores of people could not reach due to traffic jam, the administration has decided to install a significant number of signboards at important places displaying the alternative routes leading to the venue. Apart from this, adequate numbers of police personnel would be deployed to regulate the vehicular traffic during the day. Deputy commissioner Nitin Yadav said nearly six acres of land near the venue would be reserved for parking. Over 10,000 chairs would be placed for the comfort of the participants, who would be served sweets and other eatables by Jhajjar Power Limited. Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda would be the chief guest on the occasion while several Congress leaders, including Motilal Vohra, in charge of the party affairs in the state, are expected to address the gathering. According to reports, the 1320 MW plant, costing about Rs 6,000 crore, will be built by CLP Limited, a Hong Kong-based company, and it will begin generating power within the next three years.
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Global contest on diabetes
Gurgaon, January 8 The competition seeks expressions of the diabetes journey through artwork, essays, poetry and photographs. Children or adults inspired by the triumphs and challenges of dealing with diabetes or those who care for them are encouraged to enter the contest. More than 800 entries were received from around the world during the first leg of the competition held in 2008. Anjali, a schoolgirl from Chennai, won the grand prize last year. Her creative bid to increase awareness on diabetes was a game-board, which she created to represent that “one can always maximize his or her benefit by playing right”. The winners of other categories of this global competition were from the US, Japan and Spain. “’Inspired by Diabetes’ is an initiative to begin a mass movement to combat diabetes. With changing lifestyles, diabetes has grown manifold and is silently taking lives across nations and age-groups. Therefore, it is imperative to spread awareness to curb the toll of this dreaded disorder,” said Sandeep Gupta, chairman and managing director, Lilly India. The underlying idea behind the campaign is to bring families and people with diabetes together to create awareness about the global problem of diabetes and draw particular attention to people who do not have the resources required to fight the disease. "We were humbled by the response to the campaign and the depth of personal experiences communicated in the stories and art work during the first call for submissions," observed Thomas Danne, president, ISPAD. This September, the grand prize winners of the 2007-08 “Inspired by Diabetes” contest were recognized in Rome during the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), he added. People who enter the contest receive two “blue circle” diabetes pins, representing the global symbol of diabetes. For each set of pins distributed, one US dollar will be donated to the International Diabetes Federation's Life for a Child Programme, which provides life-saving diabetes supplies to more than 1,100 children in 18 developing countries. "This competition provides an opportunity to the people affected by diabetes to connect. Through various forms of self-expression, it is possible to gain a better understanding of how this disease impacts the individual, the family and the community," said Dr Martin Silink, president, IDF. To enter the contest, those interested can download submission forms from www.inspiredbydiabetes.com. The last date for receipt of entries is March 31, 2009.
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Winged visitors throng Sultanpur park
Sultanpur, January 8 Apart from a variety of migratory birds from Siberia, Europe and Central Asia, the bird sanctuary and its surrounding areas have also become winter home to several Indian species of birds. “As of now, around 32 - 33 species of migratory birds have arrived, which is in addition to the scores of other birds dwelling on the wetland,” says Shahid Khan, wildlife inspector in charge of the establishment. Khan reveals that a group of 44 flamingos had recently arrived from Kutch. “This time, these birds have arrived a little earlier than their usual time, which is in February,” he maintains. The other species of birds arriving at the lake include pintail, shoveller, wigeon, gargeney, coot, rosy pelican, white-eyed potchard, Siberian cranes, geese, darters, painted storks, etc.. Seeds of different types of fish are also put in the lake for the consumption of birds thronging the place. “We have arranged seeds of rohu, katla and midgull fish for the winged visitors,” he adds.
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Sirsa leads in kinnow production
Sirsa, January 8 Kinnows are grown on over 7,000 hectares in the district this year. The state government has recently started a kinnow grading and packing plant at Abubshahr in the district and would soon set up a food processing plant there. Talking to mediapersons here, KV Singh, OSD to Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, said the government had taken several steps for providing impetus to horticulture in the state in general and Sirsa in particular. Enumerating various development works initiated by the government, he said krishi vyapaar kendras would be opened in all districts to give a boost to the export of horticultural crops. These centres would also disseminate information related to traditional as well as horticultural crops. Recently, such centres had been set up in Hisar and Abubshahr. "At present, the state budget for horticulture is Rs 235 crore as compared to Rs 96 lakh in 2004-05. Sirsa is the front runner in the production of kinnows. Kinnow orchards are spread over an area of 7,000 hectares in the district which will ensure yield of 40,000 metric tonnes this year,” KV Singh said. He said Abubshahr was being developed as a kinnow hub and for this purpose a kinnow processing plant was being set up there. Similar hubs were being set up at different places in the state according to the production of that area, he said. These commodity hubs included a potato hub in Shahbad,a tomato hub in Karnal, an onion Hub in Jhajjar and a mushroom hub in Sonepat. Besides, a modern terminal market was also being set up at Gannur in Sonepat over an area of 500 acres for promoting fruit exports. All facilities relating to trading in fruits would be available in this market, he informed. He said keeping in view the interest of the farmers and rising production, a citrus nursery would be set up in Mangeana subdivision of Dabwali in collaboration with the Israeli government. Many kinnow varieties would be cultivated in the nursery. Similarly, a vegetable nursery would be set up in Karnal in collaboration with the Israeli government. KV Singh said farmers would be provided better irrigation facilities. For the past 28 years, the water of Teja Khera minor had not reached the tail-ends, but now with renewed efforts the same had been made possible. The Ottu Lake was also developed at a cost of Rs 70 crore to augment water supply for irrigation. The digging work of the second phase of the lake had been started, he said, adding that after the completion of its digging work, the lake would irrigate 18,000 acres in the district. He said many development works had been carried out in the district during the tenure of the Hooda government. A sum of Rs 350 crore was being spent on strengthening the power infrastructure of the district. The process of construction of 15 power substations had been started in the district out of which one 440 KV substation would be set up at Nuhiawali and one 220 KV substation at Chormar. KV Singh said preparations were afoot for the "vishwas rally" to be organised at Dabwali in the district on February 8. He claimed that a large number of people would attend this rally to express their confidence in the social welfare policies started by Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. The rally would also be addressed by Union Food Processing Minister Subod Kant Sahai, besides the Chief Minister and several other national-level leaders. KV Singh further said the same day the Chief Minister would also lay the foundation stone of many projects and inaugurate several completed projects in the district.
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Inter-varsity bodybuilding contest
Gurgaon, January 8 Jatin, who is studying in B.Com second year in Moti Lal Nehru College, Delhi, is a resident of Patel
Nagar here. He has recently won the gold medal in inter-college bodybuilding competition held for all city colleges. He won the title in 70 kg weight category. Jatin says, “I just participated in the competition as my friends asked me to without knowing that I would be the winner and now I have won the competition I will try my best to win the other one
as well”. After winning the medal, he is now working hard under the guidance of Uttam Rawat in a gym in sector 15 here. Jatin tells he started his training under Anil Kadiyan two and a half years back but now he is working under the guidance of Uttam. Jatin is inspired by Salman Khan as he feels that he is the only one actor who has started the trend of six-pack abs after
which all other started preferring it. Jatin is quite excited about the competition and is continuously doing hard work so that he can win the competition as he proudly says, "I am working three to four hour daily in the gym as I want to win the competition at any cost. My coach is good at training and is making me
more strong”. Meanwhile, his coach Uttam says, "I am proud of Jatin as he won the competition. He has been very regular and I will pray for him so that he can won lots of competitions since it is a matter of proud for me
as well”.
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Red Cross reaches out to differently abled
Kaithal, January 8 The beneficiaries were given 135 tricycles, 27 wheelchairs , 36 hearing aids , 30 crutches , 23 artificial limbs, 48 calipers and 80 specially made shoes. Kumar said the beneficiaries were identified through a survey conducted by the district administration .She called upon the people to give some amount from their earnings for noble causes.She said many people needed help and everyone should come forward to help such persons. She said the differently abled should be rehabilitated so that they became self- reliant to some extent and did not consider themselves a burden on their families or society. She asked the officers to start a fresh survey to identify the differently abled for pension to which they were entitled under the schemes launched by the government.
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Panipat to spend more on development
Panipat, January 8 The administration has already spent Rs 83.5 crore of which Rs 52 crore was spent on waterworks, drainage and cleanliness, besides improving the condition of the roads. Deputy Commissioner Vijay Singh Dahiya said during the present rule, Rs 12.5 crore was spent on revamping the drainage system in the city. The city generally faced drainage problems especially during the rainy season. Shortcomings in the system led to the accumulation of waste water on the city roads creating hardships for commuters. The Deputy Commissioner said with so much money being spent on improving the drainage, the problem was likely to be resolved soon. He said 76 drains were being constructed and 1 lakh meter pipelines were being laid in the district. Along with, a project to lay 37,000-meter long sewage pipelines was also under way. He said the drainage problem could not have been solved without extending the system to villages around the city. Therefore, 31 additional drains were being constructed in 10 villages. A sum of Rs 3.81 crore was being spent on this project. The government had also sanctioned Rs 6.29 crore to be spent by the village panchayats of the district on various development works. Besides, Rs 3 crore was being spent on link roads connecting the city to different villages. The PWD was also spending Rs 18.55 crore on rural roads, the Deputy Commissioner added.
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Dabwali school holds annual function
Dabwali (Sirsa), January 8 Alka Yadav, district social welfare officer, was the chief guest, while DD Verma, a retired education officer, presided over it. The programme began with the rendition of “Saraswati
Vandana” by the students. The students presented a myriad of cultural activities on the occasion. The guests particularly applauded choreography on the song “Chak De India”. In her address, Alka said co-curricular activities were as important as the studies and the schools should work for the all-round development of students. She also distributed prizes among the brilliant students of the school.
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Children Science Congress
Kaithal, January 8 They were awarded a gold medal and certificates of appreciation on behalf of the National Children Science Congress. The competition was held from December 27 to 31 in Dimapur in Nagaland. Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, former President, inaugurated the event. Dr Suman Nijhawan,regional director, DAV schools, and principal OS DAV, said Arundhati Ahlawat, an OS DAV student, led her team comprising Tishara, Yash Mittal, Akash and Shivam
Chawla.
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