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Farmers oppose land acquisition move
Govt’s Failure to Hike State Advised Price
Don’s Exclusion from Academic Council
Activities at Sirsa Club come to a standstill
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Sampat Singh quits party posts
INLD gets into poll mode
Cases of false crimes exposed; complainants held
Minister announces grants for villages
Notice to Haryana House secy in recruitment case
Bottles of fake soda seized
3 killed in road mishap
Woman found murdered
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Farmers oppose land acquisition move
Yamunanagar, July 12 The farmers belonging to Udamgarh, Manakpur and Garibangra villages have refused the amount offered to them by the District Revenue Officer here. The government has decided to acquire 260 acres in these villages for the expansion of the Manakpur Industrial Area for the metal and plywood industry. The farmers claimed that the collector price for one acre was Rs 22 lakh while the market price was Rs 94 lakh in the three villages. However, the government had offered them only Rs 8 lakh per acre. They rued that all their attempts to get the right price for their land had been futile. They had met Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and also Union Tourism Minister Selja recently in this regard, but nothing came out of the meetings. The farmers said if the government could not provide them with a suitable price for their land, then it could provide them with agricultural land somewhere else. “We have no other source of income and are dependent on agricultural land alone. Where will we go if the government acquires our land? The government has offered us only Rs 8 lakh per acre. At least it should provide us suitable agricultural land somewhere else if it is adamant on acquiring our land” rued farmers Omkar Singh and Jaspal Singh of Udamgarh. District Revenue Officer RK Sharma said the price for the farmers’ land had been fixed by a committee headed by the Divisional Commissioner, Ambala, after making an assessment of the land in these three villages. “We have offered around Rs 12.5 lakh per acre, but none of the farmers has turned up,” he added. |
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Govt’s Failure to Hike State Advised Price
Chandigarh, July 12 Sources in the Agriculture Department informed TNS that this year the area under sugarcane was just 85,000 hectares. Last year, too, the area under sugar cane was quite less (94,000 hectares), but the government was hoping to increase the area under this crop this year by making it more renumerative for farmers. But with no announcement being made for an increase in the SAP, farmers have switched over to better paying crops like paddy. Last year, the government had raised the SAP by Rs 30 per quintal for each variety. It was after a gap of two years that the government had increased the SAP to Rs 168 per quintal for early-maturing, Rs 158 per quintal for mid-maturing and Rs 156 per quintal for late-maturing varieties so as to encourage farmers to grow more cane. This year, the SMP (statutory minimum price) has been hiked by the Central Government from Rs 82 per quintal to Rs 106 per quintal. But farmers in Haryana are not enthused as they are paid the SAP, which is higher than the SMP. Officials in the Agriculture Department, Haryana, informed TNS that the area under sugarcane cultivation was around 1.40 lakh hectares in 2007. With such a decrease in the area under cane cultivation, cane availability to the sugar mills is expected to be reduced by 45 per cent since year 2007. They fear that most of the sugar mills in the state will now operate for only 50 per cent of the cane crushing season. “The low availability of sugarcane this year will definitely impact sugar production in the state. With a reduction in the area under cane by 9,000 hectares, against sugar production of 20 lakh quintals last year, the production will come down to around 18 lakh quintals,” said a senior official in the Agriculture Department. The less availability of cane means that the 11 cooperative, four private and the HAFED sugar mill will not be able to utilise their capacities to the maximum and the number of cane crushing days in most mills will be reduced from the usual 150 days to 90 days. As against 170 lakh quintals of cane crushed by the cooperative sugar mills, only 155 lakh quintals of cane will be available for crushing this year. |
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Don’s Exclusion from Academic Council
Sirsa, July 12 Dr Raj Kumar Siwach, a Reader in the Public Administration Department of the university, had filed a complaint before the Lokayukta in which he had alleged that Bhardwaj had been passing arbitrary and illegal orders disregard to the statutory provisions to his detriment and in order to help another teacher of the
university. Dr Siwach stated in his complaint that he was entitled to be an ex officio member of the AC as per the provisions of the schedule to the Chaudhary Devi Lal University Act, 2003, on three grounds — being Dean of the faculty under sub-statute I (iv), being chairperson of the department under sub-statute I (viii) and being the senior most Reader in the department under
sub-statute II (ii). However, the complainant alleged that he was denied nomination to the AC in his capacity of being the senior most Reader of his department without any rhyme and reason and his claim was transferred to Dr Shweta Hooda of the Business Economics
department. The complainant had further alleged that while appointing him the chairperson of the Department of Public Administration under statute 22 (I) of the Act, the university mentioned “till further order” as the term of his office instead of the statutory term of three years. Similarly, while appointing him Dean of faculties under statute 20 (2) of the Act, the Vice-Chancellor again mentioned his term as “till further orders” instead of the statutory provision of three-year term. In his written reply filed before the Lokayukta, Bhardwaj denied all allegations of Dr Siwach and said the “complaint is false and has been filed to harass and blackmail him in order to pressurise him to accept his illegal designs and wishes.” Requesting the Lokayuta to dismiss the complaint with costs, the Vice-Chancellor further said in his reply that he reserved his rights to take criminal and other legal actions against the complainant in this regard. The Lokayukta observed that superintendent Kuldeep Kumar and law officer Baljit Kumar, who appeared on behalf of the university, pointed out that though there was no specific provision for curtailing the term of chairperson and dean; in actual practice such
appointments were made “till further orders.” Observing that the university could not have violated the statute or adopted a practice contrary to the provisions, the Lokayukta said the Vice-Chancellor shall explain within one month under what provision of the Act or statutes the appointments were not made for a full period of three years when separate procedure for removal before the expiry of full term existed. Dr Bhardwaj has also been asked to explain why Dr Siwach was denied nomination to the Academic Council while his being the senior most Reader in his department. Dr Bhardwaj said whatever actions had been taken by him were as per rules, regulations and practice. He said he would reply to the explanation of the Lokayukta on August 25, the next date of hearing. |
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Activities at Sirsa Club come to a standstill
Sirsa, July 12 Several prominent persons and old members of the club have questioned the legality of the orders wondering if one cannot play a simple game of cards or enjoy drinks in a club, where else is one expected to go for these activities. The Sirsa Club was set up 40 years ago in a sprawling area on the Dabwali road and has among its members several prominent politicians, doctors, advocates, businessmen and landlords. The club has over 500 members on its rolls and the Deputy Commissioner, Sirsa, as its ex
officio president. The club has many facilities, including a gymnasium, lawn tennis courts, badminton courts, table tennis, squash, billiard and several other indoor games. “We have been told by the local police to stop the consumption of liquor and the playing of cards in the club as they say these activities are illegal. We are planning to apply for a bar licence and will discuss the
issue with the members,” said Anil Doomra, secretary of the Sirsa Club. Though very few are willing to come on record, most of the members question the validity of these orders. Interestingly, no written orders have been passed by the authorities in this regard. However, Ajay Sharma, SHO of the city police station, Sirsa, who conveyed the orders to the club management, said he had been directed by his superiors to stop the activities as these were illegal. “The playing of cards is not banned in clubs in Haryana; nor does consuming one’s own liquor bought from legitimate outlets of the government in a club amount to an offence as the club is not a public place,” said Sunil Mehta, a member. Quoting a recent decision of the Mumbai High Court, a local senior advocate said the orders would not stand the test of law. Sirsa Deputy Commissioner Yudhvir Singh Khayalia, who is also the president of the Sirsa Club, said he had told the club management to desist from doing what was not right in the eyes of the law and what he could not explain if asked by someone directly or under the RTI Act. Khayalia said the club had a well-defined constitution and areas of activity and activities banned by the authorities figure nowhere in the constitution. |
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Sampat Singh quits party posts
Fatehabad, July 12 Though he had sent his resignations from the two posts on moral grounds immediately after the party’s debacle in the parliamentary elections, he has now asked the party to relinquish him from the above two posts with immediate effect, expressing his disillusionment over the manner he was being ignored, said sources. He has, however, said he would continue working as a sincere worker of the party. Sampat Singh has been firing one salvo after another against party’s top leadership after the INLD’s debacle in the parliamentary elections. His “65 reasons for party defeat in the parliamentary elections” caused a lot of embarrassment to the party leadership as Sampat Singh raised certain questions over the style of functioning of the top leadership of the party, which were hitherto considered taboo in a party like the INLD. Seeking immediate relinquishment from the post of secretary general of the party, Sampat Singh said there was no meaning of occupying this post, considered second only to the party supremo when the party did not deem it necessary to take him into confidence during the recent organisational reshuffle. “Hisar city INLD chief Joginder Kalho, who worked relentlessly for my elections in the Hisar parliamentary constituency, has been removed from his post without taking me into confidence. People have started believing that Kalho has been removed from his post only because he worked for my victory,” said Sampat Singh in his letter sent though email to the party office today. Earlier, Sampat Singh had sought relinquishment from the post of chief spokesperson of the party terming the post as superfluous. “Not a single press release has been made in my name by the party’s Chandigarh office after my appointment and even while issuing statements on issues like those relating to the Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission, which were followed exclusively by me, name of another particular leader was added before his name,” Sampat Singh said seeking his relinquishment from the post of party’s spokesperson. Sampat Singh said he had never run after posts. He said even after relinquishment from the two posts, he would continue working sincerely as ordinary worker of the party. NS Malhan, secretary in the INLD’s Chandigarh office, however, said he was not aware of any such development. |
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INLD gets into poll mode
Sirsa, July 12 Ajay Singh Chautala, Rajya Sabha MP and secretary-general of the party, addressed INLD workers from Dabwali and Ellenabad today. Earlier, he addressed a meeting of party workers on Saturday. Exhorting party workers to be prepared for the coming Assembly elections, Ajay Singh alleged that a false and malicious propaganda had been initiated against the party by some vested interests, who did not want the INLD to come to power. He said farmers were still smarting from scarcity of power and irrigation water and the government had tried to rub salt on their injuries by increasing the prices of petrol and diesel. “The Congress had made several promises to farmers during the parliamentary elections but instead of fulfilling those promises, the government has put extra economic burden on them,” he alleged. Ajay Singh exhorted workers to become volunteers of the newly set up Jannayak Sewa Dal that was aimed at taking up social activities by following the path shown by former Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal. |
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Solar eclipse fair: Over 15 lakh visitors expected
Chandigarh, July 12 This was stated by Minister of State for Tourism, Forests, Sports and Youth Affairs and Environment Kiran Choudhry while addressing a press conference here today. She said the Haryana Tourism Department was all geared up to market itself during the eclipse, which would see pilgrims from all over India and abroad. “We are having the second of the triple eclipse slated in this year and this one is stated to be the longest of the three. We are expecting over 15 lakh visitors in Kurukshetra. Screens will be set up at various places in Kurukshetra to showcase places of tourist interest in Haryana while the Mahabharta will also be screened. A light and sound show at Jyotisar and the Sri Krishana Museum along with Panorma Science Centre will remain open on the eve of the solar eclipse throughout the night,” she said. While food stalls by students of Kurukshetra’s Institute of Hotel Management would be set up near Brahmasarovar, accommodation and food would also be available at adjoining tourist complexes of the department, he added. Meanwhile, Choudhry said India’s first open air museum, Bhima Devi Museum, would be inaugurated by Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda tomorrow. She said Bhima Devi Museum had been restored and upgraded by the Tourism Department as a world-class museum. Stating that the development of Bhima Devi Temple had been carried out at a cost of Rs 160 lakh, Choudhry said the temple and Pinjore Gardens would be developed as an integrated tourist resort. The minister said water baulis, a source of water for Pinjore Gardens, damaged in 1254 AD by invaders, had been restored. She said 85 sculptures and artifacts were on display at the internal and external open-air museum. The rest of the artifacts and statues had been placed on specially carved stone pillars all along the walkway on the museum campus. |
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Cases of false crimes exposed; complainants held
Gurgaon, July 12 According to senior police officials, several cases of miscreants lodging false complaints to cover up their wrongdoings and shift the focus elsewhere to mislead the police have come to light in the millennium city. In a recent case, Naresh Saluja, who worked as a salesman with some detergent distributor, lodged a complaint that some miscreants had snatched Rs 3 lakh from him at gunpoint when he was going to deposit the said amount in a bank. “However, our investigations revealed that Naresh had himself asked his friends to stage a snatching drama to get easy money,” DCP (west) Rakesh Arya disclosed here yesterday. Arya said in a bid to cover up his ploy, the youth tried to mislead the police by telling a false and fabricated story. “During the course of investigations, we discovered that another servant of the distributor used to accompany Naresh to bank to deposit cash in the bank. However, on that day, Naresh refused to take the servant along. We worked on this angle and the case was solved,” said Arya. The DCP said the accomplices of the accused had been arrested and the cash recovered from their possession. In another case, a local resident, Rinku Gupta, recently lodged a complaint with the police that some car-borne persons took him near Leisure Valley forcibly and looted Rs 63,000 in cash from him. “In this case, we smelt something fishy as the alleged looters had not taken away the complainant’s cell-phone. On being questioned about it, he could not give a reasonable explanation. We got the call record examined, which revealed the truth,” Arya
maintained. The DCP said actually, Gupta had committed to pay a certain amount to one Vipin Kumar. “It seems that he could not arrange the required money and was beaten up by Vipin and his friends for not making the payment as per his commitment. Following this, Gupta cooked up a story and lodged a complaint with the police that he was kidnapped and looted,” he asserted. As of now, legal action is being taken against the accused for misleading the police by lodging a false
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Minister announces grants for villages
Kaithal, July 12 The government has also spent Rs 117.98 crore on providing potable water in the district as compared to Rs 27.71 crore provided by the previous government during its five-year tenure. A waterworks at a cost of Rs 18 crore will be constructed in Patti Khot to further augment water supply to Kaithal town, following which Kaithal town will be covered by canal-based water supply as the project will provide 4.5 crore litre additional potable water. This was stated by Power and Public Health Minister Randeep Singh Surjewala during a press conference at Manas village near here today. He said 70-km-long sewer lines had been laid down in Kaithal as against 20 km by the previous government during its five-year tenure. On the fourth day of his tour to Kaithal Assembly constituency, Surjewala announced grants worth crores for various development works in Manas, Baba Ladana, Chak Padla, Chakchhot, Budhakhera, Magho Majri, Sangat Pura Nand Singh Wala, Sanghan, Mal Kheri and
Dillonwali villages. |
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Notice to Haryana House secy in recruitment case
Chandigarh, July 12 It was done to prevent prospective applicants in Haryana from forwarding their applications. Also, the advertisement was for recruiting 13 clerks. In all, 16 candidates were selected, an action which was illegal. After preliminary hearing, Justice Ranjit Singh issued notice of motion for August 24 to the Haryana Vidhan Sabha secretary and the 16 selected candidates.
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Bottles of fake soda seized
Panipat, July 12 According to SP Shrikant Jadhav, the police had received a tip-off that some miscreants were using one of the houses in the village to store bottles of fake soda. On the basis of this information, the police carried out a raid and seized the bottles from there. The SP said the police found some persons unloading bottles of fake soda from a mini-truck and taking the stocks to the house of Surjit Singh, son of Maha Singh, who had rented the house to Raju, son of Deshu, at present residing in the Tehsil Camp area in Panipat city. The police arrested Surjit Singh from the spot. Surjit Singh told the police that the soda bottles belonged to the Arjun soda water factory located in the Dutta Colony on the Assandh road, which was yesterday raided by the police. The police chief said the department also raided a storehouse in the Desraj Colony from where it seized around 3,800 bottles of fake soft drinks of different makes. He said cases were registered against the owners of the store, Dharambir, a native of Ahar village, at present residing in Sectors 13 and 17, and Rajkumar, a resident of Patel Nagar, along with Surjit Singh. He claimed that the police had so far seized around 1,000 bottles of fake soda and soft drinks. |
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3 killed in road mishap
Jhajjar, July 12 They were on the way to Hisar from Gurgaon. The truck driver managed to speed away after the incident. Later, the police, on getting information, rushed to the spot and took all injured to the PGIMS, Rohtak. Ram Niwas and Ravinder reportedly succumbed to their injuries on the way while the condition of Satish, Virender and Surender was stated to be critical. The police has registered a case against the truck driver in this regard. |
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Woman found murdered
Kaithal, July 12 According to reports received here today, Mewa Singh, a former sarpanch of Ratta Khera village in Guhla subdivision in this district, was staying at the Vakil Colony, Cheeka, and had employed Pargat of Harsa Sinna village in Amritsar district for work at his residence. Mewa Singh had gone to his native village early morning yesterday. When he returned late in the evening, he found his wife Jasbir Kaur lying dead. She had allegedly been strangled with a dupatta. He found cash and jewellery missing from the house. The servant and his wife had fled. Mewa Singh alleged that his servant had committed the crime and fled on his motorcycle. The police has registered a case. The motorcycle allegedly taken by the servant had been recovered by the police from near a drain today. |
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