Hisar, April 5
Opposition parties in Haryana today came down heavily on Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, accusing him of promoting regionalism.

At separate press conferences here, Indian National Lok Dal leader Abhey Singh Chautala and Haryana Janhit Congress (BL) supremo Kuldeep Bishnoi said Hooda was using his office to promote his own interests and that of his son, Lok Sabha member Deepender Hooda.

While Bishnoi said Hooda was showering a largesse only on his assembly segment Kiloi, Chautala said Hooda had proved that he was for all practical purposes the Chief Minister of Rohtak alone.

Both leaders said there was acute shortage of power and water in the state and the government had no idea of how to resolve the crisis.

They said Hooda had promised a round-the-clock supply of power by March 2010. Instead, he had added to the woes of the state by failing to manage even the water resources.

Chautala said the Congress had failed to curb inflation. As a result, the common man was at the receiving end.

Bishnoi accused Hooda of shielding ASP Ashok Sheoran who headed the now disbanded STF and was caught extorting money from businessmen.

He said the government had not handed over investigation to the CBI and it was now trying to hush up the probe.

He denied the charge made at the Punjabi Mahasammelan here yesterday that as Chief Minister, his father Bhajan lal had not promoted the interests of Punjabis. He said Bhajan Lal had eight Punjabis as ministers in his Cabinet.

Chautala said the Hooda government was sure to collapse under its own weight within a few months. “As soon as the HJC legislators who have defected to the Congress are thrown out of the assembly, the government will collapse,” he claimed.

While Chautala said his party would participate in the forthcoming Zila Parishad and municipal elections, Bishnoi said his party would rather concentrate on enrolling new 
members.

He, however, said HJC leaders were free to contest the poll as Independents. 

Chandigarh, April 5
The clash between Haryana Minister of State for Home Gopal Kanda and certain INLD workers in Sirsa on April 3 has blown into a controversy with INLD leaders demanding his resignation.

Former Chairman of the National Minorities Commission and Rajya Sabha member Tarlochan Singh today wrote to Haryana Governor Jagannath Pahadia, demanding that Kanda be sacked for his “objectionable behaviour” at a public place.

Tarlochan Singh, who was elected to the Rajya Sabha with the support of the INLD about six years ago, said the behaviour of Kanda had proved that he was unworthy of remaining on the coveted post.

“How can you allow a minister to abuse public men and order that they be shot just because they were exercising their democratic right to protest,” he wrote to the Governor.

Tarlochan Singh said every minister functioned under certain laid down rules and could not perform such “illegal acts” and that too in public.

On the other hand, Kanda said it was a case of “a thief pleading innocence even in the face of overwhelming evidence that he is guilty.”

The minister said it was an open secret that the INLD workers and leaders had made a murderous attack on him.

It was only in self-defence that he had resisted them, he claimed.

He claimed that many of those who attacked him were known to have a criminal background and several had cases registered against them, which ranged from rape to murder.

Kanda said ever since Bhupinder Singh Hooda had formed government in the state for the second time, the INLD leadership had been “day-dreaming” of removing him from power through illegal means. But, this would not be allowed.

Fatehabad, April 5
The INLD legislator from Ellenabad, Abhey Singh Chautala, today warned that his party would organise a major demonstration at Sirsa in cases criminal cases registered against his party workers in connection with Saturday’s incident involving minister Gopal Kanda were not withdrawn by April 19.

Chautala was here to meet his party workers for discussing a strategy for the forthcoming elections to the Panchayati Raj institutions and urban bodies.

Chautala alleged that false and fabricated cases had been registered against his workers, who were only making an appeal for a bandh.

He said the minister who has been shown on a television channel beating his workers and asking his gunmen to shoot them, had not been booked, despite complaints.

He alleged that Gopal Kanda and his brother Gobind Kanda had entered into a scuffle with his workers without any provocation and used abusive language.

He said the INLD workers would not be cowed by the “dictatorial attitude” of the government.

Abhey Singh warned that the bandh on April 3 during the visit of Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda was “only the beginning” and demonstrations would be held in other districts visited by Hooda visited in future.

Abhey Singh claimed that his party was well-prepared for the elections to the Panchayati Raj institutions and local bodies. His party would contest the elections on the party symbol only if the Congress and the BJP did so, he added.

Chandigarh, April 5
The Haryana government today removed all stock limit requirements on mustard, thus letting the mustard traders and manufacturers in the state have a free run.

The move will also encourage unreported sale of mustard, thus causing a huge loss to the state as it loses on VAT and market fee.

Official sources informed The Tribune that the stock limit of 1,500 quintals imposed on mustard manufacturers was removed today and a notification to this effect would be issued tomorrow.

This means that they can pile up as much mustard as possible and sell them at a price much above the minimum support price announced for the crop.

The move comes at a time when the crop is already trading at Rs 350- Rs 450 per quintal over and above the MSP of Rs 1,830 per quintal.

This will also encourage mustard purchases off the mandis and traders and manufacturers will buy the crop directly from farmers. This means that the state government will lose out on VAT and market fee for all such unrecorded transactions.

Though the government officials deny that this move can further jack up prices of the mustard crop, but if a large-scale hoarding of the crop is to begin (as is possible with the removal of the stock limit), prices can go up further than the current market price of Rs 2,200-Rs 2,300 per quintal.

There is already a huge gap in the demand and supply of edible oil. By allowing manufacturers to stock as much as possible, the gap is likely to widen and the prices can go up further.

It is alleged that the government has buckled under the pressure of the powerful mustard traders/manufacturers lobby, which had been demanding that the stock limit be removed.

These traders/manufacturers, with the active support of certain politicians, had presented their case before the state government saying that the traders and manufacturers had been classified under one head, while imposing a stock limit.

They claimed that the traders were also the mustard oil manufacturers so the stock limits were not valid as manufacturers always had high stockpiles.

However, by removing the stock limit, these manufacturers would no longer be under the purview of the district authorities.

This means that they cannot be checked for hoarding mustard, if that be the case.

As against the total mustard arrivals of 57,000 tonnes in various mandis of the state last year, as much as 60,000 tonnes of mustard arrivals is expected this year. HAFED, which purchases mustard on behalf of NAFED, has already entered the mandis and started making purchases at Dadri, Bhiwani, Rewari and Narnaul.

It will start purchasing mustard in Hisar from tomorrow.

Chandigarh, April 5
Though wheat procurement season has started, but the grain is yet to arrive in nine of the 21 districts of Haryana. As the wheat procurement season entered its fifth day today, the grain has started trickling only in few districts. Bhiwani, Hisar, Jhajjar, Jind, Kaithal, Kurukshetra, Narnaul and Sirsa have not witnessed any arrivals till date.

According to information available with The Tribune, the total wheat arrival in the state till date is 1,03,855 metric tonnes, with the maximum arrivals recorded in Palwal (78,454 quintals). In Mewat, as much as 6,491 metric tonnes of wheat has arrived till date, while in neighbouring Gurgaon, the total arrival so far is 6,228 metric tonnes.

At other places like Sonepat (4,505 metric tonnes), Rewari (1,191 metric tonnes) and Faridabad (3,701 metric tonnes), the procurement has begun from today only, while in Ambala, Karnal, Panchkula, Panipat Rohtak and Yamunanagar, the crop has just started trickling in for the past two days only.

It is learnt that till date, the maximum crop has been lifted by the Food Corporation of India (40,956 metric tonnes), followed by the Food and Supplies Department (28,010 metric tonnes) and HAFED (15,647 metric tonnes) and Haryana Warehousing Corporation (15,244 metric tonnes). Confed has so far purchased just 3,993 metric tonnes of wheat.

Interestingly, the high tax structure in the state has again led to private traders and agri corporates from making an entry and purchasing wheat. So far, just 5 metric tonnes of wheat (4 metric tonnes in Ambala and 1 metric tonne in Faridabad) have been picked up by the private traders - all flour millers.

Agriculture department officials said though Haryana had been expecting a bumper crop this year, the variation in day and night temperatures (with high day temperature and low temperature at night) had led to a slight delay in maturing of the crop. However, there is nothing to worry, reassure officials.

Haryana is expecting 70 lakh metric tonnes of wheat arrivals this year as compared to 69.24 lakh metric tonnes of wheat arrival in mandis of the state last year. “The total market arrivals this year will be more than the total wheat market arrivals last year. We expect the arrivals to go up in the next three days and the procurement will be on at full swing,” said Balraj Singh, director, Food and Supplies, Haryana.

Chandigarh, April 5
The Haryana State Board of Technical Education has made it compulsory for candidates seeking admission in diploma courses in polytechnics that they should have passed the maths and science exam in Class X.

The board has decided that the require pass percentage would be 33 per cent in individual subject and the aggregate for the first and second semester and there would be no change in the second and third year.

These decisions were taken at the sixth meeting of the board held here under the chairmanship of Financial Commissioner and Principal Secretary, Technical Education, PK Gupta, who is also chairman of the Haryana State Board of Technical Education (HSBTE).

The board approved grace marks of 0.5 per cent semester-wise and also moderation of 7 per cent marks.

However, after moderation the total marks should not exceed more than 95 per cent. This is in lieu of the established reasons behind poor results- teachers’ strike, assembly elections and tough marking.

While reviewing the board exams held in December 2009 and January 2010, it was decided to initiate disciplinary action against the principal, officiating principal, and the lecturer of KCGPW, Ambala. The board also decided that in future the total results would be declared discipline-wise, semester-wise and not in parts.

In the first semester, the teaching time would be extended to four months by advancing admissions, starting classes early and holding examinations. This extended period of three to four weeks would be used to teach the foundation course in physics, chemistry, maths and English and to strengthen understanding on diploma programmes, facilities in institutes, the terminology used in diploma programmes and placement avenues.

After the completion of the foundation course, a test would be conducted at the institute level. The score of this test would not be counted towards the final score of the semester.

In the second semester also efforts would be made to give at least minimum prescribed time for teaching. The question papers would be in Hindi and English with effect from December 2010. Students would have the option to reply in Hindi or English or in combination of both languages.

However, technical terms may be used in the language in which these are popular. The board approved the proposal to curb private coaching / tuitions. A committee would be formed by the Secretary to work out the modalities. The item to give grace marks for questions out of syllabus was ratified. It was decided to set up talent search clubs in polytechnics. The board would give prizes for state or national-level talent.

It was decided in principle to introduce bio-metric attendance for staff and students in polytechnics.

Jind, April 5
Another gotra row over the marriage of a girl hailing from Ludhana village in the district has come to light. Though a complaint has been lodged by the girl’s parents with the police against some residents of the village for alleged harassment, the police is yet to take any action in this regard.

The row surfaced after some residents of Ludhana village objected to the marriage of local resident Poonam Mor with Ajay Kaliraman of Bedwa village in Rohtak district. It is claimed that since Kaliraman and Mor are the main gotras of Ludhana village, a marriage cannot be solemnised between persons belonging to these two gotras due to “a relation of brotherhood”. The marriage had taken place on March 25.

“A delegation of the residents of Ludhana village had come to Bedwa to get the alliance broken, but my parents and other residents of the village did not accept their demand, claiming that there was nothing objectionable in this alliance,” said the groom, Ajay, who claimed that there was no objection of any kind in his village but the problem had been reported at Ludhana village, from where his wife hailed.

He alleged that some anti-social elements had not only disconnected the water and power supply to the house of his in-laws but had announced a social boycott of the family on the issue.

He claimed that this was not the first such alliance between these two gotras and several marriages had taken place earlier. Admitting that a complaint had been lodged with the police by his in-laws, he said the police was yet to take any action in this connection.

The police visited Ludhana village and recorded the statements of the victim’s family and other residents. “No one came forward to claim that the family had been victimised or boycotted socially,” claimed police sources.

Yamunanagar, April 5
In yet another setback to the state government, the Planning Commission has expressed doubts over the reliability and success of Chinese equipment for thermal power stations in India.

The state has two thermal plants - the Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram Thermal Power Plant of 600 MW in Yamunanagar and the Rajiv Gandhi Thermal Power Plant, Khedar, Hisar (2x600 MW) - which use Chinese technology and equipment.

Expressing concern over the functioning of these thermal plants following the remarks of the Planning Commission, the All-India Power Engineers Federation (AIPEF) has sought the Prime Minister’s intervention in the matter so that public interest is no more harmed while awarding contracts of thermal plants.

Earlier, the Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission and a CAG report had also pointed out many shortcomings in the construction of the Yamunanagar thermal plant.

“The unsatisfactory performance of Chinese units under the EPC contract of Reliance at the Yamunanagar thermal plant has been highlighted by the Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission and also by the CAG.

However, instead of being cautioned by the bad experience of the Yamunanagar thermal plant, the state government is all praise for the construction work at the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Thermal Power Plant, Khedar, in Hisar district,” AIPEF general secretary Shailendra Dubey said in a letter to the Prime Minister and the Power Ministry.

The contract for the Yamunanagar thermal plant was awarded to Reliance, which sourced the equipment from China.

Even though the commercial operation for unit-1 was declared on April 14, 2008, and for unit-2 on June 24, 2008, the performance guarantee test of these units was not conducted.

As a result these units have not been taken over by the HPGCL, he further said in the letter.

“The AIPEF urges the Centre to withdraw the golden shield awarded to the Yamunanagar thermal plant on false claims so that Reliance may be more careful in executing the Hisar thermal power plant, particularly in view of the concern expressed by the Planning Commission,” he added.

Sonepat, April 5
To give state-of-the-art facilities to its MTech students and to allow them conduct research for their dissertations in a variety of fields, the Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram University of Science and Technology, Murthal (Sonepat), signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with National Power Training Institute (NPTI), Faridabad, on the university premises here today.

Vice-Chancellor HS Chahal, Registrar RK Arora, Chairman, Electrical Engineering Department, Dr JS Saini, professor and coordinator, MTech, power system, Dr SK Gupta and PRO Mohini Ghosh from the university and Dr AV Chaoji, principal director, CAMPS and SK Choudhary Director, CAMPS, from NPTI were present during the signing of the memorandum. Dr Chaoji on behalf of the NTPI and Registrar RK Arora on behalf of the university signed the memorandum.

The Vice-Chancellor of the university was of the view that the synergetic system of joint guidance of MTech (power system) students’ dissertations would not only place the students under a more rigorous training and research schedule but also create more placement avenues for them.

The students after having undergone their three-semester course on the university campus would go for value-added training-cum-dissertation work at the NPTI, Faridabad, under the joint guidance of the faculty of the university and that of the NPTI, Faridabad, he added.

The VC further stated that this collaboration between the industry and the academics was a great idea as the NPTI had state-of-the art lab facilities and the university had good faculty. “Since electricity boards have now been trifurcated, specialists will be required and signing this MoU with the NTPI will prepare specialised professionals,” he said. 

Sirsa/Fatehabad, April 5
Tragedy struck members of an extended family of vegetable growers from Mohamadpur Rohi village in Fatehabad when a truck hit seven of them near Maujukhera village in Sirsa on the national highway in the wee hours today.

Four of the victims died on the spot while three others were seriously injured.

After hearing the news, when some of their relatives were coming from a village near Karnal this morning, the Tata Ace vehicle carrying them overturned near Mohamadpur Rohi village resulting in injuries to 17 persons, including 10 women.

The victims grew vegetables and sold these in various markets. Seven members of the family were going towards Noorpur Mandi in Faridkot district of Punjab in a pick-up in the early hours today when their vehicle developed a snag near Maujukhera village.

They were standing near their vehicle on the roadside when a truck coming from the Fatehabad side hit them and sped away. Ravi (22), Manjit (28), Ramesh (32) and Ravi (26) died on the spot, while Mehar Singh, Bala Ram and Satpal were seriously injured in the accident.

Satpal has been shifted to the PGIMS, Rohtak, due to his serious condition, while the other two have been admitted to the general hospital in Fatehabad.

As the news of the accident reached the relatives of the victims, 26 persons from Batalwal village near Karnal set out for Mohamadpur Rohi in a Tata Ace vehicle.

However, their vehicle overturned on the Jandli- Mohamadpur Rohi road in Fatehabad, resulting in injuries to 17 persons.

Chandigarh, April 5
The CBI needs another four weeks to complete the probe into the two new FIRs registered by it against Haryana’s former Director-General of Police SPS Rathore in the Ruchika molestation case.

As Rathore’s anticipatory bail plea in two fresh FIRs registered in the matter came up for hearing before the Punjab and Haryana High Court, counsel for the premier investigating agency Ajay Kaushik said the investigations were on, but additional time was required. Taking on record Kaushik’s statement, Justice Sabina fixed July 19 as the next date of hearing in the case.

Rathore has already offered himself for questioning before the CBI. He has already been granted interim protection against his arrest in the two FIRs by the High Court; and the same now stand extended up to the next date of hearing. The fresh cases have been registered on the basis of Ruchika’s brother and father’s complaints.

So far, the CBI has recorded the statements of Ruchika’s brother Ashu, his father Subhash Girhotra, her friend-cum-eyewitness Aradhana and her parents Anand Prakash and Madhu Prakash. The statement of Veena, allegedly married to Ruchika’s father after her mother’s death, has also been recorded. Anand Prakash and Aradhana have been pursuing the case since 1990.

The courtroom was jam-packed with advocates, media, and Ruchika’s supporters as the bail petitions came up for hearing. The plea for additional time was not opposed either by Rathore’s counsel, or by the complainant’s counsel. The entire proceeding was over in about a minute. 

Chandigarh, April 5
Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda today announced three new awards, Haryanavi Puraskar, Hasya Puraskar and Mahila Rachnakar Puraskar.

He also announced a hike in the cash component of some other awards to promote the Haryanavi culture.

He announced an increase in the amount of Mahakavi Surdas Samman Award from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.50 lakh and the amount of Haryana Sahitya Rattan Samman Award from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 2.50 lakh from this year. Hooda said Haryanavi Puraskar would be introduced after the name of Mehar Singh, a noted Haryanavi singer and poet. The Hasya Puraskar would be named after late Om Parkash Aditiya, a famous Haryanavi poet.

This award will carry a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh. Mahila Rachnakar Puraskar was aimed at encouraging women writers, he added.

The Chief Minister said a knowledge commission would soon be established in the state to promote Haryanavi language and culture.

Hooda, who is also the chairman of Haryana Sahitya Akademi, was presiding over a meeting of the governing council of the akademi here today. — PTI

Chandigarh, April 5
Justice K Kannan today dismissed six petitions challenging the criteria for selection adopted by the Haryana Public Service Commission (HPSC) for recruitment of assistant engineers with the Haryana Power Generation Corporation Limited and other organisations.

For expeditiously deciding the matter, Justice Kannan had heard the arguments even on Sunday.

The petitioners had applied under the category reserved for ex-servicemen. They had challenged the criteria stating ex-servicemen with 10 years experience and an engineering degree were eligible. The candidates having AMIE qualification with 60 per cent marks were also eligible. The petitioner stated they were deprived of the opportunity, as they had undergone diploma course from defense institution.