Fatehabad, July 14
Two members of a family were drowned at Nathwan near Ratia this evening. Satnam Singh (42) and his nephew Jaswinder (13) had gone to their flooded fields at about 4.30 pm. The latter fell in the waters. His uncle rushed to save him, but was drowned too.Their bodies were fished out with the help of local divers.

Mohinder Kaur (53) and her son Harjinder Singh (28) were electrocuted at Himmatpura village this evening. The victims had gone to their fields to assess the damage after floodwater receded from their fields.

On noticing sparks from a transformer installed on their tube well, Harjinder tried to disconnect the switch and was trapped by the electric current. His mother rushed to save him and she too was caught.

In another incident, villagers held four members of a rescue team, led by a tehsildar, hostage. The team had gone to provide relief to flood victims at Sadhanwas near Jakhal.

The irate villagers demanded that senior officers of the administration should talk to them for mitigation of their woes. Sadhanwas is among the worst affected villages of Fatehabad.

The villagers say hundreds of villagers from Punjab, some of them armed, are protecting a bundh on the right of the Bhakra main branch with the help of the Punjab police to save their fields from the flood waters.

An official source, pleading anonymity, said it was not possible to demolish the bundh on the Punjab side that was in place for the past several years. Punjab villagers strengthened it every time the Ghaggar was in spate. He said they could do nothing about the bundh as more than 90 villages could be affected.The DC, OP Sheoran, said the situation was improving with the the waters now receding.

Meanwhile, the discharge of water at various points in the Ghaggar came down considerably today. However, breaches on the Rangoi are yet to be plugged.

Sirsa: Despite reduction in discharge of water at various levels in the Ghaggar upstream of Sirsa, there seems no end to the miseries of the common people.

Evacuation of villagers from flood-affected areas continued as flood waters entered the fields of over 12 villages of Rania block today with breaches occurring at several places on the Ghaggar near Firozabad last evening.Jawans are busy plugging those breaches with the help of locals and the followers of Sirsa based Dera Sacha Sauda.

The Sukhchain distributory has come as a savior for Sirsa town. Meanwhile, the DC, CG Rajini Kaanthan said that about 20,000 acres in more than 36 villages of the district Sirsa had been affected by floods.

He said nodal officers were staying in villages with their teams to monitor rescue operations.

Meanwhile, Special Secretary, PWD, V. Rajashekhar chaired a meeting with department engineers and directed them to make alternative routes for commuters.

He directed power officers to save powerhouse from floods.

Chandigarh, July 14
The INLD has demanded a judicial inquiry into the recent floods in Haryana to identify their causes.

Talking to mediapersons here today, secretary-general of the party Ajay Singh Chautala said the inquiry should be conducted by a sitting High Court judge so that the people should be able to know whether the floods were due to the natural reasons or because of the mismanagement of the government.

Chautala, who toured the flood-affected areas along with other senior INLD leaders for three days, said the government should provide actual relief to the people instead of making hollow announcements.

He alleged that during his tour, people told him that during the past 10 days the government had not provided them any relief. He said if the government had taken timely steps, the people could have been saved from the fury of the floods.

The INLD leader alleged that the state government had misused the Calamity Relief Fund. He said the non-completion of the Dadupur-Nalvi canal, lifting of soil from the banks of the SYL canal and the non-construction of requisite number of siphons under the Hansi-Butana canal were among the main causes of the floods. He said instead of blaming each other, the governments of Punjab and Haryana should work jointly to provide relief to the people. 

Chandigarh, July 14
If Haryana has Rs 1, 151 crore in the Calamity Relief Fund (CRF) as per the assertion of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), why has it demanded over Rs 1,000 crore from the Centre to make up for the damage caused by the recent floods?

The CRF was launched in 2000-01. While major funds come from the Union Government, a state contribution is 25 per cent. The unspent funds are carried forward to the next year. Sources say the CRF funds can be used strictly as per the norms laid down by the Union Government. The norms say this fund is only for providing immediate relief.

In case of a major disaster, the damaged infrastructure cannot be restored with this money.

The MHA circulated revised norms vide letter July 31 last year. It said assistance for damaged houses had been revised from Rs 25,000 to Rs 35,000 per unit. The next of kin of a person killed by a natural calamity would be paid Rs 1 lakh.

In case of a person suffering disability ranging from 40 per cent to 75 per cent, the assistance would be Rs 35,000 and Rs 50,000 if the disability was more than 75 per cent.

In case of injury, if a person stayed in hospital for more than a week, he would get Rs 7,500, if less, he would get Rs 2,500.

Immediate relief for an adult would be Rs 20 per day and Rs 15 for a child. Those whose houses remained inundated for more than a week would get Rs 1,000 each for loss of clothing, utensils/household goods per family.

Gratuitous relief for families in dire need would get Rs 20 per adult and Rs 15 per child per day. But it would be paid only to those who had no food reserve or in case food reserves had been wiped out in a calamity. The sources say in view of the strict norms, the state government cannot draw money from the CRF for repair of infrastructure. Had this been possible, the Centre would not have agreed to send a team to the state for assessing the loss.

The Opposition has been accusing the government of misusing CRF.

Kurukshetra, July 14
After the devastating floods in Kurukshetra and Kaithal districts, the threat of outbreak of an epidemic looms large over the flood-hit areas.

While the victims are yet to come to terms with the post-flood situation, the health department and the district authorities are facing the challenge of providing medical aid to people with over 15 cases of fever, diarrhoea, diarrhoea conjunctivitis and skin diseases reported from Kurukshetra district alone while the situation in Kaithal is no different.

The health department has set up six mobile dispensaries in colonies like Didar Nagar, Shanti Nagar, Vashisht and Bhadra Kali colony, Mohan Nagar, Saraswati Nagar. So far more than 200 cases of fever, Diarrhoea and other water-borne diseases have been reported.

Chief medical officer Dr Vijay Garg said about 150 to 200 patients reached the mobile dispensaries and preventive steps were being taken to check the epidemic. Blood samples of patients with fever are being taken and halogen tablets have also been supplied as preventive measure against jaundice, hepatitis and malaria.

Besides, oral rehydration solution (ORS) packets are also being supplied to the people suffering from diarrhoea and other such diseases. People had been advised to stay away from the stagnant dirty water, use boiled water and refrain from easing or urinating in open places.

Dr Garg said: “Sufficient stock of medicines and water purifying tablets are available and the situation is improving.” Gango Devi, an old woman whose house was submerged under 4 to 5 ft water, said she was infected with a skin disease in her foot. “Water has been drained out but my foot is decaying,” she said. The health department has sought the services of 30 doctors from PGI, Rohtak, and 20 from Medical College, Mullana.

The situation is fast returning to normal in over three dozen flood-affected villages and several colonies in Kurukshetra and Kaithal. More than 3.50 lakh halogen tablets and over 2,800 packets of ORS have been distributed, a department official said.

Ballabgarh, July 14
Seven members of a family were killed when a truck overturned and fell on the Maruti van they were travelling in at Machgar village, about 5 km from here, today.

The deceased have been identified as Chandrawati(58), her daughter Mamta (30), daughter-in-law Bhawna (25), and her grandchildren — eight-month-old Dhruv, Sanyogita (2), Abhijeet (7) and Abhi (5).

Though the family originally belonged to Moradpur village in Bulandshahr district in Uttar Pradesh, it had been residing in Chandawali village, about 3 km from here, for the past 10 years. The family was into farming business.

According to Roop Singh, the eldest son of Chandrawati, the family was on the way to their native place for the “mundan” ceremony of Dhruv. The engine of the van developed a snag on the Mohana road at Machgar village, about 2 km from their house in Chandawali, due to waterlogging. The 15 km road is in bad shape and has a number of potholes.

Ram Sharan, husband of Chadrawati, and the driver got down and started pushing the van to get it out of the water. In the meantime, an overloaded truck tried to overtake the van, overturned and fell on the van crushing those inside it to death. Ram Sharan and the driver had a narrow escape. The driver of the truck fled the spot after the accident.

Residents of Machgar brought the victims out of the van and took them to Sarvodaya Hospital where they were declared brought dead. The bodies were later sent to BK Hospital in Faridabad for postmortem.

Later, irate residents of Machgar and Chandawali set the truck on fire and blocked the Mohana road for about three hours. The SDM and the DSP, Ballabgarh, who went to pacify the crowd, had a difficult time as they were pelted with stones. However, the crowd relented and lifted the road blockade after the SDM announced a compensation for next of kin (Rs 5 lakh each for the death of adults and Rs 2.5 lakh each for the death of children).

The residents lamented that the accident could have been avoided had the authorities repared the road, which was in bad shape.

Karnal, July 14
Residents of Alipur Khalsa village today blocked the Alipur-Kohand road and roughed up some policemen following the death of a schoolboy, who was crushed by a speeding tanker, and delay in arrival of the police.

Five-year-old Sahil, a student of class I in Government Primary School, was going to his school when he was run over by the tanker and died on the spot. Villagers immediately informed the police but it did not reach the spot on time.

When the cops, headed by Gharonda SHO, reached the spot, villagers pelted them with stones and the cops had to take shelter in a house to escape the wrath of villagers.

Villagers roughed up the policemen, damaged the police vehicles and refused to lift the blockade.

Sensing the gravity of the situation, Karnal SDM Mukul Kumar and Indri DSP Rajesh Kumar reached the spot and assured the villagers of prompt action.

Rajudin, father of the deceased, said illegal bitumen trade was flourishing with alleged complicity of the police.

The delay by the police in reaching the spot was “deliberate”.

Hisar, July 14
A four-year-old girl was killed when a car fell into a canal at Mirkan village near here past midnight last night. The girl’s mother Kartari Devi was stated to be missing after the accident.

The family was returning to Aryanagar village from Kirawar village. The girl’s father, Parveen Kumar, was at the wheel. As he tried to locate his pack of cigarettes, he lost control of the car which fell in the canal. He came out by breaking the windscreen and raised the alarm. A few villagers rushed to the spot and took out the car. The body of the girl was found inside, but the mother was missing. — TNS

Chandigarh, July 14
Haryana’s former Director-General of Police SPS Rathore’s attempt to find fault with Ruchika’s friend Aradhana’s statements did not prima facie find favour with the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

Hearing Rathore’s plea against the conviction and 18-month sentence awarded to him in the molestation case, Justice Jitendra Chauhan verbally indicated that Aradhana and even Ruchika’s assertions should not be ripped apart as they were just minors at the time of the incident.

As the case came up for resumed hearing this afternoon, Justice Chauhan asserted: “Persons you are dealing with are children of tender age, not aware that they would have to stand in court at a later stage”.

Justice Chauhan added that there was substantial consistency in the statements. Justice Chauhan’s oral observations, made in the open court, cannot be construed as expression of final opinion on the merits of the case. At the most it can be taken as Justice Chauhan’s prima facie view in the matter.

The assertion was made after Rathore’s wife-cum-counsel Abha Rathore made attempts to convince the court that Aradhana was not telling the truth, and had made improvements in her assertions.

Referring to the allegations of Rathore holding Ruchika’s hand before slipping his arm around her waist and pressing her against his chest, Abha said such allegations were not made initially. In fact, Abha has all along been asserting that the assertion regarding pressing Ruchika against the chest was added at a later stage.

She told Justice Chauhan’s Bench that the part was introduced just to make the case against Rathore strong. Abha added that in any case, Aradhana’s statement was nothing more than “hearsay”. Aradhana, she added, had deposed that she was told about the molestation incident by Ruchika. “Was this statement made at all?” she questioned, adding that then top cop RR Singh in his report did not refer to any such statement by Ruchika.

At ease and unruffled, Abha responded to the court’s observations on Aradhana and Ruchika being of tender age by asserting: “The statement was made when Aradhana was 30. She is a clever witness, not a young girl. Otherwise also, at the time of the alleged incident they were 15-16 years old. They were big girls”.

She added that an administrative inquiry could not have been ordered, and all statements recorded by RR Singh were inadmissible in evidence. “Only an FIR could have been registered at that time,” she added.

Jhajjar, July 14
The court of Additional District Judge AK Jain today awarded life imprisonment to three persons for murdering a minor girl after abducting her six years ago.

The court also imposed a penalty of Rs 20,000 each on them. Though the case had four accused, the fourth one did not appear before the court today.

Hence, his sentence will be pronounced later.

The Bahadugarh police had registered a case of abduction and murder of a minor girl against Anup Singh of Malikpur (Delhi), Pradeep of Jind, Yogesh of Badli village here and another youth in 2004.

The body of the girl was spotted after some days of her abduction

Rohtak, July 14
A poor woman, identified as Devi from Sainik Colony, delivered a baby at the main gate of the Civil Hospital here on Tuesday. The mother and the child, admitted to the hospital thereafter, are reported to be doing fine.

Devi had come for a medical check when she experienced labour pains ouitside the hospital gate. Her kin claim that she had been asked to return home and report after a month for delivery. She delivered while waiting for an auto to take her back home, they say.

But the CMO, Dr VK Govilla, says the woman had come for a check up on July 1 and had been asked to return after a month. But she came yesterday while in labour and delivered before she could enter the hospital gate. She was immediately taken inside.

Devi’s kin allege that the doctor on duty had asked her to come back later without conducting a proper check up, even though she had been complaining of pains. The CMO however denied the charge.

“The state government has set up a large number of delivery huts in rural pockets and launched ambulance services for the common man that take patients to hospital and back on nominal charges.

“The delivery of a child at the hospital gate in a city like Rohtak raises questions on the efficiency and availability of such services, despite the fact that several crores are being spent by the government on such schemes,” said social activist Yoginder Dahiya.

Kurukshetra, July 14
Kurukshetra University has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish a national facility for low temperature thermochronology (fission track dating) at Kurukshetra University with the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India.

As per the MoU, the DST will provide assistance of over Rs 2.38 crore to Kurukshetra University over a period of five years.

This facility will be used for analysis of samples collected by researchers from various universities/institutes for evaluating the age or thermal history of the samples collected under the programme.

The MoU was signed by Registrar Raghuvendra Tanwar on behalf of the university while M Mohanty inked the MoU as nominee of the DST secretary, Dr RC Patel.