Hisar, September 20
Rootless and self-styled Jat leaders from UP are making a determined bid to find a political foothold in the Jat heartland of the state causing turmoil in peace-loving society.

One of the major reasons for the violence that rocked the state in general and Hisar district in particular last week in the aftermath of Mayyar violence was the presence of such leaders from UP and their cronies.

Senior government officers analysing the violent incidents said these inexperienced persons failed to pacify or control the crowd at Mayyar when things began to take an ugly turn. They said that the violence could have been prevented had experienced political leaders with a mass base been present there.

Police officers investigating the violence say the villagers do not recognise many of those who indulged in violence at Mayyar. They were definitely outsiders and “we have reason to believe that they had accompanied the Jat Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti leaders from UP, they said, adding that the police were trying to trace them.

Investigators said the torching of the cotton yarn mill in Mayyar was a clear indication that many of the arsonists were outsiders unaware of the fact that it provided employment to half the village’s population. In fact, a group of about 40 women from Mayyar blocked the mill’s gates when miscreants tried to set it on fire. But for them, the mill would have been gutted, they said.

Samiti chief Yashpal Malik hails from UP and so does samiti secretary Satpal Chaudhry. Both of them have no base in Haryana and having failed to find a foothold in Western UP or Delhi they are desperately eyeing Haryana. The issue of reservation for Jats in government jobs has only provided them a handle to try and seek a foothold in Jat politics of the state.

Three vehicles belonging to these two leaders were torched by mobs during violence on Monday and Tuesday last. This clearly points to the fact that none of them was recognized by the crowd and that they do not enjoy any support or have a base here in Haryana.

These outsiders have found some willing partners in Haryana who themselves do not have any public standing. No wonder they have no control over crowds they tend to gather in the garb of reservation campaign.

There is growing demand in the public for booking the samiti leaders who fomented trouble and then went back to the safety of their home states, leaving smouldering villages behind.

A senior Jat politician, now retired, said the samiti leaders deserved the same treatment as was handed out to Ghasi Ram Nain some years ago when he became a nuisance while claiming to further the cause of the Jat peasantry. He was booked on criminal charges and has not been able to foment any more trouble.

Jind, September 20
The saying that love sees no boundaries seems to have proved when Monika, a 19-year-old Punjabi girl from Patiala, married Virender Giri, a 24-year-old resident of Bishanpura here, in spite of the opposition by her family. The groom is 100 per cent physically challenged and is looking for a permanent job. The couple has sought police protection in view of the threat from girl’s family through a petition in the district court.

Monika and Virender fell in love about eight months ago when Virender employed at a call centre in Chandigarh missed a call on his mobile phone from the girl. The call back and subsequent chatting over the phone developed a liking and attraction between them and they decided to meet at a place a few months ago.

“Though I told Monika that I am 100 per cent physically challenged, she told me that she loves me and not my body,” says Virender after the marriage that took place at a local temple on September 9.

He says they met about three months ago and both of them decided to get married. Though the family of Monika was against the marriage due to Virender’s physical disability, the girl remained firm on her decision and reached here a few days ago to get married to Virender.

While Virender has done JBT course and is looking for a permanent job, Monika is a student of BA (first year). Virender is highly appreciative of Monika and feels indebted to her for marrying him despite his disability and credits her defiant courage that he says has changed his life.

“I no longer feel any shortcoming on my part since Monika has come by my side and it has given me a new spirit towards life,” he says. Monika claims that it is the internal strength, will and attitude of Virender that made her become his wife. She says that it is the inner self of a person not body that counts and her husband has no shortcoming of that kind.

Claiming that she has come on her own to marry Virender against the wishes of her parents, she apprehends a threat from her family and this is the reason why they have sought police protection.

Kaithal, September 20
Veteran congress leader Shamsher Singh Surjewala, President, All-India Kisan Khet Majdoor Congress, said here that the basis for reservation should be economic basis and not caste . He said Jats deserved to be given the benefit of reservation as their economic and social conditions were like castes that were getting this benefit .

Addressing a press conference here on Friday, Surjewala said as many among those getting the benefit of reservation were affluent enjoying all comforts of life, such people should not be given this benefit merely on the basis of their caste. He said it was a mockery of the system that many people from upper and other castes were economically very weak but not getting any benefit of reservation. He said that such people should be given the benefit of reservation .

He, however, hastened to add that personally he did not believe in the caste system but still if reservation was given on the economic basis, it will be in the interest of society at large and the country. He said when reservation was granted to SCs , BCs and OBCs years back, it was demand of the time as such castes were economically very weak and they needed help for their economic and social upliftment .But with the passage of time many from such castes had become prosperous and did not need reservation. He said he accompanied a delegation from UP comprising senior community leaders to meet AICC General Secretary Rahul Gandhi about four months ago and apprised him about the economic conditions of Jats who were demanding reservation. He also mentioned this to Sonia Gandhi in one of his meetings with her .

Surjewala lambasted all those who were allegedly instigating a section of the Jats to carry on agitation for reservation and indulging in arson and violence. He said the administration should deal with such people with a firm hand. He also held the INLD responsible for the present situation and alleged that this party wanted to create trouble for the government but ultimately people would under stand this game plan of the INLD . He also appealed to parents to ask their wards not to cause loss to government or private property. Surjewala expressed surprise over the silence of state Congress which had not taken any initiative to defuse the explosive situation. He said that the organisation should have launched a campaign to educate the masses. 

Sonepat, September 20
Punjab National Bank (PNB) has set up a Rural Self-Employment Training Institute here for promoting self-employment for unemployed rural youths, particularly those living the Below Poverty Line and for periodic skill upgradation to keep them abreast of the latest technologies.

Inaugurating the institute here in Disaster Management Bhawan recently, deputy commissioner Ajit Joshi said once trained, youths would launch profitable micro-enterprises and enhance their income as well as standard of living, besides feeding the services sector both within the country and abroad. Soft skill training shall be the integral part in all training programmes to be conducted in the institute, he suggested.

"Though the state government and the Centre are already implementing various schemes aimed at providing sustainable income to rural BPL families, due to lack of necessary skills for taking up particular enterprises and also their lack of capacity to access the formal vocational training institutes, it is difficult for BPL youths to take any trade for self-employment," he said.

Additional deputy commissioner Dr SS Dalal appealed youths to take interest in setting up their poultry and dairy units and also to participate in other job-oriented programmes.

AK Chadha, deputy general manager of the bank, gave details of the aims and objectives for setting up the first-of-its-kind institute in the district. The training offered would be demand driven and rural BPL youths would be given priority in the training.

He also informed that the Union Ministry of Rural Development had planned to open such institutes in every district of the state and an institute would shortly be opened in Karnal also.

Mukul Prasad, lead district manager, said an ideal size of a trainee batch would be of 25-30 candidates and at least 70 per cent of the trainees would be from BPL families till such time the DRDA certifies that the BPL list of the particular district was exhausted.

Around 100 unemployed youths, including women, participated in the programme.

Kaithal, September 20
The sale of adulterated milk, sweets and other articles has reached alarming proportions in the district, but there seems to be no concrete action on the part of the health authorities to check the menace.

The quality of khoya products has been deteriorating day by day despite a steep increase in their prices. According to sources, local sweet shop owners use spurious condensed milk supplied from other states.

Though a huge quantity of spurious khoya was seized in neighbouring districts recently, the district authorities are yet to lay their hands on such khoya being supplied to sweet shops. Some consumers complain that sometimes items made of condensed milk give saline taste. Not only this, desi ghee sweets sold by some sweet shops at high rates are also allegedly prepared with spurious ghee or low-quality material. The shelf life of such products is reportedly two to three days after which they start giving foul smell.

It is a common complaint that the quality of milk supplied by milk sellers has been going down gradually affecting the health of consumers. Consumers also complain that milk vendors mix water in milk, while others have the feeling that milk tastes different, pointing towards adulteration.

According to the information, some of those selling dairy products such as milk, cheese, ghee and cream allegedly indulge in unfair trade practices and take recourse to adulterating these items with spurious material to make a quick buck.

A number of dairy owners prepare cheese for supply even at a low rate of Rs 80 per kg, though good-quality stuff sells at Rs 160-170 per kg.

Cheese is allegedly prepared by using chemicals that are harmful for health, but cheaper as compared to that made by conventional methods. Similarly, spurious desi ghee is prepared by mixing refined oil and vegetable ghee.

Health Department teams with the help of the local police conducted raids and unearthed such a racket, but it was a tip of the iceberg. Citizens demand speedy trial and stringent punishment to have a deterrent effect on such unscrupulous dealers.

Some dairy item producers have raised doubts in the minds of people. According to the information, some such dairy owners receive only a small quantity of milk, but they sell cheese, cream and butter in huge quantity and even supply some items in neighbouring districts.

Some residents alleged that the health authorities continue to adopt a soft approach towards the adulterators and those selling substandard eatables due to the reasons best known to them. Some shopkeepers also told that as most of the shopkeepers oblige Health Department staff, they were given the option to give a sample of any item of their choice by the team members. Not only this, some shopkeepers and dairy owners allegedly succeed in manipulating laboratory tests in their favour.

Dr Sushma Saini, civil surgeon, claimed that the staff conducts regular checking and samples of sweets and other eatables were taken frequently which were sent for testing to laboratories. Criminal proceedings were initiated against those whose samples fail in tests and a number of persons had been convicted by courts in the recent past. She added that the staff took 30 samples per month as per the target fixed by the head office for the district.

Sonepat, September 20
A four-day training programme on HIV and TB control was recently inaugurated by the Pro Vice-Chancellor of BPS Mahila Vishwavidyalaya, Khanpur Kalan, Dr Balbir Kaur, in the department of social work of the university.

The programme comprises a one-day training to ICTC counsellors and the RNTCP staff on HIV and TB. Four groups will undergo training under the programme.

The training will be conducted by experts like Dr Sudhi Nath, WHO consultant, Ravindra Prajapati, AD, Haryana AIDS Control Society, and Dr Neeraj from Sonepat. 

Panipat, September 20
Despite tall claims by the authorities regarding facilities in various sectors developed by the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA), the grounds realities in sectors 13 and 17 of the district speak otherwise.

These residential areas even lack basic amenities, which has become a major cause of concern for allottees here.

The area earmarked for park and greenbelt, near the cremation ground, has been turned into a big pound and a breeding place for mosquitoes, thanks to the lackadaisical and indifferent attitude of the authorities. The pond is gradually expanding and has eaten away much space meant for a club where wild growth has come up and the accumulated rainwater is making the area unfit for inhabitation.

Even roads have been washed away due to lack of proper drainage system, which is also a major hurdle in the construction of residential houses. As a result of utter neglect, not even a single residential house has been constructed in these localities.

Vinod Kumar Sehgal, an owner of a plot here, says there was a cremation ground in the mid of the residential area which was undesirable and nobody was keen to construct his house adjoining the cremation ground.

The allotment of plots here was made in 1993 and since then the authorities have failed to develop the area, Sehgal adds.

He says it is more shocking to note that in response to an RTI query put up by him, the estate officer concerned stated that the sector had been fully developed and there was no hindrance in anyway while the reality was exactly the opposite.

He says the owners of plots were feeling harassed and helpless as they were not able to construct theirs houses due to lack of amenities.

Sehgal says repeated requests to HUDA officials in Panipat and Panchkula have proved futile. 

Faridabad, September 20
The Municipal Corporation of Faridabad (MCF) has launched a drive to clean up a stretch of the Delhi-Mathura national 
highway falling within its jurisdiction.

According to officials, the MC has launched the drive keeping in view the Commonwealth Games and a large number of foreign visitors, including dignitaries, who may go to tourist places like Agra, Mathura, etc during their visit to the country.

The seven-day drive was kicked off from Delhi-Faridabad border at Badarpur. The drive, however, would be continued till the last stretch of the road at Palwal.

The salient feature of the drive is that four JCBs have been pressed into service apart from a large number of scavengers to clean up the highway. Each JCB has been put under the charge of a senior field personnel from the engineering wing of the MCF. This includes removal of encroachments in the form of kiosks and other unauthorised encroachments.

The MCF has cautioned all concerned to remove their encroachments along the highway failing which the civic body would not only remove them but also impose penalties. Stray animals and cattle will also be removed from the highway.

Besides, efforts will be made to beautify, repair and strengthen the city roads connecting the highway to avoid any possible negative impression on the minds of the tourists.

Kalka, September 20
Due to incessant rains, the NH-22, passing through Kalka and Pinjore, is in a deplorable condition and poses threat to lives.

The condition of the stretch from Kalka Gandhi Chowk to Kalka-Parwanoo Barrier, old bus stand to railway overbridge and main bazaar of Pinjore is in a bad shape due to the downpour.

Even the link roads from Kalka Gandhi Chowk to Tipra, near Pinjore-Kalka-Parwanoo bypass, and the link road from Kalka to Khera Sita Ram are also in poor condition.

However, residents of the Railway colonies alleged that the link roads of Kalka that fall under the Department of Railways were in a deplorable state since last couple of years due to the apathetic attitude of the Department of Inspector Of Works (IOW).

Even link roads, which cry for attention, had not been repaired and re-carpeted since the past five years, rued the residents.

They said the railway authorities never bothered about the maintenance of the link roads as various link roads of the Department of Railways had been lying in a deplorable state.

Even the condition of link road from railway station to NH-22 is no better as the road from the station that connects the Narrow Gauge Railway Colony via RPF office, Railway Institute and Railway Diesel shed has been in a neglected state.

The stretch at the Kalka-Shimla railway crossing with big potholes poses serious threats as that is the busiest road.

The link road from Kalka GRP police station to Kalka main bazaar and the road from NH-22 connecting the Broad Gauge Railway Colony was also in a pathetic condition, causing inconvenience to pedestrians and vehicular traffic, rued the residents. 

Rewari, September 20
Supporters of Raghu Yadav, former legislator and founder president of the Sarvajati Janata Panchayat (SJP), a regional political outfit of the Ahirwal region, from Narnaul, Mahendergarh, Rewari, Gurgaon and other parts of the region, participated in the SJP’S 46th mahapanchayat held here recently.

While endorsing the views expressed by Shrishti Yadav, an advocate of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, in her article “Expediting Justice-Benches a better option than a separate High Court”, prominently published in The Tribune on August 22, 2010, the mahapanchayat unanimously adopted a resolution demanding the establishment of a bench of the High Court at Rewari in Haryana.

Describing the institution of a separate High Court for Haryana at Chandigarh vis-à-vis the Chief Minister’s pursuit seeking bifurcation of the common High Court into two high courts for Punjab and Haryana as a remote possibility for obvious reasons, the mahapanchayat resolutely opined that a most realistic solution of the daunting problem lays in the establishment of two permanent benches of the High Court, one each for the residents of the Malwa and Majha regions of Punjab as well as for the people of southwest Haryana.

Asserting that it was the consequential responsibility of the two respective state governments to bring High Court’s services within easy and inexpensive reach of the people of the above regions, the mahapanchayat wondered how much more time these state governments would take to comprehend the ground reality and act accordingly in the interest of people.

Addressing the gathering, Raghu had a dig at the Chief Minister while alleging that he and others were simply befooling the people on the issue.

He deplored that it was something beyond comprehension why the rulers of the state had not paid attention to the establishment of a permanent bench of the High Court in Haryana, a provision for which exists in Section 36 (2) of the Punjab Reorganisation Act.

Simultaneously, he asserted that Chandigarh was beyond the reach of lakhs of poor people of southwest Haryana (comprising Rewari, Mahendergarh, Gurgaon, Faridabad, Mewat, Jhajjar, Bhiwani, Sirsa, Fatehabad and 
Hisar districts) owing to its remoteness and non-availability of cheap and convenient means of 
transport.

Regarding the justification of its establishment in Rewari, Yadav pointed out that Rewari was very well connected by rail and road. Moreover, it was the native town of late Sir Shadi Lal, who was the first Indian Chief Justice of the then Lahore High Court from 1920 to 1934 and played a prominent role in the legal history of Punjab.

Raghu asserted that if a bench of the High Court was set up here and named after Sir Shadi Lal, it would be a befitting tribute to this eminent son of Rewari.

Faridabad, September 20
The Congress in Faridabad and Palwal districts recently celebrated the 64th birthday of Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda.

The Palwal unit of the party celebrated the day as environment day and undertook plantation of a large number of saplings.

Harinder Pal Singh, president of the Palwal unit of the Congress, said, “The Chief Minister is the most popular and socially accepted public personality in Haryana.

Linking the theme of conservation and protection of environment with the celebration of his birthday was an effective way to popularise sensitive issues relating to the environment among the masses”.

Speaking at a public function in Palwal, which was presided over by Jaleb Khan, chief parliamentary secretary, party leaders lauded the government saying that it had rolled out a number of development projects for Palwal. They asserted that it was the Congress government that created Palwal district. Other political parties and their governments had misled the people of Palwal on the issue of separate district, they added.

In Faridabad, Congress leaders organised blood donation and health check-up camps.

The Congress leaders, including Avtaar Singh Bhadana, party MP from Faridabad, B.Ojha, district president of the party, and Satibir Daggar, senior party leader and president of the Haryana Progressive Farmers’ Front, criticised the preceding governments for neglecting Faridabad in development works. According to them, the present government took measures to develop Faridabad.

They cited the construction works on Badarpur flyover and decision to bring Delhi Metro till Faridabad as major achievements of the present government.

Rewari, September 20
Members of the Jangir Brahmin Samaj from various parts of Rajasthan, Haryana and other places participated in a commemorative conference held by the Agira Dham Committee to mark the birth anniversary of the legendary sage Angira at Angari village of Jaipur district in Rajasthan recently.

Dr RK Jangra , national president of the All-India Jangir Brahmin Yuva Mahasabha, was honoured with the prestigious “Angira Rattan” for his meritorious services in upliftment of the samaj.

Dr Jangra administered a pledge to young activists of the samaj to work for the eradication of social evils like dowry, female foetiicde and addiction to liquor.

He appealed to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi to declare Brahmrishi Angira Jayanti as well as Lord Vishvakarma Jayanti as national holidays. He also urged them to direct the railway authorities to name a long-distance train after Lord Vishvakarma. 

Panipat, September 20
The Town Official Language Implementation Committee (TOLIC) of Panipat Refinery has been awarded Indira Gandhi Rajbhasha Shield for 2008-09 in recognition of propagation of the official language by the organisation. The award was presented by Vice-President M Hamid Ansari at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi on the occasion of Hindi Diwas recently.

RK Ghosh, chairman of the TOLIC, Panipat, and executing director in charge of the refinery, received the award. The award was won amongst the TOLICs functioning in the Hindi-region states, including Bihar, Jharkhand, Haryana, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh along with Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

The officially constituted - “Rajbhasha Award” - is presented to the central government undertaking, including offices, banks and PSUs. The award was presented to Panipat Refinery for commendable work in implementation of Hindi on annual basis.

Gurgaon, September 20
Even while hoteliers of the city and other parts of the NCR are raising much hue and cry over their imminent losses due to dip in the number of visitors expected for the upcoming Commonwealth Games, the Union Tourism Ministry has asked state governments to keep a check on the tariff of hotel rooms during the games.

Interacting with the media during her recent visit to the city, Union Minister for Tourism and Urban Poverty Alleviation Kumari Selja said the aforesaid instruction had been issued so that hoteliers do not charge exorbitant tariffs from visitors during the games.

The hoteliers, on the other hand, are so apprehensive of low occupancy during the games that they held an emergency meeting here recently and appealed to the government to save them from the looming debacle.

This is not for the first time that the minister has committed a faux pas. During another recent visit to the city, she had tried to downplay the incidence of malaria and dengue, which was putting off foreign visitors.

“The visitors can wear full-sleeved clothes and use mosquito repellents,” she had reportedly maintained on being questioned about the measures being taken to prevent the outbreak of the said diseases.

In response to a query, Selja asserted that the government had given many concessions and benefits to the hotel industry and many new hotels had come up. They have raised a permanent infrastructure that would be used even after the games are over, she added.