Karnal, October 5
After holding up traffic on NH-1 for almost nine hours in the past two days, agitating farmers today had reason for some cheer.

The procurement process today picked up speed, even though farmers complained they were being paid much less for their produce than announced by the government.

National vice-president of the Bhartiya Kisan Union Rattan Mann said the farmers’ grievances had been addressed and the purchase of paddy by both government and private agencies was going on smoothly. However, he warned that in case the criminal cases registered against 300-odd farmers for blocking traffic were not withdrawn, the farmers would resume their agitation.

He blamed the government for the agitation and argued that in case procurement had started as scheduled on October 1, there would have been no problem. Karnal Deputy Commissioner Neelam Pradeep Kasani visited the local Grain Market to inspect the procurement process. She also talked to farmers about their problems. She claimed the entire produce arriving in the mandis had been lifted.

Due to the sunny weather, the moisture content had come down considerably and the paddy was now being purchased without any hitch.

She said 13 duty magistrates had been deployed at different grain markets to oversee procurement and she would visit markets too to ensure there was no harassment to the farmers. Meanwhile, the deadlock between rice-millers and the government continues. But the district administration claimed that a section of millers had come forward to purchase paddy.

District Food and Supplies Controller Ravinder Malik said the response today was overwhelming with the government agencies and private parties purchasing 75, 000 quintals (Hafed 48,000 quintals) and (DFSC 28,000 qui tals) of paddy.

Chandigarh, October 5
A five-hour-long meeting between agitating rice-millers and senior officers of the Haryana Food and Supplies Department here last night failed to break the stalemate over the purchase of paddy, which has been arriving in the mandis of the state in large quantities over the past five days.

The millers have refused to purchase paddy on behalf of government agencies till their demands are accepted. Though the government agencies are committed to purchasing paddy at the minimum support price of Rs 1030 per quintal, they just don’t have any infrastructure to do so.

In the past it was the millers who used to purchase paddy on behalf of the government, clean it, transport it and store it in their mills, though on paper all this work was done by the government agencies. The millers used to get milling charges at Rs 15 per quintal. Over the years, the system became so perfect that the agencies did not feel the need to develop infrastructure of their own.

However, this year the millers have refused to lift the paddy on behalf of the government agencies because they allege that instead of feeling obliged to them for undertaking the task, officials of the agencies penalise them, both officially as well as unofficially.

Officially, the agencies have imposed heavy holding charges on the millers for not delivering the rice to the Food Corporation of India (FCI) within the prescribed time limit. The millers say they could not deliver the rice on time because the FCI had no empty godowns to accept the rice. Nor did the corporation have sufficient technical staff to check the quality of rice. Hence, they say, the government is penalising them for its own fault.

The millers are also irked by the double standards adopted by the FCI when it comes to Haryana. While for Punjab, the FCI specifications are liberal, for Haryana it has adopted stringent specifications. The millers want that the specifications for Haryana should be the same as for Punjab.

This year the space position in the warehouses of the FCI is worse than what it was last year. The millers fear that they would again be asked to shell out heavy holding charges this year.

Last night’s meeting failed because the authorities were not willing to waive the holding charges. Another meeting is scheduled for tomorrow.

Meanwhile, in some districts the administration today allowed certain defaulters (those millers who have not delivered rice to the FCI against the paddy purchased on behalf of government agencies) to lift the paddy on behalf of the government.

New Delhi, October 5
Suspended Haryana Public Service Commission (HPSC) Chairman MS Saini and eight members today contended in the Supreme Court that they could not be removed from the commission citing lack of qualification and experience as the reason.

Arguing before a three-member Bench headed by Chief Justice SH Kapadia, senior counsel Shanti Bhushan said they were being sought to be removed through a presidential reference on three charges - inadequate qualification and experience, misbehaviour and non-cooperation in the investigation against them. Saini and the others had been appointed by the then outgoing government of Om Prakash Chautala and the present Bhupinder Singh Hooda regime is trying to remove them.

First, the Constitution did not stipulate any qualification or experience for the Chairman and for 50 per cent of the members. Second, the misbehaviour charge did not specify their act that amounted to such behaviour. Third, the non-cooperation charge had been levelled against them merely on the basis of the statement of the investigation officer (IO), Bhushan contended.

Further, the Supreme Court could go into only the three charges that had been referred to it by the President and not into the other charges sought to be framed against them by the state government, he said during day-long final arguments. In April last year, the apex court had accepted the state government’s draft charges against the accused.

The HPSC Chairman and its members were not supposed to give any documents of the commission to the IO or anyone else other than the judiciary, the senior counsel said.

Justice KS Radhakrishnan, who was part of the Bench, however, felt that this could be so only in respect of the documents and not the evaluated test papers of candidates that were being sought by the IO to ascertain whether there was any malpractice in HPSC exams. Justice Swatanter Kumar was the third Judge on the Bench.

Under the state’s charges, Saini faces nine allegations, followed by Dungaram, Chattar Singh and Om Prakash Bishnoi (six each). The remaining five members face five charges each. They are Yudhvir Singh, Satbir Singh, Ranbir Singh Hooda, Santosh Singh and Ram Kumar Kashyap.

During the consideration of the reference, the term of the six members had expired. The term of Saini and Santosh would end next month (November 20) and of Kashyap on December 14. Earlier in the morning, senior counsel PN Mishra and Additional Advocate-General Manjit Singh Dalal pleaded that the charges against the accused were just. Bhushan said the state had dropped the corruption charge against Saini in a case relating to the selection of a candidate - in the HPSC exam - who had provided a fake marksheet.

Chandigarh, October 5
The “babus” in the Haryana government have virtually received a rap over the knuckles for “moving at a leisurely speed” and adopting an “unfair approach” while dealing with the medical bill reimbursement case of an octogenarian.

Allowing MR Garg’s petition, Justice Ranjit Singh asserted: “An 84-year-old retired employee suffering from various chronic diseases, like asthma, is struggling to get the reimbursement for the expenses incurred by him on his sickness.

“The petitioner retired as Additional Director of the Food and Supplies Department on March 31, 1981. At this ripe age, he is not only suffering the effects of his advanced age, but also that of his chronic diseases. With meagre resources at his command, his survival will depend upon reimbursement for the expenses incurred by him on his treatment.

“Babus, being unmindful of any such consideration, would move at their leisure speed and would find a way to deny the rightful dues on technicalities by ignoring the merits of the claim.

Justice Ranjit Singh asserted: “The petitioner submitted a medical reimbursement bill of Rs 1,16,873 spent on his treatment in November and December 2007. Some bills are for the period between March and July 2008.

“Babus would confront the petitioner with rules which require that a medical reimbursement claim be submitted within 12 months of the completion of the treatment.

“It is not the concern of the respondents that the petitioner is old, infirm and is bedridden.

“That old age and infirmity can be a valid reason in delayed submission of the claim and a genuine mitigating circumstance should have been enough to melt a hardened heart, but has not moved the rigid babudom for condoning the delay, if any, in the submission of the claim.

“To say the least, the respondents are being too rigid and hyper technical, while dealing with the case of this old bedridden retired employee.

“The approach adopted is unfair. Is it that the delay is to be condoned only in death cases? Surely, the respondents would not wish the petitioner to die.

“The decision of the government in declining the claim only on this ground, thus, cannot be sustained. The same is set aside”.

Bhiwani, October 5
A group of youths armed with pistols, canes, chains and iron rods allegedly attacked Capt Hawa Singh Boxing Academy hostel here today.

The youths arrived in two separate vehicles and damaged windowpanes and gates of the hostel.

They even fired in the air, alleged coach Sanjay. A land dispute is said to be behind the incident. Sanjay, son of late Asian medalist boxer Hawa Singh, alleged that 20-25 youths arrived in two cars in the evening and entered the hostel building.

They smashed windowpanes, hit doors, beat up trainee boxers and opened fire in the air to terrorise sportsmen.

DSP Ram Avtar said the police had seized a shell from the hostel.

The police was investigating and they would act after completion of the inquiry, the DSP added. The DSP said a verbal duel took place between Preetam Dalal, a teacher, and Naresh Bunty and others for a room of a local school located at the Hansi gate here yesterday in the HUDA colony.

The latter group had been asking Dalal to vacate the room.

Dalal informed his friend Sanjay and today the Bunty group allegedly attacked the hostel inmates.

A case has been registered under Section 307 of the IPC and the Arms Act against 20-30 persons. However, no arrest had been made so far till the filing of the report.

Rohtak, October 5
Garnawathi, a non-descript village which found a place on the national map after Union Education Minister Kapil Sibal laid the stone for an IIM here, is again in news. This time it’s about a school in the vicinity of the proposed IIM.

Several students of Garnawathi Senior Secondary School were today found engaged in the task of filling earth, transporting sand bags to the school from a site outside.

They had been reportedly instructed by their teachers to transport the sand bags to the school premises as the area has been faced with the problem of water-logging for the past several weeks.

The school has a student strength of 450 and has 27 teaching and non-teaching staff members. The schoolbuilding is very old.

Sources claim that the this is not the first time that students have been engaged in such a task.

A rather cheerful student said they had been asked to carry the sand bags inside the school and were enjoying doing so since it provided them relief from studies.

“The heavy rains this year has resulted in water- logging in dozens of government schools in the district,” claimed sources in the education department.

The Principal of the school, HN Shastri, when contacted, said grade IX and X students had been engaged in the task of levelling the school ground and had been carrying earth from outside the school to tackle the problem of water-logging.

He claimed the work was part of a cleanliness drive launched by the department to tackle the malaria and dengue menace.

Kurukshetra, October 5
Kurukshetra University has become the first university in the country to house a unique “ion beam facility”.

It is a state-of-the-art research facility that will utilise advanced high energy (MeV) ion beam techniques covering a wide range of disciplines, including biophysics, lab-on-a-chip technology, nuclear microscopy of degenerative diseases, micro photonics, advanced materials characterisation and semiconductor micro-machining.

A Rs 9 crore project has been sanctioned by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), New Delhi, for setting up research and development facility in the physics department of Kurukshetra University.

Dr Sanjeev Aggarwal of the physics department would be the principal investigator, while other faculty members would be co-investigators in setting up the facility, the Vice Chancellor, Lt-Gen DDS Sandhu, said.

The facility would provide unique opportunities to the KU faculty and the associate universities to conduct cutting edge research in the field of ion beam applications. “The university will join the coveted group of international universities where such facility exists and this will certainly raise the status of university both at national and international levels,” Sandhu said.

Elated over the achievement, Dr Aggarwal said: “The development of new materials continues to be one of the ongoing technological and scientific revolutions of the 21st century and ion beam-induced materials engineering and growth technology is forerunner of this revolution as modified surfaces of materials dictate many of their important properties which are usually not found in traditional materials.”

Ion beam is a radiation generated from elements and if accelerated with energy can alter the properties of metals. It has a great scope as it can improve the quality of metals and give their replacements.

Hisar, October 5
Two local dentists have made it to the Guinness Book of World Records. They are: Dr Sandeep Aggarwal and Dr Vikas Puri.

The duo was part of a team of dentists which had treated 25,000 patients in Mumbai in mere 24 hours last year. The event had been organised by the Indian Dental Association under the supervision of the publishers of the Guinness Book of World Records.

The publishers of the book have now sent them certificates of their record-breaking performance. The earlier record stood at 20,000 patients.

Sirsa, October 5
Naresh Kaushal, Editor, Dainik Tribune, expressed concern over the skewed sex ratio and the practice of female foeticide in society.

Addressing a gathering after inaugurating Kurukshetra University’s Zonal Youth Festival at Mata Harki Devi College for Women, Odhan, today, he said social practices that denigrated the position of women were behind the craving for a male child.

He called upon women to come forward and take a pledge to fight female foeticide. Lauding the efforts of the host college, Kaushal said educational institutions should not only provide education, but should also work towards all-round personality of students.

Shamim Sharma, principal of the college, welcomed the chief guest.

Yamunanagar, October 5
“The work done by the Network for Promotion of Asian Cinema (NETPAC) has led to greater recognition of Asian cinema the world over, executive director Latika Padgaonkar said here today.

Addressing a session on Asian cinema at the ongoing Third Haryana International Film Festival, she said Asian cinema, especially Indian, had emerged as a vibrant creative force for creating cultural affinity and identity, and NETPAC had been set up to take this mission forward even outside Asian countries.

For this purpose, she said the NETPAC Award had been instituted and was now being given to Asian entries at around 30 festivals the world over. NETPAC has completed 20 years of existence.

NETPAC, in collaboration with Cinemaya, set up Asian film centres in some Asian countries, but it was felt that this was not enough to promote Asian cinema that Cinemaya was always writing about. This was where the idea of an Asian Film Festival, christened CINEFAN, was born, and the first festival was held in 1999.

Hisar, October 5
The Non-Government Colleges Lecturers (retired) Association has demanded release of pension to former lecturers of privately managed affiliated colleges of the state who retired after January 1, 2006, on the basis of pay fixation in the new scales granted by the UGC.

In a statement issued here recently, association coordinators RP Sahni and SN Teltia said all these lecturers were paid salaries under the new scales but after retirement they had not been given pension on the basis of salaries they drew under the new scales.

They said their counterparts in government colleges were getting pension under the new scales while the government had denied this benefit to them.

The government had also enhanced the ceiling of gratuity to lecturers of government colleges to Rs 10 lakh while denying the same to private colleges’ teachers.

They said the Finance Department had granted sanction for pension and gratuity on a par with lecturers of government colleges, but the department had not yet issued the necessary notification.