Kaithal, July 9
Cracks have developed in the top bitumen concrete layer of eight-metre portion of railway overbridge in Kaithal that has been constructed at cost of Rs 24 crore and was inaugurated by Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda here yesterday. MLA and PWD Minister Randeep Singh Surjewala and MP Naveen Jindal, were also present during the inauguration function.

On the directions of the PWD authorities, the contractor firm has started immediate repair work to rectify the defects in the cracked portion. XEN SK Aggarwal along with SDE SP Kaushik and JE Verma supervised the repair work said there was no crack in the slab of the railway overbridge and the cracks in the concrete bitumen layer were caused by seepage of water on under-path portion.

He said, “Mahesh Kumar, Engineer-in-Chief, PWD (B&R), has taken note of some defects in this portion and has directed us to remove the loose layers and get the portion filled with strong concrete cement mixture to check seepage of water.” 

Hisar, July 9
The voluntary disclosure scheme for unauthorised extension of load launched by the Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam has evoked an enthusiastic response, with over 1,000 farmers getting their unauthorised extension of load regularised in June.

An official spokesman said the scheme was most popular in the areas of Hisar and Sirsa operation circles where 388 and 325 farmers took benefit of the scheme, respectively. The number of consumers taking the benefit of the scheme was 122 in Narnaul, 100 in Faridabad, 56 in Gurgaon and 33 in Bhiwani operation circle.

The VDS had been launched to give farmers an opportunity to declare their un-authorised extension of load voluntarily without paying any penalty. The scheme will be in force up to August 31.

He said a simple procedure had been laid down for declaring the load under the VDS. The farmers might declare the extended load of motors of their tubewell connections by submitting an "Application and Agreement" (A&A) form along with advance consumption deposits (VDS). They were not to submit any terms and conditions forms or affidavits. The consumers were not required to submit any fresh test reports also. They could submit a self-declaration form. Their load shall be regularised without any penalty.

All SDOs (Operations) have been asked to hold open darbars in villages to ensure easy availability of the scheme to farmers.

Chandigarh, July 9
Haryana will set up a state fund for effective implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee (MGNAREGA) Scheme.

These directions were given by Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda while presiding over a meeting of the State Vigilance and Monitoring Committee for all programmes of the Union Ministry of Rural Development here yesterday. He also called for an effective social audit of the MGNAREGA scheme in the state.

The meeting reviewed the progress of various programmes like MGNAREGA, the Swaranjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY), the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM), the Indira Awas Yojana (IAY), Watershed Programmes, Total Sanitation Campaign, the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, the National Rural Drinking Water Programme, the National Social Assistance Programme and the National Land Records Modernisation Programme (NRLMP). 

Karnal, July 9
With the green cover depleting in Karnal due to rapid urbanisation, construction of roads and other non-forestry activities, the district administration has decided to plant 23 lakh saplings this year.

The state faces a challenge to increase the green cover to 20 per cent and has not so far achieved even 10 per cent coverage. The forest area was only 3 per cent at the time of creation of a separate state in November 1966 and the progress made in this regard during the past 45 years is not impressive by any parameters.

The scheme to plant saplings in private lands announced last year by the government did not achieve the desired success and efforts are being made to raise the plantations with active participation of people, institutions and the NGOs.

Neelam Pradeep Kasni, Deputy Commissioner, Karnal, said the saplings would be supplied free of cost and six lakh saplings would be planted by the Forest Department while 17 lakh saplings would be planted by the government departments, voluntary organisations and the NGOs.

Chandigarh, July 9
A local court here today issued fresh summons against former Punjab and Haryana High Court judge Nirmal Yadav in connection with a case related to the delivery of cash at the house of a high court judge.

The court issued a fresh notice as the earlier notice in which she was directed by the court to appear in person had not been served. The court has now adjourned the hearing of the case for August 1.

It was on March 4 when the CBI had filed a charge sheet against Justice Nirmal Yadav and four others under Sections 11 and 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA), Section 120B (criminal conspiracy), Section 193 (related to false evidence) read with Section 192 (fabricating false evidence), Section 196 (using evidence known to be false) and Section 199 (false statement made in declaration) of the IPC.

Besides Justice Nirmal Yadav, four other persons against whom the agency had filed a charge sheet were advocate Sanjeev Bansal, a Delhi-based hotelier, Ravinder Singh Bhasin, a Chandigarh-based businessman, Rajiv Gupta, and Nirmal Singh.

The case had rocked the Punjab and Haryana High Court after Rs 15 lakh was delivered wrongly at the residence of Justice Nirmaljit Kaur, another judge of the high court, in Chandigarh on August 13, 2008, following which she reported the matter to the Chandigarh police. 

Rewari, July 9
Irate farmers from Kalaka, Konsiwas, Peevra Ki Dhani and several other villages held a demonstration yesterday at the district secretariat in protest against the acquisition of 454 acres of fertile land by HUDA for the establishment of Sectors 20 and 21 here.

Raising slogans against the government, they demanded cessation of the land acquisition proceedings.

Notices under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act had been issued to them by HUDA on July 6.

They complained the government would pay them compensation at the rate of Rs 45 lakh per acre whereas the market rate was over Rs 1 crore per acre. They submitted a memorandum to tehsildar Sat Roop Sharma, addressed to the CM. — OC

Hisar, July 9
The traffic in the city remained completely disrupted for over five hours today as protesters blocked the Camp Chowk and the Fountain Chowk here today in protest against the murder of a juice vendor late last night.

The protesters belonging mainly to the migrant Punjabi community and residents of the local Patel Nagar, where the murder took place, descended on the Camp Chowk around 7.30 in the morning. The blockade cut off the walled city areas effectively from the rest of the city areas along the Delhi Road.

Later they moved to the Fountain Chowk and blocked traffic between the walled city and a large number of residential and commercial areas in the city. They also damaged a Haryana Roadways bus which happened to be passing by.

The protesters demanded compensation of Rs 20 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased and immediate arrest of the culprits. However, they lifted the blockade after SDM Amardeep Jain assured them that one member of the family would get a government job and the culprits would be traced at the earliest. Normal traffic resumed around 1.30 pm.

Vicky Arora, a juice seller, was stabbed to death in the Patel Nagar area late last night.

He was on his way to home when he was forced to stop his scooter by unidentified youths some distance away from his shop. He was stabbed by one of the youths. The victim’s father who was also heading home on a cycle tried to save his son but the youths attacked him also with a knife. His father said he could not recognise the assailants. — TNS

Hisar, July 9
A house belonging to five accused in a triple murder case was set afire in the Tibba Dana Sher area of the city.

The fire was noticed in the wee hours of the morning. It was brought under control by the fire brigade. The house was damaged considerably.

The house is owned by Bhagat Sarup who along with his four sons is languishing in jail following his arrest in a murder case involving the deaths of three brothers in March.

Nobody is residing in the house as the women and children have shifted to other places after the arrest of the male members of the family.

The house was also burgled a few days ago. The thieves had stolen household goods.

The caretaker of the house alleged that it was set afire by members of the family of the three brothers, who were murdered. A team of police forensic experts visited the house and collected samples for forensic examination. 

Karnal, July 9
The ongoing feud between the management of Pratap Public School and Ekta Manch members, formed by the parents, today took an ugly turn as the management of the school allegedly assaulted the parents, who were distributing leaflets of tomorrow’s meeting of the Ekta Manch.

Navin Aggrawal, secretary of the manch, alleged that school director Ajay Bhatia assaulted him after some verbal exchanges. A case has been registered. The parents were agitated because the school was charging certain “fees” despite directions of the CBSE. The management on the other hand maintained that the manch members were obstructing the teachers from entering the school and when Bhatia reached the school they abused him. — TNS

Fatehabad, July 9
In an incident that reminds one of medieval justice, a youth was tied to a telephone pole and beaten up badly today in full glare of the police and a large number of people by some traders of the Jakhal vegetable market.

The 25-year-old victim, said to be a drug addict, allegedly entered the shop of a trader in the vegetable market in Jakhal town past midnight.

People came and went back but none tried to save the youth from his tormentors.

Even the police did not intervene, though some policemen were watching the entire drama.

The shop owner and his son, who were sleeping nearby, allegedly shut down the shutters of their shop after noticing the youth.

The youth was kept locked in the shop for over six hours, and was later tied to a telephone pole by the shop owner and some shopkeepers in the morning.

The victim’s kin tried to intervene after they came to know about the incident, almost an hour after he was tied to the pole, but the shop owner alleged that he had been suffering losses due to theft of cash and fruits from his shop almost daily.

He demanded compensation for the losses suffered by him.

The SHO of Jakhal police station said he had not received any complaint in the case so far.

The SP, Vivek Sharma, however, said that he would get the incident probed and take legal action, if warranted. 

Sirsa, July 9
Three youths, including two brothers, have been booked on a rape charge in Suchan village of the district.

A minor girl alleged that the two brothers, Sonu and Naresh, took the girl to their friend Sanjay’s house on May 30, where they allegedly raped her. The girl also alleged that the trio made a video of the crime and threatened her with dire consequences.

According to sources, a panchayat was held in which Sonu volunteered to marry the girl on July 15. However, before the scheduled date for the marriage could arrive, the accused fled from the village with his family.

Thereafter, the girl’s family approached the police and lodged an FIR against the three in the Ding police station today. A case under Sections 354, 366-A, 376 (g), 509 and 506 of the IPC has been registered.

Chandigarh, July 9
The state BJP has demanded that a human rights commission should be constituted in the state immediately. 

A delegation of the party’s Human Rights Cell submitted a memorandum to Haryana Governor Jagannath Pahadia here to press this demand. 

The delegation was led by BJP Rajya Sabha member Avinash Rai Khanna, who is in charge of the party’s Human Rights Cell. 

The memorandum alleged that human rights violations had been growing in Haryana. The state was known for honour killings and even Khap Panchayats advocated such crimes.

The memorandum claimed that mighty and the rich ruled the roost and the dignity and liberty of the downtrodden and the poor was at stake in the state. 

A Dalit was forced to commit suicide merely because he happened to attend an upper caste wedding. A family belonging to a minority community was forced to flee its native village.

The memorandum urged the Governor to ask the state government to constitute a state human rights commission as early as possible.