Chandigarh, March 5
The Haryana Government’s priorities for the new year seem evident given the sectoral allocations in the Budget where education and creation of new infrastructure have emerged as the hub around which funds will essentially revolve.

Education alone, both higher and secondary, has emerged as the single most important sector to watch out for, bagging an allocation of Rs 8245.58 crore for 2012-13 which is Rs 1369.59 crore higher than the allocation in the current year.

The government hopes to help the cause of education by opening four new government colleges at Bawani Khera (Bhiwani), Salaheri (Mewat), Palwal and Ratia (Fathehabad) during the next academic session.

Also with an eye on boosting girls’ education, the government plans to establish 27 new residential school for girls under the “Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya Scheme” and cover all 36 Economically Backward Blocks (EBB). This will be in addition to establishing a girls’ hostel near Aarohi Model School in each of the EBBs. A proposal to establish a National Law University in the Rajiv Gandhi Education City for which 25 acres of land has been allotted, is also on the cards.

The seats in sought-after courses like computer science, economics and commerce are slated to go up given the growing demand for these while the creation of 9,545 additional posts and recruitment of post-graduate teachers through the Haryana School Teacher Selection Board to teach Classes XI to XII is on the anvil.

With science, maths and commerce subjects proving to be the weak point of students from rural areas, the government plans to open 15 kisan model schools in six districts to brush up their knowledge of the subjects. Besides, non-air conditioned buses of private schools will now be exempted from payment of passenger tax.

The government intends to construct five new polytechnics, introduce new short-term programmes like retailing, BPOs, travel and tourism, setting up 22 new government industrial training institutes. The sector has an allocation of Rs 307.55 crore, which is Rs 85.08 crore higher than that of the current year.

Besides education, the government is paying attention to public health, too, focusing on augmentation of drinking water projects and sewerage schemes, getting Rs 2212.64 crore for 2012-13, up by Rs 312.33 crore over the current year. The roads and transport sector, too, has bagged a hike of Rs 312.45 crore over the current year’s allocation, to not only provide smooth roads but also to provide better public transport.

If allocation to agrarian Haryana and the allied sectors, including live-stock rearing, has been increased by Rs 107.58 crore for 2012-13, the social justice and empowerment sector, too, has been given a substantial hike. Against Rs 2593.29 crore under the Scheduled Caste Sub Plan, Rs 2807.74 crore has been proposed. Besides, the social justice and empowerment sector gets an additional allocation of Rs 2029.79 cr.

Chandigarh, March 5
The Budget proposals for Haryana for 2012-13, presented by the Finance Minister, H S Chatha, failed to come up with any substantial measures to mop up additional resources for the state. The state has already missed the target set by the 13th Finance Commission to become a zero revenue deficit state by 2011-12, and will, in fact, continue to have a revenue deficit of Rs 2455.55 crore in the next fiscal as well. But other than relying on the hike in VAT collections, excise collections, stamp duty and motor vehicles taxes, there is no definite road map for the state to increase its revenue receipts.

This year, the revenue from VAT and excise collections is expected to increase by 20 per cent. With the new excise policy for 2012-13 being announced, the state is also expecting a jump of Rs 400 crore in its excise collections. Besides, the revision of the collectorate rate will add to the state’s kitty in the form of additional stamp duty collections.

With the government presenting a totally tax-free Budget (except for the proposal to levy 5 per cent VAT on textile and sugar, which was withdrawn immediately), there is little hope for the state to increase its revenue receipts. However, Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda seemed optimistic as he said that the revenue mobilisation would be attained through better tax realisation and better discipline. “The revenue deficit is mainly on account of the implications of the Sixth Pay Commission. We will be a revenue surplus state in 2013-14,” he asserted. In 2012-13, Haryana expects its revenue receipts to increase by Rs 3,840.34 crore, at Rs 3,73,27.97 crore. But with the revenue expenditure of Rs 3,97,83.52 crore, the deficit will be Rs 2,455 crore, a fall of just Rs 205 crore from last year. Financial Commissioner, Finance, AM Sharan, however, said that though the fall in revenue deficit had not been substantial because of a slowdown, it was not much of a concern as it was a small percentage of the total Budget size. “The good news is that we have managed to bring down the fiscal deficit substantially. From 2.61 per cent of the GSDP (Gross State Domestic Product) in 2011-12, the fiscal deficit will be just 2.06 per cent of GSDP (Rs 7,596.82 crore) in the next financial year,” he said.

The debt burden on the state, too, has soared to Rs 6,02,00 crore, up by Rs 7,500 crore from the current financial year. However, the Chief Minister said that this, too, was within the permissible limits and the debt was just 16 per cent of the GSDP.

Chandigarh, March 5
The INLD and the BJP today maintained that the Budget was not only disappointing and lacklusture but held no promise for any section of society. INLD supremo and Leader of the Opposition Om Prakash Chautala said that the facts and figures presented by the Finance Minister indicated that the debt burden was going up substantially every year.

“Given the statistics, we can concluded that every newborn in the state will come into the world with a debt of Rs 30,000. The figures quoted in the speech seem deceptive for the simple reason that these were based on the additional VAT on sugar and textile. With the government deciding to delete these from the speech, the entire jugglery of numbers has gone wrong,” he said.

“Further, no allocation has been made for law and order in the budget. This goes to show that it is not a priority for the government ,” Chautala said.

BJP presidentKrishan Pal Gurjar said no section of society had gained from this Budget which showed that the government hardly had any finances to carry out development.

“As much as 70 per cent of the revenue is going out by way of salaries, pension and repayment of debt. This means that the government is playing around with only 30 per cent of the funds which, by any standards, are insufficient to carry out development,” Gurjar said.

HJC chief Kuldeep Bishnoi maintained that the Budget had cheated the common man of expected relief. “There is nothing for any section of society in the Budget. The debt of Rs 52000 crore implies that any new born would come with the debt of Rs 26,000 on his head.,” he said.

The Budget received both brickbats and bouquets from a cross-section of society. While zero tax in the Budget, extending the scope of social security schemes and the launch of State Urban Health Mission have elicited a good response , the increase in power subsidy and no sops for the industry have not gone well with people. Entrepreneur RK Gupta alleged that since taxes on the industry and trade were at their peak, business and trade expected some relief. Since the government had been delaying power sector reforms, the ballooning power subsidy would play havoc with the state’s economy in the long run, he warned.

Terming the Budget as “forward looking”, BK Sanghi, a real estate consultant, said extending free treatment facility to all children under the Indira Bal Swasthya Yojana (IBSY) and several other social welfare measures were the need of the hour as the cost of living had really shot up in recent years.

While welcoming the widening of the ambit of the social security pension scheme and the Viwah Shagun Yojna to benefit more girls, RK Sharma, a social activist, warned that the government should learn to live within its resources.The widening gap between income and expenditure is really a cause of concern which would a disastrous consequences for the government and the common man in the long run.

Chandigarh, March 5
The inquiry report on the basis of which the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF) recommended the quashing of the chargesheet against a Haryana-cadre Indian Forest Service officer to the President of India has been declared ultra vires by another union ministry and “hence devoid of any force of law”. The MOEF had also proposed, on the basis of the inquiry report, a CBI investigation against certain state government functionaries, including politicians.

The President had quashed the chargesheet against IFS officer Sanjeev Chaturvedi on the recommendation of the MOEF, based on an inquiry into the allegations levelled by the officer against the Haryana government by a two-member committee.

The Haryana government had rejected the inquiry report and had urged the MOEF to reconsider its recommendation.

In a three-page letter written by the Department of Personnel and Training (DOPT) to the PMO, which was circulated in the press gallery of the Haryana Vidhan Sabha by Forest Minister Ajay Singh Yadav here today, the department said the Central Government was not competent to order an inquiry into a representation received from an all-India service member working in a state.

Yadav circulated the letter after the Opposition raised the issue during zero hour in the Assembly today. The Speaker did not allow any debate on it ,saying that only Budget could be presented today .

The DOPT letter was written on February 17, 2012, in response to a letter from the PMO dated November 24, 2011, inquiring whether the Central Government was competent to institute an inquiry into charges levelled by an all-India service officer serving under a state government.

The DOPT said under the All-India Services (Discipline & Appeal) Rules, 1969, the state government was the appropriate disciplinary authority to place under suspension a member of the all-India service working in that state. The state government was also competent to institute department proceedings against such officer. The role of the Central government in such matters was restricted to hearing an appeal under Rule 16 and considering a memorial submitted by an officer under Rule 25 of the 1969 rules.

The DOPT pointed out to the PMO that the MOEF had clarified that it had ordered an in-house inquiry and it was not under any constitutional or statutory provisions. It further said that going by the manner in which the inquiry was conducted and the extent to which the inquiry had recommended action, “this department is not inclined to accept the suggestion that it was an in-house inquiry…or the inquiring officers exceeded their brief/terms of reference.”

The letter also says that the aspect whether a memorial is allowed against the chargesheet was examined by the DOPT in the case of T. Radhakrishnan, IAS, in consultation with the Ministry of Law and it was held that a memorandum conveying the charges was not an order. Therefore, a memorial does not lie against a memorandum conveying the charges to the charge-sheeted officer.

“As such the legal tenability of the order passed by the MOEF on January 19, 2011, quashing the chargesheet against Chaturvedi is doubtful,” the DOPT said in its opinion conveyed to the PMO.

Yadav said the DOPT letter had vindicated the Haryana government’s stand rejecting the MOEF inquiry report.

Rohtak, March 5
The Municipal Corporation Rohtak (MCR) has issued a notice regarding the alleged violations in connection with the construction of multi-storeyed commercial buildings without permission from the civic body.

The MCR has warned to seal all such buildings, which fail to adhere to the norms and function without a licence. This is perhaps the first time that the civic body has issued a warning though it had served notices earlier.

But interestingly this had been done after several such buildings had come up even without getting their building plan approved from the civic body and the authorities concerned had already sealed many of the buildings temporarily, says Yoginder Dahiya, an advocate and social activist.

He said the authorities concerned perhaps believed in paper work only, as no action was taken against the violations that had been going on without any check and with the patronage of political leaders.

The norms regarding the construction of multi-storeyed buildings for the commercial purpose seems to be overlooked if the recent development over the action taken by the authorities concerned to seal and de-seal the newly constructed or under-construction buildings in the city was to be reviewed, an official said. Around 60 to 70 such buildings sealed by the MCR here had resumed the work after a reprieve through an official order, which allowed the builders to go ahead after an undertaking given by them to remove the violations, it is claimed.

This development is seen as another addition to the drive launched by the MCR about a few months back when it had served notices against the violations and started sealing such buildings. The process, however, led to a panic among the builders who approached the political bosses for a halt, claimed the sources in the civic body. There had been a spate in construction of such buildings in the town in the past few years but majority of them had been in violation to the building laws, claimed Virender, a local resident, who added that any action against the offenders was not possible due to political intervention.

Sirsa, March 5
Four persons, including three children, were drowned in Nohar Feeder Canal, when the tractor on which they were returning to their village after attending a wedding in an adjoining village fell in the canal near Dhukra village in Sirsa late last night. The victims belonged to Dhukra village of the district.

The bodies of all the four victims were fished out with great difficulty with the help of cranes today and were sent to General Hospital here for postmortem.

A pall of gloom descended on the village as the news of the four deaths spread in the morning.

Pappu, a villager from Dhukra, was returning home with the four victims on his tractor after attending a wedding in Baruwali village of the district.

While driving his tractor on the kutcha track made between two parallel running canals - Nohar Feeder and Baruwali Distributory - Pappu lost control over the wheel and his tractor fell in the Nohar Feeder.

While Pappu jumped to safety, his son Hira (5), two other children Renu (9) and Mukesh (10) and Vinod (20) fell in the canal water.

Pappu raised an alarm and some villagers rushed for help, but they could not do much due to darkness and the depth of water.

No official help could reach until this morning and whatever aid came later was too little and too late.

The victims were swept away by the currents of water.

Local people worked overtime and it took them several hours to fish out the bodies of the four victims and the tractor from the canal.

The four bodies were found at four different spots in the canal.

The Haryana Minister of State for Home and Urban Local Bodies, Gopal Kanda, and MP Ashok Tanwar have expressed shock and grief at the mishap.

Faridabad, March 5
Irked by the district administration’s delay in sending across its memorandum to Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, which drew his attention to the poor condition of more than 30 roads in the city, the local unit of the BJP has served an ultimatum to repair them within 15 days, failing which it would launch an agitation.

The roads include the stretch connecting Old Faridabad to the trans-canal areas, the road connecting Sector 7 and 10, the stretch from Mathura Road to railway station, the road dividing Sector 28 and 29, and the one passing vide Sector 19 along the office of Congress MP Avtar Singh Bhadana.

Ajay Gaur, president of the BJP Faridabad unit, said his party had submitted a memorandum urging repair of the roads to Faridabad’s Deputy Commissioner Rakesh Gupta and the Municipal Corporation Faridabad (MCF) in the first week of December last year. A memorandum on the issue was also submitted to Hooda vide the office of the DC.

Gaur alleged that his party was intimated by the office of the Commissioner, Gurgaon Division, saying that the memorandum to the Chief Minister was sent to him after three months it was submitted to the DC office.

Raking the issue afresh, the BJP has served an ultimatum to the district administration of launching an agitation if the roads were not repaired within 15 days.

Karnal, March 5
Forensic experts from different parts of the globe will take lessons from forensic scientists on Desi Katta (country-made pistols) at a seminar organised by Royale Armourers at the Forensic Science Society, UK, on June 8.

The experts of Madhuban Forensic Laboratory, Dr AS Gravel, Dr Dharamvir and Dr RS Sangwan, will read their papers on “Comparative study on non-identical fire arms” and interact with the participants from other countries.

In their papers, the Indian forensic experts will explain about the indigenously made country pistols, their use, availability and efficacy, failure rate and other aspects related to crime. The use of country-made pistols in crime in India was far more than the use of modern fire arms.

According to the International Action Network on Small Arms, Amnesty International and Oxfam, India accounts for about 40 million of the 75 million illegal small arms currently in circulation.