Fatehabad, March 22
With drug addiction plaguing several farmers and youths of the area, villagers in Babanpur and Badalgarh in Ratia block of Fatehabad have united to end this menace in their respective villages.

Finding intervention by the police and the authorities hard to come, the villagers have decided to “punish” drug peddlers spoiling the future of their children on their own at the social level.

In a joint meeting of the two villages held in Badalgarh Gurdwara on Wednesday, the villagers have announced that anyone found selling opium, poppy husk or any other intoxicants, including medicines used for kick, would be made to pay heavy fines in future.

“Even the police has been found hand in gloves with drug traffickers, as no action is being taken despite the menace,” alleged Binder Singh, a villager.

Another villager, Gurtej Singh, alleged medical intoxicants, including tablets, capsules and cough syrups used for kick by the youths were being freely sold in the village with impunity by quacks as well as in grocery shops.

“We have decided that we will not only boycott shopkeepers found selling any intoxicant material socially, but delinquents will also have to pay Rs 10,000 fine for their misdemeanour,” said former sarpanch Richhpal Singh and the present woman sarpanch’s husband Ajaib Singh, who both attended the meeting.

Out of the fine so recovered, Rs 5000 would be paid to the villager providing information about the sale of intoxicants, the villagers announced.

Earlier, villagers from Babanpur had met on Tuesday. They had decided to impose a fine of Rs 20,000 on drug traffickers.

taking on drug peddlers

* The villagers have decided to “punish” drug peddlers spoiling the future of their children on their own at the social level

* Earlier, villagers from Babanpur had met on Tuesday and decided to impose a fine of Rs 20,000 on drug traffickers

* Rs 5,000 would be paid to the villager providing information about the sale of intoxicants

Chandigarh, March 22
Lack of coordination between the Haryana and Rajasthan police brought huge embarrassment to the state police force when a team of the Rewari police, looking for a stolen truck carrying cattle, was allegedly attacked by a mob damaging their equipment and vehicles in Bilaspur village of Alwar district in Rajasthan yesterday.

Though the Haryana police top brass is trying to underplay the incident, sources said the “failed operation”, which was led by Rewari SP Vikas Arora, had clearly left the Haryana police red-faced. Better coordination between the police forces of the two states could have avoided the unpleasant incident, a senior police officer said.

Arora said it was a “routine operation” to recover a truck carrying cattle which went missing from the Dharuhera police station area. The Rewari police was tipped off by the CIA staff about a Tata-407 truck full of cattle allegedly stolen from Dharuhera.

Meanwhile, the Rajasthan police has booked at least 100 persons in connection with the assault on Haryana police personnel. While no arrests have been made so far, all equipment, including wireless sets, snatched from the Haryana police personnel by the mob have been recovered, Sub-Inspector Mahinder Singh of the Tijara police station said.

The incident occurred when Haryana Police personnel, who went to recover the truck loaded with cattle, were outnumbered and pelted with stones by Bilaspur villagers. 

Panipat, March 22
The district police is baffled by the disappearance of a Dalit member of the Zila Parishad, Gina Ram, since March 19. The matter came to light when his family members reported the matter to the district police. His son Sohan Lal told the police that on Monday evening Gina Ram, who resided in Rajpur village of the district, went to Panipat after which he went missing.

The family suspects that he has been kidnapped as a no-confidence motion was to be moved in the zila parishad today. It said a political conspiracy behind his disappearance could not be ruled out.

Gina Ram represents ward number 4 of the district.

Meanwhile, the Haryana Pradesh Balmiki Mahasabha held a special meeting at the Balmiki temple in the local vegetable market under its state president Mam Raj Balmiki, who said that the community members would block the NH-1 if Gina Ram was not found. 

Sirsa, March 22
Alleging discrepancies in results announced by Chaudhary Devi Lal University here, students of Government National Postgraduate College here held a demonstration and raised slogans demanding rectification of their results announced yesterday.

“There are several incongruities in the results. Those getting 35 per cent marks have got through while those getting much more have been shown as failed,” alleged the agitating students.

In a memorandum to the Principal, the students threatened to block the national highway if the results were not set right in two days.

Vice-Chancellor KC Bhardwaj, however, denied that there were any discrepancy in the results.

“A student has to clear theory, practical as well as internal assessment individually. If some students have been awarded high marks in internal assessment, but they have failed in theory, they cannot claim to have cleared the exam on the bases of their aggregate marks,” Bhardwaj said.

On the other hand, activists of the All-India Students Federation (AISF) held a demonstration in the university demanding installation of a statue of Bhagat Singh on the campus, 24-hour Wi-Fi Internet facility and the M Phil and PhD courses in all departments. Roshan Suchan, state convener of the AISF, threatened that the students will proceed on strike if their demands are not met.

New Delhi, March 22
Union Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath said today as 40 per cent of the total NCR area belonged to Haryana, the state would be given maximum loans for projects in comparison to other states in the NC .

The NCR Planning Board has given Rs 18,000-crore loans for 265 projects in the NCR, with Haryana topping the list with Rs 5,089 crore, UP Rs 880 crore, Rajasthan Rs 350 crore and Delhi Rs 650 crore. The NCR Planning Board at its 32nd meeting today decided to implement the Rapid Rail Transport System (RRTS) to connect satellite cities with the national Capital through high-speed rail links. All states would be provided 15 per cent of the project cost as a grant against loans. The NCR Planning Board was issuing loans to states till now. Now, 15 per cent of the project cost would be given to state governments, he said.

During his speech, Chief Minister Bhupinder singh Hooda said a grant-in-aid should be provided to the state by the board for major projects, including metro connectivity, orbital rail project, additional road links between Delhi and Haryana and affordable housing support.

He said Haryana was augmenting power resources to meet its demand in the NCR. The state had already spent about Rs 1,500 for strengthening the transmission and distribution network in the region. 

Chandigarh, March 22
Timely intervention by the NHRC has resulted in a compensation of nearly Rs 45 lakh to the victims, including nine persons who lost their lives, in last year’s cracker factory blast in Mougal Majra village of Karnal district.

According to a communication received by RP Malhotra, convener of the Haryana unit of the BJP human rights cell, from the office of the NHRC Registrar.

Acting on a news report published in The Tribune on August 23,2011, Malhotra had moved the NHRC terming the loss of life as gross human rights violation. While initially five persons had died in the blast, four more succumbed to their injuries later. Three persons were injured in the blast at the Bharti Fireworks factory.

Two persons- Pankaj and Harish Chand Bharati-were arrested in connection with the blast. Among those who received the compensation, were Bit (Rs 5.09 lakh), Dilip Kumar (Rs 5.04 lakh), Ram Avtar (4.14 lakh), Shanti (Rs 4.68 lakh),Gauri (Rs 4.77 lkah), Ramesh Ram (Rs 3.89 lakh), Shakunti (Rs 4.02 lakh), Arvind (Rs 4.92 lakh) and Shankar (Rs 5.04 lakh).The three injured were awarded a compensation of Rs 1.5 lakh each.

Chandigarh, March 22
With the last date of withdrawal of papers for the lone Rajya Sabha seat ending this afternoon, Shadi Lal Batra has been elected to the Council of States by elected members of the Legislative Assembly of Haryana.

This was stated here today by Sumit Kumar, returning officer for the biennial elections to the Council of States.

Batra, seeking re-nomination to the Upper House, had filed his papers on March 19.

Panipat, March 22
The district police today claimed to have solved the murder case of 32-year-old Rakesh, who had been shot dead in his kiryana shop in Anand Vihar Colony on March 14.

The police said that interrogations into the crime led them to one Amit, who during questioning admitted to have hatched a conspiracy in connivance with the victim’s wife, Meena, to hire contract killers to get rid of Rakesh.

Amit told the police that he and Meena got in touch with contract killers Rakesh and Monu, whom they promised to pay Rs 5 lakh if they killed Meena’s husband. The two paid the killers Rs 55,000 in advance after which they descended on Rakesh’s kiryana shop and shot him in his chest.

Rakesh’s family members told the police that they suspected the role of one Sonu, who lived in the vicinity of Rakesh’s shop, in the murder.

However, the police discovered that Meena and Amit had an extramarital affair. It picked up Amit who revealed that they had hatched the conspiracy.

SHO Yogesh Kataria said that while Amit had been arrested, the police was on the lookout for Rakesh and Monu. He said that Meena would also be arrested soon. 

Kurukshetra March 22
The Kurukshtra police has registered a case against six persons for allegedly developing an illegal colony at Ratgal village, near here, in 2007-2008 without getting permission from the Director, Town and Country Planning, Haryana.

A complaint was lodged in this connection by Amrik Singh, District Town Planner, Kurukshetra.