The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Relief for crime victims soon State governments to set up fund for the purpose Sushil Manav Tribune News Service Fatehabad, March 29 Victims of crime will soon start getting compensation for the injury suffered by them through court orders under a recent amendment to the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC). Justice SK Mittal of the Punjab and Haryana High Court said the process for setting up a fund for the purpose was already in progress. Justice Mittal along with Justice K Kannan was here recently in connection with the foundation laying ceremony of a few projects. He laid the foundation stone of a new judicial complex at Tohana, lawyers’ chambers at Ratia and the building of an alternate dispute resolution centre at Fatehabad. Speaking to mediapersons at Fatehabad, he said after a recent amendment in the CrPC (section 357-A), the Supreme Court had directed the state governments to set up funds for the purpose. Once the fund was set up, the member secretary of the Legal Services Authority (LSA) at the district level will decide the quantum of compensation to be paid to the victims, while appeal to their orders will lie before the member secretary of the Haryana State Legal Services Authority. He said there would be a separate cadre of judicial officers for the LSA in each of the 21 districts of the state, so that they could focus exclusively on matters pertaining to lok adalats, legal aid, alternate dispute resolution and compensation to crime victims, etc. Justice Mittal said the LSA in Haryana had taken several steps for providing speedy and free justice to the underprivileged sections of society and for creating awareness among the poor on legal issues. Earlier, while laying the foundation stone of a sub-divisional-level judicial complex at Tohana, he said 100 new judges had been recruited for appointment at various courts in Haryana. These, he said, were in addition to the 80 judges appointed earlier this year. Haryana, he said, was among the top states of the country in the matter of facilities of judicial complex, as of the 44 courts functioning in the state, 40 have modern building, while work on four others was in progress. Deepak Gupta, member secretary of the state LSA, LN Jindal, Additional District and Sessions Judge, Mahinder Singh, Chief Judicial Magistrate, DC ML Kaushik and the SP Satinder Kumar Gupta were present on the occasion.
	KU to hold film fest Our Correspondent Kurukshetra, March 29 Kurukshetra University will host a five-day Media International Film Festival (MIFF), which will be organised by the Institute of Mass Communication and Media Technology (IMCMT), Kurukshetra University, from April 3 to April 7. Lt-Gen (retd) DDS Sandhu, Vice-Chancellor, Kurukshetra University, said leading personalities from the cine world and the media would attend the festival and deliver lectures on different facets of the film world, role of the media in the projection of film industry and its impact on society by the films through the media. He said the opening ceremony would be attended by cine personalities, including noted director Kundan Shah, renowned actress Seema Biswas of Bandit Queen fame, eminent film-makers Vinod Bhardwaj and Suresh Kohli, along with Tripurari Sharan, Director-General, Doordarshan and Nina Laath Gupta, Managing Director, National Film Development Corporation, and Leela Samson, Chairperson, Central Board of Film Certification. Prof Rajbir Singh, director of IMCMT, said the festival would provide a rare treat to the students, faculty members of the university and the invitees about the global scenario of film-making. It would further provide an insight to the students of mass communication about quality films, which were made to educate the Indian masses and how the media could play a vital role in informing society about the educative and moral values of the media and entertainment industry. A one-day international seminar on “100 Years of Indian Cinema” would be an added attraction of the five-day gala show.
	Fatehabad’s MMPG college to have sports stadium Sushil Manav Tribune News Service Fatehabad, March 29 Fatehabad’s Manohar Memorial Postgraduate College (MMPG), the oldest educational institution of the district, will soon have a quality sports stadium. Sirsa MP Ashok Tanwar laid the foundation stone of the stadium building here recently. Prahlad Singh Gillankhera, Chief Parliamentary Secretary, Haryana, presided over the function. “The stadium is being set up at a cost of Rs 1 crore,” said Dr DK Kaushik, principal of the college. He said the University Grants Commission (UGC) has provided Rs 30 lakh for the construction work and Rs 5 lakh for the purchase of sports equipment. Speaking on the occasion, Tanwar said the Union Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs had made an elaborate plan to provide sports facilities in all towns of the country. Sports, he said, had become a good profession in itself and it was attracting more and more youths these days. The Haryana Government, he said, has been providing government jobs and cash awards to sportspersons to promote sports in the state. The Union as well as the state government have laid special emphasis on sports in their respective budgets this year. Sportspersons from Haryana have been excelling and their performance in the last Commonwealth Games, Olympics and Asian Games is a testimony to this. Gillankhera said due to the policies pursued by the Hooda government, Haryana had become the top state of the country in sports.
	Faridabad residents hail metro project Ravi S.Singh/TNS Faridabad, March 29 The public has reacted positively to the proposed metro services here, an MoU for which was signed between the Haryana Government and the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation recently. The common man is apparently sold to the idea of a metro link offering better and faster connectivity of Faridabad to Delhi besides increased intra-city mobility. The residents hope the DMRC pays heed to Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda’s appeal to it to complete the project before the scheduled time, which was 2014-end. SK Goel, president of the Faridabad Industries Association, said “the project was the best thing that could happen to Faridabad.” It would enhance the city’s status besides boosting its economic growth, he added. He further said the heavy traffic on city roads would be eased. Moreover, it would link the city with Delhi and give a fillip to further modernisation in Faridabad and the hinterland of the district. Jagdish Bhatia, president of the Faridabad Vyapaar Mandal, said the metro project would increase commercial activities in the city. Dashrat Singh Shekhawat and Kamal Dixit, office-bearers of the Faridabad Estate Welfare Association, expressed the view that metro services would foster greater urbanisation of the city and invite more investments in real estate. Anand Malhotra, a resident of Sector 9, was happy that his family would have to depend less on their private vehicles to go to Delhi, or to move around within the city. Maneesha Malhotra, a resident of Sector 16 pursuing her undergraduate studies in Delhi University, said faster connectivity to Delhi would enable her to enrol her self in coaching institutes to prepare for competitive exams. Karan Bhatia, resident of NIT-1, who took the just-concluded Class XII exams, was joyous at the very thought of boarding a metro train to pursue his higher studies in Delhi.
	Karnal village emerges as model of rural development Bhanu P. Lohumi Tribune News Service Kachwa (Karnal) March 29 Kachwa, once a sleepy village in the periphery of Karnal town, has emerged as a model of rural development with active participation of the local people and farsightedness of panchayat members. As a result of the initiative taken by the elected panchayat members, Kachwa became the first village in the state to adopt the scheme offered by Haryana Vidyut Vitran Nigam to connect any village with urban feeder to get 20 to 22 hours assured power supply. The villagers contributed Rs 25 lakh for getting connected to urban power feeder and also contributed the share of two deras, namely Baajigarh Dera and Chatru ka Dera, inhabited by poor people and got these connected with the main electricity feeder. Kachwa, about 12 km from Karnal, is a big village with about 18,000 population and 7,000 voters. It is heading towards fulfilling the dream of former President APJ Abdul Kalam to create urban facilities in the rural areas. The elected panchayat is not a routine assembly of panches but a parliament in itself with each member assigned different portfolios and wards to take care of development needs. The size of its population and the number of voters also make the village important as the elected representative bank heavily on the support of this giant village and as a consequence local MLA Sumita Singh has also provided substantial financial help to the panchayat for accelerating the pace of development. Sunder Mani, sarpanch of the village, said: “The panchayat generates an income of Rs 34 lakh from 100 acres held by it and this money is being used for development and creating durable assets”. The village is all set to become open defecation free and 2,260 out of the 2,350 houses have toilets. All roads in the village are mettled. Its panchayat members are educated and well qualified and 200 persons have been engaged in jobs under MANREGA. The enrolment at the elementary level is encouraging and as per a survey conducted last week, only 13 children in 4-14 age group are not attending school. However, Sunder Mani said these students would be enrolled in the coming session. The panchayat is giving cash awards to the outstanding sportspersons to motivate them to excel in their respective field and collective working and equality is the main strength of the village. The village is anxiously waiting for a sewerage system and a scheme has been sent to the government. However, the sewerage scheme is estimated to cost about Rs 4 to Rs 5 crore and unless the government of the district administration provides funds, the scheme may not take off. When asked that how the funds are allocated, Sunder Mani said: “Open discussions are held in the gram sabha meeting and the details of the total income and expenditure are placed before the members, who tell their requirements and the panchayat gives the funds as per the priority fixed by it”. “There are 21 members in the panchayat, out of which seven are women, including the sarpanch, and each member has been given the control of one ward. We are evolving a pattern for the devolution of funds directly to the wards,” he added.
	Banks told to serve needy persons BS Malik Sonepat, March 29 “Banks are the backbone of the economy of a country and they play an important role in the management of the economic situation,” said Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda while addressing the golden jubilee function of Sonepat Urban Cooperative Bank here recently. He said during the period when the US economy was in the grip of recession, the Indian economy remained strong because of the better management of the UPA government and it was acknowledged even by developed countries and international organisations. Appreciating the progress made by the bank during the past 50 years, Hooda said such banks should be opened in other districts of the state. “Apart from earning money, the motive of banks should be to serve the needy persons of society,” he added. While comparing the investment made by Om Prakash Chautala’s government during 1999 to 2005 and his government in the past six years, Hooda said his government had already spent Rs 3,207 crore against Rs 719.47 crore by the Chautala government. Kuldeep Sharma, Speaker of the Haryana Assembly, praised the Chief Minister for launching development and welfare-oriented schemes in the state. Every section of society had been benefited by such schemes, he said. BJP legislator Kavita Jain suggested for opening women cooperative banks and said such steps would be an initiative in the empowerment of women. Kailash Chand, chairman of Sonepat Urban Cooperative Bank, listed the activities of the bank and demanded a piece of land in the new grain market for opening its new branch. Chief Parliamentary Secretary, Jaiveer Singh, chairperson of the Haryana Social Welfare Board, Sumitra Chauhan, former minister, Ved Singh Malik, former MLA, Anil Thakkar, media advisor to CM, Sunder Pal, and chairperson of the local Municipal Council, Sadhna Taneja, were among those who were present on the occasion. Interestingly, in this function, Hooda praised Kavita Jain for raising issues pertaining to the people of her constituency in the Assembly Session. Jain also praised and thanked the Chief Minister for accepting some of the major demands, including the construction of a bypass, raised by her in the Assembly Session.
	45 students take part in painting competition Our Correspondent Kurukshetra, March 29 Seth Puran Chand Arora Saarthak Badhir Vidyalaya, in collaboration with the AMWAY Opportunities Foundation, organised a painting competition at its premises here recently. Sumedha Kataria, Additional Deputy Commissioner, Kurukshetra, who was the chief guest on the occasion, appreciated the efforts of the management for bring in deaf and dumb students of the vidyalaya to the mainstream. Rashmi, principal of the vidyalaya, also praised the AMWAY Opportunities Foundation for their efforts to encourage the deaf and dumb students in their day-to-day life. Besides winners, the participants were also honoured by the chief guest on the occasion. As many as 45 students drawn from nursery to class VI of the vidyalaya participated in the competition. Results: Junior Wing: 1. Maafi; 2. Shivam; and 3. Vikramjeet Senior Wing: 1. Amringer; 2. Amit; and 3. Jagmohan
	Progressive farmer gets cash award Sushil Manav Tribune News Service Sirsa, March 29 Gurbhajan Singh, a progressive farmer from Kotli village, has been given a cash award of Rs 25,000 and a citation for adopting the best agriculture techniques in Sirsa district. At a kisan mela held here recently, Deputy Commissioner J Ganeshan gave away the prizes to farmers adopting better agriculture technologies at the district and block levels. “Cash awards are given to farmers for adopting good agriculture technologies under the Agriculture Technology Management Agency (ATMA), a scheme that encompasses agriculture, horticulture, veterinary services and fisheries in it,” said Amardeep Singh, Deputy Director (Agriculture), who is also the Project Director of the ATMA for the district. The Deputy Commissioners are chairmen of the ATMA at the district level in Haryana. Kamla Devi from Darbi, Mohinder Singh from Jodhpuria, Prem Singh from Damdama and Ram Singh from Chautala village were selected as the best farmers at their respective block level and given cash awards of Rs 10,000 and a citation each. Ganeshan urged farmers to adopt allied vocations like fisheries, animal husbandry and horticulture to supplement their income. He also exhorted them to adopt the drip irrigation system, which was better for crops and also helped save water.
	Revival of millet crop a boon: Director Bhanu P. Lohumi Tribune New Service Karnal, March 29 The revival of the millet crop, a coarse grain which was on the verge of extinction, under a project sanctioned by the NAIP (National Agriculture Innovative Project) has proved a boon to the agricultural sector and will go a long way in increasing food production, Dr Bangali Baboo, Director, NAIP,said. India was among the top producers of millets with a share of 42 per cent of world production but over a period it had declined. The revival of this crop was important as it was grown in rain-fed, arid or dry-land agriculture areas, he said while talking to The Tribune. With the initiative of the NAIP, the productivity of millets had improved considerably during the past few years. The production of millet crops, including sorghum, pearl millet, finger millet and other small millets,was around 18.61 MT from approximately 18.57 m hectares, he said. Dr Baboo, who was here for the fourth annual workshop for the assessment of component II pertaining to “Value addition from production to consumer,” said productivity of millets had improved considerably in the last decade and production had increased from 14 million tonnes to about 19 million tonnes but the total cultivation had gone down from 36m ha in 1955-56 to 19 m ha in 2008-09. Director, NDRI, A.K. Srivastav said efforts had been initiated within the ambit of the All-India Coordinated Small Millets Improvement Project to conserve germplasm and for the varietal improvement of small millets and any new varieties of finger millet, foxtail millet, kodo millet, porso millet, little millet and barnyard millet with specific traits had been released. The productivity of millets had also increased from 387 kg/ha in 1955-56 to 1000 kg/ha in 2008-09 and the maximum improvement in productivity had been in pearl millet. However, the production of small millets (except finger millet in certain areas of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu) declined considerably. Sorghum and pearl millet were the two most important staple food crops for more than 300 million people in dry semi-arid tropical areas of Asia and Africa and apart from yield and performance improvement, the R and D efforts needed to be directed towards enhancing the nutritional make-up of millet crops, he said. Pearl millet, which was most widely cultivated in major states like Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana, and accounted for more than 90 per cent of millet acreage, provides the main source of nutritious staple foodgrain, high-energy feed grain for milch and draft animals, poultry, fish, and other mono-gastric livestock and green and dry fodder for ruminant livestock, he added.
	Fatehabad college holds workshop on soft skills Tribune News Service Sirsa, March 29 Soft skills are personal attributes that enhance an individual's interactions, job performance and career prospects. Unlike hard skills, which are about a person’s skill set and ability to perform a certain type of task or activity, soft skills relate to a person’s ability to interact effectively with co-workers and customers and are broadly applicable both in and outside the workplace. This was stated by Dr Anu Shukla, a professor in English Department of Chaudhary Devi Lal University, while inaugurating a workshop on the “Use of soft skills” at the Government Post Graduate College for Women at Fatehabad recently. She said in a number of professions, soft skills might be more important over long term than occupational skills. Soft Skills are behavioural competencies. Also known as the interpersonal skills, or people skills, they include proficiencies such as communication skills, conflict resolution and negotiation, personal effectiveness, creative problem solving, strategic thinking, team building, influencing and selling skills, to name a few. Ravi Bhushan, an assistant professor of English at Bhagat Phool Singh Mahila Vishvavidyalaya, Khanpur Kalan, Sonepat, gave a presentation on “Essentials Group Discussion” and delivered a lecture on the “Importance of Non Verbal Communication”. Vidhu Mohan, a professor of psychology at Panjab University, Chandigarh, spoke on the issue of “Counselling for Adolescence Problems” and “Self Analysis of Style and Effectiveness”.
	Kavi sammelan raises girl child issue Our Corrrespondent Rewari, March 29 A kavi sammelan to promote the ‘Save the girl child’ campaign, was held by Master Neki Ram Sahitya Avam Natya Kala Sanrakshan Parishad at Bal Bhavan here recently. While Roshani Devi, a Rashtrapati Medal awardee and the sarpanch of Kothal village in Mahendergarh district, was the chief guest, veteran poet Halchal Haryanvi presided over the function. Besides, internationally acclaimed pugilist Sushma Devi and zila parishad councillor Geeta Kumari were the guests of honour. Prominent poets from several parts of Haryana and Rajasthan participated in the sammelan. Addressing the gathering, Roshani Devi said that the sammelan would inspire people to lend support to the ‘Save the girl child’ campaign. Sushma and Geeta warned that laxity in curbing female foeticide could imperil the existence of society. Noted poet Halchal Haryanvi, lyricists - Ramesh Siddhartha and Vipin Suneja and rhymer Raghuvinder Yadav graphically narrated the girl child’s attributes of commitment, power to fight odds and brilliance in various spheres of life in their verses. Poet Alok Bhandoria went a step further when through is poems, he pointed out that not many women were heading central and state regimes. While distinguished poet Sanjay Pathak from Alwar (Rajasthan) sarcastically targeted ‘mothers’ indulging in female foeticide, poet Dalbir Phool poetically exhorted everyone to take up cudgels against the menace. Rajesh Prabhakar, Ahamna Manohar, Rajesh Bhulakkar, Mahabir Nirdosh, Bhoop Singh Bharati, Sunil Agarwal Kumar, Bharpoor Singh Bhapoor, Parma Nand Vasu, Usha Arya and others also regaled the audience with their relevant poetic compositions.
	Indian, Afghani students take part in food fest DR Vij Kurukshetra March 29 “Afghan Fest”, organised by the Department of Tourism and Hotel Management, Kurukshetra University, was inaugurated by Lt-Gen (Dr) DDS Sandhu, Vice-Chancellor of the university, at its premises here, recently. Students of the Department of Tourism and Hotel Management and Afghani students jointly collaborated to make the event memorable. The Vice-Chancellor showed a keen interest in Afghani cuisines and knew about the recipe of various food items. He tasted and appreciated sumptuous food and delicacies. During an interaction with the students, Dr Sandhu said: “Cultural fervour and flavour in food has a great future in this period of globalisation, mainly for the students of hotel management”. He asked the organisers to conduct such events on a larger scale. He also lauded the efforts of the students for their involvement, confidence and imagination in the event. Prof SS Boora, chairman of the Department of Tourism and Hotel Management, said the event provided a creative expression of students’ ability and vision. It will go a long way in shaping the students into future event managers. Indian and Afghani students participated in this food festival. They came up with an elaborate Afghan vegetarian menu consisting of appetisers (aash and salad); main course (qabuli palaw, mash palaw, chalaw, sabzi palak, burani kadoo, bamya, qurma lobya); and deserts (ferni, salad mewa, chai sabz, kishmish paneer). On the occasion, students decorated the restaurant of the department with the Afghani theme. They even presented a documentary focusing on the history and rich culture of Afghanistan. Besides the restaurant table set-up, students presented the traditional eating style of Afghanistan i.e. “Dastarkhwan”. The event was a combined effort of faculty members and students. All teachers in the department complimented the students for their professional acumen. Professor Boora distributed certificates among the students on the occasion.
	Tributes paid to martyrs Our Correspondent Kurukshetra, March 29 The Nar Narayan Sewa Samiti, Shahabad Markanda, organised a shradhanjali diwas on the premises of Shri Vekunthpuri Hanumaan Mandir, Shahabad Markanda, recently. On the occasion, floral tributes were paid to martyrs Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev, Udham Singh, Chandra Shekhar Azad and the jawans who had sacrificed their lives for the country. A two-minute silence was observed to pay tributes to them. The kin of the martyrs and jawans were also honoured. The programme was inaugurated by Harish Kwatra, former president of the Municipal Committee, Shahabad Markanda, and Dr Harnaam Singh. The samiti also distributed shoes among 21 poor students and announced to arrange a free ambulance for the people of area. Subhash Chakwalia, chairman of the samiti, and president Munish Bhatia thanked the people for extending their cooperation to the samiti. Dr Des Raj Sapra, Dyananad Wadhwa, Jagmohan Sethi, Rajan Sapra, Yash Pal Bhatia and Harmohan Kalra were among those who were present on the occasion.
	Movie ThisWeek Blood Money Directed by: Vishal S. Mahadkar “Blood Money”, which is about illegal diamond trade and high on action, has been shot in real diamond mines and factories in South Africa. Kunal Khemu plays the protagonist and Amrita Puri plays a nursery school teacher in this film. The film showcases Kunal’s struggle to stay true to his relationship with Amrita Puri as he fights the underworld. The film is produced by Vishesh films and Viacom 18 Motion Pictures. Upendra Sidhye has penned the screenplay for director Vishal S. Mahadkar, who has been the assistant director in films like “Awarapan”, “Woh Lamhe” and “Kalyug”. “Blood Money” has been shot beautifully in real diamond mines in South Africa. The emotional drama with action opens today at Glitz - Kurukshetra, Harsha, Inder Palace, Movie Time (Karnal), BMG - Rewari, Fun, Minerva (Ambala), Fun, Cinemax (Panipat), Sheila, Bangar, Satyam (Rohtak), Big Palam, PVR Ambience, PVR Sahara, PVR MGF, DTCC, DTMM, DT Star Mall, SRS Omaxe, SRS Celebration (Gurgaon), Inox, SRS Pristine SRS Eldeco SRS Shubham, SRS Sec 12 (Faridabad), Dimple -Jagadhri, Sun City-Hisar. — Dharam Pal