The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

252 bail jumpers, POs nabbed in 5 months
Bijendra Ahlawat
Tribune News Service

Rohtak, June 11
Intensifying its effort to check the rising crime graph, the district police claims to have arrested over 252 bail jumpers and proclaimed offenders (POs) in five months. This is nearly double the figure that was met by the police in the corresponding period last year. The police has announced a cash reward for providing clues to get the accused arrested. Two bail jumpers were nabbed recently.

Though the police is yet to reveal the number of accused still absconding or the number of accused who have jumped the bail in the past one year, the police claimed huge success of the special drive to nab the bail jumpers and POs started last year.

“The campaign was started on the directions of the higher authorities at Panchkula and a report was being submitted on a regular basis to the headquarters in this connection,” said District Police Chief Vikas Dhankhar.

He said special teams had been constituted by the department and the drive would continue for the time being. He said the catch of 252 accused in the first five months of this year include 128 bail jumpers and 124 POs, while only 127 bail jumpers and 23 POs had been nabbed last year.

There have been several cases which have either remained unsolved or the accused have been absconding. One of the most prominent cases has been the robbery at a jewellery showroom last year in which three armed youths had looted cash and jewellery worth about Rs 75 lakh .The police has been unable to arrest the accused so far.

Not a myth, it’s birth asphyxia
No immediate cry of newborns at birth can prove fatal for their brain or can result in death
Bhanu P Lohumi
Tribune News Service

Karnal, June 11
Newborn babies must cry immediately after the birth is not mere superstition but a scientific reason for survival of the child. If the baby does not cry within five minutes after birth, it means the baby cannot breathe on his/her own at birth and the condition is called Birth Asphyxia (BA), say paediatricians.

A time lag of more than five minutes is detrimental and can prove fatal. Brain cells of the child
could be damaged because of delayed breathing.
Lack of oxygen may even lead to permanent mental disability.

Nearly 40 per cent of neonatal deaths are caused by birth asphyxia. Data reveals that in a small town like Karnal, out of 363 new-borns who died last year, 146 died of birth asphyxia.

The ‘State of India's newborns,' published by Save the Children and the National Neonatology Forum (2004), revealed that 1.2 million out of the 26 million newborn babies born every year die within four weeks of birth. As per Indian Council of Medical Research data (2003), almost 40 per cent of neonatal deaths in Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Orissa occur on the first day itself.

The infant mortality rate has gone down from 54 to 40 per 1000 children but the ratio of deaths of neonatal due to birth asphyxia has not
changed and this is attributed to a large number of deliveries still taking
place at home.

There are many reasons for occurrence of birth asphyxia like inadequate oxygen level in the mother's blood due to heart or respiratory problems; low blood pressure in the mother; inadequate relaxation of the uterus during labour that prevents oxygen circulation to the placenta; early separation of the placenta from the uterus; compression of the umbilical cord that decreases blood flow; poor placenta function; severe anemia and low blood cell count that limits the oxygen-carrying ability of the blood.

Doctors suggest that the pre-natal diseases like birth asphyxia could be prevented by developing healthy food habits and making the environment healthy by curbing the tendency of smoking among expectant mothers as it results in a wide variety of deleterious effects on the developing foetus.

National Rural Health Mission (NHRM) survey reports that 40 lakh infants, including 10 lakh in India, die within one year of birth.

Lok adalats, legal literacy camps in Sirsa villages
Sushil Manav
Tribune News Service

Sirsa, June 11
To deliver justice to the people at their doorsteps and to make villages aware of their legal rights, the District Legal Service Authority (DLSA) will organise rural lok adalats and legal literacy camps in different villages of Sirsa in July, August and September this year.

“From July 1 to September 30, the DLSA will organise three rural lok adalats - one each in July, August and September - and will hold 14 legal literacy camps,” said Harish Gupta, Chief Judicial Magistrate and secretary of the DLSA.

He said rural lok adalats would be organised at Nathusari Kalan on July 8, Sukhchain on August 12 and at Jodhkan on September 9 under the directions of District and
Sessions Judge Subhash Goyal.

Pending cases of villagers would be settled through mutual compromise in these Lok
Adalats.

“Legal literacy camps will be organised at Karungawali on July 1, Nathusari Chopta on July 8, Biruwala Gura on July 15, Dharampura on July 22 and at Bhadra on July 29,” Gupta said, adding that the advocates empanelled by the DLSA would make villagers aware of their rights and also inform them about various schemes of the authority.

He said in August, legal literacy camps would be organised at Phaggu on August 5, Suchan on August 12 and at Mallekan and Sikanderpur on
August 19.

The DLSA secretary said camps would also be held at Panihari on September 2, Handikhera and Jodhkan on September 9, Vaidwala on September 16, Bajekan on September 23 and Meerpur on September 30.

PIO gets CIC notice for failure to give info
Manish Sirhindi /TNS

Panipat, June 11
Failure to provide information about storage of grain has drawn the ire of the Central Information Commission (CIC), which has served a 25-day show-cause notice on a public information officer (PIO) of the Department of Food and Public Distribution of the Union Government.

In strongly worded orders passed recently over a petition moved by local RTI activist PP Kapoor, the CIC maintained that “an assessment of the questions raised by the RTI applicant would reveal that much of the information should already be available in the public domain.”

The commission said there were certain points where the Department of Food and Public Distribution would have been able to provide specific information.

The commission also recorded that “it is a serious matter that neither did the Department of Food and Public Distribution address its responsibilities under the RTI Act nor did the department participate in the hearing, which calls for an enquiry.”

Pronouncing the decision, the CIC said: “The PIO of the Department of Food and Public Distribution (DFPD) is required to show-cause within 25 working days as to why action should not be taken against him as per law.”

The commission also ordered the DFPD to provide the information by way of statistics and synopsis about the initiatives taken by the government for storing the foodgrain. In May, last year, Kapoor had file an RTI with the PIO of the Prime Minister’s Office, seeking information on foodgrain storage and the steps being taken to increase godown capacity, prevent rotting and ensuring protection from pests.

There was a question about action taken against defaulting officers who had failed to protect the foodgrains from rotting. He had also sought information on the tenure of governments and the response to a set of questions posed in a newspaper on food storage, godowns and warehousing, consumer protection and profiteering. This application was transferred by the PMO to PIO, DFPD and Cabinet Secretariat under Section 6 (3) of RTI Act, 2005, to which the PIO did not respond.

Rajeev Jaitly gets ‘Punjabi Ratan’ title

Faridabad, June 11
Rajeev Jaitly, spokesperson for the INLD and part of youth brigade of his party, was the youngest among those conferred with the “Punjabi Ratan” title (jewel of the Punjabi community) by a social organisation, the Punjabi Mahashakti Manch, at a public function here.

Those bestowed with the title include a senior Congress leader and a former minister of Haryana, AC Chaudhary and the mayor of the Municipal Corporation, Faridabad, Ashok Arora.

Virender Kumar, president of the Punjabi Mahashakti Manch, said nominations for the title were based on sustained social services rendered to the community by the nominees.

He said Jaitly stood out because of high level of social commitment to the community shown by him at a young age.

Speaking at the function, Jaitly urged upon community members to strengthen the unity and integrity of the country. Punjabis have been in the forefront of the freedom struggle and have worked to strengthen the country in all aspects. The community has a history of being secular, disciplined and to face struggles upfront, he said.

He stressed on the need for education, especially among women. He said Guru Govind Singh had advocated empowerment of women about three centuries ago.

Punjabi women achieved high degree of academic and professional status without the benefits of reservation, he added, and said women from the community became the first among their counterparts to become IPS officer, Vice-Admiral and to be part of a space mission. — TNS

KU undergraduates to pay less for admissions
Our Correspondent

Kurukshetra, June 11
Undergraduate students of Kurukshetra University, who will be promoted to higher classes this year, will pay less money for their admission applications this year.

A decision to this effect was taken by Lt Gen Dr DDS Sandhu, Vice-Chancellor of Kurukshetra University, here recently on the request of students.

Stating this to mediapersons, Prof Brajesh Sawhney, Director, Public Relations of Kurukshetra University, said the students who would be promoted from lower classes to higher classes this year would pay Rs 40 only for filling up an application form against the purchase of a prospectus costing Rs 300 earlier.

Sirsa varsity, CPB sign MoU for academic exchange
Tribune News Service

Sirsa, June 11
To facilitate better academic exchange and cooperation between Chaudhary Devi Lal University (CDLU), Sirsa, and the Centre for Plant Biotechnology (CPB), Hisar, the two have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU).

Dr KC Bhardwaj, Vice-Chancellor, signed the MoU on behalf of the university and PK Das, Financial Commissioner and Principal Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, officiated on behalf of the CPB.

As per the MoU, the CDLU will recognise the CPB as a research centre at par with departments of the university and the faculty of the centre at par with that of its own, said Dr Dilbag Singh, director of public relations of the varsity. Students who wish to carry out research at the CPB will be allowed to be registered for PhD degree with the CDLU as well.

In exchange, students of the CDLU registered for PhD degrees will be able to use the CPB facilities. The CPB will give priority for providing training to postgraduate students of the CDLU on a reasonable payment. Intellectual property, research publication and benefits arising out of commercialisation of technologies generated out of cooperation under this agreement shall be jointly owned by the CDLU and the CPB. However, both parties shall be at liberty to terminate the MoU by serving one-month notice to the other.

Dr Bhardwaj said after signing the MoU, the move would benefit students of the university as they would have greater exposure and access to the developed laboratory and library facilities of the CPB.

DAV College teachers seek voting rights
Tribune News Service

Kurukshetra, June 11
The Haryana College Teachers Association (HCTA) has urged the DAV management to avoid ‘principal-centric’ approach which, they said, was proving detrimental to the interests of teachers in the state. They instead asked the management to evolve a mechanism for ensuring transparency in DAV colleges’ functioning all over Haryana.

In a letter to the president of DAV Colleges Managing Committee, HCTA president Rajbir Parashar said the committee had been adopting a principal-centric approach for decades and even the right of voting had been confined to principals He also demanded that teachers should also be treated on a par with principals and given voting rights.

The HCTA expressed concern over the abolition of local managing committees (LMCs) which, it said, were useful in day-to-day functioning of colleges and provided an interface among students, teachers, principal and the community at large.

The HCTA regrettedthat the DAV Managing Committee had so far failed to expedite the inquiry against the principal of DAV College, Pundri.

DLF launches fire station in Gurgaon
Tribune News Service

Gurgaon, June 11
Real-estate group DLF launched its own fire station at Cyber City here recently. In a statement issued here, the company said it had procured the latest state-of-the-art fire tender/rescue equipment. Hydraulic platforms have been imported from Finland and would be used for the projects being developed by DLF. These platforms would be available for the rescue/fire fighting operations in the eventuality of any emergency.

SK Dheri, head of Fire Safety at DLF, said the fire station provided adequate protection and fire prevention systems that match international standards.

DLF would keep two fire tenders in its fire station with the fire bouzers having the capacity to carry 18 kilolitres of water per vehicle, he added.

“DLF buildings have fixed fire protection systems namely; wet riser sprinklers, detection/public address systems and we have also provided specialised equipment like breathing apparatus (BA) sets, fire suits and thermal imaging cameras. In fact, fire safety audits are being conducted regularly, we have set up our own fire training school in DLF Cyber City for imparting
training of first aid and fire fighting to DLF staff as well as tenant employees. DLF is the only developer in India which provides 2-tier fire sprinkler system in all the tenant areas,” said Amit Grover, national director, DLF offices.

“Approximately, 25-40 personnel will be deployed at the fire station and have been sourced from outside. The company is maintaining all the systems and equipment at its own cost,” Dheri added.

Faridabad MC staff to go on mass casual leave on June 21
Ravi S Singh
Tribune News Service

Faridabad, June 11
Employees of the Municipal Corporation Faridabad (MCF) have decided to go on a mass casual leave on June 21 to press for the regularisation of services of their daily wage colleagues.

Dharam Singh, president of the MCF Engineers’ Association, said the aim of the agitation was to put pressure on the government to regularise the service of the daily wage employees soon.

“About 900 employees are working with the MCF on a daily wage basis for the past two decades,” he said.

The engineers’ association is affiliated to the Faridabad Palika Karamchari Sangh, which is spearheading the agitation of the employees. All the associations of employees of the MCF support the agitation, Dharam Singh said.

He said officials up to the assistant engineer/sub-divisional engineer level from the engineering wing of the MCF would take part in the agitation.

Meanwhile, the employees of the municipal body took out a motorcycle rally in Ballabgarh to mobilise support for the June 21 agitation.

Patients, docs suffer power pangs
Tribune News Service

Rohtak, June 11
Patients and staff at the Civil Hospital here continue to remain a harassed lot, thanks to frequent power cuts despite the hospital been on a hotline connection. The routine hospital work here goes haywire whenever a power cut is there. The hospital has no power backup despite having a generator set.

“I reported here for a check-up but was told to come back again as there was no power supply in the hospital,” said Parveen, a patient. “The surgery of my kin got delayed due to power disruption for over two hours,” rued an attendant.

“This 100-bed hospital was upgraded about a year ago. Even after having spent over Rs 20 crore, problems pertaining to infrastructure were still to be resolved,” claimed sources in the hospital. The availability of a high-tech genset had failed to resolve the power problem as it had not yet been made functional by the authorities concerned. Doctors were forced to work and perform surgeries in torchlight at several occasions, it is alleged.

An official claimed that while power supply to the hospital had been upgraded to 400 KV after its upgradation, the power back-up system was still to be made operational.

IT has capacity to change world, says VC
Our Correspondent

Sonepat, June 11
“This is an era of information technology (IT) and IT will rule the world in the coming time,” said the Vice-Chancellor of BPS Mahila Vishwavidyalaya, Dr Pankaj Mittal, while concluding a 21-day refresher course (IT) on the university premises recently.

Dr Mittal said that IT had the capacity to change the world and this technology had removed the geographical distances between countries and societies. “The need of the hour is to get proficiency in this field and then to use it in the right direction,” she added.

The VC said that IT had solved many problems in the field of higher education and it had played an important role in promoting social development activities. She also stressed the need for evolving new ideas and new techniques in this field.

In her welcome address, the director of Academic Staff College of the university, Dr Shaifali, listed the course details and said that over 19 teachers from different universities and colleges in the country attended the course
which was sponsored by the University Grants Commission.

The registrar of the university, Dr Asha Kadiyan, course coordinators Sunita and Neelam Jain were also present.

Nurses' strike ends at QRG Hospital
Tribune News Service

Faridabad, June 11
A month-long strike by the nursing staff of QRG Central Hospital has ended after long negotiations between their representatives and the hospital management, which were initiated by state Labour Minister Shivcharan Lal Sharma.

A government spokesman said the talks between the two sides were held in the presence of the minister. Sharma claimed that both sides were satisfied with the outcome of the talks. According to officials, the management of the hospital agreed to allow the striking nurses to report on duty. The management has also agreed to take back the 18 nurses whose services it had terminated during the course of the agitation.

Out of 132 staff nurses working in the hospital, 100 nurses boycotted work and had gone on strike for higher salaries and better working conditions.

Dr Mahender Gautam, a senior functionary of the hospital, said the management was not averse to increasing the salaries of nurses.

HCTA suggests action plan for education reforms
Satish Seth

Kaithal , June 11
The Haryana College Teachers’ Association (HCTA) has urged Chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda to adopt a three-point action plan to provide quality education in the institutes of higher studies in Haryana.

In a letter addressed to the Chief Minister, HCTA president Dr Rajbir Parashar and HCTA general secretary Dr Narender Singh advocated re-restructuring of the State Council of Higher Education with a clear objective of curtailing the domination of bureaucracy.

HCTA office-bearers expressed the desire to have a strong academic sub-group in the state council that could address and develop long term academic objectives independently, conduct timely reviews of academic curriculum and coordinate with universities without thwarting their autonomy.

The third and a significant dimension suggested is that the government should involve the teaching fraternity in this historical and constructive vision of making Haryana as the hub of education.

The rights of teachers of all categories including self-finance colleges be ensured through effective mechanism of governance, HCTA office-bearers said in the communiqué.

The HCTA representing the govt aided private colleges of the state has demanded parity for staff and students of govt-aided private colleges on the pattern of their counterparts in govt colleges who have numerous additional facilities. HCTA urged the government to intensify the recruitment drive in aided colleges which is the most neglected stream of higher education in the state.

The HCTA has suggested a statewide university-level rigorous process of updating the syllabi of various UG and PG degree courses, introduction of semester system, inter-discipline study in curriculum and inclusion of Haryanvi culture in syllabi. For this, teachers’ organisations in universities and colleges have to play a vital role by entering into an ‘introspective mode’ in all possible ways and by all possible means, the communiqué said.

The exclusion of the perspective of teachers’ bodies and of the students is a major miss in overall planning and it is the biggest factor leading to deficit of quality education in Haryana, the communiqué added.

Punjabi folk, Sufi songs enthral audience
Tribune News Service

Sirsa, June 11
“Punjabi Lok Geet and Sufiana Kalam”, a programme of Punjabi folk and Sufi songs organised by the Haryana Punjabi Sahitya Akademi, enthralled the audience at Jan Nayak Chaudhary Devi Lal Vidyapeeth here recently.

“Surjeet Safri and Party”, a cultural troupe from Punjab, presented a myriad of Punjabi folk songs ranging from Waris Shah’s “Heer” to “Chhalla” and “Jugnee”.

Sufi songs by the troupe mesmerised the audience in the auditorium of the JCD College of Dental Sciences.

Speaking on the occasion, Sukhchain Singh Bhandari, director of the Haryana Punjabi Sahitya Akademi, said it was the 46th programme organised by the Akademi in the current year.

“The Akademi has an annual budget of Rs 1 crore. Despite all efforts, I cannot spend Rs 43 lakh out of the last year’s budget. Now, I have decided to utilise the entire amount of Rs 1.43 crore this year to encourage Punjabi literature in Haryana,” Bhandari said.

He said with his efforts, all nameplates in the Haryana Civil Secretariat had been changed to include Punjabi as a language for writing the names of ministers and senior officers outside their offices. He said Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda was the first to adopt this and later others followed suit.

Bhandari said his proposal to write the names of cities on milestones on the national and state highways in Punjabi, too, had also been approved and tenders had already been floated for the purpose.

Remembering poet Harbhajan Singh “Renu”, who passed away recently, Bhandari said he would try to start an award after his name. “Renu”, a noted poet of Punjabi literature, hailed from Sirsa and his poems were prescribed to students of MA classes. “Renu’s” body was donated to Maharaja Agrasen Medical College, Agroha, as per the wish of the poet.

Shamim Sharma, Managing Director of JCD Vidyapeeth, traced the origin of Sufi music in her speech and said most youths liked this genre of music, but they had no idea of its genesis.

Mohan Sapra, a former professor and an eminent poet, lauded the role played by the Haryana Punjabi Sahitya Akademi.

“Budh Fir Muskraya Hai”, a compilation of Punjabi poems of Harbhajan Singh “Renu” in Hindi language by Puran Mudgil and Mohan Sapra, was also released on the occasion.

18 litterateurs to be honoured

Chandigarh, June 11
Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who is also chairman of the Haryana Urdu Akademi, has announced the names of 18 litterateurs who will be honoured for their outstanding contribution in the field of Urdu literature.

Hooda said Naresh of Panchkula would be honoured with the Haryana Gaurav, Fakre Haryana Puraskar along with a prize money of Rs 1.50 lakh. Shakil-ur-Rehman of Gurgaon would be honoured with Hali Award with a cash prize of Rs 1.21 lakh, a shawl, a memento and a certificate, he said. Rehman has written more than 36 books in different genres of Urdu language and more than eight PhDs have been written on his works in different universities.

Hooda said a special award carrying Rs 51,000 would be presented to Amar Singh Sahni of Faridabad for his outstanding contribution to Urdu literature. — TNS

Murthal varsity gets new teaching block
BS Malik

Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda inaugurates a teaching block at Murthal university in Sonepat. Photo by writer

Sonepat, June 11
Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda inaugurated a Rs 15-crore new teaching block and switched on the campus wide networking on the premises of the Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram University of Science and Technology, Murthal, recently.

While explaining the details of the inaugurated projects on the occasion, HS Chahal, Vice-Chancellor of the university, said the four-storeyed teaching block had the provision of 39 classrooms, 16 staff rooms, 27 laboratories, 16 80 faculty rooms, eight staff rooms, two seminar halls and 16 toilets.

The departments of civil engineering, physics, chemistry, mathematics science and nanotechnology, electronic and communication engineering, mathematics, humanities, Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram Chair, centre of excellence in energy and environment studies and offices of the dean students’ welfare and proctor have been housed in this block.

He further added that all the hostels, teaching blocks, workshops and administrative block had been linked with three-tier networking with distribution backbone connectivity on optical fibre 10 Gbps and centralised Wi-Fi controller-based management. Involving an expenditure of over Rs 1.25 crore, as many as LAN 1177 nodes were also one of the highlights of the network.

Provide best bank facilities to customers, Ombudsman tells officials
Our Correspondent

Kurukshetra, June 11
A seminar on creating awareness about the banking ombudsman scheme was held recently by Punjab National Bank (PNB) Circle Office, Kurukshetra.

Banking Ombudsman M Rajeshwar Rao called upon bank officials to provide the best facilities to people which would increase the bank’s business.

Rao said that although the banks always try to extend the maximum facilities to their customers, there are some problems that cannot be solved by banks. In such cases, as per the Reserve Bank of India instructions, the customers can submit a written complaint at the bank branch concerned . And if the official concerned fails to reply within 30 days, a complaint can be filed with the Banking Ombudsman from where a solution can be expected within 3-4 months.

If the customer is not satisfied with the reply rendered by the Banking Ombudsman, he can appeal to the Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of India. Again, the unsatisfied customer is free to approach the consumer forum or the court.

The Banking Code and Standard Board of India (BCSBI) Senior Vice-President PS Sharma explained about the BCSBI code and the rights of the customers. He urged customers to use Internet banking and ATM facilities cautiously in this technology-driven age.

Highlighting the measures initiated by the bank for customer service, PNB General Manager Kiran Grover said that consumer protection centres had been started while a separate cell had been established to solve problems related to Internet banking and ATMs. Cash deposit machines have been installed in the main PNB branches, she added.

She informed the participants that a new facility of knowing the account balance after giving a missed call would be started from next month.

Meanwhile, PNB circle head AK Mishra called upon bank officials to solve customer complaints on priority basis.

NABARD DM Pushkar Datt, PNB Chief Manager SC Bansal and PNB Bank Manager JS Murthy were among those present.

Govt to set up film development board
Tribune News Service

Kurukshetra, June 11
With a view to giving boost to Haryanavi cinema, a film development board will be set up in the state shortly to provide financial assistance,

Dr KK Khandelwal, Additional Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister and Financial Commissioner-Principal Secretary of Information and Public Relations, said.

In an informal chat with mediapersons after releasing a CD of Haryanavi film, Tera Mera Vaada, here, he said the Chief Minister had already made an announcement in this regard.

The film, slated for release on June 29 in Haryana, would usher in a new era in Haryanavi film industry and prove a benchmark in popularising Haryanavi films across the country, film Director Bhal Singh Balhara said.

Blocked sewers to be thing of past in Sirsa soon
Sushil Manav
Tribune News Service

Sirsa, June 11
Sirsa town will soon be free from its ever-tormenting problem of blockage of sewer lines.

Work on Rs 56.59 crore two sewage-treatment plants (STP) at Kelnia and Natar is in its final phase and the government has now approved a raised affluent channel (RAC) for dumping the treated contents from Kelnia to the Ghaggar. "The six-and-a-half-kilometre long RAC made of cement concrete will cost Rs 8.50 crore and it will rid Sirsa residents of the problem of sewer blockages and water-logging during rains," said Gopal Kanda, Haryana Minister for Urban Local Bodies.

The channel will work for 24 hours a day.

"The RAC will lift rainwater and treat sewer contents of the STP at Kelnia with the help of pumps. Provision has been made of a generator set of suitable capacity, so that the channel keeps working even when there is a power cut," said Angad Kumar, Superintending Engineer of the Public Health department at Sirsa.

An 11-kilometre long affluent channel for carrying contents of the STP, Natar, was already approved by the government and almost 80 per cent complete.

This channel will pour the contents of the STP in the Ghaggar Kharif Channel, said Bishnoi.

Both STPs will start functioning by the next year.

Kanda said the STPs and the channels were being set up keeping in mind the requirements of the year 2025 and in the second phase, provisions would
be made for people's need in 2040.

Judges speak on ill-effects of tobacco
Sushil Manav/TNS

Students present a skit at a function to mark Anti-Tobacco Day in Sirsa. A Tribune photograph

Sirsa, June 11
Judges came forward to spread awareness among people about ill-effects of tobacco in a function organised by the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) on Anti-Tobacco Day here recently.

“Tobacco consumes millions of lives across the globe every year. Shun tobacco in any form to live a healthy and prosperous life,” said District and Sessions Judge Subhash Goyal in his address during the function organised at Panchayat Bhawan.

Harish Gupta, Chief Judicial Magistrate and Secretary of the DLSA, said the objective of the event was to educate people about the legal aspects of smoking and use of tobacco.

He said the Haryana State Legal Service Authority (HSLSA) working under its Executive Chairman Justice Satish Kumar Mittal of the Punjab and Haryana High Court has been creating awareness among people on social and legal issues.

Shamim Sharma, Managing Director of the JCD Vidyapeeth, said awareness alone was not enough; people have to change their attitude to bring changes.

Civil Surgeon Dr Daya Nand threw light on the health hazards associated with tobacco smoking, while District Education Officer Kum Kum Grover said people should set good examples for their children to follow.

Students of JCD College of Education, Sirsa, and Nehru Senior Secondary School, Dabwali, presented skits and choreographies to give the message against smoking and use of intoxicants.

Teachers in favour of cartoons in textbooks
Sushil Manav
Tribune News Service

Sirsa, June 11
The recent controversy over the publication of a cartoon in a CBSE textbook has evoked a sharp response from the teaching community.

A cartoon drawn by Shankar Pillai and published in a magazine on August 28, 1949 has shaken the Indian Parliament.

This cartoon was reproduced in a NCERT Political Science Class XII textbook, ‘Indian Constitution at Work’.

It is one among the hundreds of cartoons published in NCERT textbooks to make the reading and understanding of these books interesting for students.

“I have personally experienced that my son who has read these books up to Class X has always been more attracted towards these cartoons and caricatures than the text. That has been precisely the objective of these NCERT books which have been written by a panel of authors and reviewed openly in the committee of experts before taking them to the stage of publication. Being the author and member of the NCERT Textbook Development Committee of one of the discipline, I may say so,” said Dr Mahabir Jaglan, an associate professor in the Geography Department of Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra. He said the textbook under question was published in 2006.

It is baffling that why the objection was raised against this cartoon after six years of its publication.

“Since the question was raised in the Parliament, there is certainly politics behind it which has forced the HRD Minister to apologise and order the cartoon to be removed from the textbook. Interestingly, the minister also noted in his statement that there are many other objectionable cartoons in the textbooks. Certainly, he would also remove all the cartoons in the book on Nehru-Gandhi family. It is being forgotten by the parliamentarians that Nehru himself had urged Shankar not to spare him,” Dr Jaglan added.

He said it was an open secret that NCERT books were rated among the best school books in the world.

If the authors of these books are politically victimised, no author with a critical and sane bent will come forward to write these books. So in future, it seems that these books will be written by ‘sarkari’ authors after due consultations with all community and caste leaders, he said.

Dr Meet, an associate professor in the English Department of Government Postgraduate College, Bhodia Khera in Fatehabad, said: “Cartoons help develop a sense of humour among children and hence, these help in the overall development of a child’s personality”.

She said cartoons were the artistic expression of thoughts and hence it was wrong to suppress the Right to Expression. Dr Meet said there was no problem with these NCERT books during the past six years. All of sudden, it was being realised that these cartoons were tarnishing the image of politician.

Case against members of family for ‘demanding dowry’
Hardesh Goswami

Bhiwani, June 11
Till a few days ago Neeta was all smiles. Like any other would-be bride, she had dreams in her eyes. Her marriage was fixed for June 15. Invitation cards had already been distributed. The marriage was to be held in Bawani Khera village of this district.

Suddenly, Neeta’s dreamy eyes were full of tears. On June 3, when her family visited the groom’s family at Rasalapur village to formally invite them as per the custom, her would be in-laws handed a list to her parents. The list of dowry items the groom’s family wanted to be given on the day of marriage included an Alto car, gold rings and gold chains, besides other articles. Along with the list also came a threat - cancel marriage if you are not in a position to fulfill their demands. The would-be in-laws also wanted “a grand welcome” to at least 250 members of the marriage party, though they had earlier consented to a simple marriage.

Shocked at the development, elders of the family met the groom’s family next day to seek the reason.

Representing the new generation of bold Haryana “chhoris”, Neeta and her family decided to teach a lesson to the greedy groom and his family. They met district police chief B. Satish Balan on June 5 demanding action against the groom, Rajeev, and his kin.

The complaint said that Neeta’s marriage was finalised on January 19 with Rajeev of Rasalapur village of Panipat district. At the time of her engagement, her family had spent about Rs 1.50 lakh. About two weeks before the marriage, the groom’s family had asked for dowry, including a car.

On the directions of the SP, a case was registered yesterday against Rajeev, his parents and four others at Bawani Khera police station under Sections 406 and 420 of the IPC and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act.

Education City to bring Haryana on international map, says Bhukkal
Ravinder Saini

Jhajjar, June 11
Haryana Education, Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Geeta Bhukkal said Rajeev Gandhi Education City at Kundli was the dream project of the state government which would turn out to be a milestone in giving new recognition to Haryana not only at the national level but also at the international level.

Bhukkal disclosed this while interacting with mediapersons after listening to public grievances at her residence here yesterday. She said the state government had done a remarkable work by bringing internationally reputed institutions like IIM, IIT and AIIMS in the state.

The minister said the government had launched a new scheme to re-employ the teachers, retiring during the mid-session, up to the end of academic session so that the education of children could not suffer.

“School Management Committees have been constituted in about 15,000 schools to improve the functioning of schools. To motivate meritorious students, the Rajiv Gandhi Scholarship Scheme has been started, which is benefiting over 30,000 children every year,” said the minister.

Bhukkal said as a result of the efforts made by the state government, the gross enrollment ratio in schools had improved to over 95 per cent and dropout rate had also reduced.

“The state government is providing basic facilities like uniform, text books and work books to all the children in the age group of 6-14 years. For encouraging enrolment in the backward area like Mewat, a social mobilisation programme, Jajba-e-Taleem, has been started along with the programme known as Dastak-E-Taleem and Shiksha-ka-Haq to bring each child of the area to the school,” said the minister.

The minister said to provide better training to the teachers of schools, an innovative State Level Teachers Training Institute was being established in Jhajjar district. This institute would provide pre-service training and prepare teachers for primary, middle and secondary education, she said.

Bhukkal said the state government had taken initiative for setting up of special focus schools like science schools, sports schools and kisan model schools to cater to the needs of various sectors. The budget of education had been increased by manifold for this purpose, she added.