Chandigarh, December 3
The Punjab and Haryana High Court today paved the way for the committee of experts to examine “wrong questions” in the HCS (Executive) preliminary examination by directing the Haryana Public Service Commission to furnish the names of specialists in each subject within four weeks.

Taking up a bunch of 21 petitions the Bench made it clear that the names were to be furnished in a sealed cover.

The Bench also directed the commission to decide within four weeks thereafter the representations submitted by the candidates at the time of examination, the answer keys made public on the High Court directions and approximately 25 disputed questions submitted to the Bench today by counsel for the petitioners. The Bench also directed the commission to declare the results on a percentile basis.

The directions came nearly four months after the High Court found faults with the preliminary examination and deferred the main written examination. On the previous date of hearing, the commission had agreed in principle to constitute the experts’ committee. The commission informed the Division Bench that it would constitute subjectwise expert committees, and examine all representations by the petitioners and other candidates.

More than 136 representations were submitted to the commission after the publishing of the answer keys, besides 151 received earlier.

A Single Bench of the High Court on August 30 ruled that the commission had created “much” confusion by not making public the answer key. Allowing the petitions, the Single Bench had also directed the HPSC to constitute a committee of experts to consider 151 representations received by the commission regarding the questions. “The commission shall consider the same and take steps in accordance with the law,” Justice Augustine George Masih had ruled.

Directing the HPSC to publish the answer key of the preliminary examination, the Judge had also asked the commission to call for representations from the candidates within a reasonable time before referring these to the experts’ committee.

It shall consider the representations before submitting its opinion to the commission, “which shall thereafter take a decision and take appropriate steps in accordance with law”. Subsequently, an appeal against the orders were filed before a Division Bench.

Jhajjar, December 3
The panchayats of five villages of Salhavaas region here have pronounced a verdict to boycott the families of three youths who allegedly eloped with a girl of the same gotra and village over two weeks ago.

The joint panchayat, held at Shiv Temple in Khanpur Khurd village yesterday, warned the villagers that anyone maintaining any ties with the families would face boycott as well. The accused and the girl belong to the Gahlawat gotra.

Presided over by Mahender Singh Gahlawat, the panchayat was attended by over 500 people of the five villages of Bahu, Kheda Tharu, Khanpur Kalan, Jhhamri and Khanpur Khurd.

“The panchayat also said no one would go to their houses or help them in any matter,” Ravinder Gahlawat told ‘The Tribune’ on behalf of his mother and sarpanch of Khanpur Khurd, Umrawati.

As per the verdict, if anyone from the five villages is found either making any communication or providing any sort of succour to the families, he/she will invite the wrath of the panchayat which may also issue a verdict of his/her social boycott, said Ravinder. He added that the role of the panchayat was essential to maintain the dignity of social customs.

“The family members of the accused were also called at the panchayat to know their views about the incident. They admitted before the panchayat that their kin had broken the social custom and that they were ready to face any verdict that the panchayat issued,” said Manjeet Gahlawat, sarpanch of Jhhamari village.

The panchayat also formed an 11-member-committee to meet Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda to seek the arrest of the accused. While one of the accused has been arrested, the remaining two and the girl are still not in the police net, he said.

The Salhavaas police had, on November 19 last, booked three youths of Khanpur Khurd under Sections 363 and 366 (kidnapping, abducting or inducing woman to compel her into marriage) of the Indian Penal Code on the complaint of the girl’s father.

Rohtak, December 3
Bhaini Bhairo village of Meham subdivision in the district has joined the league of villages that have banned DJ music. This is perhaps the first village in the district whose panchayat has announced such a move. Around 12 villages of the nieghbouring Jind district have already gone for such a measure.

Sanjay Kumar, sarpanch of Bhaini Bhairo, said a meeting of all communities on Sunday decided to impose a fine of Rs 21,000 for violation of the DJ
ban and resolved to ban the sale and purchase of liquor in the village.

Claiming that both the activities had an adverse impact on the social atmosphere of the village, he said the villagers had gone for the move. He said the panchayat had requested the liquor vendors to sell liquor outside the village limits. The district authorities have claimed that no liquor vend is allotted to the village whose panchayat adopts such a resolution and forwarded it before the month of March each year.

Chandpur of Jind district had a few months back decided to impose a fine of Rs 11,000 on DJ music in the village. “Many times, youths start dancing in an inebriated condition and later get embroiled in fights. In our village, some incidents had turned ugly and both the panchayat and police had to intervene to settle the dispute,” claimed Azad Singh of the village

Nidani, Chattar, Karsindhu, Haibatpur Baroda and Alipura villages of Jind have already banned DJ music and the sale of liquor.

There are over 500 villages across the state where such a ban has emerged or its demand has been raised by the panchayats and village elders

Randhir Singh of the Meham Chaubisi panchayat says that the playing of loud music has not only disturbed the rural lifestyle but also become a cause of the deteriorating law and order situation.

“The panchayat can take decisions which they think are appropriate for their society provided they do not not curtail the basic freedom of any individual or hurt the interests or feelings of any community,” claims a police official here. 

Sonepat, December 3
On the occasion of World Disability Day, activists of the Viklang Adhikar Manch staged a dharna at the mini secretariat in support of demands for the disabled persons. The activists were led by the state vice-president of All-India Kisan Sabha and manch convener Hawa Singh.

They also handed over a memorandum, addressed to Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, to Additional Deputy Commissioner SB Lohia.

The main demands were a higher monthly pension of Rs 2,000, abolition of the age bar for disability pension, upgradation of the school for hearing impaired to high school standard, 3 per cent reservation to disabled children for admission in schools, BPL status for disabled and free bus and train facility.

Addressing the protestors, Solanki said: “The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights has not recognised disabled children in its protection list. The commission demands that the child protection is the duty of the Union Ministry of Social Justice. According to census of India 2011, around 2 per cent of the population was suffering from disability.” 

New Delhi, December 3
The Supreme Court (SC) today directed Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) to expeditiously provide civic amenities such as water, electricity, roads and sewers to a large number of Gurgaon residents who have been denied of these facilities for 30 years.

A Bench comprising Justices DK Jain and Madan B Lokur passed the order on a petition filed by the Gurgaon Citizens Council questioning the Municipal Corporation’s logic in levying property tax on the residents without providing them any facilities.

The SC granted liberty to the council to approach the Punjab and Haryana High Court if HUDA failed to redress its grievances in time.

The council has already demanded colleges, hospitals, sports stadia, power grid stations and parks. As many as 3,000 flats had no power connection and were dependent on generators for electricity, it said.

During the arguments today, the Bench asked the Haryana government not to treat the affected Gurgaon residents like animals.

HUDA’s counsel said the authority would “very shortly” complete all the work relating to civic amenities in the areas that did not have these so far.

At this, the Bench asked the state government as to why it was charging property tax in undeveloped areas and threatened to pass on order restraining it from doing so. The court, however, restricted its order to directing HUDA to provide all the facilities expeditiously.

Arguing for the council, advocate Nivedita Sharma said her clients had already paid huge development charges and were regularly paying maintenance charges to the developers. But both the developers and the state government had failed to provide even basic necessities such as electricity, water, sewer connections and roads.

The affected residents are allottees of flats and plots under phases four and five. About 50 per cent of the plot cost was meant for internal and external development work which was supposed to be provided within two years.

Earlier, the SC had summoned Haryana’s Principal Secretary (Law) to appear in the court in the case.

The petitioners had also questioned the inclusion of these areas under the Municipal Corporation, contending that the balance development work would not be completed either by the developers or the state government.

Sirsa, December 3
The authorities in Sirsa have decided to appoint volunteers as ‘shanti doots’ (peace messengers) in different wards of the town and villages to maintain peace in the district.

The deputy commissioner J Ganesan presided over a meeting of municipal councilors - both present and former - at the conference hall, District Rural Development Authority, here today.

“We will appoint 10-15 shanti doots in each village of the district and each ward of town to help the authorities in maintaining peace,” said Ganesan while addressing the meeting.

Sirsa has witnessed disturbances following conflicts between the followers of Dera Sacha Sauda and forces opposing it.

Lack of communication between the authorities and the two warring groups has been found responsible for the recent violence that left over 12 injured and resulted in imposition of curfew in the town.

Ganesan said peace messengers would be issued identity cards by the district administration and they would be imparted training in first-aid and on how to maintain peace during disturbances.

He said, “We will utilise the services of shanti doots to get a feed back from their respective areas and also for exchanging of any kind of information. They will also work in preventing rumour in villages and cities and ensure that the orders issued by the district administration reach the common man.”

While seeking support of the people, he said civil society plays a vital role in maintaining peace and communal harmony. 

Chandigarh, December 3
Haryana has focused on cluster development under which common facility centres would be set up in partnership with the industry.

These centres will address the common needs of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the areas of research and development, technology upgradation support, standardisation of products, quality testing and marketing facilities and initiatives with promotion of branding of products, an official said.

He said detailed project reports (DPRs) in case of four clusters had been prepared and out of which the Ministry of MSMEs had given approval for three clusters. These included the Footwear Cluster, Bahadurgarh, Print and Pack Cluster, Karnal, and Home Furnishing Cluster, Panipat. Apart from this, the diagnostic study report in case of other eight clusters has been prepared and work to prepare DPRs of four clusters was in progress, he added.

He said the Kundli-Manesar Palwal (KMP) Expressway and the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor would open new opportunities of investment and growth. Under the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) project, a band of 150-200 km was envisaged to be developed on both sides of the Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) to create a base with globally competitive environment and state-of-art infrastructure.

In addition, the mass rapid transport system (MRTS) between Gurgaon and Rewari, an exhibition-cum-convention centre near Panchgaon Chowk, Manesar, and a multi-modal logistic hub near Bawal had been identified as early bird projects.

The official said that Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) has developed a number of industrial estates and industrial model townships (IMTs) in the state where housing facilities were also being provided to the industrial labour. Under this, the corporation, on a pilot basis, had undertaken the project and developed the industrial labour housing units in IMT Manesar, Phase-I. The corporation has constructed 192 single-room dwelling units each having a covered area of 28.67 sq m with allotment price of Rs 3.80 lakh each and 36 dormitory units having covered area of 84.55 sq m with an allotment price of Rs 15 lakh each. The project with capital cost of Rs 7 crore had already been completed at IMT Manesar, Phase I, he further added.

He said that it was proposed to construct 336 single dwelling units and 864 dormitories for bachelors at the industrial estates in Kundli, Rai, Barhi, IMT, Rohtak, Faridabad and Manesar, Phase II, at a cost of about Rs 150 crore. Work of construction of Industrial Labour Housing at Kundli at an estimated cost of Rs. 27.61 crore had been started and would be completed by the end of this year. 

Chandigarh, December 3
Buoyed by the bumper Kharif crops despite scanty rainfall, particularly paddy, Haryana is targeting a record area of 33.10 lakh hectares as against a normal sowing area of 31.97 lakh hectares during the 2012-13 Rabi season.

A lion's share of 25.05 lakh hectares of the total 33.10 lakh hectares will be accounted for by wheat crop followed by Rabi oilseeds(6 lakh hectares) and gram(1.30 lakh hectares), sources in the Agriculture Department told The Tribune today.

Wheat has so far been sown over 18.33 lakh hectares (73.2%). The figures for the corresponding period last year was 18.30 lakh hectares. As far as gram is concerned, the crop over nearly 0.76 lakh hectares (58.4%) had already been sown. Till this time of the year, the state had sown gram over an area of 0.75 lakh hectares last ear.

A maximum percentage of 91.7 %(5.5 lakh hectares) had already been covered under the oilseeds against a target of 6 lakh hectare area in the ongoing Rabi season.. Similarly, Rabi pulses have been sown over an area of 0.07 lakh hectares(70%) against a target of 0.10 lakh hectares. Normally pulses are sown over an area of nearly 0.07 lakh hectares in the state.

The sources said barley has been sown over an area of 0.28 lakh hectares comprising 56% of the total targeted area of 0.10 lakh hectares.

As against the total targeted area of 33.10 lakh hectares, Rabi crops had already been sown over an area of 24.94 lakh hectares comprising 75.3% of the targeted area.This portends well for the forthcoming Rabi crops against the backdrop of corresponding period last year when the figure was 24.70 lakh hectares. The area of another cash crop, sunflower, has almost doubled from 0.08 lakh hectares 0.15 lakh hectares, the sources added.

Additional Director (Agriculture) BS Duggal said concerted efforts by the state government and the farmers led to the increased sown area this Rabi session.

Kaithal, December 3
On the third day of a free polio camp organised by the Krishan Kripa Sewa Samiti at Geeta Bhawan Mandir, doctors from Gujarat and Rajasthan performed corrective surgeries on polio-affected children.

Samiti spokesperson Susham Kapoor said the patients and their attendants were given free food, board and lodging facility. As many as 550 patients were examined of which 110 polio-affected children were shortlisted for corrective surgery.

Shamsher Singh Surjewala, president, All-India Kisan Khet Majdoor Congress, visited the patients. Deputy commissioner Chander Shekhar visited the camp and assured full help for the noble cause.

Kapoor said the Punjabi Welfare Sabha, Aggarwal Yuva Sabha, Awaj Manch, Shiv Vatika Samiti, JCI Kaithal Star, Bharat Vikas Parishad, Barfani Seva Mandal, Mahaveer Sewa Dal, Sewa Sangh, Jawala Ji Seva Dal, Punjabi Yuva Sabha Pundri and some other local organisations had extended their help for organising the camp.

Faridabad, December 3
The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) will project party supremo Mayawati as its prime ministerial candidate in the next Lok Sabha elections, said BSP national vice-president Raja Ram while addressing party workers at Sikri village in the district.

Raja Ram, a Rajya Sabha member and in charge of the party’s affairs in Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, said Mayawati had established herself as a capable administrator.

He called upon the party cadre to prepare for the Lok Sabha elections.

He said the BSP would contest all 10 Lok Sabha and 90 assembly seats in Haryana .

He directed the party functionaries in Haryana to constitute booth-level committees by month-end.

Rajveer Singh, party’s state in charge, was critical of the state government for ignoring Dalits. He alleged there had been a spurt in atrocities against them.

State party president Naresh Saran announced that Dheerender Pratap, a BSP councillor in the Municipal Corporation, Faridabad, had been expelled from the party for anti-party activities.

Sonepat, December 3
Senior BJP leader Kishan Singh Sangwan died today at a private hospital in Delhi following a paralysis attack. He was 64 years old and is survived by his wife, two sons and two daughters.

His body was brought at his new residence in Sector 14 and was later taken to Gohana for performing last rites.

Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda; HJC supreme Kuldeep Bishnoi; state BJP president Krishan Pal Gujjar; Rohtak MP Deepender Singh Hooda; Congress leaders Professor Sampat, Raghubir Singh Kadian, Krishna Gahlaut, Ved Singh Malik; BJP leaders Kavita Jain, Capt Abhimanyu, Ram Bilas Sharma, ID Swamy, Veer Kumar Yadav; INLD leaders Dr KC Bangar, Satbir Kadian; reached Gohana to pay their homage to the departed soul.

In his 40 years of political career, he remained a cabinet minister in Haryana from 1987 to 1991 and was elected Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha) in 1998 as the INLD candidate and in 1999 and 2004 as BJP candidate. He also served BJP as a senior vice-president and at present he was the member of the national executive committee of the party.

Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said, “Though there were political differences between them but he was still a family friend. He was a mass leader and it is a great loss to the state.”

Bisnoi said Sangwan was a leader who worked for the welfare of farmers and workers. He used to raise Haryana related issues in parliament and his contribution will always be remembered. 

Rewari, December 3
Following a complaint lodged by a married woman (30) of Bhiwani district, the Rampura police of the district here has registered a case of rape, abduction, wrongful confinement, robbery and under the Arms Act against six persons. The accused are Ram Niwas, his wife Kamlesh Devi, his two younger brothers Jaipal and Mahipal and a relative Shri Bhagwan, all residents of Asia Ki Gorawas village under Rohrai police station of the district, as well as the victim’s sister-in-law Anita Devi of Bhiwani district.

A police official said the complainant’s medical examination was conducted in the civil hospital here yesterday and her swabs were sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory, Madhuban, Karnal, for chemical examination.

The woman, a resident of Jatola village in Gurgaon district, got married to a man of Bhiwani dsitrict in 2003 and bore a son and a daughter to him, who are now 9 and 6 years of age, respectively.

In her complaint lodged with the Rampura police station here on Saturday, she stated that she had a quarrel with her in-laws on August 30, 2011, after which she went to Bhiwani station from where she was enticed and brought to Rampura village, near Rewari.

At Rampura, she was kept in confinement at Ram Niwas’s house and repeatedly raped for weeks at gunpoint. She was robbed of her jewellery by the accused as well.

She further stated that from Rampura, she was taken to Palam Vihar, Gurgaon, and other places and finally to the Kherthal area of Alwar district in Rajasthan. She also stated that the accused Ram Niwas raped her all the time.

However, she managed to get out of his clutches and then reached the Rampura police station where she filed a complaint.

The police official further said that while the matter was under investigation, the report of the FSL, Madhuban, was being awaited.

Hisar, December 3
An assistant sub-inspector of police (ASI) has been booked for injuring a local resident by firing at him.

The police said Ravi had gone to the local Railway Station to bring his two friends home.

While they were coming home on a motorcycle, they were signalled to stop by the ASI and his companion near Sabzi Mandi around 11 pm yesterday.

As they stopped, the ASI fired a shot which hit Ravi's foot. Ravi was rushed to the General Hospital for treatment. He was later shifted to a private hospital.