Chandigarh,May 14
The ruling Congress today decided not to contest the forthcoming municipal corporation elections on its party symbol.

Though the decision was taken at a party meeting presided over by state Congress working president Phool Chand Mullana and attended, among others, by Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Kumari Selja, it seemed to be a foregone conclusion. With just a few days left for the filing of nominations, the Congress could have hardly decided to fight the crucial poll on the party symbol without any groundwork.

The party leadership maintained that the decision was in line with the party’s tradition not to contest the civic body poll on the party symbol in Haryana. “Besides, it was felt that time was too short for taking a major decision of contesting the June 2 elections on the party symbol,” senior Congress leader and Rohtak MLA BB Batra told The Tribune today.

However, with anti-incumbency and the allegations of a regional bias against Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda by his detractors within the party and the Opposition, the party felt it prudent not to disturb the status quo. It is being felt that in case the Congress did not fare well in the MC polls, the Opposition may well score some brownie points ahead of the parliamentary and assembly elections next year.

Though the Congress had never contested the civic body elections on its party symbol, the grassroot-level workers contested the poll to test political waters.The party tacitly supported its workers and “like-minded” candidates in the elections to contain the opposition parties. However, in the event of its workers and “like-minded” candidates winning the elections, the Congress had been quick to “adopt” them to capture the posts of residents and vice-president of these civic bodies.

With the INLD contesting the poll on its symbol for the first time and the BJP going all out to capture the seven municipal corporations, the elections are billed as the “semi-final” for next year’s parliamentary and assembly poll.

Fatehabad, May 14
Over 20 schoolchildren were taken ill after consuming iron and folic acid (IFA) tablets supplied at Bhunderwas and Mehmada villages of Fatehabad today.

In Bhunderwas village alone, 18 children complained of loose motions, vomiting and pain in the abdomen. Eight of them needed to be shifted to the Community Health Centre (CHC), Ratia.

"All the eight were discharged by the evening," said Dr VK Jain, Senior Medical Officer at the CHC, Ratia.

He said under the Indira Bal Swasthya Yojna (IBSY) started on May 13, IFA tablets are to be distributed among schoolchildren studying in Class VI to Class XII every Monday. It was the first day of the drive yesterday and IFA tablets were distributed in schools.

According to the parents of the children brought to the CHC, Ratia, auxiliary nurse midwife (ANM) distributed IFA tablets among children yesterday. Many children started complaining of pain in the abdomen, loose motions and vomiting.

Several others, who perhaps took the tablets today, started vomiting in the school this morning.

Dr Jain, who went to the school, said nearly 18 children had taken ill out of which eight were brought to the CHC.

"All of them have been discharged and sent to their homes now," he added.

Besides, three children were taken ill at Mehmeda village and their condition is also stated to be better now.

Dr Jain said the intake of IFA tablets was often associated with gastric irritation and pain in the abdomen.

Karnal, May 14
With the process for the Karnal Municipal Corporation elections set in motion, Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Chander Shekhar, who is also the Returning Officer for the poll, has constituted a three-member committee consisting of City Magistrate Aman Deep, Executive Engineer in the Panchayati Raj Department Ramphal and Executive Officer of the corporation Satbir Ahlawat for strict implementation of the model code of conduct.

Dr Chander Shekhar said places would be identified for display of posters and banners, spots would be notified for holding election meetings by candidates and political parties and the number of vehicles to be used during elections would also be approved by the officers. 

Chandigarh, May 14
The government has launched a website www.jansahayak.gov.in to facilitate time-bound delivery of 36 citizen services .

The website aims at covering all citizen-centric services under prompt service delivery in a phased manner.

These 36 services included issue of new ration cards, issue of ration cards on receipt of surrender certificates, issue of duplicate ration cards, inclusion of family member's name in ration cards, deletion of family member's name in ration card, change of address with same jurisdiction, change of address, issue of surrender certificates, issue of SC and BC, OBC or domicile certificates, issue of Tapriwas or Vimukt Jaati, income, rural area certificates, registration of property or land, sanction of mutation of land, providing copies of land records, learner’s driving licences, permanent driving licences, renewal of driving license, duplicate driving licence, conductor licence, registration of new vehicles, transfer of ownership, Duplicate RC, release of new electricity, water and sewerage connections, Issuance of birth and death certificates and approval of building plans.

Fatehabad, May 14
Members of the Bishnoi community, who are known for protecting trees and wildlife, have come out against the nuclear power project coming up at Gorakhpur in Fatehabad terming it as a threat to wild animals in the area.

A meeting of the Akhil Bhartiya Bishnoi Jeev Raksha Samiti was held at Adampur (Hisar) today.

Rameshwar Delu, president of the samiti, alleged that a large number of black bucks had already lost their lives in the Badopal area, where Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) had started fencing work on the land acquired for their residential colony.

"We have taken up the matter with the authorities in Fatehabad on several occasions but to no avail," he said.

He said the samiti had been left with no option but to move court for the mute animals who are being sacrificed in the name of development.

The samiti constituted a committee headed by Vinod Kumar Karwasra for taking the matter to the appropriate court.

Village-level jeev raksha committees were constituted to protect wildlife, particularly in the area where the NPCIL nuclear power project is coming up.

The Bishnois demanded the setting up of a sanctuary on 100 acres of land to save black bucks and other wild animals, which were in abundance in the area.

The Bishnois also demanded action against the farmers burning wheat stubble on their fields, saying that such fires were destroying snakes and many other friendly pests.

Kaithal, May 14
The police arrested five youths for raping and blackmailing a 17-year-old Dalit girl of Pai village in this district. As her rape scene had been recorded on a mobile, the accused used to blackmail her.

According to information, the youths last night reached the house of the girl and allegedly tried to kidnap her. The family members of the girl had a clash with them and the youths ran away.

In the scuffle, four persons, Joginder , Rajinder, Kura Ram and Raghbir, were injured.

In a complaint lodged with the police, the girl alleged that Amit, Satish, Jitender, Narinder alias Babloo, Parveen and two others kidnapped her and took her to a hotel and three of them had raped her. One of them recorded this act on his mobile. All of them continued to blackmail her.

Meanwhile, efforts were on to apprehend the remaining accused. 

Gurgaon, May 14
The Gurgaon police today arrested a conductor of Haryana Roadways for allegedly raping his 31-year-old neighbour.

Though the incident took place on May 3, the victim made a complaint today.

The victim said Devender, a resident of Naurangpur, raped her while she was on her way to fields.

The accused had threatened her with dire consequences if she revealed the incident to anyone.

The police nabbed Devender from his house and produced him in a local court which sent him in 14-day judicial custody. — TNS

Chandigarh, May 14
The decision taken by six village panchayats of Mahendragarh district not to send girl students to educational institutions has come under the Punjab and Haryana High Court's scanner.

In a petition, a human rights organisation has sought 'immediate action' by Haryana to ensure the safety and security of girl students. The petitioner, Lawyers for Human Rights International, has asserted the decision is affecting the education of 400 girls. Quoting a report in an English daily carried on May 11, the petitioner has asserted that the panchayats of Pal, Gadania, Kherki, Nihalawas, Kuksi and Palah villages have taken a joint decision that they would not send the girls to schools as they were exposed to harassment through eve-teasing.

In its petition against Punjab and Haryana, along with Chandigarh, the petitioner added the news item underscored a "practical problem which needs to be addressed by the state immediately'. "The decision also shows how helpless the parents of girl students are? and how indifferent the police is towards the problem of eve-teasing in Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh," the petitioner said.

It added that directions be issued to the respondents to ensure proper implementation of the laws relating to crimes against women, especially the recent amendments introduced in the IPC on February 3 'to ensure that women are able to move out freely in society without any fear and they are able to live their lives with dignity'

Karnal, May 14
The Agriculture Department has asked the farmers not to start sowing paddy before June 15 and also warned them against burning wheat stubble in the fields, causing pollution.

"The farmers should wait till June 15 for paddy sowing and raise nurseries only after May 15 to conserve water and depend more on the rains", Deputy Director, Agriculture, Suresh Gehlawat said, adding that sowing of paddy before mid-June consumes a large quantity of water and in order to conserve water resource, it was imperative that minimum water was utilised for paddy crop.

The groundwater table in Haryana is fast depleting in most of the areas except in the areas along the Yamuna and the government has already banned sowing of the Saathi variety of paddy which consumes a huge quantity of water.

Gehlawat also warned the farmers against burning wheat stubble in fields which caused air pollution and also affected the fertility of land. He said action would be taken against the erring farmers under the Control of Water and Air Pollution Act, 1981.

The practice of burning wheat stubble after harvesting the crop was also seen as a threat to the environment and a lurking danger to the standing crops in the neighbouring fields.

"The practice could lead to the elimination of a farmer-friendly insect, beetle (Zygogramma Bicolorata), said a progressive farmer having fields on the outskirts of Karnal.

The scientists have recommended that wheat stubble can be used as feed by mixing it with cattle feed and it can meet the shortage of cattle feed during the winters.

Sirsa, May 14
Within days of the recovery of the charred body of a woman in Ramnagaria, the police today recovered the burnt bones of another woman near Ratta Khera village in Sirsa. The police has sent the bones, recovered from the place where the woman's body was burnt under a heap of sticks of cottonwood, for testing.

The police recovered two toe rings from the ashes that suggest that the skeleton found there is of a woman.

Saurabh Singh, SSP, Sirsa, said the body must have been burnt four or five days back.

Basant Singh, a farmer from Ratta Khera, said he was away to Punjab when some villagers informed him that a heap of cottonwoods lying in his fields was on fire.

He said when he was clearing the place after his return, he found bones in the ashes.

The farmer brought the matter to the notice of other villagers who informed the police. The police also recovered two toe rings from there.

The police has registered a case of murder and causing disappearance of evidences against unknown persons.

On May 4 too, some persons had burnt a woman under a heap of cowdung cakes and wheat stubble near Ramnagaria village in Sirsa.

Rewari, May 14
The Kosli police of the district yesterday arrested village youth Umesh for kidnapping and raping a student of Class XII from Bhakli village, near Kosli, on Friday. The police also recovered the minor from his custody.

The medical examination of the girl confirmed sexual assault on her.

The police registered a case of abduction, rape under the POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offence) Act against the accused.

A senior police officer said after abduction, the girl was kept somewhere here and allegedly raped repeatedly by her kidnapper.

Umesh was today produced in a court at Kosli which remanded him in 14-day judicial custody. — OC