Kaithal, June 27
Four children were killed when a wall of an old house collapsed in Chausala village of the district last evening.

The deceased have been identified as Ajay, son of Anil, Sachin, son of Rajesh Kumar, Bhupinder, son of Sukhbir and Nutun, son of Ram Phal, all aged between seven and eight years.

The four had gone missing last evening after they had left their houses to play. When the children did not return after a long time, their parents started searching for them. Meanwhile, a few villagers spotted a bicycle belonging to one of the children near a collapsed house. The four were found buried under the debris of the wall, which had collapsed due to the recent rains.

The children were rushed to the Indira Gandhi Multi-Speciality Hospital at Kaithal where they were declared brought dead.

The bodies were handed over to their family members after conducting a post-mortem examination.

Chandigarh, June 27
The nearly 12,000-odd recognised private schools of Haryana will have to reserve 10 per cent seats for meritorious students belonging to the economically weaker sections and BPL categories. A notification to this effect has been issued by the Haryana School Education Department.

This announcement would come as some consolation for the private schools which were opposed to granting 25 per cent reservation to this category of students.

Education Minister Geeta Bhukkal confirmed that the department had indeed climbed down from its proposed 25 per cent reservation to 10 per cent quota keeping in view the constraints of private school owners.

However, the school owners' other demand for reimbursement of fee of students getting admission under this 10 per cent quota was pending. The government, on its part, has already turned down this demand.

The decision to reserve 25 per cent seats for the EWS and the BPL categories was first announced in 2009. However, the implementation process was set rolling only in 2011-12 following which the owners of private schools began an agitation. They maintained that they could not reserve one-fourth of the seats in every class from I to XII since it was not economically viable.

After numerous rounds of meetings with the Department and a meeting with Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, the two parties, the government and the school owners, finally reached a compromise of offering 10 per cent seats to the meritorious students of the two categories.

“The government agreed to reduce this quota to 10 per cent. We have been authorised to take a test of all such students who apply under this quota. However, our main demand for reimbursing the education cost still stands,” says Ramesh Rohilla of the private schools association.

He maintains that the government spends Rs 4200 per month on every child studying in a government school. “We are demanding that the government should at least give us Rs 1000 to Rs 1200 per child on the central pattern. We are sticking to this demand and want some reimbursement for the seats we are forgoing as quota,” Rohilla said.

Bhiwani, June 27
The Haryana Board of School Education (HBSE) today clarified that the 'answer keys' recovered from some candidates during the Haryana Teachers Eligibility Test (HTET) yesterday were fake and there was no leakage of question papers in the board or at any of the centres set up by it.

Dr KC Bhardwaj, HBSE chairman, said in all, 75 cases of unfair means had been registered in the HTET examinations held at 532 centres in 13 districts of Haryana and Chandigarh on June 25 and 26.

In most of the cases, candidates were found cheating through the use of bluetooth devices and cellphones, Bhardwaj said.

Brushing aside all allegations that some candidates had 'answer keys' with them, HBSE secretary Anshaj Singh said the answer keys recovered yesterday had been compared with the question papers and these had been found to be fake.

This appears to be the case of some candidates falling prey to unscrupulous coaching centre owners, who issued them fake answer keys for money, Anshaj said.

The board secretary said a complete transparency was being observed in the evaluation of answersheets and the process was being monitored under the supervision of board officials as well as two IAS officers from outside the HBSE. He said the result would be announced soon. 

Badopal (Fatehabad), June 27
Former Army chief General VK Singh said the nuclear power plant coming up at Gorakhpur in Fatehabad would be hazardous and pose a security threat to the people.

He was addressing people at Agroha in Hisar, Badopal, Dhangar and a few other villages in Fatehabad today.

He said the project, if allowed to come up, would render over 1.40 lakh acre of land unfit for agriculture due to the water needed for the plant.

“It is quite strange how the government is planning to set up a nuclear power project so close to the country’s border with Pakistan. At time of war, it will be easy for the enemy’s aircraft to target the plant and wreck havoc in our country,” the former Army chief said. “Even without a direct attack, for rendering Gorakhpur nuclear power plant a potent weapon of destruction against our people, all they have to do is to stop water supply to the project by inflicting breaches in the Fatehabad branch of the Bhakra system,” General VK Singh said.

He said people had just seen how even a rain could cause havoc for them. He said floods provided people an opportunity to escape from its range, but a nuclear disaster does not give people a chance to flee.

He said nuclear disasters at Fukushima, 3-Mile Island in the US and Chernobyl in Russia had exhibited the kind of damage these kinds of tragedies could inflict.

Terming the setting up of nuclear power plants in various parts as the biggest scam of the country, General VK Singh said the day was not far when people would realise that the 2-G scams, the Coalgate Scam and the CWG scams were nothing in comparison to it.

The former Army chief said at a time when the US was not setting any new nuclear power plant, Germany was closing its plants and France was also minimising its atomic power projects, India, due to the “vested interests” of some politicians, wanted to set up new plants.

MG Devasahayam, a former bureaucrat who is heading an anti-nuclear power campaign at Koodankulam, alleged that farmers whose lands were irrigated from the Fatehabad branch of the Bhakhra system downstream of Gorakhpur village would have to face an acute shortage of irrigation water in future.

“The NPCIL has written in its environment impact assessment (EIA) that the plant will need 320 cusecs of water. Going by the corporation’s own calculation that 2.25 cusecs of water irrigated 1,000 acres, the water taken away by the NPICL for the plant will render nearly 1.30 lakh acres barren,” Devasahayam said.

He maintained that farmers from Fatehabad, Hisar and Sirsa, who have their lands downstream of Gorakhpur, would suffer heavy losses in terms of loss of crops.

Later, addressing mediapersons at Fatehabad, General VK Singh and Devasahayam urged the government to convert the land acquired for the plant into a sanctuary for black bucks.

Sonepat, June 27
Reviewing the progress of work on the projects announced by him for Sonepat district here today, Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda directed the officers to ensure that the projects were completed by September 30.

Cautioning officers found negligent in their duty, Hooda said: "I will again review the progress before November 1."

Hooda said he would hold another meeting to review the progress of work on power projects in the district.

The Chief Minister said 216 of the 390 development projects announced for the district had been completed. Work was progressing on 115 projects and 24 others were yet to be started.

Hooda claimed that his government had spent Rs 3255.87 crore during the past eight years on different development projects in the district whereas the previous government had spent only Rs 616.48 crore in the district.

The meeting discussed a plan to open an Industrial Training Institute for girls in BPS Women University, Khanpur Kalan. The Vice-Chancellor, Dr Pankaj Mittal, said the university would provide five acres of land for the ITI.

The officers assured Hooda that the mini-secretariat building here would be completed before August 15.

Gurgaon, June 27
After demarcating the boundaries of the prohibited zone around the local ammunition depot, pillars will also be erected so that the people can easily identify the restricted area.

A decision to this effect was taken at a joint co-ordination meeting attended by officers of the district administration and Air Force Station here yesterday.

The objective of the meeting was to evolve a strategy to check new constructions within the prohibited zone in a 900-metre radius around the ammunition depot.

Gurgaon Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Pankaj, who presided over the meeting, assured the Air Force authorities of full support from the district administration.

He said the administration had already demarcated the restricted zone and prepared maps. Even houses already constructed were also identified and numbered in the map.

Anju Chaudhary, Joint Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Gurgaon, apprised the meeting that pillars would soon be erected on the boundary so that everybody came to know about the restricted area. She said the demarcation map of the construction restricted zone would also be uploaded on the website of the MCG.

ADC Pankaj said no illegal construction would be allowed in this area at any cost. Pankaj said the entire 900-metre restricted area was divided into six sectors where four Joint Municipal Commissioners were deputed for supervision. Besides, all three SDMs had been appointed as supervisors to control new illegal constructions.

Kurukshetra, June 27
Four new women police stations will be opened in Panchkula, Faridabad, Gurgaon and Bahadurgarh soon.

This was stated by Haryana Director-General of Police (DGP) Shriniwas Vashisht while talking to mediapersons after inaugurating a conference hall and addressing the police regarding crime and law and order situation at the Police Lines here today.

The DGP said two such new women police stations were already in Sonepat.

He said 11,000 police employees would be recruited, while 3,500 constables after completion of their training would be appointed in the police staff within the next two months.

The approval for the construction of a community centre and 75 new houses for police employees in Kurukshetra had already been granted, he said.

He said as many as 560 complaints had been registered on the new women helpline number here, adding that out of these, 450 complaints had been settled, while 21 FIRs had been registered.

The DGP said a women reserve battalion would be constituted soon. A cyber police station would be opened in Gurgaon to check incidents of cyber crime, he added. 

Chandigarh, June 27
Admonishing HUDA for compelling the allottees to approach the courts on the issue of condoning delay in the initial payment of 15 per cent price, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has asked the authority to decide the matter in terms of earlier policy and decisions.

The ruling by Justice Satish Kumar Mittal and Justice Amol Rattan Singh came on a petition filed by Surender Kumar. Allotted a residential plot in Sector 62, Faridabad, in June, 2003, he deposited 10 per cent of the tentative price.

As much as 15 per cent of the total cost was to be deposited within 30 days from the issuance of the allotment letter. The HUDA Estate Officer cancelled the allotment as he could not deposit the amount within the stipulated period due to financial constraints following his mother’s ailment,

In his appeal before the HUDA Administrator, the petitioner said he was willing to pay 15 per cent amount along with interest and penalty. But the appeal was dismissed vide an order dated February 27, 2004.

His revision petition was disposed of by the Financial Commissioner-cum-Principal Secretary, Town and Country Planning Department, in February, 2009, with a direction that his case be considered by the HUDA Chief Administrator as per the relevant policy and guidelines issued from time to time.

The petitioner contended that he was compelled to approach the “revisional authority” again after his claim was not considered. The “revisional authority” on May 25, 2011, observed that the petitioner had given a list of cases where the delay in making 15 per cent payment had been condoned for a period ranging from 156 days to 362 days.

It asserted a similar treatment should have been given to the petitioner; and the HUDA Chief Administrator should take a decision within 30 days as per the policy applicable at the time of allotment.

The petitioner added till date the direction had not been complied with. Taking up the matter, the Bench observed: “If the facts are correct, it is a matter of great concern. It has been observed by us that in many such cases, the allottees are being compelled to approach this court, when in spite of directions issued by the competent authority/court, officers of the HUDA are not taking action in accordance with law”.

The Bench disposed of the petition without issuing notice of motion to avoid delay with a direction to consider his case in terms of the directions issued by the “revisional authority”, earlier policy, and subsequent decisions “with regard to relaxation of payment of 15 per cent amount of the cost of residential and commercial plots”.

Gurgaon, June 27
The Gurgaon police today arrested five out of seven persons for allegedly raping two girls in a moving car.

The millennium city was put to shame yet again as two girls were raped in a moving car and later dumped near Sector 57 here today.

The victims are from Tughlakabad and had gone to a club on the MG road. Sources said the girls were entry escorts and a regular at clubs. They booked a cab to go to Delhi.

They alleged that the driver took a turn at the IIFCO Chowk towards Delhi, but then diverted the vehicle towards Faridabad. After travelling for some distance, two more men boarded the car and started assaulting them. The girls alleged that the men took turns in raping them inside the car.

However, the police at a press conference claimed that the accused even called their other friends who came in an Indica car.

An FIR had been registered only against two persons so far. The victims will be questioned in this regard tomorrow.

Both the women were taken to the Gurgaon Civil Hospital where their medical examination confirmed rape.

Ambala, June 27
A student was killed and 15 children were injured when a truck hit an auto-rickshaw near Saha village on the Ambala-Jagadhri road today.

Bhavya Gupta, a Class VII student of Air Force School, Kalpi, was killed while 15 other students sustained injuries when the truck hit the vehicle.

The students were on their way back home when the accident took place.

Manohar Lal, SHO, Saha police station, said one student died on the spot while others were immediately rushed to the Ambala Cantt Civil Hospital.

He said the truck driver managed to escape, adding that a case has been registered against him.