Jhajjar, May 5
Opposing the rationalisation policy of the Hooda government , teachers of government schools under the aegis of the Haryana Master Varga Association (HMVA) have served a 12-day ultimatum on the government to withdraw the policy lest they should intensify their ongoing agitation from May 17.

They have also threatened to stage a state-level dharna in front of the local residence of Haryana Education Minister Geeta Bhukkal on May 17 in protest against the rationalisation policy.

Earlier, a state-level meeting of the teachers presided over by HMVA chief Ramesh Malik was held in Chhotu Ram Dharamshala here yesterday wherein teachers slammed the Congress government for not paying heed to their demands.

"We are demanding withdrawal of the rationalisation policy, removal of certain conditions before releasing the promotion list of postgraduate teachers (PGTs), increase in teaching periods of math, science, Hindi, English, ceiling of 35 students in each section etc. but the government is deliberately turning a blind eye," said Malik.

With the implementation of the rationalisation policy, most posts of school teachers of various subjects would either be abolished or declared surplus. Moreover, it would also adversely affect studies.

A delegation of teachers later submitted a demands charter to Education Minister Geeta Bhukkal . She assured them that their demands would be considered sympathetically .

Bhukkal said the government had taken vital steps to to provide quality education in government schools. 

Chandigarh, May 5
The Punjab and Haryana High Court today made it clear that the Haryana government could not pressure private schools to reserve 25 per cent seats for the weaker sections.

A Division Bench headed by Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul passed these orders after the Haryana government failed to file reply on the petition filed by the Haryana Progressive Schools Association. The order would remain in force till July 10 when the state government has to file its reply.

The Haryana Progressive Schools Association had approached the High Court against the Haryana government's directions to implement Rule 134-A of the Haryana School Education Rules.

As per the rules, all private recognised schools of the state were required to reserve 25 per cent seats from Class I to class XII for students belonging to students belonging to the economically weaker sections, including those below poverty line,

The petitioner organisation submitted that the provisions were practically not feasible and the state government could not force the private schools to follow such norms, which might cause huge financial losses.

Taking up the matter, the High Court had asked the Haryana government to furnish its reply on the matter. But, as the matter came up for resumed hearing today, the state failed to file its reply.

Sonepat, May 5
The Punjab and Haryana High Court’s interim decision to not pressurise the private schools to enrol students from the weaker sections under Section 134-A of the RTE Act till the next hearing of the case on July 4 has evoked mixed reactions from the private school owners and the Chhatra Abhibhawak Sangh in the district.

District president of the sangh Vimal Kishore, who along with other activists had been staging indefinite dharna and chain hunger strike for the last five days, said the sangh would appeal to double bench of the High Court against the decision.

When asked whether they will continue with the dharna and chain hunger strike or not, he said the final decision on this matter would be taken in a meeting of the sangh. “The sangh will go up to the Supreme Court in this matter,” he added.

On the other hand, chairman of the Shiv Shiksha Sadan Virender Bansal welcomed the High Court stand and said Section 134-A was unconstitutional and unaided schools were being unnecessarily harassed by the education department authorities and other bodies.

He suggested that instead of pressurising the private school, the government should concentrate on improving the education standards in government schools so that every student gets good education at their doorstep. 

Kurukshetra, May 5
Members of the Kurukshetra University Non-Teacher Employees’ Association (KUNTEA) staged a dharna outside Vice-Chancellor DDS Sandhu’s office here today, demanding annual increment in salary and implementation of the Assured Career Progression (ACP) scheme for the employees who were regularised in 2003.

KUNTEA president Maan Singh said “About 250 employees were regularised in 2003, but they have neither got the annual increment in their salaries, nor has the ACP been implemented.”

He alleged that the KU administration was not taking positive steps in this matter. “We have been forced to take harsh steps and the KU administration would be responsible for the consequences," he added.

Singh said association members would start a chain hunger strike tomorrow at 11 am and will continue their dharna till the demands were approved.

Kurukshetra University Vice-Chancellor DDS Sandhu said “The university administration is dedicated to give all the benefits to its employees but the matter is related to government policies and only the government can take some steps in this regard. The university has taken up the matter with the authorities and we are waiting for a reply from them.”

Chandigarh, May 5
Vidhan Sabha Speaker Kuldeep Sharma has constituted 16 committees of the Haryana Vidhan Sabha for the year 2014-15. Kuldeep Sharma is the ex-officio chairperson of the Rules Committee. Om Prakash Chautala, Raghuvir Singh Kadian, Sampat Singh, Rao Yadavendra Singh, Krishan Pal Gurjar, Ashok Arora and Bharat Bhushan Batra are its members.

Akram Khan, Deputy Speaker, is the ex-officio chairperson of the House Committee. Balbir Pal Shah, Raghubir Singh Tewatia, Pardeep Chaudhary and Dilbag Singh are its members.

Sampat Singh is the chairperson of the Committee on Public Accounts. Rao Yadavendra Singh, Rajinder Singh Joon, Batra, Jai Tirath, Mamu Ram, Saroj Mor, Prithi Singh and Ghanshyam Dass are its members.

Anand Singh Dangi is the chairperson of the Committee on Public Undertakings. Anil Dhantori, Devender Kumar Bansal, Naresh Sharma, Anand Kaushik, Ashok Kashyap, Narender Sangwan, Hari Chand Middha and Kavita Jain are its members.

Rao Dharam Pal is the chairperson of the Estimates Committee. Balbir Pal Shah, Anil Vij, Raghubir Singh Tewatia, Ajay Singh Chautala, Bishan Lal Saini, Jarnail Singh, Zile Ram Sharma and Sher Singh Barshami are its members.

Jagbir Singh Malik is the chairperson of the Committee on Subordinate Legislation. Om Parkash Jain, Sri Krishan Hooda, Mohammed Illyas, Rameshwar Dayal Rajoria, Ghanshyam Dass, Subhash Chaudhary and the Haryana Advocate General are its members.

Ashok Arora heads the Committee on Government Assurances. Jagbir Malik, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Naresh Selwal, Raghubir Singh Tewatia, Raj Pal Bhukhri, Subhash Chaudhary, Parminder Singh Dhull and Mohammed Illyas are its members.

Joon is the chairperson of the Library Committee. Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Raghbir Singh Badhra, Bahadur Singh, Kali Ram Patwari and Ghanshyam Dass are its members.

Batra heads the Subject Committee on Education, Technical Education, Vocational Education, Medical Education and Health Services. Sumita Singh, Rao Yadvendra Singh, Naresh Sharma, Shakuntla Khatak, Gopal Kanda, Krishan Pal Gurjar, Mamu Ram and Rao Bahadur Singh are its members.

Batra is the chairperson of the Committee on Petitions. Dhantori, Bhukhri, Zile Ram Sharma, Phool Singh Kheri, Krishan Lal Kamboj and Kanda are its members.

Dhantori is the chairperson of the Committee on Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes. Jagdish Nayar, Zile Ram Sharma, Selwal, Khatak, Dharam Singh, Phool Singh Kheri, Naseem Ahmed and Ganga Ram are its members.

Kadian heads the Committee on Privileges. Anand Singh Dangi, Naresh Sharma, Rao Dharam Pal, Sumita Singh, Kaushik, Rajbir Singh Brara, Raghbir Singh, Kheri and Prithi Singh are its members.

Kaushik is the chairperson of the Committee on Local Bodies and Panchayati Raj. Dangi, Arora, Krishan Lal Panwar, Gurjar, Malik, Dharam Singh, Jai Tirath and Dhull are its members.

Naresh Sharma is the chairperson of the Committee on Public Health, Irrigation, Power and Public Works. Sampat Singh, Bhukhri, Anil Vij, Ram Pal Majra, Abhey Singh Chautala, Rao Yadavendra Singh, Zile Ram Sharma and Dharam Pal Obra are its members.

Tewatia heads the Committee on Food and Supplies. Bansal, Panwar, Om Parkash Jain, Ram Niwas Ghorela, Bhukhri, Pardeep Chaudhary, Brara and Renuka Bishnoi are its members.

Bansal is the chairperson of the Committee on Social Justice, Women and Child Development and Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes. Shah, Arora, Khatak, Dharam Singh, Selwal, Krishan Lal Kamboj, Saroj Mor and Saini are its members.

Faridabad, May 5
The solid waste management plan for Faridabad seems to have gone for a toss after the Rs 75-crore solid waste recycling plant started about three years ago has failed to come on track after a fire incident that disrupted its operation in November. Despite passing two deadlines and five months of the unusual break, the future of the plant appears uncertain, as no effort has been made to place the plant back into operation.

The plant, spread over 25 acres of the Municipal Corporation, Faridabad, (MCF) land, was started in 2011 as part of the joint solid waste management plan to dispose and recycle the waste of Faridabad and Gurgaon.

While the land was leased out for 33 years to a private company which was allotted the contract, the plant, which has the capacity of treating over 1,000 tonnes of garbage daily, became non-functional in November after a fire incident. It is reported that two deadlines of February 28 and March 31 this year were announced by the authorities, but could not ensure the restart of the plant till date. The issue was discussed at a high-level meeting of officials at Chandigarh recently.

The plant was to take 600 and 400 tonnes of garbage from Faridabad and Gurgaon districts, respectively. “The plant operator had told the officials that it was not possible for him to operate it due to losses suffered and the damage caused by the fire in the first week of November,” claimed a senior official in January. It is reported that though the operator had agreed to operate it till March, the authorities were looking for an alternative.

“The authorities now were left with no option but to cancel the 33 years’ lease to the contractor if the operators fails to operate it further,” said sources in the MCF. It is revealed that the operator had been supplying recycled products to boilers and compost to the market, but a slump in the demand had left the operator suffering losses for the past several months. In view of the bleak chances of the revival of the plant, the authorities of both Faridabad and Gurgaon have started work on the development of independent waste management plan by having their own recycle plants in the respective territory, said an official.

The district has been allotted four new sites for developing such plants in the new development plan.

Faridabad, May 5
With the reporting of the first case, dengue seems to have spread early this season even though the monsoon is two months away. The Health Department has asserted that it is prepared to meet the challenge.

The first positive case is a woman of Navada village in the district. Admitted to a hospital with high fever, she has been undergoing treatment for the last few days.

Officials are likely to visit sensitive areas and conduct fogging and an awareness drive. A meeting of officials concerned is likely in the near future. Ten cases of malaria have tested positive so far.

An official claimed that the dengue case could be due to the extended cool weather conditions and intermittent rain in the last two months.

He said lack of cleanliness in and around residential areas in both urban and rural pockets could contribute to breeding of mosquitoes and germs responsible for malaria and other water-borne diseases.

He said the onset of summer and scorching temperatures could help contain the menace till the arrival of the monsoon, expected in July.

The district had reported as many as 417 cases of dengue last year. The figure was 52 in 2012, 73 in 2011 and just eight in 2010.

The blood bank cell of the Civil Hospital had set up a blood separator unit last year to meet the demand for blood platelets for dengue patients.

Dr Virender Yadav, in charge of the cell, asserted that blood platelets were supplied free to patients admitted to government and civil hospitals.

He said the department charged a nominal fee of Rs 300 for patients undergoing treatment at private hospitals. He added that no requisition of blood platelets had come this season so far.

Karnal, May 5
A women's self-help group in Amritpur Kalan village has taken an initiative
and formed the Anmol Mahila Dugdh Samiti, a women's dairy.

All the work at the dairy is being done by members of the self-help group, be it milking the animals, collecting milk from door to door, pasteurising the milk, preparing milk products and marketing the products.

This group is being run with the collaboration of the National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI) and Arpana. Seven women members of this group are the torch-bearers of the change being brought about in the lives of other underprivileged women in villages.

NDRI Director Dr AK Srivastava said, "This is a first-of-its-kind milk cooperative set up by a women's self-help group at the village level in Haryana. It is an innovative attempt to bring the whey solid back into the food chain."

The project commenced on October 27, 2010, with an objective to empower underprivileged women, improve their lives and create resources for income generation, said Dr Srivastava.

He added that the project helped the women improve economically, made them more confident and independent and enabled them to earn the respect of villagers.

He further said the project had enabled them to interact with government and civil officials at various levels to market their products.

Arpana trustee Aruna Dayal said, "This is an example for women who always think that they have the capacity, but are unable to do this due to lack of guidance and knowledge."

Self-help group member Kamlesh said they had started the group with a contribution of Rs 5,000 each.

She added that scientist of the NDRI and members of Arpana had given them guidelines for the project.

She stated that they were putting in their best. She said the average income was between ~1,000 and ~1,200 per month in the beginning.

At present, they earned around Rs 9,000 per month on an average, she added. She appealed to women to come forward to take up such projects.

NDRI senior scientist and self-help group trainer Dr AK Singh said, "Members of the group are undergoing training at the NDRI to manufacture innovative millet biscuits, snacks and baby foods."

They planned to package the milk and sell it to households in some neighbouring villages and Karnal in the future, he added.

Arpana financial controller Sandeep Arora said the members of the self-help group sold cheese, yoghurt, 'gulabjamun', whey based drinks, ghee and butter.

He said the members sold milk and milk products in National Dairy Research Institute hostels and sweetmeat shops, did catering for wedding functions and supplied milk products in neighbouring villages.

Sonepat, May 5
After Kundli village in the industrial zone here, now it is Lalheri village where the residents have been facing the problem of chemically contaminated sub-soil water for the last three-four years. The villagers claim they have knocked every door during the last three years for a solution to the problem but no remedial steps have been taken so far.

The village is located near the Bari industrial zone of the Haryana State Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) in the district and the villagers alleged that the units were releasing chemically polluted water in the sub soil.

Villagers threatened that if the administration did not take any action in seven days, they would be forced to block the GT road for redress of their grievances.

Village sarpanch Geeta said they had complained to Vidhan Sabha Speaker Kuldeep Sharma, officers of the HSIIDC and sent fax message to Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda during the last two years but all in vain.

“We want that polluted water is not released in the sub soil and water samples are tested in the laboratories,” she demanded.

Panchayat member Kesri Devi said there was a foul smell in the water drawn from hand pumps or electric motors for domestic consumption.

Another member of panchayat, Mam Kaur, alleged that soon after drawing the water it turned yellow in colour.

Seventy-year-old Krishan remarked that before opening of the industrial units, the water in the village was sweet and healthy for consumption. He cautioned that if remedial steps were not taken, other villages would also be affected with the passage of time.

Khanpur Kalan (Sonepat), May 5
Work on the Bhagat Phool Singh (BPS) Government Medical College for Women at Khanpur Kalan village in Sonepat has been hanging fire for the past three months.

Due to paucity of funds the work on phase II of one of the prestigious projects of Bhupinder Singh Hooda-led Congress government had to be stopped in February.

Agitated over the non-payment of their dues, about 200 labourers made the employees of Kolkata-based sub-contractor Bharat Mcnally Engineering Limited hostage at the site on April 7.

The authorities had to take the help of local police to ensure their release and avoid any untoward incident.

Subsequently, the main contractor company National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC) general manager (engineering) DDS Srivastava wrote a letter to Principal Secretary and Financial Commissioner of Health and Medical Education Department on April 28 for immediate release of funds but to no avail. He also mentioned the deteriorating situation at the ground level.

While the NBCC site in charge DGM IK Gupta and Mcnally site in charge Santosh Singh Yadav could not be contacted, NBCC senior project executive Sukhbir Singh said, “Work on Phase II of the college had to be stopped in February as NBCC did not get funds for the project. As a result, it could not give funds to sub-contractor Mcnally, which in turn did not provide funds to further 20-odd sub-contractors who provide Mcnally with labourers, mason, machinery and material.”

Sukhbir Singh further stated “The NBCC has already written to the Haryana government several times for releasing the funds but in vain.”

The Rs 87-crore Phase II work to construct lecture theatre, sports complex, vishram sadan, student cafeteria, housing, shopping, girls hostel, director residence and staff accommodation had been started in June last year and was to be completed by October this year.

Sukhbir Singh said “As and when we get funds, the construction work will restart. However, it is now difficult to meet the deadline of completing the work by October as the work has been stopped for over three months now.”

Meanwhile, sub-contractors to Mcnally, Mahavir Bhargav of Mahavir Sharma Engineers and Kamboj Contractors, told The Tribune, “Rs 4 crore of sub-contractors is pending with Mcnally. Some of them had to take loans to make payments to the concerned persons.”

A labourer supplier, Kuldeep, said, “I had to take a loan of Rs 3 lakh to make a part payment to the labourers. I do not know when we will be paid our dues.”

When contacted, Chief Secretary of the state SC Chaudhary asked the correspondent to contact medical education secretary Neera Khandelwal for getting the exact version but she could not be contacted in spite of repeated attempts.

Sirsa, May 5
The health authorities in Sirsa are bracing up for malaria and other vector-borne diseases. Spelling out their action plan to combat malaria and other vector-borne diseases, the health authorities have announced that if larvae of the anopheles mosquito were found on the premises of any house or business establishment under municipal areas, a fine of between Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 would be imposed.

Sirsa recorded 1,615 positive cases of malaria last year. The department had prepared around 1.75 lakh blood smears of patients suffering from fever in 2013. This year, the health authorities had already prepared nearly 34,000 blood slides till March 31 and detected 14 cases of malaria so far.

Spelling out their strategy to combat malaria and other vector-borne diseases this monsoon, the health authorities on Saturday announced steps like setting up 240 fever treatment depots at the village level to take blood smears of patients, checking the growth of mosquitoes and observing June and July as anti-malaria months.

Presiding over a meeting of officials of the Health Department in his office on Saturday, Deputy Commissioner Anshaj Singh said multi-purpose health workers, Asha workers and anganwadi workers had been trained to prepare blood slides of fever patients at 240 fever treatment depots set up in the district.

He said the Health Department had identified 24 villages in Sirsa where the effect of malaria was more pronounced and the authorities planned a special drive in these villages. The villages of Nathusari Kalan, Chopta, Ludesar, Tarkanwali, Gadli, Darba Kalan, Ding, Manak, Diwan, Sahuwala, Dhukra, Baruwali, Makhosrani, Shakarmandori, Nejia, Mochiwali, Madhosinghana, Salarpur, Kelnia, Begu, Jhopra, Farwai Kalan, Bharokha, Sangar Sadha, Rasoolpur, Salamkhera and Panniwala Mota had been identified as malaria-sensitive.

Hisar, May 5
Khap leaders who used to come up with bizarre ideas as a solution to rape now have to face a strong dissenting voice from within on these issues. These leaders had suggested banning girls from wearing jeans, keeping off mobile phones from the girls and even to lower their marriageable age as steps to prevent rapes.

Sudesh Chaudhary (35), who now heads the women’s wing of the Satrol khap, vehemently supports wearing jeans, carrying mobile phone and education to girls instead of lowering their marriageable age. The Satrol khap had recently taken a historic decision to allow inter-village marriages within 42 villages of the khap by breaking away from the 700-year-old tradition.

“Stop preaching such things. Nobody has taken such suggestions seriously. It will be better to become carrier of social reforms instead of talking trash,” said Sudesh, who is studying law after completing MA and BEd. She strongly pitches for the social rights of the girls and vows to take up women-related issues at every social platform.

“These absurd demands are reflective of old patriarchal mindset in society which are no longer relevant. We, too, have the right to wear clothes as per our comforts. Mobile phone is not only a necessity but also a tool of empowerment as we get connected to the world via social media like Facebook and Twitter,” she told The Tribune.

“The attire of women has evolved from ‘ghaghra’ to jeans. It is a generational shift and there is no cultural conflict in it,” she said and added that instead of talking about lowering the marriageable age of girls, people should press for providing higher education to them.

As a khap leader, Sudesh has her task cut out as she gears up to embark on a special campaign to get along more women by holding interactive sessions across 42 villages of the Satrol khap in the Narnaund block of the district. “The women wing is here to lend a voice to the women issues in the rural areas of the state in their own language as they are hardly given a chance to express themselves. I am getting overwhelming response from society and media so I need to settle down a bit to launch the campaign,” she said.

She said spreading awareness on women’s health was an issue of foremost importance in the rural areas. “We are planning to hold medical check-up camps during the campaign. We will also seek feedback from them about their needs and requirements,” she said.

Born in Badli village of Jhajjar district, she was married in Jamni Khera village of Hisar district. She started taking part in social activities while becoming an active member of a political party after her marriage.

Sonepat, May 5
The Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN) today lodged a police complaint against Kartar Singh, sarpanch of Sikamderpur Majra village, and 15 other residents of the village for trespassing on the premises of the 33kV power substation at the village yesterday and damaging the nigam property.

The complaint was lodged by Ram Chander, Sub Divisional Engineer of the sub-urban sub-division of the Gohana division of the nigam. In the complaint, he said on the instigation of the village sarpanch, over 20 persons entered the power house yesterday and demanded round-the-clock supply in the village, saying the gram panchayat had donated land for setting up the substation.

He further said though the nigam officials tried to convince the villagers that the village was being provided supply as per the schedule, the villagers allegedly resorted to vandalism. The damage was assessed at Rs 20,000.

A senior official of the nigam said a few days ago, the nigam had disconnected the unauthorised connections of streetlights and submersibles taken by the gram panchayat. The villagers were instigated by the sarpanch as a repercussion of the disconnection of unauthorised connections, he said.

Karnal, May 5
Relatives of 54-year-old Davinder Kumar, who allegedly died after a stone removal operation at a private hospital on April 30, blocked the Kunjpura road last night.

They raised slogans against the surgeon and demanded the registration of a criminal case against the surgeon. They alleged negligence on the part of doctors concerned.

The police reached the spot, assured the protesters of a fair inquiry in the case and pacified them. Aman Kumar, a nephew of the deceased, said his uncle was admitted to the hospital on April 30 for stone removal.

A resident of Sector 7, he said the patient was operated upon by doctor the same day, but could not be saved. He alleged medical negligence on the part of doctors concerned.

The police started an investigation into the case as family members of the deceased alleged negligence on the part of the surgeon, said Lalit Kumar, Station House Officer, Civil Lines.

Yamunanagar, May 5
The Khizrabad police last night arrested a youth of Kalesar village on the charge of raping a minor girl.

In his complaint to the police, the victim's brother,Amar Singh, said his 17-year-old sister had been lured away by Ankur on the false promise of marriage.

Jhajjar, May 5
Three persons, including an infant, were killed and four others were seriously injured in a head-on collision between a Ford Figo car and a Maruti van on the Jhajjar-Bahadurgarh road near Dulhera village in this district last night.

The deceased have been identified as Dalbir (30), his two-month-old son Manjeet and van driver Praveen (28) of Lova Kalan village. The injured-- Dalbir’s wife Sarla, Naseeb, Pankaj, Poonam and Manju, all residents of Vazirpur village--have been undergoing treatment in the PGIMS at Rohtak where their condition is stated to be critical.

The accident took place when Dalbir along with his wife Sarla, son Manjeet was returning to Lova Kalan village from Khativaas village in a hired van being driven by co-villager Praveen. As the van reached near Dulhera village, it collided with a car coming from the opposite direction.

All occupants of the van died on the spot while the car occupants sustained serious injuries. Villagers rushed to the spot and took the injured to the General Hospital in Bahadurgarh from where they were referred to the PGIMS, Rohtak, later.

The car driver has been booked for rash and negligent driving. The victms' bodies were today handed over to their kin after a postmortem examination.

Gurgaon, May 5
A local court today issued instructions to register a first information report against 55 persons in connection with the fake voter registration case.

They include Haryana Sports Minister Sukhbir Kataria, South Delhi Mayor Sarita Chowdhary, Food and Civil Supplies Department officials Devender Singh Kadiyan and Shri Bhagwan and two election officials.

This was the seventh first information report in the case, in which Kataria was the key accused. If found guilty, he would cease to be a legislator and could be awarded a jail term.

Om Prakash Kataria, the petitioner, claimed it to be a major success. He had moved court after the Matdata Jagrookta Manch, his non-government organisation, found many fake voter identity cards issued in the name of the minister's relatives and supporters.

Sukhbir Kataria came to the limelight in the last Assembly elections after winning as an independent candidate from the Gurgaon Assembly constituency by a margin of 2,138 votes.

He had extended support to the Congress-led government in the state and was made the Minister for Sports and Youth Affairs in Bhupinder Singh Hooda government.

"Despite seven first information reports against him for his involvement in doctoring voter lists, the district administration has not shown willingness to corner him. He has been using influence and political connections to evade arrest," petitioner Om Prakash Kataria alleged.

Rohtak, May 5
The crime branch has arrested Vikas of Bahrana village, who was a member of a gang allegedly involved in several cases of ATM break and loot. Rohtak IGP Anil Kumar Rao said here today that the accused had confessed his involvement in 19 such cases.

Meanwhile, a police team led by DSP Sumit Kumar has cracked the blind murder cases that took place in the Bahadurgarh area on April 11 and 15. The IGP said a special police team constituted by the SP, Jhajjar, had also arrested a member of a gang of thieves who used to steal tubewell equipment from agricultural fields.

The arrested person has admitted his involvement in 20 such thefts in Jhajjar and Sonepat districts.

Panipat, May 5
A woman, Saroj, was killed and her husband Krishan of Goyala Kalan village, under Bapoli police station, was injured when some thieves struck at their and their neighbour’s house last night.

Saroj reportedly died due to asphyxiation as the thieves covered her mouth with a cushion.

The thieves decamped with about Rs 70,000 and some jewellery. The police registered a case.

Chandigarh, May 5
Haryana discoms-Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam and the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam have decided to put the application forms received for all new electricity connections of the industrial category and connections with a load of 20 kilowatt and above of all other categories in the online process for release of power connections.

A spokesman for the discoms said here today that senior officers of the utilities would now monitor the process of release of connections to ensure transparency.

Karnal, May 5
The state is set touch a new high in wheat production this year, but storage has been a big problem for the agricultural industry in general.

The Agriculture Department expects production of around 123 lakh metric tonnes of wheat compared to 111 lakh metric tonnes last year.

Aiming to stop wheat damage in open storage, the Food and Civil Supplies Department has experimented with hermetic cocoon cap storage.

In this new storage technique, the foodgrain is sealed in a PVC cocoon, which is sealed airtight. This technique can help solve the problem of rotting foodgrain.

"A Dubai-based company conducted a trial on 1,098 metric tonnes of wheat in Gharaunda. Wheat was stored in the open with the use of hermetic cocoons," said Ravinder Malik, DFSC, Karnal.

"The company opened the wheat after three years in March. They found that its quality had remained the same," he said. He added that the success report was sent to the government.

He further said, "A hermetic cocoon is a storage container consisting of two plastic halves joined by an airtight zipper after being filled. It is commercially available."

He added that cocoons had many benefits compared to traditional storage systems. He said cocoons extended germination life of seeds, controlled grain pests without chemicals and reduced flow of oxygen and water.

He said oxygen levels were reduced from 21 per cent to 5 per cent, which reduced live insects to less than 1 insect per kg without insecticide within 10 days. He said stabilised moisture prevented wetting and drying.

Suresh Gehlawat, Joint Director, Agriculture Department, said 123 lakh metric tonnes of wheat was expected this year compared to 111 lakh metric tonnes last year.

Hisar, May 5
The much-touted project to set up a trade and commerce hub in Hisar town, which was tipped to be developed as a counter magnetic town in the state, has been hanging fire for over a decade.

The commercial zone, spread over three phases, is facing delay due to legal tangles and demarcation of land. Now, the delay in providing power supply on part of the power authorities in phase 1 has scuttled the development plan.

The state government had floated the Vyapar and Vyavsay Kunj on 91 acres in 2001. It was to be developed in three phases by the Improvement Trust, Hisar. Though the draw of lots was carried out the same year (2001), the first phase ran into rough weather due to objections by the Archeological Survey of India (ASI), as some part of its land was included in the project.

However, after 13 years, phase 1 still remained out of bounds for the allottees, as there is no power and water supply in this zone.

Prem Chand Bansal, an allottee, alleged he had applied and got a plot in 2001. Later, the ASI staked its claim on the land and the allottees approached the court for an alternative site.

Following the Punjab and Haryana High Court directions, the improvement trust developed alternative 17 acres site in 2011. “But the wait is still on. We are yet to be offered the plots even as the prices have been revised from Rs 15,000 per square yard to 36,000. In 2001, I was promised the possession very soon and I chalked out my business plans accordingly. But due to delay in possession, my plans, like many others, got stuck,” he said. The phase 1 was set to have a cloth and pharmaceuticals market.

Improvement Trust secretary Satpal Goyal said they had applied for power connection at the Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBNV) in March 2013, but were still awaiting for the facility. “We have written letters to the authorities on several occasions and fulfilled all requirements for setting up two transformers of 200 kVA capacity each, so that we could start offering possession to the allottees. But for reasons best known to the DHBVN authorities, we are yet to get power connections.”

Kurukshetra, May 5
Kurukshetra zila parishad Chairman Praveen Choudhary inspected Lok Nayak Jaiprakash Hospital here today. He said, “I have received some complaints about the irregularities prevailing in the hospital.

Unfortunately, the complaints were right as I have found that some of the patients were asked to get medicines from outside even when they were entitled to get free medicines from the hospital. A receipt of Rs 2,250 has also been recovered. He said a formal complaint would be lodged with the Chief Medical Officer of the hospital against the negligent doctors.” —TNS

Fatehabad, May 5
Jai Singh Bishnoi, a former member of the Haryana Backward Classes Commission and Haryana Staff Selection Commission, today hinted at contesting the upcoming Assembly elections from the Fatehabad seat on Gopal Kanda’s Haryana Lokhit Party (HLP) ticket.

Considered a confidant of Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda till recently, Bishnoi, who is among the founder members of the HLP, said he was feeling suffocated in the Congress.

Bishnoi launched his political activities from Fatehabad today by addressing mediapersons and activists of the HLP.

Before this, he went to Baba Gorakhnath Temple in Gorakhpur village to pay obeisance. He said he would have a house in Fatehabad soon, where his nephew Sumit Bishnoi, a former Youth Congress leader, would camp permanently and start a door-to-door campaign for the party.

He said he would remain in Fatehabad for three days in a week. He clearly avoided announcing his plan to contest from Fatehabad and said the party would take the final call on the issue.

Bishnoi said while in the Congress, he has demanded the party ticket from Fatehabad every time, but the party denied it.

Bishnoi, who was a member of the Haryana Backward Classes Commission that recommended 10 per cent special OBC quota for Jats, Jat Sikhs, Bishnois, Tyagis and Rors in Haryana, said the state government wanted to give reservation to the Jats only and that too within the 27 per cent quota for the OBCs.

Faridabad, May 5
The Navada village panchayat has announced to ban the DJ music and offering of liquor to guests at marriages or other functions in the village. The panchayat also announced a limit on the number of members of ‘baraat’ (marriage parties). It resolved to boycott anyone who fails to adhere to the social norms adopted by the village body.

The decision in this regard was taken at a meeting of the panchayat held under the chairmanship of the sarpanch Beg Raj Nagar yesterday. In the resolution adopted, the villagers announced not to take part in any function in which DJ music was played or where liquor was offered by the host.

Speaking at the meeting, a majority of the residents, including the sarpanch, claimed that playing loud music through DJ’s and serving liquor had resulted in vitiating the atmosphere in the village as residents tend to fight and indulge in violence at such events, leading to disturbance and complaints lodged with the police. “There have been several incidents in which people have received fatal injured and it was mainly due to the menace of DJ music and use of liquor to entertain the guests at functions,” claimed the sarpanch. He said while a majority of residents, especially the women and children, were most affected by such incidents, he said the decision of the panchayat was taken keeping in view the larger interest of the residents and to ensure cordial atmosphere. He said anyone found violating the norm would face the boycott of the villagers.

While the panchayat has fixed the total strength of the marriage party to 100, the attendance at the reception after marriage will not be more 21 persons. The firework will also be limited to 200 rounds, it is stated.

The panchayat will put up hoardings and flex boards in and around the village to create awareness in this regard, said the sarpanch.

“Though it may be the first village in the district to resolve a ban on DJ this year, there are several villages where the women residents and village bodies have demanded closure of liquor vends,” said Subhash Lamba, a social activist.

Chandigarh, May 5
The Board of School Education has uploaded the revised result of the Haryana Teacher Eligibility Test (HTET) on its website www.bseh.org.in. Certificates of qualified candidates are being despatched shortly.

An official spokesman said objections had been invited from candidates regarding re-checking or re-evaluation of question paper and answer keys within one week from the declaration of result of the HTET, held in February 2014.