Chandigarh, May 12
The Haryana Government has effected major changes in the procedure for processing change-of-land use (CLU) cases in the areas under the jurisdiction of municipal corporations, municipal councils and committees.

Sources said the new regime for processing CLU applications had been put in place in the wake of a Punjab and Haryana High Court judgement and the recent amendments to the Haryana Municipal Corporation Act, 1994.

In the case of municipal corporations, the powers of Director, Urban Local Bodies (DULB), to accept applications for CLU permission have been delegated to the respective MC Commisioners. The MC Commissioner will send the application to the DULB and two sets of documents to the District Town Planner (DTP) of the respective district within three days of receipt of the application for comments and a site report on the applied land.

The DTP will send the comments and a detailed site report along with copies of the documents to the MC Commissioner within 15 days. The MC Commissioner will forward the case along with his recommendations and the site report to the DULB within seven days from receipt of the DTP's report.

Sources said the DULB would issue a letter of intent (LoI) after obtaining approval from the government. If the case was not fit for approval, the rejection shall be conveyed by the DULB to all concerned.

In the case of other municipalities, the powers to accept applications for CLU permission have been delegated to Executive Officers (EOs) in the municipal councils and to secretaries in the municipal committees.

Meanwhile, the Building Plan Advisory Committee consisting of district-level officials would be competent to advise tne DULB for approval of the building plans and other related matters, sources added.

Chandigarh, May 12
The Punjab and Haryana High Court today ordered that the compact disc showing Chief Parliamentary Secretary Ram Kishan Fauji making alleged graft demand be examined by the Central Forensic Science Laboratory at Chandigarh before proceeding further.

Taking up the matter, Justice Ritu Bahri also directed Haryana to submit the CFSL report in the court by August 29.

The directions to get the CD examined by the Chandigarh CFSL came after the state informed the Bench that it was not having the facility or mechanism to examine the CD. The development is significant as a case against Fauji can be registered only if something incriminating crops up during the inquiry, including the examination of the CD.

Fauji's counsel SK Garg Narwana has all along been arguing that the CD was doctored. He had earlier referred to a report by a Bangalore laboratory, which suggested that the CD was not authentic.

He has also been arguing that the compact disc was required to be matched with the microchip of the CD recorder for proving its authenticity. He said a photograph had little evidential value till it was matched with its negative to prove its originality. Similarly, it was essential to compare the CD with the microchip in the recording instrument to prove that the disc was not tampered with and the photographs were not morphed.

Facing allegations of corruption, Fauji had moved the High Court against the Haryana Lokayukta's order to register a case against him. In January, Haryana Lokayukta, Justice Pritam Pal had recommended the registration of a case after the release of a video footage allegedly showing Fauji demanding Rs 5 crore for change-of-land use for a plot along the NH-8 in Gurgaon.

The matter was referred to the Lokayukta for a probe by the state government, allegedly under pressure of the Opposition. Soon after the directives, the Chief Secretary had sent a reference to the Lokayukta for reconsideration of the matter on the ground that his observations were "at variance" with the findings. But, on February 11, the Lokayukta dismissed the state's application.

Narwana had also referred to a five-Judge Supreme Court judgment in the Lalita Kumari case to buttress the need for holding an inquiry into certain category of cases, including corruption, before registering a case.

In the petition, Narwana had added that the directions for the registration of a case were otherwise also beyond the Haryana Lokayukta's jurisdiction as it was was not empowered to issue directives for registration of an FIR.

Karnal, May 12
Additional Sessions Judge Ajay Kumar Sharda today sentenced Ram Kumar Kalyan, a businessman of the city, to life imprisonment in a six-year-old murder case. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 20,000 on him.

Ram Kumar’s family members would also appeal in the High Court against the decision, a family member said.

The incident took place on April 22, 2008, at the residence of Ram Kumar here. His son Nabheet Kalyan and the latter’s brother-in-law Sramveer were shot dead and Nabheet’s wife Renuka was seriously injured. The licensed weapon of Renuka’s father Ranbir Singh was used in the crime.

Advocate Ranbir Singh said Ram Kumar Kalyan had filed a police complaint against Renuka, Sramveer, their parents and others for conspiring to kill Nabheet and his parents. Renuka, an eyewitness of the case, filed a criminal complaint in a local court on May 9, 2009, and levelled allegations against her father-in-law Ram Kumar Kalyan and mother-in-law Om Lata for killing her brother and shooting at her.

Renuka also alleged in her complaint that her husband Nabheet Kalyan was trying to kill her by strangulating her when Sramveer fired at Nabheet to save her. The bullet hit her in the chest as she tried to save her husband.

Saramveer fired twice at Nabheet, resulting in his death, before firing at himself. Renuka also alleged that Ram Kumar fired at her and her brother, who was still reportedly breathing. Sramveer died but she survived the bullet injuries.

A local court had ordered criminal proceeding against Ram Kumar and Om Lata after being convinced with the forensic details submitted by the FSL, Madhuban, and DNA test reports.

Later, following a request by Renuka, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had directed the local court to speed up the trial and dispose of the matter by April end, said Advocate Ranbir.

Advocate Navjot Singh Sawney said they had attached reports of ballistic experts of FSL before the court, showing presence of gun powder and stains of Sramveer’s blood on the cloths of Ram Kumar Kalyan. He further said a bullet was still embedded in Renuka’s jaw as doctors had failed to remove it.

Rohtak, May 12
The inquiry committee constituted to look into the complaints of alleged nexus between PGIMS doctors and medical-store operators began its probe today.

Dr Ashok Chauhan, PGIMS Medical Superintendent (MS), said Dr S.S.Lohchab, the suspended Head of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, appeared before the committee comprising the MS and Chief Vigilance Officer RS Dahiya. Sources said the inquiry committee formally apprised Dr Lohchab of the complaints and asked him to submit his explanation before the committee within 10 days.

The inquiry had been instituted to look into the allegations that patients undergoing treatment at the Department of Cardio-thoracic Surgery at the local PGIMS were being forced to buy costly medical aids/implants from some specific private medical store(s).

The administration of Pt Bhagwat Dayal Sharma University of Health Sciences (UHS) had also suspended Professor Lohchab till the pendency of the inquiry .

The action came after the publication of a news report in these columns exposing how even poor patients were being made to purchase expensive medical and surgical aids/implants (costing up to lakhs of rupees) from certain private stores by some PGIMS doctors.

Faridabad, May 12
Water-borne diseases seem to have struck the district even though the monsoon has not arrived yet. A total of 52 children have been admitted to the Civil Hospital in 12 days and many have gone to private hospitals and clinics.

The children's ward of Badshah Khan Civil Hospital is full, with all beds occupied by patients of diarrhoea and ailments with similar symptoms, claim sources. The staff advise relatives of patients who are not serious to come only for medication and consultation. Dr Krishan Kumar said the hospital was equipped to deal with such patients. He said the number of beds could be increased if needed. He said the outbreak could be due to unhygienic food and water. Dr Tarun Kashyap, a private practitioner, said nearly 50 such patients were coming to his clinic everyday.

Gurgaon, May 12
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has again demanded a repoll in a few booths in Mewat. It has accused the Election Commission of not taking the issue seriously.

AAP candidate from Gurgaon Yogendra Yadav said he had highlighted a threat to democracy in his complaint, but was yet to get a response.

"We submitted proof and a detailed analysis of what went wrong. We wrote to the returning officer and the Chief Election Commissioner, but were yet to get a formal response," he said.

AAP had complained about irregularities on the day of polling, giving details about 110 polling stations. BJP candidate Rao Inderjit Singh had sought a repoll, but did not get a response.

Several booths in Mewat had registered 90 per cent turnout and there were allegations of rigging. It was reported that women were not allowed to cast their vote and others did it on their behalf. — TNS

Rohtak, May 12
Dr Satya Vrat Sharma, member of the Order of British Empire and an alumnus of Medical College, Rohtak, has been appointed Deputy Lieutenant for West Midlands County province of the UK.

His name for the appointment was approved by the Queen and a gazette notification in this regard was issued on April 29.

Only six persons of Wolverhampton have been awarded the title of Deputy Lieutenant, and Dr Sharma is the only one from ethnic minorities. The appointment is up to the age of 75 years.

His appointment has been made in view of his sound links with the ethnic minority communities, built through his work on organ donation. He will also join the committee constituted for recommending Queen's Award for Voluntary Service.

Dr Sharma is a recipient of several awards and honours.

Kurukshetra, May 12
Alleging inaction by the administration into the complaints registered by the Indian Bahujan Sandesh Party (IBSP- Kanshiram) against Naveen Jindal for violating model code of conduct during the Lok Sabha elections, party president Kanta Alariya today threatened to move court if no action was taken against Naveen in the near future.

Alariya said “It has been more than a month since we complained against the Congress MP and candidate from Kurukshetra Lok Sabha seat Naveen Jindal for violating model code of conduct but the administration has not taken any step in this regard.”

The IBSP president had alleged that Jindal was misleading people and had not mentioned pending police cases against him in the nomination papers.

Alariya said, "Naveen Jindal had not mentioned the details of the FIRs lodged against him in different cases in the nomination papers filed by him. Moreover he had used Focus TV for canvassing which was a clear case of paid news and the cost should had been included in his election expenditure. "

She also alleged that the local administration was favouring the MP. “The administration has not taken any step in spite of having all the case-related documents and complaints,” she added.

She further said “If the election commission can serve notice to BJP PM candidate Narender Modi and other bigwigs for violating the code of conduct then why is it reluctant to take action against Naveen. I approached the Delhi EC Office on May 7 but to no avail. I will approach them again after May 16 but if the commission fails to take action against Naveen I will move court with the complaint.”

The party leaders met Rajesh Kumar, Kurukshetra SDM, today in this regard and asked him the status of the complaint. 

Karnal, May 12
To check the plantation of ‘saathi’ paddy, which consumes a large quantity of water, the Agricultural Department today destroyed around four acres ‘saathi’ paddy in Indri subdivision.

Dr Pawan Sharma, Deputy Director Agriculture (DDA), said the paddy was being planted in 4 acres in Sayad Chapra village. The department initiated action on getting information and uprooted the paddy.

The DDA warned farmers not to cultivate water-guzzler ‘saathi' paddy as it is banned in Haryana. The water requirement of saathi (transplanted in the fields in April and harvested by June-end) is very high. There is hardly any rain during this period and evaporation rates are high.

He said the department has been taking various steps to create awakening among the farmers about the side effects of planting this paddy.

Chandigarh, May 12
In the backdrop of a rising demand to abolish the “exorbitant” tolls that are burning holes in the pockets of residents, the Haryana Government is all set to roll out concessions to its residents.

According to the proposal moved by the Public Works (B&R) Department, which is likely to come up at the May 14 cabinet meeting, the toll concession will be offered in two categories that will take care of a large chunk of the population. The proposed rates, being worked out by the Finance Department in consultation with the PW (B&R), will be tabled at the meeting.

Sources said the government was considering a significant reduction in toll rates charged on personal vehicles (cars and jeeps) of Haryana residents bearing the state’s registration numbers. In addition, the government wants to offer a concession on commercial vehicles bearing the Haryana registration number and belonging to residents in the vicinity of the toll plaza.

This idea has been borrowed from the concession policy followed at the Gurgaon toll plaza where owners of commercial vehicles could show their residence proof to avail the concession.

Sources said since the tolls were managed by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), the government would make good the loss for the concession that is extended by paying the balance amount.

Though department officials maintained that there could be no specific figure for the burden the government might have to bear, an “interim figure” of an additional burden of Rs 260 crore has been arrived at. The sources said Rs 50 crore was collected by way of toll in Haryana every month.

The officials also maintained that with the concession offer, a number of residents who take detours to avoid the high toll rates might actually start commuting on the highway by paying a nominal amount which will further reduce the “loss” to the commissionaire.

Meanwhile, the Excise and Taxation Department, too, has been asked to explore ways to offset this “loss” to the government. The sources said increasing the value added tax (VAT) rates on petrol by four to five per cent was under consideration. At present, the state charges 21 per cent VAT on petrol, which is the lowest among the adjoining states.

Sources in the taxation department maintained that a hike in VAT rates might not essentially be such a good idea and hold that stricter monitoring might automatically help to bring in the needed revenue.

By implementing a hike, the revenue earned by the department could actually dip since vehicles refueling in Haryana on account of low rates could move away to other states. Consequently, whatever gain could come from hiking the rates could be lost in terms of the fall in numbers.

Also, though the matter is being considered, it is very unlikely that the government would give its nod to such a hike, since Haryana goes to poll in October this year. Since the Bhupinder Singh Hooda government takes pride in the fact that it has imposed very few taxes unless they are absolutely necessary, the chances of a go-ahead don’t seem likely even if the toll concessions are rolled out, sources claimed.

Faridabad, May 12
Nearly 450 police personnel were deployed to recover the 10-year-old son a local businessman from Palwal on Saturday night. Motorcycle dealer Pankaj Sehgal’s son Yuvraj was kidnapped from the city on Friday.

As many as 25 police teams comprising 450 policemen were constituted to crack the case. “We recovered the boy by tracking phone numbers and calls within 30 hours,’’ said Police Commissioner AS Chawla. The abducted boy was found at a house in Palwal town, about 30-km from here. Chawla himself accompanied the raiding team on Saturday night and nabbed four kidnappers.

Main accused Sushil, who runs a photography shop here, roped in Aditya (24), a BTech, Sanjay (23), a BCom degree holder, and Rajan (24), a Plus 2 passed, all jobless.

Joint Commissioner of Police Sanjay Kumar said Sushil nursed a grudge against Pankaj Sehgal over booking of a motorcycle a couple of years ago. He said the accused, who were novice, tried to distract the police by deputing one of its members in Agra.

He said attempt to contact the victim’s family, however, led to the tracking of the mobile phone and its location. It was one of the major operations where a large number of policemen were involved, he said.

Karnal, May 12
Abhishek Garg, Superintendent of Police (SP), has formed a special investigation team (SIT) headed by DSP Joginder Rathi to probe the kidnapping of a shoe trader’s son.

Ketan Sardana(27), son of shoe trader Mahesh Sardana, was kidnapped from outside his house in Model Town here on Friday.

Though police teams have been despatched to various locations to look for the criminals, no clue has so far found.

The kidnappers had made a phone call for demanding a ransom for the youth's safe return. The last location of the mobile phone was tracked to Meerut Road on Friday afternoon after which the phone was switched off.

Kaithal, May 12
A team of orthopaedic surgeons performed knee transplant surgery on two patients at the Haryana Institute of Medical Sciences (HIMS) and Hospital in Kaithal today.

Two brothers, aged 64 and 75, from Jind underwent the surgery, which was so far available only in big towns.

Dr Devashish Sharma said due to increase in weight and faulty lifestyle, knee-related problems arose as cartilage suffered damage causing difficulty in movement.

HIMS director Dr JJ Sharma said advanced facility to treat knee ailments was now available for patients.

Ambala, May 12
The Health Department has taken serious note of violations by private practitioners in passing on to the public benefits of the universal immunisation programme, under which vaccines are administered free to newborns, and decided to take corrective measures. This follows a report in these columns on the irregularities.

Dr Suresh Dalpat, Deputy Director, Child Health, and Expanded Programme Immunisation Officer, said the department had called a meeting to which Chief Medical Officers of all districts were summoned. He said the issue of violations by private practitioners would be discussed in detail to find out ways to check those.

He said the department was contemplating to make it mandatory for all private practitioners taking free vaccines from the department to put up signboards at their clinics that the vaccines were administered free there. He said it was beyond comprehension why doctors were indulging in such unscrupulous activities by ignoring ethics.

The department had demanded a detailed report from all Chief Medical Officers, asking for a list of doctors taking free vaccines from the department. Sources said the department planned to scrutinise the record of doctors of vaccines received and benefits passed on to the public.

The sources said the department was trying to draft fresh guidelines on issuing free vaccines to private doctors. Under the guidelines, they would be required to maintain a record of infants, with addresses, who had been administered free vaccines.

Dr Dalpat said the department would consider taking action against private doctors in case it was established that they had charged for administering vaccines received free. Dr Rakesh Gupta, Director of the National Rural Health Mission, said the department was concerned and strict action was being considered against the doctors.

Jind, May 12
It is not easy to convince people in the state to have a girl child, but Sunita Devi, sarpanch of Jaijewanti village, has proved critics wrong with a major improvement in the number of newborn girls in the village.

The village has won Rs 1 lakh as award from the Health Department for bringing about an improvement in sex ratio by ensuring more female newborns than male during the last two years.

After getting the recognition from the state, the panchayat wants to share it with other villagers who have helped it achieve this position.

The panchayat plans to honour all women who have given birth to a girl child. Many women in the village have given birth to their second girl child.

“The panchayat is working hard and the number of newborn girls has increased,” said Dr Satish Sulekhi, Deputy Civil Surgeon of Jind.

“We have selected the village after comparing figures of all villages in the district. The panchayat was awarded Rs 1 lakh last month for its hard work in improving the sex ratio.”

The 26-year-old sarpanch and other members of the panchayat had launched the special campaign against female foeticide immediately after Sunita Devi was elected as the sarpanch in 2010.

It was not easy to change the mindset of villagers and she and other panchayat members had to work hard for almost three years to bring about some positive change.

“With the efforts of the panchayat, we have been successful in changing to a great extent the mindset of villagers regarding the girl child,” said Sunita Devi.

“The village reported the birth of 19 boys and 33 girls in 2012-13. Village women gave birth to 11 boys and 24 girls in 2013-14. Things are changing now,” she said.

Apart from her domestic chores and panchayat work, the sarpanch and her group of women have made the campaign in favour of the girl child an integral part of life.

A matriculate, she conducts meetings with women to spread awareness about the girl child and maintains a strict watch over pregnant women with the help of officials with the Health Department.

“The sarpanch and members of her panchayat have changed the mindset. Had they not taken the initiative, our village would not have won the first prize,” said Krishan, a village youth.

Chandigarh, May 12
The government has extended the tenure of Anil Dhantori, MLA, and Chairman, Haryana Bureau of Public Enterprises, for another year with effect from April 1, 2014.

The government has also extended the term of Haryana Swatantrata Senani Samman Samiti, having its headquarters at Chandigarh, up to January 31, 2015.

The term of appointment of Hari Ram Arya as chairman and Magnesh Chand Jain as vice-chairman of the samiti, respectively, has also been extended. The terms and conditions of the samiti and appointment of chairman and vice-chairman as well as of the non-official members of the samiti would remain unchanged. — TNS 

Kaithal, May 12
The Cheeka police have arrested Sukhvinder Singh on the charge of setting his wife Amandeep Kaur on fire. The victim had jumped into a water storage tank to save herself, the police said.

The accused was produced in a local court, which sent him in 14-day judicial custody. The police were making efforts to arrest the other accused.

In her statement before Guhla JMIC Harleen Pal Singh, the victim said her husband and his parents, sisters and brother had been torturing her and demanding Rs 5 lakh in dowry.

She stated that she had gone to the cattle shed when her husband and in-laws poured kerosene on her, set her on fire and fled.

She was admitted to the Community Health Centre at Guhla on May 4, from where she was referred to the PGI in Chandigarh. The couple has a one-and-a-half-year-old daughter.

Ambala
The city police have arrested a 32-year-old man of Ravidas Basti for allegedly raping a minor girl and threatening her for dire consequences. The accused is a property dealer.

The police said the youth had been luring the victim for one year on the pretext that he would marry her. The girl is 15 years’ old. The youth took her to several places, including a hotel at Ambala Cantt, and repeatedly raped her.