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Saturday,
November 3, 2001,
Chandigarh, India  
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‘Shehar Bandh’ evokes mixed response CBI raids Karnal DC’s house A boon for industrialists ‘Biological weapons cheaper’ |
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SI demoted for dereliction of duty
KALKA DIARY Grain markets fall on lean
days Vohra elected
president of psychiatric society
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‘Shehar Bandh’ evokes mixed response Chandigarh, November 2 Reports from various towns, like Ambala city, Ambala cantonment, Rohtak, Hisar, Karnal and Shahabad suggest that shops in the main bazars remained closed in the morning. Though it is an accepted practice that in the afternoon of a bandh day, most of the shops open. But today, in a number of towns, the shops reopened after remaining closed for two or three hours. The official opening time of shops is 9 a.m. In towns like Panipat, Faridabad and Yamunanagar, the bandh evoked little response. However, in Gurgaon the bandh was stated to be unprecedently successful. No untoward incident has been reported from anywhere in the state. The Congress President, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, claimed that the response to the bandh call was “spontaneous, despite the pressure and coercion used by the government and the people have shown complete solidarity with the PCC call”. An official spokesman said the bandh call had failed to make any impact in Haryana “as all business establishments and shops remained open”. He thanked the people for “not responding to the political gimmicks of the Congress, which has always been trying to befool them.” A trader of Ambala cantonment, Mr Brij Goel, said the time for bandh call was not appropriate. Though the shopkeepers wanted to participate in the bandh wholeheartedly, they were reluctant to do so because of the festival season. The Leader of the BJP Legislature Party, Mr Krishan Pal Gujjar, said the poor response to the bandh should not be mistaken by the government as an approval of its policies. Rather it was a reflection on the Congress, which failed to channelise the resentment among the people against the policies of the Chautala government. Mr Gujjar said the bandh failed because of the factionalism in the Congress, the inability of the party cadre to mobilise the shopkeepers who wanted to close the shops and because the Congress failed to establish contact with the grassroot organisations of the traders in various towns. “The Congress believed only in issuing statements in newspapers. It has done a big harm to the interests of the people because now the government will describe its failure as vindication of its policies, which, otherwise, is contrary to the reality,” the BJP leader added. The Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, told newsmen in Radaur that the bandh call had failed miserably. He congratulated the traders for standing by the government. He criticised two Beopar Mandal leaders, Mr Bajrang Dass Garg of Hissar and Mr Lakshmi Chand Gupta of Rohtak, for misleading the traders of the state, though the two did not carry any business in the state. GURGAON : The town observed a complete bandh today. Not only the main bazars, even shopkeepers in colonies supported the bandh call. According to elders in the city, it was for the first time that the entire Saddar Bazar, the main market here, responded overwhelmingly, that too at a time when the business is brisk on account of the festival season. Significantly, leaders of all the factions of the Congress were in the streets to ensure the success of the bandh. PANIPAT: The bandh call evoked very poor response here. A majority of the shops and commercial establishments remained open. Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, however, described the bandh as successful. He said a meeting of the party MLAs would be held in Chandigarh on November 7 to chalk out strategy to be adopted during the assembly session. ROHTAK: The bandh call evoked a mixed response here. The response to the bandh was an indication of the resentment among the people against the government. The bandh brought out the simmering differences between the BJP and the INLD in the open. Though the BJP did not openly support the bandh, its supporters kept their shops closed. The President of the Haryana Beopar Mandal, Mr Lakshmi Chand Gupta, said the near total response to the bandh call had left no one in doubt that the people were against the taxation policy of the government and might not hestitate to revolt if the taxes imposed by it were not withdrawn. The bandh was near total in the wholesale markets, Shouri Market, Quilla Road, Railway road, the Bhiwani stand, Partap bazar, Para Mohalla, Model Town, Civil Road, Arya Nagar and Chameli Market. It was partial in the Anaj Mandi, Kath Mandi, Jhjjar Road and Approach road markets. The halwai shops and dhabas were also closed. SONEPAT: The town observed a partial bandh. Shopkeepers in Ashok Nagar(Kutcha quarters), Ganj Bazar, Sector 14 and Sector 15, Housing Board Colony and Ram Bazar ignored the bandh call. The vegetable and fruit market functioned normally. However, shops in the Gita Bhawan area, railway road, telephone exchange road and Subhash Chowk remained closed till afternoon. Members of the District Bar Association also struck work in support of the bandh. The Congress President alleged that the Kharkhauda police rounded up 21 activists of his party. HISAR: The bandh call evoked a mixed response in the district. Most of the shops remained closed in the main markets. However, the shops in the outskirts of the towns remained open. A former Congress Minister, Mr Chhattarpal Singh, claimed that the bandh was complete in Hisar and Hansi. He alleged that official machinery threatened the shopkeepers of dire consequences if they closed their shops. JIND: The bandh call evoked a good response in the town. KARNAL: A partial bandh was observed in the town. In Sabzi Mandi, the traders observed a token strike for one hour. KURUKSHETRA : Shops were closed in the morning but opened after 11 a.m. The Bar Association also suspended work NARWANA: A complete bandh was observed in the town. The former Haryana Congress President, Mr Shamsher Singh Surjewala, said the success of the bandh here was virtually an expression of no-confidence in Mr Chautala, who was the MLA from
here. PANCHKULA : The bandh call had no impact in the town despite the fact that Mr Chander Mohan, elder son of the former Chief Minister, Mr Bhajan Lal, is the Congress MLA from here. Markets in all sectors were open as usual. |
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Mixed response to bandh called by
Congress Ambala, November 2 The district Congress president, Mr Balwant Gupta, however, claimed the market bandh was a complete success. “Markets remained closed and shopkeepers extended full cooperation to us in support of our various demands,” he said. The main markets of Ambala Sadar and Ambala City wore a deserted look in the morning. However, by late afternoon, shopkeepers were seen opening their shops. A shopkeeper said it was festival season and they would not like to keep their shops closed for the whole day. Congress activists staged a dharna at Ambala Sadar. The speakers at the dharna strongly condemned the Chautala government for imposing various taxes. The district Congress vice-president, Mr Ashok Jain, said these taxes were adversely affecting the people. “The closure of different markets shows that people are supporting us in our protest against the heavy burden of taxes imposed by the state government. This issue will be taken up during the forthcoming Assembly session,” he said. Incidentally, an official press note claimed the bandh call given by the Congress did not have my impact with the markets remaining open. It stated that some people tried to get shops, closed forcibly. Sufficient police arrangements had been done to ensure that there was no untoward incident during the bandh. Mr Anil Vij, MLA, Ambala cantonment, said although it was the right of the Opposition to oppose anti-people policies of the government, giving a bandh call when the tax policy was yet to be finalised, was not good.  |
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CBI raids Karnal DC’s house Karnal, November 2 The raid continued till 6 pm. During raid the DC was not allowed to go out of the house even though there the city observed a bandh. Nor was he allowed to have telephonic contact excepting on his mobile number to know about the law and order situation in the district from the district police chief and other officers of the administration. Enquiries revealed that Special Intelligence Cell known as SIC (I) of the CBI made the raid and one member of the team left for Delhi by bus carrying important documents. SIC (I) of the CBI deals with economic offences. Karnal police was not taken into confidence by the raiding party. The District Public Relations Officer on behalf of the Deputy Commissioner said that the raid related to a case registered against an arms dealer by Mr Devender Singh when he was Deputy Commissioner Gurgaon in 1996-1998. But this carried little conviction as the SIC (I) would not investigate an arms dealer’s case. CBI officials today also made inquiries in Fatehabad district. Relations of Mr Devender Singh reportedly live in Fatehabad district. The raiding team had over 20 persons. One CBI DSP left the residence of the DC at 2.30 pm in Fiat NE118. The CBI team did not release any details here. A locksmith was also called by the team to DC’s residence at 3.30 pm. The team also raided the houses of Mr Amar Nath, SDM, Jind and SDM Palwal. A DIG of the CBI led the raiding party.
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A boon for industrialists Yamunanagar The Haryana State Industrial Development Corporation has developed a modern industrial estate at Manakpur on the Jagadhri-Chhachhrauli road, 5 km from Jagadhri. The traditional metalware industry in Jagadhri, located in the residential areas of the town, can look forward to breathing space for their units. The estate has been set up by HSIDC on persistent demand by local industrialists who were finding it difficult to expand and modernise their units in the limited space available. The state pollution control board has also been asking these units to shift to the developed estate for some time. Dr Harbaksh Singh, HSIDC Managing Director, stated that the Manakpur Industrial Estate had been developed as an industrial infrastructure development centre (IIDC), sponsored by the Union Government. To augment the role of small-scale industries in industrial development, the central government decided to develop IIDCs in industrially backward districts of the country during the eighth Plan. As many as 246 IIDCs , developed over an area of 15 to 20 hectares each, would be set up under this scheme. The proposed IIDCs will contain the basic infrastructure facilities with developed plots. The infrastructure would cover water supply and drainage system, internal roads, power distribution network, effluent treatment and disposal system, telecommunication facilities and common facilities services including technological back-up services. Investment of up to Rs 5 crore per centre would be made for creating these facilities. The outlay would be shared by the central government and the Small Industries Development Bank of India in a 2:3 ratio. Dr Harbaksh Singh said the Manakpur estate was situated on the state highway leading from Jagadhri to Paonta Sahib. Spread over an area of 135 acres, the Manakpur estate has been planned as a model industrial estate with the latest infrastructure. Out of its total area, 75.88 acres has been carved into 214 industrial plots of various sizes ranging from 450 sq metre to 4050 sq metre. The remaining area has been reserved for public utilities, an electric substation and green belts. The HSIDC has already constructed office blocks, shopping booths and a bank building on this estate. It has allotted 35 plots of various sizes to local entrepreneurs. A three-acre plot has also been allotted to the Central Warehousing Corporation for setting up a modern complex. A number of allottees have already started construction. The total development cost of the project would come to Rs 18.50 crore. Dr Harbaksh Singh stated that in pursuance to its policy to provide financial and other services to
industrialists at the doorstep , the HSIDC would organise a camp in Yamunanagar on November 25. A committee of senior officers would make on-the-spot allotment to entrepreneurs on the basis of the technical feasibility and financial viability of their project. The corporation is offering a 20 per cent rebate on the land cost to those entrepreneurs who start production within three years of allotment. Industrialists of the area have responded positively to this offer. Mr Gursharan Singh Chawla, president of the Industrial Estate Association, Yamunanagar, lauded the contribution made by Dr Harbaksh Singh in setting up this industrial estate. While appreciating the problems of plot holders, he sanctioned Rs 20 lakh for providing roads, sewerage, lighting, water and other facilities. |
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‘Biological weapons cheaper’ Chandigarh, November 2 With the help of visuals Mr K. P. Singh explained the origin of biological warfare, starting with the practice by medieval armies who used to throw plague-infected animals inside the townships of their enemies, up to the First and Second World Wars and the more recent incidents of the Americans using biological weapons in Vietnam and Saddam Hussein using these against the rebellious Kurds. “Biological weapons are very cheap compared to conventional weapons of mass destruction”, Mr K. P. Singh said. While stating that in the USA four persons had died of anthrax, Mr K. P. Singh said that in India anthrax could assume alarming proportions because of the large livestock population. However, he added that of three forms of anthrax — skin infection, infection by consumption of contaminated meat and infection by inhalation — the last variety was considered the most dangerous and fatal. Mr Mittal said that destroying a population living in an area of 1 sq km by conventional weapons would cost $ 2,000. Using chemical weapons for the same task it would cost only $ 1. |
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SI demoted for dereliction of duty Rohtak, November 2 Divulging details of the punitive measures taken against the ‘erring’ police officials and cops the SSP, Mr Atar Singh Ahlawat, said SI Jagpal Singh was deputed as in charge, Sadar police station, here. He said SI Jagpal Singh received a complaint from a truck driver that three unidentified youths boarded the vehicle when it slowed down near a speed-breaker on October 21. They allegedly snatched Rs 4,000 from occupants of the vehicle at gunpoint and also opened fire on the Tejpal. The matter was reported to SI Jagpal Singh who refused to register the complaint on the pretext that the crime was committed in the jurisdiction of the Gohana police station. The district police chief said an inquiry was conducted in this connection and the SI was found guilty. Investigation revealed that crimes like gambling and ‘satta’ were being carried out in the town in connivance with certain cops who were transferred to the battalion, Mr Ahlawat added. The SSP said a departmental inquiry had been ordered against head constable Om Prakash on the charge of dereliction of duty. |
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KALKA DIARY Kalka As soon as the residents of the colony came to know of it, they rushed to the spot to protest against the construction. There were heated arguments and the railway officials, sensing trouble, beat a hasty retreat. The Railway Inspector of Works, Mr IP Singh, said that the path the residents of the colony were using was illegal. But they might not have closed it, had it not been on a curve which blocked an oncoming train from the view of those crossing the track. As such, there were chances of accidents taking place, he said. On the other hand, Mr Satish Singhal, a resident of Gurbaksh Colony, said that the colony was within municipal limits and, therefore, a manned level crossing should be provided between Upper Mohalla and Gurbaksh Colony. If the railway authorities block this path, they will have to make a detour of five kilometres to reach the town. The situation at present is explosive as the residents are determined not to allow this path to be closed and the railway authorities are equally keen to construct the pillars as they are not willing to take any chances. * * * The Government has done injustice to the students of Government College, Kalka, by discontinuing MA classes in three subjects, besides closing the honours course from the current session. The subjects affected by this decision are Hindi, Political Science and Economics. Students wanting to do MA in these subjects will now have to go elsewhere and stay in hostels which many of them may find beyond their means. If the government does not reverse this decision a number of brilliant students will be deprived of higher education, lament students and their parents. * * * The Municipal Committee of Kalka has appealed to the residents of the town to avoid the use of polythene bags, and to help the administration maintain a healthy environment in the town. The appeal, made jointly by the municipal president, Mr Sushil Garg, and the secretary, Mr Devinder Sharma, said that many residents threw polythene bags stuffed with waste material in the streets as well in the drains, which resulted in the filth spreading in the streets and the drains getting choked. They warned that a complete ban had been imposed on the use of polythene bags, and anybody found using such bags could be fined up to Rs 5,000 or sent to jail for one month.
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Grain markets fall on lean
days Ambala According to information, residents of about 24 Punjab villages adjoining Haryana bring their produce here every year, but this year, none of them have turned up. They have taken their paddy produce to the mandis in Punjab. Many farmers of areas around Ambala have taken their produce to nearby mandis of Punjab. Mr Bharat Bhushan Aggarwal, one of the grain dealers here, says one of the reasons for taking the produce to Punjab is that the Punjab Congress has announced a bonus on paddy. It is to avail themselves of the chance of bonus that the farmers of nearby Punjab areas have preferred to sell their produce in Punjab, thinking that if the Congress comes to power they will get incentives. One more reason is that procurement agencies in Punjab are adopting a liberal attitude while procuring the produce. Some heaps of paddy rejected by procurement agencies in Ambala have been produced in mandis in Punjab. Another grain dealer, Mr Tej Prakash, says around 24 grain dealers have temporarily settled in the adjoining mandis in Punjab instead of sitting idle. So far 1,45,611 tonne of paddy has arrived in the 12 mandis in Ambala district. Out of this, 34,376 tonne has been purchased by CONFED, followed by HAFED with 44,687 tonne, FCI with 2,471 tonne, Haryana Agro with 2,747 tonne and Food and Supply Department with 14,724 tonne. The District Administration has made elaborate arrangements for procurement of paddy. The ground adjoining Haryana Agro has been covered with concrete so in case of excess arrival, paddy produce can be unloaded there. The low arrival of paddy has provided relief to the administration. The grain dealers here are worried that the farmers who have sold their paddy in Punjab this year may do the same with their wheat produce, which will ruin the Ambala grain market. Mr Duni Chand Danipur, a former president of the Ambala Grain Market Association, says the government should take some steps for the survival of this grain market.
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Vohra elected president of psychiatric society Rohtak, November 2 Dr S.C. Bhargava and Dr Rajiv Gupta were elected vice-president and general secretary of the branch, respectively. Other office-bearers are: assistant general secretary — Dr Ramesh Batra; treasurer — Dr Prem Munjal; editor — Dr Prem Munjal; and assistant editor — Dr D. Sangwan. Dr Ajay Malhotra, Dr Ashutosh Gupta, Dr P. Singh, Dr Hitesh Khurana, Dr J.L. Chhabra, Dr J. Bathla, Dr R.S. Lamba and Dr Mundra were nominated representatives of various divisions of the Haryana branch.
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