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Tuesday,
December 25, 2001, Chandigarh, India  
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Top Haryana cop’s transfer stayed Decks cleared for Quraishi’s appointment Haryana schemes for SC students Govt softens stand on power bills BKU to decide its strategy today Gurgaon cyber centre to bring in 1500 crore |
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16 preachers rounded up Widow gets relief at open darbar Police remand
for MC officials HVP leader’s charge against Chautala Shovana enlivens cultural evening Three gangs of thieves busted
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Top Haryana cop’s transfer stayed Chandigarh, December 24 Mr Nirmal Singh, who is senior to the officiating Director-General of Haryana Police, Mr M.S. Malik, is at present posted as DGP/OSD (Rules) here. His original application(read petition) challenging his appointment as OSD, Rules, is already pending before the CAT. The CAT orders came as an affidavit filed on behalf of the Union Government had raised the question of legality over the arrangement made by the Haryana Government under which Mr Malik is holding the additional charge of the DGP's post besides being the Director of the state Vigilance Bureau. The affidavit filed by the Deputy Secretary in the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, Mr M.K. Mitra, says that under Rule 11(I) of the IPS (Cadre) Rules, 1954, the state governments may, for the purpose of facilitating leave arrangements for a period not exceeding six months, direct that any two cadre posts or a cadre post and an equivalent ex-cadre post may be held simultaneously by one single cadre officer. Moreover, the affidavit says, under Rule 11(ii) of the above mentioned rules, where the state government is of the opinion that it is necessary to do so, it may with the prior approval of the Central Government, order that the posts directed by it to be held simultaneously by one single-cadre officer under Sub-rule(I), may continue to do so beyond six months, but in any case not beyond 12 months from the date with effect from which the posts were first directed to be so held. Mr Mitra further clarified that in this context no approval of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs had every been sought by the Haryana Government “in any case of giving additional charge to any cadre officer”. Mr Malik, who holds the substantive post of the Director of the State Vigilance Bureau (equivalent to that of the DGP), was given additional charge of the post of DGP on December 5 last year. Since the arrangement has been continuing beyond 12 months, under the IPS (Cadre) Rules, 1954, there is no legal sanctity for it now. If the Haryana Government wants to use Mr Malik's services as head of the state police, it should order his posting as such. However, it is debatable if the government can give him additional charge of the Director of the State Vigilance Bureau, for another 12 months, or appoint some other officer to head the Vigilance Bureau. The rules are silent. Perhaps the framers of the rules never contemplated such a situation. The bureau is currently handling several cases of the alleged corruption by politicians belonging to Opposition parties as well as cases against a number of bureaucrats. Mr Mitra's affidavit also says that the Central Government thrice rejected the Haryana Government's request for ex-post-facto approval of the Ministry of Home Affairs for the creation of six ex-cadre posts of DGP in excess of the prescribed ratio of 1:1 as “the justification furnished by the State Government was insufficient”. There are two cadre posts of DGP in Haryana against which the government can create only two ex-cadre posts of equivalent rank. However, at present there are four ex-cadre posts of DGP in Haryana. |
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Decks cleared for Quraishi’s appointment Chandigarh, December 24 According to informed sources, Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee has cleared Dr Quraishi's appointment as one of the top media men of the country. An IAS officer of the 1971 batch, Dr Quraishi is the second officer of the Haryana cadre to head the country's official electronic media. The first Haryana officer to be Doordarshan DG was Mr Harish Khanna in the late seventies. For Dr Quraishi, the Prasar Bharati assignment is virtually a New Year gift as the media world is as close to him as his bureaucratic responsibilities. He is likely to take up the new assignment in the first week of the New Year. He is likely to be relieved by the Haryana Government on December 31. An alumnus of the prestigious St Stephen's College, Dr Quraishi did his graduation in history with honours from Delhi College in 1967. Two years later he did his masters in history from the same institution. Meanwhile, he also evolved as a linguist by doing with distinction certificate courses in modern Persian, German and Arabic. Another two years later he made it to the IAS. In 1992, Dr Quraishi did his Ph.D from Jamia Millia Islamia University, New Delhi, in "The Role of Communication and Social Marketing in Development of Women and Children". He has a number of publications to his credit, including two volumes of "Haryana Rediscovered — Bibliographical Area Study" and "Social Marketing for Social Change". He was Chairman of the core group of media experts in the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in 1989-90 to suggest inter-ministerial integrated communication strategies for women and child development for promoting family planning. Dr Quraishi was the only civil servant in a galaxy of international awardees for innovative and oustanding work in the field of child welfare when he was presented the "Nehru Fellow Award" by the Nehru Children's Museum, Calcutta, as part of "300 years of Calcutta celebrations". Dr Quraishi was chosen for the assignment by the full board of directors of Prasar Bharati from among a large number of applicants, including internal candidates of the Ministry for Information and Broadcasting. Known for being development oriented and innovative ideas, Dr Quraishi has the knack of making friends out of even bitter enemies. |
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Haryana schemes for SC students Chandigarh, December 24 Quoting Mr Risal Singh, Minister of State for Social Welfare, an official press note said it was decided to construct hostels at division level for Scheduled Caste students. Such hostels would be set up Ambala, Gurgaon, Hisar and Sonepat which had a large number of educational institutions, the minister was quoted as saying. He said Scheduled Caste candidates would be imparted training in computer and shorthand at various institutions such as the computer franchise centre of Hartron, the universities of the state, the polytechnics, ITIs and any private institution recommended by Deputy Commissioners. Scheduled Caste students would have to pay only 5 per cent of the training fee for doing these courses as the remaining 95 per cent of the fee would be reimbursed by the Haryana Scheduled Caste Finance and Development Corporation. He said under another scheme, Rs 10,000 would be given as subsidy for construction of dwelling-cum-shed to the Scheduled Castes having plots of 75 sq yard and above. The subsidy would be provided by the HSCFDC, which would also provide economic and income generating activities from its existing schemes. He said Rs 1 crore had been earmarked per annum for this purpose. Mr Risal Singh said under another scheme, SC students, who would pass class X and class XII from rural areas, with 60 per cent or above marks in science and commerce and 55 per cent marks in arts, would be given a scholarship of Rs 700 to study in reputed educational institutions within the state. While an allowance of Rs 700 would be given to the students for board and lodging, they would be given an additional Rs 2000 for purchase of books and another Rs 1500 (both per annum) for purchase of stationery and other miscellaneous expenditure. The Minister said Directorate of Higher Education had identified nine colleges for imparting training to Scheduled Caste students to prepare them for various competitive examinations. The training, which would be for three months, would be given at S A Jain College, Ambala City; G N K College, Yamunanagar; Jat College, Rohtak; Dayanand College, Hisar; Government College, Sirsa; G V M College, Sonepat; Government College, Narnaul; Dronacharya College, Gurgaon; and Government College, Bhiwani. About 450 persons would be provided training under the scheme who would be given Rs 700 per month for board and lodging. Another scheme was being introduced to prepare SC students for entrance tests for vocational courses. Four hundred and fifty students would be covered under the scheme and would be provided a scholarship of Rs 700 per month. With a view to eradicate the practice of scavenging, the Central Government had adopted a scheme of sanitary marts to provide alternative employment to scavengers. They would be able to set up shops for sanitary wares or any other thing they would like to sell. The HSCFDC would provide loans at the rate of Rs 5 lakh for up to 10 scavengers per group for these marts. |
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Govt softens stand on power bills Rohtak, December 24 The supply of power to Kiloi, Polangi and Roorkee villages was disconnected by the Uttar Haryana Bijlee Vitran Nigam (UHBVN) as these villages jointly owe Rs 6.12 crore to the power corporation. The consumer have not been paying bills for the past many years. The UHBVN had a fortnight ago restricted the supply of power to these villages to only four-and-half-hours a day. This had disrupted the sowing of rabi crop. The residents of Kiloi, had yesterday held a meeting under the chairmanship of former minister Krishna Murti Hooda and threatened to gherao the Deputy Commissioner on December 27 if the government did not restore power supply by then. The SSP, Mr Atar Singh Ahlawat today invited sarpanches of Kiloi village members of the panchayat samiti and gram panchayats and the president of the “Kiloi Barah Hooda Khaap” to defuse the situation. The Deputy Commissioner, Mr Anil Malik, told The Tribune that the administration would delink the outstanding bills from the current bills and the villagers had agreed to make payment of current bills. The electricity bills for the past two months would be distributed within a couple of days and the panchayats assured that consumers would pay these bills without delay. As regards the payment of out-standing bills, the administration has agreed to waive the surcharge
(interest) and charge the actual amount in instalments. The terms and conditions for the repayment of arrears would be decided later, he said. The administration would, also provide on-the-spot connections under the ‘tatkal’ scheme of UHBVN to those who were drawing power straight through kundi connections. It is learnt that the Chief Minister, Mr Om Parkash Chautala, has advised the Deputy Commissioners in the state to delink the outstanding bills from the current bills on the Rohtak pattern. |
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BKU to decide its strategy today Kandela (Jind), December 24 The union functionary stated that the BKU had no intention to withdraw the agitation till the officials responsible for the brutal lathi charge and firing on farmers were brought to book. The union also wants a high-level probe to identify anti-farmer elements in the present government which swears in the name of farmers day in and day out. Meanwhile, anger among farmers in the village of Jind district is spreading fast. Not only The Jind-Kaithal-Chandigarh road remained blocked for the fourth day today, but the farmers also blocked the Jind-Bhiwani road near Khanda Kher village. The irate farmers have erected a brick wall on the road which is being guarded by armed farmers. The farmers have also blocked the road near Igra village. The road to Karnal from Jind is also blocked and the traffic is being diverted to village routes. On the Jind-Kaithal-Chandigarh road, the farmers have placed hundreds of trees to block the road. Even women in the village are ready to take part in the agitation. However, thus far, the police is maintaining restraint. In the adjoining district of Kaithal, a strong police posse has been deployed in and around Kalayat town. An official in the Deputy Commissioner’s office said the police had been deployed at Kalayat as it was a sensitive area. Most of the BKU activists are concentrated in and around Kalayat and the Jind-Narwana belt. The BKU leadership criticised the attitude of the police and district administration in precipitating the crisis and demanded that power to the villages should be immediately restored. On the other hand, the Haryana Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, today made a categorical statement that no distinction would be made in power supply even to villages which were participating in the agitation. The transformers there would be changed, he said. The Chief Minister made the statement in Taraori market near Karnal. The district administration is worried that blockade of roads for long could affect supplies to the Indian Army deployed on the borders in Fazilka sector. |
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Gurgaon cyber centre to bring in 1500 crore Assandh (Karnal), December 24 This was stated by Mr Om Prakash Chautala, Chief Minister, while inaugurating a Rs 2.50 crore water works project at this town, 48 km from Karnal, today. The project would benefit a population of 22,000. Mr Chautala said with the commissioning of the project, residents would get regular water supply during the next 30 years. Every person would get seven litres of water per day, he added. The Chief Minister further said water tanks had been constructed in about 3,500 of 7,000 villages in the state. In remaining villages, water tanks were being constructed. Mr Chautala said the proposed cyber centre at Gurgaon would bring in an estimated capital investment of Rs 1,500 crore in the state. Besides, 5 lakh youths would get employment. The Chief Minister also laid the foundation stone of a degree college, which is being constructed by the Jeewan Chanan Trust. The trust has donated Rs 1 crore towards its construction while 83 kanals had been given by the Municipal Committee, Assandh. The college is the first co-educational college in the area and would benefit the rural youth. Mr Chautala assured the college authorities of all help in the construction and running of the college. The Chief Minister later also laid the foundation stone of a primary health centre to be built at a cost of Rs 90 lakh in Taraori Market. He also inaugurated a new tehsil building at Nilokheri. Speaking to mediapersons Mr Chautala offered total support to Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee in the fight against terrorism. He asked the opposition parties to sink differences and support the Prime Minister. The Chief Minister also declared that the state government would provide jobs to one member each of the two CRPF men killed in the terrorist attack of December 13 on Parliament. Already the government had given Rs 1 lakh to the families of the slain CRPF jawans from Haryana, he said.
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16 preachers rounded up Rohtak, December 24 During the pre-dawn combing operations here today, the Rohtak police rounded up nearly 16 suspected elements from the Khokhra-kot locality. The SSP, Mr Atar Singh Ahlawat, said the antecedents of these persons were being verified. Among the 16 taken into the custody today, seven belong to Mumbai, four to Bihar, three to Delhi and the remaining two are local persons. These persons reportedly told the police that they were preachers and belonged to the Tabligi Jamaat and had come to Rohtak to preach Islam. There is a sudden increase in the number of Kashmiri youths selling carpets in the town. Many of these persons, mostly in the age group of 30 to 35 years, have rented houses in colonies situated on the outskirts of the town. Mr Ahlawat told the antecedents of these hawkers were also being verified. A majority of them hail from district Kupwara of Jammu and Kashmir. Patrolling in the suspected areas and on the roads coming from Delhi has been intensified. The police has installed nakas at the entry points to screen vehicles entering Rohtak district, he said. |
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Widow gets relief at open darbar Fatehabad, December 24 A total of 225 complaints came before the Deputy Commissioner who asked the officers from the departments concerned to take suitable action. The SP Mr Hanif Qureshi, the ADC Mr C.S. Rana, the SDM Rattia, Mr S.K. Setia and a number of other officers from the district were present in the darbar. The DC directed his officers not to adopt dilly-dallying attitude in redressing the complaints received in these darbars and further asked them to act within 14 days from the date of receiving these complaints. The DC also directed the officers to issue identity cards to all daily wages and contract basis workers employed in their offices latest by January 31,2002. He warned that in case the employees were found without the requisite cards after this date, action would be taken not only against the employees but also against their officers.
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Police remand
for MC officials Ambala, December 24 The State Vigilance Bureau arrested the duo yesterday under the Prevention of Corruption Act. The bureau officials had recovered Rs 10 lakh from the residence of the cashier. The counsel of the state requested the court to grant police remand for 15 days as it was yet to be found as to from which sources and from whom the huge amount had been collected. The counsels of the accused opposed the police remand. They said the bureau had interrogated the executive officer and the cashier and the amount in question had been recovered by the bureau authorities. There was not a single complaint lying with the bureau against the executive officer for taking any bribe in any case, they claimed. The Magistrate, after hearing arguments of both sides, sent the duo in police custody till December 29.
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HVP leader’s charge against Chautala Sirsa, December 24 Mr Surender Singh said instead of keeping his promise to fill all 70,000 vacancies after taking over from Mr Bansi Lal, Mr Chautala had resorted to the retrenchment of the employees. Many employment offices, boards, corporations and government offices had been closed resulting in lesser employment opportunities for the youth in the state. He said the Chautala government had taken away the education facilities from the youth, which was evident from its policy to withdraw various postgraduate courses from the 35 colleges of the state. |
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Shovana enlivens cultural evening Kurukshetra, December 24 The function was inaugurated by Mrs Sudesh Kumari, wife of the Haryana Governor. Babu Parmanand, Governor, was the chief guest on the occasion. Shovana and her troupe kept the audience spell-bound for about two hours with their excellent performance. She projected scenes and references from the Vedas, the Gita and the Mahabharata. She depicted in her dances Lord Krishna, delivering his immortal message of the Gita to Arjuna and other sequences from the Mahabharata. Among others who attended the function included Mr Radhey Shyam Chaudhary, Vice-Chancellor, Kurukshetra University, Mr Vijai Vardhan, Secretary to Haryana Governor, Mr Abhilaksh Likhi, Deputy Commissioner, Kurukshetra, Mrs Sukkriti Likhi, Additional Deputy Commissioner, and Mr Desh Raj Singh, SP. Shovana while addressing mediapersons said dedication, hard work and devotion were the key to success. She said she had initially got training of Kathak from Sadhana Bose and later from Guru Kundan Lal. |
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Three gangs of thieves busted Fatehabad, December 24 The value of these goods was said to be approximately Rs 1.25 lakh. The SP, Mr Hanif Qureshi, told mediapersons here today that on a tip-off, the in-charge of the Hanspur police post, stopped the vehicle on a bridge near Ahlupur village. The police arrested Harmit Singh, a resident of Hanspur village and Ajit Singh, a resident of Birabadi village on the spot. The two had planned to sell the stolen property in the village. In another case the police arrested Chiman and Mukhtiar, residents of Bhirdana village for lifting a bicycle from the veterinary hospital in Bhirdana village. |
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Bank interest on loans reduced Chandigarh, December 24 While stating this here today, a spokesman of the bank said the rate of interest on loans ranging from Rs 25,000 up to Rs 15 lakh would be 13.5 per cent per year with effect from January 1. |
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Order on I-cards Chandigarh, December 24 In a circular issued here today, the Chief Secretary also directed that all government employees should display their identity cards on their persons while on duty. |
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