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Decision on reducing retirement age not uniform
Govt decision under HC lens
Will Hansi Branch canal see acche din?
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7 in line for Chief Secy working at Centre
6,308 youths got jobs in 9 years: RTI reply
A bolt from the blue for Drug Controller
Undeterred, Rampal followers go online to trash allegations
op to arrest rampal
PFA files complaint against farmer
Rs 3,400-crore plan ready for Swachh Bharat
Farmer beaten to death in Jhajjar village
Illegal constructions demolished
Minister: Issue ration cards to applicants
Ram Rahim moves HC against curtailing list of witnesses
Patrolling must to ‘check’ illegal mining
Cop’s son mowed down in Gurgaon
Man robbed of Rs 5 lakh
in Jhajjar
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Decision on reducing retirement age not uniform Pradeep Sharma Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, November 27 “It has now been decided that the age of superannuation for the Haryana Government be reduced from 60 to 58 years except in the case of judicial officers,” an order from the office of the Chief Secretary said. While the reported shortage of judicial officers against the backdrop of the huge backlog of cases seems to have weighed in favour of keeping the retirement age for judges at 60 years, the age reduction in the case of other categories of employees seems to have surprised even senior functionaries, including ministers. A senior functionary told The Tribune here today that there was a ‘concerted campaign’ in the recent Cabinet meeting for reducing the retirement age from 60 to 58 years. “More deliberations both at the administrative and political levels should have taken place before taking such a major decision affecting over 3 lakh employees,” the functionary asserted. However, official sources towed Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar’s line, saying that the decision was taken with the sole objective of providing more job opportunities to youth keeping in view the promises made in the BJP manifesto for the Assembly elections. Jawahar Yadav, Khattar’s OSD, could not be contacted despite repeated attempts. Meanwhile, senior Congress leader and former minister Ajay Yadav flayed the Khattar Government’s decision reducing the retirement age, claiming that it was another ‘anti-people’ decision by the one-month- old BJP Government. Employees’ unions, which are already miffed with the government for a variety of reasons, are meeting in Hisar on November 30 to chalk out their future course of action on the reduction of the retirement age. Eye on youth
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Govt decision under HC lens
Chandigarh, November 27 The decision is expected to immediately impact around 5,000 of the 3 lakh employees, besides putting an additional burden of ~200 crore on the government. The Hooda government had increased the retirement age of the employees to 60, shortly before the Assembly election. The government will now have to shell out ~1,500 crore as benefits to the staff retiring in two years. More than 4,000 employees on “extension” will retire on November 30; and the state will have to pay ~200 crore as retirement benefits. The central employees, otherwise, retire at 60. Some BJP-ruled states have fixed 60 years as the retirement age. |
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Will Hansi Branch canal see acche din?
Jind, November 27 Though the Irrigation Department authorities have been claiming that 1,300-1,400 cusec water has been flowing in it and its official capacity has been reduced to 1,600 cusec as the Siwani feeder, which used to get water from this canal, has been linked with the Bhakhra main line. But, during a visit to various village today it came to light that at many places the water carrying capacity has gone down below 1,000 cusec due to lack of cleaning. Lack of de-silting and cleaning has led to the growth of grass in the canal while sand has covered not only the embankments but also reduced the depth, severely affecting the capacity of canal. At many places such as Muana Fall the width has reduced to 66 feet from the official width of 110 feet; near Khumba Kothi village the width has gone down to 54 feet from 110 feet while near Gulkani village, the width has shrunk to 60 feet from the earlier 100 feet. At many places, chunks of sand have been disrupting the flow of water. “The canal is the main source of water for us. But presently it supplies water that is only half of its capacity. The government has failed to get it cleaned,” alleged Padam Singh, a farmer from Gulkani village. Some sources in the Irrigation Department said a year and a half ago, a proposal was prepared for the cleaning of this canal. Later the then Jind Deputy Commissioner Rajiv Rattan directed the department to get it cleaned under the MNREGA programme. But when the department tried to get it cleaned, lack of required machinery halted the cleaning and since then no action on the proposal has been taken. “I have raised this issue repeatedly in the Haryana Assembly during the Congress’ tenure, but the government did not pay any heed to my pleas. I hope the BJP government will take the required action as I plan to raise this issue again in the Assembly,” said INLD MLA from Jind city, Dr Hari Chand Middha. When the executive engineer of the Irrigation Department Shravan Kumar was contacted, he confirmed that a proposal of ~2.79 crore was pending with the senior authorities. “The proposal is pending and we will start cleaning the canal after getting approval from the seniors,” he said. Govt apathy
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‘Cat squad’ for Jind revenue record
Jind, November 27 The new security has done wonders within four months as rats have disappeared from the record room, while before the deployment of the “new force”, rats ruled the area and were a big nuisance for all three employees, a patwari and two binding officers. Earlier, three wooden boxes kept in various parts of the record room failed to provide required relief as only a few rats got caught, making things difficult for the officials. “Now there is not a single rat in our record room. Before the cats, we spent most of our duty hours in keeping the rats away from record, while during nights we had to keep our record packed in an iron box. But despite all, rats succeeded in damaging some of our record,” said Patwari Satyawan, in charge of the record room. The new “security guards” arrived at their own in the record room four months ago in search of rats. But when they killed two rats within a few minutes during their first visit four months ago, officials decided to deploy them permanently. “We have procured three different utensils for them and placed all that at different places in the record room. They have been taking around 1.5 l of milk daily. We contribute for it from our pockets and it’s not a big amount,” said Sukhev, binding officer. Cats can be seen roaming in different parts of the record room, sitting on the laps of officials and even taking milk from their utensils. During holidays, an official comes especially to feed the cats, while the staff leaves utensils full of milk during nights so that the cats can enjoy their night diet without any problem. |
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Organisational elections top priority, says state BJP chief Subhash Barala
Chandigarh, November 27 Addressing a press conference, he said, “We will form a coordination committee to ensure that the government and party work in tandem. Various other committees will be formed to keep an eye on developments works. Our priority will be to prepare ourselves for the organisational elections slated for 2015, especially since many posts have fallen vacant after our leaders have been elected to the Vidhan Sabha,” Barala said. Appreciating the backing of the RSS, Barala said the RSS was the BJP’s think tank. “It is the biggest organisation and we will consult its leaders as and when we need direction,” he claimed, adding that the people had voted the BJP to power with a lot of hope and the party would fulfil their aspirations. On whether action would be initiated against party leaders who had opposed the official candidates in the recent Assembly elections, Barala said the BJP had a set process for that. “If we receive any complaints, we will act,” he maintained. The new state chief said he would soon meet the central leadership and set the ball rolling on the formation of committees. Ram Bilas, who was also present at the first press conference addressed by Barala, said the BJP was targeting to enrol 33 lakh members over the next five months.
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7 in line for Chief Secy working at Centre
Chandigarh, November 27 The senior-most officer of the 1981 batch, PK Gupta, Additional Chief Secretary (Revenue), is set for superannuation on December 31. Gupta could be appointed the next CS and given extension after his retirement. After
Jakhu, Sanjay Kothari (1978 batch), Secretary, Department of Administrative Reforms, Public Grievances and Pensions, Government of India, is the seniormost officer in Haryana while Ajit Mohan Sharan (1979), Union Sports Secretary, is the next in line.
Ashok Lavasa (1980), Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, and Madhusudan Prasad(1981), Additional Secretary, Department of Commerce, are also posted in New Delhi. DS
Dhesi, Additional Secretary, Department of Commerce and Industries; KK
Jalan, Chief Provident Fund Commissioner; and Dalip Singh, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperation, are all 1982- batch IAS officers posted in New Delhi. Official sources said seniority was not going to be the only criterion for the new Chief Secretary. “The officer’s competence and his willingness to relocate to Chandigarh and work to implement the new government’s mantra of good governance are the key criteria for selection to the top post,” the sources added. In the past, the governments have selected an officer as Chief Secretary, giving seniority a go-by. Selecting new CS
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6,308 youths got jobs in 9 years: RTI reply
Rohtak, November 27 Official figures pertaining to the successive tenures of the Bhupinder Singh Hooda-led Congress government reveal that more than half of the 6,308 youths who got employment during the said period belong to Rohtak, Jhajjar and Sonepat districts. These districts are former Chief Minister Hooda’s stronghold . This information was furnished by the state government’s Employment Directorate officials in response to an RTI application filed by Subhash, convener of the Haryana Soochna
Adhikar Manch. Regional discrimination is more than evident in the information contained in the RTI reply. Official figures state that 1,479 youths of Jhajjar district, 1,033 youths of Sonepat and 733 youths of Rohtak got jobs between 2005 and 2014. In a sharp contrast, only 12 youths of Rewari, 13 of Palwal and 25 youths of Panchkula got employment during the said period. Similarly, merely 32 youths of Fatehabad, 57 of Bhiwani, 57 of
Mewat, 77 of Ambala, 87 of Faridabad, 89 of Yamunanagar, 90 of Narnaul and 91 of Panipat got employment between 2005 and 2014. In all, only 619 youths of 11 districts got employment during the said period. The official record containing employment figures of Rewari district for 2005-2007 was said to be eaten up by termites. Jobless youths of Rohtak district also got the lion’s share in unemployment allowance as Rs 36.11 crore was distributed among them. “The official figures clearly indicate a biased approach in terms of employment, which puts a big question mark on the entire process,” said RTI activist Subhash. Official figures
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A bolt from the blue for Drug Controller
It was suggested that the Haryana model could be replicated in other states and Singal could give his presentation there as well. But when Singal, State Drug Controller-cum-Joint Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), returned to Haryana, he was in for a rude shock. He learnt that his services were no more required, as he is to retire this month-end. He is among several employees who will be affected by the Khattar government’s decision to lower retirement age from 60 to 58 years. Considered as one of the upright officers of the department, Singal is credited with closing “hookah bars” in the state, curbing the sales of intoxicating drugs and codeine cough syrups used by youth for a kick, and prosecuting several unscrupulous druggists leading to their imprisonment. “Since my return from
Ahmedabad, my family and I have only one worry — to look for a rented accommodation, as I will have to vacate my official home after retirement,” Singal said. “I was so involved in my job all these years that I never thought that I needed a house of my own,” said
Singal, who hails from Sirsa but settled in Chandigarh for several years. He has been posted in
Panchkula. He said he knew he has to retire from the service one day, but he was not unduly perturbed as he had two years to plan his post-retirement life. But the government, he said, had treated people like him shabbily and told them that November 28 would be their last day in service (November 29 and 30 are holidays on account of being Saturday and Sunday). He said he was worried because his pension was unlikely to start till he completed all formalities, which could take three to four months. "Since my return from Ahmedabad, my family and I have only one worry - to look for a rented accommodation, as I will have to vacate my official home after retirement. I was so involved in my job all these years that I never thought that I needed a house of my own" GL Singal, State drug controller-cum-joint commissioner, FDA
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Kin create ruckus as tractor crushes 6-yr-old boy
Sirsa, November 27 The incident occurred at 8 am when Sunny, a local youth, was going to drop his six-year-old nephew, Rehan, to school. His motorcycle slipped after being hit by stray animals and the moment Rehan fell on the road, a tractor trolley loaded with paddy crushed him. Sunny also got injured. The driver fled leaving the vehicle. Rehan died while being taken to the Sirsa General Hospital. Later, his family members and other residents of his locality reached the spot and set the tractor trailer on fire. Kulvinder, fire tender driver, sustained injuries in the attack. Police had to use force to disperse the mob. The police said a case had been registered against the driver. Deputy Superintendent of Police Dharamvir Singh said the police was in the process of identifying the rioters and they would be booked. |
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Undeterred, Rampal followers go online to trash allegations
Hisar, November 27 The articles such as ‘False allegations on Sant Rampalji Maharaj by the media and police’ give Rampal’s side of the story and talk about the controversy surrounding Rampal, detailing the police cases and court proceedings, besides the confrontation with the police and the eventual fallout in the Satlok Ashram at Barwala last week have been posted on the website created after the run in with the police last week. The website www.satlokashram.org created by Rampal’s followers has been regularly uploading pro-Rampal articles. The website claiming to have the Satlok Ashram’s copyright has six articles besides a set of rules for the devotees. It also has photographs of police charging in on the ashram on November 18. The first three articles were posted on November 13, of which the first piece talks about how Rampal exposed the Arya Samaj, the judiciary, the administration and former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. It also blames Arya Samajis and police for the violence in 2006 and 2013 at its ashram in Karontha village in Rohtak district. Calling the claims of the police and the media about the pregnancy kit and objectionable medicines from Rampal’s residence as false, the articles state that the ashram has a hospital and it is not
a big deal to find pregnancy check kits, sugar strips, protein strips, urea strips, haemoglobin kits etc., in a clinic. The article also rubbishes reports that Rampal was bathed in milk that was used to prepare ‘kheer’ for the devotees and another one about CCTVs inside the toilets for women. The article says, “This information has been told by idiots, published by morons and believed by imbeciles.” When IGP Anil Kumar Rao was asked to comment on these articles, he said everybody had the freedom of expression, but still the online activities of Rampal were also under police’s observation. Meanwhile, another website: jagatgururampalji.org that had names and mobile numbers of key functionaries of the Satlok Ashram has now removed all the names and other details. Followers stand by Rampal
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Roadways raises Rs 1-cr bill for ferrying devotees
Deepender Deswal Tribune News Service
Hisar, November 27 Sources said the Hisar police engaged nearly 145 buses for eight days. In all, 40 buses were engaged from the Hisar depot, 27 buses were from Bhiwani, 13 buses from Charki Dadri, 20 buses each from Sirsa and Jind, and 15 buses from Fatehabad. Roadways authorities have raised a bill amounting to more than Rs 1 crore for their services. An amount of Rs 40 lakh is pending against the Hisar depot, Rs 26 lakh against the Bhiwani depot, Rs 14 lakh against the Jind depot, Rs 13 lakh against the Fatehabad depot, Rs 11.7 lakh against the Charki Dadri depot and Rs 20 lakh against the Sirsa depot. The Haryana Police will furnish details of the expenses incurred during the operation in the High Court tomorrow when Rampal would be produced in the contempt of court case. Inspector General of Police (IGP) Anil Rao said the police were compiling details of the expenses as various agencies, including roadways, paramilitary, civil administration, Health Department and fire services, were involved in the operation.
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ITI students block traffic in Sirsa
Sirsa, November 27 The students raised slogans against the authorities and the Haryana Roadways and did not allow any vehicle to pass through. The blockade continued for nearly half an hour before the police arrived on the spot and persuaded the students. The police assured the students that they would talk to the Roadways authorities and persuade them to stop buses outside the ITI in future. “Many a times, the drivers refuse to stop the buses outside the ITI forcing students to walk a long distance to the bus stand,” said students Pawan, Pramod, Vishal and Sahil. Today, when a bus driver refused to stop the bus outside ITI, the agitated students got angry and blocked the road. Students alleged their bus passes clearly mentioned their stoppage as ITI gate, but some drivers refused to stop the buses. |
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Vij suspends truant Kaithal doctor
Kaithal, November 27 The erring doctor did not attend to a tuberculosis patient, Krishan Kumar, of Teek village. He had been visiting the hospital for four consecutive days and did not find the doctor on duty each time. Earlier, patients’ attendants complained to the minister that patients were forced to lie on the floor outside the hospital because doctors concerned remained absent. Vij, on examining the attendance register, found several discrepancies. Some staff members, who were marked present, were absent from duty. The minister said there was a possibility of a collusion between officers and junior staff. He asked the Deputy Commissioner to inquire into the matter and take corrective steps. The minister checked bathrooms and pulled up employees for not cleaning the urinals. “I will continue to conduct surprise checks and take steps to improve healthcare in the state,” he added. |
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PFA files complaint against farmer
Sonepat, November 27 Bharpur Singh had covered his agriculture land with wire and allegedly passed electric current to keep stray animals away. On November 24, two buffaloes were found electrocuted near his fields. A meeting of the gram panchayat was held the same day. In the presence of police and Bijli Vitran Nigam officials, the panchayat imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh on him. He was also asked to sweep the village chaupal for 35 days. However, no police complaint was lodged. After the incident was highlighted in the media, Kadyan lodged a complaint in the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests with copies to the Haryana Chief Secretary, Director General of Police, DC, SP and the Baroda police station SHO alleging that the case was hushed up at the village level. He alleged that the entire panchayat proceedings were illegal and against the set procedure. He demanded registration of a case against the alleged accused and Bharpur Singh was booked under Section 336 and 429 of the IPC, Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, and Indian Electricity Act (Amended), 2003.
— OC |
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Governor inaugurates Sonepat varsity youth fest
Khanpur Kalan, November 27 “Education provided for development of mind, body, intelligence and soul. India’s unique heritage has a special place for women as Goddess Durga, Saraswati and Laxmi, representing shakti, gyan and arth, are worshipped all over India,” Solanki said. The Governor paid tributes to the founder of the university, Bhagat Phool Singh, for contribution to women’s education, in what he said, was important in battling social evils and problems such as skewed gender ratio in the state. University vice-chancellor Prof Asha Kadyan highlighted institute’s achievements. Students presented a cultural programme on Haryanvi folk music and dance. Solanki took a round of an exhibition oganised on the campus. Earlier, he planted a sapling to mark his first visit to the university. |
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Rs 3,400-crore plan ready for Swachh Bharat
Ambala, November 27 He said the plan would include management of tonnes of solid waste being generated across the state each day, besides making arrangements for drainage and treatment of sewage water. He said unlike the previous government, the BJP was working to ensure that all districts gained equally from government policies. He said taking the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi a step further, the state government decided that proper solid waste treatment plants and sewage water treatment plants should be set up across the state. |
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Farmer beaten to death in Jhajjar village
Jhajjar, November 27 The accused has been arrested and will be produced in a court tomorrow. Enmity is stated to be the cause behind the killing. The crime was perpetrated when Raj Kumar along with his two friends was consuming liquor at his fields outside the village. Jitender also came there and sat there on pretext of giving them company. Jitender engaged in a verbal duel with Raj Kumar over some petty issue when his two friends went out from there, the police said. The verbal duel turned violent when Jitender started thrashing Raj Kumar. He died on the spot, while Jitender fled. A few villagers later spotted Raj Kumar lying on the ground and informed his family who then called the police.
— TNS |
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Illegal constructions demolished
Sonepat, November 27 Two offices of property dealers, five boundary walls, 20 electric polls and a road network of interlocking tiles spread over 10 acres were demolished. District Town Planner Bijender Rana said an unauthorised colony was being carved out in the factory earlier known as Gadore Industry on the Piau Maniyari-Narela road in the district. |
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Minister: Issue ration cards to applicants
Chandigarh, November 27 The minister also directed the officials of the Education Department to provide quality education in the government schools on a par with private schools. He directed them to enhance the intake capacity of DIET Mahendragarh from 150 to 300. Ram Bilas, who also holds the portfolio of the Transport Department, directed its officials to maintain cleanliness in buses and bus stands. |
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Ram Rahim moves HC against curtailing list of witnesses
In his petition filed through counsel SK Garg Narwana, Ram Rahim claimed that the list was curtailed and witnesses dropped after being summoned by the court. In case of some witnesses, bailable warrants too had been issued after they failed to turn up in the court. Narwana contended that the prosecuting agency, the Central Bureau of Investigation, had taken five years to examine 15 witnesses in the case. They, on the other hand, had in just about nine months examined 28 witnesses. He said they were required to be given an opportunity of being heard. The case was today referred to another Bench. Rahim Rahim Singh is accused of rape and murder. The matter is being heard by Panchkula CBI court. |
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Patrolling must to ‘check’ illegal mining
Bhiwani, November 27 He said illegal mining in the hills be stopped immediately and told officers to conduct regular patrolling of the Dadri and Badhra areas. Kumar ordered that a
5-6 foot-deep ditch be dug around the hills to check illegal transportation of stones.
— PTI |
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Cop’s son mowed down in Gurgaon
Gurgaon, November 27 The bus hit his motorcycle from the rear and he died on the spot. The police have arrested the bus driver, Neeraj Kumar, of Kanpur in UP. Eyewitnesses claimed the bus was speeding. On getting information, a police team reached the spot with an ambulance, but the student had already died. In the meantime, the driver tried to flee, but the people handed him over to the police. “The accused is a driver of a tourist bus engaged by Maruti Suzuki to ferry its employees. When the police reached the spot, no one was in the bus,” investigating officer ASI Shri Bhagwan said.
— TNS |
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Man robbed of Rs 5 lakh
in Jhajjar
Jhajjar, November 27 Arvind of Dhakla village said he had come to State Bank of India’s branch located on the Jhajjar-Rewari road this morning to withdraw Rs 5 lakh . His car was parked in part-II of the mini-secretariat. “I was heading towards my car after withdrawing Rs 5 lakh from the bank. Two youths came there on a motorbike and snatched away the bag carrying the cash,” said Arvind. Jhajjar DSPs Dheeraj Kumar and Anoop Singh rushed to the spot. All escape routes of the district were sealed but the police failed to nab the thieves. “We are scanning the video footage of CCTV cameras installed outside the bank to get a clue ,” said the police, adding that a special team had been constituted to probe the matter. |
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Sirsa, November 27
Chandigarh, November 27