New Delhi :
The southwest monsoon on Tuesday hit Kerala, three days before its scheduled arrival, says the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The onset of monsoon over the southern state marks the commencement of the four-month long rainy season in the country.

June 1 is the official onset date for arrival of monsoon in the country and it takes more than a month-and-half to cover the entire country.

The IMD has made a forecast of "normal" rainfall this season.

Skymet, a private weather forecasting agency and a rival of the IMD, had said that the monsoon made its arrival in Kerala on Monday.

According to the IMD, if after May 10, 60 per cent of the available 14 stations --Minicoy, Amini, Thiruvananthapuram, Punalur, Kollam, Allapuzha, Kottayam, Kochi, Thrissur, Kozhikode, Thalassery, Kannur, Kudulu and Mangalore -- report 2.5 mm or more rainfall for two consecutive days, the onset of monsoon over Kerala can be declared on the second day. This is one of the main parameters for declaring the arrival of monsoon.
Besides this factor, the westerly winds must be up to 15,000 feet above main sea level and outgoing long-wave radiation less than 200 wm-2 (watt per square metre) to declare the arrival of monsoon. 

All the necessary parameters were met following which the onset of monsoon over Kerala was announced, Mritunjay Mohapatra, Additional Director General, IMD said.

Hisar :
Congress leader and Kaithal MLA Randeep Singh Surjewala has stated that on coming to power in Haryana, the Congress would waive the farm loans up to Rs 50,000 given to farmers having landholdings of less than two acres, landless agricultural labourers and the poor.

Addressing a Kisan Yuva Adhikar rally at Kheri Chaupta village in Narnaund Assembly segment of the district on Sunday, Surjewala alleged that the present government was not providing due rates for the agricultural produce.

“The government has failed to provide even the officially announced Minimum Support Prices (MSP) for various crops. Debt relief is urgently required for providing interim relief to the small farmers, Scheduled Castes, Backward Classes and small shopkeepers. If the Punjab Government could provide a loan relief to 22 lakh farmers despite its financial problems, there is no reason that the BJP government should not give the same relief to state farmers,” he maintained.

Questioning the Central and state governments for not waiving agricultural loans, the Congress leader said when loans of a dozen industrialists amounting to Rs 2.41 lakh crore could be waived, then why the loans of Rs 2 lakh crore taken by 62 crore farmers cannot be waived.

He pointed out that the insurance companies had been paid Rs 20,478 crore in kharif-2016 and Rabi 2016-17 as insurance premium amount, but farmers have been paid compensation of Rs 5,650 crore only.

Castigating the BJP government for the skyrocketing prices of petrol and diesel, Surjewala said despite the international prices of crude oil being nearly half as compared to the prices during the tenure of the UPA government, the people of the country and the region were being forced to pay much higher prices for petrol and diesel.

“During the last four years, the BJP regime has increased the Central excise duty on petrol by 211.7 per cent and on diesel by 443.06 per cent. Similarly, the state BJP government increased the VAT on petrol from 21 per cent to 26.25 per cent and almost doubled the VAT on diesel from 9.24 per cent to 17.22 per cent,” he stated.

Surjewala criticised the state government for its auction notices to 5,000 farmers who could not clear their bank dues. He asserted that the Congress stands firmly with the distressed farmers and would not let the state government go ahead with its plan of auctioning farmers’ land.

Panipat :
Members of various associations of HUDA sectors staged a state-level dharna here on Sunday in protest against the enhancement settlement scheme.

The members from various districts gathered in Tau Devi Lal Park here and from there, they took out a protest march towards the HUDA office complex.
Meanwhile, state Congress president Ashok Tanwar reached the dharna site and extended his support to the protesters.

Tanwar said the Congress would include the enhancement issue in the party manifesto and assured them that the enhancement dues would go if the Congress was voted to power.

Haryana Sectors’ Confederation convener Yashvir Malik said that they had planed a seven-day programme and started it from Panipat on Sunday. Members of two districts would fast daily in protest against the one-time settlement scheme, he added.

The dharna would continue till their demands were not accepted, he said.

Panipat :
Residents of various localities on Sunday protested against erratic power supply in the city.

Residents of Dabur Colony gheraoed the power substation on the Kutani road here.
They were not getting regular power supply for the past many days due to repeated snags in the transformer of the locality, said Shubham.

There was no electricity in the colony on Saturday, said Vipin, another resident of the colony. The transformer was unable to bear the load and they had urged the department to increase the load, but to no avail, he said. Azaad said water supply was also disrupted due to erratic power supply.

The protesters threatened to gherao the power corporation office if the problem was not resolved within five days.

Ashok Sharma, SDO, Chhajpur subdivision, said an estimate for new transformer would be prepared and survey would be conducted for installation of the new transformer.
Meanwhile, residents of Bhatia Colony disrupted the vehicular traffic at the Ramlal Chowk for nearly 20 minutes.

The protesters raised slogans against local MLA Rohita Rewri and power corporation officials.

However, the blockade was lifted after civil and police officials pacified the protesters and assured them to resolve their problem.

Rakesh Raheja, Anshul Kakkar, Madan, Jatin Bhatia, Subhash Chhabra, Pooja Tuteja, Kiran Sharma and other protesters said that power supply in the locality was disrupted after the transformer caught fire on Saturday night. They said water supply was also affected due to erratic power supply.

SS Deshwal, SDO, Model Town, said an alternative transformer had been installed there.

Meham (Rohtak) :

A mahapanchayat organised under the aegis of an all-caste panel at the historic ‘chabutara’ of the Meham Chaubisi here on Sunday demanded a change in the Hindu Marriage Act banning same-gotra marriages. The mahapanchayat also sought ban on DJ at marriage functions, community lunch after someone’s demise and pornographic content on the internet.

The mahapanhayat organised by the Athgama Panchayat convener Shamsher Singh Kharkara was attended by representatives of various khap panchayats and other community organisations.

Community leaders pointed out that due to lack of knowledge about customs and traditions, same-gotra were taking place.

“Our social customs and traditions do not allow such marriages. The law should be based on customs and traditions. Hence, a change is required in the Hindu Marriage Act and other related rules,” they asserted.

Former MLA Sukhbir Farmana demanded a chapter on marriage be added in the school curriculum so as to apprise the students of the social aspect, customs and traditions related to the ceremony. Backward Classes Welfare Commission chairman Ram Chander Jangra also supported the demand for change in the Hindu Marriage Act.

Social activist Basant Lal Girdhar suggested that parents’ consent be made mandatory for marriage. He pointed out that same-gotra marriages could lead to genetic disorders.
The mahapanchayat also decided to reduce the mourning period on deaths from 13 to seven days.