Sonepat :
A delegation of the Haryana State HUDA Sectors Confederation, led by its state president, Yashvir Malik, met Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sishodia in Delhi on Friday and sought his support for their demand regarding the recalculation of the enhancements on HUDA plots.

At the meeting, they handed over all relevant papers pertaining to the calculations and recalculations of the enhancements to be recovered from the plot holders. They also alleged that the state government had issued notices for the recovery of the enhancement amounts ranging between Rs 2 lakh and Rs 30 lakh.

Despite giving assurances a number of times in the past, they alleged that the state government had not taken up the recalculation of the enhancement amounts.
The representatives claimed that the Delhi CM and Deputy CM had assured them full support towards their demand. The delegation included representatives from different districts.

Ambala :
The Ambala police have arrested a woman for allegedly threatening a man to implicate him in a false rape case and extorting money.

The accused has been identified as Gita, a resident of Gujarat, currently living in Ambala.

The accused was produced before a court that sent her to jail.

Baljinder Pal Singh, a resident of Rail Vihar, Ambala Cantonment, had lodged a complaint stating that he had created an ID on a matrimonial site from where the accused woman obtained his mobile number and called him in February last year. He had informed her that he was yet to get a divorce but she kept on calling him. In December last year, they met in Ambala and then in March this year they met in Porbandar, Gujarat. After that, she started asking for money and threatened to implicate him in a false rape case.

The complainant alleged that she had demanded Rs 13 lakh from him.

A case was registered against the woman and another person (Surender Singh of Chandigarh) for pressurising him under Section 389 and 506 of the IPC at Baldev Nagar Police Station.

The SHO, Baldev Nagar Police Station, said “The accused has been arrested and the court has sent her to jail. The role of another person is being verified.”

Hisar :
More than eight years after Dalit villagers were beaten up by upper caste residents in Mirchpur, the police have not been able to arrest 12 convicts in the case even as a status report has to be filed in the Delhi High Court tomorrow.

Narnaund SHO Sadhu Ram said here today that 10 of the convicts had been sentenced to life imprisonment and the remaining two for two years and one year in jail. Hansi SP Vijender Vij said they had formed four teams to nab the convicts.

The Delhi HC had on August 24 reversed the acquittal of 20 accused and upheld the conviction of 13 others for their involvement in arson and assault on the residents of a Scheduled Caste locality in the village on April 21, 2010. A differently abled teenaged girl and her father had died in the violence.

Nine of the convicts had surrendered in the court while the police arrested 10 others who were awarded jail terms for different periods.

Chandigarh :
The state government’s decision to hold student body elections in colleges and universities after 22 years may run into rough weather with student organisations except the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) on Thursday resolving to boycott indirect elections scheduled to be held on October 12.

The National Students’ Organisation of India (NSUI), Indian National Students Organisation (INSO) and Students’ Federation of India (SFI) announced a protest against the government’s ‘undemocratic’ exercise which, according to them, amounted to favouring the ABVP.

Announcing a statewide agitation against indirect elections, their leaders asserted that student bodies would hold a protest across the state on October 8, followed by submission of memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Haryana visit the next day.

State NSUI president Divyanshu Budhiraja questioned the logic of holding indirect elections when direct elections were being held in Delhi, Chandigarh and Rajasthan.

While Manohar Lal Khattar government wants to hold direct elections for the post of Mayor, it wants to conduct indirect elections to students’ bodies, which defies logic,” he stated.

President of INSO Digvijay Chautala feared that indirect elections would lead to large-scale horse-trading and law and order problems in university and college campuses.

State SFI president Shahnawaz alleged that through indirect elections, the government was trying to establish the ABVP in educational institutions across the state in the run-up to parliamentary and Assembly elections.

“Efforts are being made to prop up the ABVP in educational institutions through indirect elections by the college and university authorities apparently under pressure from the BJP government,” he alleged.

“While a statewide strike will be observed on October 11, elections to students’ bodies should not be allowed to be held on October 12,” he added.

Chief Minister’s take
Asked to comment on the state government's decision to hold indirect student elections, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said the step of the state government should be appreciated as student elections were being conducted in the state after a gap of 22 years. When his attention was drawn to the demand for direct student elections, he said Lyngdoh Committee had said in its report that indirect elections should be conducted in the first year.

Karnal :
The state’s first effluent treatment plant (ETP) has failed to generate a single unit of electricity even nine months after the start of its trial run.

As per the authorities, the plant, which is located on the Karnal-Kachwa road in the district, was to generate nearly 1,500 units of electricity per day from stubble, animal excreta, waste from slaughter houses, sewage, biodegradable and solid waste.

The Karnal Municipal Corporation (KMC) allotted the project, costing around Rs 1.15 crore, to Delhi-based Growdiesel Ventures Limited to utilise waste in an environment-friendly manner on operational and maintenance basis for five year.

Now, the KMC has stopped the payment of the company after not getting satisfactory results.

“During trial run, the company has failed to deliver the desired results. So, we have stopped the payment. We have asked the company to show the results otherwise we will scrap the tender,” said Rajiv Mehta, Commissioner, KMC. The company started the trial run in January. In the initial days, the project worked smoothly, but later it stopped functioning.

The authorities associated with the project blamed poor supply of electricity for non-functioning of the project. However, sources in the KMC said that the project remained shut for nearly three months due to various reasons, including non-availability of stubble, segregation of waste and electricity. “We have started the trial run in January and the plant has generated 1000 standard cubic metres of methane gas so far,” said Sanjay Chauhan, project manager.

About non-generation of electricity, he admitted that due to non-availability of smooth supply of power, the plant remained closed for sometime.