GN

According to Gurgaon municipal commissioner Rajesh Khullar, the machine was first used in Chakkapur village on trial basis. The corporation now plans to clean sewage lines in Feroz Gandhi Colony and Sheetla Mata road soon.

"The machine is designed to suck solid particles from sewage lines and then unload it into the dumping tank. The waste is then dumped at the Dhanwapur Sewerage Treatment Plant.
Workers don't have to enter into the pipeline anymore. It has earlier led to death of several employees because of poisonous gases in the sewage lines," Khullar said.

"The operation of the machine has been outsourced to an agency for Rs 3,500 per day," he added.

The length of sewerage lines in Gurgaon is nearly 1,000 kms. "If the sresults are positive, we plan to purchase four more machines to cover the entire area," Khullar said.

This is not all. In Faridabad district, the state functionaries initiated land acquisition proceedings by issuing a notification under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act. But soon after, they allegedly issued licenses to the colonisers to develop the land - a move objected to by the landowners. They have alleged the state is the facilitating the colonisers by "acquiring the land after the efforts of the developers to purchase the land from the landowners failed to yield any result"

In the petitions placed before the Division Bench of Justice MM Kumar and Justice Jitendra Chauhan, they have further alleged, "the proposed Sectors, from 75 to 80, are, in fact, being developed by private colonisers and developers. They have either been granted licenses or permission for change of land use for the development of the sectors, both before and after the issuance of the notifications".

The petitioners, Ved Pal and three others from Faizpur Majra Neemka village, have added, initially the notification under Section 4 was issued on February 7, 2008, for the development of residential and commercial areas. Almost a year after, notification under Section 6 of the Act was issued, declaring their land has been acquired.

But chunks of land were left out of the acquisition process. In all, 246.51 acres were released before declaring their land has been acquired under Section 6 of the Act. Claiming the entire acquisition process is as such "vitiated by malafides", they are seeking the quashing of the notifications for acquiring their lands.

Official figures reveal over 15 per cent of the land notified for acquisition was released in previous two years.

A government official will be at your door with two forms -- and 50 questions, including on your family size, the kind of toilets you have, the kind of house you live in, if you have access to electricity, the assets you possess, your occupation and your educational qualifications.

After the forms are filled up, the official will collect your photo and fingerprint you.

Three government processes -- Census 2011, preparation of the national population register ( NPR) and issuing unique identification numbers -- have been amalgamated in this exercise. The census form has 35 questions, while the NPR form has 15.

While you may have to spend some time on the forms, the government will be spending close to Rs 8,000 crore on the exercise. This will ensure that the country's 1.2 billion residents are counted, identified and given a national identity card with a unique identification number on the lines of US's social security number.

Home minister P. Chidambaram termed it the biggest such exercise conducted since humankind came into existence.

As many as 24 crore households in 7,742 towns and 6.08 lakh villages will be covered to create a comprehensive identity database and strengthen the security of the country.

Source: Mail Today By Aman Sharma Mapping An Identity: The biggest headcount, Exercise Starts In Delhi From May 1

This week, a group of dedicated volunteers under the auspices of the Art of Living Foundation will make a humble beginning by launching a citizens' movement for cleaning the river's ghats. You can join them in an act of penance and exhort others to do so. The Commonwealth Games deadline was never achievable for this river that's our lifeline. It will need faith and persistence to stay the course and ensure that the government gets all the support it needs in its endeavour to clean the river.

Click On Image For Large View

It has pinned its hope on the interceptor sewage system which will bring results by 2014. Hopefully, it will reduce the pollution load in the river and take us one step closer to keeping the river alive. In fact, till Wazirabad the point at which it enters Delhi the river is not in such a pathetic state. This is where it is diverted into two main canals which take its water to various treatment plants for supplying it to the city.

Having extracted whatever we could from the river, we mount a scandalous assault on it all through its 22-km journey across the Capital. Sewage and industrial effluents are dumped into the river by numerous drains that carry the city's filth. According to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Delhi is single-handedly responsible for about 70% of Yamuna's pollution. The river suffers because on its banks is a large city with insufficient sewage treatment infrastructure, poor maintenance of existing treatment plants and sewage carrying channels and no fresh water for most part of the year.

The interceptor system is pending clearance with the cabinet and work can kick off earliest by July, say officials. It would take at least three years to complete it. Delhi, therefore, cannot expect a clean Yamuna till about 2014. Ramesh Negi, CEO, Delhi Jal Board (DJB) says this is the most viable solution to the sewage problems till the entire city is not connected via sewerage.

Source: Times Of India THERE'S HOPE FOR YAMUNA

सिकंदरपुर मार्बल मार्केट हटाने की राह में रोड़ा बने हाईकोर्ट के स्टे को लेकर भले ही अभी स्थिति स्पष्ट नहीं हुई, लेकिन निगम अधिकारी स्टे खारिज को लेकर आश्वस्त हैं और वह आगे की योजना बनाने मे जुट गए हैं।

मालूम हो कि शुक्रवार को हाईकोर्ट की स्पेशल बेंच के सामने स्टे मामले की सुनवाई हुई थी और उसने स्टे को लेकर निर्णय दिया। इस बारे में निगम अधिकारी कह रहे हैं कि स्टे खारिज कर दिया गया, वहीं स्टे लेने वाले व्यापारी इससे इनकार कर रहे हैं। इसी के चलते निगम अधिकारी अब आदेश की प्रति मिलने के बाद ही आगे की योजना बनाएंगे। मार्केट का कब्जा हटाने पर वहां के व्यापारियों ने निगमायुक्त व संयुक्त आयुक्त के खिलाफ अवमानना की याचिका हाईकोर्ट में दाखिल कर दी थी। इस मामले की सुनवाई अब मई में होगी। आयुक्त आरके खुल्लर का कहना है कि जल्द ही वह मार्केट का कब्जा हटाने की योजना को अमलीजामा पहनाने पर काम शुरू कर दिया जाएगा। रही बात कोर्ट अवमानना की तो स्टे आर्डर वाली प्रति हाईकोर्ट के सामने पेश करने के बाद यह मामला खुद ही खारिज हो जाएगा।

Every lease holder will have to rehabilitate and reclaim the area once mining t ends in the Aravallis. t The Haryana government t has proposed an extensive reha- bilitation plan in the Aravallis and a detailed proposal has been submitted before the spe- t cial bench of the Supreme t Court.

The government said it t would be mandatory for the les- t see to deposit 10 per cent of the auction money with the State Mining Department.

If the lessee fails to hold up t its promise to rehabilitate the area, the amount would get for- feited to the Aravalli Reha- i bilitation Fund. t Haryana has also proposed depositing 10 per cent of the f auction money that would be set up under the chairmanship t of the state Chief Secretary. t Subsequent to the court's t direction, the government has decided to identify 600 hectares in Faridabad for mining of minor minerals.

It would notify transparent T guidelines for the mining auc- tion. While formulating the F guidelines, the government would prescribe that each min- ing lease should not exceed 30 hectares to ensure a healthy A competition. T The government intends to ban establishment of a labour camp in the forest area.

bhadra.sinha@hindustantimes.com

Source: Hindustan Times By Bhadra Sinha Haryana submits Aravalli rehab plan before SC

You may soon have to pay a fine of Rs 5,000 if the police find you haven't got the antecedents of your domestic help verified by them.

This is one of a number of changes in the job responsibil- ities of the police force the gov- ernment intends to bring about.

It will be incorporated as an amendment to the Delhi Police Act, likely to passed before the year-end. The proposed amend- ments were released on Friday. Another amendment sug- gests that the making of hoax calls and stalking should both be punishable offences. "No per- son shall wilfully make crank telephone calls or stalk any per- son with the intent to create a sense of harassment, nuisance, injury or fear," the draft says, spelling out the punishment for these crimes.

Till now there was no specif- ic law under which these offend- ers could be booked, and thus they often got off lightly.

Source: Hindustan Times Verify your servant, or pay Rs 5,000 fine

Click On Image For Large View...

Following Delhi closely are Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Pune, ranked 2nd to 8th, respectively, in the overall quality of life ratings. Ironically, the NCR, which should have kept pace with the development of Delhi, has failed to do so. Gurgaon, Noida and Faridabad have been ranked 9th, 27th and 32nd, respectively.

A liveable city, according to the report, is not just an urbanised area in an urbanised region defined by the presence of a municipality.

Liveability refers to an urban system that contributes to the physical, social and mental well-being and personal development of all its inhabitants, it said.

Source: Mail Today Delhi Best City To Live In

Haryana Chief Secretary Urvashi Gulati Thursday sent a communication to the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in this regard.

'We have appealed to the UNODC to set up migrants resource centre in Haryana with the help of International Organisation for Migration (IOM). Earlier, we had also sent a proposal to the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs to set up pre-departure orientation centres at Panchkula and Gurgaon towns to assist prospective migrants,' Gulati said.

She added: 'To curb illegal migration to other countries, we had set up overseas placement bureau, in 2007. It also helped the youth to get overseas employment by providing expert guidance to cater to the growing demand of both skilled and unskilled workers like technicians, IT professionals, engineers and doctors in foreign countries.'

According to official records, so far the overseas placement bureau has successfully placed applicants in Middle East countries. They have also received inquiries for physiotherapists in the US through its consultants.

Gulati said the practice of illegal immigration in Haryana is mainly prevalent in districts adjoining Punjab, like Ambala, Karnal, Kurukshetra and Kaithal.

'To keep a tab on unscrupulous agents, we have made it mandatory for the recruiting agencies and agents, who are facilitating job seekers to get an overseas job, to get registered with the government. Even in case of any marriage of an Indian citizen with a person of foreign domicile, we verify his/her details from the embassy of the respective country,' Gulati said.

 Information to this effect was shared by Haryana Chief Secretary, Urvashi Gulati that Haryana has decided to by revise its existing industrial policy of 2005 and will be ready by the end of April.

Further, Haryana Chief Secretary argued Industrialists to give their suggestions to a committee formed for the purpose under the chairmanship of the Principal Secretary (Industries) up to March 15.

When you're no longer there, the state will look after your child using the insurance money.

The scheme, called Asmita, to be launched by the National Trust ­ the autonomous branch of the ministry that focuses on these four particular disabili- ties ­ will provide life and acci- dent insurance cover to the par- ent or legal guardian of any child who falls in these categories.
Once you're gone, the money will be used by the National Trust to take lifelong care of your child.

Insurance companies have been asked to submit their bids by March 15. "We'll be working through the district collectors and var- ious NGOs working in this field, whom we are already in regu- lar touch with," said Atul Prasad, chief executive officer, National Trust. "We expect to launch in the next two months.
We hope to enroll around 10,000 parents in the first year."

"The premium will depend on the age of the parent. The older he/she is, the higher it will be," he added.

"Since this is a group insur- ance policy, the premium will be much lower than if a person insures himself individually," said Sanjay Pande, Managing Director, Amicus Advisory.

There are an estimated 22 lakh people suffering from these four forms of disability, accord- ing to National Trust statistics.

This clause is generally carried in fine print and can easily be missed by the consumers.

So, in such cases can the consumers file their complaints under the Consumer Protection Act and avail of the inexpensive and speedy remedy or would they be bound by the terms of the agreement and have no alternative but to resort to arbitration? The above issue became all the more controversial for the reason that Section 3 of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 lays down that the provisions of the said Act " shall be in addition to and not in derogation of the provisions of any other law for the time being in force". Are the provisions therein in derogation of the Indian Arbitration Act? These questions have often been raised in consumer disputes and are still being raised.

The above issue came up for an authoritative ruling before the Supreme Court in the case of Fair Air Engineers Pvt Ltd, which had entered into a contract with K. K. Modi to carry out the installation of a central air- conditioning unit at his residence in New Delhi. Since it committed a breach of contract Modi filed a case before the Delhi State Consumer Commission claiming a compensation of Rs 3.75 lakh for alleged deficiency in service.

The author is an advocate and editor of Consumer Protection and Trade Practices Journal ( CTJ).

rosykumar2000@ yahoo. com

Source: Mail Today By Rosy Kumar Consumer fora can handle arbitrations

India's existing laws equip the police to arrest only those touts who operate in select places such as at railways stations or bus stands.

The proposed law, called The Delhi Prevention of Malpractices and Touting Bill, 2009, has been sent to the home ministry for approval, a senior state government official said.

" It could be tabled in the ongoing budget session of Parliament for it to become an Act," said a state home official.

The proposed law makes touting a non- bailable offence and a first time offender, including anyone who abets touting, can be jailed for up to one year or slapped a fine of up to Rs 2,000 or both.

A repeat offender can be jailed for up to two years and slapped a fine of up to Rs 5,000 for every subsequent offence. Even an attempt to tout is a violation of the proposed law and offenders can be jailed for up to six months or fined up to Rs 2,000 or both.

The law also empowers the police commissioner to banish a repeat offender from Delhi for up to a year, said a home ministry official.

Convicting touts will also become easier as under the proposed law written complaint will be considered evidence and a judge can deliver judgment even if the complainant doesn't turn up in court.

The extension of 7.05 kmlong Delhi-Gurgaon Metro link to the Industrial Model Township (IMT) Manesar, linking Mundka (an area in outer Delhi) with Bahadurgarh, the last township of Haryana bordering Delhi and extension of Delhi Metro to Faridabad are some of the projects the government has taken up this year, the minister said.

``The JV would be set up to monitor and expedite such projects which would not only benefits lakhs of people in Faridabad, Gurgaon and Bahadurgarh but also improve the infrastructure," Ajay Singh said.

Besides, the Haryana budget has a special allocation for augmenting drinking water supply in Gurgaon, Manesar, Bahadurgarh, Sampla and Badli townships. For creating investment opportunities in the state, the budget has also allocated funds for the extension of the IMT, Manesar, allotment of land to SEZ for the IT industry in Gurgaon and development of Roz Ka Meo, an area falling under Mewat district. The government has proposed to earmark rupees 1,200 for the completion of these projects. Gurgaon is one of the cities selected for development under JNNURM and for developing city bus services, the finance minister said.

Creation of Haryana infrastructure development board (HIDB) headed by CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda has also been planned to give a boost to infrastructure development.

After working for over a year to prepare detailed map of Delhi using 3-D imaging, the Delhi State Spatial Data Infrastructure project is now ready for implementation.

Over 330 applications have been shortlisted by 35 state departments that will begin using the information provided through this project for their various needs from April 1.

The Archeological Survey of India (ASI) will be the first department to implement the project. It will use the project to have real-time online tours of monuments in the Capital... on the lines of the tour of the Louvre Museum in Paris.

The Rs 120-crore project, started in March 2008, entails a detailed 3-dimensional map of Delhi (ground-level and underground) through aerial photographs.

There will also be real-time monitoring of the ground situation in the city with the help of 64 wireless internet protocol cameras. There will two control rooms, one at Delhi Secretariat and other at Survey of India office, along with the 10 monitoring centres that will be located across the city.

Each of the nine administrative districts will have seven cameras, installed on top of the tallest building in the area. These cameras can give precision pictures of objects upto a distance of 5 km and cost Rs 5 lakh.

Earlier, Chief Secretary Rakesh Mehta had asked the 35 departments to choose five applications each to utilise the available data. The departments have reverted to Survey of India and IT department with a list of 335 applications.

Source: The Indian Express Delhi's 3-D map ready, govt depts to begin use from April 1

The Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) has hired 41 private security personnel for the area, which has approximately 2,500 big, small and medium industrial units and offices.

The personnel include 29 guards, six armed guards and six patrollers who are deployed round the clock to ensure surveillance, traffic management and removal of encroachments in the area.

"The plan was in the pipeline since January last year but was put into effect only in mid-December last year after the development agency received several com plaints from owners of units in the neighbourhood," Hambir Singh, deputy general manager of HSIIDC, said.

"The cost is being borne by the HSIIDC for the time being. A service charge will be levied later," Singh said.

The duty is divided into two shifts, each spanning 12 hours.

"The police and the owners of units have been very cooperative since we took charge. The only problems we face are the villagers living in the surrounding areas, as they refuse to remove their kiosks that have been set up illegally," an official managing the duties said.

"Parking on the road was always a problem in Udyog Vihar. Bus and cab drivers would drop off employees in the Cyber City and DLF areas and later park their vehicles on pavement here due to a lack of parking space available there. The move is a welcome relief," Krishan Kapoor, general secretary of Haryana Industrial Association, said.

The plant, spread across 60 acres near Bhiwadi, would have an initial capacity of 6 lakh vehicles per annum. The company intends to scale up its capacity to 12 lakh vehicles per annum after five years with an additional investment of Rs 600 crore. Bureau of Investment Promotion commissioner Purshottam Agarwal told ET that the state government has cleared the company's proposal. Bureau of Investment Promotion is Rajasthan government's investment promotion agency.

"We have offered them a customised package which includes land at concessional rate, cash subsidy on VAT, 50% subsidy on stamp duty, 50% concession on electricity duty and special rate of 0.05% on central sales tax. The civil work is likely to begin this month," he said.

After roping in Honda Siel's second car plant in Khushkhera near Bhiwadi in 2008, this is the second big-ticket investment for Rajasthan in the automobile sector. "The car plant of Honda Siel is one of the magnetic factors for the company to select Rajasthan for setting up its two-wheeler manufacturing facility in the state. It will help the company manage both plants in a better way. Another pulling factor is the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) complex in Neemrana where dozens of Japanese companies have already set up shops. The HMSI plant will also attract various auto ancillary and accessory units that supply auto parts to this company," he said.

Source: Economic Times By Rituraj Tiwari Honda Picks R'sthan Over Haryana For Second Unit

Bewildered, his parents told the police they had noticed some unusual behaviour in their son but did not know what to do.

Now, there is a glimmer of hope for such families.

Parents worried for their `deviant' children can log on to a website www.dpjju.com and seek help. Launched by the Delhi Police, it has names of sev- eral NGOs and agencies that can counsel the children.

The police launched this web- site in view of the rising number of incidents where teena- gers have taken to crime.

"If parents notice any deviant behaviour in their children, they should bring it our notice," said Sudhir Yadav, joint commis- sioner of police, juvenile justice unit. "There are several agen- cies working in collaboration with us that will counsel them."

vijaita.singh@hindustantimes.com

Source: Hindustan Times By Vijaita Singh Kids in Crime Web? Net Help At Hand, "WWW.DPJJU.COM" Police Launch Website For Parents

Exchanging views: Haryana Assembly Speaker Harmohinder Singh Chhata with Governor Jagannath Pahadia on the first day of the Budget Session in Chandigarh on Friday.

The Haryana Government has decided to impose a complete ban on mining of major minerals in Faridabad, Gurgaon and Mewat districts for 10 years and has initiated steps for preparation of a 30-year perspective mining plan, State Governor Jagannath Pahadia announced here on Friday.

In his address to the members of the Haryana Legislative Assembly on the first day of the Budget Session here, he said this would ensure that the scarce natural resources are exploited in a judicious manner.

The State Minor Mineral Concession Rules would be completely reviewed, he added.

The State Government had identified three early bird projects including a Multi-modal Logistics Hub, an Exhibition-cum-Convention Centre and a Mass Rapid Transport System from Gurgaon to Bawal as a part of the mega project of Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor which was being developed along the alignment of the freight corridor running for about 1,480 km through six States.

The Government would re-visit the Industrial Policy of 2005 and announce a revised one by this April-end with focus on hassle-free approvals and clearances to the entrepreneurs in an efficient and transparent manner.

Mr. Pahadia said the State Government had launched the Jawahar Social Infrastructure Mission with a budget of Rs. 150 crore to create state-of-the-art schools, vocational education and training centres and State institutes for differently-abled children who were mentally challenged and suffered from impaired vision, hearing and speech. Homes for senior citizens and children in need are also being set up.

Source: The Hindu Haryana imposes ban on mining of major minerals

Chief Information Commissioner Wajahat Habibullah was hearing the case of an RTI applicant Jagdish Prasad Gaur who had sought photocopies of educational records of Joint Director, Security, R D Sharma besides other personal details from Lok Sabha Secretariat but his request was turned down.

Gaur had alleged that Sharma abused him and he wanted to file a criminal case against him which required these details.

The secretariat cited exemption clauses of the RTI Act which allowed withholding information which is personal in nature and would not serve any public interest.