In a decision aimed at providing relief to rural households, the Haryana cabinet on Wednesday approved to waiving off outstanding water charges, including surcharge and interest, amounting to Rs 372.13 crore. This decision will extend relief to a substantial 28.87 lakh water connection holders in rural areas across the state, an official statement said. The cabinet meeting was chaired by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. However, this waiver does not extend to institutional, commercial or industrial consumers falling under the Public Health Engineering Department, the statement said. The cabinet has approved the waiver of water charges amounting to Rs 336.35 crore, accumulated from April 1, 2015, to December 31, 2022, for all types of consumers in villages and rural areas. This encompasses the general category as well as the Scheduled Castes categories, it said. "In addition, the cabinet has accorded approval for the waiver of surcharge and interest totaling Rs 37.93 crore on wa
Multiple NIA teams carried out these searches in close coordination with the state Police forces.
Addressing a long-standing request from Haryana's trader and business community to settle pre-GST tax liabilities, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Sunday launched the One Time Settlement-2023 (OTS) Scheme. The scheme will be operational from January 1, 2024, to March 30, 2024. According to an official statement, from January 1, 2024, to March 30, 2024, businesses have the opportunity to settle pre-GST tax liabilities under the OTS-2023 scheme. Taxes are categorized into four groups, with exemptions from interest and penalties for cases related to seven tax acts in effect before GST. Additionally, Chief Minister Manohar Lal announced the opening of a GST Training Institute in collaboration with HIPA, Gurugram. During the inauguration of OTS-2023 at Gurugram, on Sunday, the Chief Minister also extended New Year wishes to the state. Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala, who oversees the Excise and Taxation Department, also addressed the programme. Under the OTS scheme, the t
Government doctors in Haryana went on a strike on Friday to press their demands for formation of a specialist cadre and a reduction in the bond amount for postgraduate courses, impacting outpatient department (OPD) services in some hospitals. This is the second time this week that government doctors in the state have gone on a strike. They first went on a strike on Wednesday. They resumed emergency duties after they were assured that a meeting will be arranged between the health minister and representatives of the Haryana Civil Medical Services Association (HCMS), a body representing government doctors in Haryana which is leading the protest. The HCMS had on Wednesday said that doctors would go on an indefinite strike from Friday with a complete shutdown of all services if the government did not accept their demands. Among the doctors' demands are formation of a specialist cadre for doctors, reduction in the bond amount for postgraduate courses and a dynamic assured career progress
A thick blanket of fog enveloped most parts of Punjab and Haryana on Friday morning, reducing visibility, meteorological department officials said. Fog also impacted visibility in Chandigarh, the common capital of the two states. Minimum temperatures hovered close to normal limits at most places in Punjab and Haryana. In Punjab, Amritsar recorded a minimum temperature of 9.9 degrees Celsius, Ludhiana 9 degrees Celsius and Patiala 9.5 degrees Celsius. Pathankot recorded a low of 8.8 degrees Celsius and Faridkot 8.6 degrees Celsius. In Haryana, the mercury settled at a low of 9.8 degrees Celsius in Ambala and at 8.2 degrees Celsius in Hisar. Karnal recorded a minimum temperature of 9.4 degrees Celsius, Rohtak 9.6 degrees Celsius and Sirsa 9.8 degrees Celsius. Chandigarh recorded a minimum temperature of 8 degrees Celsius.
After facing loss due to terminal heatwave last year, more farmers are cultivating climate resilient wheat varieties which has been sown in more than 60 per cent of the planted area of 30.86 million hectares so far, according to agriculture commissioner P K Singh. Wheat is the main rabi (winter) crop, sowing of which normally begins in November and harvesting is done from March-April. As per the agriculture ministry data, wheat sown area stood at 30.86 million hectares till December 22 of the ongoing rabi season, slightly lower than 31.44 million hectares in the year-ago period. "This is because there was a delay in wheat sowing in some parts where paddy harvesting got late. Otherwise, wheat sowing is progressing well," Singh told PTI. Keeping in mind the terminal heat problem that wheat farmers faced last year, the government this year has promoted climate resilient wheat varieties and kept a target to cover 60 per cent of the total cropped area, he said. "We have exceeded the ta
Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) on Friday said it has inked a pact with the Haryana government to set up second Japan-India Institute for Manufacturing (JIM) in the state. The new institute would come up at Kansala in Rohtak, Haryana and will be operational next year. Spread over five acres, the existing ITI Kansala will be upgraded to a JIM with an investment of 5.8 crore, the auto major said in a statement. The Haryana government has provided the land and building for the JIM, Kansala, while the company will provide equipment, training modules, trained teachers, and will manage this institute for 15 years, it added. "The Indian passenger vehicle industry is now world's third largest and growing. It is our responsibility to prepare human capacity corresponding to manufacturing capacity to meet this growth," MSI Executive Director Corporate Affairs Rahul Bharti stated. Skilling youth with industry ready skills will help in realising the vision of an Atmanirbhar Bharat, he added. MSI ..
For the installation of CNG stations, storage facilities, pumping stations, etc., the licensee will need to independently obtain NOCs or permissions from the appropriate
Realty firm DLF Ltd on Wednesday said it has sold independent floors and commercial plots for around Rs 1,400 crore in Gurugram and Panchkula, in Haryana, amid strong property demand. DLF, the country's largest real estate developer in market cap, has launched two projects in Sector 67, Gurugram and Panchkula. "We have launched and completely sold out 75 shop-cum-office (SCO) plots in our new project 'Central 67' Gurugram," DLF Home Developers Joint Managing Director and Chief Business Officer Aakash Ohri told reporters here. These 75 units have been sold for Rs 700 crore, he said, the total land size of this project is 9 acres. The prices ranged between Rs 7 crore and Rs 25 crore. Ohri said the company has launched another project 'Valley Orchard' in Panchkula where it is developing 470 independent floors. "Out of 470 units, we have launched 400 units. All of them have been sold for Rs 700 crore," he said. The company has sold floors at Rs 9,000 per square feet. Ohri noted that
Taking a dig at the Congress, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Tuesday said cases of atrocities against the members of Scheduled Caste (SC) communities were either not registered or, if registered, suppressed during the opposition party's regime. The victims of such atrocities had to run from pillar to post to get their cases registered, Khattar said in the state Assembly here. He said strict directives were issued to police stations after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power in Haryana in 2014, ensuring that every individual seeking to get an FIR registered is facilitated without any impediment. Responding to a question raised by Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) MLA Abhay Singh Chautala regarding the corruption cases registered in various departments, boards and corporations, Khattar said whenever a complaint of graft is received, an FIR is lodged first and action taken on the basis of investigation. The chief minister, who was responding to various issues rai
Harshal Patel bowled a game-changing spell with the old ball as Haryana beat Rajasthan by 30 runs in a well-contested final to lift the Vijay Hazare Trophy here on Saturday. Having scored 287 for 8 in 50 overs, Haryana were given a tough fight by Rajasthan, who were cruising at 201 for 4 with opener Abhijeet Tomar (106 off 129 balls) along with Kunal Singh Rathore (79 off 65 balls) slowly taking the team towards the target. However, Harshal (3/47 in 9 overs) showed his wares by varying the pace of his deliveries in a game changing second five-over spell in which he gave away only 16 runs but picked both set batters to snuff out any chance that Rajasthan had. They were all-out for 257 in 48 overs. No praise is enough for all-rounder Sumit Kumar (3/34 in 6 overs), who ran through Rajasthan top-order after scoring a quickfire 28 not out off 16 balls and also took a blinder inside the circle to win the 'Player of Match' as well as 'Player of Series'. He scored 183 runs in lower-order a
Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar Saturday said Haryana now stands as a model state in stubble management, as he emphasised the recent Supreme Court verdict advising Punjab to learn from Haryana in checking farm fires. Interacting with the state's farmers through audio conferencing during the 'CM ki Vishesh Charcha' programme, Khattar praised their efforts to reduce stubble burning incidents, according to an official release. He said there has been a 36.4 per cent decrease in cases of stubble burning in Haryana, whereas Punjab saw a 27.1 per cent decline. Citing a report by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), Khattar said until November 22, Haryana recorded 2,239 stubble burning cases, significantly lower than 36,118 such incidents in Punjab. The state has taken several steps for stubble management, setting a unique precedent nationally by fixing a rate of Rs 2,500 per tonne for stubble purchase, the statement quoted him as saying. Additionally, a provision has be
The Delhi High Court has refused to quash charges framed against a former Punjab and Haryana High Court official in a case relating to the alleged leak of the 2017 Haryana Civil Services (judicial) preliminary examination paper. The HC said that in cases where digital or electronic evidence is available, the prosecution's case cannot be thrown at the initial stage. The record indicated that petitioner-accused Dr Balwinder Kumar Sharma, who was then the registrar (recruitment) of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, was in possession of the question paper immediately before the alleged leakage. "The case is of a very sensitive nature and the evidence which is required to be led for the purpose of proving the case is either digital or documentary in nature," Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma said. The high court further said the jurisdiction of the court while entertaining the revision petition is also very limited, and it can interfere in the challenged order only if there is any serious ..
A group of men allegedly poured flammable liquid on cow vigilante Bittu Bajrangi's brother and set him on fire here, police said on Thursday. He has sustained 54 per cent burn injuries and is currently being treated at a private hospital, they said. Bajrangi alias Rajkumar, the national president of Goraksha Bajrang Force, was arrested in connection with the Nuh violence but is out on bail. According to police, Bajrangi's younger brother Mahesh Panchal was allegedly attacked on Wednesday night by six to seven men. They allegedly poured some flammable liquid on Panchal and set him on fire at Chacha Chowk in Baba Mandi, Faridabad, police said. After getting information on the incident, a police team reached the hospital. Panchal told the police that he recognised one of the attackers as one Arman, who had a juice shop in Baba Mandi earlier. . In his complaint to the police, Panchal said the incident happened in front of a shop when a car came from the direction of Dayal Hospital. "S
Realty firm M3M India on Wednesday said it is targeting 5,000 crore in revenue from its 333-acre township in Panipat. In a statement, the company said it has received the license to develop the 'M3M City of Dreams' township at Panipat in Haryana. The company has already sold over 700 plots -- worth about Rs 1,100 crore -- out of 2,100 plots, M3M said. M3M is expecting a topline of Rs 5,000 crore from this project. The company has received RERA registration for the entire 333-acre land parcel that it had acquired from Ambience for Rs 1,500 crore, including necessary government fees. "The company is investing Rs 1,200 crore, towards its development," M3M said, adding that the total cost, including land price, would touch Rs 2,700 crore. Gurugram-based M3M aims to deliver this project in the next 15-18 months.
Haryana's Urban Local Bodies Minister Kamal Gupta said the Centre and the state governments have established a system to ensure the benefits of schemes and programmes reach on the doorstep of the underprivileged. "Both the Central and Haryana governments have established a system ensuring that the benefits of schemes and programmes reach the doorsteps of the underprivileged," Gupta a 'Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra Jan Samvad' programme held in Agroha, Haryana on Monday. Addressing the programme as the chief guest, the Hisar MLA said the primary goal of the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra is to extend the benefits of both Central and state government schemes to all the eligible beneficiaries. "In instances where citizens have not received benefits due to various reasons, they are encouraged to fill the necessary forms on-the-spot to ensure they receive the intended benefits," he said, according to an official statement. He highlighted the shared commitment of Prime Minister Narendra Modi
The Enforcement Directorate Tuesday conducted multiple raids in Haryana and Rajasthan as part of a money laundering investigation against the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, officials said. The central probe agency is covering around a dozen locations in the two states as part of the action being carried out under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. Bishnoi, currently in jail, is one of the accused in the murder case of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala. The ED's action stems from FIRs and charge sheets filed against the gangster by the National investigation Agency (NIA).
Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), the nation's top oil firm, has revised the estimates of cost of expanding the Panipat refinery in Haryana by 10 per cent to Rs 36,225 crore and pushed back completion deadline by more than a year to December 2025. IOC is expanding its 15 million tonnes a year refinery, about 100-km north of New Delhi, to 25 million tonnes. In a stock exchange filing, the firm said its board has approved "revision in cost of the project for capacity expansion of Panipat Refinery from Rs 32,946 crore to Rs 36,225 crore and revision in completion schedule of the project from September 2024 to December 2025." Besides expanding the capacity to turn crude oil into value-added fuels such as petrol, diesel and ATF, IOC is also setting up a polypropylene unit and a catalytic dewaxing unit. Polypropylene is used in packaging, plastic parts for various industries including the automotive industry, and textiles. Catalytic dewaxing is used in base oil production. IOC owns and oper
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Stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana has declined by 27 per cent and 37 per cent, respectively, as against last year, the Union Environment Ministry said on Thursday. From 83,002 fires in 2020, the count in Punjab dropped to 71,304 in 2021, 49,922 in 2022, and further to 36,663 in 2023. In comparison to 2022, there was a 27 per cent reduction in farm fires in 2023. The reduction was even higher, standing at 49 per cent and 56 per cent, respectively, when compared to 2021 and 2020. In 2020, the farm fire count in Haryana was 4,202 which increased to 6,987 in 2021, then reduced to 3,661 in 2022, and further decreased to 2,303 in 2023. This marks a 37 per cent reduction in 2023 compared to 2022, with reductions of 67 per cent compared to 2021 and 45 per cent compared to 2020. The ministry said four districts in Punjab saw over 50 per cent fewer fires in 2023 compared to 2022. Five districts showed improvements ranging from 27 per cent to 50 per cent. Three districts in Haryana rec