Case details
The actual strength of students in government schools across the state was about 18 lakh against the registration of about 22 lakh students
The HC Bench observed discrepancy in enrolment on random checking carried out in a few schools in Rohtak, Hisar and Gurugram range
The discrepancy surfaced after feeding Aadhaar numbers and student IDs into the computer
An inquiry report will be forwarded to the state government for approval to register an FIR

Chandigarh : Less than two years after Haryana was directed to probe the siphoning off of funds in the name of non-existent four lakh students, the Special Investigating Team (SIT) has confirmed embezzlement. A report in the matter is being forwarded to the state government for approval to register an FIR.
Dismissing a bunch of six appeals in the guest teachers’ case in May 2016, the High Court had ordered investigation after the Bench was told that computerisation of data and verification process had brought out 4 lakh fake admissions.

The actual strength of students in government schools across the state was about 18 lakh against the registration of about 22 lakh students. The Bench was of the view that funds under welfare schemes were disbursed to even non-existent students.
As the case came up for resumed hearing on Friday, the final inquiry report in a sealed cover was produced before Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice Harinder Singh Sidhu’s Bench. Referring to the report, the Bench observed discrepancy in enrolment on random checking carried out in a few schools in Rohtak, Hisar and Gurugram range. The discrepancy surfaced after feeding Aadhaar numbers and student IDs into the computer.

The Bench added the SIT was of the opinion that “large amount of funds” were allocated for school students. As such, embezzlement or misappropriation of funds was established. The SIT was also of the view that criminal offence had been committed, while mentioning provisions of the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act. It also recommended registration of an FIR.

Re-sealing the document, the Bench took on record the state counsel’s submission that the report would be forwarded to the government for approval to register an FIR.
Before parting with the order, the Bench asked the state to specify the time required for completing the investigation and presenting the challan or the final investigation report.

The Bench also made it clear that a decision was required to be taken against changing SIT members with the change in their place of posting or assignment.
“An affidavit by the Additional Chief Secretary (Vigilance), Haryana, be filed in this regard,” the Bench asserted, while fixing the case for the second week of April.
The Bench, in its initial order, had asserted that action should be commensurate with the guilt proved “so that the same has deterrent effect for others”.

The Bench had added that generally officers or officials found guilty even of serious charges, including corruption, were often let off with minor punishment. The Bench also expressed hope that the state would be serious and set an example for future “so that none dares to even think of these kinds of designs of corruption”.

Chandigarh : The Haryana Government on Tuesday issued transfer and posting orders of five IAS officers with immediate effect.
TL Satyaprakash has been posted as Managing Director, Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation, and Managing Director, Haryana Financial Corporation, relieving Raja Sekhar Vundru of the said charge.
This change assumes significance in view of the growing difference of opinion between the Principal Secretary, Industries, and the outgoing MD, HSIIDC, who were not on the same page on a number of issues.

Satyaprakash will also look after the work of Director General and Secretary, Town and Country Planning Department, Director General and Secretary, Science and Technology, Director General, Haryana Governance Reforms Authority, Director General, Industrial Training and Employment and Secretary, Haryana Skill Development Industrial Training and Employment Department and OSD and Designated CEO, Kundli Manesar Palwal Authority.

Mohammed Shayin, Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Faridabad, and Chief Executive Officer, Smart City, Faridabad, will also look after the work of Managing Director, Haryana Tourism Development Corporation, relieving Sameer Pal Srow of the said charge.

Vijay Singh, Secretary, Haryana Public Service Commission, will be the new Deputy Commissioner, Sonipat, and Principal and Director, Motilal Nehru School of Sports, Rai, Sonipat, in place of KM Pandurang, who has been posted as Director General and Special Secretary, Town and Country Planning Department, in place of TL Satyaprakash.

Anita Yadav, Director and Special Secretary, Women and Child Development Department, and Managing Director, Women Development Corporation and Secretary, Haryana State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, has been posted as Additional Chief Executive Officer, Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority, Gurugram, against a vacant post.

Faridabad : Former Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala has said the Third Front may form the government at the Centre in 2019.
“Both the BJP and the Congress will fail to gain a majority in the Lok Sabha, making the way for the Third Front government. The Prime Minister will be from the party with the highest number of MPs,” he reportedly said at a meeting of party workers here today.
The media was not invited to the meeting.
Chautala, who is serving a jail sentence in connection with a recruitment scam, is out on parole till March 21. 

MUMBAI Drivers protest outside the Ola office at Chakala, Andheri (east), on Monday morning.
Drivers protest outside the Ola office at Chakala, Andheri (east), on Monday morning.(HT Photo)
There were very few Ola and Uber cabs on the city’s streets on Monday morning, after the drivers of these app-based taxi aggregators began their indefinite strike on Sunday midnight.

Both Ola and Uber drivers affiliated to the Maharashtra Navnirman Vahatuk Sena (MNVS), which is Maharashtra Navnirman Sena’s transport union, are participating in the strike, which has also got the support of several other unions.

The drivers want the aggregators to ensure they get the assured income of Rs1.25 lakh every month.

There are around 50,000 app-based cabs that operate in Mumbai Metropolitan Region; the union claims the figure is 1.10 lakh. Of these, Ola and Uber collectively own approximately 10,000 vehicles.

Commuters complained that the Ola and Uber apps are showing very few cabs available compared to other days, so there’s also a huge delay in the cabs’ arrival time once the booking is done.

Consequently, there is a scarcity of black-and-yellow taxis, too, and many Mumbaiites heading to work on Monday morning struggled to find cabs,especially for shorter distances.

In Kurla, some app-based vehicles that were plying have been vandalised by unidentified people.

The state transport department seems to have made no special arrangements for city commuters, despite knowing about the strike.

Sanjay Naik, leader of MNVS, blamed Ola and Uber for creating an illusion among drivers that they would get high returns, when they are barely earning Rs25,000 to Rs30,000 per month. “The drivers are going through a crisis similar to the state’s farmers,” Naik said.

The two aggregators have approached the Mumbai police for security for their offices, vehicles and drivers.

Meanwhile, the unions are circulating messages on social media asking the drivers to stay off roads and support the strike.

So far no strike has been reported in Delhi; it is expected to be observed in several other cities as well.

Last March saw two big surprises in Lucknow. Before the assembly election results emerged, few had expected the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allies to sweep the country’s largest and one of the most politically complex states with 325 of 403 seats. But another surprise was in the offing — the elevation of Yogi Adityanath, the firebrand five-term Gorakhpur MP, as the new chief minister of the state. This March saw another surprise. The BJP, comfortably settled in power in Delhi and Lucknow, seeming politically invincible, lost Gorakhpur and Phulpur — Yogi and deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya’s seats. The party was shocked.

Between the win and the loss was a year, the year of Yogi raj in Uttar Pradesh. It is a term that has been marked by continuity and departure; by controversies and innovations.

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The year began with the BJP government in the state implementing two of its key campaign promises. It set up anti-Romeo squads to tackle harassment against women.

Some appreciated it, but it also turned into a tool for moral policing and harassment by local officials. It also cracked down on slaughter houses on the grounds that illegal cow slaughter was taking place on a rampant scale and there were health and environment issues at stake. But the government intervention hit livelihoods hard and disrupted a complex network of inter-dependence between farmers and allied occupations.

The Yogi government has been given credit for improving the power situation in the state; for improving roads; and for bringing a seriousness and focus to engagement with industry.

All these, its supporters hold, will have long term benefits. Critics, however, are sceptical of the claims.

But the most controversial twin legacy of the Yogi government so far has been its record on law and order and caste. The government claims there has been massive improvement; criminals are scared; and there is fear of the rule of law. This has happened because of a crackdown.

Critics, however, have documented that the government has resorted to extra judicial executions, ‘encounters’, targeting people arbitrarily and illegally and creating an atmosphere of fear. The other issue Yogi has to contend with both politically and in terms of governance is caste.

With a perception that the return of the BJP has meant the return of upper castes, the party is seeing erosion in the support of backward and Dalit communities.

REPORT CARDAs the Uttar Pradesh’s Bharatiya Janata Party government under Yogi Adityanath completes one year in power, HT takes a look at the regime’s achievements in the year gone by and the challenges it faces in futureBIG MOVESINVESTING IN GROWTH: The UP Investors Summit-2018 was the biggest attempt by the Yogi government to attract investments in the state. PM Narendra Modi, who inaugurated the summit, announced a defence corridor for UP. Leading industrialists, including Reliance Industries Limited’s Mukesh Ambani, Adani group’s Gautam Adani and Kumar Mangalam Birla of Aditya Birla group also announced their investment proposals.

TACKLING COPYING MAFIA: In an attempt to rein in the copying mafia in UP Board examinations, the government oversaw the anti-copying measures and held video conferences with the education department officials. Yogi’s message to the officials was clear - perform or perish. The procedure of examination centre allotment was made online and CCTV cameras were installed to check the use of unfair means. Due to the strict measures taken, at least 11,29,786 students quit the examination midway.

GUNNING FOR LAW, ORDER: After taking over as CM, Adityanath ordered the shifting of criminals to far-flung prisons to curb their activities. Soon, the police launched a state wide drive against criminals leading to a spurt in encounters.

MODERNISING MADRASAS: Modernisation of madrasas remained a major policy initiative of the Yogi government. After coming to power, the government made registration of madarsas mandatory.. To bring madrasas at par with other institutions, the govt introduced NCERT books in their curriculum and made maths and science compulsory at intermediate level.

CHALLENGESHEALTHCARE: Before taking over as CM, Yogi was vociferous on the issue of deaths caused by encephalitis in east UP. However, the August 9 BRD Hospital tragedy in Gorakhpur leading to the death of 30 children due to disruption in oxygen supply drew sharp criticism. The government rejected the allegations of shortage of oxygen and launched a state wide sanitation drive PURVANCHAL EXPRESSWAY: Constructing the 353-kilometre long eight-lane Purvanchal Expressway in two years will be a major challenge for the govt. Completion of the project within the stipulated deadline would be a feat no less than the one achieved in giving shape to the 304-km Agra-Lucknow Expressway in equal time.

REALISING INVESTMENT DEREAMS: UP’s biggest challenge will be to get the MoUs of Rs 4.28 lakh crore implemented in the state. Yogi has already reviewed the implementation of MoUs and has asked the officers to work out a framework for the purpose. He has directed the departments concerned to formulate policies for various sectors. He wants officers to rework draft defence manufacturing policy to make it compatible with the Centre’s policy.CONTROVERSIESMORAL POLICING: Soon after the Yogi government took over the reins, it ordered the constitution of anti-Romeo squads to check harassment of girls. However, alleged incidents of police harassing couples drew criticism. The CM later ordered that guidelines should be frame to ensure that innocent people did not face harassment

SLAUGHTERHOUSES: Two days after Yogi took over as CM, the govt announced closure of illegal slaughterhouses in the state. The order affected meat traders across UP as most of the slaughterhouses had not been conforming to norms. The govt launched drives against roadside shops selling meat and the ‘ripple effect’ was visible on traditional eateries

BOMB SCARE IN ASSEMBLY: In July last year, a powder was found inside the state assembly while the session was on. The police suspected the powder to be PETN - an explosive, which was later uled out

UNNAO HIV OUTBREAK: Discovery of mass HIV infections in three villages of in Unnao rattled the state government in February. At least 58 people were tested positive for HIV after a quack allegedly used the same syringe to administer injections to all of them.
With the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) allying, and BJP’s own social alliance fraying, Yogi’s second year in office will be tougher than the first.

He has a formidable challenge ahead in 2019.