Chandigarh, 17 December.

Former Deputy Chief Minister of Haryana, Dushyant Chautala, has once again raised serious questions over the deteriorating law and order situation in the state. Sharing a video on social media of the clash that took place on Wednesday at Maharshi Dayanand University (MDU), Rohtak, Chautala asked the state government whether this is what law and order has come to in Haryana.

He said that miscreants entered the university premises in a bulletproof vehicle with the intention to attack, and demanded an answer from Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on how such an incident could happen. Chautala further stated that if the government truly intends to take action, it must begin by acting against those criminal elements who roam around in bulletproof vehicles.

The former Deputy CM said that the poor law and order situation in the state is no longer hidden from anyone. He added that frequent incidents of loot, robbery, murder and abduction have created an atmosphere of fear in Haryana, and now even educational institutions are no longer safe.

Chautala said that stone pelting and sticks were used in broad daylight inside MDU, and shockingly, a bulletproof vehicle even rammed into students. He said there was no one present to stop these miscreants. These horrifying visuals, he added, clearly show that there is no semblance of law left in the state and that criminal elements have no fear of the police.

Expressing concern, Dushyant Chautala said that the atmosphere of insecurity in the state is alarming, and they have been consistently demanding that Chief Minister Nayab Saini—who also heads the Home Department—take strict measures. However, due to the government’s failure to act decisively, Haryana’s law and order situation has completely collapsed.

The former Deputy CM said that the government must urgently fill the shortage of police personnel through new recruitments, and instead of indulging in hollow publicity, it must work on the ground to improve the current situation.

Panchkula (17 December 2025)

In the money laundering case related to the National Herald, a Delhi court has refused to take cognizance of the chargesheet filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Calling the decision a major victory, the Congress described it as a triumph of truth. Party leaders said the verdict exposed the BJP’s political malafide intent and accused the central government of serious misuse of investigative agencies.

In the wake of this development, under the leadership of Haryana Congress President Rao Narendra Singh and Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Congress MLAs, office-bearers and workers gheraoed the BJP headquarters in Panchkula. During the protest, slogans were raised against the BJP and a strong demonstration was held.

Addressing the gathering, State Congress President Rao Narendra Singh said that the court clearly stated in its order that the case was based on a private complaint and that, in the absence of registration of an FIR for the predicate offence, no further action could be taken on the ED’s complaint. As a result, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders received immediate relief. He termed this the failure of the alleged conspiracy of the Modi government.

Launching a sharp attack on the BJP, Rao Narendra Singh said, “BJP’s attempt to construct a building of lies without any foundation has failed. There was neither any transaction nor any money laundering. Under which category of crime does the transfer of a company’s loan fall?”

He said the entire case was driven by political vendetta. The verdict of the honourable court has proved that truth inevitably triumphs over falsehood, even if it takes time.

Former Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda also reacted strongly, saying, “The voice of Congress cannot be suppressed by misusing investigative agencies. This conspiracy of the BJP was aimed at weakening the Congress, but the people are watching everything. Our party will emerge even stronger.”

He said that after this verdict, party workers are highly motivated and plans are being made at several places to gherao BJP headquarters. These protests will be against the misuse of agencies and attacks on democracy.

Calling it a victory of truth, he said the BJP’s narrow mindset and conspiracies have been completely exposed. He added that seeing the growing popularity of Rahul Gandhi and the Congress, these corrupt elements are deeply rattled and are now conspiring to malign Congress and its leaders by adopting various tactics. However, this strong voice raised to protect democracy can no longer be silenced.

During the protest, Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee Working President Ram Kishan Gurjar; MLAs Maman Khan, Ram Karan Kala, Naresh Selwal, Rajbir Fartiya, Balram Dangi, Inderaj Narwal and Jassi Petwad; former MLAs Shamsher Singh Gogi, Mewa Singh, Pradeep Chaudhary, Surender Panwar and Balbir Balmiki; State Media In-charge Sanjeev Bhardwaj; District Congress President Sanjay Chauhan; Dushyant Chauhan, Parvinder Singh Pari, Narpal Gurjar, Devender Singh, Parag Gaba, Rajesh Vaidh, Rishipal Sihag, Kuldeep Singh K.D., Pradeep Gulia, Satveer Jhukiya, Subhash Chandra, Ramesh Malik and Baljeet Singh Makkad; Haryana Pradesh Mahila Congress President Sudha Bhardwaj; Haryana Youth Congress President Nishit Kataria; Haryana Congress Seva Dal President Poonam Chauhan; Congress Lok Sabha candidate from Karnal Divyanshu Buddhiraja; Chandveer Hooda, Manveer Kaur Gill; Municipal Councillors Akshaydeep Chaudhary and Pankaj Balmiki; Rakesh Saundhi, Rajesh Kakkar, Ravindra Rawal, Dalveer Balmiki, Sunita Sharma, Rajesh Kona, Randhir Rana, Suresh Unishpur, Naresh Mann, along with hundreds of Congress workers, were present.

Chandigarh:

In a strong enforcement action to safeguard public land and uphold cleanliness standards, the Municipal Corporation Chandigarh has challaned a resident of the Ramdarbar area for illegally dumping construction debris (malba) in an open space belonging to the Chandigarh Administration.

During routine morning monitoring, an MC Chandigarh sanitary team spotted a resident unloading debris at the open space. Acting swiftly, the team caught the violator red-handed and issued a challan on the spot for violation of the Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Rules. A penalty of ₹13,401 has been imposed on the offender.

The Commissioner, MC Chandigarh, Sh. Amit Kumar, IAS, has issued strict directions to all Sanitary Inspectors to maintain heightened vigilance and take immediate action against any person found dumping garbage or debris on public land. He directed that violators be challaned without delay, vehicles used for such illegal activities be impounded, and legal proceedings be initiated as per the provisions of the MSW Rules.

The Municipal Corporation Chandigarh has reiterated its zero-tolerance policy towards illegal dumping and appealed to citizens to dispose of waste and construction material only at designated sites in the interest of cleanliness and environmental protection.

Chandigarh: Prof. Sudhir Bhandari received first prize in the faculty presentation under the Aavishkar category at the 53rd National conference of Indian Prosthodontic Society held from 4-7th December in Navi Mumbai.
The presentation focussed on the Braille incorporated custom ocular prosthesis (artificial eye) designed for a 6 year old child with complete visual impairment in both the eyes. This patented work is the first ever reported case of using braille in the domain of maxillofacial prosthesis. This work was jointly done by Dr Bhavita Wadwa, Associate professor at OHSC, Dr Usha Singh, Professor department of Ophthalmology, and Dr Manisha Khanna, senior research fellow at OHSC.

The recognition by the premier national body in Prosthodontics is a testament to the institute’s mandate to provide excellent and well coordinated multidisciplinary patient care.

CHANDIGARH, December 16:

          Continuing the war against drugs “Yudh Nashian Virudh” waged by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann to eradicate drug menace from state consecutively for the 290th day, Punjab Police conducted raids at 263 locations on Tuesday leading to the arrest of 76 drug smugglers after registration of 57 first information reports (FIRs) across the state. With this, the number of total drug smugglers arrested has reached to 40,410 in 290 days.

          The raids have resulted in recovery of 2.2 kg heroin, 10 kg opium, 36 kg poppy husk, 1010 intoxicant tablets/capsules and Rs 1520 drug money from the possession of arrested drug smugglers.

          Notably, CM Bhagwant Singh Mann has asked the Commissioners of Police, Deputy Commissioners and Senior Superintendent of Police to make Punjab drug free state. The Punjab government has also constituted a 5-member Cabinet Sub Committee led by Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema to monitor the war against drugs.

          Over 100 Police teams, comprising over 800 police personnel, under the supervision of 60 gazetted officers have conducted 263 raids across the state. Police teams have also checked as many as 264 suspicious persons during the day-long operation.

          The state government has enforced a three-pronged strategy— Enforcement, Deaddiction and Prevention (EDP)— to eradicate drugs from the state, the Punjab Police as part of ‘De-addiction’ has convinced 25 persons to undergo de-addiction and rehabilitation treatment today.

Chandigarh, December 16

In a significant move aimed at strengthening the state’s healthcare infrastructure, Punjab Finance Minister Advocate Harpal Singh Cheema on Tuesday announced that the Finance Department has granted approval to the Health and Family Welfare Department’s proposal to fill 1,568 vacant positions of ANMs and Staff Nurses under the National Health Mission (NHM).

Giving further details on the recruitment drive, Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema revealed that the approval covers the filling of 729 vacant positions of ANMs against a total of 2,000 sanctioned posts, and 839 vacant positions of Staff Nurses against 1,896 sanctioned posts. He emphasized that the state government is committed to ensuring that healthcare services are not hampered due to staff shortages and has therefore prioritized filling these contract-based vacancies.

Highligting the financial commitment of the Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann led government toward this initiative, the Finance Minister disclosed that the total annual financial implication for these recruitments is estimated to be Rs 48.88 crore. Break-ups of the expenditure indicate an annual cost of Rs 18.98 crore for the ANM positions and Rs 29.90 crore for the Staff Nurse positions. He specified that under the approved pay structure, the monthly remuneration has been fixed at Rs 21,700 for ANMs and Rs 29,700 for Staff Nurses.

Finance Minister Cheema further informed that to ensure merit and transparency, the recruitment process is proposed to be conducted through a written examination administered by Baba Farid University of Health Sciences, Faridkot. He added that the Finance Department has accorded this approval with the stipulation that the Administrative Department ensures necessary concurrence from the Personnel Department regarding these appointments.

Underscoring the Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann-led Punjab government’s unwavering commitment to prioritizing healthcare and education, the Finance Minister Advocate Harpal Singh Cheema said that with this decision, the state government is poised to strengthen its healthcare workforce, ultimately leading to improved healthcare services for the people of Punjab. He said that the filling of these vacancies will undoubtedly enhance the state’s ability to provide effective and efficient healthcare facilities, reaffirming the government’s commitment to the well-being of its citizens.

Chandigarh, December 16 – Haryana’s Energy Minister, Sh. Anil Vij said that the Pradhanmantri Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana will be expanded across the state in the form of a campaign so that Haryana emerges as the leading state in the country in implementing this scheme and rooftop solar systems are installed in the maximum number of households. In this regard, Sh. Vij said that monitoring committees will be constituted by the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam and the Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam to ensure rapid expansion of the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana.

Sh. Vij was chairing a review meeting today in Chandigarh with senior officers of the Energy Department regarding the implementation of the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana.

The Energy Minister directed officers that monitoring committees should be formed by both power distribution corporations to speed up the expansion of the scheme, so that complete information related to the installation of rooftop solar systems under the scheme is readily available. He further instructed that an online system be developed to ensure real-time availability of information regarding solar systems installed at each household, so that it can be clearly tracked how many rooftop solar systems have been installed so far in different divisions, circles, and other units.

*Explore possibilities of appointing a dedicated agency for installing rooftop solar systems in the state – Vij*

During the meeting, the Energy Minister also directed officers to explore the possibility of appointing a dedicated agency to install the maximum number of solar systems in Haryana. He said such an agency could be engaged to cover as many eligible households as possible for the installation of rooftop solar systems, thereby promoting green energy and connecting a larger number of people with the scheme. He added that such an agency could install rooftop solar systems at the homes of eligible beneficiaries and help expand the reach of the scheme extensively.

*A revolving fund of Rs.200 crore to accelerate the expansion of the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana – Vij*

Sh. Vij said that a revolving fund could be created for this purpose. Officers informed the Energy Minister that Rs.100 crore each would be allocated to the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam and the Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam, and that government approval for this allocation has already been obtained. With the availability of this fund, the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana will be expanded at a much faster pace.

During the meeting, the Principal Secretary of the Energy Department, Sh. Shyamal Misra, assured the Energy Minister that the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana would be rapidly expanded and closely monitored. Sh. Misra stated that the scheme would be implemented through a target-based approach. In response, Sh. Vij directed officers to also utilize digital advertisements and other promotional tools to expand the scheme, so that more and more people become aware of the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana.

*At present, power distribution corporations are installing around 3,000 rooftop solar systems per month*

During the meeting, Principal Secretary Sh. Shyamal Misra informed the Minister that currently around 3,000 rooftop solar systems are being installed every month by the power distribution corporations. He stated that under the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana, solar systems are to be installed in approximately one crore households, for which a provision of around Rs.75,021 crore has been made. The scheme was launched on February 13, 2024.

He further informed that during the years 2025–26 and 2026–27, the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam has set a target of installing rooftop solar systems in 1 lakh households, while the Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam has set a target of installing 1.22 lakh rooftop solar systems. He added that under the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana, eligible beneficiaries with an annual income of up to Rs.1.80 lakh are provided a subsidy of Rs.60,000 by the Central Government and Rs.50,000 by the State Government for installing rooftop solar systems of up to 2 kilowatts—amounting to a total subsidy of Rs.1.10 lakh.

Present on the occasion were Principal Secretary of the Energy Department Sh. Shyamal Misra, Managing Director of Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam Sh. Maniram Sharma, Director of the Department of New and Renewable Energy Smt. Sangeeta Tetarwal, along with other senior officials of the department.

Chandigarh:

City Mayor Smt. Harpreet Kaur Babla and MC Commissioner Sh. Amit Kumar, IAS, today inaugurated an Aspirational Public Toilet at the Sector 28-C Market, Chandigarh. The facility has been developed by the Municipal Corporation Chandigarh under the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM).

The public toilet at Sector 28-C Market is part of the Aspirational Toilet initiative being implemented across multiple sectors of the city to enhance public sanitation infrastructure and provide clean, safe, and user-friendly facilities for citizens and visitors.

The newly inaugurated facility has been developed with a strong focus on hygiene, inclusivity, and safety. Separate toilet facilities have been provided for differently-abled persons, along with emergency sensors to enhance user safety. The toilet has also been designed to be child-friendly.

All Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) guidelines have been strictly adhered to. The facility is equipped with modern amenities such as a sanitary napkin vending machine, incinerator, hand dryers, and other hygiene-support systems. Special signage in Braille script has been installed for blind and visually impaired persons, along with tactile tiles to facilitate easy movement within the premises.

The toilet has also been provided with assured water supply and power backup to ensure uninterrupted services for users.

Speaking on the occasion, Mayor Smt. Harpreet Kaur Babla stated that the Aspirational Toilet initiative demonstrates the Municipal Corporation’s commitment to strengthening public sanitation and providing dignified, accessible, and citizen-centric amenities, especially in busy market areas.

She emphasized that such initiatives contribute significantly to improving public hygiene, promoting cleanliness, and enhancing the overall quality of urban life in Chandigarh.