Aiming to weed out corruption from the society, the Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) adopted a multi-facet approach to corner the bribe seekers and to generate awareness among the public with a resolute stand to curb this social malady. During the period the VB has apprehended 173 persons red handed taking bribes in different cases.

Disclosing this here today, VB Chief Director-cum-Special DGP Varinder Kumar, said the VB has been able to nab 139 officials of different departments and 34 private persons while accepting bribes in 134 trap cases during the year 2024. Adopting a zero tolerance policy towards all forms of corruption, the Bureau had nabbed 10 gazetted officers (GOs) and 129 non-gazetted officials (NGOs) from January 1 to December 31, 2024.

VB Chief revealed that during the year, apart from other departments, 53 personnel of Punjab Police, 33 of Revenue Department, 9 of Power, 3 of Panchayats and Rural Development, 8 of Health department, 18 of Local Bodies department, 3 of Food & Civil Supply department were nabbed red handed while taking bribes in separate cases. In addition to this, the VB has apprehended two employees each of Forest department, Labour, Finance and Transport department in graft cases.

Giving more details about the performance of the Bureau he added that the VB had registered 124 criminal cases against the accused in which include 29 GOs, 117 NGOs and 117 private persons. Apart from this, 60 Vigilance Enquiries had also been registered to probe corruption complaints against 26 GOs, 27 NGOs and 7 private persons. Besides, 3 cases of disproportionate assets were also registered against 3 NGOs.

In addition, 1 Gazetted officer and 1 Non Gazetted Officer has been dismissed from their services by their respective administrative departments due to conviction by the competent courts while deciding the VB cases. He further revealed that the Bureau had been able to conclude 71 Vigilance Enquiries during the year. .

Sharing details, DGP VB said various competent courts have sentenced 50 accused in 41 cases filed and contested by the Bureau under prevention of corruption act which includes 3 GOs, 31 NGOs and 16 private persons and awarded imprisonments ranging from one year to seven years. The courts have also imposed fines varying from Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 5,00,000 in these cases which amount to a total sum of Rs. 22,42,000, he added.

The VB has effectively implemented awareness campaigns during Vigilance Awareness Week in which seminars and public meetings were held in urban as well as in rural areas to weed corruption from the society and integrity pledges was also administered to all the officers and employees of the bureau,” he added.

He further informed that prominent persons have been booked/arrested in corruption cases during the last year included I.A.S officer Vinay Biblani, P.C.S officer Harpreet Singh Assistant Labour Commissioner Hoshiarpur, A.C.P Nirdesh Kaur Ludhiana, executive engineers Ranbir Singh and Rajinder Singh, DCFA Pankaj Garg, C.T.P. Pankaj Bawa, Jarnail Singh Bajwa, of Bajwa Developers Mohali and Medical Officer Dr. Narinder Pal Singh. In addition this, Gurmukh Singh, Sarbjit Singh and Kulwinder Singh all BDPOs, posted at Ludhiana, Ferozpur and Mohali respectively, Baldev Raj DFSO, Tehsildar Sukhchain Singh and Lakhwinder Singh, Deepak Kumar Singal of Deepak Builders, Arvinder Singh Chief Engineer, Paramjit Singh and Sarbraj Kumar both Executive Engineers were also arrested/booked during the year.

Punjab Transport Minister S. Laljit Singh Bhullar today ordered the inclusion of new buses in the Punjab Roadways and PRTC fleet during the new year.

          While chairing a meeting to review the functioning of Punjab Roadways/PUNBUS, PRTC and State Transport Commissioner’s (STC) office, S. Laljit Singh Bhullar instructed officials to achieve the targets set by the government and increase government revenue in this year, just as they achieved the targets in the previous year.

          He directed the officials to lease out the state’s bus stands to ensure revenue enhancement along with their maintenance and cleanliness.

          S. Laljit Singh Bhullar said that government bus service should be started on routes where private buses predominantly operate and government bus service is minimal so that women can benefit from free bus service along with providing convenience to other passengers.

          He said that department officials should ensure government bus service on every route in the state to curb the monopoly of private bus operators. The Cabinet Minister also instructed officials to submit list of all routes where government bus service is not available, within 15 days.

          S. Laljit Singh Bhullar asked the officials of State Transport Commissioner’s office to adopt effective recovery procedures to crack down on tax defaulters. He said that public services being run by the department should be made more effective and service delivery should be ensured in a time-bound manner.

          Prominent amongst others who were present in the meeting included PRTC Chairman S. Ranjodh Singh Hadana, Additional Chief Secretary Transport Mr. D.K. Tiwari, STC Mr. Jaspreet Singh, MD PUNBUS Mr. Rajiv Kumar Gupta, MD PRTC S. Bikramjit Singh Shergill, Deputy Director S. Parneet Singh Minhas, ADO PUNBUS Mr. Rajiv Dutta, GM PRTC S. Maninder Singh and other officials.

Taking a decisive step to ensure credible and trustworthy recruitments, the Haryana Government has notified the Policy for Recruitment to Group C and D posts through Common Eligibility Test (CET), 2024 to simplify and standardize the recruitment process for government employment to all direct recruitment to Group C and Group D posts. The test will be conducted as and when decided by the government from time to time. 

According to the notification issued by Chief Secretary Dr. Vivek Joshi, the test shall apply for direct recruitment to Group C posts, including the posts of Police service, Prisons and Home Guards etc., excluding teaching posts, Ex-Agniveer and Group D posts for which minimum educational qualification is below Matriculation in the Haryana Group D Employees (Recruitment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2018 (5 of 2018), in the departments of State Government or any Board, Corporation, statutory body or any other agency owned and controlled by the State Government other than any university established by or under a State Act.

The minimum educational qualification for Group C posts shall be class 10+2/equivalent or Matric with additional qualification. For Group D posts, the minimum qualification shall be Matric along with Hindi or Sanskrit as one of the subjects in Matric or Hindi as one of the subjects in Higher Standard or as per provision in Haryana Group D Employees (Recruitment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2018 (5 of 2018).

The syllabus for Common Eligibility Test shall be divided into two parts comprising— (a) 75% weightage for General Awareness, Reasoning, quantitative ability, English, Hindi, and for Group C posts, computer knowledge in addition; and (b) 25% weightage for History, Current Affairs, Literature, Geography, Environment, Culture etc. of Haryana. The question paper shall be of the level of senior secondary education (i.e.10+2 level/equivalent) for Group C posts and of the level of secondary education (Matric level) in case of Group D posts, provided that Hindi and English shall be of Matric Level.

All applicants shall register on a designated portal i.e. onetimeregn.haryana.gov.in by the last date to be published by an advertisement issued by the Commission, providing all particulars relating to the identity of the applicant and uploading all the required documents.

The Parivar Pehchan Number enables the recruiting agency to verify the applicant’s claims in respect of residence, educational and other qualifications, caste and experience certificate, family income/assets, status of parents (if any parent is deceased the verification of death certificate is involved), marital status of female applicant, separation certificate of legally separated women, disability certificate, sports gradation certificate, denotified tribe/Vimukt Jati certificate, certificate of ex-serviceman, dependent of ex-servicemen certificate, dependent of freedom fighter, FIR copy etc.

The applicant may register using his Parivar Pehchan Number or Aadhaar Number or otherwise on the basis of such documentation as may be specified by the government from time to time.

The policy states that there shall be no restriction on the number of attempts to appear in the written examination of the CET. An applicant of general category shall have to obtain minimum 50% marks in CET to be eligible for skill and/or written examination of second stage, however, an applicant of reserved category (both vertical and horizontal) shall receive concession @ 10%, for the purpose of eligibility for CET, i.e. the minimum cut-off for such candidates shall be 40%. An applicant of any category who obtains less than the minimum marks in CET shall have to re-appear in CET in the next or any subsequent attempts.

If an applicant has already qualified the CET for Group D post, he will have the option to appear again in the CET to improve his CET marks in the next or any subsequent occasion.

After publication of CET (Marks) in accordance with sub-clause (xi) of clause 7 above, the posts available for recruitment shall be advertised by the Commission along with the syllabus, procedure/manner of conducting skill and/or written examination of the advertised posts and last date for attaining minimum educational qualifications and/or experience. On the advertisement being issued, the Commission shall invite applications electronically of the eligible candidates based on the merit list of CET (Marks) to know whether the candidate is willing to appear for skill and/or written examination for that post. Out of the candidates applying for the post, the maximum number of candidates eligible to appear for the skill and/or written examination shall be ten times the total number of posts advertised by the Commission.

This exam will be a computer-based online/offline/Optical Mark Reading (OMR) based test and will be conducted by the Haryana Staff Selection Commission or any other agency as decided by the Government and shall be bilingual i.e. conducted in Hindi and English.

The policy further states that the CET marks obtained by an applicant shall be valid for a period of three years from the date of declaration of the result. However, if an applicant improves his CET marks in the next or any subsequent attempt, then the fresh period of validity of three years shall commence from the date of declaration of result of such attempt. More details of this policy can be accessed at website https://csharyana.gov.in.

The Haryana Government has notified nine services of the Public Health Engineering (PHE) Department under the Right to Service Act, 2014 and fixed deadlines to provide these services.

          According to a notification issued by Chief Secretary Dr. Vivek Joshi, issuance of duplicate water/sewer bill, sanction of water supply and sewerage connection in the rural and urban areas, work of fixing water leakage/overflowing pipes and blocked sewerage/overflowing manholes has to be completed within 7 days.

          The restoration of water supply due to minor problems like fault in pumping machinery, electric wiring, distribution system etc has to be completed in 3 days while restoration of water supply due to major problems like shortage of raw water, burning of transformer and fault in LT/HT Lines etc has to be completed within 6 days. Further, a 10-day deadline has been set for restoration of water supply due to major problems like burning of transformer, other major electric fault etc. to be rectified/repaired by the PHE Department.

          The notification further states that restoration of a broken street to motorable conditions, including laying of pipeline after excavation, has to be completed by 30 days.

Haryana Chief Minister Sh. Nayab Singh Saini, accompanied by his wife Smt. Suman Saini, today offered prayers at the Mata Mansa Devi Temple in Panchkula on the occasion of the New Year. He also interacted with the devotees present at the temple.

Speaking to media persons on this occasion, the Chief Minister extended New Year greetings to the people of the state, expressing his hope that the year would bring economic and social prosperity to all citizens. He said that prosperity would touch every individual’s life, and wished for the fulfillment of this aspiration.

The Chief Minister further stated that in 2025, Haryana will reach new heights of development. Reflecting on the progress made in 2024, he mentioned that significant work has been done to advance the state in various sectors. In line with the vision of Prime Minister Sh Narendra Modi’s Developed India-2047, he assured that work will proceed rapidly in the coming year to make India a developed nation. Following this vision, development efforts in Haryana will also accelerate, with the goal of making the state fully developed. The government is committed to this objective.
Promises of the Sankalp Patra are being fulfilled continuously

The Chief Minister said that the BJP government has made several commitments in its Sankalp Patra during the elections, and work is being done gradually to fulfill them. He added that significant progress has already been made in implementing many of these promises, and the remaining ones will also be completed soon.

Sh Nayab Singh Saini mentioned that upon forming the government, the first step was to provide jobs to 24,000 youth without kharchi-parchi. In addition, the government has introduced free dialysis facilities in all civil hospitals and medical colleges, benefiting lakhs of kidney patients across the state. He also highlighted the government’s initiative in granting ownership rights to tenant farmers in Haryana.

Addressing the issue of farmers, Sh Nayab Singh Saini informed that the Supreme Court has set up a committee to engage with the farmers, and this committee is in constant communication with them. He assured that the Haryana government is purchasing all crops from the state’s farmers at the Minimum Support Price (MSP). A resolution has been passed in the Vidhan Sabha to ensure the procurement of all crops at MSP.

The Chief Minister said that the government is working diligently under the leadership of Prime Minister Sh Narendra Modi. However, he pointed out that many political parties have exploited the issue of farmers for political gain without making any real decisions in their favour. He specifically mentioned the Aam Aadmi Party and Congress Party governments in states like Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, and Karnataka, accusing them of grinding their own axe in the name of farmers rather than ensuring their welfare.

Regarding the recent rains and hailstorms, the Chief Minister said that it has been decided to get the farmers registered on the kshatipurti portal immediately so that proper compensation for the loss suffered by the farmers can be given on time. He added that over the past decade, the government has directly deposited Rs 13500 crores in farmers’ accounts as compensation for various losses.

The Chief Minister said that the current government always stands by the farmers. He also shared plans to introduce new schemes aimed at promoting crop diversification. These initiatives will help farmers benefit more from natural farming practices, at a lower cost. Moreover, the government is working on providing incentives for the cultivation of crops other than paddy to alleviate water pressure and promote sustainable agriculture.

Haryana Chief Minister Sh Nayab Singh Saini has welcomed the farmer-friendly decisions made in the first Union Cabinet meeting of 2025, chaired by Prime Minister Sh Narendra Modi. Expressing his gratitude to Prime Minister, he said that the thoughtful manner in which these decisions have been made for the welfare of farmers will directly benefit lakhs of farmers in Haryana.

Referring to the Union Cabinet’s decisions as a New Year gift to the farmers from Prime Minister Sh Narendra Modi, the Chief Minister said that these decisions will ensure the availability of DAP to farmers at affordable and subsidized rates. In addition, a budget allocation has been made to promote the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana and enhance technology, which will have a direct positive impact on farmers.

It may be mentioned here that during the Union Cabinet meeting chaired by the Prime Minister on Wednesday, the proposal from the Department of Fertilizers to increase the one-time special package on DAP beyond the NBS subsidy by Rs 3,500 per metric ton was approved. This package, effective from January 1, 2025, until further orders, aims to ensure the continued availability of DAP to farmers at affordable rates. This decision will guarantee that farmers receive DAP at a subsidized, reasonable, and affordable price.

Besides this, the continuation of the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana and the Restructured Weather-Based Crop Insurance Scheme were approved to continue till 2025-26, with a total outlay of Rs 69,515.71 crore from 2021-22 to 2025-26. This move will provide farmers across the country with coverage for crop risks caused by unavoidable natural disasters until 2025-26. Along with these measures, several other decisions aimed at the welfare of farmers were also taken by the Union Cabinet today.

Haryana Anti-Corruption Bureau on Tuesday said that the Bureau has conducted 104 traps in the year 2024 and recovered Rs 88.28 lakh on the spot and 86 government servants, including 6 gazetted officer, 80 non-gazetted officials and 31 private individuals, were caught red-handed while taking bribes. The Bureau spokesperson said that in its proactive drive against corruption in government departments, the Bureau in line with the zero-tolerance policy of the State Government has registered 155 cases in 2024. Out of the 155 cases, 104 were trap cases and 51 cases were registered on complaints/enquiries. Almost seven public servants were arrested on corruption charges every month, he added.

Highlighting the arrests in some big cases involving high ranking officers, he informed that a Kanungo was caught red-handed while taking Rs 5,00,000 as bribe. A Medical officer was caught red-handed while taking Rs 3,00,000 as bribe. One co-accused HCS officer and one Excise and Taxation Officer were also arrested and two fourth Class Employee was caught red-handed taking Rs 6,20,000 as bribe. Eight private persons were caught red-handed while taking Rs 30,40,000 as bribe and their co-accused were also arrested. A Home Guards employee was caught red-handed while taking Rs 2,50,000 as bribe.

He further revealed that out of 104 raids conducted in year 2024, 34 were of police department, 11 of Power Utilities, 9 of Urban Local Bodies, 8 of Excise and Taxation, 7 of the Revenue Department, 6 of Health, 3 of Social Welfare, 3 of Home Guards & Defence, 2 of Public Health Engineering, 2 of Fisheries, 2 of Forest, 2 of Agriculture, 2 of Civil Food Supplies and Consumer Affairs and 13 of other departments like HSVP, Transport, Panchayati Raj, Pollution Control Board, Mining and Geology, Horticulture, HSIIDC, Haryana Women Commission, Employees Fund Organisation, in which officials were nabbed red-handed while taking bribes upto Rs 12.50 lakh in separate cases.

During its ongoing crusade against corruption in 2024, the Bureau has registered 49 enquiries against 11 gazetted officers, 24 non-gazetted officials and 8 private persons on the direction of the state government. During the year, 90 enquiries were finalised.

Out of 90 enquiries completed during 2024, the Bureau has recommended registration of criminal case against 47 gazetted officers, 57 non-gazetted officials and 29 private persons in 8 enquiries. Additionally, in 24 enquires, departmental action against 31 gazetted officers and 52 non-gazetted officials has been recommended and in yet another 29 enquiries, registration of criminal cases along with departmental action against 33 gazetted officers, 43 non-gazetted officials & 3 private persons, the spokesperson added.