IEP Chandigarh, October 1

Two cities of Haryana have made it to the top 100 in the Swachh Survekshan survey rankings, released under Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav at Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi.

As per the rankings, Gurugram has been ranked 29th and Rohtak 56th in the Swachh Survekshan survey 2022, while Dharuhera with a population size of 25,000-50,000, and Bawani Khera with a  population of 15,000-25,000 bagged awards for Fast Moving City.

Meanwhile, Ambala Cantt bagged the 25th rank in the Cantonment Board-based ranking. On the other hand, Haryana is included in the top 6 in the overall progress and citizen vice progress, while in the category of small states, Haryana is on the top.

Notably, Haryana’s performance has improved a lot as compared to 2021.

Haryana government under the leadership of the Chief Minister, Sh. Manohar Lal has taken several important steps to ensure cleanliness in both urban and rural areas of the State.

Chief Minister firmly believes that spreading mass awareness about ensuring the cleanliness of the cities and the villages is of utmost priority to the State Government. He said that every citizen should consider cleanliness as a fundamental responsibility and ensure that they give their contributions to keeping their surroundings clean and hygienic as only then the Country and the State can swiftly move towards realizing Swachh Bharat Mission and Swachh Haryana.

Notably, several awareness programmes are being run by the Haryana Government and from time to time monitoring is being done regarding cleanliness in various government offices, Municipal corporations and municipal areas. As a result of this, the cleanliness of the State is continuously improving.

IEP Chandigarh, September 30

The Punjab Government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday passed the Punjab Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill 2022in the Punjab Assembly. The Finance, Planning, Excise and Taxation Minister, Advocate Harpal Singh Cheema tabled this bill in the House which was passed with thumping majority.

          Launching a scathing attack on the opposition for creating unwarranted hue and cry in the House, Cheema said that previous governments had not made any effort to improve the financial health of the state exchequer.

          “Now, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann led Punjab Government has plugged all the loopholes and stopped bogus billing, which will not only benefit the traders but will also increase the revenue of the state,” he said.

          Revealing the importance of the amendments made in the Bill,   Harpal Singh Cheema said that tax evaders will be dealt severely. He said that to check the menace of bogus billing and fraudulent ITC, Section 16 of the Act has been amended to empower the State Government to restrict the availment of ITC by the taxpayer. “To facilitate ease of doing business, time period for availment of ITC has been extended to thirtieth day of November following the end of the financial year in which the supply is carried out, or furnishing of the relevant annual return, whichever is earlier”, he added.

          The Finance Minister said that rationalising the furnishing of returns by the taxpayers, amendment has been passed to be carried in section 37, 38 and 39 of the Act. He said Section 39 amended to provide for furnishing of details of outward supplies as a condition for furnishing the return to check the menace of bogus billing and fraudulent ITC and to improve compliance.

          He further added that late fees is introduced for late filing of statement by taxpayers who are Tax collectors such as e-commerce operators to improve compliance. He said that Section 49 has been amended for improving compliance to empower the government to prescribe restrictions on utilization of ITC by taxpayer.

          The Finance Minister said that to facilitate ease of doing business, Section 50 has been retrospectively amended to limit the levy of interest only on the ITC wrongly availed and utilized. He further added that section 54 is amended to provide that time period for claim of such refund shall be two years from the furnishing of return to streamline refunds to SEZ Unit or Developer.

          Notably, the Union Government, on the recommendation of the GST Council, had amended the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 through the Finance Act, 2022. Similar changes are proposed to be carried out in the Punjab Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.

IEP Chandigarh, September 30

A 10 years old Happy (name changed) boy from Paonta Sahib with a condition of a large hole in his heart, got a new lease of life after a successful surgery at Ivy Hospital, Mohali recently.

Ivy Institute of Advanced Cardiac Sciences team Dr. Harinder Singh Bedi , Director of Cardiac Sciences, Dr Jiten Singh, Consultant CTVS Surgeon, Dr Vikram Arora, Consultant Cardiac Anaesthesia at the Ivy Hospital, Mohali who performed the procedure on the boy informed during a press conference here on Friday that the boy was suffering from double outlet right ventricle which is a worse condition.
Dr. Bedi further explained that in such a condition there is a block in the outlet to the lungs which cause bad blood to mix and not to reach the lungs at all. The skin of kids with this condition usually turns dark blue as the blood does not have enough oxygen. The kids also fail to develop and in most cases the condition can be fatal for them, said Dr. Bedi.

Happy’s parents were in a hopeless situation as their only son was getting dark blue in colour and at times he was not able to breathe well. He was seen by a local doctor and diagnosed as a blue baby (Tetralogy of Fallot).

He was then referred to Dr. Bedi who has operated upon on such children in India and abroad . Dr. Bedi realized that time was running short and so a major open heart surgery was planned.

The kid underwent total repair under cardio-pulmonary bypass. The heart was placed on a heart lung machine and put on ice. All the defects were repaired with a meticulous surgery Total Intra Cardiac Repair which almost reconstructed the whole heart. The kid became pink and recovered well after the surgery, said Dr. Bedi.
Meanwhile Ivy Hospital is now operating on small children with heart defects also. A special thanksgiving Shukrana Sukhmani Sahib Path was also organized at Ivy for the kid’s recovery after the surgery.

IEP New Delhi, September 30, 2022

The National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, India joins the nation as well as the global community to observe International Older Persons Day on the 1^st October, 2022.

This day is commemorated each year on 1^st October, to highlight the issue of older persons to promote a better understanding of the challenges faced by older persons. One of the biggest societal changes of the twenty-first century is expected to be the ageing of the population. There are currently more than 1 billion individuals who are 60 years of age or older, the majority of whom reside in low and middle-income nations. In spite of beneficial schemes, many of them lack the resources required for a meaningful and respectable existence and face several obstacles that hinder them from fully participating in society.

This year’s theme for International Older Persons Day is ‘Resilience of Older Persons in a Changing World’. The theme serves as a symbol and a reminder of the important role elders play in overcoming obstacles and making a positive contribution to their solutions.

We have seen how the COVID-19 epidemic affected all facets of society, but mainly the weaker facets, such as the elderly. To address the concerns of the elderly, the NHRC has issued an advisory to the administrations of the Center, States, and UT.

On behalf of the Commission, I urge all stakeholders involved to strive toward developing inclusive policies, strategies, and taking all necessary steps to advance and defend the rights of all older people, which will undoubtedly improve their quality of life and social wellbeing.

IEP Chandigarh, September 30

A 10 years old Happy (name changed) boy from Paonta Sahib with a condition of a large hole in his heart, got a new lease of life after a successful surgery at Ivy Hospital, Mohali recently.

Dr. Harinder Singh Bedi , director cardiac sciences who performed the procedure on the boy informed that the boy was suffering from double outlet right ventricle which is a worse condition.

IEP Chandigarh

The Department of Medical Parasitology is doing pioneering work on Parasitic infections common in India.

In the recently concluded National Conference of Indian Academy of Tropical Parasitology, TROPACON 2022, held at Kolkata West Bengal from 22-24^thSeptember, four students of Medical Parasitology won awards among the papers presented by the faculty and students from all over the country and in quiz competition.

The students who won the awards are working under the guidance of Prof Rakesh Sehgal, Head; Dr.Sumeeta Khurana, Dr Priya Datta and Dr Upninder Kaur.

Divya Rattan who is working on the environmental factors contributing in the epidemiology and spread of Toxoplasmosis bagged a second prize in the oral presentations. This study is first of its kind in the country.

Davinder Kaur who is working on molecular markers and genotyping in drug resistance malaria bagged second prize in the poster category.

 Puja Garg who is working on the role of Toxoplasma in Bad obstetric history (BOH), using highly sensitive molecular methods bagged third prize in oral presentation.

Dr.Madhusree Sett who is MD student in the Department of Medical Parasitology bagged second prize in quiz competition

IEP Chandigarh, September 30:

 The life of Vikram, all of 18 years, came to an abrupt end as he was declared brain dead at PGIMER following a fatal head injury. But thanks to the selfless and magnanimous gesture of Organ Donation by his family, Vikram’s passing away has kindled hope for six lives. The donor family turned their gravest tragedy into a precious gift of life for four patients suffering from end-stage organ failure and battling for survival, one at Mumbai and three more at PGIMER Chandigarh. The retrieved corneas, on transplantation restored the sight of two corneal blind patients here at PGIMER. With this latest organ donation, PGIMER also marks 100 liver donations since inception of Liver transplant Programme in 2011 Out of these 100 deceased liver donations, 69 have been transplanted here in PGIMER and 31 livers have been shared with other hospitals across India for matching recipients.  Prof. Vivek Lal, Director PGIMER, expressing PGIMER’s gratitude to the donor family, stated, “”Our mission at PGIMER is to honour the donor family’s decision, perhaps the hardest and incredibly moving one of their lives, of organ donation of their deceased dear one. Our hearts go out to donor families and we thank them for their gracious gift to others despite their own irreparable loss.  At the same time, we at PGIMER feel humbled by the trust reposed by the donor families in the institute for their bravest decision.” The heart wrenching and tragic death of Vikram  from Village Batta Kalyat, district Kaithal, Haryana is beyond comprehension and extremely difficult to reconcile with. It was on 23rd September, when Vikram was dragging his bike on the road  as he had run out of petrol, when he was knocked down by a speeding auto rickshaw from behind, leaving him with grievous head injuries. Vikram was immediately rushed to the Civil Hospital Kaithal and then to some private hospital for initial treatment, from where he was referred to PGIMER and was admitted here in an extremely critical condition on the evening of 23rd September itself. But Vikram’s battle with life came to an end as he succumbed to his injuries and was declared brain dead on 25th September following the protocols of THOA.  Showcasing exemplary courage and altruistic spirit, the family of Vikram  did not let this tragic death go in vain and consented for organ donation when the transplant coordinators raised the matter with them.  Gaje Singh, shell-shocked but brave-heart father of donor Vikram, expressed his sentiments as he consented for organ donation, “ Vikram was not only my son; he was the family’s life force. So caring and compassionate he was that even at this young age, he was working very hard in the factory to contribute to the family income. May be Almighty also needed this ‘noble soul’. Nobody can understand our remorse; we are completely devastated.” Respecting the family’s decision, the Lungs, Pancreas, Kidneys and Corneas were retrieved from the deceased. Once the donor organs became available, everyone swiftly got into action leaving no stone unturned to ensure that the donor’s legacy continues. Prof. Vipin Koushal, Medical Superintendent cum Head, Deptt. of Hospital Administration, PGIMER and Nodal Officer, ROTTO (North), while detailing about the latest case, said, “As the cross-matching indicated no matching recipient for lungs here  in PGIMER, we immediately got in touch with other transplant hospitals to explore options for matching recipients and finally, lungs were allocated for a matching recipient, a 66 year old male admitted in Sir H N Reliance Hospital, Mumbai with the active intervention of NOTTO” Elaborating about the Green Corridors created for the case, Prof. Koushal shared, “A Green Corridors was created on 25th September  in conjunction with the retrieval timings from PGIMER to International Airport,Mohali around 11 am to enable safe passage for the transport of retrieved lungs for the onward Gofast Airlines flight to Mumbai scheduled at 11.30 am on 26th September. Prof. Koushal concluded, “With everyone pitching in, the  procedural formalities, harvesting process as well as transportation of the organ was completed despite the time crunch. The credit is due to commendable efforts by PGIMER Security Deptt., Chandigarh & Mohali Police, CISF and Airport Staff on duty that we accomplished in making it on time through the green corridors.” 

IEP Chandigarh, September 30

Haryana Chief Minister, Sh. Manohar Lal today announced that Mukhyamantri Vyapari Kshatipurti Beema Yojana has been implemented to give insurance benefits to small traders. Under this scheme, compensation at the normal insurance rate is given to the traders to compensate for the loss of their stock caused due to fire, flood, etc.

The Chief Minister said this while addressing a programme organized for the Rehabilitation of Rehri market in Sector 9 of Panchkula today.

Sh. Manohar Lal laid the foundation stone of Antyodaya Market and performed Havan. Later he distributed possession letters to 8 allottees and released the brochure of Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP).

All the Rehri markets in Haryana to have Pucca booths

The Chief Minister announced that all the street vendors of the state including Gurugram, Faridabad would be allotted Pucca booths so that no trader should face this kind of untoward incident like that happened in sector 9 Panchkula Rehri market on September 1, 2022.  Pucca booths will also be made in Rehri Market of Sector 7, 11 and 17 in Panchkula.

Under this scheme, a rebate of 25 percent in the market rate would also be provided to the small traders by HSVP, but this exemption would not be applicable to the encroachers, informed Sh. Manohar Lal.

He said that the booth costs around Rs. 17 lakh as per the current market rate, but after the rebate, a booth measuring 63 square feet will be available for about Rs 13 lakh and 75 percent loan facility has also been provided from the Central Bank. In this way, every allottee is being helped to buy the booth, said the Chief Minister.

He further informed that if the allottee deposits this amount within 180 days, then he will be given an exemption on the entire interest. An amount of Rs 50 lakh would be spent by HSVP on the construction of a footpath, ensuring the availability of electricity and other resources in this market, asserted the Chief Minister.

Traders must have GST

The Chief Minister said that small traders must have a GST. For this, Prime Minister, Sh. Narendra Modi has launched a special campaign. He said that during the last month, the revenue of more than Rs. 1.50 lakh crore has been collected in the country.

The Chief Minister said that on that unfortunate day when the entire Rehri market of sector 9 was gutted in fire, the government had decided to work on a proposal ensuring that these traders do not face any problems. He thanked the officers for their hard work and for which this scheme got implemented so soon.

Government is working with the spirit of Antyodaya

The Chief Minister said that the State Government while upholding the spirit of Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya’s Antyodaya philosophy is ensuring the upliftment of the last mile person.

He said that under this campaign the first right of government belongs to the needy person. Employment is being provided to such families through Parivar Pehchan Patra. Till now, self-employment has been given to 30,000 families under Mukhyamantri Parivar Utthan Yojana. This is why this market of Panchkula has also been named Antyodaya Market, added Sh. Manohar Lal.

        Addressing the programme, the Vidhan Sabha Speaker, Sh. Gian Chand Gupta said that while understanding the pain and suffering of the traders, the Chief Minister has come up with a better scheme in the entire state so that small traders and poor people can earn their livelihood.

He said that by giving booths at cheap and subsidized rates in urban areas, Sh. Manohar Lal has not only given them a big sigh of relief but has also ensured quick redressal of those who lost their shops in the tragic fire incident. For this, all the small traders had expressed their heartfelt gratitude to Chief Minister, said Sh. Gian Chand Gupta.

He said that an amount of Rs. 50 lakh will be spent for ensuring proper arrangements of toilets and drinking water in this market by HSVP. On September 1, about 134 shops got gutted due to fire and then the Chief Minister immediately gave relief of Rs. 25,000 to each shopkeeper. HSVP is also committed bring a change in the lives of small shopkeepers, added Sh.  Gian Chand Gupta.

Panchkula Mayor, Sh. Kulbhushan Goyal, Chief Principal Secretary to Chief Minister, Sh. DS Dhesi, Commissioner ,Ambala Division, Smt. Renu Bala Phulia, Commissioner of Police, Hanif Qureshi, Chief Administrator, Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran, Sh. Ajit Balaji Joshi, Administrator, Sh. Dharamvir Singh, Deputy Commissioner, Panchkula, Sh. Mahavir were also present on this occasion.