101 firms show interest in ‘realtor-friendly’ policy; max applications for Gurgaon projects

The much-touted Affordable Housing Policy-2013, launched by Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on August 6, is set to make housing out of aam aadmi’s reach across the state, especially in major cities.

Central Groundwater Board report out

The large-scale urbanisation has taken its toll on the groundwater resources in the districts falling in the National Capital Region (NCR) of Haryana. While painting a gloomy picture on the exploitation of groundwater, the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) has termed 31 zones as “dark zones” (over-exploited areas). The millennium city Gurgaon has four areas, Gurgaon, Pataudi, Sohna and Farukhnagar, declared as the “dark zones”.

The main Opposition BJP may have supported the landmark Land Acquisition Bill in the Lok Sabha but its kisan morcha today struck a discordant note, alleging that the Bill favoured big corporates in its current shape.

"Certain provisions of the legislation still weighed in favour of the big corporates and these need to be taken care of in farmers' interests in the Rajya Sabha," OP Dhankar, president of the BJP kisan morcha, said here.

Blames skewed sex ratio for rampant trafficking of women into state for forced marriages

A report of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC) has blamed Haryana’s skewed sex ratio for large-scale trafficking of girls from other states for forced marriages and ‘bonded’ labour into the state.

The Hooda Government today modified its land pooling scheme making it more attractive for landowners.

The major decision has been taken with a view to taking care of the major vote bank of the Congress, the farming community, ahead of next year’s parliamentary and state assembly elections, sources told The Tribune here today. Under the new policy, the landowners can now opt for the scheme within one month from the date of determination of compensation for land by the committee headed by the Divisional Commissioner.

Sparing a thought for traffic congestion against the backdrop of a spurt in the vehicular population, the Haryana government has allowed stilt parking for plots measuring six marlas and above.

While the stilt parking would be allowed for all licensed colonies and plots granted changed of land use (CLU), it would not be allowed for farmhouses, official sources said.

Builders to be given sops, including waiver of fees

At a time when the property prices have skyrocketed in the urban areas, affordable housing may well be within the reach of the ‘aam aadmi’ in Haryana. In fact, with a view to attract the private builders to go in for affordable housing, the Hooda Government is set to launch its ambitious "Affordable Housing Policy-2013" to provide housing to the lower strata of society with an eye on the forthcoming parliamentary and the state Assembly elections next year.

The orders passed by whisteblower IAS officer Ashok Khemka as Director-General, Land Consolidation, continue to haunt the Hooda government.

Even as the controversy surrounding the fast-tracking of Robert Vadra’s land deals is yet to die down, the fragmentation and privatisation of hundreds of acres in the NCR overlooking the Aravalis, including two villages in Gurgaon and Faridabad, whose consolidation process was denotified by Ashok Khemka on the charges of purchase by a business-politico-bureaucratic-police nexus has come under the scanner of the National Green Tribunal(NGT).