STF officers & town planner among 24 conferred awards in Gurgaon on R-Day

Gurgaon: Twenty-four govt officials — across planning, health, transport, information, education, policing and special operations — were honoured for their work at an event to mark the 77th Republic Day on Monday.The district administration also recognised citizens and an organisation for social responsibility. Among those honoured was district town planner Praveen Chauhan for his role in "guiding orderly development and public planning".Assistant senior medical officer Anuj Garg received an award for his responsibilities as nodal officer for the complaint branch — the CM Window portal — and as district nodal officer of Nirogi Haryana Yojana in the heath department. Subha Lata, a nursing officer, was awarded for her service in healthcare delivery.Amarjeet, a transport sub-inspector posted in regional transport authority (Gurgaon), was recognised for his duties in "enforcement and public facilitation". Vishwas Saini, an information centre assistant from the district information and public relations office, was awarded for supporting public information and communication.The education department accounted for five awardees — district education officer Indu Boken; principal of GSSS Boys Civil Lines Joginder; district maths specialist Balwan Singh; assistant Sandeep Kumar; and assistant education officer Jagdish Singh. They were honoured for their contributions to administration, school leadership, academic support and departmental functioning.Junior engineer in the district project coordinator office Poonam Kundu was honured for supporting development projects and implementation.Special recognition was also given to Maruti Suzuki Limited for CSR initiatives, acknowledging "structured efforts that supported community welfare".Two awards went to STF personnel for major breakthroughs against organised crime. Vivek Kumar, SI, was honoured for playing a significant role in the arrest of around 15 wanted and rewarded criminals associated with the Rohit Godara gang. Deepak Kumar, ASI, was awarded for his role in the arrest of around 10 wanted criminals linked to the Nandu gang, operating from abroad and involved in extortion calls to businessmen in Delhi and Haryana.From the police department, five personnel were awarded for distinct acts of service. Chandrakanta, posted at the Women police station, Sector 51, was recognised for solving a pending case of crime against women and arresting the accused from Bihar and Maharashtra. Ravinder, posted at Sadar police station, was awarded for reuniting a minor with his parents. Yashpal from the cyber cell was honoured for exposing a gang involved in registering fake rape cases to extort money. Other three include constable Rohit, SI Arun and Lalit. Alongside govt awardees, three private individuals were also recognised — Vivek Agarwal, a sculptor; Parmesh Arora, an ayurvedic doctor; and Naresh Kumawat, a sculptor. New growth corridors Maintaining that industries are the backbone of the economy, Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini said on Monday the ease of doing business was strengthened by eliminating "outdated rules and complex procedures". Gurgaon has emerged as a global hub for IT and start-ups, where a township is being developed over 1,000 acres under the Global City Project. "Logistics hubs are being developed in Narnaul, a manufacturing cluster in Hisar and an electronics park in Sohna," the CM said.Saini, while addressing a district-level function in Gurgaon, said, under Operation Hotspot Domination, launched from Dec 1, 2025, more than 2,200 criminals were arrested. Under the Drug-free Haryana campaign conducted last year, over 6,000 arrests were made and illegal property worth around Rs 12 crore belonging to drug traffickers was seized. Saini said that effective initiatives such as Operation Track Town, Operation Clean and Prahari "created an atmosphere of fear among criminals". "Strong law and order is the first prerequisite for the progress of any state, and therefore, the safety of life and property of every citizen is the govt's top priority," Saini said.Saini said the govt schemes made the state the "first choice of investors" from India and abroad. "Over the past 11 years, 12.92 lakh micro, small and medium enterprises were established in the state, generating employment for around 49 lakh people," said the CM.