M A I N   N E W S

9 Mercs rolled out for Dosanjh
From Varinder Singh
Tribune News Service

JALANDHAR, Dec 25 — To extend a red-carpet welcome to Mr Ujjal Dosanjh, the cash-strapped Punjab Government has hired nine Mercedes to make his journey comfortable during his ongoing visit of the state.

The Premier of British Columbia has an exhaustive itinerary and is scheduled to attend at least 16 public and private functions during his three-day tour of Jalandhar district, of which Dosanjh Kalan, his ancestral village is a part and where he will be felicitated by the villagers, district administration and the NRI Sabha on December 27.

Three of the gleaming white Mercs and a bullet-proof ambassador have already descended here and had to undergo an exhaustive security and a mechanical check-up at the local Police Lines, while three each have been stationed at Chandigarh and Amritsar. The chartered cars belong to the Indian Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC), while the bullet-proof Ambassador has been provided by the Punjab Police. The vehicles were made to undergo checks by the bomb and dog squads and have been put under high surveillance at the Police Lines here.

Besides Mr Dosanjh, who is expected to reach here at 9.30 a.m. by road from Amritsar, the carcade will be used by his wife, son, personal assistant and the senior Foreign Ministry officials accompanying him. The arrangement of the bullet-proof car and the Mercs has been made in the light of threat to his life as he is known for his anti-terrorism stance.

After landing in the city tomorrow morning, Mr Dosanjh will have his tea with veteran Congress leader Lekh Raj Sharma and then proceed to the Desh Bhagat Yaadgar Hall to attend a function arranged in his honour by the Desh Bhagat Yaadgar Hall Committee. After that, he will participate in the NRI sammelan at Red Cross Bhavan at 11 a.m. This will be followed by a civic reception at 12 noon and his private visit to Bahowal and Paldi villages, where he will see the development work done by NRIs.

Keeping with his hectic schedule, Mr Dosanjh and his entourage will leave for a Hoshiarpur village and he will join editors of local dailies for dinner at Gymkhana Club at 8 p.m. and will stay for night at PAP complex VIP Guest House.

Mr Dosanjh will have his Wednesday breakfast meeting with members of the local Export Council at 8.30 a.m. followed by a brunch meeting at Goraya at 10 a.m and the NRI convention at Dosanjh Kalan village, which will also be attended by the Punjab Chief Minister. At 5 p.m., he will meet an old friend and will stay the night at Punjab Police Academy in Phillaur. Mr Dosanjh will leave for Goraya the next morning to join the Punjab Speaker, Mr Charanjit Singh Atwal, at Ludhiana.