The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Spate of holidays in Budget session
Prabhjot Singh
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 26
A spate of holidays between March 1 and 12 will dominate the first phase of the Budget session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha starting on March 1. Though no date has been decided for the presentation of the state Budget, it is likely only after the holiday bonanza ends on March 12.

With the Governor’s Address on the opening day on March 1 followed by obituary references on day 2 (March 2), there will be holidays on March 3 and 4 on account of Saturday and Sunday before the House assembles again on March 5 to start discussions on the Governor’s Address.

Subsequently, March 6, 8,9, 10 and 11 are again holidays in Punjab. So the debate on the Governor's Address will continue on March 7 and 12.

On March 6 is Id-ul-Zuha, March 8 is International Women’s Day, March 9 and 10 are holidays on account of Holi and Hola while March 11 is a Sunday.

Between March 3 and 11, if an employee takes leave for two days, on March 5 and 7, he or she will have nine days’ holiday.

According to sources, once the session of the state Legislative Assembly starts, all its members are entitled to a daily allowance of Rs 300. In case there are two or more holidays between two sittings of the House, the legislators can go back to their constituencies and claim travelling allowance at Rs 4 per km in addition to the daily allowance of Rs 300.

As such for the ensuing session, after the Governor’s Address and obituary references, the Punjab MLAs will be entitled to return home or to their constituencies and spend the weekend there before returning here on Monday to attend the next sitting.

In the case of Haryana, the entitlement of daily allowance is higher than in Punjab. The other rules concerning daily allowance and travelling allowance are the same.

For the session, legislators are provided with accommodation in either the MLAs Hostel or the MLA flats for which they have to pay from their own pockets. In the case of the MLAs Hostel, the Chandigarh Administration had proposed to increase the daily rent from the present Rs 3 per day.

The proposal, however, has not been accepted as yet as the Administration cannot increase the rent of the hostel suo motu. It has to be ratified by a sub -committee of the Vidhan Sabha headed by the Deputy Speaker.

Officially, the programme of the Vidhan Sabha from March 1 to 12 has been announced.

Conference on Guru Granth Sahib begins
Our Correspondent

Amritsar, February 26
Sri Guru Granth Sahib contains a philosophical system based on “unity in diversity” that celebrates the unique merits of each particular approach to the divine energy. Yet, it also provides a way that each of these approaches can be weaved into a cohesive whole.

This was stated by Dr Harbans Lal, Chairman, Academy of Guru Granth Studies, USA while delivering the key-note address at the first international conference on “Sri Guru Granth Sahib: world’s first interfaith scripture” at Guru Nanak Bhavan Auditorium, Guru Nanak Dev University, here today.

This first-ever global conference has been organised by Guru Nanak Dev University in view of the 400th year of compilation of the holy granth in collaboration with the Academy of Guru Granth Sahib, USA.

The university is sponsoring a series of annual international conferences on various aspects of Sri Guru Granth Sahib.

Mr Harbans Lal stressed that any institution of organised religion would have to go through the process of “creative forment” to survive in the new age. He said it would have to take into account the confluence of religions throughout the globe. Each traditional approach to religious truth would have to encounter challenge from another tradition.

Dr Harbans Lal said the mode in which Sri Guru Granth Sahib was compiled four centuries ago “tells us that these encounters create a deeper understanding of spiritual thought in the mind of a religious speaker.

Capt Kanwaljit Singh, Finance Minister, Punjab, inaugurated the four-day interfaith conference, said Sri Guru Granth Sahib was a universal scripture in which a model for human welfare and human dignity had been envisaged. He said this model was a practical one with emphasis on a “true, practical and respectful life-style”.

Capt Kanwaljit Singh said the world faced several challenges and problems due to the information technology revolution and globalisation. “On the one hand, we are living a life of global outlook and on the other it has created many problems for humanity.” In this context, he said a new religious awakening was needed.

He said today people were becoming closer through the Internet and had started thinking about a universal religion which would lead to a unique unity involving salient features of all religions.

The Finance Minister hoped that a galaxy of international and national scholars gathered here would discuss various aspects of interfaith issues, interfaith perspective and movement. They would also explore the significance of the Guru’s teachings for the well-being of humankind in the next millennium.

Dr H.S. Soch, Vice-Chancellor, welcoming the delegates, said that the Vedas were written on this land. The Gita was recited by Lord Krishna here and Sufism was also propagated and promoted in this area of the country. At the same time, he said Gurbani by the Sikh Gurus had “conjoined the masses with the almighty”.

Expressing concern at the denigration of values, Dr Soch said the university was committed to imparting value-based education so that “our coming generation may not divert from our rich traditional values”. It had decided to make spiritualism a part of the curriculum at the college level. A book on the subject had already been published by the university.

Dr Soch announced the establishment of Sri Guru Granth Studies Chair at the university for which Capt Kanwaljit Singh promised all assistance on behalf of the Punjab Government. Dr Soch also announced that the proceedings of this conference would be published in a book form in Punjabi, Hindi and English and other largely spoken languages of the world.

Dr K.P. Aggarwal, secretary-general, Crime Prevention Society, Lucknow (UP), in his presidential remarks said Sri Guru Granth Sahib was a historical scripture. The granth had provided a unique philosophy for human development, which was neither a synthesis of old schools of thought, nor a completely new one. “It has the essence of cultural integration of India”, he added.

Dr Aggarwal lucidly defined the word “shabad”. He also spoke about the importance of “naam”.

Dr S.P. Singh, convener of the conference, said more than 60 scholars and 100 delegates from all over India, the USA, Canada and Pakistan were participating in the four-day deliberations on Sri Guru Granth Sahib.

He said in all there would be nine academic and panel discussion sessions on various aspects of Sri Guru Granth Sahib. A special session would be devoted to the Gurbani CD as a research tool and Sikhism and cyber space.

He said an exhibition of “Sikh heritage” displaying different coins of the Sikh regime, manuscripts, rare books, portraits and other holy scriptures was on at the Khalsa Heritage Centre of the university.

Dr Soch honoured Dr Harbans Lal, Capt Kanwaljit Singh and Dr K.P. Aggarwal with phulkari items and a set of university publications each.

Dr S.S. Parmar, Dean, Academic Affairs, in the end presented a vote of thanks.

Change in awardees’ list raises eyebrows
Jangveer Singh
Tribune News Service

Patiala, February 26
In departure from tradition, the Punjab Government today awarded the Shiromani awards, carrying a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh, to two persons — a journalist and a “ragi’” — who were not among the 39 selected for the awards by the state advisory board last month.

In a surprise move the name of two new awardees — journalist Dalbara Singh Kahlon and Bhai Baldev Singh — were added to the original list of 39 awardees in the respective categories for journalists and “ragis”, which was distributed at the function organised by the state Language Department. Though the list carries the number of awardees as 39, the names of the two new awardees have been written by hand under both categories.

Thirtynine awardees had been selected following scrutiny by the advisory committee of the Language Department comprising eminent personalities from various fields under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister. Thirteen awardees were selected for each year from 1998 to 2000, with each of them being eligible for a cash award of Rs 1 lakh, except the Shiromani Sahitkar awardee, who is given a cash prize of Rs 1.25 lakh.

The addition of two more names in the award list has raised eyebrows in intellectual circles. What is further surprising is that the name of Bhai Baldev Singh figures in the list of awardees for 1999. Mr Kahlon’s name has been included in the list for 2000.

Language Department Director Madan Lal Hasija, when questioned about the last minute additions, said the state government had taken a decision to give ‘’special prizes’’ to both persons after the other awards had been finalised by the Board. When asked how this could be done when the list of awardees had been announced last month following their selection by the advisory committee, Mr Hasija said the Chairman of the committee, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, was competent to give the two awards.

The Director disclosed that the department had received a message from the government around 10 days ago that two more persons were to be given the Shiromani Awards in addition to the 39 other awardees.

Sources in the department say a communication from the government regarding the two had created confusion as it was thought that the two would be given special awards and not the Shiromani Awards.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister while speaking at the function organised at the Bhasha Bhavan here on the occasion, said he was sorry that the awards could not be given for the past three years. He said efforts would, however, be made to give due recognition to the awardees and that plots would be given to them on reserved prices on the pattern of the facility available to freedom fighters. Mr Hasija said the department should be allowed to print its own books and that the awardees be given the concession of free bus travel and medical facilities.

The awardees are — Prof Pritam Singh, Prof Piara Singh Padam, Ajaib Chitrakar (Punjabi sahit), Dr Ishar Singh Tang, Dr Atam Hamrahi, Dr S. Tarsem (Punjabi sahitkar), Davinder Issar, Suresh Seth, Dr Hukam Chand Rajpal (Hindi sahitkar), Dr Kali Das Gupta “Riza”, R.D. Sharma “Taseer”, Dr Mohammad Sultan “Anjum” (Urdu sahitkar), Dr Sooddev Hans, Dr Sansar Chand, Dr Padam Nath Shastri (Sanskrit sahitkar), Shingara Singh Bhullar, Satnam Singh Manak, Amarjit Singh Aks , Darbara Singh Kahlon (Punjabi patrakar), Bhai Balbir Singh, Bhai Bhaan Singh Bhauran, Bhai Baldev Singh, Bhai Chanan Singh Majboor (ragi/ dhaadhi), Dr Surjit Singh Dhillon, Dr Kuldeep Singh Dhir, Dr Faqir Chand Shukla (Punjabi writer), Harbhajan Singh Hundal, Manjit Tiwana, Anup Virk (Punjabi poet), Manmohan Singh Daun, Jasbir Bhullar, Raj Dular (Punjabi bal sahit), Piara Singh Data, Dr Harbhajan Singh Rattan, Gurcharan Singh Mehta (Punjabi sahitkar outside Punjab), Gurdev Singh Mann, Darshan Dhir, Amar Jyoti (Foreign Punjabi sahitkar), Neena Tiwana, Ajmer Aulakh, Nirmal Rishi (Punjabi television, radio and theatre).

COMMUNITY

‘None can change definition of Sikh’
Varinder Walia
Tribune News Service

Amritsar, February 26
Renowned ‘Sehajdhari’ Sikh leader and a former President of the All-India Sikh Students Federation, Bhai Harbans Lal of the USA, will meet Mr Jagdev Singh Talwandi, SGPC chief, and Giani Joginder Singh Vedanti, Jathedar, Akal Takht, and demand that the definition of ‘Sikh’ should not be changed.

Bhai Harbans Lal, the only ‘Sehajdhari’ Sikh to have remained President of the AISSF in 1956, said no institution or country had the right to change the definition of “Sikh”.

“A Sikh is one who believes in Guru Granth Sahib and the Ten Gurus and professes no other religion”, he emphasised. He said the one crore “Sehajdhari” Sikhs all over the world were dedicated Sikhs. He claimed that even after the birth of the Khalsa Panth in April, 1699, Guru Gobind Singh had continued to recognise the identity of “Sehajdhari” Sikhs.

He claimed that after leaving Quila Anandgarh, Guru Gobind Singh had handed over the ‘sewa’ of the gurdwara to a “Sehajdhari” Sikh, Sant Gurbax Dass. Kirtan was performed by “Sehajdhari” Sikhs before Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh master, left for his eternal abode, he claimed.

Bhai Harbans Lal said a Muslim “Sehajdhari” Sikh, Bhai Chand, had performed kirtan at the sanctum sanctorum of the Golden Temple till the partition of the country. The descendants of Bhai Chand continued to recite kirtan at Gurdwara Panja Sahib and Nankana Sahib in Pakistan.

Though no “Sehajdhari” Sikh was now a “hazoori raagi” (a person who could perform kirtan in the sanctum sanctorum), the practice should be revived, he suggested.

Bhai Harbans Lal, however, said the SGPC had the right to change the definition of a voter to stop the entry of “Unscrupulous voters”.

It may be mentioned here that the SGPC at its general house meeting on November 30, 2000, had unanimously resolved to urge the Government of India to amend the definition “Sikh” in the Sikh Gurdwara Act, 1925.

Mr Justice Harbans Singh, Commissioner, Gurdwara Elections, had said that “under the garb of Sehajdhari Sikhs, persons not entitled to meddle in the affairs of gurdwaras have got themselves included in the list of voters”.

Bhai Harbans Lal said the SGPC should nominate a sufficient number of ‘Sehajdharis’ to the committee. The nomination should be by an electoral college of the particular constituency.

“Those who treat Sehajdharis with contempt are ignorant of Sikh religion” Bhai Harbans Lal said.

He was hopeful that the SGPC, the World Sikh Council and Akal Takht would agree to the genuine demand of ‘Sehajdharis’ for not changing the age-old definition of “Sikh”.

Bhai Harbans Lal said he would urge the SGPC chief during his proposed meeting on February 28 to resume sending jathas to Pakistan. He said there was a need for coordination between the SGPC and the Pakistan Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee.

He, however, said the Government of Pakistan had committed a blunder by declaring Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib and Nankana Sahib as ‘evacuee property’ He, however, welcomed the formation of the Pakistan Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (PGPC) for ‘better management of gurdwaras there’.

Bhai Harbans Lal said Guru Granth Sahib Foundation would make every effort to propagate the teachings of Guru Granth Sahib, the world’s first inter-faith scripture, all over the world. The entire holy scripture would be made available on digital CDs in different languages.

He said transcriptions of other languages were being sought by the foundation so that Guru Granth Sahib could be recited by persons from other faiths too. He said he would meet leaders of other states to establish ‘Chairs’ for greater research on Guru Granth Sahib.

Hospital in dire need of funds
Our Correspondent

Bathinda, February 26
The oldest and the largest ayurvedic hospital here is facing financial crisis although it is well equipped.

The Lala Tilak Ram Memorial Ayurvedic Hospital, which was founded in 1977, caters to not only local patients but also of nearby villages. The number of patients at the OPD is about 5000. The hospital has two full-time ayurvedic medical officers but the lacunae lies in the non-availability of medicines.

The state government recently granted Class-I status to the ayurvedic doctors and the pay scales of all medical and paramedical staff has been revised. But a majority of them have turned out to be “white elephants” due to the official neglect and step-motherly treatment given to the ayurvedic services by the state government.

Interestingly, the hospital does not enjoy the facility of a telephone and sources revealed that it was never installed in the hospital.

Dr Raj Kumar, in charge of the hospital, said the non-availability of medicines was the major problem. The supply of medicines was good about five-six years back but that had become erratic now. With the introduction of the latest techniques in the allopathic system the ayurvedic companies too have stepped up the research in the field. It were the quacks who were giving a bad name to the allopathic system as they had little or no knowledge, he lamented.

Sometimes a supply of only a month was sent at a time and the patients had to purchase the medicines from the market, he added.

Dr Sanjiv Pathak, ayurvedic medical officer of the hospital, said as most of the patients coming to the hospital were from poor families, they had come here in the hope of getting medicines free of cost. As medicines were not available in the hospital, at times, the number of patients to OPD declined. “We try to arrange for free samples from the medical representatives, but even that are not sufficient. Rather than opening, new dispensaries, the old ones should be supplied with adequate medicines, he suggested.

The sources in the hospital revealed that the supply of medicines was last received in August, last year, and it lasted only for a month. Sometimes the medicines for the seasonal diseases were received when the outbreak of the disease had subsided, and the whole stock had to stored for a whole year. The cost of the medicines had gone up many times but the budget for the purchase of medicines had not been hiked, the sources added.

Mr Naveen Kumar (name changed), a patient, said he was not aware if there was any ayurvedic doctor was practising in the city, so he had to come to the hospital. If medicines were made available free of cost it would be an additional facility for me, he added.

The hospital can receive medicines as donations from various NGOs and social organisations and individuals can also donate medicines to the hospital, but as the people are not aware of this the donations received by the hospital in the terms of medicines are low, a doctor of the hospital said.

The hospital wears a deserted look as the only entry point to the hospital has been turned into dumping ground for garbage and repeated requests to the municipal authorities by the staff of the hospital but in vain.

“If camps and awareness drives were organised the hospital would surely get public support and the medicines would be available to the patients. We are thinking on these lines,” Dr Raj Kumar said.

	Pingalwara coming up in Sangrur Sushil Goyal Tribune News Service Sangrur: Sangrur will have a Pingalwara for more than 200 crippled persons on the Sangrur-Dhuri road here by March-end. A massive building at a cost of Rs 1 crore has been constructed on a 6560-sq yd plot by the All-India Pingalwra Society (regd), Amritsar, under the overall supervision of its patron-president, Dr Inderjit Kaur. Finishing touches are being given nowadays to make the building operational. There are two blocks on the right and left sides of this building. The right block comprises the manager’s room, store, langar, laundry and two rooms for guests on the ground floor. Besides a room for worship two rooms for guests, and wards for patients have been made on the first floor, while on the second floor there are wards for patients and two rooms for guests also. On the left side block besides six wards each on the ground, first and second floors, there is an operation theatre, a doctors’ room, a dispensary, an emergency room and nursing rooms. In the wards on the left and right blocks, 120 and 96 crippled persons, respectively would be accommodated. Besides, an old age home is also under construction in the Pingalwara complex. In this old age complex, priority will be given to those who are able to serve the institution. Two submersible water pumps of 38,000 litre capacity have also been installed in the complex. A generator room has also been made to supply uninterrupted power to the Pingalwara. Five solar lights have also been installed in the complex. Talking to TNS, Mr Trilochan Singh Cheema, Pingalwara Project Officer, said initially cripped persons from the Amritsar Pingalwara would be shifted here. Besides, crippled persons from nearby areas would also be accommodated. This Pingalwara would prove an ideal home for the cripped as it would have all modern facilities. Dr Inderjit Kaur wants to set up a branch of the Pingalwara in each district to serve humanity. She is of the view that the Sangrur Pingalwara should be run by residents of the area. She has also made an appeal to them to come forward to provide foodgrains, medicines, soaps, clothes and other such commodities of daily use for the crippled persons of this Pingalwara. She is also of the view that doctors who want to serve the poor and crippled persons should come forward and put their contribution in this noble cause. Work on the construction of this building was started after the laying of foundation stone by Bhai Ranjit Singh, then Jathedar of Sri Akal Takht, in March 1997. This is the reason that the Pingalwara management has fixed a target to make it operational by next month.
	Rats disturb MC’s slumber Rashmi Talwar Amritsar, February 26 The alarming rate at which the rat population has increased has finally opened the eyes of the corporation. In addition to the lurking fear of plague, the immediate menace created by the sewerage seepage due to the presence of rats has forced the corporation to seek help of private agencies. Consequently, tenders were called to tackle the menace that is threatening to cause havoc with foundations of old buildings in the heart of the city. The sewer is blocked and the water has entered the foundations of many buildings rendering them dangerous and unsafe in addition to causing damage to groundfloor houses. The tender, that eventually went to CT Pest Control Corporation for Rs 2 lakh, is however a half-hearted attempt at tackling the problem. The tender covers only the distribution of cages to residents in a security deposit sans any rat poison. However, hectic deliberations regarding the problem has been going on for nearly seven years before the district grievances committee finally conceded to the demand after thousands of written complaints to the committee headed by the Deputy Commissioner, last year. According to corporation officials, the increase in the population is due to various obvious and religious reasons in addition to the delay and casual approach of the corporation in tackling the matter. Improper food storage has become a perpetual breeding grounds for the pest. While religious sentiments regarding the rat as a ‘vahan’ (vehicle) of God Ganesha has restrained the public from undertaking the killing of rats. Consequently, rats trapped by residents are let off in other areas. Many cases of children and even adults being bitten by rats came to light. Residents keep their lights on for the fear of being bit. Even cases of gas pipe leaks and power wires being cut by the rats is common. Health officials also voice their concern, citing the case of rat fever in a village near Bangalore, which took a toll of nearly 400 persons a few months back. Mr Shanker Tiwari of the CT Pest Control Corporation, lamented the non-cooperative attitude of the residents in procuring the cages. The rats so caught are passed on to the corporation, which in turn carries out their elimination. The areas most affected by the growing menace are the various mandis Tahli Sahib, Darbar Sahib, Alluwala Katra, Partap Bazar, Laxmansar Chowk, Gali Khazana, Gali Hikima, Shastri Market, Hall Bazar, Katra Baggian, Ram Bagh, Jaimal Singh Katra, etc.
	Caste bias has forced them to make brooms Bathinda, February 26 It was the caste discrimination of teachers and society against the residents of Kapassan village of Chittorgarh district in Rajasthan, belonging to the Bhambri caste, which deprived them of education and compelled them to adopt broom-making to earn their livelihood through the generations. The broom makers, who can be seen near Government Rajindra College form morning to evening making and selling brooms, come in the city once in a year. They all belong to the same caste and tribe and spend most of their time in the open. They have permanent houses in Rajasthan but they have to visit different states of the country to sell their brooms. The whole country is their market. What compelled them to take to broom making is caste discrimination by society, particularly the teachers. They move in groups throughout the country and their children also help them in broom making. These children cannot take up another occupations as they feel isolated and marginalised in society, which did not allow them to get education. This makes their future bleak. They travel from Kashmir to Kanya Kumari to find customers for their brooms. It takes only five minutes to prepare one broom and its cost ranges from Rs 5 to Rs 15, according to the size. These brooms are made from the branches of date-palm and are thus durable, cheap and easy to use, they claim. The material for the brooms is purchased from Rajasthan. One branch costs Re 1 and one date-palm tree usually has five branches. The wholesale price of brooms is Rs 350 for 100 pieces. The raw material is costly, but what they earn from their sales is meagre, the broom makers say. Dalulal, broom maker, said that most of the tribe members wanted their children to be educated and become officers but the section of the society to which they belonged did not allow them to reach higher levels. He alleged that they were being discriminated in the village on the basis of their caste and even the teachers did not allow their children to attend classes. Dhanni, wife of Dalulal, while showing her hands said that sometimes they get cut from the branches of date-palm while making the brooms. She added that they were ready to send their children to classrooms if society, particularly teachers, allowed them to.
	Govt bungalows abandoned Chander Parkash Tribune News Service Bathinda: Even as the district administration has been facing an acute shortage of residential accommodation for officials, houses owned by the government have been becoming unsafe for occupation. In the past about 10 years, four bungalows of the Punjab Government meant for senior officials posted here have become unsafe, causing a loss of lakhs of rupees to the government. Unmindful of the plinth level of these bungalows,, the authorities concerned raised the level of the power house road on which these are located, making the premises prone to flooding during the rainy season. These were subsequently abandoned by the Public Works Department. One of the reasons why the condition of the buildings deteriorated was that the necessary maintenance work was not undertaken on a regular basis. The PWD authorities later constructed Ambedkar Bhavan by demolishing two of the houses while the other two are still lying abandoned. The owners of private houses located opposite these have built a wall in front of their gates to stop rain water from entering their premises. Certain residents have also installed pumps in their dwellings to drain out water when the area gets flooded during the monsoon. The district administration has installed a pump, too, for the purpose. Official sources said that at one time the premises of these houses were identified as the best site to construct a BEd college, but the proposal was not implemented. Now PUDA has been asked to make proper use of the land, which is expensive and located in the heart of the city. The premises of the abandoned houses are now being used by people as a dumping ground. Stray animals are also often seen there. Sources said the PWD authorities are trying to press the state government to allow them to construct new bungalows in place of the abandoned ones after raising the plinth level.

	Brick-kiln workers stage dharna Tribune News Service Sangrur, February 26 More than 200 activists of the district unit of the Lal Jhanda Punjab Bhatha Mazdoor Union today took out a protest march through the town and staged a dharna in connection with their demands in front of the office of the Assistant Labour Commissioner (ALC) here. Their demands include the implementation of the Factory Act on brick-kilns, attendance of brick-kiln workers on the registers, health facilities for the workers, arrangements of toilets at the brick-kilns for women workers, etc. Addressing the workers, Mr Tarsem Jodhan, general secretary of the union, announced that about 30,000 brick-kiln workers of the state would gherao the office of the Labour Commissioner, Punjab, in Chandigarh on March 22 to expose the “misdeeds” of the Labour Department and get their demands accepted. Mr Jodhan and Mr Sat Pal Bharti, president of the union, said the union had submitted a memorandum of demands on January 31 last to the ALC for arranging their talks with the brick-kiln owners but to no avail. Those who addressed the workers included Bibi Shaminder Kaur Longowal, senior vice-president of the Democratic Women’s Organisation, Mr Beant Singh and Mr Jagtar Singh, president and secretary, respectively, of the district unit of the Lal Jhanda Punjab Bhatha Mazdoor Union, Mr Major Singh Punnewal, district convener of the Lok Sangharsh Committee, Punjab, and Mr Sher Singh Farwahi.
	Take action against employee: forum Our Correspondent Mansa, February 26 The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum, Mansa, has ordered to initiate appropriate criminal prosecution and departmental action against a Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) employee. The order was passed following a complaint by Mr Pawan Kumar of Mansa against the PSEB in which he had alleged that the board had wrongly added Rs 5040 in the bill issued to him. The PSEB took the stand that on August 14, 2000, during checking the complainant was found using unauthorised load and produced a copy of the checking report. However, the complainant produced the original checking report which was not signed by the official concerned. The forum held that the copy had been forged by the board later on. The forum also ordered to pay a cost of Rs 1,000 to the complainant and directed the board to recover the amount from the official concerned of the board.
	No uniformity in drug prices: IMA Tribune News Service Sangrur, February 26 The Punjab unit of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) has urged the Union Government to chalk out a comprehensive policy to check discrepancies in the price structure of drugs by different companies and the huge difference in the prices of drugs sold to the stockist and the consumer (patient). Dr Surinder Singla, secretary, press and public relations of the association, said here today that this was creating confusion and misunderstanding among doctors and chemists as far as the quality of drugs and their rates were concerned. Dr Singla stated that many drug companies had been earning huge profits, at times more than 1000 per cent of the manufacturing cost, at the cost of the patient. He said though these discrepancies had already been brought to the notice of the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA), no action seemed to have been taken by it for reasons known best to the Union Government, especially the Ministry of Petroleum under which the drug companies worked. He said many companies were printing enhanced rates on drug packs labels in violation of the Drug Price Control Order, 1995. Similar was the case with other drugs like cetrizine (for allergies), nimuslide (for relief of pain and fever), fluconazole (for fungal infections), and amlodipine (to treat high blood pressure). Dr Singla said some companies were selling drugs at higher rates claiming that their products were of standard quality while some sold the same drugs at lower prices claiming that in view of the interests of the poor, they preferred to keep their product “economical”. Dr Singla said another point of concern was the huge difference in rates of a drug in its generic form and the brand form. Giving an example, he said ciprofloxacin (500 mg) in its generic form was available at Rs 15 per 10 tablets while the same was available at Rs 40 to Rs 80 per 10 tablets in the branded form. Similar was the case with other drugs of common use like cetrizine. Dr Singla demanded that the Union Government introduced a legislation to ensure quality drugs.
	SDM’s complaint awaits action Tribune News Service Maur Mandi, February 26 What will be the plight of the common man in Punjab can be judged from the fact that the local police authorities have failed to register a case on the request of the SDM, Talwandi Sabo, Mr Sukhminder Singh, even 10 days after he was manhandled by a municipal councillor, Mr Nirmal Singh, on February 16 when the elections for the posts of president and vice-president of the council were conducted. Official sources said the SDM moved a complaint to the SHO here on February 16 seeking legal action against Mr Nirmal Singh, who apart from manhandling him also tore apart the ballot papers while the election process was going on. Mr Sukhminder Singh was injured while he was trying to prevent the snatching of ballot papers by Mr Nirmal Singh. The SDM postponed the elections and reported the matter to the Deputy Commissioner, Mr Jaspal Singh. The elections were held on the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The incident took place despite the fact that the district police authorities had made elaborate arrangements for security and nobody was allowed to move within that area where the election process was going on. Mr R.S. Bhullar, SP, and Mr R.S. Chahal, DSP, was manning the security arrangements. After the postponement of the elections, seven municipal councillors moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court and succeeded in getting proper security arrangements for themselves till March 1. The new date for the elections had been fixed on February 28. Mr Sukhminder Singh, when contacted, said he had reported the matter to Deputy Commissioner on the same day. A formal complaint was made to the DSP, Talwandi Sabo, and the SHO, police station, Maur Mandi, seeking legal action against Mr Nirmal Singh. Mr Jaspal Singh, Deputy Commissioner, when contacted, said that the complaint had been sent to SHO. Dr Jatinder Kumar Jain, SSP, said no formal application in this connection had been received by him. Sources at the police station, Maur Mandi, said the complaint of the SDM had been sent to the Assistant District Attorney for his legal opinion on it.
	Dalit girls married Our Correspondent Bathinda, February 26 A group marriage of five Dalit girls was organised at Chack Fateh Singh Wala village, about 20 km from here, yesterday. The function was organised at the residence of Mr Inderjit Singh, Sarpanch of the village, and the religious ceremonies were performed at his residence. Mr Jatinder Jain, SSP, Mr Jaspal Singh, Deputy Commissioner, and the panches and sarpanches of the area were present to bless the newly weds. The dalit girls of the village who tied the nuptial knot today included Ms Rajwinder Kaur, now wife of Mr Sikandar Singh, Ms Karamjit Kaur (Jasbir Singh), Ms Mahahan Kaur (Mr Charan Singh) Ms Karamjit Kaur (Mr Teja Singh) and Ms Veerpal Kaur (Mr Amrit Pal Singh). Mr Balbir Singh local MLA claimed that cheques under the shagun scheme had been given to the newly weds on the spot. A launch was organised for the families of the new couples and the band party of the Punjab police played musical notes for them on the occassion.
	Rights body flay DC’s ‘behaviour’ Our Correspondent Bathinda, February 26 The district unit of the Democratic Rights Society (DRS) has condemned the alleged irresponsible behaviour of Mr Jaspal Singh, Deputy Commissioner, Bathinda, with a member of the ‘Save Old Hospital’ committee when it had gone to meet him in the recent past. Mr Bagga Singh, president local unit of the DRS, in a press note issued here today alleged that it was not proper on the part of an officer of this cadre to misbehave with a member of a committee working for some cause. Mr Satpal Goyal, secretary, DRS, said the society opposes the decision of shifting the hospital as it was not in the larger interest of people.
	Protest against GATT Our Correspondent Bhucho Mandi, February 26 Activists of the Sarbh Sanjha GATT Virodhi Morcha, Bathinda, yesterday staged a dharna at the local railway station and stopped a special train meant for Bathinda cantonment. The activists, who also held a demonstration, were led by Mr Kartar Singh Lali, convener of the morcha. Mr Lali, while talking to mediapersons, said agriculture and industry of the country would be badly affected when quantitative restrictions under the GATT agreement were removed. He demanded that there should be a provision that the countries exporting goods to India should impose no restriction on the movement of manpower also. The Indian labour should find chance to work in foreign countries and all visa and travel-related restrictions be removed. The outstanding loans on public should be written off and only then imported items should be allowed to be sold in the local market. Mr Lali said as profit margins and prices of commodities would decrease, people would find it very difficult to repay loans, he added.

BUSINESS

Hosiery, cycle units seek protection
By Sarbjit Singh
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, February 26
What the Union Minister, Mr Yashwant Sinha, has in store (Budget) for the hosiery and cycle manufacturers here? This question is hotly debated by the manufacturers these days.

“We don’t have a lobby at the national level to make Mr Sinha incorporate benefits for the hosiery and cycle industry”, say the manufacturers. Certainly, this city is the largest producer of hosiery goods and cycle parts.

Hosiery and cycle industry, which is facing a big challenge from countries like Taiwan, South Korea and China, desperately wants “protection” from the Union Government at the moment. While enforcing the various aspects of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) no one took us into confidence and neither any information was passed on to us by the Union Government. And now when cheap goods have started flooding the country, panic buttons have been pressed by all.

Manufacturers here say before implementing the WTO regime, the Union Government should have provided enough funds for the upgradation of machinery and cut duties on the raw material to compete with the productions coming from abroad. But this was not done and consequently the entire industry was facing a big threat.

Mr Vinod Thapar, President of the Knitwear Club, said the club members wanted that the Government should bring down the custom duty to zero on the machinery import. With the induction of the modern machinery, local manufacturer could compete to some extent at the international level.

Giving instance of Bangladesh in this connection, Mr Thapar said Bangladesh did not charge any duty on the import of machinery and because of this, it had started establishing its foothold in the international garments market. The 20 per cent income tax on the revenue from exports should also be abolished, he said.

Mr Jiwan Dhavan, Chairman of the Modinagar Hosiery Manufacturers Association, here said the excise duty should only be levied on production base and non on “chamber” base. He said though many chambers in factories remain closed for a long period in a year but their owners had to pay duty in lakhs of rupees.

There should be a provision in the Budget to extend financial support for modernisation of the manufacturing units. It would take three to four years to the industry to understand the good and bad affects of the WTO, he added. He said the various duties on raw material should be cut. While in India, polyester yarn to manufacturers was available at Rs 105 per kg, in foreign countries the same yarn was available for Rs 60 a kg, he said.

Mr D.S. Chawla, President of the United Cycle and Parts Manufacturers Association, said because of non-availability of quality raw material like plastic and alloy, the local cycle manufacturers were unable to produce fancy bicycles for the younger generation. It produces bicycles for kids from the same material which was used to manufacture common bicycle.