P U N J A B

Top stories | Community

Agriculture | Crime | Education

TOP STORIES

VB turns down Sukhbir’s plea
Tells him to appear on October 6
Chandigarh, October 4
While Rajya Sabha member, Sukhbir Badal has asked the Punjab Vigilance Bureau to visit his official residence at Delhi for his questioning, the bureau has retorted in a letter that he was an accused and cannot make choices and dictate terms as regards the place of questioning.

Badal calls PAC meeting on October 10
Chandigarh, October 4
The Shiromani Akali Dal President, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, has convened an emergency meeting of the Political Affairs Committee of his party on October 10. It will be held at 11.00 am at his residence here to discuss measures to oppose the government’s “tyarrnical oppression” of the Amarinder government against the farmers.

Fear of police keeps mourners away from Gurdev’s house
Maur Charat Singhwala (Bathinda), October 4
The terror unleashed by men in uniform has allegedly affected the mourning over the death of an elderly farmer, Gurdev Singh, who died when a goods train hit him while he was sitting in dharna at Bhai Bakhtaur level crossing on September 30 during the ‘rail and rasta roko’ agitation of various farmer organisations.

Congress MP Jagmeet Brar and senior Congress leaders Vijay Sathi and Manjeet Singh Charbuti express their sympathies the bereaved family of Gurdev Singh on Saturday. — Photo by Kulbir Beera

Farmers’ body decries police lathicharge
Hoshiarpur, October 4
The Bharatiya Kisan Sangh Punjab condemned police lathi charge and killing of a farmer. Gurdev Singh, State President of the BKS, Mr Ram Kishan Thakur, Secretary, Mr Swarn Singh, Organising Secretary, Mr Janak Raj Mahajan, Joint Secretary, in a joint press statement stated that the organisation had decided to extend support to the kisan organisations and demands of the farmers.

Sikhs want bigger jathas to Pak
Chandigarh, October 4
Various Sikh organisations have urged the Union Government to allow bigger Sikh jathas to Pakistan on the occasion of the coming birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev.

Protests mark shooting of ‘Bride and Prejudice’
Aishwarya shoots in ‘old house’ amid security Amritsar, October 4 Protests marked the first day of shooting by Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai on the sets of Indo-British production “Bride and Prejudice” here today. Activists of the Bajrang Dal and the Vishva Hindu Parishad burnt the effigy and shouted slogans against film director Gurinder Chadda in the busy Hall Bazaar area, protesting against the shooting here.
Activists of the Bajrang Dal and the VHP burn the effigy of film director Gurinder Chadda in Amritsar on Saturday. — Photo by Rajiv Sharma

COMMUNITY

Federation vows not to allow Sikh conference
Amritsar, October 4
The Sikh Students Federation today announced that it won’t allow the supporters of excommunicated Sikh Gurbax Singh Kala Afghana to hold the proposed World Sikh Conference in Chandigarh on October 26.

Lions Club team crosses over to Pak Wagah (Amritsar), October 4 “Expenditure on the treatment of as many as 100 Pakistani children will be borne by the international association of Lions Clubs” Mr Ashok Mehta, international vice-president of the club, announced today while crossing over to Pakistan at the Indo-Pak joint checkpost here today.
A nine-member delegation led by Ashok Mehta, vice-president, International Association of Lions Clubs, at Wagah in Amritsar on Saturday . — PTI photo

Social Front’s ultimatum to Badal on pigeon scam
Hoshiarpur, October 4
The Socialist Front Punjab has given an ultimatum to Mr Parkash Singh Badal, Former Punjab Chief Minister to come clean on pigeon scam up to November, 2003, failing which the front will expose SAD (B) and SGPC officials involved in this scandal.

BJP for judicial probe into police firing
Jalandhar, October 4
While rejecting the magisterial inquiry report into the killing of Vijay Kumar, a Dalit youth, in police firing at Buta Mandi here on June 5, the Punjab unit of the BJP today demanded that the Punjab Government should order a judicial probe to unmask the faces of senior police officials who were allegedly responsible for unprovoked firing on agitating Dalits.

MP pulls up Public Health Dept officers
Ropar, October 4
Mr Shamsher Singh Dullo, MP and chairman of the district Vigilance and Management Committee for Centre-sponsored schemes, has pulled up officers of the Public Health Department for not taking into confidence elected representatives while planning to implement rural water supply schemes.

Registration body for all systems of medicine demanded
Sangrur, October 4
The Association for Scientific Research in Homoeopathy asked the Punjab Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh, to dissolve all medical councils, namely the Homoeopathy Council, the Ayurvedic Council, the Nursing Council, the Pharmacy Council, and the Punjab Medical Council immediately.

PCL to be revamped
Bathinda, October 4
Mr Kulbir Singh Sidhu, a senior Congress leader and newly-appointed Chairman of Punjab Communication Limited today said PCL would be revamped to make it stand on its own feet in the competitive world.

Seminar on Guru Angad begins
Tarn Taran, October 4
On the first day of the two-day seminar dedicated to the 500th birth anniversary celebrations of the second Sikh Guru, Sri Guru Angad Dev Ji, organised today, papers were read by four Sikh scholars on the life of the Guru and that of the township the Khadoor Sahib.

Repair work on ‘samadh’ begins Amritsar, October 4 The repair work on the “samadh” of Sardar Jassa Singh Ahluwalia started on war footing here today. The kar seva began in the presence of Baba Jagtar Singh, a member of Sultan-ul-Qaum Sardar Jassa Singh Ahluwalia Memorial Society, Punjab. The boundary wall under construction at the “samadh” of Sardar Jassa Singh Ahluwalia in Amritsar on Saturday. — Photo by Rajiv Sharma

Mann threatens stir on SYL issue
Amritsar, October 4
Mr Simranjit Singh Mann, president of the SAD (Amritsar), today threatened to launch an agitation against the Central Government with regard to the completion of the SYL canal. Talking to newspersons here today, he said the state did not have extra water for any other state.

Musharraf's effigy burnt
Jalandhar, October 4
Activists of the All-India Anti-Terrorist Front burnt the effigy of Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf and Pakistan's national flag at the municipal corporation chowk here today.

Demand to declare rabies a notified disease
Amritsar, October 4
The association for Prevention and Control of Rabies in India urged the Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare to declare rabies a ”notifiable” disease. Dr Ashok Goel, secretary general of the association, who returned from Kathmandu after a three-day international conference on rabies demanded this at a seminar.

Outbreak of dengue feared
Amritsar, October 4
The fear of dengue and other water-borne diseases looms large in the city and suburbs but the Municipal Corporation and the Health Department here are alleged to be not taking preventive measures.

Furniture worth lakhs destroyed
Nabha, October 4
Furniture worth lakhs of rupees was destroyed in two separate incidents of fire in the town. Fire broke out in a furniture house on Cinema Road at about 2.30 am. Local people tried to control it but it engulfed the whole building within minutes.

• Scholar Diwan Singh dead

• Sena sets up poll panel

• Film on ’84 riots screened

• Flag march held in city

Farmers urged to sow oilseeds, cotton
Mansa, October 4
Dr Ajmer Singh, Director, Agriculture Department, Punjab, while addressing an agriculture training camp held here yesterday, stressed the need of crop diversification. He said due to the continuous sowing of paddy and wheat, the water level had gone down and 84 of the 136 blocks in the state were facing acute water shortage.

• Kisan Mela tomorrow

Man pushes father-in-law into canal, showers bullets
Moga, October 4
Upset over his father-in-law’s decision to give away his property to his daughter, a man pushed him into a canal and later showered bullets on him injuring him critically in Muktsar district, the police said today.

Chemist murder case solved
Jalalabad, October 4
The local police claims to have solved the murder case of a chemist, Pawan Kumar, who was killed at his shop before being looted on August 28. Two of the three accused involved in the crime have been arrested.

Gang of cheats busted
Gurdaspur, October 4
The police has busted a gang of cheats who allegedly purchased trucks from the state of Himachal Pradesh and sold them with forged registration numbers and chassis numbers.

Youths attacked with swords
Jalandhar, October 4
Two youths were attacked and injured in broad daylight by a group of youths at the Mota Singh market here today. Some youths were waiting in the market and attacked Kuljit Singh of Model Town when he came to the market along with his friend Sarbjit to return a loan of Rs 2000 to another youth.

Policeman shoots self
Sangrur, October 4
Rala Singh, a special police officer posted at the CIA staff office at Bahadur Singhwala village, near Dhuri, today allegedly committed suicide by shooting himself with a rifle.

EDUCATION

New transfer policy for Punjab teachers
Moga, October 4
The Punjab Education Department has finalised a new transfer policy for teachers as part of its two-tier programme to improve education and achieve universalisation of elementary education in the state by 2010.

Global meet at Pbi varsity
Patiala, October 4
In order to discuss and to throw light on the aspects of cytology and genetics, an international conference on “Emerging Trends in Plant Chromosome Research” is being held from October 8 to 11, 2003 at the Department of Botany, Punjabi University, Patiala.

Ban vulgar programmes, urge students
Moga, October 4
The All-India Sikh Students Federation has taken exception to the vulgarity on television channels, saying that such types of programmes were a threat to the country’s cultural heritage.

‘Punjab Vision-2000’ seminar on Oct 27
Chandigarh, October 4
A seminar, “Punjab Vision 2020’’, which was to be held on October 6 at Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, has been postponed. It was being organised by the Young Legislators’ Forum, Punjab.