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A day of protests...
Ludhiana, February 25 The protest was organised on a call given by the confederation and after service of one month’s ultimatum upon the Punjab Government. About 1,000 pensioners participated in the dharna/rally. They lambasted the state government for its apathy and callous attitude towards their just demands based on the Punjab Fourth Pay Commission’s recommendations made in Part-III of its report. The rallyists handed over a charter of demands to the Deputy Commissioner for transmission to the authorities concerned. The memorandum includes merger of existing 50 per cent of dearness relief into basic pension; rescinding of instructions on Pension Commutation calculations with regard to retirees of July 31, 2003 and thereafter; Constitution of Pensioners State Advisory Committee, as per the Punjab government notification of January 7, 2000, and implementation of poll-eve promises contained in the manifesto and acceptance of the recommendations of the Punjab Fourth Pay Commission. The pensioners flayed the government for not inviting the representatives of the Confederation for negotiation and settlement of their demands, despite repeated written representations since the government came into power over two years ago. Prominent among those who spoke on the occasion were Mr B.R. Kaushal, state President, Mr Mohinder Singh Parwana, general secretary, Capt Avtar Singh, patron of the confederation, Mr Vishnu Datt Sharma, secretary-general, Himachal Pensioners Kalyan Sangh, Col H.S. Kahlon, Col Bhag Singh of ex-servicemen, Mr Kalyan Singh Panchi of the Municipal Corporation, Capt Avtar Singh, Mr Raj Pal Sharma of Sangrur, Principal Baldev Singh Dhaliwal of Mansa, Mr B.S. Gatum of Patiala, Basant Singh Raju of Muktsar and Mr Kirpal Singh of Amritsar. The demonstrators resolved to intensify their struggle if the government did not listen to their voice. |
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Hit by price rise, steel consumers go on
fast
Ludhiana, February 25 Other associations have also been expressing concern over the rising steel prices and apathy of the government towards the problem of the small-scale sector which uses steel as its main raw material. These include the Chamber of Industrial and Commercial Undertakings (CICU), Apex Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ludhiana Focal Point Sheds Manufacturers Association and other organisations. Speakers at the dharna blamed both the Bharatiya Janta Party and Congress for their apathy towards the small-scale industry. They pointed out that while the government was leaving no stone unturned to offer sops to the middle class and farmers, who constituted a massive vote bank, it had forgotten the small-scale industry. The speakers particularly mentioned that while the government was going all out to help the big industry, it did not seem to think anything about the small industry which is the mainstay of the country’s economy. They said, even the opposition Congress had not be able to come to their rescue. Mr Jain said the fast would continue till Saturday. If the government did not concede their demands and initiate any remedial measures, they would call for a bandh across the state. He regretted that it was surprising that while the domestic industry was dying for steel and getting it on expensive rates, large producers were exporting the same to China at cheaper prices. The striking industrialists demanded a total ban on the export of iron and steel from the country. They also sought withdrawal of the export incentives and income tax benefit on the export of steel. On the other hand, they demanded that the government should substantially reduce the import duty on steel and iron scrap without delay if it wanted to save the small-scale industry. The president of the CICU, Mr Inderjit Singh Pradhan, and general secretary, Mr Avtar Singh, said the continuous hike in the prices of steel had disturbed the engineering industry in the small-scale sector. They disclosed that the rates of HR coils had gone up to Rs 30,000 per tonne, CR strips to Rs 25,500, HR plates to Rs 26,000, MS rounds to Rs 25,000 and sponge iron to Rs 17,000 per tonne. They pointed out, the prices have gone up by almost 100 per cent as compared to June 2003 and there appeared to be no end to it as the government was watching as a silent spectator while the industry was on the verge of closure. |
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Stone laying becomes a bone of
contention
Ludhiana, February 25 Addressing a press conference here today, Mr Bains also contested the claim of the minister that he had provided funds for the project from his discretionary quota. He threw a challenge to Mr Birmi to prove if he had allocated any funds for any development work in Ward No 24 during his tenure so far. Senior leaders of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Mann), including its vice-president and former MP, Mr Dhian Singh Mand, the general secretary, Mr Chanarn Singh Lohara, the president, Mr Jaswinder Singh Bains, the general secretary of the Youth Wing of the party, Mr Jagbir Singh Sokhey, and another party councillor, Ms Sunita Rani, served an ultimatum on the City Mayor and the MC administration in this regard. They have demanded to put an end to the alleged highhandedness and discrimination on political grounds and take remedial steps within one week, failing which the party would organise a protest dharna at the camp office of the MC Commissioner on March 5. The councillor further observed that it was not for the first time that the ruling party functionaries, including ministers and legislators, had resorted to such tactics in a bid to draw political mileage. In a similar incident, he (Mr Bains), along with the party councillor from Ward No. 29, Ms Sunita Rani, had laid the foundation stone for a sewerage project in December last, but on the same day, the Local Bodies Minister, Choudhry Jagjit Singh, and the Congress MLA, Mr Malkiat Singh Dakha, laid another foundation stone for the same project. In another incident, Mr Dakha laid foundation stone for a road project in Ward No 29 on February 22, although the area councillor, Ms Sunita Rani, had already laid the stone for that project in the morning on the same day. Mr Bains maintained that the issue of such treatment with councillors belonging to opposition parties at the hands of ruling party functionaries was raised on the floor of the general house of the MC. The Mayor, Mr Nahar Singh Gill, had assured that this would not happen and foundations stones of development projects would be laid either by the area councillors concerned or by any other dignitary in consultation with the councillors. The leaders further said while their party councillor was in touch with the councillors of other opposition parties to requisition the general house meeting of the MC in near future, they would also lodge a formal complaint with the state government and the Election Commission. |
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Ex-cadet held in finance racket
Ludhiana, February 25 The city police claimed that Samnui Kumar, who was arrested a couple of days after the murder of Anil Sharma, alias Lalla, was the key man in the crime. The modus operandi was to lure persons, including big businessmen, into taking loans on easy instalments and low interest. When the persons got trapped the instalments and the interest rate swelled. According to the SSP, Mr Narinder pal Singh, a police team led by SI Tehal Singh recovered property documents of 16 persons, a Tata Safari, a Tata Indica car, two motorcycles and two scooters. He disclosed that the vehicles belonged to the victims
of the racket run by the suspect from his shop Deep Tour and Travels, near Luxmi Cinema. Musclemen were also used to force trapped people to part with their property in case they failed to pay back the money. Danny had worked for sometime in Delhi and then shifted his base to Ludhiana.
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Online catalogue for
PAU library
Ludhiana, February 25 While the process of creating an online catalogue is still on, information about over 1,000 titles of books and journals available in the library has already been made available on the website. The main page of the site has ‘online catalogue’ option. When clicked, it opens a box where one can search for any book or journal by the name of author, keyword, publisher or title and details of the physical description of the book, along with the accession number. The university has also recently begun the task of digitalising the thesis of MSc and PhD students. Mr S.C. Uppal, Chief Librarian, said almost half of the work had been completed and the rest would be finished soon. He said the library had sought the help of Punjab Technical University for the accomplishment of the task. Mr Uppal said the university had also tied up with the Information and Library Network Centre, an autonomous inter-university centre of the University Grants Commission, for installation of a software for helping users in getting access to the latest research projects being undertaken by the various universities in India. Mr Uppal said the university had also purchased a CDH server with the help of which 1,000 diskettes could be inserted in the hard disc. The new server has been purchased at a cost of Rs 2 lakh. Mr Uppal said while earlier the department authorities had to make a request to the library to get access to the material, now all departments would get a password which would these in getting any during working hours. The library has also subscribed to J-gate online service and indiastat.com, besides all its sector specific associate sites. These offer access to the database of research articles from more than 7,000 journals, updated every week. Mr Uppal said the paid site provided statistical information about India through the Internet. |
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Traffic lights in the city continue to play truant. It has become a routine that one or the other traffic lights is out of order, causing chaos at road crossings. It has become a common scene to see the green and red light at the same time. The problem has been highlighted several times but to no avail. At Bharat Nagar Chowk and Bhai Bala Chowk, one can see both red and green light on at the same time. The commuters are often confused and fail to understand whether to stop at the chowk or move. Younger Akalis The “Chetna rally” organised by the Youth Akali Dal at Bhanor last week has transformed the image of the Akali Dal into a party of the youth. But most people find it hard to digest the new look of the Akali leader. What comes in mind is the image of an old man with a blue turban and white flowing beard. But the Akalis have wowed that the new look of the Akali Dal will have their leader as a smart and dynamic young man with a neatly tied turban and jet black beard, someone who could easily go for the ‘turbunator’ competition.
Gold furniture For all those wanting to buy something exquisite, Fourth Dimensions of Delhi has announced that it will bring its furniture curved out in gold to the city later this week. Exclusively crafted furniture in pure gold and precious stones from the Victorian era would be on sale at the Majestic Plaza on the weekend. Carved by master artisans, wrapped in pure silk, each piece by the Fourth Dimension will be a collector’s item. ‘Kochhar A. Show’, as the exhibition is being called, will fill Ludhiana drawing rooms of the city’s crème de la crème with classical English furniture.
Dubious weather The sudden change in weather has caught many people off guard. Those who thought that they were ready to shed their woollens have learnt a hard lesson after catching a chill. Change of weather has been particularly harsh on the elderly and toddlers, many of whom have suffered due to haste. The young ar,e however, more adventurous in taking off their woollies. No wonder one finds the youngsters making a beeline for cotton clothing, while there are hardly any takers for jackets and pullovers.
Tricky ticket The announcement of a ticket for Mr Sharanjit Singh Dhillon by the Shiromni Akali Dal by the party high command has sent a wave of jubilation among the youth wing of the party. But happier than the Akali workers are the Congress leaders in the city, who feel that this choice will make the task of Congress leaders in deciding a nominee easier. While the Akalis claim that they are well placed on this seat, the Congress leadership says that they are very thankful to the almighty for making their task of retaining the seat easier. Only time will tell whose claims are more authentic.
Yoga fad Suddenly the young and the old alike in the city have taken to yoga. Yoga teachers all of a sudden find themselves in the ‘most wanted’ list. The young and the old struggling at a yoga class to get a better seat only indicated the level of interest this ancient art of healing has evoked among the city’s health conscious. As if the city-based yoga teachers are not able to fulfil the desire of the people to learn yoga, the city has invited Swami Ram Dev to hold a camp on yogic healing in the first week of April.
Shoes stolen It is quite common that a good pair of shoes get stolen outside religious places but what was amazing that a brand new pair of expensive Hush Puppies by Bata got stolen from outside Emergency of Hero Heart Centre. A well known doctor whose mother was admitted in Emergency for over two months and was a frequent visitor to the Emergency and he was more than zapped when he discovered that his new pair of Hush Puppies were gone within a few minutes while he was inside Emergency. Some other visitor had smartly walked away with his brand new pair and left his shabby shoes in the rack outside the emergency. The visitors are supposed to wear slippers provided by the hospital for maintaining hygiene. That the shoes got stolen caused quite a commotion as the people visit emergency to meet critically ill people and during that time to steal shoes rather speaks volumes of lack of finer human emotions.
Pressure The other day a man, in his forties, came to a local newspaper office to insert an advertisement which said that he had disowned his wife who was no more concerned with his movable or immovable property. After paying for the ad he went back only to return after two three days with a bandaged arm. When the staff asked him the purpose of his visit he said that he wanted to withdraw the advertisement. He could not hide the reason as he said that he was beaten up by the brothers of his wife who were unhappy at his decision. So he inserted another advertisement saying that his earlier advertisement stands cancelled as it was out of some pressure.
Helping hands In the busy world of today, no one has time to stop and lend a helping hand to a person in need. But children untouched by worldly materialism (see picture) find time to not only help but carry along one’s friends with great patience, but also take pleasure in it.They help even if they might get into trouble with the elders. It is heartening to note that still in this busy, selfish world, children have retained their innocence and share a feeling of great comradeship through situations sticky or otherwise. The adults could take a lesson from it.
Be kind to ill people In our country it is considered important to visit sick people even if one has to travel a distance. Not only do the relatives troupe in large numbers to inquire after the health of an ill person, but expect to be taken to shopping too. The whole exercise proves to be burdensome to the hosts but certain customs like inquiring after the health of the sick is considered important much to the chagrain of the family members of the patient.
Cricket versus studies The cricket mania in the city is set to reach feverish pitch with the onset of the Indo-Pak cricket series. One remembers how the city residents celebrated India’s victory over their arch rivals in the last World Cup. There was a Divali like atmosphere. But the main participants of such festivities-the youngsters- may not be a part of such entertainment, courtesy the clashing of cricket interest with the necessary examinations. March and April is the month of examination but this time the cricket matches and that too between India and Pakistan are taking place in this season. And the parents of students are going to have a tough time in keeping their children away from TV sets.
Tailpiece Thanks to the printer’s devil a 28 year old boy’s age was mentioned as 128 years in a matrimonial advertisement much to the chagrin of the parents. The error was, however, corrected in the next edition of the newspaper. |
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2 more elevated roads for
city
Ludhiana, February 25 This was stated by Mr Malkiat Singh Birmi, Minister of State for Jails and Urban Development, here today while addressing a function at Sunet village in ward No. 43. He was here to launch a project for the pavement of streets and drains at a cost of Rs 1.25 crore. The minister stated that the first elevated road would be constructed from the octroi post on the Ferozepore road to the Sherpur chowk near Saini Motors. The second road would start from a site near the petrol station on the Chandigarh road and merge with the elevated road under construction near Bhadaur House. The feasibility of extending the elevated road, already under construction, to the petrol station across the Jalandhar bypass chowk was also being studied. After the completion of the elevated road projects, subways and underpasses at the busy inter-sections will be constructed in the second phase of the project. Mr Birmi further observed that with a view to improving the facilities and security arrangement in jails another MoU was slated to be signed with another Malaysian multinational company for the construction of two new modern jails at Nabha and Kapurthala at a cost of Rs 150 crore. The city Mayor, Mr Nahar Singh Gill, MC Commissioner S. K. Sharma and the area councillor, Mr K.L. Chhabra , were also present on the occasion. |
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PAU flower show contest winners
Ludhiana, February 25 Contests for fresh and dry flower arrangements, cut flowers, flower ornaments, potted plants and bonsai plants were held in which many school and college students, owners of private nurseries and other government and semi-government institutions participated. Prizes to the winners were given away by Dr K.S. Aulakh, Vice-Chancellor of the university. In the above-15 category open for school students, Anuradha Kapoor of DAV Public School won the first prize in fresh flower as well as dry flower arrangements. In the below-15 category, Harpreet Kaur won the first prize in fresh flower arrangement while Parampreet Singh won the prize in dry flower arrangement. In the third category, open to government and private institutes and nurseries, Ranjana from DD Jain College won the first prize for fresh flower arrangement and Saninder Kaur of Guru Nanak Girls’ College won the prize for dry flower arrangement. In cut-flower competition, the prize winners were Ram Sanjeevan for aster, Nishant Jain for carnation and rose, Preetinder for Dahlia, Malwa Central College for gladiolus, Anju Singh for gerbera and lilium, Pripal Kaur for pansy, stock, salvia and sweet william. In the contest for flower ornaments, Megha won a prize for button holes, Shruti Jain for flower bouquet, Hunda for garlands, Raman Aggarwal for bracelet, Rupali Aggarwal for ear rings and Anju Singh for hair rings. |
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Rs 50,000 for animal birth
control
Ludhiana, February 25 The DC said this amount had been given to the PFA for sterilisation, vaccination against rabies and de-worming of stray dogs in the city. He handed over a cheque for Rs 50,000 to Mr Rahey Shyam Gupta, Chief Adviser, Mr Sandeep K. Jain, president and Mr Ajay Jain, general secretary, PFA. Giving details about the programme, Mr Gupta said stray dogs would be picked from different localities, sterilised and vaccinated at PFA’s shelter at Khwajke village. The sterilised animals will be notched on the ears after operation for identification. Dogs picked from one locality would be sent back after healing. |
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Goods destroyed in factory fire
Khanna, February 25 According to information, a neighbour saw the fire in the factory and informed the fire brigade station. Two fire tenders from Khanna and Mandi Gobindgarh were pressed in to service under the supervision of Sub Fire Officer, Khanna , Mr Sawarn Singh. It started when bags of wood wool used in cooler pads caught fire. |
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Striking workers try to manhandle scribes
Ludhiana, February 25 They tried to snatch his camera. A similar incident occurred with another photo-journalist in the evening near the Sherpur police post. |
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Man held with
pistol
Ludhiana, February 25 2 booked for fraud The division No. 7 police on Tuesday registered a case under various sections of the IPC on the statement of Mr Jagjit Singh, who lives opposite Jain Hospital on the Chandigarh road, against Rohit Jain and his father Swatantar Jain, who are partners in an industrial unit located in industrial area A. The complainant had stated that the Jains had purchased two cars worth Rs 16 lakh from him. But the cheque bounced. The complainant further stated that the two got the vehicles registered in their names on the basis of forged documents. he added that when he pestered them for payment they threatened him.
Cases of theft The Salem Tabri police on Tuesday registered a case under Sections 457 and 380 of the IPC on the statement of Mr Piara Lal of Aman Nagar against certain person(s), who broke into his house on the night of February 23 and decamped with an LPG cylinder and gas stove. The Model Town police registered a case under Section 379 of the IPC on Tuesday on the statement of Mr Ravinder Singh of Model Town against Gulzar Singh of Mohalla New Ashok Nagar on the Jassian Road. The complainant had alleged that the latter had stolen his Hero Honda motorcycle. The Haibowal police registered a case under Sections 454 and 380 of the IPC on Tuesday on the statement of Mr Gaya Parshad of Bank Colony against Pressu, who lives in a slum near Chand Cinema. The complainant had alleged that the latter had stolen some utensils and other household goods valued at Rs 6,000. The police said it had recovered the goods. The division No. 4 police has registered a case under Section 411 of the IPC against Rajiv Kumar of Chander Nagar from whose possession a Bajaj Chetak scooter was recovered.
Beaten The Haibowal police on Tuesday registered a case under various sections of the IPC on the statement of Mr Mohinder Singh of Rishi Nagar in Haibowal Khurd against Rajinder Kumar. The complainant had alleged that the accused had stopped him on way and beat him up
Injured The division No. 7 police on Tuesday registered a case under various sections of the IPC on the statement of Mr Sukhdev Singh of New Colony on the Rahon road against Hardeep Singh of Baba Jeewan Singh Nagar on the Tajpur road. The complainant had stated that Hardeep, who was driving a truck, hit a Tata 407 vehicle being driven by injuring him. |
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Three booked for rape
Sahnewal, February 25 The victim is admitted to the Civil Hospital here. The Victim (26), a resident of Ghulal village, has alleged that she had taken her brother’s son for an outing in the evening when she was forcibly put into a car by Sauraj Kaka and a third person and taken to a lonely place and raped. A case has been registered at the Sahnewal police station under Sections 376, 366 and 34 of the IPC. |
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Cash, goods stolen from
shop
Khanna, February 25 According to information available, some thieves entered the shop, Jeevan TV Centre, through the roof. They took away Rs 6,000 in cash, one colour TV, five CD players and some irons. The owner of the shop said the goods had been unloaded in the shop the same day. A case has been registered. |
Private bus operators suffer
losses
Ludhiana, February 25 While the government has provided relief to all sectors in the state, the bus operators have been left out. Interestingly, a number of legislators and ministers are themselves transporters. But even they have not been able to get any relief for themselves. Mr Fateh Singh Libra, the managing director of Libra Bus Service, said during the past five years, the prices of diesel had more than doubled, while the bus fare had remained almost the same. Added to this was the problem of unauthorised vehicles operated by the Punjab Roadways, Haryana Roadways and the Chandigarh Transport Undertaking. He said while the CTU had only about six or seven permits for the Ludhiana-Chandigarh route, the number of buses being operated by it ware several times more than that. Similar was the case with the Haryana Roadways. “It has less than 10 permits for the Delhi-Katra route, while it is plying about 50 buses on that route,” he added. Besides loss to private bus operators, it has also been causing losses to the state exchequer. The state-owned corporations pay entry tax in proportion to the permits allowed to them and not in accordance with the buses being plied, he said. Referring to the diesel prices, he said in 1999, diesel was priced at Rs 9.68 per litre, today it was Rs 22.50 per litre. Against this, the bus fare in 1999 was 36 paise per km which is 42 paise per km now. Moreover, the bus operators had to pay toll tax also. Even if they run buses for 40 km they have to pay toll tax for 100 km, he said. The bus operators have no joint forum that could pursue their case with the government. It is learnt that not a single representation has been jointly made to the government so far by any of the transporters’ unions. |
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Markfed to export potatoes
Khanna, February 25 This was stated by Mr Charan Jit Singh Channi, Managing-Director of Markfed, while addressing mediapersons during a press conference at the local Markfed Vanaspati unit here today. The press conference was also addressed by Mr Harminder Singh Jassi, Chairman Markfed. Mr Channi highlighting the achievements of Markfed, said it had got two certificates: Haccp, a globalisation certificate and ISO-9001 for the vanaspati unit Mr Khanna. He said the loss to Markfed which was Rs 11 crore four year ago, has been brought down to Rs 1 crore this year. He said the losses have been suffered by Markfed because it has to complete with sales-tax exempted units. But now Markfed had started manufacturing from sales-tax exempted units to cover its losses. Mr Jassi, Chairman, Markfed, said the Khanna vanaspati unit would manufacture special oil for use of bakery products. He said Markfed would get a grant of Rs 281 crore for the development of a cold storage chain. Markfed was planning to export brown onions, for which farmers has been registered. |
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