J A L A N D H A R

MC to construct three more flyovers in city
Lease period of Clock Tower extended to 30 years
Jalandhar, December 7
To keep visitors from outside the city well-guided, the Jalandhar Municipal Corporation has decided to erect huge sign boards on all major points and intersections. It today cleared a sum of Rs 40 lakh for these boards.

Different strokes: Two colonies being maintained on different lines
Jalandhar, December 7
It is a case of classic contrasts. While the Chhoti Baradari Phase-I colony, set up by the Punjab Urban Development Authority (PUDA) about four years ago behind the Beant Singh Punjab Institute of Medical Sciences, lies in a state of neglect, the Chhoti Baradari Phase-II facing the institute, that has low occupancy and was set up much later, is all spruced up.

A view of the ill-maintained park in Chhoti Baradari Phase-I developed by PUDA four years ago in the city.

The well-maintained park in Chhoti Baradari Phase-II also developed by PUDA one and a half years ago in the city. —  Photos by S.S. Chopra

Growers, mill talks remain inconclusive
Phagwara, December 7
The parleys between the administration and the representatives of the agitating local Sugarcane Growers Co-operative Society and the Sugar Mill held at PWD Rest House to hammer out a solution today remained inconclusive.

Land erosion creates panic among villagers
Sultanpur Lodhi, December 7
The eroding distance between Sardar Atma Singh Advance Dhussi bundh due to the changed course of the river has created panic among the villagers living in nearby areas, with officials of the Drainage Department are busy stopping further erosion with the water flowing just 10 feet from the bundh at some points near Sherpur Dogra and Mohmmed Ali Khan villages.

Armed Forces Flag Day observed

Jalandhar, December 7 The Vajra Corps and District Sainik Welfare Board held a solemn function at Punjab State War Memorial to mark the Armed Forces Flag Day here today. Lieut Gen Mandhata Singh, General Officer Commanding, Vajra Corps, was the chief guest on the occasion. Lt Gen Mandhata Singh, GOC, Vajra Corps, hands over a tricycle to a physically-challenged ex-serviceman in Jalandhar on Wednesday. — Photo by S.S. Chopra

Rally by rice mill workers
Phagwara, December 7
The Punjab Rice Miller Workers Union under the banner of Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC) held a protest rally against the “indifferent” attitude of the state government here today.

MC to construct three more flyovers in city
Lease period of Clock Tower extended to 30 years 
Varinder Singh
Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, December 7
To keep visitors from outside the city well-guided, the Jalandhar Municipal Corporation has decided to erect huge sign boards on all major points and intersections. It today cleared a sum of Rs 40 lakh for these boards.

Roads in the city hardly have any signboards, which makes it difficult for visitors, especially vehicle drivers, to locate their destinations.

“Apart from the city, direction boards will also be put along the roads to Amritsar, Pathankot, and Hoshiarpur,” the Mayor, Mr Surinder Mahey, said.

“I’m happy that there was hardly any opposition on this proposal.”

The house of the civic body which met here today also cleared the estimates of the drawings of proposed flyovers over the BMC Chowk, Guru Nanak Mission Chowk and of a Railway Overbridge (ROB) near the DAV College on the Jalandhar-Amritsar road.

“While the flyovers near DAV College and over BMC Chowk will be constructed by the Corporation, the cost of the third one, over the Guru Nanak Mission Chowk, will be borne by the Improvement Trust,” Mr Mahey said.

In another important decision, the Municipal Corporation extended the lease of the Clock Tower building to media persons for a period of 30 years.

The lease charges will be Rs 1 per annum, that is, Rs 30 for three decades.

Many hurdles had come in the way of media persons to get the lease extended, but finally they were overcome following directions to the civic body from the top echelons of the administration.

The house also passed a Rs 143 crore proposal for laying of a sewerage system in some areas of the city. Civic body authorities claim that over 70 per of the city has a sewerage network.

Earlier, the house condoled the death of those who were killed in the recent earthquake that hit the Kashmir valley and also the demise of the former President of India, Mr K.R. Narayanan and a former Punjab Minister, Mr Surinder Kapur.

Different strokes: Two colonies being maintained on different lines
Deepkamal Kaur
Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, December 7
It is a case of classic contrasts. While the Chhoti Baradari Phase-I colony, set up by the Punjab Urban Development Authority (PUDA) about four years ago behind the Beant Singh Punjab Institute of Medical Sciences, lies in a state of neglect, the Chhoti Baradari Phase-II facing the institute, that has low occupancy and was set up much later, is all spruced up.

As one enters the Chhoti Baradari Phase-I, one can see many newly-constructed posh houses. But the roads are in a bad condition. The roads that had been dug up for sewerage almost a month back are yet to be re-laid.

The areas for parks have been earmarked by a boundary but the residents are not able to use these, as wild bushes have grown in abundance inside and outside their boundary.

On the contrary, Chhoti Baradari Phase-II, facing the medical institute has few occupied houses and the rest are under-construction, as the colony was set up only 18 months back. The roads here are in a perfect condition.

The parks too are well-maintained, though there is hardly a house within 500 metre of their periphery. The boundary of the parks in this colony was painted the last week. The wild bushes have been removed and the cemented paths have been constructed, even though there are few residents living in the colony to take a stroll there.

A community hall planned for the colony is yet to come up, say the residents.

Mr Karnail Singh, secretary of the Phase-I colony, said he had written to the Additional Chief Administrator, PUDA, but till date had not received any reply from the department.

Over 125 families of the colony were facing problems due to lack of civic amenities, he said, adding that over 60 more houses would be occupied shortly and these families too would be fuming for want of proper facilities.

The secretary said he had sent a legal notice to PUDA yesterday for not maintaining the colony. He said he did this to ensure prompt action.

Mr Karnail Singh said that he wondered why the parks and roads had been spruced up and made accessible..

Mr Ajmer Singh, Senior Vice-President of the same colony, too said that the residents were much disturbed as there had been no maintenance ever since the colony was set up.

Mr Vikas Garg, Additional Chief Administrator, admitted that the roads and parks in Phase-I colony were in a bad shape but he said that these would be repaired only after all residents accomplish the construction work. But when he was asked as to why the Phase-II colony with low occupancy had been spruced up first, he said that the men had been on with maintenance work at different places. They just reached early some places, he added, while denying having received any legal notice from the welfare society of Phase-I.

Growers, mill talks remain inconclusive
J S Gandam

Phagwara, December 7
The parleys between the administration and the representatives of the agitating local Sugarcane Growers Co-operative Society and the Sugar Mill held at PWD Rest House to hammer out a solution today remained inconclusive.

The administration, headed by the local SDM Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal, and the DSP, Mr Navjot Singh Mahal, held talks with the representatives of the cane growers and the Mill Management in two rounds of separate meetings.

Though the joint meeting could not be held, yet some ice was broken in separate parleys that administration held with both the sides.

When contacted, SDM Dhaliwal claimed that both the sides have agreed to wait for the hearing of the case in the Punjab and Haryana High Court on December 9. Mr Lehmber Singh Taggar, General Secretary, Punjab Kisan Sabha and Master Harbhajan Singh Bhullarai, Society’s Vice-President, who had attended the long parleys, disclosed that they had demanded that the bonding of sugarcane should be allowed to be done by the Society as had been the practice since 1954.

“Though we had agreed to wait till the Court hearing, yet our indefinite day and night dharna, which had entered 28th day today, would continue,” they declared.

Mr Jarnail Singh Wahid, Chairman,Wahid-Sandhars Sugars Ltd, who headed Mill Management representatives during the parleys, said they had the decision of Punjab government and the Cane Commissioner, Punjab, on their side, which had allowed them direct bonding of the cane.

“However, we would wait for the Court’s ruling,” he said.

The Society members had been agitating against the Mill Management for directly bonding sugarcane from farmers, by-passing the Society.

The society had abandoned their programme to block vehicular traffic on National Highway No 1 on December 5 when the administration had assured them to hold a tripartite meeting today for hammering out a solution. 

Land erosion creates panic among villagers
Arun Sharma
Tribune News Service

Sultanpur Lodhi, December 7
The eroding distance between Sardar Atma Singh Advance Dhussi bundh due to the changed course of the river has created panic among the villagers living in nearby areas, with officials of the Drainage Department are busy stopping further erosion with the water flowing just 10 feet from the bundh at some points near Sherpur Dogra and Mohmmed Ali Khan villages.

At the time of the construction of bundh in 2000, the actual distance between the river course and the bundh was between 600 feet and 400 feet.

Between the Reach RD 25000 and Reach RD 28000, the distance between the water and bundh has been now reduced to 10 feet and 70 feet.

Because of the construction of the advance bundh in the region, 7,000 acres of land was recovered from the river. As such, the rates of the land, now highly cultivable, rose from Rs 50,000 per acre to Rs 5 lakh per acre.

An amount of Rs 4 crore spent on the construction of 13 km long bundh returned to government coffers within two years of the construction of bundh through market fees paid only by the farmers.

Moreover, the problem of water logging vanished from 3,000 acres of land touching bundh No. 2 due to the construction of the Sardar Atma Singh bundh.

According to sources, repeated requests of the local drainage officials to their higher authorities bore no fruits even after a visit by NABARD authorities to study the proposal submitted by the Drainage Department to finance the project of permanent measures to tackle the situation.

In August last year, when the distance between the course of the river and the advance bundh reduced to 35 feet to 40 feet, local MP Rana Gurjit Singh along with Kapurthala Deputy Commissioner Samir Kumar and Planning Board member Captain Harminder Singh visited the site and ordered the release of a grant of Rs 25 lakh to provide for temporary protection measures like empty cement bags, wire crated studs and revetment. The money proved sufficient for the work taken up at the worst-affected areas between Reach RD 26000 and Reach RD 27000.

Due to a strong and direct hit of the river, these studs and the revetment suffered minor damage but worked well in protecting the edge in this portion of the bundh.

But the situation in other areas of the bundh has turned from bad to worse in the last three months. In addition, the problem of water logging has started re-emerging on the land adjoining the advance bundh.

When contacted, the NABARD AGM, Mr Ravinder, said he unaware of the present status of the proposal submitted by local Drainage Department.

Armed Forces Flag Day observed
Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, December 7
The Vajra Corps and District Sainik Welfare Board held a solemn function at Punjab State War Memorial to mark the Armed Forces Flag Day here today. Lieut Gen Mandhata Singh, General Officer Commanding, Vajra Corps, was the chief guest on the occasion. He was welcomed by Mr Ashok Kumar Gupta, Deputy Commissioner and Brig C.S. Sandhu, Brigadier Administration, Vajra Corps.

The GOC laid a wreath at the memorial and paid homage to the war heroes of the station. Brigadier B.B. Patil, Sub Area Commander, senior serving and retired army officers, civil dignitaries, ex-servicemen, widows of martyrs and others attended the function.

The programme began with a devotional song by the students of Government Senior Secondary School for Girls, Nehru Garden. The girls pinned sticker flags to the chief guest and others and sought donations.

The GOC remembered the sacrifices made by the brave soldiers of Punjab. Appealing to all to donate generously, he presented a cheque of Rs 50,000 to the board for the welfare of the ex-servicemen and widows. 

Rally by rice mill workers
Tribune News Service

Phagwara, December 7
The Punjab Rice Miller Workers Union under the banner of Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC) held a protest rally against the “indifferent” attitude of the state government here today.

The protestors under the leadership of Mr Sohan Lal, general secretary of the Punjab Rice Miller Workers Union, accused the Punjab government of ignoring the interests of workers of rice millers and small farmers and raised slogans against the Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh.

Later, they submitted the memorandum to the SDM Mr Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal in which they demanded minimum wages of Rs 5000 for industrial workers, medical allowance, filling up of vacant posts, non-privatisation of public sector undertakings and free seed and pesticide to small farmers.