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Barnala evasive on return to Punjab politics
Dhuri (Sangrur), June 17 Mr Surjit Singh Barnala, Governor, Tamil Nadu, made the above-mentioned statement after performing religious ceremonies for starting the construction work of a 1.6-km-long and 40-feet-wide railway over-bridge here today. This railway over-bridge, across two level-crossings (Dhuri-Ludhiana railway line and Dhuri-Bathinda railway line), will be constructed at a cost of Rs 27.87 crore in about 15 months. The foundation stone for the construction of this railway over-bridge was laid on February 24, 2004, by the then Union Minister of State for Railways, Mr B.R. Patil. Mr Barnala also said today was a big day for the residents of Dhuri as construction of the over-bridge would not only solve their traffic problem, but would also enhance their trade prospects. He also said he had been informed by his son, Mr Gaganjit Singh, that the gates of railway level-crossings at Dhuri remained closed for more than 17 hours a day, due to which the residents faced major traffic problems. Mr Barnala said his visit to Dhuri, which falls under Barnala — the Assembly constituency of his son who is also an MLA — did not indicate that he was going to be active in Punjab politics. When asked whether he would return to Punjab to take part in the ensuing Assembly elections, Mr Barnala evaded the question by talking about the monsoon and the weather. Mrs Surjit Kaur Barnala, a former MLA from Barnala and wife of Mr Surjit Singh Barnala, when asked whether she would contest ensuing Assembly elections from Barnala, said she was not in the race at present, but workers of the party (SAD) wanted that she should contest from Barnala. It was true that there was a talk in the town about her candidature from Barnala as the party candidate, but only time would tell, she added. However, she said there was no indication from the party high command about her candidature from Barnala so far.
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Amarinder discusses poll strategy
Chandigarh, June 17 Sources said that Capt Amarinder Singh, who is known to be an aggressive political strategist, was of the view that the party should have a special strategy for the Malwa region, which was dominated by the Akalis and had about 65 Assembly segments. A programme was drawn up to get
constituencywise feedback through party and other channels. The meeting also discussed the strategy which could be adopted to counter the SAD President, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, and his son, Mr Sukhbir Singh. The party leaders also discussed what kind of sops should be given to urban and rural areas at this stage. A decision on the abolition of octroi has been hanging fire for several months. The government is expected to clinch this issue in a week or so. The meeting of Mr Jagmeet Singh Brar and his supporters with leaders of the party high command a few days ago was also
discussed. The sources said Capt Amarinder Singh and his senior colleagues had planned a strategy to counter the offensive launched by Mr Brar against them. The sources said Capt Amarinder Singh was satisfied with the turnout of people at the party function held at Tarn Taran yesterday. The sources further said the Chief Minister would soon order a reshuffle in the civil and police administration at the district
level. There is pressure from certain Ministers and party MLAs for the posting of officials of their choice in their respective Assembly segments, it is learnt.
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Budha Dal factions merge
Amritsar, June 17 Baba Balbir Singh, who remained a disciple of Baba Santa Singh and acted as his personal assistant for 23 years, parted company with him in 1996 and filed a number of cases against his mentor in the Punjab and Haryana High Court. After the merger, Baba Balbir Singh said he would withdraw all cases, filed against Baba Santa Singh immediately since he considered him his godfather. Baba Santa Singh remained excommunicated from the Sikh Panth for 17 years for carrying out “kar sewa” at the Akal Takht which was damaged during Operation Bluestar in June, 1984. When Baba Balbir Singh snapped ties with Baba Santa Singh, his parallel Budha Dal was recognised by the Akal Takht and the SGPC both. Though Baba Santa Singh re-joined the Sikh fold on March 17, 2001, Baba Balbir Singh refused to accept him the Jathedar of the Budha Dal. Baba Balbir Singh had then claimed that he was still the “real Jathedar” since he was honoured by the SGPC and the Akal Takht during the tercentenary celebrations of the birth of Khalsa Panth. Though Baba Santa Singh re-joined the Sikh fold five years ago, he today claimed that he was superior to the Jathedar of Akal Takht. Interestingly, he had accepted the “tankhah” from the Jathedar of Akal Takht when he rejoined the Sikh fold. Baba Santa Singh criticised the SGPC for not inviting him for the 400th martyrdom anniversary function of Guru Arjan Dev. Meanwhile, Baba Balbir Singh said he would accept any assignment in the Budha Dal, given by its supremo, Baba Santa Singh.
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Badal flags off Amarnath yatra
Patiala, June 17 Mr Badal, who was addressing a largely attended function organised here today to mark the beginning of the Amarnath yatra by the local unit of the Shiv Sena, said both Hindus and Sikhs were having an inseparable bond for the past many centuries. While Guru Tegh Bahadur sacrificed his life for the protection of Kashmiri Pandits, Lala Todar Mal arranged a piece of land for the cremation of the two sons of Guru Gobind Singh at Sirhind by paying a heavy price for the same. These incidents reflected that Hindus and Sikhs were having strong relations with each other. Not only this, the religious literature created by various saints belonging to different religions was included in Guru Granth Sahib, which also preached that all religions were equal. He said but now certain forces, including politicians, had been trying to create an atmosphere of unrest in the country by dividing people on caste and religion-based lines. He appealed to the people that they must identify those politicians, who were causing harm to the secular social fabric of the country and Punjab and should make efforts so that these elements could not succeed in their nefarious designs. A former Akali minister, Mr Chiranji Lal Garg, claimed that people had come to know about those forces, which had kept Punjab boiling for years together. Capt Kanwaljit Singh, former Finance Minister, pointed out that the SAD (Badal) was a secular party and represented all sections, including Hindu, Muslim, Christians and others of society. He added that people belonging to all religions had been given due representation in the party’s organisational set up. Earlier, Mr Badal flagged off the Amarnath yatra led by Mr Vijay Kapoor, president, Shiv Sena.
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20 villages turn into drug haven, courtesy women peddlers
Nawanshahr, June 17 Though at least 24 families are allegedly dealing in the sale of poppy husk and smack, yet the business — which is growing by leaps and bounds — is dominated by womenfolk, who have over 70 per cent share in the retail of the contraband. While some male drug peddlers of at least 20 villages of this district are said to have been involved in transportation and wholesale of poppy husk and smack, wives of most of them take care of the sale aspects of the lucrative business. According to a study conducted recently by the police, the two contrabands — smack and poppy husk— are not only highly in demand, but these are freely available in about 20 villages, including Jabowal, Lakhpur, Langroa, Soeta, Garh Bahadur, Mukandpur, Balachaur, Kakkran, Urapur, Aur, Mehmoodpur, Gadhria, Behram, Kullewal, Kumam, Mohalon and Jhingran. Smack and poppy husk is brought from other places by male peddlers from other districts, but their further retail is done mostly by their wives. So much so that the presence of women drug peddlers in the drug retail business has grown even beyond 70 per cent, while only 30 per cent of male peddlers were into it to avoid detection by the police authorities. The interesting aspect of the whole proliferating business is that it is being spearheaded only by some families in these villages and that people of these villages and surrounding villages are fully aware of activities of such families. But hardly anyone dares to speak up against what is going on in these villages. The business is carried out so blatantly in these villages that anybody with money could fetch the drugs without any hassle and mostly addicts were fully aware the points where their doses were available. About a dozen women drug peddlers have already been identified by the authorities but no arrest has been made so far for the want of evidence. Sources in the police revealed that a kg of poppy husk was available anywhere between Rs 500 and Rs 600 in wholesale, while the retail price varied between Rs 700 and Rs 800 per kg. Cups were used to measure poppy husk and one such cup was available for Rs 100 in these villages. A packet of smack could be had for Rs 1000.
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Pakistani Punjab Police to recruit Sikhs: Sarna
Amritsar, June 17 Earlier, a Pakistani Sikh, Harcharan Singh (19), hailing from Nankana Sahib, had hit the headlines when he was commissioned in the army as an officer. So much so that the Jathedar, Akal Takht, Giani Joginder Singh Vedanti, had congratulated Harcharan Singh for his commissioning in the Pakistan army and asked him to serve his country with dedication . This was disclosed by Mr Harwinder Singh Sarna , President, Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC), while talking to The Tribune from New Delhi today. On paper, there is no bar on the minorities in Pakistan from joining the military or police but neither a Hindu nor a Sikh could get selected for the army, para-military forces or police services since the birth of the country in 1947. Minorities in Pakistan account for less than 3 per cent of the 145 million population. According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), several Christians in the country have served in the army. Mr Sarna said the commitment to recruit Sikh youths in the Punjab Police (Pakistan’s) was given by Mr Pervez Elahi, Chief Minister, during his meeting with him in Lahore. ‘‘He told me that Sikh youths will be seen at various ‘chowks’ of Lahore regulating the traffic,” Mr Sarna said However, he said he told Mr Elahi that Sikh youths should be recruited in other parts of Pakistan also.
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SAD meeting tomorrow
Chandigarh, June 17 This was stated here today by the secretary of the party, Dr Daljit Singh Cheema. He said the meeting, which would be presided over by Mr Parkash Singh Badal, would discuss the party's strategy with regard to the coming Punjab Assembly elections.
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‘Politicians using reservation as a tool’
Patiala, June 17 Expressing his views at a seminar on “Basis of Reservation and Its Analyses” organised by the Baba Ala Singh Club, Dr Bhagat Singh Shergill, former Vice-Chancellor, Punjabi University, said there was a strong need to know about the consequences of reservation, which would prove fatal in the future. Dr D.C. Sharma, convener of the Anti-Reservation Front, said all types of reservation should be stopped. He said reservation was introduced in 1950 for only 10 years, but it continued. He added that now all types of reservations should be abolished and only merit should prevail. Dr D.S. Bhuller, president of the club, alleged that those who had been managing the affairs of country had been dividing the people on caste lines, as done by British rulers. He added that such actions of leaders of India were condemnable and a shame for the country. Mr Amrik Singh, district president, of the General Category Welfare Association, said reservation could not give benefit to those for which it was introduced. He added that a handful of people had taken its benefit.
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Railway station sans basic facilities
Pathankot, June 17 Sources said there was just one small generator at the station that was used for lighting the reservation counter in case of a power cut. For the rest of station, there was just one small inverter that could sustain just four tube lights for a small time. No proper power backup system has been installed at the station despite several reminders to the authorities concerned. Some of the officials speaking on condition of anonymity said the lack of power backup system threatened the security at the station. The station was vital as it was located near the disturbed area of Jammu and Kashmir. The reservation counter at the railway station is another problem for the passengers. Though the railway station handles huge traffic, there is just one functioning reservation counter. Even that counter functions from 8 am to 2 pm only. At the time of inauguration of the station, a provision for three reservation counters was made. However, just one of these has been made functional so far. The toilets near the reservation counter are kept locked by the local authorities for reasons best know to them. The platform number 2 of the railway station that was handling the traffic of all local trains has no drinking water facility. The taps installed at the platform do not function. The water cooler installed there has not been given power connection yet. The station also lacks the facility to house items coming through trains. Due to this, even perishable items keep lying outside, exposed to rain and heat. According to the station master, the station is new and is still being developed. The facilities would improve with time, he said. However, he failed to explain why the facilities that already existed there were not being put to proper use.
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Implementation of mission reviewed
Mohali, June 17 Mr Brar said the NHRM was being reviewed constantly by the Government of India. While appreciating the pace with which Punjab had been able to utilise funds provided under the NHRM, he emphasised to further accelerate the procedure. He asked the Mission Directorate of State to prepare the district action plan well in time so that the quality healthcare services were provided to the state. He emphasised upon the need of a three-month course in anaesthesia for doctors in medical colleges so that no shortage was observed as far as the facility of anaesthetist was concerned. Mr Guru said since the implementation of the World Bank project, there had been a considerate improvement in the secondary healthcare sector. He said the NRHM was focusing on primary healthcare and it would provide a major uplift to rural healthcare services in the state. He added that Punjab had set up a state health mission under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister, whereas district-level health missions had been set up under the chairmanship of zila parishads and co-chairmanship of Deputy Commissioners. Dr G.L. Goyal, Director, Health Services, Punjab, informed during the meeting that the department would ensure proper implementation of the mission in the state. He added that the Janani Suraksha Yojna scheme was also being reviewed on a regular basis.
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NGO asks state govt to set up population panel
Sangrur, June 17 Talking to Tribune News Service here yesterday, Prof Uday Partap Singh, chairman of the Population Control Committee, Punjab, said the committee also wanted that all political parties should allot party ticket in the ensuing Assembly elections to only those candidates, who had not more than two children. Prof Uday Partap Singh also urged the Punjab Government to make arrangements for the registration of migrant labourers from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh at the entry points of the borders so that the state could control diseases, like TB, AIDS and polio, as sometimes migrant labourers carried such diseases with them from their respective states. He also said after registration, medical examination of the migrant labourers should also be made compulsory.
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Six crude bombs found in Amritsar
Amritsar, June 17 The crude bombs were found this afternoon during the digging process by labourers on the steel factory land, which was now being levelled to cut out plots for sale, Senior Superintendent of Police S.S. Srivastva said. The factory had been lying closed for some years and the bombs seemed to have been part of very old scrap used for steel manufacturing, he said. The police had taken the bombs in its possession and their exact nature and the intensity would be worked out by the Army experts later, he added.
— UNI
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Four women of Sansi tribe held
Kharar, June 17 According to the police, the women were arrested at a religious programme being held at Seonk village by Bapu Asaram when they allegedly made an attempt to snatch gold ornaments when “parsad” was being distributed. Every year women from the Sansi tribe came to the function and snatched gold ornaments. This year the police had geared itself well in advance to nab the thieves. The police said the women of the tribe were given special training by their veterans and when an item was snatched it was soon passed on to the next member of the gang who in turn passed it on. Those who have been arrested are Shinder Kaur, Choti, Sukho and Debo. All of them had come from Patiala. The police has registered a case under Sections 379 and 420 of the IPC.
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Two of a family killed in mishap
Ropar, June 17 The mishap took place when Raj Kumar along with his wife Chhinder Kaur and mother-in-law Gurmeet Kaur were going to Nangal on a motorcycle (PB-12F-4101). The bus (PB-12-C-9171) hit the motorcycle and ran over the women who fell on the road. The driver of the bus escaped from the spot after the incident. A case has been registered.
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124 students trained in various activities
Patiala, June 17 As many as 124 children in the 10 to 18 years age group and belonging to different schools of the area were trained in different activities, including sports, adventure games and cultural items, during the camp. The aim of organising the camp was to wean away teenagers from the evil of drug addiction and to initiate them into the fields of sports, adventure and cultural activities. Mr V.K. Bhawra, IG, Punjab Police Commandoes, addressed the concluding function of the camp. He said though the camp was organised for the first time, it was a big success. He said a similar camp would be organised next year also. The participants held an exhibition on the concluding day. Commandoes organised an acrobatics show on the occasion.
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VC honoured
Patiala, June 17 He said the Punjab Government had allotted land and Rs 1 crore had been given by US-based alumni of the Government Medical College.
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