Jalandhar, July 7
Fearing that a new politician would stake claim to the Lohian Assembly constituency, arch-rivals Mr Ajit Singh Kohar and Mr Brij Bhupinder Singh Lally joined hands to form a common platform. The bone of contention is the funds for the constituency, which are not being routed through either of them.

Presenting their case jointly before the District Planning Board here today, the Akali MLA from Lohian, Mr Ajit Singh Kohar, and the Congress leader who had lost the seat, Mr Brij Bhupinder Singh Lally, alleged that Rs 3.5 crore Lok Nirman Funds for the constituency were being earmarked through Col C.D.C. Kamboj, Chairman, Punjab Health Systems Corporation (PHSC).

The duo fear that Col Kamboj, a former BSP president and now a Congress leader, was being projected as a candidate for the seat by the Congress for the forthcoming elections.

Mr Kohar, feeling totally powerless, was sore over the fact that the grants released during the past four and half years had come through Col Kamboj. Mr Lally, a former Minister for Rural Development, also felt offended about the same. The two said the grants for roads, water supply and other schemes were being directly distributed by the PHSC chairman to the DDPOs and BDOs, making him more influential in the area. They also alleged that officials were taking a commission before allocating funds for projects.

Such straight talk left everyone — politicians and bureaucrats alike — stunned. No one, including Mr Ramesh Chander Dogra, Punjab Health Minister and chairman of the board, and Mr A.Venu Prasad, Deputy Commissioner, had an answer to their grievances.

The issue of unsatisfactory utilisation of anganwadis funds also rocked the meeting. While Rs 4 crore had been released, most anganwadis had either been closed or were functioning erroneously. The Congress MLA and president of the District Congress Committee (Urban), Mr Raj Kumar Gupta, said the anganwadi system should be revamped as the funds were going down the drain.

Finding the reply by the concerned department unsatisfactory, the minister asked the authorities to furnish a list of anganwadis to all the members by next meeting and ensure proper functioning.

The demand of revising a list of people registered under the Below Poverty Line (BPL) scheme was also raised. The members said many genuine cases had not been included while the well-off families were drawing the benefit.

The social security officers were also at the receiving end as they had failed to make a payment under the pension scheme to senior citizens of Mand village for the month of January. The officers said it occurred due to wrong account number mentioned on the cheque.

Grants were allocated to the board for various works, including Rs 50 lakh for the Dr B.R. Ambedkar Bhavan with the administrative complex, Rs 68 lakh for tubewells and Rs 239.65 lakh for roads.

Jalandhar, July 7
Villagers protesting over unscheduled power cuts, disrupted vehicular traffic for over two hours at Kartarpur on the Jalandhar-Amritsar highway today.

The protest was led by the Pendu Mazdoor Union and supported by the Bahujan Samaj Party and Akali leaders of the area. The protestors demanded regulated power supply to the area and so that there were minimum cuts.

The villagers burnt two coolers in protest. Mr Kashmir Singh Ghugshor, district secretary of the party, said the PSEB employees, who had regular 24-hour power supply could not realise the problems faced by farmers and villagers.

He alleged that the employees of the board were forcing them to pay full electricity bills despite that fact that 200 units of power had been waived unconditionally during the recent Cabinet meeting.

Long queues of heavy vehicles could be seen till Bidhipur on the Jalandhar end and at Subhanpur on the Amritsar side. 

Jalandhar, July 7
Owners of marriage palace on the GT Road falling within the Municipal Council limit will soon have to make parking arrangements within their boundaries or face penalty from the authorities.

A decision to this effect was taken in the monthly grievances committee meeting chaired by Mr Ramesh Chander Dogra, Punjab Health Minister, here today. The chairman asked the MC Commissioner to follow the matter strictly to ensure less traffic hassles for the commuters on the National Highway No.1.

An issue that has been long debated on in the previous meetings was given a final shape today as the members kept on pestering that a conclusive decision be taken. Earlier, the MC Commissioner, Mr S.S. Johl, said that he had held two meetings with the marriage palace owners or their representatives and had asked them to effectively utilise the area marked as parking lot for the purpose instead of lining up the vehicles on the roadsides.

The Commissioner said that the marriage palace owners had been covering the parking lot area for their functions. But he also defended them saying that he had said that it was an off-season period and the matter would be dealt with strictness soon after they were issued some warnings.

The members had a hearty laugh as the commissioner suggested one remedial measure that the vehicles lined up outside could be towed away. They said that this would add to the woes of the public as the real culprits in the case were marriage palace owners who had made no provision for the same.

Another public issue that was taken up was over the variable charges levied by the cable operators. The members said that both Win and Siti Cable Networks were charging Rs 100 to Rs 300 as per their will which was not justified. The members said that this was not allowed as per a broadband act, a copy of which they had already given to the DC, Mr A. Venu Prasad. They also added that some channels including DD which could not be barred was not being relayed in many areas. The minister asked the DC to examine the case legally and take up the matter.

The issue of excessive use of hoardings in prominent intersections and road dividers was also taken up. The members alleged that this was not being stopped as the corporation was making a huge income in the process. The members also lamented that the hoardings were being erected against the High Court rulings and these often distracted the commuters making the areas accident prone.

The MC Commissioner agreed that the project that was being taken up on BOT basis was bringing in huge revenue but he said that it was the need of the hour as funds were needed for constructing flyovers and taking other developmental projects. He refuted any allegations that the hoardings were being erected against the court rules as he added that some fresh guidelines had been issued in this regard.

Mr Manoj Arora, a member, raised the issue that some people in the garb of transport officers were minting huge amount of money from public in Pathankot Bypass area. The SSP, Mr Ishwar Singh, said that he would get it checked up. The members also asked the MC authorities to get a double railway crossing constructed at Ladowali Road to ensure smooth movement of traffic and in view of the proposed construction on Sadar Police Station crossing that were to start soon.

The PUDA officials were also pulled up for bad roads and water supply in Urban Estate I and II and its inability to come up with a community hall. 

l The meeting went on smoothly without any war of words, which had been common earlier.

l The chairman allowed the media in for the first time after a long gap, adding a word on using softer tones while reporting it. The DC had earlier refused to do so. 

Jalandhar, July 7
Punjab BJP President Avinash Rai Khanna today ridiculed the state government for not “duly representing” the farmers. “Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh have managed to get funds for the embattled peasantry. But it’s surprising that Punjab has not got any help,” he said.

Mr Khanna said this a press conference before continuing the BJP’s ‘Cycle Rally’ to Amritsar.

He added that he had approached the Punjab State Human Rights Commission on June 28 to highlight the power and water problems being faced by the farmers, especially in the Kandi area.

He said the commission had asked the Chief Secretary to file a reply in this regard in a week’s time.

Mr Khanna said the forthcoming Assembly elections would see “a direct fight” between Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh and SAD President Parkash Singh Badal.

He also hinted that Mr Badal could be the SAD-BJP candidate for the Chief Minister’s post. “The final verdict will come after all legalities are explored,” he added.