Jalandhar, September 21
Environment lovers got a rude shock today when they came across the felling of two magnificent, fully-grown eucalyptus trees on the GT Road in front of Lyallpur Khalsa College here this morning.

Though the exact reason for this sudden and almost unwanted exercise, which made a further dent in the city’s depleting environment cover, could not be ascertained, it was said that the trees were felled so that the passage to the college gate could be widened further. Some people on the spot said it was aimed at making the way for a newly-installed tubewell at the place.

Environment lovers were stunned when they observed that an army of workers was axing the trees, which had been adorning the place for more than 20 years. “Don’t they realise the importance of green cover? All this hurts more when it happens in front of a college. Earlier, a large number of huge, lush-green trees were felled in the name of widening the road,” rued a student.

Vehicular traffic came to a standstill for quite some time because of the felling of the trees on the GT Road here today.

Jalandhar, September 21
This is a classic example of how bureaucrats misuse their position, and then exercise their power to hit at all those coming their way.

An SDM posted in the district and residing at Baradari here had reportedly not deposited his electricity bill with the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB). Employees of the board are said to have made several rounds to collect the amount to the tune of Rs 8,300, but to no avail. Every time an employee tried to approach him personally, his gunmen would show them the door.

Almost a week back, when a JE posted with the PSEB approached him to get the payment, he met with the same fate. He tried to reason out that since it was September and all pending amounts of defaulters were being audited for the month, he would have to pay it or face the music. But the adamant gunmen of the SDM refused to budge.

At this, the power supply at the SDM’s home was disconnected by the JE. The supply was restored after the SDM made a payment of Rs 5000. An amount of Rs 3300 is yet to be paid by him, sources in the PSEB confirmed.

Since the SDM felt “belittled” when power supply was cut, he, being the Electoral Registration Officer also, took the “revenge” on the JE by putting him on election duty.

The PSEB officials were shell shocked as it had never happened earlier. “Every time that the administration wants us to spare men for election duty, they ask us to choose employees who can be deployed for the purpose,” an official said.

This official said that it was for the first time that an election duty had come to their JE directly. He said that since the JE had been given the crucial charge of dealing with the technical problems related to hotline feeders that supplied power to administrative and MC offices, he could not be spared for poll duty.

Even as the JE had not received the notice sent to him, he was sent a reminder the next day for not joining the poll duty. The PSEB officials, however, are said to be taking up the matter with the senior officials to get him relieved of the poll duty.

No comments could be taken from the SDM as his mobile phone was switched off. Mr A. Venu Prasad, Deputy Commissioner, said he was not aware of the matter.

He added that Electoral Registration Officers were free to appoint any government employee on election duty without taking senior officials of the department concerned into confidence. 

Jalandhar, September 21
Mr A. Venu Parsad, Deputy Commissioner, today inspected the ongoing process of making photo-identity cards for the forthcoming Assembly elections in the state, in Jalandhar (North) constituency here today.

Mr Parsad, who was accompanied by Ms Sarojini Gautam Sharda, Deputy Director, Local Bodies Department, said photo-identity cards for voters of Adampur-28 constituency would be made between September 25 and November 5, for voters of Jalandhar (South) from September 25 to October 30, from September 25 to November 4 in Lohian, and from September 25 to November 5 in Nakodar.

He advised people to make it sure to get voter identity cards as no one would be able to cast the vote without these cards.

Jalandhar, September 21
Mr Digvijay Singh, a former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh and General Secretary of the All-India Congress Committee (AICC), has claimed that the Bhartiya Jana Shakti Party Chief, Ms Uma Bharti, could return to the fold of the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) at any moment.

Mr Digvijay Singh, who was in the city to condole the death of one of his relatives here today, said that Ms Bharti’s entry to the BJP had almost been finalised and she was using the banner of the Bhartiya Jana Shakti Party to save her political entity.

He was welcomed at the local railway station by Mr Iqbal Singh, the National Secretary of the AICC, Mr Maninderjit Singh Sikka, a senior Congress Sewa Dal leader, and Mr Subhash Sharma, a member of the District Committee for Redressal of Grievances.

Referring to the Ludhiana’s City Centre scam, Mr Digvijay Singh said the scam could be got investigated by the CBI, if the Chief Minister, Captain Amarinder Singh, desired to do so.

“None of the accused would go scot-free. But at the same time, I feel that the SAD leader Mr Parkash Singh Badal has no right to comment on the issue, for he himself remains embroiled in corruption cases,” he added.