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Brick-and-mortar men have little say in poll Come elections, political parties start wooing the four-lakh strong Purvanchali population that lives in different pockets of the city. Though their number is large, their votes are just 10 per cent of their count. As a result, political parties use them for their odd jobs but never given them their due. The Biharis and the UP-wallahs continue to live in misery and squalor in the land of plenty despite poll promises to the contrary, reports Dharmendra Joshi After rich Ludhiana, Jalandhar is their most freferred destination in Punjab. According to rough estimates, nearly four lakh Purvanchalis are living in different pockets of the city. Sixty per cent of them are from Bihar whereas forty per cent are from Uttar Pradesh. They have considerable population in three Assembly constituencies - North, Central and South - of Jalandhar. So much so, several areas, including localities around Kali Mata Mandir on the Sodal road in Jalandhar North, around Basti Bawa Khel in Jalandhar Central and around Basti Danishmanda and Model House are known as mini- Purvanchals. Interestingly, only 10 per cent of them are registered as voters as most of them are unable to produce their proof of local residence, says Mr Lalji Bharadwaj, district general secretary, Hind Mazdoor Kisan Panchayat. Hailing from Azamgarh district of Uttar Pradesh, Mr Bharadwaj has been fighting for the rights of migrants, especially Purvanchali labourers, in the city for the past several years. But come elections, political parties start making attempts to attract Purvanchalis as was evident from the Thursday visit of the Bihar Chief Minister, Mr Nitish Kumar, who addressed several rallies in support of SAD-BJP candidates in different parts of the city. Political parties want their votes but they are seemingly least bothered about their problems. They are treated here as second-class citizens by locals, alleges Mr Bharadwaj. Corroborating his statement, the BJP district secretary, Mr Ram Gopal Pethewala, who hails from Agra, says most of the Purvanchalis are living in poor conditions like animals without any basic amenities. Mr Bharadwaj and Mr Pethewala say the Purvanchalis face problems in getting their ration cards prepared as the staff of the Food and Supplies Department asks them to produce surrender certificates of their earlier ration cards in their native places. Most of the Purvanchalis prefer not to get their names deleted from their earlier ration cards at their native places as they fear if they do so they will not get their part from their ancestral property, they say. In the absence of ration cards and other proofs of residence, they can not get themselves registered as voters. The leaders say that in the absence of ration cards, the Purvanchalis are left with no option but to buy one litre of kerosene for Rs 25 from the black market, whereas its actual price is Rs 10 in ration shops. Most of the Purvanchalis have to live in unhygienic conditions in rented accommodations. Several Punjabis construct 10 to 12 small rooms in a plot of 10 marlas and give each room on rent to four to eight Purvanchalis. Mr Raj Bihar Yadav, originally belongs to Sitabadiapur village in Bhojpur district of Bihar, says he has been living with his four other companions in a small room in Kailash Nagar. Working in a company near Kali Mata Mandir, Mr Yadav says he is being paid only Rs 2,000 per month due to which he has no option but to live in such a condition. Actually his case is not an isolated one. Most of the Purvanchalis working in different pipe fitting, rubber and leather industries are not even paid minimum wages of Rs 2,470 per month, alleges Mr Bharadwaj. He says while the Purvanchali workers are paid much lower than the minimum wages, the owners of these industries get their signatures against the amount much higher than the minimum wage. Further only one-third of the Purvanchali workers are shown as their actual employees and the others are treated as ad hoc employees and the latter are not allowed to mark their presence in the attendance register. In such a way, the industrialists deprived them of their rights provided to the employees under labour laws, he alleges. Besides working in different industries, several Purvanchalis are pulling rickshaws and working as assistant and labourers or masons.
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Biharis part and parcel of Punjab: Nitish The Bihar Chief Minister, Mr Nitish Kumar, has sought to bridge the gap between Punjab and Bihar by observing that Biharis settled in Punjab have become a “part and parcel” of society in the state. He has also predicted that both Bihar and Punjab would convert India into a developed nation by 2015. “People of Bihar, who have settled here are a part and parcel of Punjabi society. So, I have come here to seek votes not from Biharis but from Punjabis as a whole. Both Punjab and Bihar are going to lead the nation as far as development is concerned. Both the states would turn the country into a developed nation by 2015. There is no difference between people of Punjab and Bihar. One thing common among them is that they are hard working and don’t fear taking any new challenges. Don’t they?” questioned Mr Kumar, who was in the city to canvass for candidates of the SAD-BJP. Mr Kumar, who was on a one-day election tour of Punjab, also addressed three rallies organised by the SAD-BJP in areas with considerable population of Bihari voters. “I am here as the SAD chief, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, had asked me to come to Punjab. We are seeking votes in the name of development and that day is not far off when the SAD-BJP will form government in Punjab and will ensure all-around development of the state,” said Mr Kumar.
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It’s a merry time when gossips meet What is that which spreads freely like fungus, floats liberally and multiplies at an astonishing speed? Well, it is rumour – the mother of all non-news! Circulating a rumour is an art, which requires no formal degree, authentic knowledge or wisdom. It has no source or basis though it appears to be hinged on a credible one as it makes its rounds. The ‘source’ could be as fantastic as Hollywood, Bollywood or plush corporate houses. The only requirement for a good rumour is that it should be spicy or salacious, and if it is, it will spread faster than sound waves. What makes rumours so interesting? There are three basic ingredients –sex, sensation and untruth (read exaggeration). And the three fastest ways of spreading it- telephone, telegraph and telewoman. Human psyche hungers for information and feeds of every bit that is on offer. The rumour is thus consumed without bothering about its veracity. Every receiver passes it on to another, decorating it with different frills and flavors. One woman ‘informed’ her neighbor that Mrs. Sharma’s daughter had married in court. The recipient passed on the spicy information that the girl had ‘eloped’. Elopement was the frill fished out from her own feverish imagination. Women are accused of being spiteful gossips. The above story proves the point. Roumour-mongering, in fact, is the most romantic, thrilling, unique, and vivacious way of adding spice to our humdrum existence. Anu, a school teacher, knows how to add elements to her gossip. The contents of her talks vary from latest trends in clothes, cosmetics, neighbours, shopkeepers — anything under the sun. Any information she gets is passed promptly to others. She says “I must tell others before they know it is untrue.” Anu is blessed with the gift of the gab. And, she has got some of her friends and foes because of her tongue. “Digestive” problems are not uncommon among women and the gossip thinks she is the right medium. Some invent, others some enlarge. Personal lives of others are fertile ground for a rumor to grow. And the mongerer’s expertise knows no fear and it is always up to date. Birth of a second girl child in the neighbor’s home is usually twisted, distorted, and elaborated with stories of bad faith and worse misfortune. But the dear tongue-wager assumes air of innocence and good will even when she is spreading toxic gases. She is a wonderful pollutant, if there ever was one. A gossip knows how to talk and what to talk. No one can ever complain about the talk being too short! Now this activity has taken a longer form and route thanks to the mushroom growth of mobiles. We are all familiar with the phrase — to make mountain of a molehill. The damned gossip is a doctorate in the field of inventing mountains, many times with disastrous consequences. But whatever the consequences, rumour-mongering will continue. The one thing in the world worse than being talked about is not being talked about. So, keep looking for your daily masala. The friendly neighbourhood rumour-mongerer is always there. She does not mind her own business because she has neither a mind nor a business. Gossip is what keeps her ticking.
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Tough time for rail
passengers Local passengers, who were travelling in the Jammu-bound 6687 Up Navyug Express, faced tough time today as the train passed through the Phagwara railway station without halting. Later, the train was stopped at the Chaheru railway station and the passengers disembarked there and travelled back to Phagwara in buses. When contacted, the Phagwara Railway Station Master, Mr Ram Pyara, said the Assistant Station Master at the Mauli railway station gave the message to switchman Surya Nath at the Phagwara railway station about the arrival of the 5087 Up Gorakhpur Express, which did no halt at Phagwara, and the Assistant Station Master gave green signal to the train to cross the railway station. He said when he saw the train passing the station was none other than the 6687 Up Navyug Express, he informed the Chaheru railway authorities to stop the train there. Surprisingly, the Gorakhpur Express is a weekly train, which crosses the Phagwara station on every Tuesday.
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Just a thought Election time is the best time for the bureaucracy. It is time to act without the pressure of the political executive. If the bureaucrats don’t act without fear or favour, they have none to blame but themselves. The Deputy Commissioner of
Nawanshahr, Mr Krishan Kumar, said this to me in his office recently. Watching the plasma screen in front of his desk from the corner of his eye, he dictated replies to the mail regarding election, and issued instructions on phone. He worked to ensure that candidates were educated and warned about the violation the Model Code of Conduct. If they still breached the Code, they would be promptly
booked, he said. His actions speak better than his words. By and
large, the district administration after donning the mantle of the Election Commission has kept all political parties on a tight leash. But money and muscle power does raise their head in all elections. It did so this time in
Beas. An Akali worker was murdered allegedly by Congress MLA Jasbir Singh Dimpa and his brother Harbinder
Singh, alias Rajan Gill. They were booked. But the situation in Beas is far from calm as the “absconding” brothers are busy in the campaign. The candidates as usual are making tall promises to the
poor, farmers and youth. Their managers collect crowds for their rallies. Voters come to rally sites to watch candidates washing their dirty linen in their presence and go about with their daily grind with a sense of deja vu. The efforts of certain TV channels to build the election tempo on issues, which are still vague, died at the start itself. The slanging match between Navjot Sidhu and Surinder Singla shows that the candidates prefer to thrash out issues with abuses and not through dialogue and debate. On the other
hand, farmers clash with cops over forcible possession of their land by the Trident group in Fathehgarh Channa near Barnala is a symptom of agrarian crises in the state. The farmers of
Dhaula, Fathegarh Channa and Sanghera have vowed to free their 376 acres from the possession of the Trident and not to vote either for the SAD(Badal) or the Congress candidate. The acquisition of land has reduced many farmers to daily wage earners. They are in no mood to listen to either Parkash Singh Badal or Capt Amarinder Singh. If at all theywould
listen, they would to Simranjit Singh Mann. But then would either Captain or Badal listen to what Mann has to say? The shrinking job market for the less-skilled youth forces youth to migrate to other countries. A decade ago 170-odd youth were killed in the Malta boat tragedy. Most families of the dead youth live in
Hoshiarpur. They have decided to support Janta Dal nominee Kehar Singh.
The families have got a positive response from the CPI candidate from Gharshankar, the Akali Dal(1920)nominee from Mahilpur and the Lokbhali Party candidate from Tanda. It seems once again the major political parties are seeking a mandate on populist slogans. They are avoiding debate on the second Green Revolution and the flight of human resource—both vital to maintain Sada Punjab in good health.
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Young World The CT Institute of Hotel Management and Catering Technology has organised a motivational and personality development seminar for its students. Mr Prerit Aggarwal, Front Office Manager, Hotel Radisson, gave tips to students on improving their personality and communication skills to become good hospitality professionals. The session was interactive wherein students demonstrated skills required for front office responsibilities. Students shared their experience they had gained after six months of training from various hotels, including Oberois, Radisson, Country Inns and Suites, Phoenix Park Inn, The Grand Continental and Marriott. Mr Deepak Paul, Principal, CT Institute of Hotel Management, Dr Sayeed Zafar, Director, and Mr Manhar Arora, Deputy Director, were present on the occasion. Placement Three multi-national companies, Wipro, IBM and Dell, are scheduled to visit Lyallpur Khalsa College for campus placement on February 6, 7 and 9, respectively. The selection process will include a pre-placement talk, group discussion, aptitude test, technical test, voice assessment, technical interview and HR interview. The candidates will be joining after completion of their annual examination. IT contests Students of Guru Nanak Dev University College, Basti Nau, have won three top positions in IT contests Plasma 2007 held at Lyallpur Khalsa College. Rohit Talwar and Ravinder Singh of MCA have stood first in software showcase. Jaspreet of MCA has also won the first prize in “Idea snapshot”.
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Free camp for poor patients The poor and needy patients of cleft lip disorders have a ray of hope as they would be treated by way of plastic surgery and reconstruction surgery by a 15-member team of foreign and Indian doctors in a 10-day free medical camp, which commenced at Pasricha Hospital here on Wednesday. The camp is being organised by Interplast, a US-based organisation, under the supervision of Dr Richard Gillerman of the USA and Dr Puneet Pasricha of Pasricha Hospital. Interplast is claimed to have treated more than 64,000 persons in 14
countries so far. Dr Pasricha said nearly 200 patients had already got themselves registered for treatment.
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People from Punjab, especially from Doaba, go to different foreign countries for better prospects asmuch as the underprivileged residents of Purvanchal -- Uttar Pradesh and Bihar--- come to Punjab to earn a better livelihood.