Jalandhar, September 13
Nearly 20 hidden cameras have been installed at different places in and around the Sodal Mandir to keep an eye on anti-social elements to check their activities during the annual Sodal Mela.

While the formal mela is on Sunday, however, devotees started thronging to the mandir to pay their obeisance there since Saturday morning itself. A number of societies held “jagrata” at different places in the city on Saturday night for the devotees as roads in the radius of 1 km of the Sodal Mandir remained jam-packed with the devotees throughout the night.

The devotees, whose desires are fulfilled, come to pay obeisance at the Sodal Mandir with their family members and friends amidst beating of “dhols”.

SP (city I) S.K. Kalia said hidden cameras had been set up at different places in and around the temple to keep an eye, especially on pick-pockets and eve-teasers. Several police personnel were deployed in civil clothes to check the activities of anti-social elements, he added.

In order to avoid any untoward incident, over 1,000 police personnel, including lady and mounted police, were on duty round the clock in three shifts of eight hours each. An SP and three DSPs would remain present during each shift, he said, adding that the police personnel were also called from neighbouring districts in view of the mela.

A number of associations organised “chabeels” and “langars” for the devotees at different places on the way to the temple.

MC commissioner Vinay Bublani said several water tankers were made available for potable water to devotees and for the associations organising “langars”. The roads leading to the temple had spruced up for the occasion, he added.

Similarly, SDM-I Bhupinder Singh said four medical teams were available round the clock for the devotees during the mela. Besides, temporary urinals had been set up at different places for the convenience of the devotees, he added.

Gurdaspur, September 13
Kanwal Bakshi, president of the United Christian Front, Punjab, while condemning the attack on members of the Christian community in Orissa, demanded formation of a state minority commission.

Addressing a press conference here today, Bakshi, who is former member of the Punjab Subordinate Services Selection Board, said attacks on Dalit and tribal Christians in Orissa would adversely affect the integrity of the country.

Bakshi said the cause of the problem was lack of communication and understanding between fundamentalists and leaders of the minority community. The ruling parties in various states should bring leaders of both the communities together to find a peaceful solution to the issue instead of trying to drive political mileage out of it.

Bakshi pointed out that the state of affairs in Punjab was also very volatile where the population of Christians was around 1.5 million. Around nine lakh votes of Christians carried the capacity of making a balancing impact in approximately 38 Vidhan Sabha constituencies of Punjab as the Christian vote bank varied from 5 to 33 per cent in these pockets.

He said the United Christian Front raised its voice for formation of a minority commission in Punjab. This demand, however, had been ignored by the previous government under pressure from a few politicians and bureaucrats.

He added that Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had promised the formulation of a state minority commission and brought the same agenda for the Christian minority 
in the party's manifesto. However, its implementation was still awaited.

Amritsar, September 13
A play, “Kuch Tan Karo Yaaro,” written by renowned playwright Pali Bhupinder Singh, was staged by Suchetak Kala Manch, Mohali, at Punjab Naatshala here this evening.

The play was staged at Naari Rangmanch Utsav, which was being organised by The Theatre Persons in collaboration with Punjab Naatshala, North Zone Cultural Centre, Patiala, and Sangeet Natak Academy, New Delhi.

Produced and directed by famous theatre personality Anita Shabdeesh, it is a comic satire on the present day society. The play revolves around a family in which the head of the family (father) represents our country and his good-for-nothing children represent our leaders and bureaucrats. The only hard-working and sincere person in house is the servant who represents the common man. The play has very humorous and powerful dialogues inspiring the people to do something for the nation.

Meanwhile, the audience were left spellbound by the performance of the artistes who succeeded in portraying the present day politicians and condition of the suffering common man. The satire in the play not only left the audience in humorous mood but also forced them to ponder over the message given.

Ammritsar, September 13
With the death of Partap Singh Hanspal, a retired superintending engineer, son of revolutionary poet and nationalist Sodagar Singh Bhikhari of Kavi Kutia fame, the old link between revolutionaries of Punjab and Bengal, who scripted the history of Indian freedom together, stand snapped.

He was born on February 8, 1922, at Calcutta. During his engineering education at Benaras Hindu University, he was arrested for his role in the Quit India Movement in 1942 and was lodged in Mirzapur central jail (UP) along with his other classmates.

Later, Partap Singh did a commendable job in rehabilitating victims of communal frenzy during Partition. Balochis chased him till Wagah, but he escaped with the help of his cousin, who was a Major in the Army.

Though the engineer has preserved invaluable manuscripts and other artifacts of his father (S.S. Bhikhari), such objects, belonging to the freedom fighters, need to be collected and kept in a museum.

Interestingly, most of the revolutionary literature written in Gurmukhi at Kolkata would print from Amritsar. Most of the literature was written at Kavi Kutia, established in 1922 at Kolkata. A monthly magazine, Kavi, was launched from Kavi Kutia in 1927, while daily paper, “Desh Darpan”, started from the same place in 1930.

It was at the height of the freedom struggle that the house of a young and fragile man became the hub of the freedom fighters in Kolkata.

Kavi Kutia was the first Punjabi literary society established in Bengal. Its members used to discuss revolutionary compositions on the freedom struggle, social and religious reform, gurdwara reforms and would publish them in Kavi and later in “Desh Darpan”, a Punjabi daily of the 1930s which is still in print. Thousands of Punjabis, settled in Kolkata, were attracted by the magnetic power of Bhikhari.

Interestingly, it (Kavi Kutia) had no building or cottage. Its members used to assemble in parks or at the house of Bhikhari.

Nawanshahr, September 13
Thieves broke into the house of Manjit Kaur at nearby Garcha village yesterday and took away gold ornaments and Rs 10,000 from the house.

According to Manjit Kaur, she had gone to the school of her children and when she returned, she found locks of her house broken. The thieves also broke the locks of the almirahs, trunks, etc and scattered the household articles in the rooms and took away the gold ornaments and cash with them.

Hoshiarpur, September 13
To ascertain the age of the five child labourers who were rescued by minister for labour, parliamentary affairs, forest and wildlife, medical education and research Tikshan Sud while passing through the Hoshiarpur-Jalandhar road on September 11, the labour department has got the medical examination of all of them conducted from the government hospital here.

According to the press release issued by the office of the assistant labour commissioner here today, the medical report revealed that the age of four children was below 14 years and that of the fifth between 14 and 16 years. The department had challaned the owners, without mentioning the name of them, in the press release where all the children were working under section 14 for violating section 3 of the Labour Act.

The department has also demanded to submit attendance and wages record yesterday, but the owners failed to produce the same. Therefore, the owners had also been challaned under the Payment of Wages Act and Minimum Wages Act.

The department has issued notices to the owners to deposit Rs 20,000 against each child labour as per the decision of the Supreme Court in the M.P. Mehta vs Tamil Nadu and others case.

The press release carried a warning to all the owners of tea stalls, dhabas and others, where children below 14 years, had been employed, to immediately stop the child labour, failing strict action would be taken against them.

Tarn Taran, September 13
Six persons, including a sarpanch, were booked here for taking undue advantage of the “Shagun” scheme of the state government here today.

The accused were identified as Lakhwinder Singh, Sardool Singh, Balwinder Singh, Sawinder Singh, Swarn Singh and Gurnam Singh, sarpanch, all of Dhotta village falling under Verowal police station.

The police sources said here today that the accused, being members of the Schedule Castes, submitted false affidavits of the marriage of their respective daughters in connivance with the village sarpanch and took Rs 15,000 per head under the scheme.

The fraud was brought to the notice of the administration by Harjinder Singh, a resident of the same village. A case under sections 420 and 120-B of the IPC was registered against the accused. The accused has absconded.