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Ferozepur a victim of govt apathy, neglect
Taint charges fail to stick against revenue officials
Dhaba owners to come under VAT net now
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Pirated CDs hit Punjabi music industry
Each sub-division to have all-CFL village
BKU dharna from today
Pak jurist who transliterated ‘Sukhmani Sahib’ in Amritsar
Man held for travelling on forged Army warrant
Docs, paramedics, staff honoured
A paramedical worker being honoured for rendering her services during the free surgical camp at Sai Temple in Abohar on Monday night. A Tribune photograph
Fazilka shopkeepers flay ‘unplanned’ ROB
Maan comes down heavily on CM, Amarinder
IT fair: Abohar school is best overall performer
SDM N.S. Brar giving away prizes to the winners of the IT fair ‘Arohan’ organised in Abohar. A Tribune photograph
20-20 National Open Cricket Tournament
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Ferozepur a victim of govt apathy, neglect
Ferozepur, November 24 With 246.22-km-long India-Pakistan border, six out of 10 blocks in the district are situated along the border. The district which was divided thrice depicts a picture of apathy and neglect today. Earlier, two districts of Moga and Muktsar were carved out of it due to political reasons and later, the Dharamkot area with hundreds of villages was transferred to Moga. Ironically, even as other districts carved out of it have made tremendous progress, Ferozepur never caught the attention of any government. It neither attracted any industry nor investors owing to poor infrastructural facilities in the district. Besides, all vital issues like opening of Hussaniwala border, which was the lifeline of traders before its closure in the aftermath of the 1971 Indo-Pak war, opening of a Government PG College, establishment of judicial complex and mini-secretariat have been ignored till date. In terms of industry, Ferozepur with total an area of 5,303 sq kms (10 per cent of the state), lags behind other districts in the state. It has only 4,500 small-scale and just 12 medium to large-scale industries. Let alone Ludhiana and Jalandhar, even the other border districts of Amritsar and Gurdaspur are way ahead in terms of industrialisation with 28,250 and 11,890 small-scale industries besides 34 and 17 heavy industries, respectively. Ferozepur has only two per cent of the state's workforce in small-scale units while Gurdaspur and Amritsar have six and 13 per cent, respectively. The scenario of higher education is equally dismal. The literacy rate is as low as 60 per cent against 69.7 per cent in the state. While scores of engineering, dental and medical colleges besides institutes of management and higher education have mushroomed across the state, Ferozepur has one engineering college, one dental college and no medical college. There is no good institution offering vocational and career-oriented programmes, which has only added to the unemployment in the area. Apart from this, there is no Government College in Ferozepur, due to which the students, especially the boys pursuing post-graduate courses, have to take admissions elsewhere. In school education, the drop-out rate is 37.4 per cent against the state average of 8.42 per cent in 6 to 11 years age group while in 11 to 14 years age group, it is 31.3 per cent. The state's average is 5.85 per cent. In sports department, despite being a breeding ground of hockey players of international repute like Gaganajit, Ajit Singh and Harmeek Singh, there is no separate hockey stadium. There is only one stadium, which is being used for all sorts of sports besides playing hosts to the official functions, including Independence Day and Republic Day. There is no facility for sports like tennis, squash, fencing and table tennis. In the absence of any judicial complex at the headquarters, there is no proper arrangement for the advocates and the judges. The Sessions Court is situated at the Mall road whereas other courts are functioning in district courts complex at Jhoke road. The number of advocates has swelled enormously in the last few years, which has only led to rampant growth of unauthorised kiosks. Sometime back, the chief justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court had laid the foundation for a new judicial complex. However, the project was stalled at the eleventh hour after the local military authorities raised objections. The work on the construction of a circuit house, the foundation stone for which was laid way back in April 1995, is also abandoned for the past 13 years reportedly due to shortage of funds. The municipal committees are also in poor condition. They lack resources and infrastructure to provide basic amenities. The roads are in bad shape dotted with potholes while the sewerage condition is pathetic. The cesspools of slush impede the flow of traffic. Even a slight drizzle inundates the city, particularly the interiors and low-lying areas. Interestingly, even the road in front of the office of Sewerage and Water Supply Board remains submerged most of the times due to overflowing sewerage water. Dozens of dengue cases have been reported but the authorities are busy passing the blame on others or citing paucity of funds as a reason. In the absence of any administrative complex, various government offices are scattered and situated at distant places due to which people, who come from far-off villages for their works, face lot of troubles. Some offices are functioning in rented accommodations, which are dilapidated now. The District Consumer and Redressal Court is functioning on the premises of a badminton hall. The condition at various sub-divisions is equally worse. There is no official accommodation for the DSPs posted at various sub-division headquarters in the district. Even at district headquarters, there is no old-age home, Nari Niketan, Bal Bhawan or community centre. The rail and road connectivity is also not very good. There is no night bus service between Ferozepur and other major cities of the state. Residents feel that it is high time that the government woke up and does something substantial for developing infrastructure in the town. |
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Taint charges fail to stick against revenue officials
Bathinda, November 24 According to an RTI activist, only three naib tehsildars out of the 74 officers have been punished. The rest saved themselves during the initial enquiries done by the department that took place against them. Many officers have long pending cases against them. On the other hand, those tehsildars against whom corruption charges were made were promoted to district revenue officers. The officers who have corruption charges against them are five district revenue officers, 38 tehsildars and 21 naib tehsildars. In Bathinda, there are 24 posts of district revenue officers, 89 posts for naib tehsildars and 181 posts of tehsildars. Many posts are vacant in all departments of the district but the revenue department is the only department which has only one post vacant, the rest are filled up. This information is from January 1997 to 2007. Four out of five district revenue officers who had a corrupt record have retired without any action against them. According to RTI Act information, an FIR No. 115, dated July 8 last year, was registered against district revenue officer Jatinder Singh in Bathinda. The inquiry in this regard is still under process, nothing has been decided as yet. In another incident, a case was registered against naib tehsildar in Sangat by the vigilance department. The revenue department had suspended him on October 20 in 2005 and he was taken back into the department on May 25 in 2006. In Bathinda, Mansa and Faridkot, there are 20 posts of naib tehsildars. All 20 posts are filled up. The revenue department did not give approval to the vigilance department for initiating cases against 11 tehsildars. These 11 tehsildars were declared innocent. Three tehsildars were promoted to district revenue officers while court proceedings were on and are still on for corruption charges against them. Balkar Singh, SP Vigilance, stated, "Approval for initiating inquiries against individuals varies from case to case. It is not only for the revenue department. We apply section 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act on the competent authority concerned. The competent authority sees the case and then gives the approval. There are a very few cases in which approval for proceeding enquiries in a case is denied, most of the cases get approved for official enquiries to be conducted." The revenue department officials often escape charges of corruption against them. Two naib tehsildars were from Patiala and one was from Jalandhar among the three naib tehsildars who were found guilty. Malwa takes the lead in Punjab as compared to Majha and Doaba areas as far as revenue officials being questioned by the vigilance department is concerned. The government with the help of intelligence wing is now preparing a list of officials involved in corruption or linked with the offence. |
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Dhaba owners to come under VAT net now
Bathinda, November 24 As per information, those with a turnover of Rs 5 lakh to Rs 15 lakh will have to pay an annual VAT of Rs 10,000, those with a turnover of Rs 15 to Rs 30 lakh will be required to pay Rs 22,500, those with a turnover of Rs 30 lakh to Rs 50 lakh will be paying Rs 40,000 as tax. The tax amount in case of dhaba owners having an income of Rs 50 lakh to Rs 1 crore is Rs 75,000, while this amount is Rs 1.25 lakh for those with a turnover of Rs 1 crore to Rs 1.5 crore and Rs 1.75 lakh in case the turnover is between Rs 1.5 crore and Rs 2 crore. If it exceeds Rs 2 crore, the dhaba owner will have to pay tax at 12.5 per cent. Officials are hoping that the latest notification would bring more people under the value added tax net and contribute to revenues. The department has also started sending notices to those who have not got themselves registered so far. While the move is bound to benefit taxation lawyers in terms of increased business, dhaba owners are unhappy. "There are sellers like sweetmeat shops who are doing brisk business. In our case, food is not so expensive, the department should have been lenient. It is unfair," said the owner of a dhaba near the railway station. K.K. Garg, a lawyer, said bringing more people under the tax net would generate higher revenues and benefit the government. Kapil Goyal, a young lawyer, said the dhaba owners should have been given some relaxation as tax is already paid on various kiryana items used by them. |
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Pirated CDs hit Punjabi music industry
Bathinda, November 24 The situation, which has forced about 20-odd north India-based music companies to wash their hands off the new projects, is said to have come to such a pass that 60 per cent to 80 per cent of the total sales of audio and video numbers is based on pirated material, mainly 'home copied' versions of CDs and VCDs - which can be purchased at about one-fourth the price of the original product. If the VCD or an audio CD of a good number by a company is priced at say Rs 75 or Rs 90, the buyer can buy the pirated version of the same after paying just between Rs 15 and Rs 20. The speed and capability of unscrupulous elements to produce and pump the pirated material in the market is such that they can flood the Punjab markets with their While a majority of buyers don't mind buying pirated material for small price tags, the phenomena has started giving owners of music companies and others related with the music industry sleepless nights and a number of them have set up their own "raiding teams", to track down those selling pirated CDs and VCDs in view of the alleged lax attitude of the police and other authorities towards the fast growing menace. Investigations by TNS revealed that pirates, having their forts mainly in Bathinda, Ludhiana, Mansa and Patiala, buy a copy of the original CD, VCD or the DVD within hours of its release, churn out huge number of copies with the help of CDRs and computers and then introduce these into the market in connivance with some retailers at cheaper prices. A blank CD costs them just Rs 8 and if the cost of reprinted wrapper is added, the total cost of a pirated CD and VCD is between Rs 10 and Rs 11. But this is sold between Rs 15 and Rs 20 while a pirated DVD is sold for Rs 25-40. "If this is not enough, MP3s have done the rest. Songs of 10 singers are being clubbed in a single MP3 disc and it is being sold for Rs 20. Why anybody would purchase a genuine CD or VCD?" questions Jairaj Mittal, MD, Music Association of India. "Though it does not hit a singer as far as the publicity is concerned, but piracy hits below the belt as his royalty get diminished. Due to piracy, a number of even established singers had to set up their own music companies," said Sukhwinder Sukhi, a Punjabi folk singer. He said the only way out of the situation was more stringent laws and their enforcement. When contacted, Aashish Chaudhary, SSP, said video parlours without licences are committing two offences — one, they are renting out pirated films, and second, they are doing this without taking licence from the company - both of which are blatant violations of the Copyright Act. "The day is not far away when the police will raid such units and book the pirates involved in this business," he added. |
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Each sub-division to have all-CFL village
Ludhiana, November 24 A number of villages have shifted to the new power supply system. H.S. Brar, member, Distribution, PSEB, said, “In the first step, we have taken up one village in each sub-division of the state to set an example for others to follow”. Darbar Sahib, Muktsar, has been fitted with 100 per cent CFL lighting and 1,500 light points have been changed at Darbar Sahib in Amritsar. Jeetasinghwala in Baghapurana sub-division has recorded 100 per cent shifting to CFL. Charatsinghwala in Moga division and a village in Patiala district have also replaced all bulbs. Jehangir village in Doraha sub-division has 180 CFLs installed. Many CFLs are designed to replace an incandescent lamp and can fit in light fixtures formerly used for bulbs. Compared to general service incandescent lamps, CFLs give light, use less power and have longer life. However, CFLs have a higher price. Modern CFL was invented by Ed Hammer, an engineer with General Electric, in response to the 1973 oil crisis. The design was eventually leaked out and copied by others. Brar said, "A 20-watt CFL lamp gives light worth 100 watt given by a normal bulb. In a sense, a CFL recovered its cost in two months of use". Baljinder Singh Sidhu, XEN (Doraha), said, "We convinced the hospital authorities in Doraha to go in for CFLs." Brar said, "It is important to take elders into confidence to popularise a new technology.” |
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BKU dharna from today
Jalandhar, November 24 BKU president Balbir Singh Rajewal said sugarcane growers were under debt and had to repay bank loan that the state government’s cooperative sugarmills had not cleared their dues of the sugarcane supplied last year. — TNS |
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Pak jurist who transliterated ‘Sukhmani Sahib’ in Amritsar
Amritsar, November 24 A man of letters, proponent of strengthening democracy in Pakistan, Justice Haider is dedicated to the revitalisation of cultural and religious bonds between people of Punjab in India and Pakistan. His contribution to the legal profession has become a milestone in the history of law, his works in other spheres of life have made him an ideal for generations to come. Author of 20 books on religion, philosophy, history, law etc and more than 200 articles, Justice Haider has contributed profoundly to inter-faith dialogue. His books like “Zikr-e-Hussain”, “Zikr-e-Farid”, “Baba Nanak”, “Zikr-e-Sakhian”, “Farid”, “Nanak”, “Bullah and Waris”, “Zindagi Nama Baba Farid”, “Sukhmani Sahib” etc can be counted as seminal works . His contribution to various fields got him awards like the Lifetime Achievement Award from Quaid-e-Azam Law College, Ambassador of Peace Award 2001, Bhai Vir Singh Award, New Delhi etc. His report on jail reforms and his participation in movement for democracy and in human rights commission of Pakistan are well known. He has transliterated Sukhmani Sahib in five scripts, including those in Persian, Roman, Shahmukhi and Gurmukhi. Sukhmani Sahib is a set of hymns divided into 24 sections appearing in Guru Granth Sahib. Haider completed this task, which was lauded by the Sikhs on a pilgrimage in Pakistan in connection with the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev. Haider has underscored similarities between Islamic and Sikh precepts. To buttress this, he has juxtaposed certain aayats, both Arabic original and English translation, from the Holy Quran with verses from Guru Granth Sahib that preach oneness of God. He also acknowledges Sikh Gurus were well-read in the field of comparative religions. Further, he points out the non-sectarian character of the composition. It has verses in Gurmukhi, along with the translation and transliteration in Urdu and English. |
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Man held for travelling on forged Army warrant
Bathinda, November 24 The Army intelligence had given a tip-off to the railway authorities about the accused. Army intelligence has been getting information about fake warrants being used for travelling in trains. Silva was caught travelling on the warrant in the name of Hav Benu Kumar, the accused had allegedly scrubbed off the original name and had superimposed his name on the warrant. Silva was searched by RPF inspector Darbara Singh and Satpal Malik. The Armymen get free railway warrant every year for travelling and the entire fare is borne by the Army. Information about misuse of this facility has been coming
in now. The Army intelligence had written to the Defence Ministry and the railways about this as it is deeply concerned about such activities. Close coordination between the Army and the railway intelligence and due to some vital inputs provided by the Army, some cases related to misuse of warrant have been cracked in the city. A similar case had come to light in June when Raju Ghosh was arrested for a similar act. Investigations are on to ascertain whether it was a solitary case or there is an organised gang behind this racket. The arrested are being interrogated further. The railway intelligence has appreciated the initiative taken by the Army intelligence for supplying credible information about such cases to help the railway officials nab the culprits. |
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Docs, paramedics, staff honoured
Abohar, November 24 Kamlesh Dawar, president of the Sathya Sai Sewa Samiti, informed that 74 major surgeries, including laparoscopic cholecystectomy and laparoscopic hystrectomy, were performed during the seven-day-long camp by a team of reputed surgeons, headed by senior urologist Kailash Philore. The doctors, who provided other services during the camp, included Satish Jain, Naveen Sethi, R.L. Bhargava, K.N. Babbar, Upasana Bansal and S.S. Gagneja. Paramedics and other workers honoured during the valedictory function of the camp included Santosh Bajaj, Kusum Lata, Baljinder Kaur, Gurdeep Kaur, Jasbir Kaur, Roma, Vandana, Ajay Malhotra, Sahab Singh, Sandeep Kumar, Neeru, Veena, Neetu, Jyoti, Amrita, Neelam, Sanjay, Santosh, Sandeep, Mahesh, Inderjit and Banwari Lal. Notably, the Samiti had earlier organised a blood donation camp where 83 units were collected. The Samiti had arranged free lodging and boarding for the patients selected from slum areas and villages of the sub-division. |
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Fazilka shopkeepers flay ‘unplanned’ ROB
Fazilka, November 24 About 100 odd shopkeepers running their business in the surrounding area are not only likely to lose their business but are also facing great inconvenience due to alleged violation of rules in the construction of the ROB. The affected shopkeepers have in a memorandum submitted to the Executive Officer, Municipal Council, Fazilka raised several discrepancies and sought the intervention of the council authorities. They have pointed out that the design and map of the ROB has not been approved from the Northern railway authorities. Besides, no slip road has been constructed before starting construction in the central road. This is causing traffic hazard. Moreover, no approval for traffic diversion plan during construction has been obtained from the municipal council authorities. The length of the flyover is pegged to be around 900 meter, which is considered extra large, as similar such fly over at Moga under the same BOT project is around 650 meters. This shall entail extra financial burden to those using the flyover. Moreover, the construction company shall also levy extra charges for the enhanced length of the ROB. The shopkeepers have also pointed out that the street lights were removed about one year back for the construction of the ROB. But compensatory electrification in the construction zone have not been made to improve the traffic safety. Along with this sufficient safety measure as per Indian Road Congress and PWD B&R Punjab norms have not been taken during the construction activities. It has caused traffic bottlenecks and rendered the area accident-prone. Recently, a labourer engaged in the construction work had died due to a mishap at the construction site, while he was engaged in work. The shopkeepers maintain that no alternative exit and entry routes have been provided to them, which has hit their business hard. A deputation of shopkeepers met Municipal Council president, Anil Sethi and Tilak Raj Verma, Executive Officer and apprised him of the problem faced by them and requested for his immediate intervention to redress the grievances. Sethi assured the shopkeepers that he would soon look into the matter and initiate action, if any violation of law is detected. |
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Maan comes down heavily on CM, Amarinder
Mansa, November 24 He further said that BJP leader L.K. Advani had admitted in his book “My Country My Life” that they had asked for the Operation Bluestar, which according to him was the need of the hour. “BJP leader L.K. Advani is the main architect of Hindu terrorism in India,” Maan added. The SAD (A) chief said most chief ministers belonged to Malwa region but the area was reeling under several problems, including poor drinking water and diseases as jaundice, cancer and malaria. He alleged that the leaders did not pay proper attention towards the above problems. Mann said that he might contest the ensuing Lok Sabha elections either from Bathinda or Sangrur constituency. Meanwhile, Akali workers of the village presented a horse worth Rs 7 lakhs to Mann. Among others present included Gursewak Singh Jawaharke, Ajaib Singh Ralli, Rajinder Singh Sarpanch, Gurdeep Singh Jhabbar and Pritam Singh. |
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IT fair: Abohar school is best overall performer
Abohar, November 24 Sub-divisional magistrate N.S. Brar gave away prizes to the winners. DAV Model School, Sector 15, Chandigarh, was the runners up. Interestingly, Dev Mittar Ahuja, chairman of the local advisory committee of the institution, also showcased his talent during the fair. He had been a student of the prestigious Birla Engineering Institute, Pilani, Rajasthan, some four decades back. As many as 19 teams from different cities participated in the competitions, principal Kusum Khungar informed today. Results are: Technology Works: (1) LIDG DAV Senior Secondary School, Jalalabad (2) LRS DAV Senior Secondary School, Abohar. Robotics: (1) Police DAV Public School, Jalandhar (2) LRS DAV Senior Secondary School, Abohar. Multi Media Application: (1) DC International School, Ferozepur (2) DAV Public School, Patiala. Non-Multimedia Application: (1) RBDAV Public School, Bathinda (2) DAV Public School, Patiala. Quick programming and Logic Development: (1) DAV Model School, Sector 15, Chandigarh (2) LRS DAV Senior Secondary School, Abohar. Debugging: (1) DAV Model School, Sector 15, Chandigarh (2) Gopi Chand Arya Mahila College, Abohar. Debate: (1) LRS DAV Senior Secondary Model School, Abohar (2) DAV Edwardganj Public School, Malout. Quiz: (1) DAV Senior Secondary School, Sirsa (2) DC International School, Ferozepur. |
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20-20 National Open Cricket Tournament
Abohar, November 24 In the first semi-final, the Raisinghnagar XI batted first and was all out at 62 runs. In reply, the Kings XI, Patiala, achieved the winning target in the sixth over at the loss of one wicket. Gurvinder Saini of the Kings XI was declared as the man of the match for his unbeaten knock of 40 runs. In the other semi-final played today, the Sandhu XI defeated the Abohar XI. Playing first, the team scored 139 runs in the stipulated 20
overs. Jaswinder Jassi and Ranjit scored 27 runs each while Varun added 35 runs to the team’s total. Sukhi and
Varun, who bowled for the Abohar XI, claimed two wickets each. In reply, the batsmen of the Abohar XI initially thrilled the gathering with fine knocks. Praveen hit six boundaries, including two sixes and four fours, during his knock of 40 runs. Suraj added 30 runs. However, the team was packed off at 114 in the 17th over. Haryana’s under-22 star
Varun, who took four wickets besides scoring 35 runs for the Sandhu XI, was adjudged the man of the match. |
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Abohar, November 24
Abohar, November 24
