Bathinda, August 5
To encourage sales at the Jan Aushadhi shop, situated on the Civil Hospital complex here, the health authorities have started taking steps. This followed the reports that the sale of the Red Cross Medical Store, also situated on the Civil Hospital premises adjoining the Jan Aushadhi shop, is more than the Jan Aushdhi shop on account of two reasons. First, the Jan Aushadhi shop has not all types of medicines and second, some doctors allegedly prescribe those brands of medicines in a big way that are available either at the Red Cross Medical Store or in the market.

In this connection, the district health authorities held a meeting at the office of the Civil Surgeon here today. In the meeting, Civil Surgeon Dr Inder Dayal Goyal, SMO of Civil Hospital Dr Vinod Garg, SMO of Women and Children Hospital Dr BS Gill and doctors from both the hospitals took part. Secretary of the District Red Cross Society JR Goyal also participated in the meeting as the Jan Aushadhi shop and the Red Cross Medical Store are being controlled and managed by the District Red Cross Society.

During the meeting, the doctors were directed to prescribe those medicines in a big way, which were available at the Jan Aushadhi shop. In turn, the doctors asked the health authorities to make available 28 more medicines at the shop. The doctors also informed the Civil Surgeon that the operators of the shop did not inform them about the medicines that were out of stock. The operators of the Jan Aushadhi shop were also directed to inform the Civil Surgeon about their problems so that the same could be taken up before the state nodal officer of the Jan Aushdhi scheme.

Talking to TNS, the Civil Surgeon said they had now kept some surgical items at the Jan Aushadhi shop, which would not be available at the Red Cross Medical Store. He said the 28 medicines, which had been suggested by the doctors today, would be made available soon and would be provided to the patients on cheap rates.

The Civil Surgeon said in the first five days of August, the sales at Jan Aushadhi shop had increased due to their efforts. He said the sale of medicines on August 4 was Rs 14,000 as compared to about Rs 4,000 earlier.

He said he had also directed operators of Jan Aushadhi shop to give order for supply of medicines before they get exhausted in their stock.

Ramnagar (Bathinda), August 5
Observing the agitation of villagers and the activists of BKU (Ekta-Ugrahan) gaining momentum, the district administration finally suspended the construction of the controversial sewage treatment plant for an indefinite period.

The development took place late this evening, when the chief parliamentary secretary, Jagdeep Singh Nakai intervened in the matter and ordered the officials concerned to halt the work

Further, Nakai directed the administration to initiate proceedings to release the BKU leader Mothu Singh Kotda, who was rounded up by the police on Wednesday, when he was leading the agitators in the village.

Earlier, tension had been prevailing in the village since morning, as the villagers and the BKU leaders were assembling to chalk out further strategy to intensify the protest.

Taking preventive measures, the district administration deployed a number of women cops in the village to keep an eye over the activities in the village.

Even after being aware that a large number of cops headed by senior officials of the district were already camping in the village, hundreds of BKU leaders and villagers, including women, came on road. The development put the cops on their toes.

Taking immediate action, the police cordoned off the protesters. Finding themselves helpless in front of the police, the agitators started raising anti-establishment slogans and accused the administration of suppressing their democratic protest.

To handle the situation, SDM, Talwandi Sabo initiated negotiations with the protesters, but to no avail. The agitators were adamant that they would consider the proposals of administration only after their arrested leader was released unconditionally.

During the discussions, the BKU leaders warned the officials that the protest was going to be intensified as the state leadership of the union at Chandigarh had called a meeting to discuss the further strategy.

Meanwhile, Nakai reached the spot and pacified the protesters stating that the work on sewage treatment plant had been stopped. Nakai disclosed that he had directed the officials to release the BKU leader, who was detained yesterday.

The protest was launched to get shifted the place for setting up the treatment plant, which was for Maur Mandi (about 4 km from village), but was being set up near the residential area in the village. The villagers wanted the administration to locate it at a distance from their houses.

Bathinda, August 5
A day after the rift between the SAD-BJP councillors came to light, when all BJP councillors stayed away from the inaugural ceremony of a single window system at the Bathinda Municipal Corporation (BMC), three officials of BMC, including the assistant commissioner, were shifted out today.

According to information available, assistant commissioner Najar Singh has been transferred to the Municipal Corporation, Patiala. The two others are the junior engineers (Civil), Gurpreet Singh and Yash Pal, who have been transferred to Patiala and Ludhiana, respectively.

It has also been reported that the executive officer (EO) Kamal Kant, who had served the BMC for a couple of years, will replace the assistant commissioner but his designation would remain the same, that of an EO.

Official sources informed that the order was an outcome of the vociferous demand by the BJP councillors, which they made before cabinet minister Manoranjan Kalia at Ludhiana.

If one goes by the previous incidents of the general house meetings of the BMC, the BJP leaders did not have very cordial relationship with the three officials transferred today.

In the recent BMC general house meeting, assistant commissioner Najar Singh had al altercation with BJP councillors, when they were accusing the bureaucracy of mischievously shielding those accused of raising illegal buildings in the city.

The two JEs in question had also irked the BJP councillors and had been at their receiving end even in the house meetings.

When contacted, BMC commissioner Ravi Bhagat stated that he had received the information regarding the transfer of the officials but refused to comment further.

Moga, August 5
A married Dalit woman, missing for the past few days, has allegedly been murdered by her paramour belonging to an upper caste.

Her body was yet to be recovered but the police has registered a criminal case of murder under sections 302 and 201 of the IPC against the alleged accused Pargat Singh, son of Mohinder Singh (Jat-Sikh), a resident of Longiwind village on the statement of her son Kulwant Singh.

Kulwant has stated to the police that his mother Jaswinder Kaur, who had ‘illicit relations’ with the alleged accused, went to the district headquarters to get medicines on July 31. She did not return.

Police inspector Nachattar Singh revealed that the alleged accused was eluding arrest. A hunt has been launched to nab him.