|
|
|
|
|
Heavy downpour makes city halt in its tracks
Spl girdawaris to assess crop loss in flood-hit areas
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Cotton growers fear damage to their crop
Waterlogging exposes MC claim on development works in Fazilka
RTI checks fleecing of bus passengers
Panghura gets another guest, a baby girl again
Kapurthala, Nawanshahr land records to go online by month-end
Passengers’ response to Duronto not quite on the right track
BJP leader quits office
Rural bank staff to stage dharna today
Teacher’s Day celebrated
|
||||||||||||
|
Heavy downpour makes city halt in its tracks
Bathinda/Mansa, September 5 The cemented roof came down due to the heavy downpour. Volunteers of the Sahara Jan Sewa from Bathinda arrived and extracted the trio buried under the debris. The injured have been identified as Mohgani Devi and her sons Sonu and Parminder. The condition of Mohgani is stated to be critical. She is undergoing treatment at the Civil Hospital, Bathinda. In Mansa, many households at the Bir Nagar locality got inundated and the underbridge connecting the city also got flooded with rainwater. High velocity winds led to rains which lashed the area between 1 and 5 am. Many residents of the low-lying areas remained indoors for the entire day due to waterlogged streets and roads. The situation was pitiable even in the planned areas of Bathinda, including all three phases of the Model Town. While residents of the Phase 1 had put up iron barricades so that vehicles should take alternative routes to avoid getting trapped, polluted water was seen coming out of the open manholes in Phase-III. Commuters were also at the receiving end as many vehicles, including two-wheelers and four- wheelers, were seen stranded on the waterlogged roads. Government and private institutions also witnessed thin attendance due to rain. Only a handful of employees were found present at the District Administrative Complex and the office of the District Industries Department. The staff present there said their colleagues failed to come due to flooded roads. As per the regional research station of PAU, Bathinda, intermittent rains will continue till Tuesday morning. The rainfall recorded by the research station on Monday morning was 91 mm |
|
|
Spl girdawaris to assess crop loss in flood-hit areas
Ferozpur, September 5 Deputy Commissioner S Karuna Raju said the administration was concerned about the public health as well as the livestock. Mobile ambulances have been deployed to tackle any situation, the DC said and added that he was monitoring the entire flood relief operations. Chief Medical Officer Dr Karanjit Singh said over 5000 patients, suffering from various kinds of ailments including skin infections, fever, and diarrhoea have been treated at the eight medical camps set up by the Health Department so far. He said the mobile vans have been pressed into service to help the patients in the flood-affected villages. The DC said special girdawaris have been ordered to assess the damage to the crops and property due to floods. Compensation would be given after the exact assessment of the loss incurred by the farmers is made by the Revenue Department. As per the initial estimates, standing crops in around 30,000 acres has been damaged by the ravaging Sutlej. The floods also claimed two lives. Hundreds of houses have also reportedly been damaged and several cattle too have perished. The road network in the affected villages had also borne the brunt of the flood fury in addition to the bridge which was washed away due to the strong water currents in the Hazarasinghwala-Gatti Rajoke area. Sanjeev Gupta, Executive Engineer, Golewala drainage division, said the department was also making an assessment of the damage to the spurs and studs of the bundh due to scouring by the gushing water, adding that the correct assessment of the losses could be estimated only after the flood waters receded fully. In some low-lying villages like Muthianwalai and Baggewala, the flood water has receded but is still a matter of concern for the villages. The DC has instructed the Revenue officials to drain out the water with the help of pumps at certain places. Meanwhile, Divisional Commissioner R. Venkatratnam along with Deputy Commissioner S Karuna Raju and officials from the Revenue, Animal Husbandry and Health Departments today visited the flood-affected villages including Dhira Gaira, Muthianwala, Talli Gulam, to oversee the relief works. |
|
|
Heavy rain disrupts normal life in Abohar
Abohar, September 5 The Assumption Convent School, having the largest number of students in the sub-division, had declared holiday on the eve of Teacher’s Day. Teaching work in some colleges was suspended as the teachers had proceeded on mass casual leave responding to the call given by their federation. Sewage system has choked. Streetlights were switched off due to power breakdown at 9.45 am as the technical staff of the Powercom could not turn up in the morning. Water taps supplied highly contaminated water mixed with sewage. Retail shops in most of the residential areas besides leading markets remained closed asstreets were inundated. The accumulated rainwater on the main roads including the Sahitya Sadan Marg could not be cleared till evening. The residents were unable to move out in a dozen of localities including Nanak Nagari, Gobind Nagari, Subhash Nagar, Idgah Basti, Arya Nagar, Sidhu Nagari, Jain Nagari, Indira Nagari and Sunder Nagari as the authorities were unable to drain out the rainwater. Occupancy in the buses was reduced to 25 per cent due to heavy rainfall. Very few people took to the roads. |
|
|
Cotton growers fear damage to their crop
Bathinda, September 5 Farmer leader Shingara Singh Mann said the rain was beneficial for the crop in the areas where the soil was sandy. Farmers in the areas near here in whose fields the rainwater had accumulated were seen busy draining it out to save their standing crop. Farm scientists said the rain would help in warding off the pests that had recently appeared on the cotton plants in certain areas of Abohar and Fazilka. Sukhdev Singh Brar, assistant plant protection officer in the Agriculture Department at Abohar, conducted a quick survey in Abohar and Khuyiansarwar blocks after the rain. He said the widespread showers washed off the white fly and there were no reports suggesting an attack by the mealy bug or American Bollworm. Barring few waterlogged areas, villages falling under the Seetogunno sub-tehsil area have been benefited by the fresh spell of downpour as a part of these areas is desert. The continuous rain spell in the Fazilka region has by and large proved to be a boon for the cotton growers. Barring some fields of the BT cotton where the tobacco caterpillar had appeared, farmers were delighted. “The rainwater is by and large beneficial for the cotton crop as it helps in blooming of the cotton bulbs. Besides, the rain also prevents the cotton crop from the attack of mealy bug, white fly and
sucking pests, says agriculture expert Satish Dhingra. (With inputs from Praful Chander Nagpal and Raj Sadosh) |
|
Waterlogging exposes MC claim on development works in Fazilka
Fazilka, September 5 The worst-hit areas were the Arya Samaj road, bus stand road, Mahajan Market, railway station, old Abohar road, MR Government College road, Radha Swami Colony, Cantonment road, Anandpur Mohalla and other low-lying localities. Rainwater accumulated at the Arya Samaj road ten days back but the Municipal Council could not succeed in draining it out. It was learnt that sewage got mixed with the accumulated water emanating foul smell. “We have to wade through the stagnant water on the main road with our nose covered,” said Naresh Kumar, a resident of Arya Samaj road. The Executive Officer of the MC Sukhdev Singh said the civic officials were busy in draining out the accumulated water and the problem would be sorted out soon. Meawhile, three persons had a narrow escape when the roof of their house collapsed in Fazilka following the heavy downpour today. The incident occured in the thickly populated Anandpur area. After the heavy rainfall in the wee hours today, the plaster of the roof of the dilapidated house of Rukmo Bai developed cracks. The family members immediately started vacating the place. Meanwhile, the roof caved in resulting in damage to the household items. Banwari Lal, a relative of Rukmo Bai, has demanded a compensation of Rs one lakh from the government. |
|
|
RTI checks fleecing of bus passengers
Bathinda, September 5 A resident of Rampura Phul, Rajiv Goyal, had approached the appellate authority of the Punjab Roadways Transport Corporation (PRTC), Bathinda depot, in June 2010 complaining that the passengers on the Chandigarh-Patiala and the Bathinda-Rampura route were being overcharged. He also stated that besides, the buses did not go to the bus stands of Bhucho Mandi, Rajpura city and Ahmedgarh and instead skirted around by taking up the route of respective bypasses. “In the garb of fare rates revised in January 2010, all bus operators were overcharging. PRTC officials replied that actual fare fixed for the Bathinda-Rampura was Rs 19 in 2010 covering a distance of 34 km with bus going inside the Bhucho Mandi bus stand. However, all the buses took the bypass route and charged Rs 20,” he said. Similarly, the bus fare on the Patiala-Chandigarh route was Rs 49 in 2010 while Rs 50 was being charged. The Bathinda depot has deployed staff of eight ticket inspectors to check that no one travels without ticket or that no one is overcharged, but they too remained mute spectators to the irregularity. However, not convinced with the reply of the PRTC, Bathinda depot, Goyal again made a complaint in September and October 2010 along with tickets and sought information under the RTI. He brought the matter to the notice of the Information Commission, Punjab. Information Commissioner Kulvir Singh then directed the PRTC to charge as per rules and stated that buses should go inside the respective bus stands. Even the general manager, PRTC, has passed orders to Patiala, Sangrur, Barnala, Bathinda, Budhlada, Faridkot, Kapurthala, Ludhiana, Chandigarh and a special cell. He has directed that buses plying on the Bathinda-Rampura route should halt at the Bhucho Mandi bus stand, those running on the Patiala-Chandigarh route should halt at Rajpura bus stand and the ones running on the Ludhiana-Malerkotla should halt at the Ahmedgarh bus stand. |
|
Panghura gets another guest, a baby girl again
Bathinda, September 5 It is the seventh female baby found in the cradle installed by the society for the well-being of the unwanted and abandoned babies. The baby was taken to the local government hospital where a child specialist, Dr Satish Jindal, examined her. Dr Jindal said the baby was about one to two days old and was healthy. After administering her injections of the BCG and Hepatitis-B, and the oral anti-polio drops, she was handed over to the DRCS authorities, he added. DRCS secretary JR Goyal said a local NGO, Naujwan Welfare Society, informed Deputy Commissioner KK Yadav about the baby. On this, the DC instructed him to do the needful in the case, he added. He further said the baby had been examined thoroughly. They would take the baby to the Yadwindra Puran Bal Niketan, Lahori Gate, Patiala, tomorrow and hand her over to the authorities there, he added. President of the Naujwan Welfare Society Sonu Maheshwari said that in the morning, they had received a phone call from a poor family that wanted to hand over the baby to someone. He said they told the family about the “Panghura” scheme but fearing that an action that might be taken against it, the family did not agree to put the baby in the cradle itself and requested the NGO to take the baby. Then, they informed about it to the DC, Maheshwari said, adding that on the order of the DC, local SDM Sandeep Rishi reached the “Panghura” site, received the baby from the cradle and handed it over to the DRCS authorities. Maheshwari said they could not disclose the whereabouts of the family as the family was not in favour of it. |
|
|
Families of farm-suicide victims seek compensation
Bathinda, September 5 The protest was held in support of their demands, including waiving of payment of electricity bills of all farm labourers and Rs 5 lakh as compensation to the suicide victim families of farmers and farm labourers. The protesters also burnt the electricity bills of the farm labourers saying they would not pay the bills. The farm labourers also demanded waiving of their domestic electricity bills on the pattern of tube-well motors of farmers. State president of the PKMU Jora Singh Nasrali said they had burnt the electricity bills of more than Rs 10,000. He said these bills had not been paid by the labourers since the regime of former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh. He said in today’s dharna, protesters from 32 villages had taken part. He said they also demanded Rs 5 lakh as compensation and a government job to every family of the farmers and the farm labourers who had committed suicides in the past as they could not repay their debt. They also demanded waiving of the entire debt of the farmers and farm labourers, he added. As till about 3.30 pm, no one from the district administration came to them to receive the memorandum, the protesters, led by Nasrali and district president of the BKU (Ugrahan) Shingara Singh Mann, marched towards the office of Deputy Commissioner to submit the same and started raising slogans against the government. On this, Bathinda Tehsildar Avtar Singh Makkar came and spoke to the leaders, who then agreed to submit the memorandum to him. The protesters also submitted to him a large number of forms filled by farm labourers and the families of the farmers demanding Rs 5 lakh compensation and a government job to suicide victim families, payment of arrears of the Shagun scheme, payment of the arrears of the NREGA workers’ daily wages etc. Among others who were present on the occasion included leaders of farm labourers Jora Singh Nasrali, Sewak Singh, Jagsir Singh Sira and Mehnga Singh Bandi besides BKU (Ugrahan) leaders Shingara Singh Mann and Motha Singh Kotra. |
|
|
Kapurthala, Nawanshahr land records to go online by month-end
Bathinda, September 5 Being NRI centric districts, Kapurthala and Nawanshahr have been selected for the trial run. “A large number of people from these pockets reside abroad and need to keep a track of their landholdings. Based on the feedback from these people, the database of other districts would also be uploaded,” said Anurag Verma, former secretary, Revenue, Government of Punjab. While people would be able to see their land records, copies of the record downloaded from the portal will not be valid for legal purposes. For a legal document, people would have to visit the Farad Kendra concerned and deposit a fee of Rs 20 per page of the record, with the duty patwari. The record would be made available within 15 to 20 minutes. This is a first of its kind project wherein people can see their land record with a click of mouse. Meanwhile, at Bathinda, the data of 201 villages out of a total of 292 is being updated under the first phase. Of these, record of 39 villages is in the validation stage, says Sandhya Birla, district in-charge, PLRS. “The records of sub-tehsil Sangat, Maur and four villages of Bhagta have already been validated,” she added. Bathinda district has three tehsils and four sub-tehsils. All these have Farad Kendras running from their own buildings while that of Bathinda tehsil is operating from a makeshift office. Started in July 2007, the PLRS, Bathinda, has faced many odds in preparing the database. Sources in the PLRS said many records have been running with blunders since 1947. Software was designed in such a way that it picked every anomaly. Patwaris resisted the move thinking that their role would be completely wiped off, as before the online era, patwaris had the sole prerogative of issuing copies of land records. Over the last five years, things are falling into place, the sources said. |
|
|
Passengers’ response to Duronto not quite on the right track
Ferozepur, September 5 The railway authorities admitted that the reservations for the first ever Duronto Express from Amritsar to Chandigarh has been much below the expectations. However, they could not specify the reasons for it. An interaction with some passengers revealed that the travel time from Amritsar to Chandigarh, no stoppages at Jalandhar and Ludhiana besides reservations and lack of quota system were some of the reasons for the lack of response. Some passengers blamed it on the strong private bus lobby. About the travel time of Duronto from Amritsar to Chandigarh, which is around four and a half hours at the moment, Divisional Railway Manager (DRM), Ferozepur Division, Vishwesh Chowbey said once the rail link between Ludhiana and Morinda is completed, the travel time would be considerably reduced up to one hour. However, the completion of the rail link might take another year, he added. At the moment, the Duronto Express is routed via Sirhind, where it halts for technical stoppage. Due to engine reversal here, another 25 minutes is being consumed. “Once the engine is broken, the pressure in brakes has to be revived, which takes some time,” disclosed Brijesh Dharma, Senior Divisional Operating Manager. The DRM said the train was one-way at the moment and if the response was encouraging, it can be run simultaneously from both the places for which additional rakes were required. About the halt at Jalandhar and Ludhiana, he said the Duronto is meant from destination to destination and is planned that way only. He added that if the passengers' response remains inadequate, the railways might contemplate its stoppages at Jalandhar and Ludhiana. In that case, the name of the train needs to be changed or some special provisions would have to be made for it. About the reservation system, Chowbey said Duronto is a reserved train and its reservation is closed 15 minutes before the scheduled departure. The DRM further said work on the rail links between Abohar and Fazilka (42.717-km), Tarn Taran and Goindwal (20-km) besides the third line between Ludhiana and Sahnewal (17-km) was going on, which would be completed soon. About the connection between Ferozepur and Khemkaran for further connectivity to Amritsar, the DRM said as per the survey done by the Railway authorities, the rate of return on the line had come out to be 7.4 per cent, which should be at least 12 per cent, following which the proposal can be considered. Reasons cited for poor response
|
|
|
BJP leader quits office
Abohar, September 5 There has been no denial of the reports that the state BJP president Ashwani Kumar Sharma preferred to leave the meeting without having lunch asserting that he felt hurt over the behaviour of some senior workers. District president Arun Narang has confirmed that show-cause notices have been issued to Jaiswal and Sharma to explain their conduct within a week, the latter, however, denied having received any notice. The party sources indicated that search for the new city president has been intensified as booth level committees for the next Vidhan Sabha election were yet to be formed. State president Ashwani Sharma was officially quoted having exhorted the party cadre to go through the warm up exercise as the next elections could be announced any moment. The one-day camp was attended by the members of the Zila Parishad, Panchayat Samitis, Municipal Council, Improvement Trust and senior functionaries of all wings of the saffron party. Some of them had pointed out that the Congress had launched a comprehensive mass contact campaign for the last six months while the BJP was unable to get rid of the factionalism. |
|
|
Rural bank staff to stage dharna today
Abohar, September 5 General Secretary, North Zone Regional Rural Bank Employees Federation, APS Brar revealed that the staff had been struggling for the parity of other allowances and service rules with the sponsor bank staff besides induction of representatives of the officials and employees on the Board of Directors in the RRBs. The Central Government had in principle endorsed the demand following a verdict given in a petition by the High Court of Karnataka but the official notification is yet to be issued, he said.
— OC |
|
|
Teacher’s Day celebrated
Bathinda, September 5 Raman addressed the staff members and students gave a speech on the importance of a teacher. Harman, Harpreet and Jaspreet gave performances on the occasion. Dr SS Sangha, principal of the college, shared his views on the occasion. |
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
