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Chhapar Mela sees mud-slinging by parties
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Tell Centre to enact Right to Service Act, Sukhbir to Amarinder
3 school kids die as train hits van in Nakodar
Village cleric loses both his children
Relatives of the convicted youths outside Sharjah’s Appeal Court on Monday.
Funds for MCs
Patil okays names of 6 advocates for elevation as judges
Govind Singh trying to encash links with Longowal into votes
Manpreet factor likely to count in Gidderbaha
Three die of malaria in Patiala village
ESI dispensaries in Punjab to go online by November
Retrenched PSEB clerks resume stir
900 masters await promotion as headmasters
Seminar on cancer held
HC upholds appointment of SEPOs by Beant govt
One more held in NRI murder case
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Chhapar Mela sees mud-slinging by parties
Chhapar (Ludhiana), September 12 Reiterating that Congress leaders were interfering in the religious affairs of the Sikhs through leaders of the Panthic Morcha and the SAD (Longowal), Badal dared Punjab Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh to contest from any of the SGPC constituencies. He said the Congress leaders were rattled at a large number of organisations, including the Kisan Sabha, joined hands with the SAD. “While the Congress leaders, including Capt Amarinder Singh, have only one agenda, that is to appease Sonia Gandhi, we are committed to following the tenets of Sikhism and according due recognition to the sacrifices made by those who laid the foundation of the Panth,” said Badal, adding the party had no place for “maharajas”. Legislators Darshan Singh Shivalik, Iqbal Singh Jhoondan, Manpreet Singh Ayali, chairman, Zila Parishad, and former minister Jagdish Singh Garcha were among those who addressed the rally. Congress Legislature Party leader Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, Congress MP Manish Tewari and JS Khangura criticised the “non-performing” SAD Government. They said the corrupt Badal Government encouraged nepotism. The Congress leaders alleged that it was always during the SAD government that development of the border state regressed irreparably. Peasants, labourers, small traders and the educated youth all were disillusioned with the government, they said. “Let Badal play the semi-final match, we will definitely win the final match and form the next government,” declared Bhattal amid applause by the audience.
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Lathi charge shameful, says Capt
Mandi Ahmedgarh, September 12 The Congress leaders said the merciless thrashing of the youths demanding jobs was shameful. “The use of unparliamentary language by Badal against the Congress and the protesting unemployed youths shows how desperate the Chief Minister has become.” Capt Amarinder Singh said: “It was unbecoming of the 90-year-old Chief Minister to have abused his own people who were only demanding jobs. He has behaved like a medieval despot.”
— OC
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Tell Centre to enact Right to Service Act, Sukhbir to Amarinder
Jalandhar, September 12 Badal claimed that the SAD was all set to make a clean sweep and the “stooges” put up by “Amarinder and party” under the garb of the Panthic Morcha were not in a position to face the SAD-Sant Samaj combine in the SGPC polls. Meanwhile, Sukhbir said now ordinary people of Punjab don’t need to be scared of entering police stations, which were undergoing a massive change under the refreshed state government-initiated community policing programme. “The atmosphere at the police stations, which will now be known as ‘Sanjh Kendras’ will set an example of the police-public interaction. These centres will also provide counselling service to resolve disputes. The programme is going to take off from October 1,” said Sukhbir. “Captain was responsible for pushing Punjab deeper into the debt trap as out of Rs 65,000 crore state debt, the Amarinder Government had taken debt of more than Rs 19,620 crore,” alleged
Sukhbir.
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3 school kids die as train hits van in Nakodar
Nakodar, September 12 According to information, the incident occurred at about 2.30 pm when 12 students were heading home after the school in the van. Four of them were seriously injured and immediately rushed to the Civil Hospital, Nakodar, from where they were referred to Jalandhar. SHO Surinderpal Singh claimed the van got stuck in the slush alongside the track and was subsequently hit by the train. Those killed include siblings Erica (11) and her brother Abhishek (4), of Mauwal village, and Kirandeep (9). While Kirandeep died on her way to hospital, the siblings succumbed to their injuries at the Jalandhar hospital. Blaming the railway authorities for the mishap, the villagers who gathered on the spot claimed they had time and again requested the authorities in Ferozepur to convert the crossing into a manned one. They also staged a dharna. Assistant Commandant, RPF, Ram Badan Rai, said a probe has been ordered. A case of negligence has been registered against the van driver, Lankesh, who too has sustained serious injuries and is admitted at the Civil Hospital.
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Village cleric loses both his children
Jalandhar, September 12 Siblings Erica and Abhishek were sitting together on the hind seat of the van, coming back from Mallavi Devi DAV Public School just a km away. They probably were the ones to face the maximum impact of the accident that claimed three lives and left three other children seriously injured. “I was having lunch at my home when I got to know about the accident. I immediately rushed there with my wife. We got her to Kamal Hospital, Jalandhar. Erica seemed more serious. There were deep injury marks on her face. The doctors at the hospital gave her first aid, oxygen mask and referred her to the Civil Hospital and provided us with an ambulance.” “The doctors at the emergency ward of the Civil Hospital took more than 25 minutes to attend to her. During this time, she was at the disposal of the ward boys,” said Bhatti. While blaming the Railways for the accident, a mother of one of those killed said, “The patch on either side of the track was slippery owing to loose mud used to fill up the potholes. There had been some rain just before the accident, which made the condition worse.” Rahul, who sustained injuries, hails from a poor migrant family from Rajasthan. His parents, working as gardeners in a nursery, could not even reach the hospital even four hours after the accident. He was being taken care of by some city-based relatives. Sajal Sood’s father Deepak Sood, who runs a shop in Nakodar, said his son had received a fracture in the left leg and was under treatment. “My younger son had returned home safe in another van,” he said. CMO, Railways, Dr Kataria confirmed that three children had passed away and three children were still under treatment in the hospital. Dr HK Singla, Civil Surgeon, said the three other children seemed stable and were under observation.
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17 youths jailed in Sharjah to return home next week
Chandigarh/Dubai, September 12 Mishri Khan from Pakistan was killed in a clash between two groups of workers involved in bootlegging in Sharjah in 2009. Early last year, all 17 Indian boys were sentenced to death for murdering Mishri Khan. “It is a very happy occasion for me and all those who have supported the cause of these boys,” said a jubilant SP Singh Oberoi, a Dubai-based businessman, who was instrumental in helping the youths is escaping the gallows. He paid a major share of the blood money to Mishri Khan’s family. Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh also chipped in both with financial and moral support. The boys to be released from the Sharjah jail are Sukhjinder Singh of Patti, Sukhjot Singh of Sanghera, Ram Singh of Kanvi, Amritsar, Arvinder Singh of Ghokulwada, Gurdaspur, Baljeet Singh of Sangwal in Jalandhar, Daljeet Singh of Aitiana in Ludhiana, Dharampal Singh of Jhoke Tehal Singhwala in Ferozepur, Satgur Singh of Khanaur Jattan in Sangrur, Satnam Singh of Koolikalan in Ludhiana, Kashmir Singh of Rattu Ke in Tarn Taran, Suban Singh of Lohian Khas in Kapurthala, Kulwinder Singh of Bansipura in Ludhiana, Kuldeep Singh of Kukrana in Moga, Sukhinder Singh of Nikki Miani in Kapurthala, Namjyot Singh of Raikot in Ludhiana, Harjinder Singh of Phagwara and Taranjit Singh of Kaithal, Haryana. In March last year, an appeal was filed on behalf of the convicts by a battery of lawyers engaged by the Consulate-General of India in Dubai. While the hearing of the appeal was on, the Appeal Court asked the defence team if it was open for settlement with the family of the victim under the “Diya” law. Though the lawyers maintained that they had a foolproof case, they informed the court that they would go by the directions from the Consulate-General of India.Later, the court was informed that defence lawyers had no objection to the settlement between the families of the victim and those convicted. After a series of meetings, the victim’s family,finally, agreed to accept the blood money and “pardon” the convicts. The settlement documents were submited in the Appeal Court last month and the final order was announced today. The court, after a brief hearing, pronounced the order, thus paving the way for early release of the youths. Since they had undergone imprisonment for more than three years, their revised sentence of a two-year jail term for other offences, including bootlegging and rioting, was taken to be completed. All they now need is clearance from the Departments of Internal Security of other states of the UAE to fly back home. They have been banned from entering the UAE ever again. Talking to The Tribune over the phone, Oberoi said: “It may take a maximum week before we can get them formally released and bring them to India.”
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Funds for MCs
Chandigarh, September 12 Meanwhile, the government has clarified that the list of 109 municipal committees that would benefit from the grant included 11 municipal committees where the BJP had a stronghold. It had been inadvertently mentioned in the earlier report that these committees had been left out. Sources said the Amritsar, Jalandhar and Ludhiana corporations would not get any grant. The grant is expected to be released in two instalments during October and November. In light of the announcement the BJP leadership is mincing no words in saying that the leader of the BJP in the Vidhan Sabha, Tikshan Sud, has managed to get a grant of Rs 14 crore for the Hoshiarpur MC which is his own constituency, but failed to plead the case of other urban areas.
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Patil okays names of 6 advocates for elevation as judges
Chandigarh, September 12 The lawyers to be elevated are R N Raina, N K Sanghi, Rameshwar Malik, T S Dhindsa, P S Dhaliwal and Gurmeet Singh Sandhawalia. The advocates will now undergo medical examination and other formalities before their warrants of appointment arrive and they are administered
oath. The oath-taking ceremony is likely to be held within a week. The oath will be administered by Acting Chief Justice M. Kumar, if Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi does not join the High Court by then. After this, three more advocates will be elevated. They are Suvir Sehgal, Sunil Chadha and JS Puri. The file carrying their names is pending before the Apex Court collegium. With the elevation of the six advocates, the number of Judges will go up to 48. Even after their elevation, the vacancies of Judges in the High Court will remain as the sanctioned strength is 68. As of now, the High Court has approximately two lakh pending cases. The list of six advocates, forwarded by outgoing Chief Justice Mukul Mudgal at the fag-end of his tenure, had reportedly hit a hurdle. Indications are that the list was again placed for review before the High Court collegium headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi. The roadblock was removed only after Chief Justice Gogoi gave the nod to the
list.
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Govind Singh trying to encash links with Longowal into votes
Apart from Govind Singh Longowal, three more candidates are trying their luck from the constituency: Avtar Singh Kallar (SAD-Mann), Rajinder Singh Kanjili (Panthic Morcha) and Shamsher Singh Tungaan (Independent). Longowal (general) seat has 43,220 voters and about 70 per cent of them are females. Govind Singh mostly has a hectic schedule lined up for the day, which he plans a day in advance. He starts his campaigning at 6 am by going door to door. Following this, he addresses public meetings between 9 am and 4 pm. Then follow the meetings to discuss poll strategy. It’s only by 9 pm that the 50-year-old is able to get back home. But there too, he has voters lined up to meet before he can retire for the day. “Longowal taught me a lot. He always loved the people…. I will carry forward his legacy,” he avers. He claims he got completed the work of Kaimbowaal Gurdwara, which was started by Sant Harchand Longowal in the 1980s, built school, colleges and roads during his tenure as Irrigation Minister from 1997 to 2000. However, Kallar is not impressed by Govind Singh’s “Mr Clean” image and accuses him of corruption in the management of gurdwaras. “A local resident, Mela Singh, has even filed a case against Govind Singh for indulging in corruption at a gurdwara,” he added. ‘Disqualify candidates who are not baptised’ Amritsar: While no case related to disqualification of a candidate due to his not being baptised has come to light so far, some Sikh intellectuals have demanded that if there were any candidates who are not baptised or are not following “rehat maryada” (code of conduct) should be disqualified. Ashok Singh Bagaria from the Institute of Sikh Studies said, “Ideally a candidate should be baptised on the day he files his nomination, as he is supposed to give an affidavit regarding the same.” — TNS
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Manpreet factor likely to count in Gidderbaha
In the last SGPC election, Gora managed to beat his nearest rival by a margin of 36,000 votes, a factor that perhaps is responsible for the confidence that Gora exudes while saying that “he would script yet another success story”. Two more candidates are in the fray: Hardeep Singh (SAD-Amritsar) and Mehan Singh (SAD-1920). There are 70,647 voters in 56 villages and the Gidderbaha town. Already, Gora is through with the first round of his campaigning in the entire constituency and has covered 16 villages in the second round. Showing little faith in door-to-door canvassing, Gora does not believe in “making promises either”. “I win because I deliver,” he says. In his second term, he avers, he got opened an SGPC school at Therri Bhai Ke village (near Gidderbaha). His agenda: fulfillment of his religious duties. Meanwhile, people in Gidderbaha speak in favour of Gora despite the area being the stronghold of People’s Party of Punjab supremo Manpreet Singh Badal. Some of them claim that even Manpreet was not opposing the sitting SGPC member. However, the PPP chief could not be contacted as he was away to Delhi.
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Naushehra Dhala heritage sites cry for attention
Naushehra Dhala, Sept 12 Naushehra Dhala is associated with Bibi Sukhanji, daughter of Baba Gurbakash Singh who was a descendant of Baba Budhaji. Bibi Sukhanji was married in Chaudhary family of this village. She used to live in “mahal”, the royal palace of Chaudhary clan. However, this palace had been deteriorating over the last few years and in view of its dilapidated condition the local residents demolished it four years back. Now, at the site of the palace there stands a gurdwara which was built in the memory of Bibi Sukhan. During the era of Bibi Sukhan, the settlement was located within four "burjs" (small bastions/watch towers) of Naushehra Dhala. At present, only one of these four exists. This octagonal two storey structure is attached with rooms on two sides. This structure has traditional ceiling and wooden doors. The structure is built with Nanakshahi bricks. A historic mosque, which is located opposite to Burj, lies abandoned and is used for storage of straw for domestic animals. It is also constructed with Nanakshahi bricks in mud mortar and masonry joints sealed with lime mortar. Internal surface is not accessible since all the three archways on front side are closed with infill walls and entrance on side is blocked due to stored material. There are remains of wall paintings on the surface of front elevation. There is also a small circular historic well adjoining the mosque on east side. There is also a samadhi of Baba Jallahan, which is among the oldest structures with traditional Nanakshahi brick on edge flooring in concentric pattern. Meanwhile, Rachanpuneet Singh, a city-based conservation architect, has submitted a report on the state of these heritage structures in Naushehra Dhala to the Punjab Heritage and Tourism Promotion Board, highlighting the need to preserve them. “Naushehra Dhala is well connected with other places of cultural heritage and tourism potential in the region such as Wagah-Attari border which is thronged by tourists for retreat ceremony and Sarai Amanat Khan village known for its heritage value. There is a need to preserve the village’s heritage sites and subsequently tap the immense tourism potential that they offer,” averred Rachanpuneet.
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Three die of malaria in Patiala village
Patiala, September 12 Two more persons, Sukha Singh and Mukhtiar Singh, from the same village are under treatment at the local Columbia Asia Hospital. Condition of Sukha Singh is said to be critical. Talking to The Tribune, village sarpanch Balbir Singh informed that the incident had shaken the entire village and people are panicked about the spread of the deadly disease. He further alleged that many more families in the village were suffering from high fever but they were yet to get the tests done. Confirming the death of three persons, Civil Surgeon Dr Usha Bansal said, “The Health Department team has already visited the village and taken almost 1,000 samples from the village. We have already got the result of 300 samples and the report of all these is negative. But to be on the safer side, we have got fogging done in the entire village, including nearby ponds. Fogging has been done even in the neighbouring villages to ensure that this disease did not spread further.” “We have also alerted our doctors in the entire district to ensure that no such cases are taken lightly. Even the health workers have been asked to keep an eye on such incidents and immediately report it to the health officials, so that preventive measures could be taken,” she added.
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ESI dispensaries in Punjab to go online by November
The ‘Panjdeep’ project n
All the 69 dispensaries have been provided
with computers
Ludhiana, September 12 This project was earlier scheduled to start from last year, but got delayed by more than a year due to some technical problems. Disclosing this to The Tribune, Director, ESI Corporation, Punjab, Dr Ashok Nayyar said, “All the 69 dispensaries have been provided with computers and will be made online by November. For this the government has tied up with the Wipro Infotech.” The training of the staff working in the ESI dispensaries has started from today. The Director said the computerisation would be of great help in keeping a strict vigil on the functioning of these dispensaries. He said, "We will be able to know all the details about the patients coming to each dispensary even while sitting in Chandigarh.” State President of the PCMS Association, Punjab, Dr Hardeep Singh said, “Online project has already been late. The smart cards to be used by the patients have also been issued. It is indeed a very good project for the welfare of the patients. The patients registered under the ESI can go to any ESI dispensary all over India. This will certainly decrease workload of doctors and paramedical staff.”
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Retrenched PSEB clerks resume stir
Mohali, September 12 Talking to mediapersons before starting the fast, Jagwinder Singh, general secretary of the Retrenched Clerks Union, said they had been taken for a ride by the Akalis and the Congress. He said the protest dharna by the clerks had completed 935 days.
— TNS
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900 masters await promotion as headmasters
Patiala, September 12 Notably, the department had completed the DPC on August 13 for the promotion of around 900 masters. There are 1,665 posts of headmaster in government high schools throughout Punjab, out of which 1,147 are vacant, which means nearly 69 per cent seats are vacant. These seats have been divided into two categories - 75 per cent for those masters who would be promoted to headmasters and 25 per cent for direct recruitment. Sources informed that the department concerned had presented a final report to the Secretary, Education, within four days of the completion of the DPC but till date these cases have not been cleared. Talking to The Tribune, one of the teachers said they had got information about the completion of the DPC but were still waiting for the letters. “Once the letters are issued, only then we could send our requests regarding allotment of particular stations in the state. This delay is certainly disappointing as we have been waiting for long now,” he added.
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Seminar on cancer held
Chandigarh, September 12 Speaking at the seminar, PGI Professor Dr SC Sharma said the particular cause of the cancer could not be pointed out. “However, there could be various factors behind its cause. There is a uniform pattern of cancer cases in the state. Owing to this, it could not be authoritatively stated that extensive use of pesticides or presence of uranium in groundwater was causing cancer in the Malwa belt or any other part of the state,” he said.
— TNS
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HC upholds appointment of SEPOs by Beant govt
Chandigarh, September 12 The development is significant as nothing less than 29 petitions were filed challenging the appointments. The allegations were that the appointments were made in a hush-hush manner, “without verification of the antecedents of the candidates”. At the time of selections, at least two of the candidates were relatives of MLAs. One of them was the son of a Superintending Engineer, while another was a close relative of a Panchayati Raj Additional Director. A candidate was also a close relative of the then Chairman of Punjab Agro Industries. It was also alleged that another candidate was brother of a Block Development and Panchayat Officer. Yet another candidate was the relative of a Parliamentary Secretary to the Punjab Government. Dismissing the petitions by Dharam Pal Sharma and other petitioners against the State of Punjab and other respondents after hearing Punjab Additional Advocate-General AS
Grewal, Justice Sabina asserted: “The allegations levelled in the petition qua appointment of relatives
of politicians/bureaucrats to the posts of SEPOs have been duly denied by the State in the written statement. “No replication has been filed to counter the denial. In these circumstances, it cannot be said that the selected candidates were closely related to politicians/bureaucrats. Moreover, there is nothing on record to suggest that any influence had been yielded by the successful candidates at the time of their selection to the posts
of SEPOs”. Justice Sabina added: “In the present case, only 15 marks were kept for the interview. The persons, who had obtained higher marks than the petitioners were selected as SEPOs…. In the present case,
the selected candidates are continuing in service for the past many years. Out of the selected candidates, four candidates have since died and
their families are getting family pensions. “Moreover, it would not be just and equitable to disturb the appointments made long time ago in pursuance to the selection.…”Keeping in view the totality of the facts and circumstances of the
present case, the present writ petitions are liable to be dismissed”.
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One more held in NRI murder case
Batala, September 12 With today’s arrest, three of the four accused, including BJP councillor Rajbir Singh Bhullar and his accomplice Jarnail Singh, a Punjab police head constable — the duo arrested yesterday — have been taken into custody. Yadvinder Singh Bhullar, brother of the main accused Rajbir Bhullar, is still at large. Gill was gunned down in broad daylight in front of the busy court complex, barely 50 metres away from the SSP’s residence, on Friday. Batala SSP Gurkirpal Singh said several teams had been constituted to nab Yadvinder. Bajwa’s arrest, however, remains shrouded in mystery as a top police official on anonymity disclosed that the accused surrendered before the cops last evening. But officials say he was arrested following a raid. Also, the Gurdaspur NRI unit’s executive committee held a meeting and condemned the murder.
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The state’s largest rural fair here saw Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Congress leaders indulging in mud-slinging and trading charges against one another. The SAD-BJP alliance put up a good show with supporters of almost all candidates for the SGPC elections bringing a large number of activists to the conference.
Nakodar, September 12
Gidderbaha, September 12
Longowal
(Sangrur), September 12
Gidderbaha, September 12