Bathinda, November 9
With the number of buses growing each year and the staff of the private transporters encroaching upon its land, the local bus stand is gasping for some breathing space. In addition, poor facilities put over 60,000 passengers to inconvenience everyday.

Even as there is lack of basic facilities, traffic chaos, pollution and dust at the bus stand, no efforts were being made either by the bus stand authorities, the district administration or the Punjab Government to rid the passengers of the inconvenience that they go through each day.

"Though the Punjab Government claims to have spent crores on various developmental works, it failed to remove problems faced by passengers and transporters at the bus stand," said chairman of the PRTC AITUC Union, Bathinda depot, Harbhajan Singh.

The total number of buses has increased to over 300 during the past few years. New buses are being added every year by the transporters, which include influential people with political connections.

The bus stand offers 1,100 times to the long-route buses and 700 times to the mini-buses. Due to haphazard parking, staff of transporters enters into heated arguments everyday. From 8 am to 11 am are the worst hours when buses move only with drivers and conductors shouting at the top of their voice. While the number of buses was increasing every year the area remains the same, Harbhajan said.

"Apart from increasing number of buses, the area of the bus stand is reducing with encroachments being made by influential transporters, who convert the parking area for buses into workshops to repair their buses," said general secretary of the PRTC AITUC Union, Bathinda depot, Sukhpal Sandhu.

He added that the number of private buses had surpassed the number of state-run Punjab Roadways Transport Corporation (PRTC) buses at Bathinda bus stand. The private buses have the prime timings due to the influence of political bosses.

He said 20 to 25 buses were added every year, which get over 100 different times to pick passengers. If the transporters continue to add buses to its fleet in this manner, there would be no space left for more buses in the next two years or so.

"Though plans are being made by the administration to shift the bus stand on the Bibi Wala Road, it will take another two years or so," said the bus stand in-charge, Makhan Singh.

He pointed out that traffic bottlenecks start at the entrance itself where traffic lights were installed few years ago.

Bus drivers park their vehicles hours before their actual time, which lead to chaos.

The AITUC members said while the authorities at the Patiala bus stand penalise the buses that enter the bus stand before schedule with Rs 500, there was no such move at the local bus stand.

General Manager of the PRTC, MS Hundal said he had already brought all the problems at the Bathinda bus stand into the notice of his seniors who were contemplating to resolve the issues.

Bathinda, November 9
Before the 2012 assembly elections, the state government has started renaming government schools in Punjab in the name of Kuka martyrs.

As a tribute to the martyrs of the Kuka Movement, the government had selected eight schools that were to be renamed. However, only five government schools were being renamed. While the panchayats of two villages denied permission to rename the schools in their villages, the panchayat of another refused any Kuka martyr belonged to its village.

Few months ago, the Government of Punjab wrote to the Education Department, directing that as a tribute to the martyrs of the Kuka Movement, names of government schools (to which these martyrs belong) be changed. "It was decided that the martyr's name would be prefixed to the name of school in the respective village," said sources in the Education Department.

Thereafter, the government issued a list of martyrs and their respective villages. The Kuka Martyrs' Memorial Trust had populated this list and handed it over to the government. The lists were then handed down to the district education officers in the state for renaming the schools in their respective districts.

The list included Mandi Kalan, Ramnagar, Pitho, Mehraj, Peerkot, Gill Kalan, Chauke and Selbrah villages of Bathinda district.

The panchayats of the villages Mandi Kalan and Pitho, however, denied permission to change the names of their schools while the Selbrah panchayat wrote back that there was no Kuka martyr from the village.

According to the list, Government High School (Girls), Mandi Kalan, was to be named after martyr Giani Rattan Singh and Government High School, Pitho, was to be named after martyr Mangal Singh.

Government Senior Secondary School, Selbrah, was to be named after Basant Singh. However, the panchayat objected to it stating that no Kuka martyr by that name belonged to the village.

Consequently, these three schools were dropped from the list.

The schools, which have been rechristened, include Government Senior Secondary School, Ramnagar, Government Senior Secondary School (boys), Mehraj, Government Middle School, Peerkot, Government High School, Gill Kalan, and Government Senior Secondary School, Chauke. These schools will prefix the names of respective martyrs (See box).

"Though the government will successfully change the names of these schools, it would be interesting to see as to how many of these changes would actually assure victory for the SAD-BJP Government," pointed out sources in the department.

Meanwhile, District Education Officer (Secondary) Harbans Singh Sandu said the list of agreeing village panchayats had been sent to the government.

"As soon as the government passes orders, we will endorse it and forward it to the respective school principals," Sandhu added.

Bathinda, November 9
A resident of Bathinda has been booked for illegally selling a piece of land of the Bathinda Development Authority (BDA) in Model Town Phase-III. The land was acquired by the Punjab Urban Development Authority (PUDA). Neither the police nor the BDA officials disclosed the details of the accused.

Jaspal Singh, SHO of the Civil Lines Police Station, where a case under Section 420 of the IPC has been registered against one Hardam Singh, said he was unaware of the case being registered. "The cases are got registered by the Economic Offences Wing and I have no idea about the matter," he said.

Chief Administrator of the BDA, Uma Shankar Gupta, said "I have got 20 calls before as well but I am not aware of the matter. You may please contact the Estate Officer Jeet Ram," Gupta said. Jeet Ram, when contacted, said he too was not aware of the case.

Interestingly the case is being registered on the complaint of the Estate Officer of the BDA. Junior engineer Anil Kumar, under whose jurisdiction the Model Town Phase-III area falls, too expressed his helpless in sharing any details about the case.

In its complaint, BDA officials said the accused had got their land registered in the name of some residents of Bathinda. No arrests have been made so far. 

Bathinda, November 9
The wrong side commuting by the residents of Bathinda has become a cause of concern as many accidents, besides heated arguments and scuffle, are being reported everyday in the city at various points where people usually drive in the wrong direction.

The commuters continue to ply in the wrong lanes at rotaries and below the flyovers where no traffic cop is deployed.

The residents of the area alleged that the traffic move at a snail’s pace at such points but it does not bother the traffic police who remain a mute spectator to the wrongdoings of the commuters.

People continue to drive on the wrong side at the flyover in front of the Police Public School, the flyover on the Dabwali road, Fauji Chowk and many other rotaries of the city in the main markets.

"The left side lane under the flyover in front of the Police Public School has deep potholes and people prefer to drive through the wrong direction for a smooth driving. This leads to traffic blockade and people end up abusing each other," said Dinesh Kumar, a resident of the Guru Ki Nagri. He added that no traffic official was ever seen resolving the problem or issuing challan to any wrongdoers.

Dinesh further pointed out that people who want to go towards the Mansa road by taking the flyover, always take the wrong turn. However, by taking the wrong turn, the vehicles remain prone collision with other vehicles coming from the right at a high speed from the bus stand side.

"Heavy vehicles including overloaded tractor-trolleys and trucks create maximum nuisance at the entrance of the flyover. People can be witnessed flouting the norms just at a short distance from the police lines as no cop is bothered," said another Gurmukh Singh.

The commuters going towards the Fauji Chowk from the Ajit road too take a wrong turn and cover a distance of around 100 yards instead of taking a long turn to reach the other side of the road. People should either take a longer route from the bus stand traffic lights or reach the Bibi Wala road taking the Ajit Road Street.

Similarly, people still continue to take wrong directions on the flyover in front of the Milk Plant.

Many serious accidents have been reported on this flyover as people taking U-turn while coming down the flyover collide with vehicles below the flyover.

A daily commuter, JS Sekhon said, "Though the government has made the flyovers but it never deployed traffic police at the entrance or exit as people continue to receive serious injuries after colliding with other vehicles. A schoolteacher lost his life on the flyover around a month ago while many accidents are being reported everyday at its entrance or exit.”

He said the police remain busy with the VIP duties in view of the political leaders’ visit due to the ensuing Vidhan Sabha elections. He demanded that the commuters should be made aware of the hazards of the wrong side commuting and stringent action must be initiated against those who flout traffic norms.

Bathinda November 9
The demand for lockers in the banks of the city has increased as in view of the burglaries, the residents want to ensure the safety of their valuables.

Senior Manager, Punjab National Bank (PNB), Bank Bazaar, YK Kaushal said, “With their precious items in the bank lockers, people spend sleepless nights.”

He said the Bank Bazaar branch of the PNB has a capacity for 600 lockers and of them, 10 are unoccupied as they need repair.

Similarly, Gopal Goyal, an official at the Canara Bank, Mall Road, said, “The moment people open their account, they simultaneously ask for the locker too. The branch has a total of 420 lockers and all are occupied. We have to refuse the 
customers if they ask for a locker.”

Likewise, the branch of the State Bank of Patiala (SBOP), situated in the Grain Market, has two compartments, having a total of 135 lockers. Of them, only 20 are vacant. Deputy Manager Dinesh Sharma said, “Everybody needs a locker with an account as no one wants to take the risk of losing their precious things.”

On being asked as to whether the people have become conscious due to the increase in crime rate, SSP Sukhchain Singh Gill said, “The crime rate has decreased in the city. It is just that they want to ensure the safety of their valuables.” 

Bathinda, November 9
The local Civil Hospital authorities have taken an initiative to run the Jan Aushadhi Drugs Store through the Rogi Kalyan Samiti (RKS) of the hospital as the matter, relating to merger of the Red Cross Medical Store and the Jan Aushadhi Generic Drugs Store under the unified banner of the Jan Aushadhi Store or handing over of the shop of the Jan Aushadhi Store to the hospital authorities, could not be resolved.

The Red Cross Medical Store and the Jan Aushadhi Generic Drugs Store are being run by the District Red Cross Society (DRCS) on the premises of the Civil Hospital here while the civil hospital authorities want to run the Jan Aushadhi Store by the RKS as per the decision of the government.

In a letter, written to the managing director of the Punjab Health Systems Corporation (PHSC) a week ago, the local Civil Hospital authorities have mentioned that as the DRCS has imposed some conditions for handing over the shop of the Jan Aushadhi Store to the RKS, so it has been suggested by the Civil Surgeon and the Deputy Medical Commissioner (DMC) to convert a room of the old OPD block into a shop, besides applying a new drug licence to the licensing authority and a new VAT number, for running the Jan Aushadhi Drugs store there.

It has also been mentioned in the letter that the RKS had already appointed a pharmacist on July 22, this year. Despite non-opening of the Jan Aushadhi Store, the RKS has been paying salary to the pharmacist so far. Dr Vinod Garg, DMC, said, “It was true that in the light of the government's decision to run the Jan Aushadhi Store by the RKS, the Civil Hospital authorities wanted to run the Jan Aushadhi Store on the premises of the hospital. So they sent a letter to the DRCS to hand over the Jan Aushadhi Store’s shop to them, but in return the DRCS demanded Rs 3.50 lakh, incurred by it on the construction of the shop, or an amount of Rs 10,000 per month as rent or lease money for the shop.”

Besides, the DRCS had also asked them not to sell those medicines/salts, which had been shifted from the Red Cross Medical Store to the Jan Aushadhi Store for promoting the sale of the Jan Aushadhi Store as these would be sold at the Red Cross Medical Store, he added. He said the hospital authorities did not agree to the conditions, so they have planned to open the Jan Aushadhi Drugs Store in the old OPD block by procuring a new drug licence.

Secretary, DRCS, JR Goyal said, “The above decisions were taken by the DRCS and have been conveyed to the health authorities here.” He added that it was now up to the Civil Surgeon what decision he takes in this regard. 

Bathinda, November 9
The students of the Guru Ram Das Institute of Engineering and Technology participated in the Youth Festival Cultural Competition, 2011, organised by the Punjab Technical University (PTU), Jalandhar.

The students performed superbly and qualified in three events by securing the second position in the folk song, third position in Bhangra and Giddha.

Chairman of the institute Harbhajan Singh motivated the students to take maximum participation in such events and bring laurels for the institute. He also said that participation in such events will increase the confidence of the students and widen their world view.