Bathinda, February 24
"We are getting requests that the state government should keep an eye on the private educational institutions so that they don't work according to their whims and fancies. We will do what we can," said Sikander Singh Maluka when asked what the government was doing to make sure that the private schools also fall in line and follow the Right To Education (RTE) Act.

The Education Minister of Punjab was in Bathinda today to attend the convocation ceremony at the Government Rajindra College.

He added that as per law, the state education department will try and make sure that the Act is implemented in not only government schools but also in private schools.

Talking about the teachers, employed under various schemes, who protest against the government and accuse it of lending a deaf ear to their demands, he rolled the ball in the court of the Central Government and said, "The problems being faced by these teachers have not been caused by the state's education department. It is the Centre's fault that it launches schemes and then stops them."

"We have requested the Centre to consider the larger good before planning such schemes and roll out long-term schemes rather that offering employment under short-term schemes. Every state has a different set of problems and requirements. We have asked the Centre to release funds for the development of the education system in the state rather than announcing schemes which later cause problems," he added.

He laughed off the fact that the teachers employed under various schemes such as Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan (SSA), Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyaan (RMSA), Central Security Scheme (CSS) and unaided staff of aided schools, special trainer teachers and others spend a lot of time protesting.

"Protesting has become a tradition in India. Some of the demands put forward by the protestors are valid and some are not. We are ready to discuss and accept their valid demands. But no matter for how long they protest, the state government will not bow down under pressure in case of invalid demands," the Education Minister said.

Bathinda, February 24
A retired vice-principal of the Government Rajindra College, Bathinda, committed suicide last night by jumping into lake number one of the Guru Nanak Dev Thermal Plant.

A father of four, three of whom are married, the retired vice-principal (64) was residing in Kamla Nehru Colony with his wife and son. He had been suffering from acute depression for some time.

The body of the vice-principal, Parkash Bansal, was fished out from the lake with the help of the volunteers of the NGO, Naujawan Welfare Society.

As per the investigating officer from Thermal police station, Harbans Singh, Bansal retired from the college around four years ago. In their statement to the police, the family members said Bansal was mentally disturbed and was suffering from acute depression.

He used to teach commerce in the college and after retirement, he opened a tyre shop near Bibiwala Chowk which he used to manage along with his 17-year-old son.

Police said Rs 5,860 were recovered from his pocket by the NGO volunteers. Bansal parked his Honda Activa scooter near the lake before jumping into the water. Police said inquest proceedings would be initiated in this connection at the Thermal police station.

This is the second suicide committed by a city resident in a month. Earlier, Parminder Singh, the owner of a soup vend, committed suicide by hanging himself in his house on February 5. He too was suffering from depression and was also upset about his chronic ailment.

Bathinda, February 24
Family members of a girl who was allegedly murdered by some unidentified persons accuse the GRP (Government Railway Police) of not registering the case of murder against the accused persons.

The GRP have initiated inquest proceedings under Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPc).

The 70-year-old father of the deceased said his son also died four days after the death of his daughter, Kulwinder Kaur.

Kulwinder, a resident of Gill Kalan village, used to work in a beauty parlor in Rampura City and was found dead on the bridge of Rampura Railway Station.

The father, a farmer, alleged that money was exchanged to hush up the matter.

In his complaint to the senior GRP officials, the father, Maghar Singh, said that his daughter's body was found on September 11 and more than five months had passed and no arrests had been made till now.

He said the preliminary reports suggested that his daughter was murdered as injuries marks were found on her foot, neck and other body parts.

Maghar added that the police refused to entertain his queries about the mobile phone details of the a person who used to call his daughter repeatedly.

Though the police initiated proceedings under Section 174 of the CrPc, no case of murder was registered despite repeated reminders and visits to the GRP officials, the father said.

Balwinder Kaur, deceased’s sister, said the role of the police has also come under the scanner as it did not register a case of murder despite their pleas.

"The GRP is delaying the investigations over the pretext of delay in the viscera report examination from the chemical laboratory in Kharar. They flatly refused to listen to our please,” Balwinder said.

She pointed out that her sister got repeated calls on her cell phone on the day she was murdered.

GRP SHO Kuljeet Singh said the police could not register a case of murder until they get the reports of viscera, which was sent around five and half months ago.

"Neither did we get any clues from the medical examination of the body nor from the spot. Moreover, the cop who handled the case has been transferred and the matter is under investigation,” the SHO said.

He added that initially, some youths were interrogated after the body of the woman was found but the police failed to get any vital clue to ascertain that the girl was murdered.

"The two sisters used to stay together in a rented accommodation and people used to visit them even during the odd hours.”

“The day Kulwinder died, her sister Balwinder shifted her belongings to some other place,” the SHO added. He added that anybody found guilty would not be spared.

Bathinda, February 24
Three days after Rs 7.80 lakh was stolen from an ATM of the Punjab National Bank (PNB) on Bibiwala Road, an alert was sounded after an ATM of the State Bank of Patiala was found open on GT road this evening.

It was initially suspected that the ATM had been tampered with. However, the police or the bank officials did not confirm if money had been stolen from the ATM.

The cabinet of the ATM machine, which was sans a security guard, was found open by someone who tried to withdraw money in the evening. The matter was brought to the notice of the police.

Cops from the Kotwali police station said the bank officials would ascertain whether money was missing from the ATM or not.

Sub-inspector Pal Singh from the Kotwali police station said the bank officials had confirmed that the ATM was intact and money was not missing. It might have remained open due to technical or human error, which would be investigated later.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Ravcharan Brar said so far, written intimation has not been received by police about any ATM machine being tampered with or money being stolen from the ATM.

Bathinda, February 24
Celebrated Punjabi writer Ram Saroop Ankhi’s short story ‘Sutta Naag’ will be documented into a short-film.

Bathinda-based lyricist, Amardeep Singh Gill, is making the short film, which will be shot in the villages along the Punjab-Rajasthan border.

‘Sutta Naag’ (Sleeping Serpent) is the title of an anthology of Ankhi’s short stories. The anthology has a story by the same title.

‘Punjabi cinema is riding high on the wave of success but serious cinema is missing. No big producer wants to fund a project that takes up serious issues. Just because there is a shortage of producers who are willing to fund films that address serious issues, we cannot keep quiet. And hence, we have decided to go ahead with our decision to take up a serious subject and make it into a short film," said Gill.

He added that literature has seldom been the essence of Punjabi cinema.

Be it the award-winning film, ‘Anhey Ghore Da Daan’ or ‘Marhi Da Deeva’, it was the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) that funded these projects and not the big production houses, Gill said.

"Since we did not find a producer to fund the film, Punjabi cinema lovers settled abroad are funding the project," said Gill.

The film will depict a picture of old Punjab. Besides giving a vintage look to the sets and actors in the movie, its music has also been kept close to rustic keeping in mind the story. The film’s shoot will begin in the first week of March.

The movie is being shot to appeal to the sensibilities of the audience at the International Short Film Festival which is held in Chennai and Goa.

Amardeep has penned the script of the film and will direct it as well.

Kul Sidhu, of the ‘Anhe Ghore Da Daan' fame, Raj Joshi, Jagtar Aulakh, Suhajdeep Brar, Gurnam Singh and Darshan Gharu will act in the film. Gurpreet will be the creative director of the film. 

Bathinda, February 24
Punjab Education Minister Sikander Singh Maluka asked the management of the Government Rajindra College to prepare an estimate for the funds required for the development of infrastructure in the college. "The college has asked us to release a grant of Rs 10 lakh, but we are ready to release Rs 1 crore as well. I request the management to prepare the estimate and I will discuss it with the Chief Minister," said the minister.

While the government college has been asked to prepare an estimate for the release of grants, the Education Minister had announced a grant of Rs 5 lakh for the Baba Farid Group of Institutions (BFGI), which is a private institution. The Punjab Forest Minister, Surjit Kumar Jyani had also announced a grant of Rs 5 lakh to the BFGI.

The Education Minister was the chief guest at the convocation ceremony organised by the Government Rajindra College here today to award degrees to the students who passed out in the year 2011-2012 and secured 60 per cent or more marks.

Pawan Kumar Singla, controller of examination, Punjabi University, Patiala, was the special guest. The ceremony was scheduled to start at 10.30 am and surprisingly, the Education Minister reached the college almost half an hour before the ceremony began.

The convocation ceremony started with the college anthem being sung by the students of the music department. Principal of the college, Vijay Goyal, made the convocation address and welcomed the guests.

Calling the convocation ceremony the turning point of their lives, Maluka said educating girls was more important as it meant educating society. He praised the girls for making their presence felt in all the fields and breaking the glass ceiling.

He also asked the teachers to perform their duties seriously and regularly to make sure the government institute worked as well as the private institutions. "Failure of a government-run institute is the failure of the masses since the government has been chosen by the masses," he said.

Pawan Kumar Singla emphasised the difference between seeking education and learning. He pointed out that the criminal activities being reported in various educational institutions were a pointer to the fact that while the youngsters may be educated, they are yet to learn a lot.

Degrees were to be awarded to 420 students of which 254 were girls and 166 were boys. Of the 420 students, 407 were present and received their degrees.

The programme was conducted by vice-principal Ramesh Chander Pasrija, registrar Jyotsna Singla and Gursharan Mann. 

Bathinda, February 24
The state president of the Unaided Staff of Aided Schools Union, Jaspal Singh, was rounded up by the police today after the members of the union tried to block the road outside the District Administrative Complex.

The teachers were staging a protest in favour of their demands. Their demands included regularisation of jobs of computer teachers, providing bags, uniforms and scholarship to the students of the aided schools and proper implementation of the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan (SSA).

After discussion with Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Gurmeet Singh Kingra, Jaspal Singh and other members of the union were released and a meeting with the Deputy Commissioner has been fixed for Monday.

The members of the Democratic Mid-Day Meal Cook Front also staged a protest outside the District Administrative Complex today. The union demanded that the government's decision to dole out the mid-day meal scheme on contract basis in Municipal Corporation schools in Mohali, Moga, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Amritsar, Patiala and Bathinda be revoked.

The union members also demanded that the mid-day meal workers be given remuneration at par with that of the skilled workers. Their other demands include two-month leave every year and that every cook be insured for Rs 2 lakh.

They also asked the state government to open bank accounts of all the cooks and instead of sending their salaries to the school authorities and transfer it directly to their accounts. They also asked that the rule of one cook for every 25 students be implemented. They also asked for free medical facility in case of a mishap while cooking meals for the students. 

Bathinda, February 24
As many as 47.62 per cent of the children in the 0 to 5 years of age-group in the district were covered in the national round of the pulse polio campaign today.

Chief Parliamentary Secretary Sarup Chand Singla inaugurated the campaign by administering the polio vaccine to children in the slum areas at the Ganesha Basti dispensary. He called upon the people to ensure that children are given the vaccine so that polio can be eradicated.

Civil surgeon Dr Ajay Sahni, District Immunization Officer Dr Rakesh Goyal, Dr Nisha, mass media officer Usha Singla and others were also present on the occasion.

Civil surgeon Dr Ajay Sahni checked the booths at Lal Singh Basti, Paras Ram Nagar, Goodwill Society and the bus stand. He said that polio-stricken children end up being handicapped and hence, every child should be shielded against the disease. 1,76,809 children have to be administered polio vaccine in the district. For this, 698 booths and 36 mobile teams have been constituted. On the first day, 84,199 children were covered while the rest will be covered over the next two days. Meanwhile, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) too installed a booth at the Bibiwala Chowk. All the office-bearers of the IMA Bathinda assembled at the booth and administered the vaccine.

Bathinda, February 24
In the month of January this year, 17,881 people benefited through the suvidha centres being run in different parts of the district. In a press statement issued here today, Deputy Commissioner Kamal Kishore Yadav stated that under the Sukhmani Society for Citizen Services, Bathinda is running a centre at the district level, two at the sub-divisional level and six at the sub-tehsil level.

The district level suvidha centre extends 41 kinds of services, where as the ones in the sub-divisions of Rampura Phul and Talwandi Sabo provide 16 services. At the six sub-tehsils, Nathana, Bhagta, Maur, Sangat, Goniana and Balianwali, eight kinds of services are provided. He said any applicant can know the status of his application through an SMS also.

The DC said that 17,881 people have benefited through the suvidha centres in the month of January. As many as 692 people had applied for an arms licence, 12 for counter sign while one was issued the unmarried certificate.

To get a copy of the revenue record, 2052 applications were received at the district suvidha centre, 845 at the Talwandi Sabo centre, 1055 at the Rampura centre, 336 at Nathana, 256 at Maur, 93 at Sangat and 16 at Balianwali

Yadav added that for marriage registration, 52 applications were received at the district level, four at Talwandi Sabo and 16 at Rampura.

For driving licence, 6,198 applications were received at the district level, 519 at Talwandi Sabo and 428 at Rampura.

Bathinda, February 24
Logistics park, a venture of the Bathinda Real Estate and Developers (BRED), located on Dabwali Road, was inaugurated today with the "bhog" of "akhand path" of Sri Guru Granth Sahib and kirtan.

Chief parliamentary secretary and MLA from Bathinda Urban, Sarup Chand Singla was the chief guest on the occasion. In his speech, Singla claimed that the SAD-BJP alliance had changed the skyline of Bathinda.

Appreciating the facilities available at the logistics park, he said the project will prove to be a milestone for the city. He added that the logistics park will fulfill the requirements of the traders to have a godown, away from the congested lanes and traffic bottlenecks in the city.

Partners in the company, Inderjit Singh Brar and Ish Garg, said the project was conceived after a ghee factory in the city went up in flames and the problems that fire-fighters faced in dousing the fire. It was then planned to provide the traders safe, secure and spacious godowns equipped with the latest facilities.

Plots ranging in size from 250 square yards to 2 acres are available so that traders and investors can buy land as per their requirements. He added that in future, the area will develop into a picnic spot for the people of Bathinda with PVR and malls planned as part of the project.

Partners in the company, Varun, Girdhari Lal and Pranav, were also present along with a large number of traders, industrialists and others.