B A T H I N D A    E D I T I O N

Kameana prefers its own water supply
Faridkot, April 7
It isn't everyday that a village turns down an offer by the state government to provide drinking water. But Kameana, a village in Faridkot district, has done exactly that.

Sathi terms Grover’s win as severe blow to SAD
Moga, April 7
Senior Congress leader Vijay Sathi, who lost the recent Moga assembly by-election, has termed the results of the Moga District Bar Association election as a severe blow to the ruling SAD in the district.

Fazilka heritage festival from April 18-21
Fazilka, April 7
The much-awaited Fazilka Heritage Festival would be organized by the NGO Graduate Welfare Association, Fazilka (GWAF) from April 18 to 21 at Pratap Bagh. To acknowledge the spirit of youth, five youngsters have been selected for the "Fazilka Youth Icon Award 2013". On April 21, these five youth icons would be honoured before a large gathering.

Hazur-Nanded Express to run tri-weekly
Abohar, April 7
The 12486/12485 Sriganganagar-Abohar-Hazur Nanded weekly superfast express train will be run tri-weekly from April 9.

Rs 4.92 cr for Guruharsahai
Ferozepur, April 7
The state government has released a sum of Rs 4.92 crore for development works in Guruharsahai sub-division.

Camps held to mark World Health Day
Faridkot, April 7
Baba Farid University of Health Sciences (BFUHS), with the help of NGOs, organized 20 health camps in Faridkot today to mark World Health Day.

Kameana prefers its own water supply
Waterworks built by govt at a cost of Rs 1 cr lies non-functional
Balwant Garg/TNS

Faridkot, April 7
It isn't everyday that a village turns down an offer by the state government to provide drinking water. But Kameana, a village in Faridkot district, has done exactly that.

It is a classic case where the Water Supply and Sanitation Department (WSSD) has spent over Rs one crore to build waterworks to cater to the needs of Kameana, but the villagers have been resisting the move for over seven years. The waterworks is non-functional and the villagers are relying on a water supply system that they have developed themselves over the years.

While the WSSD has spent over Rs one crore on the 'non-functional' waterworks, the villagers' own independent water supply system, was raised at a cost of just Rs 7 lakhs.

The villagers are of the view that the money spent by the WSSD on the waterworks could have been used for other purposes such as providing water to other villages or building roads or schools

The supply system in Kameana provides uninterrupted high quality potable water to the village, which has a population of about 6,000. "So, there was no need to spend Rs one crore on it," said Avtar Singh, a former sarpanch of the village.

The village is situated close to Sirhind Feeder. For water supply to the village, the village panchayat installed a submersible pump in the area adjoining the canal 15 years back to provide direct drinking water to the village after laying a network of pipes to supply water in Kameana.

In 1998, the state government gave the Kameana panchayat Rs five lakhs for digging up a borewell. The panchayat contributed another Rs 2 lakhs. The villagers offered free labour.

They dug a 25-metre-deep borewell close to the Sirhind feeder. The water seeps in from the canal, getting cleaned in the process. The borewell feeds an elaborate network of pipes that takes water to every house.

Water tested by the Patiala Clinical Laboratory and Water Research Centre in Muktsar, which is recognized by the government, found that the water conformed to the specifications.

Moreover, there are no illegal water connections in the village and the residents regularly pay their water bills. There is no shortage of funds to pay power bills and for repairs of any fault in the supply line, said Kulwinder Singh, a resident. Chamkaur Brar, SDO, WSSD, Faridkot, however, took the middle path saying, "Let the private water distribution system continue alongside the waterworks in Kameana."

Sathi terms Grover’s win as severe blow to SAD
Tribune News Service

Moga, April 7
Senior Congress leader Vijay Sathi, who lost the recent Moga assembly by-election, has termed the results of the Moga District Bar Association election as a severe blow to the ruling SAD in the district.

He said senior advocate Nasib Singh Bawa, who remained president of the Bar Association on 12 occasions, faced a crushing defeat at the hands of a young lawyer Ramesh Grover, who was openly supported by him and his party. Bawa was in the Congress for many years and was also once elected as municipal commissioner but joined hands with the SAD to support Joginder Pal Jain in the by-election.

Adding that the whole panel backed by the local legislator Jain and the SAD faced a crushing defeat in the Bar election, Sathi said the intelligentsia was totally against the policies of the state government.

The Congress leader said the outburst of a local lawyer, Narinder Chahal, against SAD president and Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal during his visit to the Bar at the time of the by-election also played a great role in the Bar elections.

“I have prepared a strategy to create a powerful pressure group like my father late Sathi Roop Lal and will come out on all platforms to fight for protecting the rights of the downtrodden and the poor facing atrocities at the hands of the Akalis and the official machinery,” he said. 

Fazilka heritage festival from April 18-21

Fazilka, April 7
The much-awaited Fazilka Heritage Festival would be organized by the NGO Graduate Welfare Association, Fazilka (GWAF) from April 18 to 21 at Pratap Bagh. To acknowledge the spirit of youth, five youngsters have been selected for the "Fazilka Youth Icon Award 2013". On April 21, these five youth icons would be honoured before a large gathering.

The first recipient of the award is Dr Rachna who topped in the MS ENT examination conducted by Baba Farid University of Health Sciences in 2012. The second award would be given to the yoga teacher Shobhan Juneja (24). The third youth icon award would be presented to Kanika Kamra, who represented the country in the United Kingdom in fashion designing. Nitish Dhawan, 23, who joined the prestigious Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) as a scientist, would also be among the recipients.

Another youth who is being conferred the award is Shivansh Kamra (25), an engineer by profession, known for his creative writing skills. His first book “Love is a dirty game” released in September 2012 and sold over 5,000 copies in the first quarter of its release.

“They are going to be the flag-bearers of the legacy of the city and will inspire the next generation,” said Navdeep Asija, secretary, GWAF, and a member of the selection committee. — OC

Hazur-Nanded Express to run tri-weekly

Abohar, April 7
The 12486/12485 Sriganganagar-Abohar-Hazur Nanded weekly superfast express train will be run tri-weekly from April 9.

Notably, former MP and PPCC ex-president Virendra Kataria had told Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh at a meeting last month that the railways in the 2012 budget had promised to run the train on tri-weekly basis but the promise remained unfulfilled. In the February 2013 budget, there had been no reference to this train. Kataria reminded the PM that the train was introduced on his initiative two years ago.

The railways have confirmed that the Hazur Nanded superfast train will leave Sriganganagar via Abohar-Bathinda on each Tuesday, Friday and Saturday from April 9 onwards.

In another development, the Holiday Express, originating from Hanumangarh for Kota, will also be run as a regular daily express train. The 12981/12982 superfast express will be run on Hanumangarh-Bikaner-Jaipur-Kota route from April 9. Hundreds of students from Abohar, Malout and Fazilka, who visit Kota for coaching, also travel by this train. — OC

Rs 4.92 cr for Guruharsahai

Ferozepur, April 7
The state government has released a sum of Rs 4.92 crore for development works in Guruharsahai sub-division.

Disclosing this, Vardev Singh Mann, area in-charge of the SAD said in January this year, the state government had allocated Rs 3 crore for the development of roads and other basic amenities in the sub-division following which work was going on in full swing.

Mann said the SAD-BJP government was determined to improve the basic infrastructure in the border areas of the state on which several crores were being spent. Mann said work on recarpeting of around a dozen roads besides construction of a bridge in Alphu Ali Ke and additional rooms in government school at Mahima were being taken up on priority basis. He claimed that because of the unprecedented development works undertaken by the SAD-BJP regime, scores of senior Congress leaders have joined the SAD in the region. — OC

Camps held to mark World Health Day

Faridkot, April 7
Baba Farid University of Health Sciences (BFUHS), with the help of NGOs, organized 20 health camps in Faridkot today to mark World Health Day.

Blood pressure and body mass index of over 3,000 persons was recorded at the camp. Dr Sanjay Gupta, head of the department of community medicine, said the BMI is a tool to measure the obesity and it should be kept under control. It is one of the main reasons for hypertension. — TNS