Jalandhar, July 2
In what may be termed as a casual attitude in conducting the panchayat elections, the printing of ballot papers of several blocks of Jalandhar and three surrounding districts was on at PS Garden Marriage Palace on the Jalandhar-Hoshiarpur road a few hours before the start of the polling.

When The Tribune team visited the venue of printing ballot papers at 3 pm on Tuesday, the ballot papers were being openly printed for the panchayat elections, for which the voting will start on Wednesday at 8 am.

While Jalandhar DC-cum-District Election Officer (DEO) Shruti Singh could not be contacted despite repeated attempts to know about the delay in printing ballot papers, an official told The Tribune that the problem of delay in printing ballot papers arose because a private company had been given the task of printing ballot papers of Jalandhar and neighbouring three districts. However, he expressed the hope that the ballot papers would be printed, dispatched and made available at the polling booths concerned on time.

Meanwhile, taking a serious note of this situation, the Congress stated that the exposure of ballot papers being printed and photocopied by a private firm at the marriage palace leaves no room for free and fair elections. It vindicates the Congress allegations of farce, drama and fraud being committed in the name of panchayat elections by the SAD-BJP government.

Congress spokesman Sukhpal Khaira alleged that the sensational exposure of the private firm printing and photocopying ballot papers at the marriage palace indicates a well-planned conspiracy by the SAD-BJP government to rig the panchayat elections slated for tomorrow.

In order to maintain transparency, secrecy and security, it is highly imperative for any government to print ballot papers at a government printing press and secure them in their custody well in time, he added.

Khaira said, "The Congress has been constantly approaching the Punjab and Haryana High Court and State Election Commission in the wrongful and mala fide formation of wards and other gross anomalies. There is utter confusion till date on the availability of voter lists and the reservation roaster. Unfortunately all our complaints and those of the public have fallen on deaf ears, giving the government a free hand to 'loot' these elections."

To sum it up, the present process of panchayat elections has been hijacked by the ruling SAD-BJP alliance. The said elections are nothing but a farce, mockery and murder of grassroots democracy. The SAD-BJP government has indulged in all possible unconstitutional means to capture, rig and favour the elections for its party. Even the so-called unanimous elections of sarpanches and panches is an eyewash, as the government forced the official machinery to resort to mass rejection of nomination papers, he added

"We term the entire panchayat elections a fraud being played with the Constitution, the ruling Akali Dal might win elections but they have lost moral right to govern Punjab anymore," he added.

Khaira urged the Punjab Governor and the Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice to intervene in the matter and save democracy from the clutches of "power-drunk" Akalis.

Jalandhar, July 2
Finally, the city police has registered a first information report (FIR) against BJP worker Sandeep Bhalla for allegedly uploading Congress president 's photograph on a social networking site in a bad taste.

The FIR has been registered under Section 66-A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (as amended in 2009) at the police station No. 3 on the basis of Congress leader Sanjay Sehgal's complaint. Meanwhile, the accused is at large.

Earlier on Monday, the city police had recorded Sanjay Sehgal's statement against Bhalla in connection with uploading the photograph on the social networking site.

Advisor member RTI and grievance cell of the PPCC, Sanjay Sehgal, was called by the city police to record his statement following the submission of an online complaint to the police by him on Sunday.

Sehgal, accompanied by his party activists Anil Vashisth and Rajesh Agnihotri, recorded his statement in the presence of ADCPs Navjot Mahal, Naresh Dogra, Sukhdev Singh and SHO of the police station No. 3 Jatinder Pal Singh.

Sehgal said, "I stated that Sandeep Bhalla should be booked under relevant provisions of the Information Technology Act and criminal laws for hurting our sentiments by uploading our party president's photo in a bad taste." Sehgal further stated that he had provided adequate evidence in support of his statement.

The police officials assured them of proper legal action in this regard, he added.

Jalandhar, July 2
A controversy has erupted over a piece of 1-kanal land on the Ladowali road area, which had been under the use of Government Model Co-education Secondary School, Ladowali Road.

The move — of the land being demarcated in the name of Punjab Technical University (PTU) — has invited the ire of the school, which had been using the land for the past 55 years as a park and for other school projects (the land was also part of its official map).

While a 2-acre government land was recently demarcated in the name of the PTU, the said park used by the school was also included in it even as the school said the move would choke two of its science labs (stop all ventilation due to the construction of a wall) and deprive students of the much-needed park.

While the school authorities brought matters to the notice of the DC and DEO, they finally wrote to Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal yesterday on the issue.

A letter received by them from the office of the SDM I, this morning, stated that "the 2-acre land bearing mutation No. 30631 has been registered in the name of the Punjab Technical Education Department and the demarcation of the land as per map had been done on 5th October 2012".

The letter added that while the Education Department could take up the matter with the Punjab Technical Education Department on the government level, the DC’s office could not seek any further solution on the issue.

The school, however, maintains that owing to the construction presently going on at the site, "the school park was destroyed, a long wall constructed with school PTA funds was broken and the school’s unique unit to make manure through earthworms was also destroyed."

Teja Singh Bal, president of the school’s Parent Teachers Association (PTA), said, “In April, after some movement in the neighbouring land, we got an inkling that something was wrong. We wrote to DC Shruti Singh as well as DEO Neelam Kumari on the issue and a school delegation also met the DC. While we were about to proceed to obtain a stay order from the court, the district officials pacified us that an inquiry in the matter had been marked to the tehsildar, so we stopped. But during the summer vacations, we were informed by the school chowkidar that the school wall had been demolished and an under-construction boundary wall had included the said park of the school into the neighbouring land.”

“Initially, the contractor also took away the bricks of the demolished school wall, but after a complaint to the police, some bricks were returned, while the rest are still missing,” he added.

DC Shruti Singh said, “The school authorities had come to me regarding the issue. It has been a joint-property and the school cannot lay claim to the said land legally. But since the school had been using the land for the past 55 years, it would be plausible if both parties try to arrive at a compromise on the issue.”

DEO Neelam Kumari said, “An inquiry was conducted in the matter. It is right that the land was being used by the school but the ‘fard’ is in the name of the university. We had told the school authorities to request the university to leave space for the ventilation of the labs, but other than that, the school can’t lay claim on it.”

PTU VC Rajneesh Arora couldn’t be contacted despite repeated attempts.

The school authorities said they would meet the Education Secretary regarding the issue on July 5. 

Jalandhar, July 2
Hundreds of motorists and commuters on the Lambapind Chowk-Jandu Singha road have been facing a harrowing time due to the mud and stagnant water accumulated at various places on the stretch.

The 1-km-long link, which connects the busy GT Road with the Jalandhar-Hoshiarpur road, is no less than a nightmare, courtesy the Punjab Public Works Department and the Sewerage Board which initiated laying of sewer lines in the middle of the rainy season, thus creating a lot of trouble for the residents here.

The stretch, starting from the Lambapind Chowk goes up to a railway over-bridge (ROB), is in a very bad condition. The Sewerage Board has dug up the entire section hardly leaving any space for the vehicles to cross.

The road is frequently used by heavy vehicles heading towards Hoshiarpur and Himachal Pradesh and the kutcha stretch is unable to bear the volume of traffic which further causes more damage to the road, said Randhir Singh, a city-based transporter.

The worst affected is the stretch near the intersection where knee-deep potholes have developed. Filled with rain water, these potholes have been proving fatal for the motorists, especially for two-wheeler riders who often meet with accidents, said Sanjeev Sharma, a commuter from Hoshiarpur.

The traders of the area also complained that their business is badly affected because of the damaged road as the customers avoid visiting their business establishments.

BS Tuli, Executive Engineer, PWD (B and R) provincial division, said the Sewerage board has dug up the stretch for laying sewer lines. The sewerage board authorities have already paid a sum of Rs 1 crore to the PWD department for the damages. The road will be reconstructed once the sewer lines are laid.

Jalandhar, July 2
Organic baby corn, parsley (a kind of coriander), lettuce (green leaves), dill (a herb), lemon grass and other crops are being sown by the students of Agriculture Department of Lovely Professional University (LPU) on its campus. It will soon hit the Indian and international market.

People have already accepted the produce of the university. Various organic vegetables are grown on the campus like spinach, cauliflowers, cabbage, turnip, radish, carrots.

The budding agricultural scientists are now gearing up to expand their produces to the international markets. Plans are being made for growing exotic vegetables, fruits and to develop a marketing strategy to export the produce to European countries by following the quality control parametres of the international level.

To promote organic farming and to provide practical training to the students of Agriculture Department, the university has engaged various experts to impart practical training on healthy and sustainable organic farming.

The students are learing wisdom of agricultural heritage and methods of organic agriculture which enriches the soil, increases the long-term yield, nutrient value, and potency of crops, said Dr Ramesh Kanwar, University Vice-Chancellor.

To give them exposure, interactions with experts from renowned Universities of IOWA State USA, Pakistan and other countries, have been arranged by the university. Dr Kanwar added that proper organic agricultural practices require expert training and supervision for sustainable procurement methods. These help in preserving rare and endangered plant species and the earth's natural bio-diversity.