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delay by contractors Kuldip Bhatia
Ludhiana, September 20 Enquiries made from officials of the building and roads branch of the MC revealed that a large number of works relating to reconditioning/strengthening of streets, laying of PCC flooring, laying of interlocking tiles and construction of kerbs and footpaths in different parts of the city had been delayed by months, and in some cases by years together, with supervisory officials of the MC allegedly turning a blind eye to the blatant violation of the terms and conditions of the work orders. In a complaint filed with the MC Commissioner, city-based RTI activist Kuldeep Singh Khaira said according to information provided to him under the Right to Information Act, certain development works allotted to various contractors were only 15 to 45 per cent complete even after two and a half years of allotment whereas these were to be completed within a period of six to eight months. There were some works which had not even been started while the time limit stipulated in the work orders had expired, he maintained. Khaira said in his complaint that according to the terms and conditions of the work orders, the MC could cancel the work orders, forfeit the earnest money deposited by the construction agency, and in cases of persistent default, the contractor could be blacklisted. "No such action had till now been taken against any of the erring contractors," he pointed out in his complaint. Sumit Jarangal, Additional Commissioner of the MC, who heads the building and roads branch, told Ludhiana Tribune that the progress of all ongoing development works in the city was being reviewed and instructions had been issued to executive engineers of all zones to take penal action against the contractors who had failed to abide by the time limit stipulated in the work orders. "As far as the delay in the execution of works is concerned, we have adopted a zero-tolerance policy," he said.
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Tiwari takes over reins of civic body
Ludhiana, September 20 In an informal interaction with mediapersons after taking charge, Tiwari said better delivery of civic amenities, providing better roads, expansion of the water supply and sewerage network and acceleration in the pace of all major development projects would be among his priorities. "Despite the poor financial condition of the civic body, we will make the best possible efforts to revive and speed up work on all major infrastructure development projects." He said MC officials had been directed to provide a feedback on the condition of all major roads in the city, and repair work on these roads would be taken up soon. According to Tiwari, who is aware of all major issues that need to be addressed, the traffic congestion in the city needs to be dealt with on priority. He said the MC would take measures to bring about an improvement in the flow of traffic by removing bottlenecks, providing fresh road markings and cat eye traffic signs wherever required, having closer coordination with the traffic police and seeking the cooperation of the people. Later, the new Commissioner held detailed discussions on various civic issues with senior officials of the MC.
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Seizure of gold: Verification under way
Ludhiana, September 20 The department seized the gold after the jewellery house failed to intimate it regarding the transportation of the gold into the district. "We are still busy with the verification of the gold seized by the department. The actual amount of fine to be paid by the owner will be known only once the verification is complete," said Rishipal Singh, Deputy Excise and Taxation Commissioner. He said it was mandatory to inform the department in advance regarding the transportation of any goods in the state. Gold was being brought from Ahmedabad in a chartered plane and was seized at the Sahnewal airport since the department had not been informed about the consignment. The showroom is slated to open in a couple of days and the gold consignment was meant for it. The gold has been deposited in the government exchequer and tight security arrangements have been made to guard it.
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Strike hits work at health centres
Ludhiana, September 20 Sukhvinder Singh, president of the association, said the strike would continue next week if their demands were not met. "We continued our strike for the third day today. We will continue continue our strike till our demands are met," he said. Due to the strike, birth and death certificates, and drug licences could not be issued today. Work remained hampered at community health centres, ESI dispensaries and the Civil Hospital.
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Three more cases of dengue reported
Ludhiana, September 20 The patients are from Sherpur, Gyaspura and Dhandari. With this, the total number of dengue patients in the district has risen to 47, while 46 patients from other districts have received treatment at hospitals in the city. There are 11 patients of dengue from other states who have received treatment at hospitals in the city.
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3 get life term in rape-murder case
Ludhiana, September 20 The convicts have been sentenced to undergo rigorous life imprisonment. A fine of Rs 20,000 each has also been imposed upon the accused. Delivering the 32-page judgment, the court held that the prosecution had sucessfully proved the guilt of the accused. The convicts were not entitled to any leniency keeping in view the nature of the offence committed by him, said the court while dismissing the plea of leniency filed by the accused. The prosecution had examined 13 witnesses to prove the guilt of the accused. Whereas, the defence examined four witnesses. The body of the girl was found in the fields of Ram Nand, who had intimated the police. The police arrested the accused on the basis of cogent evidence found against them. A case under Sections 302, 376 and 34 of the IPC was registered against the accused at the Sadar police station, Khanna, on July 8, 2009. The accused pleaded innocence and claimed false implication. However, after appreciating the evidence on record, the court found the accused guilty and sentenced them.
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No fiscal crisis in state, says minister
Samrala, September 20 He said the government was expecting to collect Rs 2,200 crore from various resources next month as compared to Rs 1,300 crore this month. All dues would be cleared with this money. Dhindsa hinted at releasing the pending DA instalment of employees soon. He said the government would have additional funds of Rs 2,000 crore during next year for development. He said the government would provide Rs 1,800 crore to the Local Bodies Department for the development of cities. He said the government had the required funds, but leaders of the Opposition were "telling lies about the economic condition of the state". He said there was no shortage of funds and the government was committed to the all-round development of the state. SGPC member Sarbans Singh Manki was among those present on the occasion. Opposition leaders spreading canards:
Dhindsa
Finance Minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa hinted at releasing the pending DA instalment of employees soon. He said the government had the required funds, but leaders of the Opposition were "telling lies about the economic condition of the state" |
Social bodies do their bit at Chhapar Mela
Mandi Ahmedgarh, September 20 Besides organising community kitchen and chhabeel, the organisers arranged medical facilities for all, including devotees and officials on duty, at the event. Activists of some social organisations of the town and surrounding villages organised medical camps, community kitchen and chhabeels for devotees during the fair. While the facilities came as a breather for devotees, vendors supplying eatables and drinks were disappointed due to loss of business. Social and religious organisations of the area also organised public utility camps at the mela venue and surrounding localities. Hind Hospital and the Social Welfare Organisation organised medical camps. Diagnostic tests were conducted free of cost and medicines were given to the needy. Volunteers, led by Jatinder Happy, organised langars during the fair while the Durga Sewa Society, Shri Ram Mandir Committee, the Bharatiya Mahavir Dal, the Luxmi Narayan Sewa Dal and the Har Har Mahadev Sewa Sangh organised community kitchen and chhabeels on selected occasions. Staff of the Dehlon branch of the State Bank of India, led by Sher Singh and Annapurna Arora, organised chhabeels and guidance centres.
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Inclement weather plays spoilsport
Mandi Ahmedgarh, Sept 20 The administration heaved a sigh of relief for obvious reasons of making extra arrangements for ensuring the security of visitors today as a large number of police personnel had been withdrawn from the place today. However, social and religious bodies continued organising camps, langars and chhabeels for visitors present even after the weather had turned hostile. Groups of devotees, including families, started coming to pay obeisance at Guga Mari in the morning. After noon, the situation was almost reversed. Owners of private parking spots established on the approach roads to Guga Mari were disappointed as the police did not stop vehicles from entering the venue. Though vendors and owners of sweetmeat shops and restaurants had normal business only till afternoon, they expected less business in the evening. Families of the town and surrounding localities were expected to visit the mela during evening. Hopes of vendors were dashed in the evening when weather turned hostile forcing visitors to return to their places.
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Road construction in rain
Jagraon, September 20 During a visit to the Grain Market recently, it was found that the work of laying premix on the roads was being carried out in the rain by the workers. By doing so, the contractor, who has been awarded the project, has compromised with the quality of work. According to the Punjab Mandi Board authorities, the project cost is Rs 95 lakh. The local traders feel that by laying premix in the rain, the quality of the road work was compromised. The roads of the Grain Market, which is the second largest grain market in Asia after the Khanna Grain Market, had not been recarpeted for the past many years. The project couln't take off for more than one year after its announcement due to the reasons best known to the Punjab Mandi Board authorities. According to the traders, around two months ago, Jagraon MLA SR Kaler held a meeting with the traders and constituted a five-member committee to oversee the road construction. "But, a couple of days later, the Punjab Mandi Board authorities told us that the road construction work has been postponed due to the rainy season and the roads would be recarpeted after the rainy season," said a local trader Rajinder Jain. "The construction work was delayed by over two months on the pretext of the rainy season. Ironically, now the premix is being laid in the rain. This will affect the quality of the roads," said Raj Kumar Bhalla, district president of the Punjab Arhtiya Association, who is also a member of the committee formed by Kaler to oversee the construction work. Punjab Mandi Board Jagraon SDO Amandeep Singh said the construction work began only yesterday and the premix was laid on only a few metre-long stretch when the rain started. "The rain started suddenly in the evening when the work was under way. We immediately stopped the work and no construction was carried out after that," he added. Kaler said he was aware of the issue. "I have spoken to the SDO as well as the commission agents. The construction work will resume only after the local shopkeepers are satisfied completely," he said.
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Students attend 3-day camp at NASA
Ludhiana, September 20 They were on a special three-day programme, organised for school students. On the first day, they were taken on a guided tour of the NASA campus. The students were familiarised with the fact that after over five decades, the Kennedy Space Centre (KSC) remains the worlds proven 21st Century launch complex for government and commercial space exploration. The KSC is home to three NASA programmes that supports robotic and human exploration of the universe. NASA’s space launch system and the Orion Multi-purpose Vehicle continues to lead exploration and understanding of the home planet, the solar system and beyond. The students were shown the Vehicle Assembly Building, which is one of the world’s largest structures in volume, enclosing about 3,664,833 cubic meters. They were also shown a small documentary on International Space Station (ISS). The students were informed regarding the space shuttle programme. On the second day, they were given a virtual experience of zero gravity and were made to experience the space flight in a simulator. They were shown various 3D and 4D movies on space walks and man landing on the moon. On the final day, they interacted with astronauts. Students met the actual space explorer Bob Springer who had been to space three times. He talked with them about the future of space exploration. Students asked questions and were astonished to meet an astronaut like Springer. The programme was organised by Kanwar Nihal Singh Gill, who is a certified official Ambassador of the space camp at NASA.
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I-T department team surveys two units
Ludhiana, September 20 The survey was still going on till the filing of the report.
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Traders welcome hike in limit
Manav Mander Tribune News Service
Ludhiana, September 20 Any firm or agency that has a turnover or sales above Rs 1 crore has to get their annual VAT returns audited. After auditing the returns, the chartered accountant gives a certificated that he has audited the returns and also puts his signature authenticating the same. Jatinder Khurana, a taxation lawyer, said the increase in the limit for the audited returns up to Rs 1 crore, which, at present, was Rs 50 lakh, is a welcome step. "Getting the returns audited is a waste of time. The income tax returns are filed after getting audited so it should not be made compulsory for the annual VAT returns," he said. Further, Balraj Singh, a trader, said it was a positive step taken by the department. Rs 50 lakh was not a big amount so increasing the limit was necessary. Time will be saved and people will get their returns submitted on time, he added.
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Mann seeks fair probe into case
Tribune News Service
Ludhiana, September 20 The victim, 60-year-old Major Singh, sustained injuries on his shoulder and leg. He was rushed to a hospital where he was operated upon. The police had registered a case against Anup Singh, vice-president of the Ludhiana chapter of the SAD (Amritsar) and Mann's trusted lieutenant, and his sons Mohinder Singh, Parminder Singh and Karamjit Singh. Mann said Major Singh shot himself on his shoulder in order to implicate Anup Singh in a false case. He said Anup Singh was framed as Major and his aide wanted to usurp his land. According to Deepinder Singh, the victim's son, Anup Singh and his three sons barged in their office and fired four shots. Both Major Singh and Anup Singh are residents of Dharampura Street No. 6 and both the groups had been at loggerheads over nine acres at Kakka Dholla village. Anup Singh's relatives said Deepinder and Major Singh took Mohinder Singh to their office for settling the dispute. A heated argument ensued during the meeting. In the meantime, Major Singh snatched a pistol from Mohinder and shot himself on the shoulder and leg, said Anup Singh's relatives.
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‘Nabar’ star cast visits city
Ludhiana, September 20 The movie won National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Punjabi this year. Derewal said the movie tells about how dreams of going abroad among youth affects their families. Unlike the movies being made in Punjabi, Dhir said the aim of the film is to showcase serious cinema, adding that this is a story of common man. The movie is based on a real-life incident. The story depicts how a father struggles to get justice for his deceased son. The son is tricked by some bogus travel agents, who promise to send him to the UK, but he is killed during a fight with the agents. He fought for justice and is not deterred by bribes and threats. Derewal said the movie has no commercial or non-commercial concerns. He said the music in the movie is appropriate to the situation of the movie. This movie inspires people to fix the weaknesses and flaws in the society. The movie will be released in India and abroad on September 27, he said.
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Workshop on psychology
The department of psychology of the Guru Nanak Khalsa College for Women, Gujarkhan campus, organised a workshop on ‘gratitude, forgiveness and judgmentalism’ today. Dr Shruti Shourie, assistant professor of psychology, DAV College, Sector 10, Chandigarh, who was the resource person, with the aid of innovative activities helped students to realise the importance of positive attitude in their lives. Important virtues like respect for others and empathy were highlighted. Principal Manjit Kaur Ghuman congratulated the department for its efforts and stressed the importance of such workshops that underline the practical aspects of subjects like psychology. Plantation drive
Dr Vijay Laxmi, Principal, DD Jain College of Education, organised a tree plantation drive with the help of students of the college for three days from September 18 to 20, 2013, at the Bureau of Generation of Training Model Gram, Jawaharlal Nehru Government Girls’ Senior Secondary School, Jawahar Nagar, and Swami Vivekananda Old Age Home, Model Town. Gujranwala Guru Nanak Institute of Management and Technology (GGNIMT) in association with the Secugenius Security Solutions organised a ceremony to confer certificate of training and job placement letters to the selected students under the scheme of ‘Earn While You Learn’ here on Thursday. Dr Hardeep Singh, Dean Placement, GNDU, Amritsar, was the chief guest. Satinderjit Singh, head, computer science department, briefed out the scheme. Dr Hardeep and other Dignitaries presented the certificate of training to 50 students for completing the two-month professional training on ‘Advanced Website Development and Training’.
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Displaying creativity
Daughters' Day
The Ryan International School, Dugri, celebrated Daughter's Day on the school premises. Students of Classes III and V conducted group discussions on the topic, ‘Girls are more loving and caring’, while students of Classes I and II made a doll house to show their creativity and express their feelings. Headmistress Ritu Syal said its good that the children got an opportunity to celebrate Daughter's Day as daughters were special in society. Tributes paid to girl child
A woman can be mother, wife, aunt, grand-mother but she is a daughter first. Students of ABC Montessori School celebrated Daughter’s Day on the school premises. The girls came dressed up in their best attires. All little girls performed on songs and rhymes. Little girls of Level II dressed up as doctors, engineers and astronauts delivered a message that daughters were no less than sons.
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Seminar on road safety
A seminar on road safety and traffic rules was held here today at the Government College for Girls. The seminar was organised on the instructions of the Road Safety Council. Gurminder Kaur, Principal of the college, was among those present. Sukhdev Singh told students about the importance of the traffic rules. Students were told how to keep themselves safe while walking or driving on road. Cell formed
The All India Youth Federation Front on Friday constituted a cell, ‘Women Against Crime’. Naseeb Kaur, president, Ludhiana Urban, said constituting a cell was the need of the hour. “Today women are marching ahead in every field and they are no less then men. Time has come when women should raise their voice against crime against them,” she said. Instructions given
Senior Medical Officer RK Karkara has directed medical staff to check the identity of those persons who introduce themselves as mediapersons for security reasons. He said mediapersons meeting the medical staff must introduce themselves when they make a visit to hospitals and show their identity card. He added that he had received complaints regarding the matter from the staff in the past. Repo rate hiked
The repo rate has risen from 7.25 per cent to 7.50 per cent. The move will affect the hosiery industry hard as with this the interest rate of loan and machine price will rise and moreover it will directly or indirectly affect the small scale knitwear industry.
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NRI woman, aide and court bailiff booked for land grab
Ludhiana, September 20 The accused have been identified as Pritam Kaur, an NRI of Birmingham in the UK, power of attorney holder Darshan Singh Malhi, Kulwant, a court bailiff posted at the district courts complex here. They have been booked under sections 420, 457, 380, 201, 148, 149 and 120-B of the IPC for fraud, land garb, trespass and committing theft at a house located in the posh Sarabha Nagar locality. The case was registered on the recommendation of the Punjab State Commission for NRIs. Recently, Ravjot Singh and his sister Harpreet Kaur had approached the Commissioner for seeking action against the NRI woman and his accomplices. Ravjot said: "My house is located at Block 81-J in Sarabha Nagar, near Guru Nanak Public School. It is a property worth crores. Pritam Kaur was the previous owner of the property. She sold the property to Harjit Singh through her attorney Daljit Singh. I had purchased the property from Harjit Singh and took possession of the land in 2006," said Ravjot. After some years, Pritam Kaur got a fraud case registered against Harjit Singh in 2006. However, the case held no water and a cancellation report was submitted. Ravjot said on May 29, the accused forcibly took possession of the property along with household goods, including gold jewellery, without preparing an inventory of the goods and without getting the signature of main servant Ranki, who lived there along with her brother. Ravjot said: "I have taken a loan for purchasing the property. I am still paying the monthly instalments of the loan to Punjab National Bank (PNB). The registry of the property is still pledged with the bank."
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Navjot, Sunil win bouts
Doraha, September 20 It was attended by vice-president of school Harpartap Singh Brar, manager Tarlok Singh Jaggi, Jogeshwar Singh Mangat, director Jaswant Singh Gill, Rajinder Singh Khalsa, principal Dr NS Sidhu and DP Thakur encouraged the participants and wished them luck. Boxers from various districts of Punjab participated in the tournament. The results of the second day are as follows: Men’s Bantamweight (56 Kg), Navjot of Moga, Sunil of Sangrur; Men’s Lightweight (60 Kg ), Gurpreet of Fazilka, Lalit STC Mastuana Sahib, Prince of Bathinda, Manish of Patiala, Manpreet of Moga, Jagminder singh of Gurdaspur, Teja Singh of Sangrur, Amarnath of Barnala, Harjit singh of Patiala (B), Shivam of Malerkotla, Jasvir Singh of Amritsar, Jaskirat Singh of Patiala (C), Mandeep Singh of Ludhiana (C); Men’s Light welter (64 Kg ), Gurjinder Singh of Bathinda, Sanjay of NGYA, Amandeep Singh of Ludhiana, Bhagwan Singh of Patiala, Parminderjit Singh of Kapurthala, Chaviy Kant of Sangrur (B), Ajay of Amritsar, Yadwinder Singh of Talwandi Sabo, Sukhvir Singh of Hoshiarpur, Jiwan of Mansa, Lovepreet Singh of Moga; Men’s Welter (69 Kg ), Prabhjot Singh of Malerkotla, Harkaran Singh of Patiala(C), Harsajan Singh of Gurdaspur, Gurvinder Singh of Talwandi Sabo, Jagdeep Singh of Malerkotla, Dilbhag Singh of Patiala(B), Gurkirat Singh of Ropar, Radhir Singh of Sangrur, Sagardeep Singh of Sunam; Men’s Middleweight (75 Kg), Taranjit Singh of Patiala (c), Varinder Singh of Ropar, Shivam of NGYA, Gagan of Gurdaspur, Jasmeet of Jalandhar, Yadwinder Singh of Barnala; Men’s Lightheavy (81 Kg), Gurpreet Singh of Sangrur, Sandeep Singh of Hoshiarpur, Punjab of Patiala; Men’s Flightweight (46-49) Gurinder Singh of Sai Training Academy, Akashdeep of Barnala, Mandeep of Chakar, Lovepreet of Ferozepur, Naresh of Sangrur, Gurwinder of Ludhiana, Gurpreet of Taran Taran, Sodish of Pathankot, Paramjit of Talwandi Sabo, Prince of Shaheed Udam Singh Academy, Subham of Mukatsar, Jagmeet of Fazilka, Harwinder of Moga, Pawan of Hoshiarpur and Jaideep of Batala; Men’s Flyweight (52Kg) Manish Sharma of Shaheed Udam Singh Academy, Kamal of Talwandi Sabo, Ajay Kumar of Pathankot, Sarabjit of Moga, Karandeep of Chkar, Hardeep of Ludhiana, Roshan of Hoshirpur, Arjun of Amritsar, Gurdeep of Batala, Navchetan of Barnala, Lovepreet of Malerkotla and Anil of Patiala emerged winners on the second day of the matches and were selected for the next round.
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Hockey meet from Oct 3
Bhaini Sahib, September 20 Dera spokesman Lakhvir Singh Badowal and coach Rachpal Singh said 8 junior hockey teams of the Country including PNB Hockey Academy, Delhi, Surjeet Hockey Academy Jalandhar, SAI Academy Sonepat, Maharaja Ranjit Singh Hockey Academy, Amritsar, SAI Centre, Bhopal, Namdhari Hockey Academy and Chandigarh Hockey Academy will participate in this tournament.
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The Kindergarten section of Police DAV Public School put up a vibrant display of creativity by organising fun-filled activities for the tiny tots. A harmonious blend of colouring activities, calligraphy and spoken skills which marked the day brought cheer and excitement among the children. The colouring activity - ‘fun with colours’ enabled the budding artists to express their childhood fantasies in a colourful way. In the speaking skill activity, nursery students made their mark by confidently introducing themselves and their favourite colours to the audience. Students of Classes I and II and KG exhibited the art of calligraphy by crafting the English alphabets in the best possible manner. Nilambari Vijay Jagdale, ADCP-I Ludhiana, who was the guest of honour, appreciated the creative work of the tiny tots and awarded certificates of achievement to the winners. Dr Anu Verma, Principal, said such activities not only encourage the students but provide a lively environment to them during their stay at school.