|
|
|
|
Illegal hotels around Golden Temple an eyesore
Realising pending house tax defaults an uphill task for civic body
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
Survey of ammo-dump area on cards
Municipal Corporation collects Rs 4 lakh as property tax
Medical students allege eve teasing
Five-day trade expo from Dec 5
Panel on sexual harassment at workplace formed
Teachers to hold protest
|
|
Illegal hotels around Golden Temple an eyesore
Amritsar, December 3 They resent that due to
a lackadaisical attitude of the civic authorities these units not only hurt their businesses but also burnt a huge hole in the state exchequer. Majority of these hotels, inns and guest houses located in the narrow lanes of walled city are not to be found in records and hence evade paying taxes. On the other hand, the registered hotels have been charged exorbitant administrative taxes to the tune of 15.42 per cent luxury tax on rooms (8 per cent as luxury tax, 7.42 per cent as sales tax), besides 19.26 per cent on food (12.36 per cent VAT, 7.42 per cent service tax). A hotelier said the tariffs of a non-star guest house or lodge was almost the same as that of a star hotel located in a posh locality. A star hotel’s occupancy remains below 30 per cent whereas the unregistered hospitality units are doing brisk business, besides having no liability of paying taxes. Most of these units are located near the Golden Temple which helps generate more clientele for them. It has been learnt the owners of these units bribe MC officials to escape getting the mandatory no-objection certificate (NOC) from fire brigade and building department besides getting environment clearance from the Punjab Pollution Control Board. Many of these hotels have been raised to the level of six storeys on 50-60 square yards residential plots and do not have the requisite NOC. With no alternative fire exit route, these units have narrow stairs only, leading to upper floors. This also poses as a threat to the lives of the visitors. Hemant Batra, Senior Town Planner, said, “A recent survey conducted by the MC revealed that there were 131 such hotels, inns and guest houses which barely comply with the stipulated norms.” It has also been learnt that this figure could be even more as the MC is in the process of conducting another door-to-door survey to identify the exact number after getting a rap from the Punjab and Haryana High Court in this regard. Several hoteliers here complain that they are forced to let one room for Rs 2,000 per day, which otherwise commands tariff between Rs 4,900-Rs 5,500. “We are compelled to let rooms on lower rates while we ought to pay all kind of taxes unlike these (illegal) hospitality units. We comply with all legal norms like scrutinising the antecedents of occupants, maintaining a property log account, paying food and beverages’ licence fee etc,” said a hotelier. APS Chatha, president, Amritsar Hotels and Restaurant Association (AHARA), Civil Lines, said, “Many hoteliers in the organised sector will be forced to commit suicide as their debt burden has been mounting over the years. I know some hoteliers who were struggling to pay electricity bills, what to talk of profit.” “An ever escalating tax regime imposed on us has added to our miseries. We appeal to the government to either relieve us from the burden of taxes or organise the hospitality units here,” he said.
|
||
|
Realising pending house tax defaults an uphill task for civic body
Amritsar, December 3 It seems quite impractical to clear the pending disputes within the stipulated period. On the other hand, the sub-committee meeting has not been held on regular basis for one reason or the other. The MC's house tax recovery squad and the sub-committee were constituted for resolving the disputed cases. There were around 2,200 cases lying pending before the house tax sub-committee comprising Councillors Sukhminder Singh Pintu, Surinder Sultanwind besides Superintending Engineer (SE) Jaswinder Singh and Superintendents Shushant Bhatia and Daljit Singh. It has been learnt that among the pending cases, there are several big establishments, including hotels and shops on Lawrence Road and GT Road whose cases have been lying pending for quite some time. Pintu said it would be near impossible to clear such a huge pending lot. A report has to be submitted as was directed by Local Bodies Minister Anil Joshi by December 15. "The lot of pending cases got piled up because the sub-committee meeting could not be held on regular intervals for multiple reasons. Now that Surinder Sultanwind has got busy with the Delhi polls, we could not comply with the mandatory quorum and the meetings could not be held. We had before us over 2,000 cases out of which around 390 have been resolved amicably so far," he said. Pintu further said since property tax was introduced, house tax would lose its significance. "We would prepare a status report only to be submitted with the Local Bodies Ministry. After that, it would be the ministry's directions to clear the cases. The sub-committee would become non-operational after December 9," he said. It has been learnt that the government is likely to form a policy wherein some rebate could be extended to tax defaulters to clear the backlog. But this does not mean after introduction of property tax, house tax defaulters will be enjoying immunity.
|
||
|
New Civil Surgeon assumes charge after Mitra denied tenure extension
Amritsar, December 3 Anomalies were detected in the purchase of equipment in the past few months. Some medicines and equipment were purchased double the market price. The department had also been in news from buying equipment at more price than were available in the market. The department had also denied extension of service to Dr Ashok Nayyar, Director Health Services, recently. In a formal meeting with officials today, Dr Usha Bansal said she would adopt zero tolerance towards corruption and illegal practices. The PCMS Doctors Association in a meeting today thanked Health Minister Surjit Kumar Jiani and Chief Parliamentary Secretary Dr Navjot Kaur Sidhu for taking the decision not to give extension to officials with dubious record. The association under the leadership of Dr Madan Mohan and Dr Sanjay Kapoor also thanked the minister for appointing a person with honest track record and integrity. Dr Ranjit Singh Buttar, association patron, said, "We support the cleansing drive initiated by the minister and hope that more heads would roll in the coming days. Health officials have a moral duty to provide fair services to the general public and the department must not let some people run their own agendas." malpractices alleged
Anomalies were detected in the purchase of equipment in the past few months. Some medicines and equipment were purchased double the market price
|
||
|
Police dept finds it tough to shift Hall Gate chowki to suitable location
Amritsar, December 3 The municipal authorities had asked the police department to vacate the building as it was situated alongside the “fassel wall” (inner circular road from Hall Gate to Sikandari Gate). They are all set to auction the 1,750 square yards land along the wall. This land would be auctioned for the construction of shop-cum-flats (SCFs). The auction of prime land is likely to fetch an amount of Rs 30 crore which would be utilised for development works. Though the MC had demolished the majority of the portion from Hall Gate to Sikandari Gate, the project has been getting delayed as the police department was yet to vacate a room which was in his possession. The police post in question was established in 2008 following a few instances in which the shops and kiosks located alongside the outer wall were rampaged and vandalised by agitators holding protests. After this, the then SSP Kunwar Vijay Partap Singh set up a post in a booth for providing security to the shopkeepers. As the police officials were finding it difficult to work in the booth, the chowki was later shifted to an empty building alongside the wall. A police official said as a major portion of the building was demolished by the MC, one of the walls of the post had become very weak. As a precautionary measure, they do their work outside the chowki, he added. He said they were looking for a place for shifting the chowki. Parampal Singh, ADCP city-I, said they had requested several people in the Hall Gate area for providing some place for shifting the chowki. He said efforts were also on to find the suitable place for it. “Till we get a suitable place, it is difficult for us to vacate the building completely. We are facing some difficulty but are in the process of finding a better place,” he said.
|
||
|
Survey of ammo-dump area on cards
Amritsar, December 3 The matter came to light after Chief Parliamentary Secretary (CPS), Dr Navjot Kaur Sidhu, met Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal regarding resolution of the issue of wholesale vegetable and fruit market at Vallah, which falls within the prohibited distance from the Army Vallah ammunition dump. Sources in the Department of Home Affairs and Justice said due to contentions posed by the Punjab government and the views expressed by the Army authorities, no concrete structure and development work was allowed after the establishment of Vallah Mandi. Besides, keeping in view the safety and security of people, and strategic and logistic existence of ammunition dump, due care was being taken. The Department of Home Affairs Secretary Samir Kumar said the Army authorities were quite sympathetic towards the prevailing circumstances and situation existing on the ground during the last Civil Military Liasion Committee (CMLC) meeting held on March 28. CPS Sidhu said the state government conveyed that Operational Logistics Branch would carry out an exercise in respect of all ammunition dumps in the state. A consolidated case would be taken by the logistics branch in conjunction with the state government for enhancing the compensation rates to bring them at par with the prevailing land rates. Sidhu was assured that since the matter was under active consideration of the Army and the state government, a viable solution would be forthcoming after obtaining the Army report. She said the matter would positively be taken up in the next CMLC meet. The issue of ammunition dump location dated back to 2002, when the civic administration decided to increase the periphery of the city. The Army till then had acquired 122-acre of land on the bypass, which had few settlements in Vallah village. Afterwards, the Army approached the Union Government and a notification banning any construction in 1,000 yards parapet was issued on November 11, 2004. However, till then a vegetable market had come up in the vicinity. The district administration has been issuing orders under Section 144 of the CrPc (power to issue order in urgent cases of nuisance or apprehended danger) in the area for avoiding any fresh construction. The Army had identified many construction activities in the area in the past. Meanwhile, couple of months back, a team of Punjab Mandi Board visited wholesale vegetable and fruit market at Vallah and took stock of five alternate sites to choose from among them. Since Vallah Mandi falls within the prohibited distance from the Army dump, no concrete structure and development work is allowed. The board had approached the District Town Planner (DTP) to suggest alternate sites for the wholesale vegetable and fruit market. The DTP had suggested five sites located in different parts of the city. These sites are: 50-acre mixed-use land on the Mehta road, 50-acre land at Revenue Estate, Manawala, on the National Highway-1, another 50-acre site is at the Revenue Estate, Bal Khurd, on the Fatehgarh Churriyan road, 60-acre on the Majitha road and 50- acre mixed-use land at Ibban Kalan village on the Chabbal road. Traders and farmers doing business at the Vallah Mandi rued the government's decision to establish the market at Vallah as the Punjab Mandi Board failed to provide all state-of-the-art facilities promised in its blue print. They said the government could not even provide basic amenities like toilets, bathrooms, potable water, stay houses for growers and farmers visiting the market from far-off places. Even facilities like cold storage for preserving perishable fresh farm produce and platforms for auctioning the produce were also absent. Ripening chambers were not available in the market and traders had to operate from old vegetable market to store banana and papaya, they added. They said Original plan of the market earmarked an acre plot for raising export facilities, but the place was lying vacant. The present Vallah market is spread over 92 acre. Traders were of the view that the Punjab Mandi Board must seek public opinion before deciding the future course of action. They said as per the rules, 50 per cent of the market fee must be funded for the development of the market. On the other hand, no effort was made to provide any of the amenities. As per the original plan of the market, a plot near number four shed was earmarked for raising a cold storage. However, the plot was still lying vacant. Absence of cold storage means growers do not have any option to store the produce. On the other hand, the holy city’s master plan had also recommended shifting of the Vallah Mandi, said traders. It was informed that about Rs 1.30 crore had been allocated by the department for re-laying of damaged roads and other repair works two years ago, but the work was abandoned after the Army raised objections.
|
||
|
Municipal Corporation collects Rs 4 lakh as property tax
Amritsar, December 3 The MC could realise Rs 4 lakh from around 350 traders, which was quite less than the amount expected from nearly a 1,000 shops. Superintendent Shushant Bhatia said, “Usually an amount of Rs 6,000 is collected from each shop here, but with the rise in disputes over the self-styled formulae adopted by traders, we were able to collect an average amount of just Rs 3,200 from each trader. All these discrepancies need to be addressed.” City Mayor Bakshi Ram Arora, on the other hand, said with the deadline of depositing the property tax approaching, the Municipal Corporation had been quite liberal in tax collection and conducting camps in different city localities to sensitise residents. He said, “At present, our focus is to put maximum number of residents under the ambit of property tax structure. It will be our endeavour to encourage them. That is why a self-assessment mode has been adopted. Since it’s a beginning, our motto will be to let residents understand that paying the property tax will ultimately be ploughed back
for providing them with better living and infrastructure.” The Mayor said, “I and Municipal Commissioner individually, monitor the outcome of the property tax awareness camps, which at present is quite positive.”
|
||
|
Woman gives birth to triplets
Amritsar, December 3 Senior Medical Officer (SMO) Dr Balbir Singh Dhillon said the children weighed more than 1.75 kilogram which is considered optimum in case
of triplets. Dr Dhillon said cases of triplets occurred in almost one pregnancy case in 6400 cases. He said the doctors at the hospital were providing due care to the mother and the children. Monica, the mother of triplets, said they were already parents to a two-and-half year-old son. She said she would leave no stone unturned to provide education to her daughters. Her husband Gagan said, "Bringing up four children in today's time is a difficult task for a person with meagre resources. But we hope that at least we would be able to provide them better education and facilities." Gagan, a resident of Tarn Taran road, works at a cloth shop. "Earlier, the doctors had told us that children were twins during ultra-sound scans conducted on the mother," he said.
|
||
|
Health Department officials raid unlicensed drug shop
Amritsar, December 3 Drug Inspector Sukhdeep Singh said the cost of the seized medicines was Rs 1 lakh. The shop owner was identified as Karan Puri. The drug inspector said the shop was running under the banner of AK Enterprises. He said the owner could not show any valid drug license, which could allow him to sell or store drugs. Sukhedeep said the shop owner also could not show the purchase bills of the medicines to the raiding party. “He even does not have a registered medical practitioner certificate, which can justify storage of drugs with him,” said the drug inspector. The Health Department would file a case against the owner under the provisions of Drugs and Cosmetics Act, said Sukhdeep. Zonal Drug Authority Rajesh Suri and Akhilesh were among other members of the team which raided the premises of the unauthorised drug store.
|
||
|
Medical students allege eve teasing
Amritsar, December 3 The college authorities took away identity cards of boys. College Principal, Dr Karnail Singh, said, “Boys involved in the incident were summoned today. They, however, denied that they have indulged in any eve teasing. Nevertheless, they are guilty of trespassing on the college premises without any permission.” The principal admitted that boys were college students. He said an inquiry by college officials had concluded that no instance of eve teasing had occurred. “Boys and their families have apologised in written and they have been asked not to enter the college again,” said Karnail Singh. The incident had occurred at 7.30 pm last evening, when a few girls were strolling on the college premises. “We have asked the security staff not to let in any unknown person, who does not have any business during the evening hours. The security guards has also been sensitised about handling such cases,” said the principal. He said the college was well guarded during the night time, especially the girl’s hostels.
|
||
|
Five-day trade expo from Dec 5
Amritsar, December 3 Deputy Commissioner (DC) Ravi Bhagat today visited the PITEX venue, which generated a business of Rs 240 crore last year. He also chaired a meeting of officials to take stock of the preparations. Nearly 400 exhibitors from the USA, Pakistan, Egypt, Thailand, UAE, Poland, Afghanistan, apart from the home country, are expected to take part in the exhibition. He said all arrangements would be completed by tomorrow. Arrangements of fire extinguishers, sufficient lighting, potable water, parking and security had been made, he added. The DC said, “Artistes from Pakistan and neigbouring countries will perform at the function. The exhibition complex has been divided into eight parts with specified themes.” He said the state government had taken up the issue of setting up of Container Depot Station to accommodate import and export of merchandise through the
ICP.
|
||
|
Panel on sexual harassment at workplace formed
Amritsar, December 3 DC Ravi Bhagat said in the light of the Supreme Court guidelines, a 10-member committee has been formed under Assistant Commissioner (Grievances) Amandeep Kaur. Other office- bearers are Ruchi Kalra, Gurinder Grewal, Vinay Sharma, Sunita Kiran , Prabhjit Kaur Deputy Medical Commissioner, Kanwaljeet kaur, Assistant Commissioner Police and Prabhdeep Kaur, SHO Women Cell.
— TNS
|
||
|
Dugs seized in Central Jail
Amritsar, December 3 The accused has been identified as Gursewak Singh, a resident of Patti village in Tarn Taran. A case under Section 22/61/85 of the NDPS Act Section 42 of the Prisoner Act has been registered at the Cantonment police station on the basis of complaint registered by the Jail Superintendent, said ASI Varinder Kumar of Gumtala police post.
|
||
|
Teachers to hold protest
Amritsar, December 3 In a press statement here today, union district president Gurpreet Singh Verka sought regularisation of contractual teachers. He claimed Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had promised to regularise services of 7,654 teachers by December this year during Moga by-election. He said less than a month was left and there was neither any movement nor any sign on the part of the state government to fulfil the promise.
|
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | E-mail | |
