Bathinda, September 15
As part of the Punjab government's initiative on e-governance, Bathinda district would be starting the e-district project from November onwards at its Suwidha Centre that currently covers 42 services. The project will initially cover eight services for which the applicants would be updated through an SMS and will be apprised of the status of their files.

Deputy Commissioner, Bathinda, Dr Basant Garg, stated that applicants for all kinds of pension cases, certificates of the SCs and the OBCs, residential certificates and the ration card holders would be provided this service. "Applicants will get regular updates on their registered mobile numbers through SMS and file tracking system, informing them about the status of their files. The service would save the people from the harassment of visiting the government offices and would make them know the status of their applications from comfort of their homes," he said.

The DC further added that all the tehsil offices, offices related to ration cards, panchayats, social security, Civil Surgeon office, Municipal Corporation Bathinda (MCB) and nagar councils would be linked with the Suwidha Centre through an online system. The work on installing infrastructure at different places has already been completed and final touches are being given to it.

The DC said that the service would be a major component of Suwidha Centre — the single-window service system, which is already proving to be a boon for the people. The nine Suwidha Centres in the district are located in Bathinda, Rampura, Talwandi Sabo, Maur, Bhagta, Nathana, Sangat, Goniana and Balianwali. These centres provide 42 different kinds of services to the people under a single roof sparing them from the harassment of running from one office to another.

The services provided include counter-signing of documents, issuance of caste certificates, handicapped certificates, document attestation, late entry of birth and death certificate, shagun scheme, copy of old registry, death certificates, marriage certificates, driving licence-related services, fitness certificate for driving licence, submit of passport applications, arms licence-related service, ration card related and many others services.

At all these nine Suwidha Centres of the district, 1,47,343 applications have been received in the last eight months. As many as 34,361 people have applied for the driving licence related services, while 31,638 have applied for fitness certificate for the driving licence, 17,609 people have applied for the issuance of a copy of the document, inspection of the record and miscellaneous services.

The Deputy Commissioner called upon the people to visit their nearest Suwidha Centres and take the maximum benefit out of this government initiative.

Bathinda, September 15
Upset over the dumping of construction material by the roadside, city residents have alleged that the dumping of such material puts the lives of motorists in danger.

A section of the residents on Ajit Road, Model Town Phase-III and Jujhar Singh Nagar alleged that the people who were constructing buildings, especially the commercial ones, usually dump construction material in the middle of the road.

“For instance, construction work is going on near the Bibiwala Gurudwara on the Ajit Road. The commercial building is under construction for the past few months and the dumping of gravel, sand and other materials has put the lives of motorist, especially of the two-wheelers, in grave danger,” said Jaswinder Sandhu, a resident of Model Town Phase III.

He said the construction material is usually spread over upto at least half a kilometer and the people fail to maintain their balance on the two-wheelers.

“Apart from dumping the construction materials, the owner also blocks the road for commuters whenever some consignment is unloaded at the construction site," said Inderjit Kaur, a resident of the same locality.

The corporation authorities said despite sensitising the public over the issue, people continue to flout the norms. “We made it clear to the builders and anyone constructing a building while clearing their documents, not to encroach on more than 50 per cent of the street or road area,” said SDO Gurpreet Singh of the Municipal Corporation.

He said one cannot block a road which is illegal and action can be initiated if a written complaint is received by the corporation in this regard.

He said the corporation also charges Rs 600 (debris fees) for per Rs 1 lakh construction cost of the building from the house owner and Rs 2,000 as security. The security is refunded when the sanitary inspector submits a report about the person involved in the construction. The fee is charged for using the street or road for keeping the building material for two months, he said.

Bathinda, September 15
The Railways has opened its eyes to their lands which have been encroached upon and slums that have been established by people from the other states.

To remove the encroachments that have been thriving for the last many years, the Railways has tighten its noose and demolished many hutments, while some slum dwellers have been given an ultimatum to clear the material and leave the area.

As per the information, some days ago, railway officials along with the GRP, carried out a demolition drive in the Thandi Sadak area and removed the structures raised by the slum dwellers on the land belonging to the department and made those living here for the last many years homeless. After these slums were demolished, these people started living there in the open.

The slum dewellers said for the last many years, the Railways has not told them anything but suddenly, the officials had demolished their hutments. In Gopal Nagar area also, the hutments were demolished, whereas some hutments were left to those whom the officials have let off with a warning.

An official of the Railways, Anil Kumar, said they were removing the encroachments but the slum dwellers come there again and again to set up their hutments. We are clearing the area now and this is being followed strictly by the officials.

Bathinda, September 15
The construction of the Fish Market to be built on Bathinda-Dabwali Road at an estimated cost of Rs 8.5 crore will lead to the axing of 188 trees. Most of these trees are more than 50 to 70 years old and apart from providing dense shade, the foliage proves to be instrumental in reducing the day temperature of the area during the summer.

The area for the market—3.04 acres—is taken from the 25 acres which was originally allotted for a cricket stadium. The Bathinda Development Authority (BDA) claims to have spent Rs 15 lakh on the pitch of the stadium, which is not seen anywhere near the market at present.

The land, which was ‘purchased’ from the farmers of the nearby villages, was initially meant for the construction of a cricket stadium. The officials of the Sports Department, including the District Sports Officer (DSO), Amreek Singh, were not available for comments. Balwinder Singh, one of the coaches in the department, said he had heard about money exchanging hands for the stadium, but was not sure.

BDA Chief Administrator, Varinder Sharma said the BDA had spent Rs 15 lakh to prepare the pitch. “We were the executing agency and now the Sports Department and the Punjab Mandi Board authorities know the present status,” he said.

Construction of a Water Works with a daily capacity of 45,530 litres to be provided to the Fish Market is also being constructed within the 3.04 acres area of the market. The contract for 32 wholesale and 16 retail shops is being handled by the Punjab Mandi Board along with the construction of the Water Works at a cost of Rs 43 lakh.

SDO, Punjab Mandi Board, Pawan Chhabra, said there is no other way except for axing the trees to construct the approach road for the Fish Market. The 32-foot wide road will be constructed after cutting down 188 trees.

Sources said the existing Fish Market, situated near Railway Road, will be shifted to Dabwali Road to pave the way for the entrance to an under construction mall and its parking area.

“Apart from the axing of shady trees, the existing flow of water from the canal, too, will be affected for irrigation purposes,” said Kehar Singh, a farmer from a nearby village.

Executive Engineer (XEN) of the Canal Department, Upkaranpal Singh Sra, said he has, so far, not received any proposal in this regard from any of the departments. “We do not have any third option except for providing water for irrigation or drinking purposes,” he said.

Bathinda, September 15
The District Consumer Dispute Redressal Forum has penalised the Bathinda Development Authority (BDA) in two separate cases. The forum has directed the BDA to pay a sum of Rs 5,000 each to the complainants along with 12 per cent rate of interest.

Devinderjit Singh and Parvinder Kaur had purchased two plots of 250-square yard each in Phase-VI and Phase-V in March 2011. The authorities were supposed to give possession of the plots within a time period of one and half years after completing all the basic facilities like water, power, road infrastructure and others.

The forum, after hearing the arguments and pleas of both the parties, directed the BDA to pay the amount in view of the delay in providing the basic facilities despite paying the due amount by the complainants.

Bathinda, September 15
A medical assessment camp for children with special needs was organised at the Government Elementary School, Mall Road. During the camp, as many as 141 children were assessed by a team of doctors from the Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India, Kanpur.

The camp was organised as part of the Inclusive Education for the Disabled (IED) programme under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan.

The district coordinator of the programme, Barjinder Singh, said children from the Nathana, Sangat and Bathinda blocks of the district were examined by the doctors.

While some of the children were detected with some form of deficiency, others had more than one problem, he added.

He said after the assessment camp, the office would furnish a demand for visual aids for six children, calipers for 48 students, wheelchairs for 39 children, 15 tricycles, 26 rollaters and one artificial hand.

Before holding the camp, a door-to-door survey is conducted as part of the IED programme to arrive at a data of details about the children with special needs.

While many of them are in schools, others are out-of-school.

As part of the IED programme, medical aid and help is given to such children to make them capable of coming to school and receiving education.

During the survey, details like the name, age, type and degree of disability, medical aid and help required, among other things, are recorded.

As part of the programme, home-based education aims to cover the out-of-school children who are suffering from a severe form of disability and are unable to attend school.

Assistant special teachers or the inclusive education volunteers in the district have been trained to educate the children about how to take care of themselves and to explain to their parents the nuances of special treatment that the child may require, which may improve his/her condition.

The IEVs spend three months on every child.

After the assessment of the type and degree of disability, these children will be provided with medical aid and Sarva Siksha Abhiyaan will also bear the cost of several orthopaedic surgeries through which the children suffering from club foot, polio and other orthopaedic problems will undergo surgeries free-of-cost. Children will also be given medical aid.

Bathinda, September 15
The three-day inaugural edition of the World Kabaddi League organised at the Astroturf Hockey Stadium of Government Rajindra College, concluded here this evening.

On the first day, not many people turned up to see the matches and a large number of chairs were seen empty. But on Day II and III, a good number of spectators came to the venue to watch their favourite kabaddi players in action.

Not only residents, the local SAD MLA and CPS Sarup Chand Singla, stayed away from the World Kabaddi League event.

On the first day, the organisers closed the main door of the stadium and opened four other gates by demolishing the side walls of the stadium. On the second day, rectifying their mistake, they opened the main gate as well for the entry of the viewers.

Two big TV screens were installed for the viewers present and cheer leaders dancing to the tune of songs became the centre of attraction for the audience.

During the first match on the last day today, United Singh won the match by a huge margin of 67-33 points over YoYo Singh.

The match was a one- sided affair as United Singh took the lead from the beginning and consolidated it till the end.

Popular singer Bai Amarjit also performed today. He sang his popular numbers as the spectators applauded and danced.

Bathinda, September 15
Members of the All Punjab Anganwari Mulazim Union, Bathinda district, announced that they would hold an agitation at the block level, get the memorandum of demands signed by the workers and helpers at the anganwari centres and send the same to the state and the Central governments.

The decision was taken during a meeting convened at Teachers’ Home here today. The meeting was held under the aegis of the state vice-president Chhinderpal Kaur from Bhagta. All the block and circle leaders attended the meeting.

Anganwari members announced that they would hold rallies in the blocks from October 2 to 9. They said a deputation of the workers would meet the Member of Parliament from the Bathinda parliamentary constituency, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, between October 15 and 20 to hand over the charter of demands.

They also announced that a state-level rally would be held in Bathinda in November.

District secretary of the association, Harmeet Kaur from Chak Ruldu Singh Wala, demanded that the state government should make public the report submitted by the committee, which was constituted to look into the issue of increasing the remuneration of the anganwari workers and helpers.

She also demanded that the state government should ensure that the supply of ration reaches the centres at least 300 days per year.

Talking about the block level rallies, the workers and helpers decided that while a rally would be held in Bhagta block on October 3, the next day it would be held in Sangat block.

These will be followed by rallies in Rampura and Phul blocks on October 6 and in Talwandi Sabo block on October 7.

Bathinda, September 15
In remembrance of Bharat Ratna Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya, Guru Kashi University, Talwandi Sabo, celebrated Engineers’ Day on the campus. Vice Chancellor Dr NS Malhi was the chief guest on the occasion.

The programme started with a devotional song presented by the B Tech students, followed by the lamp lighting ceremony by the dignitaries.

Floral tributes were paid to Bharat Ratna Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya. The Vice Chancellor said because of its great engineers and scientists, India was rapidly making progress from being a developing to a developed country.

GKU was providing the best platform to the student community in the field of research and development, he added. He emphasised on the latest curriculum, which meets the needs of today’s corporate world.

Students displayed projects on home automation, pre-paid energy electric meters, animated air wings, electronic voting machines, computerised street lights, water control and safety of related devices, hotel management system, Buddha International Circuit in Greater Noida, Roof Stadium Melbourne, windmill regenerative cycle, LPG refrigerator and water hydraulic JCB.

Apart from technical events, other events which gathered a huge crowd included rangoli, roadies, poster making, computer games, group discussion, quiz competition, creative writing, paper presentation, hobby collection (technical), badminton and chess competition.

Bathinda, September 15
In an attempt to mobilise and promote Hindi language concurrently with English, the Central University of Punjab, Bathinda, inaugurated the Hindi Pakhwara Programme today on its city campus.

The programme is an endeavour of the Official Language Implementation Committee formed by the university.

The chief speaker at the inaugural function was the former pro-VC of Makhan Lal Chaturvedi Rastriya Patrakarita Vishvidhalya and a former prominent journalist, Prof Ram Sharan Joshi.

In his address, Prof Joshi said due to the strong influence of Hindi cinema and media in contemporary India, the status and number of Hindi speaking people had increased considerably.

If scholars amend the Hindi dictionary and add easily-usable words of other languages, it would help in propagating Hindi, he added.

Earlier, during the inaugural welcome, Prof RG Saini said being the nation’s lingua franca, Hindi was awarded the tag of union’s official language by the Government of India on September 14, 1949.

He also complimented the Official Language Implementation Committee of the university on inaugurating the Hindi Pakhwara. — TNS

Bathinda, September 15
Bank employees and officers under the banner of All India Bank Employees Association held a demonstration at Mall road in the evening to protest against the setting up of local area small private banks.

Bank employees demanded an end to issuing of licences for starting local area small private banks and payment banks, open more branches of public sector banks, and expand and strengthen public sector banks.

Pawan Jindal, secretary, Punjab Bank Employees Federation, condemned the government’s policy of privatisation of public sector banks.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced its scheme for granting licences to corporate and industrial houses and has issued guidelines for setting up of small private banks and payment banks.

They said there was a concerted attempt to hand over our banking sector to private hands.

Once these guidelines of the RBI on small banks and payment banks are put in place, there would be mushrooming of various individuals and private agencies to start these private banks, he added.

He said in the urban and metro cities, they were trying to push in corporates to start banks and in the rural and local areas, they were trying to hand over the banking services to small private agencies. 

Bathinda, September 15
Rural veterinary and health pharmacists, who have been working from last eight years, burnt an effigy of the state government for paying them allegedly minimal salaries at the Zila Parishad office here today.

The protesters raised slogans against the Punjab Government.

While addressing the protest, leaders said they had been sitting on protest from the last nine days at Mohali. Rupinder Raja, who was sitting on a hunger strike from the last eight days, had been shifted to a government hospital by the police, he added.

They said they were protesting the government’s apathy.

All the veterinary, health pharmacists and level four employees were present during the protest. Leaders of their union also announced that they would intensify their protest if their demands were not met.

They said their members would move to Mohali tomorrow and would stay their till the government agrees to regularise all their employees.

Bathinda, September 15
On the call of MNREGA Employees Union, Punjab and e-Panchayat Employees Union, Punjab, the MNREGA and e-panchayat employees today staged a joint protest outside the office of the Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) (Development) demanding fulfillment of their demands.

The agitators raised slogans against the Punjab Government and the district administration.

While addressing the protesters, MNREGA Employees Union district president Amrik Singh said from the last many years, MNREGA employees were working on minimal salaries.

The leaders said they had not got their commission for the last six months, due to which they were left with no option but to come out and protest against the state government in all the districts across the state.

They also demanded that the government should regularise their jobs as they have been working for the last many years.

Kirar Singh said 387 employees of their department had been suspended without any notice and were stopped for marking their office attendance.

They also warned of intensifying their protest if the state government didn’t fulfil their demands.

Bathinda, September 15
Punjab Agriculture University (PAU) will organise a kisan mela on September 27 at Regional Station, Dabwali Road, Bathinda. The arrangements for the mela were reviewed by Dr Jagdish Grover, director of the Regional Station, Bathinda.

Grover said the seeds of the improved varieties of different rabi crops as well as fruit plants recommended by the PAU would be sold during the mela.