Jalandhar, November 21
As per the directions of the apex court to close all open garbage dumps, the Municipal Corporation (MC) today began the capping process of the Wariana dump.

A team of landfill experts from New Delhi visited the site in the morning and checked the feasibility of scientifically closing the dump forever.

According to sources, the dump will be phyto-capped, a process that involves placing a layer of top soil over the soil and growing dense vegetation on top of the landfill to reduce the harm of the greenhouse gases like methane and carbon dioxide produced by the decaying of the organic waste.

Gurpreet Singh Khehra, Municipal Commissioner, said the landfill consultants had done the preliminary survey and would submit their report within a month. For years, efforts were on to forever close the dump scientifically. Now, with the capping process, we are hopeful to give Wariana a much cleaner and greener look within six months, said Khehra.

Although the MC has planned to close down the dump forever, it has still not made clear as to where it will collect 500 metric tonnes of city waste till the time JITF Urban Infrastructure Limited, a solid waste management company, sets up its waste management plant at Jamsher village. 

Jalandhar, November 21
After the city police failed to trace the gang involved in several looting incidents of the past, the Police Commissioner has ordered the SHOs to round up old criminals and other notorious persons for questioning.

The SHO of every police station has been personally conducting raids for rounding up criminals. Sources said over a hundred such persons with a criminal background were rounded up by the police for questioning, still the police had no clue about the robbers.

Since Tuesday, the city has witnessed six looting incidents in which victims were also injured by the miscreants. However, the police have failed solve even a single incident.

The main suspects in all looting incidents are white Swift car-borne miscreants and the police are checking every such car to trace the accused. Nakas have also been installed in inner localities of the city. Suspected hideouts of criminals are being raided by the police.

Notably, after the recent such incidents, senior police officials, including Police Commissioner, DCP, ADCPs and other level officers, have been camping at the CIA staff where old criminals are being questioned to get leads.

Jalandhar, November 21
While last year the district administration was busy making claims that the district will be smoke-free by January 26, 2014, a meeting today has served as a perfect replay of the same.

The district administration this time has declared that the district will be “tobacco-free” by January 2015. While one would feel both mean more or less the same, the trigger for the declaration this time is the number of complaints being received from various educational institutes which say that their students are getting spoilt and peace outside their institutions is disrupted due to the running of the kiosks which sell tobacco products.

Deputy Commissioner KK Yadav has asked various departments in the district to ensure the removal of all kiosks selling tobacco within 100 yards of educational and religious institutions. The DC has asked his team of officials to make the district smoke-free from January 26, 2015.

Despite the announcement of fierce challaning drives, in the past few months, precious little has been done in the name of eradication of the use of tobacco products in the district. Areas where kiosks have particularly created trouble include Ladowali Road, Garha Road, beneath the DAV College over bridge, Railway Road, among others.

DC KK Yadav said January 26 has been declared tobacco-free and the use of cigarettes in the public has been banned.

The DC has also issued challan books to district officers, medical officers to challan those smoking in the public. While exactly the same drive with similar enthusiasm had been started in the district various times in previous few years, the same had fizzled out due to inaction.

When asked what was different in this year’s drive compared to the previous ones, Yadav said, “We do know that a plan to declare the district smoke-free has already been in place. This time the enforcement of rules and monitoring of the monthly challaning reports shall be pursued strictly. We have also made nodal officers aware of the situation and departmental reviews of challans conducted and action initiated in this regard will be made per month. In the previous times, somewhere down the line, monitoring took the backseat, but this time strong monitoring will be done. The police department has also been asked to conduct challans.”

The DC also said that nodal officers had been constituted across the district to ensure the proper implementation of the plans. Meanwhile, a comprehensive review of the challaning done during the year 2014 (including the months of November) will be submitted to the DC on December 5.

The issue of the removal of the kiosks near district educational institutions is a very serious and sensitive one. At many places, despite former removal, kiosks have found their way back within 100 yards of educational institutions. At others, it is alleged that illegal intoxicants were being sold under the garb of merely tobacco products. Places near these kiosks have become a hotbed for student conflicts and acts of violence at some institutes as well.

Notably, the Jalandhar Deputy Commissioner, along with the DC, Mansa, is also a state panel for the implementation of COPTA (Cigarette and other Tobacco Products Act).

Jalandhar, November 21
Annoyed over the recent government decisions pertaining to the regularisation of industrial plots, property tax on commercial buildings and enhancement in licence fee, the Industrial and Traders Joint Action Committee today condemned government for failing to address their genuine issues.

Committee representatives Ravinder Dhir, Gursharan Singh and Raj Kumar Sharma, along with many traders, submitted a memorandum of demands to the Deputy Commissioner.

Committee members, while talking about the property tax and house tax issues, said they held many agitations, spearheaded by the action committee, before the Lok Sabha elections which compelled the Finance Minister to announce publicly that this tax would be withdrawn after the Lok Sabha elections.

Even after the Lok Sabha elections, Ashok Gupta, Principal Secretary, Local Bodies, held various meetings with industrialists wherein he assured them that their views and suggestions would be taken care of. No one likes to be treated as a tenant in his own house, shop or factory by paying such taxes.

Our immediate concern is regarding the way administration is collecting this tax. Coercion can never be welcomed. The ceiling of commercial building on which property tax is not paid is an example of coercion and it should be stopped immediately, industrialists alleged.

Traders suggested that the government should come up with a one-time settlement scheme for property tax and house tax.

On the regularisation of the industrial zones, traders said it was nearly 30 years ago that the government had persuaded the industry owners to move outside the city into these industrial zones and assured them to give various incentives.

“The industrial units set up in these industrial zones are making payment of all the corporation taxes like house tax, corporation tax, sewerage and water bill, octroi on electricity. Now all of a sudden, the state government has declared them as irregular colonies and have asked them to get these regularised by paying the regularisation fee which is a very cruel blow on these people,” traders further alleged.

Traders requested in the memorandum that the industrial zones should be excluded from the purview of the irregular colonies.

Industrialists also drew the attention of the government towards the latest amendments made by the government regarding enhancement in the factory licence fee.

Jalandhar, November 21
Expressing resentment over the alleged supply of poor quality wheat under the “atta dal” scheme, members of the Dynamic Group of Congress councillors today gave a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner here today.

Councillors Harsimranjit Singh Banti, Sushil Rinku and Bal Krishan Bali said black wheat had been supplied to the blue card holders in ward No. 7 during distribution held by the Food and Civil Supplies Department on November 18 in the area. They alleged that while the quality of wheat sent by the department was okay, a food inspector of the area had played truant with the poor beneficiaries.

DC KK Yadav accepted the memorandum of the councillors and promised to inquire into the matter. 

Phagwara, November 21
First Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) in the state would soon be set up in Kapurthala. This was announced by the Punjab Education Minister, Daljeet Singh Cheema, while addressing students in the 42th convocation function of local Kamla Nehru College For Women here on Thursday.

He said the state government would not shut down associate schools and the details about their infrastructure, number of teachers and students had been sought from these schools to finalise a policy.

“The state government is planning to merge government primary schools falling within one km distance from to ensure proper utilisation of teachers to improve the quality of education,” said Cheema.

He expressed concern on the decreasing number of the students of the state in Civil Services and Defence.

Four hundred and eighty degrees were conferred at the function.

The minister announced a grant amounting to Rs five lakh to the college from his discretionary funds. He said only four per cent students from the rural areas could be appeared at the university-level exams.

College Chairman Inder Sardana and Principal Kiran Walia also addressed the function. ADC Iqbal Singh Sandhu, SDM Keshav Hingonia and District Education Officer Roop Lal were also present on the occasion.

Jalandhar, November 21
BJP spokesperson Dewan Amit Arora today issued a press release warning the alliance partner, SAD, against expressing any opposition to the RSS shakhas currently underway in Punjab villages.

Arora was reacting to the statements issued by Akal Takht Jathedar Gurbachan Singh, former SGPC chief and SAD minister Bibi Jagir Kaur in a section of the media.

He said SAD and Congress leaders, who are reacting against the shakhas, must tell as to why the caste division was still so pronounced in villages, unlike the cities.

“The practice of untouchability, having separate religious places for jatts and dalits and even separate cremation grounds for the people from the two communities were uncalled for. The RSS aims to wipe out all such differences,” added Arora.

The jathedar, through media reports, had said the conduct of such programmes and display of weapons in village could create a communal divide and promote orthodox opinion.

The RSS had yesterday issued a media release wherein Brig Jagdish Gagneja of the Sangh mentioned that the Sangh had developed a pan-India network going to every block and village since the last 90 years.

It also read, “The RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and chief of Radha Soami Dera Baba Gurvinder Singh met at Nagpur and share cordial ties. On being informed that Dr Bhagwat is on a visit to Mansa for a programme, Baba Gurvinder Singh went to meet him. The meeting was a private affair”. 

Jalandhar, November 21
A 17-year-old maid was found dead under mysterious circumstances at the Urban Estate locality here today.

The deceased was identified as Vandana. She was working as a domestic help at a shoe showroom owner’s house. Her father Sehdev is a washerman.

Today, the house owner found her lying dead at the servant quarters.

Sources said the girl’s father had suspected foul play behind her death and levelled allegation against the house owner.

The police said the body had been sent for postmortem which would clear the exact cause of her death. 

Jalandhar, November 21
A meeting of the programme officers and SMOs was held at the Civil Surgeon’s office here today.

Addressing the meeting, Civil Surgeon, Dr RL Bassan said hepatitis B and hepatitis C patients would be provided with free diagnosis and treatment within a few months.

“A proposal has been moved, which shall be implemented within a few months. Patients will be tied up with Lal Path Labs and SRL. Patients will be provided medicines on subsidised rates (one-third) at the Jan Aushadhi Store at the hospital and will get a unique ID for the tests,” said Bassan.

Health officials were also directed to spread awareness about various health schemes in time. Doctors were told to use flax boards to spread awareness regarding schemes like 104 medical helpline and free treatment for girls up to 5 years of age.

Other issues discussed during the meeting were free treatment for girls up to 5 years of age, cleanliness, punctuality medical machinery instruments, labour room stock among others.

Dr Harpreet Kaur Maan, District Vaccination Officer, Dr Gurmeet Kaur Duggal District Family Welfare Officer and Dr Harpal Kaur Maan were also present on the occasion.

Jalandhar, November 21
Inspector General(IG), BSF, Punjab Frontier, today delivered a lecture on ‘Internal Security of India, a Concern for All’ at Lovely Professional University(LPU). H R Singla, Director General of LPU welcomed him and appreciated the role played by the BSF in securing the borders and ensuring safety of people from both internal and external threats.

During the lecture, the IG discussed a wide range of topics including aspects of organised crime, cyber crime, communalism, border management, caste and ethnic tensions, regionalism, interstate disputes and coastal security. Students asked questions about the internal and external security challenges being faced by the country, their implications and remedial measures, which were clarified by the IG . Besides, a display of weapons and activities including demonstration, documentary on the BSF, photo gallery to generate awareness among students about the BSF were also organised. — TNS

Jalandhar, November 21
The city police today arrested Aman (22) for sodomising a four-year-old child. He was working at the shop of victim’s father.

Daljjit Singh, father of the child, told the police that the matter came to light when his child’s health deteriorated last evening and he was rushed to the hospital, where the child named Aman for sodomising him.

When the police was looking for the accused, he hid himself in the narrow streets. Women of the locality caught the accused and handed him over to the police.

A case has been registered.

Phagwara, November 21
On the complaint of Omia, a resident of Anantnag, (Jammu and Kashmir), a BBA student of Lovely Professional University the Sadar Police have registered a case under Sections 420 and 380 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against an unknown person on the charges of stealing her ATM card and withdrawing cash amount to Rs one lakh.

The victim, in a complaint, said she had ATM of her mother and its password was saved in her mobile.

She suspected that somebody had withdrawn the money in four installments from the account.

She said though the messages of withdrawing the amount were being sent by the concerned bank on the mobile of her mother, but could not be received in Kashmir due to the natural calamity.

The police have been investigating the matter.

Phagwara, November 21
Cable measuring 3576 metres in 219 pieces was stolen from the warehouse of Videocon near Khajurala.

On the complaint of Arvinder Singh, senior executive, the Sadar Police have registered a case under Sections 457 and 380 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The Police have been investigating the matter.

Phagwara, November 21
A factory was burgled on Phagwara-Dosanjh Kalan Road in Ekta Enclave here last night. The burglars entered the factory after breaking the locks open.

The miscreants decamped with valuable goods worth more than Rs four lakh.

The police have registered a case in this regard.