Tuesday, September 28, 1999
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P U N J A B | |
Tuesday, September 28, 1999 |
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Custodial
death in Bathinda Rs 2.67 cr Central excise evasion |
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Rape
victim’s mother demands CBI probe
A mortuary for vehicles Mohali biotech centre in 2000 Dharna staged by PNB officers PCMS doctors start stir Tohra has ‘aided’
Congress DGP: Laden training terrorists SHSAD caution on amendments Dugri residents rise against
intoxicants Dowry death case against husband Car thieves’ gang busted Bodh Raj Bali meets Badal |
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Custodial death in Bathinda BATHINDA, Sept 27 — Even as the dust raised by the custodial death of Devinder Singh of Hasanpur village in Ropar on September 18 is yet to settle down, another person, Jagdish Rai Jain (52) of Paras Ram locality, died in a private hospital allegedly following continuous harassment by the in-charge of the Canal Colony police post and other police personnel at the behest of certain businessmen. A case against Rajinder Kumar, in-charge of Canal Colony police post here, Mukhtiar Singh, Constable, Subhash Chander, Heera Lal, Raj Kumar (all businessmen) and Radhe Sham, an Independent candidate from this parliamentary seat in the recently held Lok Sabha elections under Sections 306, 148 and 149 of the IPC has been registered in the city kotwali today for causing the death of Jain. According to the FIR, Jain was taken to the police chowki yesterday by Constable Mukhtiar Singh and others in the evening and he was threatened by the two businessman sitting there in the presence of police personnel. Jain complained of chest pain and his son, Mr Ved Prakash, who reached there after some time, took his father to a private hospital where he (Jain) collapsed and subsequently died within no time. In the FIR, Mr Ved Prakash has alleged his father was continuously harassed by the policemen at the behest of Subash Chander and Heera Lal both brick-kiln owners, over some money dispute regarding payment of bricks for the past three months. He added that about a month ago his father was taken into the Canal Colony police outpost where he was threatened by the chowki in-charge, Mr Rajinder Kumar, that if he did not pay the money to Subash Chander and Heera Lal he would be put behind bars. The matter was settled verbally when his father agreed to pay Rs 800 per month to make payment of the entire amount. After 10 days, Raj Kumar, a contractor residing in Paras Ram locality came to his house and demanded Rs 1,000 for putting a stop to harassment by the police. The amount was paid to him. After five days, Raj Kumar again came to his house and took Rs 500 for the same purpose, he said. Mr Ved Prakash alleged that yesterday his father was taken to the police chowki where he was threatened by Heera Lal and Radhe Sham. His father who had been facing continuous harassment from policemen and the businessmen, complained of chest pain and was immediately shifted to a private hospital where he died. Mr Dinesh Sharma, SHO,
of Kotwali, said that after a post-mortem examination
conducted by a board of doctors the body had been handed
over to the family members of the deceased. He added that
police parties had been despatched to nab the culprits. |
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Rs 2.67 cr Central excise
evasion CHANDIGARH, Sept 28 — Three cases of evasion of Central excise worth Rs 2.67 crore have been detected by the officers of the Central Excise Commissionerate, Chandigarh-II, here. According to Mr Inder Raj Soni, Commissioner, Chandigarh Commissionerate-II, two of the drug manufacturing units at Rail Majra and Toansa in Nawanshahr district brought defective goods rejected by the buyers and cleared those without paying Central excise duty on those. These goods were marketed after rectifying the defects, considered manufacturing by the officials. According to law, Central excise duty should have been paid by the industrial units. In the third case, Mr Inder Raj Soni said a leading steel wire unit of Hoshiarpur had wrongly classified "flux material coated steel welding wire" as copper coated steel wire and paid Central excise duty at a lower rate. Commissionerate officials visited the drug manufacturing units and resumed their voluminous records. Scrutiny of these records revealed the evasion of excise duty of Rs 1.67 crore.The units had also installed chilling plants in their factories without paying Central excise duty of Rs 35 lakh. Mr Soni said the audit officers of the Commissionerate visited the steel wire manufacturing unit at Hoshiarpur and detected the fraud of wrong classification of goods. The unit had cleared
goods worth Rs 26.18 crore from April,1994, onwards, thus
evading the Central excise duty of Rs one core. Cases for
the evasion of Central excise duty have been registered
against these units under the Central Excise law, Mr Soni
added. |
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Rape victim’s mother
demands CBI probe BATHINDA, Sept 27 — After having failed to get justice from the local investigating and prosecuting agencies, Manjeet Kaur, mother of a teenaged Dalit girl who was allegedly raped by Malkit Singh, nambardar of Killinihalsinghwala village, has appealed to the President and the Prime Minister to order a CBI probe into the matter. Malkit Singh who was booked under Section 354, 374, 376 of the IPC and Section 3 of the Prevention of Atrocities on Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Act-1969 a few months ago, got bail from a court on September 22 when the police presented the challan under Section 354 only after getting it checked from the District Attorney. Manjeet Kaur in her application made to the President, the Prime Minister, the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Commission, the Chief Minister, the DGP, Punjab, the Director, Litigation and Prosecution, Punjab, and the SSP alleged that investigations were not done properly by the investigating agency. She added that even the offence made out under Section 3 of the Prevention of Atrocities on Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Act was also deleted from the challan presented in the court by the police allegedly to help the accused. She pointed out that offence made out under Section 374 and 376 were deleted by the investigating agency on the basis of a chemical examination of the victim in which it was reported that there was no spermatozoa in vaginal swap and that only blood was found in the stains on her "salwar" and "kameej". She added that, however, in a rape of similar nature registered in Rama Mandi police station on February 12, 1999, the police investigating agency presented the challan under Section 376 though no spermatozoa or blood was found on the person of the prosecutrix. She said that from the very beginning she had been apprehending that the police flout every rule to hush up the case. She had expressed her apprehension in the court also. She demanded that the
challan should be amended again and the accused should be
booked under provisions of the child labour Act, the
bonded labour Act and other relevant acts apart from
Section 376, 374 of the IPC and section of Prevention of
Atrocities on Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Act
and prosecution should be done by the CBI. She also
sought security on the basis of apprehension that the
accused had come out on bail and was threatening to kill
her family members. |
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Paddy production to cross 100
lakh MT LUDHIANA, September 27: Punjab is set to cross a record 100-lakh-MT/mark in paddy production and procurement this year. Although the Punjab government has estimated the paddy production to be of the order of 110 lakh MT this year, official procurement agencies, including the FCI and private millers put the production to be around 100 lakh MT’s. This difference in the figures regarding the production estimates is being attributed to the different methods used to compute figures. "We are relying on the feedback received from our district managers in the field", says Mr D.P.Reddy, Senior Regional Manager of the FCI, Punjab. Paddy production and procurement in Punjab was 94.71 lakh MT in 1998-99 and 98.40 lakh MT in 1997-98. The FCI and other procurement agencies entered the market within a day of the official announcement regarding procurement operations w.e.f. September 16. The rate of paddy arrivals and procurement this year is much higher than what it was during the same period last year. The daily arrivals now averaged in excess of 3 lakh MT as against only about 48,000 MT last year. So far, 17.54 lakh MT of paddy has arrived in the mandis of Punjab this year as against only 9.94 lakh MT during the same period last year. The government agencies have procured 7.85 lakh MT this year as against 2.04 lakh MT during the same period last year. Private millers have purchased against 9.68 lakh MT so far against 7.90 lakh MT during the same period last year. FCI has so far purchased 1.65 lakh MT, Food and Supplies Department 1.13 lakh MT, Markfed 1.67 lakh MT, Punsup 1.67 lakh MT, Punjab Warehousing Corporation 1.49 lakh MT, Punjab Agro Industries Corporation 27,786 MT. Mr Reddy,who undertook a series of extensive tours of the Punjab mandis including those in Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Kapurthala, Amritsar, Ferozepur, Faridkot and Sangrur during the last one week, one of them on Saturday with the Union Minister for Food, Mr Surjit Singh Barnala, told TNS here today that the quality of paddy coming the mandis this year was much better than what arrived in the mandis last year. "The high moisture content which was a major problem last year is not a problem this year. This is mainly because of the dry weather which has prevailed during the past few weeks." There is no distress sale of paddy anywhere in the state after the entry of official agencies in the market. "The distress sale, if any, might have taken place before the entry of the official agencies", Mr Reddy said. A blight-type disease has been noticed in the paddy brought to the mandis in certain area of Moga, Amritsar and Ferozepur. Another problem noticed is the presence of unripe paddy in matured paddy brought to the mandis. This is being attributed to the seeds of early varieties having been mixed with those maturing late. They are all being harvested together with the help of combine harvesters and brought to the mandis. In a certain areas, a
change in the colour of the grain has been noticed. Mr
Reddy said he had asked the FCI staff not to reject such
paddy unless it had been properly analysed. |
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Farmers being fleeced: BKU MOGA, Sept 27 — Members of the Bharti Kisan Union (BKU) from all over Punjab today expressed concern at the heavy losses caused to farmers at various grain markets in Punjab not only due to unnecessary delay in making purchases of paddy by the government but also weighing underweight paddy bags and allegedly bribing at the rate of Rs 2 Rs 5 per bag by representatives of government procuring agencies while making purchases. Talking to mediapersons here today, the former president of the Punjab unit of the BKU, Mr Kuldip Singh Sandhu, the president of the Sangharsh Samiti, Punjab, Mr Balwant Singh Brar, and others said at several markets farmers were forced to sell their produce between Rs 420 and Rs 450 per quintal against the price fixed by the government at Rs 520 a quintal to the traders and also rice millers. They added the procurement of paddy by the agencies was being unnecessarily delayed for want of bribe money from them. They further said that even the paddy containing 23 per cent moisture was purchased by the agencies against the specifications of 18 per cent if these representatives were bribed in accordance with their demands. They said that farmers who had suffered losses amounting to crores of rupees during last year due to natural calamities were again put to great loss due to tactics used by representatives of government procuring agencies while making purchase and also low price paid to them by the millers. They said that both the millers and also representatives of agencies were fleecing the innocent farmers and the government had failed on all fronts. They urged the government to ensure speedy procurement of paddy and save the farmers from being harassed due to low price paid to them by millers and traders and also due to inclement weather conditions. The farmers, they said,
had been waiting for paddy to be purchased. They had
brought it during the first week of this month and were
spending hundreds of rupees almost daily on food and
other requirements while sitting idle in these grain
markets. |
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Speed up paddy purchase:
minister AMRITSAR, Sept 27 — The Punjab Minister for Agriculture, Mr Gurdev Singh Badal, has asked government procuring agencies to speed up the purchase of paddy in mandis on a war-footing as some political parties are desperately trying to make it a political issue for vested interests and exploiting the sentiments of farmers. Presiding over a meeting of officials of government procuring agencies to review the purchase of paddy in the district here on Saturday, Mr Badal asked them to personally monitor the paddy arrivals daily besides taking stock of lifting of stocks from the mandis and release of payments to farmers. As compared to last
year's corresponding paddy procurement of 2,72,842 metric
tonnes and government agencies share of 36,800 tonnes,
3,02,780 metric tonnes of paddy have been procured by
September 25 out of which the government agencies have
purchased 66,030 tonnes. |
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Need to identify with new
culture: Duggal PATIALA, Sept 27 — Renowned writer and Rajya Sabha member Kartar Singh Duggal today said the Punjabis needed to identify and establish themselves in the present culture worldwide. He was delivering the keynote address at the Punjabi Sahit Sammelan organised under the multi-faculty millennium series being organised by Punjabi University here. While elaborating on the challenges of the 21st century, Duggal said there was a need to join Punjabi families in cultural and literary bonds within and outside India. He said coping with the scientific and technological progress in the context of globalisaton, industrialisation or liberalisation without neglecting Punjabi culture, was also a big challenge. In his Presidential address the Vice-Chancellor, Dr Jasbir Singh Ahluwalia, said the Punjabi culture, "which was once geo-historic ethnic in character has shrunk into a geo-religious entity identified with the Sikh community." He said the contemporary Punjabi sensibility " did not give the impression that it was an inheritor of the Indus Valley, Rigvedic, Buddhist and Islamic civilisation." Dr Ahulwalia said the canvas of Punjabi culture should not be treated as co-terminus with the territorial limits and political divisions, and it should transcend physical and political boundaries. He said in this context the information technology had immense potential for the preservation and projection of local and regional culture. While welcoming the chief guest and delegates Dr Kulwant Singh Grewal, Head of the Punjabi Language Development Department, said this was the first seminar in the millennium series over 500 scholars from all over the country will attend the millennium series. Dr Jasvinder Singh, Head, Punjabi Department, while introducing the theme and objective of the seminar said the main objective of the Punjabi Sahit Sammelan was to focus attention on the need for cultural renewal in the country that would take our country to the next century with attitudinal changes in tune with new technological society of the coming century. Earlier Dr Ahluwalia
inaugurated the university’s website on Internet.
The web site will have daily inputs from all departments
of the university in the form of both research and
informative articles relating to their respective
domains. He said the aim of the web site was not only
encourage research activities in the university but also
to inculcate a sense of creative competitiveness. |
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A mortuary for vehicles PATIALA, Sept 26 — The ill-maintained lawns of the senior girl’s hostel, Government Medical College here are fast developing into a veritable mortuary of the institution’s non-functionable vehicles. The vehicles on the one hand reveal the pitiable condition of the finances of the state government, which could not allot funds for carrying out minor repairs, what to talk of buying new ones, and on the other they cry for certain government policies gone awry and abandoned mid-way. As many as six heavy vehicles could be seen parked in a neat queue beginning from the entrance door of the hostel and ending at its backyard. Incidentally, the position of a vehicle in the queue is in consonance with its condition. In the front are parked those vehicles which are relatively in a better state. As one moves towards the end of the queue, the condition of the vehicles is in a descending order. The front two mini buses present a ragged appearance, and have long ago lost the time-frame of their durability, yet the institution is using them for transportation purposes of students. These mini buses, sources reveal, were brought before 1980. They are somehow running in spite of needing much repairs. The buses take students of the medical college to several places for training and most of the time they breakdown midway. Sources disclosed that one of the tyres of a bus had worn out completely but the government had no money to replace it. Hence it is running on a borrowed tyre. Sources said actually the two buses deserve a place amid vehicles at the rear of the queue which have been grounded permanently. Because of lack of funds the premier health institution of the region is working without proper transport facilities. The most startling case is of three mobile hospital vans parked at the rear. They are standing here ‘immobile’ since 1982 after being used for almost two years. The hospital vans were bought during the tenure of Raj Narain, who was the Union Health Minister of the Janata Dal Government (1977-1980). The health minister had initiated an ambitious scheme of providing mobile health service to the otherwise ‘neglected’ rural areas of the region. The mobile vans plied for two years and then were grounded. Sources said one reason was the vans were purchased from Bedford Company of England and no spareparts were available in India. Second, the successive governments did not show much interest in continuing with the scheme, hence the vans were grounded. The vans seemed to have had immense utility. It had been used as a cabin for OPD to take care of minor surgery. It had also different chambers for ENT and dental patients. There was also a room for routine health check-up camps. Dr S.S. Sidhu, Principal, Government Medical College, said the vans had to be grounded as they developed snags while running in remote rural areas. The union government provided the best available mobile hospitals but no thought was given on the problem of procuring spareparts if the vans developed some problem. He said the collective cost of the three vans was more than Rs 50 lakh. Another mini bus parked in the centre of the queue was bought in the eighties under a scheme for eye health check-up. It also reportedly developed some fault and has been grounded. The principal said
certain hospital staff had been asked to keep vigil on
the condemned vehicles, which incidentally await orders
of being declared condemned and sold off. |
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Mohali biotech centre in 2000 CHANDIGARH, Sept 27 — The Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, today announced the establishment of a Rs 45 crore Centre of Excellence for Biotechnology in Mohali. The centre would be supported by the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India. It would start functioning during the current financial year and act as a nodal point for coordination on basic and fundamental research in agriculture, health care and environment. Addressing the 7th annual general meeting of the Council, the Chief Minister assured government agencies would set apart one per cent of their development budget for the application of science and technology. He appreciated the setting up of a patent information centre (PIC) in the Council with the help of Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council to cater to patenting needs of innovators and entrepreneurs. The Principal Secretary, Science Technology and Environment, Mr Rajan Kashyap, said the council would make commercial use of its research in the state. All the four divisions of the Council, namely; biotechnology, popularisation of science, environment, and building construction and material technology, have already identified the technologies which have the potential of revenue generation. New projects would be developed with an eye on their marketability. By the end of December next, the Council would adopt information technology and develop its own web office to create public interface on technologies developed by the Council and link the Council with the Information Super Highway. The Chief Secretary, Mr R.S. Mann welcomed the initiatives of the Council in the transfer of technology to farmers in vermi-composting, livestock feed and self-employment for rural women. The Executive Director,
Mr N.S. Tiwana, said the Council had prepared the draft
Bill for banning use and manufacture of polythene
carrybags in the state. |
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Dharna staged by PNB officers JALANDHAR, Sept 27 — On a call given by the All-India PNB Officers Association, a day-long dharna was held in front of the regional office here by all executive members of the district zone on protest against the unilateral amendment in the promotion policy without consulting representatives of the association. After the dharna, an impressive demonstration was held which was attended by all officers. They were shouting slogans against the Chairman and General Manager (Personnel) and were demanding participation of the officers in a sub-committee formed for amendment in the promotion policy. Mr K.R. Jain, zonal secretary, Mr S.N. Kala, organising secretary, and Mr K.C. Dilvar, district secretary, AIBOC, respectively, addressed the members. Mr Jain said there would
be a complete strike of PNB officers all over India on
October 4. |
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PCMS doctors start stir PATIALA, Sept 27 — The PCMS doctors all over the state today launched the first phase of their agitation by holding protest meetings and rallies at various district and tehsil headquarters and resolved to participate in the protest dharna to be staged by the PCMS Association, Punjab, on September 30 in Chandigarh. The General Secretary of the association Dr B.C. Sharma said the PCMS doctors were agitated over the decision of the state government to put doctors and para medical staff virtually under the thumb of village panchayats. He said the doctors felt the government was diverting the attention of the people from real issues like the ailing health services, shortage of essential and common drugs in government institutions and the faulty purchase policy of the government. Dr Sharma alleged that
the government had so far failed to implement even the
recommendations of the Punjab Pay Commission like
time-scale promotions, the revision of conveyance
allowance, academic allowance and ESI allowance. Rather,
the reverse trend of imposing cuts had been started by
stopping house rent allowance on the non-practising
allowance and withdrawing the facility of rent-free
accommodation for doctors. |
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Tohra has ‘aided’
Congress PATIALA, Sept 27 — The Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, has said the All-India Shiromani Akali Dal (AISAD), president, Mr Gurcharan Singh Tohra, had indirectly helped the Congress in the just concluded Lok Sabha elections in the state by putting up candidates of his faction. Addressing a public meeting at Namadan village near Samana yesterday, the Chief Minister said Mr Tohra had tried to disintegrate the Akali Dal by raising petty issues. He said the election results would themselves be a barometer of the former SGPC chief’s popularity and would decide his political fate in the state. The Chief Minister was hopeful that the Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies would improve their position in the Lok Sabha because of a wave in the favour of Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee in the country. He said Mr Vajpayee would be able to provide a stable government to the country. He said the BJP had always supported the cause of Punjab and its people whereas the Congress party had played an anti-Punjab role. The Chief Minister was at Namadan to lay the foundation stone of a hospital to be constructed by Sant Hardev Singh Loolahanwala. After laying the foundation stone, he exhorted social and religious organisations to come forward to help the state government in setting up schools and hospitals by voluntary efforts. Others who also spoke on
this occasion included Capt Kanwaljit Singh, Finance and
Planning Minister, Sant Hardev Singh, Member, Shiromani
Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, Mr Ajaib Singh
Mukhmailpur, MLA, Ghanour, Jathedar Joginder Singh
Punjrath, member, SGPC, Jathedar Rattan Singh Alhora and
Mr Surjit Singh Rakhra. |
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DGP: Laden training
terrorists GURDASPUR, Sept 27 — Mr Sarabjit Singh, Director-General of Punjab Police, while talking to newspersons here today said aiding and abetting of terrorism in Punjab by the ISI was limited to targeting VVIPs only. He ruled out the revival of terrorism in the state in view of the dark days seen by Punjabis at the hands of terrorists. Mr Sarabjit Singh said there was no room for complacency with regard to terrorism in Punjab. He said Punjabis along with Afganis, Kashmiris, Chechen and Syrian terrorists were being trained by Osama bin Laden in camps being run in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The DGP said the state police was fully alert about thwarting the nefarious designs of Pakistan. Moreover, the ISI despite pressurising Pakistan-based Punjabi terrorists to reactivate their old contacts had failed to make any headway. He said the Punjab Police this year has seized 1.25 quintals of RDX and arrested two human bombs, Amrit Singh and Manjit Singh, engaged for target killing during the Lok Sabha poll. He said the ISI was trying to woo illegal Punjabi immigrants in Germany, Holland, Canada and the USA to infiltrate into Punjab and revive terrorism. The Indo-Pak border from Samba in Jammu and Kashmir to Simple BSF post in Pathankot in Punjab, fencing gaps in Punjab, Nepal, Gujarat and Rajasthan were being targeted by the ISI for infiltration. The DGP said the Punjab Police of border districts adjoining Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana had monthly meetings at the SSP level to exchange vital information regarding crime. Such information had paid rich dividends in the prevention of trans-border crime in the state. He said police officials responsible for custodial deaths would be dealt with severely. He informed that all police officials involved in recent custodial deaths at Ropar and Taran Taran had been arrested. Earlier, the DGP inaugurated the new building of the local police station which has been built at a cost of Rs 13 lakh. Addressing policemen on the occasion, he exhorted police officials to develop rapport with the public and dispose of people’s grievances promptly. Later, Mr Sarabjit Singh
inaugurated new buildings of police stations at Sri
Hargobindpur, Qadian and Kalanaur. |
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SHSAD caution on amendments CHANDIGARH, Sept 27 — Mr G.S. Grewal, Chairman of the advisory council of the Sarb Hind Shiromani Akali Dal, in a statement issued here today said the amendments proposed in the Sikh Gurdwara Act, 1925, go contrary to "Rehat Maryada" and require deep and thorough analysis. Mr Grewal said the advisory council held its meeting here today to discuss the proposed amendments in the Act. Among those who attended the meeting were Mr Balwant Singh Jandu, Mr Kundan Singh Nagra, Mr Surjit Singh Sood and Mr Charanjit Singh Lamba. All Sikh religious
institutions should be taken into confidence before any
steps were taken on these proposals, he said. |
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Dugri residents rise against
intoxicants LUDHIANA, Sept 27 — Hundreds of students, youngsters and residents of urban estate, Dugri, today look part in an awareness march against the use of intoxicants. They were demanding curbs on the sale of gutaka, Zarda, paan-supari, tobacco, liquor and ban on smoking in public places in the state. The march was flagged off by Dr Sukhdev Singh, former Vice-Chancellor of Punjab Agriculture University. The march was led by Mr Ramesh Garg, President of Durga Mandir, Mr Sardool Singh, President of gurdwara Phase-I, Mrs Harpreet Kaur, Rajinder Kaur councillors and Mr Gurmit Singh, Chief Secretary of the Guru Gobind Singh Study Circle. Students from over 15 schools of Dugri took part in the march and carried placards demanding regulation of sale of the intoxicants. Over 2,000 students and youngsters took a pledge not to use these intoxicants and also to make their schools and colonies free of these evils. Residents expressed
serious concern over increase in the use of intoxicants
in Dugri and adjoining areas where even teenagers and
children were getting addicted to these products as these
were available easily. A number of vends selling these
items have come up recently in the locality. |
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Dowry death case against
husband PATIALA, Sept 27 — The local police has registered a dowry death case against the husband and mother-in-law of a 26-year-old woman who allegedly died as a result of poisoning at Rajindra Hospital here last evening. A case has been registered at the Civil Lines police station against Narinder Singh and Pal Kaur, husband and mother-in-law of Baljit Kaur, for allegedly poisoning her to death. Associate Professor O.P. Aggarwal of the hospital said an autopsy had been conducted and the cause of death identified as poisoning. According to Mr Bhajan Singh, Baljit’s father, his daughter was poisoned because he could not meet the dowry demands put forward by her in-laws. He said he had received a phone call yesterday from his son-in-law saying that his daughter had been admitted into the emergency wing of Rajindra Hospital. He said when he reached the hospital from Bathinda, where he resides, his daughter had already expired. Bhajan Singh alleged the
reason behind poisoning his daughter was his failure in
not giving Rs 70,000 as demanded by his son-in-law for
meeting a bank loan. He alleged his daughter was harassed
earlier also for bringing insufficient dowry. |
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Car thieves’ gang
busted LUDHIANA, Sept 27 — The local police claims to have busted an inter-state gang of car thieves and recovered six stolen vehicles. A case has been registered against four members of the gang. Two of them have already been arrested. The vehicles recovered from them included one Esteem car, four Maruti 800s and one jeep. The modus operandi of the gang was to steal vehicles in Delhi and Ludhiana by making use of duplicate keys and fake registration papers and sell them through the car bazaar at Ludhiana. Interrogation has
revealed that Bhawanjit Singh was involved in preparation
of false registration papers of some of these stolen
vehicles. |
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Bodh Raj Bali meets Badal CHANDIGARH, Sept 27 — The Minister of Industries and Commerce of Jammu and Kashmir, Mr Bodh Raj Bali, called on the Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, here today. The two agreed to set up
joint committees at ministers' and senior officers' level
to explore areas of collaboration in tourism and trade. |
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Quality control officials CHANDIGARH, Sept 27 — The Central Government has decided to depute senior quality control officials to various procurement centres in Punjab to supervise the procurement operations. A spokesman for the FCI
said here today that the officials from Delhi would check
the quality of paddy procured by the FCI and the state
agencies. |
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1 held for having fake
notes ROPAR, Sept 27 — The local police has arrested Darshan Singh of Boonga Sahib village in this district and seized four 500-rupee fake currency notes from him. According to the police, Darshan Singh was arrested today when he gave a fake 500-rupee currency note to a rehri owner after buying eatables from him in the market here. A case has been
registered against him under Sections 489-B and 489-C of
the IPC. The police has also arrested Joginder Pal and
Avtar Kumar of this town for committing a burglary in a
karyana shop at Bela Chowk here. It has also recovered
goods worth Rs 25,000 from them. |
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Follow Haryana, say traders MOGA, Sept 27 — Businessmen, Industrialists and shopkeepers here urged the Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, today to follow in the foot steps of the Haryana Government and abolish octroi and double the old age pension with immediate effect. While speaking to media persons here today a deputation of industrialists led by Mr Kulwant Singh said this was part of the SAD-BJP government’s election manifesto and now it was time for the parties to keep the promise. They said in spite of Mr Badal’s assurances neither farmers’ interests had been safeguarded nor compensations had been given to the farmers, who had suffered heavy losses during the past three years. They alleged that
several aged, disabled, mentally retarded and other
persons had not been given their monthly pensions as they
were not able to bribe the officials of the department
concern. They also demanded a probe into this so that
suitable action could be taken against the officials
allegedly involved. |
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Mob ransacks hospital ward JALANDHAR, Sept 27 (UNI) — An angry mob agitated over the death of a youth in a private hospital to which he was informally referred to by a doctor of the civil hospital, ransacked the trauma ward of the government hospital before dawn today when the emergency medical officer (EMO) on duty declined to write medico-legal report of the case, saying the patient had died outside the hospital. When staff in the trauma ward fled fearing the fury of the mob. Which had disconnected the telephone. The mob headed towards the residence of senior doctor Surinder Kaur. The mob had an angry exchange with Dr Surinder Kaur and her husband Dr Balbir Singh. Agitated over the unruly
behaviour of the crowd, a section of hospital doctors
observed strike today for two hours and met the SSP, Mr
Gaurav Yadav and demanded action against the persons. The
police has registered a case of assault, illegal
confinement, intimidation and for obstructing work of a
public servant under Sections 353, 186, 342, 506, 148 and
149 of the IPC on the complaint of Dr Sarveshwar Sood,
who was the EMO on duty in the trauma ward at the time of
mob attack. |
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Govt urged to stop LoC
crossing MOGA, Sept 27 — Members of all communities and political as well as religious parties from all over the district today urged the Union Government to deal firmly with JKLF activists who intended to cross the Line of Control on October 4. The Amanullah Khan-led Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front has already started mobilising support in this regard in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. They said if the activists did not refrain from doing so it would be considered another attack on the Indian soil by the Pakistan Government. However, they were sure
that the government would take timely action in this
regard and stop all those who tried to cross the LoC . |
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Kargil fund JALANDHAR, Sept 27
— The Northern India Homoeopathic Chemists
Association has given Rs 50,000 towards the Army Welfare
Fund for the benefit of families of Kargil martyrs,
according to Dr Kanwaljit Singh, General Secretary of the
Association. |
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