 |
|
| Monday, November 20, 2000, Chandigarh, India    |
Woman held for preacher’s
murder Badal repackages
concessions Land erosion near
Army checkpost Brick sellers cause traffic hold-ups Police behaving like SAD wing: PCC
chief |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
160 monuments marked important In memory of an unsung
martyr
Illiterate more prone to suicide PSEB realises
Rs 6 crore as penalty Govt agencies’ payment to arhtiyas overdue NFL finds more discrepancies Road block by BKU
activists continues Trying New Zealand way of wheat growing Dirty water damages houses,
crop Lok Adalats held at Sunam Stray cattle menace PSEB engineers’ dharna from Nov 20 Paddy procurement nearly complete
In-laws killed girl,
mother tells cops
GND University
celebrations VC lays stone of school Bathinda to get
B.Ed. college Annual function of
school
Transport nagar scheme
dropped
|
|
Woman held for preacher’s
murder JALANDHAR, Nov 19 — Suspecting that her separation with her husband was the handiwork of a Christian preacher Ashish Parbash, a married woman and her paramour had allegedly stabbed the preacher to death, before setting a television in his room in the nearby Kanyianwali village on fire with the hope that fire would engulf the accommodation and destroy the evidence. The murder of the Christian preacher, whose body, bore a large number of injuries, was found in his one room accommodation on June 10. It had sparked off widespread protests by the Christian community with some of its leaders suspecting that the murder was the handiwork of some “anti-Christian” forces and saw a widespread conspiracy behind the incident. They had also organised a number of protest rallies and dharnas. As a result the police authorities had decided to form a special investigation Team (SIT) headed by the SP, Mr Amar Singh Chahal. The investigation by the team, according to the SSP, Mr Gaurav Yadav, has revealed the murder was the outcome of suspicion in the mind of Chander Kanta, a ward servant and resident of the nearby Dheena village. Chander Kanta, who was arrested by the police yesterday, was nurturing a grudge against the preacher and thought it was he who had revealed her illicit relationship with Huat Khan Thung, a resident of Behing in Churachan district in Manipur, who was living as a tenant in the same house in which she lived. Thung used to work as a Christian preacher and Ashish Prabhash had also started living with him after the latter started working as a preacher. He had come to know about the illicit relationship between Thung and Chander Kanta. Later, when Thung was transferred to Faridkot Chander Kanta, used to frequent him and had even got enrolled herself as a nursing trainee in some institute there. Subsequently, Chander Kanta’s husband Tarsem Lal, a resident of Doburji village, learnt about the development and booted her out of his home after giving her a severe thrashing. Chander Kanta, according to Mr Yadav, could not take the humiliation and wanted to take revenge from Ashish Prabhash, who she thought had told her husband about her relations with Thung and the consequent breaking up of the family. For this purpose, she incited Thung and both of them had done away Ashish Prabash with sharp-edged weapons like screwdrivers and had set the television in his room on fire since they thought the fire would spread all over the building and result in the destruction of evidence, confessed Chander Kanta during the investigation. Thung, who has reportedly left the state, is yet to be arrested, and a number of police parties have been detailed for his arrest. |
|
Land erosion near
Army checkpost GURDASPUR, Nov 19 — The Army check post set up at the highest Simble scale on the Indo-Pak border continues to be subjected to land erosion during the rainy season. Defence officers brought the matter to the notice of the district authorities more than a year ago, but nothing much seems to have been done. Mr B.K. Srivastav, the then Commissioner, Jalandhar division, along with the then Deputy Commissioner, Mr S.K. Sandhu, visited the site about a year ago. The Commissioner directed the Drainage Department to plan measures to prevent the check post from land erosion. Official sources said the Tarna river flows quite close to the check post and can cause danger to the post whenever the river is in flood. The Drainage Department made a plan involving an expenditure of Rs 20 lakh approximately to undertake measures to drain out water from the check post and save it from land erosion. The plan was sent to Punjab Government for allocation of funds, but to no avail. The Army authorities have been approaching the district administration from time to time for action in the matter. But resource crunch of the government continues to be a permanent hindrance for implementation of the plan. Mr B. Vikram, Deputy Commissioner, yesterday said as soon as the funds are received, the plan to check erosion of land would be implemented. Drainage officials said that it would not take more than a month to execute the plan. They hoped that the funds would be received before the rains set in. |
|
Brick sellers cause traffic hold-ups BATHINDA: In the fast-developing town of Bathinda, new changes are taking place day by day at a pace never witnessed before. Residents may be happy with this positive change but they are also facing various problems, including traffic, on the road. The increasing number of vehicles and congested roads have given rise to traffic jams. Apart from it, tractor-trailers, loaded with bricks have been creating bottlenecks in the smooth flow of traffic. The brick dealers have been using the side walks alongside roads to park the tractor-trailers loaded with bricks. Sometimes they park such vehicles on the road. These vehicles are a major hurdle in traffic movement. Most vehicles are parked near Teenkoni in the heart of the towns Teenkoni is a central point where most accidents occur. Some brick-kiln owners have made it their marketplace to sell bricks. The brick-loaded trollies wait for customers from morning to evening. People, too, find it easy to purchase bricks from here instead of going to brick-kilns, which are far away from the town. Moreover there are three cinema halls near the site where tractor-trailers sell bricks. A few days ago the trollies did their business on one side of the road but now both sides of the road are being used. A major accident can take place as the drivers of the trollies are careless and do not bother about traffic coming from the different directions,’’ said one shopkeeper. ‘‘The administration should appoint a traffic inspector to control the heavy volume of traffic coming from Amrik Singh Road, Bus Stand and from Goniana Road’’, he suggested. Mr Moolchand, president of the Prajapat Tractor-Trolley Labour Union, who is responsible for the brick sale here, said there were about 30 tractor-trollies which engaged in selling bricks for several years. They were not paying any tax to the government for the land they occupied. They hired only one room from where they were operating and running the business. ‘‘ It is very convenient for locals to come here to buy bricks. They give us the paid slip for bricks and we deliver the bricks at the marked time and place’’, said one brick carrier. ‘‘We are paid only the carrier charges from the ‘bhatha’ to home’’, he added. But one employee of these brick sellers pointed out that the brick carriers were purchasing the bricks from Maur Mandi, Kot Kapura and Jaitu at lower price and were selling the same bricks at higher prices. In this way they were earning their living. No “bhatha” owner was selling the bricks to these brick carriers who were creating the traffic problems. Mr S.K. Mittal, Executive Officer of the Municipal Council, said the Deputy Commissioner had directed the transport department at a recent meeting, to remove these brick carriers. He admitted that they were a hindrance in the smooth flow of traffic. |
|
Police behaving like SAD wing: PCC
chief DHARAMKOT (Moga), Nov 19 — Accusing the Punjab police of behaving like a wing of the ruling Akali Dal, the Punjab Pardesh Congress Committee President, Capt Amarinder Singh, today sought a CBI probe into the killing of a senior party colleague, Mr Harmesh Kumar Mukhija, here on November 13. Addressing a gathering at the last prayer meeting for the deceased, Capt Amarinder Singh demanded that an independent CBI probe be held to look into the circumstances leading to the murder and expressed distrust for the ongoing police investigations. He said circumstances suggested that Mukhija was a victim of a political plot engineered by the Akali Dal as not only had his security been withdrawn, but his licensed weapons also confiscated by the police. Others present on the occasion were Congress MP Jagmeet Singh Brar, SGPC member of the SAD Kuldeep Singh Dhosh and Opposition leaders. Mr Dhosh also sought a CBI probe into the murder. Several supporters of Mukija accused the Congress of not coming to the rescue of the deceased when he had lost his son in a mysterious accident. The SAD MLA, Mr Sheetal Singh, was booked in that case, but no action was taken against him. The killing of the senior Congress leader shows the increasing criminalisation of politics in the border-state. Even though the police has yet to unravel the murder mystery, the link of the alleged killer with ruling Akali Dal legislator Sheetal Singh has been proved beyond doubt. While the relatives of the deceased categorically charge Gurbux Singh Kukku, also a Congress activist, of killing Mukhija at the behest of Mr Sheetal Singh, the police is mum on the larger conspiracy behind the incident. Apart from the Opposition Congress and relatives of the slain leader, SPGC member Kuldeep Singh Dhosh of the ruling Akali Dal has also termed the murder as a political killing and sought a CBI probe. Both Mr Sheetal Singh and Kukku, despite their association with rival political camps, had struck an alliance to counter Mr Mukhija during the last municipal council election. Perhaps, political opportunism made Mr Sheetal Singh overlook the fact that Kukku was earlier too involved in a murder case. Whereas, Mr Sheetal Singh saw a potential threat to his career in Mukhija’s popularity, Kukku too had an axe to grind against the deceased. Sources in the police reveal that Mukhija had annoyed Kukku by helping Avtar Singh of Daburji village who had accused Kukku of murdering his father, Gurmej Singh “Geja”, in a land dispute case way back in 1993. Although Kukku was later acquitted of the charge, he did not forgive Mukhija for his moral support to Avtar Singh as he had to shell out a huge sum on legal assistance. Sources said Kukku had expressed his anger against Mukhija to a few of his friends before the murder. Kukku, who has absconded, was allegedly assisted by his gunman Surjit Singh, whose sister was booked under a criminal charge at the behest of Mukhija. Significantly, Surjit has surrendered along with Happy, another accused in the murder case. Kukku had some time back brokered a compromise with Mukhija. Hence, he was allowed inside Mukhija’s shop without being stopped by the bodyguard on the day he shot him dead. Even as Mr Sheetal Singh denies his hand in the murder, the Punjab Congress President, Capt Amarinder Singh, today charged the ruling SAD of “engineering political murders, which have no place in democracy”. |
|
|
160 monuments marked important BATHINDA, Nov 19 — “Those who forget history, cannot create history”, Mr Jaspal Singh, Deputy Commissioner, said while
inaugurating world heritage celebrations at the historic Govind Fort here. Mr Jaspal Singh said the common man should be educated on the need to preserve historical monuments as only with the support of masses could the monuments be saved. Mr R.S. Jamwal, Deputy Superintendent Engineer, Archaeological Survey of India (A.S.I.), Chandigarh zone, said 160 monuments had been identified as that of national importance under the A.S.I. Chandigarh zone. Out of these 30 were in Punjab. He said the monuments in the zone were in bad shape due to lack of funds. The Chandigarh zone got about Rs 60 lakh per annum for the care of monuments. Out of the sum about Rs 5 lakh was being spent on the Bathinda fort. Giving details of the problems faced by the A.S.I., he said apart from laxity of funds encroachments and land transfer in the name of the A.S.I. were other major problems. The ancient sites at Ropar and the mud fort at Abohar were examples of the fact that these were being given due care by the A.S.I. but the land was still in the name of the state government. As per the rules, no construction within a 100 metres radius of any protected site could be taken up and within the next 200 metres, only restricted construction was allowed. These rules were seldom enforced by the district authorities, he lamented. The National Cultural Fund was a good opportunity for the common public to donate for their cherished monuments. They could even specify the monument for which they were donating. The donations were exempted from income tax, Mr Jamwal explained. Mr K.P.S. Wadoria, archaeologlist, (Chandigarh zone), Mr J.M. Thapar, in charge of he Ropar Museum and Mr C.J. Kaul, in charge of the Bathinda fort, were among those who spoke. |
|
Badal repackages
concessions MANKO (Adampur) Nov 19 — The Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh, today virtually launched the Shiromani Akali Dal’s poll campaign by announcing a several repackaged sops for the people of the state. The sops, a number of these old wine in new bottles, included creation of infrastructure in rural areas like roads, more drinking water facilities in urban areas and permits for mini buses to unemployed rural youth. Addressing a gathering after inaugurating Sant Baba Bhag Singh Memorial Engineering College here today, Mr Badal said the government was planning to spend Rs 1 crore on all-round development of each of the 117 Assembly constituencies within the current financial year. “Keeping in mind the problems of rural people, our government has decided to build a vast network of link roads in rural areas and every Assembly constituency will get at least 20 km of new link roads. The old link roads in the state would be repaired within a year and we have earmarked a budget of Rs 400 crore for that,” said Mr Badal. “Efforts will be made to solve 80 per cent problems of the people on the spot during sangat darshan programmes,” he said, announcing that the next “sangat darbar” in Doaba would be held at Adampur on December 11. Mr Badal said to put an end to the problems of rural people, the government would induct 300 buses into the fleet of Punjab Roadways within a year.” To get rid of unemployment in rural areas, we are going to give permits for mini buses to unemployed rural youth,” he said. He said equal attention was being paid towards the development of urban areas. “We have already made a provision for a straight 30 per cent hike in the budget earmarked for providing drinking water in the urban areas. New tubewells will be installed at Adampur, Alawalpur and Bhogpur, in view of the complaints of the people on shortage of drinking water in these areas.” He assured residents, who had demanded that the capacity of the Bhogpur Sugar Mill be increased by replacing old machines, that he would discuss the matter with senior officials. Earlier, Sant Malkiat Singh, who built a bridge on a choe in the area with voluntary help, and similarly contributed towards the construction of the engineering college here, also spoke. |
|
CM calls for effective
coop system CHANDIGARH, Nov 19 — The Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, has given a call to cooperators and the heads of various cooperative institutions to bring about the desired socio-economic revolution in the state within the shortest possible time. Addressing the gathering after inaugurating the new building of the Punjab State Cooperative Bank constructed at a cost of Rs 8.96 crore in Sector 34 here today, he said the maximum population should be brought under the cooperative umbrella. Innovative and scientific techniques should be introduced in the cooperative system to make it more transparent, efficient and effective to successfully compete at the global level. He complimented the Punjab State Cooperative Bank and the Central Cooperative Bank for successfully launching new schemes. The Chief Minister said the Punjab Government had decided that the land mortgaged by farmers for agricultural loans would be free from the imposition of stamp duty on the execution of the mortgage deeds. He directed the Financial Commissioner, Cooperation, to liaise with the Financial Commissioner, Revenue, to ensure the implementation of this decision. He emphasised that the banks should formulate result-oriented schemes which could help eradicate unemployment and provide an opportunity to the common people to set up their own business ventures. He said rural youth were facing a lot of hardship due to their poor financial position. The Chief Minister said the cooperative movement in Punjab had turned into a people’s movement. He said with the raising of the loan limit and slashing of the interest rate by 2 per cent, people in the rural areas had started availing themselves of various loans being given by cooperative institutions. He honoured the oldest depositors of the cooperative bank, including Mr G.S. Aujla, Mr Dalip Singh, Ms Amrit Kaur, Mr Dev Raj Mehta, Ms Amarjit Kaur and Mr Amrik Singh. He also released a book brought out by the Cooperative Department. Mr Ranjit Singh Brahmpura, Cooperation Minister, Punjab, said the five-storeyed bank building was fully airconditioned. |
|
Badal loses cool ADAMPUR, Nov 19 — The Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, who was here to inaugurate an engineering college, lost temper when a scribe made an inquiry on the forthcoming SGPC elections as he was leaving the function venue. An irritated Badal retorted: “It is for the PAC to decide. I have already clarified on the issue time and again. How many times should I repeat myself?” A similar incident had occurred at Kartarpur, where he had gone in connection with another function. Earlier on Friday, Mr Badal’s behaviour at Phagwara forced mediapersons to boycott his function at Wahid-Sandhar Sugars Limited. |
|
In memory of an unsung
martyr SISWAN (Ropar), Nov 19 — The sight touches the heart and the setting strumms chords of nationalism as one comes upon the nearly complete memorial of Diwan Singh Kalepani, largely an ‘unknown martyr’ here. Kalepani, a doctor, after landing in Andaman and Nicobar Islands in 1925 never returned to the mainland, choosing to serve the hundreds imprisoned at the infamous Cellular jail. A gallery exhibits over 50 photographs and three portraits of the struggle for independence, concentrating mostly on ‘Kalepani’ (Cellular jail of the British in Andaman and Nicobar Inslands for those who opposed their ‘raj’) and also has a small library. The impressive memorial has come up quite off the main road amidst forested land. Quite uncommon for memorials of national heroes. Mr Mohinder Singh Dhillon, former principal and son of the national hero, said his talks with the UT Administration for getting some land allotted for the memorial yielded no results. There were also talks at a committee level with the Punjab government. Nothing, however, came it. A piece of land, for the memorial was earmarked by Mr Gurpratap Singh Dhillon, a grandson of the martyr from his own holdings. A more than 50 feet “pillar of truth” is the landmark of the monument. Inscription work on the walls and captions showing events related to history is currently underway. A formal inauguration of the memorial is expected early next year. Diwan Singh was born in ‘Little Golatian’ village in Sialkot district, now in Pakistan. Having lost his parents early he was brought up by his maternal family. He completed his degree in medical science from Agra. Having passed his medical examination in 1919, Dr Diwan Singh joined the Medical Department of the Indian Army and was posted at Rawalpindi. He later served at Wazirastan, Lahore and Amritsar. His posting to Dagshai was a turning point . In a pubic meeting he said “In the interest of the progress of the country, it is absolutely essential that we should attain ‘swaraj’. A few months later , he was packed off to Rangoon and later to Andaman and Nicobar Islands. There he saw a great chasm between the authorities and lower staff. The World War II had little impact on the local people but occupancy of Pearl Harbour made the British realise that they were in no position to defend the islands. Kalepani asked his family to return back home in Punjab, but himself decided to stay on because human aid was his mission. On March 23, 1942 Japanese ships landed on the island’s shores. Kalepani met the Japanese officials and agreed to be appointed as the chief medical officer and chairman of a peace committee. Diwan Singh Kalepani was soon accused of being a spy when his honest work did not suit the Japanese. “A plot was hatched and a charade enacted to give the appearance of Kalepani having met a foreigner”, said Mr Dhillon, quoting writings. The jail where he cured hundreds of ill inmates became his own residence and he bore “inhuman torture”. He died on January 14, 1944. |
|
5 killed as Jeep collides with bus ABOHAR, Nov 19 — Five persons, including a constable of the Punjab Police, were killed when a Jeep carrying them collided head-on with a private bus near Nihalkhera village on the Abohar-Fazilka road this morning. According to information collected by The Tribune team, the accident took place at about 7 a.m. Two jeeps reportedly hired by the wine contractors were going on some mission. One of them reportedly succeeded in overtaking a tempo but when the other Jeep was attempting to overtake the first one, it collided with a bus owned by Zamindara Transport Co. The bus was carrying members of a marriage party. Police sources said four of the occupants died on the spot. One succumbed to his injuries at the civil hospital here. The doctors attending the emergency said the victims were brought to the civil hospital at 7.50 a.m. The dead were identified as Gurdev Singh, son of Darbara Singh, who was driving the jeep, Main Pal, son of Ranjit Ram, resident of Choohriwala Dhanna village, Kulbir Singh, son of Mal Singh, resident of Ghuriana, Amarjit Singh, son of Banta Singh, and Constable Balwant Singh who was with anti-goonda staff. It was not immediately known in what capacity he was accompanying the other occupants of the Jeep who were stated to be workers of the wine contractors. Two occupants, Ratan Lal and Jagga Singh, were referred to Ludhiana as their condition was stated to be serious, hospital sources said. The police sources claimed members of the excise wing of the police were patrolling on the highway to check illicit trade of liquor at that time. They helped in bringing the victims to the hospital. Heart rending scenes were witnessed at the hospital. The bodies were given to the bereaved families after post-mortem examination. The Khuikhera police is investigating. Both the vehicles involved in the mishap are in police custody. |
Illiterate more prone to suicide BATHINDA, Nov 19 — The tendency to end one’s own life seems to be prevailing prominently among the uneducated people and the consumption of poison has emerged as the favourite means among those who have suicidal leanings. Suicidal leanings decrease with the increase in the level of education. The statistics released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) show that in 1998, out of total 1,04,713 persons who ended their lives 27,338 persons were uneducated while 28,019 persons were educated up to the primary level. More that 23,245 victims had education up to the middle level. The number of victims with an education level up to matriculation was 15,479 while the number of graduates who committed suicide was 1,765. Only 602 post-graduates took the extreme step of ending their lives in 1998. The trend of suicides in 1996, 1997 and 1998 shows that 75 per cent of suicide victims are either uneducated or had low education (up to middle class). Only 25 per cent of the victims had educational level over matric or higher. Statistics reveal that the victims had been choosing the method of consumption of poison (insecticides and other poison) in a big way and in 1998, as many as 39,077 persons consumed poison to end their lives and their share was 37.32 per cent of the total number of suicides reported in the country. In 1994, 34 per cent of the total suicides reported in the country were attributed to the consumption of poison. The percentage jumped to 36.8 in 1996 and remained unaltered in 1997. However, in 1998, the percentage reached up to 37.32. Hanging oneself by rope with a fan or another structure emerged as the second biggest choice among the suicide victims. In 1998, 25.6 per cent of the total suicide reported in India were committed with this method, while in 1997 the percentage was 26.8 and in 1996, it was 26.2. The other means used by the victims included self-immolation, coming under running vehicles and trains, by drowning,
alcoholism, jumping from buildings and other sites, overdose of sleeping pills and touching of electrical wires. In most cases, poison was used as it was easily available and less painful method of ending one’s own life. In Himachal Pradesh, more than 54 per cent suicides were committed with the use of poison while 39.5 per cent suicide victims of Chandigarh also took poison. The method of hanging used for committing suicide was prominent in Arunachal Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Sikkim, Dadar and Nagar Haveli, Nagaland and other states of India. |
|
PSEB realises
Rs 6 crore as penalty BATHINDA, Nov 19 — The west zone of the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) has recovered more than Rs 6 crore from consumers indulging in various bunglings in connection with the use of electricity. Mr R.S. Dhillon, Chief Engineer (West Zone), PSEB, addressing a function organised in connection with the 24-hour supply of electricity at Neor village, said Rs 6.53 crore had been recovered from 21,622 consumers found guilty during the anti-theft campaign. He said Rs 58 lakh were recovered as penalty from consumers running motors on single phase. A sum of more than Rs 2.70 crore was taken as deposit fee from consumers who had increased the sanctioned load under the voluntary disposal scheme. He said to ease power supply, new grids had been set up and the capacity of existing grids was being increased. On this task Rs 25 crore would be spent. Punjab Power Minister Sikander Singh inaugurated the function. |
|
Govt agencies’ payment to arhtiyas overdue FAZILKA, Nov 19 — Government agencies procuring paddy have not made payments of about Rs 1.45 crore to arhtiyas (commission agents) of the Fazilka grain market even after one month of procurement. As a result, the commission agents are facing a financial crunch, which may hit the sowing of wheat. Mr Mohinder Singh Khalsa and Mr Kewal Krishan Chaudhury, president and secretary, respectively, of the Commission Agents Association, Fazilka, said Punsup had procured about 62,000 bags of paddy from September 25 to October 19. The total value of these bags was around Rs 1.67 crore. Of this, Rs 66 lakh has still not been paid by Punsup. According to the commission agents’ representatives, Markfed purchased 87,000 bags of paddy from October 18 to 31. Of this purchase, payment of about Rs 80 lakh remains outstanding, although three weeks have elapsed after the last purchase. According to government rules, the purchased paddy is to be lifted and the payment is to be released within three days. Due to the non-payment, commission agents and farmers are facing a resource crunch. Hence the sowing of wheat is likely to be hamper. Mr Khalsa and Mr Chaudhury have alleged that the claims of Punjab Government of championing the cause of farmers are false. They have sent the memorandum to the Chief Minister, Punjab, demanding immediate release of the outstanding payments of procured paddy, failing which the farmers and commission agents would jointly launch an agitation. |
|
NFL finds more discrepancies ROPAR, Nov 19 — The personnel department of NFL, Nangal, in a report to the management has produced a list of names of another 51 employees whose service records were allegedly tampered with. Out of these 26 employees are those whose date of birth in the attestation form differs from that mentioned in the school leaving or matriculation certificate. At least 25 employees had shown themselves as illiterate at the time of joining the organisation. However, later they had produced school leaving certificate with attested date of birth. The company got the claims of the employees verified from a medical board that rejected the claims. In these cases, the date of birth assessed by the medical board has been accepted by the NFL management. The controversy started in February this year when the personel department of NFL compulsorily retired the principal of the school run by NFL on the charge that he had already served more years than mentioned in the original entry in his service record. After the incident, NFL decided to scrutinise the service records of all its 2500 employees. On the basis of an inquiry, the department submitted a report alleging that the service records of 41 employees had been tampered with. Now on further secrutiny, more discrepancies have been detected in the service record of another 51 employees. Two of these employees, Mr Kishori Lal and Mr Pawan Dev, have already been retired while the personnel department has sent the cases of Mr Bhagat Ram and Mr Ram Nath to the management for suitable action. The most interesting fact that come to light during the inquiries was that some of the accused employees had already served more than 42 years in NFL. The minimum recruitment age in NFL is 18 and the retirement age 60. So, in any case no employee can serve in NFL beyond 42 years. |
|
Road block by BKU
activists continues BARNALA, Nov 19 — Traffic on the Barnala-Ludhiana road at Sahore village, about 20 km from here, remained badly paralysed for the second day today following a traffic blockade by the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) activists. State
transport buses and other vehicles on this route have to face a great deal of inconvenience as vehicles have to adopt another longer route to reach their destinations. After getting in touch with Mr Dilawar Singh, SHO, Mahal Kalan police station, this reporter got the impression this afternoon, that chances of lifting of the blockade by BKU activists were very remote. According to reports, 6500 bags of paddy were lying at Dhaner village whereas 2500 bags of paddy were laying at Moom village. Reliable sources disclosed the procurement agencies were reluctant to purchase these bags of paddy because these were not up to the laid down specifications. The BKU (Ekta) activists were adamant that their blockade would continue until their paddy was procured. |
|
Trying New Zealand way of wheat growing GURDASPUR, Nov 19 — The New Zealand pattern of cultivation of wheat and Basmati rice is being introduced on a trial basis in Punjab this season. Mr Balwinder Singh Sandhu, Joint Director, Agriculture, said while talking to newsmen here yesterday said the “zero till drill” machine would be utilised for the cultivation of wheat. Mr Sandhu said that under the scheme, as soon as the fields are cleared of paddy, the land will be tilled with this machine and paddy straw in the fields utilised as manure to strengthen the soil and make it more productive. Under the scheme, expenses on cultivation of wheat will go down because it will save time and water for preparing the fields. Diesel and water expenses will also go down. Use of insecticides will be comparatively lesser and the Gulli Danda problem will also diminish by 30 per cent, said Mr Sandhu. Paddy straw which otherwise is set on fire and thus polluting the atmosphere, will be avoided. The Punjab Government has chosen Gurdaspur, Amritsar, Patiala, Jalandhar and Ludhiana districts for the scheme. The Agriculture Department will supervise the scheme in every block of these districts. Each district will be provided 25 machines at a subsidy of Rs 5,000 per machine. The machine costs about Rs 12,000. Dr Chowdhary, a native of Pakistan and agriculture expert in New Zealand invented this scheme and the technical knowhow was imported in 1970 by Pant Nagar University, now in Uttaranchal state. The experiment has been a success in Haryana. In Haryana, 2000 acres of land was tilled with this machine in 1996 which has gone up to 1.2 lakh acres during the current year against 20,000 acres last year. The experiment has yielded dividends and farmers of Punjab in Patiala and Sangrur districts have 70 such machines. Mr Sandhu said that to begin with Punjab will have 5,000 acres of land under cultivation of wheat under the scheme. The area will increase to 1.25 lakh acres by next year. In February, 500 to 600 farmers of each block will be given a demonstration on how to use these machines. Mr Sandhu said that Punjab Agriculture University has also invented ship drill machine on the pattern of the “zero till drill” machine. But it costs Rs 40,000 approximately. The machine is useful for farmers with large landholdings. It carries a subsidy of 50 per cent. |
|
Dirty water damages houses,
crop PATIALA, Nov 19 — At Sanaur, about 5 km from here, sewerage water from a partially constructed drain has damaged houses of poor persons on the outskirts of the town. The sewerage water has also destroyed crops after entering some fields. All the sewerage waste of Sanaur is not disposed of on the outskirts of the town. The waste is allowed to run into a depression along the road to Patiala. A partially constructed drain on the outskirts of Sanaur deposits all the sewerage water along the road. This has led to various problems, including the spread of gastroenteritis among residents of Bazigar Basti. Besides causing diseases, the waste has also polluted the groundwater in the area. A resident of Bazigar Basti, Vilayati Ram, said all handpumps in the colony were drawing foul-smelling water that was unfit for drinking. He said more children than ever now visited the nearby primary health centre. Everything was normal when there was no sewerage water along the road. The sewerage water is also causing problems for motorists as they have to brave the foul smell on way to Sanaur. The sewerage water has become stagnant as the underground pipes at Sant Filling Station, about 1 km from here, have got blocked. Moreover, a check dam has been created on the other side of the road by those who don’t want sewerage water to accumulate in front of their houses. The sewerage water was made to flow along the road after a person on whose land the waste was being disposed of moved court and got a stay. When water started accumulating in front of Bazigar Basti, its residents protested. After this, the water was allowed to flow into the depression along the Patiala road. A visit to the site showed that farmers who owned land along a newly created sewerage drain were raising embankments to ensure that sewerage water did not enter their fields. Farmers said the polluted water often entered their fields. The situation is worse at the tail end of the drain where overflowing water has destroyed fodder crop near Sant Filling Station. When contacted, the President of the Sanaur Municipal Council, Mr Parkash Singh, said it would be impractical to construct a sewerage drain along the road from the town to Badi Nadi at Patiala. Some educational institutions falling in the area are opposing the move. He said the council would try to construct a kutcha nullah along the road from the bus stand to Chaura and Patiala. He said a government land was available along this road for laying the drain. He said the Finance Minister of the state, Capt Kanwaljit Singh, had recently announced a Rs 20 lakh grant for the purpose. Residents of the town say that the council should repair an old drain. This drain built by former rulers of the state, used to take the sewerage water from the town to the nearby river. They said the repair job would not be expensive as the slope of the area was ideal for the purpose. The President of the Municipal Council said the idea was a good one, but the farmers had encroached upon the drain. He said it would take some time to get the encroachments removed. The town once again prepares for the laying of a new drain that will take its sewerage waste to Badi Nadi. The earlier attempts to do this have failed. The President of the Municipal Council, said the drain that had been built earlier at a cost of Rs 15 lakh had become redundant now. Residents of the town want the plans to be proper this time. |
|
Lok Adalats held at Sunam SUNAM, Nov 19 — Three separate Lok Adalats were held by Mr Pritam Singh Dhanoa PCS, Additional Civil Judge (Senior Division), Mr Harbans Singh Lekhi, Civil Judge (Junior Division) and Judicial Magistrate (First Class), and Mr S.K. Singla, Civil Judge (Junior Division)-cum-JMIC, in the judicial complex here yesterday. In these Lok Adalats 95 cases were presented out of which 58 cases were settled on the spot and amount of Rs 12,85, 056 was awarded in the cases on the spot The judges also told the litigants the local Legal Services Authority would provide free legal aid to those persons whose income is less than Rs 30,000 per annum. Among the others, Dr Vikram Sharma and Mrs Gita Sharma, both members of the local Legal Services Authority, Mr Ranjit Singh, president of the Bar Association, Sunam, Mr Charanjit Singh, advocate, Mr S.C. Goyal and Mr Inder Pal Garg, both advocates and counsellors of the banks, were also present. |
|
Stray cattle menace MOGA, Nov 19 — A number of accidents have occurred in this town due to the problem of stray cattle. A large number of stray cattle on the Grand Truck Road not only cause a hindrance, but also accidents. Similarly the areas around Moga City police station situated on the GT Road, both eastern and western Grain Market, near the cinema houses are full of stray cattle. No arrangements have been made by the local administration to remove these animals. The parking of three-wheelers and mini-buses on both sides of the GT Road also hinder the smooth flow of traffic. |
|
PSEB engineers’ dharna from Nov 20 AMRITSAR, Nov 19 — The Punjab State Electricity Board Engineers Association has decided to wear black badges from November 20 for a week in protest against the dilly-dallying attitude of the board towards their genuine demands. A press statement issued by Mr S.S. Sarna, joint secretary of the association, said the engineers would stage a protest dharna at the headquarters, Patiala. |
| Stag found dead MALERKOTLA, Nov 19 — A stag was found dead in the graveyard of Jamalpura locality here last evening. According to local residents, it was seen in the morning on the Malerkotla-Khanna road. The local police shifted the stag to the local Veterinary Hospital for post-mortem. A team from the Wildlife Department, Patiala, today reached here in this connection. The local Veterinary Officer, Dr Mohammed Iqbal, conducted the post-mortem in the presence of the DFO, Patiala and the local DSP. Later, the stag was buried near the Babanpur canal. |
Paddy procurement nearly complete BATHINDA, Nov 19 — The process of paddy
procurement is nearly complete and there were no fresh arrivals of
paddy stocks yesterday. Mr Jaspal Singh, Deputy Commissioner, in a press note issued here said the total paddy procured in the district was 4,64,983 metric tonnes compared to 4,45,897 MT procured during the same period last year. The
Food Supplies Department has procured 48,419 MT of paddy, Markfed
92,384 MT, Punsup 79,793 MT, Punjab State Warehousing Corporation
63,718 MT, Punjab Agro Industries Corporation 35,707 MT, Food
Corporation of India (FCI) 1,42,880 MT and private traders 2,082 MT. |
In-laws killed girl,
mother tells cops AMRITSAR, Nov 19 — Ms Kavita Khurana of Thane, Mumbai, in a representation to the SSP has alleged that her daughter, Nidhi Kapoor, was murdered by her in-laws on November 16. Nidhi, who was residing here was married to Mr Arun Kapoor, son of Mr Ram Chand Kapoor, of Queens Road in 1991. Along with her plea, the mother has attached a letter written recently by the deceased to her maternal aunt, Ms Parveena Arora, in Mumbai in the third week of October. She has reportedly requested the SSP in her letter for the registration of an FIR against the in-laws of her deceased daughter. |
GND University
celebrations AMRITSAR, Nov 19 — Mr Om Parkash Chautala, Chief Minister of Haryana, will preside over the 31st foundation day celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev University scheduled for November 24 on the university campus. Mr Chautala will also inaugurate a new dining hall of the hostel for girls preside over the academic lecture session at the Guru Nanak Bhavan Auditorium. Dr K.P. Aggarwal, eminent educationist and secretary-general of the Crime Prevention Society, Lucknow, will speak on ‘Sri Guru Granth Sahib and spiritualism’, Dr J.S. Neki, noted Sikh scholar and former PGI Director, will speak on the ‘Life and philosophy of Guru Nanak’ and Dr Surjit Kaur, another reputed scholar of Sikhism and Principal of Dr Shyama Prakash Mukherjee College, New Delhi, will deliver a lecture on ‘Sri Granth Sahib — a resource of national integrity’. |
|
VC lays stone of school MOGA, Nov 19 — The Vice-Chancellor of Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Mr Harbhajan Singh Soch, today laid the foundation stone of H.S. Brar Public School at Baghapurana in Moga district. The school has been opened in memory of late Harbhajan Singh Brar a social worker and a philanthropist of Baghapurana. |
Bathinda to get
B.Ed. college BATHINDA, Nov 19 — The third B.Ed. college under Punjabi University will be operational from the next academic session in the district. The foundation stone of the college would be laid by the Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh
Badal, on November 23. Mr Chiranji Lal Garg, Minister for Science and Technology, Punjab, said the college would be coeducational and the building would be constructed at a cost of Rs 1 crore. Mr B.S.
Bhatia, Registrar, Punjabi University, Patiala, said that the construction of the building would be examined by the Central Education Council. |
|
Annual function of
school PATIALA, Nov 19 — Expand your horizons beyond the confines of your classroom, were the words of advice from the State Bank of Patiala Managing Director, Mr A.K. Batra, at the annual function of Kaintal School on Sunday. Students of the school presented a cultural programme on the occasion. Principal of the school Neena Dhundia said in her address that all the 270 students of the junior school, participated in the function. Speaking on the occasion, Mr Batra said class-room education should be such that students are able to express their impressions and not just narrate back what their teachers had tought them. He said class- room teaching needed to be such that it could develop the overall personality of the students. He lamented that even after more than fifty years after independence about 45 per cent of the country’s population was illeterate. Earlier school Principal Neena Dhundia gave a short profile of the activities conducted by the school saying the school was laying stress on sports activities too, with reputed coaches from the National Institute of Sports giving children training in swimming, judo and basketball. |
Transport nagar scheme
dropped SANGRUR, Nov 19 — The local Improvement Trust has dropped its transport nagar scheme. It will now use the 23.66 acres acquired for transport nagar for a residential colony. Transport nagar was to set up on the Tunga-Kularan road near the truck union’s office here. The land for it was acquired by the Improvement Trust at a cost of Rs 4 crore. The Local Government Department, Punjab, has allowed the Improvement Trust to use the land, meant for transport nagar scheme (struck stand scheme), for residential purposes. Mr Nanak Chand Kalra, Chairman of the trust, said here yesterday that the trust was forced to drop the scheme as the local truck union authorities had refused to shift to the proposed transport nagar. Mr Kalra further said the residential colony on the land had a provision of 265 plots besides sites for government offices and a shopping complex. The trust has planned 60 plots of 100 square yards, 55 plots of 150 square yards, 90 plots of 200 square yards, and 60 plots of 250 square yards. These plots would be allotted through a draw of lots to the general and reserved categories. Water supply, sewerage, street lighting, roads and parking etc would be provided in the colony by the trust. The Chairman said the state government had asked the trusts to impose a 2 per cent cess on the cost of residential plots and 5 per cent cess on commercial plots. But the local trust had recently passed a resolution asking the government not to impose any cess as it would create hurdles in the sale of plots, he added. He said the price for 200-square yard plot had been fixed as Rs 1400/- per sq yard while it would be Rs 2100 per sq yard for 250 square yard plots. |
 |
| Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir | Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs | Nation | Editorial | | Business | Sport | World | Mailbag | In Spotlight | Chandigarh Tribune | Ludhiana Tribune 50 years of Independence | Tercentenary Celebrations | | 120 Years of Trust | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
