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| Wednesday,
July 11, 2001, Chandigarh, India
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PSEB may legalise power
connections Jalandhar, July 10 Though no deadline has been fixed for implementation of the decision, the proposed power connections would be subject to an undertaking by subscribers that they would be responsible for the legal status of the place or the demolition of the house, if any, by the Punjab Urban Development Authority or the civic bodies concerned. Haryana and the Union
Territory of Chandigarh have been providing connections to people on the same grounds in their respective areas. The PSEB has planned to follow suit to prevent power theft in unauthorised colonies and the huge revenue loss on this account. Meanwhile, the Punjab Government has also decided not to go ahead with the proposed privatisation of the PSEB. The Punjab Power Minister, Mr Sikandar Singh Maluka, said a decision pertaining to legalisation of old power connections and allotment of new power connections in unauthorised localities had been taken by the Punjab State Electricity Board and it was likely to be implemented soon. “Why should we not do it when the same has been done by neighbouring Haryana and Chandigarh. However, I must make it clear that the people of such areas would be responsible in case any demolition is to be carried out by the civic authorities concerned,” said Mr Maluka. He said before extending the facility to people a survey would be conducted to determine the estimated number of consumers in such areas. Talking about the annual loss of Rs 180-85 crore by the PSEB on account of bad quality of coal supplied to various thermal plants by different Centre-controlled coal mines, Mr Maluka said the issue has been taken up by him with the Union Coal Minister, who had assured him that he would look into the matter. “The minister has also responded positively to our request for allotment of exclusive coal mines to the PSEB. I have already apprised him that 45 per cent of the total coal coming to Punjab is nothing but stones or sand and we are losing huge sums of money on its transportation also,” said Mr Maluka. He alleged the PSEB authorities were keeping mum about the scandal involving shady deals and storage of several thousand tonnes of coal meant for different thermal plants in the state. Attacking the top-heavy PSEB and advocating the need for its downsizing, the Power Minister said the state government would not bow under any pressure for effecting privatisation of the PSEB. “Such an experiment has already failed in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. Moreover, we are not bound to follow other states and to bow under pressure of the Centre on every matter and issue,” he said. Mr Maluka, who had locked horns with top PSEB authorities over a number of issues in the past, made an interesting statement when he said there was no need for the PSEB to maintain 29 Chief Engineers and it was sheer wastage of resources. “Each of the Chief Engineers is equivalent to a minister, when it comes to expenditure and I think there is no utility of so many officials, especially when 10-12 of them have no work to do,” said the minister, who did not even spare the large size of the SAD-Akali ministry of which he is a part. “Ideally, we can run the show with 20-25 ministers. That looks more decent and has more impact among people and the bureaucracy, he added. Becoming a bit didactic, Mr Maluka appealed to people not to waste power in the interests of the state. “Every family should resolve to save at least a unit of power and they would realise at the time of getting the bill that the tariff had come down by 25 per cent,” he said. |
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EC to visit Punjab today New Delhi, July 10 During his two-day tour, Mr Tandon will hold meetings with the Chief Secretary, Punjab and the state Chief Electoral Officer, commission sources said. The Election Commissioner’s visit to Punjab attains significance as the state will be going to poll early next year. The Election Commission has already made it clear that future Assembly and General Elections will be held only on the electronic voting machines and the compulsory identification of voters will be a must either through the voter identity cards or other identification documents approved by the Election Commission. Though the Punjab Government has speeded up the process of issuing cards to left out electorate, the commission is keen that about 90 per cent of the voters should be possessing the cards before the next Assembly poll. According to information available from the commission, Punjab has issued cards to 11,241,744 voters as on May 14, 2001, which is 72.03 per cent of the total electorate. During his tour, Mr Tandon will also call on the Punjab Governor, sources said. He will return to the Capital on July 13.
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Plea to commit case of Panjwar’s kin to
Sessions Patiala, July 10 The application, filed by Justice Ajit Singh Bains (retd) through counsel Brijinder Singh Sodhi, claimed that though the charge sheet by the CBI against police officers Ashok Kumar, then DSP and Jagdip Singh, then Inspector, had been filed under Sections 365/342 of the IPC, the intention of the accused was otherwise. The application said the intention of the accused was not only to kidnap Mohinder Kaur secretly and wrongfully confine her as her whereabouts were not known for the past over eight years. It said as per the charge sheet and the accompanying documents Mohinder Kaur was abducted from her residence in Panjwar village in November 1992 and she was kept in illegal detention at the police station and she was seen in an injured and sick condition due to police torture. It said thereafter her wherabouts were not known. It said in these circumstances the inference could be drawn that Mohinder Kaur, who had not been seen for the past more than eight years, had either been murdered or had succumbed to her injuries caused by the accused. It said it could also be inferred that the accused must have caused the disappearance of the dead body of Mohinder Kaur. The application said under Section 108 of the Indian Evidence Act the burden of proving whether a person is dead or alive after he has not been heard of for seven years, falls on the person who affirms it. It said earlier on the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court to conduct an inquiry into the case, the CBI had recommended punishable acts under Sections 365/344 of the IPC against the police officers for abduction and illegal detention of Mohinder Kaur in Jhabal police station. The CBI has been asked to file reply by August 8 in the case by the Special Magistrate, CBI. |
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Youth lands in jail instead of
Canada Hoshiarpur, July 10 According to police sources, Sukhdev Singh, the travel agent based at Jhawan village, took Rs 3 lakh from Manjit Singh of Dashmesh Nagar, Tanda, for sending him to Canada. After preparing his documents Sukhdev Singh took his client to the Canadian Embassy in New Delhi for getting him visa on May 15. He made Manjit Singh stand in a queue and quietly slipped away from the Embassy. When Manjit Singh appeared before the authorities concerned and produced the documents before them, they found all documents to be forged. They reported the matter to the police and got a case registered against him. The police arrested Manjit Singh for preparing forged documents. He got bail on May 22. A case has been registered under Sections 420, 419, 467 and 468, IPC, against Sukhdev Singh on the complaint of Manjit Singh. The culprit is absconding. |
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Taking healthcare to
villages Nawanshahr Giving this information to this reporter, Baba Budh Singh Dhahan, president of the trust, says that this project is first of its kind in the state. Inadequate health services and the plight of poor and ignorant people of the rural areas motivated Mr Barjinder Singh Dhahan, Mr Ajit Singh Thandi and Mr Ajmer Singh Mann, NRIs, who are office-bearers of the Canada-India Education Society, to conceive the project. It was discussed with CIDA, which approved the project in March. With a view to finalising strategies, survey tool, time frame etc. Ms Nora Whyte, Health Consultant for CIDA, visited the Guru Nanak Mission Trust, and later a nine-member committee was constituted with one member each from the trust, doctors, nurses, college faculty, nursing faculty, school faculty etc. for implementation of the project dedicated to bringing in improvement in health services. Ms Whyte also prepared the budget for the project and provided funds to meet the expenses in the first quarter. The project is of a year's duration and about 50 villages would be covered by September, Baba Budh Singh stated. He pointed out that in the first phase of the project as many as 3814 houses in 24 villages would be covered. After conducting epidemiological surveys in each village, free medical camps were organised by the trust for preventing and treating ailments. Under this project, general health awareness is created among the rural community, he observed adding that the project was also helpful for nursing students to pick up communication skills with the villagers and to educate the women for leading the front. The Baba says that the project, in the long run, would help in strengthening the primary health care facilities and would be able to fill lacunae in the health delivery system. It would also give a boost to the status of women in the society. |
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Notices
served on Patiala cinema
halls Patiala, July 10 Both cinema halls — Capital and Tagore — have been accused of wilfully making violations of the Punjab Cinema (Regulation ) Act and Rules which were observed during inspections carried out by a team, including Sub Divisional Magistrate M S Narang, Executive Magistrate S S Sidhu and Assistant Commissioner, Grievances, Rahul Gupta. They have been given a seven-day time period to reply to notices. Capital cinema hall has been accused of selling tickets at Rs 35 over the counter instead of charging Rs 15 for a balcony ticket. Ticket rates had also not been displayed at the counters. Besides this during checking it was revealed that the management had put 66 extra chairs and benches over and above the seating capacity. Other anomalies pointed out by the team regarding Capital cinema including installation of only one fire extinguisher in the projection room whose utility period had long passed, presence of humid and hot conditions in the cinema hall which were not conducive for maintaining health and safety of the audience, non illumination of the exit signs, bad maintenance of toilets, overcharging for soft drinks and eatables as well as at the parking stand — all of which were in contravention of the spirit of the cinema rules. As regards Tagore cinema, its management has been accused of selling tickets from its counter at Rs 40 per ticket, which the notice says has been admitted by the management to the press. It has also been accused of not printing the serial number on the tickets and date and time of show has also not been displayed on the tickets. Meanwhile, the Deputy Commissioner also held a meeting with cinema hall managers today in which some guidelines were worked out in consultation with the cinema managements. Mr Jasbir Singh Bir disclosed that it had been agreed that no cinema hall owner would overcharge the public. The cinema hall owners have also been asked to ensure separate booking windows for balcony, upper and lower stalls. Rates for each stall are to be displayed prominently in English and Punjabi in bold letters. Besides this it was agreed in the meeting that serial number, date, show time and seat number would be displayed on the tickets. It was also agreed that advance booking would not be more than 40 per cent and that the ticket windows would open one hour before the start of the show instead of the present trend to open them just before the show is going to start. The Civil Surgeon has been directed to collect samples of eatables sold at the cinema halls at regular intervals to ensure they conform with health norms. The rates of soft drinks, tea and chips have also been fixed at Rs 10, Rs 5 and Rs 10 respectively, and the public will henceforth be charged uniform parking rates of Rs 10, Rs 5 and Rs 2 for cars, scooters and cycles respectively. |
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Action to be taken against excise
officials Chandigarh, July 10 “We are awaiting the official report with regard to the details of unaccounted assets, etc, from the CBI to act accordingly”, he said, when asked what action the department would take against the officers facing CBI investigations. The interrogation of the officers has not been completed yet. Two of the five officers were summoned by the CBI to its office yesterday to collect more information about the unaccounted assets. The others may also be told to furnish such details in due course, it is learnt. According to an initial estimate prepared by the CBI, unaccounted assets worth Rs 3.5 crore have been found from the homes and offices of the five officers. CBI authorities are hoping that more unaccounted assets will detected in the days to come as documents pertaining to property deals are still being scrutinised. The CBI is expected to place all details of the unaccounted assets before the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which has taken the initiative to put department officers under scrutiny. The court had heard a writ petition with regard to the connivance of certain officers in sales tax evasion. The next hearing of the case
on July 24, it is learnt. Simultaneously, the CBI is expected to send details pertaining to the recovery of the assets to the Punjab
Government. Appreciating the neatly executed raids by the CBI, a senior Minister of the Badal government said corruption in the Excise and Taxation Department had “crossed all limits”. Traders and businessmen were complaining but no one was paying heed to them. At least the CBI’s action would check corruption in the department for the time being. “Moreover those (Excise and Taxation officers) who investigate and try others for tax evasion or for certain other violations of the laws pertaining to sales tax and excise should be subjected to investigations by the CBI or the Vigilance Bureau from time to time”, said the Minister. Meanwhile, as a sequel to the raids conducted by officials of the CBI and the Excise and Taxation Department at Ludhiana railway station to check the evasion of tax on hosiery and knitwear items, the Railway authorities have accepted the state government’s proposal to set up information collection centres (ICC) at Ludhiana and Amritsar railway stations. Earlier, the Railway authorities were resisting the opening of such centres. However, permission was granted to set up the ICCs when the Excise and Taxation Department approached the top brass of the Railways in this connection. The sites for setting the up ICCs have been selected and the centres will be made functional within a week or so. A report on this is also expected to be presented to the court as a case pertaining to the evasion of sales tax through rail routes is pending before it. Hosiery and knitwear items worth several crores of rupees had been impounded at Ludhiana railway station about six months ago. Tax had not been paid on most of the goods. Besides, most of these were allegedly booked in the names of bogus firms. The process of drafting legislation pertaining to value added tax (VAT) has been set in motion by the Punjab Government. The officers concerned of the Excise and Taxation Department have been told to study the Acts in force in West Bengal and Maharashtra in this connection. The Act framed by the West Bengal Government will suit Punjab the most, it is learnt. |
Accused
confess to another
murder Pathankot, July 10 According to the SSP, Mr Sukhdev Singh, Mangal Dass Bhatia, who ran hosiery business under the name of M/s Star Light Hosiery Mills, used to visit Pathankot frequently in connection with his
dealings. Sushil, who was also running a shop near Police Station Division No 1, had to pay Rs 40,000 for hosiery items supplied by the victim. Sushil is close relative of a legislator of the
area. Sushil, Parmodh and Shilpa allegedly hatched a conspiracy along with the brother of
Shilpa, Kishore Kumar, to murder the victim and loot his collections and other articles. At about 3 p.m. on August 6, last year, the accused offered coke to the victim and took him to a cabin of the shop and attacked him with knife thus killing him. However, Shilpa’s brother Kishore remained outside the shop to stop others from entering the cabin, the police said. The body of the victim was then packed into a gunny bag and thrown into Hydel Canal near Kotli village on the same night. The police has recovered a watch, a purse, identity card and visiting cards belonging to the victim from the possession of the
accused. Sushil, Parmodh and Shilpa were produced before Duty Magistrate Harish
Anand, who remanded Sushil and Parmodh to the police custody and Shilpa was remanded to judicial
custody. Shilpa applied to the Magistrate for granting her pardon and declaring her approver. The magistrate has sent the application to the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Gurdaspur, for necessary directions. |
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Vice-president of SJP unit
suspended Chandigarh, July 10 Mr Jeeda said Mr Sukhi had been suspended because of his anti-party activities. His case had been referred to Mr Satish Kumar, chairman of the disciplinary committee of the party, for further action. |
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Five-member BJP panel to look into councillors’
suspension Bathinda, July 10 The delay in the decision regarding the suspension of three municipal councillors Vimla Garg, Chiman Lal and Shashi Datta, about a year ago has been sending wrong signals to the grassroots workers. A section of workers and party sympathisers with whom TNS talked to pointed out that it was very surprising that this matter could not be solved in the party’s state executive meeting held here in recently. Mr O.P. Kohli, National Secretary, BJP, and Mr Brij Lal Rinwa, President, BJP, Punjab, attended the two-day meeting. Information gathered from party sources revealed that Mr Kohli had constituted a five-member committee, including Mr Rinwa, Bibi Gurcharan Kaur, MP, Mr Gulzar Singh, president, BJP, Bathinda district, Mr Narinder Mittal, president, BJP, Mandal, Bathinda and Mr M.L. Garg, former president, BJP Bathinda district, to take a decision on the suspension of the three municipal councillors. These three municipal councillors were placed under suspension by former president of BJP, Mandal Bathinda, Mr Gulzar Singh, last year. They were suspended as they had allegedly conspired with the local Akali minister and other senior Akali leaders to harm the interests of party. The party had fielded Mr Basant Bhatia, a municipal councillors, as its official candidate for the election as member to the local Improvement Trust. On the day of election, Mrs Garg, had recommended the name of Mr Chiman Lal Garg and it was seconded by Mrs Datta. Mr Gulzar Singh in a show-cause notice issued to the three municipal councillors had then asked them why they should not be expelled from the party. He had sought the
explanation within 15 days from the date of notice. Party sources said these three municipal councillors met Mr Kohli in the local Circuit House on June 5 and apprised them of the situation of party affairs. The sources added that a section of the local unit of the party was in favour of settling the matter amicably. This section opined that division in the rank and file would harm the prospects of the party in the next Assembly elections. However, another section was opposing the revocation of their suspension on the basis that it would boost up indiscipline in the party. Party workers felt that party affairs should be conducted as per party guidelines. Mr Gulzar Singh, when contacted, said party discipline was important and those who violated it would not be spared. |
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Dang: case against Sarpanch false Amritsar, July 10 Mr Kabul Singh also states that earlier he had prevented some panchayat land from being grabbed by them. Independent inquiries by Mr Sat Pal Dang, veteran CPI leader, have also found the facts of the representation to be correct. The allegation against the Sarpanch is that he had grabbed panchayat land. Mr Kabul Singh said a case was sought to be registered against him curlier at the Chheharta police station. The SHO in-charge, after going through the records, concluded that the land sold by the Sarpanch was not panchayat land as alleged by Surinder Pal and others. Later, the same case was registered in the Civil Lines police station allegedly under political pressure. Mr Dang alleged a minister’s son was behind the lodging of the false case. He said some police officials had also conceded to him about the interests of the alleged minister’s kin in the case. |
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Disband
PSGPC, says
Bibi Phagwara, July 10 Talking to newsmen at residence of Mr Gurjit Singh Khalsa, her close confidant, Bibi Jagir Kaur asserted that the PSGPC headed by a former ISI chief Javed Nasir was an attack on the democratically elected SGPC. In case Pakistan had any problem, the matter should have been discussed on government to government level taking SGPC into confidence, she continued. Bibi Jagir Kaur, who had banned sending Sikh jathas to Pakistan in protest against PSGPC, was, however, evasive to query about the reversal of her decision by the present incumbent Jathedar Jagdev Singh Talwandi. The president of the SGPC had every right to send jathas but those who had gone to Pakistan had returned disappointed, she said. The jathas do not go to see only buildings but to get their appetite satiated and that is if the ‘gurmat maryada’ is observed inside those shrines. She denied having a quarrel with Jathedar Talwandi. The Bibi refused to comment on the statements of Jagjit Singh Chohan, Khalistan ideologue. It was for SAD chief, Mr Parkash Singh Badal or the PAC to make any policy statement over it, she said. She was not averse to the constitution of an All-India Gurdwara Act for bringing other gurdwaras under the ambit of the Sikh ‘rehat-maryada’. She appealed to the Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to discuss with Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf the issue of transfer of the control of Sikh shrines in Pakistan to SGPC. She had already written to Vajpayee about it. Later, Bibi Jagir Kaur addressed dalit jan chetna function. Akali stalwarts Jarnail Singh Wahid, Jathedar Gurmukh Singh, Jatinder Pal Singh Palahi, Gurjit Singh Khalsa were with her and also spoke. |
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Illegal
liquor vends continue to
flourish Patiala, July 10 Earlier, Chandigarh Tribune had highlighted the operation of unauthorised vends by liquor contractors in the city. The contractors had chosen to put up khokhas close to residential premises, besides selling liquor on commercial premises, including a shop selling iron and cement. Assistant Excise and Taxation Commissioner
H. S. Rosha, when questioned on this score at a press conference yesterday, said action had been taken against liquor contractors who were violating the excise rules. However, the details furnished by the department soon after were vague about the action taken in the case. According to the
AETC, 27 liquor vends were challaned in the district by the staff from April 1 to June 30 this year. He said out of these 10 vends were found to be functioning as unauthorised vends. However, no details were provided as to what action had been taken against those who had been operating these vends. A quick survey of the city has revealed that unauthorised vends continue to run uninterrupted in the city. An unauthorised vend is being run right next to the
Patiala-Rajpura road. Sources said this vend, which had a number of crates stores inside it, as could be seen during the day, became a hub of activity during the evening with a small illegal ahata also having sprung up near it. They said the vend had been operating there for quite some time. Other such vends are being run in
Tripri, Gurbax Colony, Bajwa Colony and adjoining villages. Talking to a cross-section of the public, it was revealed that the vends, which were mostly located close to residential premises, were invariably a cause of nuisance in the area. They said the presence of vends at such places sometimes also led to unruly scenes. They said though junior officials of the Excise Department were vigilant against smuggling of liquor into the city, the illegal operation of such vends invariably escaped their notice. Illegal running of vends is costing the Excise Department dearly. According to norms, liquor contractors have to take special permission for running of
subvends. They said for this the contractors had to submit a fee of around Rs 20,000 per
subvend. They said contractors usually submitted fee for running of subvends in the border areas of the district to counter smuggling from across the border as well as compete with liquor contractors of other districts. Operation of unauthorised vends has come about after the formation of a syndicate in the city. The syndicate, comprising various liquor contractors, has created a common pool of rates to end competition between themselves. This is to the detriment of the consumer with liquor rates having been hiked in the city and none underselling due to
competition. |
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PSEB employees hold dharna despite court
stay Patiala, July 10 The dharna was attended by workers from the various thermal and
hydel, projects besides circle, grid, workshop and employees of the headquarters, here. It was organised to ensure implementation of the demands allegedly agreed upon by the board management earlier, which was presided over by Power Minister Sikander Singh Maluka. Speaking on the occasion, Employees Federation President Surinder Singh and General Secretary B.S. Sekhon accused the board management of knowingly creating unrest among the employees by not implementing demands agreed by it, including grant of 23 years timebound scale to employees before April this year, removal of anomalies before June this year and release of time bound scales before June 30 this year and to grant benefit of ad hoc service during promotion and time bound scale. The leaders said in addition it was also agreed to create new posts as per work load norms and to grant one tubewell connection to board employees. Speaking on the occasion Mr Surinder Singh said the board management was not implementing the agreed upon demands on the plea that the board was running in losses. He said, however, the real cause of losses was not being identified with large-scale embezzlement occurring in purchase of material and below standard coal. He said the management had also failed in its initiative to stop power theft and reduce line losses. The union leader said the line staff should be given free hand to check theft of power. He also warned the board against privatisation, saying it should learn an example from Enron. Other leaders also warned the board against privatisation, adding the government should cancel the Goindwal project given to a private party and hand it over to the board for execution. The main speakers included B.S.
Sekhon, Manjit Singh Chahal, Gurdev Singh Pannu, Bikker Singh
Manghania, Balwinder Singh Pasiana, Puran Singh Khai, Sawan Singh, Raj Kumar Chopra and Inderjit Singh
Dhillon. |
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Proposals
for facelift of Bathinda
city Bathinda, July 10 Mr Ratnam held a meeting with the councillors and council officials to know their views on how to beautify the city and provide the basic amenities. The meeting was attended, among others, by Mr Bhupinder Singh Bhuller and Mr Shiv Kumar Mittal, president and executive officer, respectively, of the council. Mr Ratnam directed the officials to make plans for the development of the city keeping in view its expansion in the future. He gave an assurance that nobody would be allowed to encroach on ponds. Arrangements would be made for draining ponds, he said. It was decided that the main road would be made of concrete. Pavements and dividers would also be constructed. About 10 resolutions regarding beautification of the city were passed at the meeting. The councillors suggested some employees of the Punjab State Electricity Board should be deployed in the municipal council. They proposed the construction of an open drain in the city. |
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Fountains
cry for
attention Patiala, July 10 The fountains, which were once the pride of the city seem to have been ignored as other newly constructed facilities were getting the attention of the authorities concerned. In the case of the fountain near the traffic-lights on the Mall the sprinklers are not working properly and the colour filters on the lights had long served their utility. There are a total of three such fountains on the Mall Road. Sources said due to minor problems they were not being used regularly and were switched on only during important occasions. Moreover, they said, attention has diverted to the newly constructed fountain in the Baradari Gardens due to which these were being ignored. The facilities were presently in a bad condition. Fused-circuit bulbs had not been replaced and filters had lost their sheen. Moreover, the fountains were in a mess with grime covering them which also affected the efficiency of its sprinklers. Residents feel that since the expenditure to lay these fountains had already been incurred, a little of funds would be enough to keep these fountains in running condition. Mr Raman Singh, who occasionally takes a walk around these fountains in the evenings said, “All that the administration needs to do is to change the fused-bulbs regularly and clean the filters in order to run the fountains all the year round.” Mr Manmeet Singh, a social worker, said the fountains lent character to the Mall Road. The poor state of the water features reflect upon the condition of the city, especially, to the casual visitors passing through it. |
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They build mansions but remain
homeless Bathinda, July 10 Even after putting 12 to 18 hours of labour in adverse climatic conditions, these workers barely earn enough to keep themselves hand to mouth. For two square meals a day, they are forced to push their children into labour when they should be sent to school. As most labourers are from Bihar, eastern U.P. or Madhya Pradesh and live in kuchha houses near brickkilns sans civic and health facilities, most are unable to exercise their right to vote. A random survey of the brickkilns of the district revealed that child labour, although banned in the country, is widely prevalent in the kilns. But children are not paid anything as most are employed by the labourers themselves, just to add to the number of bricks produced in a day. All these workers are hired on contractual basis at Rs 175 for 1000 bricks. Most labourers said it was not possible to produce more than one lakh bricks a year by a single person. The day of a labourer starts at 2 a.m. as he has to prepare kuchhi bricks by 7 a.m. When the furnace is ready for baking, the labourers have to handle almost the entire process involved in making of bricks — preparing the mud, making unbaked bricks, baking these at very high temperatures taking these out and then counting and arranging these in on order — all for a paltry sum. Most employed at the brickkilns have become drug addict to enhance “productivity.” Addiction to tobacco, liquor, opium and poppy husk is common. The contractors are indifferent to the inhuman working conditions. Rough estimates revealed that about 85 per cent of their children do not complete even primary education. The houses in which these labourers reside are small and dingy without any ventilation electricity and water. Due to the unhealthy conditions, they fall ill frequently. About a fortnight ago, six labourers working in a kiln died of gastroenteritis in this district due to consumption of contaminated water. Not only this their womenfolk are often exploited by not only contractors but by neighbouring villagers too. Mr Channan Ram, state president of the Brickkiln Labourers Union, said till the brickkilns were not brought under the Factories Act and minimum wages not ensured for labourers, their lot could not be improved. To improve the working and living conditions of the labourers, primary health centres and schools should be set up near brickkilns. A payroll register must be made mandatory at the kilns, he added. Senior officials of the district administration said the brickkiln workers were often denied the right to vote as they did not have permanent residence in the state. The labourers are denied voting rights in their home-states as they are often absent during census operations. |
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Election
of
sarpanches Chandigarh, July 10 The last date for filing the nomination papers was July 19. Polling would be held between 8 a.m to 4 p.m. The counting of votes would be held immediately after the polling and the results declared on the spot. |
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AG to deliver lecture in
Malaysia Chandigarh, July 10 The Bar Council of Malaysia has also invited Mr Mattewal’s wife, Dr Maninder Kaur, Member , Punjab Human Rights Commission, and currently in Singapore, to attend the lecture as a special guest. |
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BSF shoots two youths near border Batala, July 10 The police said BSF personnel observed that two youths were trying to cross over to Pakistan illegally. The BSF personnel opened fire when the youths ignored their signal and killed them. The BSF recovered a fake Bangladesh passport from them.
PTI |
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Three killed in mishap Patiala, July 10 The car which was coming from Sangrur collided with the truck. The car driver, and two others, namely Vinod Kumar and Rajesh Kumar died on the sport. Apart from them, Urmila and Asha were also travelling in the car. They were referred to the
PGI, Chandigarh. |
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NTAS stages patriotic
play Patiala, July 10 Mr S.K. Ahluwalia, Additional Commissioner (Appeals), inaugurated the function and emphasised on the application of more such cultural and patriotic plays. He appreciated the activities initiated by Pran Sabhawal, theatre director. Presiding over the function. Dr Madan Lal Hasija, Director, State Language Department, assured that the government help would be given to revive Punjabi culture and tradition. Certificates of merit and mementos were given to nearly 60 participants who played respective roles in the play. |
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Arun Vij
is FFI vice-president Patiala, July 10 He has also been elected chairman of the Technical Commission of the FFI at the same meeting. |
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Announce paddy MSP: Cong Chandigarh, July 10 Capt Amarinder Singh, president of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, who had urged the Union Government to fix Rs 800 per quintal as the MSP, said this should have been announced before the transplantation of paddy. |
MC starts ‘awareness campaign’
today Amritsar, July 10 Consequently, an “awareness campaign” will be launched tomorrow by the corporation. The Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Mr B.R. Banga, said groups of four to six corporation personnel would apprise citizens of the danger and ways to conduct careful repairs and demolition of structures to safeguard life and property. However, yesterday’s collapse, in which a rickshawala died, and the week ago collapse of a multi-storeyed centuries-old building that took a toll of three of a family have sounded alarm bells for thousands of residents. Architectural experts feel that the current monsoon is likely to prove the proverbial “last straw” for these ancient structures which have withstood the vagaries of nature through centuries. The feel that a slightest earth tremor could raze the buildings already dampened by the monsoon which are in precarious conditions. Some are of the view that merely an awareness campaign is too little a solution as a preventive measure in view of the critical condition of buildings that could play havoc with lives of thousands. “The narrow lanes defy accessibility to these structures making repairs or demolition an extremely tedious and dangerous task. In addition to this, the structures are constructed in close integrity. Perhaps this is the prime reason that these buildings have withstood the wear and tear as they derived vital support from adjoining buildings. A single collapse in the cluster, therefore, means loosing support for the adjacent building,” opine experts. However, Mr Banga says that all help will be extended by the corporation to any person seeking repairs or demolition. Experts, however, feel a massive support structure is needed to carry out demolition or even minor repairs as these could disturb adjoining structures and are likely to prove dangerous not only for residents but also for labourers employed to carry out repairs. |
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PSEB told to replace old power
lines Moga, July 10 He constituted a committee to assess the taxes imposed on the residents of Moga by the municipal council and to redress the grievances of the people. |
Councillors’ kin getting contracts: BJP
leader Bathinda, July 10 Mrs Mangat, in letters to the Chief Minister, the local bodies minister and state BJP president, Mr Brij Lal Rinwa, alleged that contracts of development works were being allotted to some relatives of certain municipal councillors to benefit them. She alleged that the President of the municipal council, Mr Bhupinder Singh Bhuller had not been carrying out the development works in her ward number one. She said no pipes were laid in her area despite the fact that tubewells were installed by the previous municipal council about five years ago. She further alleged that Mr Bhuller deliberately held up the repair of the Kotha Sucha Singh road on various pretext. In certain development works done in her ward, the quality of work was very poor. She pointed out that on June 18, this year tenders were invited for development work and the ward represented by her was totally ignored. She added 42 tenders were opened on July 9 and gain the ward represented by her was ignored. She said though the SAD-BJP relations were lasting at the national and the state level, in Bathinda city it was just a “show”. She added that such incidents should be taken seriously as the Assembly elections would be held in the next six months. She alleged that the image of municipal councillors who had been doing their work honestly had gone down under the presidentship of Mr Bhuller. She said her request to President to discuss the development works with the municipal councillors did not produce any result. Mr Bhuller, when contacted, said he had never discriminated against any municipal councillor in matter of development works. Developments works in the ward represented by Mrs Mangat had also been carried out, he said. For more development works in her ward, the tenders would be opened on July 16 and July 17, he added. He said the allegation of Mrs Mangat regarding his unfair treatment with the members of the BJP was not true and baseless. He added that all other municipal councillors belonging to the BJP never made a complaint in this connection. He said the developments works were being carried out as per the priorities fixed and it was the main aim of the local municipal council to cover the entire city in the phases. He said he felt sorry if any of action of his had hurt the feelings of Mrs
Mangat. |
Computerisation
drive Chandigarh, July 10 Launching computer programme in the department, the Financial Commissioner, Development, Mr C.L. Bains, hoped that the department may now witness efficiency and transparency. It was told that after the computerisation process is complete, the status of water and soil property will be widely available for the farmer to decide his crop and
inputs. |
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Held for attesting ‘fake’
marriage certificate Jalandhar, July 10 Paramjit Kaur, of Ramgarh village, according to her parents Fateh Singh and Manjit Kaur, had gone Kartarpur with her friend Dimple on June 1, and has not returned home since that day. After they failed to traces her, Fateh Singh and his relatives lodged a complaint with the Bholath police station. The officials allegedly refused to register a case on the plea that the girl was an adult and might have left home on her own for a number of reasons, including a love affair, and assured them that she might come back after some days. Fateh Singh, suspected that Sukhbir Singh of the Kishanpura locality of Jalandhar might have taken his daughter away but that failed to convince the authorities, which finally registered a case after the SSP, Kapurthala, Mr Gurpreet Deo, intervened. Fateh Singh had also complained that Ramgarh panchayat member Nirmal Singh had been helping the suspect and had even attested and presented a “fake” certificate of marriage of Sukhbir Singh and Paramjit Kaur. Fateh Singh said he had only sought the help of the police in tracing his daughter and had no objection to her marriage. But his plea had fallen on deaf ears, he said. He alleged that the address given in the affidavit attached by Sukhbir Singh with the marriage certificate was fake, but the panchayat member having this knowledge had attested it to help the accused. It has only after a lot of dilly-dallying that the police authorities had arrested Nirmal Singh, he alleged. Mr Harmel Singh, DSP, Bholath, has confirmed the arrest of Nirmal Singh. |
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Free phone calls racket
unearthed Bathinda, July 10 Talking to TNS Mr Bhupinder Singh Bhuller, president, Municipal Council, said the accused, who had been running a PCO located in front of the office of municipal council, was using the telephone line of the municipal council to facilitate customers make calls. He added that when the accused was caught last evening, he admitted he had been using the municipal council’s telephone line using a ‘kundi’ connection from the distribution point (DP) pair on the telephone pole. Mr Bhuller said the accused had been using telephone number 238809 which was installed about six months ago. The accused had been misuing, the telephone for the past about four months. The municipal council in a resolution today, decided to cancel the allotment of land given for the setting up the PCO to its owner. The real owner of the PCO had leased it out to someone else who had absconded, he said. Mr Bhuller said the municipal council was yet to ascertain the extent of loss the municipal council had been getting inflated bills for the past four months. Mr Bhuller said about a week ago, a person known to him received a call on his cell phone which was made from the number allotted to the PCO. But the number which appeared on the cell phone of that person was of the municipal engineer. He said after this the municipal council officials got suspicious and laid a trap to nab the culprit. After about six days, the accused was caught red-handed last night when a call made from his PCO was found to be made from the telephone of municipal council he added. Mr Bhuller said when a raid was conducted at the PCO last evening, the accused confessed having misused the telephone. The police would be asked to take legal action against the accused. |
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150 kg of poppy husk seized, peddler
held Bathinda, July 10 Police sources said he had been smuggling poppy husk for the past many years from the neighbouring states. He was arrested in 1996 then again in 1997 and in 2000 for smuggling poppy husk. When the culprit was arrested in 2000 he was found in possession of 20 bags of poppy husk (700 kg) and was accompanied by three others. He was on leave from his sentence at that time, the sources said. The culprit had been dodging the police for the past many months though he was under strict observation. The poppy husk was kept at a kutcha house at his farm, the sources said. A case under Section 15 of the NDPS Act had been registered in this connection. The district police also arrested 15 other culprits for indulging in various crimes. Bikker Singh of Guman Khan village was arrested for possessing poppy husk under Section 5 of the NDPS Act and 7 kg of poppy husk was seized from him. Three other persons, Buta Ram, Balwant Singh and Jagtar Singh of the district, were arrested under the Excise Act for possessing illicit liquor. About 30 liters of illicit alcohol was seized from them. Under the prevention of the Gambling Act as many as 10 persons were arrested by the district police. The accused were identified as Sukhwinder Singh, Satpal Singh, Krishan Singh, Rakesh Kumar, Gurpreet Singh, Harish Kumar, Jagdish Rai, Krishan Kumar and Sadhu Ram and Rs 3516 were recovered from them. One more culprit was arrested under the Arms Act. He was identified as Sukhpal Singh and a .315 bore gun and two live cartridges were seized from him. |
Meritorious students
denied admission Ferozepore, July 10 On July 9, 2001, Neha and Namrita got a shock when Ms Prashar refused them admission despite the fact that Neha had stood fourth in the college and Namrita had been declared the best student, giddha dancer and vocalist. A photo of Namrita had also been published in the college prospectus for her achievements. Ms Prashar, when contacted on phone, while admitting the fact that Neha and Namrita had been refused admission to BA III by her, said their mothers, who were working as lecturers, had launched a campaign to defame the institution and her. She alleged that both these lecturers had been using derogatory remarks against her publicly and also asking students not to take admission in this college by painting a wrong picture in their minds about the reputation of the college. Neha and Namrita in separate representations sent to the Vice-Chancellor, Panjab University, Chandigarh, pointed out they had been denied admission despite the fact that they had a good academic record. They said they had been denied admission by Ms Prashar without assigning any valid reason for the same. They alleged they had been denied admission as their mothers were opposing the suspension of a college lecturer, namely Mrs Harbans Kaur. They pointed out they had opted for English functional as an elective subject in their degree course. No other college in the district offered the same subject in BA. They appealed to the Vice-Chancellor to direct the Principal to give them admission before the last for admissions. Ms Prashar, however, pointed out the Vice-Chancellor could not compel her to admit any student in the college as it had been clearly mentioned in the prospectus that only the Principal could decide which applicant was to be admitted or not. She said English functional as an elective subject was being offered by the colleges located at Ludhiana and Chandigarh and these girls could do their BA from those colleges. She alleged the campaign launched by the two lecturers against her and the college could affect the psyche of the 700 students who had been living in the hostel of the college. |
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Notice
issued to Punjab
Government Chandigarh, July 10 Dr Sandhu, who is also Vice-President of the GNDU Teachers Association, contended that the agenda item relating to the creation of the post of Director, Trauma Centre in the university purported to have been passed in the Finance Committee meeting held on October 19 last year was a manipulated item and an act of forgery. He further contended that no such item was a part of the agenda and no decision was ever taken regarding the creation of the post of Director, Trauma centre. He placed on record detailed correspondence that had taken place between the Department of Finance, Punjab Government and the university as well as the Department of Higher Education, Punjab Government. The Finance Department had categorically asserted that the aforesaid item was never a part of the agenda of the meeting which was inter alia attended by the Principal Secretary, Finance. Further, the department had directed the university not to go ahead with the resolution of creating the new post. The forged resolution carried the signatures of the Vice-Chancellor and the Registrar and the offence was serious in nature and needed investigation. Dr Sandhu further contended that since there was no Trauma Centre existing in the university, therefore it would have been an extra ordinary burden on the state exchequer to create a post without any practical utility. After hearing counsel for the petitioner, Mr Justice V.K. Jain issued notice of motion. |
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Jalandhar
girl second in PMET Jalandhar, July 8 More than 8,000 students participated in the test. An elated Anureet, a product of the local Guru Amar Dass Public School, attributed her success to her school Principal Bhadur Singh. Anureet, a local resident of New Jawahar Nagar Colony, said, “My aim is to join a government job and I shall seek a rural posting to serve the weaker sections of society. Dr Mandeep Singh Sethi, Chairman of the school managing committee, stated that a gold medal and a cash reward of Rs 11,000 would be awarded to her. |
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School
issue taken up with
minister Chak Ramsinghwala (Bathinda), July 10 The residents, who locked the high school yesterday to protest against the upgradation of the primary school at the neighbouring Chak Fathesinghwala village to plus two level in place of the high school located in their village, alleged that they had been discriminated against because Chak Fathesinghwala was the native village of the in-laws of the Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal. |
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VC releases book of Kirpal Singh Patiala, July 10 This was stated by Dr Jasbir Singh Ahluwalia, Vice-Chancellor, Punjabi University, while speaking on ‘Sikh historiography and Dr Kirpal Singh’ held here today. He said the old conception of mere history was over and that now the quest was for identifying forces behind facts. Dr Ahluwalia said the need of the hour is to distinguish between writing history from outside as compared to one written with proofs. Talking about Dr Kirpal Singh and his contribution to the Sikh historiography with Prof Prithipal Singh Kapoor, Dr Ahluwalia said that Dr Kirpal Singh writes form Sikh perspective and Sikh consciousness. Dr S.K. Gupta elaborated at length the contributions of Dr Kirpal Singh and stressed that he remained active in the field of historical writing by following the footsteps of Karam Singh and Ganda Singh. On the occasion, Dr Ahluwalia also released a book written by Dr Kirpal Singh on ‘Sikhan De Pakistan Vichon Niklan Di Gatha’. Others who spoke on the occasion were Prof P.S. Kapoor, Dr Kharak Singh and Dr A.C. Arora. Punjabi University results Patiala, July 10 |
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