POLITICS

Agitated BJP workers hold rally Chandigarh, September 14 Even as hundreds of workers of the BJP held a rally here in protest against the alleged corruption in the municipal council and beating up of councillors, it has brought for the differences between the two groups of the district unit of the SAD.
BJP activists taking out a procession in Bathinda on Friday to lodge their protest against the alleged corruption in the municipal council.— Tribune photo

Badal challenges Rajasthan Cong
Chandigarh, September 14
The Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, has challenged the ruling Congress in Rajasthan to prove that he owns a 5,000-acre farm in Jodhpur as was alleged by the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee chief, Capt Amarinder Singh.

Sohi’s widow lays claim to Banur seat
Patiala, September 14
Sheelam Sohi, the widow of former Zila Parishad Chairman Ravinder Sohi, today laid claim to the Banur Assembly seat and presented her case before the All India Congress observer who is camping here for the past two days to access Congress aspirants from seven rural seats of this parliamentary constituency.

Cong backward classes cell
Chandigarh, September 14
Mr Jasbir Singh, chairman of the backward classes cell of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, yesterday announced the list of its other office-bearers. Mr Jasbir Singh said that the list had been approved by Capt Amarinder Singh, president of the PPCC.

COMMUNITY

Compensation delayed to aggrieved residents
Sunam, September 14
Fourteen families of the local Kailash Parvat locality, whose houses and shops were badly damaged due to the alleged negligence of a contractor engaged by the local municipal council for installing a tubewell, have been crying for justice as the authorities concerned have failed to provide them compensation despite the submission of an inquiry report on August 10 by the SDM.

Fly ash overflows before time
Patiala, September 14
The storage of fly ash released from the Lehra Mohabbat project in Bathinda is posing problems to the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB). The board has now been forced to go in for a Rs 4 crore project to raise the dyke in which fly ash is being stored in the form of slurry mainly because the fly ash could not be disposed of to cement plants which were to come up in the area.

JCB machine without use
Fatehgarh Sahib
The JCB machine allotted to this district to dig village ponds has been used only once in Rurkee village, since its arrival six months ago.

Lawyers raise “illegal” sheds
Sangrur, September 14
Due to the shifting of courts to the newly built judicial complex here on September 10, lawyers have begun raising sheds in the courtyard of the new complex.

2 errant PSEB JEs suspended
Gurdaspur, September 14
Mr U.S. Saroa, Senior Engineer, the local PSEB circle, has suspended two Junior Engineers, Sukha Singh and Nirmal Singh, posted at 132 kv sub station at Srihargobindpur on charges of negligence of duty.

Blast in acid storage tank kills three
Barnala, September 14
Three labourers welding a storage tank of acid at Varinder Ago-Chemicals Complex of the Trident group of industries here died last afternoon in a blast which threw open the lid of the tank.

Woman loses leg in rail mishap
Bathinda, September 14
Gurjeet Kaur of Malsinghwala village in Mansa district was seriously injured when she fell on rail track while alighting from the moving 341 Down New Delhi-Ferozepore passenger train at the Maur Mandi railway station, about 35 km from here, today.

Honour for Atwal
Chandigarh, September 14
The Speaker of the Punjab Assembly, Mr Charanjit Singh Atwal, was elected Vice-Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), UK, at a meeting held in Canberra (Australia) on September 13.

• IG bereaved

AGRICULTURE

Reaping good harvest sans fertilisers
Budhlada, September 14
At the time when the use of insecticides and chemical fertilisers is on the rise and has become necessary for growers to reap bumper crop.

ADMINISTRATION

16 judicial officers promoted
Ludhiana, September 14
Sixteen judicial officers have been promoted by the Punjab and Haryana High Court, while seven newly-appointed judicial officers, have been posted at different district headquarters. Twelve courts have been abolished in Punjab and their pending cases are likely to be distributed among other judges soon.

• Seven judges get posting orders

District officers asked to be punctual
Sangrur, September 14
Mr D.P. Reddy, Divisional Commissioner, Patiala Division, here today asked the district officers to be punctual as non-punctuality brought a bad name to the administration and caused inconvenience to public.

CRIME

Case against 10 for parading woman
Batala, September 14
The police has registered a criminal case against 10 persons who had allegedly blackened the face, garlanded with shoes and paraded a woman in the streets on August 6, a police spokesman said here today.

Woman clerk held for taking bribe
Bathinda, September 14
Salochna Devi, a senior clerk in the local Tehsil Office, was caught redhanded by a Vigilance Bureau team led by DSP Jaspreet Singh Sidhu today while accepting a bribe of Rs 200 from a person who had applied for a certificate of residence of Punjab.

Bid to grab land alleged
Bathinda, September 14
Mr Vinod Kumar, a local resident, has alleged that some persons with political backing were harassing him and trying to grab the land owned by his father.

Liquor shop worker murdered
Sangrur, September 14
Balkaran Singh (32), an employee of a liquor shop, was allegedly murdered by some scooterist at the shop at Ilwal village, near here, today.

EDUCATION

Virasat opens with Mohan Bhatt concert
Amritsar, September 14
With the concert of Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Virasat 2001, organised by SPICMACAY, was launched at the Guru Nanak Dev University auditorium here today. He was accompanied by his son Salil and Sandeep Das.