Private college teachers flay pension scheme
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, June 14
The long-accepted and agreed demand of private college teachers got a severe setback today. The PCCTU, an apex body of over 5000 aided college teachers of Punjab, rejected the June 14, 2002, news item published in The Tribune regarding the so-called modified pension scheme for private college teachers.

Prof Kanwaljit Singh, area secretary, PCCTU, said today if the government went head with the plan of implementing the so-called modified 12-year-old pension scheme as given in the news item, the PCCTU would oppose it with all its might. To say that the government had nothing to do with the private college employees’ financial liabilities exposed the “bankruptcy of the thought on the part of the government.”

Way back on January 15, 1970, the then Punjab Government issued a letter to private college management to give pension/gratuity to their employees. The PCCTU waged a long-drawn battle against this letter. As a result of it, a modified pension scheme was announced on 18.12.1996 by the then Rajinder Kaur Bhattal government.

PCCTU president S.S. Hundal and state secretary Kanwaljit Singh in a joint statement issued from Ludhiana condemned the so-called modified pension scheme. They said that this news had spread a wave of strong resentment and anguish among the private college teachers of Punjab. They regretted that Punjab was only state in the region to deny this facility to its private college teachers.

COURTS

District Magistrate issues ban orders
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, June 14
The District Magistrate has banned the use of loudspeakers in the district at any hours without the permission of the competent authority.

In his orders issued here yesterday, Mr Anurag Aggarwal exercising his powers under Section 144, CrPC, said that as the loudspeakers caused disturbance to the public so their use without prior permission is banned.

He, however, exempted the police personnel, Home guards jawans, military and paramilitary personnel in uniform on duty for using loudspeakers for officials purpose.

The District Magistrate has also banned wearing of dresses of the BSF, Army and police personnel by the general public in the wake of certain crime incidents reported in the city by the criminals wearing such dresses. The DC, Mr Anurag Aggarwal, said that such dresses were used by the security guards of private sector concerns and by the public in general, so their use stands banned with effect from June 12.

Graft case: ASI gets bail
A Correspondent

Ludhiana, June 14
Sessions Judge V.B. Handa yesterday granted bail to Assistant Sub-Inspector Jagjit Singh in a graft case. The police had claimed to have recovered Rs 5,000 from the accused which he had allegedly accepted as bribe.

The ASI was booked on a complaint by Barinder Sharma, who had alleged that on May 22, he was illegally detained by the accused at police station Salem Tabri, along with his fiancee. The accused was demanding Rs 10,000 as bribe and under pressure his brother paid Rs 5,000, Mr Sharma further alleged.

The complainant added that on June 5, accused, along with a constable, came to their shop near Damoria Bridge and demanded another Rs 5,000, after which he had filed a complaint against the ASI.

Murder case accused acquitted
A Correspondent

Ludhiana, June 14
Mr V.B. Handa, Sessions Judge, Ludhiana, had acquitted Bhola Singh of Shanti Colony, Machhiwara, in a murder case. He had been accused of murdering a labourer, Ram Chander on December 24, 1999, as the prosecution had failed to prove its case.

An FIR was registered against an unknown person at police station Samrala on December 24, 1999 on a statement by Daljit Singh wherein he had alleged that he found the dead body of his labourer in a kiosk of his fields.

Later, the police arrested Bhola on basis of an extra judicial confession allegedly made by him before Satnam Singh, Paramjit Singh and Kuldeep Singh. But during the trial, material witnesses did not support the prosecution’s version.