Optional NPA for docs suggested
Panel seeks two months’ time
Chandigarh, August 27
The Experts Committee constituted by the Punjab Government to study the issue of withdrawal of non-practicing allowance (NPA) to the doctors has recommended the introduction of an “optional” NPA system and also a mechanism to oversee the same for which certain administrative and organisational changes have also been suggested.

Amarinder invites Pak Punjab CM Chandigarh, August 27 In a passionate invitation extended to his counterpart in Pakistan Punjab, the Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh, has invited him and his Cabinet colleagues to visit City Beautiful, in the first week of November, if possible. Capt Amarinder Singh has also expressed a desire to visit Pakistan Punjab.

Miraculous escape for Ludhiana pilgrims
Ludhiana, August 27
It was a call Bihari Lal and the rest of his family will remember for the rest of their lives. After national television channels reported the death of 40 persons and injury to 150 in a stampede on the occasion of the ‘Shahi Snan’ in Godavari at Nashik, a pall of gloom enveloped the Vishkarma Colony in the vicinity of Sangeet Cinema from where some families had gone for the holy dip.

Travel agents’ novel way of duping youths
Kapurthala, August 27
The police has arrested Kishan Kanojia, a travel agent of Jalandhar on the charge of duping Manjit Singh of Khasan village, under the Bholath police station, of Rs 7 lakh on the pretext of sending his nephew, Rupinder Singh, abroad.

POLITICS

• Office-bearers of new Akali Dal
  

COMMUNITY

Punjab body makes science posters for Unesco
Chandigarh, August 27
Reposing faith in the expertise of the Punjab State Council for Science and Technology (PSCST), the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has handed over major international science and technology literacy generation projects to the council.

Engineer accused of closing Malikpur project
Patiala, August 27
The Punjab State Electricity Board’s (PSEB) Vigilance Department has accused a Deputy Chief Engineer of closing down the UBDC hydel project at Malikpur in Gurdaspur district with ulterior motives for causing a loss of Rs 1 crore to the board.

Vinod Khanna threatens to court arrest
Ludhiana, August 27
The Union Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Mr Vinod Khanna, and the Punjab Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President, Mr B.L Rinwa, will court arrest at Gurdaspur on September 2, if the Punjab Government failed to withdraw cases against the BJP and Akali workers booked after the Naushera Pattan incident.

DGP opens police resource centre
Faridkot, August 27
Mr A.A. Siddiqui, Director-General Police (DGP), Punjab, has asked all police officials to be more responsive in resolving the problems of the people in the state.

Improvement trusts’ Chairmen demand powers
Bathinda, August 27
Ten Chairmen of different improvement trusts of Punjab, while taking a pledge that they will run the administration in honest and transparent manner to follow the policy of state Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh, urged him to make arrangements for giving them due powers which were sanctioned in the Punjab Town Improvement Act, 1922.

Plan to develop defence colony
Ropar, August 27
The Improvement Trust, Ropar, has planned to develop a modern defence colony in the town. The colony will be developed in an area of 50 acre on the Ropar-Morinda road, near Sahibzada Ajit Singh Academy. Fifty per cent of the plots in the colony will be reserved for serving defence personnel and ex-servicemen.

Eye flu rages
Hoshiarpur, August 27
A large number of cases of eye flu being reported in the Government hospitals and private clinics these days here. Most of the patients complain of redness and severe pain in eyes along with thick discharge.

Refinery on schedule: Mann
Bathinda, August 27
Mr Simranjit Singh Mann, President, SAD (Amritsar), said today that the Punjab refinery project being set up at Phulokhari village in the district would be completed within the stipulated period by Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL).

Scribe missing
Fatehgarh Sahib, August 27
Mr Parminder Singh Bakshi, a Sirhind-based journalist and in charge of the Hind Samachar Group of Newspapers sub-office at Fatehgarh Sahib, has been missing since Monday.

COURTS

HIGH COURT
Murder case
Chandigarh, August 27
The high court today fixed October 6 as the next date of hearing on a petition alleging the release of Punjab’s former minister Gurdev Singh Badal’s kin within a month of his conviction in a murder case.

AGRICULTURE

Farm officials inspect fields for bollworm
Bathinda, August 27
Even as the crucial period for cotton crop has started, an army of officials of the state Agriculture Department descended on the cotton belt of Punjab to guide the growers how to save their crops from the attack of American bollworm and other diseases.

ADMINISTRATION

Encroachers warned of heavy penalties
Patiala, August 27
The Municipal Corporation has identified five sites for the area-wise reallocation of the numerous ‘rehris’ of vegetables, fruits and other edible items which have been encroaching on roads and intersections throughout the city for the last two decades and plans to move these out in a phased manner by the year-end.

Irrigation SE, four others suspended
Chandigarh, August 27
The Punjab Government today suspended a Superintending Engineer, an Executive Engineer, a Subdivisional Engineer and two Superintendents of the Irrigation Department for not defending cases in labour courts.

12 employees found absent from duty
Patiala, August 27
The Mayor, Mr Vishnu Sharma, today conducted a surprise check on offices of the Municipal Corporation during the course of which 12 employees were found to be missing from their place of work.

4 civic staff dismissed for not depositing money
Amritsar, August 27
The Municipal Corporation has dismissed four of its employees for not depositing Rs 26,000 collected from water and sewerage bills. The corporation has also issued show cause notice to one Baldev Singh for not distributing water and sewerage bills. It has also ordered to deduct Rs 4,500 from his (Baldev’s) salary for not distributing bills among people on time.

CRIME

Ludhiana man in DRI net for fraud
Ludhiana, August 27
With the arrest of two Ludhiana-based businessmen — Vinod Kumar Garg and N.D. Garg — officials of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) have unearthed a major scandal involving at least Rs 20 crore. The accused used to claim export benefits from the government, even though they either did not export any material or exported it at far below the cost at which they claimed the incentives.

Boy stabs girl’s mother, ends life
Amritsar, August 27
In a fit of rage, a boy allegedly stabbed the mother of the girl he liked and later committed suicide after consuming some poisonous substance in the evening here today.

Undertrial escapes, rearrested
Fazilka, August 27
An undertrial prisoner escaped from police custody and was re-arrested after a short while last evening here.

Murder case solved, three arrested
Gurdaspur, August 27
The Dera Baba Nanak police, police district Batala, has solved the blind murder of Gulzar Masih, resident of Dhianpur. The body of the deceased was found from the fields near Dharamkot Ferry on the Indo-Pak border more than a fortnight ago.

Mohali driver shot at
Nawanshahr, August 27
Three unidentified persons reportedly snatched a Tata Sumo (CH 02, - 0689) by shooting at its driver Jasbir Singh, resident of Phase 11, SAS Nagar, near canal at Mehatpur Ulladhani village, about 18 km from here today.

• Girl recovered, abductors held

• Chandigarh family held for cheating
  

EDUCATION

Ragging reports continue as seniors let off
Vallah (Amritsar), August 27
Even as the disciplinary committee of the Sri Guru Ram Dass College for Medical Sciences and Research has given clean chit to senior students for ragging, serious complaints continue to be reported from MBBS freshers and their parents, who are sore over the inaction of the institute authorities regarding concrete steps against the erring students.

Show-cause notice to Ram Dass colleges
Amritsar, August 27
Guru Ram Dass Medical College and Sri Guru Ram Dass Dental College, both run by the SGPC, received show-cause notices from the government today after their refusal to follow government instructions on the fee structure and abolition of NRI seats.

Varsity courses fail to attract students
Patiala, August 27
The fee hike affected in professional courses by Punjabi University has led to student protests even as vacancies in numerous courses both within the campus and outside have forced the university to re-invite applications from students for admission to these courses.

Computer education for underprivileged
Patiala, August 27
Sewa Bharati is an institution which has taken up the task of providing computer education to the underprivileged. The institution has chosen two backward areas of the city, Partap Nagar and the Bundela Mandar near Shrindi Gate to open computer centres.

PTU forms panel on re-appear cases
Chandigarh, August 27
The Vice-Chancellor of Punjab Technical University, Jalandhar, has appointed a high-level committee to look into re-appear cases of B.Tech programmes being conducted by the university.

Rally against move to privatise ITIs
Bathinda, August 27
Members of the Industrial Training Employees Union, Punjab, today held a rally in the city to lodge their protest against the state government's move to privatise its polytechnic colleges and industrial training institutes (ITIs).