 |
|
|
|
|
||||
|
MC ignoring rights panel order, says
PFA Ludhiana, January 10 The PFA said that no action had been taken on the complaints made by the individuals and societies to the MC authorities and also forwarded by the complainant (PFA) regarding the butcheries on the Shimla Puri canal bridge area. The animal rights organisation would submit this report to the PHRC, which had asked the PFA to file a report before the next hearing on January 15. Stating that the open slaughtering of animals, birds and fish was not only source of nuisance but it also hurt the sentiments of the people, especially children and women. It further stated that it posed a health risk to the citizens as these slaughterhouses were breeding grounds of flies and rodents and helped in increasing stray dog population and spreading diseases like cholera, gastroenteritis, tuberculosis and rabies. Most of the animals, kept for slaughter, were sick and were under heavy stress. They were kept in unhygienic conditions. So the meat obtained from these unhealthy animals, birds and fish was also not fit for consumers. The PFA had, in its complaint to the PHRC, stated that the MC had failed to check illegal slaughter houses in the city. It had further stated that all major roads in the city had roadside butcheries many of which were near schools, hospitals, religious places etc. Quoting instances it had said that roadside butcheries were situated near Sacred Heart Convent School, BRS Nagar, Basti Jodhewal, Meherban, CMC Hospital, Haibowal, Aggar Nagar, Shimla Puri, Tajpur Road, Sherpur, Kashmir Nagar and many other places. The animals were brought there and slaughtered in the open thus hurting the sentiments of people, the PFA had stated. Many social and religious organisations and individuals had been demanding the closure of such butcheries. The PFA quoting the Section 11 of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 said that all these provisions under the section were flouted by the the owners of the roadside butcheries. So it had prayed to the commission in the interest of common public and poor animals to stop the slaughtering of animals in open and without checking the animals for any infections. The MC in its reply to the PHRC had submitted that the charge of negligence levelled against the MC was exaggerated as the provisions of Section 167 of the Punjab Municipal Act, 1911 were not applicable to the MC, Ludhiana. In order to check the unlawful slaughtering of animals and to regulate the sale of poultry, the provisions of Sections 333 and 341 of Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976 were applicable. The MC had stated that it had constructed an ultra-modern slaughter house in the Haibowal Dairy complex. Any animal brought for slaughter there was firstly medically examined by a veterinary surgeon and after the animal was declared medically fit only then the slaughtering was permitted. It further submitted that the authorities had challaned 272 such offenders as well as 1,037 kg of unhygienic meat had been destroyed. Moreover, the health staff of the MC issued licenses for the sale of meat to only those owners whose premises were neat and clean and were not situated near any school, college or religious place. |
|
Extra innings changed my life, says
Mandira Ludhiana, January 10 Giving details of her two auditions of the ICC Cricket World Cup, the Punjabi girl said that initially she was very scared. “The people of Set Max asked me plenty of questions on Cricket and I gave many right answers. I was thoroughly grilled but I was confident, I think that was why I got selected, but once I reached South Africa, I again got confused sitting with all those famous personalities, including Tony Greig, Kapil Dev, Srikanth, Ravi Shastri etc. But thanks to Set Max that we all became very good friends”, she said. It is her first visit to this industrial city, but she has been in Amritsar before. “I am proud to be a Sardarni. Basically, my family hails from Pakistan, which came to Delhi after Partition. I like Ludhiana but it is very cold here”, she said. An ardent fan of Sachin Tendulkar, Mandira said that it was because of Sachin that the Indian team reached the final of the cup. She said,”I would love to promote the women cricket team of India now”. Asked why she became so popular after extra-innings, Mandira said in a giggling manner, “I think people liked the way I asked questions in an innocent manner”. At present, she is not working for any TV serial. She said that had agreed to do the negative role in Kyonki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi only because she had never done any negative role before. She had also done a Hindi film Shaadi ka laddoo, which would be released in April, 2004 and the film had been directed by her husband, Mr Raj Kaushal, a director. Later in the afternoon, Mandira visited the homes of lucky winners at BRS Nagar and Ghumar Mandi and spent time with them, talking about the common interests, including movies. “Max has always given me a chance to be part of their innovative and fresh programming. “Mandira Aapke Ghar” has given me a chance to visit homes and cities of Max viewers and my fans. It is a very fulfilling experience and I will cherish forever the spontaneous love and acceptance from the warm and affectionate people of Ludhiana”, she said. |
|
Body of kidnapped boy
found Ludhiana, January 10 The kidnappers had demanded a ransom amount of Rs 4 lakh. The family had gone to pay the amount at a chosen place but no one had turned up there. The family had then approached the police which had registered the case and was investigating into the matter. But the hopes of the family to see the boy again dashed to the ground today afternoon when the mutilated body of the victim was found under a heap of dry grass from fields near Koom Kalan. The body seemed to be two days old and parts of legs and arms had been eaten by animals. The police said it seemed that the animals had dragged the body here. Family sources said the family was devastated at the turn of events and had pinned all their hopes on the Koom Kalan police. Police sources said some suspects had been rounded up and the police was hopeful of cracking the case. SSP Narinderpal Singh said it was a ghastly crime and despite best efforts of the police the kidnappers could not be traced . He said the police was working on two theories and the case would be solved soon. |
|
Proclaimed offender arrested Ludhiana, January 10 The accused, Puran Singh, alias Pamma, was a proclaimed offender in a liquor smuggling case of Division No. 5, had run away from the custody of local police from the district courts in December last year and had given wrong identity to the Government Railway Police here when he was caught on suspicion from the railway station. Besides these, several cases of robbery formation of gangs and anti-social activities were going on against him in different police stations of the state. His flight, however, was cut short when ASI Harbans Singh, in charge of Tajpur police post caught him on suspicion at a naka on Jail Road and seized a .12-bore pistol and a stolen scooter from his possession. It was only during investigation that the police learnt that he was a big catch. In a press releases issued by SSP Narinderpal Singh, Division No. 7 SHO Gurpreet Singh and ASI Harbans Singh have been credited with the success of catching the accused. The release said the accused was riding a scooter whose numberplates were smacked with mud in order to hide the number. |
|
Rs 500 cr for development Mandi Gobindgarh, January 10 He said the government was determined to root out corruption from the state. He had formed a vigilance wing in the local government department and people should inform the wing wherever they found any bungling, he added. It would be probed on a priority basis and
speedy action would be taken against the persons found involved, the minister maintained. Replying to a query on octroi abolition, promised in the election manifesto of the Congress, the minister said it had abolished by the previous government with an assurance that the amount equal to the income from octroi would be provided to the civic body in the shape of grant, but the same had not been released. He said the development of towns had consequently become stagnant and salaries of employees had not been released. He further said the Congress government had constituted a committee to find out the viability of imposing local development tax so that civic bodies did not suffer for want of funds. The minister earlier laid the foundation stone of a park spread over 4.5 acres near the PWD rest house. An amount of Rs 1 crore would be spent on it and it would be completed within two months. The minister also inaugurated a water supply tubewell in ward 10. Addressing a gathering at the bus stand, he said there was no split in the Congress and difference of opinion should not be construed as a split. The Congress would win all seats in the Lok Sabha elections, the minister claimed. Mr Shamsher Singh Dullo, MP, stated that the Congress was united and would defeat communal forces in the elections. He alleged that the Shiromani Akali Dal launched morchas when out of power and forgot the demands of the state whenever it was in power. Mr Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, MLA, said Gobindgarh had been given the status of a sub-tehsil and Amloh had been made a subdivision. He added that Fatehgarh Sahib had been made a district due to its historical importance by the Congress government. Local municipal council chief Joginder Pal Singla welcomed the guests and said the council would soon make arrangements for a truck stand to ensure smooth flow of traffic on the national highway. Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee secretary Joginder Singh Maini and organising secretary Sawtantra Karkara also addressed the gathering.
|
|
Indo-Pak Sufiana summit on Jan
23 Ludhiana, January 10 Given the phenomenal contribution of Punjab to the Sufi movement, with great masters like Baba Farid, Bhulle Shah and Waris Shah belonging to this great soil, the city has genuine claims for holding the summit and as usual the samagam seems to have picked up the right lead. While Pakistan will be represented by the Ajoka group, which recently gave several performances across the state, Hans Raj Hans, the great exponent of Sufiana music will represent India. Mr Sunil Kant Munjal, president of the samagam points out, “evolution of Sufi music in the current form owes much to Baba Bulle Shah and Amir Khusro who brought this unique form of music out of mela, dargah and urs culture”. There have been other icons and exponents of this music form like late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Abida Parveen and Reshma on the other side of Pakistan, while in India Hans Raj Hans, Wadali and Nizami brothers have kept the tradition alive. The Sufism primarily began with the short love poems (sometimes sung for a mystical concert called sama that expresses the yearning of the soul for union with the beloved). The love-relation prevailing in most of the Sufiana poetry is that between a man and a beautiful beloved. Typical of Sufi poetry is the hymn in praise of God, expressed in chains of repetitions. The mystics also contributed largely to the development of national and regional literatures, for they had to convey their message to the masses in their own languages. In Turkey as well as in the Punjabi, the Sindhi and the Urdu speaking areas of South Asia, the first true religious poetry was written by Sufis, who blended classical Islamic motifs with inherited popular legends and used popular rather than Persian metres. Sufi poetry expressing divine love and mystical union through the metaphors of love and union often resembled ordinary worldly love poetry. |
|
Anti-encroachment drive runs into
row Ludhiana, January 10 Refusing to comply with the orders, the residents have approached the state Home Department with documents showing that the Jail Department have been negotiating the sale of land to the occupants and have stated in writing that it does not require the land. Most of the affected persons live in areas of Islam Gunj. While the Jail Department had on January 6 issued notices of eviction within 48 hours or otherwise face demolition, the residents of the area had got letters from the Department that the government had no intention to force them out and was in fact interested in selling them land. The state Home Department has also stepped into the controversy following the request by the residents. According to a letter issued by the department yesterday, it has sought a report within a week from the state Jail Department regarding the controversy. A visit to the colony revealed that it would be quite a task for the Jail Department to carry out demolitions as a complete colony with narrow streets had come up on the land recorded as Khasra No. 1450 in revenue records. The land was given to these people on lease in 1970s for agriculture purposes. Later, the jail shifted out to the Tajpur road and land was used by people for construction. Close on the heels of the massive exercise launched by the local Municipal Corporation, the Jail Department had issued notices to these families citing the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Mr Sardul Singh, Deputy Superintendent, Central Jail, said the notices had been issued as per the high court orders. Mr Gurpreet Singh Nittu, Municipal Councillor and local leader of the BJP, who is fighting the cases of the residents, claimed that the Jail Department was on one hand offering the land to the area residents and negotiation in this regard was on, but on, the other hand had shocked the residents by issuing such notices. According to documents presented by the residents, the Jail Department had offered land to them for Rs 248 per square yard in the 1990s. The price first rose to Rs 350 and later upto Rs 5,500 per yard all these years. The residents prayed that they belonged to the poor section of society and could not pay that much. Mr Nittu claimed that as per a fresh compromise they had submitted affidavits for paying Rs 1,200 per sq yard. |
|
Traffic chaos
continues Ludhiana, January 10 In addition to rampant encroachments by shopkeepers by way of extension of sale counters or display of merchandise towards the roadside, the stationary and mobile rehris as well as pharis, coupled with indiscriminate parking of vehicles by shopkeepers and customers in front of the shops, hardly leave any passage for the ever-increasing traffic. Even though the market has negligible fast moving traffic because of sheer congestion, the slow moving vehicles like rickshaws, mule carts and luggage-carrying three-wheelers, make the things worse. The mess that the market finds itself in is more or less of the shopkeepers' own making and in private a majority of the shopkeepers admit their fault but in view of the financial implications they find it difficult to remedy the situation. It is a fact that a large number of shopkeepers, from Clock Tower to Ghas Mandi Chowk, have virtually rented out the vacant places in front of their respective shops to rehri or phariwalas to display their goods and carry out business. The fact that the shopkeepers have their vested interests in encroachments by the stationary and mobile vendors is borne out from their hue and cry against the occasional drives by the civic authorities to clear these settlers from the market. The Consumer Causes Forum, a voluntary organisation, after having conducted an intensive survey of Chaura Bazar to find ways and means to bring some semblance of order in the movement of traffic, has suggested that encroachments on both sides of the road, including the mobile and stationary vendors, be immediately cleared and display of goods outside the shops be banned in an effective manner. It has further urged the district and civic administration to effectively enforce the one-way traffic rules from Clock Tower to Ghas Mandi Chowk and that cars and other four-wheelers should not be permitted to ply beyond the stipulated parking place on the City Kotwali premises. |
|
Mann kicks off poll
campaign Samrala, January 10 Addressing a workers' conference here today, Mr Mann said while he would contest from Sangrur, Mr Bhag Singh Suratpura would the party candidate from Ropar. ''We are in the process of selecting our candidates for the Bathinda and Phillaur seats. In case the party strikes an alliance with the Ravi Inder Singh-led Akali Dal or manages to get the support from SGPC chief G.S. Tohra, we could contest more seats in the state,'' he revealed. Castigating the Akalis and the Congress, he said it was in the interest of the Punjabis to keep both parties out of power in the state. The NDA alliance had miserably failed in redressing the problems of the people. The rights of the state were frittered away by the SAD just to please its BJP masters. While in power the Akalis did not take up the issue of the river waters or the inclusion of the Punjabi-speaking areas in the state. Posing a question to Mr Parkash Ssingh Badal, he said the SAD chief should tell the people what he did for them during his five-year term other than abetting corruption. The people were fed up with them and this was evident in the assembly defeats in Rajasthan and Delhi where the Akalis failed to open their account. He pointed out that Mr Badal did not carry any weight in the alliance and that was the reason why no major project had been sanctioned for Punjab while Andhra Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu topped the list of beneficiaries. The much-touted project, an oil refinery at Bathinda, too had been cleverly scuttled by the Centre, he added. He said more than Rs 8,000 crore in farmers' subsidy had been cornered by the Akalis and the case file favouring a CBI inquiry had been kept pending owing to political pressure. Mr Mann said parleys were on with like-minded parties and a positive outcome was expected in the coming days. He also revealed that the party would contest the SGPC elections on the plank of giving more representation of the Punjabis abroad, vigorous dharam prachar and need to control the rampant apostasy among the youth. The others who addressed the gathering included party general secretary Charan Singh Lohara, kisan wing chief Satnam Singh Baheru, Mr Gurmukh Singh Purba, Mr Amrik Singh Issru and Mr Avtar Singh Grewal. The resolutions passed on the occasion included fixing the price of foodgrains with the price index, hiking the minimum support price of sugarcane and ensuring 12-hour uninterrupted power to the farmers. |
|
Manch celebrates Lohri; honours eminent
persons Ludhiana, January 10 Today’s mela had an important guest Mr Gene Lwodesky, Minister of Community Development and Deputy House Leader, in Alberta, Canada, who appeared quite impressed by the fun and frolic. The manch also honoured eminent luminaries like Prof Surjeet Patar, Deepak Thakur, Ms Manjit Sodhia, Raminder Singh (Deputy Commissioner, Amritsar), Mr Tejwant Kittu, Gokul Patnaik and Jasbir Jassi. The awards were presented by the Chairman, Punjab Pollution Control Board, Rana KP Singh. The day-long celebrations included the traditional folk dances bhangra and gidha, Punjabi pop songs, skits and other items related to Punjabi culture. Prof MS Cheema, a well-known critic of Punjabi culture, conducted the proceedings. Some prominent singers like Gursevak Mann, Ajay Dev, Suman Dutta, Diljit, Pali Jaitwani, Pami Bai, Surinder Chhinda, Parmidnder Sandhu and dashing Sukhi Brar set the stage on fire with their remarkable performances making people dance along with them. Rana KP Singh asserted that such festivals needed to be organised more frequently. He emphasised the need for involving more and more youth into such programmes. He pointed out such programmes not only promoted the tradition and culture but also create awareness among people about the rich culture of the state. He appreciated the efforts of Mr Pawan Dewan, Mr KK Bawa, Mr Ravinder Rangoowal and others for making such programmes a great success. More important was identifying the people who have made immense contribution to the Punjabi society, like Surjeet Patar, a Punjabi poet, Jasbir Jassi, singer, Deepak Thakur, a sportsman, Gokul Patnaik, who left his job to carry on research in agriculture and help farmers and Mr Raminder Singh, an outstanding bureaucrat who has served in various capacities and made a difference. The mela was inaugurated by local MLA, Mr Surinder Dawer and attended by ministers, including Mr Tej Prakash, Mr Amrjit Singh Samra, MLAs Rana Gurjit Singh, Mr Milkiat Singh Dakha, Mr Gurcharan Singh Ghalib and the Ludhiana Mayor, Mr Nahar Singh Gill. Mr Tej Parkash and Mr Samra announced a grant of Rs 51,000 each for the manch for promoting cultural activities in the state.
Ludhiana, January 10 Ms Anshul Berry, Additional Civil Judge (Senior Division), rendered a melodious Punjabi song related to Lohri amid applause. Not to be left behind, the lawyers on their part sang songs, cracked jokes and recited couplets. Mr Kanwaljit Singh Bajwa, and Mr S.S. Cheema sang Punjabi songs, which were appreciated by all. Mr Balwinder Goel, Bar president, said we should bury the prevaling bitterness in the Bar association and take pledge to work together for the welfare of lawyers fraternity at large. Mr K.S. Kalra and Mr Darshan Singh Rai showed resentment through songs against the shifting of lawyers’ chambers from the old courts complex and for not providing the possession of newly allotted chambers. |
|
Road safety awareness rally Ahmedgarh, January 10 The rally by policemen, members of the Rotary Club and students of the MGMN Senior Secondary School started from local police station. Addressing the rally, Mr Raj Kapoor, SHO (City), and Mr Jasmel Singh, SHO (Sadar), said that most of the road accidents could be avoided by following traffic rules. Police officials appealed to the voluntary organisations to come forward to educate the general public about traffic rules. They cautioned students against driving vehicle which they were not authorised to drive. Mr Pardeep Sharda, Principal, said students could help the authorities in regulating traffic during busy hours. While addressing the students at the local SVM Senior Secondary Secondary School, Ms Priyanka Sharma, Principal, said by abiding by traffic rules and road safety measures most of the lives could be saved. |
|
Police clueless about copyright
violators Ludhiana, January 10 Meanwhile, the police recovered about 7,000 more boxes belonging to Bombay Metal Work Pvt Ltd (BM Ltd). According to Mr Anil Mittal of BM Ltd, the main complainant in the case, they received an anonymous call last night. The caller revealed to them the location of a godown allegedly owned by the accused. Interestingly the godown contained the boxes of the original brand of BM Ltd and an earlier brand of the same company. BM Ltd had filed a case against RS Industries in the Delhi High Court for copying the packaging pattern and colour scheme of their product. Mr Mittal disclosed that the HC had restrained them from using the same colour scheme, features and packaging pattern. However, the goods seized yesterday where not manufactured by RS Industries, but where actually those manufactured by BM Ltd. |
|
2 booked for fraud Ludhiana, January 10 The complainant had alleged that Naveen Bajaj and Vishal Verma had defrauded his firm of Rs 403,920 and Rs 469624, respectively. No arrest has been made so far. |
|
|
In-laws booked in dowry
case Ludhiana, January 10 Forgery case The Sahnewal police yesterday registered a case under Sections 420 and 467 of the IPC against Gurnam Singh, a resident of Barwala village. The police said today that Gurnam after the death of his father, moved a forged document for notation, which after an inquiry was found to be forged.
Fake RCs case Following a tip-off, the Civil Lines police has registered a case under Sections 420,467,468 and 471 of the IPC against Sarabjit Singh, a resident of Fatehgarh, near Khanna , Darbara Singh , a resident of Rono village, Billa Khannewala and Parmod, a resident of Hanumangarh in Rajasthan. The police had the information that the accused were engaged in preparing fake registration certificates of vehicles.
Kidnapping alleged The Jodhewal police has registered a case under Sections 366 and 120-B of the IPC on the statement of Mr Lakha Singh, a resident of Dheri Wala village, against Gurdial Singh, Amarjit Singh Bholtu and Balwinder Singh, residents of the same village. The complainant had alleged that the accused had kidnapped his niece Sandeep Kaur , 20, on November 27 last and taken her to an undisclosed place.
Injured The Division Number 7 police registered a case under Sections 279 and 338 of the IPC on the statement of Mr Dalip Singh, a migrant from Bihar now living near the Tajpur Road, against Balkar Singh, a resident of Sasrali Colony. The complainant had stated that Dalip who was driving a bus, had hit his father on January 3 evening and injured him.
Arhtiyas booked Three partners of a firm have been booked for cheating and breach of trust under Sections 406, 420, IPC, by the Sidhwanbet police on the orders of Mr M.S. Chheena, SSP, Jagraon. Gulwant Singh, Jagjiwan Singh and Rupinder Singh of Leelan Megh Singh village were carrying the business of commission agent in Jagraon on the name of Gulwant Singh Dhaliwal and company and has collected about Rs 5 crore from various farmers and people in lieu of hundies but later turned dishonest. One of the victims, Ms Gurmit Kaur who had taken Rs 4.5 lakh on interest complained to the SSP as the firm did not return her amount. The police arrested Gulwant Singh Dhaliwal, one of the partners of the firm from the local railway station while he was trying to flee. |
|
CM to take up steel price issue with Central Govt Ludhiana, January 10 The Chief Minister after meeting a deputation of the Fastener Manufacturers Association of India, led by Mr Narinder Bhamra at Chandigarh on January 8, said steps were being taken to redress various problems being faced by the trade and industry in the state. Responding to the issue of unprecedented hike in the prices of iron and steel material in a positive manner, he expressed confidence that the Union Government would soon come out with remedial measures to ensure availability of basic raw material to industry at reasonable prices. On the harsh provisions in the proposed VAT Act which would come into effect from April 2004, the Chief Minister told the delegation that the government was in the process of reviewing the draft Act and such provisions that were arbitrary or harsh on the tax payers would be suitably amended or removed. While declining to commit on the demand for withdrawal of exim form, he gave an assurance to reconsider the deemed assessment scheme of Sales Tax. According to Mr Bhamra, the association urged the Chief Minister to ask the PSEB to not to charge security on total load in case there was an extension in load. Charging security at prevailing rates for extension of load to medium supply and big supply category was completely unjustified, he added. The security on revised rates should be demanded only on the extended load, the delegation stressed. In this connection the Chief Minister said the matter would be sympathetically considered after consulting the PSEB authorities. |
|
Industry cynical about sensex boom Ludhiana, January 10 Mr Harinder Singh Bhogal of the Bhogal Group of Industries pointed out that the industry, particularly the small scale sector was reeling under severe slump. He revealed that the “feel good” factor was a myth as productions had touched all time low and more and more units were closing down. He observed, “if this is happening in Punjab it must be happening in other parts of the country as well”. Mr Bhogal felt that the “bubble will burst” once again. He said may be the market would remain bullish for some time more, till the presentation of the Budget, but ultimately it might collapse. He said there was a political angle to it also. He pointed out since the general elections were round the corner, with the possibility of being preponed, the government was trying to create a situation to grab the middle class votes. This should not mean that the entire industry was bullish. Mr P.D. Sharma, president, Apex of Chamber of Commerce and Industry, also expressed similar views. He pointed out the BSE sensitive index took note of the performance of 30 top players only, which should not be taken to represent the entire industry. India’s economy was not determined by the big players, but the small scale sector only. In fact it was the small scale sector which was the backbone of the Indian economy. Be it in terms of production, combined turnover or the employment generation. The large scale industry did not even provide 25 per cent of the total employment. “Obviously the performance of the few players should not mean that the economy was booming”, he observed. |
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Mailbag | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | National Capital | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
