J A L A N D H A R

Wheat procurement begins
Experts say 11 pc increase in produce expected this season
Kapurthala, April 7
The arrival of wheat in the markets of the district began today with three farmers from nearby villages bringing in their 141.5 quintal of the produce and selling it at the MSP of Rs 650 per quintal in the local grain market here.

Kapurthala gets new DC 
Kapurthala/Jalandhar, April 7
Mr Raminder Singh took over as the Deputy Commissioner of Kapurthala here today. Earlier, he held the post of the Additional Registrar of Cooperative Societies, Chandigarh. Addressing the first meeting with senior district officers, the new Deputy Commissioner said he would endeavour to make the administration transparent. He added that there should be no hesitation on part of officials to approach him.

Application late, compensation delayed
Jalandhar, April 7
As many as fifty 1984 riot victims from the district awaiting government compensation for the past 22 years have been forced to wait longer since they could not complete the formalities and file applications before March 1, 2006. The last date for filing applications was February 28.

‘Mysterious’ police picks up five men
Jalandhar, April 7
The local police today claimed that it was clueless about the “mysterious” police team that had allegedly picked up five men from the city two days back and had also manhandled their wives when they had protested against their husband’s being picked up, apparently for no reason.

Woman’s body found hanging from tree
Jalandhar, April 7
The body of 34-year-old woman was found hanging from a tree in Pholriwal village near here today. The police said the victim, Dana Sharma, had used a dupatta to hang herself.

Teachers demand salary hike
Jalandhar, April 7
Demanding a salary raise, computer teachers employed in various government schools in the district today organised a protest rally and submitted a memorandum to the administration here.

• 2 killed in road mishaps
• ‘Transparency a must’

Wheat procurement begins
Experts say 11 pc increase in produce expected this season
Arun Sharma
Tribune News Service

Kapurthala, April 7
The arrival of wheat in the markets of the district began today with three farmers from nearby villages bringing in their 141.5 quintal of the produce and selling it at the MSP of Rs 650 per quintal in the local grain market here.

Two farmers from Thattha Nawan village, Darshan Singh and Jagir Singh, sold 116.5 quintal of wheat, while Sohan Singh from Khusropur village sold the rest.

Though the state administration had made arrangements for wheat procurement since April 1, the arrival of wheat started only today.

Coincidentally, last year the arrivals in the local market were registered on the same date, with 95.5 quintal of wheat.

Substantiating the claims of the Agricultural Department, Sohan Singh from Khusropur village said the total yield in his fields had increased to more than 18 quintal, while it did not touch even the figure of sixteen last year.

Experts are expecting an increase of up to eleven per cent in the yield, even as the area under the crop has been reduced.

The quantum of wheat in the markets of the district this season would be delayed by a week in comparison to the last year due to the rains in the region in the month of March this year and the subsequent decline in temperature, feel the experts.

In the last season, a total of 31,33,454 quintal of wheat arrived in all five grain markets of the district, out of which 7,06,424 quintal was from the arrival centres attached with the New Grain Market, Kapurthala, while Sultanpur Lodhi stood first in the total arrival, with 8,76,072 quintal.

There are 41 arrival centres in the district.

In Phagwara 6,64,649 quintal arrived in the last season, followed by 5,66,685 and 3,19,624 quintal at Bholath and Dhilwan, respectively.

According to information, wheat was sown on 1,12,000 hectares of land during the current season, while last year it was sown on 1,15,000 hectares. A total of 4,60,000 metric tonne of wheat was produced by the farmers of the district last year, while the yield this season is expected to touch the mark of 5,10,000 metric tonne.

In 2005, the yield of crop in the region was affected by rains and high-velocity winds in the month of March due to which farmers had to suffer losses in the produce, said the officials at the District Agriculture Office.

Moreover, the farmers had to face the shortage of DAP last year, but this year the supply of this fertilizer remained better in comparison to the previous season, claimed the officials.

Dr Manohar Singh, Chief Agriculture Officer, Kapurthala, said the area under wheat cultivation had been reduced due to diversification policies of the state government, under which the farmers were exhorted to shift to the cash crops.

Out of the 3000 hectares of land, which was under wheat cultivation in the district last year, the farmers opted for growing potatoes in 1000 hectares and mustard in 600 hectares. Green vegetables were grown on the remaining 1400 hectares, said the Chief Agriculture officer.

Despite the fact that the yield is going to increase in the district, the graph of arrivals in the markets during the current season could register a sharp drop in view of the prevailing market conditions, feel the experts.

Kapurthala gets new DC 
Tribune News Service

Kapurthala/Jalandhar, April 7
Mr Raminder Singh took over as the Deputy Commissioner of Kapurthala here today. Earlier, he held the post of the Additional Registrar of Cooperative Societies, Chandigarh. Addressing the first meeting with senior district officers, the new Deputy Commissioner said he would endeavour to make the administration transparent. He added that there should be no hesitation on part of officials to approach him.

This is a must for the transparency of administration and for avoiding communication gap, he said.

It may be mentioned that Mr Samir Kumar, former Deputy Commissioner of the district, has been transferred to Chandigarh as the Special Secretary, Irrigation.

Meanwhile, Mr Anurag Verma, the new Deputy Commissioner of Jalandhar, today cautioned officials of government and semi-government agencies involved in wheat procurement in the district, against any delay in lifting of wheat crop.

Referring to his priorities as the Deputy Commissioner, Mr Verma, a 1993 batch IAS officer of Punjab Cadre, said, “Corruption will not be tolerated at any level, and streamlining of all wings of administration, if necessary, will be done on priority basis.”

Prior to his taking up the new assignment as Deputy Commissioner, Jalandhar, he held the posts of SDM, Kapurthala, ADC Ferozepore, and Amritsar, Additional Chief Administrator, PUDA, Chandigarh, and Additional Commissioner, Excise and Taxation, Punjab.

Besides, he was the Deputy Commissioner, Bathinda, and later served as the Deputy Commissioner, Ludhiana, from May 19, 2003, to April 7, 2006.

Application late, compensation delayed
Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, April 7
As many as fifty 1984 riot victims from the district awaiting government compensation for the past 22 years have been forced to wait longer since they could not complete the formalities and file applications before March 1, 2006. The last date for filing applications was February 28.

Those entitled to a compensation claimed that they had shifted from other districts to Jalandhar district with their relatives at the time of the riots.

Hence they had to shuttle between two places to complete the necessary formalities leading to the delay.

Some of the victims rued that while they had to leave their homes and businesses and migrate to Punjab, they were being denied compensation even after two decades.

Mr Bakshish Singh Arora, a riot victim who had migrated from Sundernagar in Himachal Pradesh to the district, claimed that when he filed his application on March 1, it was duly accepted. “I was disappointed when I read the news that applicants who had filed their papers after February 28 might not be compensated now,” he said.

He claimed that he even met the officials concerned in this context. “But they expressed helplessness”, Mr Arora added.

Mr M.S. Kainth, the ADC (G), could not be contacted, as earlier he was busy in meetings and later kept his cell phone switched off. 

‘Mysterious’ police picks up five men
Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, April 7
The local police today claimed that it was clueless about the “mysterious” police team that had allegedly picked up five men from the city two days back and had also manhandled their wives when they had protested against their husband’s being picked up, apparently for no reason.

The authorities said they were trying to find out which police team picked up the men.

The missing men, identified as Bunti, Shekhar, Chintu, Babbu and Baglu, along with their wives used to sell bed sheets in the city. They belong to Rajgarh in Madhya Pradesh.

After two days had passed since the men were reportedly taken into police custody, their wives approached the SSP, Mr Ishwar Singh, today.

He said he had entrusted the SP, City (I), Dr Surinder Kumar Kalia, to investigate the matter. 

Woman’s body found hanging from tree
Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, April 7
The body of 34-year-old woman was found hanging from a tree in Pholriwal village near here today. The police said the victim, Dana Sharma, had used a dupatta to hang herself.

The body was identified by the victim’s husband, Krishna Sharma, a resident of Shaheed Udham Singh Nagar. Krishna Sharma is originally from Nepal.

He claimed that his wife was mentally unstable and could not even take care of their daughter.

He further claimed that he had been searching for his wife along with her photo.

Earlier, unable to identify the woman, the police sent wireless messages to all the police stations to find out reports of any missing woman. After a matching complaint was found, Krishna Sharma was called to identify the body. 

Teachers demand salary hike
Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, April 7
Demanding a salary raise, computer teachers employed in various government schools in the district today organised a protest rally and submitted a memorandum to the administration here.

The teachers, who had been appointed in government high and senior secondary schools from April 1, 2005, demanded that they be paid full-scale salaries like other teachers since they were also being given the same work load.

The teachers complained that they had to commute daily from far-off places to schools located on the periphery of the district. They claimed that those who were B. Techs, BCAs or MCAs were getting Rs 4,500 per month as salary, while those were PGDCA were getting only a salary of Rs 3,500 per month.

The teachers demanded that they too be given all the allowances that the other school staff were getting. 

2 killed in road mishaps
Tribune News Service

Phagwara, April 7
A six-year-old girl Kamla, a resident of Amritsar, was crushed to death by a Qualis when she was crossing the road to reportedly fetch water for her parents near Chachoki village here today. She died on the spot.

In another road mishap, the police found the body of a man on the Phagwara-Hoshiarpur road here today. The victim was identified as Thakur Das, a resident of Phillaur. Police sources said that it seemed to be a case of hit and run.

‘Transparency a must’
Tribune News Service

Phagwara, April 7
Political parties should maintain transparency, stated former Punjab Food and Supplies Minister and ex-Punjab BJP Chief, Mr Madan Mohan Mittal, here today. He alleged that the Congress government had remained a failure in social and economic sectors. He, however, denied any “factionalism” in the BJP.