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Demand for rationalisation of sales tax on petrol, diesel
Octroi to go after alternatives are found: Minister
Telemedicine system to be extended to |
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Move to shift court complex opposed
More water projects coming to Phillaur
Bitta flays state govt
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Demand for rationalisation of sales tax on petrol, diesel Dealers target Reliance Stung by the alleged indifference of the Reliance Industries Limited (Petroleum Division) and its “failure” to take the dealers into confidence on the issue of hike of petrol prices, a group of the company’s retail outlet holders and members of the Punjab Reliance Petroleum Dealers’ Association today threatened to approach the Ministry of Petroleum in case their grievances were not redressed. Addressing a press conference here, Mr R.S. Pathania, convener of the association along with other office-bearers and dealers, alleged that due to price hike to the tune of Rs 2 in case of diesel, retail outlets of the company had registered a 10 to 40 per cent fall in sales.
Jalandhar, June 11 Punjab BJP has also asked the Chief Minister to use the logic that with an increase in the prices of petroleum products, the state’s revenue, earned in shape of the sales taxes, has also increased. This additional revenue, the BJP said, could be sacrificed by the state government for the benefit of the people. Apart from this, the state government could also cut down various state-level taxes levied upon petrol and diesel, the party added. Addressing a press conference here, Mr Avinash Khanna, the BJP’s State President, Mr Vijay Sampla, General Secretary, and Mr Shiv Dyal Chugh, District President, demanded that the state government reduce the state level tax to such a level that it would bring the prices of both petrol and diesel to their earlier levels. Mr Khanna and Mr Sampla said Punjab levied 27.5 per cent sales tax on petrol, whereas the same tax in Chandigarh was 22 per cent and was even lower in Himachal Pradesh and Haryana. The national average on the tax was 20 per cent. “Presently, the state government is levying cess of Rs 1.25 on petrol which can be dropped to provide relief to the common man. There should be no problem for the state government in cutting down this tax, as the Chief Minister had repeatedly said on record that the fiscal health of the state was good and that he wanted to extend more benefits to people in general and the farmers in particular. Mr Khanna said that to protest against the hike in fuel prices, the BJP had decided to launch a signature campaign from Monday. Under the campaign, BJP office-bearers would stand in front of petrol pumps and get signatures of consumers who were against the hike. The BJP and the SAD would also jointly observe “Anti-Emergency Day” on June 26. “Senior BJP leader, Mr Arun Jaitley, and SAD President, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, would jointly address workers at two functions in Ludhiana and Jalandhar that day,” Mr Khanna said. |
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Octroi to go after alternatives are found: Minister
Kapurthala, June 11 The Minister said the government was likely to lose Rs 750 crore after the abolition of octroi in the state. “So it is necessary to find some alternatives to compensate the loss to the exchequer. Only then this promise made in the election manifesto of the Congress would be fulfilled,” he added. Talking to mediapersons, the Minister said the government was providing 200 units of free electricity to people belonging to the Scheduled Castes. He added that the government might consider increasing the scheme’s ambit to other poor categories whenever the demand was made. Commenting on the controversy over the land being given to the Reliance Group at “throwaway prices”, Chaudhry blamed the Akalis for creating confusion on the issue. He claimed that the entry of Reliance would start an era where the farmers would prosper. “The Akalis are worried that after the farmers get prosperous by the policies of Congress government, their vote bank would be affected,” the Minister alleged. Earlier, addressing the gathering, the Minister announced that the Punjab government had allocated Rs 5 lakh for research work on Sant Kabir and the money has been given to Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, for the purpose. A book on the life of Sant Kabir would soon be released by the Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh, Chaudhary added. Also, the Minister did not take much time in agreeing to the demand of opening a “Kabir Bhawan” in the town. |
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Telemedicine system to be extended to all districts
Phagwara, June 11 In the first phase, tele-medicine systems would be installed in the district headquarters and from there it would soon be extended to all the hospitals across the state. Talking to The Tribune some days back, Punjab Health Secretary T.R. Sarangal said as compared to other states, where this project had been launched, the three centres in Punjab had received “tremendous” response and Mata Kaushilya Hospital in Patiala had got the maximum benefit out of it. He said that recently the state’s health authorities held a meeting with the authorities of the Union’s Department of Information Technology, which had cleared the project for all districts of Punjab. He said the Punjab Health Department would install the system in at least 10 hospitals in any border districts as pilot projects to see its response for installation of such systems in other sub-divisions, primary health centres and city hospitals of other districts. Mr Sarangal said the first phase of the project would cost Rs 4 crore and added that the state government would have to bear 25 per cent of the project’s cost even though the Central Government had been asking the state to increase its share. He said the Health Department was ready for it and had put its required share in shape of manpower. Mr Sarangal said as many as 30 centres with the tele-medicinal facilities would be inter-connected and would also be connected to PGI, Chandigarh, and AIIMS, New Delhi, for expert opinion. The Health Secretary said telemedicine facility would also be help in teaching in medical colleges, especially when the colleges faced shortage of professors. Besides, he said the doctors deputed in various hospitals would also be able to participate in the lectures of experts with the tele-conferencing facility. |
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Move to shift court complex opposed
Kapurthala, June 11 In a press release issued here today, Mr Raghubir Singh said the move would affect hundreds of shopkeepers in the town. He added that the people would have to go a long distance every day to work, as the administrative complex would also be constructed at the said site. He said the government should instead build the complex at Baghi Khana which was situated in front of the Darbar Hall, presently housing the court.The former Minister said a committee set up to suggest the site for the new administrative and court complex had advised the district administration about the Noorpur Dona, as PUDA already possessed the required land in the village. He added that recently a memorandum bearing signatures of more than 3,000 town residents was presented to the Deputy Commissioner. |
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More water projects coming to Phillaur
Phillaur, June 11 Former Punjab Medical Education Minister and Phillaur MLA Chaudhary Santokh Singh today inaugurated the sixth tubewell near Sutlej Club here. Addressing a gathering, he said that one more tubewell would be installed in the town. He added that 95 per cent population of the town presently had drinking water facility and the remaining 5 per cent population would soon be covered. Chaudhary Santokh Singh said Rs 8.5 crore would be spent on sewerage system in the town. He added that Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh would lay the foundation stone of the project on July 16. |
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Bitta flays state govt
Jalandhar, June 11 He also alleged that the Reliance Group could grab political power through its expanding business. Mr Bitta sought reviews of all projects to which different state governments have given its nods. He claimed that the Front was collecting data on big business houses which had “fleeced”
people. — TNS |
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