Hoshiarpur, October 23
With the continuous decline in the municipal council’s income, it seems as if the development activities have been withheld in the town.

Due to a shortage of funds, the municipal council recently cancelled development works like concrete flooring of lanes, pavement of drains and carpeting of roads for which it had floated tenders worth Rs 11 crore.

The MC is receiving a share fortnightly from the Municipal Development Fund (MDF) created by 10 per cent of the total VAT collection in the state in lieu of octroi abolished in 2006.

MC executive officer Sandip Tiwari said, “In the current month the MC received Rs 18.45 lakh less in the first instalment of its share.” The MC also received less amount in the previous month. However, the second instalment of Rs 42.88 lakh had been received in full, he added.

In its annual budget for 2007-08, the municipal council’s engineering wing was allotted Rs 3 crore for construction work.

However, it floated tenders worth Rs 11 crore for development works.

According to the official sources, the engineering wing had previously issued work orders worth Rs 7 crore. But due to non-availability of funds none of the contractor started the work.

The MC also got a setback in its annual income due to a stay by the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The stay was given to 11,288 water supply and sewerage connection holders on account of their writs against the enhanced bills after revision of the rate schedule.

Besides, 17,485 water supply and sewerage connection holders, having houses measuring less than five marla, had been granted exemption by the last Congress government.

The annual income from water supply and sewerage is estimated to be Rs 2 crore. There are 22,192 connection holders for water supply and 16,872 for sewerage in the town.

The state government’s proposal to authorise the Punjab Water Supply and Sewerage Board for the collection of water supply and sewerage bills from October 1 has further decreased the MC’s annual income.

In a recent monthly meeting the municipal councillors too rejected the proposal of the state government.

Meanwhile, the existing concrete floors and roads in almost all the markets had been badly damaged within a short period of their construction.

It is alleged that the quality of the material and technical specifications were not checked during construction.

Jalandhar, October 23
Even as Jalandhar bus stand is being inaugurated tomorrow after being given a facelift, the road just outside the two gates from where inter-state buses enter and exit still continues to be an eyesore.

While the bus stand was today being given the final touches for its inauguration tomorrow by Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and transport minister Master Mohan Lal, the road outside remained deluged with sewer water. Huge potholes in the road have been filled up by this water that created a lot of problem for the bus commuters as well as the residents here.

Though the bus stand has been renovated at a cost of whopping Rs 14 crore, the bad road continues to be a major bottleneck as the buses enter and leave the bus stand from here.

The buses get stuck up in the potholes causing a traffic snarl all along the old GT Road outside, causing much harassment and inconvenience to the passersby throughout the day.

The road has been in a terrible mess for the past more than three years with the condition worsening each day.

While one side of the road is still commutable, the other side along the walls of the bus stand is in a deplorable condition.

For the same reason, the commuters prefer getting down the bus before entering the gates and boarding it after the buses come out.

This creates a lot of confusion on the road outside as the buses remain stranded on the traffic lights just outside the stand to pick more passengers.

This makes the intersection quite accident-prone as even the police personnel on duty round the clock are unable to handle the problem.

Asked about the problem, general manager of Punjab Roadways Parneet Singh said the road was being four-laned by the Punjab Infrastructural Development Authority (PIDB)

He said it was a bit cumbersome work and required a lot of time. Once completed and the road got cemented, the traffic would go on smoothly.

Hoshiarpur, October 23
The administration has succeeded in diffusing tension over installation of the idols of Guru Ravi Das and Maharshi Balmiki at the Dera Fattu Shah Bibi Sahiban temples of Sri Rameshvaram Mahadev in Rahimpur.

The BSP had given October 24 deadline for the installation. The administration succeeded in diffusing tension with the help of MLA Sohan Singh Thandal and SAD political affairs committee member Jasjit Singh Thiara.

After negotiations with the leaders of the BSP, including their state chief Avtar Singh Karimpuri, for more than four hours today, the BSP activists agreed to postpone installation of idols in the Dera complex.

Later, at a joint press conference this evening, DIG of Jalandhar Range Narinder Pal Singh, DC D.K. Tiwari, SSP Anita Punj, Avtar Singh Karimpuri and Sohan Singh Thandal said Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had ordered a judicial inquiry into the entire episode. The name of the judge was yet to be announced, they said.

Karimpuri said on an assurance of the district administration and announcement of a judicial inquiry into the incident, the BSP had postponed the installation ceremony of the idols.

“The BSP is a law-abiding party and had full faith in the judiciary,” he said. Narinder Pal Singh said the cases related to the Dera would be reviewed and no innocent person arrested.

Following a proposed bandh call for tomorrow by the Shri Sanatan Dharma Suraksha Samiti, the DC said the administration would not allow anyone to force shopkeepers to observe the bandh. Strict action would be taken against such elements, he added.

Meanwhile, a heavy police force has been requisitioned from all over state to maintain law and order.

According to official sources, Narinder Pal Singh along with SSP Anita Punj will monitor the situation. As many as 10 SPs, 26 DSPs and 30 inspectors, 200 NGOs, 4,000 head constables and constables, 400 lady constables, 20 mounted policemen, thtree Vajra vehicles, three water cannons, a tear-gas squad, an anti-riot squad and a large number of fire engines and ambulances had been deployed in the city to avert any mishap.

The samiti president said on an assurance by the administration the BSP would not install the idols in the Dera complex tomorrow and it had called off its proposed bandh.

Amritsar, October 23
The municipal corporation and the district health department have launched a special drive to check the spread of malaria and dengue in the city.

The office of the civil surgeon would soon begin a survey of various localities to check the incidence of the twin ailments.

Teams of the health department would also spread awareness about precautions which can prevent the spread of malaria and dengue. This would coincide with the anti-mosquito sprays in vulnerable areas.

Disclosing this here on Monday, mayor Shawet Malik said a meeting between the officials of the corporation and the health department was held on October 22. A review meeting would be held after a fortnight.

The general public would be informed about simple things such as not allowing water to accumulate in waste containers and water coolers, getting potholes on the link roads filled up, keeping potable water covered and wearing full-sleeve clothes in sensitive areas.

Last year, malaria and dengue had spread in certain localities and many people were taken ill. This time, the corporation and the health department would specifically focus on these areas.

Meanwhile, the Rs 17.50-lakh project of metalling the Sau Futi road in the Pratap Nagar area was inaugurated in the presence of officials of the municipal corporation.

Speaking on the occasion, senior deputy mayor Ajay Bir Singh Randhawa said along with the “go green, go clean” and cleanliness drives, the corporation was also focusing on uniform development of every part of the city in a phased manner by taking up different projects.

Councillors Shamsher Singh, Gurcharan Singh, Jagchanan Singh and Harjit Kaur Bahar, mandal president, were also present.

At about 7 pm, when her father and brother were away, Jawala once again came to her house along with Ganesh and allegedly tried to rape her.

She raised the alarm and the accused fled as her father reached the spot.