Bathinda, January 18
Facing acute shortage of eligible candidates for technical jobs among reserved categories in Punjab, the Army has offered assured jobs to all eligible and medically fit candidates of certain communities, irrespective of their academic merit.

The Director (Recruiting) Col D.K.Bishnoi said that qualified candidates for technical jobs were not available in reserved categories and offered instant jobs to candidates belonging to ‘Mazhabi Sikh, Ramdasia Sikhs and Sikhs from Scheduled castes’, subject to the conditions that they possessed plus two degree with Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and English as elective subjects and cleared the medical test as per the parameters laid down by the Army.

“What we require is mere plus two degree with science background and merit and percentage in examination is of no consequence for these categories”, he stated categorically.

Col Bishnoi told The Tribune that all such candidates from Punjab in the age group of 17 and a half-year to 21 years could just walk in with their documents and seek the job. He further said that the recruitment officers would entertain any candidate falling in this category tomorrow and day after tomorrow and would immediately issue the token to the eligible candidates. These open appointments would also be made at Amritsar on January 28 and Ludhiana on February 1, he informed.

The Army is concerned over non-availability of eligible candidates for handling technical jobs and the matter has been brought to the notice of the concerned state government officials. With the army going in for computerization on a massive scale, the requirement of technical personnel in uniform and regular up gradation of their skills would become a regular feature and the local people could grab these opportunities by acquiring required qualifications to meet the eligible criteria, said an official.

Meanwhile, 3000 candidates out of a total of 20,000 candidates qualified for the medical test after clearing the Physical fitness and Physical measurements tests. Medical examination of 1200 candidates was conducted today while the remaining candidates would be examined tomorrow, Col Azimuddin said.

Malout (Muktsar), January 18
Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today expressed his displeasure to the officials of the water and sewerage department here after learning of their ignorance about departmental facts and figures.

The CM showed his anger after people complained to him at a Sangat Darshan programme for villages in the area.

Taking officials of the department to task at Dhaani Natha Singh, Badal said they would have to face the music if such an incident took place again in the future.

Listing his priorities, Badal said education and drinking water supply system would come in for a thorough overhaul.

Speaking on education, Badal said, “I regret that schools in the state are not in good condition. To improve their condition, the number of rooms and teachers in these schools would be increased and the infrastructure would be renovated.”

Paying attention to public grievances, the CM issued cheques on the spot mostly for the construction of roads and buildings. At Danewala village, he announced the construction of a community hall at a cost of Rs 25 lakh.

About drinking water schemes, he said if the villages contribute 5 per cent of the total cost, then they can have have water works as the World Bank has imposed the condition of public contribution for such schemes.

Assuring the people, Badal said the carpeting of the 13 km long Malout-Danewala-Ghumiara-Kingra road stretch would start next year.

At Kingra and Ghumiara villages, he issued cheques which included Rs 60 lakh for water works, Rs 3.75 lakh for construction of new houses for the shelterless and Rs 3 lakh for renovating 30 houses belonging to the poor.

The CM’s main thrust was on drinking water and the betterment of education system. But he also instructed the PSEB officials to ensure round-the-clock supply of electricity to villages in the Malout constituency.

During his sangat darshan programme at Karamgarh village, a girl who had topped in the Board examinations, sought relaxation of fee and he assured her of doing so.

About waterlogging that is assuming serious proportions in the area, he said effort was on to sort it out.

Speaking on Adarsh school policy, he said every constituency would have three high schools.

Bathinda, January 18
The Kalgidhar Trust, based in Baru Sahib, Himachal Pradesh, that runs popular Akal academies all over north India, will soon invest a whopping Rs 875 crore (excluding land price) for its expansion under which it plans to open 125 Akal academies in rural areas, with at least one academy in each block of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and UP.

At present, more than 21,500 students are studying in 22 Akal academies located in Punjab, Haryana, UP and Himachal Pradesh.

The Trust will open at least 20 such academies every year and the expenditure on each of these will be around Rs 7 crore, excluding the price of land. A big chunk of their funding will come from the NRIs. Even the land on which these academies will be established will be donated either by the respective village panchayats or the NRIs.

Speaking to TNS over phone, K.S. Sekhon, coordinator (science), Kalgidhar Trust and former dean (postgraduate studies), Punjab Agricultural University, said that all these academies would be affiliated to the CBSE and would have classes up to senior secondary level. “There is a total mismatch between the urban and rural sector and our Trust took up the responsibility of filling up this gap.”

Khem Singh Gill, chairman, Akal academies and former vice-chancellor, PAU, said the Trust had taken up the ambitious project of establishing 125 such academies in the near future.

“The expansion plan would account for Rs 875 crore, which does not include the cost of the land. Even the panchayats and NRIs are coming forward to donate their land for opening academies in their villages.”

Some time back, the Kalgidhar Trust had also announced the opening of the first Sikh University at Baru Sahib in Himachal Pradesh. For this purpose, Kalgidhar Trust has also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Wayne State University, Detroit (USA).

Mansa, January 18
Farmers from Banawala and other villages of Mansa district today held a protest rally and blocked the traffic at Banawala village here to get a reasonable price for the acquired land for thermal plant and to ensure jobs for their children. 

Despite rough weather, the farmers gathered to block the traffic on Talwandi Sabo-Mansa road for some hours.

Addressing the rally, convener of the joint struggle committee, Malkeet Singh, said they were not against the setting up of the thermal plant but the farmers should be paid a reasonable price for the acquired land.

He demanded jobs for the children of the farmers and the labourers of these villages. State president of the Punjab Kisan Union, Ruldu Khan, blamed the state government for exploiting the farmers and the labourers on the name of development.

Bhagwant Singh Sammaon, state secretary of Mazdoor Mukti Morcha, demanded jobs for labourers, as after acquiring the land, labourers would be rendered jobless.

State secretary of CPI (ML) Rajvinder Singh Rana criticised the Akali and the Congress leaders for not supporting the farmers. Among others who addressed the rally included Gursewak Singh, Nikka Singh, Karnail Singh, J.S. Khokhar, Bhupinder Kaur and Bogh Singh.

Fazilka, January 18 
An Integrated Counselling and Testing Centre (ICTC) has been set up at the local civil hospital under a programme to control AIDS, launched by the National AIDS Control Organisation with the cooperation of the Punjab State AIDS Control Society.

The centre was inaugurated by chief medical officer Y.K. Gupta here today in the hospital complex.

Briefing media persons, Gupta disclosed that suspected AIDS patients would be tested and provided counseling free of cost. Their identity would never be disclosed.

Technical staff comprising AIDS counsellor Harmandeep Kaur and laboratory technician Sukhjit Kaur have been appointed.

Gupta said any one could avail of the services at the centre directly. Now, suspected patients in Fazilka and surrounding areas will not need to travel to higher medical centres for examination.

Besides, dermatologist S.K. Parnami, medical specialist D.K. Bhukkar and 
pathologist-cum-blood transfusion officer Renu Dhuria would also screen patients and refer them to the centre. After preliminary investigations, the blood sample of the suspected patients will be sent for confirmation to higher centres at Jalandhar and Amritsar.

On the occasion, Gupta also revealed symptoms of AIDS and suggested preventive methods.

Bathinda, January 18
In protest against the cancellation of stoppage of three trains at the Bhucho Mandi railway station, hundreds of residents of the areas stopped the Sriganganagar-Haridwar Express (4712) at the station for about 40 minutes on Friday morning.

The agitators threatened to intensity their agitation in support of their demand. The residents of the areas said that at the time when they need more and more trains to run their businesses smoothly, the railway was withdrawing the facility which would adversely affect their economic activities.

It may be mentioned here that the railway has cancelled the halt of three trains, including Bathinda-New Delhi (4732/4731), Sriganganagar-Haridwar (4712/4711) and Ambala-Sriganganagar (4526/4525) at Bhucho Mandi from January 15. Sources in the railway said that the railway authorities had taken the decision considering the ‘economic viability’.

Abohar, January 18
The issue of reorganisation of the Ferozepur district is generating heat in this chilly weather.

The proposal had been withdrawn earlier in 1996 due to assassination of the then Chief Minister Beant Singh even when the Districts Reorganisation Committee headed by Rajinder Kaur Bhattal had reportedly found the case for Abohar as “convincing” even when there had been leg-pulling by heavy-weight politicians in the neighbouring areas.

Efforts to transfer Abohar to the new district created by the next Chief Minister Harcharan Singh Brar with headquarters at Muktsar had faced a strong resistance later.

The state executive of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on the initiative of legislator from Fazilka, Surjit Kumar Jiyani on Tuesday, recommended that Fazilka sub-division should be upgraded to district by bifurcating Ferozepur.

On the other hand SAD (B) legislator Gurtej Singh had launched a signature campaign in favour of his proposal that Abohar sub-division should be withdrawn from Ferozepur district to make it a part of Muktsar district.

Some village panchayats had already passed resolutions in favour of the proposal.

He further claimed that Sukhbir Singh Badal, working president of SAD (B), had assured him during a recent meeting that Abohar would soon be transferred to Muktsar district.

Even when Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had said at Phagwara on Wednesday that it was too early to take any decision on creating new districts out of Pathankot and Fazilka, the political weather refused to cool down.

The BJP, having lost the segment to the sitting Congress MLA with an increased margin during the last Assembly elections, had lost the president ship of the district unit to Fazilka. So, its leaders preferred to remain tight lipped over the issue.

On Thursday, Congress legislator Sunil Jakhar said on phone, “Reorganisation of the district should not be mere on political considerations and whims. Nowhere in the world you find a district like Ferozepur where one has to traverse 300 km to and fro to get grievances redressed and regretfully on reaching the district headquarters, you are told that the sahib is not available.”

Claiming that Abohar had better and rather befitting infrastructure required for district headquarters, Jakhar reiterated that he had suggested to the then CM Amarinder Singh in 2006 that “Triveni” a new administrative and industrial township of Abohar, Fazilka and Balluana Assembly segments should be developed in between Abohar-Fazilka on the NH-10.

The Balluana constituency has villages making part of Abohar and Fazilka Assembly segments. Why not initiate growth on modern lines in this backward district, he asked?

The government should consider all positive and realistic aspects, no need to take any step in haste, Jakhar added.

Fazilka, January 18
The demand for granting district headquarters (DHQ) status to Fazilka has got a fresh impetus as the state unit of the Punjab BJP resolved to support the issue.

The meeting of the state unit of the BJP, presided over by state president Rajinder Bhandari, was held in Chandigarh. BJP state vice-president and local MLA Surjit Kumar Jyani succeeded in pleading for the long-pending demand of people in Fazilka.

Jyani strongly put up the case of granting district headquarter status to Fazilka, which is among the oldest sub-divisions of the state.

He said that it had been one of the three biggest sub-divisional headquarters until Abohar and Jalalabad (West) were granted the status of sub-divisional headquarters.

He further informed that traders, members of the Bar Association, social organisations and political parties had been demanding and spearheading an agitation in this regard for the past decade.

The local MLA asserted that Moga, Muktsar, Mansa, Barnala and Tarn Taran were granted the status of districts setting aside the claims of Fazilka even as the state district organisation committee had recommended the upgradation of Fazilka to district headquarters some years back because Ferozepur district was stretched longitudinally over 150 kms, touching the border of Rajasthan near Sriganganagar.

This creates administrative problems and the geography was difficult for residents beyond Abohar and surrounding areas, touching Rajasthan, and locals have to travel to Ferozepur for their official and court works.

Taking into consideration all the facts, the BJP has strongly recommended to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal that Fazilka be granted the status of district headquarters.

Hopes of Fazilka residents and surrounding areas have now soared and they feel that they may get a better deal if the town is upgraded to district headquarters.

Fazilka Zila Banao Sangharsh Committee president Rajesh Angi and spokesman Ranjit Singh Dhaliwal, Bar Association president Anil Jain, Beopar Mandal organisation secretary Satish Dhingra and BJP Mandal president Rakesh Dhuria hailed the decision and said that they, along with a large number of representatives of different organisations, had been raising this demand for a long time and now the ball was in the CM’s court.

Ferozepur, January 18
The members of the local district bar association (DBA) are up in arms against the proposed move to set up the courts of additional district and sessions judge at Abohar and Fazilka.

In a resolution passed by the DBA here, the members, while strongly protesting the move, reached a decision unanimously to oppose it tooth and nail, as it would adversely affect their practices, they rued.

In a press release issued here, DBA secretary Jasbir Singh said the proposed move would trigger serious implications on the quality of judicial working in this district.

Jasbir added that on previous occasions also, a full bench of the High Court had turned down such a move. He said if the proposal was not shelved, the DBA would intensify the stir and take out a procession in protest against the proposed move.

Bathinda, January 18
Punjabi Sahit Sabha, Bathinda, has appealed to the Punjab government for providing financial help to the renowned Punjabi playwright Ajmer Aulakh.

Aulakh is presently undergoing treatment for leg cancer at the Rajiv Gandhi Hospital, New Delhi.

Issuing a press release here on Friday, president, Gurdev Singh Khokhar and general secretary Ranbir Rana, said, “Aulakh has devoted his entire life for the promotion of Punjabi culture and it becomes the duty of the government to help him at this time of need.”

A day earlier, Punjabi lyricist, Manpreet Tiwana, had also appealed to the government to come forward and help Aulakh in every possible way.

Barnala, January 18
A three-day ceremony to mark the death anniversary of Sewa Singh Theikriwala, founder of the Parja Mandal Movement during freedom struggle, kicked off here today.

On the first day, the local gurudwara management committee carried out a ‘nagar kirtan’ throughout villages. The devotees paid floral tributes to the procession at various places.

Gurmail Singh Aulakh, in-charge of the programme, said, “Dhadhi darbars were organised today in the memory of Sewa Singh. Tomorrow, a rally would be organised at grain market where Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal along with his senior colleagues would pay tributes to the great martyr.”

On the third day, PPCC chief Rajinder Kaur Bhattal and former CM Amarinder Singh were expected to come, he added. — OC

Mansa, January 18
There were at least five lakh small and marginal farmers in Punjab in 1991, but their number declined to three lakh in 2001.

Such farmers found it hard to withstand the agrarian crisis. This was disclosed in a survey conducted by the Punjab State Farmers Commission with the collaboration of Punjab Agriculture University, Ludhiana.

The study said that after leaving the occupation, 22 per cent of the farmers became labourers, 21 per cent opted for self-employment, 10 per cent switched to dairy farming, 23 per cent got some service (mostly low paid), government or private, and six per cent were working as truck and taxi drivers.

They were compelled to do so because of low income in farming, division of land holdings, repayment of debt and more rent than income from farming.

The report further said that since 1991, 36 per cent small farmers had sold their whole land and 11 per cent sold half of it. The period since late 1990s was known as the period of declining productivity, rising costs and decreasing profits in the Punjab’s agriculture sector.

Some farmer leaders blamed the wrong policies of the government. Ruldu Khan, state president of the Punjab Kisan Union, said the farmers were under the burden of debt because of increasing costs.

Ram Singh Bhainibaga, district president of the BKU, Ugrahan, demanded loan waiver for farmers. Under the burden of debt, many small farmers had committed suicide during the last few years in Punjab, he added.

The leaders suggested that easy access to low cost credit, subsidies in agricultural inputs, checking corruption, regular power supply and training with government’s assistance were the ways to solve farmers’ problems.

Faridkot, January 18
Agriculture minister Sucha Singh Langah attended the grievances committee meeting held here today.

The minister said although the objective of the committee was to redress grievances but complaints should be entertained following satisfaction of its members.

He asked the authorities concerned to take immediate remedial measures to solve all these problems. — OC

Bathinda, January 18
To create awareness about social evils like female foeticide, drugs and to remember the martyrs, the Civil Defence Wardens Club, Bathinda, would organise an Inter-Zonal Declamation and Poetry Recitation Contest at the P.K.S Convent School, at Barnala bypass, on Saturday from 10 am to 12 noon.

According to club president G. S. Mastana, eight students, selected from four zones, would take part in the contest and three more students would showcase their talent before the audience. “T. S. Bagga, AGM, Oriental Bank of Commerce, would be the chief guest on the occasion. A cultural function by the students of PKS Convent School would also be held.”

Bathinda, January 18
The Bathinda Vikas Manch (BVM) today launched a de-addiction campaign in Dhobiana Basti here.

According to a press release, under the leadership of Jeet Singh Sidhu, workers of the BVM covered around 50 homes.

They informed about the ill effects of drug addiction and distributed literature.

Rakesh Narula, president of the Manch, announced that the BVM would help in the rehabilitation of the addicts free of cost. —TNS