Jalandhar, February 18
The wife and younger brother of Rajendra Kumar, alias Pindri, who is already undergoing a 12-year imprisonment for drug peddling, were arrested today for allegedly being involved in the drug trade. The police arrested Monica and Binnie Sahota from their house in Ajeet Nagar and seized 200 gm of smack from them.

Talking to The Tribune, SHO Balbir Singh said, “The police had information that Pindri’s wife Monica and brother Binnie were involved in drug peddling and it wanted to nab them red-handed.” So after a tip-off, the police raided Qazi Mandi today and found Binnie selling smack in small packets.

He tried to flee but was arrested from his house where the police also found Monica packing smack in packets, added Balbir.

The SHO said, “Pindri was sentenced to a 12-year imprisonment last year in a case related to drug peddling and was also facing trials in four other cases of drug peddling and sale of illicit liquor.”

According to sources, even Pindri’s mother Gurdev Kaur was caught with 250 gm of smack, while his father Veer Dass was nabbed on the charge of selling illicit liquor.

Nawanshahr, February 18
Making an oblique reference to the SAD protest rally to be held in New Delhi on February 26, Bahujan Samaj Morcha (BSM) president and former MP Satnam Kainth lamented that the political parties were only raising the voice of affluent farmers and industrialists.

He said organising protest rallies was a new trend and alleged that no political party was coming forward to air the grievances of the unorganised sector, including farm labourers, marginal farmers and traders.

Kainth said, “Keeping the interest of these people in mind, the BSM has decided to become the ‘voice for the dumb’ and for this a state-level rally would be held at Grain Market, Banga, on March 8. The rally has been christened ‘Gariban layee haa dar nahra maar rally’.”

Quoting a recent survey published by the economics department of Panjab University, Kainth said the picture brought by the report was virtually a blot on the state. He said, “According to the report, 70 per cent farm labourers in Punjab are debt-ridden, while 67 per cent of them earn below Rs 1,500 per month. The report also says that 32 per cent labourers get work only for eight to 10 days in a month, whereas only 1 per cent of them got work for more than 20 days in a month.” He demanded a table discussion on the report in the coming session of the assembly.

The BSM president said the political parties were raising the demand of waiving of farmers’ loans, which amounted to Rs 65,000 crore, but ignored farm labourers whose contribution helped in making the country self-reliant.

He termed various welfare schemes like “shagun”, “atta dal” etc, as the state government’s fanfare for the weaker section and said the conditions laid down for implementing the schemes should be done away.

Kainth criticised the policy of setting up “Adarsh” schools and said the government should try to strengthen the existing education system. Besides, the privatisation of sectors like education, health, electricity and transport was not conducive in our country as it would further widen the disparity between the rich and the poor.

Among others present on the occasion were Dr Kamal, Mehar Chand Kailey, Nachhatar Suman, Baldev Bharti, Balbir Chhadauri and Satish Kumar.

Hoshiarpur, February 18
Providing relief to Shakuntala Devi, a resident of Naushehra Pattan village in the district, the district consumers forum here headed by president P.D. Goel, has ordered Oriental Insurance Company (OIC) to pay Rs 50,000 along with Rs 1,000 as litigation expenses within one month to the complainant on account of personal accident insurance policy obtained by her deceased son Talwinder Singh.

However, the district consumers forum directed the OIC to release the payment on furnishing an indemnity bond for Rs 50,000 by Shakuntala Devi.

The complaint by Shakuntala, filed under section 12 of the Consumers Protection Act, 1986, stated that OIC had repudiated the claim against the personal accident insurance policy known as kisan credit card scheme of her son Talwinder Singh who succumbed to his injuries on April 3, 2004, following an accident in Howrah district.

The claim was repudiated on the pretext that the name of the deceased did not tally with the record of the insurance company as in the FIR registered on April 4, 2004, under sections 279 and 304-A of the IPC, at Gaamaust police station.

The name of Talwinder Singh was mentioned as Balwinder Singh.

The forum held that it had been proved on the record that since an FIR in the case was recorded at Gaamaust police station in Giriti district (Jharkhand) by Laxman Yadav, who belonged to that state, and as such the name of Talwinder Singh was wrongly mentioned by him as Balwinder Singh.

The reason is apparent. Laxman Yadav was neither known to the deceased nor belonged to his village and was only a stranger, therefore, the possibility of recording the name of Talwinder Singh as Balwinder Singh in the FIR could not be ruled out.

The forum had no hesitation to hold that it was Talwinder Singh who died in the accident.

Pathankot, February 18
As many as 1,379 trees, many of them decades old, on the Pathankot-Haryal stretch of the Amritsar-Pathankot-Kullu highway have fallen prey to the widening of the road connecting Punjab and Himachal Pradesh.

Sources in the Punjab public works department (highways wing), PWD, disclosed that the trees facing the axe were sheesham (186), eucalyptus (201), sagwan (46), kikkar (10) and 936 of other species.

With the felling of the trees, about 2.50 hectare forest cover had been converted into concrete. The PWD had taken up the project for the widening and strengthening of the nearly 12-km stretch at a cost of Rs 3.83 crore. After obtaining permission, the PWD had even made a payment of Rs 32.75 lakh to the forest department.

The width of the highway would be increased to 32-33 feet from the existing 22-23 feet, thus providing quality riding to motorists. Moreover, this would also prove helpful in removing various bottlenecks on the highway.

The felling of trees has been causing long traffic jams, putting motorists to great hardship. Since the Army and tourists heading towards Chamba, Dalhousie, Kullu, Manali and Manikaran are using the road, the frequent road blockages have become a cause of inconvenience for them.

The divisional forest officer, Gurdaspur, claimed that the regulation of the vehicular traffic was the job of the PWD authorities. The executive engineer (PWD, highway wing) was not available for his comments.

Jalandhar, February 18
To combat the rising incidence of drug abuse among the youth, the SAD-affiliated Students Organisation of India (SOI), has started a state-wide campaign. The “healthy youth, healthy Punjab” campaign not only aims at creating awareness among youngsters but also weaning them away from substance abuse.

SOI president Gurpreet Singh said SAD chief Sukhbir Badal, who is also the chief patron of the outfit, had directed them to set up cells at the school, college and university levels so that those who had fallen prey to this practice were identified and provided help and counselling. Seminars too would be organised at every level.

“We would also screen motivational documentaries and films to send home the message that drugs do not help in tackling our problems in life but hard work and perseverance do,” Gurpreet pointed out.

He said those students who wanted to kick the habit would be admitted to de-addiction and rehabilitation centres. The organisation would also bear the cost of treatment. A helpline would soon be in place to help such persons, he added.

Singh said Badal had assured them that their long-pending demand for assured travel in all buses, both private and roadways, would be redressed in the new transport policy to be announced soon.

Presently, a majority of the operators did not allow students with passes to travel in their buses since it affected their revenue. Students had to wait for long intervals for roadways buses and in many cases did not reach their institutions in time, he revealed.

Meanwhile, the following have been appointed office-bearers of the Jalandhar unit of the organisation: Satvinder Singh (president with powers to appoint block and tehsil level office-bearers), Satnam Singh (senior vice-president), Gurdeep Singh Gakhal, Kuldip Singh and Rajwinder Singh Dhaliwal (vice-presidents), Palwinder Singh Rahimpur (general secretary), Inderjit Singh (secretary), Robin Singh (joint secretary) and Gurpreet Singh (press secretary).

Jalandhar, February 18
The Laghu Udyog Bharti, an organisation promoting small-scale industries (SSI) in the country, has demanded enhancing the excise exemption limit on micro and the SSIs from Rs 1.5 crore to Rs 3 crore.

National president of the outfit Sushil Kumar Gupta said they had written to the finance minister about certain proposals to create conducive atmosphere for further industrial growth in the small sector. For such units in the pharmaceutical sector, the MRP-based exemption should be replaced by the cost price as declared by the units from time to time, he added.

By increasing the exemption, the effect on revenue would be nominal in comparison to total excise duty exemption to large units in the special economic zones. Moreover, inputs were duty paid and the exempted units were not passing the benefits to the customers but were being borne by themselves by reducing the sale prices of their products, he added.

Further, the exempted units not availing MODVAT on the plant and machinery should be refunded 50 per cent of the duty paid on inputs.

Gupta also demanded exemption to wire/bar drawing units that was prevalent till 2004. The finance minister should not include such an activity as a manufacturing process, said Gupta. — TNS

Nawanshahr, February 18
Pargat Singh, security personnel deputed with the former minister Partap Singh Bajwa, was killed on the spot and four others, driver Lakwinder Singh, Gurcharan Singh, Sukhwinder Singh and Dalip Singh, were injured when the vehicle in which they were travelling overturned after colliding with a car at Rakker Bet village, near Balachaur, on the Nawanshahr-Chandigarh road on Sunday morning.

Sukhwinder Singh was admitted to the civil hospital at Balachaur, while the other injured were taken to the civil hospital at Ropar.

The police has registered a case against Sukhjit Singh, driver of the car, under sections 279, 304-A, 337 and 427, IPC, said Balachaur DSP Gurmukh Singh Cheema. 

Jalandhar, February 18
The district police nabbed a quack and seized prohibited drugs, only to be administered under medical supervision, from him at Shahkot here today. Shahkot DSP Diljinder Singh Dhillon told The Tribune that the quack, Balraj Kumar, of Havelli Patti village, was caught with some prohibited drugs, including some injections.

Balraj had been running a clinic without any licence at Raiwal Dona village and allegedly providing the banned drugs to rural youths, the DSP said, adding that the police party raided the clinic along with drug inspector and a doctor from civil hospital after a tipoff. An FIR has been registered. — TNS

Jalandhar, February 18
District police today arrested three persons on the charge of drug peddling and recovered one kilogram opium from their possession. Two youths identified as Raman and his brother Rinku of Pholariwal villages were caught with 500 gm opium at a naka on Jamsher Chachowal Road, falling under Paragpur police post of Sadar police station, police sources said.

Both the accused during preliminary interrogation disclosed that they had brought the drug from Rajasthan to sell it in rural areas. They also disclosed that Balraj alias Raja of Sirsa in Haryana was their accomplice. The latter was caught from a nearby Nangal Karar Khan village and 500 gm contraband was recovered from him. An FIR has been registered. — TNS