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Allegations on Asst Project Officer
SAD gears up for Bathinda MC poll |
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1.20 lakh looted in broad daylight
Bathinda, February 22 Taking suo motu notice of non-compliance of Court orders by St Joseph’s Convent School, the Judicial Magistrate (Class I) Nirmal Singh today ordered the principal to personally appear in the court on February 26 along with the entire record pertaining to the admissions of LKG classes.
Earth caves in
Govt-aided schools in shambles
AICRP Coordination Committee Meet
Noor elected Bharatiya Sahitya Akademi VP
Centre urged to waive off agri loans: Langah
Army cycle expedition
Seminar on judicial activism held
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Allegations on Asst Project Officer
Bathinda, February 22 Accusing the APO of accepting illegal gratification in the name of the additional deputy commissioner (development), Bathinda, the applicants, who were in charge of the computer centres, narrated their plight in writing and submitted the copies to the ADC (D), SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, Punjab State Human Rights Commission and also to the DC, Bathinda and ADGP (Crime), Punjab. Despite submitting the applications to senior officials, the applicants are still doubtful about getting justice because they fear the proximity of the accused to senior officials. Giving details, the applicants mentioned that in 2001, applications were invited by the ADC (D) under the chief minister’s self-employment project for setting up computer training information centres by graduates/postgraduates. The Mandi Kalan, Talwandi Sabo, Bhagta Bhai Ka, Chak Fateh Singh Wala, Bhisiana and Kaljharani centres were allotted to Tarsem Dhingra, Laxman Garg, Iqbal Singh Brar, Vaminder Gill, Mohit Sharma and Teja Singh, respectively. The application further mentions that the centres were affiliated to the Punjab Technical University (PTU) and were conducting courses in BCA, DCA, PGDCA, MCA and MBA. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on June 2001 for five years. In the MoU, it was mentioned that the fee would be collected by the centres and 20 per cent of the share would go to the PTU, five per cent to the DRDA and 75 per cent would be retained by the allottees. The applicants have now levelled the allegation that the APO, Sadhu Ram Kusla, has two henchmen, who approached the allottees to pay them bribe for the smooth running of the centres and also threatened their cancellation in case it was not done. On non-payment of the money, a letter was issued to them in which it was mentioned that the share of DRDA was enhanced to 20 per cent from the existing 5 per cent and in case of non-acceptance of the condition, the centres would be derecognised. Finding them in a dilemma, Sadhu Ram allegedly asked them to pay Rs 5 lakhs, which he allegedly got from them and the DRDA share was again settled at 5 per cent. In addition to these Rs 5 lakhs, 6 per cent of the per semester fee was also allegedly settled for as bribe. The applicants then said that after paying the huge sum, a show-cause notice from the ADC (D) has been received by them mentioning why their centres should not be derecognised? They further said they had paid Rs 20 lakh as fee and by doing so, the future of the students would be put at stake. Refuting all allegations, APO Sadhu Ram Kusla said, “The applicants themselves are dishonest and we have sufficient documents to prove their malafide intentions towards the DRDA.” Despite repeated attempts, the ADC (D), Vijay N. Jade could not be contacted for his statement on the issue.
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Warm welcome for heroes
Bathinda, February 22 Those gathered included students and staff of the college, besides admirers. They greeted the athletes with garlands, flower petals and danced to the beats of dhol with the police band playing in the background. They were first taken to the Dunes Club in a procession that passed through the Mall Road and Dhobi Bazaar. The District Amateur Athletics Association organised a function at the club where the athletes were honoured by the chief guest, Sukhdev Singh Chahal (PPS) and principal of the college Kulwinder Singh among others. Om Prakash’s coach, Sukhwinder Singh, was also honoured on the occasion. It is for the first time that players from Malwa have won two silver medals at an international championship, said K.P.S. Brar, general secretary of the Association. The association presented cheques for Rs 21,000 each to the athletes and Rs 11,000 to the coach. Brar said the achievement would set an example for younger generation. Om Prakash and Gurvinder were happy at the welcome they had received. The shotputter said he does not regret getting silver as he had bettered his personal best and that he would have almost won the gold had his throw measuring over 19 meters not been declared foul.
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SAD gears up for Bathinda MC poll Bathinda, February 22 No senior leader of the Congress has visited here in the recent past as the local leadership of the party is once again banking on the support of the dera chief. The main concern of the SAD is the election for the BMC that is likely to be announced within the next few days, whereas the Lok Sabha polls are scheduled next year. A lot of realignment within the SAD and the Congress is expected to take place as the Bathinda Lok Sabha seat will get de-reserved before the next elections. There is expectation of Sukhbir or some member of the Badal family contesting the election from here and, as a result, the foremost task before them is to neutralise the influence of the dera chief here, said a senior functionary of the SAD. The BJP, which is a coalition partner of the SAD, has adopted a soft approach towards the dera, and its leaders have refused to toe the line of the SAD on the issue.
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1.20 lakh looted in broad daylight
Bathinda, February 22 The in-charge, Civil Lines police post, Ranjit Singh said the complainant had withdrawn the amount to pay the fee to a doctor, as his relative was undergoing treatment. A report has been filed and probe is on. — TNS
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‘No LKG classes for now’
Bathinda, February 22 The court had passed orders for recovery of the records and also appointed a Commissioner to seize the records by February 20 and produce the records in the court. But the school authorities refused to hand over the records on the pretext that the principal had taken the records to higher authorities. The court has put a stay on the starting of LKG classes till further orders, said advocate for the petitioners Rohit Khattar. A petition was filed by some parents alleging irregularities in admission to LKG classes in violation of the Supreme Court directions and the court had ordered seizure of records in view of apprehensions that the same could be tampered.
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Earth caves in
Fazilka, February 22 According to official sources, work on filling up of the old well was going on in the fields of a farmer, Satnam Singh, in village Chack Tahliwala of the Jalalabad sub-division, 25 km from here. Madan Singh (40), a resident of the same village, Ramesh Singh (26) and Roshan Singh (30), both sons of Satnam Singh, were filling up the tubewell pit. As labourer Madan Singh was removing bricks from the base of the old well, Ramesh Singh and Roshan Singh were standing on the periphery of the well when all of a sudden cracks developed in the inner circle of the well and earth caved in. Madan Singh was buried, while Ramesh Singh and Roshan Singh also fell in the well with the mud and were buried. After the accident occurred, Satnam Singh raised an alarm and scores of farmers and labourers working in nearby fields started rescue operations with spades and about a dozen tractors. They also requisitioned a JCB machine from the nearby fields to remove the earth from the well. All the three victims were removed from the well after two hours at about 5.30 pm and immediately rushed to the civil hospital, Jalalabad (W), where they were declared dead. Heart-rending scenes were witnessed at the hospital where family members mourned the sudden loss of their near and dear ones. Chief parliamentary secretary and MLA Jalalabad Sher Singh Ghubaya and officers of the civil administration reached the hospital. Sher Singh assured financial assistance to victim’s kin. |
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Govt-aided schools in shambles
Mansa, February 22 The Punjab Human Rights Commission (PHRC) had also sent a notice to the Punjab government about the miserable condition of 40 such schools. The commission asked the government to file its reply by February 27 in this regard. Three aided schools of Mansa, the Khalsa High School, Gandhi Secondary School and the Jain High School, are also in a poor condition. In-charge of the Khalsa High School, Parmjeet Kaur, said that around 12 posts of teacher had been lying vacant which was affecting studies seriously while other teachers had been working without salaries since March 2007. The post of the head teacher was also lying vacant. Similarly, the principal of Gandhi Secondary School said that 11 posts of teachers was lying vacant along with the post of the principal. He was also working on a temporary basis as the principal. He further informed that teachers of this school had not been receiving salaries for the last eight months. Rekha, a teacher at the Jain High School, informed that nine posts of teachers were lying vacant there and teachers had been working without salaries for the last nine months. The teachers said that the government had banned the recruitment of teachers. Hence, some were working on a temporary basis. They demanded filling up of vacant posts and regular salaries. Rohit Chatrath, system manager in the office of human rights commission of Punjab, said that the commission had issued a notice to the Punjab government about the poor economic condition of the government- aided schools and had demanded a reply by February 27. Ashok Kumar Gupta, special secretary, education department, said the government had sanctioned the salaries for teachers of government-aided schools and representatives of these schools would get salaries on March 3, 4 and 5. For the recruitment of teachers, the case had been forwarded to the finance department for approval, he added. But he could not provide any information about the notice by the human rights commission. |
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AICRP Coordination Committee Meet
Abohar, February 22 Speaking as the chief guest at a meeting of the coordination committee of the All India Coordinated Research Project (AICRP) on Application of Plastics in Agriculture (APA) here at the Central Institute of Post Harvest Engineering and Technology (CIPHET), Chandra asked the participants to make the maximum use of available sources, plan well on what to do during the next two years, and then proceed to achieve the positive goals by getting fully involving in the work. “We should launch an awareness programme across the country to educate the farmers on the use of plastic. Positive research and converting it into usable form to promote poly house farming will give much relief to the debt-ridden farmers besides improving quality and variety in the produce,” he said. Talking exclusively to The Tribune, the ADG said, “Pollution factor in promoting the plastic culture was also important but this can be tackled by marking boundaries for its use besides curbing the use of poorly recycled plastic under the law. China has brought 10 lakh hectares of the agricultural land under the poly house farming but in India it remained at mere 625 hectares, half of which is in Maharashtra. Plastic management needs to be improved more than blaming the product in an outright way. Quality should not be dispensed with while promoting the poly houses.” Chandra also inaugurated a fruit and vegetable
injury-cum-texture analyser, and also inspected the storage and packaging labs. The ADG also released a book titled “Micro irrigation in conjunction with service reservoir in canal command,” scripted by Satyender Singh, Rajbir Singh, P.R. Bhatnagar, R.K. Gupta and D.D. Nangare. CIPHET director R.T. Patil, while presiding over the first session of the two-day meet, said in a country like India, one could guess that a person who struggled to find meals twice a day could afford to buy plastic footwear. “Our farmers had developed a technique to bring down the cost of poly house farming at Rs 75 per sq meter,” he said. Others who spoke at the inaugural session included P.R. Bhatnagar, project coordinator APA, and S.K. Nanda, project coordinator Post Harvest Engineering, Ludhiana. |
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Noor elected Bharatiya Sahitya Akademi VP
Muktsar, February 22 In the elections held on last Wednesday in Delhi, renowned Bengali writer Sunil Gangopadhyay, editor of ‘Desh’, was elected the president of the Sahitya Akademi while Dr Noor was elected unopposed. Besides, senior academician and scholar Dr Deepak Manmohan of Chandigarh was elected convener of the Akademi’s Punjabi wing as he defeated Punjabi novelist Ajit Kaur of Delhi by 13 votes (24/11) in the elections, he informed over the phone from Delhi. The writers and academicians from the Malwa belt, including fiction writer Dr Baljinder Nasrali, Punjabi critic Tirlok Bandhu, principal S.S. Sangha of Badal B.Ed. College, Ravinder Kumar of the Punjabi Short Stories Association, S.S. Brar, principal of the Khalsa College, Muktsar, Dr H.S. Gosal of Narangwal College, Ludhiana, have congratulated both Noor and Deepak Manmohan, saying it was a matter of pride. |
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Centre urged to waive off agri loans: Langah
Ferozepur , February 22 The minister was talking to mediapersons during an awareness rally at Mudki village organised to spread awareness about the attack of Mealy bug, adverse effects of pesticides and other farmer related issues. Langah said that CM Parkash Singh Badal has taken up the issue of loan waiver with the central government. He announced a subsidy of Rs 10 lakh for villages where farmers have started rain harvesting. In individual cases, a subsidy of Rs 3 lakh should be granted, he added. —OC Moga: The Punjab government’s “Chetna” (awareness) rally regarding Mealy bug reached here today. The district administration accorded it a warm welcome at Droli Bhai village. Sucha Singh Langah, agriculture minister, said that the Akali government, in order to fulfill its commitments made in the election manifesto, would enhance budget allocation for agriculture. —TNS |
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Army cycle expedition
Bathinda, February 22 The team comprising one officer, one junior - commissioned officer and eight other ranks, will cover a distance of about 1200 kilometres over 15 days. The expedition team will foray into the hinterland of Malwa region and Rajasathan. —TNS |
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Seminar on judicial activism held
Bathinda, February 22 J.S. Anand, principal of the college, welcomed the guests. Inderjit Singh Sethi, head, Department of Political Science, Punjabi University, Patiala, delivered the keynote address. H.S. Sohi, income tax commissioner, Bathinda, who was chief guest on the occasion. —TNS |
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