J A L A N D H A R    E D I T I O N

Kala Sanghian turns toxin dump yard
Drain bane: PPCB takes samples
Jalandhar, February 26
Following directions of the district administration, officials of the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) today took samples from the Kala Sanghian drain into which industrial and MC waste is being discharged for the past many years.

Armed with degrees, this tech brigade’s raring to go
Jalandhar, February 26

Nearly 230 students of Dr BR Ambedkar National Institute of Technology (NIT) were awarded degrees during their annual convocation, here today.
ON A HIGH: Jubilant NIT students after receiving degrees in Jalandhar. — Tribune photo by Pawan Sharma

‘SAD Delhi rally just to promote Sukhbir’
Hoshiarpur, February 26 Former minister, Punjab, Naresh Thakur strongly criticised Chief Minister, Punjab, Parkash Singh Badal for organising SAD-BJP workers rally in Delhi on Tuesday for only raising the image of his son Sukhbir Singh Badal at national level to clear the path for the latter to get to the post of the Chief Minister of the state.

Kala Sanghian turns toxin dump yard
Drain bane: PPCB takes samples
Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, February 26
Following directions of the district administration, officials of the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) today took samples from the Kala Sanghian drain into which industrial and MC waste is being discharged for the past many years.

A committee consisting environment engineer from the PPCB Harbir Singh, Punjab Small Industries and Export Corporation (PSIEC) executive engineer H.S. Matharoo, Punjab State Water Supply and Sewage Board (PSWSSB) executive engineer Satnam Singh and former sarpanch of Nahal village Mahinder Singh took the samples.

The team started taking samples from the drain at Bulandpur village on the Pathankot road into which the sewer waste from Kahnpur and other villages is released. The team then went to flyover near DAV College near where the waste from Bhagat Singh Colony, Sabzi Mandi, Maqsudan and Guru Amar Dass Colony and other areas is discharged.

Samples from points where waste from surgical complex and Basti Bawa Khel is discharged into the drain were also taken. Samples were also taken from three points outside the leather complex.

The PPCB officials had yesterday refused to take samples. This had infuriated the residents of the villages falling along the drain and environmentalist Balbir Singh Seechewal who had asked the DC, Ajit Singh Pannu, to intervene.

A meeting was then convened by the DC in which it was decided that environmental engineer, PPCB, Harbir Singh be made member instead of the SDO Harpal Singh. The committee members were also told by the DC to prepare the report in three to four days.

The administration had sprung into action after Seechewal and his supporters on Friday had erected a bandh across the drain into which untreated water from industries and MC was being discharged since the past many years. Seechewal had pointed out that the MC and industry was playing with the lives of local populace by causing skin ailments, breathing diseases and renal problems.

He had pointed out that the carcinogenic elements were flowing into drain and further into the Chitti Bein, Sutlej and Harike headworks from where untreated water was being consumed by the residents of Malwa region and Rajasthan.

Armed with degrees, this tech brigade’s raring to go
Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, February 26
Nearly 230 students of Dr BR Ambedkar National Institute of Technology (NIT) were awarded degrees during their annual convocation, here today.

Sujit Kumar Sinha was the first student from the institute to be awarded a PhD degree. Eight students were awarded M.Tech degrees and two for M.Tech by research. The remaining 219 students graduated with B.Tech degrees in chemical and bio-engineering, civil engineering, computer science and technology, electronics and communication engineering, instrumentation and control engineering, industrial engineering, mechanical engineering and textile technology.

Kulkiranpreet of computer science and engineering was awarded two gold medals. The other institute gold medal winners were Vijeta Jangra from chemical and bio-engineering, Anil Kumar Sharma from civil engineering, Ashish Gupta from electronics and communication engineering, Ullas Vinod from industrial engineering, Salil Arora from instrumentation and control engineering, Avishek Ranjan from mechanical engineering and Rajat Jain from textile engineering.

Alan Langlands, principal and vice chancellor of University of Dundee, UK, was the chief guest of the event. He was awarded an honorary degree. Another awardee of the honorary degree was Satya Paul, founder of the Apeejay Educational Society and father of Sushma Berlia who is currently heading the board of governors of the NIT Jalandhar. Even as Satya Paul could not make it to the event because of his illness, general secretary of the society Yash Raj Aggarwal received the degree on his behalf. 

‘SAD Delhi rally just to promote Sukhbir’

Hoshiarpur, February 26
Former minister, Punjab, Naresh Thakur strongly criticised Chief Minister, Punjab, Parkash Singh Badal for organising SAD-BJP workers rally in Delhi on Tuesday for only raising the image of his son Sukhbir Singh Badal at national level to clear the path for the latter to get to the post of the Chief Minister of the state.

Talking to mediapersons here, Thakur said though the rally was organised to highlight the problems of the state farmers and plight of industries in the state, the state government itself had done nothing in this connection to improve the condition of debt ridden farmers and dying industries of Punjab.

As a result many of the marginal farmers had committed suicide and majority of the industrialists had shifted their units to the neighbouring states. SAD-BJP leaders had wasted crores of rupees for organising the Delhi rally.

They misused the government machinery for the success of this rally alleged Naresh Thakur. — OC