Bathinda, April 3
The eleven women members of the Anganwari Workers Union, arrested for allegedly trying to disrupt a seminar addressed by Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal at the civil hospital here on March 27, were released from the Central Jail, Bathinda, this evening.

Soon after their release, the Anganwari workers threatened to disrupt the political conference of the ruling party to be held at Talwandi Sabo on Baisakhi.

The released workers were accorded a warm welcome soon after they were released on bail by the district court here. Soon after, the president of the union, Hargobind Kaur, lashed out at the ‘attitude’ of the state government accusing it of trying to suppress their voice.

“We had come with the demand for an increase in our wages, but on the orders of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, the police dragged us, holding us by our hair, when we raised our voice against the discriminatory attitude of the government.”

“The incident has exposed the favourite slogan of the Chief Minister, ‘Raj Nahi Seva,’ as hollow. We were assaulted by male police officers and in the presence of two women leaders, state health minister Laxmi Kanta Chawla and Member of Parliament Paramjeet Kaur Gulshan. The incident is a matter of shame for these women leaders and both should have resigned in protest,” she added.

About the future strategy to be adopted by the union, Hargobind Kaur said, “We will not spare the chief minister for the treatment meted out to us.

“Keeping in view the ill-treatment, we have decided to disguise our identity as women and wear male dresses. We would be there at the political confrence of Badal and this time, the protest would be lodged on a larger scale, to shake the foundation of the government.”

The union members further said that they would prepare a list of policemen who had misbehaved with them on March 27 and would wage a struggle to bring them to book.

The Anganwari Workers Unionmembers also condemned the treatment meted out to media persons by the police, who had attempted to intervene in the matter, when the Anganwari workers were being beaten up and dragged out of the venue on that day.

Badal (Muktsar), April 3
“The pattern of retreat ceremony on the India-Pakistan border hurts me most. There is a need to tone down the hostile body language of the jawans as it creates a feeling of enmity between the two countries,” said Ansar Burney, member of the United Nations Human Rights Council’s advisory committee.

Burney was here along with his wife Begum Shaheen and son Fahad to meet the residents of an old age home. Earlier, they also attended a cultural function at the local Dashmesh Girls College.

While talking to media persons, Burney spoke about the sticky wicket he found himself on when after reaching India, Kashmir Singh, for whose release Burney had worked so hard, issued statements that he was an Indian spy and had crossed the border for espionage.

About Sarabjit’s case, he said, “I would fight for the human rights of everyone. And in Sarabjit’s case, I have great expectations from the newly-formed government in Pakistan. Though I have received many documents from Sarabjit’s family members, but in the absence of their authenticity, they would not be of much use. So I have asked the Punjab government to verify all the documents so that I may pursue the case.”

“I would like to request the judges of both the countries to consider the case on humanitarian grounds before awarding death sentence to any one,” he added.

When asked about the reciprocity in releasing prisoners on both sides of the border, Burney said, “The Indian government should make efforts for the release of Pakistani prisoners in jails here. But I am not saying that there should be a deal that if one Indian prisoner is released in Pakistan, then in return, a Pakistani prisoner should also be released by India.”

Taking up the issue of fishermen’s arrest, he said, “In sea, there is no wall, which could make a layman aware about the territory. So, the government should take a lenient view on the fishermen, who mistakenly cross the territory for their livelihood.”

Burney was disappointed about the restricted visa he got from the SAARC. “When I got my visa, I was happy that in India I would be able to move around. But at the time of crossing border, I was told that I can visit only Delhi, Punjab and Rajasthan.”

During his visit to the college, Burney assured his support to a lady, Parminder Kaur of Surewala village, who submitted an application for the release of her father Makhan Singh, who has been in Kot Lakhpat Jail since 1982. The woman said that her father had been sentenced to jail for 25 years, but had not yet been released.

Pleased with the hospitality received in Punjab, he said, “Before coming to India, I had a different view of Indians, but the love they have showered on me, has made me happy.”

Speaking about his contribution to human rights, he said, “The work I have done has benefited around seven lakh people all over the world.”

When asked about terror hubs near the line of control (LoC), he said, “There is no other way except for people from both sides to raise their voice and show their willingness to fight this menace.”

He also expressed his willingness to take up sundry issues with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during his visit to Delhi. Burney was accompanied by the Chief Minister of Punjab and also State Minister for Public Relations, Bikram Singh Majithia.

Badal (Muktsar), April 3
A human rights activist now for well over three decades, Ansar Burney, a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council’s Advisory Committee, today disclosed the incident which made him espouse the cause of those suffering and turned him into a human rights activist.

Overwhelmed by emotions after witnessing the pain and sentiments of families whose members are in prison in India and Pakistan, Burney spoke about his repeated arrests in Pakistan when he was young.

Elaborating upon the incident, he said, “I was a student activist in the country. There was martial law in the country and the police booked me for violating orders. They accused me of addressing a gathering which was prohibited in those days. Though I was not at fault as I was out of Karachi, where I was booked, yet I was sent to jail.”

“After an imprisonment of eight months I was released and was arrested again days later. The jail was never painful for me as I had come across the plight of those in jail. Whenever somebody expressed his painful experience to me, it made me help them out,” he added.

“Once I was sitting under a tree in the jail and a long bearded person, appearing like a saint, came to me and asked whether I knew why I had been arrested and sent to jail so frequently. I was not aware of the reason, but the person opened my eyes when he encouraged me to help the needy.”

“Since that day, I left politics and opted to help people fight for their rights. The feeling I experience after helping a person, is beyond description.”

His wife Begum Shaheen and son Fahad Burney supported his view and conveyed the message that people in both the countries should give up enmity and build a bridge supported by the pillars of love and harmony.

Bathinda, April 3
The documents seized by traffic cops against a challan for violations of traffic rules in the city many a time fail to turn up in the courts. As a result, the victims have to move from pillar to post for months to locate the ‘missing documents’, be it a driving licence or a registration certificate (RC).

Rajesh Talwar, a resident of Model Town here, is one such person who has been making rounds of the city traffic police headquarters and the judicial courts for almost over three months now in search of his two-wheeler’s missing RC.

Says dejected Talwar, “On January 2 this year, an ASI challaned me for jumping red light and the RC of my scooter PB-03A-1587 was seized by the traffic cops. I was directed to appear in the court for the disposal of challan. However, every time I went to the court, the staff concerned informed me that the challan or the documents seized by the police had not been sent to the court.”

Inquiring further with the police and the court, he learnt that the challan issued to him was not even entered in the challan register maintained at the traffic police headquarters and at the court of the judicial magistrate. “When I asked about the RC of my scooter, the police as well as the court officials expressed their helplessness,” he informed.

Having lost all hopes of getting the missing RC back, Talwar is sore at the indifference and insensitivity of the police officials besides the casual manner in which the loss of important documents was being taken.

He felt that once slapped with a traffic challan, the vehicle owners had every right to get back their seized documents intact after payment of the penalty. With the loss of documents like driving licence and RC, the affected persons are forced to go through the long-drawn and complicated formal procedures in order to get duplicate documents. “In a manner, it is like being punished twice for a single offence,” Talwar said.

In a written complaint lodged with the SSP and the in-charge (traffic), Talwar has called for an inquiry to fix responsibility for the loss of documents and failure to forward the challan to the court within the stipulated period.

He also wanted that the erring traffic police should own the responsibility for the loss of documents and arrange to get the duplicate copies of the documents seized by them prepared on their own.

The in-charge (traffic), Bharpur Singh, while talking to TNS said no specific complaint of this nature came to his notice so far. “Once in a while, the forwarding of challans with accompanying documents to the courts is delayed. Reasons could be various. In such cases, we try to assist the affected people with details like despatch and receipt numbers.”

Bathinda, April 3
The brief spell of rain in Bathinda and adjoining districts has led to the flattening of the wheat crop in some parts of the region. But scientists at the Punjab Agriculture University (PAU), Ludhiana, dispelled fears that it could prove dangerous for the crop. They feel that the spell of rain will have a positive effect on the standing wheat crop.

According to G.S. Bains, head, department of Agrometerology, PAU, “This brief spell of rain is beneficial for the wheat crop that has ripened and is ready for harvesting. For the past few weeks, the temperature in Punjab was above normal, which was not good for the crop. But the rain has made the weather favourable. Had the temperature remained the same or increased rapidly, the size of the grain would have been affected.”

“Since there was little rain and the weather too is not windy, crops suffering from Aphid attack may not yet wilt,” Bains added.

Gurmit Singh Buttar, director, PAU Regional Research Station, Bathinda, said, “If there were winds or hailstorm, it would have definitely affected the crop apart from hampering the harvesting of wheat and its procurement.”

Chief agriculture officer Paramjit Singh Sandhu said, “We have got some reports from villages in Talwandi Sabo district where crop has flattened.” However, he claimed that the damage was not more than 1 to 2 per cent. “Rain is not required now,” he added.

“Had there been rain in February end or March start, it would have led to small grain size. The rain has no negative effect on the grain size now because the crop is almost ready.”

A trader at the local grain market said the wheat crop was not coming to the market as it was not fully ready yet. “Once it reaches the market and then if we have rain, it would be very bad for the crop as a whole.”

As the weather is expected to show irregular trend in the coming days, the administration has directed the commission agents to make extra arrangements for the safety of the produce brought by farmers for procurement.

Bathinda, April 3
To improve the quality of wheat, the district administration has invoked section 144 of the CrPC in the Bathinda region banning the use of combines for harvesting the crop from 7 pm to 8 am. The order will be valid from April 1 to May 30. In a press release, the administration clarified that continuous use of combine for 24 hours might lead to the harvesting of crop still not ripe and hence lead to low production. 

Bathinda, April 3
Education, it seems, does not play a role in curbing social evils like female foeticide. In fact, more and more educated mothers in Punjab and several other regions in the north are using their education to access modern technology and kill their unborn daughters.

According to the fertility data recently released by the Centre for Women’s Studies, the more educated the mother, the more chance there is that she will resort to female foeticide. Ironically, illiterate mothers do better.

Such incidence is higher in states like Punjab and Haryana, where the status of women is relatively low and sons are looked upon.

In Punjab, the girl-boy ratio is 847:1000 in case of illiterate mothers and 755:1000 when the mothers are literate.

In effect, there is a difference of 70-100 points in the child sex ratio across the northern states of the country when the mother is literate. And, there is no reason to celebrate the comparatively healthier child sex ratio among illiterate women as they too have started accessing modern technology to kill female foetuses.

“There is an inverse relationship between educational status and sex ratio of children born in the states where foetal sex determination has become popular over the past two decades,” said an official of the Centre for Women’s Studies, who has been compiling data on fertility series.

“However, in states like West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, where the sex determination is relatively less, there is no such inverse relationship.” 

Bathinda, April 3
The District Arhtiya Association, Bathinda, held a meeting here today, to condemn the alleged derogatory statements issued by some politicians.

In a press note, members of the association stated that some politicians had been disgracing their business by issuing derogatory statements. They further alleged that their statements had spoiled relations between arhtiyas and farmers, for which the politicians would have to bear the brunt in the Lok Sabha elections.

Presided over the meeting, president of the association, Sukhdev Singh Chahal said that the government should release the bonus, which it had committed to them for a long time.

Mansa, April 3
The Punjab Kisan Union and the Mazdoor Mukti Morcha today took out a rally at Banawali village in support of their demands. Paying tributes to Bhagat Singh, Raj Guru and Sukhdev, the participants raised slogans, including ‘Save farmer and save labourers’.

Addressing the rally, state president of the Union, Ruldu Singh said farmers had been facing financial problems due to the wrong policies of the government. About the Banawali thermal plant, he demanded a compensation of Rs 25 lakh per acre for the acquired land and jobs to about 80 per cent of the youth in Banawali and nearby villages affected by the project.

State secretary of CPI (ML) Liberation, Rajvinder Singh Rana and state secretary of the Morcha, Bhagwant Singh said poor farmers and workers were facing problems due to loans and inflation. “The government should control the rising prices of essential commodities by taking appropriate steps,” he said. — OC

Abohar, April 3
The BJP is worried about the notices served to hundreds of citizens for the payment of hefty house tax by the municipal council last week.

Ram Kishan Mittal, state vice-president of the BJP local bodies' cell, in a detailed letter faxed to the minister for local bodies, Manoranjan Kalia, today alleged that revision of house tax under a specific formula was originally planned in 2005, but the Congress-led municipal council here deferred its implementation to put the BJP in the dock close to the next civic elections.

Citing specific examples, Mittal said the council wide notices beginning February 28 this year had assessed the basic value of the 252 square feetshop owned by one Mohan Lal in street 6 here at Rs 2,56,000 and had been directed to pay Rs 5,345 as the annual house tax. Another resident, Gauri Devi, on the same street, had been slapped with a house tax notice for Rs 6,750 assessing the value of just 30 sq ft shop at Rs 1 lakh. Five sons of Jagdish Rai, on this very street, had been asked to pay Rs 8,168 as house tax.The council staff assessed their property at Rs 11 lakh. A medical practitioner Jas Raj owns 300 sq ft of covered area. He had been slapped with a notice for Rs 23,310 as house tax. Ramesh Kumar, having a 1,000 sq ft shop was asked to pay Rs 25,200. The council assessed the value of the property at Rs 34 lakh. The council served another notice on Subhash Chander Aggarwal, a medical practitioner, for Rs 14,919 by putting the value of 592 ft area under his possession at Rs 20 lakh.

Mittal further said such notices had caused panic among the residents. The sub-divisional town had been reeling under serious financial crisis for the past 10 years. Some of the leading businessmen had become bankrupt and the bankers had confiscated their property.

He added that scores of depositors had filed cases against such former business magnets in the Consumer Disputes Redressal Forums and were awaiting implementations of the awards. Number of suicides due to the fluctuating economic scenario during the period in-question here was highest in the district, he alleged.

The BJP functionary urged the government to quash such notices as these could adversely affect chances of the candidates of the ruling coalition in Punjab during the upcoming civic elections besides creating a terror in the public.

Fazilka, April 3
To what extent the coffers of the Punjab government are empty can be anybody's guess, but the compensation cheques of six farmers for a paltry sum of Rs 18,620 have bounced on account of insufficient funds.

According to the available details, hailstorm had lashed Fazilka and surrounding areas in the second week of February 2007 due to which farmers suffered considerable crop loss. The government worked out a strategy to compensate the affected farmers. In the nearby Beganwali village, eight kilometers from here, six farmers namely Jangir Singh, Sushil Kumar, Gurmukh Singh, Karnail Singh, Surjan Singh and Jarnail Singh were delivered compensation cheques ranging between Rs 1,331 and Rs 4,589. The total compensation to be paid to them amounted to Rs 18, 620.

The compensation cheques dated October 15 and October 27 of the year 2007 were given to the farmers in November 2007. The farmers presented these cheques in their accounts on January 3, 2008. The submitted cheques were sent to the Fazilka New Grain Market branch for clearing. However, these cheques remained uncleared" for over two months. To the agony and surprise of the farmers on March 13, the cheques returned with comments --"insufficient funds".

The farmers are in a dilemma as to whom they should approach for compensation. They feel that they had been taken for a ride. The poor farmers who would have got a succor by way of the paltry compensation are now demanding that the government either makes cash compensation or issue cheques, which would be honoured.

Barnala, April 3
“Jad Tak Jamian rulangiya udo tak unjamia marngia (as long as the girls are discarded and not treated well, the female foeticide would continue).” Giving this stern warning to the state government to safeguard the interests of the fair sex in society, Lok Bhalai Party (LBP) chief Balwant Singh Ramoowalia said it was the need of the hour to save the girl child.

“If female foeticide continues at the same pace, time is not far when a groom would find it difficult to get a bride leading to social imbalance,” he added.

While addressing party workers at Barnala here today, Ramoowalia expressed the fear that crimes like eve-teasing and rape might increase.

Later, addressing a press conference, Ramoowalia said that his party had launched an institution, ‘Movement for dignity of daughter’ which had been formed to help the helpless girls, abandoned wives of NRIs and dowry victims. He appealed for donating generously to run this institution. He also produced two married girls before the press who were abandoned by their NRI grooms.

Sukhjeet Kaur, while narrating her woes, said that she was married to Shamsher Singh of Muktsar but soon after her marriage her husband went abroad. When he did not return, her in-laws expelled her from their house. She is blessed with an eight-year-old son Mandeep Singh. She lives in a rented house and runs her routine affairs with great difficulty. She appealed to the state government to help her to get the possession of a plot, owned by her husband at Muktsar.

Ramoowalia offered that if the state government helped Sukhjeet Kaur to get the possession, then the LBP would construct the house for her at their own cost.

Another victim, Ranjeet Kaur, said that she was married to Bakhtawar Singh of Chanumajra village, Moga. She is blessed with 17-year-old daughter and 13-year-old son.

But about 11 years ago, her husband left her and shifted to Manila. There he got married again. Before his death in 2007, he transferred his property to his father and brothers. Now being his wife and mother of his children, she has the legal right to the property owned by her husband. But she has been denied that right. She also appealed to the state government to personally intervene into her matter.

Ramoowalia prevailed upon the government to come forward for the rescue of these daughters who were struggling hard for their existence.

He said there were thousands of daughters who were leading the life of Sukhjeet or Ranjeet. “So if we want to curb female foeticide, the state government must ensure justice to these helpless girls,” the LBP chief added.

Abohar, April 3
The city police-2 has registered FIR against two boys for impersonation during the BA part II examination of the Panjab University, sources said.

According to information, deputy superintendent B.S. Bhullar, in the DAV College examination center had reportedly caught Sunil Kumar of Suraj Nagari appearing in the examination allegedly impersonating as Amandeep of village Ramsara on March 31. The case had already been referred to the University, sources added. An FIR was registered on the statement of the officiating principal Anil Makkar. 

Mansa, April 3
On the call given by some student organisations against the privatisation of ITIs in Punjab, students of ITI Mansa today blocked traffic for three hours on the Mansa-Barnala road.

Addressing the students, All India Students Association (AISA) office-bearers alleged that the government wanted to privatise the ITIs to provide benefit to certain people. The poor students would not be able to receive education in ITIs if they are privatised.

Leader of the Radical Peoples Forum Jaspal Singh criticised government polices. Students of ITI, Budhlada, also blocked traffic under the leadership of Punjab Radical Students Union. — OC

Mansa, April 3
Three persons were killed while eight sustained injuries in a road accident on the Mansa-Sirsa road today.

According to sources, the victims were going to Sirsa in a car. When they reached Nagal Khurd village near Mansa, their car collided with a bus belonging to a private transport company.

According to police sources, Surinder Kumar, son of Lachman Dass, a resident of Raikot, Kulwinder Singh, son of Ranjit Singh, a resident of Halwara, Lakhmir Singh, son of Singara Singh, a resident of Jwandhi (Ludhiana), were killed on the spot. The injured have been admitted to the hospital for treatment.