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SAD men held for murder
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Municipal Polls
Congress hopes to fare well
SEC sets maximum limit for civic poll expenses
Eco-tourism experts visit city, ASI frowns
Gujjar stir affects supply of vegetables
Ex-armymen to continue fight till demands are met
Posts vacant in Ayurveda, homoeopathy depts
Free legal aid for BPL applicants in Ferozepur
Plea to extend trial time of Dhuri Express
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SAD men held for murder
Bathinda, May 28 Sham Lal of Bhagta Bhai village in the district had gone missing nine days ago. Bathinda SSP Naunihal Singh said on May 21, members of Sham Lal’s family received a call from a person claiming to be the head of a Delhi-based gang. He asked them for Rs 1 crore ransom for the release of Sham Lal. Then on May 23, the family spoke to Sham Lal who was reportedly in a drowsy condition. On May 25 and 26, ransom calls continued. On May 27, the accused asked for money. The family could arrange only Rs 40 lakh and was called to a road near Aaklia Jalal. Just at the time of the transaction, the police managed to nab two of the accused, Balbir Singh and Gurpreet Singh, alias Boota. However, the third member of the gang, Gurwinder Singh, alias Gindri of Rajasthan, escaped. The police said as per statements of the kinappers, on May 24, the victim had already died due to an overdose of sedatives administered by them. After his death, the body was kept in the house of Balbir in Aakliaa Jalal village till the evening of May 25. It was then taken in a Tata Safari, owned by Balbir, who then threw it in the Abohar feeder canal at Rania-Roke bridge in Moga district. The body, is yet to be found. Balbir had won the election to the Panchayat Samiti from Aklia Jalal on the SAD symbol. Meanwhile, Gurpreet Singh, also a SAD-backed candidate, won the election for Panchayat member from the same village. Both were arrested under Sections 364, 364-A and 34 of the IPC. When the SSP was asked about the possibility of the body being kept at the house of Balbir, even as he was involved in the elections, he said, “He was alone at home as his wife had left for her paternal home and the rest of the family was at Canada.” The SSP further said the accused were probably facing a financial crisis, but could not clarify a query regarding the lavish lifestyle of Balbir. Meanwhile, Gurpreet Singh Kangar Congress MLA from Phul said, “We are not satisfied with the police investigation as it is a purely political case and we will demand a CBI inquiry.” |
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Municipal Polls
Bathinda, May 28 In the negotiations that ensued, the BJP, despite its best efforts, could manage just 22 seats out of the 30 seats that it had demanded, whereas its ally, the SAD, will now contest from 28 wards. The decision was announced at a meeting held at Punjab Bhawan, Chandigarh. The meeting was chaired by six members, . The SAD delegation included Balwinder Singh Bhunder, party general secretary, Sikander Singh Maluka, district president, Sarup Chand Singla, the area in-charge. For the BJP, Local Bodies Minister Manoranjan Kalia, general secretary Kamal Sharma, and district BJP president Narender Mittal argued on behalf of the party. As per the agreement, the BJP will contest from ward number 1, 2, 6, 9, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 24, 26, 34, 36, 37, 42, 46, 47, 48 and 49. The SAD will contest from ward number 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11, 14, 15, 16, 23, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 35, 38, 39, 40, 41, 43, 44, 45 and 50. It may be mentioned that the SAD leaders had issued several statements for the adoption of a 60:40 ratio in seat sharing as had been done in the past. But sensing that the situation had loggerheads, the CM, with his towering personality, managed to resolve the issue. The 50-ward Bathinda Municipal Corporation will witness its first elections since its constitution in 1998. That very year, the number of BMC wards were also increased from 35 to 50. Some leaders had complained to the CM about the unfair bifurcation of wards. The government had also gone through the distribution of the new ward limits. |
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Congress hopes to fare well
Bathinda, May 28 Hopeful of a sure win, he said, “We would demand that the SEC should perform videography of the entire polling process, the counting should be done on the polling day itself and electronic voting machines be used during polling. We also demand that for security purposes, central security agencies should be deployed in the city because the local police can easily be influenced by the ruling government. One thing more, like the SEC did during the Amritsar byelection, no outsiders be allowed in the city limits three days prior to the polling,” Jassi demanded. “For this purpose, our party, president and senior leaders, would be meeting the Election Commissioner soon.” Jassi, who is a close relative of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, will have his mark on the election results because the vote bank of Dera followers in the city is believed to be around 35,000 to 40,000. Ashok Kumar, president, District Congress Committee (Urban), said, “In the last MC elections, our party won 12 seats out of 35. This time, we expect to win around 35 seats because people are fed up of the SAD and Bharatiya Janata Party. We have a strong vote bank in wards 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45 and 46 and even during the last assembly polls, the Congress emerged a winner from there. “To discuss further course of action, we will have a meeting of working committee at Chandigarh tomorrow.” For these elections, the communist parties may have a tie- up with the Congress and party insiders have informed that the communists are demanding 10 seats while the Congress wants to give them less number of seats. Narinder Bhularia, president, District Congress Committee (Rural), said, “If the elections are free and fair, then we will definitely win.” |
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SEC sets maximum limit for civic poll expenses
Bathinda, May 28 As per the rules, the upper limit for Bathinda Municipal Corporation election candidates is Rs 1,80,000. The limit for candidates of municipal councils class I is Rs 1,60,000, for Class II, the limit is Rs1 lakh, for class III, it is Rs 85,000. Candidates for the Nagar Panchayats would be authorised to spend Rs 60,000. Moreover, it is mandatory for all candidates to submit the account to the SEC through the District Electoral Officer (DEO) within 30 days of the date of declaration of results. If a candidate contests elections from more than one constituency, he has to submit separate returns for each. Further, the SEC has clearly mentioned that all those who are supposed to keep the record would be fined in case of non-compliance upto Rs 500 in case they fail to keep an account. It may be mentioned that during the last elections, the SEC also imposed the rule but none of the candidate filed the account statement and no action was initiated against anyone. As the voting will take place through the Electronic Voting Machines (EVM), the Additional District Electoral Officer (ADEO), has through a letter, apprised the SEC about the requirement for 150 EVMs for the 134 polling booths in BMC elections out of which the district already has 132. For the Nagar Councils elections, in Goniana Mandi, there would be 13 wards, in Bhucho 13 wards, in Kotfatta 11, in Sangat 9, Maur 15, Raman 18 and Rampura Phul 17. The ADEO has sought a total of 135 EVMs for this purpose. Interestingly, in these ,elections the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal and the BJP have decided to contest on their own party symbols even at class III level in the municipal corporation polls. |
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Koti Natheana ails due to contaminated water
Koti Natheana (Bathinda), May 28 The situation is so worrisome that right from children to grown-ups are suffering from a variety of chronic diseases. Sarpanch Surjit Kaur blamed the saline and contaminated groundwater for it saying even the bricks used in construction here were so brittle that houses here did not last for more than 15-20 years. People here are forced to use contaminated groundwater for drinking purposes as the supply from Mehma Sarja waterworks is erratic, irregular and inadequate. Nashtar Singh, a villager, claimed that 30 to 40 people had died due to water-borne diseases in the past one-year and that people were drinking ‘disease’ with every drop of water. Jasbir Singh (24), said he was suffering from pain in the joints,
especially in the knees and was unable to walk comfortably. Another woman, Charanjit Kaur (50), said that due to acute pain in the knees, she was compelled to use a walking stick for support. The pain had made her life miserable. An elderly person, Gurmail Singh, informed that he was suffering from sinusitis for the past many years. He was not the only person suffering from this disease, there were many more in the village, he pointed out. One of the villagers said that Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal had visited this village 15 years ago and was shocked when he saw the water. “How do you drink this water,” he had asked the villagers in disbelief, but nothing had been done to overcome the problem, the villager lamented. Gurbhajan Singh, whose wife was unanimously elected sarpanch from the village, said the water was so contaminated that even the animals and birds refused to drink it. Former Sarpanch, Jasbir Singh, who is also a practising doctor, said that every third person in the village was ailing and there was no reprieve for them. Slogan raising villagers carrying water samples in buckets greeted this reporter when he reached the village and their agony was writ large on their faces. When contacted, a senior official at the waterworks said that he could not comment on the subject without checking the situation, but there is no co-relation of water with the incidents of death in the village. Efforts were made to contact Bathinda Deputy Commissioner Rahul Tewari, but he was not available despite several attempts. |
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Eco-tourism experts visit city, ASI frowns
Bathinda, May 28 The team reached Bathinda by a special helicopter, which landed at the Guru Nanak Dev Thermal Plant’s field hostel. From there, the team visited the lakes, which the government is expected to develop as an eco-tourism destination. Later, the team went to the deer park at village Bir Talab. Around noon, the team reached the Bathinda Fort and chose to take their official vehicles atop the fort, which according to Archeological Survey of India (ASI) sources, is against the rules. “Rules can be relaxed only if a VVIP is visiting the monument. But in case of such teams, it’s a wrongful act. None of the ASI officials were informed in advance about this visit. Interestingly, former CM Capt. Amrinder Singh, on his visit to the fort in June 2006, had sanctioned a sum of around Rs 1.25 crore for its restoration. But the same amount was diverted for the construction of a shooting range in Badal village when the Badal-led government, came to power in 2007. “Now, the ASI is undertaking the restoration process with its own funds. The fort is in a lurch for dire need of funds. We are not sure that if the WTO provides any financial assistance, that money would be used to develop the fort itself,” ASI officials rued. |
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Gujjar stir affects supply of vegetables
Bathinda, May 28 Traders said a number of truckers who had loaded fruits and vegetables before May 24 from Sikar and Nagaur in Rajasthan besides Maharashtra and Gujarat, reached the city today. However, they said, “We came to know that there has been no loading after May 24. Even today, we have to pay a slightly higher price for the fruits.” They said if the agitation continued for another day or two, the supply of vegetables and fruits is likely to be affected thus raising the prices of fruits and vegetables in the city. Brij Pandey, a fruit trader, said: “Since the market was closed on May 26, most of the traders today tried to purchase as much fruits as possible. The prices were slightly higher than the other days.” He informed that today, the average rate of safeda mango was Rs 250 per 14 kg pack and Rs 80 to Rs 100 per 4 kg pack of grapes. In the retail market, he said the mango was sold at Rs 30 per kg and grapes at Rs 50 per kg. The price of pomegranate has increased to Rs 140 per 5 kg pack. Raju, another trader, said: “The agitation has affected the supply of peas and tomatoes. Only two trucks of tomatoes reached the market. Consequently, the prices increased from Rs 80 to Rs 90 per 20 kg crate. In retail, the customers had to pay up to Rs 5 to Rs 7 per kg for tomatoes and Rs 30 to Rs 40 per kg for peas. However, traders and customers were delighted that the supply of potatoes and other vegetables remained normal, as farmers in the region came in large number on tractor-trailers to sell their produce. The truck operators lamented that the agitation by Gujjars, if continued, would affect the supply of vegetables and fruits to the city and surrounding towns. They said the Centre and the state government should intervene to resolve the issue soon. |
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Ex-armymen to continue fight till demands are met
Bathinda, May 28 The ex-servicemen spearheading the agitation under the banner of Indian Ex-servicemen League against SPC recommendations, jointly pledged "No rest till we wrest
OROP" and vowed to continue the struggle till the demands for separate pay commission for defence personnel, creation of separate commission in Ministry of Defence for ex-servicemen and medical facilities for Short Service Commission and Emergency Commission officers under the ECHS scheme were met. District president of the league, Lt Col Daya Singh
(retd) alleged that the Group of Ministers reviewed and recommended the OROP very cleverly and concealed the five-year
weightage, which already existed. The actual benefit of one, three and five years was granted to give partial relief thus befooling the innocent serving and retired soldiers and the rank pay granted by the 4th Pay Commission, to officers from Captain to Brigadier was deducted from basic pay to re-fix new pay slabs and to add rank pay, he alleged. This anomaly resulted in the loss of pay plus DA while in service and gratuity/pension with other perks on retirement, he said, adding that if the defence officers were deprived of the recommended and accepted pay and allowances, the fate of poor soldiers of the rank and file, who were unable to scrutinise their pay rolls meticulously due to stressful engagement in counter insurgency operations, could well be imagined. |
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Posts vacant in Ayurveda, homoeopathy depts
Bathinda, May 28 As many as 400 posts, excluding those of class-four employees are lying vacant in both departments. Holding the director of the Ayurvedic department (who is an allopathic doctor), responsible for this, Gurjant Singh, chairman, medical cell, in an open letter to chief minister Parkash Singh Badal, and health minister Lakshmi Kanta Chawla, has urged
them to take effective measures in this regard. He has also requested them to initiate a vigilance inquiry into the delay in implementing the new service rules. The posts of joint director, deputy director and superintendent pharmacy, 16 posts of Ayurvedic doctors in 19 districts, 15 posts of senior physicians, (SMO) in 17 Ayurvedic health centres, 122 posts of Ayurvedic medical officers, 110 posts of Ayurvedic pharmacists, 171 Ayurvedic nurses (midwives), besides 10 ministerial posts, have been lying vacant. When contacted, Mohanjit Singh, director, Ayurveda, expressing concern over the situation alleged that bureaucrats and allopathic doctors were not interesting in promoting the homoeopathy. He added that the present arrangement by the state government was against the national health policy. Mohanjit further said the government should redraft the present-day service rules of 1963, which had become obsolete. He said if the government really wanted to promote these two systems of medicines, it should give the additional charge to the persons concerned with Ayurveda. |
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Free legal aid for BPL applicants in Ferozepur
Ferozepur, May 28 He informed that free Lok Adalat would be organised on June 14 to solve the cases that were pending at district and sub-division level, adding that the Lok Adalats would be held at Ferozepur, Zira, Jalalabad, Fazilka and Abohar. Jaspal Singh further informed that special arrangements had been made to provide free legal aid justice to the BPL families so that the people who were unable to bear the heavy legal expenses did not suffer. He also exhorted the lawyers that those who wanted to join free legal service panel, should come forward and send their applications for the same. |
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Plea to extend trial time of Dhuri Express
Barnala, May 28 President of the Manch Ujjagar Singh Bihla informed that the railway officials had assured that if the booking was good and profitable, the department could run it on a regular basis. Although the train was running for over a week now, very few people were aware of it.The Manch demanded that the department extended the train’s trial from 40 days to six months.
— OC |
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Bathinda, May 28
