Hoshiarpur, July 6
Due to non-payment of requisite funds by the state government for the completion of second phase of Rajiv Gandhi Kandi Canal (RGKC)- the project to provide irrigation in Kandi area of this district, the entire construction work has come to a standstill and the field staff of Kandi canal circle has been sitting idle since April this year.

The construction of the second phase of RGKC from RD 59 (Ajowal) to RD 130 (Balachaur) was started in 2005-06 at a cost of Rs 346.64 crore which was being financed by the Union government for providing irrigation in command area in 23,326 hectares. Due to lack of irrigation facilities, the cultivation in this command area was either depended on rains or on tubewells. With the construction of 59-km-long Kandi canal constructed in the first phase, irrigation in 29,000 hectares of command area is being provided regularly.

On account of rains and floods during the last year, some breaches in embankment at various places in the canal constructed in the first phase had occurred which were yet to be plugged.Kandi canal circle Superintendent Engineer Nirmaljit Sangar said though construction from RD 59 to RD 112 had been completed so far, the water courses to provide water for irrigation was only completed from RD 59 to RD 64. Due to non-receiving of funds since April 2009, the entire work had come to a halt. Liability of Rs 8 crore for the completed works of the contractors had yet to be cleared.

Out of the total cost of Rs 346.64 crore, Rs 154 crore had been spent. The project had scheduled to be completed in 2011 but due to non-availability of required funds its completion could be delayed.

The department had sent a case for providing Rs 5 crore for the maintenance of first phase of the canal for plugging breaches and removing bushes etc., but no money had been received so far.

A syphon on drain crossing at Bhangi choe (seasonal rivulet) near Bassi Gulam Hussain had been damaged during the floods last year which caused heavy losses to the people of Bahadurpur and Nai Abadi localities.

To complete this damaged syphon, the data had been sent to the design branch of the department at Chandigarh. After getting the design, the estimate would be prepared.

Jalandhar, July 6
A total of 14,782 students have participated in the first round of counselling and filled choices for admission to bachelor courses in engineering and pharmacy, the deadline for which ended last night.

PTU officials claim that the number is significantly up this year as it stood at 12,000 last year. However, going by the number of seats available in all affiliated engineering and pharmacy colleges, which is 16,354 and 1,247, respectively, the number still remains low.

Over 3,000 more seats are expected to get added up in the present list. The admission to these seats will be done in the second round of counselling. For 85 per cent quota, the counselling will start from July 17 and for 15 per cent quota it will start from July 29. Some new colleges, which will get recognition from AICTE after the announcement of the results of first round, will be included in the second round.

Bathinda-based Ram Dass Institute is one college to have got added up in the first list. Of the existing list, Kalpana Chawla Institute, based at Rajpura, has failed to get the AICTE approval till date, PTU officials revealed.

Students were asked to fill maximum number of choices. Choices filled in by participating students in different branches of 71 engineering and 33 pharmacy colleges were about 3.90 lakh.

Result of online CET counselling is scheduled to be declared on July 9. Students will be able to take out the print of the allotment letter on computer and then deposit the requisite fee in the respective allotted college immediately after getting computer-generated allotment letter, though the last date is July 13.

The counselling for the Sikh minority (rural and urban) general, Gill quota, Sikh minority (rural and urban) reserved, Sikh minority 10+2 basis, sports and B. Arch (general and reserved) will held through manual mode from July 10 onwards as per the schedule available on the university website, www.ptu.ac.in.

Jalandhar, July 6
After witnessing a steep decline in its business during the last fiscal year, exporters across the country were expecting a major relief and concessions in the general budget for the year 2009-10 but not much has changed for them thereby leading to mixed response from the export houses.

While some exporters termed this budget as mere eyewash, others commended the efforts of Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in presenting an industry friendly budget, which would help them in reviving their businesses.

However, the major relief to the exporters came with the abolishment of the fringe benefit tax (FBT), which was a major problem for the export industry. Talking to The Tribune, Sharad Aggarwal, Chairman of All India Hand Tools Panel of Engineering Export Promotion Council, said the export of hand tools have been falling at nearly 30 per cent every month.

The exporters were also looking forward to export incentives like Duty Entitlement Pass Book Scheme (DEPBS) and Drawback rates but nothing was given. “We were expecting a 3 per cent increase in the export incentives for the uplift of export business. There has been no relief on income tax to the exporters under section 80 of the HHC as well. It should have been withdrawn in the larger interest of the exporters,” he added.

Ashwini Kohli, Senior Vice-President of Punjab Chamber of Small Exporters, however, appreciated the budget and termed it as a great relief to the exporters. “The best thing in this budget is the withdrawal of the FBT on the export houses. Moreover, the Goods and Sales tax (GST) would begin from April 1, 2010, which in turn reap benefits for the exporters. The implementation of GST across the country would bring us at par with the developed nations in the world. This is a welcome step in fast paced era of globalisation,” said Kohli.

He further stated that even the stimulation package on the exporters has been increased up to March 2010, which would surely benefit the exporters in their business. However, there was resentment among the exporters pertaining to the service tax on services and claiming refund from the government later on.

“This increases paperwork and leads to blockage of funds. The exporters were looking forward to no payment of service tax in the first place. But the government has merely done this in two areas- one in the transport services and other on commission payment to foreign agents. In case of other services, exporters still have to pay service tax and then later apply for a refund to the government,” said Aggarwal.

Amidst all this, however, the long pending demand of the exporters regarding the freight equalisation policy across the country was left unheard. “We had been urging the center governments to reintroduce this policy as it helped in bringing the export business across the country at an equal level,” maintained Kohli.

Gurdaspur, July 6
Even as former minister Sewa Singh Sekhwan could be the SAD (B) candidate for the by-election of the Kahnuwan Assembly segment of this district in all likelihood, he may face tough opposition from within the party’s rank and file.

The Kahnuwan Assembly segment fell vacant after its MLA Partap Singh Bajwa was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) from this Lok Sabha seat after defeating three times BJP MP and Bollywood star Vinod Khanna in May 2009.

Sekhwan represented this Assembly segment in 1997 when he defeated Partap Singh Bajwa. He remained Cabinet Minister in Parkash Singh Badal’s government from 1997 to 2002. He was defeated in 2002 Assembly segment by Bajwa. Again he was defeated in 2007 assembly election by Bajwa.

Information gathered by The Tribune revealed that Karnail Singh Tatla, former chairman of the Market Committee, Qadian, and Yadwinder Singh Butter, member of the Working Committee, SAD, two prominent SAD leaders, have raised a banner of revolt against Sekhwan and had been holding meetings of their supporters in the villages to mobilise support for themselves as they had expressed their willingness to contest the coming by-election as SAD candidate or as an independent candidate if the party leadership denied them the ticket.

On the other hand, in a workers’ meeting held at Kahnuwan and presided over by the cabinet minister and president district unit of SAD (B), Sucha Singh Langah, it was decided that party high command must be asked to nominate Sekhwan for the coming by-election.

The workers had also decided to work unitedly to ensure respectable victory for Sekhwan.

The polling for Kahnuwan assembly segment will be held on August 3. The Kahnuwan assembly segment was the alone assembly segment out of total 11 assembly segments of this district which returned the Congress candidate to Punjab Vidhan Sabha in the shape of Bajwa in 2007 elections. On the remaining 10 seats of this district, the SAD-BJP alliance candidates scored victories by defeating the Congress candidates. Tatla, when contacted, said he had been consulting his supporters whether to jump into the election arena or not against Sekhwan.

He said he was feeling humiliated as he was not given due respect and place in the party despite the fact that he had spent five decades in the party and went to jails number of times during the ‘morchas’ launched by its leadership.

Meanwhile, Butter said he had disclosed his grievances to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal. He would meet party president Sukhbir Singh Badal also. He said he had been touring all the villages falling in Kahnuwan assembly segment to mobilise support for him. He would take a final decision in connection with contesting of election shortly, he added.

On the other hand, though the Congress has not disclosed the name of its candidate for the assembly segment, Fathe Jung Singh Bajwa, brother of MP Partap Singh Bajwa, have been putting his best efforts to get party’s nomination.

Amritsar, July 6
Various farmer organisations led by Jamhhoori Kisan Sabha, today held a demonstration outside the Irrigation Department and the offices of Chief Engineer and the PSEB protesting against the imposition of “abiana” by the state government on river water irrigation. Demanding its immediate abolishment, they also urged to stop stealing of river water with iron hands so that the water could reach to far-away villages.

The agitators gheraoed the CE office for about two hours and gave a memorandum to be forwarded to the state government. Meanwhile, the Chief Engineer has asked the farmer leaders to meet him on Monday to find out possible solutions. Tarn Taran: On a call given by the Kisan Sangharsh Committee (KSC), farmers gheraoed the Deputy Commissioner’s office here today.

Farmers raised voice against their displacement from the land in Kang village, Chambal, and also demanded cancellation of the Punjab Panchayat Act-2007 and the Power Act-2003.

KSC state President Satnam Singh Pannu warned the state government against displacement of farmers.

A meeting between the farmers and the administration was organised in which farmers were assured of an inquiry over Kang village land controversy. Deputy Commissioner Khushi Ram and SSP S.S. Brar, besides other officials addressed the farmers. The farmers lifted their gherao after getting assurance from the DC.