Amritsar, August 14
Even as the SGPC, at its special general body meeting held here today, has decided to oppose tooth and nail the formation of a separate committee for the management of gurdwaras in Haryana, members from Haryana walked out from the meeting as it “failed” to remove their grievances. They also protested against their being termed as “Congress agents”.

The SGPC, in its resolution, has urged the Central and Haryana governments not to divide the Sikh community by creating a separate committee for Haryana. It said the governments had no right to interfere in the religious matters of the Sikh community.

Avtar Singh Makkar, SGPC president, while addressing the media, said Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda’s announcement to hold a referendum on the issue was dangerous for the unity of the country. He said the objective was to weaken the Sikh community, besides garnering votes in the upcoming Assembly elections in Haryana.

Meanwhile, Jagdish Singh Jhinda and Didar Singh Nalwi, SGPC members from Haryana, alleged that the committee had not introduced the resolution at the meeting for granting complete autonomy to the Haryana ad hoc committee for managing the affairs of the gurdwaras in their state.

Nalwi said they were misled by the SGPC as during their last meeting at Chandigarh, in which it was proposed with the mediation of senior Akali leaders MP Tarlochan Singh, Balwinder Singh Bhunder and Tota Singh to work out an amicable compromise. He said they were “shocked” that nothing concrete had been offered at the meeting and they were forced to walk out from the meeting.

Earlier, Nalwi lamented that during the reorganisation of states in 1966 by carving out Punjabi Suba, Haryana and Himachal, all parties had agreed to the formation of a separate gurdwara committee for Haryana under Section 72 of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966, and now the SGPC and SAD leadership was backtracking on the crucial issue.

Meanwhile, DSGMC president Paramjit Singh Sarna in a press note here alleged that the SGPC was trying to deceive Sikh masses of Haryana by rejecting their genuine demands, besides appeasing the higher echelons of SAD leadership.

Chandigarh, August 14
Most parts of Punjab and Haryana missed the rain that was forecast today even as the power demand in Punjab shot up to a record 2,100 lakh units resulting in a further increase in power cuts. The catchments of the Bhakra and Pong dams also received scanty rain.

Rain today was limited to Chandigarh and its adjoining areas in Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. The weather office had earlier forecast widespread rain in the region today.

Punjab is reeling under a power crisis with all three areas of Majha, Malwa and Doaba continuing to be dry. Power demand has gone up to a record 2,100-lakh units today, the highest in the history of the state. The demand had crossed the 2,000 LU mark two days back. According to the PSEB sources, it could supply only 1,600 LUs of power, resulting in power cuts of eight to 12 hours across the state.

Board sources said increase in the number of air-conditioners in cities and towns was also causing frequent breakdowns. They said the initiative to reduce the load of air-conditioners in offices had also not borne fruit. The board has, meanwhile, again requested that streetlights be switched off after 10 pm to save power.

Meanwhile, BBMB officials said there was little rainfall in the catchment areas of both Bhakra and Pong dams. The inflows of 40,000 cusecs and 20,000 cusecs, respectively, for both dams are equivalent to those received during the dry period due to snow-melt. The level of the Bhakra dam is still a cause of worry. The dam is at 1,595 ft today as compared to a level of 1,662 ft on this date last year.

The Meteorological office here has, however, forecast that widespread rain is likely to occur in Punjab, Haryana and Haryana tomorrow. Chandigarh Metrological Centre Director Chattar Singh Malik said Himachal and its neighbouring areas in Punjab and Haryana might witness heavy rain tomorrow. The meteorological office has also claimed that the monsoon could get prolonged in the northern region and be extended till September with moderate rain expected till August 23.

According to figures available, there has been 35 per cent deficiency in rainfall between June 1 and August 12 in Punjab and 66 per cent deficiency during the same period in Haryana. In June, Punjab and Haryana received 5 mm and 6 mm of rainfall only. An average deficiency between 26 to 50 per cent for the whole season is sufficient to declare a state drought-hit. Though rainfall did pick up in July in both Punjab and Haryana, it was not evenly spread due to which it did not have the required beneficial effect on the paddy crop. 

Amritsar, August 14
Taufique Kitchlew, the only surviving son of Dr Saifudin Kitchlew (known as the “hero of Jallianwala Bagh”) who had returned to Delhi as a disillusioned man when no one had offered him accommodation here, has now decided to settle down in Amritsar, his birthplace.

After arriving here yesterday evening by road, he stayed at a privately run hotel with his room arranged by a local friend. He is expected to steal the limelight at the Independence Day celebrations tomorrow and will be honoured by the district administration for his father’s significant contribution to the country’s freedom struggle.

Reminiscing on the days he spent as a youth in the city, Kitchlew, now 78, said his family resided at a house (No. 98A) on the Mall, Amritsar’s principal thoroughfare.

He said he would soon bring out his biography in Urdu as well as English, on which he had already started working. He hoped after moving to the city he would be able to complete his memoirs that would touch upon his family’s inseparable bonds with Amritsar where both his father and grandfather were also born.

Deputy Commissioner Kahn Singh Pannu stated the administration had identified certain locations in the city for Kitchlew’s permanent stay, adding that a house in New Amritsar, situated away from the noise and crowds of the city, would most probably be offered to him. Besides free accommodation, the Punjab government had also decided “in principle” to provide him a monthly pension.

Visibly pleased to have returned to his native city, expressing gratitude to the state government for “recognising the contribution of his father”, Kitchlew said he would shift to Amritsar, “bag and baggage,” after he was allotted accommodation here.

A report in these columns on Kitchlew’s plight and the fact that he was denied accommodation by city residents prompted Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to instruct government officials to search for a suitable house for him.

Kitchlew said he as well as his four brothers had opted not to marry. “I decided to return to Delhi since most of my childhood friends here had refused to meet me. I had wanted to have a feel of Amritsar after decades of staying away. I enjoyed speaking Punjabi during my brief stay here,” he added, referring to his visit to the city last month.

Moga, August 14
Duty Magistrate Kuljit Pal Singh, while refusing to extend police remand of NRI Jagdev Singh for another four days in a case of submitting false documents to seek a police clearance certificate to get Canadian citizenship, sent him to judicial custody for 14 days here today.

The NRI is already facing charges of murdering former MLA Nachattar Singh, father of Paramdip Singh Gill, the present DGP of the state. The trial of the case is also pending against him in the Sessions Court here.

A police team brought Jagdev Singh in the court of Duty Magistrate Kuljit Pal Singh this afternoon and demanded further extension of his police remand by four days to recover the fake passport, which was allegedly used by him to flee to the US and then to Canada in 1992, a few months after the murder of the DGP’s father.

However, defence counsel Ravinder Grover argued that the police had already failed to recover the fake passport during the previous 10-day remand, which indicated that the investigating team was working under the DGP’s pressure to harass his client. “The DGP wants to settle personal scores with my client and his life and liberty is in danger in police custody,” the lawyer said.

The Duty Magistrate, while agreeing to the plea of the defence counsel, refused to extend the police remand and sent the NRI to judicial remand for 14 days.

It was learnt that a police team went to Mumbai and Goa to recover the fake passport and certain travel documents related to this case, but failed to find any evidence.

Meanwhile, a three-member team of the Canadian High Commission arrived here today to conduct an inquiry at its own level. The team met SSP Ashok Bath and obtained details of the allegations levelled against their citizen. Then the team met Jagdev Singh, his counsel Ravinder Grover and enquired from them about the case.

The Tribune contacted Harleen, a team member, who confirmed that the Canadian High Commission had initiated counsellor access at its own level, but refused to give details to the media. 

Amritsar, August 14
The Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) has decided to organise round-the-year celebrations to commemorate the death centenary of local hero and great martyr Madan Lal Dhingra, who had made the supreme sacrifice for the freedom of the country.

Although the state government has decided to hold a state-level function on August 17 at Dhingra’s native place, Amritsar, his admirers lament that the government was diluting his supreme sacrifice as it had no plan to commemorate or perpetuate his memory.

Laxmi Kanta Chawla, Health Minister, who had taken the initiative to organise a state-level function, said she had written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that the nation must remember its freedom fighters who lit the fire of the freedom struggle. She had requested the PM to release a commemorative stamp during the centenary celebrations.

She said the state government had outlined a few programmes, including organising a declamation contest and a play in the memory of Dhingra, but she would impress upon the government to organise more such functions.

Chawla said she would request the government to acquire Dhingra’s ancestral house at Katra Sher Singh and convert it into a museum with his memorabilia and photographs to keep his memory alive.

Meanwhile, a road in the city will be named after the martyr during the celebration of his 100th death anniversary. Chawla, who led a big procession to mark the centenary celebrations through the main bazars of the city, said the government would organise a function to pay homage to the late freedom fighter.

Jalandhar, August 14
Furious over the handing over charge of the Chairman of the Bhakhra Beas Management Board (BBMB) to a Haryana engineer, the Punjab government has lodged a strong protest against it with the Centre and urged it to undo it.

Following retirement of BBMB Chairman UC Misra on July 31, the charge of the post has been given to MK Gupta, who represents Haryana as a member (Irrigation) in the BBMB. However, the matter came to the notice of the state government today.

Now, the Haryana man holds charge of the Chairman as well as member (Irrigation) of the BBMB. Both are considered most important slots in the BBMB. In fact, another important slot of secretary, BBMB, has also been with another Haryana man. On July 10, HK Gupta had been appointed secretary of the BBMB. Earlier, HK Gupta had been superintending engineer in the Haryana Irrigation Department. In a way, Haryana has established its full control over the BBMB, courtesy the union government. VS Bassi, member (Power) represents Punjab in the BBMB at present.

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said he had taken up the matter with the union government and would find out how it happened. Talking to The Tribune on the phone, the CM said, “I was told of this development today”. Official sources said the file about the appointment was sent late to Punjab. When the file came to a senior officer of the state government, he immediately informed Irrigation Minister Janmeja Singh Sekhon about the issue. Sekhon further informed the CM.

A senior officer of the Punjab government said the state would not deal with the BBMB in any official manner till the charge of the Chairman was taken back from the Haryana man by the union government.The chairman of the BBMB has always been appointed from outside Punjab and Haryana in view of the ongoing disputes between both states over the distribution and sharing of river waters.

Ludhiana, August 14
Already crippled by economic slowdown and erratic power supply, the industry in Punjab has received yet another jolt with the imposition of three-day power cut a week from Wednesday. The industry is suffering massively with the normal production falling to less than 50 per cent and hundreds of daily wage earners have been rendered jobless.

The development has affected the families of workers employed in hundreds of units all over the state, including Ludhiana (machinery and hosiery), Mandi Gobindgarh (steel), Jalandhar (sports), Amritsar (textiles) and Phagwara (small engines).

There are reports of a number of units having shifted from Jalandhar to Murthal (Haryana) and Baddi (Himachal Pradesh). There are also reports of more industry shifting to Uttarakhand and other states.

Machines are non-operational and the workers find it difficult to spend 72 hours being idle in a week. The export units are most severely hit with foreign companies refusing to take the 
delayed orders.

The most affected are the daily wage earners because after three-day rest, the owners of industrial units prefer employing old workers.

VK Goyal, CEO of the Vardhman Spinning Mills, said: “The power cuts have a direct impact on employment and production. The export industry is suffering a heavy loss because of delayed delivery which also harms the image of our country”.

KS Rathore, organising secretary of the Punjab unit of the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, said: “Hundreds have been rendered jobless and have no option except for going back to their respective states. The industry is, slowly but definitely, shifting to Himachal Pradesh and other places in states with better electricity availability. Punjab, with no action plan for the industry in future in place, is no 
longer the number one state in the country”.

Chanan Singh Matharu, owner of Steel Rolling Mill at Mandi Gobindgarh, said: “The state has no industrial policy. Nor has it given any incentive to the industry. Amid ongoing power cuts, the labour unrest has multiplied”.

President, Fastener Manufacturer Association, Narinder Bhamra said cuts were imposed by the PSEB on category II users, the industrial units. The production of their units had already come down to 50 per cent in the recent months. But, now with three-day weekly offs, they will not be able to get even 30 per cent production. Due to Late Delivery Clause (LDC), they had to pay heavy penalties from 5-15 per cent.

President of the Apex Chamber of Commerce and Industry PD Sharma said if situation remained like this, the industry in the state would not be able to recover again. 

Amritsar, August 14
The Punjab Students Union (PSU) will submit memorandums to all 13 MPs of the state requesting them to impress upon the Central government to take up the issue of Indian students, who are waiting for 
Permanent Residence (PR) in Australia.

General secretary of the PSU Dharminder Patra said Indian students, a majority of whom were from Punjab, had been facing uncertain future for the change of law effected by the Australian government.

He said this had placed the future of those youths, who had applied in September 2007, in a jeopardy.

Quoting an Australian law, he said students were to be granted PR within six to 18 months.

He alleged that it was an exploitation of students and they were not able to take decision for their future course of life.

He added that another major problem being faced by the students was that of unrecognised colleges that sometimes closed in the middle of the session. 

Chandigarh, August 14
Nine senior PCS officers could not have asked for a better Independence Day gift than their appointment to the country’s premier civil service, IAS.

Those appointed yesterday are Arvinder Singh Bains, Dharam Dutt Ternach, Yashvir Mahajan, Sukhjit Singh Bains, Gopal Krishan Singh, Karamjit Singh Sra, Inderjit Singh Sandhu, Harkesh Singh Sidhu and Prithi Chand.

After these appointments, both select lists of 2007 and 2008 stand cleared. While those belonging to the 2007 select list are likely to be allotted the 2001 batch of IAS and of the 2008 list 2002 batch. The final decision, however, will be of the Union government.

All new appointees formally joined the IAS on Thursday. It also brings to an end a series of litigations that had been going on in various courts over the manner in which the state government had handled promotion of Provincial Civil Service officers to the Indian Administrative Service over the past several years. A few of these elevated officers may soon get field postings.

Meanwhile, the Appointment Committee of the Cabinet has cleared the appointment of RK Jain, an IAS officer of the 1981 batch of Himachal Pradesh cadre, as Chief of the National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council that functions under the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion. Jain will be in the rank of Joint Secretary, government of India.

Ajoy Sharma of the Punjab cadre belonging to the 1999 batch has already been cleared for inter-cadre deputation to AGMUT cadre for three years for appointment as Joint Secretary, Finance, in the Chandigarh Administration.

He has replaced Rajji Srivastav who has returned to her parent state of Punjab.

A senior Punjab officer Jivtesh Singh Maini of the 1974 batch will be retiring at the end of this month. He has been on deputation to the Union government for the past several years. 

Chandigarh, August 14
The Vigilance Bureau of Punjab has recommended to the government that the high profile case of grabbing of shamlat land in Karoran village be given to the CBI for investigations.

The vigilance bureau had taken up the case in 2006 when it came to light that over 2,870 acres of shamlat land of the village, which falls within Chandigarh’s periphery, had been illegally mutated in favour of individual owners.

After three years of investigations in which names of a host of politicians and bureaucrats surfaced, the vigilance bureau has now decided to wash its hands off the case.

Sources add VB officials have written to the chief secretary that since the CBI is already investigating the construction of the Forest Hill Golf Resort in the same area, this case too should be handed over to them for further investigation. The golf resort is spread over almost 300 acres of the 2,870 acres of controversial land.

The CBI, while investigating the forest hill resort case, had detected that the land was wrongly transferred from shamlat to individual owners. The entire chunk of 2,870 acres was transferred in one go in June 1995. A day later transfer of the land and its division in the name of individual owners was carried out.

It is learnt that the VB had in 2008 submitted its own findings in the case, stating that the mutations in favour of individual landowners were “fraudulent, illegal and invalid”.

The financial commissioner (revenue) had also concurred with the findings of the VB and ordered that these illegal mutations be cancelled. The government had at that point asked the VB to carry out a legal inquiry into the case.

The VB has now reiterated to the government that since the documents and mutations of the 300 acres of forest hill land are with the CBI and since it has a shortage of manpower and resources, the case be handled by the CBI.