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Power consumers will have to pay more
State lags behind in power reforms: Tewari
House Tax |
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Chandigarh, December 3 The Punjab Council of Ministers today granted approval to increase the rate of tax on premium diesel from 8.8 per cent to 12.5 per cent under the Punjab VAT Act 2005. The enhanced rates will be applicable from the date of the publication of the notification. Trials of H1N1 vaccine at CMCH
‘84 Riots
CM seeks Rs 302 cr to check river pollution
PSEB inks pacts with pvt firms
Panthic bodies call for SGPC revamp
PRTC faces shortage of 137 drivers
Staff crunch hits Patiala ayurvedic college
Irate mob torches vehicles
High Court
TA paid after salary hike not recoverable: HC
Cop Assault Case
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Power consumers will have to pay more
Chandigarh, December 3 With the one-month deferment ending on November 7, consumers will not only have to pay a 12.42 per cent increase in their earlier tariff but also the difference of tariff for the period not charged from them along with interest in the balance period of the current financial year. According to information given by the PSERC under the RTI, the Secretary, PSEB, requested the postponing of the implementation of the tariff order by one month up to November 7. The Regulatory Commission has not taken any decision on the petition. This, sources said, meant that the board would have no option but to start implementing the power hike and start billing consumers at higher rates. The PSEB petition, which was filed for a limited period, has become infructuous as it was date bound, having asked for time only till November 7. Implementation of the power hike is also a setback for the Punjab BJP, which had objected to it and demanded that it be withdrawn completely. The BJP state unit still stands for this demand. However, in the absence of any initiative from the state government to subsidise the PSEB for the hiked tariff, the tariff order is binding on the state utility. There is also no legal authority which can overturn the order of the PSERC. Earlier, the Secretary, Power, had informed the PSEB that the government was reviewing the implementation of the revised tariff order and had instituted a committee (of Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal and Local Bodies Minister Manoranjan Kalia) to look into the issue of subsidies as well as suggest ways and means to increase resource mobilisation. The PSERC on its part had earlier pointed out that the government could file a petition if it wanted any relaxation in the tariff order. Meanwhile, according to information taken by Gurnek Singh Brar under the RTI it has been revealed that the PSERC is yet to take notice of delays by the state government in the paying of subsidy in advance to the PSEB for September and October this year. The PSERC has disclosed that it has not sent any communication in this regard to the
PSEB.
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State lags behind in power reforms: Tewari
Chandigarh, December 3 The Congress leader pointed out, the CM had once again sought extension of the deadline to go for the unbundling of the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) citing flimsy and vague reasons. Tewari revealed that Punjab was the only state which had sought record number of extension for the reforms. “This speaks too much of the inefficiency of this government,” he remarked. The Ludhiana MP said, the CM was trying to create an impression that the power reforms would lead to retrenchment of employees and doing away with the concessions to different sections of people like the farmers. “This is simply an excuse behind which this government wants to hide its inefficiency,” he said, while pointing out most other states across the country had already reformed the power sector without sacking employees. He said, the neighbouring state of Himachal Pradesh had already been power sufficient while Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir were fast moving towards self-sufficiency and Punjab was lagging far behind. “I am afraid Punjab might turn out to be the only black spot in the entire north region as far as the power reforms and self-sufficiency are concerned and the credit for this must go to this government only,” he observed. The Congress spokesperson argued, it was the responsibility of the state government to address the basic issues and problems which were coming in the way of power reforms. “He cannot always take the alibi that there are too many protests against the reforms,” he remarked, while adding, “Badal must explain to the people the dire need of reforms and not try to rake up the emotions which he himself knows are baseless”. He regretted, this government which had claimed in 2007 that Punjab “would” be power surplus within three years had pushed the state to further darkness. “They have already prolonged the power cuts to 12 hours a day and I am sure, if things go like this the duration will increase,” he said, while pointing out, this would not only lead to a lot of harassment to the people but would have an adverse impact on the economy as well as the industrial exit from state would expedite.
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Self-assessment likely from next year
Chitleen K Sethi Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, December 3 The new system expected to be introduced in the state early next year is being followed in Gujarat among other states in the country. The new system envisages the assessment of house tax by the taxpayer just like income tax. The tax would be paid to the municipal body based on the payer’s own calculations. The payers across the state would be however given a uniform formula by which they can calculate the tax liability. When contacted director local government Punjab SK Sharma confirmed that a change in the system of calculating and collection of house tax was under active consideration. He added that a meeting on this subject would be held on December 15 under the chairmanship of the minister for local bodies Manoranjan Kalia. He added that the new system, which would be introduced in the state, is yet to be finalised. “We have studied the systems being followed in Gujarat and Maharashtra and the model which is suited to Punjab would be introduced,” he said. Kalia has been talking about a change in the house tax system since 2007. The system of self-assessment of house tax is aimed to increase, by at least 50 per cent the total amount of house tax collected by the municipal corporations and committees across the state. At present the annual income from house tax in the state is about Rs 300 crore. The five corporations in the state which charge house tax is on the basis of the annual ratable value (ARV) of a property calculated on the basis of the rentable value of the property. The highest house tax can go up to 15 per cent of the ARV. In the committees also, the house tax is calculated on the basis of the rentable value with an upper limit fixed at 15 per cent. Inspectors of the municipal bodies are deputed to calculate and collect the tax. However, there is a lot of alleged leakage and corruption in the system due to which both the taxpayer and the municipal body suffer losses. In several municipal bodies across the state penalties worth crores are pending towards residents for non-payment of tax. In the new system the residents or owners would assess the value of their immovable property and accordingly deposit the house tax with the municipal bodies. This system replaces to a large extent the “inspector raaj” in the state. The new system is also expected to reduce litigation in cases of house tax.
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Premium diesel to be costlier
Chandigarh, December 3 Aimed at complying with the directions of the Empowered Committee at the national level, the move will generate an additional revenue of Rs 75 crore annually. Further, the Council of Ministers also approved the draft bill for the revision of court fee rates, which will be introduced in the forthcoming session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha. The Cabinet also given a green signal to enhance the pay package of rural medical officers employed under zila parishads on a contractual basis from Rs 30,000 to Rs 37,250 per month. It also gave nod to the enhancement of salary, allowances and other facilities to MLAs and also okayed hike in the pension of ex-MLAs. It approved the summoning of the eighth session of the 13th Vidhan Sabha from December 7- 11. The state Cabinet also approved to grant freedom fighters samman pension of Rs 3,500 per month as a special case to Tafique Kitchlew, son of Dr Saifuddin Kitchlew. It also okayed to amend the clause 78 (a) of the Articles of Association of Punjab Water Resources Management and Development Corporation, earlier known as the Punjab State Tube Well Corporation. The proposed provision will restore status-quo ante and empower the state government to appoint chairman and directors of the corporation, which shall not be less than three or more than 15. The director, including chairman/vice-chairman and the managing director, shall be appointed by the government and be paid such salary or allowances as the government may from time-to-time determine. Subject to the provision of Section 314 of the Act, such reasonable additional remuneration as may be fixed by the government may be paid to anyone or more of the directors for extra or special services rendered by him or them or otherwise. The Council of Ministers also approved the amendment of the Punjab Agriculture Produce Markets Act-1961 to reconstitute the dissolved market committees in the state till December 31, 2009, and to revalidate works done by the administrators during the period of dissolution of the market committees till the said date. The Council of Ministers also approved the nominal lease rate of Rs 6 per square yard per annum regarding half an acre of land allotted to the Punjab Olympic Association for the construction of Olympic Bhawan at Sports Complex, Sector 63, Mohali. It also gave ex-post facto approval for the extension in the one-time settlement scheme up to August 31, 2009, and December 31, 2009, under the OTS Policy-2009 notified by the state government on March 2, 2009, to provide relief to the loanees of the PSID, PAIC and PFC.
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Trials of H1N1 vaccine at CMCH
Ludhiana, December 3 The vaccine has been manufactured by Glaxo Smith Kline (GSK) Pharmaceutical. Having been tested in various countries in the West, it is already being administered to the people. The trials of the H1N1 vaccine will be carried out on 200 healthy adults between 18-60 years of age in all five hospitals across India. Forty individuals in each one of the above hospitals will be administered the preventive H1N1 vaccine. Dr Mary John, head, department of general medicine at CMCH, Ludhiana, who is the in charge of the “vaccine trial” project at the hospital, stated that the vaccine would arrive in a week’s time and soon after the trials would be done on 40 people of Ludhiana who are being chosen from different fields. Dr Soumia, resident in medicine at the CMCH who is assisting Dr John in the vaccine trial project, while giving further information said in order to check the antibodies level, blood samples of all 40 individuals would be taken a day prior to the vaccination followed by another sample 21 days after the vaccination. “These blood samples will be sent to GSK Biologicals in Belgium where necessary tests will be carried out.” In order to look for the side effects of the vaccine, the individuals will be called for a follow-up on the seventh day of the vaccination and the reports for the same will also be sent to GSK Biologicals. The second examination of the 40 people vaccinated with preventive H1N1 vaccine will be conducted after six months. Dr Kanwal Masih, medical superintendent, CMCH, Ludhiana, when asked about the availability of the vaccine for common public said it would be possible only after seven to eight months after the compilation of the reports from all centres in India and following the results of the trials conducted on all 200 individuals. "If the trials give a positive result, India will be able to curtail the number of swine flu cases and as a result the mortality rate of swine flu patients will also go down in the country," Dr Masih went on to add.
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‘84 Riots
Basarke Gillan (Amritsar), December 3 Meanwhile, in a much-needed effort aimed at eliminating frequent traffic bottlenecks in the big and small cities of Punjab, the government, Sukhbir said, had decided to come out with a master plan to regulate traffic across the state. He said two other master plans for the overall development of the state and to convert Amritsar into an international tourist hub were also in the offing. Sukhbir also laid the foundation stones of 66 KV substations at Bhittewad Wadala, Basrke Gillan and inaugurating a 66 KV sub-station at Hoshiarnagar. He was flanked by the Amritsar MP Navjot Singh Sidhu and other Akali leaders. “A long period of over 25 years has elapsed and yet those responsible for the 1984 massacre were roaming scot-free. The CBI has already named senior Congress leaders as accused in its charge sheet and we are getting a mere assurance. It is nothing but, an act to mislead the Sikh community,” said Sukhbir. Referring to the contentious issue of subsidies in Punjab, Sukhbir made it clear that the state government and the two- member committee comprising him and Punjab minister Manoranjan Kalia was yet to take any final decision. He also addressed a rally here today.
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CM seeks Rs 302 cr to check river pollution
New Delhi, December 3 Badal, accompanied by a team of officials, said the state had already submitted four detailed project reports (DPRs) to the National River Conservation Directorate for the interception and diversion of sewage. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) had already identified the Sutlej and Ghaggar under the polluted category after a study. The four DPRs relate to Jalandhar, Phagwara North, Phagwara South and Phillaur. A spokesperson for the state government said DPRs for Rajpura, Patran, Moonak and Lehragaga, all along the Ghaggar, were under preparation. These would be submitted to the Central Government by year-end. Badal also asked Jairam Ramesh that projects for Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar (Nawanshahr) and Banga towns, which too released untreated water in the Sutlej, should be taken up by the NCRD.
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PSEB inks pacts with pvt firms
Patiala, December 3 While claiming this, PSEB chairman HS Brar today said the PSEB has also signed a PPA with Atlantic Power Private Limited (APPL), Chandigarh. Giving further details, the chairman said on behalf of PSEB, member, generation Gurtej Singh Sra and from APPL, Chandigarh, its MD AS Gill signed the PPA. “APPL is setting up a 650-KW Micro Hydro Power Project on Holy Bein, MHP-II, at Terkiana, near Mukerian Hoshiarpur district, Punjab. The project was allocated by the Punjab Energy Development Authority on August 27, 2009, and its implementation agreement was signed on October 16, 2009. This project will use 300 cusecs of water, which will be released in Holy Bein and will help in its cleaning under the initiative of Baba Seechewala. The project is likely to start generation in August 2010”, revealed Brar. PSEB chairman further said the board was making all efforts to meet the power demands of its consumers and at the same time, it was also fulfilling its commitment to protect the environment as well by encouraging power production from non-renewable energy sources. “Under the Punjab government NRSE Policy, the board has already signed agreements for 48.995 MW with private developers, out of which 16.05 MW has already been commissioned”, he added. Prominent among those who were present during the signing of the PPA include AK Verma, chief engineer, Hydel Projects, and Arun Gupta, director, Investment Promotion Cell.
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Panthic bodies call for SGPC revamp
Jalandhar, December 3 “The SGPC has never functioned as such. We have examined that though the SGPC annually holds two sessions of the general house, hardly any matter related to the Sikhism has ever been tabled for a debate or discussion,” he said. He alleged the scheme of the nomination of candidates for the SGPC was one-sided and based only on political considerations and increased politicisation of the institution. Members considered the organisation as a springboard to enter the Assembly or Parliament, he added. Dal Khalsa chief H S Dhami emphasised the need for structural and organisational changes in the SGPC to overcome its “shortcomings”. “It’s ironic that the Badals have a stranglehold on the SGPC,” he added. Taking a dig at CM Parkash Singh Badal and his son Sukhbir, he said the “Badalisation” of the SGPC has led to the denigration of the Sikh institution. The resolutions adopted unanimously include building public opinion for fixing a criteria for members of the SGPC and not allowing the Aushotosh of Divya Jyoti Sansthan and his followers to hold its gathering in Ludhiana on December 5-6.
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PRTC faces shortage of 137 drivers
Patiala, December 3 Disclosing this here today, sources in the corporation said due to economic crisis, the corporation had not been recruiting staff. However, it had been trying to fill up posts of drivers,
but to no avail. The sources further said the corporation had to cancel some buses due to shortage of
drivers. According to norms, there should be 1:1.5 ratio between buses and drivers, which indicates that for 100 buses, there should be
150 drivers. Managing director of PRTC Manvesh Singh Sidhu said at present, the corporation is short of 137 drivers. He said the corporation had about 1,300 buses in its nine depots. Private agencies had been assigned the work of recruiting the drivers. Sidhu said the corporation was planning to begin local bus service on important and busy routes like Patiala-Patran and Patiala-Malerkotla road. He added that the corporation had 1,300 buses, which plied in all districts of the state, besides many inter-state routes and the Patiala depot alone having 150 buses. He said the corporation had improved financially due to stringent control measures. The corporation had also introduced air-conditioned buses and these had become an instant hit with passengers, he added. Meanwhile, sources
said the Punjab transport department had brought down its losses from Rs 162 crore to Rs 50 crore.
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Staff crunch hits Patiala ayurvedic college Patiala, December 3 Notably, after notices were issued to the Government Ayurvedic College of Patiala by the Council of Indian Medicine System (CIMS) regarding the shortage of teaching faculty last year; out of 32 posts of teachers, the Patiala ayurvedic college recruited 21 teachers on a contractual basis. However, this time, the administration of Government Ayurvedic College of Patiala is in a tight spot. Out of 21 contractual teachers in the college , 15 teachers had already left the Patiala ayurvedic college and despite advertising for the post of teachers twice, the administration of Government Ayurvedic College of Patiala had not received much response which had left the authorities worried. Information gathered by The Tribune revealed that in wake of the lucrative pay packages being offered by privately managed ayurvedic colleges, the teachers are not interested in joining Government Ayurvedic College, Patiala, the only government ayurvedic college in the entire state. While the Ayurvedic College of Patiala offers packages of Rs 20,000, Rs 22,000 and Rs 25,000 per month to the lecturer, reader and professors, respectively, whereas private colleges give far better salaries. Apart from this, the Ayurvedic College of Patiala has a poor track record of paying salaries to its teaching staff on time. When contacted, Principal of Ayurvedic College of Patiala Ashwani Sharma admitted that they were facing difficulty in recruiting teachers. “But we have already apprised the state government about the entire matter and hopefully we would find out a solution to the problem soon,” college principal Ashwani Sharma asserted.
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Irate mob torches vehicles Ludhiana, December 3 The police had to resort to firing in the air and lathicharge to disperse the mob that went berserk after the police allegedly could not respond satisfactorily to a complaint of robbery. A labourer returning home from his night shift was looted at knife point. After torching the vehicles, the mob put tyres on fire on the Ludhiana-Delhi railway track. The railway authorities swung into action and held back several trains at different stations between Ludhiana and Ambala. The trains were held up at Doraha, Khanna, Sirhind and Rajpura also. Divisional Railway manager (Ambala Division) HR Jaggi said many trains were stranded at different railway stations. SSP SS Gill said the situation was under control.
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High Court
Chandigarh, December 3 Taking up Sohrab’s petition, Bench of Justice Hemant Gupta and Justice Zora Singh fixed December 21 as the next date of hearing. Gill had earlier raised a vital question of law: Can an overseas citizen of India (OCI) represent the country in sports events as a part of the national team? Son of Punjab Director-General of Police, Gill had also sought quashing of a communiqué holding the OCIs ineligible to represent the country as a part of the national team.
Plea for release of B’desh national
Sentenced for three months, but in jail for four years - that’s the long and short of Bangladesh national Mohammed Bilal. In a petition before the high court, World Human Rights Protection Council has sought his release as he has completed his term four years ago. In the petition, chairman of the council Ranjan Lakhanpal stated that an FIR was registered against Bilal at Khem Karan police station in Amritsar district on October 9, 2005, for entering the country without valid documents. After the preliminary hearing, Justice Nawab Singh issued notice of motion for January 13 to the Ministry of External Affairs, Home Secretary (Punjab) and the police chief and also Amritsar Central Jail superintendent to file the reply.
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TA paid after salary hike not recoverable: HC
Chandigarh, December 3 Taking up a petition by Harbhajan Singh and others against the chairman of Bhakra Beas Management Board and another respondent, Justice MM Kumar asserted: The short issue raised in the instant appeal filed under Section 100 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, is whether the excess amount of travelling allowance was recoverable after the pay scales were revised with retrospective effect. The board after the revision of pay scales paid the arrears of fixed travelling allowance from a retrospective effect on the basis of the salary drawn by the plaintiffs. Thereafter, the board ordered for the recovery of the amount on the plea that they were not entitled to allowance after the revision of pay scales. Thus, the complainants filed a civil suit which was decreed vide order dated January 3, 1984, and the board was restrained from deducting any amount from salaries. Against the order, the board preferred an appeal. Ropar additional district judge then set aside the court’s order. Harbhajan and others then filed a petition. “I am of the view the question of law has to be answered in favour of the plaintiff-appellants and against the defendant-respondents.” In this case, payment of fixed travelling allowance was not on account of fraud. The amount was paid in accordance with the revised scale and arrears were paid as calculated with retrospective effect. There was no question of recovery because arrears were mistakenly paid after calculating them from a retrospective effect. While answering question of law in favour of the plaintiff- appellants, it is held that the judgment of the lower appellate Court is set aside and that of the trial Court is restored. Accordingly, the travelling allowance already paid to the plaintiff-appellants shall not be recovered by deducting the same from their salary,” said Kumar.
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Cop Assault Case
Faridkot, December 3 The duo has been accused of attacking the person in charge of the traffic police, Gurmail Singh, and were remanded in judicial custody for 14 days yesterday. However, the accused did not appear in the court today as they were admitted to a local hospital yesterday after the court allowed their application for a medical examination.
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