Jalandhar, December 16
Stung by the criticism over bad implementation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS), the executors instead of improving their functioning, “threatened and harassed” the beneficiaries.

The incident came to light in Bath Kalan village under Nakodar tehsil on Monday when the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) and Block Development and Project Officer (BDPO), Nakodar, visited the site. The officers reportedly lashed out at the women workers when they approached them with complaints regarding non-payment of wages.

According to workers, the SDM threatened them and said he would send them behind bars and press machines to complete the work. The officer even said they would be paid Rs 40 per day instead of mandatory Rs 132 per day.

Parkash Chand, a member of the Pendu Mazdoor Union, Punjab, has complained against the SDM, BDPO via a telegram to the Commissioner, NREGA, Jalandhar. Presently nearly 25 workers, including 20 women, are on job at a village pond. Besides non-payment of wages, the women workers have also complained of lack of facilities like medicare, potable water and others as per the scheme guidelines at the site.

The SDM, Nakodar, was not available for comments. ADC (D) S.G. Sharda claimed that she did not receive any complaint in this regard. Sharda, however, assured that she would look into the matter tomorrow.

Nawanshahr, December 16
The Vigilance Bureau (VB) nabbed FCI inspector Rajinder Singh red-handed while accepting a bribe of Rs 10,000 from rice mill owner Manoj Chopra here at New Grain Market on Wednesday.

DSP (Vigilance) Amarjit Singh Matwani, while giving details to the mediapersons, said the VB laid a trap to nab the accused on the basis of a complaint lodged by Chopra, owner of the Mahavir Rice Mills, Rahon.

In his complaint, he had alleged the said FCI Inspector had been demanding a bribe of Rs 700 per truck load of rice for allotting it space in the FCI godowns.

The rice mill had been allotted paddy by the Markfed for shelling and as per the government norms the rice mills had to supply 65-70 per cent rice after shelling paddy to the FCI.

Chopra said he had to supply 35 truck loads of rice to the FCI. Out of which, he had supplied as many as 15 trucks. Now, the inspector had been demanding bribe from him for issuing acknowledgements in connection with the truck loads of rice supplied earlier as well as to provide space to the rice to be supplied in future. The deal was struck at Rs 10,000 and before paying the amount of bribe as per the deal, Manoj Chopra accompanied by one Manohar Bhatia of Raju Mazra village, approached the Vigilance Bureau for taking action against the errant FCI Inspector, further said the DSP. Manohar Bhatia was made the ‘shadow witness’ and in the presence of him and two other witnesses --- Daljit Singh and Anokh Singh, group instructors posted at the local ITI, the team of the Vigilance caught the FCI Inspector red handed. A case under sections 7, 13 and 2 of the Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered against him.

Meanwhile, inspector Rajinder Singh denied that he demanded Rs 700 per truck and said the rice millers themselves used to pay Rs 400 per truck for taking a favour from the FCI officials to get their rice unloaded in odd hours and the amount was being divided among all the officials concerned.

Bhogpur (Jalandhar), December 16
The shrinking area under sugarcane cultivation has further declined, hitting the sugar mills hard in the region. According to data compiled by the Bhogpur sugar mill authorities, the area under sugar cultivation in the locality has reduced to 10,000 hectare in the last one year. As per the records, area under sugarcane cultivation in this area was 22,310 hectare in 2007-2008, which reduced to 12,061 hectare in 2008-2009.

The records show that production of sugar in the Bhogpur mill fell from 1,59,590 quintal (2007-2008) to 80,425 quintal (2008-2009). This clearly shows that sugar production came down to almost half in one year.Taking a serious note of the trend, the Punjab Government has decided to facilitate the sugarcane farmers, said Punjab Revenue Minister Ajit Singh Kohar. The minister was taking to The Tribune after inaugurating the sugarcane crushing at the Bhogpur sugar mill here today.

The minister claimed that the government was ready to pay price of the crop to the farmers at par with the private sugar mills so that the government-owned sugar mills be revived. He also revealed that proposals were there to facilitate and motivate sugarcane growers in the state.

Kohar revealed that the mill was made functional with the grant of Rs 17 crore, besides making balance payments of Rs 6 crore to the farmers for their produce.Interestingly, crushing at the sugar mill was delayed due to an ongoing dispute between the Punjab Government and Spray Engineering Devices Limited, a Mohali-based private firm. The firm had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the state government for upgrading, modernising and operating the mill early this year.

Sarbjit Singh Makkar, MLA, Bhogpur, claimed that the capacity of the sugar mill would be increased to 11,000 quintal per day from its existing capacity of 5,500 quintal per day. The General Manager of the sugar mill, Manmohan Singh, claimed that the mill was number one (production wise) in Punjab.

Jalandhar, December 16
The National Federation of Telecom Employees, SSA, Jalandhar, today held a demonstration in front of the BSNL office against the non-implementation of wage revision in the sector.

The employees sent a letter in this regard to Chief Managing Director, BSNL, and the Chairman, Wage Review Committee, demanding initiation of talks on the issue.

Addressing the protesters, district secretary of the federation Swatantar Kumar said in view of inflation the minimum benefit for the employees should be increased from Rs 1,500 to Rs 3,500. The need to enhance the pay of the employees to Rs 2.30 lakh annually was also highlighted.

They further maintained that as per the Sixith Pay Commission report, the salaries of the group D employees of the BSNL should also be hiked. “The committee should settle the pay anomalies of the first wage revision to avoid recurring loss”, he added.

Jalandhar, December 16
Bank employees and officers today expressed their opposition to the government move to merge public sector banks on the joint call given by the All-India Bank Employees Association and the All-India Bank Officers Association.

All the bank branches remained closed and the cheques worth hundreds of crores could not be cleared, apart from the disruption of cash transactions of about Rs 100 crore.

Bank employees, belonging to different banks, assembled in front of the regional office of the Central Bank of India and raised slogans against the economic policies of the government. Later a protest march was held in the city by bank employees, which culminated into a large rally in front of the Municipal Corporation office.

Amrit Lal, while addressing the rally, said the concept of the merger was not in the interest of the country and it was seriously apprehended that the government would hand over the public sector banks to foreign multinationals by inviting foreign direct investment.

Phagwara: Banking services remained paralysed in Phagwara, Goraya, Phillaur, Nakodar, Apra, Bilga and Nurmahal today owing to a strike called by the All-India Bank Employees Association and All-India Bank Officers Association.

Even clearing houses could not operate at any place due to strike. Protest rallies were also organised where various union leaders alleged that the government wanted to amend Banking Regulations Act and delete Section 12 (2) to remove the present ceiling and provide full voting rights to foreign investors.

They said allowing full voting rights to foreign investors in banks will endanger our people’s money in the banks and moreover the banks will be vulnerable to be taken over by foreign investors.

The union leaders said despite failure of 132 banks in the US only in 2009, the government was advancing on the same lines.

They called upon the bank employees to be ready for the grim struggles in coming future against the government policies being implemented under the pressure of World Bank and IMF.

Jalandhar, December 16
The Punjab State Warehouse Field Employees Union today conditionally withdrew its indefinite strike launched to protest against the high-handedness of the Food Corporation of India (FCI).

Union chairman Akshar Kumar said the strike had been withdrawn on the assurance of the Managing Director of the Punjab Warehouse Corporation (PWC) and the General Manager of the FCI.

Kumar said a demand for weighing of stocks has been accepted. He said the protest would further be intensified if their other demands were not accepted within the next one month.

The union also called a meeting of various other procuring agencies to chalk out a further course of action at Sangrur on January 10, 2010.