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PSEB chief gets govt snub
Resource Mobilisation
Will block avenues for youth: Cong
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Bajwa to protest against VAT hike
Amritsar, January 24 Gurdaspur MP Partap Singh Bajwa has announced to hold a protest along with industrialist organisations at Pathankot in the first week of February against the SAD-BJP coalition government for enhancing VAT and introducing property tax.
A First: Special kids to perform at R-Day
Save state’s economy, says Rana Sodhi
Punjab sets up 3 panels in first three weeks
Prior to arrest, Maoist leader stayed in Patiala
Youths say no to drugs
Govt dilly-dallies over financial assistance to PAU
Ahluwalia acquitted in Saru Rana case
School principal claims ‘threat to life’ for punishing student
Rape victim, her mother kept at police station during night
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PSEB chief gets govt snub
Chandigarh, January 24 According to sources, the Additional Secretary, Power, through a communication on January 11 told the Chairman that his order of December 15 had been reviewed and that the same needed to be withdrawn immediately. The communication makes it clear that the direction has the approval of the Chief Secretary and also states that the action-taken report should be reported back immediately. However, it seems the PSEB is slow on reacting to government directions. The board Chairman is still to review his earlier order. When contacted, Brar first heard out the case but disconnected the phone later without giving his version. He could not be contacted later. Brar had issued an office order on December 15 in which he listed that since both the Member, Finance and Accounts, Anurag Aggarwal, and the Board Secretary, Hussan Lal, were holding dual charge and not staying in the headquarters, all important files should be put up before him by the respective head of departments. Aggarwal and Hussan Lal had taken umbrage at the order and had written demi-official letters to the Principal Secretary, Power, alleging that the Chairman was acting against the instructions of the government. Both of them urged that the orders of the Chairman be reviewed immediately. However, the Board Secretary, when questioned on the issue, said he would not like to make any comment. Sources said the Chairman’s earlier orders had upset the functioning of the board. They said traditionally, all files pertaining to the Secretariat functioning came to the Secretary, who was also the person responsible for dealing with court cases. Similarly, all files pertaining to finances are put up before the Member, Finance. Sources added that the Chairman had given the plea that files could be cleared more quickly if they came to him directly. The government has through the order maintained status quo in the board. Though earlier it was felt that the Chairman had been given the upper hand after he was given another extension, the board has also extended the term of Member, Distributionb K D Choudhary, who does not quite see eye to eye with him. Similarly, by withdrawing the order on the issue of files, the government has made it clear that it will not do away with established work norms.
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Report vague on property tax: Tandon
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, January 24 He also claimed that the process of reimbursing farmers after taking a nominal charge from them on account of agriculture supply for tubewells would make the government a laughing stock. In a statement here, Tandon said the government needed to clarify whether the property tax would be collected from the entire state or from the municipal limits only. He said it should also be clarified whether the existing house tax, which was being collected from residents of the municipal areas, would also simultaneously continue or the new property tax would replace the existing house tax. The BJP leader said the government had taken a welcome step by deciding to give a productivity bonus to farmers, which would be the equivalent of the amount that is to be collected from them by way of electricity bills for running of tubewell motors. He said, however, there was a serious question mark on how the productivity bonus would work. He said it was un-understandable as to why the government first wanted to collect dues from farmers and then return the same through a lengthy bureaucratic process. He said the entire issue needed to be given a rethink. Tandon also made out a case for giving productivity bonus to industrialists. He said the industrialists in Punjab had suffered because of incentives given to neighbour states. He said the government should also give a productivity bonus to industrialists on the basis of enhanced rate of electricity tariff that, he said, was increasing every year and was chargeable from the industrial sector. Meanwhile, in a separate statement, Punjab CPM Secretary Charan Singh Virdi today claimed that the Sukhbir-Kalia report was pro-rich. “If it was pro-poor, it would have allowed power subsidies to those who own less than seven acres of land,” he said. He said similarly, farmers owning less than seven acres of land should have been exempted from paying abiana. The CPM Secretary said the report had also not taken any steps to increase allocation for the social sector development, which had reached a low of 21 per cent. He said in respect of raising resources, services charges as well as new levies had been imposed on everyone instead of leaving the poorer sections out of the ambit of fresh taxes. Virdi said the report should be implemented not through a fiat of the Cabinet, but after due approval of the state Cabinet.
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Will block avenues for youth: Cong
Chandigarh, January 24 They said the 37 per cent increase in VAT would see a steep increase in the prices of essential commodities and deprive the youth in villages as well as the urban poor of good educational opportunities. They said the proposed imposition of institutional tax on institutions outside municipal limits would also work against the interest of the rural youth. The leaders said taxation on DTH would also deprive rural as well as urban poor of access to information and knowledge and force them to rely on cable network that was more expensive. Parminder said the youth were being ignored even though need of the hour was to provide jobs and self-employment opportunities to them. Kaypee challenged the CM for an open debate on the recommendations made by the panel, which he claimed, were“ambiguous” and “anti-people”.
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Bajwa to protest against VAT hike
Amritsar, January 24 Addressing mediapersons here today, he flayed Sukhbir-Kalia recommendations, to hike VAT from 4-5 per cent, besides imposition of additional 10 per cent surcharge on VAT. He termed the measures as “gross injustice” to the industrial and trading community of the state in general and urban areas of the state in particular. He claimed that the collected additional Rs 4,000 crore would be spent in rural areas to consolidate traditional vote bank of the Akalis. He said the time was not far-off when the Akali Dal would enter into alliance with another party like the BSP, abandoning the BJP, which would be left with no base at all in the state.The Congress MP alleged that hike in bus fares and reduction in road permit was to help the Badal family, which is operating few hundred buses in the state.
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A First: Special kids to perform at R-Day
Ludhiana, January 24 The performance has got the nod from Ludhiana Deputy Commissioner Vikas Garg, who along with the Ludhiana SSP and other the top officials even inspected the final dress rehearsal of the children here at SCD Government College ground, the venue of the function. The children, suffering from different mental and physical disabilities, will perform in front of thousands of people, including the chief guest, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, top officials of the district administration and police, other dignitaries and distinguished guests besides thousands of city residents. The children, students of Balaji Prem Ashram, School for the Deaf and Dumb (Tagore Nagar), Ek Prayas, Vocational Rehabilitation Training Centre and Aashirwad, will perform on a mélange of patriotic Bollywood numbers, including timeless melodies like "Vande Mataram” by renowned music composer AR Rahman and "Rang de Basanti". "Those who are participating in the function include children with speech and hearing disabilities, visually as well as mentally challenged kids and also, some suffering from cerebal palsy," said Dr Neelam Sodhi, Director, Ashirwad. "We are elated that finally, our children will get a chance to display their talent at such a big level," Dr Sodhi said. She informed that on numerous earlier occasions also, proposals regarding a special performance by children with special needs had been put forth before the administration, but failed to bear fruit. "The credit for this goes to DC Vikas Garg, without whose cooperation, this would not have been possible," Sodhi revealed. The DC said, "This is a unique endeavour and we are hopeful that others will take a cue and follow suit by giving special children a chance to prove themselves."
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Save state’s economy, says Rana Sodhi
Ferozepur, January 24 Expressing concern over the “deteriorating” financial health of Punjab due to “fiscal mismanagement” of the ruling SAD-BJP alliance, he said it was the right time when all political parties, leaving aside their individual agendas, must come on a common platform to address the economic crises being faced by Punjab. Talking exclusively to The Tribune here today, Rana Sodhi said due to bad management of finances by the ruling SAD-BJP alliance, all welfare schemes including atta-dal at subsidised rates for poor, monetary assistance to the scheduled caste on the marriage of their wards under the Shagun scheme and pensions to elderly and poor people of the state had failed miserably. Not only this, most of the time the Punjab government had been failing to pay salaries to its employees at a proper time. The funds to the tune of thousands of crores of rupees given by the Union Government to the state government under various projects could not be utilised as the state government could not contribute its share. “The attempt to mobilise additional funds to the tune of Rs 4,000 crore by the ruling alliance as per the recommendation of Sukhbir Badal-Manoranjan Kalia committee’s report is certainly going to burden the poor people of the state,” he claimed, adding that this was not the way the state government should run its financial affairs. The state government must take corrective steps to enhance its growth rate, which had come down to 4.3, lowest in the country as compared to other states and half of the national growth rate of 9 per cent. The Punjab government must learn a lesson from the Bihar government where the annual growth had touched 10 per cent. During the previous Congress government led by Capt Amarinder Singh, Punjab’s economy witnessed growth every year. The previous Congress government never indulged in withdrawing money through the provision of overdraft from the RBI. He said it was very surprising that the debt of the Punjab government had been going up every year despite the fact that hundreds of crores of rupees were left in the state treasury at the time when the Congress left the governance about three years ago. It should be checked by the authorities concerned by cutting down the wasteful expenditure and better management of funds, he said. “How the state government could initiate development process in the border state of Punjab when it has been finding it difficult to meet its routine financial liabilities,” he asked, adding that no one could dream of a better future in Punjab under such circumstances and hence the political parties would have to come together to save Punjab’s economy.
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Punjab sets up 3 panels in first three weeks Chandigarh, January 24 Besides, the government has also decided to activate the Punjab Waqf Board by nominating a former Director-General of Police, Mohammed Izhar Alam, as its Chairman. The working of the board has remained mired in controversies for the past some years. Though a former Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court will head one of these - the NRIs Commission — Chairpersons of the remaining two such bodies - Minorities Commission and the Parvasi Bhalai Board — have already been named. Demand for setting up of the Minorities Commission was raised before visiting members of the National Commission for Minorities to the state a few months ago. Munawar Masih has been named Chairman of the Punjab Minorities Commission that has been given the mandate to work for safeguarding the interests of the minorities, including the Muslims and Christians, in the state. It would also give due representation to the minorities in the process of development programmes and policy formulation. While the demand for the Minorities Commission was being raised from time to time for the past some years, the state, wiser by experiences of violence incidents in Ludhiana in December last, has in a pro-active gesture decided to set up the Parvasi Bhalai Board that will work for looking after the interests and welfare of a strong work force of the migrants, comprising both skilled and unskilled workers. After naming Ram Charan Yadav Chairman of the new Board, Vishwanath Singh has been named its member. In all, the board will have seven members, including the Chairman. It has been given the mandate to examine the implementation of various safeguards provided in the constitution and in the laws passed by the Central and State Legislature from time to time for the protection of the migrants from other states. Besides, it would make recommendations so as to ensure effective implementation and enforcement of all these safeguards. The board would also look into specific complaints regarding deprivation of rights and safeguards of migrants and take them up with the appropriate authorities. The latest addition to the list of commissions and boards has been the NRI Commission, which is being proposed to redress the grievances and problems of a nearly two million strong NRI community of the state. Punjab may soon be joining the select band of states that have abundance of commissions and boards with limited or no powers. Most of these “toothless” commissions languish for want of resources or for filling vacant positions. Of late, the state government has been active in making appointments and nominations against existing vacancies in these consultative/recommendatory or even quasi-judicial bodies. But the rules of business of most of these bodies have either not been framed or not amended to make them effective public for the given mandate.
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Prior to arrest, Maoist leader stayed in Patiala
Patiala, January 24 Notably, the Special Cell of the Delhi police had arrested Kobad Gandhi from an undisclosed place in Delhi in September 2009. Kobad Gandhi is a Politburo and Central Committee member of the banned CPI (Maoist). Speaking to The Tribune, DSP (Rural) Harvinder Singh said, “Based on very reliable inputs, we have lodged an FIR under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Act 2008 and various sections of the Indian Penal Code.” He further said that a case has been registered against Kobad Gandhi and his accomplice Manoj alias Rajesh, who is also a central committee member of the CPI (Maoist). Police officials said it came to their knowledge that Kobad Gandhi was spotted at the main gate of the Punjabi University. “Impersonating as one of the professors, Kobad Gandhi stayed in Punjabi University”, said a senior cop, preferring anonymity. Based on these inputs, the Patiala police has lodged an FIR and investigations are on. “We will investigate the entire matter and will find out the period when he stayed in the university”, said cops.
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Youths say no to drugs
Bathinda, January 24 This dramatic change in the life-style has come gradually during the past two years, when the Deputy Inspector General of Police (Faridkot range) Jitendera Jain, organised a series of de-addiction camps in the cluster of villages around Lehra Mohabbat. Jain said not a single FIR was lodged in the village police station during 2009, whereas in the past, cases of murder and illicit distillation were a common phenomenon in the area. Avtar Singh (60), husband of village sarpanch, said he had been consuming poppy husk for the past 20 years, said no to it, after attending the de-addiction camps. Malkiat Singh (65), office bearer of the village cooperative society, had started consuming poppy husk at the age of 45, and had increased the quantity to about one kg every day, before he came in contact with the camp doctors. He says that he feels fresh after having shunned the addiction. Baldev Singh (40) said he had fallen in debt-trap because of the addiction of poppy husk. “ I used to simply waste a sum of Rs 10,000 per month to acquire poppy husk. Having shunned the habit, now, I am in a position to save the money with which my lifestyle has completely changed” he said. This transformation has come among residents of the cluster of 60 villages, including Lehra Mohabbat, Lehra Bega, Gurusar and Kothe-Piple. Jain said not only police, but also doctors and volunteers were also putting in their best efforts to de-addict the villagers.Avtar Singh said residents of the village with a population of over 500, have now vowed not to allow return of crime or drugs in the area. Jain had earlier taken the de-addiction initiative in the Behman-Diwana village, where many national level sportsmen had turned addicts. The project has now begun in the Deon village. He said the youths are now being trained in carpentry, plumbing, motor mechanic and other vocations, so that they could lead an honorable life. They will be assisted in availing soft loans, incase they plan to set up their workshop, Jain added.
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Govt dilly-dallies over financial assistance to PAU
Ludhiana, January 24 The Punjab government wanted the special grant of Rs 100 crore be routed through it. But Dr K S Aulakh, then Vice-Chancellor, took the stand that this was a special grant for the PAU and it should come direct to it. The ICAR, which is the nodal agency for the agricultural research institutes in the country, accepted the demand of the PAU and accordingly sent the money directly to the PAU. This decision of the ICAR irked the Punjab government. The Punjab Financial Commissioner (development) in a letter to the PAU authorities has now sought information regarding the expenditure of Rs 100 crore grant given by the Central Government. The PAU authorities have informed the Punjab government that the amount of Rs 100 crore was received in three instalments --- first instalment of Rs 30 crore in 2006-07, second instalment of Rs 45 crore was received in 2007-08 and the third instalment of Rs 25 crore was received in 2008-09 respectively. The grant money has been utilised according to the norms of the ICAR. The authorities have further informed the state government that the university has set up seven state-of-the-art laboratories. Besides, teaching techniques and computer laboratories have also been upgraded. The university authorities have also told the government that the interest realised on the special grant has been spent on the non- plan schemes because of non-availability of funds from the state government. The PAU authorities have denied that the non-teaching staff of the university is getting better pay scales as compared with the staff of the other universities. The non- teaching staff of the PAU is getting the pay scales similar to the other state universities. The Punjab government provides a lump sum grant of Rs 100 crore to the PAU every year to meet its financial needs. But the same is not sufficient to meet the salary component even and the university has sought increase in the same to the tune of Rs 135 crore per annum.
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Ahluwalia acquitted in Saru Rana case
Patiala, January 24 The case that hit the headlines dates back to February, 2002, when Dr Ahluwalia was the VC of Punjabi University. Saru Rana, a student of the Fine Arts Department of the university, had alleged that Dr Ahluwalia made an attempt to rape her in the retiring room of his office. Subsequently, a case was registered against Ahluwalia. At present, Dr Ahluwalia holds the post of the Vice-Chancellor of Guru Granth Sahib World University, Fatehgarh Sahib. The court of Additional Sessions Judge DS Johal acquitted Dr Ahluwalia on Saturday. Three co-accused in the case, including the then Fine Arts Department head Saroj Rani, artist Jaspal Singh and research scholar Amandeep Kaur, were also discharged by the court. On Friday, Dr Ahluwalia was acquitted of the charges of corruption and forgery pertaining to a case registered against him in April, 2002. The court orders came after defence counsels NPS Waraich and SS Waraich presented in the court a judgment of the Punjab and Haryana High Court directing that Ahluwalia be discharged. On December 17, 2009, the high court had said, “The charges were false and frivolous”. Waraich also quoted the HC order stating that in a case like this, where one party was adamant on having the VC removed, it was very easy to have a complaint filed against him through a student. Immediately after the filing of the chargesheet, the defence moved a criminal revision petition in the high court in 2003. Defence counsels argued that on the day Ahluwalia was alleged to have tried to molest Saru Rana, he was busy with a foreign delegation visiting the university. The counsel had claimed that the case was got registered out of political vendetta.
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School principal claims ‘threat to life’ for punishing student
Chandigarh, January 24 In their petition, Sada Ram Bansal Memorial Senior Secondary School Principal Sunita Mehta and her husband Ashok Kumar Mehta have alleged that on January 13 they were threatened and misbehaved with for stopping a
boy from indulging in eve-teasing. They said there were complaints of eve-teasing against Ishan
Garg, Anmol Goel and their friends, all Class X students. Sunita called these students to her office after receiving a number of complaints. The next day, Ishan's father Satish Kumar
Garg, along with 10 other persons, trespassed into her office after forcibly entering the school premises and started hurling abuses at her. Accusing them of beating her up, Sunita said they had also threatened her with abduction. Before leaving, they pulled apart the telephone wires to prevent her from making calls. Alleging police inaction, the petitioners claimed that a representation signed by the school staff was submitted to the police authorities, but no action was taken against them. A copy of the said application was also enclosed along with
the petition. The accused, rather, started threatening the petitioners and members of the school
staff. Ashok Kumar Mehta visited the Kotkapura city police station on January 14 to enquire into the action taken by the police. After some time, Satish Kumar Garg and others reached there. Finding Ashok alone in the police station, they started fighting with him and issued threats. Instead of taking action, a cop advised him to compromise the matter, the petitioners said. The petitioners added that their life and liberty were in danger. Though they requested the Faridkot SSP and other senior police officials to intervene, yet no action was taken. Seeking directions for the protection of life and liberty, the petitioners said the accused were influential persons and
no action had not been taken so far due to their political influence.
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Rape victim, her mother kept at police station during night
Jalandhar, January 24 Interestingly, two police officials gave different statements on the issue. While, the in charge of Nangal Shama police post, ASI Sikander Singh, denied that the rape victim and her mother had been kept in the police station on Saturday night, the SHO, Inspector Harjinder Singh, admitted that both had been kept in the police station for the entire night. He said they had been kept on Saturday night in the presence of lady cops, as the victim was to be medically examined the next day. On the other hand, the district secretary of Pendu Mazdoor Union (PMU), Kashmir Singh Ghugshor, rebutted the SHO’s claim. Ghugshor, who is pursuing the case of the victim, said the police should have got the victim medically examined at the same time when the matter had been reported to the police, as the doctors remained available in the emergency of the nearby local Civil Hospital round the clock. Even if the police wanted to get her examined on Sunday morning, it should have sent the victim and her mother to their home, asking them to come back the next day, he added. Finally her medical examination was done on Sunday, which confirmed that she had been raped. At this, a case was registered against an unknown accused under Sections 363 and 376 of the IPC. The victim is a 10-year-old migrant. Ghugshor further said the crime took place on Tuesday, when the accused took her with him from her school claiming that her father, working as gardener with the PSEB, had called her for some urgent work. Criticising the negligence of the school management for allowing the student to go with the unknown person, the PMU district secretary demanded exemplary action against its management and against the erring police officials for keeping the victim and her mother at police station for the entire night and for the delay in getting the victim medically examined.
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Undertrial flees, three cops hurt Gidderbaha, January 24 ASI Krishan Kumar, head constable Jagtar Singh and constable Subhash Chander have been referred to the Bathinda Civil Hospital. According to sources, the cops were taking one Gurpreet Singh of Bhagta Bhai Ka village, who was booked in a theft case at Kotbhai police station under section 382 of the IPC, to make him appear at the Gidderbaha court tomorrow. He has been facing various criminal cases in Haryana and was recently lodged at the Karnal jail, from where he was being taken to Gidderbaha. They were boarding the train en route from Howrah to Sriganganagar, which stopped at Gidderbaha railway station at 8.45 pm. Suddenly, some unidentified persons opened fire on the railway bogey in which the accused and the cops were travelling. According to eyewitnesses, several rounds of bullets were fired at, which injured the cops and spread a rein of terror among the passengers. Taking benefit of the situation, the undertrial, Gurpreet Singh, fled from the spot. Soon after the incident, Government Railway Police (GRP) officials and the Gidderbaha police reached the spot and rushed the injured to the Civil Hospital in Gidderbaha, from where they were referred to Bathinda. Confirming the facts, DSP, Gidderbaha, Jagjit Singh said, “Head constable Jagtar Singh is unconscious as a bullet pierced through his head.” “A case will be registered at the GRP police station, but we, too, have sounded an alert in the district,” the DSP added.
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Ludhiana, January 24
Once known as a haven of addicts, Kothe-Piple village near here has now turned into a crime-free zone, where the youth has started taking interest in sports and other vocational activities. Residents of the village have not only got the liquor vends shut, but have also driven away the chemist, who used to supply drugs to the youth.
