Ferozepur, April 13
Unmindful of risk involved in the job, the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) authorities have engaged migrant labourers to handle high tension (HT) wires in case its employees, striking on April 15-16, cause damage to the supply lines.

At many places in the state, the authorities concerned have also engaged students of electrical trade of polytechnic colleges and ITIs for pressing them into service in case the agitating employees cause disruption in power supply.

“We have left nothing to chance and have provided with alternative arrangements to maintain uninterrupted supply of electricity during the two-day against unbundling of PSEB,” pointed out a senior functionary of board on the condition of anonymity.

Admitting the fact there was risk to the lives of the migratory labourers and students if they handle HT wires and power grids, he, however, pointed out that they had been given preliminary training to handle electrical distribution equipments.

The PSEB authorities have already summoned technical and trained hands from NTPC, NHPC, Bhakra Beas Management Board, Power Grid Corporation and PWD (B&R). They would be deployed around power grids and other vital installations during the strike period.

PSEB member SC Sabharwal today said the railway authorities had promised to deploy its men in addition to the PSEB manpower at seven traction stations from where the power was being supplied to 153 km-long electrified rail route from Sahnewal to Amritsar so that uninterrupted power could be ensured to the trains running on that section.

He also stated that in a meeting between PSEB chief HS Brar and PK Shrivastava, chief electrical engineer, Northern Railway, Baroda, the railway authorities had promised that if need arose, they might deploy their technically trained men at other locations in the state.

Umesh Dewan adds from Patiala: With April 15 approaching, various PSEB unions are gearing up for protest. Not only PSEB unions, but also farmer associations are contemplating to launch an agitation in case the government issues notification for the unbundling of the board.

State president and general secretary of the Council of Junior Engineers of the PSEB (Regd) Swaran Singh and Davinder Singh, respectively, stated that PSEB employees and junior engineers would stage a peaceful agitation. “We opposed various undemocratic steps being proposed by the Punjab government against the struggling employees of the PSEB who are going to observe a two-day strike from April 15-16 against the unbundling of the PSEB,” they added.

They also reiterated that JEs/additional assistant engineers will also go on strike.

Rajay Deep adds from Bathinda: On the one hand, the government is busy making efforts to deal with the two-day strike of the PSEB employees, on the other as many as 22 organisations have announced that they would stretch the protest till April 27.

Representatives of the organisations, which include unions of farmers, labourers and PSEB employees, assembling under the leadership of labour union leader Gurnam Singh Daud held a secret meeting in the Malwa region yesterday.

They decided that besides the strike, volunteers of the joint committee would wear black badges and hoist black flags at their houses and tubewells to observe protest on April 15. 

Jalandhar, April 13
Initial reports from most part of the Malwa region especially Mansa, Sangrur, Patiala, Bathinda with regard to the yield of wheat are disheartening. However, reports from Samrala belt of Ludhiana district and Doaba and Majha region are a bit satisfying.

Farmers from the Bathinda belt of Malwa region claim that per acre wheat yield in their area has gone down up to 3-5 quintals this time. Bogh Singh, a farmer from Datewas village, said the farmers were upset on finding that the wheat yield was far less than expected. He said even some of the farmers had told him that there was a fall of up to six quintal per acre. Ghuman Singh Rajgarh from Nabha has also the same story to tell.

However, Gurdev Singh from Samrala said in his area the production was high this time as compared to last year. He said per acre production had gone up by 2-3 quintals per acre this time. “We have got wheat yield up to 20 quintals this time whereas last time in our area it was 16-17 quintals,” he said.

At some places the yield was affected by attack of yellow rust. Besides it, there was also sudden rise in the temperature in last week of March. The green wheat crop dried in a few days. High temperature affected the grains of the crop that was sown late. To add to the woes, there was also not adequate supply of power nor was their adequate water in canals for irrigation. The “Naturally, less yield of wheat will affect not only farmers but also labour, transporters and others who earn their livelihood from food grains”, said Bogh Singh urging the government to announce special bonus to farmers. 

Fatehgarh Sahib, April 13
Despite many fake currency notes being detected in banks everyday, bankers have reported not even a single case to the police .

Violating the guidelines of Reserve Bank of India (RBI), none of the bankers in Punjab have ever registered a complaint in this regard.

Sources of banking ombudsman office in Chandigarh said as per the RBI instructions; bankers should immediately seal the fake currency and get a case registered.

“In most cases, matter is swept under the carpet and bankers ask customers with fake currency to replace them with original ones,” one of the top-notch bankers said. Officials of the Crime Branch of the Punjab Police headquarters said no such case had been registered in any district.

Another banker said there were strict instructions directing them to inform the police and issue a letter to the one found with the fake currency. Also, fake notes should be stamped with a special stamp issued by the RBI.

A section of bankers said that this was an open secret and everybody knew about circulation of fake currency. However, nobody wanted to get into the legal tangles.

Moreso, no banker would like to harass its customers, they added.

A banker said he detected 1,500 fake notes of Rs 500 denominations from a customer and the depositor was told to replace those with the original notes.

IG Crime BK Uppal said the police always registered a case against someone who possessed fake currency only after enquiring about the credentials of a person.

“There have been many cases registered on the complaint of common people but I have no idea about a banker informing the police so far about fake currency found,” he said.

Chandigarh, April 13
Raj nahin sewa (service not rule) may be the adage that the incumbent SAD-BJP government claims to be its motto, but it is not true in the case of a senior civil servant who decided to put in his papers for premature retirement today. He was otherwise to retire on September 30 this year.

Jasbir Singh Bir, who belongs to the 1994 batch, chose the auspicious Baisakhi day to call it a day after his sustained efforts to get justice to a group of aggrieved residents of Mohali failed even after his meeting with Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal.

“I landed in a situation where all pillars of democracy - executive, legislature and judiciary - besides the fourth estate, media, failed to get a genuine grievance of people redressed. So I find no use in continuing in my office where much junior officials with a controversial service track record but strong political support don’t care two hoots for the system,” rues Bir, who till recently was Commissioner, Patiala Division.

He has been up against none other than the Deputy Chief Minister, Sukhbir Singh Badal, as the “buses illegally parked and operated from a Mohali Shop-cum-Office complex belong to Orbit Bus Company.”

The Chief Secretary, SC Aggarwal, confirmed that a request from Bir had been received and action would be taken on it. He said there was a three-month statutory period for the government to take action on his request.

“Whereas on the one hand, the government of the time wants public servants to be fully accountable, on the other hand, it also expects them to respect government institutions while discharging their duties for public good and public cause with integrity for which the Indian Constitution has provided some safeguards for the security of their jobs,” he said in his letter of seeking voluntary retirement. The letter was delivered to the Chief Secretary this morning.

It all started over the parking of buses in a commercial-cum-residential area of SAS Nagar. Both belonging to the residential area as well as those who had made huge commercial investments in the area wanted the “illegal operation of buses shifted out of the area so that they can carry on their routine activities.”

All representations to the police, the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority, Municipal Council Senior Superintendent of Police and even Deputy Commissioner of Police failed to get the affected people any relief.

They moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court where the court observed that this was a matter that could be looked after by the authorities concerned.

But orders passed by the Commissioner to the district authorities were not implemented. In one instance when he insisted on implementation of his order, he was immediately shifted and made a Director, rendering him office-less, vehicle-less and much below his seniority and status. His subsequent meeting with the Chief Minister to protest against harassment meted out to him for pursuing a public interest case was also of no avail.

“I could never have imagined that during the last remaining period of my service career and during the tenure of the present government, a time would come when I would feel helpless and think of saying goodbye to government service. In the past two-three months, I have undergone a severe mental trauma about which not only you but also the respected Chief Minister is aware. I was hoping that necessary measures would be initiated to reduce my mental trauma.”

“I hope this extreme step by me with deep pain and anguish will get the ‘governance reform’ process on the fast track and the people of Punjab will get the real feel of ‘Raj nahin sewa” as pledged by the present government,” he wrote in his letter to the Chief Secretary.

Sarvesh Kaushal, president of the Punjab IAS Officers Association, said, “I expect the government to redress the grievance of JS Bir and to relieve him of his feeling of humiliation and resultant suffocation at the fag-end of his long and unblotted career. This will help uphold the morale the civil services and enable the officers to put in their best in the public interest.”

Amritsar, April 13
Even as Chief Minister, Haryana, Bhupinder Singh Hooda said that he was learning Punjabi after declaring it the second language of his state, he reiterated that his government was committed to secure its share of water from the SYL canal. Similarly, he said, Haryana has been laying claim on Chandigarh.

Hooda was here today to pay homage to the martyrs of the Jallianwala Bagh. Defence Minister AK Antony was the chief guest. Earlier, Hooda also paid obeisance at the Golden Temple.

Hooda said he found Punjabi interesting and claimed that its origin lay in the Panipat area of Haryana. Many areas in Haryana especially those bordering Punjab contain population that spoke Punjabi. The Punjab government had repeatedly been laying claim over these areas.

He said about 15 lakh Punjabis resided in Haryana with a high concentration in Kurukshetra, Karnal, Faridabad and Gurgaon. Haryana was carved out as a separate state from unified Punjab on November 1, 1966.

Reacting to the rise in the revenue deficit of Haryana, Hooda said it was the result of hike in the pay of government employees effected by the Sixth Pay Commission.

He said steps like improving the tax collection were being initiated to reduce the deficit.

About formation of the Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, he said the government had sought legal advice over the matter. He refused to comment further on it. 

Amritsar, April 13
Describing the Jallianwala Bagh massacre as a turning point of the Indian freedom struggle, Union Minister for Defence AK Antony said the historic site had acquired the status of a pilgrimage for the people.

Besides Antony, almost all front line Congress, SAD and BJP leaders turned up at the martyrs’ memorial at Jallianwala Bagh here to pay tributes to the martyrs.

The leaders also included Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee chief Mohinder Singh Kaypee, former Punjab Chief Minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur, AICC General Secretary Mohsina Kidwai, MP Ashwani Kumar, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Punjab Tourism Minister Hira Singh Gabria and Punjab Health Minister Laxmi Kanta Chawla.

Former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, however, was conspicuous by his absence at the important event, even as Congress MLA OP Soni said that Amarinder Singh had got delayed as he had to appear in a court case in SAS Nagar today.

Antony was all praise for the Punjabis. “Punjab not only contributed in a big way to the freedom struggle of India but it has also produced prominent political leaders like Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Punjab and Haryana have been feeding the whole country, being the foodgrain bowl of the nation. Besides, Punjab has made immense contribution in all fields like agriculture and to the Army. We have a number of distinguished generals and soldiers from Punjab in our Army. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre gave a new momentum and direction to the freedom struggle,” said Antony.

Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ambika Soni said keeping in view the importance of the place, the central government had given a Rs 100 crore grant for the development and upkeep of the martyrs’ memorial at Jallianwala Bagh.

Mohsina Kidwai , Mohinder Singh Kaypee, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Preneet Kaur, Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, Laxmi Kanta Chawla and Gabria also spoke after paying tributes to the martyrs.

Jalandhar, April 13
Stepping up vigil against female foeticide, the Union Government has introduced a pregnancy-tracking system in rural India. Auxiliary nurse midwives (ANMs), deployed for this purpose in each health block of the country, will keep track of the pregnant women and maintain their record till delivery. The programme will be implemented under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM).

The Punjab government has started putting the system in place to implement the scheme. “It will take at the most two months to introduce the scheme in Punjab,” said Satish Chandra, Principal Secretary, Health, Punjab. In each block, about 30 ANMs will be deployed, he said. There are 118 health blocks in the state.

Punjab, Haryana are among the states having the worst sex ratio. In fact, both states have earned a poor reputation in this regard. However, the pregnancy-tracking system will go a long way to put a stop to female foeticide.

Two ANMs will be deployed in each cluster of villages having a population above 5,000. As the birth rate is 18 per thousand per month, that means in a cluster of villages having a population of 6,000 about 108 children will take birth. From the average birth rate, it can be found out whether the ANM is keeping track of the pregnancies or not. For instance, if the ANM has in her record details about 70 would-be mothers, that means she has not approached all would-be mothers in the area under her jurisdiction.

Chandigarh, April 13
Rabbi Arthur Schneier, president of the Appeal for Conscience Foundation and Religions for Peace, was conferred the second Guru Nanak Interfaith Prize at Hofstra University in New York last night. The first recipient of the $50,000-award was the Dalai Lama. The award was conferred upon him in recognition of his lifelong efforts to promote interfaith dialogue.

A distinguished panel of judges included former Prime Minister IK Gujral besides Khuswant Singh and MP Tarlochan Singh as its members from India to review the applications before shortlisting the finalists.

The Sikh community has been successfully established research Chairs at different universities across North America besides funding some research projects.

A selection committee that had representatives from different faiths chose Rabbi Arthur Schneier among more than 60 individuals and groups nominated for the ward.

Stuart Rabinoitz, president of Hofstra University, says the prize has been established with donation from a Punjabi philanthropist Ishar Singh Bindra.

A holocaust survivor, Rabbi Schneier has dedicated his life to promoting religious tolerance and freedom. He is the spiritual leader of Park East Synagogues in Manhattan and founder-cum-president of the Appeal for Conscience Foundation. Rabbi has led interfaith delegations to various parts of the world, including the Soviet Union, China and Cuba. He is the first Rabbi to get the Presidential Citizen Medal - second highest civilian award in the US.

MP Tarlochan Singh told The Tribune over phone that Religions for Peace headed by Rabbi Schneier has chosen Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for the Best Statesman of the World award to be presented in September in New York.

Religions for Peace is the largest multi-faith coalition for peace in the world with 70 inter-religious councils across the globe.

Chandigarh, April 13
Just about a week after the Punjab Police registered an FIR against Rozana Spokesman’s editor Joginder Singh on the allegations of the newspaper carrying “malicious writings about Sikh Gurus, Guru Granth Sahib, and various institutions of the Sikhs”, the Punjab and Haryana High Court today heard vendetta was at play.

In his petition against the state of Punjab, the state Director-General of Police and other respondents for grant of anticipatory bail, Joginder Singh asserted no offence was made out against him.

As the petition was taken up by the vacation Bench of Justice Augustine George Masih this morning, Joginder Singh added through counsel MS Lobana that an editorial carried out in the newspaper was misinterpreted and distorted to say it had hurt the feelings of the Sikh community.

He said a testimony to vendetta being at play was also provided by the fact that the case was registered at Amritsar, even though the newspaper was published from Mohali, and Joginder Singh was residing at Chandigarh.

Claiming that a fair trial would not be possible, he said intention apparently was to bring Joginder Singh to Amritsar, where the possibility of him being manhandled could not be ruled out.

After preliminary hearing, Justice Masih fixed April 19 as the next date of hearing.

Joginder Singh has been booked under Section 295-A of the Indian Penal Code. It all started on April 2, 2010, when SGPC chief Avtar Singh Makkar accompanied by a delegation of the Sant Samaj and chief of Damdami Taksal met the Punjab Chief Minister to demand action against the newspaper.

After a memorandum was submitted, the CM called for an in-depth study from a legal point of view.

A three-member inquiry committee, comprising Additional Advocates-General AS Jattana, Uttam Singh Dhaliwal and Baljinder Singh Sra was constituted by the state Advocate-General. The committee went through the memorandum as well as the writings.

It observed the “author has consistently, deliberately and maliciously questioned some of the very basic principles, practices and beliefs of the Sikh religion and its institutions, namely the five Takhts, Banis of the Nitnem and Sikh Ardas, etc…

“All this is grossly offensive and provocative being an attempt to insult and outrage the feelings of the Sikhs by questioning their religion and religious beliefs. It is the basic article of faith of the Sikhs that Guru Granth Sahib is the living Guru of the Sikhs and embodies a divine message.”

Patiala, April 13
Soaring mercury coupled with intermittent power cuts have put city residents to hardships. Though the timings of cuts are not very long yet, but still the city residents are worried as to what would happen in coming months.

“In summers, the city experiences daily power cut of at least 10 hours and with the sudden rise in temperature in April, the 4-hour power cut has already been imposed. What remains to be seen is what will happen in the coming months when everyone starts using coolers and ACs,” worried Mandeep Kaur, a housewife.

“With the power cuts usually occurring during school time it’s become really difficult to teach students. More than 50 per cent government schools do not have generator facilities and even if it is available, the running cost is really high which makes it impossible for schools to use them properly. Conditions in primary schools is more pitiable,” rued one of the government school teachers.

As per the local Met department, the temperature in the city is about 8 degrees higher than that last year during the same period. It has forecast that the heat wave conditions and dry weather would prevail for the next couple of months.

Patiala, April 13
Mannat Kaur Sidhu, a Class XI commerce student of Yadvendra Public School (YPS), Patiala, has been selected for participating in the People to People Leadership Summit. The summit will be held in the Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania between June 20 and 29.

At the summit, Mannat will join a selected group of students representing their schools, communities, and country as People-to-People student leaders.

People to People student leaders have to undergo an academically rigorous program focused on leadership development and global awareness.

Mannat was chosen among a bevy of other contenders on account of her outstanding scholastic merit, civic involvement, and leadership potential.

The summit is organised by the People to People International (PTPI) to fulfill the vision that its founder US President Dwight D Eisenhower had of fostering world citizenship when he founded the body during his presidency in 1956.

The purpose of the PTPI is to enhance international understanding and friendship through educational, cultural and humanitarian activities involving the exchange of ideas and experiences directly among peoples of different countries and diverse cultures.

School principal SV Kumar said this achievement was made possible because of Mannat’s hardwork and dedication.

“Her participation in this prestigious global summit will certainly give her international exposure and bring name and fame to her alma mater,” he added.