Chandigarh, May 28
The ruling SAD is now faced with the prospect of seeking votes for the mini parliament of the Sikhs — the SGPC — in the last year of its coalition government’s rule in Punjab. The SGPC elections are now likely to be held early next year.

With elections to the SGPC being held closer to the Vidhan Sabha poll, there will definitely be pressure on the SAD which will have to prepare for the SGPC elections as well as elections to the state Assembly.

Gurdwara Elections Chief Commissioner Justice (retd) Harphul Singh Brar stated here today that while the Home Ministry would announce the election date, they were likely to be held within three months of finalisation of the voter list. He said the voter list was likely to be finalised by November 9 this year. Registration of voters will start from June 1 and continue till July 15, following which time has been set aside for scrutiny and filing of objections as well as corrections if any.

The Commissioner said elections would be held to 120 seats with 50 seats having two candidates, including 30 women and 20 Scheduled Caste candidates. This will take the total number of candidates to 170. He said as many as 110 seats were in Punjab while Haryana had eight seats and Himchal Pradesh and Chandigarh had one seat each. Other members include the heads of the five religious seats of the Sikhs, the head priest of the Darbar Sahib (Amritsar) and 15 nominated members.

Meanwhile, the Chief Commissioner clarified today that it was not mandatory for voters to have the suffix ‘Singh’ or ‘Kaur’ with their names. He said it was necessary for all voters to be ‘keshdhari’ and they should not be in the habit of taking any alcoholic or other stimulants. Voters have to submit an affidavit in this regard. The Commissioner said submission of false declarations would invite penal action.

With voter cards not having any photograph, all voters have been asked to submit their applications for registration as voters personally to earmarked officials. These officials, who will be hauled up in case found guilty of any wrongdoing, will not accept bulk forms. As many as 80 lakh application forms have been distributed till now.

Meanwhile, some issues remain unresolved. Justice (retd) Brar when questioned whether secular parties would also be allowed to contest the SGPC elections, said the Commission would look into this issue at an appropriate time. 

Ludhiana, May 28
A year after Tehsildar Major GS Benipal (retd) unearthed the fake stamp paper scam, the Revenue Department today reported seven stamp papers that were tampered with and shown to be of higher denominations thereby causing a loss of Rs 7.28 lakh to the state exchequer.

The matter came to light when a team of internal audit of the Revenue Department, scrutinising the records, found the stamp papers issued by the State Bank of India to be tampered with. 

They found seven stamp papers valued originally for Rs 10,54,200 issued by the SBI but passed off as being worth Rs 17,82, 200.

The issue was reported to the Deputy Commissioner, who directed the revenue officials to lodge a complaint with the police. Major Benipal (retd), who is one of the complainants, said it was surprising that the stamp papers issued by the SBI were also fiddled with.

For instance, a stamp paper worth Rs 7,000 was passed off as a stamp paper worth Rs 7 lakh by adding a zero to it. The worth of all the seven stamp papers confiscated was shown to be much more than the actual amount.

‘‘In the case of a stamp paper issued in my (Central-Sub Registrar) office, a zero was added to a gap between seven and zero. It was done in such a way that nobody could make out the change in handwriting. It could only be found out after the audit team matched the stamp papers with the list of those sold by the SBI,’’ said Major Benipal, adding that he had written a complaint to Merado police post.

Another complaint was lodged by Sub- Registrar (East) to police station division number 6 about six stamp papers.

It was following the uncovering of fake stamp paper scam last year that the state government had authorised the SBI to issue these papers of high denominations. Earlier the stamp vendors were issued these revenue papers through the treasury, making the system vulnerable.

The government had taken the decision last year to allow stamp vendors to sell papers of low denominations only so that the exchequer is not made to suffer huge losses, if at all there is a scam. ‘‘Shockingly, even the stamp papers issued by the SBI are not spared,’’ said Major Benipal. 

Bathinda, May 28
Hundreds of green trees are being axed along the Bathinda-Kheowali road that connects Bathinda with the Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal’s native village, Badal, located in Muktsar district.

The merciless cutting of trees has initially been started on a stretch of 4.5 km near Ghudda village on the pretext of embellishing the ambience of the Central University of Punjab (CUP), which is to be set up there. Ironically, the construction project of the CUP is still confined to paper only, but showing some urgency, the authorities concerned have hurriedly put the well-grown trees on the death row.

The trees which are being targeted include Tortalis, neem, kikkar and sheesham. Many of these trees are between the age of 30-40 years with a well-grown trunk and branches.

Though the project has been started after the approval of the departments concerned, it has raised the hackles of the people of this district, as they are already affected badly by air and water pollution.

Sources in the divisional forest office, Bathinda, said that as many as 1,182 trees standing within the 4.5-km stretch on the Bathinda-Badal-Kheowali road (number MDR-73) are to be felled before the end of the next month.

Meanwhile, a highly placed official in the district administration said that the Chief Minister was keen to see the whole stretch, leading from Bathinda to Badal village, having four lanes. A project of widening the Bathinda-Ghudda stretch (about 13 km) is already awaiting approval, while another project for the Ghudda-Badal road is also being drawn up.

“Everybody is aware that the road, in question, does not cater to much traffic. Despite this, if the project gets cleared to satisfy the desires of bigwigs, hundreds of trees will have to be axed, without any valid reason,” officials lamented. Divisional forest officer SP Anand Kumar said, “We have started cutting the trees only after getting an approval from the authorities concerned. Moreover, to compensate for the axing of the trees, we will put double the area under afforestation.” The executive engineer, PWD (B&R), Manjeet Singh, quipped, “We are only implementing the project sent to us after approval.”

Ropar, May 28
The Ropar police arrested a suspected German national disguised as sadhu near Bhakra reservoir in Nangal today.SSP LK Yadav said the police came across the suspected person when areas around Bhakra reservoir were being checked. “The person did not have any valid document justifying his entry into India. He did not have a passport either. He kept changing his statements about where he lost his passport,” Yadav added.

Identified as Thomas Kuehn, son of Julius Kuehn, street No. 12, 12073 Barlach, Hamburg, Germany, the man first said he lost his passport. He then said his Russian girlfriend had taken away his passport and went off to Nepal.

He has been booked under the Section 14 of the Foreigners’ Act, 1946, and under Section 3 (A) of the Passport Act, 1920. He was staying as a sadhu near Bhabhour Sahib Kali Mata Mandir on the banks of the Nangal dam.

Yadav said some days ago, a Pakistani group had threatened to damage the Bhakra Dam and in view of this, he said the arrest might hold vital information.

Earlier, it was found that Thomas came to India in 2004. While on his way from Goa to Delhi, he met a Russian girl. With her, he visited Jammu and Kashmir, Dharamsala and went back to Germany, while the girl stayed back.

He again came to India in 2007 and met the girl in the Alora area of Maharashtra. He gave his passport to the girl, who worked as a travel agent, for getting the visa.

Thomas told the police that the girl went to Nepal with his passport but did not return. He said from 1999 to date, he had visited France, Spain, Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Somalia, Sudan, Central America, Algeria, India, Scotland, Romania, Indonesia and some other countries.

Chandigarh, May 28
The BKU (Ekta) has dismissed the remarks made by Punjab DGP PS Gill describing it as a front organisation of Naxalites.Taking exception to the statement the DGP made in Amritsar yesterday, Joginder Singh Ugrahan and Sukhdev Singh Kokri, president and secretary of the BKU (Ekta), said that by such statements, the police was trying to mislead people besides preparing the ground for crushing the peaceful agitation of the union in support of its long-standing demands.

The BKU (Ekta), they said, would hold a “sangram” rally at Moga on June 7 to continue its opposition to the unbundling of the PSEB and withdrawal of water and power subsidy besides demanding the immediate withdrawal of the ordinance on damage to public property and an end to the arrest of farmers who default on the repayment of their loans.

“By declaring us a front organisation of Naxalites, the DGP wanted to find grounds for resorting to undemocratic measures for crushing our seven-year-old agitation. About two months ago, while banning a rally by farmers and workers, the police had allegedly slapped false cases on demonstrators alleging they had come armed with lathis and stones. The police could not seize even a single lathi or stone from any of the arrested demonstrators.

“Now the police wants to use the same ordinance to ban the June 7 Moga rally,” they said, holding that farmers and workers would not allow the government to go ahead with its proposed privatisation and unbundling of public sector undertakings.

Farmers and workers of Punjab, they said, would oppose any move of allotting fertile land to monopoly and industrial houses. The government in the state was already trying to privatise water supply, education, healthcare and power supply.

Big corporate houses had been eyeing Punjab for a long time. It has been a part of the agitation that leaders like Sadhu Singh Takhtupura of the union made the supreme sacrifice. And instead of registering a case under Section 302 of the IPC against those responsible for the BKU leader’s death, the section has been watered down to 304 of the IPC.

This action of the police reflected how partisan this agency had become and was playing into the hands of the ruling alliance of the state. “Our organisation is ready to face the government onslaught as we will continue to agitate till our genuine demands are met,” they added.

Ferozepur, May 28
A recipient of Jnanpith Award, Prof Gurdial Singh, has decided to file a defamation suit against his brother, Gurcharan Singh, for portraying him as a villain in his novel “Lok Kahaye Darves”.

“I have decided to launch defamation proceedings against Gurcharan as he has not replied to the legal notice issued to him by my advocate within the stipulated time. He has portrayed me as a villain through one of the characters, Gurnek Singh, in the novel and dubbed me as one who has grabbed the property belonging to my near and dear ones,” said the noted Punjabi writer. Prof Gurdial Singh took the decision to go ahead with the defamation case in the court despite the fact that Gurcharan Singh in his reply to the legal notice issued to him by the advocate of Prof Gurdial Singh had categorically denied that he had portrayed Prof Gurdial Singh as a villain in his novel “Lok Kahaye Darves”.

“On the very first page of the novel, a disclaimer is published in Punjabi which reads: the incidents and characters of this novel are fictitious. In case of any doubt to any one, it will be purely coincidental,” pointed out Gurcharan Singh.

Prof Gurdial Singh, who has been feeling compelled to approach the court at the fag end of his life as he has already turned 77, said, “The petition in court in connection with the defamation suit is almost ready and will be filed by my advocate within this week.”

Gurcharan Singh, who retired from a senior position in the ONGC, Mumbai, a few years ago, said, “I am disheartened at this action of my elder brother. It may be a calculated move to divert the attention of the public from the main issue connected with the division of ancestral property.” On the other hand, Prof Gurdial Singh said, “I have never tried to usurp ancestral property. Gurcharan never visited Jaitu since 1995 to settle the property issue despite the fact that I have been writing to him time and again.” 

Chandigarh May 28
The Union Government has envisaged a major plan to boost solar energy and set aside Rs 1,000 crore for subsidising solar power. Deepak Gupta, Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India, said a proposal to declare Chandigarh, Amritsar and New Delhi as solar cities under the National Solar Mission was under active consideration.

Interacting with the media after inaugurating a workshop-cum-exhibition on “Deployment of Solar Thermal Systems in Northern States” under the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)/GEF Solar Water Heating Project organised by the Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA), he said a decision would be taken soon to boost harnessing of solar energy in these three cities.

He said the Union Government was working out a plan to reduce the cost of solar panels by indigenising them. A study, he said, was on to produce silicon chip used in panels indigenously.

Emphasising on the effective implementation of solar bye-laws, Gupta said the states should strictly implement the solar bye-laws necessitating every hotel, hostel, hospital, community centre to use solar water heating system. He regretted that lax implementation of solar bylaws, resulting in tardy implementation of the solar plan.

Speaking about future plans in the new energy sector, Gupta said that MNRE was also encouraging Independent Power Producers and their task was being facilitated by single-window service in the ministry. He said MNRE was targeting to produce 1,300 MW power from the new energy sector within three years.

Today’s workshop was aimed to analyse the present status of the solar thermal systems, including solar water heaters and impediments in the promotion of solar power besides discussing technological advancements, manufacturing, economics, policy issues and evaluating different financing models and implementation modalities.

Apart from this solar water heating systems, solar steam generating, cooking systems, solar passive/ energy efficient buildings had also been covered in the workshop, particularly in the context of the national rating system GRIHA being promoted by the MNRE. 

Chandigarh, May 28
Vice-President M Hamid Ansari may receive the Queen’s Baton when it crosses from Pakistan to India at Wagah (Amritsar) on June 25.Though confirmation of the Vice-President is still awaited, the Queen Baton Relay team headed by Lieut-Col Kuldip Singh Banshta and Officer-on-Special Duty, 2010 Commonwealth Games, Jagmohan Bhanot, held detailed discussions with Punjab Chief Secretary Subodh Aggarwal and other senior civil servants here this afternoon. 

Punjab Sports Secretary Paramjit Singh Aujla also attended the meeting where basic modalities were worked out.

After arriving in Amritsar on June 25, the Queens’ baton will stay in the holy city for the night before it traverses the length and breadth of the Majha and the Doab regions of the state besides touching Ludhiana before crossing over to Jammu and Kashmir.

Talking to The Tribune, Bhanot said that besides the Vice-President, the Queen Baton Relay team expects Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab and other senior leaders of the state to be present at Wagah to receive the Baton from representatives of the Pakistan Olympic Committee. The President of the Indian Olympic Association, Suresh Kalmadi, too, will be among those to receive the Baton.

There would be a cultural programme at the Wagah before the Baton is taken to Amritsar where a public reception would be organised. A stamp commemorating the Baton’s entry will also be released at Wagah.

After Amritsar, the Queen’s Baton will travel to Tarn Taran, Kapurthala, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Hoshiarpur and Pathankot before entering Jammu and Kashmir.

Since the 2010 Commonwealth Games are being organised as Green Games, Bhanot said that 10 lakh trees would be planted in the country along the route of the Queen Baton’s Relay. Forty thousand of these trees would be planted in Punjab.

Earlier, at meetings held at Amritsar to review the arrangements, the Chairman of the Media Committee of the 2010 Commonwealth Games, Tarlochan Singh, MP, and the Secretary of the Punjab Olympic Association, Raja K Sidhu, held discussions with senior officials of the district administration, the Border Security Force and the Punjab police, to finalise the route of the relay.