Bathinda, August 6
This evening, at about 7.15 pm, the Panghura (cradle), installed for accepting unwanted abandoned babies by the District Red Cross Society (DRCS) outside the Mahant Gurbanta Dass Deaf and Dumb School on the Goniana road here, got a female baby as someone left the baby in it at the mercy of others to bring her up.

The arrival of the newborn baby came to the notice of the attendant of the cradle and the principal of the school when someone rang the bell before leaving her in the cradle. This is the second baby, left in the cradle by unknown persons, in the past about two and a half months. Earlier, a newborn male baby had been left in the cradle on May 22 this year by some unknown person.

After receiving information about the arrival of female baby in the cradle, secretary of the DRCS JR Goyal immediately rushed to the spot and brought the baby to the Civil Hospital in the Red Cross ambulance for examination. He was accompanied by the principal of the school Maninder Kaur Bhalla and other members of the school staff.

Senior Medical Officer of Women and Children Hospital Dr BS Gill said though the baby was found to be fit and healthy during the examination but she would be kept under observation during the night at the hospital to ensure that no health problem occurs to the child. He said the baby would be handed over to the Red Cross authorities tomorrow morning.

Secretary of the DRCS Goyal said that as per the doctor, who examined the baby, she was about 24-hours-old and quite healthy. He said after the discharge of the baby by the doctors from the hospital, they would discuss the issue with the deputy commissioner, who had already been informed about the arrival of the child in the cradle, to hand over the baby to an organisation approved by the Punjab Government’s Social Security, Women and Child Development Department.

Goyal said that there were five such organisations in Punjab, but they would prefer to hand over the baby to a Patiala-based organisation, to which they had earlier handed over the male-baby that was found in cradle on May 22 last.

Meanwhile, Inspector Hardeep Singh, SHO Kotwali, along with his force visited the hospital to provide security to the child.

The SHO also gave Rs 500 to Jasvir Kaur, the attendant of the school for deaf and dumb.

Bathinda, August 6
Chairman, Punjab School Education Board (PSEB), Dalbir Singh Dhillon today confessed that he was unable to curb the unhealthy trend of “dummy admissions” emerging throughout the state.

Dhillon was here to attend a function at Dashmesh Public School, which was arranged by the Recognized and Affiliated Schools Association, Punjab (RASA), to celebrate the extension of one year granted to him as the chairman of the Board.

Speaking to the media, the chairman said, “I am well aware that students take admission in schools but rather than attending classes, they prefer to attend private coaching centres with the aim of cracking the entrance tests for further professional courses.”

“As the school authorities maintain the admission and fee records, it cannot be officially termed as dummy admissions. So, being the chairman of the PSEB, I could not take any step to check this menace,” he added.

Washing his hands off the responsibility, the chairman said, “This unhealthy trend can be checked only if school authorities understand their responsibility.”

Replying to queries related to the recently exposed irregularities in the academic results of various classes, Dhillon said, “The mistakes that occurred in the result were not as much as the issue was made out to be. There were 179 mistakes in the results of class XII examinations, that too could have been avoided but some unsavoury elements within our Board played their wicked game to tarnish its respect,” he claimed.

About the hike in late fee for admission that created much controversy, Dhillon said, “The late fee was hiked with a fair approach that it would have some deterrent effect, to make students start submitting the admission forms within the scheduled period, but we remained unsuccessful as a large number of students are still approaching us with offers to pay more than the fixed amount for late fee.”

“Observing the failure of this effort, we have now decided to end the system of late admissions from the next academic session,” said the chairman.

Speaking about the reforms, which he brought about in the PSEB, Dhillon said, “With a lot of reforms, like implementation of the semester system, transparency in paper checking, introduction of bar code on answer sheets, computerization of the Board, etc. the PSEB has now reached the level of the CBSE.”

About his future plans, he claimed that the introduction of an e-mail query system was in the pipeline, through which anybody could get any information regarding the PSEB within a week.

Bathinda, August 6
The billing process of the BSNL’s landline service, which got delayed for about a month due to installation of a new software concerning billing platform, is likely to return to normal in one to two month(s) time.

In a bid to regularise the bill issuing process, the BSNL is taking steps and after issuing bills for the month of May of late, the telecom major is likely to issue the bills for June in the latter half of August.

Sources in the BSNL said that the landline subscribers, who got the bills for the month of May during the period between last week of July and first week of August, are likely to get the bills for the month of June also in August last. “The BSNL may issue the bills for June after August 20,” the sources said.

Normally, the BSNL issues bills in the first week of every month with due date of depositing the charges had been around 25th of every month.

Since the bills for May have invoice date as July 7 and the due date as August 10, next bills that is for June might be issued after giving “sufficient” time to subscribers to deposit the payment against bills, sources added.

Sources further said that time gap between issuance of two bills might be lessened but that would not cause major problem to customers as customers’ convenience would be taken into account.

To make the bills more subscriber-friendly, the BSNL went hi-tech, and transformed the billing platform by replacing the existing one with new software. The bill preparation process in the entire Punjab has been centralised with the installation of new software and the customers got all new bills with more features.

The new bills besides having a new look carry detailed records of STD calls and other important information.

Bathinda, August 6
The Rural Medical Officers (RMOs) of this district, who were opposing deduction of income tax by the Zila Parishad (ZP) authorities on their monthly gross contract amount of Rs 37250, including the salary of the pharmacist i.e. Rs 6250, today heaved a sigh of relief when the Income Tax Department, Bathinda, gave in writing to two of the RMOs that “No tax is deductible out of the salary of the RMO in respect of the payment made by the Zila Parishad directly to the pharmacist”.

Sources in the ZP told TNS that under the ZP control, as many as 52 RMOs were working in the rural dispensaries of this district nowadays. Out of the monthly contract amount, the RMOs had been paying salaries to the pharmacists and the Class IV employees, besides making payments of the electricity bills. In this district till May last, the RMOs had been paid amounts by deducting income tax on the gross contract amount but after the receipt of letter from the Income Tax Department the RMOs would now be paid amounts after deducting tax on the remaining part of the contract amount (Rs 31,000) for the month of June.

The letter of the Income Tax Department, Bathinda, was received today by the ZP from an RMO who handed it over to the office of the ZP here. Earlier, the ZP was deducting Rs 3725 per month as tax on the gross contract amount (Rs 37250) of an RMO while the RMOs were opposing it on the plea that when they got only Rs 31,000 then why they should pay tax on the amount (Rs 6250), given to the pharmacists by the ZP directly. They had also met the Additional Deputy Commissioner (Development) C. Sibin here in the past in this regard, but due to Income Tax Department’s rules nothing could be done. However, the ADC (D) also wrote a letter to the Income Tax Department to resolve the issue.

The ADC (D) C. Sibin said here today that the ZP would now pay the amounts to the RMOs from the month of June in the light of the letter of the Income Tax Department.

State president of the Rural Medical Services Association (RMSA) Dr Aslam Parvez asked the ZP authorities in the state to deduct the income tax only on the actual amount, paid to the RMOs, so that they did not feel harassed. He said as the government had now started making payments directly to the Pharmacists and the Class IV employees, so the government should treat them as contractual employees.

Faridkot, August 6
Even as the Punjab government is still ‘confused’ over the findings of a German laboratory regarding the presence of uranium residues and other heavy metals in the hair samples of 149 children of Baba Farid Center for Special Children in Faridkot, this eye-opening disclosure has got international recognition.

The study carried out by E. Blauroc Busch, Advisor of International Board of Clinical Metal Toxicology; Albrecht Friedle, CEO of Labor Friedle, Regensburg, Germany; Michael Godfrey, Director of the International Board of Clinical Metal Toxicology, New Zealand; Claus E.E. Schulte, professor of Age Breaking Center, Munich, Germany and Carin Smit, neurotherapist, Synapse Neuro-Nutritional Clinic, Town Square, South Africa, has been published in the recent issue of ‘Librtas Academica’, a prestigious scientific journal of New Zealand.

The study has pointed out that these children were exposed to a large number of heavy metals. The authors of this study were of the view that India has become vulnerable to environmental toxicity because of excessive use of chemicals in agricultural practices. About the presence of excessive amounts of uranium in the ecosystem of Punjab, the authors suspect coal- based power plants as a possible source.

As per the study report, in the older age-group, cadmium was found to be within normal limits while lead, barium, manganese and uranium were higher than normal levels. In the younger age-group, all the metals were found to be higher. The scientists, while confirming that chronic and immediate metal exposure has affected children in the Punjab region, had suggested joint efforts between laboratories and governmental agencies to initiate follow-up studies that evaluate early metal exposure in children who live in industrial or otherwise environmentally endangered regions of the state.

No matter, uranium traces found in this study had prompted the state government to conduct its own tests at PAU Ludhiana but no concrete steps have been taken or regulations imposed to check pollution. The Department of Atomic Energy has also begun investigation.

Meanwhile, speculation abounds. What baffles many is that there are no uranium mines in Punjab. One of the theories is that the uranium may have come from Iraq where the US army had used its warheads. Some suspect air contamination caused by uranium-laden winds from Afghanistan, while others feel water contamination caused by toxic scrap dumped in the state's Sutlej and Beas rivers may be the cause. Some others say that uranium could have originated from thermal power plants. But these are all speculations. Dr Pritpal Singh, president of Baba Farid Center and Umendra Dutt, an environmental activist of the Kheti Virast Mission, feel the need to provide a fresh insight into the high incidence of cancer in Punjab’s Malwa belt.

Lakho Ke Behram (Ferozepur), August 6
About 12 volunteers of the Alternative Innovative Education (AIE) scheme today climbed an overhead water tank situated in this village on the Ferozepur-Fazilka main border road, to lodge their protest against the non-fulfillment of their demands.

Though the police was already there at the spot, the volunteers, whose number was more than the policemen, managed to climb the water tank with bottles filled with petrol.

The protesters raised slogans against Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal. The flow of traffic on the Ferozepur-Fazilka road was also affected.

These volunteers, who were recruited about three years ago for imparting education to poor children in the age group of 6-14 years in the rural areas, were asked to return home after their services were terminated in March.

The protesters besides lodging a protest against the termination of their services were also demanding conditions laid down for admission in the ETT courses must be withdrawn as promised to them by the Chief Minister.

A section of police and civil officials including ADC (D) Basant Garg and SP (H), Surjeet Singh, who along with a heavy police force including women cops reached the spot, took required measures to prevent the happening of any untoward incident. The fire tenders and doctors were stationed to deal with any dangerous situation.

Superintendent of Police Surjeet Singh said the protesters were brought down after carrying out hard and constant negotiations with them.

He added that no case was registered against any protester. The talks with state president of the AIE volunteers union, Swarna Rani, were also held to defuse the situation. 

Abohar, August 6
The SAD-BJP combine government seems to have started heading for another trouble as the local Bar Association has passed a resolution demanding district status for this town, located at a distance of 120 kilometres from the existing district headquarter, Ferozepur.

Though the Bar Association led by president Narinder Kumar Garg and secretary, Ranjeet Singh Phore today faxed the resolution to the Chief Minister office today, they could adopt agitation path, if their demand was not considered on its merits.

The Punjab government has already been facing difficulties to handle the demand of according district status to Fazilka of Ferozepur district, which was raised by the Bar Association, Fazilka, a few months ago.

Bar Association, Abohar, president Garg said as the last village of Abohar sub-division Gumjal— was located at a distance of about 160 kilometres from Ferozepur, the district headquarter, hence, the residents of that and its neighbouring villages had to face a number of difficulties in getting their judicial and administrative work done. 

Fazilka, August 6
On the anniversary of nuclear attack on August 6 and August 9 on Hiroshima and Nagasaki about 65 years back in 1945, the International Democratic Party has urged the world community to destroy nuclear weapons.

International Democratic Party, national president, Master Kheta Singh spoke in a seminar organised on the subject “Nuclear Weapons and World Peace” here today by his party at the local Freedom Fighter Lala Sunam Rai MA Memorial Welfare Centre.

National executive member, Hamir Singh and state president of the party Karnail Singh appealed to the governments of India and Pakistan to spurn the path of increasing defence budget. Instead the governments of both the countries should use this budget to strengthen the infrastructure of education and development in their respective countries which is in a mess. 

Sriganganagar, August 6
Tension that mounted yesterday in Suratgarh over demolition of houses in ward number 4 by the Municipal Council was defused today as leaders of the protesters, identified as Sikander Swami and Magha Ram, were released on bail.

They had been booked along with Raju Chahar under various section of the IPC by the city police for obstructing the drive. Instructions for demolition were reportedly issued by SDM Kalu Ram, who also monitored it.