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Air India’s schedule belies minister’s claim
Doaba, Majha feel ignored
Hansi Bhutana behind flooding, says Preneet |
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Residents of Burj village wait to ferry people across the flooded area to safe places in Anandpur Sahib on Monday. Tribune photo: Vicky Gharu
Zero Line submerged at many places
Flood damage below estimates
Burning of Crop Residue
SGPC to send relief material to Pakistan
Rajiv-Longowal accord ‘fraud on state’
Former PAU don shines in stem cell research
English Greek to professional course aspirants
Indians in Pak Prisons
Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur with MP Avinash Rai Khanna at the former’s residence in Patiala on Monday. Tribune photo: Rajesh Sachar
Protests atop water tanks
Naval academy to be set up near Ropar
Role of pvt docs in TB control stressed
Roads await MC attention
Zoo loses Royal Bengal tigress
CM’s orders on retirement of staff
HC moved for rescuing Indians in foreign jails
SC restores GMADA land cancellation order
Woman murdered
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Air India’s schedule belies minister’s claim
Amritsar, August 23 The Amritsar-London-Toronto flight will be discontinued from October 31 and is proposed to be substituted by two different Amritsar-Delhi-London and Amritsar-Delhi-Toronto flights. AI’s decision has invited resentment, particularly among Punjabis and NRIs, for whom the Amritsar-London-Toronto flight had been proving to be a big relief since its introduction from Amritsar in May, 2005. Amritsar MP Navjot Sidhu has been spearheading the cause of the people of Punjab and potential NRI victims. At a meeting on August 4, Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel had assured Sidhu that the direct flight would not be discontinued and instead the Rajasansi Airport will be strengthened in more than one ways. But AI’s computer reservation system shows a different picture, which reveals that there is no change in the proposed winter schedule of the national carrier. According to the schedule, AI will be ferrying Toronto and London-bound passengers to Delhi from October 31 in smaller 321 aircraft instead of the Boeing-777 aircraft. The smaller 321 aircraft, travel experts opine, are more vulnerable to fog. It is leant that Toronto and London-bound passengers will be ferried to Delhi from where they will head for their respective destinations in two different flights. While the Amritsar-New Delhi flight will take around 50 minutes, the Delhi-London and the Delhi-Toronto non-stop flights would take nine and 16 hours, respectively. What will result in a huge inconvenience to passengers will be the second leg of the prolonged journey on the Delhi-Toronto route for its being sans any break. “We don’t know what is AI’s logic behind the proposed change. It will also not lead to any cost saving for the airliner as it will have to operate another flight to take passengers to Delhi first,” said a travel expert. Amritsar Vikas Manch patron Dr Charanjit Singh Gumtala and North Amrican Punjabi Association vice-president Satnam Singh Chahal have already exhorted NRIs to oppose the proposed change.
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Lopsided growth in education sector
Deepkamal Kaur/TNS
Jalandhar, August 23 In the list of new institutes are Central University of Punjab, Bathinda, Sri Guru Granth Sahib World Sikh University, Fatehgarh Sahib, IIT, Ropar, Punjab School of Law, Patiala, Institute of Science Education and Research, Mohali, and the most recent being the Indian School of Business, again in Mohali. Two more projects for the Malwa region that are slated to be in the pipeline are of a world-class textile institute at Barnala and an engineering college at Ferozepur. Grouse that the people in this region as well as their political representatives are nurturing is the fact that the Malwa region was already dominating on this front. “Punjabi University, Patiala, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Ludhiana, and Baba Farid University of Health Sciences, Faridkot, were already in existence in the Malwa region. While the Majha can boast of just Guru Nanak Dev University, Doaba just has Punjab Technical University and a private Lovely Professional University”, they have claimed. Bholath MLA Sukhpal Khaira alleged that Doaba had been completed ignored on this front. “When a proposal to set up an IIT at Ropar was being mooted, I had written to the CM proposing that it could rather come up at Ramidi village, Kapurthala. We had 200 acres of land vacant right along the GT road with no good educational institute in a radius of 100 km. But there was no response”, he added. Gurdaspur MP Partap Singh Bajwa maintained that: “I had proposed that the world university should come up at Pathankot. It is strategically located as it is a gateway to Jammu and Kashmir, is close to lower HP and is connected via a four-lane road from Jalandhar and also Amritsar. But no one paid heed.” He added that, “Since all CMs after Partap Singh Kairon, including Parkash Singh Badal, Capt Amarinder Singh and Beant Singh, have come from Malwa, they have been giving a step-motherly treatment to Doaba and Majha. Four new thermal power projects in Talwandi Sabo, Gidderbaha, Rajpura and Mansa have gone to just one belt. Earlier, Badal was concentrating on Faridkot and Muktsar, now he is after Bathinda, being represented by daughter-in-law Harsimrat Badal and also because his constituency Lambi is a part of it now.”
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Hansi Bhutana behind flooding, says Preneet
Patiala, August 23 Talking to mediapersons at Bibipur village after visiting 24 flood-affected villages of the Samana Assembly segment, she said, “We have found that the main problem is the Hansi Bhutana canal and I would discuss the matter with Bansal in order to find a permanent solution to the problem.” She said Bansal had sent a central team to Patiala on her request for giving a detailed report as regards the ground-level situation. “The team has already prepared its detailed report and we both will examine it soon,” she added. She said the present government had failed to clean drains and canals before the onset of the monsoon, thereby aggravating the problem of flooding. The minister said she had written to Punjab Chief Secretary SC Aggarwal for strengthening bandhs alongside the Ghaggar under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS). Replying to a media query regarding the safety of Sikhs in Kashmir, she said some vested interests had been trying to disturb communal harmony in Jammu and Kashmir, but the Centre would not allow those forces to succeed in their sinister designs. “The Prime Minister and the Home Minister have told the Omar Abdullah-led Jammu and Kashmir Government to take remedial steps for the safety of minority community immediately,” she said. Meanwhile, during her visit to Bibipur village, Preneet laid the foundation stone of the community centre in the village and also announced a grant of Rs 5 lakh for it from her MPLAD fund. The flood-affected villages visited by the minister included Sassi Theh, Sasi Brahmana, Sasa Theh, Sasa Gujran, Dharamheri, Ram Nagar Bakhshiwala, Bibipur, Gheora, Dhanauri, Mavvi Sappan, Chatehra, Kheri Barna, Maddo Majra, Tren and Bhanri. Preneet was accompanied by Lal Singh, Dakala MLA; MP Singh, assistant principal secretary to Preneet, and senior Congress leader Gurbans Singh Punia and Hardyal Singh Kamboj.
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Burj residents used to flood fury
Burj (Anandpur Sahib), August 23 As the village today stands alienated from the rest of Anandpur Sahib, its people brace up for yet another fury, yet another gush of water. Rains during night and early morning deluged the village, cutting it off from the rest of the world. The village lost its only boat on Saturday and has been provided with another one by the administration. People have started moving out of the village. Some families have sent children to their relatives in other villages, while others have preferred to shift to the houses situated on the outskirts of the village. More than four feet of water flooded areas around the village today. The villagers have been commuting through the single boat, making the best use of it. Though surrounded by water from all sides, the village is facing shortage of potable drinking water. “There are around eights wells and equal number of handpumps in the village, which does not have potable water,” said a villager, Tara Singh. Drinking water pipes laid around a year ago are non-functional adding to the woes. During elections of the Vidhan Sabha and the panchayati raj institutions, the villagers had been demanding a bridge. Many Congress and SAD-BJP leaders have won elections on this issue, but have failed to deliver. “We have just 300 votes that matter to no one. Refused from all quarters, we approached local philanthropist who is now getting this bridge constructed,” added Gulzar Singh, another resident. Sarpanch Surinder Singh, too, agrees that the successive governments have given nothing but fake assurances to solve the grievances of the villagers. Meanwhile, residents of Lodhipur took over the reins of the repair work going on at the bandh on the Sutlej near the village as none of the labourers turned up for work due to rains. Post the Chief Minister’s visit and after the rains stopped, the labourers resumed work. “We are trying our best to keep the swelling Sutlej at bay,” said XEN (Drainage) Kamaljit Singh.
CM orders girdawri
Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal has ordered a girdawri to assess the damage to crops due to flooding. The Ropar district administration has issued a high alert for the villages of Gajpur, Hariwal and Burj.
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Zero Line submerged at many places
Ferozepur, August 23 Not only this, a number of border pillars erected on the Zero Line were submerged as the water level went up to 2 feet at many points. The swollen Sutlej has also started affecting few border observation posts
(BOPs) of Pakistan rangers. Information gathered by The Tribune revealed that the Zero Line had disappeared in the areas falling under DT Mal and Joginder BOPs as the Sutlej overflowed in these pockets. A section of BOPs of
BSF, including Mohamdi Wala and New Gajni Wala, located ahead of the river and towards Zero Line are out of danger. However, Tapu BOP has come under threat due to rise in the water level and if it went up any further the BSF authorities would have to vacate it. "The level of water is still rising and by tomorrow morning more areas will be inundated and hence the Zero Line will disappear at more points," disclosed a senior functionary of the Border Security Force on condition of anonymity. He added that water level in Basti Ram Lal BOP had started receding today and, thus, brought relief to the BSF authorities. "We have taken adequate measures to cover the border area as per the situation so that any mischief by anti-national element during such situation can be avoided," he said, adding that all border pillars were safe and visible. The check points located in the inundated areas were being shifted to higher grounds. The gaps created by water in certain tracks were being dominated through boat patrolling, he disclosed. Additional troops have been mobilised at vulnerable points to sanitise them. Meanwhile, Deputy Commissioner KK Yadav said so far position in Ferozepur district was under control. Water has started receding in certain pockets. Plan to meet any kind of emergency with the active cooperation of BSF and Army has already been in place.
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Flood damage below estimates
Chandigarh, August 23 According to the report sent to the Ministry of Home Affairs by the state government today, against an initial estimation of crop damage in 3,89,174 acres, the actual affected area is only 2,08,615 acres. So far 32 lives have been lost from across eight districts. SAS Nagar has the highest casualty of 10 followed by Amritsar that lost 6 persons to rains and floods. In monetary terms, the loss of crop has been highest in Patiala district (1,26,947 acres) followed by Sangrur (33,358 acres). Farmers across the state have lost Rs 104 crore worth of crop against initial estimates that had put the damage to Rs 195 crore. Moreover, public property worth Rs 130 crore has also been damaged. The total damage on account of floods and rain that was initially being estimated to around Rs 342 crore is now stated to be Rs 252 crore after field verifications. The precise assessment of loss would, however, be done after the water levels recede. It may be pointed out that these damages have been calculated at the rates prescribed by the Central government that are paid out of the Calamity Relief Fund. Punjab had suggested that the damaged crop should be calculated at the arte of Rs 2,200 per tonne with an average yield of 24 tonnes per acre. This would amount to a compensation of Rs 52,800 per acre. But the Centre has fixed the maximum damage in case of total loss at Rs 5,000 per acre. Across the state, out of 20 districts 15 have been badly hit by rain and floods. In all 1,906 villages have been affected with Patiala having the highest number of affected villages (649), followed by Ludhiana (357), Ferozepur (222), Fatehgarh Sahib (190) and Moga (161). In the last 24 hours there has been damage to paddy crop on about 1,275 acres in Ferozepur district and another 895 acres in Muktsar. Despite some relief from the situation, the Army continues to be deployed in Mansa, Sangrur, Faridkot and Ropar districts. The ITBP and National Disaster Relief Force personnel have also been deployed in many parts of the state.
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DC submits draft of Act to govt
Sarbjit Dhaliwal Tribune News Service
Jalandhar, August 23 Environmentalists and agriculture scientists are a worried lot because of the growing trend of burning of the residue. The matter has also engaged the attention of the Punjab and Haryana High Court that had directed the state government to draw an action plan to mitigate the problem and also to deliberate on steps to prevent pollution caused due to burning of agriculture waste in the open. Confirming receiving of the draft for the proposed Act, sources in the government said it was under consideration at the appropriate level. It is estimated that in the state itself nutrients worth about Rs 200 crore are lost due to crop residue burning every year. Last year some districts had imposed Section 144 of the CrPC to check residue burning. Cases were also registered. But these are non-legislative measures. To deal with a problem on such a large scale, there is a need to frame an appropriate law. After prohibiting burning of the residue, the government and farmers can claim sufficient carbon credits from the adaptation fund set up under the Kyoto Protocol being managed in the Union Government. The funds generated can be used for undertaking research in crop residue management. For violators, a penalty of Rs 4,000 per acre has been proposed. Besides disconnecting the electric supply to the tubewells and stopping of the supply of canal water to the offending farmers has also been proposed.
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SGPC to send relief material to Pakistan
Amritsar, August 23 “We have already started collection of the requisite relief material,” said SGPC chief Avtar Singh, appealing Sikhs and Punjabis to come forward and contribute to the relief exercise. Earlier, the SGPC had dispatched four truckloads of relief material like sweaters, quilts, rice and pulses for the people of Leh. The SGPC has also decided to extend all possible aid to the family of Gurjant Singh, a Sangrur-based truck driver, who has been arrested by the West Bengal Police for allegedly trying to kill Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee by ramming his truck into a car of the minister’s
convoy. The SGPC chief said it had been established that Gurjant was innocent and he had lost control over his vehicle due to failure of brakes. SAD MP Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa has already apprised Mamata and other leaders of the Trinamool Congress of the innocence of Gurjant.
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Rajiv-Longowal accord ‘fraud on state’
Hoshiarpur, August 23 "The Congress had deceived the Sikhs and (Sant) Longowal-Barnala-Balwant troika betrayed the Panth," he said. "From the very first day, the Congress was never sincere towards the Sikhs," Dhami said. "Late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi wanted to divert the anger of the community towards his own leadership as he was aware that Sikh militants would never forgive Sant Longowal for entering into any deal with the Congress that had not only orchestrated the 1984 massacre but also ordered the Army to attack the holiest shrine." He believed that it was the political chicanery of the then Central leadership that strengthened the Sikh resolve to fight against the state with guns.
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Former PAU don shines in stem cell research
Chandigarh, August 23 Kuldip Sidhu, who taught zoology at Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, before immigrating to Australia, claims it to be a first and significant progress on a technique developed by Japanese scientists who made the first iPS cells in 2007. This capability makes stem cells a better hope for treatment of incurable degenerative diseases. Sidhu's laboratory is collaborating with the UNSW's School of Psychiatry to produce stem cell lines for Alzheimer, Huntington and Parkinson diseases. Scientists hope that the research would lead to the treatment of patients of Alzheimer. It could start with a skin sample taken from a patient and finished with a fresh batch of healthy brain cells ready for transplant. “We can take a piece of skin from the patient to create patient-derived stem cell lines, transplanting those cells without the fear of rejection,” says Sidhu. “There is a future for this technology to treat many diseases that otherwise cannot be treated at the moment.” “One of the difficulties of the iPS cell technology is that the cells are generated by the use of viral particles,” says Sidhu. “There has been a fear that, while the technology being robust, could introduce foreign DNA to the genome that could lead to carcinoma (cancer) down the track. That fear has been eliminated in this technique.” The technique does not use viral particles but requires an extract from embryonic stem cells. The extract allows the processed cell to become pluripotent (able to develop into a range of different cells or tissues in the body). Because of this capability, stem cells are seen as the best hope for providing treatments for otherwise incurable degenerative diseases. Sidhu and his team has been collaborating with the School of Psychiatry of the New South Wales University for producing stem cell lines for Alzheimer, Huntington's and Parkinson's diseases. Sidhu said it was still too early to say whether iPS cells would totally replace the need for embryonic stem cells that are - more controversially - harvested from human embryos. “The iPS cells we have created appear very similar to embryonic stem cells, but they also exhibit variability and instability in culture," he said. "The next step is to make these cells suitable for long-term propagation, so they can be used in therapies.”
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English Greek to professional course aspirants
Fatehgarh Sahib, August 23 Officials of college in Fatehgarh Sahib said that students had recently got admission in MBA, MCA and various other postgraduate professional courses. At least 10 per cent of total strength of students retreat after attending a few classes due to their concerns related to English language, added a lecturer. Since students from rural background have never interacted or even written or learnt lessons in English properly, especially those hailing from Punjab government schools, they feel disregarded in professional courses. “Deep rooted fear of English forced me to leave MBA after attending classes for three days,” said Aman, a resident of Nandpur village in Fatehgarh Sahib. Aman got admission in MBA this year after completing his graduation securing first division. Though Aman, son of a government official had topped in political science in the final year of his graduation at Government College, Mohali besides getting good marks in Economics, he is unable to communicate in English properly. Aman pointed out that he and a group of five students got admission quite easily in one of the renowned colleges of Fatehgarh Sahib as they had good marks in graduation but they found it extremely difficult to cope with lectures delivered in English. “Three of us quit after struggling for two-three days with the language. We deposited Rs 60,000 as course-fee which is yet to be refunded,” said another student
who refused to disclose his name. Harjaspal Sidhu, Principal of Shaheed Udham Singh Women Engineering College, Banur, admitting the existence of the problem said some students managed to come out of the fear of English language but others had to undergo rigorous coaching. Those who failed to interact got distressed and ultimately left the course. There are students who are technically sharp, but lack the requisite communication skills with poor grasp of English language. Teachers have to be patient and spend additional time with such students, he said. Another lecturer Gagan Sharma in Fatehgarh Sahib said English seemed to be a tough nut to crack for such students. Students from affluent but rural background never bother to quit professional courses despite paying hefty fees. However, students from poor background have to work hard to stay afloat. He said even spoken English academies failed to equip students with essential vocabulary and confidence despite pocketing huge amounts.
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MP urges Centre to take steps for their release
Umesh Dewan Tribune News Service
Patiala, August 23 Addressing mediapersons at the Circuit House here, he said Harpreet and Gurmeet had gone to Lebanon through travel agents. “Since they did not get any work there, they were sent to Greece and later to Pakistan via Iran. On grounds of possessing fake visa, they were arrested in Pakistan in 2005. The matter of concern is that even after the completion of the jail sentence of six months, the Pakistani authorities have not released them so far,” he added. He also claimed that because of shabby treatment meted out to the duo in the jail, they had lost their mental balance. Taking up another matter, Khanna said, “Because of fear of militants and the Taliban in Pakistan over the years, hundreds of Hindu families have shifted from Pakistan to places like Amritsar, Jalandhar, Khanna and Rajpura. But they are facing lot of problems because they do not have the citizenship of India.” He demanded that these families should be given permanent citizenship of India. Meanwhile, Khanna also went to meet Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur at her residence and urged her to take up these two issues with the Centre. Preneet assured that through the Union Ministry of External Affairs, the issues would be taken up with the High Commissions of both India and Pakistan. Khanna was accompanied by Harpreet’s mother Satnam Kaur and Gurmeet’s father Sohan Singh.
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Cops to take
strict action
Jangveer Singh Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, August 23 The Punjab Government has finally shown political will to turn strict against agitators climbing up water tanks to force the authorities to accede to their demands after the breakdown of the dialogue with Elementary Teacher Training (ETT) candidates. The government has failed to broker a deal between teachers who have taken their training in Punjab and those from Jammu following which it was expected to fill 3,425 vacant posts. Punjab DGP PS Gill today issued directions to all field officers in the state stating that it had been decided to take strict legal action under the relevant sections of the IPC against anyone threatening to commit suicide by jumping from water tanks or indulging in self-immolation bids. He has also ordered that office-bearers or members of any organisations found instigating the suicide attempts would also be booked for abetment to suicide. The new directions are likely to give a boost to policing in the state with police officers, especially the district police chiefs, hampered due to the lack of clear-cut policy directions. Education Minister Upinderjit Kaur said all attempts had been made to recruit ETT teachers but that only 3,425 vacancies were available. She said the Chief Minister had given a formula to recruit a particular percentage of ETT candidates from Jammu and Punjab after due negotiations but even this formula had been rejected. She said both groups of teachers, around 1,800 from Punjab and around 8,000 from Jammu, had refused to take a qualifying test.
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Naval academy to be set up near Ropar
Anandpur Sahib, August 23 CM Parkash Singh Badal said this while on a visit to the district today. Inaugurating projects at Nangal, Anandpur Sahib, Ropar and Kurali, Badal said he would hold discussions with the Himachal CM and then ask the Centre to take up this project. He said Punjab would also take up with the Himachal Government the matter relating to the transfer of 25 acres in its territory to the Municipal Council, Nangal, for setting up state-of-art educational institutions. He said the government would seek an extension from the BBMB authorities in the lease of shops with local shopkeepers. He announced the setting up of a naval academy near Ropar. Land for the academy had already been identified. Earlier, at Nangal, he laid the foundation stone of a Rs 99.50 lakh swimming pool in Satluj Park and a Rs 4.60 crore common effluent treatment plant in Brari village,near Nangal. He inaugurated a Rs 3.50 crore ITI at Anandpur Sahib and laid the foundation stone of a postgraduate complex at Sri Guru Teg Bahadur Khalsa College, Anandpur Sahib. He laid the foundation stone of a sewage treatment plant and announced a scheme for drinking water and sewerage for Ropar. He handed over a cheque for Rs 1.13 crore for the completion of Senior Secondary School for Boys, Ropar.
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Role of pvt docs in TB control stressed
Patiala, August 23 Dr Vishal Chopra said the best possible medicines for controlling the disease were available in the country and the revised programme was yielding better results. District TB Officer Dr Jawahar Joshi said about 750 ASHA workers had been trained in Patiala district till now and they were successfully working as DOT (directly observed treatment) providers. President of the IMA, Punjab, Dr RS Parmar said the purpose of such IMA programmes was to involve maximum private practitioners, as more than 70 per cent of health services were being provided by private doctors in the country. IMA’s state co-chairman, public relations, Dr DS Bhullar said keeping in view public holidays in government hospital and other responsibilities of the doctors working there, private practitioners were equally responsible for the success of the programme and their involvement had become need of the hour.
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Roads await MC attention
Patiala, August 23 Since the beginning of the rainy season, this road has been clogged with water time and again. It’s almost been one month that commuters are facing a lot of problem in crossing the road. It is pertinent to mention here that people travelling to the Malwa region, including Sangrur, Bathinda and Mansa, have to cross this road in order to reach their destinations. Even a minor rainfall results in waterlogging on this road with many vehicles breaking down after water enters their engines. “This road is under knee-deep water. Even days after the rain, the road is still under water because of poor drainage system. This disrupts the traffic throwing life out-of-gear,” said a businessman travelling to Patiala everyday. One of the shopkeeperssaid, “ Due to stagnated water, the chances of spreading of diseases like malaria, have increased manifold.”
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Zoo loses Royal Bengal tigress
Chhat (Banur), August 23 Meenu was born here in October 1991. Visibly upset over her death, the two other tigresses Rupa and Pummy did not have food for the entire day yesterday, said the zoo officials. Death of the tigress was reported by a night zoo-keeper in the wee hours and was later confirmed by a senior veterinary zoo official. A panel of three doctors conducted the post-mortem and preliminary examination revealed that the tigress died of old age. Now, the zoo is left with 10 tigers.
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CM’s orders on retirement of staff
Chandigarh, August 23 The Personnel Department has issued these orders to all principal secretaries and heads of departments. Stating that the CM had received information that several employees who were to be re-employed were asked to continue working even after their retirement while a decision to re-employ them was under consideration. The departments have been told to put an end to this practice.
— TNS
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HC moved for rescuing Indians in foreign jails
Chandigarh, August 23 Taking up the petition, the Division Bench of Chief Justice Mukul Mudgal and Justice Ajay Tewari today issued notice of motion to the Centre, the Ministry of External Affairs, and the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, along with the states of Punjab and Haryana. Justice Dutt has also sought directions for the initiation of “immediate necessary steps” for the early release and return of these more than one lakh men and women, mostly from Punjab belonging to Jalandhar, Nawanshahr, Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala and Amritsar districts. This is not the first time Justice Amar Dutt has taken up the cause of gullible Indians being exploited by showing them greener pastures. During his tenure as a high court Judge here, Justice Dutt had directed the Centre to consider creating awareness through the print and electronic media on the pitfalls. In the petition filed through advocate Anil Malhotra, Justice Dutt has also asked for directions to “protect and safeguard the life, liberty and dignity and all other human rights of the Indian citizens under Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution of India and under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948, International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights, 1966, and International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights, 1966”. Directions have also been sought to “immediately contact the embassies/high commissions in India of all countries concerned and ascertain the number of illegal Indian migrants detained in different countries and to get the Indians to India by providing them all consular assistance in Indian Embassies in such jurisdictions, besides providing them with legal aid and other permissible concessions.” Justice Dutt has also asked for directions to the Union of India and other respondents “to consider according approval to the Punjab Prevention of Human
Smuggling Bill, proposed to be enacted for checking illegal migration to foreign countries”. The proposed Bill has been forwarded by the state of
Punjab for sanction.
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SC restores GMADA land cancellation order
New Delhi, August 23 Cancellation of an allotment should be the last resort, but this did not mean this right should never be exercised, a bench comprising Justices P Sathasivam and B S Chauhan ruled. “In exceptional circumstances, where the allottee does not make any payment in respect of allotment, the order of cancellation should be passed,” the apex court said in its verdict. The allottee, in this case, had argued she never got the allotment letter. On this, the bench of the apex court delivering judgement held if an order was passed but not communicated to the party concerned, “it does not create any legal right which can be enforced through the court of law, as it does not become effective till it is communicated.” Further, the bench pointed out that the HC had passed an order in favour of the allottee without giving an opportunity to the authority to put forth its views on the issue. “In the instant case, an acceptance letter had not been sent by the respondent. Thus, the allotment in her favour remained of no significance,” the court clarified. The apex court further noted that “sympathy or sentiment” by itself could not be a ground for passing an order in favour of allottees by courts, nor could an order be passed in contravention of the statutory provisions.
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Woman murdered
Sangrur, August 23 “The deceased used to stay alone and her sister Kanta used to visit her in evening and stay for the night,” the police said. “Circumstantial evidence reveals that the sisters might have tried to overpower the assailants before being hit by them.” According to Kanta’s daughter Baljit Kaur, it might be the handiwork of burglars as a few days ago there was a theft in the same house. A case under Sections 302 (murder) and 307 (attempt to murder) of the IPC has been registered against unidentified assailants.
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Patiala, August 23
Chandigarh, August 23
steps for the release of Indians languishing in Pakistan jails.
Highlighting the case of two Indians languishing in Pakistan’s Kot Lakhpat jail, Khanna said Harpreet Singh of Hoshiarpur and Gurmeet Singh of Nawanshahr had completed their sentence, but Pakistan had not released them so far.
