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Six teachers suspended
Ludhiana, September 3 The teachers have been identified as Sonu, Rupinder Kaur, Balwinder Kaur, Suman, Darshna Devi and Manjit Kaur, who were currently posted at Government Primary School, Dhollanwal village. The students were reportedly been taken to Kote Isse Khan to participate in a cultural event being organised by the ETT Teachers Union. Four students sustained critical injuries and currently undergoing treatment at multi-specialty hospital in Ludhiana, while 19 students, who sustained minor injuries, were discharged following a treatment. According to sources, driver Sewa Singh lost control on seeing a bus and the vehicle overturned after colliding with a pillar. It is learnt that the teachers union did not take prior permission from the authorities concerned for organising the cultural programme. Even the teachers did not take the permission of the authorities before ferrying the girls to Kot Isse Khan. The ADC (D) said, “I had issued the order on August 31. The teachers might have received the order today. Ferrying children out of the district without taking any prior permission is a gross violation of the rules.” Reliable sources said the ETT Teachers Union met Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and demanded to revoke the suspension of the teachers, but the meeting failed to bear any fruit.
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Pvt students a harried lot
PSEB issues roll nos 3 days before exams Mohit Khanna Tribune News Service
Ludhiana, September 3 Hundreds of students, who are appearing in the class X and Class XII examination as private candidates, started forming a beeline in front of the PSEB depot in Punjabi Bhawan since morning today. Students complained that the roll number was released just three days before the exam and their whole day was wasted in getting hold of it. They rued that they have just two days to locate their centre of examination. Tarun, a class X student who came from Mullanpur Dakha for collecting his roll number, rued, "These are very vital days for students and every moment counts. The whole day was consumed in getting the roll number. Now only two days are left for the preparation of exam. If the board had issued the roll numbers well in advance, I could have used the day for studies." Some students went through an anxious time after the PSEB employees failed to locate their roll number. "I think I have to come tomorrow. They are looking for my roll number for the last two hours, but they could not find it yet. I am afraid as exams are approaching and my crucial time is being wasted here,” said Ajay Kumar.On the other hand, government schoolteachers who have been deputed for collecting and distributing roll numbers criticise the education department’s decision of distributing the roll numbers at the last moment. A government schoolteacher said, “The education board is in the habit of creating chaos. Today the students sweat out to get their roll numbers and tomorrow it would be our turn to suffer as we have to collect the stationery and simultaneously report to our respective centres.” Nearly two lakh students of the district will take part in the first semester examination of class X and XII scheduled from September 6. The education board has made 377 centres in various schools of the district for the smooth conduct of the examination.
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More dengue cases come to light
Ludhiana, September 3 Despite having launched a campaign against dengue earlier this year, the health & family welfare department has been largely unsuccessful in containing the spread of the disease in the city. The reasons trotted out are shortage of field staff and "noncooperation" of municipal corporation officials. Requesting anonymity, a senior health official said though the "action plan” drawn up by the department to combat dengue had been forwarded to civic officials no action had been initiated since the past six months. The department’s anti-larvae wing is working relentlessly to find and destroy larvae at the public places. However, the responsibility to check water coolers followed by fines lies with the municipal corporation, which health officials said was "ignored". The eggs of the female Aedes Aegypti that causes dengue can survive for long and they grow into larvae under conducive temperature in coolers. In 2008 an outbreak of vector-borne diseases in the city had led to over 4,000 dengue cases with 15 deaths. Officials of the National Vector Borne Disease Control Program, New Delhi had blamed "lack of coordination" between the departments concerned for the outbreak.
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Land mafia eyes Mandi Board vacant land
Ludhiana, September 3 With the board evincing no interest in utilising the land or else selling it off, the city’s ‘land mafia’, notorious for grabbing both government and privately owned land, has been eyeing this property. Sukhwant Singh, ‘sarpanch’ of the Krishna Nagar ‘panchayat’, in whose area the land is located, stated: "The land was provided to the Punjab Mandi Board for setting up a fodder market to cater to the needs of the adjoining dairy complex. But since the proposal has been stalled for unknown reasons, the vacant land
comes handy for the municipal corporation staff to dump garbage collected from all over the city. As if this isn’t enough, many dairy owners use the place for making cow dung cakes and disposing dirty water. This poses a grave health hazard to residents of the locality”. Echoing similar views, Usha Soi and Arun Nayyar, members of the Krishna Nagar ‘panchayat, said nomads had been camping on the land with their cattle for quite some time. “A large number of ‘jhuggis’ (shanties) have come up and the Mandi Board land has become a favourite spot for anti-social elements. The entire area emanates foul smell with swarms of flies and mosquitoes all around and with rainy season on, there is every possibility of an outbreak of water-borne
or vector-borne diseases”, they added. Several area residents have alleged that certain “politically connected” people in the real estate business were eyeing the prime land and “underhand manipulations” were also taking place to grab the valuable
property for commercial exploitation. Punjab Mandi Board district officer Rajpal Singh Dhaliwal said the board’s field staff had been asked to visit the site regularly. “Illegal settlers on the land are being evicted from time to time. A proposal for holding an open auction for the land has already been forwarded to the board head office, and the land will be disposed of after
getting approval from the appropriate authority.” |
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Vehicles on rooftop pose danger
Ludhiana, September 3 Ashwani Sood, owner of a shop, said recently a portion of roof collapsed after the cops parked confiscated scooters on the rooftop. He further said that he even brought the matter to the notice of senior police officials, but to no avail. The residents complained that pipes had got blocked on the roof due to which rainwater accumulated there. "The place has become a perfect breeding ground for all kinds of deadly mosquitoes and viruses. Dangerous mosquitoes are breeding in the junk vehicles and spreading deadly virus in the surrounding areas," said Sood. Interestingly, all police stations are grappling with the problem posed by such vehicles. Even the health department asked told the police to clear the mess, but nothing has been done so far. Highly placed officials said the Commissioner of Police Ishwar Singh took serious view of the growing menace posed by these vehicles and tried to hasten the auction process. Despite best efforts of the commissioner, the file pertaining to the auctioning these vehicles is gathering rust. The cops replied that they were grappling with space shortage to park the unclaimed vehicles.
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Powercom penalised Rs 3.90 lakh
Ludhiana, September 3 The PLA pronounced the order while deciding the complaint moved by Gujranwala Guru Nank Institute of Management and Technology, Civil Lines, Ludhiana. Powercom was also directed to make the payment within two months along with nine per cent per annum interest from the date of filing the case till the actual
payment was made. The complainant had submitted that their institute had enhanced the electricity load from 65.45 KW to 118.77 KW. Their meter having capacity of 100/5 Amp was replaced with 200/5 Amp. As per rules, Powercom was to apply the factor of 0.5 instead of 1, after the change of meter. But they did not charge them with the 0.5 factor as per rules. In this way they kept on charging double amount for consumption
of electricity. It was pleaded that this fact came to their knowledge when senior official of the department checked their meter on September 1, 2007. But they were not allowed the refund of excess amount charged for the period March 2006 to
August 31, 2007 despite representation. On the other hand, Powercom admitted the claim of the complainant. It was submitted by them that they had sent the file of refund for approval to the competent authority. After the approval they would refund the amount. After appreciating the evidence on record, the PLA held that as per rules, the refund case was to be settled
within three months by the competent authority. But after the lapse of around three years, they failed in settling the refund case. So, they should refund the amount along with interest to the
complainant. |
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Delayed implementation of pay scales Mahesh Sharma
Mandi Ahmedgarh, September 3 The activists had been protesting against the alleged harassment of college teachers by the officials at the DPI office by deliberately delaying the implementation of the revised pay scales. “Now when the Ministry of Human Resource Department (MHRD), Department of Higher Education, has cleared that entry pay of readers appointed on or after January 1, 2006, till the issue of the UGC regulations on minimum qualifications for appointment of teachers and other academic staff in universities and colleges and measures for the maintenance of standards in higher education, 2010, be fixed at Rs 23,890 in PB-3 with an academic grade pay of Rs 8,000, no confusion is left in the matter,” argued members of the union led by Prof Viney Sofat. The education secretaries of all states, including Punjab, have also been apprised of the latest situation by the MHRD. Apprehending delaying tactics by the officials at the DPI office, Chandigarh, the members have repeated their demand to probe the sequence of events leading to the present situation and initiate action against those who had resisted the implementation of the pay scales. A perusal of notification by the MHRD revealed that the matter was considered in view of confusion and consequent resentment among the affected teachers. It was also decided to include lecturers (selection grade) promoted during the said period among beneficiaries. Such readers and lecturers (selection grade) after three years will move to a minimum of PB-4 with academic grade pay of Rs 9,000, clarified the notification.
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GTB School bag overall trophy
Ludhiana, September 3 More than 800 boys and girls (U-16) drawn from 35 schools across the district competed in the track and field events, namely 100m, 400m, 800m, 1500m races, 4x100m relay, long jump, triple jump and shot put. The meet was organised to recognise the skills, endurance and talents of young promising athletes. The inter-school athletics meets being organised in 54 cities throughout the country are a part of the initiative to promote sports at the grassroots level and are aimed at mobilising the masses, creating awareness and pledging public support for the promotion of sports ahead of the Commonwealth Games slated to begin in New Delhi from October 4. In the girls’ section, Abhiti Sharma and Malika Choudhary romped home champions in 400m and shot put events, respectively. In 4x100m relay, the quartet of Abhiti, Malika, Khushboo and Priyanka secured the second position. In the 400m race, Srishti finished third, while Priyanka got the third position in 100m race and Khushboo bagged the third position in 800m race. Jasmine Kaur secured the third place in 1500m race. In the boys’ section, Shivam Singla bagged top honours in shot put, while Kanav Narang secured top position in long jump event.
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‘Eat fresh fruits to avoid urine incontinence’
Ludhiana, September 3 The programme was organised by Dr Baldev Singh Aulakh (professor of urology and head, transplant unit) with an aim to highlight that 25 per cent of women suffer from leakage of urine incontinence at least one time during their life, but they do not ask for treatment because of social stigma, socio-economic factor and more so they are not aware of the fact that this problem needs treatment and is curable. Dr Aulakh said incontinence (any involuntary loss of urine) could be a problem for women and men of all ages. The problem cuts across generations and genders. Dr BK Gill (professor and head of obstetrics and gynaecology) said the awareness walk would help public to come forward for treatment, which could range from drugs, behavioural therapy, exercises and surgery. Those participated in the awareness walk include secretary of DMCH managing society, Prem Kumar Gupta, principal, Dr Daljit Singh, dean academics, Dr Rajoo Singh Chinna, medical superintendent, Dr BS Shah. Precautions to help relief from urinary leakage include:
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Patents, designs authority dismisses petitions of firm
Ludhiana, September 3 The petitions seeking the cancellation were moved by M/s Lucky Exports of Ludhiana. Dismissing the petitions, the assistant controller held that there were no grounds to cancel the registration of the registered designs in the name of M/s International Cycle Gears. Earlier M/s International Cycle Gears had moved a petition before the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking injunction restraining M/s Lucky Exports from manufacturing the coaster brake hubs and coaster brake sub-assemblies. They had pleaded that the patent office has granted certificates of registration of designs for both articles to them. The registration was allowed in November 2005. So, their opponent has no right to manufacture the same. Justice JS Khehar and Justice SD Anand of Punjab and Haryana High Court had disposed of the petition seeking injunction on July 24, 2009, with the observation that the cancellation petitions filed by M/s Lucky Exports were already pending with the competent authority. They had directed the competent authority (assistant controller of patents and designs) to decide the matter in controversy expeditiously. The High Court had observed in its order that in case the cancellation application filed by M/s Lucky Exports fails, they shall forthwith be precluded from manufacturing the products registered in the name of M/s International Cycle Gears. Then it would be open to M/s International Cycle Gears for moving a civil miscellaneous application for revival of the petition filed under Section 22 of the 2000 Act before the High Court. However, if the cancellation application stands allowed by the competent authority, then the petition will be deemed to dismis, further remarked the High Court.
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Potholes dot NH1
Doraha, September 3 "How can one assume that, if the existing four lane, despite of exorbitant collection of toll for the past more than five years, has been no better that any link road of a town or a village, the widening of the road shall serve any better purpose, leave aside the initial relief”, expressed a commuter. “The bumpy ride and the rough travel we face due to deep potholes and uneven surface of the so-called ‘tolled’ NH is enough to increase our resentment against NHAI that is simply befooling the commuters by justifying their technician stance every time they hike the rates. Can we not see the sordid position of the road on which our vehicles are no longer safe even after paying so heavily? The so called assured facilities of timely maintenance, speedy evacuation of the accidental vehicles, strict vigilance on the crossing of stray animals on the road lest it should prove fatal for the commuters, have come to a horrifying naught. We are the same but the extraction of toll too has not made our lives any better or journey pleasant, said a commuter. A resident from a nearby village said, "Even today we face innumerable problems on the so-called toll road as vehicles continue to be stranded for want of repair, accidental vehicles continue to block the highway, stray animals continue to pose every risk. Then how far are the authorities justified in levying toll and that too with occasional hike? The authorities should better roll back the increased rates otherwise they will have to face the wrath of the public.” “We shall no longer tolerate this grave injustice. The authorities it seems are testing our patience level. We don’t want the extension of the road rather we want the existing one to be put into order first. What is the sense in spending crores over project that is untimely going to suffer for want of repair?" rued another commuter.
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Encroachment removed
from Humbran Road
Ludhiana, September 3 The Municipal Corporation team, including Additional Commissioner Kawalpreet Kaur Brar senior town planner Balkar Singh along with police force reached the site to demolish but the person who had encroached upon the land became a deterrent factor in carrying out the drive smoothly. The drive was halted by nearly an hour due to his intervention. Baldhir Singh had heated arguments with the MC team and tried his level best not to allow the team to carry out the demolition drive. But the MC was fully geared up for the drive along with the police force. The land, which belonged to the Municipal Corporation was illegally encroached upon for the past 15 years and had even set up small quarters for the migrant labourers. Assistant town planner, Surinder Bindra said the 4.5 acre land was illegally possessed by the person for the past many years. "Only yesterday he lost the writ and the court gave a green signal to MC to remove the encroachments," he said. "We had lodged an FIR at Haibowal police station against Baldhir Singh, as he tried to stop the proceedings today. Since the high court had also given the decision against him he had no reason to intervene in between but he still tried his level best to stop the MC team from razing the encroachment," added Bindra. Further he said that after removing the encroachments the debris had been cleared and the work for setting up the workshop had started.
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'Milap Diwas' to be observed from Sept 7
Ludhiana, September 3 A jatha of Baba Banda Singh Bahadur International Foundation will leave for Nanded Sahib on September 6 to take part in the three-day congregation, which will commence with “akhand path” on September 7 and conclude with a bhog at the Gurdwara Banda Ghat on September 9. A religious congregation will mark the conclusion of the celebrations with participation of intellectuals, dhadi and ragi jathas, social and religious leaders. MP Sukhdev Singh Libra will flag off the jatha at the local railway station. Foundation president Krishan Kumar Bawa and patron Jagdev Singh Jasowal will lead the jatha. Other accompanying them will be Malkiat Singh Dakha, Jasbir Singh, both former ministers; Gurkirat Singh Kotli, NS Nanda, Hardial Singh, Pargat Singh Grewal, Mahant Gian Das Maksudra, Karnail Singh Gill, Balwant Singh Dhanoa, Nirmal Singh Kaira, Surjit Singh Manki, Harchand Singh Dhir and Buta Singh Bairagi.
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Visually impaired man gets vision, pledges eyes
Ludhiana, September 3 Unwilling to give up, Sayed after learning about Punarjot Eye Bank , Ludhiana, came to the hospital on August 23 where Dr Ramesh successfully operated for corneal transplantation. The patient while narrating his story stated that his prolonged stays at so many hospitals ended in "disappointment" as every time he was discharged due to non availabity of cornea. "Then I came to know about Punarjot Eye Bank run by Dr Ramesh and here I am , overjoyed to get my vision back," shared Sayed. " I have got my vision back because of the good cause of voluntary corneal donation promoted by the NGO, thus I and my wife Hamida have pledged our eyes. Also, we will work for this noble cause in J and K so as to make sure that partially and fully blind can get back their vision, said Sayed. The Punarjot Eye Bank Society organised interactive programme under the ongoing national eye donation awareness programme. Dr Ramesh appealed to all the NGOs, social individuals, media and health institutions to come forward for this noble cause of eye donation and get the benefit of free corneal transplantation of needy corneal visually impaired.
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This cager wants promotion of sports in Valley
Ludhiana, September 3 "It just happened by chance, I came here in the beginning of August to spend some time with my brother. He knows my love for basketball and told me about the NBA basketball league. I requested the authorities to give me a chance and since then I am here," said Atif Khan. The general secretary, Punjab Basketball Association, Teja Singh Dhaliwa, is bowled over by Atif’s dedication. "He just needs a basketball and he can play the whole day. This boy comes at 6:30am and after practicing for three hours on the court he takes a break and comes again in the evening. This game need such kind of commitment and this boy has that," said Dhaliwal and further added that the academy was open for such dedicated players. The 18- year- old cager has an altogether different opinion about the on going violence in the valley. "I believe the youths in the Valley need direction. I think the government should promote sports activities there and encourage youths to participate in it. That is how the energy of the youths can be utilised in the right manner. Rather then making the valley a political hotbed lets make it a hub of sport," said an emotional Atif, while netting the ball in the basket.
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Punjabi film industry gets its first
woman film director
Ludhiana, September 3 On a promotional tour for her film along with singer-actor Lakhwinder Wadali Ish Amitoj said the movie gave a true picture of Punjab. Although she is living in the USA she is still very close to her motherland and wants to give a social message through her film. "While on one hand, there is positivity and prosperity, on the other, there is a life replete with alcohol and drugs, also known as "Chhevan Dariya" or "The Sixth River". The Punjabi youth were becoming slave to drugs and ruining their lives. The situation is alarming and we as society as a whole need to do something in this regard," revealed Ish. Singer turned actor Lakhwinder Wadali said today if he was being recognised in the crowd was all due to singing. "It is my passion and will always be my first love. If I have to choose between acting and singing, I will choose singing without a second thought," he quips. Further he added that Punjabi films today were at par with the Hindi film industry. The credit for changing the face of the Punjabi film industry went to director Manmohan Singh, he added. "Very soon I will be seen in an album "Jugni" and will also be giving music to a Bollywood film of
Anil Kapoor. The film also stars Gulshan Grover, Neena Gupta, Rana Ranbir, Deep Dhillon, Binnu Dhillon. Prints of the film have
also been released in Canada and America while 15 prints have been released in
Punjab, added Ish.
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Experts to dwell on aspects of pelvic surgery
Ludhiana, September 3 Giving this information here today, Dr Mohammad Yamin, professor and head of orthopaedics, said the field of pelvic and acetabular course presented a significant challenge to orthopaedic surgeons all over the world. According to organising secretary, Dr Rajnish Garg, professor of orthopaedics, the scientific sessions during the course would include various guest lectures by experts in the field of pelvic and acetabular surgery, who would be sharing their experiences and latest advancements in this field. “The range of severity of pelvic injuries is wide and can include simple, displaced pelvic fractures, which may limit the activity of the patient for only a short period of time, and severe, complex or even open pelvic fractures, causing immediate life threatening situations.” The conference will be an excellent learning and training experience where every aspects of pelvic and acetabular surgery will be discussed in great details, he added.
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Laurels Ramandeep Kaur, Karamdeep Kaur and Jaaspinder Kaur, all students of Guru Nanak Girls College, Model Town, brought laurels to the city by securing first, seventh and eight position in MA-I (political science) in the Punjabi University examination, the result of which was announced today. The trio obtained 81, 73.75 and 73.5 per cent marks, respectively. While Rajwinder Kaur and Neetu Bala of MA-II (political science) bagged the second and seventh positions in the university by obtaining 78 and 75.6 per cent marks, respectively. Principal, Dr Charanjit Mahal congratulated staff and students for their outstanding performance and wished them good luck. Workshop
A workshop on the preservation of ethic and moral values was held by Guru Gobind Singh Study Circle at Master Tara Singh Memorial College for Women here today. Satnam Singh, GGSSC, and Darshan Singh, in charge, Aas Kiran, were the recourse persons on the occasion. As many as 250 students participated in the workshop. Satnam Singh exhorted the students to retain their morals and ethics for the smooth survival of complete being in this competitive world. ‘Mangal kamna diwas’
Sanatan Vidya Mandir Senior Secondary School and Sanatan High School observed “mangal kamna diwas” for classes X and XII before the commemoration of their semester examinations. The school auditorium was decorated with spiritual theme. The function started with a “Pujan” by offering prayers to the Almighty and meditating through breathing techniques.
— TNS
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Musical nite in Ishmeet’s memory
Ludhiana, September 3 In the opening remark, State Bank of India assistant general manager Tarun Sood paid homage to Ishmeet. Rupali Chhabra (finalist, Voice of Punjab, PTC) started with shabad recitation “Mera maat pita har raia” and later artistes of X-factor Studio gave mesmerising performance on Ishmeet’s song “Shukriya”. Winners and participants from different reality shows came to pay tributes to the singer. Jasleen Kaur Royal gave a scintillating performance with a mouth organ and guitar. Additional Commissioner S Kaler distributed mementoes to all performers with Ishmeet’s father Gurpinder Singh Sodhi, mother Amrit Pal Kaur and sister Sumeet also present on the occasion.
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Bhattal’s son-in-law appointed member of PPCC
Ludhiana, September 3 "Our first agenda will be to start the railway overbridge project in the town, which the Akali government has even failed to initiate. "All major projects in the state are being carried out with the aid of the Central government yet tall claims are being made by the Akali government," he said. Sanhewal has also been ignored on the city map. "It will be made a model town with all modern facilities," he said. The other main aim will be to upgrade the national airport into international airport. "Even this project was the brainchild of the Congress government," he said.
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‘Contribute liberally to PM’s relief fund’
Ludhiana, September 3 All contributions above Rs 500 will also be acknowledged in the quarterly journal “Aalochna” of the
akademi. Panjabi Sahitya Akademi president, Prof Gurbhajan Singh Gill has constituted a committee comprising Er DM Singh as convener, Sukhjit as senior vice-president, Dr Sukhdev Singh as general secretary and Dr SP Singh, former Vice-Chancellor of Guru Nanak Dev University
(GNDU), to regulate the donations. A part of the collection will be routed through the established literary organisation of the region. Joginder Kumar Gupta, president of Ludhiana Electroplaters Association, became the first contributor by donating Rs 11,000 followed by the donation of Rs 5,100 by Prof Gurbhajan Singh Gill and Er DM Singh .
— TNS
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'Release arrears of retired employees’
Ludhiana, September 3 A copy of the letter
was also sent to the chief manager of the State Bank of India at PAU, wherein it was clearly mentioned that the Punjab government had agreed to pay the benefits of revised pension with effect from August 1, 2009, and arrears for the period wef January 1, 2007 to July 31 should also be paid to retirees immediately. But it is rather a sorry state of affairs that the legitimate pensionary benefits are being
denied to the PAU retirees, rued RR Katyal, a PAU retiree. Speaking on behalf of the pensioners, Katyal said keeping in mind the dependence of the pensioners on their stipulated pensions, the authorities must release arrears of pensionary benefits to
the PAU retirees before Diwali.
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Exhibition from today
Ludhiana, September 3 Ruchika said all items to be displayed were picked up after a lot of survey and as per the need of the market, especially keeping in mind the mindset and trends prevalent among Punjabis. “I have been organising such exhibitions in other parts of the country as well and have received good response from the people. People who are fond of travelling and collecting items from different parts of the world can now choose the same under one roof,” she said.
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