Fazilka, December 14
Was it faulty planning or lack of professional approach that led to a large number of casualties in the Indian Army in the course of capturing of its territory by Pakistan’s Army in the 1971 war?

A section of residents of this town and surrounding villages have still been waiting for the answer to this question from the authorities concerned despite the fact that 39 years have passed since the Indo-Pak war was fought which led to the creation of an independent country Bangladesh, out of Pakistan.

During a tour to different villages, a section of the residents offered different stories in connection with the Indo-Pak war of 1971, which witnessed a large number of casualties on the Indian side. Though various organisations of India including its Army authorities might have held the opinion that Indian Army had done wonders in Fazilka sector and defeated the enemy, a section of Indian and foreign-based war commentators hold different views.

While John H. Gill, an internationally recognised military historian, who has served the US Army, in his book titled ‘An Atlas of 1971 India-Pakistan War: The Creation of Bangladesh’, has claimed that in the 1971 Indo-Pak war, Indian defenders, located west of Fazilka across the border from the Sulenmanki headworks, lost a significant chunk of land to Pakistan's 105 Brigade despite repeated and costly counter attacks due to poor position and inept leadership of its 67 Brigade.

However, indecision on the part of Pakistan’s high command in connection with the implementation of its plan, called ‘Changez Khan’, proved to be lucky for India. Under the plan, 
105 Brigade and 25 Brigade was to drive east from the vicinity of Bahawalnagar to cross the international border before turning northeast to push for Bathinda and Ludhiana, mentioned Gill in his book.

A retired Major General Sukhwant Singh, in his book titled ‘Defence of the Western Border, India’s War Since Independence’ has claimed that there was a detailed plan for the security of Fazilka, which was a vital communication centre and falling of the same into Pakistani hand, could have enabled the enemy to develop various variable thrusts into the Indian territory.

He claimed that the original plan to defend Fazilka was changed as per the directions of seniors just before the 1971 conflict.

The Beriwala bridge in Fazilka sector, which was captured by the enemy within an hour or so of the attack on December 3, could not be taken back despite five counterattacks till December 13-14 (1971). Almost all the counterattacks witnessed heavy casualties of the Indian Army personnel.

Meanwhile, a series of functions would be held at Asafwala later this month where a memorial has been raised in the memory of supreme sacrifices made by the Army jawans of Four Jat Regiment during the 1971 Indo-Pak war in Fazilka sector, by the Shaheedon Ki Samadhi Committee. 

Jalalabad (Ferozepur), December 14
Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal would formally launch a number of development projects in this city.

Official sources said Badal would first lay the foundation stone for the new building of the local municipal council. After that he would lay the foundation stone of a comprehensive development project for this town. Sukhbir would also hold a sangat darshan in the local community hall. SDM Rajiv Prashar said though he did not know the exact amount which was supposed to be spent on the comprehensive development project by the Punjab government, it possibly ran into crores of rupees.

He added that all the preparations in connection with the visit of Sukhbir had been completed. Information gathered by the TNS revealed that Badal would first visit the kin of former Member of Parliament (MP) Zora Singh Mann at his village Chak Suhele Wala and then would perform the foundation stone laying ceremonies in this town. 

Muktsar, December 14
In a shock to the district police, two activists of the Water Supply and Sanitation Muster Roll Employees Union, who were among the 90 odd arrested by the police from Lambi village late on Monday evening to end their days-long protest, today escaped from police custody.

The two agitators in question, namely, Lakhveer Singh Dhaliwal of Amritsar and Binder Singh alias Bheem of Faridkot, had been on fast unto death since December 6 demanding regularisation of jobs of all 3511 employees and their health was deteriorating.

Observing their deteriorating health, the district police yesterday rounded them up from their tent and rushed them to the Civil Hospital, Muktsar from where they were further shifted to Government Medical College and Hospital, Faridkot.

Meanwhile, police also arrested all other activists of the union, who had resisted the rounding up of the two. After booking all of them under section 107 and 151 of the CrPc at Lambi police station, they were sent to police lock-up.

They were today produced in the court of SDM Malout, Parveen Thind, who further sent them to judicial custody at Ferozepur Jail for seven days. On the other hand, Lakhveer Singh and Binder Singh fled from the Government Medical College and Hospital, Faridkot, by hoodwinking the cops.

Speaking over the phone, the union activists informed that the two had restarted their fast at some unidentified place to avoid police arrest.

When contacted, the Muktsar SSP, Inder Mohan Singh passed on the buck to the district health authorities, stating that the two were not in police custody.

“We had handed them over to the district health officials, who referred them to Faridkot from Civil Hospital, Muktsar. If they have fled from the hospital, the onus lies on the health officials,” he claimed.

On the other hand, Civil Surgeon, Muktsar, Dr Tirath Goyal refuted the allegation levelled by the SSP.

“We are doctors, not the custodians of patients. If the police had forcibly lifted them from dharna and admitted to the hospital, it was the duty of the police to keep them under observation. If the agitators fled from the hospital, no one else is guilty other than the police,” the Civil Surgeon asserted.

Bathinda, December 14
In support of their demands, workers of local Verka Milk Plant and several chilling stores situated in Talwandi and Rampura held a gate rally at the milk plant here today.

According to president of the Milk Plant Employees’ Union Amarjit Singh, their main demands were payment of the arrears of dearness allowance installments from January 2003, regularisation of the services of workers appointed on compassionate ground, regularisation of casual workers in service for past 10 years, payment of arrears of revised pay-scales from January 2006 to February 2010 and filling the vacancies through promotions immediately.

He said that even after selling 11 acres of land of the milk plant, the workers had not been paid their dues so far. If the authorities concerned did not accept their demands soon, then they would intensify their agitation by way of organising a state-level dharna at the plant on January 15, the union leader said.

Bathinda, December 14
To ensure income security for farmers across the country, the Kheti Virasat Mission (KVM) today urged the Union Government to set up a Farmers’ Income Commission on the pattern of the Employees’ Pay Commission so that no farmer was compelled to take harsh steps like suicide on account of inability to repay agriculture loans, losses to crops on account of various reasons, hike in the costs of agriculture inputs and non-remunerative prices of the produce.

Executive Director of the KVM Umendra Dutt said the KVM also demanded from the government to ensure pesticide-free farming and direct subsidy to farmers.

Dutt along with vice-president of the KVM Hartej Singh Mehta, secretary Kultar Singh Sandhwan and organising secretary Balwinder Singh was here to share information about the talks held between chairperson of the UPA Sonia Gandhi and a 10-member delegation of the 71-day nationwide Kisan Swaraj Yatra, which culminated on December 11 at Delhi. The meeting discussed the memorandum submitted to Sonia Gandhi by the Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture (ASHA) that had organised the yatra.

Dutt said Sonia Gandhi had assured the delegation that the government would do the needful to protect the interests of farmers in a big way. She told them that farmers committing suicides in a big way would jeopardise the food security of the country.

Sonia Gandhi also said the government would examine all aspects put forward by ASHA in Kisan Swaraj Policy, informed Dutt.

Meanwhile, Dutt said the KVM would organise a state-level convention in Punjab on the issues like farmers’ income, poison-free food and direct subsidy to farmers.

He said Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal’s model of “sending Punjab farmers abroad” was not acceptable to the KVM as it would reduce farmers’ population from 70 per cent to 15 per cent. He added that the US was giving a subsidy of one billion dollars per day to its farmers while in India it was nominal. Dutt said the KVM was in favour of subsidies and the same should continue at every cost.

Kultar Singh Sandhwan said the KVM wanted an open debate with the Punjab Agriculture University, Ludhiana, over Punjab’s existing agriculture model (use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides, mechanisation and market driven agriculture). He said due to the existing model, Punjab had lost traditional agricultural wisdom.

Fazilka, December 14
In the border village of Asafwala, seven kilometers from here, a magnificent memorial to the 1971 Indo-Pak war is situated in the Fazilka sector as a testimony to the gallantry of valiant war heroes, who laid down their lives defending this strategically important town from falling into the hands of Pakistan.

In the 1971 war, Pakistani forces were determined to capture the strategic border area surrounded by Pakistan from three sides (which is called chicken’s neck in military parlance) when the war began on December 3, 1971. Bomb shells from the Pak mortars wreaked havoc in the town and in villages of the border area. A fierce man-to-man battle was fought in this area. Pak forces made some advances and captured some Indian territory and the strategic Beriwala bridge in Fazilka sector. Indian Army jawans not only stalled the advancing Pak forces from three sides standing like impregnable Rock of Gibraltar but they pushed them back as well.

About 226 brave officers and jawans of Four Jat Regiment, three Assam Regiments and 15 Rajput Regiment of the Indian Army attained martyrdom in the war which continued for two weeks. After the cease-fire, it was not possible to carry out the cremation of the deceased Armymen as the bodies of the war heroes were badly decomposed by the time of ceasefire on December 17, 1971. The indebted citizens of Fazilka and the rural areas with the cooperation of the Armymen performed collective cremation of the mortal remains of the war heroes in a befitting way at village Asafwala. A 55-feet long pyre was prepared and collective cremation was done with the recitation of hymns from all religious scriptures.

Supreme sacrifices and acts of valour of these jawans moved the residents of the area so much that they decided to raise a memorial in the memory of these jawans whom the people of the area acknowledged as the ‘Saviours of Fazilka’.

They constituted Shaheedon Ki Samadhi Committee, Asafwala, Fazilka, which has been looking after the memorial complex in a decent way.

Giani Zail Singh, who was then the chief minister of Punjab, unveiled the memorial on September 22, 1972.

Since then, the memorial which is considered to be the best privately managed war memorial, became a historical spot for all dignitaries visiting this area. Every year, a Shaheedi Mela is organised on the war memorial.

Sriganganagar, December 14
There would be a change in the schedule of passenger trains from Wednesday midnight due to the long pending mega block on Sriganganagar-Sadulpur section. The railways have finally confirmed that some trains would stand cancelled due to the laying of rail lines for gauge conversion on the 116-km long track. North Western Railway chief PRO Lalit Bohra said the construction of station buildings and platforms had almost been completed. Now, 52405 (1 SHL) Hanumangarh - Sriganganagar-Suratgarh passenger train has been cancelled. 52406/52407 (2 SHL/ 1 SHS) trains would be run on Sriganganagar- Hanumangarh-Sadulpur route. 52415 (3 SHL) will also be run on this track. The train number 52416 (4 SHL) Suratgarh-Hanumangarh-Sriganganagar and 52408 (2-SH) has been cancelled.

The 52409 (2 SHSA) Sriganganagar-Sadulpur train would be replaced by 54208 Sriganganagar-Hanumangarh-Sadulpur while 52413/52414 would be run on Sadulpur-Hanumangarh-Sriganganagar section. There would be no change in 52411/52412 (old number 711), 02413/02414 on Sriganganagar-Sadulpur section. The NWR has decided to add more coaches to 4707/4708 Bikaner-Bandra Terminus Express, 2489/2490 Bikaner-Dadar Express, 2495/2496 Bikaner- Kolkata express trains. The NWR has also extended 09734/09733 Hanumangarh- Kota holiday special train till January 31, 2011. However, 09733 (old number 0233) would leave Hanumangarh by 5.55 pm from the New Year’s day as per the revised time-table. — OC

Abohar, December 14
While targeting the families of top ruling politicians over the increase in bus fare, former parliamentary secretary Sunil Jakhar dared the Punjab Transport Minister Master Mohan Lal to clarify as to which private transport company had forced the state government to order 10 paisa per km increase.

Earlier, former FM Manpreet Badal and now the transport minister from the BJP has opined that there could be other measures to bring the state-owned transport out of red, Jakhar said and sought a high-level inquiry into the allotment of high paying bus routes to a private company at the cost of the Punjab Roadways and Pepsu Road Transport Corporation. — OC

Abohar, December 14
Due to inordinate delay in completion of the local judicial complex, its inauguration is likely to take place next year. Though members of the local Bar Association have been looking for its inauguration at the earliest, the authorities concerned, could not complete their respective work so far.

President of the Bar Association (Abohar) Narinder Kumar Garg said Jaspal Singh, District and Sessions Judge, visited the judicial complex last Saturday to see whether the building was fit to be inaugurated or not.

After taking a round of the building, the proposal to get it inaugurated from the Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court on December 18 was dropped.

Executive Engineer (PWD) SS Bedi said the building was complete in all aspects. The delay was being caused as those who were assigned the job of laying down sewerage and electricity fittings, had been carrying out finishing touches. Meanwhile, Garg said the Bar Association would make efforts to get the complex inaugurated in January 2011, if all went as per plan.

Moga, December 14
A girl of Moga village, Amandeep Kaur, who got married to an NRI Buta Singh of Nadala village, in Kapurthala district, three years back, has allegedly been cheated by her groom and his family members. Her father Surjit Singh reportedly paid Rs 40 lakh at the time of marriage.

The police had registered a criminal case against the accused, his family members and some of his relatives under various sections of the IPC at the Baghapurana police station on the complaint of Amandeep Kaur, a resident of Vadda Ghar village. She alleged that her husband assusred that he would take her to Canada but did not do so. However, no arrest has been made in this regard.