Mill owners see shortfall in sugarcane production
Amritsar, December 14
Owing to the “slack” approach of the Punjab government, sugar mill owners are apprehensive that they will fall short of sugarcane by 25 to 30 per cent during the 2010-2011 crushing season. Consequently, a majority of the sugarcane mills in Punjab will be able to run for only three more months.

Khush pleads for food security for all
Ludhiana, December 14
Dr Gurdev Singh Khush, internationally known rice breeder, has pleaded that the right to food security should be provided to all citizens of India.

Police told to launch drive to nab POS
Chandigarh, December 14
After emulating the Bihar Chief Minister’s development plank, state Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal is set to do a repeat on the issue of proclaimed offenders. Presiding over a review meeting of the Punjab Police, along with the DGP, PS Gill, the Deputy CM today directed the force to launch a special drive to nab proclaimed offenders in the state.

Bhagi Vandar (Bathinda), December 14
Former Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal today announced that he would contest the next Assembly elections from his political turf, Gidderbaha.

Speaking to The Tribune, Manpreet admitted that earlier his “Taayaji,” Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, had always played a major role in his victory, but hastened to add, “No doubt, the circumstances have changed a lot. Still, I am confident enough of winning the elections again from Gidderbaha. It is just a matter of 14 months and the results will prove that I have my own identity also.”

Manpreet also expressed his willingness to form a separate party, but maintained that it would be done only after concluding the “Jago Punjab Yatra.”

“I am getting feedback from people across the state. They want me to launch a party to bring about socio-economic change in Punjab. Despite getting a massive response, I will show no haste and it will be done only after visiting all 117 Assembly constituencies in the state,” he said.

During his yatra in the villages of the Talwandi Sabo Assembly constituency today, Manpreet was overwhelmed to see people from all walks of life wearing a “basanti” (yellow) ribbon on their turbans and raising slogans in his favour.

While addressing public meetings in villages, the poet in Manpreet kept coming to the fore. He kept tapping his reservoir of Urdu poetry and narrated a couple of incidents from history books.

Urging all to support him to ensure the future of the coming generations, he asked people to make his Maghi Mela conference at Muktsar Sahib, which is to be held in January, a success. 

Moga, December 14
Former Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal has come out strongly against giving fresh incentives to the Bathinda refinery.

Manpreet, who as Finance Minister led a high-level committee set up by the Punjab Government in 2007 to talk to the refinery authorities, has stated, “Our committee met many times with the refinery authorities. Letters were exchanged between the government and LN Mittal but at no point they gave us a convincing argument as to why extra concessions should be given to them.”

In a press release, he said the argument given by the refinery authorities that more concessions should be given in view of the global downturn post-autumn of 2008 was “disingenuous”. “The demand for concessions was in fact articulated to me in a letter written by Arun Balakrishnan, Chairman of Guru Gobind Singh Refinery Limited, on October 17, 2007”, he said.

The incentives demanded by the refinery authorities included an interest subsidy for a period of 15 years, funding of 100 per cent interest cost for investment made in petrochemical units and a soft loan of Rs 1,000 crore.

“If we quantify these benefits, they amount to Rs 5,000 crore, which is four times the amount of benefits that have already been given to this refinery. Such exorbitant incentives will put a great strain on the state’s finances. This will also lead to a significant tax loss to the state in future”, he added.

Adding that he was not against the refinery and Punjab should in fact aggressively pursue investment in agriculture, industry and services, Manpreet, however, said, “We cannot set a bad precedent by changing the terms of contract just to appease a particular investor”. — TNS

Amritsar, December 14
The SGPC will set up a Sikh Mission Kendar in Washington. SGPC chief Avtar Singh Makkar said an SGPC delegation led by secretary Joginder Singh Adliwal, which is on a visit to the US, had carried out an inspection of the land being offered in Washington. He said he had also seen the land during his last visit to the US.

He said the SGPC had already passed a resolution to get this land but the decision was held back pending clearance from this delegation.

The SGPC delegation has also conducted a survey of land being offered at Charlotte in North Carolina (US) to set up a printing facility for Guru Granth Sahib. Makkar said the delegation, on its return to India, would take a final call in this regard.

The delegation will now visit Canada where an education trust has also offered land in Vancouver for the printing facility.

Meanwhile, the SGPC today announced that it would organise a protest outside the US Embassy in Delhi on December 23 on the issue of frisking of the turban of Indian envoy to the UN Hardeep Puri.

Amritsar, December 14
Owing to the “slack” approach of the Punjab government, sugar mill owners are apprehensive that they will fall short of sugarcane by 25 to 30 per cent during the 2010-2011 crushing season. Consequently, a majority of the sugarcane mills in Punjab will be able to run for only three more months.

With the crushing season having begun in mid-October, private and cooperative mills across the state will be receiving not more than 30 lakh tonnes of sugarcane to crush, experts believe. Last year’s production was about 35 lakh tonnes.

Dr Inderjeet Singh, Agriculture Officer, Punjab, said the area under sugarcane cultivation in Punjab had been declining continuously and had gone down by another 35 per cent this year despite the fact that Punjab’s soil was very conducive for the cane crop.

“At least 3.5 lakh acres of land should be put under sugarcane cultivation and nearly 1 crore metric tonne (MT) of sugarcane is required to run all sugar mills in the state,” he said.

There are 23 sugarmills in the state, out of which seven, running under the co-operative wing, have already closed down and the rest of the sugarmills (nine co-operative and seven private) are on the verge of closure.

Though a proposal was mooted to lease the closed sugarmills under the BOOT (build, own, operate and transfer) system but it, too, could not materialise.

Dr Harkamaljit Singh of the Applied Chemical Sciences and Technology Department, GND University, opined that had the state government begun on a positive note, the closed-down mills could have never been sick units that otherwise had a capacity to produce at least 2.4 MT of sugar.

“For the present, nine working co-operative sugarmills, which have the capacity to produce 2.7 MT of sugar, will require at least 29 lakh MT of cane. Similarly, the seven private mills have the capacity to produce 4.9 MT of sugar. For this, the mills will need another lot of at least 51 lakh MT of cane. Where will the requisite cane produce come from?,” he asked.

“The government should follow what other states like Tamil Nadu and Haryana have done to revitalise the sugarcane growth by extending subsidies on seeds, maintaining a "supportive” policy on sugarcane and sugar industry, raising SAP (state advisory price) from the present Rs 180 per quintal and giving proper attention to autumn plantation to yield maximum growth. Further, bagasse, the fibrous matter that remains after crushing, can be used as biofuel to generate power. This way these units will hardly depend upon the government for power supply. The Faridkot sugar mill is an example of this miracle,” he added.

Ludhiana, December 14
Dr Gurdev Singh Khush, internationally known rice breeder, has pleaded that the right to food security should be provided to all citizens of India.

In an interview with The Tribune here today Dr Khush welcomed the decision of the Central Government to provide the right to security of food and said: “The basic right of everyone born on this planet is food and shelter”. The focus of the government should be to provide food security to every citizen of the country.

Dr Khush said there was no shortage of foodgrains in the country.

“The problem is that poor people cannot afford to have food. We were exporting four million tonnes of rice between 2001 and 2006. The government stopped this export to feed the people,” he added.

Dr Khush said the export of basmati must be continued as it had brought good revenue to the exchequer. The demand was increasing in African countries by 6 per cent every year.

The problem of unemployment was also haunting the country because of which the poor could not afford to have sufficient food security.

As many as 250 million people in India were poor and could not have sufficient food because of the lack of power to buy foodgrains.

Regarding the world food situation, Dr Khush said in 2008, the prices of foodgrains like maize, rice and wheat rose three times from $300 per tonne to $900 per tonne and due to this reason there were riots in 12 African countries.

For development to take place, everyone must have sufficient food security, he emphasised.

Dr Khush expressed concern over the depleting water level in Punjab and pleaded for the diversification of agriculture. There was talk of diversification but no serious attempt in this regard was made.

“We used to have one crop and now the emphasis was on two crops, and the underground water level was going down rapidly. If this trend continues, it will be difficult to have two crops,” he warned. Punjab farmers should have pulses, maize and oilseeds.This diversification was very important.

Amritsar, December 14
As many as 12 fishermen, who were released from a Karachi jail, today crossed over to their native country through the Attari-Wagah joint checkpost here. They were received by Company Commander (BSF) Sanjay Kumar. All fishermen belong to Gujarat and had entered Pakistani waters while fishing three years ago.

Jayanti, who has returned from Pakistan after serving a three-year term in the Karachi jail, said there were 128 more fishermen lodged there and waiting for their release. He said a Pakistani court had sentenced him to six months in jail, but he had to wait for three years for his release. He urged the Pakistan and Indian Governments to frame a policy for the early release of fishermen.

Another fisherman Bhavesh said he would look for another job instead of joining this profession again. He said his brother, who was held by Pakistani forces along with him, was still lodged in the Karachi jail. Earlier, Pakistan had released 442 fishermen in September as a goodwill gesture. 

Ferozepur, December 14
The Punjab Government has decided to construct water courses of 14,000 km length in various parts of the state within six months.

To accomplish this task by June-end next year, the government will arrange funds from its own kitty, Nabard and the Centre apart from taking marginal money from a section of beneficiaries.

Talking to TNS today, state Irrigation Minister Janmeja Singh Sekhon said it was for the first time that water courses of such a huge length were being constructed in a short span of six months. These water courses, when completed, would bring relief to farmers as water would be available to them in enough quantity to irrigate their fields.

He said that the construction of water courses, which would be fed by the UBDC, Sirhind Feeder and Bathinda branch canals, would be funded by the Punjab Government and the Centre. Out of the 50 per cent share, which the Punjab government was supposed to spend, 10 per cent of it would be taken from beneficiaries.

The construction of water courses to be fed by the Abohar branch and Bhakra Main Branch canals would be funded by Nabard, he said, adding that at a meeting with Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal, Rs 115 crore had also been sanctioned for 52 projects. 

Bathinda, December 14
Fifty-year-old Surjeet Singh of Sardargarh village (Bathinda) appeared in the Class XII open school examination this year and through sheer dedication and hard work cleared all subjects in the first semester with good marks.

Surjeet had appeared in the examination along with his 22-year-old daughter, Manpreet Kaur, who had inspired him to resume his studies. Ironically, she could not clear all subjects in the examination in one go.

Though she is upset over her own result, she feels proud that her father cleared the examination in the very first attempt.

Son of a Dalit landless peasant, Surjeet wanted to carry on his studies after Class X in 1977 but the poor economic condition of the family did not let him study further and he had to join his father in the fields.

The unfulfilled desire remained in his heart for decades.When his daughter had to appear in the Class XII examination, she insisted that Surjeet apply for the same in the open school examinations of the Punjab School Education Board this year. Finding it a good opportunity, he deposited the fee of two candidates, one of his own and the other of his daughter.

That day Surjeet made a promise to himself that he would clear all subjects in one go. He started getting up early in the morning to study and went to bed late at night. Without letting his job (librarian at the Teachers’ Home) suffer, he studied hard. Besides,he kept motivating his daughter to work hard and both helped each other in case of any difficulty.

”When I was about to enter the examination hall with my daughter, the gatekeeper stopped me from going inside. Inspecting my admit card, the gatekeeper got surprised and wished me good luck,” he said.

He appeared in the first semester of the Class XII examination and luck smiled on him today when he received information that he had cleared all subjects.

Surjeet has now set a goal that he would be a law graduate one day.“At present, I am poor, a daily wage employee getting only Rs 100 per day,” he said.

Banur, December 14
The winged visitors migrating every year from the Himalayan region, China, Afghanistan and Siberia have scattered into various water bodies this winter following heavy rainfall. Since water got accumulated in and around the forest areas of Banur, the migratory birds have made ponds their home. According to bird lovers, the forest areas around Banur give them congenial atmosphere for breeding during the winter season.

Officials of the zoo said birds, including Common Pochards, Common Coots, Stilts, Kingfisher, Sandpipers, Red-crusted Pochards, Grebes, Geese Shell Ducks, Cormorants, Cranes and Bar-headed Geese, arrive with in November and stay till April or early May. Lack of water bodies has reduced the number of birds during the past few years, however, good numbers is seen this winter in nearby ponds due to heavy rainfall. A Chandigarh-based bird watcher, Narbir Kahlon said the number of birds has not reduced this year though they have scattered into various water bodies. He said that birds like Pintale Duck, Common Teal and Northern Shoveler is found in shallow water. Though they are mostly found near Banur forest areas, the number has reduced in Sukhna Lake in Chandigarh where the shallow water area has reduced to a great extent. Narbir pointed out that the birds on their way back make a brief stopover at Ghaggar, Patiala ki Rao and other parts of the forest areas of Banur as the weather conditions change.

A forest official said around 1,500 birds had arrived this season in Banur forest area and the exact number would be ascertained when the temperature would reduce further in the coming weeks. 

Rajpura, December 14
Bowing to the pressure of farmers agitating against setting up of IT Park, the Punjab government has agreed to drop the plan, in principle, today.

While talking to TNS, Prem Singh Chandumajra, said the Deputy Chief Minister agreed, in principal, that the IT Park would not be setup on the fertile land of villagers.

“There was a deadlock between the farmers and officials of Punjab Infotech over land prices. The officials expressed their helplessness to offer desired price for the agricultural land and hence the idea to setup the IT Park has been dropped,” said Chandumajra.

He said Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal would announce the decision upon returning from a foreign trip in next few days.

Farmers, after returning from Chandigarh, have expressed their satisfaction over the outcome of the meeting.

President of the action committee, Gurcharan Singh Sehra, said the Deputy Chief Minister had categorically denied setting up of the IT Park in Rajpura and villagers were happy over the decision.

“We informed the Deputy Chief Minister about the paltry sum given by the government for their fertile land. The Deputy Chief Minister agreed that the farmers must get their desired price for the village land or the idea to setup the park would be dropped,” said Gurcharan Singh.

He said apart from MLA Ghanaur Ajaib Singh Mukhmailpur, 15 members of action committee attended the meeting.

Farmers from six villages including Aakar, Aakari, Sehra, Sehri, Pabra and Takhtumajra had been opposing the acquisition of 1369 acres of fertile land, belonging to their respective panchayats.

Farmers said their ancestors had donated this land to panchayat for development of their villages. Several poor farmers have been cultivating the land for past many years on contract basis.

Later, Grewal confirmed the development and said, “The IT Park is meant for the benefit of area residents and the people of Punjab.If the government has decided to drop the IT Park, it will affect the beneficiaries.” 

Patiala, December 14
Perturbed over the strict norms and constant raids, marriage palace owners submitted a memorandum to the District Administration and have threatened a state-level agitation if the government departments continued to harass them.

The Patiala Marriage Palace Association (PMPA) owners allege that the Punjab Excise and Taxation Department challans them for serving liquor without permit at a private party and the police order to register a case against them for playing music after 10 pm. The PMPA have submitted a memorandum to SDM Patiala Gurmeet Singh alleging harassment by the excise department, the District Administration and police. The memorandum states the problems faced by the association.

“The state government has given many powers to the excise department and instead of taking action against the wine contractors, who sell liquor without permit, the department officials raid our premises in the middle of a function and fine us,” president of the association, Gurjeet Singh, said.

“There is no base in the excise wing harassing the marriage palace owners if the host of the function is serving liquor without permit. We can only forward a complaint, the department should act against the host instead of threatening to seal our palace,” he said.

Sources confirm that the marriage palace owners had met Deputy Chief Minister Punjab Sukhbir Singh Badal on November 29, but the problems are yet to be resolved.

In the past over a month, the police, excise department and the District Administration have conducted many raids at marriage palaces to check lapses.Members of the association said the challaning their premises, for playing loud music, was wrong as the Disc Jockey system was brought by the host and premises was only on rent.

“Recently the SDM raided some premises and challaned them for non-compliance with the Supreme Court directions of playing loud music at night. We just want that instead of us, the authorities should challan the music system owner,” they added. When contacted, Patiala Assistant Excise and Taxation Commissioner HPS Ghotra told The Tribune, that their department would look into the demands made by the association.

Patiala, December 14
It is not only in the hills of Himachal Pradesh, the marauding primates are a cause of trouble in the plains of Punjab as well where angry residents want to get rid of the simians. Monkey population in Patiala and its outskirts have been troubling the residents from quite sometime now.

In majority of cases, some have been bitten, others chased and scratched before their belongings were taken away. Notably, Patiala is surrounded by hundreds of acres of prime forest land divided into many birs (land covered under the Forest and Wildlife Act).

Talking to The Tribune, many residents complained that there was nothing that they could do to avoid the monkey menace as they sometimes turned violent. “Many a times our clothes are torn and neighbours attacked and there is no one to help us put, Niranjan Singh, a farmer near Moti Bagh Bir, said, adding that they could not poison the villagers consider them sacred.

Sources in the Wildlife Department said following complaints of increasing monkey menace, the government had proposed a rescue centre in the city to tame and rehabilitate monkeys. “However, even after one-and-a-half year, the centre is still awaiting a nod from the Central Zoo Authority,” they added.

Confirming that the monkey population in the district was increasing rapidly, Divisional Forest Officer Satinder Sagar confirmed that there were complaints.

“The monkey menace is more near Nabha and Bhadson Bir and farmers are angry as monkeys sometimes come out of the restricted area and destroy crops,” Sagar added.

The Divisional Wildlife Department does not have a tranquilising gun and in case of a complaint the lone gun is available at Chattbir Zoo.

“There is limited what we can do, but we are planning to involve animal activists and religious bodies as monkeys are religiously important,” claimed Chief Wildlife Warden, Punjab, Gurbaj Singh. “Though sterilisation drive has been started by the Himachal Pradesh government, we are yet to follow that pattern, but we do have certain things in the pipeline,” he claimed.

State Minister for Wildlife and Forest Tikshan Sud accepted that steps should be taken in this regard. “However, our proposal for a rescue centre is hanging with the Central government and once it is operational the problem would be solved,” he added.