State likely to buy own copter for VIPs
Crash could be due to ‘simple lifting error’
Chandigarh, December 17
Punjab is likely to go in for a helicopter of its own after the near-fatal crash of the Pawan Hans copter leased by the state to ferry VIPs at Chandigarh airport yesterday.

Ramgarh (Kapurthala), December 17
The PPCC president, Capt Amarinder Singh, today said that “wiping out” the Badals from the state’s political scene would be the one- point agenda of the Congress in the Assembly elections.

He blamed all ills plaguing Punjab and Punjabis at the doorstep of Parkash Singh Badal and his “cohorts”.

The former Chief Minister also regretted that Badal had remained silent even as the state was descending into a state of anarchy. He also reiterated his party’s stand that each and every false case registered against the Congress workers would be accounted for and responsibility fixed.

It was a vintage Amarinder who addressed his first political rally after taking over the reins of the PPCC. The rally was organised by sitting MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira to commemorate the birth anniversary of his late father and former minister Sukhjinder Singh.

Amarinder further alleged that there was no governance in the state and it was being run by Badal’s son and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal in violation of the Constitution.

Taking a dig at the Badals, the PPCC chief said, “Sukhbir is dreaming of ruling Punjab for another 25 years while he has managed to ruin it in just four years.” He said the Badals had such an unquenchable thirst for money that they were grabbing everything they thought would earn them money, be it sand, transport, cable or liquor business. They had their hand in every pie.

Amarinder asserted that the Congress government would not only investigate and fix responsibility against excesses committed in Bholath, but the entire state as the Akalis had got registered over 20,000 cases against their workers.

Earlier, he paid glowing tributes to the late Sukhjinder Singh and recalled his association with him as a minister about 25 years ago. 

Chandigarh, December 17
The Punjab BJP’s plan to ensure the speedy development of urban areas held by it seems to have succeeded with the proposal for the formation of a municipal infrastructure development fund being sent to the Governor today for the issuance of an ordinance to this effect.

Earlier, after a protracted struggle, the BJP had convinced its ally, the SAD, of the need for a special fund to launch infrastructure projects in urban areas. The state Cabinet approved the proposal recently.

The BJP demanded the creation of the special fund after it was revealed that Rs 700 crore had been handed over to the Punjab Infrastructure Development Board to undertake development work in Akali constituencies.

The new infrastructure fund will have a dedicated revenue of Rs 200 crore which will be availed of by diverting part of the revenue generated through surcharge on VAT to the fund.

Disclosing this here today to TNS, Local Bodies Minister Manoranjan Kalia said the fund would ensure speedy and need-based development in urban local bodies every year since Rs 200 crore would accumulate in the fund every year.

Kalia said the cash kitty in the fund would be developed further by creating an escrow account for which the government would stand guarantee. He said the fund had a target to attract loans of Rs 900 crore from various consortiums of banks ensuring a Rs 1,100 crore kitty for spending on development works.

According to sources, the fund will allow BJP legislators to recommend development work in their constituencies, which could hold the party in good stead in the Assembly elections in 14 months’ time.

According to the present formula, the corporations of Amritsar, Ludhiana, Patiala, Bathinda and Jalandhar will get Rs 100 crore each. As many as eight BJP constituencies are located in the territorial limits of these corporations. Besides, “A” class municipalities will get Rs 10 crore each, “B” class municipalities Rs 5 crore and “C“ class Rs 3 crore each.

Chandigarh, December 17
The issue of grant of concessions to the Bathinda refinery being established by HPCL-Mittal Energy Limited (HMEL) is set to get more complex with Punjab Industries Minister and BJP legislature party leader Manoranjan Kalia today saying he would ask the Chief Minister to consider further concessions to the refinery project keeping the state’s financial position in mind.

The issue of proposed concessions to the Rs 19,000 crore Bathinda refinery, which is nearing completion, has already triggered protest by both the Congress as well as former Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal who has rebelled against the SAD.

The Industries Minister, while talking to TNS, claimed the refinery promoters had the right to demand concessions and that the state was willing to have a fresh look at the case. He, however, said the state had limited resources and that its fiscal position did not permit much largesse.

The minister said the state was already giving a Rs 250 crore per annum interest-free loan to the refinery for a period of five years amounting to a total concession of Rs 1,250 crore. He said HMEL had agreed to this earlier but was now demanding more incentives stating the global slowdown in the economy as well as concessions being given by other states to refinery projects would make the Bathinda refinery unviable.

He said the company had also pointed out that a Rs 1,300 crore ancillary hub would have a multiplying effect on the state’s economy and give a boost to its industrial development. Stating that the promoters had their points, he said it was also a fact that no state government except for Punjab had given any cash loans to refinery projects in their territories. “They have only deferred VAT collections”, he added.

Kalia, however, made it clear that HMEL was only asking for an interest-free loan of Rs 400 crore per year for 15 years. He said this amounted to a Rs 6,000 crore concession with the promoters committing themselves to repaying the loan from the 16th year onwards. This proposal also has the support of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and is under consideration of the state government.

The BJP leader said there was no truth in Pradesh Congress President Amarinder Singh’s statement that the government was considering a Rs 20,000 crore concession to the refinery by processing a proposal for a waiver on VAT for 15 years. He said there was no proposal to waive VAT for the project. 

Chandigarh, December 17
Punjab is likely to go in for a helicopter of its own after the near-fatal crash of the Pawan Hans copter leased by the state to ferry VIPs at Chandigarh airport yesterday.

Though government sources are claiming yesterday’s crash is a simple lifting error, indicating the accident was because of a pilot error than anything else, the increasing number of accidents involving VIP flights has forced the government to play safe.

Sources disclosed that the government was likely to go in for the purchase of Eurocopter’s Dauphin AS365N3 helicopter, the same machine that met with an accident today. This model is being favoured because it is in VIP configuration, has twin engines and can accommodate six persons. Moreover, Pawan Hans is operating these helicopters in the country and has the necessary experience to maintain them. The Dauphin N3 used by state VIPs, including the Chief Minister and the Deputy CM, travels most frequently to Delhi and Bathinda, both of which are a little more than an hour’s travel from here.

It is clear the government will only purchase the helicopter, which is worth around Rs 50 crore. The maintenance as well as supply of pilots for the running of the helicopter will be outsourced to Pawan Hans.

Meanwhile, the man who was supposed to board the helicopter minutes before it met with an accident --- Local Bodies Minister Manoranjan Kalia-- today said the state should not use second-hand helicopters. Claiming he would take up the issue with the Chief Minister also, Kalia said he had been informed that the helicopter which met with an accident yesterday could have had a faulty tail rotor also.

However, state civil aviation authorities contested this statement, saying the helicopter had flown in the morning also and that this would not have been possible if there was any glitch in its tail rotor. They attribute the accident more to a momentary lack of concentration in handling the joystick. The Director-General of Civil Aviation has already ordered an inquiry into the accident.

Bathinda, December 17
The appointment of the patron of the Youth Akali Dal (YAD), a wing of the SAD, and former Punjab minister Bikram Singh Majithia as president of the YAD appears to be on the cards as per the indications given at a district-level meeting of the YAD, held at the Diwan Hall of Gurdwara Haji Rattan Sahib here today.

District president of the SAD Sikander Singh Maluka Maluka told the gathering that it was a matter of days when Majithia would take charge of the YAD as its president.

Later, Balwinder Singh Bhunder, a member of the Rajya Sabha, also told the gathering that they had requested Parkash Singh Badal to make Majithia the president of the YAD.

With regard to seeking the party ticket for the workers of the YAD in the ensuing Assembly elections, Majithia said, “We will demand from the SAD president that 33 per cent of the party candidates are from the YAD during the ensuing Assembly elections.”

Majithia also asked the youth to understand their social as well as political responsibilities. He asked them to rid Punjab of social evils like drug abuse, dowry and female foeticide, if they wanted to bring a change in society. He also lashed out at the Congress on the issue of corruption. The meeting was attended by a large number of youth Akali workers and the SAD leaders and activists.

Earlier, Majithia was received and welcomed by the SAD and the Youth Akali Dal leaders at Kot Shameer village. 

Bathinda, December 17
Lakshmi, a 10-year-old girl, died while seven children fell ill after consuming some poisonous substance at Kheta Singh Basti late this evening.Mystery shrouds the incident as the parents whose children fell ill were reluctant to speak out about the possible cause for the incident.

It came as a shock to the workers of an NGO, Noujwan Welfare Society, which first received an information about the incident. They rushed to the locality but found people unwilling to speak. The NGO volunteers started visiting hutments to look for sick children. In one such hutment, they found a girl wrapped in a blanket and dumped under a hoarding. They rushed her to the Civil Hospital, where doctors declared her brought dead.

Smelling a rat, the volunteers launched a search operation and found seven more children complaining of ill health.

When this correspondent inquired from the parents of the children who fell ill, initially they refused to divulge details, but later they claimed that children had consumed some fruits (guava and kinnow), suspected to have a severe dose of pesticide spray that led to the incident.

Umesh Kumar, whose daughter died and son, Santosh, was under medical observation, said, “Both were vomiting and complaining of some problem in the stomach. I got them examined from a medical practitioner in the locality, who said it was not serious.” When questioned, the doctors at the Civil Hospital said the condition of some of the children was critical.

Jalandhar, December 17
Alarmed by the spillover of wild animals such as leopards to Punjab’s human habitats from the neighbouring state of Himachal Pradesh, where permits have been issued for shooting of monkeys, wild boars, etc, the state wildlife authorities have decided to take up the issue with the authorities concerned in the neighbouring state.

In recent weeks, some leopards have been found either killed or wandering around in the Punjab area, adjacent to Himachal Pradesh.

There are reports that troupes of frightened monkeys, whose shooting has been allowed for a limited period in Himachal Pradesh, have made their way to some parts of Punjab along the boundary of the hill state. Already, people in Punjab’s areas along the Himachal boundary have been facing monkey and wild boar menace. The number of monkeys in the Nangal belt and at a ‘bir’ near Patiala is in thousands. Likewise, there is a huge population of wild boars in the Nurpur Bedi belt and Kandi areas starting from Pathankot to Syalva Majra near Kurali. Besides this, blue bulls and sambars also often make it to various villages from the hilly region.

However, following the beginning of the culling of monkeys and other animals in Himachal Pradesh during the past one week, there are reports that monkeys have entered in big number in the Nangal-Anandpur Sahib belt and also some areas of Morni hills in Haryana.

Officials of the Wildlife Department say that owing to disturbing of the natural habitat of wild animals in Himachal Pradesh, wild cats have started making frequent excursions to human habitats in Punjab’s territory along the Himachal boundary. One leopard was killed two days ago near Hoshiarpur. Another was found dead near Nurpur Bedi. People often complain to wildlife officials regarding the sighting of leopards in the forest regions of Hoshiarpur and Ropar districts.

Asked in this regard, Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) Gurbaz Singh said, “We will write to the Himachal Pradesh Wildlife Department authorities with regard to the spillover of wild animals. When frightened, wild animals run to safe places such as Punjab,” he said. The Himachal Pradesh officials would also be asked to give the number of leopards and their habitat near the Punjab boundary. “From the number of leopards, we will be able to assess the problem of wild animals especially carnivores, which can harm human beings,” said Gurbaz Singh. “We have planned some measures to check the spillover,” he said.

Patiala, December 17
Three months after The Tribune highlighted the condition of an Octogenarian, Gurbhajan Singh, locked alone in a house in Mooran Wali Gali, Patiala, for the past five years, the Patiala police has booked his son under various sections of the Indian Penal Code.

The action has been taken on the basis of an inquiry report submitted by a committee of the government officials headed by Patiala SDM Gurmeet Singh.

Confirming this to TNS station house officer of the Kotwali police station, Sukh Amrit Singh, said based on the recommendations of chairman of the inquiry committee, District Attorney (Legal) submitted his report to Patiala Deputy Commissioner Dipinder Singh.

“Following the nod from Patiala DC, the complaint against Gurbhajan’s son was sent to the police station by SDM. On December 16, a case under Section 278 (Making atmosphere noxious to health), 325 (Punishment for voluntarily causing grievous hurt) and 346 (Wrongful confinement in secret) has been registered against Gurbhajan’s son, whose name was not mentioned in the complaint submitted by SDM”, he said.

The police said Gurbhajan’s son was also been charged with Section 24 (Exposure and abandonment of senior citizen) of the Maintenance of Welfare of Parents and CC Act, 2002. No arrests have been made so far but investigations into the matter are on. Despite repeated attempts SDM, Gurmeet Singh, was not available for comments.

Meanwhile, it was on September 21 that The Tribune had highlighted the inhuman conditions in which Gurbhajan was leading his life in a locked house from past five years. Gurbhajan’s son would visit the house and kept food near the gate, on a daily basis.

Taking cognisance of the report, Patiala DC had ordered the SDM, Gurmeet Singh, to visit the house and take stock of the situation. On September 23,when a team of district administration, led by SDM went to Mooran Wali Gali, where the octogenarian was locked he was taken out.

Gurbhajan was medically examined from the Government Rajindra Hospital. Despite several efforts, the whereabouts of Gurbhajan could not be confirmed. According to the information, he is living with his daughter, after The Tribune brought the entire episode to light. 

Patiala, December 17
The Punjab Government has initiated the process of replicating the heritage walk programme of Ahmedabad, for the promotion of tourism industry in Patiala.In order to attract tourists to Patiala and ensure the restoration of lost glory of heritage buildings, the state government is contemplating setting up a special heritage cell in Patiala.

The objective of the cell will be providing the literature and other information about the heritage buildings and tourist spots of Patiala, especially to foreigners.

The cell will also provide guides to the tourists for facilitating them to visit various places of historical importance and the heritage buildings.

Giving further details in this regard, Patiala ADC APSVirk said Patiala housed one of the oldest buildings of India. “It is a must to ensure the upkeep of all the heritage buildings.

They should also be the main attraction for tourists, especially foreigners,” he told The Tribune. He said the state government would promote tourism and the cell would be the first step.

He said the team members have informed the Patiala administration that before the setting up of the cell, there would be no need to streamline the traffic in the city. 

Amritsar, December 17
SGPC president Avtar Singh Makkar today said the SGPC had decided to seek the opinion of legal experts for the expeditious implementation of the Anand Marriage Act.

Addressing mediapersons after a meeting with SGPC members in connection with the December 23 protest outside the US Embassy, Makkar said they would soon form a committee of legal experts to make efforts in this direction, adding they had already contacted some experts for the same. He was responding to a question on the recent meeting of the Sikh clergy which had directed the SGPC to step up efforts for the implementation of the Act.

On the December 23 protest over the turban frisking issue, Makkar said ideally the matter should have been resolved diplomatically by the Centre but as the “government has not taken any measure, the SGPC has to resort to such a step”. He said the protest march would begin from Gurdwara Rakabganj at 11 am and subsequently a dharna would be staged outside the US Embassy. 

Jalandhar/Hoshiarpur, December 17
The killing of two leopards in the Kandi belt during the past one month has not only caught the Forest and Wildlife authorities napping, but has also exposed rampant poaching in the area.

While wild animals and jungle fowls are being hunted for meat, leopards and panthers (endangered species protected under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act) are falling prey to the poachers for black magic.

In the recent two killings, the big cats were caught in wire traps laid by the poachers for the hunting animals like wild boars, sambars and hog deer in Ropar and Hoshiarpur districts. A female cub was stoned and chased by residents of Brahampur village near Nangal and it was allegedly tranquilised to death by wildlife officials in June.

An adult male leopard was strangled by poachers in Khera Kalmot village of Ropar district in November with a motive to use its canines and claws in black magic. The poachers had removed three canines and 15 claws of the cat, leaving behind the carcass.

Though the motive behind the killing of a male leopard in Madariwala choe near Dholbaha in Hoshiarpur two days ago could not be ascertained, the Divisional Forest and Wildlife Officer, Hoshiarpur, Satnam Singh, said the big cat fell in the trap that was laid by poachers for animals like wild boars and sambars.

The poachers, in both cases, had used clutch wires in a traditional trap to strangulate the cats to death.

Meanwhile, a team of doctors from Chhat Bir Zoo that conducted a postmortem on the leopard carcass in Hoshiarpur found that the big cat died of asphyxia and brain hemorrhage. Blood clots were also found in its lungs, Chief Wildlife Warden, Punjab, Gurbaz Singh, said.

Gurbaz Singh said that an enquiry had been marked, in this case, to Satnam Singh, DFO, Hoshiarpur.

He said that Secretary, Forest, had already asked the Ropar district administration to submit an enquiry report on the killing of a leopard in Khera Kalmot village by January 4.

Former honorary Wildlife Warden, Hoshiarpur, Sukhdeep Singh Bajwa, said the department had registered only two cases of poaching in the past two years, even though poaching was going on on a large scale throughout the state.