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Law on contract farming proposed
CAG REPORT
HARPREET MURDER CASE |
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Roor Singh case goes to CBI
TURBAN FRISKING A clarification
Lowering of salary grades
Docs found absent during raids
Punjab ex-minister Prem Gupta dead
Left to launch stir against price rise
2 suspected B’deshis shot by BSF
Lala Lajpat Rai remembered on birth anniversary
Varsity rejects plea on examinations
4 kg of heroin seized near border
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Law on contract farming proposed
Chandigarh, January 28 Contract farming has been prevalent in the region, especially after the setting up of agro-processing units. At present hundreds of acres of land is under contract farming where large companies ask farmers to grow a particular produce and promise to buy it back. In many cases, the companies do not honour their commitment if the commodity becomes available at cheaper prices elsewhere. To make contract farming popular and to facilitate optimum use of expensive equipment and implements, the Punjab Government has decided to come out with a new law on contract farming. This legislation that is still in a draft stage proposes to bind companies to honour the terms of agreement. The proposal was mooted after reports that several multinational companies and big business houses went back on their commitments after making farmers grow potatoes or tomatoes. Similarly, many farmers entered into a lease with the Punjab Agro for citrus cultivation as a means of crop diversification, but the contracts were either terminated or the farmers suffered huge losses. Under the proposed legislation, the state government will, from time to time, notify crops that would be protected under this new legislation. From around two lakh acres under contract farming at present, the government hopes to bring about 25 lakh acres under contract farming. Once the draft is completed and vetted by the legal branch of the government, the Bill could be brought for passing in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha in the coming Budget Session, it is learnt. The legislation is contemplating proposing that once a company asks a farmer to grow something for the company, it will have to buy and pay the price already agreed upon, even if the produce is available at a cheaper price elsewhere. But at the same time, if the price of the produce increases, the farmers would be at liberty to demand a higher price or sell it to someone else for a higher price.
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CAG REPORT
Jalandhar, January 28 There are 15 states having more liabilities than their financial assets, while West Bengal, Kerala and Punjab have financial liabilities that are twice than that of their respective financial assets. The ratio of Punjab’s assets and liabilities is 43:100. That means, if Punjab’s assets are of Rs 43, its liabilities are of Rs 100. Explaining the assets and liabilities, the CAG has stated that the government accounts take into consideration only the financial liabilities (debt) of the government and the financial assets (investments) created out of the expenditure incurred by the government. In case of the state governments, loans, advances from the Government of India constitute public debt for that government. Besides these, liabilities of the government also include small savings from Public Provident Fund from the employees of the government and certain obligations like insurance, pension fund and other deposits. The CAG has prepared a report, “Union and State Finances at a Glance for year 2008-09”. That is the second report to be issued by the CAG in this regard. The report for year 2009-10 will be released by March 31. “We have prepared the report after the consolidation of all fiscal figures regarding the transactions reported by the treasuries and other account-rendering units like Public Works Divisions, Forest Divisions for the year 2008-09,” said a senior CAG official. In the CAG report, with Rs 28 per capita expenditure on rural development, Punjab figures at the bottom. Only Delhi figured behind it. The report reveals that in states like Andhra Pradesh and Haryana, the per capita expenditure on rural development was Rs 372 and Rs 346 respectively. In Bihar, it was Rs 223, Uttar Pradesh Rs 234, Jharkhand Rs 265, MP Rs 285, Orissa Rs 306 and Rajasthan Rs 316. In the report, Punjab figures among average states in expenditure on health and family welfare and also in the education sector. The per capita expenditure on health in Punjab was Rs 308 in 2008-09 and and it was behind Rajasthan, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Uttarakhand, HP, J and K, and even Manipur and Tripura. In the education sector, the per capita expenditure was Rs 1,139. In this sector, Punjab was behind several states, including Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, HP, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Delhi. As far as revenue expenditure on social services is concerned, Punjab again figures among average states, behind 22 states and Union Territories. In expenditure on general services, Punjab is well placed. In the transport sector, Punjab figures among below average states, behind 23 states and UTs.
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HARPREET MURDER CASE
Patiala, January 28 Notably, en route from Phagwara to Ludhiana's Christian Medical College and Hospital, Harpreet Kaur had died under mysterious circumstances in the wee hours of April 21, 2000. A few days after Harpreet’s death, Kamaljit Singh, a resident of Begowal (Kapurthala district), which is the ancestral village of Bibi Jagir Kaur, had claimed that he was Harpreet’s husband and the father of Harpreet’s still-born child. However, 10 years after the alleged murder of Harpreet Kaur, in a sudden twist on February 25, 2010, the complainant and late Harpreet Kaur’s husband Kamaljit Singh had turned hostile before the court. Meanwhile, giving details about the court proceedings, Kler said, “A news channel had interviewed Kamaljit. Kamaljit had given the interview in Punjabi and the CBI got prepared the Hindi transcript of that interview from Tanwar, who is an expert in the videography and sound recording. During questioning, Tanwar admitted that he didn’t know Punjabi language and neither any Punjabi expert was involved, when the transcript was made.” “Substantiating my argument that how can Tanwar prepare a Hindi transcript of Punjabi interview, when he does not know Punjabi language, I asked some simple questions about Punjabi language, which Tanwar could not answer in the court,” added Kler. “When Tanwar was shown the cassette of Kamaljit interview, he could not even confirm whether it could be rewritten or not. The transcript of the last paragraph of the Kamaljit’s interview is of three lines that have no connection with the case, which clearly indicates that the cassette could be rewritten and hence it cannot be accepted that the cassette was not doctored,” Kler argued before the court. During today’s court proceedings, Bibi Jagir Kaur was present, whereas two other accused, Dalwinder Kaur Dhesi and Paramjit Singh Raipur, were exempted from personal appearance. The next date of hearing has been fixed for February 4.
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Roor Singh case goes to CBI
Chandigarh, January 28 Already, the high court has directed the payment of Rs 1 lakh as interim compensation his kin. A resident of Nurpur Jattan village, he had died at the Dhilwan police station in Kapurthala district. The arrest was made allegedly for possessing over Rs 92,000 in fake currency. Congress legislator Sukhpal Singh Khaira had alleged the accused were being shielded by the district administration at the behest of the ruling party. Acting Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel ruled: “The police personnel on duty have not given truthful and acceptable version. Their stand of arrest on September 5, 2009, instead of September 4, 2009, has been found to be false. “Their version of sudden fall in blood pressure and giving of injection and taking to the hospital where oxygen was administered has been found to be false. “Death has been held to be in police custody on account of poison. To close the topic by merely presuming that there could be possibility of suicide, will not, in our view, be fair… “The suggestion for CBI investigation has to be accepted. It is necessary to ascertain whether it was a case of suicide or homicide and what was the role of concerned police officers…. “The present is a fit case where CBI should be directed to investigate the matter. Accordingly, we direct CBI to take up the investigation and conclude the same at the earliest and as far as possible within three months…..” The Bench observed: “Counsel for the widow of the deceased and amicus curiae point out that CBI enquiry is necessary as enquiry report submitted by IGP Crime was not satisfactory. “It has been wrongly presumed death was suicidal and not homicidal on account of which the investigating officer has converted the offence from Section 304 IPC to Section 306 IPC. “Approach to be adopted in case of custodial death has to be different. Burden should be on the police officials to show that they were not responsible for causing death. We find merit in the submission. “It is patent from the findings of the Judicial Magistrate as well as IGP Crime that the deceased was kept in illegal custody on September 4, 2009, without conducting his medical examination and without recording his arrest. “According to the Judicial Magistrate, the death was unnatural while according to the IGP Crime, death should be presumed to be suicidal as the deceased had five marriageable daughters and the police officers had no grudge against the deceased. This opinion cannot be accepted as final and is not free from doubt. If the death was suicidal, the police officials who were present in the police station could have noticed this fact and taken such a stand.”
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TURBAN FRISKING
Amritsar, January 28 In his letter to the Prime Minister, Makkar said the entire Sikh community was deeply anguished over the humiliation of Sikhs by taking their turbans off forcibly or compelling them to hand over their turbans for thorough search at the international
airports particularly in the US and Europe. He said the SGPC had been flooded with calls and representations following the recent incidents involving India's envoy to UN Hardeep Puri at Austin Texas, NRI Dhaliwal at Milan airport and Hazoori Ragi Bhai Nirmal Singh. Makkar said being himself a Sikh, the Prime Minister need not to be told the importance of turban for a Sikh. "It is not only a part of a Sikh's attire but is an integral part of their religious observance. Those who are humiliating the Sikhs by searching and taking off their turbans may not be knowing that the Sikhs are ordained to keep their hair covered with turban as per the Sikh code of conduct and hence they need to be sensitised in this regard," he said, adding that the Prime Minister could perform this sacred duty in the most convincing manner.
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Lowering of salary grades
Amritsar, January 28 The “affected employees” numbering around 150 yesterday gathered at Gurdwara Tut Sahib. Briefing about the meeting, Sukhjeet Singh and Resham Singh said that as per the notification of the Indian Government, the SGPC had taken over 23 gurdwaras from 14 districts of Punjab and one gurdwara from Haryana last year. As a result of the move, around 1,200 employees working in these gurdwaras had come under the SGPC. They alleged that after taking over the reigns of these gurdwaras, the SGPC terminated 82 of these employees besides lowering the grade of around 850 employees. “Even some permanent employees have been given the grade of temporary ones,” they alleged, claiming that some employees were also denied promotion. They said they had made an appeal to the SGPC Secretary in this regard, but to no avail. They have now urged the SGPC Chief, Avtar Singh Makkar, to restore their grades, failing which they warned they would take the legal recourse. On the other hand, Makkar said that after taking over the charge of these 24 gurdwaras, they had formed a sub-committee to look into the employees’ issues and the changes in their grade had been made as per the recommendations of that panel.
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Waterlogging a boon for fish farmers
Kandhola (Chamkaur Sahib), January 28 For decades, the area has been facing the problem of waterlogged fields, which are unable to support any crop other than paddy. In 1985, a farmer Gurjitinder Singh Virk, from the royal family of Kandhola clan, converted five acres of his land to a fish farm. From five acres, he has graduated to 35 acres and so have the farmers around him. “There are more than 23 small and big fish farms around the village. Virk’s farm has become an example for others to follow,” says assistant director, department of fishery, Sukhwinder Singh. Virk was recently awarded for his achievements during the District-Level Republic day celebrations. Virk said, “A farmer should not opt for fish farming until he does not have minimum five acres of land. Even if the water is present beyond 100 feet below the earth, the farmers should opt out of fish farming. At Kandhola and nearby villages, even today, water is found at mere three feet depth in the ground.” “Even the area of Malwa, situated along Rajasthan feeder, faces the problem of waterlogged areas. But these are unfit for fish farming owing to the saline water, which is more fit for prawn farming,” he suggests. The fish farmers manage to get 15 to 20 quintals of fish from each hectare per year. The Fishery Department provides 1,000 seedlings for Rs 100, which are an inch or two long. Farmers have the option to grow the seeds to around six inches and then introduce them in pond. This ensures a higher survival rate. Assistant director fishery Sukhwinder said six kinds of fish were cultivated in these farms, including catla, rohu, mirgal, silver carp, common carp and grass carp. These fish are sold in areas of Mohali, Khanna, Jalandhar and Ludhiana. The produce does not even suffice the needs for kitchen purposes. “Despite heavy produce, the farmers here are unable to meet with growing demands. Need of the hour is to bring more fish farmers in the field,” Sukwinder added.
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Docs found absent during raids
Patiala, January 28 During the checking, five doctors and one clerk was found absent from the Civil Surgeon’s office, whereas four employees were found missing from their duty at three other government departments. Grewal said surprise checking of a complex near Leela Bhawan, which houses four government departments, was conducted. “Main doors of the complex were locked to ensure that no one entered or went out during the checking. While conducting raids at the Civil Surgeon’s office, it was found that Dr Karamhit Kaur, Dr Jasvir Singh, Dr Jawhar Lal Joshi, Dr Surinderpal and Dr Charanjit Singh Gair were found absent,” he said, adding that Irbandeep Singh, a clerk at Civil Surgeon’s office,
was also found missing from the duty. When the officials visited the office of District Town Planner, they found that one of the Class IV employees, Inderjeet, was missing from the duty. When the Divisional Commissioner went to the office of DEO (Secondary) and DEO (Elementary), some employees were also found absent from their respective offices. These included Bachi Ram, helper, DEO (Elementary); Rajinder Kumar, junior scale stenographer, DEO (Secondary); and a Class IV employee, Baldev Singh. Later, Grewal also got hold of a quack, Harpreet Singh, who was operating from near the Civil Surgeon’s office. Subsequently, the Divisional Commissioner directed Civil Surgeon Jatinder Kaur to launch a drive against quacks operating in the district. “We would not allow the quacks to play with the health of the people,” asserted
Grewal.
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Nangal residents allege misuse of funds by MC
Nangal, January 28 Dr Sanjeev Gautam led the protest of the group, which tied black cloth around their mouth and carried placards against municipal council. The crowd was silent during the protest. The protesters included lawyers, advocates, writers, theatre artists, social workers and philanthropists. The rally passed through the main market, Pahari market, Mahavir bazaar, Adda Market and culminated at truck union Nangal. At various junctures, shopkeepers and area residents pledged their support. Dr Gautam said crores had been spent for the development of the park, which remains incomplete. “In the name of development, funds are being misused in blatant violation of law and order. We give the MC Nangal a month’s time. If things do not start getting better within a month, we will be forced to shun the silent protest and move towards being more vocal and aggressive,” Dr Gautam said. Agitators said Nangal was among three A grade municipal councils of the state with a budget of Rs 23 crores. They allege that this budget was not being misused and instead money was being pocketed for personal use.
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Punjab ex-minister Prem Gupta dead
Patiala, January 28 Gupta was a Member of Legislative Council (MLC) of Punjab representing the teacher constituency, till the time of its abolition, in 1969, when Punjab had decided to switch to the unicameral system of legislature. He was also the Congress Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Patiala from 1972 to 1977. Thereafter, he contested the elections from Rajpura on the Akali ticket in 1985 and emerged victorious. He also served as Minister of the State
in the Punjab Government, led by Surjit Singh Barnala. Deputy Chief Minister Punjab Sukhbir Singh Badal expressed shock over the death of the former Punjab minister. In his condolence message, Sukhbir described Gupta as an able administrator, who worked for the welfare of the socially backward classes. He also expressed his sympathies with the bereaved family. Former Deputy Speaker of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, Bir Devinder Singh, said with Prem Gupta’s demise Punjab had lost a credible politician and the trade union movement in Punjab had lost it crusader.“Gupta lead a humble life without any fanfare. He remained actively associated with the trade union movement and worked for the cause of the teaching fraternity,” he said. The cremation was attended by people from all walks of life.
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Left to launch stir against price rise
Chandigarh, January 28 This decision was taken at a meeting of the coordination committee of the CPI and the CPI(M) here today which was attended by Dr Joginder Dayal, member, National Executive, CPI, Charan Singh Virdi and other members. The parties’ demands included a ban on forward trading in food items and essential commodities, universalising of the public distribution system, distribution of excess stocks in FCI godowns at BPL rates and the taking of firm measures against hoarding.
— TNS
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2 suspected B’deshis shot by BSF
Amritsar, January 28 Talking to The Tribune, BSF IG (Frontier) Himmat Singh said the duo aged 25 plus had reached near the border under the cover of darkness last night. However, a BSF jawan spotted them while they were inching closer to the fence. When they became aware that they had been spotted, they rushed towards the zero line in a bid to cross over the border. The BSF warned them against it, but when they didn’t pay heed to the warning and continued to move ahead, they were fired at, which led to their death. The incident occurred at Mullankot Border Outpost (BOP), which is around 5 km north of Attari international border, around 1 am. According to the IG, the two were suspected Bangladeshis who were trying to exfiltrate to Pakistan. “A slip written in Bangla language, a wrist watch and a currency note has been recovered from them,” he added. However, the identity of neither of the two could be established. The international border along Amritsar has been witness to such incidents in the past as well. Earlier, too, Bangladeshi nationals were captured or shot dead when they tried to cross over to Pakistan in search of greener pastures or to fulfil their urge to live with their relatives settled in Pak. A majority of such people land up in the trap of human traffickers who bring them from Kolkata to Amritsar via rail route before leaving them close to the border, asking them to cross over on
their own.
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Lala Lajpat Rai remembered on birth anniversary
Dhudike (Moga), January 28 The great freedom fighter was born on January 28, 1865, in the house of his maternal grandparents here. He said the nation was indebted to him for his ‘exceptional’ role in the freedom movement. He also presided over a prize distribution function of a local sports tournament organised to mark the occasion. He said 13 countries had agreed to take part in the World Cup Kabaddi to be held in Punjab in November. He said a Kabaddi League would also be organised in the state soon. He announced that for the first time the government would organise Shaheed-e-Azam Bhagat Singh Punjab Games from February 28 in ten disciplines. He also announced separate grants of Rs 4 and Rs 11 lakh for various development works in the village. Meanwhile, in a separate function the local Congress leaders led by former minister Dr Malti Thapar also paid floral tributes to Lala Lajpat Rai this morning. Congress leader Dr Pawan Thapar alleged that Lala Lajpat Rai Memorial Committee under the alleged political pressure of the SAD leadership did not invite some of the members belonging to the Congress party, including him, to attend the function.
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Varsity rejects plea on examinations
Jalandhar, January 28 As perthe routine system of examination, such students would have to appear for their supplementary exams in May-June, this year. Urging that early commencement of reappear examination would make them eligible to appear in the Postgraduate entrance examination in the year 2012, the students approached the university few days ago. Dr SS Gill, Vice-Chancellor, BFUHS, said it was not possible for the university to conduct supplementary exams within 40 days after result declaration. There would be no benefit to such students even if we conduct supplementary exams earlier, added Dr Gill.
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4 kg of heroin seized near border
Ferozepur, January 28 The BSF personnel seized four packets, containing 1 kg of heroin each, after digging near a ‘ber’ tree, 25 metres from the Indo-Pak zero line towards the Indian side between the cobra fencing and zero line. This is perhaps the first recovery of narcotics made by BSF personnel in the Ferozepur sector in the year 2011. The BSF personnel of 143 battalion, commanded by PK Rathore, who patrolled this area, witnessed movements of some suspicious elements last night on the Pakistan territory, just across the zero line. As they suspected that anti-India elements might have played a mischief alongside the Indo-Pak border, they carried out an intensive search of those pockets of the border where the movement was seen. Official sources said that four packets, containing heroin, were carrying a mark of scorpion and triple five was also written on these. The packets were pushed towards India by Pakistan-based smugglers, who had been carrying out their activities alongside the Indo-Pak border, falling in the Ferozepur sector. Sources said that BSF detectives had been activated to find out those who had pushed the narcotics inside the Indian territory and identify those who were to receive this consignment, whose value in the international market ran into crores of rupees. The sources added that the BSF authorities had handed over the consignment of narcotics to officials of the State Special Operation Cell (SSOC), Amritsar, to register a case in this connection and take further action. Meanwhile, the BSF troops also caught a Pakistan national, who had crossed over to the Indian territory.
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Patiala, January 28
