Moga, February 3
Three Congress MLAs, Joginder Pal Jain, Darshan Singh Brar and Ajit Singh Shant, have jointly appealed to the party workers to sink their differences and put up a united front under the leadership of PPCC President and former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh to make the party rally at Moga on February 5 a success.

The Malwa heartland has for decades been the deciding factor for political power in the state, the MLAs pointed out.

The unity shown by the Moga MLAs came as a shot in the arm for the party ahead of its rally, especially as the ruling SAD had put up a good show of strength at the Maghi Mela conferences held at Muktsar and Takhtupura, last month.

The MLAs, in a joint press conference held here this evening, claimed that Saturday's rally at Moga would begin a new era of change in state politics. Brar and Jain said, "This rally will change Punjab in the coming days."

The Congress almost swept the last assembly elections in the Malwa belt but lost the prestigious Bathinda and Faridkot Lok Sabha seats comprising Bathinda, Mansa, Faridkot, Moga and parts of Muktsar districts in the last elections.

The poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections in the area appeared to worry the policy makers of the Congress party.

In the run-up to the assembly elections, it is crucial for Captain Amarinder Singh to perform amid the advantage of split in the ruling SAD with former Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal going his own way.

The Moga MLAs were of the view that Manpreet's ouster from SAD has put the ruling party on a sticky wicket and it was high time the Congress cashed on this opportunity to stage a comeback to power in the coming assembly elections due next year.

Brar, Jain and Shant, while talking to The Tribune, said there were no differences among the party leaders in the entire Malwa belt. "We want to be the frontrunners by organizing a huge rally in the heartland of Malwa to change the face of state politics," they added.

This rally is being held in the new grain market at Moga where the party has set up a special tent (shamiana) show-casing the Tri-colour all around to convey the message of secularism.

"We are expecting people from all walks of life, colour, creed and religion to attend the rally to bring in winds of change for defeating the corrupt SAD-BJP regime in Punjab," Jain said.

Bathinda, February 3
The district president of the Indian Medical Association (IMA), Dr Shiv Dutt Gupta, who is the state president-elect of the IMA for 2012, is in the eye of a storm.

The Kotwali police has booked Dr Gupta, who is also the president of the Trust Mandir Sri Ram Chander Ji, under various sections including section 420 of the IPC for forging the signature of the cashier of the trust and coercively withdrawing an amount of Rs 1.30 lakh from the bank account of the trust.

Acting upon the complaint of the cashier Gurdas Garg, police also booked an employee of the trust, Deepak Kumar, who had allegedly gone to the bank to withdraw the amount, under the same sections.

According to the FIR, Gurdas Garg stated to the police that Deepak Kumar, impersonating as one Karan Kumar, went to the bank to encash a cheque worth Rs 1.30 lakh that was bearing his (Gurdas) signature as well as of Dr Shiv Dutt Gupta.

“Suspecting the handwriting to be fake, the bank manager called me to the bank, where I recognised the man as Deepak Kumar, an employee of the trust. He admitted to the crime and alleged that he had done it in connivance with the president of the trust, Dr Shiv Dutt Gupta,” the FIR mentions Gurdas as having said.

On the other hand, speaking to TNS, Dr Shiv Dutt Gupta refuted the allegation and accused Gurdas Garg of falsely implicating him in the case.

“It is a conspiracy to defame me and evict me from the post of the president of the trust, where I have been working with dedication,” he said.

In his version, Dr Gupta claimed, “Though the money was withdrawn from the account, smelling a rat, the bank authorities did not hand over the cash to the accused. During the police interrogation, Deepak Kumar admitted that he had forged both the signatures.”

“We (trust members) held a meeting on Wednesday morning, where we passed a resolution that the accused must face police action. A copy of this was submitted to the police. But it came as a shock when I came to know that the police had booked me for duping the trust, which I would challenge,” he said.

Bathinda, February 3
Tension erupted at the Makbara Meera Sahib Peer Khana here today after two groups confronted each other claiming their right over the donations and management of the place of worship.

The Peer Khana was hurriedly converted into a fortress with cops deployed in huge strength. When the groups did not relent, senior civil and police officials also rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control.

Sources said there were two committees, namely the Committee Makhbra Baba Nikka Shah (regd) Peer Khana (led by Muslims) and the Makbra Meera Sahib Peer Khana Committee (led by Hindu-Sikhs), which had been contesting claims over management and donation of the Peer Khana in court for long past.

Tension erupted when a Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Sukhpal Sran, who was recently appointed as the officiating president of the Makbra Meera Sahib Peer Khana Committee, reached the place and asked the members of the other committee to leave the place and surrender their rights to the committee he was heading.

Objecting to his words, members of the Committee Makhbra Baba Nikka Shah Peer Khana summoned their supporters. Members of both the groups indulged in verbal duel raising tempers on both the sides. However, the timely intervention of the police averted any violent incident.

Later, on seeing the cops, Sran left the place but not before he told Muslim members to vacate the premises within an hour or face the consequences. Observing that the situation was tense, the district administration rushed the ASP (City) and the executive magistrate to the spot.

Speaking to media, Sukhdev Khan, president of the Muslim-Hindu Welfare Society, and Salma, grand-daughter of Chhinder Begam, president of the committee led by Muslims, claimed that their committee was running the affairs since the Peer Khana came into existence.

They alleged that they had allowed the members of the other committee to share half of the total donation but with the passage of time, the latter started making efforts to bring all the funds under their control.

On the other hand, Sukhpal Sran accused the members of the other group of trying to keep the Peer Khana under their possession. "Peer Khana is a place of worship for people of all religions but the Committee Makbra Baba Nikka Shah Peer Khana, led by Muslims, does not want any Hindu or Sikh to be a part of the management," he claimed.

Executive magistrate Avtar Singh, who was present at the spot, said, "The matter is sub-judice. We are here only to maintain law and order."

Bathinda, February 3
Burglars had a free run on the intervening night of Wednesday and Thursday when they took away cash and goods from nearly 10 shops in the city. Ironically, at that time, Bathinda SSP Sukhchain Singh Gill was out inspecting Nakas set up across the city.

According to information available, the burglars targeted the shops located on the Bibiwala road and the area around the Sports Stadium. They broke open the shutters and stole cash and other goods lying in the shops.

Sources in the police said most of the shops targeted were that of spare parts.

When asked, senior cops today feigned ignorance about the incidents and said none of the shopkeepers lodged a police complaint in this regard.

Bathinda, February 3
Despite a decision taken by the Department of Health and Family Welfare at the level of Health Minister, Punjab, the Red Cross Medical Store and the Jan Aushadhi Generic Drug Store, both situated on the premises of the Civil Hospital here and being run by the District Red Cross Society, have not been merged under the unified banner of Jan Aushadhi Store yet.

In a letter written on December 2 last, the managing director, Punjab Health Systems Corporation (PHSC), had urged the Bathinda Deputy Commissioner (DC) to comply with the decision by December 31 last.

Earlier, in a letter written in September, the MD had also urged the DC to immediately merge the shops under the banner of Jan Aushadhi in order to implement the Government of India’s scheme in true spirit. However, the then DC replied on September 29 that the Red Cross store was not in conflict with the Jan Aushadhi since these were operating in different spheres and had stocked medicines that were not sold by the other store.

Further, the MD wrote back to DC in December last that it would be much more viable if the medicines being sold through the Red Cross store were sold through the Jan Aushadhi, for which appropriate guidelines already existed.

When contacted, secretary of the District Red Cross Society JR Goyal said they had already taken steps to promote the Jan Aushadhi store.

To increase the number of medicines available at low rates to the patients, the medicines manufactured from 28 salts and surgical goods had already been shifted from the Red Cross store to the Jan Aushadhi store about four months ago, he added. Besides, they had also initiated proceedings to shift some more medicines.

Goyal said the Red Cross store had provided discount worth Rs 15 lakh to the patients during the previous year by selling medicines at 10 per cent less than the market rates.

Abohar, February 3
Water has been released after completing the long awaited task of removing wild growth in the Abohar branch canal within the stipulated period of two weeks, covering about 25 km in length.

However, it might take two more days to remove silt from the Malukpura distributary that originates from this canal, officials said today. The water works in Abohar town and scores of villages get supply through this distributary.

The irrigation department had suspended water supply to all the distributaries and sub-canals originating from the Abohar branch canal on January 16 but members of farmer organisations who visited the site on January 22 had urged the government to press more JCB machines into service to meet the deadline.

Interestingly, the department had projected the cost of the work at Rs 2.50 crore and had requested the CM to release the amount but the contractors who joined the e-tendering, introduced for the first time, have brought down the actual cost to less than Rs 1.70 crore.

The Abohar branch canal had been bricklined in 1995. Since then, none of the respective governments had ever earmarked funds for its annual maintenance even when jungle had grown up on its banks.

A section of the media had in May last year highlighted that about 3-feet layer of silt had accumulated on the floor bed and shrubs and trees had grown up choking the side walls, despite the brick lining. This had reduced the discharge of water to the Malukpura distributary by 200 cusecs from the Abohar branch canal that had a capacity of 1900 cusecs.

The low discharge had triggered off agitations by farmers in tail-end villages.

CM Parkash Singh Badal's home turf Lambi, besides Balluana, Abohar and Fazilka segments get water through the Malukpura distributary.

The Tail-end Farmers Sangharsh Samiti has asked for sufficient funds in the budget to strengthen the canal system.

Bajakhana, February 3
Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal today claimed that the people of Punjab have made up their mind to honour the SAD-BJP government with a repeat mandate based upon its performance in carrying out development works. "We are set to replicate the NDA's Bihar success just on the basis of unprecedented development in the last four years," he said.

He was talking to the media persons after laying the foundation stones of a Rs 4.86 crore hospital at Bajakhana and Rs 2.05 crore water works at village Bargari village in the Faridkot district here, today.

Sukhbir said he does not believe in joining a war of words with Captain Amarinder Singh, who according to him, can not see beyond vendetta and the politics of negativism.

Unveiling a Rs 2700 crore plan to revamp the sewerage network of all the cities and towns of Punjab, he said that during the next financial year, Rs 700 crore would be spent in setting up sewerage treatment plants and Rs 2000 crore would be spent on providing underground sewerage systems in urban settlements.

He said the arrest of former Union Telecom Minister A. Raja in the 2G scam was just a ploy to protect those who had stashed away Rs 1.76 lakh crore of bribe money in their Swiss bank accounts.

Sukhbir categorically said that nothing short of Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) was acceptable to the NDA as it has no faith in the CBI, which, according to him, has become the 'Congress Bureau of Investigation'.

Ferozepur, February 3
The Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration (MGSIPA) has embarked on an initiative to enhance the administrative capabilities of progressive sarpanches and panches for which interdivisional-level visits would be organised for them. They would also be made aware about all public welfare schemes of the state government, revealed Raminder Singh Commissioner, Ferozepur and Faridkot divisions, while presiding over a seminar on the topic, ‘Gram Sabha— Relevance and initiatives’ organised by the MGSIPA at Dr BR Ambedkar Bhawan here on Tuesday.

JP Singh, Deputy Director (Rural Development and Panchayats), Harbans Singh Gill, consultant for Panchyati Raj cell, GS Dhillon, Nodal Officer, MGSIPA Gian Singh, Regional Coordinator, MGSIPA, also presented their views.

Surinderpal Sharma, Gurmit Singh, Varun Kumar, Captain Rup Chand, Gurpuneet Kaur besides other resource persons also participated in the discussions. — OC

Abohar, February 3
During the cremation of veteran freedom fighter Chaman Lal Azad's wife Bhagwan Devi (85) here today, it came to the notice of the administration that none of his three sons was well placed economically.

One runs a tea stall, the second pulls a rehri and the third works on daily wages in a small industrial unit. They were unable to get even their ancestral house repaired.

Azad who penned patriotic poems also was lodged in the Mianwali jail in Lahore by the British. He had also faced punishment for participating in the agitation against the Nizam of Hyderabad.

The family later settled here but Azad refused to accept the benefits offered by the Central and state governments. After his death in 1991, his wife Bhagwan Devi was prevailed upon to accept pension since she was finding it difficult to care for her children.

SDM Jasdeep Singh Aulakh was followed by Tehsildar Amardeep Singh and former MLA Dr Ram Kumar Goyal in laying wreaths at the body of Azad's wife at Shivpuri here this afternoon. District BJP president Arun Narang, city president Shankar Swami and some councillors also paid floral tributes. City police SHO Sukhdev Singh led the police contingent in offering salute.

Fazilka, February 3
Panic spread among the residents of this border area after a wild boar that crossed over from the Pakistan side mauled an Indian farmer and injured him today in the afternoon across the barbed wire fencing in village Mohar Jamsher area of the Fazilka sector.

The injured Jangir Singh, a resident of village Dhani Alamshah of Mohar Jamsher, who was admitted to the local Civil Hospital, said he had gone to his fields across the fencing near the Zero Line to spray fertilizers in his fields. The BSF jawans rushed to his rescue. — OC

Abohar, February 3
The Indian Institute of Crop Processing Technology and the Central Institute of Post Harvest Engineering and Technology (CIPHET) held a workshop to improve the standard of living of rural women.

Senior scientist Dr A Surbhi from Tamil Nadu, CIPHET in-charge Dr RK Gupta, Vinod Saharan and Rajesh Thathai addressed the participants.— OC