Bathinda, June 28
More than 250 unemployed teachers were arrested by the police in Bathinda district today. A majority of them were arrested in the city while the rest were held at different places when they were on their way to Bathinda to take part in today's state-level "Chakka Jam" (blockade of road) in protest against the holding of Teacher Eligibility Test (TET). The protesting teachers were demanding that the TET be scrapped.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Bathinda, Sukhchain Singh Gill said the police had arrested around 250 protesters as a preventive measure to maintain law and order as the agitators had been blocking the roads.

He said these protesters had been arrested under Sections 107 and 151 of the CrPC.

In view of the “Chakka Jam” agitation today by five unemployed teacher (B.Ed, ETT, PTI, D.P. Ed., Art and Craft) organisations, the district police converted the city into a virtual fortress by deploying a large number of personnel, including women constables, in various parts of the city.

Police personnel were deployed in strength at the Teachers’ Home here to prevent the unemployed teachers from gathering there. However, around 40 teachers reached the Teachers' Home. They were arrested by the police and taken to the police station in vehicles.

Later, at about 2.15 pm, about 150 unemployed teachers converged at Teenkoni chowk and blocked the road there. However, the police, led by DSP Baljit Singh, reached there after some minutes and cleared the road by taking the protesters in custody.

They were taken to the police station in two tempos and a Scorpio. They raised slogans against the government and demanded scrapping of the TET.

After a few minutes, another group of 50 protesters blocked the Bathinda-Goniana road near the Sirhind canal for some time.

The police, led by DSP Jaswinder Singh, also took the protesters in custody there and got the road cleared. They were taken to an undisclosed site in the police vehicle.

State spokesman of the Berojgar B. Ed. Adhyapak Front, Punjab, Harjit Jeeda claimed that the police had arrested more than 500 unemployed teachers in Bathinda district today.

He said besides arresting teachers, the police had also raided their houses last night and taken several of their leaders and activists in custody.

Jeeda said their activists had also blocked the road near the railway level crossing at Rampura Phul.

He said their agitation was successful as they had succeeded in conveying their message to the people and the government. 

Bathinda, June 28
Para Wilt, a disease little known among the farming community, has started attacking the cotton plants in Bathinda and Mansa districts, the two major cotton producing areas of Punjab.

Though the attack of Para Wilt is not alarming so far, it could lead to the cotton plants dying due to permanent wilting if the farmers failed to take corrective measures within the stipulated time-frame.

Para Wilt is a physiological disorder found in Bt cotton fields during the period when these fields receive heavy rains or are heavily irrigated. If application of a chemical, cobalt chloride is not carried out within 24 hours of the attack, the cotton plant will wilt permanently.

GS Romana, extension specialist, Farm Advisory Service, PAU, Bathinda and in-charge, Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Mansa, said that the attack of Para Wilt on cotton plants was reported from Gharngna village in Sardulgarh block and Raupur in Jhunir block of Mansa district.

He added that the attack of Para Wilt on cotton plants was also reported from Jajjal village of Bathinda district. He added that farmers, whose cotton crop had come under attack, had been asking for help from him over the phone.

He said that the affected farmers were being advised to spray cobalt chloride over the cotton plants, which were under attack. The camps were being organized in rural areas to educate cotton growers about it.

Tarsem Singh, Joint Director, Cotton, Department of Agriculture, said that village scouts deployed in about 750 villages of the cotton belt of Punjab under Sir Ratan Tata Trust, had been assigned the task of helping farmers overcome such attacks.

He said the growth of cotton plants in the area was normal and there was no report of attack of any other disease.

A strict surveillance was being maintained over the cotton fields by the officials of the department. 

Bathinda, June 28
Five persons were killed and six others suffered injuries when a bomb exploded in a junk shop in the thickly populated Chandsar Basti of this town on January 21, 2000.

A bomb explosion in a junk heap in Nathana town of the district on August 25, 2002 left one dead and two others permanently maimed. Similarly, a scavenger was killed near the Bibiwala Chowk of this town on February 26, 2003 while trying to extract metal from a junk item.

Over the years, the incidents connected with the blast taking place in junk shops in big cities and towns of Punjab have become a common occurrence and in the last decade, more than two dozen bomb blasts, claiming many lives have been reported.

However, these instances, have failed to make an impact on the authorities concerned as junk shops have been running in the thick populated areas of this burgeoning town and have posed serious threat to the lives of residents of the area in which these are located.

Mithu Ram Gupta, Municipal Councillor, Bathinda, said though he had lodged a complaint with the Municipal Corporation (MC) authorities against the running of two junk shops in the ward represented by him, nothing had been done so far.

Apart from causing traffic hazard, these junk shops had also become a place where explosives could land any time and result in a disaster, he claimed.

The residents of Gali Khadar Bhandar Wali locality have also lodged a complaint with the Municipal Commissioner, Bathinda, asking him to make arrangements to stop the junk dealer, running his shop in the area, from littering the junk items on the road.

Harmeet Singh, a resident of the locality, said if any untoward incident took place, the local MC authorities would be answerable for it.

Residents pointed out that blasts in junk shops had been taking place in those cities, towns and villages, which were located near the military stations and cantonments in Punjab and hence, Bathinda was too prone to such incidents.

Sukhchain Singh Gill, SSP, Bathinda, said though the police was not authorised to remove the junk shops from the populated areas, period checking of such shops were being carried out by the police teams to find out that whether stolen goods or explosives had been landing into junk shops or not.

Kamal Kant, Assistant Municipal Commissioner, said that officials of the Corporation do not have the power to remove such shops from the city area. Moreover, the Corporation had not developed any junk market so far.

However, Corporation had been trying to prevent the junk dealers from littering their junk items on the roadside.

Bathinda, June 28
The district unit of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) today staged a dharna outside the Mini-secretariat here against the hike in the prices of diesel, kerosene and LPG by the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre.

The in-charge of Bathinda zone of the party affairs Ajmer Singh was the chief guest while district president Major Singh presided over the dharna.

All the speakers flayed the UPA government for hiking the prices of kerosene, diesel and LPG saying that in the regime of the UPA government, the prices of petroleum products were being hiked time and again unnecessarily.

They asked the Union Government to roll back the prices of the petro products to provide relief to the common masses.

Among others who were present on the occasion included the party's candidate from Talwandi Sabo Assembly constituency Jagdeep Singh Gogi, district in-charge of the party Kulwant Singh, Lakhbir Singh, Randhir Singh Dheera, Avtar Singh Ghanda Banna and Sukhwinder Diwana.

Abohar, June 28
Over 150 elected representatives including directors of Sriganganagar Zila Parishad (ZP), Panchayat Samiti, sarpanches and panches, who inspected the Ferozepur Feeder and the Gang (Bikaner) Canal today urged the Rajasthan government to get the abandoned old Gang canal restored by releasing funds for its renovation from the RD 0 to 43. The cavalcade chose the banks of the canals during the long drive. This was the largest ever group of farmers so far to visit the canal system.

Speaking to The Tribune in the evening, ZP director Dr Brij Mohan Saharan said one gate of the Harike barrage was found lifted today to divert 5000 cusecs of water to the West Punjab province of Pakistan.

A perusal of the past record indicated that the diversion had been to the extent of 40,000 cusecs even when thousands of farmers in the twin districts of Sriganganagar and Hanumangarh had not been able to irrigate their farms due to the acute shortage of water.

If the abandoned canal is restored after renovation, the water management authorities would be able to release surplus water to Sriganganagar, he claimed. 

Abohar, June 28
An appeal for cancellation of the PCS test (Executive) preliminary exam 2009, held at Chandigarh on December 19 last year, has been made to the Chief Secretary, Punjab. Local resident Deepika, who appeared in the test and had obtained 223.761 marks in two papers, said there were clear instructions that criteria of negative marking would not be adopted. Since her score in both the papers was in the form of decimal fractions, it made her file a writ CWP No. 2192 in the High Court of Punjab and Haryana against the Punjab Public Service Commission (PPSC).

While discussing the issue at the Bar, Charu Tuli, senior Deputy Advocate General (Punjab) conceded on behalf of the PPSC and others that the fraction marking was on account of some wrong questions, which were included in the question paper. While attaching the photocopy of the above statement, Deepika said the state government had decided to cancel the test conducted for recruiting homeopathic doctors by C-DAC Mohali conceding that answers suggested in the paper were found to be incorrect. A similar decision should be taken in connection with the PCS (Ex) Preliminary Exam, she requested.

Mansa, June 28
Taking a tough stand to curb the haphazard growth of various towns of the district, the Deputy Commissioner today imposed a blanket ban on the registration of transfer of land including residential and commercial plots in the authorised colonies. The DC also sounded a note of warning for the officials of the district that anyone found showing any laxity in implementing his order, would be taken to task.

The problem of unauthorised colonies acquired alarming dimension when the Bathinda Development Authority (BDA), which was tasked to develop colonies in Bathinda, Mansa and other districts of Punjab, detected about 34 unauthorised colonies in Mansa alone.

The BDA had also launched criminal proceedings against a large number of people of Mansa and its surrounding areas, found involved in the development of unauthorised colonies. Ravinder Singh, DC, said he had taken the step to check the growth of unauthorised colonies, coming up in various parts of the district.

The DC said he had directed sub-divisional magistrates of Mansa, Budhlada and Sardulgarh, Tehsildar and Naib Tehsildar of Mansa Bareta, Bhikhi, Jhunir, Budhlada and Sardulgarh tehsils and sub-tehsils to take necessary steps to curb the development of unauthorised colonies in their areas. They had also been directed to take action as per law against those, found involved in development of unauthorised colonies and send him a report in that connection at the earliest.

The Executive Officers of the Municipal Councils of Mansa, Budhlada, Bareta, Sardulgarh, Bhikhi and Nagar Panchayats of the area were asked to be vigilant in the matter and take action against the unscrupulous colonisers.

Ferozepur, June 28
To lodge their protest against the alleged atrocities and step-motherly treatment being meted out by the state government to those hailing from the scheduled castes, the Chamar Maha Sabha led by its president Paramjit Singh Kainth, held a hunger strike and peaceful protest in front of the office of the Deputy Commissioner here, yesterday.

Kainth alleged that the voice of the SC community was being curbed by slapping scores of criminal cases against them.

He added that over 1800 cases have already been registered against them by the police.

Others who were also present on the occasion included Amar Singh Talanian (senior vice-president), secretary Lachmann Dass Jati Sirhind besides others.

Abohar, June 28
In connection with the death case of a local goldsmith Ramesh Kumar, the local police registered a case against four persons, all financiers, for forcing him to end his life.

The body of Ramesh Kumar was found entangled below a bridge constructed over the Malukpur distributary on June 24. The police registered a case under Section 174 of CrPC even when a suicide note was recovered. The deceased had mentioned that the financiers were harassing him though he had repaid loan.

However, the local police registered a case under Section 306 and 34 of the IPC in city-II police station against Sonu, Pirthi, Sonu and Bhandari for their alleged involvement in forcing Ramesh Kumar to end his life. The case was registered against the four accused on the statement of Ashok Kumar, the brother of the deceased. — TNS