Bathinda, July 3
Accusing the Nathana police of patronising a woman running a brothel in the village, the residents of Bhucho Khurd staged a dharna outside the village and blocked the Bathinda-Chandigarh main road today.

The blockade was cleared after two hours when senior police officials assured the agitators that the woman would not be allowed to continue the illegal activity in the village.

The protesters informed that a woman in the village, who is the wife of an army man, used to run flesh trade from her house. About a month ago, the villagers had led the police to nab three men and some women from her house, who were found in compromising position there. Then, the woman had tendered an apology in writing and had assured the villagers that she would shun the illegal trade.

However, late on Saturday evening, the villagers again found an outsider involved in the immoral activity at her place. Acting upon the information, the police reached the spot and rounded up the man but the woman reportedly managed to flee.

“The police had assured to produce the man and the woman before the villagers by the morning. However, when we contacted the police, they tried to shield the accused. Therefore, we lodged a protest and blocked the road,” said the protesters.

“Having sufficient evidences of her immoral character, we want her to be thrown out of the village but the police was shielding her,” they alleged.

After two hours of protest, Nathana SHO Sandeep Singh produced the man in front of the agitators and assuring that the woman too would soon be arrested, he convinced them to lift the dharna.

Speaking to media, the SHO refuted the allegation that the police was patronising the woman. However, when asked, if a case was being registered in this regard, the SHO said the police was investigating.

Ferozepur, July 3
The travelling on the Ferozepur-Amritsar national highway, especially at a stretch running between Talwandi Bhai to Hari Ke has become a ‘journey of woes’ for the people as deep potholes, developed over it, have become a major source of road accidents and vehicles breakdown.

Another road, which has developed big potholes, run from Faridkot to Ferozepur and travelling over it has almost become an alarming experience for the motorists and bikers. Due to rains, which lashed this region in the past few days, the national highway roads, having strategic importance due to defence point of view, have developed deep potholes within no time.

Recently, a number of accidents have taken place on various stretch of the national highway running from Talwandi Bhai to Hari Ke due to potholed roads. The accidents have also been reported from other pockets of this district, where the roads have been damaged due to rains.

Interestingly, the potholes developed on these roads despite the claims of the authorities concerned that crores of rupees had been spent on strengthening them. The other spot, which has become a headache for those, who travel on the Makhu-Amritsar road, is bridge over the Hari Ke barrage constructed over the confluence of rivers Sutlej and Beas.

The development of deep potholes and cracks coupled with no arrangements to regulate the traffic over the Hari Ke bridge by the authorities concerned has made it prone to accidents and vehicles breakdown.

The authorities have failed to repair the bridge, which has been lying in a bad shape for the past many years, even when that it is the only link between various towns and cities and other strategic locations in the Ferozepur border district on one side and Amritsar and tarn Taran districts on the other.

JS Mann, Superintendent Engineer, National Highway, Punjab, said the tender had been floated to repair the Hari Ke bridge at a cost of Rs 1.25 crores and work on it was expected to start within 10 days.

He said the potholes, which had developed over the national highway road, were being filled immediately. The repair of the entire stretch of the damaged road would be carried after the monsoon rains were over.

Meanwhile, a cross-section of residents of Zira, Makhu and Talwandi Bhai towns demanded that the Punjab Government must come out with the details connected with the figure of amount spent on this road in the past one decade or so. They also demanded that the Punjab Government must fix responsibility on the officials, who had failed to maintain the road in traffic worthy conditions.

Abohar, July 3
The cleaning of the drains that covered scores of villages in Balluana, Abohar and Fazilka segments, is to be completed by July 15, before the monsoon lashes the region.

Interestingly, the Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had on December 31, 2008 sanctioned the project during his first sangat darshan function at village Balluana, located on the Abohar-Malout road (NH 10) but the work was delayed under one pretext or the other.

Surplus water is to be finally flowed in the Abulkhurana drain that makes a part of the constituency represented by the CM Parkash Singh Badal.

Rupinder Singh, SDO, Drainage Department, who monitored the work from village Patrewala to Kikkarkhera, said, “The cleaning operation was started two months back. It has to be completed with a budgeted cost of Rs 75 lakh latest by July 15.”

Another SDO Amarjit Gupta has been asked to get 36,000 feet length of the drain cleaned from village Kikkarkhera onwards. He too was confident that the work that was started last month, would be finished at a cost of Rs 12 lakh by July 15. Four JCB machines have been pressed into service to speed up the cleaning work. The banks of the drain were being strengthened to prevent overflowing of the drain.

Mansa, July 3
In a bizarre incident, some unscrupulous elements, allegedly supported by some of the ruling politicians, uprooted the Nishan Sahib (a holy triangular flag with a tassel at its end, which is a traditional symbol of Khalsa Panth) from Jit Sar Gurudwara Nihang Singh Chawni (cantonment) at Phaphre Bhai Ke village of this district to possess the religious place illegally.

Five of the accused have been identified so far. The accused stormed into the Gurudwara premises, looted its caretaker Hansa Singh of cash and jewellery, broke the platform of Nishan Sahib and took it away with its flagpole.

Though the incident took place on Friday afternoon, the police registered the case last evening and that also after a lot of efforts of the victim. However, no accused was arrested so far.

Mansa SSP Hardyal Singh Mann said efforts were being made to arrest the accused and whosoever had supported the accused would also be taken to the task.  

Harpal Singh, SHO, police station, Bhikhi, said raids were being conducted continuously to arrest the accused. He said after arresting the accused, Nishan Sahib would be recovered from them. A case under Sections 295, 447, 454, 380, 148 and 149 of the IPC was registered against the accused at Bhikhi police station.

Bathinda, July 3
One can witness a peculiar scene at the local railway station almost every time a passenger train enters. A large number of waiting commuters first start running parallel to the train on the various platforms and then rush into the bogies to grab a seat.

However, most of the time, the commuters find themselves jostling for space to place a foot on the floor of the cramped compartment to reach their respective destination.

The scene is replicated at one of the biggest railway junctions of Asia every day as the railway authorities are yet to wake up and do something to make the passengers comfortable.

There is a scramble among the passengers to occupy seats in general class coaches the moment a train enters the platform. The authorities have not made any arrangement to prevent the occurrence of any untoward incident despite the fact that it poses a threat to passengers on the train and those who wait to board the train.

In the absence of any crowd control exercise, the journey on passenger trains passing through this railway station has become an ordeal and a harrowing experience for the commuters.

A visit to the railway station revealed that if the railway authorities do not take corrective measures including increasing the number of passenger trains and strict crowd management, a tragedy like stampede, could take place any time.

Information gathered by TNS revealed that due to high bus fare, the people belonging to middle and lower income groups prefer to travel by train, which is cheaper than bus travel and explains the rush of passengers at the station.

The commuters could be found travelling in the luggage compartment, on the floor of the bogies, on the space between the toilets and even on the footboard due to the heavy rush.

They face other kinds of hardships as sometimes the fans, fitted on the roofs of bogies are not in working condition and water is not available in toilets. Even the doors and door knobs of toilets are missing sometimes.

“The increasing rush of passengers every year coupled with the failure of the Railway authorities to introduce new and additional trains on the required sections have created this mess,” pointed out a senior Railway official, pleading anonymity.

“Even the new bogies are not being attached to the existing trains to cope with the rush of commuters. The trains, which are being plied in the name of ‘Summer Specials’ have been formed by withdrawing one or two bogies from each passenger train,” he added.

He said the North West Railway had been approached time and again to increase the number of bogies of passenger trains. Whenever some shortcomings in the bogies were noticed, officials of the departments concerned were immediately directed to rectify them.

Fazilka, July 3
Local SAD leader Tajinder Singh Namdhari has been appointed as director of PUNBUS Punjab by Transport Minister Surjit Kumar Jyani.

Jyani handed over a letter of appointment to Namdhari on Saturday at his native village Katehra in a brief programme organised there. Jyani said in view of his services for the SAD and BJP combine, he has been elevated as the Director of the PUNBUS Punjab.

Chandigarh, July 3
The Punjab Government has issued directions to all the deputy commissioners and SDMs to ensure that the ban on affidavits for 89 services was complied with.

A spokesman said directions had been issued to the officials to display the 89 services at different prominent places in district administrative complexes, SDM offices, tehsils, suvidha kendras, district courts and other public places.

He said the DCs and SDMs had been told to conduct surprise checks to ensure that all offices were complying with the directions.

The spokesman said services for which the affidavits were being taken as being mandatory included issuance of passport and sale or purchases of vehicles. — TNS

Fazilka, July 3
Former CBI Director Joginder Singh would release the local author Ashwani Ahuja’s self-help book “Let’s Write Our Destiny” on July 6 at Aaha Restaurant here. Press Council, Fazilka, would organise a programme to release the book.

Fazilka SDM Ajay Sood would preside over while Capt MS Bedi would review the book. “This book is for all those who dream to become big achievers,” claimed Ahuja.