|
|
|
|
|
Protest takes toll on Indo-Pak trade
Chinks in SAD to the fore
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
SAD-BJP govt ‘fails’ to utilise scholarship grants
Delayed cotton crop hinders wheat-sowing
Capt warns Sukhbir against violence
SAD ridicules Cong claims on manifesto
Punjab deserves package more than WB: Manpreet
Another Consumer Forum bench starts work
'Misuse' of discretionary grant
Cabinet okays policy to regularise colonies
Sugar mills may be reopened
Human rights violation
Soon, state to have biggest warehouse
Patiala lacks fire safety measures
Patil lauds Indian History Congress’ efforts at meet
Farmers call off stir
Dalit boy shot dead over refusal to give bike
|
Protest takes toll on Indo-Pak trade
Amritsar, December 10 The trade was adversely affected mainly due to the blocking of the busy Jalandhar-Amritsar highway. DC (Customs) RK Duggal said: “It has certainly taken a toll on imports. Goods that were imported in the past few days are yet to be lifted. We are left with no option but to restrict the imports from Pakistan.” He said the exports were not much affected with soyabean reaching the border town through rail and tomatoes arriving via Goindwal Sahib. He said mostly dry fruit and dry dates were arriving from Pakistan these days. “Normally, the border sees 70 to 80 trucks coming from Pakistan. At times the number goes up to 90. This number has come down over the past couple of days,” he said. Indo-Foreign Chamber of Commerce president BK Bajaj said trade had been badly hit. “We are unable to receive our raw material as well as packaging material from Ludhiana due to the blockade. The farmers don’t have the licence to paralyse economy,” he said. He lashed out at the state government for not dealing with the situation in an apt manner, ”merely because it doesn’t want to offend its votebank”. Indo-Pak Exporters’ Association chairman Om Parkash Arora said the trucks carrying perishable goods were getting delayed. “As a result, items like tomatoes, cauliflower and peas are getting damaged,” he added. He expressed displeasure at the “lack of arrangements” at the border vis-à-vis regulating the flow of trucks. Rajdeep Uppal, MD, Narain Exim, said trucks carrying export goods had to take alternative routes to reach their destination and this was affecting trade. The blockade is also affecting fuel supply to the city and seven petrol stations have gone dry. Meanwhile, a compromise was reached at a meeting between representatives of the farmers and Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal this evening.
|
|
Chinks in SAD to the fore
Aliwal (Batala), December 10 Post-delimitation, 95 villages of Qadian have been shifted to Fatehgarh Churian, following which Lodhinangal had been active in the area for the last several months as he was considering himself to be a certainty for the party ticket. Interestingly, the Qadian MLA had a one-on-one meeting with the Chief Minister at Dera Baba Nanak in the morning and it was only after this get-together that he and hundreds of his supporters decided to boycott the proceedings. Agriculture Minister SS Langah, who is also the Gurdaspur District SAD president, too, played truant allegedly due to his differences with the Speaker. "Since Fatehgarh Churian comes in Gurdaspur Parliamentary constituency, Langah should have been present. However, his differences with Kahlon are well known and that is the reason why he boycotted the function," admitted a senior SAD leader. Another Akali leader, preferring anonymity, disclosed that if Lodhinangal plays the rebel in the coming elections, as he is likely to do, he can severely dent the party's prospects in as many as four Vidhan Sabha seats. Prominent among others who skipped the function at the behest of Lodhinangal were Fatehgarh Churian Panchayat Samiti chairman Tarpal Singh, Fatehgarh Churian Market Committee vice-chairman Satnam Singh, former SGPC member Surjit Kaur Gujjarpura, Batala Panchayat Samiti chairman Kamaljit Singh Rozy and Batala Market Committee Chairman Harbhajan Singh. Nearly 50 sarpanches of those particular villages which have been shifted to Fatehgarh Churian from Qadian also absented themselves. It is pertinent to mention here that four months ago, the Qadian MLA had created a flutter in the Akali rank and file by announcing his candidature from Fatehgarh Churian assembly in the presence of SAD youth wing chief Bikramjit Singh
Majithia. The Ticket Tussle nBadal's "green signal" to Speaker Nirmal S Kahlon from Fatehgarh Churian infuriates Qadian MLA LS Lodhinangal, who was eying the seat nLodhinangal holds one-on-one meeting with Badal at Batala on Saturday, following which he and his supporters decide to boycott the function nOver 50 sarpanches of the villages shifted to Fatehgarh Churian from Qadian post-delimitation also absent themselves from Badal's function nMinister SS Langah, who is Gurdaspur SAD chief, also skips rally allegedly due to his differences with the Speaker SAD can't afford to lose Lodhinangal? If Lodhinangal plays the rebel, he may dent the party's prospects in 4 seats: Batala: Lodhinangal has remained Improvement Trust chairman here Qadian: He is the sitting SAD MLA from this constituency Fatehgarh Churian: Several Qadian's villages have been shifted here post-delimitation Sri Hargobindpur: Lodhinangal commands a lot of influence," claimed the leader
|
||
|
SAD-BJP govt ‘fails’ to utilise scholarship grants
Amritsar, December 10 In a letter to CM Parkash Singh Badal, a copy of which has been released to the media, noted lawyer HS Phoolka claimed he came to know about the development in a meeting of the Planning Commission, which he attended being a member of the Steering Committee on Empowerment of Minorities. “As per the figures provided by the Ministry of Minority Affairs, during last financial year Rs 40.59 crore was transferred by the Centre to Punjab for disbursement to over 3 lakh students for pre-Matric and post-Matric scholarships. “The state government has not submitted the utilisation certificate to the Union Government certifying that the scholarship money has been utilised and distributed to the students. As a result, the Centre has not transferred the scholarship money,” he said. He claimed a large number of poor students had been deprived of the benefit of scholarship in the last financial year due to the "failure of the government in distributing the scholarship money" and now they may again be deprived of the scholarship as the Centre would not send the money till the scholarship money of the last year was disbursed.
|
||
|
Delayed cotton crop hinders wheat-sowing
Almost 40 per cent of the crop is still standing in the fields of Muktsar and Ferozepur districts. A worried lot, farmers have been making rounds of agriculture officials and experts to find a solution. They fear if the wheat is not sown at the opportune time, the yield may be affected. Experts at the Punjab Agricultural University in Ludhiana recommend the farmers to sow wheat seed by November-end, “which is the best time”, though late sowing could be done till December-end. A visit by The Tribune team to several villages of the area found that a number of farmers were, in a bid to avoid any further delay in sowing wheat seed, plucking unripe cotton crop. “We have already suffered losses to cotton crop due to untimely rains. Now, we don’t want to take any risk during wheat season. So, we are plucking cotton crop whether or not it is ready. In order to get the best grain and yield, wheat seed should be sown on time,” said Gurdev Singh of Doda village. Another farmer, Baldev Singh of Kheowali village, said, “Due to paucity of time, we are not leaving the land empty for even a single day. On the very next day of plucking cotton crop, we sowed wheat as we were already late.” Chief Agriculture Officer Bakshish Singh Chahal confirmed that 40 per cent of the farmers were yet to pluck the cotton crop. “Sowing of wheat has been delayed in this particular area. Now, farmers will have to sow late varieties of wheat, which may give lesser yield as compared to early sown varieties….But post-December, we don’t advise any farmer to sow wheat,” said Bakshish Singh.
|
||
Capt warns Sukhbir against violence
Amritsar, December 10 Addressing a function organised to felicitate senior Congress leader RL Bhatia here, Amarinder condemned the “collapse of the government” in the state, as the Amritsar-Jalandhar highway remained blocked due to the farmers’ protest for the fifth consecutive day today. He said the government must talk with the farmer and employee unions to resolve their issues. Referring to Sukhbir’s recent statements “instigating people to violence”, the former CM warned, “If you try to hit the Congressmen once, they will hit you back not once, not twice but thrice… Let me tell him that the Congress workers will not tolerate violence anymore and enough is enough.” At the same time, he made it clear that the Congress workers would not initiate any violence as they don’t need to, since they know they are winning. “But they will not take it lying down and will defend themselves,” he warned. About Sikh memorials, the PPCC chief claimed that these were mostly incomplete and had been locked immediately after inauguration just to ensure that people do not know that they played fraud. He pointed out that the government had failed to utilise Rs 5,000 crore provided by the Prime Minister for Amritsar’s development under Jawahar Lal National Urban Renewal Mission as it could not provide the matching grants since the money was being “squandered away by Badal in his Sangat Darshan programmes”. Congress incharge for Punjab Gulchain Singh Charak, Congress Legislature Party leader Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, former PPCC president Shamsher Singh Dullo and Gurdaspur MP Partap Singh Bajwa were also present. Senior Congress leaders OP Soni and Jasbir Singh Dimpa were conspicuous by their absence, which fuelled the speculations that they stayed away from the function owing to their alleged differences with Dr Rajkumar Verka, the organiser of the show.
|
||
|
SAD ridicules Cong claims on manifesto
Chandigarh, December 10 In a statement issued from the party head office here today, SAD secretary and spokesman Dr Daljit Singh Cheema said theirs was a grassroots party and it was well aware of the problems and needs of various sections of the society. It has always planned its strategy in accordance with the ground reality so that the question of copying did not arise. The SAD also accused Congress leaders like Capt Amarinder Singh of not being in touch with the grassroots workers. “First they always condemn the policies and programmes of the SAD government and after five years when they come to know that these policies have benefited the people, they take a U-turn and start announcing these schemes in their elections manifestos,” he said.
|
||
|
Punjab deserves package more than WB: Manpreet
He said for a fiscal package, Punjab had a stronger case than West Bengal, which recently got Rs 8,750 crore from the Centre. Speaking to The Tribune today, Manpreet said the political executive in Punjab was always busy politicking and had no time for the state. Mamata Banerjee, who became Chief Minister only some months ago, got a package from the Centre by persistently pursuing the issue whereas the Badal government was too busy in playing politics in this regard, he added. Had Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal camped in Delhi for some days to convince the Centre, he would have certainly got one for Punjab, said Manpreet. “Like West Bengal, we have several underdeveloped pockets in the state. We need a package to promote agro-processing and textile industry. There is a strong case to modernise the farm sector. Moreover, our state is reeling under the burden of debt for which the Centre is also partially responsible,” he said, adding that the Centre had no reason to discriminate against Punjab on this issue. Meanwhile, he said he was all for a strong Lokpal and the Prime Minister should be in its ambit. Likewise in states, chief ministers should be in its purview. Besides, investigating agencies like the CBI and junior-level should be under the Lokpal, which should be free from any political control.
|
|
Another Consumer Forum bench starts work
Chandigarh, December 10 Presiding over a function organised in commission’s office here, Kairon said the commission played an important role in providing speedy justice to the consumers betrayed by the companies as in some cases. He said though the amount involved was usually not so big, it was the matter of hurting of their sentiments and a feeling of denied justice. He pointed out that speedy justice for consumers was the need of hour as generally in these cases complainants did not pursue their cases. The purpose of setting up of the third bench was to cut short the pendency of consumers’ cases at the state level to two months. The minister said Punjab was the only state in North India to have three benches at the state commission. Speaking on the occasion, Justice SN Aggarwal (retd), president, Punjab State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, said not only the backlog of cases, which were pending since 1999, had been cleared but also the cases filed up to 31.12.2006 had been finalised. He said the annual non-plan budget of the commission was Rs 4.59 crore which had been enhanced to Rs 11.02 crore for the financial year 2011-12. Similarly, there had been an increase in the plan budget, which was Rs 32.25 lakh during 2007-08, had now been enhanced to Rs 77.13
lakh.
|
|
|
'Misuse' of discretionary grant
Chandigarh, December 10 The theme audit report for 2009-10 on discretionary grants, handed over to RTI activist-cum-advocate HC Arora in response to a petition filed in public interest, says a Cabinet minister cannot sanction discretionary grants exceeding 50 per cent of the quota in his own constituency. But "Manoranjan Kalia sanctioned grants of approximately 80 per cent in his own constituency during 2009-10, which is irregular.” The audit report states that grants can be sanctioned for repair, maintenance and renovation of school buildings, but such grants are not permitted for construction of rooms of school building. However, during 2009-10, Rs 63.90 lakh in 21 cases was sanctioned and disbursed to the colleges and school management for construction of rooms. The PIL seeks direction to the State of Punjab to introduce effective safeguards against the misuse of discretionary grants by chief ministers, ministers and chief parliamentary secretaries. The Accountant-General (Audit) has filed its affidavit through Deputy Accountant-General (Inspection Civil and Administration) Raghubir Singh. It adds that the AG (Audit), Punjab, is not authorised to audit the accounts of clubs, colleges or other NGOs to whom the grants are issued by the state government out of public funds. But under the Comptroller and Auditor General Duties/Powers and Conditions of Service Act, 1971, the Governor can direct the audit of such NGOs. The audit report adds that the discretionary grant cannot be sanctioned for the same purpose during the same year and a certificate is required to be obtained from grantee/institutions specifying clearly that the said institutions has not been sanctioned any grant for the same purpose by any other departments during the same period. "Yet an amount of Rs 65.50 lakh by way of discretionary grants has been sanctioned and disbursed in the same financial year, which reveals that undue favour was given to the beneficiary".
|
|
|
Cabinet okays policy to regularise colonies
Chandigarh, December 10 A decision to this effect was taken here at a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal late in the evening. A Punjab Government spokesperson said that in view of the problems of the general public, a policy had been framed under which the local municipal institutions concerned would identify and demarcate the unauthorised colonies being developed along the existing developed areas. The identification would ensure that no unauthorised colonies may be developed in future. The municipal institutions concerned would approve the building plans in the demarcated areas after charging requisite development fee from the colonisers. The Cabinet, however, decided to take strictest possible action against any illegal construction in future in urban areas to curb the practice of developing such colonies. The Cabinet also gave approval to transfer Parliwala village to Dharamkot sub-division of Moga district after excluding it from Shahkot subdivision of Jalandhar district. The Cabinet also approved to revert back the possession of 1500 sq yards of land adjacent to Shaheed Udham Singh Bhawan at Bhagtan Wala Gate in Amritsar to the state government from the Punjab Municipal Infrastructure Development Company and to allot it further to Shaheed Udham Singh Trust. The Cabinet also approved to reduce the purchase tax from 5 per cent to 2.5 per cent on sugarcane. However, 10 per cent surcharge would be levied as charged earlier. The Cabinet also decided to slash VAT from 12.5 per cent to 5 per cent on household items used with hand.
|
|
|
Sugar mills may be reopened
Chandigarh,December 10 Singla said the CBI and other agencies had closed 271 rice mills following inquries. Out of these, 182 mills had been closed for submitting below rejection limit (BRL) rice in national pool, 39 under joint PFA and 50 mills because of FIRs registered against them, he added. As far as Class IV employees of the FCI who were retrenched were concerned, the MP said the Union Minister indicated that these retrenched employees could be hired on a contract basis. — TNS
|
|
|
Human rights violation
Jalandhar, December 10 In a six-page missive addressed to the international watchdog’s office in New York, the Dal Khalsa has listed several instances of custodial deaths and violations of rights of political dissenters and common citizens over the past one year. It also highlighted several incidents of denial of civil liberties to common citizens. These included incidents of high-handedness by the authorities on protesting pharmacists, ETT teachers, unemployed linemen, female multi-purpose health workers, unemployed B.Ed. teachers, veterinary inspectors, farmers and employees of a sugar mill, besides Sikh radicals. “Such incidents widely reported in the media have failed to elicit any reaction from the law-makers in the state or the Union government,” states the letter. “We are particularly concerned about the prospects of retired Punjab police officers having checkered past jumping into the political fray, reads the letter. — TNS
|
|
|
Soon, state to have biggest warehouse
Chandigarh, December 10 Speaking to mediapersons after laying the foundation stone of Rs 23 crore ‘Anaaj Bhawan’, Food and Civil Supplies Minister Adesh Partap Singh Kairon said Punjab purchased 24 million tonnes of grain annually and exported 21 million tonnes every year.
|
|
|
Patiala lacks fire safety measures
Patiala, December 10 According to information, in the past four years, the MC has neither sealed nor served any notice to any commercial building, government office and healthcare centre for violation of the fire safety norms. A visit to the Mini Secretariat complex was enough to expose the MC's claims, as the fire extinguishers in the complex were found to be expired. Many other government offices, including Punjab Water Supply and Sanitation, Pepsu Road Transport Corporation (PRTC), Language Department, Irrigation Department, PWD (B&R) also lacked proper fire fighting arrangements. Apart from the government offices, the fire fighting arrangements in many of the commercial establishments, including big shopping complexes and showrooms, in various city areas, were also missing. As per information, the total staff strength of the Patiala MC Fire Wing is 63, but presently 28 posts are lying vacant. The equipment required to douse the fire are in a shambles and the five fire fighting tenders are also in pathetic state. Besides, there are no helmets and fire resistant gloves with the firemen. Patiala Mayor Ajit Pal Singh Kohli said that he had instructed the civic body officials to start conducting inspection of all the government offices and commercial establishments from Monday onwards. "Now, I have also written to the Municipal Commissioner that every year, the civic body must renew the NOC to ensure that all the government offices and private institutions adhere to the prescribed norms", he said. Meanwhile, the Government Rajindra Hospital has not taken any step to equip it fire safety measures in the phototherapy unit in Neonatology section where nearly three years ago six infants were charred to death.The nursery, which caught fire, has not been renovated and wires can still be seen hanging around in the rooms. The fire fighting systems in the hospital are in poor condition, as more than 20 of them had already expired. Interestingly, none of the wards, except the emergency, has been equipped with fire fighting systems. In the last four years, the hospital administration has not even bothered to take the NOC from the fire department. Principal, Government Medical College and Rajindra Hospital, Dr KD Singh said despite the fact that they had been sanctioned lakhs of rupees for reconstruction and upgradation of this unit, till date they could not draw any money from the treasury and as a result, the work could not be completed. "The Government had sanctioned Rs 75 lakh for renovation and purchase of latest equipment, but the money has not reached us despite the orders of the Chief Secretary of Medical Education and Research,” he said.
|
|
|
Patil lauds Indian History Congress’ efforts at meet
Patiala, December 10 Around 2,000 delegates reached Punjabi University, Patiala, to take part in the 72nd Indian History Congress that began today on the university campus. Lauding the Indian History Congress for instituting its own annual and biannual awards for the best research papers and books in different fields of the Indian history, Patil said given the standing of the IHC in the academic world at large, these awards should be coveted equally by young researchers and mature scholars Taking note of a large number of papers on different region of the country, he said, the history of India could not be studied without studying the history of its constituents that was its different regions.
|
|
Farmers call off stir Amritsar, December 10 Notably, the protesting farmers were demanding acceptance of their two main demands: 200 units of free power for landless farmers and waiving of power bills amounted to Rs 357 crore. As soon as Amritsar SSP (Rural) Gurmeet Chauhan announced the positive outcome of the talks held at Chandigarh between Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and the farmers’ representatives, the protesters called off their strike. This led to resumption of services on the Amritsar-Jalandhar highway. Confirming the development, Rattan Singh Randhawa, Jamhuri Kisan Sabha secretary, said the government Continued on page 8
|
||
|
|
Dalit boy shot dead over refusal to give bike
The deceased has been identified as 23-year-old Gurlal Singh, who worked as a farm labourer with a landlord of his village. “As per the statements of injured persons, a few days ago one Pipal Singh had asked Gurlal to give him his motorcycle to chase a tractor which had hit him outside the village. While Gurlal refused, which ensued into a clash last night and claimed his life,” a police officer said. He further said that both the parties exchanged some heated arguments in the morning and later at night when Gurlal along with his friends was going to complain at Pipal Singh’s house, the latter’s son Gurmeet Singh started firing at them. — TNS
|
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | E-mail | |
Amritsar, December 10
Muktsar, December 10
Chandigarh, December 10
Roranwali (Lambi), December 10