First-time voters stay away from enrolment
Bathinda, January 1
The Election Commission's orders to educational institutions for enrolling eligible young voters have failed to evoke the desired response in the educational hub of Bathinda. Starting from 2010 onwards, the Election Commission ordered, through the district election officers, that all the eligible students be enrolled as voters at the college itself.

A hard day’s work
Sunday or Monday, Election Office has no fun day
Bathinda, January 1
To meet the increased workload ahead of the assembly elections scheduled on January 30, the election office here is working round- the-clock. Even Sundays are working days at the office, which is full of statistics on voters that are most sought after by the workers of the political parties.

Workload has increased and the staff at the Election Office is busy working even on a holiday. Tribune photo: Pawan Sharma

NGOs against drug, money use in polls Bathinda, January 1 Only a couple of days after the Chief Election Commissioner, SY Quraishi, said there was a need to keep a check on the use of liquor and drugs used by contestants to lure voters during the elections in Punjab, Bathinda-based NGOs have taken it upon themselves to spread awareness about the misuse of money and drugs during the upcoming elections.

Sharing vignettes Elderly find news & company at Public Library

Bathinda, January 1 The local Public Library, situated near the Gol Diggi, has been proving to be a boon for a number of elderly persons here on two counts. First, they get the newspapers and magazines to read and secondly, they get an opportunity to meet people and share their domestic and other issues with those belonging to their own age-group. Elderly visitors at Public Library are bonded by the common thread of life. Tribune photo: Pawan Sharma

Time to celebrate

Students of the Vishwas Public School present a dance performance on the occasion of the annual day celebrations in Bathinda on Sunday. A tribune photograph

Low price of cotton, basmati worry farmers
Bathinda, January 1
Year 2011 did not yield good fruits for the farmers in Bathinda as they registered losses in terms of money due to low prices of the cotton and paddy (Basmati) crops. As compared to the last year, there was a drastic fall in the prices of both these crops due to a decline in demand in the international markets.

Traders happy after increase in cash limit by EC
Bathinda, January 1
Hailing the Election Commission’s decision concerning increment in the cash-carrying limit during the election process, the members of the Beopar Mandal, Bathinda today thanked the Commission.

Soaking in New Year revelry
Bathinda, January 1
What’s a better way of bringing in the New Year than partying all night long? That’s how Bathinda residents celebrated on the New Year’s eve. And as we had told you, the party scene in the city was quite happening, with various city hotels hosting bashes.

District and Sessions Judge, SK Aggarwal, appreciating an artefact made by the Central Jail inmates.	A local Punjabi singer performs at a New Year function organised at the Central Jail in Bathinda on Sunday. Tribune photos: Pawan Sharma
Many youngsters made the city roads their party venue. As seen here, they danced on the streets to blaring music on Saturday.	Revelers enjoying performance by an orchestra at a city hotel on Saturday.

New Year spirit

Inmates of the Central Jail, Bathinda, performing at a function held to usher in the New Year in the jail premises on Sunday. Tribune photo: Pawan Sharma

City wakes up to a hazy morning
Bathinda, January 1
Though mercury gave some respite to the city residents at the dawn on New Year, fog and clouds tried to play spoil sport for the party rockers to some extent. Providing the much-needed relief to Bathinda and its adjoining areas, mercury shot up from below the normal to reach at above the normal today at 7.30 am when the city recorded 7.4 degrees Celsius, as per the agri-met department of the Punjab Agriculture University, regional station, Bathinda.

Beginning the year on a healthy note
Bathinda, January 1
Welcoming 2012 in their inimitable style today, the members of the city-based Laughing and Clapping Club, held a get together at the local Rose Garden. Braving chill and fog, the members of the club, who are usually spotted laughing off stress by taking the route of ‘Ha-ha-hi-hi’ to lead a healthy life, today welcomed the New Year with a celebratory note.

First aiders carry out mock drill in city Bathinda, January 1 On the first day of the Road Safety Week, a road safety awareness programme was organized by the local United Ambulance Brigade Division by organizing a first aid mock drill. The mock drill was organized under the guidance of Naresh Pathania, first aid trainer of St John Ambulance Brigade Division of the Society. A mock first aid drill being carried out in Bathinda on Sunday.

First-time voters stay away from enrolment
Edu institutions, EC officials put ball in each other’s court
Megha Mann
Tribune News Service

Bathinda, January 1
The Election Commission's orders to educational institutions for enrolling eligible young voters have failed to evoke the desired response in the educational hub of Bathinda. Starting from 2010 onwards, the Election Commission ordered, through the district election officers, that all the eligible students be enrolled as voters at the college itself.

The District Election Officer had convened a meeting of the principals of the educational institutions a number of times, asking them to abide by the orders of the Election Commission. The educational institutions including the engineering colleges, ITI, polytechnic colleges and other degree colleges were requested to ensure that all their eligible students are enrolled as voters.

While the election officers blame the educational institutions for not creating awareness among the students, the college authorities claim that the students are not interested in voting or already have their votes registered at different places.

Taking a cue from the orders, the authorities at the Government Rajindra College had even given Form 6 (for registering new votes) with the admission forms this academic session. In the last academic session, around 42 students were registered as voters, while this year, no student has been enrolled. Similarly, the Malwa College registered around 62 new voters, while the DAV College had enrolled 70 new voters.

The Government Polytechnic College has perhaps the sent the highest number of voters' list to the respective area officers. The institute has proposed the names of 250 students who could be enrolled as the first-time voters. "We get students above 15 years, whereas students more than 18 years of age are to be registered as voters. We have sent a list of students to the respective block level officers (BLOs) so that they continue to remain enrolled as voters at their respective places even after they have left college," said the principal Yadwinder Singh.

This year, the government released a letter on December 21 to all the educational institutes stating that new voters would be registered from January 2 to 5 and that eligible voters (who are yet to get themselves enrolled) be registered.

"The Election Commission does not understand practical problems we face in enrolling the students as voters. First, most of the colleges are done with their house tests and would open on January 8 or even later. It is impossible to contact and convince the students during the holidays," pointed out an official at the government college.

Another college officials pointed out that the registering of new voters is a

tedious project. Not only are forms to be filled, many other documents are also required to be attached with these forms. "We have limited manpower. The government should make it (registering voters) a regular exercise. Under this, all new admissions in the colleges should be directed to mention in admission forms itself whether they are voters or not," suggested one of the college principals.

Official Speak

A hard day’s work
Sunday or Monday, Election Office has no fun day
With assembly polls slated for January 30, it’s all work and no play for the mandarins on duty
Megha Mann
Tribune News Service

Bathinda, January 1
To meet the increased workload ahead of the assembly elections scheduled on January 30, the election office here is working round- the-clock. Even Sundays are working days at the office, which is full of statistics on voters that are most sought after by the workers of the political parties.

"For the last many months, we have been coming on Sundays too. The work related to the election data has to be done very meticulously. Consequently, we have been working half days even on a Sunday without a break," said one of the officials not wishing to be named.

Employees at the department said the orders of the Election Commission are very elaborate and a lot of paper work has to be done. "For one order, we have to fill several forms. Presently, work on preparing the electorate list is going on in full swing. To add to this, we constantly have queries pouring in about the new voters, removal and addition of voters, NRI votes among other things," the officials added.

They pointed out that filling up forms for new voters and verifying them has been the most time consuming procedure. While the final list of voters would be published on January 2, the Election Commissionhas given three more days, from January 2 to 5 for the registration of those voters who have been left out.

Not only the District Election Officer, other officials too like the returning officers and the police too are working overtime.

Even the meetings are being conducted late in the evening on working days, leaving little time for the employees to go home and take adequate rest.

For instance, the State Election Commissioner Kusumjit Kaur Sidhu has convened a videoconferencing to discuss the election preparedness of Bathinda district at 6 pm tomorrow.

This videoconferencing usually lasts for two hours.

Besides, a meeting of the representatives of political parties would be convened tomorrow.

"The staff on election duty is awarded a special honorarium which is equal to their basic salary. Though the employees are compensated financially, there are a number of examples of stressed out staff," said an officer from the district administration.

Another official pointed out that in many cases, women employees are exempted from reporting late in the evening.

"Being winter, the days are shorter and it gets dark soon. To ensure the safety of women employees, if possible, we try to exempt them from attending duties after it gets dark," said another official.

NGOs against drug, money use in polls
Ask people to cast their votes for a deserving candidate in elections
Nikhila Pant Dhawan
Tribune News Service

Bathinda, January 1
Only a couple of days after the Chief Election Commissioner, SY Quraishi, said there was a need to keep a check on the use of liquor and drugs used by contestants to lure voters during the elections in Punjab, Bathinda-based NGOs have taken it upon themselves to spread awareness about the misuse of money and drugs during the upcoming elections.

Bathinda Vikas Manch recently organised a seminar on the topic, 'Hamare Vote Ka Haqdaar Kaun?' in the city. At the seminar, the president of the Bathinda Vikas Manch, Rakesh Narula, said, "We shouldn't give our precious vote to the candidate who tries to sway our choice along the lines of religion, caste, region or community. We should consider only those candidates who speak about national unity and integrity."

Speaking about the plans of his organisation, he said, "We have started our 'Voter Jagrukta Abhiyaan' in some of the rural areas of Bathinda district. We are motivating everyone to use their right to vote judiciously. We are spreading the awareness about how political parties may use the power of money or the lure of drugs to get votes. We are telling them that a day of drugs may bring upon us five years of bad government."

Another city-based NGO, Sahara Jan Sewa, is also planning similar campaigns in the rural and urban areas of Bathinda district. President of the organisation, Vijay Goel, said, "We will be taking out rallies in the city against the use of drugs and money in Punjab polls. We will raise slogans like, 'Naa lo nasha, naa lo note, soch samajh kar do vote'. The rallies and the campaigns will start soon."

Confirming that the fears of the chief election commissioner are not baseless, Sonu Maheshwari of the Naujawan Welfare Society said, "Political parties and candidates in Punjab are known for using drugs and money to get voters to cast votes in their favour. We will target the rural areas first as the political parties also approach these areas first to buy votes through various means. We have discussed the issue with other NGOs of the city and all have unanimously decided to motivate the people of Bathinda to cast their vote and bring a worthy candidate to power."

Fact file

• NGOs have taken it upon themselves to create awareness about the misuse of money and drugs during the assembly elections.
• The idea is to campaign among the people asking them to choose only those candidates who speak of the unity and integrity of the nation and ensure they elect only the right candidate.
• The NGOs propose to target the rural areas in the district first as the political parties try to buy votes there by adopting dubious means.

Sharing vignettes
Elderly find news & company at Public Library
Sushil Goyal
Tribune News Service

Bathinda, January 1
The local Public Library, situated near the Gol Diggi, has been proving to be a boon for a number of elderly persons here on two counts. First, they get the newspapers and magazines to read and secondly, they get an opportunity to meet people and share their domestic and other issues with those belonging to their own age-group.

The library has thus become a platform for many of the elderly persons to keep themselves busy and get rid of the worries of life for some hours when they get together and meet their old colleagues or friends here.

Shubh Ram (86), a local resident, says, "I have been coming to the library for more than two decades to read the Urdu daily, Hind Samachar. Besides, I also read some other newspapers though I feel pleasure in reading the Urdu newspaper. I want that some Urdu magazines should also be available in the library for people in my age-group, who have studied Urdu in schools".

Amarjit Singh (70), a tailor by profession, says, "I have been coming to the library since my childhood. I don't buy any newspaper at home while I read go through several Punjabi and Hindi newspapers here to read political news and articles. Though I am not a member of the library, I am satisfied with its functioning. It also provides a platform to people like me for reading the newspapers in a peaceful atmosphere".

Muni Lal (69), a retired excise and taxation official, says, "Though an English daily newspaper remains available at home, still I come here to read other newspapers to enhance my knowledge.

“I also read some English magazines, including those relating to general knowledge. Besides, the library also provides us with an opportunity to share our problems and moments of happiness with each other."

Jugraj Singh (73), a retired lecturer from the local Government Rajindra College, who now lives in Canada with his son and comes to Bathinda for months together, says, "Whenever I come to Bathinda, I always visit the library to study several English newspapers here though I take an English daily at home. I have a special attachment with this library as before going to Canada in 2006, I was a regular visitor."

According to the manager of the Public Library, Parveen Garg, almost 50 elderly persons visit the library daily. Many of them prefer to read the Urdu newspaper and magazines.

However, the library has been providing them with three copies of a daily Urdu newspaper that is published from Jalandhar, while it is unable to provide them with the Urdu magazines now as they are not available in the markets in the city.

Low price of cotton, basmati worry farmers
This year’s crop of cotton, basmati and potato is fetching prices lower than last year
Gurdeep Singh Mann
Tribune News Service

Bathinda, January 1
Year 2011 did not yield good fruits for the farmers in Bathinda as they registered losses in terms of money due to low prices of the cotton and paddy (Basmati) crops. As compared to the last year, there was a drastic fall in the prices of both these crops due to a decline in demand in the international markets.

Chief Agriculture Officer (CAO), Bathinda Dr. Paramjit Singh Sandhu termed the losses this year due to the bumper cotton crop in neighbouring Pakistan and China. “We need to adopt a proactive approach to deal such crisis but policies are formed only at government level” he said.

District president of the Beopar Mandal, Ashok Dhunnike, said, “Today’s cotton price is Rs 4,200 per quintal and it has been stagnant since the start of this season. Last year, the cotton prices had increased upto Rs 7,050 per quintal and the average price was Rs 5,200 per quintal. The highest price was during the months of February and March last season. This time, however, it was a sluggish beginning with Rs 3,500 to Rs 3,700.”

The local arhtiyas said that this season not only the farmers had witnessed losses but also the arhtiyas due to the low prices.

The cotton prices ranged between Rs 2,500 to Rs 2,800 in 2009-2010 and the average price was Rs 3,025 per quintal. Same has been the case with paddy 1121 which too failed to fetch a good price this season. It is being sold at Rs 1,475 per quintal as compared to Rs 2,250 last season. Farmers said the price in 2009-2010 was Rs 3,200 per quintal.

Mahinder Kumar Narula, president of Arhtiya Association of vegetable market, said that the glut in potato also dampened farmers and arthiya’s spirit this season. As compared to the last year’s price of Rs 400 per quintal, potato is being sold at Rs 250 per quintal this season.

He attributed the losses to a lack of marketing skills and support by the central and state governments.

President of the grain market arhtiya association, Satish Bansal, said good quality Basmati is being sold at a price of Rs 1,700 per quintal, which is quite low as compared to last year’s price of Rs 2,400 to Rs 2,500 per quintal.

Stiff competition in the international cotton market lowered the price of cotton in the domestic market.

He pointed out that the Indian traders failed to export cotton due to its inferior quality. Last year, Pakistan produced poor quality cotton, which had helped Indian farmers to get good price in the market.

Bags of wheat stolen from godown

Bathinda, January 1
337 bags containing wheat have been stolen from the godown of the Markfed from Goniana.

In his complaint to the police, branch officer, Karamjit Singh, said some unidentified people took away the bags of wheat after breaking the lock of the godown during the night around a week ago. A case under sections 457 and 380 of the IPC has been registered in this regard at the Nehianwala police station. — TNS

Traders happy after increase in cash limit by EC
Tribune News Service

Bathinda, January 1
Hailing the Election Commission’s decision concerning increment in the cash-carrying limit during the election process, the members of the Beopar Mandal, Bathinda today thanked the Commission.

During a meeting held here, they said that increasing the limit to Rs 2.50 lakh from Rs one lakh would be helpful for traders. They sought further increase in the slab saying further raise would also help the big traders. The meeting was presided over by the state head of the Beopar Mandal and chief of Small Trades Board, Madan Lal Kapoor.

Chief of Bathinda Beopar Mandal, Rajinder Kumar Raju, Rajesh Agarwal Sunam, Bunty Goyal Muktsar, Amarjeet Singh Amritsar, Rajinder Nirankari Rajpura, Rajinder Kumar Bawa, Somnath Bansal, Raman Watts, Gyan Prakash, Mohandeep, Kartar Singh Joda, Pravin and other members of the organisation were also present at the meeting.

Soaking in New Year revelry
Tribune News Service

Bathinda, January 1
What’s a better way of bringing in the New Year than partying all night long? That’s how Bathinda residents celebrated on the New Year’s eve. And as we had told you, the party scene in the city was quite happening, with various city hotels hosting bashes.

There were many youngsters who chose to party on the streets of the city. They parked their cars, put on blaring music and danced on the roads.

At a few places, police patrol teams had to step in to rein in the crowd.

City wakes up to a hazy morning
Fog, followed by clouds, keeps the sun away
Tribune News Service

Bathinda, January 1
Though mercury gave some respite to the city residents at the dawn on New Year, fog and clouds tried to play spoil sport for the party rockers to some extent. Providing the much-needed relief to Bathinda and its adjoining areas, mercury shot up from below the normal to reach at above the normal today at 7.30 am when the city recorded 7.4 degrees Celsius, as per the agri-met department of the Punjab Agriculture University, regional station, Bathinda.

The day’s high was 17.4 degrees Celsius, nearly 3 degrees Celsius lower from yesterday’s temperature.

Sources in the weather room said that emergence of clouds caused the mercury to rise from 2.2 degrees Celsius yesterday morning to reach the above-normal mark today.

The maximum temperature dipped as the sun failed to penetrate the veil of clouds almost throughout the day, sources added.

While the mercury’s upward movement sprung a pleasant surprise, weather’s another vagary, fog, greeted the ciy residents on New Year morning, apparently in its bid to dampen the spirit of party-goers. Fog was followed by clouds that thwarted the residents' wish of enjoying a sunny day.

Beginning the year on a healthy note
Tribune News Service

Bathinda, January 1
Welcoming 2012 in their inimitable style today, the members of the city-based Laughing and Clapping Club, held a get together at the local Rose Garden. Braving chill and fog, the members of the club, who are usually spotted laughing off stress by taking the route of ‘Ha-ha-hi-hi’ to lead a healthy life, today welcomed the New Year with a celebratory note.

The members exchanged wishes for a healthy and peaceful year ahead and relished cake and tea.

The tea party was sponsored by Mithu Ram, who along with his family members, was present during today’s proceedings.

Chaudhary Pratap Singh, Mastar Satpal, Mulkh Raj Madan, Satish Kumar Thekedar, Mohan Lal, Pradeep Kumar, Vishwamitra, Vijay Kumar, Chinder Pal Fauji, Saroop Singh, Hans Raj, Subhash Dhawan, Albel Brara, KK Sharma, Bhagwan Das Bharati and other members of the club were also present.

Before the celebration, the members went on with their daily exercises.

First aiders carry out mock drill in city
Tribune News Service

Bathinda, January 1
On the first day of the Road Safety Week, a road safety awareness programme was organized by the local United Ambulance Brigade Division by organizing a first aid mock drill. The mock drill was organized under the guidance of Naresh Pathania, first aid trainer of St John Ambulance Brigade Division of the Society.

A demonstration of various manuals like human crutch, fore and aft carry, four-handed-seat and the fireman’s lift was carried out.

A demo on how the cardio-pulmonary-resuscitation is given and lifting the casualties on canvas stretcher and on improvised stretchers was also performed.

First aid trainer Naresh Pathania and Vijay Bhatt, stated the aim of the mock drill was to sensitize the members of the society and road users to learn life saving first aid techniques as well as to improve the knowledge and training in handling and transporting the road accident victims.

Harbans Romana, Sukhjinder, Bakshish, Malwinder, Sonu Jaura, Krishan Kotshmir, Anju Pathania and Mandeep Kaur took part in the drill.