Bathinda, January 15
Vote for the candidate who vows to take up the issue of eradicating the environmental pollution and pledges to restore the Punjab's environment to its original form.

Speakers at a public meeting held by the Vatavaran Ate Samaj Bachao Morcha, Punjab, put forth these views at the Teachers' Home here today.

The patron of this morcha, environmentalist Baba Balbir Singh Seechewal, said efforts were being made to make candidates take an oath of promising positive contribution towards cleansing the environmental pollution in the state, if his or her party comes to power.

"We have already taken this oath from 14 candidates from the areas of Shahkot, Sultanpur Lodhi and Kapurthala. Now, we are waiting for the election manifesto of different political parties. On the basis of the promises made in their respective manifesto, we will decide which party raises environmental concerns and how would it be able to fulfill these. After all, political will was needed to materialise every project meant for public interest," Seechewal said.

Talking about the cancer-afflicted Malwa region, Seechewal added that people were forced to drink 'cyanide and arsenic' due to lackadaisical attitude of the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) and other watchdogs meant to safeguard the interests of the environment and subsequently, public health.

"Unlike Anna Hazare, we are not demanding anything new. The fundamental rights give us the Right to Live, which sadly enough, the state has failed to safeguard. We are not against industries or industrial growth. We just want that all the norms should be followed and existing laws be properly implemented," he said.

Speakers on the occasion raised the issue of health concerns, especially in Bathinda and surrounding areas from where a large number of cancer cases have been reported.

One of the speakers, Tarsem Singh, who is associated with the Youth Clubs Movement, appreciated the efforts of the Election Commission of India (ECI) in tightening the noose around candidates vying for an Assembly seat. "The ECI's strictness has led to the candidates feeling the heat and masses heaving a sigh of relief. Perhaps, this would be the first time when elections are being contested without the hullabaloo that was earlier synonymous to polls," he added.

Another patron of the morcha and former jathedar of Takht Sri Damdama Sahib, Giani Kewal Singh, focussed on the issues of election reforms. He said the activities of the morcha, which has around 50 different NGOs under its wings, would not be limited to elections.

"In the month of February, we plan to hold two major state-level conventions wherein all political parties would be invited to share a common platform. One convention would be on health and environment while the second would be on agriculture and development. Our aim is to apprise the political parties as to what public wants," he said.

Umendra Dutt, a renowned environmentalist and a member of the morcha, said the civil society was playing a very active role in the elections and newly-introduced election reforms were one of the factors that have encouraged people.

Bathinda, January 15
Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in the city have joined hands to motivate people to exercise their right to vote.

This is for the first time that during Assembly elections, the civil society was participating with such gusto. Earlier, the Election Commission in collaboration with Nehru Yuva Kendras has been encouraging masses to vote.

“Many people, especially the youngsters, refrain from exercising their right to franchise. We want everyone to come out and cast vote on the day of polling. Even if someone does not want to vote, the Indian constitution confers on him or her, the right to vote under Section 49-O of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961,” said Sonu Maheshwari, the president of Naujawan Welfare Society, one of the seven NGOs holding awareness rallies in the city.

The NGOs participating in this movement include the Sathi Welfare Society, the Asra Welfare Society, the Shri Hanuman Sewa Samiti, the People for Animals’ Bathinda unit, the New Generation Welfare Society and the Naujawan Welfare Society.

These NGOs have put up flex boards at 10 prominent places in the city, including the Arya Samaj Chowk, the 100-feet road, the Fauji Chowk, the Liberty Chowk and the GT Road.

Besides, the volunteers of the NGOs have been regularly campaigning in different parts of the city to make voters aware and encourage them to cast their votes.

The volunteers are distributing pamphlets apart from making a direct conversation with the residents. The pamphlets bear the phone number of the Election Complaint Centre (0164- 2211915) wherein anyone can register a complaint if an effort was made to influence someone or buy his/her vote.

“We are encouraging people, especially the poor section of the society, against selling their vote for either cash or kind. Many political parties resort to the dirty politics of buying votes to get the mandate. The need of the hour is to consistently educate people not to fall victim to any such greed,” a volunteer of an NGO said.

Bathinda, January 15
With the fog being infrequent in the region during the past few days, people residing in Bathinda and its nearby areas have started raising their voice, demanding that the Railways reconsider its decision to keep the services of several trains suspended till January 31.

Like every year, the Railways, giving top priority to the safety of the passengers, cancelled or partially cancelled several trains touching Bathinda in the first week of December when fog started affecting normal train traffic. Since the spell of fog has proved to be short-lived this year despite the temperature hovering around freezing point, the commuters, affected by the cancellation of the trains, now want these to be back on track.

General secretary of the Passengers’ Welfare Association, Bathinda, Hanuman Dass Goyal, while talking to the Bathinda Tribune on Sunday, said that considering the inconvenience of the passengers, the railways should revoke the suspension of the trains passing through Bathinda. He said that since the railway cancelled many trains on the “pretext” of fog and the region has not been experiencing that weather condition for the last few days, there was no reason to keep the trains suspended.

Goyal demanded that the Udyan Abha Toofan Mail (13007/08) that runs between Sriganganagar and Hawrah could be on its normal route without any delay. The Toofan Mail, besides being a long distance train, is also preferred by the passengers travelling up to cities like Delhi, Agra and Mathura. Resumption of this service inconveniences passengers travelling up to an intermediate distance.

He also demanded that train number 14771/14772 that runs between Sriganganagar and Haridwar, could also be run on normal route. The train is nowadays partially cancelled and going up to Saharanpur only.

Goyal also demanded that the train number 19771/72 that runs between Amritsar and Jaipur should be back on track without waiting for January 31, considering the “conducive” weather conditions for running the trains.

Echoing similar sentiments, Jasvir Singh of the passengers’ welfare association also saw no reason for the railways for not revoking the suspension of the services of trains.

Jasvir Singh said that thousands of passengers had been suffering due to the cancellation of the trains, including train number 13007/08, 19771/72 and 14771/14772.

He also said that the railways should also resume the service of an important passenger train starting from Bathinda - the 54551/52 that runs between Bathinda and Ambala cantonment. As per the railway schedule, the service of the train is likely to resume on January 20.

Members of the passengers welfare association said that early resumption of the service of these train also help the devotees who wish to visit Haridwar after January 20.

Bathinda, January 15
With the elections to the Punjab assembly barely a fortnight away, campaigning for the Bathinda (Urban) constituency has started gaining momentum with both the Congress and the SAD (B) contenders canvassing for support among the voters.

On Sunday, Congress MLA from Bathinda, Harminder Singh Jassi, visited various areas like Model Town phase-III, Kamla Nehru Colony, Thermal Colony and Ganesha Basti, seeking support.

Blaming the ruling SAD-BJP coalition government for the poor civic amenities in the area, he said the government remained busy with superficial events like organising the Kabaddi Wold Cup while the basic needs of the people took a backseat.

In contrast, SAD (B) candidate Sarup Chand Singla is harking on the development ushered in Bathinda that helped change its image of being a backward area. — TNS

Bathinda, January 15
Lieutenant-General Sanjeev Anand, GOC of the Bathinda-based 10 Corps, was decorated with the Vishist Seva Medal (VSM) during an investiture ceremony held at Jaipur today.

The General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, South-Western Command, Lieutenant-General Gyan Bhushan, presented the medal to Lieutenant-General Anand at the Jaipur military station.

A total of 18 Sena Medals and four VSMs were awarded on the occasion.

According to Colonel SD Goswami, defence spokesman, the ceremony was a reminder of high military traditions and an aura of grace and dignity prevailed in the air. The ceremony was followed by a group photograph of the awardees with the GOC-in-C and a formal lunch in the honour of the awardees and the visiting civil dignitaries of Rajasthan that brought forth the sense of mutual respect and oneness, that the Army is known for.

Lieutenant-General Anand recently took over the command of the 10 Corps. He was the chief of staff of a strike corps before coming to Bathinda. He was also the GOC of a mountain division in the high altitude in the Eastern Sector. — TNS

Sunday sans sun: After a cloudy day, the city witnessed light showers on Sunday evening. Photo: Bhupinder Dhillon

Weather wonder

• Last week, the city reeled under severe cold wave conditions. Although the sun shone bright, mercury dipped to near zero degree Celsius on chilly mornings.
• Last week, the weathermen had predicted light showers in the days to come.
• The weather changed over the weekend. As the sky remained overcast, Bathinda and its adjoining areas registered light showers.
• The minimum temperature rose to touch the 10o C mark on Sunday.

Bathinda, January 15
A physiotherapy camp was organised at the Gurdev Hospital, Bathinda on Sunday. At the camp, patients were examined and treated free of cost for various neurological, musculo-skeletal and respiratory disorders. The camp got an overwhelming response from the patients from Bathinda and surrounding areas.

Dr Harvinder Singh, head of physiotherapy department, explained that the camp aimed at creating awareness about physiotherapy in in the area and also provide quality treatment to the patients.

He added that a majority of musculo-skeletal problems were due to improper posture and working conditions, for which counselling was done and ergonomic suggestions were also given.

Dr Gurdev Singh, managing director of the hospital, announced that in the future more such camps would be organised at the hospital to benefit more people and the focus of such camps would be to prevent and eliminate diseases at an early stage.

Bathinda, January 15
Ashok Kumar Dhunike has been unanimously elected as the president of the Punjab Pradesh Beopar Mandal after the election of the body held here today.

Vimal Gupta from Faridkot and Chaudhary Mehenga Ram Aggarwal from Maur Mandi presided over the procedure today. The office bearers of 35 trading pockets of the state participated in the meeting for electing the new president. Former vice-president, Rajinder Kumar Raju, administered oath to Dhunike.

Speaking on the occasion, Dhunike said he would always stand for the rights of the traders and businessmen and would ensure that the body becomes a strong representative of the business class in state.

Also present on the occasion were Bathinda president Rajinder Raju, vice-president Rajinder Kumar Bawa and cashier Somnath Bansal, Bhucho Mandi president Sunil Kumar, secretary Sushil Nagpal, Sunil Garg, Pawan Gupta, Krishna Bansal, Rampura Phul president Pawan Bansal, chairman Sunil Bitta, secretary Happy Bansal, Barnala president Anil Kumar, secretary Raj Kumar, Mahesh Bansal, Hemant Bansal and many others.

Bathinda, January 15
A voter awareness campaign was held at Oriya Colony today. Kranti – a gathering of various NGOs in the city, working for awakening voters, organised the campaign.

President of Asra Welfare Society, Kuldip Singh, asked everyone present to not get lured by money or liquor being offered in lieu of votes.

Members of the other NGOs were also present during the campaign.

Bathinda, January 15
SineSoft Education, a distance education institute, celebrated its annual day ‘Time-N-Tune’.

On the occasion, scholarships worth `55,000 were also awarded to the meritorious students of B.Sc (IT), MCA, MBA, PGDCA, BBA programmes under the Sikkim Manipal University.

Institute head, Vicky Singal, asked the students to imbibe the teachings of the gurus and become more competitive and come up trumps.

Students of the institute presented various cultural items, including plays, musical and dance performances. SineSoft staff members gave away the prizes for best performances.