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Visiting Dera Sacha Sauda
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Slain DSP’s vehicle recovered
Fertiliser prices likely to increase
Shalimar Express derails
Drunk father sets hut on fire, two minor kids charred to death
Will go all out to eradicate polio: Pak panel chief
SAD exploiting SGPC: Sarna
4 months after promotion...
Turning to Bajrang Bali for electoral success
Rain sends temperatures soaring
Mika working on film based on his life
Ludhiana to host ‘Saras mela’
Ludhiana boy in Georgian jail, Centre’s help sought
Pollution board going slow on raids
Gurdev Badal hospitalised
Another clash between rival party workers
Akali workers assault Congress man’s son
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Visiting Dera Sacha Sauda
Bathinda, February 5 “We will give a stiff competition to the
dera. During the elections, political parties, forgetting Panthic matters, made a beeline for the dera to seek votes,” he said. This was in violation of the Akal Takht
hukamnama, he said.“Any individual or political leader who has visited Dera Sacha Sauda or any other dera against whom a hukamnama has been issued should not be honoured with a siropa during his/her visit to Damdama Sahib. I appeal to the other four Takhts to refrain from awarding a siropa to anyone who visits
deras,” he said. Flanked by Sidhu, the complainant against the dera chief (for posing as the Tenth Guru), Nandgarh demanded that the FIR against the dera chief be given strict punishment as per the law. On the Election Commission of India
(ECI’s) banning political congregations in gurdwaras, Nandgarh said that the commission should exercise control over the deras as well. “The dera should come out openly on the issue of supporting political candidates and not just claim credit for a candidate’s victory after the declaration of poll results,” he added.
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Slain DSP’s vehicle recovered
Meanwhile, the DSP’s father today lashed out at the police, complaining that instead of nabbing the criminals, it had been indulging in the character assassination of his son to "hush up" the case. The DSP and Monica Kapila, an industrialist's wife, were found murdered in a farmhouse on Hambran road on Wednesday. Lambasting police investigations, Kashmir Singh Gill, a retired BSF commandant, said instead of collecting evidence from the crime site, some officials had destroyed evidence. "As I looked at the body of my slain son, a policeman washed the bloodstains from the floor. As a result, forensic experts failed to collect any fingerprints, which were vital to crack the case," he said. He said instead of informing him about the incident, a junior officer had called up his son's driver, instructing him to reach the Sahnewal police station. "As we (Gill and the driver) neared Dhandari, we were asked to rush towards Hambran road. Before I could reach there, the family members of the deceased woman had already left, refusing to identify her," said Gill. He said he had requested the investigating agencies to find out if the woman would call up Gill's friends, including a police officer in touch with the victim during the day of the incident. "Why did the police not set up nakas on exit roads on being told of the crime," he asked, alleging that his son could have been a victim of a larger conspiracy and demanded that his son's friends who were in touch with him on the day he was killed be interrogated. "My son left home at 5.30 pm and reached Narinderpal Singh's office. He collected the keys of Narinder's car and left for Sanjay Agnihotri's farmhouse.We tried to contact him at 6:30 pm but his phone was switched off. "We got worried and informed the police. Instead of informing us about the killing, Narinderpal called up my driver, instructing him to contact the ACP of Sahnewal," said Gill. Commandant Gill said no police official had visited the family to inform them about the progress in the case. "Instead, they have picked up my cook, the driver and two guards for questioning."
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Fertiliser prices likely to increase
Highly placed sources said if the decision was implemented, the cost of these fertilisers would go up and the farmers would resort to using nitrogen-based fertilisers like urea that would increase soil acidity and in turn, reduce productivity. Though the move is aimed at decontrolling fertiliser prices, it will lead to a steep rise in the prices of soil nutrients, forcing the Punjab farmers into a further debt cycle. As a result, the farmers will either reduce the use of phosphorous and potash or switch to urea, both ways will lead to a fall in production, besides disturbing the programme of balanced use of soil nutrients. The Nutrient Based Subsidy Policy
(NBSP) for fertilisers, introduced by the Central government in April 2010, is aimed at decontrolling prices of fertilisers in a gradual manner. The prices of phosphatic and potassic fertilisers were decontrolled last year, forcing farmers across the country to purchase DAP at double the prices as compared to the previous year. Punjab has seen a 10 per cent drop in the use of DAP during the rabi 2011-12 due to the increased cost. The MPNG apparently wants to prioritise the allocation of natural gas for power sector and divert it from fertiliser producing companies. At the same time, however, it also intends to continue its support to nitrogenous fertiliser units, which produce the heavily
subsidised, overused and soil-acidifying basic fertiliser (mostly urea). The sources said on the one hand, the government was asking companies using naphtha and fuel oil for producing fertiliser to switch to gas, the cleanest feedstock, while on the other, it was forcing the companies to move away from natural gas by cutting the supply of the same. Importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) as an alternative to domestic natural gas will dramatically raise the cost of
fertilisers. Punjab has already experienced the ill-effects of lopsided use of fertilisers as after the initial burst of the Green Revolution, reckless use of a particular type of heavily subsidised fertiliser has resulted in falling productivity in the state. Now, the farmers have to use even larger quantities of fertilisers to maintain farm output. Farmer leaders are contemplating taking up the issue with the government through their representative bodies. A senior officer of the Department of Agriculture commented that the fertiliser security was a prerequisite for national food security, thus, a conducive policy environment was necessary for the fertiliser sector. Without sustained increase in agriculture productivity, India will have to go back to importing food, which will make the cost of food security far more prohibitive than it looks now, he said.
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Shalimar Express derails
Jalandhar, February 5 Jalandhar city railway station superintendent RK Behl told The Tribune that the bogie got derailed as somebody had put up a tyre of a truck on the track. No one was hurt in the derailment which occurred at around 1.50 am. Sensing some object on the railway track, the driver of the train had immediately applied emergency brakes. An FIR has been registered in this regard against unknown persons, he added. However, the rail traffic on the affected track was restored at around 3.50 am. The up track that got interrupted due to the derailment was cleared for normal rail traffic at around 6.45 am. Two bogies were detached before departing the train for Jammu. Four passenger trains, including Puja Express and Jammu Mail, on the route were delayed due to Meanwhile, official sources said a three-member committee had been asked to submit its report within the next three days to Ferozepur Division Railway manager.
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Drunk father sets hut on fire, two minor kids charred to death
Herian (Samrala) February 5 Sri Pal, a resident of Utttar Pradesh, was a habitual drinker. After he had consumed liquor last evening, he beat up his wife Kanti Devi and six children. Later at night, he set his jhuggi on fire and ran
away. Kanti Devi managed to rescue four of her five daughters. She could not rescue her only son. The deceased were identified as Sachin (4) and Rubi (6). Nearby residents rushed to fight the flames but could not save the children . Samrala DSP Tejbir Singh said on Kanta Devi’s statement, a case under Section 302 of the IPC had been registered against Sri Pal, who had been arrested.
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Will go all out to eradicate polio: Pak panel chief
Ludhiana, February 5 Memon was talking to the Tribune after a meeting with members of the task force led by Shubh Karan Gupta, member of India's National Polio Plus Committee, and Amjad Ali, district governor RI 3090, here today. "Having observed that coordinated efforts of constituents of the Punjab Rotary Polio Force had resulted in required impetus in fight against polio during its last phase, I have decided to execute strategies and steps taken by it in our country," said Azia
Memon, accepting that impediments and challenges faced during the crusade launched against the dread disease were similar in India and
Pakistan. Emphasising the need for all out efforts during the last phase of the fight against the menace,
Memon, Gupta and Ali urged all Rotarians to gear up for the testing times ahead. The crusaders said stray cases in the two neighbouring countries which surfaced during the last year had set the alarm bells ringing once again. "Though the situation has improved a lot, we have to be overcautious to check infiltration of the virus. As the Type I polio virus
(brunhilde strain) is surrounded by high risk areas, it can go on the rampage any time," said Memon and Gupta while interacting with office-bearers of the district 3090. Admitting that a lot of time and energy was dissipated in persuading masses in Pakistan to accept the administration of polio drops, Memon showed satisfaction over results obtained in the recent past. "Though we started late, support from religious and social organisations besides out government has resulted in a situation wherein more and more people are joining the mission everyday," said
Memon, adding that social activists, including Rotarians, had started spreading the message even through hello tunes on their mobile phones. Fading enthusiasm and lack of parents' concern were identified as the major impediments in eradicating the maladies, including polio, in the two nations whereas institutionalised back-up from officials of the health and welfare department of the respective nations was recognised as the booster.
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SAD exploiting SGPC: Sarna
Amritsar, February 5 Sarna stated this while talking to The Tribune on his return from Pakistan where he had gone to pay obeisance at Nankana Sahib. He claimed that the DSGMC had done "groundbreaking work in Delhi gurdwaras in the last four years which was never witnessed in decades prior to it". "Already various projects worth over Rs 500 crore are underway in different shrines of Delhi. The results in our schools and colleges have vastly improved. We have set up three TV stations for propagation of Sikhism. Besides, our 39 preachers are working in different parts of Punjab. We have also made immense efforts in upkeep of historical gurdwaras in Pakistan," he said. Sarna lashed out at the SAD for "exploiting" the SGPC for political power and "belittling" the dignity of the Akal Takht by unceremoniously removing its jathedars like Joginder Singh Vedanti, Puran Singh and Bhai Ranjit Singh in the past. He said while the SAD allotted party tickets to "patits" (apostates) in the assembly elections, it did not handle the "sehajdhari" case aptly. "The SAD had claimed while celebrating the tercentenary of the Khalsa Panth in 1999 that they will baptise all Sikhs in Punjab but leave alone baptising Sikhs, one cannot find even 'keshdhari' Sikhs in the state," he added. The DSGMC chief said they would be contesting the elections on the issue of protecting and propagating Sikhism. Besides, they also aim to set up an organisation that can deal with the grievances being faced by the Sikh community at the global level. Referring to scrapping of black list, he appealed Sikhs across the world to apply for visa and visit India. "If they face any problem, the DSGMC will take up their issue". About the poll preparations of the SAD (Delhi), he said the party would announce all 46 candidates well before the start of the nomination process on February 16. "Around 38 names are more or less final while the rest will be finalised soon". Pak gurdwara to open to devotees
Talking about his Pakistan visit, Sarna said the Pakistani government had given its go ahead to opening the doors of historical Ber Sahib gurdwara for the devotees and has even invited tender bids for its renovation. He said the Evacuee Trust Property Board had handed over the responsibility of maintenance of sarai (inn) at Gurdwara Nankana Sahib to the
DSGMC.
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4 months after promotion...
Patiala, February 5 The headmasters are upset with the delay being caused by the department stating that it was causing them financial problems. After a long process of nearly a year, the department had promoted around 840 headmasters on October 5, 2011, but so far their posts have not been sanctioned. Despite joining new schools and serving in the capacity of headmasters, they are unable to draw their salaries. Sources said that the delay had been caused due to the lax working of the department. Even after two months of promotion, the DEO office,
Patiala, had not sent the proposal for sanctioning of these posts to the DPI office. The office had sent the proposal on December 6, but so far the authorities have not sanctioned the posts. Blaming the Education Department for callous attitude, one of the headmasters said, "The entire process has been delayed because of the lackadaisical attitude of the officials. They are not paying any heed to our problems, as a result of which we are facing severe financial crisis." Another teacher said that despite making repeated calls and visits to the head office in Chandigarh, they were only getting mere assurances that the work would be completed soon. However, officials in the DEO office said that they were waiting for the posts to be sanctioned by the higher authorities. Only then the salaries would be released, they added.
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Turning to Bajrang Bali for electoral success
Muktsar, February 5 While,
Fattanwala, a cousin of PPP chief Manpreet Singh Badal, has visited the Salasar Dham in Churu district of Rajasthan, about 130 km from
Jaipur, Barkandi is all set to visit the temple on February 7. Talking to the Tribune, Fattanwala said: “Before the assembly elections, my friends had asked me to visit the Salasar Dham to pay obeisance to Lord Hanuman. Owing to a hectic campaign schedule, I could not go there. So, after the elections, I went to Salasar on February 2. “I prayed for my electoral victory.” Barkandi said: “Being a follower of Bajrang Bali, I will pay obeisance at the Salsar
Dham. I also plan a visit to the Golden Temple and Hazoor Sahib.” Karan Kaur
Brar, wife of sitting MLA Kanwarjeet Singh Brar “Sunny”, was the Congress candidate from this constituency.
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Rain sends temperatures soaring
Chandigarh, February 5 The mercury hovered between 5 degrees Celcius and 1 degree Celsius above normal, the Met Department said here today.
Amritsar recorded a minimum temperature of 8.4 degrees Celsius, three notches above normal. Ludhiana settled at a low of 10.4 degrees Celsius, four notches above normal, and Patiala at 11.2 degrees Celsius, four degrees above normal. Chandigarh had a low of 12.2 degrees Celsius, five notches above normal. Ludhiana recording 11.4 mm of rainfall, Balachaur 11.3 mm, Garhshankar 6 mm, Samrala and Kharar 5 mm each, Ropar 4 mm, Chandigarh 2.8 mm and Patiala 0.5 mm. The Met Department has forecasted dry weather with a rise in the minimum and maximum temperatures in Punjab during the next 24 hours. — PTI
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Mika working on film based on his life
Singapore, February 5 "The story is being put together," he said. The film would be directed by Shashanka Ghosh of the 2009 comedy 'Quick Gun Murugan' fame. Mika, who started as a singer 13 years ago after leaving his brother Daler Mehndi's band as a guitarist, said the story would cover his journey to becoming a popular singer over the years. The 'Something Something' hit-maker said he was also being approached to act in films but was too busy with his concerts and song recordings. Besides singing hit Punjab and Hindi songs for Bollywood, Mika said he had also recorded songs in Telegu, Tamil, Bengali, Bhojpuri and Haryanvi. He said he was penning a song for actor Sunil Shetty's next film. "On an average, I would like to do two to three hit songs a year," said Mika, who was here for his first singing event in Singapore. "The Singapore concert is a an important start to my Asian tours and I hope to host one every year in the city-state," Mika said. "It is the mixed community of Indians, Pakistanis and Bengalis that give me an opportunity to sing for them and entertain them," he said, adding that he hoped to sign in as many languages as possible. Mika's next concert would be on February 10 in Hong Kong even as he has begun planning a public concert in Pakistan in the coming months. Mika talked about his non-governmental organisation ‘Divine Touch’ which he said had been expanded from "langar" services at gurdwaras to supporting needy women. "We take in a batch of 300 girls and women in the age16-40 age bracket every six months and help them with basic education as well as training in arts and handicraft," he said.
— PTI
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Ludhiana to host ‘Saras mela’
Ludhiana, February 5 Self-help groups from all over the country are expected to set up at least 300 stalls at the 12-day extravaganza. According to sources, the state government had decided to hold the mela in Ludhiana about two months back, but owing to the assembly elections, the dates for the mela
could not be finalised. The Ministry of Rural Development provides Rs 20 lakh for organising the event to promote self-help groups. Sources in the ADC Development Office (nodal Office) here said the district administration had called for a
meeting on February 9 to decide on the mela venue and other arrangements. "Two venues have been shortlisted for the event- Punjab Agriculture University and Government College for Women- but a final decision will be taken on February 9. All states will set up 10 stalls each. The district administration will make board and lodging arrangements for at least 1,000 persons", said an official. The mela is an annual feature. In Punjab, it has been held at Bathinda, Ropar and Patiala districts in the past.
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Ludhiana boy in Georgian jail, Centre’s help sought
Chandigarh, February 4 Rohit's mother had received a call from Georgia recently. The caller, who identified himself as Dilbagh Singh and a friend of
Rohit, told her that she should arrange to send Rs 20,000 in Georgia so that Rohit's lawyer could be paid. He said that Rohit was in jail and there was a need to hire a
lawyer. Khaira asked the MEA to instruct the Indian Embassy officials to contact Dilbagh Singh to ascertain the whereabouts of
Rohit.
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Pollution board going slow on raids
Patiala, February 5 Senior officers of the Board said that the special drive, which was "suspended" in the third week of December, was unlikely to be resumed till formation of the new government. Many senior field officers of the Board have claimed that they have got verbal instructions from the top brass not to conduct any surprise raid, primarily due to "political reasons"."Since majority of the industrialists have political affiliations, the authorities seem worried that conducting raids at particular industry may raise a storm. Hence, we have been given verbal instructions not to conduct any surprise raid on any category of the industry", said a senior environmental engineer posted in Majha region, while preferring anonymity. Notably, in view of the fact that industry plays a significant role in raising funds during elections, the PPCB had stopped conducting raids on various industries in the state, including distilleries, dyeing units, plastic manufacturers, brick kilns, battery manufacturers etc. It is pertinent to mention that from the month of June last till mid December, the then PPCB chairman Kahan Singh Pannu had issued instructions to all the field officers to meticulously plan and conduct surprise raids. The pace at which the Board had conducted raids across the state, including Patiala, Amritsar, Ludhiana, Tarn Taran, Dera Bassi, Jalandhar and Ferozepur, was unprecedented. During the period, the Board had issued show-cause notices to hundreds of the violators and one of the distillery units was even sealed for defying the pollution norms. However, in December Pannu was replaced with Raminder Singh. Raminder joined the office on December 21 but soon after Ravinder Singh (PCS) was given the charge of the PPCB chairman. "Because of the laxity shown by the PPCB by stalling its drive, there are reports that many industries have again started defying water and air pollution control norms", said senior Board officers. Refuting that the drive to conduct surprise raids has been discontinued, Board Member Secretary Dr Babu Ram said, "If we are not supplying information about the raids to media does not mean that the Board has suspended the drive." However, when confronted, Babu Ram failed to given any statistics about the raids conducted as per his claims. He, however, justified himself by stating, "It is the routine process and giving figures off hand is not possible." Seechewal to take up matter with senior officials Noted environmentalist and PPCB member Balbir Singh Seechewal said that he would strongly take up the matter with senior Board authorities. "Discontinuing the surprise raids is totally uncalled for and will adversely affect the momentum made by the Board against the defaulting industrial units", he said. Expressing anguish over the matter, Seechewal assured that he would not only press the Board to resume the drive but would also find out the reasons as to why the drive had been suspended.
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Gurdev Badal hospitalised
Ludhiana, February 5 Dr GS Wander, chief cardioligist of the Institute, said that he would be discharged in a few days. Former Agriculture Minister Gurdev Badal (78) had been MLA several times from Panjgrain constituency in Faridkot district. But after delimitation, Panjgrain was declared a reserve constituency and in the recently held assembly elections, he contested from Jaito constituency in Faridkot district.
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Another clash between rival party workers
Amritsar, February 5 Lakhwinder Singh, alias Lalli, in his complaint registered under Sections 307, 452, 324, 325, 323, 148 and 149 of the
IPC, alleged that led by Chaman Lal, a group of Congress workers had entered into a brawl with them as they had voted for the BJP candidate from Amritsar (North). Among those booked include are Chaman
Lal, his wife Rita, their sons Sandeep, Pardeep and Vicky; Ashok Kumar his wife Raje and their sons Sonu and
Aman; Rakesh Kumar and his wife Kamlesh, all residents of Sanjay Gandhi Colony, and Manu of Gali Ghumiaran
Wali, Faizpura. Chaman Lal alleged that it was Lalli and his supporters who had attacked his family with sharp-edged weapons. He told the police that Lalli had been coercing them into voting for the BJP candidate. "When they learnt that we had voted in favour of the Congress, they started thrashing us."
Amrik Singh, investigating officer and incharge of the Faizpura police post, said a cross-case had been registered on the basis of complaints lodged by both the groups. He said no arrest had been made so far. Meanwhile, the police has arrested Sai and his father Dalbir Singh for their involvement in the clash between BJP and Congress workers a couple of days back.
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Akali workers assault Congress man’s son
Malout, February 5 The police said Deepak
Bajaj, 17, financier Varinder Bajaj's son, was going for collection of money when four motorcycle-borne youths stopped him and without any provocation started beating him up. They also stabbed him in the arm with a sharp-edged weapon. Passersby came to Deepak's rescue, but the accused managed to escape. Acting on a complaint filed by Deepak, the police registered a case of attempt to murder against the four youths, including Lovepreet Singh, alias Lucky, Sharanjeet Singh and
Heera. The fourth accused is yet to be identified. The complainant has also alleged that the accused had decamped with nearly Rs 10,000 and a gold
chain. ASI Sukhwinder Singh said as per the preliminary investigation, the incident appeared to be the result of some old enmity between the two groups which started during the assembly elections. He said, "Though the accused are still at large, the hunt is on to nab them". Meanwhile, the victim got five stitches in the arm and was admitted to the Government Hospital here.
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Two minor children were charred to death when their jhuggi was set on fire by their father at Herian village near Samrala.
Sri Pal, a resident of Utttar Pradesh, was a habitual drinker. After he had consumed liquor last evening, he beat up his wife Kanti Devi and six children. Later at night, he set his jhuggi on fire and ran
away.
Singapore, February 5
Ludhiana, February 5
Chandigarh, February 5