B A T H I N D A    E D I T I O N

Govt depts default on power bills in Moga
Moga, February 8
The Punjab State Power Corporation Limited, facing a financial crunch, is passing through hard times in collecting lakhs of rupees from many government departments due towards their electricity bills in the Moga district.

10 kids among 13 ill after eating ‘panjeeri’
Faridkot, February 8
At least ten students and three women fell ill reportedly after eating the mid-day meal at the Anganwari centre in Niamiwala village of Kotkapura block in Faridkot district today.

Children undergoing treatment at Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital in Faridkot on Wednesday evening. A Tribune photograph

Five booked for ‘assaulting’ police party
Fazilka, February 8
Five persons, including three women of a family, have been booked for allegedly assaulting the Sadar police party in village Chandmari of Fazilka sub-division, as the latter had gone to investigate a petrol pump robbery case.

Organic farmers take initiatives to renew sweetness of ‘jaggery’
Faridkot, February 8
“Gur nalo ishq mitha”. This hit Punjabi song would have been savoured by every Punjabi seeking to strike uniformity/comparison between gur (jaggery) and ishq (love). But all thanks to the indiscriminate use of chemicals in making of gur, this coarse sweetener is now no more a much-loved inducement for a connoisseur of good food.

Organic farmers making gur at Bada Bhai Ka village in Faridkot. Photo by writer

Opium, poppy husk seized; four held
Abohar, February 8
The sub-divisional police have arrested four persons for smuggling three kg of opium and 18 kg poppy husk from Rajasthan. DSP Vibhor Kumar told the media this afternoon that Khuyiansarwar police nabbed Satnam Singh and Dalbir Singh of Tarn Taran district as they were carrying 3 kg of opium near village Maujgarh on Sriganganagar-Abohar road (NH-15).

Village girl tops in BHMS exam, honoured
Abohar, February 8
Kanwaljeet Kaur of village Gaddandob and a student of Homeopathic Medical College here has topped in the BHMS examination conducted by Guru Ravidas Ayurveda University (Hoshiarpur).

Army gears up to combat cyber security threat
Ferozepur, February 8
The Indian Army is gearing up for an altogether different battle. It is not the conventional warfare against an enemy from across the border, but the escalating cyber security threat.

Army officials attending a workshop on cyber security organised under the aegis of the Golden Arrow Division in Ferozepur on Wednesday. A Tribune photograph

Kinnow plant staff looted 
Abohar, February 8
Unidentified persons attacked and looted Rs one lakh from the cashier of a kinnow waxing and grading plant near village Dharampura, about 12 km from here.

Two killed
Abohar, February 8
Motorcyclists Kalu Ram and Ram Chand of village Shergarh were killed on the spot when their vehicle hit a small bridge near village Bhangarkhera of the sub division while averting collision with stray cattle.

 Govt depts default on power bills in Moga
Kulwinder Sandhu
Tribune News Service

Moga, February 8
The Punjab State Power Corporation Limited, facing a financial crunch, is passing through hard times in collecting lakhs of rupees from many government departments due towards their electricity bills in the Moga district.

The public health and water supply department is the biggest defaulter on account of the bills of power used for pumping and supplying water in the rural areas.

As on January 31, the SDOs of the public health department owe Rs 41,000 for power consumption in water works at Mauje Wala village, Rs 1.14 lakh in Duneke village, Rs 1.5 lakh in Landeke village, Rs 7.49 lakh in Badhni Kalan village, Rs 8.11 lakh in Rauke Kalan village, Rs 1.89 lakh in Maliana village, Rs 6.15 lakh in Lopon village, Rs 7.30 lakh in Kokari Kalan village, Rs 2.65 lakh in Kokri Phula Singh village, Rs 8.57 lakh in Chuhar Chak village, Rs 1.36 lakh Bahona village and more than Rs 30 lakh in many other villages of the district.

Apart from this, the village panchayats also owe lakhs of rupees to the power corporation on account of the bills of power used for pumping and supplying water. The village panchayat of Kokri owes over Rs 4 lakh, Daudhar Rs 1.65 lakh, Killi Chahal Rs 1.69 lakh, Ramuwala Rs 4 lakh, Kishanpura Rs 6.68 lakh, Jalalabad Rs 4.10 lakh, Jindra Data Rs 2.68 lakh, Indergarh Rs 2.62 lakh, Dagru Rs 1.37 lakh, Salina Rs 2.23 lakh, Mangewala Rs 1.118 lakh, Dharamkot Rs 5.40 lakh. Many other panchayats have also not paid more than Rs 40 lakh to the power corporation against the power bills.

The panchayats collect a lump sump from the consumers directly to provide potable water to the rural folks but they did not pay the bills against their electricity bills, which have been piling up for the past many months.

An official of the power corporation, while talking to The Tribune, said the corporation has started serving notices to the defaulter departments and panchayats and also cut off power supply to as many as 13 village water works in the Moga suburban division.

Not only the public health and water supply department and the panchayats, the power bills are also pending against many other government departments. The police station (rural) of Moga has not paid Rs 1.15 lakh to the power corporation, police station (north) Moga Rs 60,000, police station Badhni Kalan Rs 89,000 and police station (south) Moga Rs 14,000.

The health department has also not paid power bills to the tune of more than Rs 10 lakhs in the district. The bills pending against power consumption are for the health centres at Kishanpura, Jalalabad, Fatehgarh, Dagru, Daroli Bhai, Khosa Randhir Singh, Badhni Kalan and many other villages.

There are also more than 50 government schools in the district that have not paid their power bills, revealed a senior official of the power corporation. 

 10 kids among 13 ill after eating ‘panjeeri’
Balwant Garg
Tribune News Service

Faridkot, February 8
At least ten students and three women fell ill reportedly after eating the mid-day meal at the Anganwari centre in Niamiwala village of Kotkapura block in Faridkot district today.

According to the students and their parents, the children were served ‘panjeeri’ at the centre and they started vomiting after reaching their home.

It was not only the small children but the mothers of three kids also who fell ill after eating the panjeeri, brought home by their children.

Seven of the affected children have been admitted to the Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital, Faridkot.

The condition of all the ailing children is out of danger, said Mohan Lal, additional deputy commissioner (ADC), Faridkot, who reached the hospital to enquire about the health of the children.

The health department has sealed the ‘panjeeri’ and samples have been sent for laboratory and chemical examination, said the ADC.

The children have been diagnosed with mild food poisoning. Though they had not been discharged till late in the evening, doctors said their condition was not serious.

Ten children, Rahul (4), Gurjeewan (7), Hardeep (11), Dharajit (4), Shivjeet Kaur (6), Santokh Singh (5), Sumandeep Kaur (4), Komal (5), Teena (3) and Rakesh (4) of Anganwari center in the village complained of mild food poisoning after they reached their homes.

Even three women, Satbir Kaur (30), Manjit Kaur (30) and Manpreet Kaur (35) had a similar complaint after eating the ‘panjeeri’ brought home by their children.

Nobody’s condition was was serious but all of them complained of stomach-ache and some of them were vomiting, said a rural medical practitioner (RMP) in the village who informed the Civil Hospital, Kotkapura, about the problem.

Soon, all the affected were brought to Kotkapura Civil Hospital and seven children were further referred to Medical College, Faridkot.

Amarjit Kaur, Children Development Project Officer (CDPO), said the ‘panjeeri’ served was made in January this year and the expiry date was in April 2012. This stock of ‘panjeeri’ was distributed at three centres and there was no complaint from the other two centers, she said.

“However, we are investigating the matter,” said the CDPO.

 Five booked for ‘assaulting’ police party
Our Correspondent

Fazilka, February 8
Five persons, including three women of a family, have been booked for allegedly assaulting the Sadar police party in village Chandmari of Fazilka sub-division, as the latter had gone to investigate a petrol pump robbery case.

On the other hand, the villagers, led by CPI leaders Hans Raj Golden and Surinder Dhandian, held a protest in Partap Bagh today alleging that the police is trying to involve the “innocent persons” in petrol pump looting case and thrashed them.

As per the FIR lodged with the Sadar police, Fazilka, by the SHO, Chhinderpal Singh himself, he along with a police party reached village Chandmari to investigate and nab some suspects regarding the robbery at petrol pump at gunpoint on February 1.

It has been mentioned in the FIR that when the police party went to the village on Tuesday late evening to nab a suspect Baljit Singh, son of Gian Singh, the latter fled from the house after seeing the police officials.

When the police party asked the family members to produce Baljit Singh before the police, three women including the wife of Gian Singh, his daughter-in- law and daughter, allegedly thrashed the police officials.

The police registered an FIR under sections 353,186 and 332 against three women besides Gian Singh and Baljit Singh. No arrest has been made so far.

On the other hand, a large number of villagers met Fazilka SSP today and lodged their protest against SHO Chhinderpal Singh for allegedly falsely implicating the villagers in robbery case.

The villagers led by CPI district secretary Hans Raj Golden and the CPI candidate from Fazilka Assembly constituency Surinder Dhandian alleged that the family members of Gian Singh has been trapped into false case and police have allegedly committed atrocities on women also.

They have demanded cancellation of the FIR.

The villagers have warned of launching an agitation against the policemen concerned if their demand was not fulfilled.

 Organic farmers take initiatives to renew sweetness of ‘jaggery’
Balwant Garg
Tribune News Service

Faridkot, February 8
“Gur nalo ishq mitha”. This hit Punjabi song would have been savoured by every Punjabi seeking to strike uniformity/comparison between gur (jaggery) and ishq (love).

But all thanks to the indiscriminate use of chemicals in making of gur, this coarse sweetener is now no more a much-loved inducement for a connoisseur of good food.

So, in their attempt to make gur once again ‘sweet like love’, some farmers in this region of Punjab have started growing natural (organic) sugarcane and making jaggery, using no chemical, thus enriching gur with its natural goodness of minerals and vitamins, inherently present in sugarcane juice.

Two decades back, it was not only western Uttar Pradesh which was known as gur cottage industry but in a cluster of every three-four villages of this region of Punjab, there was a kulhada (a small gur manufacturing unit) where the farmers used to make their gur, using their home-grown sugarcane to meet their family needs.

But this sweet delicacy started getting a high dose of chemicals when farmers in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh began to use excessive urea to get high yields.

There was high use of chemical cleaning agents to give white colour to gur, said Amarjit Sharma, an organic farmer in Chaina village of Faridkot.

In the last one decade, when more and more farmers stopped growing sugarcane, most of the kulhadas in the region were closed and people started relying mainly on gur from UP.

Like sugar, manufacture of gur now employs a pot-pourri of chemicals like sodium hydrosulphite, super phosphate, decolite, urea, soft stone powder and ammonium bicarbonate in UP. “So gur, which was known for treating many infections and health problems, is no more a favourite in our plates,” said Dr Rajinder Chauhan of Kotkapura.

“Many a time, the gur in the market is so poisonous due to the use of chemicals that even animals do not like to eat it,” said Gurmail Singh Dhillon, an organic farmer in Jaitu.

So, in the absence of pure quality gur in the market, some farmers started growing natural and organic sugarcane. “We process the gur in a natural way and no chemical is added at any stage of its processing,” said Amarjit Sharma.

Now some farmers have started growing sugarcane for their own consumption and some kulhadas have also started working. “We are hopeful of more and more farmers resuming the old practice of making gur for their own consumption,” said Gurmail Dhillon.

“Due to its poor quality, the future of jaggery trade is bleak in UP. High use of chemicals has sounded the death-knell for gur business in the state and the gur import from UP to Punjab is declining every year,” said Surinder Sachdeva, a trader.

 Opium, poppy husk seized; four held
Our Correspondent

Abohar, February 8
The sub-divisional police have arrested four persons for smuggling three kg of opium and 18 kg poppy husk from Rajasthan. DSP Vibhor Kumar told the media this afternoon that Khuyiansarwar police nabbed Satnam Singh and Dalbir Singh of Tarn Taran district as they were carrying 3 kg of opium near village Maujgarh on Sriganganagar-Abohar road (NH-15).

Another police party arrested Balbir Singh of Ferozepur and recovered 15 kg of poppy husk during checking at Danewala Satkosi crossing that connects Abohar with border town Hindumalkot of Sriganganagar, Krishan Kumar of village Sappanwali was arrested with 3 kg poppy husk. 

 Village girl tops in BHMS exam, honoured

Abohar, February 8
Kanwaljeet Kaur of village Gaddandob and a student of Homeopathic Medical College here has topped in the BHMS examination conducted by Guru Ravidas Ayurveda University (Hoshiarpur).

 Army gears up to combat cyber security threat
Anirudh Gupta

Ferozepur, February 8
The Indian Army is gearing up for an altogether different battle. It is not the conventional warfare against an enemy from across the border, but the escalating cyber security threat.

In this connection, the Golden Arrow Division of the Indian Army conducted a two-day training workshop to acquaint its officer and men regarding cyber security issues and the looming threats of hacking of its vital data. The event concluded here at Mamdot hall in the cantonment area.

In this workshop organised by the Barki Brigade, senior officials from the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (MCIT) and Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) gave a detailed talk on cyber technology, cyber security threats, type of cyber attacks and various methods adopted by hackers and anti-national elements to extract military information.

In his inaugural address, Maj-Gen RK Sharma, General Officer Commanding (GOC), emphasised the need for a constant vigil and alertness to prevent hacking of important information. The GOC said the aim of organising this workshop was to increase awareness among the officers and troops about cyber security issues and its consequences. Anil Sagar, Director (Operations), from the Department of Information and Technology (MCIT) sensitised the officers, JCOs and ORs on the cyber security issues. He also gave a talk about the actions carried out by CERT to handle such threats. SS Sharma, Director, CERT, spoke about the threats to the Army networks and measures needed to counter the same.

Army officials lauded efforts of the CERT team which also gave a live demonstration of the hacking capabilities. Senior Army officials said the CERT team was able to provide in-depth knowledge of the prevailing cyber security concerns at the national and international levels. The workshop concluded with a question-answer session where the audience showed a keen interest to update their knowledge on various such issues. Another official said, "The workshop was really educative," adding that it was high time that the armed forces should adopt requisite defensive measures imperative to prevent hacking of its data.

  Kinnow plant staff looted 

Abohar, February 8
Unidentified persons attacked and looted Rs one lakh from the cashier of a kinnow waxing and grading plant near village Dharampura, about 12 km from here.

  Two killed

Abohar, February 8
Motorcyclists Kalu Ram and Ram Chand of village Shergarh were killed on the spot when their vehicle hit a small bridge near village Bhangarkhera of the sub division while averting collision with stray cattle.