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70 per cent jail inmates addicted to drugs
Steep rise in dog bite cases in Doaba belt
House committee proposals in limbo
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Review ban on ox-cart race, DC told
SGPC heading towards a crisis?
Manpreet says PPP will play kingmaker
Malvinder’s defection had no impact: Preneet
ADGP Mustafa could be in trouble
State on fourth spot in use of MPLAD fund
Top cops unavailable on official phones
Board examination
Missing Amritsar girl case
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70 per cent jail inmates addicted to drugs
Jalandhar, February 10 Drugs like heroin, cocaine and smack are being reportedly smuggled inside jails by peddlers and couriers, most of them children. These drugs are easily available at ‘friendly kiryana shops’ and medical stores in the vicinity of jails. With the inmates vehemently resisting efforts by the jail staff to take their blood samples to ascertain if they are suffering from the disease, the exact number of those affected is not known. “More than 70 per cent of the 18,000 inmates are on drugs. Jail doctors do not have the authority to coerce them into giving their blood samples. We are trying to persuade them to do so voluntarily. “Routine medical checkups have revealed that a large number of inmates have infected genitals,” said DGP (Jails) Shashi Kant. That the jail inmates are addicted to drugs became clear when at least 300 inmates showed withdrawal symptoms in the aftermath of the clashes between the jail staff and the inmates at the high-security Kapurthala jail in November 2011. Against a capacity to hold 15,000 inmates, the Punjab jails — eight central jails, eight district jails, one high-security jail at Nabha and one open jail at Nabha — house more than 18,000 inmates. A probe into the high incidence of addiction by the jail authorities reveals that children are being used by peddlers for smuggling drugs into and out of jails. “The couriers use novel methods like milk powder to smuggle drugs inside jails. Each child is paid a daily wage of Rs 100 for the task,” said Shashi Kant. He said Sikh exponent Bhai Baljit Singh had agreed to hold a music workshop for the inmates at the Kapurthala Model Jail. “He has also agreed to hold a musical concert in the jail before February 20 to wean the inmates away from drugs.” Various commissions and committees set up by the SAD-BJP government on jail reforms failed to achieve much. The government, it is learnt, is yet to implement the recommendations made by Justice Amar Dutt who had also suggested improvements in the judicial system to ensure speedy trial. The commission that was constituted more than a year back submitted its report six months back. Another reform committee was headed by former IPS officer NPS Aulakh.
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Steep rise in dog bite cases in Doaba belt
Jalandhar, February 10 On an average 10-12 cases of dog bite are reported from Hoshiarpur, Phagwara, Kapurthala, Kartarpur, Nakodar, Shahkot and Phillaur everday. The civic authorities in these cities have failed to find a solution to the stray dog menace. “The population of stray dogs is beyond control. Nobody wants to touch them for fear of animal rights organisations.” said Jalandhar Civil Surgeon Dr Avtar Singh Jarewal. Having sterilised more than 1,000 dogs, the Jalandhar Municipal Corporation authorities allegedly shelved the sterilisation drive about three years back when the city’s lone dog compound at Burlton Park was closed about two years ago for renovating the Burlton Park Stadium. The Jalandhar MC, sources say, have just one pick-up vehicle and just six employees to catch stray dogs. Dogs picked up from one locality are often left in other parts of the city, complain residents. Mayor Rakesh Rathour has assured the residents that the sterilisation campaign will be re-started in the city shortly. In Jalandhar, there is hardly any locality that has remained unaffected by stray dogs. “The city localities have more than 3,000 stray dogs,” claimed Dr Amar Iqbal Singh, a senior veterinary officer with the Punjab Animal Husbandry Department. That the stray dog menace has assumed alarming proportions in Jalandhar is clear from the fact that eight persons were bitten by a stray dog on Monday on the 0.5 km stretch between the Jyoti Chowk and Nakodar Chowk. “Even a small city like Nakodar is getting 10 dog bite cases everyday. The Jalandhar Civil Hospital has received 300 such cases. We have exhausted our stock of the anti-rabies vaccine,” Dr Jarewal said. Officials said till the arrival of fresh stocks, the victims would have to get themselves treated at private hospitals. While, the subsidised price of an anti-rabies shot at the Civil Hospital is Rs 100, it is available at private hospitals for a minimum of Rs 380, sources said.
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House committee proposals in limbo
Bathinda, February 10 “Our main thrust is on managing the dog population through sterilisation as done by the Himachal Pradesh Government.
The Himachal Pradesh Government was able to control the simian population in the state by outsourcing these services,” said sitting MLA of Pacca Kalan Makhan Singh, who was on the Vidhan Sabha sub-committee. The HP government, he said, roped in agencies from Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra who caught the monkeys, sterilised them and then left
them back in the same surroundings. For this, meetings with Animal Husbandry and Health official s were held. One of the proposals made by the Punjab House panel is that the dumping ground for carcasses be located far away from thoroughfares and high boundary walls (5 feet) be erected around them. Another suggestion was that the dogs be sent to Nagaland where dog meat is a delicacy. The MC had formulated a project in 2009 under which dogs were to be caught, operated upon and released. The cost of the entire procedure, fixed at Rs 510 per dog, was to be borne by the Animal Welfare Board and the Bathinda MC.
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Review ban on ox-cart race, DC told
Chandigarh/Kila Raipur, February 10 Taking up the petition, Justice Mittal directed the DC to look carefully into the representations submitted by the association; and if necessary lift the ban on using bullock carts in the Kila Raipur sports festival. The court order has came a day after the popular rural sport of bullock-cart racing was banned following objections raised by the Indian chapter of International Organisation for Animal Protection (OIPA) and People for Animal. As the case came up for hearing this morning, the petitioner prayed for permission to conduct the races in the ongoing sports extravaganza, which will continue till February 12. The petitioner said: “The festival attracts thousands of people across the globe and they come to see special breeds of bullocks, camels, dogs, mules and other animals competing here. And, if there will be a ban on these races, the real charm of this festival will be lost.” The petitioner said on February 9, when the games were going on, the station house officer of the Dehlon police station in Ludhiana interrupted the proceedings. Dubbing the action of the police and other authorities as totally capricious, the petitioner added: “The SHO stopped the sports festival and issued a letter asking the organisers to immediately stop the bullock-cart race. The letter cited a notification dated July 11, 2011, according to which, bull racing has been banned.” “But the provisions of The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, have been grossly misread by the respondents and the action of stopping the association from conducting bullock-cart races is totally arbitrary,” said the petitioner. Confusion prevailed at the games venue as some bullock-cart owners reached there with their animals. They claimed that the organisers had told them to come at the venue. But they were not allowed to take part in the festival. “We were told to come at the venue with our oxen. But until we get a permission from the administration, how can we take part in the festival, rued Jasbir Singh Bittu, president of Bail Dhorak Committee, Punjab. Ludhiana DC Rahul Tiwari said: “I have not received any order from the Punjab and Haryana High Court yet. When the order comes, the directions of the court would be implemented.” Ajay Jain, a PETA representative, said he can only comment after going through the order.
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SGPC heading towards a crisis?
Amritsar, February 10 The annual budget of the SGPC has to be passed by its executive as well as the General House before March 31. The SGPC needs to issue notices to its members informing them about the Budget Session 21 days in advance after getting it passed from the executive. However, the executive of the newly elected SGPC House is yet to be formed. This means the SGPC has now less than a month left to get its executive in place and the annual budget passed by it. The executive is formed alongside the election of the new office-bearers, a process which is getting delayed due to the ongoing legal process over the Sehajdhari row. Though the SGPC election process got completed with the issuance of a notification of the new SGPC House on December 16, following the elections on September 18 and co-option on December 5, the Union government hasn’t given a green signal to the SGPC session for electing its new office-bearers. As per the Sikh Gurdwara Act, 1925, the elections of the new office-bearers should be held within a month of the notification of the new House. Going by the norm, the meeting of the new House to elect the office-bearers should have been called by January 15. SGPC secretary Dalmegh Singh said they were in a tight spot as the time for the budget session was fast approaching. However, he clarified they had set the ball rolling as far as the preparation of the annual SGPC budget was concerned. He hoped they would get some respite from either the court or the government to facilitate smooth passage of the budget. Dalmegh Singh said apart from the budget, they were also finding it difficult to run their day-to-day affairs due to the delay in the election of the new SGPC team. “We are managing the work by keeping the nod for various expenses pending. For instance, we have already organised Jor Mela at Fatehgarh Sahib and Maghi Mela at Muktsar Sahib in the absence of necessary sanction for expenditure made in holding these events and now we may have to do the same on Baisakhi if the new SGPC team is not elected by then,” he said. According to him, the SGPC president has the powers to sanction a maximum of Rs 25,000 and any amount above it has to be sanctioned by the SGPC executive. Noted lawyer HS Phoolka said the court had not quashed the recent SGPC elections and, therefore, the Centre could call a session of the new SGPC House to elect its office-bearers. However, former Sikh Gurdwara Judicial Commission chairman Kashmir Singh Patti said the SGPC could not pass the annual budget in the current scenario.
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Manpreet says PPP will play kingmaker
Manpreet along with his father Gurdas Singh Badal was here to express grief over the demise of PPP's Bathinda (Urban) constituency candidate Sukhdeep Singh Bhinder's father Pritpal Singh. The PPP president claimed there was a triangular contest between the Congress, the SAD-BJP and the PPP in the assembly elections. He claimed, “There would be an unexpected result this time as the state people had voted silently." On which party would he support in case of a hung House, Manpreet said, "Whichever party agrees to implement the PPP agenda will get out support." Regarding his ailment, Manpreet said the cyst in his neck had receded up to 50 per cent with steroids, but the doctors had told him that they would evaluate the disease after two weeks.
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Malvinder’s defection had no impact: Preneet
"Raninder is sure to win as no Congress worker left the party with Malvinder," said Preneet Kaur, who had come here to express grief over the demise of Sukhpal Kaur, wife of former Congress Minister Gurnam Singh Abul Khurana. Preneet said “the Congress was confident of securing 62-70 seats”. On whether she would fight Malvinder in the next Lok Sabha elections, as the latter had already announced to contest the elections against her, she said, "He is most welcome." Malvinder Singh has earlier said Preneet Kaur was instrumental in getting his candidature rejected by the Congress high command for the allotment of ticket to her son.
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5 Pakistani prisoners released
Amritsar, February 10 Among those who crossed over to Pakistan include three prisoners who have lost their mental balance during imprisonment. Nazir Muhammad of Karachi said he had come over to India in September 2001 to meet his relatives at Jaipur. The Rajasthan Police held him after the expiry of his visa. He was lodged in a Jaipur jail and released following an instruction of the apex court to release foreign prisoners who have completed their jail term. Another Pakistan resident, Nur Aalam, revealed that he had illegally crossed over to India through the Khemkaran-Kasur sector and was caught by the Rajasthan Police eight months ago. He said although he had to face imprisonment, but he was happy that he managed to pay obeisance at Ajmer Sharif, which was his main motive to enter the country.
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Only 7.2% rural students reach college: PAU study
Chandigarh, February 10 Conducted at the instance of the Punjab State Farmers Commission, the study reveals that 38 per cent of the rural population had never been to school. It says even at present, 9.5 per cent of the rural children were out of school. The study maintains that there was hardly any difference between the education standard in government and private schools. According to PAU scientists, including Dr Karam Singh, RS Sidhu, Sukhpal Singh, Simran K Sidhu, GS Romana and Bhupinder Singh, the poor state of affairs persisted despite the creation of good educational infrastructure in rural areas. The team visited 50 elementary schools for the study and found only 62 per cent of the teachers present on the day of their visit to schools. It was revealed that there were 140 teachers for 250 classes in the 50 schools and that teaching suffered as the teachers were also expected to do administrative duties. Also, it was revealed that a majority of the students in government schools were from Scheduled Caste families and poor strata of the society. However, on the other hand, children from better off families going to private schools in rural areas were also not faring any better. During a random test of Class VI students who were asked questions from the syllabus of Class V, only 16 and 31 per cent of the students were able to answer questions in maths and science correctly. In case of private schools, the figure was 3 per cent and 8 per cent, respectively.
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ADGP Mustafa could be in trouble
Chandigarh, February 10 The EC has asked the government to initiate action against him for violating the Indian Police Service Rules in case the forensic laboratory establishes that the voice is his. The audio-clip was sent to the commission by SAD candidate from Malerkotla in which Mustafa was heard making political and religious statements. Chief Secretary Subodh Chandra Agrawal said he had sent the audio CD to Home Secretary DS Bains for voice-matching. “He will send it to the forensic laboratory. We will wait for the report and act accordingly,” Agrawal said. Mustafa was not available for comment. As per the service rules, a public servant is not allowed to take part in political activities. If the forensic experts’ report confirms Mustafa’s voice, he can face departmental action. The direction comes a few days after Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal accused the commission of going soft on Mustafa. The officer had proceeded on leave stating that he was unwell.
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State on fourth spot in use of MPLAD fund
Chandigarh, February 10 Tamil Nadu leads the way with 94.49 per cent utilisation of funds followed by Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh at 92.57 per cent and 92.33 per cent, respectively. Kerala and Punjab with 92.13 per cent utilisation of funds each are on the fourth spot. At a review meeting in Delhi recently, the Union Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation appreciated the Punjab Government with the state’s seven districts, including Amritsar, Hoshiarpur, Patiala and Sangrur, in the top 30 that saw the maximum use of the MPLAD funds. The names of MPs Ambika Soni and Avinash Rai Khanna, Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa and MS Gill were mentioned in this regard. The Centre has now enhanced the annual allocation to MPs from Rs 2 crore to Rs 5 crore. From the available funds of Rs 928.39 lakh, the Amritsar MP Navjot Singh Sidhu recommended works worth Rs 872.79 lakh and Patiala MP Preneet Kaur worth Rs 935.25 lakh, exhausting the entire amount available with her. Paramjit Kaur Gulshan, Sher Singh Ghubia, Manish Tiwari, Sukhdev Singh Libra, Ravneet Singh Bittu and Dr Rattan Singh Ajnala approved works worth more than 90 per cent of the amount available with them. Other MPs approved works worth 80 per cent or more of the amount available with them. The MPs recommend works to the DC of the nodal district. It is the executing agencies that use the funds and provide a funds utilisation certificate. The Economic Adviser to Punjab, Mohan Lal Sharma, whose Economic and Statistical Department works as a nodal department for the utilisation of the MPLAD funds, said the Centre had told other states to follow the Punjab model.
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Overloaded autos a threat to kids’ lives
Patiala, February 10 Auto-rickshaws overloaded with passengers is a common sight here. Despite the ruling that the drivers should not accommodate more than three persons at a time, one can see numerous people travelling at the same time. Many three-wheelers carry as many as 10-15 passengers, especially the ones transporting schoolchildren. While the district administration is seemingly indifferent to the issue, the parents and school authorities are also not bothered. “The three-wheeler drivers not only play with the lives of children but also pose a threat to others on the road. One can see some children barely managing to cling on to the vehicle. My daughter used to go to school in an auto-rickshaw which used to ferry more than 10 children. Even after repeated requests, the driver did not reduce the strength. Now, I personally go to drop and pick her from the school everyday,” added Manjeet Singh of Tripri. Charanpreet Kaur, a student of Punjabi University, said, “I don’t understand why the authorities don’t challan three-wheeler drivers. They just act as a mute spectator even as violation of traffic rules by auto drivers can been seen in every nook and corner of the city. All auto-rickshaws going from one part of the city to the bus stand are totally stuffed but no one bothers to check this practice,” she added. Patiala Deputy Commissioner Vikas Garg said it was not that the administration was not taking any action. “The traffic police has been directed to challan the drivers violating traffic norms and they are doing it,” he added.
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40 school buses challaned for violating norms
Patiala, February 10 Police said, vehicles were stopped at the special nakas in the morning and the afternoon. In the recent past, numerous schools were found violating norms by ferrying students in buses in violation of the prescribed norms. The traffic police said that they had issued 12 challans for not displaying the route and time-table, eight challans were issued for overloading and without attendant, five challans were issued as drivers were without nameplate and uniform and two buses were challened for not having prescribed colour display. "The drive will continue for some more days. We will ensure that school children are ferried in a safer manner to school", said an official of the traffic wing. "There are directions in this regard and schools have to adhere to them", said the police official.
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Top cops unavailable on official phones
Patiala, February 10 This, despite the fact that an official mobile number has been allotted to each police post and advertised for the public to approach in case of a complaint. “Usually, they do not take calls and in case their phone is busy, they never bother to call back,” claimed Inderjeet Singh, a resident of the Jhill Road area, who had to come all the way to a police station to know the process of filing an FIR through e-mail. Residents say usually police station landline numbers are not attended and only the munshi is available to attend the call and in case of an emergency, crucial time is wasted in locating the officer concerned. “A few days back, I caught hold of a snatcher who was trying to escape after robbing a woman of her purse. Once I overpowered him, I called up the SHO of Lahori Gate and then the area DSP on their official phones. But no one responded to the call. I later rang up the police control room number at 100, but again no one came. It was only after a journalist was contacted, a police team reached the spot and took away the accused,” said Jaideep Narula, a local entrepreneur. Efforts by The Tribune team to get a version from senior officers in the past one week failed as none answered his phone. Nor did anyone call back. These included Pritpal Singh Thind, SP (Detective) Patiala, Kesar Singh, DSP (City 1), and Harpal Singh, DSP (City 2). SP (H) Gautam Singal who was available on his official mobile number claimed that the officers might be busy in some meeting. “I cannot comment anymore,” he added. Recently, a villager wanted to speak to the Patiala DSP (Rural) and when he finished explaining his case on the official phone, he came to know that the mobile phone was with a former Patiala DSP (Rural) presently posted in Fatehgarh Sahib. “Sometimes in gross emergency when you want to speak to the SHO concerned, you are told that the number has been retained by a former officer. It could prove disastrous in case of an emergency,” rued residents.
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Board examination
Patiala, February 10 Expressing resentment, many school owners wanted the board to pay for the cameras. PSEB Chairman Dr Dalbir Singh Dhillon had earlier made it clear that schools would have to get it done from their own expenses and no school would be exempted from installing the cameras for getting an examination centre. Dr Dhillon said that he had already made it clear that no relaxation would be given to the schools that do not get the CCTV cameras installed. "Almost all schools agreed to this. In case any school does not abide by the guidelines, we will not make it an examination centre. This is in larger interest of the students and schools, as this will help in checking copying and use of other unfair means during exams," he added. He said as far as videography of the exams was concerned, it would be done by the board. About the government schools, he said the board had already written to the government to sanction funds for the CCTV cameras in government schools, added Dr
Dhillon.
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Missing Amritsar girl case
Chandigarh, February 10 The directions came on a petition filed by Rajwan Singh. In his petition against the State of Punjab, the Police Commissioner and 10 other respondents, Rajwan Singh had claimed that his youngest daughter, aged about 15, had gone missing. Elaborating, the petitioner had contended that his daughter had left for the school on October 6, 2010, before she disappeared. Taking up the petition, Justice Ranjit Singh rapped the police on its knuckles after observing: "The habeas corpus petition has been filed by the petitioner with the grievance that the girl has been enticed away and is being illegally detained. "The petition is pending since September 2011. Except for getting the status report, no further progress is noticed. On January 10, the case was adjourned to February 10 to enable the official respondents to file the present status. No status report has been filed. "Let the Commissioner of Police remain present before the Court to explain inaction on the part of the police to recover the detainee". Before parting with the order, Justice Ranjit Singh asserted: "It is immaterial whether she voluntary married anyone. The father is entitled to know whether she is now being kept in illegal detention or not. The causal approach on the part of the state agency is not appreciated". Fixing February 29 as the next date of hearing in the case, Justice Ranjit Singh directed the State to place before the Court the status report in the matter. This is the second time the Punjab Police has been admonished for its way of handling missing persons' cases. Only in November last year, the High Court granted liberty for initiation of action against "erring" cops, who planted a stranger in place of a missing girl. The police had presented before Sonu Parsad a stranger; and had tried to convince him that the girl was the grownup version of his missing daughter. Bringing the curtains down on the drama enacted by the Punjab Police, IPS officer Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh had cracked the missing girl's case by tracking her down in Delhi.
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Jalandhar, February 10
Jalandhar, February 10
Bathinda, February 10
Abul Khurana (Malout), February 10