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1,500 cops deputed for swearing-in
Old cars for new ministers |
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Various factions decimated, SAD rules supreme in state
Poor connectivity to
Muktsar
DSGMC poll: Supreme Court declines plea for urgent hearing
IIT-Delhi to help restore Harmandar Sahib sheen
Need for younger leadership: Bajwa
PTU to start more courses from this session
BPL families fail to avail health scheme
No ifs and buts: Efforts on to make state smoke-free
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1,500 cops deputed for swearing-in
Chandigarh, March 13 Claiming foolproof security arrangements, GPS Bhullar, Mohali SSP, said all roads leading to the venue were being manned by the police round-the-clock. Several senior police officials, including DGP Rajan Gupta, were present at the site today to review the security arrangements. “Every policeman has been briefed about his duty minutely,” said Bhullar, adding that there would be a three-tier security at the venue and nobody would be allowed to enter without proper checking. A number of ambulances, recovery vans, fire tenders, mobile dispensaries and anti-riot vehicles would be stationed at the memorial. As many as four entry gates have been set up to reach the impressive red and blue coloured “pandal” put up at the premises of the memorial. One entry gate has been set up for members of the Badal family and VVIPs. There is a separate gate for the Sant Smaj, MLAs and members of the SAD core committee. The third gate is for members of the SGPC, working committees of the SAD and the BJP. A separate entry has been set up for the public. Bikram Singh Majithia, national president of Youth Akali Dal, said around 15,000 persons were expected to turn up.
Golf carts to ferry VIPs
A number of golf carts have been arranged to facilitate the movement of the VIPs and VVIPs during the oath-taking ceremony at the Baba Banda Singh Memorial Complex on Wednesday. Sources said golf carts have been brought from Chatt Bir Zoo in Banur and from other districts.
The battery-operated vehicles would also be used to ferry the guests to the venue of lunch being hoisted by the government for the dignitaries. Besides, luxury vehicles have been arranged to ferry dignitaries from Chandigarh Airport to the venue of the ceremony.
Five helipads have been prepared to facilitate the landing of helicopters of VVIPs. To ensure that each of the guests is attended properly, PCS rank officers have been deputed as liaison officers.
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Old cars for new ministers
Chandigarh, March 13 However, they would get new Maruti Gypsies as escort vehicles. The new vehicles are parked at the depot of the Transport Department in the Industrial Area, Phase-II, here. The Camrys that are to be given to the new ministers are being given a facelift. Sources in the Transport Department said only those vehicles that had covered at least 4,00,000 km or were five years old could be condemned. As most of the Camrys were purchased in 2010-2011, these had covered less than 2,00,000 lakh km. The order for new Gypsies was given before the elections but the vehicles were not delivered with the model the code of conduct in force. At least 34 new Gypsies have reached the transport depot in the past few days. The sources said the Chief Parliamentary Secretaries and new MLAs were also likely to ride in the existing fleet of official cars.
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People’s agenda: Reforms in health, education sectors
Education
Health
Industry
Infrastructure
Economy & trade
Women welfare
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Various factions decimated, SAD rules supreme in state
Chandigarh, March 13 This group owed allegiance to the late Shiromani GPC chief Gurcharan Singh
Tohra. In the recent assembly elections, almost all members of the Tohra camp were defeated. Hira Singh Gabria lost by a huge margin in
Ludhiana, Surjit Singh Kohli lost in Patiala (City) and Tohra’s daughter Kuldeep Kaur Tohra in Patiala (Rural). Prem Singh
Chandumajra, at one time known to be Tohra’s confidant, was defeated in Fatehgarh Sahib. Mahesh Inder Singh
Grewal, another important member of the Tohra camp, was denied the party ticket this time. However, Karnail Singh Panjoli and Sukhdev Singh
Bhaur, two Tohra group leaders, are significant players in the Shiroman Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee
(SGPC). Manjit Singh Calcutta, who had disassociated himself from the SAD years ago, is in political wilderness.The Barnala faction, patronised by former Chief Minister Surjit Singh
Barnala, has been almost wiped out. Barnala’s son Gaganjit Singh Barnala, who contested as the People’s Party of Punjab candidate, was defeated in
Dhuri. The faction’s other top functionary Baldev Singh Mann suffered defeat in
Sangrur. Candidates of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) headed by Simranjit Singh Mann also suffered big defeats. The Sant Samaj and the Damdami
Taksal, which was once hostile to Parkash Singh Badal, are now SAD’s allies. The Congress is facing a war within its ranks over the leadership issue. Senior party leaders have urged Capt Amarinder Singh to resign as the PPCC president following the Congress defeat in the assembly elections. It is clear that warring Congress leaders are unlikely to play the role of effective Opposition in the state. The fall of various Akali groups ...
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Railways neglects Ferozepur division
Ferozepur, March 13 The last year’s rail budget, presented by former Union Minister Mamata
Banerjee, was no exception. It brought nothing but disappointment to the residents of state, particularly in the Malwa region. The sanctioned projects could not see the light of the day due to procedural wrangles while those that were started continue to move at a snail’s pace. For this, the residents blame the “lack of initiatives” by the state MPs, besides the “apathetic” attitude of the ministry. The work on a rail link between Abohar and Fazilka had started around 10 years ago. The link has been completed but a train was yet to be started even though there was a provision for it in the previous budget. The electrification of the Ferozepur-Bhatinda track was okayed two years ago. However, the work was yet to be started. Then there was a project to install CCTV cameras at 15 stations of the division. But, only Jammu and Amritsar stations had been covered so far. There was also a provision to provide modern facilities to passengers at the Ferozepur station, which comes under ‘A’ category. Nothing of that sort has been done so far. The plans to construct a multipurpose complex at Ludhiana and Udhampur stations are also yet to
materialise. The residents have for long been demanding a link between Ferozepur and Amritsar via
Mahalam-Kehmkaran-Patti, for which an additional 30 km of rail track has to be laid. However, the Centre has failed to give a green signal to the project. Social worker Ashok Bajaj says Ferozepur was connected to Amritsar via Kasur before Independence. But after Partition, the rail link was snapped. For its part, the railways did conduct a survey to restore connectivity between the two border districts, but things did not move beyond that. Divisional Railway Manager Vishwesh Chowbey said, “Several new trains, including the Shatabdi from Ludhiana to New Delhi, DMU between Hoshiarpur and
Amritsar, Janmbhoomi Express and the Amritsar-Chandigarh Duronto train, which were sanctioned in the last budget, have been started. The other projects are on track.”
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Poor connectivity to
Muktsar
Muktsar, March 13 But that does not appear to be enough for the Railways to improve connectivity to the town. Barring
Bathinda, it is without a direct link with other important cities of the state. Besides, there is no direct train to connect the town with the National Capital. The local station sees daily arrival and departure of just 10 trains. Station Superintendent SR Meena says, “On an average, the station caters to around 600 persons daily. But if the department links it with other important stations of Punjab and Delhi, the number of passengers will definitely increase.” On several occasions, the local residents have handed over memorandums to railway higher-ups but to no avail. Apart from poor connectivity, the station also lacks a cloakroom. Awaiting Green Signal
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DSGMC poll: Supreme Court declines plea for urgent hearing New Delhi, March 13 A Bench comprising Justices RM Lodha and HL Gokhale made it clear that the petition would be taken up for hearing only on the listed date , March 23. Arguing for the petitioners, counsel Abinash Kumar Mishra pleaded for urgent hearing as their efforts would become meaningless if the election was notified before March 23. “Nothing will become infructuous. If it becomes, what can we do,” the Bench remarked.
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Beant’s killer to be hanged on March 31 Chandigarh, March 13 The court of Additional District and Sessions Judge Shalini Nagpal today issued execution warrants of his hanging, which were sent to the Patiala jail where Balwant Singh is lodged. A special court of Judge Ravi Kumar Sondhi on July 31, 2007, had awarded the death sentence to Balwant Singh and Jagtar Singh Hawara. While Hawara filed an appeal in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which commutted his death sentence to life imprisonment, Balwant Singh refused to file an appeal. Instead, he sent a letter to the High Court requesting execution of the death sentence. Beant Singh was assassinated on August 31, 1995 by suicide bomber Dilawar Singh.
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IIT-Delhi to help restore Harmandar Sahib sheen
As a petition based on a letter to the Prime Minister on the matter came up for hearing, the Bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Mahesh Grover was informed by the Punjab Pollution Control Board that the IIT was being consulted on the issue. The board, in its status report dated March 12, said it had consulted the IIT “for studying” the problem. “The IIT has agreed to undertake the study and suggest ways and means to restore the sheen”, the report said. Taking up the affidavit, the Bench observed: “We have also noticed that the IIT has estimated that a period of six months will be required to undertake the study and submit a report”. Fixing July 18 as the next date of hearing, the Bench added the progress “as may have been made by the IIT” be intimated to the court. The havoc that environmental pollution is playing on the Golden Temple had come under judicial scanner about a year ago with the court calling for putting in place a mechanism to check pollution in the temple vicinity. The matter was placed before the Bench after Justice Ranjit Singh took suo motu cognizance of the letter written by one Gursewak Singh to the Prime Minister, with a copy addressed to him. Justice Ranjit Singh asserted: “One Gursewak Singh has addressed a letter in Punjabi to the Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh... “I have received a copy of this letter through post, which is enclosed in original. The letter says that industry in and around the area is causing pollution to the gold plates fixed on the domes of Gurdwara Sahib. “There has also been discoloration of the white marble... some invaluable mural paintings are also getting spoiled. “Considering the importance of the issue, I thought it appropriate to place it before the Chief Justice for taking notice in public interest, if considered appropriate”.
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Need for younger leadership: Bajwa
Bajwa had supported Amarinder’s candidature as Chief Minister-designate in the run up to the polls. “I did support him but he was not able to deliver. Amarinder has failed twice in a row (2007 and 2012 assembly poll). He has nothing new to offer”. The Gurdaspur MP was miffed with Amarinder for not making enough efforts to ensure that Congress rebel Suchha Singh Chhotepur withdrew his candidature from Qadian and Naresh Puri and Ashok Sharma from the Sujanpur and Pathankot seats, respectively. Bajwa’s wife won from Qadian. Bajwa said Amarinder came to Jalandhar by a chopper but following “mild rainfall” refused to travel further on car. “The rebels were waiting for the PCC chief but he did not turn up”, he claimed. Agreeing with Bajwa’s contention, Haryana Congress spokesman Khazan Singh, who was an observer for both Gurdaspur and Pathankot districts during the elections, said the rebels were “Amarinder’s friends”. Bajwa said despite heavy odds, his wife Charanjit had won from Qadian with a margin of 15,250 votes, the maximum for any woman candidate in the state. He said the party could have won both the Sujanpur and Pathankot seats if the rebels had withdrawn from the fray. The Congress leader claimed it was unfair to say that the party had lost on three of the four seats allotted on his recommendation. He said eight of the nine seats in the Gurdaspur parliamentary constituency had been allotted on his recommendation. On most seats his recommendation tallied with that of Capt Amarinder. He said his detractors had failed to notice that despite the rebel factor, the Congress had won five of the nine assembly seats in the Gurdaspur parliamentary constituency. Bajwa refused to admit that he was in the race for the PCC presidentship. He said he had not met anybody in this regard and was not a claimant to the post. The MP said there was a need for a young and dynamic leader with a mass base to take on the Akalis for the next four years. “ You cannot just sit in drawing rooms in Chandigarh and issue statements. With civic and panchayat elections round the corner, the Congress needs an active leader,” he added.
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250 jail inmates have quit drugs: DGP
Jalandhar, March 13 "The de-addiction programme has worked so well that more than 250 jail inmates have already given up drugs. The progress of the programme has suffered a bit due to shortage of funds, as de-addiction medicines are costly. We need at least Rs 50,000 per month for the medicines. I am going to take up the matter with the new government," said Punjab DGP (Jails) Shashi Kant. The Punjab Jails Department had launched the ambitious drug de-addiction programme after the violent clashes in Kapurthala's jail on November 21.
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PTU to start more courses from this session
Jalandhar, March 13 During a meeting today, the council gave a green signal to start three AICTE approved courses, including B Tech in Automotive Technology, B Tech in Computer Network and Masters in Architecture. The non-AICTE courses which have been given a go ahead include Masters in Mass Communication and Media Management, Masters in Education and Counselling Management, Masters of Science in Hotel Management and Hotel Technology, Bachelor in Mobile Computing and Internet, Bachelor in Rural Development and Management, Bachelor in Infrastructure and Real Estate Management and Bachelor in Family Business Management. The PG diploma courses likely to be introduced include Clinical Research, Regulatory Affairs, Pharmaceutical Packing, Cosmetology, Pharmaceutical Business Administration and Pharmaceutical Marketing. The council also cleared the proposal to start three specialised MBA courses, including Material Management, Information Technology and Airline and Airport Management. The members also approved introduction of M Phil in Applied Sciences with specialisation in physics, applied chemistry, environmental sciences and mathematics at the university's new Punjab Institute of Technology campus in Kapurthala from the coming session. The campus would also offer M Phil and Ph D courses in Journalism and Mass Communication. An M Tech course in Pharma Foods and Nutrition Biotechnology was also given a go-ahead.
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Electrocution of film crew member
Patiala, March 13 The mortuary witnessed a huge crowd as people gathered there in sympathy with relatives of the deceased, including staff and other personalities of the film. It is perhaps for the first time in the film history of the state that a person had died due to accidental electrocution. The body was handed over to the relatives after post mortem through concerned police station.
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BPL families fail to avail health scheme
Patiala, March 13 The scheme provides cashless insurance for hospitalisation in government as well as private hospitals. Every BPL family holding a card has to pay Rs 30 registration fee to get a biometric-enabled smart card containing fingerprints and photographs of the family members. This enables them to avail medical facilities up to Rs 30,000 per family per year in any of the empanelled hospitals. Pre-existing illness is covered from day one for the head of the household and four other dependent family memb ers. Dr Hardeep Bariar, Deputy Medical Commissioner, Patiala, said, "The cards are made for a year based on the lists of BPL families provided by the Deputy Commissioner's office." Patiala Civil Surgeon Virinder Singh Mohi said the problem was that many people were not aware of the scheme. "We time and again organise awareness programmes to promote this scheme," he said.
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No ifs and buts: Efforts on to make state smoke-free
Chandigarh, March 13 Once the ban on smoking in public places is implemented, Punjab may become one of the first states in the country to snub the menace, which is a health hazard. Mansa district will soon be declared smoke-free. Mohali district already has the tag attached to it. In 2007, Chandigarh became the first city in the country to become smoke-free. The state of Kerala implemented a more relaxed smoke-free ordinance, becoming the first state to do so. The information of making Punjab a ‘no-smoking’ zone was furnished to the High Court during a hearing on a PIL filed by the Burning Brain
Society against the functioning of hookah bars in the region. As the case came up for hearing before the Division Bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and
Justice Mahesh Grover, Punjab’s Assistant Director, Health and Family Welfare, Dr Rakesh Kumar Gupta, in an affidavit, asserted: “The government has expressed its intent to gradually declare the entire State of Punjab smoke-free. “It has been decided to declare Mansa district the second smoke-free district on May 31 on the occasion of the World No
Tobacco Day”. He said the Punjab Government had earlier declared Mohali a smoke-free district. A nationwide ban on smoking at workplace and in restaurants, hotels, pubs, airports, railway stations, educational institutions and other public places came into effect from October 2, 2008. Burning Brains is seeking directions for registration of cases under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act against hookah bars for selling nicotine. The PIL has alleged laxity on the part of the UT administration in registering FIRs against such outlets and failure to get the material tested under the Prevention of the Food Adulteration Act and the Drugs Act.
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Members of the new Punjab Cabinet, who will be sworn-in at Chappar Chiri tomorrow, will arrive in Toyota Camrys that were allotted to their predecessors in
2010-2011.
Chandigarh, March 13
Chandigarh, March 13