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SGPC faces a crisis never seen before
Governor accepts Bibi’s resignation
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Teachers to be recruited on regular basis: CM
Tribune Impact
Kataria, Bhardwaj want Capt Amarinder to quit
NRIs urged to raise funds to save shrine
The gurdwara in Vancouver, Canada. A Tribune photograph
Kalia wants EC to probe Bhattal’s claim
Gurdaspur curfew lifted
Registry offices to be modernised
Govt plans to recast Planning Board
Millers slam FCI for slow movement of paddy
Pension: Freedom fighters out, politicians in
Zirakpur-Patiala highway to be four-laned soon
Punjab households see improved amenities
Panel for hike in honorarium
Protest against poor health services
Toll tax hiked
Bathinda court summons Dera Sacha Sauda chief
HC notice of motion over appointments
Clear monuments of encroachments: HC
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SGPC faces a crisis never seen before
Amritsar, April 2 A day before the SGPC executive meeting, the SGPC has taken a U-turn and stated that its annual budget will be passed by only the executive and will not be placed before the General House for its approval, as it was claiming earlier. This has raised a big question as to whether merely passing of the budget by the executive can bring it into force. What has led to the crisis The crisis in which the SGPC finds today has its roots in the Punjab and Haryana High Court order dated December 20, 2011, in which the court quashed a 2003 Central notification denying Sehajdhari Sikhs the right to vote in the SGPC elections. The HC verdict came three days after the new SGPC House was notified by the Union government on December 17, 2011. Prior to it, the Supreme Court had made it clear that the results of the SGPC elections held on September 18, 2011 would be subject to the HC verdict on the voting rights to the Sehajdharis. Subsequently, the Centre did not convene the SGPC session to elect its office-bearers. As per the Sikh Gurdwara Act, 1925, the office-bearers are to be elected within a month of the House being notified. The SGPC then moved the SC which allowed the new SGPC House to function on February 17. However, even after the SC verdict, the Centre did not hold the SGPC session. The SGPC moved the apex court again on March 20, seeking a clarification on its February 17 verdict after the Centre attributed the delay in holding the SGPC session to the legal tangle over the Sehajdhari row and dubbed the February 17 SC order as “ambiguous”. Hearing the SGPC petition on March 30, the SC allowed the old SGPC executive (elected in November 2010) to manage gurdwaras and institutions under the SGPC till further orders. The executive committee of the SGPC is elected in November every year and the 2010 executive was the last panel elected in the old House. Therefore, the SC gave the powers to it while stating that the House elected in September 2011 without Sehajdhari Sikhs’ participation could not be allowed to hold its first meeting and elect office-bearers in the light of the Punjab and Haryana High Court verdict that restored the voting rights of Sehajdharis. As a result, the new House of the SGPC cannot function now till further orders of the SC. What will happen to the budget As per the Sikh Gurdwara Act, 1925, the executive committee needs to place the annual budget before the General House and it shall be in the discretion of the House “to pass or reject such estimate or to modify or alter it and to pass it as so modified or altered”. What legal experts have to say Legal experts say the executive has no power to bring the budget into force without the nod of the House. Punjab and Haryana High Court lawyer Balwant Singh Guliani said the executive committee could merely run day-to-day affairs of the SGPC. “If the executive had the powers to pass the annual budget on its own what was the need to call a meeting of the General House before March 31 every year in the past? Also if the new House is under the scanner how can it be allowed to chalk out the future plans?” he said. Sikh Gurdwara Judicial Commission Chairman MS Brar also stated that the executive had no powers to pass the budget on its own. Even major expenses could be passed by it subject to the approval of the General House, he added. What sgpc president makkar has to say Sehajdharis say SC order being misread
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Governor accepts Bibi’s resignation
Chandigarh, April 2 The Akali MLA had submitted her resignation to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal which was forwarded to the Governor. The Chief Minister has kept the portfolios allotted to Bibi Jagir Kaur with him for now.
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Teachers to be recruited on regular basis: CM
Chandigarh, April 2 The CM directed that the practice of deputing teachers from one school to another be stopped. He gave the nod to panchayats to spend money on the repair and upkeep of schools. Badal also directed that 25 per cent of the discretionary grants placed at the disposal of ministers be utilised for upgrading infrastructure in government schools. The Chief Minister also asked the DPI, Colleges, to fill all vacant posts of principal in colleges. He directed the Principal Secretary, Higher Education, to chalk out an action programme in consultation with the principals to upgrade infrastructure and equipment in all government colleges. The CM decided to affect the transfers of teachers in all government schools from April 10 to May 10 so that all teachers were in place at the new stations well before the start of the 2012-13 academic session. The Chief Minister also decided to retire them twice a year i.e. March 31 and September 30 irrespective of their date of superannuation. Badal agreed to only three-month ex-India leave to the teachers, subject to the approval of the administrative secretary. Leave period exceeding three months would now be approved in the “rarest of the rare cases”. Kartarpur memorial The CM approved 20 acres land for a martyrs’ memorial at Kartarpur on the Jalandhar-Amritsar highway. Cancer awareness The government would soon launch an awareness campaign for early detection of cancer with the motto “Cancer is curable, if it is detected in time”. The CM said till date the government had sanctioned Rs 23 crore under the state illness fund for the treatment of 2,020 cancer patents. The Chief Minister called upon various private medical colleges and NGOs to work in unison for timely detection and treatment of cancer. 3 more central jails The government has decided to construct three central jails in Bathinda, Amritsar and Ferozepur besides a district jail at Muktsar at a cost of Rs 200 crore. Each of these jails would be set up over an area of 70 acres and the district jail would come up on 25 acres. The Chief Minister asked the DGP, Jails, to work out modalities to generate resources to make the functioning of jails across the state sustainable through the participation of local and big industrial houses.
Quality Education * Proposal to set up a state-level teachers’ recruitment board * 25 per cent of the discretionary grants at the disposal of ministers to be utilised for upgrading school infrastructure * Transfers of teachers to be done between April 10 and May 10 before the start of the academic session * Teachers to retire twice a year i.e. March 31 and September 30, irrespective of their date of superannuation * DPI, Colleges, told to fill vacant posts of principal
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Tribune Impact
Chandigarh, April 2 The accused were arrested on charges of theft (of minor minerals through illegal quarrying) and under various sections of the Mining Act. The Tribune, in its report, highlighted how illegal mining was going on unchecked in the riverbed near Agampur, Suhara and Nikkuwal villages of Ropar. And it is not just the local “mining mafia”, but also miners from now “out of bounds” Haryana (following a ban by the Punjab and Haryana High Court) who have come and set base here. The report revealed that on an average 600 trucks daily ferry sand and gravel out of these sites. With sand being sold at the rate of Rs 1,800 per truck (500 cubic feet) and bajri (aggregate) at the rate of Rs 2400 per 500 cubic feet, the business here alone is around Rs 4.50 crore per day. Following the news report, Principal Secretary, Industries, AR Talwar today told state geologist Sushminder Singh to visit Ropar and take action. In the meantime, a team of officials led by Deputy Commissioner GK Singh and SSP JS Aulakh visited various parts of the district and impounded 38 trucks and tippers carrying sand and gravel, nine tractor trolleys and six earth mowers from various sites. Interestingly, a truck of the PWD Department of the Himachal Government, too, was impounded and its driver arrested after it was found carrying illegally mined minor minerals. Till the filing of this report, the raids were still on and the administration was still impounding machinery from Suhar. “We will keep tabs and ensure that other than the auctioned quarries (spread over 30 acres across Ropar), mining is not carried elsewhere,” said the DC. The Principal Secretary said he has now summoned a meeting of officials tomorrow to work out a policy on trying to restrict the number of stone crushers in accordance with the total area allotted for mining through legal means. “In Ropar, there are 114 stone crushers, while mining is allowed on only 30 acres of land. Since the crushers need raw material, they are indulging in illegal mining. I have called a meeting of officials including Principal Secretary Sicience and Technology Karan Avtar Singh and Member Secretary, Punjab Pollution Control Board, Babu Ram, to work out a policy,” he said.
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Badal to begin thanksgiving tour from April 5
Muktsar, April 2 The Chief Minister will cover at least 56 villages in the constituency. Sources said the CM, accompanied by his party colleagues and senior officials, would start the tour from Panniwala village on April 5 and cover 11 villages on the first day. On April 6, he would start the tour from Killianwali village and cover nine more villages, ending the tour at Kakhanwali village. On April 7, he would start from Dhaula village, cover at least 12 villages and end the day at Mandi Killianwali on the Punjab-Haryana border. On April 8, starting from Lambi, the Chief Minister would cover 11 villages. On April 9, he would start his tour from Kattianwali village. His last stop would be Chhapianwali village near
Malout.
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Kataria, Bhardwaj want Capt Amarinder to quit
Chandigarh, April 2 In a statement , Kataria said Amarinder was trying to sideline the issue of his inaccessibility by claiming he had met senior leaders and district Congress presidents during the past 10 days. He said the attempt to appoint leaders incharge for the 13 parliamentary constituencies was another attempt to divert attention from the crisis facing the party. Kataria claimed Amarinder had destroyed the party in Punjab with his feudal ways and betrayed the confidence reposed in him by the Congress president. He said the party needed to be reorganised on the lines of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) and charge given to a person with a good image who could take on the SAD-BJP alliance effectively. In a separate statement, former State Planning Commission Deputy Chairman R R Bhardwaj and middle-rung leaders, including Rajpal Singh and Ram Pal Dhaipi, today welcomed the high command initiative to call a meeting of warring leaders in Delhi on April 4. The leaders said this proved that the high command was alive to the sagging morale of the Congress workers and the discontentment against the PCC president.
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NRIs urged to raise funds to save shrine
Jalandhar, April 2 Minister Bikram Singh Majithia has exhorted the NRIs to come forward and contribute money so that the gurdwara auction is stalled. He has urged SGPC chief Avtar Singh Makkar to help save the shrine. Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh has appealed to the Sikhs living across the globe to raise funds to ensure that the shrine was not auctioned. “We will enquire about the circumstances leading to the proposed sale of the gurdwara,” said Makkar while talking to The Tribune over the phone. The gurdwara in Vancouver ( Canada) was set up in 1917 by Mayo Singh, a Sikh originally hailing from Paldi village of Hoshiarpur district. The shrine and its 84.26 acres of land, it is learnt, has been put on sale by a bank for an estimated $ 1.65 million.
About the gurdwara
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Kalia wants EC to probe Bhattal’s claim
Chandigarh, April 2 In a statement, Kalia said the charges levelled by Rajinder Kaur Bhattal against Congress president Capt Amarinder Singh that he had collecting Rs 200 - Rs 500 crore as party election fund were grave. “The EC should ask the state Congress president to furnish the details of the election fund collected during the assembly elections, the name of the bank in which the said amount has been kept, the bank account number, the name of the donors, the money given by the state president to each candidate and the details of the balance with the Congress,” he said. There is ceiling of Rs 16 lakh on poll expenses.
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Gurdaspur curfew lifted
Gurdaspur, April 2 The officers have been camping in the town for the past three days. Dera Baba Nanak MLA and Gurdaspur DCC chief Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa exhorted people to maintain peace at all costs. He rued the absence of local MLA Gurbachan Singh Babbehali and senior SAD leaders, including former Agriculture Minister Sucha Singh Langah, from the deliberations of the committee. Gurdaspur Member of Parliament Partap Singh Bajwa visited Chour Sidhwan village to express sympathies with the family of 18-year-old engineering student Jaspal Singh who was killed in police firing last Thursday. Dinanagar MLA Aruna Chowdhry and Fatehgarh Churian legislator Tript Rajinder Bajwa made fervent appeals for communal harmony. The curfew was clamped on the town following clashes between two communities. An 18-year-old youth, Jaspal Singh, was killed as the police opened fire to “disperse” the mob. The death resulted in the suspension of Gurdaspur Senior Superintendent of Police Varinder Pal Singh and Deputy Superintendent of Police Manpreet Singh while Deputy Commissioner Mohinder Singh Kainth was transferred.
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Registry offices to be modernised
Chandigarh, April 2 He said a step in this direction had already been taken by modernising the registry office at Ludhiana. Majithia said he had directed all tehsildars to be more people-friendly. He said a helpline had been put in place to address all queries regarding registered deeds. The minister said his department would endeavor to raise more revenue. Last year the department had collected Rs 2,900 crore on account of registry fee. This figure was expected to go up. The department was expected to increase the circle rates, where needed, including the periphery of Chandigarh, in order to reduce the disparity between the official registry rate and the market land rate. The minister indicated he would target corrupt officials and reward competent ones. Help would be taken from the state Intelligence wing as well as party workers to identify corrupt officials. To prevent NRIs from being duped, Majithia said they would be advised to register their status in the ‘fard’ of their property. In all such cases, revenue officials would be directed to verify the identity of NRIs by checking their passports. He said in a large number of cases unscrupulous persons were impersonating as NRIs. Steps would also be taken to check that illiterate persons were not defrauded. Landowners would not be allowed to sell land till mutual and equitable division acceptable to all owners was arrived at.
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Govt plans to recast Planning Board
Chandigarh, April 2 Presiding over a meeting of senior government officers and renowned academicians from Panjab University last evening, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said the state Planning Board would be recasted on the lines of the Planning Commission of India. Experts in the fields of education, vocational training, health, social sciences, agro- industry and other disciplines would be involved to prepare a blueprint in order to carry out multi-faceted development throughout the state, said Badal. The CM directed RC Sobti, VC, Panjab University, to depute a team comprising senior faculty members to conduct a constituency-wise village survey in areas under Punjab University for mapping ground realities related to the livelihood of the people. Sobti agreed to initiate such a project in Lambi. Similar surveys would be conducted by Guru Nanak Dev University.
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Millers slam FCI for slow movement of paddy
Patiala, April 2 “The wheat procurement season has commenced in the state but 42 lakh MT rice was still pending delivery. The pace of FCI is slow as maximum 5 to 6 lakh MT rice is moved out of the state during a month and the space thus created is subsequently utilised for the delivery of rice as a result of which only 25 to 40 per cent milling capacity of the millers is utilised,” he added. He further alleged that with the present pace of movement, the balance rice would be delivered in the next 7 months and moreover the agitation of the FCI labour union since last month has further complicated the situation as the rice special were lapsed during March 2012 and are likely to be lapsed in the subsequent months as the stalemate between the FCI labour union and its management continues. The association has proposed that for the formulation of new specification, the trial runs of hybrid varieties should be conducted. It also appealed to the state government to take up the matter with the Central Government in this regard. Saini disclosed that a deputation of their association would soon meet Food and Supplies Minister Adesh Partap Singh Kairon and Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to apprise them of the ground realities so as to pave the way for the promotion of environment-friendly paddy seed varieties.
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Pension: Freedom fighters out, politicians in
Chandigarh, April 2 All this and much more was revealed during the resumed hearing of a petition filed in public interest by Malwender Singh Waraich. In his report on the authenticity of the list of freedom fighters offered pension, amicus curiae RS Dhull said: "At the time of research, it was noticed that many big leaders of the Congress party, Communist Party and Socialist Party have place in the list and many big names who were also freedom fighters as per the same credentials have been left out. "There are many such persons who were dead at the time of giving suo motu pension and it has not been made clear whether all of them had completed the criteria which was mentioned in the scheme i.e. minimum six months' imprisonment for the general category and two months for the Scheduled Caste category". Dhull was earlier entrusted with the task to check the list of freedom fighters and to find the authenticity of the names given in it. An advocate, Waraich has all along been struggling for the rights of freedom fighters. Already, taking up the issue brought to the fore by him, the Centre has declared that freedom fighters involved in the Kuka Namdhari Movement and the Jallianwala Bagh massacre are eligible for Swatantra Sainik Samman Pension Scheme. The Centre made it clear that the Kuka Namdhari Movement, 1871, and the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, 1919, had been formally included in the list of freedom movements recognised for the pension. Waraich had filed the petition with a prayer that the sacrifices made by the martyrs and revolutionaries of the Kuka Namdhari Movement had gone unnoticed for the purpose of the Swatantra Sainik Samman Pension Scheme.
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Zirakpur-Patiala highway to be four-laned soon
Mohali, April 2 Talking to Tribune, RP Singh, Engineer-in-chief, PWD (B&R), said both the projects were approved by the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways on March 31 and the letters were issued on the same day to a Pune-based firm Rohan Rajdeep Tollways Pvt Ltd (Zirakpur-Patiala) and Hyderabad-based company IVRCL (Patiala-Bathinda) on DBFOT (design, build, finance, operate and transfer) basis. Singh said according to the contract, the Zirakpur-Patiala project, worth Rs 422 crore, has to be completed by 2014 while the Patiala-Bathinda project (worth Rs 1,586 crore) has been given two and half years for completion. For both the projects, the required clearance from the forest authorities has been sought and other formalities were being completed, he said. The Central government has also provided a grant of Rs 501 crore for both the projects. As many as 12 flyovers, three railway over bridges (ROB) and two new bypasses (Dhanaula and Sangrur) would be constructed under the project. “On the Zirakpur-Patiala stretch, a flyover on the Banur-Kharar road and a ROB at Rajpura would be constructed,” said MP Singh, executive engineer,
PWD.
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Punjab households see improved amenities
Chandigarh, April 2 More than one half (52.8 per cent) of the households are living in either two-room or three-room tenements. The bigger houses with four or more rooms are characteristic of 23 per cent of households. Only one per cent households in the state do not have any exclusive room to live. Jain said similarly electricity was available as the main source of lighting to 96.6 per cent of the people which was a 4.7 per cent increase as compared to 2001. She said latrine service was available within the premises to 79 per cent of the households. She said even in the rural areas, this facility was available within the premises to 70 per cent households. Noticeably ‘water closet’ latrine was available to 60 per cent of Punjab households. The census noted that bathing facility within the premises was available to 89 per cent of the households. The percentage composition for the rural and urban areas in case of bathing facility was 85 per cent and 95 per cent, respectively. The Census noted that LPG had become predominant fuel for cooking by 54.5 per cent of the households. This has increased from 33 per cent in 2001. It noted that 40 per cent of the households used either wood or cow dung cakes or crop residue as their main source of cooking. This percentage has declined from 57 per cent in 2001. There has also been a sharp increase in consumer items. Percentage of households having a television has registered an increase from 68 per cent in 2001 to 82 per cent now. As many as 13 per cent of households have a computer or a laptop. The percentage of people having telephone/mobile has shot up from 19 per cent in 2001 to 82 per cent now. There is also a significant increase in households having two-wheelers and four-wheelers. The percentage of households having two-wheelers has increased to 47 per cent from 31 per cent in 2001. In case of cars and jeeps, this figure has increased to 13 per cent from 5.8 per cent in 2001. Punjab now ranks second in the country as far as possession of two-wheelers is concerned and fourth in case of cars and jeeps.
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Panel for hike in honorarium
Chandigarh, April 2 During the resumed hearing of a PIL filed by advocate HC Arora, the committee report was placed before the Division Bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Mahesh Grover. In the minutes of the meeting held by the Committee on March 16, it was stated that the UT Administration would increase the honorarium payable to full-time members of the UT State Consumer Commission from existing Rs 20,000 to Rs 35,000 per month with effect from April 1. The honorarium payable to District Consumer Forum members, too, shall be enhanced from Rs 12,000 to Rs 18,000 per month.
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Protest against poor health services
Patiala, April 2 Addressing the gathering, secretary of the Committee, Vidhu Shekhar Bhardwaj condemned the statement of Punjab
Minister of Medical Education and Research Bhagat Chunni Lal, who during his recent visit to the city had said an inquiry would be conducted about the lapses in the
Eye Department of the Rajindra Hospital where modern machines worth crores have been lying defunct. “The minister should have been informed by the medical college authorities that already three or four departmental inquires had been conducted by the senior faculty members of the department regarding these machines and the head of department was held responsible and action against him was recommended but no action has been taken so far in this regard,” he said. Dr Darshanpal Singh of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ekta Dakaunda) said the government should initiate an action against all the defaulters after conducting a proper inquiry.
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Toll tax hiked
Phagwara, April 2 Beginning today, car drivers would be charged Rs 33 for a single trip and Rs 53 for multiple trips. In case of light commercial vehicles, Rs 50 would be charged for a single trip and Rs 80 for multiple trips. Heavy vehicles would have to pay Rs 5 more.
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Bathinda court summons Dera Sacha Sauda chief
Bathinda, April 2 A case was registered against the dera head on May 20, 2007 at the Kotwali police station on the complaint of Rajinder Singh Sidhu, president, Khalsa Diwan Gurdwara Singh Sabha. Taking cognisance of the case and not agreeing with the earlier cancellation report of the FIR filed by the police, CJM Harjeet Singh summoned the dera head to appear before the court on May 10. Heavy police force was deployed around the court complex and in the city in the wake of dera chief’s case hearing today. Sidhu said he was satisfied with the decision of the court which came after four years of long wait. He said it was now up to the dera head to respond to the court orders.
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HC notice of motion over appointments
Chandigarh, April 2 The notice by the Division Bench of the High Court Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Mahesh Grover came on a petition filed by Manijit Singh of Nayagaon. He had alleged that most of the appointments in the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee-funded university were made at its behest. All these recruitments in the university were made without following the prescribed guidelines and procedure, the petitioner added.
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Clear monuments of encroachments: HC
Chandigarh, April 2 Taking up the petition filed by Munshi Ram and others, the Division Bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Mahesh Grover also directed the State of Punjab to initiate necessary action to vacate protected monuments occupied by it. The Bench asserted: "In the State of Punjab, as far as national monuments are concerned, encroachments have been cleared from all such monuments…. In so far as the State monuments are concerned, the State of Punjab is directed to speed up the process, at least in those cases where the same has been initiated. "In such other cases where the monuments or parts thereof are under the occupation of the State authorities, necessary action shall be taken to make the premises in question free from such occupations. "In monuments where the process of eviction is locked up on account of interim orders passed by the court or on account of pendency of court cases, the State of Punjab will file applications before the courts concerned for early disposal of the matters…." Referring to the status report of Punjab Director, Cultural Affairs, the Bench asserted: "A perusal of the report would go to show that encroachments have not been removed from Tehsil in Ajnala, Commissioner's residence in Jalandhar, Quila Mubarak in Patiala, Quila Beern in Bahadurgarh, Mound Ghuram, Shahi Samadha in Patiala and Quila Rahmatgarh in Malarkotla." Turning its attention to Haryana, the Bench observed four monuments "from which eviction has not been carried out on account of pendency of court cases" are ancient site at Khokrakot, ancient mound at Naurangabad in Bhiwani district, Kos Minar in Faridabad's Sector 35 and Raja Harsh Ka Tila in Kurukshetra district. The Bench added: "We make it clear that in the State of Haryana where four of the monuments have not yet been cleared from encroachments on account of court cases, prompt action will have to be taken by the State."
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Punjab Governor Shivraj Patil today accepted the resignation of Rural Water and Sanitation and Defence Services Welfare Minister Bibi Jagir
Kaur. Jagir Kaur has been convicted and sentenced to five years’ rigorous imprisonment for criminal conspiracy in the death of her daughter Harpreet Kaur.
Jalandhar, April 2
Chandigarh, April 2
Perturbed over the slow movement of paddy into the Central pool, the Punjab Rice Millers Association has slammed the Food Corporation of India
(FCI). Association president Tarsem Saini alleged that the situation of paddy milling operation in the state was alarming, as about 78 lakh MT rice from paddy crop for the year 2011-12 was to be delivered to the Central pool by the millers of the state.
Bathinda, April 2
SGPC chief Avtar Singh Makkar said they would discuss and approve the budget proposals in tomorrow’s executive meeting. Regarding the approval of the General House, he said they were seeking a legal opinion in this regard. Earlier, the SGPC had stated that it would place the budget before the new SGPC House for approval after getting it passed by the executive. Sources said the annual budget of the SGPC was estimated to be around Rs 600 crore as compared to last year's figure of around Rs 580 crore.
He also asked the Secretary, School Education, to look into the viability of establishing a state-level teachers’ recruitment board for the selection of almost 10,000 to 12,000 teachers every year.
Giving details of the census survey, State Census Director Seema Jain said Punjab had got the second rank as far as availability of drinking water was concerned. She said 86 per cent people had this facility within their premises while this facility was available near the premises of 10 per cent of the population. She said only in case of 4 per cent of the people that the facility was situated far away from their premises.