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Arhtiyas to be kept in the loop on MSP payment
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State to amend Canal Act
SAD seeks action against Sarna
Centre proposes religion neutral marriage law
Rumblings in BSP grow louder
Cong rebels make a point, walk out of Amarinder’s tea party
Shagun scheme paused
Kalkat panel to draft farm policy
Punjab eyes Rs 3,000 crore rise in revenue collection
Ropar Thermal Plant overhaul in record time
De-addiction centres to come up in all jails
College teachers demand release
of arrears
Cong MP to take up tax issue with Finance Minister
Sharma elected chief of Patiala tax bar body
Varsity to study Himalayan ants
108 ambulance service completes a year
Family pension enhanced
Young granthi shot dead
3 held with US-made arms
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Light the cash bulb for PSPCL
Short of funds, the SAD-BJP government is banking on the power surplus tag — which it hopes to get in the next three years — to present as its shining achievement when it heads into the next electoral battle for the state in 2017.
Things at present seem to be looking good on the generation front. According to estimates, the first unit (660 MW) of the Talwandi Sabo plant would be commissioned in December 2012, and the remaining two in six to eight months. Similarly, the first unit of 270 MW of the Goindwal Sahib thermal plant is likely to be commissioned in January 2013. The first 700 MW unit of the Rajpura thermal plant is expected to come on steam in January 2014.
At present, there is a gap of 3,100 MW between the peak demand (10,000 MW) and the state’s own resources, including hydel and central allocation (6,900 MW). This gap will reduce considerably by 2013-14, after which the state is expected to face problems only because of peaking shortages during the paddy season. Price points Despite assertions to the contrary by the government, more power could mean expensive power. This is because Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) is facing a financial crisis as it is saddled with old debts and not getting compensation for the free power being given to farmers. There is also the issue of proper utilisation of human resources. Keeping these issues in mind, the power utility has sought a 55 per cent hike in tariff in its annual revenue requirement (ARR) for 2012-13 submitted to the Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC). PSPCL is not likely to get a full increase, but the tariff will increase for sure in the next financial year. Things could get worse for the consumer over the next few years. This is because the government has chosen to follow the memorandum of understanding (MoU) route with the three private players rather than go for competitive bidding, as recommended by the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC). PSPCL may end up paying more for electricity as power purchase agreements with the three private players making it clear the state would have to purchase the entire power produced by them. This means in case of fall in demand, PSPCL would have to pay private companies fixed charges without buying any power. This can be corrected by giving importance to state generation. The government has given in-principle agreement for setting up a 1,320 MW plant by PSPCL, but it needs to be seen whether any progress is made on this front. Financial health The key to a balanced tariff structure is a financially healthy PSPCL. Though the government, particularly Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, showed foresight by splitting the erstwhile Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) into two separate generation and transmission companies, it did not take care to provide clean balance sheets to the two firms. At present, PSPCL is saddled with a cumulative loss of Rs 11,000 crore and a working capital loan of Rs 10,000 crore. The crisis can be judged from the fact that it is for the first time ever that the state power utility has started defaulting on repayment of loans to banks. The government is not making things easy by deferring the payment of cash subsidy to PSPCL for the free power supplied to farmers as well as cheap domestic supply to weaker sections. This financial year the government has adjusted dues worth Rs 980 crore against bonds in a paper transaction. It has made paper adjustments of Rs 4,000 crore over the past five years. Continuation of such transfers would spell doom for PSPCL. From Rs 3,144 crore in 2009-10, the subsidy bill increased to Rs 3,400 crore in 2010-11, Rs 4,353 crore in 2011-12 and is expected to increase to Rs 5,500 crore in the next financial year. The increase in the number of beneficiaries receiving 200 units per month alone has resulted in an increase in subsidy by Rs 500 crore. Technology Among the factors affecting PSPCL is delay in introducing information technology. The pilot project for distribution and collection of electricity bills and record keeping is yet to be expanded to the entire state. As many as 100 sub-stations are still overloaded and unable to distribute power as scheduled. In its race for populist schemes, the government also seems to be impervious to the looming environmental crisis, with 11.5 lakh tubewell pump sets being run indiscriminately in the state due to free power. In 2000, there were only 7.7 lakh pump sets.
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Arhtiyas to be kept in the loop on MSP payment
New Delhi, April 4 In fact, FCI's decision to directly pay the farmers through crossed cheques, bypassing the commission agents, appears to have united political adversaries, the Congress and the SAD-BJP. Just two weeks after SAD MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal put up a spirited fight in the Lok Sabha in support of arhtiyas, Congress MP from Sangrur Vijay Inder Singla today led a delegation of Punjab Arhtiya Association to meet Thomas and other officials of the ministry on the issue. Singla later told The Tribune that the minister "appreciated" arhtiyas' role and assured them that they would be "kept in loop regarding the procurement exercise". Refuting allegations that arhtiyas were exploiting farmers because of their financial leverage, Singla claimed that farmers wanted commission agents to be part of the procurement exercise. "If the government feels arhtiyas are exploiting farmers, it can start giving them advance loan on their crops," the Congress MP said. Singla said: "The minister has assured that the present system will not be upset. He said he understood the role of arhtiyas. No change will be made and arhtiyas will get their commission". Describing commission agents as integral part of the procurement system, Singla said arhtiyas were just service providers in foodgrain procurement. "Arhtiyas are making payments to farmers through account payee cheques within 72 hours of the sale from the last two-and-a-half years as per directions of the Punjab government. They take care of everything, right from the time grain is unloaded in mandis till the time it is lifted by the government," he said. Also questioning the decision of the FCI to directly pay the farmers through cheques, Harsimrat Badal recently told Parliament that the government agency lacked the capacity to procure without the aid of 22,000 commission agents. The government is keen on direct payment to farmers through cheques to completely remove middlemen from the system.
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Water theft
Chandigarh, April 4 In a meeting held to review the functioning of the department this morning, Badal asked the Chief Engineer (Canals) to submit a comprehensive proposal for making amendments to the Act on the pattern of Haryana and Rajasthan. Badal also agreed to a proposal to bring the operation and maintenance of water courses under the Irrigation Department by making relevant amendments to the Canal Act. The Chief Minister also gave in principle approval to fill vacant posts of SDO through the Punjab Public Service Commission and asked the department to immediate initiate the process. He also asked the Chief Secretary to allow the Irrigation Department to fill 50 per cent of the vacant posts of patwari through promotion. He also conceded to a proposal for the creating a post of engineer-in-chief in the department. Badal asked the chief secretary to convene a joint meeting of the officers of the Forests and Irrigation Departments to direct the Forest Department not to undertake plantation of trees on the banks of canals, distributaries and minors to avoid frequent breaches. He also asked Irrigation Minister Janmeja Singh Sekhon to regularly check the quality of construction of ongoing projects and make concerted efforts to bring micro and macro improvement in the canal system. He also directed the Principal Secretary Irrigation to coordinate with the Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources, to assess the feasibility of relining the Rajasthan and Sirhind feeders without its closure through some latest available technology. Otherwise the work on these projects should be started positively by April 1, 2013, by closing the canals. He also asked the Principal Secretary, Irrigation, to chalk out a time-bound action plan for checking the problem of waterlogging. Meanwhile, the Chief Engineer, Drainage, informed Badal that funds to the tune of Rs 4,966.11 lakh were required for desilting of water logged and wet drains in the state before the onset of monsoons. He assured the Chief Minister that detailed projects relating to flood protection works on the Ravi and Sutlej amounting to Rs 13,461 lakh and Rs 7,750 lakh, respectively, under the boarder areas scheme would be submitted to the Centre within 15 days. Besides, flood protection works sanctioned under NABARD RIDF-XVII amounting to Rs 7,973.88 lakh were being taken up immediately. key decisions n Filling vacant posts of SDO through the Punjab Public Service Commission n Creation of the post of engineer-in-chief in the Irrigation Department n Irrigation Department allowed to fill 50 per cent vacant posts of patwari through promotion n Chalking out a time-bound action plan for checking the problem of waterlogging
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Clash in Delhi gurdwara
Amritsar, April 4
The delegation members met Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh and handed him a memorandum along with photographs of the clash as evidence, seeking action against DSGMC chief Paramjit Singh Sarna. They told the Jathedar that the Sikh sangat in Delhi was opposing the DSGMC move to hand over a hospital constructed at the gurdwara premises into private hands. They alleged that when the Sikh sangat resented the “bhoomi pujan” being performed there on March 2, the DSGMC called the police and a clash broke out. They alleged that an “akhand path” underway at the gurdwara got disrupted due to the incident which was a clear violation of “maryada”. The SAD leaders urged the Jathedar to deliberate on the matter from a religious aspect and act against Sarna as per the religious code of conduct. They alleged that there was police presence inside the gurdwara premises even today. Responding to their demand, the Jathedar said the matter would be discussed in a meeting of the Sikh high priests after Baisakhi.
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Anand Marriage Act Row
New Delhi, April 4 Rejecting the law Ministry's new proposal to amend the Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1969, to include marriage registration without the requirement of listing religions, Tarlochan Singh, former chairperson, National Minorities Commission, today said the move was unacceptable to the Sikhs who had long awaited a separate marriage registration law to cement their identity at home and abroad. In a protest letter to Law Minister Salman Khursheed, whose ministry is said to be finalising the proposed amendment to the Birth and Death Registration law to allow couples an option of registering religion neutral marriages, Tarlochan Singh said: "All Sikh MPs have made an appeal to the government to amend the Anand Marriage Act to allow for registration of Sikh marriages currently registered under the Hindu Marriage Act. "Your new proposal will not give any help to five million Sikh NRIs who are facing threats to their identity abroad. If their marriage certificates don't conform to their religious beliefs or reflect their Sikh identity, how will they get justice from the foreign governments?" The Centre seems to be reverting to the position Khursheed articulated in a written reply to a related question in the Rajya Sabha on August 30, 2011. At that time, conveying the Centre's decision to drop the Sikhs' demand for amendments to the Anand Karaj Act, the Law Minister had said: "Since the scope of the Anand Marriage Act, 1909 is limited to marriage ceremonies amongst "anands", the registration of all forms of Sikh marriages is not within its scope. Further, there may not be any justification for secluding Sikhs from Hindus, Jains and Buddhists as such a step would invite similar demands from these religious denominations covered under the Hindu Marriage Act. "Also, seclusion of one community is against the directive principles contained in Article 44 of the Constitution which aims at bringing in a uniform civil code." Sikhs have been seeking changes to the Anand Karaj Act to include a clause for the registration of their marriages. Similar Acts exist to allow for separate registration of marriages in case of Muslims, Christians, Parsis and Jews. "As per the Centre's new proposal, marriages would be registered without mentioning the religion of the couple. But this will never satisfy the aspirations of Sikh minority which has been getting assurances for the last several years that a registration clause would be added to the Anand Marriage Act," Tarlochan Singh wrote to the Law Minister today. He told TNS that the Sikhs would launch a stir if their demands were not met.
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Rumblings in BSP grow louder
Phagwara, April 4 The BSP candidates from Phagwara, Phillaur, Anandpur Sahib and Kartarpur reportedly met in a hotel here today. Some senior party leaders also attended the meeting to express support for those raising their voice against senior leaders Avtar Singh Karimpuri, Narinder Kashyap and Gurlal. The dissidents decided to meet BSP supremo Mayawati to impress upon her to show the door to “leaders working against the interests of the party in the state.”
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Cong rebels make a point, walk out of Amarinder’s tea party
Chandigarh, April 4 But five candidates did speak out against the PCC chief even as they ridiculed the idea of holding a tea party instead of an introspection exercise, indicating the revolt in the state unit will now be carried to Delhi. Both pro and anti-Amarinder groups claim victory. The Amarinder group claims that 65 of the 71 defeated candidates are with the PCC chief though only 60-odd candidates attended the tea party. The opposing group says it has achieved its objective of exposing the PCC chief and openly asking for his resignation. The rebels say the PCC chief should have called a meeting and held a secret ballot if he was so confident of his support base. Observers claim Amarinder has succeeded in containing dissidence against him. He has risen to the challenge and held a meeting of defeated candidates, even if was an informal one. Only known rebels - former MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira, senior leader Jagmeet Brar’s brother Ripjit Brar, Surinderpal Singh Sibia, Mangat Rai Bansal and Raman Bhalla- came out in the open against him. The rebels who were wooing other leaders, including Isher Singh Meherban, Harminder Jassi and Darshan Brar, failed in their objective to raise a banner of revolt against the PCC chief. According to sources, Sukhpal, Ripjit and Sibia urged Amarinder to exit gracefully after failing the party in two assembly elections in a row. Bansal attributed the defeat to Amarinder’s coterie. Bhalla accused one of Amarinder’s OSDs of supporting and financing Congress rebel Ashok Sharma in Pathankot. They left the tea party midway after making their point. The rebels came in one vehicle for the meeting. They said they would proceed to Delhi to give their point of view to the Congress president.
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Shagun scheme paused
Chandigarh, April 4 Sources in the department said they stopped providing shagun after they detected that a number of girls who appeared in the list of beneficiaries but did not exist. "We suspect that only 50 per cent of the listed beneficiaries are genuine," said a senior functionary. For instance, in the list provided by the Amritsar district authorities, there was no mention of the postal address of several beneficiaries, he said. Nanda said there was a possibility of 20 to 30 per cent beneficiaries being fake. "But we cannot say anything till we receive reports from all DCs. We need bank account numbers and other information to pay the beneficiaries," he said. He said online disbursement had eliminated the possibility of the money going into wrong hands. Under the much-publicised scheme of the government, two daughters of Dalit couples and those belonging to economically weaker sections are given Rs 15,000 each at the time of their wedding.
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Kalkat panel to draft farm policy
Chandigarh, April 4 The committee, which has been told by Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to submit a policy draft in three months, will be headed by Dr GS Kalkat, who has been working as a Chairman, Punjab State Farmers Commission, for the past many years. Its member-secretary will be Balwinder Singh Sidhu, Managing Director, Milkfed, who earlier worked as Director, Agriculture. In the absence of a sustainable agriculture policy, the authorities had been groping in the dark to find a way forward. For the past several years, the state government has been trying to find a viable alternative to the wheat-paddy rotation system. Experts have been urging the state government to slash the area under paddy by 10 lakh hectares to check the declining subsoil water table. Excessive use of pesticides and fertilisers has become a major problem. Besides, the state has been facing a problem of plenty with insufficient space to store paddy (rice) and wheat. The government has repeatedly requested the Centre to move the surplus stocks of wheat and rice to make space for the fresh crop. The emphasis of the new policy will be on progressive restructuring of agriculture keeping in view national and global market trends and requirements. Punjab, has a huge potential in horticulture that has not been tapped. The state, with one of the best irrigation systems, has the ability to cater to the needs of the expanding middle class as far as providing fresh fruit, vegetables and milk is concerned. Other issue that is likely to be addressed by the agriculture policy is the processing of foodgrain. The state has an insignificant agro-processing industry. It has only a good number of rice mills.
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Punjab eyes Rs 3,000 crore rise in revenue collection
Patiala, April 4 Sources said that without imposing any new taxes, the department was to tighten its noose around traders in the state to meet the tax collection deadlines. "The Chief Minister had promised to end the Inspector Raj in the department, but nothing concrete has been done so far and the business community is not happy," an official of the department said. Commissioner, PETD, A Venu Prasad said the department had earned Rs 12,000 crore in 2011-12 financial year and further eyeing Rs 15,000 crore in the present financial year without imposing any new taxes. "This includes the annual Rs 1,700 crore earned from taxes on diesel, petrol, LPG and kerosene oil. Excise revenue from liquor would also be over Rs 3,600 crore," he said. To increase excise revenue, the department has now shifted its focus on transporters, who are running a nexus in association with smugglers and evading taxes worth crores of rupees. As per an estimate, the government is losing nearly Rs 500 crore through such gangs every year. "There is a tax evading mafia operating and we are sure to curb them by imposing heavy penalties on them," Venu Prasad said. Meanwhile, the department is likely to go online in this financial year regarding filing of returns to depositing receipts. "This year our focus would also be on the technology upgradation to reduce workload and bring an end to red tapism", said an official. The department is facing a shortage of nearly 50 per cent officers in the rank of the ETO, as against the sanctioned strength of 364 officers only 170 officers are there. "The vacant posts would soon be filled and also some officers would be promoted to increase efficiency," Prasad said.
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Ropar Thermal Plant overhaul in record time
Patiala, April 4 When the high-pressure turbine operates, the time required for capital overhaul (major maintenance work) is 45 days. However, with all sections of the thermal plant working round-the-clock, the same was completed 12 days prior to the deadline. This has enabled the Power Corporation to get additional 575 lakh units (LUs). K.Lall, Chief Engineer, Ropar Thermal Plant, said: “During the financial year 2011-12, the plant had improved its performance by generating 95,640 LUs against the target of 93,000 LUs fixed by the Central Electricity Authority. The milestone was achieved despite generation loss to the tune of 6,500 LUs due to higher backing down/no demand”. Lall said the plant performance parameters like station heat rate, specific coal consumption and DM water consumption had been the lowest and the best ever since the inception of the plant. “I appreciate the efforts of the officers and the staff,” he added. GS Chhabra, Director (Generation), Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL), said the entire exercise conducted for the early completion of the work had brought desired results.
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De-addiction centres to come up in all jails
Patiala, April 4 Sources confirmed that the decision was taken following a meeting between DGP (Jails) Shashi Kant and Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal. “The Jails Department has got an approval to continue its de-addiction programme. It will get Rs 4 crore per annum for the purchase of medicines,” reads an official communiqué of the department. The move is significant in view of the fact that 30 per cent of the Punjab inmates are either jailed under the NDPS Act or are drug addicts. The department will soon have full-time staff at these well-equipped centres. The centres will use methadone syrup for de-addiction of inmates. Methadone has been in use in various countries like Maldives, Nepal and Bhutan for years, but the Drug Control Department only recently gave a go ahead for its use in India. Shashi Kant said two inmates in Kapurthala jail had already been administered a dose of methadone while 10 others had
come forward for the treatment. “The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Union Government, Punjab Health Department and the Punjab Jails Department will jointly run such
centres,” he said.
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College teachers demand release
of arrears Patiala, April 4 Prof Jaipal Singh, general secretary of the Government College Teachers' Association (GCTA), said government college teachers had already staged a protest on March 14 at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi in this regard, but to no avail. He said that the teachers were also demanding removal of anomalies in the PhD and career progression. "Despite the fact that we have highlighted these anomalies time and again, the government has not taken any notice in this regard so far," he added. The Punjab and Haryana High Court has fixed the next date of hearing in June on a civil writ petition filed against the Punjab government for discriminating between government college teachers and other government employees. "While the government has distributed their share amongst all government employees, they had ignored the interests of government college teachers," added Prof Jaipal Singh.
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Cong MP to take up tax issue with Finance Minister
Fatehgarh Sahib, April 4
Addressing the protesting jewellers, Sukhdev Singh Libra condemned new laws being imposed by Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. He assured them to take up the matter with the Finance Minister and other senior Congress leaders in Delhi. The Sangh also presented a memorandum to the MP in this regard. MLA Nagra also decried the Union Finance Minister for imposing excise duty. He said that he would to take up the matter with Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi. He said if the situation continued, lakhs of workers would be rendered jobless. Earlier, Prof Prem Singh Chandumajra visited the protesting members of the Sangh and lashed out at the UPA Government for working against the interests of the people. He assured them to take up the matter with Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to be further taken up with the Union Finance Minister.
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Sharma elected chief of Patiala tax bar body
Patiala, April 4 Other office-bearers include Ravinder Singh, joint secretary, Gurpreet Singh, treasurer, and Jagdish Kumar Kapur, Baldev Singh Neelam, Lajpat Rai Arora, Manoj Kumar Sharma, Krishan Kumar Chugh, Kulwinder Singh and Jagmohan Malhotra as executive members. Out of 13 nominations received, one nomination was withdrawn, leaving 12 candidates in the poll fray. All candidates were elected unopposed.
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Varsity to study Himalayan ants
Patiala, April 4 Project supervisor Dr Himender Bharti, who has been working on Himalayan ants for the past 12 years, said that ants were the key players in an ecosystem and therefore the study would be crucial. "I am compiling a database of Indian ants and recently discovered a rare red-list species from the northwest Himalayas, besides discovering many new species of ants," Dr Bharti said. In a recently concluded research project also funded by the Ministry of Environment and Forest, Dr Bharti and his team had assessed the health of the lower Shivalik Range of the northwest Himalayas by using ants as indicators. The team discovered a large number of invasive/tramp species in the region, which are replacing the native ant fauna at many places, thereby clearly indicating the deteriorating health of the Shivalik ecosystem. Thus the findings indicate that the Shivalik Range is now a disturbed ecosystem and is in dire need of restoration and conservation.
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108 ambulance service completes a year
Ludhiana, April 4 Jatin Malhotra, cluster head of Ludhiana-II, said, "We provided our service to 1,53,266 patients in the state. Out of these 49,277 were pregnant women who were taken to nearby government hospitals in emergency and 23,144 were accident victims. However, we also facilitated delivery of 245 women in the ambulance itself, out of which 42 were in Ludhiana district alone. The remaining patients were on medical emergency, who were rushed to hospitals on call." The service, which has successfully completed a year in the state, also faced some problems at the side of callers. Jagdip Singh, cluster head of 108 ambulance service for Ludhiana -I, said, "The major problem we face is the improper address. Whenever a caller gives us a call, he or she does not give proper address. Due to this, sometimes we reach a little late. And second problem is crank calls. Some people call us and give wrong information regarding accidents."
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Chandigarh, April 4 An official spokesperson said the rate of family pension in respect of employee who dies in harness during the first 15 years from the date of death or till the time he would have attained the age of 65 had he survived, whichever period is less, would be 60 per cent for the employees drawing salary up to Rs 10,000 while for employees drawing more than Rs 10,000, it would be 50 per cent of the pay subject to a minimum of Rs 6,000. He said the rate of family pension in respect of the employee who dies in harness after the first 15 years from the date of his/her death or till the time he would have attained the age of 65 had he survived, whichever period is less, would be 40 per cent for the employees drawing salary up to Rs 10,000 while it would be 30 per cent of pay subject to a minimum of Rs 4,000 for the employees drawing pay above Rs 10,000. — TNS
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Young granthi shot dead
Tarn Taran, April 4 The gurdwara management shut its offices in protest against the incident that occurred at about 6.30 am. Sukhchain spotted two youths taking away a motorcycle that reportedly belonged to a devotee. Sukhchain got suspicious and walked towards them to make enquires. The youths took out their weapon and shot him in the chest. They fled through the gurdwara’s langar hall. Manmohanjit Singh, a gurdwara employee, and Mukhtar Singh Randhawa, a devotee, rushed the injured granthi to the local Civil Hospital. Sewadar Nirvail Singh tried to stop the fleeing youths but in vain. The criminals intercepted a motorcyclist and forced him to drive them towards Amritsar. As they neared Thathi Khara village , 4 km from here, they got down and left in a Zen car waiting for them. Arjun Singh, gurdwara manager, has urged the police to take stringent action against the attackers. Manminder Singh, Tarn Taran SSP, said the police had registered a case under Sections 302, 511, 379 and 34, IPC, and Sections 25/54and 59 of the Arms Act. Akal Takht Jatheda Gurbachan Singh and SGPC chief Avtar Singh has condemned the incident.
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3 held with US-made arms
Nawanshahr, April 4 Dr Narinder
Bhargav, SSP, said following a tipoff, he directed DSP Satish Malhotra to hold a naka in collaboration with the Ropar’s CIA staff. The Kathgarh police accompanied by the CIA staff were successful in making the arrests. "The three are believed to be associates of Harminder Singh
Mintoo, leader of the Indian Sikh Youth Federation, who is residing in Malaysia.” Cases under Sections 25/54/59 of the Arms Act and Sections 17 / 18 / 20 of the Prevention of Unlawful Activities Act have been registered against Inderjit Singh and Dinesh at the Adampur and Bhogpur police stations in Jalandhar district. Further investigations were on, said
Bhargav.
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The 108 ambulance service, which was launched by the Punjab government on April 3 last year, has ferried more than 1.5 lakh patients in different parts of the state in a year. The government received 240 ambulances under the National Rural Health Mission in three phases.
Stopping thieves from stealing a motorcycle from outside the main entrance of Darbar Sahib here proved fatal for a young granthi of the shrine.
Sukhchain Singh (28) was shot dead by armed thieves who fled, abandoning the motorcycle, after the crime. Sukhchain was rushed to the local Civil Hospital which referred him to Guru Nanak Dev Hospital, Amritsar. He died on the way.
Punjab may become power surplus, but it will have to reckon with a power utility that is on the verge of bankruptcy, juggle a subsidy bill that is on the rise each year, and ensure electricity tariff does not increase dramatically along with availability.
Even genuine beneficiaries, who were married two years ago, have yet to get money. The department had disbursed Rs 52 crore among 34,480 beneficiaries last fiscal year through online payment. The government has released money for the 72,000 identified beneficiaries but the Deputy Commissioners of 20 districts are yet to get back to the department to prove that they are genuine cases. Though the Director, Welfare, HS Nanda, has sent several reminders to the Deputy Commissioners of all the 22 districts, only those of Moga and Patiala have submitted a verified list of beneficiaries. 
Parveen Sharma has been elected as president of the Patiala Tax Bar Association during the annual election for 2012-13. Davinder Kishor Batish and Srishti Sachdeva were elected vice president and general secretary, respectively. The elections were held at Aayakar Bhawan here.
Sukhchain Singh (28) was shot dead by armed thieves who fled, abandoning the motorcycle, after the crime. Sukhchain was rushed to the local Civil Hospital which referred him to Guru Nanak Dev Hospital, Amritsar. He died on the way.