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Rain, winds damage wheat crop
Chief Parliamentary Secys get portfolios
Cargo movement to resume today
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Punjab has no money for atta-dal scheme
Partap Bajwa’s brother Fatehjang bats for Capt
PCC Leadership Issue
Centre ‘intentionally’ not lifting wheat quota, says Chandumajra
Potable water BSF to upgrade training centre, recruit women constables
Justice Ahluwalia to join Calcutta Bench on April 19
More subsidies for farm sector on cards: Dhindsa
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Rain, winds damage wheat crop
Light to moderate rain lashed most parts of Punjab today, delaying harvesting and damaging the wheat stock lying in the open in grain markets. Showers accompanied by heavy-velocity winds, had agriculture officials as well as farmers worried. Farmers said the rain had flattened their crop. Meanwhile, procurement agencies have made it clear that they would buy wheat only with minimum moisture content. The rain, accompanied with squall, was the result of western disturbances, the Met Office said. Amritsar had 18 mm of rainfall, Patiala 14.5 mm, Chandigarh 5 mm and Ludhiana 3.4 mm. Amritsar: Rain and high-velocity winds on Tuesday night did negligible damage to the wheat crop in Amritsar district. Dr Balwinder Singh Sohal, Chief Agriculture Officer, said: “At this stage, the standing crop requires some amount of water. The rainfall, recorded in the district between 4 mm and 10 mm, did little damage.”. Development Officer Gurdeep Singh said a prolonged winter spell had delayed harvesting in the region and moderate rainfall would be a blessing for farmers. “Harvesting has been delayed till April 20. Mature earheads, that turn golden by this time of the year, are still green. The wheat crop demands water at this stage ”, he said. Baba Bakala received 4.5 mm of rainfall, Jandiala 4 mm and Ajnala 10 mm. Ludhiana: Agro-meteorologists at Punjab Agricultural University, say incessant rain could delay harvesting and affect grain quality. Dr KK Gill said: "The rainfall was minimal (4.6 mm) yesterday, but if it continues to rain for some more days, it will affect the grain." Dr Navtej Singh Bains, a wheat expert, said: “Rain when the crop has ripened can spoil the grain sheen. In case of immature crop, rain is safe if winds do not damage the plants".
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Chief Parliamentary Secys get portfolios
Chandigarh, April 11 Sohan Singh Thandal has been allotted the Irrigation Department and has been attached to Irrigation Minister Janmeja Singh Sekhon, Chaudhary Nand Lal (Forest & Wildlife, Labour), attached to Surjit Kumar Jyaani, Sant Balvir Singh Ghunas has been given Jail, Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Achieves and Museums attached to Sarwan Singh Phillaur, Des Raj Dhugga has been allotted Animal Husbandry, Fisheries and Dairy Development attached to Gulzar Singh Ranike, Harmeet Singh Sandhu has been allotted PWD attached to Sharanjeet Singh Dhillon. Mantar Singh Brar has been given Rural Development and Panchayats attached to Surjeet Singh Rakhra, Bibi Mohinder Kaur Josh has been allotted Medical Education and Research attached to Bhagat Chunni Lal, Amarjeet Singh Shahi has been given Revenue and Rehabilitation attached to Bikram Singh Majithia, Avinash Chander has been allotted Higher Education attached to Sikander Singh Malooka. Meanwhile, KD Bhandari has been attached to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and allotted Cooperation, Inderbeer Singh Bolaria has been allotted Education attached to Sikander Singh Malooka, Amarpal Singh Ajnala gets Technical Education and Industrial Training Institutes attached to Anil Joshi, Gurcharan Singh Babehaali has been allotted Agriculture attached to Jathedar Tota Singh, Virsa Singh Valtoha has been given Water Supply and Sanitation, Defence Welfare, attached to the Chief Minister, NK Sharma gets Industry and Commerce attached to Anil Joshi, Nasaara Khatoon has been allotted Social Security, Women and Child Development attached to Madan Mohan Mittal. Navjot Kaur Sidhu has been allotted Health and Family Welfare attached to Madan Mohan Mittal, Parkash Chand Garg gets Food and Civil Supply attached to Adesh Partap Singh Kairon, Pawan Kumar Teenu has been allotted Sports and Youth Services and SC/BC Welfare attached to Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal and Gulzar Singh Ranike, respectively, Sarup Chand Singla has been allotted Excise and Taxation attached to Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal and Som Parkash has been allotted Local Government attached to Bhagat Chunni
Lal.
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Cargo movement to resume today
Amritsar, April 11 Rajdeep Uppal, vice-president, Amritsar Exporters Chambers of Commerce, said: "We have reached a compromise with the labour unions at our own level. As per the deal, we will pay the Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC) and the contractors engaged by them 25 to 30 per cent of the rate which we have negotiated with the labourers as handling charges. These rates differ from commodity to commodity". Sources said even after striking the deal the labourers wanted more and resorted to a "blockade" at the ICP. The blockade, which lasted for a couple of hours, was finally lifted after the traders agreed to pay them Rs 300 per truck, besides the negotiated rate. Later, Uppal expressed hope that the trade would be back on the track through the ICP tomorrow. A large number of trucks loaded with soyabean and perishable goods are lined up outside the ICP, waiting to cross over to Pakistan for the last couple of days. The sources said the traders also gave a representation to Union Government officials, who were on a visit to the ICP before its inauguration, and urged them to look into the matter. "The traders have told them to find out a permanent solution to the issue," they said. Earlier, in the morning, a delegation of importers and exporters held a meeting with officials of the Land Port Authority of India, Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC), labour unions and contractors to resolve the issue, but it didn't yield any result. They had reached a compromise at one point of time, but a new demand by the labourers brought the situation back to the square one. The meeting also saw some exporters from Delhi arriving at the ICP. These exporters were angry at the way the trade had come to a halt. "We have been told to take our perishable goods back without any notice. Our goods are rotting due to the stalemate," said Kunal Batra, a trader from Delhi.
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Sukhbir: Open more trade routes with Pak
Jalalabad (Fazilka), April 11 He would also take up the issue of a liberalised visa regime for Indian and Pakistani traders. Sukhbir was talking to mediapersons after addressing a series of well-attended thanksgiving rallies on his maiden visit to this border constituency after the formation of the SAD-BJP coalition government. He said the economic profile of the area would improve if the Centre took steps to reopen the Hussainiwala check post in Ferozepur and Sadqi in Fazilka for trade with Pakistan and the Central Asia. He regretted that though Pakistan Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani had initially prepared a 'negative list' of 1,209 items for trade with India, it now seemed the two countries could trade only 137 items through the Wagah border. "We had pinned high hopes on the opening of the land route for trade with Pakistan", said a disappointed Sukhbir. Thanking the electorate of Jalalabad for reposing faith in him, Sukhbir said the Chief Minister would call on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to seek a special industrial package for the border area to solve the problem of unemployment. He announced a hospital for Jalalabad besides a world-class stadium to host kabaddi matches. He announced a degree college at Arniwala. He said that civic infrastructure in 20 villages of Jalalabad would be upgraded every year and he would hold Sangat Darshan twice a month to redress the grievances of the people and for a feedback on development initiatives. ‘No vendetta’ There is no truth in charges that the government is indulging in vendetta against Congress activists... Amarinder Singh is concocting such stories to divert the attention of people from the revolt against him by his colleagues — Sukhbir Badal, Deputy Chief Minister
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Punjab has no money for atta-dal scheme Chandigarh, April 11 After taking up the issue with Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, the Food and Civil Supplies Minister held a meeting with Principal Secretary (Finance) Satish Chandra in this regard. However, no final decision was taken on the issue. Sources said the state government's agencies, including Punsup, Markfed, Punjab Agro Industries Corporation and Warehousing Corporation, have expressed their inability to procure wheat and pulses for the scheme due to an outstanding debt of Rs 1,400 crore incurred by them. Sources said that the agencies had been procuring wheat and pulses after securing loans from banks on the assurance given by the state government that the loan amount would be reimbursed. However, the government had not given the money to the agencies. The government used to make a provision of Rs 350 crore every year in its budget since 2007 when the scheme was launched, but it did not pay this amount to the agencies that had been given the responsibility to procure wheat and pulses for the scheme. The scheme had proved a boon for the SAD-BJP Government in the assembly elections. Poll observers had stated that the SAD-BJP alliance returned to power because of this scheme, which made poor sections of the society to vote for the ruling coalition. The financial burden of the scheme would go up this time because the SAD had promised to give atta at Rs 2 per kg if returned to power in its election manifesto. In the previous term, it had given flour at Rs 4 per kg and pulses at Rs 20 per kg. There are about 15.5 lakh beneficiaries of this scheme in the state.
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Partap Bajwa’s brother Fatehjang bats for Capt
Chandigarh, April 11 Fatehjang was earlier miffed with his brother when he failed to get the party ticket for the assembly elections. He later came around to supporting the candidature of his sister-in-law Charanjit Kaur from Qadian. Today, he again took a position different from that of his brother, who has emerged as one of the most vociferous opponents of Capt Amarinder Singh’s leadership. Fatehjang said Capt Amarinder should remain PCC president till 2014. He said Amarinder had delivered in the past and retained utmost respect of the Sikh peasantry for his bold steps, including abrogation of the water agreements with neighbouring states and ensuring regular power supply to farmers during his stint as Chief minister. Fatehjang maintained that while Partap was of the opinion that Amarinder should go immediately, he was of the opinion that it was not the right time for the PCC chief to quit. He went on to elaborate that the Congress president was seized of the matter and that there was no point in resorting to a blame game after the poll debacle. Voicing the view of the Amarinder camp, he said the “ loss is a collective one as it was everybody’s duty to ensure the win of their nominees.” Asked if Partap Bajwa had emerged as the main challenger to Amarinder’s leadership, he said this seemed to be the case. “However, Partap should not forget that Amarinder is loved by the peasantry and all sections of society”, he cautioned. Fatehjang said a number of legislators as well as former legislators were with Amarinder and his successor would be able to run the affairs of the state unit only with Amarinder’s blessings. Observers feel Fatehjang has repaid the trust reposed in him by Amarinder who had backed his claim for the party ticket. However, wary of being caught on the wrong foot in case of a change in leadership, he has demanded a change in leadership with Amarinder’s consent.
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PCC Leadership Issue
New Delhi, April 11 The group will comprise former MLAs Sukhpal Khaira, Vijay Sathi, Surinder Pal Singh Sibia, Mangat Rai Bansal and Ripjit Brar, former ministers Raman Bhalla and Sardul Singh and sitting MLAs Randeep Nabha and Navtej Singh Cheema. Former Congress Legislature Party (CLP) chief Rajinder Kaur Bhattal has been meeting senior leaders in Delhi in the past two days. A meeting was held at the residence of Mohinder Singh Kapyee here which was attended by CWC member Jagmeet Singh Brar and Gurdaspur MP Partap Singh Bajwa, both bitter critics of Capt Amarinder Singh. Bajwa reportedly met Rahul Gandhi on the issue a couple of days ago.
DCC chiefs’ stand
Chandigarh: Following a sustained attack from senior Congress leaders, including former PCC chiefs, the Amarinder Singh camp has garnered support of DCC chiefs in a bid to prop up his leadership.
A press note issued on behalf of all DCC heads, except those of Sangrur and Muktsar, from where senior leaders Rajinder Kaur Bhattal and Jagmeet Brar belong, today “appealed” to the senior party leadership to exercise restraint and leave the state leadership issue to party president Sonia Gandhi. The press note claimed that the anti-Amarinder campaign was prompted by personal prejudices of leaders and must not be seen as the voice of grassroots workers who were more concerned with matters like harassment at the hands of the SAD-BJP government. They said the way senior leaders had been raking up the issue in the media had only demoralised the party workers facing the Akali onslaught. The signatories to the statement included Pawan Dewan (Ludhiana Urban), Jugal Kishore Sharma (Amritsar Urban), Milkiat Singh Dakha (Ludhiana Rural), Harpartap Singh Ajnala (Amritsar Rural), Prem Kishen Puri (Patiala Urban), Hardayal Kambhoj (Patiala Rural), Satbir Singh (Nawashahar), Sukhjinder Randhawa (Gurdaspur), Shyam Sunder Arora (Hoshiarpur), Rajinder Singh Rana (Mohali), Sukhbinder Saini (Ropar), Harinder Singh Bhambri (Fatehgarh Sahib), Surinder Gupta (Faridkot), Harjit Singh Parmar (Kapurthala), Dharampal Agnihotri (Tarn Taran), Jagsir Singh Gaggowal (Mansa), Arun Walia (Jallandhar Urban), Kanwarjeet Singh Lali (Jallandhar Rural), Anoop Singh (Ferozepur), Ashok Kumar (Bathinda Urban), Narinder Bhaleria (Bathinda Rural), Jagdarshan Kaur (Moga), Jagjit Singh Dhaula (Barnala) and Devinder Darshi
(Pathankot).
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Centre ‘intentionally’ not lifting wheat quota, says Chandumajra
Fatehgarh Sahib, April 11 Despite several meetings between the Chief Minister and the Union Agriculture Minister, no progress has been made so far, said Chandumajra. He also inspected heaps of wheat brought by farmers. He urged the farmers to bring wheat to mandis, saying they won't face any problem in selling their produce. He also inspected the arrangements made by the Mandi Board for the convenience of farmers. He directed the officials to provide drinking water, light and boarding facilities in mandis for farmers. He said the state government had directed the procurement agencies to ensure payment to farmers within 24 hours and lifting of procured wheat within 72 hours.
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Potable water
Chandigarh, April 11 A decision to this effect was taken by Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal during a meeting with a World Bank team and senior government officers
here. Shyamal Sarkar, leader of the World Bank team, said as many as 690 villages had been covered under the scheme to provide fresh drinking water to the people in the first phase. He assured Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal that a Rs 630-crore project to provide fresh drinking water in 700 villages along with sewerage facilities in 100 villages would be taken up in the next phase and completed within two years.
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Punjab to create land bank for industry
Chandigarh, April 11 It has been decided to implement the revised deemed approval policy in Punjab wherein any new project proposal will have to be granted all approvals by various state government departments within 30 days, failing which the Industries Department, on its own, will give a deemed approval to the project. With an aim to bring transparency, all approvals will be processed online so that the investor knows the status of his application. Having missed the bus in attracting new industries to the neighbouring tax exempted hill states and even to Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, Industries Minister Anil Joshi has decided on threshing out different issues concerning the poor inflow of investment in Punjab and thus makes Punjab an attractive investment destination. From help in creating a land banks for industry to improving the infrastructure in industrial focal points, and from promoting setting up of industrial clusters to winning the confidence of local small-scale industry by having a regular interface with them, Joshi is hopeful of ushering an "industrial investment revolution" in Punjab. Joshi today said the state government has initiated an exercise to look out for land at reasonable rates in Kandi belt and Bathinda area to be handed over to investors for setting up industrial units. "The government has started a process to look out for land available in different parts of state. Initially, we propose to have at least five pockets of land bank, with each pocket having 3,000 acres of land, so that investors can set up industrial units there," he said, adding that all general managers of industry department had already been told to identify land to create land banks, which could be given to private investors for setting up industrial parks. The Minister said that he was very keen on setting up industrial clusters for the existing
SMEs. "We propose to set up textile cluster in the cotton growing Malwa areas, IT clusters in Amritsar and Mohali and a cluster of processing houses in
Amritsar. This will help bring down the economies of scale for the SMEs in each cluster thus helping them grow and prosper," he said.
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BSF to upgrade training centre, recruit women constables
Hoshiarpur, April 11 The recruitment will begin by the end of this month during which around 1,600 women constables would be recruited and gradually inducted into the BSF. Around eight companies of 200 women constables each will undergo training at the STC. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has launched a drive to recruit women constables in all STCs of the BSF across the country. While the MHA has issued a separate budget worth crores for modification of the training area, lodging and mess, and expansion of the hospital with a new women’s ward. Prefabricated structures will also be installed at the STC to meet the lodging needs of the women constables. BSF Inspector General (IG), Punjab Frontier, Aditya Mishra said around 56 prefabricated structures would be installed at the STC. The BSF had procured these structures from the Bureau of Police Research and Development, he said. For providing training, the BSF will take services of its women constables and those from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). “We will be holding a separate training of the trainers for 10 BSF women constables and three CRPF constables during which they will be taught how to give training to the recruits in drill, weapon handling and physical training,” said a senior STC officer.
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Justice Ahluwalia to join Calcutta Bench on April 19
Chandigarh, April 11 Justice Ahluwalia will be administered the oath by Calcutta High Court Chief Justice JN Patel. Formal orders of Justice Ahluwalia’s transfer were received by the Punjab and Haryana High Court here today.The orders came nearly two years after he opted for a transfer. Information available from New Delhi suggests the Supreme Court collegium accepted Justice Ahluwalia’s request for transfer “for better administration of justice” last month. Known for his transparent style of functioning, Justice Ahluwalia is among the few judges who have opted for a transfer because their kin are practising in the same court. The High Court has an estimated 10 “uncle Judges”. Their list has been forwarded to the Union Ministry of Law and Justice in response to a communication from the latter. The ministry had asked high courts across the country to identify and furnish lists of all such judges last year. With Justice Ahluwalia’s departure, the number of Judges in the Punjab and Haryana High Court will go down to 41, against the sanctioned strength of 68. As of now, approximately 2 lakh cases are pending adjudication. Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, too, is expected to leave following his elevation as Supreme Court Judge. He is to be replaced by Justice Bimala Prasad Das of the Orissa High Court. His name has been cleared by the Supreme Court collegium. Justice MM Kumar is also set to be elevated as Chief Justice of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court.
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More subsidies for farmers soon: Dhindsa
Patiala, April 11 "Efforts are on to raise more money for such agricultural subsidies," he said while speaking at a camp organized for farmers by the Agriculture Department in Sangrur. He promised farmers that funds would not be a problem in the future. — TNS
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Light to moderate rain lashed most parts of Punjab today, delaying harvesting and damaging the wheat stock lying in the open in grain markets.
The deadlock between traders and contractors, which had halted the cargo movement from India to Pakistan at the ICP, ended this evening.
Gurdaspur MP Partap Singh Bajwa may have asked Pradesh Congress president Capt Amarinder Singh to hang up boots, but his brother and party general secretary Fatehjang Singh Bajwa wants Amarinder to keep these on. Fatehjang feels Punjab Congress men should support Amarinder and present a picture of unity at this crucial juncture.
Chandigarh, April 11
Ahead of mass recruitment of women constables, the Border Security Force
(BSF) is all set to upgrade infrastructure at the Subsidiary Training Centre (STC), Kharkan camp in
Hoshiarpur. The recruitment will begin by the end of this month during which around 1,600 women constables would be recruited and gradually inducted into the
BSF. Around eight companies of 200 women constables each will undergo training at the
STC.
Chandigarh, April 11
