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Bharat Bandh call evokes mixed response
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Elevated road may restrict entry to Pingalwara
Kiln owners feel the heat
Cong Shocked
Stubble burning norms up in flames at PAU farm
A fire at the Punjab Agricultural University seed farm in Faridkot. A Tribune photograph
Mansa is state’s second smoke-free district
PHRC seeks report on prisoners
Murder convict hangs himself to death in jail
Info on licensed weapons to go online
Pension absentees
MP: Construct memorial to victims of militancy
University’s computer lab destroyed in fire
Second challan in
Rs 8-cr paddy scam
MUNICIPAL POLL
Six held for blackmailing
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Bharat Bandh call evokes mixed response
Chandigarh, May 31 In the Majha region, normal life was hit as transport services like buses and auto-rickshaws remained off the road, leaving the commuters stranded. Commercial establishments, including shops and markets, remained closed in a majority of the areas in Amritsar, though factories and other industrial units were operational. The health services remained largely unaffected while chemist shops remained open. Train services ran normally in the region. Effigies of the UPA government leaders were burnt and protest marches were taken out.
Majithia leads cycle rally in Amritsar In order to convey the ire of the common man and the people's disapproval to steep petrol price hike, Punjab Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia led a cycle rally from Ranjit Avenue in Amritsar to the District Administrative Complex. Accompanied by SAD leaders and a large number of supporters, Majithia handed over a memorandum to the Additional Deputy Commissioner. The BJP leaders were conspicuous by their absence. BJP district chief Anand Sharma attributed their absence to the fact that today was last day of withdrawal in the MC elections and the BJP leaders were busy in it. Majithia said while the people were reeling under price rise. "The Centre has failed to find a way to ease the burden on the common man. The steep rise in petrol price from Rs 36 a litre in the NDA regime to Rs 80 a litre in the UPA government's tenure speaks volumes about the mismanagement of the Centre," he said.
BJP leaders block
NH in Pathankot In Pathankot, Gurdaspur and Batala, the bandh was near complete. BJP state executive member SK Punj and his supporters blocked the Pathankot-Chamba National Highway at Bungal. An effigy of the Union Government was also burnt. In Gurdaspur, although government schools remained closed, security around private schools was tightened since early morning. Gurdaspur SAD chief and former Agriculture Minister SS Langah, former Speaker NS Kahlon and local MLA Gurbachan Singh Babbehali handed over a memorandum to Deputy Commissioner Dr Abhinav Trikha. Banks, both private and state owned, remained open, though shops and other commercial establishments downed their shutters. Passengers were harassed as a majority of the buses did not ply. Former Qadian MLA Lakhbir Singh Lodhinangal organised a protest rally at the Gandhi Chowk, which was also attended by Batala BJP chief Ashok Modgil.
Supply of fodder, milk hit in Tarn Taran In Tarn Taran, the bandh call evoked mixed response. While the bandh was near complete in rural areas it was not the case in urban areas. In Tarn Taran and Patti towns, more than 50 per cent shops and other commercial establishments were open. Towns like Chohla Sahib, Naushehra Pannuan, Goindwal Sahib, Fetehbad, Khadur Sahib, Harike, Khemkaran, Bhikhiwind, Kharla, Valtoha wore a deserted look. Supply of fodder, milk, vegetables etc was affected.
Ludhiana industries remain unaffected In Ludhiana, the bandh call failed to evoke much response. Though shopping malls preferred to remain shut during day time, shops in all the major markets were seen open. Work in industrial units also went on undisrupted and banks also remained open. Though hospitals remained opened, they witnessed fewer patients. Mini-buses remained off roads, causing inconvenience to rural commuters. CPM activists blocked road traffic on the national high way in Phillaur. A complete bandh was observed in Khanna, Samrala, Machhiwara and Khamano, Goraya, Phillaur, Apra, Bilga, Noormahal and Nakodar. SAD and BJP activists were seen convincing shopkeepers to close their shops in Phillaur.
Bandh passes off peacefully in Moga In Moga district, all private business establishments, banks and other financial institutions remained closed throughout the day. Government schools and colleges were open, but attendance was very thin. The markets wore a deserted look. Rail traffic was normal while road traffic remained halted throughout the day. Late in the evening, private buses started plying on local routes.
Most shops remain open in Patiala In Patiala, shops were seen open except in the market near Leela Bhawan. As majority of SAD and BJP grassroots-level workers remained busy in preparations for the MC poll, they failed to ensure that the bandh was complete. In Rajpura, Samana, Sangrur and Patiala, majority of the traders kept their establishments open. (With inputs from Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran, Ludhiana, Moga and
Patiala)
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Elevated road may restrict entry to Pingalwara
Amritsar, May 31 Municipal Commissioner Dharam Pal Gupta said the work was in its final stage and the ramp would be opened for traffic within a month or so. However, the second ramp is a cause for concern for the Pingalwara Society as it starts right in front of its entrance gate. A 10-foot-high pillar of the proposed ramp of the elevated road has been built right opposite the entrance of the main Pingalwara branch near the bus stand. Once the ramp gets extension, hardly any space would be left to reach Pingalwara, which has been established for the destitute and mentally challenged patients. The three-storey building of Pingalwara currently facilitates over 1,100 patients who are housed, fed and looked after by the charitable society. It was observed that entry and exit of a 12-foot-high ambulance (approximately) from this point would be restricted. This building houses administrative complex, a female ward, children’s ward, rehabilitation centre, printing press, dispensary, medical lab, dental centre and common kitchen of the society. It is also apprehended that this ramp, in its existing state, will adversely affect the movement of vehicles to Pingalwara, which may even have an impact on donations at the society's office. Society president Dr Inderjit Kaur said several communications had been sent to the state government, but in vain. “We have written to the CM, the local MP as well as the Local Bodies Department to review the move. But, all our efforts have proved futile," she said. On the other hand, the MC Commissioner claimed the matter had been sorted out and the charitable society had no problem due to the ramp now. The elevated road project was conceptualised during the previous Congress regime in 2006. The project cost was pegged at Rs 210 crore and it was supposed to be completed by October 2009. The main elevated road, a 3.5-km stretch, was inaugurated by Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal in May 2010.
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Kiln owners feel the heat
Chandigarh, May 31
“The SC ruling also says that environment clearance is a must for land leased out for a minimum of five years. However, in Punjab, land to brick-kilns is given on lease for less than a year,” Makkar said . Makkar said they had asked the state government to ask the Centre to exclude brick earth from the category of minor minerals. He also demanded a month’s time to take legal recourse before the department of Mines moves against the kiln owners.
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Cong Shocked
Patiala, May 31 Seven other candidates also withdrew their papers following which Jaspal was declared winner by Returning Officer Anupreet Johal. Pradhan is a front-runner for the post of Mayor. During the 2007 corporation elections, he was elected unopposed from Ward No 39. Despite repeated attempts, Makhan Ram was not available for comment. Patiala DCC (Urban) president Prem Krishan Puri said since he had not chosen Makhan Ram for the contest, “ask the party leaders who had backed him.” Makhan Ram’s candidature was recommended by former Patiala Improvement Trust Chairman KK Sharma, he said. However, Sharma was not available for comment. Congress candidate from Ward No 2 Surjit Dhiman also withdrew his papers today. Meanwhile, senior Congress leaders allege that the ruling SAD-BJP alliance is using the police to intimidate Congress candidates into pulling out of the MC elections. Congress MLA Brahm Mohindra said: “ It is a matter of shame that candidates are being terrorised at the behest of SAD bigwigs. Our party urges the Election Commission to closely monitor the poll process to ensure that the elections are held in a free and fair manner”.
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Stubble burning norms up in flames at PAU farm
Faridkot, May 31 The burning of wheat stubble is a punishable act under the law and the Punjab Pollution Control Board and the state Agriculture Department have been spending crores annually on awareness campaigns against the menace. University experts say burning the stubble threatens soil fertility, kills eco-friendly worms and lowers the content of organic carbon in the soil, which results in low yield. While seed farm director Joginder Singh Brar declined to comment on the issue, Deputy Commissioner Ravi Bhagat expressed "shock" and assured of a probe in the matter.
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Mansa is state’s second smoke-free district
Chandigarh, May 31 Mahajan appreciated the consistent efforts made by the State Tobacco Control Cell as well as the Mansa administration in this direction. She said the School of Public Health at the PGI in Chandigarh had been entrusted the task of conducting a compliance survey and opinion poll to verify the compliance of COTPA Act, 2003 (Cigarettes & Other Tobacco Products Act) in Mansa. Dr Sonu Goel, Assistant Professor of Health Management at the PGI, has, in a report, said that the absence of active smoking and presence of signages was observed in 92 per cent and 75 per cent public places, respectively, in Mansa district. — TNS
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PHRC seeks report on prisoners
Chandigarh, May 31 The report revealed that despite having completed jail sentence, certain persons were languishing at the Ferozepur Central Jail for the past two years and that the state government was “dilly-dallying” over the matter. Many of these prisoners are elderly persons. One of them is aged 100. — TNS
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Murder convict hangs himself to death in jail
Ferozepur, May 31 He killed his lover in 2006 and even since had been languishing in the jail, said an official of the Jail Department. A post-mortem examination was conducted at the district hospital, after which the body was handed over to the deceased’s family members. The local police has initiated inquest proceedings under section 174 of the CrPC. However, a local magistrate has also initiated an inquiry into the incident.
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Info on licensed weapons to go online
Patiala, May 31 Punjab will perhaps be the first state in the country to implement this scheme under a pilot project backed by the Centre. Security agencies, both in Punjab and at the Centre, will soon be able to monitor the licensed weapons and track its owner within minutes. The system, Arms Information Software, will also make the process of issuing of a weapon licence easy by tracking the owner's past record. The system will be launched in all districts of the state within one year. Two districts of Punjab, Jalandhar and Patiala, are already working on the project. A team from Delhi recently trained officials in these districts. "A pilot project in these two districts has been allotted and information related to weapons for registration or renewal is entered in this software," said an official working on the project. Sources told The Tribune that the system would help officials and agencies track licensed weapons online rather than physically deputing a cop. "The project will make it easy for the security agencies to keep a record of weapons, especially in a state like Punjab where we have nearly four lakh registered weapons," they added. A Home Department official said the software would make the process simple as it would allot a unique identification number to every licence holder. "The system will also help eradicate corruption in the issuance of weapons," he stated, while refusing to elaborate. In Punjab, the districts with maximum number of licensed weapons include Ludhiana which has 26,726 such weapons, Bathinda and Gurdaspur, which have over 35,152 and 35,794 registered weapons, respectively, Sangrur has 15,197 while Patiala has 24,361 weapons issued to various persons.
the project n Punjab will perhaps be the first state to implement it under a pilot project n Security agencies will soon be able to monitor the licensed weapons and track owners within minutes n The system will also make the process of issuing of a licence easy by accessing owner's past record
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Pension absentees
Chandigarh, May 31 In Punjab, out of 10,06,149 pensioners, 51,620 are ineligible. As many as 19,806 pensioners did not come forward for verification. Out of 13,27,555 pensioners in Haryana, 18,420 are ineligible. In all, as many as 41,198 pensioners were shown absent and have not come forward for the purpose of verification. — TNS
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MP: Construct memorial to victims of militancy
Chandigarh, May 31 "It is the moral duty of the ruling Akali-BJP government to construct a suitable memorial for around 25,000 people who were killed by the militants," he said. There was endless pain for the affected families during the dark days of militancy. It was this agony of the people of Punjab that strengthened the resolve of not only former Chief Minister Beant Singh but also several leaders of various political parties and officials who made supreme sacrifices while fighting terrorism, said Bittu. "Though the government has constructed a suitable memorial to eulogise the sacrifice of my late grandfather Beant Singh, a greater memorial acknowledging sacrifices of thousands of innocent civilians is yet to be constructed."
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University’s computer lab destroyed in fire
Patiala, May 31 The incident occurred around 6 am and by the time security guards came to know about it, the entire lab had caught fire. There were more than 30 computers in the lab. A classroom and a store next to the lab also caught fire and the cable system has been charred. The loss is estimated to be in crores. Head of the department Jyotsana Sengupta said there was no causality. "The security guards raised an alarm on noticing the fire. Firefighters from within and outside the university controlled the fire. The damage is in crores," she added. University registrar AS Chawla said the cause of fire had not been ascertained yet.
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Second challan in
Rs 8-cr paddy scam
Moga/Ferozepur, May 31 Among those who figured in the second list of the challan are Ferozepur Cantonment Board member Zora Singh, Bahadur Wala village sarpanch Gurbhej Singh, Padhri village sarpanch Kuldip Singh and Mangal Singh, an employee at a rice mill. The first challan was presented in the trial court against Inder Neel Singh, his wife Devinder
Kaur, Sukhdev Singh Sukha and Satinder Singh Satta, all owners of various rice mills. Except for Zora Singh, who is in judicial custody, all the accused are out on bail. A senior official of the crime wing said the trial court had fixed June 12 as the next date of hearing in the case. As many as 1,92,973 bags of paddy belonging to
Pungrain, state-owned procurement agency, were allegedly illegally sold to rice millers in
Ferozepur, Moga and Faridkot districts instead of milling and handing over the rice to the Food Corporation of India.
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MUNICIPAL PO LL
Chandigarh, May 31 Directions for deployment of adequate police force have been issued to the respondents, including the Punjab State Election Commissioner and the Chief Election Commissioner. A Bench of Acting Chief Justice MM Kumar and Justice Alok Singh also directed that the incidences of booth-capturing “shall be immediately reported to the officers of the State Election Commission and the Chief Election Commissioner”. The Bench directed that adequate police force be deputed at all polling booths, particularly sensitive polling stations, for maintaining law and order with the sole objective of holding free and fair elections. On the issue of providing protection to candidates, the Bench said that the Superintendents of Police concerned would assess the threat perception if any person asked for personal security. “If necessary, the Superintendent of Police concerned will provide security cover to such persons during the elections.” The directions came on PIL filed by Krishan Kumar Sharma and others through counsel ML Saggar. The petitioners had sought directions to the EC and other respondents for a smooth and peaceful conduct of civic body elections . The High Court has already made it clear that the petitioners or any other person are at liberty to arrange for videography outside polling stations at their own cost and “if they express such a desire, they be not prevented from doing so”.
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Six held for blackmailing
Faridkot, May 31 The victim was invited to a rented house to meet his “would-be bride”. When he reached the house, six other gang members swooped on him, tore his clothes, beat him up and levelled allegations of rape. The gang members raised a demand of Rs 60,000, but settled for Rs 40,000. The victim informed the police and the six were arrested. — TNS
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The ride for pilgrims visiting the Golden Temple would soon become more comfortable with a ramp of the elevated road connecting the holy shrine with the GT road nearing completion. However, another ramp of the same elevated road may spell trouble for the All-India Pingalwara Charitable Society.
Wheat stubble on 200 acres at Raja Harinder Singh Seed Farm, owned by the Punjab Agricultural University
(PAU), in Faridkot was set ablaze last evening.
The fire also damaged a large number of trees in adjoining areas of the farm, spread over 1,200 acres of land. The farm was started by the university to prepare seed for various crops.
The deadline for environment clearance, as directed by the Supreme Court, ended on May 24. With officials asking them to stop excavating brick earth till they get environment clearance , the 3,000-odd kilns in the state face eminent closure.This could be disastrous for the infrastructure and real estate sectors. An average of 15 crore bricks are produced in Punjab daily. Kiln owners said tthey were required to get environment clearance to excavate earth from land (howsoever small in size) leased out by them. “Getting environment clearance takes a minimum 13 months. Till then, we will have to stop production.This will lead to huge unemployment as over nine lakh labourers work in Punjab’s kilns.The cost of bricks too will go up,” warned KS Makkar, president of the Punjab Brick-kiln Owners Association.