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Pak delegation arrives for talks
Dasuya bypoll: Congress to make police ‘misuse’ an issue
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Badal begins Green Mission from Fazilka
Fazilka, July 1 Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal chose to launch the “Green Punjab Mission” from Fazilka today as the district has a mere 1 per cent forest area against the recommended 33 per cent. Accompanied by Forest Minister Surjit Kumar Jyani, the Chief Minister launched the mission by planting a sapling near Puranpatti village on the Fazilka-Malout road, 7 km from the town.
Overcharging of beer goes unchecked
Farmer unions welcome probe into Charason clash
No end to water woes for Patiala residents
Public administration’s regional office to be shifted to Bathinda
Kharar’s ‘shamlat’ land in Gill’s possession: Report
Mid-day meal workers hold rally
Bank staff up in arms against proposed reforms
Kidnapped girl rescued after 3 years
Farmers not keen on mechanised transplantation
Punjab varsity gets over 10,000 online applications
Transfers of 40 teachers cancelled
Docs urged to serve patients with sincerity
25 booked for attack on forest officials
Man beaten to death by grandson’s wife, her kin
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Pak delegation arrives for talks
Attari, July 1 Headed by Director Generals of Sindh and Punjab units Rizwan Akhtar and Mian Mohammad Hilal Hussain, the Pakistan Rangers are on a five-day visit and would discuss key issues relating to the border, including smuggling of narcotics and fake currency, repatriation of prisoners, straying of fishermen into the other country's territorial waters and their subsequent release and unprovoked firing by Pakistani forces in the Jammu region. The bi-annual meeting is taking place after a gap of two years. The 30-member delegation from the neighboring country also includes officials from Survey of Pakistan, Anti-narcotics Force and the Interior Ministry. Interacting with the media, Akhtar denied any threat from fundamentalist groups to blow the Integrated Check Post (ICP) on their side. "There is no threat to blow the ICP… We will discuss all issues pertaining to border management," said Akhtar. About rampant smuggling along the India-Pakistan border fence, he denied any such activities on their side of the border. "We have taken adequate measures to curb the menace on our side," he said. Earlier, BSF IG Aditya Mishra along with other officials accorded warm welcome to the delegation as they entered India. Talking to The Tribune, Mishra said the BSF would take up the issues of spurt in smuggling owing to thin deployment of Pakistan troops alongside the border fence. "The overall seizure of narcotics and fake currency along the Punjab border is very high as compared to other parts of the country. Therefore, this is one of the key issues we are going to take up with our counterparts during the meeting," Mishra said. This year alone, the BSF has shot dead 11 Pakistani nationals while they were trying to push narcotics and counterfeit currency into the Indian territory. More than 150 kg of heroin and fake currency of Rs 41 lakh face value has been seized, besides other narcotic material. The Jammu frontier of the BSF would also raise the issue of unprovoked firing in its region in the recent past, which has claimed several lives. The two forces would also review decisions taken during the previous bi-annual meeting, he said.
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Dasuya bypoll: Congress to make police ‘misuse’ an issue
Badal showed contempt for the Opposition on the floor of the House, a complete turnabout from the past when he would try to be as accommodating as possible. Not only did the CM take potshots at the Congress leadership, he also humiliated folk singer-turned-politician Mohammad Sadique on the last day of the session. Congress Legislature Party Leader Sunil Jakhar said the CM had apparently become “power drunk”. The charge itself is a new development in Punjab politics as till now it was Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal who was accused of having turned arrogant after the SAD-BJP assembly poll victory. Jakhar alleged the SAD was using the police as a political tool, which he claimed was corroborated by BJP MP Navjot Singh Sidhu. The latter had reportedly said the BJP could have performed better in the municipal elections if the police had helped the party the same way as it had supported the Akalis. The CLP Leader said like Sidhu, he too felt that Revenue Minister Bikram Majithia, who had styled himself as the “Majha da Jarnail” was misusing the police not only to get the better of the BJP, but also to arm-twist Congress workers into joining the SAD. Jakhar led a spirited attack on the SAD-BJP government during the Budget session but did not get much support from senior colleagues. Pradesh Congress president Capt Amarinder Singh attended the session for a day. Former CLP Leader Rajinder Kaur Bhattal was came for just two days. The Chief Minister almost played a singles match rebutting Congress charges as well as launching one-line missiles to unsettle the Opposition. Badal stumped Capt Amarinder, saying he was twice grateful to him because “I have become Chief Minister again because of him.” Congress legislators trying to have their say were snubbed similarly. Badal told Jagmohan Kang not to worry too much about illegal mining of sand and gravel. “Look what happened to Sukhpal Khaira who used to be so interested in the subject”, he said, adding that surely he did not want to meet a similar fate. Rana Gurmeet Sodhi, who wanted to give some “advise” to the CM, was told to keep it to himself. “See the plight of people you used to advice”, Badal told him with sarcasm.
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Capt to camp in town
Dasuya (Hoshiarpur), July 1 Barnala Congress MLA Kewal Singh Dhillon, who has been designated overall incharge of the assembly segment, said former Garhshankar MLA Luv Kumar Goldy would be incharge of the party’s election office here. Based on the feedback by grassroots workers, the constituency had been divided into 25 zones for co-ordination among party leaders. Former Chief Minister and PPCC chief Capt Amarinder Singh would be camping in the constituency till July 11. The organisers have lined up a series of workers’ meetings and rallies to be addressed by him. He addressed the first such gathering at a local marriage palace yesterday.
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Badal begins Green Mission from Fazilka
Fazilka, July 1 Accompanied by Forest Minister Surjit Kumar Jyani, the Chief Minister launched the mission by planting a sapling near Puranpatti village on the Fazilka-Malout road, 7 km from the town. Under the mission, the state government has set a target of planting 40 crore saplings across Punjab in eight years. On an average, five crore saplings are to be planted annually at a cost of Rs 180 crore. The mission is aimed at enhancing the state’s forest cover from the existing 7 per cent to 15 per cent in the first phase of the mission. “The people are suffering from different serious ailments, including cancer, diabetes and hypertension, mainly due to air, water and soil pollution. The main cause of pollution is dearth of trees,” said Badal while addressing a gathering at the local grain market. Appealing to the people to usher in a new beginning, planting and protecting trees, he directed Forest Department officials to bring all government and private land under the mission. Countering the allegations of CLP leader Sunil Jakhar that Punjab had gone bankrupt, the Chief Minister said the SAD-BJP government did not require a certificate from the Opposition party on the state’s fiscal condition. He held previous Congress governments, both in the state and at the Centre, responsible for Punjab’s ever-rising debt. “A major part of our debt pertains to the terrorism period….The Union Government has failed to provide any financial package for Punjab,” the Chief Minister said. Badal denied there any differences between the SAD and the BJP over the selection of Mayor for the Amritsar Municipal Corporation. “The issue will be resolved amicably,” he claimed. Jyani said both environment and the country’s ecology had been ruined by haphazard growth. “Friendly animal species, including birds, have vanished due to the ecological imbalance. In such a scenario, growing trees is the only way out,” he said. The Minister said the beats of forest guards had been reorganised to bring all Punjab villages under the forest cover. Financial Commissioner (Forest) DS Bains said there was a need to establish large, modern nurseries at all district headquarters to disburse saplings among the people and NGOs. Parliamentary Secretary (Forest) Nand Lal, Ferozepur MP Sher Singh Ghubaya, Balluana MLA Gurtej Singh Ghuriana, Fazilka Deputy Commissioner Basant Garg and GS Dhillon, SSP, were present on the occasion.
Plantation Drive
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Draft Bill on farmers’ welfare
Chandigarh, July 1 During an interaction session at the Centre for Research in Rural and Industrial Development (CRRID) here, Amarjit Singh said the commission had proposed that small and marginal farmers owning land up to 10 acres be covered under it. There was a provision for old-age pension, health insurance and crop insurance in the Bill. It had been proposed that a cess be levied on the import of agriculture products as well as byproducts and that the revenue collected thus be utilised for the welfare of farmers and the farm labour. He said for enforcing its various provisions, the Bill proposed setting up of boards at the state and district level. However, Dr Sucha Singh Gill, Director-General, CRRID, said that elected panchayats and zila parishad members should be appointed to these boards. He said in most states, the farmers had no organisation to represent them. Hence, it would be only proper to include members of panchayats and other rural bodies on the proposed boards. Among others, who gave suggestions were Malwinder Singh Malli, Jaspal Singh Sidhu, Kanwaljit, Krishan Chand and Manjit Singh. What Bill Says
Suicide figures
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MINISTERSPEAK: LOOKING AHEAD Faced with the challenge of reforming convicts and curtailing the menace of drugs, Sarwan Singh Phillaur, Minister of Jails, says any official-inmate nexus on smuggling the contraband inside jails will not be allowed. He spoke to Kanchan Vasdev of jail reforms and more. What is your perspective about jails? These are reform houses and not jails anymore. We intend to convert all 29 jails in the state into modern reform houses. We have discussed various reports on jail reforms and will be implementing the recommendations soon. What tops your agenda? Checking the menace of drugs inside jails tops my priority list besides turning these into reform houses. We have already modernised the jails in Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Kapurthala and Faridkot. Now jails in Amritsar, Bathinda, Muktsar and Ferozepore districts are being modernised. We have identified land in three cities where modern reform houses will be set up. What are your plans to improve the department? We will be implementing recommendations of the Jail Reforms Committee headed by AP Bhatnagar. I have discussed the issue with senior functionaries. We will come up with a concrete plan soon. At the Ludhiana and Kapurthala jails, we have opened our own stores that sell eatables. Those visiting jail inmates are no more allowed to bring such stuff from outside. What are the major challenges that you face? Recidivism (habitual relapse into crime) is undoubtedly the biggest challenge that we face. Petty criminals land in jail, undergo sentence, go back and commit the same kind of crime. The responsibility of reforming such criminals lies with the state. We will have to work towards educating them, keep them away from drugs and reform them into good and respectable citizens. What steps do you plan to take in this direction? We have requested Guru Nanak Dev University in Amritsar to start a few courses for jail inmates. We are in the process of opening de-addiction centres for them. Also, the Chief Minister has sanctioned funds for factories inside jails so as to keep the inmates busy. Do you have enough funds? We have no shortage of funds. We are in the process of constructing four more modern jails in Amritsar, Muktsar, Ferozepore and Bathinda. What steps have you initiated to break the official-inmate nexus to stop drugs being smuggled into jails? I have suspended a Class IV employee of the Bathinda jail who was found carrying psychotropic drugs inside the jail. I have also reshuffled the jail staff. What do you make of DGP (Prisons) public expression of grievances? We have sorted out the matter which was blown up because I was away to Canada at that time. Everything was sorted out after my return and the DGP went on leave because of a back problem.
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Overcharging of beer goes unchecked
Patiala, July 1 Many wine contractors have pocketed lakhs of rupees per day in the past couple of months without paying a single rupee more to the Excise Department by overcharging for beer. In April this year, wine contractors sold 11,33,414 cases of beer which means approximately 1,36,00,968 bottles for the month. “By minimum possible profit, contractors roughly earn Rs 40 per bottle,” said an excise officer. “There is some nexus between officials of the Excise Department and contractors. Otherwise, contractors cannot overcharge as they will lose their license if they do not agree,” he stated. Despite the state government fixing the maximum retail price (MRP) of the beer and lowering its rate in this year’s policy, only liquor contractors have been earning profit. Flexing muscles, liquor cartels have listed the price of beer at Rs 120 at some vends and at many other vends, price display charts have been torn. Despite media reports in this regard, the Excise Department has failed to take action against overcharging for beer. The 2012-13 Punjab Excise Policy states that to wean away people from hard drinks and to promote lighter drinks, the maximum retail prices of light and strong beer have also been fixed at Rs 70 and Rs 75 per bottle, respectively. “We do not save anything by selling the beer at the MRP so we have to overcharge as refrigeration charges are also there,” said a contractor. “Further, the Excise Policy was not framed by taking us into confidence,” he added. Promising stern action and periodic raids, Additional Commissioner, Excise and Taxation, Manaswi Kumar said he had pulled up all district-level officers to ensure that the beer be sold at the MRP. “The contractors can charge Rs 5 for refrigeration, but they cannot charge by will,” he said, adding that more raids would be conducted.
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Farmer unions welcome probe into Charason clash
Patiala, July 1 The clash had left 17 persons, including eight policemen and nine farmers, injured. Members of various farmer unions said they had visited the affected villages and found that the police allegedly attacked farmers. Meanwhile, the police said farmers had first attacked the police party and some of them had also fired at policemen. Union members alleged that over two-dozen farmers booked by the police were already dead and a couple of others did not even reside in the villages. However, the union members appreciated the decision of the district administration that ordered an inquiry into the incident. On June 19, following court orders officials of the Rural Development and Panchayat Department escorted by a police team reached Balberha and Charason villages to claim possession of over 100 acres of agricultural land being tilled by local farmers for the past many years without any substantial raise in the annual contract rates. As senior Rural Development and Panchayat officers accompanied by the police reached the village to take possession of the land, farmers armed with sticks and stones resisted any move on part of the officers to get the land vacated. Police claimed that some farmers allegedly fired at policemen with .12 bore guns, following which the police resorted to lathi-charge to disperse the protesting farmers. “An FIR was registered based on initial reports and more sections would be added after the probe,” said an official.
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No end to water woes for Patiala residents
Patiala, July 1 Talking to The Tribune, Narinder Kaur, a resident of Arya Samaj, said the water pressure, which was very low, was inadequate to meet the daily requirements of the family. Also, the timings of power cuts coincide with water supply, which further added to the problem, she added. “We have got a submersible pump installed at our house a couple of months ago because of low water pressure. At several times, the pump operator didn’t turn up on the scheduled hour and as a result there was no water supply,” said Jaswinder Kaur. Claiming that everything was fine at their end, the Municipal Corporation authorities have put the onus on illegal booster pumps. Assistant Commissioner Najar Singh said there were no lapses at their end. “Actually, many households, instead of connecting booster pumps to their storage tanks, have connected them to the direct water supply which affects the proper supply of water. We have repeatedly issued warnings in this regard and have already constituted six squads to trace the defaulters. Now, we will get all illegal pumps removed so that water supply is smooth,” he added.
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Tail-end villagers fight for canal water
Bathinda, July 1 Perturbed over the irrigation department's lackadaisical attitude, farmers of Dhelman, Nathana, Nathpura, Ganga and Gidder villages detected water theft on their own and recovered as many as nine water pipes that were used to pilfer water from the Dhapali canal near Dyalpura village of Bathinda district. The villagers brought the matter into the notice of senior functionaries of the irrigation department and accused the lower-rung officials of not initiating an action the miscreants in order to check the unabated pilferage of canal water. An SDO (sub-divisional officer) and JE (junior engineer) met these villagers and tried to pacify them. The officials informed the villagers that they will propose registration of cases against farmers pilfering or blocking the water. Lower-rung officials told villagers, the SDO and the JE that there was a staff shortage in the department due to which they fail to check the pilferage in their respective areas. The lower-rung officials said instead of nine beldar's, there were only two beldars posted on the canal side to check pilferage and ensure cleanliness of the canal besides addressing other problems, if any. Gurtej Singh, a former village panchayat member, said the villagers detected five breaches at various places wherein farmers had illegally made openings at the canal to pilfer water. He said farmers had also dropped sand bags to reduce the flow of water for the tail-end villages. The villagers informed the irrigation department officials that the farmers of Kalyan Gajjuana, Diyalpura and Selbrah villages block the flow of water and use water pipes to pilfer water. The water fails to reach the tail-end villages where farmers have to shell out extra money to pump out groundwater using pumps run on diesel. The villagers said the water channel come from Tallewal and Sehna villages in Barnala and water reach their village after covering 40 km. Irrigation department officials, including Sehna SDO Hari Krishan Garg, and Sehna, Dhapali JE, Baldev Singh, said they had written to the Bhagta and Nathana police stations for registering cases against six farmers for pilferage of water. JE Baldev Singh, while talking to TNS, said they had detected water theft at nine places and found that six farmers whose agricultural land was situated nearby were involved in pilfering water.
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Public administration’s regional office to be shifted to Bathinda
Bathinda, July 1 The MGSIPA imparts training to the serving government employees from all the departments as per their need and brush up their knowledge according to the new government rules and regulations. Besides shifting the regional centre, the MGSIPA, Chandigarh, has even announced the closure of district centres at Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala and Ludhiana from June 30. At the same time, Amritsar has been developed as the regional centre to cater to the needs of border districts, including Pathankot, Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Tarn Taran. “Government benefited one border area and neglected the other. Even Ferozepur is a border district and we used to cater to the areas of Muktsar, Moga, Fazilka, Ferozepur and Faridkot districts. Now the employees will have to come all the way to Bathinda for training,” said officials at the Ferozepur MGSIPA centre. They added that keeping in view staff shortage in various government offices, the centre officials used to adjust by holding half-day training camps allowing employees to complete their respective office works in another half. Worst to suffer would be the female employees who will have to travel long distances for different training programmes. The officials reasoned that before closing down the office at Ferozepur, the government should have considered performance of the centre. In the last one month, seven batches have been imparted training on disaster management. “We follow all the programmes and modules of the MGSIPA headquarters at Chandigarh,” he added. As per the orders of the MGSIPA director-general, Dr G Vajralingam, the furniture and equipment would be shifted from Ferozepur to Bathinda. To accommodate the new centre, four rooms have been provided on the second floor of the newly developed district administrative complex. While nothing has been specified about providing additional staff for running the regional centre at Bathinda, provisions are being made to set up a library providing ample reading material to the trainees.
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Kharar’s ‘shamlat’ land in Gill’s possession: Report
Gill was busy preparing a team of influential people at the ward level to contest the coming municipal corporation elections. Gill had recently tried to change the land use of five-acres of land in the heart of the town belonging to the Railways and given on lease to the Forest Department to convert it into a park. Gill, along with his supporters and gunmen, got the land cleared of wild growth and then fenced. Later, the Railways swung into action and retrieved the land. Such controversies may adversely affect Gill’s prospects in the local body elections at a time when former MC president Barjinder Singh Brar has become active and is preparing for the poll battle. The total value of the controversial “shamlat”land, which Gill claims belongs to him, is estimated at more than Rs 150 crore. The average land prices in the area are between Rs 75 lakh and Rs 1.30 crore per acre. An inquiry has found that 'girdawari' (cultivation right) for the land had been transferred in Gill’s name “illegally” despite the dismissal of the case by a civil court. The probe was conducted by Kharar SDM Sukhjit Pal Singh who submitted his report to the Mohali Deputy Commissioner last week. The DC has sent the report to the Financial Commissioner (Revenue), NS Kang, who will have the final word on the matter. On May 13 this year, Gill and his men had occupied the land, despite a protest by village residents. The local police that arrived on the scene booked two persons but did not register a case against Gill.
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Staff shortage plagues Ayurveda dept in Muktsar
Mukstar, July 1 Ten of the total 13 dispensaries in the district are running without doctors (vaids) and either the pharmacists (upvaids) or the midwives are working as experts and prescribing medicines to patients. Even pharmacists are also in half of the sanctioned strength. Against the sanctioned strength of 13 pharmacists, only seven are working and the rest six posts are lying vacant. No only this, there are a few dispensaries that are being run only by midwives. Sources said though the influx of patients was good at ayurvedic dispensaries and medicines were also being provided regularly, the non-availability of staff and poor condition of buildings was proving to be a major dampener. Only three dispensaries, at Muktsar town, Warring and Surewala villages, are functioning properly while the situation of the rest, at at Assa Buttar, Goniana, Khunan Kalan, Khunan Khurd, Madhir, Kheowali, Lalbai, Gidderbaha, Phulluwala and Kakhawnali villages, was pathetic. The entire district does not even have a single clerk and, therefore, the only available superintendent has to do the entire clerical work. A doctor said the situation had turned from bad to worse as the department was not appointing any new staff to replace those who had superannuated. He said they had to even do the work of a clerk and a sweeper as well, as no one had been appointed to do these tasks. "The buildings are in such a poor condition that during rainy season seepage starts from the roof," he said. District Ayurvedic Officer Dr Vinod Bansal said, "We have written to the higher authorities several times, but no approval has been granted for filling the vacant posts." If the department sanctioned some more staff, especially vaids, the functioning could improve and more number of patients can be cured, Dr Bansal said.
Sorry state
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247 transformers stolen in 5 months
Muktsar, July 1 On an average, 50 transformers are being stolen every month in Muktar circle comprising the six divisions of Muktsar, Malout, Gidderbaha, Abohar, Badal and Fazilka. At 180, the Fazilka division has reported maximum transformer thefts, the loss amounting to Rs 57 lakh. Corporation insiders say the thieves appeared to be experts as stealing a transformer was not easy as the act was highly risky. They said most of the thefts had taken place in rural areas and the thieves sell copper wires and oil of transformers to scrap dealers. A perusal of the records procured from the PSPCL revealed that 63 transformers were stolen in January, 81 in February, 34 in March, 31 in April and 38 in May across the Muktsar circle. Records reveal that not even a single transformer was stolen from Muktsar, Gidderbaha and Badal divisions, 57 were stolen from Malout, 10 from Abohar and 180 from Fazilka divisions. PSPCL Deputy Chief Engineer (Muktsar Circle) Dilwar Singh said, “We have lodged theft reports with the police, which is investigating the matter.” He said taking precautionary measures, they had even welded the clamps of transformers.
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Mid-day meal workers hold rally
Bathinda, July 1 The mid-day meal workers have been agitating for some months now, demanding a hike in their salaries, incentives, promotion as per seniority and implementation of granted notifications. Asking for their salaries to be revised as per the minimum wages standard, Lakhwinder Kaur, one of the protesting mid-day meal worker, said, "A daily wager is paid at Rs 170 per day which totals up to more than Rs 5,000 a month. The mid-day meal workers are paid a meagre sum of Rs 1,000 per month. Does the government think we work less than a daily wager?" she asked. Elaborating on the woes of the mid-day meal workers, she added, "Apart from being given such low wages, we are not paid for the holidays. Also, there is no provision of compensation to be paid in case any worker gets hurt while preparing meal. That's why we are demanding a hike in our salaries and also insurance cover for all the mid-day meal workers." The ASHA workers are also asking for a hike in their salaries and asking for their pay be increased to at least the minimum wages. Talking about the workload of the ASHA workers, Sukhbir Singh said, "The ASHA workers are responsible for the pre and the post-natal care of the women in the villages assigned to them. From the time a woman conceives to the time the child is above ten years of age, the ASHA workers tell the woman how to take care of herself and her child."
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Bank staff up in arms against proposed reforms
Bathinda, July 1 The convener of UFBU’s Bathinda unit, Pawan Jindal, said all the bank employees’ associations oppose the proposed banking reforms, which are meant to privilege private banks only. “The proposed banking law amendments aim at granting licence to corporate and private houses to start their own banks. There is an attempt to shut the rural branches and open a large number of ultra small branches, thereby privatising banking operations through business correspondents,” he said. The bank employees also opposed outsourcing of regular banking jobs of employees and officers which jeopardises the jobs of the present officials. They emphasised upon the need for adequate recruitments and revival of the Banking Services Recruitment Board. Employees also trashed the recommendations of the Khandelwal Committee terming it as anti-employees. “While we have been demanding uniform pay package for all the banks, the committee has recommended that every bank should have a separate salary set up. This would imply that some part of the salary would be fixed while the remaining would be variable. It is up to the whims and fancies of respective banks to fix the variable salary, which may not match the workload given to employees,” reasoned the general secretary of the Associated Bank Officers Association, Chaman Lal Singla. Protesters sought implementation of revised compassionate appointment scheme, regulated and defined working hours, revised guidelines on staff housing loan, five day banking, non-extension of pension option facility to voluntarily retired and resigned persons, improvement in pension scheme like updation and uniform for employees.
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This innovator wants govt
to promote paragliding Muktsar, July 1 “When I returned after training at Bilaspur in Himachal, residents laughed at me for trying to introduce paragliding in the plains. Along with my family and friends, I made this possible by innovating a machine. But so far, the government has not come forward to lend me support,” Mann said. “I have trained a number of people in paragliding, parasailing and paramotoring at adventure camps held under the banner of Mohimbaz Institute, most of them free of cost. Some were sponsored by the Nehru Yuva Kendra. “It is no more possible for me to impart training without government assistance,” Mann said. Having participated in two international events, Mann regretted that paragliding was being used to make easy money like showering petals on the newly-wed. “The government should promote this adventure sport. After the initial investment, there are hardly any expenses. “Once the government provides us land and some equipment, we will be able to train people in this sport,” said Mann. He said he had started the sport with the district police giving him a tractor and former MP Jagmeet Singh Brar Rs 1.5 lakh in cash. “After that, we have had no help. We have now requested MP Balwinder Singh Bhunder to intervene. We have also submitted a project to the Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports for approval,” Mann added.
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Kidnapped girl rescued after 3 years
Mansa, July 1 They were tenants in Chhinder’s house at Maur Mandi in Bathinda. Whem the girl raised an alarm, Chhinder Kaur rescued the girl from the clutches of the labourers and kept her as a domestic help. She then shifted to Thuthianwali village. Chhinder Kaur has been booked under Sections 363 and 366-A, IPC, at the Sadar police station. Mansa SSP Harpreet Singh said a case was registered after Pinky’s family was found in Ludhiana. “The family had given up hope of ever finding the girl and had not lodged a complaint with the police”, he said, adding that Pinky had now been re-united with her family. Rajinder Singh, SHO, said the two labourers who had kidnapped the girl were still missing.
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Farmers not keen on mechanised transplantation
Chandigarh, July 1 From creating awareness on mechanised rice
transplantation to urging farmers to opt for direct seeding, espefor basmati varieties, the officers are doing it all. Director, Agriculture MS Sandhu, said : “This year 450 paddy transplanters have been used across the state.” The total area under paddy this year is expected to be 27.80 lakh hectares, of which 6.5 lakh - 7 lakh hectares will be under basmati. However, the area covered using mechanised transplanters is far less. Officials said despite the labour shortage and high transplantation rates, farmers are reluctant to opt for mechanised transplantation. They are not upbeat about the new technology.
— TNS
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Punjab varsity gets over 10,000 online applications
Patiala, July 1 There had been certain cases when students found it difficult to download the forms but the university authorities managed to fix the flaw. Online admission coordinator Dr Balwinder Singh Tiwana said, “We have already received more than 10,000 applications this year for various departments. This is not only helpful to us but also save time and effort of students who come from far off places just to fill the application forms.” “There might have been a few problems due to heavy Internet traffic but we have not received any such complaint. In fact, we have also given a helpline number in case students face any problem,” he added. “More than 70 per cent students in the university come from rural areas and it is a great convenience for them to fill the forms from their respective towns. I stay in Fazilka and have applied for admission in two courses. It has saved me from going all the way to Patiala in such a hot weather,” said a student.
— TNS
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Transfers of 40 teachers cancelled
Bathinda, July 1 Transfers were rolled back within two days of the issuing the letters to this effect. Sources in the education department said the outgoing District Education Officer (Secondary) had transferred these teachers who do not fall under his office. "The SSA, RMSA and ICT staff members fall under the Director General of School Education (DGSE), while the DEO has no role to play in the transfer of these employees. The DEO violated the established norms and drew flak from the Education Minister for which he has been transferred out," the sources said. The principal of the District Institute of Education and Training Hardeep Singh has now replaced DEO Balwinder Singh Aulakh.
— TNS
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Docs urged to serve patients with sincerity
Patiala, July 1 Dr DC Sharma, president, Docsfed, said a few doctors might be indulging in some kind of medical malpractices bringing disgrace to the honest and dedicated medical fraternity. “But painting the entire profession as corrupt, as has been done in a recent TV show, is highly condemnable,” he added. He advised the medical professionals to stop malpractices like accepting commissions from drug companies and diagnostic laboratories. He urged the medical community to identify and isolate corrupt elements so that the dignity and honour of the noble community is maintained.
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25 booked for attack on forest officials
Amritsar, July 1 A case under various sections of the IPC and the Indian Forest Act has been registered on the statement of forest guard Rajbir Singh. Among those booked are Tatna village sarpanch Anokh Singh, former sarpanch Chhinda Singh, Pargat Singh, Rana, Gurnam Singh, Sajjan Singh, Kuldeep Singh, Bachitar Singh, Dilbagh Singh and Resham Singh. Seven Forest Department officials had sustained injuries after a mob allegedly headed by Anokh Singh and Chhinda Singh attacked them with sticks and sharp-edged weapons. The injured included Rajbir Singh, Angrez Singh, Amrik Masih, Pargat Singh, Jagtar Singh, block officer Charanjit Singh and Harminder Singh. Rajbir Singh alleged that the accused took away files and papers which the officials had with them at the time of attack. He said hundreds of acres of land had been encroached upon by villagers and they ready to leave its possession despite court orders. He alleged the accused also extensively damaged a government vehicle and injured its driver. Rajbir said a team of forest officials had managed to repossess the government land in the two villages in the presence of the Ajnala duty magistrate concerned on June 28. However, when the team of forest team went there to plant trees yesterday, the accused attacked them. Bhindi Saida police station SHO Sukhbir Singh said no arrest had been made so far. "We are carrying out investigations and have recorded the statements of the officials who are admitted at the Guru Nanak Dev Hospital," he said.
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Man beaten to death by grandson’s wife, her kin
Moga, July 1 The victim tried to mediate in a quarrel but instead of listening to him, Lakshmi and her family members allegedly started beating him up. He received injuries on his head and died on the spot. Samalsar police station SHO Darshan Singh said he had registered a criminal case against Lakshmi, Ravinder, Jasmel Kaur and Rahul, but they were yet to be arrested.
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Chandigarh, July 1
Moga, July 1