Bathinda, July 22
An elderly couple’s son, daughter-in-law, a close relative and two hired killers were arrested today for executing a plan to kill them in Maur Kalan village of the district.

According to the details available, Malkit Singh, his wife Jaswinder Kaur, her cousin Nirmal Singh of Fatehpur village in Mansa and two hired killers, Dharminder (18) and Sikandar Singh (23) of Fatehpur, have been arrested for the murder of Malkit's parents, Mahinder Singh and Gurmeet Kaur, both above 60 years. While Mahinder died on the spot, Gurmeet succumbed to her injuries at the Civil Hospital.

The accused persons have been sent to one-day police remand for further investigations.

Bathinda SSP Dr Sukhchain Singh Gill said the son, who initially planned to kill only his father with the help of his wife's cousin, held a grudge against the old man for not giving him money for daily expenses and instead giving it to his two married daughters and a woman with whom he was allegedly in an illicit relationship.

Jaswinder Kaur's cousin helped them in arranging two young unemployed boys from his village to eliminate Mahinder.

The killers were to be paid `1 lakh in cash after the murder.

To start with, the boys were told to take away the gold earrings (worth more than `30,000) of the old woman and whatever cash they could lay their hands on when they were to come to the house to attack the couple.

SP (Detective) Amarjeet Singh and Maur SHO Jaswinderpal said the elderly couple used to sleep on the ground floor with their 15-year-old grandson while their son and daughter-in-law used to sleep on the first floor. However, on Friday night, Malkit and Jaswinder told their 15-year-old son to sleep with them on the first floor.

On that fateful night, armed with a wooden log taken out from a cot, the killers entered the house along with their motorbike. They were told to scale the boundary wall and if they failed to do so, the family members would open the front gate of the house. There were no doors inside the double-storey house situated on the outskirts of the village in their 11.5 acres of agricultural land.

The killers, who were drunk, parked their bike inside the house so that it was not noticed by any outsider. They went to the room where the elderly couple was sleeping and assaulted Mahinder leaving him dead on the spot. Then they tried to snatch the gold earrings of the woman but faced fierce resistance from her. However, they managed to take away the earrings but not before seriously injuring her. The elderly woman succumbed to her injuries today in the morning.

The assailants left the house after bolting the front door from outside. They spent more than two hours in the house and had consumed liquor near their victims who were now lying in a pool of blood.

In the morning, Malkit called up some villagers to get the front gates opened and claimed that their house was attacked by some looters. A case was registered against unidentified persons under Sections 560 and 459 of the IPC at the Maur police station. The complainant stated that some unidentified persons entered their house and beat up his parents to loot `10,000 in cash and gold earrings.

The police said conflicting statements of the family did not go down well with the investigating officials and the family was brought to the police station for further investigation.

Malkit failed to answer a volley of questions in connection with the crime — how did the assailants enter and exit the house without being noticed by either him, his wife or their son; how did the assailants managed to find the key of the box in which `10,000 was kept; why did the attackers not take away `20,000 lying in the pocket of the old man; why did they mercilessly beat up the frail couple who could not even walk properly; how did the attackers manage to park their bike inside the house; and why his 15-year-old son, who used to sleep along with his grandmother, went to sleep upstairs for the first time.

The needle of suspicion pointed at Malkit as he could not answer the queries of the investigating officials.

He was further grilled. Failing to bear the pressure mounted by the cops, he revealed the truth.

Following Malkit’s confession, a case was registered against him and four others for plotting and murdering his parents, at the Maur police station.

Bathinda, July 22
Even after the completion of a building for setting up a special neo-natal care unit at the local Women and Children Hospital about eight months ago, the hospital authorities are reportedly referring several newborns to other institutions causing inconvenience to the parents of the newborn babies and financial loss to them.

Sources in the hospital said there was a dire need to start this special neo-natal care unit at the earliest so that special care could be provided to newborns and their mothers on the same premises.

There are only two hospitals in the state which are exclusively built to treat only sick women and children. One is situated on the Civil Hospital premises in Bathinda while the other is the Mata Kaushalaya Hospital at Patiala.

According to information available, due to non-posting of resident doctors, trained staff and non-availability of required equipment, the functioning at the special neo-natal care unit here is yet to start despite the fact that the building for this unit was completed and handed over to the hospital authorities in December last. The building was constructed at a cost of `20 lakh under the National Rural Health Mission programme.

It may be mentioned here that after the implementation of the Mata Kaushalaya Kalyan Scheme of the state government during the last one year, number of deliveries have increased at the hospital. Besides, the incidence of newborn babies needing special care at the time of birth has also been increasing in several cases like pre-mature birth, birth asphyxia, jaundice and respiratory distress syndrome. In such circumstances, the setting up of the special neo-natal care unit here was the need of the hour.

When contacted over the phone, the deputy medical commissioner (DMC), Dr Vinod Garg, said the staff was to be provided by the Health Department while the equipment would be provided by the Punjab Health Systems Corporation (PHSC). However, the staff and equipment were yet to be provided by the authorities concerned, he said, adding that the special neo-natal care unit would start functioning only after receiving the staff and the equipment.

The special neo-natal care unit will provide special care to newborn babies weighing above 1,500 grams and up to the age of 28 days. For the purpose, the facility needs equipment, including pulse oximeter, radian warmer and phototherapy machine.

In the special neo-natal care unit, a paediatric intensive care ward for 10 babies, a neo-natal ward for six babies, a six-bed ward for mothers and a nursing station have been made.

Bathinda, July 22
The cycling and jogging track at the Rose Garden here would be ready for commissioning by September 30.

A dream project of the chief minister, the 2.5 kms long track has been laid in consultation with experts from Gurgaon who have laid special emphasis on landscaping and ensuring presence of public utilities.

Cushioned amidst greenery, the track has been developed alongside the water storage tanks of the Punjab Water Supply and Sewerage Board (PWSSB) at the Rose Garden.

Laid at a cost of `4.32 crore, the Bathinda Development Authority (BDA) is developing the project.

In its bid to get professional help and technical know-how, the BDA roped in the Silverglades - a company known for developing landscapes and designing townships with their Punjab office located in Ludhiana.

The track was to be developed along the Sirhind canal but due to technical glitches, it was taken to the Rose Garden and developed along the water tanks of municipal water works.

The project will be an integral part of the Rose Garden and will run in three lanes. These would include two-metre wide jogging track and three-metre wide bicycle track divided by a green belt.

A number of benches, public utilities like toilets and cafeteria too have been developed on the track.

Once completed, its maintenance would be handed over to the Municipal Corporation, Bathinda (MCB).

In its resolution passed on November 4, the general house of the corporation unanimously decided to take over the maintenance of the project.

“However, we are yet to work out the modalities and the mechanism for its maintenance. These would include a number of staff such as gardeners, guards and cleaners, required to run the project,” said Municipal Commissioner Uma Shankar Gupta.

Bathinda, July 22
Unhappy over not getting vocational pay-scale, a delegation of computer teachers working with government schools will meet the Director General of School Education (DGSE) at his office in Chandigarh on Monday.

The president of the Computer Teachers' Union, Bathinda, Balkaran Singh, said when 7,000 computer teachers were regularised in state in 2011, the state government notified that they be considered vocational masters and all financial benefits be granted to them under the same slab.

“When the government revised the pay-scale of vocational masters by `5,000, the same was extended to us. But when the government again revised the pay-scale by `5,400, we were not given the benefit. At this, 10 computer teachers from Gurdaspur filed a writ in the high court demanding implementation of the government notification," he said.

In its reply presented before the court, which has been put in public domain through internet, the DGSE has stated that computer teachers not be treated as vocational masters. The DGSE has reasoned that during a meeting of a cabinet minister held on December 17 last year, it was decided not to associate these teachers with vocational lecturers.

Computer teachers are objecting to it and a delegation of teachers will meet the DGSE on Monday in this regard.

Balkaran said already computer teachers were not being granted without pay leave for overseas trip. Not providing them with declared benefits would be a great injustice to them, he added.

Apart from teaching students at government schools, computer teachers also play an instrumental role in carrying out the online work of the education department. Over 50 per cent of the department's work has now become online. Besides, these teachers have also trained officials of other departments such as patwaris from revenue department and employees of the Powercom, in computer skills.

The delegation will also raise the issue of monthly regularised disbursal of salaries as well as giving benefits under the civil services rules, which include benefits of earned leave etc.

The union will decide its future course of action after tomorrow's meeting. “If our demands are taken positively, we will wait. If not, our senior leaders will chalk out a strategy to launch a protest,” the union members said.

Bathinda, July 22
The functioning in the office of the Deputy Economic and Statistical Advisor (DESA), Bathinda, is being affected adversely because of a number of posts lying vacant.

Of the total 30 sanctioned posts for the district, 18 are lying vacant, including the post of the Research Officer and the District Statistical Officer. Of the remaining 12 posts that have been filled up, two assistant research officers and one senior assistant will retire by March 2013, after which the manpower crunch will be felt acutely.

Sources said due to a large number of vacant posts in the office, the remaining employees have been working under pressure as their workload has increased manifold.

The post of the head of the office at the DESA has been lying vacant since March 1. The charge of this post is now with the research officer, Mansa. The post of the research officer has also been lying vacant since February, 2011 and the post of the District Statistical Officer since April 30, 2010. All these posts are of great importance.

Besides, a post of the assistant research officer has been lying vacant for the last three years while all the four posts of statistical assistant are also vacant. The office has 10 sanctioned posts of investigator in the district, of which five have been lying vacant. A post of steno is also vacant in the office.

Interestingly, all two posts of data entry operator have been lying vacant for the last five years. Likewise, two posts of the junior assistant are also vacant in the office.

Besides these 18 vacant posts, three posts are going to be vacant by March 2013. An assistant research officer (ARO), Krishan Lal, will retire on August 31 
next year while another ARO, Harminder Singh Dhillon, will retire on February 28, 2013.

Another employee, senior assistant Paramjit, will retire in March 2013.

Bathinda, July 22
A conference is being held at the Adesh University on July 28 to mark the World Hepatitis Day.

Doctors from various parts of the state would discuss different aspects of hepatitis, its management and prevention at the conference. A spokesperson for the university said in India about 36 million people get infected by Hepatitis-B and Punjab is leading in the incidence of this disease. The reported incidence is two for every 10,000 individuals in the western and southern parts of Punjab.

The spokesman said liver transplant surgeon D. Subbarao from the Fortis Hospital, Mohali, will deliver lectures on liver transplantation in young patient who suffer from end-stage liver failure on that day.

Dr Atul Sachdeva, head of gastroenterology department, Government Medical College, Chandigarh, will speak on the management of Hepatitis-B, which can cause jaundice and hepatic failure in its acute stage. It can also cause cirrhosis of the liver and liver cancer. The disease is transmitted from one person to another through blood transfusion, needle pricks, from mother to child and through sexual contact.

Dr Gursewak Singh will present a talk on the management of Hepatitis-C and its management in pregnancy. This disease spreads through blood transfusion, needle pricks, from mother to child and through unprotected sexual contact. There is no vaccination to control this disease which can prove fatal.

Dr Rupinder Sidhu will speak on the management of post-exposure of Hepatitis-C and management of Hepatitis-G. Dr Gagandeep Goyal will talk about the management of post-exposure of Hepatitis-B, which can cause health hazards to the medical professionals, doctors and paramedical staff. Dr Goyal will dwell on preventive measures to combat the spread of this disease.

Dr Sachin Verma from the Ivy Hospital, Mohali, will deliver a talk on the management of Hepatitis-D and Hepatitis-E. Hepatitis-E can cause health hazards in pregnant females and can cause death and miscarriage.

Dr Manmeet Singh from the Adesh Institute informed that according to the World Health Organization (WHO), one out of every 12 persons is suffering from hepatitis. Hepatitis-B and hepatitis-C are deadly diseases but they can be prevented and treated, he informed.

Bathinda, July 22
The local unit of the Congress today celebrated the victory of veteran party leader Pranab Mukherjee as the new President of India. Mukherjee won defeating his NDA-backed candidate, PA Sangma.

Sweets were distributed at the house of the former Congress MLA Harminder Singh Jassi. District president Ashok Kumar, senior Congress leader Inder Singh Sahni, KK Aggarwal, municipal councillors Iqbal Singh Dhillon, Jagrup Singh Gill and Mukesh Kumar, Lala Jit Singh, Balwant Rai Nath, Mohan Lal Jhumba, Suresh Bansal, Surinderjit Singh Sahni, press secretary Rupinder Bindra were also present on the occasion.

The local Congress leaders recalled the stellar role that Pranab Mukherjee had played in the organisational affairs and lauded his immense contribution to both the party and the government. His scholarly bent of mind was also appreciated by the leaders.

Bathinda, July 22
Bathinda, regarded as the backwaters of Punjab, is not without its share of silver lining. The city has many non-governmental organizations (NGOs) guided by the tenets of philanthropy and humanism that have won them plaudits both within the state and outside. Be it the cause of blood donation or helping the accident victims, the volunteers of these NGOs are always at the forefront.

A visit to the busy Dhobi Bazaar area as early as 7.30 am revealed that even though the business establishments were yet to roll up their shutters, the office of the NGO Sahara Jan Seva was humming with activity. Patients suffering from a variety of diseases and poor accident victims had started arriving for medication.

Accident victims from an economically weaker background and the destitute are taken care of by the NGO that provides for free medication.

Samar Bahadur, 53, who was seriously injured after a wall collapsed in Jalandhar and Mata Prashad, 42 were among those being treated by the Sahara volunteers.

"The doctors had refused to treat Samar as worms infested his wounds in the chin that he had sustained in the roof collapse. He was then brought to Bathinda and is now being treated by the volunteers for over a week," said the NGO's president, Vijay Goyal.

Goyal said the workers successfully managed to treat him and his condition seemed to be improving.

Samar is unable to eat anything and is given liquid diet after every three hours. With no help from the family or support from any quarters, it is the Sahara workers who look after the poor labourer.

Goyal said Samar is not the only such case being treated by the volunteers.

There are more than a dozen like him. He said a family found an HIV positive patient undergoing treatment at the local Civil Hospital.

He was adopted by the NGO and now his food and medicines are taken care of by the NGO.

Mata Prashad, a migrant from Bihar, was brought to Bathinda by an unidentified person and handed over to the workers of Sahara with serious head injuries.

Mata was hit by a motorcycle near Haridwar and was discharged after just being administered the first aid. He is now getting medicines on a daily basis.

The volunteers said that apart from attending to distress calls from the road accident victims, the NGO takes care of the poor suffering from various ailments.

The medical expense, cost of food and transportation, is borne by the NGO and the money is collected through donations, informed Vijay Goyal.

Presently, there are 40 volunteers with the Sahara Jan Seva working day and night to attend to distress calls and extend a helping hand to the victims of road accidents.