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They wait for water in the dead of night
Bathinda, July 28
Residents waiting for water supply in Bathinda Hit by a severe water crisis, Bathinda residents remain wide awake till late in the night waiting for the precious “safe” water supply to fill their water tanks.
Residents waiting for water supply in Bathinda

Bathinda MP flays UPA Govt on the issue of corruption
Bathinda, July 28
The Congress will suffer a major defeat in the next Lok Sabha elections to be held in 2014, as the people of the country have no faith in the Congress-led UPA Government, especially on the issue of Lokpal Bill, stated Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal while addressing functions organised under the ‘Nanhi Chhaan’ campaign in various villages of the district.

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	They wait for water in the dead of night Jupinderjit Singh Tribune News Service Bathinda, July 28 Hit by a severe water crisis, Bathinda residents remain wide awake till late in the night waiting for the precious “safe” water supply to fill their water tanks. Storing “safe” water for drinking, cooking bathing and washing has become an everday struggle for them. With the water pressure low, they have to use motors to fill tanks. Colonies like Farid Nagar, Patel Nagar, Green Avenue, Ajit Road and Guru Nanak Pura are the worst-hit. “Safe drinking water is simply a must in the area that is known for a high incidence of cancer. We are dependent on the Water Works Department that gets water from the Sirhind Feeder Canal and supplies it to the city after filteration.The entire process takes time and the water is released by midnight,” said Sukhminder Singh Sidhu. “Me and my wife decide among ourselves as to who will keep awake at night for the water job. Children have to be in bed early as they have to attend school in the morning,” said another resident. For Surinder Mohan Paul, waking up people through phone calls and SMSes to inform them of the water supply has become a social cause. Tenants in the city are having it easy with the landlords opting to keep awake for the job for an additional charge of `500. “My landlord charges me `5,000 for a two- room set and `500 for remaining awake at night to fill the water tank,” said Charanpreet Kaur. Supply route The government provides drinking water from specially installed reverse osmosis (RO) plants. Water from the Sirhind Feeder Canal is first filtered and then supplied to over 70 per cent of the city, covering 85 per cent of the population. ‘Blame it on location’ Several colonies like Patel Nagar are at a higher level. These areas get water supply from 10 pm to 2 am while the rest of the city gets water between 4pm and 7pm. The city needs another treatment plant to rectify the problem — Jardev Singh, XEN
	Bathinda MP flays UPA Govt on the issue of corruption Tribune News Service Bathinda, July 28 The Congress will suffer a major defeat in the next Lok Sabha elections to be held in 2014, as the people of the country have no faith in the Congress-led UPA Government, especially on the issue of Lokpal Bill, stated Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal while addressing functions organised under the ‘Nanhi Chhaan’ campaign in various villages of the district. She distributed sewing machines and saplings among the women, who have got training from the stitching training centres at Raike Kalan village, Gehri Bhagi, Bhagi Wander, Mahi Nangal, Jogewala, Koreana, Kalalwala and Raman Mandi. Harsimrat alleged that the UPA Government was not taking any action to tackle corruption in the country as it would expose its functionaries too. Harsimrat also called upon people to come forward to fight against the atrocities being committed on the women. She said dowry was one of the major reasons behind atrocities that women are subjected to. She said people should respect those men who did not accept dowry. Emphasising on the protection of environment, Harsimrat asked people to plant as many trees as they could. She said every resident of Punjab should plant and look after at least one sapling in a year. During her visit, Harsimrat also inspected the work being done at the stitching training centres. She also planted saplings of trees at some places.
	Not allowed to meet MP, ETT teachers resort to sloganeering Tribune News Service Bathinda, July 28 Activists of the ETT Teachers’ Union today staged a protest against Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal at Raike Kalan village. The MP had visited the village to distribute sewing machines among women. It is learnt that the teachers had gone to the village to meet Harsimrat and submit their demands. But after being stopped by the police, they resorted to staging a protest. Gurpreet Singh, the convenor of the union, said, “Before reaching Raike Kalan to meet the MP, we had spoken to her personal assistant (PA) and he had told us that she would be going to the village to distribute sewing machines among the women at a stitching training centre under the ‘Nanhi Chhan’ campaign. We were asked to reach the venue at around 10 in the morning.” “When we reached the venue, the police personnel deployed there stopped us. We apprised them of our discussion with the MP’s PA and that we had been asked to reach the village to meet her. The police personnel, however, didn’t pay attention to our requests and pushed us away,” he added. Seeing the MP leaving the venue and getting into her car to leave the village without meeting them, members of the ETT Teachers’ Union gheraoed her vehicle and started raising slogans against her. “Soon, she relented, met us and took the charter of demands that we wanted to give her,” said Singh.
	Commuters suffer as road blocked for 4 hours Tribune News Service Bathinda, July 28 Hundreds of commuters on the Bathinda-Barnala road remained at the receiving end following a blockade by the Bhullar Bhaichara. The members of the Bhaichara were demanding registration of a case against those people who disrupted a religious programme conducted by the Bhaichara near Rampura. They blocked the road for over four hours. Commuters remained at the receiving end during the blockade and vehicles were diverted to the routes through villages and the Rampura city. Members of the Bhullar Bhaichara, Surjit Bhullar, Seera Bhullar Pitho, Baldev Singh and some women including Surjit Kaur, Jangir Kaur, were also present during the blockade. The dharna was lifted only after the Rampura tehsildar assured the protesters of arranging a meeting of the Bhullar Bhaichara with senior police functionaries.
	ASI booked for illegally detaining man Tribune News Service Muktsar, July 28 Acting on the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the district police has booked Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Duni Chand, who was posted at Lambi police station in 2011, for illegally detaining a man. According to the FIR lodged at Lambi police station last year, the ASI had confined Baldev Singh for a crime committed allegedly by his sons. Four persons, including two brothers of Jai Singhwala village in Bathinda district, were booked for looting a fuel station last year, but no arrest could be made in this regard. Later, the police detained Baldev Singh, the father of the two brothers. Baldev's wife Kuldeep Kaur then moved the High court seeking its intervention in this regard. The High Court finally ordered an inquiry and registration of a case against the ASI.