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Badal: Centre to blame for state’s fiscal mess
Chief Minister PS Badal plants a sapling at Punjabi University College, Mirapur, near Patiala . A Tribune photo |
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Fruitless labour for migrant class
Muktsar power pilferers refuse to pay penalty
IMD predicts poor rainfall in August, September
Seal illegal buildings, Patiala civic body told
Commercial establishments in a residential area near Ragho Majra in Patiala. Tribune photo: Rajesh Sachar
BJP’s Dalit sammelan in Delhi on Sept 17
BJP opposed to professional tax
‘Village of addicts’ cries for its sons
Software to map cancer cases in state
Abohar councillors move HC against govt
Info on tourist spots to be a click away
Moga man’s mosaic art earns accolades in US
3 Additional DGPs, 14 SSPs shifted in police reshuffle
CM’s nod to fiscal aid for injured Yannick
Tinted glasses: Vehicles of VIPs, kin spared
Ludhiana man joins Melbourne Police
Cotton growers repent switching to paddy
Mohali integrated waste project put on fast track
Farmers to hold protest on Aug 9
Sangrur man held with 150 g smack
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Badal: Centre to blame for state’s fiscal mess
Mirapur (Devigarh), August 5 Badal said the SAD-BJP government had opened 17 colleges and eight universities for imparting quality education to students. “As a result of these efforts, Punjab, that was earlier ranked 14th in the field of education, is now on the top”, he claimed. He announced a grant of Rs 25 lakh for the college. As many as 400 students from nearby villages have already been admitted to the college. Reacting to the observations made by M Govinda
Rao, member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, that faulty government policies were responsible for the state's poor fiscal health, he said : “It is strange that central government officials are pointing a finger at Punjab that has always contributed to the progress of the country.” Accusing the Union Government of formulating policies without consulting the state governments, Badal said: “The tendency of the Centre to usurp the powers of states is very dangerous. This will weaken the country’s federal structure.” Later interacting with
mediapersons, Badal said: “Punjab was in debt as a result of the wrong policies of the
Centre. The state had gone through the black era of militancy, yet no relief was given to it.” Referring to the relief announced by the Centre for states like Gujarat, Maharashtra and Haryana in view of the drought-like conditions, the Chief Minister said Punjab was deliberately left out. Badal hoped that the state would benefit from Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar’s visit to Punjab on August 10 to assess the situation. To a query on the proposed new taxes, he said there would be no extra burden on the common man. Rather, the government was trying to rationalise the taxes so as to ensure the all-round development. He denied there was any differences of opinion with its alliance partner (BJP) on the matter. When pointed out that salaries were reportedly not being disbursed to government employees on account of empty coffers, the Chief Minister feigned ignorance and said he would look into the matter. Others who addressed the gathering were SAD in charge of Sanaur segment TP Sandhu and Punjabi University VC Dr Jaspal Singh.
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Fruitless labour for migrant class
Minna Zutshi Tribune News Service
Ludhiana, August 5 The restricted power supply and the compulsory weekly-offs and their consequent effect on labourers' wages have come as a shocker to the industrial workforce. The labourers' mathematics is simple: power cuts equal to a cut in their daily ration. Gopal is a labourer working in textile industry. His weekly wages that were earlier Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,200 whittled down to Rs 500 to Rs 600 in the past few days. Rationing started the very day he was off work. The first casualty was milk. It went off their daily list and then followed vegetables. With a visually challenged son, two teenage daughters who can barely scribble their name and a seven-year-old son who's itching to go to school, prioritising has not been easy for this man who 33 years ago left his native place Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh in search of greener pastures in Punjab. "It's too late to go back. Our village is flood-prone," he says. His 17-year-old daughter Chanda has no idea that India is her country; the only 'desh' (country) she knows of is her native village, where electricity is still an aspiration. Ironically, in "greener pastures" too power pangs continue to haunt the family. In the past few weeks, the children in the family of Kamlesh Kumar, who works as a casual labourer in textile industry, have been wishing that they had guests every day because these are the only days they get to taste tea with milk. Otherwise, black tea is a routine. "Arranging for decent meals for my family has become an onerous task. I have been borrowing money from friends and acquaintances," he says. "If you lose your wages, you have to curtail your expenses," says Kamlesh. For this family that stays in a one-room house, power cuts in the domestic sector only signify a slight discomfort, but any power cut or restriction on power supply in the industrial sector translates into a wage loss that in turn implies that they have to compromise on their basic needs. In a cramped, smelly room that houses seven members of Rakesh's family, power supply is not an issue, but the past few days have seen the family income going down. Rakesh and his wife are engaged in manual work related to shawl industry. He also ferries raw material and products from one factory to another. With industrial production on the decline, his work has shrunk. The hope for "power-packed" days ahead keeps him going.
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Muktsar power pilferers refuse to pay penalty
Muktsar, August 5 In Muktsar division, 414 consumers were caught for power theft and Rs 78 lakh imposed as penalty. But, only Rs 18 lakh has been recovered so far. In Malout division, a penalty of nearly Rs 68 lakh was imposed on 445 consumers. Here too, the current recovered amount stood at Rs 18 lakh. The situation was almost similar in Gidderbaha division, where the authorities imposed a penalty of nearly Rs 25 lakh on 212 consumers whereas the recovered amount was less than Rs 3 lakh. In Badal division, 99 consumers were imposed a penalty of Rs 21 lakh. However, only Rs 3.5 lakh has been recovered so far. The PSPCL officials claimed they had temporarily snapped the supply to defaulters, but that had not been of much help. “A few defaulters have installed ‘kundi’ connections while some have pleaded before the PSPCL that the employees who imposed penalty on them did so with a malafide intention,” said a senior official in the PSPCL. Dilawar Singh, Deputy Chief Engineer of Muktsar circle, said, “We have disconnected the supply to all power pilferers and the entire penalty will be recovered. In case they refuse to pay the fine, we will move court against them.”
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IMD predicts poor rainfall in August, September
Chandigarh, August 5
A Punjab farmer, on an average, irrigates his crop 22 times in one paddy season. With power available for only five to six hours a day, a farmer can barely sustain five acres of paddy through power. Any remaining acreage has to be sustained by pumping ground water with a generator set run on diesel. If a farmer goes in for even 15 rounds of irrigation by using diesel, he ends up spending Rs 6,000 per acre as diesel cost alone. Agriculture Adviser Dr BS Sidhu said farmers should not overstretch themselves. The State had already seen a 77 per cent deficient monsoon in June and a 79 per cent deficient monsoon in July. Farmers are already in trouble with commission agents in various districts refusing to extend credit to them for purchasing diesel. Though it makes sense for some farmers to opt out of paddy by ploughing their fields and going in for an alternative crop, including fodder, Punjab farmers have been extremely reluctant to do so in the past. It may be no different this time. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is lobbying for a Rs 2,380 crore package for the state to compensate the farmers. But there is a demand that the relief money should be given directly to the farmers. The government had handed over most of the money received in an earlier package to the State electricity utility for the additional power purchased by it. Bharti Kisan Union (Rajewal) head Balbir Singh Rajewal said any money received from the Centre should be given to the farmers directly. Official sources say an estimated Rs 716 crore has been spent by way of diverting power from paying customers to the farm sector. The state is likely to purchase Rs 814 crore additional power between August and October. Ashwani criticised He should not assume the state farmers are burning diesel for the fun of it,” he remarked.
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Seal illegal buildings, Patiala civic body told
Patiala, August 5 There are numerous cases wherein commercial buildings in the city have come up in gross violation of rules and regulations mentioned in the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act 1976. The Patiala MC building bylaws clearly mention that it is “solely” the responsibility of Town Planning Wing officials to ensure that commercial buildings comply with the norms. However, hardly any of the erring officials is taken to task. A couple of years ago, Municipal Councillor of ward No. 7 Sarita Gera had alleged that commercial buildings were coming up in the city in violation of the building bylaws because of rampant corruption in Patiala MC. Gera had later resigned from the council because of alleged harassment by the authorities. Even the Vigilance Wing of the Local Bodies Department had investigated as to why these illegal commercial constructions were coming up in the city. The Patiala civic body will submit a report to the High Court on the action taken against the illegal establishments on August 22.
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BJP’s Dalit sammelan in Delhi on Sept 17
Chandigarh, August 5 BJP’s SC Morcha national president Dushyant Gautam said the Central Government was planning to implement the recommendations of the Raghunath Mishra report on giving reservation to “converted Muslim Christians”. He said this proposal had earlier been rejected by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru as also by the SC/ST Commission. Gautam said he had visited Rajasthan to study the circumstances under which the SC community was living there, He said during the UP assembly elections, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had had shared meals with SC families. Irinically, these families were evicted from their houses after the elections, he alleged. To study the problems faced by the SC community, the party had convened a conference of its workers in Delhi, where the party’s SC wing would play a key role in the deliberations, Gautam added.
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BJP opposed to professional tax Chandigarh, August 5 The BJP core committee today decided to convey to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal that the proposed professional tax was not acceptable in its existing form and the matter should be deferred. Likewise, the party is also against the proposed property tax. Senior leaders of the party have already asked Sukhbir Badal to revoke the notification issued with regard to the VAT on sugar. At today's meeting, the party also decided not to allow tax on textiles, branded wheat flour and pulses. The BJP has held three meetings with the SAD leadership on the tax proposals in the past few weeks, but is yet to make its mind on the proposed taxes. Among those who attended today's meeting were BJP state president Ashwani Sharma, Madan Mohan Mittal, Navjot Singh Sidhu, Bhagat Chunni Lal, Manoranjan Kalia, Bibi Gurcharan Kaur and Narotam
Ratti.
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‘Village of addicts’ cries for its sons
Fazilka, August 5 Pappu Singh (28) fell prey to the menace on Rakshabandhan. A marginal farmer owning three acres of land, Pappu had left for his fields in an inebriated condition early in the morning, says his wife. As he did not return by noon, his family members got worried. His three married sisters, who had come to tie a 'rakhi', started looking for him frantically around the village. Their search ended with the recovery of his body. He reportedly died due to drug overdose. Never had the sisters thought the auspicious occasion would turn tragic. Weeping inconsolably ever since, his wife has been left to fend for herself and their two daughters, aged three and five. Pappu's is not the solitary case in the village, situated 21 km from Fazilka. Six more youths — Darshan Singh, Chhinder Singh, Mangat Singh, Balwant Singh, Gurdev Singh and Manjit Singh — die in a similar fashion. All were below 30. "Of the seven victims, six were married. The condition of around 10 more youths of the village is the same," says Iqbal Singh, an elderly.
Alliana residents have blamed more than 10 quacks who have opened their shops in the village for the deaths. Whenever a youth approaches them for any kind of medication, these quacks prescribe them habit-forming drugs, allege the villagers. "These quacks charge hefty sum from addicts and slowly drive them to death," claims Karnail Singh, Naujawan Kisan Club president. The villagers allege that the administration has virtually turned a blind eye as these quacks continue to fleece youth despite the authorities concerned knowing about it. "All the villagers should be screened thoroughly and those found involved in addiction should be treated and sent to de-addiction centres," say panchayat members Makhan Singh, Bhagwan Singh and Bachan Singh. They have also been demanding that all these quacks should be driven out of the village. Besides, the panchayat members also a convened a meeting two days ago and decided to initiate a campaign against drug abuse. Arniwala police station SHO Bachan Singh said following a complaint by the panchayat, a quack, Balkar Singh, had been arrested. About 400 grams of intoxicating powder and 500 habit-forming tablets were recovered from his possession, he said.
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Software to map cancer cases in state
Bathinda, August 5 It is an application for android platform, which can pinpoint the location of each cancer case in the Malwa region on a Google map. Vice-Chancellor GPI Singh, who is involved in developing the cancer atlas in Punjab under the National Cancer Registry Programme, said such innovations could go a long way in generating reliable data, which is lacking so far. Epidemiologist Dr Amar Singh Azad talked about the need to have a Green Revolution in India with particular reference to Punjab and presented elaborate data regarding misuse of pesticides. He talked about health issues like cancer, birth defects and neuro-developmental disorders, which had become common in the Malwa region.
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Abohar councillors move HC against govt
Chandigarh, August 5 In their petition, Suman Taneja and other councillors alleged: “The ruling party is not releasing funds for Abohar town and is also not pressurising or directing the authorities to perform their duties properly. Rather, the officials are playing into the hands of the ruling party”. The councillors also alleged that sewage had flooded town’s residential and commercial areas and sought directions to the State of Punjab and other respondents to drain it out. The High Court asked the Municipal Council’s executive officer to get the sewers cleaned forthwith. The councillors said they apprehended the outbreak of an epidemic or the spread of a contagious disease such as cholera and typhoid if the dirty water was not drained out. Already, the residents were facing a number of health problems, but the authorities were just not doing anything.
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Info on tourist spots to be a click away
Amritsar, August 5 The project will be carried out in collaboration with the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre in Ludhiana. Principal Secretary (Tourism) Geetika Kalha said initially, Amritsar had been selected as a pilot project and work had already started on mapping historic places and other tourist destinations in the holy city. The project would be completed by September, she said. Among Amritsar’s historic places that would be mapped are the Golden Temple, Qila Gobindgarh, Summer Palace of Maharaja Ranjit Singh (popularly known as Ram Bagh), birth place of Guru Teg Bahadur, Gurdwara Lohgarh, Gurdwara Bhai Salo Ji Da Toba, Gurdwara Ramsar, Gurdwara Bibeksar and Gurdwara Mata Kaulanji. The GIS mapping-enabled website would provide detailed information regarding hotels, ATMs, tourist places, different routes to these spots, airport, railway stations, bus stands, taxi stands and tourist information centres. The owners of private hotels would be charged a nominal amount for their web-link on the website, she said. Punjab Hotel and Restaurant Association general secretary APS Chatha said tourists would benefit immensely from the information that would be available on the click of a button. Hotel association chairman Satnam Singh Kanda said availability of information regarding the distance between different tourist spots would come in handy for the visitors.
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Moga man’s mosaic art earns accolades in US
Moga, August 5 Sandhu, who has held many exhibitions of his art works in India and the US, is now working on a mosaic of the Golden Temple, which he hopes will find place in the gurudwara museum. Sandhu was born at Marhana village in Patti subdivision of Tarn Taran district. His family later shifted to Moga. He did his schooling from Arya Model School and pursued masters in fine arts. He became a sculptor and a painter. He was named North India’s sculptor of the year in 1983. Sandhu migrated to the US in 1985 when Punjab was in the grip of militancy. He started a sign-making business on the Boston Road. Even as Sandhu flourished his business, he never gave up his passion for art. “I work on mosaics at my shop when the business is slow, but when I start working on it, I do not stop and love to do it for hours together,” he said while talking to The Tribune over the phone. When he visited Moga a couple of years ago, he made the portrait of famous Sufi saint Baba Farid. The art work has been displayed at a museum in Faridkot. “I am planning to make large mosaic pieces of Mother Teresa and President Barrack Obama and the Sikh gurus. I am proud to be the lone Sikh artist to get accolades in the US for making mosaics,” he added.
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3 Additional
DGPs, 14 SSPs shifted in police reshuffle
Chandigarh, August 5 The government has continued with its policy of posting Punjab Police Service (PPS) officers as SSPs. Six SSPs have been divested of charge and four others have been given fresh responsibility. Former SSP Nawanshahr, Narinder Bhargava, who was sidelined post-elections, has made a comeback as SSP, Mansa. Jasminder Singh, ADGP, IT & T, has been transferred and posted as ADGP, Crime; CSR Reddy, ADGP, P&M, has been given the additional charge of IT&T; RP Meena, ADGP, Railways, Patiala, has been posted as ADGP, Prisons. RP Mittal, Commissioner of Police, Amritsar, becomes IG, Border Range, Amritsar; Ram Singh IG, Border Range, Amritsar, has been posted as Commissioner of Police, Amritsar. Arun Pal Singh, DIG, Intelligence-II, has been posted as DIG, CM’s Security; SK Singh, DIG, CM’s Security, becomes DIG, Intelligence; Khubi Ram, DIG, Punjab Police Control Room, becomes DIG, Security; RK Jaiswal, DIG, Intelligence, is DIG, Intelligence, with the additional charge of DIG, Ropar Range; and Ashish Chaudhary (IPS), DCP, Ludhiana, is SSP, Ludhiana (Rural). Chaudhary swaps places with Gurpreet Singh Toor (PPS). Varinderpal Singh (PPS), SSP, VB, Patiala, becomes SSP, Ferozepur; Hardial Singh Mann (PPS), SSP, Ferozepur, has been posted as SSP, Fatehgarh Sahib; Mandeep Singh Sidhu (PPS), SSP, Fatehgarh Sahib, becomes SSP, Hoshiarpur; Gurinder Singh Dhillon (PPS), SSP, Fazilka, has been posted as SSP, Faridkot; and Ravcharan Singh Brar (PPS), SSP, Gurdaspur, has been posted as SSP, Kapurthala. The PPS officers who have been posted as SSPs include Kamaljieet Singh Dhillon , Commandant, 3rd IRB, Ludhiana, who becomes SSP, Tarn Taran; Narinder Bhargava, AIG, Security, who has been posted as SSP, Mansa, Raj Jit Singh, SP, VB, Amritsar Range, who becomes SSP, Gurdaspur, and Amar Singh Chahal SP, VB, Bathinda Range, who has been posted as SSP Fazilka. Those who have been divested from the post of SSP are Balkar Singh (PPS), SSP, Hoshiarpur, who has been posted as Commandant, 36th Battalion, PAP, Bahadurgarh; Dinesh Partap Singh (IPS), SSP, Tarn Taran, who becomes AIG, Personnel-I, Chandigarh; Sukhminder Singh Mann, SSP, Kapurthala, who becomes Commandant, 80th Battalion, PAP, Harpreet Singh (PPS), SSP, Mansa, who has been posted as AIG, Intelligence, Gurmeet Singh Chauhan (PPS), SSP, Faridkot, who has been posted as Commandant, 4th Commando, Battalion, Mohali, and Harpreet Singh (PPS), SSP, Mansa, who becomes AIG, Intelligence. Arun Kumar Mittal (PPS), AIG, CID Unit, has been posted as Commandant, 1st Commando Battalion, Bahadurgarh; Rakesh Kaushal (PPS), Commandant, 4th Commando Battalion, Mohali, becomes AIG, Intelligence, Chandigarh; Mangal Singh (PPS, SP, SSG, Chandigarh, has been posted as SP, 3rd Commando Battalion, Mohali; Bhupinderjit Singh (PPS), AIG, IT, becomes Commandant, 3rd IRB; and Rajeshwar Singh Sidhu, SP, CM’s Security, has been posted as SP, Headquarters,
Mansa.
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CM’s nod to fiscal aid for injured Yannick
Chandigarh, August 5
An official spokesperson said the Chief Minister had given his nod to bear the expenditure on Yannick’s treatment. Yannick is undergoing treatment at Columbia Asia Hospital in Patiala. The spokesperson said as requested by Yannick’s father Nestor Ntibateganya, the state government would arrange for an air ambulance to shift the injured Yannick to Delhi. The government would also pay the air fare (business class) for both Yannick and Nestor from New Delhi to Rwanda. The government, he said, had already given Rs 5 lakh for Yannick’s treatment. The CM had assured Nestor that those involved in the attack on his son would be punished, he added.
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Tinted glasses: Vehicles of VIPs, kin spared
Patiala, August 5 In the last three months, the police has issued over 1,000 challans, but none to a VIP offender. A number of bureaucrats and top police officers reside in the city. Many of these have vehicles with tinted glasses and red beacons. Such vehicles can be seen passing through police nakas without being stopped by traffic personnel. A senior police officer's son travels in an SUV with a red beacon and black film. Another police officer's son drives a Maruti gypsy rashly on city roads. A traffic police official said they were unable to challan vehicles belonging to VIPs or their kin since their action might offend the seniors. "These VIP brats usually drive at a high speed and when stopped, their gunmen try to intimidate us," said a traffic head constable. "A few weeks ago, an SSP-rank officer and other senior officials had put up nakas to challan traffic violators. Such an exercise had infused confidence in us, but things are back to square one," he added. The use of black film and red beacons on vehicles is rampant in the city, with the police "expressing helplessness" to check the violations. Though the traffic police has claimed to have carried sustained drives in the past to check serious violations, it seems that the efforts are just not enough. It is not possible to deploy personnel in every nook and corner of the city since the traffic police is facing a shortage of staff, a traffic official said. Meanwhile, ADGP (Traffic) RP Singh has issued warning to the district traffic wings to ensure that all violators are booked.
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Ludhiana man joins Melbourne Police
Ludhiana, August 5 Gill, whose family lives in Bhai Randhir Singh Nagar area here, is the fifth turbaned youth and second from Ludhiana to be inducted into the Australian police. The PSU is Victoria Police's specialist provider of security services. It was established in 1986 following a security review, but formally commenced operations on May 1, 1988. Manpinder went to the local GGN Public School and SCD Government College. He later graduated from Gujranwala Guru Nanak Institute of Management and Technology. He, along with his wife Pawan, migrated to Australia in 2007. He had been doing a business before he applied for PSO. "My maternal grandfather was in the Army. I also aspired to be an army officer, but could not succeed. And when I saw this advertisement, I thought this was my chance to fulfill my childhood dream. As a PSO I will be able to serve the community," Manpinder said while speaking to The Tribune over the phone from Melbourne. "After clearing the written test, I joined the Victoria Police Academy, Glen Waverley, Victoria on April 16. After three months of rigorous training, I graduated on July 16," Manpinder said. His father Sant Parkash Singh Gill, a former Superintending Engineer of the Punjab Irrigation Department, flew to Australia to attend his son's graduation ceremony. Manpinder said: "Australians do not discriminate. Here you are treated on a par with other citizens. It does not make any difference to people here that I wear a turban as they know that I am there for their safety". The PSO's are responsible for the security of Melbourne's Supreme Court, County Court, Children's Court, Magistrates' Court, Suburban Magistrates Courts, Victoria Civil and Administrative Tribunal, Department of Premier and Cabinet, Victorian Department of Justice, Parliament House Victoria, The Shrine of Remembrance, Victoria Police Centre and Victoria Police St Kilda Road Complex.
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Cotton growers repent switching to paddy
Faridkot, August 5 For this, the reasons are many. One is that cotton is considered to be among the most drought-resistant field crop. The other reason is that the dry season has had a major impact on pest pressure as drought-stressed plants are less attractive to pests. The other major incentive for the cotton growers this season is that cotton prices have already started showing an upward trend. In the last two weeks, cotton rates have shown an average increase of Rs 200 per quintal in Punjab. Cotton varieties were selling at Rs 4,200-Rs 4,350 per quintal on July 14 in Punjab and fetched a rate of Rs 4,500-Rs 4,625 on July 28 in various mandis. So, a large number of farmers in this part, who switched over to paddy this season, are repenting their decision. These cotton growing farmers changed over to paddy as cotton did not yield a remunerative price in the last one year. On the other hand, a good monsoon last season contributed to high yield for the paddy growers. So, this was the reason why in the cotton belt in north India, comprising Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, there was over 14 per cent decline in the area under cotton cultivation this season. From 16.95 lakh hectares under cotton last season, this season, the area got reduced to 14.58 lakh hectares in north India, said IJ Dhuria, director, material, Vardhman Group of Textile Industry. Out of the 2.37 lakh reduced area under cotton, while about 65 per cent went under paddy cultivation, the other 35 per cent area opted for the guar crop. While the paddy growers who opted for guar seed are not facing much of a problem with the prevalent drought-like situation, farmers who opted for paddy in place of cotton, are facing a tough time due to their increased cost of inputs, said Rajesh Singla, vice-president, SEL, a Ludhiana-based leading yarn export company. Experts feel that there has been a marked decline in the area under cotton cultivation in the country this season. Therefore, cotton will fetch a high price.
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Mohali integrated waste project put on fast track
Chandigarh, August 5 An official spokesman said GMADA cluster would include municipal corporations of SAS Nagar and Zirakpur, municipal councils of Banur, Dera Bassi, Rajpura, Ropar, etc and it was estimated that 328 tonnes of solid waste would be generated every day in 18 urban local bodies under the GMADA cluster. He said around 141 cities of the state produced nearly 5,000 tonnes of solid waste per day that would be utilised for producing power, compost or other useful products. He said after the project became operational, all urban areas would be garbage-free which would significantly improve the overall environment of the state. The spokesman said under this private-public partnership project, developing agencies would carry out door-to-door collection of municipal waste in 18 local bodies, transportation of municipal waste to the processing facility and scientific disposal or scientific landfill of the waste for which agency would create its door-to-door network, transfer stations, processing facilities and landfill sites.
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Farmers to hold protest on Aug 9
Patiala, August 5 District president of the union Dr Darshan Pal said as many as 1,500 union members and office-bearers from all over the state would sit on a dharna outside the PSPCL office. He threatened to intensify the agitation if PSPCL failed to meet the union’s demands. “The union district committee has also asked the Centre to declare Punjab a drought-hit state and announce a package for the farmers. It must provide compensation of Rs 5,000 per acre and wave the crop loan installments of this season,” he said.
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Police resorted to a mild lathicharge on contractual teachers working in government schools near Jalandhar bypass road in Ludhiana on Sunday when they tried to block the GT Road As many as 700 teachers, employed under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan, from Ropar, Nawanshahr, Mohali, Fatehgarh Sahib and Ludhiana districts participated in the protest Several teachers sustained minor injuries while one female teacher fell unconscious during the lathicharge
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Sangrur man held with 150 g smack
Patiala, August 5 The police said when questioned, the accused Shinda admitted to having bought smack from a slum area in Delhi. The city police has also registered over 12 cases against various persons who supplied smack and were in possession of the contraband. The Punjab DGP had recently issued directions to the Police Department to take strict action against drug peddlers who are usually involved in snatchings.
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Mirapur (Devigarh), August 5
Patiala, August 5
Sixty-four-year-old mosaic artist Harjeet Singh Sandhu, who was born and brought up in Punjab, has earned laurels in New York for his mosaic portrait of Bloomberg, a three-time Mayor of New York. The portrait will be displayed at the City Hall.
Sandhu, who has held many exhibitions of his art works in India and the US, is now working on a mosaic of the Golden Temple, which he hopes will find place in the gurudwara museum. Sandhu was born at Marhana village in Patti subdivision of Tarn Taran district.
Almost three months into the drive against vehicles with black films, the city police has adopted a selective approach in issuing challans to violators.
While action has been taken against city residents driving vehicles with tinted glasses, the police has turned a blind eye towards vehicles belonging to politicians and bureaucrats.
Ludhiana, August 5
In the last three months (April, May and June), the operational and enforcement staff of the PSPCL detected 1,170 power theft cases in Muktsar circle comprising the four divisions Muktsar, Malout, Gidderbaha and Badal. A penalty of nearly Rs 2 crore was imposed and a mere Rs 35 lakh recovered.
In the face of the IMD forecast, the state would issue an advisory to farmers unable to nurture their paddy crop to plough it and go in for alternative crops.