B A T H I N D A    E D I T I O N

Fazilka gets access to Gang Canal water
Fazilka, December 9
The decades-old dream of local residents getting potable canal water came true today with Deputy Chief Minister Suikhbir Singh Badal inaugurating a Rs 12.51-crore project in Khui Khera village of Fazilka sub-division.

Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal and Forest Minister Surjit Kumar Jyani inspect the canal-based drinking water project in Fazilka on Sunday. A Tribune photograph

Keetu’s nephew Jassa assaults his domestic help
Moga, December 9
One of the assailants and a nephew of former SAD MLA Malkiat Singh Keetu, who is on the run, allegedly attacked and injured a domestic servant of the deceased Akali leader late last night. Mandar Singh, the son of Mahinder Singh, works as a domestic help in Keetu's house at Bilaspur village of Moga district.

Ex-servicemen, Veer Nari meet held
Abohar, December 9
Inaugurating an ex-servicemen and Veer Nari rally at Sadhuwali Military Station on Abohar-Sriganganagar road yesterday, Lieutenant General Gyan Bhushan, General Officer Commanding in Chief, South Western Command, exhorted the ex-servicemen to enlist with the ex-servicemen corporation in Rajasthan for a budget of Rs 5 crore has been sanctioned.

Lt-General Gyan Bhushan (extreme right) interacts with an ex-serviceman at Sadhuwali. A Tribune photograph

One held under NDPS Act
Abohar, December 9
The police has seized 1500 gm of opium from a Muktsar resident at the inter-state border village of Rampura Narayanpura. Dilbagh Singh of Aulakh village in Muktsar has been arrested for possessing the contraband. However, his two accomplices managed to flee from the spot. A case under the NDPS Act has been registered against the trio. — OC

Fazilka gets access to Gang Canal water
Our Correspondent

Fazilka, December 9
The decades-old dream of local residents getting potable canal water came true today with Deputy Chief Minister Suikhbir Singh Badal inaugurating a Rs 12.51-crore project in Khui Khera village of Fazilka sub-division.

In 2001, an ambitious project of providing canal-based drinking water was initiated by the then SAD-BJP government. An amount of Rs. 5.5 crore was spent on building reservoirs, tanks, filter beds and heavy machinery for supplying canal water to the town residents.

Initially, the project had partial success. The only shortcoming was that it was not connected to a perennial canal. Hence, the town residents had access to canal water only for about six months in a year.

Later, on April 2011, the state government succeeded in getting cleared the project to draw five cusecs of water from the Gang Canal, a perennial canal 15 km away from here on Fazilka-Abohar road.

Sukhbir Badal, who was accompanied by cabinet minister Surjit Kumar Jyani, opened a valve to release water from the Gang Canal near Khui Khera village today.

While talking to mediapersons on the side line of the project, he said, "It was an uphill task to seek permission to draw water from the Gang Canal but the SAD-BJP succeeded in doing so to fulfill the promise it made to the people of Fazilka."

"With the commissioning of the project, the area residents would get rid of using sub-soil water with high fluoride content, a source of various diseases,” said local MLA and Forest Minister Surjit Kumar Jyani. He said three overhead tanks would be constructed soon for providing water in every part of the town. A grant of Rs 6 crore had already been released for the purpose, he added.

Meanwhile, Sukhbir assured that the vacant posts in the Civil Hospital, Jalalabad, would be filled soon. Members of half a dozen NGOs have been staging a chain hunger strike to protest against inadequate medical facilities in the Jalalabad hospital for the last four days.

Keetu’s nephew Jassa assaults his domestic help
Tribune News Service

Moga, December 9
One of the assailants and a nephew of former SAD MLA Malkiat Singh Keetu, who is on the run, allegedly attacked and injured a domestic servant of the deceased Akali leader late last night.

Mandar Singh, the son of Mahinder Singh, works as a domestic help in Keetu's house at Bilaspur village of Moga district. He stated to the police that when he was going back home after the day’s work late last night, Jaspreet Singh ‘Jassa’ and his associates attacked him with sharp-edged weapons. He was injured in the attack.

He stated that Jassa was creating pressure on him to stop working at Keetu's house but when he refused to do so, he was attacked.

A police official said Mandar had identified all the alleged culprits, including Jassa, who had attacked him.

A criminal case under Sections 323, 325 and 34 of the IPC and Sections 25, 27, 54 and 59 of the Arms Act had been registered against all of them.

However, they were yet to be arrested by the police.

It may be mentioned that Keetu was murdered by his three nephews and their associates in a ‘revengeful act’ at his native house in Bilaspur village on October 29 this year.

Jassa, one of the main accused in the murder case, is still eluding arrest while two other nephews of the slain Akali leader — Harpreet Singh and Gurpreet Singh — had been arrested.

While on the run, Jassa was also involved in a shoot-out at Chandigarh last Monday and his terror continues to haunt the police both in Punjab and Chandigarh.

Ex-servicemen, Veer Nari meet held

Abohar, December 9
Inaugurating an ex-servicemen and Veer Nari rally at Sadhuwali Military Station on Abohar-Sriganganagar road yesterday, Lieutenant General Gyan Bhushan, General Officer Commanding in Chief, South Western Command, exhorted the ex-servicemen to enlist with the ex-servicemen corporation in Rajasthan for a budget of Rs 5 crore has been sanctioned. The corporation will impart training to ex-servicemen to make them eligible for recruitment in the state police.

Lieutenant General Sanjeev Anand, General Officer Commanding, Chetak Corps and the General Officer Commanding, Amogh Division, Major General NC Badhani were also present on the occasion.

The Army has declared the year 2012-13 as the 'Year of Veterans' with the aim of reaching out to the ex-servicemen and Veer Naris. — OC