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Youths thrash policemen after eve-teasing constable
133 lakh tonne paddy procured
Congress plans to make law and order poll issue
SAD (A) to contest DSGMC elections
Government moots fast-track courts for heinous crimes
Special wing to deal with harassment of women
Dairyman introduces milk vending machine in Mohali
Power generation from coal set to cost more
Test to recruit teachers soon
Dr Dhillon takes over as IAA chief
Fatehgarh admn gears up for Shaheedi Jor Mela
5,000 associate schools’ fate hangs in balance
PRI polls: Villages split into wards
Four injured in bus-car collision
Snatching incident: Residents hold demonstration
Attach Kotkapura MC’s property: HC
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Air, train traffic hit as fog engulfs region
Amritsar/Jalandhar,
December 23 Normal life remained paralysed due to reduced visibility and a steep fall in the mercury. As many as four flights were delayed while Mantra's Chandiagrh-Amritsar flight was cancelled. Suneel Dutt, Director, Amritsar Airport, said no flight got delayed from Sri Guru Ramdas Ji International Airport as it was equipped with the ILS category II system. He said the airport was ready to accommodate landing of aircraft under 350-m and above visibility. He said average visibility of the day remained 400 m to 500 m. He said scheduled flights got delayed due to delay in take off from their originating stations. Other reasons were either aircraft not being technologically equipped to utilise the category II landing system or pilots not trained to land under this landing system. Arrival of as many as seven and departure of many other trains were delayed by one hour to nine hours. The arrival of Katihar Express was delayed by nine hours while Kolkatta Express arrived four hours behind the schedule time of 4:50 pm, Shan-e-Punjab arrived 3:15 hours late, Dadar Express was late by three hours, Delhi-Pathankot by two hours and Paschim Express was behind schedule by one-and-a-half hours. Till the filing of the report, Howrah Express and Howrah Mail, which were to depart at 6:10 pm and 6:40 pm, respectively, had not departed while Amritsar-Delhi Shan-e-Punjab chugged out at 6:30 pm against the scheduled time of 3:10 pm. In Jalandhar, traffic moved at a snail's pace due to low visibility. Most of the people preferred to stay indoors due to chilly weather. Rickshaw-pullers and roadside vendors were seen huddled around bonfires to keep themselves warm. The minimum temperature was recorded at 3.3 degree celsius at Adampur in Jalandhar district. The minimum temperature at Amritsar and Halwara was recorded as 4.6 and 4.3 degree Celsius. respectively. Fogged out
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Setback to Cong as MLA decides to join SAD
Moga, December 23 Confirming the development, Jain said he took the decision as his workers were disappointed for the past several years because their works were not being done due to his being in the opposition. "Keeping in view the interests of my workers, I have decided to leave the Congress and join the SAD," he said. In reply to a question, Jain said he would also resign from the membership of the legislative assembly. "The SAD leadership has assured me the party ticket and I will contest election again from this constituency," he said. He claimed that Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and his son and SAD president Sukhbir Badal had assured him a "good political assignment" after joining their party. Jain, however, clarified that he had not been assured a Cabinet berth but "will get the post of a chairman in any corporation or board at the state level". "I will also be made SAD 'halqa' (constituency) incharge of Moga assembly constituency," he said. Once considered a close confidant of Punjab Pradesh Congress president and former Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh, Jain's exit would not only be a big setback to the Congress but also a personal blow to the state unit chief. Amarinder is already facing flak for the party's debacle in the assembly elections. Jain had started his political career in the Congress and was made chairman of Moga Improvement Trust by former Chief Minister Harcharan Singh Brar in 1995-96. After a few years, he joined the Akali Dal and got elected as Moga Municipal Council president. In 2007, he again joined the Congress and was given the party ticket from Moga. He won the elections and became an MLA for the first time. In the recent assembly elections, he was re-nominated by the Congress and he defeated SAD candidate Paramdip Singh Gill, the former Director General of Police. After Jain's resignation, political equations are set to change in Moga. The status of Gill, present SAD halqa incharge of the constituency, would impinge on Jain's move, besides creating space for the local Congress leaders. Punjab Mahila Congress president Dr Malti Thapar, former MLAs Vijay Sathi and Darshan Singh Brar would look forward to contest the
byelection. About the legislator
Political Impact
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Thousands attend former Namdhari sect head’s bhog
Bhaini Sahib (Khanna), December 23 Thousands of Namdharis and leaders from different political parties were present on the occasion. ‘Dastarbandi’ (turban-tying ceremony) of the newly appointed Satguru Uday Singh was conducted later by presenting him a turban from Bhaini Sahib
Darbar. Several political, social and religious organisations also presented turbans to the new sect head. While paying tributes to the late
Satguru, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal recalled Jagjit Singh’s contribution in the field of music, agriculture and sports and the efforts put in by him to fight various social evils, including female feticide, child marriage and dowry. Union Minister for Railways Pawan Kumar
Bansal, All India Congress Committee member Jagmeet Brar, Congress MP Partap Bajwa and Indian National Lok Dal President Om Parkash
Chautala, PPP president Manpreet Badal, CPI leader Joginder Dyal, DSGMC president Paramjit Singh
Sarna, BJP Minister Bhagat Chuni Lal, MPs Avinash Rai Khanna, Ravneet Singh
Bittu, Mohinder Singh Kaypee and Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa also addressed the gathering.
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Youths thrash policemen after eve-teasing constable
Muktsar, December 23 When the constable and her colleagues objected to the misbehaviour, the youth and his friends allegedly thrashed the policemen, including an Assistant Sub-Inspector. The turban of the Assistant Sub-Inspector, Ram Singh, was also tossed in the air by the accused. The incident reportedly occurred during the recording of a cultural programme, "Mela Melian Da", to be shown on a television channel next week. Sources said a large number of people, including a few politicians, were present in the government school of Mallan village when the incident occurred. Sources said the accused, identified as Gagandeep Singh of Mallan village, first allegedly passed lewd comments against the female constable and then returned with his accomplices and thrashed the policemen who had tried to stop him. Muktsar Senior Superintendent of Police Surjeet Singh said, "The statements of the female constable and Assistant Sub-Inspector Ram Singh are being recorded and the process to register an FIR against Gagandeep Singh and his associates is on at Kotbhai police station. The youths are at large but will be arrested soon." Interestingly, it was only yesterday that the district police had launched a 24-hour women helpline so that women facing any kind of threat anywhere across the district could lodge an immediate complaint. Nobody safe in state: Cong MLA Flaying the incident, Congress MLA from Gidderbaha Amrinder Singh "Raja" Warring said, "This incident shows that even policemen are not safe in Punjab. If any youngster can misbehave with a woman constable and that too in full public view, how can we think that other girls are safe.... Nobody is safe under the
Akalis."
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133 lakh tonne paddy procured
An official spokesman here claimed the state government had mobilised the entire government machinery to ensure hassle-free procurement and prompt payment of the produce to the farmers within 48 hours of lifting of their produce from the mandis. The spokesman said in Sangrur district, Rs 1,968 crore had been deposited in farmers’ accounts till date. He said Ludhiana district was at the second place in payments where Rs 1,930 crore had been deposited in farmers’ accounts while Patiala district was the third with payments worth Rs 1,547 crore given to the farmers. He said the government agencies and private millers procured more than 133 lakh tonnes of paddy till last evening. Out of this procurement, the government agencies procured 127 lakh tonnes of paddy till date whereas private traders procured 6,16,960 tones of paddy.
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Cong hits back at SAD for objecting to appeal before Takht
Chandigarh, December 23 Congress legislators Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, Sukh Sarkaria, OP Soni, Ramandeep Singh Sikki and Amarinder Singh Raja Warring said they had regard for the Akal Takht Jathedar and they requested him to clarify to the people of Punjab whether a patit Sikh could appeal before Akal Takht or not. "If a patit Sikh cannot appeal before the Akal Takht, then why are they summoned before the Takht and imposed tankhah," they said. — TNS
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Congress plans to make law and order poll issue
Chandigarh, December 23 In the run-up to the assembly elections earlier this year, the Congress had made the registration of "false" cases against its workers an election issue. Pradesh Congress Committee president Capt Amarinder Singh had focused on the issue and even started an aggressive campaign urging party members not to tolerate Akali "highhandedness". However, with the SAD coming back to power, the issue died a natural death. The Congress was not able to compile and prove their charges conclusively even when the issue was raised in the Vidhan Sabha. The SAD-BJP government went to town that the Congress charges were "baseless". Now again, the Congress is taking up the issue of law and order but with a change. Now it is focusing on Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia, who is also the president of the Youth Akali Dal (YAD). Like earlier, Capt Amarinder Singh is leading the charge. The aim is to target Majithia and indirectly Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who is also the Home Minister. The strategy also paints Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal as someone who has "no control" over the state with Majithia and Sukhbir calling the shots. Punjab Congressmen feel they would get "good" response from the people because they have "proof" of "expletives" used by Majithia against Congress MLA Rana Gurjit in the assembly even while "abuses" hurled by Rana got lost in the din. The SAD, on its part, is adopting a two-pronged strategy to thwart the Congress charges. The Deputy CM is keen to make the police reforms work and is focusing on community policing centres (Sanjh Kendras), which have received lakhs of complaints in the last 13 months since they have opened. The government is keen to ensure these complaints are looked into in a professional manner, which itself would take care of allegations of bias. Sukhbir Badal has also made it clear that he is firmly behind Bikram Majithia, saying the Congress was deliberately blaming the latter for all ills in order to target the Badal family and to defame it. However, he is also open to introspection and had already given directions to check the antecedents of all party office-bearers and directed that anyone with a criminal record should be weeded out. Besides conducting police reforms and focusing on claims that the Congress is bereft of issues, the SAD is keen to take on the Congress politically and weaken it further. The party is wooing a Congress legislator of the Malwa belt who has already decided to resign from the party and join the SAD. The party is planning this to sow further dissensions in the Congress as well as try to prove that the Congress is increasingly becoming electorally irrelevant.
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SAD (A) to contest DSGMC elections
Sangrur, December 23 A five-member committee, headed by vice president of the party Amarjit Singh Kila Hakima, will visit Delhi to take stock of the situation. The other members of the committee are SGPC member Surjit Singh Kalabula, general secretary Jaskaran Singh, general secretary Professor Mohinder Pal Singh and member of Political Affairs Committee (PAC) Master Bahadur Singh Bhasaur. Party president Simranjit Singh Mann said here today that the party would contest the elections on the issue of “Khalistan”. He said the party would only field those candidates, who believed in the party’s ideology and could bear the election expenditure. He said the five-member committee would decide how many seats the party should contest.
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Government moots fast-track courts for heinous crimes
Ajnala (Amritsar), December 23 Speaking to mediapersons here today, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal said the government would convey to the Punjab and Haryana High Court that it was ready to provide infrastructure support for setting up fast-track courts and bear expenses for additional staff required for these courts. “I believe that merely expediting justice is not enough. The police has to be given scientific training in investigation, collection of evidence, framing of charges during prosecution stage and ensuring speedy justice to the victims. I have already ordered separation of the investigation and law and order wings of the police”, he said.
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Special wing to deal with harassment of women
Nirmal Dhillon, Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Bathinda Zone, today claimed to have launched a drive against eve-teasers by appointing nodal officers and starting dedicated women helpline numbers in seven districts falling under the Bathinda zone. Addressing a press conference, the IG said every complaint received by the police at the respective mobile phone or landline number of the nodal officers would be taken seriously and immediate action would be initiated. He said the SP (detectives) of seven districts -
Bathinda, Muktsar, Mansa, Ferozepur, Faridkot, Fazilka and Moga - had been appointed as the nodal officers. People can lodge complaints, give tip-offs or meet them personally. Their contact numbers are
Bathinda: 7508018002, 0164-2215020, Muktsar: 8054370002, 01633-265855, Mansa: 9815094444, 01652-220043,
Ferozepur: 9780005002, 01632-249261, Faridkot: 7037018004, 7508500700, Fazilka: 8558800802, 01638-264000,
Moga: 9592355550, 01636-237888. The IG said the dedicated women helpline numbers would be attended by women operators to have better interaction with the complainant or aggrieved women.
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Private petrol dealers refuse to give fuel to Punjab govt officers on credit
Chandigarh, December 23 It is estimated that fuel bills worth Rs 2 crore are pending with the Punjab Government. Though officials in the state Finance Department maintain that no bills as on November 30, were pending with the government treasury, petroleum dealers across the state alleged that a number of officers were taking fuel on credit but not presenting their bills in the treasury as money for fuel was not being released. Petroleum dealers generate a monthly fuel bill for supplies made to a particular department and submit it later for clearance. If the department gets monetary allocation from the government for fuel, the officials concerned submit the petrol bills to the treasury. If the bills are within prescribed limits, a cheque is issued to the department. The government department then endorses the cheque in favour of the petroleum dealer. Dealers allege that since fuel allocation was not being made, various departments were not presenting bills to the treasury for clearance. In a letter to the Chief Secretary, Punjab Petroleum Dealers Association president JP Khanna alleged that it was becoming difficult for petroleum dealers to indefinitely extend credit to the state government as they themselves had to make RTGS transactions to buy fuel from oil marketing companies. “With huge finances now blocked with the Punjab Government, we are finding it difficult to operate. Even payments from the state election office are due to many dealers who supplied fuel to election officer during the municipal corporation elections,” he said. A petroleum dealer in Jagraon said the local police department owed him over Rs 1 lakh and the payment was not being released on the pretext that money for fuel had not been released by the head office. A senior officer in the state Finance Department said, “We have received strict instructions from the Chief Minister that all bills presented before the treasury are to be released at the end of every month. There are no pending bills till November, though fuel bills for December could be pending. This too will be cleared by the month-end.” Fuelling a row
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Dairyman introduces milk vending machine in Mohali
Chandigarh, December 23 This unique initiative, which has been undertaken by a progressive dairy farmer of Shahpur village in Mohali district, has succeeded in turning a milkman into an
entrepreneur. Khalsa Dairy Farm now markets 700 litres of milk daily from its automatic vending machine. It will install more such vending machines in Chandigarh by the next
month. Parminder Singh of Khalsa dairy said the last two years were very bad for dairy business in Punjab. His family had put its entire stakes in commercial dairying. “With milk prices remaining static during the last one year due to extraneous factors, including a ban on the export of milk products, we were forced to market milk on our own”. The family got encouragement from the Punjab State Farmers Commission. Parminder said milk expert Anil Kaura used to encourage the family to market its produce to get the maximum benefit. He said supplying milk to Milkfed at Rs 20.50 per litre was a loss-making proposition, which also encouraged the family to get its act together. The family has a modern dairy where milk is untouched by hands and chilled to the appropriate temperature. It is then carted to Mohali where it is transferred to a small mobile tanker which has an automatic vending system that allows consumers to use smart cards to take out the amount of milk they
require. Amanpreet, who is also part of the Khalsa family and manages the Mohali operations, said the endeavour was a win-win situation for both the dairy farm as well as consumers. “We are selling milk, which we would have given to Verka for Rs 20.50, at Rs 35 per
litre. Consumers get quality milk with natural enzymes, minerals and vitamins at the same price for which they would get milk with additives from established cooperatives and private players,” he
said. Amanpreet said the family had decided to increase the number of vending machines and market the milk in Chandigarh. The dairy has also started an awareness campaign on the benefits of raw milk which is delivered chilled vis a vis pasteurised milk. The dairy is getting encouraging response from consumers. Housewife Gurvinder Kaur said she was getting now milk which tasted the same every day because modern dairies used the same silage and feed for the entire year.
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Power generation from coal set to cost more
Patiala, December 23 The FSA has to be signed by the power companies setting up thermal plants with the Coal India Limited (CIL). Sources said the final draft of the FSA would be that the CIL would provide 65 per cent of the domestic coal with a clause that the percentage of domestic coal would be increased to 80 per cent in a phased manner in the next five years. Two big power plants - Talwandi Sabo Thermal Plant (1980-MW) and Rajpura Thermal Plant (1400-MW) are coming up in the state. The deadline for the start of the first unit of the 660-MW capacity of the Talwandi Sabo Thermal Plant is April 13, whereas the first unit of 700-MW capacity of Rajpura Thermal Plant is likely to be operational by January 2014. Earlier, the CIL was supposed to provide 80 per cent domestic coal but because of the prevailing coal crisis in the country, now the CIL wants amendments in the previously drafted FSA. The CIL board had approved the modified FSA in September, assuring supply of 65 per cent domestic coal and 15 per cent imported coal at cost-plus basis. Cost-plus basis means cost of importing coal by the Coal India plus additional charges. A senior official of the Power Corporation said: “If the developer takes 65 per cent domestic and 15 per cent imported coal from the Coal India, the cost of power generation will certainly go up because imported coal will cost more.” Speaking to The Tribune, Finance Secretary of the Northern India power Engineers’ Federation Vinod Gupta said the increase in fuel cost due to blending of imported coal would vary between 37 paise and 44 paise per unit. “When the private power company will file tariff petition with the Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) after taking into account all input costs, the power tariff would certainly go up and the electricity consumers of the Punjab will be the suffers,” he added.
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Poor facilities make life miserable in Muktsar
Muktsar, December 23 The town had got the district status in 1995. But even after 17 years nothing much has changed on the development front. Potholed roads, sewage mixed drinking water, poor sanitation, drug addiction, waterlogging, dilapidated government buildings and shortage of staff are the matters of prime concern. Potholed roads
Though most of the roads are dotted with potholes, the condition of some is the worst. Roads at a number of places have sunk due to caving in of sewerage pipes. The project of building a railway over-bridge on the ever busy Jalalabad road has remained only on paper. Contaminated water
Due to collapse of sewerage system in major parts of the town, residents are forced to consume contaminated water as sewage from leaking pipes is getting mixed with drinking water. Though reverse osmosis (RO) water treatment plants have been installed, their number is insufficient. Poor sanitation
The garbage collection system is very poor. Though a private company has been hired for door-to-door collection of solid waste, heaps of garbage can be seen on almost every road. It also attracts stray cattle and proves a major cause of road mishaps. Waterlogging
Waterlogging is another problem area which needs immediate attention. A number of people have suffered huge losses due to this perennial problem. Hardly any step has been taken to rid the town of this problem which has also given rise to the menace of termites. Drug addiction
The prevalence of drugs is high among the youths. This is evident from the huge number of cases registered under the NDPS Act in the recent past. Dilapidated buildings
The condition of government buildings is also not satisfactory. Many offices are being run from crumbling buildings while those having good infrastructure are facing acute shortage of staff. These offices include the Deputy Commissioner's office, Civil Hospital and the lone Government College. Health care ailing
Health sector is also facing a number of problems, including staff shortage. Though the Civil Hospital has been shifted to a new building, the unavailability of qualified doctors is a major hurdle for its smooth functioning. The prevalence of cancer and water-borne diseases is high in this area. Education suffers
The lone Government College here is being run by a majority of teachers appointed on contractual or temporary basis. Most departments do not have permanent faculty, but hardly any new appointment has been done. The condition of government schools is also not up to the mark. Residents allege the Chief Minister is least bothered about this historical town.
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Test to recruit teachers soon
Sangrur, December 23 Stating this here today, Education Minister Sikendar Singh Maluka said arrangements were being made to conduct the test. The minister was in the city to participate in a state-level conference organised by the Adhyapak Dal. With regard to providing tablets to school students, he said two to three companies had submitted their offers to the government. He said the best tablet would be selected as there was no shortage of funds. The tablets might be made available to the students during this academic session, he said.
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Dr Dhillon takes over as IAA chief
Chandigarh, December 23 His name was cleared at the recently concluded National IAA Conference at Kolkata. He is the fifth incumbent of the prestigious post, and second from PGIMER, Chandigarh. Prof Dhillon is the president-elect of the Indian Foot and Ankle Society, past president of the NZ Indian Orthopaedic Association, vice president of the Indian Association of Sports Medicine, Editor Indian Arthroscopy Society, and research officer, AO Trauma India, making him the only one to have been elected to the top posts in multiple Orthopaedics-related professional organisations. Prof Dhillon has worked extensively in the field of joint replacement, sports injury management, and foot injuries. He has published two books, one of which on foot fractures has been accepted with rich acclaim internationally. Dr Dhillon has been associated with Joint replacement surgery at PGIMER since 1987, and was instrumental in developing arthroscopy and Sports Medicine services in North India during the last 25 years.
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2 bus terminals to be set up for Shaheedi Jor Mela
Fatehgarh Sahib, December 23 The buses transporting devotees from Ropar, Morinda, and Kurali would be parked at the bus terminal set up at Baba Moti Mehra Gate on Bassi Pathana Road. The buses coming from Chandigarh, Mohali and Landra would be parked at the temporary bus stand set up at Ambar Colony near Attewali village. Meanwhile, buses coming from Patiala, Khanna, Gobindgarh, Amloh, Malerkotla and Ludhiana would be parked at the old bus terminal. The buses would not be allowed to enter Fatehgarh Sahib and would return via the old flyover through Chungi No 4. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Hardial Singh Mann said special attention would be given to traffic management. He said the route from Ropar to Patiala would go through villages Morinda, Khedi, Chunni, Badali Ala Singh, Hansali Sahib, Nabipur and Kharoda, while Ropar to Khanna route would go through Ropar, Morinda, Bassi bypass, Dadheri village and Gobindgarh to proceed to Khanna. Similarly traffic from Khamano to Rajpura would pass through Uccha Pind, Bassi bypass, Dadheri, Gobindgarh and Sirhind and proceed towards Rajpura while traffic from Chandigarh would pass through Landran, Banur Rajpura and proceed towards Patiala. Mann said the whole town had been divided into five sectors and an official of the rank of Superintendent of Police official would be in charge of each sector and would be assisted by a Deputy Superintendent of Police and an Inspector. He said 46 nakas and 10 check barriers had been set up in the area. CCTV cameras had also been set up at strategic places to keep a strict vigil on the area. He said 16 parking lots had also been earmarked for devotees to park their vehicles.
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5,000 associate schools’ fate hangs in balance
Mohali, December 23 Dr Balwinder Singh, Secretar, PSEB, confirmed that the board would seek advice from the state government over the issue. “We would seek advice from the government but we are also concerned about the future of several lakh students studying in these schools,” said Dr Balwinder Singh. When these schools were given associate status by the board, it was decided that they would be regularly inspected by the Education Department officials following which the deserving schools would be given the affiliation. Sources said not even a single school had been inspected so far despite several requests by the board in this regard. “After seeing the indifferent attitude of the officials concerned on the issue, the board has now decided to take advice from the government. The decision to this effect was taken by the Board of Directors recently,” said sources. Each school was charged a fee of Rs 13,000 last year before being given the status of associate schools. The schools were asked to fulfil all the conditions required for getting the board’s affiliation.
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PRI polls: Villages split into wards
Bathinda, December 23 The next Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRI) elections in the state will see candidates from various wards contesting against each other instead of a handful panchs and sarpanchs many of whom have been at the helm of affairs for the past couple of generations. In Bathinda district, as many as 2,468 wards have been formed in 315 villages. Over a period of past one month, the officials of rural development and panchayat office conducted this procedure to divide villages into a number of wards as per the laid down specification. The wards have been divided on the basis of population. The carving out of wards has thrown up many interesting details. No village in the district was found to have a population of more than 10,000. With 518 wards in 66 villages, the Bathinda block has the maximum number wards. With 219 wards in 29 villages, the Phul block has the least number of wards. Also, two new panchayats have been added. Earlier, there were 313 panchayats in the district. In Bhagi Vander village, one Vander panchayat has been formed. In village Jaga Ram Tirath, one panchayat of Jaga Ram Tirath Kalan has been constituted. Deputy Commissioner Kamal Kishore Yadav said that the delimitation has been done under the provision of the 73rd constitutional amendment that aims at strengthening the PRI system. "It was observed that in many villages, a set of families and influential people had captured the posts of sarpanch and panchayat members. Now there would be representatives from each ward and every group will get represented,” Yadav added. He said the draft had been sent to the state government and soon, the final notification would also be issued. All the wards have been demarcated keeping geographical continuation in mind. Earlier, for forming a new panchayat, a population of 200 was a must. Now, this has been revised to one panchayat for every 300 people. A minimum of five wards and a maximum of 11 wards can be formed in a village. Villages with population more than 10,000 should have 13 wards but there is no such village in Bathinda. There are 23 villages having 11 wards which translates to the fact that only 23 villages have population ranging from 5,000 to 10,000. These villages include Pathrala, Pucca Kalan, Gumti Kalan, Jalal, Bhucho Kalan, Gobindpura, Lehra Mohabbat, Nathana, Poohla, Tungwali, Bhai Rupa, Bhai Rupa Patti Kangarm Chauke, Pitho, Badiala, Mandi Kalan, Rampura and others.
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Traffic norms a casualty in Patiala
Patiala, December 23 The illegal use of passenger vehicles from Patiala to Rajpura and Chandigarh has added to the problem, while illegal parking of taxis and buses near the bus stand has aggravated the problem. Despite a full-fledged department of the traffic police in Patiala, hundreds of vehicles on the city roads are flouting traffic norms unabated. Vehicles with tinted glasses, overloaded buses, tractor-trolleys loaded with bricks and unauthorised parking of commercial buses of transporters is increasing at an alarming pace. Even vehicles without reflectors are allowed to continue without any check. A few months back, backed by the Supreme Court order against use of tinted filming on any vehicles, the city traffic police had promised to challan all the vehicles running on the city roads, which were flouting norms. Almost seven months into the drive against black filming, the city police has selectively initiated their drive against black filming, challaning and warning the residents but has turned a blind eye towards the VIP vehicles of politicians and bureaucrats. The private transporters using pressure horns, plying on illegal routes, saving money by parking their bus on the roadside at night, over loading are still a common sight. The tractor-trolleys loaded with bricks from brick-kilns and other materials are a common sight on the city roads, causing threat to the commuters. “These tractors do not pay any road tax and just by greasing the palms of the officials, they are allowed to play havoc with lives of others on roads,” said Manoj Kumar, a daily commuter on the Patiala-Chandigarh road. The Patiala traffic wing works under the command of a SP ranked officer but till date there has been nothing substantial done by the traffic wing to regulate smooth traffic in the city. Instead traffic management is the best when there is a VIP movement. Following orders by the Supreme Court that has banned the use of filming on the vehicle panes, the police had started challaning and removing black films from the vehicles. With Patiala being a home for many bureaucrats and police officers, the police failed to challan those with red lights atop and VIP vehicles were seen passing from these nakas without any challenge by the traffic cops. Patiala SSP Gurpreet Singh Gill had earlier promised to pass necessary instructions to the traffic wing, ensuring proper implementation of traffic norms but nothing concrete has happened. Instead overloaded buses with students riding atop are a common sight. When contacted Patiala SP (Traffic), Barjinder Singh feigned ignorance that there was any sort of violations of the traffic rules. “I will verify the illegal parking by the private transporters,” he said, adding that buses with black films are spared as the Supreme Court had ordered not to specify them.
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Four injured in bus-car collision
Barnala, December 23 The injured were identified as Hardip Singh and his daughter Bhawandeep
Kaur, Amarjit Singh and Baldev Singh. The accident reportedly took place due to fog. According to the Mehal Kalan police, all the injured, who were from Rakba village near Mullanpur in Ludhiana, were on their way from Mulanpur to Barnala while the bus was going from Barnala towards Ludhiana. The injured persons were admitted to the Civil Hospital,
Barnala. In view of serious condition of the injured persons, they were referred to Government Rajindra Hospital,
Patiala, but they were reportedly taken to DMC Hospital, Ludhiana for treatment. The police said the driver of the bus fled from the scene.
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Snatching incident: Residents hold demonstration
Sangrur, December 23
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Attach Kotkapura MC’s property: HC
Kotkapura (Faridkot), December 23 The High Court has even imposed a moratorium on all development works in the town until the MC refunds the amount so used. To settle its accumulated debts and liabilities of over Rs 7.5 crore, the council has decided to auction its public properties. "To rescue the debt-ridden council, there is no matching source of income. The council has mooted a proposal to sell one of its prime properties situated near the bus stand in the town," said a senior functionary. The proposal has been sent to Faridkot Deputy Commissioner Ravi Bhagat for his permission. "I have received a proposal from the Kotkapura MC to auction one of its properties. We have yet to take a decision," said Bhagat. For the last over two years, the Kotkapura MC has been struggling to pay salaries, provident fund and retirement benefits to its employees. Some of the aggrieved employees approached the High Court, which has taken serious view of the situation. "Kotkapura, which was earlier known as Asia's biggest cotton market, had been earning over Rs 2.5 crore as octroi every year from the bulk depots of Hindustan Petroleum, IBP, Indian Oil and other companies. However, after shifting of the bulk oil depots to Bathinda, Kotkapura lost a major income source," said Paramjit Kaur Dhillon, president, Kotkapura MC. Besides, the Kotkapura civic body has to bear the burden of maintaining fire tenders for it being the central location to many adjoining towns. While the Kotkapura MC's income from all sources is about Rs 1 crore per month, the expenses are over Rs 1.5 crore, she added.
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Chandigarh, December 23
Chandigarh, December 23
Bathinda, December 23
With the final draft of the Fuel Supply Agreement (FSA) likely to be released within a month, the cost of power generation from the upcoming thermal plants in the Punjab will go up.
Dr Mandeep S Dhillon, professor and head department of Orthopaedics, and head physical therapy and rehabilitation PGIMER Chandigarh, has taken over as president of the prestigious Indian Arthroplasty Association (IAA).
The villages in Bathinda district have now been divided into wards.