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Municipal Corporation
Suwidha Centre employees end their four-day strike
City registers steep rise in child labour cases
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Attacks on Christian colonies condemned
Despite handicap, brave Gurleen looks ahead
Gurpreet Bhatti appointed PPP secretary-general
Encroachments mushroom on govt land
Forging ties
Seminar discusses teachers’ responsibilities
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Building Branch in for makeover
Field staff areas to be reshuffled; Computerisation to be effected soon Deepkamal Kaur Tribune News Service
Jalandhar, March 11 Mayor Sunil Jyoti said the branch would undergo a complete makeover from April 1, wherein he would daily check reports regarding building plan applications, composition fee levied, completion certificates issued and the redress of complaints received. He said he was also expecting details of levying of the change of land use charges in a day or two. As the branch has not been computerised, its working is causing a lot of problems to residents, who are a harassed lot. All works, including receipt of applications, levying charges and submission of plans, are done manually. A search of documents relating to any building is not possible for the same reason, resulting in rampant corruption. Action against officials likely
A departmental action against some officials of the Building Branch Department is likely soon after a recent check conducted in their functioning by Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) VP Singh. The officer, during his investigation on Friday, had found illegal colonies coming up near the Kartar Nagar and Tilak Nagar areas. The statements of the department concerned have been taken and an inquiry report pointing to their negligence is likely to be submitted tomorrow to the Local Bodies Department. The CVO had also visited to check the illegal construction of four commercial buildings and a house near the industrial area. The construction of these three buildings had already been stopped. The other two have been asked to first furnish plans, submit fee and composition charges before proceeding further. |
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Suwidha Centre employees end their four-day strike
Jalandhar, March 11 Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Parneet Bhardwaj said an inquiry into the conduct of the manager would be done by SDM Iqbal Singh Sandhu who would report in 10 days. After this announcement at 4 pm, the employees ended the strike and resumed work. It being Monday, there was a huge rush at the counters. With the staff on strike for most of the day, the administration had to remain on its toes to ensure that the applicants were attended to and their work was done in time. Other than the five data entry operators who had joined, the services of staff of various branches and MNREGA were used. GA to DC Sanjeev Sharma, staff from the DC and ADC offices, too, remained on duty to ensure that the public does not face inconvenience. Still, the applicants for affidavits were a harassed lot, as they had to wait for over an hour for the same. Saroj Gupta, a retired bank official, said it was her third visit to get her work done. "I need an affidavit for getting the intkal of a property done. On Thursday, they gave me my requirements. On Friday, I was told to get back because of the strike. Today again, I did not have the time and patience to wait for so long at the window. I have already wasted a lot of petrol on commuting from Wadala Chowk and have paid Rs 10 thrice as parking fees," she rued. |
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City registers steep rise in child labour cases
Jalandhar, March 11 From the 1,350 child labourers found in the city during the last survey, the number of child labourers in Jalandhar has seen a steep rise to a whopping 9,710, as per the results of the survey conducted in September 2012 by the National Child Labour Project, Jalandhar. Among these 9,710 child labourers, the number of children pursuing hazardous occupations is 5,738, and those pursuing non-hazardous occupations is 1,837. Thousands of children are being employed with impunity for occupations which have clearly been marked as hazardous under the law and for which their employers should be jailed. As many as 2,116 children in the district work as domestic helps/servants, 1,616 stitch footballs or make shuttlecocks, 788 are rag pickers, 546 work at brick kilns or agricultural farms, 261 work at dhabas, hotels, restaurants or sweet shops or other shops, 199 work at stitching or embroidery units, 183 are employed in factories/workshops and 29 are employed in construction work or work as iron-smiths (lohar). Among child labourers involved in non-hazardous occupations, 722 indulge in daily wage labour, 309 in strap cutting, 261 as hawkers, 125 indulge in shoe polish, 86 are beggars, 67 are kite/envelope makers, 60 iron clothes, 46 are working in sack (bardana) repair, 44 are brush makers, 38 are in the pharma industry, 37 are painters (of hoardings etc), 25 as sticker makers, 19 are moulding workers or comediennes (village or urban jesters), 18 as garland makers, 16 as shoe and mat makers, 15 each in electricity works and plastic tub repair, 11 in wooden works, 9 each in the surgical works and as balloon sellers, 6 as rickshaw pullers, 5 as book binders and 4 as fish sellers. Of these 9,710, as many as 2,025 children of the district fall in the category of ‘potential child labourers’, that is, children, who are currently neither working, nor going to school. Talking to The Tribune, Project Director, NCLP, Inderjit Singh said, “While the number of children indulging in child labour has clearly seen a steep rise, our foremost priority would be upgrading the number of NCLP schools in the district in the coming session so that these children are made a part of the mainstream.” While lack of will from the government machinery is responsible for such staggering rise in the number of child labourers and more pertinently those pursuing hazardous occupations in the district, the Labour Department’s bi-annual drives are clearly not enough to put a stop to child labour in the district. |
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Attacks on Christian colonies condemned
Jalandhar, March 11 Speaking at a press meet here today, members of the movement condemned the state government's move to cancel the Christmas holiday and termed it an attack on the Christian culture. They said the Badal government, in 2008, had promised the construction of a Masihi Bhawan in the city. Two acres of land and funds for its construction were also promised, but nothing was received. They demanded the constitution of a Christian Financial Corporation which would provide trade loans to Christians. |
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Despite handicap, brave Gurleen looks ahead
Jalandhar, March 11
From commuting to school in bus, to preparing her lessons and writing her assignments, Gurleen is independent in almost all her daily chores. Daughter of a businessman, she walks about comfortably and is very confident while moving around and interacting with everyone. Proficient in playing keyboard and even vocal music, Gurleen is preparing to participate in next Harivallabh Sangeet Sammelan. But the credit of her success goes to her mother Manpreet Kaur, who has taken training in handling her from the National Academy for the Blind. Still she keeps on taking her to workshops and keeps herself abreast of latest information related to Gurleen’s development. “I have recently found that the CBSE has allowed the visually challenged students to use computer in examinations. Hence on, there will be no requirement of any writers as an assistant to her. I intend to meet her teachers so that she is able to practise writing her papers from next year onwards,” she said. Says her mother, “Till now, I have been making Gurleen prepare for exams by reading out to her. I have now arranged for talking books for her through NGO Saksham, which she will be able to use from the next session. Technology has been a great boost for her. Earlier, I had learnt Braille with her and even used to write stories for her in the format.” Asked if she found any difficulty in studying, Gurleen replies in the negative. “I had problem with mathematics, which I could do only till class VI. From last year, I have been allowed to take Visharad, a course in music instead.” She says that she wants to pursue her career in music and take full professional degree for the same.
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Gurpreet Bhatti appointed PPP secretary-general
Jalandhar, March 11 A day after his new appointment, Bhatti, accompanied by its Jalandhar district president Dr Navjot Dahiya, told The Tribune on Monday, “The PPP is open to alliance with any non-Akali party for the parliamentary elections scheduled to be held next year.” However, to specific queries, Bhatti said the decision regarding the alliance with any non-Akali party, including the Congress and BSP, would be taken at the appropriate time and its announcement would be made. Claiming that the percentage of party votes increased from 5.7 in 2012 Assembly elections to 6.1 in the Moga bypoll, Bhatti said the organisation work of the party, including the constitution of central coordination committees, parliamentary affairs committee, youth wing, women's wing and other frontal organisations would be completed by March 31. Hailing from Khanna in Ludhiana district, Bhatti stated that the party leadership would start village-level visits in Punjab to apprise the general public of the policies of the PPP from March 20.
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Apoorva tops in talent search
Jalandhar, March 11 A resident of Shakti Nagar, Apoorva stood eighth in Punjab and 472nd in India among class third students. She has got 66 marks out of 75 in the test, based on multiple-choice questions related to science and mathematics. She has got 33 out of 35 in science and 33 out of 40 in mathematics. Aspiring to be a doctor like her mother, Apoorva said she did not specifically prepare for the test for it was based on the school syllabus. Apoorva’s mother Dr Pooja is a dentist, while her father Sudhir Mahna works in a private company.
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Encroachments mushroom on govt land
Jalandhar, March 11
Ironically, these encroachments are being ignored for long by the PUDA Chief Administrator (CA), Additional Chief Administrator (ACA) and the Deputy Commissioner, who pass through the area at least twice a day. Many chunks of land have been encroached on either by well-connected and financially sound persons or by roadside vendors in connivance with certain officials of PUDA, municipal corporation (MC) and the district administration. A survey of the road (starting from the Tehsil crossing to the Laddowali T-point, i.e. PUDA Complex) by The Tribune revealed that not only the vendors, certain business establishments had encroached on the government land flouting norms blatantly. PUDA, instead of enforcing the norms, have violated these by using the corridor outside their office for parking the vehicles of their officials. Moreover, the authorities have occupied a public parking and deployed a security guard to restrict the public from parking their vehicles here. Then, a hospital has constructed a separation wall amid the corridor and the encroachment is next to the PUDA’s office. A park has been converted into a parking lot by a (used) car dealer. The park is being used for commercial purposes, as vehicles are often parked "for sale" here. He claims to have developed the parking and staked his claims on it. Crossing the limits of violations, a dhaba owner has not only raised the level of a platform in front of his business establishment, but also fixed granite on it. Moreover, the entire corridor is being used for setting up tandoors and an electricity generator set by the dhaba owner. Interestingly, a public toilet has been grabbed and being used as a coal store and other goods and vegetables, forcing the public to use open space for toilet. Junk dealers have further added to the woes of the area residents, as they have not only encroached on the land, but also created pollution by littering filth and grease in the areas. Sarojani Gautam Sharda, ACA, PUDA, expressed her ignorance about the encroachments on the government land. Sharda, however, said that she would get it checked from her staff and take action against the culprits.
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Indo-Pak Trade Expo to be held in city every year
Jalandhar, March 11
PHD Chamber regional director Dalip Sharma said “Looking at the unprecedented response to IPEX at Jalandhar, we have decided to organise IPEX each year at Jalandhar and the scope of the event will be widened to add more items.” Sharma further stated “The aim of forging better people-to-people relations, culminating into B2B trade relations between the two nations through IPEX seems fulfilled satisfactorily.” Being the last day of IPEX on Monday, people thronged the DBYH since early morning. The five-day event, said the visiting Pakistani traders, was like a bridge between the two Punjabs. “During our stay here, we did not feel even once that we were in India. The culture, food, language and even the accent is so similar that not even once we felt out of place”, said Shahnaaz from Islamabad. “The potential gains from the increased bilateral co- operation between India and Pakistan are immense. Relaxed visas, rupee trade and lesser complications in customs procedures may well enhance the scope for trade.” India’s top export items to Pakistan include sugar, cotton, man-made filaments and chemicals, while its imports comprise mineral fuels and organic chemicals, Sharma added. The two sides have been making efforts to strengthen the economic relations between the countries. Remarking that better relations are a win-win situation for both traders and governments, Sharma said “As it is, informal trade between India and Pakistan via third countries like the United Arab Emirates (mainly Dubai), Singapore and Hong Kong is estimated at $10 billion. Moreover, the legalised trade would reduce costs and increase government revenue.” Other areas with potential for cooperation in the near future could be petroleum products, iron and steel, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, automobiles, heavy industries, electricity trade, small and medium enterprises, IT and IT-enabled services, telecommunications, transportation and financial services, he added.
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Seminar discusses teachers’ responsibilities
Kapurthala, March 11 Dr Ashwani Sharma, Professor, DAV College Jalandhar, Dr DR Vij, former principal of Government College of Education, Jalandhar, Gulshan Yadav, Secretary, Management Committee and Sudesh Sharma, an eminent educationist, delivered motivational talks to the teachers on different aspects of teaching and teacher-taught relationship. “Need of the hour for the teachers is to introspect. They have to come up to the expectations of the students and society at large while disseminating knowledge. They should learn to live by example,” said Dr Vij in his address. Tilak Raj Aggarwal, president, managing committee, Ashwani Aggarwal, Manager and the college principal Dr Archna Garg were among the prominent persons present on this occasion.
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While the five-day Indo-Pak Trade Expo (IPEX) concluded at Desh Bhagat Yadgaar Hall
(DBYH) here on Monday evening, the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry has decided to hold IPEX in Jalandhar city every year.
