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Finally, MC seals Akali worker’s illegal building
The Municipal Corporation seals an illegal building owned by an Akali leader at Shiv Nagar in Jalandhar on Monday. Photo: Sarabjit Singh
Verka directs IGs to register FIR after clearing jurisdiction issue
Broken road dividers put lives at risk
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Child labour violations on the rise, conviction rate abysmally low
Farmers prevented from holding dharna at DAC
27 UMCs, 1 FIR and exam centre cancelled in dist
Employees protest against new bank licencing policy
Credit game for review of property tax starts
Ban revoked, ‘Sadda Haq’ slated for April 5 release
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Finally, MC seals Akali worker’s illegal building
Jalandhar, March 18 The MC did not pay any heed towards Congress councillor of the area Dr Pradeep Singh Rai’s regular complaints for taking action against the illegal building of the ruling party workers, but it was forced to seal it today as a notice of motion was issued to the MC to file its reply by March 20 as some persons, including Tara Singh Nagra, knocked at the door of the Punjab and Haryana High Court in this regard a few days ago. Interestingly, while the building was sealed at around 10.15 am today, none of the MC officials, including Commissioner Vinay Bublani, Senior Town Planner (STP) Tarlok Singh and Municipal Town Planner (MTP) Tejpreet Singh, was ready to say anything in this regard probably as the building was owned by the ruling party worker. However, sources confirmed that a team of MC officials, led by ATP Sham Sunder, sealed the building. Later, Mayor Sunil Jyoti confirmed in the evening that the MC had sealed the building. The sealed building is located in Chief Parliamentary Secretary and Jalandhar (North) MLA KD Bhandari’s Assembly segment and the MC action against the building has reportedly been seen as a jolt to him as earlier also the MC had taken action against illegal structures in Sanjay Gandhi Nagar situated in his area. Meanwhile, the area councillor, Dr Pradeep Singh Rai, welcomed the action of sealing the building by saying “its better late than never to take action against the illegal building". He said the MC Commissioner had called him to his office in this regard on Friday after getting notice from the
high court. |
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Verka directs IGs to register FIR after clearing jurisdiction issue
Jalandhar, March 18 Taking a strong note of Kapurthala SP Baljeet Singh Dhillon's statement while appearing before the commission on behalf of SSP Inderbir Singh that the FIR was not been filed despite getting a complaint by the victim a few months ago as the crime had not occurred in the jurisdiction of the Kapurthala district police, Verka instructed both the IGs to get the FIR registered after clearing the jurisdiction issue and file action taken report (ATR) within seven days. Verka also issued direction to SSP Inderbir Singh to file affidavit that the girl was not sold in the area falling under the jurisdiction of the Kapurthala police. The SP (D) claimed that the findings of the DSP stated the girl had been sold in an area falling under the Batala police district and the panchayat of Takhra village in Begowal of Kapurthala in its statement confirmed that the she had not been sold in their village. On the contrary, the victim in the presence of the SP (D) told Verka that a Jat, Lakhbir Singh, of a village in Batala, had taken her from her maternal uncle Mehnga Singh's house in Takhra village about three year ago when she was just 14. Mehnga Singh sold her to Lakhbir Singh in lieu of Rs 70,000, she added. A Class V student of a government school at the time of her selling, the victim was living with her maternal uncle after the death of her parents. The victim, belonging to the Majhabi Sikh community, managed to escape from her buyer's house and lodged a complaint with the Kapurthala police about two months ago, but the police failed to register any FIR. Subsequently she filed a complaint with the commission. |
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Broken road dividers put lives at risk
Jalandhar, March 18
These dividers are open invitations to mishaps as majority of the pedestrians prefer using these dividers to cross the roads, instead of crossing it via a proper passage. While dividers on almost every road in the city have been broken, The Tribune reporter found them broken at several places on the road between Doaba Chowk and JMP Chowk, in Preet Nagar on Sodal Road, between Ladowali road railway crossing and BSF Chowk and between Workshop Chowk and Football Chowk, during a visit to the city on Sunday. People working in the various markets near the broken dividers say they had been demolished by shopkeepers, in a bid to be more ‘inviting’. Pedestrians are making the most of the arrangement, without caring for their safety. As the vehicles pass the road at high speeds, the risk for the pedestrians is also high. Condemning the act of breaking the verges, social activist Arun Sharma Pappu said several people had met with accidents while crossing the roads through these vents. The concerned authorities should get the broken verges repaired at the earliest to avoid more mishaps, he added. When contacted, ADCP Traffic, Sukhdev Singh said “The traffic wing of city commissionerate spreads awareness among the general public against breaking central verges. As far as the repair and maintenance of these broken dividers is concerned, it is to be done by either the Municipal Corporation Jalandhar (MCJ) or the Public Works Department (PWD), as the case may be.” Mayor Sunil Jyoti said he had already issued directions for the broken dividers to be repaired. He said “Once they are repaired, they will again be broken by the public.”
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Child labour violations on the rise, conviction rate abysmally low
Jalandhar, March 18 In the past three years, from January 2009 to February 2013, as many as 7,145 raids were conducted in the district in which 249 children were rescued and as many employers found violating the Child Labour Act and/or Juvenile Justice Act. But even as 240 of these violators were prosecuted, only 120 were convicted (challaned) for the crime while the challans against the remaining 120 are still pending. Three of the 249 violators were acquitted. In the session 2009-10, six children were rescued and four of the violating employers convicted; in 2010-11, only 21 out of the 90 violators found were convicted; in 2011-12, 41 of the 83 violators were convicted and in 2012-February 2013, a mere 54 of the 70 violators found have been convicted. Sadly, even as cases of bonded labourers as well as child labourers pursuing hazardous occupations in the district have surfaced from time to time (from factories, stitching units and other establishments), the employers of all these children have been set free after being challaned, even as the Juvenile Justice Act, 2000, and Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act (1986) clearly state that employing a child below the age of 14 years of age for a hazardous occupation is a punishable offence. At least 25 of these children (14 rescued in labour drives conducted in November 2012 and 11 rescued from a factory in 2012) have clearly been employed for hazardous occupations when they were 14 or below 14 years of age (as stated by Labour Department officials), but so far their offending employers from the 15 units have not been brought to book. A number of these cases of under-14 minors pursuing hazardous occupations has gone unreported, sources say. While as many as six FIRs were filed against six employers who had employed minors in their establishment, in the subsequent years (2011 to 13), not a single FIR has been filed against the erring employers. Even the six employers against whom FIRs were lodged, were arrested for a very short time, and let off on bail on the very day they were arrested and still walk free. While the police officials who are a part of the district task force are responsible for filing the FIRs, sadly they haven't done so despite repeated requests by NGOs as well. Sources in the department concerned of the task force told The Tribune that there had been a number of times when officials were under political pressure not to ensure action against offenders. There is a also a lack of efforts to rehabilitate and merge these children into the mainstream (schools). Deputy Commissioner Shruti Singh, who is the chairperson of the district task force, said, "I will be looking into the cases and action against erring people will be ensured."
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Farmers prevented from holding dharna at DAC
Jalandhar, March 18 Hundreds of policemen had been deployed for the purpose who stopped 150 farmers from moving towards the city. DCP Sarabjit Singh said the farmers dispersed and no one was detained. The farmers had planned a dharna in front of the District Administrative Complex (DAC) here. Their demands included release of farmers arrested during the rail roko agitation, cancellation of case registered against farmers in connection with death of a police officer in Tarn Taran district and fixing of minimum support price (MSP) of crops as per recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission.
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27 UMCs, 1 FIR and exam centre cancelled in dist
Jalandhar, March 18 Cheating went both hi-tech and bizarre in the district this year as one case of a student copying using Bluetooth, another of impersonation and a case of a student running away with his answer sheet (the students was booked) were reported in the district. One FIR was registered against a class tenth student, but all the remaining cases of cheating were from class 12. On 1st, five copying cases were detected at the Government Senior Secondary School, Lohian Khas, on 5th, three cases were detected at Social Model Senior Secondary School and one at Arya Model Senior Secondary School and one case each was also found at the Shahkot Public School, Government Senior Secondary School, Udowal and Government Senior Secondary School, Malsian. On 8th, four cases were found out at the Arya Cantt Board School (one of chemistry, three of political science) and one at a centre in Samrai Jandiala. On 12th, one case was found at the LR Doaba School, three (science) at the Mata Ganga Senior Secondary School and one (science) at the Suman Dey Boarding School. While most of the open schools in the district were said to be the dens of cheating, open school centres at Punia, Baloki, Shahkot, Kaki Pind and a school in Urban Estate among others, are counted to be among the seven most sensitive centres in the district, Education Department sources said. So far, in the district, one exam (a class 12 history exam) has been cancelled at the Shahkot Public School, owing to mass copying at the said centre, where 14 cases were caught by different observers. While officials said the examination scenario in the district was much better than the previous years and the other districts, what was notable was that cheating had also seen some precedents being broken with students adopting more audacious measures in cheating. Sources said a very effective measure to keep students away from the menace of cheating was not to make collective centres for open and regular schools. They said the copying tendencies of open school students proved highly detrimental for other students too. District Education Officer (secondary), Neelam Kumari said, “We have made utmost effort to keep the system clean this year and it will indeed bring good results. Our efforts would be consistently strict so that the troublesome elements are weeded out in subsequent exams. Even if we have to do it at the cost of the results, we will do it.”
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Employees protest against new bank licencing policy
Jalandhar, March 18 The demonstrating bank employees said the government had formed a new bank licencing policy for opening new private banks by corporate houses with a capital of Rs 500 crore. The move in not in the interest of the economy of the country. They said the paramount need was to strengthen the public sector banks and not to boost private companies in the banking sector. If this was continued, the real motive for the nationalisation of private banks in 1969 would be totally defeated. The demonstration was addressed by Amrit Lal, convenor, United Forum of Bank Unions Jalandhar, RK Gupta, NCBE, Jalandhar, Balraj Sahni, RK Dhawan, among others. Amrit lal demanded that all private banks in the country be brought under the public sector to serve the people of the country.
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Credit game for review of property tax starts
Jalandhar, March 18 Local bodies minister and Jalandhar west MLA Bhagat Chunni Lal stated that the state government constituted a four-member committee, headed by CPS Som Prakash, for the review of property tax as it did not want to impose any extra burden on the people while a number of traders’ organisations felicitated former local bodies minister and Jalandhar central MLA Manoranjan Kalia, for raising the issue of property tax in Punjab Assembly with demand of adopting a simple formula after its review, While addressing the representatives of various associations, Kalia said keeping in view the problems faced by the public in regard to the various slabs and zones and tedious calculations of property tax, it was his “duty to raise the voice of the people in the Assembly” and added that he was thankful to Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal for constituting a review committee in regard to property tax to make the calculation formula simplified. On this occasion, BJP leaders Ravi Mahendru and Anil Sacher, Panj Peer Bazar Association representatives Nirmal Singh Bedi, Kewal Phelwan, Nishi Nayyar, Harish Anand, Jalandhar Electronic Association representatives Gurmeet Singh Bittu, Wholesale Shoe Association representatives Davinder Manchanda, Parveen Handa and the representatives of various other organisations were present.
Traders to hold protest march
The representatives of various traders associations decided to hold a protest march against imposition of property tax. The representatives, including Congress leaders Jagbir Brar, Rajinder Beri, Jagdish Raj Raja, Manoj Arora, BJP leader and Vyapar Sena president Ravindra Dhir, Arun Sharma Pappu said the protest march in the city would be held within a week and the date would be finalised after consulting several other representatives of traders’ associations. Meanwhile, a number of former Congress councillors held a demonstration outside MC office, under the aegis of Progressive group, against the imposition of property tax. The protesters, including former Deputy Mayor Dr TL Bhardwaj and Balbir Mahay, demanded that the state government should withdraw its decision of imposing the property tax. |
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Ban revoked, ‘Sadda Haq’ slated for April 5 release
Jalandhar, March 18 The cast and crew of the film celebrated its music launch on Saturday. Based on the days of terrorism in Punjab, the film had been banned by the Central Board of Film Certification on the apprehensions that, “the film is an attempt being made by certain individuals based in foreign lands to instigate young impressionable minds to revolt against the country and disturb the peace, law and order in the state. We sincerely suggest that the source of funding of the film be investigated.” However, with the support of the SGPC, which wrote to the board upholding its cause, and the singers and artistes from across Punjab, the film’s appeal to the FCAT (Film Certification Appellate Tribunal) was finally upheld, with a few changes and the ban revoked. Talking to The Tribune, director and lead actor of the film Kuljinder Sidhu said, “The CBFC’s first examining committee saw the film on October 20 and banned it. A review committee saw it on November 14 and re-enforced the ban. Then we approached the SGPC. A SGPC committee saw the film and upheld it. They prepared a report based on the screening and wrote to Information and Broadcasting minister Manish Tewari, upholding the film and requesting that the ban be reconsidered.” The makers then approached the FCAT, along with the SGPC report and their advocates’ help and another screening was held on January 16, 2013, by the FCAT on the basis of the SGPC’s report. “While one of the prime objections was that the film had misrepresented facts - portraying the administration and police of the terrorism days in bad light, we took clippings of newspaper articles and statements by officials substantiating the claims made in our film, to the FCAT screening,” Sidhu said. “Finally, the screening committee of the FCAT was convinced and the film was given a go-ahead,” Sidhu beams. Just for a slight change - a 35 odd second speech by the female actor being toned down, the film stays unchanged - in what could be called a landmark victory for the makers Kuljinder Sidhu and his partner Dinesh Sood. The cast mobilised opinions for the film by holding screenings for it in UK, USA and Canada. Even on the day of the music launch, Sood held a screening of the film at Melbourne, Australia. Supporters of the film include singers Jazzy B, Lehember Hussainpuri, Menipal and actor Gurpreet Ghuggi. Jazzy B and Manipal supported the cause so much that they even volunteered to sing for the film without charging anything. The film is slated for a worldwide release on April 5. It will be releasing in three countries.
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In an effort to save itself from the wrathe of the high court, finally the Municipal Corporation (MC) sealed an Akali worker’s illegal building located at Shiv Nagar, falling in Ward 40, today.
Hundreds of employees and officers of different bank branches in the city held a massive demonstration in front of Punjab National Bank
(PNB), Civil Lines, Jalandhar, against the new bank licencing policy and bank licences to corporate houses.
