Bathinda, May 15
The presiding officers of the polling parties for the zila parishad and panchayat samiti elections were given old election handbook manuals today dating back to 1998 and 2008 highlighting the state of the state government's financial health during the second poll rehearsal held at Government Polytechnic College today.

Not only were the old handbooks distributed on the second day of the rehearsal, even the police department has not been allocated funds it had asked for to meet the fuel expenses for election duty.

The police department had demanded Rs 4 lakh as fuel charges, which the district administration refused citing the shoe-string budget of Rs 20 lakh allocated for holding elections in the state.

Similarly, the staff on election duty will not be given any honorarium by the election department, but the expenses will be met by the respective department.

In Sangat block, of the 140 presiding officers, only 100 were given the handbooks. Interestingly, after being reprimanded for being absent from election duty at the first rehearsal, almost all the employees reported today.

The administration had earlier listed the categories of employees that could be exempted from poll duty and the remaining staff had been asked to report.

Bathinda, May 15
The Municipal Corporation, Bathinda (MCB), is inching closer towards getting under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) umbrella that promises financial aid of 50 to 60 per cent for every project of a civic body.

As per the guidelines, the cities with population of 10 lakh such as Ludhiana and Jalandhar could only be included under the project. However, the project has another scheme, named mission cities, which is meant for cities having population of 5 lakh. The Government of India (GoI) is expected to revise this and include cities with population of 3 lakh by the end of this fiscal year.

The corporation targets to be covered under the 'mission cities' by the end of March 2014.

With the mission cities, the JNNURM aims at helping those cities that are making efforts to raise the standard of civic amenities, ensure 100 per cent water and sewer project and have appreciable garbage collection and disposable system in place.

"We are already gearing up ourselves to be included under the special category of 'mission cities', which would be of immense help to the corporation," said municipal commissioner Uma Shankar Gupta.

Under the JNNURM, it is mandatory for the civic bodies to recover minimum 70 per cent of its expenses. In the last fiscal, the MCB had recovered 70.68 per cent of its expenses and this year too, efforts are being made to achieve the target.

If given the nod, most of the projects related to civic amenities will be covered under the scheme wherein the Government of India would provide financial aid of 50 to 60 per cent.

For instance, for the proposed Rs 150-crore sewerage and water supply project, the corporation will have to spend only Rs 60 crore. Similarly, for the sewer de-silting work, which is currently going on in the city, the MCB will have to pay only Rs 80,000 against Rs 3 crore, the cost of the project.

"As our liability will be lessened, we would be able to focus more on the benefits of our employees and initiate other developmental projects," said Gupta.

Currently, the town lies under the Urban Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns (UIDSSMT) plan under which Rs 10 crore have been sanctioned to introduce city buses in the trans-railway lines area.

Bathinda, May 15
Miscreants stole Rs 3.29 lakh in cash by breaking a glass window of the car of a Delhi resident on the Amrik Singh road here on Tuesday.

It is learnt that Gaurav Malhotra, a resident of Rajouri Modern, New Delhi, had parked his Mahindra XUV 500 vehicle opposite the Urang cinema on the Amrik Singh Road. He went into a sanitary goods shop and on return, he found the glass window of his car broken. Further, he found that a bag containing Rs 3.29 lakh was also missing.

Bathinda, May 15
He is disappointed that he did not do very well in the match against Hoshiarpur in the Punjab State Inter-District Under-19 cricket tournament for the Dhrove Pandove Trophy. "This is my chance to show the selectors what I can do. I will be 19 soon and will not be able to play for the team starting next season. Like many youngsters from small cities, I also want to make it big in cricket," says Arjun Singh, vice-captain of Bathinda's U-19 cricket team.

He may sound like any other youngster who has his eyes set on playing cricket for his country, but Arjun is a little different. Like the Pathan brothers, he too belongs to a financially-backward family but does not want his background to be an impediment.

"Like it happens in all the families, my parents and siblings also ask me to earn for the family. I have requested them to allow me only two-three more years to prove myself. My parents are supportive but sometimes they also give in to circumstances. I have an elder sister who is to be married off," he says.

"Although my family members are quite cooperative, they sometimes ask me to help them pay a little more attention towards home as well. I tell them that after two-three years, I would do everything that they want me to do. That is all the time I need," he adds.

While his elder sister is pursuing her MSc and two younger brothers are class VI and VII students, he has other plans. "I appeared for class XI examinations last year but quit the school later. There were many reasons for it. My father fell ill. Apart from eking out time to manage the home, I needed time to practise my game as well. That was not possible with regular classes. I may go back to school next year," he says.

His father, who is the only breadwinner in the family, works at a shop in the city and cannot afford to pay for his cricket kit, shoes and clothes. "Sometimes, sponsors help me buy the things that I need. At times, my coaches pay for my shoes," he says.

Arjun believes that although making it to the Indian cricket team may still be a distant dream, making it to an Indian Premiere League (IPL) team is not that difficult. "The IPL has set straight the fortunes of so many youngsters, many of them from small towns and cities. I also hope that I will be counted among them some day," he says with a glint in his eyes.

Bathinda, May 15
One person was killed while another sustained serious injuries in an accident that took place near Giani Zail Singh Engineering College on the Dabwali Road here late in the evening.

It is learnt that the mishap occurred at around 8:50 pm when a car rammed into a truck. While the car driver died on the spot, the truck driver received serious injuries. The truck driver, identified as Darshan Singh of Kalehri Kalan village, was rushed to the Civil Hospital.

However, the car driver’s body could not be extricated till the filing of this report.

The workers of the Sahara Welfare Society, who were working on the spot, said the mangled remains of both the vehicles made it daunting task to extricate the car driver’s body.

Bathinda, May 15
The Adesh Foundation today opened its corporate admission office. Director, Medical Division, Dr Gurpreet Singh Gill and Director, Technical Division, Gurfateh Singh Gill, inaugurated the office. Dr Gill said the corporate admission office has been opened in Bathinda with the aim of facilitating admission from the urban and rural areas.

The admission office will arrange special counselling for the students of Bathinda to expose them to the latest technical and medical trends. The students will also be exposed to the latest trends in medical and engineering arenas so that they can create their niche in dynamic globalized scenario.

Elaborating upon the admission policy for the session 2013-14, Dr Gill said scholarships will be awarded to the students based on the performance in 10+2 exams and the JEE entrance. Scholarships worth Rs 1 crore have been announced for the winners of the mock JEE and JET tests held at Adesh Foundation's campus, at the degree and diploma level.

The group promised free education to the students from the scheduled castes (SCs) and scheduled tribes (STs) as well as scholarships for the economically backward and brilliant students.

Bathinda, May 15
Tara Jewellers launched its first store in Bathinda today. Mayor of Bathinda, Baljit Singh Bir Behman, inaugurated the store by lighting the ceremonial lamp. Business head of Tara Jewellers Jinendra Jain and Sunayanaa Vora (general manager, sales) were also present. The inauguration was followed by a display of contemporary bridal gold and diamond collections by the models.

The brand is expanding its retail footprint from 50 company-owned and managed showrooms across 37 cities in North, Central and Western India.

Talking about the launch, Vikram Raizada, executive director and CEO, retail, Tara Jewellery said, "We are expanding from 30 stores in 19 cities to 50 stores in 37 cities. Being established in the market for the last two years, we will now be reaching out to a larger audience across states like Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. We are very happy and excited to be in Bathinda."

Some of the salient features of the store include a browse wall which will give the customers the opportunity to get up close and personal with the collections and pieces showcased on the wall. The education wall is dedicated to helping customers understand the nuances of diamonds.

The store has an open workshop which enables customers to see the craftsmanship and also watch any changes or repair in utmost transparency. While the collection wall will have neckpiece and earrings etc grouped together to form a set for customers for better styling option, consultation tables will offer customers the chance to sit and have in-depth discussion on their purchase options and get detailed information about the pieces from the trained staff.

Bathinda, May 15
Strong winds lashed Bathinda late in the evening at around 9:30 pm leading to power snap off in the entire city.

Attributed to western disturbances, the dust laden winds rocked the city. The entire area was plunged into darkness. The officials of Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) said that the power was cut off anticipating that some live wires and poles may get uprooted leading to free flow of current that may prove fatal for unsuspecting pedestrians.

Earlier in the day, the city witnessed hot weather. The weather’s mood has been fuctuating of late. Only recently, mild showers had been experienced in the state as well as in the area. It was followed by the temperature shooting up and people resorting to various ways to beat the heat. The area is otherwise known for its extreme summer and severe cold during the winter season.

Bathinda, May 15
Bathinda today defeated Hoshiarpur on the basis of first innings lead since Hoshiarpur couldn't complete its second innings on Day II due to time constraint, in the Punjab State Inter-District Under-19 Cricket Tournament for Dhruv Pandove Trophy.

A batsman plays a shot during the match at Police Public School grounds. Photo: Bhupinder Dhillon

In a Group B match, Bathinda played Hoshiarpur at the Police Public School grounds.

On Tuesday, Hoshiarpur won the toss and elected to field first. Bathinda managed to set a target of 183 runs for the opposition.

With its tight bowling and fielding, Bathinda succeeded in bundling out Hoshiarpur for 142 runs.

With a lead of 40 runs, Bathinda began its second innings. Finding it hard it to face up to Arjun Kumar's bowling attack, the team managed to score 160 runs. At the end of Bathinda's second innings, Navkaran Sharma remained not out on 84.

Due to lack of time, the umpires called it a day and declared Bathinda victorious on the basis of the two teams' first innings scores.

OD Sharma, honorary secretary of the Bathinda District Cricket Association, said hosts Bathinda have secured six points from the two matches they have played so far.

Bathinda will now play Ropar in the next match to be played on May 17-18 at the Police Public School ground here.

Arun Wadhawan, one of the selectors of Punjab Cricket Academy, has been assigned the duty to observe all the matches to be played at Bathinda and Faridkot.

The ground and wicket for the second match is being prepared under the supervision of the main curator, Ranjit Bhola and official coaches, Satya Bhushan and Ravi Kohli.