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Choked drains see tall govt claims falling flat
Industrial policy ignores existing industry, say textile unit owners
Bajwa sees red in Modi’s move to begin campaign from state
PPCC chief Partap Singh Bajwa addresses mediapersons in Chandigarh on Monday. Tribune photo: Manoj Mahajan |
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Misuse of Grants
BJP top leaders in Pathankot, gear up for Modi meeting
Panchayat poll
Congress workers greet Nagra on his elevation
Santosh Chaudhary pips Kaypee to bag berth in Cabinet
Paramjit Sarna fails to appear before Akal Takht
BSF shoots dead two smugglers
CCTV cameras to be installed in Sangrur
Two years on, soldiers await revised pension
2 executive engineers among 4 suspended
BJP leader gives grants
Reservation of seats for sarpanches
Fake currency: Cop’s bail plea rejected
Four teachers booked for neglecting election duty
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Choked drains see tall govt claims falling flat
Chandigarh, June 17
Rs 10 lakh goes down the drain Amritsar: The authorities here had been claiming of having undertaken foolproof measures to keep tabs on rain-related problems. They had claimed that all the arterial drains were de-silted at a cost of Rs 10 lakh in a 51-day exercise conducted a couple of months ago. But, all these claims have been washed away with a couple of recent rainy spells. Waterlogging in the city had hit the normal life. All approach roads to key destinations, including the Golden Temple, remained clogged. Commuters had to face tough times as they wade through waterlogged roads owing to choked drainage system. Even the elevated road connecting the Amritsar-Jalandhar GT road witnessed waterlogging. There was a flood-like situation around the MC office at Town Hall.
Now, the municipal corporation has prepared another "intensive" de-silting plan worth Rs 40 lakh, which, it claims, would yield desired results. Meanwhile, the authorities have pointed out some difficulties in effectively executing the de-silting drive. These included difficult topography, rising population, dilapidated and limited infrastructure and encroachments. Two years ago, there was a proposal to introduce super suckers, but it failed to materialise. Japan International Corporation Agency, engaged by the Punjab Water Supply and Sewerage Board, has undertaken the task of rejuvenating the British era sewerage system. But after gulping a consultation fee of $7 lakh and a lapse of over two years, it failed to bring any visible difference so far. Instead, roads have been dug up at several places which further disrupted the drains. Bhupinder Singh, MC Commissioner, said: "We have planned an intensive programme to clean up the main drain passage-one on the Tarn Taran road up to Gujjaranwala village and another located at Lahori Gate. We have asked the Japanese contractors to cooperate with us in our 10-day de-silting drive to clear all the drainage channels". Life miserable in low-lying areas Jalandhar: The recent rain has exposed the lackadaisical attitude of the municipal corporation in improving the drainage system in the city. There have been plans to lay storm water sewerage in low lying areas, but nothing has been done. Residents in various low areas, including Neelamahal, Basti Sheikh, Rajinder Nagar and Gandhi Camp areas, have been living under miserable conditions. Even the main public places in the city like the District Administrative Complex, suvidha centre, bus stand and women police station get waterlogged even after moderate showers. A breach in Wadala Drain had led to flooding of houses in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar two days ago. Owing to accumulation of water, most roads in the city have worn out in just one week. However, the municipal authorities are unfazed and claim that they have made elaborate arrangements to deal with rain-related problems in the city. PS Jaggi, Additional Commissioner (O&M), said he had deputed 50 officials for round-the-clock handling of complaints related to waterlogging in various colonies. The officials would be available in the control room set up at tubewell No. 25 near Shastri Chowk, he said, adding complaints would be lodged at 0181-2457254. Jaggi said: "Other measures undertaken by the administration include cleaning of road gullies, de-silting of sewerage, repairing of motors of disposal pumps, installation of a submersible pump and five horizontal pumps at the main sewage plant in Pholariwal to ensure that rain water gets cleared in no time". Flood-like situation in Patiala localities Patiala: The two recent spells of heavy rain had led to flood-like situation in the city. MC officials were nowhere in the sight during the weekend when the most parts of the city were submerged in water. Though the municipal corporation had spent crores of rupees on laying a new sewer and drainage system, it failed to serve the purpose. Rainwater had submerged several localities, including Model Town, Lehal Colony, Charan Bagh, Gian Colony, Punjabi Bagh, Tripuri and the entire inner areas. A few years ago, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had approved special grants for the Patiala Municipal Corporation for development works. Despite having funds at its disposal, the MC has failed to solve the waterlogging problem. Former Patiala Mayor Vishnu Sharma claimed nullahs in the city were covered during the Congress regime and it was made sure that the same were cleaned before the monsoon. "For the past few years, the MC has not been cleaning the nullahs. This year too, it started the exercise after the monsoon hit the region," he said. "We are doing our best to rid the city of this problem. We could not do much this time due to sudden heavy showers," said Patiala Mayor Amrinder Bazaz. ‘Blame it on city’s topography’ Bathinda: Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal's dream of making the city the best place to live in Punjab has virtually gone down the drain with the first spell of rain. About 200 mm rainfall, the city received in the last three days, wreaked havoc on the city roads. Even the entrance to the houses of IGP, Deputy Commissioner and SSP remained waterlogged for two days. This shows the helplessness of the administration in tackling the problem. Though there is hardly any area of the city which was not affected, the worst hit areas include Sirki Bazar, all localities along the Ajit Road, Guru Nanakpura, Bibiwala road, Fauji Chowk, Mall Road etc. Historically, the genesis of the problem lies in the bowl-shaped topography of the city and haphazard construction over the years on and around sand dunes. Thus, water has nowhere to go as there is no rainwater drainage system. Other factors include modernisation of the city in form of widening of the roads which led to blocking of the natural flow of water as the plinth level of the roads was increased. The MC is, meanwhile, awaiting loan from HUDCO for laying the drainage system. It is relying on 25-odd water pumps stationed at several chronic sites (especially VIP areas) to pump out the water. However, the pumps are rendered useless as power supply is often cut off during rains. Mayor Baljit Singh Bir Behman blamed the topography of the city for the problem. He, however, assured that the problem would soon be sorted out. He said deep borewells would be dug up at several places for draining out water. "The public, too, has to cooperate. They throw polythene bags and other waste into the drains which obstructs the water flow." Waterlogging damages roads Ludhiana: The Ludhiana Municipal Corporation was caught off guard as the city received its first rain on Thursday. Roads remained waterlogged and caved in at many places even as the MC had made tall claims of preparedness in view of the monsoon. Life came to a standstill as almost all localities in the city were inundated with water. The main Kitchlu Nagar road in front of Dhami Eye Hospital caved in and developed a deep crater with sewage gushing out of it. Only 10 per cent of the city area has storm water drainage system. Rainwater from other areas goes down the sewer lines and ends up entering the polluted Budha Nullah. This way, the rains do not even contribute in groundwater recharging. The MC authorities have been promising to construct water recharging wells in low-lying areas where the problem of water accumulation is severe. But, this plan remained only on paper. Even areas having storm water sewerage witnessed waterlogging as the drains were not cleaned. Meanwhile, Mayor Harcharan Singh Gohalwaria has marked an inquiry to identify officials who failed to perform their duty due to which the residents had to face inconvenience. (With inputs from GS Paul in Amrtisar, Deepkamal Kaur in Jalandhar, Aman Sood in Patiala, Jupinderjit Singh in Bathinda and Puneet Pal Singh Gill in Ludhiana)
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Industrial policy ignores existing industry, say textile unit owners
Amritsar, June 17 The owners of many textile units are perturbed as the recently released industrial policy failed to provide relief to this indigenous industry. Hardit Singh Makhni, general secretary, Textile Manufacturers Association said, "It will be better if the government releases its industrial policy in two parts in future. One for attracting fresh investment and new industries and another for the existing industries of the state." He said the imposition of multiple taxes, costly raw material, an unsupportive attitude of the government and failure to modernise plants led to the closure of several units, most of which shifted to Gujarat. “The conducive environment the Gujarat government provided to the processing units in Surat, coupled with its superior geographical location, the Gujarat industry has grabbed a major share in the domestic textile market,” said Krishan Kumar Sharma, president of the Amritsar Textile Processors Association. He said the local processing units had raised the standard of textile in the country. There were about 250 processing units till nineties here, but now the number had come down to a meagre 40 and that too is in small and medium enterprises category, he added. The Gujarat Government has come up with industrial areas equipped with common treatment plants and other facilities which has brought it on the industrial map of the country On the other hand, Amritsar’s tail end location made it a costly affair for the local industrialists to compete in the national market. A majority of the textile processing units were set up here during the textile boom of the 1960s-70s. Fabric from Surat and Mumbai are better in quality and lower in price. Different excise tax slabs for composite and independent units, too, dealt a blow to the local industry. The non-implementation of subsidy, as announced by the Prime Minister, served no better. Sharma said they appeal to the SAD-BJP government to conduct a survey to find the root cause of the problem. He said their association had taken up the matter with the government to set up common treatment plants.
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Owners of textile units in Amritsar rue that the recently released industrial policy has failed to provide relief to the struggling textile units *
They say highly labour intensive processing units, which have employed thousands of workers, are being forced to shut down *
Imposition of multiple taxes, costly raw material and the government's failure to modernise plants are seen as the factors responsible for the local industry's plight
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Bajwa sees red in Modi’s move to begin campaign from state
Tribune News Service Addressing mediapersons here, Bajwa alleged that by kicking off the mission from Madhopur, a place located on the Jammu and Kashmir-Punjab border, Modi wanted to polarise people on communal lines. The PPCC chief also asked Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to clarify to the masses why he was supporting Modi, who allegedly was an anti-minority leader. He said it was ironical that a leader like Badal, who "championed himself as the saviour of the minorities", would himself be welcoming Modi to Punjab. ‘Industrial policy will benefit a chosen few’ He said the textile manufacturers had already shifted base to Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat while the knitwear industry had moved to Baddi in Himachal. He alleged the industrial climate was such that the Tata group had closed its plant in Malerkotla as they were not given a power connection for nearly three years. He challenged Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal to give the name of a single project set up in Punjab during the SAD-BJP rule. ‘Govt planning to buy copter for Sukhbir’ ‘New PCC body to accommodate all’
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Misuse of Grants
The police is now probing a larger nexus wherein aided college authorities connived with the UGC officials to usurp certain grants. Five months ago, the Rajpura city police had registered a case against Sanjeev
Kalia, former principal of Patel Memorial National College, Rajpura, and his associate Gaurav
Trivedi, son of a former IPS officer, for misusing grants released by the UGC. Last week, the police arrested one of the accused,
Gaurav, who is now in police remand. "His arrest is crucial as he knows how UGC funds were funnelled into a private account opened by
Sanjeev,” said the police. Gaurav has accepted that he took around Rs 54 lakh from Sanjay for personal use and later returned the same. The key accused Sanjeev is on the run. As per the preliminary police investigations (a copy of which is available with The Tribune), Sanjeev had sought two grants of Rs 45 lakh in November 2010 and of Rs 54 lakh in January 2012 even though the college could not have applied for both the grants as it does not have a College with Potential for Excellence
(CPE) status, which is a must for such UGC grants. Bhupinder Khatra, Rajpura Superintendent of Police (SP), said, “The UGC could not have released the funds to this college as it did not meet the eligibility criteria. Now we are probing the role of those UGC officials who were involved in the fraud.” Earlier in a separate letter written to the college in November, Charan
Dass, Under Secretary (Vigilance), UGC, had said the college had acted in connivance with certain UGC officials to siphon off funds. Meanwhile, all efforts to contact UGC officials were futile. The
UGC, however, has initiated a probe into the matter after the Patiala police approached the former for assistance in the
case. Hardyal Singh Mann, Patiala Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) said, “The UGC has assured us of carrying out a probe into the case.”
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BJP top leaders in Pathankot, gear up for Modi meeting
Pathankot, June 17 Modi is slated to start his fresh innings from Madhopur, 15 km from here. He would pay tributes to the founder of Jan Sangh, Dr Shyama Parsad Mukherjee, and then address party workers from Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is also expected to attend the function. BJP Punjab in charge Shanta Kumar took stock of the situation and after hectic consultations with the top state leadership, including state chief Kamal Sharma, decided to hold the function near Mukherjee’s statue in Madhopur. Earlier, a few leaders had impressed upon the state leadership to hold the main function at a more spacious venue away from the memorial but Shanta Kumar and his colleagues decided to organise the proceedings near the statue itself. To lend glamour to the proceedings, cine star and three-time Gurdaspur MP Vinod Khanna was also present. Khanna landed in Pathankot from Mumbai yesterday and is scheduled to address a series of meetings over the next few days. Apart from Khanna, the other ticket aspirant for the Gurdaspur parliamentary seat, Swaran Salaria, a noted industrialist, has also reached the town and will stay put till June 23. Educationist SK Punj, who is also eyeing the party nomination, is also playing a part in the preparations. Pathankot district BJP president Narinder Parmar said the preparations for the event were in full swing.
Rally on June 23 *
Gujarat CM Narendra Modi will start his innings as BJP election campaign chief from Punjab on June 23 *
He will pay tributes to Jan Sangh founder Dr Shyama Parsad Mukherjee at Madhopur in Pathankot *
Modi will then address a meeting of party workers from Punjab, J&K and HP
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Panchayat poll
Muktsar, June 17 “The seat-adjustment formula adopted in a few districts in the recently held panchayat samiti and zila parishad poll proved successful and it can also be repeated in the panchayat elections, to be held on July 3,” said
Manpreet, who was here to address party workers. The PPP president claimed the Morcha will make its presence felt in a number of villages. He said the Sanjha Morcha will hold a meeting in Chandigarh tomorrow to decide the coalition’s strategy for the coming elections and other important issues. On move to regularise illegal colonies, Manpreet said: “It may prove beneficial for Punjab. But at the same time, it will give huge profits to the land mafia, which enjoys the support of the ruling coalition.”
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Congress workers greet Nagra on his elevation
Fatehgarh Sahib, June 17 Nagra along with his supporters went to Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib and paid obeisance. Nagra said he was thankful to God and the party high command for having faith in him. He thanked Rahul Gandhi for making him a member of his team again. He won 7 out of the 15 seats in the region in recently-held Block Samiti elections. Later, Nagra left for Delhi to thank the Congress high command and Rahul Gandhi.
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Santosh Chaudhary pips Kaypee to bag berth in Cabinet
Chandigarh, June 17 Congress sources said in the run-up to the cabinet reshuffle, there was intense speculation that the party high command would elevate a Dalit leader from Punjab. It was Jalandhar MP Mohinder Singh Kaypee who was being touted as the favourite and not Santosh Chaudhary to fill the slot. The sources said the fact that the Congress lost all the nine assembly constituencies in Kaypee's Jalandhar constituency in the 2012 elections had gone against the him. The Jalandhar parliamentary constituency is reckoned as a Congress seat and the upset in the Vidhan Sabha elections in this area cost the party its government in Punjab. In contrast, the sources said the party decided to strengthen Chaudhary, who is a three-time MP and represents Hoshiarpur, also a traditional Congress belt. Chaudhary belongs to a respected Congress family of the region and is the wife of senior leader Ram Lubhaya and the daughter-in-law of one of the tallest erstwhile Dalit leaders of the region, Choudhary Sunder Singh. Her appointment as a Union Minister of State strengthens her claim to be renominated from the Hoshiarpur seat in the forthcoming parliamentary elections and could also strengthen her chances of re-election. She said her elevation was a surprise to her as well. She said she was in Gangtok attending a meeting when she got a phone call from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asking her to be available in Delhi for the next few days. She said she had never lobbied for herself or asked for anything from the high command and that she was grateful that her work had been recognised and that she had been given a chance to serve in the cabinet.
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Paramjit Sarna fails to appear before Akal Takht
Amritsar, June 17 The Takht had summoned Sarna and sought a clarification from him for allegedly creating hurdles in the construction of a memorial dedicated to the victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. The monument is to come up at Gurdwara Rakabganj Sahib complex in New Delhi. Harbhajan Singh Walia, SAD (Delhi) secretary general, represented Sarna and handed over a written excuse (sent by Sarna) to the five Sikh high priests. While tendering an apology for his inability to appear before the Takht, Sarna wrote “he will be available to appear before the clergy from July 1-15”. During their meeting, the high priests deferred their decision on displaying signboards with name of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale at the Operation Bluestar memorial situated in the Golden Temple complex. The meeting was attended by Jathedars Giani Gurbachan Singh (Akal Takht), Giani Iqbal Singh (Patna Sahib), Giani Tarlochan Singh (Kesgarh Sahib) and Giani Balwant Singh Nandgarh (Damdama Sahib) and Deputy Jathedar Giani Jot Inder Singh (Hazoor Sahib). Giani Gurbachan Singh said Sarna’s appeal had been accepted and he had been directed to appear in person during the next meeting. The Takht also accepted a written apology submitted by Punjabi film actor Neeru Bajwa for supporting a religious tattoo. The Jathedar said the SGPC had been directed to deliberate with the state government for making Section 295-A more stern so as to act as a deterrent for those trying to defame the religion.
Clergy no to tattoos
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BSF shoots dead two smugglers
Khasa (Amritsar), June 17 BSF Inspector General (Punjab Frontier) Aditya Mishra said the duo was crawling towards the border fence. “On being challenged, they opened fire at the BSF. Both later died in retaliatory firing,” he said. A .32 bore revolver with five live rounds, an empty shell, a head phone and a mobile phone with two SIM cards, besides a piece of cloth, were recovered from the spot. Mishra said the lengthy piece of cloth suggested they were trying to sneak in huge quantity of heroin from across the fence. He said Pakistani smugglers approaching from the other side of the border towards the barbed wire made a quick exit after hearing gunshots. He said Ajay Pal belonged to a well-off family owning several properties. “The lure of easy money apparently pushed him into the illegal trade. Harpal was already facing a number of drug-related cases,” he said.
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CCTV cameras to be installed in Sangrur
Sangrur, June 17 The project is the brainchild of Mandip Singh Sidhu, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Sangrur. Top police officials are awaiting the feedback on the functioning of the cameras already installed. In the next phase, such cameras will also be fitted at five locations in Sangrur; three each in Moonak, Lehra and Khanauri; and five in Dhuri. Three to six cameras are being installed at one location. Sources said the funds for this project were being provided by the public and the police was playing the role of the facilitator. The police will operate the cameras from CCTV control rooms that will be set up at the police stations in the respective areas. Talking to The Tribune here, Sidhu said the CCTV cameras would make it easier for the police to track criminals and vehicles. It would also instill a sense of security among the public.
The project *
Thirty CCTV cameras have already been installed in Sunam and 16 in Sherpur
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Two years on, soldiers await revised pension
Chandigarh, June 17 While the tribunal had allowed the petitions in May 2011 and the Army authorities concerned had forwarded the cases after due process to the Ministry of Defence (MoD) in November 2011, the petitioners are yet to get any indication about their revised pension paym
ent orders. The issue involved in the matter had, in separate cases, gone up to the Supreme Court, which
had ruled in favour of the petitioners. “Your case for obtaining government sanction has been processed to the Integrated Headquarters of the MoD (Army) through the EME Directorate on November 2011. However, government sanction is not yet received in this office,” the records office replied to one of the petitioners, Rajesh Kumar, who had sought the information under the RTI Act. Pointing out that the matter of the aforesaid petitioners was covered by the judgment of the Punjab and Haryana High Court in the case of Jai Narayan Jakhar and others Vs Union of India, which was also affirmed by the Apex Court, the tribunal had in May 2011 directed the central government to do the needful within three months or pay costs of Rs 10,000. In the case of Jakhar, who retired as a Chief Petty Officer from the Navy in 1996, the department concerned had found that here was an anomaly in the implementation of the recommendations of the Fifth Pay Commission and issued a circular correcting the glitch. The revised pay scales were given with effect from October 1997 rather than from January 1996, the date of implementation of the Fifth Pay Commission. The High Court, while observing that the stand of the government in not giving revised benefits was unjustified, had ruled that once the anomaly in pay scales is found and sought to be removed, then it has to be removed from the date of the implementation of the recommendations of the pay commission
and there was no explanation as to why the said anomaly be removed from October 1997.
The case *
The Chandigarh Bench of the Armed Forces Tribunal on May 2011 had directed the central government to implement the Fifth Pay Commission recommendations and revise the pensions of the 18 petitioners or pay costs of Rs 10,000 *
In one such case, the revised pay scales were given with effect from October 1997 rather than from January 1996, the date of implementation of the Fifth Pay Commission recommendations
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2 executive engineers among 4 suspended
Chandigarh, June 17 Manjeet Singh and Adesh Gupta (both Executive Engineers), Sub-Divisional Engineer Kimat Lal and Junior Engineer Nishu Bansal were suspended, he said. – PTI
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Chandigarh, June 17 Khanna handed over Rs 15 lakh to various social bodies for the construction of an inn, a school building and a cowshed in Fazilka district.— TNS
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Reservation of seats for sarpanches
Chandigarh, June 17 The directions by the Division Bench of Justice Augustine George Masih and Justice NK Sanghi came during the hearing of two separate petitions filed by Sukhwinder Singh of Nangal Thathal in Hoshiarpur district and Kamaljit Kumar of Kittna in Garhshankar. The Bench directed: "The elections to the posts of sarpanch of Gram Panchayat Nangal Thathal and Kittna village, if held, shall be subject to the decision of the civil writ petitions." The two had challenged the instructions dated May 2, and consequential notification of May 28, notifying general category seats of sarpanches of their villages.aThe counsel for petitioners argued that the Punjab Government issued the circular on May 2 to all the deputy commissioners, directing them that 2008 roster for post of sarpanches would be made the basis of reservation in the 2013 elections. The instructions have resulted in great mischief as earlier the reservation to the posts of sarpanches was being made on the basis of 1998 roster. He added it was, in fact, the first roster that came into being after the notification of 1994 rules for reservation and rotation of seats of
sarpanches.
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Fake currency: Cop’s bail plea rejected
Sangrur, June 17 Jarnail was the Station House Officer (SHO) of Ahmedgarh Sadar police station. The other alleged accused in the case are head constables Teja Singh, Balwinder Rai, and Amit Kumar, an owner of a printing press. Earlier, Mandip Singh Sidhu, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Sangrur, had suspended the three policemen on June 13 and had ordered a departmental inquiry into the matter. Gurpreet Singh Dhindsa, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Sangrur, when contacted, said the anticipatory bail application of the suspended SI Jarnail Singh had been rejected. The other three accused had not filed anticipatory bail applications. Dhindsa, who is also the investigating officer in the case, said the three accused policemen claimed that they were innocent. All
the four accused are absconding. The FIR states fake currency worth Rs 1.41 lakh was missing from the storeroom of Sadar police station, Ahmedgarh. Jarnail and the two head constables had lost the currency, so got it printed from Amit Kumar and produced it in court. Later, they destroyed it, fearing that their secret may get exposed.
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Four teachers booked for neglecting election duty
Fazilka, June 17 The Fazilka police has booked four employees, including Surinder Kumar Vinayak and Sat Pal, both teachers at Government High School School, Kera Kher (Abohar), Naresh Kumar and Sham Sunder Setia, both ETT teachers attached with the Block Primary Education Officer, Block I, Abohar, for dereliction of duty under Section 120 of the Punjab State Election Act, 1994. Sources said these reserve staff employees were directed to report on duty on May 19, but they failed to turn up. “The employees have been booked on the instructions of the office of Deputy Commissioner, Fazilka,” said Superintendent of Police (Headquarters) Manmohan Sharma.
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Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) chief Partap Singh Bajwa today said Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal should clarify to the masses why he was supporting his Gujarat counterpart who allegedly was against the minorities.
in dire straits
Rajpura, June 17