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Tata Group firm keen on investing in state’s urban infrastructure
Villagers protest as wrong candidate declared sarpanch
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Water level in Bhakra crosses 1,650 ft
Jail for Rajoana in Arms Act case
Eying LS poll, SAD, Cong vie for support to Gujarat Sikh farmers
Fatehgarh Sahib Bus Accident
5 more bodies found, toll reaches 13
Another driver had found fault in bus
Bus had 35-40 passengers: Survivor
Little land-purchase options in neighbouring states
DSP among seven cops hurt in clash
No conspiracy behind attack on
Pannu: SIT
Pro-Pak posters cause panic
Pathankot gets first District & Sessions Judge
Youth dies in police custody, cremated; ASI suspended
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Tata Group firm keen on investing in state’s urban infrastructure
Chandigarh, August 3 The Tata Group had expressed interest in this project in its recent meeting with top officials of the Punjab Government, led by Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal recently. Representatives from various Tata Group companies had come here last month and explored the possibility of investing in various sectors in the state. Though the Tatas had expressed interest in various sectors including information technology, health and education, one of the sectors the group was reportedly keen on participating in Punjab was in the development of urban infrastructure. Official sources informed The Tribune that though this is still at the drawing board stage, the Tatas have expressed interest in developing urban infrastructure- water supply, solid waste management and construction of major arterial roads and connecting roads. “The Tata Group company, JUSCO is already doing it successfully in Jamshedpur, besides developing water supply in major cities like Mysore. During the meeting, we had told them about the proposal to develop three major cities - Amritsar, Jalandhar and Ludhiana. We have already made the master plan for these cities and time lines are now being framed for its implementation. We told them that by the end of 2013, things would be visible on the ground. As and when we get a formal proposal from JUSCO, we have to see how they can fit in the master plan that is already been planed for these cities,” said a top government official. He said that they were waiting for a formal proposal from the company. “Once we get it, it will be examined and forwarded to the government for its consideration,” he said. A 100 per cent subsidiary of Tata Steel, JUSCO has already made its presence felt across the country, including southern states by providing utility and municipal services, besides maintaining township under Tata Steel Command Area.
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Villagers protest as wrong candidate declared sarpanch
Sangrur, August 3 The Presiding Officer had declared Jaspreet Kaur the winner of the poll for the post of sarpanch of Saron village on July 3. Jaspreet had secured 1,490 votes while her opponent Arshpreet Kaur got just 914 votes. At the dharna, Jaspreet demanded action against the Presiding Officer for allegedly changing the result later and said that she be appointed sarpanch immediately. The dharna was lifted when they were pacified by Deputy Superintendent of Police Gurpreet Singh Dhindsa. Additional Deputy Commissioner Jatinder Singh Tung admitted that Jaspreet had won the panchayat poll in Saron village. However, Tung said that she had to file an election petition to get the result rectified. Kumar Rahul, DC, also admitted that Jaspreet had won the poll.
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Water level in Bhakra crosses 1,650 ft
Nangal, August 3 Today the inflow of water in the lake was 48,187 cusecs while the outflow was 36,391 cusecs. VK Sharma, Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) Director, Water Regulation, said the aim of the authorities was to fill the reservoir up to 1,670 feet by August 15 and then 1,680 feet by the end of the month. The reservoir was filled till September 20, he said.
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Jail for Rajoana in Arms Act case
Patiala, August 3 The verdict also paves the way for the Punjab Government to reconsider shifting Rajoana out of the state as the only case against him in Patiala had reached its conclusion. Rajoana was shifted to Patiala from the Burail Jail in Chandigarh due to security reasons. Sources said a decision in this regard would be taken shortly by the Chief Minister. The threat of riots had become imminent when Rajoana’s execution was ordered by a Chandigarh court recently. However, the Patiala Jail Superintendent had refused to execute the orders. “We are yet to decide on shifting him outside Punjab,” they said. A senior Jail Department official said, “We will be in a position to comment on shifting Rajoana only after Monday when his total sentence is calculated and legal experts are consulted.” Earlier in the day, the court of the Additional District Judge sentenced Rajoana to jail for two-and-a-half years and also imposed a fine of Rs 1,000 on him. The court was turned into a fortress for teh hearing. The police had arrested Rajoana with a gun and 50 live bullets. He has already been sentenced to 10 years imprisonment in an Explosives Act case. On March 28, 2012, the Union Home Ministry stayed his execution following clemency appeals filed by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee in the assassination case of former Chief Minister Beant Singh.
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Eying LS poll, SAD, Cong vie for support to Gujarat Sikh farmers
Chandigarh, August 3 Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal has already announced that he would be leading a delegation of senior Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leaders to Gujarat to meet Chief Minister Narendra Modi. He has also directed the Punjab Government’s legal department to extend the best possible support to the affected farmers to pursue their case in the Supreme Court. Probably not wanting to be left behind, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) chief Partap Singh Bajwa, in a bid to outpace Sukhbir, has announced he would take the affected farmers to party president and UPA chairman Sonia Gandhi to help them out in their hour of crisis. Alike Sukhbir, Bajwa has also announced legal help. The BJP, however, sees a conspiracy behind the Congress’s move. The saffrom party claims the Congress allegedly wants to project Modi as anti-Sikh. In the process, the Congress also seems to be trying to politically embarrass Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and his deputy Sukhbir, both of whom are said to be close to Modi. The Badals had on a few occasions endorsed Modi as a “fit” candidate for the prime minister’s post. Political race SAD chief Sukhbir Badal to take up issue with Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi The party has also assured help to the farmers to pursue their case in the Supreme Court Punjab Congress chief Partap Bajwa to lead the affected farmers to party president Sonia Gandhi The Congress has also assured legal assistance
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Fatehgarh Sahib Bus Accident
Amritsar, August 3 Lack of infrastructure and manpower, tight schedule of the staff and poor maintenance of the buses are said to be the factors contributing to the rising number of accidents. As per the norm earlier, the drivers had a fixed duty of eight hours and their duties were scheduled keeping the safety aspect in mind. However, after the Transport Department started engaging drivers through private contractors, no such norms are followed and the drivers are made to work for 15-16 hours a day. Drivers at the Punjab Roadways Amritsar Bus Depot-1 are provided by a Chandigarh-based firm, which allegedly pays them a paltry Rs 3,000 per month. They are made to drive 600-900 km everyday. Surinder Singh, the driver of the ill-fated bus, had to drive on the Amritsar-Delhi-Amritsar route to and fro within 24 hours. On July 30, he took this bus to Delhi at 7 am via Ludhiana (962 km) and left for return journey at 7.30 pm. The next morning, Surinder accompanied by same conductor Raman, left for Delhi at 7.50 am and reached there at around 7 pm. After a halt of just 50 minutes, he started driving back. This bus was to reach Amritsar at 5.30 am on August 1. Drivers claimed that there was hardly any time to inspect the bus that had traveled more than 900 km at a stretch. Similar is the situation of other long route buses. Dhanwinder Singh, a driver, said they were required to bring the vehicle back the same day. "At present, out of 72 buses, at least 30 are parked in the workshop for the past two months for the want of spares. To meet the depot's target of daily run (26,400 km for Amritsar Depot-1), the authorities have deployed buses on multiple routes to cover the loss of defunct buses. Since there is a shortage of drivers, the available staff members are forced to do double shifts to cover extra miles", he said. Angrez Singh, a Punjab Roadways driver, said: "There were four buses for Hamirpur. Now, there are just two. The bus that leaves Amritsar at 11 pm reaches its destination at 5.30 am. The same bus has been scheduled to start return journey at 7 am to reach here at 3.30 pm. Despite being hilly area, there is just a two-hour lag between the two journeys". Jaspal Singh, president, Punjab Roadways Contractual Workers Union, said after driving on the Amritsar-Khemkaran route for seven hours, the same driver was asked to leave for Chandigarh. "A majority of the buses are in a dilapidated condition. Most of these do not even have wipers and rear view mirrors. Tyres are worn out and batteries discharged. Despite our repeated pleas, the authorities refused to listen," he said. DS Gill, General Manager, Punjab Roadways, Amritsar-1, said: "The drivers are engaged by the Transport Department through a Chandigarh-based firm. We don't interfere in their payment structure. But, we have given stern instructions to the firm to give adequate rest to every driver who drives for over 10 hours". ‘Greed’ over safety Drivers engaged through private contractors are made to work for 15-16 hours a day covering 600-900 km Out of 72 buses of Amritsar Depot-1, at least 30 are lying in the workshop for the past two months for want of spares. The authorities have deployed buses on multiple routes to cover the loss of defunct buses The staff members are forced to do double shifts to cover extra miles
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5 more bodies found, toll reaches 13
Fatehgarh Sahib, August 3 Three of these bodies were today taken out from the Bhakra canal at Khanauri by divers of the National Disaster Response Force. Satnam Singh Virk, Station House Officer, Sirhind, said eight victims, including bus driver Surinder Singh of Vaan Tara Singh village, had been identified so far. The driver's body was recovered from a canal near Buchde village in the district. Virk said others identified included Jatin of Manai Kalan in Jharkhand; Suresh Singh of Dhanpuri in Madhya Pradesh; Ashok Kumar of Sukhkhal village in Kathua, Jammu and Kashmir; and Harjit Singh of Khodebet village in Gurdaspur district. He said the bodies of conductor Raman Kumar of Batala, and Yash of Harduaganj in Uttar Pradesh, were yet to be recovered.
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Another driver had found fault in bus
Fatehgarh Sahib, August 3 Traffic lights installed at the bridge near the floating restaurant on the GT Road near Sirhind are lying defunct. Locals say these have not been repaired for many years. The permanent driver of the ill-fated bus, Mangal Singh, had complained to the officials concerned about a technical fault in the bus due to which keys used to fall out while driving resulting in auto-lock of the steering. Besides, there are several questions that remained unanswered. These are: Why the driver had not stopped the bus at the Rajpura bus stand for tea after dinner break at Pipli bus stand at 11.30 pm? Why the bus was allowed to depart from Delhi at 8.36 pm while its scheduled time was 4.46 am? Hira Singh, a contractual driver with the Amritsar Depot No1, revealed that the conductor of the ill-fated bus Raman Kumar had told the conductor of another Amritsar-bound bus that there was a rush of passengers in the bus that normally had 15-20 travellers. Des Raj, who manages canteen at the Rajpura bus stand, said generally Amritsar-bound buses stopped at his canteen, but Surinder Singh had not halted the vehicle there on that fateful day. Another worker said the driver had heated arguments with a worker at Pipli canteen, which was being run by Des Raj's brother. However, Ashok refuted the allegations. Darshan Singh Gill, General Manager, PUNBUS, Amritsar Depot No.1, claimed that the bus was in perfect condition when it departed from Amritsar. He said the ill-fated bus was purchased in April 2012 and the brakes of the vehicle were tested on July 9.
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Bus had 35-40 passengers: Survivor
Fatehgarh Sahib, August 3 He said only a few seats at the rear of the bus were vacant. He said he had boarded the bus from Delhi for Ludhiana, but as luck would have it, he alighted at Rajpura. All along the way, he was sleeping on the last seat and he only had a vague idea of the bus occupancy when he got down at Rajpura, he added. On learning about the incident, Umesh's brother Raj Kumar Yadav started searching for him among the victims. It was only later he received a call from Umesh that he was safe. Deputy Commissioner Arun Sekhri said Raj Kumar had made several enquiries on the helpline number set up at his office to get information about his younger brother. He had even visited the mishap site.
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Little land-purchase options in neighbouring states
Chandigarh, August 3 The state farmers cannot even buy land that is irrigated with canal water in Rajasthan. Decades ago, a large number of farmers from Punjab had bought land in Sriganganagar, Hanumangarh and Bikaner districts. However, a few years ago, the Rajasthan Government unofficially instructed its revenue officials not to register land deeds of these farmers. Gujarat is the latest addition to this list. A large number of Sikh farmers who had settled there decades ago are now facing eviction. The Narendra Modi government has been trying to evict them on the pretext that non-Gujarati farmers cannot own land in the state. Though the Gujarat High Court has given verdict in favour of the Sikh farmers, the state government, which has approached the apex court against the decision, appears to be determined to remove them from their farmland. Even a section of the Punjabi farmers who had settled in the Terai belt of Uttar Pradesh decades ago are now facing problems. Most of the farmers had either got the land on lease or had developed forestland as agricultural area post-Independence on the invitation of the then Chief Minister GB Pant. As the forestland cannot be transferred on the name of farmers, they continue to face the threat of eviction. Sources said politicians were into the habit of blackmailing such farmers and charging money to allow them harvest their crops.
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DSP among seven cops hurt in clash
Amritsar, August 3 The mob pelted the police personnel with stones, damaging four of their vehicles. The police said it initially resorted to lathicharge but fearing the situation may go out of control, it was forced to fire in the air and launch tear-gas shells. The protesters also blocked the Amritsar-Pathankot highway for three hours. Trouble started after a youth, Davinder Singh of Kotla Sultan Singh village
(Majitha), allegedly harassed a girl who was on her way to school around 9 am. She raised an alarm, following which nearby villagers who were working in their fields rushed towards the
spot. Davinder ran from the spot and took shelter in the house of Balwinder Singh, sarpanch of Kotla Tarkhana village. A large number of residents also gathered there and insisted on punishing Davinder themselves. The sarpanch tried to pacify the villagers but they refused to buy his advice. Amidst the melee, a rumour spread that a member of a robbers’ gang, that has got active in the area recently, had been arrested, said sources. Angered residents started arriving in large numbers. The police too reached the spot and tried to persuade the residents to hand over the youth to them. Adamant on teaching the youth a lesson, the protesters allegedly tried to barge into the sarpanch’s house. Accusing the police of being hand in glove with the robbers, the villagers later blocked the Amritsar-Pathankot highway. They alleged the police was into habit of letting the gang members go scot-free. The allegations flared the situation and violence ensued, with the police taking to firing to counter the hurling of bricks and stones by the mob. Deputy Inspector General Paramraj Singh Umranangal said the situation was under control at present and a case of eve-teasing had been slapped on the youth. He said Deputy Superintendent of Police Jugraj Singh was among the injured.
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No conspiracy behind attack on
Pannu: SIT
Chandigarh, August 3 The SIT was constituted by the state government following reports that a few state politicians could be behind the attack on the IAS officer. Confirming the development, a senior Punjab Police officer said, "There is nothing to indicate any pre-planning behind the attack on Pannu near Gobind Ghat on June 22. It was also not easy to identify everyone shown in the video uploaded on YouTube through a mobile phone. Not everyone in the picture had participated in the beating up of the officer." A police team from Uttarakhand is in Punjab for the past several days trying to get to the "bottom of the case", confirmed Chamoli Superintendent of Police Ajay Joshi. Joshi said, "As none of the persons involved in the case belonged to Uttarakhand, we are working in tandem with the Punjab Police in identifying the accused.”
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Tarn Taran, August 3 Both the posters have been written with a sketch-pen while at a few places, a ball-pen has been used. — TNS
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Pathankot gets first District & Sessions Judge
Pathankot, August 3 Among others, the function was attended by Punjab and Haryana High Court judges Justice TPS Maan and Justice Amol Rattan Singh. Earlier, the two judges jointly inaugurated the new Pathankot Sessions Division Court. Pathankot district did not have a sessions court ever since the town was carved out as a new district in November last year, just ahead of the assembly elections. Lawyers and litigants had to travel to Gurdaspur District and Sessions Courts, 34 km away, to get their judicial work done. However, with the town being conferred upon with the status of a full-fledged district, it had become imperative on the part of the authorities to create a new sessions court. Also present on the occasion were Gurdaspur District and Sessions Judge Sanjeev Kumar Garg, Pathankot Deputy Commissioner Siben C, Senior Superintendent of Police SK Kalia and District Bar Association president Ajay Lalotra. Later, the newly appointed judge addressed the members of the Pathankot District Bar Association where about 150 lawyers and other dignitaries were present. Earlier, the authorities had planned to hold a joint function on August 3 wherein Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul was to inaugurate the new judicial complexes at Gurdaspur and Pathankot. However, since the construction of the Pathankot Judicial Complex was incomplete, both the functions were cancelled. Both the complexes will now be inaugurated on August 24 by the Chief Justice. Wait over Balwinder Singh Sandhu joined as the first District and Sessions Judge of Pathankot on Saturday Pathankot district did not have a sessions court ever since the town was carved out as a new district in November last year
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Youth dies in police custody, cremated; ASI suspended
Amritsar, August 3 The incident came to light when the victim’s family members went to the police post to meet him. They along with several local leaders staged a protest against the erring police officials who had absconded. Three police officials, including an Assistant Sub Inspector, have been suspended. The family members later blocked the GT road for about two hours. They lifted the blockade after senior police officials assured them to hold an inquiry. A relative of the deceased said Maninder pal was picked up by the police a couple of days ago. But, they did not officially arrest him and continued to interrogate him, he alleged. He claimed the family had met Maninder in the afternoon, but when they went to give him dinner, he was not there. A policeman told them that he died in the evening and was cremated at the nearby cremation ground, he alleged. Ram Singh, Police Commissioner, said ASI Jatinder pal Singh, in charge of the police post, and two head constables had been placed under suspension.
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In the run-up to the next Lok Sabha elections, a race of sorts seems to have begun between the main stakeholders in Punjab’s politics to extend support to the Sikh farmers facing eviction from Gujarat.
Amritsar, August 3
With the recovery of five more bodies, the toll in the Sirhind bus mishap has gone up to 13.
Three of these bodies were today taken out from the Bhakra canal at Khanauri by divers of the National Disaster Response Force.Three of these bodies were today taken out from the Bhakra canal at Khanauri by divers of the National Disaster Response Force.
A youth allegedly died at Sultanwind police chowki late last evening. The victim, Maninderpal Singh alias Rambo, was reportedly wanted in many criminal cases. He was even cremated by the police as unclaimed body without informing his family.
The incident came to light when the victim’s family members went to the police post to meet him. They along with several local leaders staged a protest against the erring police officials who had absconded. 