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Fund-starved govt puts on hold Rs 800-crore bills
Shahpur Kandi plant shut, power supply hit
Badal: Will give legal aid to Gujarat’s Sikh farmers
Chief Minister PS Badal administers oath to panchayat members in Ludhiana on Sunday.
— Tribune photo: Himanshu Mahajan |
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Only defaulters entitled to settlement benefits: HC
Amritsar villagers clash with police again
Policemen chase away a stone-throwing crowd in Amritsar’s Bal Khurd vilage on Sunday. Photo: Vishal Kumar
RTI: 21 PPS officers suspended since 2002
BJP to focus on all LS seats, says Tandon
Balramji Das Tandon, state BJP poll panel chief, addresses mediapersons in Amritsar on Sunday. Photo: Vishal Kumar
Cong flays ABVP for hooliganism
Rajindra Hospital mortuary in a shambles
Bus tragedy toll reaches 15
Defamation case
UPA has failed on economic front: CPI
13 years on, construction of Gurdaspur DAC yet to begin
Village fairs acquire political colour
No decision on shifting Rajoana yet: CM
Sangrur to soon get
de-addiction centre
The building of the de-addiction centre on the premises of the Sangrur Civil Hospital. A Tribune photograph
Rs 80 crore for six maternity hospitals coming up in state
Roko Cancer to organise
1,500 medical camps
Cong takes on govt on law and order
Wrong
results
Credit limit for setting up units hiked
Transformer fire shuts down Abohar
Ropar jail warden held with drugs
Illegally transported fuel seized
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Shahpur Kandi plant shut, power supply hit
Jalandhar, August 4 Besides, one unit of the Bathinda thermal plant, which is undergoing repair, is non-operational at present due to which the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) is not getting about 26.4 LUs per day. Because of the shortfall of about 196 LUs, the PSPCL is imposing power cuts. Corporation spokesperson said besides weekly off on industry, one-hour power cut was being imposed in the urban industrial sector and rural domestic sector whereas 15-minute cut was being imposed in district headquarters. The PSPCL claims that the Shahpur plant is likely to start generating power in a week's time. Besides, the repair work of a 110 MW unit of Guru Nanak Dev Thermal Plant, Bathinda, is nearing completion. The unit is expected to become operational by August 8. Senior PSPCL functionaries claimed that once these plants became operational, the power scenario in the state would be comfortable. Speaking to The Tribune, KD Chaudhri, CMD, PSPCL, said to assess the damage to the Shahpur plant, he along with Anirudh Tewari, Secretary, Power, had visited the plant on Friday. Chaudhri said no major damage had been observed. "Loss to electrical equipment will be assessed after opening of the turbines," he added. GS Chhabra, Director, Generation, PSPCL, said efforts to make the plant operation were in full swing. "We are hopeful that the first turbine at the plant will be made operational within a week," he said. PSPCL officials said the restoration work of the plant was being done by teams of engineers and technicians from Ranjit Sagar Dam, Upper Bari Doab Canal (UBDC) Power House, Mukerian Hydel Power Plant and Anandpur Sahib Hydel Power Plant. Chhabra said the repair work of 110 MW unit of the Bathinda plant was almost complete and the power generation was expected to start in four-five days. Notably, out of Bathinda plant's four thermal units of 110 MW each, two are non-operational at present. While one unit is closed for the renovation and modernisation, another unit was shut down following a technical snag in its turbines in June. "We have been supplying power to the agriculture sector for about 10.45 hours everyday. We are trying our best to meet the power demand in the state. But, due to the closure of the Shahpur Kandi plant, the power situation got disturbed slightly. Once the power plant starts working, the situation will ease", claimed a PSPCL official.
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Badal: Will give legal aid to Gujarat’s Sikh farmers
Patiala, August 4 Speaking on the sidelines of the swearing-in of the newly elected sarpanches and panches here today, the Chief Minister said his government was serious on solving the problems of the Sikh farmers in Gujarat.“Our government will ensure free legal aid to these farmers who are fighting their case in the Supreme Court. I will meet Rajnath Singh to get some respite for them,” he said. Expressing concern at the rising trend of migration from villages to cities in Punjab, Badal said he had instructed officers to acquaint themselves with the problems being faced by village residents. He said he had issued instructions to the officers to interact with elected representatives and solve the problems of the people. “The growing trend of migration from villages to the cities needs to be checked and the foremost step in this direction is to provide basic amenities in rural areas on a par with those in urban areas,” he
said.
The Chief Minister assured Rs 1,700 crore for rural roads and Rs 1,607 crore for drinking water. Addressing the newly elected sarpanches and panches, he directed the officers to give them due respect. “Any complaint of misbehaviour with the representatives of the people will be dealt with strictly,” he warned. Badal alleged that the UPA Government, instead of helping Punjab in crop diversification, was creating hurdles in the way. “The Union Government is not helping Punjab by denying minimum support price (MSP) and support mechanism to alternative crops like maize and sugarcane,” he said. Cabinet Minister Surjit Singh Rakhra, Chief Parliamentary Secretary Mantar Singh Brar and other local leaders accompanied the Chief Minister Ludhiana: Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today said that by not transferring Chandigarh to Punjab, the Centre had done grave injustice to the state. He was in city to administer oath to the newly elected panches. He, however, said: “We can't launch a morcha for every demand of ours.” He alleged that the UPA Government had ruined the state's industry by giving incentives to neighbouring states. Badal said the Punjab farmers were reeling under a huge debt of Rs 30,000 crore owing to the “wrong policies” of the Centre.
— Charanjit Singh Teja
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Only defaulters entitled to settlement benefits: HC
Chandigarh, August 4 The ruling came on a petition filed by non-defaulters, claiming that they were entitled to the advantages of an agriculture debt relief scheme being made available only to defaulters. In his petition against the Union of India and other respondents placed before the Division Bench of Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Augustine George Masih, Jagraj Singh and other petitioners had, in fact, challenged the Agricultural Debt and Debt Relief Scheme, 2008. His counsel had contended that the petitioners should also be entitled to the benefit of scheme, which was available only to defaulters and not to “compliant persons” like the petitioners. Taking up the matter, the Bench asserted: “It is no doubt true that under such schemes the defaulters find themselves better placed than the people who are complying with their financial obligations. “However, this is really a policy matter. Such a situation generally arises when one time settlement schemes (OTS) are floated for defaulters or even income tax defaulters are given opportunity to pay their amount”. Dismissing the petition, the Bench added: “This does not imply that the amount paid by the petitioners is liable to be refunded to the extent the benefit has been given to defaulters under the scheme during the particular period. We are, thus, not inclined to entertain the petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India.”. The Punjab Finance Minister, in his budget speech for 2008-2009, announced a debt waiver and debt relief scheme for farmers.
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Amritsar villagers clash with police again
Bal Khurd (Amritsar), August 4 Trouble began after a confrontation between a police party of the Kamboh police station and village residents on ‘theekri pehra’ (night patrol). A police party headed by Sub-Inspector Mohan Singh was stopped by village residents. The policemen were asked to show their identification papers. The villagers alleged that there were sharp-edged weapons in the police vehicle. Some residents reportedly accused the police of being hand in glove with a gang of criminals active in the area. This led to an ugly argument and the village residents gheraoed the police team. They let the police team go on the intervention of senior police officers but did not allow them to take away their vehicle. The following morning, they blocked the Amritsar-Fatehgarh Churian road and a heavy police force was called in. As the residents saw a bus carrying policemen, they started throwing stones. The policemen had to fire into the air to disperse the crowd. As the policemen entered the village, residents standing on rooftops starting throwing bricks at them. Jasdeep Singh, Superintendent of Police (Amritsar- Rural) said the weapons found in the police vehicle had been confiscated. Instructions had been issued to all police teams to seize such weapons from those on “theekri pehra.” He said a case had been registered against unidentified persons for preventing the policemen from discharging their duty. Meanwhile, several persons have been booked for the attack on the police party at Kathunangal Khurd yesterday. An attempt to murder case has been registered on Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Jugraj Singh's statement. The latter, an international hockey player, was injured in the attack.
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RTI: 21 PPS officers suspended since 2002
Muktsar, August 4 Malwinder Singh, Superintendent of Police (SP), Telecom, was suspended in 2004 on the charge of embezzling funds. Paramdeep Singh Sandhu, SP (H), Ropar, was suspended in 2008 after the CBI registered a case against him. Manminder Singh, SP, Traffic and Security, Amritsar, was suspended in 2008 for going abroad without the requisite permission of the competent authority. Tajinder Singh, SP (Operations), Tarn Taran, was suspended for failing to control the mob during a clash between SAD and BJP workers at Daburji in Tarn Taran on May 11, 2008. Pritam Singh, SP (D), Mohali, was suspended in 2011 for allegedly removing the turban of a youth outside the PCA Stadium, Mohali. Parampal Singh, SP, Vigilance Bureau, was suspended in 2011 for allegedly producing a fake graduation certificate. Paramdeep Singh Sandhu, Assistant IG, was suspended in 2011 after he was arrested by the CBI in a corruption case. Bahadur Singh, Additional DCP (Crime), Amritsar, was suspended in 2011 for failure to act in time to arrest a gambler at the Shalimar Night Resort. Varinderpal Singh, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Gurdaspur, was suspended in 2012 for failure to maintain peace and tranquility in Gurdaspur. Banarasi Dass, SP, Vigilance Bureau, Moga, was suspended in 2012 after a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act was filed against him at Ferozepur. Sukhdev Singh Chahal, SSP, Mansa, was suspended in 2012 for failing to maintain law and order in Mansa. Randhir Singh Uppal, SP (D), Hoshiarpur, was suspended after he was arrested in a corruption case. Dharam Singh, SP (D), Nawanshahar, was suspended in 2012 for allegedly intimidating witnesses in a case in which his son had been named as one of the accused. Paramjit Singh, SP (D), Batala, was suspended in 2012 for consuming liquor in public and misbehaviour. Jaskirat Singh, SP (Operations), Gurdaspur, was suspended in 2012 for not taking interest in official work. Rachhpal Singh, SP (H), Tarn Taran, was suspended for failure to discharge his duty properly during the visit of the Deputy CM on December 4, 2012. Ravinder Loomba, Superintendent, Central Jail, Ludhiana, was suspended in 2012 for the escape of three prisoners. The Jail Superintendent of the Central Jail, Gurdaspur, was also suspended after some prisoners managed to flee. Amandeep Kaur,
SP, Vigilance Bureau, Ludhiana, was suspended in 2013 after she was arrested in a corruption case. Kulwinder Singh, Commandant, 80th Battalion, PAP, Phillaur, was suspended in 2013 for detaining officials for construction work at his farm. Mohan Lal, SP (D), Batala, was suspended in 2013 after his arrest on the charge of abetment to suicide.
Offence & punishment
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BJP to focus on all LS seats, says Tandon
Amritsar, August 4 Addressing mediapersons after holding a meeting of BJP’s ward leaders of Amritsar, Tandon said efforts had been initiated to bring about dynamic changes in the working of the coalition with the Akali Dal. “The party's focus is not just on Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Hoshiarpur Lok Sabha seats, from where it had contested the last general elections, but also on the rest of the 10 seats,” said Tandon. In charges for all Lok Sabha seats are being appointed. “In accordance with the coalition dharma, the party and its workers must extend full cooperation to the Akali Dal candidates so that no gaps are left to the advantage of the opposition,” he remarked. To a query, he responded that any differences between the workers of the two parties would be ironed out swiftly and no misunderstanding would be allowed to persist. On the continued absence of MP Navjot Singh Sidhu from his Amritsar Lok Sabha seat and consequent loss of work here, Tandon said the party had assigned him other responsibilities and besides, he had some occupational engagements. He rejected the opinion that the SAD was gradually increasing its influence over the urban pockets, traditionally the saffron party’s sphere of influence. He added that the new policy to legalise unauthorised colonies was prepared as per the Union government’s terms to get massive grants to upgrade urban infrastructure. He claimed that the Congress party and colonisers associated with it raised unnecessary hue and cry to distract the public. On the issue of Gujarat Sikhs, Tandon said there were 30 Sikh families out of a total of 800 people who had settled in Gujarat decades back. He said he would soon hold a meeting with these Sikh families to acquire a first-hand account.
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Cong flays ABVP for hooliganism
Chandigarh, August 4 Sukhpal Khaira, party spokesman, said the Congress was closely watching the activities of the ABVP activists. He said to protest peacefully is the democratic right of all political parties in our country but the youth wing of the BJP had been resorting to politics of confrontation recently. He further said that while protesting outside the residence of Tewari in Ludhiana, the ABVP activists hurled abuses, threw shoes, steel plates etc. inside his house, while the Punjab Police personnel stood as mute spectators. Similarly, a few days back acid bottles and other inflammatory material was found outside the Tewari’s house in Sector 19 Chandigarh. “We apprehend that even this act of intimidation is that of ABVP cadres. Similarly, the ABVP goons descended upon the houses of Preneet Kaur, Union Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and PPCC chief Partap Singh Bajwa and violated all norms of a decent protest,” the Congress spokesman said. He said it appeared that the ABVP had suddenly started resorting to such unruly behavior, after the elevation of Narendra Modi as chairman BJP campaign committee.
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Rajindra Hospital mortuary in a shambles
A sorry state of affairs
— Dr DS Bhullar, Editor-in-Chief of Punjab Academy of Forensic Medicine
Patiala, August 4 The roofs leak, the electric fans are out of order and the building is badly lit.
The air conditioner in the autopsy room are out of order, leaving a foul smell in the building. Sources in the hospital said the mortuary did not have a mortuary assistant to assist in postmortem examinations. “There is shortage of class IV employees, which makes it extremely difficult for the staff members to perform the postmortems,” sources said. The sources said relatives of the deceased had to bring most surgical equipment, including gloves, surgical needles, plastic jars and stitching thread from outside in postmortem cases. "Old chambers are lying outside in the open, non-functional perhaps for want of funds," he said.
One of the senior doctors, on condition of anonymity, said for the last many years, nobody has bothered to get the building whitewashed. He said there was no classrooms to teach undergraduate and postgraduate students. He said doctors on postmortem duty haven’t had official registers to write the reports for the past 10 years even though they had requested for the same several times. Dr DS Bhullar, a former president and Editor-in-Chief of Punjab Academy of Forensic Medicine & Toxicology said, “We have been asking the government for several years to improve the mortuaries in the state in order to provide good medico-legal and forensic services to the public.” Meanwhile, college principal Dr KD Singh said, “We will soon renovate the mortuary. I have already purchased new mortuary chambers.”
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Bus tragedy toll reaches 15
Fatehgarh Sahib, August 4 He said out of 15 bodies, nine had been identified. There were Dr Viresh of Aligarh (UP), Neeraj Kumar of Bulandsahar (UP), Ram Narain Dharbhanga of Bihar, Jatin Narain of
Jharkhand, Suresh Singh of Sehdal (MP), Ashok Kumar of Jammu and Kashmir, Surinder Pal Singh (driver) of Tarn Taran, Harjit Singh of Gurdaspur and Raman Kumar (conductor) of
Batala. He said out of six unidentified bodies, two bodies each were lying at Civil Hospital, Fatehgarh Sahib; Rajindra Hospital, Patiala; and Civil Hospital,
Sangrur. Arun Sekhri, Deputy Commissioner, said most of the bodies were being recovered from Patiala and Sangrur districts. He said he had deputed Naib Tehsildar Nirpal Tiwana (contact no. 9915488288) as nodal officer at Rajindra Hospital for the convenience of the victims' families. He said a helpline 01763-232838 had been set up at the DC's office, 01763-223100 at the SSP's office and 01763-232205 at the Civil Hospital Fatehgarh Sahib. Driver cremated at his native village Tarn Taran:
The body of Surinder Singh, driver of the ill-fated bus that fell into the Bhakra canal near
Sirhind, was cremated at his native Wan Tara Singh village this morning. The villagers condemned the state government for failing to send its representative on the occasion.
Surinder Singh, 32, is survived by his parents, wife and a three-year-old son. A large number of relatives of the deceased, besides area residents were present.
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Defamation
case
Chandigarh, August 4 The High Court also issued notice of motion and granted personal exemption to Shergill and
others in yet another criminal complaint filed before a Sunam court by Harinder Lalli. Arpinder Singh Sidhu, a young advocate practicing at Moonak Civil Court, has also filed a complaint against Shergill and others, accusing them of defaming the lawyers’ profession in Punjabi film “Taur Mittran Di”. Acting on his complaint, Moonak Sub Divisional Judicial Magistrate had issued summoning order on October 27, 2012, for defamation and other offences. Challenging the order, counsel Kanwalvir Singh Kang had earlier contended that totally baseless allegations had been levelled to harass and malign the petitioners' impeccable image. He had said the complainant had referred to an isolated scene to make out a case. The entire scene was a comic sequence hovering around talks over matrimonial alliance between a girl and a boy, where reference was made to lawyers. Kang asserted the conversation in the scene was blown out of proportion due to the complainant's subjective interpretation. Otherwise, the movie was a family entertainer certified for theatrical release by the Central Board of Film Certification. He said a film is developed after a complex collaboration of artistes of various skills, including scriptwriters, actors, and musicians; dancers, costume designers, make-up artistes; cameraman, choreographers and directors. “Not only does it take art and imagination but also vision to offer a slice of life, an understanding of experience, and a solution to puzzles that life tosses at the commonest of the common man.…. “Since its well-knit fabric is seamless, no one segment of a film can be taken in isolation and held forth as containing the whole meaning. A dialogue, taken out of context, can not be said to represent the intent and the meaning of the work,” Kang added.
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UPA has failed on economic front: CPI
Ludhiana, August 4 Addressing
mediapersons, he said the economic policies being pursued by the Congress-led UPA government were wreaking havoc on the poor. "The economic crisis is going from bad to worse with each passing day, growth rate is going down, investors are reluctant, employment opportunities are dwindling and the government has failed miserably to contain inflation," he alleged while asserting that economic situation would not improve with the prevailing
policies. Dasgupta lambasted the UPA Government for "towing the line" of big corporate houses and multinational companies while at the same time ignoring the poor people. Citing FDI in retail, telecom and oil sector as precipitating factors, he held the government responsible for widening gap between the rich and the underprivileged sections. The CPI leader said wealth was accumulating in the hands of a few hundred rich families and corporates while a vast majority of the people was suffering under acute poverty and rising prices.
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13 years on, construction of Gurdaspur DAC yet to begin
Gurdaspur, August 4 Its foundation stone was first laid in 2000 by the then Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal. Six years later, the then Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh again laid the foundation stone of the building. The DAC foundation stone was laid again in December last year by Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal. However, construction of the DAC is yet to begin. “People mock the government for laying the numerous foundation stones and not being able to build the DAC in 13 years,” said Lally Cheema, a resident. Deputy Commissioner Dr Abhinav Trikha could not give an exact date when the construction would begin
but claimed the work would start soon. Even the state-of-the-art Judicial Complex that was to be inaugurated on August 3 by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court, has been delayed. The building, constructed at a cost of Rs 45 crore, was delayed earlier too when mining in the state had been banned. Once the building is inaugurated, it will house over 450 practising laywers. Sources said the Chief Justice had postponed his visit because the Judicial Complex at Pathankot, which was to be inaugurated simultaneously, is not yet complete.
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Village fairs acquire political colour
Gurdaspur, August 4 Former Cabinet Minister and Qadian area chief Sewa Singh Sekhwan has invited Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to Qadian for a three-day Sangat Darshan from August 31 to September 2. This is also the time when adjoining villages hold fairs. Hence, it will not be difficult for him to gather crowds. Pradesh Congress chief Partap Singh Bajwa’s wife Charanjit Kaur is the sitting Congress legislator from Qadian. By bringing the Chief Minister to her constituency, Sekhwan plans to neutralise her influence among the voters. A few days ago, Ravi Kiran Kahlon, son of former Speaker and Fatehgarh Churian area chief Nirmal Singh Kahlon, organised a fair at Bhagowal village. Political speeches and songs by Gurdas Maan went hand in hand. The PPCC chief is slated to hold a mass contact programme here on August 12. The Kahlons plan to attend more fairs in the area to enhance SAD's image ahead of the parliamentary elections and to marginalise the Congress. Cabinet Minister Bikram Majithia could not make it to the venue despite an invitation. The most talked about fair is the one organised by Gurdaspur legislator GS Babbehali. The fair, to be held in the legislator’s native village in the last week of August, will have Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal as chief guest. All area chiefs, irrespective of their political differences, are expected to be there. The Deputy Chief Minister, Sukhbir Singh Badal, will administer the oath of office to the newly elected sarpanches and panches at Kahunwan, 20 km from here, tomorrow. A show of strength and much more
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No decision on shifting Rajoana yet: CM
Patiala, August 4 Meanwhile, the Department of Jails is certain to move the file pertaining to Rajoana to the state's Home Department, the final authority in the matter. Rajoana was sentenced to jail by a Patiala court on Saturday in a case filed under the Arms Act. It was the last case pending against him. Rajoana has already completed more than 17 years in various jails. His execution was ordered by a Chandigarh court. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said: “We are yet to take a decision whether or not to shift Rajoana outside Punjab. Maintaining peace is important. A decision will be taken with several factors in mind.” With Rajoana refusing to challenge the execution order, a plea seeking clemency for him has been filed by the SGPC.
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Sangrur to soon get
de-addiction centre
Sangrur, August 4 Dr Balwant Singh, Senior Medical Officer (SMO) of Sangrur Civil Hospital, said there would be two wards, comprising four beds each in the de-addiction centre. The SMO said he was hopeful that the construction of the centre that began on June 24 would be completed by mid-October. The authorities would recruit four staff nurses, a social worker and two safai sewaks for the centre. The hospital staff has also written to the Punjab Health System Corporation to recruit three security guards, two ward attendants and a cook. Dr Balwant Singh said setting up the centre was the need of the hour as addicts in the area weren’t getting proper treatment.
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Rs 80 crore for six maternity hospitals coming up in state
Chandigarh, August 4 These centres will be established at Mata Kaushalya Hospital, Patiala; Civil Hospital, Amritsar; Civil Hospital, Bathinda; Civil Hospital,
Jalandhar; Civil Hospital, Ludhiana; and District Hospital, Barnala. He said the work on five hospitals was in progress and tenders for Barnala hospital had been floated. He said an additional 423-bed capacity was being created for the purpose, with 100-bed additional capacity at Patiala at a cost of Rs 18 crore, 73-bed capacity at Amritsar at Rs 11 crore, 50-bed capacity at Bathinda at Rs 10 crore and 50-bed additional capacity at Jalandhar at a cost of Rs 10 crore. In Ludhiana, another 100-bed capacity was being created with Rs 20 crore and a 50-bed capacity at Barnala at Rs 11 crore. He said treatment would be free at these hospitals and incentives would also be given to pregnant women who give birth to their children in these hospitals. Children would also be treated free of cost in these special treatment hospitals.
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Roko Cancer to organise
1,500 medical camps
Moga, August 4 Speaking to The Tribune from London, Kulwant Dhaliwal, the global ambassador of Roko Cancer, revealed that his organisation would organise these camps at the village level. “Since governments have failed worldwide to provide diagnostic facilities to patients at the grass-roots level, we are laying emphasis on reaching out to people and organising these camps,” he said. Besides diagnosing cancer, they would also hold multiple camps to diagnose blood pressure and diabetes that led to thousands of deaths every year in the state. Dhaliwal said that Roko Cancer had already organised more than 1,406 such medical camps in Punjab in the past eight years and conducted mammography tests on 34,511 women. Of these, 1,379 cases of breast cancer were found positive while 1,411 were suspected cases. As many as 2.5 lakh people had been examined by the organisation so far, Dhaliwal said. On July 14, this year, Dhaliwal organised the London Hall Marathon Race to raise funds for Roko Cancer. “We have managed to collect over 1 lakh pounds in just one day,” he added.
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Cong takes on govt on law and order
Amritsar, August 4 Addressing party workers here today, PPCC vice-president and Majha zone in-charge OP Soni asked Sukhbir to clarify on the recent incidents of violence in the rural belt of Majha that were being attributed to a robbers' gang. He said the government should make it clear whether any such gang existed or these were just rumours. "There is a sense of insecurity among the residents who are forced to spend sleepless nights," he said, adding the people had lost faith in the police which was why they were holding "theekri pehras" on their own. He said innocent persons returning home at night were being mistaken as criminals due to these rumours.
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Wrong
results
Sangrur, August 4 Official sources said that in two villages, Saron near Sangrur and Bishangarh in Malerkotla-II, the losing candidates had been declared winners to the post of sarpanch. Likewise, defeated candidates had been declared elected as panches in Biggarwal, Sunam, and Channo, Bijalpur and Balad Kalan villages in Bhawanigarh. To a question, Sangrur Deputy Commissioner (DC) Kumar Rahul said the district administration would initiate departmental action against the six presiding officers for the serious lapse. He said he had already sought the permission of the State Election Commission for rectifying the election results. He had been told to ask the candidates concerned to file an election petition for getting the results rectified. The DC clarified that neither the defeated nor the winning candidates would be invited for oath-taking here on August 5.
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Credit limit for setting up units hiked
Chandigarh, August 4 The Punjab Backward Classes Land Development & Finance Corporation will finance these unemployed youth for agriculture and allied occupations for setting up small scale industries, technical trades, for pursuing professional and technical education and higher education. The financial aid for students of minority community has been increased from Rs 2.50 lakh to Rs 10 lakh to pursue higher education. The credit limit for technically/professional educated unemployed youth of backward classes between the ages of 18 and 35 years has been doubled from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh, to enable them to set up small business ventures.
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Transformer fire shuts down Abohar
Abohar, August 4 The power corp had to cut electricity supply for 8-10 hours on a rotation basis as its transformer in the 33 KV grid station went out of order. Explosion in the transformer in the new water works located near the BSF sector headquarters on Abohar-Hanumangarh road on Tuesday led to suspension of water supply to half of the populace of the city in Nai Abadi and neighbouring localities. Efforts to restore the water supply suffered another setback when the transformer at the main disposal works exploded. — OC
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Ropar jail warden held with drugs
Ropar, August 4 Ropar Jail Superintendent Paramjit Singh Sandhu said Karaj was transferred to Ropar from Amritsar jail after authorities suspected him to be involved in supplying drugs to inmates. Sandhu said he had been under observation at Ropar jail too. Ropar Senior Superintendent of Police Inder Mohan Bhatti, the police caught the accused with the drugs at the Morinda bus stand, where they were conducting checks in preparation for the forthcoming Independence Day celebrations. Bhatti said the police had arrested Karaj and
would question him after getting a remand from the court. — TNS
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Illegally transported fuel seized
Abohar, August 4 The police has arrested the driver, Ranjeet Singh, and his helper Satish Kumar. It also took the samples of the confiscated diesel. A case has been registered against Chandagi Ram, owner of the vehicle and a resident of Jhunjhunu district in Rajasthan, under the Essential Commodities Act. Officials said diesel was cheaper by Rs 5 per litre in Punjab compared to
Rajasthan.
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Four months into the current financial year, the Punjab Government is facing problems in trying to meet its liabilities. The state government has now put on hold bills of over Rs 800 crore for a month, till it manages to bridge the gap in its revenue receipts and expenditure.
Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today said he would meet national BJP president Rajnath Singh over the issue of eviction of Sikh farmers from their land in Kutch. He said he had already formed a delegation under Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal to take up the matter with Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra
Modi.
A day after the police-residents clash at Kathunangal in the Majitha constituency, another clash erupted between police personnel and residents of Bal Khurd village, located on the Amritsar- Fatehgarh Churian road, this morning.
The police had to use tear gas shells, fire into the air and resort to a lathi charge to disperse the unruly mob. Stones and bricks were thrown at the policemen.
Ahead of the proposed Lok Sabha elections next year, the BJP is set for consolidation of its organisational structure in all the 13 assembly seats in the state to make the coalition in the state a well-oiled dispensation, says Punjab BJP poll panel chief Balramji Das
Tandon. Addressing mediapersons after holding a meeting of BJP’s ward leaders of Amritsar, Tandon said efforts had been initiated to bring about dynamic changes in the working of the coalition with the Akali Dal.
The mortuary of Government Rajindra Hospital, Patiala is dilapidated for want of funds and neglect on part of the authorities concerned.
Even though the hospital receives a large number of bodies from far-off districts for postmortem examinations on a day-to-day basis, the mortuary does not have a waiting room.
Even basic amenities such as drinking water are not available at the mortuary.
At least 15 dead bodies of passangers of the Punjab Roadways bus that plunged into the Bhakra canal near Sirhind on July 31 have been recovered so far.
Divers, NDRF teams, workers of social organisations, and police personnel are working round the clock to trace the remaining victims, said Gurmeet Singh
Chauhan, who is supervising the rescue operation at the Bhakra canal.
Veteran CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta today indicated that a third front of political parties will be formed during the Lok Sabha elections in 2014 on the basis of alternative economic policies. He claimed even some of the allies of the UPA and the NDA could also join the third front on finding the alternative policies viable and acceptable.
Dasgupta, general secretary of the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), was in the city to participate in the 19th state conference of the AITUC here.
The Punjab Government will set up a 10-bed de-addiction centre on the premises of the Sangrur Civil Hospital. The building is being constructed at a cost of Rs 41 lakh.
The state government has planned to set up similar de-addiction centres in 20 districts. It will also build five 50-bed de-addiction centres in Government Medical Colleges in Patiala, Faridkot and Amritsar; and in civil hospitals at Bathinda and
Jalandhar.
