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Eyeing LS elections, govt hastens to disburse grants under welfare plans
Sulking Sidhu meets Rajnath, told to attend core committee meeting
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Shanta prepares ground for BJP chief’s visit
Panel seeks suggestions from public to tackle waterlogging in Muktsar
Druggist booked for fleecing patients
Cong for probe into bungling of funds meant for riot victims
Rural scheme to cover Punjab: MP
Mahilpur college students boycott
classes, back suspended principal
Tainted Tech Dept officer in line for promotion
BKU flays crackdown on activists
3 missing Navodaya students still untraced
Cop booked for taking bribe of Rs 16.5 lakh
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Eyeing LS elections, govt hastens to disburse grants under welfare plans
For, the beneficiaries of these schemes constitute a major chunk of the voters in Punjab and the ruling coalition doesn’t want to offend them ahead of the Lok Sabha elections due next year. More so when its political rivals are working overtime to consolidate their base. Sources in the Finance Department told The Tribune that they had received instructions from their political bosses that now onwards no payments under welfare schemes were to be withheld. The main among these plans are the SAD-BJP government’s flagship Atta-Dal Scheme, power subsidy bill to Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) and old age/widow pensions. Payment on priority The state’s priority will be to release pension (Rs 500 crore) on the last day of every month, followed by the dues for other social sector schemes. The salary bills will also be cleared on a timely basis. So far this year, the state government has been slow in disbursing these grants. Data available with The Tribune shows that funds released for these schemes were quite less even though half of the financial year had elapsed. Except for the power subsidy reimbursed to PSPCL (Rs 500 crore a month) and the funds released under the Atta-Dal Scheme (Rs 180 crore has been released of the allocated Rs 350 crore), the government has been slow in releasing grants. This fiscal, the government has paid only Rs 14 crore of the Rs 46.50 crore earmarked for old age pension. There are 14.34 lakh beneficiaries under the plan. Similarly, Rs 14.21 crore has been released as pension for the differently abled even though the allocated amount stands at Rs 48 crore. Under the Shagun Scheme, the state has released Rs 44 crore of the Rs 152 crore okayed for the current financial year. Under Bebe Nanki Ladli Beti Scheme (the beneficiaries include the girls born after April 1, 2011, to families covered under the Atta-Dal Scheme with parents having adopted the two-child norm), bills worth Rs 18.35 crore have been submitted as against Rs 62.50 crore allotted for the 2013-14 fiscal. Outlay for new schemes Officials in the Finance Department said even as they were now expediting the release of all pending payments for social security schemes, they were also making financial outlays for initiating several other welfare schemes that the government had announced in its budget proposals for the year. Among these are Mai Bhago Vidya Scheme (bicycles to schoolgirls), Bhagat Puran Singh Sehat Yojana (health insurance scheme), Nanhi Chaan scholarships (given to girls of families covered under the Atta-Dal Scheme for professional courses like nursing, dental, medical, engineering and polytechnic) and the Mukh Mantri Awas Yojana (for construction of one lakh dwellings for the poor).
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Sulking Sidhu meets Rajnath, told to attend core committee meeting
Amritsar, September 21 Also, Sidhu has said that he would attend the party’s core committee meeting in Chandigarh on September 23, which would be presided over by Rajnath Singh. Incidentally, it would be after months that the Amritsar MP would be attending any BJP event. Talking to The Tribune on phone from New Delhi, Sidhu said Rajnath had called him for a meeting and he submitted a list of his grievances to the BJP chief. The meeting comes a couple of days after the cricketer-turned-politician had met Punjab BJP affairs in charge Shanta Kumar over the same issue. “I handed over a three-page letter to Rajnath Singh, mentioning the problems being faced by me, including scuttling of my pet projects, diversion of funds from Amritsar and boycott of my wife by local SAD leaders,” he said. Sidhu, however, refused to divulge any further details about the meeting, also attended by BJP general secretary (organisation) Ramlal. About the core committee meeting in Chandigarh, Sidhu said he agreed to attend it after the BJP chief directed him that “he must do so”. He, however, clarified that he would be attending the meeting as the “ambassador of Amritsar” and that he had no personal agenda. About any plans to meet the SAD leadership to iron out the differences during his Chandigarh visit, he said, “I have no idea. Rajnathji must be aware of it.” Sidhu was earlier conspicuous by his absence during Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s first rally after taking over as the BJP poll panel chief at Madhopur in Pathankot on June 23. Subsequently, he also chose to skip the state BJP’s executive meeting in Amritsar on July 7-8 despite Rajnath Singh attending it. The MP reiterated that he would not relax until his fight for Amritsar’s “justifiable rights” reached its logical conclusion. “My fight is for the people of Amritsar.” On ruling alliance leaders getting peeved after his outburst, he asked, “What is my fault? Why I am an eyesore for them?” He said he had committed no wrong by raising his voice for Amritsar’s development.
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Shanta prepares ground for BJP chief’s visit
Chandigarh, September 21 Rajnath Singh is slated to meet leaders from Punjab on Monday and preside over the party's core committee meeting. Among the issues discussed by Shanta with senior leaders is the party's relationship with its coalition partner, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD). The stand taken by MP Navjot Singh Sidhu on the alleged diversion of funds meant for Amritsar's development and his hard-hitting statements against the SAD-BJP government also came up for discussion. At this stage, the BJP leadership, which is trying to bring more regional parties in the NDA fold, cannot afford to annoy the SAD, the BJP's oldest ally. Sidhu has been alleging that certain BJP leaders have been working in tandem with senior SAD leaders to marginalise him politically in Amritsar. Sources said Shanta Kumar was also given feedback about the functioning and performance of the BJP ministers in the Parkash Singh Badal-led government. Senior party activists, it is learnt, are not satisfied with the performance of some of the ministers. It, however, it still unclear whether the party's ministers will see any swapping of portfolios.
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Panel seeks suggestions from public to tackle waterlogging in Muktsar
Muktsar, September 21 Lt Gen BS Dhaliwal (retd), technical adviser to the Chief Minister, who heads the team formed to draft a drainage infrastructure master plan for waterlogged areas in southern Punjab, told The Tribune that despite getting information from the officials concerned, the team had also invited suggestions from the public. "We will submit our report within 10 days to the Chief Minister. We are already getting letters, phone calls and e-mails from people residing in areas affected by waterlogging. We are compiling the entire information," said Dhaliwal, adding that they were open to getting inputs from the public. "Every bit of information related to the master plan is discussed at three levels. Chief engineers of a number of departments and experts from some universities are involved in this process," said Dhaliwal. He said: "Our report will not only suggest ways to tackle waterlogging but also elaborate on alternative measures like fisheries that can be promoted in such areas. Further, if the bio-drainage system needs to be promoted, the report may suggest how it can be done by altering the design of drains and their level". Earlier, two teams of the Planning Commission of India, one led by Dr Mihir Shah and the other led by Dr JS Samra had visited the area and suggested ways to tackle the problem. The latest report of Dr Samra-led committee has even mentioned that designs of most of the drains were faulty.
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Druggist booked for fleecing patients
Faridkot, September 21 Punit Tayal, the proprietor of Universal Chemists, was booked for cheating and forgery after an inquiry by the Faridkot police found him guilty. There were a number of complaints against the chemist who was allotted five shops at the medical college through tendering process two years ago. The police had initiated an inquiry against him after Jaspal Singh, a poor farmer from Ahahal village, reported the matter to it. Jaspal's daughter is undergoing treatment for cancer at the medical college. Concerned over the matter, a number of farmers, students and employee organisations had held a dharna at the medical college last week. A delegation had also met Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal in Chandigarh two days ago and apprised him of the loot of patients by the pharmacist. Since buying medicines from the shops within the hospital premises is mandatory to avail relief from the CM Cancer Relief Fund, the chemist was selling drugs at exorbitant rates. "We are investigating the matter. No one involved in this racket will be spared," said GS Randhwan, Senior Superintendent of Police, Faridkot. The police has constituted a special team to arrest the accused, he said. Earlier, a team of Health Department had raided these chemist shops on August 31. The officials had found several physician samples of expensive drugs stocked in these shops. These samples were being sold to the gullible patients from rural areas at highly inflated rates. Besides,
the Health Department team had also found that unqualified persons were selling medicines at these stores. "Selling physician samples is an illegal act. The stores had also employed unqualified persons to handle sale counters. It is a sheer violation of norms," said Dr Baldev Singh Sahota, Civil Surgeon, Faridkot. "We have already sent a report in this regard to the higher authorities. Action will be taken against the proprietor soon," added Dr
Sahota.
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Cong for probe into bungling of funds meant for riot victims
Chandigarh, September 21 In a letter written to the Prime Minister, Bajwa said the Ludhiana Sikh Migrants Welfare Board, which represents these victims, had alleged that some politicians embezzled funds to the tune of several crores by using fake identity cards. As many as 22,000 Sikh migrants, who were victims of the 1984 riots, had been denied their dues and they must get justice, demanded Bajwa. These victims were to be paid a compensation amount of Rs 2 lakh per family after being issued a red card. However, fake identity cards were issued to some people who siphoned off the rehabilitation grant. “Though the Vigilance Bureau conducted a probe into the matter, it was later dropped. These people must get justice,” said Bajwa. Hailing the Union Government’s decision to enhance the Dearness Allowance (DA) of its 80 lakh employees, Bajwa said it was ironical that the SAD-BJP Government had not released the DA installments of its employees since January.
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Rural scheme to cover Punjab: MP
Chandigarh, September 21 This was revealed by Congress MP from Sangrur Vijay Inder Singla. He said he had written to the Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Kumari Selja in February 2013, seeking inclusion of Punjab in the scheme. The minister had now assured him that Punjab would be included soon as the coverage of the scheme was being expanded, he said. The MP said he had also sought a pilot project from the Social Empowerment Ministry to accelerate campaign against liquor by village panchayats, a large majority of which belong to Sangrur and Barnala districts. This would motivate panchayats which had taken up the fight against this social evil. He said he had already given Rs 2 lakh each to such villages for development from his MPLAD funds. The MP lashed out at the SAD-BJP government for rejecting "liquor-free resolutions" passed by the panchayats on flimsy grounds to protect interests of the liquor mafia in the state.
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Mahilpur college students boycott
classes, back suspended principal
The
fallout The
standoff
Mahilpur, September 21 The classes remained suspended amid the ongoing standoff between the management and the suspended Principal, Dr SS Randhawa. The police too remained deployed at the college complex to avoid any law and order situation. The Principal's office is still in the possession of Dr Randhawa. It remained locked as he was said to be away to Hoshairpur. Talking to the Tribune, protesting students said they swore by Dr Randhawa, who had worked hard for the expansion of the college, introduced several new courses and helped the youth of the region by providing them with more career options. Taking a dig at the management committee and the Sikh Educational Council, which runs the institution, the students said these bodies had virtually abandoned the college and had suddenly woken up to take action against Dr Randhawa. Interestingly, most of the students, who The Tribune spoke to, were from the Physical Education Department headed by Sardul Singh, a close aide of Dr Randhawa. "We fail to understand why the management wants the autonomy granted to the college by the UGC be withdrawn. This would affect hundreds of students pursuing courses not recognised by Panjab University," said Sarabjit Singh, a student leader pursuing MPEd. Similarly, a number of students spoke in favour of Dr Randhawa. Sardul Singh said: "At least 1,200 students pursuing courses like Masters in English, mathematics, human rights, women and general studies, music, Hindi and BSc (medical) and MSc (mathematics) would lose an academic year if the autonomy to the college is withdrawn as these courses are not recognised by PU." Meanwhile, as the classrooms were locked the staff members were seen idling away in the corridors. A few of them came up in support of Dr Randhawa while others maintained complete silence. Dr Jagg Singh, who has been named the new Principal by the management committee, also preferred to remain mum on the issue.
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Beant Singh’s killer Rajoana shifted to PGI after chest pain
Patiala, September 21 Lodged at the Patiala Central Jail, Rajoana was shifted to the local Rajindra Hospital in the morning from where doctors referred him to the PGI, Chandigarh, for advanced coronary tests. Senior Superintendent of Police Hardyal Singh Mann said tight security arrangements had been made to shift the high-profile criminal to Chandigarh. Sources at the PGI said Rajoana's condition was stated to be stable and he had been admitted to the cardiac centre ICU. Rajoana has already completed over 17 years in various jails and his hanging execution orders, issued by a Chandigarh Court, are pending due to his mercy petition.
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Tainted Tech Dept officer in line for promotion
Bathinda, September 21 In a virtual pat on the back of the officer, TC Bhagat, whose integrity had been rated as “doubtful” in his annual confidential report (ACR), the Technical Education and Industrial Training Department has empanelled him as one of the officers slated for promotion as Joint Director. Sources said the then principal secretary had in 2006-07 given adverse comments against Bhagat that the latter “has very bad reputation for honesty and his integrity is doubtful. His compulsory retirement would be in public interest”. In the subsequent ACR too, he was rated as an “average officer” by the authorities. Even with such a damaging censure, nothing was done as political patronage came into play and he somehow managed to get the remarks amended, which again were a violation of the Department of Personnel and Training guidelines on such issues. The amendments in the ACR are illegal and beyond the jurisdiction of any minister because rules are clear that in case remarks given by the Minister-in charge tend to substantially change the assessment report, the matter has to be referred by the Administrative Secretary concerned to the Chief Minister for a final decision, the sources said. Moreover, rules suggest that the Minister-in charge, while recording his remarks, will not expunge or alter earlier observations made by the reporting, reviewing or accepting authorities but will only record his own views in addition thereto, they pointed out. But in Bhagat’s ACR, all norms were thrown to the winds for reasons best known to the authorities. He should not have been given an extension in service as he had already completed the normal tenure of service in April, the sources said. Interestingly, while working as the Deputy Director in Chandigarh, he had also been given the additional charge of Principal, Government ITI, Ferozepur (Boys), besides Headmaster (grade-III post), Government ITI, Ferozepur (Girls), which are nearly 250 km from the head office, the sources said. These institutes have been given a grant of nearly Rs 6 crore for upgradation and modernisation and the principal has a final say on how the money is to be spent, the sources pointed out. AR Talwar, Principal Secretary, Technical Education and Industrial Training, said he was unaware about the history of the case or Bhagat’s posting but would look into the matter. The record of all in line for promotion would be “scrutinised minutely” before the final decision was taken, he added.
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BKU flays crackdown on activists
Moga, September 21 “We were exercising our democratic right yesterday and had organised a peaceful agitation. But, the government cracked down on the protests and arrested several farmers,” he said. Kokri said they opposed the shifting of meters outside the houses as it was against the provisions of the supply code of state electricity regulatory commission. He also criticised the state government for hurriedly issuing a notification to acquire 3,245 acres of land in 20 villages before the new land acquisition Bill comes into force. The other demands include: plots be sanctioned to landless farmers; farm loans and electricity payment arrears be waived without any pre condition. Kokri also demanded more subsidy for agro-based industries, better education and health facilities for farmers and improvement of public distribution system.
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3 missing Navodaya students still untraced
Barnala, September 21 These students are: Buta Singh (Dhillwan village), Parminder Singh (Joga village in Mansa district) and Jaspreet Singh (Barnala). Harwinder Singh, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Tapa, said though there was no evidence to suggest any foul play, the Tapa police had registered a case under Section 363 (kidnapping) of the IPC. The DSP said the whereabouts of missing students were sill unknown. He said investigations into the case were on. The school staff and the parents of the children have also launched a search.
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Cop booked for taking bribe of Rs 16.5 lakh
Moga, September 21 A case under sections 420 and 120B of the IPC has been registered against Constable Jaswant Singh of Brahmanwala village and Jaspal Singh of Bilaspur village at Nihalsinghwala police station, said Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) Iqbal Hussain. The two are still at large. The complainant, Sukhdev Raj alleged the accused failed to get jobs for his sons, Surinder Pal and Rajinder Pal in the state mandi board even after taking Rs 16.50 lakh from him. He further alleged the duo even refused to return the money. Hussain said that prima facie it was established that Jaswant Singh had taken the money and an inquiry had been marked into the complaint.
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Muktsar, September 21
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