B A T H I N D A    E D I T I O N

Use of sewage to grow vegetables causes concern
Muktsar, October 20
Despite knowing that vegetables grown with untreated sewage are unfit for the human consumption, the farmers on Jalalabad road here continue to put the lives of consumers in danger by using polluted water.

Encroachments removed to construct rail overbridge
Muktsar, October 20
Complying with the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the district administration today removed the encroachments from the old grain market on Jalalabad road here, which was being used as a cow shelter.

Parliamentary seat swapping to be decided by SAD-BJP 
Fazilka, November 20 Swapping of Amritsar parliamentary seat with Ludhiana would be decided at a high-level meeting of both the coalition partners, BJP and SAD soon. All the same, it would be the party’s preference that the sitting BJP MP Navjot Singh Sidhu should seek re-election from Amritsar.

Manpreet should merge PPP in Cong, says Punjab Youth Congress chief
Muktsar, October 20
Mobilising the cadre of the youth Congress on the home turf of PPP chief Manpreet Singh Badal at Gidderbaha in Muktsar district, Punjab Youth Congress chief, Vikramjit Singh Chaudhary today said Manpreet should merge his party in the Congress rather than coming to a pact for the coming parliamentary polls.

No politics over Valmiki Temple, says Brar
Fazilka, November 20
“There should not be any politics over building Valmiki Temple to woo the voters,” said Jagmeet Singh Brar, former MP, who was also a member of the Congress Working Committee. He said this at a state-level function organised by the Punjab Government at Ram Tirath in Amritsar.

Abohar colleges prove their co-curricular excellence
Abohar, October 20
The remote sub-divisional town of Punjab has once again proved excellence in co-curricular activities besides academic distinction by clinching overall trophies in both the zonal youth and heritage festivals organised by the Department of Youth Welfare of the Panjab University.

Fire breaks out at two places
Abohar, October 20
Two incidents of fire were reported from different localities but people managed to extinguish the fire themselves as the municipal council here has not got the fire tender as yet.

Government to establish memorials: CM
Muktsar, October 20
Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said that to make the youth aware about their history, the state government has decided to build memorials of different historical events and famous persons so that the next generation could get inspiration and develop the state on secular lines.

SAD organises kabbadi tourney
Muktsar, October 20
To keep the youth away from drugs, the district unit of the SAD organised a kabaddi tourney in village Chak Gandha Singhwala here today.

Woman robbed in Abohar
Abohar, October 20
Undeterred by the presence of police at all the crossings besides the city bypass and important roads due to arrival of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal some car-borne miscreants looted a woman who was returning home after attending the weekly satsang at Dera Beas centre here today.

Use of sewage to grow vegetables causes concern
Archit Watts
Tribune News Service

Muktsar, October 20
Despite knowing that vegetables grown with untreated sewage are unfit for the human consumption, the farmers on Jalalabad road here continue to put the lives of consumers in danger by using polluted water.

The farmers use sewage from a nullah flowing along the roadside to grow cauliflower, brinjal, radish, lady finger and other vegetables. This unhealthy practice is going on for years, just on the outskirts of the town, but hardly any action has been taken by the district administration to stop it.

Though a sewage treatment plant has been constructed on this road, it has not yet been inaugurated and the farmers say they were using the sewage due to lack of irrigation facilities.

While travelling on Muktsar-Jalalabad road, one can easily spot a number of farmers irrigating their fields with this black water, which always emanates a foul smell.

Gurdarshan Singh, a farmer, said, “There are two reasons behind using the sewage for growing vegetables. With its use, vegetables grow within days and secondly, many of us are unable to install tubewells and sewage is easily available.”

It may be mentioned here that Muktsar district has recorded 136 cases of cancer per lakh population - the highest in the state. The consumption of contaminated water is also one of the major reasons behind it, but still the farmers are not giving up the use of polluted water.

Amrik Singh, Executive Engineer, Muktsar, Water Supply and Sanitation Department, said, “We have constructed a sewage treatment plant on Jalalabad road, which is running on trial basis and would be made fully functional soon.” He even admitted that the farmers were using sewage for the cultivation of vegetables, due to lack of irrigation facilities.

When contacted for his views, Gurkewal Singh, District Horticulture Officer, said he was busy in a meeting.

Naveen Rani, a housewife, demanded stern action by the district administration to stop these farmers from endangering the lives of the people by growing vegetables using sewage.

Encroachments removed to construct rail overbridge
Tribune News Service

Muktsar, October 20
Complying with the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the district administration today removed the encroachments from the old grain market on Jalalabad road here, which was being used as a cow shelter.

Deputy Commissioner, Muktsar, Paramjit Singh said, "This land will be allotted to 43 shopkeepers, whose shops have to be demolished to construct a railway overbridge on the busy Jalalabad road."

Parliamentary seat swapping to be decided by SAD-BJP 
Our Correspondent

Fazilka, November 20
Swapping of Amritsar parliamentary seat with Ludhiana would be decided at a high-level meeting of both the coalition partners, BJP and SAD soon. All the same, it would be the party’s preference that the sitting BJP MP Navjot Singh Sidhu should seek re-election from Amritsar. A final decision in this regard would be taken by the party high command. This was stated by state BJP president Kamal Sharma here on Saturday while speaking on the sidelines of a party workers’ meeting to mobilise them for the ensuing Lok Sabha polls.

A day after the announcement made by Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal that wheat would be provided at Re one per kg to the poor in the state, the alliance partner in the ruling combine in Punjab has also ruled out the implementation of the Food Security Act in Punjab despite financial crisis.

“The state government decided to run the scheme for providing subsidised food grain from its own resources. For the implementation of subsidised food grains launched by the ruling combine, there are no financial constraints,” claimed Sharma.

Ferozepur MP Sher Singh Ghubaya, former BJP state president Brij Lal Rinwa and a large number of party workers were present at the meeting.

In reply to a query on imposing property and other taxes on the urban population while adopting dual standards, Sharma while shifting the responsibility on the Centre, said it was the compulsion of the state government to impose such taxes to get the state its share of revenue from the Central Government.

Admitting to a delay in the disbursement of payment to beneficiaries of Shagun scheme, the state BJP president said that the backlog would be cleared within the next two months.

Manpreet should merge PPP in Cong, says Punjab Youth Congress chief
Archit Watts
Tribune News Service

Muktsar, October 20
Mobilising the cadre of the youth Congress on the home turf of PPP chief Manpreet Singh Badal at Gidderbaha in Muktsar district, Punjab Youth Congress chief, Vikramjit Singh Chaudhary today said Manpreet should merge his party in the Congress rather than coming to a pact for the coming parliamentary polls.

“Congress is a national party, which has always contested elections for all 13 parliamentary seats in Punjab on its own. So, I would suggest to my party leaders that Manpreet should be told to merge his party in the Congress rather than having an alliance with us,” said Chaudhary, when asked about the possibility of Manpreet’s alliance with the Congress.

He, however, added, “The final decision in this regard will be taken by the party high command. Manpreet has no base even in his own constituency, as he lost the assembly election by a huge margin to our candidate Amarinder Singh Raja Warring.”

Chaudhary further said that the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre was launching projects worth Rs 3,200 crore in the state. However, the SAD-BJP led state government was putting the pictures of Parkash Singh Badal on these projects and schemes to claim credit.

He criticised Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal for holding sangat darshan programmes in the area without inviting the Congress MLA. “The area has been ruled for decades by the Badals, but the pathetic condition of roads, infrastructure, government hospitals sans doctors and paramedical staff, proves their double standards,” said Chaudhary.

The Adhikar Yatra led by Chaudhary had reached Gidderbaha assembly segment late last evening. He also came to Muktsar town and addressed a public gathering. In his speech, he said that this particular area had the largest number of cancer patients in the state, but no work had been done by the Badals in this regard.

No politics over Valmiki Temple, says Brar
Our Correspondent

Fazilka, November 20
“There should not be any politics over building Valmiki Temple to woo the voters,” said Jagmeet Singh Brar, former MP, who was also a member of the Congress Working Committee. He said this at a state-level function organised by the Punjab Government at Ram Tirath in Amritsar.

It is unfortunate that the temple could not be raised despite three foundation stones being laid earlier, Brar said, in an indirect reference to three former CM’s of his party who had laid the foundation stones on various occasions.

“The Congress party is ready to cooperate in building the temple if so desired by the Punjab Government by getting adequate funds sanctioned from the Union Ministry of Social Welfare," said Brar who was in town to attend a function.

Commenting upon the bickering within the state Congress, Brar said it was time for Congressmen to put up a united face as desired by the high command to present a formidable challenge to the SAD-BJP combine in the ensuing Lok Sabha polls.

The party can not lose Ferozepur parliamentary seat if all Congress men work together. It is only due to lack of unity that in the past also, the party has lost the seat, admitted Brar. 

Abohar colleges prove their co-curricular excellence
Our Correspondent

Abohar, October 20
The remote sub-divisional town of Punjab has once again proved excellence in co-curricular activities besides academic distinction by clinching overall trophies in both the zonal youth and heritage festivals organised by the Department of Youth Welfare of the Panjab University.

The DAV College of Education has won the trophy by securing 87 marks in 28 out of 39 competitions in the festival for professional colleges. College principal Dr Venita Singh felicitated the winning students and congratulated their teacher in charge today. Earlier, Bhag Singh Hayer College for Girls had won the overall trophy in the PU degree colleges’ Zonal Youth and Heritage Festival. The college maintained the top position in Punjabi folk dance gidha besides half a dozen off-the-stage competitions and scored more than 81 points. Gopi Chand Arya Mahila College won 24 prizes in the festival.

The college topped in drama, classical dance, group singing, quiz and rangoli. DAV College won 14 prizes while maintaining top position in mimicry.

Fire breaks out at two places
Our Correspondent

Abohar, October 20
Two incidents of fire were reported from different localities but people managed to extinguish the fire themselves as the municipal council here has not got the fire tender as yet.

In the first incident, fire broke out in a small cotton processing unit run by Hakeem Khan on Kandhwala Road neighbouring Nai Abadi.

Some quilts were turned into ash in the incident. No loss of life was reported.

In another incident, electrical gadgets were damaged as fire broke out possibly due to a short circuit in a room located on the ground floor in New Suraj Nagari this evening. The owner, Mool Chand, was helped by his neighbours in controlling the fire that had broken out.

Government to establish memorials: CM
Tribune News Service

Muktsar, October 20
Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said that to make the youth aware about their history, the state government has decided to build memorials of different historical events and famous persons so that the next generation could get inspiration and develop the state on secular lines.

Badal said this while addressing a meeting during a Rain Subai Kirtan Darbar organised by Sant Baba Sukhdev Singh at Roranwali village here last night.

The Chief Minister said it was a major achievement of the SAD-BJP that the government had maintained peace and communal harmony in the state even as it shares its border with Pakistan and a politically volatile state like Jammu and Kashmir.  

SAD organises kabbadi tourney
Tribune News Service

Muktsar, October 20
To keep the youth away from drugs, the district unit of the SAD organised a kabaddi tourney in village Chak Gandha Singhwala here today.

Circle president, SAD, Manjinder Singh Bittu, son of Akal Takht chief, Jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh, was the chief guest on the occasion. He gave away Rs 11,000 to the tournament committee to further promote this rural sport.

Woman robbed in Abohar

Abohar, October 20
Undeterred by the presence of police at all the crossings besides the city bypass and important roads due to arrival of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal some car-borne miscreants looted a woman who was returning home after attending the weekly satsang at Dera Beas centre here today.

Feeling shocked over the incident, Bimla Rani, a resident of Street No. 15-B told the police at the Dera complex near a convent school on the Hindumalkot road that a Maruti Swift car driven by a turbaned youth halted near her and three women occupants offered her lift. As she boarded the car, they diverted it to Fazilka road, snatched the gold chain and bangles that she was wearing and threw her on the road. — OC