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I've tried to accommodate all groups, says Bajwa
Capt: Will meet Sonia over discontent
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Indians lodged in Nigerian jail being ‘harassed’
16 linemen booked for hurting religious
sentiments
6 run over by truck near Jalandhar
The truck that ran over six persons before crashing into a divider on the Jalandhar-Jammu national highway near Kahnpur village on
Thursday. Tribune photo: Sarabjit Singh
Dissent high in Gurdaspur BJP
CPI to decide poll strategy tomorrow
Smartphones enhance attention: US Sikh scientist
Ludhiana gets new MC commissioner; 12 officers shifted
Sarpanch framed at Rakhra’s behest, say protesting villagers
Delivering ‘parshad’ at your doorstep
Won’t walk out of PIMS: Rakhra
Patiala gets 50 buses under JNNURM
Finally, grant for panchayats elected unopposed
Anti-encroachment drive falls flat in Abohar
Grief, shock at killed NRI’s village
Manjit Kaur and Avtar Singh, sister and brother-in-law of the deceased NRI, Jaspal Singh (inset), at Bharo-Majara village on Thursday. Tribune file photo
Cong slams govt for issuing notices to
teachers
Govt to release more funds for cancer treatment
Over 1,200 patients examined at free
camps
ASI murder accused allowed to be handcuffed
Fraudsters targeting those with ATM cards
4 held in dowry case
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I've tried to accommodate all groups, says Bajwa
Chandigarh, January 2 "The decision on the PPCC list was taken after long-drawn discussions with different groups and with the approval of party president Sonia Gandhi and in charge of party affairs Shakeel Ahmed. But we are still open to discussions at the party forum”. There has been a virtual revolt against the PPCC chief with sitting Congress legislator from Fatehgarh Churian Tripit Rajinder Singh Bajwa resigning from the PPCC yesterday. Former minister Jagmohan Singh Kang has already announced to resign from the post of general secretary. Rajya Sabha member and former Union Minister Ashwani Kumar has also lambasted Bajwa for "ignoring" senior Congress leaders. Punjab Mahila Congress chief Malti Thapar has written to AICC vice-president Rahul Gandhi, objecting to the manner in which "women leaders have been ignored in the PPCC list”. Bajwa said as the head of the (Congress) family, he had tried to accommodate all groups and communities. The party has called a meeting of vice-presidents, general secretaries, secretaries and district presidents on January 6 to zero in on issues to be highlighted during campaigning for the coming parliamentary elections. It has decided to focus on four major issues, including the drug menace in the state. The party has constituted a committee to look into the power rates in the state. It proposes to chalk out an action plan to prevent acid attacks. The party will also highlight the problem of unemployment in the state. It is considering submitting a complaint to the Election Commissioner against the tall promises made by the SAD in its poll manifesto in this regard, sources said. As part of poll preparations, Congress block presidents have been asked to constitute booth-level committees.
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Moga Congress leaders revolt
Moga, January 2 The leaders, at a meeting chaired by Sathi, rejected the nomination of former minister Darshan Singh Brar as president of the district unit of the party. Sathi said discontent was brewing against Bajwa’s leadership across the state because several party loyalists had been humiliated with low positions in the party organisation. He alleged that the newly appointed district president had stabbed him in the back during the Moga byelection and ensured his defeat. “It is an open secret in Moga that Brar supported the Badal family despite efforts by former CM Amarinder Singh to pacify him,” Sathi said. “The jumbo list of office-bearers has created fissures in the party. This could have been avoided by bringing in senior, loyal and honest leaders on the top order of the organisation,” the sulking leaders said. Kaka Sukhjit Singh Lohgarh, SGPC member, also said they would not accept Brar as the district president.
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3 more may quit PPCC
Jalandhar, January 2 Sources said the three leaders would hold a meeting tomorrow. They have been inducted as permanent invitees in the re-cast PPCC. The sources said the leaders were of the view that they could have at least given the post of vice-president.
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Capt: Will meet Sonia over discontent
Talking to The Tribune over the phone from Goa, Capt Amarinder said there was an urgent need to tackle the situation keeping in view of the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. "People are feeling upset over the new list of the PPCC office-bearers because most of the senior leaders have been ignored while few others have not been given the responsibility which they deserved," he said. Alleging that the list was not balanced, he said Bajwa could have done a better job by presenting a real picture of seniority and loyalty of the leaders before the high command.However, he appealed to the party leaders to remain united at this juncture when the Lok Sabha poll was round the corner. "I will try my best to restore the dignity, respect and honour of party leaders who have not been given the positions they deserved in the organisation," he added.
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State gaining indirectly in Centre’s direct benefit plan
Faridkot, January 2 Faridkot, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Fatehgarh Sahib and Barnala were part of the 105 districts across the country where the second phase of the scheme was implemented yesterday. Till December 31, a domestic cylinder used to cost Rs 437.50 in these districts. But now, the market price of an unsubsidised cylinder has risen to Rs 1,311.50 — the subsidy on limited cylinders in that category will be credited to the Aadhaar-linked bank account of a consumer. Whether the consumer stands to gain or lose is still being debated, but the Punjab Excise and Taxation Department is sure to benefit. For, its earning of 4.4 per cent VAT on the billed amount of each LPG cylinder will rise by around three-fold. Before the start of the scheme, every domestic cylinder was billed at Rs 437.50 and the department was earning Rs 19.22 as VAT. But now as the billing amount has increased to Rs 1,311.50, the VAT percentage has shot up to Rs 55.27 per cylinder. In Faridkot district alone, having about 1.10 lakh domestic LPG connections, the department will earn Rs 40 lakh extra as VAT on the sale of one cylinder per household. The extra earning in bigger districts like Ludhiana and Jalandhar will cross over Rs 2 crore if one cylinder is delivered to each household. Confirming the development, Varinder Pannu, Assistant Excise and Taxation Commissioner, Faridkot, said VAT was chargeable on billed amount. Sources in various gas agencies said about 55 per cent of LPG consumers in Faridkot district had so far got their bank accounts linked to Aadhaar cards to avail subsidy under the scheme. As such, the remaining consumers could end up paying the entire amount of Rs 1,311.50, without getting any subsidy refund.
How Punjab profits
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Indians lodged in Nigerian jail being ‘harassed’
Hoshiarpur, January 2 Capt Shailesh has stated in the letter that the Nigerian court had granted them bail thrice, but they were not released. The 10 Indians had been facing hardships and deserted by the company they were working for. A Nigerian naval ship NNS Predator had intercepted MT Akshay off the oil-rich Sangana river sector and found cargo suspected to be stolen crude oil. All 23 people on board the ship (10 Indians, two Ghanaians and 11 Nigerians) were arrested and handed over to the country’s anti-corruption police — the Economic And Financial Crimes Commission
(EFCC) — for investigation and prosecution for oil theft. Capt Shailesh has refuted the charge of theft of crude oil. He has claimed that the Indians were being implicated in the case and the oil that was told to be crude oil was the fuel on which the ship ran. He wrote that the ship, MT
Akshay, belonged to Veesham Shipping and Krishna Shipping, and owned by Indians Ajay Bhatia and Chander Kumar
Shroff. They had left for Port Harcourt in Nigeria on November 23, 2012, on the direction of Bhatia and
Chander. The letter reads, “We were arrested in Nigeria on November 25, 2012. We are not getting response from the company. Our salaries have not been paid since November 2012, as a result of which we are unable to get help and can’t send any help to our families. The ship owners are not responding.” He further writes, “After being arrested by the Nigerian Navy, we were kept at a place for nearly 50 days without food and water. When we were all about to die, we were deboarded from the Nigerian Naval and handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
(EFCC) of Nigeria. All our valuables, qualification certificates and valuables were left in the ship. After a week, we were lodged in jail and are suffering a lot since.” Capt Shailesh has urged the Indian Government to intervene and get them released.
Victims of ill-treatment
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16 linemen booked for hurting religious
sentiments
Fatehgarh Sahib, January 2 Out of these, four linemen are from Faridkot, three from Sangrur, one each from Hoshiarpur, Patiala, Barnala, Fazilka, Fatehgarh Sahib, Abohar, Kotkapura, Muktsar and Malout. The protesting linemen, who had raised slogans against the government at the conference in Fatehgarh Sahib, were booked for hurting religious sentiments. Though swarup of Guru Granth Sahib was placed there, the conference was political in nature. Amardeep Singh Dharni, former president of District Bar Association, said if it was a religious function then why were SAD leaders making political speeches. He said everyone has the right to raise their demands before political leaders. Leading lawyer Hardev Singh Rai said this was a politically motivated case. A majority of the lawyers said the case would not stand in court as it was a political conference not a religious one. Raising demands at such a conference did not amount to hurting religious sentiments as every citizen had the right to protest. However, HS Sandhu, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Fatehgarh Sahib, justified the registration of the FIR. The police had made a preventive arrest on that day and sent them to Nabha Jail. We registered the FIR after recording the statements of the organisers of the conference, he said. Sandhu said the district magistrate had remanded them to police custody up to January 3. He said the accused linemen should not have protested at the conference as religious leaders were present.
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6 run over by truck near Jalandhar
Jalandhar January 2 Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Jaspreet Singh Sindhu said the accident occurred at 6.15 am when the victims were crossing a divider with iron grills on the busy highway. He identified the deceased as Raju (36), his wife Lajwanti, their son Raja (7), Sonu (22), his wife Aarti (all residents of Mou in UP) and auto driver Vinod Kumar (35) of Jalandhar. Raju’s younger son Karan and relative Pardeep (20) were admitted to hospital with multiple fractures. Pardeep said they were waiting fora bus near Kahnpur village when they decided to take an auto. The Senior Superintendent of Police said the police had identified the truck driver, who was a resident of Fatehgarh Sahib. A case under Section 304 of the IPC had been registered against him with the Maqsudan police station.
They were on their way to visit ailing kin The deceased couples, working as labourers for a
construction work at Jagadhri in Haryana, had come to visit an ailing kin in Jalandhar. Raju was the sole
bread-winner of the family with his parents and two physically challenged brothers dependent on him,
said his wailing uncle Gulab Chand. Three-year-old Karan (see pic) lost his parents Raju and Lajwanti and elder brother Raja in the accident. Admitted to the trauma centre at the Civil Hospital, Jalandhar, the bewildered child kept crying, demanding that
he be taken to his mother.
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Dissent high in Gurdaspur BJP
Gurdaspur, January 2 Most of the party workers preferred to stay away from the functions, putting the district leaders in a spot of bother. Not more than 100 workers, besides general secretary (organisation) Ajay Jambwal and BJP state cultural cell president Kishan Lal Sharma, attended a state-level cultural function in Dhariwal last month. Similar was the case at the birthday celebrations of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee held at Behrampur on December 25. Only 49 workers participated in spite of senior leaders — Gurdaspur Lok Sabha seat in-charge Vinod Sharma and state vice-president Umesh Shakher — attending the function. The biggest jolt for the party came during the Sadhbawna Samaroh held on December 30 in Dhariwal. The arrangements were made for 700 people, but only 200 turned up despite the presence of bigwigs such as former Gurdaspur parliamentarian Vinod Khanna. “The SAD did not invite us to Christian Diwas held last month, so we decided to hold our own function to appease the community that has 17 per cent vote share in the constituency. The function, however, proved a damp squib with workers cold shouldering the proceedings,” a BJP leader said. Observers said things were running smoothly for the party only in Pathankot. “The Gurdaspur and Batala districts are turning out to be the proverbial Achilles heel for the party. In the 2009 general elections, the Congress managed a lead of 18,000 in Batala. In the 2012 assembly elections, a
Congress candidate got a lead of 20,000 votes, giving jitters to the BJP,” a senior leader said. “The high command has instructed the Batala BJP leadership to pull up its socks. The party is ridden with dissensions in both Batala and Gurdaspur. This will make the task of the party candidate all the more difficult in the general elections,” another leader claimed.
Sulking workers
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CPI to decide poll strategy tomorrow
Chandigarh, January 2 A senior CPI leader said the party top brass had given a freed hand to its state units to select allies in their respective states. Dr Joginder Dayal, member of the national executive, said no decision had been taken yet for striking an alliance with the Congress. He said the Sanjha Morcha would like to contest the elections as a one political entity. In the past, the CPI and the Congress have jointly contested elections in the state. These parties used to be described as natural allies in the seventies. The Congress used to leave the Bathinda constituency for the CPI. It appears, that Sanjha Morcha’s other constituents may not be in favour of a truck with the Congress in the state.
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Smartphones enhance attention: US Sikh scientist
New York, January 2 “In our culture today, we often don't have scarcity of food or gadgets or knowledge. The scarcity has shifted to mindfulness,” said Singh in a release issued by the University of Michigan. “Humans tend to forget, especially under stress. But smartphones don't operate that way,” he said. During one of his classes, Singh challenged his students to design mobile apps to help users set and meet 'wellness' milestones. The apps his team developed focused on delivering messages to users at a set time or place. An app named 'Balance', developed for senior citizens, offers easy and routine access to short exercise videos that could improve coordination and prevent falls. 'WeeAddition' app guides women through pregnancy while 'Joggle' is a collaborative art, poetry and music app that could encourage creativity. Another app named 'College Granny' is aimed to help students balance studying, socialising and develop healthy habits. The users can set the app to remind them at appropriate times to, say, go to sleep, take a break from reading, or quit after a particular number of drinks at a bar, said the release. “The goal of this course was to bring harmony between what we know and what we do,” Singh added.
— IANS
Wonder apps
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Ludhiana gets new MC commissioner; 12 officers shifted
Chandigarh, January 2 Anirudh Tewari has now been posted the Secretary, Power and Non-Conventional Energy, along with the charge of Chief Executive Officer, Punjab Bureau of Investment Promotion. Seema Jain has been made the Secretary, Science Technology and Environment, along with the additional charge of Secretary, Personnel as well as Vigilance. Rakesh Kumar Verma will be the Secretary, Technical Education and Industrial Training. Gurpreet Kaur Sapra has been appointed Special Secretary, Agriculture, while Kumar Amit will be the SDM of Malout as well as Gidderbaha. Kumar Saurabh Raj would officiate as the SDM, Kapurthala. Among the PCS officers transferred today are Shivdular Singh Dhillon, who has been appointed Additional Excise and Taxation Commissioner. Daljit Singh will be the Additional Director (Administration), Punjab State Agriculture Marketing Board, in addition to Additional Director (Administration), Directorate of Agriculture. Amrit Kaur Gill has been made Deputy Excise and Taxation Commissioner, Ludhiana, while Rishi Pal Singh will be Additional Deputy Commissioner (General), Kapurthala. Darbara Singh has been posted as District Transport Officer, Hoshiarpur. The Punjab Government has also promoted Khubi Ram as Inspector General of Police in the pay scale of Rs 37,400-67,000 plus grade pay of Rs 10,000. He is a 1984 batch CRPF officer who joined the Punjab Police on deputation in 1991.
Who gets what (IAS) Rahul Tiwari: Commissioner, MC, Ludhiana
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Sarpanch framed at Rakhra’s behest, say protesting villagers
Patiala, January 2 Now out on bail, Jajj Nijamniwala has accused Rakhra of “trying to falsely implicate him”. He said he would bring the matter to the notice of YAD president Bikram Singh Majithia. However, Rakhra and the local police claim that Nijamniwala was arrested for possessing illegal weapons and deny that they were trying to implicate him. Once considered close to Rakhra, Nijamniwala was arrested on December 20 on the charges of carrying an illegal pistol and four live cartridges in his car. However, a day after his arrest, his supporters alleged he was arrested for breaking ties with the Rakhra faction and contesting the sarpanch elections on his own. He was released from jail on bail on January 1. “Ever since I contested the poll against Rakhra's advice, he has been trying to implicate me in one case or the other. I will bring the matter to the notice of Majithia,” alleged Nijamniwala. He further alleged that the police was acting on Rakhra’s behest. The issue got more serious with the Nijamniwala group that had earlier held the charge of Samana Truck Union not allowing trucks to ferry goods. The police had been put on alert. Nijamniwala’s supporters and the state Panchayat Union have also questioned the police action against their leader, alleging, “Jajj had been framed on the behest of senior leaders.” However, Nijamniwala refused to comment on the issue. Earlier, he faced criminal cases, including one for attempt to murder, wherein he later got a clean chit. Denying any involvement in the case, Rakhra said, “Some politicians are trying to put the blame on me. Nijamniwala is free to approach Majithia or anyone else in SAD. Our policy is clear on not sheltering criminals.” Senior police officers confirmed the accused was arrested with illegal weapons and that there was ample proof against him.
CHARGES & COUNTER CHARGES Ever since I contested the panchayat poll against Rakhra's advice, he has been trying to implicate me in one case or the other. I will bring the matter to the notice of Majithia. — Jajj Nijamniwala, sarpanch Some politicians are trying to put the blame on me. Nijamniwala is free to approach Majithia or anyone else in SAD. Our policy is clear on not sheltering criminals. — Surjit Singh Rakhra, cabinet minister
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Delivering ‘parshad’ at your doorstep
Amritsar, January 2 A venture of Bangalore-based young entrepreneur Goonjan Mal, it is a website offering ‘parshad’ and related religious symbols through courier from various shrines, including the Golden Temple, Vaishno Devi, Shirdi Sai Temple, Jagannath Puri and Sri Venkateshwara temple. From the Golden Temple, ‘pinni prasad’ (a non-perishable item) is available online in two packages. For Rs 501, one can get four packets of ‘pinni prasad’, a locket with ‘kangha’ (a religious symbol) and a photograph of the Gurus. The Rs 751 packet has an ‘ashtadhatu kada’ as an additional item. There are three payment options: credit, debit card or cash on delivery. “We have so far catered to around 500 devotees from Canada, Singapore, Australia and Dubai, besides across the country. A five-layer uniform packing is done for the consignment to be delivered abroad whereas three-layer for within the country. The average delivery time is five to seven days in India and 10 to 12 days internationally,” says Goonjan. Prepared in ‘desi ghee’, the ‘pinni parshad’ is made as per the Sikh traditions. Introduced in October last, it is packed after performing ‘ardas’. This form of the ‘parshad’ tends to survive longer as compared to the traditional ‘karrah parshad’. Besides, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) has opened two separate counters on the temple premises. Devotees can take home ‘pinni parshad’ and a ‘siropa’ for Rs 151 or they can get a packet of 80 gm of ‘pinni prasad’ for Rs 20.There is a sale of around Rs 2 lakh daily at these counters. An engineer from the Birla Institute of Technology and Sciences in Pilani, Goonjan, who left his high-paying corporate job to open this portal, says the idea is to make it convenient to have religious offerings delivered at home. “Ours is more like a technology-enabled logistics provider that connects holy shrines to devotees, especially those who have limitations to pay visit physically. We take extra preventive measures so that the ‘maryada’ (religious code) is not violated during the delivering process,” he says. Goonjan says they also deliver customised kits for Haj and Umrah pilgrimages as well as religious art work of over 50 temples across the country.
SGPC secretary Dalmegh Singh has opposed the idea of selling ‘parshad’ through courier but expressed “helplessness” in check the move. “It is just not possible to observe ‘maryada’ while sending ‘parshad’ through courier like any other goods. We cannot detect the dispatcher because counters of ‘pinni parshad’ are open for all. Still, we can exhort devotees not to encourage the practice of getting it through courier,” he maintains. Sikh scholar and SGPC secretary Roop Singh and SGPC member Kiranjot Kaur say ethics demand that ‘parshad’ should only be taken after paying obeisance at any shrine. If it is dispatched through courier, it violates ‘maryada’. But, Dr Jasbir Singh Sabar, a Sikh scholar who served as SGPC’s director of a religious study course, says. “There is nothing wrong in it if devotees who are unable to visit the temple due to some reason get the ‘parshad’ at their doorstep. Moreover, there is no mention of mode of sending the ‘parshad’ in Gurbani,” he says.
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Won’t walk out of PIMS: Rakhra
Patiala, January 2 This move will help the PIMS society appoint members (most of them associated with a private hospital chain) who will bring more than Rs 100 crore to run the
PIMS. Highly placed sources close to Rakhra said the minister and his brother Charanjit Singh Dhaliwal had held a closed-door meeting with the CM a few days ago to discuss the matter threadbare. One of the PIMS directors told The Tribune that the PIMS society was facing losses amounting to more than Rs 50 crore and the fiscal situation would improve only after the new members were inducted. "We want a professional body with experts in the field to run the
PIMS," he stated. Sources say certain senior officials and ministers are against the move to induct new members and want the government to look for another way out. When approached, Rakhra said: " We are not quitting the
PIMS. All issues will be resolved with the induction of seven new members. I have apprised the Chief Minister on the matter and a decision will soon be taken and made public. We are not relinquishing our posts." The PIMS was allotted to the
Rakhra-led society on a 99-year lease in the public, private partnership (PPP) mode. It has a 500-bed hospital and runs a medical college. The PIMS society reportedly wants to shut down the hospital and medical college and concentrate on
multi-storeyed hostels inside the campus. As per the agreement signed with the government, it was mandatory for the PIMS society to construct
multi-storeyed accommodation for the faculty, hostels for girls, boys, interns and residents besides constructing a 500-bed hospital and a guest house for a minimum 250 persons. But it has failed to meet the norms.
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Act against erring policemen: Verka
Chandigarh, January 2 Addressing a press conference here, following a meeting with the state officials, Verka said a mere FIR in the two cases was not sufficient. "Action needs to be initiated under Sections of the Prevention of Atrocities Act. The commission will be forced to proceed against top police officials in case the guilty are not proceeded against and taken to task immediately," he warned. In the case of the Dalit girl from Bathinda allegedly paraded nude at the Kot Phate police station on December 28, the police had registered an FIR against Station House officer (SHO) Kabal Singh and Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Darshan Singh. But no arrest had been made. In the case of the Dalit boy who was physically abused in Amritsar on December 24, no FIR had been registered against ASI Major Singh and Havildars Major Singh and Gurmej Singh. He mentioned six more cases pertaining to atrocities against
Dalits. Atrocities on Dalits
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Patiala gets 50 buses under JNNURM
Patiala, January 2 The Patiala Municipal Corporation (MC) will launch the bus service and has identified 5 acre land near Ghalori Gate for setting up a bus depot. Though the MC had sought Rs 7 crore for setting up the depot, the Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committee approved Rs 3 crore. It also approved Rs 1.61 crore for the installation of Global Positioning System (GPS) and electronic display machines on these buses. MC Superintendent Engineer (SE) MM Syal, who is also the nodal officer for the project, the buses would cost Rs 14.50 crore. The Centre would pay 80 per cent of the amount, while the state government 20 per cent. The city will get 40 midibuses (32 seater) and 10 minibuses (16 seater). Municipal Commissioner Parminder Singh Gill said once the scheme was fully operational, the administration would be able to reduce traffic on city roads. “We conducted a survey in the city and found that around 60 per cent of the people travelled on two-wheelers, leading to traffic congestion. Only 6 per cent commuted on buses. With the scheme, we hope to encourage people to use public transport,” he said. He said the corporation would outsource the buses to a private firm and would float tenders in this regard by January-end. “We have to submit a detailed project report to the Centre by March-end. Our officials would soon visit Ludhiana and Jalandhar to get information on how the scheme can be successfully executed,” he added.
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Finally, grant for panchayats elected unopposed
Ropar, January 2 Cheema today held a meeting with representatives of such panchayats here. A total of 235 panchayats in the district will benefit. To keep tabs on political rivalry in villages during the panchayat elections, Badal had announced a grant of Rs 3 lakh for the villages forming panchayats unanimously in 2008. However, the grant eluded the panchayats through the entire tenure that ended in 2013. On protests over nagar panchayat status to Nurpur Bedi village, he said it was politically motivated. The Nurpur Bedi panchayat was converted to nagar panchayat following a resolution by the
panchayats, he said. On new organisational structure of the SAD, Cheema said the names of office-bearers had been finalised and an announcement would be made soon.
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Anti-encroachment drive falls flat in Abohar
Abohar, January 2 It seems that none of the shopkeepers is bothered to confine within the yellow line, boundary beyond which shopkeepers cannot display their wares, Consumer Movement chairman Satpal Khariwal said. The yellow line was marked for ~65,000 in the city during IAS officer Amit Dhaka’s term as the Sub-divisional Magistrate here. Non-government organisations (NGOs) have repeatedly complained to the district administration and local bodies directorate about eateries being set up on footpaths on the circular road, railway road, Rani Jhansi market, Shaheed Udham Singh memorial, bus stops, greenbelts and other areas. A basement, earmarked for parking, near the north circular road has been rented out to a mall. The municipal council had last week launched the drive against rehris that remain parked on both sides of main roads, besides Ghantaghar chowk, causing inconvenience to pedestrians, including women. The let-up in the drive seems to have a political colour.
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Grief, shock at killed NRI’s village
Phagwara, January 2 The deceased was a truck driver and had been residing with his wife Mandeep Kaur and two children in California since 1997. His elder brother Balihar Singh, also a truck driver, resides in Los Angeles. A few villagers were today seen outside Jaspal’s house, consoling his sister Manjit Kaur, who was in mourning. Manjit and her husband Avtar Singh had rushed to the village on Monday. She said her mother Mahinder Kaur had phoned from California to inform her about Jaspal’s death. Manjit said Jaspal had been in depression for the last few months and had borrowed a firearm from one of his friends. When Jaspal’s family members saw him with the firearm, his wife Mandeep informed the police who rushed to their house. The police fired upon him when he pointed his gun at one of the officers. He was taken to Keara Medical Center, where he was declared brought dead. Manjit said Jaspal’s body would be cremated on Saturday, when the police would hand over the body to his kin.
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Cong slams govt for issuing notices to
teachers
Then officials of the
Department Promotion Committee had, in December 2011, cleared the
promotions without following the criteria as well as determining
seniority, he said, adding that officials were at fault and not the
promoted teachers as the Review Committee had admitted that due to
illegalities litigation had cropped up. “If officials had
committed mistakes, it is against the natural justice to punish the
teachers, who had committed no wrong except for submitting their cases
in time as demanded by the Education Department,” Khaira said. He
demanded withdrawal of the notices. Instead of reverting the
promotions on the basis of seniority list that was prepared in haste
retroactively the government should fill up the posts of lecturer by
promoting the eligible candidates, he added.
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Govt to release more funds for cancer treatment
Chandigarh, January 2 Officials in the Health Department said the withdrawal of sin tax, which was imposed to fund cancer treatment infrastructure and drug de-addiction centres, would not hit free treatment being provided to poor patients. The 2013-14 Budget already has a provision of Rs 40 crore for the purpose under the Chief Minister's Cancer Relief Fund. An additional Rs 20 crore will now be released by the state government for the purpose. “The government is committed to providing relief to poor cancer patients. Additional budgetary allocation of Rs 20 crore is being made for cancer treatment as we have now launched cashless cancer treatment in three government medical colleges and six private hospitals and one private hospital in Bikaner,” said a senior official.
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Over 1,200 patients examined at free camps
Nawanshahr, January 2 The Maharaj Lal Dass Brahma Nand Bhuriwale Garib Dassi Charitable Trust organised the camp to commemorate the 124th birth anniversary of Maharaj Lal Dass, second mater of the Bhuriwale sect. At another free medical camp in Bhukhri village, 225 people were examined. The Guru Nanak Mission Medical and Education Trust, Dhahan Kaleran, in collaboration with US-based NRI Balihar Singh Pooni organised the camp. — OC
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ASI murder accused allowed to be handcuffed
Amritsar, January 2 After Rana tried to escape from the jail premises yesterday, the prison authorities had moved an application in this regard. The accussed were produced in the court amid tight security. Public Prosecutor RK Salwan said statements of all the accused were recorded today. The next hearing is on January 9.
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Fraudsters targeting those with ATM cards
Jalandhar, January 2 “ The RBI has not deputed anyone for getting personal details of any account holder of any bank. We have already made it clear on our website that the RBI does not seek or require details of any ATM card. Some fraudsters are misusing RBI's name,” said G Chanderkant, Manager (PR), Chandigarh. He said the RBI had no mechanism to get hold of such persons but he would try to get the matter investigated. Investigations have revealed that data skimmers make phone calls to ‘soft targets’ from mobile no. 9572332815 and seek to know their 16-digit card number. Assuming an officious tone, they invariably claim speaking from the " head office”. They are reluctant to answering counter-questions. “Someone claiming to be a bank official called me up and asked me to give him details of my Internet banking account. I got suspicious and refused to do so despite several calls from this person,” said local resident Parshotam Lal. Hitesh Rawal, manager with the HDFC Bank in Jalandhar, said no bank sought details related to an account holder's account or credit/debit cards. “There is no such practice in the banking industry,” he explained. Jalandhar Police Commissioner Ishwar Singh said the police was investigating the matter.
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Chandigarh, January 2
Six persons were run over by a speeding truck near Kahnpur village on the Jalandhar-Jammu national highway early this morning. The deceased included two couples, a seven-year-old boy and an auto driver. A two-year-old child and a youth sustained fractures.
If you do not want to get stuck in long queues for ‘parshad’ at the Golden Temple or have constraints to visit the shrine physically, onlineprasad.com will suit you best. The service is being appreciated by devotees, with orders coming from as far as Canada and Australia.
The native village of NRI Jaspal Singh (45), who was shot dead in Bakersfield by the California police officer on Sunday, was in mourning on Thursday. Relatives and family friends of the NRI were in a state of shock at Bharo Majra village.
Moga, January 2
Three-year-old orphaned, in hospital
Nawanshahr, January 2