Ludhiana, January 4
Seeking information from the civic body is a daunting task. The Ludhiana Municipal Corporation has failed to appoint a public information officer at its Zone D office.

The MC authorities, however, claim to have appointed the officer, but no such orders were passed till Friday.

The Zone D office is without the information officer since December 9 after superintendent Tejinder Singh Panchhi went on a medical leave.

Although MC officers claimed that superintendent Jasdev Singh Sekhon has been appointed as the information officer, but Sekhon maintained that he had not received any such orders.

Ludhiana, January 4
Offices of Sub-Divisional Magistrates (SDM) in the state would be gheraod by members of the Punjab Kisan Sabha from January 28 to 30. This was stated by the general secretary of the organisation, Sukhwinder Singh Sekhon, during a meeting of the working committee of the organisation today.

President of the Punjab Kisan Sabha Gurchetan Singh Basi and general secretary Sukhwinder Singh Sekhon during a press conference in Ludhiana on Saturday. Photo: Inderjeet Verma

The meeting was presided over by the state president, Gurchetan Singh Basi.

Sekhon alleged that the policies of the government are anti-farmers which has made it difficult for farmers to earn a livelihood.

The general secretary said all the recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission should be implemented at the earliest.

The members said the loans granted to farmers should be waived-off and the minimum support price of the wheat should be set to Rs 1,800 per quintal.

They also demanded that the amount taken as an advance security for electricity should be returned to citizens.

Besides these demands, a separate place for the stray cattle and dogs was also demanded, as the stray animals not only cause road accidents, but also destroy the crops.

Sekhon urged the government to roll back the policy to decontrol petrol and diesel prices on the occasion.

The hike in electricity costs by 3 paise per unit and increase in the price of LPG was highly condemned during the meeting. The increase in costs is further pushing inflation and making the life of farmers more difficult, said Sekhon.

It is arrogance on the part of the authorities concerned that the Indian farmers are being made to compete with farmers of foreign countries. What they fail to understand is that farmers have complete government subsidy in foreign countries, but in India, subsidies of the farmers are being withdrawn gradually, said the member of the association.

Ludhiana, January 4
A labourer died while digging a septic tank in Satjot Nagar on Dhandran Road today.

The deceased was identified as 30-year-old Inder Kumar, a native of Bihar.

Satbir Singh, a resident of Satjot Nagar, hired three labourers to dig the septic tank outside his house this morning.

The incident took place when sewage from a nearby tank gushed into the tank being dug by Inder Kumar.

Resident of the area tried to pull Inder Kumar out. They also arranged a machine to pump the sewage out.

After two hours of effort, they managed to pull Inder Kumar out.

He was rushed to the civil hospital where he was declared brought dead.

The body has been sent for post-mortem. 

Ludhiana, January 4
A Nepalese couple died of asphyxiation in Sarabha Nagar last night.

The couple used to work as domestic helps at a house in the area. It is learnt that the couple had lighted a brazier in the servant quarters to keep themselves warm, but had closed the doors and windows. They died due to the poisonous gas emanating from the brazier.

The deceased were identified as 43-year-old Mohan Rawal and his wife 40-year-old Rumba Devi, natives of Dodha district in Nepal.

Mohan and his wife went to their residence to sleep at 10.30 pm yesterday. The incident came to light when the couple did not wake up this morning.

Mohan Rawal was working as a domestic help in the house of Nitin Garg of K block in Sarabha Nagar for the past 25 years. Nitin said Rumba came to Ludhiana from Nepal for her treatment.

Nitin said Mohan did not respond to repeated knocks at the door. He broke open the door and found the couple lying dead in the room.

The police was informed. SHO Harpal Singh said the bodies were sent to the Civil Hospital for post-mortem.

Ludhiana, January 4
Efforts made by residents to save sparrows and attract other birds are yielding results.

Residents in different areas of the city, including Badewal, BRS Nagar and Pakhowal Road, have installed man-made nests to attract birds of different species.

Some residents have sought help from the ornithology section of the geology department at the PAU to install nests.

Ornithologist Dr Tejdeep Kaur Kler said nests were a success during the breeding season of birds from March to September.

Although the varsity has got the boxes installed at various places to study the birds and how they respond to the boxes, many residents have got the boxes installed at their places by spending from their own pocket.

Residents who have installed nests said there had been an improvement in the number of birds in a couple of parks of BRS Nagar. Sparrows that had disappeared are now seen in the parks and artificial nests, said Ajmer Singh Dhatt, a resident. 

Ludhiana, January 4
LPG consumers are a worried lot. A majority of them are yet to be linked with banks. Ever since oil companies hiked the non-subsidised cooking gas cylinders, there has been a hue and cry.

Although the district food and supplies department claims to have made Aadhaar Cards of about 95 per cent of the total population in the district, the truth is that only 35 per cent of the consumers have been linked with the banks.

If officials at the district food and supplies office are to be believed, the enrolment part is almost done in the district and around 60 machines have been installed for the purpose. An official said a majority of the gas consumers were still not linked with the banks.

"The consumers can check the status of their Aadhaar cards online, but still they are seen making the rounds of the offices. Many have got themselves enrolled again as even after two-three months, their cards have not been issued," said the official.

"Another major problem is that most of the slips are lying at post offices," said the official.

Following instructions issued by the administration, the banks are organising 'melas' to create awareness on the linkage process.

"Twenty machines have been installed at Lohara village. The consumers are facing a great difficulty in getting subsidies. As their cards are not linked with the banks, they are made to pay a huge amount to get cooking gas cylinders. The companies are charging consumers Rs 1,250 per cylinder," said zonal manager, Punjab and Sind Bank, Jagjit Singh Bhalla.

District food and supplies controller Sona Thind said: "The linkage process is under way. Once the consumers are linked with the banks, they won't face any problem in getting subsidy amount from the banks," said Thind. 

Ludhiana, January 4
The Ludhiana Municipal Corporation is all set to upgrade and beautify six intersections (chowks) located in different parts of the city. For the purpose, they will get a survey carried out through traffic experts and the project will be funded by the Punjab Infrastructure Development Board (PIDB).

Besides, in a bid to ease traffic congestion, two internal roads of the city will also be widened and developed.

The intersections to be beautified and upgraded include Fountain Chowk, Dugri Road and Pakhowal Road (both near the Sidhwan Canal bridge), Sarabha Nagar Pully (near Hero Bakery), Haibowal Chowk (near the Budha Nullah bridge) and the one near the ATI on Gill Road. The two roads to be widened include one linking Ferozepur Road with Hambran Road and the other connecting Dandi Swami Chowk and Rani Jhansi Road. Under the project, the MC will discuss both the short term as well as the long term measures to be taken for relieving residents of traffic congestion.

MC Commissioner Rahul Tiwari and senior MC officials today visited the intersections as well as the two roads. "A city-based architect had held a meeting with Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal after which the Deputy CM asked me to visit the roads and intersections so that these could be widened as well as beautified," he stated.

It is often seen that the MC focuses more on the main roads while the stretches adjoining the main roads are left unattended. Even the six intersections identified by the MC remain choc-o-bloc with traffic and if these are widened, it will bring respite to the city residents.

The MC will float the 'Terms of Reference' shortly. Traffic experts will be asked to carry out a topographic survey and submit a detailed report to the civic body. "Once the traffic experts contact us, we will give them 45 days to carry out the survey and prepare the report. And once we have the report and suggestions in hand, tenders for the project will be floated and the intersections as well as the roads will be widened and beautified in the next eight-nine months," said the MC Commissioner.

Ludhiana, January 4
State PWD Minister Sharanjit Singh Dhillon has given a grant of Rs 15 lakh to the District Bar Association (DBA).

As a lawyer, Dhillon remained associated with the DBA for long. Another lawyer-turned-politician Charanjit Singh Atwal, Speaker, Punjab Assembly, sanctioned a grant of Rs 10 lakh for the extension of the library and the other development projects. Atwal shared his experiences with lawyers and judges during the New Year's function at the district courts complex.

District and Sessions Judge GS Mathoroo and DBA president Parupkar Singh Ghumman said there should be better coordination between the bench and the bar.

The duo laid emphasis on speedy justice with transparency. Additional Sessions Judge Kamaljit Lamba cracked jokes, tickling the funny bone of the audience. Lawyers, including Rajwant Singh, Darshan Singh Rai, Kirpal Singh Kalra, Harsimrat Kaur and Jagmohan Sanghe aired their views. They dwelt on social issues and day-to-day problems being faced by the legal fraternity through their poems and couplets. Sandeep Kapoor sang a patriotic song.

Deputy Commissioner Rajat Aggarwal and the other dignitaries were accorded a warm welcome by the DBA vice-president, Gurdeep Singh Salh, secretary Rustam Pal Singh and the other office-bearers of the Bar. A majority of the judicial officers attended the function.

Ludhiana, January 4
The fate of as many as 263 schools hang in balance as the Punjab School Education Board has till date not given the information about the inspections that has to be conducted again. These schools are located in less than 200 yards in Punjab, while the board has given its continuation nod to the schools, located in over 201 yards. In Ludhiana, there are about 65 such schools which await the inspection to be conducted at the earliest.

The general secretary of the School Sangh Punjab, Bhuvaneshwar Bhatt, said these schools have been issued notices by the board stating that they will not be allowed to take admissions from Class IX onwards. “About 180 out of the total 263 schools in Punjab have filed the objections and the board has given its consent to conduct the inspections again. But we are unaware as to on what guidelines the inspection will take place or when is the board going to conduct the inspections,” said Bhatt. The board had asked schools for ‘disaffiliation’ which were located in less than 500 yards and notices were also served, but the same were given a breather and schools less than 200 yards came under the scanner of the board after the school managements opposed the decision. Bhatt said these schools have now purchased adjoining lands to fulfil the conditions and ready for inspections again.

Ludhiana, January 4
Even though the chairman of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), Vineet Joshi, clearly said schools, especially the unaided ones, should consult representatives of parents before revising the fee structure, but parents here have alleged the school managements in city to have had adopted a ‘highhandedness’ approach in this direction. They have alleged the school managements to have hiked the fee without prior consultation from their representatives.

Owing to this, a delegation of Parents Association Ludhiana is all set to leave for Delhi on January 8 to meet the chairman, CBSE, regarding this issue.

The president of the association, Rajinder Ghai, said for the last one month the association has been trying to get an appointment from the CBSE office to meet the chairman but to no avail.

“Now we will not wait and will leave for Delhi on January 8 to resolve this issue,” said Ghai.

The general secretary of the association, Sanjiv Dogra, alleged school managements to be raising fee structure at their own discretion. “The management has been asking parents to buy books and dresses from the schools itself, and the schools are also not even providing free-of-cost education to the single girl child. This calls for an immediate meeting with the CBSE officials,” said Dogra.

Parents said it was clearly mentioned in the circulars that affiliated schools must ensure fulfillment of all the norms of the Board and that they should run the schools as a community service and not as a business. “But certain schools are increasing the fees to the tune of even 15 per cent per annum. There is no check on the schools and many of them have adopted a monopolistic attitude. Even the district administration has expressed its helplessness in intervening into the matter as the CBSE schools does not come under their purview,” said the president, further adding that parents were never taken into the confidence before announcing such hikes in fee structure.

The principal of BCM School, Paramjit Kaur, said most of the school managements had made the managing committees, in which parents' representatives were also involved.

“Any decision about annual fee hike is taken by the committee in the presence of the representatives of parents. Moreover, CBSE has also asks the schools to go for annual fee increase up to 10 per cent per annum which is absolutely justified. But yes, the schools also need to be transparent in their functioning at the same time,” said the principal of BCM School Paramjit Kaur.

Ludhiana, January 4
Different groups, including Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) Employees’ Forum, PAU Democratic, Punjab Agricultural University Welfare Front and PAU United Forum, which are in fray for the PAU Employees’ Union elections are now wooing the voters to help them attain the seat of office-bearers.

The Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) Employees’ Union elections are scheduled to be held on January 10,

After the rally yesterday, Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) Employees’ Forum today visited Laddowal farm for a ‘personal contact programme’ to apprise the voters of the achievements of the forum so far.

The forum members told the farmers and voters about some of the achievements, including implementation of the 10-20-30 Assured Career Progression Scheme, and helped in promotions of the posts that were lying vacant at the farm, said Gulzar Pandher, the outgoing general secretary of the forum. An election manifesto was also relesed yesterday. Payment of pending 50 per cent arrears and lowering of eligibility conditions for technical staff were also promised on the occasion, said the outgoing general secretary of the forum.

Sahnewal, January 4
As many as 200 government employees, who were promoted from clerical posts to master cadre in September last year, are still to be allotted permanent stations.

“This is height of insensibility on the part of the Education Department. All our festivities have ended up in a fiasco. As a single earning hand of the family, I am passing through a state of severe financial penury. Ours had been a black Diwali and an equally black new year,” said a teacher, who had been promoted from clerical post to the master cadre.

“Strange are the ways of the Education Department. On one hand, there are students whose studies have received a severe setback due to the non-availability of teachers while on the other hand, the teachers are sitting almost idle, doing petty clerical chores, without serving any purpose of teaching for the past four months,” rued a promoted teacher.

Dharamjit Singh, district president of the Master Cadre Union, said, “Demands are never met silently. They have to be voiced for. The teachers kept on going to the DO office, despite of being promoted but the department was least concerned about allotting them the stations, what to talk of giving them salary. At last, when the teachers raised their voice, they were allotted the stations but again the temporary ones. Now, they shall join temporarily at those stations and continue waiting for permanent ones to teach students, who are endlessly waiting for some teacher to join their school one fine day.”

DPI Kamal Kumar when contacted said the teachers had been allotted temporary stations but the regular posting too shall be given in a day or two. “They shall be getting the salary against the vacant post shortly,” he said.

Ludhiana, January 4
The starcast of Punjabi movie Patiala Dreams was in the city today.

Actors, including Sarvar Ahuja, Madalsa Sharma, Sardar Sohi and Maninder Velly, said the movie would be released on January 10. They said the protagonist of the movie, who was in Canada, dreams of some place in Punjab. "He flies to India seeking the connection of the dreams with his life and the story then unveils," they said.

Sarvar Ahuja who has done a Bollywood movie apart from popular television series, including Punar Vivah, is playing the lead role.

He said although he was brought up in Hyderabad, his mother belonged to Amritsar. So he always had an inclination towards Punjab and Punjabi culture. So when he got the opportunity, he lapped it up. Madalsa Sharma, who is making a debut in Punjabi movies, has done a Bollywood movie and also done Tamil cinema. "Speaking Punjabi was not as big a challenge as language is immaterial in acting," she said.

Maninder Velly, who plays the role of a comedian in the movie, said the movie was different and was full of suspense, action, drama apart from comedy. "The movie has been shot in Punjab, Malaysia and Goa," said the actors. 

Nik Bakers comes up with special offers on founder’s birthday

Nik Bakers celebrates the birthday of its founder chef Nikhil Mittal every year on January 6. On the occasion, all those who share their birthday with the chef gets a free cake. This year too the old tradition continues.

Registrations and booking for the same will be open from January 3 to 5 till 5 pm. People can register themselves at any of the Nik Bakers outlet. First 100 entries will get 1 kg cake free (Chocolate truffle or Pineapple Cake) and rest all will get 50 per cent off on 1 kg cakes.

Nikhil Mittal, Director and Head Chef, Nik Bakers, said, “The customers who will book the cake will get specific time to collect the cake and I will personally come to the outlet with a big cake to greet the recipients.” Also, a cake-cutting ceremony will be organised where all the members of the Nik family would be present. — TNS

Jagraon, January 4
The Jagraon police have arrested six persons with 39 grams of heroin and 100 grams of synthetic drug from their possession separate operations.

The accused have been identified as Sukhdev Singh, alias Bittu, Jagdeep Singh, alias Deepa, both residents of Dalla village near Jagraon, Sukhwinder Singh, alias Sukhi, of Baddowal, Sikander Singh, Ranjodh Singh, Jograj Singh, residents of Minian village in Moga district.

Addressing a press conference here today, in charge of the CIA staff inspector Prem Singh said Sukhdev Singh, alias Bittu, and Jagdeep Singh, alias Deepa, were arrested from Kaunke Kalan village, while Sukhwinder Singh was arrested from Detwal village on Friday evening during a routine checking.

“Ranjodh Singh and Jograj Singh were arrested from the Ludhiana-Ferozepur highway near Gurusar village while Sikander Singh was arrested near Amarghar Kaler village today,” said inspector Prem Singh.

The accused have been booked under the NDPS Act at the Jagraon Sadar police station.

The accused were presented before a local court and were sent to two-day police remand. 

Ludhiana, January 4
The city police have arrested three persons, including a woman, and recovered six tonnes of sandalwood worth over Rs 2 crore from their possession.

The accused had stolen a truck laden with sandalwood belonging to a Delhi-based trader on November 18.

The accused have been identified as Sukhdeep Singh Bagga, Jagdish Singh Bagga and Paramjeet Kaur, all residents of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, Dhandhra Road.

The police said Sukhdeep and Jagdeep were clearing agents at dry port, Dhandhari, in Ludhiana.

Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police-IV Swapan Sharma said the trader, Sanjeev Kumar of Vishwash Nagar, Delhi, had registered a complaint on November 19, 2013, that Jagdish, Sukhdeep, Hanish, alias Honey, Harvinder Singh, alias Bunty, and driver Raj Kumar visited his godown at Hadampura and struck a deal to sell the sandalwood in Ludhiana.

Sanjeev loaded the sandalwood on the truck and left for Ludhiana. He parked the loaded truck on GLADA ground, Chandigarh Road, and asked the accused to make payment of the consignment.

The complainant said the accused said they would meet him after having food at Samrala Chowk.

Sanjeev said when he returned, he was shocked to see the truck missing.

SHO of the Moti Nagar police station Jagjit Singh said: “We got information that Sukhdeep Singh Bagga and Jagdish Singh Bagga were at their residence. The police raided their place and nabbed them. During investigation, the accused confessed to the crime. The mother of the accused, Paramjeet Kaur, was also booked for helping them.”

The police recovered six tonnes of stolen sandalwood. However, the truck and two tonnes of sandalwood are yet to be recovered.

Two accused, Hanish Kumar, alias Honey, and Harvinder Singh, alias Bunty, are still at large.

Ludhiana, January 4
A 25-year-old factory worker committed suicide by hanging himself from a ceiling fan at his workplace in Dasmesh Nagar, Gill Road, last night. The deceased was identified as Tilak Raj.