Amritsr, January 14
The much-awaited city bus service may take a week’s time before hitting the cit'y roads.

Efforts are on to smarten up minute details of this first-ever public transport system of the holy city before flagging it off. There are hurdles that deter authorities to launch the service, including encroachments on roads that are on the route plan and bus shelters. It has been learnt that the registration and insurance of the buses, too, are yet to be made.

The service was earlier scheduled to open on January 15 by the Deputy Chief Minister, but it will take the authorities quite some time to clear the bottlenecks.

Nonetheless, to make the service flawless, the MC authorities have geared up to make it a successful venture. A move is on to introduce electronic ticketing and fare-card system.

On the one hand, electronic ticketing will bring in more transparency while on the other hand the fare card system will facilitate the daily passengers to pay the fare by just swiping the card, on the lines of debit or credit-card usage process. The MC authorities have procured around 50 swipe machines for the purpose and their trial run has already been done.

As many as 40 GPS-enabled buses are going to be introduced in the first phase which would run with a time span of 10 minutes for different destinations. There will be 20 mini-buses (29-seater) and anequal number of 35-seater buses.

The tentative route plan is: The 29-seater buses will run on the Daburji-Sultanwind road-Circular road-Golden Temple route. The 35-seater buses will run on the bus stand-railway station-Chheharta-Attari route. In between, these buses will cater to around 25 other destinations falling on the way.

For the non-AC buses, the least fare will be Rs 2 (up to 5 km), Rs 5 (5-10 km) and Rs 10 (more than 10 km). The fare for AC buses will be Rs 5 (up to 5 km), Rs 10 (5-10 km) and Rs 15 (more than 10 km) for air-conditioned buses.

These buses are being operated on the NCC (net cost contract) mode by hiring a Karnataka-based company. It will be the liability of the company to operate and maintain the buses.

The company will also pay the MC an amount of Rs 1,250 every month for each bus. This contract will be for one year and a further renewal will increase this amount to Rs 2,000 for each bus per month. From the third year, there will be an automatic increase of 7 per cent for another 10 years.

MC Commissioner DPS Kharbanda said the encroachers had been given two days’ time to remove any encroachment on their own; otherwise stern action would be taken against them. Besides, the insurance and registration papers of the buses are under process with the District Transport Office.

“Before flagging off the service, we wanted it to be a flawless service. It may take us a few days to fine-tune the minor details. The paperwork of the buses, too, will be completed beforehand."

Amritsar, January 14
Several Dalit families from Ibban Kalan village in Attari today approached the SC National Commission Vice-Chairman Raj Kumar Verka, and apprised him about the “misappropriation” of funds obtained under the MGNREGA scheme by the village panchayat. Verka has referred the matter to Deputy Commissioner Ravi Bhagat for further investigation.

The aggrieved families alleged that the village panchayat members had allegedly siphoned off the grant by forging the names of the workers. Several others alleged that they were employed under the MGNREGA and were paid a lesser amount than the prescribed wages. They said complaints in this regard had already been submitted with the office of the Deputy Commissioner on July 8 and August 28, but to no avail.

Gurmeet Singh alleged that besides belonging to the SC category, he was never engaged in any job under the MGNREGA but the grant received in his name was siphoned off through forged accounts in the banks. He claimed that the forgery came to light when a native of his village, Daler Singh, procured the MGNREGA fund allocation information by exercising his right under the RTI.

“I do not possess any card issued by the government under the MGNREGA scheme employment, but I came to know that grants were issued in my name which were withdrawn through some other person in my name”, he alleged.

Other Dalit women of the village, Sarabjit Kaur, Daljit Kaur, Jinder Kaur, Balwinder Kaur and Parkash Kaur alleged that though they were engaged for jobs under the MGNREGA but they were never paid proper wages. “But, now we came to know that forgery was done by opening fake accounts in banks,” he said.

After hearing these cases in the camp court, Dr Verka said though the complaints were serious, these demanded thorough investigation and had been forwarded to the Deputy Commissioner.

“The Deputy Commissioner has been asked to submit an inquiry report within 15 days. Both types of complaints like grabbing the grant through forged accounts and workers not getting adequate wages, were serious matters and would be followed up. It is a pity that in the entire state, the central funds meant for the uplift of the downtrodden never reach the beneficiaries -- be it the border area development funds, rural development funds or other schemes menat for BPL families like the Shagun schemes etc. It was just a matter of one village, but if enquired into, there will be scores of fund-misappropriation cases,” he said.

Amritsar, January 14
The Punjab Government yesterday inked a joint statement on agricultural cooperation with Canada's Alberta province to work together in agro-sector, including agricultural research, animal husbandry and agri-food endeavours. State Cabinet Minister Bikram Singh Majithia and Manmeet Singh Bhullar, Minister for Human Services, Government of Alberta, signed the joint statement here in the presence of Alison Redford, Premier of the Alberta province.

Under the pact, Punjab and Alberta will work together to identify areas of common interest and explore opportunities for scheduling joint-exchange programmes for scientists to share their expertise. Describing Punjab as the food basket of India, Majithia said: “Both Punjab and Alberta being agro-based economies can prosper by sharing innovative-agriculture and food-processing technologies and experience.” He said Alberta had a reputation for high-quality food, successful programmes and systems in place, which it could share. These systems could help increase productivity, reduce spoilage and conserve precious non-renewable resources, while reducing the impact on environment, he added.

Majithia said opportunities existed in several key areas, including infrastructure, logistics and transportation also. “Alberta can assist by facilitating industry involvement to share expertise in these key areas for mutually beneficial trade,” he added.

Speaking on the occasion, Alison Redford, Premier of the Canadian province of Alberta, said their delegation was on a trade mission to India from January 11 to 17, which included a visit to Amritsar on January 13 and14. She said they were visiting India to explore areas of deeper cooperation, notably in the energy and agriculture sectors and promote Alberta as an investment destination. “Our trade mission to India is an important occasion to build on Alberta's strong relationship with one of the world's fastest growing economies,” she added.

“The signing of a joint statement on agriculture with Punjab is a concrete step towards increasing trade and cooperation opportunities to the mutual benefit of Alberta and Punjab,” said Premier Redford.

She said it would promote food security and food production, adding that recognising Canada-India MoU in agriculture cooperation, Alberta and Punjab now announced their intentions to work under the overall ambit of the MoU signed between India and Canada in 2009 for cooperation in agriculture and allied sectors. She said, “I hope for significant positive results, which will benefit the producers, food processors and consumers of Alberta and Punjab.”

“The purpose of the visit of our delegation is to explore all possible avenues that can foster a closer and a stronger relationship between Punjab and Alberta,” said Manmeet Singh Bhullar. He said Alberta was interested in developing strategic, reliable and trade-friendly relationships and was actively seeking new growing markets for the agri-food industry. Alberta recognised significant opportunities for cooperation with Punjab and was keen to learn more about the Indian market and partner with the Punjab Government to seek introductions to India-based agri-industry representatives and share mutually beneficial initiatives, he added.

Bhullar said, “Alberta desires to create an awareness of its agri-food capabilities. Alberta's post secondary institutions also offer potential for cooperative projects and student recruitment.” He said Alberta's large Punjabi community and a similar political system provided an excellent foundation for strong working 
relationships.

Naresh Bhardwaj, Assistant Minister, Alberta, Peter Sandhu, MLA, Alberta, Inderbir Singh Bolaria, CPS, Punjab, and KS Pannu, Agriculture Secretary, Punjab, were also present on the occasion.

Amritsar, January 14
Mid-day meal cooks affiliated with the Mulazim Manch Punjab held protest today against the state government for outsourcing the cooking for city schools to an NGO. Mulazim Manch Punjab president Jermanjit Singh alleged that rules were twisted to allow a private company to register as an NGO. The manch also sent a memorandum to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal urging him to revert to the previous arrangement of cooking food at school premises.

He said if their demands were not met, then they would hold a protest at Education Minister Sikandar Singh Maluka’s constituency in Ramphura Phul on January 19.

He said what prompted the government to shift to a new arrangement after investing heavily on setting up kitchens in government schools was questionable. He said over the years at least a kitchen, two LPG cylinders, two storage drums, preparatory utensils and gas stoves were made available in schools. He feared that entire investment on kitchen infrastructure in the 400 schools in the holy city would go waste.

Jermanjit said workers were hired on contract for preparing food, which also harmed their social welfare.

The manch announced that it would hold a rally at Labour and Employment Minister Bhagat Chunni Lal’s constituency in Jalandhar on February 2.

Amritsar, January 14
Even as the building to house the state of art diagnostic centre at Jallianwala Bagh Martyrs Memorial Civil Hospital is almost complete, the private company has failed to conduct inspection of the same, thus delaying the next stage of the project by almost a month.

The diagnostic centre would be commissioned under the public private partnership (PPP). The process for the centre had practically started with Punjab Health Systems Corporation (PHSC) asking the hospital management to form an expert committee to monitor the work of upcoming diagnostic centre at its place.

Sources at the hospital said the building was complete almost a month ago, but the company had failed to conduct an inspection even after repeated communications. It would be after the inspection that the process to install machines would begin, provided the company was satisfied with the building, added the sources.

As per the original proposal, the building was to be constructed by the PHSC while machinery and management would be entrusted to the private firm. The diagnostic centre would provide facilities as CT scan, MRI scan, Digital X-Ray and many more tests at subsidised costs. Though the final rates of each service were yet to be decided, insiders said these would be less as compared to the charges of other private centres.

In public sector, at present the costly diagnostic tests as the MRI and CT scan are available at Guru Nanak Dev Hospital only. Addition of a new such centre would be boon for the general public.

Senior Medical Officer at the hospital, Dr Balbir Singh Dhillon, said, “The building is complete and the senior officials of the department have conveyed the same to the said firm. It is a matter of time now when the inspection is conducted and next stage of the project begins.”

Amritsar, January 14
AAP’s first Punjab rally in Pathankot proved yet again that many things are working out right for the Aam Admi. Youngsters thronged the rally, several national party rebels joined the AAP and nationalist sentiments ran high, so did the recruitment drive. But one thing that was found missing was women supporters of the party. There were very few women supporters, those in attendance limited their presence to the last rows. While one of the points on the agendas of the AAP’s national movement is about building a women commando force, the hesitant support from the fairer sex in Punjab is a problem they have to overcome. We talk to the AAP’s active women force in Amritsar about their recruitment drive to get in more female supporters.

“The main problem here is the lack of confidence that results from a fear of social and personal limitations,”opines Manmeet Pal Kaur, the executive member and head of the AAP’s women wing in city. “We have an average force of 20 women members in the AAPs Amritsar wing, a mixed lot of daily wage labourers to an assistant nurse in a prominent city hospital. The problem is not of motivation, but lack of knowledge,” she adds.

Manmeet, one of the few volunteers who joined in Anna’s India Against Corruption campaign and went on a hunger strike for seven days at Company Bagh, has been a UN peace volunteer and social activist for the Pingalwara Charitable Society. She has been running a door-to-door campaign to educate women about their rights and join in for the fight against corruption. Öut of 10,000-odd AAP volunteers working in the city, the number of women volunteers is significantly low. Reason being that many still prefer to lend support from the sidelines,” she says.

She is joined in by Mamta Vohra, a management professional from the city, who helps in coordinating weekly meetings and campaigns to recruit more women supporters. Ï believe in AAP’s ideology that if we have a problem, we need to work out a solution on our own. Women have to be at the centre stage of this revolution as they, too, are the aam admi. The Delhi elections have proved that the common man is openly welcoming change, it’s time to join in.”

Bhupinder Namdhari, 40, a housewife whose kitchen bore the brunt of inflation and a “corrupt” government’s policies, too, has joined the party recently. Feeling the need to clear the mess created by an aimless leadership of the country, she has vowed to dedicate the rest of her life fighting for the aam admi. “Inflation, black-marketing of commodities, scams, everything ultimately ends up putting a burden on the way I run my family. So, I do have a reason to fight for a solution,” she affirms. “Ï am here to prove to the sceptics that even a housewife has the will and determination to change the system, that very system which considers her powerless. I, too, was a suffering common man of the vote-bank politics until I understood that I have to make the effort to make myself heard,” she shares. The mother of two teenaged children also holds regular cleanliness drives involving youngsters every weekend or on a day off. “That’s a way to make them responsible for cleaning up the mess in society,” says she.

The message is loud and clear, feels Manmeet. “Women need to come out of their fears and limitations, whatever these might be. Supporting us from back is a passive alternative; to change things needs active participation.”

Amritsar, January 14
Class IV employees of the Municipal Corporation have announced their plan to proceed on an indefinite strike to protest against the MC move to have a solid waste management plant in the city from January 16.

While holding a meeting here today, they expressed an apprehension that their interests would be defeated when a private company took over the sole charge of the plant.

Their spokesperson Vinod Kumar Bitta said the strike had been scheduled on a call given by President of the Punjab Safai Mazdoor Federation Chandan Grewal. Bitta said the Punjab Government’s move to engage private players in installing such a huge plant would mean exploitation of Class IV employees.

Another spokesperson Surinder Tona said earlier also Local Bodies Minister Anil Joshi had assured them that it would be a tri-partite agreement and the plant would be managed by the local authorities only, but it never happened.

Tarn Taran, January 14
The District Congress Committee (DCC) in its meeting held here on Sunday resolved to block road traffic in the district on January 16 in support of the call given by the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) for a “Punjab Bandh” against the drug racket.

District president Sukhpal Singh Bhullar while addressing the meeting said the party would allow opening of shops and other commercial establishments as usual, but would hold dharnas at five different places in the district. Bhullar said party workers would block road traffic at Harike, local Jandiala road, Chuslewar Crossing near Patti and Bhikhiwind township.

Bhullar demanded removal of Bikram Singh Majaithia from the Cabinet as his name figured in the drug racket as disclosed by Jagdish Bholla. Harminder Singh Gill and Dr Dharambir Agnihotri were among others who spoke on the occasion.

Amritsar, January 14
Vice-Chancellor, Prof AS Brar, inaugurated the newly constructed buildings of emerging life sciences and girls hostel No 4 on the Guru Nanak Dev University campus here yesterday.

Dean Academic Affairs, Dr MS Hundal, Dean, Students Welfare, Dr PK Sehajpal, Registrar, Dr Inderjit Singh, PR in charge, Dr AJS Bhanwer, Executive Engineer, Professor Mokesh Sharma and other senior faculty members and officials were also present on the ocassion.

The emerging life science building, which covers an area of 24,000 sqft, was constructed at the cost of Rs 2. 45 crore. Another newly constructed building of girls hostel No. 4 was also inaugurated by the VC on Monday.