Amritsar, January 22
Fed up of repeated assurances by police officials to arrest the main culprits involved in the killing of 10-year-old Gurkirat Singh, his family members and residents of Verka today sat on chain fast at Ram Leela Ground of the historic township here.

The residents made a committee for getting justice in the case and pressurised the Police Department to speed up their investigations and arrest the culprits.

The local court has granted permission for narco-test of the three suspects in the case to ascertain the truth. The polygraph test will be conducted on February 1 in the Forensic Science Laboratory, Madhuban, Karnal (Haryana).

The residents said they would continue their hunger strike till Jaunary 31. If the police failed to arrest the culprits, they would plan their next course of action and intensify the agitation.

Gukirat had mysteriously gone missing on November 7, 2012, while playing close to his home. On November 16, his body was found dumped in a secluded building, located just a few metres away from his residence.

A couple of months ago the city police restarted the investigation, which was handed over to ACP Gaurav Garg. The high court had directed the city police to submit a status report in the case by November 15. However, the police had sought more time. Now, the high court had fixed February 3 to file a status report.

The residents of the area had been holding agitations against the Police Department for its failure to crack the case even after lapse of over a year. Recently, they held a candlelight march seeking the arrest of the culprits responsible for Gurkirat's death.

The police suspect the role of three persons including relatives of the deceased. It had applied for their polygraph test in order to verify their statements which they had given to the police earlier.

Amritsar, January 22
Even as the municipal corporation is trying to find a solution to the problem the city is facing because of staging of protest by safai sewaks, a Congress councillor, Gurinder Rishi, initiated a move to deploy trolleys using his own means to lift the garbage.

However, Rishi plans to dump the garbage outside the office of the MC Commissioner were thwarted by the police. Meanwhile, Mayor Bakshi Ram Arora said they were working to find a solution to the problem.

"Hopefully, we will be able to persuade the safari sewaks to end the protest by tomorrow morning," he said. Talking about the alternatives if the employees failed to end the protest, Arora said they would deploy private trolleys to lift the garbage.

"The problem is that protesting employees are not allowing the private trolleys to operate. This is wrong on their part and they are forcing us to take action," he said.

On the other hand, Rishi claimed that if the MC failed to find a solution to the problem by January 25, they would dump 100 trolleys of garbage in front of the MC office. "The city is home to three Cabinet ministers and three Chief Parliamentary Secretaries but still the problem of garbage is not being looked into," he said.

The safai sewaks of the MC are protesting against the handing over of the proposed solid waste management plant to a private company for 27 years, stating that it would harm the interests of their community.

As the protest by the safai sewaks has entered its seventh day today, the city is facing a huge problem of garbage on its roads.

Amritsar, January 22
The local office of Employees Provident Fund Organisation today held an interactive session on the fund and the Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, at OCM Woollen Mills.

In the key note address, Additional Central Provident Fund Commissioner, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh zone, stressed upon the speedy and responsive delivery of services to the provident fund members. He apprised the gathering of various services like launching of e-sewa portal, e-pass book, payment of PF through NEFT, payment of pension to the pensioners through the core-banking system.

Regional Provident Fund Commissioner, Amritsar, Yogesh Kumar, said that the employee provident fund account would earn 8.75 per cent interest in the fiscal 2013-14. In 2012-13, the rate of interest was 8.5 per cent.

Besides, he said, the Employee Deposit Linked Insurance (EDLI) plan had been increased by about 20 per cent. Now, the maximum amount received by an EPFO member under the EDLI -- from Rs1.30 lakh to Rs 1.56 lakh. Under the EDLI, a nominee of an EPFO member gets an insurance cover if an EPFO member dies before retirement. 

Amritsar, January 22
The city police have arrested a woman and her son for "fraudulently" getting the government job and the ex-gratia grant of a man who mysteriously died a few years ago.

The accused were identified as Santosh Kumari and her son, Vishal Kumar, both residents of Rajiv Gandhi Nagar here.

Manohar Lal, a municipal corporation employee, died under mysterious circumstances a few years ago. Vishal Kumar is a nephew of the deceased.

Bal Krishan Singla, ACP, said the accused, Santosh Kumari, passed herself off as the deceased's wife and submitted forged documents in order to take ex-gratia grant to the tune of Rs 1.50 lakh of the deceased.

He said Vishal Kumar produced a forged identity card and a school-leaving certificate and presented himself as son of the deceased and took a government job on compassionate grounds.

He said the case came to light in 2010 when Raj Kumar, another relative of the deceased, lodged a complaint with the police.

He said both the accused had been arrested while further investigations were under progress. A case under Section 420, 467, 468, 471 and 120-B of the IPC had been registered at D-division police station in this regard. 

Amritsar, January 22
The Voice of Tobacco Victims, an anti-tobacco campaign running all over India in association with half a dozen local NGOs, held a press conference to protest against the decision of the Punjab Government to roll back VAT on cigarettes and other tobacco products.

The NGO members said tobacco was the leading cause of cancer and was the most important preventable cause of cancer. "When Punjab is fighting a battle against cancer and a lot of families are getting ruined because of tobacco-related deaths, the Punjab Government has taken a decision to lower the tax on tobacco products and make these cheap. This will push Punjab further down its ruin and increase the misery of Punjabis," said Dr Prahlad Duggal of Voice of Tobacco Victims.

Gurbhej Singh of Mission Aagaaz said the SAD-BJP government took pride in being labelled as "Panthic Sarkar". It should feel ashamed of its decision to roll back tax on tobacco. "Our land is the land of Gurus and use of tobacco is prohibited in the Sikh religion. What kind of government is this which takes the shield of religion while asking for votes but shuns that very religion when the lure of easy money is seen," he questioned.

Dr Duggal said raising taxes on tobacco products was the most effective method to decrease tobacco consumption and this was a scientifically proven fact. A common saying on tobacco is, "Triple the taxes, double the revenue and halve the consumption." This has been proven the world over, he said.

Members of other NGOs as Bhai Kanhayia Ji Mission Society, Chimaya Mission, Missionaries of Khudai Khidmatgaran, Sathi, Sukhmani Sewa Society and Consumer Awareness Society were also present.

Amritsar, January 22
With the Health and Police Departments trying to contain the sale of proscribed drugs, drug peddlers are taking to the rail route for the smuggling of habit-forming drugs. Recently, the government railway police had seized thousands of capsules and tablets, found abandoned at a railway station. Few weeks ago, Ramandeep Singh, a Patti resident, was nabbed with proscribed drugs. Ramandeep had brought over 2,300 capsules from Uttar Pradesh.

Davinder Singh Randhawa, SHO, GRP police station, said during the interrogation, Ramandeep confessed that he procured intoxicants from UP at a cost of Rs 25,000. He said he used to sell drugs at an exorbitant price to addicts and earned over Rs one lakh in a day.

Randhawa said a few days ago, a police team had found 1,300 capsules abandoned while a couple of days ago, they recovered 2,400 tablets and nearly 2,000 capsules besides 50 syrups from the waiting hall of the Amritsar railway station.

A GRP official said as a huge number of people arrived the holy city from various parts of the country everyday, only negligible number persons were caught by the police in absence any equipment and infrastructure to nab drug peddlers.

Notably, the Punjab police had launched a drive against drug peddling following which the Health Department and the Police Department tightened the noose around illegal chemist shop owners and quacks who were responsible for the sale of habit-forming drugs, especially in rural areas. 

Amritsar, January 22
After a brief lull, the MC resumed the house tax recovery drive.The MC may also resort to beating of drums in defaulters' residential areas to collect the tax. The civic body is also contemplating to confiscate moveable assets of defaulters in case of non-payment of the tax.

At a meeting, MC Commissioner DPS Kharbanda made it clear that house tax had to be recovered under the stipulated period and no pressure, be it political or bureaucratic, should be taken seriously by the house tax staff.

The MC has set a target to recover Rs 1.5 crore property tax upto January 31. The civic body has aimed to collect Rs 17 crore in house tax. The recovery drive had lost steam midway due to the collection of property tax from the city residents.

There are many big houses, hotels, government offices, marriage palaces and commercial units under the improvement trust besides many privately-run schools on the hit list of MC.

With the introduction of property tax, the house tax realisation had suffered a jolt as the staff of the House Tax Department was deputed for the realisation of property tax. Earlier, the MC had initiated a "name and shame"drive by beating of drums in the residential areas of defaulters and this exercise yielded a good result but with the passage of time and the need to collect property tax, it was discontinued.

Superintenden Shushant Bhatia said the MC Commissioner had already written to the Improvement Trust Chairman that many commercial units in the Dharam Singh market need to pay Rs 31 lakh property tax, which should be cleared as soon as possible. Similarly, various offices of BSNL in Ranjit Avenue, Albert Roard, Bhagtanwala and Chamrang Road have a liability to pay Rs 24.32 lakh. The office of the Women and Child Development owes Rs 4 lakh to the MC. Other government offices, including the office of Forest Division (Rs 5.45 lakh), Chief Agriculture Office (Rs 3.5 lakh), Industry Department (Rs 5 lakh) owe lakhs to the MC. Many private units, including a school on Albert Road, have to pay around Rs 6.5 lakh in house tax. A hotel in the city will have to pay nearly Rs 26 lakh and a palace on Batala Road will have to pay Rs 16.91 lakh in house tax.

“The recovery target could not be achieved because a number of big houses owe a mammoth amount to the MC. There is an utter confusion among the residents whether payment of property tax would free them from the obligation of paying house tax or not," he said.

Amritsar, January 22
On behalf of the Jain Community, the Shri All-India Swetambar Sthanakwasi Jain Conference, a 110-year-old body of Jains , thanked the Central government for granting minority status to the Jains. Amrit Lal Jain, a senior leader of the Shri All-India Swetambar Sthanakwasi Jain Conference, said with the move, the community's long-pending demand of being recognised as a separate religion was fulfilled.

"The Jain religion has its origin in the ancient India, and the recognition would help the community in safeguarding and preserving its religious places, culture and customs," he said.

The community has its presence 13 states of the country.

Amrit Lal said former Chairman of the National Commission of Minorities, Wajahat Habibullah, had favoured minority status for the Jains during his tenure.

He added that the 24th and the last Tirthankar (prophet) Lord Mahavira was born 2,612 years ago and before him 23 Tirthankars enlightened the world with the message of universal peace and harmony.

He added that followers of Jainism in the state were happy with the development as the community had been contributing in the development of the country for long.

The SAD-BJP coalition government had granted the minority status to the Jain Community in Punjab in April last year. With the development, the Jains will be able to manage their own educational institutions without any external interference and will get funds from the government under the minority welfare programmes. There are about 70 lakh people belonging to the community in the entire country. 

Amritsar, January 22
A day before the general house meeting of the Municipal Corporation, Congress leader and councillor Raj Kanwal Preet Pal Singh Lucky accused the ruling alliance of misleading public on key development issues.

Lucky said as the state government claimed that a file relating to development projects taken up under the Jawahar Lal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JLNNURM) had already been sent to the Centre, what was the need to get these projects approved from the MC house. He said the SAD-BJP alliance was trying to befool the common man. He also questioned the timing of the approval of projects. “We know that the code of conduct for the Lok Sabha elections will be imposed soon and the file may not be cleared before that,” he said. The councillor said the MC had failed to take the benefit of the Centre-sponsored schemes such as the Jawahar Lal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission as no project report was sent to the Centre in the past five years. He also raised the issue of the solid waste management plant, stating that on the one hand the MC floated tenders for it and on the other, it was demanding Rs 105 crore under the JNNURM.

Lucky said while the MC had demanded Rs 105.70 crore for laying of sewerage pipes, it had failed to use Rs 600 crore provided under the JICA project. The Councillor said instead of befooling people, the MC should repair streetlights, stop illegal construction, and make arrangements for the removal of garbage in the city. 

Amritsar, January 22
To prevent accumulation of rainwater in many areas in the city, the Local Bodies Department has sought technical and funding assistance from the World Bank. Local Bodies Minister Anil Joshi said following a request to the World Bank, Prof Kapli Gupta from IIT Bombay, an expert in storm sewerage, carried out the preliminary study. He said the one-member delegation of the World Bank, along with experts from various other departments, concluded their three-day survey today.

The minister said various methods to deal with the problem were discussed in these three days. However, the most convincing alternative was found in the construction of storage facilities under parks and other open places near the spot where rainwater accumulates for long duration.

Joshi said the system was effectively put to use at Barcelona in Spain and added that a technical team under him had studied the system there three months ago. He said Barcelona had been facing flooding during rains and they constructed storage facilities under parks from where water was released slowly.

In the city, there are many spots that have become infamous for accumulation of rainwater. The accumulation of rainwater brings the traffic to a halt in these areas. These areas are Town Hall, Chamrang Road and Sultanwind. 

Amritsar, January 22
The Jallianwala Bagh Martyrs Memorial Civil Hospital has dismissed a gardener and initiated an inquiry against an electrician of the hospital for the theft of sanitary fittings from washrooms. The hospital has been grappling with the theft of sanitary fittings for long but failed to identify the thieves. The hospital had even tried to stop thefts by installing plastic sanitary fittings instead of metallic ones but it did not help.

However, in absence of sanitary fittings, tabs had to be permanently closed to stop the wastage of water. In such a scenario, visitors to the hospital faced a problem as there was unavailability of water in the washrooms.

Senior Medical Officer Dr Hardeep Singh Ghai said he had asked few employees to keep a watch on the suspected persons. He said electrician Avtar Singh Kheri and gardener Lalan Prashad were asked to repair a water heating device in one of the VIP rooms. As the duo left the place after the completion of the work, another hospital employee reported the theft of sanitary fittings from the washroom. Dr Ghai said to steal public property was a serious offence and the investigation was on in this regard. — TNS

Amritsar, January 22
Days after mysterious disappearance of Chandresh Dutt, manager at the Central Bank of India branch near Guru Nanak Dev University, the Chheharta police on Wednesday registered a case of kidnapping after recording the statement of his wife Sudesh Rani.

She told the police that on January 18 at about 9.15 am her husband had left for duty but did not return home in the evening. Chandresh Dutt had gone missing under mysterious circumstances on Saturday. His wife told the police that she repeatedly called on his mobile but did not get any response from the other side. Then, she contacted his colleagues who also failed to tell his whereabouts. Late in the night, when the bank was reopened, officials found his bag, spectacles and mobile phone in his cabin. Harish Behal, SHO, Chheharta police station, said a case under Section 365 of the IPC has been registered and the investigation was on.