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Bajwa livid as SAD leader throws spanner in works
Norms changed, 24% hike in state’s Annual Plan likely
Secure release of detainees or face action, warn Sikh bodies
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Chandigarh, January 22 At least 5,000 villages in the state could have their own micro hybrid power plants, said retired Chief Engineer Bulwant Singh Brar at a press conference here today. He said tonnes of garbage, agriculture residue and animal dung could be used to generate clean power and provide additional source of income to small and marginal farmers in Punjab and Haryana. Chief Engineer Bulwant Singh Brar (left) at a press conference in Chandigarh on Wednesday. Tribune photo
BSP to look beyond Dalit vote bank
credit
war
20 govt middle schools shut
Patna clash: Sikh high priests to meet on Jan 27
Six deadlines later, Patiala bypass yet to be completed
thermal
plant
row
over village street
Additional force helps check drugs, cellphones in prisons
BSF to lodge protest with Pak Rangers
Verka seeks report on degrading school kids
Now, PU to accept exam fee through credit, debit cards
Protest against arrest of patwari, clerk
Auction of mines on Feb 6
Labourers seek plots, protest
immigration
fraud
NRIs can apply for LPG connection
Sugar mill officer caught taking bribe of
Rs 1 lakh
2 held in illegal sand mining case
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Bajwa livid as SAD leader throws spanner in works
Gurdaspur, January 22 Gurdaspur MP Bajwa had sanctioned Rs 6 lakh under the Member of Parliament Local Area Development (MPLAD) Scheme for development works in Pahra village, 3 km from here. The grant was sanctioned on the insistence of Gurmeet Singh Pahra, a Bajwa loyalist. He was in the reckoning for the party ticket from the Gurdaspur assembly seat, but lost out at the last moment. Gurmeet alleged that at the behest of a local SAD leader, SHO Sohan Lal with a posse of policemen visited the village and asked PWD officials and the contractor to stop re-carpeting the streets. This infuriated Gurmeet and he sought the intervention of DC Abhinav Trikha and SSP SS Gill. Nearly 500 Christians reside on both sides of the street that was being re-carpeted. Sources claim that all Christian families in the village are Congress supporters. Bajwa claimed that the SAD top brass had instructed its MLAs and government officials to stop development projects being undertaken from the MPLAD funds of Congress MPs. “I am against vendetta politics. The CM and his deputy should understand that MPLAD funds are meant for the development of parliamentary constituencies. Politics should not cloud the developmental projects,” the state Congress chief said. The police, however, claimed that they had received a complaint from Gurdaspur Block Samiti chairperson Harbinder Singh Happy, considered close to the SAD leader, that there was no need to re-carpet the street as it had already been done. The DC said the development works in the area would not be stopped.
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Norms changed, 24% hike in state’s Annual Plan likely
Chandigarh, January 22 However, the increase in the state’s Plan has nothing to do with the increase in the state’s revenue receipts. What has come to the aid of the state government is the change in the policy of giving states the resources for centrally sponsored schemes. Sources in the state Finance Department told The Tribune that this year the Planning Commission had changed the norms for fund disbursal to states for centrally sponsored schemes. Earlier, this was given as a separate head for centrally sponsored schemes, but now this will be part of the state’s plan and disbursed as additional central assistance. Through this measure alone, the state’s annual plan size will increase by over Rs 3,000 crore. Because of slow growth in the state’s revenues, the state is making a bid for an increase of Rs 1,600 crore (10 per cent over last year) in its own revenues. It may be noted that Plan expenditure is dependent on a state’s financial resources and the money the state can spare for development expenditure. But because of the state’s slow growth in revenues and its burgeoning expenditure, Plan approval for the state could not have exceeded the mandatory 10 per cent. It is only because of the change in policy that the state will see a jump in its Annual Plan size. The policy now favours additional central assistance instead of a separate head to disburse finances for various central schemes. Data available with The Tribune shows the total revenue receipts till November 2013 (first eight months of the fiscal) is Rs 21,615.98 crore. In the remaining months, the state is expected to earn Rs 21,049. 93 crore, if it expects to reach the estimated revenue receipt of Rs 42,665.91 crore by the end of this financial year. This seems to be a near impossible task. But with the slowdown in the real estate sector impacting stamp duty collections adversely and VAT collections showing slower than targeted growth, there seems to be little likelihood of the state meeting its revenue target for this year. Officials in the Finance Department said the reason for the state having a small Annual Plan was that the state continued to have marginally low revenue expenditure (30 per cent) as compared to the capital expenditure (70 per cent). Though the revenue expenditure should be very less, most states having a large Annual Plan tend to have revenue expenditure of over 70 per cent and capital expenditure of less than 25 per cent, they said. During the current fiscal, the state has been able to utilise Rs 3,097 crore of its planned expenditure, which is a little over 40 per cent of the total planned expenditure. Last year, the state had utilised Rs 2,731 crore of its planned expenditure in the same period, which shows that the plan utilisation is more by Rs 350 crore over last year. By the end of March, the state will have spent 70 per cent of its total plan outlay for the financial year.
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Secure release of detainees or face action, warn Sikh bodies
Mohali, January 22 Talking to The Tribune over the phone, he said he would report to the police station in Patiala tomorrow morning. Thereafter, he will be taken to Chandigarh. "I celebrated New Year and Lohri with my family after a long time. It was wonderful to be amid my near and dear ones. I am thankful to all those who have been fighting for our (Sikh detainees) cause," he said. His two accomplices, Shamsher Singh and Lakhwinder Singh's parole period ends on January 25. The fourth detainee, Lal Singh's furlough ends on February 1. He was released from the Nabha jail on a 42-day parole on December 20. Gurmeet Singh, Shamsher Singh and Lakhwinder Singh was granted parole for the first time in 19 years following a 42-day fast by activist Gurbaksh Singh Khalsa at Mohali. Khalsa has formed "Sikh Bandi Rehai Morcha" to seek the release of all Sikh detainees lodged in various jails of the country, despite having completed their jail term. Today, members of Sikh religious bodies and family members of detainees held a protest march from Gurdwara Sacha Dhan, Phase III to the Deputy Commissioner's office and submitted a memorandum. RP Singh, a member of the morcha, said: "We have cautioned the government that if it does not take any steps to secure the release of these detainees by February 20, we will launch an agitation again." A senior Home Department official said the detainees would have to report back to the jail authorities at the end of the parole. "Any violation of parole conditions can lead to denial of parole in future," he said. On the release of the six Sikh convicts who had completed their jail term, he said it was up to the governments of states in which they had been tried and convicted to take up the matter.
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Retd officer shows way to power sufficiency
Chandigarh, January 22 He said tonnes of garbage, agriculture residue and animal dung could be used to generate clean power and provide additional source of income to small and marginal farmers in Punjab and Haryana. He claimed that the Haryana Government had accepted his proposal in this regard. Brar said he had devised a unique (patented) concept of a power-producing unit, an amalgamation of biomass, biogas and solar power plants, costing about
Rs 3.5 crore. A micro hybrid power plant of 250 KW could be set up over 2 acres to 2.5 acres with an investment of Rs 3.5 crore and operated by 20 persons. The per unit cost of production worked out at Rs 4.29, Brar claimed. The plant would generate compost as a byproduct which could be sold to make up for the power generation cost. Such a plant could be constructed in just six months. The compost produced from the project would be 2.7 tonnes, as compared to 8 tonnes produced from conventional biogas plants, and could be easily managed. Even the ash produced would be only 15 quintals per day. This could be mixed with compost to enhance its value, eliminating special storage or disposal. Also, there would be no problem of grid failure and transmission losses.
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State
of Industry
Amritsar
It has two mega units - OCM, established during the British rule and now owned by a US-based private equity fund named WL Ross and Company, and Swadeshi. Data with the Punjab Industries Department shows there are 856 registered textile units in the city. However, there is no exact information on the number of employees in these units. Also, there are hundreds of unregistered handlooms. These are of three kinds — powerloom, automatic and shuttle-less Rapier — with electronic jacquards. Government apathy PL Seth, a textile unit operator, said the government’s indifference could be gauged from the fact that no textile policy had been chalked out after 2006. He said after agriculture, textile was the most labour-intensive sector offering jobs to a large number of people. “The government is giving power subsidy to the tune of about Rs 7,000 crore to farmers. A mere 10 per cent of this amount could do wonders to bolster the textile sector in the border district,” he claimed. Staff scarcity Labour unions say that more than 5,000 weavers are working in this sector. Labour leader Amarjeet Singh Assal complained of unhygienic working conditions and long working hours. With Punjabi youth reluctant to work in factories and labour from UP and Bihar only a trickle, the units are facing a severe labour shortage. A large number of small and medium category units have shifted to the computerised rapier shuttle-less looms. But there are few hands to operate and mend these looms. These computer-operated looms weave yarn like cotton, polyester, silk and nylon. But large industries have turned to the state-of-the-art dobby shuttle-less looms. The state government’s plan to upgrade curriculum in ITIs with the assistance of a German firm is still to take off. The Punjab Institute of Textile Technology, the only one of its kind in Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir, has failed to deliver, says textile industrialist Kamal Dalmia. Ancillary units Dyeing and finishing units, spinning mills, 4,500 modern embroidery machines and 400 shuttle-less Rapier looms with electronic jacquards and cone dyeing and printing industries lend ample support to the city's textile industry. Rough estimates suggest that textile goods, such as high-quality tweed, shawls and stoles, worth Rs 200 crore are sold to countries all over the world. Tax trouble Textile industrialist Bhupinder Khosla says that VAT on yarn within the state is 6.05 per cent while the CST on the same from outside the state is 2 per cent. As a result, manufacturers and traders pass on the high input cost to the retailers. Also, the high VAT prevents the dealers from getting registered, which affects tax collection. He says the VAT on yarn must be brought down to 2 per cent to bring it on a par with VAT on cotton and paper. "This move can revive allied textile industries like spinning and weaving," he suggested. Liquidity crunch SK Wadhwa, who manufatures blankets, said the textile industry in the country was going through a tough period and needed Rs 11,000-crore liquidity for restructuring. As of now, industrialists were getting term loan (advance given for setting up industry) and loan on the working capital at an interest of 13 to 14 per cent per annum. "Extremely high rates of interest make it unviable to invest in the textile business," he explained. Shuttle-less loom Though the government has increased capital subsidy from 20 per cent to 30 per cent on Rapier shuttle-less looms, the steep rise in the US dollar and Euro rates has neutralised the effect. Hence, the government needs to reduce import duty to f 5 per cent from the existing 17.45 per cent, say manufacturers. "This will also help convert 20 lakh manual looms to shuttle-less looms as per the Ministry of Textile plan chalked out last year," they say. The shawl industry being the mainstay of the textile sector, the chant to announce Amritsar as a city of shawls is growing louder, especially as Amritsar-manufactured shawls are sold as “Kashmiri shawls” in the rest of the country. PL Seth, whose family is one of the oldest players in the industry, said only enterprising industries with adequate liquidity could capitalise on the subsidy extended by the Union Government. He said the textile industry, the oldest in the city, had got no help from any political party. " Like other existing industries in the state, we are dismayed with the new industrial policy that has nothing to offer." The General Manager, District Industries Center (DIC), Surjit Singh, said various textile associations had been asked to inform his department about the problems they faced. " As per the Industries Facilitation Act, their problems can be taken up by a district-level committee headed by the Deputy Commissioner," he added. (To be concluded)
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Cigarette cos behind tax cut: Bajwa
Chandigarh, January 22 Talking to mediapersons on the sidelines of the ongoing hunger strike here, Bajwa said it was a "senseless" decision of the government led by Parkash Singh Badal who represented a party with "panthic" credentials. He said after the alleged involvement of SAD leaders in the drug racket, it was another dubious achievement of the SAD. Bajwa said the decision was taken under pressure from tobacco companies due to their declining sales in the state. He said the government stated that the money earned from sale of cigarettes would be spent on cancer patients, which was "ridiculous". Bajwa said he was seeking an appointment with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to seek a special industrial package for Punjab. He said he would meet the PM along with CLP leader Sunil Jakhar, Union ministers and Congress MPs from the state. Chaudhary Jagjit Singh along with Congress MLAs Charanjit Kaur Bajwa and Karan Kaur Brar today observed the daylong fast at the Congress Bhawan.
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BSP to look beyond Dalit vote bank
Jalandhar, January 22 A section of the party leadership is reportedly lobbying for the party ticket to Punjabi singer KS Makhan for the Anandpur Sahib seat, now represented by Congress' Ravneet Singh Bittu. The party believes it should go for popular names instead of fielding greenhorns, say sources. Makhan Singh, who is a Sikh Jat, is expected to formally join the BSP on February 11. Jandali refused to confirm if Makhan Singh would be the party candidate for Anandpur Sahib. "Let Makhan Singh join the party first. No decision has been taken on him so far," he said. The BSP is planning to counter the BJP strategy in Hoshiarpur. The latter has taken popular singer Miss Pooja into its fold and has indicated that it will make every effort to make inroads into the Dalit vote bank. The BJP, if it fields Miss Pooja from Hoshiarpur, is expected to attract both Dalit and Lobana votes. Miss Pooja, a Dalit, is married to a Lobana. "We are finalising our strategy in Hoshiarpur from where Miss Pooja is likely to contest on the BJP ticket," said Jandali. The BSP has decided to field Bhagwan Singh Chauhan, RS Walia from Amritsar, Sucha Singh Maan from Khadoor Sahib, Ram Singh Dhiman from Patiala, Bhupesh Sharma (Brahmin) from Bathinda and Ram Kumar Parjapat (OBC) from
Ferozepur.
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credit
war
Jalandhar, January 22 Jaivir Shergill (30) is the lone face from Punjab on the Congress panel on state issues. Perhaps, the youngest member on the panel, he is said to be close to Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi. Shergill belongs to Jamsher village in Jalandhar. He is masters in law from Berkeley University, US. He is believed to be the brain behind the helpline for “victims of Akali repression.” Shergill said the panel would use the social media to convey its message.
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20 govt middle schools shut
The school at Todar Majri, with an impressive building and a spacious playground, was shut about a week ago. Twenty more middle schools with less than 20 students on rolls have been closed in different parts of the state. At least 111 middle schools with a pupil strength of less than 30 will be shut by April 1. At least 130 more schools with less than 45 students have been warned to raise their student strength or face closure. Headmaster Kuldip Singh of the school at Majatri village said: “ Our school already has sufficient staff. The department will have to
work out a permanent solution. The teachers have been transferred here only temporarily.” A school headmaster, who did not want to be named, said it were schools located near big cities that faced the problem of a skewed teacher:taught ratio. “Official records will show that while a large number of government schools in the countryside are crying for teachers, schools on the city outskirts have surplus staff,” he said. The GMS, Chandpur (Hoshiarpur), has three teachers and two students; GMS, Miranpur (Jalandhar), six teachers and 10 students and GMS, Tapiala (Amritsar), five teachers and 19 students. The middle school in Bela Ramgarh in Ropar district has five teachers for 22 students. Fifteen schools in Amritsar district, 18 in Hoshiarpur, 11 in Kapurthala, seven in Ludhiana, 12 in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar and two in Bathinda may be closed if they fail to take in more students. Schools at Avaan Lakha Singh in Amritsar and Munnanwali, Loh Chhap, Auli Bhann and Guruchak Dala in Gurdaspur have been closed because there has been no enrollment.
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Patna clash: Sikh high priests to meet on Jan 27
Amritsar, January 22 Sources said the Akal Takht had summoned Takht Sri Patna Sahib Jathedar Giani Iqbal Singh and the management committee members on January 27. The Akal Takht Jathedar has said any decision would be taken on the basis of the report submitted by the SGPC panel that visited Patna after the clash. Additional granthi Partap Singh, whose appointment had led to the clash in Patna, will also be present here. SAD (Delhi) president Paramjeet Singh Sarna has demanded that Golden Temple's Head Granthi Giani Jagtar Singh should also be invited to the meeting as he was witness to the violent clash in Patna on January 7.
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Six deadlines later, Patiala bypass yet to be completed
Patiala, January 22 The Chief Minister is keen to inaugurate the project before the code of conduct for the Lok Sabha poll comes into force. The state government had acquired land for the project in 2006. The BRO has missed almost six deadlines in seven years. Recently, the deadline of January 15 was violated. With the completion of this bypass, commuters from Zirakpur on way to Sangrur, Bathinda and some parts of Haryana and Rajasthan would need not to enter Patiala city while the Army could use this road to travel straight to the cantonment area. “We will invite the Chief Minister for the project’s inauguration in the first week of February. We cannot delay it further as
the code of conduct will come into force,” said a senior district official. The project was likely to be completed at a cost of Rs 83 crore by March 2011. Following delays, the project cost has now escalated to Rs 110 crore. “We have been assured by the BRO that they would finish the work by January 31. With minor works pending, we will request the Chief Minister’s office to get the project inaugurated formally,” said Patiala DC Gopal Krishan Singh. BRO officials said the work remained suspended for over a year as the
contractor had left the project midway.
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thermal
plant
Hoshiarpur, January 22 A team led by CEA Director SK Mandal visited Hajipur, Naushera, Saido, Simbli and other villages to know the ground reality. “I have listened to farmers’ grievances and will submit a report to the Union Power Ministry soon. The ministry will decide as it deems fit,” Mandal said. The government has identified about 1,000 acres in 28 villages of Hajipur block. Hazipur village resident Dr Himmat Singh told the team that local leaders lured farmers with money and forced them to support government’s move. Village resident Sukhwinder Singh said the government would render farmers landless. Another villager Sulkhan Singh claimed that the thermal plant would degrade environment and lead to health problems.
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row
over village street
Muktsar, January 22 Villagers, owing allegiance to the Congress, alleged that Akali supporters had constructed a wall to close the street and then claimed that there was no street. After visiting the spot, Verka said the street existed and water pipes bore testimony to that. “A few villagers had recently closed the street by constructing walls. When people living near the street demolished the wall, they were booked in a criminal case,” he said, adding that the police had implicated Dalits in the case. Verka asked the administration to submit a report on the matter within 15 days.
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Additional force helps check drugs, cellphones in prisons
Chandigarh, January 22 An additional force of 1,100 persons has been raised from among ex-servicemen, home guards and Punjab Police personnel. This has resulted in more checking and recovery of prohibited items from prisoners. Disclosing this here today, Jails Minister Sarwan Singh Phillaur said with the deployment of more security personnel, the frequency of surprise checking had increased which was showing good results. He said in December, 36 banned drugs and 68 mobile phones were seized from prisoners. He said the jail authorities had been told that action would be taken against those allowing the entry of prohibited items into jails. Phillaur said X-ray machines and metal detectors were being installed in the jails. He said mobile jammers had been installed at the Nabha and Sangrur jails and the same would be installed in all the jails. The minister said more funds were being provided to the authorities to provide better medical facilities to inmates. To overcome overcrowding, five new jails with better facilities were being built, he added. Phillaur said he had planned to check all the jails.
Jagmeet Brar on a ‘mission’
Ropar: Former Member of Parliament Jagmeet Singh Brar on Wednesday said he was on a mission to curb the drug menace in the state. Brar, while addressing the local bar association, said he was there to consult lawyers as part of the mission. He said he would go to other districts to seek suggestions from people to tackle the situation. The suggestions would be submitted before the Punjab and Haryana High Court on January 29, the date of hearing of a case filed in this regard, he said. Brar said there was an urgent need of a CBI investigation into the racket as it "involved powerful politicians, bureaucrats and police officials".
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BSF to lodge protest with Pak Rangers
Amritsar, January 22 The Pakistan Rangers have already refused to own the dead bodies of the three smugglers. They were shot by BSF jawans during a flag meeting between officials of two forces last evening. A BSF official said the commandant of respective battalions under whose border jurisdiction the recent intrusion bid was made would write a protest letter to their Pakistani counterparts giving details of the encounters and subsequent seizures. The matter would also be taken up during the monthly, quarterly and bi-annual meetings, he added.
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Verka seeks report on degrading school kids
Faridkot, January 22 He criticised the district administration and the Education Department for not taking action against the culprits under the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, even a week after the incident. Verka gave the district administration three days to submit a report on the incident. He alleged that the district administration was downplaying the incident under political pressure. District Education Officer Amarjit Khokhar said after an inquiry, the department had submitted a list of students absent on the day of the incident to the higher authorities.
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Now, PU to accept exam fee through credit, debit cards
Chandigarh, January 22 It was decided that for all the 12 competitive exams conducted by the university, candidates could deposit fees through credit or debit cards of any national or international bank. PU controller of examination Parvinder Singh said the facility would be started in the coming months. He said bankers had already assured them that the facility would be provided to them and the gateway for this would be through the parent bank of the university, the State Bank of India. He said that in the first phase, the facility would be applicable for competitive exams but plans were afoot to extend it to all the courses of the university. Candidates applying for competitive exams have to deposit fee through the SBI only.
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Protest against arrest of patwari, clerk
Fatehgarh Sahib, January 22 Gursewak Singh, district president, Revenue Patwar Union, said Gurmukh Singh (patwari) and Malkiat Singh (registry clerk) were called to the NRI police station, Ludhiana, for their statements in a land dispute case of Sirhind. He said when they went to the police station, they were arrested. He said the police told them that they had received a complaint from an NRI in a land dispute case title Balwinder Singh verses Avtar Singh of Sirhind. He said Balwinder struck a land deal with Avtar but he got the land registered on someone else’s name. Balwinder had lodged a complaint with the Fatehgarh Sahib SSP against both the employees. However, the DSP in his inquiry report stated that both of them were innocent. He said the Tehsildar in his inquiry too found them to be innocent. DC Arun Sekhri said he had written to the Financial Commissioner (R) to take up the matter with higher police officials as both the employees had been arrested without keeping his office in the loop. He has recommended deletion their names from the FIR and their release.
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Auction of mines on Feb 6
Chandigarh, January 22 He said after the auction, people would get sand and crusher at nominal rates as it would ease the supply. Industries Minister has instructed the officials concerned to auction these quarries in a transparent manner.
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Three killed as car goes up in flames in Amritsar
Amritsar, January 22 Two victims were charred to death while the death of the third person remained a mystery as his body was found outside the car. One of the deceased and owner of the Chevrolet Beat car (PB-02-CB 1671) was identified as Surinder Singh (58) of Rana Garden enclave. The remaining two were yet to be identified. The incident reportedly took place around 4.30 am. Jasbir Kaur, deceased' wife, said her husband, a heart patient, was going to Chandigarh when the incident took place. She said she did not know the other two persons accompanying him. Jasdeep Singh, Superintendent of Police, said the exact cause behind the death of the third person would be ascertained only after a post-mortem examination. He said the car would be sent for a forensic examination to establish the cause of fire. Sources said the car might have got locked after it caught fire. "It appears that one of the victims had managed to come out of the car. The post-mortem examination would reveal whether he died of asphyxia and was hit by some vehicle while lying on the road, the SP said.
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immigration fraud
London, January 22 Sixteen addresses across the UK were raided as part of the ongoing investigation involving Manchester-based Khalsa Missionary Society, a Sikh religious and cultural centre, the Birmingham Mail reported. Ten people were arrested on the suspicion of obtaining leave by deception during the early morning swoops in the Home Office or interior ministry investigation that was supported by officers from the National Crime Agency, it said. They are being questioned in police stations across the UK and all the addresses are being searched. Addresses are now also being searched in Birmingham, Slough, Southall, Southampton, Luton, Hounslow and Leicester. The probe is focusing on the sponsoring of Indians to work at the society as ministers of religion, under the Tier 2 and Tier 5 migrant workers system, the Birmingham Mail reported. Nine more people were arrested for immigration offences, including overstaying their visa duration, it said. Three separate cash seizures were also made. — PTI
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NRIs can apply for LPG connection
Chandigarh, January 22 NRIs Baldev Singh and Vijay Kumar Saria in their complaint with the commission said they could not apply for a gas connection in India despite the Centre giving many benefits to PIOs and Overseas Citizens of India. They said to apply for a gas connection, one had to declare that "I am an
Indian citizen". They said since they were not Indian citizens, they could not apply for a
gas cylinder, which "frustrated their intention" to stay in the country for a longer period. Following their complaint, the commission had issued a notice to the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas to look into the issue. — PTI
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Sugar mill officer caught taking bribe of
Rs 1 lakh
Fazilka, January 22 Chief Cane Development Officer, Fazilka Central Cooperative Sugar Mill, JS Rada was arrested by the Fazilka Deputy Superintendent of Police (Vigilance) while accepting a bribe of Rs 1 lakh from Jaspinder Singh of Daulatpura village of Abohar sub-division. DSP Jagdish Singh said a case had been registered against Jaspinder and his two companions on the report of Rada in Daulatpura village. Jaspinder and his companions were booked on the charges of tearing and damaging ballot papers at the polling booth in the village. The case had been pending and Rada had demanded bribe from him.
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2 held in illegal sand mining case
Fazilka, January 22 SHO Chhinder Singh said on a tip-off, the police conducted a raid at the border village, where the accused and their accomplices were excavating sand. On seeing the police, all but two fled. They have been identified as Davinder Singh of Chimnewali village and Gurvinder Singh of Kamalwala village. Those who escaped remain unidentified, except one — Vijay Kumar of Asafwala village. The accused have been booked under Section 379 (punishment for theft) of the IPC and the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957. Gurjant Singh, General Manager, Industries, said: “In the past one year, 68 cases of illegal sand mining have been registered and 135 persons arrested. In all, 145 vehicles carrying sand were challaned and fine of Rs 12 lakh was collected from vehicle owners,” he said.
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State
of Industry Amritsar
Faridkot, January 22
Fatehgarh Sahib, January 22
Amritsar, January 22
SAS Nagar, January 22