Bathinda, February 7
The AIE/EGS Teachers’ Union showed unflinching determination in their fight against the state government as they kept the body of the 14-month-old Eknoor Kaur ‘Rooth’ in an air-conditioned glass casket and sat on a dharna outside the bus stand in Bathinda for the second consecutive day.

“They not only took away our quilts and left us shivering in the cold, but they also made sure that we didn’t get any tents to save ourselves from the rain. We had to resort to using a large polythene sheet against the rain. The administration is trying all tactics to force us to leave the dharna,” said Simranjeet Kaur, one of the protesters.

The mats on which the protesters are sitting outside the bus stand have turned soggy with intermittent rain and high moisture content in the air. “The child died because of the cold weather and the least we can do for her is to get justice. Sitting on soiled and soggy mats is irrelevant to us. We are not afraid of falling ill, all we want is justice,” said Resham Singh, district president of the Democratic Teachers’ Front.

By late afternoon, the protesters had started accepting donations from whoever wished to help them. While some of the unions collected money and sent across close to Rs 5,000 each, college students and passers-by also contributed.

“To keep a track of how much money is being collected through donation, we are giving receipts for all the amounts, however, small or big it is. The money will be used to help the family of the child and arrange for the basic requirements of the dharna. Till now, we were being supplied food by the members of a political party and some NGOs. But we need to have some back-up plan,” Resham added.

Since a majority of the protestors are women, the biggest problem is to attend to the nature’s call. For two days now, the females have been using the bathrooms inside the bus stand or inside the district administrative complex, which closes at 5 pm.

“This is a do-or-die situation for us. We didn’t begin the dharna to buckle under tough conditions or pressure from the state government and district administration. The issue has to be settled for once and for all,” said the protesters.

Bathinda, February 7
Bathinda MLA and Chief Parliamentary Secretary (CPS) Sarup Chand Singla today urged not to politicise the teachers’ protest to put hundreds of other commuters and city residents at the receiving end.

Commenting upon the rising number of protests and dharnas in the city ahead of the coming Lok Sabha elections, Singla said that political parties are taking undue advantage out of the protest.

“Guidelines have to be followed as per the law before giving government jobs to the protesting teachers and efforts are being made by the government to resolve the issue their appointment,” Singla said while talking to The Tribune News Service today.

The MLA termed the teachers’ protest as illogical adding that neither any government servant nor any other influential person is becoming the stumbling block in the appointment of the teachers. He claimed that the government was doing the needful to resolve the issue at the earliest.

He pointed out that a panel meeting is already under process in which Education Secretary, Education Minister and others are supposed to settle the dispute between the teachers and government.

Expressing concern over the problems being faced by passengers and commuters, Singla said deliberations continued with the protesters till 10 pm last night but failed to reach any conclusions. He said there are other legal ways to remove the protesters from the road but their first preference is to give chance to the teachers to resolve issue amicably.

“The government is willing to wind up the issue in a very peaceful and that in a democratic manner without any harm to anyone,” Singla said.

He added that the teachers are emotionally blackmailing to pressurise the government in order to get all their demands met.

Denying any role of the government servants in the death of the infant, the CPS claimed that the infant died due to some congenital deficiency.

“The Deputy Commissioner and the SSP visited the teachers and kept on enquiring about the child’s health. But unfortunately it could not survive,” added Singla.

Amritsar, February 7
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) today began its Student-Nature Interaction Programme (SNIP) with students of Fazilka and Amritsar. A group of 125 students of Army Public School, Fazilka, visited Harike Patan today in collaboration with Diksha Society for an interaction with nature. A nature walk and a wildlife quiz was undertaken to engage children towards nature. Cedar Spring High School, Ranjit Avenue, had invited WWF on Thursday to start SNIP from their school in Amritsar. SNIP is a programme initiated by the Chairperson, Punjab, WWF India, Gunbir Singh, to curtail degradation of nature and its assets by engaging with children at an early age.

The programme is a conjoined activity with EcoAmritsar wherein pledges are taken by children to save water, conserve energy and serve environment. Eco Clubs are being formed in schools, and the institutions encouraged to engage in milestone progression towards becoming "Green Schools".

WWF has appointed a permanent representative, Puneet Watts, in Amritsar to give impetus to its programmes. Today's activity included film screenings on the animal wealth of India, sensitisation of children to banned animal products, as also animated movies and nature screenings. Cedar Spring High School participated in the endeavour and appreciated the excitement and pledges taken by the children. WWF, Punjab, Chairperson, Gunbir Singh said, "Children are the future and the natural inheritors of this planet. Sensitising them about their shared existence with other species, and inculcating responsibility towards sustainable living is our duty towards the next generation.

Among them shall emerge the 'thought leaders' of tomorrow for the environment."

Bathinda, February 7
Instead of focussing on condemning the state government for failing to bring Bikramjeet Singh Majithia for his alleged involvement in drug trafficking case like earlier, the dharna organised by the District Congress Committee (rural) here today focussed on the death of the 14-month-old Rooth, daughter of Kiranjit Kaur, one of the AIE/EGS teachers who have been sitting on a dharna in the city since early Sunday morning.

Addressing the dharna, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee chief Partap Singh Bajwa strongly condemned the police action against the teachers who have been sitting on a stir in Bathinda. He also held the SAD-BJP government and district administration responsible for the death of the infant. He asked the Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, to order an inquiry into her death and take action against the guilty officials.

He also accused the SAD-BJP state government of turning its back on the teachers and questioned why the Member of Parliament from Bathinda, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, had not taken out time to visit the parents of the child. He also accused the state government of having dual standards as on one hand it was distributing cycles among female students claiming they wanted more females to come to schools, on the other they cared the least about the girl child who succumbed to the ruthless behaviour of the police department and the district administration.

He also asked the Bathinda MP to end the Nanhi Chhaan campaign as the decision taken by her own government had led to the demise of a girl child in her district.

Addressing the issue for which the dharna had been organised, the PPCC chief stated that several sections of Punjab government employees were agitating to get their demands accepted.

“The lust for money and power has made all the members of Badal family insensitive and inhuman. The CM and the Deputy CM are causing irreparable damages to the state by their acts of omission and commission,” he said.

“The CM is protecting the big leaders involved in the drug trafficking case, such as Bikramjeet Singh Majithia. They didn’t agree to ordering a CBI inquiry into the case fearing more of their leaders will get embroiled in the case. The Punjab Police was working under political pressure and has not been able to conduct a free and fair investigation in the case,” he added.

The leaders also accused the state government of wasting public funds on useless exercise of holding Progressive Punjab Investment Summit, Agriculture summit, Technical Education Summit and NRI Sammelans. He added that crores of rupees had been spent on such events.

Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, Gurpreet Singh Kangar, Jasbir singh Dimpa, Harminder Singh Jassi, Mohan Lal Aggarwal, Rajan Garg, Charanji Lal Garg, Sukhraj Singh Natt, K.K.Aggarwal, Darshan Singh Jida, Narinder Bhaleria, Bhupinder Singh Gora, Gurmit Singh Chairman, Raj Kumar Lumberdar, Khushbaz Singh Jatana, Pala Singh Pradhan, Babu Singh Pradhan also addressed the gathering.

Bathinda, February 7
Bathinda zila parishad has planned to start training programmes for the sarpanches of different villages to make them aware of their rights and functioning. Chairman zila parishad Gurpreet Singh Maluka said this while addressing a meeting of sarpanches of Bathinda and Nathana blocks here today.

Gurpreet directed the sarpanches to ensure presence of staff, stationed at rural dispensaries and village schools. They were also directed to form management committees to hold parent-teacher meetings regularly.

Emphasis was laid on improving the green canopy in villages by promoting afforestation with the help of village level youth clubs. Raising concern over increasing number of illegal chemist shops, where habit-forming drugs are sold to villagers, Gurpreet asked the sarpanches to keep an eye on such anti-social elements and inform about their activities to the police.

Maluka also asked the sarpanches to stop encroachment on shamlat (common village land). The sarpanches were told to take personal interest in the development works of the villages. 

Bathinda, February 7
After refusing compensation of Rs 5 lakh and a government job to one of the family members of the deceased child, the teachers continued their dharna leaving hundreds of commuters in the lurch.

Commuters felt the heat today with buses run due to traffic chaos and rail blockade by the BJP Kisan Morcha.

Passengers cursing the Punjab government fumed at the protestors following irritatingly slow traffic on the GT Road, Power House Road, Bhagu Road, Bibiwala Road and Mall Road following the protest.

The teachers refused to lift the dharna until all their demands are met, including jobs to all the teachers protesting for around one week and suitable monetary compensation to the family who lost their infant during the protest.

“Even the pedestrians and two wheelers could not cross the roads beside the bus stand due to serpentine queues of buses. It took me more than two hours to reach the District Court Complex in my car for an important meeting with a lawyer,” said Harbhagwan, a resident of nearby Tungwali village.

Manwinder Singh, whose car got stuck up near the Power House Road, said his sister was supposed to arrive from Amritsar and was frantically searching for the place where the bus would drop her.

Autorickshaw drivers and rickshaws were seen minting money from the passengers in view of chock-a-block on the GT Road.

Passers-by were seen donating money from Rs 10 to Rs 500 to the teachers. The teachers in return to the money gave them receipts of donation.

National Secretary of the Kisan Morcha, Sukhminderpal, said nearly 1.5 lakh farmers were forced to commit suicide during the Congress regime in the country. He alleged that the Government was directly responsible for farmers’ suicides.

He said that they had blocked trains in view of the farmers’ long pending demands.

Bathinda, February 7
The two-day inter-school Kala Mela concluded at the Malwa College, here today. Chairman of the Bathinda Zila Parishad, Gurpreet Singh Maluka, presided over the function on the concluding day.

On the second day, Government Senior Secondary School, Behman Diwana, won the first prize in the kavishri competition, while the second prize went to the Government Senior Secondary School, Gidderbaha.

In skit presentation, students of local Government Senior Secondary School and Arya Senior Secondary School, won the first prize and the second prize, respectively.

In the fancy dress competition, Jagjeevan Kaur and Harpreet Singh grabbed the first and second places, respectively.

In the group dance, students of Arya Senior Secondary School and Guru Nanak Dev Senior Secondary School, both from the city stood first and second. Simran Bawa won the first place and Gurmeet Singh second place in the spot painting competition.

In the poster-making competition, Geeta Rani and Hardeep Kaur won the first and second prizes, respectively.

Garima and Priya were adjudged first and second in the collage-making competition.

In the quiz contest, Government Senior Secondary School, Gidderbaha, stood first and Government Senior Secondary School, Goniana Mandi, came second.