Amritsar, February 17
A group of teachers has decided to knock at the doors of the court in case the government did not roll back its decision to shift male teachers out of Government Girls Senior Secondary Schools in the district.

At their meeting held under the leadership of Ram Sarup Singh, Mukhtiyar Singh, Vipan Kumar, Rajnish, Rakesh Kumar, Gurinder Singh Sodhi and others they decried the move. They alleged that senior officials were using pick and choose policies in shifting out of male teachers.

The government’s move came about after instances of some male teachers in schools at Moga, Ludhiana and Gurdaspur were found allegedly involved in outraging the modesty of girl students. It prompted the state government to instruct the state Education Department to conduct in-house assessment of replacing male teachers in girls schools with women teachers.

However, the move has irked various teachers organisations which are up in arms against the government. Some of these organisations are Government School Lecturer Union, Government Teachers Union, Democratic Teachers Front, Government School Teachers Union.

They argued that this decision would not only disturb the academic set up of schools but it would also bring a bad name to the entire male teaching community.

Following instructions from the state government, the district Education Department has prepared and submitted a report of shifting out of male teachers from various government senior secondary schools for girls in the district.

There are about 1,500 government schools in the district, including 419 under secondary. Of these 419, 385 schools are co-ed, 22 girl schools and 12 boys schools in the district.

Notably, the move has also been flayed by many female teachers who are expected to be shifted out to other schools. One such female teacher said on condition of anonymity that it was an unexpected reaction from the state government. “Instead of going against the accused and granting exemplary punishment to them, the government is hell bent on upsetting the entire set up”.

The delegation reasoned that women teachers could not stay longer in evening on the school premises to carry out maintainance and other works in the school buildings. Even in the case of educational tours, male teachers come in handy to communicate with persons from outside.

Amritsar, February 17
The spurned lover, who had stabbed a schoolgirl to death on the eve of Valentine’s Day, ended his life by consuming celphos tablets.

Jaswant Singh’s (22) body was found in the agriculture fields on the outskirts of Dhaone Khurd village where he had killed the girl.

Police officials said the boy committed suicide on very next day but his body was found only today when foul smell engulfed the area.

Nirmal Singh, SHO, Gharinda police station, while confirming this said that it seemed that the boy returned in the wee hours the very next day and committed suicide in a tube well room. He pointed out that the police had thoroughly searched the area on the day of the incident and he was not found there.

He added that the police teams had found empty bottles of celphos tablets from the scene during the search operation and was suspecting that he might take this step. However, he added that all efforts to locate him proved futile as nobody knew about his whereabouts at that time.

Sandeep Kaur (17), a teenage girl was stabbed to death by the youth as she did not pay heed to his advances and refused his friendship proposal. Both were residents of them same village. The victim used to study in Shaheed Baba Deep Singh School at Bachiwind village and used to return home around 2 pm. She was returning home from her school. The accused had slit her throat besides stabbing her in the stomach and chest. A case under Section 302, IPC, has been registered against him.

Amritsar, February 17
There is good news for the holy city. Three farmers from Amritsar will be honoured by Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal during the Progressive Farmer Summit to take place at Mohali on February 19.

These farmers have contributed to the agriculture arena by adopting novel ways of farming. They have left behind the traditional cultivation of wheat and paddy.

The youngest of them, Vikram Partap Singh Sarkaria of Gumtala village, studied Environmental Sciences in Canada but decided to return to his country to pay its debt. He learnt the art of setting up polyhouse and glass-house techniques and even worked in the blue berries farms there. With the guidance of the State Horticulture Department, he set up a net house and started cultivating capsicum, cucumber, chillies, coriander etc. In 2010-11, he with the technical assistance of the Punjab Horticulture Department set up two polyhouses under the National Horticulture Mission for the cultivation of bell peppers. The successful experience encouraged him to set up two more polyhouses (2 kanals each). Likewise in 2012-13 with the assistance of the Horticulture Department, under the National Horticulture Mission, one more polyhouse over an area of one acre was set up. These polyhouses are fitted with drip irrigation and fogging systems to save water. At present he is mainly growing coloured bell peppers in these polyhouses and is getting a good yield (320 quintal per acre).

Jagtar Singh, another farmer who left his job in the Army and became a progressive farmer. He used modern techniques for growing pears, sugarcane, vegetables, turmeric by organic farming. By marketing his produce, he is also motivating farmers to diversify their crops.

Amanpartap Singh Nizzar, another farmer, owns a processing plant. He is being honoured for his contribution in the fruit and vegetable processing industry.

Amritsar, February 17
Come May and tourists, passengers visiting city railway station may savour dishes from continental, South Indian, Chinese, besides Punjabi cuisines at the station itself, as the work to raise a food plaza has started.

Assistant Traffic Manager (ATM), Ashok Salaria, said 2,250 square feet area (250 square yard) has been allocated to the Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) Limited to set up the food plaza. He said the construction work was expected to finish by April.

The IRCTC has conceived four food plazas at railway stations in Chandigarh, Amritsar, Ferozepur and Ambala. Of these, Chandigarh’s plaza has been made operational recently.

There has not been a regular outlet serving meals at the railway station for the past many years. It has been a long-pending demand of the people visiting the railway station of the holy city, categorised as one of the top tourist destinations in the country, to get good and hygienic food. The footfall at railway station is increasing day by day.

Sources said a Delhi-based food product chain has been hired to operate the plaza here. Officials of a Mumbai-based private food chain La Festa visited the railway station couple of months back. As many as 130 trains arrive and depart from Amritsar railway station. It records a daily footfall of over 30,000 passengers.

Setting up of food plaza in the waiting hall has consumed space of general waiting hall, which was not liked by all. Passengers are of the view that the site must have ideally been situated at a vantage position to serve passengers as well as outsiders without buying platform ticket.

The railway station will soon be decked up in a modern look in the coming months as the process to install escalator had started. However, its slow work has irked passengers and vendors.

Last year, the Union Government announced Rs 10 crore for the development and to provide better amenities at the local railway station. Under the plan, the Tourism Ministry sanctioned a grant of Rs 10.28 crore to the Railways and the Railways Ministry provided the required land.

The railway station would have a retiring room, a VIP lounge, waiting room, waiting hall, parking area, VIP parking lot, circulating area etc.

Amritsar, February 17
While the Municipal Corporation has framed a policy to shift all those officials who have been holding on to the same post for more than three years, the authorities still softens its stand when it comes to the case of two officials Yogesh Arora and Vishal Wadhawan. The SAD councillors had come out in the open dubbing them as corrupt and seeking their transfer, a few days ago.

A group of SAD councillors had submitted a memorandum with MC authorities and Local Bodies minister Anil Joshi against two officials Dr Yogesh Arora, the Health Officer and Vishal Wadhawan, the Estate Officer

While Cabinet minister Anil Joshi has thrown his weight behind these officials, the SAD councillors were adamant on their demand of transferring them while alleging charges of corruption against them and questioning their credibility to hold such prominent positions for so long.

SAD councillors had even boycotted the general house meet and staged protest against local bodies minister Anil Joshi for shielding his blue eyed men.

Dejected by the Cabinet minister's casual attitude, the local SAD leadership had approached Deputy CM during his visit to the holy city for launching the city bus service.

Mayor Bakshi Ram Arora told that this particular case of both officials is under consideration as Deputy CM had entrusted the duties of CPS Inderbir Bolaria and Joshi to resolve the issue, but the outcome of this development is still awaited.

Amritsar, February 17
Local industrialists and traders today expressed a mixed response to the Interim Budget presented by Finance Minister P Chidambaram before the conclusion of this Lok Sabha.

Pharmaceutical manufacturer and exporter Raman Gupta said certainly one can appreciate some moves to encourage industry but a long- pending demand of the Small Scale Industrial (SSI) units to raise the exemption limit of Central excise from the present Rs 1.5 crore to Rs 3 crore was once again ignored. He said the move was necessary in the light that inflation had steadily gone up while the value of rupee went down in the past many years. All these factors combined to make the cost of articles dearer and investment higher in the SSI sector. On the other hand, the exemption limit was the same for the past many years.

Another leading industrialist of the city, Rajan Bedi, said accorging to the latest data, merchandise exports recorded an increase and the required steps must be taken to bolster it further. He felt that Amritsar-Kolkata industrial corridor must be extended up to Attari to facilitate import and export from Pakistan and Central Asian Countries.

Punjab Pradesh Beopar Mandal President Amrit Lal Jain said in the Interim Budget, the Finance Minister did not announce when GST would be rolled out. “The FM announced that agriculture output had increased in the country, but failed to give reasons why food prices went up soaring.” He welcomed the budgetary allocation of Rs 3,711 crore for minority communities in the country.

CII National Policy member Gunbir Singh said the fall in manufacturing investment in India was worrying and the government needed to seriously take some steps to restore the trend. He said fertiliser subsidy at 679.71 billion rupees and petroleum subsidy at 854.8 billion rupees for the current fiscal indicated that the Union Government was directing huge funds to agriculture. However, these steps encourage the unhealthy practice of using chemical-based fertiliser which would be in the long run bad for the productivity of the land and would pollute underground water. Instead, organic inputs in agriculture must be encouraged.

He welcomed the announcement of service-tax exemption on loading, unloading and storage of rice. He said the region exported a large quantity of rice to the Middle East and European countries. It would give stimulus to post-harvest rice industry to flourish as rice storage is a difficult and high investment cost project.

Amritsar, February 17
A person identified as Sukhraj Singh, a resident of Rataul village, Tarn Taran, was killed in a road mishap when a speeding truck hit his bicycle late last evening.

Gurjit Singh, who is a son of the deceased, told the police that he along with his father were returning to their village on bicycles when the truck hit his father due to which he died on spot.

The police have registered a case under Sections 304-A, 279, and 427, IPC, against the accused in this connection.

Amritsar, February 17
Fighting adverse economic conditions at home, Sukhpal Kaur Hundal, is scaling up the ladder in two games - wrestling and Judo. She was selected for the Indian camp to be held at Sonepat (Haryana) in April for the Commonwealth Games after she won a bronze medal in the National Sports Meet held recently. Earlier, she clinched the gold medal in the All India Inter-varsity Judo Championship in 78 kg category.

It is rare to see a player preparing and competing in two games simultaneously. Born into a lower middle income group family, she did not allow adverse circumstances to ground her dreams. Instead, she worked hard to see these through.

Presently, she is also preparing for senior National Wrestling Championship to be held in November. A student of BBK DAV College for Women, Sukhpal dabbled into sports at 15.

A view of the dilapidated building of the TB Hospital in Amritsar. Photo: Vishal Kumar

The residents opined that government needs to provide better working conditions to the medical staff so that they cannot complain of hardships. At the same the staff too has an obligation to perform their duties with utmost sincerity and honesty. The general public too needs to develop a sense of belongingness for the government institutions.

Fill vacant posts

The government must fill all vacant posts, provide hospital employees whatever they need and ask them to perform duties with sincerity. The government should have a will to better the services. Instead of issuing large advertisements to boast of achievements, which are otherwise not visible, the government must use the money for renovating hospital buildings.

BR Preenja, social activist

Provide infrastructure

It is not that the system has collapsed in a day or it can be built in a day. Consistent efforts are required. The day government will provide the necessary infrastructure and manpower, things will start improving. The employees too need to introspect. People in private hospitals are getting much less pay but they are working more. The problem with people is that once they get a government job, they are not ready to work.

Kuljeet Singh, advocate

Bitter experience

I have a bitter experience of visiting a government hospital. I feel that people without connections must not go there. If you do not have the connections, you must be ready to face humiliation by each and every one, including gatemen and staff nurses. The medical profession like teaching is the one which should be opted by only those who love the mankind and want to serve it.

Kanwar Preet Singh, a student

Renovate old hospitals

The government is busy constructing new buildings. It does not occur to politicians and bureaucrats that old ones also need care. Besides the government has money for everything except education and medical services. The poor are vulnerable at government hospitals and rich prefer to go to private hospitals. Society will have to press upon the government to better the services.

Sandy Randhawa, Youth activist

Amritsar, February 17
The Department of Local Bodies has sanctioned uniform (dress) allowance to a larger section of the municipal corporation (MC) employees. It has already started disbursing uniform allowance, yet the employees refrain from following the assigned dress code.

According to reliable sources, members of the MC staff were using the enhanced allowance for purchasing other dress material. Local Bodies Minister Anil Joshi had recently sanctioned Rs 1 crore for providing proper uniforms to Class III and IV employees of all the municipal corporations in the state.

A few months ago, the Joshi had distributed uniform sets among field duty staff and other safety equipments, which included safety boots, special jackets, reflectors and helmets for the sanitation staff. This initiative has been taken keeping in view the safety of the employees, who work in adverse conditions.

Those who benefited were Class III employees, including drivers, sanitary inspectors, supervisors and Class IV employees like safai-sewaks, sewer-men and beldaars. The employees had launched an agitation some time ago for revision of their uniform allowance keeping in view the rise in prices. Taking it into consideration, the Amritsar Municipal Corporation had raised the uniform allowance from Rs 967 to Rs 3,780 per head for summer and winter uniform.

The sources said earlier precedent was that the employees were provided with unstitched cloth, but the megre allowance of Rs 967 was not enough to get it stitched. Nonetheless, when this allowance was raised four times, the employees were still not prepared to wear uniform. Ravinder Kumar, secretary of the Safai Mazdoor Union, admitted the lapse. He said workers would be sensitised about spending the allowance on uniform only.

Official Speak
It is a sheer violation of norms. The employees who get allowance for uniform must follow the proper dress code while on duty. I will get it checked. I fail to understand the hitch in wearing proper uniform when they are getting sufficient allowance for it.

MC Commissioner DPS Kharbanda

Amritsar, February 17
The Kirty Kisan Union and the Pendu Mazdoor Union held a massive protest rally outside the Deputy Commissioner’s (DC) office here today to highlight various problems faced by farmers and farm labourers. Addressing the gathering, state vice-president of the Kirty Kisan Union Datar Singh said farmers and farm workers were entangled in a debt trap because of the anti-agriculturist policies of the government.

He said various governments in the past had promised to wave off loans of farmers and labourers, but none had fulfilled the promise. He said as labourers do not have land to construct homes, the government had declared to provide them 10 marla plots, but the commitment was not fulfilled.

He said instead of distributing the village shamlat land among the landless labourers, the state government had decided to give it on a 33-year contract to private companies. Despite receiving 3.40 lakh requests for granting tubewell connections, the Power Corporation had given only 69,000 connections to farmers, he added.

Sawinder Singh Tapiala, district president of Pendu Majdoor Union alleged that in spite of threatening labourers by the people connected with the ruling party, the police was not ready to register any complaint. He said if the administration failed to arrest the culprits within one week, the union would start an indefinite protest outside the DC office from February 25.

Other prominent leaders present on the occasion included Dhanwant Singh Khatrai Kalan, Dharminder Singh, Satnam Singh Jhander, Balwinder Singh Bhindiya, Avtar Singh Jassar, Mukhtar Singh and Jaspal Singh Sufia.

Amritsar, February 17
The Chief Khalsa Diwan Charitable Society has announced the names of its office bearers and member of committees following the election of president, held recently.

Charanjit Singh Chadha was elected president of the Chief Khalsa Diwan for the third time unanimously, for the next five years. All rights to elect other office bearers, members of the Executive and Finance Committees were unanimously given to the president. Chadha was asked to nominate office bearers within a week. The president announced a 13-member team of office bearers.

Dr Santokh Singh and Inderpreet Singh have been given the post of vice-presidents; Nirmal Singh as becomes resident president; Narinder Singh Khurana and Santokh Singh Sethi were given the posts of honorary secretaries.

Pritpal Singh Sethi, Harminder Singh, Sarbjit Singh, Dhanraj Singh, Sawinder Singh Kathu Nangal, Jaswinder Singh Advocate, Charanjit Singh Taran Tarn Kothi Wale were elected as additional honorary secretaries.

Chadha also announced the names of 31 members of the managing committee. Similarly, 10 eligible members along with two ex-officio and two special invitees were included in the Finance Committee of the Chief Khalsa Diwan.

Chadha also expressed happiness over the inclusion of the two Chief Khalsa Diwan representatives -- Raghujit Singh Virk, Kulwant Singh Kohli (chairman of the Chief Khalsa Diwan Local Committee, Mumbai) and Gurinder Singh Bawa in the Takht Sri Hazoor Sahib Management Committee as members.

Amritsar, February 17
The district administration has again banned the sale of sand in the open, especially on the road sides. But doubts area being raised whether it would be implemented in letter and spirit or just remain on paper.

In the past also the district administration has issued the ban orders specifying the areas where sand could be sold. However, it has not deterred the offenders to sell it in their shops alongside main roads in the city.

Heaps of sand and other building material piled up on road sides makes a mockery of the district magistrates order passed under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC). The order has been issued to check the illegal mining of minerals after the illegal sale of building material was observed.

Dumping of sand on roadsides by shopkeepers has become a nuisance and hampers the smooth flow of traffic. It sometimes leads to accidents. During strong winds the loose sand particles enter the eyes of the commuters, especially two-wheeler drivers, escalating the chances of mishaps.

The Deputy Commissioner using his magisterial powers banned dumping of sand along the road sides. The ban would remain in force till April, 2014.

The administration has designated three places, including Transport Nagar, Market Committee, Ajnala and Grain Market at Rayya for selling the sand. Barring these places it cannot be sold in other parts of the city.

Ironically, similar orders were passed in June and September last year, but it remained only on paper. Shopkeepers, selling building material, continued with their business as usual. Not a single shopkeeper has been challaned or asked to remove the material from road sides.

There are around a dozen shops located on the main G T Road alone, which have dumped the sand and pebbles on the roadsides.

Deputy Commissioner Ravi Bhagat said he would ask District Transport Officer and Police Commissioner, besides other authorities concerned to take appropriate action against offenders.

Amritsar, February 17
A two-day seminar on “Hindi Language and Literature: Changing Trends” was inaugurated here today in the Conference Hall of the university. The seminar is being organised by the Hindi Department of Guru Nanak Dev University in association with University Grants Commission, New Delhi. As many as 80 scholars from various parts of the country are participating in the seminar.

Prof Ajaib Singh Brar, Vice-Chancellor, inaugurated the seminar. Prof Kishore Vasvani, Director, Bhartiya Bhasha Sansthan, Gujarat Vidyapith, Ahmedabad, delivered the keynote address. Padam Shree Dr Sunija Jain, eminent Hindi writer, presided over. Dr Mahender Pal Sharma from the Hindi Department of Jama Milia Islamia University, New Delhi, was the chief guest on this occasion. Dr Sudha Jatinder, Head of the Department, welcomed the chief guest and others.

Prof Kishore Vasvani in his key note address said that audio and video medium were essential for any language in this era of science and technology to maintain its identity. He said Hindi language got most of its popularity because of Hindi cinema at the international level. He advocated that more efforts needed to be made to spread and popularise Hindi language and that need-based courses in Hindi language should also be initiated.

“Hindi being the national language, it needed to be projected more in non-Hindi speaking states. Our youth should prefer their mother language along with other languages. Hindi language could be projected more with modern technical aids,” he said.

Dr Sunita Jain apprised that she was intensely associated with Amritsar as she was born here. She also spoke about various stages of development of Hindi language.

In his inaugural address, Professor Brar said that language should be simple in form, so that it could face the challenges ahead. He said that Guru Nanak Dev University was always encouraging such seminars for the development of any language. The University would organise more lectures by language experts in the near future, he added.