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Political hoardings bone of contention
Breaking new ground |
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Traders quiz political parties
Cong complains against MC official for ‘campaigning’ in poll
Jaitley should learn to stand on his own feet: AAP
Security beefed up for poll
‘EU,US starting courses for Punjabi students’
City hospitals fail to follow guidelines
Roads in city cry for attention
15 samples of food fail quality test
Bhumi pujan at passport office site
Over 24,000 administered polio drops |
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Political hoardings bone of contention
Amritsar, April 8 It has been alleged that the SAD-BJP alliance has used publicity material "illegally" on government land or buildings or police pickets, road barriers, etc in support of their candidate, Arun Jaitley, for the ensuing General Election. Taking cognisance of it, the legal cell of PPCC has also approached the Election Commission to take action against this gross violation. On the other hand, the district administration had iinitiated action and got removed some of such objectionable hoardings, but the drive was stopped midway to avoid any legal implications. Sources said that the Police Department had entered into an agreement with a private firm to sublet its properties, including police pickets, and road barriers on the BoT (build-operate-transfer) basis for erecting political hoardings and posters till the poll process culminated. Thereafter, the Congress filed a complaint and the district administration started removing these political hoardings had to stall midway because it could have hampered the agreement as was made between the police department and the private firm, which could have challenged it legally. Deputy Commissioner-cum-District Electoral Officer Ravi Bhagat agreed that controversy erupted over political hoardings among the ruling and opposition parties and action was taken for removing objectionable hoardings and posters displayed on government and police properties, but it had to be withdrawn later. “We are awaiting the final verdict of Chief Election Officer, Punjab over the issue. Action will be initiated accordingly. We are expecting the decision soon and action will be taken accordingly,” he said. The code of conduct demands that no publicity material pertaining to elections should be erected over government land or buildings. Besides, for utilising private buildings for affixing hoardings or displaying posters, consent of the owner of the property is a must against the stipulated renta as fixed by the office of the Deputy Commissioner-cum District Electoral Officer. The rates applicable will have to be further accounted in the record of the candidate’s poll expenses who have been contesting the elections. Ironically, scores of places were spotted wherein the ruling party leaders are enjoying immunity from the mandatory provisions and did not care two hoots to comply with the ECI guidelines. The Congress workers argued that several hoardings and billboards of the ruling party didn’t have mandatory permission of authorities and hence enjoyed immunity from being counted in the poll expense account of
the candidate. Sandeep Gorsi, convener of the legal cell of the PPCC, said the ECI had been urged to take action against the SAD-BJP leadership which had been violating the code of conduct with impunity. “Representation of Peoples Act, law and the mandate of the code of conduct deserve to be adhered to ensure free and fair poll, but the authorities were influenced by the ruling SAD-BJP leadership. Flouting norms
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How they ‘ve taken to making ‘indie’ documentaries!
Neha Saini Tribune News Service
Amritsar, April 8 Like Aftab Singh Sandhu, a nine-year-old lad from the city, who is working to become a documenatry film-maker in future. While his father, film-maker Navtej Sandhu, is preparing for a Cannes entry, Aftab is working on a short film Kambhdiyan Deoriyan, under his aegis. "I always wanted to make a career exploring my creative potential. For a while, I passionately followed photography, until I started working on a short film with my father. That's when I realised that I could be good at it," he says. Shooting in Amritsar for the film, Aftab is looking for an independent project of his own. An 'indie' film of his own, a documentary. "Probably it would be on something that is as real it gets," he says. Not lagging behind, another youngster, Ansab Khan, 19, has already come up with his documentary on Amritsar's history. The amateur film-maker claims it's not about just the Golden Temple. "People of the city, the food of the city and the colourful way of life through the small and big traditions followed in the city arouses great interest," he says. The many things that Amritsar symbolises -- landmarks, historical places, its people and life in general find place in his documentary. The title of his 45-minute documentary -- "Amritsar -- Golden City with Colourful People is suggestive. Ansab has been exploring documentary-making with small video montages he made on every day issue of labourers and hustle and bustle of the holy city. The passionate photographer, who owns four generations of cameras, has added cinematography equipment as the latest addition to his collection. "Though I am still learning film-making, I am familiar with the basics," says he. His self-teaching methods include taking tips on production, lighting, camera handling by watching noted documentay-makers work on the Internet. Apart from the 'indie' projects, several groups like G Animation and American Indian Foundation (AIF) project also involve youngsters into making short films, documentaries on issues that strike them. The AIF has already got three or four independent documentaries and short films made by schoolchildren and teenagers screened, based on issues like drug addiction, community living of Preet Nagar and the traffic situation in the city. For independent amateur artists like Ansab and Aftab, social media is the best ground for a premiere. "Since not many short films get a theatre release, especially amateur ones, social media is a free and easily accessible launching ground," says Aftab.
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Traders quiz political parties
Amritsar, April 8 As the state will go to polls on April 30, the traders appealed to the political parties to spell out their stand on the problems faced by them.
In the questionnaire, they stated that the Excise and Taxation Department had implemented the e-trip system on September 1, 2013, which was illegitimate and should be withdrawn. They stated that the department had started charging entry tax on the import of 26 items. They regretted that the government started collecting VAT without the sale of goods, which was challenged in the court.
However, the state government changed the name of the tax to advance tax and issued fresh notification in October 2013 and asked the traders to pay it on 30 items. The PPBM also demanded the withdrawal of the single-stage taxation as the country was moving towards GST. They stated in the questionnaire that VAT refunds of more than Rs 506 crore were yet to be paid. “There is no time limit for the payment of VAT refunds. In case of delay, the government must pay 12 per cent interest on them,” they stated. They also stated that C forms were not issued by the Excise and Taxation Department due to which the traders were suffering losses. Under the textile policy of the state government for border areas, capital subsidy of Rs 12 crore has not been reimbursed despite the High Court orders. The PPBM demanded that the state government should release the amount immediately with interest. The PPBM demanded that the state government should review property tax rates for urban areas. They stated that the industry in Punjab was going through a lean patch and the state government was charging electricity duty of 13 per cent, which was the highest in the country. They regretted that in the last three years, electricity rates had been increased by 34 per cent. The PPBM demanded that farmers having more than five acres should pay electricity bills. If Punjab is power surplus, then power rates should be reduced, they said. As many as 18,770 industrial units closed down in the state in the the last seven years and the GDP growth had declined from 7 per cent in 2010-11 to 5.8 per cent in 2011-12, the Beopar Mandal stated. The traders said that in the 2013 railway budget , the then Railway Minister Pawan Bansal had announced a direct rail link between Amritsar-Ferozpur as it would reduce the distance between Amritsar and Mumbai by 240 km. The Beopar Mandal requested all political parties to spell out their stand on the trade and industry before the elections.
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Cong complains against MC official for ‘campaigning’ in poll
Amritsar, April 8 In his defence, the official, Vishal Wadhawan, termed it as a "frivolous" complaint. “A set of old pictures was picked up from the Facebook account and was wrongly being projected as if I was canvassing for the elections. It was a deliberate attempt to damage my reputation from by five different fake names. An official inquiry revealed that the complainants did not exist at the addresses mentioned on the complaint. The one whose phone number was given in one of the complaints, too, has given in writing that he never wrote any such complaint against me,” he said. Clarifying further, Wadhawan said he had always been an ardent and loyal worker and could never commit such a folly to put his job at stake. “My official record speak volumes about my achievements as the estate officer in the Land Department. I suppose that there must be a group of frustrated persons who might have faced action while being on the wrong side of the law by encroaching upon public land,” he said. On the other hand, Gorsi reiterated that Wadhawan had been involved in poll campaigning actively in favour of the SAD-BJP candidate, Arun Jaitley, which was in violation of all norms. “It is shocking if he was actively involved in politics while occupying a key position in the MC for the past seven years”, he said. Deputy Commissioner Ravi Bhagat said further proceedings were being initiated by the ADC (General).
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Jaitley should learn to stand on his own feet: AAP
Amritsar, April 8 Taking a dig at the Jaitley’s comments that Amritsar would now be known for things other than "papad-wadiyan", Dr Daljit Singh said," “Why was Jaitley waiting for so long to bring something more to Amritsar? The SAD-BJP coalition is in power for the past seven years and they didn’t take notice of the holy city. There was a time when the NDA was in power in the Centre as well as the state and Jaitley was a Cabinet Minister. Why didn’t Amritsar figure on his agenda then?” Dr Singh said Jaitley’s record as the leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha was dismal. “It was his responsibility to ensure the smooth functioning of the House but many a time the proceedings of the House were stalled by the BJP. The BJP is an opportunist party. They colluded with the Congress in the blackout of the proceedings during the passage of the Telengana Bill,” he said. “Without going into the merits or demerits of creating a new state, the Congress and BJP put their stamp on it. They can repeat this subterfuge and pass any bill without debate and bringing it into the public domain. We need AAP in the Parliament to prevent them from taking the Indian people for granted," he said Dr Daljit Singh toured the inner parts of Amritsar in the morning and interacted with people of Bhagtanwala Chowk, Katra Karam Singh, Namak Mandi Chowk, Shakti Nagar and Gate
Hakima.
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Security beefed up for poll
Amritsar, April 8 The focus of the state politics has shifted to the holy city where the Congress has fielded former Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh against the senior BJP leader, Arun Jaitley. Jatinder Singh Aulakh, Police Commissioner, said in view of the elections, special sealing plans had been made in which paramilitary forces along with police jawans had been deputed at the entry and exit points of the city after barricading. He said regular checking of vehicles and at various places was being done in order to prevent any untoward incident. He said that around 50 teams headed by ASI rank officials had been made which would be deputed at various nakas in eight-hour long shifts. He said police officials had also been directed to thwart attempts of drug peddling by anti-social elements in view of the ensuing poll. The district administration has identified around 146 booths as critical and over 100 booths vulnerable to bogus voting. On the other hand, the city police have also been on the job to categorise various areas under the sensitive and hypersensitive category.
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‘EU,US starting courses for Punjabi students’
Amritsar, April 8 Some of these wish to build personal and economic relationships with Indian individuals and companies, given the fact that there are fewer EU students than 10 years ago. There are more academic seats available in universities in countries like Germany as there is a shortage of skilled people. The similar situation prevails in most of the EU countries. She cited the instance of Germany, which could not find over 2.50 lakh qualified engineers for its high-tech companies. Germany has a serious problem in this respect and has changed its laws in the past two years to attract qualified non-EU individuals. And once a non-EU person has worked and stayed in Germany for five years then they qualify to permanent stay. About her organization, she said, it is the leading organisation in Germany which offers foreign students a place in public German University for both bachelors and masters programme with no tuition fee. ISL Sprachschule provides a unique package for Indian students which covers all the requirements needed to obtain visa and to pursue higher studies in
Germany. — TNS
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City hospitals fail to follow guidelines
Amritsar, April 8 The Directorate of Research and Medical Education on March 3, 1993, had instructed the Principal of Government Medical College here to arrange separate queues for senior citizens. In a complaint to the state government, BR Preenja, general secretary, Punjab Employees Rights Protection and Welfare Union, has stated, "Senior citizens cannot wait for hours in queues because of their poor health. In the interest of senior citizens, the government must instruct all health institutions to follow the instructions issued in 1993." The city's two prominent government health institutions—Guru Nanak Dev Hospital and Jallianwala Bagh Martyrs Memorial Civil Hospital—even after 20 years of orders, have failed to set up a senior citizens-friendly system. Preenja said the then Medical Superintendent of Guru Nanak Dev Hospital had instructed all professors and heads of the department again on August 1, 2001 to follow the government orders. Though a separate counter has been earmarked for senior citizens at the Civil Hospital, elderly still complain that employees often ask them to stand in the queue for general patients. Preenja said senior citizens must be shown some respect. "We give respect to our elders at home. However, we forget these etiquettes while dealing with the elderly at work places," he said.
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Roads in city cry for attention
Amritsar, April 8 "Ranjit Avenue is said to be one of the posh
localities in the city. If the road in such a locality is in a deplorable condition, the plight of the people living in slum or semi-slum areas can easily be
understood," said Balwant Singh, a resident of the area. In contrast, a road in Joshi Colony was re-carpeted overnight despite the fact that it was in a good condition. Sukhpal Singh, a resident of Chehartta, said, "The Municipal Corporation should take notice of these roads. They should change their approach for the balanced development of the city," he said.
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Amritsar, April 8
