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Badal defuses Congress’ dharna plan
iraq crisis: fate of several punjabis hangs in balance |
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DSP suspended for clash in Gurdaspur jail
Muktsar highway to be opened after Dec
Rajasthan Guv writes to Centre, Punjab over canal water
Pre-monsoon showers paralyse life in Abohar
Authorities fail to check encroachments in Pathankot
De-addiction centre constructed in Fazilka
CM to head drug
de-addiction board
Capt Amarinder seeks status report
No jobs for students, Phoolka lodges complaint against CM
His dream to make a quick buck ended in nightmare
NHRC seeks report on boycott of Dalits
Row over land: Sarpanch, 9 others booked for assault
Retired judge offers to sponsor studies of tea vendor’s son
Low power generated at Dehar: Engineers
Sikh heritage sites in Pakistan in ‘poor shape’
Sufi singer Barkat Sidhu critical, his fans appeal for financial help
Delay in taking up representations to invite penalty
MBBS seats
Gangster attacked in Sangrur jail
Markfed official held for graft
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Badal defuses Congress’ dharna plan
Chandigarh, June 23 While the Congress leaders aimed to bag limelight by holding the dharna, hoping resistance by the police, the Chief Minister stumped them by coming out of his residence almost immediately after the Congress leaders reached there. Badal invited them inside, which was not accepted. The Congress, though divided in different camps (Bajwa group and Capt Amarinder group), succeeded in putting up a united front with 32 of the 43 MLAs marching to the CM’s residence. The police had put up barricades about 100 metres from the CM’s residence, but the Congress MLAs crossed over these easily despite initial resistance by the police. Police sources said the Deputy Commissioner had imposed Section 144 in the area, but no FIR regarding violation of the orders was filed till evening. Jakhar said they wanted to raise the issue well before the Assembly session so as to give time to the government to take action on their demands. “Had we raised the demands in the Assembly, the ruling alliance would have sought time. Now, they would have to answer on the action taken on our demands,” he said. Jakhar complimented the Chief Minister for showing courtesy in meeting the MLAs. “I acknowledge the grace shown by Badal sahib,” he told The Tribune. Badal agreed to most of the demands raised by Congress MLAs such as abolition of property tax, release of payment of Rs 183 crore to sugarcane farmers, rehabilitation of drug addicts and release of grants under various social welfare schemes. Badal, however, disagreed with the demand for an action against Akali minister Bikram Singh Majithia for his alleged links with drug smugglers. He asked the Congress MLAs to furnish proof against politicians they thought were involved in the drug trade. The MLAs not seen at the dharna site were Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, Surinder Dawar, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, Randeep Singh Nabha, Ramanjit Singh Sikki, Aruna Chowdhry, Gurkirat Singh, Lal Singh Brahm Mohindra, Rajnish Kumar Babbi and Rana Gurmeet Sodhi. Jakhar said most of them were on a foreign tour and they had informed him they would be not be able to participate in the dharna. Rana Gurmeet Sodhi, who had opposed Jakhar’s candidature from the Ferozepur Lok Sabha seat, told The Tribune over the phone that he supported the dharna, but could not attend due to his prior engagements. An official spokesperson of the CM said the government would consider all issues raised by the Opposition. He said the Chief Minister had told the MLAs that the genuine complaints relating to the development of their assembly segments would be sorted out. He said the CM also promised to get the issue of sub-plan component for Scheduled Castes and payment of the pre and post-matric scholarship to the SC students thoroughly examined so that funds allocated for the weaker sections reach the beneficiaries. Congress demands
Chief Minister’s take Badal agreed to most of the demands raised by Congress MLAs, but refused to take action against Majithia. He asked the Congress MLAs to furnish proof against politicians they thought were involved in the drug trade
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iraq crisis: fate of several punjabis hangs in balance
Jalandhar, June 23 The Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) (Intelligence) has sent a letter to his counterpart in the Information Technology and Telecommunication wing (The Tribune has a copy) mentioning the phone numbers. “The 23 persons have been declared proclaimed offenders in two or more cases of illegal migration by various courts in Punjab. An informer can contact the police at 9592912018 or 9815800402. If the proclaimed offender is arrested, the informer will be rewarded,” the letter reads. When this correspondent tried to dial the given numbers, nobody responded to the calls. A person responded once but he disconnected the call after saying “hello”. When contacted, ADGP (Intelligence) HS Dhillon said if nobody was attending calls on the given numbers, this correspondent should contact ADGP (Crime) Jasminder Singh. When reminded that the letter was addressed by him, Dhillon disconnected the phone. Jasminder Singh could not be contacted despite repeated attempts. ADGP (Information Technology and Telecommunication) CSR Reddy said he would check the matter and revert. Jalandhar agent wanted in 75 cases of fraud Gagan Kumar Bakhshi of Lambra in Jalandhar is the only proclaimed offenderagainst whom over 75 cases of cheating and fraud have been registered at various police stations in Punjab. 23 travel agents on the list, in all The police have declared 23 travel agents as proclaimed offenders (POs). The POs in two and more illegal migration cases include Kuldeep Singh, Piara Singh, Harbans Kaur, Paramjit Singh and Jaswinder Singh of Faridkot, Rohit Sika and Raj Kumar of Ludhiana, Rajinder Kumar and Rekha Rani of Chamkaur Sahib, Gurjit Singh and Hrinder Singh Sandu of Fatehgarh Sahib, Jaspal Singh, Daljit Singh, Gurpinder Singh and Kuljit Singh Sokhi of Amritsar, Rakesh Kumar and Ranjit Singh of Batala, Gagan Kumar Bakhshi, Rajinder Kaur Chahal, Preeti of Jalandhar, Sukhwinder Singh of Sidhwan Bet, Gurcharanjit Singh of Gurdaspur and Kulwinder Singh of Nawanshahr.
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DSP suspended for clash in Gurdaspur jail
Gurdaspur, June 23 A departmental inquiry has also been ordered against Bisla. The IG (Jails) today visited the prison to take stock of the situation. Deputy Commissioner Abhinav Trikha held an inquiry into clash that left Bisla and Gulbadan Singh, Superintendent, injured. Trikha said he had submitted his inquiry report to the authorities concerned. "It is unfortunate that the custodians of law indulged in such an act. If an officer has any grievance against his colleague, he should report it to his senior," he said. The Deputy Commissioner has also instituted an inquiry into the allegations levelled against Harbans Lal Khanna, DSP, by some women inmates that the officer misbehaved with their relatives who visited them in the jail. Meanwhile, Sukhwant Singh Gill, Senior Superintendent of Police, said the incident of beating up of Bisla and Gulbadan Singh allegedly by Khanna was being probed by SP (Headquarters) Salwinder Singh. The SSP said he would take action after getting the inquiry report.
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Muktsar highway to be opened after Dec
Muktsar, June 23 Local residents are suffering as the highway is closed and they have no other proper link. Though some diversion routes have been made, these are not easy to understand for a commoner. The 31-km-long stretch between Muktsar and Malout, which usually took not more than 40 minutes to traverse, now takes an hour with the diversions increasing the distance to about 40 km. If the authorities are to be believed, the new bridge will be ready before the end of this year, but sources say it will take longer. “The construction work has not yet been allotted to any construction company and it would not be possible to complete it by December. The monsoon season will also hamper the construction work,” said a source. However, when contacted, Ashok Goyal, Superintending Engineer, PWD (B&R), said, “Four private construction companies have so far filled tenders for the construction work for the new bridge. The work would be allotted within two weeks and we are hopeful of constructing the bridge by December.” “Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal and our department secretary are very concerned about this bridge. Army officials were also approached to make a bailey bridge here. Even our executive engineer went to meet them in Sriganganagar but they did not entertain our request,” added Goyal. The proposed bridge will be 35 m long and 12.9 m wide. It will have a water clearance level of three feet. The estimated total cost of the bridge is nearly 3.65 crore. The poor condition of this bridge was highlighted by The Tribune twice last year, but the authorities concerned that time did not initiate any action to save it, and it gradually collapsed partially. They, however, said the design of the bridge was too old and water used to touch the iron girders installed beneath the bridge to give it support, which caused damage.
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Rajasthan Guv writes to Centre, Punjab over canal water
Abohar, June 23 Earlier, Hanumangarh zila parishad chairperson Shobha Doodi and vice-chairperson Shabnam Godara, who had spearheaded a campaign against the supply of water mixed with hazardous chemicals, apprised the Governor of the public interest litigation filed by them before the National Green Tribunal. They also informed Alva about the tremendous response that their "Jal Jan Jagriti Yatra" evoked in rural areas. Shobha said they had visited the sites in Punjab where industries had been releasing chemical waste in rivers. This, she said, had not only increased incidence of cancer in the Malwa region of Punjab but had put the lives of people in Rajasthan at risk as they also depended on canal water. Shabnam informed that Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje had spoken to Punjab Chief Minister now as both her letters sent to him in February this year were not responded to. Earlier, Ashok Gehlot during his tenure as Chief Minister too had sent similar letters. Health concerns In the letters, Rajasthan Governor Margret Alva has expressed concern over unchecked supply of contaminated canal water from Punjab to eight districts of Rajasthan, including Sriganganagar and Hanumangarh
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Pre-monsoon showers paralyse life in Abohar
Abohar, June 23 The Punjab Water Supply and Sewerage Board (PWSSB) faced a lot of problems in clearing water that had accumulated in dozens of residential colonies, besides on main roads. The Punjab State Power Corporation Limited could not restore electricity supply for several hours after it was suspended last night. As the Municipal Council had not been able to clear dues amounting to Rs 1.30 crore, the PWSSB was facing difficulty in arranging heavy power generators to carry out the disposal works during power breakdowns, sources said. Though Monday is a busy day for banks, the turnout of customers was very low as most of the people could not come out of their houses. Bus occupancy was also low. Some government and semi-governmnent employees said they had preferred to take leave from work instead of wading through rain water in which overflowing sewage water had also mixed. Owners of some private reverse osmosis (RO) plants said it was nearly impossible to supply potable water to residential colonies as the streets remained submerged with rain water till afternoon. Meanwhile, rain damaged temporary sheds and water entered houses. "Rain water entered shops in Sadar Bazaar resulting in heavy losses," said Mohit Vij, a garment seller.
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Authorities fail to check encroachments in Pathankot
Pathankot, June 23 Despite repeated anti-encroachments drives launched by the administration and the Municipal Corporation (MC), “politically powerful” traders and shopkeepers continue to encroach upon space meant for roads and streets. The administration has been rendered helpless even though Deputy Commissioner Sukhwinder Singh claims that if any infringement is brought to his notice, he will definitely act. Whenever MC officials strike, traders and shopkeepers are quick to hide their goods from the streets. However, as soon as they are gone, these shopkeepers display the goods again. More often than not, these encroachers are tipped off by “their men” inside the MC about a possible raid, following which they refrain from placing their goods that day on the roads. Former MC president Anil Vij claimed that at some places, roads were 20 feet wide but they shrunk to just 10 feet wide because of encroachments. On streets which have a width of just nine to ten feet, it gets worse. Here, shopkeepers often encroach upon the site as a matter of right and they threaten those who challenge them. The most notorious places in this regard are the railway road, the area around City Centre Mall on the Dalhousie road and from Shahpur Chowk to Garhi Ahata Chowk. City residents still remember the days of the first MC Commissioner, JP Singh, who acted tough against such violators. “He succeeded in clearing encroachments from the city,” said a resident. Last year, officials of the Pathankot Improvement Trust (IT) and the local police removed hundreds of illegal kiosks and other encroachments on government land even as politicians in this BJP-dominated city of traders were made to look the other way. Things are back to square one and so acute has the problem become that motorists have a difficult time driving on the clogged roads and congested alleys of the city as scores of illegal structures have come up, a majority of which are at the behest of local politicians. “The city is dominated by both big and small traders and shopkeepers, a majority of whom are politically aligned to the BJP, said an MC official. Pathankot district has three Assembly seats — Sujanpur, Bhoa and Pathankot city — and BJP legislators rule the roost on all the seats. He added, “This has made our task all the more difficult as we are under tremendous pressure from middle-rung politicians against anti-encroachment drives.”
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De-addiction centre constructed in Fazilka
Fazilka, June 23 Maintenance Engineer, Punjab Health Systems Corporation, Pritam Singh said two wards, three rooms for doctors, a registration room, an isolation ward, a meeting room, a kitchen and toilet blocks had been built. The construction of the centre was started in October 1, 2013, and was scheduled to be completed by June 15. However, despite the completion of the de-addiction centre and the health department’s drive against drugs, the department has not posted doctors there. As the de-addiction centre is yet to be thrown open to public, the hospital authorities had temporarily converted a portion of the emergency ward into a de-addiction centre. Medical Officer Dr Chander Mohan Kataria has been assigned the post of nodal officer. However, as no psychiatrist is available with the Civil Hospital, the department has hired the services of a private practitioner. Ferozepur Divisional Commissioner VK Sharma, IG (Security) Khubi Ram, Deputy Commissioner Manjit Singh Brar, Senior Superintendent of Police Swapan Sharma, Additional Deputy Commissioner Charandev Singh Maan, Civil Surgeon Dr Baldev Raj visited the newly set up de-addiction ward on Saturday and motivated patients to shun drugs. They said free medicines were being provided by the state government. They also held a meeting with representatives of NGOs and sought their cooperation in eradicating drug addiction. Assistant Civil Surgeon Dr Davinder Kumar Bhukkal said after the state government launched an aggressive campaign against drugs, 811 addict patients had been examined in Fazilka district in the past few days. Out of them, 34 addicts, who wanted to undergo treatment, have been admitted in de-addiction
centres.
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CPM burns Modi’s effigy
Mahilpur, June 23 The protesters blocked the road outside Mahilpur police station and burnt Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s effigy. The protesters were led by Channan Singh and Sadhu Singh Bhatti. They raised slogans against Modi and Badal governments. CPI (M) leader Darshan Singh Mattu said the hikes in rail and bus fares proved that Modi and his allies were putting more burden on the common man. He demanded that the hike be rolled back or the party would intensify its stir. People from several villages also participated in the protest. — OC
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CM to head drug
de-addiction board
Chandigarh, June 23 A spokesperson in the Chief Minister's office said the board would be headed by the CM. Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal would be senior vice-chairman and the Health Minister vice-chairman. The Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary, Health, Special Principal Secretary to the CM, Managing Director of the Punjab Health Systems Corporation, Inspector-General of Police (narcotics cell) Ishwar Singh, the Adviser, Health, Dr KK Talwar, Dr Ajit Awasthi and Dr D Basu from the PGIMER and five nominees of reputed NGOs would be its members. The CM also approved a de-addiction and rehabilitation society in every district headed by deputy commissioners and with senior superintendents of police, civil surgeons, district social security officers, psychiatrists of the district drug de-addiction centres and 10 nominees of NGOs as its members. The Chief Minister asked a team, comprising Dr KK Talwar Dr Ajit Awasthi and Dr D Basu, to identify sites for these centers. He said that primary health centres and community health centres could also be utilised for the purpose. No teeth, board an eyewash, says Bittu Chandigarh: Congress MP Ravneet Singh Bittu today said that the setting up of the Punjab State Board for Drug De-addiction Rehabilitation was a mere eyewash. He said the board had no powers to conduct raids and searches. He wondered why the CM had delayed the setting up of the board by four years. “The CM had promised to set up the board four years ago when we had staged a dharna in Ludhiana. Now the board had been set up, but it has not been given any powers," he said. He said that the board should be headed by a serving judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and eminent social activists should be appointed members. "The board should be given powers to conduct raids, arrest suspects and seize the property of those convicted in drug smuggling cases," Bittu added.
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Capt Amarinder seeks status report
Chandigarh, June 23 In a dig at Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal who has announced that his government will reimburse the expenses incurred by people on making telephone calls to their relatives in Iraq, he said: “I am grateful to our Chief Minister for this great philanthropic act of reimbursing people’s telephone bills.” Pointing out that extraordinary situations called for extraordinary responses, he said: “We don’t see the Government of India having done anything extraordinary so far to bring back the stranded Indians.” He said for the past one week, the government had done nothing except give assurances. “Sitting back with fingers crossed without any intention to intervene is not what we expect from the government that proclaims to be strong and decisive”. Meanwhile, Sukhpal Khaira, PPCC spokesperson, criticised the Modi Government for its failure to announce MSP for the kharif crops. He said it had been a standard practice to announce the MSP for crops well in advance so that the farmers could plan the cropping cycle. They’ll be back soon, claims Chandumajra Fatehgarh Sahib: Akali MP Prem Singh Chandumajra has said the Punjabis stuck in Iraq would be back soon. "External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is in constant touch with the Iraq Government. Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is personally monitoring the situation," he said. — OC
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No jobs for students, Phoolka lodges complaint against CM
Ludhiana, June 23 The students were admitted on the promise of good career prospects. The complaint mentions the names of Dr VK Taneja, Vice Chancellor, Kamal Deep Kaur, former Dean of College of Fisheries Science, and Asha Dhawan, Dean. Phoolka lodged the complaint with the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) police station. He alleged the college brochure had mentioned that the students would be employed in the government sector after completion of their bachelor course in fisheries science, but none of the students had got a job. The AAP leader said the students were not even eligible for recruitment as fisheries officers. He alleged it was a clear case of fraud. The students of the ongoing batch of the College of Fisheries Science have been on a strike for 22 days demanding government jobs. Several MPs and MLAs, including Phoolka, Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann, Ludhiana MP Ravneet Singh Bittu and MLA Simarjit Singh Bains, have tried to intervene in the matter, but to no avail. Asha Dhawan, Dean, said she was not aware of any such complaint. She claimed no commitment was made to provide jobs to the students. In the college brochure, only career prospects for fisheries graduates were mentioned, she added.
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His dream to make a quick buck ended in nightmare
Hoshiarpur, June 23 Parminder, brother of Kamaljit, one of the abducted youths in Iraq, had a similar experience in 2009: “When I left for Iraq, my travel agent said that I had been engaged as an electrician. I even signed an agreement that assured me a monthly salary of $450 (around Rs 27,000).” When Parminder landed in Iraq, an agent arrived at the airport to receive him. “We were 32 youths and the Iraqi agent engaged us for $200 each. Most of us were forced to work as domestic help..” ANother youth Hoshiarpur, who returned from Riyadh, said, “Our employer asked us to pay him 8,000 (around Rs 1.3 lakh) Saudi Riyals in return for our passports.” Jagjit said he complained to the Punjab NRI Cell through e-mail, following which an FIR was registered. “When I returned, I filed another complaint. But no action has been taken yet.” SSP Sushil Kumar said several such complaints against travel agents had been lodged, and that inquiries were on.
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NHRC seeks report on boycott of Dalits
New Delhi, June 23 It issued a notice to the Chief Secretary, Punjab, directing him to submit a report within four weeks. The panel had taken suo motu cognisance of media reports on the social boycott of 105 Dalit families in Baopur since May 15. The families have been reportedly victimised for defying upper castes farmers and deciding to cultivate 26 acres of panchayat land reserved for the Dalits. Earlier, the land was tilled by upper caste farmers who secured a contract by manipulating the auction. The police had intervened in the matter after farmers of dominant castes decided to fine farmers who employed Dalits or kept contact with them. A settlement was reached, but the boycott of Dalits continued. Sources said the panel would probe into the issue independently if it was not satisfied with the state government’s report. Case file
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Row over land: Sarpanch, 9 others booked for assault
Sangrur, June 23 The Ahmedgarh police has registered a case against 10 persons under Sections 341, 323, 506, 148 and 149 of the Indian Penal Code. The police said among those booked were village sarpanch Jora Singh and panch Manzoor Ali. Members of the Dalit community today staged a noisy dharna outside the office of the Amargarh Deputy Superintendent of Police.
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Retired judge offers to sponsor studies of tea vendor’s son
Jalandhar, June 23 Amit and Sumit secured top ranks in the JEE (advanced) this year too. The Punjab Government has announced to honour the brothers at a ceremony in Mohali on June 25. Justice Bhan has offered to fund the education of one of the brothers. He has asked the brothers to meet him. Justice Ashok Bhan said: “I am willing to pay the fee of one of the brothers for their entire stay at any IIT. I hope to meet them in a day or two.” The Jaypee Group plans to honour both Sumit and Amit. A representative of the Jaypee Group said Sunny Gaur, Managing Director (Cement), Jaypee Group, had invited the brothers to the company’s cement plant in Riva in Madhya Pradesh for a discussion on their future plans. The Jaypee Group runs several educational institutes where coaching classes are held for students from all income groups. The brothers have received a little more than Rs 2 lakh from various sources in Jalandhar. They have been provided laptops by the
SBI.
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Low power generated at Dehar: Engineers
Patiala, June 23 The BBMB authorities have rubbished the allegations and said their power generation was higher than the actual target. In a letter to Power Minister Piyush Goyal yesterday, the federation said the Dehar power house had generated only 13.63 MU instead of 15.3 MU. “There was a generation loss of 1.67 MUs which is equivalent to 70 MW in 24 hours,” the letter reads. It states that the BBMB had calculated the loss by wrongly giving a lower generation schedule of 12.46 MU for June 22. “The partner states get the benefit of the Dehar generation as per schedule. In real time grid operation and when the BBMB gives a lower schedule and generates in excess, it results in multiple losses,” reads the letter by AIPEF chief patron Padamjit Singh. It says that if the BBMB restores Unit V, the capacity would rise to 825 MW. Padamjit Singh has asked the Power Ministry to direct the BBMB to revive Unit V. Ashok Thapar, BBMB member (power), dismissed all allegations, claiming that the Dehar power house was performing well. Against the yearly target generation of 853.13 MU, its actual generation was 6.92 per cent higher, he said. “We are operating in a transparent manner and all our readings of power generation are updated regularly,” he added.
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Sikh heritage sites in Pakistan in ‘poor shape’
Amritsar, June 23 Talking to The Tribune here, Bansal said he had visit ed Pakistan to gather information for his book titled “Remnants of the Sikh Empire — Historical Sikh Monuments in Pakistan and India”. The book would be a catalogue of Sikh monuments connected with Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s courtiers. It deals with forts, havelis and palaces that still stand in Pakistan although some are on the verge of collapsing. These include rare forts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa associated with General Hari Singh Nalwa, he claimed. He said he had visited two of these forts, Bara Fort and Jamrud Fort. Bansal, who also visited Sheikhupura Fort where Rani Raj Kaur, the Maharaja’s first wife resided, was disappointed to find it in a shambles. “The fort showcases the Sikh architecture at its best. The queen lived at the fort until her death in 1838. Sadly, the fort has been partially damaged. A section of the outer portion, especially the arched entrance, has collapsed.” He said it was a structure comprising three floors with an elevation of 16 metres. Though a protected monument, numerous graffitis had tarnished the rare frescoes. The walls were embellished with colourful artwork depicting scenes of the Sikh court and Hindu deities. Bansal said various heritage structures associated with Maharaja Ranjit Singh era were vandalised in Pakistan after the demolition of Babri Masjid in 1992. A few were restored later. He said there was a need to sensitise the people in Pakistan about the heritage. He emphasised the need to open the doors of museums and heritage buildings for Indian pilgrims visiting Pakistan. He claimed that a number of heritage structures in Pakistan had been seized by the local mafia. On heritage structures in India, Bansal said he was not happy. He referred to the “baradari” of Maharaja Ranjit Singh at Pul Kanjari village near Attari which is in a poor state. Monumental neglect
Neglected sites
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Sufi singer Barkat Sidhu critical, his fans appeal for financial help
Ludhiana, June 23 A Sufi singer from Moga and a fine exponent of the Patiala gharana, he was to undergo chemotherapy but his kidneys failed and he was put on the dialysis machine. Jasbir Jassi of Mundiyan Kalan, who is taking care of the singer, said: “The money earned by my guru has been used on his treatment. I appeal to the public for help to save the singer,” he said. Prof Gurbhajan Gill, secretary general, Prof Mohan Singh Memorial Foundation, has appealed to NGOs to help the singer. — TNS
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Delay in taking up representations to invite penalty
Chandigarh, June 23 The assertion came after Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Arun Palli rapped the state of Punjab for its unresponsiveness. Taking up a petition by Beera Singh, the Bench observed: “We have on numerous occasions commented on the unfortunate practice of the respondent-state not responding at all to representations... Despite our observations, there appears to be no improvement”. Beera Singh is seeking a reasoned decision on his representation and legal notice. Claiming that the rate of his tender was the lowest, he says neither any negotiation was held, nor was he awarded the tender. Rather, the tender was awarded at a higher rate to a third party. The High Court had earlier admonished the state on the same grounds during the hearing of another petition by Rupinder Singh Saini. At that time, the High Court had asserted: “We are of the view that an appropriate circular must be issued both by the State of Punjab and the State of Haryana as well as by the Union of India and the Union Territory of Chandigarh, intimating to all departments concerned that whenever a representation is received, qua a tender as to why a particular party is disqualified or why the tender has been awarded to the successful party against whom the grievance is made, it should be disposed of within a week of receipt thereof giving rationale/reasons”. As Beera Singh’s petition came up for hearing, the Bench observed a circular was issued on December 16, 2013, “stating that the decision should be rendered within a week’s time with reasons”. The Bench added: “The failure of the respondents is in direct breach of our earlier directions as also contrary to their earlier circular…..” Before parting with the case, the Bench asked Punjab's Additional Advocate-General to inform the court “why a decision was not taken in this matter and an affidavit by the Chief Secretary be filed in the background of the circular”. In response, the Chief Secretary stated that the necessary circular had already been issued and the Managing Director, PUNGRAIN, had sought an explanation from the district managers concerned for the delay in taking timely action on the representation and legal notice dated April 16, 2014. The Chief Secretary also stated that “the delinquent officers are to be punished so that the lapse may not be repeated in future”.
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MBBS seats
Chandigarh, June 23 The petition came after the state on June 16 decided to bar the university from conducting independent
counselling.—TNS
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Gangster attacked in Sangrur jail
Sangrur, June 23 Jail Superintendent Jagwant Kumar Sharma said 10 inmates, led by Raghwinder Singh alias Ricky, thrashed Kala Dhanaula with sticks. The latter suffered injuries on his legs, shoulders and the head. Sharma said Kala Dhanaula, who was involved in a murder case, was shifted to the Sangrur jail from Bathinda two months ago. Ricky and his mates had been in jail for the past several months. He said the jail authorities had asked the local police to register a case against the assailants. The Station House Officer (SHO) of the city police station, Harinder Singh, said a case had been registered against Raghwinder Singh alias Ricky, Lehmbar Singh, Jodha Singh, Sukhbir Singh, Randhir Singh, Ashwani Kumar and others. Inmate attacked in Amritsar
Amritsar: Undertrial Narvail Singh, lodged at the high-security Central Jail here, was attacked by the Ankur Likhari gang late Sunday evening. Likhari is serving life imprisonment for murder. Jagpreet Singh, a Likhari supporter, scaled a 9 ft- high wall to reach Narvail Singh and then attacked him. On the complaint of Jail Superintendent RK Sharma, a case under Sections 323 and 324 of the IPC has been filed against Jagpreet, Likhari and undertrials Kuljeet Singh and Rajbir Singh alias Judge. Anticipating trouble, the jail authorities had lodged the inmates in separate barracks. But, it seems, that was not enough. The Jail Superintendent said that an old rivalry had led to the attack. Earlier on January 27, undertrial Gurbax Singh had tried to murder a fellow inmate after a scuffle over a petty issue. Gabba discharged from hospital after check-up
Patiala: Goraya-based businessman Chunni Lal Gaba (80), who was arrested by the Patiala police on Saturday for suspected involvement in the synthetic drug racket, was admitted to the Government Rajindra Hospital here yesterday. Gaba, a heart patient, was discharged after a check-up. Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr VK Sharda said Gaba, who had a stent in one of his arteries, was in sound health.
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Markfed official held for graft
Mohali, June 23 The accused, Yograj Talwar, posted at Ludhiana, was nabbed while he was accepting the bribe from complainant Jagdip Singh of Dhilwan village in Ludhiana district. Hargobind Singh, Superintendent of Police (Vigilance), Mohali, said Jagdip Singh had been supplying labourers to the department for Khanna Mandi. He had made an agreement of Rs 14.85 lakh in this regard, he said. “Markfed had already paid Rs 11 lakh to the accused. The accused had demanded Rs 25,000 from Jagdip Singh for releasing the rest of the payment amounting to Rs 3.85 lakh,” said Hargobind Singh. After receiving the complaint, the Mohali Vigilance flying squad laid a trap to catch the accused. Jagdeep Singh had gone to pay the accused the first instalment. A case under Sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered against the accused. He would be produced in court tomorrow.
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Muktsar, June 23
Abohar, June 23
Fazilka, June 23
Ludhiana, June 23
Jalandhar, June 23
Amritsar, June 23
