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Chief Justice Kaul
may be shifted to Madras HC
Have high hopes from Modi Govt: Badal
Centre approves ITIs for women
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Setting up state narcotics bureau a farce, says Capt
Majithia incommunicado, claims PPCC chief Bajwa
Jagir Kaur encroached upon land: Khaira
Rs 50 hike in paddy MSP a ‘cruel joke’
Faridkot admn forms panel,
PRTC staff unrelenting
Rs 4.19 cr to check
waterlogging in Muktsar villages
Private dental colleges in a fix
Travel agents asked to get registered
9 yrs on, Martyr’s Memorial hangs fire
Probe ordered into Moga encounter
Wasn’t paid wages for four months: Phagwara returnee
Delhi girls spread hygiene
awareness among kids
The girls in a border village on Thursday. Tribune photo
Rail mishap victims cremated
Iraq crisis: fate of several punjabis hangs in balance
Four from Amritsar languishing in Iraq jail
Addicts hoarding drugs in Ludhiana
Ex-serviceman held in Army job racket
13 officials found absent
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Chief Justice Kaul
may be shifted to Madras HC
Chandigarh, June 26 Chief Justice Kaul refused to comment further, but available information says he is going to the Madras High Court as the Chief Justice with the Supreme Court clearing his name for the post. Describing his stay in the city as "satisfactory", Chief Justice Kaul said his effort during his short stint of about 13 months was to fill the vacancies of High Court judges to cut down pendency of cases. As a part of the initiative, 16 names had been forwarded for consideration. But the problem of pendency remained unresolved to some extent, not only due to retirement of judges during the period but also because of an increase in the filing of cases. Chief Justice Kaul said the lower courts were now disposing of more cases than ever before, resulting in an increase in filing of appeals before the High Court. He said a minimum of 55 to 60 Judges were required to make the justice delivery system run like a well-oiled machine. But the number of High Court judges remained 48, 20 short of the sanctioned strength. The assertion is significant as the pendency of cases in the Punjab and Haryana High Court has registered a hike, despite an increase in disposal of matters with more and more people knocking its doors. As a result, the pendency touched an all time high of 2,62,760 cases by December last year as compared to 2,51,120 in the beginning of 2013. The situation was a shade better in the subordinate courts where the pendency registered a dip of 12,164 cases from 11,51,304 in the beginning of 2013 to 11,39,140 by the year-end. The Chief Justice maintained that the credit for bringing down the number of cases before the subordinate judiciary largely went to the collective efforts of the judges and cooperation by the Bar. He said he could now look back with satisfaction at the fact that he managed to bring the Bench and the Bar on the same platform by removing the hitches affecting the system and in improving the Bench-Bar relations. He added strict implementation of the rules hovering around the submission of petitions in public interests also saw lesser filings of pleas to settle personal scores in the garb of PIL. Publicity interest litigations also took a nosedive. Justice Mohunta rejoins HC Chandigarh: Just over three years after he was transferred out of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Justice Ashutosh Mohunta is back. He was administered oath as a judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court by Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul this morning. Justice Mohunta was with the Punjab and Haryana High Court since his elevation in July 2001, but was transferred to the then Andhra Pradesh High Court in October 2010. He was with the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh High Court before his transfer back to Chandigarh. As a result of his return, the strength of High Court judges has reached 48 against the sanctioned strength of 68. Justice Mohunta's return to Chandigarh is significant as it has brought to fore the demand for bringing back some other judges transferred from here. As of now Justice Nirmaljit Kaur and Justice KS Ahluwalia are in Rajasthan while Justice Virender Singh is a judge of the J&K High Court. Some lawyers insist that some of the judges should be brought back for helping the HC deal with the problem of pendency. — TNS
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Have high hopes from Modi Govt: Badal
Chandigarh, June 26 “I have not sought anything special for Punjab. I have urged the Prime Minister and senior BJP ministers to do justice to the state which has suffered for years owing to the indifferent attitude of the UPA Government,” he told The Tribune. He said the industry in Punjab should be given concesssions on a par with those given to some neighbouring states. On the contentious issues of Article 370 and the dominance of the Hindi language, the Chief Minister said: “It is true that the SAD and the BJP differ on certain issues, but so has been the case with several parties in alliance with the BJP. In an alliance, a party has to accommodate the other’s viewpoint without compromising on the core issues”. On the reasons for the SAD-BJP alliance’s poor showing in the Lok Sabha elections, he said it was, perhaps, because of the high sand and gravel prices. “We were unable to defend ourselves on this issue though it was the Centre’s refusal to give clearances to mines that saw sand prices hit the ceiling,” he said. Now that the Modi Government had given the requisite clearances, the sand and gravel prices were sure to tumble, he said. On the popular perception that rampant corruption had been the alliance’s undoing in the Lok Sabha elections, Badal said: “The Vigilance Bureau is headed by one of the best police officers. The people must come forward to get corrupt officials arrested”. On his recent visit to offices to check if officials and ministers were on their seats, Badal said: “This is being done to improve the delivery system in government departments. I have told senior officials to visit rural areas once a week, as was the practice some decades ago.” He said his mission was to provide clean drinking water to every village and make the rivers and streams pollution-free. “Punjab will have enough power now because the NDA Government has assured us that it will allot coal mines for the state’s remaining thermal plants. Coal linkages were creating problems in making some plants fully operational,” he added. The Chief Minister said that politicians should shun business ventures and confine themselves to politics. Speaking on his relatives’ business enterprises, Badal said all his life he had only taken care of his ancestral property. It was his son Sukhbir Badal who had started business on his return from the US after doing MBA. “At that point of time, he was not in politics and I was in jail,” explained Badal. He said no matter how clean a politician’s business dealings were, public perception would always be to the contrary. Hence, politicians should keep away from business. The Chief Minister also spoke about dynastic politics. He said his son-in-law Adesh Partap Kairon’s grandfather Partap Singh Kairon was Punjab’s Chief Minister long ago. Sukhbir’s in-laws too had been in politics since long. “If my relatives are in power, it is not because of me and my son. Their families were in politics well before I joined politics,” said Badal, dispelling the notion that power in Punjab was concentrated in the hands of those related to the Badal family. “And all of them have come to power through a democratic process, which is by winning elections,” he added.
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Centre approves ITIs for women
New Delhi, June 26 The decision was taken by Union Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi who met the Chief Minister at the Kapurthala House here today. Maneka urged Badal to send a detailed proposal to the ministry for establishing a network of ITIs across the state for imparting technical and vocational training to women to help them get jobs. She hoped that the “unique” initiative would go a long way in infusing a sense of confidence among the women in the state. Crisis centres
Chief Minister to submit a comprehensive proposal to her ministry for setting up “one stop crisis centres” in every district across the state for prompt assistance to the women subjected to gender crime. Under the central scheme, the state government is required to hand over 250 square yards-300 square yards of land for setting up these centres. The entire cost is to be borne by the Centre. During the deliberations, Badal sought a hike in the honorarium of anganwari workers and helpers from Rs 5,000 and Rs 2,500 per month to Rs 8,000 and Rs 4,000 per month, respectively. He also sought a liberal grant from the Centre for building anganwari centers in various phases. Gram yojana
Accepting the long-standing demand of the state, Punjab has been brought under the Prime Minister’s Adarsh Gram Yojana. The objective of this central scheme is to improve infrastructure in villages for the betterment of the Scheduled Castes. Punjab has a high concentration of Scheduled Caste population, especially in the Sports institute
The Central Government has agreed to establish a sports institute for the physically challenged at an estimated cost of Rs 159 crore for which 10 acres of land in Zirakpur would be provided by the state free of cost. The Chief Minister sought that Rs 10 crore be released under the pre-matric scholarship scheme for SC students of Class IX and Class X and Rs 543 crore be released (for 2013-14 and 2014-15) under the pos- matric scholarship scheme for SC students so as to comply with the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. ‘Punjab deserves greater representation’
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Setting up state narcotics bureau a farce, says Capt
Amritsar, June 26 Addressing a press conference here today, Captain alleged there were some police personnel who were promoting drug trade and they were being protected by the Akalis and who were in turn being protected by the Badals. Ridiculing the claim of Makkar that he (Capt) was seeking a separate Haryana body to weaken and undermine the authority of the SGPC, Amarinder said: "Everybody knows the SGPC was once a powerful body. But now it has been reduced to a naught by the SAD." He said he understood his (Makkar's) compulsion to oppose the Haryana body. He advised those opposing the Haryana SGPC to read history and then decide whether they should oppose or support it. Earlier, Amarinder took out a road show in Majitha segment, the home turf of Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia, and thanked the people for voting for him. He said the people of this segment had exhibited courage against all odds and intimidation and voted for him to ensure his landslide victory. He was accompanied by Lali Majithia, Sawinder Singh Kathunangal, Rana Gurjeet Singh and Lt Gen (retd) TS Shergill.
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Majithia incommunicado, claims PPCC chief Bajwa
Chandigarh, June 26 Majithia has been keeping a low profile since the Lok Sabha elections results on May 16. He has not been seen much in the Civil Secretariat. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had marked him absent during a, inspection on June 17. Though the Public Relations Minister is suppose to be the face of the government, Majithia’s whereabouts remain cloaked in secrecy. Partap Singh Bajwa, president, Punjab Pardesh Congress Committee (PPCC) cjief, said he had tried to get in touch with the minister on the Punjabis stuck in the war-torn Iraq, but he was incommunicado.”The state is facing a crisis but the Information Minister is enjoying a holiday abroad. Even the Deputy Chief Minister is away,” he remarked. Majithia’s personal staff said he was abroad while an official handling the media claimed he was in New Delhi. However, there have been no press notes or pictures about his meeting with any the Union Minister or his attending a function or a meeting for the past almost three weeks. The PWD Minister, Janmeja Singh Sekhon, who had also been found absent from work by the Chief Minister, had sent a clarification that he was abroad and that he had sought approval from the Chief Minister and informed the Union Ministry of External Affairs about it. After persistent questioning, Majithia’s personal staff claimed that he was on leave and would be back later this week or early next week. A press statement by Sarbjit Singh Sabi, District Youth Akali Dal, Hoshiarpur, said Majithia was on a “well-deserved leave” after hectic electioneering. An official statement claimed that Majithia had taken leave as per the official process. Silent on his whereabouts, it claimed Majithia was the first leader to have approached the families of the youths trapped in Iraq. Further queries revealed that he had cleared some files on June 7. Six Congress MLAs are also on a holiday abroad. They are Surinder Dawar, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, Randeep Singh Nabha, Ramanjit Singh Sikki, Aruna Chowdhry and Gurkirat Singh
Kotli. Where is the minister? "The state is facing a crisis but the state Information Minister is enjoying a holiday abroad. Even Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal is away" — Partap S Bajwa, ppcc chief Keeping low profile *
Sarbjit Sabi, Hoshiarpur District Youth Akali Dal, said Majithia was on ‘well-deserved leave’ *
Silent on his whereabouts, a press note claimed that Majithia was on leave *
It claimed he was the first leader to have approached the families of youths trapped in Iraq *
Sources said Majithia had cleared certain files on June 7 Holidaying abroad Congress MLAs on a holiday abroad are Surinder Dawar, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, Randeep Singh Nabha, Ramanjit Singh Sikki, Aruna Chowdhry and Gurkirat Singh
Kotli.
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Jagir Kaur encroached upon land: Khaira
Begowal (Kapurthala), June 26 Alleging that former SGPC chief Bibi Jagir Kaur had encroached upon the nagar panchayat land, Khaira said despite his complaint to the authorities concerned, no action had been initiated. Earlier this month, Khaira had taken up the matter of the alleged encroachment of approximately 20 acres of panchayat land in Begowal village by Bholath MLA Bibi Jagir Kaur with the government functionaries. Also, acting on a petition filed by George Subh of the Begowal Nagar Panchayat, seeking a CBI probe into the “multi-crore land scam” on May 30, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had issued notice to Bibi Jagir Kaur, Kapurthala Deputy Commissioner and other repondents for October 28. Khaira alleged: “Bibi Jagir Kaur wields political clout over the Kapurthala district administration due to her proximity with Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal. Emboldened by the inability of the government to take any concrete legal action against her, Bibi Jagir Kaur has once again started constructing the boundary wall over the panchayat land adjoining Sant Prem Singh Khalsa School.” Khaira has demanded that the construction work be stopped immediately. Despite repeated attempts, Bibi Jagir Kaur could not be contacted.
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Rs 50 hike in paddy MSP a ‘cruel joke’
Chandigarh, June 26 The price of Rs 1,360 per quintal is far below the price of Rs 1,800 per quintal recommended by the state Agriculture Department, which was worked out taking into account prices of farm inputs such as diesel, pesticides, farm machinery, implements, fertilisers and seeds. Even the price of grade 'A' variety has only been raised by Rs 55 to Rs 1,400 per quintal. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said: "There had been a massive hike in the cost of farm produce during the UPA regime. Our party has always recommended the Swaminathan formula which underlined 50 per cent profit over the total cost of production incurred by the farmer for any crop". State BJP president Kamal Sharma said: "Our government knows that there has been a massive increase in the cost of farm inputs. Corrections will be made in a gradual manner." Prof Sukhpal Singh, Head, Economics Department, Punjab Agricultural University, said: "Farmers deserved higher prices because of high burden of increasing irrigation costs as underground water level is falling at a higher rate". Manpreet Singh Badal, PPP president, described the hike in the paddy MSP as meagre. He said the ruling BJP at the Centre had 'disregarded" the Akali Dal by ignoring it on such a crucial issue. He pointed out that Badal had always been critical of the minimal hike in the prices of various crops by the UPA government and now the Modi government had done the same. Balbir Rajewal, president, Bharti Kisan Union(BKU), said: “The move means that farmers are in for testing times under the NDA Government. The diesel prices went up by more than Rs 6 in one year. Even the traders have been given the benefit of Rs 2 per kg increase in sugar prices, but farmers have not been paid the price of their sugarcane yet.” Prof SS Johl, an agricultural expert, however, said the hike of Rs 50 was justified in case it was recommended by the Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices
(CACP).
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Faridkot admn forms panel,
PRTC staff unrelenting
Faridkot, June 26 A four-member committee, headed by DTO, was constituted to stop the practice of illegal plying of private buses. But the move failed to pacify the protesting employees. They were adamant on their demand for action against the supporters of an Akali leader who had allegedly damaged PRTC buses and beaten up some corporation employees on June 1. Besides, Deputy Commissioner wrote to the State Transport Commissioner (STC) in this regard. Traffic in the town continued to remain affected for the second day today, giving a tough time to the commuters and residents. Though the police tried to convince the protesters, they seemed reluctant in taking action against the supporters of the Akali leader. "The district administration has written to the STC to take action against operators plying buses without a permit. A four-member committee comprising Faridkot DTO, Jaitu SHO, PRTC GM and a representative of the employees union has been constituted to check this practice," said Mohan Lal, ADC. "The remaining demands will be considered by the police," he added.
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Rs 4.19 cr to check
waterlogging in Muktsar villages
Muktsar, June 26 Jaskiran Singh, Deputy Commissioner, Muktsar, said Rs 4.19 crore would be spent to lay 28,000 metre pipeline to drain out water from the ponds of these two villages. "Besides, Rs 1.29 crore will be spent to lay 9,000 ft pipeline to drain out rainwater from Haraj and Warring villages. The rainwater would be diverted towards Warring drain. Similarly, Rs 2.9 crore would be spent for the drainage of rainwater from Khokhar village," he added.
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Private dental colleges in a fix
Ferozepur, June 26 Sources said of the 14,000 students who had appeared in the AIPMT: 2014, only 1,389 students from Punjab had scored more than 50 per cent marks had were qualified for admission in medical and dental colleges. Earlier, the statewould conduct the PMET for admissions in MBBS/BDS. The students were admitted on the basis of the PMET merit and seats that remained vacant after counselling were filled on the basis of the Class XII result. Now, admissions are to be done on the basis of the AIPMT merit list alone.
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Hawara needs medical care, says Akal Takht
Amritsar, June 26 The Jathedar said the authorities should allow him to get medical treatment on humanitarian grounds. He said if this was not possible inside the jail, he should be admitted to hospital. He also asked the SGPC to take up the matter with the authorities concerned. Dal Khalsa has also written to New Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung, bringing to his notice the “indifferent attitude” of the Tihar Jail towards Hawara. Party head HS Dhami said since the past one month, Hawara had been complaining of severe pain in his spinal cord and was unable to move. “The jail authorities have ignored his suffering and have not provided him proper medical treatment,” Dhami alleged. He said either Hawara should be shifted to a hospital or a team of doctors be brought to the jail for his treatment. “Not providing medical treatment to a prisoner is inhuman and violation of the jail manual,” he pointed out. Dhami said Hawara had told his family about his illness.
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Travel agents asked to get registered
Fatehgarh Sahib, June 26 This has been done to curb malpractices and fleecing of people looking to travel abroad. The agents have been asked to get licences to continue working. Those failing to do so will face action, he said. The Deputy Commissioner said there had been reports of travel agents cheating youths looking to travel abroad. He said agents could get registered by filling out “Form-1” available at Suvidha centres in the district. The travel agents who have been operating for five years or less have to deposit Rs 1 lakh as fee along with requisite documents and an affidavit. Those who have been working for more than five years will have to deposit Rs 25,000 along with the documents.
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Gurdaspur man helps eight penniless boys get home
Jalandhar, June 26 “The ticketing staff at the Ahmedabad railway station had refused to give us tickets even when we told them that we had arrived from Iraq and did not have money to buy tickets to reach our hometowns in Punjab. They told us to step aside and give way to others,” Vinod Kumar from Phagwara had claimed. He was among the eight who had left Iraq after paying $400 to their company in Najaf. When the railway authorities refused to help them, a former havildar, Ranjit Singh from Gurdaspur, who works for a healthcare company in Gujarat, came to their rescue. He paid for their tickets and also bought food and water for the boys, who hadn’t had anything to eat for over four days. He refused to accept money from the boys after they arrived in Punjab. He was at the station to board the Jammu Tawi Express for his hometown Dinanagar in
Gurdaspur.
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9 yrs on, Martyr’s Memorial hangs fire
Muktsar, June 26 Jaranil Singh, Manager, Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, Muktsar, said, “I am unaware if the stone has been damaged. But I can assure you that the construction of the memorial will begin soon.” In order to appease the Sikh community, the ruling SAD has constructed a number of Sikh historical monuments, including Virasat-e-Khalsa in Anandpur Sahib, Wadda Ghallughara in Sangrur, Chota Ghallughara in Gurdaspur and Fateh Burj in Chappar Chiri in
Mohali. The SGPC has held several meetings in this regard, but the building is yet to be constructed. On his visits to Muktsar, SGPC chief Avtar Singh Makkar has almost always promised to begin work on the memorial. Residents said the SAD was politicising religion. They said the SAD and the SGPC laid the stone of the Martyrs’ Memorial to counter Congress. The Congress had then inaugurated the Mukt-e-Minar near the District Administrative Complex
(DAC).
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Probe ordered into Moga encounter
Moga, June 26 He said the Chandigarh Police while entering the district informed the local police in Mehna police station that they had come to arrest two youths in connection with a robbery case. However, they had arrived on private vehicles and were in plain clothes. — TNS
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Wasn’t paid wages for four months: Phagwara returnee
Phagwara, June 26 Vinod, while talking to The Tribune, claimed he was forced to work as a bonded labourer for months in the country. Though the government claimed it was providing support to Indians stranded in the war-torn country, Vinod claimed he and other co-workers paid $650 each to the company to get their passports back. He went to Iraq four months ago after paying Rs 1.50 lakh to a Mahilpur-based travel agent and worked as a carpenter for a company. Vinod alleged he was not paid any wages during the four months of his stay there. He showed blunt injuries on the arm and alleged he was assaulted by company staff when he demanded wages. Vinod said he would never go abroad for work again.
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Delhi girls spread hygiene
awareness among kids
Ferozepur, June 26 The duo visited Mathar
Hithar, Hazara, Lakho Ke Behram, Sher Khan, Lakha Singh Wala, Rahime ke
Hithar, Mahal Singh Wala and Shanke villages.
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Rail mishap victims cremated
Ferozepur, June 26 The three were among four killed after the New Delhi-Dibrugarh Rajdhani derailed near Chhapra station on Tuesday late night. The victims, including Pawan Kumar Dhawan (45), his wife Neelam Dhawan (44) and Bharti Beri (45), along with their family members were going for a vacation to Darjeeling when the accident occurred. Nishant (17) and Mouli (13), both children of deceased Pawan and Neelam, besides Bharti’s husband Sanjeev Beri and his children Adil Beri (21) and Ashla Beri (17) also sustained injuries in the accident. Pawan and Sanjeev were close friends and were posted in the Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) office as Chief Loco Inspector (CLI) and Chief Power Controller (CPC), respectively. Hundreds of residents besides officials from the railways were present. BJP state president Kamal Sharma, a resident of Preet Nagat area where the Dhawan family lived, also attended the cremation. Earlier, Sharma requested Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Union Defence Minister Arun Jaitley to make necessary arrangements to airlift the bodies of the victims to Ferozepur. He said he would urge the Railway Ministry to provide suitable job to one of the children who lost both parents in the tragedy.
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Iraq crisis: fate of several punjabis hangs in balance
New Delhi, June 26 Badal spoke over the phone to senior diplomat Suresh Reddy, who has been sent to Baghdad to oversee rescue operations, and also held a meeting with Mridul Kumar, Joint Secretary (GUL) in the MEA. The Chief Minister urged Reddy to sort out the issues of those Punjabis who were willing to return but their employers were reluctant to relieve them due to certain reasons. The Central Government must get any issue related to the employers settled through direct intervention of the Iraqi Labour Department. He said any Punjabi who was willing to return but was hesitant to do so because of the financial burden incurred by him or his family should be asked to return and the state government was willing to bear his entire expenditure. Badal said it was the duty of the state government to help the distressed Punjabis and their families in the hour of crisis. Badal got an update from Mridul Kumar about the initiatives taken by the government for the safe and early evacuation of Indians. He asked the MEA official to take speedy steps to ensure the evacuation of those trapped in the war zone as also those in the safe zone in Iraq. Talks to senior envoy *
CM Parkash Singh Badal spoke to senior diplomat Suresh Reddy, who is in Baghdad to oversee rescue operations *
He asked Reddy to sort out the issues of those who were willing to return to India but their employers were reluctant to relieve them *
He said the state government was willing to bear the entire expenditure on the return of those stranded because of financial burden *
The CM also held a meeting with Mridul Kumar, Joint Secretary (GUL) in the MEA, and sought early evacuation.
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Four from Amritsar languishing in Iraq jail
Amritsar, June 26 Kulwant Singh, while talking to The Tribune, said his son Vijay had gone to Iraq around one-and-a-half years ago, but was arrested for not having proper travel documents soon after landing there. “We had mortgaged a piece of land and raised Rs 1.5 lakh, which we paid to a travel agent. He promised us to send Vijay to Iraq and arrange Rs 35,000 per month job for him.” He alleged the travel agent first took Vijay and three other youths from the area to Dubai on a tourist visa. The four were later shifted to Iraq, where they were arrested for travelling without proper documents. He said the family was struggling to pay the interest on the loan taken to send Vijay abroad. “I work as a ‘halwai’ (cook), while my two other sons do menial jobs. We are finding it hard to both eke out a living and pay interest on the loan,” he said. The condition of the families of the other three youths — Rakesh Masih, Rashpal Masih and Kamal — all of whom are married and have children, is no different. “We had hoped that they would go abroad and help their families come out of the financial mess, but they are now in jail and we are struggling get two square meals a day,” said the wife of one of the youths. Deputy Commissioner Ravi Bhagat recently met these families and assured them of government’s assistance. All India Anti-Terrorist Front chairman Maninderjit Singh Bitta also met them today and said he would take up their matter with the government. Caught travelling on invalid papers * A travel agent took four youths from Nirankari Colony to Dubai on a tourist visa around one-and-a-half years ago *
The four were later taken to Iraq, where they were arrested for travelling without proper documents *
With no hope of their release, the families are finding it hard to pay off debt incurred on sending them abroad Every day is a struggle "We had hoped that they would go abroad and help their families come out of the financial mess, but they are now in jail and we are struggling get two square meals a
day" — Wife of one of the youths
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Addicts hoarding drugs in Ludhiana
Ludhiana, June 26 He further said, “We have also sought the state government’s permission to issue identity proofs to the addicts. Once they get the identity proofs, it will be easier for the staff at drug de-addiction centres to crosscheck them.” The addicts, who visit de-addiction centres, are given medicines for three to five days. Dr Sudha Vasudev, Head of Department of Psychiatry, Lord Mahavir Civil Hospital, Ludhiana, said, “Every addict gets doses as per their withdrawal symptoms. Those addicts whose withdrawal symptoms are severe are given 8 tablets a day. These are then reduced slowly to 2 a day.” She said 10 per cent of their patients suffered from seizures if they did not get the required amount of medicine. Rajat Aggarwal Deputy Commissioner, Ludhiana, said, “As many as 3,175 addicts have started getting free treatment at de-addiction centres set up at 17 PHCs, CHCs and Red Cross centres of Ludhiana district. Out of these, 81 have recovered completely.”
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Ex-serviceman held in Army job racket
Abohar, June 26 The police said Ram Chander (23) of Satjanda village was nabbed near the local bus stand along with Arvind of Chak 12KND village (Rawla). Three fake stamps of the Army, a fake certificate, an identity card, pens, whitener, glue and other documents have been seized. Investigating officer Sub-Inspector Lal Singh said Ram Chander had allegedly been duping youths by promising them recruitment in the Army. — OC
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13 officials found absent
Fatehgarh Sahib, June 26 They are Rashpal Singh, Baldev Singh, Ajmer Singh, Bhagh Mahendra Singh, Amarjit Kaur, Jaswinder Kaur, Ranbir Singh and Harmeet Singh, all of the Market Committee; Prem Parkash, Devinder Singh and Hans Raj of the Municipal Council; Baljinder Singh, Patwari; and Ritu Rani of the Block Development Office. The SDM said action would be initiated against the absentees.
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Chandigarh, June 26
Amritsar MP Capt Amarinder Singh today questioned the logic behind constituting the Narcotics Prevention and Control Board when the Narcotics Control Bureau was already doing its job. The former CM expressed apprehensions that this board to be headed by Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal "will only shield and protect those Akalis who are producing, promoting and peddling drugs".
Muktsar, June 26
among children from rural areas near the border. Riya Ahuja and Malikka
Khanna, who are students of Class X in a private school in Delhi, showed power point presentations on various health issues to the children.
Ferozepur, June 26
The family members of four youths from Nirankari Colony are worried about the fate of their sons, who are languishing in an Iraqi jail after the travel agent sent them to the country without valid papers.
New Delhi: The SAD Member of Parliament from Anandpur Sahib, Prof Prem Singh Chandumajra, today said that Punjab should be given greater representation in the Union Cabinet. Harsimrat Kaur Badal of the SAD is Food Processing Minister in the Modi Cabinet. Punjab has 13 Lok Sabha seats. The SAD has four MPs and its ally (BJP) two. Chandumajra claimed that the state’s name was being sullied in the drug trade despite the fact that factories manufacturing synthetic drugs had been unearthed in Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Delhi. — TNS
* Majithia’s personal staff claimed he was on leave and woud be back later this week 
Even the state BJP and the SAD agreed that the increase was even lesser than the national inflation rate of 6 per cent which worked out to Rs 78.
Partap Singh Bajwa, PPCC president, said: "The negligible Rs 50 hike in the MSP is yet another indication that worst is in the store for the people under the NDA government."