Tarn Taran Diary: Illegal mining, illicit liquor & local politics
Illegal mining and distillation of illicit liquor have remained a part and parcel of Tarn Taran politics since long. Politics, specially of the ruling party, has played a major role in these illegal activities. These anti-social activities have a connection with the Mand area alongside the rivers as both Beas and the Sutlej pass through the district with their confluence at Harike. It was the Mand area which was a hotbed of militancy where security forces used to launch air attacks when militancy was at its peak. Recently, a controversy arose over an incident of illegal mining related to Mand area. Bhail Dhai Wala village has gained much attraction among the masses with its people having a keen connection in political circles, state government and the administration. The police arrested 10 members of a gang involved in illegal mining, including a kin of Khadoor Sahib MLA, belonging to the ruling party. The issues arising out of it led to the transfer of the SSP and suspension of five cops, including the SHO, who led the police raid. More interesting was the farewell of the SSP given at the time of his departure. Illegal mining and distillation of illicit liquor are not new issues being used by the Opposition, specially in election campaigns. It was the Congress party which used the issue of illegal mining in its election campaign of 2017 and promised the people that sand must be given free to the people but failed to do so and the then Opposition raised the same issue against the government. And it was the Congress government against which the issue of spurious liquor was highlighted in 2020. More than 100 people died of consuming spurious liquor and the issue was taken up by the Opposition. The issue put the Congress government in an embarrassing situation. A racket involving illegal wine too was highlighted from the district with a huge quantity of liquor being seized by the Amritsar rural police. The recent issue of illegal mining is not an isolated one. There are reports that the trade still exists. Last year, in the month of August, the Patti Sadar police in its raid at Kalake Uttaar near Sabhra village, arrested four persons and also impounded a poclain machine, three sand-filled tractor trolleys and three empty tippers. The accused were identified as Waryam Singh of Kot Budha (Tarn Taran district), Sukhdev Singh, Chamkaur Singh and Kala Singh Kalu of Ajnala tehsil in Amritsar district. Some of the other accused absconded from the spot. It is matter of great concern that more than a year has passed and the police have not even produced the challan of that case in the court. SHO Harinder Singh confirmed that the challan has not yet been produced in court. The SHO failed to reveal the exact date of presenting challan in the court. Senior politicians too are allegedly behind it. There were reports that distillation of illegal liquor was continuing even now and not only in the Mand area but in the villages too. Recently, alcohol was seized which is harmful in terms of health. The general public want to know how to bell the cat and when.
15 Nishan-e-Sikhi pupils clear NDA written exam
Fifteen students of Nishan-e-Sikhi Institute of Science and Training, Khadoor Sahib, have cleared the NDA written examinations recently. Nishan-e-Sikhi has been providing coaching for various exams, including the UPSC, NEET and JEE. The institute is being run under the patronage of environmentalist Baba Sewa Singh, head of the Kar Sewa sect, Khadoor Sahib. The 15 students who cleared the written examination of NDA include Gurleen Kaur, the first ever girl student from the institute to have passed the examination since its inception. The other 14 students of NDA wing are Sahijpreet Singh, Bhavkirat Singh, Parvinder Singh, Jobanpreet Singh, Manveer Singh, Jabir Singh, Sikandarbir Singh, Abhaijit Singh, Balroop Singh, Sharandeep Singh, Yuvraj Singh, Jaskaran Singh, Sidakpreet Singh and Jatinjot Singh who belong to different parts of the state. Three students of the institute have already cleared the NDA-SSB this year.
Road repair, MC style
One must learn a lesson in road repair when it caves in because of the lid of sewerage manhole. The Municipal Council, Tarn Taran, has filled brick pieces in the part which caved in quite in the middle of the road in front of the main post office, Tarn Taran. Local shopkeepers said with the filling of brick pieces, the number of daily accidents has increased. Most people commute over it, unaware of its condition.
(Contributed by Gurbaxpuri)
