 |
|
|
|
|
|
VB starts probe into waivers by Cong govt
Chandigarh, March 17 Well-placed sources in the government confirmed last night that an inquiry had been initiated to find out “if anybody in the previous regime had gained financially while allowing these projects or, conversely, did the government lose anything in these deals.” Officials scotched any talk of a case having being registered against a senior functionary in the previous regime. “No case has been registered against anybody till tonight”, said an official while confirming that inquiries were being conducted into various aspects. Since this morning it has been a hot topic of discussion that a former close associate of Amarinder Singh has been booked. The Punjab government has not ordered a formal inquiry on the plea that the VB does not need an order from any authority to conduct an inquiry. It is an independent body that is meant to conduct inquiries into cases of alleged corruption is the opinion of the officials. The VB will refer the matter to the government only when concrete evidence is in hand and a case has to be registered, said an official here tonight. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is the minister for vigilance while the chief secretary is the principal secretary (vigilance). The inquiry of the VB is not against any person, it is only on the conduct of the functionaries linked with handling of mega projects and concessions to big industrial houses, besides other deals. Meanwhile, VB officials virtually stonewalled and avoided media today. No phone calls from reporters were taken and the entry into the office in sector 17 here was restricted. The Chief Minister has so far maintained: “The law will take its own course and there will be no witch hunt.”
|
|
|
Cotton trading may open Wagah, Hussainiwala gates
Muktsar, March 17 Cotton triggered off a significant development here today when for the first time after the Partition a delegation of cotton traders, including the chairman, Indo-Pak Cotton Ginners Association and Jhang Chamber of Commerce, Sahid Farooqi Puri, along with four other prominent persons, came to this town to mobilise Punjab traders to pressurise the Indian Government to open Wagah and Hussainiwala borders for cotton trade. The Pakistan cotton traders delegation will meet the members of the Punjab Cotton Factory and Ginners Association tomorrow at Bathinda and motivate them to take up the matter of opening up the borders seriously with the government. Before leaving for India, the Pakistan traders had already written a letter to their government for holding parleys with the Indian Government. Puri, while talking to TNS pointed out that shortly Pakistan’s minister of textile, along with senior officials, would be visiting Delhi and Nagpur for exploring options of cotton trade with India through land routes. He added that at the Pakistan cotton traders would also meet the authorities concerned in India in this regard. Bhagwan Bansal, president, Punjab Cotton Factory and Ginners Association, who took the Pakistan cotton trader delegation to various cotton fields, factories and ginning mills, said they would also meet the union minister of textiles and commerce. He pointed out that if the Punjab farmers were allowed to sell their cotton produce to the Pakistan traders through Wagah and Hussainiwala borders, they would be getting Rs 100 to Rs 150 more per quintal of cotton in the domestic markets. He added that presently Punjab cotton was being exported to Karachi (Pakistan) via Kandla port, which was very expensive. Puri further stated that the reason for the Pakistan traders visit was that they were facing a shortage of about 35 lakh bales this year and if they managed to get the stock from Indian traders, it would be beneficial for both. He said that they had also been exploring the possibility of taking Bt cotton to Pakistan so that the per acre yield in Pakistan could be increased. He added that Bt cotton experiments had been started in Pakistan last year but a lot was required to be done. He said he was also of the view that both Punjabs should carry out joint reseach to improve the cotton quality and increase its yield. Ashok Kapur, former president, Northern India Cotton Association, pointed out that if the cotton trade with Pakistan was started through Wagah and Hussainiwala, the volume of trade would register a huge hike.
|
||
|
Badal revives ‘sangat darshan’
Ratta Tibba (Muktsar) March 17 Listening to grievances of the people during the first phase of the two-day 'sangat darshan' at
Midda, Mohlan, Ratta Tibba, Karam Patti and Rani Wala villages in Badal’s own assembly segment-Lambi- the CM thanked the people of the area for reposing faith in the policies of the SAD-BJP alliance. Badal personally listened to the grievances of
dalits, youth and women separately and at the same time warned the food and civil supplies officials to check the practice of black marketing of cooking gas in the area and ensure its smooth and regular supply. He also sanctioned tubewell connections to small and poor farmers on priority basis and cautioned the people not to steal power through ‘kundi’ connections. He also gave a grant of Rs 50 lakh for rural water supply and Rs 1 lakh for the library at Ratta Tibba. He also disbursed a cheque of Rs 50 lakh for lining of water courses of Raniwala and assured 24-hour domestic power and drinking water supply in the village. He also sought feedback from the people about the hardships being faced by them. At Mohlan, Badal gave Rs 1000 to a woman, Jeeto, for treatment of her leg and directed the Civil Surgeon, Muktsar, to provide her free treatment.
|
||
|
CM not to attend marriages
Ratta Tibba (Muktsar), March 17 Badal, who was here to preside over the ‘sangat darshan’ programme, said he had taken this decision so that he could get more time to serve the people in various parts of Punjab.
|
||
|
Pathankot-Amritsar highway accident-prone
Gurdaspur, March 17 The deep potholes at Dina Nagar, Jhande Chak, Jhakolari Gurdaspur and Batala have resulted in numerous fatal accidents. Other culprits are reckless drivers of private buses and heavily loaded trucks. Continuous downpour in February and March has peeled off the bitumen at various places resulting in knee-deep potholes on the highway. Worst affected are the two-wheeler drivers who commute daily. The conditions of almost every road converging at district headquarter-Gurdaspur-is same. Though, the Punjab public works department has started filling the potholes vehicles that gets stuck in these blocks the highway for hours, Dharam Singh of Jhande Chak village said. Whereas, Swaran Singh, shopkeeper at Dina Nagar, complained that deep potholes in front of his shop has adversely affected his business. Unprecedented rain and plying of overloaded vehicles have damaged the highway, admits executive engineer of central works division. He, however, said since the highway was to shortly be four-laned by the national highway authorities, so only repair work was being carried to provide relief to the commuters.
|
||
|
Security cameras for varsity gates
Amritsar, March 17 The cameras would record movements round the clock which could be accessed through Internet by the Vice-Chancellor or other senior officials even during their travel in any part of the world. Though the control room for monitoring activity at the entry gates would be under the charge of a security officer, other senior officers could get access through the code, which could be given to them on need basis. In the next phase, such security cameras could be installed at hostel gates too. The DVD containing recording of the visitors would remain in the archives of the VC’s office. Talking to The Tribune, Mr Jai Rup Singh, Vice-Chancellor, said GND University would be the first varsity in the region which would introduce high tech security cameras on the pattern of international institutes. The Vice-Chancellor said installation of security cameras would help in checking petty crimes like lifting of two-wheelers. Dr Jai Rup Singh said before he took over as Vice-Chancellor, some incidents of 'hit and run' by speedy vehicles were reported which needed to be checked by strengthening security at the entry gates. He said though some persons felt 'inconvenienced' the move was instrumental in decreasing the incidence of minor crime on the campus. GND University has also installed mobile jammers on the campus, especially in the conference and meeting rooms. The experiment was successful during the recently held syndicate meeting which concluded peacefully without 'mobile nuisance.’
|
|
Top officials to face the music
Varinder Walia Tribune News Service
Amritsar, March 17 Though the director, Cultural Affairs and Archives, had confessed on record that no highrise building could be constructed within the 500 meters vicinity of the Ram Bagh in November last year yet the construction activities continued with impunity. Interestingly, the director of the department in reply to Charnjit Singh Gumtala of the Amritsar Vikas Manch through RTI had informed him that rules were being framed in the light of the Punjab Ancient and Historical Monuments and Archeological Sites and Remains Act, 1964, to disallow the construction of any building before issuance of any notification in this regard. Protected monuments in this ancient city are already in a dilapidated state, owing to their negligence by the authorities concerned. The historic Ram Bagh, which was got constructed by the legendary Maharaja Ranjit Singh on the pattern of Shalimar Bagh in Lahore, is in a pitiable condition. The state government had given large concessions and other benefits to mega mall projects in the state. At least 10 new mall, multiplexes and commercial complexes with hotels primarily on the prestigious Mall Road, International Airport Road and on Batala Road were sanctioned, some of them by changing the land use. Some of the leading brands and food chains have taken up shops in these multiplexes at a phenomenal rates. Earlier, the Punjab Government had de-notified part of historic Ram Bagh, to pave the way for the construction of Rs 5 crore panorama in memory of the Maharaja. In the notification, the 20-kanal protected area had been rendered unprotected. It may be mentioned here that, under the Punjab Ancient and Historical Monument and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act 1964, section four, sub-section three, the entire Ram Bagh was declared a protected area (728 kanals, three marlas) in 1997.
|
|
Coop Dept to don farmer-friendly look
Rajpura, March 17 As a first step the government has decided to come out with a comprehensive cooperative policy to make farming a profitable occupation, the minister said while talking to reporters here today. Besides, a state-level advisory committee, which would have two representatives from each district, was also being constituted to suggest ways and means for improvement in the functioning of the department, the Shiromani Akali Dal general secretary asserted. Reiterating the commitment of the SAD-BJP government to provide corruption-free and transparent government, Capt Kanwaljit said the farmers would get loans from the cooperative banks within 15 days. He asked the farmers to approach him or top functionaries of the Cooperative Department in case they were harassed by banks or officials for the sanction of loans. Answering a question, the Akali stalwart demanded an economic package for the Punjab farmers on the pattern of Maharashtra farmers. An integrated project for the production and distribution of vegetables was being initiated for the benefit of the small farmers, the minister said, adding that export of vegetables was high on the agenda of the state government. Detailing steps to streamline the working of the department, he said the vacant posts in the department would be filled soon after a formal approval from the Cabinet. Earlier, Capt Kanwaljit Singh was felicitated at a function at Aluna village, near here. Prominent among those present were Hamir Singh Ghagga, Nirmail Singh Jaula Kalan, Sukhdev Changera, Jaswant Singh Aluna, Labh Singh Bhappal and Sukhpal Singh.
|
SAD campaign to expose Amarinder
Patiala, March 17 Mann said, “We demand an inquiry by the vigilance bureau against Amarinder Singh and B.S. Chahal into various cases of corruption filed against the two. They have jointly amassed property worth several thousand crore during the last five years. Mann added that in order to make the masses of Punjab aware of the truth, the SAD will tour all the districts of Punjab. — TNS
|
|
||
|
MC penalised for denying information
Patiala, March 17 The compensation to date has accumulated to Rs 16,000. The information officer of the organisation has also been directed to pay the same amount to the complainant. The commission authorities also directed the corporation to pay charges of Rs 500 per visit to the complainant. The commissioner of the corporation has also been directed to present himself in person before the commission on April 16 for the next hearing of the case. Octogenarian Colonel P.S. Grewal (retd) had asked the municipal corporation authorities in Patiala to provide reasons for imposing house tax on him to the tune of Rs 3 lakh. The queries were sent to the information officer in July 2006. The information was not provided within the stipulated period of one month, following which, the complainant moved the state information commission. The commission directed Colonel Grewal to personally visit the corporation to collect the information sought by him. However, despite that, complete information was
not provided.
|
|
Councillor hurt in clash
Pathankot , March 17 The injured councillor Vijay Kumar Chunni and his brother, Raju, have been hospitalised while two others, Love Kumar and his friend, Lucky, were discharged after preliminary medicare care at a private clinic. The problem started when Bahadur Singh, a teacher of government high school , Saili Kulian, was accompanying over 80 students, appearing in the Class X final examination at government school Dahki. Raju allegedly got involved in heated arguments and scuffle with him over some issue. Love Kumar, a son of the teacher, along with his friends reached the spot and he came to blows with Vijay Kumar and Raju, who had called his municipal councillor brother for his defence. Members of both the groups came to blows and the councillors’ men allegedly ransacked the house of Bahadur Singh. The police dispersed the agitators. A case under sections 323,324, 148 and 149,
IPC, was registered against six persons involved in the clash.
|
|
3-day annual Urs begins
Fatehgarh Sahib, March 17 Thousands of Naqushbandi Muslims from India and abroad, including a jatha of 181 pilgrims from Pakistan led by Ajij-ul-Nabi, has come to pay obeisance. The place has great relevance for Sunni Muslims. Sheikh Ahmed was the most eminent of Khawaja Baqi Billah's disciples and was born in Sirhind. According to Alak Nanda Dyal, deputy commissioner, basic amenities like drinking water, food, shelter, toilets and dispensary have been provided round the clock to the pilgrims. A mela officer has been deputed and an inquiry office and information centre has been set up.
|
|
Cheema adviser to CM; 3 CPSs inducted
Chandigarh, March 17 Badal said the party had decided to induct three chief parliamentary secretaries (CPSs) who would be sworn in on March 19. The three are Sarwan Singh Phillaur, Mohinder Kaur Josh and Jagdish Sahni. It would induct 12 parliamentary secretaries.
|
|
Cops deployed for Dimpa’s safety: Angra
Amritsar, March 17 The district police chief said policemen had been deployed for the safety of those residing in the house of
dimpa. He refuted the allegation that he had slapped Dimpa’s son. I have never visited Dimpa’s house, he added.
|
|
DFO shifted
Hoshiarpur, March 17 Divisional forest officer S.S. Bhatti, DFO, Ropar, has been given additional charge of Garhshankar.
|
CJ: Judges are overburdened
Ludhiana, March 17 Revealing this on the sidelines of the state Lok Adalat held at district court complex here today, Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court Vijender Jain said as per the judicial norms each High Court judge should handle 500 cases. But, each judge was handling 1,000 cases in the High Court. In the lower courts, the number was between 4,000 to 9,000 per judge. Whereas, the district and sessions judges were handling 3,000 to 6,000 cases apart from the highly-taxing administrative pressures. He said pendency of cases was a big issue. “There were more than 11 lakh cases lying pending in various courts in Punjab and Haryana and Chandigarh. About 5.25 lakh cases were pending in Punjab, 5.15 lakh in Haryana and 90,000 in Chandigarh,” he added. He also informed that a number of posts of judges in the Punjab and Haryana High Court and the lower courts were lying vacant and at present 34 posts of judges out of 53 were filled.
|
Juicing plant to start next month
Hoshiarpur, March 17 G. S. Sandhu was talking to mediapersons at the local PWD Rest House here yesterday. Sandhu said standing crops in 7086 acres of 49 villages of Tanda block and 900 acres of 14 villages of Dasuya block located in the Mand area of Hoshiarpur district had been damaged. The financial commissioner said to benefit the horticulturists and farmers, Punjab Juicing Company, a unit of the state government, had set up a modern juicing plant with a cost of 37 crore at Jahan Khelan (Hoshiarpur) which was the second of its kind in state. It would prepare all types of juices from fruits and vegetables. It would start preparing tomato juice from next month. Bains said the state government had allowed cooperative sector to provide crop loans to the farmers on 7 per cent interest. The clean farming loan limit had also been increased from Rs 4 lakh to Rs 6 lakh. Later, G. S. Bains, along with D. K. Tiwari, deputy commissioner, Paramjit Singh, additional deputy commissioner, and Kulbir Singh Deol, chief agriculture officer, visited the rain and hailstorm effected areas of Tanda and Dasuya blocks of the district to make
on-the-spot assessment of losses to the standing crops.
|
Alak Nanda is DC Fatehgarh Sahib
Fatehgarh Sahib, March 17 Before taking charge, both the officers paid obeisance at Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib. Both the officers stressed the need for a transparent and effective administration.
|
Woman alleges bigamy, torture
Amritsar, March 17 The police has registered a case under Section 494, 323, 325 of the IPC against her husband Dr Kishan Chand, Senior Medical Officer, posted at Dera Baba Nanak, Civil Hospital, after one month of the incident as the police of concerned police station was registering a case for unknown reasons. The case was registered after a complaint was made to the district police chief in this regard. Ms Prabha alleged the police had not added relevant sections of domestic violence and physical and mental
torture. However, Dr Kishan Chand said an FIR had already been registered against him and the police was probing the matter. Ms Prabha alleged her husband had married to another woman — Sukhwinder Kaur alias Simran and had a child from her. She said she came to know about the illegal relationship only two years ago. However, when she objected to this, her husband used to thrash her and torture her mentally. She alleged after the incident, her mother-in-law threw her out of the house and she was forced to live in rented accommodation along with her two children. She alleged even after the registration of a case, the police was not arresting the accused. She urged the district police chief to take action and give protection to her and children and take steps for their stay at their home in Krishna Nagar as she had no source of income. She said her in-laws even did not allow
them to take their belongings including cloths and other items with them.
|
|
Six injured in group clash
Patiala, March 17 Vicky Sangar (17), a waiter from Sanaur, said he had given Rs 200 to one Dallu, which the later refused to return. When Vicky insisted that his money be returned, he was beaten up by Dallu and his friend Bhuri. Dallu’s friends furthur abused Vicky and his friends and attacked them with rods and bricks. The injured, which include Vicky Sangar, Deepak Kumar (30), Kaka Ram (35), Chhota Ram (55), Yashpal and Rakesh Kumar Gogi (45), have been admitted to the Government Rajindra Hospital, Patiala. Yashpal and Gogi have been referred to the PGI.
|
Conference stresses on wider use of technology
Longowal, March 17 A professor at the IIT, Delhi, Chandra Shekhar explained the influence of design and manufacturing technology in the new and day-to-day changing technology and market. He also discussed the importance of design in different types of machines, new structures and technologies. Director of SLIET S.K. Pandey talked about the new advancements in the past 50 years in design and dynamics.
|
|
Experts lay stress on balanced development
Patiala, March 17 In his address, he cautioned society from haphazard development which leads to environmental degradation. He said that judicious planning should be adopted, so that sustainability of environment could be maintained. Dr G.S. Gosal, professor emeritus, in his key note address, stressed on the balanced development so that regional disparities could be checked. Dr P. Nag, director, NATMO, was the chief guest at the valedictory function. He spoke on the cultural heritage of India. Prominent scholars who presented papers were Dr K.D. Sharma, Dr Harjit Singh, Dr Jasbir Singh, Dr Ali Mohammad, Dr K.S. Sohal, Dr Dhian Kaur, Dr Smita Bhutani, Dr V.S. Manhas, Dr J.C. Sharma and Dr Yadvinder Singh. More than 23 papers and invited lectures were presented during the two-day conference. About 60 delegates from various parts of the country attended the conference. Dr K.S. Sohal, convener of the conference, welcome the delegates.
|
|
Bareta school not affiliated, says CBSE
Chandigarh, March 17 According to the press note, the secretary has cautioned the public that the school is not affiliated with the CBSE and is misusing its name.
|
Verka launches new milk products
Patiala, March 17 On successful completion of the five-year term of the board of directors, chairman and general manager of Milkfed Raghbir Singh gave a warm welcome to V.K. Singh, who was the chief guest. Speaking on the occasion, Singh congratulated the board on their success and was also happy with the performance at the milk plant at Patiala, during this financial year. He said that in the present market scenario it is necessary to maintain a balance between the producers and customers and added that in this financial year an added 30 per cent purchase price of milk had been paid to milk producers. He also highlighted the fact that the Verka Milk Plant, Patiala, is an ISO: 9001:2000 and IS-15000 (HACCP) certified plant, where all quality standards are maintained. This milk plant has also been given the job of supplying 40,000 litres of liquid milk per day in Delhi on behalf of Mother Dairy.
|
|
Prices of CDs, DVDs slashed
Ludhiana, March 17 Taking the piracy traders head on, who thrived on low rates, a number of VCD and DVD manufacturing companies have introduced original movies worth as low as Rs 21 in the wholesale market after buying the copyrights from the producers. Golden oldies, mega hits of 70s and 80s are available at this rate. Movies like ‘Ghayal’, ‘Prahaar’ and ‘Ghulami’ whose original prints were available at more than Rs 300 are now available at Rs 38 only.
|
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Mailbag | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
