Ludhiana, August 21
The atta-dal scheme, initiated by the Badal government seems to have left a bitter taste among the masses of the city. A number of well-connected and influential persons might have benefited from the scheme but the poor and deserving still have to make rounds of the government offices to get their blue cards made.

Unaware of the fact that the scheme has already been launched in the region on Independence Day, people complain that not a single government official had visited their area to conduct any survey.

Hundreds of such needy persons were present at the mini secretariat during the weekly Sangat Darshan programme here today.

They alleged that step-motherly treatment was being meted out to them by government staff. Several residents of Baba Shri Chand Colony said that not only blue cards but their voter’s card and ration cards were also yet to be made.

President of the colony, Ajit Singh, said despite repeated requests, their cards were not made. He said the residents were frequenting the government offices for the past several months but to no avail.

Santosh Rani, a resident of the colony, said majority of the residents in the area were poor. Many physically challenged persons and widows were also residing in the colony, who worked as daily wagers. “Almost 400 people are living in the colony. Just a few cards have been issued to the residents. We are not educated so we have to depend on what others say. Nobody bothers to give us a patient hearing. Government has initiated the scheme for the welfare of the poor. If the needy are not taken into consideration, then such schemes are nothing but a farce,” alleged Santosh Rani.

Similar allegations were made by the residents of Labour Colony, near Gaushala, Jamalpur. Nirmal Kaur, a widow residing in the area said only 13 influential persons of the colony have managed to get their kanak-dal scheme cards made. “We are more than 300 residents. No body has ever come for survey in the area. Every time we ask the officers about the reason, we are sent back with an assurance that somebody will definitely visit us. And now when we are complaining, they are not ready to listen to us. This is an open darbar where grievances of people are sorted out but the staff is not allowing us to meet the higher officials. Though one can not rely on such scheme throughout his/her life but when the government has announced it for the poor, it should be disbursed properly,” she added.

Ludhiana, August 21
Suspecting massive evasion of valued-added tax (VAT) by dhaba owners and other well-established eateries in the city, several teams of excise and taxation officials, led by D.K. Verma and M.S. Kundlus, both assistant excise and taxation commissioners, swooped upon at least one dozen dhabas on Naulakha Cinema Road, Gill Road and Shastri Nagar last evening to assess their average turn over so as to bring them under the tax net.

The teams, comprising of 50 officials, also conducted raids on two prominent departmental stores in Old Sabzi Mandi Chowk and Civil Lines from where several incriminating documents, indicating evasion of VAT, were seized.

The dhaba owners of Naulakha Cinema Road offered joint resistance to the action of the taxation staff, while pleading that they had taken up the matter with the state government for reduction of rate of VAT from 12.5 to 4 per cent. “Only after this demand is accepted and the rate of tax slashed, the dhaba owners will apply for registration and thereafter pay VAT,” they maintained.

The plea of the excise officials that dhaba owners and eateries were liable to seek registration and pay VAT on the basis of their annual turn over, failed to have much effect on the agitated dhaba owners, who had, in the meantime, managed to muster support from several political functionaries. Some of them also raised slogans against the raiding staff but deft handling of the situation diffused the tension and the dhaba owners agreed to meet the officials to place their case before them.

The departmental stores under the scanner of the excise and taxation department were Darshan Karyana and Mani Ram Balwant Rai.

Sources in the department indicate that records and computer data of these stores was being processed to ascertain the extent of VAT evasion by these firms.

Meanwhile, a deputation of dhaba owners of the city today met Rajinder Bhandari, state president of the BJP, Manoranjan Kalia, minister for trade and industry, and Harish Dhanda, chief parliamentary secretary, in Chandigarh today, to press their demand for reduction in the rate of VAT on dhabas.

A functionary of the dhaba owners associations told Ludhiana Tribune that their demand had been well received by the government and once the rate was rationalised, the dhaba owners will come forward to register themselves and pay all due taxes.

Ludhiana August 21
Satluj Club Ludhiana is claimed to be one of the "elitist" clubs in the country, particularly the north. It has about 2,500 members. The membership is much sought after despite the huge registration fee of Rs 6 lakh. The club membership is flaunted here as a status symbol. But the club has hardly any space for the parking of vehicles of its members.

Besides the 2,500 members, there are dependent members also who visit the club frequently. The club has a small parking space that can hardly accommodate about 50 vehicles at a time. This space falls far too short of the actual requirement. Usually the space is full and the vehicles have to be parked outside.

Every night hundreds of vehicles are parked on the roads. The residents of Rakh Bagh have to face the nightmare every day. Some of the houses open along the Mall Road while others have an opening towards Rakh Bagh (the club) only. Even for those having the opening towards Mall Road, things are no better as that road also remains parked with vehicles.

The residents said earlier they used to face problems only during some special functions in the club or on the weekends. "But now it is every night that we cannot

move on the road”, said Neelima, a housewife. She said the vehicles were parked right up to the Government College for Women on the one side and towards the officers colony on the other side.

The vehicles remain parked outside the Deputy Commissioner’s official residence also. The residents have neither any hope nor any regrets. “We can see for ourselves that if the DC’s residence can remain cordoned off due to unauthorised parking of vehicles, ours would be no big issue”, said another resident who lives outside the club.

Despite the club generating huge funds by way of monthly subscriptions, various functions and facilities accorded there, besides the huge registration charges for the new members, the club has never tried to enhance the facilities. Even the club members have themselves been crying hoarse for building up multistory parking, but nobody seems to take the issue seriously. The multistory parking seems to be the only way out as the club has no additional space to spare for the parking.

During the assembly election campaign, Sukhbir Badal had promised to the club members that if his party came to power, he would get the DC’s residence shifted and the space would be provided to the club, which adjoins it. Nobody believed him then for the promise was too big to be fulfilled. But the members and the residents of the area are hoping that some reprieve would be offered to the club.

The vehicles get stranded for hours together in the free for all. Once the traffic outside goes haywire, it takes hours to streamline it.

Ludhiana, August 21
Persistent efforts by the city police in identifying the criminal elements coming to the city in the garb of migrant labourers have finally yielded results over a decade after the move was first made.

The verification documents of labourers sent to their native states have returned for the first time revealing 33 “shady” persons with proven criminal record were roaming in the city.

In year 2001, during the tenure of DGP Sarbjit Singh, 50,000 verification papers sent to Bihar and Uttar Pradesh had never returned. This time, the police sent papers with return postage. The police of other states responded.

Most of the criminals were from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar while there was one case each from Jammu-Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh.

Of the nearly 2.52-lakh verification papers sent for checking the criminal records of the registered labourers, about one lakh returned with positive or negative response.

The data cannot be interpreted to a logical conclusion. On one hand, it reflects that a dismal percentage of migrants were criminals. But the Punjab Police repeatedly attribute 80 per cent of crime to migrants.

On the other hand, these persons could be the one whose employers sent their papers. There could be many who gave fake identities while registering themselves on their own.

Moreover, only 20 per cent of migrants had actually registered with the administration.

The result would give a fillip to the discontinued migrant registration and verification drive. The registration drive was stopped following the intervention of political leaders from Bihar.