Tuesday, July 20, 1999
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P U N J A B | |
Tuesday, July 20, 1999 |
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Walia
contender for party ticket |
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Bail of
Puar, others extended SHSAD announces 5-member panel Bill after 1 year of phone's
surrender Fake notes seized, 3 held 2 MC employees suspended 80,000 teachers not paid salaries Minister bereaved |
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Walia contender for party
ticket PATIALA, July 19 — The SAD Vice-President and employee leader, Mr Charanjit Singh Walia, today sent out mixed signals, saying he had been authorised by various employee unions with regard to supporting various candidates and parties in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections, while simultaneously maintaining he would not hesitate to fight the Lok Sabha elections from here if given the party ticket by the party. Talking to TNS Mr Walia said a state-level meeting of the Punjab Subordinate Services Federation, the Punjab State Electricity Employees Federation and the Punjab Mazdoor Dal had authorised him to take a final decision on which candidate and party to support in the coming elections. When questioned why any formal decision to support the SAD had not been taken at the meeting despite the fact that he was a party office-bearer, he said the employee organisations thought it fit for him to decide the issue at an appropriate time. Mr Walia also made it clear that he was in the race for a ticket which had unofficially been promised to Mr Surjit Singhrakhra, a member of a multi-millionaire non-resident Indian family, by Finance Minister Kanwaljit Singh. He said he was never a candidate for the Lok Sabha seat but would not hesitate to stand for elections to honour the sentiments of the public if given a ticket by the Akali Dal high command. The employee leader, who is also a former MP from Patiala, said the high command was still to decide on the candidature for the Patiala Lok Sabha seat. He said he was under pressure from employees and the public to stand for elections, adding that in a democratic set-up, the will of the people was supreme. Meanwhile, Mr Walia is leading a delegation of employee leaders to meet Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today at Chandigarh. He said the main demand of the delegation was to implement the announcement regarding granting 15 per cent house rent to government employees, promotion according to the 4-9-14 year pattern and implementing the report of the anomalies committee. He disclosed that
rallies would be held at Patti, Moga and Patiala to
support the demands of the employees. |
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Punjab Govt moves from crisis
to crisis ROPAR, July 19 — The Punjab Government has once again stopped all payments except pay and pension including arrears of dearness allowance of pensioners and advances from general provident fund for marriages. This is the second occasion of stopping of payments through treasuries during this current financial year. Earlier, payments were stopped on June 24 for about 10 days. The instructions to stop the payments were given about a week ago to the treasuries by the Director, Treasuries, Punjab, telephonically. It is learnt that due to severe financial crisis in the state, the 'ban' on payments will continue till further orders. According to sources, due to poor financial management the state government imposed such a 'ban' on payments six times during the second half of the previous financial year. The sources say that due to the 'ban' on payments, a large number of bills of government departments have been accumulating in treasuries in the state. These bills include T.A., medical, loans and advances, arrears of pay, gratuity of retired persons, and contingency bills such as electricity, telephone and for purchases of different items for offices. Due to the accumulation of bills in treasuries the total amount of the pending bills will run into crores. Despite the recurring 'ban' on payments over the past 10 months, the government has been claiming that there is no fiscal crisis in the state. Employees of government Department however, say the government has virtually admitted that the financial position of the state is not good by imposing a 'ban' on even payment of T.A. bills of meagre amounts. A section of the employees held the government responsible for giving 'unnecessary' concessions to various sections, including farmers, which pushed the government into financial crisis. They held the policies of the government responsible for its failure on the economic front. Employees and people
from other walks of life ask if the state government
cannot afford to pay its bills in the first fortnight of
the second quarter of the financial year, what will be
its state by the end of the financial year? |
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Contribution to jawans' fund ABOHAR: Some villages have their own bright traditions, Panjkosi in this subdivision is one of them. This village decided to make a contribution in the fight to flush out infiltrators from the Kargil sector. Some young educated boys held a brief meeting and decided to collect money from residents of this village for the Army Welfare Fund to express their solidarity with the brave jawans. "We went door to door, spreading the message of patriotism and sacrifices made by nearly 400 officers and jawans of our Army", says Mr Mohinder Kumar Kajla wearing spotless white kurta-pyjama. The aim was to keep the high traditions laid by our elders before and after Independence, said Mr Deepak Jakhar. Our brothers and sisters living in the colony of the downtrodden were also contacted. Even resourceless persons made contributions to the fund, even if it was a rupee only. "For us that too was a big amount," said Mr Rajiv Upneja. The villagers work hard to earn something. They had always been secular in their outlook. This was why for decades together no person had gone to the police station from this village when Mr Bal Ram Jakhar was sarpanch here, Mr Kajla said. Another young man from the Kajla family, Mr Sunil Kumar, said the late Chuni Lal Jakhar of this village was the first person in whole of the region who collected foreign-made clothes from different houses and burnt the same at the village chaupal on the swadeshi call given by Mahatma Gandhi. The nationalist spirit had prevailed in the village since then. It was surprising for Jats of other regions when the family of late Raja Ram Jakhar declared that Harijans would also be allowed to fetch drinking water from the common well of the village. The Harijans were also allowed to visit the temple and pay obeisance even when the community in the other areas had threatened to boycott Jats of Panjkosi village taking such a decision. The residents of this village were proud of so many things. Mr Bal Ram Jakhar was crowned "udyan pandit" and occupied the chief of Lok Sabha Speaker besides working as President of Bharat Krishak Samaj for so many years. Mr Sajjan Kumar Jakhar as sarpanch of this village won Rs 1 lakh award for the best developed village from the state government. He later functioned as Cabinet Minister of Punjab also. Mr Surender Kumar Jakhar was working as Chairman of Asia's top cooperative organisation IFFCO for a second term. Former Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal had married his two sons, including Mr Om Parkash Chautala, with daughters of this village. Thus the village enjoyed political power irrespective of the change of heads at New Delhi. Even otherwise the farmers were progressive and boys after completing education were adopting farming here instead of running for white-collar jobs. Some of them were studying in foreign countries. Mr Neeraj Godara said the campaign for the welfare of the Army was nothing new; they had shown their solidarity during 1965 and 1971 wars as well. Mr Bal Ram Jakhar was president of the Sub Divisional Relief Committee which collected handsome amount for Bangladeshi refugees in 1971. Now the young boys took a lead in the district by collecting Rs 51,000 from a single village — Panjkosi. They were aware of the fact that Mr Jakhar had been visiting the family of every martyr in his Lok Sabha area in Rajasthan to express sympathies and give a purse of Rs 25,000 from his own resources. Similarly Mr Sajjan Kumar Jakhar had visited every martyr's family in Ferozepore district and announced a "humble" contribution of Rs 50,000 on behalf of the PPCC President, Captain Amarinder Singh. Mr Surender Kumar presented Rs 1.15 crore on behalf of IFFCO to the Prime Minister for the Jawans' Relief Fund. Mr Vicky Jakhar and Mr Vinod Kumar said they got inspiration from their elders' acts. They decided to collect Rs 51,000 and the target was quickly achieved. The bank draft was presented to Brig. SK Uppal recently, the village team was accompanied by Mr KL Chawla, area manager, and other staff of the IFFCO here to the Brigade headquarters. Brig. SK Uppal while appreciating the efforts made by the young boys spoke of the awareness, nationalist feelings and deep sense of respect and emotional feelings for the Army jawans families for which any country would feel proud of. "We had won the battle on the LoC as well as the diplomatic front. Our enemy must have realised once again that any attempt on the Indian borders would be fatal for the infiltrators howsoever mighty they may be", he asserted. Mr Uppal said the
rehabilitation of the bereaved families was an uphill
task as they would be facing many problems, the people
could give a healing touch by liberally contributing to
the welfare fund. This coordination would strengthen
internal ties and further boost the morale of the
families of the jawans who had "sacrificed their
today for our tomorrow." |
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Umeed Kargil Education Fund
launched CHANDIGARH, July 19 — In a bid to educate the children of the Kargil heroes, Umeed, a non-government organisation from Punjab, has begun a unique ‘five rupee campaign’, to be collected for the education of the children of soldiers who became martyrs or were incapacitated during the Kargil conflict. This campaign is in association with the Army Wives Welfare Association (AWWA). Ms Sushila Nayar, Vice President, Umeed, today presented a cheque of Rs 5 lakh to Mrs Kusum Kala, the AWWA President, Western Command, at the Western Command Headquarters. A pledge to undertake responsibility of raising funds to educate the children of the Kargil martyrs was also presented to the AWWA President. Also present on the occasion was Lieut-General H B Kala, GOC-in-C, Western Command, who lauded the role of the media in highlighting the life of a soldier and added that the country should not only remember the Kargil heroes but all those soldiers who had sacrificed their lives for the nation. According to Ms Nayar, the fund would be called the Umeed Kargil Education Fund (UKEF), and would later be expanded beyond aiding the children of the Kargil victims alone. Ms Rachna Chhachhi, a volunteer of Umeed, added that the NGO, founded by Mr Arvind Khanna, had been working in the area of medical care sector for the past three years, providing free health care to the villagers of Sangrur. This NGO also claims to
have made 519 of the 680 villages, adopted by them in
Punjab, disease free. Umeed has now also set up cells for
specialised gynaecological camps, and have also
encouraged talented volunteers to conduct vocational
training camps for the youth in the region. |
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Bail of Puar, others extended PATIALA, July 19 — The Additional Sessions Judge, Mr B C Rajput, today extended the interim bail of Punjabi University's former Vice-Chancellor J S Puar, Registrar R S Sarao and senior teachers till July 26 and directed them to join the investigation in the local Vigilance Department office from morning to evening till July 23. Mr Rajput also directed that the suspects, including Dr Sarao would not attend office till the period they were being questioned by the Vigilance Department. He, however, ordered that if some important official papers were to be signed by the Registrar these could be signed with the permission of the DSP (Vigilance), Mr R S Dhillon. The Judge said no photograph of the suspects would be taken during the period of interrogation nor would they brief the press about the interrogation. It was up to the vigilance officer to fix timings of interrogation and let off those not needed for interrogation. He, however, said the interrogation officer would conduct the entire proceedings in writing. Mr Rajput also directed that the vigilance officers could demand the record needed from the university and visit the university for the purpose. He directed that the vigilance officials would, however, not visit the residences of the suspects. A criminal case had been registered against Dr Puar, Dr Sarao and six other teachers under Section 13 (1) D read with 13(2)88, Prevention of Corruption Act, and Sections 420 and 120(B) of the Indian Penal Code, on July 12. The prosecution earlier
said there was need for remand of the suspects as some
record was yet to be recovered from them. They also
alleged that part of the record had been destroyed. The
Judge, however, felt the entire interrogation should take
place under his supervision. |
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SHSAD announces 5-member panel LUDHIANA, July 19 — The Sarb Hind Shiromani Akali Dal (SHSAD) today announced a five-member committee to chalk out party programmes and policies and to explore the possibility of seat adjustments with the Akali Dal (Democratic) and Akali Dal (Panthic) for the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. The five-member, comprising Mr Sukhdev Singh Bhaur, Mr Gurdarshan Singh Grewal, Mr Jasmir Singh, Mr Sukhjinder Singh and Mr Baldev Singh Sibia, would be exploring the possibility of seat adjustments with the parties opposed to the Shiromani Akali Dal, the BJP and the Congress. This was stated by the General Secretary of the party, Mr Sukhdev Singh Bhaur, while talking to mediapersons after the working committee meeting of the party held at gurdwara Akalgarh today. Mr Bhaur said the BSP would contest from the three Lok Sabha constituencies of Phillaur, Hoshiarpur and Ferozepore, and added that the party would announce its list of candidates for the elections and the manifesto within a week. The Akali leader also said the party was holding talks with the CPM for a poll pact. Mr Bhaur denied that they were holding talks for a candidate supported by the Gurmat Sikh Sidhant Pracharak Sant Samaj. In answer to a question, he said the Sarb Hind Shiromani Akali Dal would not join hands with those parties which were for the creation of Khalistan. "The party only demands decentralisation of power and autonomy for the states. Other than the departments of defence, railways and home, all other departments could be handled by the states themselves," he said. Mr Bhaur also denied that the party had agreed to a proposal for supporting the former Prime Minister, Mr Inder Kumar Gujral, from the Jalandhar Lok Sabha constituency. When asked to comment on the complaints lodged by Mr Tohra's party with the Election Commission against the Senior Superintendent of Police, Ludhiana, Mr Kuldeep Singh, Mr Bhaur siad the complaint was lodged because Ludhiana was the home district of the SSP and this was in violation of the code of conduct. He added that the party was likely to lodge complaints against the Deputy Commissioner and the Senior Superintendent of Police, Bathinda, on similar grounds. During the meeting working committee also passed certain resolutions. Members paid their respects to the soldiers who had died in Kargil and sought one-rank-one-pension scheme for the armed personnel at the earliest. The members have also
decided to request the Punjab Governor to issue a
notification for exemption of Sikh women from wearing
helmets. They also urged the state government to grant an
allowance of Rs 3,000 per month to the families residing
in border villages of Punjab and displaced due to the
ongoing Indo-Pakistan conflict. |
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Bill after 1 year of phone's
surrender MOGA, July 19 — A glaring example of the non-responsive attitude of officials of the local Telephone Department came to light when Mrs Anuradha Aggarwal, wife of Mr Varinder Aggarwal, Judicial Magistrate recently received a telephone bill after one year of the telephone's surrender to the department. The department has sent a bill of Rs 442 for May, 1999, to her despite the fact that she had surrendered the telephone in August, 1998. Mrs Aggarwal, who shifted to Garhshankar in Hoshiarpur District following the transfer of her husband, had applied for a new telephone in lieu of the surrendered telephone about a year ago as per the policy of the department. In the bill, issued by the Accounts Officer (TRA) Moga, Mrs Aggarwal has been asked to deposit the bill by July 21. Interestingly, the telephone surrender note was also issued to Mr Aggarwal on August 17, 1998, by Mr S. Kumar, DET (Operations). In the note it was mentioned that the instrument, its accessories and the telephone directory had been recovered from the party. The telephone had been closed for shifting to the telephone system at Garhshankar, it added. Mr J.P. Gupta, Accounts Officer, when contacted, said it was a computer fault. He said Mrs Aggarwal's name could not be deleted when her telephone was taken into custody. As a result, the bill was wrongly sent to her. He said he would ensure
that in future such things did not happen so that
consumers could be saved from harassment. |
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Fake notes seized, 3 held JALANDHAR, July 19 — The police busted a gang involved in circulating fake currency on the intervening night of July 18-19, following a tip off to Mr A.S. Chahal, SP (City-II), that such a gang was operating from a house in the local Ajit Nagar. Accordingly, a raid was conducted, in which three persons, Raj Pal Singh, Kushal Kumar and Buta Singh, were apprehended while their other two accomplices managed to escape in cover of darkness. Counterfeit currency of the denomination of Rs 10, Rs 50, Rs 100 and Rs 500, amounting to Rs 1,33,000 were seized. Fake notes, printed on only one side and amounting to Rs 43,500 were also seized. The accused were making fake currency by using computers and a very sophisticated printer, which were also seized. The accused used to dupe unsuspecting people by promising them to double and triple their money within a few days. They would later supply counterfeit currency in return for the original. A case under Sections
489-A, 489-B, 489-C and 489-D, IPC, has been registered. |
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2 MC employees suspended LUDHIANA, July 19 — Two employees of the Ludhiana Municipal Corporation — Mr Suraj Parkash, a bill distributor, and Mr Madan Lal, a safai sewak — have been placed under suspension for remaining absent from duty without information. The Municipal
Commissioner, Mr S S Sandhu, who placed the duo under
suspension, warned the employees to perform their duty
punctually and regularly, or to face action. |
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80,000 teachers not paid
salaries FAZILKA, July 19 — About 80,000 teachers of the Education Department, Punjab, working in primary, middle, higher and senior secondary schools under the non-plan (temporary) and plan-scheme have not been paid their salaries for the month of June. The reason attributed for the non-payment of salaries to the teachers is that the government has not sanctioned these posts. However, 15 per cent of the teachers working under the non-plan permanent scheme have been paid their salaries. Mr Raj Kishore Kalra,
spokesman for the Government Secondary Teachers Union,
Punjab, has demanded that the teachers be paid the
salaries without any further delay. |
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Minister bereaved CHANDIGARH, July 19 — The Punjab Governor, Lt-Gen B.K.N. Chhibber (retd), today expressed shock over the demise of Ms Tej Kaur, mother of Mr Sewa Singh Sekhwan, Minister of State for Information and Public Relations and Revenue. She expired at Batala today. She was 80 and leaves behind one son and two daughters. In a condolence message sent to Mr Sekhwan, the Governor prayed to the Almighty to give peace to the departed soul and courage to the family to bear the irreparable loss. Several members of the Council of Ministers have also expressed sorrow over the death. The Chief Minister, Mr
Parkash Singh Badal, has also condoled the death. |
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PCO owner murdered LUDHIANA, July 19 — A 65-year-old PCO owner, Gopal Singh, a resident of Jammu colony here, was found murdered in his house this morning. According to the
information available from SP City Mr A.S. Rai, Gopal
died of severe injuries. The murder which occurred at
10.30 pm last night, was discovered this morning. |
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Rally by teachers on age issue LUDHIANA, July 19 — The Ludhiana district council of PCCTU organised a massive rally in front of the Deputy Commissioner's office here to protest against the government over reduction in the age of retirement, and non-release of arrears amounting to Rs 23.61 crores. Prof Kanwaljit Singh, president distt council (PCCTU) urged the Chief Minister to withdraw the decision of reducing the age of superannuation from 60 to 58. He said privately aided
colleges are facing acute financial hardships due to
non-release of grants. |
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2 killed in mishap LUDHIANA July 19 — Ravi Kumar and Kulwant Singh were killed here near Circuit House today when they were hit by a Punjab Roadways bus going from Dabwali to Chandigarh. The two were going on
separate scooters when the bus hit them from behind. The
brakes of the bus had reportedly failed which led to the
accident. |
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