Wednesday, September 29, 1999
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P U N J A B | |
Wednesday, September 29, 1999 |
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Man
posing as poll observer held |
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Contempt
notice to Punjab AIG Tohra men denied entry to gurdwara
CM’s silence on Thein snag
irks CPM CM nod to CBI to prosecute three
Punjab officials Punjabis prone to heart attack:
study Import of wheat
‘anti-farmer’ BDPOs’ plea to state govt
Training camp on rabi crops 3 FCI inspectors suspended Sangeet academy to be set up 2 tantriks held for stealing ashes Autonomy proposals rejected Undertrial commits suicide SHO’s remand extended Course of traffic management |
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Man posing as poll observer
held GIDDERBAHA (Muktsar), Sept 28 — After having cheated the police for more than a month, Dr Ved Parkash Behl, a resident of Jalalabad town of Ferozepore district, who was posing as election observer for Faridkot Parliamentary constituency, has fallen into net of the local police today. Dr Behl, who enjoyed VVIP treatment from the local police by posing as election observer landed into the custody of the police when he demanded an escort vehicle and misbehaved with police personnel. Mr Ashok Bath, DSP, said Dr Behl was quarrelling with the police personnel for an escort vehicle and when he came to know about it, he talked to the SSP, Muktsar. The SSP said no such election observer had been appointed by the Election Commission. He added that preliminary questioning of Dr Behl revealed that he was planning to cheat people by posing as an election observer. The accused, who had been arrested, had also cheated people in Jalalabad and Samalkhan towns of Rohtak district in Haryana. Mr Bath said facts of the case were that during electioneering Dr Behl rang up the local police station from his house but told the "munshi" that he was speaking from the Chief Minister's house from Chandigarh. He said he had been appointed an election observer and the CM desired that all arrangements be made for his convenience. The accused also rang up the office of the DIG, Ferozepore, and the SSP, Muktsar, and repeated the same thing to the "operators" of telephones. The "operators" passed the message to the local police station where Dr Behl was given ‘VIP’ treatment and some guards were also provided to him. Even the Station House Officer (SHO) moved around with the accused for many days in his private vehicle. A few days later, the accused opened up an ultra sound centre under the name of Chand Ultra Sound in the town and started business. He kept on enjoying the hospitality of the Punjab Police. However, he fell into the police net when he made a written request at the police station to provide him with an escort vehicle as he had also been appointed a counting agent. Mr Bath said during questioning the accused first said he was an Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer. Then he identified himself as ‘personal physician’ of a former Prime Minister, Mr H.D. Deve Gowda, and then as a friend of the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee. Two documents, a driving licence and an arms licence were recovered from his possession which were being checked. The accused had also claimed that he had passed his matriculation in 1975 and pre-medical examination in 1977 and got admission in the MBBS course at Devgarh Vidya Peeth, Bihar, in 1992. This information was also being verified. Mr Bath said accused had
been booked under Sections 419, 420, 465, 467 and 468 of
the IPC. |
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Ex-VC’s criticism
creates ruckus PATIALA, Sept 28 — Criticism of the former Vice-Chancellor for allegedly not doing anything to propagate Punjabi and changing the basic principles on which Punjabi University was formed gave rise to unpleasant scenes on the second day of Punjab Sahit Sammelan being held here. The sammelan, which is the first such under the millennium series being organised by the university, saw Guru Nanak Dev University speaker, Dr R.S. Bajwa talking at length on the dangerous trend started by the earlier Vice-Chancellor, Dr Joginder Singh Puar, by ignoring Punjabi for whose propagation the university had been formed. Dr Bajwa spoke about how he had resisted this move and had been forced out of the university. He went on to say how the university would have to pay for ignoring the basic principle on which it had been founded. He said the university would take a lot of time to recover lost ground. Following this Mr Hardev Singh Virk spoke on how Hebrew University, in Jerusalem, which was the only other university founded on the same principle, had stolen a march over Punjabi University. He said at Hebrew University a dead language had been completely revived and now even master of Science courses were being taught in Hebrew. He said on the contrary nothing was being done at Punjabi University to propagate the language. Dr R.K. Chaudhary of the Department of Sociology spoke in a similar vein. He disclosed how he had fought for retaining the unique characteristic of the university. He said his plea had been ignored. It was at this moment that Mohindra College lecturer Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal got up to say the meeting may as well pass a resolution against Dr Puar if it was going to continue in this vein. Mr Dhaliwal said the speakers were digressing from the main subject and making the sammelan a forum for Puar bashing. He even got into an argument with Dr Bajwa and a few other persons also entered the fray. Things could have taken a more nasty turn if not for the entry of the Vice-Chancellor, Dr Jasbir Singh Ahluwalia at that moment. Dr Ahluwalia defused the situation by saying differing thoughts could be argued with mutual humility and respect. Later, however, the Vice-Chancellor while talking to TNS said the incident was unfortunate and that the teachers should not have discussed the earlier Vice-Chancellor but concentrated on steps needed to propagate Punjabi in the next millennium. Speaking on the occasion, Dr Ajmer Singh Sidhu indicated that the challenge before scholars was how to propagate the language without help from the government. He said the government was spending a lot of money to propagate the language due to which some people talked of Punjabi to ensure this subsidy continued to be given. Session Chairman and former Vice-Chancellor Dr H.K. Manmohan Singh said Punjabi culture should be joined with spiritual values. He also highlighted how Punjabi had lost the beauty of its various dialects in the past 40 years besides stressing on ensuring only "pure Punjabi" was spoken. Earlier, Dr S.K. Verma in his paper, "Punjabi Drama — 21st century Challenges and Prospects", urged that more flexibility needed to be allowed in staging historical plays. He said the future of Punjabi plays was limited as Sikh Gurus, their families and notable historical figures could not be depicted. He even gave the example of how objections had been raised recently on depicting Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Dr Verma also
highlighted that the Punjab Cultural Affairs Department,
the North Zone Cultural Centre and the Punjabi Akademi,
Delhi, should not only provide sponsorships but also
provide basic needs for propagation of theatre. He said a
native touch was needed in theatre and that even the
university Theatre Department should rethink about its
role in this aspect. |
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Punjabi varsity to set up
student panel PATIALA, Sept 28 — Punjabi University has decided to form a students’ advisory committee to put forward grievances and demands of the student community. Stating this here today at a press conference, Mr Bhupinder Singh Cheema, president and Mr Harsharan Jit Singh, general secretary, respectively of the Organisation of Punjabi University Students (OPUS) said the university students held a meeting last weekend with the Vice-Chancellor, Dr Jasbir Singh Ahluwalia, to discuss several issues confronting the students. One of the demands was regarding the students’ election but as a ban on such an exercise exists in the state it was mutually decided to form a committee under the chairmanship of the Vice-Chancellor which would be announced next month. This would have 11 students as members and a senior hostel warden also. Mr Cheema said earlier a students’ council consisting of only the toppers of each department existed but as these students did not have much time on their hands it could not function properly. Mr Cheema also claimed
that a number of other demands of the students had also
been accepted. These include construction of a new
girls’ hostel to accommodate the swelling number of
girl students, opening of a PCO-STD booth in the
girls’ hostel, introduction of new buses and
availability of all books prescribed in the new syllabi
in the library. |
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Rallies mark doctors’
protest JALANDHAR, Sept 28 — The PCMS Association and all health institutes in the district held protest rallies against the state government’s anti-employee decision to empower the village panchayats to check and mark the attendance of the staff in rural dispensaries. The decision has been opposed strongly and condemned by the leaders of Senior Doctors’ Association, S/N Association, Lab Technicians Association, Pharmacists Association, Radiographers Association and C-IV Association. The president of the PCMS Association, Dr Chaman Lal Samrh, said there was acute shortage of life saving medicines and necessary equipment in the rural dispensaries and in many dispensaries there was not even a chair to sit. Many rural dispensaries were being run in Panchayat Ghars, school buildings, religious places and other deserted and unsafe buildings in the villages. He said the decision of the government was meant to divert the attention of the public from government’s inefficiency and misdeeds and moreover the decision would create confusion and interference in the working of hospitals. PATIALA: A black flag demonstration was held by PCMS doctors and health staff at Mata Kaushalya Hospital here. Health staff wore black badges and held protest rallies at civil hospitals in Nabha, Rajpura, Samana and various Community and Primary Health Centres in the district on Tuesday in response to a statewide protest call given by the PCMS Association, Punjab. Dr M.S. Randhawa, Dr D.S. Gill and Dr Manjit Singh, Patron President and General Secretary, respectively, of the PCMSA in a joint statement said here that such powers to panchayats would create chaos, encourage indicipline and disobedience, would politicise and damage the impartial character of the noble service. The association said the female health staff had also aired apprehensions that the decision might lead to misuse of these powers to blackmail, harass and exploit female employees. The association has threatened to intensify the agitation, if the government failed to withdraw its decision immediately. LUDHIANA: The PCMS Association, Ludhiana, held a protest rally at the civil hospital and Civil Surgeon’s office on Tuesday in protest against the state government’s decision. In a joint statement by Dr Sukhdev Singh Roomi, State Organising Secretary, Dr Ramesh, President and Dr Harpreet S. Sekhon Secretary of the local unit of the association, stated that all PCMS doctors and paramedical staff wore black badges and held rallies in front of their respective hospitals at block level at Pakhowal and Jagraon. Main district rally was organised at Civil Surgeon’s office here. Over 80 doctors, 60 paramedical, 20 SMOs attended the rally. AMRITSAR: The members of the PCMS Association observed a one-day strike in the district on Tuesday in protest against the decision of the Punjab Government to authorise village panchayats to mark attendance of the PCMS doctors and paramedical staff. In a joint statement Dr Harpartap Singh, Organising Secretary of the association, Dr Jagjit Khalsa and Dr Rajiv Mehta, President and Press Secretary of the local unit, respectively, said protest rallies were held by doctors and the paramedical staff at all the PHCS civil hospitals and community health centres in whole of the district and the doctors wore black badges. MALERKOTLA: The doctors and paramedical staff of the local Civil Hospital wore black badges and organised a rally in the hospital on Tuesday in protest against the decision of the State government. Addressing the rally Dr K.S. Khurana, Convener of the PCMS Association of Sangrur district said the doctors would stage dharnas in the district on October 30. MOGA: The members of the PCMS Association from all over the district wore black badges and held rally on Tuesday against the decision of the state government regarding doctors and other staff of the Health Department working in villages in the state. While addressing the
rally Convener of the PCMS Association of the district
Arvinder Gill and Co-Convener Gagan Deep said the PCMS
doctors were Class I officers and it was not right to put
them under the control of village panchayats. |
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Docs wear black badges CHANDIGARH, Sept 28 — On a call given by the PCMS Association, Punjab, doctors working in General Hospital in Sector 16 here and in the Ropar and Fatehgarh Sahib districts wore black badges today to express their resentment against the decisions of the Punjab Government for giving administrative control of hospitals to panchayats. Dr Jaspal Singh, press
secretary of the PCMS association, reminded the
government to withdraw the order issued as regards
administrative control. Otherwise, he said the
association would have to intensify its agitation. |
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Contempt notice to Punjab AIG CHANDIGARH, Sept 28 — Mr Justice V.S. Aggarwal, of the Punjab and Haryana High Court today issued notice to Punjab’s Assistant Inspector-General of Police Hardish Singh Randhawa on a contempt petition preferred by Mr Kashmira Singh and six other constables. The petitioners stated that on February 26, 1999, Mr Randhawa had filed an affidavit in the High Court in connection with a writ petition they had filed that reversion orders of the petitioners would be withdrawn and their ad hoc promotion to the rank of Head Constable and higher ranks would be converted into a rank-pay posting. They stated that until September 27 neither had their reversion orders been withdrawn nor their rank been converted into a rank-pay posting. In not implementing the
High Court order the Assistant Inspector-General of
Police had committed contempt, the petitioners claimed. |
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Tohra men denied entry to
gurdwara FATEHGARH SAHIB, Sept 28 — Mr G.S. Tohra, President, SHSAD, has alleged that the Badal camp may disrupt the counting process of votes in the state. He said he had written to the Election Commission to deploy the CRPF instead of the Punjab Police at all counting centres. Talking at Mata Gujri College here today he had come to address a workers meeting at Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib, but the Gurdwara authorities had reportedly locked all gates of the venue of the meeting. The meeting was later organised elsewhere. Reacting sharply to the statement of Mr Badal at Samana yesterday that Mr Tohra had demanded the membership of the Rajya Sabha. He said Mr Badal had flouted norms by naming Mr Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa and Mr Balwinder Singh Bhunder, rejected leaders for the Rajya Sabha. Mr Tohra said he had never demanded ticket for the Rajya Sabha but had recommended Bibi Amarjit Kaur’s name. However, Mr Badal called him up from the USA to accept the candidature as there was a controversy over her name. He ridiculed the claim of Mr Badal regarding the revival of militancy in the state. He said the state had reported incident-free polling whereas in other states many people had lost their lives. Answering a query he said he had good relations with Mr Mann and their third front would continue. He termed the exit polls as baseless. Addressing the meeting, Mr Tohra lashed out at the government and the SGPC, saying during his tenure nobody was stopped from holding meetings in gurdwaras. He said there was no
money for development in the state and employees were
being given 15 per cent less salary, even then Mr Badal
was paying Rs 3 lakh daily rent of his helicopter,
besides the salary of two pilots and fuel. A fleet of 20
vehicles went to receive him, he alleged. |
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Bid to recoup Punjab
financially CHANDIGARH, Sept 28 —The Punjab bureaucracy is in a spin. All-out efforts are being made to restore financial discipline. Not a day passes when strategies are not discussed to pull the state out of the financial quagmire, improve revenue earnings and restrict expenditure. Much is, however, known that could be done and should be done to ensure process of development is re-railed. Several measures, both short and long-term, are on the anvil. For a consensus, the officers are assigned the task rummage through available reports, analysis and data on Plan, non-Plan and investments made in the public sector undertakings. Simultaneously, a memorandum is also being prepared to be submitted to the 11th Finance Commission. Those involved in drawing up a memorandum for the Cabinet Subcommittee to consider have with them the latest reports of the Comptroller and Auditor-General as well, which were presented to the Punjab assembly during its two-day session held recently. Besides the state has also dug out a report on the performance of the state-level public undertakings conducted by the Indian Institute of Cost and Management Studies and Research (Indsearch), Pune. This was made available by the Punjab Accountant-General in November, 1998. Also in circulation is a note giving an overview of the accounts of the state, both in government and public sector, for the past five years (1993-94 to 1997-98), which gives an overall picture of the finances and a statistical and audit analysis of the transactions. At the end of this overview, which is also being updated for the finance commission, are given steps needed to be taken to enable Punjab clear the financial mess, which has been precipitated by populist announcements and myopic financial vision of those who have handled the state finances. Going through these reports and analysis, one gets depressed. In fact not long ago New Delhi had conducted a countrywide survey to know as to what use the audit reports served since, despite specific instances, losses incurred by government departments and public companies continued to accumulate and remained unrecovered. There is no system of any accountability despite autonomy enjoyed by public sector companies. Moreover, the state in its wisdom has never issued a "white paper" on the PSUs. There is a growing feeling even in the A-G staff that unless the reports, kept secret till presented in the Assembly, helped initiate action and recovery (holding individual officers responsible) the audit will serve no purpose. Of the 47 PSUs in Punjab at least 42 have not prepared their accounts for period ranging from one to 24 years. Despite heavy government investment, the PSUs continue to make losses. The Indsearch report, which studied 30 PSUs functioning for 12 years period (1985-86 to 1996-97), concluded that 14 of these should be closed and at least four of them on "priority" in the larger public interest since these could not serve the intended aims and objectives. There is scope for "improvement" in respect of remaining 15, but not much. Therefore, report suggests "merger, disinvestment and privatisation". The report contains details of the PSUs studied and justifies its recommendations in respect of each. It was found that PSUs with heavy government investment or having taken huge loan with government guarantee had not played their part in economic development. Sinking money into them did not commensurate with the benefits which should have accrued, almost all PSUs had poor asset utilisation, the report says. In regard to overview of the state finances, the paper in circulation refers to Punjab having the top position when it comes to paying salaries to employees. "It is the highest salary paid state while working hours are less than those of the Central Government and holidays are on the higher side". Punjab has to find resources for revenue by making revision of tariff on power, transport, etc an "annual" feature. There exists a power regulatory authority. But no one has been nominated as member. The tax system needs overhauling with plugging of loopholes and strict vigilance on tax collection. All money kept outside government accounts must be deposited in the treasury. There has to be a strict bar on spending and even estimates on schemes/projects should be rational and time-barred. Subsidies should be curtailed and the GPF subscription rates must be enhanced. Restriction on borrowings have to be there. There has to be an act to impose a ceiling on government guarantees. The report concludes with a warning: "a worsening balance from current revenue position, falling tax revenue, modest capital outlays and negligible returns on investment have seriously jeopardised the sustainability of the state’s finance". Moreover, a high and rising revenue deficit to fiscal deficit ratio and falling assets to liability ratio have increased the vulnerability of the state’s outstanding guarantees that have added significantly to the government’s "risk exposure", adds the report. Why the state is unwilling to increase tax revenue despite the availability of flexibility to do so is not understood. "It continues to meet its fiscal profligacy by meeting the revenue expenditure with borrowings. This has led the state to a high level of indebtedness. Thus, even Central bailout has not made any dent". Thus the memorandum to
be submitted by the officers committee engaged in
financial exercise has to keep all this and more in mind
to help Punjab pullback from the financial precipice. Its
recommendations will have to be practical, pragmatic and
politically acceptable, say sources. |
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CM’s silence on Thein snag
irks CPM CHANDIGARH, Sept 28 — Mr Balwant Singh, secretary of the Punjab state committee of the CPM, has expressed concern over the silence maintained by the Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, as regards development of snags in Thein dam. The state had suffered a huge loss worth several crores due to snags but the Punjab Government had not ordered any probe to fix responsibility. Urging for ordering a high-level probe, Mr Balwant Singh said the officials concerned and contractors should be asked to pay for the loss suffered by the state. The leader said his party was opposed strongly to raising the retirement age from 58 to 60 as it was "anti-people and youth". The government was also
criticised for improper handling of procurement of paddy. |
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CM nod to CBI to prosecute
three Punjab officials CHANDIGARH, Sept 28 — The Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, has given clearance to the CBI for prosecuting Mr Gurnam Singh, Senior Industrial Promotion Officer, District Industries Centre, SAS Nagar; Mr Pritam Singh, General Manager, District Industries Centre, Patiala; and Mr Inderjit Singh Thandi, Senior Industrial Promotion Officer, Amritsar. After a regular inquiry by the CBI, it was established that payment of the industrial subsidy was misappropriated with the connivance of industrial units without verification of various documents and claims of the units. The Punjab and Haryana High Court had ordered a CBI enquiry into the allegations of misappropriation in 1996. The Chief Minister has taken serious view of the pre-mature collapse of a bridge on the Batala-Fatehgarh Churian road in June, 1999, and ordered the registration of a criminal case through the Department of Vigilance against Mr K.K. Vashisht, Superintending Engineer; Mr Harkaran Singh, SDO, and Mr Swinder Singh, Junior Engineer, according to a press note here today. A preliminary inquiry conducted by a team headed by the Chief Engineer has concluded that the main reason for the collapse of the bridge is large variations in the specifications of approved design and the work actually executed at the site. The officials concerned have been asked to be charge-sheeted in the case. Mr Badal has ordered the dismissal of Dr Navneet Kaur, Demonstrator, Government Medical College, Amritsar, with immediate effect due to unauthorised absence from duty. Mr Badal has also
instructed the secretaries and heads of departments to
monitor closely the performance of the subordinate
officers to ensure that the benefits of the governmental
policies percolate down to the grassroots level. |
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Punjabis prone to heart attack:
study BATHINDA, Sept 28 — Punjabis are more prone to heart diseases as compared to population in the other states of the country, according to a study conducted by Tagore Hospital, Jalandhar, in association with the Department of Psychology, Panjab University, Chandigarh. Dr V.K. Mahajan of the hospital while delivering his keynote address on the new risk factors in the Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) commonly known as "heart attack" during a scientific session on cardiology organised by Grover Heart Centre here on Saturday, said CAD was assuming alarming proportions in India. It was estimated that more than 1 per cent population of the country suffered from this disease. He added that the incidence of heart attack was higher in North India in general and among Punjabis in particular. He said the main reason behind the spread of CAD in this region was the sedentary life style, lack of physical exercise, excessive consumption of liquor, obesity and peculiar psychological factors. He pointed out that triglyceride level was very high in the patients suffering from heart disease. This high level was a major risk factor for CAD. He suggested that in order to avoid CAD, regular physical exercise, reduction of fat around abdomen and waist, sticking to low-fat diet and maintenance of body weight were very important and these precautions should be taken from an early age. Dr V.P. Sharma and Dr Ashwani Suri also delivered lectures on different related topics. Later, a heart check-up and public awareness camp was also organised at the Grover Heart Centre in which over 500 patients were examined. More than 200 doctors
from Bathinda, Malout, Mansa and other nearby towns
participated in the session on cardiology. |
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Import of wheat
‘anti-farmer’ AMRITSAR, Sept 28 — Mr R.L. Bhatia, former Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, has described the import of wheat as one of the biggest post-Independence scams. He alleged the central government took an anti-farmer and anti-trader decision by importing wheat from other countries while more than 33 metric tonnes of the produce was rotting in various godowns of the country. Mr Bhatia, who is a veteran Congress leader, said the party would order a high-level probe into the import of sugar and wheat if voted to power. He claimed the Congress party would certainly form a government at the Centre. Mr Bhatia, who was the party's observer in Uttar Pradesh, returned here after a week-long tour. He claimed that there was a strong wave in favour of the Congress. He further claimed that people had made up their minds to elect Congress candidates in Uttar Pradesh, the heartland of the country, as the voter wanted a stable government. The mishandling of the Kargil conflict further strengthened the belief of the voter that only a stable government could safeguard the interests of the country. Mr Bhatia alleged it was
a matter of concern that India imported sugar even at the
time of the Kargil conflict. The statement of the
Pakistan Foreign Minister in Parliament was a clear
indication that India had imported sugar even as the
Kargil conflict was going on. |
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BDPOs’ plea to state govt BATHINDA, Sept 28 — Mr Jagbir Singh Brar, President of the Punjab State Block Development and Panchayat Officers Union, today said the union had urged the Punjab Government to accept their demands immediately. He was speaking at a meeting of the union held at Ludhiana. In a press note issued here, Mr Brar, who was elected president on September 26, said the main demands of BDPOs included class I gazetted status and removal of anomalies in pay scales of the BDPOs. He added that the Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, had also assured the union of conceding all demands a few years back when he gave audience to the union activists. He said the union had urged the Chief Minister to honour his promise immediately. Mr Brar said the union at its meeting had also decided to hold the block samiti and zila parishad elections in a free and fair manner and carry out the development work of rural areas with dedication and devotion. He said at the recently
held election of the union Mr Dhirinder Saldi had been
made general secretary and Mr Gagandip Virk was elected
press secretary. He added that presidents of many
district units had also been appointed. |
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Using pen to bridge Indo-Pak
divide ABOHAR: Relations through the pen are thicker than in blood. "I want to convey through you Sat Sri Akal, Namaskar, Salaam to all Punjabi writers in India and present the Sahit 1998. I wish a bright future for Punjab and Punjabi." This is what Mr Illias Ghumman, Editor of the 952-page magazine published annually from Lahore, has written in his own hand in the Gurmukhi script on the last page of a beautifully brought out volume. Sahit is published in the Punjabi language but in the Urdu script by Illias Ghumman, a lover of the language. A civil engineer, he is considered a pillar of the movement launched in West Punjab to introduce Punjabi in the Urdu script as a subject from the primary to the post-graduation level in all educational institutions. Mr Ghumman had set up his own computer network at his Billal Ganj office at Lahore and is publishing magazines in Urdu like Ravel for Punjabi writers and Meeti for children to promote Punjabi in Pakistan. By publishing Sahit, Mr Ghumman has succeeded in bringing all Punjabi writers of the world on one platform — a task which ardent preachers of Punjabi and Punjabiat in East Punjab could not do. When Illias published the first edition of his annual magazine in 1996, Prof Rashad Hasan Rana of Qaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad, had said that this was a historic achievement. I would have complimented if such a noble work was done even by my enemy." Some other commentators described it as one of the best magazines anybody could bring out to promote brotherhood and amity among the language writers. The Dawn, published from Karachi, commenting on 1997 edition of Sahit had mentioned that the Punjabis were outgoing, pushing, very social and easy to converse. There was some kind of liberalism about them. The Punjabis were less rigid. Having been invaded by new culture patterns, they had learnt to assimilate the new culture each time a new invader sets his new foot on the land of the five rivers. For making Sahit a complete volume of the literature published in Punjabi in 1998, Mr Ghumman had the support from renowned writers from India, U.K., Canada, U.S.A. and U.A.E. Poems, stories and articles were selected from magazines published in these countries besides books received by Mr Ghumman from writers directly as a gift. Some pages of Sahit are in the original Punjabi script also but then pronunciation some time goes awry. Manjit Tiwana has been quoted as Tuana, but keeping in view the sincere efforts made by the editor, such minor things should be ignored. The price of the magazine has been put at Rs 700 making no currency difference for Pakistan or India. Hundreds of writers from across the world including prominent Indian writers like Amrita Pritam, Ajeet Caur, Amrik Singh Pooni, Biba Balwant, Prof Deepak Manmohan Singh, K. S. Duggal, Prem Gorkhi and Ram Saroop Ankhi have contributed for the 1998 edition. One finds writers like Shekhar (Austria), Agha Ali Muddasar (Belgium), Gurcharan Rampuri, Iqbal Arpan, Nadeem Parmar, Ravinder Ravi and Stephen Gill (Canada), Amarjit Chandan, Amir Malik, Nazir Kuhut, Niranjan Singh Noor (U.K.), Pervez Sandhu, Surinder Singh Dhanoa, Harbhajan Singh Bhajji (USA) worth mentioning. Beginning with Qalam Waris Shah, the 1998 Sahit edition is enriched with Raja Rasalu's write up on Dulla Bhatti adorned with photographs of members of the great warrior's family. Muhammad Asif Khan tells how M.A. Punjabi was introduced in West Punjab. Prof Pritam Singh explains the attitude of the West Punjab Government towards Punjabi. Dalip Kaur Tiwana contributes a chapter from her autobiography. Stories from other languages have also been given. A good number of short-story writers and poets have contributed to Sahit. For readers in India it would be interesting to read "Hamad" and "Naat" and Urdu classical poetry. In a short editorial, Mr
Ghumman has said the 1999 Sahit issue will be on the same
lines but the millennium number will have the oldest as
well as the latest Punjabi literature, besides a detailed
account of the journey covered by the language. In a
publication of nearly 1,000 pages, the editorial occupies
only half of a page, the editor conveys his sentiments
through all other pages indeed. The publication comes
"with love from Pakistan" at a time when there
were many ifs and buts for resuming talks to normalise
diplomatic relations between the two countries. One has
rightly said that writers can work as a bridge better
than politicians. |
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Training camp on rabi crops GURDASPUR, Sept 28 — A large number of farmers from Amritsar, Hoshiarpur and Gurdaspur districts participated in a regional training camp regarding cultivation of the rabi crops held here today under the aegis of the Regional Research Centre, Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana. Mr Y.S. Ratra, Financial Commissioner, Development, was the chief guest and Dr Gurchanan Singh Kalkat, Vice-Chancellor of the PAU, presided. Various agriculture experts emphasised on the balanced use of fertilisers, minimum use of weedkillers and insecticides, timely sowing and watering of crops and soiled testing before a particular crop is sown in the fields. There are 50 soil testing laboratories in the state. Mr Ratra said the average land holding per farmer in the state was only six kanals which was insufficient to eke out a living. Moreover, the costs involved in cultivation of crops had risen tremendously rendering agriculture as a profession unremunerative. He said in addition to cultivation of crops, small farmers should diversify their activities to dairy, bee-keeping, mushroom cultivation and rabbit-farming to augment their income. Dr Kalkat said 60 per cent of the weedkillers produced in the country are used in Punjab. This tendency, he said, must be curbed. Otherwise, it would lead to environmental pollution. He advised farmers to replace land under paddy cultivation by other crops. He said farmers should
use water to the extent that water-level in the area did
not go down in which case they would have to resort to
deep tubewells which were beyond the means of most
farmers. |
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3 FCI inspectors suspended CHANDIGARH, Sept 28 — A vigilance squad of the Food Corporation of India headquarters comprising a Joint Manager and assisted by three Deputy Managers has detected the purchase of sub-standard paddy at Fazilka, Jalalabad and Dharamkot mandis in Ferozepur district early this week, a spokesman of the Punjab region office of the FCI, said here tonight. The spokesman said the special squad found stocks with excessive percentage of damaged grains and foreign matter in the paddy procured by the FCI in the three grain markets. The procured paddy when weighed was found less in weight. The quality inspectors
posted in all three grain markets have been placed under
suspension and the state government has been requested to
cancel the licences of the kutcha commission agents from
whose shops irregularities were detected by the squad
from the headquarters. |
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Sangeet academy to be set up ANANDPUR SAHIB, Sept 28 — Dedicated to the tercentenary celebrations of the birth of the Khalsa, Gurmat Sangeet Academy is being set up here from October 11. The academy will function under the management of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee. It will later merge in the proposed World Sikh University. In this academy, kirtan of Gurbani (chanting of shabads) will be taught on traditional stringed musical instruments. In the beginning, it will be taught on stringed instruments like dilruba, tanpura and sarangi. A three-year job oriented (professional) course will be introduced while the students will be given Rs 300 per month as stipend besides free education. Addressing a press conference here today, Prof Manjit Singh, Jathedar of Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib, said, Bibi Jagir Kaur, president of the SGPC would inaugurate the academy on October 11 which was being set up in a double-storeyed building near Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib. Prof Manjit Singh said Rs 15 lakh would be spent on the academy in the initial stage. Interviews for the selection of teachers and students had been fixed for October 7 at the Takht here. The Jathedar further said students would also be imparted training in explaining Gurbani and history on scientific lines to tackle day-to day problems. He said they would also be provided higher education facilities here to pass plus one and two examinations. They would also be made experts in speaking English so that they could also preach abroad. Prof Manjit Singh said students would also be provided with boarding and lodging facilities at the academy. He opined that there was a lack of professionalism among the majority of ragis as they had affection towards money first. Devotion to their profession came later. He said there was a need to give attention to the piousness and relevance of kirtan instead of confining oneself to only cheap publicity or money. The Jathedar said in this age of western music the importance of traditional music had been on the decline. He also said there was a need to revive the use of traditional musical instruments in reciting the "bani" of Guru Sahibans as it was in ragas. Regarding the relevance of this academy in this fast changing world, Prof Manjit Singh said the need for chanting shabads would remain long as there were gurdwaras in the country and abroad. The Jathedar said in the
academy those students would be admitted who would prefer
to join this profession and render their services in
gurdwaras. |
||
2 tantriks held for
stealing ashes JALANDHAR, Sept 28 — Two tantriks were caught today while trying to collect ashes of a body cremated yesterday at the cremation centre in Basti Nau here by the public and handed over to the police. The tantriks, Mahant Gangaprashad and Sabu Ablashananda, were caught by a relative of the deceased, Mangat Ram, a 28-year-old youth who passed away on Sunday and was cremated yesterday. The mahants were allegedly caught by people when a relative raised the alarm. The police has registered a case under Sections 295-A and 297 of the IPC. This is a non-bailable offence. Meanwhile, high drama was witnessed when the public demonstrated in front of police station no. 5, where the two are detained. The demonstrators demanded that the two should be handed over to the public and given a thrashing by the people for indulging in this blasphemy. The SP (City), Mr Pawan Uppal, and the DSP, Mr Paramjit Singh, told TNS that the highly volatile public was being controlled and vigil being kept by the police. The mahants will be produced before the Judge tomorrow, they said. Ironically, these
tantriks have a VIP clientele, which includes ministers
and mediapersons. |
||
Autonomy proposals rejected AMRITSAR, Sept 28 — The College Council (CC) of Government Medical College has reportedly rejected the proposals of the state government to constitute company/corporation or registered societies of medical institutions as a part of the move to grant more autonomy to medical, ayurvedic and dental colleges. The meeting of the council held today was attended by the principal, heads of all departments and representatives of the Medical Teachers Association, completely rejected the proposals. The meeting was reportedly of the view that the formation of a corporation/company or registered society would generate more problems in the name of autonomy. The registered society or constituting a corporation or company would give an impression that government colleges had been "privatised". The members of the College Council said instead of constituting of any company/corporation or registered society the state government should give more financial powers to the principals of medical, ayurvedic and dental colleges to enable them to make more purchases at local level. A senior professor of the medical college said if the government was sincere about granting autonomy then powers should be decentralised at the principal level in true spirit. Members of the College
Council, including representatives of the Medical
Teachers Association, were unanimous over the rejection
of the proposals of the state government. The decision
has been communicated to the state government. |
||
Undertrial commits suicide PATIALA, Sept 28 — An undertrial, Surinder Dass, reportedly committed suicide here yesterday by hanging himself from a water supply pipe in a toilet. According to a report lodged with the police by the Superintendent of jail, Mr G.S. Sidhu, the undertrial was mentally unstable and had recently returned after treatment at mental hospital in Amritsar. Mr Sidhu said the undertrial was scheduled to appear in the court on September 27 in connection with a murder case against him. He had tied a "pyjama" cord around his neck and hung himself from a pipe in a toilet. Mr Sidhu said the
undertrial, a resident of old Rajpura town, was in a
state of depression and was facing trial for murdering
his own wife. He had attempted to end his life earlier
also. |
||
SHO’s remand extended ROPAR, Sept 28 — The police remand of SHO of Anandpur Sahib, Didar Singh, and a constable, Gurcharan Singh, was today extended up to October 4 in the custodial death case of Devinder Singh, alias Bhola, of Hasanpur village, near Kharar. He died in the custody of the CIA staff here on September 18. They were produced in the court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Mr D.S. Malwai, here. Earlier, they were in police custody up to September 28. Gurcharan Singh had
surrendered before the police on September 22 while Didar
Singh was arrested on September 23 by the police. |
||
PCCTU condemns police inaction JALANDHAR, Sept 28 — The Punjab and Chandigarh College Teachers Union (PCCTU) has condemned the delay by the Gurdaspur district police in nabbing four culprits who allegedly cheated and tortured Prof Gurpreet Kaur Chauhan of SD College, Pathankot. The accused had reportedly been absconding for the past several days. Dr V.K. Tewari, General Secretary of the union, threatened to launch a statewide agitation against the police and the Punjab Government if the culprits were not booked within four days. Col Chauhan, father of
the victim, alleged that his daughter’s services
were terminated but she was later reinstated by the
college tribunal. However, the management and the
Principal asked her to give Rs 10 lakh as donation. |
||
Hindu Maha Sangh chief seeks
security FEROZEPORE, Sept 28 — In a representation sent to the DGP, Himachal Pradesh, President of the All-India Hindu Maha Sangh and founder of the state Sri Naina Devi Gufa and Sadhu Ashram, Krishnanand has demanded the deployment of a constable in the cave to ensure security to devotees, priest and others. In the representation Swami Krishnanand said in the past a constable was on regular duty but was withdrawn by the authorities. He claimed the authorities had been directed by the HP Lokayukta to provided security to him and his representatives. He apprised the DGP that since the cave was underground and the passage narrow, at least one constable was essential. He said the Assuj
Navratra Mela was scheduled to be held at Sri Naina Devi
from October 10 and he had requested the Bilaspur
Superintendent of Police to provide two security guards
to him. |
||
Pest attack apprehended LUDHIANA, Sept 28 —
Punjab Agricultural University scientists apprehend an
attack of whitebacked plant hoppers (WBPH on late show
rice in Bathinda, Sangrur and Ropar districts. Leaves
either lose colour or turn black due to black mould. The
infested plants dry up in patches. The severe attack
reduces the yield considerably, the scientists warn. |
||
Dalit raped MALERKOTLA, Sept 28 — A Dalit girl was raped by three persons at Maherna Khurd village, 10 km from here. According to the DSP, Mr Surinder Singh Saini, she had come to meet her parents and was kidnapped by the three persons of the same village. They forcibly took her to the field and raped her. The police has arrested
Ranjit Singh Mistry, Raj Jodh Singh Mistry and Jagga
Singh. The Ahmedgarh police has registered a case against
them under Section 376/34 of the IPC. They have been sent
to judicial lock-up till October 4, according to the DSP. |
||
Samiti to oppose Punjab utsav AMRITSAR, Sept 28 —The Sarv Dharma Sangharsh Samiti (SDSS) has decided to launch a "jan jagran march" against the holding of "Punjab utsav" being organised by Christians here. Addressing a joint press
conference here today, Mr Ramesh Talwar and the Mr
Santosh Gupta of the SDSS threatened to intensify their
agitation against "conversion" of Hindus if the
local administration allowed holding of "Punjab
utsav". They said the SDSS would also file a public
interest litigation against "forcible
conversions", allegedly by Christians, especially in
border areas. They further said the police and district
administration would be held responsible for any untoward
incident if the week-long "Punjab utsav" was
held here. |
||
Rs 31 lakh for
martyrs’ fund CHANDIGARH, Sept 28
— Mr Manoranjan Kalia, Punjab Health and Family
Welfare Minister, today presented a cheque for Rs 31 lakh
to Mr Parkash Singh Badal, Chief Minister, as the
contribution of the Health department employees and
officers for the Kargil Martyrs’ Family Welfare
Fund. |
||
Course of traffic management PHILLAUR, Sept 28 — A special three-day training course-cum-workshop on traffic control and management was inaugurated at Punjab Police Academy here by Mr Chander Shekhar, IGP. This is the first time in Punjab that such a course has been organised for district level police and transport officers of the state. In all about 25 officers are participating. Mr Chander Shekhar laid emphasis on taking immediate measures to control traffic in Punjab in general and that of the cities in particular. Other experts who are interacting with the participants are Porf B.R. Batra, Dean, Faculty of Physical Planning and Architecture, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar; Prof N. Ranganathan, Professor Emiritus, New Delhi; Mr Nirmaljit Singh, Chief Engineer, Ministry of Surface Transport, New Delhi; and Mr A.K. Sharma, Director (Technical), Indian Road Congress, New Delhi. Mr Maxwell Pierara, IGP,
Pondicherry, will also share his experience on traffic
management system appropriate to Indian conditions. |
||
Kisan conference organised TARN TARAN, Sept 28 — The Bharti Kisan Union (BKU) today organised a kisan conference at Khadoor Sahib on the second day of the three-day annual mela under the presidentship of Mr Charanjit Singh Fatehabad, senior vice-president of the union. Mr Ajmer Singh Lakhowal, Mr Avtar Singh Mehlon, Mr Iqbal Singh, Capt Jaswant Singh, Mr Bhupinder Singh Mann, Mr Prem Singh Lalpura, and other leaders addressed the conference. They condemned the anti-farmer policies of the Union and Punjab Governments. The BKU condemned the
Agriculture Price and Cost Commission for not
recommending a raise in the price of farmers’
products (crops). |
||
5 held for gambling BARNALA, Sept 28 — In response to a number of complaints from residents, the SDM, Mr Rahul Bhandari, conducted a raid at a gambling den yesterday in a locality near the local improvement trust office. Five persons were apprehended under the gambling Act and were later handed over to the police. A generator and a roulette wheel were seized from the spot during the raid. The SDM had also
conducted a raid on Saturday at a local cinema hall where
cinema tickets were being sold on the black market. He
also recommended action against the cinema contractor to
the Deputy Commissioner, Sangrur. |
||
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