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Cong may go in for new faces
To take up voters’ list issue with President
Chandigarh, December 20
Serious irregularities in the electoral rolls, especially of Amritsar and Muktsar districts, as noticed by the Chief Election Commissioner, Mr J.B. Lyngdoh,has prompted the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee to take a delegation to the President to apprise him of “how the present SAD-BJP government in the state has politicised the state bureaucracy and made it commit such irregularities.”

The PPCC chief, Capt Amarinder Singh, makes a point before a panel of the Election Committee of the PPCC, as an aspirant for the party ticket for the Patiala Assembly seat, in Chandigarh on Thursday.  — Tribune photo Manoj Mahajan

Army, BSF review border security arrangements
Ferozepore, December 20
Amidst speculations about a possible flare-up at border gaining momentum with each passing day, the Inspector-General (Punjab-Frontier) BSF, Mr Dilip Triwedi, today visited this frontier area along with the DIG (G) BSF, Mr R.A. Tiwari, and the local DIG, BSF, Mr A.K. Malik, and reviewed the security arrangements.

PMET students await admission
Patiala, December 20
Even as Baba Farid University is still deliberating over the completion of the admission procedure three weeks after the Punjab and Haryana High Court quashed a state government order withdrawing the minimum qualification marks for SC/ST candidates, those in the waiting list, who are to benefit from the judgement, are at a loss.

Languages Dept book denigrates Gurus
Chandigarh, December 20
A book, “Sikhs”, published by the Punjab Government’s Languages Department, has far more offensive, derogatory and seemingly distorted references to Sikh Gurus, the historical past of the Sikhs, etc, than Prof Satish Chandra’s book, “Medieval India,” which kicked off a nationwide controversy and debate among academicians.

POLITICS

Sachkhand to halt at Sirhind: SAD (A)
Fatehgarh Sahib, December 20
The Railway Minister, Mr Nitish Kumar, has agreed to halt the Amritsar-Delhi Shatabdi Express and the Sachkhand Express at the Sirhind railway station from December 30, claimed Mr Iqbal Tiwana, official spokesman of the SAD (A).

CM flayed for using foul language
Ludhiana, December 20
Mr Ravi Inder Singh, a former Speaker of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, today assailed the Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, for his alleged use of foul language against his detractors.

COMMUNITY

Protest against inflated power bills
Bathinda, December 20
The residents of the local Parasram Nagar, Partap Nagar and Jogi Nagar today held a rally against inflated electricity bills and urged the authorities concerned to reduce the amount from the bills.

‘Punjab only state to increase pension’
Fatehgarh Sahib, December 20
Punjab is the only state in the country which has increased pension and sanctioned various benefits to pensioners who had attained the age of 65 and 75.

Bhattal ‘appears’ before Vigilance
Chandigarh, December 20
The former Punjab Chief Minister, Ms Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, was today called by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau for recording her statement in connection with the “funds withdrawal case”.

Khalra case eyewitness stages dharna
Tarn Taran, December 20
Mr Kuldeep Singh, main eyewitness of the Khalra murder case, today staged a dharna in front of the office of the local SDM to lodge his protest against the non-release of his monthly salary since December, 1999.

Bar meets DC in lawyers’ case
Mansa, December 20
The District Bar Association, Mansa, at its meeting held today decided to extend its strike until names of Mr Vijay Kumar Singla and Mr Jaspal Goyal, lawyers, were deleted from the FIR registered on December 13 on the complaint of Mr Jatinder Singh Saggu, Tehsildar and Mr Jai Chand Parinda, Naib Tehsildar and suspension and transfer of both Sub-Registrars ordered in view of corruption charges against them.

Security up at stations, airports
Hoshiarpur, December 20
The attack on the Parliament House in New Delhi has caused a sense of alarm in Punjab, where security has been tightened at railway stations, airports, bus stands and government buildings, a senior police official said today.

Sehgal's appointment hailed
Chandigarh, December 20
The DAV management here today got together to express its happiness over the appointment of Justice D.V. Sehgal, senior vice-president of the DAV Managing Committee, as Lok Pal, Punjab, at a felicitation function organised by MCM DAV College, Sector 36, on the college premises.

Hijack accused plea against CBI custody
Patiala, December 20
The two prime accused in the hijacking of IC-814 Indian Airlines plane from Kathmandu to Kandahar in December, 1999, today filed an application in the court, claiming that the CBI wanted to procure their custody on the excuse of identifying one of the militants who was killed in the recent attack on Parliament, who the CBI believed was one of the hijackers.

• Stitching centres opened in 72 villages
• Safai karamcharis’ plea to govt

ADMINISTRATION

7 municipal councils get Rs 97 lakh grant
Bathinda, December 20
The state government has provided Rs 97.55 lakh, including Rs 60 lakh for development works at Kotkapura, to seven municipal councils, three of Faridkot district and four of Muktsar district to compensate them for the loss suffered due to abolition of octroi in the state.

Five MCs given financial help
Fatehgarh Sahib, December 20
To provide alternative financial assistance to the municipal councils of the state to compensate for the revenue loss in income due to the abolition of octroi, cheques amounting to Rs 109.30 lakh equal to the loss occurred during December have been presented to the executive officers of the five municipal councils of the district at a function held here yesterday at Bachat Bhavan.

CRIME

More women join liquor trafficking
Pathankot, December 20
The subdivision has become a safe haven for drug and liquor traffickers. There has been an alarming rise in the smuggling of illicit liquor and countrymade foreign liquor for the past one month and the police has arrested more than 50 persons in this connection.

Dealer booked for selling expired pesticide
Fatehabad, December 20
A local pesticide dealer, M/s Rakesh and Company, has been booked for causing damage to standing mustard crop of a farmer who had used expired pesticide bought from it.

4 booked in FCI scam
Sangrur, December 20
The Punjab police today claimed to have unearthed a Food Corporation of India (FCI) scam worth above Rs 1 crore and booked four Assistant Managers and 169 members of a limited company engaged in the loading and unloading of foodgrains of the FCI.

Telecom man arrested in cheating case
Mansa, December 20
The CIA staff have busted a gang engaged in duping people of money who were aspiring to become inspectors, deputy superintendents of police or join the Haryana Civil Service. This was stated here today by Mr Dilbagh Singh Gill, SSP, at a press conference.

Patwari booked

EDUCATION

Unsafe school building being demolished
Bathinda, December 20
The building of Shaheed Sipahi Sandeep Singh Government Senior Secondary School at the Paras Ram Nagar locality here which was declared unsafe a few year ago and about which The Tribune also published a news report in March is being dismantled.

BUSINESS

Adopt modern techniques to face WTO: panel
Fatehgarh Sahib, December 19
The small scale sector is competent at the international level. It doesn’t afraid of foreign products and WTO impacts, if the government provides level playing field, better infrastructure, inputs at international rates and amend the existing laws, said Dr Sham Sunder Aggarwal, National President the Laghu Udyog Bharti, addressing a state level seminar of small scale industrialists, at Sirhind.