Staff crunch hits roadways depot functioning in dist

Shortage of staff in the roadways depot in Tarn Taran has affected the routine working in the department. With the induction of 22 new buses by the previous government, the tally had reached to 71.

The depot was lacking required number drivers, conductors, sweepers, technical staff etc, as a result some of the buses stand idle at the workshop. Of the 100 posts sanctioned for drivers and conductors each, 34 posts of conductors and 33 of drivers are still vacant. After the induction of new buses, the two new routes from Tarn Taran to Mukatsar and Malaut had been started. Besides this certain suspended local bus-timings to Chohla Sahib, Khadoor Sahib, Valtoha, Khemkaran, Khalra, Attari, Chabal, Munda Pind, Shahbazpur-Dialpur, Khadoor Sahib, Amritsar, etc. had been resumed. But even then some of the timings of buses had not been resumed due to staff crunch. Duty Inspector Jaswinder Singh said the issue had been brought to the notice of the higher authorities. The position with the workshop was more worrisome. Gurjit Singh Gill, an employee of the workshop, Tarn Taran, said the post of junior technician mechanics (junior technician) was vacant. There are no electrician, workman and mechanic in the workshop. Gill said employees working in the workshop have to spent money from their own pockets for repair work. There were only two sweepers against six posts and only one class IV employee was working against three posts. The lone post of accountant too was lying vacant. All sections had been demanding to fill the vacant posts without delay to assure the smooth functioning.

Checking drug menace? Who cares!

One hard-hitting statement released by Harpreet Singh Dhunna, district press secretary, AAP, on the availability of drugs has put the district administration in a tight spot. Managements of private de-addiction centres besides officials of the Mental Health Cell, Punjab, had confirmed that due to the easy availability of drugs, addicts were not ready to come to the de-addiction centres. Dhunna had recently alleged that the action of the police to check drugs was just on papers and not up to the mark. The AAP leader said the lackadaisical action of the police was allegedly responsible for flourishing this drug trade in the district. He said easy availability of drugs hints at the alleged connivance of the police with peddlers. Dhunna, referring to a video that went viral on social media, said the clip shows the true picture of availability of drugs in the district and police inaction. He said the AAP MLAs had instructed the police to take action against the drug peddlers but to no avail adding that the transfers of cops too failed to bear any fruit. Dr Isha Dhawan, district in-charge, Mental Health Cell, said on an average 30 new patients are admitted in the district per month and there was no dip in this number. Dr Dhawan said during the lockdown, addicts rushed to the de-addiction centres and the average admission of addicts had shot up to 80 patients in a month. SSP Ranjit Singh Dhillon refused to comment on the issue and did not reply to the WhatsApp message.

Baba Sukha Singh returns from Bengal

Baba Sukha Singh, Head, Kar Sewa Sect, Sarhali Sahib, Tarn Taran, recently visited West Bengal to take stock of the condition of Sikh community living in the state. Members of the Kar Sewa Sect had been performing sewa of certain gurdwaras in Bangladesh and West Bangal. Baba Sukha Singh said large number of Sikhs from Punjab had settled and many families were running transport business there. Baba Sukha Singh was doing the kar sewa of a gurdwara being built in the memory of Bhagat Jai Dev in West Bangal. The Bani (Shabads) of Bhagat Jai Dev are mentioned in Guru Granth Sahib. Baba Sukha Singh said the Sikhs residing in West Bengal were having full faith in Sikh religious traditions and visit Gurdwaras there daily with great devotion. Baba Sukha Singh also visited Kenduli, Beerbhum, Panagarh cities there and interacted with the Sikh community.

(Contributed by Gurbaxpuri)