13
chandigarh | gurugram | jalandhar | bathinda | jammu | srinagar | vol.2 no.285 | 16 pages | ~4.50 | regd.no.chd/0006/2018-2020 established in 1881 | monday, october 15,2018
IN BRIEF
Two men lynched in UP after
they shoot at 12-yr-old boy
Amethi (UP): Two men were
beaten to death by a mob after
they allegedly shot at a 12-year-
old boy during a function at a
temple in Saraiya village here,
the police said on Sunday. The
boy, Sumit, suffered bullet
injuries and is undergoing treat-
ment at a local hospital. Dilip
Yadav (28) and Rahul Singh (30)
were allegedly in an inebriated
state, the police said. PTI
Parrikar discharged from
AIIMS, returns to Goa
Panaji: Goa Chief Minister
Manohar Parrikar arrived in his
home state on Sunday from
New Delhi, where he was under-
going treatment at AIIMS for
pancreatic ailment. Parrikar, 62,
was flown in a special flight and
later taken to his private resi-
dence at Dona Paula, near
here, in an ambulance. PTI
Govt to fete honest,
consistent taxpayers
New Delhi: The government is
working on an ambitious policy
proposal to “facilitate” honest
and consistent taxpayers in
availing a variety of public serv-
ices and tax-related works on
priority, officials said on Sunday.
As part of the larger plan, it is
proposed that honest taxpayers
are empowered to get “priority
service” while using public serv-
ices at airports, railways sta-
tions and at tolls. BACK PAGE
‘I killed them, so what?’ says Behbal Kalan homage by thousands
gunman; judge’s wife dead Why the delay in justice, Opposition leaders ask Cong govt at Bargari
G’gram ADJ’s son critical; accused ‘tough nut to crack’
Sumedha Sharma
Tribune News Service
Gurugram, October 14
Ritu Garg, the wife of Guru-
gram Additional District and
Sessions Judge (ADJ) Kris-
han Kant, who, along with her
son Dhruv, was shot at by the
judge’s gunman in a busy
market here on Saturday, suc-
cumbed to her injuries at
Medanta Medicity late in the
night. Dhruv’s condition is
said to be critical.
Sources said the ADJ was
in shock and doctors were
monitoring his condition. He
has not spoken since the
gory incident.
Meanwhile, accused gun-
man Mahipal remained eva-
sive during interrogation,
showing no remorse for his
actions whatsoever. “Yes I
killed them, so? I have no
remorse,” the 32-year-old
Head Constable is learnt to
have told the interrogating
team, giving the same state-
Emergency plan on air pollution from today Cupid strikes Karnal, huge rise
New Delhi, October 14
An emergency action plan
will be implemented from
Monday to combat air pollu-
tion that has begun to show a
trend towards very poor cate-
gory, the Central Pollution
Control Board said.
Under the emergency plan
called Graded Response
Action Plan (GRAP), stringent
actions are implemented based
on the air quality of the city.
If the air quality lies in the
moderate to poor category,
measures like stopping
garbage burning in landfills
and other places, and enforc-
ing all pollution control regu-
SHUBHANKAR DISAPPOINTS
IN FINAL ROUND PAGE 15
TENACIOUS
Umesh Yadav’s maiden 10-wicket haul (6/88 and 4/45)
helped India complete one of the most ruthless clean sweeps
in recent times, demolishing West Indies by 10 wickets in the
second Test to clinch the series 2-0. PTI PAGE 14
refused comment. But an
investigating official claimed
that a special interrogation
team (SIT) had been consti-
tuted to question him.
The police have reportedly
sent teams to Mahipal’s
native village in Mahendra-
garh to check if the accused
had a history of mental
health issues, such as inter-
mittent explosive disorder
which is characterised by
explosive outbursts of anger
Mahipal being produced in and violence.
court on Sunday. S CHANDAN The police are looking into
Mahipal’s post on Facebook
ment when produced in the night prior to the killing
court. He has been sent to — some strange scribbling on
police custody for four days. a piece of paper, mentioning
“As believed earlier, the ‘ Pastor Robin’. What has
shooting does not seem an made the police suspicious is
act of rage, but was well- that he wrote two words start-
planned. The accused is prov- ing with the letters ‘R’ and
ing to be a tough nut to ‘D’ and then crossed these.
crack,” the police reportedly The police are also looking
told the court while seeking into the WhatsApp account of
his custody for a week. Com- the accused, said sources.
missioner of Police KK Rao More reports inside
NASA: STUBBLE BURNING UP SIGNIFICANTLY
■ Satellite images from NASA
have shown rampant stubble
burning activity in Punjab
and Haryana
■ NASA stated that burning of
crop residue has increased sig-
nificantly over the past 10 days
in and near Amritsar, Ambala,
and Haryana are considered
to be major contributors to air
Karnal, Sirsa and Hisar pollution in Delhi-NCR
■ Burning of paddy straw in ■ In Delhi, smoke mixes with
October, November and wheat the fog and creates a toxic
straw during April in Punjab smoggy winter every year
lations in brick-kilns and very poor category, addition-
industries would be imple- al measures of stopping use
mented, an official said. of diesel generator sets,
If the air quality falls in the enhancing parking fees
INDIAN-ORIGIN MP JOINS REBELS AS
MAY’S CHALLENGE MOUNTS PAGE 13
/thetribunechd /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com
DefiantAkbar won’t Maj Gen, two Cols
quit, targets accusers get life for ‘fake kill’
#MeToo Says charges false, may take legal action
Smita Sharma
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, october 14
Exactly a week since the
#MeToo storm hit the gov-
ernment, Minister of State
for External Affairs MJ
Akbar today refused to quit.
Hours after returning from
an official visit to Nigeria and
Equatorial Guinea without
cutting short the trip, a defi-
ant Akbar brazened out alle-
gations of sexual harassment
against himself in a state-
ment to the media.
“The allegations of miscon-
duct made against me are
false and fabricated, spiced
up by innuendo and malice. I
could not reply earlier as I
was on an official tour,” said
Akbar as he lashed out at the
#MeToo campaign. “Accusa-
tion without evidence has
become a viral fever among
some sections,” he added,
threatening to take appropri-
ate legal action against those
who have levelled “wild and
baseless allegations”.
Last Sunday, journalist
Priya Ramani first named
Akbar in a tweet and identi-
fied him as the anonymous
male editor she wrote about
last year and narrated her
harrowing experience with
him as a subordinate.
“When asked recently why
she had not named me, she
replied, in a tweet: ‘Never
Ruchika M Khanna
Tribune News Service
Bargari (Faridkot), Oct 14
Thousands of Sikhs on Sun-
day converged on ground
zero of Punjab politics —
Bargari in Faridkot district —
to pay homage to the two vic-
tims of the Behbal Kalan
police firing on their third
death anniversary.
The plethora of political
leaders at the “Mahaan Sha-
heedi Samagam” demanded
that those indicted by the
Justice Ranjit Singh Com-
mission, which probed the
2015 sacrilege cases, be pun-
ished, evoking a thunderous
response from the crowds.
People from Bargari and
nearby villages were seen
serving water and langar.
Some used hand fans to
bring relief to the people
from the afternoon heat.
Many from far-off places
came with langar and milk.
Stalls selling Khalistan
propaganda material —
flags, T-shirts and posters of
Bhindranwale — drew a size-
three-four times and increas-
ing frequency of Metro and
buses would be implement-
ed, he added. If the air quali-
ty falls in the severe category,
additional measures would
be implemented of increas-
ing the frequency of mecha-
nised cleaning of roads,
sprinkling of water on roads
and identifying road stretch-
es with high dust generation.
If the air quality falls to
severe plus emergency cate-
gory, measures like stopping
entry of trucks into Delhi
(except essential commodi-
ties), stopping construction
activities and appointment of
HM TO BE WITH BSF JAWANS
ON DASEHRA PAGE 16
leading newspapers. Since
Ramani, the junior minister
has been named and shamed
publicly by some dozen
women journalists. One of
the most harrowing accounts
of sexual abuse was narrated
by journalist Ghazala Wahab
of the time 21 years ago.
Calling the allegations as
false and motivated, Akbar
said, “It is pertinent to
MANAS RANJAN BHUI
remember that both Ms
Ramani and Ms Wahab kept
working with me even after
these alleged incidents; this
clearly establishes that they
‘WITHOUT EVIDENCE’ had no apprehension and dis-
comfort. The reason why
❝ The allegations of
misconduct made against
they remained silent for
decades is very apparent: as
me are false and Ms Ramani has herself stat-
ed, I never did anything.”
fabricated, spiced up by The minister also ques-
innuendo and malice... tioned the timing of the alle-
Accusation without gations, linking it to upcom-
evidence has become a ing elections and asking if
viral fever among some there is an agenda.
MJ Akbar, MINISTER OF STATE “Lies do not have legs, but
they do contain poison,
named him because he didn’t which can be whipped into a
do anything.’ If I didn’t do frenzy,” he said.
anything, where and what is The Congress, which had
the story? There is no story. asked for Akbar to step aside
This was admitted at the very to pave way for a probe, lashed
inception. But a sea of innuen- out at the government. “I
do, speculation and abusive wonder how over a dozen
diatribe has been built around women sharing experiences
something that never hap- can be claimed as political
pened,” responded Akbar. conspiracy?” said spokesper-
A prominent journalist, son Priyanka Chaturvedi.
Akbar has been editor for more on page 7
The crowd endorses the resolution for action against those indicted by the commission. MANOJ MAHAJAN
able crowd. Radical leaders chief Simranjit Singh Mann.
Baljit Singh Daduwal and Khaira said they would not
Dhian Singh Mand repeated- rest until all those behind
ly urged the leaders of vari- sacrilege incidents were pun-
ous parties not to use the ished. He demanded that
stage to further their political elections to the Shiromani
agenda. They, however, were Gurdwara Parbandhak Com-
unable to restrain rebel AAP mittee be held forthwith so
MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira that it could be freed from
and Akali Dal (Amritsar) the “control of a few”.
a task force to take decisions
on any additional steps,
including shutting of schools,
in inter-caste weddings this yr
are implemented. Parveen Arora
Currently the air quality is Tribune News Service
in the poor category but Karnal, October 14
authorities predict that it Call it the lure of Rs 2.5-lakh
would reach the ‘very poor’ incentive being given by the
category in the next couple of
days. In addition to GRAP,
Haryana government or the
cupid indeed striking inter-
the CPCB has also deployed caste couples, marriages reg-
41 teams across Delhi NCR to istered under the Mukhya-
monitor implementation of mantri Samajik Samrasta
norms enforced to prevent Antarjatiya Vivah Shagun
pollution at the source. Till Yojana have witnessed a con-
October 11, 96 inspections siderable rise in Karnal dis-
were conducted across Delhi trict this year.
NCR and the inspections Ninety such couples — one
would intensify. — PTI of the partners must be from
Held guilty by GCM for Manipur encounter
Vijay Mohan
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 14
About 24 years after an inci-
dent of alleged extra-judicial
killing took place in Manipur,
a Major General and two
Colonels are among seven
Army personnel who have
been awarded life imprison-
ment by a general court mar-
tial (GCM) for their alleged
acts of omission and commis-
sion, it is learnt.
In its verdict pronounced
on Saturday, the GCM has
also ordered that the three
officers be cashiered (dishon-
ourable discharge with loss of
service benefits) from serv-
ice, while the other ranks are
to be dismissed, sources said.
The GCM’s findings and
sentence are subject to con-
firmation by higher authori-
ties, in this case Chief of the
Army Staff. The accused in
the case, Maj Gen AK Lal,
Col Thomas Mathew and Col
RS Sibiren, JCOs Jagdeo
Singh and Dalip Singh and
NCOs Albindar Singh and
Shivendar Singh had main-
tained that they were not
guilty of the charges levelled
against them. They have a
right to petition the conven-
ing authority against the
GCM’s sentence and there-
after, depending upon the
convening authority’s direc-
tions, approach the Armed
Forces Tribunal for bail and
associated reliefs.
Amidst pro-Khalistan flags
and slogans, Mann spoke of
the “discrimination suffered
by the Sikhs since Indepen-
dence”. He announced that
the death anniversary of mil-
itants Sukhdev Singh Sukha
and Harjinder Singh Jinda
continued on page 7
more on page 2
FIGURE IT OUT
*DATA FOR FIRST 6 MONTHS
90 76 47
2018-19* 2017-18 2016-17
the Scheduled Caste — have
registered themselves with
the District Welfare Office
4 CIVILIANS DIED IN 1994
■ In 1994, four civilians were
picked up for interrogation
and three days later, police
were informed they had been
killed in an encounter after
they attacked Armymen
■ Civilian organisations took
up the issue and matter
finally reached SC
■ Apex court directed CBI to
probe, following which a
fresh FIR was registered by
its Kolkata office
A joint trial had been con-
vened for the accused on the
orders of the General Officer
Commanding, 3 Corps,
Dimapur, which began at
Dinjan in Assam in late July.
Five charges under provi-
sions of the Indian Penal
Code, read with Section 69 of
the Army Act, for murder and
criminal conspiracy have
been levelled against them,
sources said They have been
attached to 2 Mountain Divi-
sion at Dinjan for discipli-
nary proceedings.
The Maj Gen was, at that
time, the commanding officer
of a Punjab battalion deployed
in anti-insurgency operations
in Manipur and one of the
Colonels was a company com-
mander as a Captain.
continued on page 7
Principal hacked
to death in class
in Karnataka
Bengaluru, October 14
A school principal was
hacked to death today by a
six-member gang in front of
20 students, for whom he
was holding a special class,
police said.
Ranganath (60), principal of
Havanur Public School in
suburban Agrahara Dasara-
halli, was holding classes for
Class 10 students when the
gang barged into the class-
room and hacked him to
death, they said.
They later fled in a getaway
car, police said. One of the gang
members was nabbed from
Mahalaxmi Layout area here
after a tip-off. The man suf-
fered a leg injury when police
fired at him after he attacked
them. He was later taken to a
hospital and treated.
A CCTV camera installed
near the school gate has
allegedly captured footage of
the men barging in through
the school gate.
Police suspect a land dispute
relating to the school building
behind the killing. — PTI
during the first half of the
current fiscal, a count that
has surpassed the total of 76
inter-caste marriages in 2017-
18 and 47 in 2016-17.
District Welfare Officer
Surinder Kumar Fuliya said
the number of applicants has
increased rapidly, particular-
ly after the government
hiked the incentive from Rs
1.01 lakh to Rs 2.5 lakh
around three month ago.
Fuliya said eligible couples
could apply within a year of
continued on page 7
02 PUNJAB CHANDIGARH | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018
THE TRIBUNE

Century later, World War I heroes unsung in their homeland

Rulers of princely states built
Families fight valiant battle to keep alive legacy of long-forgotten soldiers, lament indifference of powers that be
❝ memorials to pay homage to
their troops, but no effort has been
Vikramdeep Johal
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 14
made by any govt to raise a state-level Thousands of them died with
monument to honour the Sikhs their boots on, thousands of
who fought in miles away from their villages in
World Wars. Punjab. Those who survived and
Harpreet Singh returned home were scarred for
life. A century later, the names of
these World War-I soldiers don’t
even ring a bell in their own
homeland, even as their families
are fighting a valiant battle to
keep their legacy alive.
Harpreet Singh, a school-
teacher from Sarwali village in
Batala (Gurdaspur), doesn’t
have any photo of his great-
grandfather, Havildar Kala
Singh. But he is the proud
owner of the Dead Man’s
Penny, a commemorative
bronze plaquette that was
given to his great-grand-
mother, Rukman Kaur,
after the war.
Harpreet Singh holds the
Dead Man’s Penny, which
was awarded to his family in
1920 after the demise of his
great-grandfather, Havildar
Kala Singh.
Kala Singh was among the 34
soldiers of the 45th Rattray’s
Sikhs who were killed in the
Battle of Shergat during the
Mesopotamian campaign on
October 29, 1918. His name is
engraved on Panel 56 of the
Basra Memorial in Iraq.
“It’s a pity that Punjab does-
n’t observe its own Remem-
brance Day in memory of these
martyrs,” says Harpreet Singh.
“The then rulers of princely
states built memorials to pay
homage to their troops, but no
effort has been made by any
government to raise a state-lev-
el monument to honour Pun-
jabis, particularly Sikhs, who
fought in the World Wars.”
A gallery is dedicated to WW-I
at the Punjab State War
Heroes’ Memorial-cum-Muse-
um in Amritsar, but it is far
from complete, he adds. In
stark contrast, Sikh war memo-
rials have come up in England,
Italy and Belgium, thanks to
the initiative of expatriates.
According to a realistic esti-
mate, at least 8,000 of the 74,000-
odd Indian casualties in WW-I
were Sikhs. Amarpal Sidhu, a
under British rule. “The Indian
contribution tends to be sadly
reduced in importance or even
ignored in the native country.
Sikh (and Indian) troops played
a pivotal role in both conflicts,
which were fought on a global
scale. Their gallantry should be
taught in school history classes.
War memorials are needed to
keep their memory alive, and
we as a community and succes-
sive Punjab governments have
certainly been slow on this
issue,” he says.
An Amritsar resident, Major
Mohinder Singh Sarkaria (96),
recalls how highly the British
The WW-I memorial stone at Sultanwind in Amritsar district. valued his father’s valour. Risal-
dar Ajaib Singh Sarkaria of the
TOLL CLAIMS 7th Hariana Lancers was taken
How many Sikh troops died in the two World Wars? A conclusive captive along with other soldiers
answer is still awaited. General Frank Walter Messervy, a veteran of when the Allies lost Kut-al-Ama-
both conflicts, once wrote: “In the last two World Wars, 83,005 tur- ra (in modern-day Iraq) to the
ban-wearing Sikh soldiers were killed…” This oft-quoted figure has Ottoman Army in 1916. He spent
been challenged by some historians, including Amandeep Madra. two years in a Turkish prison,
“Going by the incredibly detailed work of the Commonwealth War from where he managed to send
Graves Commission, I estimate that around 8,000 Sikhs were killed information about enemy rein-
during WW-I and 10,000-13,000 in the second,” says Madra.
forcements to the Indian author-
ities despite strict censorship.
UK-based historian and the the World Wars are still looked Upon his discharge in 1918,
author of two books on the on as largely European affairs King George V, Emperor of
Anglo-Sikh Wars, observes that which occurred when India was India, sent him a message: “The
Queen and I wish you God-
speed, a safe return to the happi-
ness and joy of home life with an
early restoration to health. A
grateful Mother Country thanks
you for faithful services.”
Major Sarkaria laments that
due recognition has eluded his
family after Independence.
“Over the decades, the authori-
ties haven’t bothered about
showcasing this glorious chap-
ter of our military history,” says
the ex-serviceman, a descen-
dant of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
In the face of official apathy,
individuals and NGOs have tak-
en it upon themselves to restore
Raj-era memorial stones. One
such organisation is the Vishav
Yudh Pehla & Duja Shaheed
Welfare Society, Sultanwind
(Amritsar). After the November
1918 Armistice, the British gov-
ernment in India had installed
stones/plaques in villages which
sent more than 100 soldiers
each, including Sultanwind and
Sathiala (Amritsar), Depur
(Hoshiarpur) and Narangwal
(Ludhiana). Most of these are in
a pitiable condition, a telling
picture of monumental neglect.

At victims’ barsi, Cong Probe panel to Youngsters reach Bargari in

record statement big numbers, serve langar
assures kin of justice Balwant Garg

of witnesses
Tribune News Service

BEHBAL KALAN Claims delay due to legal issues

Tribune News Service
Faridkot, October 14
The newly formed Special
Investigation Team (SIT),
which is probing the sacri-
lege and police firing cases,
will reach Bargari on Tues-
day to record the statements
of persons who were witness
to the Behbal Kalan firing
on October 14, 2015, and the
desecration incidents.
Kapurthala SSP Satinder
Singh, a member of the SIT,
said any person who had
witnessed these incidents
could get his or her state-
Cabinet minister Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa with party leaders at Sarawan village. TRIBUNE PHOTO ment recorded.
Led by ADGP Prabodh
Tribune News Service Rajinder Singh Bajwa said Sarkaria, Faridkot MLA Kumar, a senior IPS officer,
SIT BEGINS INQUIRY
■ Led by ADGP Prabodh
Kumar, a senior IPS officer,
the SIT members reached
Faridkot on Friday.
■ They visited Kotkapura and
Behbal Kalan to inspect
the spots where the police
firing had occurred.
■ This is the SIT's first visit
to the area after its forma-
tion on September 10.
■ The probe team was formed
three days after the state
government had issued a
notification withdrawing the
investigation into sacrilege
incidents from the CBI.
gating four criminal cases
Bargari, October 14
The third anniversary of
the Bargari incident on
Sunday drew hundreds of
teenagers. Stirred into
action by their families and
religious sentiments, these
youngsters accompanied
their parents or fellow vil-
lagers to reach the venue.
Jasmine Kaur, a Class XI
student in Bargari, said: “We
have been seeking justice in
the sacrilege incidents and
punishment to those respon-
sible for killing two innocent
protesters for three years
now. But nothing has been
done. It hurts me deeply.”
“Since June 16, I have been
participating in the dharna
every day in the evening. I Children during the third anniversary of Behbal Kalan firing
have also been serving lan- incident, at Bargari on Sunday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: MANOJ MAHAJAN
gar to those sitting on the

Kotkapura, October 14
Congress leaders on Sun-
day attended the “barsi” of
Sikh protesters killed in
police firing at Behbal
Kalan village three years
ago. Separate programmes
were held at Behbal Khurd
and Sarawan villages.
Besides announcing funds
for the development of these
villages, the Congress lead-
ers assured the victim fami-
lies that action would soon
be initiated against those
responsible for the incident.
Cabinet minister Tript
due to some legal issues,
the matter was getting
delayed, but those responsi-
ble for killing the protesters
would face action soon.
“The government wants to
ensure punishment to the
culprits without leaving any
room for loopholes. The
guilty police officers are try-
ing to save their skin by
resorting to legal recourse.
We are plugging all loop-
holes to ensure their convic-
tion,” said Bajwa, while
speaking at Sarawan village.
Bajwa was accompanied
by Sukhbinder Singh
Kushaldeep Singh Dhillon
and local party leaders. He
alleged that the Akalis had
revived the painful memory
of the Jallianwala Bagh mas-
sacre by resorting to firing
upon peaceful protesters.
AAP protest
In a separate protest against
the sacrilege incidents and
the killing of protesters, AAP
leaders, led by Aman Arora
and some Panthic leaders,
including Balwant Singh
Nandgarh, assembled at the
main chowk of Kotkapura on
Sunday morning.
the SIT reached Faridkot on
Friday and visited Kotkapu-
ra and Behbal Kalan to
inspect the spots where fir-
ing had occurred. The other
team members are IG Arun-
pal Singh and PRTC Com-
mandant Bhupinder Singh.
This is the SIT’s first visit
to the area after its formation
on September 10. The probe
team was formed three days
after the state government
had issued a notification
withdrawing the investiga-
tion into sacrilege incidents
from the CBI. The SIT has
been entrusted with investi-
registered at Kotkapura and
Bajakhana police regarding
sacrilege and police firing
incidents and the killing of
two Sikh protesters.
“We are collecting details
of the investigation con-
ducted by the police in these
cases so far and also inter-
acting with the persons who
were associated with the
probe,” said Prabhod
Kumar. The SIT has set up
its office at the Circuit
House in Faridkot. “We will
do our best to probe these
cases and identify the
accused,” the ADGP said.
dharna for the last over four
months,” she said.
Armanjot Singh, a Class
IX student of Doad village
in Faridkot, reached the
venue with his friend. He
was also helping a team of
youths from his village in
serving langar. “I don’t
know much about the inci-
dents and those killed in
police firing, but I have
been told about the desecra-
tion of Guru Granth Sahib.”
Rubal Preet, a Class VI
student, and Akashdeep
Singh of Class IX from Sad-
huwala village of Ferozepur,
❝ For three years, we have been seeking justice in
the sacrilege incidents and punishment to those
responsible for killing two innocent protesters. But
nothing has been done. It hurts me deeply
Jasmine Kaur, BARGARI RESIDENT AND STUDENT OF CLASS IX
accompanied the village come on a motorcycle. “We
elders to Bargari. They also are here to pay homage to
performed sewa. Santosh the martyrs who laid their
Kaur from Tappa Mandi in life for Guru Granth Sahib.”
Bathinda is in the town with The organisers are upbeat
her son, daughter-in-law over the participation of
and two small grandchil- the youth. “If still the
dren, who were wearing T- government fails to act, we
shirts with pictures of Jar- will continue our protest,”
nail Singh Bhindranwale. said Panthic leader Baljit
Santosh Kaur said they had Singh Daduwal.

Capt, Kejriwal Rising crime, poor healthcare Two shot dead
in war of words core issues in Brampton polls over land dispute
Chandigarh, October 14
Chief Minister Capt
Amarinder Singh on Sunday
lashed out at his Delhi coun-
terpart Arvind Kejriwal, ask-
ing him to refrain from
“doing politics” on the issue
of sacrilege and police firing
incidents in Faridkot in 2015.
Capt Amarinder chided
Kejriwal after the latter
accused the Congress-led
Punjab government of “fail-
ing” to punish those respon-
sible for the sacrilege of the
Sikh holy book and deaths of
two persons in the alleged
police firing at Kotkapura
and Behbal Kalan.
“Stop politicking @Arvin-
dKejriwal. It’s shocking a
man in your position talks
of subverting law instead of
waiting for SIT’s findings,”
the CM tweeted. The Pun-
jab government had set up
a five-member SIT to probe
the police firing incidents.
Two persons were killed in
Capt Amarinder Singh (left)
and Arvind Kejriwal.
the alleged police firing at
protesters at Behbal Kalan
following sacrilege inci-
dents in 2015. Earlier in the
day, Kejriwal alleged that
the state had “badly failed”
in punishing the culprits of
sacrilege and police firing.
“On the third death
anniversary of Behbal Kalan
victims Krishan Bhagwan
Singh & Gurjit Singh, I offer
condolences to their families.
Highly unfortunate that
@capt_amarinder govt has
badly failed to punish the cul-
prits of sacrilege of Guru
Granth Sahib and the mur-
derers of two innocents,”
Kejriwal tweeted. — PTI
Varinder Singh
Tribune News Service
Jalandhar, October 14
Spurt in crime rate, raging
street fights, zooming prop-
erty tax rates, traffic jams,
lack of quality healthcare
and industry are the major
poll issues in Brampton
civic polls scheduled to be
held on October 22.
Brampton is witnessing a
high-voltage poll campaign
for the election of Mayor,
City and Regional Council-
lors and members of the
Peel District School Board.
Three dozen Punjabis are
participating in these
polls. The youth are look-
ing for a ‘generational
change’ through polls this
time around.
For residents, the biggest
issues remain higher proper-
ty tax and auto insurance
rates as compared to other
GTA cities, a sudden spurt in
the crime rate during the
past four years, lack of indus-
try and the resultant unem-
ployment apart from absence
of quality healthcare.
Candidates ignorant
Most of the candidates are
busy campaigning at their
highest pitch, though they
are ‘silent’ over an array of
serious issues that grapple
people. They are hardly
seen talking about these
during open debates and
discussions.
Residents await facilities
For Deepinder Singh Loom-
ba, a community activist
and a paralegal expert, the
biggest issue is lack of
industry and quality health-
care in Brampton.
“No one has ever thought
to bring or attract industry
to the city. For this reasons,
Bramptonians, mostly Pun-
jabis, travel 50 to 75 km dai-
ly to reach their workplace.
Mississauga on the other
hand, has become an indus-
trial, educational and
healthcare hub within the
past few years. Mississauga
has three hospitals and here
we have just one which
remains overly congested
all the time. Moreover, there
is no university in Bramp-
ton,” rued Loomba.
“I think the biggest issue
concerning Punjabis is to
keep the next generation
close to their culture and
values,” said Balbir Sohi, a
dental professional. “Where
are the employment oppor-
tunities? Why we are
shelling out such a high rate
of property tax and auto
insurance rates,” said Man-
an Gupta, an activist.
"Increasing street fight in
particular and spurt in
crime in general is a major
issue in a city which had
hardly seen such law and
order problems till about
five years ago," said Deepak
Punj, owner of Toronto-
based Radio Frontline.
Tribune News Service
Barnala, October 14
Two persons were shot
dead, while another sus-
tained bullet injuries on the
outskirts of Bhadaur town
in the district late on Sun-
day evening. The accused
fled after the incident. The
police are conducting raids
to nab them.
Harjeet Singh, SSP, Bar-
nala, said: “A farmer,
Bahadur Singh, along with
two-three accomplices
opened fired on three other
farmers of the area. Happy
Singh and Jagdeep Singh
died of bullet injuries on
way to the Barnala civil hos-
pital, while Gursewak
Singh is under treatment.”
During preliminary
investigation, it has come
to light that the accused,
Bahadur Singh, was hav-
ing a dispute over one acre
of land with the deceased.
The police had intervened
to pacify both the groups
last year as well.
The victims were return-
ing home on Sunday
evening. When they
reached near the disputed
land, the accused fired gun-
shots at them.
“The land in question is
located on the outskirts of
Bhadaur. We are investi-
gating the motive behind
the killings. Our teams are
conducting raids to arrest
Bahadur and his accom-
plices. A case of murder
has been registered,” the
officer said.
Trader held
for Ludhiana
contract killing
Ludhiana, October 14
Three days after an architect,
Mandeep Kumar Bansal, was
murdered by a bike-borne
assailant at Dugri, the city
police on Sunday arrested
key conspirator Balwinder
Singh, who had hired the
killer for Rs 15 lakh.
Balwinder, who was in the
spare parts business, was
nabbed from near Guru
Nanak Engineering College.
Dugri SHO Rajesh Thakur
said the police nabbed him
following a tip-off that he
was travelling on the Gill
Road. He would be produced
in the court on Monday to
seek his police remand.
Weapon mortgaged?
Sources said the weapon
used in the crime was
allegedly mortgaged by
someone to the landlord of
shooter Gurvinder Singh
for Rs 1 lakh. The police
are looking for the weapon
licence holder and the
landlord. — TNS
THE TRIBUNE
CHANDIGARH | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018
Much talk, little action on
illegal transport permits
Despite promises, Cong govt fails to cancel licences
Ruchika M Khanna
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 14
A year and a half after assum-
ing office, the Congress
seems to be dilly-dallying on
cancelling “illegal” route per-
mits granted by the then
Akali-BJP government to
transport companies owned
by politicians.
There is no stay by any
court on issuing notices for
the cancellation of almost
13,000 route permits (includ-
ing 3,200 for operating
minibuses on rural link roads
and district roads), but the
government has failed to act.
In February, the regional
transport authorities had
started issuing notices to
transporters over unautho-
rised extension on stage car-
riage permits. Seven of them
moved court. In May, a single
judge Bench granted a stay
on the issuance of notices.
The government then filed an
appeal before a double Bench
of the Punjab and Haryana
High Court in one case. In
July, the double Bench grant-
ed stay on the earlier order by
a single judge Bench, which
had set aside show-cause
notices to bus operators.
This means that other than
the remaining six licensees
whose notices had been
quashed in May and against
whom the state has not filed an
appeal, the government is free
to act against others who were
granted illegal permits, includ-
ing the transport companies
owned by top politicians of both
the SAD and the Congress.
Officially, the government line
SAD: FM burdening
people with taxes
Chandigarh: The SAD on Sunday
accused Finance Minister
Manpreet Badal of burdening
the common man with taxes
on the pretext of poor financial
condition of the exchequer.
Former Finance Minister
Upinderjit Kaur said Manpreet
had also tried to scuttle social
welfare schemes and pro-poor
policies when he was the FM
in the SAD-BJP government.
He was the biggest advocate
of doing away with
subsidies, she said. TNS
Probe bribery charge
against jail staff: LoP
Sangrur: Leader of Opposition
Harpal Singh Cheema has
demanded action against
Sangrur jail officers, who have
been accused of bribery by
inmates. "Seven jail inmates not
only prepared a video inside the
jail, but also uploaded it on the
social media. It shows that there
is no check on the use of mobile
phones and other illegal activities
in Sangrur jail. The inmates
have levelled serious allegations
against the jail staff. TNS
De-addiction centres lack test kits
Karam Prakash
Tribune News Service
Patiala, October 14
Facing a shortage of urine
test kits, the Health
Department has directed
all civil surgeons in the
state to purchase these kits
for Outpatient Opioid
Assisted Treatment
(OOAT) clinics and drug
de-addiction centres.
Sources in the Health
Department said most of
these OOAT clinics either
don’t have urine test kits
or were facing its shortage
for the last few months. In
fact, civil surgeons have
been asked to make
arrangements at the local
level until the Punjab
Health Systems Corpora-
tion (PHSC) finalises the
process for purchasing
these kits.
The sources said the
POWERFUL LOBBY CALLING THE SHOTS
■ The transport business in the state is mainly
run by politicians from both Akali Dal and Con-
gress. Since they were the policy-makers, they
framed rules to suit their business interests.
■ Private firms had been allowed illegal
extension of routes (beyond 24 km),
besides diversion and curtailment of
routes as per convenience.
is that they are “in the process of
scrapping illegal permits”.
Though CM Capt
Amarinder Singh could not
be contacted, his media
adviser Raveen Thukral said
the CM was clear that these
illegal permits had to be can-
celled as per the court orders.
Unofficially, the corridors of
power are abuzz that the pow-
erful transport lobby, which
has members from across the
political spectrum, has “man-
aged its way”. Perhaps this is
the reason that after almost
three months of the HC order
granting a stay on the previous
New norms for rehab
centres rattle doctors
Vishav Bharti
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 14
The state government’s
recent communication
regarding conditions to run
drug de-addiction centres
has rattled psychiatrists.
They fear that the govern-
ment is out to benefit the
big players.
The Association of Psy-
chiatrists claimed that the
requirements being put
forward by the government
would make it difficult for
private psychiatrists to
practice with inpatient de-
addiction facilities.
“Only businessmen and
big players, who already own
dozens of centres, can open
more with these require-
ments,” said Dr Simmi
Waraich, vice-president,
Association of Psychiatrists.
B Srinivasan, Additional
Secretary (Health), has sent
a detailed checklist to the
district health authorities
The Red Cross Integrated Rehabilitation Centre for Addicts in Patiala.
FACING SHORTAGE
■ Most of these OOAT clinics
either don't have urine test
kits or were facing its short-
age for the last few months.
■ The Congress had promised to break the
monopoly of powerful bus operators. A new
transport policy was announced in July
2017, but no illegal permits were cancelled.
■ Nearly 650 transporters were issued notices
in February. Seven of them moved court.
Though there is no order restricting the gov-
ernment to act, nothing has been done so far.
order of setting aside of notices
to the transporters, no further
notices have been issued and
the buses continue to ply with
unauthorised permits. Even
the new AC buses bought by
the state transport undertak-
ings are reportedly running on
“non-profitable” routes.
If sources are to be believed,
officers being posted as the
State Transport Commission-
er (STC) are being shifted out
after two to three months. The
Transport Department has
seen seven STCs since Janu-
ary. Though no official is will-
ing to go on record, it is
❝
Only businessmen
and big players, who
already own dozens of
centres, can open more
with these requirements.
Dr Simmi Waraich, VICE-PRESIDENT,
ASSOCIATION OF PSYCHIATRISTS
and told them to make sure
that each de-addiction cen-
tre complied with the guide-
lines mentioned in the com-
munication.
The guidelines, besides
asking to make it sure that
the OPD area at the centre
should not be less than 312
sq metre, also asks the dis-
trict health authorities to
check whether the record
and registration room at
the centre is less than 60 sq
metre. According to it, con-
sultation chamber should
be 30 sq foot and pharmacy
24 sq metre.
To run an indoor facility,
they should have 8 sq metre
■ The shortage arose after the
state govt made dope test
mandatory for applicants
seeking arms licences.
PUNJAB
WORKING OUT WAY
❝ We are working
out the correct way
to implement the
court order
regarding the
cancellation of
illegal permits. Once
done, we will cancel
all such permits.❞
Dilraj Singh Sandhawalia,
STATE TRANSPORT COMMISSIONER
There is no stay by court
on issuing notices for the
cancellation of 13,000
route permits, but the
govt has failed to act.
believed that as soon as the
task to issue notices is under-
taken by the STC, he is shifted.
Dilraj Singh Sandhawalia,
State Transport Commission-
er, told The Tribune that they
had already made a strategy for
the cancellation of 3,200 permits
issued to minibus operators.
“We are yet to decide on the min-
imum number of seats to be
allowed for a vehicle to be given
a minibus permit and the dis-
tance to be allowed on each
route. We cannot cancel the per-
mits immediately, as we do not
have an alternative system of
transport in rural areas,” he said.
area after per bed, three
security guards, four nurses
and a pantry and recreation-
al activity room should be
there in 18 sq metre each.
The Association of Psychi-
atrists has also demanded to
meet the Health Minister in
this regard. They said
according to the Interna-
tional Narcotics Control
Board guidelines, impedi-
ments to treatment should
be removed, adding that the
quality of care along with
accessibility and affordabil-
ity was emphasised by the
WHO also. “Such require-
ments have not been noti-
fied earlier. These require-
ments are made for
government de-addiction
centres and not private
small indoor/ OPD clinics,”
said Dr Waraich.
She claimed that they do
not seem to be rational in
terms of space required for
different chambers in a
small nursing home.
shortage arose after the
state government made
dope test mandatory for
all applicants seeking
arms licences.
In its absence, doctors
have to rely on physical
examinations to see
whether an individual is an
addict or not. A counsellor
at an OOAT clinic in Patiala
said, “We have been facing
shortage of these kits for
the last few months.”
Dr Manjit Singh, Civil
Surgeon, Patiala, said, “I
have received the direc-
tions and will release funds
for purchasing the kits”.
The Health Department
has now made urine test
mandatory for all drug
addicts before initiating
treatment. Earlier, urine
test was conducted only in a
few cases where drug detec-
tion was difficult.
03
Registered
plots to have
own number
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 14
The state government has
decided to give a unique
number to the plots of gov-
ernment and government-
approved colonies in the
revenue records which will
show the ‘khasra’ number
as well as the plot number.
This step of the Revenue
Department is aimed at
saving people from
swindlers. Under this
scheme, those who want Anandpur Sahib MP Prem Singh Chandumajra and Sanaur MLA Harinder Pal Singh with the
to purchase property in protesting teachers in Patiala on Sunday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: RAJESH SACHAR
cities or on the periphery
Teachers to observe ‘black
will get a separate ‘khe-
wat’ (ownership) number
which will do away with
the common account (san-
jha khata) of land.
Now, common land for
roads, parks, streets and
week’ over salary cut move
drains cannot be sold out Tribune News Service ernment, Anandpur Sahib
because such land will
formed a separate ‘khewat’ Patiala, October 14
❝ I make a strong
appeal to the state
MP Prem Singh Chandu-
majra on Sunday said the
in the revenue record. The A day after the teachers’ government to regularise state government was
work is being initiated as a “pol khol” rally, the protest- jobs of teachers at full pay harassing teachers by cut-
pilot project in Sector 79, ers have decided to observe ting down their salary by
Mohali, by the Greater “black week” from Monday,
scale at the earliest. 75 per cent. After meeting
Prem Singh Chandumajra,
Mohali Area Development during which they will the protesting teachers,
AKALI DAL MP
Authority (GMADA). attend schools wearing the Akali leader said,
Revenue Minister black ribbons. “I make a strong appeal to
Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria Teachers will also burn has led the former to boy- the state government
said the records would be an effigy of the state gov- cott the “Padho Punjab to regularise jobs of teach-
updated in such a manner ernment after school Padhao Punjab” project. ers at full pay scale at
that when a coloniser sells a hours. They are on an The decision came after the earliest.”
plot a tatima and field book indefinite strike since two teachers — Gopi He added that the SAD
will be prepared for that October 7, demanding reg- Chand and Bhag Singh — would request the HRD
particular plot so that every ularisation of jobs at full from Hoshiarpur were Ministry to stop the
plot gets a unique number pay scale. served a show-cause notice release of funds to the
in the revenue records and Hardeep Todarpur, state by the Education Depart- state government if the
will ultimately form an convener, Sanjha Adhyapak ment for leaving a What- latter continued to harass
independent ‘khewat’. He Morcha, said, “We will sApp group. the teachers in the state.
said a map of the residential observe ‘black week’ across The group was made on He said a delegation
colony would be superim- the state from Monday. No the initiative of the gov- would meet the Governor
posed on the revenue map. one from the state govern- ernment for better coordi- to complain against the
A specific plot will get ment has approached us for nation among the teachers Secretary, Education, for
registered in the buyer’s a dialogue.” at the district and block falsely claiming that 94 per
name rather than part of The ongoing tussle levels to improve the edu- cent of the teachers had
the colony, as was the ear- between the teachers and cation system. agreed to regularisation at
lier practice. the Education Department Hitting out at the gov- Rs 15,300 per month.
Jalandhar woman ‘gangraped’, 4 held
Our Correspondent she developed relations. She narrated the ordeal to
She alleged that on October Siri’s grandmother and aunt.
Jalandhar, October 14 10, Siri organised his birthday However, instead of helping her,
A 24-year-old woman of Basti party at his home and invited they assaulted the victim accus-
Bawa Khel, Jalandhar, was friends. Siri, Sonu and their ing her of stealing items from
allegedly gangraped twice on four friends took her to the the house. Her medical exami-
October 10. She alleged that fields and raped her. Escaping nation confirmed that she was
she was first gangraped by a drug addict, got the woman from the fields, she took refuge sexually assaulted.
six persons at Lakhanpur a job at a gas plant and later at Dayalpur village in the house A case under Sections 376
Khole village in Kapurthala. lured her into drugs. She said of an acquaintance, Satpal (D), 323, 354 (B) and 506 of the
Jasveer Singh, alias Siri, Bholu introduced her to drug Singh, who along with his IPC and 21, 22 and 29 of the
Sonu and Siri’s friends raped peddler Sonu, who pushed friends Sukhwinder Singh, NDPS Act has been registered
her in nearby fields. her into drug supply. Ravinder Singh and Kulwinder against the accused. Satpal,
Satnam Singh, SHO, said The woman then shifted to Singh, who work as security Ravinder, Sukhvinder and
Bholu, who worked at a Kapurthala and took a room guards in an industrial unit, Kulwinder have been arrested,
Jalandhar gas agency and was on rent from Siri, with whom allegedly gangraped her. while the rest are on the run.
DETAIL NOTICE INVITING TENDER
Memo No. EE-III&IV/MCG/F-6/2018/45275 Dated:- 9.10.18
E-Tender is invited for purchase of below mentioned items in single stage two cover system i.e. request for Pre-Qualification/Technical
Bid (online Bid under PQQ/Technical Envelope) and request for Financial Bid (comprising of price bid Proposal under online available
Commercial Envelope):-
Sr. Description of work/Items DNIT EMD to Time Tender Tender document download and Bid
No. amount be limit document fee preparation/submission
to Rs. in deposited months/ & E-Service
lakh by Bidder years fee (Rs.) Start date & time Expiry date & time
1. Balance work of Library at Community 09.10.2018
1 1000 + 1000 = 24.10.2018
Centre at Begampur Khatola (Ward No. 12.55 25100/- 10.00 a.m. to
26) under MCG.
Month 2000
17.00 p.m.
17.00 p.m.
2. Construction of Public Toilet at Tau Devi 2 1000 + 1000 =
07.00 14000/- –Do– –Do–
Lal Stadium Rajiv Chowk, Gurugram. Months 2000
1. The detail tender notice can be seen on website: http://mcgurugram.haryanaeprocurement.gov.in
2. Possession of Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) and registration of the portal i.e. http://mcgurugram.haryanaeprocurement.gov.in
is a prerequisite for eprocurement. Kindly contact O/o Nextenders (India) Pvt. Ltd., Municipal Corporation, Faridabad, Near B.K. Chowk,
Opp. B.K. Hospital, NIT Faridabad Contact Persons Sh. Tinku - 9810335475.
3. For any other queries, please contact Executive Engineer, Division No. III&lV, Municipal Corporation, Gurugram Tel (M) 9821395203
Gmail Address:- ee3@mcg.gov.in & office Address:- C-1 Infocity Building, Sector 34, Gurugram.
4. Any resident of MCG who has stake in any of these works and wishes to be a member of the Citizen Supervisory Committee to be
set up by the MCG for supervision of the execution of works on the ground, may submit their willingness giving name, address, academic
qualification, professional experience and contact phone number to the undersigned before opening of the tenders.
For & on behalf of Commissioner MCG
Sd/- Executive Engineer-III&IV, MCG.
PRDH/72770
GOVERNMENT OF PUNJAB,
DEPARTMENT OF WATER SUPPLY & SANITATION PUNJAB
TENDER NOTICE INVITING ONLINE BIDS
No. E-Tender-2/WSSD/Div.No.1 Patiala/EE/2018-19 Dated: 12-10-2018
Tenders are invited from eligible bidders for the works detailed in the following table. The tender form “along with conditions of contract” to be fulfilled can be
filled on the website https://eproc.punjab.gov.in. Tender processing Fee will be accepted through online system through Net Banking (Direct Debit) & IPG
(Credit/Debit Card) only. Earnest money is to be deposited online in A/C No. 2918000100286588 Punjab National Bank Patiala of Executive Engineer, W/S &
Sanitation Division No. 1, Patiala. Bids shall not be opened without the receipt of processing fee and earnest money up to the stipulated time. In case, due to
some administrative reasons, the date of opening of tenders is changed, notice/corrigendum shall be hoisted on website only and shall not appear in any
newspaper. The tender will be opened on date and time mentioned below in the presence of contractors or their representatives who may like to be present.
Sr. Name of work Approx Bids Tender Period of Last date & Time Date Period
No. value of Security Processing downloading time for of Opening of com-
work (Rs. (Rs. in Fee (Rs) of Bidding submission of Technical pletion
in lacs) lacs) Document of Bid Bids
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
1 Providing and Installing New Tubewell size 200mm i/d Straight As per As per As per 15.10.2018 to 30.10.2018 As per As per
upto 250 mtr depth with reverse rotary rig in place of old failed website website website 30.10.2018 up up to 17.00 website website
Tubewell No. 2 at Rajindra Hospital, Patiala and 5 Nos. works to 17.00 hours hours
of Renovation & Upgradation of P.H. Services in Rajindra
College & Govt. Medical College Patiala.
For Detailed Tender Notice for various works kindly refer website https://eproc.punjab.gov.in
TERMS & CONDITIONS:-
1. For Detailed Terms and Conditions of the notice inviting bids refer to website https://eproc.punjab.gov.in
2. The eligible bidders who do not possess DSC (Digital Signature Certificate) and are interested in online bidding can get the same issued from approved
agencies and for any other query may contact helpline number 0172-2791226, 0172-2791326, 0175-2222617.
3. Conditional tender shall not be accepted and will be rejected.
4. In case any of the above attachments are not received by us as an attachment to the bid, we shall not be liable to ask for it again (even if historical in
nature) and the bid shall be termed as non-responsive.
For & on behalf of Governor of Punjab
Sd/- Executive Engineer,
DPR/PB/D2637 W/S & Sanitation Div. No. 1, Patiala.
04 PUNJAB THE TRIBUNE
GURUGRAM | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018

Don’t burn, earn from Punjab Diary

straw, says IIM-A study
Students lay stress on alternative ways to utilise paddy waste
Divya Sharma
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, October 14
A group of students of the
Indian Institute of Manage-
ment-Amritsar (IIM-A) has
suggested ways to farmers
to utilise paddy straw and
earn money instead of
burning it.
The study dwells upon the
alternative ways to utilise
the paddy waste. The study
was carried out for a period
of three months from July
to September.
Students Sawan Khapne,
Shivam Rana, and Shailen-
dra Singh visited the Khot
Khalsa area here and inter-
CM shows officers who’s the boss
Chandigarh: His critics often accuse Chief Minister Capt
Amarinder Singh of depending too heavily on his advisers
and bureaucrats. However, at the inauguration of a region-
al workshop on drugs, organised by the United Nations
Office on Drugs and Crime, the CM made it clear that it was
he who called the shots. At the start of his address to dele-
gates from several countries, Capt Amarinder said he
would not read out the speech handed over to him by offi-
cers. Keeping the pages aside, he said there was much
more to the issue than figures and data.
Students of Indian Institute of Management interact with a farmer in Amritsar. TRIBUNE PHOTO
Not in my name, fumes Manpreet
Bathinda: Known for his stand against VIP culture, Finance
Minister Manpreet Singh Badal on Sunday refused to
inaugurate a new auditorium at a girls’ college here, saying
that first his name should be removed from the inauguration
stone. The college management pasted a tape over his
name and assured him that they would erase it later,
following which the FM did the honours. At another function,
Manpreet politely refused to accept a leather wallet gifted by
a shop owner. He was in his constituency, Bathinda Urban,
to inaugurate a leather goods shop. The FM quipped, “We
are not allowed to take gifts. It is a form of corruption.
Corruption naal jail ho jandi hai te main bachke rehna hai
(Corruption can land you in jail. I want to play it safe).”
Bike-borne ex-cop out to save groundwater
Patiala: A retired police inspector, Gurcharan Singh, rides a
bicycle with a placard that reads: “Paani hou tan rukh honge,
Dharti utte manukh honge (If there is water, trees will grow
and humans will survive).” He says, “A year ago, I read an
article in The Tribune about the depleting groundwater level
in Punjab. It haunted me for days. Soon, I started travelled
across the state on my bicycle to spread the message of
water conservation.” Gurcharan fears that if the people of

acted with farmers to
understand their problems
and the reasons for burning
stubble. The farmers
acknowledged that despite
government efforts, burn-
ing still remained an easy
option to dispose of straw.
The study proposed
mushroom cultivation and
gasification process for
using paddy straw in pro-
ducing biochar to be con-
verted into biofuel, besides
management of residue in
fields by growing crops with
leftover stubble. It also sug-
gested use of straw in mak-
ing bio-concrete for the con-
struction of buildings.
For effective implementa-
tion of these alternatives,
the students focused on 31
villages of Verka, near
❝
Punjab don’t realise the pressing need to save underground
PROPOSED STEPS The chain begins with Education Minister OP Soni with the meritorious students of
water, the state would turn into Rajasthan in a few decades.
■ The farmers selling straw to PSEB exams at his residence in Chandigarh. TRIBUNE PHOTO
study proposed mushroom cultivation and
gasification process for using paddy straw in producing service provider. They can For some, sycophancy is best policy
biochar to be converted into biofuel take help of labourers or Minister plays it safe, honours pupils at home Jalandhar: As IPS officer Gurpreet Singh Bhullar recently
■ Management of residue in fields by growing crops with cooperative societies. The Chandigarh: Students who performed well in Classes X and began his third stint in Jalandhar, this time as the Police
leftover stubble XII examinations of the Punjab School Education Board were Commissioner, the entire city was dotted with hoardings
straw needs to be honoured recently at the residence of Education Minister OP welcoming him. Various intersections were covered with
■ It also suggested use of straw in making bio-concrete for
transported to markets Soni. The choice of the venue raised many eyebrows. such illegal structures carrying the pictures of the sponsors —
the construction of buildings
Dr Neeraj Bhanot, PROFESSOR Justifying the decision, Soni said the board auditorium was with folded hands. Throughout the week, pictures appeared
under repair. A fellow Congress MLA said: “Actually, the almost daily in newspapers and on social media, showing
Amritsar, and divided vested,” said Dr Neeraj kets. The chain begins with minister was afraid that protesting teachers might ruin the opportunists presenting bouquets to Bhullar in his office.
these into four clusters for Bhanot, professor, who farmers selling straw to the function in case it was held at a public place.”
an easy distribution of supervised the study. service provider. These
equipment and collection The straw can be procured service providers shall pro- When Mann made AAP MLA move over
of paddy waste. from farmers by companies cure straw directly from Chandigarh/Bathinda: Shiromani Akali
“The supply chain man- or NGOs termed as service fields or from traders. Dal (Amritsar) chief Simranjit Singh Mann
agement is basically a jour- providers. These service “We have not only designed has a knack for making his presence felt.
ney of procuring a thing till providers can take help of this chain, but have also pro- During the Bargari congregation on
it reaches its destination. I labourers engaged by gov- posed the alternative uses. October 7, the former MP had stood up to
have interacted with many ernment bodies or coopera- The chain shall also help address the gathering when AAP’s Maur
farmers. The aim is to tive societies. The straw farmers make money by sell- MLA Jagdev Singh Kamalu sat down too
develop a pattern that can needs to be transported to ing straw,” said Sawan Khap- close to Mann. He got irritated and Simranjit Singh Mann
be followed as paddy is har- processing units or mar- ne, a student. virtually kicked Kamalu in full public view.
A video clip of the incident soon went viral. Kamalu was
quoted as saying by a web channel, “People are making a
mountain out of a molehill. The dais was packed to capacity

10-hr power supply on alternate days to farmers and we somehow managed to sit beside Mann. He felt
uncomfortable and just asked us to shift a bit.” TNS

Tribune News Service
Patiala, October 14
Punjab State Power Corpo-
ration Limited (PSPCL) will
provide 10 hours of power
supply to agricultural con-
sumers on alternate days in
the state from October 14 to
RABI SEASON
March 31 in the rabi season.
Following directions of the
state government, nominated
feeders of the vegetable group
will get five hours daily power
supply in a day. Power Minister
Gurpreet Singh Kangar said
for this purpose, feeders of
each substation were divided
into four groups. “Under the
initiative, power supply will be
given to two groups in one day
and to the other two groups on
the next day,” he said.
Kangar said in the same way
agricultural consumers of bor-
der areas of the state would
also be provided 10 hours of
power supply on alternate
days. He added that if a con-
sumer complained of not get-
ting power supply due to tech-
nical reasons, the department
would ensure supply to him in
the next 24 hours.
Newly married MLA gets surprise visitor
Bathinda: Despite being opposition parties, the SAD and AAP are
not on the same page over most issues. However, Union Minister
and SAD MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal recently paid a surprise visit
to AAP MLA from Bathinda (rural) Rupinder Kaur Ruby to
congratulate the latter on her wedding. She spent time with the
couple and wished them a blissful married life. The meeting was A hoarding welcomes new Commisioner of Police Gurpreet
a breath of fresh air amid bitter political showdowns. Singh Bhullar in Jalandhar. TRIBUNE PHOTO: MALKIAT SINGH
JUPINDERJIT SINGH, SANJEEV SINGH BARIANA, PERNEET SINGH, SUKHMEET BHASIN, KARAM PRAKASH AND DEEPKAMAL KAUR

COMMENT
Arhtiyas ask govt to clear paddy glut Sporting event
‘Fairness’ is key in Our Correspondent
to promote
Sikh culture
govt employment
Abohar, October 14 New Delhi, October 14
The state government A sporting event aimed at
claimed that the purchase promoting Sikh culture and
of paddy was being done by tradition and creating
Kuljit Bains other employees are young people starting state agencies at the MSP awareness against obesity
their service, while these teachers are mid- without any hassle, even as and drug menace will be

A
proposal of the government to
regularise a certain set of teachers
has triggered a storm of protest that
is gathering steam by the day. It is a
classic case of multiple challenges such as
ad hoc planning, lack of finances, poor
execution, high rate of unemployment, and
political expediency, all coming together
in one place. The solution, therefore, will
also be a test of the government’s
approach to all those issues. It has two
options — to tide over the crisis with a
band-aid, or address the core problems.
The more fundamental question is of
hiring employees on contract, against
the high ideals of job security and work-
ers’ dignity. The issue is, thus, spread
across nearly all sectors of government
services, but education is particularly
affected because of it being among the
largest employers.
A key expectation in government employ-
ment is fairness in the terms of hiring. Over
the years — amidst paucity of funds and
multiple sources of aid and financing — the
hiring of teachers has happened under var-
ious ‘schemes’ that became available at dif-
ferent times for specific goals to be
achieved. As those schemes get modified,
or even wind up, teachers’ terms of employ-
ment have also been changed. Theoretical-
ly, they can even lose the jobs.
As things stand today, myriad sets of con-
tracts have been executed for essentially the
same set of employees, i.e. teachers. While
career and mid-life, with family liabilities that the Arhtiyas’ Association held in Delhi in December.
come with time. An even more crucial factor reiterated on Sunday that This was stated by the
is the basic principle that benefits once given sincere efforts were needed president of Delhi Sikh
are usually not taken away. And in this case, to clear the glut in the new Gurdwara Management
their total emoluments will come down from grain market here. Committee Manjit Singh
more than Rs 40,000 to around Rs 15,000. The “We stand by the com- GK on Sunday.
implications are not hard to understand, irre- plaints made to the sub- Inspired by the annual
spective of the government’s justifications.
The teachers have the option of continuing
divisional and district offi-
cers and demand action,”
❝ Till October 12, only 58.95 per cent of
the arrival recorded in market was
Australian Sikh Games, the
three-day-long ‘Delhi Sikh
on their current contracts too, which may also Anil Nagori, president of purchased. Paddy has to be stacked in Games’ will be a mix of tra-
be a reasonable situation but for the fact that the association, said. open and farmers are spending sleepless ditional and modern sports,
under their specific arrangement, the pay- Reacting to The Tribune nights to take care of their produce including Sikh martial arts,
ment of salary has been irregular. This forces report (‘Nexus between Anil Nagori, ARHTIYAS’ ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT kabaddi, arms twisting,
them to take loans every now and then to tide millers, govt agencies: gymnastics and basket-
over delays in payment, which is dependent Arhtiyas’, October 13), A glut of paddy at the new grain market in Abohar on Sunday. TRIBUNE PHOTO ball,” he said.
on the funds from the Centre being received Anindita Mitra, Director, The event will be held at
by the state. This aspect needs to be Food, Civil Supplies and chased 226 MT at the MSP “We had given a written momentum,” he said. Thyagraj stadium and oth-
addressed by the state by ensuring it tides Consumer Affairs, Punjab, of Rs 1,770 per quintal. complaint to the sub-divi- Nagori said farmers and er venues from December
over the gaps from its own money, perhaps by said, “The matter was There was no purchase by sional administration on arhtiyas had on Saturday 22 to 25.
setting up a buffer fund for the purpose, probed by District Con- private millers,” it said. October 12. The association taken up the matter with “The Delhi Sikh Games
which may be replenished when the money troller along with District “Till October 12, only raised eyebrows over the District Food and Supplies are being organised to tap
from the Centre comes. Mandi Officer. A total of 58.95 per cent of the arrival meeting that some private officer Atinder Kaur and the sporting talents of Sikh
It is perhaps time to step back and take a 4,680 MT paddy had arrived recorded here was pur- millers had with state agen- Punsup District Manager youth and create awareness
fresh look at the hugely stratified cadre of in Abohar up to October 12, chased. There is a glut cies officials in a hotel in Jain Vijay Kumar on their visit to against obesity and drug
school teachers. The different sets of teach- of which 2,759 MT was pro- across the market. Paddy Nagar and demanded CCTV the grain market. “Farmers menace besides promoting
ers were created over the years as they were cured by state agencies. had to be stacked in open footage should be examined are feeling harassed. Delay our culture,” he said.
paid for under different sources of financing, Pungrain purchased 1,249 and farmers were spending to ascertain our fears about in purchase at MSP and lift- “Around 4,000 youths
whether the Central government or interna- MT, Markfed 835 MT, Pun- nights to take care of their some nexus as purchase and ing may force them to go for drawn from nearly 100 educa-
tional aid agencies. That may have served sup 448 MT and PAFC pur- produce,” Nagori said. lifting was not gaining distress sale,” he added. tional institutions across Del-
the felt need of the time, but has added up to hi-NCR will compete in the
become counter-productive. The situation games and organisers will
obtained today is that the workforce is a sponsor winners for training
huge patchwork of sub-cadres; perhaps it is
time to bring them under one umbrella.
Amalgamation of all teachers as regular
Muktsar farmer
dies of snakebite Bank fraud: Bail to Doda’s in Australia,” he said.
The local Sikh community
in Australia annually holds

kin, associates cancelled

individual teachers may be given justice employees has to be the goal, but it can only Muktsar: A 40-year-old Sikh Games to promote its
under their specific terms of engagement, be achieved with both the Centre and state farmer reportedly died of culture. The Australian
there is no common scale against which the working in close coordination to rework the snakebite at Akalgarh village Sikh Games, 2019, will be
workers’ benefits may be compared. That financing agreements. here on Saturday evening. held in Melbourne where
leaves very little scope for natural justice, The current agitation is being addressed by Shaminder Singh had gone Our Correspondent ta, son Gagan, brother of a former Intelligence athletes from across Aus-
which is the foremost reason behind the people with limited mandate, such as the to fields to bring green Joginder Pal Doda, associ- Bureau (IB) officer Sat Pal tralia as well as New
anger among teachers protesting in Patiala. minister or the Education Department fodder for animals, where a Abohar, October 14 ates Rakesh Lakra, Rahul Thatai to enhance their Zealand, Singapore and
The option of regular service offered to bureaucrats. They can at best put a lid on the snake bit him. He was The court of the Additional Wadhwa and Amit Arora in cash credit limit from Pun- Malaysia will take part.
them lays down the condition that they will anger by offering some ‘compromise formu- immediately taken to a District and Sessions Judge a case that was registered at jab National Bank. The Delhi Sikh Games
join on the same terms as all other employees la’, but that will only put off the crisis to a lat- hospital, where doctors at Fazilka on Saturday can- the city police station here The district court passed will be hosted by city-based
of the government, who are paid just the er date. The government — as the largest declared him brought dead. celled the bail that was on February 9. the orders cancelling the philanthropic organisation
basic pay and no other allowances for three employer in the state — has some serious He is survived by wife, two granted in March and April It was alleged that they bail while allowing revision Jaap Seva Trust in partner-
years. On the face of it, that seems a very rea- introspection to do on the State-citizen and children and an elderly this year to liquor baron connived and mortgaged petition filed by the prose- ship with DSGMC and Pun-
sonable stipulation. But the difference is that employer-employee relationship. mother. TNS Shiv Lal Doda’s wife Suni- prime commercial property cution on July 21. jabi Academy. — PTI
THE TRIBUNE
GURUGRAM | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018
Newborn girl dies,
doctor manhandled
Jhajjar: The relatives of a
woman, who delivered a girl
two days ago, allegedly
manhandled a doctor on
duty at the General Hospital
in Bahadurgarh on Sunday
after the newborn died. The
family has accused the doc-
tor of negligence in treat-
ment. The police have start-
ed an investigation. Lalit
Kumar, the doctor, denying
the charge of negligence
said the newborn was given
the best possible treatment
but her relatives manhan-
dled him twice without any
fault of his. TNS
Revoke suspension
of employees: Union
Faridabad: The tussle
between the district unit of
the Haryana Roadways Work-
ers Union (HRWU) and the
Transport Department got
renewed with the suspension
of eight employees of the
local depot under the ESMA
regulation. The union has
threatened to protest if the
suspension was not with-
drawn. The seven employees,
all office-bearers of the HRWU
affiliated to the Sarva Karam-
charis Sangh, Haryana, were
suspended by the General
Manager (GM) of the local
depot of the Haryana Road-
ways on Friday. TNS
GURUGRAM SHOOTING Commissioner of Police dismisses Judge’s personal security officer from service
Demand for car keys provoked Questions raised over using
guards as drivers, servants
gunman Mahipal, says FIR
Sumedha Sharma
Tribune News Service
Gurugram, October 14
As per the FIR registered at
the Sector 50 police station
here, it was the demand for
car keys by Additional Dis-
trict Judge Krishna Kant’s
son Dhruv that agitated his
gunman Mahipal and he shot
him and his mother Ritu.
The FIR was lodged by
Krishan Kant at 8.15 pm on
Saturday.
“Today, about 3.30 pm,
while I was in court complex
during course of my duty
hours, I received a phone call
from my PSO (personal
security officer) and he told
me that he had shot my wife
Ritu and son Dhruv. I imme-
diately informed my col-
leagues. One of them, RK
Mehta, called my wife’s
number. It was answered by
an unknown man, saying
that a woman and a boy had
been brought to Park Hospi-
tal with gunshot injuries. We
all reached the hospital.
There, my wife told me that
she, along with Dhruv,
reached Arcadia market and
HARYANA
Ritu. When Dhruv came to
her rescue, he shot him also.
The facts were narrated by
Ritu to me in the presence of
my colleague, ADJ Jasbir
Singh Kundu, after which
they were taken to Medanta
Hospital,” reads the FIR
filed by Krishan Kant.
Surender Singh, SHO of
the police station, has said in
his note that he, along with
Sub-Inspector Jaibhagwan,
was present in the police sta-
tion when he received infor-
mation that a woman and a
boy have been shot at near
Arcadia market and they had
been taken to Park Hospital.
The SHO said they went to
Gunman Mahipal (centre) outside the court of Duty Magistrate Park Hospital and gave
in Gurugram on Sunday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: S CHANDAN application to the doctors for
the statement of the victims.
❝ My wife told me that she, along with our son, However, the doctors termed
reached Arcadia market and asked Mahipal to wait the patients unfit for record-
near the car. When they returned, Dhruv asked him ing statement.
to hand over the keys of Honda City. At this, he got The SHO’s note further said
angry. He shouted at them and, without any Krishan Kant, who was also
provocation, rushed fired at my wife❞ present in the hospital, gave
Krishan Kant, ADDITIONAL DISTRICT JUDGE him an application after which
the FIR No. 470 dated October
asked Mahipal to wait near over the keys of Honda City. 13 under Sections 307 of the
the car. When they returned, To this, he got angry. Without IPC and Sections 27, 54 and 59
Dhruv asked him to hand any provocation, he fired at of the Arms Act was registered.
Sushil Manav
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 14
Question are being asked
how some judges and other
officers have been using
policemen provided for secu-
rity as drivers and servants.
On the other hand, judges
complain that they generally
get discarded, disgruntled
and homesick policemen as
guards. They are citing Satur-
day’s incident to substanti-
ate their charge.
“Senior officers of the
police, including SPs and
Police Commissioners, are
indifferent when it comes to
deployment of cops on securi-
ty duty of judges. Only dead-
wood, disgruntled and home-
sick cops are deployed. In the
Gurugram case too, senior
police officers are admitting
that Mahipal was mentally
upset,” said Anubhav Shar-
ma, Additional District and
Sessions Judge, Palwal, and
president of the Haryana
Judges’ Association.
He said personal security of
an officer was a sensitive
issue and normally police-
The Police
❝
Department has been
shifting gunmen
whenever there is a
complaint of any kind. I
have received a
complaint about
gunmen being used as
drivers and servants...
Director General
(Crimes) PK Agarwal
had been sent to
Gurugram to monitor
the investigation.❞
BS Sandhu, DIRECTOR GENERAL OF POLICE
men of good physical and
mental health should be
assigned the duty.
A couple of judges allege they
have to remain at the mercy of
the SP whenever they are not
satisfied with the gunman and
want him changed.
They also say deploying
CISF jawans or from some
other Central forces would
not be a bad idea.
“Everyone is aware how
cops of the Haryana Police
deployed with judges had
fled, leaving the officers in
the lurch at the time of Jat
05
quota violence in February
2016,” said a judge.
Meanwhile, some IPS offi-
cers say policemen provided
to officers as security guards
are generally used as drivers
against the norms.
“We have written to judges
several times that personal
security guards are not to be
used as drivers or servants,
but nothing has changed.
What if a gunman driving a
car is involved in an accident
resulting in fatality to the oth-
er party. His job will be at
stake,” said an IPS officer.
Sharma, however, denied
the judges used their security
guards as drivers in general.
“This is absolutely a non-
issue. Most of our officers don’t
want to give their luxury cars to
anyone else and prefer to drive
themselves,” said Sharma.
Director General of Police
BS Sandhu said the police
had been shifting gunmen
whenever there was a com-
plaint of any kind. On the
use of gunmen as drivers
and servants, the DGP con-
firmed to have received a
complaint in this regard.

His mother, cousin detained Was tortured, alleges uncle

Wheel ride mishap:
Relief to kin of victims
Ambala: Health Minister Anil
Vij has announced ~2 lakh
each from his discretionary
fund to the families of two
girls (cousins) who had died
after falling from a Ferris
wheel ride in Ambala Canton-
ment on August 12. While
Deepmala (25), who was
working as lab technician in a
private hospital, and was to
get married in December,
Anjali (18) was a student of
BA-II at SD College.
Tribune News Service
Rewari, October 14
The police rounded up gun-
man Mahipal’s mother Tir-
pati and her nephew Manoj
Kumar from their house in
Kosli town of the district on
Sunday. Tirpati was detained
in the wee hours, while
Manoj was picked up in the
afternoon. Tirpati came to
Kosli from Gurugram on Sat-
urday evening.
“Manoj had gone to Guru-
gram on October 11 to bring
Tirpati to Kosli. He stayed at
Mahipal’s house for a day.
Mahipal talked to him in a
good mood. Manoj along
with his aunt (bhua) left for
Kosli from Gurugram in the
afternoon and reached Kosli
in the evening,” said Daan
Singh, father of Manoj.
Singh maintained a team
of policewomen came to
his house around 3 am and
took Tirpati to Gurugram
stating that they were to
question her in connection
with the shootout. In the
afternoon, another police
team came to the house
and took Manoj for ques-
tioning, he said.
Meanwhile, residents of
Mahipal’s native Bhungar-
ka village in Mahendra-
garh district are disturbed
over the shooting incident.
They say Mahipal has
brought a bad name to the
village by committing the
ghastly crime.
‘RECRUITMENT
UNDER SCANNER’
❝ The incident once
again raises questions on
the recruitment in the
Police Department. Such
instances shatter the
faith of the civil society
in the state. Claims
of transparency
notwithstanding,
favouritism, corruption
and vested interests of
parties play their part in
recruitment. Police jobs
are priced higher than any
other government job❞
Rajbir Deswal, RETIRED IPS OFFICER
Gurugram, October 14
The uncle of gunman
Mahipal, who shot dead Addi-
tional District Judge Krishna
Kant’s wife and injured his
son here on Saturday, has
alleged the Judge’s family
tortured him.
“His current posting left
him stressed. He was under
pressure, especially from the
Judge’s wife. The family
harassed and misbehaved
with him,” alleged Mahipal’s
uncle Daan Singh in his
❝ Mahipal was demanding
leave for the past many
days, but not even a single
day's leave was granted.
This infuriated him❞
Daan Singh, MAHIPAL’S UNCLE
police statement.
He also said Mahipal was
demanding leave for the past
many days, but not even a sin-
gle day’s leave was granted.
This infuriated him, he said.
Daan Singh also alleged the
police were harassing the
family. “We are cooperating
with the police, but they are
harassing us. Mahipal’s
mother is unwell, but she
picking her during the dead
of the night,” he said.
On Mahipal’s conversion to
Christianity, Daan Singh said
the family was shocked at his
decision. “He would cry alone
after the conversion, but nev-
er told us the reason. One
thing is sure that he was
under pressure,” he added.

Court raps Roadways GM, Poor response Martyrs’ kin threaten to sell
awards ~50,000 cost to staffer to student polls awards if demands not met
Saurabh Malik
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 14
Rapping Haryana Road-
ways General Manager for
acting in “a very casual man-
ner” while passing an order
“actually bordering” on con-
tempt of court, the Punjab
and Haryana High Court
has awarded petitioner-
employee costs of ~50,000. In
all, two “bad” orders were
passed in his case.
The amount is to be paid
by the state to the petitioner
with liberty to recover it
from officers passing two
“illegal orders” in the matter
after affording an opportuni-
ty of hearing to them. The
court, during the course of
hearing, was informed that
Virender Singh Lather
passed first order in 2011,
while Jai Pal Rana passed
the other order in 2015.
Justice Rajiv Narain Raina
asserted the petitioner was
put to litigation expenses
twice over by palpably bad
SERVICE MATTER
■ The amount is to be paid
by the state to the peti-
tioner with liberty to recov-
er it from officers passing
two ‘illegal orders’ in the
service matter.
■ Justice Rajiv Narain Raina
said the petitioner was
put to litigation expenses
twice over by palpably
bad orders and deserved
to be compensated
orders and deserved to be
compensated by award of
costs and damages. Justice
Raina also reminded officers
that administrative order
must disclose reasons.
Justice Rajiv Narain Raina
asserted that an administra-
tive order deciding the rights
of parties was “quasi judicial
determination”. As such, it was
required to disclose reasons
which weighed on the mind of
the authority while making a
decision. “This is because gaps
cannot be filled in an adminis-
trative order by an oral argu-
ment or an affidavit explaining
what was meant by the order,”
Justice Raina added.
The developments took
place on a service matter
petition dealing with
Assured Career Progression
rules filed by Bijender
Singh. General Manager,
Joginder Singh, was present
in the court during the
course of hearing.
Justice Raina observed
Joginder Singh was unable to
make much of the order
under challenge passed by
his predecessor. “The
impugned order dated May
25, 2015, creates even more
confusion than the earlier
order dated May 12, 2011,
which was quashed by this
court with a direction to the
General Manager, Haryana
Roadways, Sonepat, to pass a
fresh order strictly in terms of
the eligibility conditions of
Assured Career Progression
rules of 1998 and 2008,” Jus-
tice Raina added.
Tribune News Service
Faridabad, October 14
The election process for the
student body at the JC Bose
YMCA University of Science
and Technology here has
evoked a poor response.
The elections are due to be
held on October 17. There are
70 seats of Class Representa-
tive (CR) here.
University officials said
that while 95 nominations
have been filed for 57 CR
seats, no one has applied for
13 seats. Only one candidate
each has filed papers for 32
seats of CR so far. Two or
more candidates have filed
nomination at 25 seats.
According to Naresh
Chauhan, Dean, Students
Welfare, candidates with
valid nominations would be
allowed to take part in the
election process.
He said the election of the
CRs would be held between
9.30 am and 11.30 am on Octo-
ber 17. The results would be
No candidates
for 13 seats in
F’bad college
declared at 1 pm the same
day after counting of votes.
Admitting that there were 13
seats where no nomination
has been filed, he said the class
toppers would be nominated
as CR as per the guidelines.
He said the result of those
seats where there is only one
nomination will be declared
after verification of the candi-
date’s papers. Accordingly,
all nominated and elected
CRs would be able to partici-
pate in the process to elect
the office-bearers and the
members of the University
Executive Students Council.
Pradeep Sharma and sell the gallantry awards Centre and the state govern-
Tribune News Service and medals to register our ments, Vijay Kumar demand-
Chandigarh, October 14 protest against the apathetic ed a quota for the kin of the
The kin of the martyrs, who attitude of the governments,” martyrs in the Lok Sabha
made the supreme sacrifice Vijay Kumar, president of the and Rajya Sabha.
in the service of the mother- Shahidon ki Awaz Kalyan More quota for the families
land, have threatened to sell Sangh, an organisation of martyrs in educational
the gallantry awards and
medals to register their
spearheading the agitation of
the martyrs’ kin, said.
institutions and jobs, jobs for
the current generations of
protest against the apathetic Since the majority of martyrs those who made the sacrifice
attitude of the central and belong to Rewari, Mahendra- in 1962, 1965 and 1971 wars
state governments towards garh, Charkhi Dadri and Jhaj- and implementation of ‘one
their long-pending demands. jar districts, the relay fast would rank, one pension’ scheme.
“We have been waiting for be started from one of the these Kumar set a deadline of
the government’s response places, said sangh general sec- November 1 for the authori-
to our genuine demands for retary Raghubir Sharan. ties to accept their demands
years without any success. Demanding a compensa- failing which they would be
Now, we will go on a relay fast tion of ~1 crore each from the forced to launch an agitation.
No.-16013/ITBP/Engr./2nd /Tender/2018-2826 Dated 11.10.18
Office of the Commandant, 2nd Bn
lndo-Tibetan-Border Police Force
PO- Babeli, Distt. Kullu (HP)
TENDER NO. ITBP/2nd BN/ENGR/ 2018-E-PROCUREMENT
E-TENDER NOTICE
On behalf of the President of India, Commandant, 2nd Bn ITB Police, PO- Babeli,
Distt. Kullu (HP) — 175138 invites sealed item rate tenders from firms/contractors
registered in appropriate class with CPWD, PWD, Railways, Telecom, MES & IPH (H.P)
having GST registration under Two bid system (Technical Bid & Commercial Bid) for
the mentioned below:-
Sr. Name of Work Estimated Earnest Time Bid Date of
No. Cost (Rs:) Money allowed for submission opening of
(Rs.) completion End date Bid

WW-II soldier’s family awaits his ashes

Deepender Deswal German Infantry division at our religious rites. We are
1. Construction of Rs. Rs.
Kitchen and dining 40,80,329/- 81,610/-
hall at Pong post of
of work
Three
working
season
27.10.2018 29.10.2018
at 1200 hrs. at 12.00 hrs.

Poggio Alto in Italy. We are relieved that the last rites of Palu Ram’s proud that our ancestor par- 2nd Bn ITB Police,
Tribune News Service

Hisar, October 14 Leelu Ram, a villager, said

The family of sepoy Palu
Ram of Nagathla village,
who went missing during
World War II in Italy fight-
ing the German army, was
taken by surprise when the
Indian Army broke the
news about the recovery of
his mortal remains.
The reports said Palu Ram
was 19 years old and unmar-
ried when he took part in the
war. He participated as a sol-
dier of the 4th Battalion of
the 13th Frontier Force
Rifles, which was under the
British Indian Army, in 1944.
He went missing on Sep-
tember 13, 1944, fighting the
that it was a big surprise
when the Army authorities
approached him to inquire
about Palu Ram’s family.
“After some inquiry, I
came to know that his fam-
ily is still live in the village.
He is related to the family
of Ramji Lal, a farmers’
family in the village. It was
also news for his own fami-
ly,” he said.
He said Palu Ram was one
of the two sons of Pat Ram,
Moji Ram being the other
one. While the unmarried
Palu Ram, who joined the
British Army, went missing,
his brother Moji Ram had
❝
mortal remains will be performed after 74 years of ticipated in World War II,” Kullu (HP) (SH: Item
Rate contract)
his demise. We will be able to immerse his ashes Ramesh said.
Reports had said that in 2. Construction of Rs. Rs. Three 27.10.2018 29.10.2018
as per our religious rites. We are proud that our Platoon office and 45,96,740/- 91,940/- working at 1200 hrs. at 12.00 hrs.
ancestor participated in World War II❞ 1996, human bones were Ops room at High season
Ramesh, GRANDSON OF PALU RAM’S BROTHER found in Poggio Alto. The Ground post of 2nd
Italian authorities in 2010 Bn ITB Police, Kullu
began investigations to (HP) (SH: Item Rate
two sons — Kana Ram and Ram after he went missing identify the remains. The contract)
Ramji Lal. in action. In fact, my grand- DNA tests in 2012 revealed 3. Construction of WT Rs. Rs. Three 27.10.2018 29.10.2018
Kana Ram has died. The father Moji Ram too died that the remains belonged Station and Store at 45,96,740/- 91,940/- working at 1200 hrs. at 12.00 hrs.
family members of Kana early. My great grandfather to non-European adults High Ground post of season
Ram and Ramji Lal are mar- Pat Ram brought up my aged 20-21 years who were 2nd Bn ITB Police,
Rtillu (HP) (SH: Item
ginal farmers. father Ramji Lal and uncle later identified as Palu Ram Rate con tract)
Ramesh, grandson of Moji Kana Ram,” he said. of Nangthala and Hari
Full details all terms and conditions including the tender documents are available
Ram, said that the Army “We are feeling relieved Singh of Rohtak.
on the website www.eprocure.gov.in/cppp/. besides being available for reference at
contacted him on the basis that the last rites of the The last rites would be per- the office of the undersigned.
of the pension records of mortal remains will be per- formed at Girone monumen-
Sd/- Commandant,
Palu Ram. “My great grand- formed after 74 years of his tal cemetery in Florence,
2nd Bn ITB Police,
father Pat Ram had been demise. We will be able to Italy, the Indian Army is
Babeli Camp, Kullu (HP),
getting pension for Palu immerse his ashes as per reported to have decided.
Pin — 175138.
davp 19112/11/0203/1819 Email:- itcell2ndbn@itbp.gov.in
06 DELHI THE TRIBUNE
GURUGRAM | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018

Cong to burn effigies of

‘ITO Skywalk planned,
LOST & FOUND COURT NOTICES totally funded by Union
CLASSIFIEDS My Client Suman Lata W/o Satyavart (U/o 5 Rule 20 CPC) urban affairs ministry’
R/o Rohtak had lost Original Gift Deed

BJP, AAP on Dussehra

No. 13119 Dated 16.02.2006 relating to
In the Court of
Ms. Payal Bansal New Delhi, October 14
SITUATION VACANT ASTROLOGY her Hosue No. 796-A/21 Situated in Prem
Nagar, Rohtak, If anybody found the same Civil Judge Union minister Hardeep
be given to Sh. Vipul Kapoor, Advocate
Required Staff Nurse (F) experienced Love marriage, Vashikaran, husband Chamber No. 246 Distt. Court Rohtak. (Senior Division), Panipat. Singh Puri today said the
with Diploma in Nursing, at the clinic wife dispute, court case, family
in Sector 33, Chandigarh. Email CV to problem, foreign travel, immediately
Mobile No. 98962-05220. C8-52563B CNR No.: Tribune News Service The Congress has made porations for violating the ITO Skywalk here was
kmkapoor@gmail.com or call solution. 78785-00751. A8-47300B HRPP02-000768-2017 arrangements at 14 loca- Delhi’s master plan since conceptualised, planned
+9198766-00600. A8-47204 COURT NOTICES Next Date: 22.11.2018 New Delhi, October 14 tions where effigies with last year. and totally funded by the
Shri Sanatan Dharam Girls’ College,
Amrik Singh Road, Bathinda, Affiliated
COURT NOTICES (U/o 5 Rule 20 CPC) State Bank of India
The Delhi Congress has the multiple heads of In view of this, the AAP, housing and urban affairs
to Punjabi University, Patiala. Phone (U/o 5 Rule 20 CPC) Versus
No.: 0164-2236108. Walk-in interview. In the Court of Anand Kaur decided to burn effigies of Ravana would be replaced the BJP and the Congress ministry, a day after Delhi
In the Court of
Requires qualified female Assistant
Rahul Kumar Kishore Kumar, Suit for grant of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) by pictures of BJP and have indulged in a blame government alleged that it
Professor in Hindi (1) purely on
contract basis. Interested candidates Judicial Magistrate District and Sessions decree of recovery. and Bharatiya Janata Par- AAP leaders to tell them game with the Delhi’s rul- was not invited on the
may attend walk-in interview alongwith First Class-2, Jalandhar. Judge, Kapurthala. Publication issued to: ty (BJP) leaders on the eve that they have “miserably ing AAP demanding an Monday inauguration.
all certificates on 17.10.2018 at 1:30
p.m. President. NA8-44207 Simranjit Kaur Rajwant Kaur 1. Anand Kaur wd/o of Dussehra blaming the failed” to do anything for ordinance from the Centre The minister is set to
MD Dayanand Model School, Nakodar Versus Vs. 2. Robin Singh s/o two parties for the sealing the city people hit by ille- to stop sealing while inaugurate the Skywalk
affiliated CBSE (Under DAV College Anwar Nahal 3. Sandeep s/o woes of the trading com- gal sealing in many areas, accusing the BJP of mas- on Monday.
Managing Committee New Delhi (90410- CNR No.: Baldev Singh 4. Surinder Kaur d/o
70748) required one TGT-English. Attend munity in the city. said city’s Congress leader sive corruption in the "...These projects, prima-
walk-in interview on 15th October 2018 PBJL03-049159-2017 CNR No. 5. Manjeet Kaur d/o There would be images of Mukesh Sharma. three civic bodies. rily a state responsibility,
(Monday) at 11:00 am alongwith COMA/516/2017 PBKP01-004474-2017 6. Sanjeet Kaur d/o Narendra Modi and Arvind The sealing drive is Recently, Delhi BJP pres- are game changers in
testimonials, in the School office at PS Sadar, Jalandhar Next Date:- 02.11.2018 7. Balvinder Kaur d/o
Nurmahal Road, Branch Nakodar. CBSE
Publication issued to: Kejriwal flanked by BJP being supervised by a ident Manoj Tiwari was addressing congestion,
background preferred, handsome salary. Petition under Section 13 Late Sh. Daya Singh s/o
1. Anwar Nahal son of Amrik MPs from Delhi and AAP Supreme Court-appointed served a contempt notice pollution & accidents. Yet
Bus facility available from Jalandhar. Ratti Ram r/o Village
Manager/Principal. NA8-44462 Singh Nahal r/o Village (ia) ib) of HM Act. Dharamgarh, Teshil ministers. A symbolic monitoring committee and for breaking the seal of no commitment is being
Dolike, Distt. Jalandhar at Publication Issued to:- Madlauda, District protest, the move is a part under it scores of commer- premises in Gokalpuri conveyed," he tweeted.
present r/o 7051-No. 5 Baldev Singh Panipat. of the Congress’s “Nyay cial and residential prem- where he alleged that an Slamming the Delhi gov-
Road, Richmond B.C. Yudh” campaign against ises have been sealed by “illegal” sealing industry ernment, Puri tweeted, "No
V6Y2Y3, Canada. Father:- Bhagwan Singh All Lrs of Late Daya
Village Kamalpur Singh s/o Ratti Ram. the sealing drive. BJP-ruled municipal cor- was mushrooming. matter how hard you try to
2. Dayal Kaur w/o Amrik
In above titled case, the stall the progress of Delhi,
Singh Nahal r/o Village Mothawal, Teh. Sultanpur
Dolike, Distt. Jalandhar at defendant(s)/respondent(s) we its resilient citizens will
Lodhi Kapurthala at could not be served. It is find a way forward".
present r/o 7051-No. 5
Road, Richmond B.C present 121 Chester Road, ordered that defendant(s)/ "Inaugurations will come
V6Y2Y3, Canada. Illford, Essex, England. respondent(s) should appear & go Sirs, why hold them
4. Iqbal Singh Sandhu r/o In above titled case, the in person or through counsel against innocent hard-
House No. 7051-No. 5 defendant(s)/respondent(s) on 22.11.2018 at 10.00 a.m. working citizens who will
Road, Richmond B.C For details logon to benefit from these projects
V6Y2Y3, Canada. could not be served. It is https://highcourtchd.gov.in/?
ordered that defendant(s)/ & from those you have
In above titled case, the trs=district_notice&district=
respondent(s) should delayed for long," he said.
defendant(s)/respondent(s) panipat
British Victoria School (CBSE) Puri said that he is sur-
Sultanpur Lodhi, Punjab need
could not be served. It is appear in person or Dated, this day of
ordered that defendant(s)/ 06.10.2018. prised at the "despair"
TGT English, Maths Teacher, must be through counsel on being expressed in certain
good fluent in Engish, excellent respondent(s) should appear in Sd/- Civil Judge
salary with furnish accommodation, 02.11.2018 at 10:00 a.m. quarters at not being invit-
call on 98789-22888, Email: person or through counsel on (Senior Division),
info@britishvictoriaschool.com 01.11.2018 at 10.00 a.m. For details logon to ed for the inauguration of
CN8-2263 Panipat.
A8-48012B
For details logon to https://highcourtchd.gov.in ITO Skywalk. Puri, howev-
Required Medical Officers & ICU
Staff for Multispeciality Hospital in https://highcourtchd.gov.in/? /?trs=district_notice& er, accused the AAP gov-
Jalandhar. Good salary. Contact. 98141- trs=district_notice&district= district=kapurthala ernment of holding on to
58800, 92161-94614. NA8-44503 jalandhar Metro Phase-IV since
Urgently required for MNC Public
Dated, this day of
Dated, this day of October'14 and Delhi-
Relationship Officer (PRO), Nursing
27.09.2018. 14.08.2018.
Staff & GDA. Salary no bar for
Sd/- District and Police detained Delhi BJP Poorvanchal Morcha workers during a protest at Congress Meerut RRTS since
deserving candidates. Contact: 86998- Sd/- Rahul Kumar
87889. headquarters against Congress leaders’ efforts to vitiate social fabric of India against December 2016 despite
NA8-44504 Judicial Magistrate Sessions Judge,
Marketing Executives for medical First Class-2, Poorvanchalis, in New Delhi on Sunday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: MANAS RANJAN BHUI repeated reminders. — PTI
equipments, all Punjab part time/full CN8-2257 Kapurthala.
time, direct sales associates. Students CN8-2251 Jalandhar.
(U/o 5 Rule 20 CPC)
welcome - 94170-02088. NA8-44506
(U/o 5 Rule 20 CPC)
In the Court of
AAP to fight LS polls with public funds
Required Accountant and Peon for
St. Kabir Public School, Gurdaspur. In the Court of
Immediate appointment experienced Kishore Kumar Sh. Sumit Bhalla
candidate apply. Walk-in interview
District and Chief Judicial Magistrate,
stkabir25180@gmail.com 98766-
87771, 94174-84017. NA8-44509
Sessions Judge, Tarn Taran.
Panacea Sr. Sec. Public School Aff. to Harjinder Kaur Ananya Panda to donors as a part of its He said the AAP will hold a ber that will be launched
CBSE, New Delhi. Chak Manne Wala, Kapurthala. Tribune News Servic campaign for monthly meeting of all its office-bear- tomorrow. “For those who
Jalalabad (W) Distt. Fazilka. Mob. Mandeep Kaur Versus New Delhi, October 14 donations of at least Rs ers, along with ministers, wish to donate offline our
89680-01313, 98720-30303. Email id -
panacea_jalalabad@rediffmail.com Versus Ministry of Road Renewing the talk of “peo- 100,” said AAP leader and MLAs, and MPs, at Talkatora representative will be visit
Walk-in Interview:- 19 Oct. 2018
(Friday 10 a.m.) in school campus. 1.
Ramanpreet Singh Transport and Highway ple’s participation” in eye of minister Gopal Rai. Stadium where the “AAP ka the donor to collect the dona-
PGT (English) - 2 MA (English), B.Ed. @ Jaggi CNR No.: the next year’s Lok Sabha “Till now random dona- daan, rashtra ka nirmaan” tions either through a NACH
2. PGT (Maths) - 2 M.Sc. (Maths),
B.Ed. 3. TGT (Computer) - 2 MCA, CNR No.: PBTT02-000861-2016 elections, the Aam Aadmi tions or the party was get- will be launched. form, cheque or cash up to
M.Sc. (Comp. Sci.). 4. TGT (S.St) - 2 PBKP01-001309-2018 Next Date: 05.11.2018 Party (AAP) has decided to ting money through The campaign team will be Rs 2,000 in case of one time
MA (B.Ed.). 5. Librarian - 1 B.Lib. 6.
PRT - 4 BA B.Ed. Handsome salary to Next Date: 05.11.2018 Publication issued to: contest the 2019 general elec- cheques. We used to get led by national executive donations,” Rai stated.
deserving candidates. Candidate must Petition under Section 13 tions with public funds. some but we had stopped member Prithvi Reddy. The AAP also made its
be well trained in English. Free van Ministry of Road
of HM Act. Claiming to be cash- that too earlier. The party is Under it, the party workers trade wing chief Brajesh
service from Fazilka. NA8-44512 Transport and Highway strapped, the AAP will run a facing difficulty in taking its will also go to those interest- Goyal its in charge for the
Master Gurbanta Singh Memorial Publication issued to: Other:- Ministry of Road
Janta College Kartarpur (Jalandhar),
Ramanpreet Singh @ national fundraiser cam- political plans for the next ed to get the National Auto- New Delhi Lok Sabha
0181-2781808 invites applications for the Transport and Highway paign from tomorrow after elections. Kejriwal doesn’t mated Clearing House Cconstituency and Rajpal
grant in aid post of Assistant Professors on Jaggi Father: Balvir Singh
contractual basis for three year in through Secretary, its launch by AAP national have funds to manage the (NACH) form filled for Solanki, owner of several
Political Sci., English, History, Punjabi, r/o Village Rayya,
Transport Bhawan, Sansad convener Arvind Kejriwal at party. So, tomorrow we’ll monthly donations. business establishments,
Economics, Physical Edu., Librarian, Pheruman Colony Near Talkatora Stadium. declare a number for month- People can donate online or as its West Delhi Lok Sab-
Cosmetology (one each), Computer
Science 2. Qualifications as per Mann Colony, Distt. Marg, New Delhi 110001.
UGC/NCTE/GNDU/Pb. Govt. rules In above titled case, the “The party will reach out ly donations,” Rai added. by dialing a missed call num- ha in charge.
salary 15600+6000 AGP. Consolidated
Amritsar.
21600/- p.m. Apply within 15 days under In above titled case, the defendant(s)/respondent(s)
registered cover along with Rs 500/- bank
draft in favour of Principal College defendant(s)/respondent(s) could not be served. It is
Reservation policy as per Punjab Govt.
norms. copy of application also sent to
Dean College Development Council
GNDU Amritsar. Those who already
apply need not apply. President. NA8-44510
could not be served. It is
ordered that defendant(s)/
respondent(s) should
ordered that defendant(s)/
respondent(s)
appear in person or
should
Man shoots self at
girlfriend's house BSF organises ‘Run for Martyrs’
appear in person or through counsel on New Delhi, October 14 New Delhi, October 14
IMMIGRATION CONSULTANCY through counsel on 05.11.2018 at 10.00 a.m. Deepak Gujjar (26) allegedly BSF organised a 5-km run of
Study in Canada/Australia +2, 05.11.2018 at 10.00 a.m. For details logon to committed suicide by shoot- personnel of Central Armed
Graduation pass students, 5.5 Band For details logon to ing himself with a pistol at his Paramilitary Forces dedicat-
IELTS, Gap acceptable, apply for any https://highcourtchd.gov.in (U/o 5 Rule 20 CPC)
girlfriend's house in south- ing the run to the martyrs.
Diploma, Bachelor & Masters. Also https://highcourtchd.gov.in /?trs=district_notice& In the Court of
deal in Tourist visa. Contact:
/?trs=district_notice& Ms. Gurpreet Kaur-III, west Delhi's Kapashera, Dr Satya Pal Singh, Minis-
Destination License 149/MC2, SCO 17, district= tarn taran Civil Judge Jr. Division-2, Sri police said today. ter of State for Human
Phase 1, Mohali. 93002-70000, 93002- district= kapurthala
60000. A8-47411B Dated, this day of Anandpur Sahib. The incident took place on Resource Development,
Dated, this day of Suraj Bhan S/o Sh. Bachittar
Canada PR Consultation: 18.09.2018. Saturday when Gujjar flagged-off the enthusiastic
Accountants, IT/Banking Professional, 28.08.2018. Singh R/o Village Hambhewal,
barged into his girlfriend's participants from CAPFs and
Marketing Manager, Real Estate Agent, Sd/- District and Sd/- Near Primary School, PS &
Doctors, Nurses, Lecturer, Engineers,
Addl. Civil Judge (SD) Tehsil Nangal Distt. Rupnagar. house and shot himself with the civil society. Approxi-
Technicians, HR, Electrician, Welder, Sessions Judge, Vs. the pistol. He was rushed to mately, 4,000 participants
Cooks, Chefs, Restaurants/Hotel
CN8-2253 Kapurthala. CN8-2259 Tarn Taran. Paras Ram S/o Sh. Moola
Managers, and many more. Rudraksh, AIIMS Trauma Centre where including Divyangjan and
ISO Certified/License 14/MC2 (U/o 5 Rule 20 CPC) (U/o 5 Rule 20 CPC) Village Hambhewal, PS & Tehsil
doctors declared him brought children ambled around the
Showroom-16, Phase-1, Mohali. In the Court of Nangal Distt. Rupnagar.
98142-23272, 98142-24276. A8-47881B Sh. Jaginder Singh In the Court of CNR No. dead, police said. hexagon of the India Gate
Civil Judge (Junior Division), PBROA0-000285-2018 It is suspected that Gujjar showing their respect to the Participants at the ‘Run for Martyrs’ organised by BSF at Major
CAR FOR SALE Phagwara.
Vikram Jeet Singh, Dhyan Chand National Stadium in New Delhi on Sunday.
Next Date:- 12.11.2018 was upset over some relation- martyrs of police forces, who
White Honda City 2007, Chandigarh
Jagdish Lal @ Rup Lal @ Civil Judge Notice to: ship issue with his girlfriend. laid down their lives in the TRIBUNE PHOTO
Rup Singh
Registration, only transfree. Contact: 2. Nand Lal S/o Moola 3. Chanan
Shop 305, Sector 32D, Chd. 94173-
Versus (Junior Division), Singh S/o Moola 9. Naresh The exact cause that com- service of nation. Chinese. In the gun battle, force lost 10 brave jawans.
Rup Singh @ Rup Lal
02070. NA8-44362
Suit for declaration and suit for Karnal. Kumar 10. Pawan Kumar both pelled him to take such a step On October 21, 1959, a though the CRPF party was Their martyrdom on this day
sons of Late Pritam Singh 11. will be ascertained only after CRPF patrol of 21 men led by outnumbered, it gave a bold is, therefore, remembered as
BUSINESS permanent injunction
CNR No.: Manga Ram Kashmir Rani Wd/o Late Sh. analysing the call records , a DSP SP Karam Singh, came account of itself in the face of ‘ Police Commemoration
Be RenewBuy Smart Digital Agent at PBKPA0-000099-2017 Vs. Pritam Singh 14. Parmodh Singh
no cost. Sell Insurance of Multiple Ins. Next Date: 02.11.2018 S/o Sh. Chuhar Singh 19. Rakesh
police officer said. — PTI under surprise attack by the overwhelming odds. The Day’. — TNS
Companies & earn. Call: 75330-05195.
D2C Ins. Booking Pvt. Ltd. IRDA
Publication issued to: General Public Kumar 20. Dinesh Kumar 21.
1) Rup Singh @ Rup Lal s/o Tara Ram Bhadur all sons of Sh.
code/DB/571/14. NA8-40126 Singh Village Khangura, Tehsil CNR No. Subhash 23. Ramesh S/o Sh.
Phagwara, Distt. Kapurthala, 2) Tej
PROPERTY FOR SALE
3 kanal old house B-Road,
Chandigarh. Exclusive sale. Jeet
Associates: 96468-09090. NA8-44390
Singh s/o Tara Singh, 3) Jatinder
Singh s/o Kashmir Singh, 4) Manjit
Singh s/o Kashmir Singh, 5) Surjit
Singh s/o Tara Singh, 6) Kuldish Kaur
HRKR02-002737-2018
Next Date:- 14.11.2018
Publication Issued to:
Kartar Singh 24. Kiran Kumari
W/o Sh. Bhavishan Kumar 26.
Sunil Kumar S/o Kartar Singh 27.
Sandeep Kumar S/o Sh. Manohar
Footwear factory gutted in Narela fire
wd/o Kashmir Singh, all residents of Lal 28. Ashok Kumar S/o Sh. New Delhi, October 14 Delhi Fire Service (DFS) Fire at Shahdara and my family members
CHANDIGARH Village Khangura, Tehsil Phagwara, General Public Chuhar Singh 29. Sushila Devi A major fire gutted a plas- department officials said, In another incident, a fire were downstairs. My
Distt. Kapurthala, 7) Swaran Singh, 8) W/o Sh. Ranjit Singh. All R/o
2 kanal kothi 8-A, six kanal kothi,
Sector 9, Chandigarh. Liveable 4
Gurdev Singh, 9) Gurbax Singh s/o In above titled case, the Village Hambhewal, PS & Tehsil
tic footwear factory in the the factory was spread in broke out on the third neighbour called out
Harbans Singh, 10) Balbir Kaur wd/o Narela Industrial area 350 square yards and DFS floor of a residential build- aloud after seeing smoke
bedrooms unit. Jeet Associates 96468-
Satnam Singh, 11) Satnam Kaur, 12) defendant(s)/respondent(s) Nangal Distt. Rupnagar.
09090. NA8-44453
Tarsem Kaur, 13) Jaswinder Kaur ds/o In above titled case the here today, police said. received a call from a local ing in Dilshad Colony emanating from our draw-
One kanal new (lift) first/second Harbans Kaur, all resident of
could not be served. It is defendant(s)/respondent(s) could The blaze was reported resident. Fire tenders today, a DFS official said. ing room. I jumped into
floors B-Road Sector 30A, Chandigarh.
Owner 99883-68351, 80549-08612. Panchwati Farm, Bhira Kheri, Distt. ordered that defendant(s)/ not be served. It is ordered that in the basement, ground were rushed to the spot. The incident took place their balcony and
Lakimpur Kheri (UP) 14) Kuldip defendant(s)/respondent(s)
NA8-44505
Singh s/o Gurmej Kaur, 15) respondent(s) should should appear in person or
and first floor of a three- As the fire engulfed the around 3 pm and two fire informed police and fire
MOHALI Kulwinder Kaur, 16) Balwinder Kaur through counsel on 12.11.2018 at floor building at 7.14 am; factory the people work- tenders were rushed to brigade." It was revealed
ds/o Gurmej Kaur, all resident of appear in person or 10 a.m. 23 fire tenders were ing in the factory were the spot. that the fire took place
10 marla facing park Phase 3B1 village Jagatpur Jattan, Tehsil
Mohali. Milap Properties 89681-19960. Phagwara, Distt. Kapurthala, 17) through counsel on For details logon to rushed to the spot. The rescued safely and no Tajbar Singh Rawat, the due to a short circuit in an
A8-46929 Tirath Kaur w/o Ajit Singh village https://highcourtchd.gov.in/?trs= blaze was doused by 10.50 casualty has been report- house owner, said, "I was inverter kept in the draw-
Panchwati Farm, Bhira Kheri, Distt.
14.11.2018 at 10:00 a.m. district_notice&district=rupnagar
PUBLIC NOTICES Lakimpur Kheri (UP), 18) Manjinder For details logon to Dated, this day of 06.10.2018. am, the official said. ed in the incident. sleeping in my bedroom ing room. — TNS
I, No. 3381812M Onkar Singh s/o Sadi Kaur wd/o Dilbag Singh r/o Village Sd/- Ms. Gurpreet Kaur, PCS,
Ram, resident of Ranjitgarh Colony, Khangura, Tehsil Phagwara, Distt. https://highcourtchd.gov.in Civil Judge (Jr. Divn),
Chamkaur Sahib, Distt. Ropar (Punjab), Kapurthala. A8-48004 Sri Anandpur Sahib.
declare that in my Army record my In above titled case, the /?trs=district_notice& Govt objects ‘racist’ question in teachers' exam
daughter’s name is wrongly recorded as defendant(s)/respondent(s) could not
Kirndip Singh instead of Kirandeep be served. It is ordered that district=karnal DISCLAIMER
Kaur. Concerned note. “The Tribune Trust does New Delhi, October 14 held by Delhi Subordinate
NA8-44446 defendant(s)/ respondent(s) should Dated, this day of
I, Service No. 1453384L Ex Naik appear in person or through counsel on
not take responsibility
for the contents
Delhi minister Rajendra Pal Services Selection Board
Ramesh Kumar son of Uttam Chand, 02.11.2018 at 10.00 a.m. 12.10.2018. of the advertisements Gautam has raised objec- (DSSSB) saying he will ask
VPO, Tehsil Indora (Kangra) HP declare For details logon to tion to purported “racist Chief Secretary to take
(Display/ Classified)
carried in this
that my daughter’s name in my sevice https://highcourtchd.gov.in/?trs= Sd/- newspaper. The paper
record has wrongly entered as Akriti
district_notice&district=kapurthala does not endorse the and misogynist” question appropriate action against
Whereas her correct name is Akriti Behl.
Dated, this day of 28.09.2018.
Civil Judge same. Readers are
being asked in the exami- the board who set the exam-
My wife Asha Rani’s birth date has also requested to verify the
entered wrongly in my service record as Sd/- Sh. Jaginder Singh, (Junior Division), contents on their
own before acting
nation for primary teachers ination paper. — TNS
05.06.1967 whereas her correct birth date Civil Judge (Junior Division),
is 20.02.1956. Concerned note. NA8-44447 CN8-2255 Phagwara. CN8-2261 Karnal. there upon.”
THE TRIBUNE
JALANDHAR | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018
Army cell to counter
social media misuse
Will identify, monitor fake messages against forces
Ajay Banerjee
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, October 14
Alarmed at misuse of social
media to spread falsehoods
about the Indian Army and its
personnel, top military com-
manders led by Army Chief
General Bipin Rawat have
discussed the issue of setting
up a dedicated cell that will
identify, monitor and inspect
fake and inflammatory mes-
sages against the Army.
The aim is to nail and expose
those with malicious intent
and bring them to book,
sources told The Tribune.
The cell will work round the
clock to counter any propa-
ganda. The Army presently
has a small (three-officer)
social media team but that is
not enough. The top Army
commanders who are meet-
ing in Delhi (October 9 to 15),
have been apprised of the
seriousness of the situation.
The Army believes “too
much” of wrong information
has been spread on the Face-
book, Twitter and WhatsApp.
The misuse of social media is
part of asymmetric warfare
(from across border) aimed at
lowering the morale of the
Apex court to rescue Court cases plague national SC witnesses judicial ‘glasnost’
of SC man sacked institutes based in Mohali T
twice by UP Govt
New Delhi, October 14
In a rare instance, the
Supreme Court has come to
the rescue of a man belong-
ing to the Scheduled Caste
category whose services
were terminated twice by
the Uttar Pradesh Govern-
ment owing to a dispute
over his caste certificate.
The top court held that the
subsequent change in law
does not have the effect of
reversing all the decisions
made prior to the fresh view
taken by a court of law.
The Supreme Court in 2013
had upheld an Allahabad
High Court order by which
Vijay Shankar was reinstat-
ed to service with all conse-
quential benefits, holding
him as a member of SC cate-
gory after state government
had withdrawn its appeal fol-
lowing a lengthy hearing.
The Uttar Pradesh govern-
ment, however, in 2015 again
dismissed him from service,
saying a larger bench of the
high court had taken a dif-
ferent view and his caste
does not fall under the
Schedule Caste category.
Shankar, who belongs to
the 'Kasera' community, a
sub-caste of 'Shilpkars'
which is a SC category noti-
fied under the Constitution,
challenged the decision once
Behbal Kalan homage by thousands Can’t deposit over ~1.5 L in PPF account
would be observed at Gurd-
wara Rakabganj Sahib in Del-
hi later this month. The duo
were sent to the gallows in
October 1992 in the Gen
Vaidya assassination case.
Sucha Singh Chhotepur,
Apna Punjab Party (APP) con-
vener, claimed that despite
requests from his Cabinet
Maj Gen...
The Maj Gen, incidentally,
was dismissed from service by
a GCM in 2008 for sexual mis-
conduct with a woman officer,
sources revealed. He has
appealed against the order in
the Armed Forces Tribunal.
While the two Colonels are
still serving, the other jawans
have retired.
Hearings are also underway
in the apex court over allega-
tions of a large number of
fake encounters by the Army
and police in Manipur over
the past few years.
NAILING CULPRITS
■ Given the seriousness of
social media misuse to
target forces, top Army
commanders have dis-
cussed setting up a dedi-
cated cell
■ The
cell will work round
the clock to counter prop-
aganda. The aim is to nail
and expose those with
malicious intent and
bring them to book
■ The Army currently has a
small social media team
but that is not enough
Army through rumours and
falsehood. These messages
exaggerate issues and tell
half-truth.
A possible trigger was in
June when fake and morphed
videos showing “strong action”
by the Army in Kashmir were
circulated on WhatsApp.
Some of these videos were
not even shot in India, but
were passed off as new “poli-
cy” in Kashmir. Such fake
videos showing “strong
action” were seen as propa-
ganda from Pakistan, which
was eyeing to discredit the
Indian Army during the then
OVERRULES HC ORDER
■ Overrulesthe Allahabad
HC verdict, saying it com-
pletely “misappreciated
and misapplied the law”
■ Directs the UP Government
to immediately release the
withheld pension and oth-
er retirement benefits
again before the Allahabad
High Court, but it dismissed
his plea saying that the law
has now been changed by a
larger bench of the top court.
A Bench of Justice SA
Bobde and Justice L
Nageswara Rao said the high
court in its judgment dated
August 12, 2015, has com-
pletely “misappreciated and
misapplied the law”. “The
difference between a superi-
or court reversing a decision,
which is in appeal before
itself, and overruling the
view is well known,” it said.
The apex court directed the
Uttar Pradesh Government to
immediately release the with-
held pension and other retire-
ment benefits of Shankar,
who superannuated from the
post of assistant prosecution
officer during his second ter-
mination period. The court,
while allowing the appeal of
Shankar, set aside the HC
order of August 2015. — PTI
FROM PAGE 1
ministers, CM Capt
Amarinder Singh had rejected
their demand “for justice” in
the sacrilege and firing inci-
dents. Leader of the Opposi-
tion Harpal Singh Cheema
asked: “When the Ranjit
Singh Commission has indict-
ed former CM Parkash Singh
Badal for the police action on
Cupid strikes Karnal district
their marriage online at the
Welfare of Scheduled Caste
and Backward Classes
Department website. He
said the incentive was given
only for the first marriage
and was provided as a three-
year fixed deposit in the
joint account of the couple.
“The objective is to promote
communal harmony and
eliminate caste discrimina-
tion,” said Fuliya.
Couples too feel the
scheme has been successful
ongoing session of the United
Nations Human Right Coun-
cil (UNHRC).
Videos of the Army bring-
ing down houses, mishan-
dling people and dragging
terrorists were all fake. These
videos are a soft and oblique
way to spread a false narrative
of human rights violations.
Last year, falsehood was
spread saying “one rank, one
pension” was only for officers
and how the 7th CPC delayed
all benefits to jawans, but not
officers.
Then came two fake letters
circulated listing emolu-
ments of the 7th Central Pay
Commission. One of these
had the complete format of a
government gazette. The
Ministry of Defence had to
intervene and deny having
issued any such letter.
The Army was also alerted
about a message on What-
sApp with phone numbers of
leading TV channels exhort-
ing jawans to share videos
and audio recordings of any
act of corruption or exploita-
tion with media houses.
Army men are not allowed to
have media contact unless
authorised in writing.
Saurabh Malik
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 14
Located just 2 kilometres
apart in Mohali, two premier
institutes have more than
just the objective of scholas-
tic pursuits in common. The
National Institute of Phar-
maceutical Education and
Research (NIPER) and Indi-
an Institute of Science Edu-
cation and Research (IISER)
find themselves on a similar
unsavoury ground — inter-
nal disputes and court cases
between the Board of Gover-
nors and Directors.
An unheard-of petition
was filed by the IISER
Director against its own
chairperson over the func-
tioning of the institute’s
Registrar. Dubbing as “most
unfortunate” the litigation
launched by the Director,
the Punjab and Haryana
High Court ruled he was not
competent to set the judicial
process in motion.
The Bench held that the
Board had not authorised
the filing of the writ petition
and the Director himself was
not competent to file it on
the institute’s behalf.
The Bench also took note
of the finding of a high-pow-
ered committee headed by
former Chief Justice of the
Allahabad High Court, Jus-
tice SS Sodhi, which con-
cluded that the Director had
protesters, why then is the
Congress government trying
to shield him?”
Among others at the sam-
agam were Jagmeet Singh
Brar, MLAs Kultar Singh
Sandhawan, Baldev Singh and
Simranjit Singh Bains, Bhag-
want Mann, Sangrur MP, and
former Deputy Speaker Bir
in strengthening bonds
between different commu-
nities. “Caste barriers have
been created by certain sec-
tions for vested interests
and these benefit none. In
fact, youth like us are the
worst sufferers… Though it
was difficult, we managed to
convince our families for our
marriage,” said a couple,
seeking anonymity.
They admitted the govern-
ment incentive would take
care of their future needs,
NATION
Will Akbar go when Modi wants him to? ❝
Vibha Sharma
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, October 14
Union Minister MJ Akbar
threatening “appropriate
legal action” against those
who levelled “wild and base-
less allegations” against him
is also a live example of the
style of functioning of the
“new” BJP under Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi and
chief Amit Shah.
Whether Akbar is shown
the door or gets a deeper
rooting in the council of min-
isters remains to be seen, but
even while epitaphs were
being written on his political
career, a section of political
observers believed “it would
be highly surprising if Modi
took action against him
under pressure”.
“It is not his (Modi’s)
style of functioning. He
(Akbar) will go when the
PM wants him to not when
others are demanding or
pressuring him to do so,”
they said. Besides, any
action against Akbar would
have opened up a Pando-
ra’s box. Apparently, there
are other similar allega-
tions under the #MeToo
campaign against some
political bigwigs and an
action without a hearing
would have “opened flood-
gates” against them as well.
In fact, Shah’s statement
Much at stake as top functionaries at
loggerheads at NIPER and IISER
“no authority or jurisdiction
to suspend the Registrar as
he has neither the appoint-
ing authority, nor the disci-
plinary authority”.
In NIPER’s case, the Direc-
tor, Prof Raghuram Rao
Akkinepally, moved the
High Court after his services
were placed under suspen-
sion. As of now, the court has
granted stay on the operation
of the suspension orders.
One of the grounds to chal-
lenge the suspension orders
was that the President of
India was the “visitor” and
had the powers to place under
suspension the services, not
the Board of Governors.
The Supreme Court, in
the case of Kailash Singh
versus the managing com-
mittee, Mayo College,
Ajmer, and other respon-
dents, had asserted that
persons employed in edu-
cational institutions right
from the Class IV staff to
Devinder Singh. Congress
ministers Tript Rajinder Singh
Bajwa and Sukhbinder Singh
Sarkaria and party MLAs
attended the bhog ceremony of
the 2015 police firing victims,
Krishan Bhagwan Singh and
Gurjit Singh Sarawan, at their
native villages. So did AAP
MLAs, including the rebels.
though it was not the prereq-
uisite for their relationship.
A Social Welfare Depart-
ment official credited the
rising literacy among girls
for the popularity of the
scheme. “The trend is going
up as more girls are
enrolling for higher educa-
tion... But in most of the cas-
es, parents of either the
groom or the bride do not
attend the weddings, fear-
ing they may be ostracised,”
he added.
that charges of sexual
harassment against Akbar
would be probed was a clear
signal of what could be
expected. “We will definitely
look into the issue. We have
to see whether these allega-
tions are true or false. We
have to check the veracity of
the post and the person who
posted it,” he said.
As clamour for action
against the eminent journal-
ist grew, there were worries
in the BJP about the allega-
tions damaging the party’s
“pro-women empower-
ment” image ahead of
elections to five states.
As the BJP and govern-
ment functionaries main-
tained a stoic silence, it was
perhaps the first time in his
tenure that PM Modi faced a
situation when either way it
could be detrimental for the
image of his government.
Some BJP leaders agree
his presence may become
“embarrassing for the gov-
ernment” but an action
against him would also be
an “admission of guilt” and
that “Modi took a wrong
decision and misjudged
when he included Akbar in
the council of ministers”.
Notably, any reshuffle that
Modi has affected in his
council in his tenure has
been when he wanted to do so
and not under any pressure.
the highest level had a far
greater responsibility on
account of the nature of
activity — education.
There were students of all
ages studying and living on
the campuses, it was a differ-
ent kind of ‘gurukul’. “Any-
thing which is done, as
would cause an adverse
impact on the mind of these
young people, is something
which we find difficult to
approve, even if it is claimed
as a right to make certain
demands. The mode and
methodology of making
demands in these education-
al institutions cannot be on a
par with an industrial estab-
lishment, where workmen
agitate for their rights.” At
stake is not just the reputa-
tion of the two institutions
and the goals for which these
centres of excellence came
into existence, but also the
career of students and
researchers.
Q. Can we deposit more than
Rs 1.5 lakh in the PPF account
during a financial year?
Please also clarify whether
interest is payable on the
excess amount deposited.
— RS Brar
A. According to paragraph 3
of Public Provident Fund
Scheme, 1968, which deals
with limits of subscription, it
is clarified that any individ-
ual may, on his behalf or on
behalf of a minor of whom he
is the guardian, subscribe to
the Public Provident Fund
any amount not less than Rs
500 and not more than Rs
1,50,000. Therefore, it is not
possible to deposit more than
Rs 1,50,000 in a PPF account.
Q. This is with reference to
answer to my query published
in these columns on April 23,
2018 regarding “Interest up to
Rs 50,000 exempt for senior
citizens”. Kindly clarify
whether interest income
received from bank on fixed
Congress leader Anand Sharma in New Delhi on Sunday. PTI
Break silence: Cong to PM
New Delhi, October 14
Senior Congress spokesper-
son Anand Sharma on Sun-
day questioned the silence of
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi on the exploding
#MeToo movement and alle-
gations against a member of
his council of ministers.
“Let the country judge the
PM by his actions. So far his
silence has been conspicu-
ous. A PM who swears by
‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’, a
PM who talks of women’s
dignity, a PM who had given a
commitment to the country
for the protection of our sis-
ters and daughters. This PM
has chosen to be silent, so it’s
a question of not only the
moral authority of the gov-
ernment, his own and the dig-
HERE have been sev-
eral unusual develop-
ments in the Supreme
Court in the last few months.
Beginning with controver-
sial January 12 press confer-
ence against then Chief Jus-
tice of India Dipak Misra by
four senior-most judges,
including the present Chief
Justice of India Ranjan
Gogoi, there has never been
a dull day in the top court.
The ‘Master of the roster’
controversy, face-off with
the government over Justice
KM Joseph’s elevation and
an unprecedented failed
attempt to remove then CJI
Dipak Misra — the Supreme
Court hit headlines for
all the wrong reasons.
But amidst all this hullabal-
loo, the Supreme Court wit-
nessed a judicial ‘glasnost’
as the institution attempted
to open up to meet the expec-
tations and demands of a
democratic society.
From allowing journalists
to carry mobile phones
inside courtrooms to mak-
ing public the collegium’s
resolutions on judges’ap-
pointments — there are
many decisions which indi-
cate that winds of change
are blowing in the top court.
But the most important
among all was the decision
to allow a PIL seeking live
streaming of the court’s pro-
ceedings in important con-
stitutional matters. To begin
with, only important cases
would be live streamed, as
TAX ADVICE
SC VASUDEVA
deposit is to be calculated or
not. Or is it only interest
income from savings account?
— Ramesh Kumar
A. Deduction of Rs 50,000 to
a senior citizen in respect of
interest income covers inter-
est from bank and post
office whether the same is
received on savings account
or on a fixed deposit.
Q. I retired from the services of
a nationalised bank in September
2016. I have paid income tax
payable on a sum of Rs 4.50 lakh
which was over and above Rs 10
lakh which I received as gratuity.
nity of the office he holds.”
Sharma further claimed
that despite the banking
system of the nation weak-
ening, unemployment cri-
sis peaking, and current
account deficit consistent-
ly increasing, Prime Minis-
ter Narendra Modi claimed
that India was the fastest
growing economy.
The Congress, however,
didn’t demand the resigna-
tion of MJ Akbar today and
said it was for the PM to
break his silence and for the
minister to explain his con-
duct. Veteran Congressman
Jaipal Reddy is the only
Congress leader to have
sought Akbar’s resignation
if the explanation he offers
is not satisfactory. — TNS
OBITER DICTA
BY SATYA PRAKASH
There are many
decisions which
indicate that winds of
change are blowing in
the top court
suggested by Attorney Gen-
eral KK Venugopal, who
had submitted a set of
guidelines for the purpose.
A Bench headed by the then
CJI said the live streaming
project must be implemented
in a progressive, structured
and phased manner with cer-
tain safeguards to ensure that
the purpose of live streaming
of proceedings was achieved
holistically. Before the com-
mencement of the first phase
of the project, formal rules
have to be framed by the top
court incorporating the rec-
ommendations made by
Venugopal.
It’s a pretty bold step for an
institution which felt com-
fortable in an opaque envi-
ronment and resisted imple-
mentation of RTI by
contesting verdicts delivered
against it by the Central
Information Commission
and the Delhi High Court.
Now, I understand there is some
change in the income tax rules.
Am I eligible to get refund of the
tax paid on Rs 4.50 lakh under
the new rules? Please clarify.
— NPS Sohal
A. It seems you have
received gratuity from the
bank at the time of retire-
ment of more than Rs 10
lakh. The limit of Rs 10 lakh
has been increased to Rs 20
lakh vide notification dated
March 29, 2018. The increase
in limit is not retrospective
and, therefore, you would
not be covered by the new
limit for exemption.
07
HOLD PROPER PROBE
If a person is
accused of something
it must be
investigated. Many
people have been
found guilty in the
#MeToo movement.
But I think proper
enquiry should be
done. However, there
can also be an attempt
to defame
politicians
as well as
actors.
Ramdas Athwale,
UNION MNISTER
FOCUS ON VALUES
❝
Prabhupada
Swami always talked
about character
building and used to
say ‘if you lose character
it is a real loss’. What
we’re witnessing today
in #MeToo movement is
a reflection of what is
happening around and
this value education
becomes
important.
Prakash Javadekar,
HRD MNISTER
For judges who rarely use
the public address system
during courts proceedings,
it’s a huge decision to put
themselves to a sort of public
scrutiny via live streaming.
What is all the more impor-
tant is the fact that the top
court has realised that sun-
light is the best disinfectant.
The Indian judiciary never
had a sense of history and a
desire to preserve its pre-
cious moments for posterity.
In recent months. India lost
many of its best legal minds,
including senior advocates
Anil B Divan, PP Rao and TR
Andhyarujina. Their erudi-
tion and skills could have
been caught in cameras and
offered to the next generation
of lawyers and judges for
learning. The same applies to
stalwarts on the Bench.
One can only agree with
Justice DY Chandrachud’s
concurring verdict that
“live streaming as an exten-
sion of the principle of open
courts will ensure that the
interface between court
hearing with virtual reality
will result in the dissemina-
tion of information in the
widest possible sense,
imparting transparency
and accountability to the
judicial process”.
But there is a need to build
a culture of transparency in
the Supreme Court which
would require many more
bold steps. India will wait for
a judicial ‘perestroika’as
well in the top court?
Q. I am an NRI. I have an NRO
bank account in India. I received
a TDS certificate from the bank.
I understand that tax has been
deducted on the interest which I
received from that account for
the last financial year. I do not
have any other source of income
in India. Do I have to file the tax
return? If so, do I have to come
to India to file it?
— Harmandeep Singh
A. Income-tax return can be
filed online these days.
Therefore, you need not come
to India to file your tax return.
You are required to file tax
return in case your total
income for a financial year
exceeds Rs 2,50,000. In case
your total income for the
financial year is below Rs
2,50,000, but you are desirous
of claiming refund of tax
deducted at source, you would
be required to file a return of
income in accordance with
the provisions of the Act. You
will have to obtain PAN for fil-
ing your return of income.
08 OPINION
Giving farmers their dignity
THE TRIBUNE established in 1881
Sir Chhotu Ram altered the temper from fatalism to self-confidence
Air safety on a prayer
DGCA must inject accountability into sector
A
IR safety is increasingly being imperiled by the recklessness of BIRENDER SINGH
pilots or crew, or even ground staff. In August, a Jet Airways UNION MINISTER FOR STEEL AND GRANDSON
flight went off the runway at Riyadh airport. The licences of the OF SIR CHHOTU RAM
pilots were suspended. In September, over 30 passengers experienced
S
bleeding after the pilots ‘forgot’ to turn on a switch to regulate cabin OCIAL reformers have never
pressure. The crew was taken off duty pending investigation. Jet Air- had it easy. By its very nature,
ways fired its pilots for a cockpit fight in January, and in March, two uprooting age-old practices
pilots were asked to quit after they turned up stoned to operate flights. and traditions in society is an
In July, mid-air collision between two IndiGo aircraft was averted, arduous task. In modern Indian his-
while in April, a window panel came off an Air India (AI) aircraft dur- tory, be it Swami Dayanand
ing turbulence. The latest is a Dubai-bound AI plane hitting a perime- Saraswati who founded Arya Samaj
ter wall during takeoff! The pilots have been derostered, for now. to free religion from dogmas and
class divide or Raja Ram Mohan Roy,
Without exception, airlines are grappling with a range of issues:
who fought against Sati pratha, they
delayed salaries (early last month, Jet Airways pilots warned of ‘non-
had to face stiff opposition and
cooperation’), poor returns, overworked pilots or their shortage. A sec-
tion of AI pilots had threatened to strike work over unpaid dues. The Del-
antagonism from various strata of
society. But with their passion, com-
hi High Court has sought from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation mitment and perseverance they
(DGCA) the latest position regarding air safety, recruitment of inspectors overcame resistance and succeeded
and investigation into accidents. The sector is under the weather and in their noble goals.
needs a potent antidote. The DGCA should incorporate wellness cap- Sir Chhotu Ram (1881-1945; knight-
sules into the high-stress schedule of employees, particularly pilots. ed in 1938) was no exception. He was
Every plane needs a provision for feedback, which must be taken seri- born in an era when the country was
ously by way of detailed action. under British rule and Indians had
All airlines have made it clear that they won’t brook unruly behav- very limited rights, liberties and free-
iour, so much so that the Civil Aviation Ministry has issued guidelines on dom. Farmers had to face additional
problems due to seasonal vagaries,
the no-fly list, under which air travellers can be banned for a three-
illiteracy, zamindari system and high
month period or even a lifetime. Fair enough, but it can’t be a one-way
taxes. In such adverse times, he chose
street. While a pilot should not be hauled over the coals for circum- to dedicate his life to the cause of
stances beyond his control — a technical failure, for instance — human farmers and villagers. He believed
lapses, endangering lives, must not go unpunished. A pilot’s negligence that political freedom alone is not
can be as grave as a hospital’s. Passenger safety is non-negotiable. enough, and the exploited, backward,
downtrodden classes and farmers
must have economic freedom also.
Throughout his life he organised and
Evaluating ‘Parho Punjab’ inspired them to fight injustice for
their dignity.
In those times, farming was not
School ranking will help improve scores treated as a profession. It was
thought that people sowed crops for
F
ULL marks go to Punjab for taking the initiative of ranking govern- livelihood only. Sir Chhotu Ram
ment schools. With many government schools putting up a poor fought against this misconception to
show in board examinations year after year, the state Education bring farmers out of the clutches of
Department had been facing flak and needed to erase the blot. Various poverty and misery. He strived to
surveys checking the proficiency of schoolchildren in science, mathemat- establish farming and agriculture as
ics or the English language regularly revealed chinks in the system as the respectable professions which could
kids failed to score grades expected of their standard. The initiative, the be used for economic strengthening
first ever, is indicative of the department’s acknowledgement of the poor of the individual as well as society.
state of affairs and its attempt to set things in order in multifarious ways.
Information collected during the evaluation process is essential in
Will spouses accept marital failure?
identifying particular parameters that need to be dealt with in each
school. Without specific statistics, vague reasons are given for lapses and
remedial action remains ambiguous. Now, with the details available, the
department should be able to not only diagnose the ailment of each
school and take corrective measures but also seek accountability. Was it Ritu Kamra Kumar
the insufficient number of teachers or inadequate infrastructure such as
T
libraries and laboratories that dealt a blow to the students? Or, did the HE Supreme Court decision to
students lag due to scarce exposure to extra-curricular activities or quash the archaic adultery law
sports? The competitive spirit of the initiative will motivate toppers to has made this taboo topic a sub-
retain their positions and also goad those at the bottom to strive for bet- ject of hot discussion. The verdict
terment. And, because education is not just about achieving good marks, asserted that women are not the prop-
the criteria of green and clean campuses will ensure the shaping up of erty of men and patriarchal dictates
youth who are socially and environmentally aware and sensitive. can’t govern marital relationships.
The court has given way for living
Besides, the grading list will also give lessons to policymakers as
together as a way of life. Assertive and
they take forward their project of Parho Punjab, launched to improve
authoritative women of today have
the performance of children. If taken up sincerely and to its logical become very clear about their desires
end, the initiative will go a long way in addressing the many ills plagu- and drives yet the fact is adultery is
ing the school sector. Quality education can be imparted if the ecosys- mostly kept under wraps.
tem boasts of a good student-teacher ratio, which is intricately con- The apex court struck down as
nected to fair recruitments and transparent transfers. Political will unconstitutional the 158-year-old law
and bureaucratic uprightness must not waver. which punished a man for having sex
with another man’s wife, assuming
the woman to be a victim of adultery,
❝ ❞
thought for the day
A hero is any person really intent on making it a better
Renaissance moment
place for all people. — Maya Angelou Refer to the article ‘MeToo must
also percolate to non-metros’ (Octo-
ber 13); no doubt, if it percolates to
small cities many heads will roll.
on this day...50 years ago The success depends upon media
transparency, victim’s truth and the
support of society. This is a renais-
sance of women empowerment. But
issues of ‘honey traps’ need to be
checked to save innocent men, as
ambala,tuesday, october 15, 1968
some cases may be fictitious.
GIAN P KANSAL, AMBALA
NO PEACE WITHOUT HALT TO ARMS RACE
UNITED NATIONS, October 14 (UNI, PTI)-PM Indira Gandhi told the UN
General Assembly today that attempt to eliminate force as a determining factor in Why spare high & mighty?
international ties should begin with steps towards disarmament. Speaking from Reference to ‘Govt panel to look into
the rostrum, from where Nehru had proposed an international cooperation year issues raised by #MeToo’ (October
and a development decade seven years ago, she called for the observance of 1970, 13); it is a welcome step by Maneka
the silver jubilee year of the U.N., as “a year of peace.” Mrs. Gandhi dealt generally Gandhi. Finally, the victims may get
in her address with what she called the “factors which control political situation”. justice. The question arising in every
She devoted her first ever address to the world body to focussing attention on the mind is why the victims remained
problems of developing nations. In calling for the “fullest support” to the silent till now. Does it mean that the
UNCTAD recommendations for freer trade practices, she said that part of the victims should not speak up at all, at
investment for the progress of the West came from the peoples of Asia, Africa and any stage of life? The circumstances
South America who had been denied a fair return for their work and produce. may have been different then. Pres-
sures from either the person involved
Autonomy Front Chief For Pre-1953 Status For J&K to blackmail or family pressure not to
SRINAGAR, Oct. 14 (PTI)-Mr. Balraj Puri, Chairman of the Jammu Autonomy invite trouble for other family mem-
Forum, today pleaded for a return by both Government of India and Kashmiri bers may have been a reason to be
leaders to the pre-1953 state of relations. In a paper read at the convention called silent for so long. Justice is not time-
by Sheikh Abdullah and his colleagues to “determine Kashmir’s political status” bound. So many cases carry on for
Mr. Puri said: “An ideal, moral and logical solution will be for both parties to go many years and so many die before
back to their commitments so that if the Kashmiri leaders get the status they want getting justice. So, why create doubts
within India they will support accession to India whenever the issue is referred to and save such men, just because they
the people in any form. “If they are unable to do so as the situation has changed or happen to be in high position. Do our
in view of the lessons they have meanwhile learnt, they cannot blame the
Government of India for drawing their own lessons from the changed situation.” Letters to the Editor, typed in double space, should not exceed the 200-word limit. These should be cogently written and can be sent by e-mail to: Letters@tribunemail.com
TRUE TO SOIL: A firm backer of the Bhakra Dam, Sir Chhotu Ram brought nine
enactments to improve the financial and social status of farmers.
Sir Chhotu Ram’s insistence that farmers will sell produce
to the colonial government only if they get optimal price for
the crop later on developed into the concept of MSP.
He instilled these values and feel-
ings among the farmers and encour-
aged them to seek their rightful
place in society.
He had the vision and foresight to
highlight the role of education in
improving the overall living stan-
dards, employability and social and
economic status of the people.
Therefore, he took keen interest in
establishing institutions of learn-
ing in the country.
In this background, it was an emo-
tional and proud moment for me
and the millions of people who have
over the years benefited from his
initiatives, when Prime Minister
Narendra Modi unveiled the statue
of Sir Chhotu Ram in Rohtak this
week. It is not only a recognition of
the farming community in the
progress and development of the
nation, but also a befitting tribute to
the stature and contribution of Sir
Chhotu Ram. The Prime Minister
echoed the sentiments of lakhs of
Haryanvis when he said, ‘It is the
right of every Indian to know more
about Sir Chhotu Ram who con-
with no sexual autonomy of her own.
The ruling is an unequivocal asser-
tion of progressive gender equation.
Interestingly, as the old law was
quashed, I was teaching Nathanial
Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter to my
students. It made me think how art
and life converge! Infidelity has been
a constant theme in literature; Anna
Karenina, Madam Bovary, Doctor
Zhivago, The Unbearable Lightness of
Being, all novels present central pro-
tagonists trapped in loveless mar-
riages, who commit adultery and are
little remorseful. Of all these novels, it
is The Scarlet Letter which testifies
adultery in various ways, with its
heroine, Hester Prynne, made to wear
a red letter ‘A’ on her bosom as pun-
ishment. She decorates the letter
letters to the editor
justice givers handle same cases dif-
ferently for different categories of peo-
ple? Their training is the same for all,
then why punish only people from the
weaker sections? Rules and punish-
ment need to be the same for all.
SHASHI YADAV, ROHTAK
Helmet politics
It is ridiculously discriminatory,
both to seek and grant exemption
from wearing safety helmets to
Sikh women while driving
motorised two-wheelers. Likewise,
it always puts one to shame when-
ever one reads headlines that pro-
nounce the ‘regularisation’ of one
or the other unauthorised and thus
illegal residential colony by the
government. Will our government
ever stop the policy of appeasing
certain sections of society with an
eye on safeguarding its vote bank?
BALVINDER, CHANDIGARH
End Rafale row
Apropos ‘Give details of Rafale
deal: SC’ (October 11), in the con-
text of the shortage of fighter air-
craft that the Air Force is facing, the
controversy over Rafale is unfortu-
nate. Let us try to understand that
the basic price of a fighter jet would
always be much less than the end-
CHANDIGARH | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018
tributed a lot to the country. A per-
son of his stature should not have
been confined to the boundaries of a
region. It did not have any impact
on his legacy, but generations lost
out on learning valuable lessons
from his life.’ I consider myself for-
tunate to have played a significant
part in giving shape to this tallest
statue of Haryana, from conceptual-
isation to the execution stage.
Sir Chhotu Ram was a pioneer who
insisted that the farmers should get
their due share while selling their
crops. He stood against the British
and took a stand that farmers will sell
their produce to them only if they get
optimal price for the crop. This phi-
losophy later on developed into the
concept of Minimum Support Price.
This was revolutionary in those times
as farmers were entirely dependent
on rains and seasonal vagaries cou-
pled with other working conditions
made their lives miserable.
He conceived of the Bhakra Dam
as he realised that the hardworking
farmers were totally dependent on
rains. The dam was his solution to
with golden thread and gradually her
philanthropy transforms ‘A’ for adul-
tery to ‘A’ for angel. Hester was a
feminist ahead of her times.
Many contemporary Indian writers
such as Anita Nair, Shobhaa De, Suja-
ta Parashar, etc., have dealt with infi-
delity which is so rampant in our soci-
ety, as clandestine lovers keep
thriving in mutual love. Many Bolly-
wood movies dared to dwell on the
subject — Arth, Astitiva, Silisla, Kab-
hi Alvida Na Kehna — but most por-
trayed the partner in black shades,
thus putting the onus on failure of
relationship to indulge in adultery,
justifying the cheating.
However, the harsh reality is that
there are enough social trends to
show the ever-present existence of
price after fitment of weaponry,
avionics and other specific require-
ments of the Air Force. It is unwise,
if not absurd, to confuse between
the two and make an issue of it. The
Supreme Court has rightly refused
to go into the issue of pricing or
technical suitability. The IAF Chief
has publicly defended the induction
of Rafale jets, calling it a game-
changer. With that, the ongoing con-
troversy should come to an end in
the interest of national security.
WG CDR CL SEHGAL (RETD), JALANDHAR
A true spiritualist
Apropos the editorial ‘Death of the
Ganga man’ (October 13), it would be
no exaggeration to describe GD Agar-
wal a true saint who epitomised all
those excellent virtues which demon-
strate a unique fusion of science and
mythical devotion. Such unswerving
faith in the sanctity of the Ganga and
his total renunciation of a very suc-
cessful materialistic life only to cham-
pion the cause of the Ganga to ensure
its uninterrupted flow, bereft of all
pollution, deserve unqualified praise.
He should be equated with great per-
sonalities like Mahatma Gandhi and
Nelson Mandela. For him, his own life
meant little in the context of his all-
absorbing passion of ensuring a clean
Ganga. The government may have
THE TRIBUNE
the problems of farmers. In states
like Punjab, Haryana and
Rajasthan, the farmers are still
reaping the benefits of the dam.
He rightly recognised the causes of
deteriorating economic condition of
the agricultural classes in his time.
He brought nine enactments to
improve the financial and social sta-
tus of farmers. Modern concepts like
debt settlement boards, caps on inter-
est, the basic fairness to the tiller were
included in these 1930s laws. The
Punjab Relief Indebtedness Act,
1934, and the Punjab Debtors’ Pro-
tection Act, 1936, were created in
1930s by Sir Chhotu Ram. It won’t be
an exaggeration to say that he gave
shape to a bloodless revolution in the
field of agriculture and farming.
The nation will remember the PM
for bringing the forgotten leaders of
the country to the limelight, be it
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Netaji
Subhas Chandra Bose, Dr BR
Ambedkar or Sir Chhotu Ram.
While we remember Deenbandhu
Sir Chhotu Ram by unveiling his
statue, we must also reaffirm our
commitment to the values, ideals
and principles he fought for. If the
youth of the country can internalise
his teachings and follow in his foot-
steps, that will be true homage to
this son of the soil.
Because of his opposition to Jin-
nah’s two-nation theory, Sardar
Patel had once remarked to Sri
Ram Sharma that he would not
have worried about any of Pun-
jab’s problems had Chhotu Ram
been alive.
Sir Chhotu Ram’s contribution
assumes added significance as he
single-handedly worked for the
betterment of the lives of the for-
saken farmer. Exhorting peasants
to shed their inferiority complex
and fatalistic outlook, he played a
significant role in their organisa-
tion as a self-conscious communi-
ty and helped them acquire self-
confidence and respect. It was a
huge accomplishment to motivate
an isolated and downtrodden
peasant community to claim its
rightful status in society.
extramarital affairs. In fact, there are
dating apps for married people now.
Gleeden, a French company, made its
India foray in 2014, and according to
a June 2018 report, the app has 2.8
lakh users in the country.
But the question is, why do people
cheat, and are we heading towards a
moral wasteland? Is infidelity the ulti-
mate betrayal? What difference will the
quashing of the adultery law make?
The law can’t punish cheating
spouses, but a woman’s consent is as
vital as a man’s. While India has even-
tually recognised the sexual autono-
my of women by decriminalising
adultery, a million dollar question
remains unanswered: Will Indian
spouses be brave enough and gener-
ous enough to accept marital failure?
had its own constraints in not fully
agreeing to his demands, but rising
above petty politics, his supreme sac-
rifice for a noble cause must be recog-
nised and rewarded suitably, posthu-
mously. In this age of fake godmen,
who are commercialising spirituality,
he was a true spiritualist, spurning
materialistic comforts, for the cause
for which he lived and died.
ROSHAN LAL GOEL, LADWA
Some gaps
Apropos the fine tribute to the noted
educationist BS Bahl in the middle
‘Pitaji wrote, so students won’t suf-
fer’ (October 11); I wish to point out
some inaccuracies in the piece to set
the record straight. Bahl did not
become a lecturer at the ‘tender age’
of 20, but at the ‘ripe’ age of 23. He
passed his MSc Honours School in
chemistry as a solitary first-class hold-
er from Panjab University, as a stu-
dent of Government College Lahore
in 1935, and began his teaching career
the same year at DAV Intermediate
College, Rawalpindi. He succeeded
Suraj Bhan as principal of DAV Col-
lege, Jalandhar. Suraj Bhan left
Jalandhar not for Chandigarh but
Kurukshetra to take over as the Vice-
Chancellor there. He came to Panjab
University on horizontal transfer.
RAJESH KOCHHAR, CHANDIGARH
THE TRIBUNE
CHANDIGARH | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018
Even Delhi railway station is a nightmare...
I
NITIALLY, seven types of disabili-
ties were recognised by the gov-
ernemnt, but their number was
extended to 21 in the 2016 disabil-
ity Act. These include physical disabil-
ity, mental disability, and physical as
well as mental disability, multiple dis-
ability, low vision, thalassaemia etc.
VIVEK JOSHI
The problems being faced by physically
DISABILITY ACTIVIST disabled persons in their day to day life are
many, but not handled sensitively in India.
Most of the railway stations in the country
Every main railway station are neither accessible nor disabled-friend-
should be accessible to ly. The attitude of bureaucrats enhances
their problems sometimes.
disabled persons. Lifts One of my experiences highlights this
should be provided to issue. I was declared a national award
winner by the Ministry of Social Justice,
connect different platforms Government of India, New Delhi. The
through overbridges. There award was to be presented to me on
December 3, 2016. I was directed by sec-
should be at least one retary/official of the Ministry of Social
Justice to reach Delhi by train. I replied
compartment with a ramp to them that I could not board the train
or low-level gate, as in the due to inaccessibility at the railway sta-
tion, train compartment etc. Seeking
case of metro trains. Train permission to go there by taxi/own car, I
compartments should be requested them to pay me the train fare,
but my request was turned down. So, I
designed like those of the had to go by train. Six persons, with great
metro. difficulty, got me seated in the train at
the Jalandhar station. When I was to get
down in New Delhi, the help of four
coolies and two friends was needed to
take me out of the compartment. My
wheelchair had to be carried for about
500 m from platform no 16 to platform no
1 to reach the ramp. It took about one
hour to come out as everything was inac-
cessible at the Delhi station.
This is the state of affairs at all railway
stations. So, if we wish that disabled
persons should use trains, big railway
stations should be made disabled-
friendly. There are some more difficul-
ties for boarding trains. They include:
1 A person on a wheelchair cannot
board the train because the width of
the compartment gate is less than the
width of the wheelchair.
2 The compartment gate is at a level
higher than the platform and the
wheelchair cannot enter it without
any ramp.
3 Even if a disabled person is success-
ful in boarding or alighting the train
somehow, he will face difficulty in
changing platforms as at most of the
Animal Farm plays out in the Valley
S
O much is happening in J&K
these days that it is virtually
impossible to focus on any single
issue. What is worse is that talk-
ing ‘dispassionately’ and ‘objectively’
about anything is fraught with danger.
On the one side is the arrogance spring-
ing from power while on the other are
ZAFAR IQBAL MANHAS heartless machinations of raw passion
FORMER SECRETARY, J&K CULTURAL ACADEMY propelled by decades of suffering and
AND CIVIL SOCIETY & POLITICAL ACTIVIST frustration. There is a dull sense of
asphyxiation, not only in politics, but
also society — its fallout staring darkly
New Delhi is not ready to everybody in the face.
accept that the leadership The Government of India and its poli-
cymakers must set aside preconceived
of the Kashmiris had notions to realise that all ‘traditional’
tools employed in the name of statecraft
entered into a conditional have not really worked in the Valley.
relationship with India, Even as some irreparable damage has
been inflicted on the Kashmiri psyche, it
which had acknowledged has also not yielded the desired results
its special position. There for New Delhi.
When it comes to principled politics
was no such thing as a on the basis of pronounced promises
complete assimilation or and agreements in the state, right from
1953, New Delhi has been caught on a
merger with India. sticky wicket. It may have been able to
employ the carrot-and-stick policy with
quick crossword
SATURDAY’S SOLUTION
Across: 1 Coconut, 4 Paste, 7 Airy, 8 Prolific, 10 Foursquare, 12 Phobia, 13 Amount, 15 Riding high,
18 Traction, 19 Garb, 20 Malta, 21 Retract.
Down: 1 Chaff, 2 Corduroy, 3 Turn up, 4 Pilgrimage, 5 Soft, 6 Excerpt, 9 Aspidistra, 11 Fujiyama, 12
Phantom, 14 Rigour, 16 Habit, 17 Mail
NOT DISABLED-FRIENDLY: Boarding a train in Punjab on wheelchair is impossible.
railway stations, there is no facility for
moving from one platform to another.
4 Then there are problems for railway
reservation. You can't reserve a seat
online for a disabled person in this
LOSS OF FAITH: The anger and alienation of Kashmiris needs to be understood.
deft managerial skills, but largely it has
not been successful.
It was not only a popular leader who
was ousted on the night of August 9,
1953, but on that day, New Delhi had
itself put out the ray of hope that Gand-
ACROSS
1 Without warning (3,2,4)
8 Absurd proceedings (5)
9 Authorise (7)
10 Portray (6)
11 Regular (6)
12 In full production (2,6)
15 Taciturn (8)
18 Surrounded by (6)
20 Comprehend (6)
21 Small amount (7)
22 Blaspheme (5)
23 At extremely low price (4-5)
DOWN
2 Ultimate extent (5)
3 Open acknowledgment (6)
4 Individually (3,2,3)
5 Bring about (6)
6 Judge (7)
7 Mawkishness (9)
11 Sell at a loss (9)
13 Begin to do (3,5)
14 Moral greatness (7)
16 Shut (6)
17 Conclusion (6)
19 Composer of marches (5)
OPED
region because you must have a card,
duly prepared by divisional office, Fer-
ozpur. You have to visit the Ferozpur
divisional railway office time and again
to get the formalities completed for
hi had seen in Kashmir during the Par-
tition. The geography of the borders
may not have changed much since, but
it seems that New Delhi has lost a
chance at building faith.
The irony is that New Delhi is not
su do ku
1 3 9 Vikrami Samvat
2 1
5
6 4
9 1 7 Moola Nakshatra up to 3.34 pm
6 3 5 9
7 2 4 7
6 4
3 4
9 2
MEDIUM
getting the card prepared. Sometimes,
they take more than one year to send
the card. Again, the railway authorities
find one objection or another and reject
the application.
The civil hospital authorities some-
times don't know the procedure or for-
malities required. As a result, the fam-
ily of the disabled person has to return
empty-handed from Ferozpur even
after completing all formalities.
Again when we get the card, we can
get reservation for two persons only:
that is, one disabled person and one
escort, and a third person, if any, can't
be entertained in the same form.
If the disabled person does not
have the card, he has to go to the rail-
way station to get the reservation
done by filling in the reservation
form manually.
Suggestions for Railways
Every main railway station should be
accessible to disabled persons. Lifts
should be provided to connect differ-
ent platforms through overbridges.
There should be at least one compart-
ment with a ramp or low-level gate as
in the case of metro trains. Train com-
partments should be designed like
those of the metro. The compartments
should be interconnected with each
other internally.
It is difficult to make all compart-
ments disabled-friendly due to finan-
cial constraints, but the facility should
be extended in a phased manner.
Other problems
It is unfortunate that Punjab is the
only state in the country which has not
formulated its disability policy. Its sta-
tus in the fields of sports, medical, edu-
cation and local bodies is shown under:
Sports
Its status and how long it will take are
not known.
Medical
� No early intervention centre is there
at civil hospitals in district headquar-
ters. Their status and how long they
will take is not known.
� Disability certificate: Since every
district and its medical officers have
different working systems, persons
with disability in need of certificates
have to run from pillar to post, from
ready to accept that the leadership of
the Kashmiri people had actually
entered into a ‘conditional’ relation-
ship with India, which had acknowl-
edged and accepted the state’s special
position and uniqueness. There was no
such thing as a complete assimilation or
merger with India.
So, instead of wasting time in legerde-
main, the Indian leadership must rise
above partisan politics and treat Kash-
mir as a ‘national responsibility’. It
must understand the ‘idea of Kashmir’
and then strive to take it forward with
the ‘idea of India’. This is what Kash-
miriyat is all about.
Had the then narrow-minded leader-
ship of Pakistan, riding the wave of the
two-nation theory in 1947, realised and
appreciated the idea of Kashmir, today
the map of Jammu and Kashmir would
have been different. No one would have
been incinerated in the fire of violence
and instability. There were no Indian sol-
diers then, nor commission agents of
hateful politics of ‘one nation, one Con-
stitution, one symbol’et al.
The anger and alienation of Kashmiri
people needs to be seen and under-
calendar
OCTOBER 15 MONDAY
2075
Shaka Samvat 1940
Aashwin Shaka
Aashwin Parvishte
23
29
Hijari
Shukla Paksh Tithi 6 up to 8.05 am
1440
Soubha Yoga up to 7.12 am
Moon in Sagittarius sign
Gandmool up to 3.34 pm
SATURDAY’S SOLUTION
4 2 9 5 1 6 7 8 3
1 6 4 8 3 9 5 2
3 5 8 7 2 9 4 6 1
1 2 7 1 8 6 4 5 3 9
9 4 5 3 7 1 6 2 8 JAMMU & KASHMIR
6 8 3 2 9 5 1 4 7
1 9 4 6 3 8 2 7 5
5 5 3 7 9 4 2 8 1 6
8 6 2 1 5 7 3 9 4 Mussoorie
09
one office to another and from one
table to another in each of those many
offices.
� Chief medical officers in the dis-
tricts refer persons with intellectual
and developmental disabilities
(PwIDD) and other disability cate-
gories as per the Rights of Persons
with Disabilities (RPwD) Act 2016 to
psychiatrists and clinical psycholo-
gists in Chandigarh or Amritsar with-
out considering the situation of the
parents of the PwIDD. This should be
stopped and arrangements made for
assessment procedures to be done at
the district headquarters of the place
of the patient. Ideally, it should be
done at the sub-divisional level.
� Infrastructure for research and
development centres for intellectually
disabled/autism is lying unattended.
Executive boards, comprising 40-70
per cent parents, should be set up so
that the centres start working at once.
Education
� A disability university was sanc-
tioned and land allocated, but nothing
has been done so far.
� The UNCRPD and RPwD Act 2016
mandate inclusive education for chil-
dren with special needs. But, unfortu-
nately, no private, public, or state-run
school has the provision of special
educators. There is no monitoring by
the education department in this
regard.
� The same is the condition in
CBSE/Punjab Education Board about
inclusive education and accessibility.
� Monitoring must be ensured by the
UGC for admissions and residential
accommodation for PwD and PwIDD
and by state government for the rights
of PwD/PwIDD.
Local bodies
� Improvement trusts, municipal
corporations and urban development
administrations must ensure poli-
cies for commercial and residential
spaces for PwD and PwIDD quota;
land for NGOs for residential and
vocational centres be provided; and
accessibility in public and private
buildings be ensured.
� The district commissioner of each
district should be made the competent
authority to issue legal guardianship
certificates for PwIDD.
stood within this context. It is no won-
der, as things now stand, that right
from mosques and seminaries to the
lanes of culture and society, every place
in the Valley appears to lend itself to
Orwell’s Animal Farm, with people —
much like the sheep, goat and mon-
keys in the novel — engaged in an
unending struggle. Those gifted with
the faculty to ‘think’ are also helpless,
or have succumbed to petty interests.
This tragedy was not born of its own
within a night or two. It has been
shaped through the years. To break
this imbroglio, the stakeholders must
heed to the logic of history.
This is what insaniyat is all about. This
is what Bapu stood for. The way out lies
in understanding and acknowledging
these realities and not in trying to sup-
press them using force and coercion.
If this does not happen, the Kashmir
issue will remain unresolved — live and
ticking, in one or the other form.
Deceitful politics, at best, can only cre-
ate ‘agents’ and not visionaries with
conviction of thought and commitment
of resolve. The solution lies in realising
this — the sooner the better.
forecast
SUNSET: MONDAY 17:51 HRS
SUNRISE: TUESDAY 06:25 HRS
Sunny Partly Cloudy Cloudy
CITY MAX
Rainy
MIN
Foggy
Chandigarh 31 17
New Delhi
PUNJAB
35 18
Amritsar 31 16
Bathinda
Jalandhar
32
31
16
16
Ludhiana 31 17
HARYANA
Bhiwani 32 17
Hisar 33 15
Sirsa
HIMACHAL PRADESH
32 16
Dharamsala 25 15
Manali
Shimla
20
21
06
10
Jammu
Leh
30
15
15
--02
Srinagar 20 05
UTTARAKHAND
Dehradun 30 14
TEMPERATURE IN OC
21 11
10
#MeToo echoes in
Kashmir, but no
complaint so far
Ishfaq Tantry
Tribune News Service
Srinagar, October 14
The #MeToo wave has hit
Kashmir, but none of the
victims has filed a formal
complaint with the law-
enforcement agencies.
A confidential police report
says it would “encourage and
assist” the victims with “legal
processes”. The police report
has also made a mention of
‘The Kashmir Women’s Col-
lective’, a women’s rights
body, which earlier this week
released a list of alleged
perpetrators on the social
media along with individual
accounts of women who
have been harassed.
The report, prepared and
circulated by a particular
wing of the police, also cau-
tions that “it becomes impor-
tant to extract the pure con-
tents of harassment”.
“Though the social media
provides a platform to publicly
shun and censure the abusers
and vent out something one
keeps carrying for years
together, it becomes important
to extract the pure contents of
Football fairy tale: Scottish coach, Kashmiri team, Hindi abuses
Srinagar, October 14
Eyebrows were raised when
ex-Rangers player David
Robertson decided to take
over the reins of a rookie
club in Kashmir, but now a
year down the line he knows
the risk he took paid off
mighty well — “four ready
job offers” to be precise.
It was indeed a win-win sit-
uation for both — the team
and the coach. While Real
Kashmir FC in May became
the first club in the Valley to
make it into the I-League, for
the coach the job offers are
Dearth of private players Draft plan ready for Palampur MC upgrade
in power sector: JSW More than 15 adjoining panchayats will be part of the proposed corporation
Sumayyah Qureshi
Tribune News Service
Karcham, October 14
Despite demand for elec-
tricity in the country grow-
ing, there is a dearth of pri-
vate players in the sector.
While the total hydropower
generation capacity of the coun-
try is about 45 GW, the private
sector generates a mere 3.2 GW,
of which 1.3 GW is generated by
the Karcham Wangtoo and Bas-
pa hydroelectric projects.
The 1,000-MW Karcham
Wangtoo hydroelectric project,
the biggest private facility in the
country, is based on the Sutlej
in Himachal Pradesh’s Kin-
naur district. A run-of-the-river
project of JSW Energy, it was
commissioned in 2011.
During an interaction with
mediapersons in Kinnaur
recently, Sharad Mahendra,
Chief Operating Officer, JSW
Energy, said “12 per cent of the
power generated from the proj-
ect is given to Himachal as roy-
alty and the rest is sold to
Haryana, UP, Punjab and
Rajasthan”. Mahendra said:
“The private sector participa-
tion (in the hydropower sector)
Met predicts
rain, snow
Shimla, October 14
With the early setting of winter
and cold wave tightening its
grip, the tribal belt and high-
altitude mountainous areas are
reeling under severe cold.
The minimum temperature
has ranged between minus
five and minus eight in the
high-altitude areas and all nat-
ural sources of water like
springs, lakes, rivulets and trib-
utaries of rivers have start-
ed freezing. There is a grad-
ual fall in the discharge of
water in rivers. — TNS
Women’s rights Urges them to take part in democratic process, shape Kashmir narrative
organisation names Tribune News Service
‘perpetrators’ on Srinagar, October 14
social media; police Governor Satya Pal Malik
on Sunday said the most
to assist ‘victims’ important stakeholder in
with legal process the peace process was the
. youth and it was essential
harassment before levelling it
against a person since it
becomes a matter of public
reputation and amounts to
defamation as well if the con-
tents do not make it sexual
harassment,” the report reads.
“This movement ought to
be gender-neutral as men
too have been subjected to
molestation and unwarranted
advances,” reads the report.
“Better is to encourage the
victims. In fact, assist them
but legally. Encourage them
for legal processes,” it says.
Mantasha Binti Rashid,
one of the members of the
Kashmir Women’s Collec-
tive, said: “The victims have
shared their stories with us
and we have shared their
stories with the world.”
coming rather thick and fast.
The Srinagar-based club
was started by two friends —
Sandeep Chatto and Shamim
Meraj — to help the commu-
nity reeling from the devas-
tating floods in 2014.
The Karcham Wangtoo project in Kinnaur district. PHOTO BY WRITER
is limited as compared to the
thermal energy sector.”
JSW Energy forayed into the
hydropower sector with the
acquisition of Himachal Baspa
Power Company Ltd plants at
Karcham and Baspa in 2015
(FY16) from Jaiprakash Power
Ventures. The project catch-
ment area is 48,755 sq km
(79.5% snow area) and the
height of the dam is 88 metre.
The Karcham Wangtoo hydel
project has witnessed a dip in
power production as compared
to last year. This could be attrib-
uted to the water flow and the
amount of snowfall received.
On expansion plans, he said:
“There are no plans for expan-
sion in Himachal, but we are
evaluating various opportuni-
IGMC to have latest
equipment: Thakur
Shimla, October 14
The Himachal Government is
committed to making Indira
Gandhi Medical College the
best medical college of the
state by equipping it with the
latest equipment and technol-
ogy, said CM Jai Ram Thakur
while presiding over the 52nd
Foundation Day-cum-CME
and alumni meet of the col-
lege on Saturday evening.
“Health indicators in the
state are better than most of
Youth key stakeholder in
peace process: Governor T
Students want sedition charges dropped
Aligarh: Kashmiri students at stop, more than 1,200 Kash-
Aligarh Muslim University
(AMU) have threatened to
leave for their homes on
October 17 if the sedition
charges against three of
to engage them regularly
and effectively to give
impetus to peace and
development in Kashmir.
The Governor said this
while speaking with the
youth during an interactive
session ‘Kashmir Youth
Dialogue’ organised by the
Jammu Kashmir Youth
Alliance at the Sher-i-Kash-
mir International Confer-
ence Centre in Srinagar.
Malik said it was impor-
tant to show the youth
the right direction to
channel their creative,
intellectual and innova-
tive energies and talents
in a productive manner.
Conveying the commit-
ment of Prime Minister
Narendra Modi towards
ensuring free and fair elec-
❝
Kashmir is a lot
safer. In fact it is
safer than a lot of places
in the world. Of course, if
you are in the wrong place
you will be in trouble...
and that is true for so
many places....
David Robertson
“For me loyalty is every-
thing. I am here for the cause
— for Kashmir. But mind
you, it is not that only the
team is benefiting out of it,
when we made it into I-
League, I got four job offers.
ties. The hydropower sector is
going through stress.” Mahen-
dra said work would soon be
started again on the 240-MW
Kuther hydel project in Cham-
ba district. He said the hydro
policy of the state and the Cen-
tre made the project viable.
“The banking sector is not look-
ing towards the power sector in
a positive way in terms of lend-
ing. Without power purchase
agreements (PPAs), we would
like to wait with uncertainty.
Without PPAs, it is not easy
to get loans. We are waiting
for PPAs and we are hope-
ful,” he said. The COO said
HP was the first state to
come up with hydro policy
changes which it had felt
were not good for the sector.
the states in the country and
the credit for this goes to the
hardworking and dedicated
doctors and paramedical
staff,” he said. The CM added
that the state today had six
medical colleges in govern-
ment sector. In the near
future, all health institutions,
especially those in rural areas,
would have qualified and
highly professional doctors
and people would be able to
get best healthcare. — TNS
J&K/HP
miri students will leave for
their homes in the Valley on
October 17.” Three Kashmiri
students were booked on
sedition charges for alleged-
Satya Pal Malik
Malik allays concern about AMU pupils
The Governor assured the youth that his administration had taken up the issue of the well-
being of Kashmiri students studying in Aligarh Muslim University with the Uttar Pradesh gov-
ernment so that students could carry on with their studies in a safe and secure environment.
tions in the state, the Gover-
nor said students were the
torchbearers for the emerg-
ing societies and urged
them to take part in the
democratic process as lead-
ers and as participants to
shape the new narrative of
Kashmir and the state.
He assured full support of
the state and Central admin-
istration for the progress
of the state’s youth.
This team, its players, its
owners means a lot to me. I
am always there for this
team. Of course, the day I
feel I am not the best per-
son for the job... I will be the
first person to call it quits,”
said Robertson, who was a
find of the rather famous
Scotsman Sir Alex Fergu-
son and had played for
Rangers and Aberdeen.
Robertson, who has
worked in China and Ugan-
da before, was in New York
when an agent got him in
touch with Meraj — the co-
Ravinder Sood
Palampur, October 14
The state government has
finalised a draft plan for
the proposed Palampur
municipal corporation.
CM Jai Ram Thakur had
announced the formation of an
MC at Palampur during his
visit to Holi fair here. After the
formation of the MC, Palam-
pur will be the third town in
the state after Shimla and
Dharamsala with this status.
Official sources told The Tri-
bune here on Sunday that all
basic formalities for the pur-
pose had been completed.
As per the draft plan,
more than 15 adjoining pan-
chayats would be part of the
proposed corporation.
Judicial probe sought
into Agarwal’s death
Mathura, October 14
Shankaracharya Adhoksha-
janand Deo Tirtha Maharaj
on Sunday demanded a
judicial probe into the cir-
cumstances that led to the
death of environmentalist
GD Agarwal, and said the
“Ganga Bhakt” Prime Minis-
ter should also issue a clarifi-
cation on the episode.
Agarwal, also known as Swa-
mi Gyanswaroop Sanand, died
of heart attack at Rishikesh’s
All-India Institute of Medical
Sciences on Thursday, where
he was forcibly brought a day
earlier.He had been on an
indefinite fast for 110 days,
demanding government
measures to ensure a clean,
free-flowing Ganga.
“A judicial probe by a sitting
justice of a high court would
only reveal the truth, since sev-
eral allegations are cropping
them are not dropped. In a
letter to AMU Vice Chancellor,
students’ union former vice-
president Sajjad Rathar said,
“If this vilification does not
The Governor also partici-
pated in a one-on-one inter-
action with the youth during
the session. The participants
put forth their grievances
and concerns on a variety of
subjects, including the state
of education in J&K, espe-
cially Kashmir, where edu-
cation is regularly ham-
pered on the account of
shutdowns and restrictions,
delays in conduct of exami-
owner — and before he even
knew he was in Kashmir.
Last year when asked to
sign the deal, the coach
admitted that there was this
lingering apprehension back
home about Kashmir not
being the safest of places. But
that was then, now Robertson
calls the place as “safe as any
other in the world”. “But to be
fair, adjusting to the Indian
way of life takes time.... Here
time keeping is terrible and
I tell this to everyone.”
That said, the players too
had their complaints against
It was also said that as per
2011 Census, the population
for an MC would be 53,000
and if the present population
was taken into consideration,
it could cross 64,000.
The second condition was
GD Agarwal
up,” the Shankaracharya told
reporters in Mathura.
He said the government’s
“silence” on Agarwal’s
demands was painful as the
environmentalist was not
spreading separatism but was
only demanding a clean Gan-
ga.He said Agarwal’s
demands were similar to the
promises made by this gov-
ernment to clean the holy riv-
er and it should give a clarifi-
cation to avoid controversies
after his death. — PTI
ly raising “anti-India” slogans
and trying to hold a prayer
meeting for PhD scholar-
turned-Hizb militant Manan
Wani on October 12. PTI
nations and declaration of
results by the universities.
The Governor assured the
youth that his administra-
tion had taken up the issue
of the well-being of Kash-
miri students studying in
Aligarh Muslim University
with the Uttar Pradesh gov-
ernment so that students
could carry on with their
studies in a safe and secure
environment.
the coach — all in a jocular
way. While veteran midfielder
Khalid Qayoom was asked to
make an almost impossible
sacrifice of the irresistible
‘white-meat balls’ (gushtaba)
for the sake of football, Dan-
ish Farooq said the coach,
who has little or no knowl-
edge of Hindi language, has
somehow picked up Hindi
abuses. “Waise woh bol dete
hain par unhe matlab kisi ka
nahi pata (Yes, he abuses. But
he doesn’t know the meaning
of any one of them),” said
Danish smilingly. — PTI
<<
that the annual income of the
municipal council, which
would be merged with the
corporation, should have
been Rs 2 crore. The basic
conditions had been ful-
filled paving the way for the
Early decision unlikely
on remaining plum posts
Bhanu P Lohumi
Tribune News Service
Shimla, October 14
The BJP leaders lobbying
for plum posts of chairper-
sons and vice chairpersons
of boards and corporations
are seemingly becoming
restive as even auspicious
Navratras are coming to an
end and only three appoint-
ments have been made, that
too to placate the MLAs who
were denied Cabinet berth.
The appointment of former
minister Narinder Bragata as
Chief Whip, senior party
leader and three-time minis-
ter Ramesh Chand Dhawala
as Deputy Chairperson of
Planning Board and clearance
of the name of Sukhram
Chaudhary, party MLA from
Paonta Sahib, for Deputy
Chief Whip have been made
CHANDIGARH | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018
Schooling in Valley
poisonous, lethal
HERE was a lot of
political noise after
scholar-turned-mili-
tant Manan Bashir Wani was
killed in an encounter in
north Kashmir on Thursday.
A sense of bewilderment
gripped political voices that
questioned why Kashmir’s
educated youth were picking
up the gun. Behind this con-
cern was a deliberate attempt
to hide the real problem —
the rot in the education sys-
tem that had filled the atmos-
phere with much more lethal
pollution than diesel smoke.
Kashmir had convulsed
with the killing of Hizbul
Mujahideen commander
Burhan Wani, a school
dropout, in July 2016. Since
then the Kashmir landscape
has changed drastically to the
extent that even candidates
were not available to contest
the local bodies polls. Worse
still, the place has become a
recruitment centre for the new
generation, many of them
school or college students.
Manan Wani joining mili-
tancy and meeting the fore-
known consequence is seen
as a new dimension where the
educated youth are getting
motivated to militancy like
their lesser-educated compa-
triots. The hail of praise on
Manan raised a question:
Does this mean that the less
literate dying in encounters
are lesser mortals? The
answer to this question can
cause a serious crisis in the
Kashmir society where differ-
ent elegies are being written
for the educated and others.
The political leaders need
to rethink what they are say-
ing and the consequences of
their words thereof.
The fact is that degrees or
no degrees, the spread of mil-
itancy is growing. Whenever
a school dropout or professor
picks up the gun, there is
something wrong with the
education system. Either the
schools lack the capacity and
As per the 2011
Census, the population
for an MC has to be
53,000 and if the
present population
is taken into
consideration, the
number may cross 64k.
The municipal council in
Palampur was set up in 1952.
formation of the MC.
Sources said now the draft
plan would be sent to the Prin-
cipal Secretary, State Urban
Development Department for
his final approval. Then the
notification would be issued
❝
There are a large
number of claimants for
plum posts but the
appointments are being
made at a slow pace. As
the Lok Sabha elections
are round the corner and
knowing that any hasty
move may have serious
repercussions, Chief
Minister Jai Ram Thakur
may further delay the
appointments and keep
the carrot hanging.
Senior party leader
to assuage their hurt feelings
but may not yield desired
political results as their
supporters want to see
them as ministers.
There are a large number of
THE TRIBUNE
ON THE FRONTLINE
ARUN JOSHI
The fact is that degrees
or no degrees, the
spread of militancy is
growing. Whenever a
school dropout or
professor picks up the
gun, there is something
wrong with the
education system.
.
capability to make young
minds see hope in future or
they are party to encouraging
the mindset of violence.
The schools have failed to
generate a narrative different
than that of love for militancy.
It is feared that a number of
schools here have become
pollute-the-mind centres. To
change all this calls for an
intense societal debate.
Let all chief ministers and
education ministers of this
state tell us what kind of edu-
cation is imparted in the
schools. The government-run
schools are an apology for the
purpose they are meant for.
They have become a theatre
of “liberation from occupa-
tion” narrative. Politicians are
scared of calling for course-
correction as they themselves
stoke the narrative of “resist-
ance” to New Delhi. The
regret of loss in the aftermath
of the encounters shows that
they made no attempt to
make amends while the mili-
tants of today were in schools.
They don’t want to answer
such uncomfortable ques-
tions because if they do so
they will lose the political
capital to cash in on.
and new wards created. Since
it was a lengthy process, it
would take one year to take
final shape, a senior officer
added. It is also learnt that
there would be a 10-year tax
holidays for residents of new
areas of the corporation. This
had also been followed by the
government in the case of
the Dharamsala Municipal
Corporation also.
The municipal council in
Palampur was set up in
1952 when Kangra was part
of Punjab. Several social
bodies, NGOs and resident
welfare associations have
welcomed the step. They
have submitted sugges-
tions to the state govern-
ment for the formation of
MC in Palampur.
claimants for plum posts but
the appointments are being
made at a slow pace. As the
Lok Sabha elections are round
the corner and knowing that
any hasty move may have seri-
ous repercussions, Chief Min-
ister Jai Ram Thakur may fur-
ther delay the appointments
and keep the carrot hanging,
said a senior party leader, who
is not in the queue. At the time
of swearing in of the Chief Min-
ister, 11 ministers were admin-
istered oath simultaneously
and no Cabinet berth was left
vacant which led to resent-
ment among some former
ministers. Subsequently, posts
of Chief Whip and Deputy
Chief Whip were created but
now the basket is full again
and simmering discontent
among senior leaders has
started surfacing.
THE TRIBUNE
CHANDIGARH | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018
Jolt to Cong as CPI
joinshandswithJogi
Raipur, October 14
The CPI today said it had
entered into an alliance with
Ajit Jogi’s Janata Congress
Chhattisgarh (J) for the
upcoming Assembly elections.
The elections in the state
will be held in two phases —
on November 12 and 20 —
while the counting of votes
will take place on December
11. Earlier, the BSP had
forged an alliance with Jogi’s
outfit. According to the agree-
ment, the BSP will contest 35
seats, while the JCC(J) will
fight the remaining 55 seats
in the 90-member Assembly.
CPI state secretary RDCP Rao
and Jogi announced the alliance
between the two parties at a
press conference here today.
Jogi said the addition of the
CPI to the JCC(J)-BSP
alliance had made it a “maha-
gatbandhan” (grand alliance),
boosting its prospects in the
Bastar region and in places
with a high number of
labourers. The development
is being seen as a blow to the
Opposition Congress, which
was planning to forge a grand
alliance in Chhattisgrah to
unseat the ruling BJP.
The alliance is aimed at
forming a government that
will work in the interest of
Dalits, Adivasis, poor, vil-
lagers, farmers, labourers
and minorities, and take deci-
sions for the welfare of the
Now, zero FIR
on board trains
New Delhi, October 14
Passengers on board trains can
soon lodge a “zero FIR”
through a mobile app and the
complaint will immediately be
investigated by the RPF, a sen-
ior official has said.
A pilot project under which
complaints of harassment,
theft, crime against women
can be lodged through a
mobile application has
already been implemented in
Madhya Pradesh.
“The passenger now need
not wait for the next station to
lodge a complaint. They will be
able to file a complaint through
the mobile app and the RPF
will reach to help them,” said
RPF DG Arun Kumar. The
complaint will be treated as
“zero FIR” and investigation
will begin immediately, he
said. Currently, passengers
have to fill out a complaint
form provided by ticket exam-
iner and submit it to the RPF
or GRP at the next station.
This form gets transferred into
an FIR automatically. — PTI
Drill at sea
The sea phase of Japan India Maritime Exercise (JIMEX) under way in Bay of Bengal. Indian vessels INS
Sahyadri, INS Shakti, INS Kadmatt and INS Kirch undertook tactical exercises, including anti-submarine
warfare drills, alongside Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force ships Kaga and Inazuma. PTI
Bill on river water disputes soon
Likely to be tabled in winter session; proposes 13 basin bodies
New Delhi, October 14
The Centre is planning to
bring a legislation to fast-
track inter-state river water
dispute resolution and also
better manage work on 13 riv-
er basins across the country,
an official said.
The Bill is expected to be
introduced in Parliament in
the coming winter session,
the official said.
The proposed River Basin
Management Bill will
replace the River Boards
Act 1956. The legislation
Ajit Jogi
people of Chhattisgarh, Rao
said. He alleged that over 50
per cent of the state’s popula-
tion continued to live below
the poverty line despite 15
years of BJP rule.
Under the agreement, the
JCC(J)-BSP will support CPI
candidates in Konta and Dan-
tewada, while the Left party
and affiliated labour unions
will campaign for the for-
mer’s candidates in Chi-
trakot and Bijapur in Bastar
division and in industrial
areas like Korba and Bhilai
Nagar, Rao said.
In the 2013 Assembly polls,
the CPI had garnered just 0.66
per cent of the votes cast and
had lost in all the 13 seats it
had contested. Rao, however,
said his party had a significant
presence in the Bastar region,
particularly in Dantewada
and Konta seats, from where it
had fielded its popular leaders
Nandaram Sodhi and Manish
Kunjam respectively for the
upcoming polls. — PTI
T’gana BJP promises curbs BJYM meet in Cantt
on liquor sale to woo voters peeves defence staff
In poll manifesto, may do away with VAT on fuel
Tribune News Service
Hyderabad, October 14
The BJP has announced a
strict regulation of liquor
sales in Telangana as part of
its Assembly elections sched-
uled for December 7.
Senior BJP leader NVSS
Prabhakar, who is also BJP
manifesto committee chair-
man, said the timing of liquor
shops will be regulated so that
they shut by 6 pm and they
will be allowed to run only five
days a week. The BJP is con-
testing all 119 Assembly seg-
ments on its own.
Giving a sneak preview into
the proposed manifesto to be
formally released later, Prab-
hakar said the party was pro-
posing to do away with the
Value Added Tax (VAT) on
fuel. BJP proposes to bring
down VAT charged by the
proposes to set up 13 river-
basin authorities.
Each authority will have a
two-layer system comprising
a governing council and an
executive board. The council
will have chief ministers from
the river-basin states. The
chairperson of the governing
council will be the chief min-
isters, who will share the post
on rotation.
The Bill also envisages that
the chief ministers of the
basin-states will meet twice a
year to discuss issues con-
Give and take main challenge
to sewing 2019 coalitions: PC
THE TRIBUNE INTERVIEW
Aditi Tandon
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, October 14
After the BSP and the SP quit
alliance talks with the Con-
gress in Madhya Pradesh,
senior Congress leader P Chi-
dambaram on Sunday said
the “ability of political parties
to give and take will be the
principal challenge to the for-
mation of state-level anti-BJP
alliances for the 2019 General
Election.”
In an exclusive interview to
The Tribune, Chidambaram
said “there must be willing-
ness to give up seats where a
party is likely to lose in favour
of the party which is likely to
win because while numbers
are important, winnability is
equally important.”
Member, Congress’ core
and alliance panels for 2019
LS poll and chairman, par-
ty’s manifesto committee,
Chidambaram didn’t see the
breakdown of talks with BSP
in MP and Chhattisgarh as a
setback but admitted “it was-
n’t the result the Congress
would have liked”.
He was confident the BSP
would “reconsider” its posi-
tion and said, “Positions tak-
en by political parties are not
immutable. It’s possible the
BSP will realise it will gain
OTHER ASSURANCES
■ Supply potable water at ~6
per month per household
across state
■ Create 1 lakh jobs within
three months to fill
government vacancies
■ Free online coaching cen-
tres for students appearing
for competitive exams
state — 32% for petrol and
27% for diesel — down to
“0%”, he said.
Elaborating on alcohol
promise, he said: “We will not
ban alcohol in the state, we
will only regulate it. All liquor
and wine shops will work only
between 10 am and 6 pm, and
work only five days a week.”
This, he said, was going to
be one of the main issues in
the manifesto based on
demand by women to ban
cerning the basins.
The authorities will be set
up for major rivers such as
Ganga, Indus, Brahmaputra-
Barak, Mahanadi, Cauvery,
Krishna, Tapi, Subarnarekha,
Brahmani-Baitarani.
The authorities of these river
basins will have all aspects
such as basin master plan
including elements like hydro-
logical assessment, ground
water, aquifers, flood control,
protected area, drainage and
economic analysis of allocation
of water. — PTI
NATION
❝ In Tamil Nadu, Bengal, UP and Bihar where the
Congress is not the main opposition party, it makes
political sense to attempt to form a coalition with the
dominant parties that are opposed to the BJP. And where
the Congress is the dominant opposition party to the BJP,
others should form a coalition under the Congress.
P Chidambaram, CONGRESS LEADER
more in a coalition rather
than fighting it alone.”
On whether the Congress
was being idealistic in hoping
for give and take, Chi-
dambaram said politics was the
art of the possible and “instead
of staring at a wall, one must
find ways to either scale the
wall or get around the wall.”
He reiterated that the ques-
tion of coalition leadership
would be decided after the
alcohol completely.
The BJP, he said, was prom-
ising to reduce the water
charges for every household
in urban areas like Hyder-
abad, Karimnagar and Waran-
gal to just Rs 6 per month.
Besides, a promise of creat-
ing 1 lakh jobs to fill vacan-
cies in the government jobs
within three months of com-
ing to power, he said.
“We will also set up free
online coaching and career
guidance centres at different
places for students appearing
for competitive exams in the
state,” he said. Though the
details will only be known in
the final release of the mani-
festo, the BJP proposed to
constitute a “task force” to
protect the land owned by the
Waqf Board and other reli-
gious institutions once they
come to power.
Stakeholders invited
amid temple protests
Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 14
Amid continuing protests on
the Sabarimala issue, a tem-
ple body which manages the
Lord Ayyappa shrine today
invited various stakeholders
for a meeting to discuss "var-
ious aspects", including
preparations for the annual
pilgrimage season, begin-
ning next month.
As Various Hindu outfits
and Lord Ayyappa devotees
have been staging protests
over the last few days all over
Kerala against implementa-
tion of the Supreme Court
order, permitting women of all
age groups into the shrine, the
call for talks is considered an
attempt for a consensus.
The Travancore Devaswom
Board has invited tantries
(temple priests), Pandalam
royals and devotee groups to
the meeting.
TDB president A Padmaku-
mar said the meeting was
scheduled for October 16.
Besides the Tazhamon
tantri family and the Pan-
dalam royals, various stake-
holders of the Sabarimala
shrine, including Ayyappa
Seva Sangam, Ayyappa Seva
Samajam, tantri mahaman-
dalam and Yoga Kshema
Sabah would be invited for
11
Gita, Upanishads got
Ilyasi going in prison
New Delhi, October 14
Former TV anchor Suhaib
ed” former host, accused in
one of Delhi’s most high-
Ilyasi, acquitted on charges profile murder cases, it has
nicated to the people must be of murdering his wife this been a rough 18-year ride.
clear and the communication month, made sure he didn’t A reading of the Hindu
must be effective.” miss out on his daily namaz scriptures helped see him
To whether Rafale was the in jail, but also faithfully through the darkest days
Congress’ main poll plank, read the Bhagavad Gita and behind bars in Tihar Jail,
he said Rafale was an “exam- the Upanishads for solace said the 52-year-old, who
ple of what went wrong” and strength. described himself as a
under the BJP government For “India’s Most Want- “devout Muslim”. — PTI
but there was more to the
government’s “omissions
and commissions” than GOVERNMENT PG COLLEGE AMBALA CANTT.
Rafale. “Wait for our mani- ALUMNI MEET
festo,” he added.
MUKESH AGGARWAL
Friday Oct, 19th 2018
On why opposition parties
were not backing the Rafale Government PG College, Ambala Cantt. feels pleasure and
issue visibly, the ex-minister proud to invite its Alumni (From Session 1997 onwards) to
said they were raising the issue attend Alumni meet to be organized in the College Seminar
in the language of their states Hall on Friday dated 19th Oct, 2018 at 10.00 a.m. Kindly
confirm your gracious presence to make it a grand success.
and they needn’t accompany
Congress leaders to CAG and
CVC because the Congress
was “leading the fight”.
Convener
Email:- gcambalacantt@gmail.com
Gurdev Singh Dev Sd/- Principal
The veteran leader dis- +91-9416669695 TRC-23515 0171-2644503 (Office)
missed Mayawati’s recent
remarks that the Congress
was arrogant saying, “In poli- ����������������������������������
tics, you must learn that hard State Institute of Health and Family Welfare Complex
words break bones.” Phase-VI, Near Civil Hospital,
SAS Nagar (Mohali), PUNJAB
2019 elections and didn’t see Refusing to predict MP, Phone : 0172-2262938, 2263938,
the upcoming LS polls as a Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh Tele-Fax : 0172 - 2266938
personality battle between PM poll results, Chidambaram Visit us at : www.punjabhealth.co.in :
Narendra Modi and Congress said this much: “The Con- E-mail: adprocphsc@gmail.com
president Rahul Gandhi. “It is gress is on the ascendant in PRE SUPPLIER MEET FOR EXPRESSION OF
a battle between our idea of these states” and reminded INTEREST OF CONFIRMATORY TESTS FOR
India and the BJP’s monolith- the Election Commission OOAT PROGRAM & DOPE TESTS
ic, homogenous idea of India.” that all political parties The Department of Health & Family Welfare, Punjab intends to
Asked about the Congress’ minus the BJP want to invite Expression of Interest from National and International
challenges for 2019, Chi- return to ballot papers and Companies for Conformity Tests. The objective of this call for
dambaram listed three: “The alternatively want EVM and 'Expression of Interest' is to confirm the tests regarding drug abuse
in the State of Punjab. Punjab Health Systems Corporation,
party organisation must be VVPAT tally ideally matched
Mohali proposed to procure Confirmatory Tests for Drug Abuse
strong, the narrative commu- in all booths. under OOAT Program & Dope Tests.
Interested suppliers/companies are invited on 22.10.2018 at
12:00 noon in Committee Room of Punjab Health Systems
Corporation, Phase 6, Mohali for "Expression of Interest for
Confirmatory Tests" along with the complete company profile
with detailed suggestions at above address or scanned copy by
email at adprocphsc@gmail.com.
This is a pre supplier meet for Expression of Interest for
Confirmatory Tests for Drug Abuse in State of Punjab for
Urine/Blood Samples for Drug Abuse under OOAT Program &
Dope Tests. This pre supplier meet is being held to obtain and
Naveen S Garewal
Tribune News Service
Bison Polo Ground by the
BJYM from October 12 to 28 study suggestions on the Drug Abuse Confirmatory Testing under
OOAT Program & Dope Tests.
Hyderabad, October 14 for its national convention.
There is resentment among Also, the Parade Ground has Sd/- Managing Director (PHSC),
defence personnel after the been allowed to be used for the DPR/Pb/C2883 PHSC, SAS Nagar.
Ministry of Defence granted convention from October 23 to
permission to the Bharatiya 28. The office of the GOC
Janata Yuva Morcha Telangana and Andhra
(BJYM), the youth wing of Pradesh Sub Area has, howev-
the BJP, to hold its national er, asked the BJP state presi-
convention inside Secunder- dent to ensure that no damage
abad Cantonment. is done to the ground and no
The Bison Polo Ground and construction or digging activ-
the Parade Ground in Secun- ity is undertaken there.
derabad will be given to the Temporary structures must
BJYM for the event. This is be raised under the supervi-
being viewed as another step sion of the military authori-
towards opening up canton- ties, it adds. The MOD has
ment areas to civilians. also asked the party to take
In a letter dated October 13, appropriate local permissions
2018, to the officials concerned, and ensure no commercial
with copy to Telangana BJP activity is undertaken.
president Dr K Laxman, the Sources said the local military
office of the General Officer formation objected but the sanc-
Commanding (GOC) has cited tion was granted by the MoD.
a communication of the Min- The BJYM proposes to hold the
istry of Defence, New Delhi, Atal Yuva Maha Adhiveshan on
which has allowed the use of October 27 and 28.
the talks, he said.
"TDB has no prejudice over
any matter related to Sabria-
mala... Let them come and
share their views. We will
take a suitable decision on Herman Gomes
all aspects regarding the
temple after that," Padmaku- Mumbai scribe
mar told reporters.
The members of the assaulted, calls
Padalam royal family and
tazhamon tantries later said a
it pre-planned
collective decision would be Mumbai, October 14
taken soon on whether to A TV journalist was allegedly
attend the TDB meet or not. assaulted by unidentified
Meanwhile, various devo- persons near his house in
tee groups and Hindu outfits south Mumbai early today.
took out protest marches in The journalist, Herman
different places across the Gomes, later termed the
state, demanding that the attack “pre-planned”.
sanctity of the temple rituals
be protected.
Gomes, working with a pri-
vate television channel, was
The BJP-led NDA's "Long returning home along with a
March", which started last friend in a taxi late Saturday
week from Pandalam in night. When he got out of the
protest against the CPM-led cab around 1.30 am, he saw
LDF government's decision four to six persons waiting
to implement the top court near his house in the Gamde-
order without going for a vi area, Deputy Commissioner
review, reached the capital of Police (Zone-II) Dnyanesh-
city Sunday. war Chavan told PTI. They
AntarRashtriya Hindu started abusing Gomes and
Parishad (AHP) president later allegedly assaulted him.
Pravin Togadia called for a Journalists’ associations in
protest in the state on October the city condemned the
18 if the Left government attack and alleged that police
implements the apex court did not file the victim’s com-
order. — PTI plaint promptly. — PTI
12| INF CUS AGRICULTURE THE TRIBUNE
CHANDIGARH | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018

CROP RESIDUE MANAGEMENT

Clutching at straws
Farmers will accept an alternative to stubble-burning only if it saves time and cost. The policy thrust should, therefore,
be on setting up small industrial units to unlock the value for the entire rural economy, says SS Chhina

P
ADDY straw burning has
become a permanent phenom-
enon in northern states of Pun-
jab, Haryana and Uttar
Pradesh. Last year, it created
havoc as smoke from the fields on fire not
only engulfed these states, but also
choked the Capital. Ostensibly, the
administration must have realised that
the coercion to mitigate this plight would
not work. The Centre, therefore, adopted
the policy of persuasion and allotted Rs
1,151 crore to address this problem in
Punjab. While the fund is allocated to pur-
chase 14,000 machines to manage the
straw in the fields, only about 500
machines could be procured.
Farmers are not burning straw deliber-
ately to cause troubles for people. They are
in a hurry to harvest paddy so they can sow
the subsequent crop of wheat in time.
They have to resort to burning to clear the
field prior to preparing the seed bed for the
next crop. They cannot wait long to let the
straw be absorbed in the field. Therefore,
stubble burning took place last year,
despite 40,000 complaints against the prac-
tice. Taking penal action against the farm-
ers was difficult without proof because
fields are often conjunct and, therefore, it
is difficult for authorities to prove the fault
of a particular individual.
According to agricultural experts, it
involves about Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,000 per
acre to clear the field through means oth-
er than burning. Such means also involve
the cost of diesel, apart from crucial time
lost. Farmer cannot lose precious time in
clearing the paddy field because the sub-
sequent crop of wheat is remunerative
and a major food item for northern India,
particularly Punjab.
Paddy cultivation is remunerative, but
it has serious environmental repercus-
sions. In 2016 the total area under paddy
was about 2.8 million hectare that
increased to 3 million hectare in 2017. It is
interesting that this year, when the hike
of Rs 250 per quintal in the minimum
support price (MSP) of paddy was
announced, the transplantation of paddy
was almost complete. The growing area of
paddy is a concern due to the fast deple-
tion of underground water table. As 60 per
cent of the irrigation water is obtained
from underground, the water level has
depleted much throughout the state.
Among the 147 blocks of the state, the
water level in 100 has gone alarmingly
low. But, it is not possible to force farmers
to stop growing paddy and shift to alter-
native crops. Only assured procurement
with higher MSP can make alternative
crops equally beneficial for farmers. It
can prompt them to shift to other crops.
The farmer is more interested in
assured market that is provided in case of
only wheat and paddy through govern-
ment-assured procurement. That is why
farmers do not bother to wait for the
announcement of the MSPs for wheat
and paddy. In Punjab the cropping pat-
tern has turned towards wheat and paddy,
where these two crops are covering about
70 per cent area of the state.
Government agencies and experts pro-
pound crop diversification. Higher MSPs
are announced for alternative crops every
year. But, the situation remains invariable
due to the lack of assured government pro-
curement of other crops. There would be
no problem on the front of country's food
security even if the area under paddy is
reduced to half, but the reduction in area
must not be forced on the farmer.
Looking at the invariable cropping
pattern and the emerging problem of
straw burning, the issue needs to be
addressed socially with the patronage of
the government. Looking on the attrib-
utes of paddy straw for its value addi-
tion in the form of cardboard, paper, cat-
tle feed, bio-fuel etc., it is prudent to
encourage the installation of small
units to prevent straw burning. It can't
be expected that the farmer would
install his industrial unit irrespective of
the size of the farm. Few big industrial
units can't be a workable idea as it
involves high transportation cost, since
the straw is spread in the entirety of the
area. It is estimated that about 20 mil-
lion tonne of straw is produced every
year that can be put to use.
The paradigm of dairy is the most
appropriate alternative. Dairy coopera-
tives have contributed a lot to the Punjab
economy. It is only Punjab where dairy is
contributing about 9 per cent in the state
gross domestic product, in which the role
of dairy cooperatives is laudable. As
small-scale units are more suitable for
such industrial units, they should be
installed in all the blocks of the state
where farmers of the area should be
made shareholders. Though the farmers
would be getting a small price for their
straw, with the value addition they would Uses of crop residue
avail the bonus on the pattern of dairy on Bedding material for animals, livestock
the basis of the share they had con- feed, soil mulching, bio-gas generation,
tributed in the cooperative venture. The bio-manure/compost, thatching for rural
straw, which was a big problem, would be homes, mushroom cultivation, biomass
turned into useful products in different energy production, fuel for domestic and
shapes. At the same time, it would gener- industrial use
ate income and employment. As the
infrastructure in the form of electricity,
roads, banks and workshops are now
Why these are burnt on farm
available everywhere, and there is no ■ To clean the field for sowing next crop
dearth of raw materials, such small-scale ■ High cost of removing stubble from field
production units would run successfully.
— The writer is a Senior Fellow of
■ Mechanised harvesting of crops
Institute of Social Sciences, New Delhi ■ Shortage of human labour

Hire to douse fire

Farmers will not make huge capital investments on implements that would
Stubborn stubble
Bhuwan Bhaskar dioxide levels jump by 7 per cent and 2.1
contain stubble-burning. As these equipments are used only once a year, they per cent, respectively. The burning of one

A
manmade disaster is waiting to tonne of paddy straw releases 3 kg of par-
would prefer to hire on rent instead of owning these, says Vikram Ahuja choke residents of the National ticulate matter, 60 kg carbon monoxide
Capital Region again this win- (CO), 1,460 kg carbon dioxide (CO2), 199

T
HE government has been unable
to curb stubble-burning despite
farmers at some places having
been challaned for burning the
paddy residue. One of the reasons is eco-
nomic. Farmers are unable to afford the
expensive machinery that enables them to
use paddy stubble for financially beneficial
uses. Time constraint is the other reason.
Farmers get a very short window between
the harvesting of paddy and the planting of
wheat. Hence, they find the burning of pad-
dy stubble to be the easiest and fastest
option to prepare the fields for the next crop.
Lack of awareness among farmers about
the ills of burning paddy stubble is not the
challenge. Now, several farmers are aware
of the productive use of paddy stubble.
They know the use of rakers and balers to
make bales of paddy stubble that can be
sold to biomass plants, to gaushalas for ani-
mal fodder, and to cardboard-making
industries. Alternatively, farmers can sow
wheat in the standing paddy stubble. If the
paddy stubble is not burnt, the soil is far
more nourished, and provides more nutri-
ents to the next crop. Several awareness
initiatives have demonstrated the use of
equipment like 'Happy Seeder', 'Mulcher'
and 'Reversible Plough' in sowing the next
crop in standing paddy stubble.
The unavailability of the
required machinery at the
Culprit states
Punjab
Haryana
Uttar Pradesh
Monetary assistance
Active fire incidents
~1,151.80 cr Sep 27 - Nov 15, 2016
central assistance
To Punjab, Haryana,
UP and Delhi
Sep 27 - Nov 15, 2017
In two years, 2018-19 and
2019-20
(SOURCE: LOK SABHA)
farm level, however, forces farmers to burn
the stubble before preparing the field for
the wheat crop. A report published in The
Tribune on October 7 pointed at the "high-
capital expenditure" on buying such equip-
ment. The average size of landholdings in
the state is three acres. Farmers are being
encouraged by the state to buy equipment,
which they will put to use for only a few
hours in the whole year. This is the crux of
the problem.
Then, what is the solution? The 'pay-for-
use' or 'the library' model is the answer to
the problem. It would work like Uber or
Ola. As an economist would say, convert
fixed cost into a variable cost. Instead of
purchasing the equipment, the
78,772
42,337
farmer takes the required machinery on
rent from the farm equipment library of
the village. Owing to the huge demand,
each village would require more than one
equipment. The service providers would
maintain daily time-tables for round-the-
clock booking during the season. They
would hire village youth to operate the
machine for in-situ management of paddy
stubble. The enterprising villagers running
the equipment libraries would not restrict
their inventory to machines that deal with
paddy crop stubble. They couldstock the
latest farming equipment that is needed by
farmers around the year.
Imagine the benefits of these libraries.
The youth would get employment within
the village. The Uber or Ola model in farm-
ing equipment would increase income at
the village level, and galvanise the rural
economy. Individual farmers would not be
required to buy costly farming equipment.
The farmer would be needed to pay only for
the service. This will also reduce the gov-
ernment's subsidy bill and the public mon-
ey could be put to good use. A tractor that
runs for less than 1,000 hours in a year, or
any farming equipment that is used for
less than 200 hours in a year, is not eco-
nomically viable, even if subsidised. The
situation is worse if farmers take loans to
buy under-utilised equipment.
— The writer is trustee, JBNR Trust
ter because of stubble-burning
in the neighbouring states - Punjab,
Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. It is esti-
mated that about 35 million tonnes of
paddy stubble are set afire by the farm-
ers of Punjab and Haryana to prepare
the fields for the winter crop.
Besides pollution, it is a sheer waste of
nutrients, required to rejuvenate the
soil. One tonne of paddy straw contains
approximately 5.5 kg of nitrogen, 2.3 kg
of P2O5 (phosphorus pentoxide), 25 kg
of K2O (potassium oxide) and 1.2 kg sul-
phur. Agricultural scientists say that the
straw can replenish 80 per cent soil
nitrogen and potassium, if not burnt.
The primitive method of clearing the
field burns a significant amount of
micro-nutrients and carbon present in
the stubble. In addition, the burning
affects some soil properties, such as
temperature, pH level, moisture, phos-
phorus and organic contents.
The practice of the
stubble-burning
degrades the
environment.
It shoots up the
carbon dioxide
level in the air
by 70 per cent.
Carbon monox-
ide and nitrogen
kg ash and 2 kg sulfur dioxide (SO2).
These gases affect human health. There-
fore, smashing stubbles under surface
soil is desirable, rather than burning
them in the farms.
It has been noticed that among the
options available for management of pad-
dy straw - bio-char, pellets and briquettes
making for thermal power plants and
ethanol production - in-situ use of paddy
straw as mulch for sowing of wheat and its
incorporation in soil for planting of potato
and other vegetable crops is the most fea-
sible and economical option for handling
the paddy straw, says an official document.
Farmers, however, prefer to burn the
stubbles. Why? There are primarily two
reasons. One, lack of awareness as many
farmers think burning stubbles would
kill insects and sanitise soil. The second
reason is purely economic - the high cost
of removing stubbles from the field. The
TRIBUNE PHOTOS:
much-hyped 'in-situ' management of RAVI KUMAR &
crop residue revolves around eight hi- MANAS RANJAN
BHUI
tech big machines.
There are several solutions to curb this
menace, but nothing will work without
involving the farmer. The government
must involve the entire farm ecosystem
to make the movement against the stub-
ble-burning a success.
— The writer is AVP, NCDEX
The views are personal

Loss of nutrients PER TONNE On the fire

Nitrogen 5.5 kg Crops Residue
Sulphur 1.2 kg Cereals 352 MT
Phosphorus 2.3 kg Fibres 66 MT
Potash 25 kg Oilseeds 29 MT
Organic carbon 400 kg Pulses 13 MT
SOURCES: AGRICOOP.NIC.IN, LOK SABHA Sugarcane 12 MT

Burning issue
States Residue generation Residue surplus Residue burnt
Punjab 50.75 24.83 19.65
UP 59.97 13.53 11.92
Haryana 27.83 11.22 9.08
Maharashtra 46.45 14.67 7.42
West Bengal 35.93 4.29 4.96
(FIGURES IN MILLION TONNE)

Please email your feedback at infocus@tribunemail.com

THE TRIBUNE
CHANDIGARH | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018
Summons to Pak auto driver over ~300-cr transactions
GLOBE TROT Karachi, October 14
An auto rickshaw driver got
the scare of his life when he
received a call from Pak-
istan’s top investigation
agency which sought an
explanation from him about
a whopping Rs 300 crore
worth of transactions made
to his account.
The driver, identified as
Muhammad Rasheed, who
lives in Karachi came to
know about the huge trans-
actions when the Federal
WORLD
Investigating Agency (FIA)
summoned him for an
explanation.
“I got a call from the FIA
office and they told me to
show up for questioning. I
was so scared as I didn’t
know what had happened,”
Rasheed said. “When I went
to the FIA office, they
showed me the record of my
bank account,” he said.
“The FIA officials told me
that transactions of some Rs
300 crore were made
LAUNDERING UNDER SCANNER through my salary bank
account which I had opened
■ Pakistan’s FIA is investigating large-scale in 2005 when I was working
money- laundering cases after the for a private company as a
Supreme Court appointed a joint investi- driver,” Rasheed said.
gation unit to probe into the matter He said he quit the job just
■ The FIA is investigating several individual after a month to start his
accounts, which have been used for own work. “Such a huge
money laundering by some influential amount is a dream. I have
businessmen and politicians never even seen Rs 1 lakh in
■ In many cases, dormant accounts of my life,” he lamented. About
poor people have been activated in his former employer,
connivance with some bank officials Rasheed said he was unable
for huge transactions to recall the firm’s name.
“My family and I live in a
13
rented place. I work hard to
make both ends meet. I
can’t even imagine such a
huge amount. I suspect my
salary account was being
used for some other purpos-
es,” he said.
He said he convinced the
FIA officials about his present
financial conditions. A few
days back, a food vendor in
Karachi’s Orangi town also
got the shock of his life when
he found more than Rs 200
crore in his account. — PTI

Maldives risks sanctions as

SLAIN ARCHBISHOP A SAINT NOW: People take part in the
‘pilgrimage of light’ to celebrate the canonisation of slain
Salvadoran cleric Oscar Romero, in San Salvador. Pope Francis
Indian-origin MP joins
rebels, May’s Brexit
raised Romero and Pope Paul VI to sainthood in a ceremony
at the Vatican on Sunday. Five others were also elevated to

toppled Yameen fights back

the highest rank in the Roman Catholic Church. AFP

Turkey renames embassy road after US rights leader

ANKARA: City authorities in Turkey’s capital Ankara have
renamed the street where the new US embassy is being
built “Malcolm X Avenue” after the US civil rights
leader, state media reported. The move coincides with a
FRESH ‘TURMOIL’ Judges hear strongman’s plea to annul poll results
period of fraught ties between Turkey and the US and Colombo, October 14
comes after other politically charged name changes to Maldives judges on Sun-
streets in Ankara. In February, the city renamed the day heard a petition by
street outside the current US Embassy “Olive Branch”, strongman President
which is what Turkey called one of its military cam- Abdulla Yameen to have
paigns in Syria. Ankara is at odds with Washington over his recent election defeat
its backing of forces led by the Kurdish YPG militia, annulled, potentially trig-
which Turkey views as a terrorist group. REUTERS gering US sanctions and
plunging the archipelago
Karaoke office: Japan Inc shifts to unusual workspaces into fresh turmoil.
TOKYO: From one-person cubicles in underground stations to Yameen lost heavily in the
camping tents under skyscrapers and even karaoke clubs: September 23 election to a lit-
in workaholic Japan, salarymen are never short of a place tle-known unity opposition
to work. Unusual work venues are popping up in Japan as candidate, Ibrahim Mohamed
firms try to move from chaining their staff to their desks Solih, despite his main rivals
to offering them more freedom in their working practices being in jail or in exile and
and as the gig economy spreads even to this temple of cor- the media in his pocket.
porate culture. These temporary “outdoor offices” creat- Under pressure from the
ed by Snow Peak Business Solutions are proving a hit US, Europe and India, which
with firms keen to get staff out of the stuffy office. AFP is seeking to counter growing
Chinese influence in the
Thousands protest artificial islands for HK housing strategically positioned 1,200-
HONG KONG: Thousands took to the streets in Hong Kong island honeymoon paradise,
on Sunday to protest a government plan to build hous- Yameen quickly conceded
ing on artificial islands, claiming the "white elephant" defeat and said he would
project will damage the environment and line the pock- leave office on November 17.
ets of developers. The government's proposal to reclaim But even as Western coun-
1,700 hectares around Hong Kong’s largest outlying tries breathed a sigh of relief,
island, Lantau, has been touted as a solution to the prisoners were released and
pressing housing shortage in the city. AFP opposition figures began
returning from exile, Yameen
Stop playing ‘Purple Rain’ at rallies: Prince estate last week filed a request for
LOS ANGELES: The Prince estate has requested President Don- the Supreme Court to annul
ald Trump to stop using “Purple Rain” at his rallies. At the result and call fresh poll.
recent rallies, like the one Trump held in A statement on Saturday by
Mississippi last week, the playlist at the his Progressive Party said the
event has featured Prince’s “Purple vote was the “most farcical
Rain”. “The Prince estate has never given election in living memory”
permission to the President or the White with the organisation
House to use “abysmal”, vote-rigging “ram-
Prince’s songs and pant” and many people
have requested unable to cast ballots. The US
that they cease — which like the European
all use immediate- Union threatened sanctions if
ly,” a statement said. PTI the elections were not free and
try’s first democratically
elected President who is now
in exile, beat him in the first
round of elections but Yameen
persuaded the Supreme
Court to nullify the result.
A subsequent vote was then
twice delayed, allowing
Yameen time to forge
alliances that helped him nar-
rowly win a contested run-off.
Dozens of people queued up
outside the SC on Sunday
to get inside several hours
before the hearing began. It
started with the court allow-
ing all opposition parties to
Opposition supporters protest in Male on Sunday. REUTERS have their say.
Hamid Abdul Ghafoor,
OPPN SUPPORTERS SEEK EX-PREZ’S ARREST Colombo-based spokesman
■ Hundreds of Maldivians protested on Sunday demanding for the opposition Maldivian
the arrest of defeated President Abdulla Yameen as its top Democratic Party, said the
court began to hear a petition challenging the outcome of legal challenge was a bid by
last month’s election. “This is our right. They can't change Yameen to create turmoil.
it. They can't play around with the votes,” Abidha Afeef, a The country’s Joint
55-year- old protester, said. “Yameen has to go.” Opposition, which includes
■ Yameen initially conceded defeat last month after an official the MDP, has asked
count showed joint Opposition leader Ibrahim Mohamed Yameen to withdraw the
Solih had won the election by a margin of 16.8 per cent in a “blatantly unsubstantiated
surprise result. Last week, however, Yameen’s lawyers case, and to step aside and
approached the Supreme Court, saying supporters had to facilitate a peaceful, and
complained about rigging of votes and fraudulent ballots smooth transition”. The
opposition has also urged
fair — on Saturday warned it against anyone who under- state institutions, including
would react if Yameen, 59, mines a peaceful transfer of the courts and the security
does not go quietly. power in #Maldives.” forces, to uphold the will of
“The US is concerned by The situation is not dissim- the people. “Maldivians
troubling actions by outgoing ilar to 2013 when Yameen, used the ballot to defeat the
President Yameen that threat- estranged half-brother of dictatorial regime. Yameen
en to undermine the will of Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, must not be allowed to per-
the Maldivian people,” State who ruled the Maldives with verse the hard-won oppor-
Department spokesman an iron fist for 30 years until tunity for all Maldivians to
Robert Palladino tweeted. He 2008, first became President. attain meaningful democra-
said Washington “will consid- Yameen’s rival at the time cy and stability,” the Joint
er appropriate measures Mohamed Nasheed, the coun- Opposition said. — AFP
challenge mounts
London, October 14
Indian-origin MP Priti Patel,
one of the most outspoken
British politicians in favour
of Brexit, joined fellow Brex-
iteers on Sunday to mount a
further challenge to Prime
Minister Theresa May’s
plans for a future trading
arrangement with the Euro-
pean Union (EU).
Patel is among 63 Conser-
vative Party MPs to sign a
letter attacking the UK gov-
ernment over its Brexit
forecasts and blaming
May’s team of leaking neg-
ative financial forecasts of
the impact of Britain’s exit
from the economic bloc.
“Adopting a constructive
and transparent approach
would be in the national
interest,” says the letter,
organised by the Economists
for Free Trade group of
Eurosceptic economists and
former Brexit minister Steve
Baker. “The general public is
battered and bewildered by
conflicting predictions of
the future path of the econo-
my following Brexit,
fuelling a growing suspicion
that Whitehall is engaging
in what is apparently known
internally as ‘policy-based
evidence-making’,” it notes.
The show-of-unity letter,
addressed to UK Chancellor
Philip Hammond, comes as
one of its signatories — for-
mer Brexit Secretary David
Davis — openly called for a
Cabinet uprising against
May’s Brexit strategy ahead
of a crucial summit with the
EU in Brussels scheduled for
Priti Patel
next week.
Writing in The Sunday
Times, the former minister
said the government’s nego-
tiating strategy had “funda-
mental flaws”, arising from
the “unwise decision in
December to accept the EU’s
language on dealing with the
Northern Ireland border”.
The British PM has sug-
gested a temporary customs
arrangement for the whole of
the UK to remain in the EU
Customs Union while the
complicated Irish border
issue is resolved. However,
Brexiteers, like Patel and
Davis, suspect this could turn
into a permanent situation,
restricting Britain’s freedom
to strike future trade deals
with other countries.
“This is one of the most
fundamental decisions that
government has taken in
modern times. It is time for
the Cabinet to exert their col-
lective authority. This week
the authority of our constitu-
tion is on the line,” writes
Davis, who stepped down
from the UK Cabinet in July
due to his opposition to
May’s Brexit plan. — PTI

Trump wants people to Ready to share CPEC debt details with IMF: Pak
enter US on merit basis
Washington, October 14
US President Donald Trump
has said that he wants people
with merit, who can help, to
enter the country and not
sneak inside the border ille-
gally. “I’m very tough at the
borders. We've been very
tough at the borders. People
have to come into our country
legally, not illegally. Legally.
And I want them to come in
on merit,” Trump said at the
White House.
Responding to a series of
question on illegal immigra-
tion, the President reiterated
that he wants people based on
merit, a move that can help
technology professionals
from countries such as India.
"What I want is merit. I want
BYELECTION IN 35 CONSTITUENCIES
NO THREAT TO ARMS
DEAL WITH S ARABIA
■ Donald Trump said he is
against cancelling the
$110 billion mega arms
deal with Saudi Arabia as
this will hurt the American
economy and jobs
■ Under pressure for taking
some action against Saudi
Arabia, after the disappear-
ance of Saudi dissident
and journalist Jamal
Khashoggi in Turkey, Trump
said he is trying to get at
the bottom of the issue
and has sought details of it
from Saudi Arabia
■ Khashoggi, who wrote for
The Washington Post, is
feared being killed by Sau-
di officials inside the Sau-
Islamabad, October 14
Pakistan is ready to share
details of the debt related to
the China-Pakistan Eco-
nomic Corridor (CPEC)
with the IMF, Finance Min-
ister Asad Umar has said
while rejecting the US'
view that China-funded
projects were to blame for
the cash-strapped country's
current economic woes.
Speaking to the media
here on his return from
Indonesia where he
requested International
Monetary Fund's Managing
Director Christine Lagarde
for a bailout package for
Pakistan, Umar said the
decision to approach the
global lender was taken
Four killed in
US shooting
able from the IMF.
Lagarde has made it clear
Taft, October 14
Investigators say a party in
■ Pakistan voted on Sunday for the by-election in 35 that the IMF would require South Texas to mark a tod-
national and provincial assemblies amid heightened absolute transparency on dler’s first birthday erupt-
security, with over 600 candidates, including some Pakistan's debts, including ed in gunfire, leaving four
political bigwigs, in the running those owned by China men dead and a fifth man
■ Over 5 million registered voters — about 2.3 million under the $50 billion CPEC. wounded.
women and almost 2.7 million men — have the right to Umar, however, rejected The Texas Department of
vote. Also, the overseas Pakistanis will be voting for the US State Department's Public Safety says the shoot-
the first time in the by-polls statement, suggesting that ing happened shortly after 5
the debt accrued on the pm Saturday in Taft, 12 miles
■ Polls are being held in nine assembly segment in Pun-
jab and one each in Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, CPEC projects was to blame north of Corpus Christi. Sgt
and 24 provincial assemblies seats. Most of these for Pakistan’s current eco- Nathan Brandley says an
seats were vacated by those candidates who had won nomic crisis. The CPEC is a altercation erupted between
on more than one seat during general elections network of infrastructure two families attending the
projects that are currently party and escalated into a
A woman casts her vote in Lahore on Sunday. AFP >> under construction deadly shooting. Brandley
throughout Pakistan that said the injured was airlift-
after consultations with Pakistan on November 7 to istan's current year debt will connect China's Xin- ed to a Corpus Christi hospi-
friendly countries. negotiate the programme, repayments were about $9 jiang province with Gwadar tal. His condition wasn’t
The IMF team, Umar said, likely to span over a three- billion but obviously it port in Pakistan's Balochis- clear. Brandley said two sus-
was scheduled to arrive in year period. He said Pak- would not entirely be avail- tan province. — PTI pects are on the loose. — AP

Pigeon keeper, dog hold out through 7 years of war

a lot of people to come in. We
have great car companies
entering our country again.
This hasn't happened for 35
years. We have companies
di Consulate in Istanbul.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia
warned against threats to
punish it over the
Khashoggi's disappear- Yarmouk, October 14 this building. They’re all and I relied on him to guard militants entered? It doesn’t
REUTERS

such as Foxconn going to Wis-
consin with a massive, mas-
sive plant," he said. "We need
people coming in, but we
want them to come in on mer-
it. We want people that are
going to help us. It's very
important," Trump said.
Observing that immigra-
tion is not tricky to him, he
insisted that the administra-
tion and the Congress have to
do the right thing whether
there's an election or not.
He opposed the chain
migration policy and said, "If
that's a bad policy, guess
what, a lot of bad things are
going to happen. But a lot of
people agree with me. I would
say a vast majority of our
ance, saying it would retal-
iate against any sanctions
with tougher measures
country agrees. They don't
want criminals coming into
our country. They don't want
people that they don't want in
the country that aren't going
to help us as a country. They
don't want these people com-
ing in. So we have a very
strong policy.” “The one thing
that really has changed over
the last couple of years since
I've been President — our
country is doing well. You
take a look at us compared to
China, compared to every-
body else, we're the hottest
country in the world.” — PTI
The Yarmouk district in
Damascus has switched
hands many times in Syria’s
war: from rebels, to Islamic
State militants, and back to
government forces. But Abu
Nimr did not budge.
He has remained in his
family home with his dog
through bombs, siege, and
fierce battles for more than
seven years, raising
pigeons on his roof even as
people fled in droves.
Since the army clawed
back the enclave around five
months ago, he has helped
clear heaps of rubble from
the streets and repair aban-
doned houses.
“My siblings and I lived in
married. They left so their
kids could go to school,” Abu
Nimr said in the Yarmouk
Palestinian camp in the Syr-
ian capital. “I thought I’d
stay here alone, keep an eye
on the family property, and
hoped things would be
resolved within days. But
seven years passed, God
kept me patient.”
Abu Nimr, who is originally
Palestinian, owned a shop
selling sweets like baklawa
before the conflict.
At the onset, he stored food
from the empty houses of his
relatives. As supplies dwin-
dled, he often slept hungry.
“I took a decision seven
years ago that weapons are
the house when I went out.”
When the fighting got too
close, he would hide in the
furthest room with a ham-
mer in case he had to dig
himself out.
The violence has turned
his neighbourhood into a
ghost town, with twisted
metal and collapsed walls
still blocking some streets.
Others are closed off with
signs warning of landmines.
By the time the last battle
came this year, after scores
Meet Abu Nimr, who just won’t budge from of residents had escaped or
Yarmouk in Syria, come what may died, only 16 people were left
in his neighbourhood.
not my thing. Bloodshed is over the years and spent time But he refused to leave.
not easy,” he said. with his dog Balo. “He was “The people fled? The war-
Abu Nimr, 36, did odd jobs my friend through the siege, planes dropped bombs? The
matter.” Now, Abu Nimr
wants to bring life back to
Yarmouk and hopes people
will be able to return soon.
Former neighbours and resi-
dents call him from other parts
of Syria or abroad, asking him
to check on their homes. They
send him some money to
clean up and repair damages.
State employees and volun-
teers have opened all of the
main roads, he said. “We help
with what we can.” “Praise
God, now things are much
better.” If not for the war, Abu
Nimr believes he would be
married with kids now. “If
people come back and it gets
better, I will re-open a sweets
shop right away.” — Reuters
14
BRIEFLY
KABUL
Hazratullah smashes six
sixes in an over during APL
Afghanistan batsman
Hazratullah Zazai achieved one
of the rare feats in cricket when
he smashed six sixes in an over
in the Afghanistan Premier
League (APL) T20 here on
Sunday. Playing for Kabul
Zwanan, the 20-year-old
produced a whirlwind 12-ball half-
century against the Balkh
Legends. Left-arm spinner
Abdullah Mazari was the bowler
who bore the brunt of Zazai’s
fury. Abdullah went on to
concede 37 runs in the over, one
came off a wide. Before him, Sir
Garfield Sobers, Ravi Shastri,
Herschelle Gibbs and Yuvraj
Singh had hit six sixes in an over.
Sadly, Zazai ‘s feat came in a
losing cause as Kabul Zwanan
lost to Balkh Legends by 21 runs.
SONEPAT
Patna Pirates pip UP Yoddha
43-37 in PKL
Patna Pirates overcame a slug-
gish start to record a comfort-
able 43-37 victory over UP Yod-
dha in the Pro Kabaddi League.
Pardeep Narwal scored 14
points to be the star raider once
again but it was Patna’s defence
that laid down the foundations of
their win. Shrikant Jadhav got 17
points for UP Yoddha and Ris-
hank Devadiga scored 11 but
their efforts went in vain.
BUENOS AIRES
Maradona lashes out
at Messi
Argentine legend Diego
Maradona feels Lionel Messi is
not a leader and should not be
considered a footballing god.
“We shouldn’t deify Messi any
longer. He was Messi when he
played for Barcelona. Messi is
Messi when he wears that shirt
and he’s another Messi with
Argentina,” he said. Maradona
coached the Argentine squad at
the 2010 World Cup. That Argen-
tine team, who featured Messi as
their main star, topped their
group and beat Mexico 3-1 in the
second round before being beat-
en 4-0 by Germany in the quar-
terfinals. Messi is yet to win any
silverware for Argentina but has
won every possible honour with
his club FC Barcelona.
BENONI (SOUTH AFRICA)
Final South Africa-Zimbabwe
T20 abandoned
Rain and a wet outfield caused
the abandonment of the third
and final T20I between South
Africa and Zimbabwe at
Willowmoore Park on Sunday.
South Africa won the series 2-0
after winning an earlier one-day
series 3-0. — Agencies
TODAY ON TV
VIJAY HAZARE TROPHY
MAHARASHTRA VS JHARKHAND
STAR SPORTS: 8:50AM
Gambhir’s ton, Khejroliya
hat-trick fire Delhi into semis
Bengaluru, October 14
Captain Gautam Gambhir
smashed 104 off 72 balls
after left-arm pacer Kulwant
Khejroliya ran through the
Haryana batting with a hat-
trick to set-up a five-wicket
win, sending Delhi into the
semifinals of the Vijay Haz-
are Trophy.
Batting first, Haryana were
all out for 229 with Khejroliya
taking six wickets for 31 runs
in 10 overs, his career-best per-
formance in List A cricket.
Navdeep Saini, with figures of
3/39, was a good foil for Khe-
jroliya. Birthday boy Gamb-
hir, who turned 37 today, then
ensured his team cantered
with a whirlwind knock com-
prising 16 fours. In the end,
Delhi got home with 64 balls
to spare and five wickets in
hand. The other major contri-
bution from the bat came
from Dhruv Shorey (50).
Chasing 230, Umukt Chand
(15) and Gambhir started well,
putting on 54 runs for the first
WI sink to 10-wkt loss inside three days, hand India 10th consecutive series at home
Hyderabad, October 14
India thumped West Indies by
10 wickets inside three days to
complete a 2-0 series sweep
here today after Umesh
Yadav’s stellar bowling effort
set up their comprehensive
victory in the and second and
final Test.
West Indies skipper Jason
Holder’s 5/56 limited India’s
first-innings lead to 56 in the
morning, but their abject sec-
ond-innings batting left the
hosts needing only 72 to win.
Openers Prithvi Shaw and
Lokesh Rahul, both of whom
remained unbeaten on 33
each, completed the formali-
ties in 16.1 overs to inflict on
West Indies their second suc-
cessive defeat inside three
days. Umesh, who was twice
on a hat-trick in the match,
claimed 4/45 to become only
the third Indian paceman
after Kapil Dev and Javagal
Srinath to claim 10 wickets in
a home Test. “I felt really hap-
py for him,” India coach Ravi
Shastri said of Umesh, who
has often had to warm the
bench because of the competi-
tion in the pace bowling
department.
“It can be frustrating when
you sit on the reserve bench
like he did in four Test match-
es in England. He got his
opportunity here and he
grabbed it with both hands...
He’s given us a (selection)
headache and it’s a very good
headache,” the coach said.
After India resumed Day 3
on 308/4, Rishabh Pant fell on
92 for the second successive
innings and Ajinkya Rahane
also missed his century as
Holder and Shannon Gabriel
restricted India to 367. Holder
surprised Rahane, who made
80, with extra bounce and, two
balls later, trapped Ravindra
Jadeja lbw for a duck. Rahane
featured in a 152-run stand
with Pant, who failed to reach
the triple-figure mark thanks
to a brilliant catch by Shimron
Hetmyer.
Abject surrender
The West Indies batsmen,
however, could not comple-
ment the lion-hearted effort
of their bowlers. The tourists
got off to a nightmarish start
with opener Kraigg Brath-
waite and Kieran Powell both
departing for ducks. Brath-
waite blocked the first deliv-
ery from Umesh to deny him
a hat-trick spread across two
innings, though fell caught
behind off the very next ball.
Umesh dismissed Roston
Chase and Shane Dowrich
with the last ball of his eighth
over and the first of his ninth
but a hat-trick eluded him for
the second time in the match.
Sunil Ambris’s 38 was the
top score in a poor batting
display by his team. India’s
spin trio, led by Ravindra
Jadeja (3/12), shared six wick-
ets among them, but had to
be, for once, content playing
second fiddle to paceman
Umesh, who was chosen Man
of the Match. — Reuters
VIJAY HAZARE TROPHY
Gautam Gambhir
Brief scores
■ Haryana: 229 all out in
49.1 overs (C Bishnoi 85,
P Chandila 59; K Khe-
jroliya 6/31, N Saini
3/39); Delhi: 230/5 in
39.2 overs (G Gambhir
104, D Shorey 50; R
Tewatia 3/32)
Bihar: 69 all out in 28.2
overs (Rahmatullah 18;
Deshpande 5/23, Mulani
3/18); Mumbai 70/1 in
12/3 overs (Rohit 33*)
THE CALYPSO COLLAPSE
Skipper Virat Kohli and Umesh Yadav celebrate with teammates the dismissal of Roston Chase on the third day of the second Test in Hyderabad on Sunday. AFP
10-FOR: UMESH JOINS KAPIL, SRINATH
Batsmen need to replicate home form in Oz: Virat
Hyderabad, October 14
India captain Virat Kohli
has no issues with his
bowlers but wants his bats-
men to replicate their home
form on Australia tour
beginning next month.
While the bowlers have
been brilliant of late, both at
home and away, the bats-
men have let the team down
wicket before the former was
caught by CN Saini off Arun
Chaprana. The skipper was at
his furious best against Yuzu-
vendra Chahal, smashing him
for three consecutive bound-
aries in the 16th over. Gamb-
hir and Shorey then put
together a 118-run partner-
ship as Delhi cruised towards
the target.
Earlier, Chaitanya Bishnoi
top-scored for Haryana with
85 off 117 balls with six bound-
aries and two sixes, while
Pramod Chandila struck 59
off 88 balls with three bound-
aries and a six.
Easy win for Mumbai
In another quarterfinal, Mum-
bai beat Bihar by nine wickets
to sail into the semifinals.
Bihar were skittled out for 69
runs in 28.2 overs with Mum-
bai riding high on the back of
Tushar Deshpande’s five-
wicket haul. Mumbai chased
down the target in 12.3 overs.
— PTI
SPORT
Umesh Yadav took 10/133 in
the match to join Kapil Dev
and Javagal Srinath as Indian
pace bowlers to take 10 or
more wickets in a Test in India
13/132
Javagal Srinath’s match fig-
ures against Pakistan in
Kolkata in Feb 1999.
Result: India lost by 46 runs
11/146
Kapil Dev’s first 10-for at
home, against Pakistan in
Chennai in Jan 1980.
Result: India won by 10 wkts
10/133
Umesh Yadav’s figures vs WI
at Hyderabad in Oct 2018.
Result: India won by 10 wkts
10/135
Kapil Dev’s effort vs WI at
Ahmedabad in Nov 1983.
Result: India lost by 138 runs
time and again. “I’m really
happy to see these guys fit
and hungry. It’s up to the
batsmen to do the rest of the
job,” Kohli said after India
decimated West Indies in
the second Test.
India were put under a lit-
tle bit of pressure in their
first innings before
Rishabh Pant and Ajinkya
JP Duminy spun the coin for his skipper Faf du Plessis, who had lost
the toss six times on the trot, in a T20 game against Zimbabwe.
Duminy spins the
coin for his skipper!
johannesburg, October 14
After going six matches on the
trot without winning a toss,
South Africa captain Faf du
Plessis got JP Duminy to toss
the coin for him the first T20I
against Zimbabwe on October
9 in East London.
Du Plessis had gone six
matches across formats with-
out winning a toss since South
Africa’s last Test against Aus-
tralia in March-April. To
change his fortunes, he decid-
ed to hand over the coin-toss-
ing duties to JP Duminy – who
Prithvi Shaw (extreme right) gets Man of the Series award in his debut series. The young opener had also
bagged Man of the Match award in his maiden Test. PTI
SHASTRI SEES SACHIN, VIRU, LARA IN SHAW
Hyderabad: India coach Ravi Shastri feels there’s a bit of Sachin
Tendulkar, Brian Lara and Virender Sehwag in Prithvi Shaw. “He is
born to play cricket. He’s been playing since the age of eight in
the maidans of Mumbai, and you can see all that hard work in his
game. He’s a spectator’s delight,” said the delighted coach.
“There’s a bit of Sachin there, a bit of Viru in him and when he
walks, there’s a bit of Lara as well... he has a bright future.”
It’s hard to not be excited by Prithvi Shaw...boy this
❝ put our heads together --
guy can bat!❞ Sanjay Manjrekar
Most consecutive Test runs in Nottingham and we
won the Test. He wanted
series wins at home runs under the belt. His
10 Australia 1994-2000 partnership with Pant is
10 Australia 2004-2008 something we want to see
more of,” said Kohli.
10 India 2013-2018
He was all praise for Umesh
Rahane steadied the ship Yadav. Ahead of the Australia
with a 152-run partnership. series, he has given a selection
“Jinx (Rahane) has been headache to the team. “If you
batting really well, he got look at the three new guys
Simran wrestles silver,
hockey boys lose in final
YOUTH OLYMPICS
Buenos Aires, October 14
Wrestler Simran settled for
a silver medal in the
women’s freestyle 43kg
final after losing to Emily
Shilson of the United
States. Simran, who had
won the 40kg category
bronze in the 2017 Cadet
World Championships, lost
6-11 as the American regis-
tered a victory by points to
wasn’t in the playing XI. The clinch the gold. This is
ploy worked as South Africa India’s fifth silver along
won the toss and elected to bat, with three gold in the
eventually winning the game Youth Olympics.
by 34 runs. “They say the Simran conceded
strength of a captain is to know a 2-9 lead to Shil-
his weaknesses, so I brought in son in the first
JP Duminy as a specialist coin- period and
tosser,” said du Plessis. that virtually
Later, on social media, du sealed her fate.
Plessis commented: “I love The Indian pro-
what I do, important to have duced a better
some fun along the way as show in the second
well, especially in T20 cricket!! period by scoring four
Might have started something points as against two by
here...” — Agencies her opponent but that
THE TRIBUNE
JALANDHAR | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018
SCOREBOARD
West Indies 1st Innings: 311
India 1st Innings
KL Rahul b Holder 4
P Shaw c Hetmyer b Warrican 70
C Pujara c (sub) b Gabriel 10
V Kohli lbw Holder 45
A Rahane c Hope b Holder 80
R Pant c Hetmyer b Gabriel 92
R Jadeja lbw Holder 0
R Ashwin b Gabriel 35
K Yadav b Holder 6
U Yadav c (sub) b Warrican 2
S Thakur not out 4
Extras: (B-12, LB-2, NB-5) 19
Total: (all out, 106.4 overs) 367
Fall of wickets: 1-61, 2-98, 3-102,
4-162, 5-314, 6-314, 7-322, 8-334,
9-339, 10-367
Bowling
Shannon Gabriel 20.4-1-107-3
Jason Holder 23-5-56-5
Jomel Warrican 31-7-84-2
Roston Chase 9-1-22-0
Devendra Bishoo 21-4-78-0
Kraigg Brathwaite 2-0-6-0
West Indies 2nd Innings
K Brathwaite c Pant b Umesh 0
K Powell c A Rahane b R Ashwin 0
S Hope c A Rahane b Jadeja 28
S Hetmyer c Pujara b Yadav 17
S Ambris lbw R Jadeja 38
R Chase b Umesh 6
S Dowrich b Umesh 0
J Holder c Pant b R Jadeja 19
D Bishoo not out 10
J Warrican b R Ashwin 7
S Gabriel Umesh 1
Extras: (LB-1) 1
Total: (all out, 46.1 overs) 127
Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-6, 3-45, 4-45,
5-68, 6-70,7-108, 8-109, 9-126, 10-127
Bowling
Umesh Yadav 12.1-3-45-4
Ravichandran Ashwin 10-4-24-2
Kuldeep Yadav 13-1-45-1
Ravindra Jadeja 11-5-12-3
India 2nd Innings
Prithvi Shaw not out 33
Lokesh Rahul not out 33
Extras: (B-6, LB-2, NB-1) 9
Total: (no loss, 16.1 overs ) 75
Bowling
Jason Holder 4-0-17-0
Jomel Warrican 4-0-17-0
Devendra Bishoo 4.1-0-19-0
Roston Chase 4-0-14-0
Man of the Match: Umesh Yadav
Man of the Series: Prithvi Shaw
HOLDER SAYS
Batting let us down
❝ A little disappointed with
the way we batted in the
second innings. I thought
we fought our way back
into the game after the
fightback yesterday, and
we tried to push forward
today. But credit to India,
they played commendably
MAN OF THE SERIES and did the basics better
IN DEBUT SERIES than us.❞
S Ganguly vs Eng, 1996 Hard to take
R Ashwin vs WI, 2011 Honestly, it’s hard to
❝
take it. I am trying to
Rohit Sharma vs WI, 2013
understand the reasons
Prithvi Shaw v WI, 2018 why it is happening. It’s a
case where we all need to
His scores
134 | 70 | 33* the management, the
selectors and the players...
We got to come together a
little bit more and find ways
and solutions to deal with
the problems that we have
at the moment❞
(Hanuma Vihari, Shaw and
Rishabh Pant) who’ve come
in, they’ve grabbed their
opportunities. I think all these
things are a big positive. But
from this Test, I want to single
out Umesh,” the skipper said.
“Shardul broke down and
(then) to take ten wickets is
great. It was an outstanding
performance.” — PTI
proved too little, too late.
Wrestler Simran poses “Tactical errors cost me the
after winning a silver medal
gold. It was silly of me to
in the 43kg category at
give in to her deceptive
the Youth Olympics.
moves,” said Simran. “I
would like to dedicate this
silver to my father, my fam-
ily and all the coaches who
worked hard to see me
where I am.”
The other Indian in the
wrestling competition, Man-
si, finished eighth after los-
ing her classification match
to Imbabi Ahmed of Egypt,
who won by fall decision.
Hockey boys settle for
silver, girls in final
India lost 2-4 to Malaysia
in the final of the men's
hockey 5s competi-
tion to settle for the
silver medal. The
girls team out-
played China 3-0
in their semifi-
nal. They will
take on Argentina in
the final. — PTI
THE TRIBUNE
JALANDHAR | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018
Djokovic beats Coric to win Shanghai title, close to dethroning Nadal as world No. 1
Shanghai, October 14
Novak Djokovic is within
touching distance of Rafa
Nadal’s No. 1 ranking after
winning the Shanghai Mas-
ters with a 6-3 6-4 victory over
Borna Coric on Sunday.
The 14-time Grand Slam
champion broke the 19th-
ranked Croatian — a good
friend and sometime-train-
ing partner — in the sixth
game of the first set on the
way to another no-nonsense
victory. The end was anti-cli-
mactic, with the Serb win-
ning the championship point
after a video review.
Djokovic buried his head in
his hand at the absurdity of it.
The 31-year-old will
leapfrog Roger Federer into
second in the world when the
rankings are released on
Monday and is in imperious
form as the season reaches its
climax. Red-hot Djokovic has
now been victorious in 18
ATP matches in a row and in
recent months won Wimble-
don, the Cincinnati Masters,
the US Open and now Shang-
hai. The last four months had
been “fantastic” and
“tremendous”, he said.
“I’m cherishing every
moment of it,” Djokovic told
the crowd, calling Shanghai
“a special place” to him.
“I could not ask for a bet-
ter scenario,” Djokovic said
of his late surge to the sum-
mit of men’s tennis. “I am
PAES WINS SEASON’S SECOND TITLE
The title for Leander Paes (R) and Miguel Angel Reyyes-Varela
followed a runners-up finish last week, when they had lost the
final to Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan (2nd L) and Marcelo Arevalo. PTI
NEW DELHI: Leander Paes is
still going great guns as the
veteran won his second
Challenger-level title of the
season, lifting the Santo
Domingo Open trophy with
partner Miguel Angel
Reyyes-Varela. The second-
seeded Indian-Mexican pair,
playing its second consecu-
tive final, came from behind
to beat Ariel Behar and
Roberto Quiroz 4-6 6-3 10-5
Schumi Jr’s got the
moves like Michael
Hockenheim (Germany), Oct 14
Mick Schumacher is tipped
to carry the famous surname
into Formula 1 as the newly-
crowned European Formula 3
champion finished the sea-
son with his 14th podium
placing on Sunday. The 19-
year-old son of stricken For-
mula 1 legend Michael Schu-
macher took second in the
final race of the 2018 season
at the Hockenheim circuit.
Having already been con-
firmed European F3 champi-
on on Saturday, Schumacher
finished the last race of 2018
behind his Prema teammate
Robert Shwartzman for his
14th podium place in the 30-
race season, with seven wins.
“Mick has the racing
genes of Michael,” said Ger-
hard Berger, boss of the
German Touring Car cham-
pionship. “If he can contin-
ue to deliver performances
like these, then he will find
his way into Formula 1.”
The head of Mercedes
motorsport was equally
impressed as Schumacher
enjoyed a phenomenal sec-
ond half of the season by
picking up five straight wins
last month to seize control of
the drivers’ championship.
“He can be a big name in
our sport,” said Mercedes
boss Toto Wolff. “The boy was
in the spotlight from the
beginning and was under
huge pressure, it’s far from
easy to deal with that.”
Italy’s Gazzetta dello Sport
declared there is an “heir to
the Schumacher dynasty” —
Rising
Serb
Novak Djokovic celebrates after beating Borna Coric in the final on Sunday. AFP
❝ Obviously the last three-four months have been terrific
for me. Not many holes in the game in general, especially
this week. Everything worked perfectly... I am very close
now to Nadal in the rankings and put myself in a good
position for the last period of the year❞ Novak Djokovic
very close now to Nadal in
the rankings and put myself
in a good position for the
last period of the year.”
in the summit clash. Paes,
who is ranked 69, added
110 ranking points to his kit-
ty and shared a prize purse
of $7750 with his partner.
Last week, the 45-year-old
Paes and Reyyes-Varela
ended runners-up at Montr-
rey Challenger to Jeevan
Nedunchezhiyan and
Marcelo Arevalo. Paes had
won the Newport Beach
event in January. PTI
Mick Schumacher celebrates
after winning the Formula 3
European Championship. AFP
14 years after Michael Schu-
macher’s last F1 world title
and 28 years after he was
crowned German F3 cham-
pions, at two years older
than Mick is now.
For the teenager with the
one of the most famous sur-
names in motorsport, the
first major title of his career
was “a nice feeling and con-
firmation that we’re doing
something right,” he said.
Schumacher has qualified
for a FIA “super licence”, a
prerequisite to race in Formu-
la 1, and is weighing up
whether to move up to For-
mula 2 or higher. “Not yet,” he
replied when asked if he has
decided about his future, but
revealed talks are in progress.
Secret
Michael Schumacher, 49, has
not been seen in public since
suffering serious head
injuries during a skiing acci-
dent in December 2013 while
skiing with Mick and his con-
dition is a secret closely
guarded by his family. — AFP
Coric, 21, said that he had
no complaints about losing
to “one of the best in the
history of tennis”. In what
Shona Manco
T
HE first invitational
golf tournament of the
season breezed into
the North, heralding the start
of the golf calendar. As it’s
among the most coveted
events on the corporate
league, golfers drove in at the
crack of dawn, flaunting their
natty golf clothes and memo-
rabilia in an attempt to prove
their allegiance to the game.
At the end of the day, howev-
er, it all centred around the
shots hit and scores carded,
with most players happy that
the round was over so that
the revelry could begin.
As golf courses around
Chandigarh today provide
good facilities with less pres-
sure from playing members
— who understandably do
not want their playing hours
reduced — most big corpo-
rate events that require
monopolising the course for
SPORT
was the biggest match of
his life, he wore heavy
strapping on one thigh and
has been troubled by a stiff
neck that saw him ponder
pulling out before the tour-
nament. But he refused to
blame those for defeat to
the man he considers some-
thing of an idol. — AFP
Chill in the air, traffic on the course
two or three days at a stretch
have sought out Panchkula
Golf Club and found an
excellent host.
Initially quite a rugged
track, this course along the
banks of river Ghaggar has
come into its own. Streams
and water hazards make the
already narrow fairways
tougher as it is of utmost
importance to keep the ball
in play. The greens played
fast and rolled beautifully,
causing almost everyone to
comment on them.
“Our greens hold the line
and we cut them in eight
directions to eradicate the
grain, so they all have verti-
cal lines,” says Col. Avtar
Dhillon (retd.) General Man-
ager at Panchkula Golf Club.
“Basically we follow the cor-
rect practices that produce
Garcia beats Pliskova,
wins year’s first title
BEIJING: Caroline Garcia
won her first title of the
year as the French player
defeated Karolina Plisko-
va to edge a nervy Tianjin
Open final on Sunday. The
16th-ranked Garcia bat-
tled through a narrow first
set before streaking away
in the second to beat the
Czech top seed 7-6 (7) 6-3.
The 24-year-old Garcia —
seeded second in Tianjin
— enjoyed a breakthrough
2017, winning back-to-
back titles in Wuhan and
Beijing, and qualifying for
the season-ending WTA
Finals. But she has strug-
gled in comparison this
year. The Tianjin title is the
sixth of Garcia’s career. AFP
Caroline Garcia celebrates
after the win on Sunday. AFP
NEW GOLF SEASON
results for us and do not dis-
turb an established system.”
From a golfer’s view point
of view, the weather is only
going to get better now, as are
the playing conditions. The
morning chill has afternoon
players on the course as early
as noon and prime time starts
earlier. Those who wish to
play before prime time get
there even sooner, insuring
that the course is busy all day.
Soon children and grandchil-
dren on holiday will join in.
Last winter, one evening the
starter, Panditji, was quite
exhausted. He shook his head
and exclaimed: “Madamji,
don’t even ask about today.
Already 100 fourballs have
teed off.” Such is the pressure
on the course as fair weather
Inconsistent Shubhankar
has even day, ends T-10
CIMB CLASSIC
Kuala Lumpur, October 14
Overnight joint leader
Shubhankar Sharma could
not play his best golf on the
final day, managing only an
even-par round to finish
tied-10th at the $7 million
CIMB Classic on Sunday.
Being among the leaders
after Round 3 augured well
for the 22-year-old who had
been going though a lean
period — six missed cuts in
nine starts. However, it did
not turn out to be his day
and he was understandably
disappointed at not being
able to convert his career’s
second 54-hole lead into a
maiden PGA Tour title.
Australian Marc Leishman,
who came close to quitting
the game in 2015 when his
wife was discovered with a
rare life-threatening condi-
tion, continued his fine run to
win his fourth title on the
PGA Tour. Leishman carded
a 7-under 65, taking his total
to 26-under, equalling the
tournament record set in 2015
by Justin Thomas. Leishman
ended five shots ahead of sec-
ond-placed Bronson Burgoon
(68), Emiliano Grillo (66) and
Chesson Hadley (66).
golfers mingle with their ded-
icated counterparts.
Ladies event
It’s also an ideal time for
tournaments and competi-
tions. The Chandigarh Golf
Club kicked off their season
with the Ladies tournament
this week while over the
weekend members got to
enjoy a competition created
specifically for them. Ace
golfer Darvesh Kumar has
created a team event format
to cater to the new breed of
golfers — those who do not
earn a living playing the
game but some of them are
as good as the pros, and each
one competitive to the core.
Four players — one from
each of the four handicap
divisions — make up a team.
Some interesting names
Shubhankar Sharma watches
his shot during the final round of
the CIMB Classic on Sunday. AFP
Among the other Indians,
Gaganjeet Bhullar had a
good finish with a 7-under
65 that lifted him 15 places
to tied-27th as he ended at
13-under. After a sedate first
nine holes, Bhullar fired
have been conjured for the
teams and it’s an exciting
format that allows everyone
to participate and compete
for the team prize.
“The team golf champi-
onship is a golf event special-
ly curated in order to provide
opportunities to play compet-
itive golf and get rewarded.
The championship is
designed in such a way that it
attracts the top amateur
golfers and club golfers to par-
ticipate and showcase their
golfing skills,” says Darvesh.
The big one
However, preparations are
underway for the big one on
the horizon — the Rs 1.5
crores PGTI event, the rich-
est tournament ever to be
played north of Delhi. The
caddies are busy speculating
15
five birdies and an eagle in
eight holes. Anirban Lahiri
(70) was 4-under 284 for the
week, while Rahil Gangjee
(72) was 5-over.
Sharma, who had two
bogeys in his first six holes,
came back strongly with
four birdies from the sev-
enth to 10th holes, only to
lose the momentum over
the next three holes, which
he bogeyed. “Sure, it was
disappointing to finish tied-
10th after being in lead, but
I would have gladly taken
this before the start, coming
from where I was before
this week,” Sharma said. “A
Top-10, my second one on
the PGA Tour, and a 19-
under total is not bad.”
Sharma had five birdies
against five bogeys and was
the only player in the Top-25
not to go under par on Sun-
day. “My start was not as good,
but I came back strongly. I
knew I had a chance as I was
only three behind,” Sharma
said. “...there was some wait
on the 11th hole and I was in
between clubs so I was trying
to hit a soft rescue and that
was one of the worst swings of
the day and that ended up in
the water. I think that killed
the momentum.” — PTI
and placing their bets while
course activities are being
conducted in earnest as
workers prune, clip and clear.
“Putting the fact that the
prize money is the largest
outside of a Tour champi-
onship, Jeev being the host
is a big draw,” says profes-
sional Sujjan Singh. “The
way last year’s tournament
was conducted created an
unprecedented buzz and set
the benchmark on how
future big events are viewed.
With the crowds, members
and fan involvement, the fes-
tive atmosphere that was
created really impressed the
sponsor and that played a
big part in him agreeing to
extend the contract.”
“It’s been awhile since I’ve
played a tournament in
Chandigarh and it can’t get
better with the biggest tour-
nament in India honouring
our best golfer! Can’t wait for
it,” adds Ajeetesh Sandhu.
16
By the way... Govt to fete honest,
consistent taxpayers
May be given benefits, priority in public services
New Delhi, October 14
The government is working
on an ambitious policy pro-
posal to “facilitate” honest and
consistent taxpayers in avail-
ing a variety of public services
and tax-related works on pri-
ority, officials said on Sunday.
They said a committee
WHAT’S COOKING: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and noted under the Central Board of
chef Vishnu Manohar (in yellow shirt) cook 3,000-kg ‘khichdi’ Direct Taxes, the policy-mak-
in an attempt to create a world record, in Nagpur on Sunday. PTI ing body for the Income Tax
■ Stone for museum for PMs to be laid today
Department (ITD), is work-
ing to chalk out the broad
parameters for extending
New Delhi: The foundation stone of a museum for Prime such “courtesies” and bene-
Ministers on the Teen Murti Estate premises will be laid on fits to taxpayers who pay
Monday, despite objections by the Congress. Culture their taxes on time and in full.
Minister Mahesh Sharma and Minister of State for Housing The proposal will be vetted
and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri will lay the stone at by the Finance Ministry and
Teen Murti Estate, the official residence of first PM sent for final approval to the
Jawaharlal Nehru. Former PM Dr Manmohan Singh had Prime Minister’s Office
expressed concern over the move to change the “nature and (PMO) before it is cleared by
character” of the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library. PTI the Union Cabinet. A Cabinet
note to enhance the output of
■ Modi to open first national police museum the Central Processing Cen-
tre (CPC) of the department
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate in Bengaluru has already
India's first national police museum here on the occasion
been prepared and sent.
of Police Commemoration Day on October 21. The
museum - depicting the history, artefacts, uniform and The capacity and automa-
gear of Central and state police forces — is coming up as
an underground facility on the premises of the national
Indian-origin blind man to get guide horse in UK
police memorial in Chanakyapuri. PTI
■ Assent to Assam Bill on retrenching staff
New Delhi: An Assam government Bill proposing to allow London, October 14
companies to retrench up to 300 employees without An Indian-origin man based
seeking prior approval of the government has received the in north-west England, who
presidential assent. It will help achieve the objective of suffers from a degenerative
ease of doing business, officials said. Companies will be eye condition, is set to become
allowed to retrench up to 300 employees instead of 100, the first person in the UK to
as per the existing legislation. The compensation will be get a guide horse to assist him
60 days' salary instead of the present 15. PTI with daily tasks once he loses
his vision completely.
Printed and published by Rajesh Ramachandran for The Tribune Trust Mohammed Salim Patel, a
Printed at The Tribune Press, Plot No. 123, Sector 37, Pace City-1, Gurugram. journalist based in Black-
Published at The Tribune, Sector 29-C, Chandigarh. burn, Lancashire, suffers
RNI No. CHAENG/2017/72605. from a condition called
Retinitis Pigmentosa, due to
Copyright © The Tribune Trust. All rights reserved.
Telephones: 0124-2210033,2210044 which he is left with a very
Circulation: 0172-3050419, Advertisement: 0172-3050256, 257 small amount of sight in his
right eye and will eventually
Editor: Rajesh Ramachandran*
become totally blind.
*Editor for purpose of PRB Act, 1867
BACK PAGE
8in thecrore
taxpayers
country at present
1.25 cr likely to be
added to tax base by March
tion of the CPC, the repository
of the taxpayers’ data and IT
Returns (ITRs), is proposed to
be enhanced so that refunds
can be issued real-time and
ITRs of small taxpayers (with
single source of income) can
be processed within hours
and not days, as prevalent at
present, they said.
As part of the larger plan, it
is proposed that honest tax-
payers are empowered to get
“priority service” while using
The 24-year-old, who suffers
from a deep-seated fear of
dogs since a scary childhood
encounter, could not rely on
the more commonly used
guide dogs for the blind and
that is how the concept of a
miniature guide horse came
to his attention.
“Digby (guide horse) is still
a baby and will be two years
old in May 2019. His training
will take around two more
years, so I expect to be able to
bring him home to Black-
burn once he’s finished his
training,” Patel said.
“There is no rush though, as
HASSLE-FREE
E-ASSESSMENT
■ To reduce complaints of
harassment and corruption,
CBDT is working to usher in a
mega plan where a taxpayer
can be assessed electronical-
ly in any part of the country
■ At present, a taxpayer is
assessed by IT officer based in
the city where the person earns
his or her income. These new
proposals could well be
launched by the end of this year
public services at airports,
railways stations and at tolls.
It is proposed that taxpayers
who have been consistently
paying their taxes or even fil-
ing their returns can be host-
ed at civic receptions held by
prominent government func-
tionaries and are honoured
publicly, they said. A unique
identity number could be giv-
en to such taxpayers or their
PAN could be flagged as spe-
cial as, they added. — PTI
Mohammed Salim Patel, a journalist, suffers from
a condition called Retinitis Pigmentosa. Digby
(guide horse) will assist him with daily tasks
Mecca Masjid blast
case judge joins TJS
Hyderabad, October 14
Former judge K Ravinder
Reddy, who quit after deliv-
ering the verdict in the Mec-
ca Masjid blast case, has
joined the Telangana Jana
Samiti (TJS), part of an
Opposition alliance led by
the Congress for the Assem-
bly polls, weeks after
expressing keenness to
embrace the BJP.
The move is being seen as
a shot in the arm for the TJS
in the run-up to the Decem-
ber 7 polls. Reddy was wel-
comed into the party by TJS
president M Kodandaram at
an event on Saturday.
Reddy, the then judge for
National Investigation
Agency (NIA) cases here,
had on April 16 acquitted
Hindutva preacher Aseem-
anand and four others in
the Mecca Masjid blast
case. He had resigned as
judge within hours of pro-
nouncing the judgment, cit-
ing personal reasons.
Last month, Reddy had
expressed keenness to join
the BJP, describing it as a
“patriotic party”, and ban-
GURUGRAM | MONDAY | 15 OCTOBER 2018
Telangana Jana Samiti
part of Congress-led
Oppn in Telangana
ners welcoming him into the
party were put up at the state
BJP headquarters here, but
it did not materialise.
The TJS is part of the
Opposition alliance, also
comprising the Congress,
the Telugu Desam Party
(TDP), the Communist Party
of India (CPI), formed to take
on the ruling Telangana
Rashtra Samithi (TRS) in the
upcoming polls. Kodan-
daram expressed hope that
the seat-sharing talks among
the alliance partners would
be finalised by “Vijaya Dasa-
mi” (October 18).
Kodandaram was the chair-
man of the Telangana Joint
Action Committee (JAC),
which was at the forefront of
the separate Telangana agita-
tion. The JAC consisted of
various parties, including the
TRS. Kodandaram, however,
fell out with the TRS after
the party assumed power in
Telangana in 2014. — PTI
there would be for a guide
dog. Digby will be able to
work into his forties, whereas
a guide dog has to retire at the
age of eight,” he said.
After spending some time
with his companion-to-be,
Patel believes a guide horse
has many added benefits over
guide dogs, including a much
longer working life, 350-
degree vision and ability to
see in the dark. The story of
Digby caught the attention of
the annual Amplifon Awards
for Brave Britons, where the
horse is among the finalists in
the Hero Pet category –—
THE TRIBUNE
Home Minister to
celebrate Dasehra
with BSF jawans
New Delhi, October 14
Union Home Minister Raj-
nath Singh will celebrate the
Dasehra
festival with
the jawans
of the Bor-
der Securi-
ty Force
(BSF) post-
ed in
Rajnath Singh Rajasthan’s
Bikaner along the Indo-Pak
border on October 19, a
home ministry official said.
He will also perform
‘shastra puja’ at the Bor-
der Out Post (BOP) located
at the forward areas. Per-
haps this is for the first
time that a senior minister
of the Central government
will perform ‘shastra puja’
or worship of weapons
along India’s border with
Pakistan. He will attend a
‘Bada Khana’ (feast with
the jawans) and address the
security personnel, another
official said.
Last year, the Home Min-
ister had celebrated
Dasehra at Joshimath in
Uttarakhand along the
Sino-Indian border. — PTI
aimed at honouring animals
who have transformed the life
of their owners. “It’s very
nice to have Digby recognised
for his work, despite still
being in training. He is a star,”
said Patel, in reference to the
awards, which will be
announced on Tuesday.
The BBC journalist began
working with his local sta-
tion, BBC Radio Lancashire,
before joining BBC North
West Tonight TV. “My moth-
er was born in India but then
came to the UK to marry my
dad. He has family in
Gujarat too,” he said. — PTI