Page 9 - Punjab

Punjab to roll out new agriculture policy by Mar 31: Agri Min Dhaliwal

Punjab Agriculture Minister Kuldeep Sinh Dhaliwal on Monday said the state government will roll out a new agriculture policy by March 31, 2023. The new agricultural policy will be prepared focusing the geographical situation, soil health, availability of crops and water, and consultations are being held with renowned agricultural scientists, experts and farmers' organisations. Dhaliwal was speaking during a 'Kisan Goshti' organised by the Punjab State Farmers and Agricultural Workers Commission on the theme of 'Agricultural Development Model of Punjab - some policy issues', a release said. Announcing the creation of a separate policy for natural farming, the minister said, people are facing health problems due to excessive use of fertilisers, chemicals, weed killers and pesticides in agriculture. He said to bring natural farming, it is necessary to work according to its climate. The state government will make every possible effort to strengthen the agricultural sector with the hel

BSF conducts Raising Day parade in Amritsar for first time in 57 yrs

The Border Security Force, the world's largest border guarding force, which is deployed along 6,386 km of International Border with Pakistan and Bangladesh, on Sunday organised a ceremonial parade

Punjab police recovers 3 Kg heroin from quadcopter drone in joint operation

Punjab Police during a joint operation with the BSF recovered an unmanned aerial vehicle carrying contraband drugs near the Valtoha Police Station in Taran Tarn district of Punjab, officials said

BJP revamps Punjab unit; many ex-Cong leaders appointed as office bearers

The BJP on Saturday announced revamping of its Punjab unit, adjusting former Congress leaders including the daughter of former chief minister Amarinder Singh. The appointment of new office bearers was approved by the BJP president J P Nadda, the party said. Jai Inder Kaur, the daughter of Amarinder Singh was among 11 state vice presidents announced by the party. The announcement came a day after the BJP made Amarinder Singh and Sunil Jakhar as members of the party's national executive. Former Congress leaders --Kewal Singh Dhillon, Raj Kumar Verka, Arvind Khanna and Fatehjang Bajwa, who had joined the BJP, found their place as state vice president, as per the list of new appointments announced by the party. Party leaders Dr Subhash Sharma, Rakesh Rathore, Dyal Singh Sodhi, Jagmohan Singh Raju and former Akali MLA Jagdeep Singh Nakai have also been appointed as party's vice president. Former Congress MLA and ex-minister Gurpreet Singh Kangar, BJP leaders Jiwan Gupta, Bikramjit Ch

Number of NRI courts in Punjab should be increased, said NAPA official

The number of NRI courts in Punjab should be increased to ensure timely delivery of justice, said Satnam Singh Chahal, the executive director of North American Punjabi Association (NAPA), on Saturday. He said the Punjabi diaspora is excited about the NRI meetings in Jalandhar, Mohali, Ludhiana, Moga and Amritsar announced by the Punjab government to solve their concerns. "This is the first time in the state that a government is trying to solve issues and concerns of the Punjabi diaspora at their doorsteps. We will make sure that every participant is treated fairly and get his/her complaints addressed," Chahal said. He said gang war is a cause of concern for the Punjabi diaspora and arms licenses should be granted to those NRIs who feel insecure. "Justice should not be delayed and the number of NRI courts should be increased to deliver justice in a time-bound manner," Chahal said.

Moosewala murder mastermind Goldy Brar will be brought to India: Punjab CM

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said here on Friday that gangster Goldy Brar, the mastermind behind the brutal murder of singer Sidhu Moosewala has been detained in the US, and he will "definitely be brought to India" and be in the custody of the Punjab Police "very soon". Brar was detained by the California police which have contacted the Indian government and Punjab police about it, he said. "I am telling you...that California police have detained him. They have contacted the Indian government and the Punjab Police and informed them about his detention. They have asked whether he needs to be deported...," Mann told reporters here. "We will definitely bring Goldy Brar to India as per the treaty with America so that the families which have lost their sons and daughters find some solace. Brar was the main mastermind, and there are others as well whose records are with us," he said. He said Brar used to get his work done through Pakistan using a gang. "We are discussing the issu

30% drop in stubble burning incidents in Punjab against last year: Minister

Punjab recorded a 30 per cent drop in stubble burning incidents this season (from September 15 to November 30) as compared to last year, Environment Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer said on Wednesday. The state witnessed 49,907 crop residue burning incidents this season as against 71,304 last year, he said. Hayer said stubble burning is not the problem of Punjab alone, it is the problem of the entire country. Despite the Union government rejecting the state government's proposal to provide financial assistance to farmers for not burning paddy straw, the cases of stubble burning have reduced, the minister said. Had there been a positive response from the Centre, there would have been a further reduction in stubble burning incidents, he added. In July, Delhi and Punjab governments had jointly sent a proposal to the Centre and the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to help them give Rs 2,500 per acre as cash incentive to farmers in Punjab for not burning stubble. However,

Sonear Industries to set up 2 units in Haryana, UP for about Rs 150 cr

Company that provides interior design solutions entering laminated boards business

Criminal justice system itself can be a punishment: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has discharged three accused in an alleged 2008 abetment to suicide case in Punjab, saying "the criminal justice system of ours can itself be a punishment"

Punjab to probe irregularities in land deal for seed farm in 2008: Minister

Punjab Agriculture Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal has said that the state government will probe alleged irregularities in purchasing land at a whopping Rs 32 crore for setting up a seed farm near the international border in Amritsar in 2008. He said 700 acres of land near the border in Rania village was bought at an exorbitant rate by the agriculture department. In a statement here, the minister said, "During the then Parkash Singh Badal government when Sucha Singh Langah was the agriculture minister and Kahan Singh Pannu was the deputy commissioner of district Amritsar, this land was bought at a very high price. The then government purchased this land at Rs 4.5 lakh per acre, which is across the Ravi river near the international border, he said, adding that one cannot approach this land without the prior permission of the Border Security Force. "An investigation will be conducted under which scheme this land was purchased at that time", he said. "We will find out the farmers who

Punjab to emerge as medical education hub, says CM Bhagwant Mann

Punjab will emerge as a hub of medical education for the world, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said on Sunday after inspecting the site of an upcoming medical college in the district According to an official release, he said the medical college, coming up on an area of 20 acres at a cost of Rs 428.69 crore, will be named after Guru Nanak Dev. The design has been finalised and work on this ambitious project will start soon, the chief minister said. He said that since a large number of students from other states will also come to this college, a hostel facility along with a 300-bed hospital will also be constructed. The Punjab government has decided to construct 16 medical colleges in five years, raising the total number of such institutes in the state to 25, Mann said. The foundation stone of the Sant Attar Singh State Institute of Medical Sciences at Mastuana Sahib in Sangrur had already been laid and work on two medical colleges at Kapurthala and Hoshiarpur will also commence soon,

Punjab Police seize Chinese pistols, bullets, heroin smuggled from Pakistan

Punjab Police on Sunday said it has arrested a person and seized from him eight Chinese pistols, 60 bullets and two kg heroin smuggled into India by a drone from Pakistan, an official said. A Punjab Police official said the accused has been identified as Paramjit Singh, a resident of Havlian village in Tarn Taran district. The official said the police had specific information that a consignment of arms, ammunition and drugs would be smuggled from Pakistan through a drone. The drone dropped the consignment inside the Indian territory on Friday and Singh tretrieved it on Saturday, police said. Singh was nabbed after his car was intercepted by a police team at Ajnala road on Sunday morning.

Punjab farmer leaders submit memorandum to Governor

Several farmer leaders of Punjab on Saturday submitted a memorandum to Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit, seeking implementation of their various demands including legally guaranteed minimum support price and withdrawal of the Electricity Amendment Bill. On the call of Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), representatives of 33 farmer bodies in the state also took out a march to mark the second anniversary of their agitation against the now-repealed three farm laws. However, the farmers, who came in large numbers from across the state, took out the march from Gurdwara Amb Sahib in Mohali till the Chandigarh-Mohali border from where a representative of the Punjab Governor accepted a memorandum on his behalf. A heavy police force was deployed at the Chandigarh-Mohali border, said officials. Later, several farmer leaders including Joginder Singh Ugrahan, Harinder Singh Lakhowal and Harmeet Singh Kadian were taken in a bus by the Chandigarh police to Raj Bhavan in the Union Territory for a ...

BSF troops spot two suspects along international border in Pathankot

The Border Security Force opened fire after noticing suspicious movement along the international border in Punjab's Pathankot district, said an official on Saturday. The movement of two suspects from Pakistan was spotted on Friday evening, he said, adding that the suspects were captured at the thermal camera of the BSF. The BSF troops at Paharipur post in Pathankot fired seven rounds, and hence the two suspects fled back towards the Pakistan side, the official said. A thorough search operation was also conducted on Saturday but nothing was found, he added.

Punjab seeks Rs 2,500 cr industrial package to develop border districts

Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Cheema on Friday sought a border-area special industrial package of Rs 2,500 crore for the development of the state's border districts, besides the resolution of the Cash Credit Limit issue in line with recommendations of the 15th Finance Commission sub-committee. Submitting a comprehensive memorandum of demands for the 2023-24 Union Budget in a meeting with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Cheema sought Rs 1,125 crore in budgetary support for assistance to farmers quitting stubble burning, Rs 1,000 crore special assistance for modernisation of the police force and policing infrastructure in sensitive border districts, Vande Bharat trains from the 'holy city' of Amritsar to New Delhi and Bathinda to New Delhi, and a railway link between Rajpura and Chandigarh. During the pre-Budget meeting at Manekshaw Centre here, Cheema said Punjab, being a border state with a high stake in national security, needed to be considered as "special cases", along with

Punjab farmers end protest, Min Dhaliwal says consensus reached on demands

Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Sidhupur) chief Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who had been on a fast unto death for six days to press for the farmers' demands, broke his fast on Thursday after Agriculture Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal announced that consensus had been reached on various demands following marathon talks. Dhaliwal offered juice to Dallewal at the protest site in Faridkot as he broke his fast. Dallewal told reporters that the farmers' protests, which had been going on at six regions in Punjab, would be lifted with immediate effect. Dhaliwal, while commenting on the demand for Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann's apology over his remarks on the farmers' protests, said there was some miscommunication as the AAP government always stood for their welfare. However, he said "we express regret" if any of Mann's words had hurt the farmers' sentiments.

16 dengue deaths, 9559 cases in Punjab this year, says health minister

Punjab has reported 16 dengue deaths and 9,559 cases so far this year, Health Minister Chetan Singh Jouramajra said on Wednesday. Jouramajra, who is currently campaigning in Gujarat for the Aam Aadmi Party, took stock of the situation on vector-borne diseases in a meeting with health officials by videoconference. There have been 9,559 cases of dengue and the state has 1,206 active patients, out of which 193 patients are admitted in hospitals, according to an official statement. Sixteen persons died due to dengue so far in comparison to 55 fatalities last year, it said. The patients who are at their homes are being monitored on a daily basis by the rapid response teams of the health department, Jouramajra said. The minister directed the health officials to coordinate with the local government and rural development departments to step up fogging activities. He stressed on the need to create awareness regarding prevention of dengue and urged people to follow the health department's

2 district food & civil supplies controllers held in Punjab transport scam

The Punjab Vigilance Bureau on Tuesday said it has arrested two district food and civil supplies controllers (DFSCs) in connection with the alleged foodgrain transportation tender scam. The Vigilance Bureau had recently said it has filed a charge sheet before a court in Ludhiana against former cabinet minister and Congress leader Bharat Bhushan Ashu and two others in the alleged foodgrain transportation tenders scam. During investigation, the VB arrested Sukhwinder Singh Gill, then DFSC Ludhiana West and Harveen Kaur then DFSC Ludhiana East. At present, Sukhwinder Singh Gill is posted as DFSC Faridkot and Harveen Kaur as DFSC Jalandhar, a VB spokesperson said in an official statement here. "These accused were members/conveners of district tender committee at the time of allotment of the tenders. They along with other members of committee were responsible to check the relevant documents attached with the tenders including list of transport vehicles but they had not verified the ...

Wont allow Haryana to make assembly building in Chandigarh, says AAP

The AAP on Monday said Punjab has the sole right over Chandigarh and Haryana will not be allowed to construct an additional legislative assembly building in the city. Haryana will not be given an inch of land in Chandigarh, which was established on the land of dozens of villages of Punjab, Aam Aadmi Party's state chief spokesperson Malvinder Singh Kang said. Separately, Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying that Haryana's land swap proposal for constructing the Vidhan Sabha building is fraught with the danger of disturbing the "already worrisome" law and order situation in Punjab. The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has also called a meeting of its senior leaders later this week to decide the party's strategy on the issue. Haryana has sought a 10-acre plot in Chandigarh for constructing the additional building of its Vidhan Sabha. It has identified land adjacent to the traffic light at Madhya Marg near the railway station road junction

Pardeep Singh murder: Sixth shooter arrested by Punjab Police's AGTF

Sixth shooter involved in the killing of Dera Sacha Sauda follower Pardeep Singh, was arrested by the Punjab Police's Anti-Gangster Task Force after a brief encounter in Jaipur Sunday