Govt interference in religious affairs of Sikhs can lead to serious conflicts: Badal

Punjab Chief Minister Mr. Parkash Singh Badal calls on Union Minister for Housing and urban poverty alleviation Mr. Ajay Maken in his office at New Delhi

Punjab Chief Minister Mr. Parkash Singh Badal calls on Union Minister for Housing and urban poverty alleviation Mr. Ajay Maken in his office at New Delhi.

by Punjabnewswire
NEW DELHI, OCT 29
Punjab Chief Minister Mr Parkash Singh Badal accompanied by the Deputy Chief Minister Mr Sukhbir Singh Badal today met the Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and sought his personal intervention to advise the Union Ministry of Home Affairs for taking appropriate measures to stop the Delhi State Government from going ahead with the proposed move of “Delhi Sikh Gurdwara (Amendment) Bill, 2012” regarding direct election of President of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC).
  The Chief Minister along with Deputy CM called on Dr Manmohan Singh here at his official residence this evening to apprise him about this ill conceived and politically motivated move of the Delhi Government,
which could pose serious ramifications with a potent apprehension of pushing the country into avoidable conflicts. The Chief Minister told the Prime Minister that he was constrained to point out that despite
express assurances from successive Governments of India and eminent national figures like Mahatma Gandhi and Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, cases of brazen interference in the religious affairs of the Sikh community still continue. This was despite the fact that the country in general and Punjabis in particular had to pass tragic circumstances because of such ill-advised moves on the part of the Government of India and the other state governments. He mentioned that it was not merely a coincidence that recourse to such needless, eminently
avoidable and disastrous moves has been initiated under Congress regimes.
Mr Badal categorically said, “The interference of the Government in the religious affairs of the Sikhs could lead to serious conflicts in the country”.
The Chief Minister referred to the latest instance of such a dangerous resort to politically opportunistic but socially and nationally destructive move which came in the wake of the Delhi Government’s decision to amend Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Act, 1971 enacted by the Parliament to facilitate direct election of President DSGMC. He impressed upon the Prime Minister to ask the Delhi Government for its immediate withdrawal to ensure peaceful and congenial atmosphere in the country as well as in Punjab besides tormenting the Sikh psyche.
Showing deep concern over the inordinate delay in the General elections of DSGMC which was due since January, 2011, the Chief Minister informed Dr Manmohan Singh that it appeared to be a calculated conspiracy of the government to delay these overdue Gurdwara Elections in the guise of this amendment bill adding that it clearly aimed at subverting the spirit of the order of the Supreme Court which had vide its order issued on September 17, 2012 directed the concerned authorities “to ensure that general elections to the
post of members of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee are completed by December 31, 2012 positively”.
However, immediately after the pronouncement of the aforesaid Supreme Court’s Orders, the Government of Delhi swung into action and introduced the said  “Delhi Sikh Gurdwara (Amendment) Bill, 2012”regarding direct election of President of the DSGMC, which was passed by the Delhi Cabinet on   October 8, 2012, hurriedly without assessing its pros and cons.
Mr Badal asserted that the purported move of the Delhi Government thereby giving undue benefits to the ruling office-bearers of the ‘Committee’ to cling to their offices and to enjoy their extended term was a calculated defiance of the court orders. He said, “It is against the law of natural justice and defeats the very purpose of the original Act”.
Describing the amendment bill as totally absurd, the Chief Minister pleaded that it violates the letter and spirit of the agreement reached between Late Prime Minister Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru and Master Tara Singh, known as Nehru-Tara Singh Pact, which specifically stated the commitment of the Government of India (GoI) not to take any steps with regard to the affairs of the Sikh community without consultation with and consent of the representatives of the Sikh community through SGPC. This attempt on part of government would lead to fresh suspicion, resentment and alienation in the minds of the Sikh community, already recovering from the painful and discriminatory blows. In addition, it would also lead to unprecedented corruption and horse trading in Gurdwara affairs at the behest of the stooges of the Delhi state government.
The Chief Minister also mentioned that there was no such provision either in the apex body of Sikhs i.e. Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), Amritsar and/or any religious or other body in
India. Similarly, even there was no provision for a direct election of a President in any of the elected constitutional bodies in the country, right from the office of the President of India, the Prime Minister down to the Panchayats.
Raising another vital issue related to SGPC elections, the Chief Minister apprised Dr Manmohan Singh that the Union Ministry of Home Affairs had disenfranchised Sehajdari Sikhs from voting in SGPC elections by a notification, which was challenged by Sehajdhari Sikhs  in Punjab and Haryana High Court. The Court ordered that debarment of Sehajdhari Sikhs from voting could not be done by Ministry of Home Affairs by issuing a notification and the Court held this could only be done by adopting legal ways thereby amending the Act.  Consequently SGPC filed an appeal in the Supreme Court and the Ministry of Home Affairs also became a party. Mr Badal sought the Prime Minister’s intervention to direct the Ministry of Home Affairs for taking necessary action either by amending the act in the Parliament or by issuing an ordinance right now to disenfranchise Sehajdari Sikhs from voting in SGPC elections.
The Chief Minister also urged upon Dr Manmohan Singh to head a Group of Ministers (GoM) for pushing the much needed Diversification of Agriculture in the state as a “Second Green Revolution” to save the
beleaguered peasantry on one hand and to prevent the depleting ground water and eroding soil texture from further degradation on the other.
The Union Agriculture Ministry had already cautioned the state to make a paradigm shift from traditional wheat/paddy cycle to the high yielding crops like oilseeds, Maize, sugarcane and others in this hour
of crisis.
Earlier the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister called on the Union Home Minister Mr Sushil Kumar Shinde in his office at North block this morning and sought his all out support and co-operation in resolving the contentious issue of “Delhi Sikh Gurdwara (Amendment) Bill, 2012” and disenfranchising Sehajdari Sikhs from voting in SGPC besides asking the Delhi state government to conduct elections to the
executives and office bearers of DSGMC at the earliest as per the directions of the Supreme Court in accordance with the existing act.

Easy for seeded players in Chandigarh Open Tennis

by sportswire4u.blogspot.com

CHANDIGARH, OCT 29

All seeded players had a smooth sailing in the opening round matches of the Rs 1 lakh prize money CLTA-AITA Chandigarh Open Tennis Tournament being played at the Sector 10 Tennis Stadium here today.

CHART trainee Ranjeet Singh scored an easy straight sets 6-1, 6-2 verdict against Sohrab Kunwar in the first round of the men’s singles round. Ranjeet will now face second seed Yogesh Phogat in the next round. Yogesh Phogat of Haryana scored a fluent opening round verdict as he beat Hardeep Sandhu  in straight sets 6-2, 6-1.

CLTA trainee Pranav Suri defeated trainee Digvijay Naruka, also of CLTA, 6-1, 6-1. Pranav will be meeting former CHART trainee and top seed Sunil K. Sipaeya in the second round. Sunil K. Sipeaya eliminated the challenge of Rishabh Dev 6-2, 7-5. Another CLTA trainee Barun Gill beat Sahil Bindal 6-2, 6-2.

Nikita Bishnoi, Gayatri Kumariah and Bhavya Wadhwan, all of CLTA also won their respective first round encounters in the women’s singles competitions. With total control over the match, Nikita Bishnoi blanked Jasmine Singh  without dropping even a single game 6-0, 6-0.

Bhavya Wadhwan outplayed Sabrina Gill 6-1, 6-2 and Gayatri Kumariah ousted Dhara Bharat Thakor  6-2, 6-1.

Results:   Men’s singles (Ist round): Pranav Suri bt Digvijay Naruka 6-1, 6-1, Brahmjot Singh bt Sahil Sachdeva 6-2, 6-2, Ankush Arora bt Vijay Bhardwaj 6-3, 6-2, Rahul Singh bt Vishwanath Savadi 6-2, 6-3, Sunil K. Sipaeya bt Rishabh Dev 6-2, 7-5, Allan Gomes bt Suraj Desai 7-5, 6-0, Bharat Bhardwaj bt Dipanshu Garg 6-2, 6-0, Ranjeet Singh bt Sohrab Kunwar 6-1, 6-2, Mandeep Kumar bt Shikhar Gaddh 7-6 (3), 6-2, Rohit Sarwate bt Krishna Rajput 6-2, 6-1, Harinder Bedi bt Rahul Seth 6-4, 6-2, Barun Gill bt Sahil Bindal 6-2, 6-2, Suraj Beniwal bt Jitin Bishnoi 6-4, 6-1, Gurvinder Mann be. Mandeep Gill 6-4, 6-1, Dhruv Goel bt Shrey Gupta 3-6, 7-5, 6-4, Yogesh Phogat bt Hardeep Sandhu 6-2, 6-1.

Women’s singles (Ist round):  Simran Wadhwa bt Silky Sachdeva 6-2, 6-3, Rajbir Kaur bt Aashima Garg 6-2, 6-1, Shehnaz Singh bt Saumya Saxena 6-0, 6-2, Victoria Chehal bt Preetnain Grewal 6-1, 6-0, Anupreet Bedi bt Protiksha Sharma 6-2, 6-0, Steffy Primal Sangani bt Sanjampreet Kaur 6-2, 6-4, Harsimran Kaur bt Vridhi Tuli 6-1, 6-2, Ayna Arora bt Sanya Chibbar 6-0, 6-1, Nikita Bishnoi bt Jasmine Singh 6-0, 6-0, Gayatri Kumariah bt Dhara Bharat Thakor 6-2, 6-1, Bhavya Wadhwan bt Sabrina Gill 6-1, 6-2, Anukriti Chaudhary bt Neelanchal Gupta 6-1, 6-2.

International Internet Day Celebrated at Aryans

by Punjabnewswire4u

MOHALI, OCT 28

Aryans College of Engineering, Chandigarh celebrated International Internet Day today in College campus situated in Village Nepra-Thuha, Chandigarh-Patiala Highway, near Chandigarh. A special talk was presented by the faculty of Aryans about the Past, Present & Future of Internet. The students of B.Tech, MBA, BBA, BCA and B.Ed participated in the event.

It is worth mentioning that International Internet Day is celebrated worldwide, every year on 29^th of October to commemorate a momentous day in the history of telecommunications and technology. Today the International Internet Day is also an on-line project germinating from the society, of the society and for the society.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Anshu Kataria, Chairman, Aryans Group said that the journey of this era of easy communication wasn’t exactly as simple as surfing up information on Google. He added that, in the year of 1969 when Internet was known as ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network), Charley Kline under the supervision of Professor Leonard Kleinrock, transmitted the first ever message on 29^th of October in 1969.

Prof. B.S. Sidhu, Registrar, Aryans Group said that Internet is a worldwide, publicly accessible series of interconnected computer networks that transmit data by packet switching, using standard IP (Internet Protocol). Now Internet has become one of the most important part of our life. Most of us cannot think of spending one day without internet. Internet has made our lives much easy.

Prof. D.C. Kataria, Vice-Chairman, Aryans Group; Mrs. Rajni Kataria, Treasurer, Aryans Group; Dr. (Mrs.) Parveen Kataria, Director General, Aryans Group; Prof. A.P. Jain, Director, Aryans Group; Miss Varinder Kaur, Coordinator, Aryans Group etc. were also present on the occasion.

Great demand for Punjab ITI trainess in Marui and Tata motors

by Punjabnewswire4u

CHANDIGARH, OCT 28

The ITIs in the state got a thums-up from the auto majors as record 799 ITI trainees of 3 ITIs in Patiala, Rajpura and Batala got their placement in Maruti and Tata Motors.

           Disclosing this here today, Mr. Anil Joshi, Technical Education and Industrial Training Minister said that ITIs in Punjab were focusing on employability of the trainees by providing them training according to the requirement of the industry. He said that department had organized an employment fair at Patiala, Rajpura and Batala. During this job fair more than 2021 trainees/students have participated, out of which 799 job seekers were selected by the both the auto majors. 

He said that the state government has committed to provide jobs to the trainees and professions being trained in various polytechnics, Information Technology Institutions and industrial trainings institutions (ITIs) in the state. The academic and training institutions have been asked to shape their courses and training per the need and skill based requirements of different trades.

                Mr. Joshi said that the aim of the Technical Education Department was to secure maximum placements for the students and to achieve the target and department was continuously organizing employment fairs. He said that it was the result of endless efforts of technical education department that the number of placements has been increasing up year after year. He said that technical institutes were focusing on weeding out obsolete trades to assure placement to youth getting training there. He said that there were 111 government and 294 private ITIs in the state providing training to over 64,000 youth every year.

            Emphasising on training 30,000 heavy vehicle drivers every year, Mr. Joshi said that there was lot of demand for skilled drivers and we must tie up with Tata, Mahindra, Toyota, Maruti, Escorts, Ashok Leyland and other automobile companies to open driver training school in every block so that we could supply skilled drivers to the booming market in India and abroad.

            The Minister said that it was the call of the hour to adopt professional studies to counter the menace of unemployment. He said that to inspire the students towards professional courses, the technical education department would organise more employment fairs besides inviting more companies during placement drives in engineering and polytechnic colleges.

Badal terms proposed Cabinet reshuffle of UPA as a ‘face saving exercise’

by Punjabnewswire4u

BATHINDA, OCT 27

Terming the proposed Cabinet reshuffle in the Congress led UPA government as a ‘face saving exercise’, Punjab Chief Minister Mr Parkash Singh Badal today said that it would hardly make any difference as it was a writing on the wall that the Congress would be routed out from the political map of the county in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Talking to the media person on the sidelines of a function organized by Maharishi Valmiki Trust to mark the Pargat Utsav of Bhagwan Valmiki Ji Maharaj here today, the Chief Minister said that the countrymen were fed up from the anti-people policies of the UPA government and were eagerly waiting for the general elections slated to be held in year 2014 to show them a door. He said that the result of a number of state assembly elections and by-polls for the Lok Sabha in which the Congress candidates have been trounced very badly has made it clear that due to its anti people policies the graph of UPA government was declining across the country and in this hour of crisis the attempt of the Congress leadership to give a fresh look to its government by inducting new faces in Cabinet would hardly make any difference. Mr Badal said that it would be a futile exercise to induct new faces in the Cabinet as the countrymen were well aware of such tantrums of the Congress party and they would hardly fall prey to them.

Terming that in the regime of UPA government the corruption has surpassed all its previous records, the Chief Minister said that this government would go down in the annals of history as the most corrupt government of the country. He further said that due to the misrule of the Congress a large number of social maladies like unemployment, poverty, illiteracy and others have made inroads in the country due to which the agonies of the common man have increased manifolds. Making a scathing attack on the UPA government, the Chief Minister reiterated that it has broken the back bone of a common man by increasing the prices of essential commodities in their tenure adding that the inflationary trends in the country have accentuated the worries of the common man. The Chief Minister lamented that it was a paradoxical situation that the Congress party which has assumed power on the name of the common man was in reality responsible for their plight as during its five decades of rule over the country it has never bothered to keep any check over the serious problems faced by the country. Mr Badal said that due to such policies of the Congress the people of Punjab along with other states have rejected the leadership of Congress adding that the time is not far away when this party would be decimated from the Indian polity.

Paying floral tributes to Bhagwan Valmiki Ji Maharaj, the Chief Minister said that he was the “Pitaamah” of Sanskrit language and first poet or the Adi Kavi of the world who by his immortal and masterpiece composition the “Ramayana” propagated the message of victory of good over evil. He also said that the great epic has from centuries taught the way of living to the people and has been a lighthouse of the ethical and moral living for the people which were far more relevant in the present materialistic society. Mr Badal said that it was a matter of great pride for all of them that sacred place where this great epic was composed lies in the state adding that the state government has paid special attention towards developing this place known as Ram Tirath, which used to be the ashram of Bhagwan Valmiki Ji Maharaj, by spending more then Rs 20 crores for its beautification.

Exhorting the people to follow the path and high ideals shown by Bhagwan Valmiki Ji Maharaj, the Chief Minister assured the people that the state government was ready to take all possible steps for the development of the community. The Chief Minister reiterated the commitment of the state government for the overall welfare of the oppressed sections of the society in line with the philosophy of Bhagwan Valmiki Ji Maharaj to emerge an equalitarian and harmonious society in the state. Mr Badal also announced a grant of Rs 10 lakh for constructing Bhagwan Valmiki Bhawan in the city for which land has already been allotted to Maharishi Valmiki Trust.

Prominent amongst those present on the occasion included Chief Parliamentary Secretary Mr Sarup Chand Singla, MLA Darshan Singh Kotfatta, Special Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister Mr KJS Cheema, Deputy Commissioner Mr Kamal Kishore Yadav, MC Mayor Mr Bajeet Singh, President of Maharishi Valmiki Trust Mr Arjun Singh and Chairman Mr Naveen Kumar.

Malerkotla to be developed as a ‘hub of small scale industry’ in the state: Badal

 by Punjabnewswire4u

MALERKOTLA (SANGRUR), OCT 27

               The  Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, today said that the state government would make all out efforts to develop Malerkotla as a ‘hub of small scale industry’ in the state. 

                Addressing the gathering at the local Eid Gah after joining in the prayer on the festival of Id-ul-Zuha (Bakrid), the Chief Minister said that there was vast scope of development of the small scale industry in Malerkotla for which the state government was making concerted efforts. He said that industrialization was the need of the hour to develop this historic city for which the support and co-operation of people was also required. Mr Badal asked the officers and the political leaders of the area present on the occasion to identify the land in and around the city for setting up small scale industry so that a required fillip could be given to the all-round development of the city. “The state government would give all possible help for making this city a centre of the small scale industry” he added. 

                The Chief Minister said that it was a matter of pride for the state that due to excellent infrastructure network coupled with industrial peace and skilled labour Punjab has today emerged as one of the most preferred investment destination in the country. Likewise Mr Badal said that infra structural development of Punjab for which the state had been ranked No.1 along with peace, communal harmony and amity were also the most favoring factors for massive industrialization in the state adding that the time has come when Malerkotla must take benefit from the process of industrialization by becoming a part of it. 

Congratulating the Muslim brethren on the auspicious occasion of Id-ul-Zuha (Bakrid), Mr Badal further said that the government was committed for ensuring the all-round development of Malerkotla by providing all the basic civic amenities to its residents. Mr Badal said that this historic city has always preserved the ethos of brotherhood and peace in the world due to which the state government was duty bound to develop it on priority. He said that a comprehensive plan for the unprecedented development of Malerkotla was on cards which would pave way for developing the city as a ‘Model city’ of the state. 

Recalling the age old ties between the Muslim and Sikh Communities, the Chief Minister said that both the communities shared a rich bond of traditions amongst themselves adding that one of the common features between both of them was that they highly revered their martyrs who had laid down life for the sake of religion. Mr Badal said that it was a matter of pride for all of them that the Sikh Gurus had requested a Muslim Saint Sain Mian Mir to lay down the foundation stone of Sri Harmandir Sahib, the most revered place of Sikhs.

Reiterating the commitment of the state government towards promoting brotherhood and amity in the state, the Chief Minister said that the biggest achievement of their government was that it had ensured communal harmony and peace in the state irrespective of the fact that major part of the country was inflicted with the severe problem of communal tension. Mr Badal said that despite of being a border state their government has assured that no untoward incident takes place in the state adding that thrust has been laid towards maintaining proper law and order situation in the state.

Addressing the gathering Finance Minister Mr Parminder Singh Dhindsa also congratulated the people on the occasion of this pious festival.

Prominent amongst those present on the occasion included Chief Parliamentary Secretaries Mrs. Farzana Alam and Babu Parkash Chand Garg, MLA Mr Iqbal Singh Jhunda, Special Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister Mr KJS Cheema and former Director General of Police (DGP) and Chairman Punjab Waqf Board Mr Izhar Alam, former Minister.

Legal literacy clubs at college level soon

 

 

 by Punjabnewswire4u
MANSA, OCT 27
 Punjab Legal Services Authority (PLSA) has taken a novel initiative to create legal awareness amongst the youth by organizing Inter-College Legal Literacy Youth Festivals through out the state to enable them to become legally educated and responsible citizens of the country. Mansa Sessions’s division today led the state by organizing first-ever such festival here at Litigants’ Hall in District Court Complex in which more a dozen colleges of the district partcipated.
After inagurating the festival, the District Sessions Judge Mr. Gurbir Singh said that these district level youth festivals were aimed to create legal awareness amongst every citizen and our youth can play a significant
role in this unique initiative. He said that the main focus of these festivals was to highlight the social evils like corruption, female feticide, drug addiction, dowry, crime against women, pollution prevailing in our society besides disseminating information about the legal rights of children, women and senior citizens so that they can be empowered to claim their rightful due. He said that to develop legal awareness amongst
students, legal  literacy clubs would be set up at college level He informed that in today's festival, the students representing different colleges would participate in poetical recitation, photography, declamation, slogan writing, postal making, histrionics and power point presentations etc. events. He said that the winners of the different events would participate in Zonal Legal Literacy Youth Festival to be held at Bathinda on November 17.
Speaking on the occasion Mr. Amit Dhaka Deputy Commissioner, Mansa appreciated the initiative and expressed confidence that the youth would play a proactive role in creating legal awareness amongst common masses.
Speaking on the occasion Mr. Kawaljit Singh, Secretary, District legal services authority said that the purpose to organize this festival to create social awareness amongst our youth and pointed out that the aim of
the legal services authority was not only confined to provide free legal aid and consultancy but also to get early justice. He also briefly outlined the concepts legal assistance, legal aid clinics and Lok Adalats. On this
occasion glorious tributes were also paid to renowned comedian Jaspal Bhatti,who died in a road accident few days ago.
        Later on Inderjit Kaur (N.M.College,Mansa), Aman (Baba Dhian Das College, Jhunir) and Amandeep Kaur (SS College Bhikhi) won first, second and third positions in poster making competition. In Power Point
Presentation event,  Wishavpreet Singh and kulbhushan (N.M.College, Mansa), and Hanisha (Milkha Singh College, Bareta) won first three positions. Luxmi  of (SS Jain College Mansa) won poetical recitation competition while Sukhvinder Singh (N M College Mansa) and Manpreet Kaur (Guru Nanak College
Budhlada) claimed second and third positions respectively. In declamation competition, Gurpal  Kaur (BB Khalsa Girls College Fafre Bhai Ke) Charanjit Kaur (Malwa School of Nursing, Sardulgarh) and Parveen Kaur (BB Khalsa Girls College, Fafre Bhai Ke) claimed top three positions.  Besides this, Harsharn Kaur (SS College of Nursing Bhikhi) and Inderjit Kaur (NM College Mansa) won slogan making and histrionics competitions.