IEP Chandigarh, January 23

The assurance from Minister of Social Security, Women and Child Development, Dr. Baljit Kaur, has led to the resolution of long-standing strike by the Punjab State Agricultural Service Society Employees Union today.

The Punjab government, under the leadership of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, is dedicated to the welfare of all sections, including the well-being of its employees.

In a proactive move, Cabinet Minister Dr. Baljit Kaur, during a meeting at her office in the Punjab Civil Secretariat, Chandigarh, directed the officers of the Cooperative Department to swiftly address the legitimate demands of the union.

The meeting took place in a comfortable environment, where various demands of the union were discussed in detail. Dr. Baljit Kaur attentively listened to the union representatives’ requests, including the recruitment of staff  in the societies and the margin of fertilizer in the societies.

After carefully considering the union’s demands, Dr. Baljit Kaur assured them that their legitimate requests would be accepted soon, emphasizing her full commitment to protecting the interests of the employees.

Registrar of Cooperative Societies, Vimal Kumar Setia and other officials were also present on this occasion.

IEP Chandigarh January 23

Aiming to curb the menace of corruption in the state, the Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) on Tuesday arrested Bikramjit Singh, a Collection Manger, of IDFC Bank, at Feroze Gandhi Market, Ludhiana for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 40,000.

Disclosing this here today an official spokesperson of the state VB said this case has been registered against the above mentioned employee of a private bank on a complaint lodged by Ravinder Kumar, a resident of Sarabha Nagar, Ludhiana.

He further added that the complainant has approached the VB range Ludhiana and recorded his statement that he is running a readymade garments shop named Silver Mod Fashions at Pakhowal road, Ludhiana. The complainant had taken a loan of Rs 13,32,379 for 4 years on 30.9.20 from the above said IDFC Bank under Grand Emergency Credit Line (GECL) scheme of RBI. He approached the said collection manager to close his loan account by clearing all remaining amount/instalments. After discussions he repaid all the loan amount but his loan account was not closed. When he met the said Collection Manager in this regard, he demanded Rs 40,000 as a bribe for getting the loan account closed from senior officers of the bank.

The spokesperson further informed that since the accused Collection Manager is a bank official and as per section 46-A of Banking Regulation Act 1946, he is deemed to be a public servant under prevention of corruption act. After a preliminary investigation of this complaint, the VB range Ludhiana laid a trap and the accused bank official has been arrested while accepting a bribe of Rs 40,000 from the complainant in his shop in the presence of two official witnesses. In this regard a case under prevention of corruption act has been registered at VB police station Ludhiana range against the accused Collection Manger Bikramjit Singh. Further investigation is under progress and the accused would be produced in the competent court tomorrow, he added.

IEP Chandigarh, January 23

Punjab Horticulture Minister S. Chetan Singh Jauramajra, on Tuesday, met a high-level delegation from Israel to explore opportunities for collaboration in advancing agricultural technologies in Punjab. Building on the existing partnership in horticulture projects, the meeting emphasized the need for a digital revolution in farming.

During the meeting with Ms. Hadas Bakst, Political Domestic Advisor Embassy of Israel New Delhi, at his office here at Punjab Civil Secretariat, Cabinet Minister S. Chetan Singh Jauramajra stated that the underground water in Punjab is depleting rapidly, a critical issue that needs urgent attention. He asked the Israel delegation to provide high-yielding and disease/virus-free horticultural varieties requiring less water. The Cabinet Minister also called for providing farm-to-market technology to facilitate the marketing of all Kinnow produce in the event of a bumper crop in the state.

He highlighted key areas for collaboration, including digital solutions for pest control, climate and soil monitoring systems, AI for crop yields, decision support systems, drones for harvesting and sprays, as well as precision farming software solutions. The discussion also touched upon the potential of year-round cultivation in greenhouses and hydroponic farming to address the increasing demand for food.

The Horticulture Minister, while emphasizing the introducing high-tech agricultural machinery, harvesting machines, tree shakers, cultivators, rotary mulchers and special field robots, focused on extending to sensor technology-based irrigation systems and innovative storage solutions for efficient and sustainable farming.

Addressing the need for advancements in citrus cultivation, S. Chetan Singh Jauramajra proposed the integration of By-Product Technologies to manage bio-waste effectively.  He said that on an average a single piece of Kinnow mandarin fruit contains 45-50% juice and the rest of the percentage is occupied by peel, rag and seeds, which so far of no use. So introduction of new machinery at processing units for management of bio-waste of citrus such as extraction of limonin, peel oil etc. will help a lot.

He also asked to introduce new patented citrus varieties, rootstocks resistant to pests and the cultivation of new crops like Dragon Fruit and Raspberries.

In the vegetable sector, the Minister advocated for the introduction of Parthenocarpic (seedless) varieties of melons, single-picking varieties of peas and tomatoes suitable for mechanization and brinjal varieties resistant to fruit and shoot borers. He stressed the importance of vegetables grafting with rootstock resistant to pests and diseases, as well as the development of processing varieties of vegetables, especially tomatoes.

The Cabinet Minister underlined the need for biodegradable and slow-release fertilizer technology in horticulture, along with the utilization of bio-pesticide technology to control pests and diseases. He proposed the incorporation of instant sensor-based technologies to detect nutrient deficiencies in horticultural crops.

Looking towards the future, the Minister expressed interest in adopting global trends in agricultural extension systems. Besides this, he conveyed the intention to send a delegation of 10 to 20 officers to Israel to witness firsthand the innovative technologies that could be implemented in Punjab, ultimately enhancing the livelihoods of farmers in the region.

Director Horticulture Mrs. Shailender Kaur also emphasized on integrated value chain Center of Excellence establishment in Punjab in collaboration with Israel technology to reduce Post harvest losses in horticulture crops.

Ms. Hadas Bakst said that Israel is keen to enhance technological collaboration in agriculture and horticulture sectors with the state of Punjab. She mentioned that experts level meetings will be held in February and March, which will focus on delivering the latest technology and introducing new horticultural varieties to address the state’s depleting groundwater issues. Besides this, Ms. Hadas highlighted the ongoing operation of two centers of excellence in Punjab by government of Israel, emphasizing the continued sharing of agricultural technologies.

Prominent amongst others who were present in the meeting included; Director Horticulture Mrs. Shailender Kaur, Assistant Director Horticulture Dr. Harpreet Singh, Dr. Daljit Singh and Dr. Balwinder Singh, Horticulture Development Officer Mrs. Balwinderjit Kaur and other officials.

IEP Chandigarh January 23

The Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB), during its ongoing campaign against corruption in the state, has registered a corruption case against five accused including a doctor and his assistant for taking bribe  in lieu of issuing a false medico legal report (MLR). In this case an accused employee of civil hospital Ferozepur has been arrested.

Disclosing this here today a spokesperson of the state VB said in this case five accused have been booked  under section 7, 7-A of prevention of corruption act and 193, 465, 466, 471, 120-B of IPC which included Dr Shashi Bhushan, posted at civil hospital Ferozepur and his assistant Ram Prasad alias Chotu, a class-IV employee in the hospital besides three private persons namely Rekha, her father Shammi and mother Asha, all residents of Khateek Mandi, Ferozepur Cantonment.

He further informed that during the investigation of a complaint in this regard, it was found that the complainant Tarsem had a quarrel with his wife Rekha in which his right hand bone and left leg bone were broken by his in-laws on 09.07.2020. In this regard a case in police station, Ferozepur city had been registered against his wife Rekha, mother-in-law Asha, father-in-law Sammi, and brother-in-law Sonu.

The complainant informed the VB that It on 24.02.2021, he had checked through his mobile phone application, that his wife Rekha and her family members were giving bribe to the above mentioned class-4 employee Ram Prasad alias Chhotu which was to be handed over to Dr. Shashi Bhushan for issuing a false MLR so as to register a forged case against the complainant Tarsem. Chhotu was playing the role of middleman in the negotiations for accepting and further passing the bribe to accused doctor.

The spokesperson further added that on the basis of this false MLR a police case was registered against the said Tarsem and his father Rafiq. During the probe the said MLR was found to be a false according to the records obtained from the Civil Hospital Ferozepur. The complainant submitted a CD to the VB as an evidence against above said family members of his in-laws including Ram Prasad and Dr. Shashi Bhushan which established the falseness of issuing a fake medical certificate in lieu of taking a huge bribe from the said accused.

He further informed that on basis of investigation by VB range Ferozepur, this case has been registered against all the accused and arrested an employee Ram Prasad. The VB is on the hunt to arrest the remaining accused. Further investigation into this case was under progress, he said.