All posts by admin

Chandigarh, Punjab

PUNJAB WITNESSES SIGNIFICANT DOWNFALL IN CRIME, DRUG RECOVERIES SURGED IN PAST ONE YEAR

Leave a comment

IEP Chandigarh, March 15     

      A year after Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann led Punjab Government came into the power, the Law and Order situation in the border state has witnessed a considerable improvement as majority of criminals and gangsters have been put behind the bar, while, many of them chose to leave the state amidst the strict vigil kept by Punjab Police on the movement of anti-social elements.          In last few months, Punjab Police under the supervision of Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav has conducted many special operations, and in majority of operations the latter himself hit the ground running to lead the entire Police Force to conduct these operations, which were aimed to instil sense of security among the general public and increase presence of the cops to infuse fear among the anti-social elements. The operations including Cordon and Search Operations (CASOs), raids at hideouts of dreaded gangsters, special vehicle checking operations, Operation Seal, night domination operations, etc were conducted.           The official data from March 16, 2022 to March 15, 2023 reveals that the Punjab Police have busted 26 terror modules with the arrest of 168 terrorist/radicals after recovering 31 Rifles, 201 Revolvers/Pistols, 9 Tiffin Improvised Explosive Device (IEDs), 8.72Kg RDX and other explosives, 11 Hand Grenades, two Sleeves of disposed Rocket Launcher, 30 Drones, and one loaded Rocket Propelled Grenade.          Similarly, the Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF), since its formation on April 6, 2022, has succeeded in busting 162 gangster/criminal modules after arresting 582 gangsters/criminals and neutralising five, after recovering 586 weapons, 131 vehicles used in criminal activities. Pertinently, immediately after coming to power, the CM Bhagwant Mann-led state government formed a special Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF) headed by ADGP Promod Ban to wipe out gangsters from the state.           DGP Gaurav Yadav said that there were six major heinous crime incidents including an RPG attack at Intelligence Headquarters building at Mohali; Murder of Punjabi Singer Shubhdeep Singh alias Sidhu Moosewala; Killing of Bargari sacrilege accused Pardeep Kumar; RPG attack at PS Sarhali, Tarn Taran; Killings of Sudhir Suri and Bhupinder Singh Chawla alias Timmy Chawla, that took place since April 2022, and the Punjab Police have managed to effectively solve all these cases in a record time.          To make Punjab a drug-free state, the DGP said that the Punjab Police had waged a decisive war against drugs which resulted in the arrest of as many as 17568 drug smugglers after registering 13094 FIRs since March 16, 2022 against them. “Punjab Police have effectively recovered a record 863.9Kg heroin in just one year,” he said.          Pertinently, Punjab Police have recovered 716.9 Kg Heroin from across the state and additionally, 147.5-Kg heroin was recovered by the teams of Punjab Police from Seaports of Gujarat and Maharashtra, taking the total effective recovery of heroin to 863.9 Kgs. Apart from this, Police have also recovered 888-Kg opium, 1229-Kg Ganja, 464 quintals of poppy husk, and 70.16 lakhs tablets/capsules/injections/vials of Pharma opioids from across the state. The Police have also recovered Rs 10.36 crores of drug money from the possession of drug smugglers arrested in the past one year.          He said that under the ongoing special drive to arrest Proclaimed Offenders (POs)/Absconders in NDPS cases, Punjab Police have arrested 828 POs/Absconders since March 16, 2022.          DGP Gaurav Yadav reiterated that the Punjab Police is committed to root out the drug menace from the border state and several special anti-drug drives are being launched time-to-time to keep check on drug peddlers.          Meanwhile, after coming to power, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has also increased the ex-gratia amount to Rs 1 crore to be given to the families of Police Personnel in case of death in the line of duty. This amount is in addition to the insurance cover worth Rs 1 crore being given by the HDFC bank. The Punjab Government has also enhanced the budget allocation for Police Welfare from Rs 10 crore to Rs 15 crore.BOXES:1. ACTION AGAINST TERRORISTSTerror Modules Busted: 26Terrorists/Radicals Arrested: 168Total Rifles recovered: 31Total Revolvers/Pistols recovered: 201Total Tiffin IEDs recovered: 9RDX and other explosives recovery: 8.72KgTotal Hand Grenades recovered: 11Drones recovered: 302. ACTION AGAINST GANGSTERSTotal Modules Busted: 162Gangsters/Criminals Arrested: 582Gangsters/Criminals Neutralised: 5Weapons Recovered: 586Vehicles Recovered: 1313. ACTION AGAINST DRUGSTotal Drug smugglers/Suppliers Arrested: 17568Total FIRs Registered: 13094Total Heroin Recovered: 863.9KgTotal Opium Recovered: 888KgTotal Ganja Recovered: 1229KgTotal Poppy Husk Recovered: 464 QuintalsTotal tablets/capsules/injections/vials of Pharma opioids Recovered: 70.16 lakhTotal Drug Money Recovered: Rs 10.36 croresTotal Arrest of Proclaimed Offenders/Absconders in NDPS cases: 828

Chandigarh

VIGILANCE BUREAU ARRESTS PATWARI FOR DEMANDING BRIBE RS 15,000

Leave a comment

IEP Chandigarh March 15    

      The Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) during its anti-corruption campaign has arrested revenue Patwari Parveen Kumar, posted at revenue halqua, Phagwara city, Kapurthala district for demanding a bribe of Rs 15,000.          Disclosing this here today, a spokesperson of the VB said this case has been registered against the above said revenue official after investigation of an online complaint lodged at the Chief Minister’s anti-corruption action line.          Giving details he added that the complainant Ranvir Kaur, resident of Nehru Nagar, Phagwara, now living at Slough, United Kingdom, has alleged that the above said Patwari has demanded Rs 15,000 as a bribe in lieu of mutation of her house after the demise of her husband and making correction in the names. She further added that the accused Patwari has already taken Rs 25,000 and asking for more money in this regard.          The spokesperson added that the VB unit of Jalandhar range has investigated the allegations levelled in the complaint and registered a corruption case at VB police station Jalandhar against the above mentioned revenue official after finding him guilty for demanding and accepting a bribe money.  He would be produced in the competent court tomorrow. Further investigation in this case was under progress, he informed.

Chandigarh, Haryana

Cong promises MSP, jobs and OPS to Haryana voters

Leave a comment

IEP Chandigarh

Former Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Tuesday said farmers will get minimum support price (MSP) for crops, youth will get jobs and employees will get old pension scheme (OPS) when the Congress government will be formed in Haryana.

Addressing a Press conference in Rohtak, Hooda said it is certain that Bharatiya Janata Party-Jannayak Janta Party (BJP-JJP) coalition government will lose in the upcoming elections and Congress will form the government.

“People are completely fed up with the present government. Haryana, which was number one in per capita income, investment and development till 2014 during the Congress government, has been made number one in unemployment, crime and scams by the present government,” he said.

Hooda said about two lakh posts are lying vacant in government departments. “Instead of filling them, scams are happening continuously in the name of recruitment, jobs are being sold like goods at a grocery store. About 30 papers have been leaked so far,”  the Congress leader said.

“The government is constantly changing the rules to give preference to the people of other states even in the few recruitments that are held in the state. In this series, the government has now decided to give five marks of socio-economic status to the candidates of other states. This will make it more difficult for the local applicants to get jobs,” he said.

Referring to the farmers, Hooda said today the farmers’ mustard is being sold in the market at a rate lower than the MSP as the government is deliberately delaying the purchase. “Due to non-availability of government procurement, farmers had to sell their mustard at Rs 1000 to Rs 1500 below the MSP. Not only mustard, the government is shying away from giving MSP on almost all the crops from bajra and paddy,” he alleged.

“The MSP guarantee law will be implemented after the Congress government is formed. Along with this, the party has decided that after the formation of the government, old age pension of Rs 6000 per month and free electricity up to 300 units per family will be given to the elderly. The scheme to distribute plots of 100 yards each to poor families will start again. The present government reduced the income limit in the creamy layer in backward classes from 8 to 6 lakhs. It will be increased to 10 lakhs so that backward classes can get full benefit of reservation,” the former CM added.

Hooda once again demanded the government to withdraw the e-tendering, accepting the demand of the sarpanches. He said the government wants to paralyze the panchayats through e-tendering and this is why Panch-Sarpanchs have to agitate under compulsion,” he said.

Chandigarh, Haryana

Patience and discipline are capital of victory in sports: Hry Guv

Leave a comment

IEP Chandigarh

Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatraya who attended the closing ceremony of the 26th All India Forest Sports Meet as the chief guest at Tau Devi Lal Stadium said that Haryana is the hub of state sports and patience and discipline are the capital of victory in sports.

Chhattisgarh bagged the first position by winning the overall trophy while Karnataka was the runner-up.

        Vidhan Sabha Speaker, Sh. Gian Chand Gupta, Forest and Wildlife Minister, Sh. Kanwar Pal, Chairman, Haryana Forest Development Corporation, Sh. Dharam Pal Gonder, Chairman, Haryana Public Service Commission, Sh. Alok Verma, vice president, Shivalik Development Board, Sh. Om Prakash Devinagar, Mayor, Panchkula Municipal Corporation, Sh. Kulbhushan Goyal were also present on the occasion.

        Addressing the gathering, Governor, Sh. Bandaru Dattatraya said that it is the result of the dedication among the forest personnel and officials towards the sports that the competitors took part in 273 competitions of about 36 different sports. He said that the employees and officials of the forest department have to work in inaccessible forest areas as part of their duties and thus it is necessary for them to be physically fit and mobile.

        “Sports is such a medium by which physical health is maintained and the person’s reflexes are also sharp. Sports are an integral part of the lifestyle of forest personnel and officials,” he added. The Governor said that Haryana is the hub of state sports and patience and discipline are the capital of victory in sports.

        Vidhan Sabha Speaker, Sh. Gian Chand Gupta said that sports promote mutual understanding among humans. “Sports give the education of working with team spirit and cooperation. It is also indirectly helpful in spiritual development as sports develop the quality of concentration,” he added.

        Forest and Wildlife Minister, Sh. Kanwar Pal said that the All India Forest Sports Meet is a captivating tableau of ‘Mini India’. He said that an energetic body only makes the mind healthy. “Sports keep the human mind happy and motivated. Participation in sports develops tolerance, patience and courage in the players and increases the feeling of collective harmony and brotherhood,” he added.

        On the occasion, Additional Director General, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Sh. S.P Yadav, Additional Chief Secretary, Haryana Forest and Environment department, Sh. Vineet Garg, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Sh. Jagdish Chandra, Principal Secretary, Tourism Department, Sh. M.D Sinha, along with senior officers of the forest departments of other states were present.

Chandigarh

Meter reader held for accepting bribe

Leave a comment

IEP Chandigarh, March 14

In Haryana’s Faridabad district, the team of Anti Corruption Bureau has caught a Meter Reader of Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam for accepting illegal gratification of Rs 4000 in lieu of changing the tampered electricity meter.

While giving this information here today, a spokesperson of the Anti-Corruption Bureau said that the ACB has initiated further action by registering a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act against the accused Meter Reader.

Balbir Singh, a resident of village Fatehpur, Faridabad, had given a complaint to the ACB stating that Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam, meter reader Ravi Kumar, posted at Chainsa, Faridabad, was demanding bribe in lieu of changing the tampered electricity meter. The accused has already accepted Rs 11,000 for this work from the complainant. After verifying the facts, the bureau team conducted a raid and nabbed the accused meter reader Ravi Kumar red-handed while accepting illegal gratification of Rs.4000.

The ACB team has recovered Rs 4000 from the accused and a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered against him in ACB police station Faridabad.

Chandigarh

Transport Minister hears public grievances in Sonipat

Leave a comment

IEP Chandigarh, March 14

Transport Minister, Sh. Mool Chand Sharma directed the officials to set up a committee to resolve the issue of loan repayment of a woman; while redressing seven out of ten complaints during the meeting of the district public relations and grievances redressal committee today. While chairing the meeting, the Transport Minister also announced to provide roadways bus facility for Salasar Balaji Dham and Khatu Shyam Yatra.        Meanwhile, on the complaint of councillor Puneet Tyagi about the non-registration of the property inside and outside Lal Dora in Rai, despite being in the valid area of the Municipal Corporation; Sh. Mool Chand Sharma constituted a committee under the chairmanship of the Deputy Commissioner to review the matter.        Responding to a question asked about construction of new bus stands, the Transport Minister said that new bus stands will be set up in Sonipat, Faridabad, Gurugram and Karnal.

Chandigarh

Festival of colours, Holi was auspicious for farmers

Leave a comment

IEP Chandigarh, March 14

On the initiative of Chief Minister, Sh. Manohar Lal, Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister, Sh. JP Dalal, made the festival of colours, Holi, auspicious for the farmers and livestock owners by organizing the Haryana Krishi Vikas Mela and the State Livestock Exhibition simultaneously for the first time. The events focused on harnessing the rural economy and taking the farmers and villages towards prosperity.

        As Finance Minister, Chief Minister Sh. Manohar Lal has focused on making villages prosperous in his 2023-2024 budget speech. The ‘Haryana Krishi Vikas Mela’ was organized at Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, from March 10 to 12, 2023; where farmers not only from Haryana but also from neighbouring states registered their presence. During the Krishi Vikas Mela, agricultural scientists gave information about new varieties and techniques of crops being developed on the changes coming in the crop cycle due to climate change.

        On the other hand, at the State Level Livestock Exhibition organized at Charkhi Dadri from March 11 to 13, 2023, best breeds of livestock were showcased and the scientists of Lala Lajpat Rai University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Hisar, gave important information related to livestock. Notably, after the formation of Haryana in the year 1966, this was probably the first time when agriculture and livestock exhibitions were organized simultaneously in the state.

        At both the programmes, the Chief Minister interacted with the people and informed about the future plans for harnessing the rural economy in the Union budget as well as the state budget. The Chief Minister also listened to the grievances of the people during the Jan Samvad programme at both the places; which garnered appreciation from the people.

        The Jan Samvad programme is an initiative of the Manohar Lal-led state government to ease the lives of the citizens by ensuring quick redressal of their grievances. So far, the Jan Samvad programmes have been organized in Rohtak, Sirsa, Sonipat and Karnal.

Chandigarh, Punjab

Major administrative reshuffle in Punjab; 16 IAS, 3 PCS officers transferred

Leave a comment

IEP Chandigarh, March 13

In a major administrative reshuffle, the Punjab government on Monday transferred 16 IAS and 3 PCS officers. Anurag Agarwal, IAS, who is currently posted as Additional Chief Secretary-cum-Financial Commissioner, Cooperation and in addition Additional Chief Secretary, Elections, has now been posted as Additional Chief Secretary-cum-Financial Commissioner, Cooperation and in addition Additional Chief Secretary, Elections, and in addition Additional Chief Secretary, Medical Education and Research in place of Alaknanda Dayal, IAS. 

Also, Raji P. Shrivastava, IAS, currently posted as Additional Chief Secretary-cum-Financial Commissioner, Forest and Wildlife Preservation has been posted as Additional Chief Secretary, Freedom Fighters, in place of Veerendra Kumar Meena, IAS.

Vivek Pratap Singh, Principal Secretary, Local Government has been posted as  Principal Secretary, Local Government and in addition, Principal Secretary, Health and Family Welfare relieving Veerendra Kumar Meena, IAS of additional charge.

Rahul Bhandari, Principal Secretary, Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs and in addition Principal Secretary, Civil Aviation and in addition Principal Secretary, Information and Public Relations and in addition Principal Secretary Resident Commissioner, Punjab Bhawan, New Delhi has been posted as Principal Secretary Resident Commissioner, Punjab Bhawan, New Delhi.

Veerendra Kumar Meena, Principal Secretary, Freedom fighters and in addition Principal Secretary Printing and Stationary and in addition Principal Secretary, Health and Family welfare has been posted as  Principal Secretary Printing and Stationary.

Vikas Garg, Principal Secretary, Transport has been posted as Principal Secretary, Transport and in addition Financial Commissioner, Forests, Wildlife Preservation in place of Raji P Srivastava.

Sumer Singh Gurjar, Principal Secretary, Social Security, Women and Child Development and in addition Commissioner, Rupnagar Division, Rupnagar has been posted as Principal Secretary, Agriculture and Farmer’s welfare and in addition Principal Secretary, Horticulture and in addition Principal Secretary Soil and Water Conservation in place of Rahul Tiwari.

Gurkirat Kirpal Singh, Secretary, Tourism and Culture affairs and in addition Secretary Mines and Geology has been posted as Secretary, Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs in place of Rahul Bhandari and in addition Tourism and Culture affairs, and in addition Secretary Mines and Geology.

Arshdeep Singh Thind, Secretary, Agriculture and Farmer’s welfare has been posted as Secretary, Agriculture and Farmer’s welfare and in addition Secretary Horticulture.

Ritu Aggarwal, Secretary, Home Affairs and Justice has been posted as Secretary Cooperative.

Malwainder Singh Jaggi, Chief Executive officer, Punjab water Supply and Sewerage Board has been posted as Secretary, Information and Public Relations and in addition Civil Aviation relieving Rahul Bhandari and in addition water Supply and Sewerage Board.

Other officers include IAS Abhinav, IAS Pradeep Kumar Agrawal, IAS Babita Singh, IAS Devinder Singh, IAS Puneet Singh, PCS Rajesh Kumar Sharma, PCS Vikas Hira, PCS Amardeep Singh Thind were transferred by the government. 

Uncategorized

AHEAD OF G-20 SUMMIT, PUNJAB POLICE CONDUCT ‘OPS SEAL-II’ TO PREVENT SMUGGLING OF ARMS & AMMUNITION, DRUGS & LIQUOR

Leave a comment

IEP CHANDIGARH, March 13      

    With G-20 Summit is around the corner, Punjab Police have not been leaving any stone unturned on security point of view to make this event a grand success, as part of which a special operation ‘OPS Seal-II’ was conducted wherein all the vehicles entering the border state of Punjab were thoroughly checked.          The operation was conducted at all the Inter-State Boundaries of the state on the directions of Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav with an aim to make Punjab a safe and secure state as per the Vision of Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Bhagwant Mann.          As many as 112 well-coordinated strong nakas involving over 1500 Police Personnel, were set-up under the supervision of Inspectors/DSPs at all the entry/exit points of 10 districts, which share boundaries with Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan and Haryana. The 10 inter-state border districts include Pathankot, Sri Muktsar Sahib, Fazilka, Ropar, SAS Nagar, Patiala, Sangrur, Mansa, Hoshiarpur, and Bathinda.          The operation was conducted in a synchronised manner from 8am to 2pm and all the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSPs) were asked to mobilise a maximum number of officers and manpower for this operation to lay strong ‘nakas’ at sealing points under the supervision of Gazetted officers/SHOs.          Divulging details, Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Law and Order Arpit Shukla as many as 5669 vehicles entering the state were checked, of which 300 were challaned and 39 were impounded.          He said that the Police have also registered 21 first information reports (FIRs) and arrested one proclaimed offender. Apart from this, the Police teams have recovered 3kg poppy husk, 3.8Kg opium, 140grams heroin and two illicit weapons, he added.          Meanwhile, the operation was aimed at preventing the influx of illegal arms & ammunition, drugs and illicit liquor in the state, besides, keeping vigil on the movement of gangsters and anti-social elements. 

Chandigarh, Punjab

SCHOOL EDUCATION MINISTER ORDERS TIME BOUND INQUIRY INTO PSTET CASE

Leave a comment

IEP Chandigarh, March 13

Punjab School Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains on Monday ordered an inquiry pertaining to irregularities during Punjab State Teacher Eligibility Test (PSTET).

Mr, Bains said that the matter was come to his notice that grave irregularities have been found during the Punjab State Teacher Eligibility Test held on Sunday. He issued an order to conduct time bound inquiry by Principal Secretary Level Officer and asked that a criminal case should be registered against the perpetrators of this heinous crime.

Apart from this, the Cabinet Minister also instructed the Guru Nanak Dev University to conduct the paper agains as soon as possible without charging any fee. He directed the officials of the School Education Department to incorporate a clause in the contract with the third party regarding conducting examinations on behalf of the department that if any irregularities will be found then the executing agency or organisation will pay the suitable compensation to the students.