Chandigarh:

The Municipal Corporation Chandigarh today carried out a special anti encroachment drive in the Industrial Area, Phase 1, particularly in the MW Kabri Market, to address unauthorized encroachments.

Following the directions of MC Commissioner Sh Amit Kumar, IAS, the enforcement team carried out inspections and took immediate action against violators obstructing public spaces and roads. A total of 27 challans were issued on the spot for various violations related to illegal encroachments.

The drive aims to ensure the smooth flow of traffic, maintain cleanliness, and uphold civic order in commercial and industrial zones. The Municipal Corporation reiterates its commitment to keeping public areas free from unauthorized occupation and urges all shopkeepers and vendors to comply with the regulations.

Further drives will continue across different parts of the city to ensure strict enforcement. The public is also encouraged to cooperate and support the civic body in its ongoing efforts.

Chandigarh, June 28, 2025:

The Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB), continuing its relentless drive against corruption, today apprehended Vikas Jindal, Clerk posted at the office of District Education Officer (Elementary), Malerkotla, red handed while he was accepting a bribe of Rs. 20,000 from a teacher.

According to an official spokesperson of the VB, the accused clerk had demanded Rs. 30,000 from a complainant of village Bagrian, district Malerkotla in lieu of for processing his pending allowances in the DEO office. The complainant has alleged to the VB that said clerk had already taken Rs. 10,000 from him and demanding the remaining amount.

He further informed that after a preliminary verification of this complaint a VB team from Patiala range laid a trap during which the accused clerk was nabbed while he was taking Rs 20000 as a second instalment of bribe from the complainant in the presence of two official witnesses and the tainted bribe money has been recovered on the spot.

In this regard a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered at VB Police Station Patiala Range. The accused would be produced in the competent court tomorrow and further investigation is underway, he said. 

With a view to weed out the corrupt practices in the public offices, the VB has appealed to the public to report any instances of corruption through its helpline numbers or official channels and assured complete confidentiality would be maintained in such matters.

Chandigarh, June 28:

The Punjab Government, under the dynamic leadership of Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Singh Mann, is tirelessly working for the welfare and upliftment of every section of society. In particular, dedicated initiatives are being undertaken to bring students from Scheduled Castes into the mainstream by providing them better educational opportunities.

Giving further details, Social Justice, Empowerment and Minorities Minister Dr. Baljit Kaur informed that a budget provision of ₹245 crore has been made under the Post-Matric Scholarship Scheme for Scheduled Caste students in the financial year 2025-26. The government has set a target to cover 2.70 lakh Scheduled Caste students under this scheme during the year.

She said this initiative would significantly help in improving the socio-economic standard of these students and enable them to lead self-reliant lives through education.

Dr. Baljit Kaur further added that in the previous financial year, the Punjab Government had covered 2,36,575 students under the scheme, disbursing ₹266.57 crore as the state’s share.

To facilitate applications, the Dr. Ambedkar Scholarship Portal will be opened shortly for online submissions, she informed. Besides this, awareness camps will also be organized at the district level to ensure that eligible students are well-informed about the scheme and avail its benefits without difficulty.

The Cabinet Minister emphasized that the Punjab Government is committed to supporting every eligible Scheduled Caste student through this scholarship so that no talented student is deprived of education due to financial constraints. She said, “It is our sincere effort to ensure that children belonging to communities historically subjected to discrimination get fair and equal opportunities to pursue higher education.”

Dr. Baljit Kaur also highlighted that over the years, thousands of SC students have successfully completed their higher education under this scheme and today hold prestigious positions in government services, private jobs, and have even started their own businesses.

She directed the concerned officials to ensure that the benefits of the Post-Matric Scholarship Scheme reach every deserving student and stressed that the scheme should be implemented with complete transparency, efficiency, and effectiveness.

Chandigarh, June 28:

The Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Minister Mr. Lal Chand Kataruchak today congratulated Mr. Jasvir Singh Sekhon on being appointed as the Member of the Punjab State Food Commission by the State Government.

Extending his Congratulations to Jasvir Singh Sekhon, the Minister expressed gratitude to the Punjab Government led by the Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann. He further expressed confidence that Mr. Sekhon would fully justify the faith reposed in his abilities and ensure that the schemes initiated by the Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Department are percolated to all sections of the society especially those linked with the farming sector as it is the core part of the procurement operations.

Notably, Mr. Sekhon has Sekhon appointed as Member of the commission under Section 16 of the National Food Security Act (Central Act 20 of 2013), 2013.

Chandigarh, June 28:

The Punjab Government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann has issued an order to suspend 26 officers and employees of Jail Department for dereliction of duty.

Punjab Jail Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar informed that 26 officers and employees of Jail Department have been suspended with immediate effect under Punjab Civil Services (Punishment and Appeal) Rules, 1970 for dereliction of duty/negligence.

Giving a clear message to the officers and employees on duty in the jails of Punjab, the Minister said that illegal activities, misbehavior, indiscipline, absence from duty and activities like involvement with prisoners will not be tolerated at all.

The Minister said that Iqbal Singh Brar Superintendent District Jail Mansa, Maninder Pal Cheema Deputy Superintendent Central Jail Ludhiana, Anil Bhandari Deputy Superintendent Borstal Jail Ludhiana, Sandeep Brar Deputy Superintendent Central Jail Ludhiana, Yadvinder Singh ASJ Central jail Ferozepur Apart from Warders Harbhupinder Singh and Sikander Singh Goindwal Sahib, Bikramjit Singh and Vijay Pal Singh Amritsar, Jatinder Singh, Ravi, Deepak Rai, Kiranjit Singh, Prithipal Singh and Satnam Singh Kapurthala, Satnam Singh and Mandeep Singh Hoshiarpur, Maninder Pal Singh Ludhiana, Anu Malik, Randhir Singh, Arvind Dev Singh, Balvir Singh and Sukhpreet Singh Mansa, Satnam Singh Nabha, Gagandeep Singh Bathinda and Anmol Verma Pathankot etc. have been suspended.

The Jail Minister said that the Punjab government led by Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Singh Mann is committed to providing good administration to the state and negligence in the duty of any officer or employee will not be tolerated. He warned all the officers and employees of the department and said that they should ensure that their duties are done honestly, diligently and according to the rules.