IEP Gorsian Khan Mohammad (Ludhiana), February 5

          In a historic initiative aimed at ensuring supply of cheap sand and gravel to the public, the Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann today dedicated 16 public mines here to the masses thereby ensuring pit head price of sand to Rs 5.50 per cubic feet.

          Interacting with the media persons after dedicating 16 public mining sites spread over seven districts here today, the Chief Minister said that the state government has fulfilled another poll guarantee made with the people. He said that the state government has eradicated the sand mafia which had flexed its muscles in the past to ensure that people get cheap sand. Bhagwant Mann said that now the sand will be sold at just Rs.5.50 in each of these public mining sites thereby giving a major reprieve to the people.

          The Chief Minister said that only manual excavation of sand will be permitted in these public mining sites and no mechanical excavation of sand will be allowed.  He categorically said that no mining contractor will be allowed to operate in these public mining sites. Bhagwant Mann said that sand from public mining sites will only be sold for use in construction of non-commercial projects.

          The Chief Minister said that sale of sand will happen only till sunset and a government official will always be present to regulate the extraction of sand at each public mining site. He said that the state government has built an app which will give complete information to people about public mining sites and will even facilitate online payments. Bhagwant Mann said that 16 mines have been dedicated to the people and by next month 50 more such mines will be operational across the state.

          The Chief Minister said that an app has been launched that will be linked to Google maps and will guide the person to the nearest public mine. He said that it will ensure supply of cheap sand to the people and check their exploitation by contractors and transporters. Bhagwant Mann said that it will boost the rural economy as a large number of youth and labour will be engaged in this exercise, leading to higher incomes.

          The Chief Minister said that it will eliminate middlemen in the sale and purchase of sand and gravel, leading to empowerment of the common man. He said that it is now one of the lowest rates at which sand is available to any person across the country. Bhagwant Mann said that the presence of public mining sites will automatically distort the prices and cause them to stabilise at a lower level, as these mines present a regular alternate avenue for the common man for purchasing cheap sand.

          The Chief Minister said that operation of the mines will be completely a transparent process as CCTV cameras have been installed to keep 24 hours surveillance on it. He said that apart from this Police patrolling will be ensured on these public sites to keep a check over it. Bhagwant Mann said that these Mines will be operational from 6 am in the morning to 7 pm from April 1-September 30 and from 7 am to 5pm from October 1 to March 31.

          The Chief Minister categorically said that the sand mafia that had flourished during the previous government regimes will no longer exploit the people. He unequivocally said that those who have minted illegal money through the sand mines will be held accountable for their misdeeds. Bhagwant Mann said that those people who have committed this heinous and unpardonable crime with the state will not be spared at any cost.

          Listing the several guarantees fulfilled by the state government so far, the Chief Minister said that within ten months of assuming the charge the state government has eliminated the transport mafia. He said that free power has been provided to 87% households of the state since July, 2022. Bhagwant Mann said that more than 26,000 government jobs have been provided so far to the youth of the state and more are in pipeline.

          The Chief Minister further said that the state government has started 500 Aam Aadmi Clinics across the state to impart quality health services in the state. He said that to deliver the best education to the students ‘Schools of Eminence’ have been set up across the state. Bhagwant Mann said that to upscale the expertise of the Principals, a batch of 36 Principals have been sent to Singapore for professional training.

          The Chief Minister said that this is the dawn of new and vibrant Punjab adding that the day is not far when with the strenuous efforts of the state government, Punjab will lead the country in every sphere. He said that his government is duty bound to restore the pristine glory of the state and no stone will be left unturned for it. Bhagwant Mann solicited the support and cooperation of people of the state to ensure a progressive and prosperous Punjab.

          On the occasion Cabinet Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer, MLAs Sarabjeet Kaur Manuke, Hardeep Singh Mundian and Jeewan Singh Sangowal, Secretary Mining Gurkirat Kirpal Singh, Director Mining DPS Kharbanda and others were also present,

IEP Chandigarh, February 4

            Revenue and Water Supply and Sanitation Minister Bram Shanker Jimpa today greeted the people of the state on the occasion of Parkash Utsav of Sri Guru Ravidas ji.

            Extending his greeting on the eve of Parkash Utsav of Sri Guru Ravidas ji, Jimpa said that Guru Ravidas ji embodied the spirit of humility and human dignity. He said that the message of Guru Ravidas ji have been a source of knowledge and wisdom for the whole society. His life and teachings would always inspire us to create a humane and just society, where every individual is given due dignity, regardless of his or her caste, creed, religion or gender, he added.

            He said that Guru Ravidas Ji’s message of love, compassion and equality would continue to inspire us to serve humanity with dedication and devotion in times to come.

IEP Chandigarh, February 4

          Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday flagged off the first batch of 36 Government school Principals visiting Singapore for upgrading their professional knowledge and expertise in the field of education.

          Interacting with the delegation here at MGSIPA, the Chief Minister gave a clarion call to the teachers for becoming the torchbearers of the Education revolution being witnessed in the state since last ten months. He said that this first of its kind initiative by the state government is part of the State scheme for teachers’ foreign training cleared by Cabinet on Friday and aims at ensuring that the professional skills of the teaching fraternity is enhanced, so that they can deliver best education to the students. Bhagwant Mann said that the sole aim of this step is to enable the students of the government schools to compete with their convent educated peers and excel in life.

          The Chief Minister reiterated that teachers are the nation builders who can uplift the level of education, so the state government has decided to upgrade their teaching skills by ensuring quality training to them. Bhagwant Mann said that as a part of this guarantee first batch of 36 Government School Principals are going to Singapore today I.e February 4 for professional training.

          He said that these Principals will be participating in a Professional Teacher Training seminar from February 6-10.

          The Chief Minister said that after the completion of training this first batch will return back on February 11. Bhagwant Mann said that this training will further widen the horizon of the teachers by equipping them with state-of-the-art teaching practices, leadership skills, creation of teaching-learning materials and audio-visual technology to meet  objectives of Education in the post-Pandemic world, Essentials of Strategic Management, Shaping School Culture, Building Teachers’ Professional Capital, Curriculum Leadership, Mentoring, and Lesson Observation Skills, Innovation in Teaching and Learning and Effective Communication. He envisioned that this path breaking initiative will prove to be a milestone for reforming education system in the state adding that with these efforts Punjab will soon become a front runner state in the field of education.

IEP Chandigarh, February 4

The Punjab government under the leadership of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is constantly striving to raise the standard of living of the people of Scheduled Castes, Backward Classes and other poor sections.  Therefore, an amount of Rs 2.91 crores has been released for the year 2022-23 for the repair and maintenance of Dr. BR Ambedkar Bhawan established in 17 districts of the state.          Divulging in this regard, Minister of Social Justice, Empowerment and Minorities Dr. Baljit Kaur said that the amount of budget provision has been released during the year 2022-23 under the repair and maintenance of Dr. BR Ambedkar Bhawan.  Due to this, approval has been given to release an amount of Rs 2.91 crore.It was decided by the government to set up Dr. B.R Ambedkar Bhawan in every district so that facilities for Scheduled Castes, Backward Classes and other poor sections can be provided under one roof with single windows.  So far Dr. B.R Ambedkar Bhawan has been established in 17 districts.   Remaining six districts, SAS Nagar, Barnala and Malerkotla  Efforts are being made to arrange the land for setting up Dr Ambedkar Bhawan, while the land has been arranged in district Pathankot, Tarn Taran and Fazilka.          Cabinet Minister directed the officials of the department for the repair and maintenance work of Dr. B.R Ambedkar Bhawan to ensure transparency and quality in government works and strictly follow the financial regulation.

IEP Jalandhar, February 4     

      Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann today gave a clarion call to people to follow the path shown by Sri Guru Ravidass ji to wipe out the various social maladies prevalent in the society.           The Chief Minister, while addressing the gathering before flagging off a Shobha Yatra to mark the parkash utsav of Sri Guru Ravidass ji, said that the bani of Sri Guru Ravidass ji is a lighthouse for the entire humanity. He said that Sri Guru Ravidass ji had shown the path of humanity to the entire world. Bhagwant Mann said that this bani can play a pivotal role in the emancipating the society for the various problems being confronted by it.           The Chief Minister said that following on the footsteps of Sri Guru Ravidass ji the state government is making strenuous efforts for carving out an egalitarian society. He said that in consonance with the path of equality shown by Sri Guru Ravidass ji and Baba Sahib Dr BR Ambedkar the state government is giving top priority to education and health sectors. Bhagwant Mann said that the schools of the state are being equipped with state of the art infrastructure and Human Resource so that quality education can be imparted to the students from weaker and underprivileged sections of society.           The Chief Minister said that poverty can be eradicated only by providing quality education to the students. He said that the focus of his government is to ensure that youth become job givers instead for job seekers. Bhagwant Mann said that this is need of hour to carve out a progressive and prosperous Punjab.           The Chief Minister bemoaned that unfortunately those who had been in power in the state earlier had mercilessly plundered the people for their vested political interests. He said that even the funds meant for welfare of poor students under Post Matric scholarship scheme were robbed. However, Bhagwant Mann said every single penny looted by these leaders will be recovered from them.           The Chief Minister felicitated the people on this solemn occasion and urged the people to tread the path shown by Sri Guru Ravidass Maharaj ji. He said that the life and teachings of Sri Guru Ravidass Ji continue to guide humanity towards an egalitarian society. Bhagwant Mann said that Sri Guru Ravidass Ji – a great spiritual ambassador and messiah of the poor and unprivileged sections of the society taught us to lead a virtuous and noble life.           The Chief Minister said that this ‘Parkash Utsav’ is an occasion to rededicate ourselves to the task of creating a society where every human being leads a life with self respect and dignity regardless of any discrimination. He appealed the people to celebrate the ‘Parkash Utsav’ of Guru ji collectively by rising above the parochial considerations of caste, creed, colour and religion. Bhagwant Mann said that Sri Guru Ravidass Maharaj Ji embodied the spirit of humility and human dignity.           The Chief Minister said that the message of Sri Guru Ravidas ji has been a source of knowledge and wisdom for whole society since ages. He said that life and teachings of Sri Guru Ravidass Maharaj ji will always inspire us to create a humane and just society, where every individual is given due dignity, regardless of his or her caste, creed, religion or gender. Bhagwant Mann further said that the message of love, compassion and equality preached by Sri Guru Ravidass ji will continue to inspire us to serve humanity with dedication and devotion in times to come.           The Chief Minister said that it is matter of great pride for him that he participates in various events related to great Gurus, martyrs, saints and seers. However, Bhagwant Mann said that he is surprised to note that at most of such places he is welcomed by saying that he is the first Chief Minister to be part of this event. He said that those leaders who didn’t even have time to participate in such events have been now shown a door by the people.  Earlier MLA Shital Angural welcomed the Chief Minister.           The Chief Ministers was felicitated by the organisers of the Shobha Yatra during the event.           On the occasion MLAs Shital Angural, Balkar Singh, Raman Arora and Inderjit Kaur Mann, Deputy Commissioner Jaspreet Singh, Commissioner of Police Kuldeep Chahal and others were also present. 

IEP Chandigarh, February 4

The Punjab Water Regulation and Development Authority (PWRDA) has notified the “Punjab Groundwater Extraction and Conservation Directions, 2023” which have come into effect from the 1st of February, 2023.

Disclosing this, a spokesperson of the authority said that the new directions apart from regulating groundwater also encourage users to conserve water through water conservation schemes. The authority will also fund public water conservation projects to be implemented by State Government Departments.

PWRDA is the first Water Authority in India to implement the concept of water conservation credits. The Users may opt to implement a water conservation scheme with the approval of the Authority, either within the Unit or outside. The User will be entitled for water conservation credits for the water conserved by it. For every cubic meter (1,000 liters) of water conserved, the user will earn a rebate equal to Rs. 2.50. The maximum rebate available to a Unit will depend on the zone in which the Unit is located and the volume of groundwater being extracted by it.

The Groundwater Extraction Charges will also be utilized by the Authority for funding the Public Water Conservation Schemes of various State Departments, such as a project for improvement of irrigation water conveyance efficiency so as to bring more area under canal water apart from improving the recharge of groundwater.

PWRDA shall facilitate rapid deployment and scaling up of water saving technologies in Agriculture. For this purpose, a pilot project for water conservation in coordination with the State Government has been initiated in the district of Sangrur to save upon groundwater in the State.

The project covers an area of 1720 acres spread over 29 villages in the district. Similar water saving projects are being planned to motivate farmers towards judicious use of water in agriculture.

The users are encouraged to implement water conservation schemes with approval of PWRDA both in their premises (e.g. rainwater harvesting) and also outside their units (e.g. collaborating with farmers to save irrigation water) to earn water conservation credits.

For Groundwater Assessment zones see the map of Punjab on website: https://pwrda.org.