IEP Chandigarh, August 2

Marking a significant milestone in efficiency and transparency, Punjab Information and Public Relations Minister S. Chetan Singh Jauramajra on Wednesday launched an online portal, designed to streamline the process of journalists obtaining their accreditation, in his office here at Punjab Civil Secretariat-1. The portal, designed for the Department of Information and Public Relations and developed by the NIC Punjab, promises to revolutionize the process of issuing the identity to media persons.          The Cabinet Minister S. Chetan Singh Jauramajra, while inaugurating the portal, expressed his deep appreciation for the efforts put forth by the DIPR and NIC Punjab in creating this innovative tool. He emphasized Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Mann led government’s commitment to fostering a conducive environment for journalism and reaffirmed the administration’s unwavering support for a free and responsible press.          He said, this milestone initiative comes as part of government’s commitment to bolstering transparency, accountability and accessibility within the realm of journalism, adding that the portal is poised to revolutionize the accreditation process by harnessing the power of technology and ensuring that journalists can focus on their crucial work without undue administrative burdens.          With the launch of this state-of-the-art portal, S. Chetan Singh Jauramajra said that aspiring and established journalists can navigate the application process with ease and convenience. By utilizing the platform, they can submit their documents, verify their credentials and gain accreditation in an efficient and timely manner.          Mr. Adil Azmi, OSD/Chief Minister (Media) Punjab said that immediately after assuming the charge of his office, Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Mann had instructed the officials of the Information and Public Relations Department to ensure that all matters related to journalists should be resolved on priority. He added that this initiative of Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Mann government will prove to be a milestone for the journalists.          Secretary IPR Mr. Malwinder Singh Jaggi informed that online accreditation platform will allow journalists to submit their accreditation applications digitally. He said, gone are the days of lengthy paperwork and delays, adding that now, with just a few clicks, journalists can provide their personal information, media organization details and relevant documentation for verification.          Mr. Jaggi said that the new system includes several key features designed to enhance the accreditation process like this pioneering platform will allow journalists to submit their applications from the comfort of their own workplaces, whether at the district or state level. He said that the initiative aims to significantly streamline the accreditation process, minimizing manual intervention and reducing approval times.          Director IPR Mr. Bhupinder Singh said that journalists can now submit their applications directly from their doorsteps, eliminating the need to travel to regional or state offices. This innovative approach will save time and resources for journalists working in diverse regions.          On this occasion, Deputy Director (Press) Mr. Ishwinder Singh Grewal, Deputy Director Mr. Gurmeet Singh Khaira, DDG & SIO Punjab Mr. Vivek Verma, Sr. Director & ASIO (D) Mrs. Usha Rai and Director (IT) Mr. Pankaj Jain were also present.          Once applications are submitted on https://eservices.punjab.gov.in, the system automatically escalates them to the approval authority at the state level. The absence of manual intervention will expedite the process, ensuring quick and efficient accreditation.          Applicants receive SMS and email alerts, keeping them informed about the status of their applications and the expected time for approval. This feature helps journalists plan their coverage schedules with confidence.          In the event of objections to an application, the system enables the process to be conducted online. Applicants can address objections and make necessary adjustments directly, avoiding unnecessary visits to physical offices.          The new system, a result of close collaboration between government authorities, media organizations and NIC, aims to empower journalists with the tools they need to perform their duties effectively. By leveraging digital solutions, the platform enhances transparency, expediency and convenience in the accreditation process. 

IEP Ludhiana, August 2 

In a bid to make Ludhiana city clean, green and pollution free, the Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday flagged off a super suction cum jetting machine for mechanised cleaning of sewer lines in the city along with 50 Tractors. Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said that the hi-tech Super Suction cum Jetting Machine has been bought at a cost of Rs 1.45 crore. He said that this machine will be instrumental in cleaning of 200 kilometre long main sewerage lines of the city. Bhagwant Mann said that this machine will be helpful in resolving the major issue of the sewerage problem in the city thereby giving major respite to the people. Likewise, the Chief Minister said that 50 tractors have been purchased by the Municipal Corporation Ludhiana (MCL) at a cost of Rs 2.22 crore. He said that these tractors have been bought for the various branches of the civic body including the Building and Roads (B&R), Operation and Maintenance (O&M), Health, Horticulture and others. Bhagwant Mann said that these tractors will be instrumental in lifting the debris, supply of water through tankers, collection of garbage and other operations. The Chief Minister reiterated that the state government is committed to holistic development of the cities for which no stone is being left unturned. He said that there is no dearth of funds with the state government to ensure comprehensive growth of the state and prosperity of the people. Bhagwant Mann said that apart from generous allocation of funds for the all-round development of the cities major thrust is being laid for augmenting the infrastructure required for giving fillip to these developmental works. On the occasion Cabinet Minister Balkar Singh and others were also present.

IEP Chandigarh, August 2     

      Social Justice, Empowerment, and Minorities Minister, Dr. Baljit Kaur, has issued instructions to all Deputy Commissioners of the state to provide income and asset certificates to the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) for availing the benefits of reservation in Government civil posts and services, as well as admission to Central Educational Institutions.          Dr. Baljit Kaur stated that it has come to her attention that income and property certificates are being obtained by many individuals in violation of the conditions set by the state government. She emphasized that the Chief Minister, Bhagwant Mann-led Punjab government, takes the issuance of income and asset certificates by ineligible persons very seriously. The state government has decided that income and asset certificates should be issued by the certificate issuing authority only after a thorough preliminary investigation, in accordance with the provisions of the instructions dated 14-5-2019 and 15-7-2019. If any such case comes to their notice in the future, departmental/criminal action will be taken against the employee/person responsible for verifying the facts while issuing income and asset certificates. Moreover, criminal action will also be initiated against individuals who have obtained income and asset certificates based on false information.          Cabinet Minister, Dr. Baljit Kaur, mentioned that detailed instructions have been issued regarding the issuance of income and asset certificates to avail the 10 percent reservation in civil posts and services for the economically weaker sections. These instructions are mentioned in the Social Justice, Empowerment, and Minorities Department letter No: 1/16/2019-RC 1/116, dated 14-5-2019, and No: 1/16/2019-RC1/1523189/1, dated 15-7-2019.          The Cabinet Minister has instructed all Deputy Commissioners of the state to ensure that the instructions regarding income and asset certificates are brought to the attention of the general public. She reiterated the state government’s commitment to the welfare of economically weaker sections. 

IEP Chandigarh, August 2     

      Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann led State Government stands with its people in the difficult times caused by floods and is committed to fully compensate them for the loss of the people of the state. It was disclosed by Punjab Chief Secretary Mr. Anurag Verma in a press communiqué after a video conferencing meeting with all the Deputy Commissioners along with the top officials.          The Chief Secretary instructed all the Deputy Commissioners to complete this work on time by following the orders given by the Chief Minister of Special Girdawari by August 15. He said that the work of Girdawari in the field should be done with complete fairness and transparency. The Deputy Commissioners should also ensure that according to the instructions of the Chief Minister, the work of Girdawari should be done on the spot.          The Chief Secretary also instructed the Deputy Commissioners and SDMs to personally visit the spot. Apart from this, compensation for loss of life and property should be given immediately. He asked the Deputy Commissioners to immediately dispose of the pending compensation cases while taking the district wise report of the compensation and Girdawari work.          Mr. Anurag Verma said that the farmers whose paddy crops were damaged due to floods are being given free paddy saplings by the State Government. He told the DCs that wherever there is a problem in the availability of paddy sapling, they should immediately contact the Agriculture Department. In this regard, Secretary Agriculture Arshdeep Singh Thind is the nodal officer. He asked all the districts to send progress reports of Girdawari, compensation and damages to the headquarters on daily basis.          The meeting was attended by Special Chief Secretary Revenue KAP Sinha, Principal Secretary Water Supply and Sanitation DK Tiwari, Principal Secretary Health and Family Welfare VP Singh, Principal Secretary Water Resources Krishan Kumar, Secretary PWD Nilkanth S Avhad, Secretary Information and Public Relations Malwinder Singh Jaggi, Secretary Agriculture Arshdeep Singh Thind, Director General School Education Vinay Bublani, CMD PSPCL Baldev Singh Sran.

IEP Chandigarh, July 31

Amidst its ongoing campaign against corruption in the state, Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) on Sunday nabbed a PSPCL Junior Engineer (JE), Jasmel Singh, posted at Sidhwan Bet in Ludhiana district for accepting a bribe of Rs 70,000.The PSPCL official has been arrested on the complaint of Surinder Singh resident of village Khurshedpur in Jagraon tehsil.Disclosing the details here today, an official spokesperson of the VB said that Surinder Singh has lodged a complaint that the JE took a bribe of Rs 70,000 from him in lieu of installating a separate transformer for his house.After investigation of the complaint, an FIR 09 dated 30-07-2023 under section 7 of Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered against the accused JE Jasmel Singh at Police Station the Economic Offences Wing (EoW) of VB, Ludhiana, the spokesperson added.        

IEP Sas Nagar (Mohali), July 30

 In another path breaking initiative aimed at spearheading revolution in the education sector, the Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Sunday flagged off the first batch of the Headmasters for expert training at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad. Interacting with the media after flagging off the batch of headmasters, the Chief Minister said that today is a red letter day in the history of the state. He said that while delegations of Principals are coming back after receiving training at Singapore, this batch is going to Ahmedabad for upscaling of their expertise. Bhagwant Mann said that the single motive is to ensure that students of the government schools in the state get quality education so that they can compete with their convent educated peers across the globe.   The Chief Minister said that as good coaches produce excellent players similarly an updated teacher will help in grooming able students for the coming future. He said that there is no dearth of funds with the state government for the education sector and every effort will be made to ensure that students get quality education. Bhagwant Mann envisioned that due to the strenuous efforts of the state government, the day is not far away when Punjab will emerge as a hub of quality education across the country. Taking pot shots over his predecessors, the Chief Minister said that the earlier rulers didn’t like to move amongst the people after their elevation. However, Bhagwant Mann said that he is daily attending one or other event to ensure the well being of every section of the society. He said that his government is duty bound to ensure the welfare of every section of society and no stone will be left unturned for this noble cause.   The Chief Minister said that after assuming the charge of office he had laid thrust on regularizing the services of 12710 teachers by overcoming all the legal and administrative hiccups. Bhagwant Mann said that the motive was to ensure the secure future of teachers as he firmly believes that if the future of teachers is protected then only they can transform the destiny of the students. He said that the genuine problem of every employee will be solved for which the state government is already making all out efforts. Slamming the opposition for misleading the people by making irrational and unjustified comments, the Chief Minister said that it is on record that from now onwards the word contractual will be forever eliminated from before the nomenclature of these teachers. He said that every year a 5% increment will be given to these teachers along with other benefits including holidays. Bhagwant Mann said that the opposition had since long befooled these teachers by playing with their sentiments during their tenures so they have no moral right to say anything over the issue. Replying to another query, the Chief Minister said that in order to restore the pristine glory of the state in fields of sports and to further give boost to sporting activity in the state, the Cabinet also gave nod to the new Sports Policy-2023 focusing on jobs, training, incentives and robust infrastructure for players from village level. He said that sports culture will be reintroduced in the government schools by recruiting the physical education teachers so that students can excel in sports. Bhagwant Mann said that apart from providing robust infrastructure, coaching and facilities to the players, the new sports policy will also lay thrust on providing financial assistance to them for bringing medals in national and international sports events. The Chief Minister said that the state government has already introduced Industrial Policy, Electric Vehicle Policy, Agriculture policy and now the Sports Policy. He said that the single point motive is to ensure that the state scripts a new success story in every arena so that a ‘Rangla Punjab’ can be carved out. Bhagwant Mann said that the policies are being framed for every section of society so as to ensure holistic development of the state and prosperity of the people. Expressing concern over the damage caused due to floods in the state, the Chief Minister said that the state government will compensate people for the loss of every single penny. Bhagwant Mann said that he had already ordered a special girdawari to ascertain the loss of crops, houses, cattle and others due to heavy rainfall in the state. He said that the officers have been asked to complete the special Girdawari by August 15 so as to fully compensate the people for their loss, if any. The Chief Minister said that for the first time in the history of the state a policy has been formulated for providing relief to the farm labours due loss of crops in case of natural calamity. He said that as amount is released to Deputy Commissioners for the relief of crop damage due to natural calamity so as per the policy additional 10 percent of the above relief amount will be provided to them out of the state budget to compensate the farm labourers. Bhagwant Mann said that this policy will be effective from May 1, 2023 and all the farm labourers’ families who have no land (except residential plot) or those who have less than one acre of leased/ rented/ cultivated land will be eligible for it.

IEP Chandigarh, July 31

 Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO on Monday laid the foundation stones for special repair and reconstruction of three important road projects worth Rs 22.56 crore falling in Sahnewal and Payal constituencies of district Ludhiana.The projects including Ludhiana-Chandigarh highway to Gurudwara Degsar Sahib road (2-KM) of Rs 2.37 crore, Bija-Payal-Jagera road (15.70 km) of Rs 13.03 crore and Payal-Issru road (9.60 km) worth Rs 7.16 crore. These works will be completed within next six to nine months.Accompanied by MLAs Hardeep Singh Mundian and Manwinder Singh Giaspura, the Minister said that 2-km stretch from Ludhiana-Chandigarh highway to Gurudwara Degsar Sahib was in bad shape due to which devotees were harried a lot. Similarly, the roads leading to Bija-Payal-Jagera and Payal-Issru were serving as connecting road between NH-44 to Ludhiana-Malerkotla state highway were full of potholes and needed immediate repair. He said that the dilapidated condition of roads had become a nightmare for commuters. He said that the earlier governments had failed to pay heed on the demands of the people to construct these roads.The Minister said that the Punjab government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is committed to making Punjab a progressive state as it is evident from the developmental projects being effectively carried out in every field. He said that the road infrastructure would be developed at par with standards in Punjab.ETO also listed the achievements of the AAP government including 600 free units of electricity, one MLA-one pension, Aam Aadmi Clinics, 30000 government jobs were given to the youths, a war against corruption, and several other pro-people decisions were taken for the state.MLAs Manwinder Singh Giaspura, Hardeep Singh Mundian thanked the Minister for starting the projects. 

IEP Sunam (Sangrur), July 31

 Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday batted for Bharat Ratna award for the legendary martyrs like Shaheed Udham singh, Shaheed Bhagat Singh and Shaheed Kartar Singh Sarabha who had made unparalleled sacrifices for the country. Interacting with the media persons here after paying floral tributes to Shaheed Udham Singh at his memorial on his martyrdom day, the Chief Minister said that bestowing the Bharat Ratna award to these iconic martyrs will enhance the prestige of this award. He said that these great martyrs really deserve this award because they had made supreme sacrifices for emancipating the country from foreign clutches. However, Bhagwant Mann bemoaned that the pseudo nationalist Union government is least bothered about honouring such sons of the soil. Rather, the Chief Minister said that the incumbent Union government is giving a severe blow to the legacy of these martyrs by muzzling the democracy in the country. He said that these nationalists had laid down their lives for the sake of freedom and democracy in the country but unfortunately the Union government is jeopardizing the democratic system through ordinances. Bhagwant Mann said that this is totally in contrast to the country envisioned by the great patriots during the struggle for freedom. The Chief Minister said that the supreme sacrifice made by legendary martyr Shaheed Udham Singh will always inspire the youth for selfless service to the nation adding that the countrymen are enjoying fruits of freedom due to the enormous sacrifices made by such legendary heroes. He said that Shaheed Udham Singh was a true son of soil, who had in a heroic act exhibited exemplary courage by killing Michael O’ Dwyer, the prime perpetrator of Jallianwala Bagh massacre. Bhagwant Mann said that the unprecedented sacrifice made by this iconic martyr at the altar of national freedom struggle helped the country to overthrow the yoke of British Imperialism. The Chief Minister further said that Shaheed Udham Singh waited for 21 years to avenge the massacre at Jallianwala Bagh and thus laid the foundation of the freedom of the nation. Bhagwant Mann said that he bows his head in reverence to such great martyrs and patriots of India’s freedom struggle, who displayed heroism and valour thereby making supreme sacrifices to for attaining freedom for the country. He said that the rich legacy of unprecedented sacrifices made by martyrs would act as a lighthouse to guide the destiny of our future generations. The Chief Minister said that his government will make strenuous efforts to bring back the personal belongings of Shaheed Udham Singh from London. He said that the state government will raise these issues at all the relevant platforms so as to bring back these belongings at the earliest. Bhagwant Mann said that even the things associated with Shaheed Bhagat Singh lying in Pakistan will also be brought back.  The Chief Minister was accompanied by Cabinet Minister Aman Arora and others.