IEP Chandigarh/Sangrur, September 11. 2022

            Punjab Information and Public Relations Minister Aman Arora said that Sohian Bir will be developed as an eco-tourism center by the state government. Mr. Arora disclosed this while talking to reporters after holding a detailed meeting with

Chief Wildlife Warden, Punjab Praveen Kumar, Chief Conservator (Wildlife) Gitanjali, Wildlife Institute Dehradun experts Dr. Habib Bilal and Dr. Samrat and Divisional Forest Officer Ms. Monika Devi Yadav here at Sohian Bir.

The minister said that this Bir has been spread over an area of more than 700 acres, which is bigger than Chhatbir.  He said that in order to make this location full of natural beauty and a center of attraction for people at the national and international level, he will soon take up this matter with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann following which the case will be sent to the union government for approval.

Cabinet Minister Aman Arora said that as an effort to save the endangered species, bringing black buck to Sohian Bir has also been discussed in the meeting. He said that according to the opinion of wildlife and forest experts, such trees will also be planted in the Bir which will become a habitat for animals and will add more beauty to this place.

The Cabinet Minister said that about two and a half months ago, he along with the Minister of Forests and Wildlife Protection Punjab Lal Chand Kataruchak visited this place and since then he has continuously been working with the officials of the Wildlife and Forest Department for the revitalization of this Bir.  He said that a preliminary plan has been prepared to develop Sohian Bir as eco-tourism and the improvement process will start soon.

IEP Chandigarh, September 11, 2022

The Punjab Vigilance Bureau during its ongoing campaign against corruption on Sunday nabbed Jarnail Singh API-cum-Panchayat Secretary of Harayau Khurd, Patiala district red handed while taking a bribe of Rs 6000.

            Disclosing this here today an official spokesperson of the Vigilance Bureau (VB) said Panchayats department official Jarnail Singh was arrested on the complaint of Ajaib Singh of village Harayau Khurd, Block Patran, Patiala.

            He informed that the complainant has approached the VB and alleged that the above said Panchayat Secretary was demanding Rs. 6,000 more to provide some record pertaining to development works executed in his village by the Gram Panchayat under RTI Act. The complainant further alleged that the above mentioned accused has already taken Rs 4,000 to hand over the copies of record under RTI Act.

            After verifying his information, a VB team from Patiala range laid a trap and the accused Panchayat Secretary has been arrested on the spot while accepting a bribe of Rs. 6,000 from the complainant in the presence of two official witnesses.

            He informed that a case under Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered against the accused at VB police station Patiala and further investigation was under progress.

IEP SAS Nagar/Chandigarh, September 11, 2022

The Punjab government led by Bhagwant Maan is working hard to increase the interest of the youth towards sports.  Working in this direction, Sports Minister Punjab Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer inaugurated the Rana Green Field cricket stadium at village Cholta Kalan of Kharar constituency today.  On this occasion, he himself went to this cricket stadium playing field and played cricket and enjoyed the game.  Cabinet Minister Madam Anmol Gagan Mann was specially present with him.  Madam Anmol Gagan Mann announced to pave the dirt road leading to the stadium.Addressing the gathering at the Rana Green Field Cricket Stadium, Sports Minister Meet Hayer said that the Aam Aadmi Party government is committed to the all-round development of the state.  He said that Punjab has given such players to the country whose record has not been broken till date.  He said that cricket is a popular sport.  He said that youth and children show more interest in cricket.  He said that with the opening of the stadium, the youth will get a big benefit.  Along with this village, players from nearby villages can also come and play in the ground. He also congratulated the local people and said that many big players can be born in this stadium.  Apart from this, he said that the Punjab government is taking many other initiatives related to the development of sports.  He said that Punjab will be brought back to number one in the sports competition.On this occasion, Cabinet Minister Madam Anmol Gagan Mann, during her address, assured the people of the constituency that all the promises made by the Aam Aadmi Party government will be fulfilled.  She also encouraged the youth and the elderly to take more interest in sports.  She said that if any player faces any kind of problem, they should bring it to her notice.  She assured to solve all the problems of the players on time.  She said that only with the support of the youth, Punjab can be brought back to number one in terms of sports.  Meanwhile, she also congratulated the residents of the constituency on the opening of the playground.            On this occasion, MLA from Chamkaur Sahib Constituency Dr.  Charanjit Singh,  spokesperson of Aam Aadmi Party Mr. Malvinder Kang, SDM Kharar Mr. Ravinder Singh, DSP Rupinder Kaur Sohi and other administrative officers, Head of Management Committee Jitinder Rana,  Mr. Ram Babu, a fan of Mahendra Singh Dhoni and the villagers were specially present.

IEP CHANDIGARH, SEPTEMBER 11, 2022 

The Punjab Vigilance Bureau during its ongoing campaign against corruption on Saturday has arrested two retired inspectors of Punjab Roadways who had been indulged in changing the departure timing of government buses to private buses in lieu of bribes. Both the accused were on the run in a case registered against them on charges of bribery.

          Disclosing this here today, a spokesperson of Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) said some employees of Punjab Roadways were accused of collecting daily/monthly bribes by changing the running timings of state passenger buses from the bus stand to favour the private buses. In this regard the VB had registered a case FIR No 5 dated 30-04-2021, under section 7, 7-A of Prevention of Corruption Act and section 120-B of IPC at Vigilance Bureau Police Station, Amritsar.

          He informed that among the accused involved in this case, retired inspector of Punjab Roadways Depot Amritsar-2, Raj Kumar Raju, resident of village Fullra, Pathankot district and Tarsem Singh, retired inspector of Punjab Roadways Depot Jalandhar-1, resident of village Chakkhelan, Hoshiarpur district were evading arrest in this case.

          Both the above mentioned accused have been arrested by the Vigilance Bureau. Further interrogation of the said accused is going on.

IEP CHANDIGARH, SEPTEMBER 11, 2022 

          Punjab School Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains today earnestly appealed to the divyang students studying in government schools, to take benefit of Pre-matric, Post-matric and Top class scholarship scheme.

           Mr. Bains said that the Punjab government led by Chief Minister  Mr.Bhagwant Singh Mann has given top priority to education and he wants to no child of the state deprived of quality education.

The School Education Minister said that the registration for these schemes, which are being run with the support of Social Security, Women and Child Development Department, has started from 20 July 2022.  The last date to apply online for Pre Matric Scholarship Scheme is 30th September, 2022 while the last date to apply online for Post Matric and Top Class Scholarship Scheme is 31st October, 2022.

          Harjot Singh Bains has  ordered the heads of all the government schools in the state to create maximum awareness about the pre-matric, post-matric and top class scholarship scheme for the Divyang students so that maximum number of students registered themselves.

IEP CHANDIGARH, SEPTEMBER 11, 2022 

          The Punjab Government led by Bhagwant Mann is committed to provide basic facilities and clean environment for the welfare of the people of the state. Taking a step in this direction, Local Government Minister, Dr. Inderbir Singh Nijjar said that Rs 734.98 lakh will be spent by the state government for the beautification and development of Malerkotla. The department has already started the process for these works.

          Giving more information, Dr. Inderbir Singh Nijjar said that, the services for various works will be hired so that the development, cleaning and maintenance work of Malerkotla can be done more efficiently. Apart from general repair, the work of tiling, interlocking, earth filling of various roads and streets in the city will be done. Likewise, beautification of Satta Chowk to Kelon Gate Malerkotla, Laying CC flooring, repair and maintenance of water supply line in the City, fixing of tree guard are also on the cards.

          Dr. Nijjar has directed the officials of the department to ensure the quality of work and follow the rules meticulously

IEP CHANDIGARH, SEPTEMBER 11, 2022 

          In a bid to ensure quick and timely disposal of applications for regularization of properties situated in unauthorized colonies in the state, Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Mann led Punjab Government has introduced a facility of online submission and processing of applications on the regularization portal for obtaining NoC. The state government has also fixed a deadline of maximum 21 working days to complete the whole process to issue the NoC. 

          Revealing this, Punjab Housing and Urban Development Minister Mr. Aman Arora made it clear that this facility of regularization could be availed only by those allottees/residents whose properties fall under the unauthorized colonies developed before March 19, 2018.

          Mr. Aman Arora said that the person concerned can now log on to www.punjabregularization.in portal dedicated to regularization of plots and buildings situated in unauthorised colonies, which will be processed online. Till now, the applications were processed offline so the applicants had to wait a long for getting issued the NoC.

          Due to ignorance, a considerable number of people had purchased properties in unauthorised colonies which had mushroomed in the past few years. These allottees/residents had invested their hard earned money to purchase plots or other establishments in these colonies, the Minister added.

          To give a reprieve to them the regularization portal has been revamped, said the Cabinet Minister, while adding that new features have been added on the portal to facilitate the allottees/residents of unauthorized colonies interested in applying for regularization of their property. Now, the portal extends a large number of facilities such as online submission of application, online payment, status checking of application and online disposal of the same. This one single portal is designed for regularization of plots and buildings falling within MC and outside MC area for quick disposal of applications, he added.

          To ensure quick and timely disposal of applications, the Housing and Urban Development Minister further stated that the officials involved in the process of dealing the applications would be required to take action in a fixed timeline which will be monitored. The whole process to issue the NoC would be completed maximum within 21 working days from the submission of the application on the portal, he said.

          Notably, Punjab Government had notified a policy on 18.10.2018 to regularize plots falling in unauthorized colonies developed before 19.03.2018. However, plot holders are facing issues for getting their plots regularized under this policy, since applications were processed offline.

IEP CHANDIGARH, SEPTEMBER 11, 2022 

            Social Security, Women and Child Development Minister Dr. Baljit Kaur said that ‘Sakhi’ One Stop Centres are proving boon for women in the state and 10096 needy women and girls have been provided free legal aid, medical aid, police assistance and counseling in the centres so far. These one-stop centres provide various services like medical assistance, legal assistance, police-related assistance, psychological and counseling assistance under one roof to distress women, she added.

Giving more information in this regard, the Minister said that in these centres medical assistance has been provided to 1503 women, counseling to 7986, legal assistance to 5358, temporary shelter facility to 1020 and police assistance to 2988 till now. She said that since April 2022, various types of assistance has been provided in 10096 cases.

            Dr. Baljit Kaur said that the main objective of this scheme is to provide shelter and assistance to women who are in distress. Efforts are also made to settle the cases through counseling, So success rate of centres is very high.Sakhi Centres are running in civil hospitals of districts, she added.

            Minister said that needy women or girls can contact with  Sakhi centres at district offices phone numbers or can contact at helpline number 181 to avail services of the centre.

IEP CHANDIGARH, SEPTEMBER 11, 2022 

In line with the commitment of Punjab government led by Chief Minister Mr Bhagwant Mann to provide quality basic services to people,  Punjab Chief Secretary Mr. Vijay Kumar Janjua today underscored need to expedite work on Punjab Municipal Services Improvement Project (PMSIP) that is revamping water supply schemes in Amritsar and Ludhiana towns.

          Chairing a meeting with a delegation of the World Bank to conclude the second joint implementation support mission for the Punjab Municipal Services Improvement Project (PMSIP), the Chief Secretary said that The PMSIP is a 300 million dollar project jointly funded by The World Bank, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and GoP. He said that this ambitious project aims to improve drinking water supply for the towns of Amritsar and Ludhiana by building new surface water treatment plants and other bulk water supply infrastructure to improve the quantity and quality of water supply in these cities. He further said that the project will also undertake urban e-governance initiatives such as asset management and capital investment planning and help set up 100% ULB owned and dedicated water utilities for the two cities that will be accountable to citizens for improved water supply.

          The Chief Secretary said that five year Project was started in October 2021 and a team of World Bank had visited Amritsar and Ludhiana this week to review the project progress and implementation.He emphasised Punjab Government’s commitment to ensure successful implementation of PMSIP as with this Project, Amritsar and Ludhiana will be able to get clean and reliable water supply for the next three decades.

          During the meeting, the Chief Secretary was apprised on the progress made so far. In Amritsar, the $90 million design build and operate contract for the water treatment plant is underway and will be completed in mid-2024. Similarly, in Ludhiana, the proposal for floating the bid for Ludhiana is in final stage of approval and will be launched soon. The project team agreed on the next steps for GIS mapping, Financial Management, Property Tax administration, GRM and citizen outreach. It was also agreed that the Project will utilize the committed $10 mn to strengthen emergency response and relief centers in all 13 MCs of Punjab by rehabilitation of existing emergency response structures with improved facilities such as testing centers, storage, removable partitions for common hall and equipment.

          The Principal Secretary, Department of Local Government, Principal Secretary, Department of Water Resources and CEO, PMIDC were also present in the meeting.

IEP CHANDIGARH, SEPTEMBER 11, 2022 

          Under the visionary leadership of S.Bhagwant Singh Mann, Chief Minister, Punjab and on the directions of Minister for Investment Promotion Ms Anmol Gagan Mann, Government is committed to increase the Industrial investments in Punjab.

          In this direction an outreach programme was organized jointly by NASSCOM and TiE Chandigarh in association with Invest Punjab through Video Conference. This interaction was held with leaders of IT industry across the country under the chairmanship of Mr Dilip Kumar IAS Principal Secretary IP, l&C and IT

          Mr. Dilip Kumar, IAS, Principal Secretary Investment Promotion, Industries & Commerce, and IT invited the IT industry to establish their business units in Punjab. He said that homogeneous urbanization, liberal & pro-industry policies, clean & healthy environment with high-quality of life, and high connectivity in terms of road, railways, and airways are significant advantages of being in the State. He highlighted the fact that Invest Punjab has been instrumental in attracting major investments in various sectors like IT/ITeS, Steel, Pharmaceuticals, Textiles, Sports Goods, Agro and Food-Processing.

          Positives of Mohali emerging as a preferred IT destination and the support and handholding being provided to IT companies by Invest Punjab were among the issues discussed.

          During an outreach programme, the Invest Punjab team presented the strength of the industrial environment in the State to the leaders of IT industry who had joined through Virtual Conference

          The programme also attended by Shri Uma Shankar IAS ACEO Invest Punjab and the IT sector team of Invest Punjab.