IEP Chandigarh, August 28

Haryana Chief Minister, Sh. Manohar Lal today raised concerns over Congress’s silence on Nuh Violence, even though the involvement of one of its MLAs has been questioned by the Police.

        “Surprisingly, Congress is neither condemning their MLAs whose names have been dragged in this issue, nor they are giving any clarification, ” said Sh. Manohar Lal while addressing a press conference after the Vidhan Sabha session here today.

        The Chief Minister said that not only has one of the Congress MLAs been issued a notice by the police, but fingers are also being pointed at some other MLAs from the party in connection with the Nuh violence incident.

        “Despite these grave allegations, the Congress party has maintained a silence that is raising eyebrows. The absence of a response from them certainly proves that ‘Daal mai kuch kala hai'( something is suspicious),” said Sh. Manohar Lal.

He said that more than 300 people have been arrested in the  Nuh violence and more than 160 FIRs have been registered and some people are being questioned, who are likely to have any connection to this violence.

        Expressing gratitude to the citizens and other social organisations of Nuh for the peaceful conduct of the Shobha Yatra, Sh. Manohar Lal said the government had appealed to the district residents to  maintain peace during the Shobha yatra.

        “I am thankful to Nuh citizens and the social organisation for giving complete cooperation for the peaceful organisation of this Yatra,” said Sh. Manohar Lal.

        He said that the government had appealed to the people that the Jalabhishek should be done in the temples only. 

        “We are grateful to the workers of Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the people of other social institutions and the Saint, Mahatmas, who peacefully completed the Jalabhishek in the temples, ” said Sh. Manohar Lal.

        Responding to the question regarding a demand raised by the Opposition about allowing the judicial inquiry to be initiated under the sitting judge of Punjab and Haryana High Court to investigate the allegations raised against Minister of State Sandeep Singh, the Chief Minister said that the matter is still pending in the court.

However, in any case, an inquiry Commission is constituted once the investigation by the concerned investigating agency is completed. 

        “The investigation in this matter is currently being done by the Haryana Police,  we have full faith in the police,” said Sh. Manohar Lal.

        He said that the bill of Sonipat Metropolitan Development Authority was also introduced in the House today, which will be passed after discussion tomorrow.  Apart from this, it has also been announced to form the Hisar Metropolitan Development Authority in Hisar.

IEP Chandigarh, August 28

In a significant decision, Haryana Chief Minister Mr. Manohar Lal announced that the State Government will be implementing a 20% reservation policy for Group A and B posts to Scheduled Caste category. This decision aims to enhance opportunities of promotions for all reserved categories in higher-level government positions.

Previously, reservation was limited to Group C and D, leaving Group A and B positions without any reservation provisions.

To ensure the effective implementation of this reservation system, he said that the state government is actively working on creating a roster system. The notification in this regard will be released within a week, reflecting the commitment of the government to ensure fair representation.

Furthermore, the Chief Minister emphasized that the new reservation system will extend reservation to all stages of promotions, ensuring continued support and representation for reserved communities in government jobs at all levels.

The State Government’s decision to introduce reservation in Group A and B posts reflects its dedication to fostering a more equitable and diverse administrative framework. This move will provide a positive impact on the representation of various communities within the government workforce.

crops (subject to a ceiling of 2 Ha per farmer) is as below.

He apprised the house that extent of damage of crops from 25% to 50%, a compensation of Rs. 7000/- per acre will be given to the affected farmers, from 50% to 75% damage, a compensation of Rs. 9,000/- will be given and for 75% & above damages Rs. 12,500/- compensation will be ensured. He also informed that the minimum assistance of not less than Rs. 1000/- per farmers in rainfed areas and Rs. 2,000 per farmer in assured irrigated areas and restricted to sown areas. He further informed that no minimum assistance will be provided to the farmers having more than 2 ha of landholding. Further, the area getting crop compensation under insurance scheme shall not be eligible for compensation under the SDRF.

IEP Chandigarh, August 27

          Taking a leap forward towards revamping of education sector, the Punjab Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains on Sunday flagged off the second batch of the Headmasters for expert training at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad.

          Speaking on this occasion after flagging off the batch of headmasters, the Education Minister said that this is the second batch is going to Ahmedabad for upscaling of their expertise. He 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 Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains 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. He 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.

          Kamal Kishore Yadav, Education Secretary Punjab  , Mrs. Gauri Parashar Joshi Special Secretary School Education , Mr. Churchill Kumar Special Secretary School Education , Mr. Sanjeev Sharma Director Education Department (Secondary), Punjab  and Mr. Amanpreet Singh  Director SCERT Punjab  were also present on the occasion.

IEP Chandigarh, August 27

The second batch of 50 headmasters today left for the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmadabad, as part of the Punjab government’s initiative to bring about an education revolution in the state. On this occasion, the teachers going on training session express their gratitude to Punjab government.

          Speaking on the occasion, Mrs. Poonam Puri, Head Teacher, Government High School, Tajpur Bhagwanpur, District Jalandhar said, “I am elated that the Punjab Government led by S. Bhagwant Singh Mann is giving this opportunity to the teachers to attend training at world famous Education Center.” She said, with this training, her professional skills will be further nurtured, which will benefit for the students. She said that this is a very good initiative of the government which reflects the positive thinking of the government towards education. Which will yield positive results in the future.

          Similarly, Puneet Garg, head teacher of Government High School Chauhan Ke Khurd in Barnala district, thanked the Punjab government and said that I have been given the opportunity to become the number one institution in the country, IIM. While training from Ahmedabad will give a new direction to the management of the school, I will be able to understand and deal with all kinds of problems of the students.

          She said that through this training, I will also be able to work towards improving the educational environment in the school.

          Prabhjot Kaur, head teacher of Government High School Basti Bawa Khel in Jalandhar district, said that this training will teach us to make better use of human resources. She said that through this training, she will be able to understand students and teachers better. She said that the better the training of the head of the school, the more the staff and students will benefit.

          Ramesh Singh, head teacher of Government High School Ghanola in Rupnagar district, said that learning new skills is essential. Updation done keeping in mind the future proves to be even more beneficial. He said this training will yield very meaningful results.

          Gurpal Singh, head teacher of Government High School Chak Bakhtu in Bathinda district, said, “If we do not update us with time, we will not be able to teach the children about the importance of time.” What we will learn through this training, we will teach the children, which is expected to yield good results in the future.

          Sometimes we are unable to solve some problems but this training will enable us to solve those problems.

          Gurpreet Kaur, Head Teacher, Government High School, Cheema Kalan, Patti, Tarn Taran district, said, “I am very thankful to the Punjab government for giving me the opportunity to get education in the world’s best educational institution at their  own expense. She said that this training will make them aware of the latest education techniques of the world.

IEP Chandigarh, August 24

Exuberating with results of the Pilot Project of Surface Seeder, the Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Thursday gave his consent to subsidize Surface Seeders developed by Punjab Agriculture University, Ludhiana under Crop Residue Management (CRM) Scheme for better management of crop residue across the state.

Announcing to provide 50% subsidy on this newly developed technique, the Chief Minister said that in view of the results of the pilot project implemented at Satauj (Sangrur), the Surface Seeders proved its worth to manage the crop residue and the state government has decided to include Surface Seeder under CRM Scheme to subsidize the equipment, Bhagwant Singh Mann said that a machine costs Rs. 80,000 and after 50% subsidy it will cost Rs. 40,000 to the farmers.

Lauding the efforts of the Agriculture Department and PAU about the Crop Residue Management in a meeting with agriculture officials, the Chief Minister said that Punjab Agriculture University recommended the Surface Seeders to be included under CRM scheme. He informed that the process for empanelment of manufacturers for supplying the machinery under the scheme is being done by PAU, Ludhiana. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that the individual farmers/Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies/ Registered Farmers Groups/Farmer Producer Organizations/Panchayats can apply for purchasing various CRM machines and also for establishing Custom Hiring Centre (CHC).

The Chief Minister further said that under the scheme the equipment such as Super SMS, Super Seeder, Smart Seeder, Happy Seeder, Zero Till Drill, Paddy Straw Chopper/Shredder/Mulcher, Hydraulic Reversible Mould Board Plough, Shrub Master/Rotary Slasher, Crop Reaper, Balerand Rakeare available on subsidy @ 50% of the cost of the equipment/machine or a maximum amount approved by Union Government in the guidelines. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that the CHC can be established with an investment of Rs.15 lakhs and any of the above machines can be purchased by the CHCs @ 80% subsidy.

The Chief Minister further informed that a total of 65421 applications for 152300 various CRM equipments have been received so far and no stone would be left unturned to save the environment with complete control on crop residue burning. He said that the state government has been strengthening and establishing collection infrastructure, bailing, transportation and handling of large amount of crop residue and creation of storage facilities. He said that the state government has started to utilize the paddy straw in different industries such as biomass power generation units, Biomass co-firing in Thermal Power Plants, Bio-CNG and Bio-Ethanol etc. Bhagwant Singh Mann also announced to organize next edition of Kisan Melas throughout the state soon.

IEP Chandigarh, August 23

          Today, Dr. Baljit Kaur, the Minister of Social Security, Women, and Child Development, unveiled a short film and a poster aimed at raising awareness about the Senior Citizens Act of 2007. The objective behind this initiative is to inform the senior citizens of the state about their rights.

          During the event, the Cabinet Minister highlighted that the government has implemented the Parenting and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act of 2007 to honor and safeguard the rights of the elderly. This legislation includes provisions for obtaining a maintenance allowance for parents and senior citizens who are neglected by their children or blood relatives.

          The Cabinet Minister further explained that the act has established maintenance and appellant tribunals to address the concerns of senior citizens. Any senior citizen facing problems can file a complaint with the sub-divisional officer of the relevant sub-division.

          Moreover, the Cabinet Minister mentioned that the District Social Security Officer has been designated as the Parenting Officer under this act. This role involves ensuring that the basic needs of elderly citizens, such as food, clothing, shelter, and healthcare, are met adequately.

          The event was attended by Ms. Madhvi Kataria, Director of the Social Security, Women, and Child Development Department, Mr. Gaurav Toora, AIG (Personnel-2), and Mr. Charanjit Singh, Additional Director of the Social Security, Women, and Child Development Department.

IEP Chandigarh

Punjab Transport Minister S. Laljit Singh Bhullar, on Wednesday, informed that the Minister’s Flying Squad, formed to combat corrupt practices within the department, has nailed a driver pilfering 20 liters of diesel from government bus, a conductor for embezzling ticket money and not issuing tickets to passengers, while five buses were reported for operating on unscheduled routes and one bus plying sans passengers.

          Further elaborating, S. Laljit Singh Bhullar revealed that the Flying Squad conducted a raid in Jiwan Nagar (Haryana) and caught the driver, Ranjit Singh, red-handed in the act of pilfering 20 liters of diesel from his alloted Bus No. PB-10FF 4952 of PUNBUS Depot Ludhiana.

          During the checking in Dhar Kalan (Pathankot), the Flying Squad caught a conductor Amandeep of Bus No. PB-06AS 8772 of Pathankot Depot for not issuing tickets to passengers despite collecting Rs.545 from them.

          The Flying Squad also reported five buses operating on unscheduled routes. In a check in Goraya, Bus No. PB-02-EG 4673 of Tarn Taran Depot and Bus No. PB-02-EG 3064 of Amritsar-2 Depot were found operating on unscheduled routes. Similarly, during an inspection in Phagwara, Bus No.PB-02-EH 2749 of Amritsar-1 Depot and Bus No. PB-32P 3598 of Nawanshahar Depot were found plying on unscheduled routes, while Bus No. PB-02-EG 9427 of Patti Depot was also found operating on different route than the scheduled one during the checking at Kartarpur. Apart from this, Bus No. PB-06BC 0216 from Batala Depot was found operating without passengers.

          The Transport Minister has instructed the department officials to take appropriate disciplinary action against the employees involved.

IEP Chandigarh, August 23

          Cricket legend and Bharat Ratna awardee Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar today began a new innings – as the ‘National Icon’ for voter awareness and education for the Election Commission of India. An MoU was signed with the legend for a period of 3 years at an event organized at Akashvani Rang Bhavan, New Delhi in the presence of Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and Election Commissioners Anup Chandra Pandey and  Arun Goel. This collaboration marks a significant step towards leveraging Tendulkar’s unparalleled impact with the youth demographic for increasing voters’ participation in the forthcoming elections, especially in General Elections 2024.

          ECI through this partnership aims to bridge the gap between citizens, especially youth and urban populations and the electoral process thereby, trying to address the challenges of urban and youth apathy.

          Sachin Tendulkar, in his role as the National Icon for the Election Commission of India, expressed his enthusiasm and commitment to the cause, and said that for a vibrant democracy like India, the youth play a key role in nation building. The hearts that beat for Team India during sports matches, with the unified cheer – ‘India, India!’, shall also beat the same way to take our precious democracy forward. One simple yet most powerful way to do that is to cast our votes regularly.

          Speaking on the occasion he said that from thronging stadiums to thronging polling booths, from taking time out to stand by the National team to taking time out to cast our votes, we shall keep up the spirit and enthusiasm. When youth from the nooks and corners of the country participate in large numbers in electoral democracy, we shall see a prosperous future for our country.

          Speaking on the occasion, CEC Rajiv Kumar said that Sachin Tendulkar, an icon revered not only in India but globally, has a legacy that extends far beyond his cricketing prowess.

          Rajiv Kumar said his illustrious career is a testament to his commitment to excellence, teamwork, and the relentless pursuit of success. His influence transcends sports, making him an ideal choice to bat for ECI and drive up voter turn-outs, the CEC added.

          The collaboration will encompass a range of activities, including Tendulkar’s promoting voter awareness in various TV talk shows/ programs and digital campaigns etc, all aimed at raising awareness about the importance of voting and the role it plays in shaping the nation’s destiny.

          During the event, students from National School of Drama also presented an impactful skit on the importance of voting in strengthening of democracy.

          ECI associates itself with renowned Indians from various fields and designates them as ECI’s national icons to motivate voters for participation in the festival of democracy.

           Last year, the Commission recognised famous actor Pankaj Tripathi as the National Icon. Earlier, during the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections, stalwarts like M.S.Dhoni, Aamir Khan and Mary Kom had been the ECI National Icons.

IEP Chandigarh, August 23

Punjab Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains today announced holidays in all government/affiliated/private/recognized schools in the state due to heavy downpour up till August 26.

          He said that complying to the directives of Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Singh Mann, holidays have been declared in all the government/private/recognized schools due to heavy rainfall in various parts of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh.