29052023-JTR-01.qxd 5/28/2023 11:35 PM Page 1 c m y b Jalandhar tribune SUPPORT INDUSTRY TO HELP CREATE JOBS, PUSH GROWTH HALLE BAILEY EXCITED ABOUT MEETING HER BOYFRIEND The Little Mermaid fame Halle Bailey is showing her boyfriend some love post the release of new film. P3 MOSTLY CLOUDY MAX 33°C | MIN 23°C YESTERDAY MAX 35°C | MIN 22°C ROHIT SUCHANTI WANTS TO WORK WITH KIARA ADVANI Work out mechanism wherein all sections pay reasonable charges for consuming power: Residents P2 FORECAST Rohit Suchanti is a big fan of Kiara Advani, and he hopes to romance her on the big screen one day. P4 » » SUNSET MONDAY 7:17 PM SUNRISE TUESDAY 5:23 AM » MONDAY | 29 MAY 2023 | JALANDHAR ChokedofBist Doabraises fears ofhason fields during paddy cultivation Canal effects farmers worried Accumulation garbage & debris Avneet Kaur Tribune News Service Jalandhar, May 28 Farmers in the Doaba region are becoming increasingly worried about the deteriorating condition of the Bist Doab Canal, which stretches from Ropar to the Sutlej. The canal has been a vital lifeline for agricultural activities in the area, playing a significant role in the region’s Green Revolution. However, their concerns have intensified this year due to the negligence of the authorities concerned in cleaning the canal, resulting in visible garbage and debris accumulation. As the paddy season draws near, farmers fear the detrimental effects of the canal’s uncleanness on their fields. The impending threat of debris and waste getting lodged in the channels poses a serious risk to proper irrigation. The paved structure of the canal, designed to facilitate efficient water distribution, would be compromised if the garbage is not promptly removed on time. Gurkripal Singh, who cultivates paddy on 10 fields near the canal, relies exclusively on canal water for irrigation. He expressed his disappointment over the delay in the cleaning process, as the canal department typically initiates cleaning operations in INBRIEF WOMAN SOLD IN DUBAI, 4 BOOKED Hoshiarpur: The police have registered a case against three members of a family and a travel agent for allegedly sending a woman abroad and selling her. As per the complaint, Usha Rani, her mother Geeta Rani and brother Ballu, and a travel agent sent the woman to Dubai on the pretext of providing her employment there. The complainant alleged that the accused did not get her any work there as promised and sold her to Neeza, a resident of Muscat. From there she had barely been able to return. After registering the case, the police have started further action. OC 7 BOOKED FOR SIM CARD FRAUD Hoshiarpur: The district police have registered two separate cases and booked seven persons who had obtained and used the mobile SIM card by preparing forged documents. BSNL officer Indrajit Singh has lodged a complaint with the city police that the accused obtained the SIM cards by giving forged documents. The nodal officer of Airtel has also lodged a similar complaint with the police station against Suman Telecom, Hariana. The police have started further action after registering a case against the alleged accused in both the cases. OC MAN HELD WITH 21-GM HEROIN Phagwara: The Phillaur Police arrested a drug peddler last night and seized 21 gm of heroin from his possession. Phillaur DSP Jagdish Raj said the arrested suspect has been identified as Gurpreet, a resident of Chahal Kalan village. He was nabbed at a check-point. A case has been registered under the NDPS Act in this regard. OC Bist Doab Canal, which provides crucial water support to several villages, lies in a state of neglect in Jalandhar district. SARABJIT SINGH APPROACHED MC FOR CLEANING PURPOSE ❝ We have approached the MCs in city areas where the canal is mostly covered with garbage. We have requested the assistance of tractor-trolleys and JCBs to remove debris from the canal. Davinder Singh, XEN, IRRIGATION ❞ May. “However, this time, the cleaning is yet to commence, causing great distress among we farmers who rely on the canal’s water supply”, he added. Hardot Singh, another farmer, echoed similar concerns and highlighted the collective frustration of the local farming community. “The impact of the uncleaned canal extends beyond the primary NO INFORMATION FROM IRRIGATION DEPT YET ❝ No one from the Irrigation Department has approached the MC yet regarding the cleaning of the canal. Nor do I know when the cleaning of the canal will start in the city. Lakhwinder Singh, SENIOR POSTMAN ❞ canal itself, as it also affects several branch canals that provide crucial water support to villages such as Kalra, Daroli, Padhiana, Goraya, Muthada, and Malsian in Jalandhar district. The farmers in these areas rely on the canal’s water to cultivate various crops,” he added. He added that the pollution of the canal is not solely attrib- uted to garbage accumulation but also to the unfortunate practice of disposing of religious items into its waters. “This further exacerbates the degradation of water quality, compounding the challenges faced by farmers,” Hardot said. Meanwhile, Davinder Singh, XEN, Irrigation, informed that the cleaning operation was initiated a month ago and is currently progressing at a steady pace. He mentioned that the cleaning work commenced from Ropar and will eventually extend to the city areas. Singh also mentioned that they have approached the Municipal Corporations, regarding the cleaning process, particularly in city areas where the canal is mostly covered with garbage. They have requested the assistance of tractor-trolleys and even JCBs to effectively remove the debris.He assured the farmers that there is no need to worry, as an ample water supply will be released. However, when contacted, Abhijeet Kaplish, the MC Commissioner Jalandhar, stated that no one from the Irrigation Department has approached the MC yet regarding the cleaning of the canal, and nor does he know when the cleaning of the canal will start in the city. Will revise doctors’ pay scale: Health Minister 17-yr-old drowns in canal while bathing Tribune News Service Talwara, May 28 A 17-year-old boy drowned while taking a bath in the Kandi canal. The deceased, Mohit Bhatia, was a resident of Raja Kalan, Garhdiwala, and a student of Class XII. He, along with fellow students, had gone on their motorcycles to pay obeisance at Gagan Ji Ka Tila located in Sahoda Kandi village. Coming back from the temple, all of them started bathing in the Kandi Kanal canal located near Wadala village. While bathing, Mohit’s foot slipped in the canal and he drowned in the strong current. Mohit was pulled out of the canal with the help of passersby. After which all the friends took him to the nearby Primary Health Centre at Mand Pandher, where doctors declared him brought dead. Investigating Officer AS I Balwant Singh said that legal action was initiated on the statement of Amrik Singh, the father of the deceased. Nawanshahr, May 28 Punjab Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Balbir Singh said the Punjab Government would soon restructure the ‘pay scale’ of doctors to strengthen the government health services. He said as many as 550 new doctors would join by next month, whose salary had been increased from Rs 30,000 to Rs 70,000. Earlier, the salary of doctors in Punjab had decreased from Rs 1.41 lakh to Rs 1.18 lakh, forcing doctors to leave their jobs. This was stated by the Health Minister after inaugurating the Pulse Polio Drive here in Nawanshahr Civil Hospital on Sunday. He said Punjab was in a dire need of doctors and the government was committed to making up the shortage of medical specialists, radio diagnostics, gynaecologists and other specialists at its own level. Singh said in the near 550 NEW JOINEES BY NEXT MONTH ❝ As many as 550 new doctors will join by next month, whose salary had been increased from ~30,000 to ~70,000. Earlier, the salary of doctors in Punjab had been decreased from ~1.41 lakh to ~1.18 lakh, forcing them to leave their jobs. ❞ Dr Balbir Singh, HEALTH MINISTER << Health Minister Dr Balbir Singh during a pulse polio campaign in Nawanshahr. future, the emergency medical services of the government hospitals would be equipped with all required tests, medical experts and medicines to make it more responsive. He claimed that the 580 Aam Aadmi Clinics opened in the state had provided a major relief to the common people in the healthcare field, due to which the rush of OPD patients in the government hospitals had reduced. He directed the Director Health and Family Welfare to provide special training to Com- munity Health Officers and ASHA workers to sensitise the common people about diseases like diabetes and BP by giving yoga tips, importance of walk and other activities, especially the pregnant women falling in the high-risk zone. Imperative for Punjabto save its rivers: Speaker Lok Sabha MP Sushil Rinu and Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan with Rajya Sabha MP Balbir Singh Seechewal in Jalandhar. Tribune News Service Jalandhar, May 28 Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan today stressed, “To save the state of Punjab, it is imperative to save the rivers and underground water in the state.” The Speaker made the remarks during a visit to Nirmal Kutiya at Seechewal village in Sultanpur Lodhi, on the occasion of the 35th death anniversary of Sant Avtar Singh. In his address to a gathering at MP and environmentalist Balbir Singh Seechewal’s work centre, Sandhwan lauded the Seechewal’s efforts to save the environment. Dwelling on concerns about the depleting groundwater, Sandhwan referred to a report by the Central Ground Water Board. “By 2039, Punjab water would go 1,000 feet deep under the earth. Punjab cannot even be imagined without water,” he Referring to the Buddha Nullah in Ludhiana, he noted, “There was a time when a stream of the Sutlej would flow there.” Due to neglect on part of the government, the stream is gone, he rued. Sandhwan shared that under Seechewal’s leadership, the Punjab Government would start a campaign to clean the polluted rivers of Punjab by converting the Buddha Nullah into a river. Seechewal expressed gratitude to those who attended the programme. He said, “Avtar Singh did revolutionary work by spreading the message of Gurbani in the region.” Sushil Rinku, an MP from the Jalandhar Lok Sabha constituency, also offered flowers to Avtar Singh. Shahkot Assembly Constituency MLA Hardev Singh Ladi, AAP’s Constituency incharge Ratan Singh Kakkar Kalan were among those present on the occasion. K’thala surpasses wheat Son of security guard gets paid internship in Amazon purchase target by 20% WANT TO HELP FAMILY Aakanksha N Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Ashok Kaura Phagwara, May 28 Kapurthala district has made a record procurement of wheat during the current season, which is 20 per cent more than the set target. The wheat procurement last year was recorded 3,15,372 MT. This year on May 25, it touched a new height with 3,78,600 MT, which was 63,000 MT more than last year. Deputy Commissioner Captain Karnail Singh hailed the role played by farmers for bumper production of wheat. Wheat procured by the government agencies during the current season was 20.05% more than the target, with Pungrain leading with 99,770 Jalandhar, MAY28 City-based 20-year-old Lovepreet Kumar, son of a security guard who never even moved out of his own hometown in his life, is now in Hyderabad as he has got selected as a software developer engineer intern in Amazon. It is a paid internship and he will be earning a handsome amount. “I came here by flight. Never in my life had I thought that I would sit in an aeroplane. It all feels surreal,” Kumar said. He has achieved all of this on his own, without taking any coaching, tuition so that he could save his father’s hard-earned money. He had not even taken any external help when he appeared for JEE exams. ~766.24 CRORE HAS BEEN PAID TO DISTRICT FARMERS MT, followed by Punjab State Warehouse Corporation (88,734 MT), Punsup (87,792 MT) and Markfed (82,599 MT). FCI has procured 1,794 MT and private buyers bought 17,910 MT. Wheat arrived in all 42 mandis across the district has been purchased at the minimum support price fixed by the government and payment has also been made to the farmers in the given time frame of 48 hours after the purchase by agencies. Rs 766.24 crore rupees has been paid to the farmers this time. c m y b ❝ I want to help my family by becoming an engineer; and will take them out of prevailing financial conditions, too. Lovepreet Kumar ❞ Belonging to a humble family, Lovepreet is pursuing engineering in computer science and had completed his 12th from Government Senior Secondary School (Boys), Bhargo Nagar. Kusum, a teacher who taught him at school, said it was a proud moment for her and the school. “I have seen his family struggle and how Lovepreet without taking any tuition or external help has made it here,” Kusum shared. The teacher shared that he would study all night sitting right next to his bed-ridden grandfather, whom he loved immensely. “It is just the beginning, if I continue to perform well, I will get placed there too. I want to help my family by becoming an engineer; and will take them out of prevailing financial conditions, too. Recently, I also got a laptop given to me by Amazon,” Lovepreet shared. “It is an altogether new and different life here in Hyderabad. I am doing everything on my own. My parents were a little wary of sending me, but to achieve big things, we have to make big decisions. So, I am ready to face every challenge and come out a better and transformed individual,” he signed off.