Page 24 - Punjab

'Punjab aims 1 mn hectares under basmati crop in paddy sowing season'

Punjab Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khuddian on Wednesday said the state government aims to bring 10 lakh hectares under the basmati crop in the paddy sowing season. Khuddian, who was chairing a review meeting with the department officials here at his office, said around ten lakh hectares of area will be brought under the aromatic crop in 2024-25 against 5.96 lakh hectares last year. Taking cognizance of the favourable results of the direct seeding of rice (DSR) technique, Khudian also directed the department officials to pull up their socks to bring more area under the DSR. "To encourage maximum farmers to adopt the DSR technique, the Punjab government is providing Rs 1,500 per acre as financial aid to them," he said. He further informed that the department has planned to bring two lakh hectares of paddy (non-basmati) under this technique during the ongoing sowing season, which was 1.70 lakh hectares last year. The agriculture minister also reviewed the progress of ...

Made me minister as Punjab's progress is NDA govt's priority: Ravneet Bittu

BJP leader Ravneet Singh Bittu on Sunday said Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi has picked him to induct him into his council of ministers despite his defeat from Ludhiana in the Lok Sabha polls as Punjab's progress is the priority of the BJP-led NDA government. Bittu, a three-term former Congress MP from Punjab, had joined the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. He contested on the BJP ticket seeking his re-election from the Ludhiana Lok Sabha seat but lost to Congress' Amrinder Singh Raja Warring. Speaking to PTI, the BJP leader said that he had quit the Congress because he wanted Punjab to get representation in the Union government. I didn't want to sit in the opposition benches for the fourth time, Bittu said. The BJP fulfilled my dream and said Punjab is on the priority whether we win (in election) or not, and gave me a ministerial berth even though I was not elected. Its because Punjab is on the NDA government's priority, he told PTI. Bittu said the BJP wants to see Punja

NIA searches multiple sites in Punjab linked to aides of Goldy Brar

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday conducted searches at various locations linked to the associates of Canada-based terrorist Goldy Brar in Punjab as part of its probe in an "extortion and firing case". The anti-terror agency also sought people's help for information about Satinderjit Singh alias Goldy Brar and his gang, according to an official statement. A total of nine locations associated with Brar and his aides were searched by the NIA teams in connection with an extortion and firing case registered in Chandigarh, it said. The searches come a day after the NIA filed a charge sheet against Brar and 11 others for their alleged involvement in the killing of Karni Sena chief Sukhdev Singh Gogamedi last year in Jaipur. The NIA has also released telephone numbers, where people can share information about the terrorist and his associates or details of any threat calls they might have received from the gang. The information can be shared on landline number 0172-26829

LS elections: AAP bags three seats in Punjab, improves on 2019 performance

The ruling Aam Aadmi Party in Punjab could manage to victory in just three Lok Sabha seats in Punjab, falling way short of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann's stated target of winning all 13 parliamentary constituencies of the state. On the other hand, the Congress has bagged six seats and is leading on one while the Shiromani Akali Dal won just one seat. The Arvind Kejriwal-led party had no truck with its INDIA bloc ally the Congress for the high-stakes poll battle in the state. They fought the electoral battle separately, giving enough fodder to the rival parties to target them for "doing a drama" by contesting on their own. However, the AAP could manage victory in Sangrur, Anandpur Sahib and Hoshiarpur parliamentary constituencies while in six seats its candidates remained at the second spot. It has, however, improved on its 2019 poll performance in the state when it could manage to bag just one seat. The AAP's Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer won from Sangrur, Malwinder Singh Kang from ...

Lok Sabha polls 2024: Congress leads in 7 seats in Punjab, AAP in 3

The Congress was leading in six Lok Sabha seats, while the AAP in four constituencies in Punjab, according to initial trends. The Congress was leading from Amritsar, Jalandhar, Fatehgarh Sahib, Ferozepur, Gurdaspur and Patiala seats and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was leading from Hoshiarpur, Anandpur Sahib, Sangrur and Bathinda seats, the trends showed. Radical Sikh preacher Amritpal Singh, who was contesting as an independent, was leading from Khadoor Sahib seat, while Sarabjeet Singh Khalsa, the son of one of the two assassins of late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, was leading from Faridkot seat. Shiromani Akali Dal candidate Harsimrat Kaur Badal was trailing from the Bathinda Lok Sabha seat against her nearest rival and AAP nominee Gurmeet Singh Khuddian in initial trends, according to the Election Commission. A three-time MP, Harsimrat was trailing by 490 votes, the EC website showed. Counting of votes for the 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab and the lone Chandigarh seat began at 8

Lok Sabha elections 2024: Why are all eyes on Punjab's Khadoor Sahib seat

Jailed independent candidate Amritpal Singh is emerging as a front-runner from Punjab's Khadoor Sahib seat in the ongoing 2024 Lok Sabha elections

Exit polls: Will farmers' anger reflect in results in Haryana, and Punjab?

These two states were at the centre of the farmers' agitation in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's second term

LS polls highlights: 'Opportunistic INDI Alliance' failed to strike a chord with voters, says PM

Lok Sabha polls LIVE: The voting started at 7 AM and will continue until 6 PM. The results for the elections will be declared on June 4

Voters of Punjab's Kalu Wala village ferried to polling station in boats

A BSF unit was deployed to safely and conveniently ferry the voters of Kalu Wala village in Punjab's Ferozepur district, which is surrounded by Sutlej river on three sides and India-Pakistan border on the other, to their polling station on Saturday. "Surrounded by the river Sutlej on three sides Int. (international) border on fourth, booth at the village Kalu Wala in Ferozepur distt. (district) is very unique. A unit of BSF was deployed to safely & conveniently ferry voters of Kalu Wala village to their polling station," said a post on X by Chief Electoral Officer, Punjab. The voters were brought in boats to the polling booth to cast their votes. Polling for all 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab was held on Saturday.

Lok Sabha elections Phase 7: 49.68% voter turnout recorded till 3 pm

Lok Sabha polls 2024 Phase 7 voter turnout: At more than 60 per cent, Jharkhand recorded the highest voter turnout at 3 pm, Bihar had the lowest at 42.95 per cent

Lok Sabha polls: India votes in final phase of massive, 6-week elections

"Calling upon the voters to turnout in large numbers and vote," Modi said as polls opened in the northern state of Punjab and the eastern states of Bihar, West Bengal and Odisha

Lok Sabha polls 2024 Phase 7: Over 40% voter turnout recorded till 1 pm

Lok Sabha polls 2024 Phase 7 voter turnout: Himachal Pradesh had the highest voter turnout at 48.63

Will send bulldozers from Uttar Pradesh to crush Punjab mafias: Adityanath

Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath said Punjab has turned into a "den of land, drug and sand mafia", and he would send bulldozers to crush these mafia groups if BJP comes to power in Punjab

Lok Sabha polls: Farmers may decide strike rate in Punjab powerplay

BJP candidates across the state facing repercussions of the two farmers' protests

Sidhu Moosewala 2nd death anniversary: Family holds event to pay tribute

Moosa village honoured the late Punjabi singer on the eve of his death anniversary, also called 'Sidhu Moosewala black day'. His father organised a program today, May 29, to pay tributes to him

Incorrect to say Centre not giving funds to Punjab, says FM Sitharaman

It is incorrect to say that the Centre is not giving funds to the Punjab government, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Tuesday here, responding to the AAP government's allegation that the Union is shortchanging the state. "The reality is that the Punjab Government is not using money rightfully," she said. Sitharaman was in Ludhiana Tuesday evening to interact with the MSMEs and industrialists. During the interaction, she slammed the AAP government in Punjab and said that it is misleading the people of the state. Her remarks came in response to the Punjab AAP government's claim that the Centre withheld Rs 9,000 crore from the state's share. On another matter, the Finance minister said any changes in the income tax would be incorporated after the formation of the new government. She said she is confident that the industry will invest in Punjab again. She said that according to a study conducted by the MSME promotion council in January 2024, Punjab has witnessed 85

LS polls: Trade via Attari-Wagah border now a poll plank in Amritsar

Several candidates, including the BJP's, promising resumption of trade on the route

IMD issues 'red alert' for North India, 'yellow' alert for Ladakh, Himachal

The meteorological department warns Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Western Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan are expected to experience 'heatwave to severe heatwave' conditions until May 28

From pink bus to HC expansion: What Chandigarh BJP manifesto promises

The 20-page manifesto by BJP candidate Sanjay Tandon focuses on issues such as women, artists, patients visiting Chandigarh, and the role of the Member of Parliament (MP) in dealing with bureaucrats

On Chandigarh industry's Lok Sabha polls wish list: An NCR-like tag

As the Chandigarh Lok Sabha constituency braces for a fierce contest between Tewari and the Bharatiya Janata Party's Sanjay Tandon, the questions around the city's growth are moot