Page 42 - Punjab

Punjab to launch drive to preserve flora & fauna around water bodies: CM

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday announced launching a drive to preserve the flora and fauna along with recharging the water table to save water for the coming generations.

Punjab scaling new heights of development under AAP govt: Kejriwal

Punjab was scaling new "heights of development" under the Bhagwant Mann government, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal said on Sunday as he sought votes for his party's candidate for the May 10 Jalandhar Lok Sabha bypoll. Addressing a roadshow along with Chief Minister Mann on the second day of his visit to Punjab, Kejriwal also referred to the 300 units of free electricity being provided to people in the state. The Jalandhar Lok Sabha bypoll was necessitated by the death of sitting Congress MP Santokh Singh Chaudhary in January. AAP has fielded former MLA Sushil Rinku for the contest. Campaigning in Shahkot, Kejriwal told people that they have voted for the Congress for 60 years and asked them to give AAP a chance now, saying if they do not like his party's work, then "do not vote for us in the 2024 general elections". Praising the AAP dispensation for the work done in Punjab in the last year, Kejriwal claimed several people have told him that they have not seen such a governme

Several injured in blast at restaurant near Golden Temple in Punjab

Several people were injured in a blast at a restaurant in the Heritage Street near the Golden Temple in Punjab's holy city of Amritsar. Police, however, said it was not error attack, but an accident

With Punjab's debt at Rs 3.12 trn, CM's OPS promise faces uphill challenge

The government says the OPS scheme is expected to benefit more than 4,100 employees in the next five years alone

No development in Jalandhar, AAP has given 'model of destruction': Anurag

"What 'good governance' has the ruling AAP given to the state in more than a year? It has failed miserably in giving workable governance also," he said

Punjab has emerged as most preferred industrial destination: Bhagwant Mann

Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday claimed that the state has emerged as the most preferred industrial destination in the country and is witnessing comprehensive development in every sphere. Addressing a gathering after dedicating a plant of steel coating products here, the chief minister said the plant has been set up at a cost of Rs 247 crore and it will provide employment to 600 youth. This is a zero liquid discharge plant which will neither pollute water nor air, said an official release quoting Mann. Due to the industry-friendly policy of the state government, Punjab has emerged as the most favourable investment destination across the country, said Mann. The CM said a strong association between the state government and industrialists has made Punjab an industrial hub in the country. His government's vision and ambition is to keep pace with changing expectations and new challenges, said Mann. He said his government has introduced several policies and initiatives t

Punjab gets new office timing, CM Mann says move to bring many benefits

The new timing in Punjab government offices came into effect on Tuesday with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann saying the move will not just save power but result in many other benefits. With effect from May 2, the timing of state government departments have been changed from the earlier 9 am-5 pm shift to 7.30 am-2 pm. The new timing will remain in force till July 15 and result in an estimated saving of Rs 40-42 crore during the two-and-a-half month period, said Mann who, along with his staff, arrived at the Civil Secretariat here at 7.28 am. "From today, all government offices will open at 7.30 am and continue till 2 pm. The move will have a few benefits," he said. Several Punjab ministers, including Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal, Harpal Singh Cheema and Aman Arora, also reached their offices according to the new timing. "Before implementing this decision, we talked to the employees and the people and they agreed (to the decision on the changed timing)," Mann told reporters at a press ...

Punjab police form SIT to probe Ludhiana gas leak, area decontaminated

A five-member Punjab Police Special Investigation Team (SIT) will probe the Giaspura locality gas leak incident here in which 11 people died after allegedly inhaling toxic gas, officials said on Monday. The tragedy struck the densely populated area in Punjab's industrial hub on Sunday. District authorities said the locality underwent a night-long decontamination process, involving putting caustic soda in drains and sewerage lines to counter the hydrogen sulphide build-up. Teams of the Punjab Pollution Control Board are looking into the possible reasons behind the build-up of the poisonous gas in the sewer that might have led to the incident, the officials said. Traces of the gas are no longer present in the area, they added. Hydrogen sulphide, also called sewer gas, is poisonous and smells like rotten eggs. It can lead to unconsciousness and death. Speaking to the media here, Ludhiana Police Commissioner Mandeep Singh Sidhu said the SIT will be led by Deputy Commissioner of Police

Ludhiana gas leak: What led to the death of 11 people in Giaspura?

The NDRF personnel have reached the spot, and the entire area has been sealed. Locals have been asked to move to safer places

BJP has never done politics over security of Punjab: Anurag Thakur

While reacting to a question related to 'Waris Punjab De' chief Amritpal Singh, Union Minister Anurag Thakur said that BJP has never done politics over the security of Punjab

Former Punjab CM Capt Amarinder Singh condoles Ludhiana gas leak casualties

Former Punjab chief minister and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Captain Amarinder Singh expressed sorrow over the gas leak incident in Ludhiana's Giaspura which claimed 11 lives

At least 11 dead after gas leak in Punjab's Ludhiana, says police

Nine people died and several were taken ill after a gas leak incident in the Giaspura area in this Punjab district on Sunday, police said. The source of the leakage and the type of the gas are yet to be ascertained, they added. Police have sealed the area while a fire brigade and an ambulance have been deployed there. A team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has also reached the site. Ludhiana Police Commissioner Mandeep Singh Sidhu confirmed that nine people have so far died in the incident. Aam Aadmi Party MLA from Ludhiana South Rajinderpal Kaur Chhina described the incident as unfortunate. She said it is yet to be ascertained what led to the tragedy.

Educational institutions won't face dearth of funds: Punjab CM Mann

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday dubbed financial indebtedness of educational institutions as a social scourge, and said they will not face any dearth of funds so that no child of the state is deprived of the opportunity to get quality education. Addressing a gathering on the 62nd foundation day of the Punjabi University here, Mann said it was the primary duty of the government to provide educational opportunities and it is a matter of great pride and satisfaction that his government was doing this work efficiently. According to an official statement, Mann said his government was constantly striving to raise the standard of education by providing the maximum support to educational institutions. "This university is the pride of Punjab and the Punjabi mother tongue. This premier education institute is also called the 'heart of Malwa'. I had guaranteed to free this university from the debt burden to restore its pride and pristine glory," he said. Mann further said that

Family members meet arrested Waris de Punjab activists in Assam's Dibrugarh

Ten family members of arrested Waris de Punjab' activists, including its chief Amritpal Singh, arrived here on Thursday and visited the Dibrugarh Central Jail to meet them, an official said. They made their way to the northeastern state after the Punjab and Haryana High Court allowed one family member of the arrested to meet them. An executive member of the Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) and legal counsel Bhagwant Singh Siyalka, and another lawyer Simranjeet Singh also accompanied the family members. Singh later told reporters that the arrested persons have been booked under the National Security Act (NSA), with the same allegations against all of them. He said even the annexures attached to their cases are the same and this seems to be ''improbable''. "There is no criminal background of those arrested. It is definitely a conspiracy as there is no reason for them to be booked under the NSA. Amritpal was campaigning against drug abuse and was also engaged in preach

Parkash Singh Badal cremated at ancestral village; leaders pay respects

Parkash Singh Badal was cremated on Thursday at his ancestral village in Punjab's Muktsar district with thousands of mourners and leaders across the political spectrum paying their last respects to the Akali stalwart and five-time chief minister. SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal lit the pyre at the funeral held with full state honours. Badal's mortal remains were taken to the family's farmland around a kilometer from the residence on a flower-decked tractor-trolley with his son Sukhbir Singh Badal and other family members standing with folded hands as the vehicle moved past mourners on the route. Leaders cutting across party lines, including BJP president J P Nadda, NCP chief Sharad Pawar and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah, visited Badal village to pay their last respects. Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, senior BJP leader Tarun Chugh, Haryana Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala, and former union minister Praful Patel paid homage

Nadda pays last respect to Shiromani Akali Dal patron Parkash Singh Badal

The senior Punjab politician passed away at the age of 95 on Tuesday. He breathed his last at Fortis Hospital in Mohali

Scores of political dignitaries, supporters reach Badal's native village

Badal, the country's oldest politician -- next only to BJP veteran LK Advani -- died on Tuesday at the age of 95 after a brief illness at a private hospital near here

Poonch attack: Punjab CM hands over Rs 1 cr each to family of 4 soldiers

Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann Wednesday handed over Rs one crore cheque each to the families of four soldiers from Punjab who were killed in the last week's terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch. Five soldiers were killed after their vehicle came under fire from terrorists. The fifth soldier killed in the attack hailed from Odisha. According to an official release, Mann visited the houses of the four soldiers -- Havildar Mandeep Singh at village Chankoian, Ludhiana; Lance Naik Kulwant Singh at village Charik, Moga; Sepoy Harkrishan Singh of village Talwandi Bharath, Gurdaspur; and Sepoy Sewak Singh of village Bagha, Bathinda -- and offered condolences to the bereaved family members. While handing over the cheques as a token of respect for the supreme sacrifices made by the soldiers, he said the entire country is indebted to them as they sacrificed their lives for the sake of the country and its people. Mann said this humble initiative of the state government is a recognition o

Punjab after Parkash Singh Badal: An era passes and a new one begins

His son Sukhbir will face his first big test in the Jalandhar bypoll next month

People throng SAD office to pay homage to Badal; PM pays floral tributes

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday paid floral tributes to Parkash Singh Badal at the Shiromani Akali Dal office here as scores of people and political leaders assembled to pay homage to the five-time Punjab chief minister. Badal had not been keeping well and was admitted to the Fortis Hospital in Mohali near here on April 16 after he complained of uneasiness in breathing. He died on Tuesday aged 95. The Punjab government has declared a holiday on Thursday as a mark of respect to the former chief minister. According to an official order, all government offices, departments, boards, corporations and educational institutions in the state will remain shut on Thursday. The central government has already announced two days of state mourning on April 26 and 27 across India as a mark of respect to the former chief minister. The mortal remains of the SAD patriarch, who straddled Punjab politics for over seven decades, were brought to the party head office here in an ambulance. Form