Chandigarh Sep 29 PTI Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi asked officials on Wednesday to check the rampant corruption in the local government department and the unplanned and haphazard construction across the stateSignificantly the local government department is under minister Brahm Mohindra who is considered close to former chief minister Amarinder SinghChanni called for all-out efforts to provide basic amenities to the people of the stateReviewing the functioning of the local government department he asked the principal secretary of the department A K Sinha to issue detailed guidelines to the municipal councils to allow construction of houses only in the urban areas in accordance with the building plans duly approved by the authorities concerned an official statement saidChanni also said corruption is rampant at different levels in the department and it must be checked immediately as there are several complaints from the common people about harassment for getting their work doneHe directed the principal secretary to personally ensure that people are given the best civic amenities such as potable water supply street lighting sewerage roads and parks etcThe chief minister also stressed on the need to make a provision for at least 35-foot roads in the colonies so as to enable people to have hassle-free road connectivityHe said the plans of those colonisers who kept narrow 20-foot roads should not be approvedChanni also asked the principal secretary of the local government department to put in place an effective mechanism to redress the grievances of the public on priority PTI CHS VSD RC

Chandigarh Sep 29 PTI The Punjab government on Wednesday decided to ease restrictions on public gatherings in the wake of improvement in the COVID-19 situation in the state According to the decision the government has allowed an indoor gathering of 300 people and outdoor gathering of 500 people Earlier it was 150 for indoor and 300 for outdoor gatherings While reviewing the Covid situation in the state Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi asked the School Education Department to encourage students to attend classes by following necessary health protocols according to a government release Likewise he also asked the Social Security Women and Child Development Department to reopen anganwadi centres while strictly following the prescribed Covid safety norms Expressing satisfaction over the decline in positivity rate of Covid cases the chief minister also asked the Health Department to ensure strict compliance to Covid safety protocols including wearing of face masks and maintaining social distancing He also asked the department to ramp up the testing capacity up to 50000 per day as a precautionary measure in view of the coming festive season While making a brief presentation on the current Covid scenario Principal Secretary Health and Family Welfare Alok Shekhar said a total 232 cases were reported in past one week with an average of 33 positive cases per day the release said He further said that from September 14 to 20 only one case of mucormycosis was reported it said PTI CHS VSD AQS AQS

Chandigarh Sep 29 PTI Punjab Transport Minister Amarinder Singh Raja Warring on Wednesday asked the transport department to ensure that all bus stands across the state are encroachment-free in the next 48 hours In his first meeting with the officials of the department after taking over the Transport minister he said the encroachments at the bus stands are not only creating inconvenience to the masses but also causing a huge loss to the state exchequer according to a government statement He directed the officials to remove the encroachments in 48 hours Every encroachment whether big or small has to be removed else strict action will be taken he added PTI CHS VSD AQS AQS

Chandigarh Sep 29 PTI Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Wednesday directed the Food Civil Supplies Consumer Affairs department to ensure smooth and hassle-free procurement of paddy during the current Kharif Marketing Season beginning October 1 While reviewing the arrangements and preparedness for the paddy procurement season at a high-level meeting the chief minister asked the Food and Civil Supplies Department the nodal agency for the procurement operations to ensure all necessary arrangements for smooth prompt and seamless procurement and storage of paddy Reiterating his governments firm commitment Channi said that every single grain of the farmers produce would be lifted from the market and strict adherence to the prescribed norms of timely payment to the farmers would be ensured an official statement said Meanwhile Food Civil Supplies Minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu said the persistent and personal efforts of Chief Minister Channi on Wednesday yielded authorisation of Cash Credit Limit CCL of Rs 3571273 crore up to end October 2021 for procurement of paddy during Kharif Marketing Season KMS 2021-22 As per the statement Reserve Bank of India RBI has sanctioned CCL of over Rs 35713 crore for paddy procurement against Rs 42013 crore demanded by the state government and the remaining amount would be released close to November for purchasing paddy during that month The Chief Minister thanked the Union Food Secretary for his personal intervention and helping the state in getting timely issuance of CCL for smooth procurement Channi had raised this issue with the Union Secretary Food and Public Distribution Sudhanshu Pandey who called on the Chief Minister in his office on September 24 as per the statement The Chief Minister had urged Pandey to take up this matter with RBI for expeditious authorisation of CCL to ensure smooth and hassle free procurement of paddy during current KMS 2021-22 Meanwhile during the meeting Ashu assured the Chief Minister that the department will leave no stone unturned in ensuring smooth procurement during the current paddy season to the satisfaction of all the stakeholders Taking part in the deliberations Director Food Civil Supplies Abhinav Trikha informed the Chief Minister that elaborate arrangements have already been put in place to procure the paddy arriving in the mandis of the state As many as 1806 purchase centres notified by the Punjab Mandi Board have been allotted amongst the government procurement agencies during the procurement The state government has ordered to lift the procured crop within 48-hours Bharat Bhushan Ashu said the government was committed to lift every single grain of the farmers produce He said that the state government had made elaborate arrangements as ensured at the time of wheat procurement so that health protocols especially social distancing could be followed meticulously amid Covid pandemic All concerned authorities involved in the procurement process have been directed to strictly follow the health protocols besides ensuring availability of soap for washing hands availability of water and sanitisers at the procurement centres he said The Minister further stated that the procurement operations would continue till November 30 PTI SUN MR MR

Chandigarh Sep 29 PTI The Punjab government on Wednesday announced to waive power bills of those having electricity connection of up to 2 kW a move that will put a burden of Rs 1200 crore on the state exchequer The decision was taken at a meeting of the state Cabinet chaired by Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi here The Punjab Cabinet also decided that disconnected electricity connections of consumers who could not pay their bills will also be restored without any penalty Addressing the media Channi said We today decided that consumers having up to 2 kw load who constitute 80 per cent of total consumers their arrears will be waived and the government will bear this He said after touring villages and towns he came to know that the biggest grievance of people was related to power bills He said power connections of many people have been snapped as they could not pay bills There are between 55000 and one lakh consumers whose power connections were cut because of non-payment of bills We discussed this issue in detail in our Cabinet meeting he said He said there are a total 72 lakh consumers in the state There are 53 lakh consumers who have up to 2 kW load in the state the CM said Their arrears till their last bill will be waived he said The arrears may be of months or years that will be borne by the state government he said in a reply to a question He said the government will pay arrears of the consumers to the power utility PSPCL Channi said it will put a financial burden of Rs 1200 crore on the state exchequer He further said his government will come down heavily on the sand mafia We are working round the clock on this It is an old nexus which has to be broken We will come out with a policy soon in this regard he said PTI CHS SUN VSD RDK RDK

Chandigarh Sep 29 PTI Haryana reported no Covid-related death even though it added sixteen new infections Wednesday pushing the total case count to 770863 According to the Health Departments daily bulletin the death toll remained unchanged at 9874 Meanwhile among the districts seven cases were reported from Gurgaon district The total active cases in the state were 105 while the overall recoveries were 760711 The recovery rate was 9868 per cent the bulletin said PTI SUN VSD RAX RAX

Chandigarh Sep 29 PTI Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Wednesday reached out to a miffed Navjot Singh Sidhu and offered to resolve issues through talks a day after the former cricketer resigned as the state Congress chief Channi also said the party is supreme and the government follows its ideology Sidhu had abruptly put in his papers on Tuesday plunging the Congress into a fresh crisis in the state which saw a bitter power tussle involving Sidhu and former CM Amarinder Singh The cricketer-turned-politician on Wednesday broke his silence on his resignation raising questions over appointments of the director general of police states advocate general and tainted leaders Talking to reporters here on the sidelines of a Cabinet meeting Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said The state president is a head of the party The head is to sit in the family party I have spoken to Sidhu sahab over the telephone today The party is supreme and the government accepts the partys ideology and follows that I told him that you come sit and talk he said If you Sidhu feel there is anything wrong you can point it out he said When asked what was Sidhus response Channi said Sidhu told him that he would sit and talk and would give him time for a meeting To a question Channi said Pargat Singh and some other leaders went to meet Sidhu Asked if this is not an attempt to cause damage to the government he said there is no such thing He said We will sit with him and talk Asked if Sidhu had done the right thing Channi said he could not comment on it I will never deviate from the issues of the people of Punjab he said Channi said the government would set up a team under a special prosecutor for fighting cases in courts We are setting up a team of a special prosecutor and 10 members and it will handle our state government important cases he said A special team will be appointed Therefore there should not be any doubt on me by the people Everything will be transparent he further said He said Whatever feedback we got from colleagues and others and whosoever can be appointed we appointed But the decisions will be taken according to the people of Punjab I have no objection or any ego in anything I am very clear If anything sends wrong message to the people I will not be rigid on it he said in an apparent reference to recent appointments He further said he would never step back on the issues on which he had been fighting for apparently referring to issues like delivery of justice in the 2015 desecration cases PTI CHS SUN VSD RT RDK RDK

Chandigarh Sep 29 PTI AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said the Punjab government has been reduced to a tamasha and urged new CM Charanjit Singh Channi to immediately remove tainted ministers from his cabinet The Delhi CM said this at the Chandigarh airport a day after the Congress was pushed into a fresh crisis by the resignation of Navjot Singh Sidhu from the post of the partys Punjab unit chief Sidhu on Wednesday in a video message flagged the issue of appointment of tainted officials and ministers Kejriwal who is the Delhi CM also asked the Punjab CM to act on promises made by his predecessor including the action in the Bargari desecration case During the previous SAD-BJP regime torn pages of a religious text were found at Bargari in Faridkot Later in police firing incidents at protesters two people were killed at Behbal Kalan and many injured in Kotkapura We are seeing what kind of political atmosphere is prevailing in the state Political instability is there which is unfortunate said Kejriwal who arrived on a two-day visit to Punjab A dirty fight for power is going on People are not able to understand whom they should approach for their problems he said They have reduced the government to a tamasha alleged Kejriwal He said accusations have been made that Channi has inducted tainted people in his Cabinet I request that they should be removed forthwith cases be registered against them and they be dealt with strictly he said While he congratulated Channi on his elevation as the Punjab CM Kejriwal said people of the state want him to act on five issues including the Bargari desecration case The mastermind in the sacrilege incidents have not been punished till now I dont need to tell who the mastermind are Their names are there in the report of Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh and Channi can go through that The culprits can be arrested within 24 hours he said Kejriwal said the promises made by former CM Amarinder Singh to people should be fulfilled by the Channi-led government Amarinder had promised to give jobs to the youth and till the time they got one he had promised to give unemployment allowance That allowance should be given He had promised loan waiver to farmers he said Kejriwal also said the Congress government should scrap the power purchase agreements Kejriwal reminded Channi that despite being in power for 49 days in the first term his government did many works and the Punjab CM still has four months left before the state goes to polls I had 49 days when I first came in power During that short period I had halved power rates made water free and eliminated corruption If I could do so many works in 49 day period then Channi too can fulfil pending works he said The AAP leader said only his party can give a stable and honest government in Punjab When asked who will be the CM face of AAP Kejriwal said I have repeatedly said we will give such a face on which you and the entire Punjab will be proud of Earlier in the day Navjot Singh Sidhu questioned the appointment of the director general of police advocate general and tainted leaders Today I see there is a compromise on issues said Sidhu apparently referring to senior IPS officer Iqbal Preet Singh Sahota who has been given the additional charge of the Punjab DGP Sahota was the head of an SIT formed by the SAD-BJP government to probe desecration incidents I see those who had given clean chits to the Badals six years agohave been given the responsibility of delivering justice he added My soul jitters when I see those who secured blanket bails they are advocate general What is the agenda here Sidhu asked apparently questioning the appointment of A P S Deol to the post A system which included tainted leaders and officials is being brought back after being dismantled Sidhu said obliquely referring to the induction of Rana Gurjit Singh as a minister in the new state Cabinet Sidhu was appointed the state Congress president on July 18 amid a bitter power tussle with Amarinder Singh who resigned as the CM 10 days back while accusing the party high command of humiliating him PTI SUN CHS VSD RDK RDK

Chandigarh Sep 29 PTI The Punjab government on Wednesday waived power bills of those having electricity connection of up to 2 kW a move that will put a burden of Rs 1200 crore on the exchequer The decision was taken at a meeting of the state Cabinet chaired by Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi here The Punjab Cabinet also decided that disconnected electricity connections of consumers who could not pay their bills will also be restored Addressing the media Channi We today decided that consumers having up to 2 kw load who constitute 80 per cent of total consumers their arrears will be waived and the government will bear this He said the government will pay arrears of the consumers to the power utility PSPCL Channi said it will put a financial burden of Rs 1200 crore on the state exchequer PTI CHS SUN VSD RDK RDK

Chandigarh Sep 29 PTI A couple their two kids and another child were found dead in a village in Haryanas Palwal district on Wednesday with the police suspecting the man of having murdered the rest before taking his own lifeNaresh was found hanging His wife daughter son and a niece were also found dead inside their home in Aurangabad village Deputy Superintendent of Police Hodal Sajjan Singh said over the phoneIt prima facie appears that Naresh either poisoned the other four or fed them sleeping pills before he strangled them and hanged himself the DSP saidThe exact reason behind the murder-suicide is not yet known but according to Nareshs father the couple were fighting over something the police saidA case has been registered and further investigations are on the police officer said PTI SUN VN IJT