India celeberates World Environment Day

Environmentalists favour CFLs
Chandigarh, June 5
On the World Environment Day today, environmentalists were vocal on the use of compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) to save energy for the future generation.
Dr Satnam Singh of the Punjab State Council for Science and Technology accepted that the government had not made any arrangements for the disposal of CFLs. 

He said this while interacting with mediapersons at the PGI. He said besides promoting the use of CFLs, state governments should make fool-proof arrangements for disposal.
He said the states should come up with a policy so that energy savers could not turn into environmental threats.
He said hundreds of discarded CFLs were lying unattended at garbage dumps, releasing poisonous material into the environment.
CFL bulbs and tubes contained mercury, which was highly toxic and could cause serious health problems like damage to the nervous system, kidneys and liver, he said.
The Panjab University dean, Dr AS Ahluwalia, said the public was not unaware about the health hazards from CFLs.
In the absence of a proper CFL-disposal policy, public dumped those in domestic bins. He said the UT Administration had implemented the e-waste policy, but there were no clear directions on CFL disposal.
He said paver blocks adversely affected the green cover and the seepage of water into the ground, resulting in the lowering of underground water level.
He said it had been scientifically proved that such concrete structures spoilt the eco-system of the soil and the heat around plantation affected it.
Other experts stressed the installation of rainwater harvesting in buildings to improve groundwater level.

Khushpreet’s kin say no to Rs 3-lakh relief

Chandigarh, June 5
The family of five-year-old Khushpreet, who was kidnapped for ransom and murdered in December 2010, has refused to claim the compensation amount of Rs 3 lakh that was recently handed over to them by the UT Administration.
Two months have elapsed since a cheque for Rs 3 lakh was handed over to the child’s father at their house in Burail village in Sector 45. But the family has not deposited the cheque as a mark of protest.
“A patwari came to our house two months ago and gave us the cheque. We told him we do not want it since money will not bring back our child. We desire justice from the police and the Administration, not money. As the patwari was under obligation, we took the cheque, but have not encashed it,” said Lakhbir Singh, Khushpreet’s father.
“The negligent police officers are still on duty. Merely stopping their increments does not mean justice to us. We do not want any compensation from the police or the Administration. We have suffered enough and our innocent child was killed due to the negligence of the police. We demand that these officers should be dealt with sternly,” he said.
Advocate Arvind Thakur, who fought the case in the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), said after a year-long battle with the Administration, the cheque had finally been given to the family and orders in this regard were received from the NHRC today.
“The NHRC has considered the matter. The amount of interim relief as recommended by the commission has been paid to the next of kin of the deceased. Departmental action has also been taken against the three delinquent police officers. No further action is called for. The compliance report is taken on record and the case is closed,” said the NHRC in the order.

22 judicial officers promoted in Punjab

Ludhiana, June 5
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has promoted 22 judicial officers to the rank of Additional District and Sessions Judge and Chief Judicial Magistrate in Punjab. Nine judges, heading different Fast Track courts, have been promoted to the rank of Additional Sessions Judge and transferred to different stations, include Anshul Berry to Patiala, Sanjay Kumar Sachdeva to Sangrur, Neelam Arora to Amritsar, Dr Rakesh Kumar to Ferozepur, Jaswinder Sheemar to Mohali, Gurnam Singh to Jalandhar, Sant Parkash Sood to Ludhiana, Manjot Kaur to Mohali, Rajiv Kalra to Gurdaspur and Sanjay Agnihotri to Jalandhar.
Sanjay Kumar Sachdeva, Civil Judge (Senior Division), has been transferred to Sangrur, on promotion CJM Mansa Budh Ram Garg has been transferred to Hoshiarpur. Whereas ADJ Hari Singh Garewal has been transferred to Ludhiana.
Seven Additional Civil Judges (Senior Division), who have been promoted to the rank of Chief Judicial Magistrate, include Harish Anand (Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar), Ashok Kapoor (Mansa), Karamjit Singh Sullar (Rupnagar), Ranjeet Kaur (Amritsar), Rakesh Kumar (Faridkot), Jaspinder Singh (Fatehgarh Sahib) and Rajeev K Beri (Moga). Whereas Civil Judge (Senior Division), Jalandhar, Sanjiv Joshi has been transferred to Mansa, Shivinder Singh, CJ (Senior Divison), transferred to Barnala, Rupnagar’s CJM Mandeep Kaur transferred to Jalandhar.
Four judges, who have been promoted as Fast Track Court Judges, include Rajiv Malhotra, Harjinder Pal Singh, Baljinder Sidhu and Gurmail Singh.

Manpneet Kaur is crowned Miss Australia Punjaban 2012

Melbourne - Manpuneet Kaur Grewal a first year Accounting student at Melbourne's Deakin University, was crowned ‘Miss Australia Punjaban 2012’ at a well attended and appreciated event held here.  She has secured a place to compete with other contestants who will be representing other parts of the world and vying for the title of ‘Miss World Punjaban 2012’.

The main event is due to be held at Ludhiana in Punjab in November 2012.

Australian born Manpuneet Kaur, a 9’9” ‘Punjaban Mutiyar’ who resides in Melbourne and is studying commerce at Deccan University, impressed the judges with her beauty, knowledge and talent to bag the prestigious title.

Parminderjit Waraich from Brisbane finished Ist runner-up while Gagandeep Kaur from Melbourne was declared 2nd Runner-up.  

Ten beautiful Punjabans hailing from Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney took part in the show organized by Sabhayachark Sath Punjab in association with South Pacific Institute.

The different rounds showcasing talent of the contestants were of immense interest to the audience. The contestants danced to the tune of Punjabi folk songs, displayed special talents and had a question-answer round where they were asked questions related to Punjabi Heritage.

Jagpreet bagged award for Best folk Dance, Ramandeep Kaur bagged award for being declared ‘Gunwanti Panjaban, Baljit Kaur was declared ‘Sughar-Syani Punjaban’ and Rajdip Kaur was conferred with ‘Gidhian di Rani’ sub-title. Amrit Kaur, Navjot and Semris were given special prizes.

Renowned Literary Personality Dr.Satish Verma who had specially flown from India, SBS Radio Anchor Manpreet Kaur and known Bhangra Expert Varinder Saran, were the judges at the event.

Gurvinder Singh Nagra welcomed the guests and audience while Harleen Sohana and Dr. Preetinder Grewal were the anchors for the show.

Teams of ‘Folk Art’, ‘Bhangra Rockers’, ‘Bhangra Federation’ regaled the audience with their performances. Parddeep Kaur, Poonam and their team members also presented Punjabi dance items. Charnamit Singh made the audience laugh with his comedy items.

Punjabi woman Roopak Kaur Sodhi who is the first Punjaban to be recruited in Victoria Police and ‘Singh Sabha Bhangra Group’ – contestants of ‘Australia has got Talent’ were specially honoured for their contribution towards the community.  They were awarded by Harbhajan Singh Khaira and Kanwalpreet Singh Sandhu.
Ajit Singh Rahi’s book ‘Teeja Ghallughara’ was released during the show.

Chairman-Director Jasmer Singh Dhatt told ‘Yes Punjab’ that those who contributed their best to make the show a success include Amardeep Singh, Manjot Kaur Dhaliwal, Amanpreet Singh, Upkar Singh, Gurpal Singh, Jaskunwar Singh.  

Others present include Prem Singh Khaira and Ruban Sohana from Sydney, Jasmel Singh Khaira, Gurpreet Singh Sangha, Sukhdeep Deol, Imtiyaz Khan and Ravi.
The event, fourth of its kind in Australia, hosted under the direction and supervision of Chairman-Director Jasmer Singh Dhatt at Monash University’s Robert Blackwood Hall with a capacity of 1100 was well received and well attended.

Jasmer Dhatt said that ‘Miss World Punjaban 2012’ beauty pageant has taken  a start with Australia event and now the  pageant is scheduled to  travel to Europe, America, Canada, New Zealand and Pakistan where such events shall select more Punjabi beauties to take part in the finals to be held at Ludhiana.

Ranbir fake encounter:11 Dehradun cops surrender, sent to jail

Dehradun - Eleven of the 18 Uttarakhand Police personnel, accused in the 2009 fake encounter case of MBA student Ranbir Singh in Dehradun, on Tuesday surrendered before a Delhi court which sent them to jail.
The accused policemen surrendered before Special CBI Judge V K Maheshwari in pursuance of the non-bailable warrants issued against them in May this year.
“They be taken in custody and sent to judicial custody,” the court said.
The accused cops who surrendered today include the then constables Satbir Singh, Sunil Saini, Chander Pal, Saurabh Nautiyal, Nagendra Nath, Vikas Chandra Baluni, Sanjay Rawat, Mohan Singh Rana, Inder Bhan Singh and Manoj Kumar and Head operator at city control room Jaspal Singh Gosain.
The constables are among the 18 policemen chargesheeted by the CBI in connection with Ranbir Singh encounter case that rocked the hill state in July 2009.
The other accused in the case are presently lodged in Tihar Jail. They include then inspector Santosh Jaiswal, sub-inspectors Gopal Dutt Bhatt, Rajesh Bisht, Neeraj Kumar, Nitin Chauhan and Chandra Mohan and constable Ajeet Singh.
They were arrested in wake of evidence that 22-year-old Singh, an MBA student from Ghaziabad, was allegedly gunned down by Uttarakhand Police after being caught at Mohini Road where he and his companions were allegedly trying to commit some crime on July 3, 2009.
The court fixed July 4, the next date of hearing and also allowed the plea of these 11 accused that they be kept together in jail as they are police personnel and apprehend fear from other inmates.
The case was transferred to Delhi by the Supreme Court on the plea of Ranbir's father Ravindra Singh.
The court had issued NBWs against them to ensure their presence before it.
Ranbir's father had alleged that his son had gone to Dehradun in search of a job where he was arrested by the police on July 3, 2009 on pretext of being involved in some robbery.
He had alleged that on the same day, 29 bullets were pumped into his body and the incident was passed off as an encounter.
All the 18 policemen have been charged for various offences such as murder, kidnapping, criminal conspiracy, destruction of evidence and public servant framing incorrect record.

Ranvir Sena chief Brahmeshwar Singh shot dead, high alert in Bihar

A file photo of former Ranvir Sena chief Brahmeshwar Singh
 Mukhiya who was killed in Arrah, Bihar

Arraha (Bihar), June 1, 2012 - Brahmeshwar Singh, the chief of Bihar's outlawed private militia of landlords Ranvir Sena, was shot dead on Friday by six unidentified gunmen who pumped several bullets into him while he was taking an early morning walk.

Violence broke out in the district headquarter town of Ara in Bhojpur district after the killing of Singh alias 'Mukhiya ji', in his early 70s, and a high alert was sounded in Bihar.

Curfew was clamped in Ara but it was lifted in the afternoon after a high-level review of the situation by senior state officials. The situation in the district was described as tense but under control.

Director-General of Police Abhayanand, who is camping at the spot, was heckled by local people who charged him with failure to provide security to Singh.

Singh, the founder of the Sena, was taking a stroll when six unidentified gunmen armed with sophisticated weapons pumped several bullets into him, killing him on the spot at Katira Mohalla under Nawada police station, 71 kms from Patna, police said.

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar appealed for calm and said investigations were underway to trace the killers.

Singh, who faced life imprisonment in several cases of carnage he had perpetrated on the lower caste landless poor, including in Laxmanpur Bathe where 61 Dalits were massacred in December, 1996, was acquitted and released from jail in April this year.

As the news of the killing spread, hundreds of Sena supporters gathered at the site of the killing and shouted anti-government slogans.

The Sena men also tried to chase policemen, including the superintendent of police, who had arrived at the spot and later clashed with policemen and burnt five private and government vehicles, sources said.

Hundreds of people took out processions in the district. The private bus operators suspended bus services from Patna causing immense hardships to passengers in the area.

Prohibitory orders under section 144 CrPC would remain in force, sub-divisional police officer Dharmesh Kumar said, adding the situation is tense but under control.

The main opposition parties RJD, Congress and LJP demanded a CBI probe into the killing of Singh.

Sikh Seva Foundation’s 1st Annual Food Drive Donates 10,000 Food Items

SURREY – A food drive organised by Sikh Seva Foundation with the support of local Sikh Community and Sikh Organisations for the Month of April donated over 10,000 food items weighing 8126 Pounds to BC Food Banks on Monday May 7.

“We would like to extend a heartfelt thanks to the community for their generous donations, the response was overwhelming. The community united to donate over 8100 pounds of food. We wantto thank everyone for taking part in 1st Annual Seva Community Food Drive, organized by the Sikh Seva Foundation in association with Food Banks BC. Your selfless service to the community is appreciated,” the organization said in a press release.

The month long food drive was held in April and food items were dropped off at Sikh Gurdwaras and schools in the Lower Mainland.

“We feel so honoured to see the community taking part in such a fundamental project. Food is energy, food is love and food gives hope to those who face challenges in providing nourishment to their families, seniors and others who cannot afford the basics. It is great to see the community stepping up their efforts this year to meet these challenges, to help others and to show how much they care about one another,” said one organizer.

“I feel this is so important. Every day I see people in need and I want to help. This is something I can do,” explains a youth volunteer. “Collecting food for others is just my small way of supporting the community. Everyone should help if they are able to. Whatever you donate, will be helpful.”

The Sikh Seva Foundation is a community driven initiative focusing on volunteering today to help give hope for tomorrow. Their goal is not to have any one person lead or direct; it is to have the entire community work to improve conditions for everyone. The purpose of Sikh Seva Foundation is to be a volunteer bank resource for a wide range of charities throughout the Lower Mainland.

The Foundation’s activities are inspired by the principles of Sikhism, including:

• Equality and fraternity of all human beings

• Selfless service to others, especially any one who is impoverished, disadvantaged or vulnerable

• Diligent and honest work

• Sharing with the community the fruits of one’s labour

• Increasing understanding and acceptance among all human beings

For more information email at info@sikhsevafoundation.com or visit their website www.sikhsevafoundation.com