Jalandhar, March, 20, 2013: The Central Bureau of Investigation has today arrested a SE (Civil) FS, Commander, 763, Border Road Task Force(BRTF), Tawang (Arunachal Pradesh) for possession of huge cash. A case was registered U/s 13(2) r/w 13(1) (d) and (e) of PC Act, 1988 for possession of unaccounted cash of about Rs.15 lakhs and assets beyond known sources of income.

The Commander, BRTF was detained today from Guwahati Railway Station   while he was travelling to New Delhi  by Guwahati-Delhi Rajdhani Express with cash of about Rs.15 lakh for which he could not give any reasonable explanation . Documents relating to 5 bank accounts and two flats at Greater Noida (Uttar Pradesh) were recovered.

Searches are being carried out at his Noida houses and ancestral village at Sultanpur in U.P.

The arrested accused is being produced today in the Court of Special Judge, CBI Cases, Guwahati. 

Chandigarh, March 20, 2013: The Punjab State Commission for Scheduled Castes today initiated the action on a complaint regarding assault of Head Constable Jai Pal belonging to Scheduled Castes Community by Congress MLAs, who insulted him with casteist remarks on March 13, 2013 as victim and his commandant today appeared before the Commission to record their statements.

Rajesh Bagha, Chairman, Commission for Scheduled Castes accompanied by Parkash Singh Gardhiwala, Member of Commission, informed that the victim Jai Pal appeared before the commission and recorded the whole sequence of events leading to his assault and deliberate attempt of MLAs to denigrate him before whole media.

The Chairman said that in his detailed statement given to the Commission, the victim disclosed that he was deployed on duty in the premises of Vidhan Sabha on March 13, 2013 and the on duty police had been informed that a girl entered the Vidhan Sabha in an unauthorised manner. He said that when he was discharging his duties on his duty point in front of CLP Office, some MLAs came  charging towards him and started his manhandling in full public view. Jai Pal also alleged that Congress MLAs Rana Gurjit Singh, Kuljit Singh Nagra, Sukhjinder Singh, Jagmohan Singh Kang and Parminder Singh Pinky were running behind the policemen discharging their duties in the lounge of Vidhan Sabha.

Jai Pal also added that meanwhile, these MLAs caught him up and started his thrashing. He said that these MLAs also questioned him about  his identity and my caste. The victim said that when I told them that he belonged to a poor downtrodden family and was from Scheduled Castes community, they snatched my identity card. On knowing my caste, they asked me that how dare you come here and made mockery of me ridiculing me with caster ridden remarks.  

According to Jai Ram, he had managed to escape from them and reached to his duty point but when after a short while he went to Congress MLAs for the recovery of his identity card but to no avail since the Congress MLAs were still abusing him. The victim said that on intervention of Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, Congress MLA, they released him.  

Pleading a strict action against the erring Congress MLAs, Jai Pal requested the Commission to initiate stern action in a stipulated timeframe and ensure the delivery of justice against the injustice committed by Congress MLAs. He also pleaded for security to him and his family as he feared threat from MLAs, who assaulted him.

Meanwhile the Commission also recorded the statement of Commandant 3rd Battalion, Mohali Sukhwant Singh Gill, whose duty was to check internal security of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha.

Bagha, Chairman of the Commission, assured the victim that every possible legal remedies would be taken to ensure the delivery of justice to the aggrieved.

Chandigarh, March 21, 2013: The Punjab State Commission for Scheduled Castes on Thursday proceeded further on a complaint regarding assault of Head Constable Jai Pal belonging to Scheduled Castes Community by Congress MLAs, who ridiculed him with casteist remarks on March 13, 2013 and it recorded the statement of Speaker Punjab Vidhan Sabha Charanjit Singh Atwal. 

Rajesh Bagha, Chairman Commission for Scheduled Castes accompanied by Parkash Singh Gardhiwala and Dalip Singh Pandhi, Members of Commission informed that they recorded the statement of the Speaker as he was the Custodian of Punjab Vidhan Sabha, where the alleged assault and denigration of an on duty Head Constable, belonging to SC Category, took place. They informed that the Victim was working under the superintendence and control of Punjab Vidhan Sabha and discharging duty allocated by Secretary Vidhan Sabha and it was imperative to record their statements to further investigate complaint.

The Chairman said that in his detailed statement given to the Commission,  the Speaker informed them about the sequence of events, including assault on the on duty victim by a group of Congress MLAs. He also informed about complaint received from the victim regarding his manhandling along denigration being a member of SC Community and action taken by him as Speaker of Punjab Vidhan Sabha on the complaint. He also informed that the complaint has been also forwarded to Chandigarh Police that has registered a FIR on the said complaint under section 147,149, 332, 353, 384 of the IPC.

Madan Mohan Mittal, Cabinet Minister for Parliamentary Affairs was also present on the occasion.

Hoshiarpur / Jalandhar, March 21, 2013: In a joint operation undertaken by Hoshiarpur and Jalandhar Rural police, a module of Khalisatn Zindabad Force (KZF) was unearthed today.

Talking to mediapersons at Hoshiarpur this evening, Gurpreet Kaur Deo, Inspector General Police, Zonal II, Jalandhar, said that the arrested members were identified as Ranjit Singh Rana of Nurpur Jattan, Salinder Kaur, wife of Kishan Singh and Kulwinder Kaur, wife of Tarsem Singh, both of village Possi PS Mahilpur.

Police recovered one 7.65 MM auto pistol, one .9 MM pistol, made in USA, one .30 bore mauser, two .32 revolver, one .315 bore pistol, three magazines, 89 live cartridges (28 of 7.65 MM, 14 of .32 bore, 13 of .9 MM, 10 of .315 bore and 24 of .38 bore) from them.

An FIR (No 31) of March 21, 2013 under sections 25, 54 and 59 of the Arms Act, sections 10, 11 and 13 of Unlawful Activities Prevention Act has been registered at Mahilpur police station against Ranjit Singh Rana, Salinder Kaur, Kulwinder Kaur, Balwinder Singh of Possi, Daljit Singh, alias Jitu, son of Tarsem Singh of Majri PS Balachaur, district S B S Nagar and Ranjit Singh, alias Nita of Simbal Camp, Jammu and others.

Gurpreet Kaur Deo said that Ranjit Singh, alias Nita, is presently in Pakistan, Balwinder Singh in USA and Daljit Singh in Malasia.

Salinder Kaur is mother of Balwinder Singh, whose extradition proceedings are in progress, whereas Kulwinder Kaur is his sister. Ranjit Singh Rana was presently working as a Granthi in a Gurdwara of village Kohar in Jalandhar district.

She said that during preliminary investigation it was revealed that Balwinder Singh, a proclaimed offender, USA based terrorist, alongwith his associates was trying to revive terrorism again in Punjab for which his house at village Possi in this district was being used as a headquarter for carrying on terrorists' activities.

This is the second major module of terrorists unearthed in the past one month. Earlier, on February 27, 2013, in a joint operation conducted by the Commissionerate of Amritsar and Mohali police, a module of Babbar Khalsa International had been neutralised with the arrest of their top leader Narian Singh, alias Chaura and his associate Dharam Singh, alias Karan Singh of Ekal Gadda, PS Verowal, district Tarn Taran, said Gurpreet Deo, added that their further interrogation was being done.

DIG Jalandhar Range Lok Nath Angra and SSP, Hoshiarpur, Dr Sukhchain Singh Gill, were accompanying Gurpreet Kaur Deo.

Jalandhar, March 21, 2013 : The Central Bureau of Investigation registered a case under section 120-B r/w 420, 467, 468, 468 r/w 471 IPC and Sections 13 (2) r/w 13 (1) (d) of PC Act, 1988 in connection with a complaint that about 33 vehicles had been imported in Tamil Nadu and of these, certain vehicles are believed to have been imported and subsequently sold in violation of import provisions causing loss of about Rs.48 crores to the exchequer.

The case has been registered against an importer and a senior intelligence officer of DRI who allegedly did not take any action even after identification of vehicles at the premises of certain users and unknown others.

During the searches conducted at 18 locations today, 17 imported cars have been located and seized under Section 102 (3) Cr.PC.

Searches are continuing.

CBI has clarified that the above operation was strictly in accordance with procedures and there was no intention whatsoever to target any particular individual.

Investigation is in progress.

Ferozepur, March 22, 2013: The Ferozepur situated on Indo-Pak international border, just at a distance of 9 KMs, was once a hideout place for Bhagat Singh, a revolutionary, who contributed to the unity of the country and was only 23 when he went to the gallows fighting against the British rulers.

Inder Singh Gogia, President, Ferozepur District NGOs Coordination Committee, Ferozepur Unit, has demanded from the Punjab Government, for raising a big monument to patriots, the small hideout of Bhagat Singh at Toori Bazar, in Ferozpur City , which has not grabbed anybody’s attention. The hide-out the double-floor house at Toori Bazaar,  is in ruins for decades now which was once a laboratory where Bhagat Singh and other revolutionary fighters made bombs and plans against the British.

Gogia added, “In fact, the two events will continue to etch the minds of elderly people of the country when 82 years ago hanging of Bhagat Singh on March 23 and the Jallianwala Bagh tagedy on April 13 where General E.H.Dyre ordered the killing of peaceful protestors, Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims including women and children and about 1500 people were killed. The government pays only lip sympathy to the pre-Partition icons.

Now the question is as to how to evoke the same sentiments among the younger generation is the problem?”.

The first floor once belonged to Gaya Parshad, an associate of Shaheed-e-Azam Bhagat Singh and on the floor above was the bomb factory.  In fact, none of the government has thought to look into this corner of history.  Gajjanand, a barber sitting opposite, trimmed the hair of Bhagat Singh for his new getup to fox the police after he had shot John Saunders, a British police office, to avenge the killing of Lala Lajpat Rai.  Presently, the dilapidated building continues to be with the trust and a family holds the upper floor. Two shops on the ground floor are with a trader and another belongs to a financier.

Sometime back, the then deputy commissioner, Ferozepur Kulbir Singh Sidhu had opened a campaign to get historical building in the district due recognition. A team of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and Surinder Pal Singh, director of National Museum also visited the site and met the trustees, who gave their consent, about the transfer of the building to the government, if it was turned into a national monument.

The NGOs of the district are disappointed over not giving the status of heritage to the house and convert it into a monument which is uncared for so far. 

Ludhiana, March 23, 2013: The Aam Aadmi Party Punjab Wing paid homage to the martyrs Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev on their martyrdom day on Saturday.

Volunteers of the Aam Aadmi Party paid floral tribute to the great Martyrs by garlanding their statues at Jagraon Bridge, Ludhiana.

The large number of Volunteers then proceeded to the home of Shaheed Sukhdev in the Old City area and after paying rich tribute to Him, they collected soil from His home.

Thereafter, a large contingent of AAP volunteers visited the village of Khatkar Kalan which is the home of the martyr Bhagat Singh and after paying their respects at the Martyrs Memorial they collected soil from His home too.

Both the packages of soil thus collected were then taken to Delhi by Party Members from all the districts of Punjab, for blessing Arvind Kejriwal as he started his indefinite fast against the Delhi Government for the inflated power and water bills which is fast becoming a big crisis for the common man of Delhi. As per the Party Spokesperson, “We carry the blessings of these great martyrs for Arvind Kejriwal for success in this second revolution for Independence.”

Dharamsala, March 23, 2013: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister, Virbhadra Singh inaugurated the Cath lab of Fortis Hospital at Kangra near  Dharamsala  on Saturday.

The lab shall  provide heart care facilities to the people of the area.

Speaking to mediapersons at Kangra today, Virbhadra Singh said that Fortis organisation was providing quality and high-tech health services all over the country. He said that this hospital in Kangra was the first of Fortis chain in Himachal Pradesh, which was providing quality health care services.

Chief Minister said, “Himani Chamunda temple near Dharamsala  would be developed as religious tourist destination on the analogy of Shree Vaishno Devi temple. Directions had already  been issued to the concerned authorities for conducting survey and preparing detailed project report for providing road facility from Nandikeshwar Dham  Chamunda to Himani Chamunda. Thousands of pilgrims visit this temple every year and their number would increase with availability of road facility.”

He said that constructing tunnel from Chamunda to Holi area of Chamba district, was priority of the government and directions had been given to Public Works Department to conduct survey and finalisation of project report. This tunnel shorten the distance from Chamba, to Dharamsala by 270 kilometers besides providing all season connectivity.

Chief Minister said that state government had proposed to decrease VAT on aviation turbine fuel to one percent from existing five percent in the budget with a view to promote air services and Heli-taxi in the state.

Khatkar Kalan (Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar), March 23, 2013: Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today said that the Congress party was totally apathetic towards the contribution of Shaheed Bhagat Singh in national freedom struggle due to which its leaders have not bothered to organise a function to pay tribute to this true son of soil here at his native village.

Addressing the massive gathering here today in a state level function organised to pay tribute to the legendary martyr on his martyrdom day, the Chief Minister categorically said that the Congress could have planned the coronation ceremony of its new President on some other day rather than giving a miss to such historic day. He said that the Congress has never acknowledged the valuable contribution of these martyrs in national freedom struggle and its absence today was a testimony to it.

Badal categorically said that realising well the supreme sacrifices made by Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev in liberating the country from yoke of foreign imperialism, he had hardly given any miss to this mega event in his entire political career. “Congress leaders must not forget that they have been enjoying the fruits of power just because of sacrifices made by these legendary heroes” he added.

The Chief Minister said that the Congress was least bothered about paying respect to the great martyrs of the country adding that the fact that no single memorial has been erected by the successive congress governments to commemorate the sacrifices of our great national heroes was  a testimony to it.

Taking a dig at the People’s Party of Punjab (PPP) Chief Manpreet Singh Badal, the Chief Minister said that he had constituted his political party from this sacred land by taking the vow but it seems that he had also forgotten the date of martyrdom of these great heroes due to which he was absent also today. He said that Manpreet has committed political suicide by the leaving the Shiromani Akali Dal but the unfortunate thing was that now he has also forgotten the martyrs of the country.

Reiterating the commitment of state government to perpetuate the rich legacy of the great martyrs and freedom fighters of the country, the Chief Minister said that the “Jang-e-Azaadi” memorial would be constructed within two years by the state government to showcase the supreme sacrifices of the Punjabis in the national freedom struggle. He said that this memorial which would come up in Kartarpur near Jalandhar at a cost of Rs 200 crore would be a befitting tribute to the great heroes of freedom movement. Mr Badal also said that in the same manner a memorial to mark the great services rendered by Punjabis in Armed forces of the country for safeguarding the freedom of nation, was also coming up at Amritsar.

Lauding the contribution of state in Indian Independence movement the Chief Minister said that it was a matter of fact that Punjab was having a rich treasure in form of martyrs who had made selfless contribution for attaining the independence for the country. He said that we should feel proud on the fact that despite of having a population of only 2.5% in the country Punjab constitutes 80% of the total number of the martyrs of the freedom struggle. However Badal said that the need of hour was that the message and contribution of martyrs of state must be disseminated to the people so that they could be made aware about the rich tradition of sacrifices set by their ancestors.

Making a scathing attack on the Congress party, the Chief Minister said that due to the wrong policies of this party, which had mostly remained in power ever since country attained independence, the dreams of martyrs remained unfulfilled.

Badal said that though the martyrs had laid down their lives for ensuring the betterment of people, during their own rule the situation was totally opposite as the countrymen were facing a large number of problems. He said that it was the irony of the fate that despite of having a bounty of natural resources the country remained poor due to the wrong policies of successive centre governments formed by the Congress party, thus resulting in a large number of social and economic maladies like unemployment, poverty, inflation, illiteracy and corruption in the country.

The Chief Minister rued that despite of the fact that Punjabis have made immense contribution in the freedom struggle and were uprooted due to the partition of country, the Congress governments have meted out a discriminatory treatment with the state by unnecessarily interfering in the social, economic, political and even the religious matters of the state.Bemoaning the grave injustice meted out to Punjab by the successive Congress governments at the Centre, Badal said that refusal of Punjabi speaking areas and transfer of Chandigarh to the state along with denial of legitimate share of riverwaters in accordance with universally accepted Riparian Law were a testimony to it.

The Chief Minister pointed out that country was facing a peculiar situation as it was not safe both externally and internally. He said that due to the wrong policies of the UPA government today the country was having hostile border and internally also the security of the country was in peril.

Training his guns against the UPA government for its anti-poor and pro rich policies, the Chief Minister said that it was paradoxical situation that the Congress which claims to be the votary of common man was in reality helping the big companies to mint the money illegally by safeguarding their interests in a clandestine manner. He said that it was shameful that instead of serving the people the Congress leaders sitting at coveted positions were plundering the tax payer’s money by indulging in corrupt practices.

Badal further said that neck deep in corruption; the Union Ministers of UPA government has amassed huge wealth, which could have duly helped in ensuring development of the country for coming several decades. He said that due to rampant corruption and misdeeds the tenure of UPA government has virtually became asynonym of scams and scandals, which have become the order of the day.

On the occasion the Chief Minister also felicitated the niece of Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Raminder Kaur Mann and nephew of Shaheed Sukhdev, Vinod Thapar

Prominent amongst those present on the occasion included Cabinet Minister Sarwan Singh Phillaur, Chief Parliamentary Secretary Chaudhary Nand Lal, State BJP President Kamal Sharma, MLA Daljeet Singh Cheema, former MLA Mohan Singh Banga, Senior Akali leaders Jatinder Kaur Kareeha, Jagateshwar Singh Majithia and Chairman district Planning Committee Resham Singh Thiara   

Dharamsala, March 23, 2013: The local Dharamsala police on Saturday arrested an Indo- Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) constable for raping a minor girl (17), a resident of Dari area of  Dharamsala town.

The constable was here as a member of ITBP contingent to take part in the  61st All India Police Games that concluded here on Friday.

The information said that the constable  was deployed as the bus helper of the team.

The victim in her complaint, said  that she was returning to her home after watching the closing ceremony of the police games on Friday evening when the incident took place. She alleged that the accused first asked her phone number and when she refused he forcibly took her to an isolated place and raped her.

The ITBP team was staying in a school near the victim’s home. The victim after reaching home narrated the incident to her parents in the evening, following which a case was registered under section of IPC 376 at Dharamsala Police station.

The accused was arrested around midnight.

Meanwhile, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), Kangra, Mohit Chawla told that the medical examination of victim has been conducted and report is still awaited. “We have also sent cloths of victim and the accused to Regional Forensic Science Laboratory (RFSL), Dharamsala,” said Chawla.

He said the accused was posted at Jalandhar.

Meanwhile, the local court sent the accused to three day police remand.

Jalandhar, March 24, 2013: Air Commodore M Fernandez has handed over the command of Air Force Station Adampur  to Group Captain R Bhasin on Sunday.

Air Commodore M Fernandez was commissioned in the Indian Air Force on   29 Dec 1982. Before taking over the Command of Air Force Station Adampur, he was appointed as Air – I at Head Quarters Western Air Command, Indian Air Force, New Delhi. He is an accomplished officer, having undergone various courses i.e. Joint Air Warfare Course, Defence Services Staff College Course etc, through his career spanning nearly 28 years. He is an alumnus of Air Warfare College, United States of America. For his distinguished services, the Air Officer was awarded with Vayu Sena Medal and Vishisht Seva Medal. Air Commodore Fernandez is proceeding on promotion to the rank of Air Vice Marshal at Air Headquarters, Vayu Bhawan  New Delhi.

Jalandhar, March 26, 2013: All candidates selected with admit cards for Soldier Clerk, during the Army Recruitment Rally held  at Tibri Cantt (Gurdaspur) in the month of February 2013, are requested to report at Army Recruiting Office, Amritsar on April 5, Apr 2013 for collection of new Admit Card.

The date and venue of Common Entrance Examination (CEE) is now rescheduled to April 28, 2013 at Patiala due to some technical reasons. 

No test will be held on May 26, 2013 at Jalandhar. 

Old Admit card will not be entertained.  

Jalandhar, March 26, 2013: The Central Bureau of Investigation has arrested an Additional Commissioner of Income Tax, Gandhinagar in a bribery case.

It was alleged in the complaint that the Additional Commissioner, Income Tax, Gandhinagar had demanded an illegal gratification of Rs.50 lakh for scrutiny and assessment of the Income Tax Return for the assessment year  2010-2011 filed by a construction firm based in Gandhinagar. The amount of bribe was subsequently reduced to Rs.30 lakh and it was also informed that the assessment order would be handed over immediately on delivery of the bribe amount on March 25, 2013. The complainant, who was one of the partners of the said construction firm, lodged the complaint with CBI. A trap was laid by CBI. The complainant and another partner of the said firm went to meet the Additional Commissioner. The bribe amount was delivered at a courier service located in Ahmedabad as arranged by Additional Commissioner and his acquaintance. After confirmation of the delivery of the bribe amount, the complainant was handed over the Assessment Order.

Searches were conducted at various premises of the accused in Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad, New Delhi and Kolkata. Incriminating documents and articles were recovered during the searches.

The arrested accused is being produced today in the jurisdictional court.

The investigation is continuing.

Jalandhar, March 26, 2013 : The Special Judge for CBI cases, Tis Hazari Courts, New Delhi has sentenced O. P. Sharma, then DIG of CBI to undergo one year Rigorous Imprisonment with fine of Rs.50,000, each in Section 7 and 13(2) r/w 13(1)(d) of PC Act, 1988 in a bribery case.

A case was registered by CBI on a complaint against O.P. Sharma on June 16, 1991.  It was alleged that O.P. Sharma had demanded a bribe of Rs.10 lakh for not implicating two private persons (who were brothers) in a TADA case.  Sharma was the Supervisory Officer of a FERA case against one private person and others in which searches were conducted at the residential & official premises of the two private persons. During the interrogation, both brothers were allegedly threatened by Sharma for involving them under TADA in the said case.

CBI laid a trap and Sharma was caught red handed while demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs.10 lakh from the complainant at his official residence at R.K. Puram, New Delhi on June 16, 1991.

After thorough investigation, CBI filed a charge sheet in the Court of Special Judge, CBI cases, Tis Hazari Courts, Delhi on September 9, 1992.

The Trial Court found the accused guilty and convicted him.

Jalandhar, March 26, 2013: The Special Judge for CBI cases, Mumbai has sentenced R.K. Gupta, the then Additional Commissioner of Income Tax, Mumbai to undergo three years Rigorous Imprisonment with fine of Rs.10,000 U/s 7 & 13(2) r/w 13(1)(d) of PC Act 1988.

The case was registered by CBI on December 15, 2008 on the allegations that R.K. Gupta, the then Additional Commissioner of Income Tax demanded and accepted bribe of Rs. 4 lakh from Complainant (A Tax Consultant) for settlement of Income Tax assessment of his client.

On the completion of investigation, charge sheet U/s 7 & 13(2) r/w IPC 13 (1) (d) of PC Act was filed in the Designated Court at Mumbai.

The Trial Court found the accused guilty and convicted him.

Jalandhar, March 26, 2013: Army conducted a two day major disaster management exercise called Mountain Rescue in aid to civil authorities at the Annandale Ground on March 25-26.   

Major calamities that have struck the Indian sub continent during the last decade have underscored the need to adopt a multi-dimensional, multi disciplinary and multi sectoral approach to disaster management.  Within the ambit of this approach the armed forces constitute a significant and potent entity available within the central and state governments for disaster response and relief.  The armed forces, by virtue of their organisational strength, motivation, discipline and operational preparedness have always risen to the occasion, earning the appreciation of the environment for their singular contribution towards disaster management.

The aim of the exercise was to practice evacuation of civilian population from the disaster affected areas in the mountains of Himachal.  Army Aviation Corps and Air Force helicopters practiced casualty evacuation drills in conjunction with the Army Special Forces and regular troops of Jutogh battalion.  The exercise was conducted in conjunction with civil administration and fire service department.

The organisational strength of the Army formation and units was in full display during the exercise.  The Army plans to conduct more such exercises in the future to the tune its disaster management response.

Jalandhar, March 26,2013:The Central Bureau of Investigation has arrested a Superintendent of Central Excise(Anti Evasion), Haldia Commissionerate, Kolkata for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs.3.5 lakh from the complainant.

A case was registered against a Superintendent of Central Excise (Anti Evasion), Haldia Commissionerate, Kolkata U/s 7 of P.C. Act, 1988 on the allegation of demand of illegal gratification from the Manager of a Resort based at Port Blair for not imposing penalty on the Service Tax payable by the Resort. CBI laid a trap and the Superintendent of Central Excise was caught red handed while demanding & accepting a bribe Rs.3,50,000 from the complainant.

During search of the accused, cash Rs. 1,17,000 was recovered from his possession and cash Rs.7,98,000; Fixed Deposits; NSCs; KVPs and other investments aggregating about Rs. 75,00,000; Bank balance of Rs. 30,00,000 in 14 Bank Accounts and documents pertaining to immovable properties worth Rs. 80,00,000 were recovered from his residence. 

The arrested accused was produced today before the Designated Court at Kolkata and remanded to 14 days Judicial Custody.

Further investigation is continuing.

Based on the decisions taken by the government on the recommendations of the Shyamala Gopinath Committee for Comprehensive Review of National Small Savings Fund (NSSF), the interest rates for small saving schemes are to be notified every financial year, before 1st April of that year.

Accordingly, the rate of interest on various small savings schemes for the financial year 2013-14 effective from 1-4-2013, on the basis of the interest compounding/payment built-in in the schemes, shall be as under:

Chandimandir-Chandigarh, March 28, 2013: Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today presided over the Civil Military Liaison Conference (CMLC) here at Headquarters Western Command in the presence of Food and Civil supplies Minister Adaish Partap Singh Kairon and senior officers of the State administration.

Taking Part in the deliberations Badal reiterated the firm commitment of the state government for the welfare of the serving and ex-servicemen. He said that state government had taken path-breaking initiatives in this regard through establishing a 'Monitoring Cell' to monitor the re-employment of ex-servicemen by ensuring 13% reservation in all Punjab Government Services. Likewise the amount under various financial assistances had also been doubled besides, enhancing theassistance forGallantry Award Winners by 20%. The Punjab Government had taken a policy decision to offer Honour and Gratitude appointment to the widows/ dependants of  the family of  War Heroes added Badal and 437 jobs were given which included 9 - PCS, 24 - Class I & II, 252 – Class III and 152 – Class IV.

Expressing concern over the decline in the numbers of Punjabis in the defence services, Badal said that to restore the imbalance in officer cadre of the Defence Services the state of Punjab had  launched a motivational scheme wherein, a cadet joining National Defence Academy Pune (NDA), Indian Military Academy Dehradun (IMA), Officers Training Academy Chennai (OTA), Naval/Air Force Academies with effect from 01 Apr 2010 and subsequent dates, would be  given an incentive of Rs 1 lakh. This would motivate youth from Punjab to seek commission in the Defence Services,     under this scheme budget of Rs. 146 lakh had been released to concerned District Defence Services Welfare Offices for payment to 146 cadets during year 2012-13.

The Chief Minister also informed in the meeting that issues pertaining to inadequate water supply at Fazilka Military station at a cost of Rs. 12.50 crore, Civil Sewage and Sludge Disposal at Air Force Station, Pathankot, reimbursement of additional excise duty in lieu of octroi charged by government in Jalandhar, Ferozepur cantonments, exemption of entry tax on lubricating oil, besides acquisition of 350 acres of land at Patiala and other many issues had also been resolved.

Earlier, in his welcome address the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Command, Lieutenant General Sanjiv Chachra, AVSM, VSM, thanked the Chief Minister and Civil administration that had always been responsive and helpful to the need of the Defence Forces. He mentioned that with Badal’s personal intervention numerous issues related to defence services had already been resolved through interactive sessions held prior to the CMLC.

He further said that Punjab and the Armed Forces shared a strong and enduring relationship, which the Army was proud of. The State had given the Armed Forces distinguished military leaders, brave heart soldiers and had always been generous to the ex-servicemen community when rolling out concessions and benefits for their yeoman service. The Army Commander was confident that this trend would continue in the years to come.

The issues were discussed in a frank and forthright manner. Punjab Government sought coaches from Army for training of members of Punjab Amateur Rowing Association (PARA) which was agreed to by Army. The issue of Ammunition Dump Patti was discussed along with other Dumps with Army where various unauthorised constructions had come up in the notified area. Army Commander clarified that the provisions of the Act could not be violated being a Government of India Notification. It was decided that a committee would study the case and come out with concrete recommendations. Army also made a request for 500 acres at Mand for setting up an Aviation Base. The Chief Secretary brought out that the development of the area as a Greenfield Project could be considered. Army raised the requirement of land for Jai Jawan Awas Yojna and AWHO colonies. Chief Secretary mentioned that State Govt was constructing housing colonies in 50 Tier I and II towns and a certain percentage could be shared based on their requirement. The Hon’ble CM also agreed to extend all possible support to bring up the standard of Sainik School Kapurthala. The Govt also agreed to analyse whether wards of Defence personnel could be classified as a ‘disadvantaged group’ under the RTE Act. The CM agreed wholeheartedly to provide all possible help to ensure greater employment to retired officers, JCOs and jawans. The flooding issue of Chandigarh Airport also came up for discussion and Govt agreed to address the problems afflicting the Airport at an early date. It was also decided in the meeting that Army authorities would re-examine the construction of security wall around the Jalandhar Cantonment.

On conclusion, a vote of thanks was proposed by the Army for the CM and Punjab Government for their positive response to all issues discussed. The Punjab Government assured greater interaction at functional level for early resolution of all ongoing issues.

Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal alongwith General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Command Lt. General Sanjiv Chachra, AVSM, VSM, during Civil Military Liaison Conference at Chandimandir, Chandigarh on Thursday.

New Delhi / Jalandhar, March 29, 2013: Akhil Bharatiya Jat Maha Sammelan is being organised at Mavalankar Hall, Vitthalbhai Patel House, Rafi Marg, New Delhi on March 30 from 11 am to 4 pm.

The former Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Balram Jakhar will preside over the sammelan.

Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and a number of prominent Jat leaders will be participating in the function.