PUNJAB CM WRITES TO PM SEEKING STATUS QUO ON PUNJAB SHARE IN CHANDIGARH UT
Chandigarh, November 9, 2018: Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to ensure that the status quo in the Punjab and Haryana share in Chandigarh UT’s administrative posts is not maintained.
Seeking his personal intervention, the Chief Minister has requested Modi to advise the Ministry of Home Affairs, GoI, for early steps to maintain the ratio of 60:40 between Punjab and Haryana in filling up civil posts in the UT, as achieved over a period of time.
In his letter, Captain Amarinder Singh mentioned that it was heartening to note that the Government of India (GoI) had agreed to keep in abeyance its notification of September 25, 2018, merging the posts of DSPs of Chandigarh Police with Delhi, Andaman, Nicobar Islands Police Service (DANIPS), in response to his letter of October 1 this year.
The Chief Minister further pointed out that, currently, of the 14 IAS Officers posted in Chandigarh Administration, only three belonged to Punjab and two belonged to Haryana, with the remaining officers were from UT cadre. Similarly, of the 7 IPS Officers posted in Chandigarh, only one each belonged to Punjab and Haryana, whereas the remaining five were from UT cadre. Apparently, the ratio of 60:40 was also not being maintained in placing the officers in Chandigarh Administration, he said, adding that the situation was similar with respect to other categories of employees, such as teachers, doctors and other civil officers posted in Chandigarh Administration.
Given the fact that the Government of India had appreciated the need to maintain the ratio of 60:40 between Punjab and Haryana in filling up the posts in Chandigarh Administration, the imbalance created during the last few years needed to be rectified as well, said the Chief Minister.
Captain Amarinder Singh also impressed upon Modi to advise the Chandigarh Administration not to curtail the role and responsibilities of the officers of Punjab and Haryana, as assigned to them in pre-determined ratio and posts.
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CAPT AMARINDER URGES SUSHMA TO TAKE UP WITH PAKISTAN ISSUE OF OPENING OF SRI KARTARPUR SAHIB CORRIDOR
Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has urged Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj to take up with the Government of Pakistan the issue of opening of the corridor from Dera Baba Nanak to Sri Kartarpur Sahib.
In a letter to Sushma Swaraj, the Chief Minister said Kartarpur Sahib was one of the most revered religious places for Sikhs as Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji spent a large part of his life there.
Pointing out that the Gurdwara lies around 4 km westwards from Dera Baba Nanak, District Gurdaspur (Punjab), on the Pakistan side, he said the Government of Punjab had, time and again, requested the Government of India to take up with the Government of Pakistan the issue of opening a corridor from the International Border to Kartarpur Sahib.
Referring to the 550th Birth Anniversary of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji, being observed in November 2019, the Chief Minister apprised the External Affairs Minister that the Punjab Vidhan Sabha had passed a unanimous resolution on August 27, 2018, seeking uninterrupted opening of corridor from Dera Baba Nanak to Sri Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan.
It may be recalled that the Chief Minister had earlier also requested Sushma Swaraj, through a D.O. letter on August 20, 2018 to take up the matter with the government of the neighbouring country.
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CAPTAIN AMARINDER WRITES TO PASWAN SEEKING RELAXATION IN PADDY DRIAGE FROM 1% TO 2% OF MSP
Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has written to Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan seeking driage @ 2% instead of 1% of Minimum Support Price (MSP) so as to ensure hassle-free and uninterrupted procurement for the remaining Kharif Season.
In his letter to Paswan, the Chief Minister pointed out that such relaxation was warranted primarily on account of the excessive/abnormal/untimely rain and hailstorm that occurred immediately before harvesting, which had adversely impacted the out-turn ratio, thus causing problems in procuring paddy due to the relatively high-moisture content.
The Chief Minister further apprised Paswan that higher moisture content in paddy arrivals in several mandis, coupled with dip in temperature due to unusual climatic conditions this year, had led to unrest amongst the millers and the farmers, which was hampering the paddy purchase operations.
Captain Amarinder Singh also informed the Union Minister that various procurement agencies across the state had so far procured 130 Lac MTs of paddy during the current Kharif Marketing Season 2018-19, and requested him to issue necessary guidelines in this regard at the earliest, so as to ensure smooth procurement operations for paddy during the remainder of the Kharif Season.
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BUSINESS FIRST PORTAL RECEIVES GOOD RESPONSE FROM INVESTORS: SUNDAR SHAM ARORA
CHANDIGARH: After the successful launch of Business First Portal (BFP) on 6th November 2018 by Captain Amarinder Singh, Chief Minister, Punjab, the results have started pouring in. Investors have shown keen interest in registering their units and their investment plans on the Business First Portal, which is first of its kind in the country. The portal enables the investor to register itself on the portal and apply for all the required clearances online. The other star attractions of the portal are online fee payment, application tracking, third party verification & time bound online delivery of clearances.
This was disclosed by Mr. Sunder Sham Arora, Industries & Commerce Minister, Punjab. He further informed that till date after the launch of portal about 28 investors have logged in to the portal and 27 investors have submitted their Composite Application Form. The portal has proved to be a success as the first online clearance has been issued to M/s Punjab Alkalis and Chemicals, Naya Nangal, District Rupnagar for its Boiler installation under the expansion plan. This clearance has been issued online by Director of Boilers, Punjab within 8 days of application submission.
Mr. Arora reiterated that Business First Portal will be a success and it will be ensured that all clearances to the investors are issued in prescribed timeframe.
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Military Literature Festival-2018 to be held from 6-9 December
Chandigarh: The Tourism and Cultural Affairs Minister, Punjab, Mr. Navjot Singh Sidhu today announced the celebrations of First Military Literature Festival to be held at the Lake Club, Chandigarh from 6 to 9 December, 2018. The minister praised the Chief Minister, Punjab, Captain Amarinder Singh for introducing such events in the State which is very well known for its rich military legacy.
Mr. Sidhu further said that Punjab has a proud military tradition and is known as the ‘Shield of the Nation’ and has borne the brunt of wars. Divulging more, he said that apart from the interactive sessions on the military and warfare related subjects with the war veterans the sessions pertaining to poetry and art fields would also be a part of the festival. He said that it would be a perfect opportunity for the young minds to learn about their rich history, culture and legacy. Apart from other important events planned for the Military Literature Festival, a mega social evening has been planned for 6th December 2018 in which renowned singer Gurdas Maan has been invited to perform. He called for the sacrifices of the war heroes to be remembered and highlighted the fact that 74000 indian defence personnel sacrificed their lives during the first world war. On the occasion, a 2 minute silence was also observed in remembrance of the war heroes.
Earlier, Lt. General T. S. Shergill AVSM, Senior Advisor to Chief Minister, elaborated the activities which have been planned for this year. He informed that as part of the pre lit fest activities, the response to the archery competition held at Patiala and shotgun shooting championship and Army Polo match held at Patiala have received tremendous response. He informed that this year the events like military theme photography competition, cyclothon, off roading show, Nature trail run for women and children and birdwatching workshop have been added.
It is worth mentioning that the entry to the main event at the Lake Club between 7th to 9th December 2018 is free for the public. However the participant will have to register and should carry the registration pass for entry to the venue. Three venues have been finalized for the panel discussions in which great military writers, soldiers, thinkers, authors, adventurers, sportsmen, poets, artists, journalists, technocrats, documentary and film makers and military industrialists will come together to share their experiences and expertise with each other and the public. This year 24 panel discussions over a period of three days will be held in which wide variety of military, strategic and historic subjects shall be discussed. The descendants of the Victoria Cross, George Cross winning soldiers would also be invited for the fest.
Earlier, Secretary Tourism and Cultural Affairs, Punjab, Mr. Vikas Pratap welcomed the chief guest. The Department of Tourism and Cultural Affairs is the nodal department for the event.
Among those who were present included Lt General Surinder Pal Singh AVSM,VSM, ADC, GoC-in-C, Western Command, Chief of Staff Western Command Lt. General P.M. Bali, Director, Sainik Welfare and Hospitality, Punjab Mr. Moneesh Kumar and other senior officers from UT administration and Army.
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PUNJAB CM DIRECTS EMPLOYMENT GENERATION DEPT TO HIRE GLOBALLY REPUTED CONSULTANT/AGENCY TO CHECK UNSCRUPULOUS AGENTS
Chandigarh: As part of the government’s crackdown on unscrupulous travel agents and overseas placement agencies, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Friday directed the Department of Employment Generation to hire a consultant or agency of international repute to develop a roadmap to facilitate the youth who intend to go abroad for the study and/or employment.
Presiding over the first meeting of the Governing Council of Punjab Ghar Ghar Rozgar & Karobar Mission (PGRKAM) here, the Chief Minister also underlined the need for a powerful framework to ensure synergy, oversight and effective coordination in the implementation of various employment generation schemes by multiple departments.
Captain Amarinder Singh underscored the need to find out ways and means to provide lucrative overseas employment opportunities for youth and suggested that the proposed globally reputed consultant or agency also be mandated to prepare a blueprint to offer better study prospects in the world-class colleges and universities across the globe, besides identifying jobs in foreign countries commensurate with the educational qualifications of the youth.
The consultant would also facilitate in the deployment/placement of Punjabi youth and also send them abroad on study visa, he said, directing the Employment Generation Department to utilize the services of aforesaid consultant/agency for designing a mechanism to launch a 24X7 job helpline and set the criteria for IELTS coaching as per international standards.
Underlining the need to chalk out a strategy for building a globally competitive and acceptable human resource in the state, Captain Amarinder Singh also asked the Employment Generation Department to create the necessary framework to facilitate wage and self-employment for the unemployed youth, besides improving employability through skill training/skill up-gradation. He further directed the Department to identify areas having potential for employment generation and to harness that potential with government intervention.
In order to reach and connect unemployed youth with prospective employers, the Chief Minister also asked the PGRKAM to make optimum use of social media platform, besides enhancing the scope of its existing digital portal for registering maximum number of unemployed youth, who could benefit from the state-wide employment drive under Ghar Ghar Rozgar Yojana.
During the meeting, Technical Education Minister Charanjit Singh Channi informed the Chief Minister that so far 4,01,300 youths have been gainfully employed under this programme, from April 1, 2017 till October 31, 2018.
To give focussed attention to the creation of more job opportunities for youth in the state, the country and abroad, the Chief Minister also decided to hold a meeting on the 10th of every month to review the progress of these targets. It was also decided in the meeting that the mission would also facilitate youth applying for government jobs.
The Chief Minister also gave the nod to constitute a committee under the chairmanship of Principal Secretary Finance, with Secretary and Director Employment Generation & Training as Members, to finalize modalities for office accommodation, recruitment of requisite staff and other financial requirements for PGRKAM. He also asked the PGRKAM to work out an action plan to generate database, divided into three components viz. jobseekers, job providers and others, which would further help in hand holding the jobseekers and the job providers, in addition to reaching out to every household in Punjab.
It was also decided at the meeting that PGRKAM would also explore the possibilities for engaging competent coaching institutes/agencies to provide quality coaching to aspirants, with an objective to promoting a level playing field, and giving marginalized and deserving aspirants a better chance to succeed in various competitive examinations conducted by the State and Central Governments.
Prominent amongst others present at the meeting were Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal, Chief Principal Secretary to CM Suresh Kumar, ACS Industries & Commerce and IT Vini Mahajan, Principal Secretary Labour and Employment R. Venkat Ratnam, Principal Secretary Finance Anirudh Tiwari, Special Principal Secretary to CM Gurkirat Kirpal Singh and Secretary Employment Generation DK Tiwari.