HT Correspondent

letterschd@hindustantimes.com

CHANDIGARH : Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday asked the “cash-rich” Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) to pay $20 fee required of every pilgrim for travelling to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib through the newly opened Kartarpur corridor from its coffers at least to those from economically weaker sections who cannot afford to pay the amount.

The CM also urged the prime ministers of both India and Pakistan to waive the passport condition for travel through the corridor and instead accept other identity proofs, including Aadhaar card, driving licence etc as there were reports of confusion among pilgrims over the registration process.

In a press statement, he added, “These ID proofs should be accepted since there is no requirement of stamping of visa on the passport in any case. It’s not because of a lack of interest among people that few devotees are crossing over to the historic gurdwara but the conditions of passport and $20 fee are to be blamed. Lakhs of pilgrims are waiting to visit the shrine on the historic 550th Parkash Purb (birth anniversary) of Guru Nanak but they simply cannot go.”

Amarinder pointed out that even as the Pakistan PM had tweeted before opening of the corridor that passport will not be needed for devotees visiting the Kartarpur shrine the decision was not formalised.

“If pilgrims are unable to make full use of the corridor then the whole purpose of this unique initiative will be defeated,” he added.

Pointing towards the lavish expenditure incurred by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) on holding separate programmes to commemorate the 550th Parkash Purb at Sultanpur Lodhi, the CM said it was evident that the body was flush with funds.

“Instead of flaunting their money to satisfy their egos and make political statements through the religious occasion, they should spend the money on supporting the pilgrims, especially poor pilgrims who simply cannot afford to pay the fee to pay obeisance at the Kartarpur gurdwara,” he quipped.

“Why can’t the SGPC and their political masters, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and particularly the Badal family, shell out some money for the actual good of the community?” he asked.

Manmohan Singh

New Delhi, November 11

Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu has nominated former Prime Minister and senior Congress leader Manmohan Singh to the parliamentary standing committee on finance in place of party colleague Digvijaya Singh.

Digvijaya Singh has now been nominated to the parliamentary standing committee on urban development by the Chairman of the Upper House, according to a Rajya Sabha bulletin.

“The Rajya Sabha chairman has nominated Manmohan Singh to be a member of the committee on finance in place of Digvijaya Singh. The chairman has also nominated Digvijaya Singh to be a member of the committee on urban development,” the bulletin reads.

According to sources, Digvijay Singh resigned from the parliamentary standing committee on finance to make way for the former PM.

Manmohan Singh, who was the country’s Finance Minister between 1991 and 1996, was a member of the panel from September 2014 to May 2019 before his tenure in the Upper House ended in June this year. In August, he was elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan.

In the previous tenure, the panel took up various contentious issues such as demonetisation and GST for deliberations, during which Manmohan Singh played very active role. — PTI

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Dera Baba Nanak, November 9

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday inaugurated the Kartarpur corridor, flagging off the first batch of over 500 Indian pilgrims here, including former prime minister Manmohan Singh and Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal.

The corridor links Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan, the final resting place of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev, to Dera Baba Nanak shrine in this Punjab district.

Modi flagged off the first batch of pilgrims led by Akal Takhat Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib through the corridor, which was thrown open days ahead of the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev on November 12.

The prime minister inaugurated the passenger terminal building of the corridor on the Indian side, also known as the Integrated Check Post, where pilgrims will get clearance to travel through the newly-built 4.5 km-long corridor.

India had signed an agreement with the neighbouring nation on October 24 on the modalities for operationalisation of the corridor at ‘Zero Point’ of the international boundary at Dera Baba Nanak.

The first batch of pilgrims included Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal, Sukhbir Singh Badal and Navjot Singh Sidhu.

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Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee members and all the 117 MLAs and MPs from Punjab were also part of the ‘jatha’ (delegation).

Before dedicating the corridor to the nation, Modi partook langar (community kitchen) along with Punjab Governor V P Singh Badnore, Amarinder Singh and state Congress president Sunil Jakhar.

Donning a saffron coloured turban (head gear), Modi watched a video on the life and teachings of Guru Nanak Dev. The prime minister was also shown a model of the Kartarpur corridor.

At the time of flagging off the jatha, Modi met Manmohan Singh, who was accompanied by his wife Gursharan Kaur, and had a brief chat with him.

The state-of-the-art passenger terminal building, with a design inspired by ‘Khanda’- a symbol of faith in Sikh community, has been constructed on 15 acres of land.

The fully air-conditioned building, akin to an airport, has over 50 immigration counters for facilitating about 5,000 pilgrims a day.

It has all necessary public amenities such as kiosks, washrooms, child care and first-aid facilities, prayer rooms and snacks counters.

The project was executed by the central government agency Land Ports Authority of India.

On November 22 last year, the Union Cabinet had passed a resolution to celebrate the historic occasion of the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev in a “grand and befitting manner” throughout the country and across the globe.

The Cabinet had also approved the building and development of the Kartarpur Sahib corridor from Dera Baba Nanak to the international boundary to facilitate pilgrims from India to visit Gurdwara Darbar Sahib round the year in a smooth and easy manner. PTI

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 6

A former disabled Lieutenant Colonel has sent a legal notice for defamation to a Lieutenant General, who retired on October 31, over views expressed by the latter on disabled soldiers and other military veterans demanding Rs 1 crore compensation for damages to reputation caused thereof.

In his notice sent through his lawyer, Lt Col Nijar Bakshi of Noida averred that in an interview given to a private news channel, Lt Gen Ashwani Kumar, who was the Adjutant General at Army Headquarters before hanging up his boots, spoke in an “irresponsible and abandoned manner” about various service subjects that were outside his purview and expressed views that were against the statements of the Defence Minister, statutory provisions and judgments of the High Courts and the Supreme Court.

The Adjutant General (AG), one of the principal staff officers to the Chief of Army Staff, is responsible for conditions of service, welfare, manpower, discipline, morale, legal affairs and fiscal matters.

Pointing out that the Lt General, on the eve of his retirement, spoke “disparagingly” about military pensioners and persons with disabilities conveying as if many such pensioners did not deserve disability benefits, the notice contends that his statements had breached the bar by contravening and challenging the authority of the Defence Minister as some of the issues were sub-judice or already being looked into by the Defence Minister.

‘Insult to veterans’

This has not only put disabled veterans to ridicule, but has also shamed the Government of India, which gives disability pension on its own as per its rules and has also been contemptuous of court orders. — Lt Col Nijar Bakshi 

Disability pension row may take a legal turn

new delhi : An army veteran has threatened to sue recently retired Adjutant General Lt Gen Ashwani Kumar for the latter’s comments on disability pension received by retired soldiers.

Lieutenant Colonel Niraj Bakshi (retd), who has threatened to sue General Kumar for a sum of ₹1 crore, has claimed the comments of the former Adjutant General has caused “irreparable damage” to his reputation as a disabled soldier, a disability pensioner and an upright military veteran and model citizen.

Bakshi has sought an“unconditional apology” from Kumar for speaking in an “irresponsible and abandoned manner”.

On the day Kumar retired, he spoke to media on disability pension paid to veterans and the proposed Code of Conduct for veterans to prevent misuse which he claimed was high.

Kumar did not respond to requests for comment.

The Silver Spitfire at Sonegaon Air Force Station near Nagpur.

Vijay Mohan
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, November 5

Over 74 years after a squadron of the Britain’s Royal Air Force (RAF), named after Bombay, came to India, a vintage aircraft that had served with the outfit during the Second World War has arrived in India as part of a 43,000-km circumnavigation expedition, bringing alive a historic link between the Indian Air Force and the RAF.

It has also revived nostalgia among aviators of what was perhaps the most iconic fighter of that era.

The aircraft, a Supermarine Spitfire fighter that was widely used during and after the war, touched down at Jodhpur airbase today after having traversed through Kolkata and Nagpur, where the flying machine and its crew are being hosted by the IAF.

Christened the ‘Silver Spitfire’ due to its gleaming all aluminum-toned airframe, this particular aircraft bearing the number MJ271 had entered RAF service in 1943. Though it served with various RAF units, it had, for a brief period, formed part of RAF’s No. 132 ‘Bombay’ Squadron that had come to the city in January 1945 and then moved on to Celyon (now Sri Lanka).

During its military service, the aircraft had flown a total of 51 combat missions. After having donned service colours, including that of the Netherlands, for over 70 years before being “de-militarised” and having its guns removed, it was restored to its present configuration with the call-sign G-IRTY. Touted as the longest flight expedition, launched in the 75th year of the D-Day landings at Normandy during WW-II, the spitfire, flown by Steve Brook and Matt Jones, will fly to 29 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe and North America in its attempt to bring together nations in which the aircraft had flown.

It is after about 30 years that a Spitfire has taken to the skies in India. The erstwhile Royal Indian Air Force and thereafter the IAF operated this aircraft from 1943 to 1959 in the fighter and reconnaissance roles with 15 squadrons. The Spitfire also saw action during the defence of the Kashmir Valley in 1947.

The last flight of the Spitfire in India was at the Air Force Day parade in 1989 by an aircraft from the IAF’s Vintage Flight based at Palam Air Force Station in Delhi, which maintains several old aircraft in flying condition. Bearing tail number NH-631, this aircraft is presently on display at the IAF Museum there and the Air Force is looking at restoring it to make it airworthy for flying displays. Its sister aircraft that was among a lot sold as scrap by the Indian government is now flying in private hands in the US.

In February 2003, a near-intact Spitfire that had crashed in May 1947 was recovered from a river bed near the Ambala airbase during digging work. The airframe was reconstructed and it has been on static display at the base.

The Army remains steadfast that it will not tolerate homosex ..or adultery in its ranks despite Supreme Court judgements de ..

BEFOre invoking the avuncular responsibilities of the neighbouring CMs, Capt Amarinder Singh and ML Khattar, Delhi’s Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal must check his own house for air quality and ensure that it is good enough to inhale for the children of his state. Distributing lakhs of masks among schoolchildren serves no purpose other than offering a cheap political gimmick. It is the duty and obligation of ‘uncle Kejriwal’ to tackle the problem of air pollution. For that, he must focus on addressing the main culprits that are present in abundance throughout the year in Delhi: construction dust and vehicle emissions. Kejriwal’s convenient shifting of the blame wholly on to the farm fires of Punjab and Haryana for the aggravated toxic fumes that the hapless Delhiites have been enduring since Diwali exposes the hollowness of his government’s intent and ability to combat extreme air pollution.

It’s true stubble fires in Punjab have become a health hazard for the state and Chandigarh and it’s also that the Westerlies blowing towards the Capital carry noxious fumes of stubble-burning in the post-harvest season. Add the Diwali fireworks and the smoky concoction wreaks misery on the residents as micro-particles fester in their lungs and bloodstream. According priority to health, the Delhi Government would do well to focus on regulating the never-ending construction business and banning coal-based units, as also strictly adopting eco-friendly transport modes.

Taking note of the debilitating gas chamber that the NCR has become, the Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority has declared a public health emergency in the region and banned crackers and construction at night for some time. Though this temporary directive will help tide over the immediate crisis, a permanent and sustainable solution is the key for clean air. While comprehensive environmental laws are in place, their enforcement is hindered by lack of political will. Is ‘uncle Kejriwal’ listening? Of course, the ‘nieces and nephews’ too need to chip in for ensuring a clear horizon. If Beijing can do it, so should Delhi.

As Jammu and Kashmir gets formally split into two UTs today, Tuesday’s gruesome killing in Kulgam of labourers from West Bengal is a grim reminder of the task at hand for the security grid — already out in full force to guard against incendiary protests and attacks after the state lost its special status. The terror handlers’ strategic switch to targeted killing of non-local truckers and labourers, as part of a campaign to deter them from working in Kashmir even if most of the victims have been Muslims, presents a new challenge. New Delhi has stated that UT status would ensure better integration with the Union, but it is now staring at an ever-widening chasm.

The bloodbath took place on the day of the controversy-ridden first visit by any international delegation after August 5. The government has chosen to side-step questions on the purpose and motive behind allowing European Union parliamentarians, many among them from extreme right or right-wing parties, to visit the Valley when Opposition MPs have been denied access all along. A few weeks ago, a US senator was refused permission. Shiv Sena raked up the issue of ‘internationalising’ the issue, reminding ally BJP how it continuously targets Pt Nehru for taking the Kashmir issue to the UN.

The credibility of the EU delegation got dented when a member claimed he was dropped from the trip because he asked for unfettered access for a fair assessment, and was ‘not prepared for a PR stunt and pretend all is well’. So, all is well, then? The EU parliamentarians have said nothing to the contrary. Terming Article 370 an internal issue of India, they vowed to stand by the country in its fight against terrorism. While one claimed the international media coverage seemed biased, another said the visit was an ‘eye-opener’. There was one positive note though for the Opposition to lap up: ‘You should also let in politicians from India. There is some kind of disbalance, the government should somehow address it.’