US NSA Lieut Gen HR McMaster with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Photo courtesy: Twitter handle of PIB

New Delhi, April 18The US on Tuesday reaffirmed India’s designation as a Major Defence Partner and emphasised the importance of its strategic relationship as its National Security Adviser HR McMaster met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and held talks with his counterpart Ajit Doval.“The two sides discussed a range of bilateral and regional issues, including their shared interest in increasing defence and counter-terrorism cooperation,” the US embassy said in a press statement after the meetings here.“NSA McMaster emphasised the importance of the US-India strategic relationship and reaffirmed India’s designation as a Major Defence Partner,” it said and noted that the meetings were “productive”.

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McMaster, whose trip here marks the first visit by a top official of the Trump Administration, also met Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar.“The visit was a part of the regional consultations that included stops in Kabul and Islamabad,” the statement said.During the US official’s meeting with the Prime Minister, the two sides discussed key bilateral and regional issues, including defence and counter-terrorism cooperation.Doval, Jaishankar and several key officials were present in the meeting that took place at the Prime Minister’s residence.Earlier, McMaster and Doval held detailed discussions on Indo-US relations, especially the security aspect of the ties, sources said.The US NSA arrived here on Monday evening from Pakistan where he met Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and some top officials.In Islamabad, the relations between India and Pakistan figured in McMaster’s discussions with Sharif. PTI

Indeed a great general, we owe him so much..

Lt Gen Joginder Singh Dhillon (1914-2003)

Last salute to the Lion of 1965

The death of Lieutenant General Joginder (Jogi) Singh Dhillon on 20
November 2003 at the age of 89 received no coverage in the Indian
papers, although it was his inspiring generalship that helped smash
the superior Pakistani armour, poised to head for the Beas bridge and then onto Delhi, in the opening days of the 1965 India-Pakistan war.
Such milestones seem of lesser consequence to our press than the
extensive coverage given to dubious public figures.What Jogi Dhillon brought to his command as lieutenant general
commanding XI Corps in the 1965 war, was a military service of many
firsts. He stood first in 1933 in the all India entrance examination
to the Indian Military Academy, then won both the coveted gold medal
and the Sword of Honour before joining the Bengal Sappers on February 1, 1936.

Graduating in 1939 with honours from Roorkee s Thomson Civil
Engineering College, he was soon sent overseas for the first four
years of World War II. He saw active service in Iraq, Iran and Burma and, after a stint in the Staff College, Quetta, was again sent to command a field company in Malaya (1945-46), then onto Sourabaya, where he commanded 2 Field Company, before returning home.

From 1946 to 1947 he was staff officer in the E-in-C s Office Army HQ,then went to Quetta as garrison engineer, before taking over as GSO1 in the E-in-C s Branch from October 1947 to February 1948 in the rank of lieutenant colonel.

At this critical juncture in the life of the Bengal Sappers, Jogi
Dhillon was handpicked to take charge of its regimental centre at
Roorkee. The centre’s crisis arose from the fact that since the Indian
Army’s Corps of Engineers had centres in Bangalore, Roorkee and
Kirkee, under the terms of Parition the centres in Bangalore and
Kirkee would remain in India, while the Roorkee centre’s assets would go to Pakistan.

So Bengal Sappers was one of the formations that bore the brunt of the division of the Indian Army. In the division on a two-third, one-third basis the majority assets in the Roorkee centre’s case went to Pakistan’s Engineers Centre at Sialkot, including plant and equipment, and even furniture, carpets, curtains, books, silver, crockery, cutlery and typewriters and one-third of the regimental fund.

In the two years after taking command in February 1948 of what was left of the centre, Dhillon turned the challenge of resurrecting it into a personal triumph that left everyone breathless. Combining
organisational skill with drive, determination and steel, he
rehabilitated the centre, streamlined its training and administration and integrated it into an efficient and war-worthy team.

A change of profound importance introduced at the centre which thenewly independent nation’s army as a whole eventually adopted was that whilst hitherto several messes for the other ranks had cooked food in each unit for a particular caste, Colonel Dhillon decisively ended this outdated practice. He decreed a single integrated mess would serve food to all men and not their caste.

Another thing, according to a retired Sappers officer, Colonel Chanan Singh Dhillon, the dynamic commandant did was demolish the wall that separated the centre’s gurudwara and Hindu temple and build a platform instead, so that gatherings of both denominations could jointly celebrate their special days.

When Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru visited the centre in 1949 he was so impressed by what he saw that he extended Jogi Dhillon the singular honour of selecting him to command India’s first Republic Day parade in 1950.

After command of the Bengal Sappers, Dhillon commanded two infantry brigades in succession before his appointment, in 1956, as director of technical development in Army HQ. He then served as director, weapons and equipment, before being promoted to major general in December 1957.

He was chief of staff, Western Command, at the time of his selection to attend a course at the Imperial Defence College in the United Kingdom, from where he returned to an appointment in the National Defence College, before assuming command of a division in August 1960.
His next job was as deputy chief of the general staff at Army HQ, then promotion to lieutenant general and posting as GOC, XI Corps in Punjab.

The posting would be the culmination of everything that had gone into the making of this exceptional soldier. When on the morning of September 6, 1965, war with Pakistan broke out, with the XI Corps launching a massive retaliatory attack across the border in Punjab on several fronts at 4 am, the aim was to teach Pakistan a lesson for its unprovoked attack on India in the Chhamb sector a few days earlier.

It is not possible to describe this 17-day war here but the decisive
tank battle of Assal Uttar, near Khem Karan, on September 10 does bear telling. Indian units hid their Sherman tanks 500 metres apart in a U-shaped formation in tall and unharvested sugarcane fields, and snared the enemy’s vastly superior Patton tanks into this ambush, annihilating them to the last tank and deciding the outcome of the war.

The destruction of Pakistan’s armoured pride and the casualties it
suffered, including an artillery brigadier and many other senior
officers killed or surrendered, destroyed the enemy’s morale. At Assal Uttar, 97 enemy tanks of which 72 were Pattons and 25 Chafees and Shermans were destroyed, damaged or captured intact, of which 28 Pattons were in perfect running condition.

Facing the very modern M-48 Pattons were India’s old and inferior
Centurions and Shermans outgunned, outdistanced and far fewer in number. And yet Indian losses at Khem Karan were only 32 tanks.

There are countless other such telling statistics but the fact that
stands out is when Pakistan’s chief of army general staff and air
chief met their president on September 19 and requested him to
negotiate a ceasefire with the Indians, Pakistan’s defeat was
acknowledged at the highest levels.

A few days after the cessation of hostilities, Frank Moraes (he was
then editor-in-chief of The Indian Express), spent a weekend in the
Lahore sector, calling first on Lt General Dhillon at his wartime
corps HQ at Raiyya, and then visiting some places that had already
become household words like the Ichhogil Canal, Dograi, Khem Karan.

Moraes described our visit in The Soldier’s Spirit in his paper of
November 1, 1965, and also his meeting with Jogi Dhillon: I was
fortunate to spend some time with Lt General J.S. Dhillon, the corps commander in this sector, and to note and understand how greatly the spirit of all, from jawans to divisional commanders, depends on the calibre of the corps commander. Jogi Dhillon is an enthusiastic, intelligent soldier with a physical vigour, drive and combativeness which enable him to be extraordinarily mobile over his wide command and an inspiring presence and example to his officers and men.

In recognition of his role in the 1965 war, the President of India
invested Dhillon with the Padma Bhushan in August 1966 and appointed him GOC-in-C Central Command, from where he retired on August 4, 1970.

When the army bade farewell to its distinguished comrade in Delhi on November 21, 2003, six generals acted as pallbearers and the COAS, General N.C. Vij, flew in for the funeral from Hyderabad. This reaffirmed that the Indian Army stands steadfast on some of its finest traditions.

On a more personal note, Jogi Dhillon was married for 62 years to
Minnie, who survives him, and to whom he was as devoted as she to him.He is also survived by his three daughters, Kiran, Komal and Kamal: an architect, airline executive and head of her own consultancy firm each as individualistic as their indomitable parents

MORE DETAILS OF THE BENGAL SAPPER LION

Lieutenant General Joginder Singh Dhillon (1914–2003) was the first post independence Sapper Army Commander (Central Army) and was a decorated and celebrated Indian and Sikh military war hero. Lt Gen Dhillon was the first Army Officer to be awarded the ‘Padma Bhushan’ on 24 November 1965, for his role in the 1965^[1] Indo-Pak War, where he was the General Officer Commanding Corps (XI corps). The official citation given for the award was as follows:

“In this Sector, the enemy launched repeated counter-attacks and the conduct of day to day operations called for great tenacity, strong determination and robust mind. Lieutenant General Dhillon displayed all these qualities in abundance and the success achieved by his Corps was to a great extent due to the personality of the General officer.”

Early career

He was commissioned into Bengal Engineer Group in 1936, after receiving the Sword of Honour and Gold Medal at the Indian Military Academy in 1935, and standing first in the all-India entrance examination to the Indian Military Academy in 1933. Graduating in 1939 with honours from Roorkee s Thomson Civil Engineering College (now IIT Roorkee), he was soon sent overseas for the first four years of World War II. He saw active service in Iraq, Iran and Burma and, after a stint in the Staff College, Quetta, was again sent to command a field company in Malaya (1945–46), then onto Sourabaya, where he commanded 2 Field Company, before returning home. From 1946 to 1947 he was staff officer in the E-in-C s Office Army HQ, then went to Quetta as garrison engineer, before taking over as GSO1 in the E-in-C s Branch from October 1947 to February 1948 in the rank of Lieutenant Colonel

Resurrection of the Bengal Sappers

The Bengal Sappers was one of the formations that bore the brunt of the division of the Indian Army during partition. Since the Indian Army’s Corps of Engineers had centres in Bangalore, Roorkee and Kirkee, under the terms of Parition the centres in Bangalore and Kirkee would remain in India, while the Roorkee centre’s assets would go to Pakistan. In the division on a two-third, one-third basis the majority assets in the Roorkee centre’s case went to Pakistan’s Engineers Centre at Sialkot, including plant and equipment and more than half its personnel, and one-third of the regimental fund

The onus of resurrecting the Bengal Sappers fell to Colonel JS Dhillon, who was the first commandant of the Bengal Sappers after India’s independence. With minimal resources and limited personnel, Col Dhillon reorganized and rejuvenated the Bengal Sappers into the leading engineering group of the Army.

“In the two years after taking command in February 1948 of what was left of the centre, Dhillon turned the challenge of resurrecting it into a personal triumph that left everyone breathless. Combining organisational skill with drive, determination and steel, he rehabilitated the centre, streamlined its training and administration and integrated it into an efficient and war-worthy team“

“A change of profound importance introduced at the centre which the newly independent nation s army as a whole eventually adopted was that whilst hitherto several messes for the other ranks had cooked food in each unit for a particular caste, Colonel Dhillon decisively ended this outdated practice. He decreed a single integrated mess would serve food to all men and not their caste.“

When Prime Minister Jawarharlal Nehru visited the regimental center at Roorkee in 1949, he was so impressed by the Bengal Sappers that he specifically asked for Col JS Dhillon to command India’s first Republic Day parade

Honour of commanding first Republic Day parade

Having taken the salute from Col Joginder Singh Dhillon, Commandant, Bengal Engineer Group and Centre on 25 November 1949 at the Centre Parade Ground, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru specifically asked for him to command the First Republic Day Parade to be held in Delhi.

The Parade was held on 26 January 1950 at the Irwin Stadium, Delhi, and was duly commanded by then Brig Dhillon. The Parade had contingents from Army, Navy, Air Force and the Police and it was one of the finest spectacles of the Independent India staged in Delhi during that period. Brig Dhillon later commanded two infantry brigades and also served as director of technical development and director of weapons and equipment at army headquarters before being promoted to Major General. As Major General, he was selected to attend a course at Imperial Defence College in the United Kingdom, and returned to a posting at the National Defence College and was later given command of a division in August 1960. JS Dhillon was Deputy Chief of General Staff at Army headquarters when he was promoted to GOC, XI corps in Punjab.

“The posting would be the culmination of everything that had gone into the making of this exceptional soldier. When on the morning of September 6, 1965, war with Pakistan broke out, with the XI Corps launching a massive retaliatory attack across the border in Punjab on several fronts at 4 am, the aim was to teach Pakistan a lesson for its unprovoked attack on India in the Chhamb sector a few days earlier“

Role in 2nd Indo-Pakistan War, 1965

Lt Gen J.S. Dhillon was the Commander of XI Corps which was responsible for the Punjab sector during the 1965 Indo-Pak War. He is credited in producing and conducting the battle plan that destroyed or captured over 100 superior Pakistani battle tanks, turning a potentially dangerous defeat into an amazing victory, as the Pakistani tanks were poised to head for the Beas Bridge and then on to Delhi.

“The decisive tank battle of Assal Uttar, near Khem Karan, on September 10 does bear telling. Indian units hid their Sherman tanks 500 metres apart in a U-shaped formation in tall and unharvested sugarcane fields, and snared the enemy s vastly superior Patton tanks into this ambush, annihilating them to the last tank and deciding the outcome of the war.

The destruction of Pakistan s armoured pride and the casualties it suffered, including an artillery brigadier and many other senior officers killed or surrendered, destroyed the enemy s morale. At Assal Uttar, 97 enemy tanks of which 72 were Pattons and 25 Chafees and Shermans were destroyed, damaged or captured intact, of which 28 Pattons were in perfect running condition.

Facing the very modern M-48 Pattons were India s old and inferior Centurions and Shermans outgunned, outdistanced and far fewer in number. And yet Indian losses at Khem Karan were only 32 tanks“

Frank Moraes, the editor in chief of the Indian Express, who spent time on the frontlines, wrote: “I was fortunate to spend some time with Lt General J.S. Dhillon, the corps commander in this sector, and to note and understand how greatly the spirit of all, from jawans to divisional commanders, depends on the calibre of the corps commander. Jogi Dhillon is an enthusiastic, intelligent soldier with a physical vigour, drive and combativeness which enable him to be extraordinarily mobile over his wide command and an inspiring presence and example to his officers and men.“

Lt. Gen Dhillon was awarded the Padma Bhushan for his role in the 1965 war and was promoted to Army Commander of the Central Command, from where he retired on August 4, 1970.

Lt Gen JS Dhillon’s counterpart Pakistani Generals who fought against him in the 1965 war, on hearing of his death in 2003, paid warm tribute to him as a great general and warrior.

Indian and Chinese delegations at a border personnel meeting in Ladakh. tribune photo

Jammu, April 10

The ceremonial Border Personnel Meetings (BPM) were held today at the Indian BPM Hut in Chushul and at the Indian Meeting Point Hut at Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) in eastern Ladakh.The Indian delegations were led by Maj Gen Savneet Singh in Chushul and by Maj Deepak Tiwari in DBO whereas the Chinese delegations were led by Senior Col Xhang Jun Yong in Chushul and by Lt Col Duan Yu Gang in DBO.Giving details, PRO (Defence), Udhampur, NN Joshi said the Border Personnel Meetings were marked by both the delegations saluting the national flags of the two countries. “This was followed by the ceremonial address by leaders of the delegations. Thereafter, a cultural programme showcasing the vibrant Indian heritage was organised,” he said. — TNS

New Delhi, April 9

Individuals struggling to link their Permanent Account Number (PAN) with Aadhaar because of differently spelled names can now simply upload a scanned copy of PAN to get the work done.The tax department is also planning to introduce an option on the e-filing portal through which taxpayers can choose to link Aadhaar without changing the name by opting for a one-time password (OTP), provided the year of birth of the person matches in both documents.With the linking of PAN with Aadhaar being made mandatory, individuals can log on to e-filing website of the Income Tax Department or NSDL, but the seeding cannot happen if the name is differently spelt in two cards—like use of full name in PAN and initials in Aadhaar. In such cases, the government has allowed a simple uploading of a scanned copy of PAN on the Aadhaar website. The tax department would start educating taxpayers from this week through media outreach on ways to link PAN with Aadhaar. — PTI

Show credit, loan payments over Rs 2 lakh in tax return

• All cash payments of over Rs2 lakh for paying loans and credit card bills during the 50-day period after demonetisation will have to be disclosed in the new one-page income tax return form
• Besides providing for declaring income, exemption claimed and tax paid, the forms have a new column providing for declaration for any deposit of over Rs 2 lakh in bank accounts made during November 9 and December 30, 2016.

Monument to be built in village of Ishar Singh who led Army unit; Punjab to hold defence literary fest on Oct 27

Punjab CM Capt Amarinder Singh interacts with the audience during his book release function in Chandigarh on Saturday. Tribune Photo: S Chandan

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 8

While it is widely believed that 21 soldiers had made the last stand at Saragarhi in the North-West Frontier Province 120 years ago, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh said there was a 22nd man in the fortress whose sacrifice had gone unnoticed.Dedicating his book, ‘The 36th Sikhs in the Tirah Campaign 1897-98: Saragarhi and the Defence of Samana Forts’, that was released here today to the 22nd man, he said the man, a non-combatant and deployed at Saragarhi as a cook, picked up a rifle after others were killed and shot four tribals.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)Though his exact identity is unknown, he probably belonged to Noushera and is referred to simply as ‘Daad’. He wanted to join the Army, but was rejected on medical grounds. There is only one edifice dedicated to the battle on which his reference crops up.The Saragarhi battle, where 21 soldiers from 36 Sikh (now 4 Sikh), led by Havildar Ishar Singh, fought to the last man last round against over 8,000 Afridi tribals, is listed by UNESCO as one of the 10 greatest battles ever fought. British Parliament had risen in unison on hearing about the exploits of the soldiers, all of whom were awarded the Indian Order of Merit, then the highest decoration applicable to Indian soldiers. When they apprised their commanding officer, based in a neighbouring fort, about the situation, they were simply ordered to “hold your position”. When they faced the enemy, they were determined to fight to the death. The remnants of the fort and memorials still lie in Saragarhi.There are three memorials to the battle in India: at the Sikh Regimental Centre in Ramgarh, in Amritsar and one in Ferozepur, for which a regimental trust is being set up for its upkeep. A Bollywood film on the battle is also in the making. The Chief Minister said the government would set up a proper monument in Ishar Singh’s village, Jhorran near Jagran, where at present his bust is installed. A discussion on the importance of the battle as well as the contemporary geo-strategic significance of the area was also held. Punjab Governor VP Singh Badnore; GOC-in-C, Western Command, Lt Gen Surinder Singh; Col of the Sikh Regiment, Lt Gen SK Jha along with a large number of serving and retired service officers and civilian dignitaries attended the function.  The Governor suggested holding of a literary festival exclusively on defence issues in Chandigarh as a large number of senior and distinguished service officers were based in the city. In response, Capt Amarinder agreed that the Punjab Government would host such an event on October 27 this year, the date coinciding with Infantry Day marking the landing of troops of 1 Sikh to defend Srinagar from Pakistani raiders in 1947.

Army jawans undergo paragliding training in Palampur. Tribune photo

Palampur, April 3

Paragliding pilots of the Army conducted a two-week Simulated Incident in Flight (SIV) course at Ranjit Sagar Dam, which concluded today. A number of Army jawans took part in the event.The course was conducted by the Army Aero Nodal Centre (Paragliding), Alhilal, to train pilots to develop their dynamic reaction capability and skill set required to make a glider recover from unstable or severe situations during flight.The jawans gained confidence on their wings under expert guidance led by Lt Col Neeraj Rana (retd). The course prepared paragliding pilots for participation in cross country and other national and international-level competitions. — OC

The Indian Army retaliated. PTI file

Amir Tantray

Tribune News Service

Jammu, April 4

The Pakistan Army on Tuesday used small arms and mortars to target Indian Army positions on the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district, the army said.“The Pakistan Army initiated indiscriminate firing at 11 am on Indian posts along the LoC in Bhimber Ghali sector,” Defence Ministry spokesman Lt Col Manish Mehta said.

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The Indian Army retaliated “strongly and effectively”, the officer said. Intermittent firing was still on. With IANS

Court grants bail to jawan held with grenades at airport, hands him to army

Ishfaq Tantry

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, April 4

An Army jawan who had been arrested on Monday day after two hand grenades were recovered from his baggage at the International Airport here was on Tuesday granted interim bail by a local court which handed him to the army authorities.Bhopal Mukhiya was arrested at the Srinagar International Airport while he was on his way to catch a flight to Delhi.Granting interim bail to the accused, the court in Budgam handed over Mukhiya to army authorities, who had moved an application to this effect, officials said.The army authorities have informed the court that Mukhiya’s custody was required by them for investigating the case, they added.The court has listed the case for next hearing on April 6.The soldier, who is posted with 17 JAK Rifles at Boniyar in Uri sector of Baramulla district, was arrested after security officials found two hand grenades in his baggage during screening at the main gate of the airport.Mukhiya reportedly told the security officials that a superior officer had handed over the grenades to him with the instructions to hand it over to a person at Delhi airport.The security officials are likely to question the officer named by the accused soldier in connection with the recovery of grenades, the officials said.Army officials refused to comment on the developments in the case saying the investigation was underway.On Monday, a defence spokesman said action as per the due process of law would be taken. With PTI

Hoshiarpur, April 3

Labhpreet Singh (21) of the 20 Sikh Regiment, who died in a terror attack in the Uri sector of Jammu and Kashmir two days ago, was cremated with full military honours at his native Muradpur Abana village.A section of soldiers from his unit and Uchi Bassi Cantonment reached his native village with his body. The martyr’s fellow soldiers gave him the Last Salute by reversing the arms and firing in the air. His father, Lakhvir Singh, lit the pyre.Labhpreet was recruited in the Army a year and a half ago and was posted in the Uri sector after completion of his training a few months ago. Besides Army officials, Mukerian SDM Amit Mahajan, MLA Rajneesh Kumar Babby, former minister Arunesh Shakar and the Ex-servicemen Welfare Officer, Hoshiarpur, paid tributes to the martyr. — OC

Army men are not allowed to have media contact unless authorised

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, April 3

In January, the Indian Army was alerted about a message on smart phone application ‘WhatsApp’ that had phone numbers of leading TV channels and it exhorted jawans to share videos and audio recording of any act of corruption or exploitation with media houses. Army men are not allowed to have media contact unless authorised in writing.The message was not an aberration, rumours and falsehoods have been peddled on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp. In the past two weeks, two fake letters have been circulated listing emoluments of the much-awaited 7th Central Pay Commission. One of these had the complete format of a government gazette. In one case, the Ministry of Defence had to intervene and deny having issued any such letter.The Army, alarmed at the manner in which the social media was being “wrongly” used by its own, has now issued an advisory to all seven Commands spelling out “do’s and don’ts” for the Army men as also their spouses, families and dependents.The Army believes “too much” of wrong information has been flowing on to the Facebook and Twitter accounts of personnel and also through WhatsApp messages.In its letter to the Commands, it has also named a particular ex-servicemen’s group for spreading rumours and falsehood through the social media. These messages are then spread using the family members of jawans. Most are rumours aimed at “dividing” the officers and jawans. The Army has asked its Commands to ensure that its forces are made aware of the restrictions on sharing information relating to Army operations, its style of functioning, false opinions on pay and pensions.These include passing on messages that are detrimental to the functioning of the Army, giving out place of posting of specific battalion (regimental shoulder epaulets are discarded in operations).The Army headquarters says these messages exaggerate issues and tell half-truth. “There have been incidents of individuals and groups with vested interests propagating blatant falsehoods,” says the letter while citing examples of how attempts were made to spread falsehood that “one rank, one pension” was only for officers; how the 7th CPC delayed all benefits to jawans, but not officers; ‘ill-treatment’ of jawans as buddies; and alleged poor quality of food.

Ruchika M Khanna

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 30

The Capt Amarinder Singh government, which has been quite vocal about the legacy of debt, is set to inherit from the previous Akali-BJP government a fleet of new cars, including a luxury SUV — something it won’t mind.These vehicles were ordered by the SAD-BJP government for the then Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, but by the time the Finance Department sanctioned the money, the model code of conduct for the Punjab Assembly elections had come into force.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)The new vehicles — a bulletproof Range Rover, and 11 Innovas and Gypsys, estimated at Rs 2.5 crore in total — will be delivered for the Chief Minister’s cavalcade shortly. Sources in the Finance Department said the amount had been released.“The budget was sanctioned by the Finance Department to the Transport Department. A sum of Rs 87 lakh has been released for 11 Innovas and Gypsys, besides Rs 1.3 crore for the Range Rover and another Rs 35 lakh for bullet-proofing it,” said a source, adding tenders had been floated in December.Last year, the former Chief Minister and his deputy Sukhbir Singh Badal had bought new Toyota Land Cruisers after the vehicles used by them were declared as “condemned”. Since parallel cavalcades had to be maintained for the Chief Minister, the new vehicles were cleared by the Akali-BJP government. Fifteen new Gypsys are also being bought to escort ministers and MLAs.

New game, new rules

Vivek Katju
Political propriety is a thing of the past

SHOWTIME: The Captain’s fine with his minister providing comic relief to TV audiences.

NAVJOT SINGH SIDHU in his present avatar as a Congress minister in Punjab is insisting on continuing with his participation in a television comedy show. A Shiv Sena member of the Lok Sabha, Ravindra Gaikwad, who has emphasised that he is a teacher, is loudly acknowledging and justifying his beating up of an elderly Air India executive. Sidhu’s approach and Gaikwad’s conduct profile the transformation of the normative landscape of India’s public life. This great change is further underlined by the responses of the leadership of the two parties of these politicians.Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh has treated  Sidhu’s desire as a legal matter not as a question of norm and convention. The Advocate-General of Punjab has opined that Sidhu’s wish does not violate the office of profit statute. There is little doubt though that old Congress icons such as Nehru and Indira Gandhi would have had little patience with Sidhu’s demand even if they may have been, as a remote possibility, amused by his hazir jawabi. But times have changed and Amarinder Singh obviously finds nothing wrong with one of his ministers providing comic relief to television audiences. Perhaps he recalls how rajas were kept in good humour. It is unclear, as yet, of what the Congress’ first family feels of the propriety of Sidhu’s insistence.Unlike the civil service which has conduct rules that prescribe dos and don’ts, persons in public life were expected to set standards of propriety. As guardians of public welfare they were expected to have an innate sense of what was ‘the done thing’. Naturally, the ‘done thing’ may change with the passage of time but the need for self-restraint in public life is the bedrock of a democratic system and distinguishes it from an authoritarian order. It is only self-restraint that keeps a check on the limitless temptations that every minister can find to pursue sama-daam-dand-bhed to achieve political ends.Over the years when the hard choice between power and expediency and the upholding of norms and conventions which flowed from the spirit of the Constitution was to be made political leaders and parties often opted for acquiring or maintaining power. Technical and legal reasons were invariably invoked to justify actions, as the Congress did in 1999. Its then Orissa CM Giridhar Gamang’s crucial vote against the Vajpayee government in April 1999 is now a distant memory. He was still a member of the Lok Sabha and chose to cast his vote despite being a CM. Vajpayee was voted out by one vote. Prima facie it is absurd for a CM to cast a vote in the Lok Sabha but now a precedent was set. This is relevant today when Yogi Adityanath even while being CM of UP can take part in a Lok Sabha vote to elect the President. Convention more than any rule demands that professionals, who hold political office, suspend their professional careers so long as they hold such office. Certainly, this was the case in the initial years after Independence. The only exception was for some distinguished doctors to see patients for a few hours every week or month on a purely honorary basis in order to keep up with their skills. Thus Dr BC Roy, the legendary CM of West Bengal who was a distinguished physician, devoted a couple of hours periodically to see patients on an honorary basis. The desire to continue with activity to maintain professional licences such as those of commercial pilots may fall within such exceptions. But can the same exception be invoked to take part in television comedy shows?  If simplicity and frugal life styles derived from Gandhiji’s example were the norm followed by those who held ministerial office immediately after Independence, over the decades, it has become its reverse. It may come as a surprise to many that ministers in the 1950s used their private cars, although with official drivers, for their private journeys. This writer may be forgiven for recalling childhood memories of his grandfather, a member of the Union Cabinet in the early 1950s, of occasionally taking him and his other siblings for drives in his personal car, a small Hillman Minx. Obviously, now security considerations may not permit the use of private cars but the idea of self-restraint in these matters has gone. To turn to Gaikwad, the Shiv Sena’s initial response to his reprehensible and potentially criminal conduct was to virtually ask for an enquiry and emphasise his good conduct in his constituency. A few hours later the party made it known that its president Uddhav Thackeray was ‘angry’ with Gaikwad and had summoned him presumably for a tongue-lashing. Perhaps he will ask him to apologise for his behaviour and  the party will take recourse to the favourite words in all such situations — the law will take its course. This is especially as an FIR has been registered against him. Legally this may pass muster but does it uphold the norm that is expected of an MP? In all likelihood, the political class will let this pass with only critical comments even though Gaikwad has aggressively asserted and justified that he beat up the Air India executive. Political leaders of the past would have found such brazen conduct unacceptable and taken action. But now we are in a different normative territory.Normative structures in the civil services have also undergone a sea change. Wide discrepancies between the provisions of the conduct rules which concretise them and what the senior bureaucracy and the political leadership not only permit but also perhaps expect have arisen. One such area is that of lobbying for jobs and posts. The rules prescribe that officials will not lobby for posts and transfers and postings. Some years ago,  when this writer asked a PMO official the reasons for a suitable officer being overlooked for a job in the foreign office for which he was eminently qualified, he was told that no one had pushed his case by speaking on his behalf. Only the naive now let their work speak for them.Another area is the public airing of views on government policies in areas outside their assignments even though this was not the earlier norm. The conduct rules permit officials to undertake cultural, scientific and literary activities but the expression of personal views on government policies do not fall within this ambit. Perhaps Sidhu will claim that television comedy shows are part of the present-day culture and hence he should be allowed to carry on after office hours!The writer is a former Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs

Road map for Punjab

Leave the rear-view mirror and look ahead

PUNJAB’S fiscal condition has turned out to be worse than what was portrayed in the last budget. While announcing Rs 3,000 crore sops, the pre-poll budget had projected a Rs 1.38 lakh crore debt by year-end. The new Congress government has scaled it up to a mammoth Rs 1.82 lakh crore. This means the SAD-BJP government had disrespected the sanctity associated with budget figures. It did not disclose, or account for, the Rs 25,000 crore expenditure carried out subsequently, according to Finance Minister Manpreet Badal. Doubts about Akalis doctoring figures may be partly cleared after a third-party audit of the state finances, publication of a White Paper and a Vigilance probe into the Rs 31,000-crore “food scam”. Vigilance, as Capt Amarinder Singh ought to know from experience, is unreliable. It is useful more for high-profile bailouts than convictions. More skeletons are expected to tumble out of the Badal closet. The CAG has put up a damning report saying PSPCL under-used its own plants and charged Rs 1,428 crore extra from consumers. The new leadership, however, need not dwell too much on Akali misrule as voters have already punished them. While witch-hunting is certainly undesirable, punishment for violations of the law, if any, can be ensured by letting the law take its course, regardless of the law-breakers’ position or cosy relationship with some in the ruling party.Other than abundant talk and oodles of confidence, the new rulers have displayed little else. The sense of purpose and urgency seen at the first Cabinet meeting was missing in the first assembly session. It needs to go beyond red beacons and focus on the road ahead — how to effect financial transformation of Punjab and arrange funds for keeping the party’s populist promises, including a farm loan waiver. How the GST rollout will affect the state finances needs to be urgently studied, as also the fallout of the likely pay hike. Restoration of the state’s financial health will require hard decisions. Going by the new dispensation’s please-all approach and adjustment of every available Captain loyalist in key posts, populism may triumph over fiscal rectitude.

Pending bills: Water shocker for residents

Sanjeev Singh Bariana

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 30

The Water Supply and Sanitation Department has issued pending bills in the range of Rs 30,000 to Rs 60,000 to a majority of consumers in 139 towns of the state, leaving them in shock.In several cases, the bills are pending for three to five years. This is so because the department did not issue bills all this while.Legislators have apprised Local Bodies Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu of the situation. He has convened a meeting of officers and MLAs next week.Sidhu told The Tribune, “In certain towns, bills had not been collected for nine to ten months. There are cases where bills accumulated for a long period. I have asked the officer concerned to prepare a detailed note and give us a correct perspective on the situation. I have also called MLAs to join us in a discussion to thrash out the matter next week. The SAD-BJP government slept over the matter.”The department is still to work out the exact figure of dues. But going by the population of more than 1.05 crore in 139 towns, the amount will be “definitely very high”.Sidhu said, “Officers will have to do a lot of explanation over why the bills were not issued for months and, in some cases, years.”Jalandhar North MLA Bawa Henry said, “Slum dwellers and those living in poor localities are the most affected. I have sought the minister’s intervention to find a way out. One solution can be to allow people pay up in easy instalments. Any other solution can be found. The idea is to give people immediate reprieve. But what’s important is that a permanent solution needs to be found to avoid such a situation in the future.”

Japanese envoy meets CM

Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh with Japanese Ambassador Kenji Hiramatsu in Delhi on Thursday. PTI

New Delhi: A Japanese delegation, including the country’s envoy, met Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh here on Thursday and explored the possible areas for investment in the state. The areas discussed were power, Smart Cities, automated guideway transit, industrial parks, agriculture, horticulture and roads. tns

Japanese delegation meets Capt, shows interest in investing in state

HANDIGARH: Japan has evinced interest in investing in Punjab and partnering the state across key segments of growth and development.

HT PHOTOPunjab chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh meeting Japanese ambassador Kenji Hiramatsu in New Delhi on Thursday.

A high-level Japanese delegation, including its the envoy to India Kenji Hiramatsu and Mitsubishi managing director Kazunori Konishi, met chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh in Delhi on Thursday and discussed possible areas of investment and collaboration.

The discussions were preliminary but it will pave the way for more intensive discussions in future, said a state government spokesman. The discussion covered a wide range of subjects which the two sides agreed to deliberate further to work out a collaborative mechanism.

The spokesperson said after the meeting, Mitsubishi officials made a presentation to the CM listing several important areas for possible investment. These included power, smart cities, (automated guideway transit), industrial parks and captive power plants, besides strengthening of some existing projects.

Amarinder also discussed development of roads and highways as a key step towards improvement of Punjab’s infrastructure.

The two sides decided to explore possible cooperation in agriculture and the CM invited Japanese experts to visit the state, particularly Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, to examine the feasibility of agricultural cooperation. An exchange programme for agricultural scientists could be worked out, the spokesman added. Amarinder said he was committed to Punjab’s modernisation in which Japan could join in as an important partner.

MP Singh to head technical board

Chandigarh: The Amarinder Singh-led Congress government has decided to give the charge of Chairman of the Punjab State Board of Technical Education and Industrial Training to MP Singh, Additional Chief Secretary, Technical Education and Industrial Training. A senior government functionary said till a new Chairman was appointed, MP Singh would remain the officiating Chairman of the board. In other cases, where the politically appointed chairmen of various boards and corporations were resigning from their posts, the principal secretaries of the respective body were being told to take the charge as an interim arrangement. TNS

Guv seeks revamp of sainik programmes

Chandigarh: Governor VP Singh Badnore while presiding over the 32nd meeting of the Rajya Sainik Board Punjab asked the officers to restructure their programmes and involve maximum ex-servicemen and students in their development projects. TNS

Hope floats for ‘neglected’ rest house near Badal resort

The dilapidated rest house of the Forest Department at Palanpur village near Chandigarh. Tribune photo

Rajmeet Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 30

A “neglected” forest rest house in the vicinity of the Badals’ luxury resort, Sukhvilas, at Palanpur village near here has caught the attention of the Congress government.Forests and Wildlife Minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot has sought a report from the top functionaries of the Forest Department on the rest house, which also has provision for a forest sensitisation centre (Van Chetna Kendra).Dharamsot confirmed that he had asked the officials to explain why the facility had remained non-functional during the past five years.The rest house fell on bad days when the construction of the resort started in 2012, the year the Akali-BJP government was re-elected. As the road to the rest house passed adjacent to the main premises of the resort, temporary barricading was done to keep passersby away.Due to the apathy, the place has been overrun by wild growth. The two-storeyed building is in a dilapidated condition. The whitewash on the façade has peeled off. “Officially, no order was passed to shut down the centre, but forest officials were told to stay away,” a senior functionary said.Back in 2007, during the tenure of the SAD-BJP government, the rest house had hit the headlines when the then Chief Parliamentary Secretary Harish Rai Dhanda was not allowed by the department to use the premises as his residence. The department had stated that Dhanda could visit the rest house with a permit, but not reside there as it was in violation of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980.

Away from prying eyes

• The rest house fell on bad days when the construction of the resort started in 2012, the year the Akali-BJP government was re-elected. As the road to the rest house passed adjacent to the main premises of the Badals’ resort, temporary barricading was done to keep passersby away

Dept in doldrums, govt must intervene: Roadways staff

Members of the Punjab Roadways Employees’ joint action committee address the media in Jalandhar on Thursday. Tribune Photo: Malkiat Singh

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, March 30

A joint action committee of the Punjab Roadways Employees’ Union today blamed the Akali-BJP government for the alleged losses worth crores of rupees which were being incurred by the Transport Department in the state. They demanded that the new government should take remedial action to fix the department which was stuck in the doldrums.They said the Congress government should investigate into the losses caused by the previous regime in the department. Action committee convener Surinder Singh said in the past ten years, the transport mafia in the state had looted the state. They said as the new government had come to power in the state, it should make efforts to save the public transport from the clutches of the mafia.Activists of the committee Jagdish Singh Chahal and Mangat Khan demanded the implementation of the Punjab and Haryana High Court order as per which the HC had on December 20, 2016 rejected all previous transport policies made after 1990, and had cancelled all extension of routes of over 24 kilometres. They also sought a dedicated budget for the inclusion of more buses in the Punjab roadways.The committee also demanded the dismissal of time tables made during the previous government, alleging that these were made to accommodate the Akali-BJP buses in the city.Activists also alleged that general managers had been deputed in the Punjab Roadways without considering the seniority level, despite the fact that the current duty charts were asked to be issued on seniority basis by the government. They also alleged that after three or four months after the passage of the orders, the charge of general managers had not been withdrawn.

Now, police say won’t cut VIP security in haste

CHANDIGARH: After the flip-flop over review of security cover to VIPs, the Punjab Police on Thursday clarified that any cut in the security will not be done in haste.

Senior police officials in the police headquarters here said the March 21 order of pruning the security of many VIPs, including senior SAD-BJP leaders, with immediate effect was issued in “haste” and out of “overenthusiasm”.

“Police department received a letter regarding the security review from the government and the pruning was ordered by the said officer without studying the perception of threat to each individual concerned. Even the field officers were sent the list of VIPs whose security was to be pruned,” sources said.

As the “unrealistic” orders created a confusion and the matter reached the high-ups, it was decided on March 24 to keep these orders in abeyance and a committee headed by DGP (law and order) Hardeep Dhillon was formed to review the threat perception to the VIPs concerned before ordering the cut.

“Dhillon-led committee will make recommendations after going through the reports of various intelligence wings of the police and other factors. There was no question of stopping the review,” Punjab DGP Suresh Arora told Hindustan Times.

On Wednesday, after getting reports from the Dhillon-led committee, security of many low-profile VIPs and those officials who enjoyed the trust of the previous SAD-BJP government, was pruned. More than 175 cops were ordered to join their original battalions with immediate effect.

Interestingly, it’s the Congress leaders who are feeling the pinch of this review exercise. Many party leaders can be seen speaking openly against the move. “In the March 21 list, an MP was left with four cops. Keeping in view the 8-hour duty, only one cop will be with the MP most of the time. Can a single constable guard an MP and his family?” said a Rajya Sabha member from the state. Sources said the SSPs and the police commissioners have even received requests from districtlevel Congress leaders for security.

SIMILAR MOVES FAILED IN PAST

It’s not for the first time that the security of VIPs was pruned in Punjab. In 2012 and 2014 as well, such exercises were carried out and many VIPs lost the security cover. However, both the times, they managed to get back the cover on some pretext. As per officials, in last six months of the previous government, security of the SAD-BJP leaders was heightened just to give them the “feel of power”.