Chandigarh : Capt Amarinder Singh on Punjab Assembly Election : 11-03-2017
Kejriwal Was “Summer Storm, He Came And He’s Gone”: Amarinder Singh on Punjab Win
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Chandigarh : Capt Amarinder Singh on Punjab Assembly Election : 11-03-2017
Kejriwal Was “Summer Storm, He Came And He’s Gone”: Amarinder Singh on Punjab Win
CHANDIGARH : It’s the day every political party in Punjab has been waiting with bated breath.
Counting of votes for the fiercely fought assembly elections will start at 8 am on Saturday with trends expected to be available by 11am.
The fate of the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP combine, which has been ruling Punjab since 2007 and is taking a third shot at power; the Congress – which has been unlucky in 2007 and 2012 and is in a do-or-die situation; and the Aam Aadmi Party, a relatively new entrant in Punjab’s political space but has made deep inroads, should be clear by noon.
“Over 14,000 officials will be involved in counting at 54 centres at 27 locations,” Punjab chief electoral officer VK Singh said. Punjab had recorded a high voter turnout of 77.4 % in the February 4 election.
The result of the by-election to the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat will also be out on Saturday.
While Punjab Congress chief Captain Amarinder Singh will camp in Chandigarh, chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal have opted to stay at their Badal village to watch the poll results.
And if AAP storms to power, the party supremo and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal will come to Chandigarh.
LUDHIANA: Anxiety levels are high among candidates with only a day left for the results of the assembly polls but they are hoping for the best.
Ask them how it feels with only 24 hours left for the results to be announced and a majority of them will tell you that they are both excited and nervous.
“Bahut mehnat kiti hai, hun bus rab os da phal deve. Result di khushi vi hai te dar vi, par main rab da na layi ja reha hai… (I worked really hard and hope that god will see me through. I am not only excited but also nervous and I keep taking god’s name),” says Surinder Kumar Dawar, Congress candidate from Ludhiana Central, before taking a jibe at party workers, friends and relatives who have been asking him to place an order for laddus in advance.
He adds, “I have told everyone that I will distribute laddus myself if I win but will not place any orders in advance.”
Kamal Chaitly, BJP candidate contesting from Ludhiana West, says, “Vekhoji! Es time, saare political leaders di kismat, voting machina vich kaad han. March 11 he saab dasogi pave saare rab da na le rahe hain. (Look! Right now, for all politicians, their luck stands captured in the voting machines and its March 11 that will tell us who is lucky even if everyone is busy praying).”
On the flip side, there are also some who are neither exhilarated nor tense and are ready to accept the public’s decision as it comes.
“I am being asked by all how it feels but to be honest, I feel quite normal – no excitement or nervousness. After all, I have contested five elections as a councillor and two as an MLA which has given me enough experience to face election results. All I can say is that whatever the public decides, I will happily accept,” says Congress candidate Bharat Bhushan Ashu, who is contesting from Ludhiana West.
Akali candidate Darshan Singh Shivalik, who is contesting from Gill constituency, says he doesn’t feel nervous at all because he feels he has huge scope to win. “Since I got so much support from all, I feel I will win but March 11 will paint the reality,” he says.
When it comes to Ahbab Singh Grewal of the Aam Aadmi Party from Ludhiana West, he says he is more than confident that his party will form the new government in the state and that none of AAP candidates are nervous.
“People want change and the AAP will bring desired change people want to see in the state and its system. Interestingly, many of us have already ordered laddus and barfis to distribute after victory,” he says.
Lok Insaf Party candidate Simarjeet Singh Bains, who is fighting from Atam Nagar, adds, “Considering the love I got from the public and the role of the leader of the Opposition that I played, I am sure I will win. The results of the elections will be like a tsunami ‘lehar’ for both Akalis and the Congress.”
Nikhila Pant Dhawan
Tribune News Service
Bathinda, March 7
It is not uncommon to see children explaining the meaning of their names to others, but what may be out of the ordinary is to see children living up to what the name stands for. Sapna Sharma did exactly that and turned her ‘sapna’ (dream) into reality.A resident of Mansa and former B Tech (computer science and engineering) student of 2010 batch of Giani Zail Singh Campus College of Engineering and Technology, she got selected by the Indian Air Force.She cleared AFCAT-2013 conducted in January 2013 and subsequently, got through the SSB held at Dehradun.She got selected in the 58 SSC (W) Course for the grant of Short Service Commission in the AE (L) branch of the Indian Air Force.She then underwent six-month training, initially at the Air Force Academy, Dundigal, Hyderabad, and later for a year in Bangalore.Sapna had been on roll of the NCC as a cadet from 2011 to 2014.She brought laurels to the state, alma mater and her family when for the first time in the history of the Air Force Technical College (AFTC), the graduation parade of the aeronautical engineering course was commanded by a woman officer, none other than Flying Officer Sapna Sharma.In all, 118 officers, including 45 women officers, were inducted into the Air Force following the ceremony.“The credit for all that I have achieved goes to my parents. We are five sisters but our parents never made us feel that we didn’t have a brother. They supported us in all our endeavours and gave us freedom to chase our dreams,” Sapna said.Born to cloth trader Naresh Sharma and mother Veena Sharma, Sapna scaled academic as well as professional heights.“Our daughter has done what sons of others have not been able to do. We are now known as Sapna’s parents and we are proud of that,” said her mother.“I was present at the graduation parade of the AFTC. It was a moment of pride for me to see my daughter break the record and become the first female officer to command the parade,” her father said.
Our Correspondent
Pithoragarh, March 7
The 11th Indo-Nepal joint military exercise — Surya Kiran — began at terrains of Panchsule brigade of Army’s Surya Command today. Major General RK Bhardwaj inaugurated the 14-day battalion-level exercise. “600 jawans from both sides are participating in the exercise. The focus is on counter-insurgency measures in hill regions besides establishing military cooperation in tough and hilly terrains between the two armies,” stated a press release issued by Defence PRO in Lucknow.“The exercise is being undertaken keeping in view disaster management in hills, anti- terrorist campaigns and mutual cooperation between the two friendly countries,” said a spokesman of the Army in Pithoragarh terrains.Durgabaksh Batallion from Nepal and Ekta Shakti Battalion from India are taking part in the exercise that is aimed at training troops in counter-insurgency operations in mountainous terrain also incorporates issues related to humanitarian assistance and disaster management.
THOSE WHO DEMAND DOING AWAY WITH THE SAHAYAKS HAVE LITTLE EXPERIENCING OF SOLDIERING AND THE RELATIONSHIP THAT EXISTS BETWEEN AN OFFICER AND HIS SAHAYAK
S uicide by Lance Naik Roy Mathew has sent the media, both electronic and print, into a spin. Equating a sahayak with a slave displays total lack of knowledge of military matters. Where the defence minister inspects a ceremonial guard of honour wearing slippers, with hands in his pocket, and the supreme commander is seen chewing a paan during the Republic Day parade, one can hardly hold out against media’s ignorance.
OFFICER’S COMPANION
Those who call sahayak a buddy to his officer, perhaps do not know that the term buddy was brought into play by the American Army during the Vietnam war, where two soldiers were grouped together as companions to overcome the problems of low morale.
Sahayak system (earlier known as orderly) is not a legacy of the colonial era. Normally, a soldier is assigned to an officer to attend to his personal requirements, setting him free to handle other important tasks. He is not called upon to undertake any undignified work. Over the time, a sort of bonding builds up between an officer and his sahayak. The two are comrades in arms with deep mutual respect between the two. In a million-plus military an odd aberration cannot make it abandon an age-old practice.
INSTITUTION OF ORDERLY NOT NEW
The institution of orderly for an officer in the military (since called sahayak) is almost as old as soldiering. In the Indian Army no sahayak is authorised on the establishment of units and formation headquarters. A soldier (one willing to take on the assignment of a sahayak) is made available to an officer to relieve him of some of the mundane tasks. Thus, a sahayak is not a servant to an officer but, and in some manner, a companion and a helper. The latter would go to any extent to make his officer comfortable and free to attend to more important issues.
When General Mussarvy came to attend his old unit’s centenary celebrations, his long-time sahayak was also there. The two went into a long embrace with tears flowing down their old wrinkled cheeks. During World War-2, a sahayak of a Polish officer would bring hot food from the enemy kitchen for his officer, till one day his identity came to be known and he was taken prisoner by the Germans.
When Major Sam Manekshaw (later field marshal) was leading his company in a charge on a Japanese position, he was hit by a light machinegun bust in his stomach (seven bullets in all). It was his sahayak who lifted the unconscious Major on his shoulder and carried him to the nearest medical aid post. The doctor there examined Sam Manekshaw and felt that he was beyond medical help and moved on to attend to another wounded soldier. Manekshaw’s sahayak intervened and insisted that the doctor attend to his officer (he is believed to have threatened the doctor with shooting him if he did not attend to his officer)
Often a sahayak proffers advice to his officer. When working as a staff officer at a brigade headquarters, I was not regular with my morning physical training, thus my sahayak would lecture me on the imperatives of an officer keeping himself in top physical condition.
He continued to lecture me on this issue with uninterrupted regularity till the annual files miles test run, where I beat him by a wide margin. That put an end to his regular lecturing on this subject.
THE UN-SOLDIERLY CONDUCT
There are cases where officers have misused the facility of a sahayak and it is for the military authorities to attend to this aberration. In the recent past, there have been cases where some soldiers have displayed undesirable behaviour and un-soldierly conduct.
Soldiering is a profession apart and not a cup of tea for all and sundry. Unfortunately, it is now being taken as a mere employment avenue and given the state of unemployment in the country, many with no inclination, mental make-up and aptitude for soldiering are finding their way into this service. Some of them cannot live with the iron discipline, rigours of military life and dangers therein and simply breakdown and you have these suicide cases.
Therefore, there is a strong case to look into the quality of intake into the military. The policy of male recruitable population have opened the door to all those with no military tradition and aptitude. The military needs to look into the selection systems for enrolment and should consider some psychological tests for recruitment into the army.
Those who demand doing away with the sahayaks have little experiencing of soldiering and the relationship that exists between an officer and his sahayak.
Taking up a solitary case and blowing it out of proportion, endlessly debating it on TV channels and social media will do no good to the military and would seriously impact its discipline. Indian Army has its own mechanism to attend to such issues and should be left to the military to handle. An odd aberration should not trip us overboard. (The writer, a former deputy chief of army staff, is a commentator on defence and security issues. Views expressed are his personal)
Dipender Manta
Tribune News Service
Manali, March 2
With the hills witnessing the heaviest snowfall this year, the opening of the Manali-Leh highway to vehicular traffic is expected to take some more time this season.The opening of the Rohtang Pass to traffic may be delayed this year as the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is yet to start the snow clearance work.Every year, the BRO starts snow clearance work from Gulaba to the Rohtang Pass depending on weather conditions. However, this time the BRO authorities are undecided as the state Met Department has predicted more rain and snow in the next four days.Talking to The Tribune, BRO commander Col AK Awasthi said: “We are uncertain about starting the snow clearance work because of inclement weather conditions in the region. We are in regular contact with the Snow and Avalanche Study Establishment to get weather updates and as soon as the weather becomes fine, we will start the work.”The 474-km-long stretch of the Manali-Leh highway, 222-km stretch till Sarchu, has received heavy snow this year, posing a challenge to the BRO to resume traffic in the stipulated time.The Manali-Leh highway opens to traffic in May-end or the first week of June every year, but this time, it will be difficult to clear snow from avalanche-prone areas like the Rani Nullah, Beas Nullah, Chumbak Mor, Rakshi Dhank and Bara-lacha areas, which are under a thick blanket of snow.On the Rohtang Pass and Bara-lacha, more than 20 ft snowfall was recorded during the winter. People of Lahaul & Spiti are awaiting the start of the snow clearance work on the Manali-Leh highway as they are dependent on flight services provided by the state government to travel in and out of the district.Though BRO personnel have faced tough challenges in the past during the opening of the road, they are still working even during snowfall to keep Lahaul roads open to public. Despite heavy snowfall this year, the BRO has kept many stretches of the highway in populated areas in Lahaul & Spiti open.
NEW DELHI: India is now fast-tracking some long-delayed modernisation of the Army’s Special Forces to make them even more lethal and mobile for clandestine warfare.
Defence ministry sources said “restricted” tenders have been issued to select foreign arms companies for acquisition of new assault rifles, sniper rifles, general purpose machine guns, light-weight rocket-launchers, tactical shotguns, pistols, night-vision devices and ammunition.
“Seven tenders or RFPs (request for proposals) were issued last week to American, Israeli, Swedish and other companies for acquisition of the specialised weaponry on a fast-track basis, Times of India in a report said. Separately in a different capital acquisition project, trials are in progress to acquire over 120 light strike vehicles, which can be carried by helicopters, for the Special Forces,” said a source.
This follows soon after India inked a flurry of emergency deals worth around Rs 20,000 crore for ammunition and spares for the Army, Navy and IAF to ensure they are ready to go to battle at short notice, and sustain the high-tempo operations for at least 10 days.
The Indian Special Forces already have specialised weaponry, ranging from Israeli 5.56mm TAR-21 Tavor assault rifles and 7.62mm Galil sniper rifles to American M4A1 carbines and Swedish Carl Gustav rocket launchers, as well as equipment.
