Chandigarh, July 11 (IANS) The Punjab government on Monday gave consent to create 25 additional seats each in Government Medical Colleges of Patiala and Faridkot, state Medical Education and Research Minister Chetan Singh Jauremajra said here.
He said the government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has the firm resolve to improve health and education sector, the core areas of concern due to which the government has decided to create additional seats in both medical colleges.
Efforts are underway to open a medical college in every district.
The authorities were directed to commence classes in Medical Colleges of Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala and Sangrur from next year.
Free medicines should be provided to patients in the hospitals of the medical colleges as early as possible, he added.
Calling the reports of alleged snooping on prominent citizens using Israeli Pegasus spyware as "baseless", the ruling BJP on Monday said there is not a single shred of evidence so far that links either the central government or the party to this controversy.
Congress MPs from both Houses had met on Sunday afternoon at Rajya Sabha member Pratap Singh Bajwa's residence to discuss the issues related to Punjab and sought an appointment with Gandhi.
Apart from reviewing the security arrangements in the national capital, the Delhi Police have also strengthened the security in and around the Red Fort ahead of the Independence Day.
Police said acting on a specific information, Budgam Police along with the Army's 53 RR and 43 BN of the CRPF arrested one local terrorist linked with proscribed terror outfit LeT and recovered incriminating materials, arms and ammunition including one Chinese pistol, one magazine, eight live pistol rounds from his possession.
As the Pegasus spyware scandal unravelled within and outside Parliament, he termed it a "shocking assault" on India's democratic polity by the Union government, which had compromised the national security with "this blatantly disgraceful act".
The shocking incident happened on Sunday when the lawyer, Satyadev Joshi and his associate Ankit Tandon had gone to survey a land for a client in Dahisar suburb.
