Punjab set up group of ministers to monitor lumpy skin disease
Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 10 Aug, 2022 10:28 AM
Chandigarh, Aug 10 (IANS) Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday announced to set up a group of ministers (GoM) for effective monitoring and control of lumpy skin disease among livestock on a day-to-day basis.
Sharing details after a high-level meeting to review the situation, the Chief Minister said the GoM comprising Finance Minister Harpal Cheema, Agriculture Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal and Animal Husbandry Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar would be assisted by experts from the Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University and officials from the animal husbandry department.
He said the GoM would daily review the situation and take necessary action for checking the spread of the disease.
Mann said the government is duty-bound to safeguard the interests of the cattle owners.
The Chief Minister also announced to launch a massive vaccination drive to save the animals from this disease. He said vaccines will be administered to the animals free of cost, adding that there is no dearth of funds for this.
Mann further said that the government has sealed the borders for checking the entry of animals from other states into Punjab.
He said the bordering districts of Fazilka, Sri Muktsar Sahib, Bathinda and Tarn Taran have been worst affected by the disease, which shows that the virus has been transmitted from other states.
Mann said the 254-km long Delhi-Katra highway will be constructed at a cost Rs 11,510 crore and will pass through nine districts of the state -- Jalandhar, Sangrur, Malerkotla, Patiala, Kapurthala, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Tarn Taran and Gurdaspur.
In a status report before Justice Anoop Chitkara's Bench, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Sukhnaaz Singh said in view of the facts and circumstances, it is evident that there is sufficient prima facie evidence on record which reveals that the petitioner is the main conspirator, who hatched conspiracy with Gaurav Patial (accused) for eliminating Middukhera.
In January 2019, a special CBI court in Panchkula also sentenced Rahim and three others to life imprisonment for the murder of journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati over 16 years ago. His conviction on August 25, 2017 had led to violence in Panchkula and Sirsa, leaving 41 people dead and over 260 injured.
According to customs officials, "The gold was in the form of a paste which was wrapped in black tape in two packets. The total weight of the packets was 433 grams. After removing the tape and other impurities from gold, it weighs 397 grams."
The two accused -- Ankit Sersa and Sachin Chaudhary had been in the custody of the Delhi Police in an arms case. Chief metropolitan magistrate Snigdha Sarvaria granted their transit remand to the Mansa Police SIT team that is probing the murder of Punjabi singer Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, popularly known as Sidhu Moosewala.
Mann said most of the time they had to run pillar to post for getting their work done. The Chief Minister said this dedicated cell will be a single-window platform for the persons with disabilities to avail the benefits of these schemes.
