DAIRY FARMING GETS BOOST: PUNJAB INSURES OVER 30K MILCH CATTLE
•Over ₹7-CR disbursed to 1056 affected dairy farmers, says Gurmeet Singh Khudian
• Rs. 3-CR disbursed to 204 dairy farmers in FY 2024-25 for setting up dairy units
Chandigarh, June 25:In a major boost to dairy farming sector in the state, the Punjab Dairy Development department has achieved a significant milestone by insuring 30,598 milch cattle across the state in just one year to provide crucial financial security to dairy farmers and safeguarding their livelihoods, informed S. Gurmeet Singh Khudian, Minister of Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development and Fisheries, Punjab.
While reviewing the ongoing projects of the department here at his office, on Wednesday, S. Khudian further shared that the National Livestock Mission’s Risk Management and Livestock Insurance Scheme offers premium rates of Rs 1,120 for general farmers and Rs 672 for SC/ST farmers annually, with a maximum claim limit of Rs 70,000 per cattle. To date, Rs 7.39 crore has been disbursed to 1,056 farmers for providing crucial financial support to affected dairy farmers.
Reiterating the Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Singh Mann led Punjab Government's commitment to dairy farmers' welfare, S. Gurmeet Singh Khudian directed the officials to proactively educate youth about dairy farming and inform them about departmental schemes to ensuring maximum benefits reach the grassroots level.
Principal Secretary Animal Husbandry Mr. Rahul Bhandari apprised the cabinet minister that Rs. 3 crore has been disbursed to 204 dairy farmers in FY 2024-25 for establishing dairy units with 2-20 animals. Additionally, 9,150 unemployed youth have been imparted with dairy training to make them self-employed. He further shared that 47 state and district-level seminars and camps were conducted to educate livestock farmers on insurance scheme’s benefits, claim procedures and livestock health management, thereby boosting participation and trust.
Director Dairy Development Kuldeep Singh and other senior officials of the department were also present in the meeting.
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QUALITY CONTROL DRIVE: KHUDIAN ORDERS ACTION AGAINST UNDERPERFORMING DISTRICTS
• CM Mann led Govt won’t tolerate any compromise on quality control, says Agriculture Minister
• Five Flying Squad teams formed to monitor quality of agricultural products
Chandigarh, June 25:Cracking the whip on underperforming officials, Punjab Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister S. Gurmeet Singh Khudian has directed departmental action against districts lagging behind in the quality control drive, with weekly reviews to be conducted to ensure accountability and improvement.
S. Khudian, along with Administrative Secretary of Agriculture department Dr. Basant Garg, reviewed the ongoing projects, schemes and Kharif season operations.
While reviewing the quality control drive outcomes, the Agriculture Minister took strict note of the underperforming districts lagging behind the targets. He ordered the Director Agriculture to initiate departmental action against defaulting officials and ensure a weekly review of the sampling of agricultural inputs.
S. Gurmeet Singh Khudian categorically said that the Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Singh Mann led Punjab Government will not tolerate any compromise on quality control and officials found guilty of malpractice will face strict action. He emphasised that the State Government is committed to protecting farmers' interests.
To uphold quality control, Dr. Basant Garg instructed the Director Agriculture to ensure regular sampling of agri-inputs in accordance with district targets, while emphasising the need for consistent monitoring to maintain quality standards by timely interventions and corrective actions.
Director Agriculture Mr. Jaswant Singh apprised the Agriculture Minister that out of 826 pesticide samples, 16 were found misbranded. Among 737 fertiliser samples, 11 were substandard, leading to 2 FIRs. Additionally, 2,113 seed samples were tested, with 49 failing quality standards. He informed that these samples have been taken from April 1, 2025 to till date and the appropriate action has already been initiated against the dealers and firms.
The Director further informed that the Agriculture department has formed five Flying Squad teams to safeguarding farmers' interests by ensuring high-quality agricultural inputs to them. The meeting also reviewed the ongoing Kharif crop sowing operations in the state.
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ECINET Operations started in Bye-polls
- Election Commission releases Index Cards for bye-elections in under 72 hours: Sibin C
Chandigarh, June 25:Election Commission of India has operationalised the new digital platform ECINET in the recently concluded bye-elections in the five Assembly Constituencies in the states of Kerala, Gujarat, Punjab and West-Bengal. It may be recalled that ECI had earlier this year on 4th May, announced the development of a new one-stop platform, ECINET, integrating over 40 of ECI's existing mobile and web applications. The bye-polls witnessed the successful implementation of some of the modules of ECINET, which will become fully operational in the coming weeks.
Punjab CEO Sibin C informed that ECINET is one of the various initiatives of the Commission taken under the leadership of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar along with Election Commissioners Dr. Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Dr. Vivek Joshi for the timely and updated disclosure of election information for the benefit of the voters and other stakeholders.
A major achievement during the bye-polls was uploading of the VTR trends (voter turnout) directly by the Presiding Officers (PROs) on ECINET as against the earlier manual process. This enabled the quick sharing of information, increased transparency and a significant reduction in time lag in publishing VTR trends. Through ECINET, it was ensured that the PROs uploaded the final VTR figures before leaving their respective polling stations which resulted in much faster availability of VTR trends on ECINET for the public. The streamlined, technology-driven system was able to provide timely updates on the approximate voter turnout percentage trends during the bye-polls.
Another major outcome of the introduction of ECINET has been the faster publication of Index Cards, which were made available within 72 hours of the declaration of the poll results. The decision to digitise and fast-track the process of generating the Index Card was announced earlier this month on the 5th of June. Under the new system, most data fields in the Index Card are auto-filled using ECINET inputs. Before the introduction of ECINET, the publication of Index Cards, used to take several days, weeks, or even months as the data was filled and verified manually by the officials.
The Index Card, is a non-statutory, post-election statistical reporting format, developed during the late 1980s, as a suo-moto initiative by the Commission to promote accessibility of election-related data at the constituency level for all stakeholders, including researchers, academia, policymakers, journalists, and the general public. The reports contain data across multiple dimensions such as candidates, electors, votes polled, votes counted, party-wise and candidate-wise vote share, gender-based voting patterns, regional variations, and performance of political parties. The reports can be accessed at the bye-elections tab on https://www.eci.gov.in/statistical-reports.
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INVESTIGATIONS BY S.I.T. AND VIGILANCE BUREAU REVEAL MASSIVE LAUNDERING OF DRUG MONEY FACILITATED BY BIKRAM SINGH MAJITHIA
HEAVY ILLICIT ENRICHMENT OF MORE THAN 540 CRORES
HUGE UNACCOUNTED CASH WORTH RS. 161 CRORES DEPOSITED IN BANK ACCOUNTS OF COMPANIES CONTROLLED BY MAJITHIA
CHANNELISATION OF RS. 141 CRORES THROUGH SUSPECTED FOREIGN ENTITIES
EXCESS DEPOSITION OF RS. 236 CRORES WITHOUT DISCLOSURE/EXPLANATION IN COMPANY FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
SEARCHES AND SEIZURES OF 22 PERSONS BY S.I.T. AND 03 LOCATIONS BY VB YIELD OVER 30 MOBILE PHONES, 05 LAPTOPS, 03 IPADS, 02 DESKTOPS, SEVERAL DIARIES, MANY PROPERTY DOCUMENTS AND MANY DOCUMENTS OF SARAYA INDUSTRIES
Chandigarh June 25, 2025 -Investigations by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the FIR no. 02 of 2021 registered in Police Station Punjab State Crime and the Vigilance Bureau reveal massive laundering of drug money facilitated by Bikram Singh Majithia. Preliminary investigations reveal that more than Rs. 540 crores of drug money has been laundered through several ways, including
(i) Huge unaccounted cash worth Rs. 161 crores deposited in bank accounts of companies controlled by Bikram Singh Majithia,
(ii) Channelization of Rs. 141 crores through suspected foreign entities,
(iii) Excess deposition of Rs. 236 crores without disclosure/explanation in company financial statements, and
(iv) Acquisition of movable/immovable assets by Bikram Singh Majithia without any legitimate source of income.
A Punjab Vigilance Bureau spokesperson stated here today that the Vigilance Bureau has registered a case based on a report of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) investigating FIR No. 02, dated 20-12-2021 registered u/s 25, 27-A and 29 NDPS Act 1985, PS Punjab State Crime, SAS Nagar wherein substantial evidence has been uncovered indicating massive laundering of drug money by Bikram Singh Majithia.
These transactions are being investigated by the Vigilance Bureau and the investigations done by the S.I.T. clearly indicate that these funds were laundered drug money funneled into Saraya Industries facilitated by Bikram Singh Majithia.
The VB spokesperson added that so far, Rs. 540 Crores drug money has been tracked as having been generated illegally and by using the influence of Bikram Singh Majithia as a Public Servant being an MLA and holding a Cabinet post in erstwhile Punjab Government.
The VB spokesperson stated that assets, including both immovable/movable in the name of Bikram Singh Majithia and his wife Genieve Kaur have increased substantially for which no legitimate source of income has been provided.
According to the VB spokesperson, searches and seizures have been conducted by the SIT of 22 persons and by the Vigilance Bureau at 03 locations which have yielded over 30 mobile phones, 05 laptops, 03 ipads, 02 desktops, several diaries, many property documents and many documents of Saraya Industries.
The spokesperson stated that Bikram Singh Majithia has been arrested by the Vigilance Bureau in accordance with law after following due procedure.
Investigations are ongoing and more arrests, searches and seizures would take place. The investigations would be taken to their logical conclusion by submitting all collected evidence before the court of competent jurisdiction for judicial verdict.
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FOOLPROOF SECURITY ARRANGEMENTS IN PLACE TO ENSURE SMOOTH CONDUCT OF SHRI AMARNATH YATRA: SPL DGP ARPIT SHUKLA
— SPL DGP LAW AND ORDER CHAIRS HIGH-LEVEL MEETING OF POLICE, ARMY, CIVIL ADMINISTRATION AND OTHER SECURITY AGENCIES IN PATHANKOT
— DRONE SURVEILLANCE SYSTEMS TO KEEP VIGIL AROUND ANTI-SOCIAL ELEMENTS
— YATRA ROUTE DIVIDED DIVIDED INTO SECURITY SECTORS WITH DEDICATED COMMANDANT-LEVEL OFFICERS: SPL DGP ARPIT SHUKLA
CHANDIGARH/PATHANKOT, June 25:In order to ensure the safe and smooth conduct of the Shri Amarnath Yatra 2025, Punjab Police has implemented a comprehensive, multi-layered, and inter-agency security and coordination plan, deploying advanced surveillance, strategic force deployment, and round-the-clock coordination for the safety of pilgrims, said Special Director General of Police (Special DGP) Law and Order Arpit Shukla here on Wednesday.
The sacred Shri Amarnath Yatra 2025 is scheduled to commence on July 3, 2025 and will continue till August 9, 2025. This annual pilgrimage draws lakhs of devotees from all across India, many of whom travel through Punjab, particularly Pathankot district, on their way to the holy cave shrine in Jammu & Kashmir.
The Special DGP was chairing a high-level comprehensive security and coordination meeting of Police, Army, Civil Administration, and other security agencies to review and strengthen the security arrangements for the annual pilgrimage.
The meeting, which was held in Pathankot, focused on strategic preparations for the ongoing Amarnath Yatra, encompassing diverse aspects such as police deployment, security measures, traffic management, and disaster management.
Special DGP Arpit Shukla emphasised the need for heightened vigilance given Pathankot’s strategic location, which shares 26.385 km of international border with Pakistan and houses critical defence installations. He said that level of security has been further escalated with Commandant level officer has been made incharge of all the roads leading to Jammu & Kashmir.
He informed that the Yatra route has been divided into well-defined security sectors under the charge of Commandant-rank officers, ensuring 24x7 ground-level supervision and rapid response capabilities in case of any exigency. A 24x7 Command and Control Centre has been established at Nakka Madhopur, supervised by a Gazetted Officer, to monitor all vehicle and pilgrim movements using advanced surveillance systems, he added.
The Special DGP said that daily anti-sabotage and security checks are being carried out at sensitive locations including railway stations, bus stands, langar (community kitchen) sites, religious places, and across the full Yatra route, to detect and deter any potential threats. The security arrangements are being implemented under the direct supervision of Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Pathankot Daljinder Singh Dhillon.
He directed the concerned officers to ensure seamless coordination among all stakeholders, including the Indian Army, Border Security Force (BSF), Central Armed Police Force (CAPF), Jammu & Kashmir Police, Himachal Pradesh Police, and other central agencies.
He further highlighted the additional technical support including mobile surveillance units, high-resolution CCTV monitoring, drone-based aerial surveillance, GPS-enabled patrolling, and real-time reporting mechanisms are also being actively used to keep vigil around suspicious people.
Meanwhile, the police have briefed and trained the owners and staff of petrol pumps, dhabas, hotels, guest houses, and other roadside establishments along the route to report any unusual activity, suspicious objects, or unidentified persons to the nearest police station without delay.
Prominent officers including DIG Border Range Satinder Singh, AIG Sukhminder Singh Mann, Deputy Commissioner Pathankot Aditya Uppal, Deputy Commissioner Hoshiarpur Ashika Jain, Deputy Commissioner Kathua Dr Rakesh Minhas, SSP Pathankot Daljinder Singh Dhillon, SSP Hoshiarpur Sandeep Kumar Malik and senior officers from Indian Army, Indian Air Force and Central agencies, and police and civil officials from adjoining states of Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh were also present in the meeting.
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Speaker and MLAs interact with more than 100 students of 35 colleges of Punjab
Kultar Singh Sandhwan inspires students to take interest in politics and join politics
Students should keep their dreams high and only those who dream high can have their dreams fulfilled, Says Speaker
Chandigarh, 25 June 2025:Punjab Vidhan Sabha Speaker S. Kultar Singh Sandhwan interacted with professors and more than 100 students of 35 colleges of Punjab. The students asked him about the various functions of the Vidhan Sabha and duties of the Speaker. Besides this, students also asked the speaker how they manage the political pressure during the session. The Speaker replied that he provide an equal opportunity to the opposition to speak in the House.
Speaker Sandhwan said that politics is a selfless service and we should serve our nation with complete honesty and dedication. The students asked him what more steps could be taken to keep the proceedings of the House more transparent. Responding to the student’s question, the Speaker said that if these three wings - Judiciary, Executive and Legislature do their work efficiently, more transparency can be brought into the proceedings of the House.
Highlighting further, Speaker Sandhwan said that to make the proceedings of the House more transparent, he has already implemented live telecast of the House since 2022 so that everyone can watch the proceedings and become aware of the proceedings of the House. He urged the students to watch the proceedings of the House and they must ask the concerned MLA regarding new laws they have promulgated for their welfare.
Students have also brought in the knowledge of the Speaker that the cost of getting higher education has become very expensive and what steps have been taken by the government pertaining to this, the Speaker asserted that education should be provided free of cost to the students. He said that he will write a letter to the Chief Minister, Punjab on this matter and request him that necessary steps should be taken to provide higher education free of cost. Sandhwan asked the students to adopt their mother tongue in full letter and spirit and also learn other languages along with it.
The students asked the Speaker that one has to pay lakhs of rupees to get a ticket of major political parties, responding to their question, the Speaker said that I was a Sarpanch of a village and the Aam Aadmi Party gave me a ticket without taking any amount. He further said if you are serving the common people wholeheartedly, then big political parties will approach and offer you tickets to contest in the elections.
He stressed that Politics is a selfless service and we should connect with grass root level. We should also listen to the grievances of the people so that we can become aware of their issues and resolve them.
He asked the students to recite daily one Shabad of Gurbani. He further said that industries should be promoted further to make Punjab prosperous. He added that there is a need to convert agriculture into an agribusiness because the land of the Punjab is very fertile. It is very difficult to find such fertile land.
He further advised the students should keep their dreams high and only those who have high dreams get their dreams fulfilled and not to take stress in their life and live their life happily. During this interaction with the students, many important issues were discussed including One Nation One Election also.
On this occasion, students and professors presented a shawl, a heritage hand fan, and scenery to the Speaker.
On this occasion, Dr. Inderbir Singh Nijjar MLA, Jeevan Jyot Kaur MLA, Fauja Singh Srari MLA, Vijay Singla MLA, Manwinder Singh Giaspura MLA, Gurdit Singh Sekhon MLA and Dr. Sukhjinder Rishi Director Youth Welfare of Panjab University, Dr. Tejinder Gill Assistant Director Youth Welfare of Panjab University , Professor Jagwinder Kaur, Professor Bhupinder Kaur, Professor Poonam Dwivedi, Professor Sarbjit Kaur, Professor Heena, Iqbal Preet Singh, Amit Sharma, Ajit Kumar were also present.
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DAY 116 OF ‘YUDH NASHIAN VIRUDH’: 153 DRUG SMUGGLERS HELD WITH 1.8KG HEROIN, 2.4KG OPIUM, ₹28K DRUG MONEY
— AS PART OF ‘DE-ADDICTION’, PUNJAB POLICE CONVINCE 85 PERSONS TO UNDERGO DE-ADDICTION TREATMENT
CHANDIGARH, June 25: With the war against drugs “Yudh Nashian Virudh” waged on the directions of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann to eradicate drug menace from state completed 116 days, Punjab Police on Wednesday arrested 153 drug smugglers and recovered 1.8 kg heroin, 2.4 kg opium and Rs 28890 drug money from their possession. With this, the number of total drug smugglers arrested has reached to 19,185 in just 116 days.
The operation was conducted on the directions of Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav simultaneously in all 28 Police districts of the state.
Notably, CM Bhagwant Singh Mann has asked the Commissioners of Police, Deputy Commissioners and Senior Superintendent of Police to make Punjab drug free state. The Punjab government has also constituted a 5-member Cabinet Sub Committee led by Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema to monitor the war against drugs.
Divulging details, Special DGP Law and Order Arpit Shukla informed that over 200 Police teams, comprising over 1600 police personnel, under the supervision of 102 gazetted officers have conducted raids at as many as 533 locations across the state leading to the registration of 104 first information reports (FIRs) across the state. Police teams have also checked as many as 545 suspicious persons during the day-long operation, he added.
The Special DGP said that with the state government has enforced a three-pronged strategy— Enforcement, Deaddiction and Prevention (EDP)— to eradicate drugs from the state, the Punjab Police as part of ‘De-addiction’ has convinced 85 persons to undergo de-addiction and rehabilitation treatment today.