PUNJAB

The Punjab Governments plan to operate over 200 new buses in the state has failed to take off. Only two persons have evinced interest in operating the buses, though the government has floated tenders twice.

The state-run Pepsu Roadways Transport Corporation (PRTC) had decided to operate buses on 219 routes, under the kilometre scheme, and its tenders were initially floated in July. However, only two operators evinced interest in operating the buses. As a result, the tender for running 217 buses was again floated in September last year. It found no takers.

This has caused the to analyse the reasons for the lack of interest in the scheme, where buses are to be leased from private parties and operated by the state government. It is learnt that the reason is the free bus rides allowed to Women passengers, which has made public transportation in the state economically unviable. The women passengers were allowed free travel on government-run buses by the previous Congress government.

To woo the Christian community inPunjabfor their electoral support during the 2022 assembly , chief ministerCharanjit SinghChanni made a slew of promises to the community, including setting up a Chair at the university level for the study of the Bible.

A community hall would be constructed in each district of Punjab in order to enable the community to hold functions there, he said. Meanwhile,Christian Welfare Board, Punjab, chairmanSalamat Masihthanked the Punjab government for choosing Gurdaspur as the place for holding this state-level function.

Over a month after the Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced to name the Chandigarh airport after martyr Bhagat Singh as a tribute, the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has issued the notification renaming the Chandigarh International Airport as Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport.

Notably, the Prime Minister on September 25 had announced that the Chandigarh airport will be renamed after Bhagat Singh as a tribute to the freedom fighter. His 115th birth anniversary was celebrated on September 28, and on the same day, it was announced that the Chandigarh Airport has been renamed after Bhagat Singh.

The development came days after the Punjab Government had urged the Centre to include the name of Mohali city in the recently-inaugurated Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport, Chandigarh, as the terminal has been constructed on land falling in revenue district of SAS Nagar, Mohali.

Notably, to name or rename the , an elaborate process is followed; and the final approval has to come from the Union Cabinet. Generally, airports are known by the name of the city where they are located. In some cases, a specific name is proposed by the respective State Government supported by a resolution passed in the state legislative assembly concerned. The same is then sent to the Union Cabinet for the final approval.

Cities in Punjab recorded lower Air Pollution levels after Dussehra this year than they did last year.

Fewer farm fires this year than in 2020 are also believed to be a reason behind the low pollution level on the event that was celebrated on October 15. Last year Dussehra was celebrated on October 25.

PPCB stations recorded AQI far less than last year on the day of Dussehra even though the air quality of Punjab had slipped to ‘moderate-zone’ from ‘satisfactory zone’ this year, the next day of the event.

This month following high moisture and rainfall towards the end of September had hit the harvesting of the crop and thus the burning of crop residue. So far, around 3,000 stubble burning cases were recorded in Punjab whereas the number crossed 7,100 by October 19, 2020.

Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Convergence Energy Services Limited (CESL) for installing public charging stations for electric vehicles in Punjab.

Highlights:

With the signing of MoU and this collaboration with PEDA, CESL is aiming to expand its EV transition portfolio. It also seeks to supply accessible and affordable charging within the state of Punjab.Convergence Energy Services Limited is a subsidiary of Energy Efficiency Services Ltd. MoU was signed by a chief executive officer of PEDA, Navjot Pal Singh Randhawa.

The Chief Minister, in his letter, pointed out that the movement of devotees to Kartarpur through the Corridor was suspended in March 2020 due to the COVID outbreak. The COVID-19 situation in Punjab has shown signs of significant improvement in the past one month and I am happy to share that yesterday, no COVID-19 related death was reported, after almost a period of one year.

Back-to-back pest attacks, unpredictable weather patterns and unavailability of canal water for sowing have brought the cultivation inPunjabto almost naught. It is for the first time in decades that the area under the white gold has shrunk below 2 lakh hectares. Though the exact data is yet to emerge, it is estimated to drop to 1.75 lakh hectares this season.

The downward trend had started after the first big whitefly attack on the crop in September-October 2015, but after 8 years, the interest of farmers towards this alternative to paddy is seen fast diminishing. So much so that the area under cotton cultivation in Punjab has reduced to one third in the last 15 years from 5.28 lakh hectares in 2008 to 1.75 lakh in 2023.

Cotton is mainly grown in semi-arid districts of Bathinda, Mansa, Fazilka and Muktsar. It is also grown in small quantities in Faridkot, Moga, Barnala and Sangrur districts. As compared to Punjab, the cotton is grown on a much larger area in adjoining

Besides, the Chief Minister has also directed the Chief Secretary Vini Mahajan to constitute an Officers Committee to personally listen to the grievances of the employees of various departments.

After incorporating suggestions ofPunjabandHaryana, the cost for the implementation of the comprehensive mobility plan for theTricityprepared by the RITES has increased by around Rs 6,000 crore, a 56% increase from the original cost.

The plan will cost Rs 16,509 crore, according to RITES latest report; but in the March 16 report, its cost was pegged at Rs 10,571 crore. The Metro project, as per the 2012 detailed project report prepared by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (Dmrc), was to cost Rs 14,900 crore.

In the final report of the RITES comprehensive mobility plan for the Tricity submitted here on Wednesday, theMRTSnetwork has expanded from initial 48 km to 66 km.

The RITES made a presentation of its final report in a meeting chaired by UT adviserDharam Pal. The meeting was attended by senior officers of Punjab, Haryana, civil aviation, IAF, railways and all other stakeholders.
The final report submitted by the RITES was unanimously approved by all stakeholders with some observations.