CHANDIGARH: The Chief Minister Beant Singh Friday called for a cease-fire in Punjab from Baisakhi April 13. He urged the militants to lay down arms on the auspicious day associated with Guru Gobind Singh and come forward for talks following which he assured he police would also suspend operations against them.

Winding up the three-day discussion on the Governors address in the Vidhan Sabha the Chief Minister said it was shameful that the militants and their new-found apologists the Akalis had discarded the philosophy of the great guru. Instead this “bogus leadership was planning to kill more innocent people.

Beant Singh made several other announcements during his 70minute spirited reply to the debate. He said two new districts Fatehgarh Sahib and Mansa will come into being on the Baisskhi ay. He also announced that the traffic department of the police was being abolished and loans taken by members of the scheduled castes up to Rs 5000 would be written off.

He said the cases of all women and children below the age of 18 who were under arrest would be reviewed and they would be released if nothing substantial was found against them. The government had withdrawn the ban on recruitment to its services and 20000 persons would be hired next year. All ad hoc employees who had completed two years of service would be regularized and Punjabi was being introduced as official language from the secretariat down to the block level.

“The Chief Minister declared that Punjab would not part with the Abohar-Bazilka areas in exchange for Chandigarh at any cost. “We will also not give even 70acres of and not to speak of 70000 acres of land as recommended by a commission in lieu of the city The Punjab farmer is known to be averse (0 parting with even one marla (25 square yards) of land.” He also said that Punjab would try to retain the quantum of river water it was getting on July 11, 985. He suggested that two MAF water from Rajasthan s allocation in the river waters should be taken away for distribution between Punjab and Haryana “and this will satisfy the demand of the two states.” Beant Singh said that all persons of age of 70 and more would be given an old age pension The Punjab government would try to get a wheat bonus of Rs.50 per uintal for the farmers to ensure that the central pool got more than 63.5 lakh tons of wheat. Launching a scathing attack on the Panthic leaders the Chief Minister said they were always voices of dissidence bent upon vitiating the atmosphere. They should at least condemn the killings of innocent people. “They call themselves senior leaders but now the militants have hooked them the way at rainier does a bear he said. The Punjab government was led by the Akalis in 1970 when the Indira Gandhi award on Chandigarh was announced. It was the Congress (I) which had protested against the award and Giani Zail Singh who succeeded Bidal as chief minister had written to the Center that the decision was not acceptable to Punjab. It was Bidal whose revolt against the chief minister Surjit Singh Barnala had led to the fall of the Akai ministry in May 1987 Again it was Badal who had surrendered as the chief minister, in 1977 the river head works of Punjab to the BMB and had even planned with the then Haryana chief minister Devi Lal to have a common governor for the two sates He said the Akalis should accept the present government as their own instead of opting for confrontation.

Calling upon the “boys” (militant’s) to come to the right path the Chief Minister said they should not cross the border for procuring arms He would like the Indo-Pak border to be opened for travel 10 Lahore and not for weapons.

Beant Singh said that after the abolition of the police traffic department a seven-member committee would in consultation with the home secretary ensure that public carriers did not evade taxes. He was committed to root out corruption at all levels. He said elections to local bodies would be fired before November this year and the panchayat poll will be held later.

The House passed by a voice vote the motion of thanks on the Governors address rejecting amendments moved by the opposition

The Chief Minister asked the corporation of Amritsar to resume the Golden Temple beautification work. The government would look alter the needs of the transport in corporation areas.

Article extracted from this publication >> April 10, 1992