Right to Service to become a law

The Act aims at ensuring accountability of the official machinery and to provide time bound delivery of 62 citizen-centric services – 42 civil and 20 police services – to the citizens. It would also entail a provision of punishment for civil servants in case they fail to comply within the prescribed timeframe.

The Cabinet,which met under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal also approved to go ahead to fill 100 posts of agriculture development officers in the agriculture department besides 94 vacant posts of senior assistants under direct recruitment quota in the Punjab Civil Secretariat. The agriculture officers will be recruited in the pay scale of Rs 10,300-34,800+5000 and would entail an annual expenditure of Rs 3.5 crore on the state exchequer.

The Cabinet also approved the hike in the honorarium paid to nambardars from Rs 500 to Rs1,000 per month with effect from October 1,2011.

The state cabinet also gave approval to grant house rent allowance to 100 per cent constables by amending Rule 3.21 of Punjab Police Rules,1934 on the direction of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Earlier only 60 per cent constables were entitled for HRA. It also accorded ex-post facto approval to increase the upper age limit from 37 to 39 years for the recruitment of 5,000 linemen in the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited as a one time measure.

The Cabinet also gave approval for merger of the cadre of all different categories of wildlife officials with the forest department to streamline the functioning of the Wildlife Wing. It also gave ex-post facto approval to the notification to declare Rupnagar as new divisional headquarter and also approved the creation of 59 different posts for office establishment. It also approved to upgrade the Kanugo Circle Talwandi Chaudharian in Kapurthala district and Banur in SAS Nagar Mohali as sub-tehsil respectively and also gave nod for the creation of eight posts each in both newly created sub-tehsils. The cabinet also gave approval to amend the section 8 of the Punjab Prohibition of Cow Slaughter Act,1955 to make it more stringent and punitive.

Something for every one

Welfare schemes: Age of women beneficiaries reduced

The cabinet also approved to reduce the age of women beneficiaries from 60 to 58 years under Old Age Pension and Financial Assistance to Widow and Destitute Woman scheme,1996. The Cabinet also approved the proposal to extend the facility of medical reimbursement for indoor treatment to the wives/widows and unmarried/ unemployed daughters of freedom fighters on the pattern of same facility being given to the freedom fighters.

Ex post-facto: Job approvals to Olympic,Asian medal winners

The cabinet gave ex-post facto approval to appoint former Advocate General Hardev Singh Mattewal as legal advisor of the Government of Punjab with effect from June 15,2011 till February 29,2012. Likewise,the Cabinet also gave ex-post facto approval to the medal winners of Olympic,Asian and Common Wealth Games – Manjit Kaur,Avneet Kaur Sidhu,Ronjan Sodhi,Palwinder Singh Cheema and Amandeep Kaur – who have been appointed as Deputy Superintendents of Police in the pay scale of 15,600-39,100+ 5400 grade pay with effect from July 19,2011. The Cabinet also approved the proposal of sports department to appoint Ruby Tomar as assistant sub-inspector in the police department. She had recently won gold medal in Rifle Shooting at World University Games – 2011 in China.

Economy: Zero tax in the SEZs

The cabinet also approved to exempt the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) units from different taxes levied by the state government to bring them under zero rated category through amending section 17 of the Punjab Value Added Tax Act,2005. The cabinet also gave approval to enhance the value added tax (VAT) on rice from 4 to 5 per cent while it slashed the VAT on vermicelli from 12.5 per cent to to 5 per cent.

Education: Nod to RTE

The cabinet also approved the rules made by the state government for the implementation of Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act,2009 . It also gave nod to run the multi-discipline academies being set up at Khunimajra,Bhikhiwind,Amritsar,Hoshiarpur,Batala,Rajpura,Guruteg Bahadurgarh,Dinanagar and Sultanpur Lodhi by the Punjab Technical University as per the decision taken by its Board of Directors. These academies would impart quality education in plus two science stream besides diploma and degree level education in engineering,management,computers and pharmacy. The cabinet also gave ex-post facto approval to the restructuring plan of technical education department and gave its approval to include lecturers’ category of technical education under the dynamic assured career progression scheme of Punjab Civil Services (ACP) Rules,2011.

Bills in October Assembly session

The cabinet also gave approval to convert the Punjab Civil Services (Rationalization of Certain Conditions of Service) Repeal Ordinance,2011 into Act in the forthcoming Punjab Vidhan Sabha session. It also also approved to convert the Punjab Value Added Tax (Fourth Amendment) Ordinance,2011 (Punjab Ordinance No.10 of 2011) and Punjab Value Added Tax (Third Amendment) Ordinance,2011 (Punjab Ordinance No.9 of 2011) into Act in the forthcoming session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha. The Cabinet also decided to amend section 27(1) and (2) of Punjab VAT Act,2005 to enhance the rate of tax on work contract from 4 per cent to 5 per cent through an Ordinance. The Cabinet also approved the conversion of the Ordinances relating to amendment in section 27 of Punjab Land Reforms Act,1972,amendment in the different sections,sub-sections and preamble of Punjab Tax on Entry into Goods into Local Areas Act,2000,amendment in Punjab Health Systems Corporation Act 1996 (Punjab Act No.6 of 1996),amendment in the sub section 1 of clause B of section 27 of Punjab Land Revenue Act,1887,amendment in section 16 and 18 of Punjab Land Revenue Act,1887,into Acts through presentation of a Bill in the forthcoming session of Punjab Vidhan Sabha.