Anandpur Sahib to be a district ?

His comments come amid growing speculations over the state government’s intention to carve out Anandpur Sahib district from Roopnagar. Only last year, Punjab Finance Minister Capt. Kanwaljit Singh had clarified that no such proposal was on the state government’s agenda.

It is pertinent to mention that such speculations are rife ever since the ruling Akali Dal decided to celebrate 300 years of the Khalsa Panth in Anandpur Sahib next year. Replying to another question, Tara Singh made it clear that the Anandpur Sahib resolution was still on his party’s agenda. “It is wrong to perceive that we have buried our political goal under the development plans for Anandpur Sahib,” he quipped.

On being pointed out that the demand for merger of Nalagarh area in Himachal Pradesh which is at a stone’s throw distance from his constituency, with Punjab was being ignored by the ruling Akali Dal, he replied, “Why only Nalagarh ? We want all the Punjabi speaking areas back, but the situation now demands that we take the Udham Singh Nagar issue to its logical end.”Tara Singh further claimed that his constituency would be on international map once the development projects were finished.

To a question, why the district price fixation committee of which he is a member is in the thick of a controversy over land acquisition drive launched by the state government, Tara Singh claimed, “The rates being offered in Anandpur Sahib are anytime higher, but efforts are being made to revise the prices to the satisfaction of people.” Celebrations AKALI Dal (Amritsar) has finally decided to participate in the tercentenary celebrations of the Khalsa Panth to be held in Anandpur Sahib next year. According to a press release, the Akali Dal (Amritsar) will hold the celebrations under the patronage of the Akal Takht.

In no uncertain words, the party working committee members have invited like-minded political and religious groups to attend the celebrations.Earlier, the working committee had convened a meeting to decide its future course of action for the much awaited event at Fatehgarh Sahib.

Party president Simranjit Singh Mann chaired the meeting where the members resolved to fill up the controversial Sutlej Yamuna Link Canal with the support of Democratic Akali Dal led by Kuldip Singh Wadala. The date for earth-filling of the canal would be decided later, the release added.

Accusing the BJP, Shiv Sena and Bajrant Dal for the ransacking of Guru Ram Dass Academy in Dehradun, the party prevailed upon the Punjab government not to accord domicile to the migrant Sikhs in Punjab.

Reiterating its view to maintain equi-distance from both the BJP and the Congress, Akali Dal (Amritsar) demanded that all the Sikh prisoners be released and those who had deserted the Indian Army in the wake of Operation Blue Star be rehabilitated.