Chandigarh, June 24 (IANS) Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday, led the Vidhan Sabha, in paying tribute to eminent personalities, freedom fighters, political personalities and noted Punjab singer Sidhu Moosewala, all who had passed away since the last session of the Assembly.
On the first day of Budget session, the House paid respects to former ministers Hardipinder Singh Badal and Jathedar Tota Singh, besides formers MLAs -- Sukhdev Singh Sukhladhi and Shingara Ram Sahungra.
The House also paid tribute to freedom fighters Tara Singh, Swarn Singh, Crora Singh and Sukhraj Singh Sandhawalia, who played a pivotal role in emancipating the country from the clutches of British imperialism.
Meanwhile, the House also paid homage to mountaineer and Arjun awardee Gurcharan Singh Bhangu, who was bestowed this prestigious award in 1965 for climbing the Mount Everest, and athlete Hari Chand, also an Arjun awardee, who brought laurels to the country in field of athletics.
The House also paid tributes to the famous Punjabi Singer Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, alias Sidhu Moosewala, who had carved a niche for himself in the vast field of music and entertainment.
The legislative assembly also paid homage to eminent Sikh personality Principal Surinder Singh.
A two-minute silence was observed in the memory of departed souls as a mark of respect during the obituary references.
Modi thanked Heger for the assistance provided by Slovakia in the evacuation of Indian citizens from Ukraine, and for permitting special evacuation flights from India. He asked for Slovakia's continued assistance in the next few days with India undertaking a mission to evacuate other citizens from conflict zones.
Sidhu has urged the apex court not to punish him with a jail term in a 1988 road rage case in which he was let off with a meagre fine of Rs 1,000. Senior advocate Siddharth Luthra, representing Gurnam Singh's family, submitted that he has moved an application seeking enlargement of the scope of the notice issued.
With Ukraine closing its airspace after Russia launched a military operation in the country on Thursday, the Indian Embassy in Kiev has asked the Indian nationals to start moving towards the bordering areas so that they can be evacuated safely.
The Indian Embassy in Kiev stated that the helpline numbers are being set up at the respective check-points to facilitate evacuation through the borders. These control rooms will be based in Poland, Romania and Hungary and they will be managed by the Indian officials posted in those countries.
On Thursday, India's Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla had stated that Jaishankar has spoken to concerned officials in Poland, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia for setting up camps on the border areas for evacuation of stranded Indian nationals.
An official spokesperson said the affected people or their relatives could call from within Punjab on helpline number 1100 and others from outside India on +91-172-4111905 for seeking information in this regard.
