Punjab set up group of ministers to monitor lumpy skin disease
Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 10 Aug, 2022 10:28 AM
Chandigarh, Aug 10 (IANS) Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday announced to set up a group of ministers (GoM) for effective monitoring and control of lumpy skin disease among livestock on a day-to-day basis.
Sharing details after a high-level meeting to review the situation, the Chief Minister said the GoM comprising Finance Minister Harpal Cheema, Agriculture Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal and Animal Husbandry Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar would be assisted by experts from the Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University and officials from the animal husbandry department.
He said the GoM would daily review the situation and take necessary action for checking the spread of the disease.
Mann said the government is duty-bound to safeguard the interests of the cattle owners.
The Chief Minister also announced to launch a massive vaccination drive to save the animals from this disease. He said vaccines will be administered to the animals free of cost, adding that there is no dearth of funds for this.
Mann further said that the government has sealed the borders for checking the entry of animals from other states into Punjab.
He said the bordering districts of Fazilka, Sri Muktsar Sahib, Bathinda and Tarn Taran have been worst affected by the disease, which shows that the virus has been transmitted from other states.
According to the BSF, around 5.15 a.m. an alert BSF team comprising Head Constable (HC) Gyan Singh and Constable Raju Biswas of 89 Battalion observed suspicious movement of miscreants, suspected to be smugglers both across the International Border as well as inside the Indian territory between the Border Outpost No. 33/06 and 33/07 in the cover of dense fog.
In an apparent embarrassment for Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu, his 'elder sister' Suman Tur on Friday described him a 'cruel' for deserting her elderly mother after father's death with an intention to 'grab family property'. She told the media here that Sidhu had abandoned her mother and she passed away on a railway station in 1989.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Friday demanded transfer of state intelligence officials, including the top brass, who face charges of compromising the security of Punjab and indulging in electoral malpractices to provide "illegal, illegitimate and immoral" help to the ruling Congress.
Due to incessant rains and water logging of fields owing to overflow of nearby natural drains during September-October 2021 in Delhi, crops of farmers have been severely damaged, the Delhi government said in a release, adding that Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had taken cognisance of the matter and assessed that a relief package for crop damage was necessary to be provided.
The SKM also reiterated that the name, banner or platform of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha will not be used by any political party or candidate in the run-up to the Assembly polls in Punjab, scheduled on February 20.
Appearing for the Punjab government, Senior Advocate P. Chidambaram argued that Majithia has gone into hiding after the rejection of his bail plea in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, and now he is appearing through counsel.
