After days respite, Punjab reports 214 new farm fire cases
Punjab waives Rs 518 crore in power bill penalties, interest; 25L consumers to benefit
Officials told to ramp up preparations for Shaheedi Sabha
Peace in J&K hinges on trust & political participation, say ex-Army commanders
Bullet from own pistol kills ASI; accident, say police
Amritpal gets bail to attend grandmas cremation but may not reach in time
Himachal cabinet clears Rs 1,500 monthly aid for 3.5L women, 300 units free power
High court pulls up Gmada, civic body over delayed Samgoli waste plant
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Punjab ready for change after Congress, AAP failed to deliver: Nayab Saini
HC imposes Rs 50K cost on PSCSC for discriminatory implementation of judgement
Congress flags vote theft at village chaupals, questions ECs impartiality
Education must build character, responsible citizens: Governor
Farmer forum prepares for Chandigarh morcha from Dec 7
Sonias candidature from Rajasansi triggers dissent in AAP
ASI dies in accidental firing while cleaning service pistol in Amritsar park
FIR against BJP MP Kangana over posts on Gandhi family
Amritpal gets one-day interim bail for grandmothers last rites
AAP Unveils First Candidate List for Chandigarh Municipal Corporation Elections 2026
AAP announces its first list of candidates for the 2026 Chandigarh Municipal Corporation elections, emphasizing transparent governance. AAP Unveils First Candidate List for Chandigarh Municipal Corporation Elections 2026
NITTTR Chandigarh Accounts Officer Recruitment 2026
National Institute of Technical Teachers Training & Research, Chandigarh (NITTTR Chandigarh) has published the Recruitment 2026 notification for the post of Accounts Officer. Offline applications will be accepted till 27 November 2026. For complete details, candidates can visit nitttrchd.ac.in.
Gulab Chand Kataria, Manish Tewari, TS Shergill
The 10th edition of the Military Literature Festival was held in Chandigarh, with Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria, Chandigarh MP Manish Tewari and festival Chairman T.S. Shergill attending the event, which aims to familiarise young people with the armed forces, military history, national security and India's relations with neighbouring countries. Speaking about the objective of the festival, T.S. Shergill said the initiative was intended to reach out to the youth of Punjab and the country, instilling in them the values of nationalism, enthusiasm and a deeper understanding of the armed forces. We are doing this for the youth of Punjab and India. We want to instil in our children the qualities of the armed forces, such as nationalism and enthusiasm. And not just enthusiasm, we also want to give them knowledge, Shergill said. He said that even if 10 per cent of the young participants understood and developed an interest in the subjects discussed at the festival, it would be a signif...
Chandigarh MC polls: AAP releases first list of 9 candidates for upcoming elections
Another setback for AAP in Punjab: Sukhdeep Singh Chhina resigns from posts, primary membership
Verka milk prices hiked by up to Rs 8; new rates kick in across Punjab, Delhi-NCR
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Experts discuss ways to bridge military needs & industrial capabilities
Chandigarh Police transfers six DSPs, inspector in administrative reshuffle
Eight observers to supervise Chandigarh MC elections
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Congress treads cautiously on ticket selection amid factional pulls
Rs 5 lakh grant for Jyotis family; order cites electrocution
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Haryana to convert 70% of investment MoUs into projects
12 arrested in sarpanch murder case, 17 pistols seized in separate ops in Tarn Taran
Six-time MLA from Rampur Singhi Ram quits BJP
ED files money laundering complaint against ADEL, 41 accused; 4,771 homebuyers duped of 1,075 crore
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75-yr-old ex-sarpanch held for road-rage murder on Delhi-Katra Expressway
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How Punjab is finding a use for its stubble
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FCIK slams RBI Regional office over ritual reviews amid deepening MSME distress
Srinagar, Nov 11:The Federation of Chambers of Industries Kashmir (FCIK) has sharply criticised the Reserve Bank of Indias Regional Office, Jammu, for failing to deliver tangible relief to distressed MSMEs despite successive meetings, repeated assurances and longstanding credit and rehabilitation mechanisms. Reacting to the 72nd Meeting of the Empowered Committee on MSMEs for J&K and Ladakh, FCIK said routine exhortations on liberal financing, credit guarantees and revival had displaced scrutiny of actual implementation. After 72 meetings, disclose how many enterprises were rehabilitated, financing deficiencies corrected and decisions implemented. Meetings held cannot be equated with results achieved, FCIK stated. The Federation said RBIs Regional Office must ensure that local economic conditions inform national banking policy, pursue corrective action on credit bottlenecks and recommend region-specific interventions. Having witnessed industrial distress for decades, the office must explain what it recommended, what action followed and why the same unresolved issues keep returning to its agenda. FCIK asked. FCIK said enterprises, particularly in Kashmir, had lost thousands of working days to turmoil, shutdowns, restrictions and natural calamities while interest, idle wages and statutory liabilities accumulated. Working capital was consumed by unavoidable expenses, while underfinancing, delayed assistance and costly emergency borrowings in the shape of overdraft with interest up to @18% pushed viable businesses into distress. Has the Regional Office placed a comprehensive assessment of disruption-related debt before the RBI Governor? What special measures has it recommended? Enterprises cannot remain indefinitely trapped between unserviceable debt and the loss of productive assets and family properties. FCIK observed. The Federation demanded meaningful resolution of legacy stress through rehabilitation, realistic restructuring and affordable settlements reflecting borrowers repayment capacity, the causes of distress and the need to preserve viable businesses. Expressing concern over complaints that banks allowed MSME accounts to become NPAs without timely intervention under RBIs Framework for Revival and Rehabilitation, FCIK questioned the Regional Offices monitoring. The framework requires early identification of stress and corrective action. Why do entrepreneurs report that meaningful engagement begins only with a recovery notice? Where are the assessments of rectification, restructuring and viability? asked FCIK. FCIK demanded a bank-wise account of eligible enterprises identified before NPA classification, considered for corrective action, restructured, revived or referred for recovery, with reasons for rejecting rehabilitation. What action has the Regional Office secured where banks bypassed these safeguards? Protection confined to paper offers no protection at all. FCIK observed. The Federation said NPA classification was often followed by SARFAESI notices and e-auction announcements while rehabilitation or settlement requests remained unresolved. Name and shame practices continued without giving distressed MSMEs a fair opportunity for rehabilitation or settlement, making revival even harder. In a closely knit society, public recovery campaigns damage an entrepreneurs reputation, business ties and chances of revival. FCIK also questioned repeated appeals for TReDS adoption without securing effective participation by government departments and PSUs purchasing from MSMEs. What has the Regional Office done to secure UT Government directions for their registration and time-bound acceptance of eligible invoices? Seller registration alone cannot unlock finance: public buyers must participate and accept invoices before those receivables can be discounted, observed FCIK. FCIK demanded disclosure of departments and PSUs on-boarded, invoices accepted, amounts financed and acceptance timelines, with deadlines to address gaps. Repeated references to TReDS at meetings do not release money trapped in unpaid bills. The Regional Office must help remove the administrative barriers preventing its use. The Federation further questioned its efforts to secure local access to debt adjudication for J&K borrowers compelled to pursue proceedings in Chandigarh at considerable expense and inconvenience. Acknowledging that establishing a Debts Recovery Tribunal falls within the Central Governments authority, FCIK demanded disclosure of the Regional Offices recommendations and follow-up for a tribunal in J&K or regular circuit sittings in Srinagar and Jammu. A remedy must be practically accessible, particularly when an entrepreneurs productive assets and home are at stake. Recalling its 2005 engagement with then RBI Governor Dr. Y. V. Reddy along 15 Deputy and executive Governors in Srinagar, FCIK said substantive dialogue had helped secure concessions and strengthen monitoring through Empowered Committees. Yet these committees, along the State Level Inter-Institutional Committee and its subcommittee, intended to rehabilitate sick units, failed to deliver and were subsequently abandoned. What happened to earlier concessions and rehabilitation mechanisms? Why did they disappear or become ineffective and what functioning alternatives replaced them? it asked. Urging the RBI Governor to review the Regional Offices performance, FCIK sought a time-bound programme for legacy-debt resolution, enforcement of rehabilitation safeguards, effective TReDS participation and accessible debt adjudication. The Regional Office must answer for the gap between RBIs stated objectives and entrepreneurs experience. Enterprises that survived decades of disruption deserve effective intervention. Another meeting ending with another assurance is no longer an acceptable response, FCIK concluded.
Punjab records 5,517 stubble-burning incidents; Ferozepur tops the list with 728 cases
Digital Desk | Chandigarh, Nov 12 (IANS) Stubble-burning incidents continue to be reported across Punjab amid the ongoing paddy harvesting season, with the state recording a total of 5,517 such cases so far, according to the latest report of the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB). Of the total incidents reported across the state, Ferozepur is at the top with 728 cases, while 374 cases have been recorded in Patiala district, placing it fifth among districts with the highest number of stubble-burning incidents. The PPCB report, up to Wednesday (November 11), states that 96.65 per cent of the total paddy area of 32.87 lakh hectares in Punjab has been harvested so far. Meanwhile, the district administrations and the Pollution Control Board are closely monitoring the situation and taking action against farmers found burning crop residue. This comes as North India continues to grapple with the alarming pollution levels. As part of the enforcement measures, authorities have inspected 4,620 fields across the state, while physical verification of reported stubble-burning incidents has been carried out at 2,003 locations. The authorities have imposed fines amounting to Rs 85.90 lakh as 'Environmental Compensation' (EC) in connection with stubble-burning cases. Of this amount, Rs 37.55 lakh has been recovered so far. In addition, First Information Reports (FIRs) have been registered in 1,259 cases, while 'red entries' have been recorded in the revenue records in 1,637 cases. The report further states that authorities have issued 1,435 warnings and show-cause notices to those allegedly involved in stubble burning as part of the action being taken to curb the practice. In Patiala district, around 98 per cent of the total paddy area measuring 2.314 lakh hectares has been harvested. Despite the high level of harvesting, the district has reported 374 stubble-burning incidents so far, officials said. Of these cases, officials have inspected 282 fields, while physical verification of the incidents has been completed at 184 locations. The district administration has also initiated enforcement action against those found responsible for burning crop residue. According to the officials, fines worth Rs 6.70 lakh have been imposed as Environmental Compensation in Patiala, out of which Rs 2.60 lakh has been recovered. Furthermore, FIRs have been registered in 153 stubble-burning cases, while 'red entries' have been made in the revenue records in 120 cases. Patiala has also issued 390 warnings and show-cause notices in connection with stubble-burning incidents, the highest number among all districts in Punjab, according to the report. The report also highlights that three fields in Patiala district have been identified where stubble burning was confirmed by non-AFL (non-Agriculture Field Level) officials. Across Punjab, a total of 147 such fields have been identified by the authorities. Among the districts reporting the highest number of stubble-burning incidents, Ferozepur is at the top with 728 cases. Tarn Taran follows with 687 incidents, while Sangrur has reported 628 cases. Bathinda stands fourth with 499 incidents, followed by Patiala with 374 cases. The authorities continue to monitor the situation and enforce measures to discourage farmers from burning crop residue, officials said.
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