Dera Baba Nanak, November 26
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has pointed out that the state had suffered losses to the tune of around Rs 13,500 crore due to the floods and reiterated his strong demand that the Union government should immediately release the Rs 1,600 crore relief package that had been publicly announced earlier. Mann was speaking on the sidelines after starting the process of disbursement of compensation to more than 30,000 families, whose houses were damaged during the recent floods.
The Chief Minister said that withholding of the promised assistance amounted to yet another “jumla” with the people and slammed the government for step-motherly treatment being meted out to Punjab. He said that the anti-Punjab stance of the centre was reflective of desperate attempts being made by them to change the status of Chandigarh and Panjab University.
Mann said the government was committed to freeing Punjab from the scourge of drugs and to ensuring that the youth were channelized towards education, sports and constructive activities. Announcing a major boost to sports infrastructure, Bhagwant Singh Mann declared that 23 model sports grounds would be developed specifically in the Dera Baba Nanak area, while a total of 194 modern sports grounds would be established across Gurdaspur district.
The Chief Minister said that the nephew has now joined another party, while the brother‑in‑law is behind bars for their sins. He added that the party even gave a ticket to a relative of a gangster in the Tarn Taran by-poll, who was badly rejected by the wise people of the state. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that the menace of drugs had spread its wings during the misrule of the Akalis and BJP.
