Punjab News

Chandigarh, February 18 Punjab Finance, Planning, Excise and Taxation Minister Advocate Harpal Singh Cheema on Tuesday said that the Excise and Taxation Department has conducted targeted GST registration drives to broaden the GST tax base, resulting in the addition of 46,338 new taxpayers in 2023-24 and approximately 33,000 new taxpayers up to December 2024. He said that a statewide campaign has also been launched to educate taxpayers on filing procedures, ITC claims, and compliance benefits. Revealing this in a press communiqué issued here, the Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said that the State GST department initiated another GSTR registration drive in January 2025, visiting approximately 48,000 new dealers and successfully registering around 10,500 eligible dealers across Pu...

Chandigarh, February 17 The Government of Punjab has posted Mr. G. Nageswara Rao, an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of the 1995 batch, as the Chief Director of the Vigilance Bureau. Mr. Rao was currently serving as the Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Provisioning, Punjab. According to information shared by the Spokesperson of the Vigilance Bureau, Mr. Rao will be taking over the reins from Special Director General of Police Mr. Varinder Kumar, an IPS officer of the 1993 batch. Mr. Varinder Kumar has been relieved from the charge of Chief Director of the Vigilance Bureau and will report to the Director General of Police, Punjab, Chandigarh, for further duties. It is pertinent to mention here that Mr. G. Nageswara Rao brings with him a wealth of experience, ha...

Chandigarh, February 17: Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Monday called upon the newly inducted officers of the Punjab Civil Service (PCS) to discharge their duty with utmost dedication, commitment and integrity so that the benefits of flagship schemes of the state government are further percolated to people at grass root level. The newly promoted PCS officers from A II and C register called on the Chief Minister here at his official residence. Interacting with the officers, the Chief Minister, while congratulating the officers, said that it is a matter of immense pride that they have selected for this coveted post adding that they should serve the people with missionary zeal. Bhagwant Singh Mann hoped that the PCS Officers will use their pen for helping the needy and ...

Jalandhar, February 16: In a major crackdown on drug trafficking, the Jalandhar Rural Police have arrested a female drug smuggler and recovered 4.8 kg of ganja (cannabis) during a special operation in the Maksuda area. The accused has been identified as Shivani Kumari, wife of Shahid Abdul, a resident of Nawabganj, District Katyar (Bihar), currently residing near the Railway Station on Kapurthala Road, Kartarpur. Senior Superintendent of Police, Jalandhar Rural, Harkamalpreet Singh Khakh said that the operation was conducted under the supervision of SP Investigation Jasrup Kaur Bath, IPS, and DSP Surinder Pal Dhogadi, of Sub-Division Kartarpur. "Based on specific reliable inputs, a special police team led by Sub-Inspector Balbir Singh, SHO Police Station Maqusdan, conducted a t...

Amritsar, February 15-Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Saturday warned the Modi led Union government to refrain from turning the holy city of Amritsar into ‘detention or deportee’ centre by repeatedly sending the planes carrying deportees on this sacred land. The Chief Minister, who visited the Sri Guru Ram Dass International Airport’ to foresee the arrangements for receiving the deportees scheduled to land later in night today, reminded the Government of India that history is replete with examples that whosoever has tried to cast a malicious eye on this land had never survived. He said that the Modi government was indulging in dirty tantrums by landing the planes of deportees on repeatedly on this revered land with the sole motive of defaming the Punjab and Punjabis. Bhagwa...

Chandigarh, February 15, 2025 – The Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB), as part of its ongoing anti-corruption drive, has arrested Harjit Singh, ex- Sarpanch of village Kalia, and Manjit Singh, Lambardar of village Sakatra in Tarn Taran district for committing embezzlement of Rs 20 lakh from compensation funds meant for farmers and others affected by floods. Disclosing this here today a VB spokesperson said the arrests were made following an investigation into a complaint filed by Harnand Singh, who had served as Sarpanch of cillage Kalia until 2019. During the verification of the complaint it was found that the accused had fraudulently opened bank accounts in the names of beneficiaries, including ineligible individuals, in connivance with bank officials. They then withheld the benefici...

Furthermore, Sond directed that panchayat lands should be leased in a transparent manner to ensure that the revenue generated is utilized for village development. He urged all officials to serve the public with dedication and integrity and set a target to complete all objectives by March 31, 2025. During the meeting, the minister also issued instructions to accelerate the construction of Anganwadi centers, sports grounds, and projects under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Rural) in villages. The meeting was attended by Dilraj Singh, Administrative Secretary of the department; Parmjit Singh, Director; Dr. Sheena Aggarwal, JDC; senior officials from the headquarters; and ADCs (Development), DDPOs, BDPOs, and officers from various wings across Punjab.

Chandigarh, February 14 Punjab’s Social Security, Women and Child Development Minister for Dr. Baljit Kaur, stated that the state government has taken a unique step by making the "Punjab Financial Assistance Scheme for Acid Victims-2024" gender-neutral. This scheme, which was previously limited to women, will now also benefit male and transgender acid victims. Under this initiative, acid victims will receive a monthly financial assistance of ₹10,000.  Dr. Baljit Kaur expressed her gratitude to Punjab Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Singh Mann and his entire cabinet for this significant decision. She stated that this move reflects the government's commitment to equality and justice in society.  The Minister further informed that the Punjab Government has decided to increase fi...

Chandigarh February 13, 2025 -  The Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) during its ongoing drive against corruption in the state, has apprehended Satinder Kumar, Assistant in Emergency Ward, Civil Hospital, Ludhiana red handed while he was accepting a bribe of Rs. 7000. Disclosing this here today an official spokesperson of the state VB said the above mentioned accused have been arrested based on a complaint lodged by Vijay Kumar, a resident of Jassal Colony, Ludhiana. He further informed that the complainant has approached the VB alleging that the above said employee has demanded a bribe of Rs 10000 for issuing a receipt regarding medico-legal report. The complainant further alleged that the accused has already taken Rs 3000 from him regard a d demanding the remaining amount. The s...