Aimed at creating robust telecommunication infrastructure with adequate bandwidth to promote Information Technology, e-governance and e-commerce in the State, the Punjab Cabinet on Wednesday approved a set of new guidelines under a single-window policy to replace the existing norms. At the same time, the Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh issued strict directives to ensure timely restoration of roads and other infrastructure damaged by the telecom firms.
The new guidelines will supersede the Telecom Policy notified on December 5, 2013, and December 11, 2015, said an official spokesperson after the meeting, adding that the amended policy was aligned to the Right of Way Rules, 2016.
The decision would enable speedier permissions for installation of Telecom Towers, Masts or Poles and Right of Way (RoW) Clearances for laying of Optical Fiber Cables etc to registered Telecom Operators or Infrastructure Providers at Government or Private buildings and lands.
Enhanced period for validity of permissions, no NOC (no objection certificate) requirement from Airport Authority of India (AAI) and elimination of NOC requirement from Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) for
installation of generator sets are among the key highlights of the new policy.
Listing the salient features of new guidelines, the spokesperson said that the existing fee structure would be rationalized by replacing various charges currently being collected by the State, in the form of one time fee, annual user fee, sharing fee and enhancement in all the charges after every five years, with a one-time Administrative Fee of Rs 10,000 per tower.
“This will help to bridge the digital divide between the rural and urban areas of the State, and provide a well-knit telecommunication infrastructure network to promote E-Governance, E-Commerce and Information Technology etc,” said the spokesperson.
The single-window policy envisages providing online clearances through Punjab Business First Portal in a time-bound fashion, with the provision of deemed clearances built into the new guidelines.
The Deputy Commissioner of the concerned district shall be the single contact person for all clearances and shall be responsible for addressing public grievances relating to installation of telecom infrastructure.
Under the approved guidelines, the period of State Government permissions has been enhanced to 20 years from earlier 10 years and has been made co-terminus with the clearance of the Standing Advisory Committee on Radio Frequency Allocation (SACFA).
The new guidelines would dispense with the requirement of a separate NOC from the Airports Authority of India if SACFA clearance has already been obtained by the Telecom Service Providers or Infrastructure Service Providers from the Department of Telecommunications, Government of India.
PUNJAB GOVT AMENDS RULES, GIVES JOBS TO MARRIED SIBLINGS OF GALWAN HEROES
Making an exception to the State Government’s existing ‘Policy of Appointments of Honour and Gratitude’, the Punjab Cabinet on Wednesday okayed amendment to rules to provide jobs in the State services to married siblings of three bachelor battle casualties of the Galwan Valley.
The decision has been taken by the Government in recognition of the supreme sacrifice made by Sepoy Gurtej Singh, Sepoy Gurbinder Singh and Lance Naik Saleem Khan.
As per existing rules, only dependent family members or next of kin of the battle casualties were eligible for jobs. But in the case of these three men, since no dependent family member existed, the Government decided to make an exception and give jobs to their married brothers.
“Gurpreet Singh, the married brother of Sepoy Gurtej Singh; Gurpreet Singh, married brother of Sepoy Gurbinder Singh; and Niyamat Ali, married brother of Lance Naik Saleem Khan, had applied for appointment in the State Services despite not falling under the definition of ‘Dependent members of the War Heroes’,” said a spokesperson of the Chief Minister’s Office.
The Spokesperson pointed out that under the Policy of Appointments and Honour and Gratitude in the Class I and II services to the dependent members of families of “War Heroes” dated September 24, 1999, and the Policy of Appointments and Honour and Gratitude in the Class III and IV services to the dependent members of families of “War Heroes” dated August 19, 1999, the widow or the dependent member of the family of a “War Hero” is offered appointment in the State Services.
A dependent member of a War Hero under the aforesaid policies is defined as a “Widow or Wife or a dependent son or dependent unmarried daughter or adopted dependent son or adopted unmarried daughter.
“However, in case the War Hero is unmarried but had other dependents on him, then one of the dependent unmarried brothers or unmarried sisters was eligible for consideration for appointment under this policy,” said the spokesperson.
Notably, five soldiers belonging to Punjab laid down their lives in Ladakh sector in June 2020, during an unprovoked aggression by the People’s Liberation Army of China.
Such deaths are normally declared as Battle Casualty by the Army Headquarters and the Next of Kin of such soldiers are granted financial assistance and one dependent family member of each martyred soldier is also given jobs, as per the Policy of Appointments and Honour and Gratitude of the State Government.
“But out of these five soldiers, three were unmarried at the time of their martyrdom. Further, none of the family members of the above mentioned three martyrs are covered under the definition of the “dependent members of the War Heroes” in the aforesaid policies, thus prompting the State Government to make a departure from norm as a mark of honour and gratitude to these martyrs, as they are survived by their old parents and other family members,” said the spokesperson.
SCHEME TO EMPOWER PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
To empower the ‘Persons with Disabilities’ (PwDs), the Punjab Cabinet on Wednesday okayed a new scheme — Punjab Divyangjan Shaktikaran Yojna (PDSY) — to be implemented in a phased manner across the State. The first phase of the scheme will involve strengthening the existing programmes to ensure that their benefits reach the persons with disabilities in a more effective manner, while in the second phase, 13 new interventions are proposed to be undertaken for the empowerment of such persons.
The scheme, envisaged by the Social Security and Women and Child Development Department, is aimed at providing a barrier-free environment to persons with disabilities in a phased manner, by making government and public-centric buildings, public transportation and websites accessible to them. as per Census 2011, in Punjab, out of a population of 2.72 crore, there are 6.5 lakh disabled persons — that is 2.14 percent of the population. This comprises 3.79 lakhs (58 percent) males and 2.74 lakh (42 percent) females. The number of disabled persons is highest in the age group of 20-29 years (1.17 lakh). A majority (20 percent) of disabled persons have disability in movement, 12.6 percent have visual disability and another 22.4 percent have disability in hearing, while the remaining account for other types of disabilities.
CRITICAL POSTS APPROVED IN GMCs AMID COVID SCARE
To cope more effectively with COVID-19 pandemic, the Punjab Cabinet on Wednesday gave approval for the creation of 16 posts of Assistant Professor (Super Specialist) in the departments of Cardiology, Endocrinology, Neurology and Nephrology of Government Medical Colleges of Patiala and Amritsar.
The Cabinet also gave nod to temporary conversion of 25 vacant posts of direct quota of super-specialist Professor and Associate Professor to Assistant Professor on contract basis in these two GMCs, said a spokesperson of the Chief Minister’s Office.
In another significant ecision, the Cabinet also approved filling up of 168 posts of technicians in various paramedical cadres in these Medical Colleges.
Of these, 98 posts would be created and 70 vacant posts would be revived. These recruitments would be made in the departments of Anesthesia (ICU), Cardiology, Radiology, Radiotherapy, Physiotherapy, Audiology, Speech, Sterilisation Services and Oxygen or Gas Supply through Baba Farid University of Health Science (BFUHS), Faridkot.