NAGPUR: The Shetkari Sanghatana will launch an agitation from November 30 to demand remunerative prices for cotton procured under the Monopoly Procurement Scheme, announced Sanghatana leader Sharad Joshi.

Addressing a press conference, he said the Sanghatana has demanded that the popular H-4 variety of cotton (FAQ grade) should be procured at the rate of Rs 1,850 per quintal. The Sanghatana is also strongly opposed to the practice of deducting cooperative loan instalments from payments made to cotton growers.

According to him, cotton-growers would not take the produce outside the state if remunerative prices were offered.

Call for pre-paid rickshaw service

PUNE: To avoid harassment of passengers by three-seater autorickshaws, the Patit Pavan Sanghatana has appealed to the traffic police and to Rickshaw Panchayat leader Baba Adhav to implement a pre-paid rickshaw service in the city. Sandip Khardekar, organiser of the PPS, who recently toured MP, witnessed the smooth functioning of the pre-paid rickshaw service in which the passenger is given a receipt after payment of fare to his destinations and one rupee service charge in advance. After the autorickshaw drops him at his destination, he surrenders the receipt to the autorickshaw operator, who in turn collects the fare amount from the traffic police at the booths at railway/airport/bus stations.

PCMC abattoir issue deadlocked

PUNE: The contentious issue of selecting the site for the proposed abattoir of the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) remained deadlocked on Monday with a number of corporators questioning the need to take up the project. The proposal has been put on hold in the face of severe opposition from members. At the end of a heated debate at the civic general body meeting, Municipal Commissioner Pravinsinh Pardeshi suggested that a committee comprising the Mayor, the ruling party leader and the opposition leader be formed to suggest a site for the abattoir.

PWD official caught accepting bribe

RAJKOT: An executive engineer (road and building) of the Public Works Department (PWD) was nabbed on Monday by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) while allegedly accepting bribe money from a contractor. According to an ACB spokesman, the accused, H N Mehta, had demanded Rs 10,000 from the contractor, Apabhai Khachar, for approving his tender and returning his deposit money of Rs 21,000. Khachar agreed to give Rs 10,000 in two instalments of Rs 5,000 each to Mehta. Later, Khachar informed the ACB who laid a trap and caught the executive, the spokesman said.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.