15 august 2024 : The state Cabinet led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Wednesday accorded approval for summoning the seventh session of the 16th Punjab Vidhan Sabha from September 2 to 4. The session will start with obituary references on September 2 and the business for the three-day session will be decided by the Business Advisory Committee shortly. Today’s Cabinet meeting was held after a gap of five months.
However, the agenda for amending Section 12 of the Punjab Panchayat Amendment Rules, 1994, was deferred. These amendments were being brought to ensure that the candidates contesting the panchayat poll were barred from contesting on their party symbols.
Sources said the agenda was deferred after some ministers said the same norm should not apply to block samiti and zila parishad candidates. This should be done only for the panchayat elections, they said.
The Cabinet decided to designate State Executive Committee as the competent authority to immediately release funds worth over Rs 1 crore per case out of the SDRF/state Budget or combined SDRF and state Budget for crop damage due to notified natural calamities.
It was also decided to reduce motor vehicle tax on registered tourist vehicles in the state. The Cabinet also agreed to levy additional road tax on one more category of luxury vehicles. The move is likely to generate additional income of Rs 87.03 crore. The Cabinet also approved to levy Green Tax on old transport/non-transport vehicles registered in the state to curb pollution.
The Cabinet also okayed the Punjab Fire Safety and Emergency Services Bill, 2024; creation of 49 posts for seven Gram Nyayalayas in Patran (Patiala), Tappa (Barnala), Bassi Pathana (Fatehgarh Sahib), Dera Baba Nanak (Gurdaspur), Dharkal (Pathankot), Raikot (Ludhiana) and Chamkaur Sahib (Rupnagar); amendment to Punjab Partnership (Registration of Firms) Rules-1932 for implementing the revised fees for services as contained in ‘Schedule-l’ under Section 71(1) of the Indian Partnership Act, 1932; Youth Services Policy; amendment to sports regular cadre service rules; project for promoting agro forestry and biodiversity conservation in the state at a cost of Rs 792.88 crore; Punjab State Education Policy for Children with Disabilities; amendment to the Punjab Family Courts (Amendment) Rules, 2004; and extending the services of 479 veterinary pharmacists and 472 safai sewaks working at 582 veterinary