PEPSU
(PATIALA
AND EAST PUNJAB STATES UNION)
Vidhan
Sabha Constituencies
For the Vidhan Sabha, there were 12 constituencies
consisting of 15 seats (Three double-member constituencies ) in the district,
viz. Kandaghat (double-member), Banur(double-member) , Rajpura , Patiala City,
Ghanaur, Patiala Sadar, Bhadson, Nabha, Samana , Bassi, Sirhind and amloh
–Payal (double –number) . From these constituenices, 7 Congress, 4 Akali Dal, 3
Independents and 1 Scheduled Castes Federation , Candidates were elected. The
Total number of valid votes polled by each contesting party is givne below:
Bye-Election
to the Kandaghat (double-number) (now in Himachal Pradesh) Legislative
Assembly.-Bye election to the Kandaghat (double–number) Constituency was
held in 1951-52 . The Total number of electors in the constituency was 57,095.
Independent candidates were declared elected from this constituency. The total
number of valid votes polled in favour of each of the contesting parties in
this constituency was as follows:-
Mid-term
Election to the PEPSU Legislative
Assembly, 1954.-- The
first general election to the PEPSU Legislative Assembly were held in 1951-52.
Normally, the Assembly should have had a term of five years in accordance with
the provisions of Article 172 (I) of the Constitution . However, on 4 March
1953, the President of India issued a proclamation under Article 356 of the Constitution
by which the Legislative Assembly of the PEPSU was dissolved and the President
assumed himself all functions of the Government and powers vested in or
exercisable by the Rajpramukh of the State. Para (C) (IV) of the proclamation
announced that general elections for the State would be held as soon as
possible after the constituencies for elections to the Legislative Assembly of
the State. The Delimitation Commission’s order containing the delimitation of
constituencies in the PEPSU was published on 15 September 1953, and the
mid-term elections to the Vidhan Sabha were held in February 1954.
PEPSU
Legislative Assembly Constituencies
There were 12 constituencies to elect 16
members from the district (four being double-member) viz. , Nalagarh , Kandaghat
(double-member), Banur(double-member), Rajpura, Bassi,Sirhind, Patiala City,
Patiala Sadar, Samama (double-member) , Amloh( double-member), Bhadson and
Nabha. From these constituencies , 9 Congress, 3 Akali (Master Tara Singh
Group) and 4 Independent candidates were declared elected. The total number of
votes polled by each of the contesting parties is given below:
Second
General Elections, 1957.—By virtue of the States Reorganization act
1956, the erstwhile states of Punjab and PEPSU were merged into one and the new
State of Punjab came into existence on 1 November 1956. This resulted in the
amalgamation of the Vidhan Sabha of Punjab and PEPSU states and the strength of
the Vidhan Sabha of the new State was fixed at 154 as against 126 for the erstwhile
Punjab and 60 for the erstwhile PEPSU. This necessitated fresh delimitation of
constituencies which was effected under the Delimitation of Parliamentary and
Assembly Constituencies Order, 1956, in December 1956. The sitting members of
the respective Vidhan Sabha became members of the new Vidhan Sabha became
members of the new Vidhan Sabha of the
new state till the delimitation of the constituencies was completed. The task
of conducting the general elections in 1957, therefore, was of 52 elections.
The delimitation of constituencies was effected only a few weeks before the
elections and left much less time for the extensive arrangements that had to be
made. Besides, the total period for the poll in the State was reduced
appreciably (i.e. 24 February to 14 March 1957). Voting for the Assembly
Constituencies was completed in a single day, or in a very few cases, in two
days, instead of being spread over a number of days, as in1951-52. The counting
of votes was also taken up in each constituency as soon as the polling had been
completed instead of counting after the polling in the entire State had been
completed. Thus, with the reduction of total period for polling in each
constituency, it became inevitable to deploy a much larger number of polling
staff as well as police in the second general elections.
In
accordance with the report of the Delimitation commission, five PunjabVidahan
Sabha constituencies comprising 7 seats (two seats reserved for the members of
Scheduled Castes) were allocated to the Patiala District.
Lok
Sabha Constituency
Patiala
was the only Lok sabha Constituency in the district from which the Congress
candidate was declared elected. The constituency had 4,56,352 voters in all,
out of which 2,37,930 cast their votes. The total number of valid votes polled
by each contesting party is given below:
Punjab
Vidhan Sabha Constituencies
For
the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, there were 5 constituencies comprising 7 seats in the
district, viz. Sirhind (double –member) ,Nabha , Rajpura, Patiala , and Samana
(double-member) . From all these constituencies, the Congress candidates were
elected. The total number of valid votes polled by different parties is given
below:
Third
General Elections, 1962.- A
major improvement in the matter of elections in the State this time was in
regard to the period of polling. While it took nearly 19 days to complete the
poll during the second general elections, the poll this time was held and
completed in a single day, i.e. on24 February 1962 throughout the State, except
in Kulu and Seraj constituencies, where on account of the areas being
inaccessible due to snowfall, the poll was deferred and held towards the end of
April. Punjab was, thus the only State which had the distinction of having a
single day poll both for the parliament and Assembly elections. The balloting
system of voting adopted during the last general elections was retained only in
the remote and inaccessible Kulu and Seraj constituencies . In all other
constituencies of the State, the marking system of voting was adopted.
In 1961, the Parliament decided to
ablish the double member constituencies for the Legislative Assemblies as well
as for the House of the People and as such passed the Two-member Constituencies
(Abolition ) Act(1 of 1961 ) for this purpose. Under the Act, the Election
Commission was empowered to divide even double member constituencies into
single member constituencies , delimit the extent, decide in which of them the
seat shall be reserved for Scheduled Castes/ Scheduled Tribes. As a result of this, one Parliamentary Constituency and 7
Assembly Constituencies were formed in the district.
Lok
Sabha Constituency
Patiala
was the only Lok Sabha Constituency in the district from which the Congress
candidate was declared elected. The Constituency had 5,24,087 voters in all,
out of whom 3,35,421 cast their votes. The total number of valid votes polled
by each contesting party was as under:
Punjab
Vidhan Sabha Constituencies
There
were 7 constituencies (including 2 reserved for Scheduled Castes) for the Punjab
Vidhan Sabha in the district, namely , Rajpura , Samana (SC) . The Congress
candidates were declared elected form all these constituencies. The total
number of electors in the district was 4,55,562 out of whom 2,85,656 cast their votes. The total number
of valid votes polled each contesting party is given below:
Fourth
General Elections, 1967.-
The
general elections held in 1967 were the fourth in the country and the first in
the new State of Punjab which came into being after the reorganization on 1
November 1966. Consequently , the constituencies delimited in 1965 were
subjected to fresh delimitation, as notified by the Delmitation Commission in
November 1966. By this order, the district was divided into one Parliamentary
Constituency and 9 Vidhan Sabha Constituencies.
As
at the time of the fourth general elections, the poll throughout the
State was held on a single day on 19 February 1967.
Lok
Sabha Constituency
There
was one Lok Sabha Constituency , viz. Patiala in the district form which the
Congress candidate was elected. The total number of electors in the district
was 4,60,603. The total number of valid votes polled in favour of each
contesting party in the district was as under :
Punjab
Vidhan Sabha Constituencies
For
the Vidhan Sabha, there were 9 constituencies in the district, namely, Banur
Rajpura, Raipur, Patiala, Dakala, Samana (SC) Nabha, Amloh(SC), and Sirhind.
The total number of electors in the district was 5,20,936. From these
constituencies , 4 congress, 2 Akali Dal (Master Group) and 3 Independent
candidates were elected. The total number of valid votes polled by each
contesting party is given below:
Mid-Term
Poll, 1969.-- The first meeting of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, constituted on
the basis of the fourth general elections, was held on 20 March 1967. In the
normal course, its tenure would have lasted for five years. i.e. up 19 March
1972 as provided in Article 172 of the Constitution of India. The party
position , after the said election, was such that no single political party had
absolute majority in the Vidhan Sabha of 104 members. Some of the political
parties, namely Alali Dal (Sant group), the Jan Sangh, the Republican Party and
the Communists joined together to form the United Front which staked its claim
to form the Government. The United Front Government assumed office on 8 March
1967. After some time, a game of defections started and the Government became
unstable. Some members of the ruling United Front formed a new group and also a
new Government on 25 November 1967 with the support of the Congress Legislative
Party and some independents. The relationship between the Ministry and the
Congress Legislative Party, its main supporter did not, however, remain smooth
for long and ultimately the Congress Party withdrew it support from the new
Ministry which had then to resign. As a result, a situation was created in
which no single party or workable alliance of parties could provide a stable
Government. In the circumstances, on the recommendation of the Governor,
Punjab, President’s Rule was proclaimed in the State from 23 August 1968. Thus,
the Punjab Vidhar Sabha constituted in 1967 stood dissolved, necessitating a
mid-term general elections to constitute a new Vidhan Sabha.
Punjab
Vidhan Sabha Constitutencies
There
were 9 Vidhan Sabha constituencies in the district, namely, Banur, Rajpura,
Raipur, Patiala, Dakala, Samana (SC), Nabha, Amloh (SC) and Sirhind. From these
constitutencies was 5,61.232.
Fifth
General Elections to the Lok Sabha, 1971.—The fifth general
elections to the Lok Sabha were held in March 1971. There was only one Lok
Sabha Consituency, viz. Patiala in the district from which the candidate
belonging to Congress Party was declared elected. The total number of electors
in the district was 5,12,694
Fifth
General Elections to the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, 1972.—The
general elections were necessitated due to the premature dissolution of the
Punjab Vidhan Sabha constituted in March 1969. It was the second time after the
reorganization of the Punjab in 1966 that the President’s Rule was imposed on
the State. In the wake of the President’s Rule, emergency was declared due to
Indo-Pakistan conflict in 1971. The preparation for the conduct of fresh
general elections had, therefore, to be made under the shadow of emergency. The
poll throughout the State was held on a single day on 11 March 1972 and
counting was completed on 13 March. The election was held under the marking
system of voting. A new design of ballot paper, with a counterfoil was also
used in this election.
There
were 9 Vidhan Sabha constitutencies in the district, namely, Banur, Rajpura,
Raipur, Patiala, Dakala, Samana (SC), Nabha, Amloh (SC), and Sirhind.The total
number of electors in the district was 6,15,960. From these constituencies, 6
Congress and 3 Akali Dal candidates were declared elected.
Sixth
General Elections to the Lok Sabha, 1977.—The sixth general
elections to the Lok Sabha were held in March 1977. For the first time, since
Independence, the Congress Party was voted out of power at the national level
and a new party, the Janata Party, formed the first non-Congress government at
the Centre. The Janata Party was formed out of combination of four former
opposition parties, the Organization Congress, the Bhartiya Lok Dal, the Jan
Sangh, and the Socialist Party. The Janata Party was voted into office by an
overwhelming majority of electorate in the northern states.
There
was only one Lok Sabha constitutency in the district, viz. Patiala. The total
number of electors in the district was 6,06,187. The Shiromani Akali Dal
candidate won the seat.
Sixth
General Elections to the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, 1977.—The
Lok Sabha elections of 1977 were not accompanied by elections to the State
Assemblies, whose terms of office in most cases were due to expire in 1978. The
Janata Government decided to call early elections in a anumber of states on the
plea that a climate of uncertainty had come to prevail in the Lok Sabha
elections of the Congress candidates in several states. Consequently, the
Vidhan Sabha elections in some states including Punjab, had to take place. In
Punjab, these elections were held on 12 June 1977 and completed on the same
day. In the lections to the Vidhan Sabha, the Akali Dal and the Janata Party
obtained majority of votes defeating the Congress. Consequently, on 20 June
1977, the Akali-Janata combine formed a coalition Government in the Punjab.
There
were 10 Vidhan Sabha constituencies in the district, viz. Banur, Rajpura,
Ghanaur, Dakala, Shutrana (SC), Samana, Patiala Twon, Nabha, Amloh (SC), and
Sirhind. The toal number of lectros in the district was 7,75,127. From these
constitutencies, 5 Shiromani Akali Dal, 3 Indian National Congress, 1 Janata
Party and 1 Communist Party of India, candidates were elected.
Seventh
(Mid-term) Lok Sabha Elections, 1980.—The Janata Government formed in 1977 did
not remain stable. As the party had been formed with the merger of four major
political parties, its members reverted to their previous loyalties. This led
to differences within the Janata Party resulting in defection by many MPs who
formed a new group which ultimately led to the fall of Janata Government in New
Delhi. The group of MPs who had defected from the Janata Party was able to
form, with the support of Congress (I), a new Government. However, the
relationship between the new Government and the Congress did not remain smooth
for long, with the result that the Congress (I) withdrew its support and the
government fell without facing the Parliament even once. The Lok Sabha was
dissolved by the President under sub-clause (b) of clause (2) of Article 85 of
the Constitution on 22 August 1979, but the Government was allowed to continue
as Caretaker Government till the elections were held for constituting the new
Parliament.
The
Seventh (mid-term) general elections were held in the country on 3 January
1980. Patiala was the only Lok Sabha Constituency in the district in these
elections. The constituency had 7,36,383 votes in all, out of whom 4,67,361
cast their votes. The Congress (I) candidate was declared elected from the
constituency. The total number of valid votes polled by each contesting party
was as under:
Table
Seventh
(Mid-Term) Elections to the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, 1980.—The term
of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha constituted on June 1977 was due to expire in 1982.
However, after the Lok Sabha elections held in January 1980 which resulted in
the change of government at the Central level, it was felt that the climate of
uncertainty had come to prevail in the States which were not ruled by the
Congress (I). The government at the centre decided to go for fresh elections in
such states, including Punjab. Accordingly, the Punjab Vidhan Sabha was
dissolved by the President under Article 356 of the constitution on 17 February
1980. The elections to the Vidhan Sabha were held on 30 May 1980 and completed
on the same day. The Congress (I) won majority of seats defeating the Akali Dal
and other contesting parties and formed its government in the State.
For
these elections to the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, there were 10 Assembly
constituencies in the district, viz. Banur, Rajpura, Ghanaur, Dakala, Shutrana
(SC), Samana, Patiala Town, Nabha, Amloh (SC), and Sirhind. The total number of
electors in the district was 8,75,411 out of which 5,82,226 voted. From these
constituencies, 6 Congress (I), 2 Shiromani Akali Dal, 1 Communist Party of
India and 1 Communist Party of India (M), candidates were elected
Eighth
General Elections to the Lok Sabha, 1985.—The term of the Seventh
(Mid-term) Lok Sabha constituted in January 1980 was due to expire on 20
January 1985. Consequently, general elections were held in India on 24 and 27
December 1984 to constitute a new Eighth Lok Sabha excepting the Parliamentary
Constituencies falling in the States of Assam and Punjab. Elections in the
states of Assam and Punjab could not be held due to unavoidable circumstances.
In order to remove any doubt and to avoid litigation, a new section 73 (A) was
inserted in the Representation of the People Act, 1951, by an ordinance issued
on 20 November 1984. The lections to the Eighth Lok Sabha was held in Punjab on
25 September 1985.
There
was only one Lok Sabha Constituency in the district, viz. Patiala. The
Shiromani Akali Dal candidate was declared elected from this constituency. Out
of 8,24,586 electors, 5,92,924 persons cast their votes.
English
General Elections to the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, 1985.—The
Punjab Vidhan Sabha was constituted in June 1980. President’s rule was imposed
in the State with effect from 6 October 1983 and the Legislative Assembly was
kept in suspended animation. Under the 48th Amendment of the
Constitution, President’s rule could have been continued only upto a period of
maximum 2 years, i.e. upto 5 October 1985. Under the circumstances, elections
to the Punjab Legislative Assembly had to be held and a new house constituted
before that date. In the meantime, on the expiry of 5 years term, the Assembly
stood automatically dissolved with effect from 26 June 1985. The elections to
the Eight Vidhan Sabha were held on 25 September 1985.
There
were 10 Vidhan Sabha constituencies in the district, viz. Samana, Shutrana
(SC), Dakala, Ghanaour, Rajpura, Banur, Patiala Town, Nabha, Amloh (SC), and
Sirhind. The number of electors in the district was 9,59,518, out of which
6,99,295 persons cast their votes. The Shiromani Akali Dal candidates captured
all the ten constituencies of the district.
(a)
Political
Parties and Organizations
Political
parties play a vital role in the working of modern democratic governments.
Their main functions are to organize public opinion on general issues and to
criticise government policies where they are not supported by inconvertible
arguments. They create an atmosphere conducive to the efficient and smooth
working of the parliamentary form of Government. They fight elections and
establish a limit between the government and the people.
In
India, political parties have been in existence for quite some time past, but
they were not well-organized. After the independence of the country, the
adoption of the British parliamentary form of government, however, called for
the reorganization of party system on sound footing. As a result of mergers and
amalgamations, a number of well-organized All-India parties and state parties
have been left in the political field. There, however, existed no political
party before 1947 in the erstwhile princely states of which the present
district of Patiala had been a part.
A
brief description of political parties, which have their branches in the
Patiala District, is given below:
All-India
Parties
India
National Congress.—Founded in 1885, the Congress Party is the
largest political organization in India. It has emerged as the strongest
political organization which has all along been in the vanguard of the
country’s struggle for freedom. In the erstwhile princely states, the Praja
Mandals, the political counterparts of the Indian National Congress, and which
had policies and perfoemance similar to it, merged with had policies and performance
similar to it, merged with it and started functioning as its units in these
areas.
Since
the attainment of independence upto March 1977, when the sixth general
elections were held, the Congress Party remained in power at the Centre and in
most of the states. In the Punjab, the party ruled upto 1966-67, and again from
April 1972 to March 1977, and thereafter it assumed power in June 1980.
Communist
Party of India.—The Communist Party of India is an old
party which in alliance with the Praja Mandals of the erstwhile princely states
waged a relentless struggle against the princely order in the district. It
enjoys influence among the intellectuals, labourers and small peasants. The
party could not capture any seat for the Lok Sabha in the district. However, it
won one Vidhan Sabha seat each in the sixth and seventh general elections.
Communist
Party of India (M).—The party emanated from the Communist Party
of India. It stands for socialism and communism through the establishment of
the dictatorship of the proletariast. Till 1985, it has never won any Lok Sabha
seat in the district, but it capture on Vidhan Sabha seat in the seventh
general elections held in 1980.
Janata
Party.—The Janata Party was founded on 1 May 1977 on the merger of
four major opposition parties, viz. The Organisation Congress, the Jan Sangh,
the Bhartiya Lok Dal and the Socialist Party. After constesting the elections
independently, the Congress for Democracy also merged with the Janata Party.
The party won the sixth general elections to the Lok Sabha and gained absolute
majority. It captured one Vidhan Sabha seat in these elections.
Bhartiya
Janata Party.—The Bhartiya Janata Party is a recognized national party. The
district branch all over the district in urban as well as in rural areas. It
has also influence among the farmers and labourers. The party could not secure
any seat in the eighth general elections held to the Vidhan Sabha and Lok Sabha
in 1980.
State
Parties
From
among these, mention may be made only of the following:-
Shiromani
Akali Dal.—It was founded in 1920 as the representative body of the
Sikhs. During the Gurudwara Reforms Movement, 1920-25, it played a significant
role in bringing about major reforms in the management of Sikh shrines and
bringing them under the control of the Shironmani Gurdwara Parbandhak
Committee. It actively participated in the national freedom struggle in
collaboration with the Indian National Congress and emerged as a vanguard of
the non-cooperation movement in the Punjab during 1931-32. It emerged as a full
fledged political party in the State during 1936-37 elections, held under the
Government of India Act, 1935. The party continues to function as a religious
and social organization.
The
Akali Dal captured the Patiala Lok Sabha constitutency in the sixth and eighth
general elections held in 1977 and 1985, respectively. For the PEPSU Vidhan
Sabha, the party won 4 out of 15 seats in the district in the first general
elections in 1951-52. In the mid-term elections in 1954, it won 3 out of 16 Vidhan
Sabha seats. In the fourth and fifth general elections, it won 2 and 3 seats,
respectively, out of 9 seats. In 1969, in the mid-term elections, it captured 5
Vidhan Sabha seats out of 9 in the district. Likewise in sixth and seventh
general elections to the Vidhan Sabha held in 1977 and 1980, it won 5 and 2
seats, respectively, out of 10 seats. But, in the eighth general elections to
Vidhan Sabha held in 1985, it won all the 10 seats in the district.
(c) Newspapers and periodicals
The newspapers and periodicals
generally deal with new items and current affairs, besides reflecting popular
opinion to a large extent. Some of these also contain informaxtion on science,
history, morality, technology, etc. Since the achievement of Independence in
1947, the number of periodicals published in the district, especially in
Punjabi has enormously increased.
The particulars of the newspapers and
periodicals published in the district, as on 31 December 1984, are given below
:
(d)
Voluntary Social Service Organizations
The voluntary social service
organizations have a place of importance in the public life in general and in
the socio-economic schemes of society in particular. There are a number of
voluntary social service organizations in the district which meet the
socio-economic needs of the people in a variety of ways. These organizations
play an important role in the educational, Social and cultural development of
the community. They are engaged in the welfare activities of the children
women. aged and infirms, handicapped and other deserving sections of the
society.
A brief account of the important
organizations functioning in the distrcit is given below :
General
Welfare Institutions
Bharat Sewak Samaj, Patiala.--This
association is affiliated to the Punjab State Bharat Sewak Samaj, Chandigarh,
and subscribes to the ideas, functions and activities of the parent body. The
Samaj organizes social service camps in rural areas and renders help in rural
development programmes, family planning programmes and setting up of balwadis
for chidren and crafts centres for women.
Shri Sanatan Dharam Mahavir Dal,
Punjab, Patiala. -- With its headquarters at Chandigrah, this organization
is registered with Shri Santan Dharam Mahavir Dal, Punjab. Established in 1926,
Shri Sanatan Dharam Mahavir Dal, Patiala has been rendering fields. It has
about 400 volunteers and 12 branches in the district. The volunteers of the Dal
assist the authorities in the maintenance of law and order at different fairs
and festivals. They also render help during natural calamities and war.
Oraganizations of National or
International Repute .- There are a number of organizations of national or
international repute, which are established elsewhere but have their branches
in the district, some of such organizations are described below :
The Indian Red Cross Society,
District Branch, Patiala. -- The Patiala District Branch of the Indian Red
Cross Society was constituted in 1956 under the Indian Red Cross Society Act XV
of 1920. The Branch is now headed by the Deputy Commissioner, Patiala as its
President. The Additional Deputy Commissioner, Patiala is its Senior
Vice-President. The General Assistant to the Deputy Commissioner is its
Honorary Secretary.
Among the important activities of the
Branch are institutional services, aid to the poor, needy and windows,
provision of artificial limbs, tri-cycles and prosthesis to the handicapped
persons. Besides assistance to the students, help is rendered to the effected
people at the time of floods or other natural calamities.
The main sources of income of the
society are : collection from lucky bag draws, district relief fund, membership
subscriptions, contributions, donations, etc. Some of the services rendered by
the District Red Cross Society are detailed below:
The society runs 5 trained dai
centres. With the assistance of Government of India and State Government. It
has constructed 25 bedded hopitals at four focal villages, viz. Tohra,
Badshahpur, Mallowal and Ghanaur. Besides, it has constructed 7 dispensaries.
Under the Rural Development Scheme, with the help of Government of India (50%
matching scheme), 18 community welfare centres have also been constructed by
the society in the district. To rehabilitate beggar's children, a
training-cum-work centre has been constructed in Red Cross Bhawan, Patiala
where these children are trained in canning of chairs and other repair work of
the funiture. The children are given nourishment, viz. biscuits, milk, toffees, etc. A hostel for
working women has also been constructed at Patiala.
The Society is running a Training
Centre for Destitute Women at Patiala, where training in sewing, knitting,
cutting, etc. is given to the needy women for their rehabilitation. It also
helps the authorities in blood donation motivational progress. During 1986,
with the collaboration of Blood Bank of Rajendra Hospital, 49 Camps were
organized and 1,644.5 units of blood were collected.
The income and expenditure of the
society during the year 1988 was Rs 22,13,915 and Rs 23,59,270, respectively.
It enrolled 2,63,672 members during the same year and collected a sum of Rs
5,29,845 as membership fee.
Junior Red Cross. -- The
Junior Red Cross functions as a wing of Patiala District Branch of the Indian
Red Cross Society. The District Education Officer, Patiala is the ex-officio
Chairman of the Junior Red Cross. The Junior Red Cross groups exist almost in
all schools in the district. The objective of the Junior Red Cross are;
protection of health, promotion of international friendship and service to the
sick.
The students contribute membership
subscription. They also collect additional funds according to their needs
through various methods, i.e. sale of Red Cross flags, enrollment of Red Cross
and St. John membership and other voluntarily donations. The funds so collected
are generally used on the welfare of the students for collective benefits.
The income and expenditure of the
Junior Red Cross during the year 1989 was Rs 62,066 and Rs 25,636,
respectively. The total membership of middle, high and senior secondary schools
in the district, during the same year was 95,905 (56,668 boys and 39,237
girls).
Red Cross Hospital Welfare
Section, Patiala. -- It is an important wing of Patiala District Branch of
the Indian Red Cross Society, which is run by a group of dedicated Lady Social
Workers. The social workers of sick and suffering people lying in the
hospitals. It provides milk, eggs, fruit and clothes to the needy patients free
of cost. It collects funds through membership fee, variety shows, film shows,
donations, etc. The income and expenditure of this section during the year 1988 was Rs 3,90,917 and Rs 1,89,483,
respectively and it enrolled 54 members during the same year.
Ambulance Training.-- The
District St. John Ambulance Association, Patiala, imparts training in
ambulance, first aid, home-nursing, etc. The number of persons trained in the
district in first-aid and home-nursing during 1988 was 4,778 and 4,117,
respectively. Special training camps are also held, where apart from first-aid
and home-nursing, training is also given to campers in rescue and
fire-fighting. The district branch maintains five ambulanace vans for the
convenience of public.
Every year, national headquarters of
St. John Ambulance Association, New Delhi, awards Jiv Raksha Medals to the
workers who endanger their lives in saving life of others. During the year
1988, 5 such awards were awarded at national level, out of which 2 were awarded
to the dedicated social workers of Patiala District.
The income and expenditure of the
Association during 1988 was Rs 1,67,911 and Rs 1,66,593, respectively. During
the same year, 5,12,150 annual associates were enrolled and a sum of Rs
5,12,150 was collected from them as membership fee.
Lions
Clubs
It is an international organization,
whose motto is 'Make Your Fellow Man Feel Needed'. It is a type of brotherhood
to serve the humanity at large. Its activities are dedicated to the welfare of
needy and the poor. The main sources of income of lions clubs are individual
subscription and public donation. The various branches of the Lions Clubs
functioning in the Patiala District are mentaioned below :
Lions Club. Patiala .-- Five
branches of Lions Club have been functioning at Patiala proper. These are :
Lions Club, City, established in1976; Lions Club, Patiala Club, City,
established in 1976; Lions Club, Patiala Fort, established in 1983; Lions Club,
Premier, established in 1986; Lions Club, Patiala City, established in 1979 and
the Lions Club fort established in 1985. These clubs render useful service to
the Patiala City in the form of cleanliness drive, mass immunization camps,
free vaccination camps, free eye operation camps, free medical relief camps,
scholarships to deserving students and books to poort students, assistance to
the handicapped, sewing machines to poor and deserving windows, etc.