& V I C I N I T Y
Friday, September 25, 1998
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C H A N D I G A R H & V I C I N I T Y |
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Friday, September 25, 1998 |
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 Mr Chander Shekhar, a former Prime Minister and president of the Samajwadi Janata Party, addresses party workers in Chandigarh on Thursday— A Tribune photograph Signing
CTBT |
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 Daylight robbery in Mohali Child
dies as |
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Pay compensation, photo
studio told
Non-bailable
warrants against housing firm chief Start
project for terrorism-hit kids, CRY urged Suspect
wants to see granny |
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Signing CTBT only option: Shekhar CHANDIGARH, Sept 24 — In today's scenario, India has little options but to sign the Comprehensive Test ban Treaty (CTBT) opined Mr Chandra Shekhar, a former Prime Minister, while talking to mediapersons here today. He, however, criticised the nuclear explosions carried out in Rajasthan in May saying: "I am against atomic explosions as these are weapons for destruction and not weapons for security". And as an aftermath of the explosions, the government is eager to be friendly with Pakistan and is even ready to sign a "no-war" and a "no-first use" agreement with them. Such an agreement could have been reached even without carrying out the atomic explosions. The former Prime Minister evaded questions when asked whether he would have signed the CTBT if he had been the premier now. He also criticised the BJP for shifting its stance on signing of the CTBT. Till about a week ago the BJP thinktank was against signing the CTBT. Now even the scientific adviser, Prof A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, was saying that signing the treaty would not affect India's nuclear abilities. The BJP had done a volte face on the issue of signing the treaty on flimsy grounds. He criticised the move to impose Article 356 in Bihar on the basis of the lawlessness prevailing in that state. The crime situation was equally bad in Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Delhi so going by this principle Article 356 should be imposed in these states also, he opined. Though whatever is going on Bihar is wrong, violence had increased and social tensions had gone up, he added. While defending the place of Article 356 in the Constitution saying it was needed in emergency situations. Thus there was valid reason for keeping the article. Regional parties, he said, were afraid of the use of this Article. On the economic front, Mr Chandra Shekhar warned that India was going to meet the same fate as Indonesia and Korea where economies had slowed down. He blamed liberalisation for rising costs, saying the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund had warned that in the first few years of liberalisation jobs would be scarce and economy would slow down. The former Prime Minister said the BJP Government's administration was poor and everybody was overstepping the lines demarcated by the Constitution of the country. He also criticised the Shiromani Akali Dal's stand on the issue of inclusion of Udham Singh Nagar in the proposed state of Uttaranchal while he favoured the formation of smaller states for better administration. In a discussion on Punjab, the former Prime Minister said there was no need to teach English from the primary level as it has started in the state. "Did Guru Nanak Dev go to an English medium school? "he asked. The decision to teach English stemmed from an inferiority complex, he felt. Mr Chandar Shekhar was in town as part of his countrywide effort to mobilise people for a 10-day consensus programme on vital national issues beginning from October 2. These issues are drinking water, malnutrition, illiteracy, lack of medicines and discrimination on the basis of caste or religion. The programme will culminate with a national convention in Delhi on October 31. He addressed a rally of party workers earlier in the morning in Aggarsein Bhavan in Sector 30. .... |
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Daylight robbery in Mohali SAS NAGAR, Sept 24 — A 70-year-old woman was robbed in broad daylight by two armed youths at her house here yesterday. Mrs Harjinder Kaur, who was alone in her Phase II home at the time of the crime around 11.15 a.m., sustained injuries in violence by the robbers. She said she received blows with the knee in her stomach and back and knife injuries. She had injuries on a forearm, sustained while the attackers tried to unsuccessfully remove a gold bangle. The youths, one of whom was wearing jeans and checked shirt and the other a red shirt and grey trousers, said they were from Morinda and enquired whether the family needed a car driver. They were in their early twenties, Mrs Harjinder Kaur said today. She said she thought they were from her village of Ucchapind-Sanghol, near Morinda, and asked them to sit in the front courtyard. She told them that no driver was needed, but they said they would wait for her husband, who, Mrs Harjinder Kaur told them, had gone to deposit water bill. Mrs Harjinder Kaur then went inside to make tea, but suddenly she found herself overpowered by the robbers in the kitchen. They had snapped the telephone line. They took her to the bedroom, beat her up and demanded the keys to the safe. She told them that the keys were with her husband. They then deprived her of Rs 600 in her purse. In the meantime the tea on the LPG stove boiled over and the smoke from the burnt vessel activated the smoke alarm in the house. The robbers panicked. They pushed the victim into a bathroom, snatched a gold chain she was wearing and fled through the back courtyard adjoining a vacant plot. The husband, Mr Harcharan Jit Singh Sahi, returned just as the alarm was on. The police is investigating. Fingerprints have been lifted from the scene. Last year, again in September, a theft took place in the house when the couple was away in England to meet their children. The police has so far failed to solve the case. Meanwhile, the police has
made little headway in the August 22 case in which
59-year-old Bimla Devi was robbed of her jewellery in
broad daylight in Phase II by a well-dressed woman and a
man in pyjama and kurta. |
Official apathy poses problems Place: Chandigarh-Panchkula road. Problem: Frequent traffic snarl ups on the road, particularly at the Mani Majra roundabout. History: The problem arising due to a single road connecting Panchkula and Mani Majra with the city has been written about several times. The delay on part of the authorities to implement a number of proposals drafted to ease the congestion on the road is aggravating the problem with each passing day. With the opening of the causeway connecting the Industrial Area with the railway station, the congestion at the transport traffic lights has eased slightly. But the slow progress on the additional bridge being constructed on the Sukhna choe is a cause of concern for the road users. To ease the traffic congestion at the Mani Majra roundabout, the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA), the nodal agency developing the Panchkula urban estate, has been holding parleys with the Chandigarh Administration on providing alternative routes connecting the township with Chandigarh. Work on another scheme to provide a direct road link between the railway station and Panchkula, which had been hanging fire for the several past years, has started recently. A sizeable number of people, including office-goers, shuttle between the township and the railway station. Response from public: Residents
of Panchkula and Mani Majra say the vehicular traffic on
the road has increased manifold over the years. A minor
accident on the road leads to traffic jams for hours
together. They say that the road had become extremely
dangerous during rush hours. Traffic snarls are a routine
affair when carpeting of the road is on. The carpeting
job was taken up recently. |
Child dies as jhuggi wall
collapses CHANDIGARH, Sept 24 — The ongoing spell of rain in the city has claimed its first victim. A one-year-old child died when a side wall of a jhuggi in Colony no 4 collapsed. The parents of the child were also injured. They have been admitted to Government Medical College and Hospital, Sector 32. Though rain continued for the fourth day today in succession, the fury was not the same as in the past two days. However, this is not the end of ongoing spell. The local met office has predicted more rain over the entire north-western region comprising Himachal, Haryana, Punjab and the Union Terriroty of Chandigarh. Heavy rain that lashed the city yesterday evening lowered the night temperature further, forcing people to switch off fans. Today the rain was more in the morning hours. The sky remained cloudy in the afternoon, but there was no rain. Calculating the rainfall in the past four days, the weather office has recorded 10 cm of rainfall till 5.30 pm today. In the labour colonies
several jhuggis were damaged. The worst were Bapu Dham
Colony and Colony no. 4. |
Pay compensation, photo studio
told CHANDIGARH , Sept 24 —The UT Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum (II) has ordered a studio to pay Rs 1000 as compensation to a local consumer for failure to deliver photographs of his marriage anniversary. Mr R.P. Bajaj, president, and Mr H.S.Walia and Mrs Kamlesh Gupta, both members, gave this order on a written complaint filed by Mr Prem Kumar Verma, a resident of Sector 22. Mr Verma in his complaint alleged that he engaged the services of Shining Photo Store, Sector 22, for taking snaps of his marriage anniversary in December, 1997. Mr Verma paid Rs 80 as advance for three snaps clicked by a personnel of the studio. When Mr Verma went to collect the snaps he was told that the film roll had been washed blank. The photo studio also did not refund the amount paid as advance. The forum held the studio guilty of deficiency in service. The studio has been ordered to pay Rs 1,000 as consolidated costs of the complaint within a month of the receipt of the copy of the order. Mr Verma is also entitled
to a refund of Rs 80 paid as advance along with 12 per
cent interest from December, 1997, till the date of the
actual payment. |
Non-bailable warrants against CHANDIGARH, Sept 24 — The Judicial Magistrate, Mr K.C. Garg, today issued non-bailable warrants against Mr Sukhdev Kaushik, for November 27. Mr Kaushik is the Director of the Panchali Housing Private Ltd. He had not appeared before the court when he was summoned by the magistrate on a complaint lodged by Mr Sat Pal Singh Gill, a businessman. The complaint is filed
under Section 138 read with Section 142 of the Negotiable
Instruments Act, and sections 420 and 120-B, IPC. |
Start project for terrorism-hit
kids, CRY urged CHANDIGARH, Sept 24--The Punjab Governor and UT Administrator, Lieut-Gen B.K.N, Chhibber (retd), today called upon the non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and voluntary organisations to adopt a coordinated approach in the execution of public welfare projects with a view to achieving better results. He was speaking at a function organised in connection with the release of the greeting cards of Child Relief and You (CRY) at Punjab Raj Bhavan, a voluntary organisation working for the uplift of the underprivileged children. General Chhibber said the voluntary organisations were working in isolation with the result that they did not make much impact. He urged the CRY volunteers to initiate a project, particularly in the border districts, to rehabilitate children who were victims of terrorism. He said CRY should collaborate with the Child Welfare Council, Punjab, to set up hostels for these children. Ms Amita Kapoor, president
of CRY, while highlighting the activities of the
organisation, said the aim of CRY was to fund projects
which helped underprivileged children. |
SAD
delegation meets Adviser CHANDIGARH, Sept 24 — A deputation of the local unit of the Shiromani Akali Dal and its youth wing led by Mr Gurpartap Singh Riar met the Adviser to the Administrator, Mr Jagdish Sagar, today and submitted to him a memorandum regarding problems being faced by villages and villagers of the union territory. The deputation demanded that those people whose land is being acquired by the Administration should be compensated on the Delhi pattern. An extension of ‘lal dora’ and grant of power and water connections to those who have constructed houses outside ‘lal doras’ was also demanded. Free hepatitis vaccination
for students of government schools in rural areas and
colonies; proper buildings for schools in rural areas;
cartshed in the grain market should be handed over to
farmers; all vacant posts in various departments of the
Administration should be filled; reservation be made for
residents of villages and colonies in medical and
engineering college; proper facilities, including
veterinary hospital, in rural areas; village roads should
be repaired immediately and special attention should be
paid towards provision of basic amenities in the villages
were the other demands. |
Suspect wants to see granny CHANDIGARH, Sept 24 — Lakhvinder Singh, one of the suspects in the Beant Singh assassination case, today moved an application in the court of the Sessions Judge, Mr B.S. Bedi, who is conducting the trial of the case, seeking interim bail for 15 days. He stated in the application that his grandmother, Mrs Krishan Kaur, was bed-ridden. Her condition was a constant cause of worry for him. He added that he, too, was undergoing treatment for psychiatry for this reason. He added that his grandmother was not aware of his arrest. And if she came to know of it she might die. "I want to see her once, may be for the last time," he wrote in the application. The judge will take up the
application on Monday. |
3 dead in
Mohali jhuggi fire SAS NAGAR, Sept 24 — A mother and her two children died when a jhuggi caught fire near the PCL chowk here today. The fire in the jhuggi in "Jhota Kutt colony" allegedly broke out accidentally from a stove. The children Babli (2 years) and Pankaj (9 months) were sleeping in the jhuggi, according to the police. The mother, Rukmani (27), was among the victims. The bodies were taken to the local Civil Hospital for a post-mortem examination. A case has been registered
at the central police station in Phase VIII. |
Two city
fathers allege discrimination SAS NAGAR, Sept 24 — Two local municipal councillors have accused the president of the council of discriminating" against the civic wards represented by them through negligible allocation of funds for development. Mrs Manmohan Kaur, one of the councillors, said today that 20 days before yesterday's council meeting, which was adjourned amid protests by councillors, she had given a list of works relating to kerb channels for inclusion in the agenda. However, the matter was ignored. Mrs Manmohan Kaur and Mr Amrik Singh, another councillor, alleged that the preisident was only interested in the completion of his own ward works and those of a few other councillors. Mr Amrik Singh had torn up a copy of the agenda at yesterday's Municipal Council meeting. However, the president, Mr
Harinder Pal Singh Billa, on being contacted, criticised
Mr Amrik Singh's action. He said development work had
been undertaken in the wards of the two councillors. At
the council meeting, items could not be included in the
agenda following the "transfer of two junior
engineers". He had promised the councillors that
various works would be cleared at the level of president
as "table items." |
Probe into
suicide ordered SAS NAGAR, Sept 24 — The Punjab School Education Board has ordered an inquiry into the alleged suicide of Ms Laxmi Devi, who was working as a clerk on a contract basis, on September 21. Mr Jagjit Singh Sidhu, board secretary said today the probe would be conducted by Controller of Examinations Jarnail Singh. The report is to be
submitted within a week. |
Kishore
Kumar award contest CHANDIGARH, Sept 24 — To commemmorate the memory of Kishore Kumar, the legendary playback singer of Hindi films, Majlis Journalists and Artists Association has decided to hold an annual All-India competition on October 13, the death anniversary of Kishore. For budding and promising singers the organisation has instituted "Junior Kishore Kumar Award — 98 for the best three singers, who would be honoured with cash awards of Rs 5,100, Rs 3,100 and Rs 2,100, respectively. Interested singers will be
required to compete in a preliminary contest on October
11 at Tagore Theatre, Chandigarh, at 10 a.m. Of the
selected 15 singers those from outside will be provided
board and lodging. All will participate and compete for
the awards on October 13 at Tagore Theatre. There will be
a live orchestra in the final musical show when homage is
paid to the immortal singer, according to an association
spokesperson. |
CHANDIGARH, Sept 24—There is bad news for the residents dumping construction material and "malba" outside their houses without the payment of prescribed charges as the finance and contract committee of the Municipal Corporation, Chandigarh (MCC) today recommended the imposition of a penalty on them. The imposition of the penalty, which will be double the usual charges, will be approved at one of the future meetings of the house of the civic body. The meeting also approved the use of developed ground adjacent to the Gaudiya Math in Sector 20 for religious and social functions. While ground could be used for religious functions free of cost up to five days, a sum of Rs 1,000 a day will be charged subsequently. Similarly, Rs 1,000 a day will be charged for holding social functions. Admitted: The Commissioner, Mr S. K. Gathwal, was today admitted to General Hospital, Sector 16, after he complained of "uneasiness" and pain in the chest. According to hospital sources, Mr Gathwal's condition is stable and he had been shifted to special ward from the coronary care unit. The Adviser to the
Administrator, Mr Jagdish Sagar, visited the hospital to
enquire about his health. |
CHANDIGARH, Sept 24 — The Admissions Committee of Panjab University has recommended sticking to the old rule as far as filling seats in second year of postgraduate classes for outside students is concerned . The rule pertains to admissions in second year in case there is availability of seats or seats have fallen vacant due to students who have failed. It covers students who have done their first year from institutes outside the campus or through correspondence. The rule provides that only those students who score more than 25 per cent of the toppers in the class are eligible for admissions . In case a class has 16 seats the candidate applying for admission should have secured more marks than the first four toppers . Sources say that the rule also extends to first year for students who misses his chance to be present at the time of the interview. In case he has more marks than 25 per cent of the toppers and there is a seat vacant he will be admitted before those on the waiting list . Student organisations of the university at the beginning of the academic session had demanded that the seats that fall vacant in second year should all be filled. It was pointed out that if a student had passed his first year he should be allowed to join without the bar of the existing rules . A decision in this regard was taken at a meeting of the committee recently. The meeting was called after the PU syndicate at its meeting on September 19 had asked departments to fill the vacant seats in the second year . A member of the committee while confirming that no change in rules had been allowed said new admissions could not be done till the existing rules were changed. The committee will submit its recommendations to the Vice -Chancellor . Lecture: The Department of Gandhian Studies, Panjab University in collaboration with the Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti (Delhi), will organise a special lecture on "Gandhian values and programmes in 21st century" on October 2. The lecture will be delivered by Prof S.L. Malhotra , a former head of the department at Gandhi Bhavan . Seats vacant: A number of seats in the first year (general category) courses of honours classes in B Sc, Bachelor of Pharmacy and Master of Computer Application have fallen vacant. Students seeking admission or transfer have been asked to report at the Department of Biochemistry on September 28. Dr H.M. Dani, convener of the joint admission committee, said all those students who have been interviewed earlier or those who have applied late and seeking admission are advised to be present. Candidates who have secured more than 29 marks in mathematics in the written test are also eligible. The departments that have
vacant seats are Pharmacy (8); Microbiology (2);
Biophysics (9); Biochemistry (9); Physics (9); Chemistry
(12); Botany (4); Zoology (7); Mathematics (9); Geology
(5); Anthropology (4); and MCA (1) . |
CHANDIGARH, Sept 24 — A labourer who was on his way to work was allegedly kidnapped by yet unidentified car-borne persons and severely beaten up this morning. The labourer, Sat Narain, was later dumped near the Tribune roundabout. He was shifted to the Government Medical College and Hospital, Sector 32. A resident of Ram Darbar, Sat Narain has injury marks over his hands and legs. According to police sources, the injuries were caused by iron roads. The police is yet to register a case. It was learnt that the labourer had some problem over payment with a contractor. Cyclist injured: A cyclist, B. Singh, of Banur, was injured when he was hit by a scooter (CH-01-S-3117) near the Tribune roundabout driven by Saheed Anwar of Behlana village. The cyclist has been admitted to the GMCH. The scooterist has been arrested and case registered. Stolen: A motor cycle (CH-01-D-9797) owned by Mr Hari Gobind Kumar of Sector 33 has been stolen from his residence, the police said on Thursday. Meanwhile, in a separate incident, Ram Singh of Sector 31 was arrested for allegedly stealing bicycles. Four stolen bicycles have been recovered from him. Clarification: In a news item reported in the "crime file" yesterday it was inadvertently mentioned that a sum of Rs 50,000 and a camera owned by Mr V.K. Sharma was stolen from a shed in the transport area. Mr Sharma, who works as branch manager with Patel Roadways has clarified that the money and the camera was the property of the company. Being the branch manager
he had only lodged an FIR, Mr Sharma said. |
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