The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Monday, October 8, 2001,
Chandigarh, India

THE TRIBUNE SPECIALS

50 YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE

TERCENTENARY CELEBRATIONS

R E G I O N A L B R I E F S

PUNJAB

AMLOH
LOK ADALAT: Sixty three cases of the 78 put up, were decided in the Lok Adalat here on Saturday, which was presided over by Mr K.S. Cheema, Additional Civil Judge (Senior Division), Amloh. Mr Jaspal Singh and Ms Ramesh Bector, Associate Members, were also present. Cases involved the Rent Act, Hindu Marriage Act, Execution Act, etc., and settlements worth Rs 4,48,800 were made.

AMRITSAR
DEMANDED: Mr Harpal Singh Nijjar, president, Punjab State Ayurvedic Medical Officers Association, has demanded facilities for ayurvedic officers on a par with allopathy officers.

SEMINAR HELD: The Majitha police in collaboration with the local Rotary Club organised a seminar on “Awareness of traffic rules and regulations” at Rayya here on Saturday. Mr Rajan Gupta, IGP (Border Zone), inaugurated it. Mr Jaswinder Singh, DIG, was the chief guest.

BATHINDA
ELECTED: The following have been elected office-bearers of the District PCMS Association: president — Dr Narinder Bansal; vice-presidents — Dr K. S. Brar and Dr Parvinder Kaur; general secretary — Dr H. S. Hehr; joint secretary — Dr Malkit Singh Gill; press secretary — Dr Vandana Singla; organising secretary — Dr Amrik Singh; and treasurer — Dr Indu Bhushan Agarwal.

LUDHIANA
ASIAN CLUB: Mr Ashok Malik, organiser of the Asian Club, said the club was organising an inter-college giddha and poem recitation competition on October 13 at the Government College for Women. He said the date for the entries to giddha, poem recitation, essay writing and story writing contest had been extended to Wednesday. Participants may submit their applications at Jassal Art Gallery, Ghumar Mandi Chowk.

MEETING: A meeting of the Youth Akali Dal (B), presided over by Mr Harpreet Singh Shehnai and Mr Gurpreet Singh Dharampura, here on Sunday warned against the designs of the Congress and anti-panthic forces which it said wanted to vitiate the beautiful atmosphere in the state for achieving political ends. A resolution was also passed at the meeting which thanked the Chief Minister for ordering adequate security arrangements in gurdwaras.

MANDI GOBINDGARH
NEGLECTED: The local industrial focal point has been facing constant neglect as it lacks basic facilities provided to a focal point area. Though industrialists are keen to establish their units here, they turn away seeing poor conditions, said Mr Anil Suraj, general secretary, Merchant Chamber, and spokesman for the Focal Point Industries Association. He said several meetings with the district administration have bore no fruit and the area lacks even the basic infrastructure of water-supply and sewerage. Mr Suraj alleged that the PSIEC camp office at the focal point was not properly equipped and the plot-holders had to go to Chandigarh even for petty jobs.

MANSA
CRITICISED: Mr Sikander Singh, state president of the Punjab Laboratory Technicians Association, on Sunday criticised Capt Kanwaljit Singh, Finance Minister, for not implementing the verdicts of the High Court and the Supreme Court regarding their demands which included the revision of pay scales. The association had decided to hold a rally at Lambi on October 21, he added.

MOGA
TUBEWELL CONNECTIONS: The PSEB has given 72 new tubewell connections while 249 test reports were pending for these connections in the district. This was stated by Deputy Commissioner Kanwalbir Singh Sidhu while talking to mediapersons here on Sunday. There was no dearth of diesel in the district, he added.

URGED: Residents of various localities here on Sunday said frequent power breakdowns and power cuts had created an acute shortage of drinking water. They urged the Punjab Chief Minister to direct the PSEB to make immediate arrangements for regular power supply to consumers.

NAWANSHAHR
DENTAL CAMPS: The Indian Dental Association, Punjab, in collaboration with the local Arya Samaj organised dental care awareness camps at Doaba Arya Senior Secondary School, W.L. Arya Senior Secondary School, Government Primary School and Ravidass Mandir here on Saturday. Mr Jagjit Singh, Deputy Commissioner, inaugurated the campaign. Dr Sareen and Dr Puneet, president and secretary, respectively, of the association delivered lectures on dental care and distributed toothpastes and brushes among children.

PATHANKOT
RECRUITMENT RALLY: The Dogra Regiment will hold a recruitment rally at Tibrhi in Gurdaspur district from October 9 to 28. Youths from Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir barring Ladakh are eligible for the recruitment.

PATIALA
PROCUREMENT Of PADDY: Various procurement agencies have procured 2,10,321 metric tonnes of paddy from the district till October 6, out of which 1,91,450 MT has been procured by the government agencies and 18,871 MT has been procured by private procurement agencies. The paddy procured by various agencies last year was around 98,000 metric tonnes only. Stating this here on Sunday, the Deputy Commissioner, Mr Jasbir Singh Bir, said from the procurement made till now, the Food and Supply Department had procured 27,872 MT, Markfed 32,887 MT, Punsup 48,377 MT, Warehouse 39,000 MT, Punjab Agro 21,165 MT and Food Corporation of India (FCI) had procured nearly 22,000 MT of paddy during the current procurement season.

CERTIFICATE COURSE: A one-day certificate course on Oral and Maxillofacial surgery and Implant dentistry was organised by the local branch of the Indian Dental Association, here on Sunday. The course comprised of series of lectures supporting equipment like slides, projectors and infrastructures. The president of the association, Dr S.K. Sareen, said three more programmes would be organised in near future.

SEMINAR: The local branch of the Indian Medical Association (IMA), in association with Patiala Heart and Health Care Institute organised its 22nd continuing medical education (CME) programme by holding a seminar on cardiovascular diseases here on Saturday. The seminar laid emphasis on the role of cardiac interventions, Balloon Angioplasty and Coronary Artery By-pass Surgery (CABG). The facilities are being provided at the institute. The consultant doctors of the institute explained the role of latest techniques in the treatment of various heart ailments.

MEDICAL CAMP: The Ananda Marga Universal Relief Team organised a medical camp on the premises of Ananda Marga School here on Sunday. As many as 395 patients were checked during the camp by Dr Sukhdeep Boparai and Dr Bimla Bhutani.

FREEDOM FIGHTER DEAD: The mortal remains of Mr S.K. Sreen (75), a freedom fighter, were consigned to flames here on Sunday. Mr Sreen was a retired Assistant General Manager in the State Bank of Patiala. He died of prolonged illness on Saturday. Mr Sreen is survived by his wife, three sons and two daughters.

PHAGWARA
POWER CUTS: The Senior Citizens Council has flayed erratic power supply in the state. In a press note here on Saturday Mr R. K. Narang, a leader of the council, said frequent power cuts and breakdowns put people to great inconvenience. If cuts were unavoidable, the timings should be fixed, he added.

TUBEWELL CONNECTIONS: Several farmers have demanded that the concession on regularising temporary tubewell connections should be extended to those farmers who could not apply for it this year but had done so last year. Mr Didar Singh Goraya, a spokesman for the farmers, on Saturday hailed the Punjab Government’s decision to regularise about 41,000 temporary tubewell connections this year.

PHILLAUR
PROCUREMENT: Procurement agencies purchased 43, 98, 447 tonnes of paddy in different mandis of Punjab till Friday evening as compared to 26, 06, 296 tonnes procured during the corresponding period previous year. This was claimed by the Punjab Food and Supplies Minister, Mr Madan Mohan Mittal, while talking to this correspondent here on Saturday.

CHANDIGARH

HONOURED: The Blood Bank Society, Kota, has honoured Mrs Kanta Sarop Krishan, honorary secretary, Blood Bank Society, Chandigarh, and Dr Manmohan Kaur, deputy president of the Indian Society of Blood Transfusion and Immunohematology (ISBTI), in recognition of their contribution towards launching a voluntary blood donation movement in the country and their pioneering efforts towards establishing the ISBTI.

MEDITATION CAMP: The Vishwas Meditation Centre would Organise a three-day meditation and satsang camp from Friday at Sector 28 B park. The programme, to be supervised by Swami Vishwas ji, will be held between 5 p.m. and 7.30 p.m. on Friday. It will be held between 6 a.m. and 7.30 a.m. and 4.30 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Saturday. The programme will be held in three shifts on Sunday, from 6 a.m. to 7.30 a.m., 10.30 a.m. to 12.30 and p.m. 5.30 p.m. to 8 p.m. According to a press note, no charges would be levied on those who attend the camp.

INAUGURAL CEREMONY: Presiding over the inaugural ceremony of freeindiamedia.com, an Internet magazine - E - zine, here on Sunday, Mr Pawan Kumar Bansal, local MP, said he was saddened by the fact that mainstream media in the country has wholeheartedly embraced the government’s policy of liberalisation. He was of the opinion that media had become a handmaiden of the government’s policies instead of playing an independent role.

DISCOURSES: The discourses on the Gita and Ramayana were organised by the Saint Sivananda Divine Mission and Gita-Ramayana Prachar Trust in Sector-23 as part of the annual function of the mission. Disciples of Swami Sivananda, Mr Romesh Sivananda, Swami Jagdishwarannda from Parmarth Ashram Rishikesh, Swami Mangal Sarup and Pandit Jagdish Arya, preached an effort to discover the self and shun the materialistic pursuits.

CELEBRATION: The Lions Club International District 321-F on Sunday celebrated the World Service Day. The club celebrated the day by serving a langar to poor inmates of the PGI and their attendants at PGI serai complex. The clubs which participated in the celebrations were: Lions Club Chandigarh — Central, Grace, Lotus, Nightingale and Classic. As many as 500 poor inmates took meal on the occasion. A poor patient with an amputated leg was also given a pair crutches.

PRESENTATION: Mr S.P. Singh, Mr Damanpreet Singh and Mr J.P. Singh, who recently won first prize at the recently-held All India Management Association’s National Competition for Young Managers, showcased their award-winning audiovisual presentation on “Building strategies for sustainable competitive edge” at a meeting of the Chandigarh Management Association. Later, Dr R.N. Nauhria, Head of Production Engineering Department of Punjab Engineering College, spoke on innovations in manufacturing for global competitiveness”, according to Mr S.K.Duggal, President, CMA.

PANCHKULA
BLOOD DONATION CAMP: Over 60 persons donated blood at a camp held at Mahavir Bhavan, Sector 17, here on Sunday. The blood donation camp was organised by Mahavir International on the occasion of the 2600th birth anniversary of Mahavir Swami. The camp was inaugurated by the Deputy Commissioner, Ms Jyoti Arora. The secretary of the association, Mr Vir Manohar Jain, donated blood for the 25th time.

RESIGNATION: The presidents of the Residents Welfare Association, Sector 4, Mr S.D. Daid, submitted his resignation to the convenor of the Joint Action Committee of various sector associations, Wg Cdr H.L. Ratta (retd), here on Sunday, for having failed to protect the interest of the public. In his letter, he stated that he was resigning from the committee for not being able to fight against the hike by cable operators. Terming the hike from Rs 150 to Rs 165 as “exorbitant”, he said he could not stop the increase in rates.

HARYANA

AMBALA
10-DAY NSS CAMP: The 10-day NSS camp organised by MDSD Girls College and the Rotract Club at Ravidass Majri concluded here on Sunday. During the camp students spread awareness among residents of the slum area regarding health consciousness, cleanliness and environment. A talk on blood donation was also organised. Mrs Kiran Aangra, Principal of the college, asked the students to devote a part of their time in social welfare activities. The president of the club, Mr K.S. Walia, also addressed the students on the occasion.

DHARNA CUM FAST: The local unit of the Mahila Congress, the Youth Congress and the Punjabi Kalyan Sabha would jointly organise a one-day dharna-cum-fast at Mini Secretariat in protest against the implementation of new house tax policy here. The president of the district unit of Mahila Congress, Mrs Amarjit Kaur Sodhi, said the municipal councils of the city and Ambala Sadar had started issuing house tax bills according to the new policy which had lead to resentment among the people. She urged the state government to withdraw the new tax since it was anti-people.

MEETING: The SBI Pensioners Association, Chandigarh circle, organised a meeting here on Sunday under the chairmanship of its secretary, Mr Manmohan Singh. In a resolution passed at the meeting, the association urged the government to revise the family pension that has not been revised since 1986. The association also demanded the implementation of medical benefit scheme and annual travelling allowance. The president of the association, Mr J.C. Bhatia, said the DA formula should be implemented according to the guidelines of the Fifth Pay Commission.

COMMITTEE FORMED : Mr Sheeshpal Bhola, president of the local unit of the BJP, has constituted a 21-member election campaign committee under the chairmanship of Mr Baij Nath for the byelection in ward No 29 of the Ambala Sadar municipal council. The election would be held on October 28. The candidates from Congress, BJP and local MLA are contesting the election.

JOURNALIST DEAD: Mr D.S. Sarhadi, a senior journalist died here on Sunday. He was 72. He was working with Punjabi Tribune for past several years. He is survived by his wife, a son and a daughter. The local journalist union expressed condolence over his death. Large number of people attended his funeral procession.

FATEHABAD
WOMEN’S FEDERATION: The district unit of the All-India Democratic Women’s Federation organised a meeting here on Sunday in connection with the district convention of the federation to be held here on October 18 and the state-level convention on October 21 to 22 at Bhiwani. Ms Shakuntala Jakhar, joint secretary of the federation, alleged that violence, particularly against women and poverty had increased in the district.

JIND
WAIVER SCHEME: Mr Tarun Bajaj, Managing Director, Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam, said here on Friday that the nigam had launched a scheme under which the surcharge of those rural and urban consumers would be waived who paid their outstanding power bills by October 31 this year. The consumers who had tampered with their meters could get these replaced by paying one-thirds of the penalty, he added.

PANIPAT
RAIDS: Two hundred and seventy-nine passengers were found travelling without tickets at Safidon and Panipat railway stations in raids conducted under the supervision of Railway Magistrate S. P. Singh on Friday. Of them, 102 passengers without tickets and 41 passengers with excess baggage were fined on the spot. Eightytwo passengers were challaned and a fine of Rs 33,700 was recovered from them. The remaining 54 were sentenced to four to five days’ imprisonment.

ROHTAK
OUTSTANDING BILLS: A campaign to persuade people to clear their outstanding power bills was launched by the authorities concerned at Makrauli Kalan and Makrauli Khurd villages on Saturday. Mr Anil Malik, Deputy Commissioner said 843 power consumers owed over Rs 2 crore to the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam. He urged the defaulters to get benefit of the surcharge waiver scheme by depositing the arrears by October 31. The SSP, Mr A. S. Ahlawat, warned the villagers against getting unauthorised power supply through kundi connections.

SONEPAT
KILLED: A person was killed on the spot when a canter collided with a jeep near Chidana village, about 40 km from here, on Saturday. The victim has been identified as Ram Phan Sharma, an employee with the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam

HIMACHAL PRADESH

BILASPUR
CAMPAIGN: Led by Dr Savita Mehta, Medical Officer, the local Regional Hospital launched a “Blood donation awakening campaign” at Kandraur, near here. Punam, Banti and Minaxi were declared first, second and third, respectively, in the declamation contest, while Geetanjali, Sarika and Vineet won these positions, respectively, in poster painting competition. At another such campaign launched at Berry Dasgaon village, near here, Sudesh, Bhanupriya and Vineeti Chandel were declared first, second and third, respectively, in the declamation contest, while Mamta, Vipasha and Meena won these positions, respectively, in the poster painting competition.

OFFICE BEARERS: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Himachal Pradesh Agricultural and Horticulture Services (Class-I) Association: president — Mr Vinod Sharma; senior vice-president — Mr Gian Thakur; vice-president — Devinder Thakur; general secretary — Mr I.D. Gupta; and joint secretaries — Mr K.R. Rattan (general), Mr K.S. Negi (organisation), Mr Vidyasagar (finance), Mr A.K. Dhiman (press) and Mr Prakash Bhardwaj (Propaganda).

NAHAN
STONE LAID: Mr Roop Das Kashyap, Minister of State for Housing and Urban Development, laid the foundation stone of a night shelter at Paonta Sahib on Saturday. The shelter would be constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 10 lakh. The minister said 75 families had been provided loans in Paonta Sahib to set up self-employment ventures. Earlier, at Bhuppur he announced a grant of Rs 1 lakh for streetlights and another Rs 1 lakh for the construction of a marriage hall there.

NURPUR
LOK ADALAT: A lok adalat was held here under the chairmanship of Mr J.K. Sharma, Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate-cum-Sub-Judge, on Saturday. Thirtyseven cases were taken up at the lok adalat of which 32 were settled.

GRANT ANNOUNCED: A meeting of the joint advisory committee of the local Non-Gazetted Employees Association was held here on Saturday. Mr Rakesh Pathania, MLA, who presided over the meeting, announced a grant of Rs 2 lakh for the committee.

TRAFFIC RESTORED: The vehicular traffic on the interstate Chakki bridge was restored on Saturday. The bridge had been under repair.