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2 sisters asphyxiated Chandigarh, December 6 It is believed that Priya had lit a matchstick and the bed caught fire. The fire did not spread but kept smouldring and the room was filled with smoke. There was a ventilator in the room but it was closed. The couple used to leave their daughters at their one-room accommodation and bolted the door from outside every evening before leaving for work. The police has ruled out any foul play and the bodies were buried after post-mortem examinations today. As per police sources, Mr Sanjay, who used to work as a milk vendor in the morning, returned to his residence at around 9.30 pm yesterday and found his daughters Rishu and Priya lying unconscious. The girls were rushed to Government Medical College and Hospital, Sector 32, where they were declared brought dead by doctors. Mr Sanjay told Chandigarh Tribune that Priya had recently learnt to ignite matchsticks and often used to play with these. ‘‘When I opened the door, the room was filled with smoke and the girls were lying unconscious near the almirah in my house’’, informed Mr Sanjay. He called his landlord Dr Lalit Bhardwaj, who in turn rushed the girls to the GMCH in his car. The family had been staying in the servant quarter of Dr Bhardwaj’s house for the past three months and Mr Sanjay also used to work as a domestic help at the house. Mr Sanjay said earlier the mother of the girls used to take them along but for the past 15 days the girls were left behind because of the cold weather during nights. However, she used to take her one-and-a-half-year-old son along with her. The police has started inquest proceedings under Section 174 of the Cr.PC. |
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Mayor rejects move to extend paid parking Chandigarh, December 6 The agenda was scheduled to be tabled in the Finance and Contract Committee meeting to be held on December 10. According to information following the directives of the Chandigarh Administration to the corporation to generate its own resources, the paid parking in force in the markets of Sectors 8,9 and 17 had to be extended to other markets. The Mayor said he had rejected the agenda item as the concept of paid parking was yet to become people-friendly. The parking contractors were still not fulfilling certain terms and conditions and complaints of harassment were pouring in. Inquiries revealed that the shopkeepers of Sectors 22, 34, 35 had been demanding that paid parking be introduced in their markets as they had to deploy private security personnel to manage the public parkings. While the parking of the Sector 34 market was ready for being handed to private contractor, the markets of Sector 22 and 35 had to be extended to accommodate more vehicles. |
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Shortage of docs affects patient care in PGI Chandigarh, December 6 The number of patients who attended the Out Patient Departments (OPDs) at the PGI during 2002-2003 was 10.19 lakh, while 42,300 patients remained admitted to Nehru Hospital. As per the PGI Annual Report, against a sanctioned faculty strength of 337 there are only 264 doctors. To tide over the acute shortage in some of the departments, interviews were held recently to take doctors on ad hoc basis. “Since the selection process is so cumbersome and has to be approved by the Governing Body and for the post of Professor by the Appointment Committee of Cabinet (ACC), the process gets delayed,” lament senior doctors, who face problems in their department. “The selection of two Professors in the Departments of Pathology and Pharmacology, made almost two years back, has still not been approved as it has to be approved by the ACC, even though the Governing Body has cleared it,” said a faculty member. Interviews for a number of posts which were advertised last year, have still not been held till now, he adds. Faculty members say since there is acute shortage of doctors, the interviews for posts advertised last year should have been held along with the promotions by the Dhar Committee two months back. “This would have solved the problem of staff shortage and both the promotions as well as selections could have been done at the same time,” say doctors. The PGI, with a bed strength of 1,268 has people coming from Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttaranchal and western Rajasthan. “We are not just catering to the patients from the North alone, as the PGI has lately emerged as the first choice of renal transplant surgery patients coming from places like Patna, Assam and Orissa also,” explains a senior doctor. “Had it not been for the junior and senior residents, numbering over 700, we wouldn’t have ever been able to handle such huge rush of patients,” says a Head of the Department. No doubt, the PGI with its tough duty schedule for resident doctors, stretching up to 16 hours a day, is rated as one of the best medical institutes in the country for training but the doctors complain of being overburdened. The number of doctors who are away on foreign
Some of the senior faculty members who have seen the PGI grow feel that with the health services in the region being extremely poor, its status has been reduced from a referral hospital to a general hospital. “The result is that we end up compromising on one of the very important aspect of research,” lament doctors. “We have a permanent problem of staff shortage, especially nurses as against a sanctioned strength of 1,200 we have only 1100,” said a senior official. |
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Witness in Beant case turns hostile
Chandigarh, December 6 Jodh Singh, who hails from Delhi, refuted the CBI's claim that he knew some of the accused prior to Beant Singh’s assassination, who had provoked him to join him to eliminate Beant Singh and Mr K.P.S Gill, former DGP. The witness denied the CBI theory while recording his statement before the UT Additional District and Sessions Judge, Mr Balbir Singh, in the Special Court room, in Model Jail, Burail. The CBI had claimed that Jodh Singh, who is an Amritdhari Sikh, had met the main accused in the case, Jagtar Singh Hawara, at various places as part of “Akhand Kirtani Jatha” prior to the assassination. Hawara was alleged to have provoked Jodh Singh to take revenge for the 1984 riots in Delhi. Going into the background of the case, the CBI had claimed that Hawara, who met Jodh Singh in Meerut, had asked him to arrange some persons who could help him to take revenge. Hawara also told the witness that all the recruits for the mission would be sent to Pakistan for training in the use of firearms, according to the CBI. But Jodh Singh, recording his statement denied that he was asked by Hawara to recruit some persons or had even met Hawara prior to the assassination. The witness was cross-examined by Jagtar Singh Hawara and Navjot Singh. While answering the question asked by Hawara that whether he was tortured by the police after his arrest. Jodh Singh said that he was subjected to inhuman treatment by the police. While answering a question from Navjot Singh, the witness said that he met Navjot in a Delhi court for the first time and he was in very bad condition and could not walk properly. |
Solution eludes stray cattle problem Chandigarh/Panchkula/Mohali, December 6 Even as the residents, especially scooterists, are panicky and fearful about stray cattle, the respective authorities in Chandigarh,
Panchkula and Mohali have so far not been able to suggest a way out. There is a need to depoliticise the issue tackle it head-on. Officials in Chandigarh are actually working in isolation. During the past few weeks — barring a meeting of the DCs of adjoining districts held in the office of the Municipal Commissioner, Chandigarh — nothing has translated into an action plan for dealing with stray cattle. Probably the root cause of the problem is that a body which should have co-ordinated on all issues and not just cattle was never formed. Another core question remains unanswered: are the lives of cattle more precious than those of human beings? In July this year when a few cattle died during transportation near Poanta Sahib in Himachal Pradesh, there was much hue and cry in the MC House and cases were registered against MC employees by the Himachal police. Till date, no political party has held even a single protest rally against the stray cattle menace. We just cannot do so, admits a senior functionary of a leading party. Mr Sukhdev Sharma says, “Politicians should rise above their aspirations and create a public opinion to force the local administrations to act; otherwsie more deaths will follow”. Interestingly, the states of Punjab and Haryana have told the Chandigarh Administration that stray cattle caught in Chandigarh cannot be transported through their territory to be left in the jungles. In reply to this, Chandigarh Administration could do nothing. An agitated Mr Shalin Verma of Sector 41 says, “Why can Chandigarh not tell Mohali and Panchkula that it will stop entry of all traffic into Chandigarh if ferrying of cattle is not allowed to jungles in UP and Uttranchal?” Already the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation is working on a plan to start removing all cattle from villages falling within the MC limits. About 20 days ago, a series of road accidents due to cattle has made the Administration sit up and take notice. The UT Administrator, Justice O.P. Verma (retd), had told his officers that pro-active measures to check the menace of stray cattle in the city were required. There are about 4,000 stray cattle in the city and the MC has invited applications from the NGOs to set up gaushalas. In private, officials admit that setting up of gaushalas is not the way out of the problem. In Panchkula, the death of Mr Manmohan Munjal has once again brought to light the inability of the Municipal Council to evolve a strategy for controlling stray animals in various parts of the township. Mr Munjal, General Manager of Milkfed, Punjab, died after his scooter was hit by a stray cow near Sector 20 on December 1. He had received head injuries and died at a private hospital on December 3. The Municipal Council’s efforts to privatise the rounding up of stray cattle have allegedly failed under political pressure. With the vote-bank politics ruling in the MC, it is alleged that the Councillors thwart the efforts of the contractors whenever they go to catch the stray cattle. Most of the sector-dividing roads (‘A’ roads) in the township, especially those near the slum and labour colonies and the 13 villages in Panchkula, are almost taken over by these stray cattle, especially at night time. This is responsible for many a road accident and spreading of litter on the roads. MC officials concede that at least 1,500 cattle have been abandoned by the owners. The story on mismanagement repeats itself in Mohali. Due to the ongoing tussle between the Municipal Council and the private contactor responsible for catching cattle in Mohali, the cattle menace in the township has reached an all-time high. With no end to the stalemate between the two in view, it could be many days before anyone takes responsibility of catching stray cattle here. While the contractor stopped working over two months ago, the MC has not been able to reach any agreement with him despite issuing him endless number of notices. A meeting scheduled for today with the contractor, too, was postponed by the MC. While MC officials state that the council has resumed cattle-catching operations, its drive does not seem to be having any effect as stray cattle crowd garbage dumps in the town. |
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Man charges dentist with negligence Mohali, December 6 Alleging negligence on the dentist’s part, the resident, Mr N.P. Jain, has in a complaint to Chandigarh Tribune, stated that Dr D.S. Jatana fractured his jaw while trying to extract his tooth and tried to keep his mistake under the wraps by not informing the patient that he had caused the jaw fracture. Denying these allegations, the dentist stated that he tried to extract the tooth, but left the job incomplete on the patient’s request, following which the patient never came back to him for the rest of the treatment. Relating the incident, Mr Jain said he had gone with a minor tooth problem to a private dentist in Phase VII, who informed him that his tooth needed to be extracted. “I am a heart patient and special care has to be taken before minor surgery. But the doctor did not even bother to note my blood pressure before deciding to remove my tooth. He did he get an X-ray done. He gave me an injection and started extracting my tooth. But in the process, at one point, I felt that my whole jaw had moved. I told the doctor to stop as I could not tolerate the pain. He agreed and prescribed some medicines,” he said. Following this, Mr Jain’s face swelled and he visited another private dentist, who recommended an X-ray. “I also went back to the dentist but he told me not to worry and continue with the medicines. But since I did not have any relief and continued to be in great pain, I visited the PGI after two days where I was asked to get an X-ray done. After the X-ray, the PGI staff told me on November 27 that my jaw had been fractured following an extraction bid and it needed to be joined with metal wires. Since then, I have been with these wires, which bond my teeth together. I cannot speak properly and I will be on liquid diet for the next six weeks,” he added. “This entire condition is due to the carelessness of Dr Jatana,” he said. Refuting these allegations, Dr Jatana stated that he attended to the patient on November 20 and tried removing his tooth. “His tooth was completely spoiled and during the removal of such teeth, these break. I managed to remove one root, but then he stopped me, saying he was a heart patient and was not feeling well to continue with the procedure. I wrote this fact on his prescription slip also. I took all necessary precautions of conducting this procedure on a heart patient. He was given a different pain killer, specially made for heart patients,” he added. “After that, Mr Jain only returned to me once to enquire about the medicines that he was taking. He had apparently gone to another dentist, who had changed the medicines. All he wanted to know was if he could continue with the ones I had prescribed. Following this, I came to know only from mediapersons that Mr Jain had gone to the PGI and was alleging that I had fractured his jaw,” he said. “From the date that he came to me to the first mention of a fracture in the jaw by the PGI, where Mr Jain went for treatment, I do not know. To allege that I am responsible for his condition is wrong,” said the dentist. |
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Bajrang Dal men hold procession Chandigarh, December 6 At the Aroma traffic light point, the traffic was held up for over half an hour when motor cycle-borne activists of the Bajrang Dal raised slogans and took time to move ahead. Similar chaos was witnessed in other sectors when the procession was passing through these. The procession, held under the leadership of Mr Raj Kishore, started from Maloya and culminated at Mauli Jagran. Leaders of the Bajrang Dal demanded that the Centre should pass a resolution in Parliament for the construction of a Ram mandir at Ayodhya. Panchkula: Members of the Bajrang Dal held a scooter and car rally on Saturday in connection with the 11th anniversary of the Babri Masjid demolition. The Bajrang Dal members had assembled at the Pracheen Shiv Mandir in Sector 9, and the rally began from here under the leadership of Mr Sandeep Kumar. |
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Man dies of cold Panchkula, December 6 The police said it was today afternoon that a resident of Sector 17 noticed that the man was dead and informed the police. The body was taken for a post mortem examination to the General Hospital, Panchkula. The police has initiated inquest proceedings in this regard. One killed: A middle-aged woman, Lajwanti, was crushed to death by a speeding truck (DL-1GA-5400) at Raipur Rani on Saturday. The woman was on her way to the bus stop, in order to catch a bus for Ambala, when the accident took place. The truck driver fled the scene and the police has booked him on charges of rash and negligent driving leading to death. Arrested: The Kalka police has arrested a resident of Shimla, Abhiram, and recovered 350 gm of charas from him. The police said the accused had brought the drug from Himachal Pradesh and wanted to sell the drug in Kalka and Pinjore. The police said that they had received secret information about Abhiram coming with the drug, and laid a trap for him. As soon as he alighted from the bus, the police nabbed him and recovered the charas. He has been booked under the NDPS Act. Booked: The police has booked three persons - Rajinder Kumar, Dharmendra Kumar and Phool Kumar for indecent acts. The trio were arrested from Abheypur on charges of singing indecent songs. They were later released on bail. |
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Seminar on working women and childcare Chandigarh, December 6 The basic concept of the seminar was to provide a platform for the working woman to not only discuss and share her problems but also to work towards resolving them. The panelists included Dr Mangla Dogra, gynaecologist, Aruti Nayar, journalist with The Tribune, Dr Prabjot Malli, child psychologist, and Dr Jyotsna Sachdev, paediatrician. The seminar gave an insight into the current requirements of the working woman and the facilities being offered by the city. It created awareness about the various options available to the working woman for making her life comfortable and assist her in bringing up children in a healthier and better environment. Information was provided to mothers about other areas related to child psychology, care and effective management. An exhibition at the venue displayed various child care products, including wholesome foods, breakfast cereals, natural sugars, wholesome food cookies, wheat kernels, protein rich husks and oil-free mango relish, besides others. |
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