Jalandhar, September 10
Amritsar MP Navjot Singh Sidhu’s aide and Bharatiya Janata Party state secretary Rakesh Rathore, a first-time councillor from Ward 20, was elected mayor of the city municipal corporation here today. Rathore secured the post after a tough fight from his contenders, BJP district secretary Ravi Mahendru and BJP district president Shiv Dayal Chugh. Meanwhile, the post of senior deputy mayor went to second-time Shiromani Akali Dal councillor Kamaljit Bhatia, who had won the poll held on August 8 with the maximum margin of 3,526 votes from Ward 45. The SAD’s Parvesh Tangri from Ward 50 was declared the deputy mayor.

The oath-taking and nomination ceremony took place at Town Hall jampacked with councillors, their kin, senior party leaders and party supporters, MC officials and media persons. Everybody was seen jostling one another for space at the venue.

While most people had occupied their seats well before time, those who arrived just on time found it difficult to go upstairs. In fact, many visitors were unable to find sitting space and were forced to stand throughout the proceedings. Since the view was completely blocked for those sitting behind, many stood on the tables resulting in topsy-turvy before the programme concluded.

The real scene was created when Navjot Singh Sidhu and his supporters reached the venue in the mid of the ceremony to felicitate the new mayor. The environment became more suffocating by the end as leaders, councillors and others pushed one another for getting their pictures clicked with the new mayor. As the ceremony was over, newly appointed councillors lined up outside the building to present bouquets to the mayor and garland him. But this could not be possible as everyone, including Sidhu, seemed to have been pushed out of the door straight downstairs at one go.

The worst part was when the contender for the post of senior deputy mayor Kuldeep Singh Oberoi found his party rival Bhatia selected for the post. Oberoi and his wife entered into arguments with the top SAD-BJP leaders, including Manoranjan Kalia, Navjot Sidhu, Avinash Chander, K.D. Bhandari, Jagbir Brar and others, but none of them was ready to listen to them.

Oberoi went vocal with his arguments giving bytes to all TV channels, saying the party sidelined him ignoring his merit and gave the post to a man who attacked an IAS officer, torn ballot papers and burnt an MC vehicle.

Chandigarh, September 10
Health ministry and National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) have framed a new policy, asking private labs across India to get NACO certification if they want to conduct HIV testing as per national guidelines. Till now, private HIV testing has been going on unregulated, often to the detriment of patients health and social status. Recently, a private lab at Jalandhar declared an HIV negative person positive. The latter discovered his real status from a government-run integrated counselling and testing  centre (ICTC).

But now, private labs wanting to conduct HIV testing will have to apply to NACO for certification which will be granted after on-site inspection to see if the lab has basic facilities and if it can honour the issues of confidentiality and informed consent. Subject to these conditions, the lab will have to sign MoU with the local state AIDS control society (SACS) if it wants to validate its HIV testing facility. The policy adds that private labs can be blacklisted by ministries of health, home and external affairs if they breach the MoU, which will have to be renewed annually.

NACO’s decision follows massive unregulated HIV testing by private labs that are flouting national standards of repeating HIV positive test with two different kits before declaring a person’s positive status. Often they conduct a single test, which is a screening test. If positive, it has to be confirmed with two more tests. However, easy availability of rapid HIV test kits is causing many private labs to indulge in HIV testing without bothering for a person’s consent or offering him pre or post test counselling.

By its latest policy, to be implemented under National AIDS Control Policy III (NACP III), NACO has sent out a clear signal to private labs flouting guidelines on HIV testing. Once the AIDS Act is implemented, such labs will have to face penal action. Till then, the policy will discipline labs which have even been, reportedly, conducting pre-operative HIV testing without informing patients.

A highly placed source in NACO explains: Informed consent is a fundamental right. Moreover, HIV test is not like other medical tests conducted to determine treatment. HIV has no treatment. Therefore, HIV testing can’t be done without a persons consent because it can expose him to stigma.

Several private labs have, however, been ignoring ethical issues but they will be in trouble once the AIDS Act, Laboratory Act and Private Nursing Home Acts are implemented. These acts will provide for penal action against erring labs. NACO has now given such labs an option of falling in line. In NACP III, NACO is planning to encourage access to HIV testing by involving disciplined private labs in a  big way. The basic conditions they will have to fulfill for NACO certification include facilities for screening test and two confirmatory tests, commitment to issues of informed consent, counselling and confidentiality. The consent, says NACO document, must be taken in writing. The document adds that inspection will be conducted by a joint team led by a microbiologist from National Reference Lab who will submit a report to NACO. 

Jalandhar, September 10
There seems to have been a major lacuna in the implementation of the central government’s National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) in the state for the uplift of rural health care.

While the primary health centres (PHCs) and sub-centres will be drawing funds under the scheme, the amenities at nearly 1,310 subsidiary health centres (SHCs, popularly known as dispensaries) which a majority of the rural population has been visiting, are unlikely to get improved as these have not been covered under 
the proposal.

A sum of Rs 161 crore is expected from the mission for the state soon as grants for various plans are being forwarded by health officials of the state. The central government has been getting feedback from doctors, nurses, anganwadi workers and rural volunteers on the PHCs and sub-centres by holding meetings at the block level. Since no such response has been derived from the doctors working at SHCs, it seems unlikely that the problems related to improper sanitation and water supply, shortage of medicines and other needs will get resolved.

The doctors have pointed out that since the mission was planning to fund 17 other states as well, the problem could have resulted due to a technical error. “Some states do not have the concept of subsidiary health centres as does Punjab. There is a possibility that the central government is not aware of the system network in the state. The state officials at least need to raise the matter and seek correction from the mission so as to ensure improvement of infrastructure in the dispensaries as well,” a member of the local unit of Rural Medical Services Association (RMSA) said.

The member said while earlier they had been getting every support from the central government for the dispensaries they had been working in, they wonder what had gone wrong now.

The member also pointed out innumerable problems of the local rural dispensaries such as those of logging of drainage water at Bhoor Mandi and Wariana villages leading to scabies and other skin diseases. While some dispensaries did not have electricity connections, there were others without toilets, refrigerators and water 
supply.

Punjab health minister Laxmi Kanta Chawla, during her Saturday visit said the SHCs were not being covered in the plans of the NRHM. When asked how the requirements of these centres would then be met, she said it was up to the zila parishads to see for they were now taking care of them.

Nawanshahr, September 10
A private television channel showing power theft by local SAD MLA Jatinder Singh Kariha on Sunday has led to the demand for his resignation on moral grounds.

District Congress Committee president Kuldip Rana has also demanded a high-level enquiry into the matter.

Meanwhile, Jatinder Singh Kariha termed allegations of power theft levelled by the private TV channel against him as totally baseless and fabricated at a press meeting today. Kariha said he had been paying heavy electricity bills and had 
also applied for a temporary meter for his Dilawarpur farm.

He had also deposited the requisite money with the PSEB, Kariha said. He alleged that the TV channel had not verified the facts.

Rana alleged that Kariha, who had himself been raising the issue of a missing bag containing Rs 51 lakh presented to the then Chief Minister Harcharan Singh Brar, about 12 years ago, was himself involved in power theft.

Refusing to comment, former Congress MLA Parkash Singh has termed it a petty issue. Vouching for Kariha, he said, “He does not believe in mudslinging and his mission to join politics is to fulfil the dream of late Congress stalwart Dilbagh Singh to make Nawanshahr a model district in the state.

He has tried his best for accelerating the pace of development over the past five years, he added.

Batala, September 10
Demolition of an old building, situated on the Cinema road, by its owner on Saturday night has led to unrest among the tenants of the building who had been running their shops from here for decades. Affected tenants and other shopkeepers of the area protested strongly and kept their shops closed today as mark of protest.

The police has booked the owner under sections 452, 467, 506, 348 and 149, CrPC. No arrest has been made so far. The building had been a cause of dispute between the building owner and its three tenants. The tenants had been running their shops in the building for the past about 40 to 45 years.

Action followed when a resident of the area submitted in a written request to SDM Sandeep Rishi requested for the building to be demolished because of its dilapidated 
condition.

The SDM got the building inspected from officials of the municipal council and the PWD (B&R). The building was declared unsafe as per a report submitted by the officials. The SDM ordered the demolition of the building under section 133, CrPC.

However, the owners of the building demolished the building without informing their tenants as well as government authorities on their own.

Amritsar, September 10
The Amritsar (Rural) police has sent the remains of Dhirajpal Kaur, resident of village Saran who died under mysterious circumstances, for forensic examination.

Addressing a press conference, SSP (Rural) Iqbal Singh said the victim had been married at the age of 14. She separated from her husband around two years ago and started living with her elder sister, Rajwinder Kaur.

She also started doing household chores for Narinder Kaur, whose husband was in Kuwait. Narinder also used to teach Dhirajpal.

The latter had cleared her Class X examination last year. On July 8, 2007, Dhirajpal complained of nausea and vomiting. Gradually, her condition deteriorated and she was rushed to a hospital where she breathed her last.

Before the cops could start their investigations, the body was cremated. The SSP said the further course of investigations would be decided on the basis of forensic report.