R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

PUNJAB

PATIALA
Painting exhibition: Vice-chancellor of Punjabi University Swarn Singh Boparai inaugurated an exhibition of paintings in the university’s Museum and Art Gallery here on Thursday. The exhibition displays the works of Gurpreet Singh, an artist hailing from Bathinda. Director of Museum and Art Gallery Dr Saroj Sharma addressed the gathering and said the work of Gurpreet Singh was not just the representation of his own fantasies but the result of an inspired mind.

CHANDIGARH

Won: The six-member Indian team bagged 3 silver medals and 3 honourable mentions in the 48th International Mathematical Olympiad that just concluded at Hanoi, Vietnam. The Olympiad was held between July19 and 31.

Mohali
Tourism Day: Chandigarh College of Hospitality celebrated the World Tourism Day at the college campus here on Thursday. Some students from the college went to the Chandigarh airport to welcome the tourists from various parts of the country and abroad by offering them flowers, garlanding them and offering sweets. The students at the function at the college campus were told about tourist destinations, Indian Railways and rural economy.

Panchkula
Hit and run: Dayawanti of Kuradi Mohalla, Kalka, reported to the police that a motorcyclist, Ankush Goyal, of the same locality hit her on the way in main bazaar, Kalka, on Thursday evening. Her leg was fractured in the accident and she was taken to the hospital. Police has registered a case under Sections 279, 337 and 338 of the Indian Penal Code at Kalka police station.

HARYANA

AMBALA
Kashmiri students: A team of schoolchildren from Kashmir arrived in Ambala Cantt on Thursday. They were received by Maj Gen U.M. Maindarkar, COS, Kharga Corps. The 25 children and there teachers have come here under the Army sponsored Operation Sadbhavna. An officer said the children have already visited Pathankot, Chandigarh and now they are proceeding to Delhi. During their tour, they will also meet the President of India.

Librarian association: The Punjab College Librarians Association (PCLA) has hailed the Punjab government decision for notifying the Career Advancement Scheme (CAS) for librarians as recommended by the UGC on October 19, 2006. Mohinder Singh Dhillon and Barjinder Pal Dhiman, president and general secretary of the association said here that this was long overdue and thanked finance minister Manpreet Badal.

Vigilance inquiry sought: Vikas Parishad chief and former Ambala Cantt MLA Anil Vij demanded on Friday that a vigilance inquiry must be conducted into the tree-felling incident. He said that there was lack of transparency in the allocation of tender for the felling of trees. He said the presence of Congress activists including Congress block president Vishwanath Yadav at the spot where the trees were being chopped clearly indicates political patronage. Anil Vij said Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda is going to be in Ambala on Saturday for a function at Kharga stadium and he must direct the officials concerned to probe this matter.

Dental programme: Union minister Kumari Selja inaugurated “Bright Smile Bright Future” programme in Ambala on Friday. The Indian Dental Association along with Colgate is jointly running the programme. Kumari Selja said that a large number of people, particularly senior citizens suffer from dental problems. Indian Dental Association, Ambala, secretary, Dr S.S. Ahluwalia said more than 80 per cent of the people in India do not adopt the correct method for brushing their teeth. He stressed upon proper brushing of teeth to keep germs at bay. “In this programme, we are holding awareness camps in various schools and distributing dental health pack to the children. About 25,000 health packs are going to be distributed to school students,”  he said.

Water conservation seminar: A national seminar on water conservation was organised at GMN College, Ambala Cantt, on Friday. Financial commissioner R.N. Parashar inaugurated the seminar. Prashar said we must deliberate upon converting rainwater into water fit for drinking. Prof R.K. Kohli of Panjab University, Chandigarh, threw light on important aspects of water conservation. Dr R.P. Malyavar chaired the evening session. College principal Dr R.R. Malik said more than 250 experts from all over the country are participating in the seminar.

HIMACHAL PRADESH

BILASPUR
Suicide: Dinesh Kumar (30), son of Rattan Singh of Taon village near Ghumarwin, has allegedly hung himself in his room on Thursday night. He was a serving soldier in 56 Dogra Rifles at Delhi and had come home only a few days back on a month leave and was said to be under depression. The police has registered a case and are investigating the case. A postmortem examination was conducted at Ghumarwin Hospital.

HAMIRPUR
Candle-light march: The SFI district committee organised a candle-light march in Hamirpur on Thursday evening to celebrate the birth anniversary of Shaheed Bhagat Singh. The SFI activists marched through the bazaar carrying lighted candles and holding placards. SFI secretary Sandeep Thakur said they would observe the day as an ‘anti- imperialism day’ and distributed pamphlets highlighting the philosophy of Bhagat Singh and his associates.

Art of Living: The Art of Living Himachal chapter on Friday decided to involve 15,000 people in pledge to support the ‘stand up & speak out’ international campaign against poverty and hunger on October 17 in the state. State coordinator of the organisation Kamlesh Barwal said The Art of Living and United Nations Millennium Campaign (UNMC) had come together to champion the cause of eradicating poverty in the world. Barwal said the campaign aimed to highlight the resolution of the Millennium summit held in the year 2000 where 189 countries had resolved to achieve eight millennium development goals with a thrust on poverty eradication by the year 2015.

SHIMLA
Appointed: The All-India Congress Committee has appointed former minister Ranjit Singh Verma as the chairman and Indu Patial as the vice-chairman of the Panchayati Raj Department of the Pradesh Congress Committee. It also appointed Onkar Singh as the vice-chairman of the Other Backward Classes Department of the party.

Seminar: A one-day seminar on “jute geo-textiles and innovative jute products” highlighting the advantages of using geo-textiles for strengthening roads, arresting landslides and soil erosion in hill states like Himachal Pradesh was held here. The seminar was organised by the Jute Manufactures Development Council. Inaugurating the seminar, industries minister Kuldeep Kumar said jute geo-textile products were ideal for checking soil erosion in the environmentally fragile Himalayan region. These products were not only economical but also eco-friendly being biodegradable unlike the synthetic materials, he said.