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Traffic jams galore as Jan Chetna rally hits city
Political rivalry between Kalia, Rathour comes to fore at rally
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Business suffers near the venue
These children know only about dark rooms, garbage, insults and exploitation
Sans publicity, govt programme for SC students a flop show
From Colleges
Support pours in for agitating staff of aided colleges
Donning courage
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Traffic jams galore as Jan Chetna rally hits city
Jalandhar, November 14 Since the rally came from Ludhiana and stopped for a while en route at Phillaur, Goraya and Phagwara, the commuters lamented that the police did not allow them to use the national highway and traffic was diverted through villages, which took them too long to reach their destinations. Even those going the opposite side from Jalandhar towards Phagwara claimed that they too were forced to take the in-lanes to move further as the rally was planned on the highway itself. Those who managed to leave early did not face any problem, but those starting after 9 am were a harassed lot. In Jalandhar, traffic at all intersections, including Rama Mandi, PAP Chowk, Chogitti Chowk, Lamma Pind Chowk and Pathankot bypass, remained stuck for over an hour. Achhar Singh, a resident of Mukerian, said he was coming to the city for some piece of work in a roadways bus. “The bus did not come via Rama Mandi, where I had planned to get down. Rather it took a longer alternative route to reach the bus stand,” he said. The worst was the plight of the residents around Chogitti Chowk and the Guru Nanak Pura area where a rally in support of former Local Bodies Minister Manoranjan Kalia was held around 1 pm. People had a tough time reaching their own houses and establishments. Since most of the lanes around the venue site had been closed, they were seen moving from lane to lane to make way for their homes. Harpreet Singh, resident of Guru Nanak Pura, said, “Almost all roads were blocked and it took me 15 minutes driving through the maze of the lanes to reach my home. There were barricades across almost every other lane.” An elderly woman Joginder Kaur from Chogitti, complained, “I was to go to a satsang at a gurdwara in Central Town. I had to take three rickshaws to reach the gurdwara as they were not allowing the rickshaw pullers to go further.” The ACP (Traffic), Diljinder Singh Dhillon, said he tried to ensure that the movement of other vehicles was not hindered due to the rally. “The traffic has been slow. We have not stopped it anywhere. We have used cones to segregate the rally and non-rally traffic.”
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Political rivalry between Kalia, Rathour comes to fore at rally
Jalandhar, November 14 This despite the fact that Chogitti Chowk had been decided as the venue for Jalandhar Cantonment and Jalandhar (Central) leaders and supporters.
Though Mayor has also been projecting himself as the aspirant for the party ticket from Jalandhar (Central), he was instead seen at the next rally venue at the Pathankot bypass where the leaders and supporters of Jalandhar (North) and Jalandhar (West) were scheduled to assemble. Even as all the leaders sat down in the Jan Chetna bus in which former Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani is travelling, Kalia sat apart from the trio of Rakesh Rathour, MLA from Jalandhar (North) KD Bhandari and MLA from Jalandhar (West) Bhagat Chunni
Lal. l It was interesting to watch Manoranjan Kalia give all gifts, including a turban, siropa, shawl, garland and sword, from his stage, which was two to three feet away from the rooftop of the Jan Chetna bus. l Kalia had even got a table extended from the stage (held by two people) to climb on the bus, but his plans failed. Most of the items he presented were received on the other side by the party’s state president and compere Ashwini Sharma. l Muslims and Gujjars were present at Kalia’s rally in large numbers. Their leader presented a safa (scarf), which Advani’s daughter Pratibha took around her shoulders till the next rally venue. Pratibha was also seen making videos of the rally with her digital camera of the rally from the rooftop of the bus. l Two elephants were made to stand outside one of the venues at the Pathankot bypass for over two hours in contravention of the Wildlife Act. One of the elephants, Laxmi, had been especially brought from Ludhiana. l
Some paid workers were dressed up like Charlie Chaplin, jokers, etc, to amuse the crowds. l The number of hoardings and banners put up in connection with the rally multiplied overnight, especially around the Pathankot bypass. The banners were seen hanging vertically down from the bridge on the highway.x |
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Business suffers near the venue
Jalandhar, November 14 Several shops in the locality, close to the site, had been asked to pull their shutters down for the first half of the day in the name of security for former Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani, who halted at the site for nearly half an hour. There are close to 100 shops in the locality. There are several dhabas, sweetmeat shops and banks in the locality that suffered losses owing to the political function. While all those shops near the venue were shut down, only half of those further away were close. The owners of the shops that were kept open, too, complained that they hardly got customers today. Raja, a hair dresser, said, “Even as I have my shop open today, there has been no client since morning. The residents do not want to get out of their homes today for the passage has been blocked from all sides.” Sunny, a grocer, too claimed, “None of my regular customers have visited us in the past two days as the passage has been closed since the last evening.”
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These children know only about dark rooms, garbage, insults and exploitation
Jalandhar, November 14 While the authorities play the rude little drives and jokes in the name of Children’s Day every year, they never find a soul to rescue them from their cruel shell, even as “raids” and “labour awareness drives” never result in any revelations. They are the city’s best kept secrets, harboured and maltreated by the authorities as well as so-called conscientious citizens alike. They work at homes, factories and streets. Unlike children brought up amidst cozy dreams, they know only hatred. A look at some of these lost dreams: Kazi Mandi This sprawling slum near the railway station is one of the most notorious areas in the city as far as child labour is concerned. The irony of the era is that labour is a way of life that the children of the area have grown comfortable with. The very approach of the area is marked with tea stalls and makeshift dhabas where older-than-their-age children sit mouthing obscenities at each other all day long. Most of the workers helping to take loads off trucks here are also seen to be children. The area abounds in children involved in the trade of drug peddling. Children of poorer families are into rag picking and work as mechanics at workshops or employed in factories. About 500 children of the area (most of these belonging to Tamil families, which shifted to the area years ago) are into child labour. About 150 to 200 children from the neighbouring Bhim Nagar, Santoshi Nagar and Daulat Puri areas are also employed at scooter repair shops and tea stalls. The area is also a safe haven for many children that come here from the railway station. Sources say many of the children of the area are hooked onto drugs. They dab thinners, spirits and whiteners onto dirty rags and inhale them through the day. When asked why don’t they go to school, Sanjay, a 14-year-old employed at a tea stall, said, “Have I been bitten by dogs that I go to school?” A man sitting at the stall said they are spoilt beyond reclaim. They can never go to school now. Lamenting about the lack of facilities, Jatinder Kumar, a resident of the area, who runs a shop there, said, “Even children interested in going to school do not have a choice because there is no school in the area nearby and parents won’t send them to schools farther away. Medical facilities are also lax. The only government dispensary in the area is good for nothing.” Gandhi Camp There are about 100 houses in the area with each having at least five children as labourers. Children from six onwards are into the trade. Labourers living in little rented rooms pin clothes onto frames and children embroider sequins and beads. When The Tribune team visited one of the houses, the young ones were seen dozing around the frames, with their hands wavering at work. The elder ones, with swollen, hollow, bloodshot eyes, looked around for brief breathers and then went back to work. A senior worker present there said the children (in that house) were from Sita Marhi village in UP, from where they were being brought. While some had been working here for the past two to three years, others were relatively new (four to five months). The neighbours say the kids only come out to buy tea from nearby stalls, other than that, they are hardly seen around. They don’t play. They don’t go to school. The kids that The Tribune talked to, just gave a shy, half-hearted smile when asked why they don’t go to school. According to the worker, the younger ones get Rs 1,000 per month and the elder ones get Rs 3,000. The only schools are two private schools nearby. While Gandhi Camp children go to these schools, the labourers don’t have the right to dream about them (some haven’t even heard about schools). Guru Ram Das Nagar It’s a different world. On the outskirts of the city, the area lies right next to the huge dump at Wariana. While the urban populace can’t tread in this area without a kerchief on the nose, the area is home to many little rag-pickers who have spent their lives so far stooped in the dumps. The bumpy, dusty road that leads to the area is strewn with garbage on both sides and rag-pickers abound. While almost all children belonging to about 100 families that live in the area slums are labourers, many of the children living in pucca houses also belong to poor sections. The area has about 250 children in all. While 150 sit around idle, the rest about 100 are into odd
jobs. About half of the children from the adjoining Shiv Nagar (500 in all) area are also into different jobs. Both these areas abound in children who are
irregular to school. While the government school at Maqsoodan is far, some children go to the Basti Peer Daad School. Pritam Singh, a resident of the area, says, while his daughter was going to school at Maqsoodan, the lack of government schools near the area has caused him to stop sending her to school. While his financial condition is still good, there are some who can’t even afford that much. The basti areas of the city, like Basti Danishmandan, Basti Peer Daad and Basti Nau, Gujan and Bawa Khel, are also brimming over with labourers. While children across this area are employed at stalls, sports goods-making units (there are homes and entire neighbourhoods where all children are employed in sewing footballs, etc) and leather as well as rubber industries. There are 27 National Child Labour Project schools in the district, with each having 50 children, teachers from these areas say the survey pattern of the area keeps changing and the most common problem with these children is that dropout rate is high. |
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Sans publicity, govt programme for SC students a flop show
Jalandhar, November 14 This despite the fact that Jalandhar has around 40 per cent Scheduled Castes population, the highest in the state. The district also has the highest number of SC students studying in various educational institutes and others who have been employed with different sectors. The scheme, which is otherwise meant to provide golden chance to such aspiring candidates, is marred by lack of publicity. So much so that none of the educational institutes in the city was aware of the free coaching facilities and its advertisements. The Department of Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Backward classes, Punjab, has been running the free coaching at Ambedkar Institute of Careers and Courses, Mohali, since 1987. The institute provides free coaching, hostel accommodation and financial assistance to the selected candidates. Academicians from various educational institutes in the city were ignorant about any such centre being run by the state government. Paramjit Kaur Jassal, principal of Government Arts and Sports College, Jalandhar, said they have the highest number of SC students in the college. "I have never heard of this institute. It is surprising that despite being a career academy, the beneficiaries are not even award of it. The state government should have ensured that all the colleges were informed about the scheme," she added. Even principal of Doaba College, Naresh Dhiman, also expressed ignorance about the institute and applications invited for it. "What is the fun of running an institution like this, if the beneficiaries are not informed? Jalandhar has the highest SC population, hence maximum IAS aspirants should make it to the institute but who cares?" Contrary to this, the principal of the coaching institute Rajwinder Kaur Minhas said they held a large-scale publicity campaign in the state about the coaching institute while advertisement appeared in various newspapers. "We also publicised this scheme in various colleges of this state", she added. However, when she was informed that none of the colleges in Jalandhar was aware of the scheme, she said, "I have joined recently. I don't know if the previous principal conducted a publicity campaign or informed the colleges in the state through the respective the district departments."
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From Colleges
Jalandhar, November 14 UGC seminar A UGC-sponsored national seminar on ‘Second Generation Reforms-Implementation, Challenges and Quest for the Third’ was organised by the Department of Economics of Prem Chand Markanda SD College for Women. The seminar was held to commemorate completion of two decades of reforms. On this occasion, the Journal ‘Economic Surge-2011’ comprising papers of the distinguished scholars and professors, was also released.Professor K Enoch, former Vice-Chancellor of SV University, Tirupati, was the chief guest. In his presidential address, he focused on the growth impulses of the Indian economy and stressed upon the need for inclusive growth and good governance. Professor RL Bhat of Central University, Jammu, delivered the keynote address and highlighted the main theme of the seminar-the need to take forward the process of economic reforms in India. HMV winners Students of Hans Raj Mahila Maha Vidyalaya (HMV) participated in various events organised by different colleges as part of celebration of “International Year of Chemistry, IYC-2011”. Amanpreet Kaur got first prize in poster making, Ramandeep Kaur won first prize in collage making and Shaveta Sharma got second prize in speech competition at BBK DAV College, Amritsar. World Diabetes Day Rotary Club, Phagwara organised a seminar on ‘Diabetes Awareness' at Kamla Nehru College for Women, Phagwara. Dr SPS Sooch from Gandhi Hospital who is also the member of the club informed students about the causes, symptoms and types of diabetes. Students were motivated to do regular exercise, take balanced diet through a power point presentation. History competition The local Lyallpur Khalsa Collegiate Senior Secondary School organised a competition on the religion and history of Punjab in which as many as 20 students participated. This event was held with an aim to create awareness among students about the history and religion of Punjab. KMV winners Badminton team of Kanya Maha Vidyalaya brought laurels to the institution by bagging first runners-up position in GND University Inter-College tournament. Shahnaaz and Ritu have been selected for All India Inter University Championship. Workshop on boutique The department of fashion designing of Hans Raj Mahila Maha Vidyalaya organised a two-day-long workshop on ‘Boutique - Traditional Indian Art of Resist Method’. In the workshop, textile and printing expert, Pawanjeet Kaur, informed students about boutique technique and demonstrated designs on cotton and silk fabrics.
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Support pours in for agitating staff of aided colleges
Jalandhar, November 14 Federation president principal Dr Gurdeep Sharma justified the agitation saying the demands of both the teaching and non-teaching staff had not been met. “Since 2005, there is a ban on recruitments under 95 per cent grant-in-aid scheme which has led to downfall in the quality teaching in these colleges,” he said. General secretary of the federation, Principal Dr Jaspal Singh Randhawa said in spite of the Bill passed in the Punjab Assembly in 1999, the notification regarding pension and gratuity schemes was yet to be implemented. “The notification regarding new pay scales and service conditions with 65 years as retirement age has not been implemented in letter and spirit”, he added. The federation members also said the Punjab Government was yet to sanction the revised pay scales to the non-teaching staff unions. “This has forced the employees to go on strike and the government is responsible for the loss being suffered by the students due to the agitation,” they said. The federation also demanded recruitment under 95 per cent grant-in-aid scheme, payment of pension and gratuity direct from treasury, complete implementation of UGC notification including retirement age of 65 years and quick payment of arrears. Pension demand A meeting of retired employees of Non-Government Aided Colleges of Punjab was held at Lyallpur Khalsa College was held this morning in which large number of employees of various districts of Punjab took part. The members demanded the implementation of the long pending demand of the implementation of pension and gratuity scheme and other retirement benefits. |
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He makes others see the big picture
Atma Ram goes past his disability to start a school for visually impaired students Nikhil Bhardwaj
Jalandhar, November 14 Despite being visually impaired, he never lost hope and always tackled the odds with courage. He follows his own unique philosophy in life. He believes, “Visual impairment does not impair the power to dream or relish the taste of life.” After he was hit by chicken pox, Atma Ram gradually started losing his sight. Few months after he passed matriculation, he became visually impaired. “Since that day, I pledged to achieve success in life and also to help hundreds of visually impaired children like me,” said Atma Ram, who originally hails from Sangrur. He said 1982, with the support of Khalsa College principal, he started a blind school, in which visually impaired students are given education, food and accommodation free of cost. “My school has now 35 students from across the state. Out of these, many have completed graduation and post graduation. Recently, 13 students have already been selected for government jobs,” said Atma Ram, who has done MA Music, MA History and BEd from Khalsa College. Atma Ram’s wife, who is also visually impaired, is also running a Girls Training Centre for Blind on the Khambra road. As many as 23 visually impaired girls are being given free-of-cost training. These girls also get hostel facility. Atma Ram has also perfected the art of astrology. People from across the state visit him to know their ‘future’. “I got the knowledge of palmistry from Haridwar-based sadhu. I also attended hundreds of ‘jyotishi samelans’ in the UK, US and Canada.” Atma Ram claimed that he has been running the blind school through private donations and there has been no support from the government.
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It was a harrowing experience for hundreds of commuters in the city as traffic remained jammed at all important intersections owing to the passing of the Jan Chetna
rally.
Jalandhar, November 14
Jalandhar, November 14
