Auction: The auction of octroi posts of the local Municipal Council could not take place on Wednesday due to the traders' protest. The MC President, Mr Dharam Singh Aulakh said the posts would now be auctioned to private contractors on December 21.
Dharna: Members of the local division of the Punjab Non-Gazetted Forest Officers Union staged a dharna outside the Divisional Forest Office here on Wednesday in support of their demands. This was stated by the Press Secretary and Division President of the union, Mr Mohinder Singh.

MALERKOTLA

Workshop: Mr Vikas Partap, Additional Deputy Commissioner, district Sangrur, advised the women panches and sarpanches of Malerkotla-1 and Amargarh block to know about their rights and duties and take independent decisions. He was addressing them at a workshop organised by the Block Development and Project Officer to acquaint the women sarpanches and panches with the working of the village panchayats here on Tuesday.

PATHANKOT

Recruitment rally: The recruitment rally of the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles concluded here on Wednesday. Over 6,000 candidates, mostly from J and K, Punjab and HP, were screened at the three-day rally.

PATIALA

Drivers' union: The Driver Operators Union of the Punjab State Electricity Board has decided not to participate in Friday's strike, the call for which was given by various employees organisations of the board. In a press note Mr Kanhaiya Singh, President of the union, said all drivers had been directed to attend duty on that day.

PHAGWARA

Market Committee: The Punjab Government has appointed Mr Sarwan Singh Kularas as the Chairman of the local Market Committee and a leader of the BJP, Mr Tejaswi Kumar, has been appointed the Vice Chairman.

SAS NAGAR

Mourned: The Municipal Employees Union has mourned the death of Mr Sarbjeet Singh Pandher, Assistant Labour Commissioner and husband of a former Executive Officer of the civic body, Mrs Pritam Kaur. The union also condemned the imposition of octroi on equipment for the show of singer Daler Mehndi.

Local bus service: The Haryana Roadways has decided to add 200 new vehicles to its fleet of buses to meet the increasing passenger traffic. This was stated here by Mr Sita Ram Singla, Chairman of the Haryana Bureau of Public Enterprises, while inaugurating a local bus service from the bus stand here on Tuesday. Mr Singla said local bus service within the city had become a necessity in face of the rapid expansion and industrialisation of the city. The bus service would cover the entire town including the industrial area and residential sectors.
Labour cell: The following have been elected office-bearers of the district Congress Labour Cell: President — Rao Shree Krishan; Senior Vice-President — Mr Ram Singh; Vice-Presidents — Mr Satnarain Dahiya, Mr Dhoop Singh Nahar and Mrs Sunita Sahrawat; General Secretaries — Mr Anil Kumar Tyagi and Mrs Beena Sahrawat; and Treasurer — Mr Hansraj.

JHAJJAR

Convicted: Dayanand, a resident of Bupnia village, has been sentenced to 10 years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 1 lakh by the Additional District Judge, Mr R.K. Bishnoi, on the charge of possessing 4.8 kg charas.

JIND

Small savings: Mr Dharambir, Commissioner Hisar Division, called upon the people particularly women to participate in the economic development of the country by investing money in small savings. He was speaking at a district-level small savings prize distribution function here on Tuesday.

ROHTAK

Protest: Members of Maharshi Dayanand University Teaching Departments Teachers' Association would stage a dharna and form a human chain around the Vice Chancellor's office today to protest against the alleged delay in the implementation of the revised pay-scales.

SIRSA

Demand: Residents of Goriwala village in the district have demanded the covering of an open drain near the village bus stand. They alleged that the drain had made the area accident prone.
Girl recovered: The police recovered a minor girl, who was reportedly abducted by Sukh Ram, alias Sukhia, from Ellenabad, about 40 km from here, on Wednesday. In a complaint to the police, the father of the girl had alleged that his daughter was abducted by the accused on October 5.
Theft: Domestic articles and cash were reportedly stolen from the house of Mr Pushpender Kumar at Rania, 20 km from here, on Wednesday night. The police has registered a case.
Arrested: The Sadar police arrested Ram Mehar of Pipli Khera village on Wednesday for possessing charas.
Poor bus service: Residents of Chakkan, Bhuna, Kharian and Goriwala villages are facing problems due to poor bus service in their area in the evenings. They have urged the authorities to take the necessary action.

SONEPAT

DAP shortage: The shortage of DAP fertiliser in the district and its surrounding areas has affected the sowing of rabi crop, especially potato and wheat. Describing the factors responsible for the shortage of DAP, an official spokesman said due to the heavy rains in October, the potato crop was damaged and the farmers had started sowing it again which increased the demand for the fertiliser.
Transfer sought: A memorandum signed by a number of arhtiyas, retailers and farmers was sent to Mr Bansi Lal, Chief Minister, on Thursday. It demanded the transfer of Mr Raghbir Singh, Assistant Secretary of the local Market Committee and protested against the transfer of Mr Mahavir Singh Hooda, a Mandi Supervisor.
Intercepted: The Rai police intercepted a truck with 13 head of cattle on Wednesday and foiled the attempt of four persons to smuggle them to UP. The police has registered a case against them and the truck has been confiscated.
Medical camp: The Ganaur unit of the Bharat Vikas Parishad organised a free medical camp at Khubru village, about 30 km from here, on Wednesday. A team of specialists examined about 200 patients. Medicines were given free of cost to them.

YAMUNANAGAR

Case registered: The police here has seized one revolver and two cartridges from Sunil Hassain, a resident of Ranjitpur. Mr Sheel Madhur, Superintendent of Police, said here on Wednesday that a case had been registered under the Arms Act.

Indira Awas Yojna: Sixtyeight houses have been constructed under the Indira Awaas Yojna for poor widows and handicapped persons in Kangra. The Deputy Commissioner, Mr B.K. Aggarwal, said the administration proposed to construct 214 more houses during the current financial year. He said Rs 275 lakh had been distributed among 865 poor families to help them in setting up self-employment projects.

KULU

Three arrested: The mystery shrouding the murder of Sanjeev, who was stabbed to death on Friday last, has been solved with the arrest of three persons — Raju (26), a Nepali national, Sanju (24) from Loran and Shankar (25) from Jahlma in Lahaul. Mr Zahur H. Zaidi, SP, said a case under Section 302 had been registered against them.

NAHAN

Sentenced: Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Mr L.M.K. Bansal, has sentenced Subhash Chand of Kun village to six months simple imprisonment and a fine of Rs 2,000 under the Excise Act, for possessing bottles of illicit liquor.
Elected: The following have been elected office-bearers of the district unit of the Agriculture Land Horticulture Extention Officers Sangh: President — Mr Lakhbir Singh (Paonta Sahib); Senior Vice-President — Mr Shivprasad (Nahan); Vice-President — Mr Ravinder Thakur (Paonta Sahib); General Secretary — Mr Tejvir Singh (Nahan); Joint Secretary — Mr Sanjiv Bansal (Nahan) and Treasurer — Mr Man Singh (Nahan).