& V I C I N I T Y
Saturday, January 2, 1999
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C H A N D I G A R H & V I C I N I T Y |
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Saturday, January 2, 1999 |
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‘Steps on to improve’
southern sectors CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The Chandigarh Administration has taken a number of steps to improve civic amenities in southern sectors, says Mr Jagdish Sagar, Adviser to the Administrator of Chandigarh. Murder suspects identified PANCHKULA, Jan 1 — The suspects behind two subsequent murders one of a labourer and then of a labourer woman at Raewali village in Raipur Rani in the second week of December have been identified as residents of Badianu district in Uttar Pradesh. |
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Summons
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‘Steps on to improve’
southern sectors CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The Chandigarh Administration has taken a number of steps to improve civic amenities in southern sectors, says Mr Jagdish Sagar, Adviser to the Administrator of Chandigarh. Mr Sagar told newsmen here this afternoon that recarpeting of roads, provision of community centres and improvement in other facilities were being undertaken with the cooperation of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation in these sectors. He, however, maintained that some of the problems being faced by residents of certain southern sectors on account of their proximity to four villages within the civic limits might not be solved satisfactorily. Before developing phase III sectors, Mr Sagar said that a number of improvements would be made. For example, he said, the work on provision of footpaths would be part of development of roads and side paths in these new sectors. He agreed that the absence of footpaths was being felt in some parts of the city. Similarly efforts were being made to improve slow carriageways along Madhya Marg. Talking about general urban discipline and awareness, Mr Sagar maintained that Chandigarh was much better compared to any other Indian city. The Administration was making an endeavour to create awareness about urban planning in general and Chandigarh in particular. Home page on Internet, holding of quiz on the city and starting of City Museum were steps in this direction. The Adviser said that it was for the first time that a special gathering of top architects, planners and critics was being organised from January 9 to 11 to celebrate 50 years of the idea of Chandigarh Mr Sagar said that the only thing missing from the conference would be mock up structure of Governor's Palace as visualised and designed by Le Corbusier. The cost of this mock up structure, he added, would have been almost the same as it would have cost its actual building in the fifties. The conference to be inaugurated by the President was being sponsored by CITCO, Voltas, Otis, PUDA, HUDCO, Air-India and the Ministry of Tourism. It would cost around Rs 45 lakh and the entire budget would be met through sponsorships and registration fee of delegates. The Adviser said 544 delegates had been registered and 150 student delegates would also be permitted to attend the conference. Mr Sagar said that efforts were being made to rehabilitate only those slum dwellers wherever it was necessary to do so. He talked about the Sector 31 colony because of its proximity to Air Force station and said that plans were being finalised for the Sector 25 colony also but nothing was final as yet. For other colonies the Administration was planning to provide the basic services like water and power connections besides toilets and other facilities. He made it clear that the media would not be permitted to attend the Local Advisory Committee meetings as these were indoor meetings for advising the Administration on various issues. Talking about law and order, he said that no Adviser would ever be satisfied with the law and order situation. But Chandigarh was growing into a metropolitan city and its law and problems were going to be different than what they were 20 years ago when it was only a middle class city. The police was making every effort to solve some of the recent cases of dacoities and gang rapes. Also present at the press
conference were the Home Secretary, Mrs Anuradha Gupta;
Finance Secretary, Dr G. Vajralingam; Secretary Urban
Planning, Mr S.K. Midha; and Deputy Secretary (Home), and
the Director Public Relations, Mr Gurmel Singh, besides
Mr Rajnish Wattas and Prof I.J.S. Bakshi. |
Murder suspects identified PANCHKULA, Jan 1 — The suspects behind two subsequent murders one of a labourer and then of a labourer woman at Raewali village in Raipur Rani in the second week of December have been identified as residents of Badianu district in Uttar Pradesh. The victims, Kalu (54) and Ramti Devi (46) — were allegedly murdered over a land dispute involving the woman. The body of Kalu was found lying on a roadside near Raewali village on December 7. A few days later the decomposed body of Ramti Devi was found dumped at the back of a house at the village. Both the bodies bore injury marks. Raids were conducted at Naraingarh, Ambala, Zirakpur, Derabassi, Lalru and some places in Uttar Pradesh. Ramti Devi used to live with his son-in-law at Karchari village in Badianu district of Uttar Pradesh. She had purchased a piece of land in the village for Rs 5500. A neighbourer of the woman, Khoob Ram, opposed her settling at the place and it resulted in heated exchanges between the two on a number of occasions. To settle the score Khoob Ram, Jagan Bhai, Nanku, Bhoo Devi and Jagat Pal brought the victims to Raipur Rani for making baskets and allegedly murdered them with a sickle. The S.P., Mr Alok Mittal, said the arrest warrants of the assailants had been obtained from the courts and a police party had been sent to arrest them. Mishaps: Two cyclists died in two separate road accidents in the town in the last 48 hours. A cyclist, Manoj Kumar (21) died after he was hit by a Haryana Roadways bus here this afternoon. The victims was pillion riding on a cycle when he was hit by the bus. In another case an army man, posted at Western Command, Chandimandir, died after he was hit by a speeding truck at Majri Chowk, Old Panchkula on Thursday night. The driver of the truck,
Muni Lal, has been arrested. A case under Section 304-A
of the IPC has been registered against him. |
Foreign language courses in
doldrums CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — Empty benches and echoing corridors present a dismal picture of various foreign language courses being run by the Panjab University. Paucity of funds, dearth of students and unavailability of qualified teachers speak volumes about the condition of these departments. Degradation in academic standards has come in stages and virtually no effort has been made to contain the rot at any level. It started with diploma-holders, with specialisation in other streams, being appointed to teach the subject. In spite of being dedicated workers, they could not infuse excitement in their teaching due to limited knowledge of the subject. As these founder members made no efforts to improve their qualifications while in service they were promoted regularly on the basis of their teaching experience. Further, vested interests of the faculty did not give better qualified candidates a chance. At present, university politics and infighting are the root cause of qualified staff not being able to come forward. Added to all this is the well known fact that university authorities succumb to insurmountable bureaucratic pressure and choose undeserving candidates — the rejection of the recommendations of the selection committee by the Syndicate prove the point. The number of students applying for these courses has steadily increased over the years but for reasons other than interest in any of the seven languages. Admission to any language with postgraduate classes is a student's passport to hostel accommodation and library facilities. Students in the one year part-time courses have easy access to the library. Working "students'' are also keen on getting bus passes at reduced rates, says Dr Madhukar Arya of the Persian department. Furthermore, the serious lot of students has gone into streams other than languages which offer lucrative jobs on completion. No effort is being made to make these foreign languages attractive for the students. The authorities are watching the number dwindling during the session but are unmoved and unperturbed. Classroom teaching, too, cannot be made interesting because of lack of funds. Video tapes and cassettes lie locked in cupboards, very few useful books could be purchased with the sanctioned amount as they cost a fortune in foreign currency and then there are very few incentives in the form of scholarships or exchange programmes for the students, says Mr Jeewan Sharma of the German department. Dr M.S.Chauhan of the same department adds that more than twice the sanctioned funds are required to make the department work effectively. Dr H.L. Vasudeva, re-employed with the Russian department, says, "With the breaking up of the USSR, there are no joint ventures, no collaborations, few students going there for further studies and hence the declining interest in the language." The department teaching Slovak has been in abeyance for the past few years.Though French and German attract quite a few students every year, by the sessions end there are only a handful taking the exam. Out of these, a few qualify in the exam, others end up with compartments, and still others fail. Mrs Asha Verma, teaching Chinese, says,"I am not interested in the paltry amount given to me each month. With only two students there is no incentive to work. The authorities sleep over the issue for an entire session and after admissions they ask me to take classes every year. This year, too, I joined as late as in November." She laments: "I got a teacher from China but she was unceremoniously shunted out. Since then officials in China have decided not to send any more teachers here." Mr V.K.Singh of the Department of Central Asian studies says: "The fee of the part-time courses is on a par with the regular courses. Most students are unwilling to pay so much for an hour a day and hence are not interested. When it was suggested to cut the fees, the authorities suggested the teachers, too, should be paid for the one hour they take classes, which was unacceptable.'' Teachers on their part have evolved a way to save these departments from closure. The German department wants an integrated five-year programme to popularise the language. The study of Persian for any study or research in Ancient History, Fine Arts and Medieval History should be made compulsory like other universities. French or German must be made compulsory for those doing engineering as most machines come from Germany before.
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Army chief in Chandigarh CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The Chief of the Army Staff, Gen V.P. Malik, accompanied by his wife, Dr (Mrs) Ranjana, arrived here today on a three-day visit to the headquarters Western Command, Chandimandir. He was received by Lieut-Gen H.B. Kala, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Command, and his wife Mrs Kusum, besides the Air Commodore R.V. Kumar, AOC, 12 Wing. General Malik, who exchanged New Year greetings with journalists who had gathered at the Air Force station, did not give them any opportunity to ask him any questions. "I am not speaking on the subject," was all that he said before getting into a waiting car. He, perhaps, referred to the recent controversy over the removal of the Chief of the Naval Staff. Only yesterday, General Malik had taken over as Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee. During his visit, General Malik will hold discussions with the Army Commander and other senior officers of the command on various issues of operational and administrative importance. Dr Ranjana Malik,
President, Army Wives Welfare Association, will visit
various welfare centres and projects being run by the
Western Command, AWWA. Besides, she will address the
ladies of the station at a family welfare meet tomorrow. |
Summons to Maneka Gandhi CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — A local court has issued a summons to Mrs Maneka Gandhi, Chairperson of the People for Animals (PFA), a registered charitable trust established for the welfare of animals. The summons have been issued by Mr Jasbir Singh, Civil Judge (Junior Division) in a civil suit filed by two local members of the PFA, Mr Amar Sidhu and Ms Nandini Kakar, alleging that the Chandigarh chapter of the PFA is not being run as per its constitution, rules and byelaws. It has been alleged that Ms Payal Sodhi, who was made in charge of the chapter, is running the PFA as her "personal fiefdom". The plaintiffs have also alleged misappropriation of funds. The plaintiffs have also sought directives from the court for holding elections to the governing body of the chapter. They also alleged that the PFA was itself violating various animal laws of the country and the animal shelter being run by it was in a very poor condition. The suit alleged that Mrs Gandhi was given a memorandum, demanding an enquiry into the affairs of the local chapter during her visit to Chandigarh on October 25 last but she refused to intervene. The summons have been issued for February 6.
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SBI pensioners want ceiling to
go CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The State Bank of India Pensioners' Association has demanded the removal of the ceiling on the pension fixed at Rs 4250. In a memorandum, which the association submitted to the chairman of the bank, Mr MP Radhakrishnan, on his visit to the city, it demanded that pension should be 50 per cent of the last pay drawn as was being done in case of other banks and government departments. Better medical facilities,
removal of anomalies in the payment of dearness
allowance, communication of pension, enhancement of the
gratuity amount of Rs 2.5 lakh with effect from April 1,
1995, and early refixation of the family pension were the
other demands highlighted in the memorandum. |
Bank told to pay Rs 3000
compensation CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum-I, Chandigarh, comprising its President, Dr H.C. Modi, and members, Mr R.K. Behl and Ms Shashi Kanta, has imposed costs and compensation of Rs 3,000 on the Punjab and Sind Bank for not returning the collateral security to a loanee. Mr Amrik Singh of Milk colony, Dhanas, Chandigarh, filed a complaint, alleging that he had not been returned the allotment letter and leasedeed of his house, deposited as collateral security with the Sector 24 branch of the Punjab and Sind Bank against a loan which had been fully repaid in March, 1989. The bank pleaded that the original title deed was in the Civil Court and not in the custody of the bank, as it was filed with a civil suit instituted for recovery of loan from the complainant. The documents were, however, procured during the pendency of the complaint and returned. The forum noted that in spite of the complaint having been instituted in 1995, "still the bank procured the said documents only recently and placed on file". The forum held the bank guilty of deficiency in service for having retained the original documents wrongly for over nine years.
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Congress leader felicitated CHANDIGARH, Jan 1—The Dalit Samaj, Punjab, felicitated Chaudhary Jagjit Singh, MLA, who has been elected a Leader of the Congress Legislature Party by organising a function in Sector 30 here on Wednesday. The function was attended
by representatives of various organisations of Scheduled
Caste employees, advocates, and Congress leaders,
including the general secretary of the Punjab Pradesh
Congress Committee, Mr Shamsher Singh Dullo, Mr Gulzar
Singh and Mr Ramesh Dogra, all former ministers. NSS camp at Khudda Jassu CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — A valedictory function of the 10-day special camp of the NSS unit of Government College for Girls, Sector 11, was held in Khudda Jassu, here today. The function was presided over by the principal of the college, Mrs Vijay Lakshmi. She later gave away prizes to participants. Another 10-day NSS camp by Government College, Sector 46, concluded today. Mr D.S.Mangat presided over the valedictory function and appreciated the role of the volunteers who had accepted social service a way of life.
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CTYC takes up cudgels for poor CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — With a view to highlighting the plight of the poor, members of the Chandigarh Territorial Youth Congress organised a silent protest outside Hotel Mountview here last night. While addressing the gathering Mr Chander Mukhi Sharma said while officers of the UT Administration were busy welcoming the New Year in government hotels on public expense, no attention had been paid towards poor residents who were left to shiver in the cold. He added that it was totally inhuman on the part of the Administration officials to celebrate New Year eve in five star hotels without paying a penny, thus causing a severe loss to the exchequer. He demanded an enquiry to establish as to how many free invitations were doled out by CITCO to oblige the high-ups. Mr Chander Mukhi said blankets were used to be distributed among poor by the UT Administration, in the past but no such step was taken this time.
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Vaccination camp on Jan 10 CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The third Hepatitis-B vaccination camp will be held at the Chandigarh Press Club premises on January 10 (Sunday). The timings for the vaccination will be 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. The earlier date for
vaccination — January 17 has been advanced by one
week as Pulse Polio Day is being observed on January 17. Drive to recover power bills CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam (HVPN) has recovered Rs 134 crore as arrears of unpaid electricity bills during a special campaign launched in Pehowa subdivision. The Deputy Commissioner, Kurukshetra, Mr Alok Nigam, said 12,973 consumers were covered in the special drive launched from December 14 to 29 and it was found that the HVPN was to recover Rs 5.75 crore from them. He said the electricity meters of 3605 consumers were also removed. They were yet to pay Rs 2.98 crore.
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Procession today on Guru's birthday CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — A colourful 'nagar kritan' procession will be organised on January 2 in connection with the birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Gobind Singh. According to Major N.S. Rangi (retd), president, Sector 34 Gurdwara Committee, the procession will start from the Sector 34 gurdwara and move through sectors 33, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 before terminating at the Sector 15 gurdwara. The main attraction of the
"procession" will be special Khalsa band and
school children, he added. Three file papers for panchayat
poll CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — Only three candidates filed their papers on the first day of the filing of nominations for the UT panchayat poll here today. The nomination papers were filed with Mr D S Mangat, DPI (S), who is the Assistant Returning Officer (ARO) for Behlana, Kajheri, Hallomajra and Palsora villages.
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70 'pharis'
removed
in Sector 17 CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — In its drive against the illegal 'phariwalas' in Sector 17, the enforcement wing of the Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh today removed over 70 'pharis' from the area. The enforcement wing had removed over 100 pharis yesterday. A 'phariwala', Davinder
Chauhan, has been booked by the police for obstructing
the staff from removing the 'pharis'. Attack on churches assailed CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The local unit of the Samata Party today condemned attack on the Christian institutions in Gujarat. A meeting of the executive of the party felt that if the attacks went unchecked they would endanger the religious harmony and secular fabric of the country.
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Two
car thieves nabbed CHANDIGARH, Jan 1 — The police today claimed to have arrested two persons allegedly involved in the theft of cars and their parts in city in the recent days. According to the police, on specific information, a party laid a naka at the roundabout separating sectors 14,15,24 and 25 and stopped a car coming from the Panjab University side. On demand, the occupants of the car later identified as Namandeep Singh alias Miky, a resident of Sector 32, and Karminder Singh, a resident of Sector 36, could not produce any documents of the vehicle. Later during interrogation, the duo confessed that they had stolen the car from Panchkula. As many as four radiators and four batteries, allegedly removed from cars stolen from the city, were recovered from this vehicle. The police claimed that it had recovered two more cars — UP-53-1444 and GJ-01-K-8069 — from their possession. They have also admitted to having committed 42 thefts of batteries and radiators in the city. A case has been registered. Body found: The body of Kamal, a resident of Panipat, has been found from a motel in Sector 36 here. According to the police, the deceased lived in the motel on night of December 27 along with Dhan Singh, a resident of Sadmakhu village in Ludhiana district. The police has arrested Dhan Singh on the complaint of Ms Surinder Kaur,a relative of the deceased. A case has been registered. Liquor seized: Ranjit Singh, a resident of Dwarkapuri village in Yamunanagar district, has been arrested by the police from the Transport chowk in Sector 26, and 70 cases of whisky seized from him. A case under the Excise Act has been registered. Arrested: Mr Ramesh Kumar Mehta, a shopkeeper of Sector 7, in a complaint with the police alleged that he was assaulted by a shopkeeper of the market, Mr Ved Parkash. A case has been registered and the accused arrested. Assaulted: Mr Sadhu Ram, a resident of Mega Majra village in Kurukshetra district, was assaulted by a three-wheeler driver, Piara Singh. A case has been registered. Auto thefts: Atleast three cars were stolen from the city last night. While the car-CHO1-1814 of Mr Jagpal Singh, a resident of Sector 35, was stolen from Sector 22, the car (CHO1-V-1872) belonging to Mr Girish Garg was stolen from the Railway Station. Another car (DDC 1225) belonging to Mr Amit Monga was stolen in Sector 17. A motor cycle(CHO1-B-9097) was stolen from Sector 17. The scooter (CHO1-V-3624) of Mr Major Singh, a resident of SAS Nagar, was also stolen. Hurt: Mr Milkhi Ram, a resident of Panchkula, was injured when his scooter (CHO1-U-8287) was hit by a jeep (HR-03-B-2919) near the roundabout separating sectors 36,37,41 and 42.
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