Should Dilip return Nishaan-e-Pakistan? No, say most
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, July 9 — As soldiers prove their mettle day after day in flushing out intruders from the Dras-Kargil sector, a war of a different kind has erupted in another part of the country — Mumbai.

The Nishan-e-Pakistan conferred upon Dilip Kumar by Pakistan last year has become the bane of existence for the don of Indian cinema for the simple reason that he happens to be a Muslim. Prominent political parties have joined hands and are engaging in what is seen as "petty politics'' and politicians are casting aspersions and raising fingers at his integrity and nationalism for retaining the award despite the war-like situation at the border adjoining Pakistan.

Speaking to a cross-section of people, TNS found that a majority of them were of the opinion that tension between the two countries has nothing to do with the conferment of civilian awards on individuals making their mark in various fields in the sub-continent. The issue has been blown out of proportion to win cheap popularity by certain political outfits. In the process, they were only fanning the flames of communalism.

Dr D.N. Jauhar, an academician, condemned the political parties for the "rash and hasty move'' which would achieve very little in the end. "The prevailing war-like situation is no reason to return an award and these 'hawks' fail to realise that it is unbecoming on their part to make such preposterous demands. Again, all said and done, once the tension between the two countries eases, India could use his services to make and mend bridges through the strong cultural ties which have been established over time. This is one time when parties must rise above inner squabbles to present a united front on issues which will benefit the country in the long run.''

A theatre personality, Ms Neelam Man Singh, is disturbed by the fact that the issue was raised at all. "To me it smells of fanaticism — hounding him because he is a Muslim. Why should he need to prove his feeling of nationalism or loyalty by returning an award given as a gesture of recognition for his versitality by another country?'' she inquires.

Mr M.M. Sharma, an educationist, says, "The demand to return the award is childish and ridiculous. The introduction of the element of politics in the matter is not likely to achieve much in the end since returning an award can be no barometer of nationalism. Also, if such questions are being raised about the award conferred upon Dilip Kumar, the political parties ought to take up the issue of the bus trip across the border undertaken by our Prime Minister as a gesture of goodwill and that cannot be withdrawn. Hence, there is no justification for the demand.'' He ends on the note that Dilip Kumar will remain Dilip Kumar, with or without Nishaan-e-Pakistan.

Terming the idea of returning the award as "rotten thinking'', Shiv Singh, an artist, said that Dilip Kumar deserved the award and he got it. 'Floating such an idea and then thinking of ways and means to achieve the end is bound to create a rift within the Hindus and Muslims residing in our country,'' he rued.

"It is only an attempt to create mischief since returning the award is in no way going to change the ground reality or even force the Pakistan Government to call back its troops,'' Col Harsharan Singh, an ex-serviceman, remarks. He goes on to say that "our Muslims'' are fighting the intruders tooth and nail to regain occupied territory as also laying down their lives in the bid to succeed in their effort. "Can their sacrifice be any less when compared to that of the Hindus or Sikhs?'' he questions.

Air Marshal Randhir Singh, also an ex-serviceman, endorses the views put forth by Col Harsharan Singh and adds that an Indian Air Chief Idris Hassan Latif, a Muslim, was no less patriotic when compared to the rest. "The political parties are playing up a non-issue compared to the ground reality in Kargil and then, it should be a matter of personal choice whether or not Mr Dilip Kumar wants to return the award,'' he contended.

A general manager of a local automobile company and ex-serviceman, Lt-Col Amar Bindra, contended that it was in the fitness of things that Dilip Kumar return the award before things flare up. "It would in no way demean him but add to his stature. He must see it as his contribution to the Indian cause but it is not for political parties to decide and thrust their decision on him.''

A lawyer by vocation, Mr Randeep Singh Surjewala, says that keeping the award in no way puts the integrity and nationalism of Dilip Kumar under a cloud and there are no two opinions on this issue. However, he adds, "If I were in his place, I would have returned the awards as soon as the tension between the two countries started mounting.'' Also, he strongly disapproved of any coerce methods being adopted to ensure Dilip Kumar knuckles under threats to return the award "which should be a matter of personal choice''.

No crime is a "perfect crime"
By A.S.Prashar
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, July 9 — No crime is a "perfect crime". No murder is a "blind murder". There are always clues, leads and indicators which can lead an intelligent and discerning investigator to the perpetrator.

This is the philosophy which mainly guides the Central Detective Training School (CDTS) functioning here for the past more than 26 years. During this period, thousands of police officers from all over the country have been trained in tracing a crime, scientifically, methodically and painstakingly.

If in spite of this, the police stations remain full of unsolved or untraced cases it is not because the crime was perfect but because of lack of effort on the part of the investigating officer. "Non-detection of a crime is generally attributable to infrastructural and logistics problems", asserts Mr Satyendra Pratihast, an IPS officer belonging to the Andhra Pradesh cadre who is the principal of the school.

Although the popular image of the police remains what it was years ago — a danda-wielding, moustache-twirling police "daroga" trying to extract a confession out of a suspect by using rough and ready methods, the police is increasingly using sophisticated methods to solve crimes which at first sight look unsolvable.

"We are training them in the latest methods of crime detection", says Mr Pratihast. "And there are any number of police officers who are willing to swear that their stint at the Detective Training School has been of immense benefit to them. As a matter of fact, it is quite common for a difficult case to be referred to a police officer trained at CDTS because he is seen as the person equipped to handle it..."

And with the passage of time the training for the police officers has gone even more sophisticated and high-tech.

Now police officers are being trained in detecting even cyber crime and credit cards frauds and dealing with computer hackers. "We have to look beyond our immediate needs and prepare for the future", says Mr Pratihast. In this training, experts from Scotland Yard recently delivered a talk at Delhi.

The school has 30 seats and conducts a series of 21 courses. Their duration varies between one month and three and a half months. The candidates for the courses are selected by the Director-General of Police in New Delhi.

"We teach them to have full appreciation of the evidence at the scene of a crime — blood stains, semen, nails, hair and even dust particles as also broken windowpanes and ballistics in addition to, of course, fingerprints and footmarks.

Those attending the courses are given the recent court judgements in various criminal cases and asked to examine them from various angles.

They are also asked to give cogent and convincing reasons for placing reliance on the testimony of the prosecution witnesses. They are also asked to cite case laws and predict whether or not the prosecution will be successful in securing conviction on the basis of circumstantial evidence alone.

Gold sale picks up
By Rupesh Kumar

CHANDIGARH, July 9 — A fall in the gold prices has led to an increase in the sale of standard gold and gold ornaments in the city.

Jewellers contacted by TNS, during the course of a survey today, say though the gold sale has picked up,many customers are still holding back in expectation of a further fall in its prices. They, however, assert that there may not be a further decline in the gold prices as international market forces are already at play to wrest any further fall. There are reports that certain gold mines in South Africa are closing for the time being.

As a result of auction of 25 tonne yellow metal by the Bank of Britain (BoB),the price of standard gold and ornaments have fallen to Rs 4040 and Rs 3890 per 10 gm, respectively. Sovereign remained at the price of Rs 3650 per piece of 8 gram. Several prospective buyers have been seen waiting for the further slide in the price to cash in on the bargain.

Notwithstanding the slump in gold prices, people’s belief in the yellow metal is unlikely to be shaken. Instead, it is right time to stack up more gold as it is more reliable than the local currency or the banking system, maintain many people.

Due to decrease in the gold price, several customers out here have been found busy in the purchasing of gold and other have been expecting a further fall in its price. Indians’ fondness for gold is well known. With its 30 per cent of the world gold consumption, India is the biggest consumer of yellow metal in world.

Several buyers of the yellow metal feel that because of the dowry part still in vogue in society, its buying would remain a way of life. At the time of marriage of their daughters, they are required to give gold ornaments, they say.

A lecturer of Khalsa Collegiate School, Mr Shailendra Sachan, says buying gold is not only storing wealth, but also a vital part of everybody’s life. Mr Ram Singh, a farmer from a village of Punjab, says that the habit of buying gold to tackle bad times ahead can hardly be changed. Instead of turning to fraudulent non-banking financial companies,it is wiser to buy gold, he opines.

On the other hand, jewellers feel that the 25 tonne auction of gold by ‘BoB’, triggering fall in international gold price to 20-year lows, has forced its physical demands to pick up.

Compared to last year’s Indian consumption of 700 tonnes of standard gold, the dealers are optimistic that this year’s consumption can be around 1000 tonne. A jeweller says that in front of India’s yearly consumption and unknown amount of gold stacked in various types of lockers, Britain’s launch of its 415 tonne gold sales programme stands no where.

In February 7, 1996,the highest rate of standard gold and ornaments ever in India was Rs 5800 and Rs 5650 per 10 gm, respectively. This decade’s lowest rate of standard gold and ornaments was quoted at Rs 3900 and Rs 3700 per 10 gm, respectively.

Likewise, compared to the price of 10 gm each of standard gold (Rs 4300) and ornaments (Rs 4150) on July 5, 1991, the same are fetchable at Rs 4040 and Rs 3890 per 10 gm, respectively. One can imagine that in spite of increase in the rates of all durables and non-durables during the past nine years, the yellow metal has seen its downward trend, an analyst views.

The Secretary of the Chandigarh Jewellers Association and a proprietor of Talwarsons Jewellers at Sector 22-D, Mr Anil Talwar, accepts that the dip in the gold price has increased its demand. He says, “as cake cannot gets anymore sweeter so this is a lovely rate to buy standard gold and ornaments.”

Mr Talwar cautions that if the gold price rebounces, it would have escalating effect on Indian consumers. Stating that being the highest inflationary country in world, if the price of a dollar goes up, the price of yellow metal would escalate. He adds that continuous increase in gold import duty by the Government of India has put the customers at receiving end.

It may be recalled that following a rise in import duty by Rs 250 per 10 gm,the gold prices zoomed in January. But it has shown a reversed trend after BoB announced its gold auction and receded to old low levels.

Dr A.K. Prasad of Panjab University fears that being the largest gold producing continent, if some of the African gold mines were to be closed, there will be a severe impact on the poor African labour employed in the mines. He opines that the development can lead to a reconsideration about the desirability of hoarding gold as speculative investment or as a hedge against unforeseen incidence ahead.

Development works kept pending
From Our Correspondent

SAS NAGAR, July 9 — Development works to the tune of about Rs 5 crore were kept pending by municipal councillors at a meeting of the civic body held here today for want of equal distribution of works in all the wards.

The engineering wing of the council had been asked to prepare estimates connected with development works again on a ward basis and not on a phase basis as had been done.

Councillors alleged that some wards were being given special treatment while others were being neglected as far as development works in the town were concerned.

However, sanction for spending only 25 per cent of the full estimated amount on works linked with annual maintenance was given by the house after Mr Yash Goel, Executive Officer, requested the councillors so that the work in the town did not come to a standstill.

Full estimates prepared in connection with the annual maintenance of ATC signal blinkers, supply of labour for annual maintenance of streetlights, replacement of sewer pipes in Phase IIIBI, installing of automatic switch control panels in tubewells operated by the Department of Public Health and purchase of a sewer cleaning machine were cleared. Other items relating to council employees that had been put on the agenda were cleared by the house.

A two-minute silence was observed before the start of the meeting as a mark of respect to the Kargil martyrs. The councillors decided to collect Rs 25 lakh in aid of the Kargil heroes.

As many as 20 municipal councillors, including the President, Mr Harinder Pal Singh Billa, were present at the meeting. Ms Daljit Kaur, Kharar MLA, also attended the meeting.

However, before the items on the agenda were discussed, heated exchanges went on between councillors over the removal of congress grass. Certain councillors also complained that no progress was witnessed in connection with some development works that had been cleared more than an year ago.

Mr Goel assured the house that tenders would be floated immediately in connection with the privatisation of sanitation work in some parts of the town.

Mr Billa denied that he was being partial as far as development works of the town were concerned. He said development was carried out in all the wards and no ward was discriminated against.

City police to be fully computerised
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, July 9 — The Chandigarh Police is all set to become the first organisation which will have a fully computerised set-up up to the police station level.

In this context, a team from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), New Delhi, was in the city to conduct a half-day workshop for officers of the rank of Inspectors and above. Forty officers took part in the workshop, which was aimed at educating cops a bout the uses, applications and potential of computers at the Police Lines in Sector 26 here today.

The bureau team was led by a Deputy Director and two other officials. The Director, Mr Sharda Prasad, could not make it as he was busy elsewhere. Also present were the IG, the SSPs, the SPs and the DSPs.

According to police sources, the NCRB has prepared a pilot project for the city which will entail an expenditure of nearly Rs 15 - 20 lakh. Under the project, all 11 police stations will be linked to the headquarters. The police HQ is already online and all service records have been computerised, besides the disbursement of salary.

The ultimate aim of the exercise is to ensure effective use of the Crime Criminal Information System (CCIS), which will help the investigating officers (IOs). The infrastructure for the same would be procured and the officers will be imparted training to make them computer-friendly.

The software of the CCIS will not only be able to cut down on the paper work but also work-load of the officers in the field. This will go a long way in the investigation of crimes, sources added.