Friday, November 5, 1999
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N E W S Friday, November 5, 1999 |
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Cinema
ticket price up by Rs 5 CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — The cinema tickets are going to increase in the city from Friday. The prices of all three categories — balcony, upper stall and lower stall — will be raised by Rs 5. The Chandigarh Cinema Exhibitors Association announced today that the prices would be increased from tomorrow (Friday). Tickets sold through advance booking for tomorrow’s shows were sold at enhanced rates today. Incidentally the much-awaited and advertised ''Hum Saath Saath Hain'', directed by Sooraj Barjatya, is being released tomorrow. On the other hand, sources said that the taxation wing of the Chandigarh Administration was contemplating action against the cinema hall owners asking them why the prices of tickets were increased without informing the office. The cinema halls owners association says that they are empowered to increase the ticket rates without taking permission from the District Magistrate. The increase has been effected in line with the Punjab Cinematography Act, 1952, and as applicable in Chandigarh, pointed out Mr Naresh Batra, owner of a cinema. ''A clause in the Act allows us to increase the rates, fixing of which are not controlled,'' he added. Anyway 50 per cent of the increased cost would go to the government by way of entertainment tax, Mr Batra added. The cost of screening a movie has gone up in the past three to four years, say exhibitors. A system of fixed ''minimum guarantee'' is payable by the exhibitors to the distributors. It is only after this expense that cinema owners make any money. The minimum guarantee has gone up to anything between Rs 6 lakh and Rs 9 lakh for Chandigarh. For example, Rs 27. 31 lakh has been fixed as the minimum guarantee for ''Hum Saath Saath Hain'' in the Chandigarh area where it will be screened in three cinema halls. Another cinema owner, Mr Ashok Mahajan, claimed: ''In the case of most movies we are not even able to cover the minimum guarantee.'' Mr Batra claimed that the cost of electricity bills, water bills and wages of employees have increased manifold, thus a need to enhance ticket rates. Exhibitors claim that the rate of tickets in Delhi or Mumbai were close to 200 per cent more than those in Chandigarh. The last hike in cinema
ticket prices was effected in June, 1997, when the price
of balcony tickets went up from Rs 15 to Rs 25. The then
District Magistrate, Mr K.K. Khandelwal, made it
mandatory for cinema hall owners to provide certain basic
amenities. |
New SSP
reports to IGP CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — Even as the UT police authorities are yet to receive the orders regarding replacement of the city SSP Mr CSR Reddy with Mr Parag Jain, a Punjab cadre IPS officer, the latter reported to the UT IGP Mr S.K. Singh at the Police Headquarters here today. According to official sources, though orders regarding transfer of Mr Jain, a 1989 batch Punjab cadre officer presently working as SSP, Tarn Taran, were sent by the Union Home Ministry to the UT Adminstration two days ago after clearance of his name by the Appointments Committee of Cabinet for inter-cadre deputation with the UT, the police authorities had not received any communication in this regard from the Chandigarh Administration so far. The situation led to confusion at the police headquarters today as Mr Jain came to assume charge of his new posting, but knowing that no orders had been received by the UT police authorities, he submitted his joining report to the UT IGP, amid speculations that Mr Jain might assume formal charge tomorrow, provided the police authorities received any communication. Mr S.K. Singh, confirmed
that no orders had been received by his office in
connection with the posting of Mr Jain. He said the
orders might be “in the process”. He said he
has asked Mr Jain to wait till the orders were received
by the police, adding that Mr Jain would be asked to join
immediately as and when he received any communication
from the Administration. |
Illegal
lottery ticket sale on CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — If one was under the impression that the sale of banned single-digit lottery was a thing of the past, then one is in for a shock. Not only in the garb of double digit lottery are a large number of lottery vendors in the city fleecing the public, but are also blatantly flouting the provisions of the Lottery Regulations Act, 1998. The crowded corridors of Sector 17 market from where about a dozen lottery outlets function can give a fair idea about the huge amount of money generated through lottery selling. These lottery stalls remain surrounded by regulars for whom buying lotteries one after the another is an addiction and most of them end up as losers by the end of the day. “I won Rs 135 in the morning but lost more than Rs 200 in the afternoon. This is how it happens here,’’ said Mehar Chand, who works as a peon in an office nearby. Shivtaj Singh, an electrician who is a frequent visitor to the lottery stalls said that over the years he has lost more money than he had won”. But the lure of making a quick buck someday always brings me back here, he added. Raids conducted by the Chandigarh police in the past few months leading to the registration of a number of cases against lottery agents have substantiated the doubts about the sale of unauthorised lottery tickets, primarily from the north-eastern states of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Nagaland and Assam. Presently, these cases are pending in Chandigarh courts. Sources in the city police informed that the modus operandi of the lottery agents was to pay bulk money, which ranges in crores, to the governments of the north-eastern states and then to arm themselves with unbridled freedom to sell the lottery tickets. “They even go to the extent of printing their own tickets. During raids conducted in the past we found a large number of illegal self printed tickets,’’ said an official. Though the UT Administration has given permission for the sale of about 12 brands of lottery tickets from the north-eastern states, hundreds of unauthorised brands are being sold resulting in huge tax evasion. Pointing out malpractices, police officials said that the agents in the city had been offering prizes at pre-announced and prefixed numbers and on the basis of the single-digit which is a clear violation of Section 4 of the Lottery Regulations Act. As per the rules laid down in the Lottery Regulation Act, there can only be one draw in a week whereas these agents are taking out a draw every half an hour starting from nine in the morning till seven in the evening. Officials of the Administration informed that it was mandatory for the respective state governments to have a firm grip on the printing, circulation and draws of the lottery tickets but this was not at all being followed. The Act also says that each state government will enact lottery rules after getting it approved from the state legislature and the draws will be conducted by the state governments in their respective states. However, officials say
that not even a single provision is being followed. Even
before the Lottery Regulation Act came into existence
,the matter had come up before the Punjab and Haryana
High Court through a civil petition in 1995 and a
division bench of the High Court had observed that the
states of Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh
etc. had no control over the printing, selling,
distribution, issuing and genuineness of the lottery
tickets and their sale in Punjab was banned. The
debatable point is how the Chandigarh Administration
allowed this lottery business to carry on for so long. |
Effluent treatment plant for SAS
Nagar CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — The Punjab Urban Development Authority proposes to set up a 15-mgd sewage treatment plant at SAS Nagar. Services of Tata Consultancy have been engaged for the project. PUDA is also in the process of acquiring land for the proposed plant. The domestic sewage has been assessed at 10 mgd. The SAS Nagar Municipal Council has no land for any sewage treatment plant either. The proposed plant will, however, not handle any industrial effluents. The problems posed by the industrial effluents have been regularly highlighted by Chandigarh Tribune in its columns after conducting exhaustive surveys in Lakhnour and nearby villages where the residents are not only getting highly polluted water but are also suffering from numerous water-borne diseases. SAS Nagar has heterogenous industry, including units engaged in chemicals, pharmaceuticals, paints, leather and food processing, including corns. Untreated industrial effluents are discharged into a seasonal choe which flows towards Lakhnor. While PUDA has decided to go in for a sewage treatment plant, the industry may go in for a CEDA (Canadian Environment Development Agency)-aided common effluent treatment plant. There is already an agreement between CEDA and the Confedration of Indian Industry (CII) under which 66 per cent of the funding is made available by the former, while the beneficiary, say SAS Nagar industry, will be required to contribute only 33 per cent of the project money. The agreement probably also provides for funding a feasible study before such projects are taken up. There was an interaction programme at the CII Headquarters (Northern Region) today where, besides a representative of the Canadian Government, Mr G.S. Sobti, there were three representatives of a Canada-based company dealing in water management, waste water management and telecommunications, Mr Ken Morrison, Mr Alan Perks and Mr Sanjay Devnani. The others present included Mr Jagjit Singh (CII), Mr B.K. Bassi, Chief Engineer (PSIEC), Mr Harinder Pal Singh Billa, "President", SAS Nagar Municipal Council, Mr S.S. Sandhu (Mohali Industries Association) and representatives of PUDA and the Municipal Council. The Canadian company, which has been managing water, waste water and sewage in Mumbai and at Vaspi, would undertake a visit of SAS Nagar tomorrow for an on-the-spot study of the problem of common effluents and domestic sewage. Mr Ken Morrison said that his company, which has been in business since 1948, designed the waste water or sewage treatment plants after analysing the samples of the wastes. Another important aspect in designing or planning such a project is to maintain low cost of operations. The main costs are incurred on labour, power and chemicals in running such plants. Further, the system monitoring was also essential as only those wastes which the system can handle should be allowed, failing which the entire process would collapse. Representatives of SAS Nagar industries, PUDA and the Municipal Council were keen whether any system could handle heterogenous water wastes and industrial effluents. Further, the treatment plants could be designed to treat the sullage or waste to a certain level. They also discussed about various systems being used the world-over in treating common effluents and waste water. The PSIEC officials held
that they had set up an effluents treatment plant at
Jalandhar for leather industry there. The corporation was
also planning two more treatment plants at Ludhiana
— one for the dyeing industry and the other for
electro-plating units. Under the existing schemes, Mr
B.K. Bassi said, that the Central Government used to
provide 50 per cent subsidy while the state governments
chipped in 25 per cent of the cost. But since the scheme
ended on march 31, the central subsidy is ruled out.
Similarly, since the state governments were facing fiscal
deficits, there was hardly any scope for the state
subsidy coming in. As such grants or loans from CEDA or
other such agencies could be of great help. |
Kala Sagar
closed to public CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — Kala Sagar, a creation of state awardee artist Vijay Pal Goel, has its doors closed for public visits because of differences that have arisen between the artist and the government servants on duty in the garden, specially created in the Leisure Valley. The artist, honoured by the state and various organisations, made the art garden specially during a festival. It was not dismantled and the artist donated the creation to the Administration for public view. Differences with the chowkidars has led to its closure. The differences reached their zenith on October 31. The artist found several of his prominent creations missing from the garden. He said that certain other works had found their way outside the garden even on earlier occasions. Goel complained to the police. A staff member on the duty list was picked up by the police for questioning. Although he was let off, the chowkidars are agitating to express their resentment at the 'mistrust' on them while on duty. They claimed unnecessary action against government staff. Goel, however, maintained that he did not give any written complaint. Lack of staff cooperation was reported to the authorities many times according to the artist but the trouble remained constant .The garden witnessed theft of certain prominent creations. The artist claimed non-presence of staff on several visits during nights. The staff remained discontented with the " over-interfering artist". The artist continued overseeing the project and also worked on new creations at a site adjoining the creation. He had his workshop in one the official rooms. The creation maintained by the administration had chowkidars to patrol the boundaries and prevent damage. Despite "full administrative assistance" from higher officials, the artist expressed his dissatisfaction with the official staff deputed in the garden. The artist says that he had to complain to the higher authorities on several occasions. The staff was also changed several times but the artist claims to have received very little attention and response to "his requests to staff". Senior officials always gave a patient hearing but the project faced closure due to attention at the ground level, he added. Apart from land within the boundary wall in the valley there seems little administrative action to support the creation. Kala Sagar came up as a "fantasy land" where wastes of toilet seat covers, plastic pipes, bends, pipes and water tanks were sculptured into various forms. A plumber by profession, Goel has moulded the sanitary scrap into butterflies, trains, telephones and showers besides other models. The artist has created
more than 700 sculptures. He spent between Rs 2 and Rs
900 for raw material on one item. He feels that language
(English) was the only problem he had while communicating
his idea to the tourists. |
Pre-arrest
bail for businessman CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — City businessman Naresh Batra and advocate Anil Aggarwal, accused of being involved in a trespass and assault case, were today granted anticipatory bail by UT Additional District and Sessions Judge, Mr. S. S. Lamba. The two were directed to furnish personal bonds of Rs 10,000 each along with a surety of the like amount. The application for anticipatory bail was filed after a news item, on directions by the UT Judicial Magistrate (First Class), Mr Naval Kumar, to the Station House Officer of the Sector 19 police station for registering a first information report, appeared in a local English daily. Seeking the grant of
anticipatory bail, counsel for the petitioner had stated
that the two were being implicated in the case. Claiming
innocence, counsel had added that the allegations had
been inquired into by Sub Inspector Jaswant Singh of
Sector 19 police station. Counsel had added that the
allegations, as per the report, could not be established. |
Police
remand for Syal CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — Director of Marigold Forests Rajesh Syal, accused of duping investors, was today remanded in police custody till November 11 by the UT Judicial Magistrate (First Class) Mr Naval Kumar after he was produced before the court amidst tight security. Slogans filled the air as investors gathered outside the court. The Chandigarh police had earlier sought the help of the Interpol in arresting Syal, who had reportedly fled the country after allegedly duping investors of crores. He was Director of Marigold Forests and Alpine Floritech Limited, agro-forestry companies which had been accepting deposits from investors by promising high rates of interest. The company had its head office at the NAC Area, Mani Majra. According to the police, several investors had complained that the company was not honouring its commitment of either paying the interest on their money or the deposits which had matured. The matter was investigated by the Special Crimes Cell and a case was registered against the accused. The department had written to the Ministry of Home Affairs and the External Affairs Ministry to seek the help of the Interpol in arresting the accused. A request in this context had also been sent to the ministries. Police sources had said the accused had been siphoning funds from the company for the past many years and had taken away a vast sum. He was declared as absconding and an advertisement proclaiming him wanted was published on September 16 in newspapers of the region. Following this, the
police had launched a manhunt but he could not be found.
Syal was a resident of Sector 12, Panchkula. Two cases
under Section 406 , 420 and 120 - B of the IPC were
registered against the accused at the Mani Majra police
station. |
Police
remand for attendants CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — Railway station parking attendants — Ram Vinay Sharma and Naval Kishore — accused of cheating the public by selling fake tickets, were today remanded to the police custody till November 6 by the UT Chief Judicial Magistrate, Mr Sant Parkash. Residents of Bihar, the duo were booked and arrested by the Chandigarh police under Sections 420, 468 and 471 of the Indian Penal Code after a trap was laid, following an information regarding their alleged activities. According to the
prosecution, the duo were caught red handed after a decoy
customer was sent by the police. Several fake tickets of
Rs 10 denomination were seized from the accused, the
prosecution had added. |
Statement
recorded in Delhi: witness CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — Former Chief Minister of Punjab Beant Singh’s assassination case continued today with prosecution witness Chamkaur Singh stating that his statement was recorded before a magistrate at Delhi. Deposing before UT District and Sessions Judge Mr. B. S. Bedi in the make-shift courtroom at Model Jail in Burail, near here, the witness stated that no one else was present in the chamber while his statement was recorded. He added that the recording had taken about 30 to 40 minutes. Chamkaur Singh’s deposition is significant as he was believed to be human bomb Dilawar Singh’s brother. In his earlier statement before the court, he had stated that Dilawar Singh, along with another accused, had visited his residence here in an Ambassadar car. The Former Chief
Minister, it may be recalled, was killed in a blast
outside the Civil Secretariat on August 31, 1995. While
Dilawar Singh died in the explosion, the other accused in
the case are facing trial. The case will now come up for
further hearing tomorrow. |
Bail
denied in sodomy case CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — The bail application of a Sector 25 resident, accused of sodomising a Janata Colony dweller after kidnapping him on “knife point”, was today dismissed by UT Judicial Magistrate (First Class) Ms Jitinder Walia. The accused, Shiva, alias Sheru, was booked by the Chandigarh Police on October 27 under Sections 363, 377, 506 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code on the complaint of the alleged victim’s father Rajinder Parshad Sharma. He had alleged that “unnatural offence” was committed with his son after he was kidnapped by the accused. The victim, he had added, had gone to Sector 25 for collecting money. Seeking his release on bail, the counsel for the accused had contended that the offence was bailable. He had added that no useful purpose would be served by keeping the accused in custody as nothing had to be recovered. Opposing the bail plea,
the public prosecutor had contended that the Court of
Sessions or the High Court had the jurisdiction to decide
the bail matter under the provisions of law as it was
punishable by life imprisonment. |
Penalty
of Rs 1,000 imposed CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — Granting bail to an accused in the engineering department kickback case Piyara Lal Verma, taken into custody after he failed to turn up in the court on the date of hearing, UT District and Sessions Judge Mr B. S. Bedi today directed recovery of Rs 1,000 as penalty. Seeking his release on bail, the counsel for the applicant had earlier stated that Verma, instead of noting October 20 as the date of hearing, had wrongly penned down October 21 as the next date. Claiming the mistake to
have been neither “wilful” nor with “any
ulterior motive”, the counsel had added that the
factual position was explained by Verma to the court
after he appeared before the court on his own the next
day. |
MC
Executive officer shifted SAS NAGAR, Nov 4 — The Executive Officer of the local municipal council, Mr Yash Goyal, has been transferred to the Mandi Gobindgarh municipal council. A order to this effect has been issued by the Local Government Department of Punjab. His place has been taken over Mr K.S. Brar, who was earlier the Executive Officer of the local municipal council, before being transferred to Mandi Gobindgarh in July this year. The place of Mr Brar will be taken over by Mr Goyal. The orders of the Local Government Department was received in the office of the local municipal council today. The outgoing Executive Officer, after his short duration of about four months, leaves behind some new projects to be launched in the town. Sources in the department said though the transfer orders had been issued in August, the same could not be implemented due to the code of conduct during the recent parliamentary elections. Mr S.S. Barnala, a local
municipal councillor, said the process for implementation
of new projects like privatisation of sanitation, night
sweeping and better streetlights in the town should be
implemented. Function held for cancer-afflicted
kids CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — Sixty children suffering from cancer got a chance to participate in a variety of colourful activities at a function organised by the Sahayta Charitable Welfare Society in collaboration with the Advanced Paediatric Centre, PGI, and the State Bank of India here today. The children were first entertained in a puppet show and then made to participate in an on-the-spot painting competition to celebrate Children’s Day. These participated in the contest in senior and junior categories. Speaking at the function, Mrs Neelu Tuli, President of the Sahayta society, said the aim of the society were to provide emotional support to the cancer patients. It also helps to provide a better understanding of physical and social aspects of cancer and also general information and practical guidance about the diagnostic treatment and rehabilitation services available in and around Chandigarh. The society has so far helped 71 such cases in fighting the disease and is presently providing financial assistance to more than 50 needy cancer patients. The first three winners in the junior category of the painting contest were Shivam, Rahul Sharma and Sonia. In the senior category, the winners were Tanya, Kalpana and Bharti Gupta. The consolation prizes, which were sponsored by the Sahayta volunteers, were given to Anju and Robin. Mrs Peeyush Sharma, President, State Bank Ladies Club, gave away the prizes. Dr R.K Marwaha of the APC, who is constantly motivating the Sahayta volunteers in this direction also lauded the work being done by them. Later, Mrs Tuli stated
that Survivor’s award for the year 2000 would be
given to a child, who has successfully fought the
disease. The award, which has been announced by Mrs Toor
in the memory of her son, Gagan Toor is given every year
to the child for his studies. Mrs Toor also gave some
books and toys for the OPD of the paediatric ward. |
All set
for cards sessions CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — If Divali is around the corner, playing cards, especially gambling, is common. This year is no different as locations like hotel rooms have been booked, while friends take turns to host cards sessions. Some clubs are allowing card sessions but they use counters between Rs 10 and Rs 500. Managements are cautious with visitors and sale of counters stops after a certain time. Homes of bachelors are preferred. In some cases, wives and sisters join the action. Stakes vary according to one's pocket and the group one is sitting in. The going rates for 'teen patti' (also known as flash) may be as high as Rs 1,000 as initial money (also known as boot) put in by players before each game, followed by bets. The most popular format in the city is Rs 50 or Rs 100 or Rs 200 as initial money. Among the poor it may not go beyond Rs 5 or Rs 10. The rich are known to squander away a couple of lakhs in a single night. This Divali 'teen patti' is popular, followed by 'rummy'. In some circles, players also play 'kanua' (the reverse of flash). Several city residents play cards among their 'couple kitty' groups. Others play in the pre-Divali time with friends, colleagues or family members. Most groups of cards players comprise men only. Some women prefer their own domain and play among women only. Sources in the hotel industry say rooms are booked for the day and are usually used for playing cards. A room in any of the medium-level lodgings is available for between Rs 800 and Rs 1,000. It works out to be cheaper if 5 or 6 persons are playing, besides saving harassment from the police. Food and drinks are available on call. With night-long card
sessions, liquor cannot be far behind. This may be in the
form of beer or wine for light drinkers. Hard liquor is
popular among men. |
Health
Department gears up for Divali PANCHKULA, Nov 4 — A team of three doctors will be on duty to tackle cases of eye injury and burns on Divali night, while the General Hospital, Sector 6, is being stocked with medicines to meet any emergency. The duty hours have been fixed from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m.For the first time, the sole eye specialist in the district will be on duty along with an orthopaedic and a casualty medical officer in place of the skeleton service provided by the general physician in the previous years at the hospital. An ambulance will be kept in waiting to rush serious cases to hospitals in Chandigarh. Besides, the field doctors in Raipur Rani and Kalka have also been asked to be on duty and instructed to dispose of cases with minor injury with adequate medical aid and refer the rest to the General Hospital in the town. However, the dispensaries will remain closed throughout the district. “The eye specialist is more suited to handle these cases than any of the general physicians. Experience has shown that in the absence of immediate treatment, the patient suffers from vision loss, whatever the magnitude and extent of damage. Since most of the cases usually pertain to eye injury, the eye specialist can at least provide initial treatment even if the case is to be referred to hospitals in Chandigarh,” Dr H.C. Nagpal, Chief Medical Officer, said. Last year 10 cases were reported to the hospital, of which six to seven were of eye injury. Though burn cases have been reported in the past, most of them had minor injuries and are tackled at the level of the General Hospital itself. “Cases which are usually referred to the PGI or General Hospital are of eye injury, especially those where a blister has formed at the back of the eye or a foreign body has entered the eye and the hospital is not equipped to handle it. Those hospitals have better infrastructure and are better equipped to deal with emergencies,’’ Dr Nagpal explains. Also, the Health
Department is working out the admissible limits of
explosives and crackers in consultation with an explosive
expert. Though the findings will have no bearing on this
year’s festivities, Dr Nagpal adds that from next
year explosives which fall in the category above that of
the approved sound levels will be banned. |
3-day
Divali mela from today CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 —Even as the Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh (MCC) has asked the temporary Divali stall owners in Sector 17 and other sectors to observe strict safety norms, all is set for the three-day Divali mela beginning tomorrow. The civic body has completed the process of granting permission to the stall owners in city, including 170 stalls in the Sector 17. While a stall owner in Sector 17 will be required to pay Rs 600 per day for putting up the stall, the MCC will charge different amounts for putting up stalls in other sectors according to the area occupied by them. The charges per day, which the MCC prefers to call removal charges, will be Rs 50 for an area up to 20 square feet and Rs 100 for up to 50 square feet. An amount of Rs 200 will be paid by the person putting up stall in the area up to 100 square feet. Similarly, while for an area up to 225 square feet the charges will be Rs 300, these will be Rs 500 for area up to 500 square feet. For area up to 1000 square feet, the stall owner will have to shell out Rs 1,500. The person putting up small “phari” will pay Rs 150 for three days. According to official sources, the stall owners in Sector 17 had been asked to give an undertaking that no crackers will be sold and no inflammable and combustible material sold in the stall and no gas or stove will be used. Besides, proper wiring will be made while putting up the stall and the size of the stall shall not exceed 15’x15’ and the stall will not be sublet under any circumstances. The sources informed that while first preference in case of 140 stalls will be given to persons having showrooms in Sector 17, remaining 30 stalls will be allotted to on a first-come-first-serve basis. Two fire engines, along with the requisite staff, will be stationed near the Sector 17 with a view to minimise damage in case of fire. A fire engine will also be stationed at the Sector 19 market. The Chief Fire Officer has issued directions to the four sub-fire Officers to inspect all markets so as to avoid any untoward incident. The city had been divided into two zones and the MCC staff, besides the enforcement staff, would patrol different sectors with a view to supervise the arrangements. While sectors up to 40 will constitute the first zone, the Sector above 40 and other areas will constitute the second zone. It may be recalled that though the MCC had prescribed strict safety norms, a majority of them are observed more in breach reportedly on account of the shortage of the enforcement staff at the disposal of the corporation. Persons using gas stoves without observing any safety norms were a common sight in the Sector 17 Plaza last year. In addition, hardly any stall owner uses four sand bags and fire extinguishers — a mandatory requirement. Apart from this, the
menace of “illegal” stalls in other sectors is
bound to be there since there was no fool-proof system to
check them, admitted sources. |
No mass
fireworks by Army CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — Taking a lead in checking environmental pollution caused by bursting of fire crackers, Army authorities at Chandi Mandir have decided to do away with mass fireworks display at Divali this year. An Army spokesman said here today while there was no restriction on bursting of firecrackers by individuals in the cantonment, it had been decided that massive fireworks display organised at a central place in the cantonment would not be organised this time. "The Army has
always been deeply involved in preserving the
eco-balance. This step has been taken as it was felt that
bursting firecrackers causes excessive air and noise
pollution. We are taking a lead in what is now a major
issue in the country," he added. |
Divali
fair on Nov 5 CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 —
The Lishkara Sabhyacharak Manch would organise Divali
Cultural Festival at the Sector 23 Bal Bhavan on November
5, Mr Karamjit Singh Dhaliwal, President of the manch,
announced here today. Mr Dhaliwal said eminent Punjabi
folk singers and artistes would participate in the fair
which would begin at 4 p.m. and continue until late
night. A new album of upcoming singer Aman Sagar would
also be released at the fair. |
Challaning
drive intensified PANCHKULA, Nov 4 — The city police has intensified its challaning drive in perusal of the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and to ensure that residents adhere to rules strictly. Surprise checks in various sectors are being carried out. A special drive was carried out last week to check traffic violators. Police sources opine that residents of the city are not in the habit of observing rules but will gradually come around when they know that a cop may be around. Frequent challaning and presence of police personnel at traffic lights is bound to make them more rule-conscious. “While most of the challans in the city are being cut for not wearing helmets or jumping of traffic lights, maxicabs running on the Naraingarh road are being forced to comply with rules due to the presence of the police,’’ Mr Amitabh Singh Dhillon, ASP, informs. He adds that the maxicabs are overloaded, which is the reason behind most accidents in which these vehicles are involved. Their documents are incomplete and most of these are in possession with the police for one traffic violation or another. Five of these have been impounded by the police. The department, besides briefing the personnel at the various police posts and stations, has circulated a performa, which mentions the various heads under which vehicles are to be challaned.The department is supervising the work and information of the challans is sent to them on a regular basis, which promotes accountability among the men on duty. The police personnel have been instructed by the Superintendent of Police, Mr Sudhir Chaudhary, to avoid getting into confrontations with violators. However, a few dissatisfied residents claim that the police continues to be high-handed in its approach while dealing with them. Mr S.K. Badhwar, on his way to Shimla, was challaned at one of the points during the special drive of the police on Sunday. The police version completely differs. Those on duty contend that he was not able to produce the pollution certificate and blaring music and tinted glasses called for a challan.”If traffic rules are being flouted, it is our duty to challan the violator, whether or not he is a resident of the city,’’ an official justifies. Meanwhile, the police
department is working on intensifying the drive. They
contend that drivers will have their papers complete and
everything in order, which will leave little work for the
police. |
PGI
interviews begin CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — The much-awaited selection process to fill the vacant seats in the faculty of the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGI) got underway here today. As many as 600 candidates will appear for interviews for 140 posts of professor and assistant professor in various departments. The PGI Director, Dr B.K. Sharma, said this had been a record of sorts in the history of the PGI that the selection process for these posts would last for 16 days. The interviews would be conducted on all days except November 7, 8 and 14, which happen to be holidays. The entire process would be completed by November 20, in accordance with the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Dr Sharma said though many persons were skeptic till today morning about the selection process beginning due to the litigations for the past five years, thanks to the intervention of the court, the interviews were conducted today. On the first day,
interviews were held for the one post of professor and 10
posts of assistant professor in the Department of
Anaesthesia. Four candidates appeared for the interview
for the post of professor, though six had applied for the
same. In all, 16 persons appeared for the 10 posts of
assistant professor, though 27 had applied for these. |
SNIPPETS Journalists to hold seminar SAS NAGAR, Nov 4 — The local Working Journalists Association will hold a state-level seminar on 'Duty of Print Media towards Children' in co-ordination with the Punjab School Education Board on November 13. This was disclosed here yesterday by Mr Ajit Salani, Chairman of the association, at its meeting held at Chandigarh. He said a delegation of the association would meet the Chief Minister of Punjab regarding various demands of local journalists, includng a permanent office of the Public Relations Department and allotment of a plot for construction of a club. Godrej employees lay conditions SAS NAGAR, Nov 4 — The Godrej-GE Employees Union today reiterated its stand to have a dialogue with the management of the company, provided it took back all workers who had been suspended or dismissed. The General Secretary of the union, Mr Vijay Sharma, said if the management did not heed to its request, the agitation would be intensified. Board gets land for colony SAS NAGAR, Nov 4 — In all, 7.20 acres in the town have been allotted to the Punjab School Education Board for construction of a residential colony for its employees. A decision in this regard was taken at a recent meeting of the Punjab Urban Planning and Development Authority (PUDA) chaired by its Chief Administrator (CA), Mr K.B.S. Sidhu. A spokesman of PUDA said the decision to allot land for the residential colony was taken in pursuance of the Employees Welfare Policy of the state government. Poetry prize for Ruby CHANDIGARH, Nov 4 — Ruby Charak of Government College for Girls, Sector 11, won the poetry recitation contest on the second day of the Panjab University Zone-A Youth Festival at MCM DAV College here today. Geetanjali of the same college secured the second position, while Navjot Sran of the host college stood third. In another literary event, debate, Deepti Sodhi got the first position. She is a student of the host college. The debate witnessed strong competition with strong textual contents of most of the speakers. Ruchi Bedwal of Guru Gobind Singh College (women) and Manisha Nayar of GCG, Sector 11, were second and third, respectively. Quency of the host college was adjudged first in the rangoli contest. Anupreet also of MCM DAV and Kuldeep of GGS (women) stood second and third, respectively. The day also witnessed drama contests in the afternoon. Police officers transferred SAS NAGAR, Nov 4 — In a major shake up ordered in the local police administration by the Ropar Senior Superintendent of Police, Mr G.S. Bhullar, Inspector R.S. Sohal has been made the Station House Officer of the Phase I police station. The outgoing SHO, Mr Devinder Singh, have been made the SHO of Nurpur Bedi. The SHO of the Sohana police station, Mr, G.P. Singh, and the SHO of the Kharar police station, Mr Jasdev Singh have swapped places. Additional SHO of the
Sohana police station, Sub Inspector Tarlochan Singh,
have been transferred to the CIA staff, while Sub
Inspector Sohan Singh will be the SHO of the Kurali
police station. |
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