BATHINDA
MEETING: A meeting of the members of the Muktsar Circle Ex-servicemen Association will be held on December 30 at Muktsar. This was stated in a press note issued here on Saturday by Mr Major Singh Brar, convenor and president of the association.

2 KILLED: In a head-on collision between a scooter and a cycle one person was injured on Sunday. The volunteers of a local NGO admitted him in a local hospital. He was identified as Roshan Lal, an employee of thermal plant here. He died in the hospital later. In another incident a person threw himself before a train at Varing Khera village 35 km from here and died. He was identified as Thana Singh, a resident of the same village.

HOSHIARPUR
JAIL INSPECTED: Mr L.R.Roozam, District and Sessions Judge, inspected the district jail on Saturday and listened to the problems of prison mates. Mr Roozam inaugurated the newly constructed female ward in the jail.

ELECTED: Dr Gurcharan Singh Chahal, president of the Punjab State Veterinary Officers Association, has been elected vice-president of the Indian Veterinary Association, according to press note issued by Dr Tej Parkash Saini, spokesman for the association, on Saturday.

MANSA
PROCEEDINGS ORDERED: Mr Sukhdev Singh, Special Judge, Mansa, while acquitting Ms Jaswinder Kaur of Sandhu Kalan village in Sangrur district in a NDPS Act case has ordered to start proceedings under Section 250 of Cr PC against Sub-Inspector Sulkhan Singh of the Bhikhi police station who was the investigating officer of the case. The Sub-Inspector stands accused of searching the suspect himself instead of letting a lady constable to do so under the law.

NAWANSHAHR
INAUGURATED: The Welfare Minister, Mr Sarwan Singh Phillaur, inaugurated the newly constructed ring road and a computer room at Government High School at Garcha village on Saturday.

RESENTMENT: Teachers working in government middle schools under ‘Operation Blackboard’ scheme in the district are sore over the non-payment of salaries for the past couple of months as the government has not sanctioned the requisite budget. They have urged the Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, to allocate budget for the same.

WOOLLENS DISTRIBUTED: The Lions Club, City Smile, Banga, on Saturday distributed woollen clothes among students of Government Primary School and Government Middle School at Bhootan village and presented two embroidery machines to the Sakharata Stitching and Embroidery Training Centre at Chak Kalal village. Mr Baldev Nayyar, a social worker, presided over the functions. This was stated by Mr Suraj Parkash Nayyar and Mr Harmesh Singh, president and secretary, respectively, of the club, in a press note issued here on Sunday.

PATIALA
STAFF COLLEGE: A proposal to set up a staff college for imparting management technical training to PSEB (Punjab State Electricity Board) employees in collaboration with other institutions has been put up. A programme to spread literacy among the PSEB employees has been launched by the Human Resource Directorate to cover over 20,000 employees who require familiarity with computers for their daily working. 

MEETING: The Punjab State Services Federation and the Punjab State Electricity Employees Federation held a meeting with Mr Parkash Singh Badal, Chief Minister, Punjab, principal secretary and finance secretary on Sunday. Several demands of employees were accepted on the spot and for the remaining, a committee had been formed under the Chief Secretary, Punjab, to make recommendations in given time.

CAMP: The Punjab Pradesh Congress Seva Dal, under the guidance of Mr Prahalad Yadav, chief organiser, All India Congress Seva Dal, will organise a training camp at Pax school here from Sunday to Saturday. This was stated in a press note released by the Dal. Senior leaders of the Congress, including Mr Moti Lal Vohra and Mr Amarinder Singh, will address the camp on different days. 

PHAGWARA
STONES LAID: Mr Swarna Ram, Minister for Tourism, Punjab, on Saturday laid foundation stones of seven roads in villages and addressed as many public functions.

BJP MEETING: The Beopar Cell of the Punjab unit of the BJP will hold a meeting here on Monday , according to Mr Rakesh Duggal and Ramesh Sachdeva , district and block presidents, respectively of the cell. Mr Harish Bedi, cell’s state president , will chair the meeting.

LETTER TO PM: In a letter to Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on Saturday the Shiv Sena lauded the decision of the government to recall the Indian High Commissioner from Pakistan and terminate the Samjhuata Express and Delhi -Lahore bus service. Mr Pawan Parbhakar and Mr Inderjit Karwal, Sena’s state vice-president and local unit president, respectively, said the letter was handed over to the local SDM, Mr Amarjit Paul, for onward submission to the Prime Minister.

TALK: The Bharat Vikas Parishad organised a talk on “Sanskar” at Dev Samaj Senior Secondary Girls School, Sector 21, here on Sunday. The Director of the project, Mr Avinash Kamal Jain, said it was not sufficient to be literate only as being educated was more important. He said while literacy meant knowledge of books and attainment of degrees, knowledge meant inculcating moral and cultural values. The Patron of the East branch of the BVP, Dr V.P. gupta, advised the students to be good listeners. Earlier, the Principal of the school, Ms Sumati Kanwar, read out the welcome address.

HONOURED: The Mohalla Welfare Society, Sector 38 (West) honoured Ms Harjinder Kaur for her election to the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation at a function on Saturday. She promised all help to the residents, said Mr Gurnam Singh, president of the society, in a press note.

FUNCTION: The Property Consultants Association, Chandigarh, honoured Mr Surinder Singh and Mr Vijay Singh Rana on their election to the Municipal Corporation at a function here on Sunday. They two promised on their part to take up the cause of property dealers with the Chandigarh Administration.

ELECTED: Mr Vijay Kumar Puri has been elected general secretary of the 504 MIG Flats Residents Welfare Association, Sector 61. This was stated by Mr Anils Kumar, president of the association, in a press note.

OFFICE-BEARERS: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Chandigarh Subordinate Services Federation UT Chandigarh: vice-chairman — Mr Tersam Lal Saini (CTU); vice-presidents — Mr Kuldeep Singh (CTU) and Mr Hem Raj (Horticulture); and secretary — Mr Vijay Kumar.

CONTEST: The Purvanchal Welfare Association, Chandigarh, will organise a painting competition at Bogan Biliya Garden, Phase IV, SAS Nagar, on Tuesday. About 200 students from various schools in the region are expected to take part, according to Mr Rajendra Singh, general secretary of the association.

SAS NAGAR
CELEBRATIONS: The Residents Welfare Association (HIG flats), Phase II, held a function in connection with the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev here on Sunday. The function began with the ‘path’ of Sukhmani Sahib, ‘shabad kirtan’ by Harinderpal Singh and group and ‘katha’ by the head granthi of the Phase IV gurdwara. Mementos were given to children for presenting religious items by the ward councillor, Mr Amrik Singh Mohali. The function ended with ‘langar’.

BILASPUR
ENGINEERS’ ASSOCIATION: The following have been elected office- bearers of the district unit of the HP State Electricity Board Junior Engineers/Additional Assistant Engineers Association: president — Mr Bhupinder Tadu; general secretary — Mr Suresh Kapoor; finance secretary — Mr P.C. Sharma; and organising secretary — Mr V.S.Bhardwaj.

DEMONSTRATION: A large number of Congress activists led by Congress state delegate Rajesh Dharmani held a demonstration at Ghumarwin, 20 km from here, on Friday in protest against the “anti- people and anti-farmer” policies of the state government. They also held a rally.

CHAMBA
AYURVEDIC DOCTORS: Resentment prevails among 85 ayurvedic doctors who have been posted in far-flung tribal areas under the ‘tribal and hard area sub-cadre’ after 1999 for at least five years. They have urged the government to reduce the tenure to three years.

ALLOWANCE DEMANDED: The Himachal Pradesh Veterinary Doctors Association has warned the state government that the doctors will start an agitation if their only demand of non-practicing allowance (NPA) is not accepted forthwith. Dr Devinder Kumar Soni, district secretary of the association, has said the veterinary doctors have been demanding 25 per cent NPA like Medical Officers in the Health Department.

HAMIRPUR
REPAIR SOUGHT: The president of the Hamirpur District Non-gazetted Services Federation, Mr Prem Chand Verma, has expressed concern over the failure of various departments to deposit money with the Public Works Department for the repair and maintenance of the government houses of the state government employees as per the orders of the Deputy Commissioner. He has demanded immediate repair of the damaged houses.