Water shortage for patients
Shivani Bhakoo

Ludhiana, June 18
Next time you visit Lord Mahavira Civil Hospital, you must carry drinking water bottle with you or you will have to stand in a queue to quench your thirst. In the absence of sufficient water coolers at the hospital, the only cooler installed near the reception area (old building) is always flooded with patients, attendants, nursing staff and para-medical staff.

One of the nursing staff members said that in this scorching heat it was difficult to cater the huge rush with one water cooler only. Though, the authorities had constructed the new building worth crores of rupees but there was no facility for drinking water. She said that recently the Managing Director had ordered to install a water cooler near the canteen. “But on June 10, when an attendant went to drink water from the cooler she got an electric shock. She became unconscious and was given first aid at the hospital itself. But instead of solving the problem, the authorities ordered to lock the room where water cooler was kept. Hundreds of patients and attendants visit hospital every day and one water cooler is not sufficient especially when the temperature is at its peak”, said the nurse.

Mr Narata Ram, an octogenarian and an attendant of a patient said, “One needs to have more water in this unbearable heat. There are two to three drinking water taps in the hospital but you can not get water all the time from those taps. The patients come from far off villages and more water coolers should be installed for them by the authorities”.

Another member of the para-medical staff said that the water cooler kept near canteen was lying without any use. “The hospital authorities should shift that particular cooler to some other area for the time being so that patients and attendants do not suffer. But neither the cooler has been shifted nor the problem has been solved and poor patients find it difficult to quench their thirst”, said the person.

Dr S.N. Tewari, Civil Surgeon, when contacted said, “We have already asked the department for more water coolers, but it will take some time. But the problem would be solved in a few days”.

Speed up survey on encroachments: DC
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, June 18
Deputy Commissioner Anurag Verma has asked all officers of the departments concerned, including the Municipal Corporation, PUDA and the Improvement Trust, to complete the survey on encroachments and authorised constructions on the government land relating to their departments falling within the municipal limits of Ludhiana city at the earliest as per the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

They have been asked to submit affidavits in this regard.

He was presiding over a meeting of the officers and asked SDMs to collect the information on their own by examining the revenue records.

The DC said a complete report of the survey had been asked for by the high court. He said to monitor the progress, two meetings — on July 10 and July 31 — would be held to review the progress of the survey.

Later, presiding over another meeting to review the progress regarding the fire-prone industrial units in Ludhiana city, the Deputy Commissioner asked the officers to speed up the survey and complete it by June 30. He asked the DFSC to register a case against defaulters, in case any unit kept unauthorised gas cylinders.

Taking a serious note of the poor progress of the Deputy Director, Factories, in this regard, the DC directed him to show the required progress and book violators of the Industrial Act, so that others could be compelled not to store extra stock of benzene and other highly inflammable chemicals, which caused loss of lives in the Khud Mohalla fire tragedy.

Mr Verma also directed officers of the PSEB to check the electric wires outside the premises of the units and ask their meter readers to have a look on the internal wiring and advise the owners to keep the faulty wiring system, if any, in order.

Among others who attended the meeting were Mr Rahul Bhandari, ADC(G), Mr Kuldip Singh ACA, PUDA, and Mr Prem Chand, Joint Commissioner, Municipal Corporation.

Admn gears up to check floods
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, June 18
The district administration is fully geared up to meet any kind of eventuality of floods in the coming rainy season and the officers of all departments concerned have been told to direct their staff to remain available round the clock, said Deputy Commissioner Anurag Verma.

He was presiding over a meeting of the SDMs of all subdivisions and officers of the departments concerned to review the flood protection measures and safety arrangements here this noon.

Mr Verma said that the vulnerable points on the Dhusi Bandh along the Sutlej in the district had already been identified. To keep a strict vigil on all these points daily patrolling by Junior Engineer, revenue officials and the police would be carried out, so that the information of any danger to the bandh at any point could be given to the officers concerned to enable them to take remedial measures.

He said that the flood-prone areas along the bandh had also been identified and to accommodate the flood affected people, sufficient number of evacuation centers had also been identified in different areas.

The Deputy Commissioner directed all SDMs to personally check the functioning of the flood-fighting equipment present in the tehsils offices and visit all identified evacuation centers to ensure the facilities of drinking water, lights, toilets etc. He also asked the SDMs to keep proper liaison with the voluntary organisations working in their areas to avail their services in case of floods.

It was also decided to set up a flood warning system in the office of XEN, Drainage, which would be in constant liaison with the Ropar Head Works regarding daily release of water in the river.

The DC further informed that district and subdivision level flood control rooms had also been set up and would start functioning round the clock from July 1, where all related information would be available.

He said that a sufficient number of medical teams had been constituted by Health and Animal Husbandry departments to provide medical facilities to people and animals. The Civil Surgeon and the Deputy Director Animal Husbandry had been asked to keep ready sufficient stock of life-saving medicines. The District Food and Civil Supplies (DFCS) officer had been told to make arrangements for the supply kerosene and food packets for any kind of emergency.

He also asked the SDMs and police officers to prepare a list of divers available with the police department and public for the evacuation purposes, in case of the floods in any area.