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Two dead in liquor vend fire
Mohali, May 26 The deceased, Vikesh Katoch, alias Vicky (24) and Kamal Singh (26), belonged to Kangra in Himachal Pradesh. Both got trapped in the fire as they were sleeping inside the vend. The charred bodies were removed by the police and sent for postmortem to the local Civil Hospital. Kamal had got married about a year ago and his wife is pregnant. Vikesh had come back from Himachal Pradesh a day or to ago to join duty. Members of the families of the deceased have been informed of the mishap. Raka Ghira, SHO of the Phase VIII police station, said the fire was noticed by head constable Swarn Singh while patrolling the area. He informed the fire brigade at 1.52 am. The fire spread fast with bottles of liquor inside the vend bursting. Two fire tenders from Chandigarh and two from Mohali were pressed into service which brought the flames under control. The SHO said when she reached the spot at about 2.15 am, she found the door of the vend bolted from inside. She asked the staff on duty to break open the door, fearing that somebody must be inside. However, efforts proved futile as the victims had been badly burnt by that time. One of the bodies had to be pulled, with the leg trapped under a heap of broken bottles. The SHO said the victims must have been suffocated in the thick smoke that engulfed the area. She said it was presumed that the fire broke out due to a short circuit. Liquor vend owner Ashok Kumar said the vend had been provided a power connection only yesterday by the Punjab State Electricity Board. The police has registered a case.
Housewife kills herself
A resident of Phase III-A died under mysterious circumstances here today. According to the police, Anita, a mother of two daughters, suffered from health problems and was depressed. She allegedly took poison.
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Shatabdi bigger, nattier, safer
Chandigarh, May 26 Divisional manager (Ambala) H. K. Jaggi said the railways had added four more coaches to the train, taking the number to 17. Besides, these had been replaced with the modern LHB coaches, that had 10 additional seats each.
The Delhi-Kalka Shatabdi will now have 13 AC chair cars, two executive coaches and two generator cars. Jaggi said the LHB coaches had been manufactured by the RCF in Kapurthala. These were more comfortable. The stainless steel coaches are lighter, lowering the hauling cost. The coaches have disc brakes that require less maintenance. Besides, providing better riding comfort, the coaches had plush interiors and better panoramic view through bigger windows. The coaches had modular toilets with a controlled discharge system. The DM said the new coaches were safer with centre buffer system and anti-climbing features that prevented mounting of coaches one over the other in case of accident. The material used inside the coaches was fire retardant that reduced chances of a coach catching fire. He said the RCF in Kapurthala would be manufacturing 105 LHB coaches this financial year.
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Another cop held with dirty money
Chandigarh, May 26 The SHO Bishi Ram of the Mani Majra police station was held on the charge of accepting bribe today. According to sources, the SHO was caught red-handed receiving a gratification of Rs 5,000 from one Malkiat Singh, said to be a member of an alleged lottery syndicate of Mani Majra. SP R.Upasak of the CBI said the inspector was arrested at 5.45 p m while pocketing the amount in the retiring room of the police station to evade the CCTV camera installed at the SHO’s room. Malkiat Singh had filed a complaint with the CBI alleging that the inspector had threatened him that in case he did not pay him Rs 5,000, he would implicate him in a false case. Bishi Ram used to receive a monthly gratification from Malkiat Singh to make sure that the police did not interfere in his
operations. This month, Malkiat Singh failed to pay him following which the SHO beckoned him to the police station and sought an “explanation.” Infuriated he decided to approach the CBI.
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Status quo for a year
Sanjeev Singh Bariana Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, May 26 Scores of schools in Mani Majra have closed down this year on directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The possible displacement of more than 1,400 girl students, including 400 Muslim girls, has been cited as the main reason for allowing the concession. It has, however, been clarified that the permission is possible only after “the situation is brought to the knowledge of the court with a request that the school be allowed to continue for one more year.” The administration will make alternative arrangements for a new school within a year. Land has been earmarked for the same. The school is recognised, receiving aid. The school existed even before the township was envisaged. It has done a lot towards girls’ education. On the committee which took the decision to allow a year's extension to the school were the Adviser, the education-cum-home secretary, the finance secretary, the commissioner of the municipal corporation, the DC and the chief engineer. The chief architect said the administration had identified seven sites for new schools in Mani Majra. MRD Model School in Mani Majra had been allowed to apply for a playway status.
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High-speed rail corridor
Chandigarh, May 26 A decision in this regard was taken during a meeting of Haryana chief secretary Prem Prashant and Railway Board chairman J. P. Batra. A joint forum would be constituted to formulate modalities. Around 500 km of rail link would be laid at an estimated cost of Rs 25,000 crore, excluding land. The speed of the trains would be 250 km an hour.
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Deaf & mute woman in quest of justice
Chandigarh, May 26 “I have left my despair behind. There is nothing more to grieve,” says the woman, who just got her husband of 20 years booked for cheating and cruelty. What makes her case special is her physical condition - she is deaf and mute, so is her father and two children. The provocation, Anu says, was extreme. Two years ago, she was turned out of her matrimonial home in Panchkula along with her 13-year-old deaf and mute daughter. “My husband told me to go and live with my father and grandmother, who is 94-year-old. He disposed of my properties and left nothing to me. All along, he displayed insensitivity to my condition. He would never let me meet my deaf and mute friends. I felt tormented,” Anu stated in her complaint to Chandigarh SSP. The case was marked to Woman and Child Support Unit and an FIR under sections 406 (cheating) and 498-A (cruelty) was registered against Anu’s husband. But her battle for justice has just begun, with everyone viewing her intentions with skepticism. At the heart of skepticism is the delay in registering a case, never mind the fact that delay was justified. Unable to communicate, Anu kept enduring her pain until two months ago when she met Era Walton, an interpreter and volunteer with Deaf Way, a Delhi-based NGO that counsels deaf and mute women in distress. Speaking on Anu’s behalf, Era said today, “Her condition mirrors a larger social rot. There are several such women, who get married to able men and then fall on bad days. They never dream about justice because they know the road ahead is too bumpy to navigate. But Anu has showed tremendous strength. She says she’ll fight for maintenance so that she can raise her daughter well. Her son, although deaf and mute, is with her husband.” Meanwhile, Anu has not come to terms with the desertion. For her, it has been a double whammy. Her mother had deserted the family when she was three year old, now her husband has done the same. “The mental trauma is too much to bear. The case is another burden. But Anu has no alternative,” Era said. Anu is determined to secure her future as she feels she has lost more than she could afford. With a deaf father, an old grandmother and a speech impaired child to care for, she must get ahead with courage. Some of her hopes are pinned on the recovery of belongings and properties from her husband. The rest, she says, she will manage by opening a beauty parlour. After separating from her man, Anu trained as a beautician.
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No livestock for butchery
Chandigarh, May 26 Though the Corps Headquarters (HQs) had initially expressed reservations over setting up a butchery at Leh, it later reversed its stand. The butchery, completed in December 2003 at a cost of Rs 1.10 crore, could not be started due to non-availability of livestock and the premises have since been used for storage. Army Headquarters had sanctioned construction of a butchery at Leh in August 1997 to facilitate supply of hygienically slaughtered meat to troops. In October 1997, Corps HQs realised that construction of a butchery without ensuring availability of required quantity of meat-on-hooves would be a tremendous waste. Corps HQs expressed doubt on the earlier presumption about availability of livestock on account of lack of grazing facilities and high mortality rate and no local availability of sheep or goat. The Leh Cooperative Society, which had initially keen to supply livestock, backed out on grounds that their religion did not permit slaughter of animals. In December 1997, the Corps HQs, however, reversed the stand and favoured construction of the butchery as the General Officer Commanding had ruled that supply of meat be ensured through regular meat contract since troops did not like frozen meat. Since the butchery could not become functional, the assets created were temporarily re-appropriated in October 2004 as storage accommodation for two years. Movable assets such as deep freezers costing about Rs 15 lakh and generators worth about Rs 2.20 lakh were issued to Army units in the area. Although Corps HQs had apprehension about the feasibility of running the butchery, their frequent change of stand and decision to go ahead with the construction was strange, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) in its latest report, has stated. Stating that the construction of butchery despite possibility of inadequate livestock was contrary to all reason, CAG remarked that the temporary re-appropriation of the butchery with its ancillary facilities as a storage house cannot cover the lack of concern for ensuring value for money.
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Minorities to get 6 pc of net credit: RBI
Chandigarh, May 26 This was disclosed by the Minister of State, Finance, Pawan Kumar Bansal, on the sidelines of the State Level Bankers Committee meeting for Haryana, held here today. He said that the RBI has directed all banks that six per cent of net bank credit be extended to all minorities, who had remained financially excluded. The decision has been taken in view of the 15 point economic programme of the Prime Minister, which has recommended easy credit flow to minority communities. In case of Haryana, two districts - Gurgaon and Sirsa - have been identified by the RBI for extending credit to minorities, as both districts have at least 25 per cent minority concentration. In both the districts, banks have issued advances worth Rs 24.93 crore to 3976 beneficiaries in 2006-07, which is higher than the advances of Rs 23.10 crore given to 3889 persons. However, after Mewat district has been carved out of Gurgaon, the State Level Bankers Committee has demanded that RBI may reconsider the identification of districts and include Mewat for monitoring under the parameter as the Meo Muslim population here was higher than the 25 per cent slab. It is learnt that the minorities that are included under the scheme in Haryana are Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists and Zoroastrians. Data available from various banks shows that in 2006-07, maximum amount of advances in the state have been issued to members of Sikh community ( Rs 144.96 crore) followed by Muslims (RS 100.88 crore). Though no loans have been advanced to the Zoroastrian population in the state, loans to three members of the community (worth Rs 4 lakh) are outstanding since the last fiscal. It may be noted that though the number of loanees from the minority communities have increased from 11,092 in 2005-06 to 13,098 in last fiscal, the amount of loans disbursed to the minorities has decreased from Rs 341.06 crore in 2005-06 to Rs 247. 61 crore in the last fiscal. However, bankers were of the view that in wake of the new RBI directions, setting a slab of 6 per cent of net credit being extended to minorities, the performance of the state will be better this year.
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35 get Rank and Bolt awards
Chandigarh, May 26 Governor of Himachal Pradesh Vishnu Sadashiv Kokje was the chief guest while Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court Justice Vijender Jain was the guest of honour.
T.K. Palit, general manager, Air India and Roopinder Singh, assistant editor, The Tribune, were also present. Rank, an award for students, is an acronym for “Race for Awareness and Knowledge” while Bolt for teachers stands for “Broad Outlook Learner Teacher”. These awards, sponsored jointly by Air India and The Tribune, have been instituted to recognise excellence in the field of academics and are designed to ignite the creative talents among students and teachers. The winners were determined by a panel of judges who evaluated the award bid forms of the candidates. The award winners among students are Ruchi Sharma (Chandigarh), Aditi Sinha (Haryana) and Akhil Razdan (Punjab). Among the teachers’ group, Dr Arun Kumar Sharma (Chandigarh), Dr Sharad Bala Khare (Haryana) and Chandralekha Silhi (Punjab) received the award. The recipients also went to Singapore from October 10 to14 as guests of Air India. During this visit, the students and teachers interacted with the teaching and students’ communities at Singapore. Dr Arun Kumar Sharma, a teacher with GMSSS-16, was highly impressed with the Singaporean community, which was emerging as a centre of higher learning. “I was astonished to see how the four ethnic communities over there live as one and the civic responsibility is their prime concern,” says Sharma. Ruchi Sharma, a final-year engineering student, felt that the Singaporeans laid great emphasis on recycling, preservation of the environment and conservation of water and electricity.” “With simple activities like switching off the electrical appliances, instead of keeping them on stand by mode and removing the cell phone charges when not in use. These activities can save enough electricity to light up a mid-sized town,” opined Pawan Walia, a social science lecturer with GMS-36 and recipient of the Bolt district runners-up award. Accompanying him was her daughter Arshpreet Kaur, a state runner-up of the Rank award. Dr Amit Bhattacharjee, a Chandigarh-based Bolt district winner, said, “The underlining theme of the Air India project was to promote the concept of “Towards Responsible and Active Citizenship”. The Singapore experience, we believe, will live with us and help influence our thinking and shape our goals.” “Since huge amount of fossil fuel that we burn is contributing to global warming, plantation of trees is an anti-measure and we should encourage this,” opined the award winners.
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Eco task force to be set up: Kanwaljit
Chandigarh, May 26 Speaking to media persons after inaugurating a photo exhibition depicting the history and achievements of the TA, here today, minister for cooperatives and defence services welfare Captain Kanwaljit Singh said the state government was working towards setting up the task force within a year. Captain Kanwaljit said the state has also proposed to the Centre that ex-servicemen, who retire at a young age, be absorbed in paramilitary forces or TA battalions. He added that though the state government provided 17 per cent reservation for ex-servicemen in government jobs, it was not enough to cater to the large number of ex-servicemen in the state. The minister said the government would also look at creating employment and welfare opportunities for ex-servicemen through cooperatives and departments under the control of his ministry. The four-day photo exhibition on the TA titled "Territorial Army Down the Ages" held at the Government Museum and Art Gallery here displays a wide collection of photographs from the archives of the TA. It is open to the public. Maj Gen P.C.
Kharbanda, General Staff, Western Command; Brig J.S. Thind, Commander, Western Command TA Group, and a large number of TA officers were present on the occasion. The exhibition has been jointly organised by the TA and Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity. The exhibition aims at creating awareness among the public about the TA’s history and activities and also strives to motivate civilians to join the organisation.
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Onus only for poll period: EC
Vishal Sharma Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, May 26 The commission took this stand in a reply handed over by its counsel to Jagmohan Bhatti. Bhatti had moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking regulations to control the political rallies so as to not to disrupt the freedom of movement, trade etc. The reply will be taken up by the court on July 23. Bhatti had sought framing of extensive guidelines to ensure the safety of citizens in general and those participating in rallies in particular. He had made the Centre and the Election Commission of India, among others, as respondents in his public interest litigation. The commission stated in the reply that it was not concerned with the rallies or processions organised by political parities during non-election period. During the election period, the model code of conduct was applicable which contained various do’s and don’ts for political parties and candidates.
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Farmers welcome move on land acquisition
Chandigarh, May 26 In all models being proposed by the centre or the state, the farm owner was not alienated from his land and the benefits from the development of his land, said Kultar Nat, secretary of the Mani Majra Farmers Welfare and Environment Protection Society. The society had submitted an application in March 2007 to the Chandigarh administration seeking the framing of a policy for farm owners to pool their land and develop it at no cost to the administration. Major R.S. Virk of the Pind Bachao Committee has criticised the offer of the administration of a compensation of Rs 1 crore per acre. The farmers’ groups, united under the common front of the Chandigarh Sanjha Morcha, are now planning a series of protest rallies and dharnas, the first one under the aegis of Angrez Singh of the Pind Bachao Committee, who has been instrumental in saving villages of Chandigarh from being uprooted.
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MC officials spoil show
SD Sharma
Chandigarh, May 26 The artistes, their families and the audience were taken aback by the development, even as the officials questioned the boards and banners and ropes near the stage. Mohali-based director Yatin Gupta, who had prepared his students for the grand finale today as also parents Avtar Singh and Mohinder Saini condemned the incident. The MC commissioner was not available on phone (0172-2726436 and 98725-11101) for comment. City mayor Harjinder Kaur said she was unaware of the happening. President of the Carnival Committee Manki Deep said the committee had permission for the shows till May 26 evening. The Plaza carnival, aimed at promoting art and culture and running since 1993, had never experienced such a situation before, lamented Sandeep Sardana, general secretary.
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Mercury dips by 3.4 degrees
Chandigarh, May 26 Over the last two days, the day temperature had been hovering at a high of 40.2°C and 40.4°C, respectively. But sudden alterations in the weather last evening brought down the day temperature.
The night temperature also fell significantly and stayed at a comfortable 25.4°C today with traces of rains promising to cool the scorching earth further.
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Fire at BSNL store
Mohali, May 26 According to fire brigade officials, equipment related to old telephone exchanges was lying in the store which got completely burnt. Even the building got damaged. The cause of the fire could not be ascertained immediately. It was being presumed that the fire had been caused deliberately by someone as a lock on the back door of the building was found tampered with. Fire could not have taken place due to a short circuit as the building did not have any power connection. Two fire tenders were rushed to the scene and it took nearly two hours to bring the situation under control. According to reports, a group of rag pickers often roamed about in the area and were shooed away by a caretaker much to their annoyance.
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Popularising blood donation
Chandigarh, May 26 To accomplish his mission, the former banker and Patiala resident has come out with motivational and educational modules and projects containing games, quiz, slogan competitions, skits, stories and essays on the theme of blood donation. “Voluntary blood donation awareness campaigns should be started for different sections of the society, particularly among children so that by the age of 18 they come forward to donate blood," Bansal told the Chandigarh Tribune today. The modules will go a long way in creating awareness and dispelling doubts and misconceptions regarding blood donation. Bansal, who is a life member of the Indian Society of Blood Transfusion and Immunohaematology, said if children were made aware of their responsibilities towards the society at an early age, they learn to put their energy to proper use. Bansal said he was always available to collaborate with government and non-government organisations (NGOs) to spread his
message. Working on his life's motto - dharam anek khoon ek - Bansal said no patient should die for want of blood.
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Chandigarh, May 26
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Letters
I am highly impressed by the administration’s decision to make the city smoke-free from July 2007. This will reduce passive smoking and will also bring down air pollution.
I would like to bring some facts to your notice: 1. By the age of 17, 40 per cent to 55 per cent of children are smokers the world over. 2. By the age of 35, 60 per cent men and women are smokers. 3. Smoking one or two cigarettes a day causes a slight rise in one’s blood pressure. If a one smokes more, he/she develops a cough, which will worsen as the number of cigarettes increase. 4. Tobacco is a $200 billion industry, producing nine trillion cigarettes per year - about 1,000 cigarettes for every person on the earth. Moreover, smoke pollutes the air, making it harmful for non-smokers as well. I have written all these facts to convey that I am grateful to the administration for its decision, which will be of good to everyone. Avtansh
Class VI, Saupin Schoolm, Chandigarh
Readers are invited to write to us. Send your mail, in not more than 200 words, at
[email protected] or, write in, at: Letters, Chandigarh Tribune, Sector 29, Chandigarh – 160 030
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4 hurt in clash over land dispute
Dera Bassi, May 26 The clash took place when a group led by nambardar of the village Sucha Singh went to take “forcible” possession of the land, measuring about two-and-a-half bighas. The said land is currently under the possession of members of the Bazigar community, including Ram Kishan, Des Raj, Puran Ram and Nathu Ram, and being used for dumping garbage. In the ensuing clash, three women belonging to the Bazigar community, including a 12-year-old girl, were injured. A brother of the nambardar Harnek Singh, also sustained injuries. Meanwhile, Gurwinder Singh, son of Sucha Singh, claimed that the land belonged to them and the Bazigar community was forcibly occupying the same. The police is investigating the matter.
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2 killed in mishap
Dera Bassi, May 26 The accident occurred when a tractor-trailer, carrying about 20 devotees from Amlala to Sekhan Majra, overturned killing Harmeet Singh (17) on the spot. Three persons, Satwinder, Bittu and Jagga, were seriously injured and shifted to the local Civil Hospital. They were later referred to PGI, Chandigarh, where Satwinder (15) succumbed to his injuries.
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Two youths hurt in clash
Chandigarh, May 26 While Sanjay had sold the mobile for Rs 1,250, he offered to take it back only for RS 1,050. As the two started fighting, the police reached the spot and took them to the Sector 31 police station. Till the filing of this report, the police was investigating the matter.
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Land to coop societies led to Rs 1.81 crore loss
Chandigarh, May 26 The anomaly has been pointed out by the Principal Accountant General, Punjab. The land was allotted to the CHB under the “ “The Chandigarh Allotment of Land to Cooperative House Building Societies Scheme- 1991” at a cost of Rs 2850 per sq yard. After allotting the land, the UT’s finance department and the Chandigarh Housing Board decided that of the total land cost, 50 per cent (after retention of one per cent handling charges) would be paid to the estate office and the balance of Rs 1410.75 per sq yard would be with the engineering department for development of third-phase sectors. Instead of paying the total land cost, the housing board paid part payment. This resulted in a balance of over Rs 19 crore on account of interest due to delay in making payment. It has been further pointed out that the administration lost a sum of Rs 1,81,53,890 on account of one per cent handling charges. It was envisaged that the interest earned by the housing board in retaining the money deposited by eligible cooperative housing building societies would be used to provide infrastructure through the engineering department. “But the method of depositing the amount has not been specified and there is no record to show the amount which has been paid by the housing board to the engineering department,” the audit has pointed out.
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Soiled notes worth Rs 39.5 lakh exchanged
Mohali, May 26 Nearly 500 persons availed the facility and exchanged currency worth Rs 39.50 lakh, including Rs 90,000 worth of coins. Krishan Kumar, state head WBO, HDFC Bank, said the bank was happy because customers in large numbers benefited from the camp. Such camps would be organised in future as well, he added
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Workshop on pharma exports at NIPER
Chandigarh, May 26 The workshop, to be held on May 28 and 29, will discuss issues like testing requirements, regulations and standards, intellectual property rights and data exclusivity and transparency of regulations. The workshop will specially be beneficial for technical persons engaged in business development, regulatory affairs, R&D and manufacturing of pharmaceuticals, according to a statement issued by the institute.
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Chandigarh
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