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Building inspector arrested
Ludhiana, January 3 Area town planner of Zone A, Ramesh Chhabra, has been booked as a co-accused in the corruption case. A complaint in this regard had been lodged by Hira Dhir, owner of the dhaba at Samrala chowk. He alleged that the duo had demanded Rs 1 lakh from him for not demolishing his structure. Following his complaint, the vigilance laid a trap at the Zone A office this morning. Despite being a holiday, Kapoor came to the office and was caught after chemical-laced notes were handed over to him by Dhir. A case under Sections 7, 13(2) and 88 of the Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered against the duo. Raids were also conducted on the house of Chhabra, but he was absconding. The SSP, vigilance, Kanwaljit Singh, said the duo had demanded Rs 1 lakh from the dhaba owner, failing which the dhaba would have been demolished. When Dhir expressed his inability to pay the amount, they brokered a deal that he would pay them in five instalments. Kapoor demanded Rs 1,000 more today, saying that it was a cold day and they wanted to party. The SSP said it was shocking that despite stay orders from a court, Dhir was being harassed by officials. They had gone with a bulldozer to his dhaba on December 29. He said they were questioning Kapoor and manx tumble out. “The possibility of some more officials involved in the corruption racket cannot be ruled out at this stage. We are investigating the matter and will find out the percentage of share that was to go to various officials,” he said, adding that several people had lodged verbal complaints against building branch officials. Dhir, meanwhile, said a councillor was also involved. He alleged that the money was demanded by the councillor a year ago. After his refusal, the councillor threatened him of dire consequences. It was after this that the building branch officials started harassing him. The municipal commissioner said he would write to the local bodies department to initiate action against the building branch officials who had been booked. He would recommend strict action against both officials as he had already warned officials against corruption during a meeting held recently.
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Sub-registrar remanded
in police custody
Ludhiana, January 3 The public prosecutor had sought the police remand of the accused on the plea that they wanted to enquire about the assets of the accused. Also, they wanted to investigate where they had invested their money. The duo were arrested yesterday by sleuths of the Vigilance Bureau. A vigilance team had raided the Mullanpur office when the officer was allegedly counting Rs 5,000, which he had got as bribe. The vigilance had swung into action following a complaint by Davinder Singh of Teja Nagar that the naib tehsildar was not registering a power of attorney and had asked him to contact Mal Singh in this regard. When he contacted the deed writer, he demanded Rs 10,000 for the work. Later, the deal was struck at Rs 5,000.
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Temperature dips by 5°
Ludhiana, January 3 Reeling under severe cold wave, residents lambasted the PSEB for the shortfall in power generation in winter. Cuts for more than four hours in the mornings have annoyed residents. Sudershan Grover, a shopkeeper, said if this was the state of power in winter, it would be worse in summer. He said cuts were imposed around 9.30 am and it became difficult to get ready without hot water. Meanwhile, due to the fog, Flying Mail from Amritsar to Delhi and a passenger train, 3LF-8LF, were cancelled today. Railway officials said eight-10 trains had been delayed by five hours due to the present weather conditions. Balbir Singh Rajewal, president of the Bharti Kisan Union (Rajewal), told The Tribune that this weather was bad for potato crop. “Except for wheat, the cold spell could damage most vegetable crops. And if the temperature increases suddenly, it could have a bad affect on wheat production as sprouting would decrease,” he said, adding that dairy farmers should keep their animals warm as most animals died due to respiratory ailments in winter. Parents of school-going children have demanded that school managements should either extend the winter break or change the timings. |
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Rural dispensaries go without power
Ludhiana, January 3 These dispensaries were under the jurisdiction of the department of health and family welfare, Punjab, but were handed over to the rural development department in June 2006. Doctors here are working in deplorable conditions as they have to bear sweltering heat in the absence of power connections. A doctor said: “We are answerable to the sarpanch, the ADC (D) and the senior medical officer in the area for being absent from work even for an hour, but nobody is ready to take the responsibility of our welfare. We work for more than eight hours a day without fans during summer and without light during winter.” “Both departments are passing the buck and we, besides the staff, are at the receiving end as it is not possible for us to clear the outstanding amount varying from Rs 60,000 to Rs 1 lakh from the stipulated amount that we are getting in the capacity of service providers,” the doctor added. Despite the repeated reminders of some doctors working in dispensaries across the district, the authorities concerned have failed to clear the bills so far. Hardeep Singh, a former sarpanch, said: “Villagers are accommodating some doctors by providing them kundi connections. There is nothing else that we can do.” The PSEB chief engineer (central), BS Bath, said it was for the respective departments to settle the matter. “We can only exempt hospitals with indoor patients under the essential services Act, but since dispensaries cater to outdoor patients, power connection can only be restored after the payment of the outstanding amount,” he said. |
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City Concerns
More than 30,000 autorickshaws on city roads are not only emitting smoke, but are also a major cause of traffic jam. A classic display of the raw power of pollution and the harassment faced by daily commuters can be seen at the Jagraon bridge. The worst-affected areas include roads leading to Clock Tower, railway station, Chaura Bazaar and Christian Medical College.
A section of residents feels that three-wheelers are the best form of transport in this part of the city. Ludhiana Tribune seeks your opinion on the way out of this problem. What could be the best possible way for a mass transport system in the congested corridors of the city? Do you think there is confusion in the district administration and the municipal corporation with regard to their role? Responses, in not more than 200 words, can be emailed to ludhianaconcerns@tribunemail.com or sent to our city office at Bhadaur House, Ludhiana. — City Editor |
Live operative skill exchange programme at DMCH
Ludhiana, January 3 DMCH alumni Dr Inderbir Singh Gill, professor and chairman, Glickman Urology Institute, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, USA, performed the surgery. The surgery was performed on a 18-yr-old female patient with 12x8 cm tumour arising from right adrenal gland. Adrenal gland produces many hormones that cause fluctuations in blood pressure. Dr Gill deliberated and demonstrated skills required in laparoscopic adrenal surgery. Dr Sandeep Sharma, professor and head of urology, DMCH, said it was second workshop in the past two years and had been organised for the benefit of local surgeons and students. He emphasised the importance of skill exchange programmes and said such programmes would go a long way in refining the skills of surgeons and students. Dr Sandeep Sharma, Dr Jaspal Singh, both professors of surgery, and Dr Arvind Goyal, assistant professor of urology, and Dr PL Gautam, professor of anaesthesia, were part of the team. DMCH managing society secretary Prem Kumar Gupta said the hospital had regularly been organising skill exchange programmes for the benefit of common man. He added that operating theatre of the hospital was being transformed into a state-of-the-art operating facility and a 50-bed post-operative recovery unit was under construction.
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Memorial to war hero in neglect
Ludhiana, January 3 The district administration, district soldier’s welfare board and the municipal corporation have failed in keeping the statue clean and maintain the park developed along the statue. Maj Bhupinder Singh, Squadron Commander, Hodson’s Horse, had led a squadron with distinction in the battle of Phillora and Bodreke in Pakistan between September 11 and 19, 1965. His squadron caused large-scale destruction of Pakistan tanks and other equipment, reads his citation. “Although his tank was hit on several occasions, he continued to remain in effective command, by several acts of personal gallantry, inspired his men to fight courageously. On September 19, in the battle of Bodreke his tank was hit and caught fire. While abandoning the tank, he was burnt severely and though evacuated subsequently died,” further reads the citation. He was awarded Mahavir Chakra (posthumously). The statue of Maj Bhupinder Singh was installed along with a captured tank at Bharat Nagar Chowk in 1976 and was unveiled by Parkash Singh Badal. The statue and tank were removed from Bharat Nagar Chowk in 1990s when the chowk was widened and were put outside the present Punjab War Museum site. However, a rope was tied to the statue and was used by staff to dry wet clothes. The Tribune took up the insult to the martyr and Lieut-Gen G.S. Buch (who retired as GOC-In-Chief, Northern Command) and Lieut-Col Chanan Singh Dhillon (retd), president, Indian Ex-services League, Punjab and Chandigarh, joined the campaign. It was then decided to install the statue and the tank on the Ludhiana-Ferozepur road, near Bharat Nagar Chowk, along the boundary wall of Government College for Women. A park was also carved out and the municipal corporation was asked to maintain the same. Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, former commissioner of the corporation, also laid out a leisure valley starting from Bharat Nagar Chowk to Durga Mata Chowk. However, a part of the leisure valley has been encroached upon allegedly by the mandir committee. Illegal structures have come up in one corner and no steps have been taken to remove the same. The area around the statue and tank is being used as open toilet by beggars and migrants. The valley is also being abused by drug-addicts. Lieut-Col Dhillon has criticised the administration for neglecting the statue of the hero and sought the attention of the Chief Minister for immediate removal of encroachments and upkeep of the leisure valley and the statue.
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SIT headed by SP formed
Our Correspondent
Jagraon, January 3 Seeing the seriousness of the matter, SSP (Ludhiana Rural) Gurpreet Singh has made a special three-member investigation team headed by SP (D) Pritam Singh with DSP (Dehlon) Paramjit Singh Goraya and SHO (Jagraon Sadar) Prital Singh as its members. The case has also been transferred from the Jagraon City police station to Jagraon Sadar police station. The team on the basis of investigation has detained three persons, including a money changer and an orchestra organiser, for questioning. An employee of the bank branch said, on the condition of anonymity, that on November 17 he had sent an email to higher authorities regarding the operations of the gang in the bank and their illegal transactions. Though bank officials at Jagraon, Ludhiana and Chandigarh denied this, it’s apparent that action was taken on the basis of the email. The claims of bank officials that audit was done every month was nothing but a formality. Investigation by The Tribune revealed that efforts of the bank officials to pacify clients who were victims of the gang had not paid off as many had approached police with their complaints. Meanwhile Mandeep Kaur, Judge of Jagraon Court, has remanded the accused till January 4.
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DTO dubbed den of corruption
Ludhiana, January 3 The DYC, led by its president Dimple Rana, asked transport officials to set their house in order within a week lest they should stage a dharna outside the office. Rana said people had to make rounds of the office several times to get their works like issuance of driver’s licence and registration of vehicles done at the office. Traffic scenario in the city was also turning from bad to worse largely due to unauthorised auto-rickshaws. The department was allowing these to ply on roads that was leading to traffic chaos. Children were not able to reach schools in time and ambulances carrying patients in emergency were being delayed due to frequent traffic jams. “What is the office doing if they cannot handle the situation?” said Rana. Rana demanded a vigilance inquiry against the office and urged the SSP and the vigilance bureau to trap corrupt officials.
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Community help sees heart patient through
Ludhiana, January 3 Rachna was admitted to the hospital a week ago with defective heart valves. Despite her acute problem, she couldn’t afford to undergo surgery owing to the poor financial condition of her family. Her husband Naresh Sharma said: “Her condition had deteriorated to such an extent that she couldn’t even sleep on the bed as it caused breathlessness. Undergoing surgery thus became inevitable to save her life.” “Then Mayor Hakam Singh Giaspura, who hails from our locality, heard of our story and gave us Rs 70,000 from his personal savings. He also arranged Rs 25,000 from the CM’s relief fund. This initial support spurred me to contact some philanthropists of the city who chipped in with their contributions. Besides, residents of Ambedkar Muhalla, Giaspura, also helped me raise funds.” Thereafter, Rachna was admitted to the hospital under the care of cardiologist Dr GS Wander and surgeon Dr Sarju Ralhan. Dr Ralhan carried out the operation to replace defective valves in the heart and the hospital management too decided to give her a concessional treatment. Following her successful operation, the patient was discharged from the hospital yesterday.
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Here is the will to study
Ludhiana, January 3 This reporter on a visit to a government school found the innocent children squatting on the floor of the classroom, unmindful of the extreme chill and fog outside. Government has not provided them with any requisite furniture, belying the tall claims of the state government of doing a lot for the welfare of education. Despite the fact that there are no basic amenities in the government schools, the attendance was still full. Thanks to the midday meal, which has made the parents realise the importance of the school and their responsibility to send their wards to the schools. Teachers of the school reported that there was no problem of attendance and children in their school come from surrounding villages also. There are many government schools in the city that don’t even have a roof and children are made to sit on the floor in the open. If these children belong to the poor families, that doesn’t mean that government could be indifferent to their basic needs.
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Board discusses Class V exam issue
Ludhiana, January 3 Rajinder said board has issued a press release in Ajit Newspaper' dated 01/01/2009, regarding the Class V examination, it had mentioned that in all the aided/private schools students, Class V exams will be conducted by the Sarab Shiksha Abhiyan authorities. But it had not mentioned regarding the affiliated schools. It was not clear in the press release that affiliated school students had to appear in the examination or not. All the members of the delegation demanded that it should be cleared to the affiliated schools regarding the Class V exams by the chairman, Punjab School Education Board, Mohali, and director general of education as early as possible. According to the national educational policy, association had already demanded to abolish the Class V and VIII board. But till now director general of education had not cleared anything regarding the matter. It was decided that if Class V exams are conducted then same policy should be implemented on the affiliated schools as on
the government/aided/ recognised schools.
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Thousands take part in nagar kirtan
Mandi Ahmedgarh, January 3 Kirtan was organised under the aegis of the Kalgidhar Federation and Gurdwara Parbhandak Committee, Singh Sabha, ahead of the birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh, which falls on January 5. The procession started from the Guru Teg Bahadur Chowk and passed through various parts of the town, including railway road, main bazar, Bhagat Singh Chowk, Bazar Bazazan, Gandhi Chowk and Mahavir Marg. A large number of vehicles and tractor-trailers carrying devotees followed the procession. Panj Piaras, gatka and bhangra artistes and school bands accompanied the devotees. A bedecked palanquin, carrying the holy Guru Granth Sahib followed the Panj Piaras. The devotees sang Gurbani and performed kirtan. Gurdwaras in various localities and social organisations organised tea and langar for the devotees. Members of various organisations, including Sukhmani Seva Society, Vishawkarma Mandir Committee, Baba Budha Gurmat Parchar Trust, Gurdwara Bhagat Ravi Dass, Jandali Road, and Shri Ram Mandir Committee showered flowers and sprinkled water along the way. Municipal council president Usha Rani Sood, councillors Bimal Kumar Sharma, Kedar Nath Kapila, Dilshad Mohammad and Manjit Devi led devotees in welcoming the procession at their respective wards.
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Gurpurb celebrated with fervour
Tribune News Service
Ludhiana, January 3 The students lead the nagar kirtan procession as 'Panj Pyaras', which was organised by gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha, Sherpur Kalan. Avinash Kaur Walia, director and founder principal, appealed to the congregation to follow the footsteps of the great guru. GRD Academy: GRD academy celebrated Gurpurb with devout sanctity here today. A holy congregation was held at the school gurdwara. Aneeta Kundra, principal appealed the students to follow the path shown by guru ji.
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Legal fraternity celebrates New Year
Ludhiana, January 3 Sessions Judge GK Rai congratulated the legal fraternity and stressed the need for a complete understanding and coordination amongst judges and lawyers to ensure speedy justice to litigants. DBA president Parupkar Singh Ghumman expressed resolve to cleanse the system. Member Parliament, Canada, Sukh Dhaliwal appreciated the role of the legal fraternity in the progress of the country. He stressed for more congenial atmosphere in the state to redress the long pending grievances of NRIs. Jail and Tourism Minister Hira Singh Gabria assured lawyers of help in sorting out their problems. Local Member of Parliament Sharanjit Singh Dhillon said Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal would shortly visit the complex and make important announcements for the legal fraternity. Former Additional Advocate General Punjab Harpreet Singh Sandhu spoke on the role of the Bar and the Bench. Earlier, DBA Secretary Kamaljit Sharma welcomed the guests. Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana chairman Balwinder Goel, Punjab Public Service Commission member Anil Sareen, state BJP president Rajinder Bhandari, NRI Sabha Punjab’s president Kamaljit Hayre, Additonal Sessions Judges Kishore Kumar, AS Grewal, RL Ahuja, Munish Singal, Mohd. Gulzar, GS Saran, Manjinder Singh, Civil Judge Senior Division Lachhman Singh and all judicial magistrates were present on the occasion. The dignitaries were also felicitated.
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Sabhyacharak manch to honour 9 figures
Ludhiana, January 3 A press release said the awardees would be presented a gold medal on the occasion. The names on the list of those to be honoured include Dr KS Aulakh (Dr MS Randhawa Memorial Award) for contribution towards agricultural research; Mandeep Kaur (Brig Dalip Singh Olympian Memorial Award) for contribution to sports; Inderjit Nikku (Lal Chand Yamla Jatt Memorial Award) for contribution towards folk singing; and Prof Gurbhajan Gill (Dr VN Tewari Memorial Award) for contribution to Punjabi culture and literature. The others are: Jaspinder Narula (Mohammad Rafi Memorial Award) for contribution towards playback singing; Dr Inderjit Kaur (Bhai Ghanaya Memorial Award) for contribution to social service; Varinder Kaur (Mother Teresa Memorial Award) for her sacrificial character; Mandeep Singh Hans (Dalip Singh Sond Award) for contribution to social services; and Rana Ranbir (IS Johar Memorial Award) for his role as comedian. Giving details about the mela, Krishan Kumar Bawa, chairman, said at least 15 newborn would be honoured with a token amount of fixed deposits worth Rs 5,100 each by Ishar Das Garg, in memory of his wife. A seminar on foeticide would be organised at Punjabi Bhavan on January 8. Ravinder Ranguwal, convener, said around 25 artistes of international repute would participate in the ‘Lohri Mela’.
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Cattle suffer in absence of vet
Sahnewal, January 3 Cattle owners are finding it hard to provide treatment to their animals in the absence of adequate medical supervision here. Also, the problem has aggravated due to the absence of private service for animals here. A cattle owner said not only were the day-to-day medical services affected but also long-term treatment. There is no one to provide treatment to animals in cases of emergency. The problem is acute for poor farmers, who can’t make arrangements to transport the ailing animal to nearby areas for treatment. According to a farmer of Jugiana village: “I recently bought a cow for Rs 40, 000 but its suffered an injury to the ankle. Due to the absence of a veterinarian, it could not receive the treatment needed, as a result of which it got permanently impaired.” To make the matter worse, even post-mortem examination is not being carried out on dead animals. As a result, insurance claims are either being delayed or not given to the owners at all. According to a veterinarian: “As the veterinary doctor is not available, timely immunisation particularly against the occurrence of foot and mouth disease
(FMD), which affects animal’s immune system, has been interrupted. The threat of disease outbreak in the coming months is very real.” Meanwhile, Deputy Director, animal husbandry department, said the post of veterinary doctor at Sahnewal had been lying vacant since August after the retirement of the earlier doctor. “In such a situation it becomes difficult to conduct even routine activities. Since no recruitment has been carried out for many years, many posts have been lying vacant. Also, there is a shortage of para-medical staff due to which regular activities like insemination, vaccination, treatment, etc. are suffering,” the officer added.
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MC releases impounded vehicles
Ludhiana, January 3 According to sources, owners of the vehicles, along with SAD councillor Simarjit Singh Bains, met the municipal commissioner today and asked him to release the vehicles. Ghuman allowed the vehicles to be taken away without the payment of “superdari”. However, when contacted, Ghuman said he had deputed a master town planner to collect the fine. When Bains was asked about it, he said: “There were reports of people being manhandled by MC officials during the anti-encroachment drive and I had gone there to resolve the issue amicably.” Besides, no challans were issued to vehicle owners, he said, adding that a drive against encroachments was required but the work should be done patiently. When the tehbazari wing was clearing encroachments in Ghumar Mandi on December 29, councillor Gurpreet Gogi had intervened. He had said MC officials were adopting a pick-and-choose policy and targeting only those rehriwalas who were not paying them money. There have been many instances where the intervention of councillors at various levels has come to the fore, forcing the executive unit of the civic body to bend. At the same time, these councillors play a blame game against MC officials during house meetings.
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Anti-Imperialist Struggle
Ludhiana, January 3 A large number of participants from intelligentsia, trade unions, writers, women activists paid tributes to the struggle of people of Cuba under the leadership of Fiedel Castro and Che Guevara, who had withstood the onslaught by
the US. On January 1, 1959, Cuba became the first socialist, democratic republic in Latin America despite pressure, sanctions and sabotage by the US. “It was not an easy task to face sanctions by the US. But the heroic people of Cuba with the help of Soviet Union not only built their economy and sustained it but also progressed in the human development indicators,” a press note said. The seminar was addressed by BC Chhiber, Dr Arun Mitra and Ramesh Rattan.
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Warm sendoff to PAU don
Ludhiana, January 3 Speaking on the occasion, department head Dr Rajinder Singh Sidhu said Dr Singh had been a popular teacher among students not only of the PAU but also of other educational institutes. He shared the contributions of Dr Singh in designing different courses in a need-based manner. He appreciated Dr Singh in guiding students to lead a better life. He said Dr Singh had published over four dozen research papers in addition to two text books on sociology. Dr Harnek Singh traced the background through which he steered himself for higher education. He was grateful to the university and gave credit to the institution for helping him excel. He said patience, faith and tolerance were vital ingredients for success. He paid tributes to his teachers for shaping his career.
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India, Pak docs condemn war hysteria
Ludhiana, January 3 “History has shown that war has never solved any problem,” the statement said. Any conflict between India and Pakistan had the potential to trigger a nuclear war which would be a disaster. Both countries ranked low in human development index indicators and were the biggest buyers of arms in the world.
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Army recruitment rally on Feb 9
Ludhiana, January 3 The recruitment process will be carried out on the Camping Ground, Complex (Military Area), near the Jagraon Bridge. The recruitment is open to eligible candidates from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi and Chandigarh. The recruitment is open to candidates between 18 and 42 years of age. Candidates uptil 21 years of age should be unmarried.
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Tributes paid to educationist Dhawan
Ludhiana, January 3 Jeevan Dhawan, member, working committee SAD in a press release informed that they have decided to observe both the birth and death anniversary of Satish Chander Dhawan every year. They lit the candles in his memory and observed two-minutes silence to pay obeisance to the noted educationist. Government College for Boys was named after Satish Chander Dhawan in the 1980s. Amongst present were Dr Arun Dhawan, Roopesh Dhawan, principal, Dr Malkiat Singh and Vivek Dhawan.
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Teachers request DC to change timings
Ludhiana, January 3 Sudagar Singh Sarabha, president and Parveen Kumar, general secretary, said timings should be from 10.30 am to 3.00 pm, as the students who come from far off areas were finding it difficult. Due to dense fog and chilling cold winds, it is difficult for school going children to reach on time, said the union.
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Bank opens 2 branches
Ludhiana, January 3 Bank chairman Harmeet Singh Shant inaugurated the branch at Gidderwindi village. He talked about various schemes related to deposits and advances of the bank.
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Truckers’ strike tomorrow
Ludhiana, January 3 Prithvi Raj Sharma, chairman of the association, said they would burn the effigy of petroleum minister Murli Deora for not reducing the prices of diesel.
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