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Ravana’s end costs tricity Rs 80 lakh
Chandigarh/Panchkula/Mohali, October 13 Dressed in their festive best, residents attended Ramlilas across the Tricity where artistes enacted the final battle episode of Ramayana where Lord Rama kills Ravana. As the effigies were set ablaze amid chants in praise of Lord Rama, residents witnessed spectacular fireworks which illuminated the sky leaving many in awe. The tallest effigy of Ravana — 84 feet — was set afire in Sector 46, Chandigarh. The tallest Ravanas in Panchkula and Mohali were 65 feet and 70 feet, respectively. Dasehra was celebrated at 40 places in Chandigarh. A large number of residents thronged Sector 46, 17, 29, 27, 7 and 24 where effigies of the Demon King were set afire. The Sector 5 Parade Ground in Panchkula and the Phase VIII Dasehra Ground in Mohali were the centre of attraction. The average cost incurred by the organisers ranged between Rs 1.5 lakh and Rs 2.5 lakh. Elaborate security arrangements were made to ensure that the festivities go without any untoward incident. More than 2,000 policemen were deputed in Chandigarh. According to reports, more that 20,000 persons witnessed the Dasehra celebrations at Sector 46, which included air, laser and cracker show. A glider showered petals from the sky to welcome the gathering. A 10-minute laser show on Ramayana was one of the major highlights of the celebrations in Sector 46. The Dasehra celebrations in Sector 17 also attracted huge gathering. Their celebration began with a procession that started from the Sector 23 temple and culminated at the Sector 17 Parade Ground where the effigies of Ravana, Meghnad and Kumbhkarna were set afire. It was an all-religion affair at Sector 24. Heads of all religious bodies gave the message of communal harmony and set a 55 feet effigy of Ravana on fire. Hundreds of people reached at the Sector 27 Dasehra Ground to witness the victory of good over evil. MP Pawan Kumar Bansal was the chief guest at the Sector 27 Dasehra celebrations.
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Demon king Ravana goes up in flames
Mohali, October 13 A large number of people went to the Phase VIII ground to witness the setting alight of the demons. This led to traffic snarls at some places, especially near the Phase VII traffic light point. One side of the road leading to the Kumbra chowk got blocked as people parked their vehicles there to participate in the celebrations. Reports of the celebrations were also received from several other places in the town, including Phase I, Matour and Sector 66. In Phase II, the Dasehra celebrations were organised by Atul Sharma, president of the Balongi Mandal of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha. Over the past three days, various schools, including Lawrence Public School, Shemrock, Small Wonders School, St Xavier’s High School and Paragon School (Sector 71), have been holding celebrations in connection with Dasehra. Last year, unexpected rain had played spoilsport on the Dasehra eve, damaging effigies. One of the effigies burnt at the Dasehra ground last year was of corruption.
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This Dasehra, residents pledge to eradicate female foeticide
Panchkula, October
13 KK Khandelwal, Principal Secretary to Haryana Chief Minister, was the chief guest. Over 80,000 people turned up to see the victory of good over evil at the Sector 5 ground. Hundreds of visitors were seen sitting on fire tenders and on the roof of the bus shelters. After the Ravana
dahan, visitors rushed to take the burnt wooden sticks used in the effigies. Manhandling also took place between two youths in the process. Many children were seen pushing and jostling to possess the same. Like every year, parking chaos was also witnessed for about an hour near the Sector 11 roundabout. Traffic congestion was eased out by the police force deployed for the purpose. Effigies were burnt in Sector 15 and Sector 21 and other areas as well.
Meanwhile, the three remote controlled planes which were meant to shower flowers and messages of female foeticide from above in the air could not take off today at the Sector 5 Dasehra ground as the contractor did not find any place of landing and taking off because of the huge crowd present there.
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Parking no child’s play as contractors flout norms
Tribune News Service It is a struggle finding a slot for vehicles in the paid parking lots in the city. Despite paying the parking fee, commuters have to vie for space as the lots overflow with vehicles. In the Part I of the series, The Tribune reporters Amit Sharma and Aarti Kapur report after checking the ground reality. Chandigarh, October 13 Such incidents, which are common at various paid parking lots of the city, keep annoying the city residents. The commuters, in a hope to get a parking space easily, drive into the paid parking lots, only to encounter various problems. Adding to the woes is the unfriendly behavior of the parking attendants who, on being questioned about their duties, respond rudely to the commuters. MC rules given a go by
The city has 24 paid parking lots through which the Municipal Corporation earns an annual income of Rs 24 crores. The parking lots can accommodate around 8,000 vehicles. A month back, the Municipal Corporation did penalise the contractor operating the parking lot at Sukhna Lake for violating various norms: the parking attendants were not wearing uniforms, there were no closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras at the entry or exit points, and electronic ticketing machine was absent. The contractor was fined Rs 8,500. The contractor operating the Sector 9 parking lot was also fined Rs 10,000 for violating similar guidelines. However, a visit to the paid parking lots in Sectors 8, 9, 17, 34 and 35 revealed that the commuters continue to be harassed. While the MC has laid down strict guidelines for the parking contractors, one of the clauses of the agreement makes it virtually toothless. This clause that states the MC has no power to cancel the contract acts as the saviour for the contractors.
No attendant to facilitate parking every 50 metres
While the terms and conditions set by the Municipal Corporation for parking contractors clearly require the presence of an attendant every 50 metres, a visit to 16 parking lots in Sectors 8, 9, 17, 34 and 35 revealed that not even a single
A visitor to the Sector 8 market tries to carve out space to park his vehicle at a paid parking lot.
No staff after 10 pm
The timing for paid parking is between 8 am and 12 pm. The parking attendants should be available at the lot during this time. They, however, are hardly available after 10 pm, except at Sector 35.
No complaint boxes
Every parking lot needs to have a sealed complaint box for the commuters to air No care for differently abled
A separate space should be earmarked for the parking of vehicles by the differently abled, and no fee can be charged from them. However, during a visit to the parking lots at five different sectors of the city, it was found that not even a single lot had a space reserved for the differently abled. The norms state that if any other vehicle is found parked on the space earmarked for the physically challenged, the contractor will be fined equivalent to 10 times of the parking fee per vehicle.
No CCTV cameras
Every paid parking lot must have a CCTV camera installed at the entry and the exit for recording the registration number of vehicles. The parking lots at Sectors 8, 9 and 17 do not have any CCTV cameras. At Sectors 34 and 35, contractors have installed the cameras, but they are not functional. The rules, however, clearly state that the cameras should be installed within one month of taking the possession of the parking lot.
No attention to attire
The parking attendants need to wear a uniform while on duty. The uniform comprises a light brown shirt, a dark brown pant and a brown belt besides a pair of black shoes. The attendants at most of the parking lots, however, are mostly shabbily dressed. Not even a single attendant at the parking lots visited by The Tribune team were found wearing a complete uniform. On defaulting on this clause, the Municipal Corporation can penalise the contractor. The fine that can be imposed by the civic body if
Rs 500.
No designated slots to park vehicles
A paid parking lot sans lines to earmark space for each vehicle in
Sector 8.
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Stray dogs on prowl, attack 14 in Panchkula in three days
Panchkula, October 13 A 10-year-old child and a beggar were also attacked by stray dogs on Saturday. “Ever since my maid has been attacked, I myself go to pick up my seven-year-old daughter. We have also stopped sending our children to play in the park, said Lali Devi, another resident. Executive officer of the MC, OP Sihag, said: “A dog-catcher tem would be sent to the area.”
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Accused played it safe
Chandigarh, October 13 Instead of handing over the marksheets to the students, the accused sent the same to the college by post with a memo of the PU attached to it. PU Registrar AK Bhandari confirmed that the memo was attached to the marksheets. He, however, said it was yet to be established that the memo was sent from the university office. The accused knew the procedure adopted by the university in sending marksheets. The committee constituted by the university is also investigating the case to find whether any insider is involved in the racket. The committee has already recorded the statements of the students. Sources said the committee was planning to take the help of the police to crack the case. “The university has the cellphone number of the accused from which he used to contact the students,” said an official.
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Mansa Devi gets Rs 1.16 crore in donations
Panchkula, October 13 The clothing, crockery items and dairy products are given to the underprivileged who visit the shrine seeking such items for their wedding or other functions “The
sarees, suits and crockery items, are given to the underprivileged as a token of blessing during their wedding. The dairy products are saved for making
prashad, but a major portion of the product is also given to them,” said an official of the accounts department. Items such as temple bells, fans and lights, are kept for the temple, and rest are donated in other hospitals or religious institutions, added the official. “Devotees usually pledge to donate such items when there wishes are fulfilled,” said Pandit Balwan
Bhardwaj. As many as 127 glasses, 72 spoons and others were donated by devotees. The previous year, an amount of Rs 35,000 was received. Dr KK
Khandelwal, Principal Secretary to Haryana Chief Minister presided over the havan organized on the last day of
the Navratra.
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Reporters’ diary Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 13 Gag on DPR
The newly-appointed Director Public Relations (DPR) had to burn his fingers when he reported in press brief that there was a walkout by syndics in the syndicate meeting held on September 21. Upset with the walkout being reported in media, the syndics are learnt to have barred the DPR from attending the syndicate meeting in future.
Confession
After speaking at length over the need for controlling obesity, identifying it as the greatest cause of cancer worldwide,during the inauguration of a cancer workshop in PGI, the Director of Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, had a late realisation. Making attempts to justify his lecture in a jam-packed auditorium, he paused, looked at himself, while standing on the dais, and conceded on a light note that he also needed to lose weight.
Bone of contention
Officers are known to have disputes over major administrative issue. But in Chandigarh, a liquor vend in southern sector of the city saw subtle tussle between two top UT officials, one in favour of opening it and the other one for closing it. While one group approached the top brass to scuttle the allotment of vend, the other one, in favour of the vend had the last laugh.
Cranky sound system
Women who turned up for the celebration of International Girl Child Day function had an awful time as the eminent resource persons who came to deliver the lectures asked the organisers to switch off the fans as they were creating disturbance, as the hall had ineffective sound system. Few participants, who turned up for the event, said when the department does not have a proper sitting arrangement then why do they invite them.
Faulty Alco sensors
With incidents of faulty Alco sensors increasingly being reported, a Union Territory (UT) Traffic policeman, at a barrier last week, was taken aback when he too was detected to be in an inebriated state by the machine. The policeman, who swore he never touched liquor all his life, was shocked to find himself drunk as per the Alco sensor. “Some of these sensors have indeed developed snags and need calibration every three months. I was shocked to find myself drunk when I casually tested myself,” said the police official.
A condemned bus becomes headache for officials!
The Education department’s plan to convert a condemned bus into a library has eventually become a major headache for the concerned officials. The matter was recently forwarded to the DEO office to execute this plan and as a matter of result; the otherwise dull office has become a hotbed for discussions and arguments over its possible makeover of the bus. An official was overheard rebuking the idea of converting the outdated bus in to a library, but since the idea of putting the condemned bus in to some use has come straight from the Governor Shivraj Patil, nobody is daring to oppose it publicly. In fact a field trip is planned shortly to see the bus.
Softy of Sector 17
To motivate Kabaddi players from Ludhiana, who were participating in the recently held Kabaddi championship, the team’s coach was seen saying her players, “Je Jitte tan hi 17 wich softy khilau, ni tan sidha ghar wapsi.” (If you win this match only then I will treat you all with softy from Sector 17, otherwise head back to your respective residences.) Interestingly, the team won their first match. All credits to the Sector 17’s Softy!! Contributed by Rajinder Nagarkoti, Rajmeet Singh, Ritika Jha, Amit Sharma, Aarti Kapur, Vivek Gupta, Aneesha Sareen and
Deepankar Sharda
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GMCH-32, PGIMER hostels breed sickness
Chandigarh, October 13 An official from the department, on condition of anonymity, said, “Larvae were found breeding in the coolers installed in the hostels and also in the coolers set up in residential areas in both the hospitals.” “It is crucial to understand that dengue breeds in merely 10 ml of water. One has to be very careful in a residential setting and ensure that even a thin layer of water does not remain stored anywhere,” said an official of the department. Two months back, the health department officials inspected resident doctors’ hostels in PGIMER. Violations were pointed out then also, but in vain. No action had been taken back then, said an official. “As per the observations, the water stored in coolers installed in the corridors and rooms of the hostels must have remained unattended for several days,” said an official. A visit to PGIMER hostel today revealed that some of the coolers even had dirty water accumulated. The larvae were clearly visible in the water and indicated that the water inside the coolers had not been emptied from several days, said an official who conducted the inspection. Sources stated that doctors work under immense work pressure; hence they fall short of time to empty water from coolers. The PGIMER administration, however, must appoint a cleaning staff to check on such issues. The previous year, two PGIMER doctors had contracted dengue. This year, so far, 20 dengue cases have been reported. More than 350 cases of dengue were reported the previous year.
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Cycle tracks need immediate attention
The cycle tracks of the City Beautiful are in a poor state and require immediate attention. Cyclists no more enjoy using these tracks as these have become worst. To add to the woes, there are defunct streetlights, making the cyclists feel helpless mostly during nights. Le Corbusier had designed seven kinds of roads for the city. Later, he had added an eighth kind (V8) that comprised cycle tracks and pedestrian pathways. But even after all these years, the roads remain a nightmare for cyclists. The number of cyclists commuting on the roads is ever decreasing. The city instead of being referred as “cycle-friendly”, be referred as “garbage friendly” as garbage is present in heaps on these tracks. The issue does not bother the authorities. Arshdeep Singh, Mohali Encourage cycling
Cycle riding is a good exercise and keeps the body fit, besides its operating cost being ignorable. It saves fuel and ultimately reduces import and saving of foreign exchange. Motivation for cycling is important as youngsters are gaining weight due to less physical work or exercise. Hence, cycle tracks should be maintained in excellent condition to encourage cycling and moreover, this is the only conveyance of poor. OP Garg,
Patiala
Mismanagement by staff main cause
Cycle tracks created with much fanfare along the length and breadth of the City Beautiful at a considerable cost by the UT Administration about a decade ago have been gradually allowed to perish. The reason for this sorry state of affairs is the gross mismanagement by the officials concerned responsible for its proper upkeep for years together. SC Luthra,
MHC, Mani Majra
Regular cycling events needed
It is really disheartening to see the condition of cycle tracks in the City Beautiful, despite it being declared cycle friendly. In the past we have seen cyclothons being organised in the city to encourage cycling habits in residents. This has been done to save the depleting environment and also to save conventional energy sources. But unfortunately this just turns into a mere one-day event. Everything returns to the same the very next day. The recent changes brought about in a rotary near Sector 20 are a welcome step. But it should not remain confined to one rotary only but must be extended to the entire tricity. Moreover, some feedback must be taken from every strata of its user so that leftover shortcomings can also be overcome. Dr Ranju Gulati,
Chandigarh
Streetlights needed
It is a serious matter that has been taken up many times earlier also but neither the Administration nor the Municipal Corporation does take remedial steps in this regard. Cycle tracks constructed at huge costs across the city are lying neglected with potholes that pose grave risk to the cyclists. There is no streetlight on these tracks and cyclists fear using the same during night. Even during the daytime cyclists and rickshaw-pullers use the main roads, making them accident- prone. I commend the decision of the Punjab and Haryana High Court that has snubbed the city administration over the poor condition of these cycle tracks and has asked them to provide all cycle tracks with adequate lighting arrangements and get the same updated by repairing wherever it is necessary. Residents must be told that these cycle tracks are safe and comfortable for riding cycles and even rickshaws. Home guards volunteers must be deployed in adequate strength to see that cyclists use these tracks and not ply on the main roads risking their lives and those of motorists. Those who park their vehicles on the cycle tracks must be fined by sending notice to them by post. RK Kapoor,
Chandigarh
Cyclists should be penalised for violation
Chandigarh is one of the selected cities in the country where cycle tracks were maintained with most of the main city roads. In my view, before going for any new modification plan, firstly we have to lay down some rules also for cyclists or rickshaw pullers because they are not using these tracks even when well- maintained track is available for them. Traffic men are issuing challans to every motorists for traffic rules violation. Cycle users and rickshaw pullers should be penalized if they don't use the cycle track. Shishu Paul,
Chandigarh
Vehicle parking should
be checked
There is definitely an immediate need to make cycle tracks more user-friendly so that cyclists can make maximum use of the same. Peddling on these tracks is not at all easy. Lot of garbage on these tracks is also not cleared regularly by the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation. Adding to the woes, the four-wheelers parked on these tracks is also a matter of great concern. Various proposals of construction of more cycle tracks should be immediately taken care of. Priya Darsh Growar,
Mohali
No motivation for cyclists
It is sad that the UT Administration is not paying enough attention to the upkeep of the cycle tracks in the city. No proper mechanism exists or is followed to protect and motivate cycle users. It is at the cost of our health, environment and also the pocket. The petrol and diesel prices are increasing at regular intervals. People are adding more cars to roads everyday, which is resulting in increase in accidents, pollution, traffic jams. The common man is the worst sufferer. A cycling culture is needed. The intiative has to come from the top. Let the ministers and MPs start going to their offices on cycles, at least once a week. Col R D Singh
(retd), Ambala
Cantt
Symbol of the working class
In fact, bicycle is the symbol of the working class as most of those who use it are daily wage earners, milk and vegetable vendors and newspaper hawkers. In the absence of maintenance of proper cycle tracks, bicycles being a mainstream transport option are therefore under threat today. The cycle tracks constructed in “city beautiful” years ago are in a deplorable condition. One such example is of Sector 40 C which is hardly being used in the absence of proper maintenance. SK Khosla,
Chandigarh
Not serving the purpose
A lot has been talked about safety of cyclists as a lot of accidents occurring on roads involve cyclists. For that purpose, cycle tracks were made where any other vehicles won’t be allowed. But because of the poor maintenance of cycle tracks, they are not serving the purpose they were built for. Cycle tracks in most sectors are poorly maintained. Dr Shruti K.
Chawla, Chandigarh
Open house question
Parking vehicles at any of the paid parking sites across the city becomes a headache due to unregulated parking lots. Neither the MC nor contractors ensure that users fund space to park their vehicles. It has been seen that the number of vehicles exceed the available parking space, leaving the users looking for space. What needs to be done to ensure that the users find proper place to park their vehicles and the MC ensures that the paid parking contract norms are followed. Write your suggestions to openhouse@tribunemail.com
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GMSH-16 poised for challenges
Chandigarh, October 13 Even the recently upgraded 100-bed hospital in Manimajra has
allegedly failed to divert patient rush from GMSH-16. The hospital was upgraded from 10-bed
to 100-bed four months back. However, the hospital caters to as many as 1,300 patients in OPDs everyday. But in GMHS-16, as many as 117 regular doctors attend to over 3,000 patients in OPDs on a daily basis besides catering to 500 patients indoor. Having seen more than 7 lakh patients in OPD and conducting over 12,000 deliveries in past one
year, the hospital is attending to patients not only from within the city but also from Mohali and Panchkula. Lightening the burden on doctors, officials announced that they have recently hired additional staff under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), on contractual basis, bringing the
total strength of doctors, including specialists and MBBS doctors, to 300. “We have recruited doctors under NRHM and our overall strength has improved. We are looking forward to providing
our patients with improved services from now on,” said the Medical Superintendent, Dr Rajiv Vadehra.
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Affixing of HSRPs on old vehicles starts
Chandigarh, October 13 Officials at the RLA said apart from affixing the HSRP on newly registered vehicles, the schedule of affixing the plates on old vehicles was being communicated to vehicle owners through public notices. Starting in a reverse manner, the RLA plans to cover all vehicles registered till 2009 over the next 12 months. Every month, all vehicles registered under a particular series are being covered under the exercise. At present, the affixation of the number plates is being done at four offices of the RLA, which includes Registration and Licensing Authority, Sector 17, office of the SDM (East), Industrial Area, Phase I, SDM (South) Sector 42, and for commercial vehicles of the State Transport Authority, Sector 18. The fee fixed for two-wheelers is Rs 79, four-wheelers Rs 183 and for commercial heavy vehicles Rs 189. Two years’ time has been given to fix new number plates on old vehicles. On procuring the HSRNP for the vehicle, the owner must ensure that the vendor issues him two copies of the HSRNP delivery document, one of which he will keep for his own record. He will then bring a representative of the vendor to the RLA office for fastening of the HSRNP and affixing of the Third Registration Plate (self-destructive sticker) on his vehicle.
— TNS
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20K new voters to be added to city electoral rolls
Chandigarh, October 13 “We presume that the deletion happens after voters change their place of residence. In the new drive, the addition of 20,000 voters would compensate for the deletion,” said Tilak
Raj, Joint Chief Electoral Officer. Apart from the new registration, the Election Department would be issuing smart card as the Election Department of the Chandigarh Administration has decided to replace the existing laminated cards with a driving
licence-type hard plastic card. But only the new voters would get the smart cards. The city has over 5 lakh voters. The task to change the cards has been given to the Haryana State Electronics Development Corporation
(HARTRON). In place of the card with black and white photograph, the hard plastic card would have colour photo of the voter. The department is also contemplating to allow voters to apply online to get their voter ID cards made. Residents who want to apply for a new voter ID card or get changes made to an existing one have been asked to submit the relevant documents at the designated polling stations in their the respective sectors till October 31.
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employee was inside the lot to ensure proper parking. The commuters paying for the parking have to locate a suitable space themselves, leading to haphazard parking, which in turn inconveniences a number of commuters. As per the rules, the contractor can be fined
Rs 500 for violating the norm each time.
As per the norms set by the Municipal Corporation, the parking contractors should ensure
that vehicles are parked at a designated place. Two-wheelers, however, can be seen parked in the area designated for the four-wheelers at the Sectors 34 and 35 parking lots. The situation is similar at various parking lots in Sector 17. This further leads to space crunch in the parking lots that are already marred by overcrowding.