Elderly woman’s phone snatched

Chandigarh: A car-borne miscreant escaped after snatching a mobile phone from an elderly woman while she was out for an evening walk at a park in Sector 18. According to the police, 77-year-old Savita Kumar, a resident of Sector 18, reported that she had gone for an evening walking in a park near New Public School on February 11. Around 7.40 pm, a youth came and snatched her phone. The victim saw him escape towards the mini power house. She raised the alarm. However, the suspect ran towards a white car parked near the spot and sped away. The police said the footage of CCTV cameras installed in the area was being scrutinised. A case has been registered at the Sector 19 police station. TNS

Counselling for inmates

Chandigarh: ‘Rupantran’, an initiative of the Burail jail, in collaboration with PU’s Psychology Department, aims at providing the inmates with psychological counseling. It was inaugurated by the UT Administrator VP Singh Badnore here on Wednesday. A drug de-addiction centre, ‘Rupantran Kendra’, was also inaugurated on the occasion. Jail officials said that there will be a standard operating procedure for counseling of habitual offenders. TNS

Sacked mc staff meet official

Panchkula: Sacked contractual employees of the Municipal Corporation marched to the Local Bodies Department building in Sector 4 on Wednesday to submit a memorandum to Amit Kumar Agrawal, Director General, Urban Local Bodies, Haryana, demanding their reinstatement. Bhag Singh, Nagar Palika Karamchari Sangh, Haryana, said: “We submitted a memorandum seeking reinstatement of dismissed employees by the Panchkula Municipal Corporation. The official assured us that he will discuss the matter with civic body officials concerned.” “We will continue our protests outside the Municipal Corporation building in Sector 14 until our demands are met,” he said. Meanwhile, protesting street vendors announced their support to the Nagar Palika Karamchari Sangh, Haryana. TNS

Circuit Bench sittings cancelled

Chandigarh: The Circuit Bench sittings of the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum (NCDRC), which was scheduled to be held from February 17 last year, has been cancelled. A communication to this effect was sent by the UT State Commission, Chandigarh, to the advocates today. According to the secretary of the commission, the NCDRC joint registrar cited unavoidable circumstances due to which the forum chief has directed the cancellation of the circuit Bench sitting. Advocate Pankaj Chandgothia said many people were eagerly awaiting disposal of their cases during the two weeks when the Bench was scheduled to hear matters relating to Chandigarh and Haryana. TNS

Seminar on drug abuse

Chandigarh: A seminar, ‘The Sixth River: Drug abuse’ was organised at the Department of Guru Nanak Sikh Studies by the Academic Forum of Sikh Students. The theme of the seminar was the problem of drug abuse and its solution. DIG (Admn), Punjab Police, Gurpreet Singh Toor was the key speaker. He presented some case studies and data related to drugs. An officer having over two decades of experience, Toor has written two books on the drug problem. Another speaker, Dr Gurpal Sandhu said that rapid urbanisation had de-rooted the centuries-old lifestyle which is the basic cause of all such problems. Nirmal Singh Jaura and Jaspal Kaur Kang were also present at the event. TNS

SGGSC students get JOB OFFERS

Chandigarh: Three students of BCA III, Arshdeep Singh Pannu, Jatin and Siddhant of Sri Guru Gobind Singh College, Sector 26, were selected by Infosys, Bangalore, in the off-campus placement drive held in Chitkara University on February 5 and 6. The annual package offered is Rs 2.2 lakhs. Six students cleared all rounds of the interview process. Selected students thanked their parents and the teachers, who always motived and guided them. Principal, Satinder Kaur congratulated the students on their achievement and wished them luck for their bright future. TNS

Youth booked for raping minor

Lalru: The police have booked a youth for raping an girl (18) in Lalru on Tuesday. The suspect sexually assaulted the girl when she was alone. “The victim told her kin about her ordeal,” said the police. The suspect is yet to be arrested. — OC