The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Chandigarh Stories

UT may ban coloured polythene bags
By Prabhjot Singh
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — The Chandigarh Administration is all set to extend the Recycled Plastics Manufacture and User Rules, 1999, to the Union Territory of Chandigarh without pursuing the draft notification it issued last year for banning the recycling of polythene bags.

Once the new rules are extended to the Union Territory of Chandigarh, colourful polythene bags of pink, blue, green, yellow and other shades, will disappear from hotels, restaurants, dhabas, fast food joints and other such places where they are used heavily.

Though the draft rules notified by the Chandigarh Administration were more stringent and the Administration had also considered objections filed by representatives of general public, but no final notification could be issued.

Initially, the Administration wanted to ban polythene bags of recycled plastic in Sector 17 only, but now, the new rules notified by the Ministry of Environment and Forests will be extended to the Union Territory.

The decision to adopt the Central rules has probably been influenced by the need for uniformity than anything else.

The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests had notified these draft rules under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, and invited objections from general public within 60 days of the publication of the draft notification. In September last year, almost 10 months after notification of draft rules, the ministry finally notified the rule in September last year.

Now the Department of Environment and Pollution of the Chandigarh Administration has proposed to extend these rules to the Union Territory of Chandigarh.

Under the central rules, the prescribed authority for enforcement of the provision of these rules related to manufacture and recycling shall be the state pollution control boards in respect of states and the pollution control committees in respect of the union territories.

The major clause of the rules relates to prohibition of usage of carry bags or containers made of recycled plastics for storing, carrying, dispensing or packaging of foodstuffs, meaning thereby that carry bags of recycled plastics can be used for the rest of the things.

The central rules also specify conditions of manufacture of carry bags and containers made of plastics. The rules specify that the carry bags and containers made of virgin plastic shall be in natural shade or white.

The rules further mention that the carry bags and containers made of recycled plastic and used for purposes other than storing and packaging foodstuffs shall be manufactured using pigments and colourants as per ISI specifications entitled "List of pigments and colourants for use use in plastics in contact with food stuffs, pharmaceuticals and drinking water."

The rules are also specific that the manufacturers of recycled plastic carry bags having printing facilities shall code or mark carry bags and containers as per the Bureau of Indian Standards (ISI) specifications entitled, "The guidelines for recycling of plastics" and the end product made of the recycled plastic shall be marked as "recycled" along with the indication of the percentage of recycled material. Others who do not have printing facilities, shall comply with this condition with in one year of the publication of these rules i.e. by September this year.

Rs 80 lakh grant for villages remains unused
By Ajay Banerjee
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — Tomorrow it will be a year since the panchayat elections were held in 18 villages of Chandigarh. However, the subsequent democratic process of forming the panchayat samiti, market committee and zila parishad are still lying in cold storage.

The Panchayati Raj Act, 1994, promises elections to all vacant posts within six months.

On the other hand, almost Rs 80 lakh provided as grant during the current financial year has been lying unutilised despite pleas from sarpanches and panches. Only a fraction of the sum — about Rs 5 lakh — has been used. This too after the elected members virtually ran after the officials concerned to release the grants, a source said while pleading anonymity.

The Administration is only providing salaries of the safai karamcharis while holding on to the real sum that will bring in more work and development, said a village-level politician.

Elections to the panchayat samiti have been beset with problems. A decision on the number of wards and the reservation of seats for those from the members of the public and those from the sarpanches is yet to be taken. Initially, it was decided that the samiti would have nine members from among sarpanches and six to be elected by the members of the public.

It was then pointed out rules require a proposer and seconder for each of the elected sarpanches. Thus a minimum requirement should have been 27 more sarpanches to propose and second a name to elect a candidate. Such a number cannot be met as there are only 17 sarpanches in Chandigarh. It was then decided that all members of the samiti be elected from among the members of the public.

A fresh notification in this regard is still awaited.

Even a notification on the zila parishad was carried out wrongly. Elections to the same had been held almost three years ago. The members were elected, but the notification was waited. Now the fresh and a correct notification is awaited.

Regarding the market committee, which collects fees from incoming trucks: This body was dissolved in 1997 on expiry of its term. Since then the democratic process is yet to be restored. Such a delay only causes frustration among the elected members who are forced to run after officials for grants that should be routed through the zila parishad and the panchayat samiti, said Mr Bhupinder Singh Badheri.

Trucks that violate all laws
From Gautam Dheer

PANCHKULA, Jan 15— “Maut Ke Kuan”, as they are satirically known as, the scores of half-body trucks make their presence felt almost everywhere in the district, especially in surrounding areas of the township.

Not only do these violate the orders of the High Court in regard to safety and maintenance, but also threaten the existence of many on the roads. A large number of these trucks are being run without number plates, fearless of any laws. This is one of the grave factors which facilitates their going scot-free from the site of an accident.

These many trucks are in a dilapidated state. Most of them have exceeded beyond the 15 years’ limit for plying on the roads. Damaged and curved chassis as an outcome of the many accidents they face on the roads, highlight their crying state. Many such trucks use retreaded tyres, especially on the front side as they prove inexpensive, much against the conventional norms adhered by truck operators.

“The risk in plying vehicles with retreaded tyres on the front side is higher and often proves fatal”, explained a truck operator. Residents in the area say the truck owners seldom upgrade the documents of their vehicles. “Surprise raids on these vehicles en-route would reveal that they default in documentation, especially in payment of insurance and road tax,” observes Mr Anil Bahl, a local resident.

These trucks are mostly used for purposes of local transportation in stone crushers. They also prove handy for those who undertake dwellings on the dry bed of the Ghaggar river. The owners of most of these trucks are reportedly influential people around here.

Sources reveal that the driving licences of many such drivers are allegedly forged and belong to other distant states. This is one major factor which has reportedly caused a backlog in the disposal of insurance claim cases in the region. Most of these trucks violate pollution norms and hardly attain the pollution control certificate from the authorities concerned.

The drivers of these trucks are usually paid on a per trip basis made in a day, and not a fixed monthly salary. Likelihood of accidents increase as the drivers overspeed the limits to earn on a more number of trips. The district has yet to witness speed checks by the police at strategic locations.

Although the police had earlier intensified the drive to check such violations, there is not much respite to the situation. These trucks, hazardous on roads, compound to the misery as they blow pressure horns out of proportion, much against the rules. Since these ‘demi- monsters’, do not have any arrangement to cover the stock inside, it becomes dangerous as sand and pebbles fall here and there as the vehicles move to the roads.

High Court moved over board appointment
Tribune News Service

SAS NAGAR, Jan 15 — A deputy secretary of the Punjab School Education Board has moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court for quashing the State of Punjab's orders sending a deputy director on deputation to the board as the controller of examinations. The petitioner, Ms Narinder Kaur has also sought directions to the board to appoint her as the controller of examination after regularising her services.

In her petition, she stated that Chairman and Secretary of the board at no point of time had approached the state government or any other agency to send an officer on deputation to fill the post of Controller. It had its own officers who were competent, qualified and fit to man the said post, she added.

Terming the orders Punjab issued through the Secretary, Education Department (Schools), as " illegal, null and void, unconstitutional and against the principals of services", the petitioner stated that no legal requirement like a request from the borrowing organisation, sending a panel of officers along with their confidential reports and selection and acceptance of officer by the borrowing organisation had been complied with. The controller, she further stated, will be on deputation in her own pay scale and cadre.

She also stated that the orders passed by the government had yet to be approved and authenticated by the Chairman of the board, who was the appointing authority.

The action of the government, she claimed, was in violation of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India. By filling the post on deputation, the chances of promotion of the petitioner had been blocked.

In her 16-page petition, she also stated that as per the service regulations, the post had to be filled by recruitment from amongst the eligible candidates of the board first and if fit candidates were not available for promotion or appointment, only then could the board seek the services of deputationist after following a procedure.

The petitioner stated that she was stagnating as Deputy Secretary for over 11 years. She said that she worked in different sections and also as Joint Secretary and Controller of Examination. "Being the seniormost Deputy Secretary, it was her right to be considered to be appointed permanently to the post.

She further stated that the deputationist had been issued a show-cause notice by the Education Department in a case of financial irregularities and embezzlement of government money. It was further stated that the main function of the board was to conduct middle, matriculation and 10+2 examinations and the deputationist had no experience in the field.

Taking up the petition, a Division Bench of the high court, comprising Mr Justice G.S. Singhvi and Mr Justice Iqbal Singh, issued notice of motion for January 18.

Astro-advising on the Internet
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — A Panchkula-based astrologer, Dr Prem Kumar Sharma, is one of the few astrologers of the region to have gone hi-tech. He has created a website (www.premastrologer.com) to give astro-advice globally through e-mail.

Dr Sharma says that his role models have been his uncle and father who not only matched the patris of the local people but also made several predictions about the state and its erstwhile rulers at his hometown of Bathinda.

Leaving his job as an engineer, he followed in their footsteps and turned into a professional astrologer after his amateurish attempts yielded results and predictions made to friends started coming true.

The astrologer foretells about the stars in columns in a couple of newspapers of the region, too.

Among the notable predictions made by him, Dr Sharma claims, are the rise of Mrs Sonia Gandhi in politics, the fall of the United Front government in 1997, the end of tenure of Mr I.K. Gujral, the ascendancy of the BJP as a national government after mid-term poll but as a coalition government and the subsequent problems of the Vajpayee government, including his exit as Prime Minister and now, mid-term poll before 2000. Other predictions which he has successfully made include the impeachment of President Bill Clinton and his surviving the proceedings, the release of film star Sunjay Dutt from jail after his imprisonment under the TADA and the end of militancy in Punjab and the most recent being the fall of the BJP government before June, 1999. He also correctly foresaw the fall the the Bansi Lal regime as also the victory Mr Pawan Kumar Bansal from Chandigarh last year.

However, the astrologer who has a doctorate degree based on observations on the importance of birth charts in marriage, derives the maximum pleasure when his clients attain personal and professional happiness through his efforts and astrological guidance. Couples who are experiencing matrimonial discord, lovers who are unable to convince their elders of their desire to live together, women who have been unable to bear children all can benefit from various methods listed by experts of astronomy, astrology, numerology, gemmology, tantras, etc, he claims.

But he also believes that it is ultimately the blessings of powers superior and yet to be fully understood by us which mould our lives along with the efforts we make to fulfil our destinies.

Astrology can only help diminish evil effects and amplify the beneficial aspects, is his belief.

Open areas become garbage dumps
By A Correspondent

CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — Open areas in the villages of City Beautiful have become garbage dumps.Garbage bins placed in these areas are not used properly. Waste material is normally thrown outside the bins.

Sweepers of the Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh (MCC) on garbage collection duty empty the bins but ignore the waste material thrown on the ground, resulting unbearable stench.

Heaps of garbage have accumulated where the weekly Apni Mandi is held in a ground near Ram Darbar. Residents of nearby areas throw polythene bags full of trash in this ground. Stray cattle and pigs add to the insanitary conditions, which could cause health problems for the residents of the areas. After the weekly mandi is held, innumerable polythene bags and waste material lie littered. Residents complain that basic services of garbage disposal were not available to them.

The case is as similar in the bordering Hallo Majra village. Jhuggi-dwellers on the periphery of this village who are mainly daily wage workers are not conscious about cleanliness and hygienic living. They throw bundles of rubbish here and there.

The condition of Burail village is worse. Heaps of garbage are seen along roads, streets and open spots. Pigs worsen the situation by scattering the litter. The colony is plagued with insanitary conditions in the the absence of regular garbage disposal system.

In Industrial Area, Phase I, lack of cleanliness gives a grim look to the area. Factory leftovers and waste material have been lying in the area.

CRIME

Car company’s dealer booked
Tribune News Service

SAS NAGAR, Jan 15 — The authorised dealer of a car-manufacturing company at Chandigarh has been booked by the local police for cheating an ex-serviceman of Phase 2 here to the tune of Rs 6 lakh. The car dealer Mr Amardeep Singh, is a resident of Sector 33 in Chandigarh, who was an authorised dealer of Premier Automobiles Ltd, Mumbai.

According to the information available, the police has registered a case under Section 420 of the IPC after the victim, Wg Cdr B.S.Virk (retd) complained to the police that he came in contact with the car dealer when he booked a Uno car in 1996. The suspect then requested him to lend him Rs 3 lakh as he was facing financial crisis. In return he had promised to return the money back at an interest rate of 24 per cent per month.

The complainant stated that the car dealer had informed him that at the time of delivery of the car he would adjust the remaining amount against the price of the vehicle. Taken in by the assurance given by the car dealer, the victim issued a cheque of an amount of Rs 3 lakh of the Punjab and Sind Bank, Sector 17 branch, at Chandigarh, on October 18, 1996.

Again the car dealer requested the victim to lend him another Rs 3 lakh, which was given through a cheque of Times Bank, Sector 8 at Chandigarh, on July 15, 1997. In both the cases the dealer had promised to pay interest at a rate of 24 per cent payable every month. He also assured that the car would be delivered by December 31, 1997.

When the borrower failed to make the payment and give delivery of the car, enquiries by the complainant revealed that the dealership of the Amardeep Motors had been cancelled — a fact concealed by the borrower. Then in June 2, 1998, the suspect, in a communication sent to the money lender, said that his company was in financial crisis and he would be able to pay the rate of interest on the amount at half of the rate as had been promised by him earlier. The suspect had wrongly stated in the communication that he had paid an amount of Rs 1,86,386. Several visits to the place of the car dealer failed to yield any result. According to police sources, the car dealer had been arrested.

Neighbour held for trespass
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — The police has arrested a Ram Darbar resident on charges of trespassing and outraging the modesty of the wife of his neighbour.

According to sources, Mrs Ranjan Devi reported that her neighbour Ravinder Yadav, trespassed in her house at about 10 p.m. while she was in the bathroom. He reportedly tried to force his way in. When her husband responded to her cries and accosted the trespasser, the accused bashed up her husband.

A case under Sections 354, 323, IPC, has been registered at the Sector 31 police station.

Truck stolen: A case has been registered against Balwinder Singh, alias Sonu, and Tony, residents of Balongi village, on charge of stealing a truck (HR-01-A 0433) belonging to Ballo Majra resident Ujagar Singh. The truck was parked at the Industrial Area when it was allegedly driven off by Balwinder Singh, who worked as a cleaner.

A case under Section 379, IPC, has been registered.

Car theft: Mr Kirpal Singh of Burail village reported that his car (CH-OI-E 3116) has been stolen from his residence. A case under Section 379, IPC, has been registered.

Caught stealing: Amrit Rao, a resident of Sector 46, was caught allegedly red-handed while stealing a spare wheel of a scooter in the market of the Sector. A case under Sections 379 and 411, IPC, has been registered.

Whisky seized: The police has arrested Parkash Singh, a resident of Patiala, and seized 12 bottles of whisky from him. A case under Sections 61, 1, 14 of the Excise Act has been registered against him.

SAS NAGAR

Suicide committed: A 40-year-old Class IV employee of the Punjab Vigilance Department, Chet Ram, allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself from the ceiling of a room in his house in Janata Colony at Nayagoan here on Saturday.

Theft attempt: Harish, a resident of Phase I here, has been booked by the police for allegedly attempting to break into a house to commit a theft. A case under Sections 457 and 380 of the IPC has been registered against him.

BUSINESS

Punjab may absorb sacked PAC staff
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — It was at a heated and a frenzied meeting of the members of the Punjab Arts Council (PAC) this afternoon that the issue of termination of four of its junior staff members was taken up yet again. The decision to terminate the services of the “excessive” staff was taken earlier this month in the wake of a financial crisis.

Dr Harcharan Singh, Chairman of PAC, and Mr H S Bhatty, the Secretary-General, while talking to the media today said that a consensus had been reached that the terminated employees would be given six months payment and that the Punjab Government would be approached to absorb this staff into allied departments, like the Cultural Affairs. They also added that the concerned employees had also agreed to the same.

However, later these employees, while speaking to the TNS, said that they did not agree to this as they wanted a “golden handshake”, whereby they should be paid their gratuity and provident fund as well.

Mr Gursharan Singh, the grand old man of Punjabi theatre, said: “There should be no pick and choose strategy for sacking employees when in financial crisis. I suggest that Council should be locked and the key handed over to the Punjab Government, which should now intervene in this matter”.

Other dissenting members included Dr Dalip Kaur Tiwana, the Chairperson of the Punjab Sahitya Akademi, and Bibi Harjinder Kaur, the Chairperson of the Punjab Sahitya Kala Akademi.

Bibi Harjinder added: “There should be the same policy for everybody. And though the council was envisioned as an autounomous body, the Punjab Government does need to take responsibility of the same”.

The controversy over the PAC functioning started when on January 1, this year, four junior-level members were served termination orders, “since they were found surplus in a situation of financial crisis forced by the failure of PUNWIRE to pay the interests for six months on a corpus fund deposit of Rs 65 lakh”.

The four who have been terminated include Anil Sharma and Kala Singh, both junior assistants, Kashmiri Singh, a peon, and Ram Kalap, gardner.

These orders were passed after a special meeting of the council was called on December 30, 1999, for studying the financial situation due to failure to receive amounts due from PUNWIRE. It was on January 3, that it was decided that out of the 10 staff members of the council, four should be removed on the basis of “last-come-first-go principle” and be given one-month’s salary in lieu of the notice.

At the “special meeting”, which was attended by 19 of its 29 members, council had decided to curtail its activities and also to reduce the surplus staff, as a measure of economy. Further, a four-member sub-committee was appointed for taking suitable action in this regard. The sub-committee constituted of the Chairman of the PAC, Dr Harcharan Singh, the Secretary-General, Mr H.S. Bhatty and two members of the General Council, Dr Deepak Manmohan, the former chairman of the PAC, and Mr Gurdial Singh Arif.

Meanwhile, not only are the terminated employees making a ruckus, some of the PAC members are also dissatisfied the “way the events have taken a turn”.

The members of the three akademis are also raising question marks on how the sub-committee could reach the decision on its own about terminating the members services. Said one of the members of the PAC, “The committee had no authority at all to reach such a decision. In fact, the sub-committee was formed to work out a solution out of this crisis and give the General Council its recommendations only”.

But Mr Bhatty insists that the sub-committee was fully authorised to take the decision, since it was formed with this very intention.

Sources also indicate that even at the special meeting, Dr Dalip Kaur Tiwana had vociferously opposed the move to terminate the members. Dr Tiwana had reportedly also indicated to the fact that this was no “business house” being run, but that the PAC was a cultural organisation that was meant for the people and so the act of terminating those who have been working for a period of 18 years or more was not justified.

Said Ms Rama Rattan, the General Secretary of this Sahitya Akademi, who could not attend the meeting, “If there is a financial crisis, we could curtail the money being spent on the general council meetings which amounts to Rs 10,000 to Rs 12,000. And what is the need of giving TA/DA for some months to the honorary members of the council?”

According to the Secretary General of the council, the PAC is “left with an interest of Rs 37,500 per month on the balance of Rs 30 lakh, since Rs 65 lakh went down the drain”. The council was earlier running on the interest from a total amount of Rs 95 lakh, which constituted the corpus fund or endowment.

According to sources, it was during the chairmanship of Dr Deepak Manmohan that the Finance Department of the Punjab Government had directed the PAC to invest some money in PUNWIRE.

Meanwhile, with effect from the first of this month, the sub-committee had also introduced a new set of rules, which includes Saturday to be a working day. Interestingly, though all the members of PAC have signed and accepted these rules, they have added a clause stating that the members “would have the right to go to court”.

In this hue and cry, some members also raised the issue of gifting blankets to the invitees on every occasion and also throwing parties for the guests. Mr Bhatty refuting “uncomplimentary statements” said, “The blankets cost us only Rs 950 each, and out of the total 20-30 blankets the PAC has spent for only about 10. We were in fact trying to save money, by presenting blankets”.

Also being questioned are the parties that were thrown in honour of Mr I.K. Gujral, the former Prime Minister, last year and also for Mr Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, a Union Minister, on January 5 this year. Mr Bhatty said that these are baseless allegations, as the one for Mr Dhindsa “was funded by the Shobha Shakti Films, the producers of Bole-So-Nihal, after their silver jubilee show”.

Curiously enough, the invitation card for the felicitation ceremony for Mr Dhindsa is from the PAC that lists the time as 8pm and the venue as a hotel in Sector 22! Mr Bhatty further added “this situation has been reached only because of the directive which was earlier issued by the Punjab Government to invest our money with PUNWIRE, otherwise we do not have any intention to victimise anyone”.

Tubewells lack power connections
From Our Correspondent

PANCHKULA, Jan 15 — Following the inability of the Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam (HVPN) to provide power connections to scores of tubewells, farmers, especially in the Doon and Raitten areas of the district, are facing a tough time.

There has reportedly been a virtual collapse of agriculture in the areas due to paucity of water for irrigation. The number of pending cases has mounted to about 50 in the operation division of Panchkula and over 400 in the operation division of Naraingarh.

The scarcity of water has led to the boring of several tubewells by farmers. However, the purpose has been defeated over the years, with these rendered functionally redundant without an electricity connection. Farmers have often taking up the issue with the authorities and at the grievances committee meetings but nothing concrete has emerged.

The department feels handicapped in the absence of transformers, electric poles, stays, conductors, etc for the purpose. Reliable sources in the department claim that the district is ahead of other districts in the state regarding the disposal of pending cases. A majority of such cases would be disposed of by the year-end, they say.

Apart from low agriculture yield, farmers in the area lament that the warranties of the motors attached to the tubewells have expired without being put to use. Many bores of tubewells dug in the areas have been damaged due to misuse over the years. Many farmers are reportedly under debt from banks. They have to pay the equated monthly instalments (EMIs) as the purpose remains unfulfilled.

''The average cost of a tubewell is around Rs 6 lakh. I had collected such a big amount with the hope of getting results in the future. However, I feel the money has not been properly used over the years,'' said a farmer pleading his case at the district grievances committee meeting here. The accessory equipment, including switch boxes and starters, are also getting damaged by rust.

The misery of farmers has compounded over the years with many filters in the bores getting choked. The filters need to be put to use or else face problems, explained Ram Sahay, a farmer. Many farmers have reportedly opted for alternative avenues to earn a livelihood in the absence of a durable system to support their farming.