78-year-old woman done to death
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, May 24
A 78-year-old widow, Prakash Kaur, living alone in her Sector 15 house, was done to death here last night. The body was noticed by some neighbours this evening. The police suspects that the widow was murdered by her servant, Sombhadur, who lived in the same house. This is the second such murder in the in the city in the past six weeks.

The body of Prakash Kaur was found lying in a pool of blood in her bedroom. It is suspected that the assailant had attacked the widow with a sharp-edged weapon. The incident took place sometime between 9 pm and 11 pm last night. There were wounds on the neck and face of the victim. A blood stained knife was found lying near the body.

Valuables in the possession of the victim seem to be the reason behind the murder. A police official said the assailant had ransacked all almirahs in the house before leaving the place. Some jewellery boxes were lying open on the bed. There were no signs of forced entry. The murderer took away cash and jewellery before fleeing. The victim is survived by two sons, one of them lives in the USA and the other in Canada.

The servant’s name was not registered with the police. He had been working at the house for the past two months and used to reside there along with his wife and two sons. The entire family escaped from the spot leaving behind their household goods.

Police sources said the servant had also worked in another house in the same sector. He had also worked in Sectors 9 and 19 and a restaurant in Sector 17.

The police was called in by the neighbours when they did not see the woman since this morning. One of the neighbours said newspapers had been lying in front of the main door of the victim’s house since morning and telephone calls to her house were not attended to. A friend of the victim staying in Sector 16 also called up a victim’s neighbour when her repeated telephone calls to the victim were not answered.

A case has been registered.

CBSE CLASS XII RESULTS
Poor performance by govt schools
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 24
With pass percentage of 87.67 and 59.39 this year, performance by government schools has shown a marginal decline from 88 per cent in case of model senior secondary schools and a sharp fall from 79 per cent in case of senior secondary schools.

Contrary to the overall result, the swing has been towards improvement in three senior secondary schools. These are Manimajra school, which has a pass percentage of 76.3 against 59.2 of last year, Karsan school has 84 against 71.42 and Dhanas school has a pass percentage of 62 against 52.27 per cent last year.

However, the result of Sector 15 school has dipped from 97.87 per cent to 41.28 per cent and that of Sector 45 school has gone down from 85.36 to 48.05 per cent this year. Commenting on the poor performance, the DPI (Schools), Mr D.S. Mangat, says, “It only means the heads are not supervising their schools properly. We will look into the matter.”

In the model schools category, GMSSS-16 clearly stands above the rest. They have a pass percentage of 97.06, while all other schools hover around the 90 per cent mark. This school recorded a pass percentage of 98.3 last year.

While GMSSS-35 has a pass percentage of 93.6, up by two per cent in comparison to last year, in the model senior secondary schools category, Sector 33 and Sector 37 schools have a percentage of 91.06 and 91.07 per cent against 87.37 and 100 per cent, respectively.

They are closely followed by GMSSS-44 and GMSSS-46 with pass percentage of 90.6 and 90.7, respectively. The lowest pass percentage is that of GMSSS-22 where 22 students have failed and 30 have a compartment.

In the secondary schools category, Sector 20-D school (with 36.45 per cent down from 70.58 per cent), Sector 15 school (with 41.28 per cent), Sector 27 school (with 46.9) and Sector 45 school (with 47.4 per cent) have shown poor performances while others have improved upon their last year’s performances.

Boys recorded a pass percentage of 78.8, while girls had a pass percentage of 80.59. Among the private schools Sacred Heart, Carmel Convent and Bhavan Vidyalaya have outshone others to emerge as the only schools to get 100 per cent results.

However, in contrast, only 48 of the 139 students who appeared in the examination from Sanjay Public School passed while in case of G.N. Khalsa School 38 out of 83 students passed the examination. In SGGS Collegiate Public School, too, students fared badly with only 143 of 363 students emerging successful.

Chandigarh Tribune spoke to the principals of the three private schools of the city that have secured 100 per cent result.

The Principal of Sacred Heart Senior Secondary School, Sector 26, Sister Elsie, says, “We put in a lot of hard work to ensure that our students emerge right on top. Our effort was to push all students above 80 per cent mark and everybody pitched in. However, there is always a next time and we will be looking to improve our performance in the coming session.’’

While there are six students in the above 90 per cent range, there are 28 others who fall between 85 and 89.9 per cent. The added distinction is that all students have at least a first division to their credit.

Consistency seems to hold the key to the success of students of Bhawan Vidyalaya, Sector 27. The topper of the commerce stream is from this school. Sixteen students of the school have scored above 85 per cent and no one got below 60 per cent marks.

“We are continuously evaluating our students’ performance through regular tests. Extra classes are held for weak students throughout the session. While the routine examinations are conducted in September and December, we have two pre-boards and students can demand separate examinations in subjects in which they want to get practice. Emphasis is laid on self-study to enable children to identify their problems and solve these before the exam,’’ says Principal Meenakshi Mohindra.

Carmel Convent, Sector 9, also has a fair share in the success story of the city as far as results go. Sister Oleen says the school emphasised on regular attendance and made sure the students attended classes. “There were no compromises on that. In addition, we had special classes for students who were not performing up to the mark.

They were called on holidays and revision sessions were organised by the school. I am satisfied with their performance,’’ she stated. Ten students of the school scored between 85 and 89.9 per cent and none of them went below first class.

Meanwhile, students who managed to cross 90 per cent marks were in a mood of celebration, but for those just short of the mark, nothing seemed to give comfort or consolation. Most of the students in the 85 to 89 per cent category, though winners in their own right, said applying for revaluation was their only hope.

According to another perception, students of the science and commerce streams were of the opinion that the CBSE result hardly mattered.

“All competitive examinations have to be taken and marks of the CBSE don’t count at all. It hardly makes a difference how we fare in these as long as we get qualifying marks,’’ they state.

Estate Office to privatise fee collection
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 24
There is a good news for people who own properties in the city. Job of receiving annual ground rents, lease money, instalments and fines will soon be out of the hands of clerks at the Estate Office and handed over to a bank.

A decision to select a bank which will collect all these fees, fines and rents on behalf of the Chandigarh Administration, will be taken in a week. The selected bank will deal with the property owners directly and will even provide net banking and phone banking services to its clients. Thousands of commercial, residential and industrial property owners have to battle it out with official of the Estate Office as their properties are on lease. Even in case of freehold properties, instalments have to be paid and owners have to visit the Estate Office.

At present, the system is cumbersome as a property owner has to first get a draft or bankers’ cheque made in favour of the Estate Office, get it noted in the treasury branch and then proceed further. Then comes the process of getting a receipt. Even after that there is no guarantee that the payment will be noted against his name correctly.

Yesterday, a team of bankers visited the Estate Office and conducted a survey to know how to carry out things. A long discussion between top officials of the Chandigarh Administration and the bankers was also organised where ideas were exchanged. Once the scheme is in place the banks will start collecting of payments. For accounting purposes, the bank, at the end of the day, will transfer all the money received to the accounts of the Estate Office.

No due certificate, a major hurdle for any property owner, will also be issued by the bank. The bank will also deal with processing of files of mortgaged property. The bank will also be asked to provided net banking facilities. The second stage will be the involvement of the bank in back-up operations. The ideas is to streamline and bring out professionalism in working of the Estate Office.

The new system of accepting payment through a bank means the government will need no staff to issue receipts, maintain registers of payments etc. 

City to get more power from today
Tribune News Service

With Monday’s agreement, additional power will also flow. It is expected that peak demand in the city will touch 200 MW in July and August. The Administration is also closely monitoring the breakdowns occurring in power supply. Each transformer has an electronic meter which records the peak demand. This data will help in augmenting the system in future and prevent major breakdowns. This will also allow power engineers to plan in the long-term.

Power supply fails in the very first item
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 24
The variety programme organised by the Office of Principal Accountant General (A and E), Haryana, would have been much better had the power supply in Tagore Theatre not failed in the very first presentation. Just as the first item of the function organised under the banner of ‘Indradhanush’ by the Sports and Recreation Club of the office started, the hall of Tagore Theatre went all black. It was all the more difficult for the performers who were in the middle of saraswati vandana.

They, however, kept the melody going and completed the vandana before the power supply was restored after about 10 minutes.

Luckily for the organisers, the power supply did not fail in the subsequent programmes. Right from play on family planning to many cultural presentations covering the elements of Punjab and Haryanavi folk, the programme had everything good about it.

The best thing was the music arrangement for the day. The function featured many items including folk songs, folk dances, skits and plays.

It needs to be mentioned here that the function started at about 7.15 pm, although the scheduled time was 6.30 pm. The delay was, however, compensated by a wonderfully-structured show as also by the spirit of employees and their family members who kept clapping throughout in order to keep up the morale of performers.

Man held on rape charge
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, May 24
Uday Singh, a resident of Mauli Jagran colony, was arrested by the police for allegedly raping an 11-year-old girl of the area here today.

According to the police, the accused allegedly allured the girl on some pretext to his house and committed the crime. Later, the girl raised an alarm and informed her parents. The accused was apprehended form the spot.

He was booked under Sections 363, 566 and 367 of the IPC. Later, a local court sent him in judicial custody till June 7.

COMMUNITY

Fire rages in Shivalik foothills
Khair trees worth crores destroyed
Our Correspondent

Mirzapur, May 24
Forests on the foothills of Shivalik in Punjab and Himachal Pradesh have been engulfed in a massive fire, which is showing no signs of dying down. Reported to have been caused by the heat wave, the forest fire is spreading with every passing minute. While no damage to life has been reported, the fire has already consumed Khair trees worth crores.

However, sources in the Punjab Forest Department said that they were making all-out efforts to control the fire. They claimed that the fire would be brought under control within the next couple of days. Though the source of fire could not be ascertained, yet sources say the fire has spread to the forests of Noorpur Bedi range, Siswana range and Mirzpur range and in the adjoining belt falling in Himachal Pradesh.

It is learnt that officials of the Forest Department were busy dousing the fires in the jungles till late in the evening. They were being assisted by the Fire Department and revenue officials. However, no officials was available for comment.

As the fire spreads, villagers residing in the foothills, who also have a significant share in the forest, are helplessly watching the trees being burnt to cinders. The villagers allege that timely action on the part of the Punjab Forest Department could have stopped the fire from spreading. Along with damage to property, villagers fear that several wild animals and birds, including wild pigs, neelgais, wild cock and peacocks might have perished in the fire.

Sources state that the fire started on Monday. Spreading ever since, it is now threatening to engulf the entire Shivalik belt. Patches of fire on the hills could be spotted from the Kurali — Chandigarh road. The Chandigarh Tribune team visited several spots where the flames could be seen reaching sky high. Residents of Mirzapur village, which is surrounded by hills from all sides, said on Tuesday morning, they had informed the Forest Department and the police about the fire. “The forest officials have visited the area several times in the past three days, but things seen to be out of their control”, said a visibly opset Mr Dayal Ram. The village sarpanch, Mr Lajja Ram, complained that the fire was destroying their property and had already claimed several thousands of Khair trees spread in about 3,200 acre owned by the villagers.

Another villager claimed that the fire had claimed Khair plantation of the past 10 years. “As per a rough estimate, trees worth Rs 10 crore had already been burnt and in the next few days the entire forests could be gutted”, estimated the sarpanch.

Changes in paid parking system demanded
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 24
Eight city residents, including a few traders in Sector 17, have threatened the municipal corporation to incorporate certain changes in the system of paid parking within a week else they will move court.

Certain abnormalities and irregularities in the faulty implementation of paid parking system, especially in Sector 17, have been pointed out by Mr Jagdish Arora, Mr R.P. Malhotra, Mr Jagdish Paul Kalra, Mr L.C. Arora, Mr Neeraj Bajaj, Mr Kamal Jit Singh Panchhi, Mr Chiranjiv Singh and Mr Rajinder Minocha.

The demands are: create ample free parking zones for the general public too; leave a strip of prescribed area in front showrooms for free parking of vehicles for the owners and employees of their establishments; declare the thorough roads and other traffic bottlenecks as toe away zones to ease smooth flow of traffic; remove discrimination among the government employees and private employees; provide complaint books at the entry points of the paid parking areas; implement the concept of first park and then pay and roll back the entry fee/parking fee to the previous one.

In a memorandum submitted to the Mayor, Ms Lalit Joshi, they said the recently re-implemented paid parking system has a member of variations and ambiguities from the basic procedure and process decided by the MC previously.

Inclusion of free parking zones and tow-away zones into paid parking zones and enhancement of parking fee from Rs 2 to 5 has drastically affected the business.

Initially, the plan was to convert 50 per cent of the parking area as paid parking but now almost 90 per cent of area available is covered under paid parking area, they said.

“Highly congested and overcrowded parking area has left no space for the smooth movement for fire tenders in Sector 17. Two incidents of fire in Sector 17-C and D had occurred recently and the Fire Brigade took ample time in reaching the spot.

The contractors’ staff in total contravention to the terms and conditions, issue the slips and charge the parking fee just at the entry point of roads and market places without bothering to see the arrangement of proper parking of vehicles, the memorandum said.

Hospital for Chhatbir zoo inmates
Bipan Bhardwaj

Chhatbir (Patiala), May 24
After a long wait, inmates of the Mahendra Chaudhary Zoological park will have good medical facilities in a well-equipped hospital.

The building of the zoo hospital will come up at a cost of Rs 4 lakh in a month or two. The project had been under consideration for the past over six years but due to some administrative and financial problems could not be taken up, according to Dr Vinod Sharma, Chief Warden (zoos) Punjab. He said the zoo authorities had initially demanded Rs 4 lakh for the completion of the project but, later, as the master plan of the building was changed by an architect, the authorities sought Rs 4.27 lakh for it. “Against the required money, the Central Zoo authorities (CZA) sanctioned only Rs 4 lakh,” said Dr Sharma.

Sources in department said that the zoo authorities had not spent the Rs 4 lakh had been sanctioned by the CZA earlier for development works in the zoo. Since the authorities had failed to spend the money released, the CZA had threatened to stop further grants to the zoo.

The CZA had been demanding the ‘Utilisation Certificate’ from the zoo authorities to release funds to carry out further development works in the zoo, sources revealed.

According to Dr Sharma, 90 per cent of the construction work of the hospital has been completed. A fully air-conditioned operation theatre (OT) with modern hydraulic operation table, an X-ray room with portable X-ray machine, a recovery room and an ultrasound machine would be the facilities on offer for the animals. Presently, the sick and injured animals are being treated in the cages and enclosures. Also, bodies of animals are taken to the Punjab Agriculture University (PAU) at Ludhiana for conducting post-mortem examinations. With the completion of the hospital, separate organs of dead animals could be sent to the PAU instead of sending the entire carcasses, a zoo official revealed. 

Kidnapped cop’s kids pray for parents
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 24
A strange silence greets you as you enter the transit flat occupied by the two sons of a Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr Jagdish Nagar. This is certainly not what one expects of a house-full of children.

On going inside, one comes across three young children, along with Saksham, younger son of Mr Nagar, trying to concentrate on a game. Newspapers with reports of the status of negotiations between the state government and the BKU leaders, lie scattered in the room. The elder son, Akshay, was away to Chandigarh for his classes for entrance examination of Law.

As they hear news of the Punjab and Haryana High Court appointing a warrant officer to secure the release of DSP Ashok Sheaoran from the captivity of BKU leaders, they cheer the order and hope that their reunion with Mr and Mrs Nagar is also round the corner.

It may be noted that the couple, along with their gunman, was kidnapped on May 20 from near Khanda Kheri village, where they were headed. The police officer belongs to the said village and had planned to stay there with his relatives for the night, before pursuing their onward journey to Jind on next day.

Says Ms Ritu, a cousin of the DSP’s children, who has been camping here with the children since Mr Nagar and his wife, Ms Rajwanti Devi, had been taken captive by the Bharatiya Kisan Union in Jind district three days ago, ‘‘ It is a long wait for uncle and aunty. We thought of diverting our attention somewhere else and thus cope with the stress’’.

Her husband, Sukhbir Singh, too, has been staying here with the children. ‘‘Police ki naukri mein aisa to chalta hi hai. Hamein suchna mil rahi hai ki woh dono theek hain’’. (Such incidents are common in a policeman’s job. We have been receiving word that they are fine). He says that they are trying to keep the children in good humour.

Talking to TNS, Saksham informed that his cousin, Kapil Nagar, had met his parents at their hide-out yesterday. ‘‘He says that they are coping fine and are being moved from one hide-out to another every 10 hours. We had arrived to stay with out father only on May 19, after the school closed for summer vacations, hoping to have a good time together. After the trauma of being separated from them like this, we hope that they come back soon,’’ he says . 

City expert joins tunnelling panel
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 24
Mr Ravinder Kumar Sharma, a local tunnelling professional, has joined as member of the International Committee of the elite Rapid Excavation and Tunnelling Conference (RETC) sponsored by the Society for Mining, in Littleton, Colorado, USA.

The RETC, a biennial event, deals with tunnelling projects throughout the world and the difficulties faced during tunnelling and underground construction. The discussions take place by presentation of papers as case histories which are authored and presented by principal job site personnel in charge of major tunnelling projects.

The next RETC is due from June 15-18, 2003, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. He will represent India at the conference.

Mr Sharma has been involved in tunnelling and heavy construction professionally since 1973 and has helped overcome many complex problems the Indian tunnelling industry faced.

He is a former student of the Department of Geology, Panjab University, Chandigarh.

Heatwave toll in region 32

Chandigarh, May 24
The heatwave sweeping Punjab and Haryana for the past four weeks has claimed three more lives, taking the toll in the region to 32.

Two persons died in Bhiwani and one in Bathinda, police and hospital sources said today.

Meanwhile, despite isolated drizzles, people got little respite from the sizzling heatwave in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh.

While Delhiites got a slight respite from the blistering heatwave conditions following a strong duststorm and sharp showers last evening, the rest of the region remained mainly dry.

Thundery conditions in the adjoining areas of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan gave the people there the much-needed relief from the simmering heatwave conditions, though marginally.

Weather Bureau Director S. C. Bhan said here today that though the heatwave was in its fourth week, its longest spell, there was a week’s break till May 19 when the maximum temperatures stayed normal or 1 to 2°C above normal. PTI, UNI 

Dance party at Funcity today
Our Correspondent

Ramgarh (Panchkula), May 24
For the entertainment of residents of Chandigarh, Panchkula and nearby towns, Surya Funcity Limited will organise an exotic dance party with Russian model Lada at Funcity Amusement Park located on the Panchkula-Naraingarh road here tomorrow.

Apart from this, Funcity Grind would continue as a regular feature on every Saturday and Sunday at Funcity Wunder Water till July 7. Adding more enjoyment, a lucky dip Scheme has also been introduced on weekends.

The invitees and the participants would be given prizes after holding a draw, informed Ms Bhupinder Kaur, manager events of the company.

SOCIAL MONITOR
An evening with Koena and Chivas
A.S.Prashar
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 24
For members of the Chandigarh Club and Chandigarh Golf Club, it was a novel experience. One of India’s leading models, Koena Mitra, ambled from table to table on Thursday and Friday evenings, and invited them to taste Chivas Regal, the classic, premium Scotch whisky in a novel fashion: Chivas on the Sugar.

Not many could resist it. Even the women wanted to have a go at it. There was excitement in the air at the two clubs on Thursday and Friday as the evening descended and a team from Chivas Regal made its appearance. Soon it began its ritualistic offering of whisky to the members. Dark and sultry Koena, dressed in the manner supermodels do, approached a table accompanied by smartly-dressed girls and young men, carrying a bottle of Chivas Regal and small boxes containing a few crystals of sugar.

‘‘Would you like to taste Chivas on the Sugar, Sir?’’ she asked in a sing song voice.

‘‘Oh yes, thank you,’’ came the eager reply.

Koena then handed over a small matchbox-sized carton containing the sugar crystals to the member and asked him to place them on his tongue. That done, she poured a small amount of Chivas in a shot glass and asked the member to swallow it neat in a single gulp, which the member did.

Many found the experience fun and innovative. Others had trouble catching their breath after the neat whisky went down the foodpipe. A few others downed it in a jiffy and waited for the second shot. But there was no second helping.

‘‘How do you find it, Sir’’, asked Koena. Some nodded, a few enthusiastically and a few looked uncertain. ‘‘Doesn’t it taste like honey?’’ prompted Koena helpfully and there was an immediate positive response.

‘Chivas on the Sugar’ is an exciting way to enjoy the taste of Chivas Regal, sipped through brown sugar crystals. The ritual brings out the truly unique character of the Chivas Regal blend - smooth, with a honeyed richness, round and full bodied, with a long lingering finish, says Mr Sumeet Lamba, vice-president (marketing), Seagram India. He pointed out that ‘‘Chivas Regal was launched in the city of Chandigarh, a couple of months ago. Within such a short span of time, we have received an overwhelming response. This has encouraged us to revisit the city and introduce ‘Chivas on the Sugar’, to the fun-living people of Chandigarh. We plan to introduce several new and exciting ways to enjoy Chivas Regal’’.

Chivas Regal has been an international icon for its impeccable quality standards and craftsmanship for more than 200 years. In Chandigarh, Chivas Regal is priced at Rs 4,000 for 750 ml bottle and Rs 5,000 for 1 litre bottle at retail. It is currently available at leading departmental stores, duty-free shops, bars and restaurants.

Police-public interaction
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 24
To check burglaries, the police has initiated a special campaign to improve the police-public interaction. Public meetings are being held in all the phases to listen to the grievances of the residents, said the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr H.S. Bhullar.

He said in the past it had been seen that in cases of burglaries or robberies, the residents did not react in the manner they should. Being alert about ones surroundings helped in checking incidents of crime. As part of the campaign, a meeting was held with the residents of Nayagaon.

After the meeting, a report on the basic issues of the residents would be prepared for taking appropriate action, he said.

Spirituality expo opens
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, May 24
A three-day “Scientific Spirituality Expo-2002” by the North-West Zone India of the Global Gayatri Parivar began at the Parade Ground, Sector 17, here today. In the morning, 251 women members of the parivar carried holy Kalash on their heads from Gayatri Shakti Peeth, SAS Nagar, to the venue. Another shobha yatra of the parivar from Panchkula reached the Parade Ground.

The expo, which was inaugurated by Mr Ashwani Sekhri, Punjab Minister for Industries, is about the scientific aspects of spirituality. Dr Pranav Pandya, head of Global Gayatri Parivar and Chancellor of Dev Sanskriti Vishvavidyalya, Shantikunj, Hardwar, gave a devotional sangeet pravachan on “science of Gayatri Mantra” in the evening. In the evening, a film on Shantikunj, Sanjeevni Vidya, was also screened.

Dr Pandya said that spirituality, was the only way to attain peace. He said that wordly allurements were many but people should not run after them. ‘‘It does not mean that we should adopt the path of renunciation and go to the Himalayas, that will mean running from the path of parmartha’’, said Dr Pandya.

An exhibition on topics like drug de-addiction and ill-effects of drugs, women empowernment, social evils, scientific spirituality and environment is also under way at the expo. The organisers have tried to deliver their message by using various interesting 3-D models. “To learn tools and techniques for energising latent talents, to learn and experience the power of yoga, meditation, prayer, mantra and yagna and enjoy a very high level of bliss and blessings, one must come to the expo”, said Mr Chander Mohan Sharma, zonal convener of the parivar.

Trucks collide, no one hurt
Tribune News Service

SAS Nagar, May 24
At least 16 occupants in two trucks had a miraculous escape when the two vehicles collided at the roundabout of Sectors 29,30, 31 and 32 near the GMCH-32. One of the trucks, driven by Anil Kumar, was coming from Sector 45, while the other, driven by Kashmir Singh, was coming from The Tribune roundabout and hit the tail-end of the former. Till the filing of the report no case had been registered.

Customers harassed
Tribune News Service

SAS Nagar, May 24
People buying liquor from a vend in Palsora village today complained that the workers of the contractor of the Phase I liquor vend, adjoining Palsora village, were forcibly preventing the customers from buying liquor from Chandigarh. The workers of the contractor could be seen harassing people buying liquor from the Chandigarh vend.

Human trafficking; 2 detained
Our Correspondent

Dera Bassi, May 24
The flesh trade case, in which four persons, including two women were detained by the local police, took a new turn today when only a man and woman were arrested and the remaining two were released after questioning.

Moreover, a case under Section 109 was registered against the duo, Sunil Gupta, a personal manager in a local factory and Manju Rani, wife of an employee who is also employed with the same factory, for loitering under suspicious circumstances on the local College Road.

Interestingly, a Haryana Home guard employee and a local teenaged girl, who were also among the detained, were released after questioning.

Both the accused were granted bail, today.

Three deaths reported
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, May 24
Ramesh Kumar, in his early thirties, allegedly ended his life by hanging himself from a ceiling fan in his Sector-46 house here this evening. The victim was married and had two children.

An unidentified man, in his mid-twenties was found dead in the bushes behind a wine shop in Sector 47, here this evening. Police sources said that the body bore no signs of injury and initial investigations reveal that he died of excessive consumption of liquor.

In yet another case, an unidentified beheaded male body was found on the Railway tracks near the Housing Board Colony, Sector 19, at Panchkula today. The GRP has proceeded under Section 174 of Cr. P.C. in this regard. The victim was wearing a white and brown shirt over black trousers. 

3 of family booked in fraud case
Tribune News Service

Panchkula, May 24
The police has booked three members of a family residing in Sector 12 here on charges of breach of trust and fraud. The accused — Pankaj Joshi, Ms Raj Joshi and Aanchal Joshi — have been accused of duping Ripu Daman of Rs 2. 95 lakh on the pretext of sending him to Italy.

In another case, Lal Chand has accused Devendra Kumar and Mohan Lal of duping him by taking earnest money worth Rs 20,000 for sale of a shop in Bhainsa Tibba and then turning away the offer. A case under Sections 406 and 420 of the IPC has been registered.

In another case of cheating, fraud and impersonation, the Chief Manager of State Bank of India, Sector 10, here has accused five persons of cheating the bank of about Rs 35,000. While Mohan Lal Sharma and Rajinder Jain had taken Rs 10,000 each as loan from the Mandi Gobindgarh branch of the bank on forged papers, Vijay Kumar had taken a loan on forged papers from a Phagwara branch, Ashok Kumar had taken Rs 5000 from a Ludhiana branch, while Ram Pal had taken a loan of Rs 10,000 from a New Delhi branch.

Four booked
The police has booked four persons- Sant Ram, Ishwar Chand, Prem Kumar and Channi on charges of hitting Nitin Kumar’s motorcycle with their car ( HR-49- 9800) near the Housing Board Colony on Thursday night and then beating him up with sticks and hockeys. They have been booked under Sections 279, 324, 325, 506, 427, 34 of the IPC.

One arrested
The policehas arrested Ranjit Singh from the bus stand of village Basaula village and seized nine bottles of country made liquor from him.

Car stolen
An Indica car (HR- 06H- 4737) was reportedly stolen by S.K. Bose from near Sahara restaurant on Thursday. A case under Section 379 of the IPC has been registered.

One injured
A young woman, Vinita was injutred after she fell out of the window of a Haryana Roadways bus, because of the rash and negligent driving by the driver. A case under Sections 279, 337 and 114 of the IPC has been registered.

Foreigner sentenced
A resident of Tanzania , Masood Khalifa , has been sentenced to one year’s rigorous imprisonment in a drug trafficking case. The accused was involved in selling smack from his house in Sector 15. He had been arrested in May, 2000.

Another foreigner, Mrishael Chukwu Mastws , has been sentenced to two year’s of rigorous imprisonment by the special court of Mr H.S. Bhangu . A Nigerian national, he was arrested from near Sector 2 in April last year and smack was recovered from him.

CHANDIGARH

Theft cases
During the past 24 hours, the police has received four cases of theft including one motor cycle from different parts of the city.

Mr Vivek Aggarwal, a resident of Sector 11, reported to the police that 11 fans including two exhaust fans, electric items and three bags of sanitary items was stolen from his house. The house is under construction and was lying locked for about past one month. The theft came to notice of the owner only yesterday when he visited the house.

A gold kara, two watches and Rs 7,000 were allegedly stolen from residence of Mr V.K. Chopra, a resident of Sector 23, here yesterday.

Thieves reportedly decamped with an LPG cylinder, gas stove, cable wires and other household goods from the residence of Mr Ayodhya Shashtri, a resident of Modern Housing Complex, sometime between May 21 and 23. The house was unoccupied during the above said period.

Mr Manu Bhambra, a resident of Sector 32, reported to the police that his Hero Honda motor cycle (CH-01-H - 1978) was stolen from his residence on Wednesday night.

Injured
A scooterist, Mr Amar Nath, a resident of Kurali, was injured after being hit by an Ambassador car (PB-09-0019) near roundabout of Sectors 36, 37, 40 and 41 on May 20. The car driver sped away from the spot. A case under Sections 279 and 337 of the IPC has been registered.

Beaten
Mr Mohan Lal, a resident of Phase I, Industrial Area, alleged that he was beaten up by two brothers, Tandeshwar and Nageshwar, residents of Colony No. 4, last week. The complainant got fracture in his left shoulder. A case under Sections 325 and 34 of the IPC has been registered. 

BUSINESS

Techshow-2002, a treat for the techno-savvy
Tribune News Service

Big shots of the industry like AMD, HP, Canon, IBM, TVSE, TCS (Tata Consultancy Services), Zenith, Invensys, ADCOM, E3R (Call Center Training) and various other companies have their latest technology and gadgets on display. The exposition is a unique opportunity to technology, products, services and their users together under one roof. The basic aim of Techshow 2002 is interaction among the technology-developers and technology-users, technology tie-ups for the industry, interaction with a number of country’s representatives, and academic institutions to bring quality knowledge to the people, R & D institutes to personalise their technologies and call centres to serve clients more efficiently. Companies like Airtel and Emmtel have used the occasion to improve their subscriber base in Chandigarh and so media houses like C & IT, Newsline, Computer Bazar columns and ICN.

Govt to encourage NRIs to invest
Our Correspondent

SAS Nagar, May 24
The Punjab Government will provide a conducive environment and needed facilities to NRIs who were interested in investing in the state, said. Mr Raghunath Sahai Puri, Urban Development and Housing Minister, Punjab, after inaugurating an amusement park near here today.

Mr Puri said if an NRI comes forward to set up an industrial unit or any other business in the state, the government would try to make the relevant procedures easy for him so that he does not face any difficulty. Administrative officials would be issued instructions so that simple procedures were implemented, he added.

He alleged that the SAD-BJP government in Punjab had failed on this front as it was not able to provide a congenial atmosphere or the needed facilities to NRIs. He alleged that the former government was more interested in finding out what share would it be getting provided an NRI was allowed to set up a business in the state.

Mr Ashwani Sekhri, Minister of State for Tourism and Cultural Affairs, Punjab, said from tourism the nation earned a revenue of Rs 45,000 crore each year out of Rs 15,000 crore constituted foreign currency.

He sai the former government had ignored the tourism department. Now, he said, the government would make efforts to revive it and would develop it on the pattern being followed by states like Kerala and Karnataka.

He said under the new tourism policy, the government would like to develop the religious and cultural aspects of the state so that tourists become aware of the rich culture of Punjab. He said the government had decided to develop the area from SAS Nagar to Patiala in the form of heritage because many historical places like Quilla Mubarik, Moti Bagh, Aam Khas, Bagh, etc, fell in the area and there was an urgent need to protect such places.

MARKET PULSE
Playwin hits Rs 8.61-cr jackpot
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 24
Playwin Sikkim Super Lotto, the country’s first online lottery, created history by creating the first Rs 8.61-crore jackpot winner in India in its ninth draw. The six lucky numbers 04, 16, 18, 21, 23 and 44 were announced at the draw which was held on May 23 at Gangtok, Sikkim.

The excitement and expectations were huge with everyone keeping their fingers crossed. Hearts were pumping hard with millions of people dreaming of winning a Rs 8.61 crore jackpot. The ninth draw did not disappoint anyone.

The Chief Minister of Sikkim, Mr Pawan Kumar Chamling, recently presented a cheque to Nilesh Taware, India’s first Rs 2 crore jackpot winner of the Playwin Sikkim Super Lotto in Gangtok.

Hitting the second jackpot in a span of five weeks has heightened the excitement of the game. The next draw would be held on May 30 and will be telecast live from Gangtok on Zee TV between 9 p.m. and 9.30 p.m.

Madura garments

Madura Garments yesterday opened its new Peter England megastore in Sector 17 here.

The 12th megastore in the country, this outlet will have Peter England formal shirts, elements casual and San Frisco (trousers). The outlet was inaugurated by Mr Ramesh Acharya, national sales manager. The customer would be able to choose from a wide range of over 2,000 shirts and trousers and over 800 trousers in different colours and designs, said Mr Acharya.

The latest collections in the store include the new summer mints range of shirts, aquacool range of trousers — specially treated trousers to keep the heat away.