Green belt full of rats, snakes
Chandigarh, October 9
A closed down Municipal Corporation store and thick bushes around it in the Sector 46 green belt are bringing rats, snakes and people to defecate to the sector. Bushes and vegetation are thick and tall enough for a human being to hide around the store.

Hundreds of empty drums and wild vegetation in the Sector 46 green belt are becoming a habitat for rats and snakes. — photo Manoj Mahajan

‘Crime against women on the rise’
Chandigarh, October 9
A workshop on “Sexual harassment of women at workplace” was organised by the Deputy Commissioner’s office and the Estate Office here yesterday under the leadership of Ms Seema Handa, Law Officer-cum-Chairperson of the complaint committee.

Differences in Cong come to fore
SAS Nagar, October 9
Differences among Congressmen came into the open when the Kharar MLA staged a protest at the inauguration of the new block of the Civil Hospital by the Punjab Health Minister here today.

Advani makes brief halt in city
Chandigarh, October 9
Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Lal Krishan Advani here today had brief stop-overs during his visit to and fro Himachal Pradesh and Delhi. Mr Advani reached the Air Force airport in the morning and spent about 10 minutes meeting dignitaries present there.

Tibetan youths honoured
Chandigarh, October 9
Twelve Tibetan students, today earned distinction of ‘national heroes’, for succeeding in highlighting Tibetan issue. They were honoured by the Tibet Youth Congress, Dharmsala at a function organised in their honour here today.
Twelve Tibetan students, who were jailed in connection with a recent demonstration against Chinese rule in Tibet, were honoured by the Regional Tibetan Youth Congress, Chandigarh, on Wednesday. — A Tribune photograph

Hindi fortnight concludes
Chandigarh, October 9
A cultural programme and prize distribution function marked the conclusion of the Hindi fortnight celebrations of the PGI here. Presiding over the function, known dancer Madan Lal Koshar said that the medical science was the only profession which has a unique combination of the both Hindi and English language.

Modgil heads BJYM
Chandigarh, October 9
Within a day of the newly nominated BJP president Yashpal Mahajan being authorised to reconstitute morchas and cells of the organisation, Mr Mahajan replaced Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha president Satinder Singh with Mr Davesh Modgil. 

Awareness drive on fake currency
Chandigarh, October 9
Punjab National Bank organised an awareness programme on soiled and fake currency notes, in its Sector 22-D branch here today. 

PUDA auctions commercial sites
SAS Nagar, October 9
The Punjab Urban Development Authority fetched more than Rs 7 crore at the auction of 15 commercial sites in Sectors 70 and 65 here today. Exemplary transparency marked the auction held under the personal supervision of the Additional Chief Administrator, PUDA, Mr Yashvir Mahajan, and the Estate Officer, PUDA.

Nominated
Chandigarh
Mr Vikram Katyal, a resident of Sector 6, has been nominated member of the Regional Direct Taxes Advisory Committee, Panchkula.

CIA arrests UT staffer
Chandigarh, October 9
Parmod Thakur, an electrician in the UT Electricity Department, was today arrested by the CIA, allegedly with certain parts of a Suzuki motor cycle, which was reported be stolen from Sector 32 on October 3 here.

5 cops booked in suicide case
Lalru, October 9
Following directions from the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the police has booked two Sub-Inspectors and an Assistant Sub-Inspector with the CIA Staff, Ambala, for forcing a resident of Alamgir village, near here, to commit suicide.

Theft in Markfed office

SPOTLIGHT - 22B
Electronic home appliances’ Mecca of city
Without it, entertainment in the lives of the city residents, albeit through electronic gizmos, toys, eating out and exercise equipment, could not have been thought of. 


A night view of the market in Sector 22-B. — photo Pravesh Chauhan

• Problems

Britannia launches promotional scheme
Chandigarh, October 9
Britannia Industries Limited, yesterday launched ‘Britannia Khao, World Cup Jao,’ a product-promotional scheme, in the city. Mr Vinod Tiwari, General Manager of the Delhi branch, said the scheme would be implemented from October 16. 

Spice launches cricket game

Primary school games begin
Dera Bassi, October 9
The Block Level Primary School Games-2002 of Block I started today in Government Primary School, Devi Nagar, about 2 km from here, this morning. The participating teams from various schools started pouring on the school premises along with their teachers early in the morning.

Participants, along with Mr Deepinder Singh Dhillon, Additional Advocate-General of Punjab, at the inaugural function of the Block-Level Primary School Games-2002, in Devi Nagar village, near Dera Bass,i on Wednesday.

Poem recitation contest
Chandigarh, October 9
A Punjabi poem recitation and a group song contest were held as a part of the on-going Population Education Week being organised by the Population and Development Cell of the State Institute of Education, Sector 32, here today.

Adopt values of life, students advised
SAS Nagar, October 9
The second annual convocation of Government College was held here today. Mr N. S. Rattan, Principal Secretary, Higher Education, Punjab, who was the chief guest, urged the graduates to meet the challenges and improve the quality of life by adopting the values advocated by great men like Socrates, Osho and Buddha.
Students of Government College, Phase 6, at the annual convocation of the college in SAS Nagar on Wednesday. — A Tribune photograph

COURTS

DISTRICT COURTS
Bail plea in visa racket dismissed
Chandigarh, October 9
A bail plea moved by a suspect, Kushwinder, who had been arrested by the UT police in the racket involving issue of fake visas, was today dismissed by a local court. Meanwhile, another suspect, Priyanka, has also filed a bail plea in the case.

WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY
Mental health care remains a taboo area
Chandigarh, October 9
Even as various WHO studies indicate that after heart diseases it is depression which is the second highest of global diseases, even then mental health remains an ignored area today, with a number of misconceptions surrounding it.

• 200 examined

PU campus win swimming meet
Chandigarh, October 9
Panjab University Campus, Chandigarh, clinched the Panjab University Inter-College Swimming Championship held at PU swimming pool. The second place in this section went to the Government College for Girls, Sector 11, while the MCM DAV College for Women, Chandigarh, get third place.

• Rudra excels in world meet

• Cricket meet

SSP’s post: 3 interviewed
Chandigarh, October 9
An informal interview for the post of SSP, Chandigarh, was held today with three candidates meeting the UT Administrator, Lieut Gen J.F.R. Jacob (retd), here today. The three — Mr Gaurav Yadav, Dr Sharad Chauhan and Mr Harpreet Sidhu — are all Punjab cadre Indian Police Service (IPS) officers.