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Cops given clean chit 
Burail jail break case
Chandigarh, February 19
The Chandigarh police has given a clean chit to its officials who were involved in the investigations of the sensational Burail jail break case.

Hailstorm lashes city
Chandigarh, February 19
Rain, a brief hail storm and high-speed winds lashed the city and surrounding areas today. The wind speed was so high that it touched a whopping 115 km per hour at 1:20 a.m today.

Chandigarh experiences a hailstorm on Wednesday. — Photo Karam Singh

Winds sweep off Kalagram stalls
Chandigarh, February 19
Changing weather has dampened the spirit of both the visitors and the artisans participating in Kalagram Utsav going on at Kalagram along the Kalka-Shimla highway.

• Major power breakdown

Scholarships for PU toppers
Chandigarh, February 19
Panjab University has instituted special scholarships for toppers at the undergraduate and post-graduate levels from the forthcoming academic session. These scholarships will be paid from the Alumni Fund.

UT ignores its disabled
Job quota policy takes a beating
Chandigarh, February 19
It is high time the UT Administration reviewed its policy with regard to 3 per cent job reservation for the physically handicapped. Disabled candidates from Punjab and Haryana are being adjusted in posts of UT departments by ignoring the rightful claims of the disabled from the city. This is being done in gross violation of Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995, active in UT.

Institute in disuse:  MLA for probe
SAS Nagar, February 19
Four years after the World Bank-financed Institute of Health and Family Welfare Complex was inaugurated by the then Chief Minister Mr Parkash Singh Badal in Phase VI here, the Kharar MLA, Mr Bir Devinder Singh, today called for an in-depth departmental inquiry into its current state of disuse and degeneration.

COMMUNITY

CHOPRA MURDER CASE
He was the black sheep: Bhupa’s father
SAS Nagar, February 19
Investigations in the February 17 murder of V.K. Chopra, XEN, Chandigarh Administration, are now hinging on the arrest of the main suspect, Brij Bhushan Sharma, alias Bhupa, who along with two others is still at large. The two conspirators who were arrested yesterday have been granted police custody by the Kharar court, sources in the police department said.

Contract killings on the rise Chandigarh, February 19 Contract killings are no longer the domain of underworld dons. The trend is fast catching up in the region if the recent incidents of contract killings in the city is any indication. And the killers are not from outside. They are mostly those whose name figure in police records.

Today’s victory revives cup hopes

Chandigarh, February 19 Cricket buffs, high on the World Cup spirit, sat intoxicated in front of television sets, as the Indian team revived their cup hopes by winning against Zimbabwe. As master-blaster Sachin Tendulkar let himself loose on the opposition right from the beginning, fans here, sure of their team’s victory, took out crackers to celebrate the impending win. Cricket buffs enjoy the match between India and Zimbabwe, in Sector 9, Panchkula, on Wednesday. — A Tribune photograph

Jacob favours sharing of technology
Chandigarh, February 19
The Punjab Governor, Lt Gen J.F.R. Jacob (retd), speaking at a seminar here today said that Canada and the USA should pass on the benefits of research in fuel cell technology and the use of hydrogen as a fuel to the developing countries so that these countries could benefit from these technologies.

Tributes paid to Beant Singh Chandigarh, February 19 To commemorate the 81st birth anniversary of the late Beant Singh, PPCC leaders and his family members paid floral tributes to the former Chief Minister at Beant Singh Memorial here today. Ms Jaswant Kaur, wife of late Beant Singh, pays tributes to her husband on his birth anniversary, at Beant Memorial, Sector 42, Chandigarh, on Wednesday. — A Tribune photograph

PSEB fails to clear bills
Chandigarh, February 19
Can one believe that the financial position of the Punjab State Electricity Board ( PSEB) is in really mess. The management is not only finding it difficult to clear the bills for coal supply but small payments worth a few lakh rupees to each small scale unit, which had supplied small items like nut bolts and transformers, have not been cleared even for the period of August, 2002.

Foundation stone laid Chandigarh, February 19 The Mayor of local Municipal Corporation Subash Chawla, today laid the foundation stone of a community centre building at Vikas Nagar, Mauli Jagran. Mr Subash Chawla, Mayor of the Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh, lays the foundation stone of a community centre at Mauli Jagran village on Wednesday.

41st Sood Mela on February 23
Chandigarh, February 19
The Sood Sabha, Chandigarh, will hold its 41st all-India Sood mela at Sood Bhavan in Sector 44-A on February 23, Mr Raj Kumar Maria, public relations secretary of the sabha, said here. 

Swami’s lecture

CRIME

Mohali man drugged, robbed
SAS Nagar, February 19
A local shopkeeper was robbed of cash and jewellery by a car driver in Ludhiana on Sunday. Mr Rajinder Pal Singh, resident of Phase IV here, who runs a shop in the Phase III B1 rehri market, was robbed of a gold “kara”, a gold chain, a mobile phone, Rs 5,000 and some items he had purchased for his shop by the car driver who had offered to give him a lift to Chandigarh.

Group attacks four with swords
Kharar, February 19
A case under Sections 307, 324, 323, 148, 341 and 149 of the IPC and the Arms Act has been registered against two persons, Ladi and Aman, and about 15 others on the charge of injuring a youth, Goldi, and several others with swords and sticks yesterday.

Case of cheating registered
Chandigarh, February 19
The Chandigarh Police has registered a case of cheating against a contractor and his son for allegedly putting up fake papers of surety for a tender of works floated by the Chandigarh Administration.

BUSINESS

MARKET PULSE
Soft drink launched
Chandigarh, February 19
Pepsi Foods Private Ltd launched ‘Mountain Dew,’ its citrus-based neon-coloured drink here today. At the launch, Mr Sandeep Singhal, vice-president of the company, said: “This is the third largest soft drink brand in the USA. It would be available in 500 ml Pet and 300 ml returnable glass bottles at an introductory price of Rs 15 and Rs 9, respectively, at all outlets, pubs, restaurants and eateries across the city.’’

EDUCATION

Workshop on cytogenetics
Chandigarh, February 19
The 21st century is all set to witness an accelerated progress in the field of cytogenetics because of its wide range of applications in gene correction. This was stated by Prof S.K.Taneja, Chairman of the Department of Zoology, Panjab University, (PU) at the inaugural session of the University Grants Commission (UGC) sponsored workshop on “Cytogenetics-modern trends” in the university here today.

Principal denies allegations
Chandigarh, February 19
The Principal of Kailash Bahl DAV Public School, Sector 7, Ms Madhu Bahl, today denied that students were being compelled to pay Rs 600 for their farewell party and for buying a gift for her.

Rotary GSE team visits school
Panchkula, February 19
As part of the group study exchange (GSE) programme of the Rotary Foundation, five Sri Lankans who are in the city, visited Hansraj Public School here today. After the traditional tilak ceremony, they performed a yajna under the guidance of the students.

Educational fair organised
Chandigarh, February 19
Canam, an overseas educational consultant company, organised an educational fair here today in which representatives from around the world — the USA, Canada, the UK, New Zealand, Singapore and Switzerland participated.

Painting contest prizes given away
SAS Nagar, February 19
The prize-distribution function for the 18th Nitish Lahiri On-the-Spot Painting Competition was held in Shivalik Public School here today. The competition had been organised by the Rotary Club of SAS Nagar.

National youth festival
Chandigarh, February 19
The three-day national youth festival ‘Jhankar 2003’, commences in Panjab University tomorrow, according to a press note issued by the Panjab University Campus Students Council here today.

‘Fin Hunch’ draws crowd
Chandigarh, February 19
There was heavy rush at “Fin Hunch”, a mega management game show organised by University Business School at Panjab University here today. The debate which was the first event of the day saw a lot of heat on “Customer is not the king-telecom shows the way” in the preliminary round and “Globalisation is nothing but nationalisation of the internationalisation” in the final round. 

Rural students given prizes
Chandigarh, February 19
Eight students of schools in rural and slum areas, who secured top positions in the Human Development Talent Contest, were given prizes at a function organised by the Kusum Arora Memorial Trust in collaboration with the UT Education Department at Government High School in Sarangpur.

COURTS

DISTRICT COURTS
Bootleggers get six-month RI
Chandigarh, February 19
Two local persons were given six month rigorous imprisonment under the Excise Act by a local court today. The men — Dev Raj and Rajesh — received the sentence from the UT Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, who also fined them Rs 500 each.

HEALTH

CT scan facility
Panchkula, February 19
The Haryana Government has started providing the facility of CT scan to the needy patients in General Hospital, Sector-6 here, from today onwards. In a press release here today, Mrs. Satwanti Ahlawat, Deputy Commissioner, said that the patients could avail the facility of CT scan of head, neck, upper and lower abdominal region, stomach, spine and other parts of the body at fixed rates. However, few categories of economically weaker sections can avail this facility free of cost, she said.

300 examined at medical camp Chandigarh, February 19 A medical awareness camp was organised at Shri Dhanwantry Ayurveda College and Hospital in Sector 46 today in which a team of doctors, yoga experts and dietician examined about 300 persons from various departments of Panjab University. A doctor of Shri Dhanwantry Ayurvedic College and Hospital examines a student at a free medical check-up camp organised by the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad at Students’ Centre, Panjab University, Chandigarh, on Wednesday. — A Tribune photograph

Blood  donation camp

SPORTS

Gupta, Adhikari in final
Chandigarh, February 19
Saurav Sen Gupta and Deepankar Adhikari, both of the RSB, Kolkata, will meet in the final of the men’s singles on the penultimate day of the All India Civil Services Table Tennis meet at Sector 23 hall here today.

TTA mourns Arjun’s death

Cop suspended for drunken brawl
Chandigarh, February 19
A Head Constable of the Chandigarh police, Satya Parkash, was today placed under suspension for indulging in a drunken brawl at a liquor shop in Sector 32 here this evening. According to information he was with a constable of the Haryana police, Satish.

Jhuggis removed