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Swiss national found dead in Panchayat Bhavan
Chandigarh, April 19
Little did a night watchman at Sector 18 Panchayat Bhavan, Des Raj, know that he would be the last person to see alive a 43-year-old Swiss national, Edwin Bosshard. The over six-foot tall foreigner, who had checked into a deluxe room (No. 109) of the bhavan at 10.30 pm on April 17, was found dead this evening.

Thunderstorm causes damage in city

Chandigarh, April 19 The city was lashed by a thunderstorm this evening. High velocity winds uprooted trees, caused minor power break-down, forcing people to remain indoors and disrupting many marriage functions.
A neem tree which was uprooted by high velocity winds in Sector 20-C, Chandigarh, on Saturday night. — Photo Parvesh Chauhan

R.K. Sharma to write book on travails
Panchkula, April 19
A former Inspector-General of Haryana Police and accused in journalist Shivani Bhatnagar's murder, Mr Ravi Kant Sharma has said he is now writing a book on his travails he had undergone since August last year, when he was named an accused by the Delhi police.

14-yr-old girl ends life
Chandigarh, April 19
A 14-year-old class X student committed suicide by hanging herself in her house in Sector 38 here this morning. The deceased, Surbhi, was found hanging by her mother who had returned from a mandir.

Woman's body found
Chandigarh, April 19
The body of an old woman was found on the stairs near a scooter stand at the Inter State Bus Terminus, Sector 17, here last night. According to police source, the woman wearing a suit had a plaster on her left hand, which appeared to have been put several days ago.

COMMUNITY

MC permitted to renew firemen’s contract
SAS Nagar, April 19
The Department of Local Government, Punjab, has given permission to the Municipal Council here to renew the contract of 13 firemen whose services had ended on March 9.

Wonder berry from Ladakh
Chandigarh, April 19
Nature has a perfect way of maintaining its balance. In the hot arid Rajasthan where water is scarce, nature has endowed this bounty in the form of watermelons. In the cold severity of Kashmir, nature has endowed the saffron, the natural body warmer.

Prices of fruits, vegetables witness 60 pc rise
Chandigarh, April 19
Prices of some fruits and vegetables registered an increase of 40 to 60 per cent as truck operators’ strike entered its sixth day today. Traders in the market claimed that though the prices in the market had increased by 15 to 20 per cent, retailers were charging high premium in the name of strike.

Exotic bonsai varieties beckon visitors

Chandigarh, April 19 One could not have wished for more beauty than what the eyes encountered at the venue of the fifth bonsai show this morning. Filling the space of the venue were over 200 exquisite bonsai varieties, trained to create the illusion of nature. In the company of nature: One of the organisers of the 5th bonsai show is busy giving finishing touches to an exotic entry at the Snack Shop, Sector 17A, Chandigarh, on Saturday. — A Tribune photograph

SBI employees stage dharna
Chandigarh, April 19
Employees of State Bank of India (SBI) staged a dharna in front of the SBI Zonal Office here today.

Police raids Gymkhana Club
Panchkula, April 19
The police raided the Gymkhana Club in Sector 6 here this evening following a complaint that a latest Bollywood movie, The Hero, was being screened there in violation of the Copyright Act. KC Cinema in Sector 5 here is currently running the latest release.

Shobha yatra held
Chandigarh, April 19
A shobha yatra was held by followers of Bapu Asa Ram on his 63rd birthday today. The yatra started from Soonk village in Kharar and passed through Sectors15, 24, 37, 35, 44, 45 and 46.

Save Sukhna
Make dams to check direct inflow

CRIME

2 vehicles stolen
Chandigarh, April 19
During the past 24 hours, at least two cases of vehicle theft were reported from different parts of the city. A car (CH01J 7700) of Mr S.S. Virk, a resident of Sector 35 was reportedly stolen from his residence on the night intervening April 18 and 19.

EDUCATION

NCERT books still elude students
Chandigarh, April 19
While textbooks prescribed by the Central Board for Secondary Education (CBSE) for some subjects, which were in short supply earlier, have started trickling in, books for some subjects are still not available in the city. These books are published and printed by the National Council for Education Research and Training (NCERT).

PU may do away with evening B. Com classes
Chandigarh, April 19
Panjab University is likely to do away with B Com classes offered by the Department of Evening Studies. The closure is scheduled to commence in a phased manner from the coming academic session.

Single-speciality training for nurses stressed

Chandigarh, April 19 The Vice-Chancellor of Panjab University, Prof K.N. Pathak today stressed the need for single-speciality training for nurses as there was a growing demand for such staff in this era of super specialities. A proud moment for the passouts of the National Institute of Nursing College, PGI, as they capture the moments after receiving their degrees at a convocation held in Chandigarh on Saturday. — Tribune photo Parvesh Chauhan

Learning through teaching aids

Chandigarh, April 19 Shaji, a Delhi-based creator and developer of activity-based teaching aids, who has long experimented with newer and better ways of teaching, shared his experience with people in the city today. He is here to conduct a three-day special workshop that aims at bringing home the apparently complex scientific and mathematical concepts. Famous Delhi-based teaching aids creator, Shaji, interacts with kids before commencing a special science literacy workshop at Sector 34 State Library in Chandigarh on Saturday. — A Tribune photograph

VC to get back lecture condonation power
Chandigarh, April 19
Panjab University is all set to restore the power of condoning the shortage of lectures to the Syndicate and the Vice-Chancellor. The issue will come up for discussion at the forthcoming Syndicate meeting later this month.

Jacob inaugurates community centre
Chandigarh, April 19
Lieut-Gen J.F.R. Jacob, UT Administrator, inaugurated a community centre for the campus staff at Panjab University here today.

Bus operators’ claim
Chandigarh, April 19
In less than three days after a news report appeared in Chandigarh Tribune about tourist buses being used for ferrying school children, the Chandigarh School Bus Operators Welfare Association today claimed such buses were used only when the school buses broke down.

COURTS

1327 cases settled at special lok adalat

Chandigarh, April 19 As many as 1327 cases were disposed off, and Rs 33 lakh was awarded as compensation to the litigants in Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) at cases the special lok adalat organised at the Sector 17 District Courts here today. The UT District and Sessions Judge, Mr H.S Bhalla, the UT Additional and Sessions Judge, Mr J.S Klar, and the Member Secretary-cum-Judge, permanent lok adalat, Mr Sant Parkash, at a special lok adalat at the District Courts in Chandigarh on Saturday.

CULTURE

Mixed fare at Plaza Carnival
Chandigarh, April 19
Visitors to Sector 17 piazza were in for surprise this evening as they were treated to a mixed musical fare prepared by the organisers of Plaza Carnival. Breaking away from routine, the organisers today offered a blend of various forms of music — from sufiana qalaam presented by Nanak Shah and Manak Ali to ghazals rendered by local artistes.

Johar begins lessons in bharatnatyam

Chandigarh, April 19 Renowned bharatnatyam exponent Navtej Singh Johar kept his promise with the city as he landed at Punjab Kala Bhavan in Sector 16 to commence a classical dance workshop today. Navtej Singh Johar familiarises participants of the dance workshop with basic postures of bharatnatyam at Punjab Kala Bhavan, Sector 16, Chandigarh, on Saturday. A Tribune photograph

Shankar Sahney to play lead role
Chandigarh, April 19
Punjabi Pop singer Shankar Sahney for the first time will play a lead role opposite actress Ayesha Julka in the recently announced Punjabi film ‘Ishq’. Being produced by P. Kumar and Sanjeev Kumar, the film is written and directed by Indrajit. ‘Ishq’ has cinematography by Nandu Chaudhary, lyrics by Sham Balkar and Shankar Sahney and music by Vicky Sahney.

HEALTH

Bir Devinder raids health centre
SAS Nagar, April 19
The Deputy Speaker of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha and Kharar MLA, Mr Bir Devinder Singh, conducted a raid on the primary health centre and the veterinary hospital at Landran, near here today.

SPORTS

6 teams for Parle trophy

Chandigarh, April 19 DAV Senior Secondary School, Sector 8, will be among the top six teams chosen from the whole country for participation in Parle Champions Trophy going to begin at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore from April 24 to 29. Other five teams are: Presidency School, Bangalore, St Bedes AIHS School, Chennai, Salwan Boys School, Delhi, Ramakrishna Junior College, Hyderabad and Sharda Ashram Vidya Mandir, Mumbai. Participants engrossed in making moves in the ICSE chess meet at Tender Heart School, Sector 33, Chandigarh, on Saturday. — A Tribune photograph

ADMINISTRATION

Zirakpur area to have sewerage, water supply
Zirakpur, April 19
To streamline all development projects which had slowed down in the past year, the Zirakpur Nagar Panchayat authorities have taken up a new project for setting up sewerage and water supply in the area. This will be done at a cost of Rs 8.5 crore in the next two years.

UT to get more power from PTC
Chandigarh, April 19
The Chandigarh Administration today received a fax message from the Power Trading Corporation (PTC), informing 30 MW of additional power had been arranged for Chandigarh at Rs 2.40 per unit during the summer. This power will be supplied between May 1 and September 30.

Orders on new DC’s appointment soon
Chandigarh, April 19
Orders to appoint Mr Arun Kumar, a 1989-batch Haryana-cadre IAS officer as the new Deputy Commissioner of Chandigarh in place of Mr M. Ramsekhar, who has served here for four years, are expected any day.