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TOP STORIES

Land mafia occupies prime piece of land
Top govt, police officials involved
Zirakpur, April 22
Throwing all norms to the winds, land mafia, allegedly in connivance with senior Punjab police officials and top functionaries of the Punjab government, has encroached upon a piece of prime land at Lohgarh village owned by the Zirakpur Nagar panchayat. Located along the bed of the Sukhna choe, the piece of land measuring about 2.5 acres was earmarked by the civic body for setting up a sewerage treatment plant.

A boundary wall being raised by the land mafia on a piece of prime land earmarked for setting up of a sewerage treatment plant at Lohgarh village near Zirakpur. — A Tribune photograph

Bodies of woman, daughter found in water tank

Chandigarh, April 22 Unaware of the tragedy that had struck the family with the first rays of the sun, six-year-old Divya played a perfect mother to her two and half-year-old sister Nisha. Little did Divya realise that her mother, Neelam, along with her sister Radha, had jumped to death in a water tank of a water boosting station in Sector 33 here this morning. Two surviving children of 22-year-old Neelam (inset) whose body was found along with her two-and-half-year-old daughter in a water tank in Sector 33, Chandigarh, on Tuesday. — A Tribune photograph

Bank cashier flees with Rs 20 lakh

Chandigarh, April 22 The Sector 22 branch of Punjab National Bank was “robbed” of Rs 20 lakh by its own head cashier late last evening. The loss came to light when the head cashier, Raj Pal Singh Chandoke, did not report at an office of Life Insurance Corporation where he had gone to collect cash. A senior official of Punjab National Bank inspects documents at the bank’s Sector 22 branch from where a head cashier ran away with Rs 20 lakh in Chandigarh on Tuesday. — A Tribune photograph

TRIBUNE IMPACT
Overcrowded school vans: challaning drive on
Chandigarh, April 22
In less than a fortnight after a story on private vans being used for ferrying schoolchildren appeared in Chandigarh Tribune, Haryana’s Director-General of Police M.S. Malik has written to Chandigarh’s Inspector-General of Police Rajesh Kumar asking him to “look into the matter”.

Swiss Embassy team visits Panchayat Bhavan

Chandigarh, April 22 A two-member team from the Swiss Embassy today visited the city to get first-hand information about the case of the Swiss national, Edwin Bosshard, who was found dead in a room at the Panchayat Bhavan in Sector 18 here on April 19. Officials of Panchayat Bhavan explain a point to the legal attache of the Swiss Embassy who visited the city to probe the death of Swiss national Edwin Bosshard in Chandigarh on Tuesday. — A Tribune photograph

Low cost portable water-testing kit
Chandigarh, April 22
A low-cost portable water testing kit, claimed to be the first of its kind in the country, has been developed for use by school students by the Punjab State Council for Science and Technology here.

No chicken disease in Barwala belt
Chandigarh, April 22
The newly formed Broilers Farmers Association of Chandigarh today sought to allay a widespread apprehension in the city that broiler prices were falling here because of the outbreak of a chicken disease in the poultry belt of Barwala.

COMMUNITY

Mohali’s City Park makes headway
SAS Nagar, April 22
A beautiful park which may well occupy the pride of place in the town is coming up in Sector 68 here. In fact, the first phase I of the ambitious project is nearing completion.

We did not abandon Vandana: parents
Chandigarh, April 22
“Kya koi apne bachche ko kahin chhod sakta hai? Mera pati to police ke pass apni ladki ke gum hone ki shikayat lekar gaya tha aur police ne usse hi pakad liya,” said Sunita, mother of six-month-old Vandana, while coming out of the court after getting a release order in the evening.

FIERCE FIRE: Fire personnel struggle to bring under control the fire in the open ground at Government Medical College and Hospital, Chandigarh, ignited due to dry leaves and shrubs on Tuesday. — Photo Manoj Mahajan

Endless wait for justice continues
Chandigarh, April 22
“I will die by the time the court pronounces judgement in my son’s murder case. “My son, Inderjit Singh, was murdered 18 years ago in the city and I am still struggling to get justice,” an octogenarian, Allaha Singh, said yesterday while coming out of the court after the case was committed in the court of the UT District and Sessions Judge, Mr H.S. Bhalla, for trial.

Misuse of funds by society officials
SAS Nagar, April 22
In a move that could lead to the surfacing of a building scam in the township, the Trade Union Council has alleged that the officer-bearers of the Mundi Cooperative House Building Society, Sector 70, in connivance with the then Assistant Registrar of Societies, Kharar, have misappropriated over Rs 1 crore rupees during the construction of the buildings.

342 challaned for traffic violations
SAS Nagar, April 22
The police challaned 342 traffic violators during a special drive undertaken in the township here yesterday. The four-hour drive that started at 4 pm was conducted by special teams formed by the SP, SAS Nagar, to check traffic rule violations in various parts of the township.

BJP to launch agitation against MC
Chandigarh, April 22
The BJP has threatened to launch an agitation against the Congress-ruled municipal corporation for a poor condition of sanitation, water supply, street-lighting, roads and lack of mobile toilets.

VHP demands arrest of Ashok Gehlot
Chandigarh, April 22
The Punjab unit of the VHP today demanded the arrest of Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and the imposition of President's rule in the state for allegedly trying to incite Hindus by arresting VHP leader Praveen Bhai Togadia.

Save Sukhna
Multi-tunnel silt ejector needed
The Sukhna Lake was created simply by obstructing the flow of the Sukhna choe and other tributaries originating from nearby hills. It appears that no specific study was carried out on the sedimentation rate and prediction of sedimentation distribution in the lake.

70 jhuggis around Golf course razed
Panchkula, April 22
More than 70 unauthorised jhuggis that had come up in Sector 3 around the Golf course were demolished by a team of the Enforcement Wing of the Haryana Urban Development Authorities here today.

CRIME

Woman crushed under train
Zirakpur, April 22
A mutilated body of a 21-year-old woman was found on the Kalka-Ambala railway line at Dhakauli village, near here, this morning. Mr Gurinder Singh, in charge, GRP police post at Lalru, said the deceased Ramni Devi, a migrant labourer, was mowed down by a train while she was crossing the railway line.

• Jewellery, cash stolen

BUSINESS

Verka’s kheer being lapped up
Chandigarh, April 22
Kheer introduced by Punjab Milkfed a couple of months ago under its well-known brand name Verka has proven to be a runaway success. “We are producing about 500 kg of kheer every day at our Mohali milk plant and I am happy to disclose that all of it is sold within no time”, said Dr B.M. Mahajan, Managing Director, Milkfed, in a talk with TNS here today.

Pop songs catch up as mobile ringers
Chandigarh, April 22
Songs like “Kanta laga,” “Dil chahta hai,” “Maine dil tum ko de diya,” “Sandeshe aate hain,” “Ladki hai,” “Ghar kab aaoge” and “Tum paas aaye” make you look for a TV set, a radio set or a music instrument. But these songs are fast catching up as mobile ringers and companies are trying to cash in on them in the market.

EDUCATION

Ex-student seeks PU help
Chandigarh, April 22
A former student of Panjab University has come back to the doors of Panjab University expecting help during times of trouble. A student who left her studies after doing second year in B.Sc II (Home Science) in 1999 has come asking for a special chance to allow her to do her B.Sc III.

Students resent move to hike fee
SAS Nagar, April 22
Too busy with their annual examinations to react publicly, students of Government College, SAS Nagar, are, however, visibly upset about the proposed hike in the fee of higher education in the government colleges of the state.

Govt releases 110-cr grant
Chandigarh, April 22
In a step which has come as a major relief for government-aided private colleges, the Punjab Government has withdrawn the 10 per cent annual cut on grants-in-aid and released a sum of Rs 110 crore which had accumulated over the years.

Yoga, aerobics camp from April 25
Chandigarh, April 22
A yoga and aerobics camp will be organised from April 25 to 30 at Dhanwantary Ayurvedic College, Sector 46. The camp is unique in the sense it will try a fusion of yoga and aerobics which is popular among young people.

Former Editor on PU Senate
Chandigarh, April 22
Mr Radhey Shyam Sharma, a former Editor of Dainik Tribune, has been nominated as a fellow of the Panjab University Senate. The nomination has been done by the Chancellor for the remaining term of the Senate, starting from April 21 onwards, an official press note said here today.

SCHOOL WORLD
Geography: About Argentina
THE second largest country in South America, Argentina lies on the continent’s south-east. Sharing its borders on the west is Chile, while Bolivia, Paraguay lie to its north. Uruguay is located to its north-east. The country has a long coastline on the Atlantic.

How & Why
FORCE
THE push or pull that brings an object into motion or effects its movement is called Force. Force not only makes objects move, but can also speed up or slow down a moving object, make it change its direction, or even distort its shape.

Need to conserve ecology stressed
Chandigarh, April 22
To mark the World Earth Day today, around 300 students from six schools organised a rally to spread the messages to “save the earth” and “conserve the ecology”. It was organised by the local chapter of the Environment Society of India.

COURTS

Land allotment to schools: stay plea dismissed
Chandigarh, April 22
An application for staying the process of allotting land to schools in Chandigarh was today dismissed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The draw of lots for allotting the sites is scheduled to take place tomorrow.

CULTURE

Balwant Gargi — prodigal son of Punjabi prose
Chandigarh, April 22
As one flicks through the literary corpus that defines Balwant Gargi, one cannot help tracing the roots of his literary genius. The journey takes us back from the glamorous Western settings to the humble Punjab villages that find expression in Gargi’s most celebrated works, ‘Loha Kut’ and ‘Kuari Teesi’.

Master weavers in town
Chandigarh, April 22
Utsav, a house that brings together traditional weavers from all over India, is back in town with summer collection. Exquisite ranges of cotton sarees, suits, dupattas and dress materials from 15 different corners of the country are being exhibited under “Weave Prabha” at Hotel Aroma in Sector 22.

LIFE & STYLE
Glitz & glamour
Hey, heat-haters! Put the fun back in your stride
All you guys and dolls leaving the cool comfort of your air-conditioned rooms, do not let the blazing sun tone down your mood. Just go through our hot guide for cool attitude compiled after talking to experts for hours and hours. Just for you.

Chic Pick
Purple passion just for you
Purple is the hot in the summers of 2003. If you are having any doubts, just look around. Everywhere you see, you will find damsels in purple. Sitting behind their guys on single-cylinder flying machines called motor-bikes. Or else knocking down the arcade corridors. Dressed to kill in purple.

Venus Speaks
Sunscreen is the secret
SHE does not go out in the open without applying thick layers of sunscreen lotion. No, not even for five minutes. This is not all. She reapplies the lotion after every two hours, even if she is in a car.

Tip Top
Drink for vibrant looks
Drink a lot. No, we are not talking of beer. But water. Gulp as much as you can. Whenever possible. For that healthy vibrant look and flawless complexion. Also to stay hydrated in the summers of 2003.

AC trouble? No problem
Are you facing problem in the office because of the air-conditioner? Well, don't just indulge in a verbal duel. If your colleague wishes the cooling to be the maximum despite your cold, there are other ways and means of sorting out the issue.

Brave sun with a smile
Hey kids, stop cursing Apollo. Face his onslaught with a brave visage. Remember it is not essential to use a toner in summers unless you have a very oily skin. But you can always use it to freshen up your tired visage.

RADIO BUZZ
Songs for summers
Driving down the road in the summers can be quite boring. Specially if you are not listening to nice songs on the stereo. That’s why Radio Buzz has complied summer songs just for you. Go ahead folks.

HEALTH

Awareness camp on cancer prevention
Chandigarh, April 22
With more than 80 per cent of cancer patients seeking medical help at an advanced stage, a lecture and awareness camp on prevention and early detection of the disease was organised at The Tribune here today.

Public health workers hold rallies
Chandigarh, April 22
The Chandigarh Municipal Corporation Public Health Workers’ Union and a united front of the Public Health Employees Union held rallies here today. The rallies were held in connection with the strike call on May 7, given by the Coordination Committee of Government and MC Employees Workers.

SPORTS

Trials for women hockey team
Chandigarh, April 22
Trials to select local women hockey team for Junior Women Hockey National Championships will be held at Hockey Stadium in Sector 18 on April 23 at 5 pm. According to the honorary secretary of the Chandigarh Women's Hockey Association, Mr J.P.S. Sidhu, the championship is scheduled to be held in Pune from May 5 to May 11. Players born on or after January 1, 1984, will be eligible, Mr Sidhu added.