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TOP STORIES

Pandemonium marks MC meeting
Chandigarh, October 23
Pandemonium broke out at the General House meeting of the municipal corporation held here today. This led to the deferring of an important issue of loss of Rs 16 crore to the corporation due to the delay in the allotment of a hotel site in Sector 35.

Pre-Divali shopping at its peak in Chandigarh on Thursday night. Shopping areas are open till late at night. — A Tribune photo

Plan for traffic lights at Piccadily roundabout
Chandigarh, October 23
The Chandigarh Administration today decided that the Piccadily roundabout (at the intersection of Sectors 21, 22, 34 and 35) needs Traffic lights. The UT Administrator , Justice O.P. Verma (retd), asked the Inspector-General of Police to initiate the experiment of putting up traffic light signals in addition to rotary at the roundabout.

Passport stealing racket at airport?
Chandigarh, October 23
A city resident coming from Germany loses her passport and visa at Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi, a woman loses her Green Card at the same place and a family from SAS Nagar was deprived of six passports with European visas from a hotel in Delhi.

Meera Ali puts rural talent to best use
Chandigarh, October 23
It is impossible to see Meera Ali in isolation with her husband, Muzaffar. As two individuals set apart in time and space, they made sense but so much as they make being each other’s facilitators in the scheme of life and art.

COMMUNITY

Rise in crime cases against women
Chandigarh, October 23
Chandigarh has seen a 25 per cent rise in cases of registration of crime against women during the last two years. This was stated here today by Superintendent of Police H.G.S. Dhaliwal. He said the registration of cases was a sign of growing faith of the wronged women in the police.

Railways plans centenary celebrations
Chandigarh, October 23
As part of celebrations to mark 100 years of the Kalka-Shimla railway section, Northern Railway will involve students of schools in the city and neighbouring towns of Panchkula and SAS Nagar in a series of painting competitions.

Rise in number of applicants for TA
Chandigarh, October 23
There has been a significant increase in the number of applicants seeking commission in the Territorial Army with the number of candidates being called for the entrance test being about double than last year. This is expected to offset, to some extent, the severe officer shortage affecting the “Citizens’ Army”.

Official: council staff threatened
Panchkula, October 23
The Executive Officer of the Panchkula Municipal Council, Mr O.P. Sihag, today said that the MC was forced to stop its campaign against unauthorised hoardings, under the garb of public interest slogans, after it was threatened by the powers that be.

Bhatti cracks down on crackers Chandigarh, October 23 He conveyed the message in not so comical a manner this time, but in quite an effective tone. Comedy king Jaspal Bhatti and his wife Savita Bhatti, dressed up as fire officers, asked the general public to avoid dangerous crackers. Dousing the flames of negligence in city residents, Jaspal Bhatti and his wife Savita Bhatti asked people to shun dangerous crackers. — Tribune photo by Pankaj Sharma

Dargah caretaker fears threat to life
Chandigarh, October 23
Mr Abdul Razaq Khan, caretaker of Sakhi Sarvar Lallawala Pir Dargah at Darua village (UT), has complained to the police that certain miscreants have threatened to grab the dargah land.

READERS WRITE
Don’t look towards Pak, India needs you
THIS is in reference to the news item recently published in your daily, “Lions Club to treat 100 Pak children.” I find that of late some elite groups in India have become more inclined towards Pakistan. They are more concerned about the welfare of Pakistani people irrespective of the welfare of millions of hapless people living a miserable life here. In my opinion these groups are doing this only to draw media attention.

CRIME

Chain snatched from woman on morning walk
Chandigarh, October 23
A resident of Sector 37, Ms Surjeet Kaur (55), who was on her daily morning walk, became poorer by her gold chain today. A clean shaven youth, wearing a tracksuit, snatched the chain and ran away. The incident took place near the Fragrance Garden in Sector 36 here at around 5.45 am.

BUSINESS

Say it with almonds this Divali
Chandigarh, October 23
The Almond Board Of California has urged Indians to get back to basics by gifting a handful of almonds as a health additive to their loved ones. This request was with reference to the changing gifting trends during the festive season, and in tandem with the latest USFDA claim of almonds being good for health.

EDUCATION

Slogan-writing contest against crackers
Chandigarh, October 23
An inter-school slogan-writing competition which saw a participation of over 250 children from various schools was organised as a part of the anti-cracker campaign launched by the Environment Club of the Dev Samaj College of Education, Sector 36, on the college campus, here today.

From Schools
DPS kids present ‘Ramayana’
Chandigarh, October 23
Students of Delhi Public School, Sector 40, presented “Ramayana”, bringing alive the glorious traditions, values of love, forbearance and a supreme sense of sacrifice, here today.

College girls form Tribune Club Kurali, October 23 As many as 150 students of the BR DAV College for Women here have formed ‘The Tribune Club’. Students of the BR DAV College for Women, Kurali, who have formed The Tribune Club, read the paper.

COURTS

HIGH COURT
Petition to seek probe into cop’s death
Chandigarh, October 23
In less than a fortnight after Panchkula police head constable Jaiveer Singh allegedly killed himself, a petition was today filed before the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation into the incident.

CULTURE

Sukha is back with ‘Dhola’
Chandigarh, October 23
Punjabi pop singer Sukhdev Sukha, who won thousands of hearts with his debut album “Tu Mast Qalandar” three years ago, is back with his second album “Dhola”, which was released in the city today. The album was released by T- Series.

Shahenshah-e-Sufi Award conferred on Wadali Brothers

Chandigarh, October 23 Dazzling song sequences from Bollywood to the soul searching Sufiana ‘kalaam’ by Wadali Brothers, The Indian Arts designed its annual award giving function “Rainbow- 2003” to tickle everyone’s tastebuds. The programme was organised at Tagore Theatre today and 10 artistes were honoured in different fields for their contribution in their chosen area. Wadali Brothers perform at “Rainbow 2003” at Tagore Theatre in Chandigarh on Thursday. — A Tribune photo

The mystic beckons God with music

Chandigarh, October 23 Writing about music seems like dancing about architecture tonight. Sacred is the only word that strikes the mind and music is the only feeling that cares to surface. Had it not been for the divine offerings of Abida Parveen tonight, one would never have tasted the fruits of sufi poetry. Donning a mystic’s mantle, Abida Parveen took the audience at Leisure Valley to a divine journey through her musical offerings of the verses of Sufi saints during the Sada-e-Sufi concert in Chandigarh on Thursday.  — Tribune photo by Pankaj Sharma.

NEW RELEASES
Boom time for Bollywood
DIVALLI is boom time for Bollywood. Four new films are slated for release on Friday, with over Rs 10 crore at stake. It is pre-Divali that films like “Pinjar”, “Inteha”, “Ssshhh....” and “Raja Bhaiya” will open today at Chandigarh and Panchkula.

HEALTH

Long wait for cataract surgery at GMCH
Chandigarh, October 23
Hundreds of patients in need of cataract surgery at Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) have been left at the mercy of either private hospitals or waiting for the equipment to be repaired, which has been out of order for the past four months.

Volunteers celebrate Divali with patients at PGI
Chandigarh, October 23
The Punjab branch of the Indian Red Cross Society has decided to provide medicines, blankets and financial assistance to patients admitted to the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) from next year, as was being done by them at the PGI.

Rati ambassador of menopause society
Chandigarh, October 23
The Indian Menopause Society will shortly start its Chandigarh chapter, according to Dr Urvashi Jha, president of the Indian Menopause Society. Ms Rati Agnihotri, actress and activist, has been appointed the cause ambassador of the society.

SPORTS

Soccer title for St Stephen's School
Chandigarh, October 23
St Stephen's School, Sector 45-B, Chandigarh, annexed the under-17 U.T. Schools Football Tournament held at Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 22, Chandigarh by beating Guru Nanak Public School, Sector 36, Chandigarh, by three goals to nil. The scorers were Aita Ram (1) and Hardeep Singh (2). In the first half the team was leading by 2-0 and after the lemon break Aita Ram completed the tally.

MC earmarks 6 cr for development
Panchkula, October 23
The Municipal Council today cleared the decks for carrying out development works worth over Rs 6 crore in various sectors of the town, even as councillors from various slum and labour colonies accused the Municipal Council of treating them like “poor country cousins”.