New Delhi, September 30
The Supreme Court has exempted Sikh women from wearing helmets in the Union Territory of Chandigarh while driving two-wheelers and has modified the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s order regarding traffic regulation in the city to a great extent making it more practicable.

A Bench comprising Mr Justice Arijit Pasayat and Mr Justice P.P Naolekar said, “We direct that if any exemption is granted to any person, including Sikh women, from any of the Motor Vehicles Rules relating to different states or areas or under any statutory rules, the same shall operate notwithstanding the directions of the High Court that all persons, including women, shall wear helmets” in the Union Territory of Chandigarh.

The Chandigarh Administration, while seeking modification of the High Court guidelines on traffic regulations in the city, had said under the Punjab Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 and the Chandigarh Motor Vehicles Rules, 1990 Sikh women were exempted from wearing helmets and the same should be allowed to them in Chandigarh.

As per the other modifications made in the High Court order, the apex court allowed the Administration to fix the quantum of parking charges by taking into account the relevant factors.

Regarding the introduction of one-way traffic in Sector 17 and 24 as ordered by the High Court, the Bench said if the Administration wanted to give relaxation in this system in any sector, the same “shall be done by indicating the special features which warrant such departure.”

“Reasons shall be recorded and placed before the High Court for justifying such departure,” the court said in the order passed on September 27, which was made available to media today.

About regulating the inter-state buses, which the Administration said, had been creating a lot of problem, the Bench said, for this an appropriate application should be filed before the High Court, indicating the factual details so that any decision in this regard was taken by it.

“No vehicle should be permitted to be parked in any area, particularly on the main road or internal roads of any sector to prevent traffic jams,” it said.

On the question of use of black films or glasses by vehicle owners in their cars, the court said the mandate of sub-rule (2) of Rule 100 of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules in this regard “shall be kept in view.”

“This shall be in addition to any security requirement as may be laid down by the law enforcing agencies,” the order said.

Regarding the removal of all advertisements facing the highways, main roads and side roads, the court said it would be open to the government or licensee to bring to the notice of the High Court any safety hazards caused by it, warranting any action in this regard. The High Court would decide the matter “in the proper perspective”, the apex court said.

Chandigarh, September 30
Supreme Court’s order to exempt Sikh women from wearing a helmet has been welcomed by Ms Harjinder Kaur, Municipal Councillor and President of the Sikh Nari Manch and also the local MP, Mr Pawan Bansal.

Ms Harjinder Kaur, who had been leading agitations against challaning of Sikh women for not wearing helmets, while reacting to the judgement said, “We have got back our fundamental right.”

The local MP, Mr Pawan Bansal, said Sikh women should not have been forced to wear a helmet. The police should educate the women two-wheeler drivers about the benefits of using a helmet. Leave the decision of wearing the helmet to women. Since it hurts the religious sentiments of Sikhs there is no need to make the helmets compulsory for women.

Mr Gurpratap Singh Riar, President of the local unit of the Shiromani Akali Dal and a member of the SGPC welcomed the orders of the Supreme Court. He said the challaning of Sikh women for not wearing helmets while riding two wheelers should be stopped immediately.

Chandigarh, September 30
Even as the country celebrates the Senior Citizens Day with much fanfare tomorrow, one of the few surviving “special class” artistes of the All-India Radio (AIR), Ustad Lachhman Dass Sandhu, is facing starvation and, inching towards death. However, his plight has failed to move either the authorities or society.

In fact, the 80-year-old exponent of the famous Patiala Gharana, who has been bed-ridden for the past over three years after the death of his wife, Sheela, is living at the mercy of his neighbours. The tall claims of the authorities concerned regarding the welfare of the senior citizens seem to fall flat if the plight of the veteran singer is any indication.

Born in musicians’ family, Sandhu, who was trained under Ustad Barkat Ali Khan, the guru of renowned Pakistani ghazal singer, Ghulam Ali, started his musical career at the Lahore station of AIR in 1937 at the tender age of 13. After Partition, his long association with AIR began and he was promoted to “special class” artiste for the traditional ghazal, Multani and Sindi kafi and thumri.

Even as he stuck to the traditional “gayaki”, he continued to be hard-pressed for money with the decline of the radio as the principal source of entertainment. The changing tastes of the audience ensured very few takers for his style of singing.

The circumstances and administrative apathy seem to have broken the self-respecting singer, who stood for purity in music during his over 65-year-long career. “I am waiting for death,” he quipped at his one-room ramshackle house in Sector 22 (No 2511) when this reporter visited him this afternoon.

“I had not anticipated such hard times even in my dreams. After the death of my wife in 2001, who did odd jobs to make both ends meet, my health had deteriorated and since then I have been bed-ridden with joint pain. I could never recover from that shock. Two square meals a day is a dream and I eat whatever is offered to me by the neighbours,” he said in a choked voice.

So much so that I have no money to buy medicines, spectacles and to get my beard shaved. “Para jo waqt to yaaron ne saath chhod diya, kadam kadam par saharon ne saath chhod diya” (the friends have left me in the present difficult times, even my associates have left me in lurch at regular intervals), he sums up his plight as his eyes well up.

Neighbours informed that a Punjab Police officer, Mr Kapil Dev Sharma, who was earlier posted in Mohali used to take him to Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Sector 32for treatment. However, after his transfer to Bathinda, there is no one to take him to hospital.

The long illness has taken its toll on the performance of the musician. Now he finds the playing of harmonium, which has been his companion for nearly seven decades, difficult.

It may be recalled that a purist to the core Sandhu was complimented by the legendary Bade Ghulam Ali Khan for his “gayaki” during his performance at the Harballbh Sangeet Sammelan in Jalandhar.

Chandigarh, September 30
This is a post in the UT Education Department which is vacant, but no one wants it. Prospective candidates prefer to remain at a junior position. The two seniormost principals, Dr Gulzar Singh and Mr R.S. Goraya have expressed their unwillingness to join as Deputy Director, Adult Education.

The two candidates have expressed their willingness to join against the post of District Education Officer (DEO). The seniormost Principal, Dr Gulzar Singh, has a chance to become the DEO after the incumbent, Ms Rajesh Chaudhary, retires or moves to next senior post of Deputy Director, Adult Education. There are two posts of Deputy Director and two posts of Assistant Director in the Adult Education Department.

One of the posts of Deputy Director is lying vacant after Ms Joginder Moti retired. Ms Sudesh Kalra, who was appointed against the second post, retired today.

Sources in the department say as none of the Principals or the DEO want to move on to the least preferred posts of Deputy Director, the vacancies will not be filled. The backlog of promotions in the department is not being cleared, says a senior officer.

Ms Chaudhary, who is a national awardee, is on a two-year extension and retires in 2005. Till then, Dr Gulzar Singh has to wait.

The sources say the practice of allowing national awardee Principals to continue as DEOs during their extension period after retirement was started by Mr Brahamjit Kalia.

In 1995, when a deputationist from Punjab, Mr R.D. Singla, a national awardee, got extension as DEO, the UT Teachers Union had protested and Mr Singla opted for the post of Assistant Director in the Adult Education Department.

The general secretary of the Government Teachers Union, Dr Vinod Sharma, said the union had been demanding promotion to UT cadre officials on the basis of seniority and should be followed by the department. The seniormost Principal should become Deputy District Education Officer and the Deputy DEO should become the DEO. The DEO should go to the higher post, provided it was on promotion.

The department should take in writing from the Principals who were not willing to join against the post offered by the department, said the union leaders. The department should bring the posts of Deputy Director under the fold of the Education Department.

Chandigarh, September 30
Here is good news for diabetic patients and worried parents whose children love chocolates and sweets but hate going to the dentist with caries.

In the not too far a future, sweet herb, Stevia, a calorie-free bio-sweetener, is waiting to replace chemical sweeteners and table sugar. It could prove to be an asset to manufacturers of soft drinks, beverages, confectioners and bakers.

A Chandigarh-based Yaksh Biotech firm is in the process of testing and experimenting with Stevia. Though, still at a nascent stage, the firm’s Managing Director, Dr Ashwin Johar is confident of introducing Stevia in Punjab. Though Stevia is a product of Paraguay, it is a staple in Brazil, China and the West. What lends credence to Dr Johar’s confidence is that already the firm has successfully introduced cultivation of medicinal plants like Aloe Vera in the state.

Dr Johar says, ‘’We are working on such herbs and medicinal plants for the last three years. We plan to make a cautious beginning in encouraging farmers to grow Aloe Vera and Stevia. We assure them remunerative price and regular income. This will also help introduce diversification in agriculture. We have a processing unit for Aloe Vera at Malerkotla. We now plan to form a chain between farmers and consumers’’.

For the new introduction, Stevia, Yaksh Biotech propose to set up an extraction plant somewhere in the North. Since Stevia was not easily available in India, the herb required to be specially multiplied and distributed to growers. Stevia plants are already being made available to farmers of Himachal Pradesh by Palampur Agricultural University. ‘’We are arranging plants and seeds. Once our tests prove positive, we will distribute Stevia to farmers’’.

Yaksh Biotech has studied the agro-climatic regions, soil requirements and conducive water and temperature, agronomic practices etc for the cultivation of Stevia besides working out the returns to farmers and economics of Stevia, per unit.

The powder extracted from the leaves of Stevia is believed to be 300 times sweeter than sugar and low in calories, saccharin and calcium cyclamate. Dr Johar plans to make use of this extract or even dried or fresh leaves to replace sweet sugar or add flavour to eatables and beverages, which are today a cause of worry, given the fact that 21 million Indians are diabetic. This figure is likely to shoot up to 60 million by 2010.

The sweetness of Stevia comes from Stevioside, which is non-fermenting. Thus, when used in confectionary and bakery products or say as chewing gum, parents could be less worried about children spoiling their teeth!

In fact Jharkhand plans to take up Stevia as a major alternative crop to sugarcane while Tamil Nadu took to research on its cultivation some years ago. In Punjab when the farm air is thick and moving towards organic farming, Stevia may fast replace sugar and other chemical sweeteners bringing cheer to the diabetic and health-conscious.

Even as the likes of Dr Johar work on new farm avenues, the government would do well to step in a big way and use its farms to experiment on Stevia and simultaneously work on its marketing and pricing strategies. This will ensure public-private sector enterpreneurship and accelerate the pace of introducing new crop. Today 1 kg of powdered Stevia leaves fetch between Rs 300 and Rs 400, while the crop lasts for three to four years with new flush of leaves sprouting after every harvest at an interval of three months to six months.

An ideal plantation should have around 30,000 Stevia plants per acre, sown on raised beds with plant spacing of about 23cm X 40 cms and good dressing of farm yard manure, 25 tonnes. One acre could yield about 3,000 kg dried leaves, annually. Stevia is also known to be free from any insect or disease incidence.

Chandigarh, September 30
In a rare gesture of goodwill, the famous Fountain House Psychiatric Centre at Lahore in Pakistan has named a newly constructed building as "Professor N.N.Wig Occupational Therapy Unit" in recognition of the internationally renowned Indian psychiatrist's outstanding contribution to the cause of mental health.

Professor Wig who is a Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry at PGIMER, Chandigarh, was earlier WHO Adviser in Mental Health for the countries of Middle East and North Africa.

He has also been Professor of Psychiatry at AIIMS, New Delhi, and PGIMER, Chandigarh.

The inauguration of the building was done by Professor A. Okasha, President, World Psychiatric Association, on September 14 at Lahore. Rich tributes were paid to Prof Wig in the International Psychiatric Conference which was held in Lahore from September 16 to 21.

Dr Wig, however, could not personally go to Lahore to attend the conference due to his other commitments.

In a talk with TNS here today, Dr Wig, who hails from Gujranwala now in Pakistan, said that he had very fond memories of his days in Pakistan. He was only 16 when Partition took place and his family came over to India.

But even after the division of the country, his association with the land his birth continued because of the medical profession.

As a WHO Advisor in Mental Health for a great stretch of land from Pakistan to Morocco, Dr Wig initiated a model for mental health programme for Pakistan.

"I started the mental health programme in India before applying it to other countries, including Pakistan", he recalled.

Dr Wig remained in Alexandria for eight years from 1984 to 1992 during which he made several trips to Pakistan.

Dr Wig also had a word of praise for the community mental health programme in Pakistan, which he said, was doing very well.

Panchkula, September 30
A three-day meditation camp began at the Osho Dhara Commune , 58, Industrial Area here today.

More than 200 persons from different parts of the country are taking part in the camp. It is being conducted by Swami Satya Niranjan, former secretary of the Osho Commune, Pune.

Participants will be made aware of numerous musical and Tibetan meditations techniques. These are very simple and can be easily incorporated in daily routine, said Swami Satya Narayan, organiser of the camp.

He said special techniques would also be demonstrated to those wishing to go deep into the meditation.

A unique dance to meditation programme will be the highlight of Saturday’s function.

A book exhibition and “connecting with nature” session will also be held.

Chandigarh, September 30
The Chandigarh police today booked travel agent Kamaljit Singh Bains and his two accomplices in a cheating case. They have been charged with taking Rs 5.37 lakh from a person on the pretext of sending his son abroad.

Mr R.P. Sharma of Phase II, Mohali, filed a written complaint to the Senior Superintendent of Police, Headquarters, on June 30, in which he alleged that Kamaljit Singh Bains, director, Renu Zudoo, deputy director, and Sudhir Kapoor, general manager, Bains International Enterprises, Sector 22-C, had taken the money from him to send his son to Canada. The SSP office directed the Sector 17 police to investigate the matter on July 5. The police registered a case under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code against the accused at the Sector 17 police station today.

According to Mr Sharma, his son contacted Bains International Enterprises after an advertisement of the company in leading newspapers of the region between August 24 and September 16, 2003, citing an urgent demand of skilled labour in Canada. The had given a guarantee that after paying Rs 50,000, the candidate would be in Canada in two months as there was great shortage of labour in Canada.

Mr Sharma further said the company demanded another Rs 6,000 as registration fee for a 10-month course in Canada, for which the candidate would be sent to Canada. He also said the company assured him that his son would be paid a stipend as per rules in Canada and after the course, the Canadian Government would provide a one-year visa to the candidate, during which he could work in Canada. The company assured them that after spending one year, the candidate would be entitled to permanent immigration to Canada. They were told that in case of refusal of visa, the amount charged would be refunded.

Mr Sharma alleged that after paying the money, they did not receive any reply from Bains International Enterprises. He said he and his son paid numerous visits to their office in Sector 22, but in vain.

Mr Sharma said the company had closed its business from its earlier location about three-and-a-half months ago as there were many others who had been cheated of their money by the abovesaid company. He alleged that the company had changed its name to Star Education Centre, in Sector 8-C, and Renu Zudoo was working at that place.

Mr Sharma said he had traced 11 candidates who had been cheated by the company, out of which only three or four had have been paid back their money by the company as they were from influential backgrounds. The others had lodged complaints with the police.

Chandigarh, September 30
Two call girls from West Bengal and an equal number of pimps have been arrested for allegedly running a flesh trade racket in the city.

Kashmir Singh from Sunam and Kudleep Singh from Jammu were arrested last night by a team of the crime branch. when they handed over the two girls from West Bengal to a decoy customer in lieu of the marked currency notes paid in advance. An official note said the decoy customer was allegedly solicited by the pimps and the girls in Sector 44.

The operation was headed by the DSP (Crime), Mr Om Prakash. The deal was struck near a place of worship. Both the girls are married and they revealed to the police that they had been hired by the pimps on a monthly salary along with a percentage of commission. The women were in the business in the city for the past couple of months. The women were put up at a rented accommodation in Mohali. 

Chandigarh, September 30
The Punjab Circle of the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) will add five lakh more mobile connections to its existing subscriber base by the year-end, the Minister of State for Communications and Information Technology, Dr Shakeel Ahmad, said here today.

Addressing a press conference at UT State Guest House, Dr Ahmad said the mobile connections were being provided on demand in Punjab. However, in UP and Bihar there was a waiting list of 4 lakh and 1.5 lakh, respectively.

The minister, who earlier held a review meeting with the Punjab Circle officers of the BSNL, the Postal Department and the National Informatics Centre (NIC), informed that remaining six of the 17 districts of Punjab would be linked with the video conferencing facility by next month.

The minister informed that currently there were 8.5 crore telephones, both landline and mobile, in the country and the government had fixed a target of 20 crore telephones by 2007.

The private operators were not discharging their responsibilities of providing service in the rural areas, which was a part of the agreement at the time of awarding licences to them.

The government was pressing them to fulfil the commitment and the erring operators would be dealt with strictly, he warned.

He said an amount of Rs 58 crore had been collected under the special scheme for senior citizens so far in the Punjab Circle. The Haryana Circle had netted Rs 21 crore under the scheme, which was launched on August 2, he added.

In reply to a question on the poor grievance redressal system of the government department, the minister said the telecom and the postal departments were not merely business organisations and people’s welfare was paramount.

Mr L.K. Puri, Punjab Circle’s Chief Post Master General (CPMG), Ms Meera Datta, Haryana Circle’s CPMG, and Mr G.S. Bhatia, BSNL Punjab Circle’s Chief General Manager, were among those present.