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LPG distributors defer strike
Chandigarh, November 25 The decision was taken after a meeting between the members of the federation and the Deputy Commissioner, Mr R.K. Rao. Mr K.J.S. Buttar, President of the All-India LPG Distributors Federation, North West Region, said the Deputy Commissioner had called another meeting for November 30 to discuss the issue of exorbitant rental being charged on sites allotted by the Chandigarh Administration for godowns on a permanent basis. The distributors also expressed their resentment on the manner in which two godowns were demolished in Khuda Ali Sher village yesterday. No precaution was taken while handling the LPG cylinders during demolition, said Mr Buttar. Talking to the Tribune, members of the federation said they had been for long pressing upon the administration to be realistic in deciding on the issue of allotting sites for a nominal rent as on the pattern of New Delhi. While in Chandigarh, the rent on sites allotted for 10 years came to around Rs 15,000 per month, the rent being charged in New Delhi was between Rs 2,000 and Rs 4,000 per month. As a result of the exorbitant rates of rent, only two distributors got allotted permanent sites in Ram Darbar and they, too, have not been paying the rent. Of the total 26 distributors, 21 have their godowns in the city periphery, they added. Sources in the Administration said at least 25 sites had been earmarked across the city. But due to high rental, very few distributors came forward to accept them. In case of the godowns, which are situated on private land, the Administration gives permission for up to three years. No rent is charged on such sites, the sources said. The distributors lament that the rent vary on the higher side compared to the commission being paid by the oil companies and other overhead expenditures. The Deputy Commissioner has now asked the federation to come up with statistics of rent structures so that some decision could be taken during the next meeting, said Mr Buttar. The Deputy Commissioner said though the demand for a permanent solution was genuine, the godowns, which had been situated on the acquired land, had to be demolished as it was hampering planning. A sub-committee, consisting of distributors, representatives of oil companies and officials of the Administration, would meet to discuss a permanent solution to the problem, Mr Rao said, adding that for the godowns located on the periphery, the Administration would come up with a policy. He said the issue of rental being charged would be discussed at the meeting scheduled for November 3.
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High prices of flats keep applicants at bay
Chandigarh, November 25 A two bedroom flat is priced at Rs 32 lakh while a one bedroom flat will cost Rs 15.90 lakh. The scheme is offering 96 two bedroom and the same number of one room flats. Sources put the number of applicants till Thursday evening at about 300. Mr S.N.Sahai, chairman of the CHB, however, disagrees with talks about poor response. He said more than 600 applications were received till today evening and by Monday the number will definitely cross 1,000, which was more than five times the number of flats offered. Mr Sahai said “genuine rate will, at least, prevent a segment of applicants who apply only for investment purpose”. Applicants are saying that the CHB was not a profit making authority so the rates, which are more than double the actual rates of the board, were very high. The board authorities maintain that the quality of construction was much higher than that in normal flats. “We cannot ignore the market rates while giving flats,” the official said. Mr Ram Tirath, a retired bank official, said “the property prices were at their peak in the city and the rate of increase in the city was probably amongst the highest in the entire country. The Administration should not follow the market trends blindly. The higher price of CHB flats will automatically lead to a higher price of all property in the market. The new rates were adding to the rise in existing rates in the city.” A two bedroom (1150 square feet) first floor flat will cost Rs 26 lakh and top floor flat would cost Rs 24 lakh. The price of the one bedroom flats (650 square feet) will vary between Rs 11 lakh and Rs 13 lakh on the first and the second floor. Experts feel that the revised rates will not be able to handle the resale of flats. Middle income investors are a peeved lot because in case of resale of these flats, which was a normal phenomenon in the city market, the buyers will be spending much more than they would have if they had bought a house in resale.
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Murder accused arrested after two years
Chandigarh, November 25 A Sector 37 resident, Gunwant Singh Walia, an Industrial Area-based contractor, was stabbed to death by unidentified assailants during the night of October 15, 2003. As it was Karva Chauth, the incident came to be known as Karva Chauth murder case. It was stated by one of the eyewitnesses that an accused was wearing a particular cap. Giving details of the investigations the Deputy Superintendent of the Chandigarh Police (South) KIP Singh said on the directions of senior officers a team was constituted to solve the case. A study of the case indicated robbery as the reason behind the murder and the records of persons involved in such cases were scrutinised. He pointed out that in the FIR an eyewitness to the incident stated that one of the assailants was wearing a Dev Anand style cap. The DSP, while elaborating over the probe, said: “In the bad character’s list provided by the Sector 39 police station, the name of Chikna came up. He was involved in cases of robbery and theft. As I had been posted at that police station, it was known to me that Chikna was fond of wearing a special cap and I worked on the hunch, which resulted in solving this case.” He added that on the basis of information provided by the sources, a police team led by Inspector Ishwar Singh Mann, SHO of the Sector 36 police station, apprehended two of the accused, Sunil Singh alias Chikna of Palsora village and Harish Sharma alias Billa of Phase I, Mohali. The third accused Manpreet Singh alias Mani of Kharar is still at large. During sustained interrogation, the accused reportedly told the police that on the fateful night of October 15 they were coming from Ram Darbar after having liquor at an ‘ahata’. When they reached near Sector 41, 42, 36 and 37 roundabout they saw the victim, Gunwant Singh Walia, walking on the road-side and decided to rob him. When Gunwant Singh Walia resisted, the accused, armed with knives, allegedly stabbed him to death. They decamped with a purse containing Rs 3000 and a voter’s identity card, a wrist-watch and a gold ring belonging to the deceased. Chikna reportedly told the police he dropped his cap during the incident. Later, when he realised the fact, he went back to the spot ignoring warnings of his friends and came back safely as the police had not reached at the spot till then. While describing the profiles of the accused the police said Sunil Kumar alias Chikna was a registered as bad character category ‘A’ in the Sector 39 police station and was facing six criminal cases of heinous offences in the court. Similarly Harish Kumar Sharma was involved in three criminal cases. The third accused Manpreet Singh alias Mani has reportedly gone abroad and efforts are on to trace him.
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The cap gave the murder accused away
Chandigarh, November 25 In fact, the case was referred to senior Chandigarh Police functionaries for marking it as “untraced”. The fact that a heinous crime had been committed, however, prevented the cops from closing the file. The sources in the police headquarters admit that the name of the accused was included in the bad character’s list with the Sector 39 police station. It was a matter of common knowledge that the accused was fond of wearing that cap. But the cops simply failed to connect the two, the sources add. The case, the sources assert, would have gone untraced had UT Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) K.I.P. Singh not remembered the fact that the accused was in the habit of wearing that particular cap. The DSP, promoted recently, was reportedly going through the old files when the realisation dawned upon him, they say. The sources add that this incidentally is not the first case in which the police took its own sweet time to solve the matter. The Sector 24 wineshop double murder and robbery case was solved only after five long years. The accused had allegedly struck at the vend on August 17, 2000. After hacking to death two employees sleeping inside, they had reportedly decamped with nearly Rs 60 lakh. The deceased were identified as 34-year-old Roop Lal and 28-year-old Nand Kishore. They were working as salesmen at the liquor shop. Complainant Tilak Raj had told the cops that there were no signs of forced entry. As such, the culprits were known to the victims. The incident is till date referred to as “the most gory, daring and biggest robbery in the city’s history”.
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What brings you to Chandigarh? I am here in connection with the recording and video shoot of a Himachali new year eve programme, “Geet Paharan De”. It will be telecast on a national channel. What are the latest trends in music? Heavy western and fusion music are on their way out. In fact, it is back to folk music and melody with new arrangement in all kinds of music, including the film, devotional and pop. T Series is a major player in the entertainment industry. What are the future projects of the company? Apart from consolidating its national and regional markets to retain its No 1 position, T Series is working with a majority of leading singers of the country, including pop, devotional, folk and playback singers. As part of its diversification strategy, the company will launch major Punjabi and Himachali films soon. How do you see obscenity in music videos? There must be some censorship on vulgar videos as they are onslaughts on our moral and cultural values. Any tips for the upcoming singers? Do regular “riaz” and get voice culture training to master “mike techniques”. Work with major banners and beware of fly-by-night operators in the music industry. — Pradeep Sharma
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Down memory lane with Mala Sinha
Chandigarh, November 25 Mala Sinha is in town to grace the annual award-giving function of Yaadgar-e-Rafi Society to be held at Tagore Theatre here tomorrow. I met the actress, who has for some time been a recluse, today as we drove down from the airport to the Punjab Bhavan in Sector 3 where she will be staying till Monday morning. Mala agreed to go down the memory lane and recall some of her films which had formed a part of the golden era of the Hindi cinema. Mala revealed how film maker Ardhendu Bose saw her perform in a school play and approached her father Albert Sinha for permission to cast her in his film. Papa Sinha agreed for a lark and Mala’s film debut was made in Bose’s Bengali film ‘Roshanara’ in 1952. Next came an offer from Amiya Chakraborty for his Hindi film ‘Badshah’. So the family shifted to Bombay where the film was being made. Luckily she came in contact with renowned actress Geeta Bali who introduced her to her mentor Kidar Sharma. The director saw the fire in her and groomed her for ‘Rangeen Raatein’, in which Mala played the lead. Thus began Mala’s career in films. The next year, she played one of her most memorable roles in ‘Pyaasa’ — of a girl who opts for marriage to a rich man (Rehman) instead of an uncertain life with a struggling poet (Guru Dutt). Then followed ‘Parvarish’, ‘Phir Subah Hogi’, and ‘Love Marriage’. Soon her father, who was fully in charge of her career (sometimes to the annoyance of film producers), decided that his daughter would do only strong, heroine-oriented roles. The result: Mala started playing central roles. She played an unwed mother in ‘Dhool ka Phool’, an illiterate girl in ‘Anpadh’, a wife betrayed by her husband in ‘Mere Huzoor’, a bride who becomes a widow on her wedding night in ‘Bahu Beti’, a lawyer who fights her ex-lover’s case in ‘Pooja ke phool’, Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan’s daughter who sacrifices her love for a commoner to save the royal honour in ‘Jahan Ara’, a village girl with a heart of gold in ‘Himalaya ki God Mein’, and so on. But the creme de la creme was her role in B.R. Chopra’s ‘Gumraah’. It remains Mala’s all-time favourite role. She plays a bubbly, vivacious girl in love with a painter (Sunil Dutt). Due to a quirk of fate, her sister dies leaving behind two small children and Mala is compelled to marry her widower brother-in-law (Ashok Kumar). But her former lover reappears in her life and she is drawn into an adulterous relationship with him. Mala, looking elegant in a printed sari and stylish bun, said she also did several glamorous roles like in ‘Dillagi’, ‘Night in London,’ ‘Aankhen’ ‘Neela Aakash’, ‘Lalkar’, ‘Paisa ya Pyar’ etc. It was amazing how she looked younger in these films as compared to her earlier ones and was comfortably paired with Rajesh Khanna in ‘Maryada’ and Amitabh Bachchan in ‘Sanjog’. Incidentally, despite having done creditable work in innumerable movies, Mala never won the coveted Filmfare award. To this query the cheerful lady replied that it was all a matter of ‘kismet’. She would win nominations for the Filmfare award for several films like ‘Dhool ka Phool’, ‘Gumraah’, ‘Himalaya ki God Mein’, ‘Jahan Ara’, ‘Aasra’... but at the nth hour the tables would turn. But she felt duly rewarded by the love and appreciation of her countless film fans. Earlier in 1968 Mala had also done a Nepali film ‘Maithi Ghar’. Her co-star C.P. Lohani, also an estate owner, impressed her and her father with his pleasing manners. Soon an arranged-cum-love marriage took place between Mala, a staunch Christian, and Lohani, a Hindu. An understanding between them enabled her to continue acting in films in Bombay while he stayed in Nepal to look after his estates. Besides, Bombay having better facilities in education was good for their daughter Pratibha. While in Bombay Mala planned to do just a few films on and off, but the huge success of ‘Do Kaliyan’ wherein she played mother to Baby Neetu Singh, brought more offers pouring in and she remained as busy as ever. Gradually she moved over to more senior roles — her first won being ‘Rickshawallah’ as Randhir Kapoor’s mother. She also did ‘36 Ghante’, ‘Holi Aai Re’, ‘Sanjog’, ‘Zindagi’, ‘Daulat’ etc. In Rakesh Roshan’s ‘Khel’ she played grandmother to Madhuri Dixit. A few more such films and Mala called it a day. Mala today lives a contented life in her old home in Mumbai with her husband who too has more or less retired. Her immediate plans now are to get daughter Pratibha married off. She strictly believes in destiny and feels God will do the needful. Pratibha has acted in a couple of movies but bowed out quite soon. She is best remembered for her guest appearance doing a graceful dance to the tune of ‘Pardesi, pardesi jaana nahin ...’ in ‘Raja Hindustani’.
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Mala Sinha to inaugurate ‘Navi Rah’
Mohali, November 25 Giving this information to the press Mr. Manmohan Garg, chairman, said under this project Swami Vivekanand Institute of Engineering and Technology (SVIET) would be giving free computer training to rural girls while Swami Vivekanand College of Education (SVCE) will be teaching these needy students free of cost. Swami Vivekanand College of pharmacy will take care of health requirements of the students. |
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IAF to train Lankans on combat aircraft
Chandigarh, November 25 "Though Sri Lanka has been sending its air force personnel to train in India for a long time, this is for the first time that training on combat aircraft is being imparted for them here," an IAF officer said. The present batch contains only technicians and pilots and engineering officers from Sri Lanka are expected to train here later. The Sri Lankans are here on a 14-week course, during which they will be trained on maintenance and repair of the MiG-27, which includes servicing its airframe, engines and sub-assembles, avionics and weapon systems. TETTRA (Technical Type Training) schools are responsible for training pilots, engineers and technicians on the technical and engineering aspects and the weapon systems of a particular aircraft. All pilots and technical staff have to pass through the TETTRA schools before they join aircraft operating establishments. The IAF has about 20 TETTRA schools all across the country catering to various aircraft types. The TETTRA school at Chandigarh recently stopped training IAF personnel on MiG-23s, which are being phased out and the MiG-29 TETTRA School was shifted here from Pune a few weeks ago. Sri Lanka procured some MiG-27 aircraft from Ukraine in the recent past and are said to be based near Colombo with the Fifth Jet Squadron. Being ground attack and close support aircraft, these are used in operations against Tamil fighters in the northern part of the island. Other aircraft operated by the Sri Lankan Air Force, which are common to the Indian Air Force are the An-32 medium haul transport aircraft, the Mi-17 utility helicopter and Mi-35 helicopter gunship. It is also known to have a few trainer versions of the MiG-23. The IAF has been training Sri Lankan Air Force personnel on these aircraft also.
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Indian Air Force to cut costs, manpower, says A.K. Singh
Chandigarh, November 25 The study was done on Jaguars and MiG-21 Bisons at the Ambala Air Force Station. The study also revealed that meantime between failures could be increased by 20 per cent. Speaking to mediapersons here, the Air Marshal said that the IAF has a mix of old and new technology and applying procedures meant for earlier aircraft resulted in aircraft being "over-serviced". He said the IAF need not apply the same maintenance procedures on aircraft having new technology. "It is like maintaining an Ambassador and a Maruti. While the former needs to be taken to garage frequently, the latter does not," he remarked. As far maintenance, Air Marshal Singh said that there was no dearth of technical expertise in the IAF, but problems arise when spares are not available. "We are already exporting our technical expertise. As for spares, we are encouraging indigenisation and participation of private industry in a big way. But it is a money intensive exercise," he said. On air accidents, the WAC chief, who used to fly Jaguars, said that a large part of accidents were due to pilot error, where old technology is difficult to imbibe. Pilot training simulators at Gwalior and Hindon airbases have been upgraded and two simulators to combat spatial disorientation while flying have been imported and installed at the Institute of Aeromedical Sciences, Bangalore. Spatial disorientation is when a pilot, due to various reasons, loses his sense of direction while flying. He said that the IAF is increasing the use of simulators for training. Flying a simulator is cheaper but it cannot replace actual flying. The cost of an sortie is about Rs 2.5 lakh per hour, whereas operating a simulator for a similar period costs Rs 15,000 to Rs 50,000. Earlier, Air Marshal A K Singh inaugurated annual Maintenance Conference of the Western Air Command, which was attended by chief engineering officers and logistic officers of all airbases under this command. Exhorting the participants to adapt to new technological advancements, he impressed upon the maintenance fraternity to ensure economy in expenditure so as to bring down the overall cost of operations without compromising on safety and readiness.
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Rodrigues lays stone of vocational training centre
Chandigarh, November 25 The unique project, to be constructed on an area of 1.12 acres at a cost of Rs 2.5 crore, will extend training facilities to the handicapped in different vocations and skills in order to enable them to lead their life with dignity, respect and confidence. General Rodrigues while interacting with the Home Secretary and other senior officers of the Administration about the concept of the building emphasised the need for creating equal opportunities of employment for the disabled, in public and private sectors. He asked the officers to introduce innovative techniques in the proposed plan to make the support structure more “disabled friendly” suiting to the needs of different handicaps. General Rodrigues also asked officers of the Engineering and Architecture Department to undertake the construction on a war footing and complete it within the stipulated period. The Home Secretary, Mr Krishna Mohan, while explaining the concept of the project said the centre would provide Vocational Training in chalk making, electrical and electronic assembly, envelop making, candle making, agarbatti making, file cover making carpenter, printing and composing and book binding and screen printing. As many as 200 physically challenged persons are likely to be imparted training in the above courses. In the subsequent years more vocational training/trades would be added on the basis of local needs having employment potential. The building will have hostel facilities to accommodate upto a maximum of 54 students. The centre will also be imparting training in different trades to the able students upto a maximum of 300 students. In order to monitor the activities of the centre, a high level committee has been set up under the Chairmanship of Secretary Social Welfare with Chief Engineer, UT, Chandigarh, Chief Architect and DPI (S), besides others.
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Prevention better than cure, says Kidwai
Chandigarh, November 25 The scientific exhibition showcasing related technologies like polymerase chain reaction and cell sorter was inaugurated by Prof K.K. Talwar. The scientific deliberations attracted more than 300 delegates from India and abroad.
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Gandotra denies allegations
Chandigarh, November 25 In a statement, Captain Gandotra said his stand had always been for the improvement of functioning of the club. I shall not be deterred from the aim of unravelling the truth.
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Delimitation panel extends date for objections Chandigarh, November 25 Political parties have been asked to file their objections, if any, by November 30. Earlier, the last date for the filing of objections was November 24. Public hearings by the commission in this connection will be held in the second week of December in Punjab, it is learnt. |
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Gurdwara panels’ poll on Dec 11 Chandigarh, November 25 There are 202 constituencies in Punjab, 18 in Haryana and one in Chandigarh. After the last date of withdrawals, there were nine constituencies in Punjab where nomination papers were not filed by anybody. In 85 constituences the number of candidates was four in each constituency, which means there will be no polling for these seats, too. In Haryana there will be no polling for eight seats as the number of candidates is four in each constituency. In Chandigarh polling will be necessary for the lone seat. The results will be announced on December 15. |
Suicide by woman: husband, in-laws booked
Chandigarh, November 25 Sources in the Industrial Area police station said a case under Sections 498-A and 304-B of the IPC had been registered on the basis of a complaint made by Ms Kamla Kapoor, mother of Sunita. The police has booked Sanjeev Kumar, his elder brother, Sandeep, his father, Tejbhan, and his mother. No arrest has been made so far. Talking to the media in the Sector 16 General Hospital, Ms Kapoor alleged Sanjeev Kumar and his family members were harassing her daughter for dowry. They used to coerce Sunita to bring car and other things from her parents. She further alleged that after the death of her husband about seven months ago, the accused began forcing her daughter to demand share from her father’s property. She said, “Sunita had a brilliant academic record. She was gold medalist in MBA and was computer literate. She used to write poetry. It is hard to believe that she met such an end.” Meanwhile, the body was handed over to the family after a post-mortem examination. The SHO of the Industrial Area police station, Mr Baljit Singh Chadda, said the doctors had mentioned hanging as the cause of death. However, to leave nothing to for doubt, the viscera is being sent for examination. In her suicide note, Sunita has not blamed anyone for her taking the extreme step. She has also exonerate her husband.
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Two vehicle thefts in city
Chandigarh, November 25 In another incident, Mr Raj Kumar of Sector 47 has filed a complaint alleging that his Maruti car (DL-4-CC-5956) was stolen from Kisan Mandi in Sector 46 on November 21. Two separate cases have been registered at various police stations in the city. Burglary In another incident, Mr Joga Singh of Phase II, Industrial Area, has lodged a complaint with the police alleging that a car stereo and a mobile phone were stolen from his factory premises on Wednesday night. Two separate cases have been registered. Held for gambling An amount of Rs 155 was seized from his possession. A case has been registered.
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