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PUNJAB

Abohar
Students excel in exam: In this sub-division, students of Gopi Chand Arya Mahila College have topped in BA I, II and III examinations, principal Neelam Arun Mittu informed on Saturday. They are Ishu Bajaj, Rachna and Shayna Garg. Besides, the GAMC students had got first 11 positions in BA final year, first 17 positions in BA II and first three positions in BA I, Mittu added.

PGDCA examination: For third consecutive term, Swami Keshwa Nand Memorial College has achieved 100 per cent success in the PGDCA exam held by Guru Nanak Dev University. Coordinator G.L. Nagpal informed on Saturday that Rishu, Archna and Kanchan Bala bagged first three positions in the college. In Diploma in Computer Application also, all the female students of the college had passed. The toppers were Honeydeep Kaur, Renu Bala and Rupali Chugh. All the students of BA part II and III had also achieved success, he added.

AMRITSAR
College to be named after Sam: The government has decided to restart the Government College for Boys and name it after India’s first Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw. Health minister Laxmi Kanta Chawla, who had been vociferously supporting the demand of her constituency to re-establish the college, which had been set up in 1998 in a rented building, said she had taken up the matter with the Department of Higher Education and was hopeful to restart this college with proper infrastructure for the benefit of the poor.

Batala
Iron stolen: Some miscreants stole pig iron worth Rs 1.60 lakh from the local Chandan Foundry. Unit owner Joginder Pal Aggarwal in his complaint stated that six persons entered the premises by scaling a wall and took away iron.

BATHINDA
Bike stolen: A Hero Honda Passion bike was stolen from outside the mini-secretariat on Friday here. Rajbir of Faridkot had complained that his motorcycle, registration number PB-04H-7168, had been stolen. The Kotwali police station has registered a case.

Meeting: The Khetriya Welfare Manch had a meeting with ADC Upjeet Singh Brar over problems of people living across the railway line including, Paras Ram Nagar, Pratap Nagar, Janta Nagar, Gopal Nagar and Jogi Nagar. Kamal Kant and DFSO of food supply, Atinder Kaur were also present at the meeting that was organised in view of the demands put up by the Manch before the chief minister during his last visit here.

CHANDIGARH
Aided school teachers’ stir: The Punjab State Aided School Teachers and Other Employees Union on Thursday decided to launch an agitation in support of their demands. “We will sit in a dharna in front of the office of the DPI (Schools) on July 22,” said Ashwani Kumar Sharma, press secretary of the union. M.L. Chopra, adviser to the union, alleged that the government had failed to fill sanctioned posts of teacher in aided schools. It had also failed to restore the pension scheme, which was suspended in 2003, in the case of retired teachers and other employees of aided schools.

Jalandhar
MBBS topper: Trimaan Singh Sikand of MGN Public School, Jalandhar, has topped the All-India Sikh Minority Quota MBBS entrance test conducted by Shri Guru Ram Das Institute Medical Science, Amritsar.
T S Sikand

Kapurthala
Man ‘stabbed’ to death: A man was allegedly stabbed to death by his neighbours in the wee hours on Saturday when the former was going to pay obeisance at a village gurdwara. According to police sources, Joginder Singh and his son Taranjeet Singh of Talwara village, falling under Bholath police station, were reportedly annoyed with Santokh Singh (55) as the latter had lodged a complaint against them with the village panchayat over a tree-cutting incident.

Kapurthala bandh: Almost a complete bandh was observed here on Saturday against the killing of a Sikh youth in Friday clashes between several Sikhs and followers of the Dera Sacha Sauda. Shops in all the main bazaars in the town, including Satnarayan Bazaar, Sadar Bazaar, Bania Bazaar, Sarafa Bazaar and Kesariya Bazaar remain closed in response to the call by different Sikh organisations of Kapurthala.

LALRU
Infant killed in accident: Karan, a nine-month-old child, was killed while his parents were seriously injured when a truck hit their car on Friday. According to the police, the family belonged to Lalru. Bhupinder Singh who was driving the car said they were coming home after paying obeisance at Lalan Wale Peer. When they reached the Jaula roundabout, a truck rammed into their car. The police said the victims were taken to the civil hospital in Ambala where Bhupinder’s son Karan was declared brought dead by the doctors, while his wife was referred to the PGI in critical condition. The police has registered a case of against the truck driver.

Mansa
Dance and spelling contest: Solo dance and spelling competition for the students up to class IX was held at St. Xavier's School here on Saturday. In the first group of solo dance competition, Devika, Sanchi and Akshit of LKG stood first, second and third respectively. In the second group Jagriti, Khawahish and Miksha of UKG and in third group, Triyan, Anupreet and Hitanshu picked up first, second and third positions, respectively. In the spelling competition, Pradhuman, Rozel, Mushkan, Richa, Sidharth and Chetanya were leading.

NAWANSHAHR
10-yr jail for 4 youths: A local court, in a decision on Friday, sentenced four youths, Parminder Singh of Rakkeran Dhahan village, Kulwinder Singh, Kulbir Singh and Manjinder Singh of Sahungra village, to 10 years’ imprisonment and a fine of Rs 10,000 each in a gang rape case. Another accused Jeeta was acquitted of the charges by the court. The rape victim had swallowed some poisonous substance and reached the police station to lodge her complaint. The girl had died then. On the statement of the victim, the police had registered a case.

PATHANKOT
Assault by robbers, 1 held: The police arrested Parteek of Indira Colony here on Wednesday in connection with a daylight robbery in Rajesh Mahajan’s house in which the latter’s son Sahil was injured, at New Bank Colony, Shastri Nagar, here on Wednesday. The complainant said two robbers entered his house to loot, but when Sahil, who was alone, challenged them, they attacked him with sharp-edged weapons and fled from the scene. SP Harpreet Singh said the injured boy was taken to the Civil Hospital by his father, who had come home for lunch. The SP said another accused Raj Kumar of Indira Colony was still absconding.

PATIALA
Mega car show extended: State Bank of Patiala (SBoP) organised a mega car show at Baradari Gardens in which local car dealers of leading companies participated. The show, in which latest models of cars were displayed, draw huge rush despite intermittent showers. Keeping in view the overwhelming response of the public the car show was extended by another day. The show will conclude tomorrow.

SANGRUR
Insurance Co to pay Rs 2 lakh: The local District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has directed National Insurance Company Ltd to pay Rs 2 lakh along with interest at the rate of 9 pc per annum from the date of repudiation i.e. February 25, 2008, till realisation to the kin of late Balwant Singh, a resident of Pakhowal village. Balwant died on April 30, 2003, due to electrocution. The company has also been directed to pay Rs 2,000 to the complainants as litigation expenses and comply with its order within 60 days of communication.

CHANDIGARH

MOHALI
Anti-rabies camp: The Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals organised an anti-rabies vaccination and animal welfare camp in association with the animal husbandry department, Punjab, at Jagatpura village here on Saturday. As many as 76 stray dogs and pets were vaccinated at the camp which was inaugurated by Dr Raj Kumar Arora, deputy director. Dr Desh Deepak Goyal, general secretary of the society, said the dogs were vaccinated against rabies and were given medicines for ecto and endo-parasites and skin diseases.

HARYANA

BHIWANI
Retd officer attacked: A group of miscreants allegedly attacked a retired education officer at Vidya Nagar Colony on Friday and robbed him of Rs 1.50 lakh and his car. The police has registered a case against Baalu and his four accomplices on the complaint of Ajit Singh. The five youths allegedly attacked him with knives when he was on his way to his residence in the car. The miscreants decamped with the booty and the vehicle. Singh sustained injuries in the attack.

Youth killed: A 25-year-old youth was killed after he was run over by a train, Kisan Express, on Friday. The incident took place near Tosham railway crossing. The deceased has been identified as Kuldeep of Kakroli Sardara village. The police handed over the body to relatives after postmortem examination.

Woman electrocuted: A 30-year-old woman was reportedly electrocuted at Adampur Dadhi village on Friday. The victim accidentally touched a live electric wire while doing domestic work. She was rushed to a hospital at Charkhi Dadri but she succumbed to her injuries on the way.

CHARKHI DADRI
Dalit girl raped: Four youths allegedly picked up a Dalit girl (17) of Hari Nagar area and one of them allegedly raped her on Thursday. The police has arrested three of the accused. While one of the accused raped the girl in a car, the other three misbehaved with her. Later, they dropped her near the old bus stand and threatened her of dire consequences. The victim’s father lodged a complaint on Saturday.

HISAR
Revised pay scales: The All-India State Government Employees Confederation has demanded that employees of the Haryana Harijan Kalyan Nigam (HHKN) be given revised pay scales with retrospective effect from January 1, 1996. In a letter to the Chief Minister, confederation president M.L. Sehgal said the state government had extended this benefit to employees of all state boards and corporations except the HHKN. The benefit was extended even though the previous Chautala regime kept denying this to the employees of boards and corporations on the plea that these were incurring losses.

JHAJJAR
Road blocked: Residents of Silani village blocked the Jhajjar-Silani road in protest against the pitiable condition of the road and acute shortage of potable water in the village for about an hour on Saturday. Protesters lifted the blockade when SDO of the PWD Ram Lal assured them that the road would be repaired within a week. The villagers complained that they had been facing hardships due to the bad condition of the road. They said water supply to the village was also erratic.

JIND
3 killed in mishaps: Three persons were killed in mishaps in the district in the past 24 hours. Two youths were killed when the motorcycle they were riding on was hit by a tractor-trolley. The deceased have been identified as Amit and Suresh, residents of Siwah and Daroli villages, respectively. In another incident, a youth identified as Vipin of UP, who had come here in search of employment, got drowned in the Hansi branch canal here on Saturday. It is learnt that he slipped into the water after he tried to touch the flow of water with his feet.

Two shot at: Two employees of a liquor vend near Intelkhurd village here got injured when four youths allegedly opened fire and beat up the duo on Friday. The incident took place when the victims identified as Rambir and Krishan were sleeping outside their shop. Rambir told the police that the youths had come to steal the cash kept in the shop. He said when he told them that he had no cash except a few hundred rupees, one of the youths fired at him. After firing at Rambir, they allegedly thrashed Krishan, when he expressed his helplessness. A case has been registered, but no arrests have been made so far.

KAITHAL
Camp for physically challenged: There is an urgent need to identify physically challenged persons and make efforts for their proper rehabilitation so that they can join the mainstream and contribute to national building. This was stated by deputy commissioner-cum-chairman of the district Red Cross Society while inaugurating a block-level survey camp to identify physically challenged persons in each block. The DC said after proper identification such persons would be provided artificial limbs, tricycles, wheelchairs and hearing aids as per requirement. As many as 2,500 persons from Kaithal block were examined at the camp.

KALKA
Encroachments removed: Under a special two-day campaign, the local administration removed encroachments from the main bazar at Pinjore where the project of widening the NH-22 is already in progress.

REWARI
Body found: The body of a youth (25), who died under suspicious circumstances, was recovered from an isolated place near the Kali Mata Mandir road here on Saturday. The deceased has been identified as Sanjeev Sharma, a resident of Shivpuri area of Delhi. He used to work as an agent of a readymade garments company of Delhi. The body was sent to the PGIMS, Rohtak, for postmortem examination to ascertain the cause of Sanjeev’s death.

SONEPAT
One killed in accident: Suresh of Garhi Ujale Khan village died on the spot whereas five others were injured when the driver of the canter loaded with charcoal lost control over the vehicle and entered into a sweet shop near Dewan petrol pump in Gohana on Thursday. The injured included the canter driver, owner of the shop and his three employees. In another incident, Narender from Bahadurgarh was reportedly washed away in the Yamuna river as he jumped into it for taking a bath on Friday.

HIMACHAL PRADESH

CHAMBA
Budhil hydroelectric project: Thakur Singh Bharmouri, a former Congress legislator of Bharmour tribal constituency has alleged that the hydropower enterprises executing the 70 MW Budhil hydroelectric project in Bharmour region were being forced to engage private vehicles in the project. He had also alleged discrimination in the ongoing development schemes. A deputation of activists of the Bharmour tribal block Congress committee led by Bharmouri on Saturday met the additional district magistrate and presented a memo to the Governor of Himachal Pradesh through him.

Chowgan reopens for ‘stroll’: The historic Chowgan of Chamba has been reopened for public for taking a ‘stroll’ in view of the ensuing eight-day Minjar Fair to be held from July 27 to August 3. Strolling in the Chowgan was banned around two years ago for undertaking some repair work.

Employees’ action panel: The following have been elected office-bearers of the district unit of the Himachal Pradesh Non-Gazetted Employees Action Committee - president: Brij Mohan Bedi; senior vice-president - Narinder Kumar; vice-president - Ramesh Bhandari; general secretary - Puvinder Pathania; finance secretary - Dinesh Marwah; and adviser - Dildar Ali Shah.

Office-bearers: The following have been elected the office-bearers of the Chamba unit (girls committee) of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) - president: Sapna; vice-president - Ritika Bedi; general secretaries - Sashita Khan, Reena; joint secretary - Pooja Sharma; members of the committee - Radhika, Lakshmi, Kanchan and Priyanka Marol.

HAMIRPUR
DCC’s working president: Sunil Sharma (Bittoo) has been appointed the working president of the District Congress Committee (DCC). Congress spokesman Deepak Sharma said soon a regular DCC president would be appointed. Talking to mediapersons here on Friday, he criticised the state government for taking the credit of several schemes and projects cleared by the UPA government.

KANGRA
Support for HPSEB staff: The State Pensioners’ Welfare Association, Himachal Pradesh, has come out in support of the agitating Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board (HPSEB) employees, who had been protesting against the trifurcation and privatisation of the board. Spokesman of the association B.L. Sharma said in a statement on Saturday that around 1 lakh employees of the board would be adversely affected by the move. More than 25,000 retired HPSEB employees have decided to support the cause of the agitating employee so far.

Body found: The body of Manjoo, 16, who was washed away in Iku khad along with her sister Sujata near Tang Roti, was found at Sheerathana on Saturday. The body was handed over to the family after a post-mortem examination. The preliminary report of autopsy indicated that she had died due to asphyxia due to drowning. Sujata’s body was found on Friday.

JAMMU & KASHMIR

JAMMU
Girl hurt in acid attack: A teenaged girl suffered serious burn injuries when a youth allegedly threw acid on her face in the Akhnoor area, police sources said on Saturday. “The incident took place at Naiwalla village when a local youth identified as Ashok Kumar (22) threw acid on the face of one Asha Rani (15) as she refused his proposals,” the police said. They said Ashok had been harassing Asha for the past few days. Both reportedly entered into a verbal duel, after which Ashok threw acid on Asha’s face. Asha sustained serious burn injuries and was immediately shifted to a nearby hospital while Ashok managed to escape from the spot. Meanwhile, a case under Section 326 RPC has been registered against Ashok.

Two commit suicide: Two persons, including a youth, committed suicide in Samba and Doda districts of Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday, official sources said. They said a middle-aged man, identified as Vijay Gupta, was found hanging from a ceiling fan by his family members at his residence in Vijaypur area of Samba district on Friday evening. The police was trying to ascertain the reason behind his extreme step. Meanwhile, in another incident, one Irfan Bhat (22) committed suicide by jumping into the Chenab river. A family dispute is stated to be the reason behind his extreme step.

Soz criticised: The BJP on Saturday strongly criticised union water resources minister and state Congress chief Saif-ud-Din Soz’s alleged suggestion of curtailing duration of the Amarnath Yatra from two months to one and restricting the number of pilgrims to 75,000. Addressing a press conference here today, state BJP president Ashok Khajuria said the recommendations of the Nitish Sengupta Committee had not been implemented by the government or the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board since their submission in 1997. “The suggestion by Soz is a deliberate assault on Hinduism, an act, designed to accord greater respectability to Kashmir-based religious extremists and separatists,” he added.

SRINAGAR
Two ultras held: Two militants were arrested by the security forces along with arms and ammunition in the Kashmir valley on Saturday. Official sources said the special operation group (SOG) of the Jammu and Kashmir police and the 5 Rashtriya Rifles (RR) conducted a search operation at Saloora village in the Ganderbal district of central Kashmir. During the operation two militans Tajamul Ahmad Sofi and Ajaz Rafiq Tantray were arrested and a hand grenade was recovered from them, they added.