Jalandhar, September 8
The prolonged process to get a change of land use certificate from the government even on declared roads has resulted in a significant dip in the revenue of the Municipal Corporation.

Local builders revealed that while several cases of CLU had been cleared during the previous Congress regime, the process had slowed down during the past two years.

They disclosed that as many as 53 cases were lying pending at the government level, nearly 18 were yet to be taken up by a local committee which could perhaps meet tomorrow for a clearance.

The property developers said the pendency was so high that less than 10 cases had been cleared in the past two years.

They also alleged that all those cases which had been cleared off were of those who managed to make an approach, proving that the pick-and-choose policy played a pivotal role.

“If the government has declared six roads for CLU clearance, what is the need to hold two meetings? If it believes that such a provision is mandatory, such meetings should be held more frequently in Chandigarh and files be cleared within a stipulated time,” they insist.

Manoj Arora, a Congress leader and a representative of the Model Town Market Association, blamed the MC for a poor performance on this front. He said the process was much quicker when Ch Jagjit Singh was in power as the Local Bodies Minister. He alleged that the delay was leading to much chaos as many commercial buildings had come up on residential plots, illegally, on the Rainbow Road and other areas around Model Town, without getting the mandatory CLU for the same.

Councillor Kuldeep Singh Oberoi too has urged for a need to speed up the pending works.

The charges for a CLU are Rs 1,996.50 per sq yard for a building upto 38’-6” and double for any building higher than that.

Mayor Rakesh Rathour, when contacted, said the delay was at the government level. “I have been pressing mantriji to speed up the process for we are suffering a revenue loss. There is no delay at our level. We have been holding meetings every now and then. We have a meeting on CLU even tomorrow”, he gave his stand.

Jalandhar, September 8
Members of the national committee of the Bharatiya Khadya Nigam Karamchari Sangh today staged a day-long dharna outside their office and raised slogans against the food ministry and the management.

The agitated protesters demanded immediate settlement of wage revision of the category-II employees pending with the food ministry. They also demanded revision of staffing norms and manpower requirements of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) as per the proposal submitted to the ministry.

Sangh general secretary M.C. Tyagi said despite raising the issue at the meeting of the board of directors their genuine demands had not been met. “The food ministry should approve the proposal submitted by the management for appointment of dependents of deceased employees on compassionate ground against the existing entry level posts as a one-time measure,” he maintained.

The members said the sangh would observe a day-long dharna in front of all the regional offices on September 10. “A dharna would also be held in front of all zonal offices except the north zone on September 15. Similarly, a mass rally at the residence of food minister would be held on September 18 followed by a country wide strike on October 13,” he added.

Jalandhar, September 8 
The long-lost dream of Sansarpur village, popularly known as the Mecca of hockey, to have a mini-turf for the budding hockey players has finally taken shape. The laying and construction work on the ground, which started a month back, is in full swing these days. 

An initiative to equip the village with the state-of-the-art facilities is under way and the budding players would now get a world-class mini-turf of 22x44 dimension for hockey sessions. The Sports Department, Punjab, recently released a grant of Rs 3 crore for the completion of the project. 

Situated on the Sansarpur-Jandiala road, the mini-turf would be another feather in the kitty of the village of olympians. “It has been a long-pending demand of the hockey lovers to have an astroturf in the village. Though a bit late yet finally our dream has come true,” said Darshan Singh, an elderly villager.

Project Chairman and Deputy Director (Sports) of Jalandhar Division Hazari Lal Sharma said the work on the project would be completed soon. “These days the workers are busy layering the mud. The boundary wall has been constructed. We hope to complete the project in a month’s time,” he added. The laying of mini-turf is part of the renovation work which started simultaneously at Olympian Surjit Hockey Stadium. It needs mention here that earlier the budding hockey players used to practise at the Sansarpur hockey grounds.

Lauding the initiative, olympian Gurmail Singh said with the construction of a mini-turf the demand of hockey lovers has been fulfilled. “The mini-turf would cater to the needs of hockey players of Sansarpur as well as the adjoining villages. The mini-turf would ultimately help in the revival of the national game. However, an astroturf at Khusropur village is also required,” 

Jalandhar, September 8
Though trade pundits in Punjabi cinema signal it’s slowly but consistently inching towards brighter days, there’s no doubt about the fact that there’s still a lot of catching up to do. Hence, every single new release, chalks out a new course (good or bad) for the advancement of Punjabi cinema which, in turn, might make or mar its immediate future.

After Sarbjit Cheema’s “Apni Boli Apna Des”, Punjabi cinema is all set with its new family drama “Akhiyan Udeekdiyan” which will hit theatres soon.

Son of sufi artiste Puran Chand Wadali will be debuting with the movie which has been directed by Mukesh Gautam.

At the movie’s music release on Monday, a sense of déjà vu struck the gathering as it sat surrounded by huge posters of the movie flashing a cowboy-hatted, guitar-swanking Lakhwinder and typical Punjabi-girl-next-door Roshni. A melodramatic chadra-sporting Gugu Gill immediately brought the “main-tere-tote-tote-kar-deyanga” days of Punjabi cinema flooding back to one’s memory.

But the crew claims the cover tells just half the story, it really is different this time. A peek at what the movie gang had to say:

Sukhwinder Sukhi (scriptwriter): “The film is based on reality, not artificiality and is an entertaining family drama. The film deals with the issue of female foeticide.”

His dig at the popular cinema culture in Punjab: “The hero of the film is not an NRI and it doesn’t talk about any NRI issue either.”

Lakhwinder Wadali (male lead): “I never felt I was acting. I guess it comes to me naturally. I am sure the film will touch everyone’s heart.”

Roshni (female lead): “The film has rather been a sort of mission for me given the issue that it deals with.”

Gurmeet Singh (music director): “The music has been made keeping in mind the folk culture of Punjab. Along with that an effort has also been made to introduce some Bollywood element in the movie.”

Lakhwinder’s father Puran Chand Wadali and uncle Pyare Lal Wadali were the surprise package of the evening.

Jalandhar, September 8
The demand by certain outfits to include them in the list of Scheduled Tribes should be rejected by the government since they do not fulfil the criterion fixed under the Constitution.

Dr Ram Lal Jassi, secretary, PPCC, said the norms for inclusion in the SC and ST list was fixed on scientific basis keeping in mind the distinct traits of a particular community before Independence and the then government had a re- look post-Independence. The SC and ST population quota was fixed at 15 and 7.5 per cent, respectively, and was duly notified by the President of India under Article 341 (1) of the Constitution.

He said the castes in question were duly notified in the SC list of Punjab thereafter. This was done after detailed surveys and there was not even an iota of evidence to justify their claim for inclusion in the ST list in the state.

The raising of this issue every now and then was more out of emotional quotient and the desire to have a separate identity. The report cited by these groups was based on a study of the sociological and anthropological panel of Punjabi University that had been allegedly doctored for extraneous considerations. Besides, many specious arguments were being advanced by such people to suit their interests, Jassi pointed out.

The government should reject such claims as had been done by them in the past, he added.

Jalandhar, September 8
It is a proud moment for this budding actor who is set to tour six European cities to perform the lead role in a musical folk play during an international theatre festival to be held from September 21 to 30.

Working as an RJ with Big FM in Jalandhar, Vikrant Sharma is part of the Jammu-based theatre group Natrang which is being sponsored and supported by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) for the tour. The 16-member troupe is currently rehearsing for a 15th century Dogri folk ballad titled “Ghumayee” meaning wail.

Vikrant tells that the play had been staged several times in international festivals held in India but it was for the first time that it was going abroad. Quite excited about the new assignment, he said tickets for the play to be staged in Frankfurt, Moscow, Poland and Hungary were being sold online.

Narrating the script of the play, directed by Sangeet Natak Akademi awardee Balwant Thakur, Vikrant said the play portrayed the strong character of a 14-year-old bride of a village in Udhampur. “It opens with a doli scene. En route the bride starts feeling thirsty and asks for water. The only probable source of water is a gorge down a difficult terrain. The groom refuses to go but a man lifting the doli volunteers to go down.”

The climax begins when the groom in his ego bets away his bride to the man in lieu of water. The man manages to be back and quenches the thirst of the bride but he himself dies of exhaustion. As the baratis decide to continue ahead, the bride refuses to do so declaring herself a widow and crying out a wail (ghumayee).

Vikrant tells that the play will be performed in the original Dogri dialect even in Europe. “Since it is full of music and rhythm and has a spectacular visual appeal, it has the power to speak across language barriers,” he believes.

Jalandhar, September 8
Students of the commerce forum of DAV College celebrated Teachers’ Day on Friday. The students highlighted the role of the teachers in moulding their lives. The students honoured their teachers with gifts. A special message writing competition was held. College Principal V.K. Tewari was also present on this occasion.

Teachers’ Day was celebrated at the Red Cross School for Deaf on September 5. A cultural programme was held which was judged by two deaf students. Principal Harwinder Kaur highlighted the role of a teacher in the life of a student.

Paying homage to Dr S. Radhakrishnan, students of Sanskriti KMV School celebrated Teachers’ Day. Students presented a short programme in the honour of their teachers. Greeting cards and bouquets were exchanged by the students.

Teachers’ Day was celebrated at BD Arya Girls College, Jalandhar cantonment. Students presented a cultural programme, while teachers spoke on the bond of a student and a teacher.

Similarly, the birth anniversary of Dr Radhakrishnan was observed as Teachers’ Day on the premises of CT Public School hostel. The Student Council of CT Hostel organised a show in honour of the teachers.

A message writing competition was held in Kanya Maha Vidyalaya on Teachers’ Day. Navjot Kaur of class XII of the commerce stream bagged the first prize.

State Public School celebrated the birth anniversary of Dr Radhakrishnan from September 2 to 5. During the four-day-long celebrations, students participated in seminars, exhibitions, matches and greeting card competitions.

Teachers of MGN Public School staged a skit representing the plight of low-paid teachers in private schools on the occasion of Teachers’ Day.

A special assembly was held at Manav Sehyog School. Students dressed up as teachers took their respective classes and highlighted the importance of a teacher in society.

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