 |
|
|
|
|
||||||||
|
Rs 791-crore MC budget to be presented today
Ludhiana, February 14 The sources added the civic body has allocated Rs 552.1 crore for undertaking various developments works. Since huge funds are required for flyovers and rail overbridges that are already under construction or are planned, a major share of the budget has been allocated for development. "Though the municipal corporation hasn’t been able to meet all the targets it had set, there are some areas where it has done fairly well. During the first six months of fiscal 2009-10 there were significant financial losses due to one or another reason. However, things are expected to improve this year. We expect to begin the new fiscal with an opening balance of Rs 22.39 crore," said a senior MC official. The sources said apart from the budget estimates circulated among municipal councillors another proposal that could be floated on the House floor tomorrow is increasing councillors payscales from Rs 5,700 to Rs 12,000. The matter was raised at the MC’s core committee meeting held recently. "A proposal to increase the entertainment allowance to Rs 10,000 and Rs 5,000 per month for the mayor’s and commissioner office, respectively, has already been included in the circular," the sources said, adding “the new fiscal would be a great challenge for the civic body”. Terming the budget to be “public friendly”, senior deputy mayor Praveen Bansal said, "The maximum amount of the budget has been earmarked for big and public friendly projects like railway overbridges, flyovers and roads. Apart from this a substantial amount has been kept for upgrading the civic body’s equipment and machinery, including garbage trucks, which have already outlived their lives and need replacement." However, Congress leader Parminder Mehta termed the budget as an “eyewash”. "The entertainment avenues promised for residents by the municipal commissioner, announcements of which were made, didn't find any mention in the budget proposals circulated. Even last year one saw the budget was approved in five minutes and the house was empty. The budget is of no use unless discussions on it are held”, he added. Extra burden The municipal corporation, which has been facing a severe financial crisis, will be saddled with an increased burden this fiscal with new pay scales for its employees coming into effect along with regularisation of safai karamcharis
|
|
|
Cupid-struck youths defy moral police
Ludhiana, February 14 The cinema halls, especially PVR and Waves, witnessed huge rush of youngsters in all shows. Anjali Gupta (name changed), a college student, said her parents were strict. She came out of the house by giving an excuse that it was her friend’s birthday and latter had invited all to watch a movie. “I am waiting for my friend to come. He has gone to arrange tickets. I have been gifted with a silver bracelet by my friend on Valentine Day”, she added. Tarun Sibia, a student, looked disappointed, as his “Valentine” had refused to take his gift home. He said, “I had presented her a big soft teddy bear but she refused to take it home. Her parents will ask so many questions. I understand and respect her feelings”. To avoid acquaintances, a few were seen enjoying the day at “cozy” places like Rose Garden and Leisure Valley. Holding each other’s hand, many of them were not even bothered that evening walkers were watching every act of theirs. Nirmala Jain, a woman in her mid 50s said, “Look at them. Times have really changed. Such celebrations were never part of our culture but looking at them, I feel western culture has spoilt our generation. Expressing love is not bad but I do not approve indecency”, she rued. But for married couples, there were no restrictions at all. Wearing “churas” in their arms, young girls were seen enjoying the occasion- the most. “Why should I be scared of anyone? I am enjoying with my husband. We are having great fun. My husband has even booked a table for dinner tonight. It is not that I am not attached to my roots. But if a good opportunity of expressing love has come our way, why not avail it”, she asked? Meanwhile, activists of the Bajrang Dal burnt cards at the Samrala Chowk. They said that they were opposed this western tradition as it spoilt the young mindset.
|
|
Ishwar Singh takes over as first police commissioner
Ludhiana, February 14 He is a 1993- batch IPS officer of the Punjab carder with a rich academic background with a degree in electronic and communication engineering. He has done his masters in police sciences. Besides attending a few crime-related workshops, he had even attended a workshop on community policing organised by the VERA institute of Justice, New York, USA, in 2002. Beside, the commissioner, the city is likely to have a joint commissioner, 12 assistant commissioner of police (ACPs), and five deputy commissioner of police (DCPs). These ranks would be taken by the officers of the ranks the SSP, SP and the DSP, sources added. The slot vacated by SSP Sukhchain Singh Gill, who has been transferred to Bathinda, has not been filled so far. The police would enjoy more power for quick and effective policing. These powers were earlier vested with the district administration. Instead of the deputy commissioner, the police commissioner would have the powers to issue arms licenses. Besides this, the police commissioner would enjoy certain powers of the executive magistrate as well. The commissioner would grant permission for holding processions or protests, besides those related to marriage palaces and implementation of curfews. As a first police commissioner, he has a Herculean task at hand. With a hand full of force, at least 3,000 cops, out of which near 200 are on VIP duties and limited funds. It would be tough to bring the crime rate down in a city that has a population of over 30 lakh. The police commissioner would monitor the city from his office situated in mini- secretariat. He could be contacted at 0161- 24149404, 2414943, 2414927 ( R). |
|
Google to the rescue of new moms
Ludhiana, February 14 The Internet has permeated all spheres of our life to such an extent that the traditional place of a nanny has been taken over by the search engine Google. Mothers of newborn kids searching for instant answers during the early years of motherhood are turning to the Net where Google appears to have become their “best friend”. For instance, a child crying for a long time can make many mothers nervous. Sameera, mother of a four-month-old baby girl, said one day she was alone at home and her baby was crying incessantly. "I got worried but didn’t know what to do. I made a search on Google and got to know various reasons why a child keeps on crying as well as different means to calm it down," she added. Added another mother of a two-year-old kid: “With grandmothers no longer living with the family there are many things that small kids have to miss. It became a habit with my son to listen to a lullaby before sleeping when my mother came to stay with us for a Said Harmeet Kaur: “Initially I used to get several calls from my daughter every other day regarding her newly born baby. Then all of a sudden the phone calls stopped. When I asked her the reason she replied whenever there was any problem in bringing up the child she surfed the Net, adding answers to her problems were available with the click of a mouse”. There is no doubt the Internet has made the lives of new mothers easier. |
|
MC looks other way as builder flouts norms
Ludhiana, February 14 Area residents complained though the site where construction is going on has been earmarked by the MC for a public park, someone was building a community park’ in the area. The matter was reported to the civic body but to no avail, they rued. Talking to The Tribune, Amrik Chand, a resident of the locality, said, “The site was to be developed as a public park but the concerned authorities failed to do so. Now they are allowing construction of a building there despite the fact that the city’s green belts and areas need to be protected.” He added the residents came to know some MC officials visiting the site asked the owner of the under construction building to halt the work but nothing happened. “The pillars of the structure have been erected, now do we need to wait for the lintel to be constructed?” he questioned. “If municipal corporation officials fail to ensure compliance with building bylaws what is the need for them to be present? It’s their duty to make people obey the laws,” Chand asserted. Similarly, another area resident, Sushil Kumar, said, “When construction began over two weeks ago we thought the park was being developed, but on enquiring someone told us a community hall is being built. I along with other residents was taken aback, thinking how could a community hall come up in a public park. Area councillor Ruchi Jain seems to be least bothered about what is going on in her ward. Had the public park developed on time the owner of the under construction building would not have been able to grab public land reserved for a park”. Residents of the locality were of the opinion that a community hall in the area would disturb the residential area and suspected it was coming up “at the behest of some local politicians”. Despite repeated attempts to contact him assistant town planner SS Bindra was not available for his comments.
|
|
Thieves strike at two shops, decamp with Rs 1.10 lakh, clothes
Ludhiana, February 14 The incident came to light this morning, when Congress Leader Jung Bahadur, who own Duke outlet in Kucha No. 11, reached his shop and found the shutter of the outlet uprooted. He immediately informed Amarjit Singh, who happens to be an Akali leader and owns the outlet of TQC clothing. Meanwhile, the police along with the dog squad and finger print expert reached the spot and started its investigation. The thieves broke the cash counter of both shops and took away clothes and other accessories. Amarjit Singh said thieves broke open the cash counter and took away cash worth Rs 68,000, while Jung Bahadur said cash worth over Rs 42,000 was stolen from his shop. According to the police, the thieves might have struck during mid night. The cops have not ruling out the involvement of an insider as the shops are situated in the heart of the city and remain crowded even during night. |
|
12 encroachers booked
Jagraon, February 14 After conducting an inquiry, the BDPO has recommended SHO Sidhwan Bet to book the accused. Those booked have been identified as Inder Singh, Shinder Singh, Harjinder Singh, Inder Singh. Harbans Singh, Kartar Singh and Gurnam Singh, all resident of Bhundri village and Basant Singh, Roop Singh, Mohinder Singh and Kartar Singh, all of Bharowal Kalan and Gurnam Singh under Sections 447 and 149 of the IPC. Many of them or their relatives were booked earlier also for encroaching upon 30 acres on November 29, 2009. |
|
Cycle Manufacturers’
Body Tribune News Service
Ludhiana, February 14 Terming it unethical, former office-bearers said since their team issued the directory in 2009, removal of messages was uncalled for. However, the serving president said hundreds of directories that could not be distributed were of no use to the association. The incumbent team had saved association’s money by making use of those particular directories by “deleting” its two pages, he said. Varinder Kapoor, former general secretary, said they had filed a written complaint over the issue and were awaiting the reply. He said in 2009, their team under president Charanjit Vishkarma had released a directory, of which 2,500 copies were published. Of these, 1,400 were still lying with the association. The messages of former president and general secretary were removed and photographs and messages of new president and general secretary were added to the directory released by us. We are not raising hue and cry over the removal of our names and messages. Our only complaint is that we released the directory and the present team had no right to make changes in that. The new team could have published their own directory as being practiced by teams for years,” remarked Vishkarma. Meanwhile, UCPMA president DS Chawla said the issue was being dragged unnecessarily. He said whenever a new team took over; their photographs and messages were added to the directory. To save the funds of the association, they used the old directory, of which hundreds of copies were lying unused. “We simply deleted two pages and added two new ones. There have never been any messages of former presidents or general secretaries in directories of association since 1967. There is absolutely no controversy,” said Chawla.
|
|
Juniors bid adieu to seniors
Tribune Reporters
Ludhiana, February 14 The function began with a havan. Students of Class XII sang a song remembering their school days. A fashion show was also organised on the occasion. The outgoing students were given trophies as token of love. Gurkirat Singh and Chahat were declared Mr and Miss GMT Directors of the school. Annual day
The annual day celebrations of Baba Jaswant Singh Dental College, Hospital and Research Institute, was a blend of creativity, comedy and wit. The evening also marked the culmination of Sardar Jawala Singh Memorial Annual Sports Meet. AR Talwar, principal secretary, Home Affairs and Justice, Punjab government, inaugurated the function. A cultural function was also organised on the occasion. A satire on quacks “Neem Hakim Khatra-e-Jaan” and a spoof on mushrooming of news channels, Rajasthani folk dance and mesmerising mystic choreography on Sufi songs kept the audience spellbound. The chief guest presented certificates to the toppers. Crusade against drugs
Mullanpur Dakha: The NGO, presently active in crime prevention activities and developing LPG gas-based crematoriums in Punjab through its network, ACCP COPS, will assist SSP Ludhiana (R) Harinder Singh Chahal in its crusade against drugs. Varinder Singh Sant, national president of the NGO, said he and the other office-bearers of the NGO were watching the police action against the drug peddlers, especially the medical stores for the past few months and the “Jago” campaign received a good response from the general public. Sant, in the company of other office-bearers announced a separate wing of the NGO to assist the crusade against drugs. The wing will be headed by Ludhiana ® president Parminder Singh Dhaliwal, who will form his own team out of the active members of the NGO. Parminder said they would help the police by erecting hoardings giving details of the police officials to contact if someone was detected peddling drugs. Teaching
practices
The inter-college competition of the Ludhiana Zone of Panjab University, Chandigarh, in teaching practices were held at GHG Khalsa College of Education, Gurusar Sudhar. Students from 13 education colleges in the zone presented their skills in teaching practices of Hindi, Punjabi and English. The competition was presided over by Prof Iqbal Singh Sandhu from Punjab University. Results Teaching Practices Teaching of Punjabi- 1st GHG Khalsa College of Education, Gurusar Sudhar, 2nd Satyam College of Education, Moga, and 3rd SDS College of Education Lopon Teaching of Hindi- 1st DM College of Education, Moga, 2nd GHG Khalsa College of Education, Gurusar Sudhar, and 3rd Babe Ke College of Education Mudki (Ferozepur). Teaching of English- 1st Babe ke College of Education Mudki (Ferozepur), 2nd Moga College of Education, Ghal Kalan, and 3rd Sukhdev Krishana College of Education, Moga.
|
|
Parents hope schoolbag strain on kids will be eased
Ludhiana, February 14 Discussion with several parents whose kids are enrolled in various schools affiliated to CBSE and PSEB reveals on an average a schoolbag weighs around 5 to 6 kg, consisting of books and copies related to various subjects. Students studying in classes III through VIII are the worst hit with the heaviest bags. Talking to The Tribune, Anshu, whose daughter studies in a CBSE affiliated school, said, “With the increasing competition schools often prescribe help or revision books and so my daughter has to carry them too to school every day. She will now be going to class VI and subjects like social studies will be divided into three - history, geography and civics. Similarly science will be split into physics, chemistry and biology”. “The school authorities can try to reduce the load of book students have to carry along with them by providing them lockers in their classes. When parents pay such huge amounts for fees this facility should be made available in all schools”, she added. Similarly, Rohini Sharma, whose son studies in Atam Public School, said, “At a time when HRD Minister Kapil Sibal has begun introducing reforms in education, then why not focus on books too? Kids are treated like donkeys that carry heavy loads of bags every day, despite the fact there are just fixed number of class periods in a day. Sometimes teachers create such fear among students that they are forced to carry every book and copy to class.” She added CBSE affiliated schools are now trying to change that but students of PSEB schools are still face the same stress. Another parent, Sameer Seth, said: “The life of schoolkids has become a virtual hell. Tuitions, schools, extracurricular activities to attend - they have no time to think about themselves. Schools can help in a great way by reducing the burden in every possible way, whether it is lugging fewer books to classes or reducing study materials for
students”.
|
|
Hope in sight for small units
Ludhiana, February 14 The industry feels that the issues related to the MSME sector remained unsolved in the absence of a representative from Punjab on the national board and the Southern states were able to extract maximum benefits. VP Chopra said the MSME sector in Punjab had suffered a lot as nobody represented the state at the national level between 2007 and 2009. “The Centre will not be able to get the feedback if the problems pertaining to the MSME sector are not discussed. FOPSIA expresses gratitude that the Central government gave it a chance to discuss the issues related to the tiny and small industry for next two years,” said Chopra. The small and micro industry has been condemning the “step-motherly” treatment meted out to them by various banks in the state. They feel that due to various “risks”, banks avoided providing loans to the MSME sector. President of the Punjab chapter of the Federation of Association of Small Industries of India (FASII) Badish K Jindal told The Tribune that under the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust (CGFT), 2.50 lakh cases were settled by the Central government till December 31, 2009. Rs 9,200 crore was disbursed among the SSI sector in the country, he added. “Unfortunately, Punjab's cases were not more than 5,000. Whereas at least 5 per cent cases should have been from Punjab. But here, banks are not ready to provide loans to the SSI without the collateral fee. Maximum benefits were extracted by the Southern states under the CGFT scheme. With the appointment of Chopra as the member of the national board, the issues of the small and medium industries would be taken up at the highest forum,” said Jindal.
|
|
Relief for rice sheller owners
Mandi Ahmedgarh, February 14 The FCI officials led by area managers GN Raju and NA Anand took stock of the situation and directed the staff concerned to take necessary steps to ensure safety of stocks that had been stacked in open yards of warehouses at the three places. Talking to Ludhiana Tribune, Anand clarified that the situation had arisen due to misunderstanding among rice sheller owners and junior officials of the procurement agency over lifting of milled paddy. Denying allegations of demanding consideration for shifting the commodity inside godowns, Anand maintained that no specific incident of corrupt practice was brought to his notice. “We have looked into the sequence of events leading to the delay in shifting of stocks inside godowns and found that sudden worsening of weather had created panic among rice sheller owners. Though the delay was caused due to unavoidable technical reasons, no specific incident of demanding consideration was found,” said Anand adding that strict action would be taken if any employee is founding harassing shellers owners unnecessarily. Owners of about 12 rice shellers had demanded probe into the sequence of events that had led to the dumping of foodgrain in the open for over a week and consequent spoiling of stocks by rain.
|
|
Railways fail to run special trains
No room in UP, Bihar, West Bengal-bound trains Kuldip Bhatia
Ludhiana, February 14 As a result, most of the trains running on these routes either have a long waiting list, or there is no room (no booking can be made even on waiting) in some other trains. Information provided by the railway authorities indicate that in the UP and Bihar-bound trains like the Amarnath Express, the Lohit Express, the Shaheed Express and the Archna Express, the waiting list is more than 300. Similarly, in trains for West Bengal, the Himgiri Express has a waiting list of 300, while the Sealdah Express and the Duplicate Howrah have a waiting of 150 and 190, respectively. Situation in trains on Amritsar-Mumbai and Amritsar-Nanded route is no better. There is no room in the 2716 Amritsar-Nanded Sachkhand Express, whereas the Pashchim Express and the Golden Temple Mail also have a waiting list of 190 and 100, respectively. Meanwhile, the Railways have announced that a special train between Ludhiana and Saharsa (Bihar) with unreserved accommodation will run twice in the last week of February. The 0471/0472 Ludhiana-Saharasa-Ambala Unreserved Express will leave Ludhiana on February 24 and 27, 2010. On its return journey, the train will leave Saharsa on February 25 and March 2, 2010. Departing from Ludhiana at 9.45 am, the train will have stoppages at Dhandari Kalan, Sirhind, Rajpura, Ambala Cantt, Jagadhri, Saharanpur, Moradabad, Bareilly, Sitapur, Burthwal, Gonda, Basti, Gorakhpur, Bhatni, Siwan, Chhapra, Sonepur, Hajipur, Muzaffarpur, Samastipur, Russenghat, Hassanpur Road, Khagaria and Mansi. “As thousands of migrant workers are waiting to get reservation to visit their native places for Holi, just two runs of a special train are far too inadequate and a majority of the passengers will either have to cancel their trip, or will have to make other travel plans, which is easier said that done," said a dejected Ram Vilas, waiting at the reservation counter here to book a ticket for Samastipur in Bihar. Senior railway officials said running special trains for festivals or other occasions to clear the rush was the prerogative of the Northern Railway headquarters and regular feedback was provided to the authorities on the expected increase in the number of passengers during this season.
|
|
Mirza Ghalib, a mystic poet
Tasawwuf (Islamic mysticism) is a spiritual protest against the extrinsic forms of religion. A few Urdu poets have taken liberties with a few established beliefs. This has enkindled the spirit of enquiry and awakened a sense of revolt. Dr Ali Jawad Zaidi tells that “these undercurrents in poetry upheld the supremacy of compassion and brotherhood of man, disregarding the dividing lines between faiths. The emphasis on love in the mystic system of thought came in handy to the ghazal writer, as it encompassed both the physical and the metaphysical”. Mirza Ghalib (December 27, 1797--February 15, 1869) is a mystic poet but not in the ordinary sense of the term. Earlier to him Mir Dard and later to him Asghar Gondavi were definitely poets of mysticism. Ghalib took the nuances of this system lightly but conveyed the true spirit of mysticism deeply. Even when he says he is a mystic poet, worthy to be a Vali (a godman), he says it with tongue in cheek. He qualifies his mysticism with his habit of drinking wine, flamboyantly - Yeh masa’lay tasawwuf yeh tera byan Ghalib Tujhe hum Vali samjhte jo na badakhar hota. In another couplet he says that even when one has to expound the theory of mysticism, it is imperative to use the metaphors of wine and goblet. Indeed it is true in the case of many Persian poets like Sa’di, Khayyam, Hafiz, Urfi, Jami and Attaar who could not help using these symbols to bring home their point of view. Mirza Ghalib is, however, very explicit on this account - Har chand ho mushahida-e-haq ki guftgu Banti nahin hai bada-o-saghar kahe baghair Most of the Urdu poets have the temerity to question the validity of the concept of paradise and its paraphernalia. The 18th century poet Mir Taqi Mir even derided the concept of belonging to a particular religion as a matter of fact. He tells, of course in a lighter vein, that he has distanced himself from Islam and taken shelter in a temple after putting vermilion mark on his forehead- Mir ke deen-o-mazhab ko abb puchhte kya ho unn ne to Kashka khaincha, dair mein baithha, kab ka tark Islam kiya Mirza Ghalib does not reject the concept of paradise outrightly but in a light-hearted style. He is of the view that it is good to think of the blessed life in paradise to keep up one’s spirits. Otherwise, the veracity of the existence of paradise is of a doubtful nature - Hum ko malum hai jannat ki haqiqat lekin Dil ke khush rakhne ko Ghalib yeh khyal achha hai Still, he imagines paradise to be a good place for frolicking. While bemoaning that his beloveds have not responded adequately to his gestures of love, he finds a ray of hope for chastising them. He realises that in paradise houris (fairies) would be at his beck and call. In case the beautiful women of his time turn into fairies in their next birth in paradise, he would take revenge for all the atrocities committed on him by them - Inn pari-zadon se leinge khuld main hum intiqam Kudrat-e-haq se yahi huren agar vaan ho gyein Admittedly Mirza Ghalib is a mystic poet but with a difference. He is liberal in his outlook and makes fun of the rigid attitude of the diehards for observing rituals. He says he will return if he found the door of Ka’ba closed (Ulta phir aaye, dar-e-Ka’ba agar wa na hua). Or he would wash his stained holy cloak at the Zamzam (a sacred spring on the way to Ka’ba) after the nightlong revelry (Dhoe dhabbe jama-e-ehram ke). He shows his reverence for the holy shrine but in a stylish manner. He intermingles the sacred and the mundane imperceptibly. He is aware of the fact that the physical and the metaphysical have a close affinity to each other. So it is not proper to ignore either of the two. In one of his couplets, he comments wryly on this idea - Apna nahi sheva ke aaram se baithein Uss dar par nahin baar to Ka’ba hi ko ho aaye (I am not a comfort seeker by nature, I paid a visit to Ka’ba when I was not welcomed at her door). — NS Tasneem
|
|
Former umpire Mahal felicitated
Ludhiana, February 14 Dr Mahal, currently serving as senior entomologist at PAU, Ludhiana, received the award at the 48th annual meeting of the association held at the university campus here today. Dr Mahal retired in March last year as an umpire after doing national duty for 23 years. He officiated in three ODI matches (India vs England, India vs Zimbabwe - 3rd umpire (Men) and Sri Lanka vs West Indies - 6th Women’s World Cup and supervised one-day/three-day matches of almost all the Test playing countries, namely Pakistan, Zimbabwe, Australia, West Indies, New Zealand, England, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. At national level, Dr Mahal umpired in 59 first class Ranji and Duleep Trophy matches and 26 limited over matches, besides more than hundred other first class matches. He also officiated in India’s premier limited over tournament, NPK Salve Challenger Trophy, besides umpiring finals of the Ranji Trophy and Deodhar Trophy. Recently, Dr Mahal was appointed match referee by the Punjab Cricket Association to supervise the Punjab State Cricket Championship matches. Dr Mahal joined the university service in 1979 after doing post-graduation from this college with distinction, getting scholarship/fellowship throughout the college studies. He represented the university cricket team for four years and also captained it in 1972-73 and was awarded the University Colour. He played for the district team twice and was selected to attend the coaching camp for North Zone Combined University Cricket team (1972-73). On academic front too, Dr Mahal had an illustrious run as he received Jawaharlal Nehru award for outstanding PhD research in 1979. He founded a scientific society -- Indian Society for the Advancement of Insect Science in 1987; remained editor-in chief of Journal of Insect Science for 15 years (1988-2002); got incentive increment from the university for good work in 1991; received Shiromani Punjab Rattan Award (2003), PAU Foundation Day Award (1997) and Madhav Gaurav Ratna Achievement Award at national level (2007) for sports achievements; honoured with fellowship of Indian Society for the Advancement of Insect Science in 2009; published around 100 research papers; guided 10 students for their PhD and MSc degrees, besides having17 package recommendations for the benefit of the state farmers to his credit.
|
||
|
Weaving magic through ‘sarangi’
Ludhiana, February 14 Parvinder was inspired by her maternal grandfather who, too, was a ‘kavishri’. “I use to see my grandfather doing ‘kavishri’. Since childhood I always wanted to become like him. I took training from Ajiab Singh Chandan and also performed at various kirtan darbars,” she added. Her parents always supported and encouraged her to preserve the dying art form. She not only sings but it is a lyricist too. “I write the compositions myself. Sometimes it is based on religion while on other occasions it is the current social scenario which I depict through my ‘kavishri’,” adds Parvinder. The problem of drug addiction, dowry, corruption and female foeticide are a few social issues that she tries to highlight through her compositions. Presently teaching at Ramgarhia Senior Secondary School for Girls she also teaches them the art of ‘kavishri’. “I also teach my students the kavishri and gatka. Students regularly perform it during the various functions organized in the school,” she adds with a smile. Expressing concern over the traditional art forms losing their sheen in the modern society she said, somewhere parents are also to be blamed for this scenario. “Sometimes even if children want to learn the traditional arts, parents are not supportive about same. They want them to do something unique and exceptional and do not like their kids learning the traditional arts,” she feels. Parvinder has two kids and she wants both of them to learn the art form, their mother is apt in. “My son Harnoor shows keen interest in my musical instrument. He keeps playing with the strings of sarangi. He loves learning and playing sarangi from me,” she says. In addition to sarangi she is also an expert in gatka. “Gatka is also another art which need to be preserved. Generally Nihangs practice this art. I also give training to the students of my school in this martial art. I am contented that I am playing some part in preserving the conventional art forms,” she signs off.
|
||
|
Workshop on climate change
Mandi Gobindgarh, February 14 Dr Batra said: “Population explosion has increased the demand of fuel-wood leading to a fuel wood crisis followed by deforestation, soil erosion and silting of dams. The use of fossil fuels increased the carbon dioxide content in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide was the main green house gas warming up the atmosphere. Such green house gases pose serious environmental threat leading to rise in the global temperature which would result in melting of ice in the Arctic and Antarctica regions there by causing a rise in the sea-level,” he added. Chawla emphasised on various measures needed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and effect of carbon emissions in causing climatic changes. He also stressed on the need of awareness among young engineers and entrepreneurs to understand the hazardous effects of global warming. He informed the audience that the United Nations Development Project (UNDP) in collaboration with the Ministry of Steel had initiated the process of adopting the energy efficient technologies in steel rolling sector. Gurpreet Kaur, civil engineering (III year) student, also spoke on climate calamities. Prof Sandeep Singla, event coordinator and assistant Prof civil engineering department, motivated the students to work whole-heartedly towards achieving the goals and make the earth a better place to live in.
|
||
|
Jagraon overbridge to be ready in 40 days: SSP
Jagraon, February 14 The SSP said a few organisations and NGOs, led by Bhag Singh
Malla, chairman, planning board, Ludhiana, had met him on February 5 and demanded police action against the contractor of the overbridge for not completing the work within stipulated period. The construction of the overbridge had been running behind schedule by over two years and every time the contractor was asked to complete the task, he gave an assurance of completing it within a month’s time. The SSP summoned the contractor and during a meeting yesterday, the contractor gave an assurance to complete the work within 40 days. He was said he could face police action if he failed to fulfil his promise. The organisations have been protesting against the contractor for some time. They had issued a warning to block railway tracks if the overbridge was not completed
soon. Paramdeep Singh, a retried civil engineer, however, said with the current evaluation of the construction so far, it was impossible for the contractor to finish the work in the given time frame. Sources said the railways authorities were planning to take stern action against the contractor. The contractor might lose his contract, balance payment or face penalty. |
||
|
Govt under fire over price rise
Ludhiana, February 14 Speaking at the occasion, Kanwaljit Khanna, general secretary of the body, said the backbreaking prices of essential commodities had deprived a majority of the people from two square meal while the government was a mute spectator. “By creating artificial scarcity, hoarders and profiteers have jacked up prices of pulses, foodgrains, sugar and edible oils, amassing several thousand crores of rupees in the process during the last few months,” he said. Accusing both the Centre and the state governments in indulging in a blame game, the speakers said the “shameless rulers” were busy passing the buck, while the extortionist lobby of traders was holding the entire nation to ransom. They called upon the people from all walks of life to come together at a single platform and force the government to pay heed to the burning problem of the masses. Among other speakers at the rally were Jaswant Zeerakh, Bhajan Singh, Satish Sachdeva, Nirmal Bhumal, Vijay Narain, Rajwinder, Harjinder Singh, Preet, Gallar Chauhan and Baldev Billu.
|
|
Lions Club organises ‘Ibadat-2010’
Ludhiana, February 14 Shushil Aggarwal, former international director, was the chief guest and VS Kukreje performed the induction ceremony of the 300 new members at a glittering function. PS
Narang, public relations officer, informed members that the conference was dedicated to those brave and strong members who had taken self-pledge to plant for the planet. He stressed the need for researching solutions on environmental crisis and creating awareness among people to unite to stop global warming and climate change. He stressed that all members should work in the direction to see the world in perfect harmony and wake up to strengthen brotherhood not alone beyond the boundaries but within the boundaries as well. District governor Dr Kaushal informed about 600 members that during the last year, Lions Clubs in the district planted more than 40,000 saplings to save the environment. He said that more than 5,000 units of blood was donated by the Lions Club and around 100 medical camps were
organised.
|
|
|
Fight poverty, corruption, Manpreet to youth
Mandi Gobindgarh, February 14 “After 63 years of our Independence, we have not been able to solve our economic and social problems. More then 300 million people in the country are living on earnings up to Rs 25 a day, every second child in the country is suffering from malnutrition. The youth should take up the responsibility of taking the country ahead in this era of globalisation,” said Manpreet Badal during his address on the founder’s day function of the Desh Bhagat Group of
Institutes, Mandi Gobindgarh, yesterday. He also gave a clarion call to the youth to fight against the enemies of the country, not Pakistan or China, but poverty, illiteracy and corruption. He also inaugurated the new block of the boys hostel, launched the website and initiated the tree plantation drive. On this occasion, a colourful cultural programme was presented by the students.
|
|
Dead man’s eyes brighten two lives
Jagraon, February 14 Not caring of any adverse reaction from the family, Vijay urged the family to donate Suraj’s eyes. He somehow managed to persuade them. When the brother of the deceased agreed, Dr Madan Mittal took out the retina at the crematorium itself. The retina was sent to Punarjot Eye Bank, Ludhiana, where one of it was planted in the eye of Prem Kumar (22) of Sunet village and the other in the eye of Swaran Singh (70) of Mauli village. — OC
|
|
|
GTB College teachers call off stir
Mullanpur Dakha, February 14 They were demanding revised pay scales as per the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations. They had initiated their protest since February 7 against the college management on a call given by the Punjab and Chandigarh Teachers’ Union. The UGC has made it mandatory for the college managements to pay the new scale but the managements of private colleges were delaying its implementation on one pretext or the other.
— OC
|
|
Dalits complain of harassment
Amloh, February 14 The village
sarpanch, who belongs to a Jat Sikh family, conformed the allegation in front of the member. Pandhi assured the Dalits to take action in this regard. — OC
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
