J A L A N D H A R    E D I T I O N

Apeejay institutes answerable under RTI: Info panel
Jalandhar, February 26
Terming Apeejay School and Apeejay College of Fine Arts a public authority under Section 2 (h) of the RTI Act, the State Information Commission, Punjab, has said the institutions could not withhold information from the people.

Council laxity renders thousands of pharmacists unregistered
Jalandhar, February 26
Due to the callous attitude of the Pharmacy Council of Punjab, thousands of applications of pharmacists across the state are lying pending with the council, for want of registration for the past one year.

Woman, daughter-in-law run over by train
Jalandhar: Unmanned level crossing claimed the lives to two residents of Shiv Nagar Colony, near here, this morning. The tragedy occurred when Mohinder Kaur and Kajal were crossing the track.
A wailing relative at the accident site. Tribune photo: Malkiat Singh

NRI woman gets son back after 3 years
Jalandhar, February 26
It was a tearful moment for NRI Rajwinder Kaur when she was reunited with her 10-year-old son after three long years following efforts by the administration. Ironically, her in-laws were threatening her and not allowing her to take away her son, Suraj, back home. Divisional Commissioner S.R. Ladhar said he was approached by Rajwinder Kaur, a resident of New York, USA, with the plea that her son should be handed over to her.

Apeejay institutes answerable under RTI: Info panel
Amarjit Thind/TNS

Jalandhar, February 26
Terming Apeejay School and Apeejay College of Fine Arts a public authority under Section 2 (h) of the RTI Act, the State Information Commission, Punjab, has said the institutions could not withhold information from the people.

In his order pronounced today, Information Commissioner P.P.S Gill directed the respondent to appoint a Public Information Officer/First Appellate Authority and observe all the provisions of the RTI Act with an immediate effect.

The case was filed by RTI activist Rajinder Bhatia who had contended that since the school functioned from land belonging to the state it was a public authority and was covered under the relevant section of the act.

Gill in his order observed that Apeejay School/College of Fine Arts, i.e. the Respondent, is functioning from a prime land measuring 42 canals and 14 marlas leased to the respondent by the Jalandhar Improvement Trust on an annual token amount of Re 1. Thus, the ownership of this land rests with the trust.

Thus, ipso-facto, the respondent is functioning from the land belonging to the state. Further, the respondent is performing duties in-consonance with the policy of the state and being encouraged by the state. There has been no review as far as the status of land given on lease/rent to the respondent by the government.

This concession given to the management has placed the respondent at a great advantage over all other ‘self-financed’ or ‘private’ institutes. The state has also not placed any obligation on this respondent in return. But the respondent is performing the same duties, as the state would have.

It also becomes absolutely clear that the state has contributed directly to the development of the respondent in a substantial manner. This word “substantial” connotes the financial assistance provided the magnitude which is not meager. He said this financial assistance is in the form of infrastructural facilities (including land) through which the respondent is earning its revenue.

In the instant case, it is obviously the land and the development of the infrastructure on this prime land provided @ Re 1/- per annum by Jalandhar, Improvement Trust. The respondent has developed infrastructure on this piece of land owned by the state.

In view of the above, I hold the Respondent Apeejay School and College as a public authority within the meaning of Section 2(h) of the RTI Act. Thereafter, as regard the provision of information is concerned, I direct the respondent to provide information as has been demanded by the complainant vide his RTI application dated 20.10.2009, if held on record, duly attested, through registered post with an endorsement of the covering letter to the Commission, before the next date of hearing, he ordered.

Council laxity renders thousands of pharmacists unregistered
Amaninder Pal/Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, February 26
Due to the callous attitude of the Pharmacy Council of Punjab, thousands of applications of pharmacists across the state are lying pending with the council, for want of registration for the past one year.

Although 700-800 students pass out from various pharmacy colleges across the state, the council has registered only six candidates in the past one year.

Sawarnjit Singh, General Secretary of the Punjab State Pharmacists Association, alleged that owing to unprofessional attitude of the council more than a thousand of fresh pass outs and nearly 8,000 pharmacists bear the brunt of delayed registration.

“Registration renewal has to take place after every five years. December 31 was the due date for latest renewal. The council received more than 8,000 applications from across the state in the last three months. However, it hasn’t cleared even a single application yet. Moreover, nearly 500 applications of last year are also pending”, he alleged on behalf of the association, which is going to hold a state-level protest addressing this issue on March 8 in the state capital.

The role of the council is also under the scanner as some private pharmacy colleges have been admitting students, who passed their intermediate from unrecognised school boards.

“Managements of some private colleges allegedly procure 10+2 certificates for such students from unrecognised education boards and ultimately become pharmacists after getting a nod from the council,” he said.

“The Ministry of Medical Education and Research has already sought clarification from the council on this issue and asked the council to identify students who passed 10+2 from such unrecognised boards,” he claimed.

He also alleged that in spite of established minimum qualifications, the council has registered 11 persons as pharmacists of its own, merely on the basis of their ‘experience’.

The council is also seeking an undertaking that registrations of only those pharmacists will be renewed who do not run private practices and who will not practice in a private set up for the next five years.

“Only 2,700 pharmacists are working in the government set up. This undertaking, if implemented, will render thousands of the rest of pharmacists unemployed,” said another pharmacist requesting anonymity.

Accepting the delay, President of the Council, VP Dogra said registrations are pending owing to the shortage of staff. “It is true that registrations are pending. But the problem is not that severe,” he said.

“There is no dereliction as far as unrecognised education boards are concerned. We register candidates only after getting no objection certificates from the concerned students and boards,” he claimed.

Woman, daughter-in-law run over by train

Jalandhar: Unmanned level crossing claimed the lives to two residents of Shiv Nagar Colony, near here, this morning. The tragedy occurred when Mohinder Kaur (65) and her daughter-in-law Kajal (25) were crossing the track and a Ferozepure-bound train mowed them at about 9.15 am.

NRI woman gets son back after 3 years
Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, February 26
It was a tearful moment for NRI Rajwinder Kaur when she was reunited with her 10-year-old son after three long years following efforts by the administration. Ironically, her in-laws were threatening her and not allowing her to take away her son, Suraj, back home. Divisional Commissioner S.R. Ladhar said he was approached by Rajwinder Kaur, a resident of New York, USA, with the plea that her son should be handed over to her.

Upon investigations, it was found that Suraj had come to India three years ago to be with his grandparents, Munsha Singh and Nirmal Kaur of Talwandi Sallan village, near Hoshiarpur. The visit was supposed to be for a year to acquaint the boy with his roots, but it turned otherwise with the aged grandparents refusing to allow their grandson to go back to his mother and father.

Rajwinder has been coming to India for the past two years and had even pleaded with her in-laws to give back her son but to no avail. Rajwinder’s husband Jagjit Singh, too, reasoned with his parents but they were unyielding in giving up their grandson. However, this time she met Ladhar with a letter from the New York Chief of Police asking the former to do the needful to recover the child.

Acting on the request, the Commissioner directed the SDM, Dasuya, to bring the child to his office and the boy was handed over to his mother in his office here this noon.

The moment the child saw his mother he ran and embraced her making her break down on this emotive moment. There were also tears in the eyes of some relatives present on the occasion. Ladhar wished the mother-son duo a safe journey back home.