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Health Matter
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Bank manager nabbed for accepting bribe
Problems galore for this unnamed road
2010 Commonwealth Games
16-yr-old dies in accidental fire
INSPIRE awards: 174 models displayed on first day
Cong leaders welcome SC decision
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Health Matter
Amritsar, April 27 Dr. SS Shergill, Principal Medical College, when approached, said if the proposal is met, it would be beneficial for the patients of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir. “The expenditure of the treatment would also come down by 30 to 40 per cent, in case the center is established in GNDH. At present it took Rs 16 to Rs 18 lakh for the treatment in metros like Delhi and Mumbai, while it would take anything between Rs 4-5 lakh for the same after it comes up here,” said Dr. Shergill. There is no such centre in this region till now and patients have to go to the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at Delhi for treatment, he added. Bone marrow transplant is essential for patients suffering from blood cancer and aplastic anaemia. Meanwhile, Dr. RPS Boparai, Medical Superintendent, said it would cost about Rs 4-5 crore for setting up the centre which would include purchase of
modern equipments, stem cell harvester etc. He said there was no need for the construction of a separate building as it could be established in the new building of the hospital. When asked about the staff, he said the bone marrow centre required multi-disciplinary approach, doctors from various departments including biochemistry, microbiology, pathology, blood bank, orthopaedic, medicine and oncology would be trained at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi for this. As per requirement, new staff could also be recruited, he added. |
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Drain pain
Amritsar, April 27 About three years have elapsed since the Punjab and Haryana High Court and the Punjab State Human Rights Commission (PSHRC) had taken suo moto action of the research of the PGIMER Chandigarh pertaining to the grave risk posed by the drain not only to the humans but also to the flora and fauna. These two authorities directed the state government to prepare a time-bound schedule to combat the pollution of the drain. In response the government filed an affidavit that it would set up three sewerage treatment plants by 2012. Resultantly, the Pollution Control Committee Amritsar (PCCA) also applied to be a party for the case in the High Court and the PSHRC. The Army authorities marching ahead had set up a treatment plant in Amritsar
cantonment to treat wastage released by its slaughter house into the drain.
Geographical location & history
There are two drains surrounding the city. Tung Dhab passes through its periphery and another is the City Outfall drain. Former is located in the north while the latter is situated in the south. Both of them merge near Khasa and is known as Hudiara drain. It leads from here to Pakistan and there it is also known with the same name. According to P.S. Randhawa, General Secretary, PCCA, Tung Dhab drain originates at Talwandi Bharath village close to Head Regulator of the UBDC near Alliwal village in Gurdaspur district. A downstream of the UBDC also origins in Talwandi Bharath. Tung Dhab was among the several drains developed across the state in 1955 to prevent and control floods. Hence, Randhawa, opines that covering the drain would defeat its very objective. Besides, it would put the city at risk in case of a flood like situation.
Problems
Consumers of old refrigerators and air conditioners installed along the drain complain of their gadgets breaking down frequently. Gas, which is chloro floro carbon (CFC), causes cooling effect was circulated in copper pipes. Harmful gases emanating from the drain corrodes these pipes and in turn they leak. Earlier, milch animals especially buffalos, were exposed to health hazards as they used to wallow in the contaminated water of
the drain. However, presently as the drain carries dense form of waste, even animals
do not try going in. In the absence of any carcass utilisation centre in the city, the forlorn areas along the
drain have become a place for skinning the carcass. People involved in the trade left the skeletal remains behind for consumption of dogs. Dogs consume the left over of the carcass which alters their eating habit. Not in the position to find carcass they tend to attack calves to satiate their hunger. Localities, industries draining into Tung Dhab: Colonies and industries set up along Verka, Maitha and Fategarh Churriyan release domestic waste and industrial effluents into it. The Majitha Municipal Committee and Central jail also discharge waste into it. Localities, industrial units in Puttalighar and Chheharta apart from cantonment also release waste into it. The matter of concern is that a number of approved and unapproved colonies have sprung up on either side of the drain. It has made them victims of health hazards and loss of valuable items owing to toxic gases emanating from the nullah. Many small-scale units, notably textile processing, woollen clothes, dyeing, electroplating, iron foundries, pulp and paper mills, glass and plastic ware are situated along and around it. Studies: The PGIMER research has expressed its apprehensions that the severest hit areas along the drain may experience birth of children ailing with congenital diseases and also predicted mutation of cells after three years. The Chemistry Department of the GNDU carried out clinical experiments on 11 kinds of vegetables grown along the drain and found quantity of heavy metals was more them the standard laid down by the WHO. The Genetics Department of Guru Nanak Dev University had confirmed DNA damages among the residents of Mahal village, which falls close to the drain. The research studies stated that women living in the areas close to the Tung drain suffer from DNA damage which could lead to dangerous diseases. The experiments performed by Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, had also confirmed that the quantity of heavy metals in the soil exceeded the quantity certified by the WHO. The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), India, in collaboration with Aquatic Biology Laboratory of Guru Nanak Dev University had also carried out a study titled ‘Addressing Environmental and Pollution Concerns across International waters through Strategic Partnerships’ with special focus on Hudiara Drain. The study had found evidence of eye and skin ailments, endocrine disruptions, cancer and congenital defects in the region caused by the evil effects of the drain. Global connection The problem of the drain has threatened to become an international issue with Pakistan on many occasions pointing out that India was polluting the Ravi through effluents. As ultimately the drain joins river Ravi on the outskirts of Lahore city. |
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Bank manager nabbed for accepting bribe
“Khanna demanded Rs 25,000 as bribe to transfer the loan amount sanctioned to his account. However, the matter was later settled at Rs 10,000 and the accused called Raj Kumar to his house this morning,” said Randhir Singh Uppal, Superintendent of Police, Vigilance. He was nabbed in the presence of government witnesses Kuldeep Singh, SDO, and Balwinderjit Singh, Junior Engineer, Public Works Department. “The senior manager had taken all the requisite documents to his home and called Raj Kumar there to clear all the formalities after he would hand over the money to him,” Uppal said. A case under the Prevention of Corruption Act had been registered against him, he added. Khanna originally hailed from Ashok Vihar, Delhi, and was transferred to Batala in September 2008. |
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Problems galore for this unnamed road
Amritsar, April 27 The road around the walled city connects it with the rest of the city. However, the road is grappling with many problems. Teeming with potholes, its width is not uniform. Central verge on this road is neither properly painted nor maintained. Social activist Naresh Johar alleged that a private company had taken the responsibility in 2006 with the MC to maintain and paint all the road dividers in the city for seven years yet this offered a shabby look. He pointed out that instead of a divider a low level footpath exists between Sikandari Gate (Pink Plaza Chowk) to Hall Gate and from Hall Gate to Ram Bagh there was no divider at all. He felt that its reason lay in encroachment of the road. Similarly from Ram Bagh Chowk to Ghee Mandi Gate, the divider is a resting place for animals. Central verge at some places has been turned into a dumping place for garbage and even manholes were made on them. Height of central verges is also not uniform. The road from Chowk Maha Singh Gate up to Gurdwara Baba Deep Singh Shahid has rampantly been encroached upon on either side. At some places it becomes very narrow. This despite the fact that this patch of the road experiences the highest footfall and even heavy vehicles yet its management leaves a lot to be done. From Bhagtanwala Chowk to Gate Khazana, the road is wide enough but full of potholes. Pavements do not exist at all and dividers are in a pitiable state. When contacted, Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, DPS Kharbanda, said the corporation was carrying out one of the comprehensive and intensive anti-encroachment drive in the city and all kinds of encroachments even on this road were being removed. He said a foot overbridge was installed outside Gurdwara Baba Deeo Singh Shahid to help devotees reach the shrine from other end of the road thereby easing the congestion from the patch. Besides, from time to time central verges were painted and repaired. |
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Ward 45
Amritsar, April 27 “But there seems to be no solution as our repeated requests to the authorities to come out with some concrete plan for smooth flow of traffic have yielded no result,” said a resident, Narotam Das. The areas that come under this ward include Dhab Wasti Ram, Namak Mandi, Dal Mandi, Shakti Nagar and Chhati Khui. When The Tribune team visited the Dhab Wasti Ram area, wholesale market of karyana items, it found an ambulance stuck into the severe traffic jam and there was no one to guide the traffic so that the patient could reach on time to hospital. Situated in the old walled city, there is absolutely no arrangement made by the authorities concerned to get rid off this problem. “What to say, the shopkeepers are also themselves to blame for this chaos as they have illegally extended their shops by two to five feet by way of displaying karyana goods on the road,” said another resident Heera Lal. Meanwhile, like other areas of the walled city, the problem of scarcity and contamination of water persists in this ward also. A couple of month back two children of Gali Mastgarh, near Namak Mandi, had a narrow escape as they fell critically ill due to water contamination problem, claimed a woman of the area. “We took water samples filled in bottles contaminated with sand and sewerage water to the councillor and other representative of the area. Yet the problem is solved for the time being, but many areas are still facing the problem. The authorities should find a permanent solution for supplying safe and regular drinking water,” said another resident Nirmla Devi. People seemed anguished over the poor water supply. As soon as The Tribune team asked the residents about the problem, they started cursing the Municipal Corporation authorities for its utter failure to ensure adequate supply of water. “Even the water booster pumps fail to draw the water. The water pipes dry out after 7 am while the inhabitants felt themselves lucky if they get water supply in the noon,” said Shashi Sharma. The choking of sewerage regularly is another major problem. “The sewerage remains blocked every second day and that required regular desilting. Residents have to get their work done by spending from their own pocket instead of getting it done from the corporation,” said Parvesh Kumar. The filthy water could be seen spilt over the roads while the cleanliness seemed to be on the bottom of the priorities of the Municipal Corporation authorities, he added. Rajesh Kandhari, BJP councillor of the area, could not be contacted even after repeated attempts. |
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2010 Commonwealth Games
The baton will reach Karachi, Pakistan, on June 23, from Dhaka,Bangladesh. After a day’s halt, it will be handed over to India, just 100 days before the commencement of the Commonwealth Games in
New Delhi. A high-level meeting to grace this occasion was held at Attari, which was attended by representatives from the Home Ministry, Border Security Force, Punjab Police, Additional Secretary, Sports, Punjab, Director, North Zone Cultural Centre and officials from local administration. Named as Queen’s baton, it has been made of special metal and weighs 2 kg, carries the flags of participating countries and will be stuffed with sand to be collected from all
states of India where it will travel. It has been scheduled that the baton will reach Delhi on October 3 at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, where the games will be declared open. The proposed dates for the games are October 3-14, inclusive of the opening and closing ceremonies. Rajya Sabha member and Chairperson, media committee, Commonwealth Games, Tarlochan Singh said top dignitaries of India would receive the baton from their counterparts on the
other side of the border amid six-band national integration tunes played by the BSF. While handing it over to Indian dignitaries, special folklore cultural programmes would be conducted by the North Zone Cultural Centre at the Attari border. Thereafter, the baton would be handed over to Arjuna awardee players for relay on the prominent streets of Amritsar before being proceeded towards other districts of Punjab. Tarlochan Singh, member of the Rajya Sahha from Haryana and Vice-President of the Indian Olympic Association, said here today that the baton after crossing the Wagah border would travel
to 28 states and seven Union Territories and two islands Andaman and Lakshadweep. The baton would spend three days in Punjab. On June 26, it would head towards Tarn Taran, then to Ludhiana via Ferozepur. On June 27, it would come to Jalandhar and Pathankot before going back to Ludhiana. After a day’s stopover at Ludhiana, it would travel towards Jammu and Kashmir belt. On July 3, it would reach Chandigarh and after having a round of the NIS, Patiala, it would be brought back to Chandigarh the same day. The next day, the baton would be heading towards Shimla. About preparations for the games, Tarlochan Singh said everything would be “as per plan”. “The infrastructure for holding the events has been executed. As many as 30,000 volunteers
have been engaged in looking after the Indian and foreign players and officials accompanying them. Elaborate arrangements have been made to live telecast the games. Over Rs 600 crore have been earmarked for the training of the Indian players and chances seem to be bright in the games”, he said. |
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Philatelic adds commemorative coins to his rare collection
Amritsar, April 27 The set of two coins cost him Rs 1,837 for which he had applied in June 2009. The Rs 100 coin is in circular shape with 44 mm diameter and 200 serrations. It weighs 35 grams and quaternary alloy consisted 50 per cent silver,
40 per cent copper, 5 per cent nickel and the remaining is zinc. The Rs 10 coin is bimetallic with 27 mm diameter and circular shape. The out ring of 7.71 gm coin is made of aluminium bronze with 92 per cent copper, 6 per cent aluminium and 2 per cent nickel. While the centre piece contains Cupro nickel with 75 per cent copper and the remaining is nickel. The obverse side of these coins has emblem of India, ‘Satyamev Jayate’, Bharat in Hindi and India in English besides Rs 100 embossed on it. On the reverse, the coins have images of Golden Temple in relief with ‘Bani Guru Guru Hai Bani’ underneath. While tercentenary of Gur-Ta-Gaddi in English and Hindi with 2008 embossed on circular fringe of the coins. Tiny mark ‘M’ on the reverse sides of these coins indicates that these were proof coins struck at India Government Mint, Mumbai. A committed philatelic, he has been steadfastly pursuing his passion though it was leaving telling effect on his family budget. Jain has a collection of an array of stamps on subjects related to the city. These stamps are on the Golden Temple, Maharaja Ranjit Singh, 50th anniversary of Jallianwala Bagh, Maharishi Valmiki, whose hermitage is believed to be located near the city, Bhai Vir Singh, Gurdwara Baoli Sahib, Master Tara Singh, Baba Jassa Singh Ahluwalia, Saifuddin Kitchlew, Udham Singh, 75th anniversary of
Jallianwala Bagh, Nanak Singh, Gurmukh Singh Musafir, Mohammad Rafi, Bhagat Puran Singh,
Partap Singh Kairon and Sam Manekshaw. |
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16-yr-old dies in accidental fire
Amritsar, April 27 According to information, the incident took place when Vishu, a relative of the gun house owner, accidentally shot Sunil while cleaning a revolver. The shopkeepers in the neighbourhood were silent over the incident. Civil Lines police station SHO Davinder Singh said the police was investigating the case. He said the owner of the gun house had absconded.
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INSPIRE awards: 174 models displayed on first day
Amritsar, April 27 District Education Officer (Secondary) Manjit Kaur Sidhu along with District Science Supervisor Kailash Sharma inaugurated the six-day
programme. The selected models would take part in the finals slated to be held on
April 30. The Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research (INSPIRE) award is an innovative programme developed by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of
India, with an aim to invigorate scientific thinking and attract young talent in the
field of science and technology at an early stage. |
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Cong leaders welcome SC decision
Amritsar, April 27 President of the District Congress Committee (Rural) Sukhjinder Raj Singh Lalli Majithia said the judgement vindicated the stand of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) in general and Capt Amarinder Singh in particular. He said the Parkash Singh Badal government misused the legislative powers to achieve political ends.
— TNS |
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Amritsar, April 27
Amritsar, April 27