Jalandhar, September 12
The police detained over 500 ETT teachers in Jalandhar and Kapurthala to thwart an attempt to gherao Rural Development and Panchayat Minister Ranjit Singh Brahmpura’s house in Amritsar.

ETT Teachers, working with the schools being run by zila parishads and municipal councils, had given a call of gheraoing Brahmpura’s house in support of their demand to bring these schools under the purview of the Education Department.

According to sources, the district rural police issued directions on Saturday evening to the Kartarpur thana to stop the members of the ETT Teachers Union to proceed towards Amritsar on Sunday. The Kartarpur thana police laid a special naka at Bholath where it stopped six buses carrying 300 ETT teachers including women. The teachers staged a dharna on the spot.

They raised slogans against the SAD-BJP government. The police also resorted to mild lathicharge to disperse them but to no avail. Later, the police took them to the thana where they were detained till the 
filing of this news.

Over 200 ETT teachers were detained in Kapurthala at different points. SSP Sukhminder Singh Mann said all the detained teachers were released and no case was registered against them.

The agitating teachers jammed the vehicular traffic on the Kapurthala-Goindwal Road near Mundi maur for some time when the police detained them and they lifted the blockade at the intervention of senior police officers. ETT Union District President Rachpal Singh Waraich, also a member of the state body, told mediapersons that the union had decided to start statewide indefinite strike from Monday till their demands were accepted.

Phagwara: The police rounded up 45 teachers, proceeding towards Amritsar to participate in an agitation. SHO Sadar Ravinder Singh while confirming it said the teachers were taken into custody near Chiherru and all were released in the evening.

Nawanshahr, September 12
Just recently, the alleged failure of the drainage department to undertake the work of strengthening the sensitive points at the Dhussi bundh along the Sutlej in the Tajowal-Mandala complex had almost got 40 villages submerged. But it seems that the administration hardly learns from its mistakes.

Now, the alleged negligence of the PWD (B&R) in undertaking timely action to check the erosion of the approach road to the Rahon-Machhiwara bridge over the Sutlej in the district may pose a serious danger.

The approach road on both sides of the bridge lies in a dilapidated condition as the earth filling has started eroding and at some places it has even started caving in.

If strengthening of the base of the approach road is not taken up immediately, the road may cave in which would become a cause of a serious accident as the Rahon-Machhiwara road is a very busy route as it shortens the distance to New Delhi. Most of the political leaders and officials frequently use this route, but they don’t appear to have noticed the dilapidated condition of the approach road.

“Boulder pitching of the approach road is immediately needed to strengthen its base,” said experts, while lamenting that nothing was being done and the railing of the bridge had started caving in. It could cause accidents during night.

Nek Chand, SDO, PWD (B&R), when contacted on the phone, said an estimate had been sent for approval to the authorities. The work of strengthening the approach road would be undertaken immediately after the sanction as well as the release of funds.

“It seems that the district administration or the higher authorities of the PWD (B&R) are waiting for a major mishap to occur,” said disgruntled residents of nearby villages.

Amritsar, September 12
It’s sheer indifference on the part of the Department of Medical Education and Research that thousands of the patients having corneal blindness in the state remain blind owing to limited number of hospitals performing corneal transplantation.

There are only four hospitals --- three medical colleges and a Ludhiana-based NGO --- where corneal transplantation is done. These are Government Medical Colleges of Amritsar, Patiala and Faridkot besides the Punarjot Eye Bank Society in Ludhiana.

Ironically, the government has decided to set up 73 eye donation centres in Punjab but it has spared a little thought over allowing more eye centres to perform corneal eye surgeries.

Reason: The eye donation and corneal transplantation are covered under the Human Organ Transplantation Act (HOTA) having stringent measures. Added to this, the process of granting permission for the same to various eye centres linger on due to various procedural delays. These centres have to deposit about Rs 1.5 lakh following which a team visits the centre to see whether the centre fulfils the guidelines under the act before granting permission.

However, a number of eye hospitals who have applied for approval to conduct corneal surgeries are still awaiting the response from the government.

Senior ophthalmologist Dr Baljit Singh Dhillon, president Punjab Ophthalmologist Society (POS) and Head of Department of Ophthalmology, Sri Guru Ram Dass Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, pointed out that every year about 25,000 persons lose their eyesight because of corneal injury. The existing hospitals perform about corneal 400-500 surgeries annually and remaining patients remain blind for their whole life. The number is increasing, he cautioned.

“The government should revive Cornea Grafting Act, 1963, instead of covering it under HOTA. Cornea is a tissue that is retrieved from dead, who donate their eyes,” he said.

It is evident to mention that this Act is not prevalent in Punjab for some time. The cornea transplantation used to be done from 1969 till 1985. Thereafter, the Act was sent to Punjab Vidhan Sabha for revision but it was never executed. Later, more hurdles were created due to HOTA that was implemented in 1994.

However, Tikshan Sood, Minister for Medical Education and Research, pointed out that the authorities could not allow the eye centres to perform the surgery in hazy manner and as they have to look whether they fulfil the requisite guidelines or not.

“We are concerned over the issue and therefore going to form a coordination committee headed by Director, Research and Medical Education (DRME) and Principal Secretary Medical Education, Anjali Bhanwra in this regard. Moreover, the department will soon launch a website having all the record of donors and beneficiaries which would help in speedy procedures,” he said. The department also considering all the requests of approving the eye centres for surgeries sympathetically, he added.

Amritsar, September 12
Following the allegations of forcibly extracting hostel charges from nursing candidates and subsequent report filed by a two-member team, constituted by the Principal of the medical college here, the Directorate of Research and Medical Education (DRME) has suspended Rajrani, Principal of the nursing college here.

Dr S.S. Shergill, Principal of the medical college, said here today that Rajrani had been suspended on administrative grounds under the Punjab Civil Services Rules with immediate effect. The next senior-most nursing tutor, Kanwaljeet Kaur, had been appointed officiating Principal of the nursing college. A charge sheet would be handed over to her separately, he added.

It is evident to mention here that the parents of a number of aspiring students, who had cleared the test for admission to the nursing college, had complained against the Rajrani that she was forcing the students to deposit hostel charges of Rs 18,000 per candidate.

The parents had pointed out that they were local residents of the city and hence they should not be charged hostel charges, besides admission fees from them. However, they had alleged that the Principal of the college was forcing them to deposit the money.

Based on the written complaint, Dr Shergill had constituted a two-member team of Dr Nirmal Kajal and Dr Tejbir to probe the charges, which found that the collection made by the Principal was illegal and certain rules were overlooked by her before levying the hostel charges.

Although, Rajrani had refuted the allegations and termed it a departmental politics adding that the money was collected as per the notification, the DRME order asked her to join nursing college at Patiala till further orders.

Pathankot, September 12
More than 400 residents of Nangal Bhur town, 14 km from here, on the Pathankot-Jalandhar road, face inconvenience due to dirty water stagnating at the only town street adjoining the main road.

Ram Parkash Sharma, a resident, alleged that the street had been submerged under dirty, stagnant water. The stagnant water has become a permanent breeding ground for mosquitoes, pests and other insects. The foul smell emanating from the water has become a nuisance for people and can lead to the outbreak of diseases. Suresh Kumar, a social worker, alleged that the about 50-ft-long street had been turned into a lake and its deteriorating situation was putting the lives of residents at stake. Although the residents approached the authorities concerned to highlight the 
problem, no action has been taken so far. — OC

Jalandhar, September 12
Rail employees held a demonstration outside Station Superintendent Ashok Kumar’s office at Jalandhar City Railway Station under the aegis of the Uttar Railway Men’s Union (URMU) for the acceptance of their long-pending demands today.

The URMU station branch president, Gulzar Singh, said their main demands included provision of bonus as per the new pay scales and arrangements to provide jobs on priority to family members of rail employees.