The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Vandalism, violence and panic follow youths’ clash Dharmendra Joshi Tribune News Service Jalandhar, August 18 Panic gripped Kishanpura and surrounding localities as armed youth brandished swords and resorted to violence here this evening. About six car-borne persons armed with swords and other sharp-edged weapons arrived at the Kishanpura Chowk area around 4.40 pm and brandished their weapons creating panic. Residents got scared as the youths started hitting a motorcycle parked beside the road with their legs and subsequently, with weapons like swords. As they continued with their violent exercise for some minutes, vehicular traffic remained disrupted on the road. Meanwhile, the youths put the motorcycle on fire and vanished from the spot in their car. They had to abandon the car near the Ikhari Pulli Chowk probably due to some fault in the car. Later, they went on foot brandishing their swords and weapons. SHO Surinder Singh, who reached at the spot after one and a half hour, said the two parties had some fight near Rajendra Nagar. Two youths of a group tried to flee on a motorcycle, but the six youths from the other group chased them, he added. While the eyewitnesses said on reaching the Kishanpura Chowk, the youths abandoned their motorcycle and the car-borne youths burnt the motorcycle. On the contrary, the SHO said the motorcycle hit a pedestrian. Later, it fell on the ground and got burnt due to sparking near its engine. The police confiscated both the vehicles. Meanwhile, a former councillor of the area, Bal Kishan Bali, flayed the city police for violence in the area. He said the police should ensure immediate arrests of the accused.
	Human rights body demands upkeep of school building Kusum Arora Tribune News Service Jalandhar, August 18 Members of National Crime and Human Rights Protection Society have expressed concern over the dilapidated condition of Government Primary School, Niyajpura Mohalla, situated in Central Town here. The building of the school, built in 1947, is unsafe, according to the members of the society. Despite repeated requests the Punjab School Education Board, Mohali, as well as Punjab education minister Sewa Singh Sekhwan have not paid any heed to their demands to repair the school building, the members rued. The authorities are busy passing the buck the members rued. Children studying here have not been shifted to a safer building despite the directions issued by Punjab education minister Sewa Singh Sekhwan, the members rued. The roofs of the building leak during the monsoon, they said. The school has only five students on its rolls and only one teacher. The official records, however, state that the school has higher student strength. Society’s national president Rajwinder Singh Raju said the members met District Education Officer (Primary) Balbir Kaur and the present DEO Surjit Singh in this regard but both denied that the school falls under their purview. Raju said the education department would be responsible if any untoward incident took place. The members have demanded that the school building be repaired especially because children belonging to the weaker sections of the society study here.
	Former YC chief booked for Mayor’s gherao Tribune News Service Amritsar, August 18 Hundreds of Congress activists led by former district Youth Congress president Dinesh Bassi gheraoed Mayor Shwait Malik at Katra Ahluwalia today. They were demanding details of Rs 526 crore spent on the development projects in town. The Kotwali police have booked Bassi along with several of his supporters under the attempt to murder charges late in the evening today. Confirming this Prithvi Raj, SHO said a case has been registered under Section 307 of the IPC against them. MP Ravneet Singh Bittu has strongly condemned the incident. He said if the police did not cancel the case, the Youth Congress would launch a protest against the district administration. Jugal Kishore Sharma, president District Congress Committee has also flayed the registration of a case against the Youth Congress activists. Mayor Bassi had to be escorted to a Public Call Office where he waited for an hour for the police to arrive. The police arrested 100 Congress activists who were detained at the Kotwali Police station. The police detained 100 persons, including Bassi, however, 90 Congress workers were released after some time. Shwait Malik had gone to the Katra Ahluwalia to examine the development work in the area. The protest ensued after the Mayor failed to answer the questions raised by Congress workers showed black flags to the Mayor after he failed to respond to the questions of the Congress workers. Bassi said Mayor was making tall claims about spending Rs 526 crore on various development projects but had failed to give any details about these. He alleged that the Mayor did not undertake any development work in the area over past four years as it was represented by a Congress councilor. He said the Mayor was befooling the people by laying foundation stones in the area keeping in view the forthcoming assembly elections. Malik said he had gone to the area to listen to the grievances of the business community. Capt condemns arrest Chandigarh: PPCC chief Capt Amarinder Singh HAS condemned the lathicharge and arrest of several activists of the National Students’ Union of India in Amritsar today. In a statement issued here today, Capt Amarinder cautioned the police against falsely implicating the NSUI activists in different cases. He said, they had every right to protest and they were protesting in a democratic and peaceful manner. — TNS
	Constable killed in mishap Phagwara: Constable Roshan Lal of the Indian Reserve Battalion posted in Jammu was killed, while his wife Parveen Kumari was injured in an accident on Thursday. The victim was a resident of Daulatpur village. The victim was killed on the spot when the motorcycle on which the couple was travelling collided with another motorcycle coming from the opposite direction near Khalwara on Wednesday night. Purshotam Lal, riding the other motorcyclist was also injured in the accident. The injured were admitted to the Civil Hospital.— OC
	Anna supporters flood streets Tribune Reporters Jalandhar, August 18 PRANITJ, a student organisation of Dr BR Ambedkar National Institute of Technology (NIT), Jalandhar, today conducted an hour-long rally supporting the cause of Anna Hazare for a strong Lokpal Bill. The students all dressed up in black T-shirts, gathered outside the NIT campus and raised their voice against the UPA government for thwarting the attempts of Anna Hazare to constitute Lokpal Bill. Abhay, one of the students from the PRANITJ, said they would continue to hold similar small-level rallies everyday until the crusade of Anna Hazare will go on. “We fully support this national movement and have also joined the Facebook page of ‘Support Anna Hazare Against Corrupton’. It is time for the youth to join hands with Anna Hazare in this campaign against corruption,” he added. Kapurthala: BJP workers of Bholath area today took out a protest march in the bazaars here to express their solidarity with the agitation launched by Anna Hazare for the formation of a strong Lokpal Bill. The agitators also handed over a memorandum to the SDM in this regard. Batala: Different organisations came forward to support the Anna Hazare here today. The Ex-servicemen Association, Batala, also called every citizen to support the Anti-Corruption drive led by Anna Hazare. Another organisation ‘Youth for Nation’ started hunger strike here today. Phagwara: Students of dozens of educational institutions belonging to Ramgarhia Educational Institution, Phagwara, held a protest march in support of the agitation launched by social activist Anna Hazare against corruption. They were carrying placards and raised slogans against corruption. OC HOSHIARPUR: On the third consecutive day, activists of various social organisations continued their protest on Thursday in the city, Mukerian, Dasuya, Tanda, Garhdiwala and Talwara towns expressing their solidarity with social activist Anna Hazare on the issue of the Lokpal Bill. They staged protest rallies, burnt effigies of the UPA government and sat on fast. Tarn Taran: More social, political and religious organisations have extended their support to Anna Hazare. The leaders of Kisan Sangharsh Committee, Manukhi Adhikar Insaf Sangharsh Committee, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and others in their different written press statements issued here on Thursday have extended their support to Hazare for the formation of a solid Lok Pal Act to be passed in Parliament soon.
	Question of numbers: Lessons in maths by science, drawing teachers Aparna Banerji/TNS Jalandhar, August 18 Teachers of science, biology and drawing subjects at government middle schools across the state are taking classes in the subject of mathematics-a subject they were not appointed to teach. All this because there are no dedicated posts for teachers of mathematics in the middle schools. These teachers rue that they are overworked as they are forced to take more than 30 classes a week. Sanjiwan Singh Dadwal, general secretary, Science Teachers Association, says, “In 1996, the central government sanctioned 2,600 posts for Punjab under Operation Blackboard meant to strengthen education in the subject of mathematics. Out of these, 1, 300 posts were surrendered by the state the same year for reasons not known yet. Over the years, a number of posts for mathematics have been removed from the middle schools from time to time in the name of rationalisation of posts. Now there are no dedicated posts for mathematics teachers in middle schools in the state and teachers of science and other subjects are forced to teach the subject. Lokesh Khetarpal, a science teacher at Government Middle School, Khurla Kingra, Jalandhar, says, “While a middle school has five or six teachers, there is none for the subject of mathematics. A science teacher is thus required to teach both the subjects. Against 24 lectures a week, we have to take 36 to 40 lectures. We were appointed to teach science but we have take math classes too.” Pawan, a science teacher at a middle school in Gurdaspur, says, “It adversely affects curriculum. Interestingly, in some schools, even teachers qualified in medical streams are teaching mathematics.” Savinder Singh, who teaches science at the Kohala Middle School says, “Ideally, a science teacher is supposed to take 18 periods and a math teacher 24 lectures per week. In comparison, an arts teacher takes only nine periods. Due to recent changes in the syllabi, mathematics students have to maintain the activity and workbooks of students. The workload has increased phenomenally and a mathematics teacher thus has his/her hands full. We have been instructed by our department to teach both mathematics and science.” KK Aeri, District Education Officer (secondary), Jalandhar, says, “There are problems but in a democratic set up, we have to go systematically. About two weeks ago, posts were demanded for teachers in schools across Punjab from the Director General School Education (DGSE) and we expect favourable results soon. A rise in admissions in government schools this year is also one of the reasons for the shortfall.” Director General, School Education (DGSE), Baldev Purusharth said, “We are encountering problems on this front. In the past too we have been recruiting teachers from time to time. Steps will be taken to redress the problem soon. Rationalisation of posts according to the student-teacher ratio will be done in a month. Right now an analysis is going on.”
	Two booked for rape Tarn Taran: One Sonu of Bagge village (Tarsikka) and Harpreet Singh of village Khadur Sahib have been booked under Section 376 IPC by Verowal police in a three-month-old rape case. According to the information available, the father of the victim, (a 21-year-old girl) in his statement to the police alleged that the accused were workers with a JCB machine in the village and established illicit relations with his daughter. They raped her repeatedly during a period of more than three months. The local Superintendent of Police (operations) conducted an inquiry into the allegation levelled by the father of the victim, hence a case has been registered. Satpal Singh, Investigation Officer (IO), said that the victim was yet to be medically examined. The accused have not been arrested as yet.— OC