Bathinda, October 20
Though the Bathinda Municipal Corporation (BMC) has been earning Rs 44 lakhs per year from the poles and kiosks set up for advertising purposes, public buildings in the city have been badly defaced in blatant violation of the law.

The walls of the Government Girls School, Gole Diggi, fire station, Rose Garden, letter boxes in the main market, telephone booths, electricity poles and even the Civil Hospital have been defaced with advertisements staring you in the face.

As per sources in the corporation, the BMC generates revenue of Rs 22 lakhs from the 14 big poles given on contract, while 54 small poles have been given on contract for a similar amount.

"The corporation dabbled in this business after it realized that the advertisement display has become a lucrative business in recent years. Its customers include builders and developers, telecom companies, manufacturers of electronic goods, automobile dealers etc, who are looking for good locations in the city to display and sell their products," said the BMC officials.

The corporation has allotted various sites for advertisements by way of kiosks, unipoles, backlit unipoles, bus queue shelters and hoardings to avoid the defacement of the city and to enhance its revenue.

However, those businessmen, who do have separate funds allocated for advertising take the easier route by defacing public property. Different organizations, political parties and small-time investors do not even think twice before indulging in such acts, said the corporation officials.

Ironically, the corporation employees realize the need to remove such posters from public property only when a VIP like the Chief Minister visits. "Interestingly, the corporation employees first get information about the route of the CM and then clean the defaced properties. All other areas are left untouched," he quipped.

As per the provisions of the law, a case can be registered against the offender on the complaint of the owner of the property or the municipal body. However, Bathinda is yet witness such a thing.

But with World Cup Kabaddi round the corner, people can expect some respite as the BMC has decided to launch a clean-up drive. "Within the next four days, you will experience a cleaner city," claimed BMC Commissioner Uma Shankar Gupta.

Bathinda, October 20
As many as 1159 patients have tested positive for dengue so far through out the state this season. Of these cases, 447 have tested positive in Ludhiana district, 358 in Bathinda district and 239 in Muktsar district. However, as per the official information, only three dengue deaths have been reported from the state so far.

Dr JP Singh, Director, Health Services, Punjab, said here today that he had come here today on the directions of the Chief Minister and the Health Minister to assess the dengue outbreak and the preparations made in this regard by the district health authorities to tackle the situation and provide treatment and other facilities to the patients. He said the CM and the Health Minister had ordered him to assess the situation in Bathinda, Ludhiana and other districts.

As part of his visit, the Director visited the patients in various wards of the local Civil Hospital. He personally inquired about the well-being of many patients and instructed the doctors to provide all facilities. However, he expressed his satisfaction over the treatment being given to the patients in the hospital.

The Director also said that besides the dengue positive cases in Ludhiana, Bathinda and Muktsar districts, many patients had also been found to be positive for dengue in other districts this season, including Faridkot (31 cases), Ferozepur (15), Jalandhar (13), Moga (12), Barnala (8), Mansa (7), Hoshiarpur (5), Patiala (4), Gurdaspur and Kapurthala (3 each) and Mohali and Amritsar (2 each).

He said that three dengue deaths had been reported from the state so far. Two deaths had been reported from the Ludhiana district and one from Kapurthala district, he added.

However, the Director also stated that even some private hospitals in Ludhiana had been creating panic, despite the fact that a majority of the patients were not suffering from dengue fever.

The Director also said that his department had already purchased sufficient number of rapid cards, platelet rich plasma (PRP) bags and Mac Elisa kits to serve the patients.

Regarding the shortage of the emergency medical officers (EMOs), he said the department had already advertised over 500 posts of the medical officers (MOs) to end the shortage.

Bathinda October 20
Police security has been provided at the blood bank in the Civil Hospital to manage the heavy rush of attendants of dengue patients, who come here to get the platelet rich plasma (PRP).

It is worth mentioning here that the Bathinda district has the second highest number of dengue patients. As the number of dengue cases increases, the blood bank is witnessing a flood of blood donors. A police man has now been deployed at the main gate of the blood bank where he can be seen managing the crowd and asking the attendants to form queues to get inside.

In just 13 days, from October 8 to October 20, as many as 1368 donors have been recorded by the paramedical staff of the blood bank.

"A majority of the persons come to take platelets for patients admitted to the private hospitals. One pouch of PRP can increase the platelet count by 5000-7000 and the private doctors prescribe even 4-5 pouches to a single patient, that in turn, harasses the common man and they approach the blood bank in large numbers. However, the number of attendants of the patients at the Civil Hospital is comparatively less," said Jagjinder Kaur, a staff nurse.

A few days back, the staff at the blood bank met the Deputy Commissioner to demand extra security as some clashes had taken place between the employees and the attendants. "The members of some welfare societies started creating problems. They snatched their slips and tried to operate the blood bank, due to which the patients were confused. They even fought with the employees and created chaos. So, we had to ask for police security," said the staff nurse.

The Senior Medical Officer, Dr Satish Goyal, said, "Security was demanded not just for the blood bank but for the whole Civil Hospital complex. At the moment, we have four guards deployed at different locations such as the one near the OPD windows, which witnesses a large number of people in the morning hours. The second guard is located in the laboratory while the other two have been given the charge to control the crowd in the blood bank and in the emergency, respectively. They have been deployed to manage the crowd, so that no untoward incident takes place in the premises."

The Senior Medical Officer said, "People from all walks of life come here for treatment. Therefore, the situation becomes tense due to the conflicts between the employees and the attendants. Therefore, an arrangement should be made."

"The proposal of the hospital administration for a police chowki has been there for long. But for the time being, the police personnel have been given room number 42 in the old building," he added.

Bathinda, October 20
The court of district and sessions judge S K Aggarwal today awarded a man seven years of imprisonment for raping a minor.

Saranjit Singh alias Khumba, a resident of Dasmesh Nagar, Rampura, had raped a student of class VIII on November 7, 2010.

In her complaint to the police, the girl stated that she was living with her family in the Mehraj Basti area. When she went to school on November 7, 2010, the accused Saranjit Singh followed her with bad intentions.

At around 8 pm, when the girl was alone at home, the accused came to her house and forced himself upon her.

When her family members reached the spot, Saranjit Singh fled from the spot. The victim's family did not report the matter to the police the same day out of fear.

Next morning, he girl was taken to the hospital wherein medical examination confirmed rape. Saranjit Singh was booked and arrested.

Vaginal swabs of the victim taken for medical tests confirmed that Saranjit had raped her.

The accused Saranjit pleaded before the court to take a lenient view while awarding the sentence as he is poor, unmarried and has a father to take care of. His mother had expired a few years ago.

However, the court noted that the victim was less than 16 years of age and hence, awarded seven-year sentence to the accused.

The court has also directed the accused to pay Rs 7,000 as fine. In case of default, he would further undergo seven months imprisonment.

The accused has also been directed to pay the victim Rs 3000 from the amount imposed as fine.

Bathinda, October 20
The Vigilance Bureau, Bathinda, caught a patwari red-handed while taking bribe in lieu of providing land mutation to a man from Barnala.

Gurmeet Singh, a resident of village Jangiana in Bhadaur, district Barnala, complained that the patwari, Balraj Singh from the Dullowal revenue area under Dayalpura police station, demanded Rs 10,000 in bribe from him for giving him a copy of the land mutation.

Gurmeet told the Vigilance Bureau that he had gone to take a copy of the land mutation that his sister-in-law had bought. However, the matter was settled for Rs 5,000.

When Gurmeet gave the money to patwari Balraj Singh, he was caught red- handed.

The official witnesses at the spot were Dr Jagsir Singh from the veterinary hospital at Nehianwala and Purshottam Lal from the PWD (B&R) department.

The accused has been booked under sections 7, 13 (2) 88 of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

Bathinda, October 20
Starved with lack of cadavers earlier, the medical colleges in the region now have surplus bodies. The efforts of the NGOs, which make people pledge their bodies for medical study and research purposes, have started showing results with many medical colleges expressing their inability to store more bodies than they need.

"Till 2007, we were short of bodies. There were so many legal intricacies involved in getting unclaimed bodies from the police that at times, one felt dissuaded. It was then that we decided to start motivating people to pledge their bodies," says Dr Pramod Kumar Goyal, assistant professor, department of forensic medicines, Adesh Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (AIMSR).

With the help of his family members, who were inclined towards an NGO Tarksheel Society, Dr Goyal started an awareness drive to help people overcome the inhibitions in donating their bodies after death.

In 2008, the followers of Dera Sacha Sauda gave a call and started enrolling themselves for body donation. In the last four years, bodies from parts of Bathinda, Mansa, and Muktsar are not only helping the medical students study at the medical college in Bathinda but also in Ludhiana and Pathankot.

Such is the dedication amongst these followers for the cause that the Adesh Medical College has to politely refuse.

"We have 18 bodies in stock and have run out of capacity to store more. We guide people to approach the other medical colleges nearby, especially the new ones that need cadavers," said Dr Goyal.

The Director-Principal of Chintpurni Medical College, Dr Jagjiv Kumar Sharma added that due to the body donation drive, the college has not faced any major crisis. "We have had eight bodies from Bathinda so far. People have contacted us expressing their eagerness to donate the bodies of their near and dear ones. Earlier, people would retort saying that the bodies should be cremated with due respect and honour," he said.

Perhaps this was the reason that prompted the medical colleges to take bodies with all respect and honour. The medical college staff also makes it a point to follow the bhog and other ceremonies that follow death in a sect or community.

Bodies from Bathinda and nearby areas are also sent to the medical colleges at Ludhiana. The head of the department, department of anatomy, Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH), Dr Poonam Singh added that the anatomy department cannot teach the students in the absence of adequate number of cadavers.

"No kind of advanced software or books can replace the practical knowledge that a cadaver imparts. Students can't understand the bones unless and until they do not take it in their own hands and it would be excellent if every student can have a set of bones to study. This would mean producing excellent and knowledgeable doctors," the doctor said, emphasizing on the use of cadavers in medical colleges.

Bathinda October 20
The family of a badly injured 11-year-old girl turned restive at the emergency wing of the Civil Hospital here today after doctors referred her to the Medical College, Faridkot. The family members took the girl, Sapna, and squatted on the main road outside the hospital due to which traffic was disrupted for sometime.

Father of the injured girl, David, is a rag picker and could not even afford transporting her to Faridkot.

The news about her being referred to the hospital there came as a shock to him. David claimed that it was an accidental case but no police personnel came to the hospital to complete legal formalities. “Even as we went to the police station twice, they did not attend us,” he cried.

Though he blamed that they have been driven out of the ward by the hospital authorities, he later admitted that the family had got panicked as the girl was referred to the other hospital and they had no money to spend on her treatment.

The girl was injured yesterday after being hit by a PRTC bus near Bathinda-Mansa over-bridge. She was coming from Jassi village along with her two brothers on a bicycle when the mishap took place. The bus driver allegedly drove off leaving behind an injured girl and her brother. Her brother had received minor injuries. Both were shifted to the hospital by volunteers of the Sahara Jan Sewa.

David said, “I requested doctors to treat the girl here only, but they referred her to another hospital. I don’t even have money to take her to Faridkot. How can I afford her treatment even as she needs it immediately?”

Dr Dheeraj Goyal, who attended to Sapna yesterday, said, “The girl has a crush injury on her right foot, due to which her fingers are nearly damaged. She immediately needs plastic surgery care, which is not available here. Therefore, we have referred her to the Medical College at Faridkot where she can get proper treatment. If not cared immediately, her fingers would have to be amputated.”

Dr Vijay Mittal, who was present at the time of chaos, said, “If the patient is not willing to shift anywhere, we will provide her with the best care and treatment we have. For us, the patient is most important.”

Meanwhile, Director, Health Services (DHS), Dr JP Singh was on visit to the hospital. While taking a round of the emergency ward, he was encountered by the girl’s father, who briefed him about the problem. The DHS immediately ordered the local health authorities to look into the matter and treat the girl at the earliest.

Bathinda, October 20
The first year students of MBBS at the Adesh Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (AIMSR) were accorded warm welcome at a function titled ‘Aagaz’, held at the institute on the Barnala road here today.

Chairman of the Adesh Foundation, Dr H S Gill was the chief guest on the occasion while Kamaldeep Kaur Gill was the guest of honour.

Director-principal of the AIMSR Dr GPI Singh said healthy interactions amidst senior and junior batches help eliminate the fear of ragging.

During the function, students exhibited their prowess in dance, drama and music during the function.

Amritpal Singh Sohi was adjudged Mr Fresher while Akshita was adjudged Miss Fresher.

Bathinda, October 20
The strike by the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) staff in support of their demands today entered its 18th day.

The NRHM staff, under the leadership of district president of the NRHM Employees Association, Narinder Kumar, today staged a dharna at the Civil Hospital here. They were demanding regularisation of their services.

Narinder Kumar said if the government did not accept their demand, the association would distribute pamphlets during the Kabaddi World Cup at Bathinda to expose the government's "anti-employee" policies.

He also said the state government had not been releasing their salaries for the past two months, due to which they had been facing difficulties in meeting both ends.

Later, they also met the Director, Health Services, Punjab, Dr JP Singh, here regarding their demand. The Director told them that the NRHM staff, who had been working on the state government's sanctioned posts, would be regularised while the case of other employees would be sent to the Government of India, seeking regularisation of their services.

Bathinda, October 20
The three-day protest dharna, staged under the banner of Council of Diploma Engineers by the junior engineers (JEs) and assistant engineers (AEs) of various government departments, like Powercom, PWD B&R, Public Health, Irrigation, ended outside the Mini-secretariat here today.

The protesters said that even their already accepted demands, Rs 7880-13500 pay scale after eight years of service, Rs 500 as mobile allowance, 30 litres petrol for traveling, were not being accepted and implemented by the state government. They also said that a "Sarkar Jagao" rally would be organised on October 21 at Mohali by the engineers from all parts of the state.

They also said that all diploma engineers in the state were on mass casual leave from October 18 to October 21 as the state government had turned a blind eye towards their demands so far.

Among others who were present at the dharna site included Rajinder Kumar Bawa, Gurjant Singh, Amarjot Singh, Gurcharan Singh Brar, Sawarndeep Arora, Mandeep Chahal, R. K. Sharma, Jagan Nath and Balwinder Singh.

Bathinda, October 20
The ensuing World Cup Kabaddi-2011 has brought to fore the factionalism in the SAD-BJP as the general secretary of the local BJP (Urban) unit has written to the Deputy Commissioner, Bathinda, registering a protest on the non-inclusion of BJP workers in the arrangement committees.

Mithu Ram Gupta, who is a municipal councillor and general scretary of the district unit of BJP (Urban), has written to Deputy Commissioner KK Yadav stating that the BJP is being ignored in organising the mega sports event.

“We are very much part and parcel of the Punjab Government led by CM Prakash Singh Badal. While Badal is making all efforts to bring forth a united face of the SAD-BJP in front of the electorate in the state, the administration’s move of not considering the BJP for this important event will send a wrong message to the masses,” he stated. He has requested the Deputy Commissioner to look into the matter personally.

Bathinda, October 20
A dead lizard was found in a water tank placed atop the old OPD block (now emergency wing) of the Civil Hospital here today.

Though the health authorities said the water from this tank was being supplied to clean toilets only some persons expressed their anguish over the dead lizard being found in the water tank. They posed a question to the health authorities that what could have happened if the water was being supplied to the patients and their attendants.

Director, Health Services, Punjab, Dr JP Singh, who visited the hospital here today, expressed regrets over the matter when it was brought into his notice.

However, Civil Surgeon Dr Iqbal Singh immediately intervened and said they would fix the responsibility for the lapse and take action against the “erring” person.

District Health Officer Dr Raghubir Singh Randhawa said it was surprising that the lizard entered the water tank that was fully covered. Despite this, he said, the authorities would inquire into the matter. The water from the said water tank was being used for cleaning toilets only, he added.

Bathinda, October 20
Hundred units of blood were donated at the blood donation camp held at the Giani Zail Singh College of Engineering and Technology (GZSCET) here today.

The NSS unit of the college organized the camp where the blood unit of the Guru Gobind Singh Medical College, Faridkot, collected the donated units.

Associate professor in pathology and in-charge of the blood bank at the medical college, Dr RN Maharishi and medical officer of the college dispensary Dr HM Garg extended medical assistance to the donors.

Speaking to the students, Dr Maharishi said that due to the diseases like dengue and malaria, freshly donated blood brings major relief for the patients because they can get platelets directly from the units donated.

College principal Dr Jasbir Singh Hundal inaugurated the camp. The Red Cross Society provided refreshment and mementoes to the donors.

Bathinda October 20
The protest and the pen-down strike of the Punjab Secretary and Gram Sewak Union, Bathinda block, entered its 11th day on October 20.

The district president of the union Gurjeevan Singh Brar said a meeting of Director, Village Development, Balwinder Singh and the leaders of the union was held on October 17, which proved futile.

The leaders then decided to protest at divisional level in Punjab on October 19.

In Ferozepur division, the protest was held at Lambi as it is Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal’s home turf.

The employees an dpanch-sarpanchs took part in the protests in good numbers in districts of Moga, Ferozepur, Faridkot, Fazilka, Bathinda and Mansa.

Bathinda October 20
An awareness rally was organised by the students of Government Secondary School, Maisarkhana, to protest against the burning of stubble by the farmers.

Principal Varinder Pal Kaur, NSS program officer Rakesh Narula and Eco Club in-charge Ranjit Singh also participated in the rally.

Narula said there was a loss of Rs 500 crore to the farmers of the Punjab due to burning of stubble.

The rally aimed at making the farmers aware, passed through the entire village.

Bathinda October 20
The 17th annual art festival will be held from December 1 to 4 at the Teachers Home, which will be dedicated to Eeshwar Chitarkaar.

The decision in this regard was taken at a meeting of the S. Sobha Singh Memorial Chittarkar Society (Regd.) Bathinda, held at the Teachers’ Home under the leadership of president of the society Amarjit Singh Painter.

Tributes were paid to playwright Gursharan Singh and famous ghazal singer Jagjit Singh, both of whom passed away recently.

Hardarshan Singh Sohal, who got the State Teacher's award and Harmeet Singh Artist, whose exhibition at Mumbai got good response, were congratulated.

Bathinda October 20
A blood donation camp was held at the Malwa College in collaboration with the Goodwill Society, to help dengue patients.

A total of 196 units were collected. Principal CL Singla motivated the students for donation.