Amritsar, November 19
A day after the body of Indian woman Karamjit Kaur was recovered from Ravi River at Veeroke town in Narowal district of Pakistan, the Amritsar city police slapped murder charges against the in-laws of the deceased.

Karamjit Kaur (35), hailing from Gurdaspur and married to Jaspal Singh of Ghonewal village in Ramdas area of Amritsar, had gone missing from her in-laws' house three days ago.

The couple had a marital discord for the past some time. The woman’s family had left her at her in-laws’ residence on November 14.

“However, a couple of days later (on November 16), Jaspal told them that she had gone missing. We then lodged a missing complaint with the Ramdas police,” said Gurpreet, brother of the deceased while talking to The Tribune. Later, they came across some media reports regarding the recovery of a woman’s body in Pakistan.

The Ramdass police has now registered a case under Section 302, 201 and 34 of the IPC against her husband Jaspal Singh, sister-in-law Kulwinder Kaur and mother-in-law Manna Devi in this connection on the statement of Gurpreet, a resident of Sahari village (Gurdaspur).

The family also met Deputy Commissioner Rajat Agarwal urging him to initiate steps for repatriating the body from Pakistan.

In his statement, Gurpreet alleged that Karamjit’s husband and in-laws used to beat her and used to ask her to bring money from her parents. He alleged the in-laws killed her and threw the body in Ravi in order to dispose it of.

Karmajeet’s body was recovered from Ravi River in Narowal district in Pakistan. She was identified as an Indian citizen through a locket in her necklace which had pictures of the Golden Temple and Shaheed Baba Deep Singh.

The authorities in Pakistan then intimated the Amritsar police which got in touch with the granthi of Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib, inquiring as to whether anybody from Sikh jatha, which recently visited Pakistan for Guru Nanak Dev birth anniversary celebrations, has gone missing. After the granthi replied in negative, they spread the word among officials in the border areas.

Meanwhile, Karamjeet’s family got in touch with Kartarpur Sahib granthi who mailed them the photographs of the deceased through which they identified her, said Gurpreet.

Deputy Commissioner Rajat Agarwal said as the complainant of the deceased’s body belongs to Gurdaspur, we have asked them to approach Gurdaspur DC who would forward their request along with necessary documents after completing the formalities to authorities concerned for repatriating the body.

“From our part, I have personally talked with Gurdaspur DC. As the matter pertains to a different country we don’t want any lapse in documentation in the process,” said Agarwal.

Hapreet Singh, brother-in-law of the deceased, urged the authorities to expedite the formalities in bringing back the body.

Ravinder Singh, SHO, Ramdas police station, said the Ramdass police has lodged a complaint on the statement of Gurpreet.

The SHO added the accused were absconding since the disappearance of Karamjeet. He said they were waiting for the repatriation of the body from Pakistan. The actual cause of death could be ascertained only after the postmortem reports.

“In the meanwhile, we have started our investigation. We are inquiring a number of people in the village,” he said.

Amritsar, November 19
Due to lack of awareness, the Passport Seva Kendra, which was launched here last month, has failed to get a good response from the public. The number of online applications received by the kendra daily reveals its low popularity.

The kendra with around 50 employees catering to the needs of nine districts of the state has been receiving 60 to 70 online applications daily on an average. It has a potential to process at least 250 applications daily.

Meanwhile, the rush at the Regional Passport Office remains the same even though the seva kendra was launched with a view to introduce the e-governance in passport issuance process.

The passport office in Ranjit Avenue still receives 80 to 100 online applications.

Even people from various districts throng the passport office to submit their applications in person. The office receives about 100 applications submitted in person by the applicants on daily basis.

The number of applicants approaching the office is over 250.

The rest are asked to file their applications online at the seva kendra. Gurpal Singh from Gurdaspur, said, "I came to know about the passport seva kendra after coming to the passport office. As I'm not a computer literate, I would have to find someone who can help me out."

Waking up to the poor response, Passport Seva Kendra has sought services of schools. Regional Passport Officer JS Sodhi said, "The students in various schools have distributed pamphlets with the information about the online application facility at passport seva kendra." A large sized bill board outside Regional Passport Office has also been installed to teach people the online steps to file an application. Sodhi added that the office has decided not to accept online application forms at the Regional Passport Office from December 1 in order to shift the workload to Passport Seva Kendra.

He added all applications from speed posts centres and district passport collection centres at Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Batala, Pathankot, Tarn Taran, Ferozepur, Faridkot, Muktsar and Fazilka, will also be done away with from December 1 onwards. He added that office has decided to continue with the system of receiving applications in person for a short while before the work is entirely handed to the new seva kendra.

Amritsar, November 19
The holy city has caught the attention of the business community. After the successful hosting of CII's Punjab fair, Gandhi Ashram's handloom exhibition, Air Cargo Agents Association of India's national conclave, the city is all set to host the fourth consecutive edition of the five-day Punjab International Trade Expo (PITEX) 2011 from December 1.

Riding on the success of last year's PITEX, the PHD Chamber would organise the expo in collaboration with Punjab Government.

Like every year the fair would be organised at Ranjit Avenue, Ajnala Road. Many city-based trade organisations like Shawl Club and Textiles Manufacturers Association are supporting the event while National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC), Punjab Technical University (PTU), Knitwear Club, the Ministry of Food processing and Ministry of Textiles have also chipped in with their expertise.

Meanwhile, the international event would showcase traditional handicrafts, embroideries, textiles, and electronic equipment of various countries to promote mutual understanding and cooperation on the trade front.

The PHD Chamber claimed that the last edition of the PITEX was able to generate business enquiries worth over Rs 250 crore while over two lakh people visited the pavilion.

This time the expo would have 10 special and exclusive pavilions for sectors like agriculture, food and farm, travel, tours and handicrafts, real estate and finance, home interiors, decor, kitchen, consumer, health and wellness, education, textiles and garments, automobiles, megabrands, apart from the international pavilion and the pavilion for the industry.

The chamber claimed that international exhibitors from Canada, USA, Holland, Lebanon, Thailand, Egypt, China, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, Myanmar, Poland, Malaysia, Vietnam, Central Asian, ASEAN countries besides over 300 exhibitors from India would participate in the event.

The expo provides a great opportunity to entrepreneurs, importers and exporters for sales, marketing, promotion and networking in the region.

Amritsar, November 19
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) today lodged a complaint with Kotwali police station alleging that more than 50 stray dogs have been found killed in Guru Bazaar and adjoining areas in the past week.

The incident came to light when several residents of the area approached SPCA and informed that rampant carcasses of stray dogs were found on the streets.

All dogs were believed to have been poisoned to death.

The SPCA authorities constituted a two-member team to investigate into this grave issue besides deciding to approach the police to identify the accused involved in the killing. The Kotwali police has registered a complaint under Section 428 and 429 of the IPC and Section 11 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animal Act against unknown persons in this regard.

Dr Jagdish Chander Shouri, general secretary, SPCA, and Deputy Director, Animal Husbandry, Amritsar, said although the exact number of the dogs killed could not be ascertained as the Municipal Corporation lifted the carcasses of dogs. But it was sure that the number is beyond 50.

Majority of cases were reported in the walled city area which is seriously affected with the stray dog menace.

“We discussed the matter with the Deputy Commissioner, Rajat Agarwal, who also heads SPCA. He endorsed the registration of criminal case against the unknown culprits,” informed Dr Shouri.

“Our team headed by a veterinary officer Vishaljit Singh as well as the police force intensified patrolling in the designated areas to nab ‘culprits’. However, the accused seemed to be shifting from one place, where patrolling has increased, to other,” said Dr Shouri.

Volunteers associated with SPCA are also helping in the cause. They would continue patrolling for few more days.

After the postmortem, viscera would be sent for chemical analysis to ascertain the exact cause of deaths of dogs.

The Deputy Commissioner said we are taking the issue very seriously. A team of doctors have also been deputed which would patrol the area regularly so that at least we can save those dogs which were recently poisoned. He said efforts were also launched to nab people behind the killing.

The incident has raised serious concern among the animal lovers who had urged the authorities to nab the culprit as soon as possible besides appealing the people to help the authorities.

Amritsar, November 19
Theatre is like a social therapy, diagnosing and healing the ailments of our social structure. It’s a medicine that takes a cue from the past and tries to cure our present and future.

The 8th National Theatre Festival held at Punjab Naatshala in Amritsar mirrored the same concept. With 10 plays and over hundred artistes across the nation performing known stage plays, the event celebrated the spirit of late legendary playwright Sardar Gursharan Singh.

The week-long festival saw participation of professional theatre groups from Delhi, Jammu, Chandigarh and Pakistan. The event kicked off with the famous play from S Gursharan Singh, ‘Dhamak Nagare Di’.

Based on the life of Dulla Bhatti, a peasant folk hero of Punjab, the play transformed Dulla in accordance with our present sensibilities primarily with human desire for freedom and the strangled economic and political system. The play highlighted the folk culture of Punjab and was directed by Kewal Dhaliwal and performed by Manch Rangmanch.

The second play was from across the border, Pakistan’s theatre group Ajoka performing a historical drama, Dara. A biographical play on the life and times of Mughal Prince Dara Shikoh, the eldest son of emperor Shahjehan who was imprisoned and executed by his brother Aurangzeb, it explored the existential conflict between Dara, a crown prince, and Dara, a Sufi and poet. The violent struggle between the two brothers, the mystical legends like Sarmad, the naked Sufi and Dara’s mentor, Mian Mir and Guru Har Rai made for strong characters in this powerful and gripping story. Performed by 35 artists, the play was the highlight of the festival.

The two plays from Delhi, ‘Phandi’ and ‘Hum Dono’ too had power packed performances from NSD artistes. The former deals with mercy killing while the latter was based on Russian play, Old World. ‘Chhaan Vihoone’, by Norah Richards Rangmanch in Mohali, was unique in its concept as it explored the relationship between man’s philosophical, cultural and social structure with their kitchen.

“The cooking place has always been a symbol of the pulse of human life. When the soot stops flowing in the kitchen, our social structure strikes its head against the walls and burns itself in the fire of hunger. ‘Chhaan Vihoone’ is not just theatre for art’s sake but a serious attempt at handling a theme with profound social implications,” said Davinder Daman, the playwright and director of the play.

‘Tota Kahani’, performed by Zulfikar Khan’s Theatre age, Chandigarh, was based on Rabindra Nath Tagore’s short story. ‘Court marshal’ was a contemporary story that deals with discrimination and casteism and ‘Dushman’, a play that highlighted the burning issue of Kashmir. The dark play ended with a question - is the pain better than the idea of happiness? Who is punishing the innocent?

‘Mind Games’, a play by Natrang Jammu was an attempt to see beyond the abstract. The dual personalities in each one of us, what we think we are, what we think we should be.

The concluding play ‘Gair Zarori Log’ by Amateur Theatre Group, Jammu, stirs a collective memory through six of the best stories.

Amritsar, November 19
From just one avenue of becoming a music teacher at the most, the advent of newer technology has changed the life of visually impaired persons for the better.

The biggest hindrance for them - to be able to read and to be able to write has been overcome to a great extent. With this, more and more visually impaired persons are becoming lawyers, teachers and other professionals, said Naresh Kumar, assistant professor of history at Kamala Nehru College, Delhi, on the sidelines of the All-India Sports, Music and Educational Competition for visually impaired children at Guru Nanak Dev University.

Kumar said, "Around 20-25 years ago, a visually impaired at the most could become a music teacher. Now as he is able to read with the help of assistive technology, more avenues are opening." The technology has eased the lives of many like Naresh. He added, "There is a need to produce universally accepted designs of various products so that physically handicapped can use the same things as those who are physically fit."

A student who has recently completed his masters, Mukesh Kumar said, "Now we can use any book. We even go to libraries and issue books. The book is later scanned with a special printer and the computer reads it aloud to us." The visually impaired can even print any document from the computer on a Braille printer.

Laptops and mobile phones with special talking software's are readily available. A large number of the participants and organisers, mostly visually impaired were seen using their mobile phones. A student Vikram Singh said, "We can exploit each function in our phones with the help of the talking software." Even few were seen using their laptops.

The President of the Association for Welfare of the Visually Impaired Employees of Punjab, HS Bajaj, said, "Now we can use Braille books, audio books, digital books, Braille calculators, talking clocks, talking thermometers and many more things."

He said few decades ago there used to be only one Braille printing press in country and with of these coming up the more students are getting Braille books. The 'voice recognising' software's in phones made things simpler for them.

Another visually impaired Anil Gupta said, "Though these newer technologies have made things easier, everyone cannot buy these machines." He added that visually impaired still cannot be considered at par with others.

Amritsar, November 19
The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has ordered the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited to refund an amount of Rs 29,702 deposited by a consumer as fine, imposed on him for power theft.

The corporation had imposed a fine of Rs 29,702 on Dinesh Kumar, a resident of Lachmansar Chowk for allegedly tampering with the electricity meter.

Dinesh Kumar moved the consumer forum claiming that the corporation had removed his electricity meter, terming it as a routine exercise, and later imposed a fine on him without getting the meter checked from any laboratory.

Kumar said after he received a memo from the corporation, he deposited the fine as demanded.

The corporation said the meter was found tampered with during inspection.

The consumer forum held that power theft on the part of consumer cannot be proved until the PSPCL get the meter checked from a competent laboratory. The forum thus directed the corporation to refund the amount earlier deposited by Dinesh Kumar within one month of the passing of the order.

Amritsar, November 19
A weapon exhibition for girl NCC cadets was organised by 1st Punjab Girls’ Battalion in collaboration with 9th Punjab Battalion of the Indian Army at Khasa Army Cantonment yesterday.

Amritsar, November 19
The holy city of Amritsar is well known for soothing the soul with its spiritual and cultural warmth. And so when eminent psychologist, artist and writer Dr Sudeep Ranjan Sarkar decided to launch his first book from the city, it was nothing less than an inspiring move. “The city has an inherent spiritualism that vibrates with my spiritual soul. There was no doubt I wanted my first book launch to be in Amritsar.”

His book, Loss of Thoughts, is a compilation of poetry, paintings and verses that praise and try to explore the connection of the soul to God. It has Sudeep’s latest work and is still to be launched worldwide. Ask him about the combination of textual and visual art form and he explains, “Just like a biryani is judged on the basis of not only its taste but also the presentation, similarly poetry and paintings complement each other to provide a complete package.”

Travelled far and wide, Sudeep has constantly kept the message of spirituality alive back in Kolkata as well, his hometown. “Kolkata, like Amritsar is connected to its cultural roots. It’s a city that respects and hails its culture.” But still Amritsar has inspired him in more than one way. “Whenever I come to this place, I experience a different dimension. Metros have a different, running life. There is no time and space for the mind to breathe. But here, one soothe the senses,” says the artist.

Along with the book launch, an exhibition of his paintings will also be the highlight at the SG Thakar Singh Art Gallery. Looking at his paintings the artist’s eye-catching unconventional oeuvre may act as a colour therapy. “Colours are soothsayers. At a spiritual level, this method of treatment acts as a holistic cure. At a scientific level, however, it acts as psychotherapy,” says psychologist-cum-self-taught painter. But he insists, “I don’t like to put a tag before my name. One can call me doctor, painter, scientist or writer but I am like a flowing river.”

The exhibition is on till November 24.

Amritsar, November 19
On the joint call of the PCCTU and PCNTEU, teachers and non-teaching employees of colleges today ceased work for two hours and held campus rallies at the DAV College against the government for not accepting their demands.

PCCTU general secretary, HS Walia said the demands of teachers and non-teaching employees were not fulfilled forcing them to continue agitation. These demands include inter­ alia, implementation of pension and gratuity scheme, lifting of ban on recruitments imposed since 2005, disbursement of arrears for the period January 1, 2006 to March 31, 2010 due on account of revision of pay scales, implementation of the revised pay scales of non­-teaching staff with effect from January 1, 2006, release of salary grant for the last two quarters. — TNS