Amritsar, December 2
Bio-medical waste such as cotton, gloves, masks and bandages is being disposed off at a vacant chunk of land in front of the surgery wards near the girls’ hostel of Government Medical College here. Pointing to the laxity of the staff responsible for the segregation and handling of the waste generated at the hospital is in violation of the guidelines in this regard.

Unaware of how the waste is to be disposed off, sweepers sometimes burn the same to get rid of it quickly. This exposes visitors to the hospital to great health risk. “Even the smoke emitted while burning such waste is dangerous to health,” said Mohit Gupta, a visitor.

The hospital staff often resorts to burning bio-medical waste despite the fact that it has a mechanism in place to dispose of the medical waste as per norms. Each ward in the hospital has dustbins of three colours to segregate various categories of medical waste which is collected at the store room before being taken away to dispose it off with the help of incinerators.

Medical Superintendent at GND Hospital Dr Karnail Singh said, “The situation has arisen because Class IV workers have been on strike for past few days. Generally guidelines are being followed while disposing off the waste.” He said in the absence of Class IV workers, there is nobody to lift the biomedical waste. He said he will visit the spot and get the biomedical waste disposed off properly. The hospital is regularly sending the waste to the incinerators for the same, said Dr Karnail Singh.

Amritsar, December 2
In a novel way to get their demands fulfilled, the junior resident doctors of the Government Medical College collected 76 units of blood at a donation camp organised outside the Out Patient Department (OPD) of the Guru Nanak Dev Hospital today.

The blood donation camp was organised by the Junior Resident Doctors Association (JRDA) in collaboration with the GNDH’s blood bank. The JRDA vice president Vivek Tomar said, “Supporting the cause of the doctors, 20 people from general public too donated blood during the camp.”

Tomar added that blood donation is considered as the ‘mahadaan’. “We are committed for service of the humanity. By donating blood we have strengthened our commitment,” he said.

The indefinite protest by the doctors demanding an increase in their monthly stipend has entered its third day. The doctors had boycotted all the medical services at all hospitals of the Government Medical College. Later, the JRDA held a candle march on the city roads to generate public support.

The nurses and Class IV workers at the GNDH also took a protest march on roads demanding regularisation of contractual employees. The PCMS doctors at the Civil Hospital also continued their one-hour-daily strike.

Amritsar, December 2
It was the owner of a neighbouring jewellery shop who was the master mind behind the robbery at a jewellery shop at Guru Bazaar two days before Diwali. The police has arrested the accused Harjit Singh alias Ladi, a resident of Shaheed Udham Singh Nagar, who not only planned the robbery but also gave the required information to the alleged robbers and later procured the looted jewellery from them.

The accused has his shop right next to the jewellery shop where workers were looted at gunpoint by a four-member gang of looters led by Parwinder Singh. They were recently caught by the police at a naka near inter-state bus terminal.

During investigations, Pawinder Singh disclosed that it was Harjit Singh who had given them the information and chalked out the entire plan.

“They looted gold jewellery weighing 45 gram worth Rs 1.50 lakh from the goldsmith. Harjit then purchased the same looted jewellery for Rs 80,000 from them who distributed the money among themselves,” said Police Commissioner RP Mittal.

Harjit Singh has confessed to the crime after he was taken on police remand, he added.

Our focus was also to nab the person who had provided weapons to the gang.

The police also nabbed Heera Lal from Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh, in this connection. “During investigations, it was found that the gang had procured the mouser recovered from them from Heera Lal who currently lives at Pathankot bypass road, Jalandhar,” said Mittal.

Heera had bought the mouser from Uttar Pradesh for Rs 15,000 and sold it to the accused for Rs 30,000. The police also recovered a country-made .12-bore pistol and two live cartridges from his possession. He has been booked under Sections 25/54/59 of the Arms Act.

The police also arrested Heera Lal from Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh, in this connection.

They looted gold jewellery weighing 45 grams worth Rs1.50  lakh from a goldsmith. Harjit then purchased the same looted jewellery for Rs80,000 from them who distributed the money among themselves — R.P. Mittal,  police commissioner,  Amritsar

Amritsar, December 2
The police has booked five members of a family for the death of a woman due to harassment for dowry.

The victim Minakshi was allegedly brutally beaten up by her in-laws allegedly for not bringing enough dowry to satisfy their greed. The victim was left at her parent’s house where her condition deteriorated and she later died at a private hospital.

The police has booked the victim’s husband Pardeep Kumar, father-in-law Deepak Prashar, mother-in-law Kamlesh Prashar, brother-in-law Ravi Kumar and Ram Rashpal. A case under Section 304-B and 120-B IPC has been registered in this regard.

Father of the deceased Sham Sunder of Tilak Nagar had alleged that his daughter Minakshi used to be beaten by her in-laws on the pretext that she had brought less dowry. Despite the fact that they had given a car at her wedding, her in-laws family was demanding a bigger car, he alleged.

He said, on August 13, the accused mercilessly beat his pregnant daughter and kicked her in the stomach. She was thrown out of the house after which Pardeep left her at their house.

She complained of severe pain in the stomach and was admitted to a private hospital where she prematurely gave birth to a male child.

He said the conditions of Minakshi, however, did not improve and later re-admitted in another hospital where she breathed her last on November 16.

The police said they have arrested Pardeep Kumar while remaining accused are absconding.

Amritsar, December 2
“Why this…why this…Kolaveri Di” is a hit, answers lies in its pan India appeal, it seems. Kolaveri Di song from the upcoming movie 3 has bridged the North-South divide it seems and has become the number one song to have caught the imagination of the entire nation. If you heard it you can’t help but hum it.

Yes the song sung by superstar Rajnikanth’s son-in-law Dhanush is the latest sensation, breaking news on television, the song has crossed the 4-million mark on the Youtube and facebook. This light-hearted ‘flop song’ or ‘soup song’ has become an anthem of sorts for the heartbroken but one that lifts your spirit and leaves you with a smile on your face.

Kolaveri Di was conceptualised in record 20 minutes and its popularity is breaking all records. Since its official release on the Youtube, the ‘soup song’ has become a national rage, the most searched song ever online and the Tamil song to have connected the youth right from Chennai to Amritsar.

The song may not be loud but its appeal is universal. Youngsters in city are no different. “It’s is a desi song, just like bhangra beats. It has got the South Indian desipan, along with the beats and the flavour.

The language is English, so even Punjabis can understand it. The video is different and the dialogues in between lend it a casual style. It’s a total masti song, something that every youngster likes,” says Siddharth Arora, B.Com III year student of DAV College.

The song sure grows on you. “When I first heard it, I could not understand its meanings but still I liked it. It’s simply great,” says Amulya Walia, another student from city.

The song has become so big that it finds its fan in none other than the Big B Amitabh Bachchan himself. Kolaveri Di which is a song from an upcoming movie 3 and is the hottest topic on Twitter. Type it on Google and 3,430,000 pages open. “What makes the song so popular is it’s broken English lyrics. It can be understood by almost everyone around the globe, it’s not a South Indian song; it’s an Indian song,” says Amulya.

Call it a smart marketing move or online mobbing, but as soon as the song went viral, there is no stopping it. “It’s all about the hype. The song is being promoted well through social portals. It’s not that great a song. It may be the herd mentality that it has become such a rage,” feels Danish Gupta, an engineering student from Manawala.

Agrees Sana Verma, a B. Tech student from GND University, “These guys must have made this song for fun and now it has become a huge hit because of the peer group appeal. Its as good as the last hit and it will soon pass.”

Amritsar, December 2
A 508-student delegation from Sri Lanka, Nepal and 27 states of India visited the holy city as part of the week-long National Integration Youth Camp in the state.

Students were thrilled after visiting various sites in Amritsar.

The delegation was led by Dr Gurdev Singh Sidhu, former vice-chairman Punjab State Education Board (PSEB).

The integration camp is being organised by an NGO National Youth Project, New Delhi, founded by Dr SN Subbarao, who was instrumental in the surrender of 653 dacoits from Chambal.

The delegation visited the Golden Temple, Jallianwala Bagh and viewed the Beating the Retreat ceremony at the Attari-Wagah Joint Check Post.

The camp, which started from Jalandhar on November 29, will conclude on December 6. The participants would visit Anandpur Sahib and would see museum of Shahid Bhagat Singh at his native village Khatkar Kalan.

Dr Sidhu said motive of the camp was to instill moral values in youth, mobilise them against racism, casteism, religious fanaticism, parochial identity, language, cultural and other narrow identities.

He said the camp is being funded by the NGO with its resources and a grant from the Central Government.

Amritsar, December 2
Even as many residents have suffered grave injuries after coming in contact with Chinese 'dor' (kite flying thread) in the past few years, the local Kite and Thread Sellers’ Association demands that they should be allowed to sell the thread.

Previously, the district administration had imposed a ban on the sale of the thread in view of the dangers it causes to commuters especially bike riders.

Seeking lifting of ban, traders met various officials today. The association reasoned that sale is not banned in any other city.

A delegation of the association that met Police Commissioner RP Mittal expressed that the ban has jeopardised the livelihood of around 2,500 people associated with the business in the city.

Association president Ravi Babbar said, “The Chinese thread is not banned at other places except Amritsar. Traders in Amritsar should not face discrimination.”

The Chinese thread made of plastic which obliviously is stronger than indigenous kite flying thread is almost a rage among the younger generation of kite lovers.

Babbar said, “School children are the major buyer of kites and thread. And 90 per cent of them are adamant on buying Chinese thread for flying kites.” He said that when the thread is available at other cities, they prefer to buy it from there. The association demanded that either the ban on sale of Chinese thread be extended to the entire state or they too should also be allowed to sell it.

Immunity to frictional cuts --- the reason for which thread is popular among kite lovers --- has proven dangerous for humans and birds flying in sky. There had been incidents in city where people had received cuts because of the Chinese thread.

Hardeep Singh, a resident of Guru Ki Wadalli village who had cut his nose in one such accident, said, “I was going on a bike when I felt a thread around my face. Before I could understand what happened, my nose was cut.” Hardeep Singh had to go through a costly surgery to get his nose redone.

Dr Balbir Singh Dhillon, Senior Medical Officer, Jallianwala Bagh Memorial Civil Hospital, said, “The accident cases where people were injured because of the dor were reported at the hospital last year.” He advised that bike riders must wear a helmet and wrap a cloth around their necks to save them from these mishaps.

Meanwhile the Police Commissioner had assigned the task of finding a solution to the problem to the SP Headquarters. The administration had last year booked various traders for flouting the ban.