Chandigarh, May 25
With students fainting in morning assemblies and the overall attendance dropping, schools in the city, particularly the government ones, are in no mood to advance the summer vacations. The students of government schools in the city are the worst affected as they are made to sit in their classrooms till 2 pm in sweltering conditions.

While most of the private schools have declared summer vacations, the government schools will remain open till May 31. The weatherman has expected the temperature to touch 45 degrees in the coming days. The temperature has already crossed the 46 degree Celsius mark at the airport observatory.

A government school principal said the situation is worrisome as everyday students are complaining of stomach pain and other health issue due to the heat wave. “We stopped holding morning assemblies after our six students fainted on Wednesday,” he said.

Morning assemblies are off in private schools too. Aarti Malhotra of Saupin’s School, Sector 32, said that the school did not hold morning assembly and advanced the timings by one hour till the summer vacations. Vacations have already been declared for the pre-primary section, she said.

Chandigarh, May 25
The green cover in the city shields residents from the heat, for there is a variation of 1 to 2 degrees in the temperature recorded in the city and at the airport.

Met department reports reveal that the maximum temperature recorded in the city today was 42.5 degree Celsius, while the temperature recorded at the airport was 43.3 degree Celsius. Met department director Surinder Pal said the variation in the temperature was due to exposure, location, distance, topography and vegetation in the surrounding areas. “There are concrete structures at the airport, whereas the city has more green cover,” he said. The department considers the temperature recorded by the instruments installed in the city and at the airport valid, he said. The maximum temperature in the city is likely to be 42 degree Celsius, the Met department said. Experts believe that as around 54 square km area of the city has green cover, there is a difference in the minimum and maximum temperatures in the city and the airport.

Chandigarh, May 25
Democracy is a great leveller, but not when it comes to power supply. When parts of the city are reeling under unscheduled power cuts in sweltering conditions, the areas inhabited by VIPs are insulated to outages. And that too when the electricity department is short of power.

sandeep joshi

Sources in the electricity department reveal that to avoid inconvenience to those residing in the VIP sectors, the department is enforcing power cuts on showrooms located in the area. In the past one week, power cuts were imposed in the markets of Sectors 7, 8, 9, 16, 23, 24 and 39. However, residential areas remained immune to power outages.

Sources also reveal that barring the lanes where the VIPs reside, power cuts are being imposed in other areas in the same sector.

In Sectors 14, 15, 17, 19, 20, 22, 30, 32, 35, 37, 40 and 44, unscheduled power cuts are being imposed to avoid overloading.

Requesting anonymity, an official admitted that verbal orders had been issued to the department not to impose power cuts on areas inhabited by the VIPs.

Sources say the department is preparing a list of scheduled cuts to be imposed so as to meet the demand which has increased manifold in past one week.

Neelam Sharma, a resident of Sector 19, said: “I wish we get an opportunity to reside in a VIP sector so we can make full use of the amenities provided by the Administration.”

The demand of power has shot up to 300 MW in the city against the availability of 250 MW. To bridge the demand-supply gap, the department is forced to impose unscheduled power cuts in various sectors of the city.

Chandigarh, May 25
A day after ruckus in the House meeting of the Municipal Corporation, political parties have started using pressure tactics to convince the complainants to withdraw their complaints lodged with the police.

The councillors of Congress, BJP and BSP, yesterday submitted complaints of manhandling, abusing and hitting with bottles against fellow councillors and leaders sitting in the visitors’ gallery of the MC house.

As complaints have been lodged against former Congress Mayor Ravinder Singh Pali, former Congress Deputy Mayor HS Lucky, present Mayor Subhash Chawla’s son Honey, BSP councillor and Lok Sabha candidate Jannat Jahan Ul Haq and BJP’s leader of opposition Arun Sood among others, parties are now trying to clear the names of their leaders.

Although the UT police is yet to register an FIR against any of the leaders, complainants are not ready to take back their complaints.

Jannat Jahan Ul Haq, who had accused Pali and Lucky of hitting her with a water bottle from the visitors’ gallery, said the Congress leaders were pressuring her and the police.

She said before the House proceedings too, when she was about to enter the MC House, the Congress leaders accompanying Pali and Lucky passed comments at her. “This shows the respect the Congress leaders have towards women,” she said.

Denying all the allegations, former Mayor Ravinder Singh Pali said as Congress councillor Poonam Sharma had lodged a complaint against Jannat and other BJP leaders; in a face-saving exercise, Jannat leveled such false allegations against the Congress leaders.

HS Lucky, meanwhile, said he had heard of false allegations being made at the level of university politics, but for the first time had witnessed such false allegations being made in the MC. People present at the meeting witnessed no one throwing a bottle at Jannat. The video recording of the MC House meeting, too, contained no such incident, he said.

Congress councillor Poonam Sharma, who had submitted a police complaint against BJP and BSP councillors, said that opposition councillors, especially Arun Sood and Hira Negi, created nuisance in the House, which resulted in the ruckus. Talking about Jannat’s allegations, she said a woman should not level false allegations to gain political mileage.

BJP councillor Heera Negi said the Congress leaders after entering the MC House directly from the Mayor’s room hit the BJP and BSP councillors with bottles.

Panchkula, May 25
Ward 9 comprises the most elite area, including Sector 1, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 18. This ward has over 11,000 voters and as many as four candidates to contest the Municipal Corporation elections.

Despite being VVIP sectors, these sectors are ailing with every problem which one can expect, be it non-operational streetlights or potholed roads. This ward includes Sector 7 market, the biggest shopping centre of Panchkula which is ailed by the pathetic parking problem.

Contesting elections for the first time, Ranjeeta is sure of her win. She said that the people in her ward knew how much work had been done in the past. “This ward has always suffered on the count of development works. And I have already thought of what I would do for my people,” said Mehta.

She has decided to launch a toll free number and a complaint box in all the markets of the sectors to render problems of people. “Connectivity between a councilor and people is very important,” added Mehta. Apart from this Mehta said she made sure that a meeting time between her and people would be fixed in the morning and evening everyday.

Panchkula, May 25
The Panchkula Deputy Commissioner, Ashima Brar, reviewed the arrangements of the Municipal Corporation elections with the Returning Officer, Assistant Returning Officers , Supervisory officials and Duty Magistrates.

She asked the officers to put their utmost sincere efforts to conduct the elections in a free, fair and transparent manner. She directed the RO to ensure the adequate arrangements at all the 231 polling booths for the smooth process of elections.

The Returning Officer, Assistant Returning Officers and Supervisory Officers, appointed for the Municipal Corporation elections, Panchkula, were directed to ensure that the model code of conduct and the provisions of Haryana Prevention of Defacement of Property Act were not violated in any manner by the contesting candidates.

Executive officer of the Panchkula Municipal Corporation was directed to ensure that in case of any violation of the Haryana Prevention of Defacement of Property Act, the same was removed and action was taken as per rules. The officials were directed to ensure that the hoardings and posters were affixed on the stipulated places by the contesting candidates.

Mohali, May 25
The construction work of Purab Apartments, a major housing project of Greater Mohali Area Development Authority in Sector 88, will commence after the issuing of letters of intent (LoIs) to the farmers whose land had been acquired for the project.

The decision was taken by the GMADA authorities in a recent meeting with the affected farmers.

The farmers are yet to receive the LoIs from GMADA under the land-pooling scheme. As per the scheme, GMADA has allotted a residential plot of 1,000 sqm and a commercial plot of 121 sqm to farmers in lieu of one-acre land.

The farmers had also raised an objection when the construction work of the 15-storeyed skyscraper project was started recently.

Talking on the issue, AK Sinha, Chief Administrator of GMADA, said the farmers’ demand was a genuine one.

Sinha said: “There was a delay in the issuing of LOIs to the farmers. Now I have directed my staff to complete the job within 15 days. We will start the construction work only after the farmers get the LoIs,” said Sinha.

A Delhi-based company will be constructing 4,500 flats under the housing project. GMADA aims to complete the project by mid-2014.

Chandigarh, May 25
The Chandigarh Police today recovered a mobile phone from the room of the University Institute of Engineering and Technology (UIET) student in Boys’ Hostel No. 2 at Panjab University, where he had died under mysterious circumstances on May 23.

The charred body of Amandeep Singh, a final-year student, was found in his hostel room. His mobile phone was missing since the day of the incident. The missing mobile phone had raised many questions and also pointed towards the possibility of foul play.

A police team today visited the hostel to conduct a search in the room, which was sealed after the incident. Sources said the mobile phone was found lying in a cupboard of the room. “The phone was safely kept in a corner of the cupboard, which saved it from getting burnt when fire broke out in the room,” sources said.

The police is scrutinising the messages and content of the mobile phone. Police officials said the recovery of the mobile phone would help in the investigations. Sources said the deceased’s diaries and notes, which were also lying in the cupboard, were recovered by the police. “The diaries may give some clues to establish the claims that the student was upset for the past few days,” sources said.

The hostel authorities also accompanied the police during the search of the room, which lasted for over an hour. “The room was thoroughly checked, so that the police could get more clues, which would help in cracking the case,” said a PU official.

Chandigarh, May 25
Boys’ Hostel No. 2 of Panjab University that has witnessed three deaths in less than a year has decided to hold a ‘shanti paath’.

In the past one year, two students and a canteen employee of the hostel have had tragic deaths, which made the hostel authorities think of holding a peace prayer.

The tragic death of Amandeep Singh, a student of the University Institute of Engineering and Technology, who died in his hostel room under mysterious circumstances on May 23, has left the authorities shocked, following which they are now planning to hold a 'paath'.

On January 30, Beiba Chhatha, a student of BA-MA integrated course at the Economics Department, was hit by a recklessly driven motorcycle outside the PGI. The student, a resident of Boys' Hostel No. 2, succumbed to his injuries the next day at the PGI.

In another incident, a 20-year-old youth working at the hostel canteen committed suicide by hanging himself from the ceiling fan in room number 19, Block 5, of the same hostel in September last year. A suicide note was also found from the spot.

Official sources said presently it had not been decided as to when the ‘shanti paath’ would be organised.

Chandigarh, May 25
Members of the Student Federation of India (SFI) today submitted a memorandum to the Panjab University authorities, demanding that fire-safety equipment should be installed on the campus at the earliest.

SFI leader Prabhpreet Singh said: “Students from far-off places come to study here and reside in the hostels of the university. It is the duty of the PU Administration to ensure that the students don’t fall victims to any kind of mishaps”.

“The Fire Department has served various notices on the university asking it to equip the buildings with fire-fighting equipment. However, the university in the past few years has been ignorant of the issue,” Singh said.

Singh said the recent fire incident in the hostel was not the first case on the university campus.

The SFI members said the university campus should be equipped with fire extinguishers, automatic detection and alarm system, manually operated electric fire alarm system, illuminated-type exit signboards, etc.

The students said they would launch an agitation if the university failed to act within 15 days.

Chandigarh, May 25
In compliance with the observations of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the UT Education Department approved the revised limits of the neighbourhood policy for filling 25 per cent seats in private unaided schools by students belonging to the economically weaker section and disadvantaged group, as referred in the clause (c) of Sub-Section (1) of Section 12 of the RTE Act, 2009. The notification in the UT's extraordinary gazette is expected soon.

As per information, earlier the UT neighbourhood policy was silent about giving admission to students residing beyond 3 km from the specific schools. According to the revised policy (up to class V), now the admission will first be offered to eligible students belonging to the EWS and disadvantaged group residing within a distance of 1 km from the specific private school.

In case vacancies remain unfilled, students residing within 3 km from the school would be considered for admission. If after this too some seats remain vacant, then students residing beyond 3 km will be eligible for admission.

For class VI to class VIII, admission will first be offered to eligible students residing within 3 km from the specific schools. In case vacancies remain unfilled, students residing beyond 3 km will be considered for admission.

Officials said there was no distance limit beyond 3 km. Private schools would have to admit students in case they fail to fill their seats from students falling within a radius of 3 km.

This decision, it is believed, would further force private schools to implement the RTE Act and fill their 25 per went seats under the Act.

This year, several private schools refused to entertain students living beyond a distance of 1 km from the schools citing lack of clarity on the neighbourhood criteria. With the fresh notification on the policy, there would be no confusion as far as the distance criteria for the admission to students belonging to the EWS and disadvantaged group is concerned.

Participants during a dance workshop at Strawberry Fields World School, Sector 26, Chandigarh. A Tribune photograph

No clarity over vacant RTE seats

Even as the Education Department asked private schools not to convert their remaining RTE seats to the general category, there is no clarity over whether these seats are still available. There is so far no confirmation about nearly 400 seats out of the total of 772 seats under the RTE Act at the entry-level classes of private schools.

Chandigarh, May 25
Post-Graduate Government College (PGGC), Sector 11, and the Alumni Association of the college are going to celebrate the founder’s day of the college on Sunday evening.

Sufi Balbir, an internationally renowned singer, will be performing during the function at 5 pm on the college premises. — TNS