Dengue patients prefer pvt hospitals
Amritsar, October 30
Over 70 per cent of the 90 dengue patients reported to the district Health Department so far preferred to get themselves treated at private hospitals despite the fact that government hospitals offer the same at a nominal cost. The reason seems that the public has lost faith in the government health services.

‘Nation needs well-qualified, trained engineers’
Amritsar, October 30
Students of the Khalsa College of Engineering and Technology (KCET) today presented research projects during the tech fest that was inaugurated on its campus here today.

‘Consult hoteliers before forming policy’
Amritsar, October 30
In a meeting of hotel and restaurant owners here today, they demanded that they should be consulted before bringing any policy with regard to regularisation of illegal hotels.

Exhibition showcases ‘eco-friendly’ items
Amritsar, October 30
To enliven the spirit of Diwali, Montessori students under the guidance of their teachers organised an exhibition on the school premises. Diwali greetings, decorated diyas and candles, gift items, and paper lanterns in the exhibition showcased the artistic skills of the students.

Amritsar, October 30
Cracking a whip on house tax defaulters, a team of the Municipal Corporation (MC) today sealed around a dozen properties and realised an amount of Rs 1.5 lakh from them.

The team, led by superintendent Shushant Bhatia, comprised inspectors Kuldeep Bhatia and Ashok Vohra. The targeted areas were properties located on the Amritsar-Jalandhar GT road, Chheharta Road, East Mohan Nagar, Jahajgarh, truck stand areas and Ram Tirath Road.

A transport company and a shop were sealed in East Mohan Nagar, followed by a car bazaar office in the truck stand area. Similarly, four shops and two godowns were sealed on Ram Tirath Road.

Shushant Bhatia said several associations at Jahajgarh and Ram Tirath had volunteered that they should be provided with the list of defaulters in their areas and that they would get the dues cleared. “Yet there is confusion among residents that after the introduction of property tax w.e.f. April 1, the house tax had got abolished and they would not have to pay house tax, which is a totally false assumption. We have been intimating residents about it, but still they argue with us. That’s how the cases go under dispute,” he said.

Amritsar, October 30
Over 70 per cent of the 90 dengue patients reported to the district Health Department so far preferred to get themselves treated at private hospitals despite the fact that government hospitals offer the same at a nominal cost. The reason seems that the public has lost faith in the government health services.

The district health authorities confirmed that over 70 per cent of the dengue cases were reported by private hospitals. A lesser number of patients did visit the government hospitals.

And this is despite the fact that government hospitals - Jallianwala Bagh Martyrs Memorial Civil Hospital and Guru Nanak Dev Hospital - have special isolated wards set up for dengue patients. Even both hospitals have aphersis machines for the treatment of dengue patients.

Even platelet kits are provided to patients at a subsidised rate of Rs 7,700 per kit while private hospitals have reportedly been charging more than double than that.

Daljit Kaur, a patient recovered from dengue at a private hospital, said: “We incurred an expense of Rs 48,000 on the treatment.”

On questioned why she had not preferred to go to a government hospital as the expenditure there is less, Daljit said: “My family was not ready to take any risk as it is a general perception that government hospitals do not provide good services.”

This was a case in which the patient was admitted to a small private hospital. Sources in the Health Department said bigger hospitals were charging even more.

Talking about the patients losing faith in the government hospitals, senior medical officer at Jallianwala Bagh Memorial Civil Hospital Balbir Singh Dhillon said: “The services at government hospitals have improved in the recent years. Several new facilities have been introduced in this civil hospital also.”

Dr Dhillon said: “The OPD at the hospital witnesses around 600 to 700 patients daily, which proves that people have not lost faith in the government health services.

“No private hospital in the city is visited by such a big number of people in a day,” he said, adding that people should avail the facilities at government hospitals that were better than most private hospitals.

Amritsar, October 30
Students of the Khalsa College of Engineering and Technology (KCET) today presented research projects during the tech fest that was inaugurated on its campus here today.

Electronics’ projects, including home security system, anti-theft alarm system, automatic closing of gates at railway crossing, helicopter-fitted surveillance and electronic attendance, were the main attractions.

Gunbir Singh, finance secretary, Khalsa College Governing Council (KCGC), who was the chief guest on the occasion, said the country needs well-qualified and trained engineers.

He added that India was a developing nation and it could not develop without the help of engineers who have to build its infrastructure by undertaking bigger projects of civil, electrical and software engineering.

He recalled top engineers of the world, including the services of Steve Jobs, who changed the world with their innovative inventions.

Dr Amarpal Singh, Principal, KCET, welcomed the guests and said the fest aims to inculcate a spirit of competition among the students and apprise them about the latest technical inventions. Software programmes developed by them were also the main attractions for participants.

Dean (Academics) Sangeeta Mahindra, Dean (Students’ Welfare) Narinder Singh, Khalsa College of Education (Ranjit Avenue) Principal Dr Surinderpal Kaur Dhillon, Khalsa College International Public School Principal DK Sandhu, KCGC Deputy Director (PR) DS Rataul. Prof Harcharan Singh, other faculty members and students were among those present.

Amritsar, October 30
In a meeting of hotel and restaurant owners here today, they demanded that they should be consulted before bringing any policy with regard to regularisation of illegal hotels.

The members of the Hotel Restaurant Welfare Association said they were ready to pay any fees as would be decided by the government for regularisation of hotels and restaurants.

Surinder Singh, president of the association, said: “We demand that representatives of hotels and restaurants should be taken into any committee that is constituted to decide the future of the hoteliers.”

The Hotel Restaurant Welfare Association and the Walled City Hotel Guesthouse Association, led by Satnam Singh Kanda, had decided to work together over the issue, said Surinder.

Amritsar, October 30
To enliven the spirit of Diwali, Montessori students under the guidance of their teachers organised an exhibition on the school premises. Diwali greetings, decorated diyas and candles, gift items, and paper lanterns in the exhibition showcased the artistic skills of the students.

Organic gifts wrapped in handmade recycled papers, jute bags, handmade Diwali greetings, natural decorative items like flowers and leaves and organic incense sticks were the highlights of exhibition that conveyed the message of celebrating a green and 'eco-friendly Diwali'. All these items were displayed in a beautiful and attractive manner. Principal Rajni Kalra told the students about various ways to celebrate an 'eco-friendly Diwali'.

Amritsar, October 30
The Medical Students’ Union of Government Medical College here initiated a tree plantation for beautification of the campus under the aegis of the college authorities.

Renowned environmental PS Bhatti and Principal of the college Karnail Singh encouraged students for the noble cause on the occasion.

Navpreet Aulakh, president of the union, said around 500 saplings would be planted in the first phase. Clean and green environment could be made possible only by growing more trees. Bhatti congratulated the students for taking up the cause and said better human health could not be ensured before creating a better living space.

Dr Karnail Singh also lauded the role of students and assured them help in the initiative.

Dr Ram Saroop Sharma, head, department of physiology; Dr Sarabjit Singh, Dr Jagdev Kullar and Karanjit Singh were among those others present.

Amritsar, October 30
A four-day inter-zonal youth festival (final) of Guru Nanak Dev University was inaugurated here in the Dashmesh Auditorium of the university. The festival began with the presentation of a folk dance item. Over 1,000 student-artistes from university affiliated colleges are participating in the event.

Manjit Singh Narang, IPS, who was the chief guest on the occasion, inaugurated the festival. Dr Inderjit Singh, Registrar, presided over the function. Dr Jagjit Kaur, Director, Youth Welfare, welcomed the chief guest and other guests.

Narang said students play an important role in reviving the rich Punjabi cultural heritage. He exhorted all students to participate in such cultural events along with their formal studies to excel in their lives. Later, Dr Inderjit and Dr Jagjit honoured the chief guest with a memento and shawl on behalf of the university.

In folk dance performances, Haryanvi, Punjabi 'sammi' and Rajasthani were the main attractions. Folk dance performances were followed by group shabad/bhajan, group song Indian, classical instrumental (percussion), classical instrumental (non-percussion) and classical vocal competitions.

On the second day on Thursday, competitions of folk orchestra, classical dance, mime, mimicry, one-act play, folk song, elocution, poetical symposium, debate, fine arts and geet/ghazal will be organised at various venues, as per the schedule.

On Friday, skit, bhangra, group song western, vaar, kavishri and western vocal, quiz preliminary, rangoli and phulkari competitions will be held. Similarly, on the final day, November 2, a gidda competition will be organised.

Parminder Singh Dhindsa, Finance Minister, Punjab, will be the chief guest at the valedictory function on November 2 and Prof Ajaib Singh Brar, Vice-Chancellor, would preside over the programme.

Amritsar, October 30
Touts and agents operating from outside the Civil Surgeon's office continue to fleece the general public. These touts have set up their shops outside the office on the pretext of helping people to fill various forms.

However, it has been seen that they also lure people with the promise of getting their works done faster for a certain sum of money. "In fact getting a work done, especially with regard to birth and death registration, is impossible without the involvement of these agents, as certain employees only do it 
if the person has already met someone outside," said an insider.

More than a dozen such agents can been seen sitting on chairs placed on the roadside on Tailor Road here.

Even a huge rush of people can be seen pleading with these agents to get their works done.

The applicants said the rate for getting the birth or death certificate depends on the urgency shown by the applicants. "Certainly the rate would go higher if the agents come to know that you need it at a short notice," said an applicant, who did not want his name to be published for fear of being identified by the employees.

The visitors' demand that the department should engage someone officially to help them in the filling of forms so that influence of these touts and agents could be reduced. The Regional Passport Office had earlier engaged a person to tackle the problem faced by illiterate people in filling the forms.

An office insider said, "The department seems to have turned a blind eye to corruption at the office. It would be better if the officials take notice of the problem and order the removal of these touts."

Civil Surgeon Dr Yash Mitra said the general public should not fall prey to these touts.

He said people should file a complaint against any employee who seeks bribe for getting their works done. 

Amritsar, October 30
A jail inmate, who had come to his home on parole, allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself at his native place at Gali Masit Wali in the Islamabad area here today.

The incident came to light this morning when he did not respond to repeated knocks at the door of his room.

Kuldeep Sharma, a resident of Masit Wali Gali, Islamabad Area, was arrested by the police in 2005 in connection with a murder case, following which the court had sentenced him to a 10-year rigourous imprisonment, besides imposing Rs 2.50 lakh as fine. He had come on a week’s parole and today he was to return to the jail.

Rama Rani, mother of the deceased, said his son was apparently under severe mental pressure as his imprisonment had increased due to failure in depositing the fine of Rs 2.50 lakh. She said her son used to claim that he had been falsely implicated in the case, while certain people in his friend circle were behind the crime and had named him as an accused.

She said they belonged to an economically weaker section of society and, therefore, could not deposit the fine. His younger brother Romy Sharma used to work as a rickshaw-puller.

Gurpreet Singh, SHO, Islamabad police station, said they were yet to ascertain the reason behind the incident. He said his term would have ended next year. Action under the Criminal Procedure Code had been initiated in this connection, he added.

Amritsar, October 30
A head constable deputed with a PCR team came under attack when the team raided a dairy following a tip-off that that two couples had entered the dairy under mysterious circumstances.

The police have charged four persons, including two women, with attempt to murder and all of them have been arrested.

Sandeep Singh, head constable, stated that he was on duty at Fateh Singh Colony when he received a call from the PCR that two couples had entered a dairy under mysterious circumstances. He said he, along with another cop, raided the spot and arrested them. Those arrested were identified as Nishan Singh of Gurbax Nagar and Harpal Singh of Attari who is now residing at Naraingarh area, besides two women.

He said when he was questioning them, they attacked the police party with a sharp-edged weapon. In the scuffle, Nishan Singh also sustained injuries.

The police has registered a case under Section 307 (attempt to murder), 353 (obstructing government servant from discharging his duty), 186, 34 IPC in this regard at the Gate Hakima police station.

Amritsar, October 30
The city police today seized a huge quantity of liquor and arrested two persons in this connection. Their third accomplice managed to escape from the spot.

Those arrested were identified as Sahib Singh of Himmatpura village, Ajnala and Davinder Singh, alias Mintu, of Nive Tung, Batala road, here. Mandeep Singh, driver of the vehicle and their third accomplice, managed to dodge the police party.

The police recovered 50 boxes containing 450 litres of liquor from them. It also impounded their vehicle HR-38-N-7000. The police got a tip-off that the accused were involved in the smuggling of liquor in the city areas where it was costlier than rural areas. Following this, a naka was laid on the 88-feet road, Majitha road and the vehicle was intercepted. A case has been registered. — TNS

Amritsar, October 30
In a shocking incident, a young married girl was set on fire by her husband under the influence of liquor. The latter was arrested by the police following the victim's statement.

Poonam, a resident of Gali Number 3, Sunder Nagar, Batala Road, was rushed to a private hospital, where her condition was stated to be critical. Police officials, quoting doctors, said her chances of survival were bleak.

The police, which recorded her statement in the presence of Judicial Magistrate Sushma Devi, today arrested her husband, Subash, in this connection.

Poonam was married to the accused about a year ago. Subash used to work in a blanket manufacturing unit located in the Mustafabad area situated on the Batala road. She stated to the police that the accused never gave her any expenditure for domestic works and instead used to harass her to bring money from her parents to run the house. She alleged that later he even left his job.

She said on October 28 evening he came to house heavily drunk and immediately started beating her.

“The accused then sprinkled kerosene in the whole house and on me. Before I could understand, he threw a burning matchstick on me and fire engulfed my body,” she stated.

When she raised an alarm, neighbours immediately rushed to their house and threw water on her to douse the flames. To give it the shape of an accident, Subash broke the kerosene stove and tried to pressurise her to state that she accidentally caught fire.

Her neighbours informed her brother-in-law, who arrived at the spot and took her to a private hospital. Meanwhile, Subash fled from the scene.

The police said following her statement, the police had registered an attempt to murder case against Subash who was arrested by the police today. 

Amritsar, October 30
The immigration authorities at Guru Ram Dass International Airport here have arrested two persons in two separate instances for allegedly having fake passports and visas.

They have been handed over to the police for further investigations, while a case of fraud had been registered against them.

Mohan Singh, SHO, Airport police station, said Baljinder Singh, a resident of Ibrahim Wal, Kapurthala, was held after his passport and visa were found to be tampered. He had come from Italy from Uzbekistan flight.

“The immigration authorities got suspicious of him after seeing his passport. According to them his passport contained a fake visa and departure stamp of Italy,” said Mohan Singh. He said a case under Section 420 of the IPC and 12 Passport Act had been registered against him while further investigations were on to find how he managed to go to Italy.

Meanwhile, the immigration authorities arrested Parminderjit Singh of Kotla village (Hoshiarpur) with a fake passport and visa. During investigations, he could not give satisfactory answer to the immigration officer’s queries. They later handed him over to the police, where a case under Section 420 of the IPC had been registered against him.

Amritsar, October 30
Following a probe conducted by the Deputy Commissioner, the Sadar police has booked Kulwant Singh and his sister, Rajwant Kaur, for getting government jobs on compassionate grounds.

Kulwant is a resident of Cheema Bath, Baba Bakala, and Rajwant Kaur is staying at Ajit Avenue, Ganda Singh Wala road, here. The case was registered on a complaint submitted by Deputy Commissioner who stated that Kulwant produced fake affidavits in order to get the job around 11 years ago while his sister had already got the government job under the quota.

As per details, both accused belong to a family affected by terrorism as their father was shot dead by armed militants around 23 years ago when terrorism was at its peak.

“At that time Rajwant was provide with a government job as a clerk in the Punjab State Electricity Board (now, Punjab State Power Corporation Limited) on compassionate grounds,” said Vavinder Mahajan, SHO, Sadar police station, where a case under Section 420, IPC, has been registered in this regard.

As per the government policy, the job on compassionate grounds could be given only to a single member of the family, and in this case Rajwant got the job while the remaining family members had given affidavits stating no objection then.

“Around a decade ago her brother Kulwant again applied for the job on compassionate grounds and submitted fake affidavits declaring no objection without the knowledge of the family. He got a job of clerk in ITI College in Rayya,” said Mahajan.

The fraud came to light when Principal of the college reported the matter to the Deputy Commissioner. After procuring the documents, he marked a probe which found the accused guilty.

“We are waiting for the probe report for further investigation,” said the SHO, adding that a case under Section 420, IPC, had been registered in this regard and no arrest had been made so far.